My legs carried me forward on their own, anywhere my eyes could see. I couldn't calm down, couldn't pull myself together.
"What the hell happened…" I breathed out.
The last thing I remembered was lying in a hospital bed. And then… I opened my eyes and found myself in the middle of some nightmare. I was literally lying on someone's remains, in a body that wasn't mine. When I woke up, strange memories rushed through my head. It wasn't my life.
I was a recruit in a special task force created to fight the infected. After the threat of the new parasite became real, the creation of such units was more of a way to calm the public than an actual solution. Still, we were a fully armed formation, though all its members came from different backgrounds some police, some SWAT, some military.
The Helix Laboratory was one of the sites in the Cordyceps research program. When a distress signal came from there, our team was sent in for a cleanup. We expected to encounter infected, but not… that. It was like we were lured inside, and then they surrounded us from every side. We fought our way through, but there was no escape.
The squad was almost completely wiped out. We held the line until the last moment, shooting back until the formation broke. Everything turned into chaos screams, blood, flashes of gunfire, and then darkness.
I remember three infected attacking me at once. Their nails tore through my uniform, their teeth sank into my flesh. The last thing I felt was unbearable pain and something scratching at my mind.
Those were the final moments of Victor. And then I woke up in his body, not understanding where the hell I was or how I was even alive. My clothes were torn, my body scarred, but the wounds had already healed, as if months had passed.
After escaping that damned laboratory, I nearly collapsed from exhaustion. I just wanted to get as far away as possible. Reaching the edge of the forest, I finally stopped by a tree, ripped off the gas mask, and exhaled heavily, gasping for air and trying to steady my breath.
I hadn't run like that in ages. Guess I'm getting old would've dropped dead from exhaustion by now.
Checking my body, I realized the wounds were gone. Only thin, pale scars remained, like traces of old burns. I must have been unconscious for just a few hours. We entered the building late at night. Now it was almost noon. At least twelve hours had passed.
"Damn! what are you even thinking?" I muttered. "Look at the shit you've landed in."
And then it hit me.
Cordyceps fungus. I remembered there was a game called The Last of Us. Funny, I never actually played it. Only watched reviews and summaries. Work always got in the way. Never thought I'd live to regret that.
The world is collapsing. People are desperate to find salvation a vaccine. But all efforts are still failing. There's no hope left. Fewer and fewer still believe in one. Bands of raiders attack travelers, sometimes using them as food. Military zones turn into near-slave camps. Hordes of infected sweep across territories under the parasite's control. That's the bright future waiting for me.
Finally catching my breath, I tried to remember where I was. The Helix Lab was only ten kilometers from the nearest town. Maybe there were small settlements nearby I couldn't recall exactly. But heading there would be safer than walking into a major city. After the outbreak, cities were nothing but chaos. I needed time. Time to recover and figure out what the hell to do next.
Our unit's base was located on the outskirts of the city. We trained there, ran simulations, conducted combat drills. It served as a kind of buffer zone far from prying eyes, but close enough to respond quickly when needed.
I kept catching myself thinking that I couldn't separate my own memories from Victor's. He was born and raised here. His parents were immigrants who came looking for a better life. Victor chose the military path. He wanted to serve, to protect and, truth be told, he was damn good at it. That's why he was chosen for the task force dealing with infection outbreaks.
Those units were created during the early stages of the epidemic small, mobile squads. There weren't many of them, but the government believed they were enough to contain the infection. How wrong they were.
The first outbreak appeared in Texas, and day by day it spread across the country until it consumed every state. It didn't even take a week.
After checking my gear, I stood up, deciding to head for the base. My gaze lingered for a moment on the scars beneath the fabric of my uniform. Real mystery. But the real question was how the hell I ended up here in the first place.
I had to walk nearly six miles. I was tired, but the body held up. It was trained, built to endure far worse.
Base "Worker-4." Once, it used to be a prison. Later it was converted into a military site. When the authorities decided it was too dangerous to keep inmates that close to the city, part of it was demolished, and the rest was handed over to the special forces. There were shooting ranges, armories, training fields, obstacle courses everything needed to prepare soldiers of all levels.
*image*
As I got closer, I noticed how unnaturally quiet it was. Usually this place was full of noise shouted orders, gunfire, the hum of constant activity.
A lone guard stood by the gate. He spotted me almost instantly and, without hesitation, raised his rifle.
"Stop! Who goes there?" he shouted.
I lifted my hands.
"It's me… Victor," I said, my throat dry and voice cracking.
He didn't lower his weapon. Maybe my face was covered in dirt and dried blood. Or maybe he simply couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"Victor?" His voice trembled with disbelief.
From Victor's memories, I recognized him James, one of the base guards. He usually worked shifts at the perimeter.
"What the hell happened at the lab?" James yelled, still keeping the rifle aimed at me. "We lost all contact with your team!"
"We were ambushed," I exhaled. "Not many survived. I don't know where the others are... I made it here on foot."
James froze for a moment, then grabbed his radio.
"Base, this is Checkpoint One one of Captain Norton's squad just showed up."
"Any signs of infection?" came the voice of Colonel Simmons, the base commander. He had led this facility for over a decade a man of steel, used to keeping order no matter what.
"No, sir," James replied. "He seems lucid. Just filthy and exhausted."
"Bring him to me," Simmons ordered curtly. "I want a full report on Helix."
"Yes, sir," James acknowledged and motioned for me to follow.
We went inside. The base felt eerily empty. The motor pool was deserted not a single vehicle in sight. Normally there would be transports for the training squads, armored trucks, unmarked tactical vehicles. Now, silence.
*image*
This base had served as a training center for special units. Soldiers came here to prepare for deployment in hot zones clearing infected areas, storming seized buildings, apprehending high-value targets. So besides our own team, many others had been stationed and trained here.
The command post wasn't any better. Only a handful of people remained mostly radio operators, technicians, and communication staff coordinating the city's defenses.
Colonel Simmons stood by the main radio console, giving orders, his expression grim as he watched the surveillance screens. The monitors showed a nightmare: the city in chaos, fires raging, buildings in ruins, flashes of gunfire lighting up the streets. Infected roamed freely, while the military struggled to hold the perimeter, deploying heavy weapons just to keep them back.
"Report, soldier," Simmons ordered without turning around.
"The sweep started without any problems," I said, my throat dry. "But the deeper we went into the complex, the fewer infected we found. It was like they were luring us in. Then they ambushed us from all sides. Almost everyone died. I don't know who survived or where they are."
Simmons stayed silent for a long time. Only the hiss of the radio and the crackle of static filled the room.
"Looks like we won't be seeing a vaccine anytime soon," he said at last, his voice low. "We'll have to do it the old way. Lead and fire. It's the same damn story across the country. A cure would've changed everything. Now… who knows if we'll ever have one."
Finally, he tore his gaze from the monitors and turned to face me. A man in his fifties, still standing straight, still built like a soldier.
"You did well, son," he said, extending his hand. "Get some rest. Tomorrow you're going into the city. Every soldier counts now."
I reached out to shake his hand but his grip suddenly tightened, hard and crushing. In one swift motion, he yanked me closer, and a pistol was pointed straight at my forehead.
"Are you infected?" the colonel asked coldly. "Were you bitten?"
"No," I said quickly. "I tore my clothes while getting out got caught on something, that's all."
I'd almost forgotten how I must have looked from the outside. The memories made me believe that the base was the safest, most reliable place left. I came here without a second thought. My head was a mess; I didn't even realize how suspicious I must have seemed.
"Take him to the infirmary," Simmons ordered. "Check him thoroughly and lock him up. If he's infected, we'll know by morning. If not, release him."
"Yes, sir," one of the soldiers replied.
Under guard, they escorted me to the medical wing. The doctor examined my wounds and was clearly confused by what he saw. There was no record of any scars in my file, and when he asked where they came from, all I could say was that I didn't know. The only good part was that they let me wash up and gave me clean clothes.
After everything that had happened, I was completely drained. The cell they locked me in was small the kind reserved for those who had broken serious rules or committed crimes, a holding room before transfer. A metal cot with a thin mattress stood against the wall. But I didn't care. I was so exhausted I collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep almost instantly.
*image*
In my dream, it felt like everything that had happened today was just some strange, drawn-out nightmare. Any second now I would wake up in a hospital bed, ready for another routine day.
*Alarm*
*Sirens*
But the dream turned into a terrifying reality. I shot up from the bed and looked around. The base was under alert. The single window was high up near the ceiling. Grabbing the edge of the frame, I pulled myself up.
Through the fogged glass, I saw chaos infected soldiers running across the compound. There were few survivors left, and only occasional gunshots echoed outside.
"Hey! Let me out! I can help!" I shouted, realizing that if I didn't get out now, I'd be trapped here forever starved to death, surrounded by the infected. My guard was nowhere to be seen.
At first, it seemed no one was nearby. Then I heard heavy footsteps outside the door, followed by sounds of a struggle. A soldier burst into the room, only for an infected to pounce on him instantly, sinking its teeth into his neck.
"Aaah!" he screamed, writhing in agony, trying to get up and fight off the infected. But the creature, driven by madness, sank its teeth into his face, tearing off chunks of flesh. They struggled for several minutes before my guard finally went still.
The infected slowly turned its head toward me. It was the first one I had ever seen this close. There was no trace of humanity left in its eyes the pupils had turned pale, and something seemed to crawl beneath the surface. Its limbs jerked and twitched as if it were a puppet pulled by invisible strings.
*image*
With inhuman strength, it slammed itself against the bars that separated us, over and over again, trying to reach me. My heart pounded so hard that I could hear the blood rushing in my ears. My eyes flicked down to the holster on the infected soldier's hip. There was a gun.
"Shit… shit…" I whispered, trembling. My fingers barely obeyed me, my knees felt weak. There wasn't much of a choice I had to act.
Taking a few uneven breaths, I grabbed the infected's outstretched arm and pulled with all my strength, holding it close so it couldn't move. Its other hand clawed at me, trying to tear through my clothes. With one hand I held it back, and with the other, I reached for the holster. My fingers were shaking, but I finally undid the strap, pulled out the pistol, and aimed straight at its head.
*Gunshot*
The creature froze. Its body twitched, then went limp and slid to the floor. I stood there, breathing heavily, staring at the corpse. In movies, it never looked this horrifying. On screen it always felt distant, unreal. In reality, it was something else entirely.
I needed to get out. The door was still locked. The dead guard lying near it must have had the key, but now he was sprawled in a pool of blood, too far to reach.
Then the guard's body twitched. He started moving.
"Hey…" I breathed, disbelief tightening my chest.
He wasn't himself anymore. The fungus had taken over. The infected jerked his head unnaturally and turned his gaze on me.
"Ahhh…"
He threw himself against the bars, slamming his head into the metal. I reacted instinctively, raised my hand, and fired without aiming. The bullet struck his skull, and he collapsed.
Without wasting a second, I reached between the bars and searched his pockets. My fingers finally found a set of keys. The ring jingled softly. I picked the right one, slid it into the lock, and turned it.
The lock clicked. The two corpses leaning against the cell door made it hard to push open, but I managed. Blood streaked the floor as I stepped out and grabbed the guard's spare pistol from his belt.
Moving slowly, I approached the outer door and stepped outside. A few bodies lay motionless on the asphalt. If they were infected, they wouldn't get back up. But if any of them had turned after dying, that would change everything.
In the distance, I could still hear gunfire and the guttural growls of the infected. Somewhere near the command center, survivors were still holding out. I didn't think for long. Running blindly or trying to escape the base would be suicide. I had to find out what was happening in the rest of the country. The command post was the only place that could tell me. As long as power and communication still worked, the autonomous systems would last a few more months. Then, one by one, they'd fail and civilization would fall with them.
Keeping low, I ran across the yard, checking the bodies for weapons. One soldier had an AR-15 rifle. I checked the magazine nearly empty. I pulled two spares from his vest, loaded one, and pocketed the other before heading toward the command building.
There couldn't be many infected left on the base. I'd seen maybe twenty people here earlier. Most of them must have turned, and the rest were probably caught off guard in the first minutes. Stopping at the entrance, I peered inside before stepping in. The lights were still on the place was running even through the night.
Inside, it was unnervingly quiet. Dead quiet. Carefully checking every corner, I made my way up the stairs. That's where the communications room was. Bodies of the infected already littered the stairwell. Blood trickled down the steps, forcing me to move slowly and watch my footing.
"Kh…" A faint groan broke the silence.
I raised my weapon and aimed toward the sound.
***********************
Note:The fungus is a parasite. Its goal isn't to kill the host, but to spread. That's why the infected act on instinct they seek out the living to pass on the spores.
If a person is bitten in the neck or head, infection takes hold within minutes. Even if they're killed, the fungus still reanimates the body and makes it move. A bite to the torso spreads over several hours, but if the host dies first, the fungus dies too. A bite to a limb can take a full day. Infection through food like contaminated flour is the slowest, depending on the person's immunity.
That's how, as far as I understand, the fungus works.