“We really can’t go any other way?” I asked Lena, staring out of the window. The darkness was starting to have a glow to it that heralded the coming dawn, but the lights on the RV were so good we didn’t need the sun. Besides, there were no cars on the interstate at all. That seemed really odd, but I knew that the sickness had been so quick most people probably wouldn’t have had time to go far anyway. “I think I can get out and walk faster than this, Lena.”
Something seemed to snap inside of Lena and she looked over at me as if she wanted to slap me. “If you don’t hush soon I’ll put you out and you can find out for yourself which one of us is going faster while you walk. I’m doing the best I can. I’m exhausted, my butt is on fire from all of this driving, and I just want to shower and go to sleep. Stop complaining.”
I looked over at my friend, not sure whether my feelings were hurt or not but I understood what she meant. This wasn’t the life we were supposed to have. She was just as terrified as I was and she was tired. I knew I had to say something, anything to make her feel better. “Why don’t you stop once we reach the top? From the look of the place I very seriously doubt there’s going to be anyone around and I’ll drive for a little while so you can get some sleep. How does that sound?”
Lena looked over at me and I know she wanted to say something sour, but stopped herself and gave a grateful smile. “I bet the sunrise will be spectacular up here. I’ll wait for that, okay? I don’t know if we’ll ever get to see it again after today. You sure you won’t kill us trying to drive this thing?”
“Nope, not at all, but you need to rest and we need to get into that cave. Just write down when I need to turn and things like that alright?” I asked, already feeling the nerves of having to drive. I’d be alright, I had been so far.
“I’ll be alright.”
“Alright then. I’m going to stop once we reach the top and we can switch then.” Lena said as she continued to keep her foot down on the gas pedal.
The engine of the RV was doing all it could to get us up the road that seemed to climb straight into the sky, but before long we could finally see the plateau at the top. The sun was just starting to peek over the horizon and we all got out of the RV to have a look. Maggie ran circles around the RV, sniffing and inspecting suspicious looking rocks before she finally came to sit at Ginny’s feet. Ginny cuddled into my side, wrapping her little arm around my bottom, all she could reach, as we watched the unfolding show in front of us.
“Wow!” Ginny said as the Sun finally crested the horizon of our little portion of Earth and spread its morning light across the valley below us. What seemed to be thousands of feet down was the flat valley of the town we’d bypassed earlier. The sun shining on the roofs, roads, and water sources below was spectacular to behold and for a moment I felt insignificant. We were only tiny specks of dust on the face of planet that was quickly losing its number one parasite.
My moment of feels passed quickly as Lena clapped her hands and declared it was her naptime. She went back to the RV, found Ginny something to eat for breakfast, made a list and map for directions, and went back to the bedroom to sleep. Ginny and I buckled in and I shifted the RV from park into drive and we were soon rolling once again. I handed Ginny the map after looking it over once more and grinned at her.
“You get to be navigator, my dear. Can you read Lena’s writing?” I asked her, not sure what level of reading the child could possibly be at. I have a whole lot of no experience with children, have I said?
“Of course I can.” She replied, reading the words to herself. Her lips moved but she didn’t make a sound. Her little finger followed the words until she got to the end and she looked up at me. “Right, there’s an exit coming up in about 15 minutes, you need to take that.”
We made good progress after that, the highway still taking a few steep turns and dips, but the land wasn’t as steep after that. Ginny became excited when we came to a long tunnel blasted through the middle of a mountain, but I stared into the dark, gaping maw of the thing and shivered. Slowing the RV to a stop I stared at it, the urge to shake my head and reverse the RV all but making me shake. I’ve seen far too many movies where people go into dark tunnels, but never came out of them.
“You can do it, Madeline. Just turn the lights on and take your time. I’ll even lock the door if it makes you feel better.” I heard the electronic locks going and smiled over at Ginny.
“You really are amazing, Ginny. Alright. Keep your eyes peeled.” I took a deep breath, shook myself all over, then locked my hands on the steering wheel as I eased off of the brake. “We’re going in.”
I kept the RV at less than 15 miles per hour. I could see with the lights on, but I was still terrified a car was going to suddenly materialize and I’d smash us all right into it.
If I’d thought Lena was ticked off before, that would really ruin her day.
We crawled through the tunnel and my heart pounded in my chest, my terror rising. I didn’t like this a bit. Then I spotted a car on the side of the road and my heart beat impossibly faster. Dark and still there was no sign of human life in the car as I drove past. I didn’t look real hard though, afraid of seeing something gruesome. And then, all of a sudden, light was flooding in and I had to pull down the visor. My heart gave a thump of joy before it finally started to calm down.
“We’re through!” Ginny called out, waving her little fists in victory.
I smiled over at her, relieved that was over with, but quickly went back to the road. We weren’t finished with our drive yet.
Another hour of driving through highway that was either hidden in a forest of trees, or through rocky vistas of blasted mountainside, and we were turning off at the exit Lena had indicated on the map.
“Should we stop at the store?” I wondered aloud as we pulled up by a gas station off of the exit.
“I think we should let Lena sleep. We can come back later to the place, we have what we need for now.” Ginny was staring out at the vista before us, rolling green hills, almost black they were such a deep green from the foliage, and a clean blue sky.
“Amazing.” She breathed as we once again started rolling.
Ginny let me know where to turn before it was time and we were soon bouncing up an unpaved, but well-kept road.
“Go for another mile, then turn at the house, to the right it says, go for another mile and we’re done.” Ginny’s excitement, evident in her voice and the way she sat up in her seat to stare out of the huge windshield, was infectious and even I was excited to see our new home.
I drove carefully, not wanting to damage the RV, and before I knew it we were stopped before a tall mountain. An obvious path went into the cave but try as I might I couldn’t figure out where the entrance was.
“Do you see it?” I asked Ginny, looking over at her with a perplexed look and a flit of a wave.
She shrugged and shook her head no. Now what?
I didn’t want to, I’d planned to pull in and let Lena sleep, but I was going to have to wake her up. Moving to the back of the RV I walked in quietly and sat down on the bed beside of Lena’s sleeping form.
She’d put on some pajama pants and a loose top but she’d left her shoes on. Like the rest of us she’d learned to be prepared. I smiled down at her sadly, realizing just how much our world had changed. The dead had come back to life, some were even almost functional which was terrifying in itself, and most of the people we’d known were dead or near dead. We could be the last people left on the planet. I hoped that wasn’t the case, but it could be the truth.
We have to take care of each other now. I stood up and instead of waking Lena I went back to the front and fetched Ginny.
“Let’s stop being wimps and go have a look, sweetie. Where’s Maggie?” I looked around and she was already behind me, as though she knew we were heading out of the RV. I gave her a curious stare and she just gave me a doggy grin and kind of woofed at me, waving a paw at me before she ran to the door.
“I t
ake it that means we’re all cool to go outside.” I said out loud and we all marched out of the door and headed for the vine covered area in front of us.
I pulled at the kudzu and found that it wasn’t hard to pull away from the ground. We moved along, searching for a handle, a door, anything that told us we were in the right place. I was just starting to think we were at the wrong mountain when I felt something metal and like a handle beneath my hand.
“Ahha!” I cried out, my eyes merrily dancing as I grinned over at Ginny and Maggie. “I believe we have found the door to Aladdin’s cave!”
Ginny helped me as I pulled at the handle; the door sticking for a bit before it finally gave way. It must have been on some kind of pulley system because it was a massive steel structure that would have allowed two RV’s stacked on top of each other into the cavern system below.
We ran back to the RV and pulled it into the cave, eager to see what was inside. We climbed out and shut the massive door, using a padlock and chain to secure it before we went to look around. I could see something like a road heading off to the right and a footpath to the left.
“Let’s walk, see how far down that “road” goes. If we can.”
I grabbed a flashlight and Ginny grabbed one too and we headed down the road, we’d been walking for five minutes when the road widened out into a large cavern, much like the one we’d left. As big as a football field the room was huge and we stared into the darkness, our eyes caught by the light reflecting off of water.
“Oh cool, there’s a pond there! Shall we unhook the car and pull the RV down here?” I asked Ginny.
Working quickly we unhooked the car, set up the RV in the new chamber, and I soon had some lunch cooking. It was dark in the cave, and a bit cold in this section, but I hadn’t felt this safe since before my parents died. Nothing could get to us in here!
“Oh my god, is that bacon?” I heard Lena ask in a sleepy voice and turned to her with a spatula in hand.
“Yeah, I found a pack and some of those fake egg things in the gas station. I guess their customers go there for that stuff a lot. French toast, bacon, and eggs will be served in five minutes, along with a pot of coffee my dear. Have a seat.” I waved at one of the bench seats the RV’s kitchen area sported and finished my preparations.
“Wait, we aren’t moving. And it’s dark outside. Are we in Pennsylvania or something?” Lena stared out of the window of the RV and then looked back at me with pity.
I felt a bit insulted for a moment but let it go. We were talking about me after all. A month ago Lena’s suggestion would have been a very real possibility.
“No, Ginny, if you would please, my dear.” I said in an imperious tone, waving my magic spatula once more.
Ginny giggled and hit a button on the RV’s control panel. Bright lights lit the exterior, illuminating the “porch” built into the side of the RV, a net tent really, but much sturdier than the external contraptions that usually came with RVs. Inside we’d set up the chairs and a table, even a love seat had been stored in the bottom of the RV! Bright lights were built into the tent and now worked to reveal the stone confines of our new home.
“We’re in the cave already? Oh wow, Madeline! You’re amazing! And look what you’ve done already!” Lena stood, squealing in excitement as she ran to hug my neck. “Oh thank you sweetie! I needed that sleep and it’s amazing out there!”
Lena was soon out the door, looking around at everything that came with the RV. Like Ginny and I she was amazed at the luxury of the vehicle, now a permanent part of our home. I couldn’t believe it myself and hoped that we didn’t have to leave the safety of our refuge too soon but knew the day would come, and soon. Pushing my dark thoughts aside I plated up the food and called Ginny and Lena back in. Maggie had discovered the bed in the back and was now stretched out, snoring as only dogs can.
We were safe, we could all rest, and we had food and shelter. For three ladies stuck in the zombie apocalypse we weren’t doing too badly. I knew hardship was coming, fear was coming, and maybe even threats to our lives, but for now, even the threat of a seizure couldn’t spoil my day.
I pushed away the feeling of “something’s not right” that always came before a seizure, and ignored the sensations that had started to plague me an hour before. Sitting down at the table I told myself I was not going to have a seizure, but had barely picked up my fork when a violent surge of my muscles, an involuntary spasm, caused me to fling the fork to the other side of the room. I guess it can’t all be perfect.
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Maggie snored on the bed, her paws clawing at the cover, her breath coming in snuffles and woofs between the snores. She knew the humans she was travelling with thought the world was safe now, but she’d scented the bad-smellies on the wind. They weren’t close, but they were out there. Maggie wasn’t sure what to do about them, but she knew she could warn the humans now, they’d caught on to her signals earlier in the day.
Maggie patrolled the area outside of the cave in her dreams, exploring the area she’d been denied running around when Madeline closed the door to the outside world. The humans were safe in the cave, she didn’t sense anything in here, but there was still danger. A buzzing in her head caused Maggie to wake up. She knew it was Madeline and she went to the woman now, pushing her own head under Madeline’s until the woman’s head fell from the table and to the soft bench below.
Madeline’s head hadn’t fallen into her food but she had knocked over a pitcher of water and had somehow managed to get a spoon under her cheek. Maggie saw that Madeline was now in a position where she couldn’t injure herself and settled at the woman’s feet. There wasn’t much more she could do as the other human’s came in and spotted their friend. Maggie watched approvingly as Ginny fetched Madeline’s medicine.
No, the humans weren’t entirely safe here, and it wasn’t solely the bad-smellies that were a danger. But Maggie knew now that the females would look after each other and with her help they might just survive the new world. Maybe.
About the Author
Sparrow Black is an American writer, lover of all things zombies, and a trooper through her own battle with a seizure disorder. Seizure disorders come in many forms and like the seizures themselves, are varied.
Feeling rather helpless as she seized her way through a zombie movie one night she was desperate to figure out how she would survive herself in the event of a global apocalypse where a friend could become a foe.
Now a more capable human being, and better prepared, Sparrow spends her days writing, discovering new uses for everyday objects, and pondering what boundary she should push next. Because that’s what boundaries are for, to be pushed away.
Not every hero wears a cape and sometimes they even have disabilities. That just means you have to be inventive, doesn’t it?
I hope you enjoyed this book, and if you could find the time I would really appreciate a review. My goal is to give those like myself a hero, hope that life does go on, and the knowledge that you don’t have to know how to operate a tank to survive in this world, just a little ingenuity, care, and hopefully a friend or two to look after you when you need it. Reviews can help spread the word about my little book and, hopefully, give others a smile and some encouragement along the way. Thank you.
-SB
For new and updates visit my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Sparrow-Black-793756190661986/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel
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Table of Contents
Seizures
by Sparrow Black
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
About the Author
Zombie Apocalypse
Seizures: A Tale of the Zombie Apocalypse Page 8