He pointed toward the aft of the ship at a single lifeboat. The tiny vessel was clinging to the release assembly by a chain, dangling off the side of the ship, its oars connected by a strap. “Get up,” Chris said. “Get up now.” He grabbed hold of Jake’s sleeve and gave it a yank. Alicen tried to push past him, and they both wobbled on the railing posts, trying to maintain balance. “Keep your damn shirt on.” He had to grab her with his free hand to keep her from going over the side.
Jake pushed off the deck and attempted to settle his feet on the posts that saved him from falling in the ocean. He swayed a bit before Chris felt confident enough to let go. There was a good-sized patch of blood matting his hair to the back of his head.
“We have to get all the way over there?”
Chris was already urging him to walk. “Yes, now go.” He held his place as Jake started off. Chris let Alicen get around him before he moved. He tried to keep his eyes on the railing posts, the mounting number of dead caught in the expansion of nets, and the kids out in front of him. “Steady with your steps. One post at a time.”
It wasn’t long before the nets were dangling above them. The mass of knotted material was spread out well over a hundred feet. They were moving along the railing underneath the nets when Chris and the kids realized how many decaying bodies were moving through the mess. Some of the dead were caught in the wires, while others were stuck underneath, but the sheer numbers were beyond counting. A majority were dressed in the torn and bloodied coveralls of former crewmembers. Others were clad in the jeans and t-shirts of survivors who had found their way on board in search of safety.
“Don’t look at them,” Chris ordered. “Just keep moving.”
Jake was running as fast as his legs would carry him. Alicen was struggling and her hesitation lengthened the distance between her and Chris to Jake. The moment she started to pass under the nets, she couldn’t take her eyes off the dead. Zombies lashed wildly as the living ran into view. The thrashing had an instant and terrifying effect.
Chris broke his own rule as his eyes drifted upward toward the high side of the deck. The figures trapped within started to slip from their bindings and those still free rushed out of the remaining cabin doors like mad dogs. The result was a showering display of rotted corpses. The first bodies fell from the doorways, slamming down on the railings. Alicen came to a sudden stop as a zombie hit a few feet ahead and managed to keep from dropping between the posts. The next few bodies splashed into the water, which caused her to cry out.
“It’s raining dead people!”
Chris worked his way around her, using the top banister for footing. He smashed the heel of his boot on the head of the zombie as it tried to pick itself up off the posts. The skin tore apart across the nose. Then its face cracked open. The diseased remains of the brains smeared across the pole and the bottom of Chris’s boot. The body gave way and fell, leaving only a streak of blood smeared across the post.
Chris grabbed Alicen’s hand and pulled her along. He took slow but determined steps, not wanting the girl to lose her balance behind him. The bodies continued to rain down, several striking the posts and toppling over, but some managed to grab hold. Numerous undead littered the railings in front of Chris and Alicen before they could do anything about it.
Jake reached the lifeboat, and he was yelling at Chris, but the words were lost among the chaos. The boy went to work on the remaining chain when a zombie fell and smacked into him from behind. The creature flipped over the top rail and continued on, but the impact pushed Jake out over the side. He grabbed hold of the lone chain connecting the lifeboat to the ship in a fevered desperation.
Chris tried to keep one eye on Jake and the other on the dead laid out in front of him. He had half a mind to tell the boy to let go, but he wasn’t sure he could tread water long enough to survive. Two of the four zombies in the way tried to get up on their feet but then slipped over the side. One of the remaining looked to have broken her back, and she lay bent over on herself, trying to reach out for Chris. The skin on the woman’s face was peeled off from the nose to the chin, revealing a set of pearly white teeth highlighted by surrounding bloody tissue.
Chris grabbed the woman’s outstretched hand and pulled her over the post. The move resulted in the cracking of bones and a horrifying twist as her back bent in the opposite direction. He let go when her body unfolded and she slipped helplessly in the space between the posts. Chris took a cautious step on the bloodstained bar and then quickly dispersed the lone zombie with a few kicks as it tried to get up.
They were moving fast, spurred on by another scream from Jake. The shower of bodies forced Chris and Alicen to start and stop several times. By the time they reached the lifeboat, Jake had slipped farther down the chain, and the only thing keeping him from falling was his foot wedged inside the boat. Chris did a hasty search of the hook ups and found the release lever.
“You’re going to have to jump.”
Jake’s eyes shot up to meet his. “The hell with that.”
Chris had to look past him and into the water to understand his reluctance. Several of the dead were thrashing in the churning tide, some in pieces, torn apart by the fall. Jake was too far out for Chris to reach and he was left without another choice. The bodies were falling at an alarming rate. Zombies pushed out of the cabin doors in droves, all of them focused solely on Chris and the kids. If the living didn’t get off the ship now, there would be nowhere else for them to run.
“You have to,” Chris said. “Push off as hard as you can.”
“No way.”
“When I release this safety switch that damn boat is going to fall.” Chris looked back at the growing multitude of dead working its way through the nets. “The impact will probably kill you.”
“But—”
“Do it.”
Jake clenched his teeth and then moved without thinking about it. He brought his feet up as high as he could and bent close to the edge of the lifeboat. One good push thrust him back and he let go of the chain as he went. Jake turned his body in the air and managed a diver’s form as he hit the water.
Chris didn’t wait. He pulled on the safety and unhooked the chain in one quick motion. The safety clip released and the boat dropped and hit the water, crashing into several bobbing figures in the process. Chris grabbed Alicen around the waist and lifted her without instructions. She screamed and hollered as he tried to spot Jake in the water. The boy was treading as best he could, but his attention was on several hands reaching up for the side of the boat.
Alicen hit Chris in the face as he lifted her over the railing. He aimed for Jake as best he could, and then tossed the girl out. She screamed all the way down. Alicen hit the water a few feet from her brother. Jake grabbed hold of her and helped her get righted. Chris readied himself to jump, when something slammed into his back and pinned him to the rail.
He felt it clawing at him before he realized what was happening. Pinned down with his knees spread across two posts, Chris couldn’t force himself up. The first tear came at his side. His skin ripped under his jacket, and a burning sensation radiated from his ribs. He felt the warmth of his own blood as it soaked through his clothes.
A gnarled hand grabbed hold of his face and pulled his head. He saw the exposed teeth of the zombie clinging to his back as it brought its open jaws down toward his face. Chris reacted the only way he could. He pulled one knee over the post, nearly dislocating his hip in the process. The move left his body with no support and as he slipped through the open space, the zombie’s neck struck the railing, pulling its head clean off.
Chris hit the water chest first, and the pain of the impact rivaled the burning in his side. He felt hands grabbing onto him under the water, and he struggled to swim back up to the surface. His lungs begged for air as he swept his arms downward, trying to push himself through the water. His chest was about to explode when he burst through the surface gasping for air. He reached up for the side of the lifeboat and discovered Ja
ke standing on the inside trying to pull him in.
♦
The boat moved at a painfully slow pace. Chris had both oars in the water and was doing his best to keep rowing. Alicen’s eyes were closed. She’d curled up next to her brother and used his legs as a pillow. Jake was facing Chris, his eyes still glazed over. The water was calm and the ship and dock were barely visible in the distance behind them.
Chris looked down at his soaked map unfolded in the center of the lifeboat between his seat and the kids. He knew the distance between the dock and Catalina Island was twenty-eight miles. He had no idea how long that trek would take in a rowboat. His mind was blank. He gave no thought to what lay ahead until Jake’s first question broke the silence.
“You think we’ll be safe now?”
Chris stopped rowing, but he didn’t answer. He was cold, wet, and hungry. Other than that, he wasn’t sure of much else. He pulled the oars from the water and rested his shoulders for a minute. He rubbed his hands together trying to get some life into his fingers.
His side hurt with every pull, but Jake had drained his strength getting Chris in the boat and rowing them away from the dock. Chris guessed that he’d been at the chore for nearly an hour. His thoughts were on Jenn. She was the dedicated one. She was the one who told him he had to believe they’d be safe. He finally gave Jake an answer, although he wasn’t sure he believed it.
“I think so.”
Alicen’s eyes popped open. She stared at him for a moment, waiting for him to acknowledge her. “You promise?”
Chris grabbed the oars and pushed them back in the water. He was quiet for a while, but both kids kept their eyes trained on him. Finally, he looked back at them as he started to row again. He smiled but avoided the question.
“Get some sleep,” he said. “We should be there soon.”
THE END
TRIBES OF DECAY
Decaying World Saga
Book I
By
Michael W. Garza
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted
in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including
photocopying, recording or by any information and retrieval
system, without the written permission of the author, except
where permitted by law.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and
incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or
are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events,
locales or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 by Michael W. Garza
All rights reserved.
Proofread by Karen Robinson of
INDIE Books Gone Wild.
1
The cold, damp air left the heavy vegetation glowing in a thin cover of dew. Morning light crept across overgrown streets and long-abandoned structures. Little remained of the old world. Those who called this place home knew only fragments of the once proud people who believed they’d reached the pinnacle of civilization.
Darian was a hunter. He’d always been taller than the other boys his age, and his skill with a bow was considered the best among the Cheyenne Tribe. Rowan lived his life in the shadow of his older, admired cousin. The two were as close as brothers. They’d been inseparable since they were children. At the age of seventeen, they would be among the next generation to take the test of manhood.
“Haven’t we been out here long enough?” Darian asked. His skill with a bow was almost as well-known as his questionable sense of humor. “I’d be just as happy to spear you and take you back.” He laughed as Rowan finally turned around. “I’m sure if I skinned you down, no one would even notice the difference.”
Rowan was trying to keep Darian focused. It was a task he’d been at since they were three years old. Darian never had to try very hard to be good at anything. It annoyed the hell out of Rowan at times, but he’d learned to accept it.
“Look at the sun.” He pointed out beyond the buildings. “We haven’t been out that long.”
“Why don’t we head west?” Darian asked.
Rowan eyed him closely. The land west of the city was crawling with the infected and both of them knew it well. The tribe had managed to push most of the infected into the outlands beyond the city before the last harvest. No one was allowed to go out beyond the city limits. The city was bad enough; the dead lurked in the dark corners of every building, and they were difficult to deal with in large numbers.
“We can’t play around anymore,” Rowan said. “We have to bring something back or we’ll lose favor in the elders’ eyes.”
Darian smiled a sly grin. “You know as well as I do that the lands in the west are stocked full with game.” He had Rowan right where he wanted him. “We can stay at the edge of the city and we’ll be fine.”
Rowan wanted to disagree, but he knew Darian was right. In truth, he was tired. They’d already drained their waterskins, and the day was looking like a total loss. He tried one last time to think of a better idea as his eyes scanned from one dim entryway to another. The buildings loomed overhead in every direction, their exteriors covered in deep-green foliage that matched the distant surrounding forest. Rowan gave in with a nod, and they were on their way a moment later.
The streets were as silent as a grave. Rowan often wondered what the people of the old world were like, but deep thought was not a particular hobby of his cousin. Rowan knew his place among his people and he was content with his lot in life. He was proud of his skills, and he was sure the council of elders would make him a full member when the trials began.
“Don’t you ever think about what it was like before us?” Rowan asked, and Darian’s face drew up as if the question smelled bad. “In the times before the infection.” Rowan’s eyes were on the main doorway of a three-story building across the street.
“No.”
The simple response caused Rowan to freeze in his tracks. He shook his head and laughed. He marveled at what it must be like to not get caught up in reflection. Rowan knew it was a key difference between the two cousins. Darian was capable of sudden action, and it showed in everything he did.
“You think too much,” Darian said as he pulled an apple from the pouch dangling off his belt. “I bet you’d be a better shot if you spent more time with your bow.” The bigger boy pushed Rowan in the back. “When I’m the council chief, I’m going to forbid you from thinking about anything longer than me.”
Rowan started off again, this time laughing. “I guess that means I won’t be thinking at all.”
♦
Rowan gasped for air and tried to remain perfectly still. He’d lost Darian somewhere within the building but was too frightened to retrace his steps and look for him. His knees shook and he was sure that his deep, panting breaths would give him away. The only light came from a small window at the other end of the hall.
They’d reached the edge of the city and a sprawling valley opened up ahead of them. And what they found there nearly brought them to their knees. The infected pushed through the high grass in an endless row of bodies. The count was unnamable and the sheer size too vast for comprehension. Their horrible howls carried on the wind, slithering through the grassland.
Rowan and Darian rushed for cover, seeking refuge in the first building they found. Darkness consumed them and at some point during the panic-stricken run, they were separated. Neither of them had the courage to call out. Rowan was alone and fear clung to him more than ever before.
He could hear the dead closing in. Their moaning calls echoed through the dark halls. The tactic was a common one and highly effective. The infected would cover the exterior of the building and send the dead in to flush out the prey.
Rowan cursed himself for falling into the trap. He couldn’t shake the nefarious vision of the horde crossing the field. He couldn’t remember ever seeing a group so massive. He would have to get word to the council. The sound of foo
tsteps reminded him that he needed to live long enough to get out of the building before he would have to worry about delivering the news.
He notched an arrow and tried to gather his bearings. He’d lost himself in his mad dash but guessed at the direction of the stairs. Rowan took three hesitant steps before another sound froze him still. He considered his surroundings and then quickly put his bow away and pulled the knife from his belt.
The moaning grew louder and a rush of sounds followed. Figures shifted within the shadows of a room on the other side of the hall, and Rowan rushed toward the opening. He peered through the doorway in time to watch Darian’s knife plunge through the skull of a zombie. The blade dug through the top of the head and burst from its mouth. Darian let the creature fall to the floor and then managed to flash his cousin a smile before he waved him over.
“I’m glad you’re having fun,” Rowan whispered. “You know we’re trapped in here.”
Darian’s smirk faded. “We need to go up.”
“We’ll get stuck.”
“We’ll just have to wait them out then.”
Rowan shook his head. “Did you see the size of the horde?”
“We’ve seen worse.”
Rowan was going to disagree, but a new sound pulled his attention back to the hallway. The slithering-speak consisted of a series of grunts interchanged with words. Rowan’s heart thumped in his chest. The infected were coming in after them. He felt his hands shake as his mind raced.
“We’ve got to go now,” Rowan said, but Darian was already moving. “We can’t get trapped in here.”
Darian waved him off as he approached the doorway. He held still for a moment before peeking out into the hall. Rowan’s eyes adjusted enough to see Darian signal him forward. They stepped out into the hall only a foot apart.
The Decaying World Saga Box Set [Prequel #1-#2 & Books #1-#2] Page 44