The Horsemen

6. The Spread

THE SPREAD

It's a wild night out in Wrigleyville. Clark and Addison always full of freshly minted twenty-one-year-olds', to middle-aged people who just want to enjoy a night out. And why not, it's a fun time with many places to go. The streets are packed, and the bars are full. You can catch a game at one bar, play trivia at another, or try to find a spot to just sit back and relax with some friends.

What the people tonight do not know, however, is that the most heinous evil the world could think of thus far has been set free to do unthinkable things. All this evil has been released just a few short miles from where countless people are trying to enjoy their night.

The streets are packed with a rowdy crowd from a late night. Most a bit too intoxicated, just waiting for their cab ride home. Some looking for the next bar to hit. Others just having a quick cigarette before heading back inside.

A group of twenty-somethings, two men and two women; young, attractive, recently graduated from college, all bright-eyed and ready for their lives to begin, standing outside of a bar having a cigarette. Unhappy with the fact that their careers must start at the bottom of their respective fields, are out drinking away the week they just had. I'm sure you know the type, the frat-boys who haven't yet matured past that stage of their lives, and the sorority girls who know better, but just have had a bit too much to drink and are tagging along for the ride.

Three of the four seem to be the most, well let's just call it how it is, obnoxious. One of the two women knows she's a bit too old to be acting childish, but she enjoys the company. That's when an older, homeless man comes walking down the street. He's clearly intoxicated; by what, that's hard to tell. He has been bumping into people that are standing along Clark Street, when he comes across our foursome.

One of the men, who has clearly had too much to drink already, decides it's time to play a prank on the helpless older man. As he approaches their group, before he gets a chance to use them as a pinball machine, the frat-boy sticks out his foot and trips him. His clothes, an old and dusty sweatshirt, and a tattered pair of jeans, become even dirtier and more torn as he falls on the cement.

The woman, who has already grown weary of the group's attitude, has had enough.

"Come on, did you really have to do that?" She snaps as the other three as they continue to laugh.

She walks towards the old man who is still laying on the sidewalk.

"Oh, don't be such a baby. It was just a joke." The other woman comes to the man's defense.

The woman ignores her comment and the laughter from the men.

She kneels down at the side of the homeless man and asks, "Can I help you up?"

"Yes, please." He responds.

He reaches out his right hand, and she grips it to help him up. The touch of their hands together sends a jolt of energy through her that causes her to almost lose her balance. After a split-second, she gains her focus and lifts him off the ground.

That's when she notices a strange tattoo on his wrist. A bow with a single arrow through it. The homeless man is in fact The First Ride - Pestilence in disguise.

The woman looks back at him, something about the tattoo made her feel uneasy. She attempts to let go of his hand, but he holds on tight. After taking a closer look at his face she can see that his teeth show a hint of green from decay and his breath lingers with the stench of rot. The woman quivers out of fear and disgust.

The same man who tripped Pestilence comes to the woman's aid to force him to let go of her.

"Back the f**k off, man!" The frat-boy grips his hand to pry it off the woman's.

Pestilence, who has been staring intently into the woman's eyes, snaps his head towards the man hastily.

"You should have been a little nicer, you peasant. Now you'll get it worse." He finally lets go of the woman and grips the man's hand. The man, for a moment, has the same feeling the woman did. Unease shooting through his body.

Then, Pestilence releases his grip, turns around and walks away. He vanishes back into the crowd of people on the street, leaving the foursome confused at the events that have just played out.

As Pestilence was walking the street earlier, bumping into people, he was infecting him with a virus, a plague on humanity. However, when he gripped the hand on the man and the woman, he infected them with a stronger version of the virus. A more direct infection.

Even though the woman was trying to help him, Pestilence is such a vile creature, it does not matter if any human shows him a kindness. To him, all humans deserve to suffer.