Walter remembered that Karl cured him after being infected by The Darkness somehow. There was a way to cure people after being infected if only he could figure it out. Walter racked his brain on where Karl said he was going, but he couldn’t remember. He decided to try and slow the infection while he waited for Dale to wake up.

The Academy trained them in basic field triage, and the first step was to locate the infected wound. Searching her body he found a wound similar to the one the rat beasts gave him. A hunk of her flesh gouged out with a black scab forming over it on her lower back. He could see black veins growing out from it, like the roots of a plant digging deeper into her back.

Tying her down, Walter applied a small incision to the wound. Black blood seeped out as the blade cut in, smelling like rotten meat drenched in honey. Gagging, Walter began to apply pressure to the wound, pushing more of the toxins out. Stephanie started to whimper and twitch in pain as the corrupted blood began showing streaks of red.

Squeezing the wound, Walter felt that it contained a hard center that needed to be removed. Attempting to make the incision a little larger Stephanie began to wake, struggling against her bindings. Her cries waking Dale as Walter struggled to hold her down.

Dale groaned and rolled onto his to see Walter squatting on Stephanie’s back, a knife covered in blood in his hand.

“What the fuck are you doing,” Dale yelled struggling through vertigo caused by his ruptured eardrums.

Walter looked quickly over at Dale, “Get over here I need your help holding her,” ignoring Dales outburst.

“You’re killing her,” Dale said as finally stood. His hand reaching up and touching the crusted blood in his ear, he took a lurching step to stop Walter.

Walter reacted quickly, dropping the knife, and backing away so Dale could see the black infected veins spreading from the abscess on her back. The corrupted black blood stained her back like rivulets of oil, spotted with blots of healthy blood.

“What can I do,” Dale asked.

“Hold her legs down, something is in her back that I’m trying to get out,” he said as he squatted back down to get to work.

Using his thumb and pointer finger, he spread the incision open wide. Black blood started to pool in the wound as Walter inserted the tip of his knife. He felt the knife tip clink off something hard and Stephanie screamed in agony flailing her arms and legs.

“What did you do?” Dale yelled. He was struggling to hold her bound legs.

“I don’t know but I think I found something in here,” Walter told him.

Dropping the knife, Walter went in with two fingers. The bauble in her back slick with blood moved kept slipping from his grip. Squeezing the wound so the bauble would not move, Walter hooked two fingers underneath it pulling it out. As he pulled it out, black veins like spider webs connected the pea-sized black bead to her wound. As he pulled harder on the bead, he watched the veins under her wounds move with every tug.

“What the fuck is THAT,” Dale yelled in panic.

“I think it’s a black mana orb,” Walter said. “When you get infected by the beasts, these must grow inside of you. I think,” Walter said.

Grabbing the knife Walter swiped it through the veins severing them from the bead. Stephanie started to seizure when disconnected from the bead, as the veins sucked back inside her body. Going limp she laid there panting like a dying animal.

Bandaging up her wound, Walter could still see the veins under her skin pulse and move like little snakes. Her skin cold and clammy to the touch she was unresponsive as they cut away the straps holding her.

Dale sat there looking at her smoking a cigarette, his hands shaking. “Is that going to grow in all of us?” he asked.

“I don’t know but I was infected and cured. I’m just trying to remember where Karl said he was going,” Walter told him. He paced around the front of the store, “He told me what he gave me but I just can’t remember.”

“Can you remember anything he told you,” Dale said as he exhaled smoke.

“He offered me a deal to adventure with him. And he fed me, pancakes I think its what he called them,” Walter said. “He actually was kind of obsessed with food on this world, or worlds like this one.”

Dale threw his cigarette on the ground, grinding it out with the toe of his shoe, “I don’t know what to tell you. This town ain't known for its cuisine bucko,” he said.

“I don’t think he was looking for cuisine because he said something about checking out a factory,” Walter said as he picked up a Snickers from the candy rack by the cash registers. Tossing it to Dale, “He gave me one of these to.”

Dale caught it, opening it up and biting into it. “Wish we made these here, all we got is a Twinkie factory outside of town,” Dale said around the mouthful of candy.

“That’s where he’s going,” Walter exclaimed. “How far is it?” Walter asked excitedly.

“Not far maybe 5 miles,” Dale said.

“Ok go get the truck and I will stay here,” Walter commanded.

Dale took off on a run for the truck as Walter sat there with Stephanie. The few minutes he waited saw no changes in Stephanie’s health.

As Dale pulled up, he leaned out and hollered, “We better hurry some zombies are heading this way.”

Walter lifted Stephanie carrying her to the truck. Laying her down in the back, he sat next to her as Dale started to drive. Not as fat as Stephanie had he still was not gentle with the turns.

Arriving at the entrance gate to the factory, they saw piles of dead mutated rats and zombies. Each one with a quarter-sized hole in their forehead with no exit wound. Walter stopped them from entering any further after examining the bodies. As he walked among the piles of dead beasts, he saw some stronger mutated ones including a four-armed humanoid one which he pointed out to Dale.

Dale readied his gun, “Where is everyone who did this?”

“Only one person did this, and whatever you do, don’t shoot if he is here,” Walter said. “He is from another dimension like me, but not a human.”

“Does he know what caused all this?” Dale asked gesturing to the piles of dead.

“I told you, we call it The Darkness and it brings death and destruction to any world it touches,” Walter said. Turning to Dale “Just stay there and keep her safe,” Walter said as he walked away.

Walter could hear the sound of machinery coming from the back of a warehouse. As he slowly walked to the warehouse, he could hear the sound of music under the sound of machinery. Slowly opening a door, he saw Karl, bobbing to the beat, on the black floating disk in the air taking apart a giant machine. Every piece he removed disappearing into thin air.

“Karl…. Karl…. KAAARRRRLLL,” Walter yelled to be heard over the music.