Day 1 - Midnight.

“What the FUCK is going on!"

I slammed my head back against the thick hospital door. My eyes darted wildly around the dimly lit delivery suite, struggling to make anything out in the hospital's gods-shitting-damned failing emergency light system!!!

Screams. Crying. Crashing. The world was unravelling, and the disorienting noise outside felt like a tsunami of terror. My thoughts were spinning wildly out of control.

Noises bathed the entire room from the outside, adding to the head spinning disorientation as I tried to bring my mind under control.

Somethings coming! Block the door. I NEED TO BLOCK THE FUCKING DOOR! GET UP! MOVE!

My body jolted into action, finally acknowledging that I needed to do something very fucking important, but then promptly failed me as I slipped and face planted onto the cold, disinfectant-stenched floor. There was something else-something rancid, a violation, something that made my stomach churn butter, but I had no time to dwell on that right now.

"Shhhhit!" I hissed through clenched teeth, scrambling to drag an overturned medical bed across the room. Just in time too. Something, or someone, slammed into the door with terrifying force

*BANG*

"CLAKCLAKCLAKCLakclakclak....Skreeeeeeeeeeeeeee-"

"HELLO? Are you one of the staff?? Can you help?? Can you help my pregnant wife? She's-...No-no-NO-NO!!! STAY BACK! NO STAY BACK! HELPPP-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHURK-..."

Crunch.

A man's desperate cries for help were silenced in the most horrible way imaginable. What followed was a series of truly sickening sounds like someone was churning a bucket full of watermelon, eggs, and raw chicken.

Please.

Distant, pained, terror-filled screams mingled and mixed with the other chaotic noises down the hallway, like the sounds of vomiting echoing in a toilet bowl at a house party. The amount of desperation, manic pleading, and nightmare fuel sounds chilled my blood; my mind was treading on very fucking thin ice.

Please stop. Just go away. Just go, the FUCK, AWAY!

My arms ached and my fingers throbbed, sore from how hard I was gripping and pushing against the cart, but I was desperate to keep the door shut above all else; it was my only defense.

It is OUR only defense.

More utterly disturbing growling and guttural noises tittered against the thickset hospital door as I held my breath and internally yelled at my heart to shut the fuck up, lest the thing outside could hear it..

..

Mercifully.. it started to move away. Whatever it was. Whatever was making those nightmare-inducing sounds.

Waiting a few more cold moments, I finally recovered some of my sanity and slowly unclenched my hands. Carefully and as quietly as I could, I placed another spare chair in front of the cart.

It was a meager offering, but it would hopefully hold for now..

This is the best I can do. I need to check on Marri and Lone. We need to get the hell out of here.

My eyes had finally adjusted enough to look over at my terrified wife, Marri, whimpering in the corner, cradling our less-than-2 hour-old newborn, Lone.

Even in this living nightmare, I couldn't help but admire how beautiful she still looked as the strobes of the emergency lighting traced over her in a finite loop that was showing signs of failing. Her raven black hair was limp with sweat and her wonderful green eyes were puffy with tears and fatigue but, she's the most wonderful creature..I'm too fucking lucky to be with her...I won't let anything happen to her. I. Fucking. Won't.

A wave of emotions washed over me as I rushed over and wrapped my arm around her, giving a gentle head nudge on her forehead “Marri, how are you both holding up, honey?” It was a stupid question, but I had to ask.

White as a sheet with exhaustion and fear, she just nodded sharply. She clearly wasn't okay, but she tried to reassure me nonetheless; it was a testament to how insanely tough mothers were and it bolstered my resolve. She was shivering out of fear but I couldn’t tell who was shaking more, me or her.

“You are incredible. Really, really amazing. I’m going to do whatever it takes alright? Whatever it takes! I’m going to get you, Lone and me out of here and I swear I’ll protect you both. No matter what. We can do this...we'll be alright-"

I had to believe that. We had to believe that.

"After all, we’ve got this amazing little guy that will look out for us as well yeah? Heh, look how tough he is, hasn’t even cried once while there’s us two shaking like a bunch of wet wipes, right?”

I was absolutely scared shitless but pretending to be brave and talking bollocks made me feel better. A little bit.

“Ye-yeah, Godu, I know, I know. I’m just really scared…and I’m so, so tired..Although I’m not sure if I can even sleep. I feel so numb and I’m so absolutely scared but like, really tired…but..I can’t sleep here! Wh-what if something happens or-or they get in!!! I want to go to sleep! But I'm scared!!-” she whispered. Her voice was thin, trembling.

I swallowed my own fear, forcing myself to stay steady. “I know. I am too. But I’m here. We’ll get through this..whatever this is..”

Knowing the history of mankind, this probably isn't the first time someone gave birth during the start of a war…or attack, or whatever the hell this was, but still...this is pure horror.

She broke down into uncontrollable sobs as my mind drifted. I regained focus and sucked up all my fears and feelings and cast them into the abyss, like a good boy.

“Shhhshhh! Honey it’s okay. Please, I won't let anyone in! You just rest, I'll watch over you, easy now..easy..” I pulled her tighter and kissed her forehead. She went quiet but I could feel her body twitch as she held in her sobs.

“We’re going to be alright…we’re going to be alright…we’re going to be alright” I repeated as we swayed together.

...

After half an hour or so, she fell asleep nursing our tiny boy; Sheer physical exhaustion having had a big part to play in her pretty much passing out once a shred of drowsiness carressed her eyelids, so I slipped away from the bed doing my best not to disturb them, and, located a couple of pillows that I tucked either side of her arms to keep them both comfy and safe.

Cosleeping..SIDS..pretty low on my current list of risks..But measures taken regardless. Phew okay. Keep it up.

Satisfied with my work, I let out a sigh and massaged my temples, hoping for a sliver of relaxation or peace

The riotous sounds were mercifully becoming somewhat more distant, which afforded a smidgen of comfort as I rubbed my stubbled face in a further attempt to try and self-soothe before sagging down into the green hospital armchair. It had been over 24 hours since we’d arrived at this god-forsaken-hospital, expecting nothing more than a normal delivery.

How had it all gone so horribly wrong?

Looking back it had been a blur--16 hours of labor, punctuated by gasps, grunts, and Marri’s cursing. A clear random memory popped up; the midwife had struggled to spell my name - “Yes it’s spelt G-o-d-u-y-n-e pronounced God-une. but you can call me God-du. Either’s fine. Ha-oh my surnames even better, yes that’s S-l-a-e-y-r-u..pronounced Sleigh-ru. And my wife is Marrigan. Yes, same surname.”

Yes it's a strange name, but I must have had strange parents...Not that I ever knew them, having been left in foster care since birth...Something that I would never do to my child, not in a million years..I ended up meeting Marri through the system and overall it was generally full of kind, loving people...Mostly.

So we hunker down and 16 hours pass in a blur of cursing and grunting and oooooooooo-ing, lots of breathing techniques-And some sweet, sweet gas and air!

Then comes the big moment and we’re pushing and pushing and, WOAH, uhh, she doesn't need me down near the business end, so I stayed up beside her lovely puffy face holding her hand as she’s doing one big final push, it’s the last stretch and then…

”It’s a boy!!! congratulationnnnnnnnnsssssaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAARRRGHGHH!”

Out of nowhere, the doctor screams. She was holding my boy with his umbilical cord still attached when the power abruptly cut out and the emergency lights slammed on. We were in only minor confusion, panic and shock at this point..But, then came a shocking kind of painful wave or what felt like a blast of a thousand ice cold pins washing over me. And I think I heard whispers?..Probably my imagination..

Well, what wasn’t in my imagination was one of the two nurses, or midwives or doctors? Oh, I don’t really know what they were for fuck sakes! but she spontaneously disintegrated right in front of us!

Fucking disintegrated!!

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

It was like she was made of flesh one minute, then the next, kinetic sand and she just dropped - clothes and all. Then, we hear guttural roars and an uninvited guest wearing a doctors kit running through our room, covered in blood, and HE pissing dive bombed through the window!!

I shook the memory from my mind. It was too much to process.

My gaze drifted to the shattered window, and my stomach tightened. I hadn’t checked it yet.

Ffffffffuck.

Slowly, cautiously, I moved over to the window and peeled back the curtain. The cold night air hit me instantly. The moon was bright—too bright considering how abnormally pitch black the shadows looked. I had to be careful to not slice my neck on any sharp bits of glass remaining as I carefully stuck my head out and looked down. My hands were trembling and my breathing threatened to hyperventilate, yet, again, I shoved the writhing fear down as morbid curiosity compelled me to find the fate of Dr Diver, breaker-of-windows, first of his name...

...I'm not taking credit for that one brain. That's on you.

*

My mind excelled at vile and completely juvenile thoughts, but my dark humour sobered when I looked down.

Welp.

There was no corpse. Just a grim splatter mark and smears of reflective blood streaking away into the darkness. We were 3 floors up,

Perhaps the guy survived and dragged himself-

“SCREEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIICHHHTTTTTTT-RRRRROOOWWWWWwwww…"

A demonic screech echoed outside. The horizon lit up with distant amber and red lights, pulsating and flashing; it felt like the end of the world-

No thanks. I’m good.

I couldn’t take it. The world was unraveling, and I was barely holding on..so I went into ignorant mode

I think I’ll go back to the armchair for now and process all that..later.

Carefully and quietly, I slid the curtain back and gently patted it back in place.

Okay curtain, you just stay closed now, yeah? I’ll just, uh, return to my seat.

...

Sitting there listening to the chaos happening in the other rooms and periodically outside, I slowly rocked back and forth trying to stay sane at the horrible noises, twitching at every creak, bang or thumping footstep. Infrequently now, compared to earlier, a bone chilling scream or grotesque wail could be heard, heavily muffled through the door, ceiling and walls, giving all the nightmare fuel my imagination needed to paint a happy little satanic picture of what was happening outside. Initially I thought that maybe the power going out was causing people pain, since it was a hospital, but that would be me trying to lie to myself that it wasn't as horrific as it sounded. The sounds were fundamentally wrong, beyond comprehension.

Like when you are a child and you see an adult sobbing uncontrollably for the first time or two grown men or women fist fighting, it fills you with that grim, cold, sickly feeling as your innocence is torn away from you..What the hell is happening..

In the past, I sometimes found it helpful to deal with scary situations by breaking down all the information available to understand it better. After all, nearly all fear came from not knowing or understanding so..Yeah, let's try that. Okay, let’s think, after Doctor window…..

Oh!

The sole remaining nurse or midwife that was still in the room holding my newly born child, must've had ovaries of steel, because, after standing there in shock at what just happened, something in her just clicked and she put on the most determined face and went into absolute super hero mode.

Seriously, I already knew the NHS was full of angels and saints but she is up there with the toughest..

She wore a faceguard, but I remember her: small, olive-skinned, with steel-blue eyes and dark sandy blonde hair tied up. She seemed to be in her mid-thirties, possibly of Arabic or Syrian descent, but her impeccable English, with a slight roughness, suggested one parent was British. Her voice was soothing yet authoritative—like a teacher’s.

With almost divine efficiency, she cut the cord, performed the checks, wrapped little Lone, got him nursing, and finished delivering the placenta while cleaning Marri up. Despite the disturbing noises and the complete electrical failure, she managed it all flawlessly. I honestly don’t know how. Looking back, I don’t even recall what Marri or the midwife said—we must have all been in shock, running on instinct, grunting and cursing simple orders to one another.

Then we made sure Marri was settled in the bed with Lone whilst me and the Midwife left to see what was going on outside. In hindsight it sounds a bit fucking mental, but I'd only expected to take a quick look and return..

But...then...wha-...what happened?

Thinking started to hurt and no matter how hard I tried, my brain was failing to recall much at all.

Shit. Not a good sign..What's wrong with my brain...

Some deep breaths helped.

One step at a time..I remember following the Midwife for a bit before we went past the kitchen and thinking when we returned I'd bring some food and water for my wife, 'just in case' she needed them...Then…screeching and extremely violent roars, shouting, growls and crying, wailing…then a blank. Suddenly I was sprinting….running back and… then I’m grabbing an office paper recycling bin and threw in whatever I could find from the kitchen and started frantically searching for my room…But I had seen something really messed up? What was it? It was-

Red.

Wet.

Copper.

Sickly sweet.

A flood of images returned. Red, gore filled images. Images that made my mouth salivate uncontrollably.

Oh gods no, I remember, it was BLOOD. EVERYWHERE.

Extreme amounts of blood and blobs of something streaked along the walls. I'd followed the midwife through some double doors that led to a hallway FILLED with mutilated bodies on the floor and I had immediately gave in to deep instincts that screamed at me:

RUN.

GET SUPPLIES.

RUN BACK TO YOUR FAMILY.

HIDE.

I grabbed a nearby bucket and emptied my stomach contents. I started to break down, crying and silently sobbing from the stress and fear, clutching my head.

Shit I can’t lose myself, come on! Your mind is stronger than this! Fucking buck up!

The emergency lights started to fade out.

FUCK! FUCK! NONONO!

Extreme levels of adrenaline were overloading my system; My body was trembling violently and had started to go numb.

Why was there so much blood on the walls? What was out there? Where did the body go from the doctor and what the fuck was that noise I’d heard outside?! Where are the police or Doctors??! OR PEOPLE-

I drew a deep breath, forcing myself to focus on my family. Think of them. Breathe. Exhale. It helped, even if ice-cold fear still coursed through my veins. All right. Let’s think like a human, not a scared animal.

Could it be an attack? Terrorism? A pathogen making people violent? But we were fine—Marri, the midwife, and I had all been fine. Could it be war? A biological weapon? Or worse...zombies? Christ, don’t let it be fucking zombies or some Raincoat Corporations secret virus escaping from a lab..If only I could access the internet or a phone to see what the shit was going on.

One of the first things I naturally tried was to check for our phones. But they were mysteriously gone. All of them.

Even so, I checked again.

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result.." I grumbled to myself. So is talking to yourself..

Dammit still no luck.

My mobile phone still simply could not be found anywhere which was oddly terrifying in itself, I felt naked without it. It was 2024 and who wouldn't have their smartphone at least within 3 ft of them at all times?! I felt bizarrely crippled and anxious without it.

I can’t call for help using the phones and there’s now no more light in the building and I’ll be DAMNED if I’m leaving those two here on their own to look for a sodding torch!

Lone mewled in his sleep, and the adorable sound briefly shattered the horror. Marri sighed softly, and they both shifted, continuing to sleep while he nursed. That simple, wholesome scene switched something primal in me—aggression began to replace fear.

Fine. Caveman mode it is. Reinforce the cave. Find food. Find weapons. Whatever this was, I’d fight it. I’ll protect my family. If I have to be violent then fuck it and fuck the consequences. Surely the police would accept my actions were acceptable?

A surge of determination washed over me. I envisioned beating down any threat, the typical fantasies of bravery and heroism. Then—BANG.

The universe slapped me back into reality.

BANG.

I almost yelped, but swallowed it, my blood freezing as the noise shot through me like needles.

THUNK.

Something slammed into the door. A wheezing, chattering sound followed—like teeth clattering and clicking. I'd never known true fear paralysis up until this cold, horrifying moment.

*SCRAAAAAAPE*

*CLIKCLIKCLIKCLAKCLAKCLAK-WHEEEZE*

No, no, no, please no.

*SCREEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeee…CLIK....CLAK...CLIK...wheeeeeze*

What the fuck is that!

*Taptaptaptap*

"Gaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrll.."

There was a gargling noise then quiet.

Shakily and as quietly as I could, I dropped to the floor, all of that confidence gone and replaced with pure fear. I forced myself to scramble over to the barricade, whimpering and trembling, and I slowly pushed against it with everything I had, hoping and praying that whatever the fuck was out there would give up and move on..but deep inside my instincts told me it knew we were there...and it wanted to come in.

The door itself is shut and the handle hadn’t been touched yet..but there isn't any bloody way to lock it without a key! It wouldn't take much to-

"AAWWWWAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

A blood curdling infants cry pierced the air.

"Shhhshhh baby! Nono not now! PLEASE be quiet! Oh please, shhh!"

A muffled female voice frantically tried to plea with the infant.

"AWAAAAAH! AWAA-"

The pleas were ignored, and met with more screaming before being muffled, poorly. Probably by a desperate mothers hand.

"Mmm-......Mmmwww-...."

There was a brief period of silence as I held my breath in gut wrenching, guilty relief. I heard the tiptaps and clikclak noises rapidly moving away, assumably towards the noise...Then abruptly, a blood curdling scream of both an infant and adult pierced the air and the sounds of a short scuffle that barely lasted even two hyperventilated whimpers.

"Thwack...thwack..thwack.."

Only the sounds of a faint almost rhythmic thumping remained as I stared at the door in utter disbelief. I covered my ears, hoping to cancel out the sounds, but the terrible vibrations could be felt through the floor. I silently cried in relief, whilst at the same time hating myself for not having the courage to grab a weapon and trying to help.

WHY AM I SO WEAK?

Even though I knew chastising myself was futile, I couldn't help but hate myself as my imagination ran wild...I glanced over solemnly at my wife and child with tears streaming down my face.

Get. It. Together.

How could I let fear get to me when those two were in their most vulnerable state. I needed to be better, to be braver and, most importantly, I needed to be stronger.

They both stayed asleep, which was such a relief, so I laid down in front of the barricade trying so hard to not let my weeping become loud enough to wake them.

For now, until I figured something better out, I could at the very least use my useless meat-sack of a body to help reinforce the door barricade.

For now…just stay silent and block the entrance… just for now…for their sake..

Just for...a few… more… minutes….

…

..

.