It
is close at hand...
Blow ye the trumpet in
Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain:
let all the inhabitants of
the land tremble:
for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;
A day of darkness and of
gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness,
as the morning spread upon
the mountains:
a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like,
neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.
A fire devoureth before
them; and behind them a flame burneth:
the land is as the garden
of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness;
yea, and nothing
shall escape them.
Joel 2:1-3
*****************
When it happened I was excited – at first. I was a fan of the
movies, the books, the games...all of it. So when those first reports came on
the television and hit the net I was probably the most excited person on the
planet. I mean, you always wonder “what if” when you see it in films, but then
to have it actually happen, it really gets you going. That is, until they’re
banging on your front door. Or the door of someone you really, truly care
about. Someone you love.
That is when the excitement fades to fear. The fear can turn
to horror. But right before that there is a brief moment where human instinct
takes over and you choose to either fight or run. You don’t think, you just
act. That is how I’m still alive. And it is probably why she is dead.
My story is not a happy one. It is not about heroics or unity
or the fight to persevere. It is the story of survival. The only thing a person
could really do during the crisis. It is the story of trying to protect someone
you love and failing. It is a story of love, friendship and ultimately death.
I’m not holding back. I am going to tell you everything. For some, this story
will be harder to read then it was to write. For others, it won’t. Either way,
this is my story. This is my account of the zombie apocalypse.
I was trying to be reassuring and bring my students back to
the mood they were in before we stopped to eat, which not many were doing. But
I knew there was something big going on.
I could hear the words “bioterrorism,” “widespread” and
“thousands dead.” I could hear people talking about countries all over the
world. CNN had this gorgeous new anchor,
Rebecca Mailey and I had a sort of boyhood crush on her. I was
29 and still entitled to fantasize about celebrities. So when she was the one
who sent a chill down my spine, I thought it was sort of ironic and could not
help but laugh. I’ll never forget the colorless look on her face when she
uttered, “We are now getting scattered reports of incidents here in the United
States.”
I never finished booting up my laptop. My instincts told me to
get everyone out of the rest area and back on the bus. It was a quiet on the
way home. I told everyone to call their parents and let them know that they
were okay and would be home soon. As we boarded the bus two police cruisers
went speeding in the opposite direction, sirens blaring. It was unnerving,
given what we just heard. The rest of the ride home was dead quiet.
“It’s happening everywhere.”
“What is?”
“This...thing. People are dying. Riots happening everywhere. They said that
there are drugs in the water supply that makes you want to hurt others. Then
they said it wasn’t drugs, but a massive psychological event caused by a solar
flare or something. Another guy said it’s been happening for a few weeks, but
until now the government had it bottled up. And then...”
“Keith.” I had to stop him. The talking heads on TV had him
all turned around.
“Yeah?”
“Take a breath. Clearly they don’t really know what is
happening. So the question remains. Now, what do you know for sure? What do
they know for certain? Think simple, Keith.”
“I don’t know. People are killing each other, I guess. They
haven’t really said why or how, just that it’s happening.”
That part bothered me. If it were a terrorist event, then
someone would be taking credit by now. If it were a disaster, then they would
know the cause. Not knowing information...that is when I became hooked. That is
when it became...interesting.
I looked up at the clock on the microwave. It was almost 10
AM. I really slept in late. I went and checked my cell phone. Seven missed calls?
I realized then that I still had the phone on silent from the tournament. One
call from Keith’s mom. Two
from
my parents? That was odd. Four from Ashley. Damn...I had promised to go over
early this morning. She’s probably pissed right now. I went back into the
bedroom and turned the TV on as I checked my voicemail.
“Hi, it’s Keith’s Mom. Sorry I’m home so late. Thanks for
watching him.”
All over the country
people are fighting against...
“It’s
mom. Calling to see if you’re okay. Call me back.”
Military response is
beginning to organize...
“I
need you! Now! Please hurry! Call me back!”
We have confirmed video
reports of...
“Why
aren’t you answering?! Oh good...I hope...call me back...”
Rising from the dead and
attacking...
“They’re
outside! Help me! I need you! I need to hear your voice!”
All over the world people
are coming back from the dead and killing others.
“I
love you...Mom! Look out!” There’s a crash of glass on the phone.
Stay indoors. Lock your
doors. Board up your windows. Do not go outside.
No
words on the last message...just another crash and the sound of a scream.
I
was paralyzed.
Available from Amazon.co.uk
"It's a Zombie Baby" spoof of "Call Me Maybe"
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