"Sometimes we forget, sometimes the worste part about a zombie apocalypse isn't dying. It's living to watch all those around you die..."
-Roberta Warren
Wednesday, August 2, 2017
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Bitten
Arriving back to where Shane's hummer ran out of gas, we noticed the inside windows were smeared with bloody hand prints. I jumped out of our hummer before Cliff could completely pull to a stop, I ran to the open back door and peered inside. There was the bodies of two children and a headless woman's corpse, the children had horrendous bite marks on there necks and arms. There was a small bullet hole in each of their foreheads. I exhaled in relief, the fact that they are fully dead meant Shane was still alive somewhere, but that was the question...where? "Shane!" Cliff was circling the vehicle, he searched the ground for any signs of which way Shane had gone. "Cliff, weren't there two other kids, and another woman in here?" I asked pulling my 9mm out of its holster and readying myself for an impending attack. Cliff shrugged, and crouched next to where it looked like Shane had jumped off the hood of the vehicle and run East. Cliff looked towards the mountainous area, searching for any signs of life. He squinted against the setting sun, looking West. I tapped on the back window, telling the other survivors to lock the doors and stay inside, and only open them for us. Grabbing my shotgun and Cliffs M-16, I headed East. I handed Cliff his gun as I passed him nodding towards a tree where I saw a piece of torn fabric stuck in one of the lower branches. Cliff stood, took his safety off and followed me into the trees. There were broken sticks, and torn fabric along a steep pathway marking where someone had run. Whether or not that someone was alive, or infected was still unknown to us. The pathway lead us to a small clearing, and there sitting on a rock head bent looking at his hands sat Shane.
We approached him cautiously, Cliff pointed his chambered gun at the ground in front of the still figure. Softly he called "Shane? Buddy are you okay?" Shane stirred, but did not turn around. He exhaled loudly and wiped his eyes. I put my gun on safety and hurried towards him, placing my hand on his shoulder I peered at what Shane was so intently looking at...a bite mark on his arm. It wasn't deep, in fact it wasn't even bleeding, but it was red with irritation around the edges. "Oh fuck, Shane..." Cliff exhaled and stepped away from him. Shane looked up at me with a tear stained face, he whispered "One of the kids did it, I didn't want to kill them, they were just kids...Oh what have I done?" He burst into tears at this and shoved his face into his dirty hands. I pulled his wounded arm away from his smudged face and studied the irritated skin. The area around the bite was red and a bruise was forming under the skin. None of the skin was actually broken though. Cliff slowly raised his gun pointing it at Shane's head. "It's up to you bro." He said tears forming in his cold green eyes. "Wait! I don't think he is infected!" I stepped between Shane and Cliff, Cliff lowered his gun eyes flashing with anger. "What if he is, can we risk it?" Cliff grabbed my arm and tried pulling me away, but I pushed him away saying "Just wait, he can take the second hummer, that way if he is, we will be safe, but give him a chance." I said turning to Shane, I held my hand out to help him up. He wiped his eyes sniffing, but nodded grateful for any break we could give him. He looked at Cliff, and handed him his gun belt, but kept his baseball bat. Cliff looked at his feet, but followed us back to the road.
Climbing down to where the hummers were parked, we noticed the red gas can on the hood of Shane's hummer, but our hummer was nowhere to be seen! "That fucking bitch!" Cliff breathed through clenched teeth. Shane sat against the front tire, while Cliff and I removed the dead bodies of the infected survivors, and filled the tank with the red gas can. I used a heavy green blanket to cover the blood splattered back seat, and used it to wipe away the dried blood from the windows. I know it sounds bad, but in desperate times, no one thinks to cover, or even bury the dead. we just pulled them off to the side and got in the vehicle and drove to the gas station. Fueling up the rest of the way I told Shane about the strange crying zombie in the bathroom. He just stared at me with blank sad eyes. I felt bad for him, I had never had to kill any children zombies, and Shane had told us about his three little girls, so it was especially hard on him. I ran back into the gas station to get some snacks and drinks, since all the food I had grabbed was in the back seat of our stolen hummer. After the tank was full we pulled away in Silence, it was dark outside now, since the sun had gone down. Shane sniffed occasionally from the back seat, but other than that all was silent. I drifted away in the silence dreaming of how life used to be, before all this shit happened.
We approached him cautiously, Cliff pointed his chambered gun at the ground in front of the still figure. Softly he called "Shane? Buddy are you okay?" Shane stirred, but did not turn around. He exhaled loudly and wiped his eyes. I put my gun on safety and hurried towards him, placing my hand on his shoulder I peered at what Shane was so intently looking at...a bite mark on his arm. It wasn't deep, in fact it wasn't even bleeding, but it was red with irritation around the edges. "Oh fuck, Shane..." Cliff exhaled and stepped away from him. Shane looked up at me with a tear stained face, he whispered "One of the kids did it, I didn't want to kill them, they were just kids...Oh what have I done?" He burst into tears at this and shoved his face into his dirty hands. I pulled his wounded arm away from his smudged face and studied the irritated skin. The area around the bite was red and a bruise was forming under the skin. None of the skin was actually broken though. Cliff slowly raised his gun pointing it at Shane's head. "It's up to you bro." He said tears forming in his cold green eyes. "Wait! I don't think he is infected!" I stepped between Shane and Cliff, Cliff lowered his gun eyes flashing with anger. "What if he is, can we risk it?" Cliff grabbed my arm and tried pulling me away, but I pushed him away saying "Just wait, he can take the second hummer, that way if he is, we will be safe, but give him a chance." I said turning to Shane, I held my hand out to help him up. He wiped his eyes sniffing, but nodded grateful for any break we could give him. He looked at Cliff, and handed him his gun belt, but kept his baseball bat. Cliff looked at his feet, but followed us back to the road.
Climbing down to where the hummers were parked, we noticed the red gas can on the hood of Shane's hummer, but our hummer was nowhere to be seen! "That fucking bitch!" Cliff breathed through clenched teeth. Shane sat against the front tire, while Cliff and I removed the dead bodies of the infected survivors, and filled the tank with the red gas can. I used a heavy green blanket to cover the blood splattered back seat, and used it to wipe away the dried blood from the windows. I know it sounds bad, but in desperate times, no one thinks to cover, or even bury the dead. we just pulled them off to the side and got in the vehicle and drove to the gas station. Fueling up the rest of the way I told Shane about the strange crying zombie in the bathroom. He just stared at me with blank sad eyes. I felt bad for him, I had never had to kill any children zombies, and Shane had told us about his three little girls, so it was especially hard on him. I ran back into the gas station to get some snacks and drinks, since all the food I had grabbed was in the back seat of our stolen hummer. After the tank was full we pulled away in Silence, it was dark outside now, since the sun had gone down. Shane sniffed occasionally from the back seat, but other than that all was silent. I drifted away in the silence dreaming of how life used to be, before all this shit happened.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Pit Stop
Shane followed us for the next 30 miles, until his vehicle rolled to a stop. We turned around to make sure everything was alright. "Bitch is out of gas." Shane said as he slammed his door shut and walked towards our vehicle. Up until this point I hadn't thought about gas, I glanced at the near empty gas gage. "Theres a station 10 miles from here, we can make it gas up and bring back enough to get you there." I pointed towards the green sign stating that the next town was 10 miles. Shane nodded, and pulled himself onto the hood of his Hummer, he he started tapping his bat against the black metal push bar. I watched as Shane's red hair faded off in the distance. I hope the gas station hadn't been blown up.
We rode in silence listening to the kids in the backseat snore softly. As we pulled off the exit, I reloaded Cliff's and my gun, so that we would be prepared. Lucky for us, the gas station was still intact. We pulled up to the end pump, and shut the vehicle off. Cliff turned to the mothers in the backseat and said "Stay here, and don't unlock the vehicle for anyone but us." A dark haired mother nodded, and stroked her sleeping child's hair. Cliff looked at me, I nodded and we climbed out of the vehicle. Looking both ways, I pulled the fuel nozzle from its holster and inserted it into the vehicle. Strangely I didn't see any infected yet. I tapped on the back window, the dark haired mother cracked it slightly, "Do you want me to grab anything to eat, or anything like that?" She nodded and smiled and softly replied "Just grab what you can dear." I nodded and headed for gas station. Cliff was already peering through the locked door. He pulled my hatchet out of its holster and swiftly broke the glass on one of the doors. An alarm sounded from somewhere inside the building. I heard distant screaming of zombies from somewhere outside. "Fuck!" Cliff handed me back my hatchet and unlocked the door pushing it open. I followed him inside. I turned the fuel pump on outside with the press of a button on the register. I headed for the candy aisle, and grabbed a couple boxes of crackers and a few cases of candy bars. I noticed a basket containing some fresh fruit. I grabbed it and stocked up on a few other things like toilet paper, I turned to see Cliff leaning over the counter and grabbing a case of Camel Reds, and a zippo lighter. He grabbed a red gas can labeled "DO NOT STEAL!!" I headed towards the cooler, grabbing a gallon of water, and a couple sodas. I stopped dead in my tracks, I felt a chill go down my spin. "Wait! Ssshhhhh..." I listened closely. Just under the dull scream of the alarm, I could hear...crying. "Do you hear that?" I said turning to see Cliff set his smokes down and head towards the dark hallway marked "RESTROOMS" in big red letters. I set the basket down slowly and took the safety off my shotgun. Cliff turned to me and put his finger over his lips to show me to be quiet. He turned the knob, and shinned his light into the dark bathroom revealing a slumped figure of what looked like a woman. She was shaking with the power of her sobs, her clothes seemed to be torn off her skin was a grey color. "Is she...?" I started in a whisper, but before I could finish Cliff shone his light on the sobbing figure. She let out a scream of surprise and threw herself towards him. He stumbled backwards falling and slamming the door in her face. The door shook with the power of her blows as she tried desperately to claw her way through. "What the Fuck was that thing?" Cliff pulled himself off the floor and pulled his M-16 off his back and pointed to the bellowing monster behind the bathroom door. The wood began to splinter away as the creature's grey clawed hands ripped it's way through. I stepped away from the door in horror, the bellowing stopped for a moment as the angry creature peered through the door revealing red glowing eyes. Cliff fired a full clip at the creature, it screamed in anger and started to push through the door harder. It pulled its upper body through the door and Cliff ripped his machetti out of its case and started to hack at the creatures neck. With one last screech the creatures head rolled to the side and soaked Cliff's shirt with blood. "Fucking Bitch!" He said as he spit on the bleeding corpse.We headed back towards the gas pump blowing away about three zombies on the way. Cliff pulled the nozzle out of the Hummer and shoved it into the red gas can filling it. He handed it to me, I set it down at my feet and he ripped his blood splattered shirt off and threw it out his window. He spun the tires out of the parking lot and headed back to Shane.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Dr. Phibes
We headed towards what looked like the main medical tent. It was a white tent with a red cross spray painted on it. So far we hadn't seen anyone who looked like they had been bitten. Inside the tent there was a few beds. In one of the beds lay an ashen white woman. She looked dead, except that she was gasping for air, and giggling Shane lifted his bat as if to get ready. "There is no need, she is heavily sedated." came a cool calm voice from behind us. Shane spun around looking at the young blonde man in a blood covered lab coat. He smiled like a crocodile looking past us at the giggling dying woman. His eyes light up when the woman inhaled one last time before choking out her last breath. "Oh good and now the fun begins." He said grabbing some rubber gloves and strapped the dead womans hands to the bed rail. Shane was looking at this man with growing distaste, as the woman snarled back to life. "Oh that's a new record! How exciting." the doctor exclaimed as he injected the zombie with a yellowish liquid. The zombie sputtered for a moment, then blinked it's blank eyes at the doctor. "I'm Dr. Phibes by the way, I am doing research on these fascinating creatures. Did you know someone can die of a bite within an hour and 15 minutes?" The doctor was now knocking on the womans knees to test her reflexes. I turned away from him at this moment, he made me sick to my stomach. Cliff shook his head and followed me out of the tent. I headed for a group of men dressed in green camo. "Hey! I'm looking for my father, and little sister, who would I talk to to see if they are in this compound?" A young soldier with black hair laughed and said "The only people here are soldiers and dying people." I felt a lump build up in my throat, what if Dr. Phibes had experimented on my father? Cliff put his hand on my shoulder giving it a light squeeze, "You okay?" He asked looking concerned. I whispered under my breath "I will fucking kill him if he touched my dad or my little sister." Cliff nodded and tapped his Desert Eagle. The soldier turned and laughed with his soldier buddies. "Well then, have you heard if there is a Mike Dalton here?" I asked looking from face to face, hoping someone knew who I was talking about. The dark haired kid shrugged and pulled a cigarette out and light it, a red headed soldier next to him stepped forward, "Isn't his daughters name Tay?" He nudged his dark haired buddy "Remember that cute little blonde with the sweet little ass?" I ripped my 9mm from it's holster and shoved it under the soldiers chin. "That's my baby sister you are talking about, so I suggest you watch what you say." The kids eyes widened with fear. Cliff laughed an insane laugh, and stated "Don't worry about her, she will shoot you in the head, I on the other hand will shoot you in the heart so that you will come back as a zombie then shoot you in the head." His eyes flashed dangerously as he fondled the gold Desert Eagle strapped to his side. The kid looked from me then to Cliff, tears welled up in his eyes as he bawled out "I'm sorry please don't kill me twice!" I pulled my gun away from his face and put the safety back on, "So tell me about where my sister is." I holstered my gun, and stepped back. The kid rubbed his neck where the barrel of my gun was, he looked at me smugly and wiped his eyes. Sniffing he said "She was here two days ago, looking for your father. She said she was going to his house in Enoch." I turned on my heel thanking the unfortunate soldier as I did. I headed back towards the medical tent to find Shane. Cliff stood for a moment watching the soldiers carefully. Then turned to follow me. As I walked into the tent Dr. Phibes was removing the front part of the zombie ladies brain. Interestingly enough the zombie did not die when he did this. She gnashed her teeth against the leather strap in her mouth. He placed the brain in a metal bowl. "Excuse me Doctor, where did the guy we came with go?" Dr. Phibes chuckled and mumbled to himself, I asked again this time placing myself in the doctors line of view. "He is on his way to becoming my next test subject." He shrugged as he removed the next part of the zombies brain. Again it gnashed its teeth trying to get to its oppressor. Cliff jumped forward in a low menacing voice he said "What the fuck did you just say?" The doctor chuckled again, and started to remove another piece of the zombies brain. Cliff pulled his Desert Eagle out of its holster and shot the zombie in the face killing it, and spraying the doctor with congealing blood. A look of anger came over the doctors face at this, "Now what did you go and do that for?" He grabbed a rag and began toweling his face off. "Where the fuck is Shane?" Cliffs eyes had turned a stony grey, he now pointed the gun at Dr Phibes face. Cliff wasn't fucking around anymore, I heard men yelling outside. The gunshot must have alerted them. I grabbed Cliffs arm and pulled him out of the tent. Outside soldiers were scrambling to find weapons. A mother and a small child were caught in the middle of the rush, a soldier knocked the child out of the mothers arms in his haste. The woman cried out reaching for her lost child. The child was screaming for it's mother, I jumped in front of another soldier who was not paying enough attention, and was in a strait pathway for the screaming child. I stepped in front of him and scooped the child up. I heard the crack of Shane's wooden bat, he was yelling "Here piggy, piggy, piggy!" He came around the corner clothes lining one of the scrambling soldiers. He spotted us waved his bat at us and helped the child's mother up. "Anyone who doesn't want to be an experiment, come with us!" Three other mothers grabbed up their children and hurried towards our vehicle. Shane loaded the children up in the hummer next to us, "I will follow you." He nodded towards Cliff, Cliff helped a few other survivors into the backseat of our hummer. I was confused as to why, none of the soldiers were trying to stop us. I looked around to see if anyone else was trying to escape. Thats when I noticed the army of the dead. They were limping towards us. The soldiers were loading up in vehicles and crashing through the fences. Cliff stopped to see what I was looking at, and slapped his forehead exclaiming "Shane" I started to laugh, of course Shane would do something like this. I jumped up in the passengers seat and sat out of the window yelling for any other survivors. We found a brother and sister huddled together under a bed. The mothers said they didn't think anyone else was left in the compound so we followed the fleeing soldiers.I watched the area carefully to make sure, we didn't miss anyone. I saw the doctor cackling as he was devoured by the monsters he had experimented on.
Leeds
We decided to take the Hummer, because it was the most durable vehicle that could fit everyone. I sat in the passenger seat, and Cliff drove. Sterling and James had decided to stay, since everyone with proper fighting skills had gone to Leeds with us. We decided the easiest and fastest way to get there would be to take I15. We went slow, since there were wrecked vehicles everywhere, and the occasion zombie limping along the road. Shane, one of the other kids who had decided to go with us made it a point to dispose of every zombie he came upon. Every time he killed one he would cut a notch in a wooden baseball bat he carried with him. At one point we had to get out and move an SUV that was blocking the road. Lucky for us, in a zombie apocalypse, no one thinks to take their keys with them.
It took us 2 hours to get through Cedar City. During that time, I attempted to make conversation with Cliff, but he was shy, so it was mostly me talking. That was okay, but I felt like maybe I had misjudged the electric pulse I felt everytime we touched. After telling him about how I had met James, and with no reply as to how he had come to be in my father's basement I fell silent. I started to study my shoes, I didn't want him to see the disappointment in my eyes. We rode in silence for about 15 minutes, then he broke the silence with a long exhale, and said "I miss when zombies were only in video games." I looked up at him, our eyes met for a moment, but he looked away quickly. Shane started to laugh in the backseat, "Zombies are the best thing to ever happen to this country, did you know before all this I was on parole? The best thing is killing cop zombies!" I was studying Cliff's face I watched how his eyebrows raised slightly as Shane said this, then he started to laugh and said "You are right, I did enjoy going piggy hunting with you." I looked between both Shane and Cliff, then started to laugh at the look of complete contentment on Shane's face.
Cliff was able to speed up as soon as we got away from what was left of Cedar City, there were less vehicles on the side of the road. Shane was curled up in the back seat snoring softly. I leaned my head against the window, drifting slowly into a troubled slumber. I was dreaming about what I still consider the worst day of my life. I didn't feel the tears rolling down my face until Cliff gently wiped them off my cheek. My eyes fluttered open in surprise. He was looking deep into my eyes with his piercing green eyes. His eyebrows were pushed together with concern. He glanced back at the road for a moment, but our eyes locked again and for a moment I felt like I knew him from somewhere. I pushed the thought out of my head and quickly rubbed my eyes embarrassed he had seen me cry, even if it was in my sleep.
"You were saying something, all I caught was the name Roy." He said gently as he pushed my tangled hair behind my ear. I exhaled looking down, and shrugged "He's nobody anymore." He cupped my face in his palm, eyes softening for a moment as he said "If he was nobody, why were you crying?" I looked down again, tears welling up in my eyes again, as I said "He's an ex boyfriend that didn't end well." Cliff nodded and said "Yea I have heard his side of the story a million times, what's yours?" I looked up at him in surprise, "You knew Roy?" He nodded and shrugged "He is one of my brothers best friends, personally I thought he was an asshole." He was gazing out the windshield, I could tell he had a great distaste for the man I once called love. I studied my shoe as I said "He hates me, and I should be over it but sometimes it still hurts." I looked up at him in time to see him staring at me out the corner of his eye. I blushed slightly, "He's probably a mindless zombie now anyway, so it really doesn't matter what happened, I need to move on." He smiled sideways at me, reached over and brushed a rogue tear off my cheek. "So your brother is Gus?" I asked looked up at him, I was trying so hard not to enjoy the warmth of his hand against my cheek. He nodded, then shrugged "I didn't really know Gus, I lived with them for a while, but I wasn't raised around them, so I didn't fit in." He ran his hands through his mohawk as he said this. I turned in my seat so I could face him "How did you survive?" He looked surprised and laughed "Amy? I just gave her, her way." I laughed at this as well recalling how crazy Gus's wife could be. "No I mean this." I gazed out at the dying world around us, we were near a small town. There were wrecked cars littering the highway, and offramp. A few limping zombies turned their blank eyes on our vehicle as we passed. "Well, I didn't know anything was happening until I found your video on youtube." He shrugged slightly, swerving around a limping zombie with outstretched arms. I must have looked surprised, because he started to laugh. "I worked for a website, and didn't get out much. I heard the screaming from the apartment above me, but I thought it was his crazy girlfriend. I looked for the most recently viewed videos and yours popped up. I thought it was a joke, so I went outside to prove it to myself, and decided to go to you, since everyone else was dead." He laughed again "I was playing Left 4 Dead the during the real zombie apocalypse." I started to laugh, half wishing this were all a dream, and we were playing video games. We talked video games for the last 20 miles before we reached the offramp for Leeds.
There was a blockade at the offramp, with armed soldiers standing guard. We pulled up slowly, ready for anything. The soldier tapped the barrel of his gun against my window, I rolled it down to talk to him. "How many?" He asked looking around through my open window. "Three of us, but there are more in Enoch." I replied looking past him at the other guards, who were watching us suspiciously. The soldier squinted at me for a moment, then asked "Are you Amber? The chick with the safe house?" I smiled and nodded. He yelled some orders at the other guards, they opened the barricade for us and we edged our way through. We followed the cement barriers built around a makeshift compound. "This is the refugee center?" Shane had woke up, and was looking around us. The blocks opened up into an area filled with tents, and military vehicles. There were a few survivors, but they were mostly wounded. "I'm not so sure about this." Cliff was frowning at a group of bandaged children playing with charred toys. We found a place to park our vehicle, Cliff nudged me and showed me he put the keys in his pocket. I nodded and pulled my Shotgun off the floor. Shane popped his neck, and grabbed his baseball bat up off the floor. "Ready?" He asked tapping it against his window. We both nodded and stepped out into the refugee camp.
It took us 2 hours to get through Cedar City. During that time, I attempted to make conversation with Cliff, but he was shy, so it was mostly me talking. That was okay, but I felt like maybe I had misjudged the electric pulse I felt everytime we touched. After telling him about how I had met James, and with no reply as to how he had come to be in my father's basement I fell silent. I started to study my shoes, I didn't want him to see the disappointment in my eyes. We rode in silence for about 15 minutes, then he broke the silence with a long exhale, and said "I miss when zombies were only in video games." I looked up at him, our eyes met for a moment, but he looked away quickly. Shane started to laugh in the backseat, "Zombies are the best thing to ever happen to this country, did you know before all this I was on parole? The best thing is killing cop zombies!" I was studying Cliff's face I watched how his eyebrows raised slightly as Shane said this, then he started to laugh and said "You are right, I did enjoy going piggy hunting with you." I looked between both Shane and Cliff, then started to laugh at the look of complete contentment on Shane's face.
Cliff was able to speed up as soon as we got away from what was left of Cedar City, there were less vehicles on the side of the road. Shane was curled up in the back seat snoring softly. I leaned my head against the window, drifting slowly into a troubled slumber. I was dreaming about what I still consider the worst day of my life. I didn't feel the tears rolling down my face until Cliff gently wiped them off my cheek. My eyes fluttered open in surprise. He was looking deep into my eyes with his piercing green eyes. His eyebrows were pushed together with concern. He glanced back at the road for a moment, but our eyes locked again and for a moment I felt like I knew him from somewhere. I pushed the thought out of my head and quickly rubbed my eyes embarrassed he had seen me cry, even if it was in my sleep.
"You were saying something, all I caught was the name Roy." He said gently as he pushed my tangled hair behind my ear. I exhaled looking down, and shrugged "He's nobody anymore." He cupped my face in his palm, eyes softening for a moment as he said "If he was nobody, why were you crying?" I looked down again, tears welling up in my eyes again, as I said "He's an ex boyfriend that didn't end well." Cliff nodded and said "Yea I have heard his side of the story a million times, what's yours?" I looked up at him in surprise, "You knew Roy?" He nodded and shrugged "He is one of my brothers best friends, personally I thought he was an asshole." He was gazing out the windshield, I could tell he had a great distaste for the man I once called love. I studied my shoe as I said "He hates me, and I should be over it but sometimes it still hurts." I looked up at him in time to see him staring at me out the corner of his eye. I blushed slightly, "He's probably a mindless zombie now anyway, so it really doesn't matter what happened, I need to move on." He smiled sideways at me, reached over and brushed a rogue tear off my cheek. "So your brother is Gus?" I asked looked up at him, I was trying so hard not to enjoy the warmth of his hand against my cheek. He nodded, then shrugged "I didn't really know Gus, I lived with them for a while, but I wasn't raised around them, so I didn't fit in." He ran his hands through his mohawk as he said this. I turned in my seat so I could face him "How did you survive?" He looked surprised and laughed "Amy? I just gave her, her way." I laughed at this as well recalling how crazy Gus's wife could be. "No I mean this." I gazed out at the dying world around us, we were near a small town. There were wrecked cars littering the highway, and offramp. A few limping zombies turned their blank eyes on our vehicle as we passed. "Well, I didn't know anything was happening until I found your video on youtube." He shrugged slightly, swerving around a limping zombie with outstretched arms. I must have looked surprised, because he started to laugh. "I worked for a website, and didn't get out much. I heard the screaming from the apartment above me, but I thought it was his crazy girlfriend. I looked for the most recently viewed videos and yours popped up. I thought it was a joke, so I went outside to prove it to myself, and decided to go to you, since everyone else was dead." He laughed again "I was playing Left 4 Dead the during the real zombie apocalypse." I started to laugh, half wishing this were all a dream, and we were playing video games. We talked video games for the last 20 miles before we reached the offramp for Leeds.
There was a blockade at the offramp, with armed soldiers standing guard. We pulled up slowly, ready for anything. The soldier tapped the barrel of his gun against my window, I rolled it down to talk to him. "How many?" He asked looking around through my open window. "Three of us, but there are more in Enoch." I replied looking past him at the other guards, who were watching us suspiciously. The soldier squinted at me for a moment, then asked "Are you Amber? The chick with the safe house?" I smiled and nodded. He yelled some orders at the other guards, they opened the barricade for us and we edged our way through. We followed the cement barriers built around a makeshift compound. "This is the refugee center?" Shane had woke up, and was looking around us. The blocks opened up into an area filled with tents, and military vehicles. There were a few survivors, but they were mostly wounded. "I'm not so sure about this." Cliff was frowning at a group of bandaged children playing with charred toys. We found a place to park our vehicle, Cliff nudged me and showed me he put the keys in his pocket. I nodded and pulled my Shotgun off the floor. Shane popped his neck, and grabbed his baseball bat up off the floor. "Ready?" He asked tapping it against his window. We both nodded and stepped out into the refugee camp.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Anarchy
We arrived back at my fathers house as the sun began to rise in the east revealing what was once a quiet neighbored, that was now in chaos. There were remnants of the dead, and a few undead still wandering around. Most of the houses had caught fire during the night and now lay as a smoldering pile of brick and ashes. One house had the charred bodies of the family that had lived in it huddled together. Tears welled in my eyes when my eyes met the twisted face of the father who was holding the charred body of a baby. I wiped my eyes and turned my gaze to my father's driveway. There were two more vehicles besides my white car, and the transport vehicle that had carried the survivors from the armory. "News travels fast." This was the first word James had spoken since his confession earlier this morning. "I hope no one has been bitten." I took my gun off safety and undid my seatbelt, ready for anything the undead might have to offer. Sterling was sitting on the back porch enjoying the morning mist. Some of the wandering dead were attempting to get through the fence that was around the back yard. The fence was not that high, but the zombies were not all that smart either. Their arms outstretched towards us they leaned into the fence as if they just expected to go through it. Sterling nodded at us, and cleared his throat. "Glad you made it." I smiled a little bit, and pushed past him. James sat with Sterling and started taking aim at the zombies that were still pushing on the fence. I headed down the stairs, the door to the saferoom was open wide revealing a group of young adults, all huddles around a game of cards. They were not using money to place bets, but things like smokes, weapons, or candy. They looked up as I entered the room, I nodded at them but my eyes stopped on a curly haired kid wearing glasses. Our eyes met for a moment, I smiled and continued to the kitchen area where Nelda was cooking some eggs. "Are you hungry dear?" she asked as she cracked a small brown egg into the pan she was cooking in. I shook my head smiling, "No thanks, I just want a shower." She nodded and began to hum what I recognized as an old church song. Brother Todd and a few others were lounging on the couches and recliners my dad had equipped the room with, they were chatting quietly amongst themselves. I could only hear snatches of the conversation, they were talking about a refugee camp in Leeds. Leeds is a town just outside of St. George, there wasn't much there other than good hiking and quiet living. I headed for the massive bathroom my dad had built for his late wife. The shower had multiple shower heads, there was a hot tub in the corner as well. The three old timers from the armory were lounging in the hot tub telling stories.
"Aye, you were right, this is a better place." One of them tipped their pipe at me. I nodded smiling, I closed a curtain on them, so that I could shower without putting on a show for the old folks. I showered quickly, I had to get to Leeds today, and I was probably going to have to escort some of the survivors there. There was a large closet close to the bathroom, it was filled with clothes of various sizes and styles. I found a good pair of jeans and a black tank top. I also found some better boots. I left my sneakers behind for someone who might find better use with them than I did, and headed back out to see what James was up to.
On my way back through the safehouse, two more survivors walked through the door. I smiled and welcomed them shaking their hands, "Your father is a good man." The man stated as he gave me a big bear hug, and headed towards the kitchen area sniffing the aroma of fresh cooked eggs, and bacon. The group of young adults had dispersed. I headed up the stairs and heard what sounded like a game of football going on in the backyard. I was right, James was acting Ref, and Sterling was playing quarterback. The curly headed kid was laughing at them. He wasn't playing instead he had a PSP in his lap. I sat next to him glancing to see what game he was playing. I began to laugh as I realized he was killing zombies in his video game. He jumped and turned to me, and our eyes met again I felt a chill run down my spin. I held my hand out to him "I'm Amber" He smiled and said "I'm Cliff" Our hands met and I felt the chill again. It was like electricity when our hands met. He smiled and looked at me curiously. His eyes were so intense I had to look away. I set my gaze on the group, James was trying to convince Sterling that he had messed up some play. They argued playfully for a moment, then Sterling grabbed James's chin and pulled him into an intense kiss. Cliff was laughing at them next to me. When he laughed I could feel the emotion roll off him. His laugh was musical in my ears. I began to blush, so I got up and headed towards my fathers chicken coop. The chickens were scratching the ground and clucking aimlessly. I sprinkled chicken feed our for them and watched as they fought over it. James walked up beside me, he had given up trying to ref, he had a goofy smile on his face. I started to laugh at him, when I caught the eye of Cliff again. My breath got caught in my throat, so I looked towards the ground. James elbowed me, and nodded towards Cliff who had started playing his game again. "I see the way he looks at you, and you are as red as a lobster." I bite my lower lip and looked into James's eyes, "Am I that easy to read?" I smiled and started to blush again as James nodded laughing. "I can't do this right now, I have to get to Leeds, to find my dad and sister." I started but James shook his head, and said "Amber, look around you it's the end of the world as we know it. Live, Love, Laugh" He was watching Sterling now, "I am." What he said was the smartest thing I had ever heard, and it made more sense than anything else that had happened to me this far.
Before I had a chance to try talking to Cliff, Nelda poked her head out the back door "Hey I need to call a meeting." I nodded at her and headed back towards the saferoom. The others followed me laughing and goofing around in the morning sunlight. Down the stairs and in the lounging area everyone had gathered together. I took my seat at the computer desk, and turned toward the rest of the group. James and Sterling sat together on the floor holding hands. Brother Todd was staring at them, but they didn't notice. I envied James then, he didn't care what anyone thought. He was perfectly content to be with Sterling. I felt an electric touch as Cliff placed his hand on my shoulder standing above me. I glanced up at him, he winked and smiled at me. Nelda cleared her throat "This room is not meant to be lived in by this many people, I say we take a head count of all those who want to go to the refugee camp in Leeds." She was interrupted by Brother Todd who politely stated "What if they are not safe there? I can't take my children unless I know its safe." Others nodded throughout the room. I saw my chance, standing up I stated "That is completely understandable, those who want to stay here, until I can get there and confirm they are safe are welcome to stay, those who want to go with me, your guns are appreciated." James nodded and Sterling said "I'm with you." Most of the younger group jumped up and pumped their fists in the air. I turned and looked at Cliff, his eyes were glinting and he nodded at me. This nod made me feel reassured that I was making the right decision. "Nelda, I would like to ask if you would like to be in charge of this safe room?" I turned to the hunched woman, she nodded and stuck her chin out proudly. "Then it's settled, those who are going with me, pack up we will leave in an hour." The group whooped and began gathering up their possessions. I turned back towards the computer to check if we needed to rescue anyone else. Other videos had started popping up about other saferooms throughout the United States. There were people congratulating us for our ingenuity, and for helping our fellow humans. I searched for any news on the state of the States. I found a video that showed a zombie attack on the white house. The US government had fallen. "Anarchy!" Cliff whispered over my shoulder. I nodded smiling sadly.
"Aye, you were right, this is a better place." One of them tipped their pipe at me. I nodded smiling, I closed a curtain on them, so that I could shower without putting on a show for the old folks. I showered quickly, I had to get to Leeds today, and I was probably going to have to escort some of the survivors there. There was a large closet close to the bathroom, it was filled with clothes of various sizes and styles. I found a good pair of jeans and a black tank top. I also found some better boots. I left my sneakers behind for someone who might find better use with them than I did, and headed back out to see what James was up to.
On my way back through the safehouse, two more survivors walked through the door. I smiled and welcomed them shaking their hands, "Your father is a good man." The man stated as he gave me a big bear hug, and headed towards the kitchen area sniffing the aroma of fresh cooked eggs, and bacon. The group of young adults had dispersed. I headed up the stairs and heard what sounded like a game of football going on in the backyard. I was right, James was acting Ref, and Sterling was playing quarterback. The curly headed kid was laughing at them. He wasn't playing instead he had a PSP in his lap. I sat next to him glancing to see what game he was playing. I began to laugh as I realized he was killing zombies in his video game. He jumped and turned to me, and our eyes met again I felt a chill run down my spin. I held my hand out to him "I'm Amber" He smiled and said "I'm Cliff" Our hands met and I felt the chill again. It was like electricity when our hands met. He smiled and looked at me curiously. His eyes were so intense I had to look away. I set my gaze on the group, James was trying to convince Sterling that he had messed up some play. They argued playfully for a moment, then Sterling grabbed James's chin and pulled him into an intense kiss. Cliff was laughing at them next to me. When he laughed I could feel the emotion roll off him. His laugh was musical in my ears. I began to blush, so I got up and headed towards my fathers chicken coop. The chickens were scratching the ground and clucking aimlessly. I sprinkled chicken feed our for them and watched as they fought over it. James walked up beside me, he had given up trying to ref, he had a goofy smile on his face. I started to laugh at him, when I caught the eye of Cliff again. My breath got caught in my throat, so I looked towards the ground. James elbowed me, and nodded towards Cliff who had started playing his game again. "I see the way he looks at you, and you are as red as a lobster." I bite my lower lip and looked into James's eyes, "Am I that easy to read?" I smiled and started to blush again as James nodded laughing. "I can't do this right now, I have to get to Leeds, to find my dad and sister." I started but James shook his head, and said "Amber, look around you it's the end of the world as we know it. Live, Love, Laugh" He was watching Sterling now, "I am." What he said was the smartest thing I had ever heard, and it made more sense than anything else that had happened to me this far.
Before I had a chance to try talking to Cliff, Nelda poked her head out the back door "Hey I need to call a meeting." I nodded at her and headed back towards the saferoom. The others followed me laughing and goofing around in the morning sunlight. Down the stairs and in the lounging area everyone had gathered together. I took my seat at the computer desk, and turned toward the rest of the group. James and Sterling sat together on the floor holding hands. Brother Todd was staring at them, but they didn't notice. I envied James then, he didn't care what anyone thought. He was perfectly content to be with Sterling. I felt an electric touch as Cliff placed his hand on my shoulder standing above me. I glanced up at him, he winked and smiled at me. Nelda cleared her throat "This room is not meant to be lived in by this many people, I say we take a head count of all those who want to go to the refugee camp in Leeds." She was interrupted by Brother Todd who politely stated "What if they are not safe there? I can't take my children unless I know its safe." Others nodded throughout the room. I saw my chance, standing up I stated "That is completely understandable, those who want to stay here, until I can get there and confirm they are safe are welcome to stay, those who want to go with me, your guns are appreciated." James nodded and Sterling said "I'm with you." Most of the younger group jumped up and pumped their fists in the air. I turned and looked at Cliff, his eyes were glinting and he nodded at me. This nod made me feel reassured that I was making the right decision. "Nelda, I would like to ask if you would like to be in charge of this safe room?" I turned to the hunched woman, she nodded and stuck her chin out proudly. "Then it's settled, those who are going with me, pack up we will leave in an hour." The group whooped and began gathering up their possessions. I turned back towards the computer to check if we needed to rescue anyone else. Other videos had started popping up about other saferooms throughout the United States. There were people congratulating us for our ingenuity, and for helping our fellow humans. I searched for any news on the state of the States. I found a video that showed a zombie attack on the white house. The US government had fallen. "Anarchy!" Cliff whispered over my shoulder. I nodded smiling sadly.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Inside the Armory
We climbed down two sets of stairs, following Sterling who didn't say a word the entire time. We walked down a long hall with about four rooms all with windows. Sterling didn't even glance at the windows as he passed, but James and I couldn't help but look. Some of the windows had bloody hand prints, or just smudged blood on them. One was covered in what looked like the green goo, the Brett zombie had tried puking on us. I squinted against the goo trying to see what was in the room. I could make out a large figure, it had its back towards me. I tried looking closer to see what it was, I had an idea, but I didn't want it to be true. "Is that?" James started, but as he spoke the figure turned revealing the puss covered face of a zombie. "Hey Sterling?" I called stepping away from the glass and hurrying along the hallway after him. He turned slowly at the end of the hallway, looking down he took a deep breath as if preparing himself for a hard explanation, "The woman in that room, was human four hours ago. Those rooms, were our patient rooms. I thought I could set up a refugee camp." He looked up with tears in his eyes, "But, most of the survivors were bitten, or scratched. The woman in that room had been vomited on by something that looked like she does now." I heard a sharp intake of breath, as James stepped back to peer into another patient room. This room had a beheaded zombie strapped to a hospital bed. There was blood everywhere as if who ever had removed the head, used a chainsaw, or something like that. I felt a scream get stuck in my throat, as I saw on the floor the still moving head of the zombie body. "Is it?" I started, but Sterling had unlocked the door at the end of the hallway and held it open for us. His eyes had turned cold and grey again. "There's about 12 of us left." He said as we entered into a large basketball court. Sleeping bags littered the floor of this room, and there were small groups of people all looking at us. "It's not safe here kids, we been trying to get a rescue party to help us, but I don't think anyone is coming." A little old man wearing a set of blue overalls that had blood splattered all over the front. He was smoking out of a wooden pipe, something that smelt like stale tobacco. He was sitting with a group of about three old men all in overalls, they were passing the pipe around. "I think we should wait till daybreak to leave here, we will be able to see whats coming better." I turned to James and Sterling, "Will this place hold for another couple of hours?" He looked doubtful and then looked back towards the hallway with the undead petting zoo. "I don't think their rooms will hold till tomorrow, we have a transport vehicle all loaded up with supplies, but I can't convince some of the people here to leave." He nodded towards the three smoking buddies. I nodded and headed towards them.
"Do you mind if I smoke with you?" I asked sitting on the floor next to their camping chairs. "There isn't enough!" The man who had spoken to us first said as he held his pipe away from me like a small child with a toy. "Well thats ok." I said pulling my pipe off my keyring and setting it up for a good hit. I loaded it with the last of my thunderphuk. The sweet savory smell of the herb filled the area and engulfed us. The old man sniffed the air, and looked sadly at his own stale pipe tobacco. I took a hit holding it in for a moment, allowing the smoke to fold over the three. The other two were watching my pipe as I offered it to the greedy old man. He looked at me dumbstruck "Girl, I thought the world had forgotten how to share, and had forgotten how to be civil to one another." He gingerly held my pipe and took a little puff. He exhaled loudly as a look of happiness spread across his wrinkly old face. He handed it back to me "Thank you." I passed it to the other two older men, holding my hand out to the man I said "I'm Amber, I am here to rescue you."
After I had successfully doped up the three unwilling passengers, we headed for the hallway to take care of the zombies that had been locked up there. I attempted to open one of the doors, but the zombie threw itself against it so hard I thought it had ripped the hinges right off the wall. I retreated back to the basketball court, where Sterling and James were catching up."So what happened to Joe?" Sterling was saying, but quickly stopped as I walked up. I sat down next to them and in a low voice, so the others wouldn't hear me "We are going to have to find another way out, or figure out how to sneak past them." I looked between them, hoping one of them would come up with a solution. James stood up and stretched his neck, he popped his knuckles, grabbed his machetti, and headed towards the door. I looked back into Sterlings cold grey eyes, he looked hopeless. I smiled at him as I got up to follow James, "Come help us kill some zombies." I winked at him as I grabbed my hatchet from my belt. He looked at me with frowning eyes, then got up and followed us. As I entered the room James was picking his zombie of choice. He paced back and forth in between a zombie wearing a military uniform, and the room covered in green goo. He had decided on the green room when I stopped him saying "Wait, last time I killed one of those ones, it exploded, and alerted the horde, leave this one for last." He nodded and entered the room with the dead soldier in it. Sterling and I watched through the blood splattered window. The zombie turned slowly, and began to frenzy itself. It growled through blood covered teeth, it seemed the monster was drooling blood, it ran down it's chin and onto the floor. James took up a defensive stance against the charging zombie. He stepped out of the way running his blade along the zombies stomach. He had sharpened it so that as the zombies weight pressed against the blade it cut the flesh like butter, the zombies stomach fell to the floor with a wet plop. It turned its angry eyes to James and attempted to charge again, but it tripped on its intestine and fell on its face. James took his chance and embedded his blade in the monsters dome. It twitched a little as it died, this time never to get back up. He pulled the machetti out of the dead soldiers head and wiped it on the zombies already bloodstained shirt. Exiting the room he dipped his head towards me as if to say, your turn. I turned to a very angry girl zombie, she looked to be about 15 or 16, same age as Artesia. I felt a twinge of fear almost as I entered the room and readied my hatchet. The girl turned to look at me with glazed over eyes. As I looked into those sad dead eyes, I wondered if Artesia was still alive or not. I turned the blade part of the hatchet away from the teen zombie, she bared her teeth at me revealing braces with little pieces of flesh dangling in them. She took her first step towards me, I raised the blunt end of the hatchet and brought it crashing down on her head as she stumbled towards me with outstretched arms. As the hatchet fell I felt her skull give way and the hatchet sink into her brain. Her eyes rolled up into her head as she fell. All the air whooshed out of her as she did. I threw up. I didn't expect her head to just crush so easily. I was shaking as I exited the room. I pulled my pipe out and smoked the last bit of blackened spice. Exhaling I tried stopping my hands from shaking I sat against the wall across from my zombies window. I sunk to the floor still shaking slightly. "This is our rescue crew? She can't even kill a zombie hardly!" Sterling was looking at James with angry eyes, James shrugged "she is better with guns" He offered his machetti to Sterling, but he refused it popped his knuckles loosened up a little and entered a room with another soldier zombie. As he entered the room and before the zombie could even turn to look at him he punched it in the lower part of the zombies head. The zombie fell to its knees with an angry groan. Sterling looked surprised, that it hadn't knocked the zombie out, he kicked the zombie to the ground, and with his combat boot stomped the back of the monsters head. The skull gave way, almost too easily and the zombie stopped moving. Sterling wiped as much of the blood off his boot as he could. Stepping out of the room he looked at me with his cold eyes and said "THAT is how you kill a zombie." James laughed and handed me his boot pistol, it was a small revolver. I checked to make sure it was loaded took it off safety and tapped the green window. The monster hurled itself through the window with a loud crash. James and Sterling stepped back towards the door, James had his Machetti at the ready for in case I couldn't kill the beast. I jumped back towards the stair well, I raised the gun, at the monster that had started making its way towards me. "Cover your ears." I said as I pulled the trigger. The zombie exploded with an earth shattering BOOM. Sterling's mouth fell open in shock, and James whooped. The door behind them yanked open to reveal the startled eyes of a few of the other survivors. We heard the electric fence start to zap lifeless bodies as the horde attempted to push their way through. "We need to go...NOW" James jumped towards the stairs turning long enough to catch the keys for the transport vehicle out in the yard. I ran back for our weapons and to gather the rest of the survivors. Sterling and I herded them out to the roof, where James had backed the transporter up to the ladder. I took aim at a few of the zombies who had started to climb their dead comrades to get in. I handed Sterling Jame's rifle, and he started shooting the oncoming army of the undead as well. "I have an idea" I jumped from the roof to the roof of the transporter, then to the roof of the van, climbing in the passenger side I honked at James to let him know I was going to lead them away. He shook his head at me, but I pushed my foot to the floor, and drove through the now dead electric fence dragging the bodies of the fried dead with me, the zombies turned to follow me, and I thought I would be able to get their attention, when the barbed wire from the fence wrapped itself around my front tires and popped both of them. The van lurched forward as the anti lock breaks set in. I was going to fast to keep control of the vehicle and it rolled onto its side. I of course hadn't put my seat belt on in the heat of the moment. I lay there for a moment wondering if I had died, but then I heard the roar of the transporters engine, and the blasting of guns. At least I had saved them.
After a moment my side started to ache, where I had hit into the shattered window, and road. I realized I was alive, but not for long if I didn't get the hell out of this van. I could smell gas leaking and a small electric wire sparked lighting the back seats on fire. I began kicking at the shattered windshield frantically. This van was going to explode if I didn't get out. The window fell to reveal the grinning faces of the zombies I had chasing me. the tried clawing their way into the van, I heard gun shots and the zombies went stiff and fell revealing bullet holes in their foreheads. I crawled out of the van, cutting my hands on the glass, and twisted metal. I felt James's grab the back of my shirt as he heaved me up to my feet. I felt blood trickle down the side of my face from where I had hit my head on the window. "Thanks" I said meekly as he dragged me back towards a waiting hummer. "Where are the others?" I asked trying to turn around to see if they had gotten away." He hoisted me up into the passenger side without saying anything. He pulled himself into the drivers side and shifted the vehicle into first gear. It jumped to life making me dizzy with how quickly it moved. I looked at James, studying him for a moment. He looked pissed. His usually twinkling eyes, were cold and set on the road in front of us. The van exploded behind us in a ball of flames. I flinched at the sound. After about 10 minutes of silence, James cleared his throat, the sound startled me, I turned to look at him. Tears were flowing down his cheeks now. "James?" I asked as I leaned over and wiped a few of his tears from his face. He sighed looking away from me. "Amber, there are some things about my past, that people would probably not like if they found out about it." He rubbed his eyes, and turned to look at me with sad eyes. "Sterling knows about some of it, but I don't want him to turn them against me because of it." I studied him trying to decide, what it was that he was going to tell me. He looked miserably at me, and said "Amber I'm gay."
"Do you mind if I smoke with you?" I asked sitting on the floor next to their camping chairs. "There isn't enough!" The man who had spoken to us first said as he held his pipe away from me like a small child with a toy. "Well thats ok." I said pulling my pipe off my keyring and setting it up for a good hit. I loaded it with the last of my thunderphuk. The sweet savory smell of the herb filled the area and engulfed us. The old man sniffed the air, and looked sadly at his own stale pipe tobacco. I took a hit holding it in for a moment, allowing the smoke to fold over the three. The other two were watching my pipe as I offered it to the greedy old man. He looked at me dumbstruck "Girl, I thought the world had forgotten how to share, and had forgotten how to be civil to one another." He gingerly held my pipe and took a little puff. He exhaled loudly as a look of happiness spread across his wrinkly old face. He handed it back to me "Thank you." I passed it to the other two older men, holding my hand out to the man I said "I'm Amber, I am here to rescue you."
After I had successfully doped up the three unwilling passengers, we headed for the hallway to take care of the zombies that had been locked up there. I attempted to open one of the doors, but the zombie threw itself against it so hard I thought it had ripped the hinges right off the wall. I retreated back to the basketball court, where Sterling and James were catching up."So what happened to Joe?" Sterling was saying, but quickly stopped as I walked up. I sat down next to them and in a low voice, so the others wouldn't hear me "We are going to have to find another way out, or figure out how to sneak past them." I looked between them, hoping one of them would come up with a solution. James stood up and stretched his neck, he popped his knuckles, grabbed his machetti, and headed towards the door. I looked back into Sterlings cold grey eyes, he looked hopeless. I smiled at him as I got up to follow James, "Come help us kill some zombies." I winked at him as I grabbed my hatchet from my belt. He looked at me with frowning eyes, then got up and followed us. As I entered the room James was picking his zombie of choice. He paced back and forth in between a zombie wearing a military uniform, and the room covered in green goo. He had decided on the green room when I stopped him saying "Wait, last time I killed one of those ones, it exploded, and alerted the horde, leave this one for last." He nodded and entered the room with the dead soldier in it. Sterling and I watched through the blood splattered window. The zombie turned slowly, and began to frenzy itself. It growled through blood covered teeth, it seemed the monster was drooling blood, it ran down it's chin and onto the floor. James took up a defensive stance against the charging zombie. He stepped out of the way running his blade along the zombies stomach. He had sharpened it so that as the zombies weight pressed against the blade it cut the flesh like butter, the zombies stomach fell to the floor with a wet plop. It turned its angry eyes to James and attempted to charge again, but it tripped on its intestine and fell on its face. James took his chance and embedded his blade in the monsters dome. It twitched a little as it died, this time never to get back up. He pulled the machetti out of the dead soldiers head and wiped it on the zombies already bloodstained shirt. Exiting the room he dipped his head towards me as if to say, your turn. I turned to a very angry girl zombie, she looked to be about 15 or 16, same age as Artesia. I felt a twinge of fear almost as I entered the room and readied my hatchet. The girl turned to look at me with glazed over eyes. As I looked into those sad dead eyes, I wondered if Artesia was still alive or not. I turned the blade part of the hatchet away from the teen zombie, she bared her teeth at me revealing braces with little pieces of flesh dangling in them. She took her first step towards me, I raised the blunt end of the hatchet and brought it crashing down on her head as she stumbled towards me with outstretched arms. As the hatchet fell I felt her skull give way and the hatchet sink into her brain. Her eyes rolled up into her head as she fell. All the air whooshed out of her as she did. I threw up. I didn't expect her head to just crush so easily. I was shaking as I exited the room. I pulled my pipe out and smoked the last bit of blackened spice. Exhaling I tried stopping my hands from shaking I sat against the wall across from my zombies window. I sunk to the floor still shaking slightly. "This is our rescue crew? She can't even kill a zombie hardly!" Sterling was looking at James with angry eyes, James shrugged "she is better with guns" He offered his machetti to Sterling, but he refused it popped his knuckles loosened up a little and entered a room with another soldier zombie. As he entered the room and before the zombie could even turn to look at him he punched it in the lower part of the zombies head. The zombie fell to its knees with an angry groan. Sterling looked surprised, that it hadn't knocked the zombie out, he kicked the zombie to the ground, and with his combat boot stomped the back of the monsters head. The skull gave way, almost too easily and the zombie stopped moving. Sterling wiped as much of the blood off his boot as he could. Stepping out of the room he looked at me with his cold eyes and said "THAT is how you kill a zombie." James laughed and handed me his boot pistol, it was a small revolver. I checked to make sure it was loaded took it off safety and tapped the green window. The monster hurled itself through the window with a loud crash. James and Sterling stepped back towards the door, James had his Machetti at the ready for in case I couldn't kill the beast. I jumped back towards the stair well, I raised the gun, at the monster that had started making its way towards me. "Cover your ears." I said as I pulled the trigger. The zombie exploded with an earth shattering BOOM. Sterling's mouth fell open in shock, and James whooped. The door behind them yanked open to reveal the startled eyes of a few of the other survivors. We heard the electric fence start to zap lifeless bodies as the horde attempted to push their way through. "We need to go...NOW" James jumped towards the stairs turning long enough to catch the keys for the transport vehicle out in the yard. I ran back for our weapons and to gather the rest of the survivors. Sterling and I herded them out to the roof, where James had backed the transporter up to the ladder. I took aim at a few of the zombies who had started to climb their dead comrades to get in. I handed Sterling Jame's rifle, and he started shooting the oncoming army of the undead as well. "I have an idea" I jumped from the roof to the roof of the transporter, then to the roof of the van, climbing in the passenger side I honked at James to let him know I was going to lead them away. He shook his head at me, but I pushed my foot to the floor, and drove through the now dead electric fence dragging the bodies of the fried dead with me, the zombies turned to follow me, and I thought I would be able to get their attention, when the barbed wire from the fence wrapped itself around my front tires and popped both of them. The van lurched forward as the anti lock breaks set in. I was going to fast to keep control of the vehicle and it rolled onto its side. I of course hadn't put my seat belt on in the heat of the moment. I lay there for a moment wondering if I had died, but then I heard the roar of the transporters engine, and the blasting of guns. At least I had saved them.
After a moment my side started to ache, where I had hit into the shattered window, and road. I realized I was alive, but not for long if I didn't get the hell out of this van. I could smell gas leaking and a small electric wire sparked lighting the back seats on fire. I began kicking at the shattered windshield frantically. This van was going to explode if I didn't get out. The window fell to reveal the grinning faces of the zombies I had chasing me. the tried clawing their way into the van, I heard gun shots and the zombies went stiff and fell revealing bullet holes in their foreheads. I crawled out of the van, cutting my hands on the glass, and twisted metal. I felt James's grab the back of my shirt as he heaved me up to my feet. I felt blood trickle down the side of my face from where I had hit my head on the window. "Thanks" I said meekly as he dragged me back towards a waiting hummer. "Where are the others?" I asked trying to turn around to see if they had gotten away." He hoisted me up into the passenger side without saying anything. He pulled himself into the drivers side and shifted the vehicle into first gear. It jumped to life making me dizzy with how quickly it moved. I looked at James, studying him for a moment. He looked pissed. His usually twinkling eyes, were cold and set on the road in front of us. The van exploded behind us in a ball of flames. I flinched at the sound. After about 10 minutes of silence, James cleared his throat, the sound startled me, I turned to look at him. Tears were flowing down his cheeks now. "James?" I asked as I leaned over and wiped a few of his tears from his face. He sighed looking away from me. "Amber, there are some things about my past, that people would probably not like if they found out about it." He rubbed his eyes, and turned to look at me with sad eyes. "Sterling knows about some of it, but I don't want him to turn them against me because of it." I studied him trying to decide, what it was that he was going to tell me. He looked miserably at me, and said "Amber I'm gay."
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