Welcome to the End

Chapter 17: Within Reach

Kevin was the last man up the gangplank, and he motioned to one of the crane operators from Walton sitting at the controls. The man pulled a lever, and the gearing system retracted the metal ramp up and away from the docks, preventing anyone, living or otherwise, from coming onto the ship.

Despite the large amounts of zombies incoming, Kevin's group of refugees were in no immediate danger. The deck of the vessel measured ten feet up from the dock, and a three foot gap existed between the wooden planks and the metal hull. Free from threats momentarily, Kevin stood by the railing and focused his attention on Adam.

The first swing of Adam's wood baseball bat made a loud crack as it connected hard with the closest zombie in range. Spinning in the opposite direction, Adam swung his aluminum bat and caused a hollow metal echo as it downed another zombie.

Adam's strategy was unique and effective. He would find the largest group of zombies making the most gains toward his position, and hurl himself at them, smashing and cracking their skulls with his two bats. After disposing of a dozen or more, Adam would select the next group and attack them. His technique allowed him keep the zombies at a distance and prevent them from overwhelming him, but only at first.

The initial numbers of zombies had been marginal, as the buildings and chain-link fences had blocked some of them from immediately getting in to where Adam fought them. As the incoming zombies put more pressure on the fences, the chain-link partitions began to yield under the increasing volume of undead until they collapsed in a rattling crash of metal against concrete. The walking corpses, no longer held back, poured into the base in a rancid and slow moving flood.

Adam noticed the growing crowd of zombies pressing in from all sides. Rather than continue battling his opponents in the open where their numbers put him at a severe disadvantage, Adam made a tactical withdrawal, heading toward a small building and smashing aside three zombies in his way.

Tossing the bats onto the roof ahead of him, Adam lunged for the edge of the building. He snagged the eave with only his fingertips, but his strong grip let drag himself up and over the edge by brute strength and roll onto the higher level.

The zombies gradually moved in to surround the building, their decaying fingers and hands clawing at the edges but unable to exert the force necessary to pull themselves up as Adam had done.

Adam rested a moment, laying on his back and breathing deeply. Exertion wasn't the only thing bothering him. He lifted his arm for a better look at the bleeding wound the zombie had left behind. The skin was twisted and ripped, and it reminded him of a clay sculpture ravaged by a vengeful child. Under the top layer of blood, he could see the skin was turning gray, the initial stages of the rapid decay infection he now carried. It would take time before it spread completely through his system, so he had a few moments longer to do what he came out here to accomplish.

He rolled back to his feet and collected his bats. Setting the metal one aside for the time being where he wouldn't lose or trip over it, he approached the edge of the building. He gripped the wooden handle of his bat in both hands and lifted it high above his head. As he dropped into a crouch, Adam brought the bat crashing down to cave in the skull of a zombie with a loud crack of his bat against bone. He repeated his attack several times, moving around the perimeter of the building to keep the vanquished dead from accumulating too quickly.

The wood fibers of the bat were absorbing the blood from his attacks, turning the weapon solid red and making his grip harder to maintain. He took off his shirt, revealing more tattoos on the chiseled muscles of his chest and stomach. Using his knife, he cut the shirt into long strips and wrapped the grips of both bats. When his weapon modification was complete, he added an additional strip of cloth and tied each bat to his belt, ensuring if the weapons slipped from his hands, he'd be able to retrieve them quickly.