Greene stood there and watched as Jackson pumped shot after shot into the shadowy figure. What the fuck had that dumb spade gotten them into?
He looked around to see what the others were doing and whether or not there were any more of these things.
Tommy watched as the scene unfolded, then Greene turned and looked at him. After a few seconds the look turned into a stare and Tommy realized Greene wasn’t actually staring at him.
Turning around he looked behind him out into the darkness, he couldn’t see much because he’d just been facing the fire but he could just barely make out a shambling movement. Little glints of light here and there. As his eyes adjusted he could start to make out the subtle differences in the different shades of black, there wasn’t just one thing moving in the dark, there were five.
VII
The movement of the expedition team in front of the fire seemed to spur the ghouls on, initially they had just been drawn by the beacon but now that they saw movement it triggered inside them a hunger, a deep seated need to feed.
The creatures limped and staggered faster out of the darkness and into the glow of the fire. Everyone who hadn’t already grabbed guns did so. The ghouls were coming from all sides. Some were closer and some were moving faster than others but one footstep at a time, however fast it was taken they were being surrounded.
So far the team had yet to take one down. Breaking free of his shock Greene opened fire out into the dark in short one and three bullet bursts, which at least for the moment he kept clear of his team mates.
Ramirez finally managed to take the first ghoul off of its feet by swinging his rifle like a bat and then he opened fire, point blank at it, with the gun on full auto. The 15 round clip emptied in about a second and half but still didn’t seem to kill it, it twitched and writhed on the floor trying to move… between the two men they seemed to have done just enough damage to prevent it from getting up but not stop it completely, not enough to kill it.
Tommy drew his weapon and thrust it towards his closest attacker, there wasn’t enough room though – the Glock 17L sank into the creatures open mouth with a sickening wet-sucking sound and got stuck. The ghoul thrashed in shock before Tommy could pull the trigger and he lost his grip on the gun.
Taking a step back he lost his footing and fell.
Robert tired to take careful aim at the creatures as they advanced, they were close enough now that he could smell them. The air was thick with the smell of wood smoke and only growing worse with the addition of so much gunfire but he could definitely make out a new, putrid smell that had not been there before. He had never smelt anything like it in his life, a vile cocktail of copper and feces.
He moved to take aim at a new shadow, one he hadn’t seen before but it moved too quickly – faster then any of the others. Before he knew what had happened the new threat - whatever it was - had thrown itself at him. Catching him in the gut it knocked his arms wild and he lost his grip on the gun.
He landed on the floor next to Tommy who had also lost his gun. Looking up he saw the ghoul who still had Tommy’s Glock lodged deep in its throat, the sight would have been comical if he wasn’t so terrified.
The shadow that had tackled him never stopped moving, a blur of movement compared to the other shambling attackers. Robert was too winded to do anything but watch and try to breathe as it rolled over them both and onto its feet in one swift motion.
It moved with the grace of an animal, feet firmly planted as it grabbed the gun stuck in the ghoul’s mouth and squeezed the trigger. There was a spray of brains and the creature went limp but before it could slump to the ground the new combatant pulled the gun free and grabbing the front of the ghoul’s clothing using its own momentum to flip the larger attacking ghoul over and into the bonfire.
Starting from the feet Robert scanned his way up the body of his attacker-cum-hero. Whoever they were they stood perfectly still after easily dispatching the seemingly unstoppable creature, catching their breath. Wrapped in what looked like soft brown leather from head to toe including a swath that covered their face and scalp – leaving only a slit to see through – the figure seemed to be staring down at him.
He couldn’t be sure because their eyes were in shadow but the gore covered gun looked to be pointed right at his head. After a moment the figure broke its stare and shifting the gun up to take aim out into the darkness, at the rest of the attacking horde.
The gun roared again and again and with each bullet one after another of the nameless, faceless ghouls fell to the ground in a shower of brain and skull fragments.
Greene looked about, he didn’t know what the hell was going on but these guys must have been wearing body armor or something because none of the ones he was shooting was going down, they all just kept on coming.
Trying to think of something else to try, he slid his last fresh magazine into place. He glanced over at “Coward” and “Stains” both of the damned fools had let themselves get overrun, one of the pair had even been disarmed and was about to get shot in the face. As much as he wanted to let it happen he decided if he saved them he might have more fun lording it over them.
Raising his MP5 he took careful aim, he didn’t want to accidentally shoot those he was trying to save, he wasn’t simple like Baker. Before he could get off a shot a rock flew out of the darkness and caught him in the forehead, right between the eyes.
Crumpling in half he sat straight down on his butt barely managing to keep his top half upright. He didn’t know what the hell had just happened but somebody was going to get their ass kicked.
He looked up in time to see a small figure running at full speed towards him, still stunned he couldn’t react in time to stop the inevitable. A few feet away the tiny attacker jumped and flew towards him planting both feet into his chest. He snapped backwards, hitting his head on the hard packed dirt and losing consciousness.
After landing on Greene the figure jumped to its feet and grabbing the fallen MP5 took aim out into the darkness – firing short bursts at the heads of the ghouls.
Jackson and Ramirez looked around, they had just managed to keep one of the things down but it had taken a lot of ammo and too much time. Several of the creatures were coming towards them now – none of them overly fast which was almost worse than if they were being rushed, at least then they wouldn’t have time to think – only act, even if what they did was wrong they wouldn’t be able regret it for long… but with their slow walking attackers they had plenty of time to play out one failing scenario after another.
Ramirez heard grunting and gunfire from behind them and he turned to see Greene unconscious with a strange little figure standing over him firing his gun at the creatures. Another figure he didn’t recognize was also taking out their attackers while Howard and Sterns just sat there and watched.
Whoever these strangers were they seemed to know what they were doing, they were taking out the ghouls with one and two shots not whole clips.
He turned back to Jackson getting his attention, “Look!”
They both watched what was happening behind them and catching on quicker now they tried the tactics, taking their time and going for the more difficult headshots, it seemed to be working so well for their new found compatriots.
The creatures started to fall more easily, it only took a few shots now instead of several. It wouldn’t be enough though, they tried to focus on the closest ones first but more just kept coming behind.
Jackson ran out of ammo in the Glock and grabbed his MP5 and started taking out more of the attackers.
It was hard to make out over everything going on but he heard something… a growing high pitched whine, not only was it getting louder but higher in pitch and quicker in rhythm.
Suddenly the sound stopped and there was a glint as something flew through the air. Jackson paused as he was about to open fire on another ghoul, the object making the noise wrapped long cords around the creatures head and weighted, spiked balls whipped around until they ran o
ut of rope and connected with a bone shattering crack.
Too much was happening too quickly, Robert watched as two more figures emerged from the night to help them. After the bolo pulverized the one ghoul’s head they leaped into the firelight both wielding long clubs with bulbous heads and a single spike sticking out at a ninety degree angle. They swung them with lethal force and each blow drove the spike deep into another skull. In a matter of seconds it was all over.
VIII
In the aftermath of the bloodbath everyone was speechless. The expedition team just stood there dumbfounded at what had happened, ears ringing and blood pumping, unable to move.
The strangers however moved quickly and with purpose. They moved about around the camp like they belonged there – rummaging through things until they found what they were looking for. The first one that had come from the darkness, who seemed to be the leader, grabbed a couple of metal trays and threw them to two of the others who used them to scoop up sand and throw it onto the bonfire.
Robert finally found his voice, “W-wait!”
The leader had found a five gallon jug of water, uncapped it and sniffed the contents. Throwing away the lid the figure hoisted the jug up onto its shoulder and began dousing the flames too.
“No, wait we need that fire!”
He grabbed the leader by the arm and in a flash he found himself sitting back on the ground holding his jaw and tasting blood.
With their one free hand the leader grabbed the cloth wrapping their head and pulled it free, a long mane of thick black hair fell free and framed the young woman’s perfect face.
“Are you stupid!? Do you want to die? The fire draws them!”
She stood over him, watching him only for a second before going back to putting out the flames.
The four strangers worked quickly to extinguish the bonfire, soon there was nothing left but a smoking ruin.
“I-I’m sorry, we didn’t know.”
“Shut up!” the woman snapped at him.
It was hard to see without the fire, the moon shone down some light but not enough to distinguish detail, he could only pick her out of all of the other shadows by her flowing hair.
She stopped and listened to the night.
There was a little noise from the fallen ghoul that Ramirez and Jackson had first taken down, it moaned and howled like some deformed animal. Taking one the spiked clubs from one of the others she strode over the creature, placed her foot on its head and swung the club through the top of its head. There was a sickening sound that brought silence and Robert was glad that he couldn’t see what had happened.
She stood there for a moment and listened again. Silence. When she was satisfied that there were no other noises indicating the approach of more ghouls, she relaxed a little.
“What are you fools doing here?” she said turning, looking for an answer from anyone.
“We’re on our way to Los Angeles, to see if – ”
“Lows-an-gal-ez?” she said, the name coming out sounding twisted and foreign, “I do not know this place.”
“Los Angeles, it was a major city on the other side of the mountains, by the ocean”
“That place!? Hah! You really are fools, we should have let the Carrion have you”
“Carrion?”
“The Carrion. The Wanderers. Ghouls. The Dead Ones.” She knocked one of the corpses with her foot to emphasize her point.
“Dead Ones?”
“Unbelievable, you are like a child – you know nothing of the world. You light fires and draw death to you, travel towards Helheim instead of away”
“Helheim?”
“Gaahh! Helheim, the place you call Lows-an-gal-ez – it has many names and all of them bad.” She paced about, agitation in her body and voice. “I have no time for children, we go now.”
Raising a finger in the air she drew a rapid circle and all of the strangers moved with her back into the darkness.
“Wait! Stop, please!” Robert called after her.
She didn’t even pause in her retreat. He had to run to get a head of her and stumbled slightly on the uneven ground.
“Please, wait. W-we need your help. It is obvious there is a great deal we do not know about this place. Who are you people? Where do you come from? How did your people survive the great Plague?”
“No. You ask too many questions. You talk too much. I am not a teacher, I am warrior.”
“So are we, we are the warriors of our people.”
“Then I feel sorry for your people.”
“Pity us then but please – Help us.”
She sneered at him, but it held no venom. She glanced at one of the other members of her group, they stared at each other, not exchanging any words but when she looked back she didn’t meet his eye.
“Very well, we will take you to our village, the Father can decide whether to help you or not.”
“Thank you, Thank you… uhhh… Carlos, Henry… wait here, take care of Greene and watch out for Smith coming back. We’ll come back as fast as we can.”
“Yes sir!” Jackson answered.
Using his flashlight Robert quickly grabbed his pack and found his Glock where he had dropped it. Tommy grabbed his pack too but the woman still had his gun and right now he didn’t feel like asking for it back.
Following the others wasn’t easy, even in the dark they seemed to instinctively know where to put their feet, Robert and Tommy stumbled and struggled to keep up even though they got the feeling that their guides were already going slow for them.
They ran for a while across mostly flat land but then the elevation changed as they started to work their way up into the surrounding mountainside. Sand and brush gave way to rock and they fell even further behind.
The temperature was starting to fall ahead of the approaching sun and Tommy could see his breath in front of his face. It was no good, he though as he stopped to try and catch his breath. He had a stabbing pain in his side and his heart was pounding – the others seemed fine, even Robert was keeping up better than he was.
“You okay?” Robert asked over his shoulder when he noticed that Tommy had stopped.
“Yeah… I’ll… be fine… I… just… need a second… to catch my breath.”
When he turned back around the others were all just stood watching them. He held up a hand to them. “Just a second”
He turned back to Tommy. “You’re not gonna die on me are you?”
“Not today”
“Good, it would be a shame to have made it through that fire-fight just to drop dead going on a little hike.”
“Little hike!? Are you mental? This has to be like…. What five miles?”
“Probably more like two.”
“Really? It feels like five.”
“Come on, are you ready?”
“I guess.”
Turning back around the others were gone, all but the girl. She stood watching them silently. In the dark he couldn’t see the expression on her face but her body was tense as if she didn’t like standing still for even this long.
They tried to close the distance between on her and she let them, she was defiantly going slower now, they must have been far enough away from any danger to relax a little but she didn’t seem happy about it.
“My name is Robert, Robert Howard. The third.”
She trudged on silently.
“What’s your name?”
“Fallon.”
“Fallon, that’s nice. Thank you for waiting for us Fallon. We’re not used to running like that for this long”
Ignoring him she climbed on.
“Most of the exercise we get is walking or on stationary bikes, treadmills stuff like that.”
She stopped suddenly head of him. “You talk too much.”
“Sorry, it’s a nervous thing.”
Studying him a moment longer she turned and carried on up the rocky terrain. A few minutes more and they crested a rise, the path down the other side was a lot easier than going up and w
hen they reached the bottom on the other side they turned and walked along the bottom of narrow ravine.
The sun was coming up now and the sky overhead was lightening, Robert glanced up once and noticed people watching them from above. There were men, women and children lining the rocky outcroppings looking down at them with curiosity.
They walked through a dog leg in the rocks and came out into a larger area, a courtyard of sorts with hollows and openings in the walls all around it. There were more people here too, watching and waiting for them. Up above the rim of the enclosed area the ones who had watched them down the narrow corridor were gathering.
Looking around Robert recognized the others who had helped them fight off the attacking ghouls. The small one who had knocked out Greene was sitting inside one of the round shallow holes in the rock, another just stood off to the side. The third was walking towards them just behind a taller, older man that Robert assumed was The Father.
IX
Sitting around the small fire in the center of the courtyard they drank a hot herbal tea and explained as briefly as possible their story to the patiently listening Father.
They explained where and how they lived, the bunker, the Library. The Father seemed especially interested in the Library, he loved to read, but the village only had a few books. A partial set of encyclopedias, a bible and a Stephen King book. Robert laughed at the irony when he heard that it was “The Stand”.
When they were done the Father went on to explain what stories had been passed on to him about the world after the Cataclysm or as he called it, the Great Plague.
“Some say the birds carried it, others say it was the rats. It doesn’t matter the how or the why or the where. The Plague came. Scientists and doctors tried to fight it, but it moved too quickly. It washed the world in a wave of blood. The Plague brought madness and rage to those it infected, but not death. Never death. Some people believe that the thinnest of the ‘walkers’ the ones that are little more than bone wrapped in paper skin have been here since the beginning.”
Long Live The Dead Page 5