Hey Zombies

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Purity

The rain showered on the wreckage. Feet ran left and right, plopping in the wet sand beneath them. The snarls and growls of the infected ran amok, trying to grab something to eat. Sadly, the crash survivors were the only ones on the menu. Nadine struggled to climb on top of the plane wreckage, the sides were wet and the softness beneath her kept her from jumping great heights. The only thing keeping her up was Tai's hand gripping hers, attempting to pull her up. The rain soaked between their skin, the slipperiness increased. Before long, Tai couldn't hold any tighter, and Nadine slipped from his hands, plummeting into the pit of infected below.

Tai could only scream as he watched Nadine get ripped apar-he took deep breaths as his eyes opened, and then he sat up, the bed he rested on felt muggy and drenched in moisture. The orderlies would have to clean the sheets again. He turned to his left, and saw his daughter Mai sitting, staring at him from a seated position.

"You talk in your sleep." Mai said with a smile. Tai just looked at her, "Another bad dream?"

Tai nodded, "Terrible terrible dream. I saw the plane, I saw zombies attacking our people, it was so terrifying, I saw you die, I saw Nadine die...

Mai stood up and approached his bed. She took his hand into hers, "You're not losing me again." She said with a smile. Tai looked into her eyes, he could see his wife in his daughter's eyes. He leaned over and saw Nadine resting in the bed next to his.

"She had just passed out. She went to talk to the soldiers with the others a while ago. It was that kid's father, Arnold?"

"Yes Miles! What did he say?"

"I don't know, she just came in and said we shouldn't worry. Then she pass out." Mai responded. It left Tai puzzled as to what was going on...

Gerald and Phoebe could only look up at the ceiling as they rested on their makeshift bed. The hangar was for the most part empty. Refugees were allowed to wander around the mess hall and recreational building while the hangar was their sleeping area. Some people wandered left and right, parents holding their kids. Brothers and sisters hugging and mourning their lost loved ones.

Phoebe and Gerald were just glad to have each other.

"What would've happened if Oscar didn't sacrifice himself...?" Phoebe asked quietly. Gerald was quiet, stroking her shoulder, "If he was still all about his own life when things went downhill, would we have made it out as easily...if not at all?"

"I wouldn't know," Gerald said, almost out of fear, "It all seemed to change the moment Oscar closed that hallway gate. His eyes seemed lifeless, almost like he had given up..."

"Wonder how Arnold felt, Oscar was family to him."

"He was family to all of us...even if he was selfish and preserved his own interests." Gerald said, asking all sorts of questions, reality setting in even in their safety net, "Harvey's dead too."

"The mail man?" Phoebe lifted her head from Gerald's shoulder, "How did he..."

"Willy. Willy killed him, then tried to kill us when we went to get gas."

"What happened to everybody..." Phoebe wondered, settling her head back down on Gerald's chest. Silence again.

"We should have a funeral." Gerald chimed up. Phoebe looked at him, "For everybody from Hillwood. Marty, Harvey, Oscar, Mrs. Vitello..."

"I agree." Phoebe said.

Meanwhile, Goose had Victor moved from his cell to the infirmary. Doctor Krieg was going to be with them momentarily. Goose stood over Victor while he laid on the hospital bed, his veins getting murkier and more decayed.

"How did you get your hands on this?" Goose asked, his eyes staring at the glowing spark in Victor's finger.

"I've had it for some time General. You were so wrapped up when Miles and Stella returned from San Lorenzo that I decided to take liberties, I had someone chizel off a piece and bring it back to the states."

"And you decided to jam the shard into your finger?"

"Not at first. Everything was under control at Kappa until these idiots tried to stage a coup on me, I decided to add a little extra security, had my best doctor there implant it in my middle finger."

"I didn't think it was real. I thought Miles and Stella were just delusional during their time stranded in the jungle. I thought the Corazon was something they were on a treasure hunt for."

"You're a fool to think that their time down there was relevant to our research. FTi was only a speck of dust back then. I brought us to where we are now, don't forget that. Now are you going to save my life or not?"

"We'll have to wait for Krieg." Goose replied.

In the laboratory, Krieg had finished another test with Shadow-1. As he packed away his equipment, he picked the walkie talkie off his belt and clicked the talk button.

"Ramsay, radio me on channel 4, repeat, channel 4." Krieg clicked off his radio.

Down the hallway, a man in a lab coat sat at his chair. His legs were propped on his desk and his chest breathed heavily. The contents of the magazine he was holding were most likely the cause of his heavy breathing. The man was looking at the glowing curving body of Miss October. His excuse would be that the eyes and face of the naked woman in front of him were what got him excited.

"Ramsay!" the radio boomed at his waist, startling Ramsay out of his wet dream. He dropped the Playboy magazine and picked up his radio.

"Ramsay here, go ahead doc." he replied into his radio.

"Get to the lab, need help putting experimental gear away, I've got an operation to be at."

"Be right there." Ramsay replied. He clipped the radio to his waist and jumped from his chair, kicking the magazine under his desk.

Krieg picked up a vial with murky green liquid inside as Ramsay busted into the room, "Yes sir, watcha need?"

"Take these vials and put them in the coolant room, I've got to be in the infirmary in twenty."

"What the hell is this?" Ramsay said as he unscrewed one of the vials to get a whiff.

"Stop! It's infected brain matter. We have so much to test with. Just get it in the coolant room and be prepared for surgery." Krieg ordered.

Ramsay nodded and walked towards a tall metal door. He struggled with the suction but was able to open the door. As he entered, a small itch bugged his left eye and he blindly rubbed it with his finger.

Outside the coolant room, Krieg shut a small metal case and stuffed it under one of the counters. Next thing, he heard a loud crash from the coolant room and a loud scream.

"Ramsay?!" He called. More crashes and breaking glass echoed from the coolant room and Krieg approached it, "Ramsay, you alright?" Krieg cautiously peaked inside. Ramsay was on the ground, his legs sprawled and several containers piled on top of him, in addition to the shattered glass and fluids that surrounded his body. "Ramsay?"

Just then, Ramsay's body began to twitch. His legs began to bend and move, then his arms which pressed against the floor, picking his torso off the ground. The containers and rubble slipped off his body as Ramsay got to his feet and turned around.

Krieg looked in horror to see decay setting on his face, Ramsay's eyes glowed a darkish red hue. Blood appeared to well in his left eye and drooped down his cheek. Instead of a human voice, Ramsay growled and hummed like an animal, staring at Krieg with a lust for hunger in his face.

Suddenly, Ramsay lunged at him, Krieg was quick to shift to his left as Ramsay missed him. Ramsay turned and charged again without hesitation. His jaws wrenched wide open and aimed for Krieg's neck.

Krieg was able to deflect Ramsay's biting jaws as he held his head in both hands. The infected Ramsay was not ready to give up its meal, and before long both guys were on the floor. Ramsay's jaws began to chomp, attempting to bite any part of Krieg's revealed skin. Before long, Ramsay climbed on top, and Krieg was pinned, unable to move either of his arms.

Seeing that he was close to the wall, Krieg attempted to shift, Ramsay followed suit. As they got closer, Krieg got a better grip on Ramsay's head. When he figured he was close enough, Krieg began to shift and move Ramsay's head closer to the wall. Krieg then put all his energy into his arms, and slammed Ramsay's head into the wall. After several hits, Ramsay's head began to bleed more profusely. The sixth slam rendered his body lifeless but his head not entirely intact. Krieg moved from under the now lifeless Ramsay and stood up.

Krieg, without hesitation, walked over to the opposite wall and pulled down on the bright red lever. A siren echoed through the halls and red neon lights flickered above on the ceiling. Before long, four soldiers arrived at the open door to the laboratory. Goose was with them.

"Krieg, we were waiting for you in the surgery room, what the hell happened?" Goose asked with alarm.

Krieg could only stand in place and shake as one of the soldiers turned off the alarm. His whole body quaked. Stains of Ramsay's blood were caked on his lab coat. Adrenaline made his hands shake vigorously. He looked at Goose, a shiny glitter in his eyes, like a sign of realization.

"You okay doc?" Goose asked. Krieg breathed for a second.

"Ramsay...got infected...within seconds. It was the fastest reaction I've seen yet..." Krieg replied.

They found the porn magazine in Ramsay's office, shoved under the desk, "Still had time to be a perv I guess..." Goose said, tossing the magazine to the floor again. Krieg went to pick it up himself, looking at it.

"Not even the best issue, don't know why you'd want to keep it." Goose chuckled. Krieg continued to look at it, "What're you thinking doc?" Krieg looked at him and then went to Ramsay's desk, opening each drawer until he found the jackpot.

Six issues, all stacked on one another, half naked chicks on the cover of every one of them. Krieg looked at Goose, an odd sense of ponder on his face.

"So what? The guy likes his nudie mags, what's the big deal?" Goose said, still moderately confused.

"Exactly what I'm trying to prove here. We've had dozens of bitten survivors come through here correct? All beyond our saving capacity, but they didn't turn nearly as quickly as Ramsay. Think of who they were. Who was the last one our soldiers had to quarantine and dispose of?"

"That girl and her dad. Dad had a neck bite, wasn't bleeding but it definitely festered."

"And how long did he say he had it?"

"Two weeks, allegedly though doc, how can you prove it when you didn't see it firsthand?"

"Goose, I'm a scientist, I prove things with even only a few variables. Ramsay was in that coolant room for a mere few seconds. I told the idiot to keep away from the samples but he couldn't help scratch his eye or pick his nose or whatever the hell he did to get this shit on him. That's four, maybe five seconds at the most when Ramsay was exposed that Shadow-1 took him over."

Goose rubbed his scalp, "Let me get this straight, you think that Shadow-1 infected Ramsay quicker because he's a pervert?"

Krieg just looked at him, wide eyed, "I can't guarantee that's the answer, but it's the best one I've got."

Goose stepped away and looked down, his eyes wandered around the office, until they laid eyes on Ramsay's porn stash, sitting on the desk for all eyes to see.

"So who's all a carrier?" Goose asked.

"As far as I know, the kid from the plane wreck group was the only one bitten. Victor and everyone else claims he's had that bite for five months..."

"No change?"

"None until they escaped from Kappa apparently. He's got a strong will to live, but he's weak. I had him and Victor put in the same room so I can analyze their blood. For all we know, Victor's infection could be a carrier for Shadow-1."

"I highly doubt that Krieg." Goose said, "His infection's spreading because he has a shard of the Corazon in his finger."

Krieg was wide eyed once more, "How?"

"He says someone on the inside cut off a piece of it when they were in San Lorenzo. If he's right, we need to get it out of him immediately."

"Why would we go to such lengths to save his life?" Krieg asked.

"Cause he believes there's a cure in the Corazon." Goose said. Krieg was bewildered. He sighed heavily and looked away for a second, then he looked back at Goose.

"Okay, let's go check on them."

When they arrived at the door to the room in which Victor and Charlie were kept, they heard a raucous. No one else was around save for a technician walking away from their location. Goose was puzzled by the commotion when he immediately opened the door.

Blankets were tossed on the floor, a thick green substance was stained on them. The bed that Charlie lay on was knocked over. Charlie himself was pressing Victor up against the wall. Victor's eyes were wide, and his forehead sweated with fear. Charlie's back was turned to the duo as they just watched Victor struggle with him.

"Victor!" Krieg called out of panic. Victor looked at them, Charlie's hands gripping him tightly. Charlie whipped his own head around, his eyes glowed the same red color as Ramsay's after he was infected. He snarled and green goo seeped down his lips. He snarled that same animalistic snarl the infected uttered when they spotted prey. Goose immediately whipped out his pistol, hesitant that he could hit Victor.

"No! Don't shoot!" Victor called. Goose just stood there, oblivious to Victor's order.

"General, don't kill him!" Victor said as Charlie continued to fight him, trying to chew a piece off his arm. Victor, being a grown man, was strong enough to hold him at bay. Quickly he whipped him around, and pinned him against the wall.

"Get me some restraints, a leather belt, something!" Victor called.

"Why would we do that, he's infected Victor!" Krieg said.

Victor turned to them, "Because I can save him!"

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To Be Continued.