Zombie Revolution

by Emily Allison

  Keith cleared off the coffee table and laid out a map of Vail. “Let’s just take one thing at a time.” The three sat around the oak coffee table staring at an old ripped tourist map of Vail, discussing where they would hit first. They decided to try the small gas station located just off the county road that led up to Keith’s. Riley informed them that it was the only station that was not pilfered by the marines when they took over Vail. The marines stationed themselves in Vail right after the zombies came. The mad General ordered all the remaining residents killed for risk of spreading the infection. A lot of good that did. The virus spread anyway. Riley pointed to another location on the map. After gathering as much fuel as possible they would hit the nearest grocery store which was a few blocks down the road. There was also a barbeque restaurant they could check out. The plan after that was to continue to look for food if their first choices turned up zilch.

  Orange light glared through the living room windowpane just as the group finished going over their plan. “What about weapons?” Riley was not shy about asking for some deadly effects.

  Keith’s pudgy red face pinched in a smile. “I think you two should follow me.” He heaved himself out of the low chair and strode through the doorway. Damon and Riley followed him through the dining room into the kitchen and down a staircase that was so narrow that Damon’s elbows touched both walls. It was a wonder that Keith fit.

  They kept going down. Damon could tell that they were deep underground. Below them it was starting to get dark. Damon heard Riley ask his brother if they were going to China. Once at the bottom the three stood in near complete darkness, Keith pulled a dangling silver chain that hung above his head. The light clicked on, illuminating the cellar in soft white light. They were surrounded by four walls of thick concrete. The cellar mostly contained empty shelves that used to hold ample amounts of food. There was white deep freeze shoved into the corner. Behind a wall of MREs and canned goods Damon spied a door. Keith shimmied through the tight space and pulled out an iron key. The thing looked like it was from the 19th century. Keith held the skull shaped bow with his thick fingers as the long stem disappeared into the lock. With a quick turn of his wrist they heard a click. The door popped open revealing a dark room. Keith disappeared inside. “Get ready boys.” His disembodied voice said.

  When the light blinked on Damon was looking into a room that would have made Arnold Schwarzenegger jealous. It was Keith’s own personal armory. This was the second time his brother had surprised him today. Riley whistled in approval. It was like Christmas. Damon eyed the variety of guns, bows and knives trying to decide which would suit him best. He heard Riley giggle like teenage girl in a shoe store. He watched as the marine picked up numerous guns having the hardest time making a choice. “Oh…ho ho!” Apparently he had made his choice. “This baby’s mine.” He was petting his new found metallic friend. It was a marine issue M107 high powered sniper rifle. The sword-like barrel reflected midnight blue in the fluorescent light. Damon had a feeling that if they were not there, Riley would have hugged it.

  “Easy man. It’s just a gun.” Being a born and bred mechanic, Damon did not really know a whole lot about guns. He shook his head.

  Riley’s mouth dropped open. He was almost offended. “The M107 is not just a gun. This little death machine allows me to get up close and personal with my enemy without getting so up close, if you catch my drift. Before the zombies came this is what my job when I was in the marine core stationed in Afghanistan.” The marine cocked a thin eyebrow. “And this will probably by saving your ass outside that fence.”

  “Alright, I get it. Not just a gun.” Damon smiled and backed off. He continued to browse the basement armory. He brushed the polished metal of a shotgun.

  “You don’t want that one.” Riley had come up beside him. He pointed at the barrel. “That’s a pump shotty. You can see by the shape of the barrel, and look at the magazine. It’s small. You don’t want to be in the middle of a bunch of zombies when you are reloading ever few rounds, and that shotgun there doesn’t fire rounds rapidly.” He disappeared around a metal shelving unit only to return a moment later holding a different type of shotgun. This one was black with an extended stock and had a bigger magazine. It was certainly one that could not be purchased at your local gun store. “If you want a shotgun, then you want this bad boy. This is the Benelli M4 Super 90 12-gauge semi-automatic pump combat shotgun. If you want to blow those zombie bastards apart, you want this baby.”

  Damon took the beauty from Riley’s outstretched arms. It was heavy in his hands. “Thanks, Riley.” He admired the shining onyx barrel. He put the stock to his shoulder. It felt right. He felt dangerous…really dangerous. The marine flashed a smile. Even after what happened at the church a month ago, Damon knew that the marine was eager to go out into the city again.

  “Which one’s mine?” The three were stunned when they heard Chloe’s squeaky voice. Keith looked down at Chloe. “This is man’s work. It’s too dangerous. We wouldn’t want you to get hurt. Or worse, turn into one of those freaks.”

  Chloe went a thousand shades of red on her crinkled forehead. “You’re joking right?” Her sarcasm was molasses. She looked from Keith’s pudgy face to Damon’s. “Tell him, Damon. I saved your life at the gas station, and from that asshole, Jackson, who was about to beat your face in--”

  “You’re not going.”

  “But--” “No buts. Keith’s right. It’s dangerous.” Chloe tried to interrupt but was shushed when Damon held up his hand. She clamped her lips together. “I almost lost you twice. I don’t want to put you in danger again. As long as you are behind the fence, you’re safe.” He tried to ease his voice so it did not sound so harsh. “You mean a lot to us…to me…I can’t lose you again.”

  Tears welled up in her green eyes, threatening to spill over. Her voice cracked. “What about me? Huh Damon? You and Riley are all I have left. What if one of those things gets you or him? And there was something I could have done?” She slammed her hands on her small hips. “Plus, Riley’s been teaching me in the yard how to not get bit.”

  Damon shot Riley an evil eye. The marine shrugged his shoulders. “She needs to know how to stay safe. You never know what could happen. She’s got a point though.” He said wearily, testing the water. “We could use another man, or girl, watching our backs.” Riley winked at the teenager.

  Chloe beamed at Damon, flashing her big green eyes and pouting her lips. Damon seemed conflicted. He did not want to put her in danger, but if they did get attacked, another somebody shooting would help. He sighed. Brains won over the heart. “I suppose you can come along, but you will listen to either me or Riley. You got it? No free thinking.” She nodded her head like she was a bobble-head. “And if you mess up or have a close call, then you’re out. You’ll be sitting on the sidelines.”

  “Okay, okay. I won’t let you down.” She dashed down the aisle splitting Damon and Riley. She grabbed the first pistol she saw. It was gold in color with a black grip and bigger than both of the teenager’s hands. “Wow…” She held the heavy pistol with both hands, her slacked jaw face reflected on the metallic surface. A big hand plucked the powerful handgun out of the youngster’s hands. “Hey!” She protested.

  “This here is a Desert Eagle. It would knock you on your ass after it broke both your wrists.” Keith strode back over to the shelf. “Why don’t you run upstairs, and grab your pistol. I think I have some ammunition for it.” The teenager seemed a little upset about not having the new, pretty gun. So Keith added. “It’s good to use a gun you already know. It makes it easier to hit your target, and in your guys’ case that’s very important.”

  With that Chloe bounded up the stairs to fetch her weapon. Keith glanced back at the two. “You boys got what you need? Juleen should have supper ready.” Both nodded. “I’ll wait here for Chloe, you can head up.”

  Damon went for the stairs. Riley followed but stopped short of the door. “Wait.” He snatched a combat knife nearly the siz
e of Damon’s forearm off the wall and stuck it in his belt. “Now I do.” The both headed up the stairs. “You know it’s a good thing that she is coming with us.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because she can shoot better than you can.” Damon punched the marine’s arm but cracked a smile. They were both nearly trampled by stampede Chloe. Damon shook his shaggy head. He did not like the idea of her going with the longer he thought about it. Riley slapped his pale hand on his muscled shoulder. “She’ll be okay. I promise.” The marine gave his shoulder a squeeze, and then went to the dining room to start cleaning his new prize. Damon headed off to his room; all of a sudden he did not feel like eating. He wished he could have been as excited as Riley, but the aching feeling in the pit of his stomach would not let him. He prayed that his gut was wrong, and that tomorrow would be uneventful. Get in. Get out. No zombies. The decaying pile of remains just outside the fence collecting flies was a lasting reminder of what awaited them outside.

  Chapter 4

  The next day was bright and sunny. The sun draped the trees and grass with gold. Wispy clouds stretched across the blue sky. Damon actually saw a robin in the yard, well that was until Boomer chased it off. He sat on the porch sipping on a mug filled with black coffee and scratching the bloodhound’s long ears. Boomer licked his hand, and then went off to do his daily patrols around the fence. The dog seemed to be at ease today. That was a good sign. The bloodhound was a good zombie detector. The day the zombie was fried Boomer was worked up. He paced the fence growling with his fur standing on end. He showed none of those signs today. Damon actually let himself smile as he watched the happy dog bound through the yard sniffing every scent possible. He took another swig of the coffee and winced. It definitely was not his normal Folgers. Maybe he would put it on the list.

  “Ready to go?” Riley’s voice was filled with excitement. He jumped off the porch into the grass.

  Damon looked up from his mug. “Where’s Chloe?” He questioned the marine since the two were buds now. “She’s getting herself put together, I think.” Riley scratched his head. “I didn’t know you had to ‘get ready’ to go find supplies in a town overrun by vicious flesh-eating monsters, but whatever.” Damon heard the marine mutter something about teenage girls as he walked off towards the Jeep.

  “Oh shut up, Riley!” The two jumped. “I wasn’t fixing my hair or anything like that.” She stuck her tongue out at the marine. “I was polishing my gun.” Chloe brandished the shining pistol. Her eyes were sparkling with the thought of adventure. Damon could not understand why everyone was so excited, even him. It was like each one needed this. Chloe put her hand on her hip and popped it out to one side. “Wow if you guys are this jumpy now, how are you guys gonna be out there? Maybe I should just go alone.”

  Damon got up from his chair. The old thing creaked in protest. “Yeah right. Get in the Jeep.” He moved off the porch and into the sunlight. The white light glinted off the shotgun, ready to be unleashed. He did not bother to look to see if Chloe was following. Damon heard soft footsteps behind him.

  Chloe muttered something else she learned from the marine. It wasn’t nice either and referred to Damon as a special kind of donkey. The teenager trailed after their grumpy leader, mimicking his long gait. Riley waited at the Jeep, silently laughing at the teenager’s grumblings. The three jumped into the green Jeep. Damon was in the driver’s seat with Riley riding shotgun and Chloe in the back seat. The empty gas cans in the back emitted a familiar odor. Chloe didn’t mind though, she had always liked the smell. Her mother would always tell her it was bad to breathe in the fumes. She knew it wasn’t healthy, but she did it anyway. She sat with her shining pistol in her lap her palms sweating. She brushed them on her dark jeans. She didn’t want the guys to know that she was just a wee bit nervous.

  The Jeep sat in front of the immense chain-link gate. Slowly it inched open, parting just wide enough so the Jeep could squeeze through. As it opened the metal made a high-pitched squeaking from weeks of being closed. The moving stopped. Damon maneuvered the vehicle between the metal panels out of their sanctuary and into the dangerous unknown. His heart quickened as he felt his senses heightened. He eyed his shotgun that was propped up between him and Riley. The marine sat upright with his M16 sandwiched between his knees alert for danger. Damon looked in the rear-view mirror and found Chloe sitting with her hand firmly gripping her pistol peering out the window. His worry for her was ever present, but he had to shake that emotion for now. They had a job to do.

  Damon followed the tire tracks through the forest of Douglas-furs and pines. The trees formed a protective arch over the passing Jeep. The prickled branches opened up revealing a picturesque view of Vail. The three could see the entire town surrounded by green mountains. The clock tower still stood in the center of Vail Village. It no longer tolled but stayed silent. Dead like the rest of the town. The corpses were not visible from their location, but Damon could see the burned out building and debris that littered the cobblestone streets. This isn’t going to be easy. For now Damon took whatever solace he could get from the view. He saw the ski shop where his truck had buried itself. He also saw the remains of the old church. It was nothing more than a pile of black ash and stone. His eyes combed the once decorative streets and that’s when he saw it. Damon’s back stiffened in his seat. His heart thumped wildly in his chest. It had been one month since he had seen a zombie in the open. Even from their distance the effect was the same, the hair on Damon’s tan arms stood up. It staggered sluggishly down the street without a destination, just wandering…waiting for food. Damon heard a noise from beside him.

  Riley had seen the zombie too. He quickly checked the perimeter around the Jeep, then opened the door and slid out. “Wait here.”

  “What are you doing?” Damon put the Jeep in park. Chloe propped herself on the center console. “Yeah, where you going?” Riley popped the hatch of the Jeep and retrieved the black case containing his new sniper rifle. “Just don’t leave me out here okay? I’m going to climb on the roof of the Jeep to see how many zombies we have down there.” The two watched Riley as he expertly assembled the rifle. The marine topped off the rifle with a suppressor that he had taken from the small armory. He had it together in seconds. They felt the Jeep rock from side to side as the marine snaked up to the roof.

  Damon and Chloe kept vigilant eyes out for any movement around them. She watched right as Damon watched left. All was calm.

  Once on the roof, Riley positioned the rifle on the roof and laid down his stomach behind the weapon. He pressed his eye against the scope. He found the zombie through the scope in the blink of an eye. It swayed lazily with its head bent at a harsh angle. He was pretty sure the zombie was a male from the baggy green cargo pants and black hooded sweatshirt. Its steps were unsteady and uncaring as it trudged through the blood and gore on the streets. It tripped over still body of a corpse, only to pick itself up off the hard ground, oblivious to the world…and the rifle aimed at its forehead. The zombie was an easy target for the marine who was use to taking down Al-Qaeda dirt bags in the middle of a war torn city. The black crosshairs moved over the zombie’s head. It turned its eyes up to them, unseeing. It opened its mouth; Riley did not need to be close to the thing to know that it was moaning. Not wanting the zombie to live a second more, he squeezed the trigger. The suppressor absorbed the BOOM of the rifle. The zombie’s head exploded with a fountain of red and black.

  Damon and Chloe pressed their hands over the ears to protect their eardrums. Even with the suppressor the gun was still loud enough to make your ears ring. They let go of their ears and heard the pinging of an empty shell hitting the roof. There were three more shots fired. Damon knew that if there were any zombies in the immediate vicinity they would have heard the shots. He banged his hand on the roof. “Come On!” He gave the roof another bang. “Let’s go!” Riley jumped down and went back to the trunk and laid the rifle in the back. He didn’t bother to disassemble it. Hell, the
y may need it again. Riley walked back up to the passenger door and jumped in.

  “Took four shots to hit one zombie?” Chloe chirped from the backseat with a smile on her freckled face. “Nope. Four rounds for four zombies. Did you think there was only one down there?” Riley smiled. “A head shot for each of ‘em.”

  “We need to do this quick. I think if we wait around any longer we will have more to deal with.” Damon shifted the vehicle into drive and started to roll down the hill. “Good shooting by the way.”

  Riley nodded, ready to continue the trend. He could feel his blood bubbling with adrenaline. Damon rolled slowly down the hill. The steep decline of the hill made him feel like they were going to roll. Slow and steady. He thought silently. Riley would never let him live it down if he crashed…again. He was not the slow and steady kind of guy, more like balls to the wall, but he thought it was better to use his wife’s philosophy this time. They came to the location where they left the Volkswagen. The orange bug was missing. Brakes go out?

  “Where’s our trusty ride?” Riley cracked.

  “Maybe zombies learned how to drive…” Chloe joked from the behind. Damon snorted. “It would be a cold day in hell before those things learned anything besides eating.” Hopefully. He moved passed where they left the beetle. The Jeep rocked back and forth as they made their way down the bumpy road. It was like Damon hit every pothole. They did not see any other zombies the rest of the way. Damon continued straight on one of the cobblestone streets lined by small shops. He kept the speed of the Jeep to a crawl allowing them to read every store sign. They rolled passed what looked like a clothing shop.

  “O.O…Maybe I could get some new jeans.” Chloe bobbed up in down in her seat pressing her face up against the tinted glass. Damon shot a glare in the rearview. “This isn’t a shopping trip, Chloe.” Chloe met his dark eyes with hers. She muttered a halfassed apology and slumped back into her seat. It wasn’t long before she was bouncing up and down again, pointing at more shops. Damon turned the Jeep right at the coming intersection. “What the…?” Damon hit the brake. If they would have been going faster than four miles per hour, Chloe would have hit the back of Riley’s seat.