Land of the Blind, Part 22

22 – Last Dance Dylan wanted to be left alone, curled up in his own private bubble of pain, so Dee left him be. When he got the heads up Roan was out of surgery, he’d take him to see him, and he’d probably be in more of a mood to open up then. Diego found himself sitting next to jock boy, Scott, the hockey player that Ro had inexplicably befriended. Well, maybe not so inexplicably – he had a hell of a profile, a long lashed boy with delicate features that could have been pretty if it wasn’t for his strong jaw and a few pale scars that gave him a more rugged appearance. He was a little flushed, but that was typical of the heavy anti-viral he gave him at the scene. There was an emergency anti-viral you could give in case of suspected exposure...

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Land of the Blind, Part 21

21 – Die Slow The strange thing was, it was very peaceful. Roan sort of felt distant, removed from the scene, as he heard Grey in his hockey goon voice, shouting, “You shot a cop! He was one of you!” It was a voice of pure homicide, and he could just imagine that poor cop shitting his pants or worse, aiming his weapon at Grey. And he was factually incorrect! He wasn’t a cop, just a “special investigator”, and he was never one of anyone. But he couldn’t articulate any of this. He felt like he was turning to ice, freezing in place, becoming gum on the sidewalk. His vision was fading, slowing going out like someone had a dimmer switch, and a shadow fell over him, came beside him. “Hold on, Roan,” Scott said, taking off his belt. It struck...

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Land of the Blind, Part 20

20 – Shot By Both Sides Roan watched Kevin’s TV for a bit, just to see what the local news had to say about the bombing. Not a lot, or at least not much that was substantive. Two pipe bombs went off, one didn’t, and the amount of injuries ascribed to the attack ranged from fourteen, twenty two, and twelve, depending on whether you were watching channel five, seven, or four. That one person was critical was the single constant. If there was one or two particular suspects, they weren’t named. Perhaps because there was a plethora of suspects to choose from. It would be easier to name those not involved, or at least take less time. Kevin told him not to go to the crime scene, that he’d ask around and see what he could find out. Was it that...

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Land of the Blind, Part 19

19 – Short Bursts Roan knew he had to go home, but he put it off, mainly because his thoughts had turned very dark. No matter that his thoughts had been dark before; now they were deep black, abysmal. Was it over? Was this it? The tainted drugs would spread, infecteds would die, normals would blame the infecteds for their freak outs, and even more infecteds would die. It was an endless cycle – this was only the beginning. And he could do nothing, he could only stand on the sidelines and watch. He considered what Scott had told him about being first, about being a trailblazer, and wondered what a trailblazer would do at this moment. He was blazing a trail for the dead, for people who couldn’t possibly follow him. Not all infecteds would do the drugs, not...

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