by Aline Riva
As the group moved off, deep below ground inside the old and crumbling crypt, Jason woke with a start to see a bloody severed arm beside him. He sat up sharply, brushing dirt from his face as he screamed, but that scream was muffled by the earth around him and above him as he looked up to see on the surface a handful of undead had gathered, as they joined in a feeding frenzy, ripping bloody flesh from each other's hands, sharing the spoils of a fresh kill.
Bloody chunks of flesh dropped through the gap that showed a narrow view of the cold sky and the feeding dead above him, then a bitten off finger hit the earth as he scrambled to his feet, still looking up. But the dead carried on feeding, oblivious to his presence as Jason stared up and a splash of blood hit his face, then covered his lips and slipped into his open mouth as he stood trapped in the tomb with walls lined with dusty old coffins as above the dead feasted on human remains and he gave a cry even the dead could not hear.
As he screamed in vain his thoughts raced, pushing him closer to insanity as he thought of the man who had done this to him and made a silent vow:
He would get out of here eventually, and when he did, Rick Lester was a dead man...
Chapter 6: The Forest
Morning mist rose foggy and sharp, wreathing the looming woods like a shroud as the group approached, gas guns at the ready.
The Captain radioed her position, but heard nothing but crackling and empty static on the other end.
“That's odd,”she remarked, “But power might be temporarily down to HQ ... it happened last week. It's hard work, getting systems back up and running, they have to keep diverting to aid many other sources while so much activity is going on out here...”
The others said nothing in reply as they followed on, entering the woodland where bare trees stood stripped of leaves, looking bare and cold in the chill of winter. Here there were no evergreens, just leafless boughs and sturdy trunks, in spring and summer this place would be lush with foliage, shaded heavily from the sun by a green canopy but here in December, the ground was covered by dead leaves in autumnal
shades that ran from brown to red to amber, their colours still intact save for the driest of the leaves that split and cracked, thin and pale and parched, reminding them all of the flesh of the living corpses in their state of decay, but none voiced that opinion, instead focussing on the mission to sweep this area and then move on to the second village, where the teams that had moved left and right would converge, and the whole group would once again gather, to wait for transport and hope it would arrive before nightfall – because even if they had entirely swept the area of corpses, it was bloody cold and no one wanted another night out here...The mission had been set at forty eight hours maximum, even though expected departure was hoped to be earlier – but with all transport in use, schedules meant very little when the clean up mission came first...
On leaving the previous village, not a trace had been found of any lurking undead. With the horde remains locked behind the park gates, it would not be long before the extra team were sent in to finish them off, then this area would be clear – surely it would be clear, it was the hope the group all shared as they looked about the leaf-strewn floor of the woodland, then through the clear gaps between the spreading trees and their wide trunks, seeing no trace of the undead. The fact that visibility was so much better here made the group lighten up a little, it was almost the end of the war, they were winning, the battle was almost done...
“It's so much better without him,” Rick announced as they went on their way, dry leaves crunching underfoot.
“I never want to lay eyes on Jason again,” David added.
The Captain glanced back at them.
“I think we're all in agreement on that, David!”she said.
They passed a small stream where clear water trickled along, here and there the deeper parts were iced at the edges but where the trees parted up above enough light had come down from the cold sky despite the lack of sunlight, inviting the ice to melt away, at least where it was at its thinnest. The sound of the water was soothing, the smell of the damp leaves and the fresh soil was welcoming because it bore no trace of the stink of death. This could have been a normal walk in winter woodland, if not for the weapons they carried and the fact that they had to remain alert for hostilities...
The group had walked for around a mile when they spotted other soldiers to the left and the right, they were in the distance and sweeping other sectors. The Captain tried the radio, found it hissing static and waved, and those in the distance waved back.
“Radio's down?” she yelled over as her voice echoed about the woodland.
“Down for two hours!” came the reply.
“Thanks!” Tina called back, then they went on their way, deeper through their allocated area, finding nothing but skeleton trees that looked stark and frozen against the winter skies above, as the cold white light of what was almost a snow sky fell bright enough to show a flash of colour even though nature slept, with the bed of leaves in many colours strewn for miles across the frosted ground.
“It feels normal...normal life is back, yes, it does feel that way,” Vince said, smiling as he walked beside the Captain.
“It will certainly be different,” she replied, “A new sort of normal...all the wild mutant animals are being released from the zoos world wide, we need them to live among us, protection to be sure no more corpses remain after the final sweep.”
“But they're friendly,” he added, “I rather like the idea of tigers lazing in the sun on rooftops, lions in the parks...”
“Me too,” she replied, “It's a whole new experience for all of us – the children of this world will grow up with friendly wild animals roaming lose. I think that's incredible.”
“But we still have to watch out for the snakes,” David added as he and Marie caught up, “As long as we have mutant snakes, we'll have more and more grey children emerging.”
“And that's not a bad thing!” Rick declared, joining the others as he carried the sleeping baby, “These kids are special. I often watch Flossie and although she talks differently to us, she's every bit as bright as a regular child – maybe more so. I was told the virus affects speech patterns and of course there's the diet problem – but the antidote should help a lot of that...or so they say...”
Then he fell silent, walking on as the others talked, his thoughts with Lois and her decision to give Flossie the antidote, a choice that no longer sat easily with him.
Just then he felt the phone vibrate in his pocket, and now they were in a quiet part of the woods, he decided to answer her message – but then they entered a large clearing and all thoughts of Lois and Flossie and that antidote were far from his mind as they all looked up at the old, abandoned house, it stood alone in the woodland, some grimy windows broken, others boarded up. But the door was busted off its hinges and hung at an angle – something that could have happened before or after the outbreak, either way, it could be a hiding place where surviving undead lurked. It was big, it was old and it was dark in there...
The group exchanged glances.
“Just what we need,” David remarked, “Anything could be hiding in there.”
The Captain looked to the group.
“David, Marie – check out the lower level, Vince, take the upper floor. I'll remain here on watch with Rick. If you run into trouble just yell and we'll be there, okay?”
The others nodded, then David, Marie and Vince headed off towards the abandoned house.
As they stood together in the clearing, mist all around them and their breath making clouds that matched the freezing air, Rick looked about the woods beyond the clearing, then he gave a shiver as he held the baby he cradled a little tighter, protectively, thinking soon that child would be safe back at the base and meeting Lois and Flossie... He wanted to take a picture on the phone and send it to Lois – but then she would have called him repeatedly wanting to know more about the baby, and this really wasn't the time, not when he was holding a
child in one arm as he rested the gas gun in the other...
“No long now,” the Captain said, smiling as she looked to Rick, “This war is almost done. I'm certain regular patrols will be sent out to rural areas to ensure any remaining dead the sweep may have missed are dealt with quickly – but very soon that will just be precaution. We'll have the animals roaming the cities and countryside, they'll help keep us all safe too. This is it, we won.”
“I'm still letting that sink in,”Rick said, looking down at the child in his arms, “You're right, this will be a new kind of normal, but it's a world worth fighting for, it always has been.”
“And with good men like you in it, I think it's going to turn out okay,” replied the Captain.
Then they stood there saying no more as they listened, remaining watchful, knowing this war was almost at an end – but it was not over and done with yet...
As they entered the house together, Vince looked to David and Marie, gave them a nod and then went quietly up the stairway slowly and cautiously, it was a long climb, as the top loomed, the sight that greeted him was a floor of dusty boards part covered by a long, narrow strip of rug that ran down its centre, dark red with swirled black shapes worked into the weave. The wallpaper was old and damp, darkening in corners and part peeling away near windows where mould had crept from old window frames and spread to the ceiling. Ahead, the long upper hall stretched quite a distance, with several doors leading off both sides, and every one of those doors were shut and would have to be opened...
Vince gave a sigh.
“This is where I need to call for some assistance,” he muttered, “But no yelling, just in case.. we need the element of surprise...”
Then he thought about his radio, but guessed even the crackle of it might alert some lurking creature to his presence – those things could smell living flesh, they could hear human movement...anything could alert whatever might be hiding somewhere in these rooms...
“Probably nothing here at all,” he said quietly, trying to convince himself it was true as he looked about the dusty old house that he guessed had stood abandoned for many decades – there was a telephone on a small table below a window, it was black and the old fashioned kind with a receiver, a dial and a curled cord that ran to an outdated socket, and the phone was covered in dust.
“I guess they left years ago, way before the outbreak...” he said under his breath, “No one here, Vince, just an old, empty house...”
Then he drew in a breath, let it out slowly and with the tip of his gas gun, pushed open the first door on the right, which had been left ajar, ready for whatever may be lurking within...
On the ground floor, David and Marie had searched a dusty front room with boarded up windows where thick cobwebs hung from a dust laden chandelier and once grand furniture lay in abandoned ruins. There was a gap between the boards that covered the windows, through it light escaped in and on that shaft of light, particles of dust danced and shimmered ghostly in the air. The old leather sofa and armchairs looked very dated, the fireplace was Victorian with a grandly wide surround, but no fire had been lit there for many years.
Marie glanced to the floor, saw half melted candles stuck to plates on the floor, the wicks long since snuffed out and blackened. Over in the corner, bottles and cans with modern labels and brand names were scattered about, along with an overflowing ashtray and some old takeaway bags and wrappers.
“Someone's been here,” David said, “Looks more like it would have been a party than a group of survivors... probably happened before the outbreak.”
“A party,” she said, looking to the trash left behind, “I never thought I'd see the day when I even thought about a party again... Maybe one day...when this is over.”
David glanced at her and smiled.
“Like this? You want us to break into an old house and get drunk, sleep on the floor?”
Marie was standing in the shaft of light and the dust that illuminated within it seemed to sparkle as the light caught on her fair hair and she smiled too.
“Maybe...yeah, why not? We need to have some fun.”
“I think it's more important family links are re-established first,” he replied as they turned to leave the room, “Fun will have to wait, I miss my son.”
Then before she could reply, as they reached the open doorway and stepped out, a thud from across the other side of the hallway sounded heavy, from behind a closed door. They exchanged a glance.
“I'm ready for it,”David said in a low voice, clutching his gas gun tightly.
“Me too,” Marie said as she set her sights on the closed door.
Then David turned the handle and gave the door a push, sending it flying open. As the cold breeze whipped about outside, the open window slammed on its metal frame again, and they both breathed a relieved sigh.
David went over to the window and closed it, pausing to look out on to a heavily overgrown garden that stretched on and rambled for a great distance – it seemed this house in the woods had once been a fine place to live, with a garden once well tended that was surrounded by an old brick wall that stretched beyond the end of the woods nearby and into what had once been an orchard where now old trees stood tall and spreading, their boughs lacking fruit and leaves as winter froze them bare.
“If only every sound turned out to be nothing to worry about,” he said as he left the room and they continued up the hallway, “I'm starting to think this place is empty – I mean, there's no food supply here, it's not like the woods where they can wander and hide and grab the odd human snack here and there – corpses don't need a house, there's nothing here for them.”
“Good point,” Marie replied, pausing to look in the open doorway of a small parlour where papers and books lay scattered about and a bookshelf was upturned, “I see no sign of death here at all.”
“It's probably been abandoned for years,” David replied, “It's nothing the undead would be interested in.”
They searched a downstairs bathroom, then a kitchen, found nothing, and then they looked to the closed door that could only lead to one place...the cellar.
“We should check it out,” David said, and he gave the door handle a tug and found it open as it groaned on rusted hinges.
Upstairs, Vince had checked every bedroom and found it to be the same in every room – old, dusty and very much empty. Then he had found a stairway beside the door that led to the master bedroom, that wooden flight of steps was old and dusty like the rest of the house, and led to a closed door that had to lead to the attic.
He looked back down the upper hall, where at a window a curtain wafted about, ragged and shifting like a wraith on the cold breeze, then he went up the stairway, gas gun at the ready.
He gave the door a push and it opened easily. The attic was bright, the window at the end of the room was broken and daylight streamed in, along with a winter chill as the eerie sound of old sea shell wind chimes that hung from a beam on the ceiling above swayed and knocked together. All around on either side of the attic stood piles of boxes and old, dusty furniture.
Vince didn't see it at first, not until the breeze shifted the white sheet that covered something standing tall near the window, and he realised it was covering something that could only be a human form, standing there still, facing him, as the sheet was shifted by the breeze, clinging to the face of what lie beneath it, making the features stand out...
His finger was on the trigger, ready to hit it with a burst of gas as he made his way quietly closer, as still the figure did not move. Then he whipped off the sheet, giving a gasp on seeing dead eyes staring back at him - then he realised with great relief they were just the glass eyes of a mannequin, the old shop dummy stood there nude and bald with lifeless eyes and fixed on lashes with ruby red painted lips, somewhere between strangely pretty and slightly creepy as the wind blew through the broken window and dashed off a layer of dust from her chiselled shoulders.
He breathed out heavily, walked over to the open window
to cool the sweat that had broken out on his face, as down below the house he saw the Captain and Rick looking up at him.
“Nothing here!” he called out.
But they were staring, seeing something behind him, looming as it reached for him...
“Vince!” the Captain yelled.
The warning had come too late as Vince cried out as the corpse lunged, dragging him from sight, away from the broken window.
Tina looked to Rick in alarm.
“Keep watch...he needs help!”
“On my own?” Rick exclaimed, but the Captain was already gone, reaching the house as in her haste she half collided with David and Marie who had been about to investigate the cellar until they heard Vince cry out. Together they raced up the stairs, weapons ready as they headed for the attic, and Rick was left alone outside, cradling the baby as he watched the woods and kept his free hand close to the trigger of the gas gun as David's warning came back to him with alarming clarity:
This baby was his responsibility...he was very much on his own with the child, because David's prediction had been right – when it came to the mission, fighting the undead had to come first....
His throat felt tight as he glanced down at the child in his arms, then looked back to the woods, scanning for a sign of movement as he broke into a sweat and his heart raced as the thought dawned on him that if there was a corpse in the house, there could easily be more of them out in the woods....
“It's okay,” he whispered protectively, finger near the trigger and ready to blast any wandering corpse that might emerge as he cradled the child, “I've got you, son...I won't let harm come to you...”
Chapter 7: Horde