by Steven Pajak
“We’re good,” Justin called over his shoulder. He shrugged back into his back pack and took up his weapon, a set of modern Tomahawks. Each of the weapons featured a cutting blade on the front and a spike-like protrusion on the back. Justin said he liked the Tomahawks because he could hit his enemy whether he was coming or going. Either end of the weapon would do the job.
I nodded my head and looked at the rest of the group. They were ready to get this show on the road. We were all dressed similarly in thick canvas coats. Everyone wore a hat and covered as much of their face as possible without limiting their vision. Leather gloves and boots covered hands and feet. Most of us wore two pairs of jeans hoping the extra layer of denim would stop teeth from penetrating and reaching skin. They looked like battle-hardened veterans, and they were.
“All right, folks, listen up,” I said. “Kat and Justin are up first. They’ll provide cover for us on the other side and make sure there are no surprises waiting for us. Lara and Chandra will follow with the sled and I’ll bring up the rear. No one moves out until we’re all on the other side, together. After we all put feet on the ground, Kat and Justin will do their thing with the ladders while the rest of us are on lookout. We clear?”
The group responded in the affirmative and without further delay our patrol was underway. I watched as Justin and Kat ascended the ladders while Lara and Chandra pulled the sled into position. In less than five seconds two bodies were behind enemy lines.
Lara and Chandra paused a moment, listening for any warnings from their team mates. All was quiet on the other side. I stood between the two women and helped them by supporting the sled while each climbed their ladder and lifted the sled until it rested securely on the ledge of the wall. Slowly, they lowered the sled down to the other side using the nylon rope secured to each side of the sled. Without delay they slid over the edge and dropped down into the soft snow.
Now it was my turn. I climbed the rungs of the ladder using one hand and holding the splitting maul in the other. I made quick work of climbing and within seconds I sat on the top of the wall. Below, my team had fanned out slightly and were scanning the area. I used my vantage point eight feet off the ground to scan what I could see for any signs of the crazies. Between barren trees and branches I saw pristine white snow. Except for where we’d landed on the other side of the fence, the ground was unmarred by footprints, human or animal. By all appearances, this was just a winter wonderland scene in a magazine sitting on a table in a doctor’s office.
I jumped down and put my own imprint into the cold ground. The snow was deep; with my full weight I sunk down in snow that came to just about mid calf for me and knee deep for those who were shorter. Although the sled was equipped with the equivalent of snow shoes, we did not have the luxury. Because we did not often venture out of the walls we had not prepared for a trek in deep snow.
I heard Kat’s footfalls in the snow as she approached. The snow made odd squeaking-crunching sounds as the weight of our bodies as it compacted below our feet. “Looks clear,” she said. Plumes of white vapor filtered through her scarf. “What do you think?”
Scanning the area from ground level, I still saw no signs of movement. Although not as densely populated as the east and south of our community, a fair number of crazies were always around on all sides. It was as if they knew there was a healthy source of food beyond the wall and they concentrated their numbers toward the more populated sides of our community.
“Let’s hold a minute,” I said.
Before winter arrived in force, we all had wondered what the cold weather would do to the infected creatures. There was much speculation—more like prayers—that they’d freeze to death. Ravi had insisted that would not be the case. The crazies ran hot with fever and Ravi insisted that their elevated body temperature would keep them alive through even the harshest of winters. Unfortunately, she’d been correct.
Although the cold did not kill them, it did, however, make them more lethargic. They moved a bit more slowly. When food wasn’t in immediate sight, they almost seemed to fall into a trance. They stared at nothing for long hours. The other odd thing was that when they were in groups, even as small as two or three, they’d make a collective moan. To me, it seemed as though they were meditating. In this state of trance, their reaction to sound was slightly delayed, but only by seconds. It was as though they needed that few extra seconds to reboot, to bring themselves out of their trance. It was this delayed reaction that had me wait now. If they’d heard our movements, I wanted to give them time to reboot and reanimate. If I could see them, I could kill them.
“It’s cold,” Kat said. “Minute is past. Can we move out?”
The depth of the snow had me on edge. What if they were just laying there, under the snow, waiting for one of us to step on them?
As if reading my mind, Justin said, “I hope I don’t step on one of those bastards. That would not be cool.”
“Please keep your creepy ass thoughts to yourself,” Chandra admonished. “Now I’m gonna be thinking about those things popping up from the ground.”
Pushing past me, taking the lead, Kat stopped next to Chandra. She elbowed the other woman as she passed by and said, “Just use that piece of iron and whack them on head.”
Justin burst out laughing. “Freaking whack-a-mole!”
“Shut up and move,” Kat called over her shoulder. Play time was over and it was time to get down to business. No one was better at turning off their emotions and switching into battle mode than was Kat.
At my side, Lara grabbed the rope of our makeshift wood tote. Although she wore a scarf across her face, I was sure she was smiling at me under there when she said, “I thought you were in charge.”
I glared at her in mock anger. “You heard the lady,” I said. “Shut up and move.”
“You just want to look at my ass when I walk away,” Lara said. The look on my face must have been comical because she burst out laughing. She turned away and fell in line behind Chandra and Justin, pulling the yellow sled behind.
Bringing up the rear, it took all my willpower not to check out her backside. Instead, I focused my attention on our peripherals and our six, making sure that nothing would hit us from the sides or rear. A few times I caught Lara looking back at me, but I never made eye contact with her. This was not the time or place for flirting. People could get killed out here.
The afternoon was not mild. The snow had stopped falling an hour ago and the temperature had dropped another ten degrees. The cold air stung my eyes and made them water. I should have worn goggles or sunglasses. I mentally added that to the top of my “should have” list so next time I wouldn’t forget. We’d only been moving steadily for a few minutes but my calf muscles were already feeling fatigued. It was difficult moving through snow this deep. And even though I had on two pairs of jeans and leather boots, the cold wetness was able to penetrate and find my warm flesh.
Before long we entered a small clearing, probably no more than a quarter of a mile from our west wall. Kat held up a fist and brought the patrol to a halt. Justin, Chandra and Lara each crouched instinctively and turned to cover their respective flanks. I continued to move past them until I stood beside Kat.
She slid out of her backpack and placed it next to the trunk of a large poplar. “What do you think?” she asked.
“I think these trees are the same as the ones just outside our walls. Only we had to walk really far to get to them.”
She shifted her grip on the Mosin. With her free hand she pulled down her scarf. My eyes immediately went to the scar on her cheek but I didn’t look away for fear I would embarrass her. “I thought you were smarter than that, boss.”
“Enlighten me,” I said.
“Why do you think those things have such a small presence on the west side but are thick as shit on the south and east?”
“I don’t know…”
Kat cocked her head and looked disappointed. “Because the trees make it more difficult for them to
congregate. It’s harder for them to stack up effectively because the trees are in the way.”
“And why would we want to clear the way and make it easier for them, right?”
“Well, at least you’re a quick learner,” Kat said. She turned to the group and said, “This is the spot. Lara and Chandra start tagging trees. Nothing too big and nothing too small. Nothing that’s rotting. Justin, cover our left flank.”
The most difficult task would be mine. It was only fitting that I do the chopping. After all, I did have the axe. I set down my back pack and unfastened the leather sheath that covered the head of the splitting maul. We had carried with us the portable chainsaw, but I didn’t like to use it because it was too loud and would drown out all sound leaving us deaf to our enemies’ approach. The buzzing of the chainsaw was also a crazy magnet, drawing the creatures from all over.
“Don’t wander too far,” I called to Lara and Chandra as I stowed the leather sheath in my bag and pulled out a bottle of water. Lara turned and saluted. She said something to Chandra that I couldn’t hear and both women had a good laugh.
Like a mother hen, Kat admonished, “Mouths shut, ladies. Be aware of your surroundings. This isn’t playtime.”
While I waited for the women to mark my targets I scanned the area. Again the calmness of the surroundings stirred something in my gut. The scene was just too peaceful, too quiet. In the months since the initial outbreak the crazies were ever present outside our walls. If they weren’t, we were being attacked by Providence. Either way, our lives were constantly filled with violence and threats, making any semblance of peace seem like bait for a trap.
Consulting my compass, I noted that were heading in the direction of Reverend Reggie’s church. Although I considered making an attempt to reach the church if the opportunity arose, I never really expected that we’d make it that far. I expected some resistance from the crazies. If things remained quiet, I considered sending Lara, Chandra and Justin back with the wood while Kat and I scouted the church.
“You’re up, Matthew,” Kat said, stirring me from my thoughts. She stood next to me which surprised me. I hadn’t heard her moving in the snow. “What’s on your mind?”
Standing, I took a more comfortable hold on my splitting maul. I said, “That it’s very quiet and that is unusual.”
Kat nodded her head. “I was thinking the same. I don’t like it. I’m feeling like we need to get this done and get back home.”
I didn’t tell her about my plan to reconnoiter Reggie’s church. I figured I’d wait and see how things went. There was no need to get Kat all riled up right now. Besides, it was time to get to work.
Taking up my position at the first tree marked, I got into my chopping stance. I eyed the tree as I hefted my axe, taking the most comfortable grip that would still channel maximum power. The poplar was about fifteen feet tall and about a foot and a half in diameter. I figured I’d make quick work of this one.
My first swing tore away a chunk of bark and bit into the flesh of the tree. My second blow severed off a substantial chunk. I swung the axe again in short, controlled arc, always aiming for the same spot. After about thirty seconds of continued chopping, two more heavy swings were enough to bring the tree down. I stepped aside and watched as the poplar fell, impacting the snow with more force than I expected. I stood up, only slightly winded, and gave the okay sign to Lara. Now she would come in with a machete and begin to chop at the smaller branches and clean as much of the felled tree as possible. I’d return after to chop it into cords that were more manageable for stacking on the sled.
As I passed Lara on my way to the next marked tree she went out of her way to brush her arm against mine. “That was sexy,” she whispered and winked at me. “I love the way you swing that axe.”
Sure that I was blushing, I was grateful that my face was covered by my scarf. With a huge grin on my face, I went to work on the next tree. Slightly larger than the first, this poplar proved a bit more difficult. As I chopped away at the base I could hear each of Lara’s machete strokes between my own swings. When I concentrated on the sounds, I noticed that Lara and I had fallen into time with each other, creating a steady beat.
Just as I struck another blow I heard Kat’s voice. “Shhh! Everyone quiet. Quiet!”
I froze with the axe above my head in mid-swing and behind I heard one last tock of the machete against the hardwood before Lara fell silent. I pulled down my scarf and turned to Kat who was standing with her head cocked, listening. It was difficult to hear anything other than the wind; my heavy breathing was loud in my ears. I started to take a step forward with the intention of regrouping with Kat but halted when she raised her fist at me.
I watched as Kat moved slowly, her head still bent, listening intently. She wandered a few steps toward Justin but then turned away from him and reversed course. A few more steps and she stood beside Chandra whose eyes were big as saucers. Kat had us all freaked out right about now. As Chandra was about to speak, Kat’s head whipped to the left and my gaze followed. A second later I watched in disbelief as the snow several feet away from Lara began to stir. Chandra let out a quick sound of shock when a head broke through the surface.
The thing sat up slowly as we all watched; its movement markedly slower than we were used to seeing. When the thing sat up fully, its head, shoulders and chest were exposed. We all stared dumbfounded at what used to be a woman. Her hair was dark and matted, obscuring much of her face. Her skin was a gray, mottled color. Her eyes were open, but she stared at nothing in particular. After a moment, her head started to swivel slowly to the right where her gaze finally landed on Kat and Chandra. As if a spark had been lit, the sight of fresh meat activated the hibernating creature.
For a few seconds no one moved. The woman struggled to pull herself out of the deep snow, clawing and kicking her limbs as though she were a drowning woman trying to tread water. The strange moan escaped her lips and the sound became more exaggerated and guttural as her dead eyes focused on human flesh.
It was Lara who sprang first, moving surprisingly quickly for a woman shin deep in snow. In just a few steps she was just feet away from the infected. With a golfer’s wind-up, Lara swung her aluminum bat, striking the thing squarely in the back of the skull. The ping of aluminum and the wet sound of cold flesh being struck made me wince, but Lara did not so much as flinch. Even as the crazy’s body slumped back down into its hole, Lara swung her weapon again, splitting the skull. Blood finally oozed from the crevice, staining the snow where the dead woman’s head had fallen.
As one we all converged around the dead thing, taking it in with large eyes. Although we were all seasoned veterans who had mixed it up with the infected before, seeing one up close was still surprising.
“Nice swing,” Kat said.
“Did you hear the sound when you cracked its noggin?” Justin asked, earning six sets of sharp eyes as the women started daggers at him.
“Are you okay,” I asked Lara.
“Yeah, fine. It never knew what hit it.”
“That’s my girl,” Chandra said. She held out her fist toward Lara and said, “Bump it, girl.” The two women touched fists in a show of comradeship.
“Okay, enough of that,” Kat said. “Let’s get back to work. I’d like to get home now and settle by a nice warm fire. My ass is freezing out here.”
“That was some creepy ass shit, though,” Chandra said. “I knew they were hiding in the snow like that. If this was a scary movie, that’s exactly the kind of shit that would happen.”
“You think there are more of them around here?” Justin asked. “There has to be, right?”
“Keep your eyes open,” I said. “Assume there are more. Everyone stay alert.”
I resumed my place by the felled tree while the rest of our group went back to their assigned duties. I was on edge now, after Chandra’s comment, wondering what the hell was under all this snow. If there was one of those things there were bound to be more. Kat had said they liked
to congregate together. They were not solitary creatures; they hunted in packs. That was how they overwhelmed you. One on one, even a child could outsmart and outrun the infected. Their strength was definitely in their numbers and they seemed to know that and use it as an advantage.
Hefting the splitting maul, I swung it back over my head and brought it down on the tree. I swung again, hitting my mark, gouging the wood and opening up a three-inch gash. My third blow further opened the gash. As I was about the strike my fourth blow, I noticed the movement from my peripheral. I slowly lowered the axe and turned toward the perceived movement. About seven or eight feet to Justin’s rear the snow began to shift.
“Justin, check your six,” I said. “We have another one over here.”
“Here we go,” Justin said. He immediately took up his tomahawks and began to bounce them nervously in his hands. I could tell his adrenaline was pumping as he prepared for action.
“Shit,” Kat said. She turned away from her post and started toward the mound of movement. “Justin, you be careful.”
“I got this,” Justin said. He was now full of nervous energy, bouncing back and forth from foot to foot.
As I started to move in to flank the creature its head emerged slowly followed by an arm and shoulder. Behind me I heard Chandra shout, “Oh, shit, we got another one here, people.”
Lara said, “Make that two more. This is getting serious.”
That stopped me in my tracks. I looked back at the two women and saw two more of the things breaking through the snow between them. Heads and arms were exposed and like the first, they were struggling to get their feet under them. In less than a minute they’d be up and moving, desperate for our flesh.
“Matthew, check your six!” Kat shouted.
I turned quickly on my heels and saw two more crazies rising. The two men were already exposed to the waist. The younger of the two had a shock of red hair plastered to his pale face. He was on his knees, trying to push himself into the standing position. Without hesitation, I waded forward and engaged him, burying the axe into the top of his head. His body went limp and he went down fast. I tried to disengage the axe, but it held firmly in his skull, buried deeper than I expected. I glanced at the other thing to determine how much time I had and found him too close for comfort. The older man, sporting a thick black beard and shock of curly hair, was already on his feet no more than five feet away. He moved awkwardly as he tried to navigate the snow on weak legs.
