Zombie Apocalypse: Nick Ch. 2

As I walked, I could only think about when my life began to turn to shit. A little more than three weeks ago, reports of some bacterial outbreak had begun to spread across the east coast. No one started taking it seriously until it had reached Ohio in about ten days. On the eleventh day, they had actual video footage of infected people. Fear spread quicker than the actual infection. People were panicking. People were always panicking. I knew things might start getting bad and decided to make the emergency pack that I had with me. Due to the reports of the infection spreading through bites and fluid contact, I made an investment in tear-resistant gloves and a mask. The mask never came but my gloves have served me well. Madison was one of the lucky cities. The CDC and military experts seemed to deem it a high risk city. There had been no sign of the bacteria anywhere else in the mid-west yet. Instead of sealing us off or firebombing the place, the military tried evacuation. It was risky. Any one infected was a potential risk. Everyone was screened before getting on the APC. We packed light, took our screening, and waited to be moved. Somehow, the infection got though. I do not know how but it did.

My musings on the past were brought to a sudden halt. A zombie had emerged from a storm drain in a ditch. Not the usual infected human body, one of the mutated ones. Its fingers and toes had become elongated and pointed. The creature's vertebrae had become sharp a protruded through the skin. Spikes an inch and a half long stuck out from its elbows and knees. A bear trap like jaw housed jagged, broken teeth. Yellow eyes gleamed out from its skull. The CDC called them 'advanced infected.'  I called them 'Spinies.' This demon was eating a severed arm; its tattered clothes and skin were covered in blood. I did not want to fight this thing.

My heart was a drum. It was impossible to think that the demon could not hear me. Carefully, I crept along the road, praying it was too occupied with its meal to notice me. 'I don't want trouble. Just. Stay. Put.' The monster glanced towards me but did not attack. I passed by and when I was far enough away, I bolted. A pile of cars off in a ditch served as my rest stop. Heart racing, I noticed I had trouble breathing. My lungs were not keeping air for longer than a second. I took in deep breaths to slow down my body. A body in one of the cars had smashed through the window; it hung limply next to me. By now, one corpse was not worth reacting to. When I was calm enough, I continued on my way, staying off the road for now.

The sun had begun to set shinning its orange light into my eyes. Night would fall soon enough and I would need to find a spot to sleep. Some of the scenery was being populated by an ever increasing number of trees. I noticed the air had begun to get colder than usual. A house or two could be seen within them. It seemed that the owners wanted to keep the some of the forest that was here before them. Finding a spot to sleep seemed easier than normal.

I pulled the opened Powerbar and finished it off. It had gotten a little stale from sitting open for so long. My jaw worked a little harder to finish it and took an extra little sip of water to wash it down. As my body bitterly digested the only meal it would get tonight, I found a spot within the trees to set camp. The sun had nearly gone and the remaining shadows made visibility hard with such little light. I suddenly felt my foot fall further than intended, as though I had taken an extra step down a flight of stairs. It seemed I had stumbled upon a fire pit made by the former owners of the land.  Finally, I would feel the warmth of a roaring fire.

I found some sticks and a few blocks of fire wood scattered around the area. There was enough to keep a decent sized flame going for the rest of the night. The lighter's flame lit the dry kindling I found and I removed my gloves. Stoking the flame, I finished off the Powerbar I had started earlier. This seemed bad at first, what with low amounts of food available, but I had just killed five zombies. Anyone deserves two thirds of a Powerbar for killing five zombies, it was written in constitution.

I chuckled to myself at the thought while the fire began to come to life. Waves of warmth poured over me the way the tides rolled over a beach. My hands reached out and felt the fresh air against my skin. Relaxed by the flame, I began to settle into my surroundings. Leaning against a nearby tree, I took the gun out of the holster and the hatchet found its way to my hand. Weighing my two options, I chose to continue holding onto the hatchet and set the gun aside. Something told me that it was not smart to sleep with a loaded gun in my lap. At least a hatchet did not have the risk of going off and harming anyone or anything. I set the gun about an arm's reach away and the hatchet rested by left leg. My mind buzzed with thoughts of the failed evacuation.

Our driver was the first to go. One bite killed him from what I could tell. No driver, no control, and about twenty extra victims. We crashed and I managed to get out unscathed except for a few bruises and a headache. I had no weapon and no way of knowing where I was. In the confusion, I managed to escape with a family of four and two of their friends. Nobody stopped moving until morning. We rested, but not for long. The younger children among us were tired and needed to be carried. I think the girl I carried was named Mary. Each person had some amount of blood on their clothes but none of them said they were infected; we should have been more careful.

As night fell, the group found a strip mall that was still partially supplied. We split into two groups and found food and medical supplies. I stocked up on a few over the counter drugs and a nurse helped me find a few penicillin based prescription drugs. I also found a hatchet in a hardware store that made its way with me. The three people I was with heard a noise and called for me. When we found the other group, two of them had become zombies and Mary had been bitten. I watched Mary's father club the other two to death before killing his own daughter. They drove me to the Wisconsin/Minnesotan border in silence. We parted and they continued on to Illinois. That was about two days ago now.

The amber light from the fire relaxed me. My brain switched from solid memory to dream. Sleep came easily that night.