Operation: DeadMan

Chapter-04: Hot and Cold

31ST OCTOBER, 2025: 2:20 PM

“As I walked out of the building, I once called home, the ray of sunlight hit my face. The smoke from the ashes of the zombies found its way to reach the sky. The streets in front of me are free from those man-eating pests. But it won’t be the case for long. In the year of 2025, The Greater City of Dhaka has surpassed Manila of the Islas Tagalogonia, making it the most densely populated city in the world. I wonder if that would still be the case after what just happened. This city is not familiar with the tranquility it now possesses. That’s why, the silence rang harder in my ears than the screams of the deceased.”

The unbearable smell of corpses has completely burned my nose, I honestly consider it as a blessing right now. Mahi’s house is in the block beside this one. The road felt abandoned. There was no sign of life. I started walking more confidently. But as I walked out of my block, my heart started racing again. I witnessed the hordes of zombies gathered at one stop to feast upon the flesh of the deceased at the corner of the road, another half-eaten body lies there on the ground. I wonder if that half-eaten body will turn into another zombie or not. I took my steps slowly and carefully, not to disturb their lunch. The zombies, blinded by hunger, had yet to sense my presence. I walked on my tip-toes to get past the hordes. With each step I took, my heart started to race faster and faster. It almost hurts in my chest. Maybe I’ll die from a panic attack before a zombie takes a bite of my skin. I clenched on to the body spray tied to my waist, a red lighter resting between my fingers. My only hope lies on this make-shift homemade flamethrower. As my destination came closer and closer, I started to panic even more. These streets are feeling longer than usual. It’s almost as if it was testing my patience. Something in the back of my mind is telling me to run for it. “Snap” the sharp and sudden sound of a twig breaking under my feet reached my ears. I just walked into my own grave. My heart sank. I wished I could go back in time to prevent the last couple of moments. But I can do nothing in my power to undo it. Perhaps I got too lost in the chain of thoughts, I forgot to look where I’m stepping on. Without looking back, I ran with my life. I did not have the courage to look back, but the sound of the undead did not fail to reach my ears.

From where I was, Mahi’s house was just ahead of me. I just had to run for it. With the undead getting closer and closer, my body used every last drop of energy left in this vessel. All thanks to my misfortune, I was met with nothing but a wall that stood taller than myself. I could see his apartment from there. The wall appeared to be about 9 feet tall to me. I leaped on to the wall. My fingers struggled to hold my weight. My entire fate lied on my fingers. It was a life-or-death situation. Zombies tried to grab onto my feet. A kick to the face! The zombie latching onto my feet fell down. I struggled to get myself on top of the wall. My fingers were almost giving up. My body dangling from the wall as the horde of flesh-eating beasts gather under my feet. With the last bit of strength left in my arms, I pulled my body up. A sign of relief exited my lungs. I had no will to continue fighting, but every second I waste here, the chances of survival of me and my friends gets slimmer and slimmer. In front me was a narrow path between two building filled with trash. The main streets are crowded with those pests. This is my only safe option. With no choice left, I proceeded on my way. Just then, I was greeted by an unexpected guest, a little cat that met its unfortunate end. It hissed at my face and ran away. I was left confused. A zombie cat wasn’t the first thing to come to mind when one thinks about a zombie apocalypse. It was kinda cute for its zombie status. Window to Mahi’s apartment was left open which might sound irresponsible at first, but it came out handy in tough times like this. Now the problem is how am I gonna climb that? I do happen to be in a narrow gap between buildings. Should I climb up like some lizard? My arms grabbed onto the walls tightly. My arms started shaking as soon as I started the climb. It was not a test of strength, it was a test of will power, it was testing my will to endure this bone-breaking pain for my friends. But I’m no man to give up. As the window got closer, the pain started getting worse. I knew I cannot climb all the way to the window. I gotta jump. With all my energy stored in my legs, I jumped and latched onto the window. I pulled myself in. I released a deep breath as I sit on the kitchen floor of Mahi’s apartment. Getting here was no easy task. It tested my arms, legs and my will to survive. As my senses came back to reality, I realized the apartment was awfully quiet. My mind was filled with negative thoughts. Should I just barge in? I started walking out of the kitchen carefully. As I poke my head out, I noticed a familiar figure. It was Mahi’s brother. Turns out I was too late to save him. I found him eating raw beef straight out of the fridge. His mouth was covered in blood. I rather not waste my remaining energy on a young zombie like that. But it also doesn’t feel right to let a zombie live to see another day. One zombie killed means ten lives saved. Without thinking, I kicked it from behind out of sheer bloodthirst and simply slammed the door of the deep fridge shut. The fridge started to shake. But I couldn’t care less. I doubt a small zombie like that will find its way out.

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31ST OCTOBER, 2025: 2:16 PM

Mahi’s life turned upside down just a few minutes before Megh rolled down the kitchen window. The following passage describes how the things went down from Mahi’s perspective.

What just happened…. Is this even real? It’s like a never-ending nightmare…. They all turned. They are no longer who they once were. My own mother walking around the house mindlessly in search of my flesh. Hiding under the bed, I’ve realized how big of a coward I am. I just wanna bury my head in sand and disappear off the face of the earth. My brain had turned into a mush from all these thoughts swarming in. “Ma…Hi…” those words that came out of the mouth of the being I once called mother pierced into my skull erasing everything that was going on. It’s almost like I regained my lost sense of identity.

A zombie might not understand what those words mean, but to Mahi, those words felt like golden arrows. Valuable yet painful. “Ma…Hi…” The words repeated. Mahi began to lose patience. The urge to come out from under the bed was unbearable. “Ma…Hi….” The words repeated again. Mahi could no longer listen to his mind. He crawled out of his bed in hopes that his mother is still in fact alive. But his hopes were shattered at the sight of his zombie mother’s rotting frail skin. The zombie chased for his flesh the first chance It got. Mahi didn’t even bother to defend himself. To him, it was like a mother wanting to hug her son. His dreams were shattered as Megh hit the zombie at the back of its head with a metal pipe. Megh begun to crush its skull, only to be intercepted when a punch in the face came out of nowhere. “What the heck are you doing!?”, Megh shouted. No word came out Mahi’s mouth. He grabbed Megh by his collar out of rage. He went for a second punch but his fist felt weak, he lost his stand and fell onto Megh’s arms. Tears begun to come out of his eyes uncontrollably. As Mahi lost his sense of self in this fit of emotions, Megh thought to himself, “I doubt this boney chest of mine can provide any comfort to a crying man.” Their reunion was interrupted when Mahi’s zombie mother came from behind, without thinking, Megh pulled out his homemade flamethrower and sprayed it in her face. Her face begun to melt as she screamed rolling on the floor like a dying cockroach. Her burnt face no longer held the fragment of what gave it its identity. Again Megh asked himself, “Is facial recognition all that matters?”