Then…Blackness.
No blue fairy. No dreams. No fear of death.
Just the blackness of my dreamless sleep.
I opened my eyes, and it was like someone had shined the light of a thousand suns directly into my eyes. Once my eyes adjusted, I saw Terry standing at the foot of a bed I was laying in, smiling at me. That was one of the most uncomfortable things I’ve ever seen. Have you ever woken up to a lunatic smiling at you? I tried to speak, but my voice sounded like it was full of kitty litter and razor blades.
“Are you wearing pants?” I croaked.
“You need pants?” he excitedly responded. “Here, take mine.”
Before I had time to shout, Jack walked in the room and stopped Terry from exposing himself again.
“You’re up,” Jack said.
“How long was I out?”
“Six days.”
“Did you change me again?” I asked. Jack laughed.
“You know I can’t help but admire your prick.”
“What happened at the gate?”
“We lost a few men…” he said, bowing his head respectfully for the fallen. “Terry rigged up three propane tanks with a road flare, and jammed them under the Jeeps by the gas tanks…”
“Woah…” I said just imagining the explosions.
“Some of Axel’s men were trying to climb over the jeeps by the time all of those zombies made it to us. I shot the first tank, and…” He made a hand gesture of a giant explosion.
“I wish I could have seen that.”
“It was amazing!” he added. “That’s when the rest of them left.”
“The slow zombies? Or speeders?” I asked.
“Speeders?” Jack said with his head to one side. “Oh, the fast ones, yeah. After the explosion, a bunch of the fast ones came out of the woods to see it. Then, one of them screamed, and they ran off.”
“One screamed, and they just left?”
“Like a retreat.” Jack nodded. “And the one that screamed didn’t leave. He stood there while the others left. Then, when I went to take a shot, he took off.”
“So you saw him?”
“Nothing special,” he shrugged. “Just like the other zombies. Rotting skin, black jacket, and dark hair.”
I immediately remembered seeing a zombie fitting that exact description just the other day. I remember feeling uneasy. It looked at me like it had a self awareness that I didn’t like.
“You’re awake,” an older man said while walking in the room. He was wearing a bright yellow tee shirt and blue cargo shorts. His glasses were hanging by a chain right next to a stethoscope.
“Who are you?” I asked, trying to sit up but finding it exceedingly difficult.
“I’m Ron. I’m one of the vets here at the zoo. I was the one who did your surgery.”
“Surgery?”
“Yes. The bullet that hit your leg was about half an inch from your femoral artery. So you got very lucky. The damage to the bone, however, was pretty bad. I was able to save the leg, but you won’t be walking anytime soon.”
I pulled the covers off me so I could see the damage to my leg. A large ugly scar traveled from just above my knee to just below my hip.
“You were the first human I’ve ever worked on,” he said smiling.
I wanted to correct him regarding my humanity, but this didn’t seem like the time. As I was placing my head back on the pillow, a sudden panic washed over me, and I sat upright, causing a great deal of pain in my leg.
“Relax, Jeffrey,” Ron said, holding his hands up in a calming manner.
“Rex!” I blurted out glad that it was only the one syllable I needed to say.
“He’s fine,” Jack said. “He’s actually doing better than you.”
As if on cue, I heard the comforting clickety-clack of tiny claws on tile floors. I looked to the door and saw Rex come in with a small cast that covered his entire left rear leg.
I don’t know for sure what was going through the dog’s head, but when he came in the room, he stopped to look at me. It felt like time stopped, and I could understand his every thought. His head bobbed quickly, and he limped as quickly as he could towards the bed. I would call it a run, but the cast prevented him from really getting enough speed to make the jump onto the bed. He tried, and almost made it all the way up. I reached out, caught him, and pulled him onto the bed on top of me. His body was squirming with delight, and his eyes were moist. I don’t know if dogs really can cry, but he was howling as I squeezed him and kissed him on his fluffy little face.
“Rex!” I said with tears welling up in my own eyes. “You look fat.”
“Yeah, about that…” Brian said entering the room. “We couldn’t get him to eat right away, so we thought there was more of a problem. Then we saw him digging Hot Tamale candies out of your bag, so we mixed a few of those into real food.”
“Hot Tamales are real food,” I corrected.
“He’s eating a fairly normal diet right now, so I would limit the amount of candy you give him…”
“You know, you really shouldn’t be giving him candy at all,” Sara said entering the room.
“Sorry Rex.” I said to the happy dog, “Only kibble from now on.”
His response was a squeaky fart that quickly cleared the room of everyone but me and Sara. Once we were alone, she leaned in and kissed me. As she did, Rex licked the bottom of her chin lovingly. I pulled him to the side to avoid the dangers of an interspecies threesome.
“I honestly thought you would be gone by now,” I said.
“Me too.”
“Why are you still here?”
“I don’t know,” she said running her fingers through my hair. “Why did you stay and fight? Didn’t you have a chance to get away?”
“I don’t know either.” Then I reached over and scratched Rex between the ears.
“Do you think there could be a life here for us?”
“Is there a life anywhere for people like us?” I asked.
“I’ve been walking around this place for the last few days, trying to decide if I should just take what I need and take off. I even contemplated taking Rex with me…”
“That would have been a huge mistake.”
“Well, if I had him, I would at least have a guarantee that you would come after me.”
We sat in that room for a few hours discussing how we could secure the zoo a little bit more and possibly make it a home. We would need more guns, more ammo, and more supplies if we wanted to make this a permanent home. The offices would make great apartment complexes, and the restaurants would make great mess halls.
“I think we can make this work,” I said.
Two days later, Jack brought me a wheelchair and took me outside so I could see daylight again. When we got to the center of the zoo where I killed Axel, all that remained was a small stain on the street. I looked at the stain where Axel’s blood and brains had worked their way into the porous pavement, and I took great satisfaction in what I did. Of course, I acted like I did what I had to do to survive. But the reality was I wanted to kill Axel again and again.
While Jack showed me the reinforcements to the security of the zoo that would now be a permanent home to many people, I watched people working together to make this happen. I saw children carrying two by fours to groups of men who were building guard towers around the perimeter of the zoo. The women who weren’t busy on other construction jobs were bringing water and fruit to the people who were making this place more secure. I watched them like ants all working together towards a common goal.
As the new “mayor” of the zoo, I got the nicest home to choose from. I chose the chimp exhibit. It was mostly underground, and it stayed nice and cool. The main wall to my new domesticated domicile was a foot thick wall of glass that separated me from the chimps. I got my own bed and basic furniture to make my “home” more homey. I enjoyed watching the chimps every day. It reminded me of how I wat
ched people and their monkey ways. The other thing that the chimp exhibit had was a quick entrance to the tunnels below. From there, it was about twenty yards to the nearest exit. If the time ever came that I had to bug out, I would be ready.
Sara and I kept our relationship hidden for a few months. It was still a strange feeling to be so intimate with someone I couldn’t let my guard down with. I enjoyed our time together, but I knew deep down she was just like me. I couldn’t help but wonder what she was after.
I’m not sure how long I can stay here with this group. My kind is better off alone. When we scoured the area surrounding the zoo, collecting weapons and searching bodies, we never found Bob. I will make it a point to find him. While walking the perimeter of the zoo, I’ve seen the long haired, dark suited zombie a few times. He never approaches, and he never screams. He watches. Why he watches, and what he’s hoping to learn, is beyond me.
As I laid in bed one night, I looked at the glass wall that separated me from the chimps. I saw the small family of chimps cuddled together, and I could see that their affection for each member of their family was real. I never had that connection with my family, nor did I ever regret not having it. But it did make me think about Rex. He laid there asleep with his ass pointed dangerously towards my face. As he snored, I stroked the fur along his back. It’s funny how something non human could make someone not human feel just a little human for a little while.
I wish I could tell you that this dog changed my life by teaching me how to feel. Or that like the Grinch, my heart grew three sizes that day. But that’s just not how life works. I’m still a cold, heartless, inhuman monster. Only now, in the vast ice field of my soul there is a tiny warm spot. A small flame that ignited where I didn’t think it was possible. My whole life, I’ve enjoyed my alone time, and now I don’t want to imagine my life without this tiny little furry fucker.
The Inhuman Chronicles (Book 1): Inhuman Page 32