Chapter 1 | The Aftermath
PART 1
EVANGELINE
It was now six months ago that the virus for the first time started spreading, quite harmless as everyone thought in the beginning, not knowing anything about the disaster it was about to unleash at the time. But within a month the seriousness and the vastness of the situation became clear as more and more people, all over the world, started getting sick and dying rapidly.
Six months ago, the world was normal and all of a sudden it all changed, forever. Nothing would ever be the same again and everything that had happened during the past six months felt like a fever dream, a really, really bad nightmare. But it was all real and there was no waking up.
The big city was no longer what it used to be. Once, it was a grand testament of what humanity and society as a whole were capable of achieving. A metropolis bustling with life day in and day out, and now, it was dead. The huge skyscrapers and buildings, the roads and cars, parks, the people - everything within the city, and around it, was destroyed and desolate and there was no longer any life around – it was all gone and the only things left were the ruins and the deafening silence.
When the virus initially started spreading, it came out of nowhere and it hit hard. No one was safe from it, but especially the very young, the elderly and those already ill, were the ones that were most prone to the sickness. No one was safe and no one stood a chance against it – there was no cure. As the virus spread more and more, faster and faster, it was then the mandatory curfews started getting enforced everywhere, in the hopes of stopping the spreading. This only created a sense of panic and people were convinced that doomsday was near. And so, the riots began happening, people became scared, and they started hoarding everything from medicine to food and resources and soon it became harder and harder to get supplies anywhere. When the governments and law enforcements tried to deescalate the riots and the panic, it only made things worse and in no time all-out wars broke out between civilians and military forces and amongst the people themselves. Soon after, the shootings started against anyone that didn't follow curfews or the military's orders, but that only made the violence escalate even further and it got to a point where horrific crimes were being committed on every side. In a fit of pure panic people were looting, rioting, fighting and killing each other and within a few months complete chaos and anarchy had broken out as people were fighting for their survival, being betrayed by their own governments and those who were supposed to help them.
Due to the extreme violence going on and the virus spreading faster than ever, the hospitals were getting overwhelmed, and they had no chance of keeping up with the huge numbers of sick and dead. In an idiotic and desperate attempt to stop the virus from spreading further the military started bombing places with the highest virus infections and places where the violence had escalated to war like levels. This, unsurprisingly, only made things worse: now everything; big cities, towns, rural areas, were all getting destroyed and people, not even sick, were getting killed by those who they had trusted would help and protect them.
This was the point of no return.
This was when humanity and the world, as we knew it, fell. Everything collapsed and now there was no turning back.
What replaced the old world was total anarchy, violence, fear, helplessness and wars. It became a world where only the strongest and most fortunate would survive, a world where the laws and policies of the old-world didn't matter anymore and a world where people were forced to survive in complete ruins left by the destruction and the epidemic. There were no longer any laws protecting you, there was no food and water to nourish you, no electricity, no schools, hospitals, police – everything was gone, destroyed, and the few people who had managed to survive, were left to themselves in a destroyed, cruel and brutal new world.
It was early in the evening.
The sunset was shining bright and beautifully on the remains of the destroyed city that was no longer recognizable from the destruction it had endured. Evangeline Rose, or just Eva as she was called by most people outside her family, put on her leather jacket and stepped outside from the small building she had been holed up in for a day or so. She was here in the city on a very important mission.
Outside, the fresh air did her good as she with determination started walking in the direction of the city centre. She had grown up in this city, so she knew it inside out and she knew the fastest way to get where she needed to be. Right now, she was in one of the outer zones, so walking to the centre would take her a small hour or so, but she was ready for the trip having packed the most essential items in a small bag she took with her.
As far as she knew, this zone was pretty safe – or as safe as it could be. There was not much left here from the old world, and it was pretty empty with nearly no people, and especially, no gangs roaming around. The gangs were going to be the main issue for her going forward. This particular zone might be gang free, but the zones closer to the city centre were all controlled by different gangs and fighting, and they were filled with people: not all of them nice and peaceful, and being a woman, all on her own, made her an easy target. But she knew how to take care of herself, she always had.
Growing up mostly in this city, Eva had lived a life most people could only ever dream about. Descending from an old and powerful crime family, Eva grew up in extreme wealth, never needing anything. Her father, uncles and grandfather had all been active members in the criminal underworld, her family owning many companies, banks, hotels and properties, making more money than anyone could ever need: both legally but mostly through various criminal activities.
All her life, Eva had been surrounded by crime, money and power and with all that, violence followed. The violence had become a very big part of her life from since she was quite young, and it was something that she to this day was accustomed to. Corruption, blackmail, manipulation, death and all forms of violence had been everyday life, but it was a life she had loved, mostly because her family meant everything to her and she would do anything for them. Many would, and did, describe her family as fucked up and not your average, normal family, they would call them criminals, look down on them, talk behind their backs, but Eva didn't care. What mattered to her was the fact that they were a loving family: loyal to each other, supportive, helpful and they enjoyed everything they had built up together. Everyone who ever had anything bad to say about the family, would never say it directly to their face out of sheer fear and the fact that they all knew the power, influence and respect her family held, both in the upper classes of society, but certainly also in the criminal underworld.
It was from this family Eva had learned everything she knew. It was that family that had moulded her into an intelligent, smart, determent and pretty manipulative woman who loved power and control and who strived for it. She knew, and had witnessed, what one could achieve with true power and influence.
The life she had lived, her family and the qualities and skills they had given her, were all going to be very useful in this world and in her survival. She knew she could do this – she knew she had the skills, the willpower and the determination to overcome this, to take control of the fucked up situation the world was in and come out on top, but the most important thing right now was finding the rest of her family; if they were still alive.
Initially Eva had been living in a different country when the virus first struck, but when things started to go to hell, she was able to get a flight back home, wanting to be with her family. But she was too late. No one was there when she finally made it home and the only thing she found was her mother and stepfather, dead.
When she was just sixteen years old, her and her family's life was turned upside down when her father was killed, and witnessing his murder, changed Eva forever. She had always been a daddy's girl who saw her father as the best man in the whole entire world. He was a father that always had been there for her, being her rock. He loved her and always believed in her, teaching her how to be strong and setting her up for success in every aspect of life - she looked up to him so much, wanting to be just like him, so his death was something she never got fully over. The whole experience turned her quite cold, stand-off-ish and closed off, but most of all it made her mad, making her embrace the criminal side of the family even more, bonding with her grandfather, whom was another big influence on her, especially after her father's death. Her grandfather turned her into a fierce young woman, teaching her everything about the family businesses and the criminal underworld and as soon as she was old enough and had finished college, she started working for him, slowly, but surely, gaining more and more responsibility, control and power until she already in her mid-twenties was a true force to be reckoned with.
The power, the money and the control her family had in the old world meant something, even now. Their name and legacy still carried weight in this world and that was a huge benefit, since it meant she could use this to her advantage. She quickly found out that she could get nearly anything from the right people and the right contacts, whether it was food and water, medicine, weapons or other necessities or even more rare goods such as gas and batteries. She still had powerful allies and connections and that had given her a leg up in this new world.
Being the last family member left, she didn't feel helpless or lost. She mourned the loss of her family in silence and some might say: a cold indifference - but only she knew how much it hurt losing them all: she didn't show it, but she felt it.
As a final goodbye she made sure to bury her mother and stepfather together, giving them a proper resting place where they could be together in death – after all, they had only been married for two years and even though Eva's relationship with her stepfather had been strained at times, they eventually grew closer and she respected him for the man he was and for how he had treated her mother.
Where the rest of her family were, she had no idea. Since it was impossible to contact anyone in other countries due to all communication lines being cut off and destroyed, she had no clue about what had happened to her aunts, uncles and various grandparents but she assumed that they most likely were dead. She had a big brother, but he was nowhere to be found, and he was the one she was out looking for now and all she hoped for, was finding him somewhere, still alive. Her stepfather had two sons as well, Eva's stepbrother's, but she had never really met them since they had been in jail for the past three years and right now, as cold as it might seem, her priority was her biological brother whom, she had been told, had been seen in some of the zones close to the city centre.
Having been walking for less than an hour, she finally made it to where she needed to be. She was much closer to the central city, but this was as far as she was willing to go for now. In her current zone she had arranged a meeting with a contact who she was waiting on in a dark alley, trying to stay out of sight from anyone that might be outside roaming around. It was easy to stay hidden now that it was becoming dark and she took the opportunity to rest up and get something to drink.
These zones, bordering the downtown city, were the most dangerous since it was here most of the gangs hung out, it was here the fighting, and the violence was most prominent. It was complete chaos in these parts, and no one was safe around here and even though she was more than capable of taking care of herself, having trained martial arts all her life, earning a black belt, she still didn't want to run into anyone or to get herself in any kind of trouble.
It didn't take too long before a big, imposing figure appeared in the alleyway, joining Eva who had impatiently waited for him, a bit annoyed that he was late.
"Sorry I'm late." the big dude told her apologetically. "There was some shit going down." he added, looking for something in his many pockets, patting himself down with his big hands. The guy was dressed in all black: a pair of dark canvas pants, a hoodie and a vest with a bunch of pockets. His hair was buzzcut and he was wearing the hood over his head. Standing there in the dark alley he looked huge and menacing.
"What's happening?" Eva wanted to know, curios about what had made him arrive late to their meeting.
"I'm not sure. They're setting up some fence around the city centre. Blocking off a huge area."
"Who is?"
"The military."
Eva wasn't sure what to make of that info. It was strange that the military were making such moves, suddenly starting to make their presence more known. What was the fence for? What the hell were they doing?
"I'm pretty sure I heard someone talk about them wanting to make the fence electric."
"They have electricity for that?"
"Apparently." the guy said with a shrug, once again making Eva question what the hell was going on. She knew that the military, or what was left of them, had been immobilized for some time, but it would seem that they now were trying to control things in the city again, to get a hold on the anarchy and chaos, but so far without any luck. The gangs were just too many and too violent and the resistance was too strong; no one wanted to be controlled in this new world anymore, especially not by the military or the broken leftovers of government officials, who had failed the people during the epidemic and who were now considered to be the enemy. All the rules and laws from the old world were no longer respected nor upheld.
"Did you bring me what I asked?" Eva wanted to know, changing the subject to what they were there for in the first place.
"Sure did." the guy handed her a set of keys. "It's parked in the warehouse. Like we talked about." he explained to her while she grabbed a small pouch from her bag that she gave to him in return. The guy weighed the pouch in his hand, tossing it up and down for a bit, feeling the weight of it.
"Don't worry. It's all there." she assured him, looking at him as he made sure her payment was in order. He sent her a boyish smile. "I know, I know. You're good for it."
The content of the pouch was nothing less than gold in various forms and a few jewels; a high commodity in this world as it was very valuable and rare, used as one of many payment methods since money no longer had a value and was useless. Now, if you wanted anything you had to either find it yourself, make it yourself or trade – trading becoming a normal way for people to exchange resources and goods, but at this moment in time, not much trading was being done with people being too scared to even associate with each other or even go outside. Otherwise, anything valuable could be used as payment, it being jewellery, weapons, food, sex or any other favours and jobs people could think of exchanging.
"So, did you find out anything?" Eva asked, hoping he would have some news for her, but he shook his head. "Nah, nothing yet." he informed her, knowing that wasn't what she was hoping to hear, so he continued: "But I'm pretty sure something will turn up."
No, that wasn't at all what Eva was hoping to hear, but she had been expecting it. Considering the chaos and panic that ensured during the hight of the pandemic, and during the bombings, it was impossible to find people who were now missing. They could be anywhere, alive, captured or worse; dead.
"Let me know when you find something." she just said, getting ready to move on. The evening was slowly turning to night as it only got darker outside, and if she wanted to reach the warehouse before it became completely dark, she had to start moving.
The guy had offered to accompany Eva on the rest of her journey to the warehouse, and they quickly made their way through the zone, luckily not encountering anyone on their way since they were pretty good at staying hidden and knowing their way around the zone. The warehouse was going to be Eva's next HQ for the time being as she explored the surrounding areas, all in the hopes of finding some of her missing family members, especially her brother. The search was going to be like looking for a needle in a haystack, but she was determent to get some information and to keep looking, no matter how much time it would take her. She was going to stay here, and she was going to find her family.
