Outbreak

by A L Carter

  “Err... hi Jones fancy a drop?" he offered grinning like an idiot.

  Jones appraised the bottle, "A fine malt you got there and I'll admit were running a bit low on the good stuff, but what I'd really like is to try some of that weed you got there lad?"

  Once back with the others Jones announced that Derwyn had weed, suddenly everyone took interest especially Jenkins.

  "Weed Jones don't you know that stuffs illegal," Jenkins challenged.

  "Sir with all due respect there’s no law now, and I have to admit I always wanted to try it especially with all the alleged health benefits of the stuff. So what are you going to arrest me?" Jones replied.

  There seemed to be a tense stand-off between the two men, both eyeing each other like a showdown between Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef. Everyone looking on in anticipation and even the dog looked worried.

  "Well go on lad pass the joints around," Jenkins said to Derwyn, who was clutching the bag of weed anxiously.

  Suddenly they all burst out laughing the tension now gone, Derwyn slumped back into his chair relief all over his face.

  "You boy's you had us all going for a minute there," Marie scolded them but unable to contend her own laughter.

  Half an hour later they were all on their way to becoming pleasantly stoned. Even seemingly to affect the dog, who flopped down her eyes seemed bigger than usual.

  Jones got to his feet went over to the van reappearing moments later with what appeared to be a smartphone, "I'm sorry sir you'll have to excuse me I have something I must show the group it's of utmost importance."

  Jenkins looked back at him grinning inanely back at him, "Continue if it's that important sergeant."

  With that Jones showed these important images to everyone in the group, who were suddenly unable to control themselves with laughter even holding their ribs as they cramped uncomfortably. When everyone had seen Jones seemed content that his duty had been done.

  "Jones, do I get to see these items of great importance?" Jenkins requested.

  A moment's regret seemed to cross Jones' face, but was soon replaced by an oh well expression and handed the phone over to his boss. Moments passed as Jenkins studied the images on it. It depicted him who was on his back and unconscious on the floor of the pub. The barmaid Donna had her head and ample breasts in his lap and both his hands clutched his truncheon, which suggestively poked her mouth and out the back of her head. He continued through each of the images until he reached Jones piece de resistance, the image with Jones doing a selfie with both him and the barmaid. Everyone suddenly choked up their laughter and began to anticipate his reaction. Moments past and then tension grew; it really was too much for them all to take.

  When finally Jenkins broke his silence, "Jones I can see now the level of importance of these images, it is a true testament that Donna really did have big boobs."

  Well, that was it as they all collapsed into more now painful laughter and they began pleading with them to both stop it as they couldn't take any more. Jones relaxed back and took another puff of his joint and looking rather pleased with himself. Jenkins continued to appraise the images, grinning widely to himself.

  Chapter 35

  Lost memory

  Max had enjoyed the evening; the newcomer's fitting right in with the rest of the group, now they were eight. Everyone now seemed wrecked after indulging in the booze and weed. Maybe it wasn't the wisest thing to do when the shit was about to hit the fan, but with tensions running so high they needed a release. Which they had certainly done, and they had all retired to the house. Even Marie was wasted. She had always wanted to try weed, but being illegal she had never dared try it. Having never been interested in hard drugs and couldn't see the point of them as they destroyed people’s lives. They had had always talked about it, how alcohol was legal and responsible for violence, car accidents and damage to our bodies. When weed had the opposite effect, how many weed-fuelled fights were there? We always joked that instead of dropping nuclear bombs they should drop weed bombs and chill everybody the fuck out. He had had some of the weed himself and indeed it did have a mellowing effect, but however short lived. This was probably down to his enhanced recovery rate as booze had little effect on him at all. He had told everyone to get some rest and that he would take first watch. They were all grateful and to stoned to argue. So he sat out on the courtyard in front of the burning fire pit they had constructed of brick. He wasn't cold; he never really felt the cold. But it was comforting and gave him something to do tending the fire. He didn't think that the danger was coming tonight but it was near, maybe tomorrow. Having been so busy lately and rarely being on his own, this had been the first time that he had got to himself other than sleep. Letting his mind relax and search his thoughts. Finding himself in a state, where he was totally aware of his surroundings enabling him to maintain watch, but also go deeper into his own mind.

  Unbeknownst to Max was that his few joints had done more than just make him a little mellow. The cannabis in his system had unlocked certain pathways in his brain. This enabled certain memories to be able to surface, blocked before, but now they came back with a vengeance.

  It was day 2 of infection. They had already seen news reports of widespread violence apparently due to a virus that caused the effect. But not to worry as they had it all under control. Bullshit, well that's what they thought anyway, the day before they had boarded up the downstairs windows and reinforced the doors. People had looked at them like they were crazy, but reports of people being killed all over the world were coming on the news. Didn't they see what was happening? No, because like most people they trusted what they were told like sheep and did as they were told. They had just come back from shopping at the co-op. It had been mad. Don't get me wrong he always found shopping mad, people could be so ignorant. Blocking aisles, hogging shelves, even holding social occasions in the middle of an aisle and usually oblivious to people trying to get around them. Well, this was the same but a lot worse. It was like an American Walmart that was holding a black Friday sale, people were panic buying grabbing armfuls of the shelves, as the staff was trying to restock them. People also looked ill, sweating uncontrollably appearing to have a fever. We decided to just buy what we had got and get the fuck out of there. Following behind Marie a woman bumped into me then bent down and bit my wrist, pushing her away she staggered after someone else. Inspecting the wound it stung like hell, her teeth had broken the skin but it wasn't bleeding too badly. But suddenly the implications of the wound sunk in. He pulled down his sleeve to hide the wound just before Marie turned around at the van.

  "You okay?" She enquired.

  "Yeah mad cow just bumped into me is all," he replied.

  She eyed him suspiciously then started loading the van with the shopping.

  Once back at the house we unloaded the van, and then he made an excuse to go back to the van. It was then that he took off, feeling guilty that he had not told her. But she would try to talk him out of it and say he would be okay. He had seen how that woman was in the car park, which meant that he was probably infected too and he couldn't face the thought of harming Marie. So he just drove off having no idea of what he was going to do? Five minutes later he was sitting in the car park of the Sunnyside garden centre, thinking about what to do next. How long had it been since the bite, twenty-five minutes maybe? Did he feel a fever? He was certainly hot but maybe that was just stress. He lowered his window and someone gave him a funny look. Why couldn't people mind their own business? Deciding to wait it out a bit and see how he felt and maybe he would be alright. Then he could return home and they could talk about it, his phone rang. Checking it he saw Marie's name on the display. He ignored it as he had no idea what to say. Thirty minutes had past and his phone kept ringing so he turned it off feeling bad that he couldn't speak to her. He had to admit he did feel hotter and he was beginning to feel like he had flu. These were the symptoms that he had heard about on the news. The feeling of sadness and despair washed over him
. So this was it was it if he had contracted the virus, he might never see Marie again. Was this really the zombie apocalypse? It was so stupid; they discussed it many times on what they would do in a zombie apocalypse. But never once had they considered that either of them might be infected. It had always been them against the undead surviving against all odds. Even thriving and not worrying about upcoming bills, debt and the stress of work. He checked the time it was well over an hour now and he steadily felt worse. By one hour thirty, he was getting pains in his stomach. This was not good and as well that he noticed people coming out of the garden centre, some screaming and running away. Be some were like the one that had bitten him staggering around and blood clearly visible from their mouths. A sick feeling hit him, that this would be him soon. He started the van, wanting to die in peace not being hassled by zombies. Soon he was at Elistown, crossing over the two mini roundabouts, but in front of him, cars and people were blocking the way. People were being eaten in front of him, he couldn't believe it.

  "Shit," he said aloud and turned the van left.

  Driving into the industrial estate he realised that the only way out was the way he had come. But he suspected that this didn't matter as he felt that he didn't have long left. Partway down the road a zombie suddenly came out from behind a parked van. He hit it full on and it was pulled under the wheel's which in turn caused the van to skid. Unable to control the vehicle he ran straight into a lamppost, causing him to hit his head on the wheel. It took maybe a few minutes until he came round enough to move. He looked out the window and he saw one coming for him, probably drawn to the noise. Reaching behind the seat he located the heavy tyre iron that was in the toolbox there. He exited the van and the zombie was almost on him. Fighting against the fear he swung hard at the thing hitting it in the shoulder, almost toppling it but soon it was coming back at him.

  "Shit, the head, it's always the fucking head," he scowled at his own stupidity.

  The next swing brought the desired results however obliterating the thing's skull, sending blood and brain matter behind it. The zombie flopped down lifeless. Suddenly he felt a tug at his ankle and to his horror, it was the one he had hit with the van. It had managed to drag itself towards him even with its crushed body. A downwards smash to the head fixed that however, and then he was moving towards the industrial buildings. He was breathing really heavily, his overweight body greatly impeding his actions. Also, the pain in his stomach increased causing him to stop and vomit. He was dismayed to see blood in it but carried on, getting closer to a warehouse with a sign on it that read sports and fitness. Well if he was to survive he could certainly use some of that he thought ironically. Not that he thought that there was much chance of that. But he wanted to live and he wanted to protect Marie. Could he fight this thing he wondered? He doubted it be he could sure as hell try. Fight the pain he killed three more zombies that attacked him. He tried the warehouse door but it was locked so he went around the back, that door was also locked. But then he saw the ladder and put it at the side of the corrugated wall. He then climbed the ladder onto the roof, flopping down exhausted. The minutes past as he tried to regain his breath, vomiting more blood, and forcing himself to crawl along the roof. Then he saw the open skylight and made his way towards it desperately, his body was beginning to shut down. He held himself above the open skylight his heart beating out of his chest. His face contorted in agony as he had a massive heart attack and suddenly he was dead and fell through the open skylight.

  Suddenly he was outside of his body and he could no longer feel pain. In front of him he could see his dead useless body falling through the opening; however, it seemed to be happening in slow motion, frame by frame. He felt loss and sadness; he hadn't had enough life yet and didn't feel ready to die. In his new existence, he felt like he was made completely of light weightless, floating upwards as if to emphasize this. Then he noticed the swirling void full of complex shapes and colours as if inviting him to another world. It would be so easy just to travel through it and experience the wonders it offered. But suddenly he fought it and he remembered something. It was a book he had read the spirit molecule, which was about a natural chemical that was released by a certain part of the brain called the pineal gland. Often more commonly depicted as the third eye. That chemical was a drug called DMT, which was present in most living things, plants, trees and us. This is said to be released during sleep, astral projection and death. DMT could also be smoked or taken as a tea. In a scientific study, people talked about travelling through a tunnel into another world or universe even. The experience seeming to last a lifetime were they learned many things as well as meeting otherworldly beings. After the experience, these people were changed forever and often cured of various addictions. But some spoke of travelling inside their own bodies and learning vastly about themselves. He thought of Marie he couldn't just leave her there must be something he can do and maybe he could fix this. His mind now made up he travelled back to his own body.

  Once inside he was suddenly overwhelmed with a vast knowledge of everything, it was frighteningly real as this knowledge was dumped on him with more bombarding him all the while. Now he understood the inner workings of the human body, far exceeding any doctor or scientist. He now pursued his body’s killer, namely the virus. In a moment he had studied it completely and knew its inner workings and even future mutations programmed into its cells. Then reprogrammed it to terminate itself immediately, rendering it now harmless. He turned his attention to his heart which was restarted bringing life to the body that was in free-fall still, and at that moment hitting his head on one of the metal shelves. This both fractured the skull and tore open a gash in his forehead. This in itself now put his life in danger yet again. But he knew exactly what must be done travelling down his own DNA strand finding the area that controlled the rate of healing, dramatically increasing it as if turning a switch. The wound on the forehead stopped bleeding tissues and bone began healing. He continued on his journey making genetic improvements, it was almost as if the human body was designed to be flawed, and everything was on its lowest setting. Some abilities were even turned off, this he soon fixed however and even reprogrammed his DNA to be adaptable and evolve when needed. It was then he felt as if he was being pulled back and away from his work. His body hit the boxes on the warehouse floor and he lay there unconscious.

  Suddenly Max could hear soft footsteps behind him.

  "Good evening Derwyn your welcome to come and join me," he invited warmly.

  "Shit there's no sneaking up on you," he replied as he sat down next to Max.

  "So you’re not as stoned as the rest then," he observed.

  "Well I am kind of more used to than they are, but not you it appears as that was some heavy weed," Derwyn surmised.

  "Oh it affected me more than you'll know," he declared.

  "Well you wouldn't know it to look at you, anyway how did you take over my body earlier it was as if you were in my mind," Derwyn asked curiously.

  "We all potentially have the ability, it's just locked to us though," he explained.

  Derwyn thought about this for a moment, "Well at least you seem to be a good guy."

  "Thanks," he replied.

  "So this danger do you know what's going to happen," Derwyn asked.

  "The virus is about to evolve, in other words, the zombies are going to become more of a threat," he explained.

  "More of a threat?" Derwyn wondered.

  "Well at the moment if you keep out of their way you’re pretty safe, but imagine if suddenly they were better at tracking us. If their remaining senses like smell, for instance, increased then they would be able to find us better," he proposed.

  Derwyn thought about this, "Yeah at the moment they're pretty much dumb and easy to pass by without them noticing you."

  "That's right," he agreed.

  "If you need to get some sleep I'll take watch," Derwyn offered.

  "Thanks but I'll sit awhile first," he said gratefully.
r />   So they sat watching the fire and both in their own thoughts.

  Chapter 36

  New reality

  About an hour later Max retired to bed, quietly climbing in beside Marie. To which she moaned, rolled over flinging her arm at him whacking him in the head. Eventually, she settled down again and he was left with his thoughts, which he wasn't sure was a good thing. So was his flashback real, his instincts told him it was and it explained his amazing abilities. While he had travelled inside his own body he had felt like? Like god, or a god anyway. While inside it was like he knew everything but now his knowledge was far more limited. He wondered whether he would be able to do the same thing again or perhaps to others. Then he realised that he already had. Dinah had been dead and he had somehow brought her back, however, he thought that he must have done this on a subconscious level because he wasn't aware of how he had done it. He wondered whether he had done it by touch or by his mind alone. His immunity could he give it to Marie and the others, or had he already done so? He didn't have the answers yet but he was sure they would come eventually. Lying there he tried to still his mind and let sleep take him, but it wasn't until over an hour later that it finally took him.