Warm Bodies: Awakening

A Time for Miracles

Mark had to admit, he was excited about this. They'd all been staring at this damn wall, hell, he and his son had been helping to make it, for just over seven years. Sure, it kept the zombies out, but it also kept them stuck within, afraid to leave the safety of the city. They had most of what they needed inside, aside from some essentials they had to make regular salvage runs for, but it was still just a human zoo.

The time had finally come for it to fall. He'd been helping out with the planning, drawing on his construction and engineering backgrounds to assist in where to put the explosions, how to chain them together for a proper collapse, and backup plans in case anything went wrong. But nothing would, he knew it. It was overdue, their city was ready, the world was holding its breath for this.

Brandon was off helping his team set the explosives in their section. He had to wonder how it felt for his boy to destroy something he'd spent the last three years working on. He had a feeling it felt amazing really, because he wouldn't have to be stuck on a wall team from now on. Life was about to change for him. For everyone. Dramatically.

And they couldn't wait.

He jumped in the cab of the bulldozer, one of two assigned to clear the west entrance of rubble once they'd actually triggered the explosions. All of the buildings adjacent to the wall had been evacuated, and the military were about a half hour away from closing the gates. Things were definitely going to be a bit messy for a while.

There were a lot of people on the streets, most of them trying to get out of the city to watch the wall fall from the hillside west of town. He had to honk his way through a couple of big crowds as he drove the bulldozer to the rendezvous area. The sense of excitement was palpable, and almost everybody was wearing a big smile. It was good to see.

He knew there were still some folks who weren't behind the rehabilitation though, even as more and more newly living walked the streets these days, taking up small jobs to help out and earn their place here. They ate normal food, they needed rest and sleep just like anybody else, they smiled, they laughed, they cried. But there were some isolated groups of people who couldn't accept what was going on. Who just didn't trust it. And they were getting more aggressive. He'd heard rumors of an attack on one of the rehabilitated a few nights ago, some poor man had been beat up pretty badly, nobody knew who by.

Sure, he hadn't accepted it at first either. But all you had to do was spend time with one of them to know they were just people, after all, and that this was important work. Brandon had certainly embraced the idea, his son spent almost all of his free time at the stadium now, but Mark had a sneaking suspicion that was due to the girl he'd been working with. Sarah, his son had called her. Probably not her real name, but until her memories were back, that's what they were going with.

Brandon was trying to hide how important this girl was to him, but it was easy to see his boy was the happiest he'd been in years. Hearing his son laugh, seeing a genuine smile on his face more often than not - he'd got over the strangeness of the whole thing pretty quick. Apparently she was going to be released from the stadium today as she'd been making really good progress with Brandon's help. Hardly a surprise, they'd spent so much time together. They were planning on attending the big celebration being held in the markets all night, and they'd invited him.

Whether he was going to go or not, Mark hadn't decided. Ostensibly, it depended on how long the clearing took, but truthfully, he wasn't sure if he was up for a party. Today's big event kept turning his thoughts towards his eldest, despite his best efforts.

Honking at another group of stragglers, he shrugged off the melancholic cloud settling on him, and pulled into the site. The other bulldozer was already there, driven by a big bearded guy named Frank, who took up most of the cabin of his rig. Throwing a quick wave at the man, he settled in, arms crossed over the wheel. The wall stood a like the hull of a warship two hundred yards away, riveted panels of steel streaked with rust and the weathering of time.

An impenetrable barrier that had stood for seven long years against an enemy that was no longer their enemy.

Who had turned into a friend. A lover. Family.

It was definitely the time for miracles.