Rise

by Wood, Gareth

  Jess and I changed clothes into dark pants, black shirts, and dark coats and hats. She showed me the carbine we had taken from the farm, and showed me the quickest way to reload it. It had two clips, and we duct-taped them together facing opposite each other, so all I’d have to do if I emptied one would be flip it directly over and place it back in the weapon. I took both clips for the Glock as well. Jess took her rifle and scope, and we spent several hours cleaning them all and going over our plan. Sarah, for the record, doesn’t like the idea of us going in to rescue DJ Dave. She thinks it’s dangerous and not worth the risk. My argument was that he was alive, and that I was not under any circumstances going to abandon anyone alive to those dead monstrosities.

  Finally it was time. We had waited for the sun to go down, and waited to see if the street lights came on. They did in a few areas, but not where we were. That suited me just fine. Jess and I took our weapons, leaving the others to watch the area. Michael was asleep, and I was glad of that. Jess was risking her life for a stranger and with her little boy asleep with Darren and Sarah to watch out for him, she felt a little better about going to get DJ Dave. We had been listening to the radio broadcast quietly, and he had nothing really new to report. He made another “Dead Report” around sundown.

  We set out, keeping to the shadows and going slowly. I wished we had radios to keep in touch with my sister, so we could call them if anything went wrong. I made a mental note to keep a lookout for a Radio Shack or a Revy or something. We saw several undead on the way to the river, but the darkness and rain kept us unseen. We were able to sneak by them quite easily. We reached the river after about an hour and a half.

  We had several advantages over the walking dead. Speed, since they walked or limped along, but never quite ran. Brains, since they appeared to all be about as smart as a dumb cockroach. Weapons were also an advantage. They appeared to rely on hands and teeth only, and they didn’t appear to be getting any stronger as they decayed. Our disadvantages were numbers and endurance. There were many, many more of them than us at this point, and I remember a news report, one of the last I saw, saying that they didn’t tire. They could chase us for days, and while we had to rest, they never needed to.

  At the river we took a few moments to rest under a tree. I had brought along a backpack with three water bottles, binoculars, first aid supplies, two flares, some food, and a couple of flashlights. Jess and I ate a bit, and then kept going. We were soaked but not cold. It was still a warm night. Lightning and thunder started up to the west, and we were able to make good time upstream. Few of the dead seemed to be anywhere near the river. Perhaps some instinct kept them away from running water. We saw only three, and all of them were watching the lightning. We passed them quietly, and kept checking behind us, but they never followed.

  Four hours after setting out we stopped. We were near the train tracks opposite the radio station, and it was full dark now. A few blocks away the power was on to the street lights, and we could see into the buildings in a few places. Interior lights revealed a few of the undead just standing in some buildings, and on the street a large mob of them had formed near the front and back of one building, a three story brick structure with a fire escape ladder. The top floor lights were all on, but I couldn’t see movement inside, even with the binoculars. Jess and I were safe at our current location, as we were on the other side of a chain link fence, and no undead were within 200 yards of us here. Well, ‘safe’ might be too strong a word, but we were not in immediate danger.

  We looked around carefully, and finally spotted what we were after. From the ridge earlier we had seen a few rail cars on the tracks near the station, and in the rain they were harder to find than I had thought. We planned to get Jess up on top of one with her rifle, and I would go and create some distraction to draw the dead away from the building for a little while. I already knew what it was I’d do, so Jess climbed up onto a railcar that said Alberta Wheat Board on the side, and I passed her rifle up to her. The rain stopped around then, but the lightning and thunder kept up, and I suspected more rain was coming.

  I quietly snuck over to the fence, and walked the length of it upstream since there were fewer undead there. The grass was very overgrown along the fence, and I was looking for a place out of sight of the undead to climb over it. I finally went far enough and slung the rifle over my shoulder. I waited, listening, for a good five minutes before I climbed over. I paused at the top and looked around, but it was hard to see anything in the dark. I jumped down and crouched in the grass again, and listened for another five minutes. When nothing happened I breathed a sigh of relief and crept towards the road nearby. I had to maneuver my way very carefully around some cars and trucks until I was once again downstream of the radio station, about a block away. The crowd of undead was concentrated by that building, so it was fairly clear where I was. One straggler was a little close for comfort, and I held the Glock ready in case he caught sight of me. I managed to get past him, as he was also staring at the lightning with empty eyes. One bonus to the rain, it kept the decayed stench down to tolerable levels.

  I had taken a position a block away from the crowd of corpses, around a corner. I could see from the streetlights in the area that they were all near that building, so I carried on with the plan. I walked along the street until I found a newer model car, big and expensive. Just my luck, it had a broken window. I unlocked it and opened the driver’s side door. I reached down and popped the release for the gas tank cover, then turned the wheel and pushed. The car slowly started moving out into the street, and I pushed some more until I got it clear of the curb. I stopped and looked around again. Never can be too careful. I grabbed a flare from the backpack and closed the drivers’ door quietly, then took the inner cap off the gas tank. I got behind the car and pushed until it was heading towards the street where the undead were gathered. I let it go on its own momentum, popped the flare, and stuffed it into the gas tank. I then turned and ran, hoping to be well away before the tank exploded. I made it three steps.

  The gas tank went up with a quiet ‘poof’, and I found myself face-down on the street kissing pavement. This was so not a good idea. I got up, ignored the sudden twinge in my back, and ran for the alleyway nearby. The car was now on fire, and was sure to draw some attention. I walked as quietly as I could down the alleyway, cut around the side block into some serious shadows, and crouched behind a truck. I stuck my head around to see most of the undead wandering towards the burning car. They all had their attention on the fire, and at least 45 of them were walking towards the wreckage. The others were all looking the other way, so I crossed the street behind them and ducked into the alleyway behind the radio station. As I walked towards the back of the building I saw that the large cluster of zombies there had dispersed and were all walking towards the burning car. I waited until they were all out of sight, then went over to a garbage can and lifted it up. I carried it over to the fire escape and turned it over, then climbed up on top and grabbed the bottom rung of the ladder. With a little effort I pulled myself up a few rungs until I was able to get my feet on a rung. Then I just climbed up until I was at the fire door by the back of the building. I knocked.

  After a minute I knocked again, this time a little harder. I was beginning to think that I had the wrong building when I heard something inside. A sound of furniture being moved, and a voice that said “Hello?” I said, “Open the door” to him, and a few seconds later the door opened, and a man was standing there staring at me in amazement. He was heavy-set, maybe in his late forties, and looked very tired. His eyes were red and puffy, and he was wearing a filthy track suit. I said hello and stepped inside. I asked him if he was Dave, and he nodded, and then he was hugging me and crying and saying how happy he was that I was there. He thought he was dreaming when he heard me knocking, and then was convinced that it was a zombie that had somehow climbed the ladder. I broke away from him and shut the door behind me, sure that Jess had seen me go in. She was watching for us to leave now
, and would be our insurance.

  I introduced myself to Dave and asked if he was alright, if he could travel. Still crying in relief he told me he was fine, but that all his colleagues were dead. He told me the power was still on in parts of the city, and that the water had run until five days ago. He showed me where he slept and lived in the studio. He had no weapons, but had boarded up the stairs, using desks and conference tables. He asked where I came from, so I told him how we had heard his broadcast, and had decided to rescue him. He was eager to get going, so we spent a few minutes gathering what he’d need, like some food (he had raided a cafeteria on the first floor), extra clothes, and a knife he’d found. I had him change into his darkest clothing, and put all his things into my pack. I asked him if he knew how to use a gun, and when he nodded I handed him the Glock. We then went into the studio where he stopped the record that was playing and announced he was being rescued and that 94X FM was going off the air now. He wished good luck to any listeners, and shut it down.

  Thus it was that 24 minutes after entering the building, we went out the way I came in. I checked and the undead were all still pre-occupied with the fire, so we climbed down the fire escape and dropped to the ground. I took out my flashlight and flashed it towards where Jess was waiting, our signal to her that I was coming back. She flashed it back once, and we set off directly towards her. We ran. Stealth was not an option now, just getting to the river was our only goal. We made it halfway when I saw a muzzle flash as Jess fired a shot. Behind me a walking dead had just joined the truly dead, but that also alerted the others to our presence, and they gave chase. We were far faster than they were, so made it to the fence and started climbing just as Jess was taking a fourth shot. Dave climbed over first. He was out of shape from sitting in his booth for so long, but adrenalin got him over the top. I followed, and we got over to the train car just as Jess was dropping down. She said she had shot five of them as they started to pursue, and I quickly introduced her to Dave. He started to hug her too, but she said we had no time, and we got moving. We made it about a hundred yards when we ran into the three we had seen staring at the sky earlier. It was so dark I nearly didn’t see them in time, but I guess they were attracted to the gunshots. They suddenly loomed out at us, and I raised the carbine and shot at them. One fell right away, and the other two kept coming. I shot again, and then Dave shot too, and the other two fell. We ran past them a good hundred yards before we slowed and went into stealth mode again. We carried on like this for a long time, slowly creeping towards the garage, and hiding and resting as often as we could. Dawn came, and we found ourselves a good kilometer from Sarah and the others. Enough undead were about on the streets that we decided to hole up in a house until night again, then make it back to the garage. We went down a back alley until we found a house in decent shape, and approached it. Just as we got to the back door a zombie appeared around the corner and lurched at us. Not wanting to fire our guns, I turned the carbine around and clubbed the creature in the skull as it was reaching for me. Three blows and it went down, and I kept on clubbing it until it stopped moving.

  By then Jess had the door open and we went in. We checked the house carefully and found the front door open and a corpse rotting in the hallway, blood everywhere, and bits of tissue scattered around. No undead though, so we closed the front door, grabbed a sheet and dragged the corpse out back. We shut ourselves in just as it started to rain again, and spent the next hour searching for anything useful and barricading the various entry points. We had warned Sarah and Darren that we might have to spend the day in the city, so not to worry about us unless we didn’t return by midnight the next day.

  We spent the rest of that day trading stories with Dave, and trying to find something to carry the various treasures we had found in the house. Toiletries, mostly, but also some clothes, a few canned soups and a pocket multi-tool. We eventually got a blue pack from the upstairs bedroom, and I tossed in a few of the paperback books I found on a bookshelf. Jess was rummaging in the basement when she found a camping stove that backpackers use, and a full container of fuel. There was also a set of camping pots, and we took that as well. The prospect of hot food made us all drool. We resisted the urge while we were in the house, though, since we had no idea if the undead would be able to detect the cooking food.

  At nightfall, after a careful scan of the streets and alleys, we moved out. Dave was feeling a lot better due to some real rest, and we had taken turns sleeping during the day. Amazing what a few hours in a real bed can do for you. We left out the back, and soon we were making good time away from the house and towards the garage. We had to avoid a small group of zombies who were aimlessly wandering about, and that took some time. The rain kept coming, and all three of us were wet and chilled by the time we reached the garage. We got to the side of the garage, and I peeked inside. There was Sarah, sitting in a chair, fast asleep, and Darren was walking around holding his gun. I knocked quietly, and Sarah jumped up and ran to the door. She opened it and we all piled in. There were introductions and hugs all around, and then we had a look at the little extra loot we had secured. Darren told me that there had been no trouble at all. A few undead had walked past earlier in the day, but showed no interest in the garage. We all celebrated by heating up some instant coffee, the first we had had in a long time. Jess went to see Michael, and I went to check on her to see if she wanted some coffee, and found the two of them asleep on the cot we had found in the front office. I left them alone and went back to the quiet party. That was last night. Now we have left the city outskirts again and are driving along a utility road that goes northwest of the city. We plan to head for the coast now. We’ll find a place up ahead to stop.

  July 19: The Swarm

  Just northwest of Prince George there is, or rather was a brand new mall complex with theaters, a Revy, a large grocery store, and a few restaurants. And two thousand zombies. We saw the roof of the complex over the treetops, and in typical stupid fashion, the road led right to it. We had seen almost none of the undead since we got onto this road, just three in a field, and one staring at us from a bucket truck that we passed. We were actually wondering where all the Prince George undead had gone when we turned the corner and found out. About a hundred yards ahead the road dipped down towards the mall complex. A torn down sign showed the picture of the place as it was supposed to appear. It was far from that ideal now. I slammed on the brakes as fast as I could, and Jess, driving the Odyssey behind me, came to a stop as well. Sarah and Darren and I just stared at the sight before us. Less than a hundred and fifty yards from our vehicles was a vast swarm of the undead. Hundreds and hundreds of them, all shuffling about in front of the grocery store, those closest to us just starting to turn around and look at the foolish living meals that had just appeared. Right up to the doors and windows were parked several large vans and trucks, including two armoured trucks. They were parked end to end and sealed the glass off from the walking dead quite effectively. I heard Darren whisper, “Jesus fucking Christ,”, and then I snapped out of it. I slammed the Rav4 in reverse, and started backing up to turn around. I looked in the rear view and saw that Jess was already about a hundred feet away turning around. I looked back out front and saw that a few hundred of the dead were walking, shuffling, or in a few cases actually moving at a limping jog towards us. Behind them, several hundred more were starting to turn our way!

  With the Rav4 in reverse, I backed away while Darren and Sarah brought up guns. I hoped we wouldn’t have to fire them inside the vehicle; it would leave us all deaf. Just as I was turning around a dozen or more of the walking corpses emerged from the trees around us. We could hear them moaning and gasping through the glass, and one smashed its fist onto the glass on Darren’s side, leaving a moist brown and red smear, but not even cracking the glass. Darren yelled anyways, and was lifting the gun he had to point at the zombie when Sarah yelled at him not to fire, and I gunned it. We were all pinned to our seats as I accelerated. Ahead I could see the tail lights
of the van, a few hundred feet away already, and between us and them were at least two dozen undead. They all appeared to have come onto the road from the trees, and the side nearest the shops at that. My guess at this point was that somebody inside the shopping center was doing a Dawn of the Dead thing, and from the activity of the corpses, they must still be alive. That mattered a whole lot less to me than the fact that we’d all be dead really soon if we didn’t get far away from here very quickly. The road ahead was cluttered with the walking dead, and I tried, I really tried, but I could not avoid them all. At least four went under the tires, seven more (I was counting) bounced off the bumper, and one actually grabbed onto the hood for several seconds before my mad swerving shook her off.

  Far ahead, I saw the van pull up and wait a few seconds to see if we were coming. That was stupid, and something we’d all have to talk about if we got out of this. She should have just left us; we don’t know how many more of these things are in the woods here. It could be over ten thousand. Prince George was a pretty big city. She started going again when it was clear that we were not going to get stopped by the undead on the road. She stayed well ahead of us, and I could actually see a few of the creatures come onto the road behind the van as we drove. Darren said that a huge number of them were on the pavement behind us, looked like hundreds. I looked, and he was right. Several hundred at least. I hoped this would take the pressure off the people in the grocery store, whoever they were, for a little time at least. Maybe they could even make a break for it.