The Zombie Panic Continues…
The group stood still, frozen in fear and confusion. None of the squad or the Backstabbers had survived an entire base camp being overrun and this was the last known operational Army base. They did not know what they should do next. The silence on the comms radio combined with the lack of gunfire or explosions in the direction of the base were very bad signs.
The senior Backstabber was trying to raise anyone over the comm net but he only found silence.
“It could be just a general power failure. They probably stopped firing because they won the fight,” explained the senior.
“Power failure wouldn’t silence the mobile comm units. The base is lost. Damn Zombie Panic,” said Jimmy.
“We have to check.”
“Ok but let’s be quiet and not announce our approach.”
“Let’s do it,” said the senior.
The squad resumed its progress toward the base but at a snail’s pace, led by Jimmy who was still the point man.
In the distance, reddish flickering lights were showing in random spots around and inside the base.
“Those aren’t lights, they are fires,” said Jimmy.
As they neared the front gates of the base’s main entry point, they could see that the large steel gates were open. One of the gates was off its hinges and leaning against the wall. The squad passed through the gates, no one was around. The two sentries normally on top of the walls were missing, no posts were manned, and blasted corpses littered the base’s courtyard.
The inner base walls had an ominous blood-red glow shed by the firelight. Jimmy stopped and turned to the senior Backstabber.
“Let’s get the hell out of here. The fight’s over,” he said.
The senior raised his AK47 and pointed it at Jimmy.
“Keep moving to the command tent or I’ll put you down like a dog,” threatened the senior.
Before Jimmy could respond, a Conscript in the squad tripped over a metal bar that was supporting a stack of fuel barrels. The stack came crashing down as everyone turned to stare him down for making such a racket.
“Oh…my…God…” whispered Jenkins, one of the other Conscripts.
He was staring in disbelief at the massive horde of zombies that was coming at them from deeper in the base. It was not bad enough that a massively overwhelming mob was rushing at them; the horrifying fact was that half of the zombies were wearing Army fatigues.
The zombie panic had claimed more victims.
The squad now knew what happened, the base had been overrun, and its defenders infected.
Jimmy started running back toward the gate. He could hear the footfalls of his comrades behind him and looked over his shoulder. The zombie horde was hustling after them. Fortunately, most zombies are slow movers. The very nasty ones were swiftly pursuing, maddened at the sight of fresh meat.
Jimmy turned back in time to see that another group of zombies had moved in through the gate, seven of them, and they were cutting off the group from freedom. The two Backstabbers had fallen behind because their added gear was slowing them down. They had AK47’s, side arms, and ammunition but were too freaked out to shoot at the zombies blocking their escape.
The Conscripts were armed only with heavy clubs and thick bats.
“Don’t stop!” shouted Jimmy.
The Conscripts ran through, dove between, and jumped over the zombies. Suddenly the zombies were aware that humans were in the area and looked up. They saw two Backstabbers heading toward them and rushed to meet them. The Backstabbers started firing too late. The Zombie Panic claimed them.
Both men were tripped up and pounced upon. The junior Backstabber started screaming. The senior reached into his jacket for his heavy grenade and activated the trigger. A large, fiery explosion consumed both men and their attackers. The Conscripts kept running.
Twenty minutes later Jimmy stopped running and took a breather. He was convinced that no zombie could have kept up or would still be following them. After a few minutes, the group had caught its breath. He was convinced that his part in the Zombie Panic was over.
“At least I can go home now,” said Jimmy.
“What about your brother?” asked Jenkins.
“He was in the group the Backstabbers just blew up.”
