Zombies! Rising from the Dead

by Richard Palmer

  All over the screen, regardless of what channel we watched, the story was the same. Great plumes of ash and smoke filled the sky, making air travel impossible. The immediate areas that weren't destroyed by the impact were covered in caked layers of soot. Homes,

  villages and livestock were blanketed in a thick layer of meteor ash. The comet had all but disintegrated on impact, sending fine dust and particulates into the atmosphere. Relief efforts were underway and aid was spilling in from many countries including the United States. It was truly a epic natural disaster, but in recent years with hurricane's, tornado's and earthquakes on the rise it just didn't seem to affect that much. The one startling fact that separated this event from the others is that it was an event caused by outside forces, which gave no warning or indication of impending danger. With all the satellites and telescopes scattered across the globe it was amazing that absolutely no one saw this coming, or at least at this early point it didn't seem that anyone did. It was a stark reminder of just how weak, fragile and helpless we as a race truly are; even in this age of technological marvels and military might.

  Amanda called it a night, leaving Rick and I to rehash all the events of the day. After a few hours we both grew tired and Rick left for home. It had been a good day and fun was had by all. I cleaned up for a bit longer, throwing away cups, paper plates and doing the few dishes that were left behind. Not long after I turned in myself and feel asleep.

  The next morning the ringing of my phone abruptly woke me, it was Rick. “Dude turn on the TV you have to check this out, they are going crazy over there”

  I turned on the news wondering what had taken place in the overnight hours. I didn't have to wonder long as news reports were all abuzz on the airwaves; while and images of fires, looting and riots filled the screen in the background.

  “Man this looks crazy” I told him, as I stared into the screen.

  “Yeah, it started sometime last night. People just going fucking crazy, there's not enough police to control their fucking asses; getting killed for the shoes on your fucking feet.”

  Rick compared it to the chaos in New Orleans after hurricane Katrina; people looting the stores, lack of law enforcement; sidewalks lined with dead bodies and human excrement. A complete and total breakdown of government and society.

  We went on to discuss these events and what a horrible situation it was. During the course of the conversation I happened to bring up that I needed to into Panatauk and he was welcome to join me, Rick said that he tag along for the ride.

  I ate breakfast, giving myself enough time to wake up and then took a quick shower, washing away the rest of the chlorine and smoke from the previous day. It was going to be another hot day so I dressed lightly in a t-shirt and shorts. Just before leaving I called Rick and told him to be ready as I was on the way.

  I pulled up in his driveway minutes later, right around ten. He was already waiting at the end of the road and seemed eager to get going, as he climbed into the truck.

  “Hey man, what’s goin' on?” I said.

  “Aww, nothing much. Hey, turn on the radio” he said in a very excitedly.

  I agreed, “What's going on?”

  “Just listen...” he replied, “It’s getting worse”

  I fumbled with the tuner until I found a station that came in clearly. As we drove I could hear the broadcasts. “Looting and riots continue to escalate. Law enforcement has had little to no effect in controlling the mass chaos. Reports of violence are coming in from many regions and the panic seems to be spreading. Trade and commerce are also severely affected. Reports of wide spread attacks by angry mobs and looters have been coming in for ours; with some

  victims being brutally beaten, sexually assaulted or even bitten by their attackers.”

  “Wow,” I told Rick, “things are really getting bad.”

  “Yeah I know, I wonder if it will end up affecting us? I mean with oil and stuff like that. The oil sheiks are always looking for an excuse to jack up gas prices.” Rick always seemed to fall back to some type of conspiracy theory, but in truth there was always some truth to be found in his crazy ideas.

  “I dunno, probably so, they always seem to use any excuse they can find, I wouldn't be surprised if they did!”, I told him lightheartedly

  We set out to Panatauk, our largest city (at least within a reasonable drive). There were several bills to pay and things to do including some light grocery shopping. Living in the country as I did, I usually only managed to get to town once or twice a month but it was absolutely necessary as going to Mark's, as things were generally twice as much as they were at the stores in Panatauk. It could get very costly if you shopped in Barkley more than a few times a month so it was well worth making one big haul every month to get everything I needed, that way I could limit my trips to Mark's Grocery and save a pocketful of cash in the process.

  As we set out we continued to chat and listen to the radio. It was during these next forty-five minutes that we began to understand something more was going on than had initially been relayed, and our situation quickly began to change.

  As we drove our attention was drawn ever more to the radio as news and alerts started to filter in, continued reports of violence, riots and attacks filled our ears. Widespread panic and hysteria had settled in even in areas that were seemingly unaffected and far removed from where the initial disaster had taken place. There were disturbances in regions like Europe, China, Italy, and Japan; which made absolutely no sense.

  Then we began to hear warnings issued directly to American citizens. “With the growing reports of violence in many regions; some only hundreds of miles north and south of American borders we cannot rule out the possibility that terrorist organizations are taking advantage of the mass confusion caused by this disaster. Authorities

  cannot rule out the use of biological weapons or otherwise...reports are wide and scattered. Citizens are strongly urged to exercise extreme caution. Caution is also advised to American citizens traveling abroad. As soon as we have more information it will be brought to you. Please stay tuned to your local news affiliate for further details.”

  I looked at Rick. “Dude, not good . . . not good! What the fuck?”

  “I don't know, it doesn't make any sense, I think we just better get to town and get our shit done. It’s going to be busy as hell and I don't want to get caught in the middle of all those people freaking out.” Rick replied.

  We had just entered the city limits when we got another report on the radio, the music abruptly interrupted by a local news anchor.

  “Ladies and gentlemen we are now going live to the Center for Disease Control.” A few seconds later I could hear the sound of heels and assorted clatter as spokeswoman made her way to the podium and began to speak. “At approximately 8:49am the day before yesterday, a meteor entered our atmosphere, impacting on the island of Santorini located in the Aegean Sea, the earlier reports of splash down in the South Pacific were inaccurate. The meteor was composed of a material that is currently unfamiliar to science at this time. Current data indicates that the meteor was highly radioactive and exhibi...exhibited...un....unusual.... properties.” She began to stutter.

  Rick and I looked at each other in confusion, but knew this was going to be bad but we never ever expected to hear what we heard in the next several minutes. It was something out of nightmares.

  “The radioactive elements of this meteor have displayed several unique properties. Currently it appears that the..um. that...the...umm....one...of....the..the...primary properties of the material has the ...umm, unique property”. She stammered yet again and paused as she caught herself repeating the same phrases. There was yet more commotion in the background followed by a brief moment of silence, and then she continued again. “The most alarming and concerning effect of this radioactive material....” She took another deep breath, paused and started again. “Preliminary data as well as eye witness reports indicate that the radioactive properties suggest many unique attribut
es”, she continued to get stuck on this one particular phrase as if she couldn't bring herself to say what was coming next.

  She kept hanging on this one single line of dialogue. By the quiver in her voice it was easy to discern that she was shaken, stressed and exhausted. It was unusual for a government official to show that level of panic, especially during a press briefing, generally

  they are reserved and resolute; not this time.

  “One of the unique attributes of this radioactive substance at the present time, appears to include the propensity of, to...re...e-energize narcotized tissue.” There was a long pause yet again.

  You could hear flashbulbs and chatter in the background as the reporters began to process what she had just eluded too. Rick and I had already pulled off to the side of the road, I don't even remember exactly when, only that one moment we were driving along as usual and then the next we were sitting on the side of the road straining to hear every word.

  A moment later we heard a reporter ask what we were already wondering, “Excuse me Ms. Richardson, what exactly are you saying?”

  “By all accounts it appears that the radioactive material can reanimate dead tissue; and from everything we can currently determine that the phenomenon IS spreading,” she reiterated.

  We couldn't see what was happening in the room, all we knew is that for what seemed like several minutes the radio was virtually silent.

  Ms. Richardson spoke again. “The cause for the widespread condition stems from the fact that the meteor was composed of a soft material unlike anything we have seen in asteroids before. As it hit the atmosphere it began to break up almost immediately distributing

  radioactive debris in Earth's higher atmosphere. As the material descended it dispersed and was further spread by wind and natural weather patterns. The material as far as we can determine poses no immediate threat to living organisms, but causes artificial metabolism in dead and decaying organic matter. We have yet to determine what other affects this radiation has on this material or otherwise, but we can confirm that the phenomenon to be spreading as the radioactive components disperse into the lower atmosphere. For this reason the Center for Disease Control is issuing the highest possible alert.”

  I remember looking at Rick sitting across from me in the truck. We were both hunched over listening to the radio, completely unaware of the other. His eyes as wide as half dollars; all the color drained from his face. It was a look of astonishment; not terror or dread, but the perfect state of shock which left him unable to speak, move or think; for that matter I wasn't any better off.

  All we could really do is continue listening. “The Center for Disease Control is encouraging individuals to stay where they are and avoid any sort of travel at this time. Should anyone en....en....” once again she stuttered. “Should anyone encounter re...” she coughed and cleared her throat. “Should anyone encounter reanimated matter avoid it at all costs. Do not contact or attempt to make contact. Re-energized material may carry disease and infection which may be harmful. Remain where you are, secure your location and please do not travel unless absolutely necessary. The National Guard and sources within the military have been mobilized to assist. We will have more information as it becomes available.” With that the local news channel picked up and began to reiterate what had already been said.

  After a moment I reached over and turned the radio down, Rick and I looked at each other again in dismay. We sat there for what seemed like hours with our eyes wide, palms sweating and hearts racing. After a while we somehow found the capacity to speak.

  “What, what is she saying man, what the fuck is she saying?” Rick began to panic “WHAT THE FUCK IS SHE TALKING ABOUT? Metabolized, necrotic tissue? GODDAMMIT IS SHE TALKING ABOUT DEAD PEOPLE?”

  He was incoherent; making little sense, but I knew him and knew what was going through his head.

  “OKAY, OKAY, DAMNIT...STOP! STOP GODDAMMIT, JUST GET AHOLD OF YOURSELF”I screamed at him, “JUST STOP IT, WE CAN'T FUCKING DO THIS.”

  Taking a deep breath I tried to lower the tone, “Listen, bring it down, take a breath and just listen to me, okay” Rick did as I asked, not that he seemed much calmer, but he did stop ranting long enough for me to get in a few words and in a slow, almost whispering tone I tried to talk him down, “Listen, we don't know all the details, okay? We can't jump to conclusions; we don't know ANYTHING yet...”“yeah, but...” He cut in, but I cut him off. “NO, listen, we don't know anything yet, not really, we just have to chill till we find out more, we can't go jumping to conclusions, just chill out, we will figure out what’s going on, just take a big deep breath; can you do that for me man?”

  “Yeah....yeah....I can do that” He replied, more calmly than before.

  Taking a deep breath and composing himself he asked, “What do we do? Should we just head home or what? What do we do?” Rick ranted.

  “Listen” I said, taking a deep breath. “We're already here, let’s get to the store get what we need and get the hell out”. Looking back years later I realize it was one of the smartest decisions we made throughout the whole ordeal.

  “OK” Is the only response Rick could muster. I told him to take another deep breath, he was hyperventilating, and as he drew in another deep breath he seemed to calm down and regain his senses.

  We got moving again, quickly making our way through the little town of Libbetsville which was just on the outskirts of Panatauk, making our way through the little intersection there virtually ignoring everything else along the route. We arrived in Panatauk only moments later.

  The scene in Panatauk was one of confusion and unrest but it had not reached the state of pure panic yet. We were lucky in two respects, in that we were basically already in town when the announcement was made, and also that it was still relatively early and most people were at work and the news had not reached everyone yet and if it had people were still trying to make sense of it.

  The grocery stores, gas stations and other local businesses were still packed even as it was. People hurriedly filtered in and out gathering groceries and supplies in expectation of all sorts of varied outages and shortages.

  If there were any words to describe what we saw it would that of controlled chaos, but as news reached the people the situation got worse by the minute; if not by the very second. People did not understand the true nature of what was happening. It seemed as if people were preparing for some kind of natural weather phenomenon, not much unlike the ice storm that hit our region several years earlier, only the level of activity was much greater. People crammed into the stores to stock pile in preparation for the impending disaster. All around us people scrambling past each other, some yelling, others crying.

  As we walked past the entrance Rick asked, “What do we get? What should we go after first?”

  “Doesn't matter, doesn't matter, you get whatever you can get your fucking hands on, at some point it's ALL going to be useful” I told him.

  We swerved up and down the aisles walking as fast as we could, just short of running. We did not want to insight panic as things were already getting close to riot levels, so we tried to keep our pace in check. In and out of the aisles we dodged avoiding the other shoppers all we could, dumping anything and everything we could into our cart. Some things were already hard to get, and the supplies of perishables like bread and milk were long since gone. Remembering our experience from the ice storm Rick and I knew that bread and milk would be of little use anyway, milk spoils and bread gets moldy quick; no, instead we grabbed those things that

  others were overlooking, things that would last. Soda, drink mixes, canned goods, cupcakes, pop tarts, in most cases it’s recommended to stay away from processed foods. In this situation processed foods had one distinct advantage...they are so refined and loaded with chemicals that they will potentially last forever if left unopened.

  As we made our rounds through the grocery side I happened to look across the store and saw the garden center which had been completely aban
doned. People can be quirky, and one of those quirks is that most individuals tend to think in the here and now, what they need now, what makes them happy now, very few think about the long term. I was in the minority in all my eccentric, hermit-like ways.

  I turned and mumbled to Rick non-nonchalantly so that no one would hear us, “We need to get over there; let’s walk in through the back isles”

  “Why, what's over there?” Rick asked questioningly.

  “Come on think man, THINK!” I said to him and I lifted a single finger to my temple, and tapped gently on the side of my head. He looked at me, still at a loss to understand my intentions, but followed my lead nonetheless.

  Finally making our way through the back of the store and cornering off into the garden center I told him what I had been eluding too.

  “Look man seeds, potting soil, fertilizer; IF, and I say IF this is what we think it might be and we have to hold-up inside for a long time we gotta be able to make our own food right? You can't grow cupcakes brother, with this shit we can grow our own food. It will be messy but at least we will have something to eat, just in case you know? Not saying it will come to that. But we gotta find out what’s going on and be prepared just in case.”