Chapter II: Other Survivors

It was almost sunset; lots of screams were heard throughout the campus. There was bloodshed across the hallways, like the school was in some war.

"I think we are safe here for now, let me look at your wound," said Professor Ursula, a short tempered professor. She wore sharp ended eyeglasses which added strictness to her appearance, and her old fashioned attire tended to be some kind of a joke to her students.

The faculty room's contents were properly fixed, no trace of any unusual things took place. It had a large glass window facing an open field where students often carry out their morning exercises

"T…th…thank you…pr…prof…essor…" the bitten student coughed weakly before vomiting blood. He was pale, and his eyes were turning red. His right arm was almost torn off from a horrible bite; he was trying to hold off the blood with his handkerchief which was now tinted red from his own blood, but still the bleeding wouldn't stop.

"Oh what's happening to you, that is a serious injury my boy, you just wait there, I think some of my co-professors have placed their first aid kit somewhere here" said Professor Ursula. She strode forward and opened the drawers of each table and finally saw a box with a red colored cross sign. "Oh yes here it is my b… I SAID YOU JUST WAIT THERE!" screamed Professor Ursula her temper going off again.

The bitten student was now standing with his head almost bowing, and lurches towards Professor Ursula.

"W..wait you're turning into one of them… y…you know me right? I'm going to give you a failing GRADE if you won't stop there right now. STOP!" screeched Professor Ursula. Apparently her shout attracted other infected ones outside of the faculty room. They were pounding their fists outside the room. As her infected student staggered towards her slowly, she searched frantically for a possible weapon, after finding a mop she pointed it directly to the student.

"S…see what you have done! Y…You have called your friends to attack me! I'm going to hit all of you with this if you don't stop! Tell that to them HURRY!" ordered Professor Ursula as she swung the mop trying to scare off the student "Oh… So you still are going to get me after ALL?"

Professor Ursula took several steps back until she reached the window. The infected student was almost near to her, and some of the infected ones outside were almost destroying the door.

She heard the windows break behind her. She cried "NO!" As the hand grabbed her behind, it seemed that it was another student survivor holding a pole, now she's outside the faculty room.

"Are you ok, Ma'am Ursula? Let's get out of here while they are still inside the room," said the student with blood stained uniform offering his hand but Professor Ursula sway it away at once.

"THERE'S NO WAY I'M GOING WITH YOU! Y…YOU WILL JUST LET ME BE EATEN B...BY TH…THOSE THINGS!" shouted Professor Ursula. "Look behind you, there's your comrade." As the student turned his head, a vicious bite inflicted his shoulders, causing him to yelp out of pain.

"Professor!" he screamed, "Please run!… My friends… are at the entrance gates…" said the student as he still struggled to hit the infected student in the head even if it still didn't let go of his arm like it's jaw was locked.

It torn off a portion of the student's shoulder, blood gushed out from it.

"Can't you understand? No one will survive this, NO ONE!" Professor Ursula bellowed like a lunatic, while she stares at the student being bitten. An infected student lunges to her from the faculty window, successfully tearing off her neck.

…..

"What are those things? They were just perfectly normal students before and now they've become flesh eating monsters! And where in the world are Xander and Brenda?" shouted Dan as they ran through the hallway. Behind them were the other pale-looking students who had bloodshot eyes, walking to them unsteadily. "Do you think I could answer that? " replied Shiela irritatingly as she looked back. "Just run!"

Upon reaching the stairs at the end of the hallway they stopped; downstairs there were some infected students tearing apart a normal one, "No! NO! HELP!" he screamed timorously.

Upstairs they saw a falling student to the platform leading to another stairs to the floor where Dan and Shiela were , it appears like she doesn't know what she's doing, as she sat there on her knees, she started coughing blood but somehow, there was an air of 'liveliness around her. She was not lost, not yet.

"Ewww…" –almost throwing up he looked back to Shiela- "So what now?!" asked Dan. "I'm not Superman, so I think we won't survive after jumping out of the window."

Shiela retorted "This isn't the time for your endless jokes Dan!" as she cautiously looked at her left and right.

"Psssstttt… In here," said a voice inside the classroom just beside them. Dan and Shiela immediately ran to the opened door of the classroom. "Quick! Help me block the door with this shelf."

As they lugged the bookshelf to the door they saw it was no longer the usual classroom crammed with noisy students. All they could see were scattered chairs, most probably caused by panicked students mad dashing here and there. And blood – blood painted the space and there was an unquestioned cold feeling enveloping them.

Somewhere outside the room, a dull, sickening groan was heard from the infected students. The guy placed his pointing finger in the middle of his lips signaling that they should keep quiet.

After the sound of the creature was gone the guy whispered "Well hello my fellow survivors, I am Edward Sean David Bellforth, some call me "Eddie", some just call me 'The Zombie Exterminator', I thought I was just going to survive this all alone" he chuckled. His hair was pretty messy, it's long enough to cover his whole face,so he tied it up in a pony tail, he wore a T-shirt with a design of a zombie with a knife on its head. He looked more like a fourth year college student.

"Do they really call you 'The Zombie Exterminator?' Cool…" said Dan with an amazed looked at the guy's T-shirt.

"Guess I'm stuck with two morons here…" said Shiela silently to herself.

"We'll just call you Eddie because it's shorter."

"Tch… shouldn't have said Eddie at the first place" said Eddie dissapointedly, biting his thumb.

"So what is going on Mr. Zombie Exterminator?" asked Dan his eyes gazed upon Eddie.

"Shhh…! Lower your voices or they might hear us…" said Eddie while peeking at the small glass window at the door.

"At least someone knows some manners, anyway here's the catch, as far as I know, I think there are these creatures spreading the "virus" to our campus, I have seen one lurking just outside this room a bit later before you came in …"

"Thank God we didn't see it," whispered Dan abruptly.

"…it looks half-human half monster, it doesn't move like one of the 'infected ones' which are slow and doesn't seem to really know what they are doing, It's like it has a mind of its own. I'll call it the "runner" –he chuckled. Then his voice dropped to a much more serious tone- "I have seen it biting one of my fellow classmates, it's fast but he doesn't eat his victim, he just tends to bite and leave them alone." answered Eddie with a serious tone.

And just as suddenly, there was a bloodcurdling scream by a girl. The voice was quite far away but seemed to catch the attention of the infected ones.

But the low growls heard beyond the door told them they were still not alone.

"So what do you suggest we do now?" asked Shiela nervously.

"I think let's wait for the police I'm sure they will come here, or maybe the Justice League will finally show up, or the Fantastic Four, or the Avengers, or th…."

"I wasn't talking to you and your foolish mind Dan, I was talking to Eddie," whispered Shiela abruptly with a more forceful voice.

"You didn't…" answered Dan but immediately closed his mouth after seeing Shiela looked at him furiously.

"I think the police couldn't help us now, I tried to call them but no one's picking up, only the answering machine is and from what I have watched on zombie apocalyptic movies, some of them might be like one of those "things" right now. If they would react on this, they should be here by now, because the police station is not that far from here anyway. It is best if we look for other survivors for more backups," answered Eddie silently.

"At least someone here's got a point," said Shiela looking at Dan.

"I believe that Xander and Brenda are still alive and are looking for us too," said Dan immediately like he didn't hear Shiela said something.

"Ok let's look for them," whispered Eddie.

"Aren't you going to look for your friends?" asked Shiela.

"They are now infected I saw it happened with my own eyes" answered Eddie seriously. "I killed one of them who almost bit me, as I thought, it's just like what's said in the book I just read 'How to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse' - 'hit it in the head'. For now let's wait till the sun is up, it will be much easier if we can see them better."

"Cool… I never knew there was a book like that, tell me more please?" begged Dan.

"Uhhh I don't know…" said Eddie.

"Pretty please… w…with Ice cream on top? Coated with chocolate syrup? added Dan.

"It's a bit classified you know? TOP SECRET," said Eddie emphasizing the words top secret

"…with strawberries and cherry on top? And sprinkled with marshmallows and milk chocolate bits?"

Foolishly convinced by Dan, Eddie told him some of the contents of the book. "Well ok the first thing you should know is that a zombie…"

"I can't believe this is all really happening and what's more is that I'm stuck with a moron and a zombie apocalypse fan," said Shiela to herself silently while going to the nearest armchair. "At least it's better than being alone." As she looks at the two while they are conversing.