Anno Zombus Year 1 (Book 2): February (6 page)
“We can't be sure of anything. We can hope that they are decent people, or at the very least remember how to behave like it, and that they appreciate the road being cleared for them. Or else, we'll have to kill them, simple as that.” The Colonel said, in a matter of fact tone. “We disarm them when they arrive, watch them for a couple of days, kind of a probation we can call it. Anyone that refuses to disarm can go back the way they came.”
“Anyone who wants to live here has to live by our rules,” The Twin said. “We just have to agree what those rules are, I suppose.” There was general agreement to that statement. “Obviously the old rules of society no longer apply, not now, but if we're talking about starting a new society, which we are, really, we need some set of rules.”
We decided on a few simple, yet classic, rules. No stealing, raping, killing, eating people alive, that sort of thing. All the basics now covered, we had to work out a form of punishment. The Colonel said one word. “Exile.” That suited us fine. Anyone who fucks up has to deal with it by spending the rest of their probably-now-very-short lives outside in the wide world, where the Dead roam. That should be deterrent enough, in my opinion, at least.
We also agreed that tomorrow we would spend some time engaging in some target practice against the Dead, as other than Redbeard, the newcomers had little experience. The Children needed some real world experience, as did Auntie. The Twin needed more familiarity with her other weapons, she admitted readily enough, though she appeared loath to use anything other than her new bow. The Colonel had spent some time helping The Girl learn how to shoot, apparently, though where she had found the time I have no idea, and now she was a fair aim.
Tomorrow is going to be an interesting day, at least. Checking the satellite images before heading off to bed we noticed that the first group had found the roadway leading up to the facility. They could begin their ascent first thing in the morning, but if they are smart enough they will send out a scout or two first. There was still the matter of the horde between us, however. There were no vehicles in the tiny carpark area, as most people would arrive by helicopter, so there was little chance of punching through the Dead ranks to get to them. The Colonel was bound to have some ideas, I'll have to remember to ask her first thing.
February 10th Year 1 A.Z.
morning
The flames had moved on down the line of Dead once more, yet several hundred at least stood between us and the group hoping to find shelter. The snow had abated, leaving the air crisp and cool, as long as you didn't get too close to a flaming Dead one, that is. On the big screen in the main computer lab, we saw the new group waiting for something. A small group of Dead were nearly upon them, and attacked as we watched from high above.
I was all over fairly swiftly, as after six weeks of survival you get pretty good at killing the Dead. One of the newcomers moved slowly up the road, clearly scouting the way ahead, while the others remained behind. The scout returned back to his position before much longer. They spent some time discussing the matter at hand, then they turned to the dead Dead lying around them. It was difficult to see what exactly it was they were doing, but before much longer, the thermal images of the group moved up the road. There were seven of them, at least for now there were seven of them. By the time they reached the compound there would be a few less, if any reached us at all.
The Colonel insisted that we try to do whatever we could to get them up here safely, and we made for the surface, heading immediately to the helipad to get a good look at everything. The Twin could see the seven newcomers through the scope of her sniper rifle, though she said the only reason she could tell they were the new group was by their movements alone. She told us that it looked as though they had covered themselves in Dead glorp as a disguise. The Colonel admitted that, since all evidence pointed to the Dead hunting by scent and sound rather than vision, it was a damned good idea. As long as they don't move too quickly, and the weather stays relatively clear. She suggested that we should go to the gates, maybe make ready a welcome for our new guests, something that will keep the Dead off their backs. Telling The Twin to cap a Dead one near us when the group of Living draws near, The Colonel, Apocalypse Girl, Redbeard, Smart Guy and I headed down the stairs.
noon
The Dead had swamped the gate once again, not quite to the point where they can simply walk into the compound, but that would not have been far off had we not arrived when we did. The Colonel flamed up those Dead who were at the fore, then we moved away from the fires to discuss our next move while the Dead burned. Apocalypse Girl pointed out a ledge along one side of the road where one or two of us could theoretically make our way down the line a little, maybe give the approaching group a hand up and quickly fuck off back to the compound. Redbeard volunteered, and I offered to go with him, thinking that my sword could prove useful.
Getting up there proved hairy enough, as we passed within reach of multiple Dead arms, many of which burned fiercely, but once we were up there their talons could no longer reach us. The downside, other than the rank odour, was that there was barely room enough for us to sidle along for the first twenty metres or so, after which it widened considerably. We were able to make good, swift progress down the side of the road, and saw the group cunningly weaving smoothly in and out from between Dead, covered in gore and slime, an instant before a Dead head near Redbeard exploded, showering his boots in rotting brains. The survivors saw this, and then us, moving slowly in our direction.
Redbeard open up on the Dead nearest us with his dual .45s, giving me an opportunity to leap into the fray, katana drawn and at the ready. I cleared a swathe through the Dead, giving the new arrivals a chance to run past me and scramble up to where Redbeard waited, guns in hand. The seven passed me, the last one patting me gratefully on the shoulder, leaving a reddish-brown smear of stench-ridden muck behind. I cut down several more Dead, then almost flew back up to the relative safety of the ledge. Redbeard was reloading, the survivors already running past him, the ones in front already almost at the narrow part. I wiped the blood and brains from my sword onto my shirt, after all it needed a wash now anyway, then sheathed it, before following as Redbeard unloaded his fresh clips into the Dead, more for fun than for any real effect.
I knew the leading survivor of the new group was nearing the gate when I heard a barrage of gunfire open up, and the Dead knew there was food nearby because of it too. They surged forward, and Redbeard opened up once more with his twin pistols, attempting to distract at least the Dead closest to us. I pulled my .45 out and joined him, blasting Dead heads to spatterings of flesh and bone and brains. Shoot a couple of Dead, take a couple of steps became my world until, at long last, I stepped down to the bitumen of the compound. The Colonel insisted that the new arrivals remove their outer garments, at the very least, and anything that had been overly soiled by their deception, so that they could be burned. One of them, a feisty young red-headed woman, pointed out they would freeze without clothes, Dead-glorp or no Dead-glorp. I assured them all that there was ample clothing inside, but they might want to take anything out of their pockets that they intended to keep. One guy pulled out his wallet, took a photo from within, then they all proceeded to strip to their underclothes, after which The Colonel marched them all inside. Apocalypse Girl asked them to leave their weapons near the entrance, which they did willingly, though the red-headed girl bitched about it. No guns to speak of, a couple of cricket bats, an iron bar, a crowbar and a sledgehammer, plus a pocket knife so mangled and covered with Dead gore that the owner simply shrugged and flung it away.
evening
We ate together, the new group, having freshly showered, shaved and wearing new clean clothes, more than grateful for the meal, our facilities and most of all, saving their arses out there. The Colonel asked them how they had survived so long, apparently they had come from a small mining town not too far to the east of our position, the groups leader and two of his workmates having spent the last few years unearthing gold from the ground. The way his two former colleagues deferred to him gave me the impression that he had possibly been their foreman. Since it had been a bit of a tourist spot they also had in their group the local gift shops owner, and a pair of tourists from Japan, a young married couple, who had come to Australia for their honeymoon, whose English had improved rapidly in the time they had been running from the Dead. The six of them had left the mining town at the same time, though separately, meeting up with one another's groups a couple of klicks out of town.
They had only met the red-headed girl a little over a week ago, the Firecracker had been on her own the entire time. The iron bar and pocket knife had belonged to her, and she had used them to wicked effect. She had figured out early on that the best way to hide from the Dead was to disguise yourself as one of them. Naturally she discovered that she had to 'change costumes' after the rains had come, but by that time she had found some shelter, enough to keep her warm and dry at least. By the time the others had arrived at her location, an upscale truck stop that had been abandoned by Living and Dead alike, she had eaten all of the available food, and was nearly dead from malnutrition. The Japanese man, amazingly enough, was a doctor, his wife a nurse, and though they spoke little English they were easily able to help Firecracker regain her health, though at their first encounter they had thought her one of the Dead, at least until she spoke.
Almost as soon as they had finished their tale, Doctor and Nurse, Firecracker, Foreman, Prospector and Miner, and Gift Shop Girl departed for their suites, citing extreme exhaustion. The Colonel, after they had left, suggested that they seemed alright, but that it would still be a good idea to keep an eye on them, at least for a day or two. Unanimously, we agreed, then retired to our own beds. Not too sure about the rest of our crew, but I sure as fuck am totally exhausted myself!
February 11th Year 1 A.Z.
morning
In gratitude for saving their collective bacon, the new arrivals soon began contributing to our communal welfare. Doctor and Nurse were in awe at the sophisticated medical facilities available, Gift Shop Girl was more than willing to help Auntie with the cooking, not to mention looking after The Children. The trio of miners offered to take turns with The Twin, Redbeard and myself at guarding the compound from the Dead, and Firecracker...well, mostly she kept to herself. Doctor had told me that she had been that way since they had met up with her, but then she had been alone since the very beginning. The Colonel took it upon herself to keep an eye on her, in case she proves some kind of threat.
After breakfast I sat with Smart Girl and Apocalypse Girl in the smaller computer lab. We watched as the three remaining groups of survivors drew ever nearer to our position, the masses of Dead swarming about, dangerously near the Living, yet not quite getting their scent. These remaining three groups clearly had their own methods of survival, or disguise perhaps, something to mask their scent, as the groups of Dead seemed far too close for any of them to hope to survive much longer.
“Fuck me sideways,” Firecracker announced herself, as she entered the lab. “Is that seriously what was out there after us?” She almost shoved Smart Girl out of the way to get a better look at the screen. “Those red ones, they're more survivors, yeah?” Smart Girl nodded, readjusting her glasses as she glared at Firecracker, unnoticed. “I'd say they're screwed, looking at this, but fuck that's probably what you thought about us, too.”
Apocalypse Girl said she had pretty much summed it up nicely, but that we had to help her group, and we have to help these ones as well. Firecracker pointed out that they might not be as nice as her group, she had seen and heard things while she was alone. Apocalypse Girl nodded, telling her about the group that had fired on us for no goddamn reason on the road, and the bandits from the prison that had attacked our nice safe little commune in the middle of fucking nowhere. We knew all about how nasty some survivors could get, but we owed it to humanity, what remained of it, to band together and Live for as long as we possibly could. “As long as one Living human remains on this planet, we are saying 'Fuck you!' to the Dead.” Firecracker turned to Apocalypse Girl, grinned at her broadly, then swung her attention back to the screen.
“Is there anything we can actually
do
with this thing, or is it just a display?” She asked of Smart Girl, who replied that she wasn't entirely certain, but that it appeared to be a simple display. Firecracker nodded, her brow furrowing in intense concentration. “We can't contact them, but we can still help them, at least. Means sending an armed group out, of course, but they're not gonna get here for at least another couple of days. How are we for guns in this place?” Apocalypse Girl just smiled, showing her teeth in an evil grin. “Okay, then. We have weapons...we certainly have an awesome defensive position here. We need to clear the road completely.”
