The
Wall Eleven
“Okay, I’m just gonna
say it…what the hell was that?” Jason, a young kid with scraggly hair and
adolescent beard spoke as the group tried to catch its collective breath having
a moment’s pause.
“I’ve seen
that thing before,” Hank said walking Jen to a guardrail to sit. “Back at the
orphanage when we jumped to the next building, that thing was in the hallway. I
thought I could take it out like any other walker but….,” he looked at Marla,
“it was different. It can….think.” The words left Hank’s lips and even he had a
hard time believing it.
“Can
think? That’s impossible, the virus kills the brain and only reanimates the
base functions like eating and moving but not any of the higher functions.”
Carl informed the group drawing the conclusions he remember from his time at
the CDC when he was a child. Dr. Jenner showed them exactly what this virus
does before he tried to kill them.
“I didn’t
believe it myself but I fought this thing. I saw how it moved and fought back.
And now...it’s changed. You all saw what I saw. Not only did it change but it
kill those men because it wanted to not just to eat them.” Hank put a
comforting arm around his daughter. He felt her subtle shake beneath his palm.
They’ve faced tough obstacles before but the only real danger was letting your
guard down around walkers and other survivors wanting what little you had.
This new
threat now was a combination of the two. Intelligent walkers that kill for fun
instead of food. They didn’t want your supplies either, just you dead. The
thought of it was more than some can handle and Jason immediately threw up the
miniscule contents of his stomach.
The group
was silent, all seeming to try and contemplate the events of this morning. All
that could be heard was labored breathing and groans of dismay. “We need a plan
of attack then. The city hasn’t fallen completely, there is still hope.” Daryl
spoke.
“He’s
right. For right now we only know of one of those things and with enough fire
and man power, I believe we can kill it.” Carl stood up, his leather gun belt
groaning with the movement. Hank noticed he carried rather large Colt Python,
the silver gun gleamed in the sunlight and made Hank conclude this weapon must
have sentimental value because for practical use against walkers there are
other weapons that would be more effective.
“What
should we do? There are only eight of us and I’m running a bit low on my ammo.”
Christy said despondently as she rose from her seat. “Frank and Terry are dead,
the rest of the Dead Heads are scattered and with that signal jam we can’t
radio them.”
“Signal
jam?” Hank asked.
“Yeah, we
use to be able to keep in touch with short wave radio, on a different frequency
than the NCD, but since all hell broke loose, the signal has been jammed. We can’t
send or receive any transmissions which leaves me wondering ‘who’ wants to jam
all the signals.” Carl informed.
“So, our
signal is being jammed so we can’t radio for back up, our forces are spread to
the wind trying to contain this outbreak of walkers that no one can explain how
they even ended up within the city limits, the gates of the outer and inner
walls have been sealed and the thousands of citizens are turning into walkers
all around us. Oh, and let’s not forget our friend the super walker. I don’t
mind saying it but shits really hit the fan today.” Jason so eloquently
reiterated.
“It has
but we can fight back. The first thing we need to do is replenish our weapons.”
Carl turned to face north and the looming outer wall in the distance.
“The armory.”
Daryl echoed Carl’s thoughts and stood beside him.
“Yes,”
Carl rotated to face Hank, he assumed he was about his father’s age and the
thought of needing his father’s guidance hit him instantly. Carl quickly
stomped out that idea being that he and his father haven’t been on speaking
terms for several years or more. Not since the day their small core group
splintered.
“Where you
came in Hank, there is an armory on the outer wall. Its where the confiscated
weapons and contraband from new arrivals are stored until they can be
transferred to the inner wall armory which has a more sizable collection and
security. Even though the outer wall armory is smaller it’s also less guarded.
We should be able to take it with just this group until we can find others.”
Carl laid out a convincing plan but Hank was unsure.
“What’s
the catch? There is always a catch.” Hank asked.
“Always
suspicious, you would have made an excellent addition to the NCD.” Carl smiled
at him.
“How did
you know…of course you would know that being the leader of the Dead Heads. I’m
sure you keep tabs on everything here.”
“The
catch, Hank, is we have to walk to the outer wall. Without the trains and buses
being operable and without cars being allowed in the outer distrcit the walk
will be long and dangerous. Not only that but I’ve heard reports that the outer
wall was the…epicenter of this disaster. Walkers were coming from that
direction all the while citizens were trying to escape the city there as well.
More than likely, we’ll meet a lot of resistance.”
Hank
looked down at his daughter, his one reason for coming to a ‘safe’ city to
begin with. He got her into this and now would be taking her into the middle of
this invasion of walkers. Jen looked at him and seemed to read his mind.
“We have
to do it, dad. We can help these people. They can help us.” Jen pleaded with
him.
“Then
let’s do it before I change my mind.” Hank smiled.
“Carl what
about Judith?” Marla asked and Carl’s expression changed.
“I don’t
know where she is. Judith is smart, she’ll make for one of our safe houses and
she can handle herself. Doesn’t mean I’m not scared to death not knowing what
happened to her. Once we get the supplies we need, we’ll search for her.” Carl
hoped.
Judith ran
to the three story building near Hampton Park and desperately shut the door
before the herd of walkers reached the area. Judith had been dodging walkers
all night but hasn’t been able to reach the DH headquarters. Wave after wave of
walkers came as if someone opened the outer wall flood gates and invited every
Zeek in the area in. She hasn’t been able to send any message to her brother at
all.
“What the
hell is happening?” Judith whispered as she locked the front door. As long as
the walkers didn’t hear a sound they’ll move on.
“It’s the
end of the city you know.” The nonchalant female voice startled Judy that she
had to cover her mouth with her hand to stifle the scream.
“Yup, I’ve
been sayin it since I’ve been here that the city will fall. All the rules and
regulations Grimes put into order wasn’t gonna work. That crazy ass loon. What
did he think; a curfew and identification passes was gonna bring civilization
back from the brink? Asshole.” The woman was blonde and thin wearing torn up
jeans, chucky boots, and a T-shirt with ‘Death to All’ written in red letters.
Fitting. But it was all Judy could do not to tell this woman to shut the hell
up about her father.
Most
citizens of New Charleston blame her father for their troubles. Judy knows
different. She knows her father worked hard and sacrificed so much to make this
city livable and to maintain it there needed to be rules.
“You
agree, don’t cha?” The woman asked her blue eyes flashing with insanity.
“No…no I
don’t agree. Laying blame doesn’t keep us alive now. There’s an outbreak and we
have to work together to survive. The NCD...” Judy was cut off.
“Ha! The
NCD? That’s a laugh. There not gonna do shit! They’re under orders you see,
from Grimes to keep these Zeeks here in the outer district while they remain
safe behind the inner wall.”
“You’re
crazy; my…I mean, Councilman Grimes wouldn’t authorize something like that.”
Judy was shocked hearing this.
“The hell
he would!” the woman walked closer bringing the light of her flashlight into
Judy’s face. “Those snotty, uptight, selfish assholes behind the inner wall had
their eyes on the outer district for years. Wanting to remove all of us poor
people so they can set up shop here too. Selfish bastards!” She yelled.
“Keep your
voice down. You want the walkers to hear you?” Judy whispered panicked.
“They are
just gonna sit and wait this out and allow the Zeeks to do the job. There’s no
NCD coming kid, no help at all, just death. We’re all gonna die here, you and
me too.” Her tone changed slightly from one of insanity to perfect clarity and
malevolence. Judy’s guard went up and she began to inch back towards the door
she just locked; her well-worn boots deftly missing the tripping hazards
littering on the ground.
The woman
advanced, “I tried to tell people that, I tried to explain it but they all
thought I was just crazy. Like you. But I tried to tell them.”
“Look, I’m
just going to leave, I’ll find somewhere else to hide out, okay. You can have
this place all to yourself.” Judy tried to reason with her.
“I have a
great place for you to hide. It’s just here, I’ll show you.” The woman moved
with lightning speed and was on her in less than a second. Her hand clamped
down on Judy’s wrist so hard she felt it would break with one twist. The woman
yanked her further into the home and towards a door in the kitchen.
“Let me
go! Let go of me you bitch!” Judy let her free hand ball into a fist and fly,
the woman dodged the blow and sent an elbow into Judy’s face. The jolt made her
see stars for a moment as her head sailed back. She could taste the salt of her
blood in her mouth.
The next
thing she knew, she was standing at the top of a staircase leading down into
the dark bowels of the home. Without much fanfare, the woman sent Judy flying
into the abyss. Her shoulder made contact with a stair and she tumbled end over
end unable to stop her momentum. Her head was first to hit the bottom and the
stars returned for a second viewing. Her mind seemed to swim in and out of
consciousness and she didn’t know how long she lay on the cold concrete floor.
A moan in
the dark dragged Judy back to reality and she struggled to lift herself up.
Another moan sounded, another and another. She stayed quite but knew she had to
leave the area where she made the noise. Judy silently slide her body across
the floor to the left, not really being able to see but feeling where she was
going. The walkers in the basement would be attracted to the bottom of the
stairs where she landed and that’s one place she didn’t want to be. From the
different moans, Judy estimated about five walkers inhabited the basement but
without a light source Judy wouldn’t be able to get out. For right now she just
had to hide until she could figure out her next move.
She
thought of her brother and her father and hoped she would see them again.
To be continued….
