Plague Of The Revenants

by Chilvers, Edward

  I closed my eyes and tried to sleep but it was hopeless. My nerves were shot to pieces. I was tense and different thoughts cascaded through my head. I needed a drink. I had not drunk for years but now more than ever I needed something to settle me. It was also bitterly cold up here in that bell tower and even though I had wrapped three sets of blankets around me I still found myself unable to sleep. I decided to go back to the farmhouse for a while, not to sleep, I was determined of that, but rather to sit by the fire a while and take the chill off my bones before heading back. I went downstairs with the flashlight and opened the door to the tunnel. The flashlight caught upon two figures embracing halfway along. I recognised them both straight away. It was Stan and Gloria, enjoying a private moment in the tunnel. I stopped and wondered if I should turn away, at the same time feeling a pang of envy that their love could still survive despite all things. I supposed in time we would repopulate the world and children would be born having known nothing except the outbreak. Maybe Reverend Thorpe would marry them in the church. I wondered whether I ought to turn back, but then it was not as though I minded what they were doing. Stan and Gloria did not move as I approached. It was only when I was around five metres away that I noticed the blood seeping down the girl’s neck and the torch alighted upon the dead expression in her eyes. At the same time the revenant Stan caught sight of me and looked up, his own eyes wide with hatred and displaying the vacant stared that had haunted my dreams for months. Before I could react he had lunged at me. I instinctively hit out with the flashlight but was able only to parry him away and sending him falling to the side of the passageway. The flashlight was knocked out as a result and I was left in pitch darkness. Dazed and disorientated I turned and stumbled back down the passageway with no clear direction as to where I was going. I heard a guttural growl followed by fast shuffling footsteps and I knew the creature was after me. My hands grasped upon the heavy iron handle of the church door and I turned it and quickly let myself in. Yet when I tried to slam the door shut behind me the creature’s hands closed around the frame and pushed even harder so that I was knocked back. I stumbled into the church and I heard the door slam against the wall as the revenant gained entry to my sanctuary. Though the windows were large the night was dark and I could see but a shadow before me. I crashed backwards through the aisle and towards the altar where two heavy gold plated candlestick stood on either side of the green cloth and seized it up. By the light of the window I could see just enough to pound the revenant’s skull into oblivion as soon as it was close enough. This down I fumbled upstairs and took the second flashlight from the clock tower. Gloria was just starting to turn as I reappeared in the passageway. I did not leave her long.

  I stormed through the tunnel and into the farmhouse, started rummaging loudly through the kitchen cupboards in search of a stiff drink. In time Reverend Hammond heard me and came to investigate. “The noise you were making!” He exclaimed with a shake of his head. “I thought it was one of the revenants broken in.”

  “You wouldn’t have been far wrong,” I said as my fingers gratefully grasped a bottle of gin. “We’re two down.”

  “What do you mean?” Demanded Thorpe in alarm. I briefly outlined the events which had taken place in the tunnel. Thorpe regarded me with horror. I turned sharply as Paul entered the room to see what all the commotion was about.

  “How could you not have noticed?” I demanded angrily. “How could he have hidden something like this?”

  “It must have been in the bedroom,” stammered Paul apologetically. “He didn’t say anything about it. I suppose he thought we would have shot him.”

  “Well he’d have been about right with that,” I muttered.

  Kit appeared. “What does this mean for tomorrow?” She asked.

  “Forget it,” I snapped. “I’m not losing anyone else. I’ll go by myself.”

  “Impossible,” snapped Paul. “I’m coming with you.”

  “And me,” said Kit.

  “It can’t work anyway,” I sighed pessimistically as I took a long pull of drink. “It’s suicide. We should call the whole thing off.”

  “Why don’t we go one better?” Demanded Kit crossly. “Why don’t we just drive up to the racecourse and surrender to Blake and save us all the bother?”

  “Fine, we’ll go,” I muttered. “Whether it is the last thing we do, and it probably will be, we’ll go.”

  We were all up early the following morning, none of us really able to sleep. Reverend Thorpe was up early too to see us off. Dev would now stay behind but would guard the perimeter of the camp with the shotgun, for all the good it would do if the Elite rolled up. For weapons we had the hammer, two shotguns and the iron bar. It was not much but then if we were forced into a pitched battle with the revenants we were as good as dead.

  “This is it,” I said decisively. “The last big battle against the revenants I ever intend to fight. I’ll take part this time but after this I want to retire. I’ll take down the odd one or two but I’m done with killing after this.”

  “Killing revenants you mean,” said Kit. “We still need to polish off those Elite.”

  I didn’t reply to this, although it was true of course. At that moment I doubted whether this whole thing would ever end.

  “We must really be desperate to be trying to hit that base,” said Paul. “If it was so easy why didn’t the Elite go back there?”

  “The guard told me they had more than enough weapons already,” I replied, only half telling the truth. “At least the base lies in the opposite direction from the Elite camp so we shouldn’t have them to deal with.”

  We drove in silence, each of us lost in our own thoughts. Sometimes the revenants blocked the road. I slowed the truck and pushed them out of the way. They converged angrily upon the truck and there were some tense moments as the truck slowed and laboured with the weight of bodies, but I was careful not to cause too much damage, at the same time driving fast enough so they could not smash through the windows. We were closer to the big town than I had ever been since leaving it all those months ago. Sometimes the cars formed a long line and there was nothing for it except to turn around and find a different route, often via treacherous bridleways which saw the van becoming perilously close to getting stuck. It was clear many people had made for this base and as we drove we saw revenants in ever increasing numbers. They lumbered towards us and when we were not quick enough to avoid them slammed against the sides of the van but we were mostly able to avoid the larger groups for the time being. I knew it was only going to get worse but there was to be no turning back now.

  “At least we’re getting close,” I said, trying to remain cheerful although my voice was filled with trepidation. “And with a swarm this thick it’s a sign the Elite have been around these parts to clear it out.”

  “Well they’re not stupid,” muttered Kit. I smiled at this.

  After a while we arrived at the base, a sprawling complex set out over several acres of flat countryside. All around were the signs of an epic battle. Rotten skeletons in tattered army fatigues lay prostrate on the ground. Many of the revenants were also dressed in the tattered rags of what would once have been army khakis, others were clearly doctors and nurses in their surgical gowns. There was no telling where the armaments depot might be, presuming it was still intact. The revenants were spread out but there were thousands of them, even more than I had been expecting. Looking at them all congregated around I found it extraordinary that the biker gang had managed to snatch even a few weapons, and here we were expected to do even more with just three people. I drove fast now, for I knew we would not bring this truck back, knocking revenants off the vehicle as I went, swerving to avoid the thicker knots and all the while with my eyes scanning the base to ascertain what kind of state it was in. The gates had been busted wide open but they had not been torn off the hinges and would easily close whilst most of the revenants were spread outside the gates.

  “We’ll lead them away,” I said. “D
rive slowly to distract them then double back and drive straight through the gates then close the gates behind us, finish off the revenants within, grab the loot and head back.”

  “You make it sound so easy,” laughed Paul.

  “It needs to be easy,” said Kit. “We can’t afford any mistakes otherwise we’re dead.”

  Heavy fists slammed into the windows and it was not long before the cracks appeared. Now and then when they got too thick I attempted to reverse but the progress was painfully slow. We skidded through the grass and slowed abruptly on a wet spot where the rain had soaked it through. I revved the engine hard but the treads on the wheels found only loose mud. The grass and water churned. I felt ourselves sinking. We were almost stuck on more than one occasion. Of course the revenants offered us no quarter and were upon us in a moment. We tried to draw them away but there were so many and now those further afield returned to torment us. We found ourselves dodging around the perimeter of the base as we sought an opportunity to break away and lead them further afield. There were more than I could have ever imagined and now they all turned, thousands of them, as one fiendish body and converged upon the truck. I backed up quickly, hearing and feeling the oddly satisfied thud as metal struck flesh. I weaved in and out as best I could, hitting them head on but not too fast so as to damage to bodywork of the truck with the momentum.

  “There are thousands of them!” Exclaimed Paul.

  I seized the hammer and smashed the back window into the cab beyond. “Keep trying to clear the truck,” I urged Kit as I moved into the back. “I have an idea.”

  I jumped into the back of the van, seized hold of the axe and swung it at the roof of the vehicle. What I had in mind was crazy and liable to get me killed very quickly, for I had surely used up my nine lives long before now. I moved along, smashing the entire length of the roof, then the width, smashing a round circle so that soon the entire metal roof of the truck came away. I took the metal sheet and climbed up on top of the truck so I was standing on the roof of the cab. As I worked I heard Kit revving the engine but it was to no avail. From the side I heard deafening crashes against the metal as the revenants slammed against the truck and as I looked I saw dents starting to appear in the inner bodywork as the creatures slammed their heavy fists against it. I looked down at a sea of revenants and realised there must have been many thousands of them. In a way it was fortunate there were so many because the crush at the front of the van meant the revenants could not gain leverage to slam their fists against the windows although if they became much thicker in numbers they would surely cave it in regardless. I saw the side windows were now blocked with bodies which I imagined would delay the revenants somewhat but now they turned their attention to the front windscreen and their heavy bodies slammed against it. Already it was cracking. Once it was broken there would be no hope for Paul or Kit. “Hold strong!” I called down to them. “I have a plan.”

  The revenants were around three metres deep and tightly packed in around the truck. I took a deep breath and held the sheet of metal out before me like it was a surfboard. Then I ran, pitching off the truck and landing on top of the sheet of metal which in turn landed on the weight of revenants, gliding through them with the momentum of my run. I landed with a forward roll, falling off the metal sheet and dropping the axe. I quickly leapt to my feet and retrieved my weapon then charged away, rushing through the stragglers with the axe, swinging at their heads as I went. I charged away from the main body, turned and waved and hollered, determined to attract their attention and thus free the truck from their mass. The cacophony of groans was deafening. From behind me I heard the collective groan and shuffling of a thousand revenants and I looked up and saw to my horror a whole knot of revenants coming out of the trees and straight towards me. I turned around but the original mass still came at me. I was surrounded. I ran tentatively forward, swishing the axe through the air, carving in half the skulls of the undead but there was no path to be cleared. One of the revenants avoided the axe and was simply deflected by the wooden handle. I dived out of the way of his ravenous jaws and collided with another bearing down on top of me. I broke free and swung the axe, watched its head explode in a fountain of blood. I was merely killing time. The end was surely upon me. Just then I saw a clear space and I ran towards it but still more shuffled in to block my path. I swung the axe again with such force that I almost dislocated my shoulder decapitating one of the beasts as he moved towards me.

  Suddenly there came a great roar of engines and the truck surfed through the bodies like they were a puddle before swinging to a stop before me. The vehicle drove at speed, heedless of the damage done to the bodywork, casting the undead into the air in its path. I charged forward, leapt through the air and jumped in through the back from where I had earlier carved out the roof with the axe.

  “Careful!” I exclaimed, as we drove into a knot of revenants which shattered against the headlights. “You’re going to destroy the truck.”

  “The truck is gone anyway,” replied Kit dismissively. “We’ll need to find another one.”

  Kit turned and weaved the truck around like a pro, drawing the revenants in a long line behind her before bumping the truck out on to the road and driving at full speed through the gates of the military base before screeching to a stop. Myself and Paul were out in a moment and rushed back to slam the gates closed. Afterwards Kit reversed the truck back to create a further block before leaping out herself.

  “I swear you have nine lives,” laughed Paul and I poked my head through the front to the cab.

  “Either that or the luck of the devil,” retorted Kit with a wry smile.

  Kit pulled up the handbrake and swung the van around so that it perfectly blocked the entrance. We leapt of the side door. The parade ground was littered with bodies. Many of the soldiers had shot themselves rather than fall victim to the revenants. Guns are other small ammunition were scattered all over the place. Many of the gates had been torn off their hinges, probably knocked off by a fleeing truck and the parade ground within was awash with revenants although there were not nearly so many as outside. Kit was right. There were indeed many more trucks scattered around the area. We then began a sort of grab and run movement, the truck first attracting the revenants then pulling fast away from them before screeching to a stop at which point myself and Paul would leap out, grab a handful of guns then leap back into the truck before the revenants had a chance to catch up. There were still many revenants left inside the perimeter but compared to the outside it was a positive paradise. Still, we could not afford to become complacent. With the truck almost wrecked anyway there was no need to go sparingly. Kit smashed into as many as she positively could before the engine finally laboured and it gave up the ghost and after that myself and Paul were out with the axe and iron bar to finish off as many as we could. But at that moment more emerged from inside the mess halls and it was clear there were too many of them to take on ourselves.

  Just then I saw a knot of bodies surrounding a heavy looking square building and ran forwards, attacking the revenants head on, my blood up. I smashed my weapon through their skulls in a frenzy, barely conscious or coherent as the bloodlust overtook my senses. I only came to when I heard the chugging of an engine. I turned to see Kit had managed to start one of the trucks and now drove it forward. There were not too many revenants around now and those that were still there were easily avoided. We followed the bodies until we found the armoury. There was a mass of weapons scattered outside and it was clear something of a final stand had been made here. Inside was dark and it was a good job I had taken the torch with me. I flashed it inside at a veritable mother-load of guns, grenades and ammunition. We began piling the guns on to the back of the truck and we were smiling as we did so for we were now surely invincible against the massed ranks of the Elite. Every now and again I would leave the armoury to check for revenants and finish off those who had strayed too close. From inside the armoury I heard a crash and rushing outside I saw the revenan
ts, through sheer weight of numbers, had toppled over the fencing on the far side and were now piling in as fast as they could. I cursed our complacency that had seen us failing to learn the lessons of the wood depot all those weeks ago. From outside there came ominous noises. The truck was getting full now and what was more the revenants around the perimeter were starting to converge once more upon the fencing.

  “Back in the truck!” I cried. “We’ve got all we need for now!”

  We turned to run, flinging the rucksacks on our shoulders. We were home free. All we needed to do was get back into the truck and go home. We weren’t paying attention and this was our undoing. I saw the hand reach out towards Paul’s leg as he rushed past and instinctively raised the axe but not soon enough. Paul let out a howl and fell to the side as a gush of his blood splattered against the wall. I cried out and smashed the revenant’s head clean off then dragged Paul outside and into the waiting truck. “Please,” stammered Kit when she saw the damage. “Don’t tell me...”

  “It is finished,” said Paul darkly, and he did not seem at all afraid. “This is how it will end for most of us some day. I’m not exactly surprised.” He turned and looked towards the revenants who had now breached the walls and were coming towards us then turned and took up a grenade from the glove compartment.

  “Don’t do this, Paul,” said Kit urgently, and at that point she seemed as close to crying as I had ever seen her before.

  “I’m not going to turn,” said Paul through gritted teeth. “And if I’m going to go out I’m going to make damned sure to make myself useful. No stories and no long goodbyes either.” And with that Paul pulled the pin from the grenade and rushed out into the multitude of revenants without another word. The bodies were so packed in he was able to wade over them, at a run. They turned to follow him. Suddenly he vanished. A moment later an explosion ripped through the air, sending revenants flying and rocking against the truck which t least was somewhat protected by undead bodies. Myself and Kit charged forwards and leapt back into the truck. I revved hard and this time was able to break out and through the massed ranks. I felt the wheels slipping and turning over the blood and rotten sinew as we went.