Day 3: Sadistic Games II

The group entered the club.

The lights of the place, which were interspersed between pink and violet tones, impacted against the faces of the survivors who were unhappy with the lighting, because the lights hurt their eyes. Jason caught a glimpse of several bottles of alcohol in the distance, some were half-finished while the crystal glasses that were used to drink the contents of the bottles were scattered on the carpet like shards of glass.

There were many men tied to the tables, they were so different starting with age. The civilians had been beaten, some of them had their clothes torn and stained with blood from the brutal beatings they were subjected to. Some of them were crying and screaming at Jason's group to release them before "he" arrived.

Nikolai noticed something peculiar, and that was that he couldn't help but smell a distinctive scent. By the time he realized what it was, it was too late, for there was a man standing behind the stage with a gun in his hand.

It was a police officer, an African-American man who had a very calm smile on his face as he held his gun. Nikolai had finally understood what the man's plan was.

—Officer... You're not that asshole ***Freddy Dunkins***, are you? —Nikolai kept pointing his gun at the man, even though the club reeked of gas.

—And to whom do I owe the pleasure? —Freddy didn't blink for long periods of time, his cold stare and dilated eyes were unpleasant to look at.

—How I know you doesn't matter to you. What are you planning? There's a reason this place reeks of gas... Right?

Jason tried to approach one of the men who were tied up but Freddy threatened him.

—DON'T GO NEAR HIM. If you go near one of them without my permission I'm going to shoot and blow this place up. Don't tempt me!

—Please help us! —Another of the men said, completely terrified. Jason realized that he had peed himself. —He's kept us here for hours and he's already killed some of us!

—Shut up, you criminal! —Freddy took out his cane and with it he hit the guy directly in the face, who started crying from the injury.

—Put your hands where I can see them! You're under arrest, Mr. Dunkins. —Greg pulled out his gun and pointed it straight at the bad cop who just laughed.

—And who's going to stop me, you asshole cop? You? Please! The world has gone to shit and it's delusional of you to think you still have some authority. We should join forces! You know... Why should we stick to fear if we're going to die anyway? Let's embrace the situation and make the world what it's always been! Ours.

—I'll make the world a better place by starting to get rid of trash like you. What gives you the right to decide for people's lives? The viral outbreak is not an excuse to behave like this, it's not... —Greg wanted so badly to shoot but the smell of the gas prevented him from doing that, which frustrated him.

—What's your name? —Freddy turned to Jason, he liked him because of the particular shape of his body. Jason had to take off his mask because the smell of the gas started to make him dizzy.

—Jason... Slater.

—Jason, Jason... you seem like the most sensible person among your friends. Tell me... Why are we here?

Jason tried to look at Nikolai as if he had the answer. Jason didn't quite understand what the policeman was referring to. After a moment of silence Jason answered.

—Because our parents had sex, am I wrong?

Freddy laughed at the answer, burst out laughing and a characteristic reddish hue could be seen on his face.

—A very funny guy! Very eloquent... I would have liked to find you alone and unarmed to make you my bitch... Yes.

—Bastard!

—Jason, haven't you ever thought about the meaninglessness of this circus? We survive every day and for what? So that these shits can have another chance to fuck us while we sleep, in the shower, while we eat... even while we yawn. In the blink of an eye it's all over. So why are we here? Is it our desire to persevere even though we're delaying the inevitable? Is it that we're afraid to die and so we try to "survive" even though we're doomed from the start? Tell me, Jason... Why are we here?

Jason kept silent, because he had set himself this kind of questions, another reason why he didn't even rest when he slept. Jason saw in front of him yet another product of the outbreak, another man who unfortunately got lost along the way and, maybe, just maybe, the outbreak revealed in him the true nature of the human.

—Why do you do this to people? What they have done to you?

—Why not? You know, I consider survival of the fittest a law here, and you're clearly not the fittest, Jason... I have to assume you've been surrounded by people who have saved your ass. I can see that you're not prepared... I can see by the way you talk, the way you're standing right there... the way you look at me... You should consider yourself lucky to have someone to take care of you, because you won't be able to survive by your own.

—You don't know anything!

—Oh, I know everything! For example... I know that this thing we have in our body encourages us to **fuck**, and fuck a lot. Have I told you how many times I've jacked off watching how the dead eat? How the pigs that are caught squeal and ask them to stop, and they don't. Have you thought about it, haven't you? Sometimes out of morbid curiosity I'll watch the first few minutes of footage and watch very carefully who gets killed, and if I like to see how they get killed whether it's the dead or the savages... you should know I don't regret it.

Greg was disgusted just listening to someone use the outbreak as a vile excuse to pleasure himself.

—Now, Jason. I think this is going to go one way. I didn't count on running into armed people...and apparently neither of us will put our guns down. If one of us shoots it's all over, but I want to have fun before I go I want to leave a mark on this stupid place.

—You're afraid of death too, aren't you? —Nikolai commented with certainty.

—If I'm honest with you... I wasn't counting on anyone showing up... I was going to let these assholes burn alive. I have a rifle on the second floor, I have a perfect angle to the club... all I had to do was shoot and these pigs would explode because as you may have noticed, I left the gas taps open, but now I'm caught in my own trap. I'm not getting out of here, that's for sure...

—You could have worked with the people you swore to protect, Dunkins... you could have...

—But I didn't want to! I don't want to be under anyone's yoke, I wanted to live my life in freedom... but now my actions have come back to me. I can shoot right now... I could do it.

—Do us a fucking favor, you idiot! —Nikolai exclaimed but was stopped by Jason as he believed that in fact Kalinic's screams would encourage him to shoot.

—Let these men go, Freddy! They didn't do anything to you!

—You just don't understand, Jason. Take a good look at them...

Slater didn't quite understand what the Mall Security Officer was referring to. When he approached some of the men, they started yelling at him and calling him names. The eyes of those guys as well as Freddy's were completely dilated, they kept laughing and telling him how they felt like doing... things to him.

On the other hand there were some men who were genuinely scared, asking Jason to please release them. Greg joined in the inspection with Jason and at best he could make out, next to him, a total of two men.

—They're not all... the same...

—They are like me! We kill for **pleasure**, we kill because we can and because we want to. It feels so good! For days now I feel like a vigorous, powerful man... I feel I have a great potential in me... And them? I kill them because I feel like it. I've seen them fuck everything that moves, I've seen them enjoy hurting others, they as well as I have taken advantage of the outbreak. Take a good look at them, Jason... take a good look at them. Is this the kind of shit you want to live with? They wouldn't hesitate to slit your throat and they wouldn't hesitate to cum inside you even if you were dead and in pieces.

—Don't listen to him, please! He is crazy! I'm not a bad guy! I don't want to die! —One of the men shout, he was crying and sobbing.

—You wouldn't hesitate to do it either. We'll take two of them, we don't care what you do with the others, just let us go.

Freddy nodded at the proposal and so Greg took it upon himself to approach the men he identified with Slater and they were untied. They were grateful, unable to pronounce properly as they were sure they were going to die right then and there.

—You won't survive, Jason. Eventually the people who save your ass won't be there for you, you'll be alone, you'll die alone. Why do you even bother to continue? Stay with me and die while you have the chance. You know we're all carriers, I've seen them, I know what they do, I know what happens to us... Are you really going to be able to try to carry on by being the hero? I've seen you on the cameras, I've seen you before ...but I never thought that...

—You've seen us? What do you mean...?

—I've seen you through the cameras in the Pink Flamingo office area! I've seen you running around, along with your stupid group... I had intended to pay you a visit but I guess it won't be possible. And Jason...remember, you may live today, but no matter what you do, what you say or which way you turn in your life... you are going to die and embrace nothingness like all of us, like those rotten people you kill, like us who lack compassion. You call this "survival"? It's just the kicks of a drowning man.

—I... I don't believe you. Even though I want to die... It doesn't mean it gives me the permission to hurt other people for my own problems! I don't care if this "survival" thing are just the kicks of a drowning man... because we're all trying to do our best...

—How lovely! You still have faith... but it won't last that long. One day you'll wake up and you'll realize that this is the only life we have, the only, and you, like me, like them, like all of us, will understand that at the end nothing matters, nothing matters at the end, Jason... It doesn't matter if you are a "good person" or someone who fucks with everything that moves, it doesn't matter if you keep lying to yourself because, one day, you'll realize that your desires, your fantasies, your needs are human, and you'll understand that the pleasure will stop once you're dead. Nothing awaits for us when we die, and the zombies are the proof of that.

Freddy laughed.

—I want to ask you... Jason... How are you going to live your only life?

Freddy pointed the gun at his head and smiled.

—I would have loved to torture you and hear your screams asking for me to stop.

The group of civilians started running as soon as Freddy pointed the gun to his head. As they ran the entire area that made up the club was blown to smithereens, plus the gas caused the destruction of much of the plaza. The explosion caused Jason to be ejected to another end of Black Card Plaza. By the time he rejoined he saw how some people were covered in fire, this was because there were other civilians very close to the club when the explosion occurred.

—Jason! —Nikolai tried to lift his partner and shake him as Slater looked sleepy.

—Nikolai... Oh God! Your face... Your face!

Jason was horrified at the fact that Nikolai had half of his face ***burned off.***