The Clock Runs Down: Half Past the Apocalypse

by Joe Kelly

  Even with the extra ammo, they should try to avoid engaging large groups of the Undead or find an intact armory to loot for more ammo. He grinned slightly, any ground pounder always wanted more ammo. But at this point he would settle for an arty battalion and air support. He shrugged to himself sooner or later they would run out of ammunition, even with the reloading gear.

  “Let’s make sure everyone has a full kit before we leave here, Steve you’re the best at outfitting people so its your detail.” Steve had a knack for pairing people with the best gear they might need. It might not sound like a great skill but when you were out in the brush and found that one little item that you needed and wouldn’t otherwise have bought it could be a life saver.

  Steve quickly picked out packs for Jill and Carol then started making piles of gear in front of each one. Explaining what each item was used for even if it was obvious. Mark helped them load their gear while explaining the importance of packing for weight distribution.

  The pack that Jill had brought with her was more of a book bag than an actual pack and Jared wanted to make sure that she and everyone else had the best gear they could in case they ended up split off from the rest of the group.

  While they waited for the two women to pack the gear they had brought with them, Jared had Mark and Ronny go through the storage room once more for any gear that they might need and had missed earlier. He didn’t want to find out tomorrow they had left something behind that they needed.

  All in all they ended up spending fifty seven minutes in the lot. Jared, Ori and Ronny stood guard outside the building watching the slowly increasing numbers of undead that were gathering along the fence line across from the rental space.

  “We can't wait much longer” Ori said watching a Goth dressed Female zombie walk into the fence. Ronny nodded slowly his eyes never leaving the undead gathering along the fence line. Something about the look in his eyes bothered Jared. Please do not let him crack up, Jared prayed silently to whoever might be listening.

  Jared half his attention on Ronny turned towards Chris and said, “make sure the crossbows and the two compound bows are loaded in the trailer too.” Chris nodded and headed back into the storage building with Mark.

  Chris and Mark finished loading the last of the gear while Jared took one of the crossbows and handed to Jill. “Figure it might come in handy.” Jared said as she eyed the contraption dubiously.

  “So I take these little arrows in that clip thing and load them here “ she asked pointing. She wasn’t stupid, but she had no idea what those things were called or how to use a crossbow.

  “Those are called bolts, and yes.” He said then launched into a description of the weapon and how to use it while the group finished loading and strapping down the gear Jared had her practice cocking and loading the crossbow a few times before he let her put the weapon in the truck. “I’m going to set you up with a rifle later but for now the cross bow is better and its quiet and even better is the fact we can retrieve the bolts if we have time.” He explained.

  “And it goes with the whole warrior goddess, end of the world, leather dominatrix look” Ronny said as he stood at the door to his truck. He had a peculiar look on is face that worried Jared.

  “Does he ever stop?,” Jill asked as Ronny waggled his eyebrows at her.

  “Not until Mary has a conversation with him. Which usually leads to him getting slapped upside the head a few times” Jared replied with a shake of his head. “Most times she just skips the conversation part and moves straight to Gibb slapping him or spanks him.”

  “Ah the joys of being engaged, I always thought I’d only be abused once I got married. “Ronny said, “I am happy to say I didn’t have to wait.”

  “Okay smart ass get in here and get ready to go,” Mary said from inside the truck. “When I’m done with you, your picture is going to be in the dictionary under Broken in and totally whipped”

  “Only if you promise to spank me, I've been bad!” Ronny said with an evil grin that faded as he looked at the fence and the undead who stood on the other side. He chewed on his lip for a moment looking pensive.

  “Don’t know who she is fooling his picture has been under that definition, since a week after they started dating” Ori said as he climbed into his truck.

  Jared glanced at the pistols Jill carried “Don’t get insulted but do you know how to use those” he asked pointing at the pistols.

  “Yes” she stated. “one is mine the other is my sisters, I…I took it off …” she paused forcing down the tide of emotions that threatened to rise up and sweep her away at the memory of what she had done. “Till yesterday I’ve never fired it at a person.”

  “Good enough for now. Just don’t use them unless you have no choice. Lets try to keep it as quiet as possible.” Jared said then motioned for the groups attention.

  “Okay folks, it's time to go” Jared called out. “No one groan, but I have a plan.” He closed and locked the storage room as he talked.

  “its simple really, start the trucks and make as much noise as you can to draw the undead here. Hopefully that will clear any that might be around the gates and keep any new ones from showing up. Ori and I will go on foot back to the office and when it’s clear or as clear as its going to get we will take out what ever undead are left and at the first shot you guys haul butt for the gate. Jill, you drive my truck, Carol you drive Ori’s and pick us up at the gate once your outside and we get the gate shut.”

  “And if there are to still too many at the gates?” Steve asked thick arms folded across his chest and giving Jared a look that promised he would argue if Jared thought he was going to do something singularly heroic and by definition stupid.

  “then we start shooting, you come running we open the gates and you folks drive through and run over as many as you can get then Ori and I will jump in the last truck and leave the damn gate open. Happy?” Jared replied.

  “Yes” Steve said almost smiling.

  “good, now…” Jared said.

  “I can’t take this much longer” Ronny snapped interrupting him. Jared stopped talking and the entire group looked at Ronny who ignored them.

  “what are you doing?” Jared asked as Ronny walked over to his truck and opened the door and started searching through his console.

  “what is his problem.” Chris asked worriedly.

  “I don’t know,” Jared replied worried about Ronny who was now walking over to Ori’s pick up. “Ori I need to borrow something”

  “Sure, what do you need?” Ori asked looking as puzzled as Jared as Ronny opened Ori’s truck door leaned in and rummaged around for a moment.

  “Ronny?” Jared asked glancing at the fence where the undead seemed to be becoming more excited with every passing moment.

  “Got it” Ronny said holding up a red thumb drive, with a grin he jogged back to his truck.

  “what in the hell is he doing” Steve asked Ori who shrugged. “I have no clue other than that’s the drive with all the music that Jared hates.” He said quietly with a sudden grin.

  “oh” Steve said and grinned himself.

  Jared groaned as the music started, the noise would draw every zombie for ten miles. “lets hurry it up” he called out as Ronny jacked the music all the way up. It had to be his imagination that the truck looked like it was pulsing with the music.

  “Bastard” He yelled as Ronny ran around and climbed on the hood of his truck and started dancing to Barbie girl taunting the undead on the other side of the fence.

  “Get some” Ronny yelled at the Goth zombie slapping his butt.

  “Get the hell down” Jared yelled, convinced that Ronny had lost it.

  “you wanted us to make fucking noise” Ronny shouted back still dancing. “well I’m making it.”

  Mark suddenly grinned and climbed up onto the truck hood and began dancing too.

  “you’re all idiots” Jared said signaling for Ori to follow him.

  “and they say I have no sense of hum
or” Ori remarked. It was sounded so sincere and dry that Jared started laughing. Stupid or not, they needed a moment to just flip the bird at the dead and the universe at large in defiance and if that kept them sane for another day then Jared was all for it.

  He and Ori returned to the manager's office entering thru the rear office door and watched the gate from a window till there was only a small number of undead at the gate. The Music, shouting and idling trucks worked like a charm.

  “Looks like that’s as thin as its going to get” Jared said counting eleven zombies close enough to the gate to be a problem. Ori was looking stressed again but that wasn’t unusual for him. He dragged his fingers through his hair then pushed his glasses up on his nose with a knuckle.

  “You know, I can't stop wondering what happened to Clare” Ori said suddenly.

  Jared shook his head looking puzzled. “Who the hell is Clare?” He asked.

  “You know the cute girl with the big boobs that worked here, The one in the skimpy dress” Ori said. “You mean you never knew her name.”

  “I forgot okay. You were the one that haunted the office flirting with her.” Jared said. “And I wouldn’t worry about her, her car isn’t out front so she at least got out of here. Probably holed up at her house.” Jared pointed out. Ori was silent for a moment, then visibly straightened up as he put on his game face. He is one of the oddest guys Jared thought.

  “Ready?” He asked Ori who shrugged.

  “As ready as I can be.” Ori replied, his voice strained but steady.

  “Keep it together brother, it's no worse than some of the other shit we have been involved in.” Jared told him calmly.

  “If I remember right, no one was trying to eat us alive back then” Ori pointed out.

  “You have a point” Jared admitted then pushed the button on his radio. “Stand by moving to the gate now”

  The stench got worse as they approached the gate and the eleven zombies on the other side. Beyond the group at the gate, maybe sixty feet back, were six more zombies who must have sensed Jared and Ori’s approach or heard them somehow, because they turned slowly and began to shuffle back to the gate.

  Since there were only six of them and they were spread out, they would not be much of a threat and wouldn’t reach the gate till the other eleven were dead. All in all they were not going to be a problem.

  In the back of the lot he could hear motors revving and knew that his group was ready to roll. “Ready?” Jared asked. Ori nodded dropping into a combat crouch. Jared opened the lock and as he rolled the gate back Ori began to fire. That was the only signal the group needed the vehicles were on the move before the second shot was fired.

  Ori was by far the best shot in the group, he fired slow and steady like he was on the range and had all the time in the world. He almost looked serene, Jared thought.

  “I really hope Carol can scoot over once she gets here. I’d hate it if she got wedged into the seat by the steering wheel.” Ori said as the last zombie fell and a fresh group of the undead appeared out of the trees across the road. Ori reloaded his eyes never leaving the next batch of targets.

  “That was truly insensitive” Jared replied absently. Normally it would have been a joke today it fell flat.

  “That’s me, Pappy Sloan Jr.” Ori shot back, grinning his tension gone now that he was committed and in action. He lifted his rifle once more, “might as well put these down too” he said as he squeezed the trigger.

  Ronny’s truck led the small convoy through the gate music still blaring, this time it was of all things the backstreet boys “larger than life”. Ronny was bobbing his head and fist pumping in time to the music and grinning wildly. Mary looked like she was torn between beating him and laughing.

  Jared tossed a look at Ori who shrugged. “Hey you wanted to bring him along remember” Ori said with a tight grin.

  “True,” Jared said with a sigh “and you have a long way to go to match Pappy” Jared replied the tension building in him again as more and more zombies appeared on the road in both directions. The undead were all a good safe distance away, but that was no reason to slack off now. The humor of the last ten minutes vanished like it had never been. God I hate these things, Jared thought.

  The last two trucks thru the gate slowed then stopped. Carol opened the driver’s door of Ori’s truck then humped herself across the seat to the passenger side. “See no problems.” Jared said, Ori gave a slight grin as he jumped in his truck and slammed the door shut then pulled forward giving Jill enough room to get Jared’s truck and the Trailer outside and clear of the gate. Ori waited weapon ready to provide cover while Jared closed and locked the gate. They might need to come back and get more gear at some point, so there was no sense in leaving the gate standing open.

  As he secured the gate Jared was uncomfortably aware of how close a few of the zombies were now. “Hurry up” Jill called out throwing open the driver’s door and then scooting to the passenger side. Jared turned and ran for his truck, having to dodge the outstretched arms of one zombie that had somehow gotten ahead of the pack. He leaped into the cab slammed the pedal down and was accelerating away before his door was shut.

  Chapter 8

  They entered the town of Cedar point around 2pm. Passing a line of burnt out cars and trucks that had been placed bumper to bumper across the road each end anchored on both sides by fence lines that enclosed the fields. Someone had rammed through the barricade at some point and Jared bet it was the Semi, with a trailer that sat a hundred yards past the barricade in a ditch. Its front end was crumpled, one of its front tires was shredded and there were more bullet holes in it, than Bonny and Clyde had sported.

  They rolled down the road past a scattering of fields and farms, All seemingly abandoned. Nothing moved in the fields and the few vehicles they saw parked beside houses were covered in pollen. “its creepy seeing it like this” Jill said quietly.

  Calling Cedar point a town, was really along the lines of calling a tricycle a motorcycle. At its height, the town had boasted a population of a hundred twenty people. The town proper was only five buildings clustered at the four way intersection.

  The paint was peeling on the old McDougals Country store that had a sign that boasted of the best roast beef sandwiches in the county. The store had also doubled as the local post office and garage and had been proudly run by four generations of McDougals, according to the sign at any rate.

  Next door was a cheap portable building with gas pumps outside and a four thousand gallon above ground fuel tank. From the look of it the place had been closed for a long while now. Debbie’s Hair and nail salon a pale blue cinderblock building sat across the street a sign in the window announced a Tanning booth was now available.

  The BP station was probably the newest building in the town, and all that really meant was the sign was new, the building dated at least back to the 50’s. “Pull in and lets check the pumps” Jared called out over the CB. Might as well fuel up while we can, the next place might be crawling with infected.

  Jared climbed out of the truck and stretched, as he looked around. Distant tree covered ridges loomed over the small valley. The only sound was the sigh of wind and the tick of cooling metal from the trucks. It hadn’t been much of a town by modern standards, but it had been home to the people that lived here.

  A soft clunking noise, like coins being fed into a machine broke the silence, Jared turned quickly and saw Ronny at the old Coke machine. The kind that you just opened the narrow glass door after depositing your money and pulled a drink from the rack, he hadn’t seen one of those since he was a kid. “Coke does a body good” Ronny said, twisting the top off the bottle.

  “That’s milk does a body good you idiot,” Mary said correcting him. “He always screws up quotes.” She explained unnecessarily to the group.

  He took a long pull on the bottle then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and gave a melodramatic sigh of pleasure. “I says what I says” Ronny replied trying to joke
but his heart just wasn’t in it. “Jared’s the highbrow that knows all the quotes.”

  “Ori, you and Mark clear the store.” Jared said ignoring Ronny as he gazed speculatively at the sheriffs sub station across the way. There was one patrol car parked out front, which might mean nothing at all.

  “you sure you want Ori to help, I mean he is kind of short he won’t be able to see over the shelves.” Mark said with a strained smile at Ori.

  “sign says they sell hardware too, see if they have any of those sheet rock stilts for him.” Jared replied forcing himself to smile.

  “bite me” Ori said bringing his weapon up into a ready position and started towards the store across the street. Mark gave a genuine chuckle as he followed after Ori.

  Note to self, make an effort to joke and keep every one’s spirits up, Jared thought. We are going to need it.