Hella Rises: Dawnland

by Karen Carr

  “Party’s over,” Zeke said. He grabbed Rachel’s hand, and she nodded.

  “I can get us to the basement,” Rachel said. “If you give me a bigger gun.” She held out the pea-shooter that had been Roger’s.

  “Take this,” Zeke said, handing over the gun from his boot.

  “I’ll take that,” Greg said, taking Rachel’s pea-shooter.

  “We have to hold on to each other,” I said to the others. “Everyone, grab a hand or a shoulder.”

  “We have to get Jeremy,” Rachel said. “He’s over by the bar. He’s a med student in pathology. We’ve been talking about cures—virology and pathology, we’re a perfect match.”

  “I’ll get him,” Zeke said.

  I peered around the corner as Zeke snuck back into the living room, careful to stay out of view of the hovering copter. Jeremy was face down by the bar. I was afraid he was already dead, but he lifted himself up on his elbows when he saw Zeke coming.

  Most people who could still walk had exited the apartment. Zeke made it to Jeremy and they exchanged a few words before Zeke picked him up and put him on his shoulders, fireman style.

  “I’m going to bolt,” Zeke shouted. “Get out before me, I’ll draw too much attention.”

  “Come on,” Huck said. He grabbed my hand, and I grabbed Saudah’s again, and we ran out of the apartment into the hall. We heard a barrage of bullets as Zeke ran out of the apartment and made it safely with us.

  “He was shot in the leg,” Zeke said. “But he’ll live. Booze will help the pain.”

  In the hall, people were scattering in all directions, some went back to their apartments and some went down the front stairs, while still others stood with us. I was afraid Mace’s men were already making their way up the front stairs. Those people that ran down it were doomed.

  “We have to get to the station in the basement,” I said to everyone left. “Your only chance to live is to come with us. Please.”

  “This way,” Rachel said.

  We followed Rachel to the back stairwell and began the twenty story decent down. Rachel and Zeke led the way, taking two stairs at once in unison. I had to hand it to her, she was nimble and fast and giving Zeke the run for his money.

  Several of Roger’s friends had followed us, and I was beginning to regret my decision to ask them to come. They ran down the stairs like clodhoppers, tripping and crying out with every misstep. Five flights down and we lost two of Roger’s friends. They were too drunk to continue, so we shoved them out the nearest hall and told them to hide. After a few more flights, we convinced the rest of Roger’s friends to hide on another floor, including Jeremy who was too injured to walk on his own.

  “We’ll come back for you,” Rachel said.

  We were nearing the bottom when we heard noises from below. Footsteps—lots of footsteps making lots of noise, not even trying to be the littlest bit quiet. Mace’s troops were coming up the stairs.

  “Duck out here,” Rachel said.

  She opened a door and we dashed out of the stairwell, closing it swiftly behind us. This floor opened up to the gym, exercise bikes, an indoor swimming pool, and countless weight machines lined the wall.

  “There’s another way down,” Rachel said. “Follow me.”

  Rachel took us around the gym, passing the swimming pool which was still full of water, and to the other side. We walked along stealthily, silently, listening for any sign of Mace’s men.

  “In here,” Rachel said. She opened another stairwell. This one only went down. “Only three more flights,” Rachel said.

  We crept down the stairs, single file, keeping our feet as quiet as possible. We got to the bottom where there was only one exit door.

  “Who wants to open it?” I asked.

  “We should prepare for the worst,” Huck said.

  “Guns,” Stan said. He made sure Saudah had hers up.

  “Boa and Greg, behind me,” Zora said.

  “Boa in the middle,” Greg said. “I have my weapon.” He held up his pea-shooter.

  “That’s good if you want to shoot a fish,” Zeke said.

  Greg accidentally pulled the trigger and everyone ducked. The sound of the gun echoed through the stairwell.

  “Anyone hurt?” Greg asked.

  We all shook our heads, no.

  “That noise is going to attract anyone who was looking for us,” Zeke said. “We better go now.”

  “Give me the gun,” Huck said to Greg.

  “I can’t,” Greg said. “Don’t let me go out there unprotected.”

  “Greg,” Zora said, taking the gun from him. “You’re going to shoot us”

  “Ok, you’re right,” Greg said, holding up his hands. “I’m sorry.”

  “Ready?” Rachel asked with her hand on the door.

  We all nodded. She turned the knob and opened the door slowly. Huck and Zeke were the first ones to jump out with their guns pointed.

  “It’s safe, come on,” Huck said.

  We walked onto the underground platform. It was cold and dark and only lit by Huck and Zeke’s penlights. Rachel clicked on a larger flashlight that she must have had in one of her pockets.

  “It stinks down here,” I said.

  “We didn’t clean this place,” Rachel said. She flashed the light farther in the distance, highlighting the zeroes laying everywhere. Several dozen people must have been trapped under here when the virus hit. “Your virus is incredible, Hella.”

  I blushed. It was dark, nobody saw. “Thanks. We’re safe for a thousand feet, I suggest we run that far now.”

  Rachel highlighted a train car that had been parked in the station. “We can take the tracks out of here.”

  “Good idea,” Zeke said. “We’ll lead.” Zeke took Rachel’s hand and began to walk across the platform.

  The rest of us followed, having to jump over the ticket counter, and onto the dark tracks. The small light that we had barely illuminated the area, forcing us to walk slow. When we made it to the edge of the track, to where the train was stationed, we stopped.

  “Get down on the tracks at the end of the train,” Zeke said.

  We walked faster along the lines of the train, now knowing where to go. A few bodies were in the way, and a few more were in the train, but by the time we reached the end of it, there were no more in sight.

  Zeke jumped down onto the tracks and helped Rachel down with him. Huck followed, helping me down. We both helped Zora and then Saudah, who helped Stan. Huck caught Boa as she jumped off the platform and we all waited for Greg.

  “Coming?” I asked Greg.

  “Sure,” Greg said.

  “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of heights?” I asked.

  Greg shook his head. “No. Rats.”

  I didn’t think of rats in subway tunnels. Gross. I hated rats too.

  “Come on, sweetie,” Zora said. “You can use your pea shooter on them.” She dangled the small gun in front of Greg for incentive.

  Greg sat on the platform and dangled his legs off the edge before sliding off and landing on the ground next to us. We proceeded to walk down the dark tunnel, lit only by the small flashlights we had. The tunnel was dank and smelled of mildew, but there were no rotting bodies so it was actually less than awful to walk along the tracks. I felt my racing heart slow down with every step.

  “We’re almost free,” Zora said, pointing to the silvery glow of the moonlight not too far ahead of us, where the tracks came out of the building and back out into the open.

  “We can’t let Mace live,” I said. “We have to go back, sneak on his bus, and kill him. If he doesn’t find us, he’ll kill everyone. He’ll go back to Pittsboro and annihilate Hipslow and everyone there, including Harper. I can’t have that on my conscious.”

  Zora’s shoulders slumped. “I have everyone here that I love.” She reached out for Boa and Greg’s hands. “I can’t put them in danger again.”

  “You don’t have to, Zora. If we don’t make it, we’ll need someone on
the outside to go on.”

  “We’re going to need a zombie army,” said Huck. “Raleigh has a huge population, right? We need them. That is the only way to defeat Mace’s forces surround them with the undead.”

  “You want me to lure all those zeroes to the capital building?” I asked. Trying to coax the zeroes out without killing them was going to be tricky.

  “I want Mace’s bus,” Huck said. “With that communication system, we can see who else is out there. If we can get to the bus, with Mace on it, we can take it out of the city and back to Haverlyn Village. The roads are clear, thanks to Mace’s towing service.”

  “So you would take the bus and I would stay downtown to attract the zeroes?” I asked.

  “No, Hella,” Huck said. “I would never leave you.”

  We had reached the end of the tunnel to where the tracks lead to the outside world. The first rays of dawn cracked through the luminescent glow of the city, highlighting its haunted buildings. I remembered what Hipslow said about Dawnland, the American Indian’s old world, and our new world. How starkly different they were. Ours was cold and empty with the only signs of life, things that weren’t alive.

  “Hella,” Stan said. “I think you are already attracting them, look.”

  Ahead, where Stan pointed, I saw a bunch of corpses scattered over the tracks. Zeke and Rachel jogged ahead of us to check things out. We walked along slowly up the path, to where Zeke and Rachel stood.

  We were on a hill, so we could see out over downtown. A layer of fog covered the city, eerily mixed in with glowing lights from Mace’s group. Some were still at the PNC building, as we heard distant shouts and horns and the helicopter’s distant rumble.

  “They’re coming,” Zeke said.

  He was right. Waves of dead were in all directions, mostly coming from the middle of downtown. They were barely visible through the fog, but their unmistakable movement was a dead giveaway. A mass of dead human flesh was making its way over to us. We were still only a few hundred feet from the PNC center, but it was most definitely out of my range by now.

  “Mace’s men are probably already being hit by a swarm,” I said. “All those people we left behind will be trapped.”

  “They’ll stay upstairs,” Rachel said. “They’re too scared to go out. Zombies can’t open doors, so if they keep themselves zipped up, they’ll survive.”

  “Why don’t we just stay here,” Saudah said. “We’ll wait until the sun rises higher, go pick up what’s left.”

  “I don’t want Mace to escape,” I said. “We have to get him, now. There are too many zeroes out for you to stay here on your own. You have to stay at least a thousand feet of me.”

  “What if Zeke and I go get Mace?” Huck asked.

  I looked at him like he was crazy. Mace was supposed to be mine. I didn’t want Huck confronting him on his own. It was too dangerous.

  “Why?” I asked.

  “You stay here,” Huck said. “Because you need to keep everyone safe. Let the zombie battle continue over in front of PNC and the capital building. Zeke and I go get the bus and pick you up.”

  “We can meet Huck on the road to Haverlyn,” Zora said. “The one they cleared.”

  “Not a chance,” I said. “You’ll have to fight Mace’s crew and the zeroes. It’s a losing choice.”

  “I’m in,” said Rachel.

  “No you are not,” said Zeke. “You are the only known doctor alive on this planet. You are staying with Hella. Huck and I are going.”

  “You have a point,” Rachel said. “Although, technically I am not yet a doctor.”

  “You are not going without me, Huck,” I said. “We are sticking together.”

  “We will,” Huck said. “Sort-of.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “We’ll be a thousand feet ahead of you, just at the zombie death border. We’ll still be protected from your virus, but Mace’s men won’t. You don’t get too close until we hit the bus and then we all make a run for it once I get it.”

  “What about Mace?” I asked. It wasn’t a bad idea, but still left me out of the fighting. I had to shake my head when I realized who I had become. Zombie warrior, more interested in fighting than exploring humanity. What happened to the girl who wanted to get a PhD in social sciences?

  “Mace is either on the bus or dead,” Huck said. “Stan and Saudah, can you field the middle? One of you can keep track of us, the other can help Hella follow.”

  “Sure,” Stan and Saudah both said right away.

  “Alright, fine,” I said.

  Since Rachel knew the area best, having stayed at her cousin’s multiple times, she told us where to go. We would stick together until we were close to the capital building. We’d climb down the hill, across the street, and then through a small corridor between two buildings. Rachel was sure that would put us far enough away from the capital building and the hotel Mace was staying in to keep the zeds alive, and close enough to where we could still mostly protect Huck and Zeke. The word mostly scared me the most.

  We crept along in silence, down the hill and across the street. We made it swiftly to the corridor Rachel mentioned. It was perfect, long and narrow between two buildings with several fire escapes in case we needed to climb up. While dead zeroes were piled up left and right, not too many had found it in the narrow space, so it made walking easier.

  Within minutes, we were all huddled together at the end of the corridor, looking out over the Museum of Natural History.

  “I know where we are,” Saudah said. “The capital building is the next block over.”

  “Can you stay here?” Huck asked me.

  I looked out over the crowded street, crowded with bodies. My virus had taken its toll on the undead. There was no sign of Mace or any of his men in this area, so I nodded.

  “Sure,” I said.

  “Zora, Greg, Boa, Rachel,” Zeke said. “You all stay here, too. Stan, your job is to keep point with us, and Saudah will keep point with Hella.”

  “Got it,” Stan said. He looked ashen.

  “You mean we’re like relay operators?” Saudah asked.

  “Yea,” Huck said. “Let Hella know when to move out.”

  “Then, we’re going to have to switch positions,” Saudah said. “I am immune, remember?”

  Stan shook his head.

  “No choice, Stan,” Saudah said.

  “She’s right,” Zeke said. “Safest way.”

  I handed Saudah my gun. “Take this, it’s better than yours.” Saudah tried to give me her gun. “You’ll need both,” I said.

  Greg handed me his pea-shooter. “You can have this one.”

  “Thanks,” I said.

  Zeke and Huck crept out into the street. They dashed behind a couple of parked cars and then over to the alley across the road. Stan and Saudah hugged before they followed Huck and Zeke into the street. I had an eerie feeling that would be the last time I saw my friends alive.

  We waited for a few minutes in the cold and dark alley. Greg, Zora and Boa huddled together like a regular family unit. They were whole and I was happy that they were safe. Rachel and I kept our eyes on the road, waiting for an appearance from Stan.

  “How long has it been?” Rachel asked.

  “Maybe ten minute,” I said.

  “Less than a minute,” Greg corrected, looking at his watch. “Timing it.”

  Zora smiled and rubbed Greg’s chin. “Always the numbers man,” she said.

  A few more minutes passed. With Greg getting tired of us asking how much time had passed, he called them out. Four, five, six minutes had passed. Where were they? Suddenly the helicopter flew across the street and over to the capital building. When we heard shooting and saw Saudah run back to us instead of Stan, we knew something was wrong.

  Chapter 24

  Saudah ran over to us. She was gasping for breath and crying profusely, saying Stan’s name over and over again. She had blood on her hand and more on her shirt. I knew something had h
appened to Stan. We had to help him fast.

  “Show us where he is,” I said. “Rachel can help him, she’s a doctor.”

  Saudah shook her head and gasped for breath. She was trying to talk, but couldn’t calm down. I grasped her shoulders to help steady her.

  “No time,” Rachel said. “We have to go now.”

  Rachel was about to run into the street when Saudah pushed out of my arms and stopped her. “He’s been bitten,” she said. “Stan’s been bitten and he’s not immune.”

  My heart stopped beating. Stan was bitten. One of my only friends left in this world was going to turn into a zero. I couldn’t have that happen. My heart wrenched knowing we were going to have to kill him before he changed. I would have to kill him, Saudah would never be able to.

  “Has he changed yet?” Rachel asked.

  Saudah shook her head, no. “I don’t think so,” she said. “I ran away before it happened. I wanted to find you. Please tell me you can do something?”

  “We can do something, but we have to act even faster,” Rachel said.

  Saudah’s face brightened. “Can you help him?” she asked.

  “No,” Rachel said. “But I think Hella can. No time to explain, we have to get going. Show us where he is.” Rachel gently nudged Saudah into the street, to get her feet moving. Rachel waved to me as they crossed the street. “Come on, Hella. No time to waste.”

  I looked at Zora, Greg and Boa. “We have to stick together. Y0u in?” I asked.

  Zora looked at Greg and then to Boa. “We’re in,” Zora said.

  The five of us followed Saudah across the street and down the alley. We jogged passed the Natural History Museum and didn’t stop running until we got to the other side. Saudah was fast, but Rachel was faster, saving Saudah from falling and helping her over rubble.

  “There he is,” Saudah said. She pointed to a lump on the ground that must have been Stan. His body was shaking and his shirt ripped and stained with blood, and there was a corpse by his side. Whoever or whatever had bit him was dead.