The Light Side of Death

'Through here.' I said taking a sharp left into an alley.

I stopped and looked up then without using my hands i jumped up against one wall using it as leverage to kick myself up against the other wall and did the same. Angela and Sarah watched me for a few seconds and did the same as i was doing. I landed on the roof to my right and waited for Angela and Sarah to join me. I looked down and saw Sarah sliding down while Angela grabbed the ledge of the roof and pulled herself up to safety. Angela looked down at Sarah.

'Wait here and keep watch. I will get her.' I said jumping two stories down landing on my feet.

I looked up and raised my arms catching Sarah.

'You okay kiddo?' I asked her.

'Yes, I'm okay Charlie. My foot slipped.' She answered while i set her down.

The zombies were entering the alley to many at a time making them fall over each other.

'Get on my back and hold on sweetie.' I said bending down a little while watching the zombies ahead of me.

Sarah got onto my back locking her arms around my neck and her legs around my waist.

Chapter six

I stood up straight and measured our wait together by bending my knees a few times.

'Here we go. Hold on tight.' I said kicking myself upward from wall to wall with shorter steps for more momentum.

I could feel fingernails just grazing my ankle as i leaped for the other wall. Angela was watching with her pistols in her hands shooting at zombies that seemed to get to close to grabbing at my legs or feet. I grabbed the ledge of the roof to let Sarah climb up over me.

'Climb up over me Sarah.' I said as Angela leaned down to grab Sarah's hands.

Angela helped Sarah up then grabbed my one hand as i slipped. I hung there for a few seconds noticing that my hand was slipping out of her hand.

Angela was lying on her stomach trying to hold on to Charlie. She wasn't going to lose the woman she loved, not now, not ever. Sarah stood nearby still shocked from her fall.

'Sarah? Dig in the back pack for a grenade.' I shouted trying to grab on the ledge with my other hand.

'Okay, hold on.' Sarah said while opening the backpack on her mother's back and grabbing a grenade.

'I got it.' She answered.

'Okay now pull the pin and throw it down to the zombies.' I said looking up at Angela.

At that moment Angela knew exactly what i was thinking of doing. The grenade fell to the ground and exploded creating a blast traveling through the whole narrow alley. The zombies blew all over the place in pieces.

'No Charlie, i am not letting you go.' Angela said trying to adjust her grip on my hand.

'Angela, listen to me. Follow the rooftops until you get to the wall i will be following on the ground. I will be fine. You and Sarah will be safe on the rooftops. I will meet you at the tunnel. I promise. As soon as i land on the ground throw down a few ammunition cartridges.' I said.

Angela and i looked into each other's eyes. We knew that we will see each other again. She knew that i always kept my promises. Sarah dug around in the backpack again for cartridges then closed the backpack. Angela opened her hand releasing me. I landed on my feet looking at more zombies coming into the alley. I looked up at Angela and Sarah then Sarah dropped down two cartridges.

I caught each one in a hand and stuck them in my belt then grabbed my machine pistols from my belt. As i started shooting i was walking backward into a gate at the other end of the alley.

Angela and Sarah started firing down from the roof to give me time to get over the gate. I clambered over the gate then checked both sides of this street for zombies. The zombies behind me were trapped behind the gate but not for long. The hinges were rusted and rotting with age.

Angela and Sarah walked along the roof watching me. I started running toward the beach. I looked up at the roves on my right seeing that my girls were following my lead while leaping over alleys in between the buildings. We started running faster and faster. I shot at zombies popping out here and there in front of me to clear my path. The buildings were passing us barely noticeable. They were just blurry structures in the corners of my eyes.

Twenty industrial squares with five or six buildings on it passed us in ten minutes. I came to a screeching Holt at the wall separating us from freedom. Angela and Sarah stood on the corner of the last building's roof then jumped off landing on their feet. Walking over to me they looked in the direction we came from. The zombies were about ten blocks away from us and closing in fast. Looking at me again Angela walked into my arms throwing her arms around my neck.

'Don't you ever do that to me again? Next time i will personally kick your ass.' Angela said as she smacked me on my chest.

'Oh trust me babe. I will never do that again.' I said kissing her on the lips while rubbing my chest.

In front of us was a huge flood gate covering the entrance of the tunnel in the ground. Next to the gate was a small building where i guessed the controls to open the gate were.

'I will open the gate while you two go through and wait for me. I need to do something to lock the gate behind us. I am not going to let these zombies follow us outside.' I said looking at the zombies closing in on us.

'Oh no, i am not leaving you behind. We are coming with you.' Angela said grabbing Sarah's and my hands in hers.

We walked into the small building and checked out the controls. There were switches, nobs and levers everywhere. I noticed a lever with the words open written onto of it and close written below it.

'Right, this should be the gate switch.' I said pushing on the lever to test it.

The gate opened then i got an idea. I walked up behind Angela then dug in the backpack for another grenade. I pluck Sarah's belt from her waist then strapped the grenade to the top of lever. I looked around then noticed a roll of wire on a table in a corner. I picked it up and handed it to Angela then took the tip of the wire in my fingertips.

'Okay, you two walk to the gate and unroll the wire on the way. Once you are at the gate i will tie this end to the pin of the grenade then meet you at the gate and pull the pin. The blast of the grenade should push the lever back to the closed position.' I explained my idea.

Angela and Sarah left for the gate leaving me alone with my thoughts. Angela and Sarah were watching the zombies edging closer. They were one block away from us. Seeing that my girls were safely at the gate i tied the end of the wire to the pin then ran for the gate. As i reached the gate Angela pulled on the wire to remove the pin from the grenade.

We turned around and ran for the beach through the tunnel. We heard the blast then a few seconds later the gate close behind us. It worked, the gate was closed. The zombies were trapped in the city. A few feet ahead of us i could see the beach and i could hear the waves crashing onto the beach. We walked into the night sky. It was fool moon. The tide was coming in making the waves seem alive as it edged closer and closer to the city with each wave.

Angela, Sarah and i ran to a safe distance on the beach; about ten miles away. I dug in my pants pocket for the detonator.

'Well then, here goes nothing.' I said pressing the button to set off the explosives.

We sat down on the beach watching as the city blew up. Each charge we set blew in sequence. It looked almost like fireworks. A huge mushroom cloud formed high in the sky then sent a wave of dust outward followed by a shock wave. Angela and Sarah dove to the ground hiding their faces while i covered them with my body.

A gust of wind travelled over our bodies almost lifting us off the ground into different directions from each other. The blast dissipated then we lifted our heads to look at the damage done. The city fell to the ground crumbling into flames as if hell was swallowing it. The walls kept most of the blast contained within the perimeter of the city walls. It probably saved us from a much bigger blast.

We got to our feet and walked to the hummer hand in hand. We felt free. Is this what freedom feels like? Is this what peace feels like? I just wish this feeling could last forever. There will be more zombies; unless i can come up with a way to improve my anti-virus and administer it to the whole world's survivors at once. Luckily Sarah thought of grabbing my laptop. All my research is on it and it would help a lot.

We took our sweet time to get back to Ravens Rest. We just decided to enjoy the scenery while we travelled. We camped along the road every night enjoying the bright shining stars in the clear sky. We arrived home a week and three days after our mission. Everyone welcomed us back with open arms and smiles of happiness. We mourned the few that were lost then started rebuilding the hospital using its rubble. The first ever recycled hospital.

One year later

I took up an office and lab in the hospital where i could do my work. I used to be a medical practitioner and surgeon before i started working on medicines. I used my abilities to find out exactly what was wrong with my patients. I didn't lose even one of them. I trained more people to be doctors so i would be able to spend more time during the day on the anti-virus and nights at home with my family.

I was busy standing in my lab looking through the lenses of my microscope when Angela and Sarah walked in.

'Hi baby. What are you doing?' Angela asked me standing still behind me while wrapping her arms around my waist.

'Oh, i can't seem to get the anti-virus right. It still keeps changing the other blood samples into superhuman. I used your blood, Sarah's blood and my blood as a basis.' I said frustrated.

'Well, have you only been using the white blood cells or the other cells as well?' Sarah asked me.

Sarah has been spending a lot of time nosing through medical books she found hidden in a dark and musty corner of the library. She knew just about everything there is to know about the human body and medicines just as i knew.

I took a deep breath and thought about it for a few seconds rubbing my temples. Then it hit me. I was only using white blood cells i should try using red blood cells as well. I looked up at Sarah in surprise and held my arm out to her. She walked into my arms.

'Sarah you are a genius. White blood cells are like an army; they always fight. Red blood cells are the peace keepers, the civilians. It could work.' I said hugging her tightly.

Angela wrapped us both in her arms.

'I'm proud of both of you. You know that but before you continue with your mission, why don't we go have lunch at the pub?' Angela said kissing us both on the forehead.

'Good idea. I can't work on an empty stomach. Maybe Sarah can help me finish this when we're done eating?' I said looking down at her.

'Oh, i will be happy to help you.' Sarah said releasing me then literally jumping for joy.

'Let's go before i eat my equipment.' I said smiling.

We walked over to the pub talking about anything we could think of. Mike greeted us with a smile and a wave as soon as we entered the door. We took our seats at a table in the corner. Mike walked over to us and took our orders.

'Hi ladies. How's the research going?' He asked looking at me.

'It's going good mike. My girls just dragged me away for a brake.' I said smiling.

'Hey, you have been working very hard on that research for six months, you need a break.' Angela said slapping me on the arm.

'Ouch!' I exclaimed laughing.

'That is so true Angela. What can i get you ladies?' He asked laughing.

'The usual for me mike, a beer and a toasties sandwich.' I answered.

Angela and Sarah ordered cola and toasted sandwiches.

'Coming right up.' Mike said turning around.

We had our lunch then walked back to the hospital to finish. I couldn't wait to see if Sarah's idea would work. On arrival i handed Sarah a white lab coat on put my own one on. Angela sat in the corner reading a book while Sarah and i went to work.

Sarah drew a little of her blood and set it aside on a peitry dish. I went to the fridge and sample of normal blood out with a sample of infected blood and put it on the table. Sarah took a little bit of those samples and placed each sample on a separate peitry dish. I took her blood sample and separated the white blood cells from the red blood cells with a special machine.

Sarah then took the uninfected blood sample and put it under the microscope. Sarah then took a sample of my previous anti-virus, placed a drop of it on another peitry dish, looked at it under another microscope and then injected a little of her separated red blood cells into it. The anti-virus started changing colour.

'I think it is ready mommy.' Sarah said putting it aside.

'Okay let's test it against the infected blood.' I said placing the infected blood sample under the microscope she was using.

Sarah took the drop into an injection and handed it to me. I then injected it into the infected blood. The anti-virus ate through the virus cells changing the cells into normal.

The infected blood i used was six months old. The anti-virus brought the dead cells back to life without changing it into superhuman cells like ours is.

'Yes! It is actually working! This is a six month old sample. I need to test it on a fresh sample next.' I shouted in joy.

Angela startled by my shouting jumped to her feet dropping her book closed on the floor. Sarah ran into her arms.

'It worked mom. The anti-virus is finally ready.' Sarah said.

'Would the anti-virus work on us?' Angela asked looking at me.

'There is only one way to find out. We have to test it on samples of our blood.' I said with a sigh of relief.

Before we tested the anti-virus on our blood i tested it on a freshly infected blood sample. It worked. I then tried the normal uninfected blood we placed under the microscope earlier, injected it with the anti-virus. I then injected it with a sample of the virus. The anti-virus fought off the virus leaving the normal blood unharmed.

Each of us gave a sample of our blood. We just needed a drop, so we pricked our fingers and each placed the drop on a separate peitry dish. I placed Angela's under the microscope and then injected it with the anti-virus. Her blood changed from superhuman to normal. Sarah's blood did the same as did mine.

We next made more of the anti-virus and injected ourselves. We could feel the anti-virus working its magic on our blood racing through our veins. We felt a bit weak for a while but strengthened after half an hour.

I felt normal again, we felt normal again. We have been waiting for this day to come for so long.

'We need to think of a way to get this anti-virus all over the world.' Angela said after a moment of silence.

'I agree babe. You know what? I sure am going to miss being superhuman but i am happy to be normal again.' I said as i took off my lab coat hanging it up.

'It was fun while it lasted, wasn't it?' Sarah said removing her lab coat.

'Yes it was sweetie. Let's go home and relax for the rest of the day.' Angela said taking Sarah's lab coat from her and hanging it up by mine.

We spent the rest of the day in the lounge watching old movies, sitting on the floor. I thought about using the radio station to broadcast that we have a valid and tested anti-virus. Wouldn't that draw unwanted attention our way? Would there be someone else out there that would want to destroy our new found freedom?

'Maybe we can somehow use the weather to spread the anti-virus.' I said out loud without noticing.

'What did you say baby?' Angela asked me with questioning look.

'I was just thinking about how we could spread the anti-virus without drawing unwanted attention to the town. Maybe we could use the weather to spread it somehow.' I explained my thoughts.

'It could possibly work. We don't know if there are more people out there that would think of the anti-virus as a threat to their plans.' Angela said.

'Exactly. We need someone familiar with weather and machinery.' I said staring at the TV.

'I might know someone.' Sarah said out of the blue.

Angela and i looked over at her in anticipation. Sarah just looked at us in silence.

'Well? Who is it?' Angela asked.

'It's my geography teacher. She used to be the weather anchor for the news. She just lives on the same street as us, two blocks over.' Sarah replied.

'Okay, so what are we waiting for?' Angela asked standing up from the floor.

'Don't you think it's a bit late babe?' I asked checking my watch.

'No, she is always up till late.' Sarah said standing up.

'Okay then, let's go see her.' I said lifting myself up to the couch.

'You two go ahead, i will catch up in a second.' I said walking to the kitchen.

Before we left hospital i grabbed a few tubes of the anti-virus just in case we might need it for someone. I grabbed one tube with an injection and headed out the door to catch up to Angela and Sarah. We walked the two blocks and entered the yard of a humble little house. I could smell freshly cut grass and fragrant flowers from a garden we passed. Before we could knock on the door it opened. In front of us stood a young woman maybe in her late teens, long blond curly hair, brown eyes, tanned skin and tall slender body. Angela and i are in our early thirties, this young woman didn't look at all like an expert of weather.

'Hi miss tailor. May we speak to you for a moment?' Sarah said sounding very nervous.

'Hi Sarah, sure come on in.' miss tailor said standing aside.

I could hardly believe my eyes. This woman is about the same age as Angela and me. What could she possibly know?

'Hi i am Angela, Sarah's mother and this is Charlie, my wife.' Angela said shaking the woman's hand.

'I am Janet. Please... grab a seat?' She said shaking my hand.

'Miss tailor, we have a little mission that we would like you to help us with.' Sarah said taking a seat.

'I am so sorry. I was expecting someone a bit...' i started to say then Janet stopped me.

'Older and wiser?' She asked with a mock.

'Yes, kind of.' I said blushing crimson.

'Charlie? What are you doing?' Angela asked me.

'No Angela, it's quite alright. I'm used to it by now.' Janet said taking a deep breath before continuing.

'I finished my whole school curriculum in five years and after that i graduated university in one year earning my honours top of my classes. I worked for the news for a year then started teaching geography here in Ravens Rest at the age of sixteen. I assure you whatever you want to know or do i can help just as much as any old fart can. I am eighteen now.' Janet sat down next to Sarah with a smile noticing the stunned looks on Angela and my faces.

'I told you so. Miss Taylor is the best i know.' Sarah said.

'Why thank you Sarah and please call me Janet. I doubt that we will ever have a school again. So what can i do for you?' Janet said grinning wide.

Before we started telling her what we wanted to do, we explained to her what happened thus far. We talked for at least three hours and told our stories.

'So you see. We want to know if there is a way to use the weather to spread the anti-virus without attracting unwanted attention to the town and without anyone noticing a thing.' I said relaxing a bit more.

'Sarah why don't you go fetches us all something to drink in the kitchen while i think a bit? You know where everything is.' Janet asked Sarah tapping Sarah on her leg.

'Sure Janet, no problem.' Sarah answered and headed for the kitchen.

Janet stood up and walked over to her desk looking for something. She stood still midway and turned around to face Angela and me.

'There is a way but it's a long shot at the least. We need rain to accomplish this and we haven't had rain in about three months.' Janet said then turned around again.