by Gayle Katz
The seatbelt sign pops off and people start to stand, anxious to exit the plane. Waiting in line for her turn to deplane, I see her walk through the skybridge along with the rest of the passengers. Looking around, the airport is huge. So many people running to catch their planes.
Once she’s outside the confines of the plane and the gate, the video starts to cut out. I hear my voice.
“Oh man. When will this damn headache go away?”
The video drops from eye level to the ground and goes dark. After a few seconds, I hear more conversation, some in Chinese, but also in English.
“She looks American!” one person says.
“Miss! Can you hear me?” another chimes in.
The video feed comes back on for a moment and I see some people standing over her body. She doesn’t seem to respond to their voices and the video goes dark again.
More conversation in what I believe to be Chinese.
Suddenly, the video comes back. She’s convulsing on the floor and making horrible noises. More people come over to see what’s happening. A circle begins to form around her. An EMS crew bursts through the wall of people to diagnose the situation.
“What’s happening to her?” I ask.
“You’ll see. Keep watching.”
The screaming gets louder.
“Miss. Please calm down. We’re trying to help.” I see the main medical technician’s eyes widen. He tries to step back, but she grabs on to him and takes a chunk of flesh from his arm. Stunned, he freezes. She jumps on top of him and takes another bite from his neck. Crouching on the floor, she jumps to the next human. Only then do the people in close proximity start screaming and running in all directions, trying to get away.
“W-Why is this happening? I don’t understand.”
“They’re changing.”
“I can see that, but I thought the clones were for experimental purposes only.”
“Someone is lying to you.”
“Oh no.”
I see her slowly get back to her feet, scanning the area. Now, instead of screaming, she’s shrieking and moaning those familiar sounds. With humans in almost every nook and cranny of the airport, my zombie clone moves quick to bite anyone moving. Turning around, I see the EMS fellow and others convulsing on the floor. One by one, they turn and rise up. “Run, run, run,” I whisper to the screen. Despite the scene unfolding in front of their eyes, some people just going about their business still don’t believe it’s real and stand there not moving for some reason. Others, frightened by the sight, try to take off and run as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, they’re all too close. One woman stands there staring at one of the zombies while it stands up slowly in front of her, leans in, and bites her neck. Screaming and holding her neck, she tries to back away and escape. Unfortunately, another zombie smells her and comes over to take a taste. She falls to the ground, shaking and flailing her arms and legs. That is, until she too rises again to prey on others around her.
In the distance, I see a man trying to run away, who is soon surrounded by zombies. Keeping a lookout around him, he doesn’t seem to know which way to go. Zombies are all over. “Run, man! Run!” I shout at the screen. I see them closing in on his position. He attempts to break out of the circle they’ve trapped him in, but they’re too strong. And soon I can’t see him at all.
I exit out of the video, unable to watch anymore of this blatant attack on my fellow human beings. Tears forming, I cry out, “What was that?”
“These people are using your replicas to destroy all of humanity. That’s what that was.”
After ending the video, the screen takes me back to the list of airports and cities. I start clicking down the list of airports and more and more videos pop onto the screen. I see Jane after Jane flying on airplanes and landing in these big city airports. It’s like watching myself in a bad horror movie where you know what’s going to happen, but no matter how much you scream at the screen, nothing changes. “There are so many cities listed here. Shit! It looks like the cities on the list are slowing turning from green to red. That can’t be good.”
“You’re right, it’s not good, and we don’t have much time left if we’re going to save people. The cities in green are scheduled for invasion,but are safe for now. You could probably guess that these clone attacks have already started for those cities in red. What you saw is only from one city. When you consider the length of that city hit list and how many are already in the red, the devastation is catastrophic.”
“All the more reason I need to find out what Brie and Malik are doing and when that cure will be ready,” I say, flicking off the monitor and running out of the office.
Chapter 8
________________________________________
As I get closer to the lab, I hear Malik and Brie talking. Instead of going in, I hide behind the door, listening.
“I can’t believe we’re almost there. I’m so excited,” Brie says.
“Almost, but you can’t deny this virus has been a blessing, coming at the right time. The overpopulation crisis is almost over. We just need to hold out a little longer and then we’ll be able to lessen the strain on the planet today and for future generations. Now that we’ve put our plan into action, once enough people are finally gone, we’ll spread the cure. Life will be better and we’ll be treated as heroes.”
“And how will we know when to share the cure? When is the right time? If we wait too long…”
“Don’t worry about that. Humans are procreation machines. Even if the population shrinks too much, years from now we probably won’t even notice there was an issue. My prediction is that there’ll probably be another baby boom anyway.”
“A baby boom? Do you think someone who was infected and cured will still be able to have healthy children? Does that zombie virus, even cured, still remain in the system? Maybe it’s in a dormant state? Could two cured people give birth to a baby zombie?” Brie asks.
“Time will tell with all of those questions. Stop worrying, OK? We’re doing the right thing here. And think about when we come out with the cure. We’ll be heralded as the saviors of the world, bringing the cure at just the right time, just before we’re on the brink of extinction, of course we won’t let it get *that* far, though.
“We’ll be touted as guardian angels, gods even,” he says. “And no more kids will go without food just because there are too many damn people and the land can’t sustain so many mouths to feed.
“My mother would be so proud if she could see me now, making a difference in the world. She’d still be alive if she didn’t sacrifice herself for her children. She did what she could to put food on the table for me and my brothers and sisters, even inviting other children from the neighborhood in for meals. I was so young. I don’t even remember when she stopped eating so there would be enough for everyone else. No one helped us. And now that I’m calling the shots, I say when enough is enough.”
Listening to Malik drone on, I can’t believe what he’s saying. What are they talking about? Holding the world hostage until it’s molded to their ideal vision because he had a rough childhood? The cure isn’t a bargaining chip. These are people’s lives we’re talking about. And it sounds like they’re going to try to use it to their advantage, and that’s not right. Without thinking about my own safety, I stand up and interrupt their secret conversation.
“What’s this plan you’re talking about? Letting the zombie plague wipe out more people by withholding the cure? What’s wrong with you? Is there something wrong with the wiring in your brain or something?”
“Where did you come from? We thought you were with the Professor,” Brie says.
“I was, but then I came back and overheard what you said.”
“What did you hear exactly?”
“Enough. That you plan on holding the cure until it’s the right time, whenever that is, until many more innocents have succumbed to the sickness.”
“You must have misunderstood,” B
rie says, dropping her keys in the top drawer of her desk.
“Misunderstood? I don’t think so. I heard exactly what you said. How could you, Brie? I thought you wanted to help people and now this? Somehow I can understand this evil coming from Malik, but you? Why? Does Ben know what you’re doing?”
No response.
“Why don’t I tell him? I think he’d want to know.”
“Before you go running to Ben, let us explain!”
“No! Forget it. I’m not sure you can provide a reasonable explanation that I’ll buy. People are dying. Don’t you get that? I don’t want to hear your lies. I might not be able to stop you, but the Professor can!” I make my way to the lab door.
“Don’t let her go!” Brie shouts behind me.
Malik hits the button for the door and the hiss of the hydraulics starts to close it shut.
Moving quickly, I slip through the door and into the hallway.
Malik follows me out of the lab, grabs me by the arm, and tosses me against the wall in the hallway. I hit my head. He stomps over and picks me up off the floor. “Don’t even think of telling Ben what’s going on.”
“You don’t scare me,” I shout in his face, lying. “Let go of me!” I yell, trying to loosen his grip on my arm. “You’re hurting me!”
“Good. Listen up, you little brat. You’re not going to ruin this for us.”
“Ruin what for you? Allowing innocent people to die? Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m telling Ben what you're doing and you can’t stop me.” I try to move, but he holds me tight against the wall. “Get off of me!”
“You may be able to manipulate the Professor because he’s got this second chance and feels sorry about what he did to you and what happened in the past, but if you cross us, so help me, I swear you’ll be watching your back until the day you die.”
“Are you threatening me?” I ask, staring into his angry eyes.
“I’m just looking out for your general health and well-being. That’s all.”
“Thanks for your concern, but I can take care of myself. I’ll be going now,” I say, trying to walk away. He grips tightly onto my arm and yanks me back. “I said, let go of me!”
Face to face, I can feel his hot breath hit me in the face. He tries to restrain me, but I lift my knee quickly and, with all the strength I can muster, give him a swift kick in the groin. He falls to the floor, moaning in pain, as I run away.
I scatter down the hall to tell Ben what I’ve just learned when three zombies pop out of nowhere and block my way. Stopping in my tracks, I look around to see about circumventing them and finding another way around, but they’ve managed to block the entire hallway. Turning around, I run back and see Malik standing there, a bit hunched over, smiling at me.
“Fine. You win, all right? I won’t tell the Professor. Just call them off, OK?” I plead.
“Too late. That offer doesn’t exist anymore.”
“Why not?”
“You had your chance. We can’t trust you now.”
“The Professor will notice if I’m gone.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. And if he does, we’ll just say it was an accident. Accidents happen. Oops,” he laughs.
Three more zombies appear out of the darkness behind Malik as he walks back into the protected lab with Brie. Why don’t the zombies attack him? Why are they just headed for me?
“Don’t do this! Malik!”
“Goodbye!”
Now I have six zombies closing in on my position. I turn back around and see the first three coming closer. Their putrid smells start to envelop me and their shrieking makes me cover my ears. I look up to the ceiling and around to the walls, but there’s nothing I can reach for or climb on to get out of their way.
As I take a better look at the zombies headed toward me, I notice a few of them are missing limbs, like they were ripped right off. I guess, what’s a missing limb to a zombie anyway? If the only chance I have is to fight my way out, it’s probably best to start with the zombie who has the most handicaps so I up the odds of escaping.
Knowing I need all the help I can get, I pull the breakfast knife out from my back pocket and run straight for the zombie missing an arm and dragging one of his legs behind him. As I get closer, I use my momentum, drop to the ground, and slide forward along the shiny floor to knock out his other leg. When he falls over me, I jump back on top of him and stab him multiple times in the head until he stops moving. One down, five to go.
I start to get to my feet when two of the other zombies pile on top of me, their jaws chomping for a piece of me, causing me to drop the knife and preventing me from getting up. Thankfully, I manage to roll onto my back and use my hands to prevent them from biting me. With their faces much too close to mine, I can see and hear their rotten teeth chattering, hoping to get a bite. With two of them on top of me, they’re starting to bend my arms and crush my chest. I try to get some oxygen in my lungs, but inhale their stench instead, causing me to cough.
Face to face with one of the zombies, I try to communicate with it, but nothing happens. I guess only Ben has this power or there’s no humanity left in this guy.
Not giving up, I pull my right arm free from the fray and reach out for the knife I just dropped. I can feel my fingertips touching the handle of the knife, but I can’t grasp it just yet. I stretch my body as far as I can go, while still keeping the zombie away from my face, but it’s still not enough to reach it. And I can’t reach out much further, without my other arm giving way. This isn’t going to work.
“Ben!!” I scream, as loud as the air in my lungs will allow. “Ben! Help me!”
Losing strength, the other zombies use the mass of their bodies to bend my arm back enough for one of them to bite my neck. “Ahhh!” I scream, almost crying. Using my last bit of energy, I pull my knees up so they’re in between the zombies and me. Out of energy, I try to straighten out my legs, pushing the zombies away and getting some distance from their infected maws. They press against my legs, almost flattening my body. I feel sick when I see them just an inch or so away from me with fresh blood, my blood, covering one of their faces.
Just then, I hear loud bangs. The pressure of the zombies against my arm and legs disappears as they fall limp to the floor on either side of me. Covered in zombie brains and chunks, Brie grabs my hand and helps me up. “No more death. No more,” she says.
“Tell Malik that,” I say.
I stare at her for a moment, seeing the small pistol in her hands with an elongated barrel. Without saying a word more, I grab my knife that’s still lying on the floor and run away from her down the hall to my original destination.
Chapter 9
________________________________________
Forgetting the proper formalities of knocking to announce my presence, I burst into Ben’s office, and find him sitting behind his desk. Looking to see if Malik and Brie are following, I quickly close the door behind me and twist the lock. Ben looks up from his papers.
“Jane… What’s going on? Is that blood? Are you bleeding?”
“No time for that,” I say, huffing and puffing. “Didn’t you hear me screaming for you?”
“No. With the door closed, I can’t hear much in here. Calm down and tell me what happened. What’s wrong?” He stands up and walks over to me.
“Brie and Malik aren’t doing what you asked them. Well they are, but they’re planning on holding the cure, and when I interrupted them, they sent some zombies to ambush and kill me.”
“What? What do you mean? Zombie ambush? Holding the cure? Slow down. What are you talking about? I don’t understand.”
I lean against the wall to catching my breath before starting to explain. “I saw them together last night, but I couldn’t hear what they we’re saying. Just now when I went back, I heard their plan. They’re planning zombie invasions of all of the big cities around the world and some of them are happening right now! And they’re using my clones to do it! When enough people are dead, then and only then w
ill they release the cure!”
“Those are some strong accusations. Are you sure? I don’t understand why they would do such a thing.”
“I don’t know all of the details, but I do know they’re not going to release the cure until more people get sick, and they’re going to use my clones to help make sure that happens. Something about overpopulation and the planet not being able to sustain so many people. They want to play God!”
“No. That’s not possible. You must have misunderstood.”
“Why does everybody keep saying that? I guess maybe that’s possible, but I think my hearing is spot on. Do you think I’ve misunderstood this zombie bite on my neck, too?” I question him while taking my hand, rubbing it on my wound, and holding the blood smears closer to his face.
“It can’t be,” he says, walking across the room to get some alcohol and bandages. “Brie and I, we have an understanding.” He pours the alcohol onto a cotton pad and wipes my neck a couple of times. Then, he covers the wound with bandages. “This should help. We’ll make sure to give you a shot of the cure once it’s ready to go, but I think you’ll be fine.”
“Thank you for the triage, but you need to have a talk with her. Just ask her. I know she thinks the world of you. She’ll listen to what you have to say.”
“All right.”