“Yeah, it was actually,” Lena reassured her. “I grabbed an expensive looking, heavy briefcase and used it like a bat.”
“Did it work?”
“I knocked them out, but they aren’t dead… Actually dead, but they’re undead… Whatever.” Lena didn’t know how to refer to them.
“Yep, understood. Need another drop?” Crystal asked with enthusiasm.
Lena thought for a second before nodding to herself. “Do it!” She dived into the row again, grabbing the safety of the chair in the nick of time.
Barry wasn’t so quick and tumbled to the floor, squashed between the seats. He looked like he might throw up.
“Thanks for the warning, Lena!” He shook his head and pulled himself from his tight fitted space.
The zombies fell over again. They flipped around and slumped comically. Their funny movements lightened the suffocating mood that had risen again in the small cabin. Children chortled at the ridiculous falling figures, and even the grown adults got a good laugh from the flailing enemy.
The zombies fell to a dramatic slump on the cabin floor as a final zombie emerged from premiere class. A loud, uncertain gasp rippled through the entertained guests. No one could quite believe the figure standing in front of them. Lena and Barry excitedly looked at one another, shocked at the sight of the famous zombie. For once, Barry was right with his joking.
“Oh, my God, is that…?” Lena gasped.
“Lena, who is it?” Barry asked confused.
“You don’t know who she is?” Lena was shocked.
“Should I?” Barry became more confused at the zombie fuss.
The zombie grunted and moaned. Her long, flowing, sparkly dress shimmered in the dull light. Everyone was star struck, and no one let out a noise except some nervous squeaks and excited breathing.
“Am I the only one who doesn’t know who this is?” Barry asked towards the gaping passengers.
“It’s…” Lena started. “Adele.”
Adele made her way down the aisle with surprising grace given that she’d been infected. Lena scrunched her face up like a toddler about ready to erupt into an outrageous temper tantrum. She hated the idea of actually having to kill the famous singer. A singer Lena loved to listen to. She loved to put on Adele’s tracks whenever she was driving around alone or after a long day at the office.
“Why did it have to be her?” she complained to Barry who looked equally disappointed.
“I don’t know who she is…” he replied, whining.
Other passengers cried out as Adele made her way through the knocked out zombies. “Don’t kill her!”
“Dude, it’s fucking Adele!” Dude called out, whistling.
“She’s a bloody zombie!” one of the jersey guys observed.
“Still hot, even as a grotesque monster,” another of the jersey guys added next to him.
“Did you say Adele is back there and infected?” Crystal begged for answers.
Lena once again nodded to herself, looking at the zombie with great sadness. “Yes… She’s infected, too.”
“Out of all the fucking singers in this damn world, they had to bite the goddess of music. Why the fuck didn’t they bite bloody old Bieber! I could deal with him being a damn zombie, but Adele!” Crystal burst out in a rant.
Adele was closing in on Lena, and the Special Forces operative still gripped onto the heavy briefcase. It had a few scrapes on the fine leather, but overall, it was in perfect condition. She wondered what was inside that made the damn thing so heavy, but she didn’t care. She was grateful that it was efficient in knocking the zombies senseless.
“You’re not going to hit her, are you Lena Turner?” Roy hadn’t moved an inch since the whole palaver had begun.
Lena ignored the orange smelling man and stepped out to face Adele. Lena had always had a dream of meeting the beautiful singer, but this was not how she had pictured it.
Adele bared her yellowing teeth menacingly. She had long, silky smooth hair that was tied back in a thick bun on the top of her head. The occasional hair slipped free and waved around as she moved. Her once bright green eyes now were black and dilated like the other zombies. She had an immaculately crafted necklace that dangled from her neck, and it matched well with her signature dress.
“You’ll have to deal with a lot of angry passengers if you hurt her, Lena Turner,” Roy sneered.
Lena hated to admit that he was right. The passengers, including herself, all loved Adele. Lena hoped there was a way to reverse the infection, but she knew there was no hope of changing Adele back to her human form. The singer was beyond hope.
Lena stood in the aisle, the briefcase coiled back behind her head. She was ready to give Adele a powerful whack with the weapon, but the cries from the other passengers stopped her.
“Don’t hurt her!”
“I love you, Adele!”
“Dude no, back away!”
“Lena, you have to knock her out,” Barry told her seriously.
Lena turned to her computer nerd friend with a heartbroken look. He pushed a small smile onto his aged face and nodded softly, knowing there was no hope. The zombie would get the better of them if Lena didn’t act fast. There was no choice. She had to act.
“I am so fucking sorry, Adele,” she told the approaching zombie.
“Do it, Lena,” Barry encouraged quietly.
Before Lena could swing at the celebrity, Adele went ridged and stood frozen for a brief second before collapsing into a grey lump at Lena’s feet. Shocked, Lena looked at the defeated zombie before raising her gaze to the attacker.
Barry screamed loudly, and the other passengers joined in to make an entire orchestra of different frightened yelps and cries for help. Even Roy let out a high pitched, terrified scream at the attacker.
A tall, hunched over figure growled at Roy as the orange-scented man screamed. Adele’s attacker had large, strong teeth and fangs that could tear skin from bones, and he bared them with a purpose.
His eyes were a deep blue shade and overflowed with anger and authority. His entire body was covered with thick hair that flowed as he moved. His hands were long, and the nails extended into sharp claws ready to slash again. The figure was bent over in the short cabin which added to the fear of the other passengers. He breathed menacingly, looking closely at the other guests on the plane, and no one dared move.
Lena was face to face with a werewolf.
Chapter Nineteen
Lena stood staring at the large, terrifying, hairy werewolf before her. She was worried about what he could do to the passengers if provoked. The zombie fuss was dangerous enough, but now there was the added threat of the large werewolf for Lena to deal with. She stood there, still holding the heavy briefcase. The wolf didn’t move or show any signs that he wanted to attack.
“What are you doing?” Lena muttered to herself as she watched the wolf straighten. He moved slowly like he didn’t want to scare anyone.
Adele was lying on the floor, groaning. She rested a mangled hand on her grayish stomach. The dress material was torn slightly, but no blood flowed. She wasn’t dead, but she wasn’t hurting anyone else which was better than before.
After another awkward pause, the wolf took an intimidating step toward Lena. She sucked her breath in, trying to think of how she could defeat him if needed. She gripped the briefcase, ready to swing at him.
The wolf took another step, and the briefcase was in the air. She was ready to swing it, but she stopped. The wolf stooped low close to where Lena was. The wolf wasn’t coming to hurt her.
The hairy figure opened his mouth wide, showing off his terrifying teeth sitting in jagged rows in his oversized mouth. He sunk his long claws into the fleshy meat of the zombie lying confused on the cabin floor. He bought the zombie to its feet, and it hung lopsided like an ugly rag doll. The wolf dug his claws deeper into the zombie’s gray, flaky flesh and opened his mouth wide.
Lena couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
In one quick move, the wolf quickly jerked his head towards the zombie’s open throat, it was the perfect, soft and juicy target. The wolf slid let out a satisfying grunt as he ripped his jaws away. He tipped his head back so his snout faced the low ceiling of the economy class cabin. The wolf barbarically chewed the grey, flaky neck in his long teeth. He swallowed the meat down and let the slaughtered zombie tumble to the floor.
Lena was impressed by the wolf. Barry, on the other hand, threw up all over the floor. Other passengers reacted similarly to Barry as the stench of vomit mingled with rotting zombies and the faint tinge of oranges. The smell was putrid.
The wolf moved to the next zombie and licked at his lips. He picked the remaining bits of flesh from between his fangs the way a human would pick at stuck popcorn kernels.
The sight was disgusting, but also comforting. The wolf only attacked the zombies that laid in snarling lumps on the floor.
Lena lowered the briefcase and watched with mixed feelings of horror and amazement as the wolf disemboweled his next victim. The zombie put up more of a fight that the first one. He reached his hand up to try to push the wolf away, but his attempts were in vain. The wolf bit the zombie’s hand clear off and chewed loudly with his mouth wide open. Everyone around could see the gory contents as he enjoyed his meaty meal.
“You need a few manners.” Lena chuckled.
The wolf finished the second zombie off triumphantly and shuffled over to the third one in line. The wolf treated the third zombie like the first. He seemed to have a disgusting fondness for their throats.
“Woah, check it out, mum!” an excited teenage voice came from behind Lena.
“Levi, get back here!” the mom begged.
Lena didn’t dare turn around in fear of the wolf suddenly charging an attack. The werewolf quickly finished his hearty meal and slouched to his next victim. The grayish figures lay in clumps around the cabin. Some oozed unidentifiable liquids, and the stench became considerably worse.
A teenager appeared next to Lena, and she looked at him with concern. The boy eagerly looked at the wolf chomping down on the zombie’s neck.
“That is so cool!” he said. He looked on as if the scene in front of him was just a movie. Lena didn’t know what to say. “It’s like my game or like Dwindling Fire!” He eagerly pointed at the next zombie.
“Dwindling Fire didn’t have any wolves though,” Lena corrected, and the teenager nodded. “You need to get back. I don’t want you to get hurt.” The boy nodded again, and she waited for him to move, but he didn’t. “Go, right now,” she ordered, but the teenager just nodded for the third time. He was frozen still.
Lena looked at the wolf who made his way down the aisle. He had his eyes focused closely on Adele. His hungry pupils screamed for more meat, and Lena feared he would come after them as well as the zombies.
“GET BACK!” Lena yelled, pushing the teenager behind her.
Barry reached for the teenager and helped him back to the safety of the mob at the rear end of the cabin. Barry tried to keep the crowd as silent as possible, knowing any noise could distract the wolf.
“Barry…” Lena called as loud as she dared.
Barry shuffled to his friend’s side, and they stood next to one another as they watched the wolf teeter awkwardly.
“What is he doing?” Barry asked.
“I really have no idea,” she replied.
The wolf looked up at them, his mouth hanging open with small shreds of zombie meat still lodged in his teeth. He breathed softly, and his eyes no longer showing hunger. The wolf looked more concerned. His eyes seemed to show hopelessness and pain.
“He looks so… sad,” Barry said softly.
“He isn’t attacking us?” Lena questioned.
Adele snarled and picked herself up off the floor, her dress flowing around her. The wolf snapped back to his menacing stance, his legs bent slightly and his arms extended in front of him, ready to strike. He breathed deeply and growled as he exhaled.
Lena could feel the texture of the leathery briefcase material beneath her fingers. Sweat coated her tense hands and mixed with the off colored leather. Barry’s pleasant smell was less powerful than it had been a few hours earlier, but he smelled better than the mix of odors circulating the cabin.
The ever-greasy Roy became angrier at the death of his dream. His hopes of the rebirth were being slashed by this enormous wolf that was crammed into the front of the economy class section. The premiere class curtain dividers brushed against his matted hair, but he didn’t notice the expensive curtains clinging to his fur. The werewolf was too focused on Adele.
“What the fuck is happening?” Roy spat.
The remaining passengers were fixated on the wolf. They scrutinized the tall hunched monster who had just saved them from the grotesque zombies on the ground.
“Lena, update?” The crackle of Crystal’s voice came through the headset, and Lena realized she’d forgotten all about her.
“Crystal, sorry. I forgot about you,” Lena replied honestly.
“It’s fine, but I don’t know what you need me to do.” Her voice was quiet.
“Not much. Things are okay back here now,” Lena reassured the copilot.
“What happened?” the copilot asked.
“Uh, I’m going to pass you back to Captain Pertus. He can explain.” Lena pulled the headset from her ears before hearing a reply.
Captain Pertus crawled out from the last row. He looked sickly and terrified. He tried to force a smile as he made his way over to Lena. He coughed nervously before placing the headset over his ears. “Crystal, it’s Captain Pertus here.”
Lena focused on the wolf. Adele was almost to her knees.
“You won’t believe this, Crystal, but there’s a werewolf!” the pilot said. There was silence as he listened to her reply. “Yes, like a real werewolf!”
A groan came from Adele. “What was that?” he asked.
The werewolf scratched softly at a chair cushion, and the seams ripped as stuffing slowly poured out.
Lena knew she had to act. “I’m going to just knock her out,” Lena said, gesturing towards the zombie. The werewolf didn’t growl, so she took that as acceptance.
Lena swung at Adele, avoiding the singer’s pleading zombie gaze. The expensive, heavy briefcase struck Adele hard.
“I didn’t throw up!” the captain whined into the microphone loud enough Lena could hear him over her own thoughts.
Adele fell dramatically to the floor, and the werewolf looked at Lena. He stepped toward her but didn’t growl.
Captain Pertus held onto the microphone tightly, waiting for something to happen. Lena watched as the wolf hung his head like a dog waiting to be petted. Barry stared open-mouthed at the tall monster above him. The wolf took a few steps back before crouching. He fell to his knees and paused.
“What is he doing?” Barry asked no one in particular.
“It’s like he’s sitting,” Captain Pertus said.
The wolf lowered himself to the floor, lying back and staring at the ceiling with his claws resting on his chest. It was as if he wanted to make himself seem as unthreatening as possible, but also like he was waiting for what came next.
“He’s laying down?” Captain Pertus pointed out.
“Well done, Captain Obvious,” Barry joked.
“He’s not hurting anyone,” Lena finally said, not understanding the wolf or his motives.
The three of them watched the wolf closely, but he didn’t move at all. His hairy chest rose and fell with each breath.
“Kill him, Lena Turner.” Roy sneered.
Lena whipped her head around to face him. He was out of his seat, standing proudly in the aisle. His chin was tilted upwards like he was asserting his authority.
“He hasn’t harmed any of us,” Lena calmly told him.
“Dude, he may kill us next!” Dude cried out as he agreed with Roy.
“Roy is right. We need to get rid of him,” another passenger agreed
.
“He is harmless to us!” Captain Pertus protested.
“He ripped their throats out! It’ll be us next!” A frightened mother clutched her sweet baby to her chest.
“He will slaughter us like animals!” a larger woman cried helplessly.
“My bloody suitcase won’t help you,” The pompous man from Eaton nodded towards the heavy case Lena still held onto.
“He killed the zombies. He helped us.” Lena tried to reason with the passengers, pointing out the obvious to them, but they weren’t interested.
“He’ll do the same to us!”
Barry and Lena exchanged nervous looks. There seemed to be nothing they could say to quiet the ruckus.
“Has he hurt you?” Lena asked a single passenger, and the terrified woman shook her head. “What about you?” she asked the man in the Eaton blazer.
“The only thing hurt is my expensive suitcase. You practically ruined it!” he complained.
“Oh, grow a set, will you?” Barry shot at him.
“And did he hurt you?” Lena asked the next passenger, and the passenger shook his head. “He hasn’t hurt any of you, so why should we kill him?”
She was met with a silence that continued on for a moment before the wolf groaned.
“Lena Turner, this is the end of days,” Roy predicted.
“Let’s hope you’re terribly wrong then,” she replied, pushing past him.
The werewolf let out a louder groan, but he hadn’t moved from his position on the floor.
“What’s happening?” Lena asked the others.
“Not sure,” Captain Pertus responded.
The raging group of people in economy class watched eagerly as the large, hairy wolf transformed. His fur slowly disappeared. He looked comical with only patches of hair all over his body.
The long fangs in his mouth shrank down to normal shaped teeth, and his oversized lips curled over as his teeth shuffled into their correct positions. His large eyes shrunk to normal size, and soft eyelids replaced the sprouting hair around the socket.
The mop of unruly hair faded and was replaced with a ginger mass of silky-smooth hair. The thick chest hair receded, and only a peach fuzz was left littered over his muscular form. Small and well-defined abs appeared as the hair faded. The man’s legs showed muscle instead of hair, and his kneecaps became pronounced. Lastly, his hairy feet made way for normal yet extremely large soles.
Pandemic Z (Book 1): Pandemic Z Page 16
