"We weren't alone when we started out, we were on a school field trip."
"A school field trip? What were your parents and teachers thinking?" Don't they realize this place is infested with zombies? That there's a war going on? It's no time for field trips!"
"Well, actually, this was a pretty safe place when we started out. The man from the army said they got rid of the zombies. Our teacher Mrs. White said there hadn't been a zombie spotted on this road for over six months now. Plus the army was using the road every day. They keep it clear for supplies to the city. My mom was a bit nervous, but my dad said it would be OK."
"But still," Chaz chimed in, "letting a bunch of school kids out on a venture like this with just a teacher and a few chaperones is ridiculous. It's insane. They're jeopardizing the wellbeing of all these kids."
"Oh, we weren't alone. We had soldier escorts. They had one of those big fancy trucks in front of us. You know, the ones that look almost like a tank, but are more of a truck. And they had a Jeep behind us, watching."
"Still, where the heck did they think they were going to take you? There aren't any tourist attractions out here. At least not any that are safe anymore."
"Oh, we weren't really going anywhere special. We were just going for a ride. A lot of us have never actually been out of the city. The wars have been going on since before we were born. They said it wasn't safe. Our teachers thought it would be good for us to get out of the city and see some nature. We left this morning, and we'll be home for supper."
Alex just stared. "Yeah, well, I suppose that's not too crazy. Nature is nice. I used to like walking in the woods."
"I'd never seen a forest before, at least not a real one. I've seen pictures in books and on the internet. It seems different in person. It smells different. We saw birds too. Hawks. Billy says he saw eagles."
Billy perked up a bit and glanced towards Christa upon hearing his name. He started to open his mouth, but Christa tilted her head and glared back. Billy went back to pouting.
"I don't really think he saw eagles; he makes things up sometimes. That's how little kids are, you know." A smile formed on Christa's face as she brushed her hair back from her eyes.
Alex smiled back. "So, what happened? Why are you guys all sitting here, with no parents around?"
"Oh, they'll be back, they just needed to run a quick errand down the road."
Billy perked up. "Yeah, they'll be right back."
Chaz thought he heard Billy giggle. "What's so funny there, son? You think it's funny being out here all alone?"
"I'm just a bit scared, that's all. I laugh when I'm nervous."
Chaz left Alex and Christa talking, and headed towards the front of the bus. He veered towards the smaller vehicle about ten yards away. Approaching cautiously, he noticed the door was open, but couldn't see anyone inside. There appeared to be no damage, and the keys were still in the ignition. A half-eaten bag of beer nuts sat in the passenger seat. Looking around, he noticed the tarp he'd spotted through the binoculars off to the right. He walked around the car, checked underneath, then headed towards the tarp.
***
Alex continued talking with Christa. "I don't understand why the parents left you here for so long. How many of them were here?"
"Well, there was Mr. and Mrs. Castle. They're the chaperones for the trip. Then our teacher, Mrs. White. The bus driver, Jack, and Mrs. White's helper, Julie. They all went with the soldiers. The soldiers that were left. They said they'd be back in just a little while."
"What do you mean the soldiers that were left?"
"Oh, well we were just driving along when the truck in front stopped. One of the soldiers went and talked to the soldiers in the Jeep. Then, the soldier came back and talked to Mrs. White. She told us that the soldiers in the Jeep were checking out something in the forest. She said it was nothing to worry about, and they would be right back. The drove off in the Jeep through that dirt road over there between the trees. The big truck of soldiers waited here with us. They haven't come back yet."
"Well, OK, but what about all the other parents and soldiers?"
***
Chaz approached the tarp near the edge of the road. He looked back, and could see Alex talking with Christa. Alex looked back, but he was too far for Chaz to make out his expression. Always on the lookout for something to jump out, Chaz scanned the woods. The stench of acrid death filled his nose. He really didn't want to lift up the tarp, knowing it wouldn't be good news. The bumps underneath were too many to be just one body. He wondered why the kids hadn't mentioned it. Maybe the car blocked their view of the tarp. The tarp was downwind, so the kids couldn't smell what he was smelling.
***
Christa shuffled her feet, and looked behind her at the other kids. They were pretty quiet. "I don't really know. When the first group didn't come back, the other soldiers and adults went looking for them. I'm sure they'll be back soon. They wouldn't leave us here all alone."
"How long have they been gone?"
Christa just shrugged her shoulders.
Alex was interrupted by Chaz yanking on his backpack. He'd come up so quickly that Alex hadn't heard him approach.
"Alex, we need to get the hell out of here!" Chaz commanded in hushed but urgent tones.
"What are you talking about, Chaz? We can't go yet. We haven't even gotten onto the bus yet. The kids are just starting to trust me. I think Christa will open the door and let us in now."
Chaz just shook his head violently back and forth, still trying to catch his breath. "We're leaving, and we're leaving now, even if I have to drag you kicking and screaming."
"Wait! What the hell!"
"I'll tell you on the way; we need to move. What we're doing is too important to deal with this. We've got to get to the fort. We'll take the car. The keys are still in the ignition, and there's enough gas to get us within spitting distance of the fort." He started pushing Alex towards the small car, all the while glancing backwards anxiously at the school bus. A few steps from the car Alex stopped, turned, and pushed Chaz back.
"Alright, that's it! No further! Not until you tell me what the hell is going on. There's no way I'm leaving a bus full of kids unprotected out here in the middle of nowhere. They're going to die alone if we don't help them. What is wrong with you?"
Chaz took a deep breath and glanced at the bus. All the kids were watching them from the windows.
"Go and take a look under the tarp. But be discreet. I don't think the kids can see from the bus, but I'll keep an eye on them."
"Keep an eye on them? What exactly do you think they're going to do? They're just kids."
"Go look under the damn tarp ... quickly, then come right back here."
Alex shook his head and turned towards the tarp, muttering under his breath about crazy old soldiers going bat-shit. As he approached the tarp, the smell became overpowering. Hesitantly, he lifted a corner. The smell was too much, and he backed away, choking down the bit of bile that was rising in his throat. He looked at Chaz's back as he stared intently towards the school bus. Alex pulled a rag from his pack and covered his mouth before pulling the tarp completely off. Initially, he wasn't sure what he was looking at. Drawing closer, he made out several whole bodies, dozens of assorted parts. Two were small children, and the third he thought was a badly mangled soldier. As his eyes scanned the children's bodies from their feet to their bloody necks, the bile in his throat became a rushing torrent. He turned away, vomiting everything he'd had for lunch, and parts of breakfast. Both children were decapitated, and they weren't zombie children. They were human children. Without returning the tarp, he scrambled back to Chaz, wiping himself with the rag.
"What the fuck happened here! Why are there two decapitated children, a mangled soldier, and a bunch of unidentifiable body parts from kids? Damn, that's just sick!"
"I don't know. There was a report that circulated from the CDC about six months ago that made no sense. At least not until now. It said there had been unsubstantiated sightin
gs of zombies doing weird things."
"Weird? You mean like other than walking around undead and trying to eat people? How much weirder are we talking here?"
"Maybe not weird, but just behavior that we'd never seen before. It talked about zombies spontaneously exploding. When they blew, it was like they had bombs strapped to their bodies. Incredibly violent blasts, with bone and skull fragments cutting everyone around them to shreds. They tried duplicating it in their labs, with no success."
"I've never seen that. In all your years, have you?"
"No, never, just a few stories here and there?"
"Stories? You knew?"
"No, of course not, they were just soldier stories. Like sea monster legends that old sailors told. The CDC wrote them off as post-traumatic-stress-affected soldiers."
"So you think that the little body parts under the tarp were from zombie kids exploding? And the kid took out the soldier? That still doesn't explain the two decapitated kids ... they weren't zombies. Why the hell would they be decapitated?"
Chaz shook his head in doubt, then glanced back again at the bus. All the kids were watching them now. "There's one more thing the report said, and this I've never heard anywhere else."
Alex stared intently "Well ... go on ... what is it?"
"The report said that some zombies can revert to human form."
Alex now stared dumbfounded at Chaz, then back at the school bus. Then back at Chaz.
Chaz continued, "The report was vague. It didn't say if they actually changed back to humans, or just appeared to change back to humans. Again, they couldn't duplicate it in the lab."
"Well, Chaz, now's your big chance to find out." He nodded back towards the direction of the bus.
Christa had exited the bus, and was walking towards them. The rest of the kids stayed inside the bus, watching her. Billy was yelling something to her, but no one could make out what he was saying. She got within twenty feet or so of Chaz and Alex. Chaz shouldered his rifle, and ordered her to stop where she was. Christa smiled, and kept coming. Chaz barked the order one more time. Then, there was a loud, dull thud, followed by screams of children from the bus.
A few front windows of the bus were completely covered inside with blood and body parts. The screams became more frantic. The kids were scrambling through the aisle and over the seats towards the back of the bus, where others were huddled. Alex thought he saw Billy moving through the bus, but he couldn't be sure. Alex moved towards the bus until Chaz stepped into his path, rifle still leveled at Christa. Before Alex could move around him, they heard another loud thud. It sounded like when two cars collide at an intersection. The windows near the back of the bus changed from clear to red. They were randomly interspersed with more body parts and bone fragments. Several of the windows cracked, and the screams stopped.
Christa, who had turned, looking towards the bus, now turned back to face them, tears streaming down her face. She ran towards Chaz and Alex. Chaz pulled his trigger, and Christa fell to her knees ... unhurt, but still crying. The warning shot stopped her. She screamed, "I've changed ... I've changed ... I've changed ... I don't want to hurt anyone. I won't hurt you. Please help me."
Chaz lowered his rifle. Alex ran to Christa and picked her up in his arms. She wrapped herself around Alex's neck, clinging for dear life. Alex walked back to Chaz, his face torn between emotions.
"She's harmless, Chaz, you know that, right?"
"What I see, son, is a huge unknown and you taking a huge risk with both our lives. Keep your distance, that's an order." Chaz backed away, and Christa squeezed tighter. "You need to put that girl down now, and back away."
"That's not happening, Colonel. Just look at her. She's in no condition to hurt anyone. She's scared. Christa," he said, turning his attention to the girl, "what did you mean when you said 'I've changed'? Changed from what? What is it you've changed from?"
Christa continued sobbing, and kept her face buried in Alex's neck.
"Christa, please, you need to help us understand. What is it you've changed from? We want to help."
Chaz lowered his weapon part way.
Christa raised her head and wiped her eyes with one hand while the other held fast to Alex. "I'm just a little girl now. I only want to be a little girl. A kid. I'm not a zombie anymore. I'll never be a zombie again. I won't hurt anyone ever again ... I promise. Please don't shoot ... please don't kill me."
Then There Were Three
"I don't trust her, Alex, not one damn bit."
"I know, Chaz, I completely understand. This is way beyond crazy, but she's shaking, shaking like a leaf. She's terrified. If you were holding her, you'd understand. There's no way she wants to hurt us. Certainly not in the state she's in now."
"We need to get going to the fort. That's way bigger than her. You know what we're carrying, and the potential it has for change. Now quit being so emotional, and think about the larger picture."
"Really, Chaz? What does the larger picture matter if we can't make a difference in the life of a kid. Isn't that what the bigger picture is about? It's about making a difference in the lives of individuals. We don't even know if the drugs and research we're carrying will work. It's a gamble. But right here, right now, we can make a difference. We can save her. We don't get chances to save many lately. How can we not help her? Maybe she's a key to understanding the zombies. If what she says is true, she could be incredibly helpful. Maybe more helpful than what's in that case."
Chaz paused, and took a breath. Then, he shook his head ever so slightly up and down.
"Fine, OK, damn it! But we're taking precautions. I'm not about to get my throat ripped out by some kid. Get in the car."
They headed over to the car, with Alex carrying Christa and Chaz following safely behind. The safety on his automatic was still off.
"Put her in the front passenger seat and put her seatbelt on."
Alex opened the passenger door, and gently slid Christa into the passenger seat and placed her seatbelt on. She was reluctant to let go of him, but she did.
"Don't worry, kiddo, it's going to be OK. We'll get to somewhere safe."
Meanwhile, Chaz grabbed the keys from the ignition, and popped open the trunk. He rummaged around for a while in the back till he found what he was looking for. He came out holding tie-down straps for the roof rack. Alex look at him and shook his head.
"Tie her hands and feet. Not too tight, don't cut off her circulation, just make sure she's not mobile. Make it tight enough so she can't reach the driver."
"C'mon, Chaz, is this really necessary?"
"I told you, I am not taking any chances. What we're up to is too important. It's not that long a trip; she'll manage."
"Fine!" Alex took the straps from Chaz
Alex knelt down by Christa and wrapped the straps around her wrists.
"I'm sorry about this, but there's a lot we don't understand and he's just trying to keep everyone safe. It won't take us long to get where we're going, and then I can take these off."
"It's OK," she said. "I understand. I know I used to be pretty scary, before I changed. I would have tied me up before too. There's a lot I don't understand too."
Alex smiled back. "It really is just a short ride. I'll get you out of these as soon as possible. I just need to keep the old man happy."
Alex continued tying the straps, not as tight as Chaz would have, but well enough. He looped the straps from her hands through the door handle so she couldn't reach the driver, like Chaz had requested. He secured the strap from her ankles to the seat frame underneath. That should keep the old buzzard happy, he thought.
Alex closed the passenger door and reassured Christa that things would be OK. Chaz tossed him the keys to the car.
"You’re driving, and we're going straight through like a bat out of hell. No stops. We need to finish this. I'll navigate from the back seat, where I can keep an eye on our little stowaway. I've got a few questions for her about what really happened here."
&nb
sp; "She's not our prisoner, Chaz; you don't need to interrogate her like one."
"Don't worry, son, I'll be peachy-keen nice, so I don't make her cry."
Alex jumped into the driver’s seat, placing a reassuring hand on Christa's shoulder. Chaz sat himself in the back, behind Alex. He flipped the safety of his semi to the on position, and placed it in his lap. Alex started the car and headed off towards Chattanooga. The tarp fluttered off the bodies as they drove by, and Alex made a conscious effort not to look. Instead, he turned towards Christa, giving her the most reassuring smile he could muster.
The car's GPS told them they were a little over four hours from Fort Knox. It was pretty quiet inside the car. The day’s events had taken their toll. Christa got comfortable enough to fall asleep in spite of her restraints by the time they reached the city limits. Driving through a major city these days was always an experience. It was one thing to drive through the open country where visibility was good. Every city was different. Most were pretty safe, and managed to keep the zombies at bay. You still had to be on your guard. Every time you turned a corner, there was potential for danger. Chattanooga, like most cities, was run-down, but was mostly zombie free.
Dusk fell as they drove the city streets, and there weren't many people around. Downtown Chattanooga closed up tight after the work day. Buildings were dark, and only a few small businesses still had lights on. A small convenience store was still lit up as Alex stopped at an intersection.
"Hey, Chaz, what do you think? We've got money, how about we stop in and pick up a few supplies?"
"No."
"Ah, c'mon, we're in good shape here at the moment, and the kid looks sort of hungry." Christa never budged from her slumber.
Endings: Dystopian Post Apocalyptic Zombie Thriller (Parables From The Apocalypse Book 1) Page 7