Chapter 4

Over the course of the next three days we didn’t leave the apartment, just stayed in and watched out the window as the brothers moved about the streets searching for us. Every now and again we heard gunfire as the dead took notice and came out making their hunger known. Trying to keep from being detected, we kept the generator off and stayed away from the windows as much as possible. it seemed like the days were lasting for hours on end and I knew we couldn’t keep this up much longer, a person can lose themselves being cooked up like this for too long.

After waking up from a nap on the fourth day I noticed Ginger sitting by the window looking out. Curious of what she was watching I grabbed a blanket and put it around her shoulders because it was cold and as per usual when we have been sleeping, she wasn’t wearing any clothing. She quickly looked at me and back out the window when I came close, alerting her to my presence. There was a strange look of confusion in her eyes that made me a bit cautious.

“What’s wrong?” I asked with little more than suspicion in my voice.

“Him” she gestured out the window, not meeting my gaze.

I looked out the window and saw a dead fuck moving around in the street in their usual jerking motions, sniffing the air and licking its lips, pressing its hands and face against shop windows like it was looking inside, searching for something.

“What about him?”

“He’s been out there for the last two days searching….and every so often he will just fall down and just lay there motionless, for hours on end. Have you ever seen that before?”

“No I haven’t. “

“Anyway, what did you dream about?”

“Oh, just the end of the world, Zombies rising from the dead, devouring the living, running around in the streets with their decaying flesh slipping from their bones, you know the usual.”

“Sounds enjoyable” I could sense the irritation in her voice at what I said.

“I’m sorry” the words seemed too taken on a life of their own, stopping the whole moment in time.

“For what?”

“You seem irritated about what I said, so I figured I would apologize”

“No, I’m not irritated about what you said; I’m just having a hard time understanding you. It’s like nothing that has happened effects you the way it should. I mean yeah you have some sense of nostalgia with the names and ID’s, but everything else just seems to be another day in the park for you. It’s like your life before the end effects you more than now. It’s like the fact that the world ended doesn’t matter to you.”

All at once it was like everything came crashing down in my mind and I stood frozen. I had never honestly thought about it before, like the switch that clicked on the “hey dumbass the world is dead now and everything you have ever known is gone forever” mentality was in the off position. This made the dreams I had been having lately make more sense.

“My dreams haven’t been about all the shit that’s been going on….they have been about my family and the world before. Sometimes in my dreams I just sit here at the window watching people moving about the streets in everyday life. I long for those days again.”

At that moment Ginger reached up and put her arms around me, holding me like some distant lover I never knew. I could feel myself begin to choke with tears, something I hadn’t felt since I was a child. This rush of emotion was beautiful and overwhelming and came to an abrupt stop when I looked up and out the window. I saw the one thing I dreaded most, the dead fuck had just moved into the building with others following from the sound of the broken glass.

“Holy fuck!” I said as I ran to the door barring it shut with a make shift lever lock.

“What happened?!” Ginger asked with fear in her eyes.

“That dead fuck you’ve been watching just broke through the glass on the bottom floor and now all of them are flooding in!”

She just stared at me frozen in fear.

“go put on some fucking cloths and grab the two packs out of the closet!” the thought that my home, the place I built for myself was being invaded caused a rage from deep inside to rise and take over. While she was getting dressed I ran to the back room where I kept the rest of my things and threw on some black BDU’S that I had collected from the old Baton Rouge police department and got dressed. I strapped on my 45 and lead rod, and collected the several guns I knew I would be able to carry, including the nasty and the big nasty. Ginger came running in and was shocked at what she saw, I hadn’t taken her in this room. It was here that I kept all the ammo and weapons and supplies that I scavenged over the last couple years. Grabbing one of the packs, I instructed her to fill her pack with clips and as much dried and canned food as she could, while I filled mine with all the ammo I could fit. When the packs were full I tossed her a couple hand guns and extra clips to carry with her and strapped the nasty (or the shotgun) to my pack. Grabbing my bat I hand her a machete and her eyes go wide.

“What the fuck john?!”

“I like to be prepared for anything!”

I head out to the front door with Ginger in tow, and ready myself to open the door.

“By the way my real name is Devon” I say with a slight smile and unlock the lever wrenching the door open. In the hall way I could already hear the crashing and moaning coming from down stairs as they tried to make their way up to us. It was evident that they could smell our scent. Running down the hallway we reached a door that held the roof access, swinging it open I rushed her in and onto the ladder. Just as she was getting out on to the roof I heard the door to the stair well burst open and the stench and moans became louder than ever. With one last look I saw the dead rushing toward me jerking around like a hard core kid at a heavy metal show. Mounting the ladder I quickly made my way up and out onto the roof and wedged the door shut with and old piece of metal. The banging had already starting as I led Ginger over to a spot on the roof where I had made a makeshift bridge spanning across to the next building.

“You can’t be fucking serious?”

“I’m extremely serious, that door won’t hold long and this bridge is our only chance of escape!”

At that moment a loud crack came from the door signaling that at any moment it was going to give way. Ginger took a deep breath and climbed up on the rickety bridge which was mostly sheet metal and aluminum ladders, and began to shimmy across it on her hands and knees. When she got to the other side I climbed up and began to hurry my way across, which was still a slower pace than I would have hoped for in a situation like this. Without looking back I heard the door crash open and saw the look in Gingers eyes. They had broken through and it was time for me to quicken my pace. I got two thirds of the way across when I felt a hand grab my ankle and knew exactly what it was. I dropped down onto my back and swung my bat not knowing where I should be swinging with the thought in my head that if I didn’t do something I was done for. I felt the crack as the bat connected with the jaw of the dead fuck who grabbed me. My mind stopped for a second as I saw the jaw falling to the ground six stories below.

“seriously?!” the words forced their way out as I kicked him in the chest knocking him off the ladder and as quick as I could, back peddled my way to the other side with Ginger. Using my weight I scooted the bridge off the edge of the building sending the rest of the dead fucks on the bridge to the ground. Safely on the next roof I made a mental note to start trying to get in better shape, more cardio is needed. I stood up and faced Ginger only to find her standing with the machete at the ready.

“Whoa! It’s alright I wasn’t bitten!” I said as I ducked missing her swing and seeing a hand fall to the ground.

“What the hell” I whispered and turned around to see a whole group of RDF’s coming out of the open door leading to our escape.

“What are we gonna do?” asked Ginger in a slightly pathetic tone.

I gripped my bat and readied myself.

“Use the machete and hit the head, no guns yet we need to make as little noise as possible, and whatever you do DON’T-GET-BITTEN!”  I say as I start swinging at the first RDF I come to, crushing its skull. Moments passed as we bashed through the small hoard sending blood and decayed flesh flying through the air, baptizing us in a sort of twisted ritual into a world of the dead. With every swing I could feel my rage intensifying, and I wasn’t sure what would happen next.

Losing myself in the battle, I didn’t notice its end, just the need to swing and cause destruction. I swung the bat intending to cause pain to everything that moved and before I realized what was happening I was swinging at Ginger. In an attempt to stop I stumbled and slipped on some poor bastards eye ball and tongue and fell flat on my back, knocking the breath right out of me. The whole world stopped as I fought to capture my breath once again and Ginger looked down at me holding my head in her arms. I tried to speak but she shushed me and spoke soft words that I couldn’t make out over the beating of my heart. Then out of nowhere I felt something gripping my foot and applying pressure.

I looked down and saw to dead hands holding it in place while a dead mouth attached to a dead face was gnawing on it. I could clearly see that it had no teeth thus it bore no threat what so ever. Intrigued by the sight, I sat in awe watching as it continued gumming my foot, fighting to quench its hunger. I was so engrossed by it that I didn’t even notice that my breath had come back. In a second’s time Ginger had scalped it with her machete and began helping me up.

“You gonna make it Lancelot?”

“Lancelot?” I could hear the sarcasm in her voice, but had no Idea what she was referring to.

“That’s what your friend called you, her dearest knight, and well…that’s what you have been for me. So I figured Lancelot, like King Arthur and the knights of the round table.”

“Hmmmm, Lancelot? I think I could handle that.”

Ending the friendly banter I grabbed my bat and her hand making our way around to the other side of the roof. There is only one way off this roof and it’s not that far of a jump. Yet with more RDF’S coming out of the roof access I figured it wouldn’t take much convincing to get ginger to jump. I jumped after her and found the gravel roof a bit of a relief, being that I had cleared this building and knew it to be safe. I came and checked it every day to make sure, since the building we were just on was filled with more RDF’S than one man could handle.

In seconds we were descending the buildings stairwell relieved to be out of the madness, even if it was only temporary. Yet with each step I couldn’t help but wonder what would be at the door when we reached it. It was an ominous feeling, but with the way things have been going the last hour it doesn’t surprise me. On the second to last floor I led her to a room that I had set up for such an occasion, stocked with dried goods and extra ammo and such. It was a place to stop for a second and catch our breath before braving the madness outside.

When we were safely in the room I had her begin to recheck our bags and I went to the window to survey the situation outside.

“Dammit, it’s like someone stirred up an ant hill out there” I say watching the dead flood the streets, sniffing the air like a wolf tracking its prey. If we were going to survive this next move we were going to have to be prepared which meant different cloths for her, especially boots after my last experience.

“Look we are gonna have to get to the police station and get you some new cloths, something with more protection than what you have on now” she silently agreed while continuing to check our packs and supplies. I could sense the fear in her movements and didn’t blame her, we were in a shitty position and getting out of it was going to be just as shitty.

“I know it’s a lot of them, but once we get to the police station I can figure it out” I say hoping the courage in my voice would be reassuring. It was then that I began to understand her fear as the roar outside became deafening.

I couldn’t believe that all this time I never heard it. The whole time we were on the roof I never thought about what consequences all that noise would bring, and now we were surrounded by a constant deafening roar which brought more of those dead fucks every second. We were being surrounded by a mass of hungry dead, which tends to make things look pretty bleak.

“How do you suggest we get there?” I could hear the transition from fear to frustration as she spoke.

“We walk” I say without thinking.

“What do you mean we walk?”

“Its something I’ve had in the back of my mind for awhile, and as crazy as it may sound it’s our only option.” She stares at me puzzled by the notion of escape, as if it is a foreign thought to her.

“What is it?” she stammers slightly taken aback.

“Ring the bells” I smile.

Chapter 3

When I wake up I quickly notice that the covers are on the floor. I mean I have heard of a cover hog but never one who simply doesn’t want anyone to have a blanket at all. Her legs are wrapped around my right leg and her arm is across my chest with her head on my shoulder. It’s a strange sight, a man in his boxers lying there with a nude woman wrapped around him. I’m sure morning wood is going to be an issue today, but for now I stay in bed enjoying the moment. This comfortable, safe moment.

Around eleven I get up, taking care not to wake her while covering her up again and go get breakfast started. After about thirty minutes I head back in and wake her up with breakfast in bed, scrambled eggs and coffee. The eggs are the fake kind, the only kind of eggs that can be found these days really, though I do keep meaning to go find some hens at some point so I can start having real ones, fake eggs get old quick. A dairy cow would be nice to because no one likes powdered milk, I don’t care who you are. I shake her a little and watch as her face goes from sluggish and sleepy to scared and confused, then to relieved.

“What’s wrong?”

“I didn’t know who you were at first, it scared me”

“Oh I’m sorry; I should have just let you wake up on your own”

“No it’s fine”

“Well here I made you some breakfast”

She sits up when I hand her the plate and the blanket slides down revealing her breast. I find it funny yet awkward that she doesn’t seem to notice. and I still find it hard to keep myself from looking so I focus my attention somewhere else.

“Where did you get the eggs?! Is this real coffee?!”

“The eggs are fake, and yeah its real coffee, the stuff that’s vacuum sealed doesn’t go bad as easily”

“Wow…..I never thought I would taste coffee again…”

“Well enjoy it, we got plenty”

I walk up to the blackout curtains and open them letting the sun warm things up. It’s safe to do so now because we don’t need the lights during the day.

After she gets through eating she takes a shower and I get ready for our excursion. I figure she could use some more cloths and we could use some extra supplies being that there are two of us here now. I get my gear together and hang in the living room until she is done. When she comes in she is shirtless in a pair of jeans wearing the locket with her head completely shaved. The head looks nice and was unexpected but the look of the cold metal of the locket lying against her chest became strangely intoxicating and I couldn’t tear my eyes away from it.

“Do you like it?”

“Huh?”

“The locket”

“Oh, yeah”

“Good, what do you think about the hair?”

“Looks nice, why the drastic change?”

“I figured most of it was gone anyway so why not”

“Hmm, makes sense”

I try not to make eye contact with her, and avoid her breast at all cost. There is nothing worse than getting caught staring at a woman’s chest.

“You haven’t been near a woman in awhile have you?”

“What?” I ask in shocked surprise.

“Well you were starring at my chest and every time I’ve been naked around you, you seem to get tense”

“Not used to it I guess”

“You can touch anytime you like, I don’t mind” she says as she moves closer to me.

“It’s ok, thanks” I stammer while grabbing my gear, trying to avoid the moment

“Fine suit yourself”

She puts on her sweat shirt and we begin to leave. The afternoon air was humid, but from growing up here I already knew that and took the necessary precautions by bringing extra water. This is the reason I usually head out on my excursions in the morning. The air is cooler and the dead fucks don’t move around as much, must be too cold for them. 

Being that it was afternoon we were not allowed the luxury of moving around in the street as freely as normal. We had to scout ahead and stick to the shadows, and use different obstructions as places to duck and hide.

After scavenging for awhile we make our way to a secluded safe spot I half found half erected in a big battle to stay alive a year earlier. I was surrounded by the dead fucks that patrolled this area like freaking Nazis in a concentration camp, and this little spot under the bridge next to the old casino boat proved to be the perfect location to hole up. One side was blocked by several cars that had tried boarding the ferry that was here in the evac attempt, but sadly they didn’t make it. Another side was water which was blocked with yet more cars and drift wood, the other was concrete. I stayed there for two days waiting for things to clear out, and eventually came back with rod iron fencing and installed it to block in the last vulnerable spot. Over the next year I took to reinforcing it for emergencies and used it as a middle point in my days where I was having these restless fits. It was here we had lunch and rested, thinking through our plans for the rest of the day and talking.

“You know chivalry is really pointless these days?”

“Huh?”

“Chivalry, being a gentleman, its pointless these days”

“What brings that up?”

“I was thinking how you reacted to my offer before we left; I mean what guy turns down a free and willing piece of ass? It doesn’t make sense to me. And you saved my life at the risk of yours, why did you do that when you could have died?”

There was a long silence before I found the words to say.

“I had a friend named Jessica who used to argue with me about chivalry, especially when I tried to carry something or open a door for her. She would always say that “she was well capable of carrying her own things and opening her own doors” until one day we really got into it, and we didn’t speak for a long time. It was a stupid reason to; all I did was lightly put my hand on her back and move her to the other side of me when we were walking through a bad neighborhood. You see I didn’t want anyone to have a chance to mess with her but she didn’t see it that way. She yelled at me and walked off leaving me there with a whole crowd of people laughing at what happened. I didn’t hear from her for years and when I did it was just a letter and a graded paper from a college in Oklahoma. The paper was on chivalry and it classified men in three groups, the pauper (a man who knows nothing of chivalry and exist only to get what he wants) the lord (a man who knows everything of chivalry but uses it to get what he wants) and the knight (a man who knows everything about chivalry and uses it out of respect for others with no thought of what he can get.) after I read the paper I read the letter and it said:

To my dearest knight,

I have made a serious mistake in thinking I knew what was in a man’s heart. I lost a great friend because I was to prideful to except help when offered. I’ve learned over time how much I miss having it around now that it is nonexistent. I am truly sorry for the things I said, thank you for the lesson learned.

With love

Your damsel in distress

“That was the last I heard from her. You see chivalry has been such a huge part of my life for so long that I can’t help but be that way.”

“Yeah but things are different now”

“The only difference is that is that back then I didn’t have a dragon to fight; now I do”

With those words I stood up and began to get my gear together, we still had one stop to make before heading back to the apartment and settling down for the night.

“You know the brotherhood will come right?”

“Let them come”

We left the safe spot and started toward the Mississippi River Bridge by way of the levee, zigzagging through debris and cars. The day wore on and the sun was unrelenting in its attack upon our backs as we climbed up to the middle of the bridge. There was a blockade set up in the center where the military tried to keep the dead from leaving the city only to find out to late that they didn’t need to breath and would eventually make it across the river.

We got to the top and crawled over to the other side of the blockade where I re spray painted a large message that read: 

Still here!

“What is that for?” ginger asked with a puzzled look.

“It’s for when my friends return”

“Your friends? What friends?”

“Derrick and Jimmie, they went to find Jimmies brother Jeremy and are searching for some supplies and weapons while looking for signs of survivors.”

“How long have they been gone?”

“Eighteen months”

“And you expect them to come back? You don’t think they’ve died?”

“No”

“How optimistic”

“You don’t know them, they won’t die so easily”

“How do you figure?”

“I’m a fat guy who has managed to survive right”

“Yeah”

“Well they are tougher and are in better shape than I am. They are trained better and are heavily equipped. The only thing they don’t have more of is determination. That’s why I’ve stayed alive so long by myself, trust me they are still alive.”

“So when they get back how will they know how to find you?”

“We have a system set up, I come and make sure this message doesn’t fade and when they come back they will paint a response, in which I will paint a time and we will meet here at that time the following day.”

“Really thought this through huh?”

“Part of the survival game I guess.”

Dong, dong, dong, dong, dong

“Five o clock, we better get going. Don’t want to get stuck out here at night.”

We crawl back to the other side of the blockade and begin our slow meticulous trek back to the apartment. I always like to leave with plenty of time before nightfall, I’ve had the great pleasure of camping out here many times and I do have to say I’ve enjoyed nightmares more than that. We made it about halfway back when I head foots steps not far behind us, and not the random chaotic footsteps that come with the dead, but the kind with purpose and intent. The kind that was alive. Quickly I grabbed Ginger and ducked away in an alley behind a car, just in time to see several men go walking by. I could hear them speaking, in a gruff harsh voice.

“I saw someone come through here, I know it!”

“You better be sure, it’s getting dark out.”

“I don’t care how dark it gets, I saw someone back here and I know it’s him!”

“How do you know it was even human?”

“I know it was!”

“Alright fine! Calm down!”

“The son of a bitch shot my brother and left him to be eaten alive by those things! Ill calm down when he’s dead!”

I couldn’t help but smile at the words, yet ginger seemed to be upset by the whole situation. I looked at her and put a hand on her shoulder and nodded my apologies. We waited there for awhile, and after checking that the coast was clear we began our trek again.                                              

                          *****************************************************

We made it back to the apartment just after dark, but being that there had been so many searching for us outside I opted to keep the generator off for the night, so as not to give any reason for our whereabouts to be made known. The moon was full that night so we ate dinner by moonlight, a lovely selection of MRE’s and grape Kool-Aid that I had found. After awhile of just sitting I took a shower and made my way to bed. It wasn’t long before I heard her in the shower and then making her way to my room once again getting undressed and climbing into bed. It was warm so the covers weren’t needed as we lay there together in the moonlight. It seemed like hours had passed when she started tracing the scars on my body with her finger.

“How did you get them?”

“Which ones?”

“All of them”

“Some of them were before everything died, mostly random stupid things from when I was a teenager, but some were from when I was in jail in Russia, while others were from when our house burnt down. The rest happened after, fighting off the dead, run INS with the brotherhood, you know the sort of thing.”

“Oh”

“You know, they caught me once?” I said after a long silence

I felt her body twitch at the words.

“Really?” her voice quivered as she said it.

“Yeah, I was out scavenging and got surrounded. They took me prisoner so to say and less than delicately brought me back to their compound. The old zoo I believe.  It was there that I was chained up and tortured, couldn’t have been but a few days though there is no real way to tell. Some of the more hard up ones came in and enjoyed having their way with me; I guess anything is good when you haven’t seen a woman in a while.” It was difficult to get the words out, difficult to keep the anger down.

“How did you get out?”

“One day during one of the “special visits” after he pissed on me, I managed to get close enough while he was attempting to fuck me and I ripped open his throat with my teeth, and kept biting until I got his Adams apple. I got the keys and unchained myself, then took his cloths and left a message on the wall in his blood before I left. It’s disgusting to admit it but I guess there comes a point where you can’t take anymore and you just lose your mind.”

“…..what did the message say?”

“What happened to this world is nothing compared to what I will do to you….”

Her eye reflected the moonlight as she starred up at me.

“You are the only one I’ve told that too”

She nodded her understanding.

“So you’re the one?”

“What do you mean?”

“When I was at the zoo, the other girls there used to talk about a man who escaped and swore revenge on the brotherhood. It was you.”

We looked at each other for awhile in silence.

“Never mind that now how is your wrist?”

“Getting better”

We had bandaged her wrist earlier that morning from where the copper wire binding cut into them. She snuggled up to me a little more and I kissed her on top of her head, I don’t know why but it just felt like the right thing to do, and after a few minutes I could feel her heavy breathing signifying that she had fallen asleep. I laid for a while watching her body move up and down with each breath, and considered what should be done next with the brotherhood roaming the streets looking for us, it wasn’t an hour before I feel asleep as well.

Chapter 2

It was 4 hours later that I woke her and led her back to the corner of 5^th and laurel. It was a smooth trip and for the most part really quiet, I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything different; it’s usually pretty quiet around this time. When we got there I showed her where the shower was and got her a towel and soap, while she argued with me about going out and getting her some cloths. Being the type of person I am, I went anyway. She soon found that once my mind is set there is really nothing that can change it.

While on my little shopping trip I took extra care to find things that I thought she would like, things that would make her look pretty and even found some perfumes and lotions I thought would make for a nice change in the way things smelled around there. I managed to find a nice supply of tampons, razors, Advil, and Midol in the pharmacy section of one store, but became entranced when I passed through the jewelry section. It had been so long since I had a woman around and even then I could rarely afford to by her something really nice. It was a risky decision since I haven’t been into any of these stores and thus didn’t know if it was clear or not, but I figured why not, it would be nice to see her smile. People don’t smile anymore, well when you find people alive.

Making my way into the store through a broken window I am sure to be as silent as possible. I didn’t have to go far before I found what I was looking for. There in the front case sat a silver heart shaped locket with rose vine engravings all over it. I knew it was perfect because as soon as I saw it I thought of her. Quickly grabbing it and a gift box I made my start for the door. I didn’t take 6 steps before I heard a very familiar crunch from behind me, they must have smelled me when I came in.

“SHIT!” I breathed as my heart and feet raced out the window, followed by a resounding wail and pounding of feet. Strangely as I ran I felt a certain sense of nostalgia remembering back in Jr high getting chased by the school bully and his friends. The only difference is that these bullies don’t feel anything but hunger and never tire. Finding a corner I take it and stoop down behind a car to get a glimpse of what I was dealing with because I wouldn’t be able to sprint the whole way back to the apartment like this. I am, of course, still a fat guy. After a few seconds I see three dead fucks round the corner sniffing the air like a dog and licking his lips. Should be easy enough to deal with, I’ve been in worse situations before and after the dead thought it a good idea to get up and eat people. Again I pull out my trusty combat knife and lead rod I keep strapped to my leg and wait for the last one to pass the car. Slowing my breathing and calming my heart rate I step out and jam my knife into the temple of the first one I come to, then cave in the skull of the second. Blood and decay splatters me as I turn just in time to be tackled to the ground by the third. Holding it at bay by its shoulders I notice the extreme stench of rot secreting from its body like the smell of road kill after several days in the hot sun.  Working my hands up to its neck I feel the skin start to tear away as my grip tightens, and finally I feel its vertebrae and as quickly as possible twist and pull till it breaks, leaving the creature hovering lifeless above me.

About thirty minutes later I arrived back at the apartment completely exhausted. When I walk through the door I find a towel wrapped ginger springing up from behind the couch with my bat and in total shock at my appearance.

“What happened?”

The words reveal how frightened she is for it is no secret what happens once you have been bitten.

“I had a run in with a few of them, no big deal”

“No big deal?!”

“I assure you I haven’t been bitten”

“Take off your cloths”

“Excuse me?”

“Take off your cloths!” she holds the bat tighter than before, a signal to let me know she means business.

“Ok fine, but you do understand that that bat holds no threat to me right?”

“Just fucking do it!”

Funny thing really, when you are fat you know your fat but sometimes you never really think about it, but when you are getting naked in front of a pretty girl you become very aware of every roll…..and scar. For a moment we stand there looking at each other, me naked and her in a towel. She eyes me up and down and walks around me to do the same. Every secret, every imperfection and hurtful thing that I have gone through is revealed at this moment, I guess If I’m going to have her around for a little while I have to become vulnerable at some point. She comes back to face me, looking into my eyes, and I drop mine.

“What happened to you?”

The words seem to shy away from my lips in an effort to keep some secrecy for myself.

“Just some things along the way, you know the whole end of the world thing.” I say letting in a slight sense of my self consciousness.

“Here” I say handing her the box with the locket in it. I forgot I was still holding it after the events that transpired.

“I made a detour and figured you might like it, I also got you some other things as well” I stoop down and hand her the bag as I pick up my cloths.

“Now if you will excuse me, I am cold and covered in decay. I need a shower”

I begin to make my way out of the room as she opens the box. I hear a slight gasp and then her voice breaking the silence.

“Wait! John…I…..I’m sorry”

I don’t turn around but just nod.

“Its fine, those things have to be done these days. I probably would have done it too”

I begin to take another step but am stopped again by her voice.

“Please John wait, just turn around and look at me”

I turn around and I don’t really know why, I figure more out of curtsey than anything else. I mean it’s not like I would be expending that much energy doing it. When I stop and look at her she let’s go and drops her towel revealing her naked form. I am a bit taken by surprise, being that no woman has ever just dropped her towel in front of me before, but also because of what I see. She has scars all over her like someone had been burning and cutting her, yet still she looked beautiful and perfect in my eyes. It was getting dark and I hadn’t turned on the generator yet so the only light was that of the fading sun reflecting off her firm skin. I noticed it really made you appreciate her curves as the light rolled across her breast and down her hips. I stood there for a moment and then walked close to her and grabbed her towel to wrap her up.

“Your still wet and can catch a cold”

“I wanted to make it even, I’m sorry to make you do that”

“It’s fine, really. I’m going to get a shower and then turn on the power so we can see and get something to eat”

                                            *************************************

Scrubbing all the death off proved to be more of a chore than expected. I didn’t mind though, it gave me time to think things through. I mean honestly I’ve known this girl for a total of like eight hours and we talk like we know each other intimately. Hell we have even seen each other naked and that usually never happens until at least the third date, well maybe longer in my case. Still the issue is that I don’t know a thing about her, and I’m not sure if it’s a good thing that I’m allowing this. I guess the need for human contact overrides my sense of security.

After a good hour of scrubbing, the stench and blood is gone. Man I remember the days when a long shower meant masturbating not scrubbing dead people from under your fingernails. I get dressed and make my way down to the soundproofed basement and cut on the generator so we can have some light. When I return ginger is in the living room on the couch in a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt I had found for her.

“I don’t know how you did it but you managed to get my exact size in everything, even my panties and bra”

“I guessed”

“Lucky guess then”

“I grew up around women and had a lot of friends that were girls. I went shopping a lot so I guess I still remember how to do it”

I head into the kitchen to find what we are going to eat tonight, probably ramen again.

“It’s weird I haven’t had underwear in over a year, I’m not used to it at all” she says as she adjust the underwire in her bra.

“You’ll get used to it again”

“Yeah I guess”

“You don’t have to wear them if you don’t want to, I just didn’t know if you would or not. It’s been awhile since I had a lady around—“

“I’m not a lady! And you know what, maybe I won’t wear them!”

I noticed a deep resignation as she said this and I watched as she began the dance that is a woman taking off her bra while still wearing her shirt. I’ve seen it many times while driving through town.

“Oh! Dammit to hell!” she spits as she wrenches off the jeans and sweatshirt removing the undergarments and then slips them back on.

“Feel better?”

“Not really”

“Then what was the point?”

“I just….I’m not a lady ok?!”

“Ok fine, ill just say that you are a member of the female species then”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I just figure what else am I supposed to say about you? I haven’t been around a lot of people in awhile, especially not a girl. I was just trying to be kind, trying to treat you better than whoever gave you those scars. Better than the brotherhood”

I saw her eyes flash at the mention of the scars.

“Chicken or beef?” I say after a few minutes.

“Huh? What?”

“What flavor ramen would you like? Chicken or beef?”

“Oh sorry, chicken please”

“Chicken it is”

I get the water boiling and grab a couple bottles of water and hand her one as we wait, and let her know its ok to take a look around the place. I did some converting when I got here and made it my own. I even rummaged through the art museum for some décor stuff like paintings and the like. I also went to the old antique shop and stocked up on vintage vinyl after coming across an old record player. When the food is done we sit down and eat, it was quiet at first but then we started talking and even laughed a little. When it was done I washed the dishes and got out some glasses and a bottle of wine, which we shared while watching Harvey, an old Jimmie Stewart movie.

“You aren’t trying to seduce me are you?”

“No, it was a habit of mine before everything died that I would have a glass of wine or two after dinner with my sister while watching an old film”

“That’s sweet” she said with a faint hint of envy.

“Yeah, I’ve tried to keep to my routine. It helps me keep my mind through all this”

“Yeah”

“Yeah”

The air seemed to grow awkward again, which I tried to combat as all men do.

“So, you want to play Xbox?”

“Sure!” she said with a laugh. We played video games into the night, laughing and joking until about 3 in the morning. I showed her to her room and went to my own and got ready to sleep. It wasn’t long before I heard a faint knock on my door and she was standing there in her sweat shirt.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, it’s just been awhile since I had a night like this, you know….safe. It meant a lot to me”

“It’s my pleasure”

“Also…..I uh……do you mind if I sleep in here with you? Night time is a scary time for me and I’d feel safer here”

“I take a moment and then answer”

“Yeah, sure come on”

She comes in and I shut the door when I turn around she had taken off her sweat shirt revealing her naked form once again. Shrugging it off I crawl into bed and she cuddles up to me and holds on as if to make sure I will never leave. We lay there till our dreams take us in to twilight revelry.

Chapter 1

Silence is deafening, always surrounding you in its never ending charade of hopelessness. Yet I find it helps remind me that I’m still alive. I was a fat guy, artsy, wrote poetry, the isolated type. Now I’m still fat, artsy, still write poetry and am involuntarily isolated. I never owned a gun in my life except for the pellet gun my parents bought for my birthday one year, and now I have several and am well versed in how to use them. Though I must say the only one that I could tell you the name of is my Glock 45, other than that it’s the big one or the big nasty or the nasty as like to call my shotgun. I think it may be a 12 gauge or something, at least that’s what the shells say. Anyway here I am stalking around the levee in downtown baton rouge in search of something, though I’m not sure what yet. I guess food would be a concept or even water or ammunition, but mostly I think I am searching for something different than being holed up in a lawyer’s office on the corner of 5^th and laurel.

It smells better here by the levee, everywhere else the stench of rot and death overpower, I like to think sometimes that it smells worse here because of all the Cajun food the people consumed before they died.

“Man what I would give for some boiled crawfish”

The words escape my lips with less ease than I had anticipated, partly because I know I won’t be having any anytime soon, but also because any sound could alert the dead fucks patrolling the area. Cautiously I crouch down behind a stone stair case, waiting for the inevitable scampering of decaying feet. But to my great relief there is none. Sitting back against the wall I pull out a Gurkha legend, not my favorite cigar but it is my brand so I’m not complaining. It so happened that I recently ventured out farther than I had been since the rise of hell, in one of my fits of restlessness as I am now, and came upon my favorite cigar shop, Churchill’s off Jefferson highway, and to my expectation I found that it was completely untouched. I guess people were more worried about canned food and water than single malt scotch, cigars and fine wine. So I grabbed what I could carry and locked the place up for later trips, after clearing out Andy, the guy who works there but knows way too much about cigars to be a freshman in college.

It’s a cold morning and the cigar and little flask of bourbon that I had lifted off Andy weeks ago help keep the chill and nerves away.

Dong, dong, dong, dong, dong, dong

“Six am” I whisper as the church bells down the road sound the moment. I’ve come to the conclusion that the dead get used to sounds if they hear it constantly, kind of like a horse when a cowboy shoots while riding. But I wonder what would happen if the bells chimed when they weren’t supposed to? Would they go ape shit like they did when it all first happened? I’ll have to test it one day, but for now on to the task at hand.

I get up and start my search again, drifting between cars moving in shadows and crouching behind poles and benches, anything to keep out of site of the dead. Yet still every time I venture out I find myself daydreaming of the day it all went to hell. I went to the theater after work as per usual when I was in a play and would catch a nap in the green room till rehearsal.  I remember waking up because I heard something and went to see what was happening, I mean it wasn’t unusual since the theater was located in a bad part of town. I stepped out into the lobby to see if I could catch a glimpse of it and was frozen in horror at what I saw, yet it only took a fraction of a second for me to realize what I was seeing. I’ve read enough zombie novels and seen enough movies not to, but there right outside the glass door was a person who worked in the building next door gnawing, not chewing, but gnawing on the hand of an elderly lady I had known to be a season ticket holder here at the theater. Blood was smeared all over the glass and I could see where her throat was missing and her eyes gouged out. Immediately I ran back to the green room to gather my thoughts and grab my phone. Without thinking I called my dad to see what was happening there but only heard the dogs yelping and loud crashes when it answered. Getting myself ready I grabbed my keys and bag and made my way to the front, stopping to pick up a bat from the props cage, and stood in front of the door with the man from next door hungrily staring at me, daring me to move like a predator does with its prey. I could feel the blood pulsing through my veins as I built myself up, I did not intend on being some dead fucks food today. With a sense of determination and long abated rage I slammed the door open knocking the man back and placed the bat between his eyes, sinking in his forehead enough that he was not getting back up, and sprinted for my car.

Immediately the scope of destruction made it clear that the tables had turned as smoke and screams filled the air, and from all sides I could see them running, like a pack of ravenous gazelles descending upon a lone lioness. Pressing the unlock button I reach for the door, wrenching it open and plowing inside. With the doors locked and engine started I hit the gas as they reach the car pounding on the glass trying to reach me, and with the crunch of what I soon saw to be a skull I thank the car Gods for SUVs’. Weaving in and out of the destruction and chaos I happen to see some fat kid racing across the a parking lot with at least three gazelles on his tail, but before I could make a move in his direction they had overrun him and were tearing out his intestines as he screamed. Fucking chubby chasers.

Clink

The noise roused me from my thoughts, and I nearly shit my pants. That’s the worst part about these fits, I tend to daydream. In the distance I see a lone RDF (really dead fuck) that’s what I call them, those who don’t die the first time you shoot them, those who met death twice so far and are due for a third and final meeting. It was a shaggy looking thing, man I’m guessing, probably the grungy stoner type who thought that life revolved around their music and “who needs food when we can play a tasty lick” kind of asshole. His foot kept hitting a can in the street which kept his attention and every time he moved toward the can he hit it, thus causing an unending cycle of clinking noises. I couldn’t have this because before I know it more would come to join the party. I’ve learned lots of new skills in the last couple of years and one of them is stealth, taking care in each step I take so as to not step on any glass or make any noise. Keeping out of sight I circle around behind him and jam my combat knife deep into his cerebral cord initiating his final meeting with death.

Some would say that I should feel bad for the poor bastard, but then again I’ve probably shot those same people in the head already. I have come to the point where I don’t care that they were once human, they aren’t anymore and they want to eat me. Enough said, plain and simple.

Rounding a corner I find a store and decide to see if there is anything of use, I open the door slowly in case there is a bell attached to let the clerk know someone has come in, the last thing I want is to make a noise. If there is one thing that has come to light in this new world it is that a sound travels for miles when nothing is left. Relieved at the lack of a bright jingling welcome I take a few cautious steps inside and find myself face to face with a stack of king sized snickers bars. Happy to have a change in the menu I grab a few and stick them in my pack before searching for other surprises such as water, lighters, jerky, and Tooth paste. The funny thing, as I have observed is that when the chaos began and people started looting no one seemed to think of dental hygiene. Which perplexes me, I mean seriously, how hard is it to grab a tube of toothpaste? Apparently quite difficult because everywhere I go there is tons of it left.

After grabbing all that I could grab, including the final issue of playboy (great articles when you are bored) I check the street outside to make sure that the coast is clear. Edging myself out the door I begin my trek toward the Louisiana state library as I have found myself craving a new book to read. I have made this trip a few times already so I know the way pretty good and feel confident in its safety, for I have already cleared it of the dead. I even stuck a couple of their heads on sticks out in front to warn the other dead that it is my domain, though I know it doesn’t matter to them. I’ve seen them trample each other to get to fresh meet before, but still it makes me feel better. Also I think it makes the other survivors uneasy, well if you can call them survivors. I’ve had a run in with a few from time to time and I have to say I think I’d rather deal with the dead fucks. These guys are just uncouth sick bastards who figure that since the world has gone to shit they can take whatever they like from whomever and do whatever they fell like doing at the time. I take pride in knowing that some of the heads in front of the library belongs to the brotherhood as they call it.

Walking up the steps of the library I smile and feel a warm sense of accomplishment as I walk by the last brother to cross paths with me and head into my domain. Over the span of two years I have managed to search through most of the books here and have read a bunch of them, but I am pretty positive that I haven’t even made a dent in the thousands here. I find comfort in a place where I am surrounded by so many words in world where words rarely exist. I take my time looking around and finally decide to reread my favorite book in the whole world, the old man and the sea. I think it is my favorite because I relate to the old man so much, what with being alone and all.

I fell asleep after reading for awhile, and rested like I haven’t rested in awhile, and woke to a terrible sound. A car horn was blowing and a woman was screaming over the roar of an engine and the woops and hollers of what sounded to be drunken crazed men. The brotherhood no doubt, but what are they doing with a woman? Rushing to the window with my rifle I look out to see a full sized truck with a snow plow attached to the front barreling through the streets dragging what seemed to be the old bed of a truck that was converted into a cage with a woman tired to the top locked inside. About 50yards behind them was a hoard of sprinting dead fucks trying everything to make their way to the noise and fresh meat in front of them. At this point I have become a bit more than agitated with the doings of the brotherhood disrupting my silence and life that I have taken to extreme measures in dealing with them. Opening the window I take sight with my rifle and take a deep breath, squeeze the trigger and the front left tire explodes while making a turn causing the truck to tumble down the road breaking free from the trailer (an action that I had not anticipated) causing it to speed off toward the library.

“Damn, I don’t think Sherlock Holmes could have done better” I say to myself taking sight again searching for the brothers driving the truck. I see them crawling out and starting to run down the street away from the horde heading their direction. I put a bullet through a knee dropping the one and send another bullet through the gut of the other making sure that dinner will be good for the dead of Baton Rouge tonight. I drop the rifle and start searching for where the girl ended up and notice her not far below where my window is, screaming.

“Hey! Stop screaming or I’ll shoot you to!” the threat is more to make sure she shuts up than anything and it does the trick.

“Who are you?” she whimpers so quietly I could barely hear her up here.

“The names Daniel, and didn’t I say shut up or I’d shoot you?!”

“Ok but hurry, they are coming back this way!”

“Stupid women” I think as I run to my pack thinking, always causing trouble, or at least that is how it has been since I first noticed they had different parts than me. Which is why I stayed isolated most of the time, but man I could really use some company these days, I haven’t seen anyone but dead fucks and the brotherhood since Jimmie and derrick left. And that has been a long time.

Finally I find what I’m searching for and run to the stairs leading to the roof. My natural instinct says to go left but I go right knowing that my instincts aren’t always the best. I was never a boy scout. When I get to the edge I light the fuse on a homemade pipe bomb and toss it on to the stoop of a building as far away as my unathletic arm would let me. After a few seconds I hear the explosion and feel the debris flying even all the way up here.

“Hell of a bomb Jimmie” I say remembering the day we made our way into the home depot searching supplies. That was the thing about Jimmie, I thought as I ran back down to the window, he and his brother were always good at destruction when it was needed. I just hope they are all ok and that they found Jeremy.

Getting back to the window I take a look out to assess the situation and see that it is all clear except for one RDF, so I grab my pack and make my way down and out to the girl. Rounding the corner I pull out my combat knife and jam it into the stiffs eye as I run by, making a mental note to put his head on a stick when everything is clear. Getting to the cage I begin to search for the door and lock but soon realize neither exists.

“How did they get this damn thing on here?!”

“They just tack welded it on with me in here!”

“Seriously?! Shit! Ok hold on, I’m gonna try something!” the words were already gone as I ran back a little ways in order to build speed and took off at a sprint and threw myself into the cage. To my surprise it didn’t even budge. The only thing that accomplished was a throbbing shoulder and headache.

“What the hell are you doing?!”

“Trying to get you out of there before those dead fucks get back here!”

“Well here’s an Idea, how about cutting me loose and letting down the tail gate so I can crawl out!”

She says the words and I can’t help but stop and think about what she was saying, “Man I really need to think clearer in these situations” I say to myself. Pulling out my combat knife I climb up on the bed and begin cutting her loose. They had tied her up with copper wire and it had cut into her wrist. Poor girl, there’s no telling what all else those dirty sons of bitches did to her.

After cutting her down I open the tail gate and help her out, then start our run back to the library as the smell of rot starts the escalate signifying the end of the first course. I can hear their footsteps as I pull her along running and running like every time before, I just hope this time is different, cause to be honest I could really, really use the company. We reach the doors and I wrench them open just enough for us to slip in, but before she can take one step in a hand grabs her by the hair and yanks her back. Without thinking I grab her around the waist and yank her into the building dragging the DF with her slamming the door into a locking position and in one motion pull out my knife once more and cut her hair free from the hand. I dropped down on top on the thing that was once human and started jamming the knife in and out of his eyes with a sudden fury and rage that I had not felt in years. I only stopped when I felt a hand on my shoulder that seemed to close to affection to be anything hostile. It was then and only then that I realized what I had done.

Sitting up I began to look through his ratted jeans for some form of Identification and found his wallet. Jonathan Riley was his name, poor bastard. I take the ID out and stick it to a wall covered in ID’S. It seems to be getting larger and larger as time goes on, but I just can’t help doing it. I think it’s what keeps me going, the thought that humanity once existed in so many instead of the few people who aren’t dead. So every time I kill one I take the ID, if they have one and put it up on the wall and take that person’s name for awhile. Kind of my way of honoring the dead and keeping some form of meaning in this shit hole called life. I do have to say though, the wall is getting crowded.

“What are you doing?” the question startles me out of my thought and I feel my face flush like I’ve just been caught doing something I shouldn’t, like when your mom walks in and catches you masturbating.

“Huh?”

“What are you doing?”

“Oh, just something I started doing after awhile, helps me remember the world we once had before everything happened. Gets me through the days you know.”

“Ah I see”

I could hear the curiosity in her voice but only resigned to give her what she needed to know about me for now.

“Sorry about the hair” I say in a sheepish tone

“Eh, it’s just hair. I’d rather lose it that my neck”

“Yeah”

She had what seemed to be beautiful hair, but from the looks of the way she had been treated by the brotherhood it had been greatly neglected and all I did was finish it off. I think it used to be auburn but I’m not sure, it doesn’t really matter anymore though.

“You know, I’m getting kind of nervous with you just staring at me like that. It’s making me feel self conscious”

“Oh, sorry, I was just thinking”

“And what were you thinking?”

“That I will call you ginger since it looks like you used to have red hair”

“Well I did, but why ginger?”

“It’s what we used to call red heads when I was growing up”

“Hmmm, ginger? I think I can live with that” I nod in response

“And do I just call you Daniel?”

“No, call me John for now”

“I thought your name was Daniel?”

“It was, it’s kind of a complicated thing to explain, too much for now anyway” I say this as I walk up to the window and survey the situation.

“Oh, well maybe later. So what are we gonna do now?”

I think she changed the subject for my benefit more than her curiosity.

“Well I figure we will give it a few hours and let them clear out then make our way to my apartment”

“Your apartment? You have an apartment still?”

“Yeah, well it’s an old lawyer’s office but it was set up like an apartment, running water, shower, toilette, ECT. I figure we could rest here and make our way back there and you can get cleaned up and relax while I go out and find you some cloths”

“A….real shower?” her eyes seemed to tear up as she said it, like it meant so much to her.

“Yeah a real shower, I’ve got a nice set up there. I think you will like it. Maybe we can play some video games when I get back with your cloths”

She seemed so surprised with how nonchalant I was about it all.

“Look, why don’t you get some rest and I’ll keep a look out. I’ll wake you up when we can leave, ok?”

I showed her where the more comfortable couches were and gave her a blanket to sleep with, then went and sat by the window getting back to my way of things.

Torn apart

Lost to the tides

Before I start

And all the words

Hollow now

Softly spoken

Quickly drown

It becomes harder

Every day

Searching for something

I cannot say

I begin my decent

Slipping away

Falling apart

In everyway

Devoid of reason

Terribly unseen

I hide away

Inside my dreams

And though forged in lies

This part I play

Becomes the life

I live each day

Feast upon the life within

I will see the things you’ve hidden

Coursing through your veins and skin

You were just a worthless liar

Passing through this masquerade

Now I’ve set your bones on fire

Watching till the coals all fade

I have seen your lips so shallow

Speaking words of careless thought

I have seen your forked tongue gallows

Destroying all the dreams I’ve wrought

I will bring to life your fears

Lavished in your screams at night

Consuming all your selfish tears

Falling from your soul torn fright

I am here to speak the truth

Of who you are when you’re alone

I will tell your tale of youth

And all the things you’ve done wrong

I will reply with hang mans noose

For every word that you have cried

This is the blight that you will lose

For I am you and you have died

In the ring masters façade

For your fears won’t soon be abated

For through your eyes

You will realize

The sheer terror of what you’ve created

When sinew and bone

Break and atone

For all your curses and hatred

In the circus we’ll play

With you on display

Before all those you have berated

And soon we will move

When nothing can prove

These words were ever stated

For under the big top

Your horror won’t stop

For this is the future you’ve slated

I don’t know what I should do

I just want to stitch my eyes shut

So I don’t have to look at you

Won’t someone simply listen

To the words I cry at night

Someone who will come and save me

From the terror and the fright

I’ve become a fading vision

Careless in my imagery

Reaching out I embrace this

Failing form of surgery

So please let this be a moment

Of terrifying epiphany

Let go your heart and sow my mouth shut

So I can finally live in peace

The funeral procession plays the death tune

Signifying all is lost

I am carried to this grave yard

Buried beneath the saviors cross

Trying desperately to scream out

Scratching down my fingernails

Locked inside this fucking coffin

Condemned to a living hell

Suddenly the lights are no more

Darkness of the killing kind

Silence is the predecessor

Of the death inside my mind

Alone I am revealed

Life unsaturated and pure

Begging not to feel

Locked inside this riddle

Storming inside my head

Carless, cold, and brittle

The things I should have said

Scared of what’s to come

How much can I take

Feeling all but numb

Every second I’m awake

Words become a whisper

Always so unclear

Rising like a blister

Then suddenly disappear

Your face a living nightmare

Connected to my heart

Life can be so unfair

But fuck it; it’s time I fall apart

Lost to the world on the cold dead ground

A split reality scared of the sound

I think ill breath in and drown

It’s been but a moment yet I’m still sane

An aneurism caused by the strain

This victim of the lower class stain

Wait, I guess I am insane

I saw the sky in rainbow hue

And danced a dance only for you

An lsd dream comes true

What else is there to do

But watch your lips move in stuttered motion

An act of the simplest notion

Revealing all the worlds commotion

I think I’ll just swim in your ocean