Genesis 2.0 (Monster Apocalypse Survival) Sci-Fi/DarkFan/Horror

Chapter twelve

Dedicated to Lucy_Dafe she made  the first comment, she staked first claim! No pun intended. ;-)

Growing up in Northern Louisiana, I’d often heard my redneck dad refer to high winds as “howling like a pack of wolves.” I can say now - without any doubt - that he didn’t know what the hell he was talking about.

The massive sand wall, combined with over a hundred mile-an-hour winds, which barely managed to mask the ginormous herd of zombies, didn’t come close to sounding like wolves.

I’d heard wolves howl, coyotes yip and feral dogs snarl. But nothing compared to the ear-piercing wails coming from the cloud of desert sand.
It sounded like Judgment Day, as the King James Bible referred to it. The Rapture or Coming of Jesus was prophesied as an incomparable event; both to observers and participants. Before the End came, one could only imagine the sights and sounds of millions upon millions of people being called to their paradise or hell.

I’d survived that, and can honestly declare it had nothing on two War Angels whipping up a dust storm to blow away a mob of undead.

Aeriel’s body swayed to a silent tune, her arms weaving invisible patterns as the gathering sand mimicked her every movement. She looked like a Python dancing before a flute. She’d push a hand to the side and the sand would divide in parts, small increments aping her like a mirror image. A marionette doll, obeying its master’s commands had nothing on Aeriel’s graceful dance.

After the towering wall of sand erupted from the ground, it remained – suspended – in mid-air as the angel warrioress surveyed the rotting corpses steadily building up against her barricade. She remained resolute; a predator measuring its prey.

“What is she doing?” I asked, my voice a breathless whisper over the roaring winds.

“Air is her element,” Daniel answered, his lips inches from my ear. I shivered when his warm breath washed over the cheek not pressed against his chest. I closed my eyes and inhaled. It had been so long since I’d relaxed. After years of being on the run from one place to another, I’d not dallied long enough to make friends. Sure, I’d travelled with other people, sometimes there were even teens my age, but their absence of common sense almost always got them killed and I learned early on not to get attached.

Just because you share shelter with someone, didn’t mean you had to be on a first name basis. I’d been alone since losing my family, and oddly enough, I’d never wanted to be a part of anyone else’s group. I kept to myself. Maybe it was the angels or having seen Heaven for myself, but being a small part of this little rag-tag group was eliciting emotions I’d long repressed in lieu of surival.

Sure, they were angels, and they would fly away as soon as I found their precious Tree and order was restored. I’d probably never see them again. I could live with that. But maybe, just maybe, after all was said and done, I could move on and find others. Maybe I could find a place to call ‘home.’

An audible pop echoed through the air and where there was sound before, now there was nothing. Even “quiet” has some sounds, some noise.
This was like an absence of resonance. Like my ears closed off after ascending above sea level and I hadn’t popped them to adjust for air pressure.

Shoving myself away from Daniel’s chest, I watched in wide-eyed shock as Aeriel’s back bowed inwards, her upper body folding to lay parallel with the ground. She had her arms stretched high above her head. She looked like she had pulled off some insane yoga pose. And like the snap of fingers, her shoulders, arms, hands and chest whipped forward and the sand flew away from her she’d shot a torrent of air from her mouth.  The rush was enough to send zombie body parts flying in every direction, some crumbling to dust and others buried beneath the rushing sand as it fell like heavy rain.

Once everything settled, the desert floor looked the same as before. But I knew better. It wasn’t just another flat expanse of sand. It was a graveyard as far as the eye could see; a graveyard for the rotten, walking, corpses of people who couldn’t be saved.

The red-headed angel turned back to study me and Daniel, her lips curving in a small smile.

“We should get going, that little trick won’t hold them for long,” she warned. “The reanimation curse is a strong one.”

“But I killed that other one,” I protested dumbly. “With Ember…” my voice trailed off at seeing the looks they gave me.

“You’re sword is special,” Daniel reminded me and stepped even further away, brushing sand from his arms and back. “It absorbed the zombie’s soul. A soul is pure energy; neither created nor destroyed, but merely transferred until it returns to the Creator.”

“I’m so in over my head,” I muttered and moved to follow them as they trudged on.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This chapter sort of took on a life of its own. I can't really explain any further without revealing spoilers.  Please comment on anything you liked or hated and please don't forget to VOTE! :-)