by A. L. White
Z Chronicles 2 Book Set
Z Chronicles: Surge of the Dead
Hybrid Z
By A.L.White
Z Chronicles: Surge of the Dead" Copyright © 2015 A.L.White.
Hybrid Z Copyright © 2016 A.L.White.
Quality © 2016 A.L.White.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever, without written permission of the author.
Contents
Z Chronicles: Surge of the Dead CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 24
CHAPTER 25
Hybrid Z Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Quality
Z Chronicles: Surge of the Dead
By A.L.White
To my Uncle John, who has always supported me and taught me to be the person that I am today
Virginia and Lori have survived the first wave of the Zombie Apocalypse by relying on wit and skills imparted by the harsh realities of their new world and the guidance of their companions. Enduring a world where all they knew and loved has perished has taken quite a toll on the girls but they soldier on regardless; ever determined to continue their journey on old Bob’s map.
This is the second book in the Z Chronicles, a series of adventures crafted as my imagination runs wild. If thirst for a new perspective on zombie stories, then come into my world for a story or two.
When the Lamb broke the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come.” I looked, and behold, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him. Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth.
Revelation 6:7-8
Z Chronicles: Surge of the Dead
CHAPTER 1
Virginia sat outside in the cold, chilling air watching Lori and Jonas drive away in the truck. If anyone should have been in that truck, it was her and she did not understand why he could not see that. In the past few months no one had become as good as she had at hunting and killing zombies. It was like second nature now; easier with each passing day. Even the two point zeroes were nothing to Virginia. Rarely did she mention that; Bob had told her to try to steer clear of them because they were smarter than the normal ones.
The door opened behind her and Jack came through, he nodded his head, and went over by the trailer. That was where he spent the better part of his day; with the laptop plugged into the solar panels. Virginia wanted to tell him, at least a million times, that it was all a waste of his time. If he was so smart and could not figure out the simplest thing as that, then maybe he was not as bright as everyone had thought. They were all as good as dead. The sooner he learned that, the better off he would be; maybe he would even stop being dead weight in her mind. Still, she did like Jack, in his own way he was a loner like her. Even before the world moved on, Virginia did not have many friends. The ones she did have tolerated her, she thought. Funny, she could not remember how many times they had called her a crybaby growing up. They would all be surprised now to see that she had no more tears left to cry. Why would she? Even if she felt like she wanted to, who would care? What would it change? All her family, except for Lori, were dead and it probably would not be too long before she was. Lori kept talking about things that did not matter anymore. Virginia did not see a point in remembering. It was too hard to face, and served no purpose in the world that they lived in now. Mom was not coming home with dinner. Dad could not look over the arrows she made yesterday and say, “good job pumpkin.” They were gone and that is where she wanted to leave them. No pleasant thoughts of family time to clutter up her mind when she had to concentrate. If anyone here was useful to Virginia, it was Bob. She and he had hit it off right away.
Bob was a little bit like her dad but more real somehow. Dad had pretended to be prepping for the end of the world; Bob did prepare for the end of the world.
The door opened behind her, causing Virginia to lose her train of thought. She turned around to see Bob coming slowly towards her. He sat down off to her left where Zeus and Perseus joined him on either side. Virginia pretended not to see him, still upset over his objections to her going into town at breakfast.
“So that’s how it’s going to be?” he asked her.
Virginia rolled her eyes but did not answer.
“I guess you could have gone into town with your sister. Of course, then me and the lads would have had to do this other job,” he stated.
Virginia let out a sigh, she could tell when Bob was trying to play her, and this was one of those times if she had ever seen one.
“The lads and I are going to go out and reconnoiter the area,” he said to the back of her head. “You know what reconnoiter is?”
Virginia laughed a low shallow laugh, “To go scout an area?”
Bob put his hand on her shoulder to get Virginia’s full attention. “Yes, that is what it is, young lady. We need to know that our area is safe to stay in for the time being, if we are going to stay here for the winter, that is.”
“Safe? We haven’t seen a person, dead or alive, other than the people in this group!”
“The other night Zeus there was acting a little odd. I think something may be out there and we need someone to look. I could send the lads, but they can’t talk. I guess I can take them for a walk to have a look see, might do me and them some good to stretch our legs.”
Virginia was not stupid by any means and she knew that if she did not go, Bob would definitely go. He would go just because, now that he had asked her, she was refusing. He knew that his heart was not holding out as well as they had hoped. He was growing weaker every day and everyone knew it. No one said anything aloud for whatever reason.
“I will take the pups and have a look around if it will stop you from nagging all day long,” Virginia finally said, managing to smile at him.
One of the few things that made Virginia still feel human was when Bob smiled at her as he was doing now. It was the way her father used to smile at her when she did something right. “Where do you think I should start?”
Bob thought a minute and then said, “Start over that way, towards the farm we passed coming in here. The lads seem to sniff the air in that direction a lot lately.”
She knew e
xactly where Bob was talking about, and he knew that she had been there a few times while she was hunting. There was not much there besides the old farmhouse and the barn, but she would go look and make Bob happy. Besides, it would give her something to do other than her chores.
“Let me grab a few things, and the Lads and I will go scout it out,” she stated, climbing to her feet.
“Virginia,” Bob said halting her, “you run into anything out there, you get safe little lady. If you have to, climb as high as you can and wait it out. Never mind the lads, they will take care of themselves, you hear?”
Virginia paused for a moment and continued on, returning with a backpack and more arrows.
“Come on boys, let’s go,” she said to the lads.
As she headed with the dogs toward the gate Bob called out her name, but she kept going. He called out again, “Virginia!”
“I will get high if I run into anything Bob, promise.” She said as they neared the gate.
Opening the gate, she let the dogs go through first and then followed. Perseus ran forward about twenty feet and then dove into the snowy undergrowth of the ditch. Virginia and Zeus ran as fast as they could to see what he had found. Only to find it was the puppy in Perseus coming out again. She laughed at him and called for him to come on. The whole way towards the farm Zeus walked to her right-side keeping pace while Perseus would bolt up a head then return trying to get on her right side. A playful snap from Zeus sent him off charging ahead again.
Virginia loved being out here by herself with the dogs. Here in their company she felt free of any worries. She took care of them and they took care of her.
Reaching the beginning of the long gravel driveway leading to the farmhouse, Virginia stopped, looking around and listening for any movement that seemed unnatural. A swing hanging from an old tree about ten feet in front of the front porch swung gently in the wind. A broken shutter, hanging by a single fastener, banged against the windowsill. Satisfied that there were no other movements or sounds that stuck out to her, Virginia moved forward. Zeus took the lead with Perseus staying a few feet to her left. He was not running off to play now. Virginia thought it was amazing how he knew it was time to be serious. Slowly they made their way past the swing and up the crumbling sidewalk to the porch stairs. Virginia started to step up but halted as Zeus turned sideways in front of her. She could see that the door was ajar and knew what he wanted.
“Well then, go ahead and check it out. What are you waiting for?”
Zeus went up the stairs with Perseus and nudged the door open. After standing there for a few minutes sniffing they disappeared into the building. Virginia looked around as she stood there impatiently, waiting for the all clear. The wait was not long as Perseus came running out of the house with a tennis ball in his mouth. At the top of the porch, Zeus’s big head popped into the door opening and she knew all was clear inside.
“It’s about time,” she said, laughing at him as she climbed the old stairway onto the porch. Zeus backed up a few steps to let her and Perseus into the house. The room had an old brown, full size sofa and a love seat arranged in an L shape towards the outside walls. Next to the door, going into the next room, was a rocking chair. Just like the ones Virginia had seen outside of a restaurant that her father loved going to for breakfast when she was small. The walls were covered with pictures of what she had assumed where the previous owners and their family. In the next room, she found the kitchen, like the previous room it was clean, but looked well-worn and old. Out of reflex, Virginia opened the refrigerator door, letting out a horrid smell that even backed up the dogs. Slamming the door closed, she froze and listened for any movement. She was mad because it was a careless move to make. Something she knew better than to do.
At the back of the kitchen she found a stairway leading to the second floor. It too looked old and narrow. Not enough room for her and one of the dogs to go up next to side by side and it seemed hard for Zeus to climb. Once up there it was more of the same, the furniture was old and falling apart. It looked like the family had left. Maybe the authorities had taken them. Either way, Virginia was satisfied that the house was empty and safe. She returned downstairs and started out the kitchen door to the head towards the barn. Zeus and Perseus nearly knocked her off her feet passing her by just as she began to step. Perseus had the tennis ball again as if to say, “Ok we are safe, let’s play.” Virginia called him over to her, took the ball from him, and threw it as far as she could. Perseus charged off to retrieve the ball while Zeus sat down and crooked his head, watching. When Perseus returned, Virginia held the ball in front of Zeus and said, “Come on old guy, let’s play a little.” She smiled as she threw the ball nearly to the barn. A laugh escaped her when Zeus knocked Perseus over trying to get an unfair advantage in the race for the ball.
It was in that moment that she had appeared; from out of the depths of Virginia’s soul, a place hidden deep from the world and safe. It was the real Virginia. From the times before her mom had gotten sick, before her dad had been dragged from the house by the emergency services people, and long before her brother had died so violently. There in the field between the house and barn she was running around and laughing like a kid again. Every now and then a scream would escape her, as she wrestled the ball away from the dogs and threw it again. She was having such a good time that she had lost track of time and everything else around her. Only when it looked like Zeus had laid down refusing to chase the ball did she take notice of the movement around them circling in closer. Zeus did not growl or move; he just laid there panting as if he could not catch his breath. Perseus moved in front of both and growled.
Virginia reached for her crossbow, but it was gone. She had laid it down on the ground about thirty feet away from her. Her head snapped from the bow to the zombies. They were closer, by far, but slower. In a mad dash, she ran towards the bow; a shadow came from her left closing within inches. It quickly went down as Perseus attacked the creature, knocking it off its feet, and to the ground.
Virginia put an arrow into the crossbow and spun towards Perseus, busy tearing the throat out of the zombie. She called him to her side and backed towards Zeus who was still lying on his side panting. There were too many for her to fight. Even more, Virginia thought, than there had been outside of the lab where they patched up Bob and Jack.
When she reached Zeus, she yelled at him to get up and move. Zeus lifted his head up and stared at her with pleading eyes. It looked to Virginia like he was hurt and afraid for the first time since she had met the dogs at Bob’s house. Then, from where he was laying, Zeus saw the zombies cross into his field of vision. Something inside him willed him to his feet, driving him to protect Virginia. Once up and moving forward, slowly, on unsteady legs, he pulled his lips back into a snarl bearing his massive teeth. Virginia patted him on the head and moved backwards towards the barn. It was the only path left to them, and it seemed the safest right now.
With each step backward the herd surged forward. Slowly, like a train on a track, toward them. Perseus stayed right by Virginia’s side with Zeus still blocking the path between her and the approaching zombies.
A hand reached from the side, grabbing a hold of Zeus, and he turned into it snapping his maw like crazy. Virginia shot an arrow into the head of one zombie as Zeus vanished from sight. As she reached the barn door Virginia could still hear him growling and fighting the herd off. Perseus moaned for his companion and right then, Zeus broke free of the herd, running to his companions. Virginia swung the door open enough for them to get through and slammed it closed behind her. On the door, there was a clumsy looking lock that she latched and then pulled an old box over in front of it.
Surprisingly, the barn was well lit by the light streaming through the random holes in the loft rafters. Virginia could hear the herd moving around the barn as they enveloped it. The door was probably the weakest point, she thought, and even that opened outward. The makeshift latch should hold unless they had grown smarter and knew to
pull it outward. Zeus seemed to be doing a little better as he lay down on the hard dirt floor in front of her. She would check on him as soon as the rest of the barn had been checked out. In the back, just on the other side of a green tractor it looked like there was a stair case off to the right, in the shadows.
Raising her crossbow, Virginia moved toward it. When she noticed Perseus moving to her side she told him to stay. If anything did pop out, Zeus would need all the help he could get right now. On she went, towards the shadows, to see if that was what she had thought it was. It would make her a whole lot happier to stay up off the ground floor if she could. The murmur of the zombies outside made it harder to concentrate on the job at hand. Her eyes were looking forward trying to make out every shape, but her mind and ears were wandering towards the noise.
Just beyond the large tire on the tractor, Virginia could finally make out the stairs and a barrel of some sort. The stairs looked better than the stairs inside of the house. They creaked with every step she took. Funny how so much noise could surround her but her senses could hone in on one single thing; so much so that the sounds it created were as loud as a gun going off. With each step she was growing more tense and ready to spring on something, anything; the anxiety building until she reached the top step.
For the most part, the loft was empty. A few bales of hay, but that was it. On the far end, above the door they had come in through, there was another large door. Virginia walked over to it and swung it open so that she could see. There before her were thousands of zombies. There were still quite a few in front of the barn and moving around the house, but the rest of the herd was moving off towards the road.
Returning to the dogs, Virginia petted Zeus on the head for a few minutes. Reassuring them both with the motion. Perseus, feeling like he was being slighted, pushed his head under her hand.
“OK, you too; let’s go upstairs and get some rest while they clear out of here.” She said as she helped Zeus get up and led them to the stairs. Perseus went up without a problem but the older Zeus needed help up the stairs. It had crossed her mind, briefly halfway up, that maybe it would have been better to just leave him down stairs. The thought didn’t last long because she was closer to these two dogs than anyone alive. If he had stayed downstairs, they all would have had to stay downstairs.
