THE DAY THE WORLD FELL

Chapter 15

Brody and Mitch

Mitch and Brody managed to make it back into town from the mountain. Florala, Alabama usually looked like a quiet place with a small population. The population sign names close to two-thousand people. When they first came to this little town, it was almost ghost-like and it was a charming back country place. Not too many shops or tourists. They chose to stay at the  Lakeview Motor Lodge because it was the only motel in Florala and offered affordable prices. Their ultimate goal was to climb to the top of every highpoint in Florida. The lodge was about 8.30 miles from Britton Hill, which is the current highest measured point of Florida, measuring at 345 feet. This was the pairs final stop on the map to complete their goal. 

The town now stood chaotic. It was no longer quiet and ghost-like. It was now the set of a horror film. The locals were arguing about what to do and packing up the vehicles as best they could would blankets, pillows, food and things they would need to survive. People were making their way to county highway 147 west. The closest road out of town. Some locals covered their windows and barricaded the front gates and doors of their homes. The local base for the Army National Guard was alert and active. They were preparing to set up blockades and a few teams in Joint Light Tactical Vehicles alerted local residents to stay indoors and report infection. 

Mitch and Brody drove to the door of the motel that they were staying in and ran inside, locking the door behind them.  They could see the army building the barbed wire fences just behind the tree line from their room window. "We might be locked in here." stated Brody. "What are we supposed to do? We can't survive in here for too long. We have three days tops with the food and water we have." 

"The Army is building up gates, we could be okay here. They obviously know what is going on and are trying to keep this town safe. If we leave, we could be on our own and we don't know what we are up against." replied Mitch. 

"It is some kind of infection, I heard what the army was saying on the streets before we came in. Let's see about the little tv, can we get a signal and see about any news reports?"

"Alright, good idea." Mitch grabbed the remote and tuned it to the only news broadcast he could find. The program spoke of the virus and shared the only information the CDC had readily available. The broadcast told people to stay inside, keep the doors and windows shut and locked and to report any infected people to the CDC and local authorities. 

"That's it. That is all we get. What is this virus and how does it spread? Is it airborne or is in the water? Food based? Are we already contaminated? How do we know?" Brody was panicking and pacing the floor. 

"Let me check the web. Maybe someone else has more information." Mitch pulled his laptop from his bag and began powering it on. He sat at the makeshift desk across from the bed next to the tv. 

Once he was logged in, he searched the web for current information on the virus around the world. He came across a you-tube clip and clicked it for them to watch. It was a news report from Daytona Beach with a local CDC scientist, DR. Korrina Eberhardt. It was graphic and shed more than enough light on the situation for them.

"Fucking zombies...." the men paused and looked at each other in absolute shock. "That woman, on the mountain. She was dead but not dead." Mitch felt his stomach disappear and all the color faded from Brody's face. "It really doesn't matter what we do or where we go. It will be everywhere. We need to prepare." Brody got a notebook out and ripped the used pages out. "So it's zombies. We have watched movies and read books about these things before. We know that creative minds have made up a few different kinds. So which of those, are we dealing with?" 

"The woman on the mountain, she wasn't fast but she was slow enough for us to pass. Barely though." Mitch replied. 

"Okay so we have one slow zombie. We need to record what we see from here on out. How long it takes to turn. We need to monitor every person alive. Record if they were bitten or scratched or even if they were infected by bodily fluids, also how long it took them to turn." Brody started writing in his journal.

"Also note how they work. Like if they can see, hear or smell. Behaviors too. I really hope they don't take to pack like behavior." Mitch started to lay out clothes and survival gear on the bed. "I think long sleeves for a little protection and we do have hunting knives. We just have to try avoiding close proximity."

"Agreed, there is a Piggly Wiggly a little under a mile from here. We could go and stock up. Maybe they'll have the store open while the guards are in town doing their jobs."

"In the morning we will drive up there. Let's just get some sleep and try to be ready for the morning." said Mitch.

The men got to sleep fairly quickly, with the curtains drawn and the door locked, the turned out the lights and drifted away for what may be the last time they will ever get good sleep. Hours went by and it was almost early morning. Very small amounts of light shown through the curtains but birds were chirping. 

Mitch and Brody jumped out of bed when they heard random banging on their room door. It was a slight bang and pause repeated. Like someone was lazily banging against something in a tantrum.

"Check the peep hole." Whispered Mitch.

Brody being the closest to the door, crept quickly to it and peered through the small glass hole. He could see a distorted man bumping against their door. He was a zombie, and though he posed a very real danger to them, he was not Brody's primary concern. Just past the zombie was an empty parking spot where their Jeep was parked when they went to bed. Now it was no where in sight.

"Fuck, the Jeep." Brody whispered in alarm," It's gone." 

Mitch mimicked Brody's words and ran his hands through his hair, "What do we do now?"