Zombie War: Interviews From The Frontline

by Lambdin, Susanne

  A lot of people had suffered. Nearly everyone I have met has lost someone during the zombie war. Many people have spent months barricaded inside somewhere, listening to the constant groans and howls of zombies’ mere feet away. There wasn’t only the horror of seeing people eaten alive; there were also a lot of criminals around who did a lot of damage. There were also many other problems such as starvation, disease and so on. In India the Black Plague made a huge resurgence, although it had still been active in the years immediately before the War.

  The bottom line is we had millions of survivors who were traumatised, suffering from depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. Some of them so severely they could barely move at all, they may as well have been in a coma. Others had constant nightmares, flashbacks, difficulty connecting with people, and difficulty functioning in day to day life. Post-traumatic stress disorder is kind of like being stuck in a panicked state. The person is always stressed. It comes about as a result of a person being unable to process what has happened to them.

  There are various ways we tried to address this. Intensive counselling was one of them. Even just having someone to talk to like a priest or a teacher could really help someone who was suffering. You saw a lot more of that in the days after the War was over, communities banding together and showing concern over individuals who were struggling to cope. I guess after the apocalypse hit we all kind of went back to a tribal mentality.

  Before the initial outbreak in 2018 the US military was researching the effects of psilocybin with soldiers who had post-traumatic stress disorder. Even in the early stages of research the cure rate was 80%, which is astonishing. Psilocybin is what you would probably have heard as magic mushrooms. There were essentially two ways of taking it. One way was to take what was known as a ‘heroic dose’ which was 5 grams of dried mushrooms straight up. This would cause a disconnection from reality so that the person wasn’t even aware of the room they were in. If you like, they were in another reality. This resulted in something called ‘ego death’ where the person separated from their own personality and gained a whole new perspective on their life.

  Now, for an ordinary Joe who has no psychological problems this was probably a fascinating and magical experience, full of wonderful illusions and fun. For someone suffering mental illness it was about eight hours of pure hell. All their fears, their paranoia, all their weaknesses, and any addictions they had, all of it was brought up and they were confronted with it. So, a ‘heroic dose’ is not what I would recommend.

  What we tended to go with, and what the US military was doing in 2018, was to go with micro-dosing. This involved giving the patient a much smaller dose of psilocybin, about 1 gram or less. At this dose the effects were barely noticeable, the patient would report feeling more alert, calmer, they could perceive much more detail in their environment, and they also felt physically stronger. They would be given one dose every four days. Typically, on the first day they felt best, then there were some residual effects on the second day, on the third day they got a reminder of what they were like without psilocybin, then on the fourth day they were given their next dose.

  We usually find that after about one year the patient doesn’t need psilocybin any more.

  Were there any other medications that were effective in treating mental health problems?

  There was research done into marijuana use but that wasn’t my area. I do know that the marijuana that was commonly used in 2018 was about twenty five times stronger than the stuff that was used back in the 70s. You would get these reporters saying, “I used to smoke marijuana in the 70s and it never did me any harm,” yeah, sure, but try smoking something twenty five times stronger and tell me how that goes. It would be a bit like if someone had a glass of wine with dinner every night you wouldn’t think anything of it. However, if they had twenty five glasses of wine a night then there would be a problem.

  I saw a lot of patients before the war who had developed schizophrenia and manic depression from smoking marijuana. As I said, marijuana wasn’t my field, so I don’t want to say definitively not use it. But I will say from what I saw I can’t recommend it.

  What were you doing before the War?

  [Smiles.] I was only just finishing my psychology qualification. I was married and had five children. My wife could really organise the household, when it was time to get the kids ready for school in the morning she would have them obediently cycling through the bathroom for a wash, she made sure they all had breakfast, the cat and dog were fed, and that everyone had their school bag ready for the day. Meanwhile I hadn’t even combed my hair or made a coffee yet! It’s hard to find a good woman like that, someone who is so supportive of what you do. I feel that a big reason I got through my psychology course is because of her. She’s my rock. She always will be.

  Where are your family now?

  [Smiles sadly.] I buried them during the War. They all died. Every one of them. But I hold them in my heart still. I always do. One day when all this is over I will see them again.

  MAGA – Make the Apocalypse Great Again

  Interviewer: Mick Franklin

  INTERVIEW 30:

  The conditions of this interview were that I would not be allowed to know where in the world this conversation was taking place. My blindfold is removed and I see that I am on board a yacht. I later learn that it is a perfect replica of the Maxim Gorky, the historic boat where President George Bush Senior once sat consoling President Gorbachev over the collapse of the Soviet empire while the Russian President arrogantly chided him over the evils of Capitalism.

  My host smiles and offers me a glass of champagne.

  There will never be a post-American world. You can see for yourself that although some people doubted America’s role as a super power that once again it is a mighty nation. When America was first formed it was made up to a large degree of volunteers from Europe, people who were brave enough to live in lawless, frontier country. With that type of blood running through their veins it’s easy to see why the Americans are doing so well.

  Mr President, no disrespect but I would like to focus on the events during the Zombie War.

  Go ahead.

  I won’t waste your time. I’ll get straight to the point. Did you use the Zombie War for your own political gain?

  Absolutely not. I certainly teamed up with certain valuable allies during the dark days. These were people who were similar to us -a strong nationalist, Christian nation. But our political goals were simply to establish some kind of control and order. There was no underlying plot for world domination.

  Okay, maybe not a plot then, Mr President, but it certainly looks as though there was some scheme where you seemed to do very well from the War.

  We did our best to deal with one of the worst global catastrophes of all time. Given what we were up against it is impossible to make everybody happy.

  You didn’t really answer my question, Sir.

  We did not have a scheme or plot or any kind of thing to take over the world. The global events were monstrous. Some situations could have been handled better, I should have been quicker to act in some circumstances, and I admit that.

  Are your allies the real bosses here?

  No. I’m my own man. Always will be. While I am certainly interested in alliances and making deals that are mutually beneficial I can never call another man boss.

  As a billionaire many people have accused you of profiting from the War, from -

  That’s called business.

  Would you deny that your enemies are dead or in such a state that it would be decades, maybe even centuries, before they could threaten your nation again?

  Who do you perceive my enemies to be?

  Well, China is no longer a credible threat due to their catastrophic action of nuking themselves, the Middle East is a smoking pit of ruin and may never recover, and many other countries are still crippled by the War with hordes of zombies and armed gangs running unchecked throughout the countryside. I wo
uld say that places you in a very good position, Mr President. Or would you disagree?

  I prefer to think of it that we’re all in this together. And I’m just someone who is trying to help out the rest of the world. There’s no room for old terms like “enemy” any more. Especially when there’s so few people left.

  Right, because you’re such a nice person?

  No. I will always place my own nation’s best interests first. That’s what a true leader does. But that doesn’t mean that I’m not willing to help other nations out.

  For the right price.

  Naturally. Many resources are scarce now, even with a drastically reduced world population. If my countrymen are going to be providing food or water or manpower then we expect to be re-compensated handsomely. The days of gifting charity to ungrateful nations is long gone.

  So, you’re willing to help as long as you do it your way. It would seem you and your allies didn’t help everybody out equally. Israel sure got a lot of help. But when Venezuela collapsed and millions of refugees poured out but were refused shelter in the US.

  That’s right. There was a lot going on there you probably don’t understand. That entire situation, everything that was going on in Venezuela, was funded by the Iranian government. They wanted to create a refugee disaster to cost the United States as much money as possible, while at the same time allowing thousands of jihadis to gain entry to the US by blending in with the Venezuelan refugees. That’s why they weren’t allowed in.

  You yourself are suspected of triggering the Iranian revolution of 2018, the result which toppled that government and destroyed its Islamic regime. Was that your intention?

  [Smiles.] Well, I don’t know anything about that. But I will say that I’m glad the Iranian people now have their own country back. Good for them.

  You didn’t do much to help out in the Middle East. A lot of the territory there is still a hot zone of the living dead. Do you think you neglected those innocent people?

  We established safe zones within the borders of many of those countries. Genuine refugees who were willing to cooperate and follow our rules were encouraged to seek sanctuary in those zones.

  But those zones could hardly accommodate the millions of people who desperately needed them. Many people were turned away by the soldiers stationed there, only to be absorbed by the zombie crowds themselves, fuelling the problem.

  We were short on manpower and fighting the War on many fronts. It was the best we could offer with what we had available to us. Those countries were deeply troubled long before the War broke out.

  Okay, but you still could have done more to help. Once Europe was reasonably under control with its own established safe zones more troops could have been sent to the Middle East to help out. Do you accept that?

  Sure, they could have been. A lot of things could have been done differently. We concentrated on saving our allies first and taking back strategic points. The truth is a lot of people did have to sit tight and wait. We’re still in the process of getting to everybody.

  There’s a lot of people who have been waiting a long time for your help.

  Well, my face is now chiselled on the side of a certain mountain; I don’t know if you’ve seen that.

  Yes, I’ve seen it.

  And I’ve got a few Nobel Peace Prizes lying around at home, so what I did can’t have been all bad.

  You’ve been accused of many underhanded tactics during the War. And it has been suggested that you used the War as a pretence to settle old political issues. For example, my sources indicate you used the “Re Mercs” zombie mercenaries for toppling regimes and destroying your enemies. You also have Special Forces soldiers at your disposal, not to mention covert agents, nuclear weapons, and you are also suspected of unleashing the most dangerous man in Russia, the Nightmare Man, upon your enemies. What do you have to say about all this?

  I’m not on trial here. If you don’t have any proof of those accusations then I’m not going to discuss them.

  After everything you’ve done . . . even if only half of it is true . . . how do you sleep at night?

  [Laughs and sips his champagne.] When it’s a perfect world let me know.

  What do you think of the American people?

  I have a great deal of admiration for the American people. I would like to think that in these troubling times that we will share a bright future together.

  I’ve spoken with retired agents there who said that the Russian government and the American government conspired to take over the world together. I don’t have enough evidence to act on yet, but I will one day.

  Is that a question? Because if it’s not I think we’re about done with this interview. It’s a beautiful afternoon and your champagne is getting warm.

  Okay, okay. I think that will be all. For now. Can I shake your hand?

  You may.

  [We shake hands.]

  Thank you, President Putin.

  You’re welcome, my friend. You can visit me any time you like, with or without more interview questions. And if I’m not in the United States of America, then you’ll probably find me at home in Russia.

  PALERMO, SICILY

  Interview 31:

  Video footage taken from the port’s surveillance camera and from two helicopters reveal the following events:

  Two military helicopters fly in above the port. Don Orazio is there, sitting on a plastic lawn chair eating an ice cream. He watches the helicopters with interest. Armed Mafioso step out of the buildings and the oil rig stationed at the port, curious. The helicopter doors open and ten soldiers are lowered through the air on ropes. They land gracelessly. These soldiers have stilted, awkward gaits. They are clutching assault weapons. On the back of each soldier is spray painted the word “Re-Merc”.

  The Mafioso begin firing at the Re-Mercs but with little effect, as the body armour of the undead soldiers absorbs the bullets. Then the Re-Mercs get close to the soldiers and the killing begins.

  Don Orazio is screaming as his men fall, no sound caught by the cameras, but he seems to be shouting, “What the fuck is going on?”

  As the Mafia men die around him, either being gunned down at close range or else ripped apart by the armoured ghouls, Don Orazio falls on his knees and begs for mercy. His eyes widen as the zombie soldiers loom closer and the Mafia boss realises there will be no mercy given.

  He tries to run but one zombie fires a shotgun blast into his back, knocking Don Orazio to the deck, crimson blood spreading across his white suit. He turns to face the zombies gathered around him.

  The zombies close in on Don Orazio, obscuring the camera angle as they rip him apart, and the port is awash with Mafia blood.

  AUTHOR BIOS

  Susanne L. Lambdin is the author of the Dead Hearts Novels series, and The Realm of Magic trilogy, among other published works. Influenced by her love for film, she moved to Los Angeles in the mid-1980s where she worked at Paramount Pictures to further her writing aspirations. She received a screen credit for her contribution to Star Trek: TNG - Season 4, Episode 76, entitled ‘Family’.

  To contact Susanne and find out more about current and upcoming projects, visit:

  www. susannelambdin. com

  www. deadheartsnovel. com

  www. the-realm-of-magic. Com

  Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

  * Inspired from characters from the ‘Dead Hearts Novels series’:

  Interview 6: Manitou Springs, Colorado -Pikes Peak Cog Railway by Susanne L. Lambdin

  Interview 20: Miami Florida – ‘The Wall of Liberty’ by Susanne L. Lambdin

  Mick Franklin is the author of The Nightmare Man, Crimson Tears, and Zombies vs Psychopaths. He is dedicated to providing as much accurate research in his books as he possibly can. His writing motto is ‘for the fans.’ He is heavily influenced by the films of George Romero, particularly the original Dawn of the Dead. He has travelled to many countries, including Russia, India, Sicily, Egypt, Norway, China, Indonesia, Japan and
France. He has also produced a number of short zombie films available on YouTube under “zombie containment Edinburgh.”

  By day he works as a medic.

  He can be reached at mick.franklin@hotmail.com.

  I'm U.S. Veteran and author TJ Weeks, as well as owner of Texas Vet Barbecue. I started writing when I was very young. My first book was published at the early age of 12 by my middle school. After serving 8 years in the military, as well as an 18 month Iraq deployment I started dabbling in writing again. I finally published my second book in 2009. I started my writing career in 2012 and have been doing it ever since. After close to 60 published books I took a short break to take care of my dad when he was diagnosed with colon cancer and now back to what I love most. I have one book (The Horror Squad) going to film (2018), as well as a comic book series. I've won many awards in my career and have high hopes of continuing my success. If you've read one of my books, please leave a review and if you haven't ever read one of my books, please read the reviews and give one a try. There's honestly not many bias reviews on any of my books, I have PTSD and don't talk to enough people to have bias in my life.