All Things Zombie: Chronology of the Apocalypse

by Various Authors

  The pool, usually crystal clear, looked pink and murky and standing at the bottom was a gray looking man with a large chunk missing from the right side of his neck.

  She had seen this man stumble into her yard less than an hour ago and grab at her slumbering cat, attempting in an awkward gait to chase him around the yard. Assuming he was drunk or possibly even mentally ill, Jen had immediately called 911. The dispatcher sounded rushed and impatient and multiple phones were heard ringing in the background as she gave her address. Before she had finished the call, Jen was startled to see the man simply walk into her pool like he had expected to walk on water.

  "Oh Hell!.....I gotta go lady....this man just fell into my pool!" she said while dropping the phone and running into her yard.

  The man in her pool splashed around, but his gaze was transfixed on Jen in a way that sent chills down her spine. When she realized the man couldn’t swim, she grabbed one of the floating rafts and tossed it into the water. Much to her amazement, the man did not grab it; he actually continued to reach for Jen and managed to grab the side of the pool.

  The pool didn’t really have a shallow end as she saw no need with no children running about, so the pool was 5 feet deep at one end and 8 feet at the other. Looking down at this man, the thought of offering him a hand never once crossed her mind. He looked terrifying. Jen looked into his strangely translucent eyes, and the large jagged wound on his neck and her mouth opened in disbelief. How the hell are you even alive? She thought to herself.

  Without realizing she was moving, Jen slowly moved backwards and the man in the pool followed her, walking deeper into the water making a sick, watery gagging sound. The man clawed at the concrete on the side of the pool, leaving tracks of blood and tissue in streaks. Oddly showing no sign of pain, the man continued to mutilate his own hands by scraping and grabbing at the concrete. Suddenly Jen watched as the he lost grip on the side of the pool and sunk to the bottom leaving a greasy film on top of the water.

  What are you? Jen thought as she watched the man who should have drowned continue to reach for her in the murky water. In a robotic trance like movement, Jen lifted her glass to her mouth and drank it in one swallow suddenly wishing she had bought something stronger.

  At 32, Jen had done pretty well for herself, much to the chagrin of her abusive foster parents who seemed to thrive in telling her she would never amount to anything in life. She owned a holistic health shop, and had finally hired an assistant manager. Sabrina was working out better than expected and managed the little shop with ease, allowing Jen to take some much needed time off. Although her budget allowed a real spa weekend, Jen felt the need to be away from people. She had bought some beauty items from her shop as well as two bottles of wine and turned off her cell phone and TV. She had every intention of completely pampering herself in her own little private bubble. On nice days, she sometimes liked to do yoga outside. Recently, she had noticed the neighbor’s young teenage son ogling her, so she begrudgingly took her yoga back indoors. Today there would be no yoga.

  Jen, suddenly aware of her surroundings, heard sirens and gunshots in the distance and smelled smoke. Dropping her wine glass onto the grass, she turned on her heels and sprinted into the house closely followed by Luna, who scrambled into the house and promptly vanished from sight. The cat was spooked and right about now, Jen knew something simply wasn’t right.

  Jen wasn’t really sure what to expect to hear on the TV when she turned it on, but nothing could have prepared her for the absolute horror and carnage she was seeing on the screen. She had purposely avoided the media on her mini vacation and after watching only five minutes of the emergency broadcast, she knew life as she knew it would never be the same.

  "Sabrina.....hello?” Jen pleaded into the phone.

  "Jen......" Sabrina whispered into the phone.

  "Something bad is going on Jen....some crazy people came into the shop and just started attacking people......like biting and shit. I'm in the stockroom with a couple customers....but they are banging and scratching on the door trying to get in. One of the customers got hurt pretty bad before we got in here....they...they...bit a chunk out of her arm Jen....I called 911 like an hour ago.....and they never came.... THEY NEVER FUCKING CAME!!!!…..what do I do ...What the hell do I do?" Sabrina cried into the phone, her panic and fear causing her voice to crack and fade.

  “I am gonna try and call the police and ambulance from here Sabrina. I called about half an hour ago because……” Jen stopped in mid-sentence realizing sharing the information about the strange man in her pool would not help Sabrina’s situation at all. “Well, I will call from here…..just prop something up against the door for now until someone gets there to help.”

  Jen paced back and forth in her kitchen running her fingers through her hair and replaying the last hour in her head over and over. Her phone call to the police had been unsuccessful, nobody answering the phone. She initially had thought of driving to the shop herself, but then thought better of it. Not only would she be useless in helping the situation, all hell seemed to have broken out all over the place. One thing was for sure though, regardless of any action she decided on, it was not going to be in a fluffy robe and bunny slippers. Jen quickly found a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, grabbed a pair of sneakers and threw her still damp hair up into a messy bun on top of her head. Grabbing her keys off the kitchen counter, she turned to walk to the front door when she heard a loud screech followed by the unmistakable sound of a car crash. Almost simultaneously her house plunged into complete silence, the T.V cut off and the soft humming of the refrigerator ceased. Jen opened her front door and saw a mangled red car that had careened into an electric pole, knocking it over and into the house behind it. “Jesus!” Was all she could mutter as she took off at full sprint toward the vehicle.

  Jen approached the side of the car and saw the driver had smashed through the windshield all the way to her waist, her body contorted in such a manner Jen knew she was already gone. A panicked scrambling in the backseat caught her attention. Jen reached down for the handle when a loud voice boomed from behind her.

  “Miss…..I would NOT do that if I were you!” he said.

  “But….there is someone in the back seat…..I might be able to help.” she stated while lifting up on the handle of the car and yanking it open.

  Once the door clicked open, a force bashed into it from the inside causing Jen to stumble backwards onto her behind. Spilling out of the backseat was what appeared to be a teenage girl covered in dirt and gore. On her stomach was a blood stained folded towel taped in place with white medical tape. Either the impact of the crash or the fall from the car had dislodged half the tape and long strands of intestines splashed onto the road as the girl attempted to steady herself and stand. The girl’s mouth opened and closed in a snapping motion and Jen noticed clumps of bloody brown hair in the girl’s mouth and hands that matched the hair color of the bloody and contorted woman’s hair laying half-way onto the hood of the car.

  Frozen in place as a result of fear and shock combined, Jen watched the strange girl with opaque eyes stagger in her direction stepping on her own intestines as she trudged forward. Jen also sat completely still, unable to move as the blood encrusted baby pink painted nails reached for her.

  “Get yer ass up and run sunshine.” said the deep gravelly voice as Jen felt arms pull her from behind then practically drag her down the street.

  In a daze, Jen allowed herself to be led by this man she didn’t know. “Right here….all ya gotta do is step up these steps….they are pretty steep so watch your step…..but ya gotta hurry it up sunshine.” The man said.

  Jen stepped through the small door and watched as the man rushed up the steps, kicked someone backwards and shut and locked the door.

  “Well they aint getting in here Miss…..My name is Jim by the way, pleased to meet ya…..Ugh wish the circumstances were better….but it is what it is I guess”. Jim said as he handed Jennie bottled water. “I wou
ld offer you something stronger to ah….calm your nerves a bit, but I don’t drink.”

  Jen looked up and into Jim’s face. Something about the way he looked at her made her instantly comfortable. He gave her a reassuring smile that reached his eyes and made tiny little crinkles around them. She noticed the strange way Jim was staring at her and then realized she still had some of the cucumber mask plastered on her face. Jen pulled down her sleeve and rubbed at her face feverishly attempting to remove the remnants of green mask.

  “What in the hell is going on Jim?” Jen said once she was calm enough to form a sentence.

  “Well the world has gone to shit young lady, putting it mildly…dunno if it was some form of chemical terrorist shit or virus, ya know what I think?” He asked not expecting an answer “God has finally had enough of mankind’s bullshit.” Jim said as he peeked out the tiny window at the top of the door. “Still a few of them bastards out there milling about. Seems like they hear something, get distracted then wander off, right now though, they know we are in here and until something else catches their attention, we are all they care about.” He stated.

  The steady sound of banging and scraping interrupted Jen's thoughts. “What is this place? Can they get in here?” she said feeling a brand new wave of panic rush over her.

  “No mam, not a chance. The side door is 5 feet off the ground, and I aint seen a one of em climb anything.” Jim said “This here's my little home away from; well it’s where I sleep and hang out when I need a break from driving this truck.”

  Jen looked around at the cozy little space realizing it was one of those little sleeping compartments that truckers used when they needed a break after long hours of driving. There was a little table that collapsed and was covered in cushions to form a small couch and a ladder that led up to a bed that sat directly above the driving compartment of the truck. Hanging on the wall was a tiny flat screen T.V and several small photos of Jim with a woman about his age and a young woman that looked to be in her 20’s.

  Jim explained that he was about to head over the Bay Bridge but had taken an exit after being stuck in traffic. He had seen fire trucks and ambulances and had assumed there had been an accident on the bridge and decided to find a suitable location to park and catch a quick nap. Jim had turned on his little TV and after five minutes, any thought of sleeping was long gone.

  Night was starting to claim the day and strange shadows formed on the inside of Jim's little sanctuary. Jen and Jim had fallen into a comfortable silence pondering whether they would even be alive when the sun rose the next day.

  "MY CAT!" Jen sat up and looked at Jim in horror. "I left my cat. I have to go get him Jim, I just can't leave him." she cried.

  "Tomorrow." he said simply

  "Look Jim!" she said peering out the small rectangle window above the door. "They’re gone!" "If I just make a run for it, I can grab Luna and be back in five minutes."

  Jim looked at Jen and smiled warily. She reminded him so much of his own daughter it tore at his heart.

  Twilight was beginning to darken into evening. Jen knew if she didn’t go now, she would have to wait until the next day. Whatever these things were she had no desire to take them on in the dark. The two of them looked across the road to Jen's house. She took several deep breaths, willing herself to feel bravery she absolutely did not. Jim opened the door and looked at Jen.

  "Five minutes." Jim said. "I will stay here five minutes, and then I come get you and drag your ass out with or without this cat.....got it?"

  Jen couldn’t even bring herself to be angry at Jim's tone. He sounded more like the father she wished she had as a child, worrying about her, caring.

  She raced across the black asphalt and barreled into her home and shut the door behind her, figuring she would grab a few essentials then track down the cat. She grabbed her gym bag and threw water, granola bars and a quick change of clothes from the dryer. Jen picked up a bag of dry cat food, shaking it and called out for her cat.

  "Luna!!, come on we gotta go" she half whispered into the darkness.

  "I have him." Came a voice out of the shadows.

  Jen felt her body tense but before she could enter full panic mode, Mikey, her next door neighbor’s son stepped into the kitchen.

  "What are you doing here Mikey...where is your Mom?" Jen said as she squinted at him in the progressively darker kitchen.

  "Mom's sick, Miss Jenn." Mikey said looking downward while shuffling his feet. "We saw Mrs. Davenport outside, but it was weird because she didn’t have her walker and she was trying to walk and stuff and kept falling, so Mom went outside to help her." Mrs. Davenport always used a walker and her health had deteriorated so much in the past year that she had home visits from the state nurse twice a week.

  "What happened when she tried to help her Mikey?" Jen asked even though she already thought she knew the answer.

  "Mrs. Davenport bit Mom Miss Jenn.....and bit her hard too." Mikey said.

  Mikey turned his head away and wiped at his eyes not wanting to appear childish then said flatly "Mom isn’t the same Miss Jenn....she tried to hurt me."

  "Okay honey…we can talk more about this, but right now, we gotta go. When I tell you to run...you run. There is a safe place for us to go for now but we have to be quick." Jen said immediately feeling guilty for not appearing more sympathetic.

  Jim saw Jen's front door open and Jen came flying out of the house with her cat flopping under her arm. Jim's mouth fell open and he looked around for a weapon of some sort when he realized that Jen was being chased by one of those things. Crowbar in hand, Jim jumped from the small cabin and raced toward Jen with it raised above his head.

  "NO! WAIT!!!!" Jen said only seconds before Mikey would have received a skull cracking blow to the head. Jim skidded to halt and eyed the boy and nodded, motioning them back into the trucks sleeping compartment.

  At this point Mikey was openly crying and wringing his hands and stepping from foot to foot, terror shining in his wet eyes.

  The noise had brought back masses of people that were no longer people.....stumbling over one another moaning in unison in an eerie ballad of horror.

  "Tonight we stay here and we gotta be quiet....ALL of us." Jim said while looking sympathetically at Mikey who was now sobbing quietly tucked under Jen's arm.

  Jen leaned over and opened her backpack and pulled out a half empty bottle of wine she had grabbed while running toward her own front door. She offered it to Jim, who just shook his head, then she downed every last drop. She asked about Jim's family, then immediately regretted it as she watched the man's face twist with the unrelenting pain of grief. Jim looked at Jen, then toward her empty wine bottle and said in a flat tone "My wife and daughter were killed by a drunk driver 2 years ago tomorrow."

  Jen pushed the empty wine bottle back into her backpack and looked up at Jim "I am so sorry." she said. Jim merely gave a nod and a slight grunt then leaned his head up against the wall of the cabin and closed his eyes.

  Morning came and birds chirped and sung like today was like any other day...only it wasn’t. The bird's joyful song seemed as though it was mocking them. Jim stood and peeked out the small window. A few bodies remained, but most had wandered off distracted by other sounds of the living.

  "Ok I have an idea." Jen said with optimism.

  Jim and Mikey snacked on a granola bar and looked at her expectantly.

  "Well this is Annapolis, and we are right by the water right?" She asked. When neither of them responded, she continued, "One thing I do know for sure is they can't swim!"

  All three of them sat and pondered Jen's thought. "The only thing is, even if we are able to find a boat, food is an issue. We will all surely starve before the government gets control of this shit." She said in defeat.

  Jim broke into hysterical laughter and had tears rolling down his face. Jen and Mikey looked on in concern. Had he lost his damn mind? Jen thought. Jim pulled a pillow over his face to muffle the noise he didn’t seem to be abl
e to control.

  When Jim had a handle on himself, he looked at both of them and smiled a knowing smile.

  "I just left the warehouse where I picked up my load for transport....This truck is packed to the rim with dry and canned goods......oh and bottled water" he said with a grin.

  Getting to the dock wasn’t much of a problem, a few of the biters roamed about, but no hordes like they had seen in Jen's neighborhood. She thought it was odd that Jim stopped three times on the way to the docks and scampered across manicured lawns and swiped garden hoses, then dodged and darted between the few followers he had attracted. Maneuvering the large vehicle through winding neighborhood roads proved challenging and driving over curbs bounced the three of them around in the truck several times as they neared the bay.

  Several boats remained tied to the dock and a few were seen floating in the distance. Jim managed to turn the truck around and back up on the road leading to the docks. He had completely and totally blocked the road and expertly parked the truck with only inches to spare on either side. The only way to get back onto the dock was to swim and climb up onto it, so they all did. Luna did not appreciate that part one bit and dug his sharp claws into Jen's shoulder.

  Once on the boat, Jen watched on in confusion as Jim tied the ends of the garden hoses together. He then jumped off the side of the boat onto the dock and looked at Mikey and Jen looking back at him puzzled.

  "Well come on you two!! I need your help!" Jim said as he jogged back to the back of the truck and unhinged the hook and slid the rolling door upwards to reveal enough food and drink to feed a small army for quite some time. Several trips were made and only when Mikey and Jen dripped with sweat did he say "Ok that should do for a while."