Rhiannon Frater - As The World Dies Untold Tales

by Eric's Story

  "Brandy never went anywhere without packing those," Eric said softly. He began to wrap the rope around the railing posts. He basically wove a safety net for them by threading the rope back and forth then finally tying it.

  "What was she like?"

  "Beautiful," Eric answered and tested the rope to see if it was secure. It held and he was comforted that neither of them would roll off in the middle of the night.

  "What else?" Stacey pulled another wipe out and began on her arms.

  Eric sat back in the shelter and thought for a second. The first word that had come to his mind was "demanding", but he was loath to say that. He fumbled for something to say that sounded good, but he was surprised to come up empty.

  Stacey looked toward him curiously. "I guess I shouldn't have asked. Sorry."

  "It's not that," Eric admitted. "I just…she was very high maintenance. My friends called her a bitch and worse. But I loved her. She was so beautiful and stylish and…" He faltered again. "That sounds so shallow."

  Pepe scooted along the side of the water tank and into the shelter. Out of the wind and away from the terrifying view, he relaxed.

  Stacey crawled over to the edge of the shelter and he saw her lips were trembling from the cold. "Sometimes we love the wrong people for all the wrong reasons."

  Eric felt his throat constrict as he realized her words were true. "I did love her. And, yeah, it was for all the wrong reasons. But…"

  Stacey gave him a little hug and crawled over him to sit out of the wind. "I know. I had one of those boyfriends."

  Eric sighed. "Sucks, doesn't it?"

  "Oh, yeah."

  Eric smiled and began to go through the bags. He handed her some cans of food and a can opener while he searched for the bedding and something for her to wear.

  In an hour they were settled in. The comforters from the bed and breakfast were folded over and laid end to end to make a bed for each of them. The king-size pillow would have to be shared and it was set in the middle of the two beds. Stacey stacked some of the bags up at her end of the shelter to keep the wind out and Eric kept the other end open just a bit.

  "I didn't think cold beanie weenies could taste so good," Stacey said after a long moment. She sat with her back against the water tank clad in one of his T-shirts and his pajama bottoms. Pepe was curled up on her lap and she gently stroked his fur.

  "Yeah. I think it’s the best thing I've eaten in forever," Eric agreed.

  He lifted the water bottle he was clutching and sipped the warm water. The moonlight illuminated the world and he could clearly see the outline of the trees and the edges of the town. They were so close now.

  "It doesn't seem real," Stacey said. "Any of this."

  "I know."

  "If anyone told me a week ago that I would be trapped in the community center with zombies for days, then have to run for my life, shoot my undead brother, ride an quad bike with a guy and his dog, and sack out at the top of a water tower, I would have told them they were freaking nuts."

  "I had to kill Brandy," Eric said after a beat.

  Stacey looked toward him. "Really?"

  "Yeah."

  "I'm sorry."

  Eric let out a long sigh. "At least she's at peace now."

  The young woman nodded and then said, "I have to think that way about Sean, don't I?"

  "It makes it easier," Eric admitted. "Better they be at peace then wandering around like that."

  Stacey slowly lay down and Pepe curled up behind her back, squeezing between the water tower and her body. He was obviously afraid of the fall.

  "I know you're right, but…" She curled up and sighed.

  Eric lay down, too. They were head to head, lying in opposite directions. She smelled of baby wipes and it was a strangely comforting smell.

  "We'll be okay," he said softly. He believed it now that they were so close to the fort. "We'll find a way to join the others. We'll be safe."

  She reached her hand out over the top of the pillow and his fingers closed around it.

  It took some time, but finally, they both fell asleep.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Where It All Goes To Hell

  Eric woke up to the sound of gunshots in the distance. Pepe began to bark and Stacey sat up sharply. The steady pop pop pop of small arms was interlaced with the crack of rifles being fired. Eric scrambled to his feet and shoved past the bags in the opening of the tent. Reaching down, he fumbled through the bag he had shoved his binoculars into and moved along the catwalk to try and see if he could get a view of what was going on.

  "They must be clearing out the zombies at the fort," Stacey said as she joined him. Pepe was in her arms and his ears were perked up at the sounds in the distance.

  The morning light had washed away all the shadows and the town was laid out clearly before them. The downtown area was full of old red brick buildings; several were close to four stories tall. Most appeared to be abandoned. A tall ten-story red brick building towered over the downtown area and the construction site was huddled up against the base of it. Eric could barely make out one area of the fort. What he saw made his heart leap.

  A man and a woman were dangling from what looked like a pulley system over the outer rim defense made up of construction trucks. Under them on the trucks was a mass of the undead that were trying to grab them.

  "Are they bait?" Eric lowered the binoculars and handed it to Stacey.

  She took them and trained them where he pointed. He could see her mouth tense then she handed the binoculars back. "I don't think so. I think something has gone wrong."

  Eric returned to gazing through the binoculars at the fort. He tried to figure out exactly what was going on, but the scene was pretty chaotic. The gunshots continued and he could see the zombies toppling over. "I wonder if the zombies figured out how to get in."

  Stacey held Pepe closer, snuggling him protectively. The little dog's ears were twitching as he listened to the sound of the weapons firing in the distance. "Eric, if they are getting in where are we going to go?"

  Eric looked toward Stacey, hearing the tremor in her voice, and reached out to touch her shoulder gently. With all the grime wiped off her face and her hair hanging around her face, she looked very young and fragile. "We'll be okay. I promise. Somehow we'll find away." He was surprised that he firmly believed his words.

  She smiled slightly and nuzzled Pepe. "What's happening now?"

  For the next thirty minutes, Eric narrated what he saw. It was hard to tell exactly what was happening with his limited view, but it did seem like the Fort was winning. The zombies that had clustered under the dangling people were wiped out. The woman undid her harness and dropped down out of view while the black man was drawn back and lowered out of sight.

  The gun shots died away.

  "They’re lifting a blond woman over the wall. She looks unconscious. And they're lifting a man over, too," Eric said.

  "Do you think they're bitten?"

  "No. Peggy told me it was the bite that was dangerous, so I think they know better than to bring in bitten people. Maybe they got hurt some other way." Eric rubbed his brow and looked toward Stacey. "Let’s get some breakfast than I'll check and see what's up. If it’s clear, maybe we can get to the Fort today."

  "Okay. Sounds good," she answered and set Pepe down.

  The little dog stayed close to the wall as he trotted back to their tent.

  They ate ravioli from a can and drank some water. Pepe munched on the kibble Eric had packed for him. Stacey sat in silence through most of the meal and Eric didn't blame her. Even though they had slept well, they were both emotionally and mentally exhausted. He had to admit he felt the urge to lie back down and sleep. His entire body ached from yesterday and he rubbed his shoulder with one hand.

  Stacey's body was covered in bruises and he felt terrible for her. Her expression was rather empty and he suspected she was trying hard not to think about the loss of her father, brother and entire town. He left her to
her silence and went back to studying the fort.

  The activity was calmer now and it looked like the zombie assault on the fort was over. In fact, everyone he could spot through the binoculars was grinning. Feeling relieved, he moved back to Stacey's side. Pepe was lying on her lap getting his ears scratched.

  "I think we should try and go to the Fort. It seems to have calmed down. This may be our best shot," Eric said to her.

  Looking up at him, Stacey said, "I'm scared."

  "I know. But we need to try and make it."

  Leaning forward a little, she peered down at the ground below. It was empty of zombies.

  "I just want to feel safe," she said to him, tears in her eyes. "I'm tired of running away."

  "I can try and go alone and send them back for you," Eric offered.

  "No!" She grabbed his wrist tightly, tears springing to her eyes. "Don't leave me alone! I'll go with you."

  "Stacey, if it’s too much for you-"

  "No, Eric. I don't want to be alone," she said firmly. "Please. Just let me get my nerve up."

  "Okay, Stacey. We'll go when you're ready."

  It took her two hours to get her nerves steadied and he let her have the time. There were no more gunshots and every time he checked on the Fort, things seemed calm. Stacey changed into a pair of his jeans and one of his undershirts. He was surprised that she managed to make it look almost cute on her when she rolled up the pant legs and tied the shirt at the waist. Brandy wouldn't have been caught dead looking like that.

  "My feet hurt so bad." She pulled on her running shoes and she managed to tie them despite her shaking fingers.

  "Yeah, I'm pretty sore from everything. I've never worked out like this before."

  "Do you work out?"

  Eric looked at her strong arms and powerful legs and then down at his own thin, but mushy body. "Um. Nope."

  She laughed a little. "Then I bet you're really hurting."

  He couldn't help but blush. "Yeah, well, you're like an Amazon or something. I'm just a mild-mannered engineer."

  She motioned to the tent. "Thank God for that."

  "I've done much better work than that," Eric assured her.

  She smiled and seemed to relax just a tad. "I'm sure you have."

  After a little discussion, they decided to leave their camp on the water tower as a precaution and just take what was still loaded on the trailer. Pepe was stuffed into Eric's jacket once again and they slowly descended the long ladder. Eric went first, the revolver tucked into his belt where he could grab it quickly, and Stacey followed him with the shotgun slung over her shoulder.

  Pepe kept quiet throughout the ordeal, occasionally peeking out, and then ducking back out of sight. He was obviously unnerved by the height.

  When they reached the ground, they were relieved to see the coast was still clear. Eric started up the ATV and Stacey slid on behind him. Eric noted that they were both much more relaxed now that they were on the ground and no zombies had appeared.

  The morning coolness was giving away to the noon heat. The jacket was a little warm, but Pepe seemed comfortable enough. Stacey rode with the rifle in her hand and Eric felt reassured by her determined expression. She was strong despite all they had endured.

  They were just two blocks from the water tower when they heard the motorbike.

  "Eric!"

  "I hear it!" The excitement welling inside of him was intense.

  Then the motorbike came rushing around the corner and Eric swerved to avoid it. The growling bike came to an abrupt stop a few feet from the ATV. There were two men on it and they stared at Eric and Stacey in shock. One of the men, pasty white and hollow eyed, slipped off the motorbike and walked toward them slowly. His companion stayed on the bike and looked uneasily over one shoulder. He was a huge guy with masses of dark hair and golden brown skin.

  "Hey," the younger man said to Eric as he approached. "You from that construction site?"

  "No, no. We're from out of town. Are you from there?"

  The other man shook his head. "No, man. We're like holed up nearby, but we gotta move on. Got company after us," the kid answered and laid a hand on the handlebars.

  Eric suddenly felt uneasy. "We're heading to the fort."

  "That's cool," the man said. "Nice ride."

  "Ritchie, you better fucking hurry it up," the other man said.

  "Shut up, Sergio. I’m dealing with this."

  Suddenly, Pepe lifted his head out Eric's jacket and began to bark angrily.

  "Eric," Stacey whispered.

  "Ritchie, they're coming!"

  "Gimme the quad, bro," Ritchie said to Eric, his eyes growing cold.

  "No," Eric answered and shoved Ritchie's hand off the handlebars.

  Ritchie drew his gun quickly and aimed it at Eric's head. "Yeah. Gimme the quad. I need it. We've gotta move on and I need it."

  "Eric," Stacey said in a terrified voice.

  “It’s okay,” Eric said to her softly and hoped she would just stay calm and not try anything rash.

  Pepe was in a barking fit and it was not directed at Ritchie.

  "Dude, they are coming!" Sergio looked back over his shoulder.

  "We need the quad to move the others," Ritchie snapped back.

  "Just go with us to the Fort," Eric said, trying to ignore the gun. "It's safe there."

  "No, man. It's full of old people and losers. We're doing our own thing," Ritchie answered tersely.

  Eric could see the man's eyes were fully dilated and knew then that he was not dealing with someone in the state of mind to reason with.

  "Don't make me shoot you and the girl," Ritchie continued.

  Eric was tempted to try and draw his weapon, but he wasn't sure he could shot anyone still living. Plus, Ritchie could shoot him much faster than he could draw. Reluctantly, he slid off the quad. Stacey slid off with him.

  "They're coming!" Sergio whipped out his own gun. "Let's go!"

  Ritchie slid onto the ATV and quickly turned it around.

  Eric and Stacey both made grabs for the bags on the back of it and both managed to snag two each before the trailer was drawn away. The two thieves then rode off, whopping and laughing.

  Pepe was still in hysterics.

  "We need to run," Eric said to Stacey and began to race back toward the water tower.

  "Not again," she wailed and followed.

  They were a block away from the water tower when they heard the howls start up behind them. The slap of feet against the pavement spoke of a good number of the dead. Eric dared to look behind him and saw a throng moving rapidly toward them. They looked freshly dead.

  The bags full of water and food were heavy and Eric considered dropping them. Stacey managed to get ahead of him and rushed down the side road toward the water tower. He was slower than she was and he felt panic rising in him as Pepe's barking became more frenzied.

  He saw Stacey make it to the ladder and start to climb. Pumping his tired legs as hard as he could, he dared another look behind him to see that the dead were gaining. Pepe bounced around in his jacket and Eric tried to hoist the bags onto his shoulders as he got closer to the ladder.

  "Hurry!" Stacey's voice was frantic.

  His heart felt like it was going to burst from exertion, but he forced his body to move faster and he managed to reach the bottom of the ladder. It was hard lifting his arms up with the bags on his shoulders and he struggled to get up over the chains.

  Stacey was above him, the shotgun aimed downward. The bags she had managed to grab were dangling off one of her shoulders and forced her a little off balance.

  He struggled to get over the chains and not get caught as Pepe continued to bark furiously.

  "Eric!" It was more a shriek than a word.

  He had just hoisted himself up onto the rung above the chains when he felt a hand grab his ankle.

  "Eric! No!"

  Eric grabbed tightly to the rung above him and began to pull himself up. The weight of the creature cli
nging to his leg made it hard to climb. Pepe scrambled out of Eric's jacket and onto his shoulder and barked fiercely down at the zombie. Everything was happening to fast to process and Eric struggled to even have a rational thought.

  Then the worst happened. Pepe fell off his shoulder toward the raging zombie below. His foot slipped off the rung. And the bags he had put on his shoulders put so much stress on his grip he began to slip.