Jake's Undead Nightmare

by McElyea, Ben

  Tom and Tracy searched the pharmacy while Jake, Dan, Jamal, and Sandy traveled back to the lake.

  “Do you think we’ll ever see them again?” Dan asked.

  “I don’t know,” Jamal answered. “I don’t think we’ll see them again.”

  Tyler, Josh, and Tony weren’t pleased with Tracy and Tom’s decision. Most thought they’d never see them again. Tracy eventually returned with a bite on her wrist. Michael made an amputation, but it was too late. The infection had already traveled throughout the body. She was led to a field and shot.

  Tyler, Courtney, Jamal, and Sandy fished while Jake, Dan, Josh, Tony, and Dustin traveled to an abandoned office building near the interstate.

  “You think this place has anything?” Dan asked.

  “This place looks like it hasn’t been looted,” said Josh. “I think it’ll be worth the searching. It’s not every day we see a place that doesn’t have a lot of signs of chaos.”

  “There could be a lot of zombies in there.”

  “If you’re not willing to take the risk, stay outside.”

  “I’m going in.”

  Tony took the lead. He led the others across the first floor. Nearly everything inside was stained with blood.

  “Stay on your guard,” said Dustin.

  There was blood all over the railing of the staircase. Bodies were scattered all over the stairs. One by one, heads of the bodies filling the stairs were pierced. One corpse lunged and bit into Tony’s ankle. Tony screamed and shot the zombie in the head. He then hopped on one leg to the wall.

  “Damn it,” Tony whined.

  “We can make an amputation,” said Josh. “But we don’t have a way of cauterizing the wound.”

  “I know. I’m screwed.”

  Josh took his hatchet, raised it up, and smiled.

  “I’d rather bleed to death than be killed by the infection nd come back as a zombie.”

  “Put the leg on the floor.”

  “How much is this going to hurt?”

  “Well, I’m going to chop off the area just above the foot.”

  “I don’t see why you’re smiling.”

  “I don’t know. Why are you laughing?”

  “Because I knew this time would come and now I’m going crazy.”

  It took five hard swings with the hatchet to remove the infected area. Tony tried not to scream and cry, but he couldn’t hold it in.

  “I’ll help him walk,” said Dustin.

  “I’m going to bleed to death if someone doesn’t build a fire right here.”

  “Every zombie or person in here knows we’re here now,” said Josh. We might as well do the cauterization here. I always keep some with me. Let’s do this as quickly as possible. Everyone, be ready for a fight.”

  Getting the fire started and cauterization took a while, but it was done. They traveled up the stairs and searched the next floor’s rooms. Blood was everywhere, but everything was intact.

  “I don’t get it,” Dan whispered.

  “Something’s going on here,” said Jake.

  “Be prepared, Jake. Something crazy is about to happen. I just know it.”

  A few zombies were stuck inside the janitor’s closet. The group didn’t know if it was a good idea to keep searching the building. Curious and wanting to find something, they pressed forward. On the third floor were piles of stacked chairs and desks forming a barricade. Behind it was a crowd of zombies. All were chained to the desks and wall.

  “Someone has to be holed up on the next floor,” said Dan as he and the others examined some of the zombies eating flesh, legs, arms, hands, and feet.

  “People are or were here,” said Josh.

  Tony sat on the slippery, bloody floor.

  “Right now isn’t the time to rest on the floor,” Dustin said to Tony.

  “I just had my foot cut off. I’m in too much pain. I have to sit down.”

  “You can’t just stop. Let me help you up.”

  “Just give me a minute.”

  “Either I’m helping you stand up or I’m leaving you here. Make your choice. Now’s not the time to be stupid.”

  “Help me up.”

  Jake, Dan, Josh, Tony, and Dustin stayed behind the barricade and took out one zombie at a time. It didn’t take long to move the chairs and desks. On the top floor were five bloody people. They had made an altar from human bones. In the far corner of the room were shotguns. One of the men stepped forward and gave a polite bow.

  “Hello,” said the bloody man. “Would you like to become a member of our group?”

  “Tell us about your group,” said Jake.

  50

  “We coexist with the dead walkers. They are people just like us. They just need the cure.”

  “What do you think the cure is?”

  “We’re currently trying to figure that out.”

  “My name is Jake.”

  “My name is Julius. This is holy ground.”

  “I understand.”

  “Do you?”

  “Yes. Everything going on in this building is sacred to you.”

  “You and the people with you have destroyed the infected people. We could have cured them and brought them back to life.”

  “I’m not so sure you understand my point of view.”

  “We’ve done everything we could to get a better understanding of these poor people and to make them more comfortable. They’ve eaten flesh from the living and recently deceased, so we did the same.”

  “Wait,” said Dan. “So you’re crazy cannibals. We’ve dealt with your kind before. It’s kind of hard to come across someone who isn’t completely crazy these days. The five of you should have had your weapons pointed at us. You’re all very foolish.”

  “Wait! Listen!”

  “I don’t want to listen to any more of your psychotic babbling. I’ve heard enough of that.”

  “Technically, we are cannibals. But we didn’t kill any human beings.”

  “You’re crazy.”

  “Shut up and allow us to explain.”

  “This should be interesting.”

  “Quite. In the corner of this room is a closet. Inside the closet is a dead man who was once moving. Two weeks ago, he stopped moving.”

  “Why did you eat human flesh?”

  “We ate human flesh in an attempt to feel what they feel.”

  “How can you not know how crazy that is?”

  “The experiment was a failure. Eating human flesh did nothing more than make us very ill.”

  “You and your associates are covered in blood. There is an altar made of bones. Explain that for me.”

  “I’ll tell you something.”

  “We’re waiting.”

  “We won’t be explaining anything any further. Look behind you.”

  Jake and the others whipped around to see a crowd of ten men with semi-automatic weapons.

  “Why?” Dan asked.

  “We need to use you as specimens. I’s nothing personal. We need you and your people.”

  “If you let us, we can help you. It seems like you’re really trying to do some good. We have a large community not too far from here. We could use some scientists.”

  “You’re going to help us with our research.”

  “How?”

  “We’re going to kill all of you and see what we can find out.”

  “Wait!”

  “What?”

  “Let us live. We’ll bring you some people.”

  “You won’t bring us anybody.”

  “I swear we will!”

  “This is what we’ll do. We’ll kill two of you and allow the rest of you to go out and find more specimens for us.”

  “I see there is no other way.”

  “Who should we use as specimens?”

  “Take me,” said Tony. “I can’t live like this anymore. I have no one to care for me. I’m tired of this. Just shoot me.”

  “Who else is going to die?” the man asked Jake as he wiped b
lood from his face with a dirty cloth.

  “My brother and I need to live more than anybody. Choose Dustin.”

  “I’ve been through more with you than Josh!” Dustin cried. “You really don’t know choosing Josh to die is the right choice?!”

  “Dustin, Josh is much more useful in a fight than you. I’m sorry, but you’re to die.”

  “Kill Josh! Not me!”

  “It’s settled,” said the bloody leader. “The man with one leg and Dustin will be our research specimens. The rest of you will bring us more specimens.”

  “Thank you for sparing us,” said Jake. “You won’t be disappointed. We will bring you more people. There are lots of people we can bring.”

  “Good. Go get them and return.”

  “Do you really plan on coming back to this place?” Josh asked as he, Jake, and Dan made their way back to the lake.

  “Hell no,” Jake answered.

  51

  News was spread about Tony and Dustin. Of course, the three who survived the encounter agreed to keep the truth about their fate a secret. Michael wanted to send a group to dispose of the crazed experimentalists at first, but later decided not to. He advised everyone to not go back to that area.

  Jake, Dan, Courtney, Josh, Tyler, Jamal, and Sandy sat at the dock and fished.

  “I think it’s time we talked to Michael,” said Tyler.

  “About what?” Jake asked.

  “He has a radio. I think we should ask him if he’s heard anything new.”

  Jake, Dan, Josh, and Jamal followed Tyler to Michael’s tent.

  “What can I do for you?” Michael asked.

  “Have you found anything new on the radio?” Tyler asked.

  “I’ve heard a few things, but I think it’s all fake information.”

  “What have you heard?”

  “A man on one broadcast is saying the worst of the infection is over. I’m not so sure about that. There are still plenty of zombies in the area, but it is possible it isn’t nearly as bad as it once was.”

  “What do you think of the man on the radio? Did he seem legit?”

  “The man sounded sincere, but it could be a lie. There’s no way of finding anything out right now. Even if most of the dead are no longer moving, it will take a very long time for life to be more convenient again.”

  “What do you think our chances are?”

  “As long as the fish keep biting, I think most of us will be okay.”

  “Most of us?”

  “I’m sure at least a few of us will have an accident here and there. It does happen sometimes.”

  “What else did you hear on the radio?”

  “I heard something about a group of people in hazmat suits are trying to take people with them and something about a church of madness.”

  “We came across some people with hazmat suits on,” said Jake.

  “Really?” Tyler asked.

  “Yeah. Dan, Jamal, Tom Tracy, Jasmine, and Sandy were with me at the time. I feel bad about Jasmine dying.”

  “Why didn’t you tell anyone?”

  “We didn’t think about telling anyone. Sorry.”

  “What happened?”

  “We shot them.”

  “What? Why?”

  “We didn’t trust them.”

  “I wish I could have talked to them,” said Michael.

  “Me too,” Tyler added.

  “What’s done is done,” Jake said with a shrug.

  “You’re right,” said Michael. “Our biggest problem right now is our trading with Marcus’s people.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “They’re getting desperate.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “They want food in exchange for anything. We’re not going to give in. This has been a problem for days.”

  “Of course we aren’t going to give in.”

  “I can tell this is going to be a big problem.”

  “We need to be ready for an attack. There are way more of them than there are of us. An attack will probably happen at some point.”

  “All we can do is prepare.”

  For six days, Michael and his people did what they could to prepare for an attack. All that could be done was adding cushioning to the walls and quickly bringing as much food as possible back form scavenging runs. Two days later, Marcus showed up at the front of Jake’s home. Michael came out with a smile.

  “Hello, Marcus!”

  “Hello, Michael. How are you doing?”

  “I’m great. Thank you for asking.”

  “I was hoping we could talk.”

  “Sure. I’ve got time.”

  “As you probably already know, we’re in dire need of food.”

  “My traders have told me your people don’t want to trade for anything but food.”

  “We really need food, Michael.”

  “There are a lot of you. That’s a lot of mouths to feed.”

  “That’s correct.”

  “We’re having trouble with the same thing.”

  “Are you?”

  “Yes.”

  “I would really appreciate it if you and your people would be willing to help us with the food problem. We’ll make you a very good deal.”

  “As I and my traders have said before, food is something we’re not willing to trade.”

  “Some of us aren’t doing so well, Michael. We have food, but not nearly enough. How are you and yours getting so much food?”

  “We’re not getting a lot of food. There are far less of us. We don’t need to acquire as much.”

  “We need help, Michael.”

  “We’ll do what we can.”

  “I would like it if your traders would start trading your food with us. We’re barely getting by.”

  “We’ll see what we can do.”

  “I think you and your people should help us very soon.”

  “We are doing what we can to survive. We couldn’t possibly feed as many people as you want.”

  “I think you should try to.”

  “I’m not liking where this conversation is going, Marcus.”

  “I don’t like it, but I have to talk to you about it.”

  “We don’t need to talk about it. You simply want to. Say what you really want to say, Marcus.”

  “Give us some of your food, Michael. We need it. Remember, we’re allies.”

  “Are we?”

  “If zombies or people attack you, we’ll help you. So yes. We are allies.”

  “I see this for what it really is.”

  “Are you going to give us food?”

  “No.”

  “That’s a shame. I was hoping it wouldn’t have to be this way.”

  “What do you plan to do?”

  “I don’t plan to do anything. My people might not like what news I’m about to bring them, though.”

  “We’re human beings, not savages. There is no need for violence.”

  “My people may not see it that way.”

  “You know they won’t be reasonable in times of desperation, Marcus. Where do we go from here?”

  “Hopefully not war. I’ll take my leave now. Have a pleasant evening, Michael.”

  52

  That evening, Michael brought together his twenty-seven people for an announcement.

  “Everyone, we need to establish the fact that Marcus and his people are not to be underestimated. They want our food. We’re not giving them any food. There are nearly two hundred of them and so few of us. Prepare for war.”

  Questions were asked and answered. Jake and Dan spent much time fishing. To prevent confrontation with any of Marcus’s people, they’d catch one fish and return to eat it rather than waiting to catch two or more. They felt they knew war would soon happen, so they went on several scavenging runs. It was difficult to find anything anywhere near their home, so they traveled several miles away.

  “How far are we going?” Dan asked.

  “We’ll go as far as we need to,
bro. We have enough food and water to last us for a few days. We’ll find something to put back for later. We have to.”

  “We deal with something crazy just about every time we venture out. I don’t like it. I know we have to do this. I’m sick of it.”

  The small talk ended when the two brothers stopped after seeing several men in hazmat suits walk around the corner of a building and spotted them. Jake and Dan, knowing they couldn’t get away, waited for them to approach.

  “Hello,” said a woman.

  “What do you want?” Jake asked.

  “The worst part of the zombie apocalypse is over.”

  “Is it?”

  “Yes. We have a facility not far from here. Would you like to follow us there? Normally, we are searching for some women to add to our population. But, we’re having a hard time finding people now. If you were to join us, you’d be well protected. We have what it takes to survive this.”

  “We’re not so sure we believe what you’re saying.”

  “We’re telling the truth.”

  “Prove it.”

  “I’m going to set my backpack down on the ground and get some pictures out of it. Don’t shoot at us.”

  “We won’t shoot as long as none of you do.”

  The woman put her backpack on the ground. She then opened it and took some pictures out.

  “I’m going to set these pictures on the ground. After I do, my associates and I are going to turn around. Does that sound okay to you?”

  “That does sound fair.”

  “Please don’t shoot us in the back. We’re really trying to help you.”

  “As long as none of you do anything stupid, no one will get hurt.”

  “Alright. Here we go.”

  The woman and the people with her did as the woman said they would. Jake snatched the pictures from the ground and had a look at them. There were pictures were of the fenced in facility, people holding signs saying “we’re okay” and “go with the hazmats”, and the inside of one of the buildings showing people sleeping on cots and drinking what appeared to be lemonade.

  “You can turn back around now,” said Jake.

  The nine people wearing hazmat suits turned around.

  “Do you believe me now?” the woman asked.

  “I do, actually.”

  “Really?” Dan asked.

  “I think they’re telling the truth.”

  “They might want to kill us.”

  “I don’t think they will. Look at the pictures.”

  “I was looking.”