Journals of the Damned (Book 2)

by GJ Zukow

  I had been stripped and hogtied, bleeding from multiple shrapnel wounds, while being roughly dragged through the dirt. My mouth hadn’t been gagged though so I screamed out in pain, fear and anger at my captor. He was completely taken by the parasite, and I was shocked when he turned his head and spoke. It wasn’t the words he said that terrified me the most about him. When I saw him from behind, as he dragged me towards the main building, he had long, dirty black hair. When he turned and faced me, I saw the filthy, unwashed locks weren’t his. He wasn’t wearing a wig either. What he was wearing was a full mask of some unfortunate victim’s face. The lips, eyelids and nostrils had been cut out, with the whole of the scalp still attached. There was dried blood still crusted on it, highlighting the jagged cut around the hairline.

  “You’re going to beg for unconsciousness again little girl, your screams now are nothing compared the way you’ll scream soon.”, then he laughed at me, a sick and twisted sound that sent a cold chill through me.

  Every jolt over every bump in the ground sent another wave of pain through me. I could feel the sharp fragments of the shrapnel within me shifting and doing more injury with every step I was dragged. I thought I was dead. The only question in my mind was how long it would take for me to die. Struggling to free myself from the restraints proved futile, they weren’t shoddy or handmade.

  As he dragged me to what would surely be my place of death, he started humming something. When I recognized the tune he was so happily humming, it sent a shiver through me. He was jauntily humming ‘I’m walking on sunshine’. I don’t recall who sang it but if I find them I’m going to put my foot all up in their asses.

  Just as I was about to resign myself to a violent death, Laelaps came running full speed. Her teeth were bared, a deep growling issuing from her throat. With every step, dirt flew from her paws and fur. She must have dug under the fence somewhere and squeezed herself through. Before the carrier could react, Laelaps was on him. The savagery of her attack astounded me. Once she pounced she laid him out flat on his back. Over and over she bit him, tearing and shaking his arms when they got in the way of where she wanted to bite him, his neck. I did the only thing I could to help her kill him. I wrapped the steel cable that was binding my hands to my feet around his neck and squeezed with all my strength. The exertion caused fresh blood to flow from my wounds in a burst of new pain. While Laelaps mauled him, snapping off the fingers on his left hand as he feebly tried to block her sharp fangs, I did my best to strangle him. Finally, he reached up with his right hand and stuck his fingers in my wounds, digging into them, making them howl in pain. I almost lost my grip when he did that, the blood from both of us adding a slippery element to my tenuous grasp on him. After what seemed an eternity he lost consciousness but I kept strangling him anyways. I wanted to make sure he was dead and not playing possum. When Laelaps finally stopped her fierce tearing at him, sitting down and panting profusely, I knew he was truly dead.

  The only thing the carrier was wearing was a dirty pair of khaki shorts and there, around one of the belt loops, was a huge set of keys. It took me a lot of tries to find the correct key to unlock my restraints. All the blood made me drop them more than once, forcing me to calm myself. I needed to get my weapons back before more of them showed up. Once unlocked and free again I quickly followed my path back to where the booby-trap had gone off. My weapons were all there, scattered in the dirt alongside my clothes. The weapons were still loaded and ready to rock, having been tossed aside to disarm me. My clothes were useless, having been quickly cut and torn from my body. I must have looked insane then, wandering around naked, covered in blood, carrying enough weapons to fight a war. It might be a good thing to go native in this madhouse, it might give me the edge if they thought I was one of the infected also. If not then maybe they would stare in momentary shock and lust as a naked teenage girl shot them in the face.

  On my way back to the entry way the mad Red had been dragging me to, I stopped and stabbed my bayonet, repeatedly, through the dead man’s skull. That was one corpse that wouldn’t ever rise again. I made sure of that.

  I had become paranoid that I would come across more traps once I entered the foul abode. Laelaps didn’t care, she immediately took point as soon as I opened the door. I was completely keyed up and ready for anything. At least I thought I was. The interior of the building was a living nightmare. Trash, rotted food, feces, bones and maggoty meat of unknown animals was piled knee deep all through graffitied and blood smeared rooms.

  Amidst stacks, cases and piles of looted supplies came the distinct sound of a generator running in the background. I had no desire to explore the hell hole, all I wanted to do was find Nancy and the baby and then get out. I had no idea how many of the Reds were around, I didn’t care to find out.

  It didn’t take Laelaps long to find her first enemy. With her tail furiously wagging she quickly charged and took down a walker, knocking it off balance easily. In a bare moment I was right behind her, slashing the horrid things skull in half, letting its corrupt brains slide out on the dirty floor.

  When I found a fresh blood trail I knew I was getting close. I followed the spatter and had to momentarily stop when I came to a makeshift kitchen. The whole room, from the floor to the ceiling was covered in blood and gore. There were so many flies and maggots in the room, buzzing and crawling through the area that I could barely see. The stench was overwhelming, decayed bones, fingers and assorted pieces of flesh mixed their odors and my flesh crawled with every squishing step of my bare feet. Huge ovens and stew pots held fetid and rancid contents that had boiled over long ago and had never been cleaned up. As happy as I was to leave that room of horrors, it led to what I could only call a meeting hall. A single long table, once a very expensive and grand centerpiece, was surrounded by a motley confusion of miscellaneous chairs. There must be some fascination with head hunting among the infected, along with their cannibalistic tendencies. The shelves along the wall obviously used to hold books and repair manuals but was now a display rack for grisly trophies. Most of the skulls had been placed along the nasty walls long enough ago that most of the flesh had rotted off. Occasionally, between the desiccated and emaciated skulls, there was the still animated heads of the risen. As soon as those dead, dark, cataract covered eyes noticed my passing they struggled and squirmed, chomping their teeth and licking their blackened tongues at the sight and scent of me. Before I could reach the halfway mark through the long room, I heard multiple bangs on the double doors that led deeper into the complex. It startled me, the shepherd’s hairs rose on her back, gums drawn back showing off her wickedly sharp canines.

  I was positive that I had been found out, that the Reds would quickly find and catch me in short order. Even after I had deduced that the pounding was made by more of the undead, I had the feeling that others would surely hear the commotion and come running. That’s when Laelaps ears pricked up, listening intently to something. I had to strain to hear past the pounding but then I heard what had captured Laelaps attention. I heard Candice’s cries. Laelaps let out a loud and mournful howl then, as if she was trying to tell little Candi that she was here for her. Wanting to waste no time I let slip the simple bolt latch, prepared to greet the shambling dead with some hardened steel. The doors banged open, the hungry dead inside struggled to rush me but they were held back. Thick heavy leather collars, attached to thick steel chains, kept the things from leaving the room. They jostled each other, reaching with their outstretched, unfeeling, dead arms and grasping hands as they tried in vain to reach me.

  My jaw actually dropped when my brain processed what my eyes were seeing. Six fettered horrors, all women, were dressed (and partially undressed) like some necrophiliac’s wet dream. A blond high school girl in a dirty cheerleader’s outfit, a dark haired woman in a French maid’s costume with pulled down top and underwear tangled around her black high-heeled pumps were just two of the ridiculous things that greeted me. I was positive I knew what had been going on in this ro
om and I put the poor bitches to rest permanently with a great enthusiasm.

  The single overhead light displayed a further nightmare, for there in the center of the room was a great dark altar with Nancy’s limp body tied upon it. Behind the blood encrusted, unholy altar was a great throne (fashioned and constructed in the same manner as the bloody altar) and there was Candi, bawling her eyes out. I rushed first to the baby, not knowing if Nancy was still alive as I hadn’t seen her body move even once. Laelaps reached Candi first and she proceeded to give her some great sloppy licks which quieted the child.

  I scooped the babe up in my arms, glad to see she was unharmed, glad she was no longer lying on that evil throne made of bones and held together with razor wire.

  Her mother was in bad shape. She was unconscious, having suffered lacerations to her head and chest that would require stitches. Her nose, cheek and left eye was bruised, blackened and swollen, they had to have been broken. One of her nipples had been cut off and I could plainly see the edges of broken ribs shifting with each breath she took. Nancy had been brutalized in her short time here, blood caked her thighs and I shivered at the thought of what had been done to her. She had lost a lot of blood and as I was untying her she awoke, blinking her one eye that hadn’t swelled shut at me. I suppose she thought I was one of the insane, come to torture her further. The visage she must have seen obviously shocked her, covered in my own and another’s blood, covered in sweat, dust and dirt and naked to boot. Nancy had strained to scream in terror, all that escaped her throat was a rough, raspy wheezing sound. When she heard my voice and saw me tenderly holding her child she recognized me. The altar itself looked like it was made by the hands of the insane, bones and barbed wire, broken weapons and razor wire, covered by a great dark slab. Inside the center of the terrible construction were the still unliving heads of the animated dead. I vowed, right then and there, to come back here and burn this affront to the Gods from the face of the Earth. Two worn books were upon a podium and they caught my notice. They seemed a bit out of place, the heavy wooden stand held a crudely carved figure of a naked woman with dozens of small eyes covering where long hair should have grown. I grabbed them and made Nancy carry them for me as I dragged her from the vile darkness of the temple.

  Nancy could barely stand upright and with one arm I struggled to lead her out of the compound while cradling Candi in my other arm. In the end I basically dragged her out of there, thinking desperately on how to get as far from there as quickly as possible. I counted myself extremely lucky that we encountered no others, living or not, as we made our escape. Laelaps once again took the lead, somehow knowing we had to leave.

  There, in a covered bay was our escape. That black electric car I had seen and wanted for myself was parked and charging, just waiting for me to steal it. The dark tinted windows would keep anything, alive or dead, from seeing us and the quietness of its motor would be a benefit of huge proportions for me while denying the Reds of the same. Besides, my wounded thigh and ass cheek, where the shrapnel had tore into me, was starting to get the better of me now that the shock was wearing off. As soon as I tried the handle I found it was unlocked and fully charged with the keys still dangling from the ignition. Once Nancy sat down in the leather passenger seat and once again was able to hold her sweet Candice in her arms I handed her a pistol, telling her I would be right back after I opened the gates.

  The gates, once blocked by multiple vehicles, now had a clear path through them. The only thing keeping the gate shut was a single cheap lock and chain which surrendered to a few swift blows from the butt of my rifle. Even as we drove out of there I was expecting to hear an alarm raised and gunshots being fired in my direction but there were none. It was disturbingly odd, how simple it was but I thanked the Gods for smiling on my endeavor.

  Nancy lost a lot of blood, I’ve cleaned her up and stitched up the wounds I could. Candi seems okay and both are sleeping peacefully.

  Laelaps and I will be expecting the Reds if and when they return. We’ve got some surprises in store for them if they do decide to come back. Until then I’m going to nurse Nancy back to as much health as I can and read these hand written journals I found.

  Thursday, June 26, 2014

  I’ve done everything I could for Nancy but she’s still in bad shape. She’s deathly pale and anemic, she’s lost a lot of blood. I know she’s in a lot of pain, I have to keep her so doped up on pain meds that she sleeps most of the day. Even with copious amounts of drugs in her system she still wakes up and complains about the pain. Her whole face has swollen into an ugly, blackened bruise. I think most of the bones on the left side of her face have been broken. Broken fingers, ribs and even toes are all beyond my care. She still occasionally bleeds openly, but doesn’t seem to remember being brutalized or anything after she had been dragged to the black car. Her whole body looks like it was beaten, punched and kicked, it is so covered in bruises and deep scratches. My greatest fear is that if I can’t find a doctor for her soon she will die. I honestly think the only reason she’s still holding on is because of Candice.

  Candice on the other hand is fine. Besides a rough bruise around her ankle and lower leg she shows no sign of injury. Thank the Gods for small favors. She’s still quite the handful though, just as any infant is. Between her and her battered mother I have my hands full.

  Once I took care of those two I was finally able to take care of myself. Two of the jagged pieces of metal that had torn into me weren’t hard to get out at all. I barely had any problem at all getting those ones out compared to the third piece. The third piece of sharp metal had buried itself deep into the muscle, causing fresh blood to flow with every step. By the time I was able to dig it out, using thin, needle nosed surgical pliers I looted from the hideout of the Reds, I was awash in my own sweat. It had to come out though, to leave it in would have meant eventual infection.

  I have a hard time leaving the shelter to do anything, fearful for either the babies or Nancy’s safety. The most I’ve been able to stay away from them is for little more than ten minutes. I experimented with taking Candi with me, securely strapped into a baby carrier but it doesn’t feel right or safe carrying a baby around in sight of the hungering undead or firing automatic weapons inches from her tiny ears. In the end I’m left with resorting to locking Laelaps into the shelter to guard them when I’m gone (which I know Laelaps hates with a passion).

  Tomorrow I’m planning on leaving the shelter for most of the day. I’ve got to go back and find that ammonia truck, at the least. I read 1st Lieutenant Lance Ewer’s journal and now there’s a burning desire for me to go back to the former junkyard and check out the truth of what the ex-soldier had written about. If it’s true that I killed the last of the Red’s, that should leave their whole base with its huge stockpiles of goods, open for pillaging. There was a military ID tucked between the pages of the journal, I’d like to go back and confirm that Lance was the last of the Red Death squad (turned carrier) whose body I left laying in the dirt. What I need to do is find a radio or something. I need to spread the news of what ammonia does and find a doctor for Nancy. I know the junkyard has working generators and electricity, at least it did almost a week ago, if not then I’m sure it’ll be simply a case of finding more gas for them. I would love to find a shortwave radio, that would be perfect. Lance’s journal, detailing his descent into madness, shines a lot of light on how the infected ones kept the Omni at bay. It also makes me sick to my stomach to read what he had become. Better that he should have committed suicide than struggled to survive as such a monster.

  The other journal I read, the one by Martin S. Trebuchet, M.D, was interesting. It seems he had stumbled upon the undead abominations weakness before starving to death. I tested out what he reported, setting out foolishly armed with bottles of glass cleaner, seeking some member of the cannibalistic undead. It worked! Just as the Doctor reported, even weak ammonia based Windex will cause the hated dead to die again.

  All that time I was thi
nking the Reds had been somehow spraying cat urine around. I had been trying to figure out where all the cats would have come from to produce such copious amounts of urine. I mean, I know they weren’t really using cat piss but I didn’t recognize the scent for what it was. I had no idea the strong odor of cat urine was from the high ammonia content. Guess I should have paid more attention in chemistry or biology or whatever.

  Now that the secret of ammonia is out, I’m going to use it to destroy the last of that horrid Yama-Kali things minions no matter where they roam.

  There are so many things I want to investigate but I feel tied to the shelter. Nancy can’t even move from her bed and I’m going to have to leave Candi in her crib. If something happens to them while I’m gone I’m going to be wracked with guilt. If something happens to me then I’m condemning Nancy, the baby and loyal Laelaps to a slow death by starvation because I’m going to lock the door shut from the outside when I leave.

  Friday, June 27, 2014

  I woke up amped, ready to go and do some serious exploring while waiting impatiently for the sun to come up. A thousand questions and possibilities were floating in my head as I busied my hands with taking care of Nancy and the baby.

  I knew the baby would do fine if I left for the day. Nancy worries me though. Nancy looks worse every day and this morning I awoke to the subtle scent of infection lingering in the air. Her wounds are getting infected, all the hydrogen peroxide and Bactine in the world do nothing for her. I’ve been giving her shots of penicillin since I rescued her from the junkyard but either the drugs have lost their potency or the pus filled, nasty smelling wounds are immune to it. I need to find a Doctor or she’ll die within the week. I’m sure of it.