OK you lot, the final chapter is cut and sewn and draped over the tailor's dummy for your inspection. Feel free to check the quality of my stitching and the shaping of the shoulders and let me know what you think. I can't quite believe that we have come to the end of another story. I hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. A massive thank you for all your kind comments and encouragement and to all my collaborators for the endless quality material that you feed me. I have already started to think about the SZS's next adventure so they will ride again. In the meantime have a great Mothers Day and keep being brilliant.

James paced up and down outside the operations tent in frustration. He had been kept waiting for some time by those inside and the heat of the day was becoming oppressive. It had been three days since they had found the zombies and brought them back to base. Three days since the strange events at Drovers Crossing and the order to intern Doctor Kyung Sook and her companions.

In that time James had tried everything he could think of to secure their released but to no avail. He had filed a full report of their discovery, Kyung-Sooks statement, the kidnapping and the subsequent confrontation in the desert which he had sent directly to the Secretary of Homeland Security and Morley. When they had not responded he had tried to telephone them but Secretary Howard had refused to take his calls while Morley was not answering his phone or replying to the Major's multiple messages. He had even tried to get in touch with Jonathan Beck, but the Belverly Hills store had said he was in Chicago scouting for sites and had refused to give James a contact number for him.

James had been about to get in touch with the British consulate as a last resort when, just that morning Captain Dwight had confirmed that Secretary Howard was to visit the base in a few hours time to view the zombies for himself. As Howard had arrived James had confronted the man and demanded a meeting which had been reluctantly agreed to. Now he waited in the heat to be received, but no one seemed in any hurry to let him in.

At long last Captain Dwight had pulled back the flap of the large tent and nodded James inside. He walked into the dimly lit interior, his eyes taking some time to adjust after the bright sunshine of the desert. Dwight took up a post by the entrance while Howard could be seen sitting behind a desk reading from a file. He continued to do so until James cleared his throat at which sound the secretary looked up with a frown "Yes Major, you needed to see me?"

"Sir, I wanted to make sure that you had seen my report and, in light of that, to urge you to reconsider your decision regarding the future of the zombies" said James

Howard shut the file be had been reading and leant back in his chair. "I have indeed read it Major and would like to thank you and your unit for all your help in bringing this matter to a successful conclusion"

"But what of the zombies sir?" asked James "They have requested asylum, surely you have to honour that?"

"Major, that is really none of your concern. This is an internal matter to be resolved by the government of the United States as it sees fit"

"But with all due respect..." Began James

"In my experience Major, when someone says that they are usually about to be wholly disrespectful" cut in Howard

"Be that as it may sir" pursued James "I was present at their interrogation, and their stories are consistent. Our research also shows that Doctor Kyung-Sook is who she says she is"

"Was" said Howard

"Sorry sir?" Queried James

"She was Doctor Kyung-Sook. She is now an undead" replied Howard

"But one who has escaped the clutches of a rogue state and has come to seek help from a free nation. Surely you have a moral duty..."

Howard raised his hand "Please do not lecture me on moral duty James. We have no way of knowing that this isn't all part of the plan for them to infiltrate American society and spread the pathogen among our population. If we let them stay we could have an epidemic on our hands that not even you could stop Major"

"But what of the assassin sent to kill the Doctor? Doesn't that prove that they are genuine?"

"It could all be part of the plan...plus we haven't had a chance to confirm his identity given that you claim he has been kidnapped by aliens" said Howard pointedly

"I know it sounds unlikely..."

"That's a bit of an understatement major..."

"But there are a number of witnesses..."

"That saw a large black disk decend and take up the assailant in a tractor beam" read Howard from a sheet of paper he had taken from the file in front of him.

"Yes sir" said James a little uncomfortably "Like on Star Trek"

Howard closed the file and looked at James "Major" he said "I am convinced that what you saw was all set up by the Koreans to back up Kyung-Sooks story. The agent wasn't taken up in a space ship, he was picked up by a north Korean airship probably using a winch"

"An airship sir?" Asked James in disbelief

"Yep, it all fits; the shape, the thrumming noise you heard, even the smell was the gas they use to inflate the balloon"

"But that's ridiculous sir" spluttered James

"More ridiculous than a UFO major?" Countered Howard

James put his hands on his hips and bit his lip. This was not going as well as he had hoped but he had to keep trying.

"What about the other people they took up?" Tried James

"Oh they where definitely aliens" replied the secretary

"Really?" Said James, hope rising

"No major, it is much more likely that they were also North Korean agents. My understanding is that they had all recently been arrested for subversive activities. The craft had clearly been sent to extract them as well"

James racked his brain for a way of piercing the mans carefully constructed logic "And the cows? What about them?"

"Food" said Howard simply

"Food" repeated James doubtfully "They extracted the cows stomachs for food and threw the rest of the animal away?"

"Well they are Koreans after all" explained Howard "They eat dog you know?"

James shoulders slumped in defeat "But they are harmless" he said "I have a zombie of their kind in my unit. He wouldn't hurt a fly and is one of my best...men"

Howard lent back in the chair again "Ah yes, Private Dylan Smith, the one who has been confined to quarters for the last two days for displaying violent behaviour to our marines"

"He's not usually like that...he's got the major hots for...oh never mind" said James uneasily and looked at the secretary pleadingly "Killing them is just wrong"

"They are already dead major" stated Howard "We are simply releasing them from their torment. The order has already been signed and the first injections are to be administered any minute"

Just then an anguished cry was heard from the direction of three sections quarters. James walked past the motionless Captain Dwight and lifted one end of the tent flap to stare in the direction of the accommodation tents. Smurf stood struggling with three marines as Kyung-Sook and her companions filed towards the medical tent under heavy guard.

Mansfield Mike and Molly rushed over to the struggling zombie and ushered the marines away. The corporal then turned to his friend and hugged him while the zombie slumped into his embrace and sobbed disconsolately on his shoulder.

James turned away and approached Howard once more "I will lodge a formal protest through my government, I will tell the world what you have done here today!"

"Your government is aware and has raised no objections. They have also asked me to make you aware of the requirements of your Official Secrets Act. Say anything and you could face jail Major"

James visibly deflated. He was stimied at every turn. He was starting to realise that nothing short of a miracle was going to save the zombies from death.

Then from outside came the sound of a car being driven at speed, followed by the screetching of tyres and raised voices. Captain Dwight walked quickly from the room to investigate and was soon heard saying "Sir, you can't go in there!" Which was shortly followed by a gruff reply of:

"Son, I am a Colonel in the United States Army and my companion is a former major in Her Majesty's Armed Forces, you are mearly a Captain, go do the math"

Seconds later the tent flap was pulled open and Morley and Beck strode in, the former in fatigues and the latter in soft buckskin suit with tassles under the arms. James started in surprise "Sherman, Jonathan what are you doing here?"

Jonathan beamed. "Well dear" he said:

"We just blew in from the windy city

The windy city is mighty pretty

But they ain't got what we got, no sirree"

Morley rolled his eyes "Jesus JB, can you stop singing that for one second"

"Sorry lover boy, I can't help it. Anyway stop blustering at me and go save the day" Then turning to James he mouthed "Watch this"

Howard had stared as the scene unfold in open mouthed bemusement but now found his voice. "What the hell is going on here Colonel. You better have a damn good explanation for this and fast!"

"Methane" said Morley

"Well take it outside Colonel" said Howard "This is a small tent and the windows don't open"

Morley shook his head. "No Mr Secretary, methane as a propellant"

"Oh" said Howard, looking slightly uncomfortable

"Yes sir, when James here mentioned the cows stomachs and how they were only good for making methane, it got me thinking. When I was a rookie lieutenant, just out of West Point, my first assignment was to military intelligence in New Mexico. The CO there Colonel Bradley 'iron grip' Bowden, sorta took me under his wing..."

"Why did they call him iron grip?" Asked James curiously

Morley cleared his throat "Everybody thought it was because he never let go of any secrets, even under the fiercest of interrogation...but I found out it was for other reasons"

"Oh" said James then after a pause "oh, I see"

"Anyways, one day after a pretty tough work out I was towelling the Colonel down and shooting my mouth off about how New Mexico was such a dumb place to have an Intel unit when he gets all serious and says there are plenty of good reasons for its location. I make a joke about Area 51 not actually existing and he says I should always keep an open mind about rumours in military intelligence...that there could always be a grain of truth. When I laughed he just said 'methane...its a big risk but methane could be the answer'. I asked him what he meant but he just smiled and changed the subject."

"Well this trip down memory lane is all very fascinating..." said Howard but Morley cut in quickly.

"Colonel Bowden's retired now, lives in Michigan and that's where I caught up with him yesterday. His grip ain't as strong as it used to be but his mind is as sharp as ever. He knew exactly what I was talking about when I mentioned our former conversation and just like any good intelligence operatives had taken copies of all the most interesting files with him when he retired, just in case."

Morley then reached inside his chest pocket and took out a thick manila envelope which he threw on the desk infront of Howard "These are copies of documents that prove successive governments have covered up the discovery of a crashed space craft in the New Mexico desert in the hope of using its technology for military purposes. They also show that the crew were never discovered and the decision was made not to mount a thorough search for them, for fear of alerting people to the existence of the craft"

James looked at Morley "And the methane engine was one of the technologies they hoped to use?"

Morley nodded "It was called the Fast Anaerobic Reactor Traction engine"

"The FART engine" said James "So it turns out there isn't a better name for it after all. Did it work?"

Morley shook his head "We could never stabilise the conversion rate and gave up after a catastrophic blow back event caused fatalities"

"What a way to go" commented Jonathan and everyone present paused to consider the unsavoury prospect.

All eyes then turned to Hammond who stared at Morley then at the envelope in front of him. The secretary took a deep breath and nodded in a resigned way saying "Ok, what do you want?"

Morley put both hands on the desk and leant towards Howard "We want you to give these zombies a chance to build a life here, just like the aliens did for all those years"

Howard pursed his lips and placed a hand on the envelope, pulling the damning evidence towards him. "Very well, but if this backfires the administration will deny any knowledge of this arrangement. Captain Dwight please abort the transformations"

James clenched his fist in triumph then followed the marine captain as he doubled out of the ops tent and towards the medical centre.

Howard watched the soldiers leave then took a lighter from his pocket and directed the flame at a corner of the envelope he held in his hand until it caught alight. The tongues of fire quickly travelled up the paper, which Howard then dropped into a waste paper basket where the documents were quickly consumed. The secretary then turned to Morley. "Now you've saved them what are you proposing to do with them Colonel?"

"Oh, you just leave that to me Mr Secretary" said Jonathan. "I have a few ideas"...

The interior of the school hall was decked out with a range of carved pumpkins, each casting a flickering light into the darkened space. At the far end a small band was warming up under a large banner which read 'Marfa Oktoberfest Halloween Hootnanny'. On the dance floor people where standing in groups dressed as ghosts, vampires, werewolfs, witches and a range of other Halloween costumes, waiting excitedly for the music to begin.

Mayor Hambleton moved among the throng, shaking hands and patting backs. The man was in his element and beamed at all he met, asking after mutual aquaintances, listening to old anecdotes heard many times before and encouraging everyone to eat, drink and enjoy themselves. At the arrival of James and his party he broke off to greet them warmly, bowing to Mansfield Mike and shaking James' hand, although he saved his warmest greeting for Jonathan, who's hand he kissed gallantly before offering his arm and escorting him to a chair.

" I am so pleased that you could make it Jonathan, I trust your business trip to Chicago was a success?"

"Very much so Mr Mayor and you received my message regarding my staffing requirements?" Replied Beck

The Mayor smiled broadly "I have spoken with Nate and he'd be mighty happy to take on your...specialists on the agreed terms"

"Excellent, and remember, these are skilled leather artisans with very particular requirements. They are to be well treated , housed and fed as I have instructed. I want them to be welcomed here and for Marfa to be their home for as long as they want, is that understood?"

"Completely" replied the Mayor and left to organise drinks for his guests.

James looked at Jonathan "Are you sure this is going to work?"

"Its the best chance they have James. A small isolated community, a job, as much raw beef as they can eat and a local mayor who is desperate for the investment that comes with them"

"Thank you" said James simply but Jonathan just waved his hand.

"Its nothing, makes sound business sense. The deal I'm getting for the leather is very good. Now where the hell is my drink? I need to whet my whistle before I bang out any numbers"

Molly joined them then, putting her arm around her husbands waist and squeezing. "Scared any kids yet with your costume?" She asked

James frowned "Will you stop, I love this jacket, its edgy and stylish"

"And the colour of diarrhoea" put in Molly

"Its a warm brown" said James defensively

"Yer, like diarrhoea" stated Molly

"I could have left you back at the base you know" replied James

"Nah, you'll need someone with you to apologise for the jacket"

James was about to make a playful grab for his wife when Mayor Hambleton returned with the drinks aided by Sheriff Wyatt. After the refreshments had been distributed the mayor turned to James with a frown "Now Major, Jed and I gotta mention that we're havin' some issues with these here Majorettes."

"Oh god, they haven't arrived have they? How did they know I was here?" Asked James

"Now don't get me wrong James, most of them are mighty nice and are spendin' plenty of tourist dollars which is fine by me. But Joleen's already had three women come into her diner insistin' on siting at the table where you had your lunch the other day and nowhere else." Said the Mayor

"Oh, yes they can be quite...particular about that" conceded James

"But" continued Hambleton "The biggest problem seems to be you got two rival groups of fans here"

"Really?" Said James, baffled.

At this point Wyatt took up the thread "You sure do James. One call themselves the stags, the other the goats. There ain't been no big trouble yet, just some pointed remarks and a bit o' mild sarcasm but give it time and it might get worse..."

Jonathan laughed excitedly, "Ooo James, two rival gangs just like West Side Story" then started to sing:

"When your a stag

You're a stag all the way

From your first cigarette

To your last dyin' day"

"I'm sorry" said James "I'll try and sort it out. Maybe get onto twitter if I can remember how...its been a little while"

An announcement from the stage then signalled that the band was ready to begin causing Jonathan to jump to his feet. "That's my queue,wish me luck" He then pecked a worried looking Morley on the cheek and hurried off in the direction of the stage. Soon the band struck up a tune and Jonathan was away:

"I'm just a girl who can't say no

I'm in a terrible fix

I always say 'come on let's go'

Just when I orta say nix!"

James cheered loudly then looked across at Wyatt. He was staring at Lizzie White who was on the other side of the hall dancing with Tom her son. James caught the sheriffs attention then nodded over to the mother and son and raised his eyebrows questioningly. Wyatt frowned and shook his head at which James rolled his eyes and took the sheriff aside.

"For goodness sake have you two not got your act together yet?" Asked James

"Yes...well no...well I don't know" subsided Wyatt miserably

"But after the other night I thought...hang on, you've not told her have you?" Said James accusingly

Wyatt grimaced then flayed his arms around in exacerbation "can't she tell...I mean do I have to...you know?"

"Yes you do" said James simply "Listen, when you find the right person, you have got to tell them. It doesn't matter how you do it, just find a way of expressing yourself or else you will lose them. OK?"

Wyatt let out a breath then looked up at the stage "OK" he said and started to stride towards the band.

"Oh bloody hell what's he going to do" said James to himself, then watched as Wyatt took the mic from a smiling Jonathan and muttered something to the musicians. The sheriff then turned an intense stare on Lizzie White and started to sing in a deep rich bass:

"My heart is higher than a hawk

My love is deeper than a well

I'm thinkin' in a little while

My love and I'll be doin' very well"

Lizzie stared at Wyatt transfixed, a deep blush colouring her cheeks. Her son looked up at her then gave her a gentle nudge towards the stage. His mother looked down and smiled at him then started to walk, hesitantly at first, but them with purpose. Wyatt seeing her approach moved to meet her at the top of the small flight of steps that led to the stage and took her hand as she reached him. The sheriff then looked deep into her eyes as he finished the song and, as the final chords faded leant down to kiss her passionately on the mouth.

The place erupted in cheers and whistles and shouts of 'about time'. The couple didn't surface for some time but eventually parted and looked out at the hall where people were still clapping and stamping. Wyatt then led his lady off the stage and towards a beaming Tom.

Next, Mansfield climbed the steps to cheers from three section. He picked up the mic and faced the hall. "I've been asked to announce the winner of the best Halloween costume tonight" he said "And I'm delighted to say that we have joint winners this evening. Can you put your hands together for Smurf and Kyung-Sook for their incredibly realistic zombie costumes!"

The spotlight followed Mansfield's pointing finger and found the couple engaged in a passionate kiss in the middle of the hall, both oblivious to all around them.

"OK" said an amused Mansfield "looks like they are both otherwise engaged so I'll just keep the trophy safe for them until they come up for breath. Now on with the singing!" And with that Mansfield nodded to the band and began to sing

"Wish I was, yeah, a wild west hero"

James took Molly's hand and kissed it, then led her out onto the dancefloor

"We're not going to be able to separate those two" said Molly nodding towards the kissing zombies

"Oh, I don't know, I think we've got a crow bar in the back of the APC" replied James

Molly slapped him playfully on the shoulder "You know what I mean"

"Yes I do, and I am working on it OK?" Said James

Molly nodded and snuggled further into his chest as they danced to the music.

"So" he said "shall we have a go at this honeymoon thing again? I hear Kenya's very nice"

Molly looked up at him lovingly "Anywhere will do as long as we're together"

James nodded "OK, Bognor it is then"

They both laughed and joined in the song

"Ride the range all the day til the first fading light

Be with my western girl round the fire oh so bright

I'd be the Indians friend, let them live to be free,

Ridin' into the sunset, I wish I could be"

The end