Since the world ended yesterday and all, I thought I'd treat you with a little surprise. Authors Ryan Sayles and Brian Panowich have co-authored this little toxic baby of double-feature called C'MON AND DO THE APOCALYPSE, VOLUME 1, which you can buy here, for a ridiculously low price. They also entrusted me with a prequel flash by Brian Panowich called THE CODE. I don't have much fiction on the site, but I might start taking guests soon. So enjoy that and since you will all need zombie survival training very soon, I'll let Ryan introduce you this bad boy or...rather Ryan was who he was before yesterday. Now he's...this dude. So Merry End of Everything and c'mon and do the apocalypse...
Hey you, get down here! I swear to God if
you draw those things’ attention this way I’ll kill you with them…sorry. It’s
just- yesterday my wife came home from work
with our kid in the back of the car—picked him up from school—and the
kid was turning. Into one of them. Got my wife. I had to put ‘em both down.
That rattles a man.
Whatya mean you don’t believe this is the
end of the world? Ain’t you seen them? They’re dead! Dead but still walking!
Ain’t seen one close up, huh? That’ll change with the way you’re trottin’
around out here. I just saw two of ‘em a block over. Both in business suits,
still pretty fresh. One of them—the bigger guy—he was missin’ his left hand.
Clean gone. That’s how I knew they was already turned.
Yeah, they moan and whatever, but unless
they’re missin’ whole limbs or soaked in blood they look like you and me. Still
think its bullshit? Suit yourself, partner. Just go jack with one when I’m not
around. Serious.
You been bit? No? You lyin’? No? Alright.
Listen, I got a little camp set up on the third floor behind us. Food and
water. Where you headed? Yeah, that’s what I thought. Nowhere. You can come-
Shhh! Get the fuck down! They are those two
I was tellin’ you about! Business suits! Hush! I don’t care if you knew that
guy when he was alive he’s one of them now! Stop! STOP!
Damn it! They see us RUN! Get away from
them! NO! I told ya! I fuckin’ told ya! They’ll fuckin’ eat you! Moron!
Where’s my gun? Damn it to hell where did
that thing fall- no. NO! Get AWAY! GET AWAY!
The Code, by Brian Panowich
Static
“Gold Cross Unit 26, respond to a seizure at
forty four Newbury Ct.”
Static.
“That’s us Phillip, let’s go.”
“ 26, be advised the patient is a juvenile.
Respond on EMS tac one.”
“Step it up Phil, it’s a kid.”
Andre flipped on the emergency lights and siren,
and grabbed the radio.
“26 responding.”
Phillip pulled a U-turn across the four-lane
highway, pushing the ambulance toward their latest call. The evening had
started out slow, but over the last few hours, every available box in the
street was in route to something. Looks like it was going to be one of those
nights.
“Newbury is right off Pepperidge, we should be
there in no time.”
Phillip nodded and weaved the truck through the
traffic.
Andre grabbed the radio again when they arrived
at the residence.
“Dispatch, 26 is on the scene, forty four Newbury
Court.”
The two Paramedics were barely out of the truck
before the front door of the residence burst open. A tall shaggy headed young
man carrying a smaller kid met them in the yard.
“He just started freaking out. I can’t snap him
out of it.”
“Calm down sir,” Andre said, “Can you tell me
some history on him? Does he have any medical conditions?”
“No, man, nothing. I don’t know what’s
happening.”
“What’s his name?”
“Bobby.”
How old is he?”
“Fifteen.”
Andre pulled out his penlight and shined it into
the boy’s eyes, lifting his eyelids to see his pupils.
“Damn, he’s burning up. How long has he had this
fever?”
“I don’t know.” The older kid said. “I came home
and found him laying on the floor like this.”
“How long ago?”
“Maybe ten minutes ago. I called 911 as soon as I
found him.”
Andre motioned to Phillip to get the stretcher,
and took the boy from the young man.
“Is the mother here?”
“No. She comes and goes. I’m his brother, we kind
of just take care of each other.”
“Well, listen to me. Your brother’s fever is life
threatening and we’re going to take him to the hospital, do you have a way to
reach your Mom?”
“What’s wrong with him.” The older boy was
starting to lose it. Tears were beginning to well up in the corners of his
eyes.
“Does your brother do any drugs?”
“What? no. Hell no! He’s a good kid.”
“I have to ask. At this point it could be
anything, but we need to get him to the ER as soon as possible.”
Andre and Phillip loaded Bobby’s shivering lanky
frame onto the stretcher and packed him into the back of the ambulance.
“I’ll run a line on him and hook up the monitor.”
Phillip said.
“No, I got it. You just get us to University.
High flow diesel.”
Phillip acknowledged and hopped behind the wheel.
Andre turned back to Bobby’s brother who was staring through the open back door
of the ambulance in horror.
“We got him.” Andre said. “You can follow us to
University, but don’t speed. And call your mother.” With that, he slammed the
door and Med Unit 26 headed out with a fury.
***
“Dammit, I can’t hold him still enough to get a
stick. I’m going to have to restrain him.”
“Be careful back there ‘Dre, you don’t know what
that kid is on.”
“I can handle it, just haul ass. This poor kid is
circling the drain.”
The kid was on fire and the convulsions were
getting worse. Andre was struggling to get him restrained when the boy slacked
and went still. Andre looked at the monitor with the familiar dread every
Paramedic knows all too well.
“Fuck me, Phillip he’s flat-lining! Goddamn it,
how far out are we?”
“Five minute ETA.”
Andre put two fingers on Bobby’s still throat.
Nothing. No Pulse. He put his ear to the
boy’s bluing lips. Nothing.
“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit,”
Andre straddled the boy and started compressions.
Pushing hard and deep while trying to keep his balance in the speeding
ambulance.
“Get on the horn, Phillip, let them know we’re
coming in hot.”
Phillip grabbed the radio.
“Med 26 to university.”
Static.
“Go ahead 26.”
“We’ve got a full code coming to you.
Fifteen-year-old male. CPR in progress. Two minute ETA.”
“Received 26, we’ll have a team in place.”
“Holy shit, Phillip!” Andre yelled. “I got him
back! Brother, I got him back!”
Bobby was starting to stir underneath Andre and
the movement washed the Paramedic with relief. This kid wasn’t going to die on
his watch. He reached down to the boy’s jugular to feel for a pulse but Bobby’s
head twisted back and forth making it impossible.
“Is he stable?” Phillip yelled back.
“Hell yeah! I can barely keep him on the
stretcher.”
“What are his vitals? I’ll radio ahead.”
“I don’t know. The monitor must be broken. It’s
still showing a flat line.”
“Well fuck it, we’re here.”
Phillip wheeled the ambulance up the tarmac and a
team of Nurses popped open the back doors. They unloaded the writhing, growling
teen and rushed him inside. One of the Doctors looked confused.
“I thought you said this was a code?”
“It was.” Andre said. “We got him back.”
“I would say so.” The doctor said watching the
group of nurses and orderly’s struggle to keep the boy restrained.
***
Phillip finished his verbal report to the counter
nurse with the little bit of information they had on the kid, stripped the
sheets off the stretcher, and wheeled it back outside to the truck. Andre was
sitting on the bumper.
“Good job back there man. You saved a life
today.”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“Hey man, are you alright? You look like shit.”
“All of a sudden I feel like shit too. And look
at this.”
Andre lifted his arm to show his partner a small
wound on the underside of his left bicep.
“I think that fucker bit me.”
THE BEGINING