She started moving slowly down the road. She couldn't go too fast because there was abandoned vehicles and other debris in the road. A few blocks down was a store called Beretta Factory. They specialized in guns and ammo and the like. Having decided that this would be a good place to stop, she headed that way.
What would normally have been a short trip took twice as long. The Infected followed Katie's Jeep down the road pushing and pulling on it, trying to get to the tasty little morsel inside. As Katie approached the gun shop, she saw a mob of the Infected. They were surrounding a white mini van, which rocked precariously back and forth. Several of the Infected which had been trying to get into Katie's Jeep wandered off in the direction of the mini van.
Katie cut the engine, sitting there for a moment as she decided on her game plan. After about five minutes, all but two of the Infecteds had made their way over to the mini van. The two that remained were banging blindly on the driver's side of the car. She opened the passenger door as quietly as she could and slipped out carefully closing the door behind her. She looked around, the two closet to Katie were still banging and drooling on the driver's side of the car.
She started out in the direction of the Beretta Factory ducking low to stay out of view behind the cars. When she got to the front of the store she realized that the front was enclosed by a brick fence with a wrought iron gate. Now what? About one hundred feet down the road the dumpster rested up against the brick wall. Katie took a look around, one of the things had begun to shuffle in her direction, but she figured she was still good. She ran to the dumpster. The lid was down, so she threw her bags on top and started to boost herself up. Once on top of the dumpster she peeked over too the other side. It was about a ten foot drop into some bushes on the opposite side. Katie tossed her bags into the bushed below and jumped down herself.
Crossing the small courtyard, Katie noticed the front door was slightly ajar. She took out her gun as she started up the steps. The lights were bright, she could hear static from a TV coming from somewhere in the back. She started towards the display cases. The glass cases were locked. Are you kidding me right now? Using the butt of her gun she broke the glass out of the cabinet. "I'm sure no one will mind...." Katie said aloud to no one in particular. She chose a handgun with a scope and silencer and a shotgun along with as much ammo as she could carry.
In the outdoors section Katie was able to find a machete, a flare gun, binoculars, glow sticks and a hunting knife.
Now how was she going to get out of New York?
On the way out Katie found the button to release the front gate so she wouldn't have to jump the fence again. All of the Infecteds were now climbing all over the van. It appears that they had gotten inside and blood now splattered the windshield. Katie ran back to her Jeep and got back inside. She quickly pulled off and headed towards the George Washington Bridge.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Chapter 2
There were abandoned cars all over the road, bodies lay all about and she saw several corpses staggering around. There were several people looting the Zales on the corner.
"Amazing! There are people dieing all over the place and these sonofabitches have time to loot Zales!" Tiffany commented.
"Human greed never ceases to amaze me." replied Katie.
They pulled over in front of Katie's building. Katie used her key card to get them inside the outer doors. The lobby was deserted and they headed straight for the elevator.
"I don't feel so good..." mumbled Tiffany, she then vomited all over the floor. She really wasn't looking good at all.
"Oh my God! You're burning up!" Tiffany just moaned in response. "Come on lets get you fixed up."
They got off on the fifth floor. Once inside Katie's apartment with the door securely locked, she helped Tiffany to the couch.
"Let's take a look at that arm." Katie gently took Tiffany's arm. Her arm looked horrible, the flesh where Tiffany had been bitten was torn and discolored. It was pretty swollen but at least the bleeding wasn't too bad anymore. It was the meaty part of the forearm. Katie cleaned the bite the best she could and bandaged it up. She gave her something for the fever and pain and helped her run a cool bath to help with the fever.
While Tiffany was in the bath, Katie turned on the TV and sat down to see if there was any new info. The reporter on the screen was saying "It seems the outbreak has spread rapidly worldwide. The Infected start to feel ill in a matter of hours and deteriorate rapidly from there. It appears once one of these "Infecteds" die they... they.... rise from the dead and become very violent. We have seen footage of people being attacked and they seem to be eating or biting the victims. These victims that are killed then also rise but this is happening much faster than those that were originally infected. It appears that those who have been killed by these...Infected....can reanimate in anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, while those who have been Infected through a bite take about twenty-four to thirty hours to succumb to the illness before reanimating in the same manner. Scientists believe whatever is causing this affects the nervous system, primarily the brain. The original source of this remains unknown, however this is now being spread rampantly by the bodily fluids of the Infected. Similar to the way HIV is transmitted, only much more rapidly due to the violence of these reanimated. The President has urged everyone to try to remain indoors. The military has moved into cities throughout the country to do whatever they can. It also appears the only way to stop one of these reanimated dead is to somehow incapacitate the brain. There is no cure yet, but government scientists are working around the clock."
Katie gave Tiffany a change of clothes, they were a little big on her. Not that Katie was overweight or anything, she just had a nice figure and Tiffany was a little petite. Katie got Tiffany set up in the spare bedroom. She decided to take a shower herself, she had her new friend's blood all over her and her scrubs. She decided to use the other shower....just in case. After her shower she made a quick dinner and headed to her room. Better take a nap and get some rest, who knows what's going to happen? As anxious as she felt she was exhausted and quickly fell asleep.
She awoke several hours later to screaming and the sound of gun shots. She remembered her gun in the nightstand drawer and took it out. She couldn't tell if it had come from down the hall or below her. She looked out the blinds. The sun had already set and things were looking even worse on the street below.
Katie went in the other room to check on Tiffany. She looked horrible and was shivering though her temperature read 104 degrees.
"I can't feel my hands and feet!" she whimpered.
"Shhh, it's gonna be alright. I'm gonna do everything I can." whispered Katie taking her hand. It felt hot to the touch.
Tiffany mumbled something that made no sense, it didn't even sound like words. If the news report was right, she would only have another twenty-four hours at the most.
Katie paced the room, she didn't know what to do. She tried calling Tyler and Dave but got their voice mails. She tried her parents in Loch Sheldrake and got no answer. Her sister Brianna answered on the fourth ring.
"Brianna! Are you OK? Where are you? What's going on?"
"Katie! Oh my God! This is crazy! I'm on my way to mom and dad's house with Kevin! They're saying to stay out of the cities if possible, if not to barricade yourself inside! Where are you?"
"In New York, my apartment." Katie's pretty face wrinkled in a frown.
"Oh shit Katie! What are you gonna do?!"
"I don't know, but I can't stay here too much longer. Maybe I should pack up the car and meet you at mom and dad's."
"How the hell are you gonna get out of New York?!"
"That is a good question....."
The call was lost, Katie's phone flashed no signal. How the hell was she going to get out of New York? She definitely didn't want to go the tunnel route. She had visions of being trapped in an zombie filled tunnel every time she thought of it. She was gonna have to try the George Washington Bridge. She would leave first thing in the morning.
She went to the kitchen to see what kind of supplies she could gather up. Katie grabbed a duffel bag from the closet and threw all the bottled water she could find into the bag. She grabbed some dehydrated food and some cans of this and that and threw them in the bag. She tossed in some granola bars, trail mix and fruit roll ups. She grabbed all the medical supplies, pills and antibiotics she could find and a change of clothes and threw them in also.
She put the duffel bag by the door and headed to the room. She grabbed her backpack and threw in the box of ammo from the nightstand. She also tossed in a flashlight with some extra batteries, her map of the East Coast, a couple more bottles of water and a sweatshirt. She changed her clothes trying to dress in something that would be comfortable and easy to run in. She decided on a pair of black running pants and a tank top with a pair of hiking boots.
She went back into the living room and set her backpack on the coffee table.
Katie went to go check on her friend. It had been about twelve hours since she had been bitten. Her heart rate had slowed and she seemed unable to move her arms and legs. She also seemed to be in a semi-conscious state. Her temperature was now up to 106 degrees and there was nothing Katie could do.
She went back to the living room and sat back down to the news. She could hear banging and shuffling noises from outside in the hallway. She got up and slid the table in front of the door. Better to be safe.
Katie managed to stay up until three am and then fell asleep on the couch. She awoke with a start to the sound of glass breaking. She looked at her watch, it was ten am. She jumped up. Tiffany had staggered out of the bedroom. That's odd she thought, last time she had checked on her she hadn't been able to move and was non-responsive.
"Tiffany?" Katie started. Tiffany's head whipped around in Katie's direction, and she started heading straight for her. Her skin was pasty white and her eyes had glazed over. Katie screamed and ran towards the kitchen where she had left her gun on the counter. She turned around to take aim, but it was too late, Tiffany was upon her. They fell to the floor, Katie hit her head hard, and saw stars. Tiffany was on top of her trying to bite and drooling. Katie struggled to get her off finally pushing herself free. She fired hitting Tiffany in the head on the first shot. She sat there in shock on the floor just crying and staring at Tiffany's corpse for a while before she heard banging outside on her door.
She slowly got up and went to the door looking out the peephole. An Infected face looked back at her and continued its thumping on her door. There was at least three of them out there. She gasped, how was she going to get out? The gun shot must have drawn their attention. She looked around for another exit, but she lived on the fifth floor, its not like there was a back door or something. She looked at the window. The fire escape! She grabbed her bags and headed to the window. She tried the window, it wouldn't budge. "I hate this window! It always sticks!" She didn't have time for this, she grabbed a chair and smashed the window.
She picked u the gun and bags and stepped out onto the fire escape. Great, now just five floors of fire escape and I'm free, she thought sarcastically. The pounding on the door grew more insistent. Time to go, she started to make d her way down. It was a little more difficult with the bags then she had expected and there was more of those things stumbling around on the street below. When she got to the second floor, she stopped to take a look around below. Once she gets down from here her car is about twenty feet away. There was two of those Infecteds between here and there. So the decision now is does she shoot them and try to run for it, or just try to make a run for it without taking them out.
She decided on the later, worried the gun shots would only attract more of them to her. She kicked the ladder down and made her move. She had to jump the last couple of feet to the sidewalk, and lost her balance sending her sprawling on her back. One of the Infecteds turned her way and started in her direction. She jumped up and shook it off and grabbing her bags made a run for her car. She pulled out her keys and pressed the button to unlock the door. Katie opened the door and threw in her bags jumping in behind them and pulled the door closed quickly locking them behind her. She struggled to get the key in the ignition as the Infected who had been chasing her began pounding on her window, smearing it with blood and goo. She got the car started and took off.
"Amazing! There are people dieing all over the place and these sonofabitches have time to loot Zales!" Tiffany commented.
"Human greed never ceases to amaze me." replied Katie.
They pulled over in front of Katie's building. Katie used her key card to get them inside the outer doors. The lobby was deserted and they headed straight for the elevator.
"I don't feel so good..." mumbled Tiffany, she then vomited all over the floor. She really wasn't looking good at all.
"Oh my God! You're burning up!" Tiffany just moaned in response. "Come on lets get you fixed up."
They got off on the fifth floor. Once inside Katie's apartment with the door securely locked, she helped Tiffany to the couch.
"Let's take a look at that arm." Katie gently took Tiffany's arm. Her arm looked horrible, the flesh where Tiffany had been bitten was torn and discolored. It was pretty swollen but at least the bleeding wasn't too bad anymore. It was the meaty part of the forearm. Katie cleaned the bite the best she could and bandaged it up. She gave her something for the fever and pain and helped her run a cool bath to help with the fever.
While Tiffany was in the bath, Katie turned on the TV and sat down to see if there was any new info. The reporter on the screen was saying "It seems the outbreak has spread rapidly worldwide. The Infected start to feel ill in a matter of hours and deteriorate rapidly from there. It appears once one of these "Infecteds" die they... they.... rise from the dead and become very violent. We have seen footage of people being attacked and they seem to be eating or biting the victims. These victims that are killed then also rise but this is happening much faster than those that were originally infected. It appears that those who have been killed by these...Infected....can reanimate in anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, while those who have been Infected through a bite take about twenty-four to thirty hours to succumb to the illness before reanimating in the same manner. Scientists believe whatever is causing this affects the nervous system, primarily the brain. The original source of this remains unknown, however this is now being spread rampantly by the bodily fluids of the Infected. Similar to the way HIV is transmitted, only much more rapidly due to the violence of these reanimated. The President has urged everyone to try to remain indoors. The military has moved into cities throughout the country to do whatever they can. It also appears the only way to stop one of these reanimated dead is to somehow incapacitate the brain. There is no cure yet, but government scientists are working around the clock."
Katie gave Tiffany a change of clothes, they were a little big on her. Not that Katie was overweight or anything, she just had a nice figure and Tiffany was a little petite. Katie got Tiffany set up in the spare bedroom. She decided to take a shower herself, she had her new friend's blood all over her and her scrubs. She decided to use the other shower....just in case. After her shower she made a quick dinner and headed to her room. Better take a nap and get some rest, who knows what's going to happen? As anxious as she felt she was exhausted and quickly fell asleep.
She awoke several hours later to screaming and the sound of gun shots. She remembered her gun in the nightstand drawer and took it out. She couldn't tell if it had come from down the hall or below her. She looked out the blinds. The sun had already set and things were looking even worse on the street below.
Katie went in the other room to check on Tiffany. She looked horrible and was shivering though her temperature read 104 degrees.
"I can't feel my hands and feet!" she whimpered.
"Shhh, it's gonna be alright. I'm gonna do everything I can." whispered Katie taking her hand. It felt hot to the touch.
Tiffany mumbled something that made no sense, it didn't even sound like words. If the news report was right, she would only have another twenty-four hours at the most.
Katie paced the room, she didn't know what to do. She tried calling Tyler and Dave but got their voice mails. She tried her parents in Loch Sheldrake and got no answer. Her sister Brianna answered on the fourth ring.
"Brianna! Are you OK? Where are you? What's going on?"
"Katie! Oh my God! This is crazy! I'm on my way to mom and dad's house with Kevin! They're saying to stay out of the cities if possible, if not to barricade yourself inside! Where are you?"
"In New York, my apartment." Katie's pretty face wrinkled in a frown.
"Oh shit Katie! What are you gonna do?!"
"I don't know, but I can't stay here too much longer. Maybe I should pack up the car and meet you at mom and dad's."
"How the hell are you gonna get out of New York?!"
"That is a good question....."
The call was lost, Katie's phone flashed no signal. How the hell was she going to get out of New York? She definitely didn't want to go the tunnel route. She had visions of being trapped in an zombie filled tunnel every time she thought of it. She was gonna have to try the George Washington Bridge. She would leave first thing in the morning.
She went to the kitchen to see what kind of supplies she could gather up. Katie grabbed a duffel bag from the closet and threw all the bottled water she could find into the bag. She grabbed some dehydrated food and some cans of this and that and threw them in the bag. She tossed in some granola bars, trail mix and fruit roll ups. She grabbed all the medical supplies, pills and antibiotics she could find and a change of clothes and threw them in also.
She put the duffel bag by the door and headed to the room. She grabbed her backpack and threw in the box of ammo from the nightstand. She also tossed in a flashlight with some extra batteries, her map of the East Coast, a couple more bottles of water and a sweatshirt. She changed her clothes trying to dress in something that would be comfortable and easy to run in. She decided on a pair of black running pants and a tank top with a pair of hiking boots.
She went back into the living room and set her backpack on the coffee table.
Katie went to go check on her friend. It had been about twelve hours since she had been bitten. Her heart rate had slowed and she seemed unable to move her arms and legs. She also seemed to be in a semi-conscious state. Her temperature was now up to 106 degrees and there was nothing Katie could do.
She went back to the living room and sat back down to the news. She could hear banging and shuffling noises from outside in the hallway. She got up and slid the table in front of the door. Better to be safe.
Katie managed to stay up until three am and then fell asleep on the couch. She awoke with a start to the sound of glass breaking. She looked at her watch, it was ten am. She jumped up. Tiffany had staggered out of the bedroom. That's odd she thought, last time she had checked on her she hadn't been able to move and was non-responsive.
"Tiffany?" Katie started. Tiffany's head whipped around in Katie's direction, and she started heading straight for her. Her skin was pasty white and her eyes had glazed over. Katie screamed and ran towards the kitchen where she had left her gun on the counter. She turned around to take aim, but it was too late, Tiffany was upon her. They fell to the floor, Katie hit her head hard, and saw stars. Tiffany was on top of her trying to bite and drooling. Katie struggled to get her off finally pushing herself free. She fired hitting Tiffany in the head on the first shot. She sat there in shock on the floor just crying and staring at Tiffany's corpse for a while before she heard banging outside on her door.
She slowly got up and went to the door looking out the peephole. An Infected face looked back at her and continued its thumping on her door. There was at least three of them out there. She gasped, how was she going to get out? The gun shot must have drawn their attention. She looked around for another exit, but she lived on the fifth floor, its not like there was a back door or something. She looked at the window. The fire escape! She grabbed her bags and headed to the window. She tried the window, it wouldn't budge. "I hate this window! It always sticks!" She didn't have time for this, she grabbed a chair and smashed the window.
She picked u the gun and bags and stepped out onto the fire escape. Great, now just five floors of fire escape and I'm free, she thought sarcastically. The pounding on the door grew more insistent. Time to go, she started to make d her way down. It was a little more difficult with the bags then she had expected and there was more of those things stumbling around on the street below. When she got to the second floor, she stopped to take a look around below. Once she gets down from here her car is about twenty feet away. There was two of those Infecteds between here and there. So the decision now is does she shoot them and try to run for it, or just try to make a run for it without taking them out.
She decided on the later, worried the gun shots would only attract more of them to her. She kicked the ladder down and made her move. She had to jump the last couple of feet to the sidewalk, and lost her balance sending her sprawling on her back. One of the Infecteds turned her way and started in her direction. She jumped up and shook it off and grabbing her bags made a run for her car. She pulled out her keys and pressed the button to unlock the door. Katie opened the door and threw in her bags jumping in behind them and pulled the door closed quickly locking them behind her. She struggled to get the key in the ignition as the Infected who had been chasing her began pounding on her window, smearing it with blood and goo. She got the car started and took off.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Chapter 1
Katie glanced up at the clock on the wall. Seven am, seemed like a good time for a break. It was a particularly uneventful morning at the Lenox Hill Morgue. Her shift started at six and she had been proof reading reports and filing ever since. She leaned back in her chair stretching her arms. Katie stood up and brushed her reddish brown hair into a ponytail.
She stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor. As the elevator ascended she looked through her messages on her phone and hummed along to the elevator music.
Stepping out of the elevator, she walked through the hospital lobby and down the hallway towards the cafeteria. As she passed by the emergency room she noticed it seemed busier than usual. The chairs in the waiting room were filled and people were pacing the aisles. She took note quickly of some of the wounds. Some seemed minor, cuts and bruises, while a few more looked to be far more serious.Others seemed to be experiencing an illness of some sort, with coughing and sneezing.
She stopped in her tracks. She had to look again, unable to believe what she thought she saw. A man stood facing her, sweating and unusually pale. His eyes were downcast and he pressed a blood-soaked cloth to his shoulder. When he removed the cloth she noticed the large chunk of his flesh missing. He looked up and their eyes met. Although Katie didn't feel he actually saw her, she began to feel afraid. She continued walking, albeit a step faster now.
Katie grabbed a juice and a bagel, her thoughts still lingering on that man, and sat down at one of the tables in front of the large wall mounted TV. The news was on as usual but today something was different. The reporter was talking hastily about a sudden illness that was spreading rapidly. The first case had begun around twenty-four hours ago, and since then, cases had begun showing up all over. Reports were coming in from China, Russia, England, Canada, Mexico and the U.S. The same illness all over the world.
"It's still too early to determine the cause of this illness," said a balding man in a suit. "As soon as we know something, you will know something. We encourage you not to panic and if possible remain indoors!"
The reporter flashed back on screen. "Those with ill family members just want to know what is going on and those who are not ill are just trying to prevent the illness and stay safe. Hopefully in the coming hours, scientists will be able to offer more. Back to you Jim."
The bald man, who Katie assumes is Jim, continued. "So far reported symptoms are fever, chill, joint pain, vomiting, and slight dementia. These symptoms rapidly progress to severe dementia and loss of motor functions. Remember the cause for this is unknown at the time of this broadcast. It does appear to be transmitted by bodily fluid however."
Towards the end of the broadcast, Katie's friends Tyler and Dave joined her at the table. They were both nurses in the ER. They were also classmates of Katie's from college, yet they couldn't have been more different in both looks and personality. Dave was stoic and studious; his brown hair cut short like a marine and his green eyes pale and calculating. Tyler was more sociable and talkative. Behind his black hair there were blue eyes. Smart as well, but more attuned to people's hearts rather than their wounds.
"Can you believe this?" Katie asked as the anchorman switched to another headline.
"This crap?" asked Tyler, shrugging in the general direction of the television. "It's probably just another flu outbreak"
"They always blow this stuff out of proportion." Dave chimed in.
They discussed other possibilities for the illness and when they finished their breakfast they parted ways.
Several hours later, Katie looked up from the report nervously, she thought she heard something unusual. She moved cautiously to investigate. It seemed quiet, the silence making each noise louder, more brutal. Something just didn't feel right. The TV caught her attention and she reached for the remote turning up the volume. The news coverage of the outbreak, as it was now being called, appeared to be on every channel. The reporter was outside of a hospital.
"We've received reports of several deaths associated with the outbreak, both locally and globally." Just as the doors behind the reporter burst open, Katie heard screaming from the floor above. She ran to the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor frantically, all the while the screaming continued.
Working with the coroner prepares you for blood and gore but not to the extent Katie was about to witness. Blood covered the walls and floor and there were torn bodies everywhere. Limbs of various size scattered like toys strewn from a toy box.
"Oh my God! What's going on?!" she cried.
There was an almost violent shriek from somewhere down the hall and then stillness. A sudden movement to her right caught her attention and from around the corner a small girl stumbled, holding her bleeding arm. She was pale and her white scrubs were sprayed with blood. She was shaking violently and then she collapsed to the ground.
"What the hell is going on here?" asked Katie but the girl would not answer, her eyes frozen as though lost. Katie knelt by her. The badge attached to her uniform read Tiffany. "Tell me what's going on Tiffany."
The sound of her own name snapped her from her stare and she looked to Katie, fear alive in her eyes.
"I don't know. We had one patient waiting for transport to the morgue and Dr. Keese had just pronounced another one, when the first one started to....." She stopped and began to shake, slamming her eyes shut, holding back tears.
"Began to what?!" Katie pressed to no avail. "Tiffany! Began to what?!"
"Move. She had been dead for about twenty minutes and just started moving. Dr. Keese tried to get her vitals and she...she...she just bit his face off! Just tore it right the fuck off! And he was screaming and there was so much blood!" She was sobbing loudly. Katie shook her, she needed her attention. She needed to know what happened.
"What happened next Tiffany?"
"Me and Dave tried to pull her off of him but she just kept going! That's when I got bit and Dave told me to get the hell out of there!" Tiffany sobbed "What's going on?!"
"I don't know"
From down the hallway they hear a door close. Katie shushed Tiffany and they hid behind the nurses' station. Katie heard the steps slapping down the hallway. Closer and closer came the footsteps, loudly shuffling until they seemed to be right in front of them. They struggled to keep silent. She could hear the slow breathing of whatever was on the other side of the counter. She looked over to Tiffany, whose mouth was clenched shut, holding back a scream of terror. Before a terrified scream could escape, Katie pressed her hand over Tiffany's mouth. Quiet, Katie said with only a look. Tiffany was shuddering but she understood. The steps continued on down the hall.
Without wasting a moment, Katie grabbed Tiffany's arm and ran back towards the elevator. Katie pressed the B Button and repeatedly hit the door close button.
"We need to get out of here!" Katie said.
The elevator went directly to the morgue. Katie used it everyday while at work. When the door opened she ran to her desk, looking for her bag and her keys. She grabbed some first aid supplies to bandage up Tiffany's arm. It wasn't looking good.
Tiffany complained, "My head is killing me."
The news was still on but there was no reporter in sight. Infecteds passed the camera every so often. Katie stopped to stare at the screen. She couldn't believe her eyes. Their steps were slow as though they had lost control of their legs. Their heads were slung forwards. They looked like corpses, their skin pale. Scenes flashed the same in other cities around the world. A voice over announced, "Reports are coming in from all across the country of widespread chaos. Everyone is in a panic, people have begun looting. A National State of Emergency has been declared and the National Guard and other military forces have been deployed throughout the country. The terror alert has been raised to RED and the president is preparing to address the nation."
"Come on, we'll go out this way" Katie told Tiffany as they headed toward the emergency exit. They ran across the parking lot towards Katie's Jeep. Before Tiffany had even closed her door, the car was started and the sped out onto the street. She headed for her apartment a few blocks away and couldn't help thinking; Thank God I didn't walk to work today.
She stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor. As the elevator ascended she looked through her messages on her phone and hummed along to the elevator music.
Stepping out of the elevator, she walked through the hospital lobby and down the hallway towards the cafeteria. As she passed by the emergency room she noticed it seemed busier than usual. The chairs in the waiting room were filled and people were pacing the aisles. She took note quickly of some of the wounds. Some seemed minor, cuts and bruises, while a few more looked to be far more serious.Others seemed to be experiencing an illness of some sort, with coughing and sneezing.
She stopped in her tracks. She had to look again, unable to believe what she thought she saw. A man stood facing her, sweating and unusually pale. His eyes were downcast and he pressed a blood-soaked cloth to his shoulder. When he removed the cloth she noticed the large chunk of his flesh missing. He looked up and their eyes met. Although Katie didn't feel he actually saw her, she began to feel afraid. She continued walking, albeit a step faster now.
Katie grabbed a juice and a bagel, her thoughts still lingering on that man, and sat down at one of the tables in front of the large wall mounted TV. The news was on as usual but today something was different. The reporter was talking hastily about a sudden illness that was spreading rapidly. The first case had begun around twenty-four hours ago, and since then, cases had begun showing up all over. Reports were coming in from China, Russia, England, Canada, Mexico and the U.S. The same illness all over the world.
"It's still too early to determine the cause of this illness," said a balding man in a suit. "As soon as we know something, you will know something. We encourage you not to panic and if possible remain indoors!"
The reporter flashed back on screen. "Those with ill family members just want to know what is going on and those who are not ill are just trying to prevent the illness and stay safe. Hopefully in the coming hours, scientists will be able to offer more. Back to you Jim."
The bald man, who Katie assumes is Jim, continued. "So far reported symptoms are fever, chill, joint pain, vomiting, and slight dementia. These symptoms rapidly progress to severe dementia and loss of motor functions. Remember the cause for this is unknown at the time of this broadcast. It does appear to be transmitted by bodily fluid however."
Towards the end of the broadcast, Katie's friends Tyler and Dave joined her at the table. They were both nurses in the ER. They were also classmates of Katie's from college, yet they couldn't have been more different in both looks and personality. Dave was stoic and studious; his brown hair cut short like a marine and his green eyes pale and calculating. Tyler was more sociable and talkative. Behind his black hair there were blue eyes. Smart as well, but more attuned to people's hearts rather than their wounds.
"Can you believe this?" Katie asked as the anchorman switched to another headline.
"This crap?" asked Tyler, shrugging in the general direction of the television. "It's probably just another flu outbreak"
"They always blow this stuff out of proportion." Dave chimed in.
They discussed other possibilities for the illness and when they finished their breakfast they parted ways.
Several hours later, Katie looked up from the report nervously, she thought she heard something unusual. She moved cautiously to investigate. It seemed quiet, the silence making each noise louder, more brutal. Something just didn't feel right. The TV caught her attention and she reached for the remote turning up the volume. The news coverage of the outbreak, as it was now being called, appeared to be on every channel. The reporter was outside of a hospital.
"We've received reports of several deaths associated with the outbreak, both locally and globally." Just as the doors behind the reporter burst open, Katie heard screaming from the floor above. She ran to the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor frantically, all the while the screaming continued.
Working with the coroner prepares you for blood and gore but not to the extent Katie was about to witness. Blood covered the walls and floor and there were torn bodies everywhere. Limbs of various size scattered like toys strewn from a toy box.
"Oh my God! What's going on?!" she cried.
There was an almost violent shriek from somewhere down the hall and then stillness. A sudden movement to her right caught her attention and from around the corner a small girl stumbled, holding her bleeding arm. She was pale and her white scrubs were sprayed with blood. She was shaking violently and then she collapsed to the ground.
"What the hell is going on here?" asked Katie but the girl would not answer, her eyes frozen as though lost. Katie knelt by her. The badge attached to her uniform read Tiffany. "Tell me what's going on Tiffany."
The sound of her own name snapped her from her stare and she looked to Katie, fear alive in her eyes.
"I don't know. We had one patient waiting for transport to the morgue and Dr. Keese had just pronounced another one, when the first one started to....." She stopped and began to shake, slamming her eyes shut, holding back tears.
"Began to what?!" Katie pressed to no avail. "Tiffany! Began to what?!"
"Move. She had been dead for about twenty minutes and just started moving. Dr. Keese tried to get her vitals and she...she...she just bit his face off! Just tore it right the fuck off! And he was screaming and there was so much blood!" She was sobbing loudly. Katie shook her, she needed her attention. She needed to know what happened.
"What happened next Tiffany?"
"Me and Dave tried to pull her off of him but she just kept going! That's when I got bit and Dave told me to get the hell out of there!" Tiffany sobbed "What's going on?!"
"I don't know"
From down the hallway they hear a door close. Katie shushed Tiffany and they hid behind the nurses' station. Katie heard the steps slapping down the hallway. Closer and closer came the footsteps, loudly shuffling until they seemed to be right in front of them. They struggled to keep silent. She could hear the slow breathing of whatever was on the other side of the counter. She looked over to Tiffany, whose mouth was clenched shut, holding back a scream of terror. Before a terrified scream could escape, Katie pressed her hand over Tiffany's mouth. Quiet, Katie said with only a look. Tiffany was shuddering but she understood. The steps continued on down the hall.
Without wasting a moment, Katie grabbed Tiffany's arm and ran back towards the elevator. Katie pressed the B Button and repeatedly hit the door close button.
"We need to get out of here!" Katie said.
The elevator went directly to the morgue. Katie used it everyday while at work. When the door opened she ran to her desk, looking for her bag and her keys. She grabbed some first aid supplies to bandage up Tiffany's arm. It wasn't looking good.
Tiffany complained, "My head is killing me."
The news was still on but there was no reporter in sight. Infecteds passed the camera every so often. Katie stopped to stare at the screen. She couldn't believe her eyes. Their steps were slow as though they had lost control of their legs. Their heads were slung forwards. They looked like corpses, their skin pale. Scenes flashed the same in other cities around the world. A voice over announced, "Reports are coming in from all across the country of widespread chaos. Everyone is in a panic, people have begun looting. A National State of Emergency has been declared and the National Guard and other military forces have been deployed throughout the country. The terror alert has been raised to RED and the president is preparing to address the nation."
"Come on, we'll go out this way" Katie told Tiffany as they headed toward the emergency exit. They ran across the parking lot towards Katie's Jeep. Before Tiffany had even closed her door, the car was started and the sped out onto the street. She headed for her apartment a few blocks away and couldn't help thinking; Thank God I didn't walk to work today.
Intro
This is a rough draft of Zombie Apocalypse "Book". Many of you have already read what will compose the first few posts already. My intention is to continue and post the new chapters as I write them for any opinions, constructive criticism, etc...
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