by Steven Till
“Kinda weird that there aren’t any ghoulies around, don’t ya think?” Ronnie asked.
“Yeah, it sure is,” Nathan replied. He had the same thought when they were checking out his apartment. “We haven’t come across any in a while. I wonder what they’re up to.”
Ronnie shrugged. “Who knows? Who cares? Fuck it.”
Another minute later, they had reached Julie’s apartment. The door stood ajar, like most of the other units. Blood covered the front. Thirty feet away, among a dense swath of woods, red eyes watched the dog and two zombies enter the building.
“Jules, you in here?” Nathan called out. They walked down the long hallway and into the living room.
Boomer made it into the room first and immediately went behind the couch. Nathan and Ronnie circled to the back of the couch. They stared at the dismembered and disemboweled body of their friend. Boomer gently licked Julie’s cheek as he continued to whimper.
Ronnie opened his mouth, wanting to say something funny to try to lighten the mood, but he had nothing. There wasn’t anything he could say to make this situation better. He stood solemnly as he waited for his friend to react.
Nathan felt defeated and discouraged. Evelyn was nowhere to be found. One of two possibilities existed. Either she had turned and now walked among the army of the dead, or she had been one of the countless casualties of the ensuing apocalypse. No. He refused to believe that she was dead, one way or the other. She MUST have found a way out. He forced the morbid thoughts out of his head. She was safe...Somewhere.
GGGGRRRRRRRRRR
Boomer was on high alert, growling towards the front door; his hair puffed up in an aggressive stance. Nathan and Ronnie looked at each other, just as the sound of breaking glass pierced the silence outside. The pair looked towards the door. Nothing and no one entered through the door or busted picture window.
“We should get the hell out of here,” Nathan stated.
“I second that!” Ronnie agreed.
****************
Sunshine stood on the precarious ledge high above the adult bookstore and the small band of humans trapped inside. A rabid smile stretched across the demonic child’s face.
****************
Nathan clutched his head as the image of Julie's front door flashed painfully in his head.
“Ah, fuck!” he shouted, doubling over.
“Dude, you cool?” Ronnie asked, stopping at the front door.
Nathan shook his head trying to regain his senses. “Yeah, I’m alright. Let’s get outta here.”
Boomer led the way as the trio hurried out of Julie’s apartment and into the parking lot. They were too late. Emerging from the surrounding woods, countless dead advanced on their position. The pair looked for a viable escape route while Boomer barked furiously at the approaching army.
“Shit, we’re completely surrounded!” Nathan exclaimed, his mind grasping at options.
“This is going to suck, dude,” Ronnie replied.
The Horde crept into the parking lot. Getting to the buildings was no longer possible. The only thing within their reach were a handful of cars; of those, only a nearby SUV was intact, save for the busted out driver’s window.
“We need to get to higher ground,” Nathan said as he watched the growing circle of dead collapsing in on them.
“Good plan, man, but they have like, all the ground.” Ronnie joked.
“Come on,” Nathan replied.
In one swift action, he scooped up Boomer and jumped up onto the roof of the Ford Escape that sat six feet away. Ronnie followed and placed himself back-to-back with Nathan in a defensive stance. Boomer stood sandwiched between the two’s legs, still barking fervently. The Horde closed the shrinking gap of space which separated them from the two rebel zombies and their dog.
The dead aggressors in the front ranks began to leap at their targets. Nathan extended both arms and catapulted the first incoming attacker back into the swarm of bodies using its momentum against it. Ronnie did the same, flinging two incoming assailants back into the mob. Again and again the two repelled the salvos of bodies.
Nathan realized that they were never going to get out of this in one piece if they didn't start causing some fatalities. With the next incoming volley, he wrapped his large clawed hand around the zombie's head and spun laterally. The force caused the body to rip from the neck. He watched as the now headless body rag-dolled back into the chaos.
"Rip off their heads, if you can!" Nathan shouted over his shoulder.
"Word!" Ronnie replied.
The pair continued to rebuff the sustained assault, but it was becoming more difficult to fend off the onslaught. Nathan moved down onto the hood of the SUV to give himself more room to avoid one of them from getting knocked down.
"Bro, this isn't working! There's too many of them!" Ronnie exclaimed in frustration.
Nathan already knew that they weren't going to survive this. Glancing toward the tree line, he saw that the bodies kept coming. There was no end in sight. Suddenly, one of the ghouls leapt high over Nathan's head and landed square onto the windshield, shattering it. Before he could react, a claw swiped at him, gashing him across his stomach. He paused, looking to see if his entrails were going to spill out onto the car, but luckily, the wound was superficial.
While Nathan dealt with his insides, the ghoul turned and buried four long talons deep into Boomer's side. The little dog cried out in a horrifying scream of pain. Ronnie spun around and swiped at the zombie's arm, severing it at the elbow. Nathan grabbed its head with both hands and liberated it from its shoulders, casting it back into the swarming mob.
"NO!!!" Nathan screamed as Boomer collapsed in a heap onto the roof.
He grabbed the severed arm and pulled it free from his dog's side. Boomer cried out again, his breathing shallow and rapid. Nathan turned and swung the limb like a club, beating back more of the dead as they continued their attack. It was only a matter of moments before they would be overrun.
A loud, thunderous roar erupted from the woods. Just then, an immense, hulking beast burst forth from the trees, landing smack dab in the middle of the zombie army.
"HO-LY SHIT!" Ronnie shouted.
Nathan, Ronnie, and the Horde stared at the towering creature. The thing stood on all fours like a gorilla and must have been about seven feet tall. It was covered in strange gray-black fur which shimmered in the light of the burning cars in the parking lot. Its head was massive. Long ears protruded back along the muscular neck. Silver eyes glinted and looked down across the long, wolf-like snout. Large, razor-sharp teeth bared in a ferocious snarl. It lifted an arm and extended a huge hand-like claw, which embedded itself into one of the nearby ghouls. It effortlessly cast the zombie aside, hurling it at least twenty yards towards the woods. The thing released another booming roar. It lunged into the thick of the dead army and began tearing ghouls limb from limb. Blood showered down in a maelstrom.
"Is...is that a fucking werewolf!?" Ronnie asked in disbelief.
"I have no idea, but whatever it is, I'm glad it's here," Nathan answered.
He turned back to the masses before him and continued to behead them. With the addition of the enormous werewolf-thing to the fray, the dead-heads paid little attention to Ronnie and himself.
RRRROOOOOOAAAAAAARRRRRRRR
A second, slightly smaller wolf-thing charged into the thick of battle. Now there were two big-ass dogs chewing, clawing, and trampling their way through the mob. So much of the dead's thick black-red blood was being shed, that Nathan was having trouble seeing exactly what was going on.
He turned to Ronnie. "Stay with Boomer. Don't let him get eaten!"
Giving a nod, Ronnie stood over the mortally wounded canine and fended off any approaching threat. Nathan jumped off the Escape and started on an offensive. Taking a cue from his new "allies" he began hacking off limbs left and right. Genius, he thought to himself. An immobile zombie is a much less dangerous zombie. After about five minutes of absolute
butchery, the creepers who still had legs mounted a hasty retreat. Within seconds, they vanished into the woods.
Ronnie and Nathan looked at each other. Then they looked at the two wolf creatures standing mere feet away. The larger one turned and faced the two zombies. The smaller one walked the parking lot, crushing the heads of those whom now lay armless and legless on the bloody snow.
The larger wolf took three steps towards Nathan and stopped. It towered over him, just a couple inches away. Instinctively, Nathan's right arm flails to the left, swiping his talons across the enormous wolf's chest. His nails made a loud "ching" sound as they made contact with the wolf. He was shocked when he saw that his attack glinted off the surface, causing no damage. Holy shit! Taking a closer look, the wolf's fur was comprised of short quills, which, when laid flat, formed something akin to chainmail. Body armor. Figures.
The beast released a roar that almost gave Nathan's dead flesh goose bumps. It then stood up on its hindquarters, raising the creature to almost eleven feet. Those silver eyes pierced his own. He waited for the inevitable, but instead of what was sure to be a horrible death, a deep powerful voice spoke to him in his head.
["Do that again and you will be missing an arm. Now, listen to me Nathan Ackland..."]
It had a hint of an accent, but he couldn't quite place its origin. How does it know my name? The voice continued.
["You must reach your beloved alive. She needs your protection. It is imperative that you find each other. We are here to ensure your reunion. My name is Maalik and my companion is Bataviah. Come with us."]
Maalik turned and walked towards the woods.
"Aw, shit. Dude, I think you should come over here," Ronnie said in a sullen tone as he gently laid Boomer down on the ground.
The dog had lost a lot of blood and was barely breathing. Nathan rushed over and knelt beside his dying friend. The wolves paused and looked back at the two friends grieving for the little dog. Maalik glanced at Bataviah and then walked towards Nathan, as Bataviah sprinted off into the woods.
["Please move aside,"] Maalik said in as soft a voice as his powerful presence would allow.
Nathan looked at him with uncertainty. Reading his expression, the wolf gave a reassuring nod. Reluctantly, Nathan gave Boomer a loving scratch behind the ears and stepped back a few feet.
"What are you going to do?" Nathan asked, with obvious concern in his voice.
Maalik didn't acknowledge the question. Instead, he reached back and pulled a single quill from the back of his neck. It was colored differently from the rest of the grayish-black "fur" that covered the wolf. It shimmered a deep sapphire blue. Then Nathan saw a drop of blue liquid drip out of the quill tip. The werewolf took a large clawed hand and stroked the dog and with the other, stuck the quill into Boomer's neck. A moment later, he extracted the quill, took a few steps backward, and watched.
Nathan moved towards Boomer. "What did you do to him?" he demanded.
["Stay where you are,"] Maalik commanded. ["I assure you that your little friend will be alright, but for your safety, you must keep your distance."]
Nathan was confused. "Why the hell do I need to..." Before he could get the rest of the sentence out, Boomer let out a horrific wail.
Nathan and Ronnie watched in amazement as Boomer's body began to convulse and contort. The sound of snapping bones and stretching, tearing flesh seemed to echo amongst the surrounding apartment buildings. He began to get larger; his fur was falling out in clumps and in its place, jet-black quills began to emerge. His snout elongated, as well as his fangs. His eyes glossed over and clouded to a silvery sheen. His whimpers and growls became deeper and deeper as he continued to grow.
Finally, it all stopped.
"Ho-ly shit!" Ronnie exclaimed.
Nathan stood in shock as he stared at his dog, although he wasn't sure if "dog" was an appropriate term any longer. Slowly the Boomer-beast raised his head and rose to his feet. The transformation had healed the wounds in his side.
"JE-SUS!" Ronnie said with escalating surprise.
Boomer now stood a good four feet high at the shoulder. He shook his body as if he had just got a bath. When finished, he looked at Ronnie and then to Nathan. His large quill-laden tail began to wag.
"Boo-Boo, you okay buddy?" Nathan asked apprehensively.
Immediately, Boomer trotted over and licked his face with an immense wet tongue.
["It's done,"] Maalik stated. ["There is not much time. You must feed now for what is to come."]
Just then Bataviah emerged from the woods dragging three dead deer behind her.
"Hold up, what the hell do you mean? What's coming?" Ronnie asked.
["Daylight,"] Bataviah answered. ["No more questions now. Feed."] She tossed a deer carcass each to Ronnie, Nathan, and Boomer. Before the word 'daylight' registered in their heads, all three of them tore into the deer. Instinct overrode any semblance of reason. The hunger was fierce.
After only a few minutes, Maalik interrupted the gorging threesome. ["We must go. NOW! The sun arrives soon!"]
Nathan stood from his carcass, blood smeared across his pale face. The horizon had the glow of the approaching morning. "What happens at sunrise, Maalik?"
["You'll find out soon enough."]
With that, the two wolves started towards the trees. Nathan and Ronnie and their new were-dog Boomer followed.
"Dude, this is some CRAZY shit, huh?!" Ronnie asked, obviously excited.
"That doesn't even begin to describe this," Nathan replied under his breath as he kept gawking at Boomer, who trotted on huge paws beside him. He seemed just as happy as he ever was, perhaps even more so.
The five travelers continued towards McKnight Road, where Evelyn, Sunshine, and the Horde awaited.
CHAPTER 40 DEAD SLEEP
The eleven-year-old zombie queen, the matriarch of the teeming mass of her progeny, unleashed the most inhuman scream imaginable. The interference of the wolves was inevitable, but she had hoped that they would have been too busy with the evening's onslaught to concern themselves with her prey. Anger pulsed through her body. The horizon was growing brighter with every passing moment. There wasn't much time left until the Dead Sleep took hold of her army.
Backing away from her vantage point on the cliff, her zombie children surrounded and enveloped her. They held her in their embrace and cocooned her within their bodies as they formed a protective carapace of limbs and torsos in anticipation of the coming dawn.
****************
All the humans inside the adult bookstore stood silent, looking up at the ceiling as if attempting to peer through the layers of concrete. They waited motionless as the horrific undead scream shattered the tense tranquility.
"We can't wait any longer," she said as she walked towards the mutilated bodies of her former comrades.
"So who's the lucky one who gets to do this?" asked Alison.
"I'll do it," Shawn replied. Noticing the looks he was getting from the group, he cracked a half-hearted smile. "Look, I don't WANT to do it, but we don't have time to debate about it, so I'll go."
"Thank you Shawn," said Evelyn. "You're not as big of a dick as you let on."
"Let's just get on with it before I change my mind," he replied with a wry smile.
Evelyn crouched down next to Bill's corpse. Using her hands, she scooped up a large puddle of the thick, dark blood of the dead zombie. She covered Shawn's clothes with the putrid blood, making several trips to the corpse. Within minutes, she had basted Shawn's body with the muck.
She bent down and gathered two more handfuls of blood. "You're almost done."
"You're sure this is necessary?" he asked with obvious reluctance.
Carlos answered "Yes, unfortunately. It's the only way to be sure your pheromones are masked. In theory, you will be completely invisible to them."
Shawn gave Carlos a defeated look and took a deep breath. "Alright, hurry up with this."
Evelyn smeared the zombie blood all over Shawn's fac
e, neck, head, and hands. Finally, he was ready.
Sam headed to the front door and readied himself. Chatty stood on the other side of the doorway for support, should the creepers try to enter.
"Okay, if they buy the ruse, get your ass onto that bus and get ready to fire it up," Sam said.
"Yeah, yeah, I got it," he replied with annoyance.
"We're going to lose the darkness soon," Shawn observed, trying to speak without letting any of the rancid blood into his mouth. "We'll be easier to see."
"I don't think the dark has been much of an advantage for us, do you?" Sam asked, trying not to gag from the smell.
Shawn grunted in agreement.
"Okay, here we go," Sam said as he unlocked the door and opened it for Shawn to leave.
Shawn stood in the doorway a moment, surveying what he could see of the parking lot from behind the bus situated a few feet in front of the entrance. Looking in both directions, not a single creature was in view. The waning night was dead quiet. The distant screams no longer echoed throughout the hills of North Pittsburgh. The gunfire had ceased. The human resistance to the overwhelming threat was unsuccessful. The smell of death weighed heavy and thick in the putrid air. Fires still burned nearby, their orange light blending into the gloom of the nearing sun.
His eyes scanned along the top of the bus, then along the front ledge of the building roof. No sign of any of the dead. He took a cautious step out into the lot. A second step, followed by a third. He made his way from behind the bus. Shawn paused between each step, as if he were walking out onto a frozen lake. Now he could see the entire parking lot.
Shit, he thought.
Towards the far left corner of the lot, a lone zombie stood facing the bus. He took in another deep breath and another step. Shawn continued past the creeper towards McKnight road, bringing him past the creature.
Damn, I think it's working!
As if the zombie read his thoughts, it turned to face him, only ten feet away. It approached him, releasing a quiet, sustained hiss. Shawn stood motionless as the creeper drew within arm's-length.
