The Good, The Bad & The Dead | Book 1 | Once Upon A Time In An Undead World

by Grimes, A. L.

  He felt a rage building inside him, an absolute anger that could only tempered with destruction. He slowed the boat and pulled it into the embankment. He took hold of the pole and broke off the end. He stepped onto dry land and massacred the dead.

  In the distance he could hear the roar of a car, it was getting nearer.

  *

  Jane had found a Fiat 100 abandoned, well sort of, the owner was still strapped into the driver’s seat snarling and grabbing. It was a tricky one, she could have smashed the dead woman’s skull in but she didn’t want contaminated blood and brains across the seat and steering wheel. An idea fired in her head. She opened the rear door and climbed in, she reached for the belt buckle to release it. The dead grabbed at her hand, she snatched it back.

  ‘Bitch,’ she said to the dead woman. The dead thing groaned back at her.

  Jane slapped the dead’s woman’s head, it turned towards her hand. She pressed the release button; it snapped its head back and grabbed out again. Jane hadn’t pressed hard enough.

  ‘Fuck,’ said Jane. The dead woman groaned again. ‘Shut the fuck up,’ she spat.

  Jane took hold of the woman’s hair at the side of her head. This held the dead woman’s attention while Jane jammed a firm thumb into the release mechanism. She heard a click and the buckle released. The seatbelt slid slowly across the front of the dead woman; it took her a second to realise she was free. Instinct took over, maybe a memory as she swung her legs out of the car. She placed her arms on the door and pulled herself forward. She stood upright and took in the world.

  Then she noticed Jane and advanced straight into the sharp end of her axe. The world went dark. Jane jumped in the car and started the engine; the keyring had a pendant with the name Marie. ‘Thank you Marie, I’m sorry for calling you a bitch.’ She pulled off the name tag and tossed it onto Marie’s body. She took off before anymore of the dead arrived.

  *

  Ronnie stood on the embankment, a mess of ruined bodies lying around his feet. Things that were once men and women, some with families, maybe some still alive surviving somewhere, wondering why their loved ones hadn’t returned home. his thoughts were lost in a world of death and bereavement. He heard a loud splash, ducks scattered and flapped in the air. His head turned to see the water ripple towards him. He had to blink twice in disbelief when the head surfaced.

  He had seen Tigers in the zoo, huge majestic creatures. Orange and black striped bodies with yellow eyes that could look straight through a person. He had only ever been to the zoo once, with little Ron and Stacey, he vowed never to go again after seeing the caged animals.

  This tiger was different, it’s eyes had lost their yellow sparkle, replaced with white orbs. The same white orbs he had seen in the dead. The predator swam towards him, its dead eyes never leaving him. Behind him he heard a growl.

  ‘For fucks sake…you’ve got to be kidding me,’ he said out loud.

  Ronnie was no animal expert but that was definitely a bear stomping towards him. Grizzly, brown or black bear he didn’t know or care, what he did know was this animal was alive…he could see the brown of its eyes.The dead tiger was blocking his path to the boat, the bear was barring his escape. The tiger snarled, baring its discoloured teeth. The bear roared, they eye-balled each other.

  Ronnie stepped back towards the wall; it was part of the city ruins. He scanned the surface looking for vantage points to scale. The bear had all its natural instincts about it. It stood tall on its hinds legs and bellowed; Ronnie could see it was a male. The tiger driven by dead primal rage darted forward. Ronnie leapt, grabbing hold of a centuries old rock and scrambled up the wall.

  The tiger leapt into the arms of the waiting bear and his widening jaws. The bear shook the tiger from side to side, in the wild this would be enough to finish off any prey or foe. He flung the tiger to the floor knowing he had done enough to end the threat.

  The tiger raised itself, dark ooze flowing from the wound in its neck. It gave a memorised shrug and launched itself again. The bear was taken by surprise. Both animals collided and crashed to the floor. This time the tiger was on top. The bear dug huge claws into the tigers side. The huge cat didn’t flinch. The bear ripped through flesh again. The tiger growled once and sank its teeth into the huge neck of the bear. It didn’t try to suffocate its prey, it tore chunks of flesh and swallowed.

  *

  Jane thought she knew a place she could catch up with Ronnie. A bridge that she drop on to the boat and blast him into the next world or leave him dead in this one – she hadn’t decided. She slammed the car to a skidding halt. The world had turned upside down in the space of hours that had barely turned into days. She had seen the dead walk and eat the living. She had witnessed humanity lose all morals and ethics as they turned on each other, killing and worse.

  Now she witnessed a herd of wild animals strolling across her path. Half a dozen zebras strolled casually past, monkeys chased each other across the road and a family of elephants thundered past.

  Jane sat mesmerised, ‘You’ve got to be kidding,’ she said as a giraffe strode past her majestically. She got out of the car to watch the spectacle.

  She jumped back in shock as the fingertips of an orangutan gently brushed hers. The ape appeared to mock her by smiling. The mother had a baby attached to her back. A pride of lions padded across the road, the male leading the pack. The lionesses guarded the young, all the animals appeared to be united in their migration. Jane looked in the direction they had come, a sign read Chester Zoo, two miles away.

  The dead were following.

  *

  Ronnie jumped down from his perch as the two predators fought. The bear was almost done, no matter how many times he punctured the tiger with his huge claws the relentless attack continued. He managed to get to the boat as the bear took his last breath. The tiger continued to feast until it heard the roar of the engine. Ronnie pushed the boat away from the riverbank as the tiger turned to stalk its prey. The gap between him and the dead tiger was nowhere near enough.

  The tiger readied his jump. The boom that erupted caused Ronnie to flinch. The tiger’s head disintegrated in a spray of red crimson, orange and black stripes and a splodge of grey matter. The huge body splashed into the canal. The second boom shattered the window closest to Ronnie, he dived for cover. Jane stood on the embankment, reloading the shotgun. Ronnie took a peek.

  ‘For fuck’s sake,’ he shouted. ‘What’s your problem…I thought you had gone?’

  ‘I have unfinished business,’ Jane shouted back.

  Ronnie popped his head out and gave a puzzled look. ‘With me?’ He asked.

  Boom, the shotgun blast took a chunk out of the wood panelling.

  ‘Nonverbal communication is just as effective,’ he shouted from behind a table. ‘Any clues as to how I may have offended you?’

  ‘You got on your boat and left us. You left that poor family with Derek the psychopath,’ she screamed.

  ‘If I remember correctly, you wiped out Aaron and went on your way,’ he replied.

  ‘I went back for Denise and the kids. You are predictable, you were always going to leave them to rot on the barge. You left Aaron behind, he was just too young and stupid to realise.’ She had reloaded the shotgun.

  ‘I am only trying to get back to Manchester to what family I have left. That family didn’t want to be with me as much as I didn’t care for them. Aaron was unfortunate, he could have swam after me,’ shouted Ronnie.

  The blast from the shotgun almost split the table in two. Ronnie scrambled away. ‘Are you hit?’ Shouted Jane.

  ‘It was a bit close for comfort,’ he shouted back. He scurried further away and risked a look over the rail. He guessed Jane was trying to locate him.

  ‘Shame,’ she shouted back. ‘I could have come aboard and put you out of your misery.’

  Ronnie stood up; she raised the shotgun. ‘Before you pull the trigger I’d look both ways.’

  To Jane’s left the dead bear was
beginning to rise. To her right the dead had followed the sound of her voice and the boom of the shotgun.

  ‘Shit,’ she cursed.

  ‘Deep shit, I’d say,’ said Ronnie. ‘I am willing to offer a truce and allow you onboard, but you’ll have to toss that shotgun over first.’

  ‘How do I know you’ll keep your word?’ She asked.

  ‘You don’t,’ he replied smiling.

  She aimed the shotgun at Ronnie’s face, ‘Fuck it,’ she said.

  Ronnie raised his hands in defence. ‘There’s no point both of us dying, toss the gun then jump, I’ll catch you,’ he replied extending his hand.

  She threw the gun and jumped. Ronnie caught the weapon with his right hand and grabbed Jane with his left as she leapt. He swung her onto the deck and kicked her foot from underneath her. She fell heavily on to the wooden floor. Ronnie swung the shotgun around and fired into the face of the roaring bear. The huge body crashed from the embankment into the water. Several of the dead walked off the edge in pursuit.

  Ronnie tossed the shotgun onto a table. ‘Right, time to reacquaint ourselves,’ he said smirking.

  ‘Certainly, she replied and jammed a foot into his groin.

  That was how the fight started.

  *

  Ronnie was a hard man, but he drew the line in most cases at hitting women. The heel to his testicles knocked the wind out of him. Jane was up quickly on the attack. She knew how to throw a punch; the first one caught him just below his left eye. He dodged the next one and narrowly avoided a rugby kick to his groin. He backed off as she steadied herself for another attack. She charged, sending a high kick aiming for his head. Ronnie blocked, then bobbed his head as a straight right arrowed towards him.

  ‘Any chance we can discuss this?’ He asked.

  ‘Nothing to talk about,’ she snarled as she let fly with another combination.

  ‘So you just want us to beat the shit out of each other?’ He responded.

  ‘I’m not here to beat the shit out of you…I’m here to kill you.’

  ‘That’s a bit extreme considering the only thing I have done is pull you out of two life threatening situations,’ he replied.

  ‘You left those two kiddies to…’ she trailed off and launched another attack.

  Ronnie blocked her strikes, ‘I left them to what,’ he replied. ‘They had a mother and father to look after them. I have a family to get back to myself,’ he paused momentarily. ‘What’s left of them anyway.’

  Jane rained blows left to right, combinations of punches and kicks. Ronnie blocked most, a kick to the shin caused him to grimace. She was wearing herself out with the continuous onslaught. Jane paused for a moment.

  ‘Before you throw another kick or punch, let’s talk,’ he said.

  Jane’s eyes narrowed as she realised she still had the axe and the Glock tucked in her belt. She reached for both.

  ‘Oh shit,’ declared Ronnie as he watched her hands move towards the weapons. He didn’t need time to think, he was instinctive and reactive. The punch he threw was pulled but it had enough force to nullify the threat. It caught Jane square on the chin. Her senses rattled, her eyes lost focus and the lights went out. Ronnie caught her and lowered her to the floor.

  He removed the weapons and put them out of reach. He let her sleep for a few hours before gently bringing her around. The fatigue and mental strain had wiped her out.

  Chapter Seventy-Seven

  Seaforth, Back to the Lighthouse…

  They fled, leaving their bags behind. Lola was safely tucked up in Billie-Jo’s jacket. The remaining dock workers had run in the same direction as them. After a few minutes of hard running they stopped behind a container to catch their breaths. The dock workers stopped beside them.

  ‘You lot can fuck off,’ said Tom, his blade inches away from Colin according to his name badge.

  ‘We’re sorry mate, Dave was a prick. He forced us to ambush you.’

  Tom lowered his sword and headbutted Colin in the nose. ‘Don’t take us for fools, you’ve made that mistake already.’

  Dean stepped forward, ‘Ok, we made a mistake, we are sorry. We have a better chance if we all stick together,’ he said.

  Ben stepped forward and surprised everyone. ‘You heard what he said, fuck off. You are on your own.’

  ‘C’mon mate, we can…’

  ‘I said fuck off and do it now before I lose my patience with you,’ replied Ben.

  Billie-Jo was keeping watch, ‘We need to move, those things are following us,’ she informed them.

  The dock workers made a move to the left. ‘Not that way,’ said Ben. ‘Go that way.’

  ‘It’s unsafe that way,’ said Dean.

  ‘It’ll be a lot safer than going the same route as us,’ threatened Tom.

  The dock gang moved off; Colin stared at Tom with malice in his eyes. ‘We’ll be seeing each other again,’ he said.

  ‘Piss off,’ replied Tom.

  They moved off in the opposite direction and towards the lighthouse.

  *

  The pace they were travelling at was unsustainable, all four were breathing heavily. Lola was breathing fine. The dead were moving steadily after them. They hadn’t encountered the dock workers in the half hour since they had parted. They took a breather.

  ‘We need to get somewhere high or stop this horde following us,’ said Claudia. ‘We can’t keep running flat out.’

  ‘She is right,’ replied Tom.

  ‘Look at that,’ said Billie-Jo.

  She was pointing to a container suspended in mid-air, dangling from a crane.

  ‘I think I have a plan,’ said Tom.

  ‘Is this plan D?’ Asked Billie-Jo.

  ‘Something like that,’ he replied.

  Ben looked towards the sky. ‘You’re thinking of a plan that is going to make a lot of noise and destruction I’m guessing.’

  ‘You are correct my friend. Do you know how to operate a crane?’

  ‘I somehow knew you were going to ask that. I do or I at least know the basics,’ replied Ben.

  ‘Enough to drop that hunk of metal on an advancing horde of the dead?’ Asked Tom.

  ‘What do we have to lose?’ He replied.

  ‘Err, our lives,’ said Claudia. ‘Are you two insane?’

  ‘You really need to ask that,’ said Billie-Jo.

  Moments later Ben was moving rapidly up the ladder of the crane. It would have been handy if they had some walkie-talkies to communicate. Instead they had to rely on a series of hand gestures and facial expressions. Ben sat in the hot seat. He was a little unsure of the buttons and levers. The first button he pressed sounded a loud horn that caused all of them to jump and excite the dead even more.

  Ben returned Tom’s gesture. He composed himself and concentrated on what was in front of him. He started up the crane and slowly he steered the container into place. If he executed this right, he would not only crush most of them, but he would also block the rest from getting through. He was in position and ready.

  ‘Oh shit,’ said Ben. From his vantage point he could see Colin sneaking around trying to flank his companions, he was holding a serios looking iron bar. Ben could also see the rest of the dock workers all laid out. Ben had no choice; he sounded the horn again.

  Tom gestured for him to stop honking their whereabouts. ‘Is he serious, every living and dead thing will know where we are.’

  Claudia squinted her eyes, ‘He’s pointing at something.’

  The iron bar struck Tom across the shoulder, biting into the fleshy part. Claudia and Billie-Jo reacted in an instant bringing out their weapons. Billie-Jo stood in front of the vulnerable Tom.

  ‘Get out of my way you little bitch, I’ll see to you and your friend when I have finished this prick off.’

  ‘You should have pissed off when you had the chance,’ she responded.

  Tom got gingerly to his feet; the pain pulsed down his right side. He was unable to reach for his sword. ‘A cheap sh
ot,’ he said.

  Claudia and Billie-Jo pressed him with their sword, he edged backward. They continued for a few more feet when Tom told them to stop and step back towards him.

  Colin turned to see the dead horde advancing towards them.

  ‘What are you going to do now?’ Asked Tom.

  ‘We are all in this together,’ he replied. ‘They won’t just stop at me.’

  ‘Sure they will,’ said Tom.

  Colin had unwittingly moved into the kill zone; the dead had also advanced into it. Colin was still out of reach but he knew he was trapped…stabbed or eaten, not much of a choice.

  He pleaded, ‘Please let me go, I made a mistake.’

  ‘Another one,’ replied Tom. He signalled with his left arm; he gave Ben a thumbs up.

  Colin heard a thunderous rattle of chains. He looked up just in time to see several tons of metal rain down on him. Claudia, Billie-Jo and Tom had retreated at speed.

  The container buckled as it hit Colin and the dead first, followed by the concrete floor. The noise was deafening, Lola sunk further into Billie-Jo’s coat as they flung themselves out of harm’s way. Colin was pulverised into the dirt. Body parts travelled in every direction. Small shards of metal pinged across the dock.

  Ben witnessed the devastation from his crow’s nest high up. A cloud of smoke blocked his view once the impact had settled. He watched as his friends ran for cover, he was certain they didn’t get caught up in the destruction. He slid down the cranes ladder towards them.

  Tom had landed on top of Claudia as they had thrown themselves out of the way of flying debris. She had a smear of dust across her face, he wiped it off, she opened her eyes.