by M. E. Betts
"It would appear to be," Kandi replied, standing to Shari's left and peering out the window. "You can shoot his gun, and mostly likely blow him to smithereens."
"Yeah," Shari said, "but that would ruin both the ATV and the grenade launcher." She began to line her sight on his head when she saw him raise the weapon, pointing it in the direction of the barn.
"Shit!" she cried, scurrying halfway down the ladder, then leaping the rest of the way down. "He knows I'm in here. And this place is nothing but a huge pile of tinder. It's gonna go up like paper."
"Well," Kandi taunted, following behind Shari, "it's just an enormous red barn from which one could snipe, that's all. Certainly not a likely target."
"Eva, go!" Shari commanded. There was no time to mount the horse. Shari had just barely cleared the entrance to the barn when there was a muted, barely audible Click, click, click which was followed a moment later by three concussive blasts inside the barn. By the time the barn was ripped apart by the explosions, Shari and Eva were about fifty feet away, cowering behind an RV. The barn was obliterated, just as she'd expected, its flaming pieces raining down across the yard. She glanced toward the house. I hope nobody lives here...or at least they're not hostile.
Her mind raced. Without the loft of the barn, she had no high ground to scope out her enemy. I don't hear any motors approaching, she thought. He must be coming on foot.
"Most likely, princess," Kandi agreed. "You'd better run. There's just one little problem."
And what would that be?
"Your horse is gone...I presume the explosion spooked her. I suppose in this case, 'bombproof' can't be taken literally."
Shari looked around...Eva was nowhere to be found. "Why the hell didn't you say something sooner?!"
Kandi shrugged. "Sometimes I don't notice these things any more than you do!" she said defensively. "Still, I'd suggest running. Maybe you'll find the horse later, and maybe you won't. In the meantime, there are more pressing matters at hand." Shari was already running as Kandi finished the sentence, heading for the woods behind the house. She reached the edge of the woods and raced into its depths.
"Um...Shari, dear?"
Piss off, Kandi. I'm a little busy.
"Yes, but I thought you might be interested in the zombie behind you." Shari's eyes snapped wide open. She glanced back, and grabbed her bow. Kandi was right. There was a very fresh, very fast young undead man closing in on her. I guess there was someone near that house, after all.
"Yes, I suppose there was," Kandi patronized. "Shoot the bloke, already!" Shari let an arrow fly, probing the skull of the young zombie. She came to the top edge of a steep slope, and was preparing to jump downhill. She slowed before she jumped down the gradient, wondering if she had time to check the corpse. Just then, she heard the familiar, hushed click, which made her forget at once about searching the body. She leaped down just as the grenade landed very near to where she had been standing. She braced herself for the impact, freefalling about fifteen feet and tumbling gracelessly the rest of the way down the slope. She came to rest momentarily at the bottom, then jumped to her feet and continued fleeing. The air was filled with the aroma of wet leaves and wood as they burned, and Shari could hear the crackle of the flames up the hill behind her. She glanced back briefly, and when she turned back around, she ran full-speed into a petite human form that had seemed to appear out of nowhere. The stranger pushed Shari to the ground and hurled a long, sharpened wooden stick in the direction of the grenade-wielding aggressor. The stick penetrated the man's cranium and exited the other side. The force propelled him backward, pinning him to the tree. The stranger, whom Shari could now see was a woman, marched up to the man. She placed one foot firmly on the tree and wrenched the stick free from both the tree trunk and the man's skull. Shari watched uneasily while the young lady cut off the man's right ear and placed it in her bag.
"That was the last one," she said. She turned to Shari. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," she replied. "I guess I should thank you. He'd have cremated me if you didn't show up when you did." She offered her hand. "I'm Shari."
"I know," the strange young woman answered, "but there's no time for introductions now." She started toward the demolished barn. "That place is going to be crawling with undead soon. That jackass gave every zombie in a five-mile radius a firework display that they couldn't miss." She bent down to pick up the grenade launcher which lay at the lifeless feet of its owner and searched his pack. She found a dozen more grenades, plus some more ammunition and three bottles of water. I guess this is what they wanted from that settlement, she thought, examining the weapon.
Shari ran to catch up with her, an expression of bemusement on her face. "What do you mean, 'I know'? Do I know you from somewhere?"
The woman was silent for a moment, eyes straight ahead. "We'll talk about that later. Let's see if we can find your horse and get the hell outta here."
Shari scowled. I don't trust this, she thought.
Kandi appeared at her side. "Do you trust the fact that she just saved your arse, princess?" Shari glared at Kandi and kept walking.
They passed through the yard and out to the road. Shari ran to the far side of the ruined barn, retrieving her arrow from the skull of the sadist she had killed earlier. There were undead wandering in from both directions...about a dozen in all, at least within her range of vision. None of them were too close yet, so she got to work putting them down with her bow. The mystery woman helped, throwing her sharpened sticks at the ones who were close enough. When they were all successfully rekilled, the two women retrieved their arrows and sticks. They could now see more shuffling in their direction from farther off. Shari clicked her tongue loudly, hoping Eva was still in close enough range to hear it.
"Eva!" she called.
"No time for that," the stranger informed her, pointing to the woods across the road from the house. Shari gasped...about two dozen undead, in various stages of decomposition, were pouring out of the woods and toward the road, forming a rather tight cluster. What on God's green Earth are they all doing here? she wondered.
"Migrating herds, dear," Kandi said. "Keep in mind, they've had several months to form groups. I guess perhaps it's instinctual for them."
The two women ran over to one of the ATVs near where the barn had been. Shari kicked away the corpse who was still seated behind the wheel and got on.
"Hurry!" she urged the stranger. She climbed on behind Shari, and they took off down the road, headed west. Shari glanced down at the gas gauge. It appeared to be about half full. She sighed, relieved. Good, we don't have to worry about gas for awhile.
"So now that we're safe, do you want to explain to me what the hell you're doing here?" Shari demanded.
"No, not really," the young woman responded flatly. "We're not that safe right now. I'll tell you later."
Shari sighed in frustration. "Do you at least want to tell me your name?"
"Daphne."
"Well, Daphne," Shari said, "at least that's a start."
They had been riding for a couple of minutes when Shari saw rapid movement out of the corner of her eye. It was on the edge of the woods, to her left.
"Take out one of those sticks you have--" she started to tell Daphne.
"No need," Daphne said, cutting her off. She pointed. "I think it's your horse." Shari glanced over.
"Eva!" she exclaimed. She felt as if a load were lifted from her shoulders. She hadn't been proud of the fact that she had lost Fauna's beloved horse less than a day after she had ventured out. She stopped the vehicle. "I'll take the horse, you drive this thing." Daphne nodded.
Shari started toward the horse, then stopped. She looked back at Daphne. "Where are we going, anyway?"
"I know a safe place," Daphne said, "if you don't mind being outdoors."
Shari shrugged. "Whatever you say." She mounted Eva and followed Daphne down the road. Kandi appeared, as always, at Shari's side. She was riding sidesaddle, facing Shari as she spoke.
"So tell me, princess...what do you think of our new friend?"
"I don't know," Shari responded after a moment. "I don't know why she's being so secretive. Maybe this is some kind of trap, maybe she's just weird...I'm leaning more toward the latter."
Daphne stopped the ATV up ahead. Uh-oh, Shari thought. She couldn't have heard me, right? Kandi shrugged.
"Alright, listen..." Daphne began, closing her eyes and rubbing the bridge of her nose. "You should know I can hear you...at least, the you that's actually you, and not...whoever the hell it is you're talking to. I respect you enough to tell you that, just to avoid any more embarrassing situations like this. And no offense, but it's a little ironic for the lady talking to herself to call another person weird. I'm just sayin'." She got back onto the ATV and drove onward.
Shari frowned, not sure what to make of what Daphne had said.
Kandi giggled. "Sure, she called you weird. But she also said she respected you. That counts for something, doesn't it?"
"Yeah, I guess so," Shari whispered. "But why does she respect me? I don't know who the hell she is. To be honest, I'm a littlie creeped out."
"You go ahead and be creeped out, but I like her," Kandi said.
"Maybe I'll like her more once I know what the hell she's up to."
Up ahead, Daphne gazed at Shari in her side mirror. She saw her facing to her left, lips moving. Still at it, she thought. This chick is cracked.
They spent the night next to a radio tower set off from the highway. The tower, sitting on top of a small hill, was enclosed by a ten-foot-high fence. Shari had a smoke while Daphne sharpened sticks with her titanium knife.
"That looks like an impressive knife," Shari said.
"Yeah," Daphne agreed, "it is." She pointed to the engraving. "Talon of the Titans. I don't know who those Titans are, but they have some good taste in weapons." Shari grinned, suppressing a chuckle. She was becoming captivated by Daphne's lack of pretension. She reminds me of a Titan, herself, she thought.
"Definitely," Kandi concurred. "Like a charmingly simple-minded, knife-wielding goddess. I mean that in a good way, of course."
"How did you learn to use that thing so well?" Shari asked.
Daphne shrugged. "Practice," she said. "I found it in the woods, and...." She paused, remembering her first night with the knife. "I've been practicing with it ever since, just drills mostly, and hunting and stuff. I never really had friends or hobbies or anything, so I've had a lot of time to just mess around with it. Now it just feels like part of me. It feels like a living extension of my hand." She slashed the air, pleased with herself. "I've gotten pretty fast!"
"I noticed," Shari said. She snuffed out her hand-rolled smoke. "So Daphne...I think it's time for you to explain exactly how it is that you know me." Daphne looked over at her, regarding her with hesitant eyes.
"I guess I can see how you'd feel that way," she said after a moment. "Well...I've been watching you for awhile."
Shari's eyes widened, and her brow furrowed. She couldn't help but feel a little violated. "Why?" she asked.
"I could tell you were a good person, and I like to watch over good people," Daphne replied.
"O...kay...." Shari said. "But...why in secret?"
"I don't know," Daphne said. "It's just the way I've always been...at least, for a long time. When I was a kid, I had to sneak around a lot." She related to Shari the tragic story of her childhood...the death of her biological parents, the bizarre and abusive foster family she had been sentenced to spend the remainder of her childhood with. She stopped short, however, of telling Shari how she had murdered them that night more than six years ago.
Shari had listened with a somber silence until Daphne finished her story. "I'm sorry, kid," she said when Daphne finished.
"Wow, what a lame response that is!" Kandi teased.
Shut up, Kandi Cane. Kandi gave her a look of utter indignance, rolling her eyes.
"You don't have to be sorry," Daphne said. "It's over now. The only reason I brought it up is...I don't know, I just wanted you to have some explanation of why...why I am the way I am, I guess. I don't know, I'm not very good with psychological stuff."
"No, it makes sense," Shari assured her. "You reacted to your environment in order to survive. They gave you no choice but to sneak around, so you got to be good at it. But hey--" She looked at Daphne pointedly. "At least you can say something good came of it. I mean, being able to sneak is quite an asset in a world like this."
Daphne snickered. "You got that right."
"So...you were watching me the whole time, then?" Shai asked. "I mean, since the world went to shit?"
Daphne shook her head. "No, not the whole time. Since just before you guys went to pick up Jon and them."
Shari nodded slowly. A light of apprehension appeared in her eyes. "So then...you were the one who killed those guys that day? The ones who were fucking with Fauna and me?"
"Yeah, that was me," Daphne said, a coy smile appearing on her face. She sighed. "I never did like killing people. I wish I didn't have to." She gazed off into the distance, at the disappearing light of the setting sun. "But I just can't stand the thought of bad people making life hell for good people...innocent people who didn't ask for it, who didn't do anything wrong."
"Well then," Shari said, "I'm glad to see that you and I see eye to eye on that." She shifted awkwardly. "I'm sorry I called you weird earlier. Considering what you've been through, you're really pretty stable. I think you turned out a lot better than most people would've under the same circumstances. Probably better than I would've." She laughed, glancing at Kandi who sat, as always, at her left side. "And you're right. I've got this imaginary friend here--" She pointed, gesturing at the invisible woman. "So for me to call anyone else weird is...well, it's a little like the pot calling the kettle black."
Daphne shook her head. "Hey, chick, if it helps you get through these tough times, then more power to you. It's not hurting anyone. Not like those guys back there."
"Those sadists," Shari said.
Daphne nodded in agreement. She looked up, surveying the skies as the last light of day escaped beyond the western horizon.
"It looks like it'll be pretty clear tonight," she said. "Good news for me. I spent the last couple nights out in the rain."
"You always sleep outside?" Shari asked.
"Yeah, most of the time, anyway" Daphne replied. "I guess it's another one of those things that I just had to get used to. I spent a lot of nights outside as a kid...outside in the rain, the cold, the snow. Sometimes, if it got really bad and I was afraid I'd freeze to death, I'd go sleep in one of the sheds in the backyard. But most nights, I would rather be outside. It just feels...." She paused. "It just feels right. Like it's where I belong. Sometimes if I'm indoors for too long...it kind of freaks me out."
Because most of the time you were growing up, if you were indoors, it meant you were in a basement being starved and raped, Shari thought ruefully. Her heart ached for Daphne, who had endured so much and still managed to have a conscience. She deserved better.
"Well," came Kandi's voice from her left, "that's the ironic beauty of the apocalypse. People like you and Daphne can thrive and flourish. Remake the world for the better. Make a world that won't tolerate injustice."
Shari awoke bright and early the next morning, uncomfortable from the dew that had saturated the grass and her sleeping bag. She looked eastward...the sun hadn't quite crossed over the horizon line yet. She looked over at Daphne, who was already wide awake, eating a protein bar.
"Good morning," she said.
"Morning," Shari mumbled.
"You want some breakfast?" Daphne asked, offering her a protein bar.
"Yeah, sure," Shari said, lifting herself up out of the sleeping bag. She kneaded her face, attempting to kick-start her circulation. "Man, I slept hard. I'm glad none of those walking pus-bags came to fuck with us, because I might not have woken up if they had."
Daphne pointed
to a lifeless figure lying outside the fence, about 75 feet away. A stick protruded from its ruined, rotten face. "Just that one," she said. "Luckily, I'm a very light sleeper, and I have night vision like a cat." She smiled proudly, flashing small, straight white teeth and flicked her long, straight red hair behind her. "Besides, I doubt they'd get into the fence. This thing was built pretty solidly, so I doubt they'd get under it. They'd have to climb it, and look at that thing." She pointed again at the nearly disintegrated pile of bone and flesh. "I doubt it'd be able to climb a stair, let alone a ten-foot-tall fence."
"Yeah," Shari conceded, "but that one's pretty rotted. Granted, most of them are the same way, but every now and then there's a fresh one. One that hasn't had a chance to rot yet, or even to destroy its tendons and joints. And those are the ones to be afraid of."
"I'll hear 'em coming, either way," Daphne said. "And I sleep with one eye open." Shari saw that she was sorting through a pile of sticks, scrutinizing each one.
"I'm gonna go pee in the woods over there," Shari said, pointing. "I'll be right back."
"Okay, be careful," Daphne replied without looking up from her work.
Shari looked out toward the road as she walked downhill toward the treeline. She could see for miles in either direction. There were a few undead figures out in the distance, stumbling slowly in her direction. She palmed the .357 in her jacket pocket, reassured by its presence. She figured she would leave the zombies alone until they got closer. From their current distance, she would need her sniper rifle. They're not really a threat, anyway, she thought as she squatted down to relieve herself.
Kandi appeared, squatting beside her. "No, those rotted ones are only a threat in large numbers." She held up her imaginary skirt to protect it from her imaginary urine stream.
Shari looked at her, perplexed. "Why are you peeing?" she asked, shaking her head. "Is your pretend bladder full?"
"I don't know, princess, you tell me," Kandi retorted. "You're the one who's imagining me doing this." She smiled, pleased with how thrown-off Shari was by her response. "I may have some kind of will of my own, but everything you think you see and hear--my visage, my voice, my horse, my physical actions--those are all products of your overactive imagination."
