Zombies (11 page)

“So that was where the professor put them.  I wish I had known it,” said Michael. 

Without warning Angelica pushed him to the ground while swinging her fist.  Startled at first, he soon realized why she had done that.  “Run Michael!” 

Chapter 9

Scrambling to his feet,
Michael prepared to battle the creature standing before them.  “I said run!” Angelica yelled again.  This time he did as he was told.  However, he couldn’t leave his friend to fight the beast alone.  Taking one last look, he noticed it had the appearance of a human, but none of the other characteristics.  While she was landing powerful blows to the head, nothing subdued the creature.  The frightening growling noise followed him inside the cabin. 

Michael
grabbed the gun; and then after having second thoughts, he picked up the sword before rushing back to the scene unfolding outside.  As quickly as possible, he ran upon the creature with a sword drawn.  With one swoop, he decapitated the opponent.  He watched as the severed head rolled across the ground with eyes wide open.  Feeling good about his accomplishment, he reached out his hand to assist his companion from the ground.  However, the weird sound behind him caused the boy to turn around.  He froze while turning white as a sheet.  Soon he realized those sounds were being emitted from the severed head.

“Don’t let it bite you!” yelled Angelica.

“What in the heck is going on?  You can’t kill those things?” shouted Michael, quickly firing the weapon.  The bullet lodged in its brain, and the eyes closed as the teeth snapped together for the last time.

“You have to attack the brain, remember?” asked Angelica, raking her hands over her arms.

“Did it bite you?”

“No, I don’t think so,” replied Angelica, checking her
skin.

“That thing could have killed you
.  Even worse, you could have become infected,” said Michael.

“Well at least you listened to that part, but you need to remember to go for the brain.  That is the only
surefire way to kill them.  If they infect you, then you will become one of them,” said Angelica.

“I remember, but what are we going to do with this thing?”
nodding toward the remains of the creature.

“Leave
it.  We can’t take a chance on becoming contaminated.  But, this is not good.  There may be others,” said Angelica, staring into the nearby woods.

“Shouldn’t we drag it away from the stream?  What if the water becomes contaminated?”

“I hadn’t thought of that.  Let me do it in case something goes wrong,” said Angelica.

“We are in this together
, remember?  Besides, I don’t want to be left in the world all alone; and if you were to become contaminated, I couldn’t kill you anyway.” 

She stared at her companion all starry
-eyed.  “That is the nicest thing you have ever said to me.  There may be hope for you yet,” said Angelica. 

As they stared at the lifeless corpse, Michael decided to go for the head first
, since that would be the most difficult part of the task.  Bending down to take the creature by the hair, he was in for a big surprise.  The eyes popped wide open, sending him backwards and knocking his companion to the ground in the process.  They both lay there closely examining the severed head.  “It’s dead.  That is just the reflexes.”

“Are you certain?” asked Michael, slowly approaching the
grotesque sight.

“Yes,
just grab hold of its hair, and toss it into that ravine.”  Noticing Michael’s reluctance to take it, she asked, “Do you want me to do it?”

“Don’t rush me
!  I will do it,” said Michael, cautiously approaching the hideous object.

“Well hurry up
!  I’m still hungry.”

“How can you think of food
at a time like this?” asked Michael.  Garnering his courage, he lifted the head once again.  While staring into the cold harsh eyes, the mouth opened and shut like a steel trap.  That was enough to convince Michael to hurriedly toss the head into the ravine and make a run for the cabin.

As he hightailed it to the cabin, Angelica yelled,
“Where are you going?  We are not finished yet.”

“I have to
cook dinner, remember?” 

Exasperated but with no other choice,
Angelica reached for the feet and began dragging the corpse to the side of the trail.  With a forceful shove, the remainder of the body rolled into the valley below, opposite the stream on the other side of the trail.  Dusting off her hands, the proud young lady walked toward the cabin.  However, a loud noise from deep in the valley below sent her scrambling for shelter. 

She enter
ed the cabin to find her companion hard at work.  Noticing her being out of breath, Michael commented.  “Are you okay?”

“Yes, why do you ask?”

“You are as white as a sheet,” said Michael.

“That’s the color I have always been
, and you know it.”  He laughed at her, thinking that disposing of the corpse must have been quite an experience.  Now that he had time to think about it, he felt badly about abandoning her in such a terrible crisis.  But, he felt much better after his friend offered a compliment.  “That smells great.  What is it?” asked Angelica.

“This
, my friend, is Michael’s famous chili.”

“Where did you get all the stuff to make chili?”  When he held up the can
, she realized where it had come from.  “Well I must say it smells good.”

“That is because we haven’t eaten all day long.  Valiant warriors like us need food and lots of it,” said Michael
, bending his arm in such a way as to expose the muscles in his biceps.

“
Unfortunately we may not be quite as valiant as we once were,” said Angelica in a somewhat disappointed manner.

“Oh, why do you say that?”

“I don’t have the same skills as before.  Now the battle is of this world, and we are on equal ground with humans,” said Angelica. 

Overcoming the anxious moment, Michael
decided he should offer words of encouragement.  “We can do this and maybe one day you will get those wings.  When you do, make sure you don’t forget me.”

“I perceive where
ver I go, you will be right there with me,” said Angelica. 

Unsure
of how to take that comment, Michael dropped the matter and offered her food.  “It’s ready.  Help yourself.” 

After dipping a healthy portion from the boiler, she stared at the rest.
  “Did I leave enough for you?”

“There is plenty
.  Have a seat and I will join you.”

“I hate to admit it
, but that headless corpse is still entrenched on my mind,” said Angelica.

“Some warrior you are,” teased Michael.  However, the thoughts of that grotesque sight weighed heavily on him as well. 
He paused while staring at the bowl of chili.  Picking up his spoon, he stirred the contents of the bowl as if to cool the ingredients.  But no matter how hard he tried, he was unable to bring the utensil to his mouth. 

“See
. I told you pride goes before the fall.  It’s not so easy to keep from losing your appetite, is it?” asked Angelica.  The brave young man pushed those thoughts aside and was determined to show her he could stomach it.  That was before she spoke again and shot down his ego.  “Well, it could have been worse.  Sure glad you didn’t fix spaghetti.” 

Turning
white as a sheet and being unable to eat, the boy stared directly into the eyes of his companion who was already eating while fighting off the urge to laugh.  “Very funny.  You just wanted my portion too, didn’t you?  Well you are not winning this battle because I’m hungry,” said Michael, filling his mouth.  Surprisingly the taste of food caused him to forget about the ugly sight of the headless zombie.  Quietness followed as they consumed the bowl of chili in record time.  However, it didn’t end there.  When his spoon echoed as it hit the empty bowl, Michael replied, “I’m still hungry.”

“You are a guy
.  Guys are always hungry,” teased Angelica.

“What is it with you cracking jokes today?  Until now
, you always seemed so serious,” said Michael.

“I have changed
, Michael.  Have you not been listening to me?”

“Yes, but does that affect everything about you?  I would have thought your personality was pretty well set by now,” said Michael
.  After thinking for a moment, he asked, “By the way, how old are you?”

“Michael, you should know by now it’
s not polite to ask a woman her age.”

“Yes, but you are definitely from another world.  How does that equate in human years?”

“If you are asking whether or not I am too old for you, it depends.”

“Oh, I remember now.  It depends upon whether or not we fall in love, right?” asked Michael.

“That too, but it hinges on whether or not you can manage to grow up a bit.  Until now, you were way too immature for me,” said Angelica.

“Well I have already saved you from the demons.  You said so yourself.”

“Yes, but that was with a lot of help from me.  I can’t grant you those powers anymore.  So now, big guy, you have to prove yourself.”

“I can do this.  If I do
, will that make me old enough for you?”

“What difference does it make what I say right now
?  We just met and neither of us should be thinking of such personal matters.  Let’s see if we can master the battle against the zombies,” said Angelica.

“But, you don’t understand men at all.  If I have a reason for fighting, it will be much easier to be courageous.”
 

She wasn’t buying it.
  “You had better fight to save your own butt,” said Angelica. 

He considered all she had said and realized he wasn’t any closer than before to building
the relationship he wanted with the beautiful girl.  However, he wasn’t about to abandon the idea.  She was very attractive and now that she wasn’t an angel, he just might have a chance with developing an intimate relationship with her.  Those thoughts caused his eyes to wander, and his companion picked up on it.

“
There you go again,” complained Angelica.

“What
?  I’m a guy.  You said so yourself.”  He thought for a moment and provided a prediction.  “One day you will want me, and then it may be too late.”

“Why?  Are you expecting to be ea
ten by zombies?” asked Angelica, laughingly.

“Very funny.  No
, actually I may find someone that will appreciate me,” said Michael.  When she failed to reply, Michael turned his attention toward cleaning the table to prepare for more planning.  There must be a cure for the parasite that was attacking the brain of humans.  Then again, he wasn’t certain if there would even be an epidemic.  At the moment he was reminded of the news on the internet, that thought was immediately shot down.  “You were right.  They have no idea what is going on; and by the time they figure it out, the epidemic will be out of control,” said Michael.

“This is progressing much faster than I had expected.  We may be forced to seek a more secluded location,” said Angelica.

“We are already in the boonies.  What could top this?”

“Anywhere away from people,” replied Angelica.

“We can’t abandon everyone like that.  Others will need us,” said Michael. 

Being somewhat surprised and pleased at the same time, his companion decided to pay him a compliment.
  “I am impressed, Michael.  There may be hope for you yet.”

“So now you want me?”
asked Michael.

“No, I don’t want you in the way you think, but I find it commendable that you are now thinking of others,” said Angelica.
 

That
statement gave him a great idea, but he must not let on.  Suddenly he decided to put the plan into action.  Seeing it was already dark outside, he perceived it just might work.  “Stay here,” said Michael, grabbing the sword.

“What
’s wrong?  Do you hear something?”

“Lock the door behind me,” said Michael
, leaving in a rush.

“Don’t you need this?” asked Angelica
, holding up the 9mm sig.  However, Michael was already gone, so she considered locking the door before realizing her friend would need to get back in.  While she was pondering those thoughts, a loud noise could be heard off in the distance.  It was Michael and he could be in trouble. 

Examining the gun and then eyeing the sword, the brave girl finally decided on a sword as the weapon of choice.  With her back to the door, she had not noticed the intruder. 
Suddenly she got a glimpse of the reflection in the window.  It was Michael or so she thought.  However, when she wheeled around prepared to embrace the brave young man, she was startled by what stood before her.  That must have been the ugliest creature she had even seen.  The eyes were the most disturbing of all, yet the expression on its face was enough to cause panic among the bravest of warriors.  Grasping the sword firmly, she prepared to aim for the head. 

Before she could deliver the fatal blow, the creature had company.  Now
facing half dozen zombies with blood dripping down their cheeks, Angelica prepared to fight.  Yet, it was hopeless unless she could come up with a better plan.  Since the intruders stood between her and the door, she considered escaping through the window.  Knowing that was a bad idea and likely to end in disaster, she drew back the sword.  Thinking she could possibly take out two of the creatures before being eaten alive, tears began gathering in the corner of her eyes.