Zombland

New Beginnings

BEEP BEEP BEEP. Jack's eyes slowly open up to the sound of the alarm clock. He looks over and sees the time he has seen many times before. 4AM. "By this time tomorrow I'll be on my way to the beautiful beach with my family," he thinks. Stumbling towards the bathroom he turns around to see his wife Jane peacefully asleep. Every morning Jack decides to have a cup of straight black coffee before hoping in his truck to head to work. He clicks the on button, but to his surprise it doesn't turn on. Then he does it again, and again, until he is frantically hitting the button and gives up. Irritated he opens the fridge and grabs a water to have instead even though it won't be as good.
The way to work wasn't any better with traffic being more packed than it should be. Curious as to why he turns on the radio. "Today, there will be partly cloudy sky's with a high at 89 degrees, so if your wondering what day would be great to swim, today just might be that day," enthusiastically the weatherman says. Maybe that's what it was, nice weather means more tourist visiting the lakes, but this early is unusual by at least a couple weeks, maybe even month. "If traffic doesn't move any faster I'm gonna be late to work again," Jack murmurs to himself frustrated with the situation. Traffic delays have always been a struggle to get around since it seems no matter how early he goes traffic is backed up.
He hears a loud roar in the air above him that soon starts to shake the ground. Looking he knows this is far out of the ordinary. From what he can tell it's some type of military helicopter flying way lower to the ground than they should. The radio coverage interrupts his thoughts with a emergency broadcast, "Everyone please be advise to stay indoors at all times. An unknown virus with the effects of cannibalism, uncontrollable thoughts, and death. If you are infected, lock yourself inside your house. This is not a drill. This message will repeat." The messages begins to repeat as Jack shakingly turns the radio off and grabs his phone. He goes to call his wife when he hears an explosion off in the distance. Looking he sees the cell tower falling until it gets out of site with a cloud of dust pushing into the air. He looks at his phone to find his service has now gone out. Looking around frantically he notices traffic isn't moving anytime soon. Thinking for a second he comes up with a idea. He puts his truck in drive and goes into the shoulder going until he can reach a place to turn around. Then all of a sudden someone walks out in front of him. Slamming on his brakes he flies forward and hits his head on the steering wheel. He has a massive headache and a knot because on some stupid guy deciding to walk onto the shoulder. Jack leans his head out the window and yell, "HEY MAN CAN YOU GET OUT OF THE WAY!". The guy glances at him like he is confused. His face seems pale with some veins showing on the neck. "DID YOU...." and as Jack is yelling at the guy again, he slumps over and starts puking up an enormous amount of blood. Now when he looks up at Jack this time his eyes are bloodshot. He starts twitching his head in ways that should be impossible to any living human. Freaked out now Jack hurries himself back into his truck and rolls the window up as fast as it can go. 'Oh what the fuck is going on,' then something slams against his door. Quickly looking it is the guy that was in the road, now blood running down from his eyes. In a reaction Jack slams his foot on the gas and flies down the shoulder now. Looking behind him, he sees the guy or thing chasing after him. Looking Jack is now doing 40mph and that guy is still managing to keep up with him. He's now grunting and screaming with his hand out trying to reach him.
"I just need to reach that median so I can turn around," thinks Jack to himself. While the median isn't to far away from where he is now, Jack notices traffic has merged onto the shoulder and there is no way through. Jack notices that it is about a 100 yards away from him. Most of the cars in front of him have wide open doors and their owner is no where to be seen. Pondering on what to do, his windshield begins to crack from the constant hitting the guy is doing. Jack turns around and rummages around the backseat until he finds his weapon. It is a old fashion screwdriver that his dad had given him when he was a little boy. Turning back to the window he notices it is cracked more and won't be much longer until it breaks. "Sir, I need to you stop hitting my truck before I have to take you down!" Jack yells getting more and more frustrated and angry with the situation. It made no sense as to how he was able to keep up with how fast I was going, blood pouring out of his eyes, and all the unusual grunting. His eyes have gotten very bloody now and they seem to be completely broken, but he isn't yelling out any type of pain. The cracks in the window have now reached the edge. Jumping across to the passenger seat and the glass shatters. His ankle gets grabbed by the guy who is now grunting even louder than before like he is close to getting what he wants. Kicking as hard as he can his face gets beat in little by little but he has his full strength on keeping hold of Jack's ankle still. Turning around the guy now seems determined to get into Jack's truck. "Look man I don't know what you want but I'm sure I don't have it. Can you please go on somewhere and leave me alone." Getting a little more worried Jack grips his screwdriver more getting prepared to use it if he has to. As he is crawling in the truck through the window the broken glass is cutting through his stomach. His intestines come falling out over the driver seat. "Oh what the fuck man, I just cleaned this out yesterday." The guy doesn't stop coming at Jack. Jack takes the screwdriver and stabs right in the back. He rips it back out with blood now dripping down the end. All he can hear is the snapping of the mouth coming from the guy. Now Jack stabs again but at the shoulder this time. He keeps coming trying to gnaw at Jack's legs. "If you don't stop I'm gonna have to kill you man and I really don't want to" Jack let's out just hoping that this random guy will stop. Even with all the fighting and pleasing he is not stopping and knowing this, Jack does what he had been putting of this entire time. Jack lifts up his screwdriver one last time and drives it straight in the top of the head. After a couple seconds of struggle the guy falls over with blood now coming out of his mouth. Jack goes to check his pulse and there is nothing. When he takes his fingers off, some of the skin comes up with it.
Jack looks back out his front windshield to see more panic than he did before. People are running out, some getting chased by others. One catches a woman and drives their mouth into her neck blood comes squirting out and more people come to the aid to help finish her off. A couple have blood dripping from their eyes while others don't. Some are running faster than others, and even jumping higher than what is humanly possible. Whatever this virus is it seems to spread quickly and causing the world to go into a panic. Some of the cars off in the distance have already been set on fire with the people around it, if they even are people still, also being on fire. Jack needs to decide how to get back to his family now or he might not be able to get back to them in time. They shouldn't even be up yet since Jane gets up at 7 to get Ava ready for school. He could either go over the median wall and try to stop a car, but he will likely get hit, or try to get close to the opening and take a open car. Jack decides the best way to solve the problem is to just find another car he can take.
Walking slowly turns into running as the feeling of getting chased creeps into his mind. Last thing he wants is to get eaten by these things and don't make it home to his family. Wiping the blood that is dripping down his forehead he looks inside every car he can potentially take. The first was a white 4 door which had seen some better days. Blood was everywhere on the inside with a dead woman in the back seat with her arm resting off the edge. Soon her head moves a little and she starts to grunt. Jack knowing from before doesn't want to stick around here much longer or he might become one. Running up a few more cars he finds the best one yet. A blue 2 door with a relatively clean interior. Whoever was in this got out in a hurry even luckily leaving his keys. Jack turns to start the engine and it let's out a couple puffs of smoke. "Come on you son of a bitch START!" frantically yells Jack. It keeps trying until right before he gives up it manges to roar to life. "Thank fucking God." Jack murmurs to himself with relief. He needs to push the car in front of him out of his way and he will be on his way home. Pushing the gas as hard as he can the car goes forward a couple of inches. Knowing this isn't close to enough Jack backs up and rams back into the rear-end making the car roll a few yards. There might be enough room to squeeze out now. While Jack had been focusing on getting the car out the way all the noise he was making attracted the things again. While the car rolls the few yards it does Jack hears a thud on the roof. Then he hears another. Then something hit the passenger side of the car. Looking he sees the bloody eyes of the thing grabbing hold of the car. Jack locks all the doors just in case they weren't before. Jack floors it hoping the force will make them all fall off and he squeezes in between the wall and car he had pushed. He hears the thud of the thing that was holding on hit the car next to time and fall off. Jack hears a couple of them roll off the roof of the car to join their friend on the asphalt.
Speeding off the thing that is left keeps hitting the roof. By this point they have done it so much there is a good size dent in the roof. Well at least I won't have to worry about that until I get pulled off somewhere. Looking across the dashboard to notice if there is anything lighting up the gas light comes on. There is only one gas station between now and his house.
Pulling up there seems to be no one here. Jack decides to hit his brakes hard and then he watches as the last thing rolls over the windshield and onto the ground. Getting out quickly he takes his screwdriver and puts it through the top of the head and the body slumps on the ground not moving. Looking around the owner Jim seems to have left by now. Jim has ran the gas station for years and he does live down the street from Jack. Opening the door Jack looks around and sees it is mostly untouched. "Jim, are you here!" shouts Jack while walking towards the register. The office door is open and Jack walks back there and creeps it open. There is cash laying on the floor that Jim must've left behind. Walking in he notices a note laying on his desk.

To whoever finds this,
I have ran back home to my family as the world went to shit. I highly doubt it will recover enough in my lifetime to run this gas station again so take what it is you need. The gas is also free so fill up while you can since before long there won't be any.
Best of Luck, Jim

'Well hopefully Jim made it back okay'. Jack scavenges around seeing what he might be able to use or take with him. Filling a dufflebag he found full of food and water he is ready to go. He could of taken a whole lot more, but for the person who comes here next they can have some to. The car fills up with almost 12 gallons of gas. Jack doesn't have any gas canisters to take more with him so this will have to last for a long time. Jack hurries into his new car and goes straight to his house as fast as he can.
Flying down the driveway Jack stomps on the brakes and slides towards the house to a complete stop. Jane coming running out with a shotgun in hand screaming, "Who the fuck are you and what are you doing at my house!" Jack a little scared at the site of his wife walking down the stairs with the shotgun pointed straight at him. Putting his hands out the window to make sure she doesn't shoot he yells back, "Honey it's me Jack I came back as fast as I could." Hearing this is all she needed and she puts the gun on the ground and runs tears rolling down her face holding out for a hug. Jack gets out and they run into each other holding one another tight. They hug for what feels like an eternity. Finally letting go Jack looks at her and makes sure she is okay. Looking at Jane he asks, "Where is Ava at?" Jane looks at him with tears still coming down here face. "She is in the closet upstairs, I told her to run and hide as soon as I heard you speeding down the driveway." Knowing this Jack starts going to the house with Jane in his arms. They make sure to grab the gun as well.
Going up the stairs Jack keeps calling out for Ava. She hasn't came out of her hiding spot yet, not sure if she is still scared or just trying to have some fun. Opening Ava's door her room turned into a mess overnight. Toys laying everywhere, the covers flung halfway off the bed, and even the curtain for some reason knocked down. Jack stands still for a few second listening for any type of noise Ava might make. He hears nothing. 'This might be harder than I had thought before.' Looking under the bed to see if she is there comes up empty with toys still scattered under there. Opening the closet door he doesn't see her in there either. That's weird I thought Jane said she would be in the closet. Walking out he looks up and down the hallway to no site of Ava. Going farther down he opens every door he has until he reaches the last room. This room was the baby's room. Jane doesn't ever go in here and forbids Ava from going in here. Jack comes in here and sits down from time to time wondering about the what ifs. Opening the door the room is the neatest of them all. Looking around at all the baby toys and crib they had gotten that didn't come into use Jack decides to check this closet. There is plenty of room for Ava in there. Opening the door he finds Ava sitting there laughing away. Jack laughs and picks her up giving her the tightest hug he can.
Later that night they family sits around and has their dinner they had agreed on the night before. They are all happy being together again. Each of them worried about what might happen to the other. It starts to get late and Jack packs a sleeping Ava up the stairs to her room. Jane looks at Jack and says, "How about she sleeps in the bed with us. She will feel more safe and I don't want to leave her alone in there tonight." Jack nods in agreement with a yawn coming out. The day had been exhausting and tomorrow isn't going to be much better. They all slowly lay down in the big comfy bed to have a good night's rest for the long day that is ahead.
Jack gets woken up suddenly by the screaming and yelling of Jane and Ava. Getting up he rushes towards the door running to defend his family. He opens the door the the butt of a gun hitting him square in the face knocking him down cold. He sees a blurry figure squat down at him looking him in the eyes. His face is completely covered except for his dark eyes. His rather deep voice rumbles, "You sure do have a pretty family. I'm not going to do anything to hurt them. They are to good for that. While I can't guarantee what will happen to them once they are out of my hands. I just like to play the middle man in these circumstances. We have been watching for days now and this was the perfect time to strike. All of you scared about the future. So we came in and did it all when no law will help. We could kill you right here and now but what's the fun in that. I want you to try and chase us down." After saying this he stands up and points at one of the other men then at Jack and walks out the room. The other guy comes over with a rag and stuff it on his face making Jack slowly fall asleep into the darkness.