And then I look toward the collapsed bridge…
The blood drains from my face as cold, hard fear slams into me.
“Oh, fuck…” I whisper in horror at the sight. “We need to movenow!”
Everyone stops and looks at me with a mixture of confusion and dread.
“What’s wrong?” Rhys demands, instantly taking charge of the situation.
“Look under the bridge,” I say, unable to articulate just how fucked we are unless we move our asses.
Everyone turns their attention to the bridge. Rhys and Theo let out a string of curses as Ollie gasps at the sight. As one, we surge forward,hacking and weaving our way through the collection of cars to get off what is probably a fucking killing field.
But we’re too late.
The writhing mass of dead that were penned in by cars under the bridge has spotted us and are climbing over the cars. It’s the biggest horde I’ve ever seen, and they’re coming straight for us.
A Shit Way to Die
Theo
There have only beena few times during my time on Earth that I’ve truly feared for my life.
One of those times was staring down the barrel of a gun from some gangster who was so high he couldn’t recognise that I was trying to help him. I can remember the cold sweat drying on my back, the twist of dread and fear in my gut and the sinking realisation that I could be taking my last breath.
Staring at the horde of zombies spilling over the cars reminds me of that near-death experience. The same cold sweat, the same fear and dread knotting in my stomach and the dawning horror that I could be turned into a soulless undead monster within the next few minutes. But, it’s not just myself that I’m worried about, but the three other people at my side.
“Move your fucking asses and head for the bank!” Rhys barks out, causing all of us to jerk out of our fear induced stupors.
Alex is already on the move, weaving through the cars while dodging the flying limbs and open maws of zombies. Rhys and I are hot on his heels. Ollie forces Bean onward, but they struggle to navigate through the tight spaces between cars. It’s slowing her down and if they don’t get ahead soon, that horde will tear her apart.
“Ollie!” I call out.
She whips her gaze over to me. She looks like she’s barely hanging onto her sanity, her eyes wide and glazed with fear and her lips pressed into a thin line.
“Ride her further down the road until the cars thin out. You’ll have a better chance of outrunning the horde that way.”
It takes a moment for my words to sink in, but once they do, she nods and digs her heels into Bean’s side. The mare leaps forwards into a frantic gallop just before the first zombie can reach them. Harlow surprisingly doesn’t follow. Instead she barks, snarls and attacks the first few of the undead horde that have reached us, slowing them down. While it helps, it’s not enough.
The horde slams into the maze of cars we’re navigating, crawling and clawing their way over the metal. Inhuman moans, groans and the screech of nails and bone on metal fill the air. The stench of rot is overwhelming, making me gag as I slam my knife into the eye socket of the nearest zombie. It crumples to the ground only for another to take its place.
I fall into the fighting mindset I used when I did MMA, allowing muscle memory to keep me safe as I dodge attacks from the zombies and sink my knife into their brains. It becomes almost like a dance; dodge and stab. Dodge and stab. Over and over. It’s almost therapeutic, if the lives of me and my friends weren’t on the line.
But I can only fight for so long and fatigue is setting in. My muscles scream in protest as I kill yet another zombie and dodge an attack from another. In front of me is a sea of writhing, rotting bodies and to my left, Alex and Rhys aren’t in any better shape. We’re all sweating and covered in blood, gore and other questionable fluids.
“Fall back!” Rhys orders as he viciously kicks a zombie before sliding his knife into its skull. “Follow where Ollie went and hope we can outrun these bastards.”
Solid plan. Except I’m fucking surrounded by the writhing undead and they’re all clamouring for a taste of me.
“Damn, if only I was this popular at school,” I say as I dodge a set of particularly grabby hands and dispatch the owner. “I would’ve got laid a hell of a lot more.”
“Is this really the best time to think about your dick?” Alex deadpans from the other side of the car I’m pressed up against.
“It’s as good a time as any other,” I say with a shrug as I put down another zombie. “Should we start reciting our biggest regrets?”
Alex just grunts, no doubt focusing on trying not to die like me.
“Okay, I’ll go first. I regret not taking that blowjob from Missy Hastings during our last school dance. She had the best fucking lips and, from what I heard, sucked like a Henry Hoover.”
