Way of the Barefoot Zombie

by Jasper Bark

  Chapter Ten

  "What are you doing?"

  Benjamin was bugging her again. He was like a little kid sometimes. Always wanting her attention. If he wasn't so cute she'd have given up ages ago.

  It's like her Aunt said though. You don't meet the perfect man - you make him. You start with the best raw material you can get and you sculpt it into something worth having.

  Not that it had worked too well for her Aunt. She was constantly improving men only to have them stolen away by younger, slimmer women.

  "Are you okay? C'mon speak to me."

  "I was practising my Zombie breathing dumb ass," Tatyana said, sitting up in bed. It was the first time she'd moved in thirty minutes. "You know, like they told us to do - at least three times a day."

  "Oh yeah, guess I should probably be joining in. You're getting rather good though. Had me worried for a second. You had almost no vital signs. For a moment, I thought you'd actually died."

  "I find it weirdly relaxing actually. Just letting go of everything and resting, taking a break from actually living. It's like a drug you know, sort of addictive."

  Benjamin got excited at this. He jumped off the bed and started gesticulating. "I know exactly what you mean. I find encounters with the noble monster totally addictive. I'm in the zone out there. I'm at one with them and they can sense it. I've definitely got the most developed Inner Zombie on the island."

  "Steady on genius. We've only been at it a week. Don't get ahead of yourself."

  "I'm not getting ahead of myself. I'm good at this. Things are starting to make sense for the first time. Even you and me are getting along better."

  "Now there's no women flirting with you."

  "Aw c'mon, cheap shot."

  "Okay, you're right. I am happier, about us, about everything. It is beneficial. I guess that's why they charge so much for the course."

  "They said they've got something special planned for us today. Time to take the next big step. I am so ready for it."

  "Well you better get showered and changed then. We're supposed to be down there in ten."

  "Oh shit!"

  Today's encounter was in a different part of the compound. They assembled in an observation room overlooking a large enclosed arena. Tatyana shared the anticipation she could see on the faces of the guests. They could all tell that something different and special was going to happen.

  Raoul, their movement coach and encounter leader, came in to address them. "As I told you yesterday, today we're going to move you on to the next stage of your training. As this is a moment of significance, someone of great consequence is going to address you."

  Tatyana felt an immense presence behind her. Without thinking, everyone in the group turned at the same time. Standing behind them was Doc Papa. He smiled with satisfaction at their shock and awe.

  "Good morning," he said. "A pleasure to see you all again. I understand from my staff that you've been doing rather well. Now it's time to do rather better. So far we have shown you the Way of the Barefoot Zombie. But there is a difference between knowing the Way and walking the Way.

  "Tomorrow night I am hosting a dinner for some special guests. We are going to be joined by St Ignatius's Board of Directors and the previous graduates of my course. It's fair to say that between them they control most of the wealth on the planet." Tatyana saw the excitement and anticipation on the faces of the guests at the mention of this. They were like a bunch of groupies who've just been told their favourite band were oiled, naked and waiting in the next room.

  "Whether or not you join us will depend on how well you perform today. If you fail, you are going home. To survive in the company of merciless killers is not enough. You must learn to become like them in order to dominate them. To become like them you must kill as they kill - without thought or compunction. Observe."

  Doc Papa pointed to the window and they all turned at the same time to look out of it. They were like living puppets. He just had to pull their strings and they did whatever he wanted.

  A cage descended into the centre of the arena. It was held by a heavy chain and stopped about twelve feet above the ground. Inside was a man with a thick black moustache, wearing a Hawaiian shirt. He looked Latin American. He was frightened and disoriented. He moved about the cage, testing the bars and trying to see what was going on in the arena below.

  "This pathetic specimen is a militant trade unionist from Venezuela," said Doc Papa.

  A set of gates opened onto the arena and two women, also Latino, stumbled. They blinked and shaded their eyes from the sunlight. The man in the cage called out to them and they went to stand beneath him.

  "His wife and sister are also in the same union," said Doc Papa. "They've been causing a lot of problems for Western clothing companies. Instead of being thankful for the work their benefactors provide, they've been spreading scurrilous lies about the state of their factories. Calling them sweatshops and trying to bully the companies into paying higher wages. They've even gone as far as trying to hamstring these legitimate operations by demanding an end to child labour."

  Tatyana saw many of the guests sneer, shake their heads and make disparaging noises.

  "Instead we called an end to their activities. Observe how to deal with labour relations the Barefoot Zombie way."

  Two more gates opened on to the arena. Speakers clicked on in the observation room so they could hear what was happening in the arena.

  "Madre de Dios," said one of the women and clung to the other. The man in the cage started shouting to the women and pointing at the gates.

  Around twenty Zombies shambled into the arena. One of the women started crying and wailing at the sight of them. The Zombies scented the air then began to lurch towards the women.

  The man in the cage reached down through bars. The slimmer of the two women tried to jump up and catch hold of his hands. The other woman ran back towards the gates they'd come though.

  Four Zombies gave chase as the woman hit the gates. They were locked and the woman battered on them as the Zombies bore down on her.

  A scrawny female Zombie got to her first. The woman tried to push the Zombie away. It caught hold of her hair and the woman put her hand against its face to hold it off.

  The Zombie opened its mouth wide and bit down on the woman's hand. The woman shrieked in pain and yanked herself away, leaving the Zombie with great clumps of hair in its hands.

  Two of the woman's fingers were missing. Blood poured out of the stumps, covering her hand and the sleeve of her blouse. The woman gasped in shock. Staring in disbelief at her hand.

  She backed into a fat Zombie who came up behind her. The Zombie caught her by the shoulders and lunged for her neck. She managed to twist free from its grip and it fastened its teeth on her shoulder instead.

  The woman screamed and punched the Zombie in the head with her uninjured hand. The Zombie bit harder but she managed to tear herself away. The Zombie chewed on a big chunk of skin and fabric from her blouse as it lumbered after her.

  Three more Zombies loomed up in front of the woman as she fled her attackers. They were maddened by the smell of the blood that was gushing out of her shoulder wound and finger stumps.

  They encircled her and dragged her to the ground. Tatyana could see the woman's legs kicking as the three Zombies began to feed. She was still sobbing with pain as the other two joined them and yet more scrambled over for a taste of flesh.

  The slimmer woman had managed to catch hold of the hands of the man in the cage. He was trying to pull her to safety as the Zombies circled below.

  The woman's legs flailed as she tried to pull herself up onto the cage. A tall male Zombie caught hold of her foot. The woman kicked at it and her shoe came off.

  The Zombie chewed on the shoe for a few seconds then threw it away. It stretched up its arm and grabbed her naked foot. The woman cried out in terror as the Zombie tried to drag her back down. The man in the cage tried to pull her up but he wasn't strong enough.

 
; The Zombie bit into her foot, tearing off a huge chunk of skin and cartilage. The woman howled in pain and let go of the cage. It was only the man's hands on her wrists that stopped her falling.

  The woman thrashed sending droplets of blood raining down on the Zombies that were gathering beneath her. They looked up towards the source of the blood. Their jaws working hungrily.

  The tall Zombie got hold of her foot again and yanked again. A tug of war ensued between the Zombie and the man in the cage. The woman's screams of panic became shriller and shriller until the man lost his grip.

  She hit the floor and the Zombies pounced. The man in the cage let out a howl of dismay. He beat his fists against the bars and spat angry curses at the Zombies. Then he curled up into a ball and sobbed his heart out as he watched what they were doing to the woman he obviously loved.

  Tatyana buried her face in Benjamin's chest and tried to block out the woman's screams. Everyone else leaned forward to get a better view of the feeding. Benjamin was torn between comforting her and watching himself.

  She'd seen thousands of Zombie movies before. Seen them pull people apart and cheered with her friends. This was different. This was really happening. These were real Zombies and real people, not bad Italian actors and cheap special effects.

  These women had been sacrificed for trying to help children. She couldn't bear to listen to their screams of torment. She felt physically sick as the other guests cheered their slow agonising deaths.

  Benjamin pushed her gently away and turned her head to the observation window. His eyes implored her not to lose it. She knew what he was doing. This was all part of the test Doc Papa had mentioned. If they didn't play along, if they showed any signs of weakness, they'd be sent home. The mission would be aborted and it would all have been for nothing.

  She looked out over the carnage, the Zombies feeding and the caged man's tears. She looked but she tried not to see or hear. She remembered the last time she'd felt like this. She was ten years old. She was having dinner with her parents.

  Her mother had over-cooked the roast. Her father was angry about his job and was looking for someone to take it out on. He picked her mother as usual. He'd thrown the gravy at her and then punched her to the ground.

  Tatyana had dropped her cutlery and moved to help her Mother. Terrified for her welfare, Tatyana's mother had told her to sit and to keep on eating. Told her to mind her manners or her Father would become even more angry.

  She had to sit at the table and carry on as if nothing was happening. As if they were a normal family having a normal lunch. As if she couldn't hear her mother's cries and the sound of her father beating her until his arms ached.

  Tatyana slowed her breathing to almost nothing. She let her limbs relax until all the energy drained out of them. Let her heart rate drop until it was hardly beating at all. She was tired of living right now. Tired of all the pain it brought.

  She wanted a break. They'd told her to practise her Zombie breathing. Well now she was.

  Chapter Eleven

  "Now it is your turn," Doc Papa said. The Zombies had picked the corpses clean and had shuffled off to find other distractions. "Now you must hunt in a pack. You must kill as they kill with bare hands and teeth. You must gorge yourselves on raw human flesh."

  There was a collective in-take of breath among the guests. Tatyana could see the looks of apprehension and anticipation that they shared.

  "You have a small window of opportunity in which to attack. It is imperative that you strike swiftly and decisively. The victim is traumatised and disoriented. He does not understand what is happening to him. Nothing in his life so far has prepared him for this.

  "He is like a faltering national economy in the aftermath of a calamity. A struggling country hit by hyper-inflation, natural disaster or years of war. Ripe for exploitation!

  "It is in these times that multi billionaires are made. When, disguised as foreign aid, the IMF is able to demand economic shock therapy. Privatising public industries, slashing public services, raising taxes on the poor while systematically cutting their wages. Because the populace is too shocked to even realise what is happening to them, let alone resist or fight back.

  "You must be like a multi-national descending on a weak nation. Just as they strip the country of its public coffers and natural resources, you must strip him of everything. Tear out his guts, gorge yourself on his life blood and suck the marrow from his bones. Squeeze the life out of him like it was the last penny of an impoverished people.

  "Because he is in a position of weakness and you are in a position of strength. Because you are clever enough to have seen the opportunity and to have found the means to exploit it. That is what creating wealth is all about. That is the Way of the Barefoot Zombie. The lessons you learn in the arena today will determine if you are fit enough to be among the world's most rich and powerful."

  Doc Papa's words had an invigorating effect on the guests. Tatyana could feel the hunger growing in them. A deep seated hunger for blood, and for the wealth and influence they realised was within reach. She felt like she was standing in a pack of starving jackals.

  Raoul and the other encounter leaders took them down as the Zombies were cleared from the arena. They were told to strip to their underwear and then led to a set of gates.

  As the gates opened they spilled out into the arena. Most of the guests were pumped, filled with excitement and blood lust. Others were apprehensive but, from the looks on their faces, Tatyana could tell they were ready to kill.

  The bottom of the cage opened and the man tumbled onto the arena floor. Five of them were on top of him before he even had time to stand. They tore off his shirt and sunk their teeth into his neck and arms but found it difficult to even break his skin, let alone tear it.

  "¡No, no, parada! ¿Qué usted está haciendo? ¡Párela, en nombre de Dios parada!" the man called out.

  An Asian woman tugged the man's hair to keep his head still and bit his cheek. The man screamed in pain as she managed not only to draw blood, but to peel off a chunk of his face.

  At the sight of blood the other guests went wild. Four of them lunged at his face with open mouths. Tatyana heard the man's nose break. Someone else tore off part of his bottom lip, exposing his teeth.

  The man kicked his legs violently and thrashed around. He almost succeeded in getting away from them. His foot connected with one guy's mouth who reeled back and spat blood.

  "Oh my God he just broke my crown!" the guy said. "Do you have any idea how much that dental work cost you little shit?" He went to kick the man, missed and hit one of the guests. He lifted his foot to try and stomp on the man but Raoul and another encounter leader stopped him and led him out of the arena. Someone wasn't going to make the dinner tomorrow night.

  Benjamin was kneeling next to the man's midriff. He grabbed Tatyana and pulled her down next to him. The man was naked now, still writhing and screaming but that only seemed to get the guests more excited.

  All of them were chewing on parts of his body, trying to shred his flesh. Bessie, the ageing redhead, was trying to tear his penis off with her teeth. Tatyana could see the years of bitterness and broken marriages coming out in the vicious way she gnawed on his flaccid member.

  Using both their teeth and fingernails, someone managed to part the man's stomach wall. Benjamin saw his chance and stuck his hand in. He pulled out a section of the man's intestinal tract.

  He turned and offered a section to Tatyana. He seemed almost pleased with himself. He waved the intestines under her nose but they were too gross to even touch. He implored her with his eyes, saying 'please don't fuck this up.'

  He was right. She took the pink and bloody tube in her hands. It was hot and heavier than she thought it would be. She put it slowly to her lips and gagged at the smell. Benjamin bit into his section and Tatyana tried to do the same.

  The wall of the intestine was thick and rubbery and slick with blood. Her teeth just slipped off. Benjamin had more success than
her. The intestines tore and a thick liquid poured out. Benjamin wretched as it spilled into his mouth and tried not to vomit.

  Tatyana could hear the man moan in pain. He was still alive and she was trying to eat his innards. Tears ran down her cheeks and mingled with the human blood dripping from her chin.

  Make this end, Tatyana thought. Oh God please, please make this end.

  She looked up and, out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly became aware of Miriam. She had that hazy field around her again. Maybe it was only because Tatyana's eyes were full of tears that she could see her.

  Miriam was moving her hands about in a series of precise movements and muttering what looked like some sort of incantation. She was doing it so she didn't have to join in with the carnage, Tatyana realised.

  Tatyana reached out a hand to her. She wanted nothing more than to disappear into that hazy field. To find the blind spot and just fade from view.

  Her hand was slick with blood though. Miriam and her field disappeared the minute she reached out for her.

  What was she reaching out for?

  She'd been thinking about something... fading from... what was it?

  No, it was gone.

  She looked down at herself. Her face and chest were smeared with blood.

  The stains would never come out.

  Chapter Twelve

  Shit, would the taste never come out? Tatyana had brushed her teeth like twenty times now. Her gums were bleeding and her mouth was raw. She couldn't tell if she was tasting her own blood or the man's.

  The man. That's all she could think of him as. The man' That's all he was. She didn't know his name or anything about him other than he was once in a union. That's how they wanted it. The less she knew about him the easier he was to kill.