Pathogen - Chapter 6

Scruffy sat in the car, reflecting on his situation. He was excited when Master and his Friends had decided to take him out with them. But when they came to a stop and piled out of the car, Master had closed the door in his face. Scruffy wondered if he was a Bad Dog, if he was being punished for something. That was the only explanation for why Master would take him out only to leave him here.

When Master left, Scruffy was sad. He was always sad when Master left, but it was especially cruel of him to leave him in the back of the car. What’s more, he had left the window open, so Scruffy could smell all sorts of intriguing things outside, but still was trapped inside.

Sitting upright, he scratched at the window. It was an impermeable force field, but there was a gap just wide enough to wriggle through. The idea made Scruffy uneasy. He could be hurt in the fall, but that wouldn’t be half so bad as Master’s disappointment with him. If Master was disappointed, then Scruffy was certainly a Bad Dog. Scruffy was to stay in the car, that much he knew, and he sullenly accepted his fate.

Making the best of a bad situation, Scruffy pushed his head through the window. There were a thousand scents in that parking lot that were known to him but still exotic. The damp closeness of the fog could not entirely mask the smell of groceries in the nearby cars, or the gasoline fumes, or even the rich smell of fresh blood and Carrion.

Confused, Scruffy took another sniff. There must have been a dead squirrel, or maybe a raccoon somewhere  nearby. Yet, for some reason that didn’t seem like enough meat to make such a powerful smell. There had to be more than one piece of Carrion. With each sniff, he could pick out another distinct body of Carrion. Fortunately, he was downwind of the multiple sources, so he had no trouble distinguishing the sickly sweet scent of rot from the night air.

With a whimper, Scruffy withdrew from the window. There were so many Dead Things out there, it just didn’t seem right. He paced nervously in the back seat, once more lamenting the cruelness of Master for locking him up here with so many dead things outside. Worried that he might become a Dead Thing too, he urged Master to come back soon. 

Again, Scruffy leapt to the window to sniff out his surroundings. The Carrion scent was more overpowering now, the source must have moved closer. Still whimpering, Scruffy struggled to make sense of this new information. Carrion didn’t move anymore, that was part of what made it Carrion.

Through the fog, the dog could make out a faint outline in the shape of a person. It moved strangely, as if it was remembering how to walk again. Slowly but surely, it approached the car and Scruffy could discern some more details. Its long, dark hair and polka dot dress indicated she could have been a Nice Lady. Normally Scruffy liked Ladies. They cooed at him, pet him, and gave him treats. But the foul odour of decay was upon this lady, which made Scruffy uncomfortable.

Another outline distinguished itself from the fog. This one was a Man, practically sprinting. He was looking over his shoulder, so he didn’t see the Lady. At least, not until she saw him. His scream split the night and once more Scruffy could smell fresh blood.

The sight shocked the poor dog, but not as much as what happened next. The Nice Lady fell to her knees over the man she had attacked, and started to devour him. Teeth gnashed and spittle flew as her hands tore into the man to remove vile morsels from him. Scruffy didn’t regard her as a Nice Lady anymore.

What was happening simply wasn’t right. Carrion was food, Carrion didn’t eat anymore. It went against everything that Scruffy knew. Too much for the noble dog, he barked at the Lady. Distracted from her meal, the Lady turned to face the dog. Blood and offal fell freely from her face as she snarled at the dog.

Scruffy was overcome with fear. He knew that a Lady could open the doors to the car, but he could not. Why did he bark? That was foolish. He was a Bad Dog. The Carrion Lady was going to eat him now. People could open doors where dogs couldn’t, and now he was trapped.

The window! Scruffy knew he could escape that way. He had no trouble fitting 
his head through, but it was no small task to squeeze his fore legs through. Practically out of the car now, Scruffy hesitated. Master would be disappointed if he wasn’t in the car when he got back. The Lady snarled as she lurched closer, reminding Scruffy that this was more important than Master’s feelings.

With a push from his back legs, Scruffy tumbled out of the window. He fell heavily to the ground with a yelp of pain. A fiery sensation spread from his left fore leg, which was first to strike the ground. Instinct told Scruffy to get up, to run, to never look back. Ignoring the pain in his leg, Scruffy stood shaking to his feet.

The Lady in the now bloodied polka dot dress was close now, reaching out to snatch the dog. Scruffy limped away as fast as he could, the awkward trot of a three legged dog. Still, despite his injury, he was able to put a little distance between him and the Lady.

Sniffing around him, Scruffy was seeking a safe path away. With a whimper, he realised the Carrion scent was all around him. He continued his flight from the Polka Dot Lady, unsure where he should go, but sure he should be going away.

Miraculously, the wind shifted and with it brought relief to the panicking dog. The Carrion scent wasn’t so bad upwind, so Scruffy altered his course. The dog trotted more to his left, leaving the Dead Lady chasing him behind. It would only be a matter of time before she caught up to him, or before he ran into more like her, but for now at least he felt safer.

The pain in Scruffy’s leg became more insistent. In his panic, he hadn’t paid much mind to it. Running with an injury was going to be difficult, but Scruffy didn’t have another option. He allowed himself to whimper once more.

Scruffy’s flight brought him to a busy street. At least, it was usually busy. Right now, however, it was deserted. Scruffy followed the road, still awkwardly trotting with three legs. He risked a look over his shoulder. The Polka Dot Lady was about a dozen paces behind him.

Running for the rest of life seemed to be what Scruffy was doomed to. His paw pained him terribly, but still he pressed on. His Instinct to survive would always win out.

Another scent greeted him from upwind. It was like the gasoline fumes from the cars before, but with the pungent scent of roast flesh and the nostalgic aroma of Bonfire nights. Scruffy and Master used to enjoy a good Bonfire, whether Master took him into the woods or if they were just hanging out with friends in the backyard. They would roast marshmallows and hot dogs sometimes, and Scruffy would steal Master’s wieners. He always pretended to be upset by that, but he knew Master was letting him have them.

As Scruffy continued to run upwind, he began to see the source of this new combination of smells. A great, flickering light penetrated the fog as Scruffy drew closer. An SUV had rolled over in the street and struck a lamp post, which was apparently sufficient enough to cause an explosion. Scruffy picked his way through debris and broken glass towards the biggest Bonfire he ever laid eyes on.

Pinned beneath the wreckage was another of those terrifying Creatures that smelled of Carrion. This one had been a Man, but beyond that it was difficult to make out any details. The flames had engulfed the Creature, but although it burned it still struggled to free itself from the wreckage. As Scruffy passed by it reached out and growled at him.

Again, the wind carried the smell of Carrion to Scruffy. He risked a look behind him to discover the Polka Dot Lady was still chasing him, although she was a whole twenty metres away now. Scruffy couldn’t very well keep to the road if he was going to find more monsters on it, but he also couldn’t double back into the jaws of the Lady in the polka dot dress.

Scruffy would have to leave the road, but which way should he go? To his left lay more buildings, retail outlets, and eventually downtown. On the other side to his right was less developed. He could flee into the bush, then climb a wooded hill. On the other side lay the suburbs, and eventually the ocean.

Choosing the right, Scruffy plunged into the thicket. He had some slight difficulty negotiating the densely packed trees with an injured leg, but the Polka Dot Lady fared no better. While Scruffy was low to the ground and could take full advantage of his diminutive stature, the Dead Lady soon became ensnared in the brush.

Picking his way between trees and briars, Scruffy panted as he worked his way up the hill. Again he risked a look behind him, searching for the Lady in the polka dot dress. He found her still at the foot of the hill. Although she still made every attempt to pursue Scruffy, she was slowed to what was practically a crawl by the thick vegetation.

Soon Scruffy summitted the slope. He looked about himself, desperate for direction where to flee next. Even though the Dead Lady had slowed, she was still chasing him. He had to get away somewhere safe before she made it through the brush.

The fog wasn’t so thick up here, and Scruffy could get a reasonable picture of the surrounding area. Behind him, the path he had decided not to take, countless lights flickered in the city. Hundreds of Bonfires raged in the heart of the city, and Scruffy knew he’d made the right choice. Looking ahead of him, he surveyed the scene.

Fog City’s suburbs on the ocean side of town were situated in very hilly terrain. Scruffy couldn’t get a complete picture of what took place in the valleys, but it certainly looked a lot better than the city. A flame burned here and there, but otherwise the neat little houses that made up the neighbourhood were what they had always been: quiet.

Pressing on, Scruffy started his descent. He would find refuge in the suburbs. If Master was clever, he’d find him there, were it was so much safer than the city. If not, then Scruffy could live the life of a dog in the suburban middle class. He could run free in the back yards, enjoy barbecues, and maybe play frisbee with a Boy.

Scruffy hoped all those things could happen again. The walking Carrion upset him, it was deeply unnatural, but it couldn’t change the world he knew entirely.

Right?