Volume 1 - Chapter 26

This Aura Isn't Good

I drove as slow as I could behind Ryotaro, who was doing the same just ahead of me.

The garden store was to my right about twenty yards from us. I saw pallets full of green plants that would eventually die when no one watered them.

To my left was the apartment where two survivors had become trapped by a group of zombies acting strange.

I could see Genta and Haru looking down at us through the big window as we looked at the zombies that were just thirty yards away.

The things were acting very unlike all the other zombies we had encountered so far. There had to be at least fifty of them, and even with the sounds of our engines we barely got a few of them turning to look.

Normal ones would have already been chasing after us. These brainless former humans just stood there like they were zoned out.

I honked my horn and a few more of them shuffled their feet in a slow spin to look at us. Ryotaro did the same, and we started slamming on our horns, wailing out to get their attention.

The zombies reluctantly started walking towards us. I got ready to hit the gas pedal and speed away, but as soon as I stopped honking my horn the zombies slowed again and just stood there.

I studied the things from where we idled in the street. Their dark eyes, pale skin, and hunched postures gave me the sense they were starting to rot.

Most of them stood in a small yard of grass with only a wide sidewalk between us. A few still lingered near the entry portico.

I had no idea why they were acting so strange. It didn't make any sense.

I rolled my window down halfway. The stench of body odor and unwiped ass filled my nostrils. It had only been two days, I figured, so how the hell could they smell so awful?

I gagged, but forced myself to focus on the task at hand. I took a deep breath and yelled, "hey you brainless idiots! Over here!"

The zombies in the courtyard still barely reacted. A few more turned their heads towards me, but most of them remained still, as if they were in some type of trance.

I was puzzled by their lack of interest, and I really had no idea what to do. I had expected them to be more aggressive. They should have been more eager to attack us.

With my foot on the brake, I considered this new development. I didn't have anyone with me to bounce ideas off since Ryotaro was in the other van.

There were two realistic possibilities I could think of.

First, the zombies could have some type of wi-fi brain and the others from the Zag Zag told these ones we were just trying to lure them away from the apartment building.

It was possible but I didn't believe it. If the other group of zombies were smart enough to send telepathic messages about us, then it didn't make sense why they were so dumb that they stayed at that building.

Second, it was possible that their energy levels were drained. If they hadn't eaten in two days, they were likely tired. Their bodies and brains might have been dead but their muscles still required energy to function.

I realized I was attempting to apply logic and science in a world full of animated corpses. I was thinking too much, and honestly I had no idea.

Neither one of those ideas made sense to me because the zombie horde from the florist parking lot that swarmed the Zag Zag had plenty of energy. This quiet batch of zombies acted completely different.

I looked ahead at Ryotaro's van. His brake lights indicated he was sitting there trying to think about this as well.

He could have the same thoughts as me or fresh ideas. I had no way of knowing. The walkie next to me would have been very handy if the old man had one as well. Too bad he didn't.

I scanned through the zombies again, trying to see or hear if there was anything that could be holding their attention. All I saw were more zombies and all I could hear was the sound of our two engines.

I shook my head and told myself, "I don't know, man. This is weird."

Looking up at the survivors in the window, I asked into the walkie. "Genta?"

I saw the man, wearing a plaid long-sleeve, lift a walkie-talkie to his mouth. "Yes! I see you. What's wrong?"

"They're not following us," I said. "They're acting weird. Is there a noise inside the apartment?"

"No. It's quiet."

"Well, okay. Hang on, we have to figure something out."

Genta said, "okay, will do."

I put the walkie down and shoved into the horn again. It was a constant wailing that kind of got the attention of the zombies.

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Ryotaro did the same.

It took a few seconds for the zombies to start shuffling forward again. I watched them slowly and hesitantly move towards me. It was like they were being forced against their will to act like normal zombies.

Minutes ticked by as the front row of the undead moved less than five yards. Some of them finally reached the van. I let off the brakes and moved forward just a little bit to be on the safe side.

The zombies slowly took bigger steps towards me. It was like they were having to earn their momentum, and all the while I was just laying into the horn. The sound I was making started to annoy me, but it was the only way to lure them from the building.

I saw other zombies from around the neighborhood. They shambled toward us from around other buildings and down nearby roads.

Those mindless bodies were moving at us in a normal fashion, but not these extra stupid ones from the apartment. Something had a grip on their physical ability to move away from the building.

The slower than normal zombies were maybe fifty yards from the apartment when they started acting normal again and giving chase. It wasn't immediate, but a slow progression that saw them return to form.

It was like the creatures escaped from some type of radius that had them extra brain dead. Either they really needed a warmup or there was something seriously messed up at the apartment.

It didn't matter, I figured. It was over with then and we were finally being chased.

There was a hundred or more zombies following behind me. Ryotaro had slowed down so the creatures could hear both of our vehicles and our horns. I was thankful for the help, although once we made it a few blocks down the road, the zombies followed as they normally would.

"Genta," I asked, "did they all follow?"

"Yes, I think so. Does it normally take that long?"

"No," I said quickly and then laughed to myself about this being my new normal. "Hold tight. We'll be around in a few minutes."

"Okay. Will do."

Ryotaro did a good job of guiding us nice and slow down the main road.

We meandered through a couple of wrecks at intersections and I took note of some of the other stores in the area. We kept the attention of the small horde of zombies chasing behind us, and it was only growing larger.

I saw two smaller grocery stores and a car rental. On the left I noticed a blue and yellow building. There was an assortment of digging machines, tractors, and trailers outside.

The mountain view to my right would have been spectacular if I wasn't being followed by a bunch of things that wanted to eat me.

We crossed a bridge over a small river and Ryotaro took a left turn. It was a thin one-lane road the hugged the curve of the water, next to a concrete walking path.

The old man lead us through multiple intersections before he turned right. The road shifted into a path that wasn't much wider than the sidewalk.

We'd collected additional stray zombies along the way that joined the crowd behind us. At one point we were headed straight towards a small cemetery.

I was thinking Ryotaro had gone crazy. I wasn't about to drive through a sacred piece of land with a bunch of unholy creatures behind me.

Luckily, he turned right again before we drove over our ancestors. I followed. We were driving on a piece of concrete barely wider than the vans, and I struggled to keep the wheels from going off into soft dirt.

Since we had made a small switchback, I saw way more zombies chasing us than I thought. We had gathered a horde of them, and they shifted their path towards us as we shot back to the main avenue.

The old man had circled us back, and when he turned right again I expected him to put the pedal against the floorboard.

Ryotaro did exactly that. I took the turn going faster than I should have, but I made it, and I slammed on the gas to catch up with him, tires screeching.

We were putting distance between us and the zombies, and I didn't see any zombies in my rearview mirror when we made it back to the apartment building. We had successfully lost them at least a kilometer back.

Ryotaro stopped his van in the street just outside the apartments.

I pulled up behind him and scanned the courtyard again before putting the car in park. I didn't see any zombies.

The old man got out with a baseball bat and walked over to me. He still wore the goofy helmet like a dorky soldier, but at least he had a bullet proof vest.

I turned off the vehicle, grabbed my rifle, and stepped out to join him. Before we entered I tightened the straps on my own vest. There was no telling what we might encounter and I had promised Aiko I wouldn't do anything stupid, as if this entire thing wasn't.

"Let's get these guys and get out of here," I said quickly.

Ryotaro nodded, turning to the apartment building. We both walked towards it in a hurry.

I was tired, angry, and still confused about those weird zombies. I just wanted to get this over with and drive away from the place.

At the portico entrance I pushed open the front door and stepped into a dark lobby. The air was thick with the smell of decay, and I didn't like the vibes I was feeling in there. I felt like I had just walked into a pressure cooker.

My gun was aimed forward with my finger near the trigger. I was ready to blow some holes into the undead, but I didn't see any zombies near us or down the hallway. There were six apartment doors and a flight of stairs.

We cautiously made our way up the steps to the second floor, our footsteps echoing in the eerie silence. As we rounded the corner we saw a group of zombies that didn't even acknowledge we were there.

I raised my rifle and shot all of them. The noise in our confined space was deafening.

We were close enough that the zombies exploded near us and fell. Metal tinked on the floor near my feet.

I could see the zombies were not completely dead but for whatever reason they still ignored us. The normal ones would have still been crawling to try and get a bite or two.

I shot three more and Ryotaro smashed one with the baseball bat before we made our way to the third floor. I smiled, thinking that I was getting better with the gun already.

Hopefully I didn't experience any issues with it since I didn't know the first thing about maintaining the thing or clearing a jam.

Half way up the steps I felt an uneasy sensation, like the bottom of my stomach had just dropped out. I was nauseas and lightheaded.

Ryotaro seemed to be feeling it too. He stopped just behind me and looked disoriented.

"What is it? You feel sick all of a sudden?"

"Yes. I'm not sure," he said, looking unsteady on his feet, "but something doesn't feel right."

He leaned against the wall and I gave him a minute. The truth was I needed a breather too, but I also wanted to get this rescue done with.

"Yeah," I nodded, taking a minute to calm my racing heart. "This place gives me the creeps. Let's get these guys and get out of here."

I pushed forward up the last bit of steps. It wasn't easy, and I didn't feel right. It was like my weight had doubled and my muscles had gone weak.

If I was in there for much longer there was a good chance I might pass out. Ryotaro lagged behind me.

Down the hallway I saw one last zombie. The stupid woman was standing just outside one of the apartment doors.

"Hey!" I yelled. "Over here!"

The zombie didn't even acknowledge me. I walked closer towards it, guessing that we had to be somewhere near the survivors and their apartment unit anyway.

I was only a few yards away from the zombie when I stopped, not taking any chances. The thing still didn't act like I was there.

I kicked on the wall a few times and yelled, "you in there?"

It took the zombie five months to slowly turn and look towards us. I had no idea what I was witnessing. Either the thing was in slow motion or it was in some type of trance.

I heard a man's voice on the other side of the wall. "Yes! It's me Genta and the boy Haru. Is it safe?"

Pulling the trigger, I put three bullets into the zombie. The undead woman fell to the ground.

"Yes!" I answered. "You can come out now! It's safe!"