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Chapter 21: The Last Stop
The train roared forward, its wheels screeching against the rusted tracks. Wallace gripped the controls, his knuckles white. The blackened landscape of Palatka blurred behind them, fire and smoke swallowing the town whole.
Mercer—or what was left of her—clung to the side of the train, her elongated fingers scraping against the metal as she pulled herself up. Her hollow black eyes locked onto Wallace and Vanessa through the cabin’s shattered window.
“You can’t escape,” she whispered, her voice carrying through the wind like a death rattle. “It’s in you. It’s in everything.”
Vanessa didn’t hesitate. She grabbed the emergency fire axe from the wall and swung. The blade buried itself into Mercer’s shoulder, but she barely reacted. Instead, she grinned—a grotesque, twitching smile—as her fingers wrapped around the edge of the window frame.
Wallace yanked the train’s emergency brake. The locomotive jerked violently, sending Mercer flying backward. She slammed against the roof of the next car, her body contorting unnaturally. But she wasn’t dead.
Vanessa swore under her breath. “She’s not letting go.”
Wallace pulled out his last flare and lit it. “Then we burn her off.”
With a deep breath, he threw it at Mercer.
The flare struck her chest, and in an instant, she was engulfed in flames. Her shriek split the air, an inhuman sound that made Wallace’s skin crawl. She flailed, trying to smother the fire, but the wind only fed the flames. Within seconds, she lost her grip and tumbled off the train, disappearing into the darkness.
Vanessa exhaled, her hands shaking. “Jesus.”
Wallace watched as the fire receded into the distance. “She’s gone.”
But deep down, he wasn’t sure if that was true.
Chapter 22: The Tunnel
The train barreled forward, but Wallace knew they couldn’t ride forever. Up ahead, an old train tunnel loomed—one of the last remnants of a forgotten railway system.
“We slow down and go in on foot,” Wallace said. “If we stop too soon, those soldiers will be on us. If we go too far, we’re trapped inside.”
Vanessa nodded. “Half speed. Get us close, and we jump.”
Wallace adjusted the throttle, easing the train into a slow roll as they neared the entrance. The tunnel swallowed them in darkness, the fire-lit sky vanishing behind them. The sound of the wheels echoed, amplifying the oppressive silence.
As soon as they reached the halfway point, Wallace and Vanessa leapt from the train, landing hard against the gravel. They rolled to a stop, coughing from the dust.
The train continued forward, disappearing into the void.
Then, silence.
Vanessa sat up, catching her breath. “Now what?”
Wallace turned toward the far end of the tunnel. “We find out where this leads.”
But before they could take another step, something moved in the shadows.
Not behind them.
Ahead.
Chapter 23: The Forgotten Ones
The air inside the tunnel was thick, damp, carrying the scent of decay. Wallace and Vanessa moved cautiously, their footsteps echoing.
Then, a voice.
“You shouldn’t have come here.”
A lantern flickered in the distance, illuminating a figure—a man, gaunt and hollow-eyed, standing just beyond the tracks. Behind him, more figures emerged from the darkness. Dozens of them, their faces marked with exhaustion, fear… and something else.
Survivors.
Wallace exhaled in disbelief. “You’re… you’re alive?”
The man stepped forward, revealing a makeshift rifle slung across his back. “For now.” He studied them for a long moment. “How much do you know?”
Vanessa exchanged a look with Wallace. “Enough to know this thing—whatever it is—wasn’t an accident.”
The man’s expression hardened. “Then you know we can’t let it leave Palatka.”
Wallace’s gut twisted. “The soldiers are already trying to wipe everything out.”
The man’s eyes darkened. “Not trying. Doing.”
He turned, gesturing for them to follow. “Come with me. There’s something you need to see.”
Chapter 24: The Truth in the Dark
The survivors led Wallace and Vanessa deeper into the tunnel, where old maintenance rooms had been converted into makeshift shelters. Crates of supplies, weapons, and medical kits were stacked along the walls.
“We’ve been here since it started,” the man said. “Name’s Rhodes. Former National Guard. We got cut off when the military sealed the town.”
Vanessa frowned. “Sealed it?”
Rhodes nodded. “The government knew about this before the first case was reported. This wasn’t a quarantine. It was containment.”
Wallace’s stomach sank. “They were never going to let anyone out.”
Rhodes shook his head. “They let you out.”
Silence.
Then, Vanessa whispered. “Oh my God.”
Wallace’s throat tightened. “They let us out because they knew… it was already too late.”
Chapter 25: The Final Hours
Rhodes led them to an old control room, where a rusted radio transmitter hummed faintly.
“We’ve been listening in,” Rhodes said, adjusting the dials. Static crackled before a voice came through.
“…operation in final stages. No civilian rescue. All remaining assets to be neutralized. Full protocol execution in 0600 hours.”
Vanessa’s breath hitched. “They’re going to bomb the entire town.”
Rhodes nodded. “And everyone still inside it.”
Wallace clenched his fists. “We have to stop them.”
Rhodes met his gaze. “We don’t stop them.”
Wallace’s eyes narrowed. “Then what do we do?”
Rhodes exhaled, his voice grim. “We make sure that when they burn this place to the ground… we take the infection with it.”
A long silence hung in the air.
Then Wallace nodded.
“Then let’s end this.”