by Marie Lanza
The waves rolled in, lifting them up, and dropping them down as they floated in the sea.
Black smoke rose up from the ships and gunfire continued to crack and pop, echoing through the air.
Melody and Jason watched bodies continue to fall into the water, not sure if they were dead or alive. There was a melodic howl from those who already fell into the waves.
“Jason, what about the infected?” Melody asked. “The infected in the water!”
Jason circled around, scanning their surroundings, then dunked his face under water for a brief few seconds. “We’re fine. Unless those things know how to swim.”
Bodies continued to collect around the ships, bobbing in the water, splashing around, causing a white foam to collect on the surface. “We have to get to shore. Slow and steady.” Jason began swimming for the beach.
The ocean waves pushed them along towards shore. From their vantage point, the beaches looked like a war zone, only the casualties were still moving.
“Jason, it’s not safe there!” Melody called out, directing him to the infected on shore.
“We’ll swim along the beach until we find a clear area.” They continued to swim just outside where the waves broke against the shore. The ocean pulled at the clothes on their bodies, causing an exhausting drag.
Melody watched the movement on the beach. The shapes she saw weren’t running for their lives, or calling out for help. She watched as dark shapes lumbered awkwardly towards the water, being drawn to the movement of the ships and the survivors swimming towards shore. “Jason, the infected…” She swallowed water, causing her to cough, “the infected on the beach are coming to the….”
Suddenly, Melody fell below the surface.
Jason turned to look for her, only seeing the bubbles and foamy water where she went under. “Mel!”
Melody opened her eyes, catching sight of two arms reaching up at her, clawing at her leg from the darkness below. She screamed, causing bubbles to block her already impaired vision in the clouded water. She was being pulled into the depths by an infected that had its grip firmly around her ankle. Only her life vest prevented the infected from successfully pulling her into its embrace. She kicked and jerked up her leg in an attempt to get away from the infected’s hold.
Melody frantically kicked downward, fighting the resistance of the water, and the infected soon lost its battle, sinking to the bottom. With the infected’s release, Melody’s vest popped her up to the surface. Her lungs ached for air, and she struggled with fatigue. Melody felt herself being grabbed again; turning to face her aggressor, she was relieved to see Jason reaching for her. She took his hands and let him pull her into him.
“Jason, infected! Infected are in the water!” Melody coughed as she spoke, gasping for air.
“Take Aubrey and swim as fast as you can!” Jason put Aubrey on Melody’s back.
Jason took a breath and put his face under the water. Melody didn’t wait for him, swimming along shore, keeping her body as flat as possible on the surface so her feet wouldn’t dangle, in case infected waited in the depths.
To Jason’s horror, the sea was full of infected, a kelp-like forest of bodies, streaming from the bottom of the ocean floor, the current giving some just enough movement to float upwards, reaching to grasp their prey. With the sun continuing it’s decent towards the horizon, Jason had limited visibility to see just how many were lurking in the darkness, but the shapes of shadows dancing about gave him an idea. He surfaced, yelling for Melody, “Mel, keep your legs up! Keep your legs up, they’re everywhere!”
Melody stuck her face underwater, she and Aubrey seemed clear of any threats.
Jason ploughed on, slicing neatly through the rolling swells, promptly catching Melody and Aubrey. “OK, here’s the plan. We’ll use the waves to bring us in. Most of the infected look distracted by the ships, so this is good. We’ll head straight for that outpost for cover.”
Melody just listened and nodded as he spoke.
Past the break, inside the impact zone, the waves were choppy, tossing them around as if they were in a washing machine. Melody talked herself through the process as she held Aubrey firmly with one arm, using the other to paddle forward. Don’t forget to look back. Dive with the waves. Use the bottom to push back up to the surface. Don’t let go of Aubrey.
A sense of dread fell over Melody as her feet hit the sand and the water was shallow enough to wade through. Still fearful the infected were possibly under the water, she moved as fast as possible to shore. Jason caught up and directed his family towards the outpost the military had set up on the beach.
Most of the infected were gathering at the other end of the beach, coming through the entry gates the military had funneled off. They were focused on the water and the survivors from the disabled ships that were splashing around, swimming to shore.
Jason and Melody took a moment to look at the situation behind them. Now, no longer tunnel vision on their own plight to get to shore, the sporadic gunfire continued coming from the ship, the screams of the living in the water seemed louder, fighting for their lives as the infected on the ocean floor pulled them under. The ocean was turning into a blood bath right before their eyes. “Jason, let’s go. Please let’s get out of here!” Melody begged.
Melody frantically scanned the beach for some sort of shelter, something that they could use to protect themselves against the infected wandering the sand. At the far end of the beach, she saw a small group of ramshackle buildings. They looked like emergency shelters she had seen in the news after earthquakes. “Jason, there – look! Those buildings!” Jason looked towards the buildings, and without a word, grabbed her hand and began to run towards the shelter.
Melody hated running through the sand, and was happy the buildings weren’t far and they would be on pavement within a hundred feet or so.
“Let’s move, Mel, we’ve caught some unwanted attention!” Jason lightly guided her with his hand on her back as she cradled Aubrey in her arms.
Melody turned around to find infected limping down the beach with their eyes set on them. The sand continued to tire her legs, and carrying Aubrey wasn’t making it any easier. She turned around to see the infected behind them.
Jason lifted his shirt and reached for his waistband to pull his gun – it was gone. He stopped dead in his tracks and began patting down his body around his waist and legs.
“Jason, what are you doing? What’s wrong?”
“It’s gone. I must have lost it when we jumped.” Jason continued running.
Melody didn’t know what to say, nor did she have time to think about. Every time they paused, the infected would close the distance between them.
They ran down aisle after aisle of the trailer-style, temporary buildings. It appeared to be a pop-up station where the military posted themselves to process survivors. Jason ran back and forth between each building checking every door. Between the trailers were large holding containers he assumed were full of supplies for either the ships or the encampment there. Row after row, and no luck with any easy entry. The moans of the infected followed closely behind. Melody took her time peeking around every corner of each building and container before passing, making sure there were no surprises waiting for them. Jason continued following closely behind. He turned to measure how close the infected were, hoping they weren’t gaining on them too quickly.
“Jason!” Melody screamed.
Jason turned back around to see three infected coming around the corner in front of them. They were surrounded. He searched for anything useful to use as a weapon, when his eyes caught a piece of scrap metal.
Melody couldn’t take her eyes off the monsters coming their way. Dirty, bloody, and monstrous anger over their faces, the infected didn’t slow their pace. Melody held Aubrey close and slowly backed away, hoping Jason had a plan. Next thing she knew, Jason was charging the infected with the metal scrap he picked up. He shoved the first to the ground, taking his makeshift weapon, and plunging it
into the second infected’s brain.
“Run, Mel! Run!”
There was an uncertain moment inside Melody, not sure how to get past the third infected, feeling somewhat helpless holding Aubrey. It was moving in on them.
Aubrey cried out in terror.
She watched Jason stomp down hard on the head of the infected that had fallen to the ground with a loud crunch as he broke through its skull.
“Jason!” Melody brought Jason’s attention to the third infected coming their way.
Jason used his sharp piece of metal again to take down the third.
Melody moved fast with Jason giving her the safe opening. As she searched for any way out, anything that would help them get away from the infected, she spotted a ladder attached to the side of a container. Swinging Aubrey to her side, holding her tight with one arm, Melody climbed using the other. She looked back for Jason, and he was already headed their way.
Melody’s steps were frantic up the ladder. The metal was covered in dew from the ocean air, causing each step to be slippery. Melody made it to the top, but her feet slipped out from under her. As her body fell backwards, two hands reached out, grabbing her, and pulling her back into the ladder. Startled, Melody gasped.
“It’s OK!” a woman’s voice said.
Melody was looking into the face a woman who looked about her age: short, almost buzzed hair and a muscular build, wearing a tan T-shirt with camouflage pants. Melody took her hand and felt herself almost lifted from the ladder before her feet soon found the top of the container.
“Are you alright?” The woman asked.
“Yes, thank you. Yes,” Melody said, looking back for Jason.
Jason climbed up behind Melody and put his arm around her for a brief hug.
“I’m Nicole. Call me Nic. That’s Ricky and we just met this group,” Nic pointed to three others, two men and a woman sitting huddled together on the opposite side of the container.
Jason took note they were all soaking wet. “I’m Jason, my wife Melody, and this is Aubrey,” he pointed to the baby. “You were on the ship?”
“Yeah. MPs assigned to the Antietam. I’m guessing you too,” Nic said as she looked at their wet clothes.
Jason nodded. “So what are we thinking?”
Nic walked over to the edge of the container and looked down. She looked back to Jason. “We can reach a few containers from up here, but anything down is jammed with those things. We can’t reach any of the trailers without being on the ground and everything we checked was locked tight.”
“Any weapons?” Jason asked.
“No, we lost our guns abandoning ship,” Ricky said.
“Same here.”
Melody sat down and put Aubrey in her lap. “Looks like we’re going be here a while then?”
Jason sat down next to her.
Nic continued to pace around the container, scanning their surroundings.
“Would you sit down?” one of the men demanded in a hushed voice. “You’re just calling attention to us! If you just sit down, maybe they’ll go away.”
“Would you shut up, Vic? She’s trying to figure this shit out,” the woman fired back.
Melody looked at Jason to see if she could get an idea of what he was thinking.
Aubrey began whimpering, then started to cry.
Melody brought her in close. “She’s freezing,” Melody said as she wrapped her arms around her daughter.
Jason scooted in a little closer, hoping his body heat would help.
Nic made her way back over and sat down across from the family. “She alright?”
“Yeah, just cold. Probably a little hungry,” Melody said.
“You and me both, kid.” Nic gave a sweet smile to Aubrey.
Aubrey reacted by giving her a smile back, sending a brief moment of relief to Melody.
“Do you have kids?” Melody asked.
“Nah, but definitely a sucker for them.” Nic made another face at Aubrey.
“Are we just gonna die up here from small talk or are you gonna get us outta here?” the man named Vic shouted out.
“This guy’s been this way since they got up here,” Ricky said to Jason. “Why don’t you make yourself useful and find another container?” he called back to Vic.
“The military was good for nothing. Nothing!”
Melody watched Jason’s face sour as he continued to listen to Vic’s rants.
Vic’s two friends tried to quiet him down again, but Melody wasn’t able to hear what they were saying, and it seemed everyone else was fine just ignoring him.
The sun had fallen below the horizon, casting its final light of deep pink and orange, making it harder to see anything past the fence surrounding the outpost. The group sat and stared into the darkening surroundings, listening to the screams coming from the water as the infected picked off survivors from below. Those that escaped their clutches, made it to the shores and ran in all directions, some swarmed by the infected, never to leave the sandy beaches. There was no easy way out due to the barricades the military had built up in an attempt to protect those making their way to the ships.
Sitting for what seemed like hours, they were now only able to see with what little light the moon and stars cast down. They helplessly listened as survivors from the ships were slaughtered. The screams of terror, growls, and moans of the infected, were accented with the harmony of the waves rolling over, hitting shore.
“You guys are good for nothing,” Vic said, breaking the silence, continuing his repeated rant. He stood up, and began pacing back and forth.
Melody thought maybe they were witnessing a complete breakdown as she watched his movement. His appearance was more disheveled than the others, and he had a slight twitch in his face as he spoke.
“Only the strong survive.” Vic hit himself in the chest with his fist, like an ape demonstrating his dominance before a battle. “Not old people, certainly not babies. You’re all gonna die for sure, man!”
Melody felt Jason shift, then slowly make his way to his feet, turning to face this man they called, Vic.
Jason caught Vic’s attention, and he stopped his frantic pacing. “What, man? You got any ideas?”
“You need to sit back down,” Jason said calmly.
Nic stood up, Ricky did the same, but neither said anything or stepped in.
“Fuck you, man! Look around! We just gonna sit here until we starve to death?” Vic scratched at his head, and began his anxious circling again. “What? You got a problem that I think your kid is a fucking liability? That’s right. No one else will say it, but I will. That thing’s cry is a dinner bell. Do us all a favor and throw it over the edge.”
Chills went straight into Melody’s spine. This man was a lunatic, and just as much a threat as the infected below them. Melody felt a rage in her, a heat wave of anger that passed over her entire body, she had never felt before.
Suddenly, with a swift kick to the chest, Jason sent Vic over the edge.
There were no words, no discussion or negotiation. A mere gasp of shock was sent over the man and woman that Vic was attached to. Jason calmly turned and returned to his seat next to his wife and daughter.
Vic screamed in horror from the ground as he fell into the grasps of the infected. Melody couldn’t see what happened, but she could hear the hissing and growling of the infected and imagined how their dirty nails were ripping into Vic’s flesh. Vic’s screams turned to a gurgling cough as he choked on his own blood, and finally, there was only the sound of the infected below.
Melody clutched Aubrey, who continued to sleep through the scuffle. She had never seen this side of Jason. She knew that deep down he had the ability to kill a man, but she thought he had left that overseas in the battlefields. When he returned, she had prayed that he would forget that dark period of his life, but in this moment, she was thankful for it.
“Shit,” Nic whispered under her breath.
CHAPTER 4
The moon cast its light over the ocea
n giving the water a glistening sparkle. The screams were almost gone, leaving only occasional pops of gunfire echoing through the air from small battles on the ship that by now were halfway underwater, and the infected’s continuous raspy growls as they aimlessly roamed the beach.
No words were spoken about Vic’s death. Vic’s two companions sat in silence on their side of the container, neither shed a single tear for him. Giving the notion, maybe they weren’t that close, or they didn’t know each other at all, just happened to be in the same place at the same time. No one cared to ask.
Melody concentrated on Aubrey who was restless in her arms. Nic and Ricky sat close by, looking into the darkness. The breeze over the ocean was cold, and the air felt extra chilled thanks to their clothes that were still damp. Melody hoped her body heat was helping Aubrey, but her constant stirring was indicating otherwise.
Jason paced around the container, brainstorming about an escape plan, as staying on the container was only a temporary option.
Melody thought maybe he needed to be alone after the incident with Vic. So she didn’t bother him, letting him have space. She too needed this time to really absorb what had happened. The sound of his screams haunted Melody as she sat in silence. But, the most haunting image, the thing she couldn’t shake off, was that Jason had sent him to his death. That image, the image of her husband sending a man to his death, that image would never leave her. She shuddered as she stared out over the ocean. Melody tried to think of something else, anything that would help her remove the incident from her mind.
“Does anyone else hear that?’ Jason asked.
Everyone perked up, listening carefully.
“That sounds like a landing craft.” Ricky got to his feet. “Too bad no one will see us in the dark.”
They were all standing now, looking out at the water to see if they could spot the craft.
“There!” Jason pointed out at their three o’clock.
They first noticed the lights gliding across the water, then the silhouette of the craft. It was heading straight for the beach. The sound from the engines grew louder, capturing the attention of the infected, and drawing them away from the outpost.
