Z Day is Here

by Rob Fox

  All the survivors met back up in the hallway. We wanted to gather all our ammo together so we could make our way out the door. Kenneth motioned for us to follow him. I don't remember how it happened. All I remember is seeing the absolute horror on Kenneth's face as three arms came out of one of the offices by the stairs. They grabbed him and dragged him, kicking and screaming, into the office. We couldn't move. We were frozen by the suddenness and shock of it all. One second Kenneth was standing there, proud of himself, the hero. The next second, he was gone.

  Finally, Jeremiah ran to the end of the hall to kill the bastards that had taken our savior, but he slipped on all the blood in the hallway. As soon as his body hit the ground, a zombie came out of nowhere, pouncing onto Jeremiah, desperately trying to sink its teeth into his flesh. Cole ran to his aid before I could stop him. As he ran towards the fallen solder, he began pulling out a very large knife that would make Crocodile Dundee proud. Cole too slid on the blood, but he steadied himself enough to slide towards the two. Cole came to a halt directly beside Jeremiah. The zombie turned instantly towards Cole. Quickly and without flinching, Cole drove the blade straight into the top of the fiend’s head, causing him to instantly slump over.

  We all ran towards the two and headed down the stairs, glancing quickly into the room where Kenneth could be seen being devoured by two zombies. Alisha, who was the last down the hall, stopped long enough to place two rounds directly between the zombies’ eyes. Once in the main hall, we all made our way towards the front gate. Along the way, we came across a handful of zombies, which we disposed of quickly.

  As we reached the front gate, Mego yelled at us to go stand by the front. She said she would take care of the gate for us. I tried to protest, but she insisted that she knew the prison better than anyone and that she would know other ways out if her escape route got blocked. I couldn't argue with that. Well, I could have argued, but honestly, I was scared. I couldn't step up and be the hero; my body and mind wouldn't let me.

  As we stood by the front gates, we could see Mego briefly in the windows as she crossed into the other rooms. She pressed the button, allowing us to make our escape. As she did so, we could see a flash behind her. There were zombies in the room! We could hear Mego yell for us to get the hell out. No one wanted to leave her, but we had the chance for freedom, so we ran. We all ran and never looked back.

  We made our way to a parking garage that had been almost completely destroyed on one side. We climbed up the fallen concrete and made our way to the top. From that height, we could see the prison in one direction and the zombie cloud making its way towards us in the other. Behind the zombie cloud was a very dark storm cloud. I have a sinking feeling.

  Day 88

  It rained all day today, and the zombie cloud seemed to get bigger and bigger the closer it got to us. We spent the entire night last night debating on what to do. Most of us think we should stay here and wait out the oncoming zombies. I think that if we can cover ourselves in zombie blood and keep hidden for a few days, they should pass right by us without ever noticing our presence. A handful of others want to leave and try to risk getting out of the area without being seen before the zombie cloud gets here. I am not going to stop anyone that wants to leave. It is up to them individually. I think it is suicide leaving this area right now. The cloud is probably less than a day away from reaching us, and it is spread out over two miles wide. They would never make it without being seen.

  A few of the other survivors decided to risk it earlier today, while the rest of us decided to fortify our location in an attempt to keep the zombies from getting to us. We piled up rocks and destroyed the stairs as best we could. The closest ledge to us is at least ten feet high now. There is virtually no way for them to get up to us individually. The only way up would be for them to make some sort of zombie pile where one would lay on top of another so the zombie on top could reach us; I am really hoping they are not smart enough to figure that out. Unfortunately, the rain has slowed us down so much.

  We also made one fatal mistake. We forgot to get extra zombie blood before we blocked everything off. We were able to find two dead zombies that had been blown up by the air strikes, but most of their blood had already been drained or dried up. I hope it is enough to keep us safe.

  I can feel them getting closer. It feels like a small earthquake rumbling under us, even though they are still a mile or so away. I can only imagine the quaking that will take place once they are around us.

  Okay, I have more preparations to make before they get here. Looks like another night without sleep.

  Day 89

  They are here.

  The earth is shaking worse than I had thought it would, and I am beginning to worry about the stability of the garage we are in. Early this morning, we all decided to hide in a few parked vehicles on the top floor. Everyone is in a separate vehicle except for Tonya and Cole. I am in an old Dodge Neon. God, I hope I don't die in a Neon! The floor has been shaking, and I can see a few of the barricades beginning to fall due to the "zombie quake." I don't know how much more the buildings can take.

  I also don't know how much more we can take. We could hear the loud moaning last night when they were still quite a distance away. Once they got here this morning, the noise was almost unbearable. They have been walking under us for a few hours now, and I feel like I am going insane because of the noise. I know the others are the same, because every now and then, I peek out of the window and can see the others covering their ears. Alisha is rocking back and forth in her car right now. I just hope we can all maintain for a little longer.

  One other problem we are facing is the weather. Winter is quickly heading our way. I don't know what the temperature was this morning, but I know it was cold. Sitting in a parked car in the frigid weather is not an easy thing to do during normal conditions. I know Shaughn has got to be cold; he is wearing shorts and a t-shirt. At least the rest of us are in jeans.

  Oh no! I can hear someone starting to cry. If I can hear it, I know those undead bastards can too. I have to go try to shut up whoever it is, or we are all dead.

  Day 90

  The moaning is enough to drive anyone crazy, I guess. Imagine over a million people moaning at the same time over and over again. It is constant and never seems to end. Words cannot accurately describe how the moaning actually feels on the body. To me, it feels like bugs crawling all over me. Every time there is a large group moan, my skin literally crawls; all the hair stands up on my arms and down my back. I just want it to stop. I would do anything to make it stop. I guess that’s what Cheri was thinking also, when she began to cry yesterday. I tried to help her; I swear I did. I tried to calm her down. I tried to shut her up!

  So I left the "safety" (if that’s what you can call it) of the Neon and ran over to a nice brand new Infinity, where I could see a girl crying. I convinced her to open the door to let me in. Once inside, I could clearly see that she was in a total panic. I asked her for her name and told her mine. She told me her name was Cheri then asked me to kill her. I was shocked! I asked her to calm down and think about what she had asked. She just kept saying that she couldn't take the constant moaning anymore. She said she could hear voices in the moans, voices calling out to her, telling her to join them.

  As she spoke, a cold shiver rose up my spine. Maybe that’s why the moaning creeped me out so much. Maybe it was voices I heard in the moans as well. Maybe that’s why the girl ran out onto the streets in the city. Maybe she heard the voices too. Hell, maybe I'm just going crazy. Maybe we are all going crazy.

  Without warning, she bolted out of the car, running as fast as she could towards the edge of the parking garage. I jumped out of the car and ran after her. Ed also jumped out of the truck he was hiding in. Cheri stood on the edge looking over at the undead crowded below her. She was sobbing uncontrollably. Ed quietly called out to her, begging her to step back from the ledge. She turned to look at us; she was no longer crying. "I'm sorry. They are telling me to," was all she
said before turning back to face the crowd. Like an Olympic diver doing a perfect swan dive, she spread out her arms and jumped into the masses below. I couldn't take a chance on going to the edge to look and see what had happened, but based on the sounds of the thud of her body crashing down to the ground and the sounds of skin being ripped off of muscle, I can only imagine what the last few seconds of her life was like. I really hope the impact killed her before the zombies did.

  Ed and I slowly walked back to our own vehicles. As he was walking away, he looked me directly in the eye and asked if I heard the voices too. "No," I lied. I do hear them. I hear what Cheri heard.

  Another black cloud is moving towards us.

  Day 91

  Rain again.

  It's been raining all day again. I can't complain about it this time, though, because the sounds of the drops on the hood of the car help block out the moaning, plus it also helps wash away some of the stench in the air. I need something to block out the moaning and the voices. I swear I can hear them begging me to join them, to allow them to feast on me. I think I am going crazy. When I concentrate really hard, all I hear is moaning; it is when I stop concentrating that I can hear voices calling out to me. They are like quiet little whispers.

  I hope they will be gone soon. I cannot take much more. All night and so far all day today have been the constant rumbling of the feet below us, the moaning, and the sounds of rain. How long have I been awake? Hell, when was the last time I even closed my eyes for more than two minutes?

  It sounds like they are moving away! The moaning has died down a little. Maybe I will be able to get some sleep tonight! The "calling out to me" has finished now, thank God. I hope they will be gone tomorrow, so we can finally figure out what we are going to do. We cannot survive around here with those mass migrations coming and going. I think we all know things will never be the same, but maybe we can find somewhere to live out the rest of our lives where we won’t have to be on the lookout every minute.

  First though, I have to try to find Darcy. One way or another, I have to know what happened to her. If we can leave this area tomorrow, we should be at the base as early as tomorrow night.

  Day 92

  I slept harder than I have ever slept my entire life. I had strange dreams. When I awoke, I was in my bed. Darcy was lying snuggled up against me like she had been for the past few years. I raised my head to look around, disoriented. Where was I? The sight of my bedroom took me aback. What the hell was going on? I fell asleep, and I was in a Neon, surrounded by zombies below me. Now I was lying in my bed, in my room; all was well and as it should be. The zombies were a nightmare. I breathed in. The stench was gone. Darcy woke up and asked me if everything was all right. I smiled and said, “Yes, it is perfect." She ran her hands through my chest hairs and fell back asleep. I couldn't sleep. I was given a second chance at life.

  I got out of bed and made a huge breakfast. I made eggs, grits, bacon, pancakes, and toast. When it was done, I took Darcy a tray in the bedroom for breakfast in bed. Together, we ate it all. She kept commenting on how much I had changed overnight and even joked about aliens stealing the real me. We laughed a lot. Things were back to normal.

  Without warning, the alarm went off. It was time to go to work. Aggh, at least during the zombie attack, I didn't have to go to work. I showered and got ready for the day. When I was leaving, I kissed Darcy like I hadn't done in years. Again with the alien comments.

  Work was...well, work. I fixed computers and set up networks. I took a long lunch. I also got written up for something stupid I did weeks ago. I passed by one of the offices; a goldfish happily swam around in his bowl. People came and went. Things were normal again.

  That night, Darcy and I sat around the house talking about wedding plans. I wanted to go to Vegas, and she wanted to go to St. Lucia and get married on the beach. We argued a little about it and then decided to pick a location in a few weeks. Darcy cooked her meatloaf that I love. We watched TV and went to bed early. We fell asleep a couple of hours later. Things were normal again.

  Days turned into weeks that turned into months. Life was normal. Life was good. I came and went to work; Darcy and I planned our wedding, detail by detail. I still voted for Vegas. Every night I kissed Darcy like I hadn't seen her in years. I vowed to continue until the day I die. Life was normal again.

  Last night I went to sleep like I had done every day before. I awoke this morning cold. The forgotten stench of death was in the air once again. I sat up quickly. Alisha and Ed were standing by the edge of the garage, looking at the area. Cole was talking to one of the other survivors, another teen; I think his name is Matthew. Jeremiah and Tonya were arguing with Shaughn. The sun was coming up. The zombie cloud was on the other side of the city. I got out of the car, walked to the edge, and took in the surroundings. Blood covered the ground. Bodies were torn to shreds and strung around on the ground. Buildings were crumbled, and a straggling zombie or two picked clean the body of a young black girl. I blinked a few times and threw up. Things were normal again.

  Day 93

  As we began leaving the parking garage this morning, we heard a noise from inside a nearby dumpster. Jeremiah approached it cautiously, weapon in hand, and ready to blast apart anything that moved. He flung the lid wide open and shoved the barrel of the gun into the trash. Out of nowhere, a two-by-four smashed him across the nose, causing blood to fly in every direction. Mego emerged from the dumpster, holding the other end of the two-by-four, the board pulled back and ready to strike again until she saw who we were. She dropped the weapon and ran to help Jeremiah up. The rest of us followed.

  Mego was all too pleased to see the rest of us. Once our hellos were said, I told her our plan to head to the military base to get any weapons, supplies, and survivors we can find. She agreed to go with us because, after all, "The living must stick together to survive."

  We have been walking all day and most of this evening. We have only encountered a few zombies, and most of them were completely immobile. There were a few that only had the upper portion of their bodies, so they were crawling around on the ground, pulling themselves along. The others we disposed of as quickly as possible.

  Now we are just outside the gates of the base. The gates have been torn down, and there are bodies everywhere. Hundreds of zombies, holes blown through their heads, lying along the ground, along with mutilated soldiers; every one of them have holes in their heads as well. There must have been one hell of a fight here. We have decided to approach the base in the morning so we can see a little better. I hope some people were able to escape. I hope Darcy was able to escape, if she was even there to begin with. God help me, I feel terrible, but I don't care whether or not anyone else made it. I am being so selfish, but with everything I have been through, I think anyone would be selfish in a time like this. Tomorrow can't come fast enough.

  Day 94

  The base is completely destroyed. Every building that once stood has been completely demolished. It looks as if someone hit a self-destruct button, causing the entire base to explode. Pieces of rubble litter the ground, as does pieces of body parts. There are a few parts still moving. We saw a leg and a few hands moving around on the ground. While sifting through a downed building, we found a decapitated head with most of the face burned off, yet its eyes still followed us as we passed. Shaughn bent down to get a closer look at it and almost got bitten as it snapped its teeth at his face. Laughing, Cole and his new friend Matthew decided to play soccer with the head. Matthew was the one to score by kicking the head into the nearest tipped-over trash can. Both of the teens jumped up and down, waving their arms around in victory.

  Ed has been frantically searching for his family. There were three fallout shelters located throughout the city, and we had found two of them. Both shelters were empty. They had been destroyed from the inside out, like someone set off bombs inside the shelter, killing everything and everyone inside. The doors to both shelters were off their hinges. Inside, the lights were all
destroyed, so it was too dark to really see what had happened, but the rooms were caked in blood. We would not let Ed in either of the shelters; we didn't think he could handle it, so we took a picture of his family and entered one at a time, searching for any signs of them. While searching, I also looked for signs of Darcy. We found nothing that would lead us to think either of them had been in there. I don't know what happened in those shelters, and I don't think I ever will, but whatever it was, by the looks of it, it was a living hell.

  We have made our way to the last area of the base. We are directly outside the last shelter. From what we can tell, the doors are still intact and closed tight. We are sitting outside, trying to figure out what to do. The shelter has a call box, where we can make contact with anyone on the inside, but no one is answering. We have thought about blowing open the doors so we can get inside, but I don't think we have enough explosives to even do that. Plus we don't want the kind of attention an explosion like that would make.

  It's getting pretty late, so I think we will set us a camp for the evening. A few people will sleep while the others look out, then we will swap so we all can at least get a few hours of sleep. We are also going to continue to call the shelter; hopefully, someone is inside that can answer us.

  The door to the shelter is opening slowly, as if someone is pulling it open to peek out. I see someone's face. It's hard to make out, but I think it is a woman. It is a very pale face, looks to be covered in blood. Alisha is approaching cautiously. She has a flashlight. She is about to shine it on the girl’s face so we can see her.