The Zombie Apocalypse

Chapter 10 - Caesar's Got A Friend

We reached the Interstate by 8 a.m. We sped along the highway, shooting zombies that came in our way. One of the zombies was too huge, and we had to stop altogether to knock it down.

We had picked up our guns and shot it in the head several times, after which it fell to the ground. All three of us had to pick him up and toss him aside to make space for the minivan. As we moved along the interstate, the zombies reduced in numbers and soon they were not in sight at all.

We saw a board indicating 'Welcome to New York'. I think we were on Interstate-95.

'Let's hope this place doesn't have zombies.' I said.

'I didn't see any zombies for a lot of time now. Looks like they're gone. Now, how are we supposed to warn the government about this? Should we even do it? They'll think we're mad.'

'We better worry about that bag as of now.' I pointed to the security check ahead of us.

'Oh, don't worry about that.' Caesar said. He looked at James and smiled. And then, out of nowhere, they opened a compartment in the back of the minivan. I suppose it was a secret compartment. They had hidden it well – I never noticed it earlier.

'Wow.' I managed to say.

Caesar grinned. 'C'mon, let's go.'

Caesar moved the minivan into the empty queue. Even the officers were surprised. I suppose we were the first ones today to go across the state – after all, not many people were living in New Jersey now.

'What happened to New Jersey today? No one coming up on the Interstate at all?'

'You won't believe us if we told you the truth, officer.'

'Oh, you better not care about that! Tell me what's going on.'

'Well, the people there are in no condition to drive. To say more, they aren't even in a condition to live, know what I'm saying?'

'You trying to be smart with me, boy? Just tell me clearly what's wrong.'

'Ok, let me get it straight. There are zombies out there. Now you can laugh all you want, but that's the truth.'

'You're talking too much today. Took something last night?'

'Yeah, the lives of dead people.'

The other officer had been checking the minivan all along. He now said, 'They're good to go, sir.'

'Better leave before I knock you out, boy.'

'You'll see it all soon. Better keep you gun ready, officer.'

'You're going to teach me what to do now, eh? Move it!'

Caesar drove off with a contented smile on his face.

'At least he can't say later that I didn't warn him.'

I chuckled. Once we were across the security check, we started seeing normal people again.

'Nice to see humane creatures again. Plus, they look more lively than those people at the shelter.' I completely agreed to him. New York was just the same. I had visited New York several times earlier, and there was no difference between the New York weeks ago and the New York now – unlike New Jersey.

'So, now what? I don't think anyone would be believing our story.'

Little did I know that I would be proved wrong soon. Neither Caesar nor James replied to my question. But, Caesar kept driving, as if he knew where we must go. He finally stopped the car near a huge building and spoke. 'This guy knows me pretty well. I am sure he'll believe our story. I don't know how, but he somehow won the previous election and became a minister. Before that he was just a vagabond. Anyways, let's go. But remember, let me do the talking. You both don't want to mess with this guy.' His last sentence sounded more like a threat than a warning.

All three of us went inside the minister's office. Caesar seems to have contacts literally everywhere, I thought. Caesar told the receptionist that he wanted to meet Luke. I guess Luke was his name.

Caesar had a little chat with the receptionist. When they came back, she smiled at three of us and took us to Luke. The corridors of the building were pretty well-furnished. The walls were painted a rich blue. There were photos of many great leaders of America on the walls. At the end of the corridor, two men stood guarding a door, and they didn't move a muscle as the secretary nodded at one of them, probably as a sign to let us all pass. We entered the room.

What I saw inside was crazy enough for me to almost forget all about zombies – let alone saying something to Luke. The room was not something you would expect in a minister's office. I looked around. The walls were painted dull green inside. The floor was wooden, and there were hardly a wooden seat or two around. There were mostly couches, and a bouncy-looking sofa, lying unused in a corner. The walls here didn't have any photos of great leaders, instead they had pretty awesome gadgets, huge TVs, a funky-looking wardrobe and 2 computers. The room looked more like a gaming room, with wild lights dancing around the ceiling and walls, like I stood in a club, not a minister's office. The minister, Luke, sat with his to back towards us, pretty lost playing Battlefield 3 on his Playstation. He looked nothing like a minister to me. I guess that's exactly why he was Caesar's friend. Lucky guy, I thought.

'Hey Luke,' Caesar said. The volume was too high for Luke to hear us. 'HEY Luke,' Caesar said loudly. Luke turned.

Another shock for me. THIS guy is a minister? This must be a joke. This guy looked liked he hadn't bathed for a couple of weeks. He won an election? The future of our country isn't safe anymore, I thought. If people like these become ministers, we'd end up poorer than Afghanistan! 'Hey Caesar!' Luke said.

Luke was dressed in a green funky T-shirt and PINK jeans. He looked like he was a caveman who had just fought a battle with the US Military. His shoes were battered like he's walked across the whole country in those shoes. The biggest shock was that his hairstyle looked like he belonged to a rock band. I almost fainted when I saw him. Caesar talked as if this was a normal sight. I guess it pretty was.

I was so confused that the words that they were speaking kind of blurred out, and I had no idea what they were saying. Finally, I forced my brain to concentrate on the conversation. Luke was saying, '...you are joking right? Zombies? Out there in New Jersey?'

'I'm serious, Luke. If you want to proof, I could take you there and show it to you,' Caesar said. 'Of course I need proof. And of course you gotta take me there. And right now.'

Before I knew it, we were back in our car, now with a few more cars behind us, as Luke's protection. We sped down the Interstate. The cops this time, seeing the protection cars, saluted us instead of stopping us for security check.

You can pretty well guess what happened. We went, Luke took all the proof he wanted, including a video of a living zombie, who walked towards us. After we shot it, he clicked photos of the dead zombie. By the time we got enough proof and returned to his office-cum-playhouse, it was dark outside. We parked the car into his garage, and we spent the night there itself. The food was pretty awesome. Luke sent the photos for printing, and checked the video cassette to make sure everything was alright.