The Kill Order

Back in present time, Alec makes a quick breakfast, and the group begins walking again. At midday, they stop by a stream. Trina wanders off to use the bathroom and Mark follows. Trina insists they are both healthy and that it is safe to touch; they embrace and kiss. The group continues walking for several more hours, then they set up camp. Mark lies awake as the others sleep, thinking about his life before the solar flares and about his sister, Madison. A sound alerts him to someone in the woods. Mark goes to investigate and finds Toad, who claims something is living inside his head.

Mark wakes the camp. Toad keeps talking about things in his head and asks why they left him. Lana asks about Misty, and Toad says that they had to put her out of her misery. Toad keeps talking about himself in the plural, insisting there is something living in his brain. Lana tries to keep him calm, but Toad continues to panic. Alec finally grabs Toad and pulls him out into the woods. They can hear Toad screaming, and then they hear nothing. Alec comes back and insists he did what he had to do. Then he goes to wash up.

They all go back to bed, but none of them sleep. The next morning, Lana expresses a fear that there is something wrong with the virus. Lana suggests the virus changes people and makes them hallucinate. Lana also suggests the virus is mutating, becoming something different as it spreads. Mark suggests they have all been exposed and already have it. Alec makes the comment that he hopes it will give them a week to finish their mission. Later that afternoon, they come across a village. The smell of death tells them the virus has already hit the area. However, before they can leave, they spot a little girl who tells them the villagers have abandoned her.

The little girl, whose name is Deedee, tells them about the men in green who shot them with arrows. She says her parents died, but her brother, Ricky, went with the villagers. Mark sees evidence that Deedee was hit with a dart, but she appears to be fine. Alec wants to leave her behind, but Trina insists they take Deedee with them. Alec, anxious to get going, finally agrees; he is worried about running into Deedee’s villagers. That night, Mark imagines a time when little girls like Deedee can be carefree and happy like they should be.

When Mark sleeps, he thinks of the past. In his dream, Alec tells Mark and Trina that he believes solar flares caused the trains to stop. He says he heard that there were warnings about solar flares on the television right before it happened. Alec tells them that he has a group of people waiting on them. He says they need to make their way to the surface as soon as it is safe because there will be flooding in the tunnels when the water from the melting ice caps reaches them. Mark wakes up and is unwilling to go back to sleep and relive the horrors of the past. He fights it but soon falls asleep again.

In his dream, Mark recalls how Alec led them through the transit tunnels toward the Lincoln Building. There, Alec introduces Mark and Trina to the group he has already begun building. There is Lana, Alec’s coworker at the Department of Defense, Darnell, Misty, Toad, and a younger boy named Baxter. There is a sense of urgency as they rush toward the Lincoln Building; they fear the arrival of a tsunami from the melting polar ice caps. When they venture further into the tunnels, they begin running into other people. One group charges at them, trying to steal any food they might have. Alec attempts to fight them off, but everyone else is pulled into the melee. Soon, a wall of water bears down on them.

Mark wakes, a little disoriented. Mark and Trina talk about Deedee briefly before heading out. Alec announces they are getting close to the Berg’s headquarters. They settle in for a meal, and Trina criticizes Alec’s manners, in response to which he makes a joke and roars with laughter. The laughter is catching, and the others join in, allowing a small break from the tension of the previous day.

That night, Alec checks the map on the workpad and tells them they only have about five more miles to go. When they camp that night, Alec expresses a desire to go over his plan with Lana before telling Mark and Trina. Trina is annoyed at being left out, but Mark assures her that he will keep her and Deedee safe. Mark hears singing in the woods and alerts the others. Alec insists he and Mark go check it out. Deedee tells them to be careful. She believes it is the people from her village and says that they began thinking the nature around them was magical. She also warns them to watch out for the man “with no ears” (115).

Mark and Alec reach a clearing, where five or six people are dancing around a fire. Mark and Alec move closer to make sure they are not a threat. Alec tells Mark that these people have caught the attention of the people at the Berg’s headquarters, therefore they will serve as a distraction to allow Mark, Alec, and the others to sneak in. As he says that, however, the villagers hear them and approach, initially inviting Mark and Alec to join them by the fire. Mark asks why the villagers abandoned Deedee, and the sound of Deedee’s name causes one of the women to order the others to seize Mark and Alec.

The villagers tie up Alec and Mark. Alec struggles, and Mark begs him to remain calm, afraid the villagers will kill Alec. The villagers begin interrogating Mark, demanding to know why he is there and what he knows about Deedee. It is clear the villagers think that Deedee is evil and are concerned that Mark and Alec are working on her behalf. One of the men kicks Mark in the ribs, inspiring Alec to struggle again. A man with no ears comes out and his presence calms the villagers.

The man without ears introduces himself as Jedidiah. Mark asks if the scars on his face are from the solar flares, and Jedidiah laughs, saying that it was not sun flares, but an evil plague sent down by demons. Jedidiah tells them their village was attacked by the Berg two months ago, confusing Mark both because it was so far from when his own settlement was attacked, and that Deedee was still healthy after such a long period of time. Everyone else shot by the darts died in a matter of days. Jedidiah tells them how some people died immediately, some died within days, and how others lingered for weeks while a few struggled with an altered reality and tried to kill them. As Jedidiah talks, he grows excited and collapses. Sounds begin coming from the woods (people making animal sounds), which alarms the villagers. The woman tells Mark that they tried to warn them about the outsiders. Jedidiah dramatically dies, accusing the demons with his last breath.

Mark and Alec escape their restraints as the outsiders overrun the clearing. Some of them fall into the fire and begin to burn, running back into the woods. Others attack the villagers, choking and beating them. The woman who ordered Mark and Alec restrained begs them to take her to safety, but Mark is pulled away by the brawlers before he can answer her. Alec pulls him free and starts dragging him into the woods. Alec and Mark struggle their way out of the fighting only to discover the woods between them and their camp is burning.

Alec leads the way, running along the edge of the fire to keep from losing their direction. They suffer from the heat of the fire but keep running until they finally hit the edge of the flames and find a quiet place to get their bearings. They begin walking again, searching for their camp, but when they arrive, no one is there.