The Virus

by Lee, Damien

  “No chance.”

  He shot the animal before it stepped into his office. He looked down the neck of the bottle as he took another swig. The sloshing liquid cast an amber tint over the next animal that entered the room. Gordon set down the bottle and stared at the large cow.

  “Well, you’re a beauty, aren’t you?”

  The crazed heifer watched him with wide eyes. Its lipless mouth formed a permanent snarl as it stepped over the dead cows. Gordon turned, busying himself with another bottle of alcohol. The undead animal stepped forward, like a tiger stalking its prey.

  “I think me and you should go down in a blaze of glory.”

  Gordon soaked his handkerchief in the potent mixture. The liquid dripped from the fabric as he stuffed it into the neck of the bottle. Turning back to the animal, he produced a lighter and lit the end of the cloth. The flame devoured the handkerchief as the cow attacked. It rushed toward the desk as Gordon hurled the cocktail.

  The bottle smashed on the cow’s skull, showering the office in glass shards as the alcohol ignited. A sea of flame engulfed the room. The undead cow was oblivious to the searing heat as it clambered onto the desk. It darted toward Gordon, who now held a gun to his temple.

  “Good luck, Benjamin.”

  His head jerked sideways as the bullet entered his brain. His muscles twitched as he fell in a heap. An enigmatic shriek escaped the cow as it pounced on the motionless body. It wasted no time in tearing flesh from the man’s lifeless form, but it meant little to Gordon. As soon as the bullet entered his brain, he faced an eternity of darkness.

  32

  “Shut the fuck up, Zielinski!” Gus Razor spat.

  “Wait, what’s going on?” Frank asked.

  “It’s him,” Zielinski continued. “It’s his fault all this started.”

  They watched as Gus went nose to nose with the Polish man.

  “I swear to God, Zielinski, shut it or I will kick your arse back to Krakow!”

  The two men locked stares until the click of a gun caused them both to turn.

  “Tell us what happened,” Frank said, aiming the shotgun at the two men.

  “Well, it started when—”

  “I’ll tell the story!” Razor bellowed, pushing the Polish man aside. He turned his back to the group and looked towards the military complex. Seconds passed before he emitted a hefty sigh.

  “A few weeks back, one of my boys got word of a military cargo being transported. He found out it was the same routine every week. He was certain it was guns. Maybe confiscated weapons, or prototypes that hadn’t matched the specification, I don’t know. Either way, I gave the order to intercept the cargo on its next run.”

  “And I’m guessing they were transporting corpses?” Lisa said.

  “Don’t ask me, I wasn’t there.”

  “Yes, it was,” the soldier replied. “We had no idea either. Our orders were to keep the base secure and destroy the medical waste every week. It was the scientists in the complex that knew what was going on.”

  “Did you not get suspicious when the cargo started moving and eating people?” Frank asked.

  “They were never alive. They were dead before the experiment as far as I know; bodies donated to science and that kind of thing. The corpses transported were experimental failures. But we weren’t authorised to know what they were doing down there.”

  “Down where?”

  The group looked on as the soldier motioned towards the large dome in the centre of the courtyard.

  “Wait, there’s a lab under there?”

  “An entire medical facility. I told you; the base is used for weapons research and development.”

  “Why were they experimenting on corpses?”

  “Probably trying to create a super-soldier or something,” Tina muttered. The group turned and looked at the teenager who crossed her arms. “What? That’s what they always do in the films.”

  “Not quite,” Zielinski replied. “Me and Lurch found a bunch of paperwork in one of the filing cabinets. They were trialling bioweapons.”

  “Bioweapons?”

  “Yeah, It’s all here.”

  He produced a wad of folded sheets from his pocket. He handed it to Lisa as Gus stepped forward.

  “Oy! Where did you get that?”

  “We tried to tell you,” Zielinski said. “You ‘don’t read’, remember?”

  Gus Razor snarled at the pair. He made to speak, but Frank interrupted him.

  “I still don’t understand how this all started. So, Razor’s boys ambushed the truck, yes?”

  “Yeah,” the soldier replied.

  “Then what happened?”

  “I have no idea. I was never a driver. All I know was what the lads told me when they got back.”

  “And what did they say?”

  “They were attacked by a group of blokes in a blacked-out van. They were trying to ram them off the road. Both vehicles got smashed up pretty bad. In the end, those guys gave up and fell back. But when they went to destroy the bodies, they found that the hold was damaged.”

  “So the zombies escaped?”

  “Their report said the cargo was accounted for, but one of them told me later that there was a corpse missing.”

  “But you said they were dead when they were being transported. Rejects, right?”

  “Yeah.”

  “So it would’ve been a corpse at the side of the road? How could it have spread the virus?”

  The soldier shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe this one wasn’t a reject after all, or maybe a fox took a bite of it and became infected, who knows. What I do know is that it wasn’t long after that when the shit hit the fan.”

  The group glared at Gus Razor.

  “Oh, grow up you little specks of shit!” he snapped. “You’re all giving me evils just because a hijack went wrong? It was these cunts that created the virus. They started it.”

  Frank glanced at Lisa, who studied the unfolded documents. “Find out anything?”

  She held a hand to silence him, not taking her eyes off the pages. Frank’s attention was caught by the soldier walking back to the building.

  “Where are you going?”

  “To make a brew.”

  The group watched as he reached the door. He made for the handle before it swung open. A wild screech accompanied an undead woman as she dived onto him.

  “Shit!”

  Frank levelled his shotgun at the grappling pair, but his aim wavered when he heard more shrieking from the side of the building. Ignoring the potential threat, he looked back at the soldier as the zombie tore a chunk out of his hand. Lisa’s rifle drowned out his scream of pain. The attacker lurched back with a bullet in its head. Frank watched as the soldier scrambled to his feet and rushed inside.

  “You said you got them all, Lurch!” Razor snapped as more screeches sounded nearby.

  “No, I didn’t. I said one or two might have got past.”

  “Well, there’s more than one or two here, you dumb fuck. Can’t you count?”

  The group readied their weapons as a series of zombies rounded the corner. A multitude of gunfire echoed around the courtyard. They banded together as the undead ran straight at them from both sides of the building. As each corpse fell, another took its place in the endless assault.

  “One or two!” Gus raged over the gunfire. “You need your fucking eyes tested.”

  Lurch scowled. He gripped Tina’s hand and ushered her away as the gunfire continued.

  “How many bullets you got left, Frank?” Gus shouted.

  “Enough.” He blasted a woman as she drew close, reducing her top half to a bloody mush. “I think that’s the lot.”

  “Good, because I’m out,” Gus muttered, returning the weapon to its holster.

  “Do you have any more guns?” Frank asked him.

  “I think there are some back inside.”

  “Right, Pinky and Perky,” Frank said, turning to Simon and Elaine. “Go inside, get some guns and b
ring them out here. We need to make sure the rest of this place is secure.”

  He turned back to the rest but stopped in his tracks when he heard the click of a handgun.

  “No. We’re not following your orders anymore!”

  Frank turned, eying Simon and the handgun that shook in his chubby hand.

  “Where the hell did you get that?”

  “From the back of that bloody lorry. You’re not going to order us about anymore. Me and Elaine are getting the hell out of here.”

  “Fuck me, you sure know how to pick ‘em, Frankie.” Gus chuckled until Simon’s wavering aim rested on him.

  “Fuck you!”

  “Now hold on a minute,” Gus started, raising his hands as he stepped forward.

  “No, you hold on!” Simon lurched toward him, aiming the handgun at his head.

  “Oh, you fat twat. I’m bored with this. Frankie, kill him.”

  Simon snapped his aim at Frank, whose shotgun remained by his side.

  “Frank, shoot him!” Gus repeated.

  “I can’t, I’m out of bullets.”

  “What? You just said you had enough bullets?”

  “I did. I used it on that last zombie.”

  “Oh, well, fuck a moose on a winter’s night!” Gus spat. “Blondie, you shoot him.”

  “Nobody is going to shoot us,” Simon snapped. He aimed the gun at each of them as he and Elaine backed away.

  “What’re you gonna do, Simon?” Lisa asked.

  “We’re getting in one of those jets and we’re getting away from here.”

  “But where? Everywhere’s fucked.”

  “We’ll go to France, Spain, Italy. Anywhere but here.”

  “Have you forgotten about the Channel Tunnel?” Frank asked, “Europe is gone. Asia is gone.”

  “Then we’ll go to Africa.”

  “Africa?” Gus laughed. “Even if they’re not infected; they’ll still eat you.”

  “Then we’ll go to America. I can fly us there.”

  “Pull the other one. You’d never make it to the Yanks in one of those.”

  “We’ll take our chances.” Simon swung the weapon from side to side as he steered Elaine back with his free hand.

  “We need to stick together.” Lisa protested.

  “We are.”

  “You’re being stupid.”

  “Am I?”

  The pair reached the side of the building. Simon made to speak further, but a startled gasp from his wife stole his tongue. He whirled around as two undead soldiers rushed at them from behind the wall.

  “Shit!”

  The group looked on at the unfolding events. Simon shot one of the men, sending him crumpling to the ground. Elaine held out a hand to keep the remaining attacker at bay. She shrieked as it lunged for her, grabbing its face as it snapped toward her neck. Her palm blocked the zombie until it ripped into the flesh between her thumb and forefinger.

  A second shot drowned Elaine’s screams as Simon killed the creature. He wrapped Elaine in his arms as the group rushed over.

  “Stay where you are!” He aimed the gun at the group.

  “Simon, you need to kill her.” Lisa urged.

  “Like hell I do!”

  “There’s no cure!” She brandished the folded pages. Simon aimed the weapon at Lisa as she glared at him. They locked stares before another series of shrieks filled the air.

  “Fuck it, I’m off,” Gus stammered.

  He turned on his heel and ran back to the military base, with Frank and Lisa close behind. The trio bounded over the corpse near the doorway and rushed inside.

  Frank looked back, watching the fleeing couple. Simon fired at the zombies as they rushed towards the jet. Some fell to the ground, others ploughed on, determined to reach them before they escaped.

  A straggling zombie turned the corner. After looking between the two morsels, it attacked the army base. Frank pulled the door shut, seconds before the creature crashed against it. It cried out in frustration, slamming itself against the wooden pane.

  “Did they get away?” Gus asked.

  “I’m not sure.”

  “Fuck me, I’ve never seen a fat twat run so fast.”

  Frank shook his head as he joined Lisa and Zielinski next to a gap in a window.

  “You’d think McDonald’s were giving out freebies,” Razor continued.

  He stepped away from the door as the zombie continued its relentless assault.

  “Shut up, Gus.” Frank strained his neck to see more of the airfield, but the wooden planks obstructed most of his view.

  “Do you think they made it?” Lisa whispered.

  “I don’t know.”

  “There really isn’t a cure. These scientists have created a bioweapon; a nerve agent to infect the enemy.”

  “What?”

  “It’s all here.” Lisa handed the paperwork over. “Apparently gaseous agents are too easy to identify. They’ve manufactured a new strain which is transmitted via fluid.”

  “So it turns them into zombies?” Frank asked.

  “Not at first. It’s designed to kill them. But it continues to release neurotransmitters after death. The brain is reactivated, and they become those things.”

  Frank studied the sheet as she continued.

  “The enemy spreads the virus within their camp. Before long, their army is decimated. Kind of like a Trojan horse.”

  “Will you drop this shit?” Gus spat.

  “So it’s spread by fluid?” Frank asked, ignoring the request.

  “Bodily fluid.”

  “So as long as we don’t jerk these guys off, we should be fine.” Gus snorted.

  “Shut up, Gus. This whole thing started because of you.”

  “Spit and blood.” Lisa continued. “It’s spread through a bite. It’s why you didn’t turn into one when Louise scratched you.”

  Frank touched his cheek, tracing the scabbed flesh with his finger.

  “Oh ho, you’ve had another woman, Frankie? Fuck me, you get about.”

  Frank rounded on the gangland boss. “I won’t tell you again, Gus. Shut the fuck up. New bodyguard or not, I’ll still kill you.”

  Gus looked around the room.

  “Hang on, where is Lurch?”

  “Tina?” Lisa scanned the room. “Where’s Tina?”

  “I think I saw them run round the side,” Zielinski offered.

  Razor’s eyes widened. “The little shits better not be in your truck!”

  He bounded to the front of the building, followed by Frank and Lisa. They each found a gap in the barricaded window. Frank pressed his eye to the hole. The lorry was still there, surrounded by a sea of motionless corpses.

  “Well, they didn’t steal our truck.”

  “Thank fuck,” Gus muttered, wiping sweat from his brow. He leaned back against the wall until the sound of an engine roared nearby. “Oy! They’ve only gone and nicked my van!” He pressed his eye to the gap once again.

  “You mean our van.” Zielinski said.

  “Zip it, Polak. I don’t share with narks.”

  Frank looked through the window. The prison van came into view as it trundled away towards the main road.

  “I guess I’m not the only one who knows how to pick them,” Frank sneered, looking at Razor’s wide-eyed grimace.

  “Yeah? Well, that’s our only transport out of here.”

  “Relax, we’ve got food and guns in the lorry. We’ll be fine for now.”

  “Yeah, but—”

  “What happened to the soldier?” Lisa interrupted.

  The men exchanged a glance as they stared at the open doorway nearby.

  “Got any bullets left, sweet-cheeks?” Razor asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Good. You lead. If he looks at you with anything more than a smile, you shoot the bastard, got it?”

  “I think I’ll manage.”

  Lisa stepped forward, closely followed by the three men.

  As they entered the room, th
ey spotted the injured soldier. He sat in a small, wooden chair beside a powerless vending machine.

  “What happened to the rest of you?” He glanced up with a dazed look in his eyes.

  “The kids have hijacked the prison van,” Frank said. “And the fat twats were heading for one of those jets.”

  “Can they fly?” the soldier murmured.

  “Apparently, but I’m not sure whether they made it.”

  “Elaine was bitten,” Lisa added. “She’ll be one of them soon.”

  The soldier nodded, looking down at his bloodied hand. They all fell silent as the sound of a jet engine rumbled overhead.

  “I guess they made it.”

  “Who cares? I told you there’s no chance they’ll reach America,” Gus snorted.

  “America?” the soldier frowned.

  “Yeah, Bonnie and Clyde are en route to the almighty USA.”

  “Can it be done?” Frank added, eyeing the soldier for a response.

  They watched him rub his forehead.

  “Can they do it?”

  The soldier nodded. “It’s possible,” he said, his unfocused eyes staring at the wall.

  “What?” Gus spat.

  The soldier blinked, breaking his reverie, and stared at the group. “Those are the new issue Hawk fighter jets. They’re state-of-the-art machines. They’ve got three fuel tanks, which I’d wager is more than enough to get them across the water.”

  “But how can he fly one of those?” Zielinski asked.

  “Jets these days practically fly themselves. They need little input from the pilot once they’re off the ground unless it’s performing a manoeuvre or firing a missile. As long as he has basic flying experience, he’d be able to pilot it.”

  “But that’s good, right?” Zielinski suggested. “He can explain to the Americans there are still survivors and they’ll come and save us.”

  Both Frank and Gus scoffed at the idea, shaking their heads at the Polish man. Lisa remained expressionless.

  “But what about the virus?” she asked after the indignant muttering had ceased.

  “What about it?”

  “He’s flying with Elaine! She’s infected. What if they do make it across?”

  The group fell silent as the prospect started to dawn on them. They all remained still, lost in thought until the soldier voiced their concerns.

  “Then what’s left of the world is going to die.”