“You’re an evil bitch.”
“Give that shit up. No one in this hole is more or less righteous than the next person. Who’s the guy wearing the mask?”
“I’m Joey.”
“Are you one of those psycho people?”
“He’s with us,” said Landon. “This is Nicole and Zack. They’re with Joey and I. Who do you know here?”
No answer.
“We’re not allies. Are we, Kate?”
No answer.
“I’m Blake. With me are Greg, Irene and Mindy. Wish we could’ve met under better circumstances.”
“Likewise,” Landon responded with raised eyebrows. “Anyone got any bright ideas?”
“We’ll kill them,” Joey answered.
“No shit,” Kate added. “Of course, we’re going to kill them. Just have to wait on the opportunity.”
“I’m guessing the bitchy one’s your wife?” Joey asked Landon.
“She used to be. I don’t know her anymore.”
“I’ll be your wife again when you grow a pair of balls.”
“I’ll be your husband again when you’re done being Satan’s girlfriend.”
“At least Satan has balls.”
10
“Our food situation’s wonderful,” a young woodsman said as he approached an old man sitting at a desk.
“I’m proud of you,” the old man said, turning his head to gaze out the nearest window. “You’re a great asset to the people here. You’re a good man, Mack.”
“Couldn’t have gotten this far without my cousin.”
“Josh is your cousin?”
“Yes.”
“Why does the man refuse to gain the ultimate power?”
“He’s different but definitely one of us. It has been a few days since I last spoke with him. I’ll go have a word with him.”
Mack walked around the small fortified civilization and found Josh on the watchtower.
“I was wondering when you’d come find me.”
“Why haven’t you said anything to anyone lately?”
“I don’t trust anyone here.”
“You won’t eat anything, either.”
“I do eat, but I refuse to eat people. I kill people, take their stuff and hunt small game. Don’t you feel bad about being a cannibal, Mack?”
“No.”
“How can you not?”
“I don’t know.”
“You genuinely don’t feel bad about it? It doesn’t fuck with your head at all?”
“I’m fine, Josh.”
“I don’t think you are. I think you know you’re not fine.”
“We’re okay, Josh.”
“I’ll be happy when we’re done with these pieces of shit. They kill and eat innocent people. None of those people trust us. We’re being used to further their goals. When they think we’re no longer needed, they’ll try to kill us. Don’t let them brainwash you. You’ve befriended everyone here.”
“That’s what I want them to think. I killed Daniel this morning.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Ran him through with the machete while we were on a supply run. Got him while he was taking a piss.”
“I have an idea. Let’s free the people in the pit and kill these hillbillies while they’re sleeping.”
“A bold idea, but a good one.”
“Stop the cannibalism, Mack.”
“Okay.”
“I’m serious.”
“I know.”
“You’re the best killer I know. I don’t want that to change.”
“I’d like to find some people like us. I’m tired of people we can’t trust. Why can’t we have trustworthy people with us?”
“Life used to be easy. Food was in abundance and easy to acquire, people were ridiculously impressionable and easily fooled. Everything was so easy. There has to be a place full of people who we can form genuine alliances with. Can’t get too close to the nearby city. Too many of those things there. Let’s kill these people soon.”
11
The attack commenced wo days after the plan to kill the crazed woodlanders was created. It went off without a hitch. Josh sent Mack to free the prisoners while he held the leader at gunpoint. The corpses of the leader’s minions were thrown into the pit. Mack and the freed prisoners walked into the leader’s small building. Josh held a pistol, preventing the old man sitting at his desk from escaping. Joey approached.
“Don’t kill him,” Joey said to Josh.
Josh laughed.
“My cousin and I just saved you bitches. Now, you think I’m going to take orders from you?”
Joey removed his mask to reveal a nasty scar.
“This old man is my half brother’s father. He’s responsible for this scar.”
The old man shook his head and covered his face with his hands.
“My bad,” said Josh. “It’s obvious you’re telling the truth. Do whatever to him.”
Joey looked at the leader with hate in his eyes.
“He deserves to die for what he did to me, but I won’t kill him. I’ll keep him as a prisoner.”
“If you don’t kill me,” the old man began, “I’ll kill you.”
“You’ll never kill another person, you sick bastard.”
“Kill me or I’ll kill you!”
“Just because you’re an evil piece of shit doesn’t mean I have to be. Let’s get our possessions back and tie him up.”
Later, Joey found Mack and Josh on the largest manmade building’s top floor.
“I wanted him alive,” Joey said angrily.
“So did I,” Josh replied.
“What happened?”
“Not everyone agreed with keeping him prisoner. He was thrown into the pit with the zombies.”
“What zombies?”
“The others placed the dead woodsmen in the pit and allowed them to turn.”
“So, there’s a pit of zombies within the walls? Those things make a ton of noise.”
“We’ll be fine.”
Concerned about intruders, everyone had a brief meeting. Responsibilities were quickly given. Once again, another group was formed. Although everyone wanted a specific person to be the leader, all agreed to divide power by voting on tougher decisions.
Josh, Mack and Joey resided on the largest structure’s top floor when not on guard duty or patrolling. Landon, Zack and Nicole stayed inside the walls and inhabited the floor below Joey and the two cousins. Blake, Greg, Irene, Mindy, Kate, Icepick, John and Adam made up the scouting and salvaging teams.
After weeks of scraping to get by, the group agreed on making a final sweep of the area before making another hard push to relocate.
“I hate moving,” Mack said to Josh.
“I think we all do,” Josh replied. “Stay strong. I can’t afford to deal with you losing your mind or getting killed. We have to press on.”
Kate, Blake, Irene, Adam, Landon, Zack, Nicole and Icepick came back two days later with grim facial expressions.
“Who is missing?” Josh asked.
“Three people are dead,” Landon answered. “Greg, Mindy and John.”
“What happened?”
“There are different zombies.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?!”
“They’re more contagious than the usual ones. These zombies carry different sicknesses than the common ones. They’re covered in what looks like pus filled boils. John, Greg and Mindy came into close contact with some. They weren’t bitten or scratched but caught the sickness. We’re late because we got surrounded. Gunshots from somewhere else attracted the undead. The noise allowed us to escape.”
“God damn it.”
Blake and Irene isolated themselves from the group until Josh convinced everyone it was time to move on. All knew the sun would soon go down. The group hated the idea of moving but knew there was nothing worth staying for.
Twenty minutes after the sun went down, the group saw a light in the distance.
�
�No,” said Kate.
“We have no other choice,” Landon argued.
“No, Landon. It’s death.”
“Fuck you, Kate. It’s where we’re going. If you want to take your chances in the dark with no moonlight, go ahead. No one will care.”
Kate laughed.
“Where are we?” Blake asked.
“We don’t know,” Icepick answered. “We need to get to that light now. Let’s run.”
They rushed to the large settlement. Unfortunately, the settlement’s people were hostile. The remainder of the enemy force surrendered after seven of its shooters were killed.
“We surrender!” yelled one fighter.
“Don’t shoot!” yelled another. “You can have whatever you want!”
“Send out your leader!” Josh commanded. “You have less than thirty seconds to comply or be slaughtered!”
The unknown fighters quickly complied. A man in a torn suit came out into the open with his hands in the air.
“Get out of the open!”
The man obeyed. He walked over to Josh and laid on his stomach.
“How many of you are there?” Mack asked as he held his pistol to the back of the man’s head.
“There are fourteen of us here, minus those of us who you have killed. I could be wrong, but I think there are seven of us left. We’re part of a bigger group.”
“If I find out you’re lying, you’ll all be killed.”
“I know. If you all value your lives, you’ll trust me when I say killing me isn’t a good idea.”
“He’s telling the truth,” said Josh. “Mack, Landon, Joey, Kate, Zack! Come with me. The rest of you are to guard that gate. No one gets in or out without my permission.”
All seven defeated fighters laid on their stomachs while Josh, Mack, Landon, Zack, Joey and Kate did a security sweep. The six did their best to hold in their excitement after coming across a massive load of food, water, weapons and more.
“Why would fourteen people have so much?” Mack asked.
“They’re definitely a part of something greater,” Joey spat while happily examined everything.
“Maybe so,” Kate added.
“They’re part of something,” said Josh. “That’s for damn sure.”
“What do you plan to do?” Kate asked as she too examined what they’d won. “You plan to take over something grandiose with so few people?”
“I’ll do what needs to be done.”
“You’re not as powerful as you think, Josh.”
“You’re not as important as you think,” Mack said with a stare. “I could kill you and no one here would care.”
“I’m pretty sure Landon here wouldn’t let that happen.”
“I’m pretty sure your husband doesn’t give a shit,” Joey intervened. “He told Nicole, Zack and I all about you, bitch. You’re a horrible excuse for a human being. You not only betrayed the one person you shouldn’t have but also sided with people who killed innocent men, women and children.”
“What?!” Josh roared, spinning around and aiming his rifle at Kate’s face.
Mack followed in suit with his pistol.
“You need me,” Kate said firmly and without flinching.
“The hell we do!” Mack yelled as he shook and twitched in anger. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“I did what I thought was best! I did what I had to so I could continue to live! Landon, don’t allow them to kill me!”
“Answer the following questions,” Zack calmly ordered Kate. “Did you kill any minors?”
“No! I didn’t, but some of the people I was with did.”
Zack aimed his pistol at Kate’s forehead.
“Second question. Did you eat any minors?”
“No!”
“She’s lying,” Josh said angrily.
“How do you know she’s lying?” Joey asked.
“Her body language says it all. Landon, whether or not she lives is not up to you. I’ve chosen to execute her. Say your last words to this monster. You have ten seconds.”
“Landon, help me!”
“You ate kids?”
“No!”
“How come I don’t believe you?”
“Because you’re furious with me! You know I’d never stoop that low, Landon!”
“She’s full of shit,” said Mack. “Say goodbye to your wife.”
“I said goodbye a good while back. This woman isn’t my wife.”
Josh pulled the trigger. Mack dragged Kate’s corpse outside and rendezvoused with the others.
“There are nine of us,” Josh said as he took a deep breath. “We have an ungodly amount of valuables here. People would do anything to acquire such a blessing. Considering that our hostages weren’t able bodied fighters and were put in charge of a haul like this, I’m guessing they’re revered by those who are higher up on the ladder. We’re in power. We’ll strike a deal with these people. If that doesn’t work out, we’ll grab what we can and go.”
“I feel like this might bite us in the ass,” said Icepick.
“Get what you can,” Josh said, ignoring Icepick. “You never know. We might get ambushed and not have time to grab anything. Lady Luck shined on us tonight.”
12
Morning finally came. Nicole was on guard duty when she saw a mass of people coming towards the settlement.
“People are coming!” Nicole yelled as she ran inside the building they’d been using as a conference room.
“Mack,” Josh said quietly. “Get in the watchtower.”
Mack hurried to the top of the wooden watchtower. He quickly and easily spotted the intruders in his sights. They were a few hundred feet from the zombies that were likely attracted to the assault the night before. Armed to the teeth with fully automatic assault rifles and wearing spray painted military grade combat armor, over fifty people came their way.
The armed mass was not phased by the horde behind them. Josh walked outside the gate with his head held high. Mack targeted who appeared to be the leader. Suddenly, the well-armed people turned and disposed of the undead horde. Wearing a denim jacket and blue jeans, the senior man approached and stopped ten feet from Josh.
“Think what you’re doing is smart?” the old man asked with a stern look.
“We have what you want, you have what we want.”
“We can kill you all and take back everything.”
“I have a sniper.”
“Yeah, in the watchtower. He’s ready to shoot me in the head.”
“Correct.”
“You are bold but stupid.”
“We’re at a stalemate. Not a stupid move.”
“What do you have that we want?”
“Partnership.”
“You need us more than we need you, sonny.”
“Cut the bullshit. Let’s make a deal.”
“Give up everything. In exchange, your lives will be spared.”
“Let us join you. In exchange, your life will be spared.”
“Of the people who were once here, how many are still alive?”
“Seven are still alive.”
“We’re going to leave and come back with a negotiator and more people. We’ll make a deal then.”
“We make a deal now. If not, you die where you stand.”
“Very well. Release the seven you’ve taken hostage and guard this place with your life. If anyone dressed in blue clothing comes and asks for something, give what is needed. In exchange, you’ll be a part of the organization.”
“Tell me about this organization.”
“We’re the elite. There are thousands of us. At a time, we lived in the nearby city. Farming is reliable. We have many crop fields, vegetable gardens and livestock. We’re not cannibals. We’ve often gone without the proper protein needed but never starved. We live miles from here. Surrounding our home is a huge wall and barricades. It’s almost as safe as we can make it.”
“Will my people and I ever be given access to the city?”
“When and if you prove to be decent, yes. This is a genuine deal. You’d be stupid not to take it.”
“I agree to this deal.”
“Release the hostages.”
“Joey! Release the hostages!”
“We’ll come back in later weeks to check on you. You’ll be notified if something important comes up.”
“I’m glad we could come to an agreement.”
The hostages were released. The bearded old man and his forces marched away. Josh and the others were at ease. That is, until an unarmed group of five approached the gate with their hands raised.
“Why have you come here?” Josh asked the strangers.
“The people who were here didn’t kill you because they didn’t want to lose more important people or resources,” said a greasy man in ragged clothing. “They won’t let you get away with killing their allies. If you stay here, they’ll soon come back and kill all of you. Gather everything you can and side with us.”
“You’re enemies to the people who recently left. Why?”
“We refused to give in to them. Wouldn’t give them our supplies. A year ago, they were robbing and killing everyone who opposed them. They tell the ignorant and gullible that we’re horrible people. Idiots believe their bullshit or side with those assholes simply because they’re powerful.”
“How many of you are there?”
“Fifty-six.”
“Your enemies’ numbers are in the thousands.”
“We get by. There are advantages and disadvantages. We’re few in numbers but use zombies as weapons. We’re not as desperate as you think. The zombies keep our enemies at bay. Before we started using zombies, our enemies picked us off one by one. There used to be over two hundred of us.”
“How well does the zombie defense work?”
“It works exceptionally well. Everyone’s afraid of the risen dead. Outside our walls, thousands of zombies are imprisoned between two surrounding walls. If enemies get too close, we unleash the dead upon them by opening parts of the walls.”
“Hell is your weapon. I like it.”
“As do we.”
“We’re joining you and yours. I want to speak with your leader.”
“I am the leader.”
“I believe you.”
“I’m surprised.”
“I can usually tell if someone’s spewing bullshit.”
“Wish I could do that.”
“We’ll talk and get to know what’s what and who’s who. Let’s carry what we can and get out before the people in blue come back. What do you do for food?”
Jeffrey McElyea's Zombie Compilation Page 8