After Genocide: The Dead Live Again Read online

  Our eyes adjusting to the impetuous darkness that struck with such surprise.

  “Split up,” Kelly ordered, as she and Pam walk in first then I followed.

  “Pam you take room two. I will take room three beside me. And Joe you check the next one that follows.” Not once in my life have I been inside this therapy place, and Max with the only flashlight well this was like walking on egg shells.

  “Roger that,” I agreed and Pam just walks to face her door. The hand on the door handle, the room is closed; perhaps she would not have to deal with anything strange and just an empty room. Whereas I walking ahead to the room that followed Kelly’s. Each step leaves an echo and slowly the girls seemed to be too far for my reach. Sweat began to pour, and saliva ran through my throat. I felt cold all over. A small sign on the wall with the arrow pointing towards the room and inscribed is the word Equipment.

  Pam slowly turned the handle clockwise and quietly pushed the door open. A dark room; she felt nervous. Small amount of fear crept through her cold body. The Goosebumps on her arms began to spread. With one hand reaching to her side; the cold wall then a small bump. Light switch to the room is flipped it up and the lights ignite dimly. A flicker and the buzz of struggling electricity ran through the room.

  The room is like a den; everything echoes through. There is the sound of snarling. Pam walks quietly taking every step cautiously. Cabinets inside the room and a large table in the middle; a sink to the far right corner, she approaches the left edge of the table with one hand on her magnum; trembling as she feared the worst. Her eyes wide with fear but she dared to walk further and approach the scene.

  Her eyes stricken with such fear; cold sweat ran down her forehead to her cheeks. A long pause ran through her brain. She wanted to shoot but something kept her arm paralyzed. No not just her arm, her entire body is paralyzed; like a small prey to that the glare of a snake like predator gazing upon from the distance.

  Then her vocal cords closed and opened as she let out a scream of such fear. A loud echo of her scream made Kelly pause. The zombie having a snack blood fell from the mouth of the creature. The eyes glowing red like that of a wild predator in the dark. Its teeth sharp like that of a wild cat; nails extremely large. Its skin peeled like a flesh eating disease had struck it; all due to the act of the mutation.

  Eyes of the zombie glare into Pam’s nervous stare. A mother is the zombie and the meal appeared to be the child, too little left to distinguish male or female sibling.

  Standing to be approximately five feet and nine inches in height; slim. Pam is the next meal for it to munch on. Quick speed as the zombie rushed to take a charge at Pam; but she had a guardian angel in the room. The blast of a firearm stopped the zombie halfway from reaching Pam’s standing point. Kelly stood at the doorway then rushed to hug her best friend that stood in such a frozen position, taken by the terror.

  Pam stood there, then a tear broke out. “Why is this happening?” she cried.

  The cold hands of Kelly felt warm against Pam’s spine as Kelly rushed and placed her arms around her and hugged her tight.

  “It’s okay,” she comforts.

  I rushed as the sound of the gunshot had echoed.

  “Pam!”

  “Kelly!” I yelled while I began a jogging pace, then while standing in front of the room at the door entrance I aim my crossbow.

  “You ladies hurt?” I ask.

  “We are okay,” replies Kelly.

  Walking towards them, Kelly released the hug she has on Pam. No words exit my mouth. The crying continues for only a few seconds then she stops the sobbing.

  “Okay. Kelly, take Pam with you. I will check out the equipment room,” I ordered and Kelly agreed then reloaded her firearm.

  Walking out of the room and into the mildly dark hallway, Kelly and Pam behind me, but their objective is room two.

  Last I recall I saw them standing by the door, but I kept walking straight ahead to the equipment room. Step by step at a calm and quiet pace; trying to make no sound whatsoever, but the hall is too quiet. No matter how light I walk the footsteps echoed throughout.

  My hand trembling; unbalanced legs as mild fear ran through my body.

  A sudden pause; I keep my crossbow in hand as I walk. The door is closed and I can hear every breath I take like a loud siren. I place my left hand on the door knob and move it a little.

  It felt weak and so a quiet pull and a dark room is in view. One step then another then another; each one silent how a cat walks. Darkness embedded the room. A quick glance caught my eye of the light switch, flipping it up and the lights barely light up the room. Sizzling electricity runs through the wires to the bulbs.

  Aiming my crossbow position, quietly walking the scenario is two large shelves at the end of the wall to hold equipment. Two book shelves parallel to each other with coinciding computers to each side one to the front and the other to the back. A clear path resides ahead however I feel like a coward for not wanting to explore further but the job must be done. I don’t want to be held responsible if they attack the girls in a large ambush later.

  I begin to approach the middle of the shelves, next to the computers from the peripheral side of my eye there is a shadow that moves quickly. A quick reaction forces my scared body to move and point the crossbow straight to the end of the hall. My pulse begins to accelerate and my heart rate beating rapidly. My throat goes dry and sweat rapidly pours down my neck.

  “Any,”—my pulse echoes—“anybody there?” my voice cries out in a dry and hoarse tone.

  Come on Joe. What would the girls think of you right now? Prove to yourself that you are the man that you claim to be. Only with her are you tough but away you are soft like a gummy bear.

  From under the desk it watches; like a predator through the night a tiger hunting its feeble prey through the utter darkness. Waiting for the perfect moment to strike, my leg is in perfect coordination for its strike ability but it watches me move like a frightened deer through the wilderness.

  Eyes glowing red like the blood that a human bleeds when injured by a severe or even a minor wound on the body.

  With such speed and agility it makes a quick attack from under the desk and tries to bite me on my leg.

  A small power struggle takes place as I try to shake her off but it is no use. I use my legs to kick her back to the ground, but her speed is too much for me and keeps getting back up in quick time.

  “Fuck this!” I exclaim then I aim my crossbow and shoot the zombie child in the head. Although it appeared as if I had only nicked it, my thoughts were only to move further away as possible, and forget to recover the arrow. Now down to four.

  A slow walk backwards this time then a spin to check my surroundings but still nothing. All is silent and I’m facing the end again; and from my left side red glaring eyes and a loud growl echo. I shake my head now, a zombie on top of the bookshelf; I look and our eyes stare. It jumps to pounce, but I’m way ahead of it. With my crossbow I smack hit it while in the air and send it back a couple of feet. I draw my hunting knife now as the zombie begins to move again and I stab it in the head.

  Blood smears and drools on the floor; my next step is on a small puddle of it. To my right; another growl equaled another zombie. On top of the bookshelf, it stood and made a quick jump. But my speed for reaction is a lot faster as I use my knife to stab into the head of another zombie.

  Three bodies are lying on the floor in their own pool of blood; “next time don’t mess with a scared man who carries a knife,” my voice broke out in a mild cocky manner.

  A deep breath then sweat poured down like usual. From up front three zombies viewed my position. They ran towards me; so I began to pace backwards to the end, like running into my own trap. Three zombies, each apart from one another like players in a football team working together to acquire the goal in their minds. I sheathe my knife and reach for my pistol, with each two steps I released a bullet for each zombie approaching me with ferocity.

  S
ix bodies now my nerves twisting and my breathing increased then slowly began to decline when all seemed calm.

  Placing my pistol in its appropriate holster a sudden voice inside my head tells me to turn left echoed through my brain.

  Another zombie stalking my position then to my right another with my left hand I pull my pistol out again and cocked it; then aim it left. I drop my crossbow and draw my knife with my right hand then shift it to hold it from the tip. The two zombies begin to move in quickly and I turn to both sides.

  I squeeze the trigger on my handgun and blast the first zombie into shreds; whereas another quick glance puts me face to face with the other. My reflex to throw the knife is acted upon itself. The knife hurls with speed and accuracy directly into the zombies’ head.

  I sheathe my knife and place my pistol in the holster. I pick up my crossbow and begin to walk. Up ahead is the same zombie child on the floor, twitching.

  “Poor little ones,” I said then I knock an arrow and I shoot the zombie in the head. I remove the arrow and place it back with the others.

  Pam still in mild shock of the event that occurred earlier she still held on to her magnum. Kelly turns to face Pam, “I need you to be strong okay just try to be strong,” she comforts.

  Pam agrees with a trembling nod.

  Kelly’s hand on the door knob there is the smell of blood that runs through the building. A twist and then a small push to open it, the sound of a creak is echoed throughout the entire room; “its dark” warns Kelly.

  “I don’t think so,”--Pam peeks in the room--“there is adequate lighting to see enough.”

  Kelly walks in first, taking her steps carefully; then behind her Pam walks.

  There is blood on the floor, plus a decaying body. A physical therapist from the looks of the leave over carcass, the guts scattered around the room, sounds from a television that appeared to be hanging on the wall, only a white blurry screen.

  A treadmill to the right facing the television, dumbbells to do rehabilitation curls for the elbows and biceps on the arms. To the right; a bicycle for exercising the legs along with some medicine balls, small shelf with some electrical muscle stimulation machines; the portable ones.

  “Look up ahead, there is another part to it,” Kelly says.

  “Anybody here?” asks Pam in a faint voice. There is no reply only the echo of her voice.

  “Come on lets go ahead,” Kelly says.

  “You sure that is a good idea?” Pam asks.

  “Well we heard the scream of a little girl. If there is someone alive we must find her and bring her along.”

  They walk straight through the remainder of the room until they pass the small entrance indicating the next room. The lights barely lit up the room. To their right, a large pool covered in blood water but still practically clear to the eye.

  And to the left is another pool, but inside it a zombie twitching around. No eyes to see what is coming but it can smell the girls inside. Kelly holds her machine gun tight then cocks it as she continues to walk. The zombies under the pool are walking slowly and all turn up to see the two girls.

  “Shit. Pam. Get back,” Kelly orders. Pam begins to walk backwards then a turn around to face the door.

  “There are two zombies here. Where did they come from?” she complains.

  “Pam. You have a gun, please use it girl,” Kelly replies.

  “Right,” Pam agrees and she aims it at one zombie then pulls the trigger once; shooting one zombie in the head, then pulls the trigger again taking down the other one. A deep breath runs inside her.

  Kelly pulls the trigger and shoots the twitching zombie first then aims at the pool and begins to fire at the others. About eight zombies were in the water; walking normally but slowly. Not for long however.

  Pam runs but there is a sudden freeze rushing through her body. Her blood clots and her muscles become atrophied. The sudden stun from the face of a zombie, fear ran through her; she felt as if this is the end, and so much she wanted to say and do to explore the world as a live person not as the living dead.

  The wide open mouth of the zombie as it is near to bite; the teeth showed ferocity. Her eyes widened; then as the mouth appeared to approach closer the sudden spill of blood on her face as the head blew up into pieces. She fell to the ground, the body on top of her. She lay there in shock; she thought about what happened that split second.

  I ran through the hall to reach her; picking up the dead zombie body from hers.

  “Pam you okay?” I ask her. Six coming in from the door; his gun aim. He shot the zombie that is about to attack Pam. Six gets closer; “are you okay?” he asks.

  “Do you think I am infected? Pam asks. What if I become one of them?” she cried.

  “No. You won’t become one of them. None of us will,” I tried to comfort her.

  Blood is splattered on her face and she gets up after a few minutes had passed. She is a bit serious now, like the young weak girl was dead, this was a new Pam.

  “Let’s go. Kelly and Six are waiting,” she says.

  I begin to walk, leading the way out of the rehab facility; but Pam decides to take one last quick glance at the Rehab of Death. She views the dark hallway and in her sight and with the flickering of light until the first half is lit and the second half is shrouded in pure darkness a little figure of a girl is staring directly at Pam.

  It’s like she felt the presence or something, Pam begins to walk inside the facility again after all we had been through, taking her slow and steady steps but I realize what she has seen.

  “Pam, be careful you don’t know if she is infected,” I warn.

  Curiosity and disobedience, or perhaps she saw something in this small child I couldn’t understand completely a bond of sorts that could not be explained only felt by some presence of unnatural ability, but she kept walking. The tiny echoes of the minor blood splatters on the ground echoing as her shoes stepped on them and increased the diameter range of blood.

  “Are you okay,” Pam asks.

  “Pam,” I warned by calling her name out. I draw my crossbow and knock an arrow just in case.

  Pam kept walking and soon after, the little girl began to mimic her moves and approach her as well.

  Her dress is covered in blood but she manages to make it most of the way before saying something that took Pam by emotion.

  “Please, don’t let the monsters get me,” and then her body falls on the cold floor.

  Epilogue

  Thalia Acosta looks around as she views the cameras on the security room. Her group is vast in numbers and with the weapons in the mall they have plenty in case of unwanted guests. Her black curly hair is longer than usual. She grips a knife, the same knife she had when it all happened, the only weapon she used to defend herself and her family.

  “Boss you called for me,” Tanya walks in. Tanya holds a crossbow in hand and has a knife strapped to her right thigh. She wears camouflage clothing along with a camouflage poncho. Her hair is in a pixie cut as she walks, her Hispanic skin giving off in the bright light.

  “Yes how are we doing on food,” Thalia asks.

  “Might be low soon.”

  “We’re going to have to start working on a scouting team, keeping numbers lower than five and separating artillery as well,” Thalia replies.

  Thalia stands while looking at the camera screens, her blue jeans and black shirt noticeable as well as her black shoes. She is paused now, thinking, dwelling on what her group might need for the future that awaits them.

  “We should hotwire some of the vehicles in the parking lot and bring them into the basement. First a small party will escort one to hotwire and another will cover from the roof,” Thalia orders.

  “Anything else boss,” asks Tanya.

  “Any word on other survivors?”

  “No. Sorry. Our transmissions have not picked up any others on Call Back radio. However there is a report from the Elsa refugees saying a red suburban was seen driving around carrying seve
ral people. Seems like they been surviving as well.” Tanya reports what she heard and although Thalia is facing the screens she can see a bright smile on her face. Thalia knows her family is alive, and it will only be soon when she will see them again.