Rising of the Dead

Chapter 3: Friend I'm Here

Chapter 3: Friend, I'm Here

A wave of disgust washed over me as the grim reality sank in - I had just taken the life of my own mother. The revulsion was overwhelming, rendering coherent thought nearly impossible. But there was no room for hesitation in this merciless new world, and I had no choice but to end her torment. Her eyes, once familiar and warm, were now a haunting void of white, with no trace of the person she once was. Her once-pale skin had transformed into a disquieting, reptilian brown, devoid of scales but eerily alien. Her legs were gruesomely severed, remnants of where they had been entangled, and she was still bleeding when I finally ended her suffering. As I raised the makeshift weapon, a sharp stick, toward her head, her contorted posture seemed to convey an anguished plea, as if she were silently saying, "Forgive me," or "I'm sorry, I can't control myself."

The brutality of what I had just done was beyond comprehension. My heart ached as I watched my mother suffer, her pleas echoing in my mind. But there was no other choice; I had to do what needed to be done to prevent further agony.

Amid the chaos, my thoughts turned to my father and my friend, Jaidyn. Despite the horrors surrounding us, I clung to the hope that my father, a police officer, would somehow find a way to survive and reunite with me.

I staggered towards the middle of the road, the very place where the accident had occurred. My body ached, my head throbbed, and a painful bruise throbbed on my leg. Abandoned cars littered the scene, some empty, others with lifeless bodies inside. Among the wreckage, I spotted an unoccupied vehicle, a stroke of luck that would prove crucial. The car key remained in the ignition, and though I was only 14, my father had taught me the basics of driving. I wasn't a pro, but I knew enough to get by.

I turned the key clockwise, the engine sputtered to life but then died. I tried again, and this time, the engine roared to life, filling the air with the sound of its strained vitality. I navigated the car past the wreckage, but my attention was soon drawn to a lone figure walking erratically on the road ahead.

"Hey! Are you okay?" I called out, my voice quivering with concern.

The person didn't acknowledge my presence, stumbling about as if inebriated. I shouted louder, desperate for a response, but the sight that greeted me sent a chill down my spine.

"Oh my God," I gasped in disbelief.

The individual had a grotesque scar etched across their face, their lips brutally split open to reveal their teeth. Ignoring me, they suddenly adopted a racing stance, poised for a sprint. Panic surged within me as I swiftly attempted to start the car, but it stubbornly refused to comply.

The noise of the engine had attracted more attention than I could have ever anticipated. More of them, the infected, began closing in on the car. Desperation gnawed at me as they clawed at the windows and glass, attempting to break through.

I tried the ignition repeatedly, and finally, the car roared to life.

"Yes!" I cried out in relief.

Stamping my foot on the gas pedal, I accelerated forward, leaving the pursuing infected scattered and disoriented in my wake. Yet, a troubling sensation nagged at me, and I glanced up at the car's roof, my suspicions confirmed when I saw two infected individuals rolling and bouncing atop it. I swerved the car violently, causing them to tumble off. But, incredibly, they rose to their feet, with one of them adjusting its twisted neck back into place before resuming the chase.

I floored the gas pedal once more, the car hurtling forward, and as I looked in the rearview mirror, I saw no sign of pursuing infected. I breathed a sigh of relief, but the journey ahead remained treacherous and uncertain.