《Apocalypse》


 Episode 001: BEGINNING OF THE END

    It came over the news that something new and terrible had emerged in the world. Three different aeroplanes taking off from JFK airport that morning had gone down en route to Miami, Chicago and Dallas. Further planes from this airport had been quarantined on landing at Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, London, Berlin, Amsterdam, Brussels, Zurich, Geneva, Stockholm, Madrid, Milan, Istanbul and Moscow.


    I had sat in my apartment that evening and watched the news footage of police and army personnel at the different locations maintaining safe zones around the planes - the news channel flipping between locations with rapid regularity. The initial burst of information was terrorism. A mass co-ordinated event to rival that of 9/11.


    Various commentators arriving on the news set gave their commentary on what they believed had triggered this outrage. Fingers were pointed at Islamic fundamentalists, but as the evening wore on the narrative slowly began to change. It wasn¡¯t that new information was being released regarding the quarantined airplanes simply that the news channel stated that all news regarding the airplanes from all official sources had ceased.


    JFK airport had long since been quarantined and as the night wore on I turned down the babble from the television and watched in silence the constant cutaways from studio sets to the long range camera shots from the different airports around the world, the crash zones from that mornings series of disasters, and the lengthy multi-shot locations from JFK where most media attention now seemed to be focused.


    At some point the numbness arising from watching the same talking heads, and seeing the repetitive loop of external and interior shots overwhelmed me, and during the late evening my eyes closed and I dozed in front of the tv and did not wake again until the break of dawn.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    I woke with a start. My head was pounding and I felt my hands reaching out blindly for a cup of juice only half drunk from the night before. The sweet liquid felt cool in my mouth and I rubbed my eyes to look back at the screen. It was 5:45AM UK time, and my mind instantly turned to thoughts of the work day ahead. I leaned back on the sofa, working out the kinks in my back, and my focus returned once more to the television. Across the bottom of the screen was the usual breaking news scrolling ticker banner. The sound was still turned down and so I read the news headlines without at first seeing the moving images above them:


    Horror in the skies. Thousands killed in airplane crashes across the USA. John F Kennedy airport now considered a major mass casualty event with army forces in combat with unknown assailants throughout the complex. Multiple emergencies announced at airports throughout the world with planes and airports placed in quarantine.


    I looked up from the ticker tape news reel to watch what appeared to be an aerial shot of what the screen said was JFK airport. The picture changed to an overhead shot that showed multiple individuals in miniature that could now be seen on the screen.


    The east coast of the US was five hours behind and so it was still night time there and so the night vision cameras only showed monochromatic images with their heat sources glowing bright on screen. Some appeared to be running while others, much dimmer, appeared to be lying down on the ground.


    The camera panned across to show three US military planes sweeping in from a distance flying in a v formation. I grabbed the remote control and turned up the volume. I watched as the planes drew closer, the microphone capturing the thunderous roar as they approached. And then, as if in slow motion, I watched as their deadly payload was dropped from their fuselage. On the screen the camera followed the descent of the bombs as they struck the airport building and runway and then the screen was filled with the tremendous glare and flicker of multiple incendiary explosions going off in rapid succession as the bombing of the building and airport saw the location devoured in a wall of flame.


    My tired brain struggled to understand fully what I was seeing. The US military was carpet bombing US soil. What the hell was happening?

 Episode 002: An Early Morning Run

    I had just watched on the news American military planes bombing JFK airport in New York. The talking heads on the news were speaking of an unprecedented crisis facing the world. The news anchor was solemnly facing the camera and spoke the words that would chill me to the bone.


    JFK Airport has been bombed this morning by the US military in an attempt to contain what is being described as a zombie outbreak.


    I picked up my phone. There were no new messages, and so I opened up the social media apps. There was that word again repeated in post after post. Zombie. Disturbingly it did not seem contained to New York. I recalled the news yesterday of the planes quarantined around the world that had arrived from New York. There had been so many. I looked again at the locations where planes were affected. Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, London, Berlin, Amsterdam, Brussels, Zurich, Geneva, Stockholm, Madrid, Milan, Istanbul and Moscow.


    Looking at the stories it seemed that of these only three locations had situations where planes were at this moment deemed to be affected by the outbreak.


    Moscow had footage of their plane being boarded by Special Forces, and the news from the Russian Government was that the threat was eradicated. Social media was reporting that everyone on board this plane was killed. Whether by the Special Forces team themselves I guess we may never know.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    In Stockholm the Swedish government announced that an individual was contained on the plane during flight and that no further casualties were reported and that the remaining plane passengers have been moved to a secure facility for assessment.


    In London it has been confirmed that a quarantined airplane at Heathrow Airport is contaminated. I read that word again. Contaminated. I stood up and walked over to my window on the tenth floor of my apartment building and looked out over the view of London. Contaminated.


    I looked up at the skies. They were peaceful. The news had said all worldwide civilian aviation had been grounded for the moment. The city at this early hour was still quiet. I slipped on some running shoes and headed to the elevator. I exited the building and started a light jog. I normally listened to music on my run, but today I simply held my phone and ran in silence. There was light traffic on the roads but I saw no one else walking - on this road at least. At a road junction I stopped as I could hear an emergency vehicle approaching - it¡¯s siren blaring. It was a police vehicle.


    I remained in my spot as I heard additional vehicles with their sirens blaring too. Three more police cars and two ambulances roared past me at speed. Behind me I could also hear the rotors of a helicopter. I looked up and saw a small police chopper flying across the sky in the same direction as the road vehicles. Shortly after, the loud vibration of chinook military helicopters swept across the skyline too. All vehicles were heading west. That was in the direction of the airport some five miles away from me. I looked westward too and wondered what horrors the day would hold.


    Somewhere far off in that distance I heard a loud boom.

 Episode 003: Planes Overhead

    I was stood on a road junction five miles to the east of Heathrow airport and it was just turned six AM. Emergency road vehicles and both police and military helicopters had passed by me. They were heading towards the airport. An official statement from a government spokesman said a quarantined plane arrived from New York was contaminated. And now in the last few seconds I had heard a loud explosion from that very same direction. It was a mild sunny start to the morning, but my blood run cold.


    Around me I could see people looking out of their windows roused by the noise. A few emerged from their homes and stood on the street aimlessly much as I was, and looked west. Wherever, and whatever, had occurred was far enough away that we could see neither flames nor smoke. My phone vibrated and I looked down at the screen. It was a text from my brother. It read - news says Heathrow is quarantined. Zombies!!! Oh my god!!!


    OMG indeed.Stolen novel; please report.


    I looked across at one of the people who had just emerged from one of the houses. She had a ghostly white pallor to her skin, and she stood there shaking with tears running down her face. I addressed her.


    ¡°We are pretty close to the airport. Until we know what¡¯s happening it would make sense to pack a bag in case we need to evacuate.¡±


    Her eyes briefly flickered over to me without acknowledgement before she turned to looking back west. Another man stood by her stared at me. When I looked at him he quickly turned around and ran back to his home.


    Overhead we heard more military aircraft coming in fast. A few seconds later there were more explosions. Were we now bombing Heathrow airport too?


    I paused momentarily and then turned to run back to my apartment. More people were beginning to emerge on the street and so I ran in the road.


    While I ran i called my brother. On the second ring he answered. I spoke while in motion.


    "They are bombing Heathrow. Shit is about to go down."


    Above me more planes flew past. These sounded like bombers with their deeper louder engines. I was almost at my apartment when their salvo struck Heathrow.

 Episode 004: Motorbike Ride

    I raced up the stairs to my 10th floor apartment. Today was not the day to get stuck in a lift. Breathless and with both my legs and lungs screaming in torture I opened my front door and went into my living room. The television was still on and I stood in front of it sucking in oxygen while looking at the news channel.


    Once again, we are seeing incredible scenes unfolding at Heathrow Airport this morning. Task Force Cobra, chaired by the Prime Minister, has authorised military action on Heathrow Airport.


    I texted my brother a simple message. I¡¯m coming.


    We understand the quarantined measures in place for the impounded airliner from New York were breached yesterday. In the last few moments our cameras recorded the military air strike on the facility. A military cordon remains in place to safeguard the surrounding area.


    On the screen I watched the planes I had heard just minutes earlier drop their payload. I had heard the distant explosions of the bombs from the streets, but could now see the devastating impact of the explosions on the terminal facilities.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    In New York the city remains on lockdown as the security forces try to control the epidemic. Elsewhere the Swedish government has confirmed an outbreak at the assessment center in Stockholm.


    I walked into my bedroom and grabbed a backpack. Inside I put two changes of clothes and a wash bag. I changed into jeans, boots and a top and then put on a leather jacket. In the kitchen I stopped to grab some food which I stuffed into the backpack along with a pair of kitchen knives.


    In the hallway I grabbed my motorbike keys and helmet, and then raced back down stairs.


    In the parking lot I climbed aboard my motorbike and turned her on. My brother lived fifty miles east of London in Colchester. I would stop there and we would plan our next move together.


    I eased my bike into the street and opened up the throttle. I needed to go East into London before exiting on the other side to get out into Essex beyond.


    The roads were still relatively clear and I opened the throttle still wider to gain more speed. Emergency vehicles were still racing west and I was now moving at speed towards Central London.


    At the next intersection I slowed as I could both see and hear a car sliding out of control. He spun into an opposing lane and struck an on coming vehicle at speed. The other driver was flung through the windscreen of his vehicle like a rag doll.


    I desperately tried to steer clear of the devastation and it put me wider than I intended as I crossed the next junction.


    Out of the corner of my eye I could see the other vehicle as it hit me side on at speed.

 Episode 005: Hospital

    My eyes opened and there was a moment of disconnect. I had been on my motorbike, but where was I now? My senses tuned in to my surroundings. The smell of anti-septic, the whiteness of the room and the beeping of the monitors. I tried to sit and was immediately hit by a bout of dizziness and nausea. I could hear someone walking towards me, and then their hands on my arm as they laid me back down.


    "Where am I?" I asked.


    "Your in hospital", the nurse said. "You were in an accident, but don¡¯t worry. Your going to be fine."


    "Hospital?"


    "Yes."


    More thoughts and recollections slowly re-emerged through the fog. New York. Heathrow. Bombs.


    "I can¡¯t stay here", I said. "It¡¯s not safe. The zombies. The hospitals are not safe. This will be where the infected will be brought."


    "Calm down."


    "How long have I been out?" I asked.


    "Not long. It¡¯s only noon."


    I tried to move again but my body betrayed me. It felt heavy and disconnected from my mind. I could feel the nurse leaning over me adjusting equipment next to my bed.


    "Sleep", she said.


    Then the fog returned and all went black.


    I woke again with a start. More fog in my brain before my senses re-tuned and awareness came back to me. I remembered the nurse and once again more dizziness and nausea returned. This time it faded away quickly.


    I put my hand to my head and rubbed my eyes. I sat up straight and realised I could not hear the nurse this time. I was in a ward with five other beds. Only the end bed was occupied. A much older man who turned to look at me. He had the vacant expression of someone either lost in the haze of medication or dementia. I could not tell which. His face was fixed with a hang dog expression which did not react when I spoke out to him.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    "Where is the nurse?"


    Nothing. I looked to see how many wires were connected to me, and disconnected them all before swinging my legs free from the blanket. I was wearing only a hospital gown and gently lifted the material exposing myself in the process in order to look at my body. I had a nasty array of bruises and abrasions across my legs, and could see similar discolouration on my arms. I gingerly stepped down off the bed to test my balance and was relieved to see that I could support my weight without issue. So no broken bones. Thank God.


    To the side of my bed my backpack had been stored on a chair along with my now shredded leather jacket and boots. My other clothing was nowhere to be found. I reached into my bag and saw that both the food and knives within had been removed but my spare clothes were still there. I got dressed, hitched my back pack on and with one last look at the old man left the room.


    The corridor clock said 3PM. My footsteps echoed down the corridor. I looked in rooms as I walked and saw several rooms with hospital patients, but no staff. At the end of the corridor was a lift. My hand raised up to press the call button when I stopped myself and looked for a stairwell. There, to my left.


    I had been on the second floor, and when I emerged on the ground floor I tentatively approached the fire door that would lead back into the hospital interior. I lingered and listened. There was a lot of noise beyond. With a racing heartbeat I pushed the door open just enough to look through.


    Doctors and nurses were there en masse and all looked normal enough. I opened the door wider. To my left the corridor ended at a pair of double doors which flung open as I watched.


    Through them raced paramedics pushing people on gurneys. The doors opening also let through the siren of the ambulances. The space beyond was apparently the ambulance docking bay.


    The doctors and nurses who were congregated on the ground floor now went into action moving amongst the trolleys. I pushed myself back against the wall as the trolleys came through. The wails and cries of the injured was horrendous and I couldn¡¯t but notice that every one I saw had bloody wounds. The thick iron rich scent of blood was choking.


    I edged further along the corridor towards the open air that beckoned beyond the ambulances. I stumbled through the doors and walked at pace past the multiple ambulances with sirens wailing in the parking lot.


    As I passed the final one I saw the vehicle lurch to one side from some impact within, followed by a woman¡¯s horrendous scream. Instinctively I moved to to the rear of the vehicle and I knew what I would see even before I opened the back doors.


    The paramedic was lying on her back in the ambulance with her arm outstretched flailing weakly. Her eyes met mine as I looked in and the life went out of them in that instant. On top of her was one of them. It greedily ripped at the flesh exposed on her neck by her scrubs. I backed away and bumped into someone.


    I turned and the armed police officer stepped to the back of the ambulance, raised his gun in a cool calm professional way and blew its head off.

 Episode 006: Edgeware Road

    The police officer stepped into the ambulance and stood over the slain paramedic and put one more round into her head too. He looked at me as he stepped back out.


    "The hospital is about to be quarantined." He said. "Move out."


    "Where did they come from?" I asked. "The attack victims."


    "Paddington Station." He said. "Don¡¯t go there."


    I turned to look at which hospital I was at. It was St Mary¡¯s.


    "But that is just around the corner", I said.


    "We have perimeters in place."


    "Where else in London has been attacked?" I asked.


    "In London? Just this I think so far. But around Heathrow is just a mess."


    I immediately thought of my own neighbourhood.


    "And Hounslow?" I asked.


    "Do not go to Hounslow", he said.


    I stepped away from the hospital. Paddington Station was a five minute walk behind me so I walked east towards Edgeware Road. I had lost my phone, my transportation and my wallet in my motorbike crash this morning. I had no knives or food as these must have been removed by the hospital staff when I was admitted. I could feel a rising sense of panic inside me as I walked along the side streets where it remained eerily quiet.


    At this time even this kind of road in London should have been buzzing with traffic and yet apart from a cyclist and the distant buzz of a scooter disappearing around the corner I heard no-one in this vicinity. It was like the city held its breath before deciding on its next move. All stores were closed. Someone had left a discarded metro bicycle lying on the ground. I lifted it, feeling a pain from my ribs as I did so, and after a quick visual inspection to make sure it was still rideable mounted it and set off at slow steady pace.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    Ahead was Edgware Road and I could hear it before I saw it. The road was gridlocked. Vehicles laden with families, pets and possessions. Irritated drivers beeping their horns in frustration, rage and helplessness. I mounted the pavement and rode past a lengthy line of vehicles on the road to nowhere. It was now a cacophony of noise and the despair was palpable.


    Ahead I saw someone come from a side street and lunge at a vehicle. I stopped. Two more lumbered from the same direction. I watched as the three lumbering wretches beat at the window trying to get to the unfortunates within. One was using its head against the glass like a battering ram. Still more emerged from the side streets in the same location. I counted seven total.


    There was a rising cry of shock and horror as drivers became aware of what was happening. Some people exited their vehicles and simply ran from the scene. Others turned around inside their vehicle aware that something was happening but not sure what.


    One car ahead of me started reversing back crunching into the vehicle behind him to create more space before driving into the vehicle in front to push him forward too. With a screeching of tires and wheels he was able to generate enough space to get on to the pavement at which point he accelerated on the pavement towards me. I jumped from the bicycle, hearing it crunched behind me as the vehicle tore past. I weaved between the vehicles on foot now feeling more vulnerable than ever.


    I was aware of the zombies ahead of me, and that more could emerge at any moment from any direction and that the vehicles I wove between could move at any moment too. More panicking drivers were now attempting the same crazed manoeuvre of crunching vehicles both in front and behind to generate turning space.


    I returned back to the pavement of the other side of the road immediately needing to hug the wall as another vehicle turned on to the pavement to accelerate.


    There was nowhere to turn, no place of safety. I could hear screams up ahead and saw the zombies had shattered the wind screen of the first vehicle attacked. A couple of them were now dragging themselves through the open space amid the flailing limbs of the trapped occupants. The piercing dying shrieks of the victims would now be etched on my memory forever, I knew.


    Another vehicle mounted the pavement but as he accelerated the wheels caught the kerb twisting the car so that it struck the adjoining building head on. The man opened his car, but realised too late his seat belt was stuck. He tried to close the door again but too late again. One of them was on him. He beat at it weakly as it chewed on his face. With agony from my own bruised body I vaulted the bonnet of this vehicle and made my way further along Edgeware Road.


    Up ahead I heard shooting.

 Episode 007: Amidst the ensuing chaos of Edgeware Road

    The unfolding chaos occurring along Edgeware Road funnelled me towards the gunfire further ahead. I had not yet seen military on the streets, and saw that this once again was from an armed police officer. The shooting was sporadic one off shots. I could see neither the zombies or the officer until I almost stumbled across them.


    Very few British police officers are permitted to carry firearms and those that do undergo extensive training. This officer had climbed onto the first tier of scaffolding erected on an adjoining building overlooking Edgeware Road and was trying his best. But even from my short observation three things became immediately apparent. You can¡¯t take the shot unless the zombie was in the open, you can¡¯t shoot if people are behind the line of fire, and unlike the police officer who shot a stationary zombie back at the ambulance it would prove to be a far more difficult task getting a kill shot on a moving zombie.


    I could not tell how many zombies were in this area due to the extensive traffic obscuring them. Several zombies were beneath the scaffolding, whether drawn by the noise of the shots I could not tell, and alarmingly had enough self awareness to be pushing on the legs of the scaffolding. I was myself in sensory overload trying to detect danger from all directions while also observing the scene unfolding ahead of me to my right. Every time I looked it seemed another zombie had appeared beneath the scaffolding and it seemed to be in concert that they were now pushing the scaffolding legs. The shooting had now ceased as the officer had wrapped his arms around the scaffolding to stop from falling. A terrible metallic screech was filling the air as the scaffolding moved and swayed under the pressure being exerted beneath. I moved as swiftly as I could again filtering between vehicles as horrified occupants looked on in fear both towards the events on the scaffolding while searching for other dangers emerging elsewhere.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    I had gone another fifty meters before the metallic screech reached a crescendo replaced by a terrible roar. I sneaked a look back and saw the scaffolding topple and fall across those vehicles closest to it. Their screams rose higher, and only begun to fade as I moved swiftly further away.


    Whatever debilitating affects my crash wounds had on my body were over rode by the adrenaline pumping through me. I had never been so scared, had never been more aware of my own mortality, had never felt so alive.

 Episode 8: Hunger

    It was clear to me now that Edgeware Road was becoming a death trap. I pushed on and saw that there was a turn up ahead. Some vehicles were successfully creating turning space for themselves and going down these side roads, and this was in turn creating space for others. I walked quickly on, as I was as keenly aware of the dangers of road vehicles as much as the walking dead. It was quickly becoming apparent that vehicle access through the city would not be possible soon without great risk, or indeed at all, as I was already seeing multiple vehicles in the street and across the pathway where accidents and crashes had already taken place. My pace quickened as the chaotic scenes of Edgeware fell further behind.


    The roads I walked through now were residential. Large hulking housing estates were on either side of me. I noticed some people on higher floors were observing me from their balcony or their open windows. My ears were attuned to all sounds now and I had settled into a state of attentiveness without panic. My body had been put through the wringer so far today and I was satisfied the crash injuries were not proving to be a hindrance thus far. During this section of my walk I became aware of my hunger. It was now late afternoon and I had not eaten all day. I could feel a vague headache rising and my stomach was already growling. Thirst was a real issue too. Losing my food from my backpack had been a real setback and it did highlight the need to get supplies as soon as I could.


    I had to assume at this point that regardless of how widespread within London this had become, or whether perimeter cordons were successful in stopping the spread, the area in which I had found myself was lawless. There was a Tesco express store coming up on my left. I approached and saw that it too was shut. At this early stage I had yet to see any looting. The civilised part of me was reluctant to be the first to breach this, but the primal instinct to survive was strong. I stood before the store and quickly assessed my options.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    I found a loose house brick on a garden wall, stood back from the store front and after a moments hesitation flung it at the store window. I had to shield my face as the brick ricocheted off the window almost hitting me. Reinforced glass.


    "That ain¡¯t gonna work, mate."


    I turned around and it was a young man holding a hammer.


    He strode up to the window and quickly smashed the same spot of glass six times in succession before the glass shattered. He kicked in the frontage creating space to step through, and after a quick look each way along the street I entered too, my back pack already off my shoulder and unzipped.


    The store was dark, but with just enough natural light through the window to see. The young man was boisterous and noisy and seemed concerned more with cigarettes than food as he vigorously attacked the metal screen with the hammer, behind which the cartons were kept.


    I moved quickly down the aisle and found what I needed - protein bars, nuts, seeds, dried fruit, beef jerky. I ripped off any excess packaging and stuffed into my bag as much as it would hold. I grabbed two litres of water and a can of energy drink. I exited the store as fast as I could with the sound of the young mans hammer continuing to pound off of the metal screen.


    I looked up at the sky and thought I had maybe two hours of daylight left.


    The hammering stopped and I could hear cursing behind me. It looked as if the young lad could not penetrate the security screen.


    Out of the corner of my eye I saw movement and looked down the street. Someone was coming towards me, and as he came closer I could tell from his face he was one of the undead. To my horror I could see he was sprinting. As the young man exited back through the shattered window pane the zombie hit him at full speed.

 Episode 9: Killer

    The momentum of the zombie sprinting sent the young man flying sideways to the floor. His attacker had wrapped both arms around him and had sunk its teeth into his face and I watched in horror as I saw it tear a big chunk of flesh from his cheek. The young man was screaming in terror and unable to free one of his arms to even fight back.


    I saw that the hammer he had held was knocked clear in the collision. I raced over to it and picked it up. It was just an ordinary toolbox hammer. I turned back to the attack and the zombie continued to tear into the young man with a frenzy terrifying to witness.


    I ran back towards them, and lifting the hammer saw red, and struck down on the back of the zombies head as hard as I could. It slumped momentarily, and then begun to lift its head. It shook as if in a fit, and looked directly at me. It¡¯s stare was predatory and I was it¡¯s prey.


    It attempted to stand but it¡¯s balance had become affected and it rose to its knees before falling back on to the young man. I raised the hammer again and struck a further two times. It was still not dead but lay there convulsing violently. I rolled it off the young man who was still alive and conscious.


    "Fucking kill it!", he screamed at me with shredded lips.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.


    My breathing was quick and shallow as shock overcame me.


    "Kill it!", he screamed again.


    This snapped me out of my reverie and I leaned over it and this time drove the hammer down hard repeatedly until it¡¯s head opened and it lay still.


    I stood, feeling empty and then looked back at the young man. One arm trapped beneath him in the collision had clearly been broken. His face was a ruined mess and blood ebbed and flowed from the bites received. He looked at me with stricken eyes.


    "Now kill me", he said.


    I looked at him without at first understanding.


    "Kill me you cunt. Don¡¯t let me turn."


    The hammer had fallen back to my side.


    "Please."


    I breathed deep and dropped to his side. His eyes turned to mine and within them I could see pain and fear.


    "Close your eyes", I said.


    He held my gaze for a couple of seconds and then closed them as I had requested. I raised the hammer and struck down hard again and again and again and again.


    And at the end I staggered over to the side of the road and heaved until my throat felt raw.


    I clutched the hammer as I continued down the road away from the store and the horror of what had unfolded. I felt like something had changed inside me. I was now a killer but it lacked the weight of what I felt that would mean. I didn¡¯t feel dangerous and in control, just frightened and not in control. The world around me was unraveling and I was no longer the captain of my own ship.


    The sun was continuing to sink lower on the horizon and I had enough awareness remaining to know that I needed shelter from the streets during the hours of darkness. Somewhere safe where I could just sink down to the floor and let sleep take me away from this waking nightmare.

 Episode 10: Mina

    I had gone a further hundred meters when I heard more running. I looked forward, and to my left I saw a young black woman at speed passing a few feet in front of me, and then another zombie running behind her in chase. So the first quick zombie had not been an anomaly! I pulled back slightly so that I was not in line of sight of the zombie, and stuck out my foot to trip it as it ran. The zombie fell headlong into the pavement striking its head hard. Before it had a chance to recover I followed up without hesitation to strike it repeatedly with my hammer. Their was no queasiness this time, just a numb sensation. When I had finished I stood back up, and tried to slow my heartbeat again. I looked to my right and the young woman was breathing hard and had both hands on her hips as she slowly walked back towards me.


    "Hey." She looked at me assessing me. "Thanks."


    I nodded and turned to leave.


    "Wait", she said.


    I turned back.


    "Where you from?"


    "Not from around here", I replied.


    She looked up. "It¡¯s getting dark. You need a place? There is a bunch of my friends in a building up ahead. You want to crash?"


    I looked around my surroundings. This was unfamiliar territory and my options for safe boarding elsewhere this evening did not look promising.


    "Sure. Thank you."


    "No problem", she said.


    As we walked we both constantly surveyed our surroundings. As the light continued to fall, and the shadows continued to lengthen I was keen to get off streets that seemed more ominous with each second that passed. She turned off the street to a set of steps that led to a three storey townhouse.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    "Technically we are squatting, but it¡¯s secure", she said. "Come inside."


    With one last look at the world outside I shut the door which closed with a reassuring thud. The inside was initially dark as the property did not have power, but candle light flickered from the stairwell above. I ascended the stairs behind the girl and we emerged into a brighter room with half a dozen people sat around the room listening to a radio. One girl leaped up and ran to the young woman I had followed.


    "Mina! Oh thank god. What is happening to the world!"


    Mina embraced her friend warmly. She addressed the room.


    "I almost didn¡¯t make it. Some of those things can run. I mean full on sprint. I was being chased down, and this guy took it down and killed it. He saved my ass."


    The girl who had embraced Mina, now embraced me too.


    "We are an art collective. Thank you for saving our friend. You''re welcome to stay here. The doors are locked, the windows are secure. I think we should be safe here."


    I looked at the windows which had no coverings and then around the room at the different light sources flickering in the fading light.


    "I know those things are drawn to sound, and as far as I can tell they see plenty good too. We need to either put out the lighting, or cover those windows otherwise before long we could have every one of them out there heading towards us once it gets dark.


    Mina looked outside which was darkening enough for her reflection to bounce back. Off in the distance she could see the flickering light of a fire rising high into the sky.


    "Grab some spare blankets", she said. "Let¡¯s cover these windows."


    Once the windows were covered the group returned to sitting around the radio while a news broadcast played:


    In New York there are fears that the lock down on the city is failing. Outbreaks have been reported across all boroughs and fresh incidents have taken place as far away as two hundred miles north east in Boston, and 100 miles south west in Philadelphia. In Sweden outbreaks have now been reported across the city of Gothenburg. Denmark, Norway and Finland have said they will establish armed border crossings with Sweden while they monitor events with their Scandinavian neighbour. The Russian Government has said that the might of the Russian Army is on stand by to combat any invasive threat from either the East or West.

 Episode 11: Alistair

    It was still early evening when the art collective settled down for the night in the squat. Blankets were distributed and I found a spot to lie down in. Most of the group seemed to be emotionally spent, and so talk quickly ceased. Outside was mainly quiet, but every now and again there would be a disturbance that would rouse people from slumber. My own sleep was fitful. Too many new experiences, images and unwanted memories intruding into my thoughts.


    It was just before midnight when we heard the loud hammering at the door. We listened quietly in the dark. It was Mina who stood first and she laid her hand on my arm.


    "Come with me?" she asked


    I nodded and reached across for my hammer. A couple more of the group followed behind, and we descended the stairs as noiselessly as we could.


    The hammering on the door continued. Mina stood against the solid wooden door which had neither windows, letter box or peephole. We listened to the hammering which slowly abated. In the silence we could hear someone weeping on the other side of the door, and then very faintly someone saying the word please.


    I could see Mina scrunching up her face as she tried to process the voice, and then her features softened as recognition dawned on her. She turned to us.


    ¡°Its Alistair!¡±


    She kept the security chain connected to the front door as she slowly opened it.


    ¡°¡±Alistair¡±, she called out gently.


    ¡°Mina! Thank God. Please let me in. I¡¯m hurt."


    I reached out to Mina, and put my finger to my lips. I then spoke out to Alistair.


    "How are you hurt, Alistair?"


    "I¡¯ve been bit", he said. "It hurts so bad."


    Mina went to remove the chain.


    "Wait", I said. "We all know what happens when someone gets bit."Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    "From the movies", Mina said. "But what if it¡¯s not like the movies. What if not everyone turns?"


    I immediately thought of the young man outside the store that I had bludgeoned to death after he had been bitten. Mina reached up for the door chain, but this time I did not stop her.


    Alistair stood on the other side of the door. He was ghostly white and held his arm close to his chest. Mina guided him in and shut the door behind him.


    We took Alistair upstairs and the rest of the group were already awake. Someone grabbed water and others grabbed a spare blanket that was torn into strips, and Alistair removed his jacket. The wound was open on his forearm and the flesh was marbled around the bite wound.


    Mina dampened a strip of the blanket and lightly pressed it against the wound, and then removed it so that someone else could then bind the open wound with another strip of material.


    "What happened?", someone from within our group asked.


    "I was in our squat, and one of them things just crashed through the window", Alistair said.


    Mina turned to me. "Their squat is in a basement."


    "This thing just attacked everyone there. We couldn¡¯t fight it off. We had no weapons. It got everybody. I tried to help, but when I got bit too I managed to get to the door, and closed it behind me."


    Mina listened and said ¡°Everybody?! Suzie? Erika? Annabelle? Phillip?"


    Alistair sat and heaved a huge sigh. ¡°Everybody."


    We lowered him down on to his back. His brow was fevered and so we pressed down a wet cloth. Mina said that she would take the first watch and we would switch hourly. She laid a hand on my arm and told me she would call me if she thought my help would be needed. I laid myself down, my hand clutching the hammer beneath the blanket, and when sleep tugged at my eyelids I gladly slipped into the blackness.


    I don¡¯t know whose watch it was when he turned, but when it happened it was with a savagery and suddenness made even worse, if possible, due to the confined enclosed space where we all were sleeping.


    My mind awoke to the sound of screaming. The smouldering candle was now out and a thin wisp of smoke drifted up from where it had been knocked over. And with the curtain drawn too the room was now in pitch blackness.


    All I could hear was screaming and the scrabbling of multiple people blindly moving in the dark. I remained still and clutched the hammer tighter. Someone made it to the curtain and pulled it down.


    It was still night time outside, but there was some moonlight. The darkness lifted from the room only slightly, but it was just enough for me to discern silhouettes if not the actual individuals. Now I had my bearings I moved quickly backwards until I was up against a wall. I heard more screams as one silhouette moved from one space to another. As it crossed the window there was enough light to identify the individual. It was Alistair, or at least the zombified version of him.


    He launched himself at an individual cowering in the dark on their feet in front of me, and when I heard her scream I knew it was Mina. Alistair bore down on top of her, but Mina had brought her knees up to her chest, and so far Alistair could not close in for the bite. I stepped forward raised my hammer and struck down with all my might.

 Episode 12: Wielding A Hammer

    I continued to beat Alistair with the hammer until his body ceased twitching on the room floor. The moon light coming through the window allowed me to see Mina. She stared at me with open eyes and a look of horror on her face.


    "Hey", I asked. "Are you okay? Are you bit."


    She shook her head. "No. No. I''m fine."


    Some of the fear seemed to fade from her eyes, and our attention then focused on the chaos elsewhere in the room. I wanted to light a candle, but the curtains had been torn from the window and I did not want light shining out into the darkness attracting god knows what to us.


    I reached out to the first of the casualties. It was a young girl with blonde hair. She had been beautiful, but those features were now a horror mask with her lower lip bitten off exposing her bottom row of teeth. She appeared to have additonal bites on her neck, shoulder and arm. There were possibly even more that I could not see. She looked at us with an unblinking stare while her breathing fluttered light and quick. Mina stroked her hair while I moved on to the next.


    Again, catastrophic injuries had been inflicted on them in the attack and now they lay mortally wounded waiting for the inevitable conclusion of death before they turned. All four of the surviving room mates were in the same condition. All were hideously wounded.


    I took Mina by the arm and led her into the hallway so we could speak in confidence.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    "They are going to die, and they are all going to turn."


    This time Mina nodded. "I know."


    "Its still night time outside. I don''t want to go back on to the streets until there is light to see with. Those people, they are your friends, your room mates. Tell me what needs to be done and I''ll do it. But we have got to be quick."


    Mina looked back towards the closed door behind which her friends lay.


    "We can''t save them." She looked back at me. "And we can''t let them turn."


    I held Mina''s hands.


    "The dangerous thing to do would be for us to wait for them to die before we finish them off", I said.


    Mina looked at me guardedly. "You mean kill them while they are still alive?"


    "There are four of them Mina. If even one turns before we are ready to finish them we are going to be in trouble."


    Mina breathed deep and looked me square in the eye.


    "How? Will they feel pain?"


    I shrugged. "I have no good answers Mina. All I have is the hammer. All I can do is move them one at a time into a quiet area so that the others can''t hear and finish them off."


    Mina continued to stare at me. "By caving there skulls in with the hammer?"


    "We have to destroy the brain, and that hammer is all I have."


    "Fuck!", Mina said. "Fuck!"


    "I''m going to move the first one into the kitchen. I''ll shut the door so that the others can''t hear. I''ll close their eyes so they can''t see what I am about to do, and then I will put them out of their misery."


    Mina nodded, but it was without enthusiasm.


    "Stay with your friends and reassure each one until I come for them."


    The kitchen had a linoleum floor and was a small crammed space. Each person I moved in was severely injured and in a state of shock. I laid them down as gently as I could, covered their eyes as I had promised Mina and then stove their skull in with the hammer. My mind was numb to the horror of it all. I had a job which I did, and at the end of it I returned to the living room, and I wrapped additional blankets around Mina, and then lay down on the floor and slept a deep sleep.

 Episode 13: The Sun Rises On A New Day

    I woke and saw daylight filtering into the room through the bare window. I was warm beneath my blankets. I turned and looked for Mina. She was sat on the floor facing the window with her blankets wrapped around her.


    "Hey", I called out. "Did you manage to sleep at all last night."


    She shrugged. "Maybe a little."


    I rose and stood, but kept those warm blankets wrapped around me. I walked to the window and looked outside. The fires in the distance seen last night still seemed to be going and a heavy backdrop of smoke hung over the city from the horizon.


    "I wonder if emergency services can even get to those fires. The roads were already becoming blocked with discarded and crashed vehicles yesterday", I said.


    Mina met my eyes.


    "Maybe there aren¡¯t any emergency services left to attend."Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    "Hey", I said. "It¡¯s still only been a day. It was a rough night so things are going to feel pretty bleak right now. But don¡¯t start losing hope. Let¡¯s put the radio on and see what they are saying."


    Around the world civilian aviation remains grounded. In New York evacuation procedures have been established along the Hudson River, with survivors being told to head there if they are unable to get to the manned perimeters on the outskirts of the city. Reports of outbreaks continue in Boston and Philidelphia. No additional major urban areas have yet reported attacks.


    In Europe the European Union has moved its forces along with those from the United Nations to contain events in Gothenburg and its surrounding areas. And the Russian Government has said the Russian Baltic Fleet will take up key tactical positions within the Baltic Sea.


    In London the west of the city is ablaze from Acton to Shepard¡¯s Bush. Due to the severity of the outbreak a military cordon has been established with buildings torn down to create a fire break so that these fires cannot spread. Elsewhere in the city a military cordon has been established from Paddington eastwards to Edgeware and westwards to Bayswater. The outbreak has so far been limited to London and security officials remain quietly confident that this outbreak can yet be contained.


    I reached out to Mina. "See. We just need to get beyond the military cordon and then we will be out of this mess!"

 Episode 14: Departure

    I opened my back pack and grabbed a protein bar for myself and Mina, and I still had some water left over too. This would be our breakfast as neither of us wished to enter the kitchen where her room mates lay on the floor. We both stood by the second floor window looking out at the street below. From our perspective the world outside seemed quiet and empty.


    My concern when leaving the property would be encountering the fast zombies. I had puzzled over this in my own mind. Why the discrepancy in speed and motion? Was it the damage to the body that dictated whether a zombie could move at speed? Were they all capable of running, and only those whose bodies were severely damaged in their own conversion then limited in mobility? Was it damage to the brain? I could not know, but the thought that most zombies may have speed chilled me. It would mean they could be a threat even at distance as who knew what endurance levels a fast zombie would have? Would it ever tire? Would it ever slow down? Would it ever end the chase, or would it pursue its victim to the end of the world if need be?


    We went through the house, bar the kitchen, one last time looking for supplies. Both of us wore back packs. Mine still contained a wash bag, clothes and food. I added the small radio and a set of spare batteries. In addition to the hammer I was now carrying a screw driver too. In a fleeting moment of humour Mina said I was starting to look like Bob The Builder. Can I fix it? Sadly, no I probably couldn¡¯t.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    Mina had added clothes to her back pack, along with some personal keepsakes. As she had been packing I had resisted the temptation to say essentials only. She had lost a lot over the night time period and now was not the time for criticism.


    With one last look from an upstairs window to make sure all was clear we opened the door and exited on to the street.


    Our goal was clear. We had to reach the manned barricades which could be just a few streets away. I was right handed and so held the hammer in this hand, and the screw driver in my left. Mina had picked up a wrench and another screwdriver from a rudimentary toolbox kept at the squat. We were armed, we now had a clear mission objective and I felt we had a decent amount of information pertaining to both the threat that we faced and the conditions we found ourselves in.


    Within moments of turning off one street and on to another we saw two zombies further down the road listlessly shambling along. They saw us and immediately started running towards us. Me and Mina started to run too. Ahead we could hear multiple shots of gunfire and we ran towards its source.

 Episode 15: The Barricade

    We were moving at speed, but our back packs were a hindrance. I dared not look back behind me incase I should stumble and fall. My lungs burned with exertion, and I could hear from Mina¡¯s ragged breath that she was in the same way.


    I knew they were gaining on us as I could hear their moaning rising in volume behind us. I focused on keeping my balance and simply putting one foot in front of the other as we pushed on. We were now running down the middle of the road as that was the flattest surface. The road had a slight incline and it felt that we were going slower as we pushed forwards.


    I had a stitch in my side, and a pain in my hip that would not subside. My hands clutched the tools I held with a vice like grip. I was mentally preparing myself to stop, stand and fight rather than be pulled down from behind and savaged.


    Ahead was a small public garden. Both Mina and I rushed through the open gate. On the other side of this garden we could see a cordon and it was from here we could hear the shooting. As we ran we both shouted out to the cordon. The cordon itself consisted of riot barriers and as we exited the garden the noise behind had me tensing with every stride as I imagined those cold dead hands reaching out for me.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    From behind the barricade we saw our first soldier. He raised his gun, sighted behind us and sent out a thunderous volley of shots. We reached the barricades and desperately tried to climb over. I glanced over my shoulder, my ears ringing from the shots fired and saw that out pursuers had been downed. The relief shook through me and I could feel my hands shaking in real fear for the first time since these events had begun.


    Mina was helped across to the other side of the barricade. She saw my hands shaking, and reached across to squeeze my arm.


    ¡°We made it¡±, she said her voice sounding weak and faint to my damaged hearing. ¡°We got to safety.¡±


    Mina and a pair of soldiers helped haul me over the barricades. There was more shooting. Short concise bursts. We were directed towards more fencing where we saw a sign for a first aid station.


    As we passed it we looked inside a tent and saw that there were many wounded inside. Some lay there in silence and shock, but some writhed in agonised pain. I recalled Alistair¡¯s face from the night before and a new chill ran up my spine. Mina looked across to me and smiled with a look of relief, but I could only look back at that first aid station and wonder.

 Episode 16: The First Aid Station

    At the first aid station a medical officer was doing a quick visual inspection of each person. We joined a queue of around ten people. They were all civilians like us and all looked terrified and haggard. I am sure Mina and myself gave the same first impression too. Someone in the queue closer to the front was in obvious distress as they had started to moan loudly. The medical officer walked up to them and quickly signalled the attention of two soldiers who escorted the individual back towards the tent we had just passed.


    Mina leaned into me. ¡°Bitten?¡±


    I looked back at the tent where he was taken. ¡°I think so, and he wasn¡¯t the only one. That tent seemed full of people in the same condition.¡±


    Mina looked back towards the medical officer who had just waved two more people through.


    ¡°It looks like this is compulsory to get through the cordon.¡± She looked at me. ¡°Let¡¯s hope it¡¯s quick.¡±


    The line moved slowly. It looked like the medical officer was asking an array of questions in addition to visual observation. The noise within the cordon would rise and fall. Sporadic shooting was still occurring causing everyone to turn in the direction it came from, pausing momentarily before continuing with whatever they had been doing. Shouts and cries would carry during the lulls and I could feel my anxiety building. We were now two away from speaking to the medical officer.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    Mina turned back to me. ¡°Thanks again for getting me this far.¡±


    "Your welcome", I said. ¡°And had you not given me shelter overnight who knows what would have come of me. ¡°


    She smiled with sadness. ¡°That was the worse night of my life. But I am glad you were there. Had Alistair arrived, and you not been present I would...¡± She stopped, and I reached out to touch her shoulder.


    ¡°None of this is going to be easy for any of us to process once this is over.¡± I said.


    The medical officer waved through two more people and we were next. He looked from Mina to me. ¡°Are you together?¡± Mina and me exchanged a quick glance and nodded.


    "Names?"


    "Mina Oroju...Bradley Young"


    "Have either of you been in direct contact with the infected?"


    We exchanged another look.


    "Yes?"


    "More details please? Any injuries or open wounds? Have you come into direct contact with their blood?"


    We have no injuries, no open wounds.


    And have you come into direct contact with their blood?


    We exchanged another look between us


    "Ummmm....."


    Behind us there was another volley of shots, and screams. We looked behind and saw someone in military uniform stumble from the first aid tent covered in blood. A zombie followed, this time the lumbering variety, who latched onto the stricken soldier biting into his flesh.


    Further screams were rising in a crescendo from the tent. Soldiers were running towards the tent while additional shots could be heard coming from the barricades. As we watched two fast zombies emerged from the tent.


    One raced towards the oncoming soldiers and one raced towards us.

 Episode 17; The Impact

    Whether the soldier froze, or if his gun had simply jammed, it allowed the first fast zombie to barrel into the group of soldiers that were running to the first aid tent.


    Their screams and yells carried to us as the second fast zombie ran towards us. It¡¯s mouth was open, and from it rose a dry scratched roar.


    We had not been disarmed, thank god, and in truth I did not know where in this hemmed in enclosure we could have run to. The fenced in area from the first aid tent to the station was one straight linear line. I braced for the impact as myself and Mina stepped back until we had our backs up against the first aid station.


    There was no sensation of time slowing down. From my perspective it¡¯s surge towards us was very much in real time and I raised my screwdriver and hammer to my sides and struck out with my screwdriver at the last moment before impact.


    I had aimed upwards with this weapon. The screwdriver successfully pierced through the jaw, but it¡¯s angle was too shallow. As the momentum of the collision bowled us both over I could see that the zombie was still very much animated, and that the tip of the screwdriver had exited back through the top of its nose instead of forward into the brain. It¡¯s mouth could barely open as the screwdriver had impaled through both upper and lower palette. It¡¯s face was a mere inch from mine and I panicked.


    I was knocked to the floor, and with my backpack on I floundered like a rolled tortoise while this undead creature clawed at me with a barely audible croak now rising from its locked up mouth.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    It¡¯s hands scrabbled at me in a frenzy and I tried to hold it off me while I kicked out with my legs trying to right myself in order to give myself any chance of fighting back.


    Mina had been knocked over in the collision too, but without the weight of the zombie on her she was able to get back to her feet. I turned my head away from this creature as I could see saliva hanging from its pursed lips while it continued to squirm and wrangle its way further on to me.


    I could see Mina stand, and turn back to us. I was not sure whether she would flee and run, or come to my aid. Initially I am not sure whether she knew either as there was a moment where she looked around and I could see a resigned look of hopelessness spread across her face.


    She looked back at me. She could not have known that the zombies mouth was sealed shut, but in that moment where our eyes made contact it seemed to break her spell of indecision and I saw her raise her screwdriver, approach, and plunge it into the back of the zombies skull.


    It was killed instantly and I immediately could feel it become a dead weight on top of me. Once again I began to kick out with my legs in order to both get this thing off me, and right myself. Mina braced herself and pushed at it too. With our combined efforts the creature rolled off of me and finally I was able to move myself back into a position from where I could scramble back to my feet.


    As I stood the sounds around me roared back into my thoughts. The yells, screams, groans and gunshots formed a wall of noise. Myself and Mina edged back around the first aid station away from the scene of chaos at the first aid tent where the soldiers were embraced in deadly hand to hand combat with the zombies emerging from the tent.


    And as I watched I could see the soldiers weaken and succumb to the appalling injuries received under the onslaught of a relentless enemy that knew neither pain nor fear, and was driven by an insatiable hunger.

 Episode 18: The Surge

    I took Mina''s hand and we turned and dashed beyond the limits of the first aid area. This opened up into a further section of the cordon. Several soldiers were a few feet further ahead of us, unaware of the chaos unfolding within the first aid area. We rushed up to them breathless.


    "We have people that have turned within the first aid tent. They are breaking out."


    The soldiers looked at us with stern expressions, and then I saw fear sweep over them when they looked beyond us.


    Several fast zombies had now emerged from the corridor that we had just exited through. These creatures did not seem to have a need for reflection, or pause. They moved instinctively and with an immediacy that was unsettling and jarring. Mina and me stepped away from the soldiers who raised their guns, and even as they brought them up into shooting position were already seeing the zombies close the gap between them from ten feet, then eight, and then six.


    What I had seen on Edgeware Road was now being repeated here. Shots on moving targets, especially ones moving at speed such as these, seemed to be a futile task in such close proximity.


    We ran backwards while seeing this group of armed soldiers unloading their guns into the marauding undead. Flesh ripped from the zombies bodies as the ammunition tore through them. They were knocked off balance, and yet continued on their unrelenting forward path.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    I saw arms reach out for the soldiers and then a mass of bodies falling to the floor as the guns were silenced, and a deadly struggle for survival began with desperate hand to hand combat between the living and undead. Cries, and screams were soon the only sounds coming from this group of troops.


    Mina opened a gate, and we stumbled through while looking desperately for a safe haven. We had emerged into a civilian holding area where dozens of people were milling around on cot beds and makeshift seating areas on benches.


    We screamed at them to get up and run. Some reacted, but most did not. As we moved through the area we saw a number of frightened faces watching us. Maybe they simply did not know in which direction to go. Maybe they had simply become too tired and numb to run. But as we moved to the rear of this civilian area fresh screams and shouts erupted as the first of the fast zombies reached the area.


    More people were now on their feet, and now there was a surge of momentum towards the gates that me and Mina were aiming for. Troops were running through these gates too as we were approaching, and we almost came to a standstill as we were crushed between the troops rushing towards us, and the surge of civilians now frantically running away from the threat that had appeared just moments ago.


    I lost my grasp of Mina''s hand, and cried out her name as she got pushed away from me. She called out my name as she appeared to trip and fall beneath the running crowd.

 Episode 19: Where Is Mina?

    The weight of people pushing past me from both directions induced in me a sense of panic. I could no longer see Mina, and I could no longer hear her either. People were screaming and crying in a mad rush to escape this area.


    The soldiers entering the area could not see the zombies beyond the crowd, let alone find space to aim and shoot them. I felt myself be pushed in the maelstrom towards the exit, and finally succumbed to the flow until I exited along with the rest of the frightened people looking for a way out.


    Some soldiers had finally broken through the crowds as I could hear shooting within the area commence. I was torn between running away, and returning to look for Mina. I hovered by the entrance watching people fleeing in fear.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    The soldiers had formed a line and were laying down a wall of fire that for the moment seemed to be holding the threat at bay. I encroached back into the area, chills running down my spine as the shooting continued unabated while a stream of undead continued to run into this section.


    I moved cautiously one eye on the proceedings ahead of me while walking back towards the troops. Several people had been trampled in the mad rush to exit. My heart hammered in my chest and my lips and throat felt dry.


    I saw her to the side of the troops. I moved closer and reached for her. Her face was still, and I was not sure whether she still lived. I reached down and felt for her pulse. It was weak, but it still beat.


    I reached out with both arms, unhitched her back pack and while the volley of shots repeated loudly behind me, carried her out of the area.

 Episode 20: The Garden

    I held Mina¡¯s limp body in my arms not knowing the extent of her injuries. I looked around to see where safe ground would be.


    The shooting behind me had fallen silent. Whether this due to the zombies having been slain, or the troops overwhelmed I did not know. I looked up at the sky which was overcast with the promise of rain.


    Ahead I could see more fencing and barricades. These had been pushed over outwards, and so I assumed that this was the direction taken by the mass of people that had fled from the civilian holding area. I picked my way carefully over the barricades being careful not to fall.


    This took us back into a residential street. According to the news report this should have taken us into safe territory, but in such a swiftly changing scenario I did not know whether this was still the case. I looked around as I walked for any clue or indication as to whether this area had fallen too.


    The cars were undamaged, and there was no debris in the streets. It looked like London from before the horrors of the infected aeroplanes arrival still less than 48 hours ago.


    Mina was feeling heavy in my arms, and I was aware of my own vulnerability now both my arms were being used for the task of carrying her. Off in the distance I thought I heard a scream, but I could not be sure from which direction.


    I looked to my right. I was passing a house hidden behind a thick verge. I pushed open the garden gate, and then closed it behind me. The garden I found myself in led to a four storey substantial Edwardian townhouse.


    As I looked at this building I could hear running up the street. I stepped away from the gate so I was fully hidden by the verge. The sound of the running seemed to be made by several individuals, and from their hissing and groaning it sounded as if the undead had indeed broken through the cordon.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    I laid Mina down on the gravel, and explored around the side of the building. All lights seemed off within the house. At the rear of the house I peered through the glass of the back door. I could not see or hear anyone within the property, and so picked up a rock from the garden, and smashed the window panel, and reached in with my arm. The key fortunately had been left in the internal lock, and so I unlocked the rear door and went and collected Mina.


    Whoever lived here was not currently home, but the property was lived in and cared for. I laid Mina down on one of the ground floor sofas, and then went upstairs to grab blankets, and then into the kitchen to wet a cloth which I pressed against her forehead which had grown feverish. While I attended to her I also removed the radio from my back pack.


    Tragedy on the Hudson River today as two vessels laden with survivors from the unfolding disaster in New York have collided and sunk. Officials are unable to estimate the number of casualties. A manned military border has now been put in place around New York, Boston and Philadelphia as containment protocols continue. The US government has also stated that all military personnel will be withdrawn around the world with immediate effect.


    In Gothenburg the outbreak has continued apace and United Nations and European Union forces have engaged in live fire on Swedish soil.


    Russia has as yet not deployed any forces onto non-Russian soil but the Russian Goverment has repeated that all its border territories will see increased numbers of military personnel stationed along its length, and that all options will be explored to ensure the safety of the Russian people.


    China has also announced today that in light of the incidents happening in the West that it has taken immediate measures to control its borders. A full lockdown of its borders is now in effect, and Hong Kong has seen Chinese troops on its streets as this region has now been placed under Chinese military occupation.


    In the United Kingdom the containment of the outbreak in the west of London has been extended into both northern and central regions of the capital. Officials have stated that the situation is fluid, and that more measures will be implemented to bring this situation under control.

 Episode 21: Awake

    While Mina remained unconscious I went into the kitchen and rummaged for additional food supplies. There was a plentiful supply and so I brought through a plate of food to eat for now, as well as items I could squeeze into my back pack.


    The news on the radio switched between events occurring around the world, as well as those occurring in Britain. The outbreak still seemed to be confined solely to London, but having heard how quickly it was spreading around New York I knew it was only a matter of time before that same scenario unfolded here too.


    I saw this house had a landline telephone and called my brother. It went to voicemail, and so I left a message to say that my plans had changed. I realised I needed a mobile phone again so that I was contactable. I did not give any indication of where I was to him as I did not want to draw him towards London and danger.


    I explored all four floors of the property, and saw that it had a useable attic space too. I had fleeting thoughts of shoring up the house and using it as a base to get through the first few days. I quickly dismissed the idea as I did not want to remain within an already infected area. Having seen how difficult engaging the enemy in combat had been, even for those both armed and trained, I had already made the mental calculation that there would be no easy resolution of this blight that now faced humanity.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    I came back downstairs and checked again on Mina. To my surprise her eyes were open and she seemed surprised at her surroundings.


    ¡°Where are we?" she asked.


    "Somewhere safe for now, somewhere outside the cordon."


    She looked towards the window. "Are we outside the infected area?"


    "We are outside the other infected area. But the zombies broke through the cordon too."


    Mina tried to sit, and then I took both her hands and helped her back to a standing position.


    "How do you feel?", I asked


    "Like I have been run over", she replied.


    "Well, you kind of were."


    She took a few tentative steps and reported no pain beyond a mild ache in her back. Outside I heard the creak of the garden gate opening. Mina walked over to the window and gasped.


    I looked over to the window too just in time to see it shatter as a zombie jumped head first through it.

 Episode 22: Home Invasion

    Mina stumbled back from the shattered window frame, and I turned and rushed back to the kitchen. There had been a knife block alongside the sink, and I pulled from it two sharp cruel looking knives. I ran back to the front room and saw Mina back track from the zombie as it rose back to its knees.


    Shards of glass were embedded in its marbled skin. As I marched up to it, both of its cold dead hands reached out and gripped my trouser legs. It moaned as it pulled me towards it while it moved its head forwards ready to bite. I plunged down with one of the knives. I missed the skull, instead impaling it through the nape of its neck. The pressure of the blow sunk the zombies head down to the floor. I pulled the knife free and lifted it again before plunging it straight back down again - this time the blade penetrated the skull, killing it.


    I pulled free the knife, and looked back to the window. Two more zombies had entered the garden, and one ran and flung itself through the window. There was a distinct audible tearing sound as a large jagged edge of glass still attached to the window frame tore the zombie from sternum to pelvis.


    I watched as the wretched creature stood and its innards flopped out from where it had been tore open on entry. It moved towards me oblivious to the ruination of its body.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    It¡¯s hands were strong as it gripped my jacket. I tried to plunge the knife into its skull, but came down at a too acute an angle so the knife glanced off. The forward momentum of the zombie pushed me off balance and we both went over with its cold sticky entrails coating me in a sickening stench.


    I grimaced as I went down feeling a sharp pain in my ribs from the motorbike crash that already seemed a lifetime ago. Mina had grabbed the zombie by the hair, and pulled back its head so that it could not bite me. I lashed out with the knife in three rapid motions.


    The first was a lateral slice across its throat rendering its groans to a hoarse whisper. The second swipe split it¡¯s mouth into a wide joker style slash. The third movement was an upward stab that went through its eyeball and directly into its brain killing it stone dead.


    The third zombie was still unsuccessfully trying to climb into the room when we grabbed the back pack and exited the house through the rear door. I strapped on my back pack as we carefully trod on the shingle surface as we walked back round to the front of the house. I poked my head around the corner and watched as the third zombie clumsily climbed through the window frame and dropped with a thud inside the house.


    I took Mina¡¯s hand and guided us through the garden gate, and back out on to the street. Behind us, fifty metres or so, we could see the cordon through which we had exited earlier that morning. There looked to be a dozen or so zombies still milling around. We turned and ran in the opposite direction. After a few strides I looked behind me, and saw that the entire group was giving chase.

 Episode 23: Born To Run

    I held Mina¡¯s hand as we ran. She was lighter than me, younger than me and probably fitter than me too, but she had barely recovered from being trampled at the first aid station earlier that morning. I squeezed her hand and urged her on, but I could tell that even with the adrenaline rush arising from the fear of our being chased that she was waning and tiring fast.


    We had a turning up ahead and so could go left, right or straight ahead. My concern was turning off this road and finding ourselves trapped in a cul de sac. This road led on still further so we ran past the intersection.


    As we ran we passed residential house, after residential house, but I knew that even if everyone was home and watching our predicament that no help would be forthcoming. The British had banned guns from personal ownership and so now a nation faced a zombie outbreak armed with nothing more than items from tool boxes, kitchen shelves and garden sheds. Against a mob of a dozen zombies on our heels our only hope was to run into a group of armed police officers or soldiers.


    As we ran a stray dog darted out of nowhere, and ran alongside us up the street. I could not tell whether it knew of the danger behind us, or whether it simply enjoyed running with people.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    Ahead I could see that this road ended at another intersection. Now we would have no choice but to turn left or right. We could also hear a vehicle for the first time in a while, and as we approached the intersection a BMW slowed down from speed with screeching brakes to career down the road we were running along. Mina and me managed to squeeze between two parked vehicles as the car shot towards us.


    The dog was not so fortunate, and it yelped in pain as it was struck by the vehicle. I could hear the car engine rev up again as the driver would have now seen the marauding zombie horde rushing toward him.


    There was a crunch as metal hit flesh, and then amidst tire squeal a louder sound of metal hitting metal. I looked behind and saw that the car had mown down some of the zombies before sliding out of control and slamming into a parked car.


    The unhurt zombies had now swarmed the vehicle, and were clawing and banging at the vehicle to get at the occupant inside.


    I tentatively stepped back into the road to look for the dog. It was lying on its side with its legs clearly broken. It¡¯s eyes were wide open in shock, and it panted fast and heavy. Behind it I could see a pair of zombies dragging their now broken frames towards the stricken animal.


    As me and Mina turned the corner looking for safety we could hear the animal howl out in pain as the zombies reached it.

 Episode 24: Gassed

    The road we were now on was business rather than residential. We had gone less than a hundred metres when Mina said she had to stop. I stayed on lookout while she stumbled over to the side of the road and vomited. I looked up at the sky and saw a number of contrails criss crossing overhead. I assumed military, but also thought maybe the civil aviation suspension had been lifted to get people away. But if so, where?


    We had seen so few people on the streets, other than in the traffic grid locked area of Edgeware Road that central London seemed desolate. It appeared that either a lot of people left as soon as the information hit the news, or that each building we had passed was filled with frightened individuals waiting for advice, news, help or inspiration. I knew my first response on hearing the news was to instantly get moving, and apart from seeking shelter at night I had resisted every temptation to remain static ever since apart from nursing Mina. I looked at her frame now, still hunched over.


    Like myself she had already been through so much, and yet it felt like we were still only at the beginning of whatever journey we now found ourselves on. I reached into my backpack and withdrew a drink bottle which I handed to her. She sheepishly accepted it, wiped her mouth furiously with her sleeve and drank from the bottle.


    "Better?", I asked.


    "I guess", she said.


    I hitched the backpack on and we strode onwards. If my memory of London served correct then this road would lead direct to Regents Park. I recalled zombie movies I had seen before, and helicopters and military drop off points seemed to be commonly found in those open areas - which are few and far between in a city environment. This thought gave me a sense of renewed optimism.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    We had fallen into the habit now of always walking in the middle of the road where possible. It gave us the best view, had the smoothest walking and running surface, and afforded the most options if we needed to take evasive action.


    Ahead we could hear human voices. A food store on our right was being ransacked. We looked in as we passed, and saw a mix of people young and old, white and black. A few stopped and stared as we passed. We carried on as we had only one backpack between us now and our provisions were plentiful.


    Further on we saw signs for Regents Park. Moments later we heard the sounds of helicopters sweeping overhead.


    As we got closer to the park we heard a great volume of noise and saw that it was a large crowd of people drawn to this open space possibly for the same reason that it had held such optimism for myself. From our distance we could see helicopters sweeping in for landing, and others rising and flying away.


    There were clear indications of a large military presence here - soldiers in uniforms, military ground vehicles, and now as I looked up at the roofs of the buildings that we passed I could see evidence of soldiers posted above too with their guns sighted down on the streets below.


    From directly above us we heard a rapid fire of shots. I span to see what had prompted this, and saw a group of around twenty zombies running at speed down the road less than fifty metres away.


    Me and Mina started running towards Regents Park and the thriving mass of people. More gunshots rang out now in a sustained and repeated burst from multiple positions, and as we neared the Park we could hear an ominous sound of dread, fear and panic rising from the hemmed in crowd of civilians ahead of us.

 Episode 25: Get To The Chopper

    As we neared the fencing around Regents Park we saw that the majority of the crowds were on the street side of the park, and that the military were filing people into the park through the gates only after inspection.


    We also realised that the shooting taking place was occurring from multiple routes surrounding the park. I was not sure if this was co-incidence that the zombies were coming towards the park by multiple paths at the same time, or similar to when the zombies cooperated together to bring down the scaffolding, there was some base level of intelligence being displayed by these creatures never hinted at in popular culture references.


    The crowds were frightened, and we could see many people were crying looking behind us at the hordes of zombies pouring into the area from multiple locations. In addition to the shooting from the rooftops there was also shooting from soldiers down on ground level, and so the zombies ran into a hailstorm of fire.


    Myself and Mina had stopped at the periphery of the crowd unwilling to seek safety within after the experience of Mina having been trampled earlier. I could already see people falling within the crowd as weaker individuals succumbed to the surge of the crowd as it shifted with people trying to create space for themselves. Some individuals were now trying to climb over the fencing and I could not see, but only imagine, that others were now being crushed up against these immovable objects.


    I quickly scanned the movement of the zombies and saw that only a third of the zombies were being gun downed by the hailstorm of bullets. Once again the issue of headshots on a moving target was proving to be an unassailable problem.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    Mina reached for my hand and we skirted away from the edge of the crowd. Most people were still trying to get into the park but it would be impossible to get through the crowd into the park with so many creatures now just meters away.


    One helicopter had now taken a hovering position thirty feet away. It¡¯s 30mm chain gun was laying down a formidable blast of large calibre bullets into an oncoming mass of zombies and I could see the wretched beasts fly apart under the onslaught.


    Mina and me hunched down and braced ourselves against the buffeting air shock of the chopper blades and ran to stand beneath the thunderous roar of the chopper twenty feet above us.


    Screams and shouts from the crowd barely penetrated through the cacophony of noise above us. But I could see that individual zombies had managed to penetrate the periphery of the crowds. The surge of the crowd intensified as people desperately fought with each other to get away from the threat that they now knew was amongst them.


    More helicopters were now airborne but even as the guns above us ceased I could see that the gunners could only shoot into masses of zombies, and not masses of zombies intermingled with people. The chopper above us was beginning to ascend higher, and I saw that other choppers were now doing the same.


    Mina and me now ran away from the park back down the street where this group of zombies had emerged before being decimated by the gun barrels from the helicopter.


    As we ran I saw that many of these zombies although now limbless and torn to shreds still retained animation, and their jaws opened and closed as they watched us pass.

 Episode 26: The Public Garden

    The height of the buildings above us meant I could no longer see the helicopters as they flew away, and quickly enough we could no longer hear them either. Shooting could still be heard from the park behind us, and this became quieter the further away we got. I saw there was a large military presence within the park, and as they were mainly behind the metal street fencing i retained a hope that this could remain a safe stronghold for us to return to. But hope was becoming increasingly harder to hold on to.


    The size of the zombie horde that had targeted Regents Park had been dozens strong at our location. The Park was large in size and I had no way of knowing if this incursion had been repeated elsewhere on the parks perimeter, and if so, whether multiple groups had attacked simultaneously.


    In a city the size of London, where the population swells to over 10 million on any given day, there was bountiful opportunity for the zombies numbers to increase dramatically, and quickly. Who knew how large their numbers were already? And whether their numbers killed in the attack on the park exceeded the number of people turned in the crowds around the park that they had penetrated.


    We saw with Alistair that he had turned much quicker than we had expected. This kind of knowledge was going to be instrumental going forwards. Know thy enemy.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    Both of us were winded, and as were in a constant state of nervous agitation I had to consciously slow my breathing to ward off an impending sense of doom.


    We took the opportunity to look around us. On three sides were multi-storey residential blocks with a public garden on the fourth side. I saw that we had an audience as several people in upper floors were watching us. I wondered how long their supplies would last before they too needed to venture beyond the safety of their apartments, and what the streets of London would then look like once they did.


    I looked across at Mina and knew we were doing the right thing. The only hope was to keep moving, keep looking for safe passage out of this city, or to keep walking until we got to the other side of the city and to the relative safety of the outskirts and countryside beyond. To remain holed up in London itself would soon only mean living in a city of the dead.


    From out of the public garden we heard a cry. We turned and peered into the gloomy foliage laden space, and waited. There was another cry, but this time like sobbing. Mina took one step forward, and then another. Before I could stop her she bolted forward and entered the garden.


    I pulled the kitchen knife free and cautiously approached the garden gate. There was more rustling behind the bushes, and I raised the blade in case it should need to be swung.


    Mina re-emerged and beside her was a child of perhaps 10 years of age. The child¡¯s face was flush and wet from tears. Mina guided the child towards me when I saw the child clutch at its arm. I bent down and gently pulled the jacket sleeve back, and audibly sighed.


    Mina looked in. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    I looked at the child. ¡°He has been bitten.¡±

 Episode 27: The Child

    Mina and me exchanged an uneasy glance before looking down at the stricken child with the bite. I smiled at him before placing my hand on his forehead. It was hot, and the boy was clearly suffering from a rampant fever.


    I knelt down. ¡°Where are your parents?¡±


    The boy would not meet my eyes. ¡°Eaten.¡±


    I stood again and a hundred thoughts raced through my mind. The boy had taken refuge in the overgrowth of the garden park. We could not just simply walk away, or return him to where we had found him. We had to think this through and find a solution. Unlike the bitten at the squat who were mortally wounded and close to death I could not even consider the notion of ending the child before he turned. He was still lucid, and healthy enough to stand, walk and talk. Neither could we leave him. It would be cold blooded murder, or akin to it, and I could not live with that stain on my conscience.


    My immediate concern was to get off the streets. If fast zombies came then Mina and me could run at speed, but how fast could the child run? On the street like this he was exposed and vulnerable. I looked back at the watching audience in the upper floors of the tower block who continued to look down at us.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    I yelled up to them ¡°Please help us. We need to get off the streets.¡±


    No one responded except for one man who raised his arm and pointed back towards the garden. At first I thought it was him indicating we should return the child to where we found him. But then I heard the moans carried on the wind. There were zombies either in or beyond the garden. Mina reached for the boys hand and asked the question for which I had no answer


    ¡°What do we do?¡±


    I turned and looked back towards Regents Park. There had been a large military presence inside the park. Despite the chaotic scenes outside the park could we return in hope of securing refuge within its perimeters? Or would the dead now outnumber the living outside its borders?


    Mina could see my indecision and leading the child she moved back the way we had came. I felt rooted to the spot. For the first time in my life I truly did not know how to proceed. She had taken six steps before she turned and looked back at me.


    ¡°Let¡¯s try the park again, Bradley. If there really is no way through then we will break entry into a building, but we can¡¯t stay on the street!¡±


    I looked back towards the garden, back up towards our watching audience, and then back towards Mina. After another pause I nodded and walked towards them both. Mina held the child¡¯s left hand, and so I reached down and reached for his right hand, and the three of us walked back towards Regents Park.

 Episode 28: Back To The Park

    As we approached Regents Park the sounds of gun fire again could be heard, but it seemed sporadic rather than constant heated combat. The sound of helicopters could be heard overhead again too. We passed by the carnage where the helicopter gun ship had mown down the zombie horde, and while trying to keep as low a profile as possible tried to assess what was going on.


    There was still a crowd outside the gates, but they had moved on from where we had saw them initially. That area of the ground was littered with bodies on the floor. We saw two moving groups of ground troops patrolling outside the fencing along with an armoured personnel carrier now parked on the street.


    Inside the park additional armed troops could be seen around the fencing area. I glanced up at the roof tops and could see soldiers manning their positions there too. It looked at first glance as if the zombie incursion had failed. I turned to Mina. ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s try this.¡±


    We picked our way through the concourse leading to the crowd still trying to gain entry into the park. A soldier was stood at the closed gates. He was barking out instructions, but above the noise of the crowd I could not hear what he was saying.


    Mina turned to me. ¡° Why have they closed the gates?¡±A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    I looked around and saw one of the two patrols heading back towards us. I called out to them. ¡°Will they be opening the gates soon?¡±


    ¡°Negative¡± said the soldier. ¡°We are evacuating everyone inside. The park has had multiple incursions along its perimeter. Clear the area.¡±


    ¡°And head where!¡±, screamed Mina.


    Overhead more helicopters were touching down inside the park, and we could see that the people inside the park were boarding these craft before they took off again.


    The APC had opened its doors and both patrol groups were heading back to the vehicle.


    A panicked cry went up from the crowd when they saw their protection departing.


    I turned to Mina. ¡°We keep moving. It¡¯s what we have been doing, and it¡¯s kept us alive so far.¡±


    Mina looked dejected. ¡°And go where?¡±


    I looked back at the crowd. ¡°Anywhere but here.¡±


    Overhead more helicopters were ascending and descending in the crowded airspace. As I looked it seemed that one helicopter slewed sideways. Its trajectory now took it directly into the path of another. I yelled for us all to run.


    A fireball erupted as one helicopter buried inside the other and then the air above us was filled with flying metal shards, and slivers from the destroyed spinning rotary blades. The burning chassis of the two helicopters plummeted straight down in a screeching crescendo.


    Mina and me hauled the child free as the burning metallic husk fell upon the screaming crowd. My lungs felt seared and my ear drums deafened as a second fireball engulfed them. I covered the child and flung us to the floor as the flames blew outwards over us.

 Episode 29: Boom

    I could smell the back pack burning, and I rolled off the child and tore out of the straps. The bag was full of our precious food supplies, and I frantically rolled the bag on the ground to put out the flames while behind me the wrecked husk of the helicopters burned.


    Around us the shocked survivors of the crowd who had been standing on the margins looked on in horror at the nightmare scene of those not yet dead, who screamed, and cried, and suffered with horrific burns. All of us were coated in a black smear of smoke and soot. I looked from the bag to the child and Mina. She had wrapped her arms around the child who had turned his head away from the devastation.


    The heat from the flames was intense, and I felt my breathing laboured both from the initial searing blast, and now from the roiling waves of flames so close by. I stepped further away from the flames pulling Mina with me afraid of further explosions.


    We had gone no more than ten feet when some incendiary device aboard one of the helicopters did explode. The concussion blast from this explosion knocked all three of us to the ground. I heard Mina scream, and when I looked across I saw that the child lay on his back with a length of shrapnel penetrating from his forehead. I checked the child¡¯s pulse. He was dead.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    I got to my feet and saw that everyone else who had survived the initial helicopter crash had been blown to the ground too. Some rose on unsteady legs, but others had clearly suffered mortal wounds.


    I looked back at the helicopter crash and saw no more signs of life within. I extended a hand down to Mina who stood with an expression of absolute misery on her face. I am sure my expression matched hers too as this was truly hell on earth.


    I looked around for my back pack and saw that it had been blown another twenty feet away. I retrieved it and put it back on. The straps still held, and the bag was still intact despite the obvious burn damage. I walked back to Mina and we looked down at the child.


    ¡°What should we do for him?¡± Mina asked quietly.


    ¡°There is nothing we can do¡± I said. ¡°He had said his parents were dead. Let¡¯s just hope he is at peace.¡±


    As we walked away I felt a morbid sense of selfish relief that the child had not turned.


    There was still a constant flight of helicopters into and away from the Park and we walked disconcertingly around part of the perimeter as I still wanted to travel east. We could still see the occasional soldier within the perimeter but both of us felt betrayed at how an unarmed civilian crowd had been left to fend for themselves.

 Episode 30: Going Underground

    We turned away from Regents Park on to Marylebone Road. I knew this area of London well, and now felt more confident about the choices we could make as we travelled through the city. This road if we could travel down it unhindered would connect us to Euston Road. Both were a major thoroughfare through the city and unsurprisingly we saw that vehicles now littered the road as we walked. Some had been seemingly abandoned, while others were smashed into each other.


    There was plenty of evidence of zombie activity. We saw both dead zombies, as well as those still animated, but unable to extricate themselves from beneath the vehicles that had run them over, or that had crushed them against an immovable object. In some vehicles we saw that the occupants had been bitten and turned and these creatures beat against the windows, or stretched through broken windows, as they watched us pass by.


    It was unnerving to see entire families trapped in this way. Maybe one day their seat belts would finally tear and they could emerge from their vehicular coffins.


    Overhead, the skies were busy with helicopters crisscrossing the city, and higher above them we could see military aeroplanes. At ground level we saw an occasional person, or smaller groups but at no time did we try to hail them, or they try to hail us. At this early stage everyone was locked into their own individual journey of escape.


    On our right we saw Great Portland Street station. The gates to the station were open and curiosity got the better of me. We walked over to the entrance and looked inside. All was silent although we saw evidence of an altercation inside where fittings had been smashed and knocked over. Blood smears ran across the ceramic wall tiles leading to the ticket barrier. There was still power and the screen displays were on showing a line suspension message.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    Mina touched me on the shoulder. ¡°What are you thinking Bradley? Surely you don¡¯t want to go down there?¡±


    I paused. ¡°No. Because that would be crazy, right?¡±


    Behind us we could hear running coming towards us. We looked behind and saw at least four zombies sprinting across the street towards the station entrance. We instinctively vaulted across the ticket barriers and ran down the stairs. As we ran down we could hear them slamming loudly into the ticket barriers, and as we emerged on to the platform we heard them running down the stairs in pursuit.


    There was no train in the platform and so I ran to the edge of the train platform and jumped down. I turned and raised my arms to Mina ¡°Jump down, but don¡¯t touch the third rail.¡±


    I caught her as she jumped and we moved quickly along the train track. At the end of the platform a group of lads were standing looking down at us. They were around 18, dressed in track suits and each held a knife. I looked up at them. I told them, ¡°For gods sake, run¡±.


    They simply glowered at me and then turned back towards the stairwell as the sounds of running footsteps echoed down towards them.


    Myself and Mina entered the underground train tunnel. There was just a single filament bulb every twenty feet emitting a feeble pool of light within the otherwise impenetrable blackness. We walked quickly but carefully towards the first pool of light. We could hear the lads cursing, yelling and shouting.


    By the time we reached the second pool of light there was just the sounds of screaming. By the time we reached the third pool of light there was silence. At the fourth pool of light we could hear running in the tunnel.

 Episode 31: Afraid Of The Dark

    We ran from one dim pool of light to the next. The blackness did not embrace us, but swallowed us each time. The sound of running footsteps further behind were amplified and magnified which only added to the sensation of overwhelming dread. Ahead we could see that we were approaching a stretch of absolute blackness. Either the power was out in this stretch, or the filament bulbs had blown or been broken.


    We had to slow to a crawl as we were now going forward blind. The dim pools of light ahead had always allowed us to see the twist and turns of the tunnel, but now our brains were confused by the lack of visual guidance and we stumbled forwards with no sense of direction. The footsteps continued to echo through the tunnel and were growing ever louder as they got ever closer.


    Mina clutched to me closely as we stumbled forwards, and I could feel her shaking in fear. My own heartbeat was elevated to such a degree that I feared any new fright would kill me stone dead.


    The tunnel was damp and musty and smelt old and decayed. Now we were at walking pace, in addition to the footsteps echoing from behind, we became aware of other noises in the tunnels. There were squeaks and the scratch and patter of hundreds of tiny feet. We could not see them but I visualised us as being within a horde of rats and mice. I could not see which way they were going, but like us I sensed they were running away from the unnatural forms of the undead that chased us through these dark winding tunnels.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    There were the drips of water falling from the ceiling, and occasional splash as we walked through an unseen pool of water. There was the background hum from mains cables and electrical service panels. At times we could feel a breeze blow by us but we could not see from where it came, or from what source it originated.


    Now the zombies were closer we could hear their moans echoing along the tunnels. I assumed they too had now reached the dark section of the tunnel as there was now an absence of loud footsteps. They may have been the undead, but they too were blind in the dark.


    This was demonstrated about a minute later when we heard a huge electrical blast come from behind us. I turned to where I felt Mina standing. ¡°I think one of them touched the third rail¡±. We stopped and listened.


    There was silence initially apart from the migration of the rodents, and then their moans started up again. We continued forward, more aware than ever of the danger of the unseen third rail somewhere to our left in the dark.

 Episode 32: Run Towards The Light

    We inched forward slowly in the pitch black. My left hand was held by Mina while with my right hand I stretched out to feel the unseen wall to guide us. I tried not to recoil from all the different wet textures or surfaces that my fingers ran through, but still jumped repeatedly as my fingers brushed against what might have been pipes that sometimes appeared on the wall, but which my imagination running rampant saw as the bony fingers and hands of the dead.


    The moans of the dead were an unwelcome ever present ambient noise and I could not judge whether they were gaining or falling back as the tunnel muffled and echoed their horrible sounds. Mina shuffled so close to me that in the blackness we constantly bumped and tripped the other.


    Finally we turned a curve in the tunnel and saw lighting further ahead from a station platform. It was some distance away but we could at least see that this section of the tunnel was straight and true. The pitch black around us now receded and we could see the outlines of our surroundings in the tunnel once again. We strode forward briskly and once the dark diminished still further broke into a run towards the light.


    As we entered the station platform I could see on the ceramic tiles a sign that we had arrived at Euston Square tube station. I climbed up onto the empty platform and reached down to help Mina do the same. This station was quiet and the lighting meant the station still had some power. We exited the platform and went up the stairs. To my relief these gates were open too and we exited on to the street.


    It was cloudy overhead now and I was glad we did not step into the glaring light of sunshine after our journey through the darkness. The station exit took us on to Gower Street. A road I knew well from my university days from the University College further down the road. Directly across from us was a hospital, and then from our left down there were a number of university owned buildings before reaching the campus itself. To our right was Euston Road. One mile south of our current position was Great Portland Street and one mile north was Kings Cross.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    We could hear zombies somewhere in our vicinity, and also a lone motorbike that was riding at speed. The biker slowed as he entered on to Gower Street, and revved his throttle open wide as he roared past us on the street.


    I watched him recede into the distance and motioned for Mina to follow me towards the university campus. Being in a central London location the university had a gated fenced perimeter. My hope was that it was securely closed and could offer a safe haven for the evening. The day was drawing on and we were both hungry, thirsty and exhausted from the continuous adrenaline dump we were experiencing.


    The gates to the University were closed and both gates and fencing stood approx 7 feet tall. We could hear activity in our general location, but could not yet see anybody. The gates were too tall for either of us to clamber over on our own so I looked around for something for us to climb on to. There was a metal public rubbish bin ten feet away. I lifted its shell off of the base and stood it by the fencing, and climbed up to straddle on the gates.


    From my higher elevated position I could now see further away, and above, the obstructions at street level. There seemed to be a lot of activity occurring along Tottenham Court Road fifty metres away parallel to our own position. We had walked underneath that location in the dark and for the first time felt thankful that we had not been at surface level. I reached down and grabbed Mina¡¯s hand and hauled her up to the top of the gate. We looked into the courtyard where all remained quiet.


    We dropped down and walked towards the main quad building and saw both doors were pulled apart, and a body was lying down within.

 Episode 33: Drawn Towards The Noise

    We moved cautiously towards the quad buildings double doors, and peered inside. The body was that of someone who had turned, but the blunt force trauma delivered to their head suggested they would not be a threat anymore. Even so I held the knife in my hand while I kicked its leg to test for a response.


    This door led into a lobby and then into a long corridor with a high ceiling and double doors at either end. We turned right, and beyond the double doors turned right again past the Jeremy Bentham wax model exhibit. This led us into the central staircase where there was one level below and more levels above.


    I peered over the bannister looking both above and below. We could not see any movement, but after a few moments we heard a distant repeated thud. It was too muffled to know what the cause of the sound was.


    I motioned to go upwards and we ascended the wide stairwell. There were windows in the stairwell and we paused to look outwards, but the windows had obstructed views and gave us no additional knowledge of the safety of the campus.


    The thud continued and seemed to be becoming louder and more distinct as we arrived on the first floor landing. We had agreed that our goal was simple. A locked room and access to a bathroom.


    We paused momentarily listening to the thud and entered the first floor corridor. It was a long linear corridor with multiple thick wooden doors leading off it into rooms beyond. We moved along and tested each door as we went. All were locked and felt strong enough to survive a hammering.


    We ascended to the next floor. Here the thud sound was stronger still. We cautiously entered the corridor and looked down its length and found the source of the noise.


    It was someone in a security uniform. Both of his arms ended in stumps at the elbow where bone pushed out through the gnawed flesh that remained. The creature stood in front of the door that was half way down the corridor.


    It was stood on unsteady legs, pulled back its head and then violently butted the solid wooden door. From the blood splatter across both the door and its head it seemed to have been at this activity for a while.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Mina held out her hand and I gave the second knife to her. We had spoken at intervals during the morning of our need to always be ready to run, but equally both us needed to be able to fight. So far I had done whatever it had took to stay alive, and Mina was aware that she had to adopt the same policy. She had not engaged a zombie in combat before, but perhaps now was the perfect time.


    The armless shambling creature before us lifted back its head, and then drove it forward again into the door. We both stealthily approached along the corridor, and whether due to it being dazed by the repeated concussive shocks to the head it seemed oblivious to our presence.


    Mina stood a couple of feet behind the zombie and braced herself. I could see her hand tense around the handle of the blade as she raised it to shoulder height. The zombie pulled back its head, and stopped. It paused and then swivelled its head to look at us.


    The security guard had been an older black man. His forehead was caked in both dried and fresh blood, and his eyes were red rimmed and glassy. His lips pulled back from his teeth as he saw us and his dismembered body turned to face us.


    ¡°Now, Mina¡±, I said.


    But she had frozen and could not move. The zombie bumped into her and they both clattered to the floor with Mina underneath. The zombie was biting her through her coat on her shoulder while Mina screamed. I grabbed the back of the creatures shirt and pulled but he would not release her, and so I pulled my knife.


    I could not plunge the knife straight down into his head for fear of stabbing Mina, and so plunged it in sideways over the ear. It was not a killing blow, but it was enough to get the zombie to stop biting. As he relaxed his jaw I grabbed his clothing again and tore him off her.


    Without arms to right himself the zombie floundered on his back. I knelt over him, pressed one hand down on his throat to stop him moving, and then drove my blade through the top of his skull.


    Mina had clambered back against the wall of the corridor with her hand to her shoulder screaming in fear. I went to her and knelt beside her. Her eyes were wide open in shock. I moved my hands to the top of her coat to unzip it. Her hands reached up to block mine.


    ¡°Let me see¡± I said.


    Her hands fell away. I unzipped her coat and gently pulled it away.


    ¡°There¡¯s no blood¡±, I said.


    ¡°What?¡± said Mina looking back at her shoulder.


    She rolled her t shirt up to the shoulder blade. There was a very distinct swollen red bruise where the creatures teeth had gripped her skin, but it had not tore the skin or penetrated it.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to turn?¡±


    ¡°No!¡± We hugged.


    Behind us the door to the room where the zombie had been trying to gain entry opened. A young anglo Indian woman stuck out her head. ¡°Help us, please. My friend. She¡¯s been bitten.¡±

 Episode 34: Meera and Joseph

    I helped Mina back to her feet, and we followed the woman into the room. I closed the door behind us, securing the lock as I did so. The room was a twenty by thirty foot lab space with three medium sized windows set in to the back wall. Benches and cupboards ran around three of the walls, and sat on the floor with his back propped up against a cabinet was the woman¡¯s colleague.


    He was a thirty something caucasian male with thinning hair and a thin frame. He looked at us through his glasses and I could see his face was covered in a sheen of perspiration. He wore a v neck sweater and it was rolled up on the left arm where he held bandages, from an opened first aid kit next to him, over a wound on his forearm. I knelt down next to him.


    What happened?¡±, I asked as I gently pulled his hand away from the bandage, and lifted up the material. The skin beneath was black with necrosis around a large open wound on the forearm deep enough to show muscle fibres and a hint of bone.


    "We were working late when the zombie virus story broke. The night security guard had locked the gates. His daughter had come to find him. I don¡¯t know when she was attacked, but she turned when she had been let through. She bit our colleague who then turned and the two of them then attacked her father."


    "There is a dead zombie downstairs in the lobby", I said.


    "And that would be my colleague, Simon. I put him out of his misery, but alas I am no fighter and i got bitten in the process."


    "We have just killed the security guard outside in the corridor", I said.


    Mina spoke. ¡°What happened to the daughter?¡±


    "As far as I know", said the injured man, "she is still out there somewhere on campus. Be careful if you see her. She can run."


    "We have traveled from Paddington to get here", I said. "We have had to run most of the way ourselves, and been chased every step of the way. Not all of them can run, but many of them can."


    "His name is Joseph", said the anglo


    Indian scientist behind us. "And I am Meera."If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Myself and Mina then introduced ourselves. Joseph studied me.


    "Was he the first one you killed? The security guard?"


    "No", I said. "I have already had to kill before now."


    "Only zombies?", asked Joseph.


    I looked at Mina before answering. ¡°No¡±, I said. "I have helped others who have been bitten.¡±


    ¡°Helped?" Joseph laughed until he started coughing, and then he sat there in silence regarding me.


    ¡°I can feel it inside of me. The disease, the virus, the pathogen, whatever it is. I can feel it growing stronger. I can feel it trying to take control. When it happens I want you to kill me too. I want you to end it before I can do any harm to anyone.¡±


    I nodded my head. ¡°I will, Joseph. I¡¯ll make it quick."


    When he breathed his last I did not wait for him to turn. I took my blade, drove it into the top of his skull and then covered him with a lab coat.


    Meera had guided us to another room on the the same floor. Darkness had now fallen outside. The three of us settled down in armchairs. I had distributed food from the backpack for us all, and Meera had made coffee with the last of the milk from the fridge.


    The university boilers were still on, and so we had put the radiators on. I took out the radio and while we ate and drank we each sat in our space, and listened to what was happening to our world.


    The United States military remains in position on the East coast, and significant fighting has been reported throughout New York, Philadelphia and Boston. It has been confirmed that all five branches of the military - army, Air Force, coast guard, marine corps and navy - are involved in this operation. The National Guard have also been deployed throughout the region and have been placed on state of alert throughout the country from coast to coast.


    The British Government have said that London is still affected by the zombie outbreak, but that the situation remains under control and optimism and confidence remains high within operational control.


    In Sweden, evacuations continue in Gothenburg as the Swedish government has confirmed that regions within the city are no longer under their control.


    Tensions have risen in Eastern Europe today as Russian ground troops have moved into its neighbouring countries of Estonia, Latvia, Belarus and the Ukraine. The Russian Government have said these measures are necessary for the security of the Russian people.


    Tensions have also risen along the borders of India and Pakistan today. It is reported that false stories of zombie attacks on social media within both countries triggered these events.


    Chinese troops have opened fire today on protestors in Hong Kong. The number of casualties are unknown but protests have continued throughout the day to international concern.


    Also in this region both South Korea and Japan have announced immediate plans to increase the size of their armed forces.


    Throughout the world eyes remain on events occurring in North America and Europe.

 Episode 35: Morning Glory

    When dawn broke it did so with rays of sunshine flooding into the room where myself, Mina and Meera slept in our arm chairs. This room was a staff tea room and had an en suite wash room. I eased myself from the chair pleased with how my motorbike injuries were already responding. I still had bruises, and my ribs hurt if you pressed hard enough, but otherwise the wounds appeared to be superficial.


    In the wash room I took the time to splash water on my face and looked at my reflection. I was mixed race, and my thick tousled hair was its usual mass of curls, and after two days of no shaving I had a light scattering of stubble. My face looked tired to me, but then how could it not? My eyes were red rimmed and my features seemed more drawn than usual.


    I removed my shirt and looked at my wounds from all angles. The bruises were an array of colours, but I was gaining confidence that they would be no further hindrance. I opened up a first aid kit within the room and applied some antiseptic cream to them. Once I was dressed I put back on my shirt, and returned to the tea room.


    Mina had also awakened and was stood by the window looking out at the view of London beyond. More fires raged in the distance and although the sky was awash with a tangerine sunrise the city beneath seemed to be masked in a smoke filled haze.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    She turned to me and smiled sadly.


    ¡°It looks like a war zone out there¡±, she said.


    ¡°It is¡±, I replied.


    Mina turned to look at Meera. ¡°And what do we do about her?¡±


    ¡°We bring her with us.¡± I said. ¡°Assuming she wants to come.¡±


    Meera¡¯s eyes were closed but she answered for herself. ¡°I do.¡±


    We left the room as a group about an hour later. As a staff member Meera had a security swipe card and PIN number that led us through rooms and corridors that would otherwise have been inaccessible to us.


    We walked back through the courtyard towards the Gower Street gates. Meera had security entrance into a side building beside the gates which had a street exit out on to Gower Street.


    As she was reaching for the card in her pocket we heard a crunching on the gravel behind us as someone ran at us at speed. I thought of the security guards daughter, and turned just in time to see her clatter into Meera smashing her head into the white wash wall of the building.


    Meera collapsed unconscious from the collision, and the zombie fell upon her tearing a chunk of flesh from her cheek.


    Mina had already picked up the dropped security card and opened the door. As I reached into my belt to withdraw my knife Mina grabbed the back of my trousers and pulled me into the building before slamming the door shut.

 Episode 36: Supermarket Sweep

    I pressed my back against the door and my heart beat furiously. I looked at Mina with a mix of dejection and rage.


    ¡°We can¡¯t just leave people to die like that, Mina!¡±


    ¡°She was out cold, Bradley. Let¡¯s just hope she never wakes up.¡±


    I continued to stand at the door but no cries or screams arose from the other side, and after a minute I had composed myself.


    Mina regarded me. ¡°Are we cool?¡±


    I nodded my head. ¡°Yeah.¡±


    I had already returned the knife to my waistband. I checked the straps on my backpack, and together we opened the street exit door and peered outside. The way was clear and so we stepped into the street.


    I could not help but look back at Meera. She was still in the same position as where she had fallen. The zombie was still on top of her tearing her to shreds. When Meera turned I didn¡¯t even know now whether there would be enough of her to even stand.


    The zombie sensed me watching, and turned and flung herself at the gates. Her two arms reached for me while her blood drenched face was pressed up against the bars while she gurgled and moaned.


    We turned away from her and walked away from the campus heading for Kings Cross. The simplest route there would have been to follow Euston Road, but I wanted to avoid a main thoroughfare after seeing the horrors on Edgeware Road.


    We kept to the side streets moving quietly and stealthily. We saw activity both human and zombie, but managed to move without incident until we got to Brunswick Shopping Centre about half way to Kings Cross.


    Our supplies had already been dipped into both last night and again this morning. We saw that there were two different supermarkets here, and chose to get close enough to see if either were even an option for scavenging.


    We could see that the plate glass windows on the first store had been shattered. We approached cautiously, and I winced as we trod across the broken glass fearing the noise we were making.


    The lights within were off but daylight allowed us to see in the store. The shelves had been ransacked, but there were still ample supplies within.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    I turned to Mina. ¡°We go straight in, load up and then we¡¯re off again. Two minutes max.¡±


    Mina nodded her head in agreement, and so we stepped over the threshold. We each grabbed a plastic bag from a pile strewn across the floor and then made our way over to the aisles. I grabbed packaged food items both from the shelf and the floor. I saw the drinks aisle and threw in some canned and container drinks too. The liquids were heavy but essential.


    I moved quickly back to the store window where we entered. I looked for Mina, but could not see her. I set down my supplies and looked into the dim lighting within. I called out for her in a hushed voice, but there was no sound within the store at all. I pulled my knife and set off in the direction she had departed.


    The aisles in this direction were in as much disarray as the other side of the store. I looked along each aisle but could see no sign of her. I moved lightly on my feet rapidly wanting to cover the distance quickly. I moved further into the store and heard a can fall to the floor further within.


    I paused as I saw the can roll down an aisle further ahead. Rather than go directly towards the source I moved quickly to my left, and then up.


    As I got to the end of the aisle I poked my head around the corner quickly to scan what I could see. Mina was sat on the floor with a knife held to her throat by one of two men.


    The first man who held the knife knelt behind her with his other hand gripping her hair. The second man held a knife too, but seemed to be looking down the aisle from where I had originally come from.


    I grabbed a can from the shelf and flung it deep to the back of the store where the man was continuing to look. The noise was amplified greatly within the silence of the store. The men spoke together, but I could not make out what the other said. The second man then moved away towards where the noise had sounded.


    I instantly moved towards the man with the knife held to Mina. I kept low, and I kept quiet. Two foot out with his back still to me I thrust out with my knife and stuck it into the side of his neck with enough force to knock him sideways off of Mina.


    He dropped his knife and sank to the floor holding his hands to his neck where blood was spurting out in a great volume where the jugular had been severed.


    He was younger than I had expected based on his size, perhaps no more than eighteen. I watched him while I spoke to Mina.


    ¡°They hurt you?¡±


    ¡°Not yet¡±, she whispered.


    I took her hand, and raised her to her feet. We stayed low while the young man continued to lie there with his hands to his neck. He was in shock and was bleeding out quickly. We heard movement approaching and I took cover on the aisle where his colleague was approaching.


    I could hear him gasp as soon as he saw his friend, and then I heard him grunt as I drove out and plunged my knife into his chest. He was if anything even younger than his companion, and much slighter of build. I pulled the knife out and watched him fall. I think he was dead even before his body struck the floor. I turned back to the one with the neck wound, and his hands had fallen away from the wound, and his eyes were lifeless.


    I felt a numbness. I took Mina¡¯s hand and we returned to the window and exited with my bag of supplies.

 Episode 37: The Apocalypse Blues

    We moved quickly away from the supermarket. Only I had collected supplies and after the trauma of Mina being taken at knife point, and my own trauma of killing two people in cold blood, I regretted us ever stepping across its threshold.


    London had pockets of garden squares throughout the city, and we moved through another one now. Overhead I could hear the raucous cry of ring necked parakeets that had established themselves as part of the landscape of the city over the last fifty years. With the sun shining down on us too this could have felt like a very different kind of morning, but both myself and Mina wore the glazed thousand yard stares of people who had retreated inside themselves.


    I was aware of what was happening, and why it was happening as a way of processing my emotions and thoughts, but for the moment I could not break free from its hold.


    As we exited the garden square I became aware of a rising hubbub of noise somewhere distant to our left. Blocks of flats surrounded this garden square and there was a path that ran between the blocks. My preservation instincts kicked in and the haze muddying my thoughts fell away.


    As I watched I saw a large group of lads, perhaps as many as fifty or more, all armed with bats, clubs, machetes and knives all marching through their estate. They looked across at us, and I tensed, thinking perhaps they were friends of the two lads from the store seeking retribution. But then one within their group spotted a zombie and en masse the group ran towards it.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    The lone zombie was not a runner. It had clearly suffered devastating injuries before turning. It shuffled towards the group with one useless arm at its side, while the other outstretched before it.


    The group arrived and in a frenzy beat the thing to the ground. Me and Mina departed quickly fearful of their screams and shouts attracting fast zombies to the area. I wondered how long this mob could last against this other kind of enemy, and how soon until each of them would roam the streets of London with a different kind of thirst for blood.


    We rounded the corner and saw ahead of us a junction that was an intersection for Grays Inn Road, York Way and Euston Road. It was one of the busiest junctions in the whole of London. On its corner was Kings Cross railway station. Both myself and Mina gasped. At this junction a hundred metres away we could see and hear a crowd of zombies thousands strong.


    I could hear something loud and fast approaching from behind us, and turned to look up at the sky. A pair of RAF fighter bombers came in fast and low. We saw the bombs fall from their fuselage and then the incendiary explosion of light and heat as the whole of this junction erupted in flames.


    Even from our distance we could feel a concussive blast blow our way, and along with it the acrid smell of seared meat. Me and Mina held hands as we watched the roiling mass of zombies explode in the initial blast and then stumble around on fire as the wall of flames consumed them.

 Episode 38: A Vision Of Hell

    Amidst the huge fireball that engulfed the junction across from Kings Cross Station we could see the surrounding buildings were equally affected. In the initial blast hundreds of windows in the surrounding buildings shattered from the concussion wave, and glass windows were continuing to shatter amidst the roiling waves of heat blowing away from the area funnelled up narrow streets.


    The fire bombs that had been dropped were now causing secondary issues with surrounding buildings catching alight, and even as we watched we could see the flames spread as they licked across connecting buildings.


    This area of London had clearly been deemed as lost by the authority figures. I thought back to the residents who had looked down at us from their upper floor windows. They were half a mile away from the blast zone, but how long until the next blast zone was just a quarter mile away? And how long then until the flames would be lapping at their own front doors.


    A huge cloud of smoke now hung over this part of London and the lighting in the street began to dim as the smoke obscured the light from the sun. We covered our nose and mouth with our hand to stop from choking, and moved onwards away from this location.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    We found ourselves heading towards Grays Inn Road. I did not want to veer back towards Holborn and Central London so we decided to follow as far as Chancery Lane and from there we would go on to Farringdon, Barbican and further East to London Liverpool Street.


    I retained a vague hope that we would encounter an official staging area at one of these transport hubs. Some indication that the authorities had some semblance of control to warrant the optimism expressed by the government response on the radio yesterday evening.


    Under the darkened smoke filled skies it was like night was beginning to fall. And this scared me. We only moved during the day so we could see the enemy from afar, and so we did not get caught unawares.


    My senses were now heightened, and I was pleased to see Mina had also shaken off the shroud that had hung over her since the supermarket, and that she was equally sharp right now, and scanning our surroundings. I pulled my knife and we walked quickly and decisively towards our next location.


    Up ahead we could hear footsteps running towards us, and through the darkening light we saw several of the young lads from the marauding mob we witnessed just minutes earlier. They looked shaken and scared, and behind them we saw why. There were fast zombies, and many of them. Myself and Mina turned around and began to run back from where we come.


    As the fire consumed vista of Kings Cross junction loomed back in to view I threw away our plastic bag of supplies as me and Mina ran helter skelter towards a vision of hell.

 Episode 39: Molten Monstrosity

    The lads behind us seemed to be following directly in our wake as even when we turned on to a small side street we could still hear them behind us. And behind their shouts of fear and terror we could hear the ferocity of the running zombies who as always seemed consumed with hunger. The darkness of the smoke filled sky was punctuated by the flickering light of the fires both ahead, and now increasingly around us too.


    The junction opened up into a wide thoroughfare and this was where the fire bombs had landed. We could see the devastation on ground level as we approached. The choice of weapon used had been designed for causing maximum carnage to a ground based target and we ran on towards a charred mass that was twisted, conjoined, and fused. Despite the howling of the wind driven fire, as we ran past we could hear moaning still arising from within this molten monstrosity of a melted zombie hoard. Burnt limbs still moved within this horror even though they would forever more be trapped by their own melted frame and skeleton.


    The heat was persistent and choking in intensity, and I could feel the soft tissue within my throat swelling. We had already suffered similar internal damage from the helicopter fireball at Regents Park.


    We headed on through the junction and beyond back on to Euston Road being pushed west rather than East. The fire ball had struck the junction on the eastern side and the wind was pushing the blaze further east. Off of Euston Road to the west was St Pancras hotel.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    This huge gothic style structure was untouched by the explosion and upwind from the fires. We shot away from Euston Road and ran towards it. The boys continued to follow in our wake, and behind them the undead.


    We ran up the slope to the front of the building and rattled the doors which were locked. I looked behind and both groups were now just seconds away from reaching us.


    I took off my back pack and threw it at the nearest window. Packed as the bag was, it¡¯s heavy weight allowed it to smash through the window. I jumped through and helped Mina follow. The boys had reached the building now, and one flung himself through the open window too.


    The window was too small for more than one at a time and as the others hesitated to take their turn it allowed the zombies to reach them. The boys were no longer the aggressive peacocks from before.


    As I looked on they cowered before the zombies and screamed in terror as they were overwhelmed and knocked to the floor. Their screams continued to sound as I leaned into a heavy cabinet and pushed it in front of the broken window.


    I grabbed Mina¡¯s hand, scooped up my back pack and the three of us ran through the ground floor of the building. Behind us I could hear the windows shatter as the zombies gained entry. We ran headlong along a lit ground floor corridor. The end of the corridor ended at a fire door and I pressed down on the panic bar which opened the door.


    We shot through and out into a rear courtyard. The area was fenced and we ran towards a gate which turned out to be locked. The fencing was six feet high but topped off with spikes to deter intruders. I turned around and saw two zombies burst through the fire door opening.


    We were trapped.

 Episode 40: My Apocalypse

    Under a darkened smoke filled sky, and with the crackle and flickering of a city block on fire, I faced the two fast zombies who had just entered the courtyard, and saw them bumped from behind as still more continued to arrive.


    I looked at the growing horde with a weary air of resignation. We had tried to run from every circumstance we had found ourselves in. We had kept moving because I had not felt that there had been any other alternative.


    And despite it all here we found ourselves.


    Myself, Mina and the young boy kept walking back until we were up against the fence, and then we could retreat no more.


    I thought of the life that I had once had, and of my brother who I hoped was in a part of the country still unaffected. I hoped he would find a way where I had not. I hoped he would succeed where I had failed.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    I thought of the radio reports and the way that this pandemic had grown so quickly, and relentlessly continued to grow.


    I removed the backpack from my shoulders and let it fall to the floor. I pulled the knife from my waist band, and held the screwdriver in my other hand. I did not look at either of my companions. I simply stared straight ahead at the undead who came towards us in a driving mass.


    There was no hope left in this world. All that remained was destruction. All that remained was fear. It was clear to me in those last moments that humanity could never beat the odds of fighting death itself. As I stared into the faces of these creatures as they swarmed us I saw the true nature of things, and that all things must end.


    As we fell, I struck out instinctively. My blows were futile and ineffectual. We were overwhelmed and outnumbered.


    Above the groans there were screams. From the boy, from Mina and from myself. The pain was immediate, intense and continuous. I was engulfed amidst their ruined bodies and at the last all I knew was pain.


    This was my apocalypse.