Stay Dead: The Stranger & Tunnel Rats

by Steve Wands

  It was Danni's third day in her new home. She and Clem were on the rooftop once more. It was sometime in the afternoon, the sun was sitting high above them. They were just observing. Taking note of the dead people's actions, which really weren't much, they just kind of wandered without purpose. It seemed only human flesh provoked them to action. They wondered if they responded to scent or noise, or if they could still see. It was all speculation and if they wanted real answers, they'd have to see through the eyes of the dead and become one of them to really know--and neither of them cared that badly. The two of them stayed on the roof for about two hours. Then Clem noticed on the other rooftop, the one Danni had jumped from, that a group of the undead had started to gather. It seemed as if they were looking for something. It gave Clem a sick feeling in his stomach. Clem put his finger over his lip and looked at Danni, then pointed in the direction of the group. She nearly gasped and cupped her mouth. Her eyes were wide with fear. Clem slowly and quietly crept over to the doorway, careful not to draw any attention. Danni closely followed him and tried to mimic his footsteps as closely as possible. There were easily over a dozen staggering things on the other roof, some gazing into the sky, others swaying their heads, and some seemed to look with working eyes. However they found prey, it was obvious that they knew something was on the roof. Danni and Clem made it inside without incident. Clem immediately looked at Danni with a look of concern mixed with anger.

  "We are not going back up there any time soon, and Lorri is not to know about this."

  Danni nodded in agreement.

  "She doesn't need to know what we saw up there. It's scary enough without thinking that they know we're in here, and I hope to hell they don't," Clem paused, his concern turned to fear. "Because if they do, well, we're just fucked."

  Clem wasn't the kind who took to cursing with ease. He really didn't care for it, and Danni knew that right off the bat. She took his concern very seriously. She too was scared and didn't want Lorraine to be any more frightened than she had already been. They both parted ways. Danni returned to her radio for a bit, listening to the static and odd noises. Clem returned to Lorraine's side. They sat cuddled on the couch. She had an old photo album that she took from her room and the two of them sat flipping through it.

  A few hours passed and Danni had gone out to the hallway. She crept toward the doorway that led upstairs. Her head was cocked--she stood still, listening to hear any noise that might come from the roof. She couldn't hear anything other than the moans from inside the complex. Reassured, she returned to her dwelling. She scoured the place for any other batteries. She looked around for a bit, then she got bored and started to do some pushups. After that she did some crunches. Once again she put on the headphones and once again she was disappointed. Another day passed and it was basically the same. Danni grew comfortable in her new place and she was comfortable with Clem and Lorraine. She joined them for breakfast again. This time the spread was a little more conservative. The fresh food was already growing short and there were only a handful of eggs left. Clem had mentioned that he wanted to look into the last apartment for any food they could use; everybody agreed it was a good idea. Now they had an excursion they could all look forward to--even Lorraine wanted to go out into the other apartment. Clem and Lorraine had always gone for morning walks before the world went to hell and today especially, Lorraine was feeling her legs start to cramp from sitting around so much. She felt she needed to go on a little adventure, even though the apartment was just across the hall.

  After breakfast they sat for a bit. It was amazing how quickly the simple act of going across into their neighbors' home had become such a grand spectacle. Leaving the complex was potentially suicidal, especially for Clem and his wife. They talked it up enough and decided it was time to go over, Clem grabbed his bat, Lorraine had her peashooter and Danni didn't bother with anything. Clem had been in there before and was pretty certain that nothing was there. They crossed the hall, trying to be quiet, more out of their own fear than any sort of need. Clem opened the door, letting it creep open. Danni's hand was shaking and her heart was thumping. She could only imagine what Lorraine was feeling. Danni put her hand on Lorraine's shoulder, and Lorraine looked back at her, instantly comforted. Now inside the apartment, Clem moved forward while Danni wedged the door open. Lorraine stuck close to her husband. The three of them were gathered in the kitchen. Lorraine was given Clem's flashlight and held it in the direction of the fridge. Clem opened it and was hit with the stench of rot--spoiled milk and rotten cold cuts. He dry-heaved. Luckily Danni and Lorraine were back far enough not to get the initial wave. With his hand cupped over his face, he sorted through the fridge, and handed whatever he thought was good back to Danni. Within seconds her hands were full, mostly with juice and soda. She ran back to their door and put it on the ground and ran right back. She did that two more times before they started on the freezer. Everything was still kind of cold and they figured it was better they keep it in there for now and wait till their freezer was near empty. Clem gave a quick look into the pantry, taking a gallon of water and calling it quits. The other stuff in there could wait, too. Back inside Clem's place, they stocked all the stuff they'd gathered into their own fridge. They assured Danni she was free to use any of it, and she knew they meant it. She didn't care to bring any of it back to her place. She had plenty to eat and drink at her place for a while.

  A few more days passed and it was more of the same. From what they could tell by looking out the windows, the situation hadn't changed. Clem and Danni had talked about going back to the roof and on more than one occasion they made it to the doorway before backing away. They were talking about it again as they heard and felt a loud booming noise. They looked at each other and without hesitation ran to the rooftop door. Lorraine had slowly followed behind, and neither one of them noticed. Clem opened the door to the roof. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary, and there were even less of the ghouls on the other rooftop. Clem turned his gaze around and dropped to his knees. Danni put her hand on his shoulder and mumbled something. Lorraine popped her head around the door and crawled over to her husband, her jaw not willing to close. They stared in the direction of Titan City and saw that the skyline had been replaced with a giant mushroom cloud. Someone had dropped the bomb on Titan City. The biggest city on the east coast had been wiped out. The closest government-sanctioned safe zone was no more, a city lying in ruin. Before the moment could really set in, on the other rooftop, the walking corpses realized a fresh meal was in reach. Danni turned to see one walking off the roof, moaning toward their direction and plummeting to the street. Two more began moaning. The three of them went back inside. They sat behind the door listening, their breath deep and hearts racing. They could hear the moaning from the roof. After a bit they began to head down to Clem's place. The trio sat next to the window. They could see a stir in the street among the dead. Hoping it was for the same reason, they stared at the cloud. Lorraine was in tears and soon Danni was too. They hugged as Clem put his arm around both of them, never taking his eyes off the cloud. The three of them stayed there, not really moving, just sort of stunned. Not knowing what to feel, they were all pretty numb to begin with. They wanted to feel hope, but all that came up was fear. Another loud booming noise was heard and felt. They didn't bother going to the roof. None of them wanted to know what just happened. Clem sat behind Lorraine, arms wrapped around her. Danni sat close to them, but felt so alone. They waited as if in preparation for the next bomb to hit them. It never came. Looking out the window, the three of them stared at two towering plumes of ash, dust, and debris. The city that never slept would never wake again.

  The next morning, Danni went back to her apartment to get her headphones. She put them on and started thumbing through the stations. First the FM band, and then the AM, frantically at first and then slowly, but the noise was the same on every station--a regular rotation of dead air.

  * * * * *

  STAY DEAD

  Tunnel R
ats

  * * * * *

  Deep below the belly of Titan City a man called Bark shaves his face in a shard of mirror that's duct taped to the wall of his makeshift shack. His sweat serves as lather and the dull blade wicks it off. Most of his neighbors don't even bother to shave. They're too busy gumming the community crack pipe to give a shit. Not Bark, no sir, he's going to the surface, he's going to find a job, a good woman and a fast car, he swore it to God. He swished his razor in a bucket of piss-colored water, splashed his face and patted it dry with the sleeve of a tattered flannel shirt. He then put the shirt on, tucked it in and grabbed his hat, a faded and chewed Pirates cap which was a keepsake from his former life. A life that now seemed like a dream, an amazing dream of mediocrity, of clean clothes and hot coffee, running water and a bed.

  Bark pushed open the plywood door. The squealing of rats and the sparking noise of a lighter pulled his thoughts back to reality. The reality of a harsh truth that he very well may die down in the dark tunnels of this subway-suburbia of tents, shacks, vermin and shit. His backpack sat in a shopping cart alongside his collection of bottles and cans. Bark slung the bag over his shoulder and started his trek along the tracks to the surface. It was just over a mile.

  Daylight stung his eyes. He winced as if it were a rat chewing at his calf. The city was bustling. It was morning. He stuck his hand out. Most people never even looked at him, if they saw his hand they would make it a point to not look into his eyes. His deep blue-green eyes, a set of some of the sorriest eyes you've ever seen.

  "Spare some change," he asked but it wasn't a question.

  "Just 'nuff for some coffee," he continued.

  "God Bless You," he blessed passersby at random, with or without donations.

  Bark had a different line every time he opened his mouth, different strokes for different folks and all that, he figured. Sometimes it worked sometimes it didn't. It worked well enough, after an hour he had enough for a cup of coffee and a breakfast sandwich. He was thinking of a big old belly buster from the corner deli, Happy Deli was what they called it but none of the people who worked there looked happy. He ordered his Belly Buster. It oozed grease, cheese and butter. He couldn't wait to wrap his mouth around it. He walked to the line, coffee and sandwich in hand. Once he got the cashier, he dumped his change on the counter. It consisted of pennies, nickels, quarters, a ball of lint, and a dollar. He was a few pennies short, but he was close enough that they didn't care. They gave him a dirty look for free.

  Outside the deli was a stack of apartment guides and Titan's Voice, he grabbed one of each and headed for a bench across the street. He flipped through the apartment guide, his belly beginning to bust and began daydreaming. Before he could get too swept up into his fantasy world of rooftop apartments and stacks of fancy boxed wines, the loud sirens of a TCPD patrol car whined by, followed by another and another. He brushed it off and finished his sandwich. He got up off the bench and headed toward the waterfront.

  Once there, he folded up his arms and leaned against the sturdy fence, looking into the river. The sounds of seagulls filled the air, tourists were scarce and wind moved calmly across his face. Bark came here almost every day, watching the water, watching the boats and gathering his thoughts. The water seemed to take the weight out of his breath and he stood a little straighter as a result.

  Bark was so used to people not looking at him, that every time one of them did he couldn't help but feel uneasy. It made him feel like a beggar, he hated it, but he had to do what he had to do in order to survive. And now that was sticking his hand out and hoping someone had a nickel or dime to spare. Fall was just about over and things always got tougher with the cold, people usually gave a bit more as a result of that holiday feeling. It was the begging for change all day long in the bitter cold that was tough, when your lips turned into shredded beef and your fingers were as cold as concrete. Sure, underground was usually warmer, fires usually burned but that didn't make it any easier. At the end of the day you still had to beg. You had to wake up and go to sleep a beggar. And you had to beg everyday just to try not to die a beggar too. When people gave a smile it stung a little less, and that's what this woman just did. She gave Bark a smile and a few bucks. He could only dream it would be this good the whole way back to his tunnel town. Enough to get a decent dinner and maybe a box of that fancy wine. He thanked her, god blessed her and thought about fucking her.

  There was a lot of action going on, he noted, as he walked home palm up. More cops than usual, less people on the street. Everything seemed fine though and he kept on trucking. A few other folks felt they had deep enough pockets to toss Bark a couple of coin collections, varying sizes of silver peppered in a small pond of copper pennies. One was a wheat penny. He loved getting wheat pennies. They reminded him of being a kid, when his Grandmother would give them to him. She always told him to save them cause they would be worth money some day. She was right of course; they're still worth exactly one cent. And one cent has never bought shit, at least it didn't back then, now every cent was a cent closer to something and something was better than nothing.

  Bark stopped at a pizza joint with a pocket full of change and two singles, the joint was named Jay's and the place was a glorified hole in the wall. He came here every once in awhile and the owner, who usually worked from sun up to sun down, treated him like a human being. He always gave him a smile, and usually a bigger drink with a free refill and an extra slice or some garlic knots for the road. Bark called the man Jay even though it wasn't really his name, and Jay called him Sparky even though Bark corrected him every time. The place was as dead as usual. Bark ordered two plain slices and a large Lime-Up and then sat down and waited. He kept his eyes on the television, the volume was low and he tilted his head in hopes to hear it better. It was a news segment broadcasting, there had been several accidents and multiple homicides throughout the last few days. The anchorwoman noted that there had been an escalation and that events continued to occur, she made the suggestion of possible ties and as always had to throw the words terror and terrorist in there, the salt and pepper of the airwaves.

  "Everybody's goin' nuts out there!" Jay yelled. "No one's buyin my pies, fuggin' nuts just goin' ape shit," he continued.

  "Well, I'm buying, economy can't be that bad if a bum like me's still eating," Bark said with a chuckle.

  "Something's goin' on, man," Jay muttered under his black mustache.

  "Something's always going on."

  Jay brought over his two slices, an extra large Lime-Up, a couple of knots and a bag to take with him. According to Bark's eyes it was another two slices, maybe one of them a Sicilian slice. He thanked him, Jay nodded and Bark picked up a slice folded it and bit deep. It was hot and crisp, he moaned a message to Jay, mmmmmmnnn, and Jay nodded a second time. Jay walked over to the doorway, peering out into the chilly nearing nighttime sky. Shadows moved in the distance, staggering and slow moving.

  "God damn drunks, sick of cleaning puke off the sidewalk."

  "What's that?" Bark grumbled, cheese dangling from his lip.

  "Ah, nothing," Jay grumbled back.

  Bark stuffed the last bit of crust into his mouth and slurped up the last of his drink, shaking the ice at the bottom of the cup to signal the end of his meal. He brought his plate and unused fork and knife up to the counter, he grabbed a napkin and dabbed his lip, again thanking Jay. Jay filled up his cup for him and Bark was on his way. The bell jangled as Bark opened the door and left. He headed home for the night.

  The bell jangled again, a woman staggered in to Jay's. She held a purse at her side, her leg was swollen and bloodied, dried blood streaked down to her high leather boots. If you followed the blood back up toward her hips you would find several bites and strips of gouged flesh. Muscle and fat stuck out of the open flesh. Above that were the torn remains of a skirt, kept around her waist by a belt. Hanging slightly over that and partly tucked in her torn skirt was a blood soaked white button up shirt that too was ripped to shreds.
Her left breast was hanging freely, a nipple barely hanging by a tendril of skin. From in between her breasts to the bottom of her mouth were ragged folds of skin held together by coagulated blood, the sticky sweet deep red hung from her chin. The insides of her throat were visible as were parts of her sternum. Her jaw hung slack, almost being pulled down by the weight of the gore just below it. Her teeth were crooked, some missing, others cracked. Her face was that of nightmares, hair and blood became a road map of disaster, tears of agony bled mascara down her cheeks, her nose was missing; it looked like her face was dragged down a city block covered in glass. What was left of her eyes found her way to Jay and his shock stuttered stare. Could she even see him?

  "My God! Lady sit down, I'll call 911!" Jay rambled out.

  She gargled some kind of groan, her jaw moved as if biting the air. She stepped closer.

  Please be patient. All lines are busy. Your call will be answered in the order it was received.

  "Fuck, it's busy! Just sit down---I'll get you a towel!" He was frantic.

  Still staggering closer to him, she moved her tongue across her bottom teeth. It was swollen and discolored. Jay had a towel in hand and moved quickly towards the woman. He raised the towel to her throat and she raised her hands toward his. Confused, he stepped back.