Reboot Universe - Part 6 - written for Lifejournal

[prisca]

Title: The Tiger (Reboot 6)
Character: Casey Connor, Zeke Tyler
Word Count: 3076
Rating: R
Finished: February 2015

This is a chapter of my Reboot Story = Crossover/AU between Jeremiah / The Faculty.


They had been following the tracks for almost two hours, and Zeke started to believe that they would never be able to find the causer. Only the thought of the three young, scared women let him still move on.

It was last evening that he and Casey found the old farm. Despite the provisionally repaired roof and some broken, nailed-up windows, it was in a good state, with a small barn and a kitchen garden. Zeke had stopped, hoping for a meal and maybe a warm place to stay overnight.

The last days had been cold and rainy; Casey didn't stop shivering, though, of course, he wouldn't complain, as usual. He was the most stubborn boy he had ever seen, but honestly, he enjoyed being together with him. Not only had the world changed, but he had, too. The times when he had only been interested in parties, girls, and fun, where he had cared about nothing and no one, were long gone.

They had been on the road for some weeks, and Casey was still unwilling to give up and return to Herrington, where they would find at least some comfort. Though no one they had met on their trip seemed to know about this mysterious 'Thunder Mountain' they were looking for. Zeke was convinced that it didn't even exist; it was just a pipe dream of a freaking guy. But Casey did believe his words, that the fate of the world depends on him … again. He had been the one who had killed the alien queen… which had caused the 'Big Death'; almost everyone older than twenty died. It was nearly two years ago, but Zeke knew Casey still felt guilty, and he was looking for a way to make up for it. No way that Zeke would leave him alone out here. The world hadn't stopped turning but had changed, everyone was fighting to survive, and a lot of gangs of skinheads and other schizos had earned too much power.

But there were other people, too, like the women in the farmhouse. At first, they had been cautious when Zeke stopped the Chevrolet in front of the farm, but they relaxed soon after he offered them some goods in exchange for a meal and maybe a place to sleep in the barn.

"Come on in," the woman, Jenny was her name, had said. "We have some cure meat and potatoes, I guess it's enough for all of us."

They had spent a lovely evening. The meal was excellent. Zeke had added milk powder, sugar, and flour to make pancakes for dessert. They had talked and laughed, and when it was time for the children to go to bed, Casey had offered to tell them a fairy tale.

Liz smiled and watched them leave the room. "He's great with children."

"Yeah." Zeke nodded. "In Herrington, he often hung around with Delilah. She was the former cheerleader queen, pretty much a bitch. But when it was needed she did surprise all of us, she adopted a baby. Marie. Casey loves her; he says, whatever will happen, he could never stop fighting for a better world because the children deserve this."

"He's right." Liz looked at the baby boy who was sleeping in her arms. "When … when it happened … it freaked me out. I ran and … tried to hide. All I wanted was to wake up from this nightmare. But it didn't happen. I was sure I would die like all the others around me.

Jenny found me; she was on the run with her little sister. I don't like to think about the things we did to survive the following weeks. But then we did find the farm. It was a stormy day, and we were looking for shelter. Here we met Ann, with Ben and Daniel. The children of her former neighbor, their parents died, and they were all alone for days until Ann heard them crying."

Liz hesitated. "Since then, we have been living here," she added. "It's a good place. We grow vegetables, we have some chicken and some wild rabbits. Even a goat … but … maybe we will have to leave soon."

"Why should you? Someone is threatening you?" Zeke felt anger rising. The women had worked so hard for this place, and in times like these, it was a shelter—so much better than living on the road or somewhere in a rotten town. It was just not fair …

"Not someone," Liz said. "Something."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"It's… something not human."

Liz was unsure if she should tell him more. And yes, under other circumstances, he might have laughed about it, but she looked seriously worried.

"It started some weeks ago. Only during the night. First, it was the rabbit hutch. We thought it was a wolf or maybe a feral dog. Then we found the tracks. I've never seen anything like that before. They are big, like heavy, great creatures. Some nights ago, it came back to kill the goat. We could hear her crying, but before Jen could get the gun, it was over. We did see a shadow vanishing into the woods. And the sound it made ..."

Liz shuddered at the memory alone. "It was creepy. Nothing can freak me out anymore, but this thing … I can barely sleep anymore; I dream that it comes into the house to get the children. Maybe it would be better to leave … but this is our home. I don't know if I can endure this once again. To leave everything behind, without knowing where to go."

"We will help you!"

Zeke stiffened at Casey's determined voice from behind.

xxx

As usual, he had gotten his way. And now they were here, in the nearby woods, following a track also Zeke couldn't say to whom or what it belonged to. It was nothing he had ever seen before. And as much he felt sorry for the young women, he felt relieved. To face an unknown danger with Casey beside him was nothing he was eager about.

"We should go ..." … back, he wanted to say, but right at this moment he could hear Casey breathing heavily; there was a cracking in the woods beside them. Alarmed, he jerked around, his fingers around the trigger of his gun. But what he caught sight of made him stiffen and gape, bewildered.

He blinked, once, twice, he knew it was impossible because he didn't do drugs anymore, not even a bit pot or some of his scat but this felt like one of the most weird dreams under the influence of drugs he had ever had.

"Good god," Casey whispered.

And Zeke knew it had to be real. Casey could see the tiger, too. A tiger! He was cowering between some trees, high grass, and dense bushes. His fur was yellow with dark stripes, his tail moved up and down slightly, and his dark eyes, with golden iris, pointed at them. He looked small, not even full-grown. Calm and almost uninterested, he lay there, watching them, but Zeke knew better than to underestimate the danger.

Without further movement he slowly put his hand on Casey's arm to warn him, he could feel his tension. His thoughts were racing. What could they do? Running away in panic was not an option, the tiger would be quicker then they were. He felt the weight of his gun. It was not what he wanted to do; what a fantastic animal. He wondered where he had come from. Probably from a zoo or a circus … he had somehow managed to escape … free for the first time in his life. Zeke swallowed. It was not fair. But what other option did he have? The farm was nearby, his hunting ground, for the moment it was enough for him to take the easiest prey, but this would change. The tiger would grow up quickly and get stronger, and it was only a matter of time before he would run into one of the women … or, even worse, the children. Usually, a tiger would try to avoid it to get near to humans, but what other options did he have in a world he didn't belong to?

Zeke aimed the gun at the tiger, still not sure if it was a good idea. He was a good shooter, but would he be able to kill the tiger with one shot? If he only hurt him he would turn into an unpredictable beast. Even though he wasn't fully grown, he was big and strong enough to cause serious injuries. And Zeke was not willing to risk that, not with Casey by his side.

Then, everything seemed to happen at the same moment. Casey noticed the gun in his hand and grabbed for his arm to push it down. "No, Zeke, don't!"

It was barely a whisper but enough to alarm the tiger. Every fiber of his body tensed in expectation of the danger, and he crouched down, ready to attack. Zeke stopped thinking and just followed his instincts. He pushed Casey back; the boy slumped and yelped when his head hit a tree behind them. The tiger jumped, Zeke's arm shot up, and he pulled the trigger … once, twice, thrice … The best he could hope for was to gain some time.

"Case, run," he yelled at him breathless.

And Casey did. The tiger had stopped his attack, reeled for a moment, took a few unsteady steps, and finally collapsed. Instead of bringing as much distance as possible between himself and the still-existing danger, Casey rushed over to the animal and dropped onto his knees beside it. Zeke stood paralyzed; it was like a nightmare. He stared at the scenery in front of him, expecting the tiger to gain his power again, jumping up, and attacking Casey … there would be no chance to escape … he could already hear him crying … death cries …

But nothing happened, no sound to hear; the world had stopped to turn around. It felt like an eternity until the slight sobbing reached his ears, and Casey's shoulders were shaking violently. Still cautious, Zeke stepped closer, ready to shoot once again if the animal would show any sign of life. He noticed blood coming out of a wound in his head and another, smaller one on his spine. An amazing animal, bigger than he had suspected, with heavy paws and a jaw slightly open so that he could see long, white teeth. Zeke felt relieved that the tiger didn't seem to breathe anymore. Maybe they were lucky.

Casey finally noticed him coming closer and looked up, tears in his eyes, but accusing and furious at the same time. "Don't worry, you did a good job," he spat. "He's dead!"

Zeke's relief was brushed away by anger. "What the hell are you thinking, huh?" he yelled, grabbing his shoulder to shake him. "You don't care about your life? Well, I do! It's a predator, Casey, he could have killed us as if it is nothing at all. Fuck, I didn't survive an alien invasion just to end as a meal for a tiger."

Casey stayed unimpressed. "He was still a baby. And you killed him without caring about it. Because you are still a selfish prick. You had no right to do that. He's only tried to survive; what's wrong with that?"

His hand rested on the back of the tiger, almost caressing. Zeke cursed inwardly. What a little shit. He knew he had done the only right thing … so why did he feel so low?

"Case!" Zeke sighed. "You know I had no choice. He actually shouldn't be here, he don't belong into this world. Never did; a tiger should be free, not born in captivity, looked up in a cage. What kind of life is this?"

Casey huffed, annoyed. "Oh! So you did him a favor when you killed him? It's that easy, isn't it? God, Zeke, you are such an asshole."

Suddenly, he jumped up, turned around, running away. Zeke frowned. "Case, wait! What are you doing?"

"Going back. To the farm. Get a shovel."

"A shovel?"

"To bury him. At least that I can do for him!"

Zeke looked back at the animal under the tree. Although the work would be challenging, and the ground was loamy and wet, he could understand Casey's feelings. "Okay," he agreed. "I guess we own him that. I will help you!"

Casey jerked to a stop and turned back to him. Still, tears in his eyes but wildly resolved. "No, thank you! You already did enough."

xxx

Casey went back to the place where they had left the tiger behind together with Liz. The young woman insisted on going with him and he finally gave in. In silence, they had made their way. When they reached the dead animal, Liz stood thunderstruck.

"Good god," she murmured. "He looks beautiful."

"He is!" Casey smiled sadly. "And he had no chance. It's so not fair."

Liz looked up. "You think what Zeke did was wrong," she asked. "That there should have been another way?"

Casey shrugged. He still remembered the shock, the astonishment … and the relief … in the women's eyes when Zeke had told them that the monster that had visited them for days had turned out to be a tiger … and that he had killed him. All they could think about was that the danger was over now, that they wouldn't have to leave the farm. In times like these, it was so much when you did find a shelter where you could feel at home. But the thought did want to go out of Casey's mind that, again, he had tried to do the right thing, and it ended with the death of an innocent creature. Just like killing Mary Beth had caused the death of half of the world's population. Sometimes, he was so sick of it that he was ready to tell Zeke: Let's go home! Home, Herrington, the Marriot Hotel, where his friends awaited him. But the voice in his head was stronger: The world's fate depends on you.

Pondering, he looked at the tiger. Was this part of the plan? Was it his fate to be in charge of everyone's lives? He suddenly felt dizzy and swayed. Liz grabbed his arm to give him some hold.

"Hey, you okay?"

Casey squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to breathe. The panic vanished. But when he opened his eyes again, the tiger was still there, drying blood on his forehead, his eyes wide open but dull, dead. Slowly, Casey bent down and grabbed for the shovel. "I guess we should get over with it."

They finished their work without talking much, without resting. When it was done, Liz threw a last glance at the grave of the tiger.

"I'm glad that he's dead," she admitted. "You are right; it's selfish; he would have deserved it to grow up and live. But all I can think about are the children. They used to play in the nearby woods. Who knows how long he was out there? The danger was so close, and we didn't even know about it. I'm afraid there is no safe place in the world anymore."

Casey kept quiet. Suddenly, all he wanted was to go back on the road. Together with Zeke in the old Chevrolet. Driving … just driving.

xxx

They spent another night on the farm, giving Casey a warm bath in a wooden tube when they returned from the woods. They had another great meal in the evening, though it was not half as fun as the day before. All of them were still feeling shocked and worn out. Only the children were chatting and laughing like before. They didn't know about the danger they had been into… and others that might still wait for them.

The worst for Zeke was that Casey still refused to talk with him. He didn't look angry anymore but sad and tired. Zeke would put his life into his hands, Casey was stronger than he seemed to be, he had proofed it more then once since the Big Death had turned the world around. But he was still a caring and compassionate guy, fighting with nightmares because of the things he saw and did. Zeke knew well enough when he was in that mood, but there was not much he could do to cheer him up.

Then it was time to go; the goodbye was quick but hearty. The women insisted on giving them homemade marmalade, fruits, and fresh bread as a thank-you. One last smile, a wave with the hand. Probably, they would never meet again.

When Casey opened the door on the passenger's side of the Chevrolet, an idea crossed Zeke's mind. "Not this time!" He tossed the key over the roof of the car. "Your turn!"

Casey stared at the key in his hands. "What do you mean?"

"It's about time that you take up your part of the driving."

"Oh! But ..." Casey looked dumbfounded, and Zeke had a hard time suppressing a grin. At least he had been able to spark his interest. They had been on the road for over a month, and it had never been a question of who the driver was. Zeke wasn't even sure if Casey could drive. Sometimes, he had considered teaching him. One could never know what would happen tomorrow. But the thought alone of taking place in the passenger seat was strange. He had had his own car since he was sixteen; he had loved the GTO, and no one dared to put a hand on the wheel except him.

"You can drive, don't you?"

Casey nodded, still looking confused.
"I did use my mom's old Audi now and then. Got the license some weeks before ... before Marybeth."

Zeke cringed inwardly, but no way that he would back off now.
"Then better be careful. This baby has a lot more power under the hood than an Audi."
He went to the other side of the Chevrolet and slipped onto the passenger seat, happy to see Casey's slight grin when he put the key into the ignition.