Chapter 1
I think it’s kind of funny to say that I was prepared for this. Honestly, I really do chuckle when I think about how it was only six months ago my friends and I would make jokes about it. But now those jokes were how I had to live. I wake up in my bed each morning and look out the window. Each day the amount of people shrink and the infected grow. Three months ago my parents became part of this group. My brother went shortly after them. I live alone. Well not really, it’s me my dog Leila and two cats Cleo and Babe. My only connection to the outside world is my cell phone. The infected don’t go near the towers so there is still connection. I think the electrical lines bother them so they don’t go near them. There used to be television but as the amount of people living decreased TV became less important. I use the internet sometimes but rarely. I prefer the phone. Hearing my friends’ voices reminds me that I’m still alive and so are they. I looked on the internet, someone has updated the statistics. The last guy died I think. He had not updated for a week before this. The Stats used to be small, two percent infected, seven percent infected. Then the numbers changed drastically, 25 percent 38 percent. I remember when it became even fifty, fifty. That was when government officially shut down. It was like every one on earth went absolutely crazy. Sorry that was just putting it bluntly. Without Government there was no police, no firemen, no army or any hospitals. On the first night we heard someone break in my dad ran downstairs with a bat. He turned the light on. There he saw a woman with two girls standing behind her. When I walked down she was standing in front of them with a knife pointed shakily at my dad. She looked scared and hungry. Her girls had stolen some food from the cabinet. They were eating it furiously. My dad dropped the bat at his feet. The woman stared at him puzzled my dad was much larger and stronger than she was and you could tell she knew it.
“Why would you lower your weapon to me? I could kill you if I want?” She finally said her voice shook as she spoke. The pitch was high and really effeminate Not the kind of voice you would expect from someone that would point a knife at you.
“I know you could.” My fathers face was calm; his voice was cool and collected “But I know that you won’t.” he did not flinch as she stepped towards us.
“What makes you so sure” She as trying to sound threatening but clearly was not. She was a very small woman and the closer she got the more you noticed it.
“I know because…” my dad said as he gently pushed the knife down “you are not a killer you are just hungry.” Of course my dad was right; you could see it on his face. There was a silence long and tense. It finally broke as the woman dropped the knife and began to cry. My father and I stayed with them and watched as they ate like they haven’t eaten in days, probably because they haven’t. They lived with us for a little while. I became very close with her daughters. One of them was pretty close to my age about two years younger than me. Her name was Stephanie. The other one was about six years younger than me. Before they left I got both of their phone numbers and they became part of my group that I talked to on a daily basis. It was strange watching them go.
Today though when I went on the stats were upsetting yesterday was only 72 percent but today it was and even eighty to twenty. I sat down and just stared at this pie chart for what felt like hours. I just sat there I felt the world around me disappear except for me and this chart in a mental face-off. It is very hard to keep your spirits up in such dark days. I often find myself asking why I am still alive what purpose do I serve. Suddenly I hear a sound break though the blackness. I look on the desk my phone is ringing. I look down front and I see the name on the front screen. “MATT ROBERTS” says in large black letters. Matt was always a close friend before the infection broke out. He was a tall almost lanky guy but under that was muscle a lot of it. His hair was black and his eyes showed off this massive intellect. Before the infection broke out Matt and I would discuss the idea of it and how we would deal with it. We agreed that when it came we would keep in contact. He was the first I called when the news broke. Then when the government shut down. Then when my parents became infected. Now he was calling me. It was a relief to hear from him.
“Hello” I said with a bit of tension in my voice.
“Hey Sam have you seen the stats today?” He seems pretty excited about them.
“Yeah, they are kind of depressing”
“I am the one who edited them” which explains the excitement he was showing. It was always a big deal to be the one who edits them. It lets the world know that you are there. “So how’s it going by you?” he says as his voice goes from fun to business. I can sense what he is trying to say.
“You want to start moving now, don’t you?” I said I already knew the answer but I had to humor him. There was a long silence it was not an easy thing to do there was a large amount of planning involved it wasn’t going to just happen and we knew it.
“Yes” he says finally, and just like that the silence comes back as we both realize the scope of our endeavor. We will need people, food, weapons, supplies, vehicles, clothing; all these things require contact with the infected. That was not something that could be done easily. The infected were violently hungry and will kill for a taste of flesh. Worst of all they were not killed too easily. “Then lets start packing I will begin to make calls to the others who are still alive.” just like that the conversation ended. We rarely said goodbye it meant we were not going to see each other again, so we avoided using it. I looked down and Leila was looking at me. She wanted to go to the bathroom. Back before the infection it would just be pretty easy, let her out watch her then let her in. Now it was different. I went into the garage and found one of my projects the woodpecker scythe as I called her was a five foot six wooden pole with a nice curved spike at the end that rolled down to remind me of the scythe that the grim reaper carries around. I closed the door behind me and Leila and I stood there together in the closed garage. I stared at her and then I pushed the button. The metallic chains creaked to life and the light automatically turned on. It is bright out. The sun is shining and the sky is blue. Today is the perfect spring day. That pisses me off. I feel like it would be better if it were like the movies. You open the door and the zombies are waiting for you in a red sky black tree hellhole. This just seems like it does not fit the mood. Leila and I walk out onto the grass and she begins to sniff for that perfect spot to do her business. As we walk the sound of the infected coming towards us is growing. Usually they begin in small numbers, but today sounds different. As Leila and I keep walking I see the first one down the street. It looks like my neighbor but I know it’s not him. My neighbor was killed by his wife after she was bit. As this thing began running I got the scythe ready. I look down and Leila is still at my side sniffing around she was close to her spot and you could tell. As I look back up I see how close it has gotten. I wait. I clench my fist and hold my ground. I have to wait till it’s with in range. Eleven feet, hold it. Nine feet, hold it, seven feet, hold it. Then finally; swing! I hit the thing directly across the face as the spike goes through the zombies head. I then pull and the head flies clear off. Unfortunately that is just the beginning and I know it. I turn and there is another one. I step back and take another swing. It hits this one in the side and I knock the thing over onto its side in the follow through one final shot to the head kills it. I turn and suddenly another one right on top of me. I know the face and in a heartbeat block it out of my mind. I jab it in the face but the shock knocks me back. I look at Leila and she is almost done. I get back up and take a wild swing. I didn’t expect to hit it but it just gave me momentum. Leila finishes and begins to run toward the garage. I am not far behind but unfortunately neither is the zombie. Leila and I get into the garage and I push the button furiously. It seems like the garage is taking forever to close. When it gets about halfway down the zombie reaches us crawling through the door as it closes on its back. It keeps closing pushing down on this creature’s back; Screeching it keeps trying to push towards us. The sounds are attracting others. I stare empty of feeling just in shock. I raise the scythe high over my head and bring it down over its head ending the screeching forever.
I walk inside and close the door hard behind me. Leila walks behind me giving a final look at the now decapitated body lying in the garage. Inside I finally catch my breath. My encounters with the infected always leave me shaken but this was really bad. I sit down and open my fridge. Food, I really was hungry I have not eaten yet and did not know how much time I would have before I had to begin packing. So I took most of the food in the refrigerator and made a giant last meal. I ate everything that could not be brought with me. I also fed Leila, Cleo, and Babe, they were coming with me. I am not going to leave my animals to die. I looked at my phone and began making calls.
Most did not pick up or the phones went straight to voicemail which usually meant they were dead. Finally I got to Lucas; Lucas was one of my closest friends but after the infection broke out him and his girlfriend Danielle fled to Vermont
“What” Lucas sounds like I just woke him up I look at the clock and see that it is twelve already. He is such a lazy person. I sort of envy his ability to sleep late; there are nights where I just lay awake and think about all that has happened and what will happen tomorrow. I think why in gods name should I wake up tomorrow, why I would want to get out of bed? Yet here is Lucas able to sleep in late and enjoy his night.
“Matt Roberts and I are planning on going to find a permanent group” I say
“No” he says then there is a silence I look at my phone and see that he hung up. I am quick to call back “Sam, listen Danielle and I are quite safe here why would we ever think of leaving” He made a point Lucas was one of the few people I knew with guns and he could shoot them well.
“There is power in numbers you and I know that.” He sighs over the phone seeing that I won’t drop this. He knows that I am stubborn. “You guys could just drive down here and-
No we will not leave, you guys would have to come to us. Speaking of who do you guys have?”
“No one yet”
“No” I look at the phone he hung up again. I hit the redial and it rings. “Listen get people come here and maybe”
“Will do” then we hung up. I knew that it was the best I was going to get from him and honestly I was not really in the mood to fight with Lucas.
Just like that began going through my contacts and found Erik. Erik was a friend of mine from school. He and my other friend Casey decided that the best thing to do was as soon as the Infection broke out they were going to take over a warehouse and lock themselves and everything that was in there inside. It was Erik, Casey and Erik’s girlfriend Kayleigh. I rarely called them I knew they were alive so I rarely had to. This is different I have a proposal for them. I push call and the phone rings and Kayleigh picks up. I know it’s her by the way she answers “Sammy” she really was the only one who called me that but I did not mind we were close friends. Honestly I knew her a lot longer than Erik so I preferred to hear from her.
“Hey Kayleigh, is Erik around?” I ask
“You’re on speaker” I hear Erik in the background
“Why are you calling” Casey asks. He was always no nonsense when he wanted to be. He could be pretty scary and I try to speak but feel as though there is something stuck in my throat. “Sam!”
“Matt Roberts and I are creating a stable group, want to join us?” I rush out of my mouth.
“Sam, we have shelter, food, and weapons if we need them but we don’t so why would we risk danger?” Casey says. He was right they were really safe and honestly I did not have an answer, well not one that could convince them anyway.
“Listen Sammy if you guys need any help or supplies we have extra and could always give you something” Kayleigh says
“I might have to take you up on that offer” I had no idea what that meant but it seemed like a nice way to say thanks without actually saying it. Just like that the call ended and the contacts screen rolled up, there were calls to make and next on that list was my friend Sean Ackerman. Sean lived the closest to my house and I was really hoping he was still alive. Last I heard he was in a pretty bad place mentally. I remember the call from him.
He called me in tears and he spoke so quickly that it was almost impossible to understand him. After he finally calmed down he explained the story. It was a story which unfortunately was common for most of the survivors. He came home one day and his family was gathered around his little sister. She was lying on the couch with a blanket on top of her. She was shivering cold and screaming in pain. On her shoulder was a small bite with blood dripping out of it. Her parents were sitting over her and trying to clean the wound. They were trying desperately to do anything that they could to prevent the inevitable, she was infected. She had all of the signs the bite, the cold sweat, the screaming, and the hunger. Sean was the only one who did the right thing. He grabbed his sword and locked himself in the basement. The sounds upstairs became gruesome and sick. Then he decided to do another thing right. He called me and after I calmed him down I came over.
When I walked in the sight was sickening. I saw his sister sitting on over the bodies of her own parent with their blood all over. I called out to him to let him know I was there. I knew I had little time before his parents rose as part of the infected. I did not really bring too much. Unfortunately this was before the woodpecker scythe so all I had with me was the war hammer. It was just an old hammer that I had so I took it and bent the sharp side with pliers then sharpened them to a fine point. It was great for close range but was a bit short. As I went to the basement door she jumped at me. I side stepped and swung downward with the dull end of the hammer. It was a direct shot in the back of the creatures head. Its body hit the ground hard stomach first. You could hear the crack in the skull where the brain used to be. The zombie was quick and grabbed at my ankle ready to bite I reached down and got its wrist hard enough to hear the bone crack. It let out an incredible screech in pain. The disgusting brown blood of the infected began to flow from this creatures arm. I took advantage of the release and ran to the higher ground of the stairs. By the time I got to them the zombie was up and running after me. It is backing me up. I swing and knock the arm away then I make the turn and with the sharp edge go straight down the top of the zombies head. I hear stirring from the other room. His parents must be awake. I hurry and pull back the hammer as bits of skull fly out of the creatures head along with a geyser of rotten brown blood spits out of the hole I just made. When the dead creature finally fell forward defeated the other two were right behind it. I looked at their arm length and realized that their arms were too long for me to hit them without being grabbed for it. I make a run for it and jump the railing. I fall and hit the ground wrong. I can feel my ankle twist but there was no time to stop. The adrenaline was running through my body like a raging river of energy. I pushed myself toward the living room. They were right behind me so I turned and took my chance at the first zombie in front. I hit it with the sharp edge in the arm and pulled out a chunk of muscle and now useless nerve. The arm fell to its side but it didn’t stop the rotten thing. What it did do for me was give me an open side to swing at. I took full advantage of my opening and moved to the side and caught the creature in the back of the head and pulled it to the ground. I tried to pull the hammer out but it seemed to be stuck on the back of the skull. There was no time to try and un-wedge it. So I turned and left it. I was now without any protection and one angry zombie behind me. There was only one place to run. The kitchen is the best place to find weapons. Usually people keep knives there and some of them are pretty big.
The only problem was that this was not my kitchen; I had no idea where to find these knives. I began pulling at draws sending supplies on the floor but there were no really sharp knives, just a few small butter knives. I looked to the last corner where the last draw lay unopened. I knew that you were never supposed to corner yourself but if I could get to the knives then it would all be worth it. I pulled at the door but it was stuck. I could see the handles inside but I could not get to one. It was closing in and there was no longer anywhere to run. I was trapped I could now feel the cold hand grab tightly. I closed my eyes and was prepared for death When, the creature suddenly let out a screech that I had never heard. It was a blood curdling yell which could be heard for miles. I opened my eyes and the dirty brown blood was spraying everywhere. I could not figure it out till I looked down at the creature’s torso. There was Sean’s sword tip speared through it. I pulled at the draw where my other hand was still gripping the handle and it shot open. I grabbed the largest knife I saw and stabbed it straight into the mouth of the screaming beast silencing it forever. As the zombie fell I saw Sean standing behind covered in the same brown blood I was. His face was red and there was a mixture of emotion on it; relief that I was alright and a sense of grief and mourning in the loss of his entire family. We embraced in a hug filled with gratitude. Then we both washed the blood off of ourselves and sat down in his basement away from the carnage of the battle. Something had changed in Sean, he no longer cried and was filled with rage towards the infected killing with pure brutality. He was cold and lonely.
Our conversation was short and simple I asked if he was ok and he said he needed somewhere to stay for a bit. I invited him and he joined me for a few weeks. Now as I look at his name in my phone I plan on inviting him to join me on a much larger journey.
“Sean?” I say cautiously into the phone.
“What is up Sam how is it going?”
“I am quite ok Ackerman.” I say in a sarcastic gentleman’s accent. “I come baring a business proposal which my dear friend I doubt you will want to pass up.” I kept the scholarly charade going for as long as I could. I got a good kick out of it for some reason. It was simple yet so fun.
“What is it Sam?” I guess he was not enjoying my accent as much as I was but I kept it going.
“Well if you must know, Matthew Roberts and yours truly have decided that it would be in our benefit-“
“Get to the point Sam!” I could hear the frustration in his voice and I decided rather than keep my fun joke going I would humor him.
“I was going to but I was so rudely interrupted.” I sarcastically respond but then I cut the joking. “Matt and I are creating a group, you want in?”
“Fine.” He sighs clearly still frustrated but trying to keep some composure “What do I need?” I had not really thought about it. I have not even begun packing myself.
“Um, my suggestions are canned foods, clothes, stuff like toothpaste and most importantly as many weapons as you have.” Then I realize I need to pick him up “I will be there in an hour, I will call you before I leave.” There is a long silence on the line; it ends finally with one word
“Ok” with that one word the conversation ended and it was time for me to begin packing.
No comments:
Post a Comment