I didn't believe it until I saw it. I stood there, dumb-founded in the store as the counter guy slugged towards me, moaning. His eyes were rolled to the back of his head, his head leaning against his shoulder. His arms were stretched out towards me, his fingers limp. His right leg had been mauled, half of it chewed off and the bone was visible. As he walked, it trailed behind him, holding on by a few layers of skin. Blood and drool dripped from his mouth.
My jaw dropped, my body went numb, my brain went dead. I couldn't believe what I saw. The zombie limped towards me so I did what came natural to me: I punched him in the face.
He staggered backwards then fell over because of his unbalance. Normally, when you punch someone in the face, your fist aches a bit. Not mine. The skin was so soft and squidgy, like cold porridge; my fist flew through his cheek skin and knocked his teeth. I drew it back quickly, drool dampening my skin. Luckily, I hadn't been bitten. I've watched Dawn of the Dead a hundred times over to know if I get bitten, I turn into one of them.
While the zombie was rolling about on the floor aimlessly, I raced out of the store, my heart thumping. I unfurled my wings: fifteen feet of brown and ivory feathers. I did a running jump into the air, pushing down hard and soaring upwards.
I landed on top of Burger King, glancing around the small Coloradoan town. It was silent, which wasn't exactly strange but when I listened hard, I could hear a few moans in the distance: all of them low, dumb and very, very hungry.
It had to be a joke, it just had to. There was no way the entire human race could turn into zombies overnight. It was impossible, just impossible.
But you're supposed to be impossible. After all, you have wings.
Shut up, shut up, shut up! I screamed in my head. The Voice had terrible timing. Leave me alone, I yelled in my mind. This is just some stupid prank.
You should have listened to Fang. I bit my lip. Fang came back just moments ago, claiming the world had become zombies. I ignored him; after all, he had left me three weeks back and left a crummy letter. Angel believed him but I ignored her to, even though after she said it I had a nagging feeling in the back of my head. You see, Angel can read minds and see images from someone's memory. She can tell liars from those telling to truth.
I stormed off, which was normal for me when I'm upset, and I flew to town to see if they were telling the truth and weren't just messing around. I stood there for three minutes, standing on the roof of Burger King, debating if it is or if it's not a prank.
A door of a nearby gas station got kicked to the floor and four different zombies crawled out. One of them was a toddler, three years old or so, with his jaw ripped off. My stomach lurched, sickened by the amount of blood dripping from his innocent face.
I couldn't stand it anymore. I leapt off the roof and beated my wings. I soared up and headed towards the mountains of Mesa Verde National Park. My home, the Flock's home, was hidden a few mountains away from the ruins, safely hidden from the preying eyes of towns and placed on a cliff to make a speedy get away.
I landed outside and they all rushed out to see me. Fang was there, Mr. Tall, dark and handsome with wings darker than night, his eyes too dark to see emotion. Angel was worried, a pair of blue eyes placed on a frowning face with golden princess curls. Her brother, Gasman, stood behind her with the same expression. Nudge, for once, had her mouth shut and gripping Iggy's sleeve. Iggy's finger was locked around her belt loop, just so he could follow her steps outside. He's blind.
Dylan stood in the door frame. A tornado of emotions raged in his turquoise eyes. I saw worry, for me probably, fear that Fang was telling the truth, anger that Fang was back and confusion for some reason I couldn't make out.
"Is he telling the truth?" Dylan asked. I knew he hated Fang. He was the reason why he wasn't dating me right now. He was created to be my other half, with the same likes and dislikes as me, even the same wing colour. I knew he loved me, he was programmed to be but the nag that it was artificial pulled me back from him. And anyway, I still had feelings for Fang. He left to protect me when he didn't need to. And who put this thought into his head? Dylan did.
To answer Dylan's question, I nodded. Nudge chocked, crying. Iggy suddenly became scared. "We've got to go and get Ella." He blurted. I thought I had been punched in the gut by Fear. I cursed in my head. How could I forget my half-sister and my mother?
"Quick, get some backpacks!" I ordered. "We're going to Arizona!" Gazzy and Nudge left to get them. Dylan frowned.
"What about food?" He asked.
"We'll get some later but right now, we've got to save Ella and Mom. Now."