Evacuation

There’s a truck outside. A woman is climbing out of the driver’s seat, and you recognize her long raven hair immediately.

“Bella!” You can’t keep a grin off of your face, and you hear a commotion behind you as the others rush to gather their bags. Reaching down, you pick up your own bag, and resting your ski-bat over your shoulder, you quickly open the door. “You’re here!”

“Did you think I’d just flake on you or something?” She smiles a little, and meets you in the middle to catch you in a hug. “I’m glad you’re safe, little brother.” Pulling away, she looks over your shoulder. “So this is your little band of misfits, huh?”

“Yeah.” You gesture to the five others. “You might remember I mentioned a couple of them. Charlie, Sam, Heather -”

“The Heather, huh?” Bella’s expression is teasing, but she has the decency to keep her voice down.

“Yeah.” You shrug. “Things have changed, though.”

“Oh?” She raises an eyebrow. “I’ve got to hear that story later.” She turns to the others. “Get into the back, people. We don’t have much time and I don’t know how long the distraction I set will give us.”

As the group passes (Alex whistling idly, Charlie sulking, Meg giving your sister a nod and Heather practically beaming) Sam stops and looks up at the much taller woman.

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

“Likewise. Sam, right?” At your girlfriend’s nod, Bella smiles. “From what I hear, you’re the reason this idiot hasn’t gotten himself robbed and dumped in an alley.” The redhead bites her lip to stifle a laugh as you try to protest, but the conversation is cut short as you hear a rumbling in the distance.

“Um, Bella?” You look at your sister, who’s now facepalming. “That’s not coming towards us, is it?”

“Depends on whether you want me to lie, little brother.”

“Fuck.”

“Get in the truck, now. We’re just going to have to gun it.” She climbs into the driver seat and revs the engine. “Brace yourselves, this isn’t gonna be an easy ride!” As you climb into the bed of the truck, bracing yourself against the side as the others do similarly, you feel the truck move.

And then it accelerates.

You faintly hear the others cursing as you’re all pushed towards the back of the truck-bed by the sheer speed your sister is driving the truck at. Looking back, you think you see why: a horde of the infected, barreling around the corner at a speed that would have brought them to you quickly if you hadn’t started moving.

The city streets fly by in a blur as the wind steals the breath from your lungs. You hear roars and screams from other streets and alleys.

And then there’s a crash.

Well, it’s not a crash so much as a ‘boom.’

Suddenly, the truck is spinning out of control, and everyone is screaming and the brakes are screeching. The truck tips to one side as your sister tries desperately to regain control, and as you fall out, your ears are ringing.

“Fucking hell….” You can faintly hear voices, and looking around you see the rest of your group in various states of disorientation. Heather is already pulling the pistol Meg gave her out of her belt, aiming shakily at a mass of the shambling corpses that’s coming closer and closer, led by the ugliest one you’ve seen yet.

It’s freakishly gaunt, hunched over with a torso that seems too long for its body. Its jaw appears to be dislocated, and whatever clothing it had on its upper body has been reduced to scraps. It seems to be gasping with how its mouth opens and closes, though your hearing is still shot.

Glancing around, you see Alex scooping several marbles into the barrel of his own weapon, and Charlie is holding his axe in shaking hands. Then you see Sam, clutching at her head as she tries to stand.

One of the infected is right behind her, reaching out to grab her so he can sink his teeth in -

With a scream you can barely hear, you **** yourself onto your feet, holding your ski-bat in both hands. Charging forward despite your sore limbs and the weight of your bag over your shoulder, you swing at the attacker’s head.

With how cleanly the ski-blades bite through the zombie, you don’t know whether you would hear a crunch or not.

You hear Bella in the background, and more sound is coming back through the ringing in your ears. A distant-sounding ‘boom’ is followed immediately by several of the rotting bastards stumbling, apparently hit by the glass shot of Alex’s gun. You feel Sam squeeze your bicep with a small hand before you hear her own gun’s reports, launching slugs into the crowd of walking dead.

Readying yourself, you wait for the worst to come.