Dead Air (English Version)

Chapter One: Part Three [1]

"It's clear," Joseph said after peeking outside the metal door he opened slightly. "We're good."

Joseph was the first to step outside the store through the backdoor. Nigel followed and looked around the alley, anxious about the surroundings. He was instantly embraced by this unshakable feeling that someone was looking at them, calculating their moves, and ready to attack them when they got a chance. He inhaled deeply and gazed at Joseph. He smiled at him and that gave him a sense of security; that Joseph would do everything he could to protect him, which is also what he would do for him. That pushed him to continue; to ignore his feelings as much as possible.

They began walking silently down the alley. They heard distant noises and screams that spoke terror. As they walked through the town, it seemed like they were walking on a graveyard. Nigel witnessed the devastation of their place. The road was full of crashed and burning vehicles. There were human bones, dried blood, and flesh everywhere; feasted by flies. They remained out of sight by going through the alleys. Cautious not to make any noise that could attract the zombies.

But unfortunately, they stumbled upon a horrific sight. Nigel immediately put his hands on his mouth and stepped back after seeing a glimpse of zombies, gnawing the flesh of a teenager. Joseph dragged him carefully away from the zombies and hid behind garbage bins. He tasted sour in his mouth and felt his stomach was about to push out everything he had just eaten. No matter how hard he tried to brush off the sight, the image was carved in his mind. He can still picture the lad, lying on the ground; with exposed ribs, blood scattered everywhere, and his insides consumed by the three zombies. On the other hand, the zombies looked different; they had no more clothes, exposing their pale skin; and they lost their hair.

From where they were hiding, they could still hear the sound of flesh being eaten and the growl and inhuman noises of zombies as they feast on a body. Joseph couldn't stand it any longer. He immediately pulled Nigel away carefully. They just looked at each other, with fear written all over their faces.

They kept walking and walking. After almost half an hour, they safely reached the mall, but Nigel can still feel this tight knot on his chest that speaks something. He still couldn't remove the sight in his mind. He felt something bad was about to happen; that while they were out in the open, they would never be safe. No matter how hard he kept thinking positively, he couldn't brush his thoughts. He sensed someone or something was watching their moves. They kept looking around, checking on any zombies nearby. Until they found a nearby fitting room and Joseph gestured to him, signaling him to get inside.

Inside, Nigel was still uneasy, but he didn't let Joseph know what he was feeling. He just pretended he was okay and brave.

"We should split..." Joseph suggested.

"What? No!" he protested, controlling his voice. "That is a bad idea. It's too dangerous."

Since they stepped outside the grocery store, he was afraid and anxious, even if Joseph was by his side. But now that he suggested that they would go separate ways, he was never this terrified of the thought of going alone.

"It would be faster for us to find a radio—"

"And dying," he cut off. "This is my plan, right? Trust me. We're better together—"

Joseph instantly covered his mouth and gestured to stay silent. He paid attention and tried to figure out what he was implying. Joseph let go of him and in the silence, he was swept by horripilation after hearing a guttural sound outside. But he sensed there was more than one creature outside. His heart was pounding. He felt numb by this coldness that embraced him. He turned his gaze to Joseph and noticed he was scared too.

Their attention shifted to the floor where the shadow of the zombie passed by through the small gap under the door. He counted the movements and found out three zombies were looming outside. The fear just took over. His hands were shaking uncontrollably and tears welled in his eyes. His mind was screaming; repeatedly alarming him of his death and telling him he should run. But he can't move. All he had was his chaotic thoughts. But his thoughts were silenced when he felt Joseph's hand holding his trembling hand.

He gazed at him and their eyes met. There was something in Joseph that calmed him. His eyes were saying, "It will be okay". The way he held his hand tightly eased his nerves. The world peeled away. He closed his eyes. Slowly inhaled and exhaled. He pretended that they were back in the storage room as he held Joseph's hand tightly.

When he opened his eyes, the first thing that he noticed was the door. It was unlocked. He shifted his gaze back to Joseph and pointed to the door. Joseph immediately got what he was trying to say, but he only shook his head. Nigel was worried about zombies breaking in easily. He was anxious. His thoughts debated for a second until he finally decided. He reached out for the lock. But before he could even touch it, the door sprang open and the zombie's face covered in blood came inside the room.

In fear, they were both quick to push back the door while battling against the strength of the monster. Its neck was stuck, preventing them from closing the door. The zombie kept struggling, trying to get in. Nigel groaned as he tried to get his face away from the face of the zombie that was directly in front of him. It stinks, the pungent smell burned right through his nostrils. As he fought for their lives, he felt something grow in him. There was this sensation that built up every moment that passed; it was about to explode.

In the blink of an eye, a new level of fear just took into Nigel's system when they were thrown back and more zombies came in pushing and rushing inside. Everything happened so fast. Instinctively, he jumped over Joseph and embraced him as tight as he could as they dropped down to the floor. He put himself open to the zombies; and closed his eyes as he waited for them. He accepted their fate in an instant. He knew that moment would be his end and it would be the most painful way to go out. But there was this foreign feeling in him that began spilling out. Until he screamed and at the same time, they felt and heard a loud explosion that shook the whole room.

He slowly turned around and was appalled by what he saw. No words came out of their mouth as they stared at the burned marks on the doorway and floor. The door was gone. They looked at each other, clueless about what just happened. They stood and slowly walked out. There they saw three charred bodies of the zombies.

"What just happened?"

"I think someone threw a bomb."