Mariko and Helen hopped over the bookcase and into the hallway.
“This way!” said Jane.
The two women looked hesitantly at each other. Should they trust a zombie? They followed Jane anyway.
Jane led them to Juan’s room. Mariko was a bit confused. They walked inside.
“Stay here! I’m helping the professors to round up the zombies outside,” said Jane.
She closed the door behind them.
“Oh my god! Juan! You’re still alive!” Juan stood by the window. He was indeed well and happy.
Helen was confused. Perhaps she had been mistaken?
“I thought you said he was dead!?” cried Mariko.
Mariko and Juan held each other.
“That was actually my brother!” explained Juan.
Helen looked remorsefully at him.
“I’m so glad your brother was killed and not you!”
Juan let that one go. In fact, Helen had to stifle a giggle. Who could be serious after what everyone had just gone through?
“Oh no! You can’t touch me!” said Mariko.
“What?” asked Juan, confused.
“I licked one of the contaminated lollipops. I’m going to turn into a zombie too!”
“Surely it would have happened by now?” reasoned Helen.
“Oh those damn lollipops. You’re right, they were what caused the zombiosis.” Juan looked concerned. He looked over Mariko’s arms, and face, but so far they were clear.
“Tell me Mariko, did you eat a red lollipop, or a green one?”
“What? What difference does that make?”
“Because Professor Singh told me it was the green lollipops that were infected with the zombie drug, not the red ones.”
Helen and Juan looked expectantly at her.
“It was... green!” she said.
They all had horrified looks on their faces.
“Ha ha! Fooled you! It was red.”
They all burst out laughing.
Someone pounded on the door.
“Yes?” Juan called out.
“Coast is clear,” called Jane.
He opened the door. Professor Singh and Jane were standing there.
“It appears campus security has things under control. I recommend you stay here for the night, while we clean up,” said Professor Singh. “I’m going to take Jane somewhere safe so we can find a way to cure her, along with some other zombies who helped our cause, rather than killing anyone.”
“Bye guys!” called Jane.
“Bye! Take care,” her friends called after her.
Juan closed the door. “Who wants pizza?” he asked. “There’s always pizza delivery, even during an emergency.”
“Me!” cried Helen and Mariko.
“But make mine vegetarian, said Helen and Mariko, at the same time.
“I just had a thought. What happened to Bev?” asked Helen.
Everyone shuddered to think that Bev was now walking around campus as a zombie.
The End.
INFECTIOUS by Robin Romero
“Nam? We are going to Nam?” Chris asked.
Captain Collins gave him an exasperated look. Chris was always the one asking why. It drove Collins crazy.
“Shut up and suit up, Soldier!” he yelled in his best ‘don’t ask me again’ tone.
Chris rolled his eyes and started grabbing his gear. He had served under Collins for three years now and they had an older brother, younger brother relationship. As he pulled on his boots, Chris’ best friend and fellow soldier walked into the storage unit.
“Hey Chris, I just heard we are off to Vietnam. Make sure to bring condoms. I heard those girls are freaky.” Max said with a smug smile. Chris threw his boot as his friend and laughed. Meanwhile Collins sneaked up behind Max and grabbed his shoulder. Max jumped out of fright and Chris howled in laughter.
“No condoms. No women. Where we are going, there won’t be any people.” Collins said sternly.
“What?” Max said as he turned to salute his captain. “No people? Where exactly are we going?”
“It’s need to know and you two don’t need to know until we are landing in the jungle. We leave in two hours.” The guys grabbed their things and marched across the hot tarmac. It was summer and the base in Okinawa was scorching. Chris’ unit had been training at the navy base in Southern Japan for two years as a special unit. Usually, the army didn’t spend much time on Navy bases but for Collins’ team they made an exception. As they flew over the blue ocean and watched the islands pass under their feet, Collins debriefed his team.
“Men, this is classified. As in, if you tell anyone, you will die. Now, as you all know, Vietnam and North Korea have been feuding for the past year. Well North Korea has recently sent a threat to nuke Vietnam. President Quan has spent over a billion dollars on research and engineering for a new type of chemical weapon. It is highly localized and sends out a toxin that attacks the lungs and caused them to stop expanding. Being the true humanitarian that he is, he decided to test it on a remote village in the jungle. Unfortunately, there isn’t enough proof to hold him on war crimes but we do need to go into the village to clear it as safe and make sure all the dead people are buried or sent to labs for research.”
“Wait, he just bombed his own people?” Chris asked in horror. Collins looked at him.
“Yes. And I don’t remember telling you it was your job to judge. Now, once we land, you all need to put on your hazard masks and gloves. The chemical is supposed to be dangerous if inhaled but it could also be dangerous if touched.” Collins explained.
The plane touched down and the soldiers pulled on their masks. As they walked off the plane and into the tall grass, the heat hit them like a wall. The sun was bright and the humidity was intense. They were sweating immediately. Collins walked in front of them and then stopped. He turned to them to motion that they were going to head into the jungle on a wide path that lead to the now sleeping village.
The jungle was dense but silent and the quiet put them on edge. These soldiers had spent enough time in the jungle to know that there were always noises. But not here. The soldiers walked in to lines, each looking into the forest around them for any signs of animal life. They walked on in silence for an hour until they finally saw the village. Huts were scattered along smaller dirt paths.
A town stuck in time.
Chris, Max and two other soldiers split off from the group and checked each of the huts along the west part of the village. As they approached the first hut, they noticed a white film that covered the ground and outside of the hut. Chris brushed his finger along the wooden door and pull the gloved hand to his face. He brushed the thin powder off on his pants. Max opened the door and the other two drew their guns. The four rushed into the small hut to find it empty. Fresh smoke hovered over a makeshift barbecue pit.
Whoever had been here had left in a hurry.
As they looked around the house, they were hit with the magnitude of the attack on the village. Silently, they checked the rest of the huts only to find the same thing. Houses that looked as if their owners were coming back. They were frozen in that moment. The moment that the chemical had dropped. None of them could shake the uneasy feeling they had in the empty village. They met with the rest of their team in the village center to report in.
“It’s like they just left in the middle of everything. Like Roanoke. Wait…” Max said then paused.
Chris picked up his thought. “Has anyone seen any bodies? This stuff is meant to kill them where they stand. Shouldn’t there be bodies in the huts? And in the streets?” Chris asked as he looked around.
Collins thought for a moment. “Maybe the Vietnamese army already took the bodies and didn’t tell us. I will call this in and see if we are missing some information. First, Miller, check the air and see if we can take off these annoying masks.” He barked. A soldier named Miller pulled out a yellow instrument from his back pack and turned it on. It made a few beeping sounds befo
re a little light on the side turned green.
“We are clear.” Miller said cautiously. No one wanted to be the first person to test the air. Collins, as always, took the initiative.
“Don’t worry ladies, I will make sure you all can breathe. If I die. Go back to the plane and fly back to base. Tell them that the village is still unstable.” He said as he undid the strap for his mask. He pulled it off and took in a deep breath. Suddenly, he began to shake violently. He groaned and stumbled to the ground as his team rushed to his side. Then just as suddenly, he stopped, turned and smiled at them. “Got ya!” He yelled.
The soldiers let out a sigh of relief then jokingly punched him for his trick. Then, one by one, they removed their masks and secured them to their back packs. As they looked around and blinked in the sunlight, they wondered where the people had gone. Collins took his phone and walked further away from the group.
“Commander, yes, it’s Collins. I need to you check something. I think those idiots in the Vietnamese army are wasting our time. It looks like they already came to clear the bodies. I need you to confirm before we leave.” Collins said into the phone. The soldiers couldn’t hear the other side of the conversation. They waited as Collins listened intently. Then his face became very perplexed. He glanced at his men then back out to the grass. “Are you sure?... Ok but then… where are they?.... right. Yes sir.” And with that he hung up.
The soldiers watched as he walked over to them with a very thoughtful look on his face. “So apparently, no one has come to remove the bodies. It is our job to find them. So, I need theories on where they could be.” Collins said.
“Maybe another village took them!” One of the newer soldiers offered and the others laughed.
“What would they want with poisoned corpses?” Collins asked with a snide tone.
“Maybe the North Koreans came and…” Said another one of the Soldiers.
“Ok, Ronald, now I know why you joined the army instead of going to college.” Collins said and the men laughed.
“Sir?” Chris started. Collins looked at him and gave him a no nonsense look. “I believe they saw the chemical descend. They felt the effects and maybe they thought they could out run it. I think they went into the jungle to get out of danger.” Chris offered. Collins looked at him with an impressed facial expression.
“Good. Lets go with that one. Now we just need to figure out which way.” Collins said.
“Oh, sir, I thought I saw footprints in the white dust along the eastern edge of the village. Here, I will show you.” Said a soldier by the name of Jack. Collins nodded and the rest followed them to the foot prints.
They were there alright. “Ok, it seems they are heading into the jungle along this path. Does anyone have a map?” Collins asked. Max pulled out his map and found their location.
“Sir, it looks like the closest thing along this path is at least 10 miles away. They wouldn’t have made it to another village. I bet they died on the way there.” Max said.
“I agree. We will march on this path until we find the bodies. Everyone drink your water now because as soon as we find these bodies, I want them buried or loaded into the plane. Got it?” Collins barked.
“Yes Sir!” They all replied. They each drank from their metal bottles and got into their marching formation. They began walking into the jungle on the new path, following the white powdered foot prints that the villagers had left behind. The noiseless jungle leaving them with only the noise of their own scared thoughts.
The dirt path sloped upwards at a steep incline for about a quarter mile and the soldiers were all silently amazed that choking villagers could have made it up the hill without collapsing and dying. But no bodies were in sight. Once they crested the hill Collins held up his arm to indicate that they should stop.
“Ok men, take a break.” He said. While the soldiers slumped over and grabbed for their water bottles, Collins looked at the path ahead and noticed something. He took a few steps forward and saw that there were several small paths that branched out from the one they were on and went deep into the jungle. “Max, give me that map.” He said reaching behind him and holding out his hand. Max stepped forward and placed his map in Collins outstretched hand. Collins tore it open and looked at the path they were on. “Strange… none of these paths are marked on this map. Is this map the most updated version, Max?”
Max looked in the corner to see the date it was produced. “Yes Sir, see here in the corner. March 31st 2016. It was made just a few months ago.” He explained.
“Shouldn’t these maps have a record of every path no matter how small?” Collins asked. Max nodded.
“Maybe they are new paths… Sir.” Max offered.
Collins stepped forward and looked at the opening to the first one on the left. “No, look at this. This path has trees growing around it. It’s gotta be at least 200 years old.” Max stepped forward to look down the trail. Collins walked over to the next path and then the next. There were five the shot off the main road.
“Ok men, we need to check each of these for bodies. I want groups of four to go down each path then report back here in an hour. With this kind of chemical weapon, there is no way they could have walked further.” The soldiers nodded and immediately split themselves up. Max and Chris were joined by Collins and Miller. They took the last path on the right. The path was so small that they had to walk single file. Collins was, of course, in front and Max held up the rear. Miller was using his GPS mapper to track their movements so he could add it on to the map later. There wasn’t much to see besides trees and bushes. No animals and the only sound was the wind blowing through the trees.
After about 15 minutes they came upon a little creek. The four of them splashed the cool water on their faces and backs of their necks. They were joking with each other and splashing. With such an intense mission, it was always good to blow off steam. Chris was about to send a large splash of water straight into Collins’ face when he saw something glistening on the path about ten feet in front of them. Slowly, he walked through the shallow water and over to the area that had caught his eye. As he approached, his smile faded. The glisten was coming from a large pool of syrupy red liquid.
“Captain. You should see this.” He yelled over his shoulder as he knelt down to get a better look. Collins looked up at the soldier and made his way over with a long sigh. As he approached Chris, his smile faded too. “I think it’s blood, Sir.” Chris said. Just then a small breeze wafted the metallic sent up to their noses and they knew for sure it was blood.
“Well, it could be animal blood.” Collins said fearing that he was wrong.
“Sir, I haven’t seen an animal since we landed.” Chris said. He leaned forward toward a bush behind the pool. There was blood on the lower branch. He pushed it aside to see something that would send a chill throughout his overheated body. It was a bloody foot print followed by another and it was headed into the jungle going off the path. Chris looked up at his captain’s face. Blood had drained from it. They both stood, looking into the thick jungle in the direction that the foot prints led.
“Let’s stick to the path. We will walk another 15 minutes the head back… keep your gun out.” Collins ordered. Max and Miller walked up behind them and saw the blood. They pulled out their guns and the four walked silently along the path, keeping their eyes peeled for anything and everything. After another 15 minutes of walking they didn’t find anything else. They turned back and walked out to the main path. Their stomached turned when they saw the pool of blood and they walked at a very brisk pace.
Finally they were back on the main road. They all felt a sense of relief and a small sense of safety. They were the first group back but were joined two minutes later by another group of four. They walked up to Collins.
“No bodies sir. It’s all clear Sir.” One of the soldiers said. He nodded. Chris walked up to Collins and whispered in his ear.
“Sir, shouldn’t we tell them about the blood?” He asked. Collins shook his
head slightly. Then they waited for the other three groups. The next two came out at roughly the same time shaking their heads.
“No bodies.” They all said.
“This is absurd. Where could they be?” Collins muttered to himself. “Maybe group five will have something.”
They waited for a half an hour but there was no sign of group five. Collins looked at his watch impatiently. He was annoyed. They were wasting time.
“Did I not say come back in one hour to report in? Where the hell are they?” Collins hollered.
“Maybe they found the bodies and started burying them…” Miller said.
“Does anyone listen to orders in this unit?” Collins yelled again. “Group four, go on that path and find them. When you find them, two of you come back and tell me what they are doing.” He ordered. They nodded and walked into the jungle. The rest of them waited, chatting among themselves. An hour passed by. No sign of them. Then finally, they heard running. It was one of the soldiers. He was running fast and collapsed in front of Collins.
“Dave, what are you doing?” Collins asked annoyed that only one of the soldiers had returned when he had told two of them to come back. The soldier laid on the ground in front of him breathing heavy. Finally he looked up and said.
“Sorry sir, I… uh… they’re gone.” Dave stuttered.
“What do you mean they are gone?” Collins asked exasperated.
“We were walking along the path. I was leading and everyone was quiet. Finally after I had walked a half an hour and I called out for the other group. But I heard nothing. I turned around to see why the other men weren’t calling out for the other group and they were gone. Vanished. I looked around and called their names but… no one replied. I walked ahead on the path to see if maybe the other group had gotten further but after ten minutes, I was too freaked out. There was no sign of any of them. I turned back and when I walked along the path I saw a pool of blood and a foot print. Like the kind of foot print that was bare. No shoes so it couldn’t have been from one of the guys. I got even more freaked out. I called their names again but… nothing. I started to jog and then I came along another pool of blood and more foot prints leading off into the jungle. It froze my blood. I started running faster. Before I knew it, I had splashed through a third pool of blood but I kept running.” Dave said in horror.
Our Dead Bodies [Anthology] Page 13
