Apocalypsis Immortuos | Book 1 | Syndrome

by de Hoogh, Marco

  There appeared to be only one way to stop them, and that was to ‘apply sufficient trauma to the brain’, as the anchor stated it.

  The anchor also shared the latest, and possibly last, CDC bulletin.

  The first portion of the bulletin stated that the CDC had confirmed that the syndrome was not found to be contagious and could not be transferred to a living individual.

  Well isn’t that against Romero’s rules...

  The CDC bulletin continued to describe the undead.

  The ‘afflicted’ will attack any living people around them, without regard to who that is.

  Really? Afflicted? Even now, they won’t use the word ‘zombie’! Shelley shook her head in disbelief.

  The CDC bulletin went on to describe the observed animalistic behaviour of the afflicted, including attempting to bite and tear into their victim’s throat. The afflicted did not display cannibalistic behaviour and would stop their attack once their victim was dead or unmoving. They seemed to display some kind of short-range telepathy, as they rarely attacked each other, and they seemed to move in coordinated fashion without any kind of signal.

  Their movement appeared woodenly and somewhat reminiscent of large primates. This was followed by a warning that while most afflicted moved relatively slowly, some specimen were capable of moving a lot faster. It was advised not to try to outrun them.

  “That Romero was full of shit, man.”

  There. Somebody said it. Shelley almost laughed at the jibe.

  The bulletin stressed that any survivors needed to lock themselves into a safe location somewhere. It also stated very specifically that survivors should not draw attention to themselves. The undead were attracted to noises and movement and seemed to be specifically attuned to sound.

  People looked at each other at that point – and looked outside. Several of the school’s lights were on.

  “Oh shit.” Ethan Collins said. The young man had moved to the front of the room and was looking out the window. “I can see movement on the outside of the fence!” Several people gasped while others leapt up from their chairs in alarm.

  John quickly walked over to the window, waving for quiet as he walked.

  “Hit the lights and turn that tv off.” Somebody complied and the group was plunged into semi-darkness.

  He had a long look out the window before he spoke up again.

  “Folks. Please calm down.” He said as he turned back to the room.

  “The movement is on the far side of the fence, several hundred feet away. I think all we need to do is keep quiet, stay out of sight, and maybe shut off some lights. I don’t know if those things are attracted to light, but the streetlights are all off, which kind of lights us up like a beacon...”

  “John is right. Let’s keep our cool.” Craig added. “We are safe in here. Let’s shut the lights off like John suggests. We should also get the rest of the rooms sorted out, so we all have a place to sleep tonight.” A few people nodded and the group started filing out into the hallway.

  The lights were turned off in short order. Thankfully, there was still enough light to see by.

  Shelley spent the next thirty minutes helping out, until everybody was set in rooms for the night. Ern and Nancy took a room, and Keith and Bill shared another room, leaving three rooms. Shelley turned to Claire as they were moving cots and bedding into the next room.

  “Roomies?” Claire asked. Shelley had been thinking the same thing. She smiled and nodded.

  Emily and Maria took the next room. Shelley was glad that Maria wasn’t going to be alone tonight.

  Track suit girl took the last room.

  She’s... Distant. Shelley watched her retreat towards her room.

  Shelley pondered the young woman. She was maybe in her early twenties, possibly a College student. The only thing Shelley was sure of was that she was an athlete. Her track suit gave her away as one, and Shelley recalled that the girl seemed tireless while some folks were starting to struggle with the cots and bedding near the end.

  Shelley walked after the girl and stood in the doorway as the younger woman set up her cot.

  “Hey. Are you going to be ok on your own? Would you rather come stay with us?”

  Track suit girl jerked up at the sound of Shelley’s voice as if stunned. Shelley immediately regretted interrupting her.

  “S–Sorry! I didn’t mean to startle you...”

  Track suit girl stood up and faced Shelley. She didn’t look angry. More like she was embarrassed. Shelley had a good look at her face. She had dirty blonde hair pulled into a short ponytail. She had high cheekbones and brown eyes. Her nose was slightly bent, like it had been broken in the past – but that somehow accentuated her face and made her prettier.

  “Nah.” She said with a shrug. “I’m kind of better on my own. ... Thanks though!” She quickly added with a small smile.

  Shelley smiled back and nodded. “Ok.” She gestured with her hand “We’re right next door. If – if you need us.”

  Track suit girl nodded, and Shelley turned and walked back to her own room.

  Shelley recalled that several people had tried to engage her in small talk, and she had shot them all down. She wasn’t sure what to make of track suit girl.

  Maybe she’s just shell-shocked like the rest of us. She thought as she walked up to her own room.

  Or maybe she’s a bitch...

  With that last thought, Shelley closed the door to the room she shared with Claire and walked to her cot. She felt exhausted.

  I have no idea what time it is. Shelley walked up to the window. It was set high in the wall, the bottom of the window at eye level for her. She looked out of the window. The world looked strange from this angle, as she looked out at about the same level as the ground. Several houses were lit up across the street, but other than that it was dark. With a sigh, and a softly whispered ‘good night’, she turned and walked to her cot.

  It would take everybody staying at the Ren some time before they would fall asleep that night. Everyone replayed what had happened that day and reflected on the events leading up to this.

  Shelley lay awake, worrying about her parents. They had been away, on a cruise. The last phone call she had received was six days ago now. Their ship had pulled into Port-au-Prince in Haiti.

  “Hi honey, we’re fine!” Her dad had started reassuring her as soon as she had answered.

  “We’re in Haiti. The cruise ship decided to dock here because there were some people getting really sick. Haiti is beautiful, by the way!”

  “But dad! This HAPS thing – it’s... It’s bad, dad.”

  “Ah it’s nothing! Mom’s got a bit of a belly ache, but–”

  “Don’t worry the girl!” Shelley could hear her mom admonishing her dad in the background.

  Shelley held the phone to her ear and closed her eyes.

  Oh mom. Always worrying about others.

  “Anyway, it should only be for a couple of days, until this thing passes. I’m feeling great – no problems!” Shelley could hear another muffled discussion. “Mom wants to know how you’re holding up!”

  “I’m fine. Tell her I’m fine!”

  Ugh. Like mother like daughter...

  “We’re going to take advantage of this stop and check out the country-side. Maybe try some of that Haitian cooking that we’ve heard so much about. Maybe some of that Haitian rum too!” Her dad continued, after relaying her well-being to Shelley’s mom.

  Shelley looked at her watch. The call had come at a bad time. She was supposed to be at the hospital in fifteen minutes.

  “Hey dad, I’ve got to go, or I’ll be late for my shift.”

  “Oh. Ah, no problem Shelley. How about we call you again in the morning?”

  “Yes. Please do. Ok dad. Talk to you in the morning. Say hi to mom for me.” With that she had hung up. She had not heard from them since...

  Deep down, Shelley knew that her parents were dead.

  Say ‘hi’ to mom... I should have
told them that I love them!

  She berated herself. But the past was gone and could not be redone. Shelley eventually fell into a troubled sleep. Eventually, all the other people at the Ren fell asleep as well. Some of them slept fitfully, others more deeply. But every one of them went to sleep with the knowledge that the life that they were used to was gone and might never be back. Tomorrow, and the future, was unknown.

  Shelley woke up once in the middle of the night. Without moving, she opened her eyes. She could see Claire on her own cot, outlined by the moonlight shining in through the high window. The older woman’s body shook as she silently wept. Shelley felt for the heartbroken woman. She knew there wasn’t much she could do though, so she let Claire grieve. Sleep claimed her again shortly after.

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Sophie

  October 28, 12:15 P.M.

  Sophie looked back at the bus. She could see the people on the bus staring back at her. Everyone looked scared. Sophie was scared too.

  “Let’s go babe. Fuck those guys.” Dean had already rounded the corner and called back to her.

  With a heavy sigh she turned from the bus and followed Dean. Her boyfriend had entered the nearest front yard and was rooting around the shrubs.

  “Where the fu – Oh. Here it is!” With a grin he brandished the heavy table leg he had tossed into the yard earlier. When they heard the vehicle and ran for salvation. When they hoped that, just maybe, things would be ok.

  Dean’s smile dropped when he saw Sophie’s sad face. He quickly left the yard and wrapped his girlfriend in a hug.

  “Hey. It’s O.K. We’ll be ok, baby.”

  Sophie couldn’t keep the tears back. “But you heard what they said. There is no cure!” She said between sobs.

  “Well maybe they’re wrong. They don’t know that! They’re just soldiers!” He held her quietly for a moment as she continued to cry.

  “Hey. I’m not feeling bad. I can hardly feel it. ... Are you feeling worse?”

  Sophie nodded affirmatively into his chest.

  “Hey.” He said as he held her at arms length so he could meet her eyes. “You trust me, right?”

  Sophie nodded.

  “You know that I will protect you, right? I’m not going to let anybody hurt you!”

  Sophie was regaining her composure now and nodded again. She had seen Dean take out several silent screamers first-hand.

  Sophie had coined that moniker when she got her first good look at some of them. She had heard all kinds of names thrown around on social media; Infected, zombies, undead... To Sophie they looked like they were perpetually screaming, without the accompanying sound – so to her they were silent screamers.

  “Ok. So, we go with our original plan.” He smiled at her. “Hey. It’s probably for the best that we couldn’t go with those folks, anyway. I’m sure Sam will know what to do.”

  Sophie blinked the last tears out of her eyes and pulled an arm free to wipe her cheeks.

  “Ok.”

  “There’s a good girl.” He smiled. Then hesitated as he looked over her shoulder. A determined frown replaced his smile.

  “Get behind me.” Was all he said. Sophie knew exactly what was happening. It wasn’t the first time today.

  Dean rolled his shoulders once and stepped past Sophie.

  One of the silent screamers was less than half a block away, just coming up to the intersection behind them. It must have been attracted by the noise of the bus.

  She watched as her broad-shouldered boyfriend took a couple steps forward. The silent screamer moved somewhat drunkenly towards Dean. When it got close enough, Dean raised the table leg above him with both hands, and timing it perfectly, slammed the heavy wood down on the head of the lunging assailant.

  Sophie could hear a sharp crack. She knew that it wasn’t the table leg cracking.

  The silent screamer went down. Dean followed his first hit with another two-handed blow to the back of the head. Sophie could see the splatter from where she was standing and swallowed hard.

  Dean looked around for a second, making sure there were no more threats around, before turning back to Sophie. He gave her a warm smile.

  “See? Nobody is going to hurt you while I’m around.”

  Sophie nodded. She looked at her boyfriend as he strode back to her with a confident grin. Dean O’Reilly had graduated from college thanks to a free ride baseball scholarship. His business education never came into play, though, as Dean signed a contract with the local baseball team. Being short stop for the Ospreys didn’t provide the six-figure income he was looking for, but Dean was sure that his chance to make it to the big league was right around the corner. That dream was now lost forever. But his skill, stamina and strength were way more useful than any calculator or keyboard would have been.

  Dean rested the table leg on his shoulder, holding on to it with one hand, while taking Sophie’s hand with his other.

  “Let’s go.” He said as they walked off.

  The late-morning sun had taken the chill out of the air, and the sky was mostly clear. There was a serene beauty to it all. But at the same time, it was disturbing.

  It was the silence.

  The city felt like it had been deserted. There were no cars driving on the roads. There were no planes flying in the sky overhead. There were no people.

  No living people, anyway.

  Dean and Sophie moved fast, but cautiously. They would take extra care passing through intersections. Those intersections would provide an opportunity to have a good look down the streets. They spotted several moving forms when they got to the next intersection, but thankfully the forms were far away.

  So far, their luck was holding. They saw no shambling forms in the direction they were heading.

  They got to the next intersection. Dean cautiously snuck around a vehicle and looked in both directions. He motioned Sophie to come forward as the coast was clear. He drew her down to crouch at the hood of the car.

  “There’s a group of them about two blocks away. Have a peek.” Dean encouraged Sophie.

  The road ran down a gentle slope, providing a decent view in the direction Dean was indicating. Sophie lifted her head over the hood and watched. Sure enough, there was a group of about half a dozen people in the intersection two blocks down.

  Not people. Silent screamers.

  You could tell these weren’t regular people. They moved strangely, jerking one way and then in another direction without any apparent thought. Sophie found it fascinating the way they moved together. Like it was synchronized somehow.

  Like a miniature swarm, or flock of birds.

  Dean stood up beside her, and Sophie followed suit. She knew that it would be very unlikely that they would be seen from that distance. Make any noise though, and the silent screamers would be coming around.

  Just then a window shattered a few houses behind them. They turned in time to see a pale body fall out of a window and into a yard. Sophie and Dean picked up their pace and quickly moved ahead. They slowed their pace once they got a few more houses down the street. Sophie looked over her shoulder and saw that whatever had fallen out the window had not gotten back up.

  They’re stuck inside their own houses.

  It made sense. The authorities had instructed people to stay in their houses during these last fear-filled days. Most people did, which meant that many silent screamers were stuck in their houses. Sophie imagined the silent screamers stuck inside their bedrooms. Standing beside their own beds. Heads down and eyes open... She shuddered at the thought, but also realized that it was a small blessing. It kept the streets relatively free of danger.

  “It’s just up ahead. We’re almost there.” Dean whispered.

  Dumfrey’s Apothecary was a locally owned pharmacy. Not like all those big box stores that people tended to flock to for discount no-name sleeping aids, Christmas cards, and a case of beer. No, Dumfrey’s carried little of that. The store had been around for over a hundred years, and they we
re forced to specialize as competitors drove Dumphrey’s market share down.

  They offered the strangest things there now. From tinctures and tonics, to powders and pills, carrying items from the new age Californian herbalist to the ancient Chinese medicine man.

  Dean was hoping that something at Dumfrey’s would succeed where modern medicine failed.

  The original building had been demolished, and a two-story brick structure stood in its place since the early 70’s. The owners of the store; Jamie and Sam Wilson, lived upstairs in the second story of the building. Dean knew them well.

  He was into supplements, natural or unnatural. Basically, anything that would give him an edge, without getting him busted for doping. On top of that, Dean was fascinated by anything not mainstream, and the dark little store with its hint of the occult and the extraordinary drew him like a fly to sugar. The Wilsons were avid baseball fans, and always excited when Dean came around. Dean visited the store regularly and had often given them free tickets to games.

  As they walked up to the main entrance, they saw that the store front shutters were all down. Sophie watched Dean frown and rub his chin a moment. They didn’t want to call out or make any noise, having learned their lesson earlier that day.

  Dean remembered something, and beckoned Sophie to follow him around the side of the building. They followed the side of the building and the tall wooden fence that followed. They stopped at a door built into the fence. The Wilson’s back yard lay beyond that fence.

  “Wait here.” Dean whispered and in one motion pulled himself up to the top of the fence. Sophie did not even have time to argue as the man dropped down the other side and into the yard.

  The big man knew how to move quietly, as she didn’t even hear him land on the other side. Within moments the door swung open and Dean beckoned Sophie in with a mischievous smile. They shut the door behind them, and crept up to the back door, which was thankfully not obscured by roll shutters.

  THEY APPROACHED THE door, up the steps and onto the small landing. When they got to the solid wooden door they hesitated. Dean frowned and scratched the top of his head, trying to decide what his next move would be.