World Zombination

by John Kloepfer

  “I’ll do it,” Olivia said, stepping forward.

  “No way, too dangerous. We can’t afford losing you. You’re too valuable as the antidote,” Ozzie said, taking the rope from Nadie. “I’ll handle it.”

  SNAP! The crocodile’s snout closed shut with a crack and the stick in Nadie’s hand snapped in half.

  “Yikes!” Nadie flinched back.

  “Can we get on with this?” Rice asked. “Wrestling a live crocodile is on my bucket list and I’m not getting any younger.”

  “Don’t be nervous, guys,” Nadie coached him from the shore. “They can sense your fear.”

  “Too late,” Zack said. “I’m already pretty freakin’ nervous.”

  “Now!” Rice yelled.

  The big lizard twitched as the boys each grabbed the nubby tail with both hands.

  The massive reptile wriggled, but the boys held on, pulling with all their might. Just as they gained traction and began to drag the beast up onto the sand, something surged out of the water behind them: an enormous zombified crocodile, twice the size of the first one. It lifted its brown head and roared.

  With a shriek, Zack landed butt first in the water and watched as the zombie chomped down and bit the other crocodile’s tail in half.

  The smaller, soon-to-be-zombified crocodile made a strange sound, almost like a whimpering yelp. It lumbered away from the river with a waddle, past the kids, and left a thick trail of blood behind it as it escaped into the jungle.

  “GLRGHOWRK!” The undead crocodile glugged down the tail and let out a revolting burp, then whipped its head at Zack and Rice. Its eyeballs were bright red and bloodshot, oozing some kind of nasty yellow pus. A huge bite mark had left its hindquarters mangled on the left side. But that didn’t stop the massive zombie from lunging at Zack and Rice, who were crab-walking into the river to get away from the monster.

  Zack splashed and flailed as the crocodile snapped at him. He stared straight down its throat, so close that he could smell the rancid stink of other half-digested animals. Rice squealed in fear. They were trapped—if they went any deeper into the river, they’d have to start swimming. And Zack didn’t want to think about what else was in the water.

  Nadie sprang into action, grabbing the zombie croc by the tail. “Hurry! Drag it back onto land. If it gets them in the water, they’re both goners!” Nadie, Madison, Zoe, and Olivia clung to the crocodile’s tail, digging their feet into the sand and playing tug-of-war against the animal’s desire to make a snack out of Zack’s and Rice’s brains.

  But as the girls heaved and hoed, the crocodile slid backward. Zack and Rice watched as Ozzie leaped onto the beast and mounted its back.

  The zombie crocodile lurched violently, trying to buck Ozzie off its spine, but he rode the giant lizard like a champion cowboy at the rodeo. He grappled his way up to the crocodile’s neck and lashed Nadie’s rope around its muzzle, knotting it tightly so the zombie croc could no longer open its mouth.

  The crocodile thrashed as Rice and Zack ran back onto solid ground. It took all seven of them to flip the zombie croc on its back, but as soon as they did, the beast was harmless and the riverbank upstream was free and clear.

  “You did it!” Zack gave Ozzie a high five.

  They all followed Nadie up the riverbank and slowed down as their guide came to a stop.

  “There they are!” Nadie pointed to a muddy spot at the edge of the jungle river.

  The mayfly larvae covered the top of the wet soil, a squirming translucent film of bug eggs.

  “Ew, gross!” Madison squelched her face in disgust. “So nasty.”

  “Not as nasty as a bunch of super zombies,” said Zoe. “No offense to your family, Olivia.”

  “None taken,” Olivia said as Rice pulled out the special container from Nigel.

  “And now it’s time to make history,” he said. “Zombie history.”

  “The only one who’s going to make zombies history is me!” said Zoe as she snatched the container from Rice.

  “Hey!” Rice shouted, but she ignored him and stepped toward the mayflies.

  “Come on, let’s go!” Zack shouted to his sister as she slowly and carefully gathered the sample. “Hurry up!”

  “I’m going as fast as I can,” Zoe shouted back, sealing the lid. “Got it!”

  “Yeah, Zo!” Madison cheered. “You go, girl . . . you go!”

  Running back to the group, Zoe suddenly stumbled forward as her foot snagged a rock. She tripped face-first into a log.

  Zack gasped as the larvae container flew in the air, arcing through the drizzling rain, and plopped into the river.

  The container bobbed downstream, away from them.

  “Zoe!” Rice shouted. “What’d you do?”

  “Don’t yell at me, you little lamewad. It’s not like I meant to fall down,” Zoe yelled. “I’m not an Olympic athlete!”

  “You guys, we can’t lose those mayflies,” Madison said. “You heard what Nadie said! It’s not going to be their mating season for another six months!”

  “Why don’t you just take another sample?” Nadie asked them.

  “Because we need that special container to preserve them,” Ozzie explained.

  Zack turned to his sister. “Zoe, go get it,” he yelled. “You’re the one who dropped it.”

  “No way, José. There could be crocodiles in there,” she snipped. “Why don’t you go get it? You’re the one who was rushing me to—”

  Before Zoe could finish her sentence, Olivia had already taken off like a shot, running toward the river.

  “Olivia!” Madison shouted to her cousin. “Wait . . . come back!”

  But it was too late.

  Zack and the gang looked on as the last of the vital vegans dove in the water. Olivia kicked her feet, swimming after the container.

  “Look,” Rice shouted. “She’s gaining on it!”

  Olivia was gliding toward the floating sample. Zack watched as her arm reached out and snatched it out of the current.

  Gracefully, she changed course and swam back to the shore. Olivia stood on the riverbank and lifted the container victoriously above her head. “All-city swim meet, first place,” she bragged. “Set a record for my age bracket . . .”

  “Olivia, watch out!” Zack shouted, and Olivia whirled around to find herself face-to-face with the recently zombified, tail-less crocodile waddling out of the underbrush.

  The crocodile snapped its jaw with a sound like a carrot cracking in half, nearly nipping Olivia in the back of the leg. But she hopped out of the way just in time. With a squeal, she spun on her heel and ran back to her friends.

  “Nice job, Olivia!” Madison high-fived her cousin.

  “Yeah, good work, Olivia,” said Zack. “But could you please not do that ever again? You’re going to give me a heart attack. . . .”

  “Let’s get the heck out of here,” Ozzie said, then turned to Nadie. “Can you get us back to the coast? That’s where we left our plane.”

  “Yeah,” Nadie said. “But it’s going to be a little bit of a hike.”

  After running through the rain forest and back toward the west coast of Madagascar, all seven of the Zombie Chasers gasped for breath. It wasn’t a little hike but a very long and exhausting trek through the deepest part of the jungle. The air was thick and humid, making it hard to breathe. Both of Zack’s hamstrings felt like they were about to cramp. He couldn’t wait to get back to the plane. The sky had cleared up a bit as the storm clouds headed to the opposite side of the island. Finally, they left the jungle and hurried toward the beach, past a scattering of palm trees. The propeller plane sat about a quarter mile down the coast.

  Thankfully, the white sand was free of any undead animals or people. Without any zombies, the beach seemed peaceful, almost like paradise. Zack wished he could lie down and relax. But they didn’t have a second to lose. They had to stay on track and get the mayfly sample back to the Caribbean. Nigel Black was waiting for them.

  As the
y approached the aircraft, Zack could hear the plane’s communication system blaring from inside the cockpit. It could only be Nigel Black, and Zack hoped that nothing was wrong.

  Brrrring! Brrrrring! Brrrring! Ozzie jumped up into the airplane and answered the high-tech face-time walkie-talkie. Zack, then Nadie, then the rest of the kids hopped in after Ozzie and gathered around, listening to the telecom system.

  “Hello?” Ozzie said, a little out of breath. “Nigel . . . are you there?”

  “Ozzie! Thank goodness.” Nigel’s voice came through the receiver, and a fuzzy image of him popped onto the screen.

  Nigel’s face was a bit pixelated, but Zack could still make out his voice. “I’ve been trying to reach you all day long,” Nigel said. “Where were you?”

  “We got it! We just got the mayfly sample!” Ozzie said into the speaker. “We’re about to head back to you, and soon this will all be over.”

  “That’s great,” Nigel said. “Good work, but you can’t head back just yet.”

  “Why not?” Ozzie asked, looking confused.

  “While you were gone,” Nigel replied, “I ran some tests and made a few calculations with regard to the super zombie virus. . . .” There was something off in his voice, like he didn’t want to tell them what he’d discovered.

  “Don’t even tell me we came all the way to Madagascar for nothing. I was almost eaten by a zombie crocodile!” Zoe said, sticking her face in front of Ozzie and looking directly at Nigel.

  “Shush, Zoe.” Zack nudged his sister out of the way. “Let the man speak.”

  “So it turns out that . . . ,” Nigel said, clearing his throat, “we’re going to need one more ingredient to complete the super zombie antidote.”

  “What is it?” Madison asked. “What do we need?”

  “We’re going to need some more ginkgo biloba,” Nigel told them. Ginkgo biloba was the extract compound they had been using to knock out zombies. It was kind of like what garlic did to vampires, except one dose of ginkgo and a zombie, or even a super zombie, could be put into a coma for a few hours.

  “No problemo,” Rice said. “We can just pick some up at the local pharmacy on our way back.”

  “I’m afraid it’s not going to be that easy, Rice,” Nigel said. “I’m not talking about just any ginkgo biloba supplement you can buy in the store. We’re going to need a portion of the root from an ancient ginkgo tree. It’s the purest form of the specimen. And that means you’re going to have to travel to China.”

  “You mean China, China?” Olivia asked. “Like, other side of the world China?”

  China? Zack’s heart plummeted. The only thing Zack knew about China was what he had studied in school. His imagination wandered as Nigel kept talking.

  “That’s correct,” said Nigel. “And you’ll have to hurry up. If the mayfly larvae hatch, we won’t be able to use it for the antidote. So you’ll have to get to China and back in less than a week.”

  “I once tried to dig to China in the school sandbox,” Rice said. “It didn’t work out so well.”

  “We’re going to need more fuel,” Ozzie said, looking at the gauges on the dashboard.

  “I think we can do that,” replied Olivia. “Maybe we can find somewhere to fill up?”

  “If you don’t get slowed down too badly,” Nigel said, “you should be able to make it in plenty of time. You have my complete confidence. If anyone can do it, it’s you kids.”

  “I don’t understand,” Nadie said, butting in. “Why don’t you just bring the mayfly eggs back to him first and then head off for China?”

  “There’s no time for that!” Nigel replied. “I just ran a brain scan on our super zombie specimen. . . .” He meant Ben, Madison’s cousin and Olivia’s brother. Ben had been super-zombified when they had mixed the antidote with Spazola Energy Cola at Bunco’s Fun World. Nigel continued, “I’m sorry to say, but Ben’s symptoms are getting worse.”

  “But what does that mean, doc?” said Zoe.

  “In other words”—Nigel cleared his throat—“it would appear that the super zombies are getting stronger and smarter. They’re evolving at an accelerated rate. Have you run into any super zombies abroad?”

  “No,” said Ozzie. “Why would there be any overseas?”

  “How would that even be possible?” said Olivia. “I thought the only super zombies were back in Florida with my parents.”

  “Those are the only ones we know about,” Nigel said. “But you kids proved that to turn a zombie into a super zombie, it only needs to drink that energy cola. And that’s a super popular drink all over the world.”

  “Oh yeah?” Zoe said. “Well, I’ve got some concerns of my own—”

  The connection went fuzzy, and Nigel’s voice crackled with static. His image disappeared from the screen.

  “Come on!” Rice yelled, smacking the side of their telecom. “What’s the matter with this thing?”

  The airplane’s telecom system blinked again, and Nigel’s image came back on the tiny screen.

  “Nigel?” Madison said. “Where are we supposed to get this magical ginkgo root?”

  “You will be heading to the Zhejiang province in eastern China, near the Tianmushan reserve. The coordinates are on your map,” Nigel informed them. “There, you will find a tree at the top of an old monastery, on a mountain near the outskirts of town. Once you retrieve the ginkgo root, fly back west until you reach my island.”

  The kids stood in silence, slowly processing the mission and calculating the dangers that were now in store for them.

  “Well, what are you waiting for?” Nigel shouted over the line. “Get a move on!” The connection cut off, and he disappeared from the screen.

  Zack and the gang then turned to Nadie.

  “So,” she said after an awkward silence, “looks like you guys gotta get going. . . .”

  She looked a little sad, as if she had just realized her new friends were too good to be true. Zack felt sorry for her, and thought about how lonely she must be all by herself.

  “Do you want to come with us, Nadie?” Zack asked her.

  “Thanks, but I can’t,” said Nadie. “I’m needed here. . . .”

  “We’ll totes miss you, Nadie!” Zoe said.

  “Totes!” Nadie said, and gave everyone a hug.

  “Take care of yourself, Nadie,” Zack said as they prepared to leave. He felt her whistle in his pocket and handed it back to her. “Thank you for everything,” he said, looking her in the eyes. “I promise that after we find the cure for super zombies, we’ll come back and unzombify all of Madagascar and the rest of your family.”

  Nadie held the wooden whistle in her hand. “You should take it,” she said. “You have a long journey ahead of you.”

  “Nah.” Zack shook his head. “You need it more than we do, and besides, I don’t think there’ll be any lemurs or fossa running around where we’re headed.”

  “Okay,” Nadie said, tucking the whistle into her belt. “I guess you’re right.”

  And with that, Zack, Rice, Zoe, Madison, Ozzie, Olivia, and Twinkles waved farewell to Nadie. The propeller plane’s engine roared, and soon they took off in search of the ancient ginkgo tree.

  A few minutes after takeoff, Zack leaned his head against the back of his seat and drifted to sleep. . . .

  He awoke with a jolt and a half-remembered dream. Something about being in a garden filled with exotic flowers. An old man was training him in hand-to-hand combat. A herd of zombies was closing in. He was fighting to the death.

  The plane jerked again, and Zack shook back and forth in his seat.

  “Everybody buckle up,” Ozzie shouted. “Things are about to get a little rough!”

  Just then a sound like a buzz saw whizzed through the cabin and the aircraft bumped from side to side with turbulence.

  Glancing out the window, all Zack could see was a dense swirl of sand. His dream forgotten, Zack watched the propellers choke on dust and the back engine pop with an explosion. Bl
ack smoke began to rise.

  Zack felt his stomach twist as the plane pitched sideways in the wind.

  They were going down.

  Ozzie gripped the center stick with both hands, struggling to right the plane, which was out of control, nose-diving toward the ground. For a moment, Zack thought this might be it. He wasn’t panicked exactly, as going down in a fiery plane crash might actually be better than getting ripped apart by a bunch of zombies.

  Across the cabin, Madison clutched Twinkles to her chest. The scared little pup arfed nonstop. The plane tilted to the side. “Ozzie!” she shrieked. “Please don’t let us die, okay?”

  “Yeah, seriously!” Zoe shouted. “If I have to die, I’d rather get zombified and then bite Olivia and become a human again.”

  “You can’t get zombified, Zoe!” Rice said. “You already got unzombified. You’re immune!”

  “Shoot! I forgot about that,” Zoe said, smacking herself on the forehead. “Ozzie, don’t you dare crash this plane!”

  “Doing my best, guys,” Ozzie called back, focused on bracing the plane through the sandstorm. “Everyone hold on tight!”

  Zack felt the plane shift upward and one of the wings dip to the right. He closed his eyes tightly, when suddenly the plane touched down, slightly off-balance. They scraped the ground and fishtailed in the sand before skidding to a bumpy halt somewhere in the middle of the desert.

  A sense of calm flowed through the cabin as they all let out a collective phew. Rice was still clinging to Zoe’s shoulder with both hands.

  Ozzie looked back from the cockpit. “Everyone okay?” he asked.

  “I’d be doing way better if this little creepazoid got off me,” Zoe said. “Ew, Rice, you’re all sweaty. Get away!”

  “Rice, are you all right?” Olivia asked.

  “I think so,” Rice said, testing out all his joints. “Just a little dizzy.”