Ashton Memorial

by Robert R. Best

“I've never fought any,” said Ella, behind them.

  “That's fine, Ella,” said Park.

  “I don't think I'd be very good,” said Ella.

  “Don't worry about it,” said Park.

  “Maybe if I had a gun?”

  “No one's giving you a gun, Ella,” said Park.

  A corpse stumbled past the bodies of the two men, heading for Maylee, Park and Ella. It was a gangly old man, his withered arms working up and down like claws on a pale, dry insect.

  “I got this one,” said Maylee, stepping up and readying herself.

  Park stepped in front of her. “Oh no. I said I might need your help. Not the other way around.”

  He moved toward the old man, knife ready. A second corpse, a short woman with red hair and a gaping hole torn in her chest, came up behind the old man. Maylee could see part of her dead heart sticking through the hole.

  “Fine,” she said, moving toward the woman while Park was occupied with the old man. “I got this one.”

  Park reached the old man first. The old man noticed Park approaching and moaned, opening his mouth to reveal a swollen, gray tongue. It reached for him, like a child eager for an approaching treat.

  Park brought up his knife and shoved it deep into the old man's forehead. The old man blinked and gurgled, dark fluid spilling from his mouth. Park put his free palm on the handle of the knife and pushed upward, toward the top of the man's head. The skull cracked as the blade ground upward. The old man slumped and was still. Park wrenched the knife free and the old man fell over backward.

  At the same moment, Maylee reached the woman with a hole in her chest. She swung the bat into the woman's sternum. Bone shattered and the bat smashed into the exposed heart. The woman staggered back, hissing and grasping at Maylee. Maylee brought the bat up and slammed downward on the woman's head.

  The bat crunched down into the woman's skull. She jerked as her forehead split. A thin line of fluid seeped out, running down her face. The woman hissed, more weakly than before.

  Maylee brought the bat around and smashed the woman across the temple. The woman's head crumpled in on one side, forcing more fluid out of the split down the woman's forehead. A thick glop splattered out after the fluid. The woman stopped hissing and fell over.

  Maylee stepped back, gripping her bat and scanning the approaching corpses. She counted twelve remaining. She gauged how close they were to reaching Ella, Park and herself.

  She glanced over at Park, who had also fallen back. She could tell from his face that he had made similar calculations. “This ain't gonna work,” he said. “We're either gonna have to run or do something faster.”

  Maylee nodded, looking around for any ideas.

  Two corpses stumbled against the bodies of the two men, which by now had been completely torn open. Red and gray organs were splayed out. Rain pattered down on them, streaking red across the pavement. The little boy corpse lifted a rope of intestines to his mouth and gnawed on it.

  The two corpses who had stumbled into the men grunted and noticed the freshly torn bodies below them. They reached down, toppling to their knees and grabbing. They pulled meat and organs into their mouths and chewed.

  “I just got an idea,” said Park.

  “Me too,” said Maylee. “And it's gross.”

  “Whatcha gonna do?” said Park. He stuck the knife back in his pocket and ran to the bodies of the two men. The now four corpses on the ground ignored him, engrossed in eating.

  He knelt down and grabbed an organ that had fallen several inches from the bodies. It was a gray-red hunk of meat Maylee couldn't identify. He stood, frowning.

  “Goddammit,” he said. “Fuck my grandpa with a spoon, this is gross.” He hauled back and flung the organ into the approaching group of corpses. It slapped against the chest of a middle-aged woman missing an arm and with two scab-crusted gouges across her face. The organ distracted both her and another corpse. They both fell on the organ, biting and pulling on it.

  “Mega gross,” said Ella. “Plus, I can't believe it worked.”

  “Good thing these things are stupid,” said Park.

  Maylee rushed over and started to reach for an organ.

  “Whoa!” said Park, holding her back with his left hand while he tried to wipe his right clean. “Don't get too close. They're not that stupid.”

  A young man with a dark hole in his throat drew close and came at Park. Park pulled his knife but only got it halfway up before the man grabbed him.

  “Look out!” yelled Maylee. She and Ella moved to help.

  “I got this!” yelled Park, struggling with the young man. “Just distract more of those fuckers!”

  Maylee frowned. The approaching corpses were too close to reach another organ. There were ten left undistracted, counting the one fighting Park. Not yet enough to get past.

  Ella ran up. “What can I do?”

  “Shit,” said Maylee. “Here, hold my arm.”

  Ella did and Maylee leaned out, holding her bat outward with her free hand.

  “The fuck you doing?” yelled Park, still struggling with the young man.

  Maylee ignored him and stuck the end of the bat into the pile of meat, blood and organs. She leaned until she felt the bat touch pavement.

  “Yeah,” said Ella behind her. “What are you doing?”

  “Pull!” yelled Maylee. Ella pulled on her arm and Maylee leaned back up, dragging the bat along the ground toward her.

  “And dammit!” she yelled as she saw the bat had snagged a loop of intestines and not a free organ.

  “Again?” yelled Ella. Park was still struggling with the young man. He was holding him back with one hand and trying to bring up the knife to strike with the other.

  Maylee looked at the corpses. The remaining undistracted ones were drawing closer. “No time.”

  She dragged the bat along the ground, pulling the loop of intestines toward her and Ella. Either end of the loop ran back to the stomach of the thin man's body. He jerked slightly with each tug.

  “Gross gross gross gross!” yelled Ella as the intestines scraped along the concrete. Bits of intestines broke off, stuck to rough spots in the pavement.

  “I know,” said Maylee. The intestine was close enough for her to lean forward without Ella's help. She shook her hand free of Ella's grip and twisted the bat around until the intestines had looped over the top of it.

  “What are you doing?” asked Ella.

  “No idea,” said Maylee. She whipped the bat upward. The intestines flew up into the air in front of her and Ella. Maylee gripped the bat with both hands and brought it up over her shoulder. She watched as the intestines arced and started to fall.

  No way in hell this'll work, she thought. As the intestines fell in front of her, she swung.

  The bat hit the coil of intestines square on. With a solid squelching “thwack” the intestines flew back toward the approaching corpses. It draped over four of them, smearing red glistening slime over their rotting clothes and bodies. The four corpses lost interest in Maylee, Ella and Park and turned on the intestines. They clawed at it, shoving it greedily into their gnawing mouths.

  “Shit,” said Maylee, lowering the bat. “I can't believe that worked.”

  “Me either,” said Ella.

  They turned to Park to see him pulling his knife from the temple of the young man. He rocked the knife up and down, then wrenched it free. The young man slumped, dragging his rotting hands across Park's torso. He crumpled on the ground and was still.

  Park turned to look at the corpses. The four Maylee had distracted were chewing furiously at the intestines. He looked to Maylee and nodded in approval.

  “Damn straight,” said Maylee.

  He stepped quickly back over to her and Ella. “What's that leave? Two?”

  Maylee looked. Of all the corpses, only two seemed to still care about getting to them. “Yeah.”

  “I think we can handle two. Let's move.”

  The two corpses broke free o
f the group and came at them. One, a thin gangly woman with thick curly hair, came at Park. The other, a chubby older man with a gray mustache and no lips, came at Maylee.

  Park stood in front of the woman, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. Like he was looking for an opening. The woman lunged at him. He ducked to one side, grabbing her by one of her outstretched arms. He pulled the woman to him, holding the knife out and toward her head. She fell forward, driving the blade into one of her yellow, pus-filled eyes. The woman growled and gurgled.

  Park grunted and pushed the knife in farther, twisting. The woman convulsed, then was still.

  Maylee ran at the chubby older man, screaming. He chattered his lipless teeth under his blood-crusted mustache. She swung her bat around from her side, smashing it into the corpse's mouth. His jaws collapsed and he fell backward, gurgling and choking on his own teeth.

  Maylee brought her bat around the other way, throwing her back into the blow. She whacked the corpse across the side of the head. It jerked to one side, neck breaking and skull crumpling. It kept falling over sideways and was still.

  “Go!” Park yelled and they ran for the opening the two fallen corpses had left. It was a small strip of pavement between the walkway and the capybara exhibit to the left.

  They stopped running when they realized what a small opening it was.

  “Shit,” said Park, looking at the corpses feeding, then back at the opening. Maylee followed his gaze. They would have to move single file. And pass very close to the corpses.

  “Should we kill a few more?” said Maylee.

  “No,” said Park. “Don't want to call attention to ourselves. They seem so happy.”

  Maylee smirked. The corpses tore and chewed at the two men. Soon they would run out of meat. Or they would want to move on to something fresher.

  “Okay,” said Park. “I'll go first. Take my hand.” He held it out for Ella.

  Ella took it, frowning at the feeding corpses. “I knew they were doing that, but...”

  Maylee looked at Ella and remembered seeing corpses feed on Brooke, the babysitter Mom had insisted on the night the world ended. Remembered the cold, deadening shock of it. The feeling of nauseous imbalance.

  “But it's different seeing it,” said Maylee.

  Ella nodded.

  “We going?” said Park.

  Ella sniffed and nodded again. She reached out for Maylee's hand and took it. Park stepped slowly toward the opening. Ella followed and Maylee went last.

  Park pressed his back against the fence and slowly inched past the feeding corpses. The corpses grunted and chewed. The capybara snorted and stomped its feet on the ground.

  “Keep it down, fucker,” muttered Park.

  “Tara,” said Ella next to him. She pressed her back against the fence, trying to get as far as possible from the corpses. They tore free hunks of flesh and gnashed their teeth, grunting in ecstasy. The capybara snorted and huffed, angered by Park’s and Ella's proximity.

  “Keep it down, Tara,” said Park. He reached the end of the opening and stepped out behind the corpses. He kept hold of Ella's hand and led her along the fence. Ella pulled at Maylee's hand and Maylee moved into the opening.

  She put her back against the fence and slowly slid along, sidestepping past the corpses. Blood and meat trailed from their mouths. Grunting and the sound of smacking lips filled the air.

  The capybara behind her snorted angrily. It stamped its feet and butted its head against the fence. It did it again, hard enough that Maylee felt the wooden fence bow against the small of her back.

  “She's never like this,” said Ella. Her hand was wet and slippery in Maylee's. “None of the animals are ever like this.”

  The capybara gave a loud snort. Maylee heard it turn around and run away from the fence. She kept inching past the corpses, hoping she was wrong about what was coming.

  She wasn't. With a frenzy of huffing and stamping feet, the capybara ran back to the fence and rammed it. The impact of the capybara's head with the wood echoed around the area.

  “Shit,” said Maylee, slamming her back against the fence. The corpses grunted more loudly, slowing their eating.

  “Hurry,” said Ella, hurrying along next to her.

  The capybara rammed the fence again, more loudly than before. The corpses slowed their eating further, blinking their clouded eyes and moaning.

  Maylee moved along as quickly as she could while still remaining silent. She couldn’t risk drawing any more attention.

  The capybara huffed in frustration and ran away from the fence. Maylee sucked in her breath, waiting for the impact. But none came. From what she could hear, the capybara was running in circles, grunting and growling. The corpses grunted and resumed eating, still unaware of Maylee's presence. Maylee let out her breath, chest pounding. She kept inching along, about halfway through the opening.

  Then what was left of the dead men sat up and moaned. The corpses that had been eating them lost interest suddenly, like a switch had been flipped. Maylee felt cold as she realized she'd never seen moving corpses attempt to eat each other.

  The corpses looked around, already starting to climb back to their feet. Their unsteady gazes fell on Maylee. They groaned.

  “Oh shit,” said Maylee.

  The closest corpse, a man with dark black veins showing beneath his gray skin, reached for her. She kicked at him, leaning back as she did. She lost her balance and started sliding over the fence.

  “Maylee!” yelled Ella, letting go of Park's hand and grabbing Maylee's with both of hers. Maylee slid downward into the capybara exhibit. Her legs were hanging on the fence and her head hung toward the ground. The bat in her right hand scraped along the dirt of the exhibit.

  The corpses groaned, sounding closer than before. Ella screamed, clutching at Maylee’s left hand. Maylee heard huffing and pounding footsteps behind her head. She craned her neck back to look, upside-down, into the exhibit. She saw the capybara running straight for her head. Its eyes were crazed and a fine mist blew from its snout as it pounded along toward her.

  Maylee screamed. Ella pulled on her hand, wrenching her upward. Her head moved up as the capybara passed under it, missing her by inches.

  She sat up straight on the fence. Ella pulled at her arm, her eyes wide and worried. Park rushed in from the side, knife out and aimed at the nearest corpse. The corpses crowded behind Ella, almost close enough to grab and kill.

  “Look out!” Maylee yelled.

  A tremendous cracking sound came from beneath her as the capybara smashed through the wooden fence and came out the other side.

  Snarling and grunting, the capybara ran into the legs of the approaching corpses. The corpses stumbled and fell forward. The capybara thrashed around, like it was trying to get clear of the corpses so it could come back at Maylee. The capybara showed no interest in the corpses and the corpses showed no interest in it.

  At the moment the capybara smashed through, Ella jumped to one side, out of the way of the rampaging animal. She clutched Maylee's wrist as she jumped, but the awkward angle made her hand slip. Maylee slid backward on the fence, struggling to maintain her balance but unable to.

  “Maylee!” yelled Ella.

  Maylee's hand slipped from Ella's completely. She fell backward into the exhibit. Air rushed from her lungs as her back slammed into the dirt. Her bat clattered from her hand.

  She blinked, dazed, at the rain falling from the gray sky above her. She heard Ella screaming and Park shouting. She shook herself out of her daze and climbed hurriedly to her feet.

  Looking out over the fence, she saw Park pulling Ella away from the throng of corpses. They both looked unhurt.

  “Kid!” yelled Park.

  “Here!” she yelled. She ran over and grabbed her bat from the ground. “I'm okay!”

  Park saw her and nodded. He brought up one of his legs and kicked back the group of corpses. “We're going that way!” Park nodded behind him, the direction the corpses had origin
ally come from. He grabbed Ella's hand and backed hurriedly toward the next corner. The corpses stumbled after them.

  Maylee turned to her left and ran along the exhibit, parallel to Park, Ella and the corpses. She got out in front of the corpses and curved back toward the fence. She pulled one foot up and started to climb over.

  The child corpse was waiting on the other side. He hissed and grabbed her leg with blood-caked fingers.

  Maylee let out a little scream of surprise and fell backward off the fence. She landed on her back in the exhibit. Pain shot up her tail bone and into her spine.

  With a sharp, loud “crack” that sent bits of wood flying into the exhibit, the capybara broke back through the fence. It rushed blindly forward for a moment, huffing and grunting at nothing. Blood, bright and red, ran from its forehead. Its angry panting sent a fine mist of blood into the cold damp air.

  Maylee struggled to climb to her feet. She knew she didn't have much time before the capybara corrected its course and came at her. Her tailbone and back were killing her. She could hear Ella and Park yelling, getting farther away as the corpses pursued them.

  The capybara turned and came at Maylee just as she finished standing. She ran, trying to ignore the pain.

  The capybara pounded its feet into the dirt behind her as Maylee ran as hard as she could, heading for the far end of the exhibit. She wanted to put distance between herself and the capybara before she attempted to climb the fence. She quickly wondered if she'd made a mistake. The capybara behind her sounded faster than she would have expected. It snorted and grunted, sounding enraged as it ran.

  She drew near the far end of the exhibit and started to curve right, toward the fence. She could see the mob of corpses. Ella and Park backed around the corner. Ella looked around frantically. The corpses shuffled toward them. Another minute and the corpses would block Maylee's escape.

  The capybara sounded close as she drew near the fence. Too close for her to stop and climb. She jumped, surprising herself at how well she did. Her foot caught the edge of the top of the fence. She pushed herself up with her leg, doing her best not to slow down.

  As she crouched on the fence, mid-run and about to come down the other side, the capybara hit the fence beneath her. It broke through, coming out the other side. The approaching corpses tripped over it as it raced in front of them.