Million Dollar Zombie 4-3

[Posted by Ted H]

I've found I do my best writing when I should be working...thus, this update is brought to you by: Me, working on the clock and when I should be doing other things that are much more important.

Realized after the fact that this part is mostly dialogue...which is what you get when it's mostly 2 non-black people failing to hotwire cars...
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[Million Dollar Zombie 4-3]

            Five minutes alone with a metal coat hanger, and Ted was able to pop the lock on most car doors. From there, Marko would attempt a hotwire while Ted sat lookout. The street was relatively empty, and Ted wondered where are the dead people went. "I got nothin," Marko said as he climbed out, failing to start the engine of another car. They had been making their way down the street towards the college trying every car they came across.

            "I thought you said you were good at this?" Ted asked.

            "I am," Marko protested.

            "Is this why you didn't tell Jay you could hotwire? Cuz you suck at it?"

            "My Uncle Lou taught me how. He also taught me how to break in faster than you can with your abortion tool...just not as quiet."

            So...how come we don't have a ride out yet?"

            "I dunno, but something's up with these cars. Might be related to why there's no power in the area either. Maybe that's why no one ran. They couldn't."

            "Well that doesn't help us now. Wanna head back?"

            "No," Marko said bitterly "You really think help would come?"

            "Maybe the army is planning some sort of sweep. Ya know? Comb through, save anyone alive and strait up kill everything else?"

            "You're a moron."

            "What's the worst case scenario? Since you're being so pessimistic about our chances, I'm sure you've thought of it already."

            "The army? They'll nuke the town."

            "The army isn't going to drop a nuke on us."

            "Not a nuke, but something."

            "That can't happen. Yeah, we're in the sticks, but Cazenovia is on maps. People WILL notice when this place gets eradicated."

            "Just wait until they find an excuse."

            "Whatever. We're not in immediate danger."

            "The idea of getting blown off the map sounds pretty immediate to me."

            "Then we're not in any immediate-immediate danger."

            "We're fucking dead either way."

            "Dude, the apartment is secure. Nothing is going to come after us as long as we're careful."          

            "And how much food do we have? You literally cleaned house when you moved out and your neighbor only had food in his fridge, which in fucking toxic now. He has, what, three bags of chips and a bunch of beer. Jay is fucking dead, if not from the bite, then from the fact that we have no way of treating his open wounds."

            Ted stayed silent for a moment before scanning the street. There was the occasional moan in the distance, but nothing that could be seen. "There's a health center or some shit nearby," he said "There's probably some gauze and stuff we can use for Jay. Worst comes to worst, they've at least got to have an aspirin." Marko shook his head. "I'd rather leave."

            "Yeah, well, we can't," Ted said.

            "Bull shit."

            "You wanna hump it on out of here, be my guest. We ain't gettin far with Jay hurt the way he is though. We at least need to deal with his leg."

            "There needs to be some car somewhere that works."

            "Are you even listening?"

            "I'm NOT saying here," Marko said, raising his voice as he balled his hands into fists.

            "Jerry and Jack will come back. We just need to sit tight. We can't drive out and walking out would be suicidal."

            "We can outrun those things. If we're smart-"

            "Jay can't walk."

            "We'll come back for him."

            Ted stood in silence at Marko. "We can't just leave him alone."

            "I thought you said the apartment was secure."

            "I don't wanna talk about this here," Ted said as he and Marko walked into the courtyard of a nearby church.

            "Hear something?" Marko asked as the two began hearing moans of the dead.

            "Not behind us..."Ted said as he snuck forward and crouched. A snow pile blocked their view of the parking lot, but they knew that the dead had suddenly gathered recently.

            The two snuck over to see that a mass of zombies had gathered right outside the nearby drug store. The front doors were ajar and zombies were pushing their way inside. "There a sale?" Marko asked as Ted eyed around towards the back to see someone crash out the rear exit. "Look," Ted said as he pointed him out. "It's one of those idiots from last night," Marko said as the man began climbing up the snowy and icy hill; the only other way out besides going passed the horde by the entrance. "Think he found supplies?" Marko asked. "Let's find out," Ted said as they ran.

            The hill behind the drug store let up right into another parking lot; this one for the health center. Ted and Marko didn't need to battle any hills, so they were able to cut across much faster and were able to intercept. "We're robbing him, right?" Marko asked as he held up his gun. "We don't really have the ammo to waste, do we?" Ted said as the man ran out into the health center lot and stopped at the sight of the two.

            "So you are both still alive." he said.

            "Ryan, was it?" Ted asked as Ryan nodded.

            "Never really remembered your names though," Ryan said.

            "Ted and Marko," Ted said as he pointed to each accordingly. "Jay's still alive, too." Ryan made a face. "Where is he then?" he asked.

            "Apartment," Ted said.

            "Anything good inside?" Marko asked.

            "No," Ryan said "Place was pretty much tapped. We can't stay here though. They'll catch up eventually."

            "We're just gonna hit up the health center real quick, if there's anything still inside." Ted said.

            "Not sure, but you don't have any time, unless you want those things following you right away," Ryan responded.

            "What if we have a distraction?" Marko asked.

            "I'm not doing that," Ryan said.

            "I'll do it," Ted said "Marko, just make sure you get enough shit. I'm trusting you on this. Ryan, you do whatever the fuck you want."

            "You sure about this?" Marko asked.

            "I know this town," Ted said "I'll be fine. Just keep the back door unlocked for me."

            Marko nodded and Ted took off for the street to head off the incoming hoard. "What about you?" Marko asked Ryan. "Supplies sounds good," he said "We can probably search faster together." Marko shrugged. "Whatever," he said as they headed for the entrance to the center. "Let's split up, gang," Marko said sarcastically "I'm sure that won't end badly."

Million Dollar Zombie 4-2

[Posted by Ted H]

Work work work work working all week...only got a little bit done, but better than nothing right?

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[Million Dollar Zombie 4-2]

 

            "They're not going anywhere," Ryan said as he snuck back into the apartment. "It's not like we're going anywhere either," John said as Doc spied out the window at the undead below. They were still trying to claw their way into the stairwell. From there Doc was sure it wouldn't take long for them to get passed his front door. "The door will hold," he said as Ryan walked over and flopped down onto the couch next to John.
            "And if it doesn't?" Ryan asked.
            "Then we rush out the back." John suggested.
            "And follow those guys from last night?"
            "Worth a try."
            "And follow them where?"
            "The one guy told Doc where they were headed."
            "That other guy probably turned by now. They're all dead."
            "Maybe they got smart and offed the infected one."
            "Look, we're better off if we try to distract those things outside away from the door."

            "How?"
            "I don't know, but it's better than exposing ourselves out there."

            Doc walked away from the window and headed for the kitchen. "We're low on food and ammo," John said "No power, no way to heat the place. Mind telling me why this place is even worth defending?" Doc stopped in the doorway to the kitchen and turned his head. "Nowhere is safe," he said "Might as well hold fast where we are."

            "She's dead," John said "Candice isn't coming back. You waiting for her here is only going to get us all killed." Doc didn't turn around. "No one said you needed to stay," he said as he disappeared into the kitchen. John and Ryan looked at each other.
            "I have an idea," Ryan said "I'll go out the back way and circle around to the front, get those thing's attention and draw them away from the door." John shook his head. "So we'll just freeze and starve to death instead?" he asked.
            "We've got blankets, and maybe something is left inside the drug store. Doc is right though; nowhere else is guaranteed to be safe. Might as well fight for where we are.."
            "Whatever. Sure you can scale the pipe back up though?"
            "No, but I know you couldn't on your best day."
            "Whatever. Try not to get eaten." John said as he slapped Ryan on the shoulder.

Million Dollar Zombie 4-1

[Posted by Ted H]

Enough housekeeping! Time for some new material!

Job hunting has given me a potential opportunity for a decent paying job. Should I get it, I'd have to move n shit...which would lead to an indefinite hiatus on my part...I dunno when or if, but such a dead period might be coming...the people hiring me would have to finish their damn vacation...

But till then (or ever) you still got updates! Yay!

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[Million Dollar Zombie 4-1]

            Beams of light shone through the windows signifying it was morning. Ted shifted from his spot in the corner, facing the closed door to the bedroom. There wasn't any furniture in the room, but it was the only room in the entire apartment that had a door with a working lock. Marko was in the adjacent corner, also facing the door. Neither man slept much, if at all. Between them under the windows laid Jay, sound asleep.

            Ted checked once again out of paranoid habit that Jay was indeed still breathing as he slept. Both the other men had no intention of killing him just for being bitten, but neither was prepared to let their guard down in case he succumbed to his alleged infection. Jay had curled himself into a ball and Ted eyed how his chest rose and fell gently as the man slept. Ted wondered how long he had left, or if that was how the infection even worked. No matter how much time Jay did indeed have remaining, Ted had no intention of cutting it short, no matter what inconvenience doing so would cause. Either way, there were more pressing concerns then an injured friend.

            Out in the hallway laid the undisturbed corpse of the man Ted killed last night. There was no use denying the definitive cry the man made before Ted shoved the broomstick through his skull. After he and Marko so casually killed off an anonymous amount of the undead, Ted found it strangely comforting that he was still so bothered about killing one living person; albeit accidentally. There was still a sense of humanity, even amid all the chaos. Then again, they had only been trapped in town for one night as opposed to Doc and the others. Would he and Marko remain so just and level headed after a week?

            Ted had a good idea who the man in the hallway was. "Stay here," he said in a low tone to Marko as he stood up. Marko nodded as Ted reached for the bloody broomstick and opened the bedroom door. The hallway was still dark but there was more light coming in through the open door at the end. Ted pulled the door closed behind him as he made his way over to the body. "Why didn't you say something sooner you dumb son of a bitch?" he lamented as he half kicked the corpse as casually glanced in the open door, and his jaw dropped at what he saw inside.

            Back when he lived in the apartment, there was nothing special to Ted about the second bedroom. It was smaller and it bordered against his neighbors side, who was too loud. That neighbor was now dead in Ted's hallway. Now though the wall that bordered the bedroom and the neighbors side had a large hole in it, allowing anyone access to both sides. "So that's how you got in," Ted said as he stepped through the hole.

            The other side let out into an enclosed porch. The other end of the room had a staircase leading down to a back door leading to the back parking lots they were in last night. Ted made his way down that staircase to ensure the exit door was locked before he opened the other door leading into the apartment proper. Inside was quiet and dark just like next door. "Hello?" Ted announced but got no reply. Ted crossed the open kitchen to the front door and found it too locked tight. Both apartments were defiantly secure from the outside world, it was now just a matter of ensuring there was nothing inside with him and the others.

            He slowly made his way through the apartment beyond the kitchen; first the bathroom and then the living area. The door to the lone bedroom was shut and Ted was about to check it when he heard Marko calling his name. He headed back to find Marko helping Jay through the hole. "Problem?" he asked. Marko shook his head. "My fault," Jay said "I just don't think we need to split up if we don't have to." Ted smiled. "You don't need to worry about us," he said "We're the ones who need to worry about you."

            "So who's the corpse?" Jay asked, ignoring what Ted just said.

            "Neighbor," Ted said.

            "He make the giant hole in your wall?" Marko asked.

            Ted shrugged. "Maybe," he said "But I dunno why. His side seemed pretty secure to me."

            "Check the whole place? Clean?"

            "Just the bedroom remains. Care to join me?"

            Jay hung back in the kitchen while Ted and Marko approached the door to the bedroom. Silent and weapons drawn, Marko opened the door and let it swing open. The one window in the room had its curtains drawn over but there was still enough light leaking through to hint that there were two women inside; one was motionless on the bed while the other one was sitting in a nearby chair and snapped to attention.

            "Light," Marko said as he fished his cell phone out. The person in the chair struggled to stand up but remained sitting as they gave off muffled moans from behind some sort of gag. "What went on in here?" Ted asked as Marko lit up his phone and shined onto the woman in the chair. Her pale white eyes lit up as she struggled further to free herself from the chair and attack the two men.

            "Ho-ly shit," Marko said as he backed away from the restrained zombie. Ted crept closer to look. "What the fuck went on here?" Marko asked. "That would be..." Ted trailed off as he backed away "That would be Mrs. Neighbor...or fiancé...or whatever, she's dead now." Marko made a face as he watched the zombie struggle to free itself. "Why would he just keep it?" he asked while Ted used his own phone to light up around the bed. "Sentimental? It's a loved one, maybe he knew he wouldn't be able to kill her off."

            "You think so?" Marko asked as Ted lit up around the girl on the bed. "I don't fucking know. You're asking me to get into the mind of a creep...This one over here's dead at least...Dead-dead I mean." Ted reached under the dead girls head and retrieved a pillow, then he walked back over to the zombie. "What are you-" Marko started but Ted cut him off. "Poor mans silencer," he said as he placed the pillow around the gun and against the zombie's head and pulled the trigger.

            "What the fuck?!" Jay called from the kitchen as the zombies head tilted back and didn't move again. "Suppressor my ass," Marko said "That was loud as fuck." Ted shrugged as he dropped the smoking pillow. "Quiet enough so nothing outside could hear," he said.

            "How thin are the fucking walls in this town?" Marko asked.

            "You realize they're thin enough for an overweight psychopath to bust down the barrier into the next apartment, right?"

            "Still..."

            "And it's quiet as death out there. The slightest noise might notify a bunch of those things to us. I don't want no crowd."

            "Paranoid much?"

            "I consider that an important survival trait right now."

            "True..."

            "Holy shit!" Jay yelled from the doorway after crawling his way over. Ted and Marko turned to see him looking into the room through his camera. "What happened to that girl?" he asked. Ted and Marko used to phones to look over the body. She was naked and her armed were tied to the bedposts. There were various cuts and bruises all over her body but her legs were absolutely mutilated, some areas right down to the bone.

            "I thought that smell was coming from..." Marko started but just turned and made his way out of the room. Ted slowly made his way over to Jay and helped him onto a couch in the living room while Marko puked in the bathroom. "How did you even notice that?" Ted asked as Jay held up his camera. "Night vision," he said "Just dark enough in there to work." Ted looked over the camera. "That would have been useful last night when we were wandering into a horde," he said. Jay smirked. "Yeah, well, unless there was a 'blizzard vision' setting I don't know about, we would've been fucked either way."

            Marko slowly emerged from the bathroom while wiping his mouth with his sleeve. "No more fucking around," he said "Let's find a way out of this shit hole."

Million Dollar Zombie 3-3

[Posted by Ted H]

Oh look...a job posting that requires that I have a college diploma to even apply. How rare! Now if there was only a way to hide the fact that I'm white at the interview, then I'd be in business...

The numbering system I use for these parts (1-2...2-1...3-2...Q-R) is kinda sporadic, I know. I just try to break everything up in logical cut offs, chapters if you will. So just because part 1 was done in 1 part, and part 2 was done in two shots, and part three took 3 updates, doesn't mean jack about part 4 or how many pieces it gets broken up into...just be glad when I even finish a part...

Anyway...remember these douchebags?

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[Million Dollar Zombie 3-3]

            "We need gas," Jack announced as he eyed the needle on his dash board. It was the first thing either one said since escaping Cazenovia. Jerry grabbed the map which was folded up neatly in the glove compartment; they didn't need it before with Ted. Jerry used his keychain light to see as he read the map. "Manlius," he said after a moment "Just keep going this way...I think."

            Jack had been driving with his lights off, not wanting to attract unwanted attention. After getting out of Caz, the roads had been pretty straightforward, even in the dark. Jerry spent most of the time trying to raise Martin on his cell phone but was having no luck. The snow had let up by time they reached Manlius and Jack hit the lights.

            The first gas station they reached was dark and the pumps shut off. "Backwater mother fuckers shut down for the night?" Jack asked as Jerry pointed to the other side of the street where there was a diner with lights on and people inside. "Go get directions or something," he said as Jack nodded. "One sec," he said as he got out and went to the back.

            "What are you doing?" Jerry asked as he saw Jack pull out a tarp and motioned to the corpse they had. The body was partially covered in snow, but it was still obvious what it was. Jerry and Jack got on opposite sides and pulled the open tarp over it. "Think anyone will get nosey?" Jerry asked as they climbed back into the truck. "Nah," Jack said "The smell isn't that prevalent since it's so cold. We won't take that long anyway."

            Few people took  notice of the men as they entered the diner, but those that did rarely looked away as they approached the front counter. "You boys need something?" the nearby waitress asked. "We need gas," Jerry said "Know anyone around that's still open?" The waitress made a face as she thought to herself. "Not nearby," she said while shaking her head "Your best bet is DeWitt. Know how to get there?" Jerry nodded "We have a map, just looking for gas without having to go that far."

            "Well, sorry I can't be more help than that," the waitress said while looking back and forth between the two. "Hope you don't mind me saying, but you two look like shit. You sure you don't need anything else?" Other people started looking over after hearing the waitress. "I could use a coffee I guess," Jack said as Jerry shrugged in agreement. The waitress nodded. "Be right back," she said and was off.

            The two sat down at the front counter while Jerry looked around. It was a narrow front with booths lined up at the front windows. It felt almost too clichéd for Jerry to believe it. There weren't too many people inside eating but what struck Jerry as odd was most of them were now paying attention to him and Jack. Some were still carrying on a light conversation while others were just staring, but almost everyone had an eye on the two new people in the room.

            "You boys passing by or just new?" an middle aged man next to them asked. "Passing by," Jerry responded "What's it to you?" The man smiled "Well most people know that this town all but shuts down at night. Even the gas stations are closed by midnight."

            "Well this place seems awfully busy," Jerry said.

            "Well it's mostly laborers or people who head into DeWitt or even Syracuse for their morning commutes. Breakfast is still important ya know."

            "Breakfast?"

            "You boys must've been driving a while now, it's damn near 4am!"

            "Shit," Jerry said as he turned to Jack, who had buried his head in his hands.

            "When did we leave?" he asked. "11...maybe?" Jack responded without looking up "Ted did say about 5 hours depending on traffic."

            "Where you two going that can't wait till morning, anyway?" the man asked.

            "Uh...DeWitt," Jerry said quickly "Just need some gas to get there."

            "Where you from?"

            "...South of here," Jerry said, suddenly wishing the man would stop talking to them.

            "South?" A woman down the counter said suddenly "But that's not possible. No one has come from that direction all week And anyone who goes down that way..."

            "What's it to you, anyway?" Jerry said defensively.

            "Ain't nothing," the man said "Just rumors. No one's had time to travel down that road and figure it out, no one important anyway. Others haven't come back. Word is something weird happened out in Cazenovia. Word is the army is snooping around, too."

            "You were there," the woman started again "Have you heard anything? I have a sister and-"

            "We weren't in Cazenovia!" Jerry yelled, everyone in the diner now looking right at him.

            "You came in on Route 92," the man said with a puzzled look "You pretty much have to hit Caz in order to get all the way up here."

            "Back roads," Jerry said while nudging Jack.

            "You would have hit three gas stations long before the one across the street if that were true. The only gas station on 92 before this one would be in Caz. What's happening?"

            "I don't feel like waiting for coffee anymore," Jack said as he and Jerry quickly made for the exit. Various people in the diner called after them as they left, but were ignored. The men broke into a run as soon as they were outside.

            "What about gas?" Jack asked as they climbed into the truck and Jack fired up the engine.

            "We'll figure something out, but let's get the hell out of here," Jerry said as they drove off. They breezed through Manlius and were on the way to DeWitt. "Think they were right?" Jack asked "About the army or something?" Jerry bit his lip. "I hope not. Though why haven't we been hit by them by now?"

            "Cuz Ted got us there sneakily enough?" Jack suggested as Jerry gazed out the window and looking at the sky. The snow had pretty much dissipated and the sky was clear. "The weather was bad..." he said to himself and realized how exposed they were in a truck with no blizzard covering them. "Lights off," he said as Jack quickly made things dark.

            "What's w-" he asked as a loud metallic "THWACK" sounded. "What was that?" he asked as Jerry screamed "Get us out of here!" Even in the dark he could see the sound came from something landing on the hood of the front, a small hole was now present. "Drive!" he yelled. "I-I can't" Jack said as he floored the gas pedal but the truck only slowed down.

            "Guess we should have waited for that coffee," he said as the truck rolled to a stop and sat in the dark for the inevitable.

Million Dollar Zombie 3-2

[Posted by Ted H]

Spent most of last week sick. Went to work though, cuz I'm fucking stupid.

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[Million Dollar Zombie 3-2]

            "We're gonna figure a way out of this," Ted said as he positioned himself in the window "When we do, we'll get you guys and get out. All six of us." Doc didn't say anything as Ted reached out and grabbed the pipe. His trip down wasn't as smooth as Marko's was, almost slipping off twice, but he made it down in one piece. "What now?" Jay asked as Ted and Marko shouldered him and started off.
 

           "There's a small alleyway next to where my apartment was," Ted said as they advanced. We get through that alley and have to spend maybe five seconds with our asses exposed." The area behind Doc's apartment was mostly parking lots for the various apartment buildings that surrounded it. "Why didn't anyone run?" Marko said as he eyed the various scattered cars about. "Can YOU hotwire?" Jay asked. "Just asking," Marko said.

            "No streetlights," Ted said in a low tone "No lights on in the apartment. Something happened here. Something besides the dead." Marko looked around, thinking it only got darker since Ted pointed out the lack of lighting. "Should someone go back and ask those guys?" he asked. "No," Ted said "Let's just get where we need to go before this storm buries us."

            The blizzard was still as thick as before as the three made their way up the small alley. Ted pulled out the guns and left the others as he crept his way street side on the sidewalk. There weren't as many walking corpses as opposed to the adjacent main street they were on before. With luck, Ted figured they could cover the short distance without being seen.

            Ted went back and helped Marko with Jay as they made for the apartment entrance. Three stone steps led up to blue double doors, one of which was ajar. Ted pushed it open further and the men filed through and shut the door without being seen. Ted slid a deadbolt closed and tried the light switch for the stairway. "Guess that settles it," Marko said as Ted flipped the switch on and off but it stayed dark "Power's out for the area."

            "We're fine now, right?" Jay asked.

            "Not by a long shot," Ted said as everyone followed his gaze up the stairs to see the single door at the top. Even in the dark they could tell it was open. "Maybe someone else who's alive?" Jay asked as Ted slowly made his way up the stairs. No one answered him as Marko helped Jay up after Ted.

            At the top, Ted crept near the wall until he felt around and found the closet door. He pushed it open and felt for the broomstick he left behind when he left. It was of decent weight and broken at the end. They couldn't afford any gunshots if there was something in the apartment. Ted and Marko both pulled out their cell phones. They couldn't get signals on them but they flipped them open and held them out as flashlights as they moved forward in the dark.

            "Hello?" Marko announced and the men stopped at the thumping they got in response. Ted readied his broomstick as he crept down the hallway towards the rear bedroom where the noise was heard. He used the stick to push the door open and immediately a figure reached out and grabbed at him. "Shit!" he screamed as he dropped his phone and blindly tried to push off the grunting attacker. Marko ran up and with one hand on his phone lighting up the struggle, grabbed the attackers hair with his other hand and pulled back, taking care not to go near its mouth. Something metal clattered to the floor as Marko pulled.

            Ted was on the ground and Marko pulled the attacker back, his arms raised to pull Marko's hand out of his hair. Ted grabbed the broomstick and readied the sharp end forward. "No!" the man screamed as Ted thrust the stick through the man's neck and up into his brain. Ted finished pushing the corpse off of him as the heavy thump it made was the only sound for a moment.

            "That man wasn't dead." Jay said but no one answered him.

Million Dollar Zombie 3-1

[...Posted by Ted H]

You know how freakin impossible it is to write when you're suppose to be watching your 1 year old nephew and he won't stop crying unless you hold him...but now you're trying to type with one arm while holding a child in the other while he keeps trying to slam his little hands down as hard as he can on your keyboard........this is why I shall remain childless...


Aaaaaaaaaaaanyway, I was originally planning to do a mock-bible write-up for Easter, but then some shit went down around here and I found myself with no time to attempt such a task. The effort required was too great to do at the last minute, so I guess I'll just shelf the idea for a year. If you must know-it involved Jesus pissing off God big time, fist-fighting Satan, and fighting zombies with the apostles. I know everyone's pants just got real moist at that preview, but you're going to have to contain yourself until next year.

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[Million Dollar Zombie 3-1]

            "Noooooooo!" Marko screamed as the taillights of Jacks truck disappeared into the storm. "You fucking bastards!" he screamed as some zombies who were blindly following the truck turned towards the screaming. "Shut the fuck up," Ted said as he aimed his gun at the zombies already closing in "We need a new plan. We can't stay here."

           "We run after them. They have to turn back, right?" Marko suggested. Ted was about to respond as a scream grabbed their attention. Both men exchanged an "Oh shit" look before running towards Jay, who was trying to push off zombies as more shuffled over. One had a hold of his leg as it continuously bit into him while another had a grip on his shoulder, keeping Jay from pushing it too far away.
            Ted rushed over and grabbed the zombie on his shoulder and easily tossed him aside while Marko shot the other one in the head. "Give me the gun and grab him," Ted shouted as Marko handed over his gun and helped Jay up. He couldn't put any weight on his right leg so Marko had to shoulder him.
            "We won't last ten minutes out here," Ted shouted as they slowly moved out, Ted shooting a few zombies to clear a path. "We're not leaving Jay behind," Marko barked. Ted made a face as he looked out in the direction of Cazenovia. "We head for the town," he finally shouted "Find somewhere safe to hold up. Move!"
            The three made their way towards the town, carefully weaving their way through the closing hoard. Jay balled his hood up around his left shoulder to cover the bite wound while he gritted through the pain radiating from the devoured remains of his right calf. He knew Jerry had done all he could before running. If he stayed any longer, he probably would've lost out on his chance to escape. Jay wondered if Ted and Marko were carelessly throwing away their chance to escape by staying to help.
            They had gotten ahead of the main mob, but main street still had a few dozen scattered about, and the snow was letting up, exposing them all the more. "What's the plan?" Marko asked. "My old apartment," Ted said "End of this block we turn and-"
            "I don't suppose your landlord let you keep the keys," Marko interrupted.
            "We'll improvise," Ted said as he sidestepped a lunging zombie. He didn't want to attract more with gunfire, but that was too close so the next one that came in Ted fired. "They're too many!" Jay cried out as their progress was all but halted by an incoming horde, almost shoulder to shoulder. Ted shot a couple hoping to create a hole in the approaching wall as more undead approached from behind.
            They backed up towards a jewelry store. The window in front was cracked but didn't look like it could be broken open with the means anyone had on them. Marko dropped Jay near the door while Ted aimed and fired into the closing crowd. Marko ran up and kicked into the door but it didn't budge. "It's bolted or something!" Ted said without turning. "Then I just need to kick harder!" Marko shouted as he tried again "We don't have much choice!"
            "Down to one!" Ted yelled as one of his guns clicked empty while Marko made a failed third attempt to open the door. "I'm so sorry guys," Jay said as he buried his head in his hands then almost jumped at the sound of a booming gunshot that felt like it was right next to him.
            "This way!" Someone yelled as they appeared from a door to the left of the jewelry store. They held up a rifle and fired again into the horde. Ted and Marko both grabbed Jay and dragged him to the door. The man followed them and closed it. The door had a large center window that was covered with a nailed board on the inside.
            They entered into a cramped stairway that led to two doors on the second floor. One of those doors were boarded up with a red x painted on the outside. The man began walking up the steps. "Get away from the door," he said as the door to the street began to shake from pounds from outside. "Will that hold?" Marko asked. "It has so far," the man said "But if you want to stay and find out if it survives this assault..."
            Ted pocketed both guns and helped Marko shoulder Jay as they began up the stairs, every step gave off an uncomfortably loud creak as they progressed. "You know this guy?" Marko asked as Ted shook his head. When they reached the top, Ted looked at the boarded up door and listened. "There's something in there," he said. "Living or dead?" Marko asked.
            "Stay away from that door, too," the man said as he stood by his own door and motioned everyone in. As soon as they were through, he closed the door and began pushing a couch in front of the door. Ted helped while Marko brought Jay into the kitchen. "Thanks, by the way," Ted said as the man nodded and slung his rifle around his back. "The others are inside. Grab your friends and head on in."
            Ted walked into the kitchen to find Jay on the ground holding a wad of paper towels on his leg bite. Marko was digging in the cabinets looking for anything he could use to dress Jay's wounds. "How bad?" Ted asked. "Hurts like a bitch," Jay responded "And the bleeding won't stop." Jay's hood was soaking through and stuck on his shoulder. He made no attempt to move it.
            "Better than nothing," Marko said as he pulled out a large rag and began tearing it up. "How'd that guy find us anyway?" Jay asked as he tossed the bloody wad aside and shoved a new one in before tying it down. "Shooting guns right outside his window might have something to do with it," Ted said "And there are more people here."
            "Can we trust any of them?" Marko asked as he dropped the last of the rag down to Jay. "I trust anything that's not trying to eat me," Jay said as he finished up and pocketed the remaining rag. "Just let me do the talking," Ted said as they helped Jay up and walked out and towards the living room.
            The apartment as a whole wasn't spacious. From the door they entered in was a hallway leading to bedrooms in back. The main living area was divided by a mess of boxes, leaving only a narrow path from the kitchen to the front of the apartment where three men were waiting. One was peering out the window in the corner, another was laid out on a couch drinking a beer. The one with the gun was standing nearby, arms folded, and cleared his throat when Ted and company arrived.
            "I'm Doc," the man said "That's Ryan by the window and John's getting drunk." Ryan barely looked over from the window, taking more care to spy on the horde just outside. John nodded to the men but seemed too inebriated to care beyond that.  Jay was let off onto the couch and Marko stood in front of him. "I'm Ted. That's Marko and Jay is on the couch," Ted said as Doc tried to look around Marko at Jay. "What's wrong with your friend?" he asked.
            "Ankle," Jay said quickly as he slunk down in his seat. His entire coat was wet from the melted snow and his pants were covered in mud which helped to conceal the parts that were soaked with blood. "I took a nasty fall out there."
            "What were you even doing out there?" Doc asked. "Well..." Marko started but Ted cut in "Trying to get out," he said.
            "There's no getting out," Doc said.
            "No harm in trying."
            "Your friend's hurt and you almost got eaten."
            "Either get out or wait to die. So what if we almost expedited or deaths?"
            "Help will come. We just need to last long enough."
            Ted looked over to Marko who clenched his jaw but said nothing. "Help isn't coming," Ted said. "People will come," Doc said as Marko sighed "It's been long enough, some sort of rescue should be here soon."
            "No..." Ted started "It...Help would have been here by now."
            "What if we work together?" Ryan asked from the window "Six of us together might stand a chance."
            "We'll be swarmed in seconds," Doc countered.
            "We've got more guns," Ryan said as he finally turned away from the window "That guy is right, help would have been here by now."
            "What would the holdup be?" Doc asked.
            "It's the fucking zombie apocalypse," Ted said "A quarantine is blocking anyone from getting in...probably."
            "So we just need to make it to wherever this quarantine ends and a bunch of armed mother fuckers with help us out," Ryan said as he looked back out the window.
            "Sounds like a plan," Doc said as he turned to Ted. "How much ammo do you guys have left?"
            "Not much," Marko said "But it's not like we're gonna find more, so we might as well try."
            "Alright," Doc said "Then we'll just have to-"
            "This guy's bleeding all over the place," John said.
            Everyone's attention turned to John and Jay on the couch, and the puddle of blood that was on the ground by Jay. "It's ok...really," Jay said as John jumped back on the couch. "He's bit!" he screamed "Holy shit, Doc, you let one of those things in!" Doc readied his rifle as Ted and Marko stepped into his line of sight. "Let's not do anything rash," Ted said as Doc raised his rifle and said "Get out of the way."
            "We're not gonna let you do this," Ted said as John jumped off the back of the couch to get away. "I'm...I'm not...I feel fine," Jay stammered as he braced himself in his seat. "This isn't up for debate," Doc said as he leveled his gun.
            "What did I say?" Ryan shouted from the window "They're probably infected. They'll get us all killed." Ted pulled out both guns. "Shut the fuck up or I'll send you out that window," he shouted to Ryan. "Get him up," he said to Marko "And stay behind me."
            John made a movement towards Marko when Ted aimed one gun at him and the other at Doc. "I think it's time we left," he said as Marko helped Jay up and they backed their way to the door. "You can't go that way," Doc said, keeping his rifle pointed at Ted as they moved "You'll just let everything outside in."
            "Well they can't stay here," Ryan protested "At least not alive." Ted shot Ryan a look. "I'm not telling you again," he said. "I'm not killing anyone I don't have to," Doc said "There's another way out." He lowered his rifle as Ted lowered one of his guns but kept the other trained on John. "A back staircase?" Marko asked. "Not exactly," Doc said as he walked back towards the kitchen.
            Doc led everyone back to the kitchen, doing his best to ignore the pool of Jay left from before, and opened a small window in the back. Cold air blew in as Marko moved up and peered out the window. "We're on the second floor, how are we getting down?" he asked. "There's a drain pipe near the window," Doc said "It's pretty sturdy and it goes straight down. I've used it a couple times myself. Those things don't dwell back here unless something grabs their attention so be quick, wherever it is you're going now."
            Jay flashed Marko a worried look as Ted moved up and stuck his head out the window. "Nothing out there I can see," he said as he pulled himself back inside and looked to Marko "You first. I'll cover you if there's trouble."
            "What about-" Jay started but Ted cut him off. "Once you get a hold on the pipe, we'll try to get Jay onto your back." Marko made an uncomfortable look but said nothing. "C'mon," Ted said "You rock climb all the time. This isn't any different." Marko sighed. "I'll have an injured person on my back and going in the wrong direction," he protested "It's nothing like rock climbing. How about you carry and I'll cover."
            "Can you get Jay out the window and onto me without dropping?" Ted asked and Marko shrugged. "Anyone else ant to help us?" he asked towards the others to find that only Doc was watching them and he was keeping his distance. "Fine," Marko said annoyed as he climbed into the window and reached for the pipe. "Got it," he said as he swung himself out and waited. "You're up," Ted said as he helped Jay to the window. Jay steadied on his good leg in the window as Marko extended his arm.
            "Hold on tight, Marko," Ted said as he patted Jay on the back. "I got you," he said as Jay let go of the window and reached his other arm out and half jumped to Marko. He swore as he crashed into the other man and wrapped his arms around him. Marko maintained his hold on the pipe. "So far so good," Ted said. "Not dead yet," Jay said sarcastically as Marko began to work his way down the pipe, grunting the whole time. "Keep it down," Ted said. "I'm gonna punch him," Marko said under his breath."
            "Still looks clear," Ted said as he scanned the surrounding area outside "Guess we made enough commotion on the other side to draw everyone's attention." Doc remained silent.
            "Look," Ted said turning away from the window "I kinda get why you're doing what you're doing. And we appreciate it over things turning into a shootout back there."
            "I might need the bullets," Doc finally said.
            "Yeah...well, whatever. Thanks anyway. I didn't want to waste a bullet on either of your friends, so I guess we'll call it even."
            "Ryan isn't going to stop bitching about helping you guys to begin with now."
            "I take it he wasn't too keen on you rescuing us earlier, huh?"
            "We voted on it when we first heard you guys. I was the only one in favor of helping you."
            "Wow...uh...so if you were in the minority..."
            "I was also the only one with the gun."
            "Well thanks again."
            "When your friend does die...and assuming that neither you or your other friend get-"
            "Jay isn't dying anytime soon. But we'll be in touch...maybe."
            "I don't need you lingering around-"
            "No, no, you see? Check this out," Ted said as he pointed out the window towards the rear of a block of buildings nearby. "Behind the dumpsters, second story. See those windows?" Doc looked out and nodded. "That's where we'll be...maybe," Ted said as he checked to see that Marko had reached the bottom of the pipe and was letting Jay off.

Million Dollar Zombie 2-2

[...Posted by Ted H]

...Personally, my favorite part is always when I get to write where a situation irreversibly hits the fans in a big way.

BGI is taxing me for some reason. Apparently transferring v2 and making it all coherent in v3 involves a bit more effort than I wanted. Writing Ted and Aaron hanging out before it all went down was fun...Kristen getting killed by zombies was a blast...D talking to his superiors and worrying about his task at hand came easy as well, but none of that happened in any prior version. Ted dicking around with an electric fence and the other two major characters he encounters on the way back to the school both were in the previous version and are the ones taking me the longest. Those parts are slow but once the story proper gets rolling I'll be able to pound out v3 much more efficiently. For now I just need to drop my head and plow through. I just need everyone to get back into the school, then I can do this much easier.

Until then we have our other story where 5 greedy jackasses are getting attacked by the undead...
...And Anthony's story about a guy (Chinese? I'm only saying because he ate a cat and my brain can't help itself) in a different apocalypse, which is very good so far (And you can trust that endorsement because the voices in my head don't praise all that much)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Million Dollar Zombie 2-2]

            The snow had stopped, but the others were too far ahead for Jack to see. He got out anyway since he wanted a cigarette. It had been snowing hard for a while but thanks to the wind, little actually stuck to the truck. Still, it would pick up again and Jack didn't feel like busting out a snowbrush in the middle of a alleged zombie attack. Just to be safe, he reached back into the truck and retrieved a brush alongside his dads magnum that he "borrowed" for the little adventure.

            He quickly brushed the light snow off of the side windows as he made a circle around his truck. "Done and done," he said as he tossed the brush into the truck bed, then quickly stopped to listen. He thought he could hear shuffled footsteps. "Fucking crazy," he said as he approached the door. The snow was still out of the way but there were no streetlights on or anything to give much visibility.

            Jack reached in and turned his lights on to reveal a half dozen stumbling figures approaching. "Oh...That...That can't be..." Jack started but stopped when the closest of the approaching figures let out a long moan and reached out. "Yup, time to go," he said as he jumped back into the truck and fired up the engine. He knew the plan was to sit in the dark quietly and let the others lead back a zombie, but the zombies found him and he was going to make a change to the plan.

            Jack shifted gears and backed the truck around again. The first of the undead had just reached the truck when he shifted into drive and drove off after the others. The storm was picking up again as the hoard of six grew larger and together they marched after the truck.

 *******

            "Alright," Marko said as he aimed his gun at the approaching people "What now?" Jerry was at a loss for words and could only stare at the approaching. None of them were dressed for the weather and their faces looked pale and discolored. Some were partially devoured in places and all were covered in blood, especially around the mouth. All of them groped the air in front of them as they encircled the men.

            "Jerry!" Ted screamed "Tell me you planned for this!"
            "I..."Jerry started but couldn't bring himself to focus anymore.
            "Jerry!" Ted screamed again as he grabbed the man by the shoulders and shook him. "Fuck it, we lost him."

            "You got a plan then?" Marko asked as Ted pulled the gun out of Jerry's hand, then pointed it at the closest approaching person.

            "STOP!" Ted barked out "I will shoot!" He fired a shot overhead to show the gun worked then pointed it back, but the approaching took no notice. "I'm warning you!" he yelled again as even more figures stepped out into view. Ted hesitated a moment longer before he pulled the trigger again and put a round right through their head. The persons head knocked back as they slowly fell over and didn't move again.

            "Holy..." Jay started and pointed his camera but stopped himself, unsure if he wanted a picture of what just happened "This...It's real..." The gunshot snapped Jerry out of his own head as looked at all the other approaching continue on unfazed from the headshot. "They don't even care," Jay called out.

            "Back to the truck!" Ted yelled as the storm strengthened "Shoot a path, Marko!" Ted and Marko led the way as they shot the closest in their way, Jerry and Jay stayed close behind. Jay held up a moment to get one more picture as the undead converged where they were standing before, then he took off after the others. They had just run into the intersection when headlights pierced through the storm and Jack drove in.

            "Look out!" Marko screamed as he and Ted dove forward and Jerry and Jay dove back just as Jack drove his truck between them. He then hit the brakes as slid to a stop. Without waiting, Jerry ran for the truck as Jack came out. "You guys ok?" he asked as Jerry ran up pointing to Jack's left. "Incoming!" he yelled as Jack turned to see a zombie approach.

            Jack immediately held up his magnum and yelled for it to stop. "They're real, just fucking blow it away!" Jerry screamed as Jack hesitated. Real or not, Jack had never fired a gun before and found it difficult to pull the trigger. "Jack!" Jerry screamed "Kill it!" Jack continued to wait, shaking his head as his aim waivered. "I'm...I'm just here to drive," he said to himself as Jerry pulled the gun from his hands.
            The zombie was close enough to reach out as Jerry pulled Jack back and extended his arm to aim. Jerry squeezed the trigger and the gun jerked out of his hand as the top of the zombie's head disappeared and it fell backwards. "Oh shit," Jack said as Jerry picked the gun up and pointed it at other approaching zombies. "Get that thing in the truck," Jerry said as he shot and missed at another zombie.
            Jack went to pick up the body and observed all the things wrong with it. The top of the head was the only injury the magnum caused but this man was defiantly dead long before. They were barefoot and only wearing jeans and a torn shirt. Where the shirt was torn, the man's chest had been torn into with skin missing all the way up to their face. Despite the wounds, only the head injury was yielding blood, and even that seemed to produce little in the way of liquid.
            "Come on, Jack!" Jerry screamed as he squeezed off another round; the shot striking a zombie in the chest, but otherwise doing nothing to deter it. Jack hesitated a moment, then grabbed the man by the remains of his shirt and pulled him up so he was sitting up. He then threw his arms under the corpse's and dragged it up. This wasn't supposed to be his job, prompting him to ask Jerry "Where are the others?"

*********

            Jack couldn't hear them over the storm, but Ted and Marko were only twenty feet away. After diving out of the way, they were quickly overtaken by zombies and they had to scramble away to avoid being eaten. They had taken temporary refuge on someone's front lawn.
            "How's your aim?" Marko asked as both men aimed into the closing zombies. "Paintball count?" Ted answered as Marko fired three shots and dropped two zombies. "Good enough," Marko said as he continued to fire.
            "I can't see Jerry," Ted said as he struggled to see through the storm then spun around and fired at the zombies who were coming in from behind.
            "We need to move!" Marko screamed as more zombies approached, forcing the two to retreat away from where the truck was. "Jerry!" Ted screamed before shoving his gun into a zombie's face and shooting.

 ***************

            "I need help, Jerry!" Jack yelled as he struggled to push the corpse over the top and into his truck-bed. Jerry fired off another shot, blowing through zombie's neck and severing its spinal cord. He quickly turned and grabbed the corpse by the belt and pulling up, helping Jack flip it into the truck. "Go go go!" he yelled as he fired a wide shot and sprinted to get to the other side.
            "Ted! Marko! We're leaving!" he screamed as Jack threw his door open to block some zombies and jump in. Jerry strained to listen for the others but could only hear gunfire that seemed to be so far away.
            "Help me!" someone else screamed, turning Jerry around as a cold sweat washed over him. He lost track of Jay, and unlike the others, he was alone and unarmed. Jerry took off to where he remembered diving away from before, shouldering away a zombie and knocking it over. Jay was on the ground and trying to kick two zombies off of him. Others were making their way to him as well as Jerry aimed and shot the head right off of one of the zombies on Jay. The body fell over on top of Jay as Jerry quickly aimed for the other and pulled the trigger, only to find the magnum was out of bullets.

 ************

            "We're going the wrong way!" Ted screamed as Marko reloaded his gun. "I know!" he screamed back as the approaching hoard kept pushing the two backwards "But what are we gonna do, ask them to let us through?" Ted and Marko continued to fire as they retreated back into the street but still in the wrong direction.
            "I'm out!" Ted yelled as he constantly pulled the trigger to no effect. "How is that possible?" Marko shouted as he fumbled a new clip out and tossed it over. Both had been conservative with their ammo; only taking sure headshots. It wasn't until later that Marko realized that when Ted took the gun from Jerry, he never bothered to take any of the spare ammo Jerry had on him.

            Marko had only one spare clip, and Jerry just screamed something inaudible from the truck. Whatever it was he was screaming, they needed to get back fast. "This is fucking ridiculous," Marko screamed as he fired two more shots "They're swarming from everywhere!"
            "We gotta risk it," Ted finally said as he took one final worried look at Marko, then charged into the hoard where it was thinner.

 ***************

            Jack had to push off a zombie that was pulling on his door, but he finally closed it. The engine still running from before, he shifted into reverse and drove to where he saw Jerry disappear to. Through the wall of falling snow he saw him, pushing a zombie away while trying to pull Jay out from under another zombie.
            "Holy shit," he breathed as he sat helplessly and watched as zombies began to pound at his door trying to get in. He watched as Jerry jumped back as he avoided a lunging zombie while the original zombie fell on top of Jay and bit into his shoulder. "No!" Jack screamed as Jerry kicked the zombie back off of Jay, while another crouched down behind Jay and grabbed his leg.

            Jerry wasn't going to give up though as more and more zombies began to pound on the truck while more approached Jerry and Jay. Jack realized, on top of the fact that he couldn't hear any more shooting from wherever Ted and Marko were, that if anyone was going to leave alive, they needed to leave now.
            Ted and Marko were gone, and it became pretty clear that Jerry wasn't going to be able to help Jay as the zombie bit right into his calf. Jack pushed his hand into the steering wheel, sounding the horn which grabbed the attention of everything, living and dead. With Jerry's attention, Jack waved furiously for him to get into the truck.

            "Come on you idiot, he ain't gonna make it!" he screamed as he beat the horn while Jerry made one final effort to pull Jay away but gave up when too many zombies got too close. Jack drove back a little to push some zombies off of the truck so Jerry could reach the passenger door.

            As soon as Jerry's door was shut, Jack shifted and sped out of the immediate area, knocking everything aside as he drove. "No!" Jerry screamed "What about Marko and Ted?"
            "I don't know where they were. I don't think they made it either," Jack said as he clenched the steering wheel.

            "We need to go back."

            "If I waited any longer, we die. If we go back now, we die."

            "We could've saved Jay."

            "He was fucked."

            "You don't know that!"

            "Jerry, do you even realize what just happened?"

            Jerry didn't say anything. "Yeah, you do," Jack said "And believe me, I do too. We can't go back. We shouldn't have even bothered."