Forgetting the Apocalypse

4. Ranks in the New World

I don't remember what the rules were in the old world. What I do know are the ranks of this new world. Granted I had no other choice if I wanted to live but more than ever it is confirmed that daylight hours are off limits.

Against my will, I was forced to walk again during the day because some dead one came into the house I was staying in. Like what the hell? There's plenty of houses to choose from yet this is the second time I'm run out of them.

All I woke up to was a growling noise coming from the kitchen. At first, I thought a dead one had wandered in but that was impossible since I made sure to lock all doors and windows. But walking all day and night yesterday, in my exhaustion I didn't see the dog door.

So, when I opened my eyes, I saw a half dead one. By that I mean this poor former bastard was completely eaten from the waist down. The way he was chewed up made his spine look like a small tail. And boy was he fresh. Just because his only mobility came from his two mangled arms didn't mean he couldn't move as fast as the rest of them. I managed to dodge every lunge he made at me. I ran to a closed door and waited until he lunged again. Pinning him halfway, well half of half of him, I held him against the door and reached for my belt knife to stab him in the head.

Wiping the blade off on one of the curtains, I see more dead ones coming to the house. I may have done my best to keep quiet but buddy over there let out some snarls that alerted the others. So I can't stay here. Meaning another great walk in the sun.

I grab my things quickly and readjusted my sunglasses. There was a small wind up toy that was in one of the rooms, so I turned it on an left in the hallway for the distraction. It worked for the time being.

Not even an hour had passed before I had some on my trail again. Took me four miles to lose them, which actually meant that I bloody tripped and took a tumble down the hill side. All good. A dislocated shoulder is feeble in comparison to bring torn apart and devoured, or even whatever the heck those men had in store for me. Setting it however, really sucked. And thank god for those books, because 0ikotherwise I wouldn't have known how to do it properly. I might've done it wrong and make it worst.

If you want to survive, know how to keep moving. Make sure you know how to tend to your injuries. These are two common rules for the dead and the living.

But I swear if one more thing makes me travel by day again, I'm going to lose my shit! At least I've figured out some tricks and valuable information.

For the dead ones, move only at night and stay silent. If they hear you or are close enough to smell you, they'll let out this high-pitched snarl that will inform the others. It's basically a dinner bell. The loudest of them all is when they physically see you in the flesh, basically confirming that there is food. So the tending to your injuries as fast and as best as you can isn't just so you can make a quick get away but so that they don't smell your blood.

Most importantly, know which kind of dead one you're dealing with.

The newly dead ones, they aren't as decomposed. That means they're fresh, therefore a lot faster, stronger and more aggressive. Kill one, and it seems that the rest take it personal making them angrier. Those don't give up the chase once they tag you, so you better have a weapon handy and know how to use it. However the newly dead are found in lesser numbers.

Those who aren't dead but aren't as old, are the middles. They're not as fast as the newly but just as strong. My guess is that they are probably the second or third wave of people in the world that got turned. Any survivors that were unlucky to have fallen victim into their seemingly never-ending army. They travel in larger numbers, a couple hundred or so. If you can run fast enough, once you're out of sight and hide your scent, they'll usually give up the chase.