Zombie Infestation Read online

  In one stroke, she decapitated the first zombie she encountered, but the other ones surrounded her. When she hacked at them, her strikes appeared to enrage them, and hence make them stronger. Two arms on the ground grabbed at her as she stuck her blade into the temple of a bloated woman with red hair in a skin tight electric green sundress.

  When the horde converged on her again, her machete swats were less effective. Just before she was overwhelmed, her team swooped in and decapitated half of the horde from behind. When she embedded her machete into the back of a zombie spine, it shifted and bit into her Kevlar helmet. In the span of a breath Jefferson jammed his machete into its eye socket. When he jerked it out, its brain flooded out onto the ground like a broken bottle of syrup.

  Double fisted and swinging their machetes, Ray and Jefferson dispatched the remaining undead on the flanks with a series of well timed slashes and finishing head stabs to any zombies in their zone. With most of the mini horde eliminated, Rose, Jacques, and Nate handily managed the rest.

  When Nate slayed the last member of the zombie horde, Jacque picked up its severed head, then took a few steps and punted it with his steel toe boot. Its hair windmilled as it flew end over end off of the top of the ramp. All around them, the dingy cracks of the concrete filled with ribbons of stoplight red blood, which pooled in the sunken drains of the sloped surface.

  “That was some gladiator shit right there,” said Jefferson.

  Ray said, “Let’s get over to that fire escape, on the rooftop we will have a bottle neck position. That will buy us some time, and provide us some degree of safety to survey this place.”

  When Rose motioned, the team moved toward the building in unison, and still in a formation. Like before, Ray and Jefferson watched one flank, while Nate and Jacques watched the other. At the concrete berm, Rose was first to jump over to the fire escape. Once she got half way up the ladder, one by one the team followed suit.

  As Jefferson moved to the ladder, he climbed up a few rungs, then turned back toward the team. “We need to move in tandem. If shit goes down we will need space. We got all the time we need. So be patient and don’t crowd up.” Then he flipped his night vision goggles down and proceeded up the ladder.

  Chapter 9

  Stopping on a fire escape ladder two floors from the top, Rose signaled for the team to halt. When she pointed, the team watched a group of bloody mangled corpses charge up and pound their fists on what was left of the mostly shattered glass turn style door below. Once the entrance breached, the uncoordinated crew of raging undead all charged into the entrance at the same time. When she signaled again, the group continued up the ladders.

  Midway, Jefferson and Jacques, stopped. On the ladder below them, Nate glared at them with a silent annoyance. In the dimly lit office, a slender naked woman was bent over a desk, while a rotund man with the remnants of a miniature pony tail stuck to his sweaty back pounded into her from behind.

  “What’s the matter ya’ll,” said Nate.

  Both Jacques and Jefferson stared, as he long braid swung back and forth as her and partner continued their coital last stand while the trio of hard charging zombies barged into the adjacent office.

  The rooftop above them was flat except for a small box with a door on it situated near the center. Two small lights were mounted on each corner. Curious if the team was being attacked, Rose and Ray peered down the maze of ladders.

  When she and Nate locked eyes, they both shrugged their shoulders.

  Annoyed she said, “What’s the delay guys?”

  Jacques responded. “Nothing, we are on our way.”

  Then he and Jefferson continued up the ladder.

  As Nate passed by the office window, the zombies had overwhelmed the beautiful underwear model and had torn out her throat before she could scream. Two zombies’ teeth ripped into her slender waist as competing zombies moved in and opened her up with their hands. Witnessing this horror, her last resort partner backed further away.

  As he swung both left and right hooks, his heavy breathing and adept boxing footwork shook his massive midsection. Surprisingly, each blow sent the attacking zombies flying backwards. As the naked overweight boxer rotated to reset, he froze. Then screamed in pain as his gorgeous one minute stand sunk her perfect teeth into his kneecap, and pulled a tendon away. Shocked, he stared at the swollen squirting intestines that flooded out of her open midsection and pulsated with each movement.

  Nate looked away, then continued up the ladder.

  At the top, Rose used her night vision to glance down the fire escape ladder on the opposite side of the building while Ray pointed his rifle at the pillbox doorway. Then she glared at her team like a mother hen and said, “You fucking herd of turtles are going to get me killed. What the fuck were you doing? My decrepit p-paw can climb a ladder faster than that.”

  As Jacques grabbed a small baton from his waist belt and expanded it. Ray and Nate both glared at Jefferson with equal annoyance. Jefferson’s only response was to shrug his shoulders. Before Jacques could use the tool to block the door from the opening, it popped open. Two stiff and filthy zombies with bloodstained biker’s cuts on stumbled out onto the rooftop. Without hesitation, Jefferson rushed forward, pushed the door closed. Then leaned is hulking frame against it.

  Chapter 10

  While Jefferson leaned on the door, Ray took the biker zombies. As more bloated of the two reached forward, he grabbed its wrist, then with a quick chop he hyper extended its arm. Before his next breath, Jacques shoved the baton thorough its left eye socket. Then he tossed the vanquished zombie into the other as he ripped the messy baton out. As it fell backwards, Ray’s immaculate decapitation with his machete sent its head rolling with a trail of radiant blood behind it.

  To secure the door, Jacques walked over and slid the messy baton through the door handle. Of course, Jefferson checked it to ensure it was secure. Since this was the only other entrance to the roof besides the fire escape, they took a moment to use their small flashlights to analyze their maps.

  Using her night vision, Rose stared down the fire escape. “Not sure coming up here was such a great idea. Hopefully, none of those meat bags are good at ladders.”

  The rooftop was high enough that the smoke from the surrounding buildings was of no concern. However, the pungent smell of the piles of trash burning on the street below was still noticeable. Even in the darkness, their vantage point allowed them to see the smoldering vehicles which blockaded and clogged streets below. Cluttered on the freeway ramp, a band of zombies paced back and forth across a semi-truck and trailer turned on its side.

  The massive ash blonde marble columns of City Hall were stained with waxen soot, and the blackened backside of the top floor was exposed from a severe blast. The multiple barricades around it were all broken and useless.

  Next to it was an empty fast food restaurant, with a gas station attached. On its roof, two men clutched shotguns and hid behind its giant HVAC ducts. Circling below, a zombie horde orbited the station like a pack of patient hyenas waiting for their prey to make a mistake.

  Hearing a metallic banging noise, everyone scanned the rooftop or activity. “Nate, and I will cover the fire escapes, Jefferson, Ray and Jacques take the door,” said Rose.

  No one argued, and did exactly as she ordered.

  Both Rose and Nate each scanned a fire escape ladder, but found nothing.

  Rose said, “Okay guys, everything looks blocked. Let’s look for signals, and try to identify a route.”

  While she patrolled the area, the rest of the team took a corner and compared the streets below to the map that Harrison had provided them. Ray was the only one who took notes. When Jacques looked down at the street below, zombies flooded out of the first floor windows of a neat row of houses.

  As two men in flannel shirts carrying police shields guarded a woman on the street, a dozen zombies charged up. While they unsuccessfully fought back a dozen zombies, a sprinting zombie
engulfed in flames ran down the street at them. Shocked by this sight, and new flood of undead, they were overwhelmed. Unable to watch the gore, of the doomed group being ripped apart, Jacques surveyed further up the street.

  With his night vision, Jefferson looked past the two zombies wrestling over one of their recent victim’s arms. Then stopped at the barricaded doors of the police station. In the windows above, a man with a hunting rifle scanned the street below. The man posted on the roof also did the same. Most of the streets in their path had a ruined vehicle obstacle or makeshift blockade.

  Behind him Rose said, “See any feasible routes?”

  Jefferson lowered his night vision binoculars and turned to face her. “Not really, everything looks tough. Looks like the cop shop over there has got some armed survivors, but they are definitely not our targets”

  She nodded and replied, “They will make it. Probably best to avoid them so we don’t get shot.”

  When the others walked over Jacques pointed and said, “Our targets are either dead, or holding a position in that area.”

  Jefferson interrupted. “This bitch is tall, but unfortunately we can’t see the crash site from here. Unfortunately, we need to get deeper into the hot zone, and survey from there.”

  Rose scanned the surrounding rooftops. “Fuck that.”

  No one responded.

  She analyzed each alley and barricade. Then saw a snake of open avenues with cover points. If they were quiet, they could find a better survey point near the crash site.

  Jacques spoke up, “Jeff is right, we will need a survey point near the crash site. From there, we can look for evidence of the target’s stronghold or their death.”

  When a series of loud metallic banging sounds captured their attention Rose said, “It was a mistake to come up here.” She spoke as she signaled. “Jefferson and Ray on that fire escape now. Jacques on the door, and Nate and I will check the other side.”

  No one questioned her order, and rushed to their designated positions.

  “Holy shit. We got company,” said Jefferson.

  A half dozen zombies attempting to climb over one another on the fire escape ladder three floors below.

  “Hold your fire. This side is clear,” said Rose.

  Jefferson and Ray both had a suppressed weapon, but hesitated to shoot.

  As soon as everyone gathered, she said, “Cover my six.” Then ran over to the other side and stared down at the zombies below.

  Chapter 11

  Rose aimed and shot down the fire escape. Her silenced rifle barely made a sound as she planted a perfect headshot into the male zombie with long curly hair. Legitimately dead, it fell backwards, bounced off the building, then landed on a curb below. By the time Jefferson, and Nate rushed over to join in, she had already tumbled the rest with quick precision shots.

  With less competition on the fire escape ladder, the remaining zombies were clumsy, but continued to climb. They didn’t make it far before a few more of Rose’s well placed head shots ended their progress. The sound of the zombies’ bones breaking as they tumbled down the side of the building was noticeable against the silence of dead city.

  Rose muted her comlink with her hand as she said, “Fucking dumb ass roper. This building sucks. I shouldn’t have allowed this.” Ray glared at her because her voice was still loud enough to hear.

  “It seemed like a decent idea at the time. At least we know the area now,” said Jefferson.

  Rose flipped their night vision binoculars down and stared off the side of the building. When the others gathered around her she said, “Any ideas?”

  They all knew she had the plan, so they remained silent. “Everything is blocked off pretty good down there, but I think I found us a decent route to the crash site.”

  When she pulled out her map and a flashlight, the team moved in even closer.

  “There are plenty of buildings around the crash site, so they can’t be far from it.”

  Jefferson interrupted. “These things are pretty fucking strong. So, let’s not engage them if we don’t have to.”

  The team scanned the area.

  “If we are quiet, we can get there without any problems.”

  Rose traced the jagged route she found on the map with her gloved index finger and said, “If we use this side’s fire escape, we can hit Russle Street, which looks pretty fucked up from up here. However, from there we can zig zag over to Prince Ave, which will take us right to the crash site.”

  What she proposed sounded easy, but they all knew she often spoke in abstracts.

  Jacques said, “That should work.”

  When she signaled, Jefferson went down the ladder on the opposite side than they had used before. Then the team followed him down the fire escape stairs and ladders. Half way down Rose said, “On the ground, let’s keep it tight. Just like before, two in front with blades, two in back with blades. I will be in the middle with a hot scope ready if we need it.”

  As they descended, the same metallic banging sound as before alerted them. A quick glance revealed no zombies above or below them on the ladders or stairways. Without hesitation, they continued until they arrived in the alleyway below. Luckily, it was clear. From there, they noticed the zombies who had just entered the fire escape from the rooftop above.

  Chapter 12

  Like many times before, the team instinctively spaced themselves seven to ten feet apart. In the front of the squad, Ray and Jacques had a long machete in each hand. Nate, and Jefferson watched the rear of their formation. Between them, Rose, had her silenced semi-automatic rifle ready. When she signaled, the team moved forward with nearly identical steps.

  When they reached the street, they paused. “This is Russle, we need to take a left,” said Rose.

  Their tight formation continued to move forward in perfect unison. Many of the storefronts had apricot orange flames, or outlines of shoe polish black ashes left behind. The street had multiple barricades, and the smell of the dismembered corpses scattered all over the flint gray street was gag inducing.

  Without warning, a small zombie horde jumped through the windowless storefront of what was once a coffee shop. Even with night vision, it was clear there was no where to hide. Without any words, the team understood the situation and created a pentagon shaped perimeter. They all flipped their goggles up and readied their machetes for the anticipated carnage.

  When the first wave of zombies arrived, Jacques and Jefferson hacked at the oncoming horde. Severed arms, fingers, and heads flew in random directions as each wave was hacked down. The only zombie to get through grabbed Jefferson’s arm and tried to bite into his forearm. Fortunately, his thick body armor halted any damage, and gave Ray a perfect angle to sever its head.

  Even with the zombies’ animated head still attached to his arm, Jefferson continued to slash and hack at the last of the zombies on his quadrant. When the next wave of zombies rushed at them from the alleyway, Nate got overwhelmed.

  He shouted, “I need help over here.”

  As he fell back, Rose and Ray supported his quadrant and cleared the danger.

  Winded, Nate said, “Those meat sacks could gag a maggot.”

  A few zombies cleared a nearby barricade. As the team readied themselves, random gunshots ricocheted off the street. A stranger’s voice yelled, “Hey down there. You guys are welcome up here. It’s safe.” Jacques swiped at an incoming zombie and missed, but Ray didn’t. Then another volley of misdirected shots ricocheted, and nearly hit Rose’s boot.

  Jacques said, “Let’s get out of the street.”

  No one responded, and continued to hack at the attacking zombies.

  Annoyed Rose said, “Let’s boonie. More help from those fucking cowboys on the deck up there is either going to get us killed or attract another zombie party.”

  She motioned.

  “There is our alleyway. From up there it looked open. Let’s jet down there like our boots are on fire.”
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  As usual, she vocalized what the team was thinking, and they did as she suggested.

  Jacques or Ray hacked at the calves of any zombies in their way, then the rest of the team took turns decapitating them. Silent, they progressed without attracting any attention and stopped in the designated alleyway.

  “Thank God, it’s open,” said Rose.

  Then she pointed.

  “On the other side we can cut over, then Prince Ave is about five blocks down. From there it is a straight shot to the crash site.”

  Chapter 13

  From the mouth of the alleyway, the team heard more shots from the amateur marksmen shooting from the balcony. Cognizant of where the gunfire was coming from, another undead mass ignored Rose and her team and ran directly to the location of the shots. As the zombies attempted to get up to the railing above by climbing whatever they could, another set of undead began smashing at the barricades that surrounded the building’s entrance.

  Ignoring the potential threat, the team moved single file in a tight defensive formation to the end of the alley. The nearby blocks sounded hostile, so the team moved slow and cautious to the open cross street, then stopped at the next alleyway.

  “Fuck, this one is blocked,” said Rose. “We can cut over to the next one, or take the street.”

  As if she had pressed a special button, both Jefferson and Jacques responded simultaneously. “The street.”

  The team moved like they were tied together until their methodical movements led them to the end of the street. After climbing over the pile of wrecked cars, they froze. The only working streetlight revealed three survivors wearing a karate gi. Much too busy dispensing zombies, the fighters didn’t notice the team.