Jonah was stunned, to say the least, of that Ross was sure. No one on Earth, save for him, should have this information. He studied her hard for a moment, trying to get a grasp on what had just happened.
“I...don't know what to say,” he finally said to Sarah. “I had no idea all of that information was contained within the virus, and I had no idea that...wow...”
“You said we didn't have much time,” Sarah pointed out. “We need to take your ship into orbit and create the antidote. Right?”
“That's right,” Jonah nodded. “It seems to me that your blood might hold the secret to many other ailments as well. Cancer, AIDS, Tuberculosis, plague, all of those. We licked them centuries ago, but since the cure is coming from a human...sort of, it might be viable on this world.”
“Hold on,” Jack said. “Are you coming back? Can I come with you?”
“Jack Frost,” Jonah said, shaking his head. “You have important things to do here. It's true that you can't make a speech to save your life, but that doesn't mean people shouldn't follow you. The best advice I can give you now is to rely on your people, and be fair in your dealings. Remember, you killed Dunfield, and that will carry weight with his troops. Even if you had help, you're the one that had the guts to pull the trigger, and that means a lot.”
“But what about my sister?” Jack demanded. “Where is she going to go? I barely know her and...I wasn't always there when we were growing up. I don't care about Earth, I just want to be with her, can't you understand that?”
“It's okay big brother,” Sarah said. “I'll be back from time to time to check on you, but I can't stay here. When I was bitten by the zombie, it rewrote my DNA. I'm not...human anymore. I'm going to outlive Jonah here.”
“Not...human? I don't understand. You look human, you.. no, you have to be human.”
“Yeah, it's a hard concept to wrap your head around,” Sarah admitted. “I'm going to live for centuries, literally centuries. I'll see empires fall and rise. I'll see stars become supernovas, but the worst part of all, is that I'll outlive all of my friends and family, at least the ones who still exist. But there's a silver lining. I get to save humanity.”
“You need to get back to your people, Jack Frost,” Jonah said. “Believe it or not, they're looking for you.”
“To kill me?”
“No, I don't think so,” Jonah laughed. “You might want to find out what they want. We have to go.”
“Don't worry big brother,” Sarah said, as a ramp lowered from the ship. “I'll be back soon enough to check on you.”
Jack watched as Sarah and Jonah ascended the ramp and vanished into the ship. As they entered, the ramp folded, once again becoming a part of the ship's hull. The engines ignited, though they didn't seem to make a sound as they propelled the ship upward. He stayed for a moment longer, watching it lift off and disappear into the atmosphere.
Almost involuntarily, he raised a hand to the sky, as if he could touch the ship before it flew out of sight. It was in vain of course, he didn't place much stock in the notion that his sister would come back. Who would even want to come back to Earth when given a chance to leave? Seconds later, the only thing left of Jonah's ship was a blue streak temporarily staining the otherwise clean sky.
“Of all the shit to happen,” he muttered as he turned around and walked back toward the gated community. He was perhaps halfway there, when he was met by a group of soldiers from Dunfield's army.
“Jack Frost, word from Wright Patterson and Fort Sill. We're with you,” one of them said.
“When you say with me...”
“We're ready to follow your orders, Sir.”
“Alright then, first order of business,” Jack said. “We're going to build a better world.” How he was going to do that, Jack Frost wasn’t sure, but he knew that their world had been irrevocably changed forever by the zombie apocalypse.
As if to punctuate that point, a zombie stumbled towards him on the outside of the gate, and a soldier on the wall, took aim and fired. The shot hit the shambling corpse in the head, silver blood like substance spattering as his skull exploded from the shot. It shambled a few more steps then dropped to the ground. Yep, changing the world was going to be a hard job, and he wondered if Jonah and Sarah would hold up their end of the bargain. Without their serum, only zombies would remain. Getting his job done would be difficult, but their job would take a miracle. Jack looked to the sky and prayed, as the horde shambled around this precarious island of safety in an ocean of the undead.
Epilogue
Aimee's Journal, July 14, 2019
Jonah is gone and so is Sarah. I wrote in an earlier entry that I do not trust men, but this man, I feel that I could trust. I do not know where it is that he went, but I know that when he left, the plague went with him. Jack Frost tells me not to ask questions, but I see that he is troubled. I often catch him staring at the night sky, as if he is waiting for something, or someone to return. Sometimes I think Jonah must have ascended into the like Jesus. I kid of course.
The zombie attacks have become fewer, and I suspect that they will stop altogether eventually. Unfortunately, we are not yet out of danger. Some of the zombies have changed; they have become something...else. I do not know how to describe them, but they are much more intelligent.
As I write this entry, I prepare to make my journey to the Akron area of Ohio. Jack Frost insists that I stay, but he is not Dunfield; he will not impose his will upon me.
In the absence of General Dunfield, Jack Frost has made significant improvements to this little community. He has arranged for the roads to be cleared, and has made for a steady supply of food and water. He has big plans, and I hope that he succeeds. Still, I sense the emptiness in his soul, and I hope that someday he finds whatever it is that he lost. I hope to God that I do as well.
IS THIS THE END?
This is the end of Zombies Ate My Neighbors, Friends & Relative! Now What? Part I. Look for Part II in a bit as the motley crew of heroes continue their fight against zombies, tentacle creatures & more in this romp through a post Zombie Apocalypse Z world.
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Zombies Ate My Neighbors, Family & Friends - Book 3 (Zombie Apocalypse Z Series) Page 10