The End of Greed (Part 1)

It wasn’t always like this, but to tell the story I'll need to bring you back to the beginning. Before it all went wrong. You see, this world used to be beautiful. That was until the plague struck and humans started attacking each other to survive. They say it started in China but I believe it was the world that got tired of our abuse.

I remember it like it was yesterday. Sitting in front of the tv watching a show about alien conspiracies, playing with the heart shaped locket I always wore around my neck. For me, it’s something I've always done when I was thinking. Almost like a nervous twitch. I’d run my fingers along the grooves in the side and then rub the smooth surface on the front, lost in thought.

It’s a bit strange when I think about it. But the Locket was given to me by my dad after my mom passed away. She really loved it and it was actually a gift from my father on one of their first dates. Both of them are gone now but I've carried it with me through everything. When I held it close I felt like they were with me. I wonder if they’re watching now?

Sitting there on the couch I heard a sound from the street. I Didn't think much of it at first. The city is always noisy and where I lived felt like the noisiest place of all. Screams were common, yelling, the sound of stuff breaking, ambulances, fire trucks, and all sorts of noise surrounded me, which often led to me turning up my volume just to drown all of it out. Suddenly the news came on, an emergency broadcast with a woman I'd never seen before, and I watched the news alot.

She was panicked to say the least, breathing hard like she had just been attacked. Blood dripped from her forehead as she looked into the camera. After a pause she spoke, and before I knew it the world had changed. A virus had swept the nation and took over almost overnight. Symptoms include Loss of inhibition, lack of appetite, violent outburst, and finally an overwhelming hunger, she said. That night I knew, as I listened to this lady speak, that life would never be the same again.

Suddenly, the sound of gunshots rang and before I had a chance to move, my door burst open, and a man had started running towards me. Blackish liquid oozed from his mouth as he lunged forward, falling over my couch head first onto the floor. Watching in shock as he placed his twisted arm in front of him, I couldn't move. What the hell is happening, I screamed! People were running by my door, cars were crashing outside, and you could hear the sounds of screams everywhere.

In front of me was a man or at least something that used to be. As he started towards me again I grabbed my coffee table and threw it at him. It’s not like it was very big but it should have knocked him down, I thought. I was very wrong, not even stunned as it hit, glass shattering, and wood splintering leaving pieces all over the floor. This monster was unfazed and lunging right at me!

This was it, I thought. No weapon and nothing around me to grab, I put my hands up ready for a fight. As he lunged at me I swung, with one hook I caught the left side of his eye and With a straight I caught him again, knocking him back. As he stumbled backward and fell, I started running. Over the couch and out the door, I just kept going,

refusing to look back, even once.

All around me I could hear people fighting for their lives. Jumping over the bodies as i flew down the hall i didn’t think about stopping. I headed for the elevator not even thinking how dumb that was until i turned the corner and saw about 10 of my neighbors fighting just to get on. Turning around I headed towards the stairwell relieved that nobody seemed to be going this way. As I opened the door that led down stairs I realized all the lights were off in the stairwell.

Standing there between the door and the stairs i had to make a choice, i thought. Should i risk the elevator or risk the dark? Not even given the chance to think, I heard what seemed like the entire floor running towards my direction. This was it, my only option. Taking a few steps forward I gripped the railing, with the last of the light fading as the door closed behind me. Stumbling down the stairs like a drunken fool, I couldn't see a thing. Slipping over and over as i ran as fast as i could down the stairs in the dark.

Luckily, I was only 4 floors up. As I plunged deeper into the stairwell nearing the 3rd level I heard the door on the floor above me crash open and the sound of footsteps stampeding towards the stairs. I wasn’t about to slow down now, moving faster I ran, making it all the way down to the 2nd level before I tripped, falling face first down the stairs hitting the last few steps before barreling into the wall. Stunned, I lay there hearing the floors above me getting louder and louder as the herd of residents made their way down stairs, at least I had hoped it was people. For what I fought in my living room was no person and I could not take on a whole army of them.

Dazed, I pushed myself up off the floor, leaning against the wall to stay upright. Moving forward I reached the corner, and from there I made it to the stairs. Feeling the railing to the left, i couldn't help but feel relieved as i gripped hold and started down the dark stair way again. Finally nearing the first floor, I started to worry what was on the other side of the door as it loomed closer, i heard all the noise above me, and that thought vanished in an instant. Whatever awaited me was nothing i could avoid, for i was not about to stay in this stairwell to wait for whatever was crashing down behind me.

As I reached the door, I took a breath. I made it, I thought. Gripping the handle I opened the door and a brilliant glow hit my eyes. I was out of the darkness. Without wasting another moment I started towards the front entrance, which was just around the corner.

As I opened the glass doors and walked outside I knew, I was entering a new world, and nothing was ever gonna be the same again!