Deep in the darkness she could hear them. In the walls, beneath the floorboards and the ceiling above. They haunted her ever-waking hours and their constant gnawing left her feeling like she was about to lose her mind. "They are coming for me," she thought to herself. She could only keep herself holed up in the chilly old room for so long. After all there was nowhere left to run. She pulled the cover over her head and tried to think of a more peaceful time but all she could think about was the chaos. History was repeating itself and she felt powerless to stop it.

How it all began seemed like a fever dream or better yet a nightmare. For as long as Chloe had remembered she feared rats. Feared their very presence. Feared their aggression and those sharp little teeth. She had done her best to ignore them in the beginning but then the plague began to spread. Much like it had during the medieval period when so many fell prey to the black death. Only this time something had changed. Modern medicine proved to be no match for the countless cases of the infected. She was forced to watch as friends and loved ones became infected with a form of the bubonic plague.

It began with a rise in the number of rats. They spread the plague quickly first with the homeless and then cities fell prey to the terrible illness. Covered with black boils and swollen lymph nodes that left the victim suffering in agonizing pain. Before long it had spread and as it spread so did death. In a matter of days it had spread around the world killing millions. The rat population had increased so much that exterminators couldn't keep up. At first Chloe wondered if she was losing her mind but as the bubonic plague began to spread rapidly, she realized that she was watching history repeating. There had been rumors that it had come from a lab rat that had escaped and infected other rats. Antibiotics didn't work on this new version of the plague and those who did live took part in destroying what was left of civilization.

The world was left in ruins as the dead were buried in mass graves as there were not enough people to dig individual graves. Around her there was an eerie silence, and it made her question her own sanity. Every morning, she awoke and looked out the dirty old window. There were no people around her and no kids playing in the street. Just garbage and debris. At some point Chloe was going to have to leave that room. She already had the can of gasoline. She looked down at the floorboards and saw the holes where the rats were trying to gnaw through. "Come on move" she said to herself. The longer she stayed the more danger she was in. Taking the gasoline she began splashing it on the walls and the floors.

She was going to open the door but taking a peep through the keyhole she could see the large rats gnawing on a couple of bodies. The house she was holed up in belonged to her elderly neighbors. They had boarded up their doors and windows, but nothing could keep the rats out. Rat's always found a way in. She busted out the window and then used her lighter to set a piece of the curtain on fire and after climbing out the window found herself falling near the remains of what appeared to be a dog. As the house went up in flames she could hear the loud screeches of the terrible rodents. She walked down the empty street and with every step she feared what she would find as she got closer to the small town.

The air around her smelt of death. It was a stench she should be used to. She had witnessed so many people around her die from the horrible plague. As she passed old bikes and tricycles her heart broke even more. As she neared town the stench grew stronger. "I'm in hell," she whispered to herself. Her fear of dying was what kept her alive. Chloe had done everything she could to avoid becoming infected. The town was full of bloated corpses laying in the streets. Covered with boils and one large man had a rat literally coming out of his mouth.

The rats were unusually large, and it was at that moment that she realized that they were quickly evolving. She started to run down the street and with each step had to jump across decayed bodies. With no clear direction she continued to run until she spotted someone or something a light out of one of the windows. A hand reached out and waved to her. Chloe ran towards the building where she found a couple of people holed up in a nice apartment. Before she was let in one of the guys who called himself Todd looked her over to make sure she wasn't infected. She was introduced to a couple Mike and Shelly, who were just as shaken as she was. The three appeared to be gearing up for the apocalypse but Chloe knew it was already here.

"There is a safe zone about thirty miles from here," said Todd. As Chloe listened to Todd go on and on about hearing some radio activity she couldn't help but notice Shelly watching her. "How did you make it on your own?" she asked. Chloe stammered at first because it had been two days since she had eaten anything. Todd caught her as she lost her balance. "Sorry it's been a while since I have eaten anything," said Chloe. Everything was a blur. The plague had spread so fast that as her family fell prey to it Chloe ran and hid. She had boarded herself up inside her bedroom with only a few bottles of water. A part of her felt guilty for surviving but the future remained unclear. "Where is the military?" she asked, as Todd helped her sit down. "They bombed Europe and parts of the U.S. but still the rats multiplied.

Though she had agreed to join the trio on their journey to the safe zone she found herself wondering if there was such a place. Rats were intelligent creatures and knew how to get into even the toughest places. For days they traveled with each one taking turns at keeping watch. They broke into the nicest houses hoping that they wouldn't find as many bodies they had found already. Men, women and children. The very sight made Chloe both angry and sad. Those were images she would never forget. Shelley had vomited at every sight and the more bodies they found the more Chloe felt like doing the same. She felt like an intruder but knew that the real intruders were climbing under the floorboards and in the walls.

Intelligent creatures who had turned on humans. "Be careful of what you touch," said Todd. Easier said than done, she said to herself. After all, food was moldy and splashed around giving sight to what the rats had managed to leave behind. Chloe sidestepped past the rat traps where dead rats had managed to be captured. Their decaying corpses were nothing compared to the lives they had destroyed. "Do you have anyone waiting in the safe zone?" Todd asked. "No," she replied sadly as they started down a pair of railroad tracks. It almost seemed surreal to even think about her family being gone. Her parents and sisters were all taken within days of each other. What started as a virus that took weeks to show symptoms had developed into something more dangerous.

Chloe had been living far from home when she had received the call that her family was ill. She had arrived in time to watch each one of them die. Until this day she had no idea of why she was still alive. After all it had fallen upon her to care for each one of them and it was an agonizing time during which she had seriously considered ending her own life but then the promise she had made to her mother to keep on going kept her from slitting her wrist. As they traveled for what seemed like miles she remained hopeful that there really was a safe zone somewhere. After days of being held up in a tiny room, practically starving to death she needed to keep a hold of some ounce of hope. When the group came upon a large field Mike and Shelly rushed towards it despite Todd shouting for them to stop.

Chloe could feel her stomach growling and wondered if there were any vegetables left. Todd muttered under his breath as he led Chloe towards the field however a loud scream made them stop in their tracks. Mike came rushing towards them carrying Shelly in his arms. "We were trying to reach for some carrots when a rat came out of nowhere and bit her," he said. Shelly was crying as blood seeped through her finger. "What is left?" Todd asked. "Just a few carrots the rats ate all the corn and cabbage," said Mike as he tried to calm Shelly down. Normally Chloe would have stepped up to bandage Shelly's wound, but fear had already set in. Both she and Todd knew that Shelly was most likely already infected.

"We need to get to the safe zone right away," said Todd, who remained hopeful that there was such a place. They continued traveling along the railroad tracks. They drank from the streams they found while living off of nuts and berries. The longer they traveled the sicker Shelly got. It started off as flu-like symptoms then her body became covered with small painful lumps. As Mike tended to her he became infected himself. Todd pulled Chloe off to the side and together they agreed to leave in the middle of the night. There was no point in watching the couple before them die a painful death. As they journeyed down the tracks she could hear squealing in the distance. They hurried as fast as they could towards what appeared to be a spotlight. As they ran Chloe found herself wondering if they were running towards salvation or damnation. They found themselves heading towards a large military type area.

However, they both stopped once they arrived. There were no members of the military on duty. The gate was opened and as they silently crept inside she had a horrible feeling of what they were about to find and that feeling was all too real. Bloated corpses covered with flies. Just the stench alone made them both vomit. She pulled out her handkerchief and covered her nose and mouth as Todd did the same. Chloe watched as Todd tried searching for any form of life. The fact that the military had fallen prey to the virus now showed her that the chances of them surviving were slim. "There is no one here," he said. "Todd, You have to accept that this is the end," she said. He brushed past her and then angrily turned to face her. "There are other humans out there and I am going to find them!," he shouted. His shouting seemed to awaken whatever rats were in the vicinity as she could feel their tiny eyes watching them.

Without warning the rats began jumping from the rafters and both she and Todd found themselves having to knock them off. Once he had removed the rats Todd fled and left her behind. Once she knocked them off of her she headed out into the open and threw her bookbag down on the ground. Pulling out a flute she gently stroked it. She remembered the story of the Pied Piper and knowing that she most likely was bit or scratched she raised it to her lips. Dazed she began to play and as she did the rats lined up in three rows. She turned and began playing, the music echoing in the night. As the sun began to set she headed towards a large cliff overlooking the ocean.

Beneath her were sharp rocks and rocky waves. Chloe watched as the rats jumped off the cliff and landed on the rocks below. She drowned out the squeals and as hundreds fell to the sea below. She looked down at her hand and noticed a couple of bite marks. As her veins began to turn black she smiled and fell backwards. Falling into the dark abyss and praying for bliss.

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