Artefact 299: Accounts of the Zombie Apocalypse

by Binley, L. A.

  “Does Daniel know?”

  She shook her head. Fear stopping her voice.

  “Go on, go wake him up and don't forget your bags. We need to find a way to get out of here before it spots us.”

  “Okay.” She squeaked as she raced to where Daniel rested.

  I squeezed the handle of the cricket bat as I made sure my bag was securely fastened to me. If I made it through this, I didn't want to end up with no food. I edged closer to the kitchen, listening for any sign that it was in the house with us.

  “We need to be careful with this.” I said as they entered the kitchen behind me. “Where did you say you saw it, Rachel?”

  “It was on the front bit over there.” She pointed out of the window in front of us.

  “Did you see what direction it was going? Was that the only one you saw?”

  “I only saw that one. I don't know if there are any others. I ran straight to you, to wake you up. It didn't look like it knew where we were. It was more meandering its way to the house. Not in a straight path, but it was getting closer.”

  “Okay. I'll have a look and see if it's still there. Get down. Both of you. I don't know if it will be able to track us inside the house. If I can help it, I'd rather keep you two safe and out of the way.”

  Both ducked behind the table as I moved to the window. I peered through the pane. My heart pounding through my head. I couldn't see anything. I lowered the bat, resting it against my leg. Maybe it had moved away when Rachel had woken me. As the small seed of hope began to move through me, I heard shuffling from outside. I pushed my face further into the window, but I still couldn't see anything. I couldn't be certain the noise I heard was that, but I couldn't think of any type of animal that would be able to make the same sort of shuffling sound.

  “We need to find a way to get out of here that isn't through this room. I don't think we'd be able to get past anything if it is out there.”

  I moved slowly back towards the table. Slower, and quieter than I had before.

  “Have either of you seen a way that we can get out of here?” I risked a quick look before me.

  Rachel shook her head, but Daniel looked up.

  “I'm sure I saw somewhere yesterday. I thought it would be a good place to try and get out of here in a hurry.” He slunk his bag over his back as he stood up. “Come on Rach, we'll survive this together.”

  He grabbed her hand pulling her to one of the back rooms in the house. I followed quickly behind them, anxious that any loud noises might alert the thing outside to where we were. I tried to brush off Daniel's comment about surviving this with Rachel. I know they're family, but I thought we would all want each other to get out of this alive. I thought over the past couple of weeks that I might be more important to them than that.

  “How can we leave?” Rachel asked. “There's no door.”

  “With this window.” He said pointing out his escape plan. “It's lower than any of the others and look where it leads.”

  I drifted to the window and looked outside. At first, I didn't realise what I was looking at. Then it hit me. The trees backed up to the house. There was an open space between us and the line of trees, but it should be close enough to reach. If we could get out of the window.

  “This looks perfect.” I turned to them. “Make sure those bags are secure on you. If we lose any of us, at least we will have some food to survive until we can find each other again.”

  Rachel pulled her straps tighter and tied the ends together in a knot around her waist. Daniel only checked to see if both straps were over his shoulders.

  The window was a little way off the floor, not something you could have climbed out of easily. I looked around and saw a chair in the corner of the room. The only issue I had was the floor beneath the window was wooden. I quickly ran to the bathroom and grabbed some of the towels from the cupboard, placing them beneath the opening. There was a light thud as the chair was gently placed on top. I waited, holding my breath. When I was sure it hadn't been heard, I turned to the window.

  The window was one of those old, sliding ones. The ones that would fall ceiling to floor if they weren't propped open. I cast my eyes around the room, looking for something to keep it open.

  “Have you seen the stick for this?” I whispered to Daniel.

  “No, I didn’t know it needed one.”

  “We could use the cricket bat, but I don't want to have to leave it here. We need to find where it is.”

  He nodded before moving to look around the room. Rachel moved to the other side doing what she could. I stayed by the window. My eyes never leaving the view of the trees. If we could keep this path safe, we could be free.

  “I think I've found it.” Rachel said as she held up a piece of wood.

  I squinted. “It looks about right. Pass it over.”

  She took a few steps forward before stretching her arm out, offering the pole. I gingerly slid the window up. I wedged the wood in as far to the side as I could get it.

  “There should be enough room for us to get out without knocking it. Who wants to run for their lives first?”

  “I will,” Daniel said stepping towards me. “If the coast is clear, Rachel can follow me.”

  “I'll make sure the chair doesn't move too much. And remember, don't make any crazy loud noises.” I rested the cricket bat against the wall so I could grab the chair with both hands.

  Daniel slowly made his way over to me. He nodded his head as he climbed on the chair before darting through the window. He landed with a soft thud on the grass outside. His first few steps in the open were slow. When he felt safe, he quickened his pace. He reached the trees and turned around, signalling for Rachel to follow him. I helped her quickly climb the chair and scramble through the window. She didn't take any time to run towards her brother. As soon as she reached his side, she turned to check it was okay for me to follow.

  I took a slow, steadying breath as I perched on the chair. I hooked one leg through the open window. Bracing myself, I launched through the opening into an ungraceful fall onto the grass below. I landed with a thud on my side and heard the chair crash to the floor.

  “Anna!” Rachel shouted at me.

  I look up and saw the last thing I wanted. A zombie starting to round the corner of the building.

  “Oh shit.”

  I scrambled to my feet, putting distance between me and the creature in front of me. I was hoping this one wouldn't be able to see us. Or hear us. It couldn't be a trait of all of them, but maybe I could get lucky this once.

  “It's okay Anna. You can do this.” I whispered to myself, looking to see if there was anything I could distract it with. I looked up towards the tree line to see if Rachel and Daniel were safe. They'd disappeared. I couldn't blame them. I wouldn't want to stick around to be dessert either.

  I instinctively went to grab the bat from my bag. My fingers grasped empty air. My stomach dropping as I remember placing it by the window. I needed to get it back. My eyes flickered to the approaching zombie. Did I have time to go back? Without it, I didn't give myself much of a chance. I changed direction as I slowly moved back towards the window. Daniel was right. It wasn't too far from the ground. But I'd need to turn my back on the zombie to grab it. I paced with my hand outstretched behind me. My heart beating faster, the feeling turning my stomach. Now didn't feel like the best time to be sick.

  After what felt like an eternity but had maybe been ten seconds, my hand bumped into the outer edge of the house. I risked a quick look behind me. I thanked whatever had decided to watch over me. I was within arm's distance of the window. I quickly checked on the zombie. It had barely made any headway in coming towards me. Maybe it didn't know I was here? I took a deep breath and quickly moved to my right and turned to reach into the building. I knew the bat was underneath the window. I hoped I hadn't knocked it over when I capsized the chair.

  As I ran my hands over the wall, edging closer to the window, I took a quick look back towards the zombie. It ha
d stopped. Frozen, seemingly to be doing nothing. It made me more anxious than I'd been before.

  I pushed myself onto my tiptoes. With the extra reach, I managed to grasp the handle. I snatched the bat through the window and quickly turned around. It was still standing there, but now it looked like it was staring straight at me. I hugged the bat to me, fighting the urge to run as fast as I could. I started to move back towards where I'd edged myself before. Struggling to keep my flight mode under control. I needed to keep as much distance between us as possible. I'd like to think if it came to a race, I'd be able to outrun the undead, but I didn't want to get too cocky and optimistic.

  I'd not taken my eyes off that thing since I grabbed the bat, and it still hadn't moved anywhere. I knew my only chance of survival would be if I could get to the tree line before it. Or, and it was a big or, I could try to kill it. The second option didn't leave me with a lot of hope, not given my past encounters with them. I took a few more steps to my left, angling towards the trees. It was weird to think this could be the end of my life. I felt like I was literally staring death in the face with no relief from anywhere.

  It was when I'd almost given up, I heard a noise to my right. Sounding out from inside the house. I couldn't make out what it was, but it sounded like things being thrown around and toppled over. It wasn't until I heard a voice, I realised what had happened.

  “Over here, you dead monster. Look at us!”

  Rachel and Daniel had circled and gone back inside. I felt grateful to them but also annoyed they'd risked themselves to help me. I couldn't argue with the results though. It was working. The zombie no longer stared at me but moved towards the window. I didn't know how those two would make it out of there. So, I did something I never thought I'd do. Something no one would have thought I'd do. I ran at the thing with my bat raised.

  I don't know if I'm an idiot or what, but I managed to surprise the zombie before I thwacked it over the head. I know I wasn't able to hit the last one as hard as I did this, and even then, I didn't kill it in one hit. I had angered it. I had made it realise I was there. I took a couple of steps back before I raised the cricket bat to hit it again. As the wooden bat landed on its head, the crack of the skull fracturing reached my ears. I exercised every bit of control I had over myself to stop myself from throwing up.

  I continued to hit it. With every successful contact, it slowed. I don't know how long it took. I don't know how long I was hitting it when it had stopped. Eventually, I slowed my movements. My mind catching up with the scene in front of me. I'd managed to bludgeon to death my first zombie. It didn't make me feel good. The sight of the body on the ground next to me, and the blood and brains covering my bat made me throw up. I couldn't hold it back any longer. I was thankful when Rachel and Daniel came running up to me with some cloths. I used one to clean my face and another to wipe down the bat. I didn't want all that drying on it when I was carrying it with me. The thought itself made me heave, but luckily nothing else came up.

  “Shall we go?” I asked them through deep breaths.

  They nodded in response, and we headed towards the trees. My thoughts hoping we would be able to find safety at some point.

  Day 31

  We're hiding. As if yesterday's event wasn't bad enough already, we've now come across something we've never encountered before. Not together, or separately. I can barely see the page well enough to write this down. It doesn't matter though. We might not be able to see what's out there, but we can hear it. We can hear every laboured breath it takes. I'm worried the scratching of my pen will draw it to us, but I can't let this go. I can't let this night pass without keeping a clear record.

  I'm hoping it can't hear us. That it can't hear our breaths. The short, sharp intakes we're trying hard not to take. I feel like we're breathing too loudly. Most of the day we've run. Someone has found us. Well, I'm assuming it's a person as I've never seen a zombie behave like this before. It sounded so angry and aggressive. Not the usual snarls and growls which accompany their rotting forms. Whatever this thing is. It's freaked all three of us out.

  Rachel and Daniel are sleeping. Terror and exhaustion are not a good combination. This small respite of sleep might help clear their minds. It might be the thin line between life and death. I don't mind going without for a little if it saves them. They both settled and drifted off, but I can still hear it.

  There were some houses nearby, but we didn't want to be easily found. Would it know to look for us in a house? I didn't want to risk it and pushed us into a hedgerow. I guess that's one of the good things about travelling near minimal woodland. There's always a space to hide if you get desperate. I'd pushed Rachel and Daniel into one section before moving further down from them. I didn't want my being awake to draw anything to them. It was a risk I wasn't willing to take. My hiding spot was more painful to wriggle into, but the cuts and scrapes were more than worth it.

  I've looked out a few times. Peering through the criss-cross of nature. Nothing is out of place, at least from my limited knowledge of what is normal. After yesterday, I'd been feeling braver. I wasn't as defenceless as I'd been telling myself. It wasn't all luck and cowardice keeping me alive. With my trusty cricket bat by my side, I'd ventured out into the clearing.

  Thinking back on it, I feel foolish. What if I'd been caught? I'd stopped every few seconds to listen. The wind whispered around me, rustling the leaves underfoot. Other than that, I was wrapped in calm. An easy stillness had fallen around us. I let myself breathe normally. Whoever or whatever had followed us was nowhere to be seen. Maybe they'd become bored and wandered off when they couldn't find us anymore? A stupid part of me wanted to search it out, stop it from causing any more pain. The risk I had been avoiding since this started tried to seduce me. I edged forward, a few short, tentative steps away from safety. I couldn't leave Rachel and Daniel. My movements faltered. I couldn't abandon them while they slept. Not after they risked themselves for me. We were safe. No need to tempt fate anymore.

  Day 32

  The world has changed. There isn't the feeling of being followed or watched that we had yesterday. Maybe today will be a normal day? As dawn broke over us, I woke Rachel and Daniel and we set out. Calm drifted over us, causing our stumbled steps to falter with shock at the scene we were greeted with.

  How do I describe it? Are there words that can be used to explain the jolt that ricocheted through me? One second we were skirting around the edge of Beacon Hill and the next we stumbled across a battleground. Warning signs may have been scattered around us as we walked, but I'd missed them all. If we hadn't, we might have saved ourselves this small feeling of horror.

  “Did you see that?” Rachel asked, peering towards the grass.

  “See what?” Daniel asked her.

  She shook her head. “Never mind, I must have imagined it.”

  I turned to look at the spot she'd been gazing at. Nothing stood out to me.

  “Wait.” Daniel said.

  I halted my steps, looking around us when I saw it. What I had mistaken for puddles of water looked deeper, looked darker. My heart faltered beneath my breast as I tried to convince myself I was wrong. I took a couple of anxious steps forward and looked at the puddle. The water was almost black. I threw a twig towards it. Instead of the smooth splash of a puddle, my grim reality was confirmed. Blood.

  “Eurgh, that's disgusting.” Daniel said, holding his hand over his mouth. “I think I'm going to throw up.”

  I followed his gaze. The scattered humanoid remains separating themselves from the shadows the more I stared. The pieces were strewn all around us. Something terrible had happened here. From the limbs and scattered body parts, it made me think some giant monster had ripped the unsuspecting people limb from limb. I'd never seen anything like it before. I didn't want to again.

  The wind picked up and swirled the stench of death and decay around us, replacing the usual hints of damp soil and bark. It felt as though it had been waiting for us to see the carnage before allow
ing the smell to hit us. Using it to the best effect.

  Daniel's face paled as he tried to keep the contents of his stomach in his body.

  “Do you want to move? Get away from here?” I asked him, taking a step closer.

  He withdrew from me but nodded sharply. “I didn't think we'd try and make camp here.” He said weakly.

  “No, although it might keep anything else away from us.”

  “Will it be safe to go back where we came?” Rachel squeaked out.

  “At least for a little bit.” I looked at them both, not sure who was more at risk of losing their breakfast. “Will you be able to get out of here?”

  “I hope so.”

  “Yes.”

  They answered at the same time.

  Rachel moved over to her brother and grabbed him by the arm. I turned and made my way back the way we came. Moving slowly so the twins didn't have to rush behind me.

  “I wonder what happened back there.” Daniel said, his voice returning to its usual cadence.

  “A massacre.”

  “But why?” He mused.

  “I don't want to know. If I don't think about it, I might be able to get out of here okay.” Rachel said.

  Daniel ignored her. “What do you reckon Anna? Any thoughts on what might have happened?”

  “Honestly? I'm not sure. A massacre for sure, but I don't know why. It seems calculated. Nothing I've seen from the zombies. They wouldn't waste that much person, and I've never seen them pull someone apart like that. It's always been cleaner, if biting into someone can count as clean. It seemed so fresh, it can't have happened more than a few hours ago.” I paused, allowing the nausea to fade. “I think I'm with Rachel, dwelling on this is making my stomach turn.”

  Daniel didn't say anything else as he took in the scenery behind us. His face paled the longer he looked at it. I don't think he could stop himself. His hand covered his sister's which was wrapped around his arm. I couldn't tell if that was for his comfort or hers. At that moment, I don't think it mattered.