Curvaceous Kevlar and other inspired tales

Movie Night

"It looks like a zombie thriller I've never seen…hey, is that Brazil?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I've never been." I sat down, just as the newsfeed ran across the bottom of the screen. "That looks like the news, not a movie."

"C'mon, zombies aren't real. It's just a movie…"

A newsreader appeared, her concerned voice narrating through more video. The zombies looked very coordinated to me. "And more about the unrest in Brazil…the violence is increasing as more and more civilians join what is being called the Zombie Army. The followers are fanatically loyal to a leader who some sources say is a woman…"

I stood up and walked away. "It seems far too real for me."

I crossed to the kitchen for a drink. I heard Mother enter the house behind me.

"Is that the news?"

"No, some zombie movie that scared Sarah…"

"…sources say that this woman, known as the Siren or Our Lady, leads the horde of followers who behave like zombies out of a movie…"

I turned at Mother's gasp. "Oh shit."

"Cantrella's finally gone mad. A zombie army? What is she thinking?"

I squinted at the screen. "She's trying to wipe out humans. Laila said she wanted to…"

"Are you two crazy? It's a movie – nothing to be afraid of."

Mother touched a hand to his shoulder, her eyes grave. "That's my sister-in-law leading them. It's no movie."

"But…how in hell can she turn so many people into zombies? That's insane!" Finally, he looked scared.

I glanced at Mother. Below his hearing, I asked her, "He doesn't know what we can do, does he?"

She gave the slightest shake of her head, speaking normally. "Don't worry. We'll protect you."

"And…them?"

I shrugged. "The Americas? Not part of our territory. They're as good as lost."