Z-Boat

by Suzanne Robb

  "I'll do whatever you want, just let me go see Ally."

  Iain wanted to scream. No one listened to him.

  "Dutch, get us as much power as you can; we're going to need it. Ivan, you come with me and Marcus to the control room. We need to find out the status of things from Ally and fill her in on whatever it was we saw over there."

  The three men walked down the hallway, Dutch heading in the other direction, towards the stairway to the electrical room.

  ***

  Dutch made his way down the darkened stairs. The red lights came on about five minutes after the hatch closed. He knew it was Betty Loo's way of telling him things were bad. He moved as fast as his arthritic knees would carry him.

  When he reached the bottom landing, he fished his flashlight out of his toolkit. Even with the emergency lighting, he could barely see. He thought he saw something move out of the corner of his eye. He swung around with the small beam of light, but saw nothing.

  Drips of water could be heard everywhere, and there was almost a quarter-inch of water on the floor. The faint smell of smoke hung in the air. He knew the bilge pumps were working overtime.

  Dutch stared down at his boots, glad he decided to put on the rubber hipsters just in case. The chance of getting electrocuted down here was pretty high. He looked around at the various panels and racked his brain as to where he could route some power.

  Nothing came to mind, so he figured walking around, looking at whatever his flashlight landed on might help him think of something. A noise behind him, a raspy breathing sound, caused him to turn suddenly.

  He tried to let out a scream, but it wouldn't come. He held his flashlight up, illuminating the face of Johnny Ventura. Dutch knew it was impossible; the guy was dead, crushed to death by the rockslide. Yet here he stood.

  His eyes were funny looking. From the way the light hit him, along with the red emergency lights, he appeared menacing. When he opened his mouth, a dark sticky liquid could be seen. Dutch tried to run but fell. Johnny stood over him, then bent down, biting him in the neck.

  Dutch let out a scream this time, but it didn't last long. Johnny kept chewing on his face as his hands reached for and found Dutch's vocal cords. Seconds later, they were ripped out. Dutch had never felt such pain before. He sent up a prayer for the Betty Loo. It was the last thing he did before his heart stopped.

  ***

  The thing that had once been Johnny enjoyed its meal. After ten minutes of gorging itself on bits of Dutch's lungs, stomach, and liver, he sat back with a satisfied smile on his face.

  Dutch's body lay there, unmoving, but then one of his fingers gave the slightest twitch. The thing smiled. Soon it would have a friend to hunt with. He reached out and pulled a length of intestine to chew on while he waited.

  ***

  Ally almost cried when Marcus walked through the door. She leapt up and hugged him, an unusual public display for her.

  "Thank God. I was so worried. Are you okay?" She pulled herself away from his warm embrace and examined him closely.

  He was soaking wet and smelled horrible, and a large gash ran down one of his arms. Ally felt weak as relief washed through her, though when she turned to look at Iain and Ivan, it was short lived.

  "What the hell happened over there? Why are you all covered in nasty-smelling gunk?"

  "Ally, we'll tell you everything in a minute. First, get the health kit and let Ivan deal with Marcus's arm. Second, I need to know if you took care of our problem. Third, we need to surface now."

  Ally grabbed the health kit and handed it to Ivan. She watched with interest as Ivan paid a great deal of attention to the cut on Marcus's arm. He seemed scared- whether for Marcus or of Marcus, she couldn't tell.

  "I took care of the problem and was just waiting on surfacing until I knew everyone was stable. The ride's going to be bumpy, especially since we have no power and life support is offline."

  She watched as Iain's face went from dread to relief and then back to dread as he heard about the bomb being taken care of and the seriousness of their current situation.

  "Dutch is trying to find us power. I don't care if he gets it by rerouting the head at this point, as long as we get something."

  Iain walked towards his chair and sat down. He stared down at his sodden and stained clothes. Ally waited patiently, keeping her eye on various screens. She cleared her throat to remind him he'd promised to tell her what happened over there.

  Iain looked into her eyes, and she saw how haunted his were. She briefly thought about telling him to forget it and focus on getting out of there, but something told her she needed to hear the story.

  "Ally, what we saw over there wasn't right. They weren't human." There was a crackle of electricity in the corner, and the dim lights went out, leaving only the red emergency lights. "They were monsters of some kind. Zombies."

  Ally sat down and braced herself for the story to come. Something in her gut told that her when Iain finished, the story would just be starting.

  ***

  Maxine stood in the med lab, wondering what to do next. Her job here was technically done, for all intents and purposes. Nina hadn't moved a muscle. Maxine picked up her wrist and tried to find a pulse. It was weak and fading fast. If something happened, she would not have Kramer to help out- not that it mattered. She gave him enough sedatives to keep him asleep for a month- not for any humane purposes; she just didn't want to listen to any bitching or moaning.

  Though her objective was over, and the fact that she wasn't a doctor uncovered, they still left her in charge of the ill people. The only one she cared about was Nina. She wanted to see what would happen, how the infection spread.

  Maxine assumed it spread quickly. She took a blood sample from Nina, and it was thick and congealed, the smell of rot already apparent. She walked over to the examination table and pulled over the magnification panel. She stared at the results, not believing what she saw. There had to be a mistake of some kind. She took another sample and went through same process, getting the same results.

  The results were identical to the tests she ran on Johnny. Though he died before they reached The Peacemaker, the bacteria she found in his blood were not eating their way through Nina's. If what she discovered was correct, they were in big trouble. The method of infection was the water. Thousands of people, perhaps millions, were already exposed. Of course, only the rich could afford to buy the crisp, clear water they pumped up from down here, but a black market did exist.

  Maxine thought for a moment. A massive die-off was just what the planet needed. She knew what she was up against, so she didn't need to tell anyone and create a panic. 'Survival of the fittest' was the motto that got her this far in life; now it would combine with 'knowledge is power.' Nothing would take her down.

  She walked over to where Kramer lay and took off his boot. Bits of bone stuck out through torn skin; tendons and muscle were easily visible. She sighed with annoyance. This would be difficult to bandage up. She straightened his foot as much as possible, secretly enjoying the crack and snap of various things as she did so. Once she had it relatively normal looking, aside from the blood and gore, she grabbed the casting gun.

  She hit the prepare button and listened as it mixed the chemicals to make a cast. Once the beep sounded, she began to spray a layer of it on Kramer from knee to toe. Within mere seconds, the layer turned into a one=inch thick cast, harder than cement, but light as a feather. She placed the gun on the cot next to Kramer and smiled at her work. Even if he survived, he would be horribly maimed for the rest of his life.

  Karma's a bitch, she thought.

  She walked towards her desk and brought out her display panel. She popped in the chip she'd stolen, to verify it was the real deal. After a few moments, a green light appeared. Maxine tried to upload it to her bosses, but they were too far out of range. She tried to hack into it to confirm her suspicions about the blood results, but it was encrypted.

  She placed the chip in her back pocket an
d tried to figure out a way to get the hell out of here. Something about the medical lab seemed off to her, something important was missing.

  ***

  The bodies formerly housing Johnny and Dutch made their way upstairs. Dutch could smell something, and he needed it. They lurked in the shadows, the red emergency lights glinting oddly off of their white eyes. They stood in front of two doors. One had a stronger smell than the other.

  Johnny motioned to the other door, preferring to recruit rather than fight, at least for now. Dutch pawed at the handle and opened it. Inside, the smell of what they needed caused them to moan with delight. They both entered the room and locked the door behind them.

  He sat in a metal enclosure, shaking his head groggily. Johnny walked to the door and forced it open. They heard the thing they needed start to scream. Dutch pushed Johnny out of the way, the hunger in him taking over.

  He moved like a young man with strength and vigour. Within seconds, he ripped the arm locked to the wall off of the body and began to eat it. Johnny slowly sat down and put a hand on the thing to keep him in place. The screams annoyed him, however, so he bent over the wriggling body and began to tear out the throat. When he pulled away, part of the esophagus and a large portion of the tongue dangled from his mouth.

  The screaming stopped for the time being, and Dutch ate hungrily. Tom Simon would join them soon enough.

  ***

  Maxine sat in her chair, trying to relax. There was little she could do with the lack of power- and the fact that she wasn't a real doctor. As she contemplated her options for escape, along with possible explanations should they decide to question her, a noise caught her attention.

  She opened her eyes and slowly brought her head forward. Nina sat up on her cot. Maxine didn't move a muscle. She watched as Nina opened her mouth, and even from across the darkened room, Maxine could see the black fluid dripping out of it in stark contrast to the white shirt Nina wore.

  Nina stood up and sniffed the air, her eyes zeroing in on Kramer. If Maxine actually gave a crap, she would do something to save the guy, but at the moment, she thought it was more important to save herself. There was no option to shoot her, as her gun was in the bag lying across the room.

  She watched as Nina walked over to Kramer and lifted his right arm to her mouth. Maxine watched in horror as Nina put a finger in her mouth, bit down, chewed, and then swallowed. She watched, transfixed, for four fingers, until she decided it might be a good idea to get the hell out of there.

  Maxine looked towards the door, then back to Nina. For the time being, she seemed happy enough to be munching on fingers. Maxine stood up and ran for the door. A screech pushed her to run faster than she ever had before. She opened the door and pulled it shut behind her.

  She stopped for a moment to lock it, an attempt to contain the problem. She heard the door to the research lab open behind her. Maxine turned to see Johnny. He opened his mouth, and a half-eaten ear fell out.

  To hell with this, she thought.

  Maxine took off for the control room and hoped to God Ivan, Iain, and Ally had a plan. She sprinted down the aisle way and heard the sounds of pounding feet close behind her.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Ally stared at Iain as he wrapped up the story. He had to be crazy, lying, making it up. When she glanced back to look at Marcus, he nodded in agreement. She swallowed hard.

  "Are you sure whatever infected them didn't make it on board the Betty Loo?"

  Ivan came over from where he leaned against a console.

  "I think it is possible Nina is infected. Maxine would not let me examine the wound. I find her actions to be highly suspect."

  Ally let out a breath and sagged a little against Marcus. In the midst of Iain's tale, he had come over to her and wrapped her up in his arms. Absentmindedly, she stroked the bandage on his arm, the reality of how close she came to losing him hitting her like a punch to the gut.

  Looking at the panel displaying energy levels, Ally noticed they were running on fumes. What was Dutch doing? She was about to voice the question when they heard screaming and the thumping of feet.

  Ally watched as Ivan ran to the door, flashing a light down the darkened hallway.

  "Get ready to shut the damn door!"

  Maxine's voice sounded terrified. Ally grabbed her gun, as did Iain, who'd taken more bullets from one of the drawers as soon as he entered the room. Ivan pulled a gun out of the waistband of his pants and aimed into the hallway.

  To Ally, everything seemed to slow down. She watched as Ivan slowly raised his gun. Marcus let go of her and moved to stand in front of her, ready to fight bare handed. Then Maxine burst into the room, yelling, "Shut the damn door; they're coming."

  Ivan looked at her, then down the hallway. The pounding footsteps could still be heard. Ivan shut the door, and two seconds later, a ghoulish face appeared in the porthole. Ivan was so shocked by its appearance that he fell backwards. Marcus ran forward and finished turning the handle to lock the door.

  Ally stared at the face of Johnny Ventura. How was he up and about? He hadn't even gone over to The Peacemaker. His skin was a sickly color, and his eyes were devoid of any color at all. His face was sunken in, and a black fluid sprayed the window as he screeched in frustration.

  Marcus backed away from the door and helped Ivan up to his feet. Ally glanced from him to Maxine, who had fallen to the floor, gasping for air.

  "Something you want to share with us, Maxine?"

  All eyes turned on the so-called doctor.

  Maxine turned her head and stared up into the angry eyes of Ally. She knew the woman would be a challenge to fight, but hoped things didn't come to that. In mere seconds, she had to determine how much to tell them.

  Standing up slowly to buy herself more time, and acting more out of breath than she really was, she gathered her thoughts. She didn't know what to talk about first, their need to get out of there, or what was on board.

  "Nina, it started with Nina. She went after Kramer. I made a run for it, and there Johnny was, coming out of the research lab with a damn ear in his mouth. I can only assume he got Tom."

  Iain shook his head. "How the hell did this happen? Johnny was dead way before we even arrived here."

  "I think it's some sort of bacterium. I did some tests on Johnny before, because I noticed unusual movement underneath his skin. The results were strange. I found activity in the blood when there shouldn't have been. Nothing set off alarm bells. But if I'm right, once this bacteria get into you, they overtake you, killing you in the process."

  Ally spoke up. "But it still doesn't explain Nina. Johnny could have been infected days ago, and he just now came back or whatever it's called. How did it work so fast on her and not on him?"

  "I think it's the method of contamination that determines how fast the bacteria work. Johnny might have been infecting himself slowly over the years. We all know he was a squisher. But Nina was bitten by one of the zombies. Perhaps it mutates once inside the host and learns how to adapt more quickly, making it easier to take over similar hosts. "

  Maxine glanced around the room. Three blank faces stared back at her. She mentally sighed. How could she make them understand?

  "Think about it, bacteria are like a colony of tiny organisms. They stick together and spread, but imagine what kind of bacterium could be all the way down here. How old is it? How did it survive for millions of years? Imagine all the waste we've dumped in the ocean for the last hundred years or so; there's no way it had a positive effect."

  "You aren't even a real doctor. Why should we believe anything you say? Not to mention you knew damn well Nina was infected, and you still brought her on board. You wanted this to happen. You risked all our lives for what?" Marcus moved towards her in a menacing way.

  Ivan stepped in front of him, then turned to look at Maxine.

  "Who do you work for, and did you get the chip?"

  Maxine shot a look at Ivan, wondering how he knew about the chip. Johnny sti
ll beat on the door, and all she really wanted to do was save her own ass. Her only option was cooperation at this point... well, at least some cooperation.

  "I work for a firm out of North Korea. My orders were to gain the trust of the crew, identify any other firms at work, send reports when possible, and once aboard The Peacekeeper, to get the data chip to find out if they had in fact found an alternative fuel source. The chip must have been destroyed. I never found it." Maxine stared into Ivan's eyes as she said the last part, hoping it would convince him

  "You're a fool. Your bosses knew it wasn't an alternative fuel source. That's why they hired Kramer too. The first search-and-rescue sub sent out received images indicating something very wrong with the crew."

  Maxine assumed a defensive position and glared at Ivan. "Really, so that means you work for the Russians, and we're supposed to trust you."

  Ivan took a step towards her, and she backed up a bit. "Yes, I work for the Russians, but I also wanted to make sure your mission failed. My brother went out with the original search and rescue. He sent me a message before they all died. He sent the original S.O.S. from The Peacemaker."

  Iain jumped up from his chair. "You mean you knew all along we would be dealing with these things? And what the hell are they, by the way?"

  Maxine watched the two men arguing and wondered if they realized the time for pissing contests had passed.

  "Not to interrupt your lovers' quarrel, but if you'll take a look out the porthole in the door, you just might see we have bigger issues to deal with."

  Marcus spoke up. "We should let Dutch know."

  Ally stood at the control panel and hit the button for the electrical room. "Dutch, it's Ally. You need to be on the lookout for some nasty stuff. Be careful. Try to find a safe place to hide."

  They waited several minutes for a response, the room eerily quiet. Maxine peered out the porthole. Johnny was gone. Ivan went over to one of the display panels and tried to turn the power on. She wondered what he was trying to do.