The Zombie Chronicles, Book 1: The Daywalkers

by Mark Mulle

What was he talking about? This land did not belong to him. This land belonged to all of us. Monster and adventurer alike. We all lived here. Also, if I were being perfectly honest, I knew for a fact that the monsters had been here long before Barron had ever found the area.

  “The zombies have been here for seven generations, and the skeletons and spiders even longer than that,” I argued. I did my best to keep the anger out of my voice. I did not want to fight with Barron but had never occurred to me that he thought that none of the monsters belonged here.

  “That doesn’t matter,” he exclaimed. “When I built my house on the edge of this forest I posted signs all around the area telling everyone to stay out. But none of you will listen. You just keep coming back.”

  I felt myself begin to blush. The truth was I did not know how to read Barron’s language. The zombies write with a different set of letters and symbols and, though we had seen his signs, there was not a single one of us that knew what they said.

  I thought about stammering an apology but then I decided against it. Even if we had been able to read the signs, he had no right to make us leave our homes just because he decided that this land was his. Why should one adventurer get control of the land when hundreds of monsters were currently living in it peacefully?

  While I was contemplating my response, something unexpected happened. You see, I had this idea in my head that if I remained peaceful, like Herobrine, that Barron would be nice enough to treat me with respect.

  I could not have been more wrong. I had not expressed more than three sentences trying to explain my wish that we could live in peace, when he lunged at me with his sword.

  He gave no warning, made no comment, simply struck me down with the same fierce anger he would have shown if I had attacked him.

  The world went dark and I disappeared.

  Day 17:

  I do not know that it is true for all adventurers, but last night made me realize that I would never be able to talk sense into Barron. I now understood why Herobrine felt the need to teach his foes what it felt like to be treated as if their home did not belong to them alone.

  This is how we zombies have been made to feel for ages.

  Once I find my way home, I intend to consult with the rest of the zombies to try to convince them that we need to show the adventurers, the daywalkers, that this land does not belong only to them.

  Day 18:

  I feel as if I have respawned on the other side of the planet. Though I follow the moon, I have been forced to take a longer route around the massive desert.

  If I were to attempt to cross it and found myself caught in the open during the daytime, who knows where I might show up next?

  Day 19:

  I have reached a jungle.

  My father once told me that there was a jungle on the far edge of our forest and, though I have never seen it with my own eyes, I can only hope that this is the one he was talking about.

  I will continue to follow the moon, but I have yet to see anything that looks familiar.

  Day 20:

  Tonight I passed one of Barron’s signs that mark the boundaries of his land. I know that this means that I still have a long ways to walk, for he has claimed a massive area for himself, but at least I can be certain that I am going in the right direction.

  Day 21:

  My arrival home this evening was nothing like I had expected.

  I found my family huddled in the darkness of our cave even though it was the middle of the night.

  My mother threw her arms around me as soon as I entered the cave and she cried out that she was so happy that I was safe.

  I asked her what she was talking about. Why would I not be safe? I might have appeared further away from home than usual, but it was not as if I would not have been able to find my way eventually.

  She told me that since my disappearance Barron has been worse than ever. He has been actively hunting all monsters night and day, but especially zombies. She told me that he wants us all off the land and that some of the monsters were seriously considering leaving.

  I could not believe this.

  “This is our home,” I cried. “Why would anyone leave?” Though I asked the question, I already knew the answer. Apparently, my conversation with Barron had enraged him. He had begun to make it perfectly clear that we were not welcome.

  I could not, I would not allow it.

  I asked my father to call a meeting of the monsters. On special occasions, monsters will gather together to make a plan or discuss their options.

  He looked at me with a sad expression and nodded. Without a word, he slipped out into the night to spread the news.

  Day 22:

  I spent the entire daytime pacing our cave and trying to plan exactly what I wanted to say to our neighbors.

  The truth is, I am not a leader. I’m not a hero. I am not Herobrine.

  I told myself that this did not matter. I told myself that I needed to focus on doing what was best for all of the creatures in our world.

  I did not want to harm Barron, or make him leave. However, I was certain that we must fight for our right to stay. We must defend our right to live in this forest with our families and our friends.

  If Barron was able to drive us away from this place, what would stop the other adventurers from doing the same thing in another?

  When night finally fell we sent a contingent of zombie children, including all of my siblings, to distract Barron.

  The children were very excited for their first true battle, but before they left we tested each of them to ensure that they understood the rules of finding their way home.

  Devon seem determined to respawn. He had never experienced it before and he was certain that it would be a great adventure. I did not want to break the news to him that it was more inconvenient, and annoying, than anything else.

  Once the children were out causing mischief, the remaining adults met in our cave for a serious discussion.

  It seemed as if they were all looking to me to begin. I was, after all, the one who had called the meeting.

  “This is our home. We have every right to be here and not a single monster should have to leave,” I began.

  “What are we supposed to do,” the gravelly voice of the skeleton came from the back of the room, “when Barron is hunting us as if we are animals?”

  “Yeah. I know that respawning doesn’t actually cause us any harm, but if my entire family is spending most of their time finding their way home then when am I ever going to get to spend time with them?” This statement came from a young female zombie who was standing near the doorway.

  “I am not suggesting that we need to allow his hunting of our families to continue,” I explained. “What I think we might be able to do, is show him that we will not allow him to push us around. We can all live in this area, we have been doing it for many years without ever having problems before.”

  “That was before Barron arrived,” someone shouted.

  I took a deep breath. I was about to say something that I knew would be upsetting to all of them.

  “I understand that,” I spoke slowly with the hope that everyone would remain calm, “but, if we are being fair, then Barron has a right to live here too.”

  The room erupted with cries of anger.

  “He will never allow us to live here in peace,” the skeleton raised his bony arm in anger.

  “Either he leaves, or we all leave.”

  I did not see who said it, but it did not matter. Instantly, everyone in the room seems to be shaking their heads in agreement.

  “Wait! Please, wait.” I held my arms out in an attempt to block the doorway through which everyone was attempting to leave. It was clear that I would not be able to convince them with words that Barron could be dealt with. “We need to try! We cannot give up this easily. We need to try.”

  The elderly skeleton, whom I did not recognize but everyone else seemed to have a great deal of respect for, came to stand with his nose almos
t touching my own.

  He narrowed his beady black eyes at me and stared into my face for what felt like hours.

  “You think there is a solution?” He asked. “You think there is a way?”

  I nodded. “I do,” I said.

  “Well, I do not believe you,” I felt my heart began to sink to my knees, but then he continued, “but if you are so certain, then you handle it. My family and I will wait for a little bit longer, but if you cannot find a solution then we will leave.”

  He held his hand out to me and I shook it. With that, the entire neighborhood seemed to be in agreement.

  They would not leave. Not yet, at least. But one thing had been made perfectly clear.

  I was on my own when it came to finding a solution for Barron.

  Day 23:

  The following night I spent watching Barron and planning.

  I have decided, especially after the result of my last conversation with Barron, that I wanted to approach this issue in the same way as the great Herobrine.

  I wanted to make my point. I wanted to teach him a lesson. At the same time, I was determined to avoid any open battle or warfare. Still, by the time the sun rose in the morning and I returned to my family’s cave, I was not sure that my plan would work.

  Day 24:

  I was told by a spider that Barron had been seen entering his portal to the Nether just before darkness fell.

  This made me very excited because it meant that I could work on my plan without being interrupted, or harmed, by Barron.

  I sent Devon to watch the portal and to inform me the moment that Barron returned.

  I did not know how long I would have, so I