The Quiet Before The Swarm

Chapter 1

A cool, damp September day. An assault rifle in my hands, an M16 to be exact. Three people follow behind me. A little girl named Peggy, a dull business man, and some rebellious teenage guy. I don't know his name. His accent indicates he's from the deep south, somewhere in Georgia. Dark brown, almost black, hair under a "Southern Discomfort" baseball cap. He's too well-armed and I don't trust him. It's one thing to prepare, but it's another thing to have two shotguns across your back, a 45 on each side, and an AK47 in your hands.

I'm just saying, he's a bit suspicious.

I have a 45 on each side, that's just playing it safe.

He's said five words to me.

"Hey. You take the lead." He said, about 5-6 hours ago.

Business man? His name is Mark. His dark hair is thinning. Peggy is short, ten years-old to be exact. On this day. Hell of a birthday.

We've been walking through this abandoned city for too long and we're tired. I know what's going on. Signs everywhere.

'Wash your hands.'

'Evacuate the city!'

'Steer clear of being alone!'

'Never go back.'

'A healthy mind means a healthy body. Stay calm.'

I've played too many video games and I've seen too many horror movies.

The zombie apocalypse has finally arrived.

Anyways, my name is Nicole O'Reilly. I'm from the country of Ireland. I've come to visit my aunt, she's sickly in the hospital that's about... 3 or 4 miles from this highway. I'm expecting the worst, but I still don't know if I'm prepared to end my own beloved Aunt Patty's life. Such a sweet woman. Made me deserts as a child. Eventually, though, the cancer caught up with her and she just... She had to move here and I hadn't heard from her for at least 2 years. And now... They told me she took a turn for the worst. I came here... And I might not leave here.

But I am going out with a fight.

Good thing I have this mindset, too... Because here comes footsteps, rapid and clumsy. At least 20. They're growling.

I insert the full magazine and I aim.

"Oh my God! What are those things?!" Peggy cries in absolute horror. How do I explain to a 10 year old child, who just lost her parents on her birthday, that ZOMBIES were trying to eat us?

That sick, dead, cannibalistic freaks that aren't people anymore are trying to rip us apart and devour us?

I don't. I just begin shooting.

They drop, one after another. I hear sick laughter as more and more flood us. I side-look over to Southern Guy. I still don't know his name.

"BRING IT ON, YOU SONS-A-BITCHES!" He yells out, the most enthusiastic I've ever seen the boy. He's a teenager, so he probably has experience with his dumb video games. But this is all too real.

I almost get attacked, but Peggy has me covered. Armed entirely with melee weapons, Peggy cracks this thing in the head with a baseball bat.

I step in front of her, and I shoot these things. Aim for the head and chest.

Finally, things stop. It's so quiet as we reload and walk on. Backpacks on our backs. Full of health supplies and ammunition.

That's what I hate the most about walking the streets now. It's always so eerily quiet, but you barely hear them coming. The quiet before the swarm.