In A Land Of Zombies, The Hypnotist Is King

The Darkness Across The Threshold And The Return To The Light

A couple of days after the hostel massacre, Gale and I left the hostel where she had been surviving since the apocalypse. We were both hefting a new weapon each, a five foot spear sharpened from the cheap metal bed frames in the hostel and we had been practising zombie death manoeuvres with them for the last couple of days. We were now using them as walking staffs and strolling along a large main road from the hills into a town.

The weather was cold and seemed to be feeding our alertness. The light was good but was starting to turn towards evening. The reason for this passed through my mind – the rotation of the planet and the cosmic ballet, but it seemed ridiculous. I had enjoyed musing on certain things when at my leisure before the apocalypse, but now it seemed so unimportant juxtaposed to our day to day fight for survival. My main attention was on the wide street to our left and every now and again the gap between the large industrial buildings on our right as we scampered across them from building to building. We could see far enough to know we were not going to be surprised and Gale and I worked well as a team – she did exactly as I suggested.

“You don't travel at dark do you?” she asked, breaking silence for the first time for about an hour.

“Definitely not, our eyes are our best defence.”

“Do you think we should hole up in one of these bad boys for the night?” she said gesturing to one of the behemoths to our right. “They look pretty secure.”

“Definitely not,” I said again. “We'll stay in a house. Houses are small enough to be sure it is clear, a building we can control.”

“I see,” she said.

We walked on for a little while longer until we came across a park to our left on the far side of the silent road. On the other side of the park were some large sturdy looking houses. Expensive to those who are now dead, but very affordable to those of us still living.

“They look pretty comfortable,” she said as I was thinking the same thing.

“Great, I agree,” now we need to break cover to get there. Is it safe to do so?”

She stopped and looked up and down the road, then looked across, scanning the park and the space we would need to cross to get there.

“Yes. We have cover between here and there, and nowhere where that a surprise hoard might pour out from that I can see. I say do let's do it.”

I couldn't fault her enthusiasm and thoroughness. My survival was in good hands.

“Let's go then, you look to the right and back, I'll look to left and forwards. That car there,” I said pointing to an estate that was sitting slightly diagonal across the middle of the road. Our journey seemed ominous as the last of the day's sun stretched lazily across the road but the park was being rapidly swallowed by the evening shadow.

We scampered. I scanned where we had come from as we ran and where we were going. As we approached the car I checked it for any Mindless that might have made it their home, but it was empty. I put my hand on the metal as we got there and the sound made Gale slow and stop behind me. She kept looking round though as I checked the car for anything useful. I found a lip moisturiser which I handed to Gale which took her attention from the horizon briefly as she giggled with delight, but only for a second. I found nothing else so we moved to the next car, a kit car with a ripped fabric roof with dried blood stains. I imagined someone had been dragged from it kicking and screaming but the car was empty now, and I shook myself from that echo from the past. I found £300 in the glove compartment and noted the brief flash of excitement before consciously realising it's worthlessness – some subconscious patterns take a while to fade. We ran on to the bushes at the edge of the park and as we approached, I saw something very strange in the park.