The Soul Eater (Chronicles 1): The Book of Roland

by James Master

  “Don't you know ladies should never spit in public? It's not proper etiquette.” She laughed again and sat back up on the roof. Ashley was just as hot as the princess sitting in the car, but Ashley wasn't going to be looking in any iceboxes, she didn’t think Jessica would either for a while.

  She was just happy that the gas station's canopy was above them. She took the M1 in her hands and kept watch of their surroundings while Roland did whatever he was doing. She tried to keep her mind off of the dream she had, but every time she closed her eyes she saw the two of them together. It almost made her throw up like the princess down there. She sighed and looked at the road, hoping some zombies would come along and take her mind off of them.

  Jessica used some of her last water to clean out her mouth. She hated the taste of bile in her mouth. She thought about the time that she and her friends went out for drinks and ended up at a fraternity. The boys there were super cute from what she remembered, but they kept on giving her drinks till she puked. They ended up dropping her off at one of her friends' homes, where she vomited for most of the night and morning. She threw the bottle onto the pavement. Roland kicked it back at the car, stepping over an already drying pile of vomit. Jessica looked up when the bottle returned to her and saw that Roland carried in his hands a gas canister in each hand. As he approached her, he inquired about the ice box.

  “So what was in the icebox, a zombie?” She shook her head and climbed out of the car. She stood on shaky legs and looked at the canisters in Roland's hands.

  “What are in those? I thought the pumps were empty.” He nodded and nodded his head back to the cars that were left stranded in the parking lot.

  “Those weren't empty.” Jessica watched as he filled the car up with the siphoned gasoline. When he was finished, he collected his things and packed them back into the trunk. Ashley slid off of the roof and into the back seat of the car since Jessica wasn't moving. Roland got into the front seat behind the wheel and started the car up. The night came quickly and Roland had to turn on the headlights.

  *** 9 ***

  Starke was given a cellular phone from his master before he turned left for his new task. His new task had two objectives. The first was to locate Hank Townsend and have him find some way out of the quarantine that had been set up around the border of Indiana. The second part was to keep out of Roland’s way until they met up at the capital. Starke knew the authorities on the outside world will try and stop his boss although they obviously didn’t know who employed Starke.

  The boss told him to wait in the trunk of the car till Roland and his crew came. He left specific instructions for Starke. The boss said that the prissy bitch would be alone for a few minutes and that was when Starke was supposed to slip out of the trunk and plant an item that he received from his master. When he heard Roland and the brat slam the doors to the gas station, he slipped out of the trunk and crept alongside the back wall of the station. He spied the girl trying out the pumps for gasoline, but she didn't have any luck finding any.

  Starke filled up all the other cars, draining the pumps of what little gas they had left. The boss said when the brat got closer to the car, he would have to slip out from behind the gas station and plant the object into her backpack. So when she pulled up to the pump that was close to the wall where he was standing, Starke picked up a chunk of cement from the floor and chucked it at the pump across from where the brat was standing. As expected, the brat heard the noise and went over to see what had caused it. Starke took this time to sneak to the front seat and place it in her pack, slipping back towards the back of the gas station.

  He didn't hide in his trunk because he knew that Roland would probably know how to siphon gas and he didn't want to risk him finding him in the trunk of all places. Instead, he hid in the dumpster till they left. The smell didn't bother him much, considering what he had smelled, this trash wasn't half bad. When they left, Starke found that the car he had driven was unnoticed by Roland, still holding all of its gasoline. He slid into the front seat and started on his next objective.

  Chapter Twelve

  *** 1 ***

  Roland watched the road carefully, but all the driving was finally beginning to take its toll on his tired eyes. The last mile marker he saw indicated that Indianapolis was fifty miles away. That was about three miles ago, he thought. They could make it to Indianapolis by morning if he continued to drive, but the longer he drove, the more effort it took to keep his eyes open. He looked at the kids which was what he was secretly calling them from now on. That's what they kept acting like, children. They wouldn't talk to each other unless it was a snide comment. Jessica kept flirting with Roland just to make Ashley mad because she knew that it would. Ashley kept calling her princess, which in turn upped the flirting.

  Roland didn't mind the flirting, but it kept reminding him about Ashley's dreams. He almost wanted to dismiss them but didn't just for the fact that she knew too much about Eddie that he didn't tell her. He knew that she wasn't lying about the first dream regarding Eddie and Starke, but he kind of had doubts about this new one. He didn't see himself having sex with Jessica anytime soon. It was certainly impossible for Jessica to pull his gun out before he could stop her. She could barely hold his gun. He didn't see Ashley lying about though either, it just wasn't like her.

  It's just jealousy, he thought as his eyes closed again. They opened a moment later to see a zombie in front of the car. Roland didn't bother to swerve because it wouldn't make a difference anyway. The undead hit the car dead center sending it over the hood of the car. Roland could hear the dead thing thudding on the roof. The windshield was cracking like a spider web. Roland could see wisps of smoke coming from the engine. It was going to die soon by the sound of it clunking its death rattle.

  “Everyone wake up. We have to move!” Roland almost envied them for still being able to sleep through a car crash. He was half asleep at the wheel and he was now wide awake.

  Jessica stirred in the seat next to him and slowly opened her eyes. He could hear Ashley instantly wake up. The kid probably already had her pistol out, ready for anything.

  “What is it Roland? What's wrong? Why is the windshield like that?” Ashley sighed as she listened to Jessica asking obvious questions.

  “Well, obviously Roland hit something, looks like a deer.” Roland laughed and thought how simple their problems would have been if it was only a deer.

  “No, my dears, I hit a zombie. It also looks like it damaged the engine too. We will have to pull over and find somewhere to sleep for the night. Then we should find another car. Shouldn’t be too hard except for the siphoning.”

  “I’m sure it wouldn’t be too hard for you Roland.”

  “Hey, I have an idea Roland. Why don’t you show princess here how to siphon gas. I heard she was great at those things.” The two traded backhanded innuendos and insults while Roland ignored them and started to look for somewhere safe to sleep.

  *** 2 ***

  It took a little while to find something that might keep them safe, but Roland found a motel with two floors and thought that it would be sufficient. He briefed the ladies as he pulled into the motel parking lot.

  “Now remember two things when we get out there. Number One: Stay by me. Number Two: Shoot the head. Make sure your guns are loaded. Are they?” He saw them checking, Jessica was getting better at checking the chamber for bullets Roland noticed. They nodded after a second.

  “Alright, if you have your packs with you great, if not then don't worry about them, just get out of the car and stay by me. We are going to try for an upstairs room, but if we can't then try and stay together. Here we go!” He stopped the car and didn't bother shutting it off because it wasn’t going to restart. Roland opened the door and pulled his gun at the same time. The zombies in the parking lot were already starting to converge on the occupants inside the car, moaning as they grew nearer.

  Roland stayed by the car, waiting for the girls. Ashley didn't wait for Jessica to get out
of the front seat, she pushed Roland's seat up and got out before Jessica could. Roland smiled and shot two zombies in the head. A minute later Jessica was standing with her backpack on her shoulders. She had the 9mm her father had given her out and firing at a zombie. Ashley and Roland went around the car and started up the stairs of the motel. Jessica looked around and saw that the two were leaving her and started after them. She got to the foot of the stairs when two arms came out of the window where Jessica was standing next to. A zombie had smashed through the window and grabbed a hold of Jessica by her ponytail. She started screaming as panic took over. The zombie tugged on the ponytail, Jessica wasn't able to break free. The zombie's head came out of the window and was ready to bite her neck when a bullet penetrated its brain. The hands released the ponytail and Jessica saw Ashley grimace.

  “Get your ass up here princess. I won't save you again.” She then disappeared from the top the staircase.

  Jessica ignored the comment and ran up the staircase. She turned to her left and saw Roland and Ashley standing in front of one of the motel rooms. Ashley shot a zombie as it came near to Roland.

  “Why are we just standing around?” Jessica wasn't aware of the fact that most motel rooms were locked, but Ashley took that moment to inform her of the fact. Jessica took another look what Roland was doing and noticed that he wasn't just standing there, it seemed like he was picking the lock. Ashley saw the realization in her face and smiled.

  Roland was almost on the verge of kicking in the door when the door clicked and opened. Roland quickly put away his lock picks and drew his gun. The first room he entered was clear of undead, and he searched the bathrooms and closets as Ashley shut the door behind them. Jessica sat on the bed and threw her backpack on the floor and was about to lay down when Roland and Ashley shoved her off onto the floor. She hit the floor with a thud and looked up at the two with surprise.

  “What are you two doing? We'll need that to sleep on tonight.” Roland and Ashley propped the bed up against the window. Roland then moved the four-foot solid oak dresser and secured it up against the door. While he did that, Ashley moved the two chairs so that they sat against the propped up bed. Roland looked around, satisfied, and sighed. He sat down with his back up against the dresser. Ashley plopped down on one of the chairs, eyes closed. Soon, she was asleep. Roland looked up wearily up at Jessica who was still on the floor.

  “Get some sleep. We leave in the morning, when they are all gone.”

  “What do you mean? They will still be outside in the morning.” All she got from Roland was snoring. She pulled from her pack a shirt and rolled it up to use as a pillow. When she did, an unfamiliar silver compact mirror fell out of her pack, rolling away from her. She quickly snatched it up and looked at the foreign object. She always remembered accessories and wondered if the little twerp had rummaged through her things and left the mirror by accident. She ran her finger against the smooth shiny cover and suddenly found she liked the feel of the silver on her skin. Quickly tucking the mirror into her pocket, she noticed that Ashley hadn’t seen the action and smiled. What she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her.

  *** 3 ***

  Roland woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of moaning. He quickly thought that the zombies had managed to break in and drew his revolver, but was happy to find out that the moaning was still coming from the outside. He stood up and walked into the bathroom, stepping over Jessica as he made his way. Roland entered the bathroom and closed the door, turning on the lights as he did. When the dazzling lights finished dancing across his vision, he managed to sit on the toilet safely.

  Roland shook off the sluggishness of sleeping on the floor and stood once again. After relieving himself of urine, he looked into the mirror and barely recognized the man staring back at him. It was the first time since the outbreak that he had looked at his face which was unshaven for once in his life. Before the outbreak, Roland shaved every morning before he went to school. Just looking at his almost beard stubble made his face itch feverishly. Roland decided to leave the light on just in case one of the girls tried to make their way to the bathroom.

  He stopped just outside the bathroom door and looked at his two companions. Ashley had moved the two chairs together to form what looked like an uncomfortable makeshift bed. He watched for a moment while Ashley moved slightly in her chair/bed. He looked away at Ashley and observed Jessica rolling around on the floor with her face scrunched in a grimace. He knelt down by her side and was ready to wake her up from her nightmare when he heard her whisper something. He knelt closer and heard her say.

  “Daddy, don't make me do that, I don't want to. Please, anything but that.”

  Roland decided not to wake her up and stood back up. He walked around her and back to his spot in front of the dresser. It took a couple minutes for Roland to get adjusted to the sounds of the undead moans again before he could drift back to sleep.

  *** 4 ***

  Ashley didn't dream anything from the past or the future that night, but Jessica had a strange nightmare. She woke up in the motel room needing to use the bathroom. She did her business and tried to flush the toilet, but discovered that it didn't flush. She leaned down and opened the lid of the toilet and saw Roland's head staring up at her. She let out a yell and closed the lid down as fast as possible. Jessica just stared at the plastic toilet seat lid for a minute before she heard a familiar voice calling her name.

  “Jessica darling, it's me, daddy.” She turned suddenly, but there was no one standing behind her. She walked out to the main room of the motel room but didn't see anyone there either.

  “Honey dear, I'm in the bathroom. We need to chat.” Jessica stopped dead cold and turned around slowly and walked back into the bathroom. When she went in she didn't see her father.

  “Daddy? Where are you?” She felt for a gun in her pockets, but she didn't find one. She knew what her father had become. She was about to turn again when she decided to see what sort of condition her hair was in the mirror. She turned and saw her father's face where her beautiful face should have been. She jumped back into the wall of the bathroom and let out another yell.

  Her father looked alive and undead. Jessica saw her father and started crying. He looked irritated at first but started to try and comfort her. “There, there dear, it's alright. I'm in a better place. From the looks of it, you are not.” Jessica dried her eyes on a piece of toilet paper and blew her nose on another. She looked at her mirror father.

  “It's horrible Daddy. I had to follow Roland and Ashley out of the mansion. There were zombies everywhere in the foyer and the lawn. If I hadn't of followed them, I would probably be dead.” Her father started shaking his head.

  “That is not the truth honey bee. You are in danger if you remain in their company. They are dangerous people that would hurt you just for fun.” It was Jessica's turn to shake her head.

  “Daddy, Roland has been nothing but kind and sincere.” Mirror Ben Jones looked at her daughter.

  “Sure he is dear, but what about the other one, hmm?”

  “Alright. She is a little bitchy to me, but never violent. In fact, she saved my life last evening.” Mirror Ben laughed, making Jessica a little nervous.

  “Darling, you don't know do you?” Jessica didn't understand a lot of things, but she knew this had to be a dream. It would explain why her father would be talking to her through a mirror. She laughed nervously with her mirror father.

  “What don't I know? Is it about Roland or Ashley?” Instead of answering her, mirror Ben dissolved and the reflection of the mirror changed into a view of her father's old room at the mansion. It showed Ben tied to his bed and gagged. Jessica let out a gasp at the sight of her father. Then, she watched as Ashley walked into the room with her pistol drawn. After watching Ben for a moment, she walked over to one of the two chairs in the room and picked up a pillow. To Jessica's revulsion, she walked up to Ben and placed the pillow against his head and pulled the trigger of the gun. She watched as her f
ather's brain matter splashed against the wall, mixing with blood. Jessica then watched as Ashley scavenged the room for anything useful. The view in the room faded away and mirror Ben came back into view.

  “She killed me, honey bee. Roland gave her the command to do it.” Jessica's hands were already covering her mouth, tears rolling down her face. She started to argue that they wouldn't have done that, but her mirror father kept repeating that they had killed him.

  “Honeybee, we could have been together. You would have never have had to leave the mansion. You would still have all your things, all your clothes. Look at yourself honeybee. I bet you haven't had a shower for quite a long time. Am I right?”

  Jessica couldn't deny the fact that she had wanted a shower since she left the mansion and that her clothes started to smell. Her mirror father could see that he was getting to her. “Now all that I need for you to do is to avenge me.” Her face snapped back to the mirror and her father.

  “What do you mean avenge you?”

  “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I don’t want you to kill them. I just want you to get them to the construction yard.”

  “Don’t worry you were always going to go there. All I need for you to do is make sure they stay there for the night.” The mirror image transformed back into Jessica’s beautifully dirty face. She woke up that morning inside the bathtub, unsure how she ended up in the bathroom.

  *** 5 ***

  Ashley woke up that morning when her butt hit the floor. The two chairs she was sleeping on slid apart, sending her crashing to the ground. The surprise of hitting the floor made her yelp. Roland was already awake. He laughed and shook his head. Jessica woke up because of Ashley's alarming wake-up. Roland looked over at Jessica.

  “Are you alright? I think you were having a bad dream last night.” Jessica looked at Roland and said with a hint of accusation, “And what were you doing watching me while I slept? Is that why I woke up in the bathroom, so I could get some peace from the pervy old guy?” Roland flushed and looked down at the floor, then back at her.