(Mattaya's P.O.V)

I trudged out of my Algebra class, Mr. Payne's monotone voice echoing in my head. My class used to be the rowdiest and loudest, until last fall. I followed my peers down the hall to the commons, herded through like sheep, trained by a bell like a dog. High school was a blast. Anyway, last fall there had been a nationwide selection. The week before had been filled with a serious of strange tests, none of it pertaining to the subjects of our classes. Only a few days later did the news come out the tests were to find those with a very below average IQ and ship them off to Antarctica. My friends and I joked about that stuff until it actually happened. It was a cruel punishment for those who could recite Lil' Wayne's songs but couldn't name the state they lived in. I'm not lying; I had witnessed this first hand and heard teachers talking about how sad it was. At least the people who valued their education could focus without wanting to hang themselves from the pure stupidity of others.

I entered the commons and took a left, walking past the school Café and proceeding to the concrete slab outside the Art rooms. I saw a few of my friends waiting for me now, Luis and Jerry sat on the slab where as Daphne and Kenzie stood next to them, making a small circle. I usually would have started with my typical phrase: “I hate people.” But I couldn't do that anymore, there was no one's stupidity to rant about anymore.

"Hey guys," I said instead.

"Hey," Daphne said, her brown eyes focused on her iPod.

"What quiz is that?" I asked without looking at the screen, I knew what she was doing, it was what she did when she was bored.

"What character I would be in a horror movie," she answered, sweeping her black side-bangs out of her eyes. She stood maybe half an inch short than me, which was sad.

Don't get me wrong, I loved her to death but I was maybe five foot one. Luis and Jerry leaned in and looked at the screen, peering for a glimpse at the quiz. I rolled my eyes, of course they had their attention focused on her again. She had almost all her male friends waiting on her.

"Well, I have to go," Kenzie said. She had dyed her hair a natural red a while ago but it faded out so it looked like a dark copper color, not brass, copper. I hugged her good bye, always getting the first hug before she hugged the rest of our small group and left for the gym. She was the athletic one, only one week out of the school year was free for her, this time she had track practice.

"Farewell, Mine Turtle!" I shouted in a terrible English accent, she returned the saying in a better accent and waved. I smiled and tuned back to my other friends.

"What'd ya get?" I asked.

" 'You're that ominous person who knows how to solve the problem but people still get pissed at you for not speaking up sooner,' " she quoted.

"I can see that."

"Who would you be?" Luis asked.

"Me? I'd be the one who died at the beginning of the movie, you know, the one people never remember the name of," I answered. Yeah, I believed that, though I always had strange dreams of being 'the chosen one,'.

"What about you?"

"I'd be the one to arm myself first," he answered.

"I'd die on my way to the weapons."

"That's sad."

"I know right?"

I felt a breath down my back.

"Hey Evan."

A tall guy in a gray and black sweatshirt walked around me to fill the gap where Kenzie had been standing previously. The commons were pretty much cleared out now.

"Hey," he said with a wave.

He stood at least ten or so inches above me, his eyes a navy blue and his brown hair buzzed.

"You'd be the killer," I decided.

My friends bursts into laughter, including him.

"It's true though," he said.

We nodded in agreement, though Evan was a descent guy he had a strange sense of humor, a very dark and morbid humor.

"Who would Jerry be?" He asked.

I stared at him, "The one who lived but didn't have a major role."

We nodded.

"This is so weird. I feel like there's nothing to talk about. It's always so quite in our classes," I finally confessed.

"Are you saying that we don't have anything to complain about so there's nothing to talk about?"

"Yes," Daphne and I said in unison.

"It showed our bleak understanding and regard for human life when they did the Selection," Daphne said. I nodded.

"Vampire has a point, the government had no right to do that," I spat.

"Vampire?" Jerry said confused. Of course this was the only thing he got from the conversation.

"Yes, Jerry. Vampire. Because she hates the sun, has overly sharp canines and, despite her heritage, she is the whitest Mexican I have ever met," I answered.

"She's Hybrid," Daphne said.

I know this seems racist and the whatnot but it was the truth. Jerry and Luis were Hispanic too. I was half Hispanic and half White. My own mother joked and called my brother and me half-breeds. I wore that name proudly though.

"Okay then," he said.

"Well, there goes that conversation," I muttered.

"Wow, somebody is grumpy today," Luis announced.

My brown eyes locked with Luis's hazel, I glared. He laughed, naturally. Jerry just stared at us and looked at Daphne, starting a new conversation with her. I rolled my eyes and pulled my phone out of my pocket, checking my messages for any announcement of my mother's arrival. Nothing. I felt a tap on my shoulder.

"Yeah, Evan?" I said, putting my phone away.

"I forgot I'm grounded, I have to go."

"Ugh. Okay."

"You should give me a hug."

"Fine."

I gave him a hug and said good bye, then looked back at my remaining friends. Luis and Jerry were laughing, Daphne had her arms folded across her chest. If looks could kill...

"C'mon guys, back off," I said.

"But-" Jerry started.

I didn't listen to what he had to say next, my phone vibrated. It was... An alert? Not the normal kind.

"Luis, Daphne..." I started, staring at the alert.

"What?" They both said.

"Check your phones..."

"I see how it is," Jerry said.

"You don't have an iPhone, I'm not sure you'd-"

"Oh my god," Luis interrupted.

Jerry leaned over his friends shoulder.

"Oh shit."

I stared at my own screen: Emergency Lock Down, Zombie Apocalypse.

"How?" I asked.

There was silence. Then, "The Selection," we all said.

"How is that even possible?! You can't survive in Antarctica! Even the bases they have there, you have to have your appendix and wisdom teeth removed!" Daphne shouted.

We didn't answer, we couldn't. Was this some sort of sick joke? Probably not. I let out a sigh.

"Well, this was bound to happen eventually. Right?" I said bitterly.

A message popped up on my phone: I'm here. It was from my mom.

"I have to go. Daphne, do you want a ride home?"

"Let me call my parents."

She unlocked her phone and walked a few feet away.

"Isn't this ironic? Right after her quiz too."

"Does that make Evan a zombie?" Jerry asked.

Luis punched him in the stomach. I smiled and shook my head. Sure, we didn't really believe the alert but there was a possibility. We shrugged it off.

"I can go," Daphne said, rejoining our group.

We walked towards the doors, Jerry and Luis would end up walking to Jerry's apartment, which was across the street from the school. We walked to the doors and pushed against them, only they didn't give in and I ended up smacking my face into the glass.

"What the-?"

"Ow!" Daphne half squeaked as she hit the door too.

Neither of our male friends said anything as they hit the doors. Just backed away and played it cool. Whatever.

"I guess they weren't joking about the lock down," I muttered.

"Where's Munoz? He should have a key or something," Jerry started.

"Munoz already left, stupid," Luis spat.

"Let's go talk to Shayegi. She doesn't leave for a while," I said. We walked back to the Art rooms, only they were wide open, neither Mrs. Shayegi nor Mr. Crow were present. Yay.

"Was there anyone in the Attendance Office?" Daphne asked, she was referring to the office to the left when you enter the building.

"No, they would have left by now," I said. I had stayed late after school enough times to know this.

"Even the cop left," Luis said.

"Hey," Evan's voice said from behind me.

"What are still doing here?" Jerry asked.

"Oh, the doors were locked so I tried the other doors before coming back," Evan explained nonchalantly.

"Of course," said a bitter Luis.

I felt my phone vibrate, "Hold on guys, my butt is vibrating," I announced.

I pulled it out and saw a voicemail from my dad. I walked away a few feet and played it.

"Mija, they're drafting for war. If things get bad, you know where the guns and amo is. We love you. See you soon."

I felt tears welling up in my eyes, I kept walking until I was past the Art rooms, in the corner where the wall ends and a thin one comes out to block off construction. I slid down it and listened to the voicemail again, clinging to my father's every word. I saved the voicemail and stood up, wiping the tears away. It was short but enough to send my world into a tailspin.

A chorus of, "Are you okay?" Rang from my friends.

"No. They're drafting for war, in other words, every adult they can find eighteen and above. Our parents are gone, our teachers are gone, and we have only ourselves. Great," I said, trying to hold back tears.

"We have to get out of here," I concluded after a long silence.

"Why? We should be-"

"Jerry, look at the construction wall. It's too thin. The remodeled area doesn't have walls yet, just a fence," I said.

"Where do we go then?" Luis challenged.

"We could go to my Uncle's underground bunker," Evan offered.

We stared at him.

"What? He's fucking insane."

"Um, that won't do us much good. Unless you want to cower for twenty years or something," Daphne said sarcastically.

Just then Kenzie came from the gym, immediately joining our group and hugging Daphne and I.

"What happened?" Jerry asked.

"I kid you not, some guys dressed in black just came up, and took Conley and Brown," she said, her face was red from either running or something else.

"Great. I wonder..." I looked over at the front doors again. I ran to them and looked out, I found my mom's car, an old green Chevy Tahoe, standing outside, empty. The door was open though, maybe the keys were still in it. Hmm. I ran to the thin construction wall and tried the door, it was locked. No matter, it was held up with tape. I ran to the nearest Art room and grabbed a chair, I looked at my friends and motioned at the room.

"We're breaking out of here, bitches," I stated bluntly. The guys got up quickly at the news of destruction and grabbed chairs, I even gave mine away. I was a girl, no way did I have the strength they did. Daphne and Kenzie joined me as we watched them go at the wall, until it had a large hole. We approached and stepped through, passing through the plastic that led outside and came to the chain link fence. It didn't take us long to scale it. I started to make my way toward the front of the school, now that we were at the back by the modules.

"Where are we going?" Jerry asked.

"My mom's car. Then I'm going home, getting our guns, and then finding a secure concrete building," I answered.

"Can we stop at my place too? We have weapons," Evan added.

"Of course," I answered.

"Okay, what's going on?" Kenzie asked. Her voice was almost hysterical, like she wasn't sure if it was all a joke or this was really happening. I heard Daphne explain the situation in a low voice. I silently considered what schools seemed legit. Well, the first one that came to mind was my old middle school, Elton Gregory. It had two floors, that could be helpful. No weak walls, that I was aware of. One problem was all the windows. That could be dealt with, I hoped. I'm not sure why this came to mind but I remembered when Jerry and Luis told me about their leadership class with Munoz, who asked them what their strength would be in a nuclear explosion shelter. Jerry knew how to weld. Hmm.

"I'm going to Elton Gregory," I said.

"I'm going with you," Daphne said.

"I will too," Kenzie said.

"Okay. Jerry, we could use your help, you can weld, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Good," was all I said.

We got to the car, I jumped into the driver seat, I was used to driving my dad's small pickup but my mom and I were about the same height so it was almost better. I checked the ignition and saw the keys still there.

"Get in," I said.

No one argued, at first.

"I know how to drive, probably better than you," Luis said.

"This is my mom's car, therefore, my car. Back off," I said. The door squeaked as I shut it. Daphne scooted next to me, where the center conceal turned into a seat, and Kenzie got into the passenger seat. The guys squeezed into the back.

"You don't even have your permit," he said.

"Luis, leave her alone. This is her fucking car and you can shut the hell up or be thrown out!" Daphne snapped.

"Okay, fine. Just don't blame me when we wreck," he muttered.

"Mattaya, are you sure you know what you're doing?" Evan asked as I pressed on the brake and stared the car, shifting into drive.

"Yes. I'm not stupid," I answered.

"I never said you were, I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were doing."

"Okay! Enough! Just let her drive for God's sake!" Kenzie yelled.

"Thank you," I said.

Kenzie just looked out the window. I didn't blame her. I released the brake and pressed on the gas, lightly. Then we were off.

DAPHNE'S POV! (I don't know how Mattaya thinks so... My turn!)

We drove to Evan's place, he got out quickly and proceeded to get his weapons. Mattaya's fingers drummed the steering wheel, Kenzie still looking out the window in complete silence "Can I drive?!" Luis tried again,

"NO!" Mattaya, Kenzie, and I said in unison,

"Well." Luis huffed and slumped into the seat. I looked at my phone and sighed in relief. My parents were fine, serving in battle but they were fine; my siblings had been taken into a shelter zone till everything is alright, most kids from the high school were being taken into shelter or shipped out to war, my friends and I weren't the type to sit around and wait. I was too impatient for that,

Evan came back with a large Nike duffle bag and a handful of pocket knives, he tossed the bag onto Jerry and Luis's lap; they grunted in response.

"What's in here?" Luis said setting the bag on the floor, "Guns." Evan said simply.

"Where we headed now?" Jerry asked "Hybrid's house." I answered. We drove till we reached the house, it was complex since there were many cars just left there on the roads, "What kind of idiot leave their car in the smack dab middle of the road!" Jerry yelled "People who assume that this town will be deserted. I don't think they assumed that six teenagers would just break out of school and steal a car driving to a safer location." Mattaya said. We got to her house, I got out of the car with her to pack all her guns "I can't believe we're doing this." I sighed holding the bag open for her to pack the guns. "I can't believe a lot of things, that doesn't mean they aren't true." She spoke quietly. I nodded and zipped up the bag and shut it, just six hours ago we were all just normal teens waiting to leave school and enjoy life. Now we needed to protect ourselves from the idiots of the world. Literally.

Taya's (Mattaya) P.O.V

I had gently laid each gun into the bag, shot guns first, .22s second, then the big rifles and lastly, my parents hand guns. I nodded, Daphne walked out, lugging the bag behind her. I heard Jerry meet her outside, helping her with the heavy load. I grabbed a few Wal-Mart bags from a cabinet above our washer, running back to my parents room and filling up them up with ammunition. I left them on the bed, knowing Daphne would be back. I ran inside and grabbed a backpack and a garbage bag, running to my room and shoving a bunch of my clothes in the bag, including a few pair of shorts for the warm weather. I filled the garbage bag with my clothes, filling the backpack with books, a phone charger, my pocket knives, my laptop, and hygiene products.

As I walked through my house I noticed my brother's room, his door ajar. I knew he had most likely been taken to a shelter with the other teenagers but... I stepped in and looked for his trench knife, which was right where I had left it since his girlfriend and I had organized his room. The blade was a few inches short of a foot, the handle more than make up for the missing inches. Brass knuckles were welded into the handle, making it a perfect close combat weapon. I took it. I passed through our garage, taking my dad's and my skinning knives that we used for hunting. Now I was ready. I dumped my stuff in the back hatch and climbed back into the driver seat.

"Let's go pick up your guy's stuff," I said.

Daphne's house was the closest, so we started there.

DAPHNE'S POV

After five years of asking for a house key... I still had no key. I groaned as we pulled up, I glanced at my house. Something was different about it; something ominous almost and it was creeping me out. I got out of the car, Mattaya and Kenzie following. I thought of how I would enter my house, I heard a thump and turned to see Kenzie on the ground. "I tripped over this rock," she handed me a plastic looking rock, it was light and hollow. I opened the rock-box and saw a key inside, my eyes widened "This stupid rock had a key inside it the whole god damn time?!" I yelled, I opened the door and was bombarded by two smaller bodies. My brother and sister, "What are you two doing here!?" I demanded "We stayed home, where are mom and dad?" Salvy said, "On a business trip." I lied. Saying 'Oh, mom and dad are going to fight a war' seemed really harsh. "Come on," I told them "Get your stuff, we're going on a trip." I said, they shared a look but obeyed and ran upstairs. "You guys have to help me pack for my siblings." I grabbed a few suitcases out of the closet. We ran upstairs. I grabbed a few pairs of clothes for both Salvy and Ximena as they got all their electronics. "Are you going to tell them? Your brother and sister will catch on." Kenzie told me, I sighed and looked at her

"I need to keep them in the dark for now, they're little kids." I said, my siblings came back with almost every electronic they owned along with a bunch of chargers. I didn't protest since I had a backpack full of just chargers, I grabbed a few pairs of clothes and sneakers. I was wearing flats and I doubted that I would enjoy being in for very long. I exited the house, shutting the door, and putting my siblings in the back. "You brought kids! Why the hell did you bring kids?!" Luis yelled at me.

"Why the hell did we bring you?! They're my siblings and I am not leaving them so you can bite your tongue and deal with it," I said. He shut up, he was getting his head bitten off today but he wasn't exactly trying not to be annoying. So right now he deserved it.

Taya’s POV

After many trips to different houses we finally had the back filled with an assortment of different bags and a very seriously quiet car. The presence of two small children had sent everyone into a harsh reality; the only noise was that of a video game. Super Mario to be exact. I was surprised that Luis had let Salvy sit on his lap, he was even paying attention to that game. Ximena sat on Daphne’s lap in the front. We were on our way to Elton Gregory, all our minds floating on different thoughts or all the same horrifying thought. I heard the clicks of someone changing the DS cartridge, then the sounds of Mario Kart coming on.

NNNNNNIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTEEEEEENNNNNNDDDDDDOOOO! WOO-HOO!

“You know… I should still drive,” I heard Luis say.

I kept silent, this was not the time to argue.

“Luis, just drop it,” Kenzie muttered.

“What?”

“You don’t have your permit either!” Daphne snapped.

“So? I’m still the better driver!”

The three of them exploded into an argument, I couldn’t even make out the different statements. I gripped the wheel tighter.

“I’ve had it! Just shut your damn mouth! All of you!” I shouted, I looked back to Luis, our eyes locked.

“Would you just drop it?! We can get you a car later! For now, stop being a backseat driver and a nag!”

Luis opened his mouth to spit a retort but we were suddenly cut off by screams of: Mattaya! And, “Watch out!” oh and Evan said, “Oh fuck.”

I heard something smack against the grill, I instinctively hit the brake, Ximena’s head almost hitting the windshield. Daphne’s grip was the only thing that saved her. We all turned around and saw a used to be swaggot lying on the road, unmoving.

“Wasn’t that Garret?” Daphne asked, I could hear a hint of a smile in her voice. Garret had once sat behind us in Science, but not since the Selection.

“Well, he should have looked both ways,” Jerry said in a voice that made him sound like he was chastising a young child.

There was a silence before we erupted into laughter. I released the brake and pressed on the gas pedal again, continuing on our way.

 "That's exactly why I should drive," Luis mumbled.

"You would have stopped, Garret deserves to be run over," Daphne snapped.

"The only problem is Garret is supposed to be dead," I said quietly.

"So that means the zombies are from the Selection," Kenzie said.

"This is going to be some of the funniest shit I've done in a long time!" Evan announced.

"Zombies? What's happening?" Ximena said nervously.

"Shhh..." Daphne soothed, pushing her sister's hair back, "Don't worry about it."

"Yeah, we were just talking about a video game. You know, teenager stuff," I bluffed. "Hey look, it's the school," I said before Ximena could ask anything else. I pulled around to the back, where the track and football field were. I turned the car off after putting it in park and climbed out, my friends following.

"It's probably locked," Luis started.

"We don't know for sure," Daphne said quickly.

I opened the back of the car and pulled out my twenty gauge, putting a shell in the chamber then putting in two more. Putting the safety on I watched as Luis grabbed a handgun and Evan grabbed a semiautomatic .22. I looked at him oddly.

"What? It'll do the job and quickly," he defended.

I shrugged and motion for Kenzie and Daphne to stay back, Jerry stayed with them. I checked the door, it was unlocked. I looked at them strangely, Luis motion for me to go, he was already getting impatient. I took note that the blinds on the glass doors were closed. I advanced into the building, finding a few kids sitting and chatting at the tables of the cafeteria. I lowered my shotgun and approached. Luis and Evan called out to me, asking me what I was doing. I paused as the talking stopped and the kids turned towards me, their smiles seeming less than genuine. There were three girls, maybe a few years younger than me. I tightened my grip on my gun. Their hair was ratted but they didn't seem to care. Their mascara was around their eyes and their clothes looked like rags.

"What are you? The last standing or the foolish heroes?" One girl said in a oh-I'm-way-better-than-you voice.

"Foolish heroes. What are you? The ungrateful dead or the ones who were 'accidentally' left behind?" I sneered back.

"The Selected," another girl said, she was wearing a pink belly shirt. Her tone suggested she thought it was an excellent comeback. I rolled my eyes. Still just as stupid as when they left. I lifted my gun.

"Well, we're renovating this area so if you could leave, that'd be great."

Pinkie laughed and ran at me, her eyes black. I took the safety off and fired, my beads lined up on her head. Using all my expertise from the Walking Dead, I pumped the gun and fired another round into her. I heard other shots ring out as Luis and Evan took care of the other girls. Pumping the shotgun again I waited. Pinkie was motionless on the ground. There was no blood but she wasn't breathing either. I pulled out some shells from my pocket and reloaded.

"Let's clear out the rest of the school. I'll check the Columbia wing."

"I'll take Metolius," Luis volunteered.

"I'll take care of the last two," Evan said.

We walked out of the cafeteria taking our separate ways, Evan went upstairs, Luis and I continued past the first set and second set of stairs then parted. Luis going right and me going left. The last thing I heard from him was the clicking sound as he loaded another bullet into the chamber.