by Gallier, TW
"Or maybe they have a mental connection," I said. "She didn't see the rabbit, but she knew it was behind her because the other walkers stopped to look at it."
"Fuck me," she said.
"Don't say it, dude," I warned Ralph. He grinned at me. I shook my head. Some things never change. "It's something to remember and watch out for. I have no idea how far their mental range is."
"Hopefully not too far," Ralph said, returning his attention to the radio. "What channel was that station on?" Voices sprang from the speakers. "Ha! Found one."
"…still waiting on confirmation," the female broadcaster said. "Town officials have a limited number of gas masks. Riots broke out when Mayor Wilson announced the Emory police and town leaders would receive masks first, and the rest would be doled out to people they deemed vital."
"The suckage has gotten worse," Olivia muttered behind me. "The closest safe city is about to become a battle ground between the haves and have-nots."
"Fuck that, why do they need gas masks?" Ralph asked. "More zombie bombs coming?"
"That would be my guess," I said. "Or they know more have blown up upwind of the town."
"Will we know if we start to change?" Olivia asked. "Shoot me if I start to change."
"If we start to change, then we'll all shoot each other at the same time," I said. "No one here wants to be a zombie."
I sounded brave and determined, but I wasn't sure I could shoot either one of them. Hopefully whoever I failed to shoot had the strength to shoot him or herself. Suddenly, every smell was suspicious.
The radio had continued, though we weren't listening. Then the woman on the radio got our undivided attention.
"I repeat, the US has launched a massive retaliatory strike against Iran and Pakistan after they launched more missiles at us," she said. We heard unintelligible whispering in the background. So frustrating. "Okay, we just received word that the Pentagon estimates this next round of missiles will hit in three minutes. Take cover. I repeat, take cover. Go to a basement or closet. If you have a tornado or bomb shelter, that is even better. Keep your AC running, since that will help keep gases out of your home."
"Really?" Ralph said. "The AC pulls air from outside, doesn't it?"
"Not in a house," I said. I looked at the dash, at the vents. "But I think the car AC does pull outside air."
"No, there's a setting for recycling the air," he said. Ralph studied the AC/Heater, and then slid something over. "There. Maybe that'll help."
"You guys remember the window was busted out back here, right?" Olivia asked.
Ralph and I just glanced at each other in frustration. If it wasn't one thing…
We were cruising down the highway at 70 miles an hour. I hit the gas. Not sure why, but I wanted to get away. Get out of there. I knew there was no escaping intercontinental ballistic missiles, but two days ago I would've dismissed the idea of real zombies wandering the land.
Within a minute I was ripping down the road at 90 miles an hour. I pushed it to a 100, then 110. The minutes ticked by, one, two, three. Five minutes passed, and then it hit.
"Shit!" I cried, slamming on the brake.
There was a bright flash of light. The highway lights flickered off. The car died at 110 miles per hour. The headlights, dashboard lights, and the radio died. I lost power steering and power brakes. It was all I could do to keep it on the road as we slowed rapidly.
"What the hell?" I cried, and finally came to a stop on the shoulder of the road. "What happened?"
"Oh man," Ralph said, tapping at the screen of his smartphone. It was black. "Guys, see if your phones are working."
I pulled mine out. It wouldn't come up. I held the button down, turning it off. There was nothing to show it turning off. So I pushed the button again to power it up. Nothing.
"Mine is dead," Olivia said.
"Mine, too," I added. I looked at Ralph. He looked grim. "EMP?"
"The whole country?" Olivia asked. "We are really fucked now."
"Guys, I think we just entered a new Dark Ages," Ralph said.
I looked out the window. I swear, the world had never looked so dark before.
Chapter 7
"Why would they nuke us way out here in the middle of nowhere?" Olivia asked.
"Maybe they spread their missiles out evenly to destroy our power grid with EMP," Ralph said. "A thousand air bursts high in the atmosphere might not kill anyone right off, but it could plunge us into a pre-industrial Dark Ages."
Only geeks and nerds would be arguing the tactics and strategies of their own impending doom. Even knowing the uselessness of it all, I still couldn't help thinking about it. Maybe it came from playing and programming video games day in and day out. Post-apocalypse was our company's bread and butter.
I got out of the car and looked around. There was zero light in any direction. The sky was clear, but moonless. Seriously, it was as dark outside as I've ever seen it. I think a lot of it was how tall and close the forest was on all sides. I could only see a thin strip of sky.
"I would think we could see a nuke strike close enough to hit us with an EMP blast," I said, looking up and around. "Did either of you notice which direction that flash of light came from?"
I looked at my phone, and then off to the south. I couldn't call home now. Did they know what just happened? How were my parents reacting? Mom had to really be freaking out now, with all of her children spread across the country. Would we ever know if my brother and sister survived?
"If it was close enough to see it, I think we'd be dead," Ralph replied.
Not true, but I wasn't going to argue with him. I suspected the high trees were blocking our view of the air burst. His theory of scores of high-altitude air bursts sounded most likely to me. Until we reached Emory and learned differently, there was no reason to argue it ad nauseam.
Ralph and Olivia got out of the car. I had to open the door for Olivia since the back doors couldn't be opened from inside.
"We have to get home," Olivia said.
I'd never seen her eyes so big. Even Ralph looked stunned as he looked around. None of us were feeling like gung ho zombie hunters now.
"It's amazing how losing the Internet affects a bunch of geeks," I said, trying to lighten the mood.
"Who are you calling a geek?" Olivia said, acting all offended. "You two are geeks, but I'm a nerd. That means I'm much a more well-rounded person."
No one knew why she thought nerds were more well-rounded than geeks. Personally, I thought the exact opposite was true. Most geeks were normal people with an obsession. While nerds were just weird people who knew too much about too many things.
"Why are we geeks and you a nerd?" Ralph asked. I sighed. It was an old argument between them. Were we back to arguing every point to death? "You always claimed to be a nerd, but you are a programmer just like us, plus you like and do the same things as us. Why aren't you a geek?"
"Because you're a geek and I don't want to be like you," she snapped. "Good enough?"
I smiled. Hearing their usual arguments gave me a feeling of contentment. Some things never changed, and I didn't want them to either. Maybe arguing was the wrong word for it. We bantered. Endlessly.
Popping the trunk open, we pulled our packs out. None of us wanted to carry those heavy things, but what choice did we have? At least we'd have food and ammo. I pulled off the flashlight that was Velcro-strapped to the side of my pack.
"Flashlight works," I said. I shined it in Ralph's face, and then Olivia's. They were not amused. "And it's LED, too."
"Circuit's too small to be destroyed by the EMP," Olivia said.
"Everyone knows that," Ralph added.
"Duh," they said in unison.
That was debatable. A lot of different factors came into play. I refrained from bringing any of them up. That would start another argument.
They were still joking, so that was a good sign, but it looked forced. Both of them had haunted looks that bothered me almost as much as the whole therm
o-nuclear exchange and destruction of Western Civilization.
"Funny how the zombie apocalypse turned two geniuses into five-year-olds," I said. "Grab your shit and let's get out of here."
"Yeah, I love you, too," Olivia said.
"I love you more," I said.
I knew her comment was a snide reply to mine, but my response stunned her more than I intended. She actually gawked at me a moment.
After shouldering my pack, I picked up the AR15 and continued south on the highway. Olivia fell in line behind me, with Ralph bringing up the rear.
"Only a geek would wear khakis to the end of the world," Olivia muttered behind me.
"I am Geekman, zombie slayer," I said.
That got a laugh from Ralph.
"Should we be walking down the middle of the road?" Olivia asked. "Won't we be easier to spot?"
I was wondering the same thing.
"Actually, we're walking on the shoulder," I said.
She had a valid point. The pavement was rather light. I could see it stretching off into the blackness. Then again, would walking in the grass hide us in the least? The bare ground was rough and bumpy, and made me trip every other step. The pavement was nice and smooth, which would allow us to walk further faster and easier.
"I'm open to suggestions," I continued. "Do we want the speed and ease of the road, or move slower and safer at the tree line?"
They were silent. That was a surprise. Those two were never shy about sharing their thoughts. So I kept walking. Once again we fell into our habit of me watching ahead, Olivia watching the left, and Ralph keeping lookout to the right and rear.
"I'm not sure it's wise to stop at Emory," Olivia said.
"Why not?" Ralph asked. "They can fill in the blanks on what the hell is going on. Like what started this war."
I thought we'd settled it back in the city. Now Ralph wanted to go to Emory? I was with Olivia on that one.
"I don't care why it started, who started it, or anything," she said. "I just want to go home. And I'm afraid they might not let us leave once we're inside the city."
That was my main concern. The city government might seize our weapons and ammo, too. They didn't know us. I doubted they would ever care what we wanted and thought. The survivors in Emory would put their survival above all other concerns.
"Emory's on the way home," Ralph said. "We have time to decide."
"I've already decided," Olivia muttered.
We trudged along for hours. I gave up wearing a wristwatch when I got a smartphone. Now I didn't have a working smartphone. Thank you, EMP. Without other concerns, I found myself constantly wondering what time it was. I'd never realized how time-obsessed I was.
"When are we going to stop for the night?" Ralph asked when we crossed a bridge over the river.
I remembered that bridge from my frequent trips home. I always stopped at the big truck stop outside of Emory. The town wasn't on the highway, but across the river from it. As I recalled, there were two long bridges, one across each fork on either side of Emory. The town was still a good dozen miles away.
"Okay. I suppose we should stop and rest before we reach Emory," I said. "From the earlier radio broadcasts, I got the impressions zombies were attacking them. There could be a lot of walkers up ahead."
"Oh joy," Olivia said.
"The highway crosses over a creek up ahead," I said. "We can get off the road there and make camp. That way we have water and can test our water filtration kits."
"A bath would be nice, too," Olivia replied. "I've never felt so dirty in my life."
I tried to remember if there was soap in our packs. Did zombie survivalist even care about bathing? Then I realized none of us brought a change of clothes. We'd have to wear wet clothes if we washed the blood and sweat out. Was that better or worse than wearing nasty clothes? Since I was super hot and sweaty after our long hike, I decided clean, wet clothes were best. Wet clothes would help keep us cool.
I turned right off the road when we reached the bridge over the creek. I figured under the bridge would be the perfect place to camp. The ground was clear of brush and grass, and relatively flat.
"Perfect," I said. "Who wants to stand first watch for – "
"Zombies," Olivia whispered urgently.
"I was going to say two hours," I replied.
"No!" she cried, pointing down the creek. "Zombies!"
"Shit, shit, shit," Ralph screamed. "I hate zombies!"
All three of us opened fire. I watched the zombies jump and spin, heads erupting with blood and brains. They were all dead by the time my magazine was empty. My ears were ringing, and a little numb. The two shotguns were that loud.
I was pretty sure that every zombie within ten miles was now alerted to our presence. The only question was would they all head this way? Or just some of them? How far away was safe with zombies?
"We better get out of here," I said.
"More coming," Ralph said.
It was hard to count them in the dark, but we were outnumbered for sure. We opened up on them. There were a lot more this time, so they were getting closer and closer. We started backing away, about to run back up to the bridge and cross over.
"More walkers behind us," Ralph said. He turned and Ka-boom! Ka-boom! "Die, zombies!"
Olivia used up all of the shotgun shells in her pockets, so pulled both pistols. I was almost through all of the magazines in my tactical vest. I wasn't sure how Ralph was on ammo. We desperately needed to get more ammo out of our packs, but the zombies were too close.
"Machete time!" I cried, pulling it free. Olivia's pistols emptied, so she holstered them and pulled her machete, too. Together, we advanced on the remaining zombies. "We have to cross the creek."
"Duh," Ralph said. Ka-boom! Ka-boom! "Now would be a good time!"
Olivia and I spread apart. We needed enough room to swing our machetes without hitting each other. My first swing took off an arm above the elbow. The female zombie pointed her stub at me, hosing me with hot blood. So freaky sick. For a second I thought I'd puke. The walkers didn't give me time to be sick.
"Ack!" I gasped. I swung at her neck, and the zombie's head came off. When her body started to fall towards me, spouting blood from the severed neck, I screamed and kicked it straight back. I spun with my momentum, bringing the machete around for another decapitating blow. Then I lifted the blade straight up and brought it down beside the neck of the next zombie. My machete stuck in his chest.
"Dammit," I growled. "That was stupid."
I pulled both pistols and started shooting. The first shot made a zombie's head explode. What kind of bullets were in those guns? Still, that wave of walkers was down. The next wave was stumbling out of the woods.
I holstered my pistols and pulled my machete free.
"We are so fucked," Olivia gasped out, huffing and puffing.
Zombies were coming out of the woods from both directions. I was so damned tired. We wouldn't last much longer. A quick glance didn't find any on the other side of the creek. Still, these zombies could follow us across. I couldn't tell how deep the water was, but did we have a choice?
"Into the water!" I shouted. "According to the radio these motherfuckers can't swim!"
"Aaaggh!" Ralph cried.
I whirled around to see him tumbling down into the water. For a second I thought a zombie had killed him, but he hit with a splash and came up cursing.
"Go, Olivia! I'll hold them back!"
"I won't leave you behind!"
"I'll be right behind you," I cried. "GO! GO!"
I charged forward as she took off for the creek. I expected the zombies to stop, but they never hesitated. Of course they weren't afraid of dying. I felt like a fool, but knew I gave my friends time to cross over.
"Kyle!" Olivia screamed. "Behind you!"
I ducked, spun around, and swung the machete. That sharp blade bit deep into the thigh of a walker. And stuck in the bone. So I let go and promptly fell on my back. Three zombies loomed
over me, rage in their wild eyes.
Ka-boom! Ka-boom!
Blood exploded out of two of them, pushing one wounded into the third zombie. It was just enough to let me roll to all fours, wretch my machete free, and disembowel him. Scrambling away, I slipped and ended up tumbling down the creek bank into the water. For a second I thought the heavy pack would drown me, but I finally got my feet down and rose up.
"Hurry!" Olivia cried.
I waded across, the water coming up to mid-chest. That meant the zombies could follow, since no swimming was needed. My friends helped me up the other bank. Once we got to the top, we all sat and looked back across the creek.
"They're not crossing," Ralph said. "Maybe they are afraid of water?"
"I don't think they're afraid of anything," I replied, huffing and puffing. I swear, every muscle and bone ached. "I think it's more likely they are too stupid to know it's shallow enough to wade across."
"They just saw us wade across," Olivia said.
"That's why I said they were too stupid," I answered. Standing up, I looked around. "We better go. I want to be long gone before they figure out they can cross over the bridge and come after us."
"Oh shit," Olivia said, struggling to her feet. She lifted one hand, middle finger extended, and shouted, "Stupid zombie losers!"
"Aaaiiieeee!" a woman screamed behind us.
We whirled around to see two men and two women running like crazy. They were unarmed and unencumbered with any packs or gear. I heard rustles and footsteps behind them. A second later, zombies appeared in hot pursuit.
Chapter 8
"Run!" I cried.
I cursed myself for a fool. We should've immediately dug into our packs and reloaded all of our magazines and shotguns. I still had a few full magazines for my pistols, but I wanted to save them for a last resort. Ralph and Olivia must've reloaded, since both of them opened up on the new zombies.
Ka-boom! Ka-boom!
After that it was balls to the walls running. Olivia led the way. She had way more energy left in her than I had inside me. Ralph was starting to slow as well.
"Oh god! Oh god!" I heard a woman cry ahead of us.