by Lee Wade
We all sat around the table; there were more than enough chairs for everyone, when the light house was built way back in 1803, light house keepers would have had five or six children at least in their families. The atmosphere was jovial, like the old days back on our site in Devon. That seemed like a lifetime ago to us then, but in fact had only been a matter of weeks. God, what we’d been through to get to where we were that day. We ate and drank and nobody took watch that night. Why would they have? The island had clearly been unvisited since before the outbreak and how many other people were getting around using boats. We were lucky to have people in our group with the experience and knowledge to use them in these kinds of waters. Not every Tom, Dick or Harry could jump on a boat and navigate two hours to an island in the middle of nowhere in the dark. We drank and celebrated into the early hours of the following morning.
Chapter Fifty One
When we stirred the following morning, not many of us adults had actually made it to our rooms. It took me back to one of the many Christmas party’s that we’d had back at work. We had all booked hotel rooms at the venue, but we’d gone back to someone’s room for an after party and all just ended up crashing out there. I missed those nights out with the Aspers crew as we used to call ourselves. I wondered what had happened to the rest of those guys in the Aspers crew, I just hoped that they’d survived and maybe they were even back at work with my supervisor and still enjoying life as we had been before the outbreak. After all we’d already planned for a zombie apocalypse!
Becky and Maddison were already up. God, I wished I was nineteen again, how did they do it? Up until the early hours of the morning and then still fresh as a daisy the next day. It took me a week to recover from a night out with the Aspers crew back in the day! It was times like this that I missed technology. I could sometimes spend hours on social media talking with friends and family and sharing photographs and experiences.
We all eventually emerged that morning, most of us resembling the rotters we’d been avoiding for the past two years, if a helicopter had landed outside at that point, they’d have probably just shot us on site, thinking we were rotters!
Becky and Maddison served us a feast of beans and tinned tomatoes. If only we had the rest of the full English, or was that full Scottish, who cared, I missed bacon. Maybe one day we’d keep pigs and chickens and other animals, I could only hope back then.
Once we’d all eaten, we didn’t really discuss what we were going to do that day. I said that I was going to take Babs and the kids down to the Gamebird for a shower as at least we had hot water there and then after that we were going to explore the rest of the island.
After we’d all showered we ventured down to the south side of the island which we hadn’t managed to explore the night before due to the failing light. We had to negotiate a very over grown cliff top path that hadn’t been used for years. Not far along it we reached yet another gun emplacement and then more housing. These were in a worse state than the ones we’d found the night before. Nature had made a hardy attempt at reclaiming these buildings with small trees growing inside a few of them.
We continued on to the south of the island where we found another gun emplacement. This island had clearly been of some importance at some point in its recent history. There was also various storage areas actually cut into the rock itself, all of which hadn’t been used for years. We walked back to the light house, picking the last of the autumn black berries that were still in abundance along the way.
When we got back to the light house most of the group were out and about exploring the island the same as we had been doing. I heard Becky on the radio. Rabbits down here at the west end, I’m going to see if we can get some fresh meat for supper tonight. I took it from that, that we were here for the day at least. BANG! BANG! I heard in the distance, but for once it didn’t send a shiver down my spine. The radio crackled into life again, it was Becky, Yep, rabbit for supper, going to see what else we can find out here.
David radioed in too, I’m going to drop a few pots and do bit fishing whilst I’m out there if anyone wants to join me. Sandie, replied, count me in, I’ll see you down on the Saltwind in five.
Paul and Sophie were still at the light house; Paul said he was going to have a look around some of the buildings next to the helicopter pad to see if he could locate the generator. I told him if he wanted any help, just to give us a shout on the radio.
I was happy for the group, but worried at the same time. I just hoped the guys didn’t think we’d found what we were looking for. Yes, the island was about fifty acres, but it was exposed, how many rabbits and berries would it take to sustain twenty people. If it was a good place to live, why was it abandoned when there had clearly been so many good homes and so close to Scotland’s capital city? We could have made runs to the mainland for supplies as we had done back on our site in Devon. There were loads of smaller ports too, so we could avoid the more populated areas. But I wanted to find somewhere where we could be self-sustainable and I didn’t think Inchkeith was that place. I didn’t want to split our group up and piss on anyone’s bonfire just yet. After all everyone deserved a little bit of respite. So I decided to leave it for a bit and maybe speak with Sandie and Lia later and see what their take was on things.
Chapter Fifty Two
That day seamed to fly by. We left the kids to roam around the light house. Hayley had fetched the mattress from the Gamebird into their room, so I figured she thought they were there for the duration. The rest of the guys had brought all the supplies from the boats into the light house. I felt nervous for the first time thinking about what I was going to tell them, but they had followed my lead so far and it had been my plan to get off the Somerset, so why wouldn’t they listen to what I wanted to do next. I just had to come up with a detailed plan before I spoke to them all.
Babs had managed to bring the cushions from the Gamebirds sofa to the our room, so at least the kids had something comfortable to lie on that night, but by no means did I think this was going to be a permanent arrangement.
That evening we ate well, surf and turf by the means of fresh fish and rabbit that the guys had done well to get for us earlier that day. It was fair to say that Margaret had done well to make sure that everyone managed to get a good meal with the two small rabbits and fish and our meagre supplies.
After we’d eaten that night and the kids had been put to bed I finally got to talk to Lia and Sandie about our situation. Lia was a country girl and had been bought up in a rural area similar to myself and my family and so she agreed that we needed to find somewhere much more sustainable. Sandie on the other hand surprised me, she wanted to stay, I could see her point, the Island had good views across to the mainland and we could easily fortify the one and only way onto the island. She was happy to go out and scavenge for supplies and was sure we could create a comfortable life on the Island. I didn’t agree, we were yet to spend a winter on this Island. I doubted whether we’d even get off the island in our small boats once the river started to swell more as the weather got worse. But as someone who was used to being at sea, it didn’t faze her.
I showed Lia and Sandie the maps I’d been studying. There was a much larger Island and only a few hours sail away, The Isle of May. It was situated at the mouth of the Forth and as such may be a bit more exposed, but it was three times as big as Inchkeith. There would be better fishing waters. Less populated ports and more importantly to me it would give us a bit of land that we could work and keep animals. Lia loved the idea and Sandie was more acceptable to it now that she could see what I had planned.
I gathered everyone in the living area and told them my concerns about the Island we were on and especially with winter approaching. I then went on to tell them about May Island. They all listened intently and when I’d finished speaking the room was silent. I could understand why, after everything they’d been through to get to somewhere they had felt safe for the first time since the outbreak for some of them and here was me p
roposing that they leave it behind with an idea to go to a bigger Island that may not be any better and may be populated and may even have rotters on it.
David spoke up first, and how far did you say this island was away, I passed him the map, about three hours sail away I’d estimate, but you’d know better than me I told him. I needed David or Paul on side, there was no way I was going to be able to sail one of the boats; I didn’t have the knowledge or the experience. I could steer the Gamebird down a canal, but taking one of our boats into open waters with my family aboard was not something I was prepared to do. So my destiny was once again in someone else’s hands.
David studied the map, yes, I agree, about three hours on the Hope. He passed the map around and everyone else had a look at it. Paul spoke up, why don’t we send a small party out first thing to have a look, if we set off at sun rise we can get there, have a good look around and be back before it gets dark. We need to have a look at this place before we make any decisions. To my surprise, everyone was in agreement. So it was decided that Paul, Becky, Sandie, Lia and I would set off the following morning in the Hope. I could tell Babs wasn’t very happy so I took her into the kitchen for a chat. She had been worried, she didn’t want us to be separated, I tried to make her feel better by reminding her of all the supply runs we’d had to do back at the site, often away all day. I tried to assure her that this was going to be no different and that we were properly armed these days, but I could tell she was more worried than usual.
I reminded her of the promise we’d all made to Keith back on the Somerset, that whoever got to our home in Togston first would leave a note as to where we were heading for. For all we knew, he was still heading there now and by moving to May island we were even closer to home and would be able to make a trip home one day to find out what had happened there. I don’t think she felt any better, but the thought of home cheered her up a bit.
Chapter Fifty Three
We had gone for a walk down to the Hope with a few supplies for our trip to the Isle of May. Everyone else was still back at the light house. It was a pleasant evening and it had been nice to be alone with Babs for the first time in a long while, it felt good just to be able to hold her hand. We went onto the Gamebird to take a shower. It felt so good to hold her again. It had been too long since we had been alone together. We almost fell into the shower, the water pouring over us, Jesus, the relief was unimaginable. We just sat on the shower floor for ages afterwards, the water still pouring over us, husband and wife together again, whispering gently to each other and hoping that no one was going to disturb us any time soon.
Eventually the water had turned cold, so we took that as our cue to leave. We dressed and had a slow walk back up the hill to the light house. It was an eerie sight looking over towards Scotland’s capital city and not a light in sight, and then I had seen the warm glow coming from the light house and could imagine the guys inside and what they would be doing. We went to bed early that night, after all, we had a busy day ahead of us and wanted to be well rested.
Chapter Fifty Four
We had set off early the following day as planned. Thankfully the good weather had continued into the morning. Most of the other guys had got up to see us off and to wish us luck. We planned on getting there as quickly as possible. I was pleased Sandie had chosen to come with us as she was one of the ones that were going to take the most convincing that moving island was a good idea.
The journey to the isle of May went without any issues. We arrived in harbour around ten in the morning. There were two harbours indicated on the map. We chose to land at Kirk Haven as it looked closer to a lot of the buildings on the map.
As we entered the natural harbour, much to our dismay, there had been another boat, much larger than our own already moored there. It was named the May Princess and looked like a small ferry capable of holding a lot of people, up to a hundred people Paul had thought.
Shit, I thought I’d made a massive mistake at that point. There was the potential to be over a hundred people on the island and only five of us. Surely they would have seen us coming though? There was no one there to greet us and no sign of any rotters either. There was however plenty of grey seals and hundreds of birds, even at that time of year.
We landed at the harbour and all five of us got off. We were well armed which was going to be one advantage we’d have over a boat full of day trippers and twitchers.
We headed straight for the May Princess. The access ramp had been lifted, but we still managed to struggle aboard it. It had been locked from the inside so one could get in. However we did have one of our crow bars with us, so it didn’t take us long to gain access.
We entered into a large seating area; clearly it was only a ferry for day trips and not for ocean voyages. The passenger area was empty as were the toilets and observation deck. We had headed to the control room next. There was movement inside, we banged on the door before entering and a rotter appeared at the window, the captain I presumed by the remains of his uniform. It had looked like he was the only one in there. He must have locked himself in there to hide from someone or something before he’d turned. You could tell by his state of decomposition that he had turned some time before.
We forced the door open. CRUNCH, Becky dispatched him with her axe in the usual way. We threw him overboard into the water below. The engine room and the rest of the boat were clear; it had only been the captain.
I asked Paul if he could sail something as big as the May Princess and he’d said no problem, it was more like what he had been used to sailing rather than the small boats we’d been using. Only problem with it he’d said was that it would take a hell of a lot of fuel to run. But I thought if we had the fuel, we could go anywhere in that thing.
There was a sort of ships log in the control room and a passenger list. It looked like it hadn’t been the busiest of times for the captain. There had been twenty seven passengers in total and three crew members and him from what we could tell. There must have been people already on the island too. Things would have needed to be maintained and there would have been people to cater for the visitors. We thought that we were looking at between thirty and forty people or rotters or even a combination of both.
Paul checked the fuel levels, there was more than enough to do several trips back and forward to the mainland at Anstruther harbour, and so if the crew were still alive, surely they’d have made the trip back home?
We also found tourist maps of the island in the passenger area. There was a light house of similar size to the one on Inchkeith that used to house three light house keepers and their families. There was another smaller, older light house that had been turned into a bird observatory with sleeping for up to six visitors. There was a visitor centre with toilet blocks. A tennis court, picnic areas, but more importantly a solar powered power station and a small fresh water loch.
There was also a list of the local wildlife. There was an abundance of different kinds of protected birds with advice to stick to the marked path ways. I noticed that rabbits and woodcocks were on the list.
We could live quite comfortably on the island, if not for the small problem of the thirty or so residents, whom we had no idea where they were, or what they were. The May Princess’ log showed that they landed here in the very early days of the outbreak, but we were only a few hours journey from Newcastle, so these areas would have been some of the first places hit. At least if they were rotters, they’d be fairly well decomposed, I’d thought and hence be easy to take out. If they had been people, then chances were they would be unarmed; this was a conservation area, so I would imagine weapons of any kind would be the last thing we’d expect to find.
We had discussed taking the May Princess and just returning to Inchkeith and telling the guys what we’d found and then maybe coming back with more people and taking the island.
Then Sandie had said, fuck it, let’s go for it, let’s take this place, we’re the five best zombie killers we’ve got and we’ve got the
slayer with us too, referring to Becky. We can take this place and be back in time for tea!
Chapter Fifty Five
We decided against radioing the guys back on Inchkeith, we were still within range and had told the guys about the May Princess, but that was all. We didn’t want to worry them unnecessarily.
We set off up the hill along an overgrown track towards where we expected to find the visitor centre from the map. The first thing we came across was a ruined chapel and further down the track an over grown picnic area. There were human remains scattered all over the picnic area and outside the visitor centre. They were just bones now; the flesh would have been consumed either by rotters or the thousands of birds that inhabited the island. At least that had accounted for a dozen or so of the visitors.
The visitor centre, named the Mouse House, had been left open to the elements, probably for almost two years. It was a wooden structure and it hadn’t faired very well, it would have been exposed to all weathers with no protection or maintenance and as we had entered it, we could see that some of the local bird life had started to inhabit it too.
The visitor centre was abandoned, but when we had checked out the kitchen area, we had been pleasantly surprised how many tinned goods were still there. Any dried and fresh stuff had long since been consumed by the birds and vermin. I have to admit, one of the things that had excited me the most was the full coke machine in the dining area, I knew I’d be taking the crow bar to that later!
There was a cross roads outside the centre, so we checked the map and took the path that would take us to the four unmarked buildings next to the loch. We ventured along the over grown path way. The first building was some sort of bird ringing room and was full of all sorts of bird watching stuff, but again, it was uninhabited. The two smaller buildings were for the care of sick and injured animals. There were a lot of medical supplies in one of them and the other one had been full of cages and pens containing the skeletal remains of dead birds and probably seals.