The Becoming: Brothers in Arms
A Novella of The Becoming Series by Jessica Meigs
Edited by Stephanie Gianopoulos Cover Art by Zach McCain
Cover Design by Jacob Kier
Published March 2012 by Jessica Meigs
Amazon Edition
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Copyright © 2012 Jessica Meigs All rights reserved.
Visit my website at www.jessicameigs.com!
Praise for The Becoming
“Fast zombies become slow zombies become kick-ass.”
Peter Clines, author of Ex-Heroes and Ex-Patriots
“From the chilling opening scenes to the tension-filled climax…a story that reminded me that zombies are really scary.”
Kevin J. Burke, author of The Last Mailman
“The first installment of a projected trilogy, The Becoming isn’t exactly groundbreaking—its narrative force comes from Meigs’ ability to write a breakneck-paced, emotionally intense story that is powered by meticulous and insightful character development. This isn’t a novel about the zombie apocalypse—it’s a novel about how a handful of heroic survivors deal with it.”
Paul Goat Allen, Explorations: The BN SciFi and Fantasy Blog
“Meigs created one of the most bleak apocalypse situations I have ever read, and I hope that I never find myself in a situation like that. I actually had nightmares about this zombie world that she created.…The Becoming is the first of a trilogy, and I can’t wait to read more about the Michaluk Virus!”
Zombiephiles.com
“Flat out, this is an entertaining book that never slows down. It’s jam packed with cinematic action that will leave both the characters and the readers struggling to breathe. If you like zombies…if you enjoy scary action sequences with gore and gunfire…if you want to read a good example of what is great about this genre, spend some time with The Becoming by Jessica Meigs. It’s what you should be reading.”
Ruled by Books
“The Becoming is a fantastic set up for the future installments of the trilogy, a novel that focuses intimately on the Survivors of a zombie plague and yet is full of subtle hints of something more in the nature of the Michaluk virus and its consequences. Fans of the Undead will enjoy the well orchestrated Zombie action scenes but for the true connoisseur of zombie fiction it is the speculation of what is to come that is the true joy of this novel.”
The Guilded Earlobe
“[Meigs] really focuses on character here and has a way of detailing gore that’s, well, infectious. There’s also a fairly engrossing narrative drive that propels everything along at a brisk clip. The Becoming won’t replace World War Z as the touchstone modern zombie novel, but keep your expectations modest and you might just dig it.”
Fangoria Magazine
Other Works by Jessica Meigs
The Becoming
Available Now from Permuted Press
~*~
The Becoming: Ground Zero
Coming Summer 2012 from Permuted Press
Author’s Note
It all started with an email.
Okay, a lot of things in my life lately seem to start with an email. The last time, it was from a publisher. This time, it was from a reader.
This reader asked me a question in the midst of their message, probably one they thought was fairly innocent at the time but has caused me entirely too much hair-pulling over the past few months (though not necessarily in a bad way): “What happened to Theo and Gray when the virus got to them?”
Now here’s the funny thing: I knew what had happened to Gray and Theo when the Michaluk Virus hit Mississippi. I’d sketched out a rough backstory on my computer for my own personal use, so I could drop some hints in book one when they told their stories to Brandt Evans. Gray and Theo, though, were intentionally vague, and that alone has prompted some questions from readers as to how two untrained, random guys could manage to survive the way they had in the zombie apocalypse.
What you’re looking at on your reader of choice is the result of an attempt to answer that question.
Unfortunately, there were length constraints. It could not be novel length, just a novella, so I did not get the chance to detail everything I wanted to. However, there is enough here to show just what these guys dealt with in Plantersville, Mississippi, and what they found themselves facing as they tried to survive. It’s violent, it’s bloody, it’s messy, and it’s life-threatening. It is, therefore, a straight-up zombie outbreak novella. And it was way fun to write.
So if you read The Becoming and wondered how Theo and Gray Carter managed to survive, this novella is for you.
If you haven’t read The Becoming and want to sample my writing before picking up the more expensive novel, this is for you.
If you have read The Becoming and are trying to find something to tide you over until its sequel’s release this summer, this is for you.
If you just like zombie apocalypse fiction, this is definitely for you.
I love taking questions and comments about anything and everything that I write. You can find me on my website at www.jessicameigs.com, on Twitter @JessicaMeigs, on Facebook at facebook.com/jessicameigs, and on Goodreads at goodreads.com/jessicameigs.
I hope you enjoy this little tale of gore and terror!
Chapter 1
Gray Carter was leaning halfway underneath the hood of an older-model Honda Civic, up to his elbows in grease and a grimace of concentration on his face, when a hand clapped firmly against his back. He startled and narrowly avoided striking his head on the underside of the hood before backing out and turning his grimace onto whoever had snuck up on him.
His older brother, Theo, stood beside him, attired in his immaculate paramedic uniform with a take-out drink tray and a bag of what smelled like cheeseburgers and fries in one hand, a wicked grin crossing his face. “I didn’t scare you, did I?” he asked.
“Oh, shut up, asshole,” Gray replied, though he was grinning as he spoke. He tugged the well-used rag from his back pocket and began to scrub at the filth that had accumulated on his hands. “What are you doing here? I thought you had to work today.”
“I go in later this evening,” Theo replied. “Figured I’d grab us some lunch and drop in to see what you were doing.” He looked past Gray at the vehicle and added curiously, “What’s wrong with this one?”
“Fubar-ed alternator,” Gray said. He stuffed the rag back into his pocket and nodded toward the white door leading from the service bays and into the garage’s assorted offices. “There’s a sink in the break room. I can wash up in there.”
Gray led the way through the noisy garage, trying to tune out the sounds of the other mechanics banging around under the hoods of other cars and calling out to each other. Somewhere, music blasted on the radio—some R&B stuff that drove Gray crazy day in and day out, but he wasn’t allowed to listen to music on headphones while servicing a customer’s car, so he had to endure the torture. Theo was right behind him as he let him into the building and the break room, and after an intense session of scrubbing with dish detergent and a rag, Gray sat down to the feast of cheap cheeseburgers and fries that Theo had unpacked from the sack.
“You did get mine with no pickles, right?” Gray asked, settling into the metal folding chair across from Theo.
Theo raised an eye
brow and blew the paper wrapper off his straw, shooting it across the table at Gray. Gray swatted it out of the air and wrinkled his nose. “What do you think I am?” Theo asked. “Some kind of an idiot?”
“Well…” Gray drew the word out and laughed when Theo gave him a mock-offended look. “I’m kidding, okay? I know you got it without pickles. You never don’t get it without pickles.”
“I just don’t understand your aversion to pickles,” Theo said. He tore the wrapper off his burger and took a large, messy bite before adding, with his mouth full of bread and meat, “They’re fucking awesome.”
Gray wrinkled his nose but didn’t reply. Instead, he bowed his head and mentally recited the quick prayer of thanks he always made before eating. When he finished, he lifted his head to see Theo giving him a patient smile, even as he nibbled at a french fry. Gray returned the smile and dug into his cheeseburger.
“You still do that prayer thing before you eat?” Theo asked once they both settled into the groove of their meals. Gray shrugged and finished the mouthful of burger before he responded.
“Yeah, of course,” he said. “Why? Don’t you?”
Theo shrugged and dabbed a fry in some ketchup. “Occasionally, whenever I think about it. Which isn’t really as often as I’d like.” He took a bite of his burger and reclined in his chair. “Hey, I have tomorrow off. After I get some sleep, do you want to go out on the town, do whatever?”
“Yeah, sure. Sounds like fun,” Gray agreed. “We can go bar hopping or something. Maybe pick up a couple of chicks, huh?”
Theo snorted. “Gray, you’re the most unconvincing womanizer ever,” he joked. “You’re too baby-faced for one-night stands.”
Gray threw a fry at him and bit back a laugh. “Oh, come on. I’m not any more baby-faced than you are.”
“Yeah, you keep telling yourself that.” The twinkle of mischievousness in Theo’s eyes showed he was joking, but it still rankled Gray’s nerves nonetheless. Before he could come up with a good retort, though, Theo added, “Oh, I almost forgot.” He leaned back in his chair, dug into his pocket, and tossed a small box at him. “I got your prescription refilled for you earlier,” he explained as Gray caught the box.
Gray glanced at the box and made sure it said “albuterol” before he nodded and slipped it into his jacket pocket. “Thanks. I hadn’t even thought about it,” he admitted sheepishly.
“See, this is why I still hang around you,” Theo said. He waved a fry in Gray’s general direction. “If I decided to, I don’t know, stop coming by to see you, you’d forget about getting your meds refilled and end up suffocating to death.”
Gray made a face at Theo and stuffed the last of his cheeseburger into his mouth. “Oh, you’ve got to give me at least a little credit!”
Theo laughed and shook his head. “But why would I want to do that?” he asked. “It takes all the fun out of screwing with you.”
Gray sighed wearily. “Don’t you have somewhere to be? Like maybe work, saving people’s lives instead of sitting here making mine miserable?”
“I should be offended, but I don’t think it’s worth the energy, not after last night,” Theo said with a soft chuckle, even as he grimaced. The disparity between the expression on his face and the sound he made was mildly disconcerting. At his questioning look, Theo added, “Had to work an MVA. There was a kid involved. Those are always hard.”
Gray frowned and leaned over the table, resting his elbows on the edge and studying Theo closely. “You okay?”
Theo shrugged. “Hey, it’s what I signed on for, isn’t it? I wouldn’t have gone to school to become a paramedic if I didn’t think I could handle it.” He drank from his soda cup and added, “It just gets a little rough when the kids are hurt. Emotions and all that shit try to get in the way.”
“I could never do what you do,” Gray admitted. He started to clean up their trash, shoving the emptied wrappers back into the bag. “I’d be entirely too nervous handling other people’s lives like that.”
Theo shrugged and stood to help him wipe the table down. “Well, it keeps roofs over our heads, so I do what I have to do.”
“Yeah, I know, and thank you for that,” Gray said. “God knows I don’t pull in enough here to do much other than keep me in groceries and maybe pay my cell phone bill.”
“How’s the place working out for you, anyway?” Theo asked. “Is everything still okay there?”
“Yeah, it’s fine,” Gray assured him. He gave him a half-shrug and a sheepish smile. “I don’t know. It’s okay. It’s just…not home, you know?”
“I know.” Theo sighed and shook his head. “I’m sorry about all that. I’ve been arguing the case with Dr. Taylor every time I see him, but he’s not budging. I don’t know what to do next.”
Gray glanced at the clock above the door. The second hand ticked inexorably toward the twelve. He sighed and headed for the trash can to jam the bag into it. “As stimulating as this depressing conversation is, I have to get back to work. I’ve still got three hours to finish up this car and get chewed out by the boss for only getting two cars done today.”
“Yeah, I’ve got to get to work myself soon, anyway,” Theo agreed.
Gray headed out the door and back into the service bays, Theo right behind him. Before he went to his car, Theo stopped him and added, “Hey, be careful going home this evening, okay? Seems like we’ve been working a lot of accidents the past couple of days. I don’t want to have to come scrape you off the road.”
Gray gave him a tight smile. While he was touched that Theo was concerned enough to say something, his brother’s overprotectiveness had become almost unbearable over the past few months. Maybe I’m just getting used to staying by myself, Gray thought. He wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not. “I’ll be fine, Theo,” he promised. “It’s not like I drive like a bat out of Hell anyway. And besides, I take that route home five days a week. It’s nothing new.”
“I know, I know,” Theo said with a careless shrug. “Can’t blame me for tossing that out there anyway, right?” He patted Gray on the back again. “See you later, man.” He started to walk toward his car, but he didn’t make it more than a few steps before he turned and added, “Oh! Big Daddy at the base said he’d really appreciate it if you’d come by when you have time and take a look at one of the ambulances. It’s making that weird knocking noise again, and we’re down a truck because of it.”
Gray stifled a laugh at Theo’s nickname for the supervisor on his EMS base and waved a hand at him. “Tell him I’ll see what I can do. I’ll give him a call in the morning.” He shook his head. “I don’t know why I let myself get roped into constantly fixing those junkers for you guys.”
“Because you’re just that damn good, Gray,” Theo said. “And admit it; you’re a total sucker for a big engine.” Before Gray could reply, Theo retreated to his car, slid in, and pulled out of the lot.
Chapter 2
Whenever Theo had to work long shifts like the one for which he was scheduled that evening, he always found himself breathing out prayers for a quiet time of it. But it was Saturday, and teenagers in Plantersville had little to do besides throw drunken parties and cause problems for the police and EMS crews in the area. Considering the rumors already circulating about a party to be held at one of the houses on the outskirts of town, he had no doubt it would prove to be a very busy shift.
Theo found his driver, Jonathan Kramer, already sitting sideways on the passenger seat of their truck when he arrived at the base a few minutes before his shift. He took a moment to toss his bag onto the bed on which he would crash for the night, and punched in before joining Jonathan outside.
“Hey, Carter, how’s it going?” Jonathan greeted him.
Theo shrugged and ran a hand through his hair. “It’s going. How was drill last weekend?”
Jonathan gave him a shrug in return and smiled. “It was okay. The usual. Sarge was a total dick. Nothing strange about that, though.” He didn’t wait for T
heo’s reply. Instead, he thrust a sheet of paper toward him and added, “New marching orders from the boss man. Some supplies have been disappearing from a few of the trucks, so he wants us to inventory everything on paper at the beginning and end of every single shift.”
Theo took the paper and scanned it over. It was a chart listing everything the state required to be on the ambulance, including the amounts, with a space to write in the number actually in the truck’s interior and exterior cabinets. And in the trauma bags. And in the EKG monitor’s bags. “Well, that’s all fine and dandy, but this all looks like extra work just for me.”
“Oh, I’ve got my own.” Jonathan held up a sheet with a noticeably shorter list on it. “Crawling in the fucking dirt, checking the psi on the tires. This is ridiculous.”
“Watch your language,” Theo muttered absently. He felt silly saying that to a man who was over ten years older than he, but he shook off the sensation and looked the list over one more time. He tore his eyes away from the paper and pulled the ambulance’s side door open, hauling himself inside. He was greeted by the sight of dirty gloves, used nasal cannulas, and plastic packaging littering the floor. Soiled linens were piled on the bench by the back doors, and the garbage can attached to the side of the bench was overflowing with everything from used supplies to takeout fast-food bags.
“Fucking hell!” Theo exploded as his eyes took in the view. “What the fucking fuck is this?”
“And you told me to watch my language,” Jonathan joked. “Needless to say, I was less than pleased when I walked into this a few minutes ago. I figured you were going to hit the ceiling.” He tilted his head back to look up at the roof of the ambulance and made an odd snicking noise with his tongue against his teeth. “Looks like you might have left a dent in it.”
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