Hush in The Bush

Bridging

Their voids have their own purposes. It’s a matter of taking the wholeness of their foes, but it wouldn’t defy them of who he is. It’s been three days and the base wasn’t still able to get any contact to the team that was separated. They are wasting time, that’s what Catheryne is thinking, but she can’t do anything but to obey the rules from the higher-ups. Though, Mildred continued to step on her personally; testing her patience, she couldn’t help but to worry about her. They can’t also locate their current positions as if they have vanished all of a sudden.

“Did you get them?” Catheryne worriedly inquired as she piled some reports and documents over her desk.

“I still didn’t have an access to where they are or any information about them. Victoria didn’t even contact us through their radios. I think there’s something happening there. We need to send the available ones for a rescue.” Captain Roswal Kimberton said and took a sip of his freshly brewed coffee, crossed legs, wearing his corporal attire, his well neat cleaned shoes sparkling on the floor and was sitting attentively on the green perpendicular couch at the lobby.

He had prayed that those who have been left are still breathing for hope will be set upon them soon. One thing that they have to do when they are held is never share the code of their organization. It would be a form of treachery.

“Not yet. We will wait after two days, if they can’t make it, we’ll have to organize and set a mission to save and get them.” He laid.

Before they could say something again, they were barred by a sudden impulsive knock. It was Dr. George, bringing some wheat bread and a half-full jar of strawberry jam. He walked towards the two and sat across Captain Roswal. Gently putting the food on the desk, he listened to them attentively.

“I didn’t know they still got that thing.” Captain Roswal said and grabbed a piece of bread and put the jam on top of it. He even let the ants that are marching at the side of his chair by pouring the crumbs on them. The others have appreciated his kindness, but as they watched the tiny creatures devoured their food, they have understood that they were just like them – building a colony and fighting those who are a threat in destroying the zone.

“We did find some when we’re going to the mall for our toiletries and our stocks for this month. Our population inside the base is getting bigger also, since we have taken those who are living by the sewers. The Founder has also shared to me that those in the higher positions are planning to get a new vicinity for the others. We couldn’t let our base to be overpopulated. Maybe next quarter, they would probably find a place and relocate the other citizens we are holding.” Dr. George said and read one of the old newspapers. Aside from the captains, he’s also closed to Mr. Vicoffs, especially because he’s of the doctors who’re observing the man. Sometimes, he would be the first to know the possible plans of Trinity, since Mr. Vicoffs is much comfortable to talk to him as if he’s his son.

“Captain Roswal, what do you think of the Origin?” He precipitously asked him who currently enjoying his munches. The officious Catheryne who tends to take her focus with the documents suddenly looked to the men at the lobby.

She asked herself which topic is now being discussed and was trying to read Dr. George.

“Mmm. Now that you opened it. I think the Origin is somehow a big mistake they have made from the past that made the place into this situation. I guess the people behind this thing just wanted to have a betterment, but in return, it happened to be the conflict. I also deem that they’re kind of selfish somehow with their decisions.” Captain Roswal said and happily finished his sandwich.

“To think they were part of the cause they have the biggest reason to hide themselves from the past.”

“They are probably joining the others who were already decomposing beneath us. I’m sure they’re having their tea party right now and enjoying the view of us doing some sh*tty things just to survive in this world they have created.” Roswal stood impatiently as he hold his emotions. “I’m going to see the Founder and discuss some certain matters regarding the Infinite.” He added and took himself outside Catheryne’s office and drove off directly to Mr Vicoff’s property, which left them looking at each other.

Captain Roswal de Vida is the leader of Group Three: Archbishop. Most of the members of his team still believe in gods that would probably and hopefully save them. He was a former member of the youth that served inside the chapel in the past. Eventually, he was able to gather his own team and was moving according to the ways by the book he’s been reading. More like he’s the religious person among others. He’s also a cousin of Dr. Victoria and it’s the reason why he wants to get her out of that place.

Catheryne walked to George, bringing with her some files about their new mission in the Riverside.

“John got me some copies of this. They wanted us to look over the Riverside.”

“For what purpose?”

“They got some information about the Ethernal. They wanted us to check the place and see if there’s a sign of the Devian’s troops there.”

“Oh okay. But this time we have to go through the Bridge. I already asked permission for the vehicle that’ll be used for us to patrol. It’s an excuse obviously. I also wanted to surprise her when we get there, since she doesn’t want any trouble and visitors. It’s the best thing that we could do to make her talk.” George smiled and stood. “I’ll be right back, I just need to get my pack. Meet me at the ground, after you get all that you needed.” He added and left the room.

Catheryne agreed and immediately grabbed some food, protective gear, flashlights, the disk and the weapon they have found. She put it inside a plastic cylindrical container with wheels and a handler. She turned off the lights and carefully locked her office, making sure no one was going to bug inside. She looked at the clear sky and saw the bush from the north.

“I hope you’re all alright there. If not, I’m going to take you back Isabela and the others.” She said to herself and went directly to the parking lot.

Doctor George had also arrived, standing beside the armoured truck with his black heavy pack bag hanging at his back. They immediately went inside and George started the engine and finally, the guards have let them pass. It was noon, the sun was prickling their sweats, crows were flying above them, patiently hunting some dead. The city is still in its horrific apocalyptic state. They passed by a group of stray persons who were stale, some were sitting alongside of the central road, carefully taking their focus upon the vehicle they were driving. They were getting worse than what they were expecting – as if they’re hungry to eat, enough to take a living person.

“They’re giving me some chills.” Catheryne mumbled, rubbing both her shivered arms as she looked back at those.

“Don’t take too much of their attention. They might follow us somehow.” George muttered and intently focusing on the narrow freeway.

“How did they even manage to survive outside?”

“People are always greedy, Cath. They would do anything to live, even if it means killing their own kind. We couldn’t blame them if they have already done such things to their friends, or even worse to their own families, but this is how we’re living now. We need to adapt what’s standing right now in front of us.”

Catheryne sighed and turned her sight to the road as they turned to the right side. After a couple of minutes, she saw the Bridge that was bombed 6 months ago.

“Do the heavens still listen to our prayers, George? Do the angels even know we’re still here, seeking some guidance and help?”

“They always do. But we also need to do our parts here below. We couldn’t let our guards quiver or be weary in death’s presence and put our whole trust upon the ones above us. I mean, I could somehow see things in equality sometimes. Whether you’re rich or poor, we are on the same boat, dealing with the heavy tidal waves of these bushes.”

They were fastly approaching the house of George’s acquaintance, when a bunch of people they’d seen a while ago suddenly blocked the driveway, dead eyes. George immediately hit the break hard and made them stop.

"Shoot! What the hell do they want?" She spoke.

They were staring at both of them. Their eyes began to swell and their bodies started to decay all of a sudden. They started to march slowly in their way, acting like robots.

“W-what’s going on, George? Why are they approaching us? I’m having a bad feeling about this.” She pressed his arm.

Catheryne looked at her side mirror and saw someone appear at the back. It was a 6-year old girl with puffed eyes just like the others. She was clenching something sharp and abruptly succumbed. In an instant, they felt the back tires were being pierced and the vehicle started to move downwards.

“G-George, the…the tires.” Catheryne started to panic as she see George freezing on his sit.

“G-goddamn it! Get on your senses!" Catheryne slapped him on his cheek that made him back to himself.”

“W-we’re going to die!” The young man couldn’t think straight and was so frightened. The parade stopped just in front of them. Catheryne slowly moved her head and saw a horrific scene from the people that surrounded them. They deliberately opened their mouths all together and small flowers started to reveal from them and will be popping! then suddenly a white paled smoke aroused at both sides. Catheryne couldn’t say anything in a moment but the dense smoke that came from a tear gas that was thrown from someone. Suddenly, someone budged and opened her door. It was a woman, covered with dried leaves and a black mask. She was holding a riffle at her right hand. She forthwith grabbed Catheryne outside the vehicle and pushed her at the tall slender grasses under the trees. She headed back and pulled forcefully George outside who was still shaking and shocked.

___

A glass of water was splashed suddenly to the frightened face of George. The young man was still in shock at what he had seen a while ago. After a couple of minutes of slumbering, he gained himself again and looked at the mad expression of the woman who was wearing an overall outfit of leaves, covering all over her tanned skin in front of him, standing as she put both of her hands on her waist. She got those round, auburn eyes and golden brown hair. She’s five flat tall and has a slimmed body. She’s blending with the nature. She slowly removed the dried coverings and left her with her inner clothes - a denim jacket and a blue paired with her dirty white snickers.

“Who even told you to go here?” The woman muttered and gave him a contemptuous look. She walked over Catheryne who was looking at the well-curtained greyed window outside. There were no signs of any appearance who appeared at the narrow road a while ago.

“Hey, you. What brought you here? Do you need something?”

Catheryne looked over the woman who was pouring some lemonade on the glass.

“Oh, hi. We’re from Trinity, we just-”

“You should leave.” The woman said directly.

“But, we need to talk to you-”

“I don’t want to deal with anything which is related to the Trinity.”

“Amelia…” George said and slowly stood from his seat and walked to her. “We need your help. There’s nothing to do with the Trinity here. We went here for our own purposes.” He added.

“You know that I already cut the ties between that arrogant organization.”

Catheryne couldn’t understand what the woman was talking about, but she surely thought that something had happened between her and the Trinity. The woman gave the drink to the both of them and sat on the couch. Her hideout was just a spacious one and wasn’t that recognizable to any other groups, which intend to be located under the left side of the Bridge. The outside was covered with dried leaves, just like what she wore at saving them.

Catheryne closed the curtains when she didn’t anything moving outside, rather than the leaves being blown by the wind with the dust. She moved her eyes around the house, a picture got her attention. It was a portrait of two women embracing each other as they smiled happily with their laboratory gowns.

“Who is she?” Catheryne pointed at the young woman on the right side of a picture, who has a brown hair was in a ponytail.

“She’s my partner and a family. Apparently, she wasn’t able to live this long due to some reasons.” The woman said and took a sip on her juice.

George roamed around the house and was peaking on each window.

“What are those creepy dead people a while ago?” He asked and sat beside the woman.

“You were lucky you weren’t there when they exploded. They were known for being called the bombers. More like the new weapon of the group of an organization.”

“Bombers? What you do mean by that?” Catheryne looked at her, leaning on the wall and crossed her arms.

“They were injected by the pollens and eventually turned them into hosts. I reckon you already have identified the stages of the victims. Apparently, those you have seen a while ago were just taking their first stage. It was obvious that they got the first symptoms which were bruises and nosebleeds. But more to that…” She looked up at the wooden ceiling wall. “They’re still conscious of what they’re doing. Eventually they would reach the next stage, but before they could make it, they needed to do their job – to explode just in time and let the pollens scatter through the air. They’re helping the bushes to grow somehow.”

“Why are they doing that?” George interrogated and sat beside her. Now the topic is getting interesting and loving through ears.

“It was like a ritual made by them. They’re offering themselves to help the nature rule the world, more like making the world to its very own origin. I heard an organization was paying a handful of goods for them to survive in return of their bodies to be made as hosts.” Amelia stood abruptly and made her way to the kitchen to get some grilled chicken and returned after.

“Make yourselves comfortable. So why did you even bother to get yourselves to be killed almost and go here?” The woman scratched her legs and peered at both of them.

Catheryne gawked for her container and grabbed the weapon. Amelia was alarmed when she saw the amour. She didn’t anticipate to see it again for a couple of years. All she could

“Where on earth did you find that thing?”

“Well, George was able to discover a secret passage on his laboratory and we were able to get that together with a disk. The other tapes and disks were still there.” Catheryne offered the weapon to her and she slowly held it with her bare hands. “We’re also hoping if you’ll teach us how to use that. George said you were fond in electronics and mechanics.” She added.

The woman stared at the weapon and sighed. “I thought I wouldn’t see ever again. I was part of the team to get this thing done. We were able to make a single one for this model just before the incident happened. I was part of the origin.”

Catheryne and George were both shocked when they heard it.

“You’re part of it?” George said.

“It wasn’t a thing to be bragged on. I regretted being with those people back then. We knew it wasn’t a good experiment and the success was in its low percentage. We were given the hint that those bushes outside will be out of hand, and now it happened. I guessed you have already seen one of those tapes.” Amelia looked at Catheryne. “I was one of Trinity’s engineers. And that woman with me in the picture was my best friend. She was the former assistant of that doctor and she’s the first person to be killed by the bush.”

Catheryne and George remembered the woman who assisted Dr.V in the video. She was the one being captured and wasn’t able to escape the bush. The doctor left her with guilt.

“Was that the reason you left Trinity?” George asked in a melodic tone.

“It’s one of the reasons I set my own tracks far away from them. But the main reason I left the group is because your group’s ways are too crucial and selfish. Everyone is, but I can’t deny that Trinity is far worse than the other groups. They might have just thought that they could set their own crowns and thrones in here, but they didn’t even realize that people are capable of building new groups too that’re in total opposite and against them.” She sighed and looked at the image of her and her friend.

“We got our own perspective when it comes to putting ourselves in such bond. I respect your side for not approving for Trinity, but I guessed our group is doing fine. In fact, George is trying to find a possible source of medicine to cure this virus.” Catheryne announced, but all she got from the woman was a taunt.

“I see. So you’re on your way to being a hero this time, George.” She teased, making the man scratch his nape.

“I just want to get our lives back and maybe also the people who have turned into hosts…” He said in a low tone.

“Who’s she?” Catheryne asked, referring to the friend of Amelia.

“She’s Obrey. If you’re going to inquire any information about the doctor she’s been working with, I don’t have any. She never discussed or mentioned anything about those whom she’s been with. Anyways, I will teach you on how to use this, but promise me you wouldn’t let the others know about this thing. Before I left, I decided to hide this in our secret room to be kept safe from the higher authorities.” She explained.

The two agreed and listened attentively to the woman.