Testing Zero: a dystopian post-apocalyptic young adult novella series (Remnants of Zone Four Chronicles Book 1)

by Simsion, N. G.

  “Then what?”

  “I don’t know. We’ll figure that out when we get there.”

  “That’s a terrible plan.”

  “Yes it is, but it’s the best I’ve got. If you have anything better, I’m open for suggestions.”

  The sun beat down on them so heavily that it didn’t take them long before they didn’t want to continue down the center of the road anymore. They walked as close to the trees as they could in order to benefit from the shade.

  Cars passed by every few minutes. Most of them were going toward the testing grounds—probably to take part in the draft. Zero waved his arms as they approached, hoping there was still a chance to get back in time for the draft, but those hopes quickly dissipated. The drivers of those cars took great interest in them, slowing enough to get a look at them, but never stopping. Some of those drivers wore purple and traveled in shiny silver cars. Others drove pickup trucks and dressed in the standard issue white t-shirts.

  Flea remained ten feet behind them at all times. They did their best to maintain a quick pace. They did not want to spend any more time in the old world than was necessary. It was only a guess, but Zero felt pretty confident they could reach one of those cities before nightfall. For all he knew, they might be walking toward the front gates of Exile City. Whatever city they found might not be too welcoming toward people wandering in from the old world.

  There was a real possibility that the old world could be their whole life from now on. If that were the case, then finding food and protective shelter would quickly become top priority, neither of which any of them knew how to do.

  Zero lifted his eyes and noticed that a few hundred yards away the road forked in two directions.

  “I think we should take the right fork,” Zero said.

  “How come?” Lefty asked.

  “I don’t know. I’m just going with my gut on this one. In my mind it seems like that way is a little faster.”

  “I’m coming with you,” Flea said from behind.

  Zero had already assumed he would, but he also knew Lefty would jump on this chance to torture him a little.

  “What’s it like to be the follower now?” Lefty laughed. “Now you’re the tagalong, not the leader. All your little shadows are back there waiting for the draft while you’re here begging to follow after us.”

  “You think this is funny?” Flea asked. “I admit it. I’m not too crazy about wandering around the old world alone. Even if that does mean I have to stick with two worthless—”

  Something rustled in the bushes nearby. Flea screamed as he jumped. It was just a rabbit. It sprinted out of the brush, darted between them, and then hurried down the road and out of sight.

  They all laughed at this—even Flea. But just as they were about to resume walking, Zero grabbed Lefty’s arm and pointed at the trees. They went silent, eyes large.

  There, standing in the shadows about fifteen feet back from the tree line, was a man. His clothes were tattered. His skin was as dark as the mud of the swamp—just like the Remnants they had seen the day before. He wasn’t moving. He was only watching them.

  Then Zero noticed another set of eyes monitoring them. He was even closer than the first.

  “Don’t make any sudden movements,” Lefty whispered.

  Chapter 15

  Zero remained still as his eyes bounced back and forth between the two dark-skinned men in the bushes. For a long time, he didn’t dare move other than taking a step back. He knew very little about the Remnants’ behavioral tendencies, but he was pretty sure these men wouldn’t lose interest and simply walk away.

  “We can’t stand here forever,” Zero whispered.

  “If we try to run, they’ll chase us down,” Lefty said.

  Zero felt the sweat on his forehead drip down the side of his face and off his chin. Another drop was threatening to slide into his eye, but he resisted the urge to wipe it away out of fear that any sudden movements might trigger an attack. “Maybe not. They act like animals, but they’re still human. Maybe they’re not any faster than we are.”

  “It doesn’t matter who’s fastest or slowest,” Flea said, not bothering to keep his voice down. “It matters whether or not someone has a head start.” He took off at a full sprint, running down the center of the road with his head tilted back and his arms swinging wildly. He was 10 steps away before either Zero or Lefty followed after him.

  Zero had known Flea for as long as they both could remember. He had no respect for him, but this was an all-time low for him.

  Zero was easily the fastest of the three. Within only a few running steps, he realized it wouldn’t take very long to catch up and pass Flea, but that would leave Lefty trailing far behind. He slowed to keep pace with Lefty, and the distance between them and Flea grew increasingly wider.

  Zero looked back and saw the two Remnants following, but not at a full pace. The closer of the two was over a hundred feet away. His animalistic scream pierced the air. The Remnant farthest away had a club foot and ran with a limp in his step, his body leaning slightly to the right with one hand curled in to his chest. Black saliva stained the fronts of their shirts.

  “I think we’re starting to lose them,” Zero said, his face still looking back.

  Lefty stopped abruptly—his shoes skidding on the blacktop. Zero was about to ask what the matter was and urge him to continue on when he looked ahead and saw a Remnant run out of the trees. He walked to the center of the road where he stood a short distance ahead of Flea with his arms his above his head and his fingers out like claws. Flea stiffened up--his shoes sliding and stopping on the blacktop. He reversed his direction and headed back toward Zero and Lefty.

  The two Remnants following behind slowed to a walk. Their chests heaved. Their bloodshot eyes bulged. They gnashed their rotting yellow and brown teeth, growling.

  “Run or fight?” Lefty asked, breathing heavily.

  “I … I don’t know.” Zero was terrified of either option. He had seen hundreds of fights in his life, but he didn’t know the first thing about swinging his own fists. If they chose to run, the only place they could go would be into the dense woods on either side of the road. If there were three Remnants this close to the road, then running into the woods could very well lead them directly into a pack of them. As horrifying as the thought of fighting three of them was, defending themselves against hundreds would be much worse.

  He looked at the Remnant up ahead, who was now chasing Flea back toward them, and then back at the two coming up from the rear. He darted toward the trees and grabbed onto a branch that was about the same thickness as his arm. It took three jerks to break it free from the trunk. He quickly snapped off its small peripheral branches before bringing it down over his knee to break off three feet of the thicker part. He threw the club to Lefty, who took a few swings at the air to warn off the coming Remnants.

  Zero grabbed hold of another branch and quickly made himself a weapon to match. He hurried to Lefty’s side and they stood back-to-back in the center of the road.

  Flea was soon once again at their side. “Don’t let them get me. Don’t let them get me.” His voice shook almost as much as his hands.

  “You have a lot of nerve asking us to protect you,” Lefty said. “Why don’t you make yourself useful? At least grab some rocks or something.”

  Flea scurried to the side of the road, where he began gathering rocks. A fourth Remnant screamed and came bursting from the bushes with his mouth open wide. Flea had almost no time to react, but he was able to raise his right elbow, which struck him just below the eye before he could sink in his teeth.

  The Remnant fell face-first to the ground. He lifted his head and cried out in pain before grabbing hold of Flea’s ankle with both hands. The outer layers of skin had peeled off when his face hit the ground, embedding gravel into his cheek. He bared his teeth, half of which were mis
sing, and pulled at his leg.

  Within three quick steps, Lefty was at his side. He swung his club down as if swinging a large hammer, catching the back of the Remnant’s head at the base of his skull. The Remnant’s arms dropped limply to the ground and his face bounced once again off the gravel.

  “Is he dead?” Zero asked.

  “No. His chest is still moving,” Lefty said.

  Flea jumped on top of him, placing one knee on his spine. He pulled both arms together behind his back so that one wrist was on top of the other. “I’ll keep this one subdued. You guys figure out how to keep the other ones away.”

  The other three Remnants paused their advance. They remained thirty feet away on either side of them, their chests heaving, rambling nonsense and spitting black saliva all over themselves.

  The one with the clubfoot was the first to peel off and disappear into the woods.

  A shiny silver car approached. It was heading in the direction of the testing grounds. It slowed almost to a stop as it passed the first Remnant, who slapped an open hand on the side of the car, but the driver didn’t dare stop. He drove slowly enough that he was able to make eye contact with Zero, who was standing at the side of the road gripping his club in front of him. The driver was wearing the distinctive purple robe of an Elite. He rolled his eyes as he drove past, as if he was annoyed that their tomfoolery had caused him to use his brake.

  When Zero looked back down the road, another one of the Remnants had gone. He turned toward the only one left standing in the road and swung his club threateningly through the air. “Go on. Get out of here.”

  Lefty laughed. “That’ll never get rid of him. You don’t look mean enough.” He picked up a fist-sized rock from the side of the road and hurled it at the Remnant before running a few steps toward him with his club high above his head, yelling as loudly as he could.

  The Remnant watched the rock bounce down the street, nowhere near hitting him. He took a step back when Lefty began to scream, and then backpedaled until he reached the trees. He didn’t fully disappear into the woods like the other two had. He stepped a short distance into the shadows and crouched low into the bushes.

  The Remnant under Flea’s knee began to stir. His red eyes were glassy at first, unfocused as he gradually regained consciousness. He muttered gibberish, spitting and biting at the air.

  “What are we supposed to do with him? Kill him?” Flea asked.

  “I’m not killing him,” Zero said, taking a step back.

  “I’m not either.” Lefty crouched down in front of the Remnant but remained out of spitting distance. He looked him in the eye. “You know what I think, Zero? I think this would be a great opportunity for us to… ummm, what’s the phrase I’m looking for?” He grinned. “Oh yeah… for us to ‘get a head start.’” He pretended he was going to run away, but he didn’t actually take a step.

  “You wouldn’t.” Fear was all over Flea’s face now.

  Lefty noticed a large box truck coming toward them and he stepped out of the road. “You’re right. I wouldn’t. Because I’m not you.” He pointed a finger in Flea’s face. “But we may be out here in the old world together for a very long time, and if you ever pull something like that again, then yes, I would dare.”

  A high pitched squeal pierced the air as the box truck slowed to a stop next to them. A young man only a few years older than they were hopped out of the passenger seat and stepped toward them. He stopped a few feet away and placed his hands on his hips. He wore a plain white t-shirt that was covered in dried blood. His disposition seemed pleasant, but the blood all over his front made his appearance alarming. He looked down at the Remnant, then at Flea, and then back down at the Remnant. “What in the old world is going on here?” he asked.

  “We got attacked.” Lefty said matter-of-factly. “There were four of them, but the other three got away.”

  “There were four of them? And you caught one?” His mouth hung open as he looked back and forth between Lefty and Zero.

  “Yeah, well, one of them is still over there in the bushes.” Lefty pointed at the Remnant hiding in the shadows fifty feet away.

  The young man jumped when he discovered what Lefty was pointing at and took two steps back toward the truck. “Who are you guys?”

  “Students. We just took our placement tests,” Flea said.

  “Then aren’t you supposed to be at the testing grounds? The draft is starting soon.”

  “We got kicked out for fighting,” Zero said. “Cumulus drove us out here and dropped us off to fend for ourselves.”

  The young man shook his head. “That guy always thinks he has more authority than he actually has. I remember him from when I took my tests.” He walked toward the back of the truck. He jerked the handle and the back slid upward. “Get in. I’ll take you back to the testing grounds.”

  “What about me?” Flea was beginning to panic. “You can’t leave me here. I can’t let go of this guy or he’ll bite me.”

  “Choke him out,” Lefty said. “Wrap your arm around his neck and squeeze until he passes out.”

  “I’m not getting my arm anywhere near his mouth,” Flea said.

  “Then I don’t know what to tell you.” Lefty grinned.

  Zero groaned. “You guys are pathetic.” He pulled off his shirt. He ripped it down the center, and then ripped it again to create a single strip of white fabric. He walked a wide circle around to the back of the Remnant, checking in the trees to make sure nothing or nobody was going to come chasing out after him, and then knelt down next to Flea. He wrapped the strip of cloth around the Remnant’s wrists before pulling it tightly into a knot. “This should hold at least long enough for us to get into the back of the truck.”

  Flea rose up to his feet while keeping one hand on the Remnant’s wrists. He counted to three and everyone then ran together to the back of the truck. Zero placed one foot on the rear bumper and jumped in before turning around and offering his hand to Lefty. He pulled Lefty in and offered Flea his other hand at the same time.

  The truck began to pull away before they had fully situated themselves in the back. Lefty almost tipped out, but Zero grabbed him by the shirt and kept him in. They sat themselves between the cargo crates, which was mostly pallets of bananas and other fruits.

  They looked back at the Remnant as he grew smaller in the distance. He ran along the side of the road, snarling and biting at the air with his hands still tied behind his back.

  “Now what do we do?” Zero asked. Escaping the Remnants was a relief, but heading back toward the testing grounds and the draft felt like they were only swapping one problem for another.

  Chapter 16

  Zero reached up and grabbed hold of the handle attached to the back door of the box truck. He pulled it down, causing everything to go dark when it closed. He fumbled around in the dark, feeling his way to a comfortable spot to sit between two large crates of bananas.

  “I think I have an idea,” Zero said. “I say we try to stow away. There’s no way they’ll need this many bananas for just the testing grounds, which means this truck is likely to go other places as well. We’ll stay back here until the truck gets to its next stop and we’ll jump out then. We’ll try to blend into that city like we belong there.”

  “That’s a terrible plan,” Flea said.

  Even in the dark Zero could picture the snide look on Flea’s face.

  “Who said you were coming with us?” Lefty asked. “Just because we didn’t let that Remnant kill you doesn’t mean we want you following us around for the rest of our lives like a little pet. After this truck stops at the testing grounds, why don’t you do us all a favor and get out? Consider this our goodbye.”

  Flea didn’t bother to respond. They rode in silence for the rest of the drive. When the truck slowed to a stop, they could hear a short conversation between the driver and the guards working the
gate, but the words were too muffled to distinguish. They moved forward again, stopped at the inner gate, and then continued on for a short distance before coming to a complete stop somewhere on the testing grounds. The sound of the engine died, followed by the truck’s doors opening and closing.

  Zero squinted in the sunlight as the back door slid open, revealing the young man in the bloody shirt a few feet away.

  “I do believe this is your stop,” the young man said. “Everybody out.”

  Flea sprung to his feet and climbed out. He stood just outside the truck to dust himself off before leaning in. “These two are hoping to stow away in the back of your truck, just so you know. You may want to check it before leaving the area.” He shot Lefty a grin.

  Zero’s heart sank to his stomach. There went his only plan.

  The young man laughed before waving for them to jump out of the truck. “Come on out of there, boys. I’m sure that sounds like a fun adventure, but they’re monitoring us pretty closely. We would all be in pretty deep trouble if we got caught letting you do that.”

  Zero closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then exited the back of the truck. “Thanks for saving us back there, by the way. In all that excitement, we didn’t have time to thank you.”

  “Save you? You looked like you were doing pretty well on your own. If anything, picking you guys up probably saved the life of that Remnant.” He laughed again. “My name is Root, by the way.” He offered his hand to shake.

  “Zero.” He shook his hand and then pointed a finger at the others. “And this is Lefty, and Flea.”

  Zero looked across the grounds and saw that everyone was beginning to gather in the seats around the fighting cages. The students who were anxiously waiting for the draft to start were sitting in those chairs while others, most of whom were dressed in purple robes, walked around with clipboards in hand jotting notes and taking a moment to look them over.