**
"You want to stay in Detroit? Did all those blows to the head impair your judgement, Chris?"
"Probably, but think about it: can you think of a place that we've spent more time, or a place where we know the layout better? I'm not by any means saying that we stayright here in this house, but if we could find something high-rise, or on the outskirts, then it'd be better than going somewhere that we're not familiar with!"
Shelley flicked the curtain in the study, surveying the street below. Tracks of red ran all over the road, from where people had tried to run. A few bodies still shambled along the street, calm now that there was no one in sight. The sun had tracked along the sky while they had planned so when they had reached the point of discussing a destination, it was already 3pm. Less than twenty four hours earlier, life had been relatively normal.
Shelley rubbed his eyes. It had been thirty one hours since he had last slept, and he had gone without for longer, but it felt like so much more. He stifled a yawn as he looked at the TV, trying to find a flaw in Sabin's reasoning, or just trying to avoid thinking about it for a moment. But all the TV did was highlight the urgency of the situation – it was simply showing a loop of attacks. They were different people in different places, but it all ended up the same. Zombies were rising all over, attacking, infecting and spreading like wildfire.
He sighed, looking at his long time friend. "So where do we go?"
**
Chris Sabin rubbed his eyes as he continued looking at the maps in front of him. He knew where he was going – he could drive there in his sleep, he knew it. But he wanted to make sure they had plotted the best possible path. There was no telling what might be in the streets, whether it was vehicles, people or possessions. He glanced up to see Alex Shelley asleep in the corner, curled tightly into a ball, gripping a golf club as if his life depended on it. Which, Sabin considered, it did. He had insisted that his friend get some sleep when he would not stop yawning, assuring him that it wasn't wasting time. There was no way they would be able to drive with all the panic going on outside.
For a moment, Sabin resenting his friend for sleeping so soundly, then shook his head, double checking the route they had decided on.
**
Alex Shelley was sitting by the window, looking at the street below. He was trying to take an inventory of everything they had and everything they would need, but he just felt ridiculous. The world might be ending, and he was writing a shopping list.
Sabin had woken him an hour before, and even though he wanted nothing more than to remain asleep, Shelley could see that his tag team partner was in need of sleep. He took over the watch while Sabin shut his eyes. As Shelley watched the last shambling form make its way out of the street, he thought over all he had seen in the last few hours. Even after the sleep, he had a hard time comprehending how little time had passed. And then there had been the decision of where they were going to go.
**
Sabin had picked up a golf club, as it was one of the few weapons in the room that would provide some distance between himself and any attacker, and carefully snuck downstairs. When he had what he wanted, he had resisted the urge to run, and again, carefully crept back upstairs. Once back in the study, he had present Shelley with a newspaper, opened to page 5.
"See?"
"I'm looking at...real estate? It's the zombie apocalypse, and I'm looking at real estate. I didn't think you crack so quickly, Chris."
Sabin rolled his eyes and jabbed his finger into the middle of the page. "Millender Center Apartments. Thirty three floors, Detroit's highest residential building. The pent house is for sale, which means it's empty. Think about it; if we can get in there, then we can block off any stairs, fuck up the elevator after we're done with it, and be as secure as we sensibly can be! And it has a parking garage, so maybe we can use that."
"Chris, buddy, I knew there was a reason I kept you around!"
Sabin had rolled his eyes and snatched the paper out of Shelley's hands.
**
It was 3am when the blackout hit. Shelley only realised because the TV, which neither Gun had wanted to turn off in case something new happened, suddenly switched off. Shelley, not wanting to turn the lights on in case it drew attention to the house, tried to turn the computer monitor on, but it just sat there. Muttering to himself, Shelley felt about in the dark and located one of the torches he had collected earlier. Hating what they were about to do, he crawled over to where Sabin was sleeping and gingerly reached out his torch to tap his leg.
Shelley's instinct had been correct, as Sabin woke up swinging. He didn't quite have the coordination to spring to his feet, Shelley observed, but he was definitely swinging the golf club as hard as he could. "Calm down, Chris!" Shelley tried to soothe, just wanting his friend to stop trying to beat him to death.
Sabin came to his senses and glanced at the TV. "Why is the TV off?" he asked, running a hand through his hair. "And damn I am hungry!"
"Power went out a few minutes ago, but I think it's time we got going anyway." Shelley responded, picking up the bags loaded with items from downstairs that he had initially bought up in the panic. "Catch", he added, throwing a nut bar at Sabin.
While he was chewing, Sabin listened attentively to the low hum of Shelley's voice, filling him in on what he had missed. "They're still advising people to stay in their homes", he said with a snort, handing Sabin a torch, "and saying they don't know what caused it. Apparently a huge amount of people are fleeing the city, so good call on not trying that. The highways are packed, cars can't move at all. Apparently the Government is advising anyone who has been infected to report to Comercia Park, Ford Field or Joe Louis Arena, where they are treating the sick. Word is that treatment is a bullet to the head – they showed some footage of some protesters getting slaughtered. There were also some reports that people are trying to get the infected – family members, friends, that sort of thing, out of the city without the Government knowing about it. But all that managed to do was introduce some newly turned zombies onto the traffic jams on the highway."
"What about the roads that we need to take?"
"They showed a brief shot of them about an hour ago, and they looked mostly empty. A few cars, but nothing we can't get around. Not too many zombies lurking, either, but that really says nothing. The shots they showed of them just swarming to a location..."
Sabin looked at his friend with concern when he just trailed off, his voice growing softer with each word he spoke when he mentioned the swarms. Sabin pushed the thought from his mind, knowing that later they would probably both have a cry and get all the worry and fear out, but in that moment, they had to be focused.
Once they had everything collected, Sabin opened the study door. They quietly made their way through the house and into the garage, where Sabin unlocked the car. He winced as it beeped, and after a moment in which the Guns held their breath and tried to hear if anything was coming, started loading up the car. When Sabin climbed into the driver's side, secured his seatbelt and saw Shelley doing the same on the passenger side, he took a deep breath.
"You ready?" Sabin asked, turning to Shelley.
"Ready as I'll ever be, my friend."
With that, Sabin started the car, and Shelley picked up the remote to open the garage door. He clicked the small button, and together, they waited.
**