“It depends on the situation, I guess. But it wouldn’t be overly friendly to shoot someone who just saved my butt. And thanks, I get lucky sometimes. By the way, I have to say it…nice shoes. Do they go with the poncho as part of some outfit?” Jack asked.
“Long story, and I doubt you’d believe a third of it, let’s just say I had some wardrobe help from my friend here.” Mike reached out and squeezed Trip’s shoulder.
“You mentioned howlers. What are those? Zombies I’ve already had the misfortune to become acquainted with,” Jack stated.
“Well, where I’m from, zombies rule the roost. The rest of us are just trying to survive. Then, my buddy and I find ourselves here, and it appears that zombies have made the journey with us. And there’s this super zombie, but not really because my zombies like to eat these new ones. We call them ‘howlers’ because of the noise they make. I’ll tell you what, they scare the hell out me. They made it up this tower like it was a sand castle…that’s another thing zombies can’t do,” Mike said with a shudder.
“Well, isn’t that just fucking peachy? I was hoping you were from here, and I could figure this place out. I’m just looking to get back home to my kids and girlfriend, but I’ll be damned if I know how. Shit, I don’t even know how I got here. I’ll admit that I’m not overly fond of zombies that can run. Fuck that nonsense. So…question. Do these howlers, as you call them, come out during the day, or have you only seen them at night?” Jack asked, trying to get a handle on a situation that seemed to be only getting worse.
“Only at night, and they fry like an egg left on an Arizona sidewalk during the day,” Mike answered. “You know about them?”
“I was going to tell you about some night runners I ran into last night. I’m guessing they’re one and same as your ‘howlers’. That’s the world I come from. They have night vision capabilities, can hear like a wolf, run around in packs, and can detect scent like nothing else. Oh yeah, and they’re stronger and faster. Fucking great, eh?” Jack replied. “What about these zombie things? Are there a lot that can run like that?”
“Shit, man. I thought we had it bad. When the outbreak happened, it was the slow ones that started the whole train. Thing was, they had to die and reanimate so, at first, they were slow. Then, as the virus, or whatever the hell it was, mutated, the human host didn’t die first, so the body was kept intact. So, we have zombie version two-point-oh, and your traditional slow shuffler. More of either of them than is worth counting. Are you guys overrun with these night runners? That’s a more apt (and scarier) name. How are any of you surviving?” Mike asked.
Jack chuckled at the mention of “zombie version two-point-oh” and realized that these two men he had run into weren’t that bad and, if he were to be honest, he rather enjoyed their company; or was at least comfortable with them, even if John did seem a little out there. I guess that’s why he was named ‘John the Tripper.’
“We survive one day at a time. We’ve built a sanctuary against them and we have the day to do what we need. It looks like we have time as we’re not going anywhere soon,” Jack said, looking over the railing. “Where I’m from, most of humanity was wiped out from a flu virus and subsequent vaccine. Seventy percent just died. Less than one percent lived through it; a lot less now. The rest turned into these night runners.”
“We’re from different worlds, but the similarities are too striking to be completely coincidental. Our world got screwed over by a tainted flu vaccine. Nearly all who received it died, most of those turned into zombies. I’ve got to figure ninety percent of the world’s population has become flesh eaters. Of the ten percent of humanity left, we’ve been culled pretty good. We’re holding on by a fingernail, and I’d still take that place over this one. At least I’d be with my family.”
Mike wasn’t sure why he was opening up to the man, but he seemed an honorable warrior, much like he considered himself. Just mentioning his girlfriend and kids had made Mike feel for him.
“My wife once made me watch a movie that had aliens in it. They took men and women from all different worlds and made them into prey for the predators. I can’t remember the name of the movie though,” Trip said as he took a big influx of smoke.
Mike and Jack both looked over at Trip, each deciding how much validity they wanted to put into Trip’s words.
“Yeah. I’m with you. This world sucks, although I’m not overly envious of the one you come from. At least I have my kids in my world. Look, it seems like we aren’t going to shoot each other. You’re going to need these if we’re dealing with night runners,” Jack said, removing his NVGs and handing them to Mike. Replying to Trip, “I’ve seen that movie. I can’t remember the name either.”
“Thank you,” Mike said, looking over his new toy. “Please tell me we’re not in someone’s experiment. Listen, I’ve got a fair amount of ammo, but I’m telling you that staying up here tonight is no bargain. The night runners know we’re here, and the zombies are somewhat of a deterrent. It didn’t stop them last night, and I can’t imagine it will stop them tonight. Me and Trip went through a military blockade a couple of miles away. We could go back and check the rest of the stuff. My last visit was cut short.”
“I hope we aren’t as well. I was really hoping you knew a way out of this place. I have a little ammo as well, and the last place I want to be is out in the open at night. Fuck that. I wish I had more grenades so we could carve a hole through our friends downstairs. Do you have anything that makes noise? We could make a distraction,” Jack asked.
Mike looked over the railing at the zombies that had coalesced around the ladder entrance.
“Want some more water, Ponch. I’m going to get some.” Trip asked, oblivious to the entire conversation going on around him.
“You going back up to the top?” Mike asked his friend.
Trip walked away.
“Excuse me for a sec, Jack,” Mike said as he followed Trip around the parapet.
Trip opened up a small utility access panel, a normal looking garden spigot was recessed inside.
“Jack!” Mike shouted, “I think you’re going to want to see this!”
Jack walked to where Mike and Trip were gathered around an opened hatch. “Well, that’s handy. It will be nice to fill up, but, honestly, I’m not all that keen on staying up here for long, although I haven’t the foggiest idea how to get through the horde below.”
“I wonder if running water would be enough of a distraction. It’s not all that far from we’re we’ll be leaving the ladder, but it’s something. Maybe we take a few pot shots at some of the faster ones and then make a break for it,” Mike said as he watched Trip place his entire mouth over the spigot. “You know other people would like to drink from that, right?” Mike asked.
“Dude chill-lax. There’s plenty of water in there,” Trip answered, tapping the tank.
“Speaking of which, you were swimming in it. I don’t feel so thirsty anymore,” Mike said queasily.
“Seriously? You were swimming in it? How in the hell were you swimming in it?” Taking the pack from his shoulder, Jack removed one of the water bottles from inside and handed it to Mike. “Here, you might like this a little better. It’s fresh from the Arcadia Mountains. Wherever the fuck that is. I’m just curious, how many were in the pack of night runners?”
“Thanks, man.” Mike took the bottle, making as little a show as possible of seeing if the safety cap was still sealed.
He’d only known Jack for a short amount of time and was unsure how many of his psychoses he was willing to share just yet.
“The pack, man. I bet there had to be at least thirty that I saw, maybe as many as fifty total. They fought the zombies tooth and nail just to get to the structure and the ladder. They used tactics as well. I wasn’t expecting that. We knew we weren’t going to be able to defend this position, and Trip found a way onto the top of the structure. There is only one way up there, and I killed them as they came. It got close a few times.”