Thing a Week 45: Zombies!

Day 7:

Honestly, I don’t think we can hold out much longer. We’ve run out of food and ammunition; we’ve been forced to rely on our more primitive weapons—hammers, bats, pipes, and the like. If a zombie is close enough to hit, it’s too close—believe me.

I hear them stumbling around downstairs. Eric’s on reinforcement duty on the door while I’m sleeping, but I can’t sleep with the zombies so close. Until now, we’ve always had an escape route; now we’ll have to make our last stand. That’ll probably be soon, by the sounds of how hard they’re hammering on the door.

Day 6:

The four of us arrived in Swennad today, but there were no other refugees here. Honestly, I think the two boys we met were breaking down mentally, and so I voted we split up when they wanted to continue on north, thinking they hadn’t driven far enough. Sometimes I wish I could read minds; whatever was going on in theirs wasn’t normal.

We set up base in an old pub. We chose it because it only has one entrance, which we barricaded shut once we’d moved in all our supplies. We spent the whole day scavenging stores and avoiding the crazies to gather supplies. We’ll probably stay here quite a while. The barricade on the front door is very well made, thanks to Eric’s know-how.

If we turn off the lights at night, we shouldn’t attract any extra attention to ourselves anyway, so I think we should be able to live relatively quietly for quite some time without having unwelcome guests. Hopefully by then the government will step in and start quarantining and rescuing survivors.

Day 5:

Keller and Eric were overrun at their stronghold, and forced to travel again. They drove and drove, ignoring those stumbling around in the streets. When they ran out of gas, Eric would stand guard while Keller pumped gas at the station. No one was working, so the gas was free.

Eventually, they came across two more travellers on the road. They followed close behind, and when they determined it was safe to do so, they both pulled over and introduced themselves, albeit cautiously.

The two were named Dave and Calvin and came from the small town of Winton just forty miles south. They said there was a refugee stronghold in the north that they were travelling to, and extended an invitation to Keller and Eric. They accepted, and they piled into one car to save gas, even though it was free. They didn’t know if it would always be free.

Day 4:

“What happened?”
“Someun’ came inna the front door all crazy lookin’ and bleedin’. I told ‘im to git out, but ‘e di’nt listen.”
“You didn’t do anything?”
“Oh, I did! I ran to the sleeper, grab my rifle and ran back. But whenna came back this was ‘ow I found ‘er. I shot the—”
“Sarah! Keep in there, okay? It’s going to be fine, I promise! Sarah!”
“I tried to give ‘er the CPR, I did. I dunno hows they do it, actually, so I did’nuh wanna ‘urt ‘er, ya’ know?”
“Let me take care of her now, okay? Go lock the doors and the windows, and keep an eye out for more of those crazies!”
“You can count on me, boy. Me an’ my rifle, we ain’t gonna let no more crazies in ‘ere, no sir!”

Day 3:

A heavy bang on the door woke Dr. Keller up from his light slumber. Groaning, he wrapped the robe he’d fallen asleep wearing around his body and took his time walking to the door. Before opening it, he lifted his hand to glance through the blinds.

On his porch stood a man foaming at the mouth. His hair, matted and greasy, was missing in abnormal locations, as if he had torn bits and pieces out. From his mouth dripped a dark, red liquid amongst the foam that matched the large stains on his ripped, plaid shirt. But the worst thing of all were his eyes: the colors normally seen in eyes had melted outwards, mixing with the white to cloud over both eyes.

“Who is it?” Dr. Keller called through the door, scared.

The man growled, but otherwise gave no response.

“Just a minute please, I need to get dressed!” Keller silently reached out to turn the deadbolt and lock the door before sprinting to the back of the house. From the kitchen he grabbed his car keys and a jacket, and then swung by the laundry room to pick up a clean pair of pants.

The back door didn’t have windows on it. Cautiously, Keller slipped it open and peered out into the alleyway. When he saw nothing, he tentatively stepped outside and took a closer look. At one end of the alley, a man had his teeth deep in the wounds of another, spraying blood onto the concrete behind them. Keller stood motionless, in shock more than anything else. What seemed like eternity later, both men stood up together and stumbled off in different directions without a word.

Dr. Keller sprinted to his old, beat up Pinto. With the keys in the ignition, he drove straight across town (about 3 miles) to his parent’s house.

Day 2:

Summerville, NY—What was first thought to be increased reports of inebriated men and women roaming the back streets may turn out to be something much more dangerous. Scientists have not yet determined the cause of the “summer fever,” but are currently researching what may of caused it—and more importantly, how to cure it.

Until further investigation, Mayor Hudson has issued a statement strongly urging all citizens to remain indoors during the day. “Vigilance,” he said in a press conference this morning, “is our best defense against the unknown.” A city curfew of 7PM will be enforced strictly until further notice.

If you have any information as to the cause of this unnatural disturbance, please call the Summerville Police Department immediately, at (426) 555-3593. Thank you for your cooperation.

Day 1:

EML Experiment #420529
Overseer: Dr. Matt Keller

STS-425′s natural antibiocillic properties have the potential to provide a multitude of treatments for diseases ranging from HIV to cancer. This experiment aims to use this biomedical payload to eradicate abnormal cells in pretreated subjects infected with HIV, proving to be the first cure for the human immunodeficiency virus.

Many scientists have publicly denounced Dr. Keller’s inhumane methods of science, and several have even gone to the extent of boycotting the enterprises that associate and endorse him. However, this experiment—if successful—will no doubt propel him into the runnings for his very own Nobel.

7:59 AM: All test subjects have been primed and are ready for their initial infection vector.

8:24 AM: One subject passed during infection. She has been removed from the testing pool and replaced with one of the spares. All subjects are fully prepared. Waiting four hours for the infection to spread.

12:30 PM: Began STS-425 injections in subjects. Most seem to be responding well. Several seizures and side effects not noted. Incompliant subjects have been temporarily detained.

1:42 PM: I can find no traces of HIV in Patient #2953. I believe this experiment is going to be a success! Administering another 50cc to patients who have yet to clear.

1:56 PM: Subjects extremely violent. Locked them in lab with the security door. Engaged ANF-24 gas chambers. Will return tomorrow when the room has been cleared to clean up and try again. Experiment was a failure, but I know I’m on the brink of success!