Maizen: Return of the Zombies

Chapter 2

"JJ, what's all of this?"

"It's a wall! Now, no zombie will be able to get into our village. Plus, the dispensers I placed at the top will shoot arrows as soon as it detects movement, so we're now completely safe from the infected."

Mikey stared, bamboozled, at the twenty block high barrier that concealed the village from all four sides. He couldn't even see anything past it besides the sky.

"H... how long did it take to build this thing?" Mikey asked.

"All night and all morning." JJ responded casually, sounding pretty proud of himself. "And if I need to, I'll add more secuirty measures to ensure the safety of this village."

"No offence JJ, but I really don't think any of this is nessacary-" Mikey began, but JJ interuppted him before he could pull another one of his dismissive responses.

"This is all just in case." JJ reminded him. "Besides, even if the infected don't reach our village, isn't it useful to have protection anyway?"

"I guess..." Mikey agreed. "But... if the dispensers shoot arrows at anything that moves, won't anyone that tries to visit us get hurt? Like Mary, or Bob?"

"...oh." JJ said. He'd forgotten that some of his teammates from the killer clown takeover visited them ever now and then, even though they lived in a village further away from the one that the infected had come from. Bob would sometimes bring his family, meanwhile Mary would just come to hang out. She didn't come over as much nowadays because of being focused on her marriage with Will, but she would still try to make time for visits. And the others... didn't really make an effort. But that was fine. After all that they had endured with the killer clowns, they deserved to be at peace.

"Well, I doubt they'd come here anyway with the warnings in place by the science lab." JJ said. "Plus, look at how happy the villagers are knowing that they're protected."

Mikey hadn't even noticed that the villagers were going about their day, as if there wasn't any danger. Well, maybe there wasn't, at least not anymore.

"Huh. I guess having walls to protect us is a good idea after all!" Mikey was finally realizing the importance of his new security. JJ was glad he finally wasn't being contradicted anymore, and went back home to get some well deserved rest while Mikey went to finally buy some bread. But when JJ got inside, he suddenly felt the urge to check the news again.

"I probably should. What if the infection got worse? I mean, everything seems okay so far..." JJ turned on the tv. It was more breaking news.

"The warnings in place have now gone from "strongly recommended" to "required by law." A reporter said. "With the inital spreading of what we now call the "zombie infection," villages in the area are in extreme danger. Just this morning, one of them was ravaged beyond the point of no return. In just a moment, we'll be interviewing a survivor of this horrible attack."

The screen cut to a different person, persumably the interviewer, standing next to a woman. She looked as though she's seen... things.

"Are you sure you're ready for an interview, ma'am?" The interviewer asked, sounding geniunly concerned. The woman nodded.

"Of course. All of the other villages need to know about this. They need to realize the danger that's at hand and prepare!" She tried keeping her voice stead, but it constantly wavered as she continued. "When they came, they looked harmless. Strange, but harmless. A few people tried speaking with them, and that's when they attacked. It turns out, when they see people, they turn... violent. No, ravenous! They tore their skin off and ate them alive! And I tried to escape with my daughter, b-but they... t-they got her! They caught her and tore straight into her! And I had to listen to her die! There was too many of them for me to save her- a-and-"

She fell to the ground. She looked insane at this point, rocking back and forth as other people holding cameras came to try and help her out.

"They were so many! They turn so fast! Some of them take long, but other turn in seconds! Y-You can never know! They run so fast, and you can never escape! Never! Fuck this warning, you'll all die! Every single one of you!"

Suddenly, the camera abruptly cut off. Someone had ended the broadcast. The reporter from earlier seemed distrubed by the interview that had just taken place, but he cleared his throat and continued his report.

"The zombies have been reported to be heading towards The West Village. For the residents there, lock yourselves inside of your homes and do not leave until instructed by the law. That concludes this emergency broadcast."

JJ turned off the tv, feeling compltely numb.

"The West Village... that's... where we live."

Realization kicked in. He raced outside immediately, not even caring about who he ran into.

"Everyone, get inside your houses! The zombies are coming!" JJ shouted. Some of the villagers looked at him as if he were crazy, but most of them took him seriously, and instantly started locking themselves inside.

"JJ! What's going on?" Mikey asked, nearly running into him.

"We need to get inside the house, Mikey! I'll explain later!" JJ exclaimed, and started racing back. He knew Mikey was following him, because he always did.

There was one disturbing detail that JJ had noticed while watching that interview. That village that had been attacked? It had strong, sturdy walls. Bigger and better than the ones JJ had installed. And if the zombies could get past that, and manage to do destruction that horrible to a village, then there was no hope for this one. None.

JJ slammed the door behind him once Mikey got inside. He put a lock on it, but there was no use. All he could remember was the burning houses, broken walls, and the blood... it was everywhere. JJ knew, that woman had been one of the only ones who were lucky enough to escape from those creatures. And that village was known for having the best security around.

JJ couldn't deny it. Him, Mikey, and the rest of this village were all going to perish. After all...

It didn't take long to walk from village to village. They would be here soon.