AniZombie

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AniZombie Page 23

by Ricky Sides


  “We go. Really, what choice do we have? I feel we have to make the attempt. It is better to die trying than to hide in safety while hundreds of millions of people die because of our inaction,” Erma said.

  “When you put it that way, count me in on this crazy mission,” Gil said.

  “This is crazy. We’re going to attempt what 120 Marines couldn’t do, and all I can think of at this moment is how proud I am to be associated with all of you,” David said.

  “Are you people that certain that this nanotech will even work on people?” asked Herb. “You may be throwing your lives away over a false hope here.”

  “I’m certain it worked on the vulture,” Erma said.

  “You really can’t let them fly it out? You’re sure?”

  “Perhaps seeing what’s involved would help the Corporal understand,” Sam suggested. “I’d say he earned the right to see what he saved yesterday.”

  Erma nodded her agreement and got up from the table. “Come with me, Herb,” she said.

  When he entered the trailer, Herb found himself in a small dining room with a table and chairs. To the right of that room was a small kitchenette. A wall to the left, with a doorway in the center, led to the rest of the large trailer.

  Erma opened the door and led him back past a small bedroom with bunk beds that would house members of the staff. There were four cot-like beds that were just large enough for a person to stretch out and sleep. They looked much too small for adults to suit Herb.

  To the right of the bedroom was a door that led to a small bathroom of super compact design. It contained a toilet, a sink with a mirror above it, and one of the smallest shower stalls that Herb had ever seen.

  Beyond that set of rooms was another doorway on the left. The smallish room Erma showed Herb seemed packed floor to ceiling with computer equipment. “This was Oliver’s domain,” Erma explained. “He was the computer expert. The man was a genius.”

  “How much of this stuff is filled with the data associated with the nanotech?” asked Herb.

  “Most of it,” she replied.

  Across the hall from the computer room was a small storage room that contained items needed for their research. Then they came to a door at the end of the hall. Due to the small size of the rooms, Herb estimated that the hall ended about halfway down the length of the trailer. Erma’s next words confirmed that supposition when she said, “The other half of the trailer is the lab.”

  She opened the door and led Herb into the only area he had seen inside the trailer that appeared to be even remotely spacious. Not to say that it wasn’t also crowded. It was, but it was large enough that it didn’t appear to be nearly as cramped and confining as the rest of the spaces he had seen. Over beside a wall, Herb saw the vulture in a cage. “Are you keeping him to see if the parasites make a comeback in him?” he asked curiously.

  “No. That isn’t likely, unless he is exposed to the parasites again. There are none in him to make a comeback.”

  “How can you be so sure? Couldn’t they be hiding somewhere in its body and not be in his blood?”

  “Yes, that’s a possibility, but their presence leaves a chemical marker in the bloodstream, regardless of where they’re located. You should have seen the evidence of their presence when we first tested him. It was off the charts. Now though, all his tests come back free of that marker.”

  “Where do you keep the nanotech things?” Herb asked.

  “There,” Erma responded. She pointed to a large black box that appeared to be made out of metal. “The housing is filled with a gel, not unlike ballistics jelly, only thinner,” she explained. This helps protect the contents of the syringes that are stored inside. We add the hypodermic needle as we need the units.”

  “How many are in there?” he asked.

  “Eleven. The university gave me a dozen prototypes to use during the experiment. We only needed to use one.”

  “So you have enough left to treat eleven patients?” Herb asked.

  “At the moment, yes, but more can be produced with the research materials we have with us.”

  “Can they be used as an immunization?” he asked.

  “No. They break down in forty hours or so once they are administered.”

  “So, theoretically, a soldier could inject himself when going into battle with them as a form of short term immunization?”

  “Assuming he doesn’t get killed by the zombies, yes. He’d still be subject to the physical damage they inflict, but wouldn’t turn into one of them.”

  “That’s a major plus in favor of it then,” Herb stated. “But how practical is it? On the battlefield, measuring our specific doses would be a problem, you know.”

  “Yes, I imagine that would be an issue, but to answer your question, you’d need to understand how these nanobots work. They were designed to target invasive cancer cells. Remember that chemical marker I mentioned earlier? Well, they follow that until they locate the source and attack it. If no such cells, or in this case, Akins parasites, are present, then the nanobots do nothing and expire harmlessly in the body, which breaks them down and absorbs them. Therefore, precise measuring isn’t required.”

  “How long does it take to work?”

  “It took a matter of hours to eliminate the parasites from the vulture. That’s the extent of my experience with them to this point. It would most likely take longer in a larger animal with more of the parasites to eliminate.”

  “So you don’t really know that it would work on a man. I mean, the nanobots might die off before they can take out all of the parasites. Right?” asked Herb.

  “That is possible, yes. It might require multiple injections, but the important thing is that it works. There is no biological reason that it wouldn’t work on humans too.”

  “How do you set up an injection? I ask because you said a soldier could do it in the field. I’m a soldier, or was. I’d make a good test subject to see if it’s practical in the field.”

  Erma took a moment to show Herb how the process would work. She opened the storage box and removed one of the syringes. Then she opened a sliding drawer mounted in a nearby shelf, removed a hypodermic needle, and attached it to the syringe. “Next you’d just need to remove the needle cover and then you’re ready,” she explained.

  “Where do you inject it? At the point of the wound?”

  “Yes, you could do that. It should take the parasites out quicker if you did it that way. Not directly in the wound, mind you, just in close proximity.”

  “Okay, one more thing. Do you have to hit a vein? Again, I’m asking because that would be difficult for soldiers in combat.”

  “A vein would speed the process, but no. It’s not necessary.”

  “Thank you, Erma. I see now that this could save a lot of soldiers’ lives. I’m satisfied. I’m in. I’ll help you folks get to the lab you’re going to try to reach.”

  “Was that the reason you wanted to know all about this?” she asked.

  “Yes, but I’m speaking strictly for myself. I’m not volunteering my friend’s service. I think he should stay here to help the Echols. Henry wants to make a run to the Jernigan farm and he needs help to do that. You’re not planning to leave today are you?”

  “I have no idea. I think we need to talk to the others and then with Agent Marx and make our travel plans.”

  Chapter 1 9

  The Jernigan’s farm

  “I still say I should go with you tomorrow,” Randy said stubbornly as the truck rolled along the road on the trip to the Jernigan farm.

  “We’ve been all through that. The Echols need you with them. If the cabin comes under attack, they wouldn’t last long without you and the firepower of your weapon.”

  “They are good people. Martha is a great cook. I’d hate to see anything happen to her and old Henry,” Randy admitted.

  Herb could see that his friend was torn by the need to be in two places at once, so he did his best to make it easier for him to make his decision whe
n he said, “It’s not just the Echols. We have a lot of gear here that we are going to need in the future. No matter how this mission turns out, it’s going to be months, maybe even as much as a year, before things return to normal.”

  “That’s probably true,” Randy conceded.

  “I believe it is. I need to know that I’ll have a cabin and supplies to return to when this is over.”

  “You can count on me. I won’t let you down.”

  “You never have, buddy. You three should be fine, as long as you stay put. Don’t venture out and lead a bunch of zombies to you. Avoid shooting at the cabin as much as you can. They would hear that and be attracted to the sound.”

  “I don’t think we should be doing much target practicing anyway. We’re going to run low on ammo sooner or later,” Randy pointed out.

  “I’ll see what I can find on the way back,” Herb said.

  “No. That’s too dangerous without someone to watch your back. You just get back in one piece. We’ll go scavenging together after you return,” Randy said.

  Herb slowed the truck and looked at a farmhouse that set back off the road a good hundred yards. “I think that’s it. There’s the barn Henry mentioned.” Randy said.

  Herb stopped the truck fifty feet from the farmhouse. The two friends got out of the truck with their rifles and stood staring at the house in silence for several moments. Henry had told them that all of the Jernigans had been present at his home the day before, but something had turned them, and they had no way of knowing if that something might have been a pack of zombies that stopped at their home. If that had been the case, it was possible that they were still in the area.

  “You going to knock on the door?” Randy asked.

  “Yeah, I thought I would. You never know. Someone may be here.”

  Herb walked up onto the front porch and knocked on the front door, but then stepped back away from it. When no one came to the door, he tried again, and knocked louder.

  The two friends waited in tense silence, and when no one opened the door to greet them, they walked inside. The smell assailed them the moment they entered the farm home. Randy opened his mouth to voice a warning, but Herb gestured for him to remain silent. He flicked the safety lever to single shot and his friend followed suit. A battle had been fought in the room. That much was evident by the amount of damaged furnishings.

  The two men moved through the living room and into the adjoining kitchen with a fluid gate, crouching as they did so.

  As they entered the kitchen, they fanned their weapons around the room, keeping the muzzles pointed in their line of sight. A back door in the room stood open. The signs of forced entry were obvious. Blood lay in dried puddles here and there along the floor. A large kitchen knife, its blade coated in dried blood, lay on the floor beside the stove. The remains of a broken chair were scattered about as well.

  Having cleared the room, Herb turned and went back into the living room with Randy a few steps behind him. He went through an open doorway that led to a bedroom, but no one was in sight. They could tell a fight had occurred in the room. The bed was disheveled and bloodstains were everywhere.

  A door at the far wall led deeper into the house, so the two men moved toward it. As they moved across the room, Herb thought the smell of death was getting stronger. He heard a moaning sound coming from the other side of the door and motioned with a quick jerky movement for Randy to be ready.

  Herb jerked the door open and jumped back. A young woman was crouched in the floor near the door. Her eyes were wide open and fearful. She whimpered when she saw the two men, but then she pointed between them and screamed, “Look out!”

  Both men spun around in time to see three zombies entering the room behind them. There was no need for them to communicate which targets they would take because they were standing beside each other. Their training dictated the man on the left would take the target on the left, while the man on the right took out the right hand enemy. Their shots rang out just a second apart, dropping two of the zombies in their tracks. Randy’s shot took the third creature long before it could close with them.

  “There are more of them in the house somewhere,” the woman warned quietly.

  “You knew they were here, but your door was unlocked.” Herb observed. That doesn’t make sense to me.”

  “I was in the attic,” the girl whispered, and then she pointed to the trap door above her head. “I came down here when I heard you knock. I was about to lock the door when you opened it.”

  “Go back up there until we clear the property,” Herb instructed the still terrified woman. She needed no further encouragement. She turned and pulled the trap door down to her and unfolded a small ladder. In seconds, she had scaled it and closed the trap door behind her.

  The two men turned and went to the door that the zombies had entered only minutes before. They found themselves in another bedroom, but there was no one in sight. They left that room and went back through the house until they reached the living room. They saw another closed door, and made their way to it.

  Once more, Herb opened a door that could lead them to further danger. This time, they saw movement across the room as they entered. A black cat jumped down off a dresser and rushed past the men. It scampered out the open front door and out of sight.

  Herb breathed a sigh of relief, gave the room a quick search before the two men left, and returned to the living room. Outside, the men heard the sound of a cat in distress. The yowling of the animal set Herb’s teeth on edge. He stepped out the front door and saw two zombies pulling the cat back and forth between them. The terrified animal was still voicing its fear when both Herb and Randy fired their M4s. The zombies dropped the feline and their bodies fell to the ground.

  The cat staggered to its feet. Its hide was bloody in several places. Herb shook his head in sadness and targeted the animal. His shot rang out before Randy could protest, but now his friend was mad. “You didn’t have to shoot it! The scientists have the cure!”

  “Think, buddy. They have eleven doses. Do you really think they should use one for a cat when there are millions of people at risk?”

  Randy’s anger deflated as quickly as it had risen. “I’m sorry. You’re right. That would be stupid.”

  “I wish that wasn’t the case, but I’m afraid it is,” Herb replied.

  The two men next walked around the house in the yard, looking for, but not finding, more zombies. Then they went to the barn. They saw several dead chickens and two dead goats. They assumed that the zombies had been feeding on the livestock behind the barn when they entered the house.

  Inside the barn, they found the Jernigan family tractor along with several farm implements.

  They went back to the house, gave it one last inspection, and then called to the woman that it was safe to come down.

  The trap door descended and the woman soon joined them. Now that things had settled down, Herb could see that she was in her early twenties. She was slender and had shoulder length brown hair. He thought she was a pretty young woman. She introduced herself as Amy Jernigan. Amy was the youngest daughter of the farm family. The night that her family had been attacked by zombies, she had descended from her attic bedroom, only to be met by one of her brothers who told her to get back to her room until he came for her. She had been frightened by the yelling and crashing sounds in the house and did as her brother said. In summation of her explanation, she said, “I waited and waited, but he never came for me. I... I was afraid to come downstairs.”

  “Your brother saved your life,” Herb told her gently. Then he added, “There’s no easy way to tell you this. I’m afraid the rest of your family is dead.”

  “I know. I saw them leaving yesterday. They were all changed. They had become zombies, like I saw on the television,” Amy replied. Then she said, “What brought you here?”

  “We thought you were all dead. We came here to see if there were any supplies to help us at the cabin. Martha and Henry Echols are there with
us. They were the ones that told us your whole family was dead.”

  “They must have seen my cousin Jenny. She was here for a visit,” Amy said, her voice breaking at the last. She wiped her tears irritably and said, “Yes. We have a lot of supplies here. I’ll give them to you if you two take me with you. I can’t stay here.”

  Then the woman’s eyes widened fearfully and Herb turned to see if another zombie was standing behind him, but there wasn’t. He turned back to face Amy, only to see that she was backing away from them. “You two won’t hurt me will you?” she asked.

  “No, Ma’am. You’re safe with us. Martha won’t let anyone hurt you either. Remember her? She said your mother was her friend.”

  “Mama loved Martha, that’s true enough,” Amy said and visibly relaxed. “Let’s load the supplies in your truck and leave. I don’t like being here anymore.”

  It took an hour, but they loaded Herb’s truck with the majority of the Jernigan family’s food stores, which they kept in a root cellar to keep them cool. Carrying all of the boxes of canned foods up the steps and loading them into the truck was arduous work, but it yielded enough canned food to last the survivors for several months. Then they entered the kitchen pantry and Herb was surprised to find that it was loaded to the brim with foodstuffs.

  “That’s a lot of food,” Herb observed.

  “We had a big family,” Amy said. Her eyes teared up as she saw the condition of the kitchen, but she was made of hardy stock. She dried her eyes and said, “I think you’re going to need my daddy’s trailer to haul everything.”

  “I’ll get it,” Herb said. He had seen the trailer earlier and knew where it was located. “You’d better pack some clothes,” he advised, thinking it best to get the woman out of the kitchen where someone, most likely her mother, had fought and died.

  “I will. You men just don’t let any of those zombies in the house, please.”

  “We’ll be keeping watch,” Randy, who was a bit smitten by the woman, promised.

  “Oh, don’t forget the smokehouse. There’s a lot of meat hanging in there. I doubt those zombies got to it, because Daddy kept it under lock and key to keep people from raiding it.”

 

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