Diana crawled slowly through the air duct, trying to make as little noise as possible. Behind her, she could hear the frantic moans of the dead as they struggled to reach the ductwork opening. The zombies were in a frenzy, and for good reason. Moments before, Diana had hatched her plan.
Taking the box cutter from her supply bag, she had carefully removed some of her duct tape armor and made a tiny slice in her forearm, allowing the blood to drip along the edge of the ductwork opening. Once she had a sufficient amount of blood above the zombies, she carefully wrapped her wound and reapplied the duct tape. By now the zombies below were in a frenzy to reach the fresh blood, massing in the area below the vent opening.
Diana knew she only had minutes to execute her plan before the blood dried. Once that happened, there was no telling how long the zombies would linger in the supply room before losing interest and wandering back in to the lab. She had to act fast.
Moving quickly through the ductwork, she worked her way back towards the lab. She knew that there were multiple vents within the lab area; she just wasn’t sure exactly where they were located. As she approached the first vent, she stopped to see where she was. Looking through the grate, she recoiled at the horrific scene below. Blood and gore were splattered across the table beneath her, an arm visible on the floor, partially hidden from view. Huge chunks of flesh were missing from the appendage, and in some places bone was visible. A large pool of blood formed next to the table and under the arm, with bloody footprints leading away in the direction of the storage room.
She held her hand to her mouth as the urge to vomit raced to the surface. To loose her lunch now would most certainly alert the undead to her presence. Taking a few deep breaths, she looked again at her location. She was in the middle of the lab, near a large bank of tables that once held multiple test tubes and beakers from ongoing research. Her goal was closer to the far wall.
Diana continued crawling through the ductwork for another twenty feet before she reached the vent she wanted. Looking down, she saw a bank of computers, all of which were still on. The screens and keyboards were splattered with gore and bloody handprints were smeared across the desks.
Wasting no time, Diana pulled out the hammer and used the hook end to bend the louvers enough for her hand to fit through. Next she pulled out the screwdriver and quickly unscrewed two of the screws on one side. The screws fell to the floor, but the sound was lost over the moans of the dead in the storage room. With the two screws gone, she pressed on the grate, bending it down enough to where she could squeeze through. Repositioning herself, she slowly lowered herself down, feet first, to the desk below.
As her feet gently touched the desk, she took a moment to check her footing, making certain that there was nothing in her way that could be knocked over once she put her full weight down. Releasing her grip, she came to rest on the desk, standing motionless for the first few seconds as she listened for any indication that she’d been discovered. Nothing. With a brief sigh of relief, she quickly went to work.
Carefully climbing off the desk, she opened a nearby desk drawer and pulled out a flash drive.
“1 terabyte,” she whispered. “That ought to do the trick”.
Moving to the nearest computer, she typed in a password and accessed the ongoing research files. Inserting the flash drive, she quickly selected all the files from the last month of work and copied them to the flash drive. The bar on the screen indicated four minutes until the file transfer would be complete.
“Common!” she whispered. “Go faster”.
Standing at the computer, she kept a watchful eye on the doorway to the storage room. She could still hear the frenzied moans of the undead as they struggled to reach her blood, a sound that made her want to run screaming from the room. But she had to get the data. She had to see this through. Nervously she watched the screen as the transfer bar counted down.
2 minutes, 30 seconds . . .
Anxiously she watched the door, expecting an undead face to appear at any moment. But her plan was holding up. The zombies were still focused on her blood.
1 minute, 10 seconds . . .
The urge to run was overwhelming now. She knew the blood would dry any second and the zombies would find her.
26 seconds . . .
Eyes glued on the door, she stood frozen. Afraid to even breathe for fear of alerting the dead.
“TRANSFER COMPLETE” flashed on the screen.
Without hesitation she pulled the flash drive from the USB port, ignoring the protocol to eject it properly first. Shoving it deep into her pocket, Diana turned for the exit.
Moving quickly between tables, she rushed towards the door that led to the hallway. Just as she was nearing the door, a cold, dead hand reached out and grabbed her ankle, sending her tumbling into a nearby office chair. The impact sent the chair sliding into a desk, the noise echoing loudly through the empty lab. Diana fell to the floor, her leg still caught in the icy grip of the unseen zombie.
Spinning onto her back, she looked to her feet, kicking frantically in the process. To her horror she saw the dead, gray face of her former co-worker, Anna. The ashen image was twisted in rage as it clawed at the floor, trying to advance on its prey. Diana scrambled backwards, desperately trying to free herself from the zombies grip, but with every move she made, the zombie slid with her. That’s when Diana saw that she was pulling a torso. Entrails slid across the floor behind the zombie, leaving a trail of blood and gore in its wake.
Diana kicked repeatedly at the zombie’s head as she struggled to get the hammer from her bag. Teeth clicked together as the zombie repeatedly bit at the air, anxious to sink its teeth into living flesh.
Pulling the hammer from her bag, Diana leaned forward and slammed the tool repeatedly into Anna’s skull, but the zombie continued its assault. Desperate, she grabbed the hammer in both hands and with as much force as she could muster, slammed the weapon one final time into the head, splitting the skull open and spraying brain matter across the floor.
Trying to stand, she saw that the dead zombie still gripped her leg. Grabbing the cold hand, she pried it loose and slid away from the body, her lungs gasping for air as she was nearly hyperventilating.
The panic subsiding, she scrambled to her feet, just in time to see the first of the zombies stagger from the storage room door. Rushing to the lab’s main door, she pulled on the handle to no avail. It was locked. She pulled frantically at the door, hoping to somehow get it to open, but it remained locked, baring her escape from the walking dead that were flowing into the lab.
Her eyes darted around the room, coming to rest on the fire alarm located about thirty feet to her right. She had to make a run for it, knowing that this was her only chance. The fire alarm was the only thing that would override the lockdown that had secured the doors.
A half dozen zombies had now made their way into the room, and all were eyeing their next meal. More of the undead passed through the door with each passing second, their moans growing louder as they caught sight of her.
Sprinting to her right, she raced for the fire alarm. As she closed in on her target, the zombies closed in on their own. She wasn’t going to make it. As she approached the alarm, a hideous form cut her off, its gray face gaunt and distorted, blood and gore dripping from its mouth. It moaned in anticipation as it reached for her, its jaw open, ready to bite.
Diana ducked under the outstretched arms and, in one fluid motion, swung her hammer at the back of its head. The blow knocked the zombie off balance and it tumbled to the ground as she reached for the alarm. Pulling hard, the alarm sounded with a piercing shriek.
Two more zombies closed on her location as she turned to escape. She felt the brush of their dead hands as she turned and jumped over the fallen zombie, racing to get to the door. By now the room was filled with the undead, and Diana had just one final shot to escape. If the door didn’t open, she would be torn apart.
Ten feet from the
door, her path was cut off by a female zombie wearing a tattered sundress and sandals, huge chunks of flesh missing from her arms and shoulder. Without hesitation, Diana jumped, planting a perfect sidekick to the zombie’s chest. As she landed on the floor, the ghoul staggered backwards, falling into another, causing both to tumble over an overturned desk.
“Years of martial arts training paid off after all,” she thought, although she never expected to be using it against zombies.
With her path cleared, she arrived at the door and pulled hard on the handle. To her relief, the door swung open. She quickly ran through, pulling the door closed behind her mere seconds before a horde of undead slammed into it. Blood smeared the observation windows of the door and lab as the dead sought to pursue their prey, their dead hands and gory stumps pounding on the shatterproof glass.
Diana recoiled at the sight, backing away as she looked upon the ashen faces of her former co-workers plastered against the glass. Moving even further from the door, she realized just how close she had come to becoming one of them.
Snapping back to the moment, Diana realized she had to move. Something was wrong, and she wasn’t going to stick around to find out how the zombies got in. She had to escape the Chemcorp complex, and fast.
Diana turned and sprinted down the hall, slowing at each corner to check for any sign of the undead. But the halls were empty. As the alarm continued to sound, she made her way to the outside entrance where she saw a truck parked in front of the doors. The back had been modified in a way that mimicked a cattle shoot of some sort. Her stomach knotted as she realized that the zombie invasion into the lab was no accident. They had been brought to their wing and let loose on the unsuspecting scientists.
“But why?” she said aloud. “Who would do this?”
She didn’t have time to ponder the question. Whoever was behind this undoubtedly wanted no survivors, and they would be coming for her the moment she was discovered. Listening to the shrill sounds of the alarm, she knew that moment had already happened. She had only minutes to make her escape if she wanted to stay alive.
Running to the truck’s cab, she climbed in and checked the ignition. To her amazement the keys were in it. They probably figured there was no reason to remove them, as they expected no survivors. Plus, zombies can’t drive.
Turning the key, she fired up the engine, fastened her seatbelt, and put the truck into drive. Slamming her foot on the pedal, she turned the truck to the left and headed for the main gate.
Abe Morrow sat at his desk, a drink in hand, reading a book he had taken from his shelf 20 minutes earlier. The quiet was suddenly broken by the familiar sound of the fire alarm he’d heard all too many times during routine fire drills over the years. Throwing the book on his desk, he stood and rushed to the bank of security monitors positioned on tables at the far side of the room. As he stared at the monitors, one of his men ran into the room, a concerned look on his face.
“Sir, we have a situation,” he said.
“No shit,” he responded, his brow furrowing.
Starring at the monitor, Morrow watched as a young girl fought her way past zombies and escaped out the research lab door. He planted his hands on the desk as he watched the girl run down the hall towards the exit, passing from one monitor screen to the next.
Morrow turned to face the henchman, his face calm but angry.
“Get the girl,” was all he said.
“Yes sir,” the guard responded, turning for the door.
The man sprinted from the room, already barking orders into a two-way radio that had been attached to his belt.
As the guard ran from the room, Morrow turned his attention back to the monitors, watching closely as the girl sprinted for the exit. How she had escaped the zombies, he didn’t know. But like the others, she had to die. All traces of the research team had to be erased, and she was part of it.
He watched as she reached the entrance and climbed into the truck. Much to his surprise and anger, she started it up and pulled away!
“Idiots!” he exclaimed.
Picking up his own two-way radio, he screamed into the device.
“Get that damn girl!”
Slamming the radio back onto the table, he turned and walked to the window.
“One girl is not going to ruin my plans.”
Walking back to his desk, he grabbed his drink and finished it off in one gulp. Grabbing the nearby bottle of scotch, he filled his glass again and returned to his book, confident that his men would get the girl.
Diana pulled the truck out of the main entrance of the research wing and headed for the outer loop drive, just a few hundred yards away. Luckily, the box truck was an automatic and fairly easy to drive. Giving the truck some gas, she accelerated to the outer loop junction, just in time to see three of the security SUVs racing from the chemical research building on an intercept course.
The chemical research building sat outside the outer loop, completely removed from the bulk of the Chemcorp complex. It was one of only three buildings outside the loop, the other two being the maintenance and facilities buildings. The central structures of the Chemcorp complex were all connected with closed walkways, but the chemical building stood alone.
Diana didn’t ponder why the security team was there, but she knew they weren’t a welcoming committee. They were clearly part of the reason why the zombies got in, and she wasn’t about to stop and ask them questions. As she reached the outer loop, she had to make a choice – go right and head for the main entrance, or go left and make a break for Gate 2. Going for Gate 2 would mean turning toward the oncoming SUV’s before she could turn down the Gate 2 access drive. Going for the main gate would buy her a few seconds of time. These thoughts raced through her mind in a split second as she made her choice.
Turning the wheel hard to her left, she made a break for Gate 2. The SUVs were just reaching the outer loop and only 100 yards away when she turned right onto the Gate 2 driveway. Slamming her foot to the floor, she raced towards the guard booth, not knowing if there was anyone there to greet her. No one appeared as she sped past the booth and shattered the drop bar that crossed the drive. Keeping her foot on the gas, she braced herself for the impact with the steel gate that protected the facility.
Aiming for the right side of the gate, the truck hit with tremendous force, sending the gate flying as it barreled through. Diana’s head slammed off the headrest as she struggled to keep control of the vehicle before she hit the main road. Hitting the brakes, she turned hard to the left, the truck’s wheels screaming in protest as she nearly capsized making the turn onto the two-lane highway.
Risking a quick look, she saw the twisted metal of the gate as it came to rest in the path of the oncoming security vehicles. The first SUV attempted to cross it with disastrous results. The truck’s undercarriage hit the creased section of the gate, causing the SUV to flip on it side and barrel roll to a stop in the grass near the driveway, smoke billowing from the wreckage.
She watched in the mirror as the remaining two SUVs screeched to a halt short of the gate as three of the men inside jumped out and pulled the heavy mass of twisted metal out of the way. She had managed to buy herself a few precious seconds as she raced down the road. But the SUVs were much faster than the bulky box truck, and she knew they’d soon catch up. Turning quickly off the main highway, she raced down a secondary road, hoping to stay out of sight of her pursuers. The road cut through a forested area for a half a mile or so before intersecting Egypt Road, another major thoroughfare. Making a quick right, she raced down Egypt Road and headed for Rt. 29. Looking in the mirror, she saw no sign of the Chemcorp security vehicles, but this didn’t make her feel any safer. She knew they had seen her turn onto the secondary road, so she had to keep weaving to do her best to lose them.
Sticking to the larger roads assured her that she’d not end up in a housing development loop, or worse, a dead end. She needed to get as far from the com
plex as she could before trying to find a new vehicle.
After a short distance, she came to the intersection of Rt. 29. Multiple vehicles were abandoned in the intersection, their front ends smashed as the owners had ignored traffic signals in an effort to flee from the undead masses. A zombie couple struggled inside one of the cars, trapped inside by doors they could never open, and seat belts they could never unfasten. Looking away, she carefully maneuvered the truck past the pileup and headed for the bridge that would take her over the Schuylkill River.
Crossing the river proved to be more difficult than she thought, as she encountered abandoned vehicles throughout the span. Many of the cars and trucks contained undead, much like the couple she had seen moments before. As with the others, the zombies lacked the basic intelligence to open the doors, their hands often reduced to bloody stumps as they pounded on the glass in an effort to escape and feed. The sickening sights made her want to vomit, but she didn’t have the time for it. Nervously watching her mirror, she weaved in and out of the vehicles, occasionally pushing one to the side with the weight of her truck.
Having reached the other side, she started to pull away but suddenly stopped. Backing the up the truck, she caught the corner of the bed of a large pickup and, giving the box truck some gas, pushed the truck sideways, blocking the road.
Smiling, she pulled away, checking her mirror in the process. Her smile quickly faded as she saw two white SUVs turn onto Rt. 29 on the far side of the bridge. Pressing the gas, she raced forward, hoping that her roadblock would give her some extra time.
A short distance ahead, Rt. 29 turned left while Bridge Street continued forward. She turned left, racing down Rt. 29 in the direction of Rt. 23. Less than a mile down the road, she intersected Rt. 23, veering left while barely slowing down. The truck leaned heavily through the turn as she continued her escape, her eyes glancing in the mirror every few seconds, fearing what she might see.
Route 23 was fairly clear, the truck’s speed pressing the limits of maintaining control. She’d never driven a box truck before, and the size and weight were still foreign to her. Nearing Valley Forge National park, she rounded a curve to see six zombies staggering in the road. Unable to slow down and avoid them, she swerved to the right, nailing two of them head on, while clipping a third. Blood and guts splattered the windshield from the impact, sending body parts flying in all directions. She momentarily lost control of the truck as she struggled to see through the gore, the vehicle continuing to veer right. She hit the brakes and regained control as the truck jumped the curb of a grass island in front of a gas station. The impact jarred her spine as the truck continued forward, hopping the opposite curb as it re-entered the road.
Moments later, the truck’s radiator started spewing steam. Between the impact of the zombies and crashing the gate, the truck was on its last leg. Struggling to see through the gore covered windshield, she pushed the truck onward until she saw a fork in the road. Taking the turn at full speed, she raced up the hill, reaching the crest just as the engine cut out. Steam pouring from the radiator, she coasted to a stop as the truck reached the downhill slope on the other side of the hill. Jumping from the cab, she left the truck in gear, allowing it to slowly start moving forward again. As she ran to the nearby woods, she watched as the truck rolled away, heading down the road with ever increasing speed. Halfway down the hill, the wheels started to turn and the truck veered off the road and headed into the grass on the right. Moments later, the truck’s wheels caught a rut and turned sharply right, causing the vehicle to flip violently onto its side.
Wasting no time, Diana rushed into the woods, getting as deep into cover as she could before her pursuers caught up. The sun was getting low in the sky as she stopped to rest under a large oak a few hundred yards into the woods. As she sat under the tree catching her breath, she heard the sounds of engines in the distance. Peering around the tree, she could see the two familiar white SUV’s as they raced down the hill to the site of the overturned truck.
Resting against the tree, Diana grabbed the surrounding decomposing leaves and dirt and rubbed it onto her white lab coat, quickly coating herself in brown camouflage. Satisfied with her makeshift cammo, she quietly crept deeper into the woods.
As she snuck through the woods, the sun sank lower in the sky, casting deep shadows within the thick canopy of the trees. She heard car doors in the distance and the sound of engines, causing her to once again drop into the cover of some nearby bushes. Peering between the leaves, she could see the two white SUV’s speed off, apparently abandoning the search as night drew near.
She breathed a sigh of relief as the trucks disappeared into the distance, but her relief was very short lived. It took only seconds for her to realize that she was alone and exposed with darkness fast approaching. She needed to find shelter and find it quickly if she was to survive the night.
Diana had jogged through Valley Forge Park on numerous occasions, so she knew that there were numerous structures scattered throughout. There were many large houses and buildings where she could take refuge, but she tossed all of them aside as viable options. Those would be the first places that the ones chasing her would look if they came back. She had to find a less obvious place to hide. A place that could provide shelter from the undead, yet was obscure enough to avoid initial detection. Remembering her jogs, she recalled the numerous log cabins that dotted the landscape of the park. These were reproductions of the original cabins used by soldiers during the Revolutionary War, and any one of them would be a perfect spot to hide until morning.
Moving through the woods, she came to the edge of the tree line as the last rays of sunlight were fading from the sky. The sunset was beautiful, with bright streaks of red, orange and yellow lighting the horizon in brilliant color. Looking across the distance, Diana spotted three small log cabins nestled into a small group of trees about 60 yards off of one of the many small roads that were formerly used for self guided tours of the park. These were acceptable. They weren’t right next to the road, and they were nestled in the trees. With darkness nearly upon her, they would have to do.
Running down the hill, she crossed the open expanse of land as quickly as possible, not knowing if any zombies were lurking nearby. As she approached the road, she slid to a halt behind a large granite marker that bore information relative to that spot during the war. Listening carefully, her ears strained for any sign of the undead, that telltale moan that indicated prey had been spotted. Nothing was heard except the sound of crickets as they welcomed the cover of night with a symphony of chirping.
With little light remaining, she made the final sprint across the road to the small group of cabins. Moving to the most secluded of the three, she slowly edged her way around the small structure, searching for the solitary entrance door. Rounding the final corner, Diana ran smack into the back of a large zombie, knocking it forward as she stumbled backwards. The zombie turned quickly, its gray eyes locking onto her, a horrifying moan pouring from its throat as it moved in for the kill. Staggering backwards, Diana tripped on a large branch, falling to the ground as the zombie advanced. Scrambling across the ground, she struggled to pull a weapon from her bag as the zombie closed in.
Diana’s martial arts training kicked in once more as the creature lunged forward, hoping for a meal. Tucking her legs close to her chest, she grabbed the zombies shirt and, using it’s own weight against it, flipped it over her head and onto it’s back. Scrambling to her feet, she reached into her bag and pulled out a screwdriver. Running forward, she drove the tool into the zombie’s head as it struggled to get to its feet. The creature dropped to the grass in a heap as she drove the screwdriver into its skull three more times, making sure it was dead.
Breathing heavily, she returned to the cabin door only to see that a padlock secured it. Breaking the lock with the hammer was out of the question. The sound would echo across the fields attracting every undead within a half a mile. P
ulling out the penlight, she looked closer at the lock. The lock was secure, but the metal plates that held it together were screwed into the door and framework. Grabbing the Phillips head screwdriver, she carefully unscrewed the plate that was secured to the doorframe. This way, when she shut the door behind her it would still have the appearance of being locked.
With the door now free, she quickly pushed it open as she took a few steps back, watching for any movement inside. Nothing moved. Cautiously moving forward, she shined the penlight inside to reveal an empty room. She quickly moved inside and closed the door behind her. Looking around the cabin, she found a long piece of wood that she used to wedge against the door. It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.
The cabin was a single room, with a dirt floor and triple bunks along each wall and a small fireplace in the wall opposite the door. Pulling the flash drive from her pocket, she tore a small piece of fabric from her clothing and then removed the duct tape from the bag. Next she carefully wrapped the flash drive in the fabric and then wrapped the small bundle in duct tape. She then stuffed the new protective package back into her pants pocket and moved over to the bunks. Taking off her bag, she pulled out a screwdriver before slinging it on one of the bunk posts. Climbing onto the bottom bunk, she laid down, clutching the screwdriver firmly in her hand. Watching the door, her eyelids began to sag, and within moments she was asleep.