Zomblog

by T. W. Brown

  We were against the trailer at an angle that made it unlikely we would be seen. Still, there had to be several thousand of those things. They numbered about ten or twenty wide and I had no idea how many had already passed. The tail end of their line was somewhere out of sight in the woods.

  I’d seen zombies follow something relentlessly. Even after losing the trail those things just continue on the path they had begun. If this was a case of that, I wondered if this was a cluster from Spokane.

  All I know is there were lots! Bill signaled me to go in the trailer and pre-warn the others which I did. One by one we all came out and simply watched. The “zombie parade” lasted all morning and well into the afternoon. Starting the vehicles would be folly. That swarm would change course and come for us.

  With them a few hundred yards away, we were actually in relative safety. Nothing caused any of them to wander our direction so…we simply waited. And waited.

  Once we were confident that they had passed, we had a lengthy discussion that revealed something we had once believed in to be utterly false. No place was safe. No matter how far away from society we retreat, those things can show up at any time in huge numbers.

  We will stay put for at least today and tomorrow to ensure that that horde has moved a good distance away. All of us are curious and want to go across the clearing to see the area that the zombies passed through.

  Thursday, June 5

  Went across the clearing. You could smell the stench from about a hundred feet away. The ground was not only trampled down, but bits of gore were scattered everywhere. Not just the insides falling out of open wounds, but entire limbs. None of us were so bold as to suggest venturing into the woods in either direction.

  One other particularly grisly discovery was of a couple of zombies in various stages of decay that must’ve fallen and been unable to regain their footing. They were nothing more than smashed pulpy remains. But, the resilience of the skull left the head intact. The eyes, milky and black bloodshot followed our every move and the mouth opened and closed with the click of teeth. Nothing that a good stomping with a pair of industrial boots couldn’t put an end to.

  We returned to the trailer and spent the rest of today scavenging everything that we thought we might be able to use. Other than fuel, the best thing we nabbed was one of those big chainsaws with the yard long blade. Hopefully it will work. None of us wanted to start it up because of the noise.

  Maybe we’ll move out tomorrow.

  Friday, June 6

  We have two choices. We can back track to where we split and found the children the first time we made this trip and then hike it to the bridge with whatever gear we can carry. Or…we can make a run through a handful of popu-lated areas and hope we don’t get mobbed.

  The argument is fairly evenly split and this is one of those times I truly wish we had an actual leader. My concern is that we simply decide and get moving. After what we witnessed with that migrating horde of zombies, the folks at Irony are living under false security.

  Evening

  Well, it took all damned day and a perceptible rift that now exists between Bill, Caren, and Kyle versus Meredith, myself, Roy, and Jimmy. We are making a dash through a few small towns with unassuming names like Cabinet and Lakeview.

  In the morning we will reverse directions and then cut north. We do know that the roads we’ll be using are all but washed out. So, the deuce will be moving slow and we will need to take turns driving the Hummer out front in an attempt to clear a path.

  The drawbacks are being uncertain of how slow our progress will be. After all, the reason we didn’t take that route before was because scouting parties had indicated that a lot of debris—both from slides and fallen trees—blocked the way making it treacherous.

  Saturday, June 7

  I still feel phantom buzzing in my hands as well as my ass. My hands from a lot of time with a chainsaw, my ass from riding on the hood of the hummer as we make painstaking progress.

  To the credit of Bill, Caren, and Kyle…they have all worked hard and nobody bitched. We were a real team. Of course our progress did not come quietly and that drew out more than a few zombies.

  Tonight we are camped out in some sort of Forest Ranger tower. Jimmy spotted it when he was standing watch from atop the roof of the deuce while Bill and I were cutting a tree that lay across the almost indiscernible gravel road we are following. We made that our goal for today and reached it just about an hour before sundown.

  There is a great view, and we can see that the first bastion of what once had been civilization waits at the bottom of a long shallow valley. We were able to get a glimpse via binoculars with the waning daylight that remained, and there are definitely signs of movement. Tomorrow looks to be a busy day.

  Sunday, June 8

  Early this morning we were all awakened by the distinct sound of large vehicle movement. From our vantage point in the tower we were able to watch a convoy of twelve vehicles roll past and into the town we had scanned visually last night.

  We figured that this was probably a band of raiders or perhaps just folks like us. We also agreed to simply let them pass. That would’ve worked fine except the last two vehicles came to a stop on the road, then turned in and came to investigate the tower.

  We didn’t have much time to really plan anything so Bill and I grabbed our shotguns, strapped on our pistols and a few spare magazines and hustled down, taking up positions behind our vehicles. Jimmy grabbed three scoped rifles and went up onto the roof of the tower. Caren and Meredith also grabbed rifles, but they stayed inside with Roy and Kyle so that somebody could keep an eye in each direction.

  Both approaching vehicles rolled into the little clearing and stopped suddenly. Probably the instant they saw Bill and me. One of the vehicles was some sort of dune buggy with three people riding in it. The other was an old, beat-up Volkswagen bus. Neither was overly impressive compared to our military-grade machines. All told, there were six guys and two gals. They weren’t soldiers. Just survivors.

  One of the guys raised his hands and came out from the vehicles alone. With all that I’d seen from surviving humanity, this person was either very brave, very trusting, or very stupid. At least, that’s how I saw it at the moment.

  Without warning a shot rang out from above. The man walking towards us stopped, looked down and then fell back hard. In no time we were in a nasty firefight..

  Jimmy was pretty much the hero. At some point, one of the new arrivals tried to take off in the dune buggy only to catch a round in the face, slump over the wheel and run down two of his friends.

  About the time we were considering taking a prisoner to question, Roy yelled down that the convoy was coming back. Then he yelled something down that solidified things for me. These were the people Meredith had escaped from!

  They basically moved into position to surround us. Jimmy says he puts their numbers at no more than forty. So…about six to one with the odds in their favor.

  I give Jimmy the best chance to survive this. The best news seems to be that they don’t have any exotic weaponry. I can’t believe it’s come to this.

  Wednesday, June 11

  We did all we could. Held out and fought back. And in the process, we took out a lot of those people who did such terrible things to Meredith before that day she first joined up with us. It seems like a lifetime ago.

  Still, there were simply too many of them and not enough of us. I’d guess they lost half their numbers. But we did not escape—if you can call it that—unscathed. Bill is dead. Kyle and Meredith are missing. We all got separated when we broke south.

  Bill didn’t go down easy. The second day there was what I guess you’d have to call a charge by a big group. Jimmy yelled warning and we were fending them off as best as we could, but a handful made it to the base of the observation tower. Bill was on what we counted as a rest up in the tower with Caren, and of course Jimmy perched on the roof. I was on the ground with Kyle and Meredith; Roy was in the wood
s. All I remember seeing is Bill charging down the switchback staircase with pistols blazing. It was enough for Kyle and I to pop up and start firing. Unfortunately, Bill took about a dozen rounds to the body. He was dead before we got to him. Our one loss was bigger in scope than the handful the invaders had taken. That was when we decided to run for it.

  Just after dark that night everybody bailed and loaded into the deuce which was still miraculously undamaged save for a few holes which did nothing to hamper it. We roared out of there headed what we were sure was south.

  We drove as hard and fast as possible. There was no way to know where we were going. We simply turned off at random points on the almost invisible logging roads. Try as we might, we couldn’t lose our pursuers. Every time we dared hope, a pair of ghostly yellow headlights would waver into view through the dust cloud we left in our wake.

  I never even saw the section of washed out road. The deuce lurched violently to the left and seemed to hesitate for just a moment before toppling onto its side at such an angle that the wheels were practically pointing to the dark sky above.

  Then…we tumbled over a steep bank and into a river. All of the winter snow had piled up this year. Coupled with how only recently it had begun to warm…and there was a lot of cold water rushing down this river.

  Kyle, Meredith, and Roy were in the back of the deuce. I was driving and had Caren and Jimmy in front with me. We had the windows up. I don’t know how many people have ever tried to get out of a water-filled compartment while strapped in and upside down. I do not recommend it. Once the windows were rolled down and I got free, I made for the surface with all the choking and gasping you can imagine.

  The raging water was whisking me along even faster than I think we had been moving in the big vehicle. I was pretty sure that the coldness of the water would prove fatal so I kept angling for the shore. When I finally made it, I was on the opposite side of the river. Roy and Caren both made it to my side, but further downstream, Jimmy was on the other.

  Nobody saw Kyle or Meredith.

  Our pursuers must’ve seen the accident and been satisfied with the presumed outcome. We actually came away relatively uninjured. At least those of us present.

  Jimmy was able to cross early this morning. For the rest of today we will hole up in this rocky area we found. The rocks are high and flat giving us not only a place to dry off, but also relative protection should any zombies happen by, as well as a semi-concealed place to look out.

  While everybody is focusing on watching for any sort of approaching danger…my eyes are seeking only one thing.

  Meredith.

  Friday, June 13

  We are going to have to move. It seems clear that our two missing friends will not be strolling up to reunite with us.

  While water is plentiful, we have no food. Also, in all the events of the other day, we have one 9mm and seven rounds in the magazine, two baseball bats, and one long sword. Jimmy has the gun, I’ve got the blade, Caren and Roy have the bats.

  To say things are bleak might be understating it. We are moving south, following this river. It stands to reason that we should eventually encounter someplace that was once inhabited. We’ll re-supply there and try to obtain transportation.

  Then, we’ll return to Irony. This mission is a failure. Let somebody else go to that other compound and “settle” it. I just want to crawl in my bed and sleep for a month.

  I know I’m concerned about our little group and the chances of survival we face. That is probably the reason that all I can feel in regards to the loss of Meredith is total numbness. I can’t even grieve for her properly right now.

  Saturday, June 14

  We have stumbled—almost literally—upon a small town. From the signage still standing, I’m pretty sure this place is called Thompson Falls. We came around the base of the foothills and bingo! The town is right there to our left. There is an open inlet we need to go around. Or…what looks to be a bridge. Today we’ll only watch and observe.

  Sunday, June 15

  Lots of activity. None of it looks to be alive. There are a lot of bodies that look to be decaying in the open. Also, it is clear there were some bad fires. We have climbed this hill that towers at least a couple hundred feet above town. Had to take out a couple of stragglers.

  We can see another road on the other side of the river. That is just one more thing to watch in case those bastards that I now blame fully for Meredith’s death should happen to come this way.

  Anyways, hunger is winning. We have to go into that town. We have to find food. Just another thing you took for granted when the world was not dead. The simplicity of walking into a grocery store is long past. I only hope we can find something edible. There haven’t been any fresh delivery trucks in these parts in a long while.

  Tomorrow…

  Monday, June 16

  I can’t believe we didn’t notice!

  This morning we snuck into town just as the first hint of light kissed the sky. At least these damned creatures are slow. The plan was to slip into a few houses on the outskirts to find food.

  We were not in a position to see the total layout of town. What we couldn’t see was the telltale sign of living people in the form of a large pack of zombies surrounding a building. The place looked like a brick, two-story insurance office.

  We found Meredith! Oh yeah, and Kyle.

  The problem is getting them to notice us without drawing attention. The way we found out it was our two presumed lost comrades is because they made a journey up onto the roof. Obviously scouting for an escape.

  The only way we could see that would get them out of their predicament would be to make some noise. So, we’ve loaded up on some canned food. The second house we hit was still “occupied”, but after clearing it we hit a bit of a jackpot. Seems this was a Mormon family, and I guess they were ready for the apocalypse. (We know they were Mormons because of the Book of Mormon sitting on an upstairs nightstand.) Anyways, we found this pantry that was literally loaded with non-perishable foods, bottles of water, all kinds of stuff. Once we had all we could carry, we snuck back up that hill.

  It was difficult leaving, knowing that Meredith is down there. It took us most of the day to get in, gather everything, and get back. Now, as it is late…we are forced to wait one more day. Caren is going to stay here and watch the town and the road…Roy, Jimmy, and I will slip in. Roy is going to make a racket and be certain that crowd sees him, then Jimmy and I will get Meredith and Kyle’s attention and slip out of town.

  Hopefully.

  Tuesday, June 17

  I guess the most important thing in the life we live now is our ability to maintain humanity. Before this happened, we all seemed to lose perspective on what was important. Bad news and scandals sold more than good deeds and honest living. It became all about labels, marketing, and if it would turn a profit.

  If something was done that could be deemed “heroic”, it was trumpeted, exploited, and buried all in the same day more often than not. If there was a scandal, a tragic death, or an act of depravity…it could surf the wave of headline status or lead-in story for weeks until the next great foul deed was uncovered.

  People that live on both sides of that spectrum have survived the horror of this past half a year. I’ve seen both in extremes. I’ve tried not to linger on either side. I’ve had to put down for the last time folks I’ve known, including my own daughter. I’ve tried to help those around me in any way I could. If there is anybody left who knows/knew me a year from now, I don’t want to be thought of as somebody who never tried. Leave the labels and over-exaggeration in the dead past.

  We did all we could to rescue Meredith and Kyle. After Roy came up with the clever idea of attaching a note to a rock, we were lucky and got close enough to throw our note and get their attention with minimal zombie interaction.

  All went relatively smooth. Once we were ready, Roy began shattering windows and making a real racket. Of course the zombies have no concept of lures, tra
ps, or anything of that nature, and followed eagerly after the sight of warm, living meat. Then, as the mob around Meredith’s and Kyle’s building began to pursue, Jimmy added to the chaos and this caused the pack to sorta disperse.

  I was never happier than when Meredith and Kyle were able to bolt down the stairs only having to dispatch the occasional persistent zombie that had refused to follow the pack. I waded in to help, dispatching a handful of those things.

  We ran for the Walking Bridge as fast as possible. Caren fired twice as the signal for both Roy and Jimmy to break and run as well. Meredith, Kyle, and I waited on the town side of the bridge, urging our friends to run faster.

  We all crossed and then I tossed a match on the ground to ignite the trail of gasoline back across to the pool we had dug and filled. It went up with a “FWOOP” that sent an oily black cloud skyward. We knew we had to move, because if any of the folks who had been chasing us were still in the area, they had a good idea where to come look.

  Roy, Jimmy, Kyle, Meredith, and I scaled the hill to where Caren was waiting. I kept glancing at Meredith as we climbed. I was so happy to see her. I thought for certain that I’d never see that smile again.

  Screw Noxon, screw Trout Creek! We’re heading back to Irony. Let somebody else make this run. Let them clear out a backup compound that we may or may not need. I just want to live without running, fighting, or killing. I want a shot at a family with Meredith and Joey.

  Those were my honest to goodness thoughts as I was scrambling up that hill.

  That is most likely why I never saw, heard, or smelled the creeper. I’m guessing he was in his early teens when he died. The zombie did him in good. Most of the left side of his face was torn away leaving plenty of crusty, exposed skull. The left eye-socket was literally packed with dirt and gravel. He had bites out of him all over his body, and the legs had obviously been ripped off. A dried tether of intestine trailed about a foot or so behind him.