Creatures

by Michelle Khonsari

  The woman hesitated only a moment. “Let me pack a bag.”

  Cassie surveyed the boarded up door while the woman packed. The hammer was lying out, and Cassie got to work prying the nails out. The woman joined them at the front door shortly.

  “I’m Cassie Rickers, by the way, and this is my brother Trey. What’s your name?”

  The woman cleared her throat. “Dawn. Dawn Weaver.”

  It took Cassie a couple hours to get the door cleared. She opened it slowly and peeked out. Creatures lurked nearby, but didn’t respond to Cassie opening the door. She closed it back gently, using the deadbolt and chain to lock it.

  “We should be fine for the night,” Cassie informed. “We’ll leave in the morning.”

  Cassie sat down on Dawn’s couch and pulled out a pack of cigarettes, offering one to Trey. They lit their cigarettes.

  “Please don’t smoke in here,” Dawn requested.

  Cassie snorted. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  Dawn, realizing what a stupid request it was, plopped into a chair.

  “Are you all alone?” Trey asked.

  “I had a husband and a little girl,” Dawn answered quietly. “I tried to get my daughter, but the elementary school was full of creatures and I couldn’t find her. I assume she met the same fate. My husband never came home.”

  “They got our parents, too,” Trey shared. “How old was she?”

  “She was eight,” Dawn answered. “I don’t want to talk about it. How old are you anyway?”

  “Eleven,” Trey told her.

  “That’s a little young to be smoking, don’t you think?” Dawn asked.

  Trey shrugged. “We just went back to the dark ages. Do you think it makes much difference now?”

  The three had beans for dinner. Dawn had a gas stove, which was still operating, and they were able to heat the beans up. Dawn also had some bread they finished off with the beans. After dinner, the three played Gin Rummy with Trey’s cards. Cassie and Trey slept in their sleeping bags on the living room floor, and Dawn slept on the couch. When the morning came, Dawn cooked the last of the eggs for breakfast. Cassie gave Dawn one of the pistols, gave her a quick lesson with it, and packed up Dawn’s kitchen knives and canned foods.

  “Use the knives if at all possible,” Cassie instructed. “We should try to make the ammo last.”

  Cassie stepped into the hallway first. She saw creatures scattered out down the hallway. She looked back at Trey and Dawn. “Don’t panic, let them come to you, always hit the head. And don’t get bit.”

  Trey followed behind Cassie, and Dawn behind him. As they inched quietly, the creatures took notice and started toward them, making their awful noises as they did so. The three stabbed the blades into the creatures’ heads as they came into contact with them. They made their way to the stairwell. Cassie shined her flashlight into the stairwell and cautiously started down the stairs, the other two close behind. As they reached the last level, Cassie ordered them to get the pistols out. The rifles were strapped to them, but Cassie didn’t feel they needed to be trying to use long rifles at the moment. Cassie opened the stairwell door to the first floor. Creatures were everywhere.

  “Run and shoot,” Cassie ordered.

  It was harder for the creatures to grab them when they were running, but there were also a lot of them. They shot at the ones nearest them. Their hearts pounded loudly in their ears, nearly drowning out the horrid sound the creatures made. Dawn shouted out the direction to the parking garage. Cassie burst through the door when they reached it, only to find more creatures, although not as many as in the lobby area of the building. Cassie grabbed out another pistol and fired at them as they neared the trio. Dawn had cut ahead just a bit to lead them to the car, and she gave Cassie the keys. They jumped in, started the engine, and flew toward the exit.

  “Where are we going?” Dawn asked.

  “To the ocean,” Cassie answered. “We’ve got a ways to go.”

  Cassie drove as fast as she could, trampling through the crowd. Luckily, Dawn drove an SUV as well, and it pushed through the crowd fairly easy. Creatures slammed over the hood, fell underneath the vehicle, and smacked into the sides of it. Cassie made no hesitation flooring it through the mass, and they could feel the SUV running over the top of the flesh rotting bodies. Dawn sat in the middle seat in the back, trying her best not to have a panic attack. Trey sat in the front passenger seat, gripping the side of his seat and the door handle, watching intensely as they moved through the man-eating crowd.

  Half an hour later, they had emerged from the city limits, and there was hardly a creature in sight. Dawn instructed Cassie down the back roads to lead them into Mississippi. The larger cities, which are obviously more densely populated, would have larger amounts of creatures. Cassie felt they had a better chance staying on the back roads and keeping to the smaller towns. Trey tried the radio, but it was just static. Not one station was operating, not even with the automated emergency broadcast. Trey snapped it back off. As they came upon the bridge to cross the Mississippi River into Mississippi, Cassie slowed almost to a stop. There was an array of vehicles sitting on the bridge.

  “Great,” Cassie replied. “Is there another way?”

  “There are bridges like this, or the interstate,” Dawn informed.

  “We are not getting on the interstate,” Cassie returned. “I guess we’ll just try to work our way through. We might just have to see if we can move some of these cars.”

  Cassie started to drive slowly into the mass of vehicles, maneuvering around as if going through a maze. As they passed, they saw many of the vehicles had been abandoned, and a few had the remains of what the creatures hadn’t eaten, which were mostly bones. Dawn got out and moved vehicles out of the way as needed. Some wouldn’t start, and for those, Trey had to steer while Dawn pushed them out of the way. It took them a long while to make it across the bridge into Mississippi, and both Dawn and Trey were exhausted. They stopped at the first house they saw. They knocked on the door first, just to ensure there were no survivors hiding inside ready to shoot intruders.

  They moved through each room, checking every closet and even under furniture. It was a bit of a mess, as though the occupants had packed in a hurry. There were no creatures to be found, so they decided to stay there for a night or two and recover from their journey. They found candles to light, some food to eat, and some board games to play.

  “Now if only I had my music,” Cassie sighed out with a smile. “The night would be perfect.”

  Knowing how she stayed attached to her iPod, Trey smiled back at her. “Maybe we can stop at a music store and snag some CDs for you. Your music was growing on me actually.”

  “Nice thought, not worth the risk of being eaten,” Cassie laughed.

  “The water works,” Dawn announced, returning from the bathroom. “No hot water, though.”

  “Must be an electric water heater,” Cassie replied. “Well, a shower would be nice. We could heat water in the fireplace. Let’s find some paper.”

  They dug out the largest pot they could find, made a fire in the fireplace, and used a metal bar from a weight bench to heat the pot of water in the fire. It took several trips from the fire to the bathtub to get enough water to wash in, and then it was only warm. Cassie went first. The warm water felt good on her skin, and she just sat there for a few minutes, grateful for the moment. She had no idea how long it would be before she could take another warm bath. She started to actually realize how much she had taken for granted.

  They made a bath for Trey next. He, too, took his time, wanting to enjoy the rare opportunity of warm water to bathe in. Dawn took hers after Trey was done. As much as they wanted to take advantage of sleeping in a comfy bed, they decided it best to stay together. They found blankets and pillows and made a large pallet in the living room to sleep on. Dawn took the first watch, Trey took the second watch, and Cassie took the third watch.

  “Maybe we can just stay here for a while,” Cas
sie suggested over breakfast. “We’ll need to go find some supplies. More food would be good, and some starter logs for the fireplace. We’ll need some toilet paper, too. There’s not much left.”

  “Should we all go?” Dawn asked.

  Cassie nodded. “We shouldn’t split up. We’re safer in a group.”

  After breakfast, they headed out in the car and soon found a Wal-Mart. Cassie eyed the parking lot carefully, and seeing the coast was clear, exited from the car. The Wal-Mart had been ravaged, but they managed to gather quite a bit, including some clothes. There were a lot of munched on bodies throughout the store, but Trey managed to fight the urge to vomit at the sight of them. Some had maggots crawling on them, most were very skeletal with hardly any flesh remaining. As they shopped around, Cassie kept getting the feeling of being watched, and a few times thought she saw something move in her peripheral vision. She drew her gun and started peeking around the aisles, searching for what loomed in the shadows. Trey and Dawn became aware of Cassie’s suspicions, and drew their guns as well.

  “Don’t shoot,” a young man replied calmly as he stepped out from behind a display, also holding a gun. “I’ve been staying here, so the creatures are all dead. I’ve killed all the ones I’ve seen.”

  “We’re obviously not creatures,” Cassie stated. “Why are you sneaking around watching us? I mean, it’s a good way to get shot.”

  “People went crazy, you know,” he answered. “Everybody was for their self, and didn’t care to kill someone over a jar of peanut butter, you know.”

  Cassie lowered her gun. “Are you on your own?”

  “Yeah,” he answered. “I’m Matt Jenkins.”

  “Cassie Rickers,” she introduced. “This is my brother Trey, and our friend Dawn Weaver. You want to come with us? We have a house that we found. It’s pretty safe for now.”

  “Yeah, that’d be great,” Matt accepted. “I’d like that.”

  After gathering what they needed, the four of them headed back to the house. They went through the house room by room searching for intruders of any sort before bringing in the supplies. Matt looked a little flushed since arriving to the house, and Cassie took notice. She waited to say anything until well after dinner.

  “This is my buddy’s house,” he informed after a moment when Cassie inquired on his reaction. “He lived here with his mom, stepdad, and little sister. They packed up and headed out when shit hit the fan. We played football together since sixth grade.”

  “What grade were you in this year?” Cassie questioned.

  “I graduated last May,” Matt replied. “My buddy did, too, but he stayed with his parents to go to college. I moved to the dorms, but it got crazy there. Those creatures were popping up all over the place. I saw a few of my friends turn into those things. I had to kill quite a few to get out myself.”

  “What about your family?” Cassie asked, curious to know about him.

  Matt shrugged. “I’m an only child, my parents travel a lot. I’m not sure where they are right now. The house was crawling with those things, so I just went to the Wal-Mart. What about you?”

  “Well, Trey and I lived in Nebraska with our parents. We were the first city to have the explosion and breakout of zombies,” Cassie replied. “Dad got bit and turned on Mom, and so I had to shoot them both. I was a junior this year, and Trey was in sixth grade.”

  They awoke the next morning to banging on the door and front porch. They could hear the grunting of the creatures outside. All four grabbed a gun and started checking out the windows.

  “The back is clear,” Dawn reported.

  “We should just run for it,” Matt told Cassie. “It’s a pretty large crowd out front.”

  They quickly gathered up as many supplies as they could carry in their bags and bolted out the back door. Woods faced the back of the house, about thirty yards away, and they hurried into them. They stopped just inside the woods to catch their breath and peek back to the house. The creatures were making their way to the backside now.

  “We need the car,” Dawn said.

  Cassie looked at her with a little disbelief for a moment. “If you want to risk getting eaten to get it, then go right ahead. There’s no way in hell I’m attempting to dive into a massive group of creatures to retrieve a car.”

  “We’ll find another one,” Trey cut in matter-of-factly. “Right now we should keep moving.”

  Reluctantly, Dawn started the walk through the woods with the other three. They walked for quite some time before reaching what appeared to be a campsite. There were three tents set up near each other, some lawn chairs, a burned out campfire, and barbed wire going around the parameter.

  “Hello!” Matt called out, but there was no answer.

  “Maybe we should wait for them to come back,” Trey suggested.

  “I don’t think they’d have room for us, Trey,” Cassie decided. “Let’s just keep going.”

  “We could just wait and see. They might have gotten attacked, in which case they won’t be needing this camp,” Matt pointed out.

  “That’s true, you have a point,” Cassie shrugged. “We could stop for a rest anyway.”

  About half an hour later, a group of people approached the camp, startled and drawing their weapons. Cassie and group put their hands up.

  “We didn’t take anything,” Cassie insisted immediately. “We just thought we’d wait.”

  “We’re not in a position to trade, nor share our camp,” one of the men said boldly. “You should move on.”

  “Fair enough,” Cassie complied. “We’ll be on our way then.”

  The four of them got up with their things and continued walking, keeping their eyes on the other group. The group kept their weapons pointed at the four until they had made their way out of sight.

  “What a bunch of assholes,” Cassie mumbled when out of earshot.

  “People went crazy,” Matt reminded. “That’s what fear and desperation does to a person. Everyone is now functioning in survival mode, and they’ll kill to protect what they have left.”

  They heard rustling nearby and came to a halt, their eyes searching the trees for the source of the noise. The noise came closer. They all held up their guns, ready to fire. Just then, a creature came into view and Cassie pulled the trigger. The noise was still coming and growing louder. Cassie could feel her hands trembling and fought to keep focused. Then, they came into view. About thirty creatures in a group were emerging from the cluster of trees and brush.

  “Oh, shit! Run!” Matt yelled.

  They all turned and ran the other way, back toward the camp. The creatures moved swiftly, although they did not run. More came into view from their left, and then their right. There was nowhere to go but straight. As they came back upon the camp, they screamed for help. The unfriendly group all stood to face them. The group consisted of three couples in their mid-twenties.

  “Please! There’s a hundred of them!” Cassie begged. “They’re coming from every direction.”

  They turned back as they reached the camp to see the creatures closing in on them, moving closer at a swift pace. Both groups started firing at the creatures, but it didn’t stop dozens of them from closing in on the camp. Some of them pulled out their knives so they could quickly stab the creatures within reach of them.

  “Cass!” Trey screamed suddenly.

  Cassie turned to see Trey fighting off a creature. He had fallen to the ground, and the creature came down on top of him, trying it’s best to bite into his flesh. Cassie took aim, squeezed the trigger, and watched blood gush all over Trey as the creature went limp.

  “Get it off!” screamed Trey.

  Matt was there before Cassie could take two steps, and he tossed the dead creature to the side. He pulled Trey to his feet and gave him a knife, as they didn’t have time to load another magazine before two more creatures descended upon them. Cassie went back to shooting every creature she could. Finally, the last one lay motionless on the grassy forest ground, and they
all took a moment to catch their breath.

  “What the fuck?” one of the men from the other group yelled. “Why in the hell would you lead them here? Are you just trying to get us killed?”

  “They came from every direction,” Dawn shot back. “It was the only place to go, and ten is much better than four. We came for help.”

  “Well, we don’t owe you nothing,” the man returned. “Go on and find your own camp!”

  “You should be glad you had some warning!” Cassie spat out angrily. “You ungrateful prick! Had we fought them on our own, we’d have ended up just coming with them to eat your ass! And I would’ve ate you first, you little bastard!”

  The man cocked his rifle and pointed it at Cassie. “Get out of here. I won’t tell you again.”

  “Look, we’re going,” Matt told him. “There’s no need to be threatening other survivors. We’re on the same side now, whether you like it or not.”

  The man said nothing more and continued to keep his rifle aimed as they retraced their steps away from the camp. They walked in silence for a long time, and emerged from the woods onto a dirt road just as the sun was starting to set.

  “Should we follow the road a ways?” Dawn asked.

  “I guess,” Cassie replied.

  She was so exhausted and famished. All the walking she had done before all this couldn’t have prepared her for the endless hours of walking on guard and running for her life. She was so thirsty, and stopped only long enough to retrieve a bottle of water from her bag. It was warm, but quenched her mouth and her throat just the same.

  “Look at that,” Matt replied as they reached the end of the dirt road.

  A large stone house, nothing short of a castle to Cassie, stood before them. It looked very much deserted, but it was difficult to tell.

  “Should we go up and ring the bell?” Trey asked after several moments.

  Without answering, the four of them started to walk toward the oversized front door slowly. They each kept a hand on their guns. A doorbell was visible, and Cassie pushed it. They waited several minutes before Cassie tried the door, which was unlocked. It was a heavy door, and it moaned and creaked as Cassie pushed it open.