Aftershock Zombie Series (Book 2): Breakdown (A Collection of Survivors Tales) Read online

  Kristopher Lioudis and Valerie Lioudis

  Breakdown

  Aftershock Zombie Series Book Two

  Copyright © Kristopher Lioudis and Valerie Lioudis, 2018

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

  This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

  First edition

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  Contents

  A Quick Recap

  I. BREAKDOWN

  Ian

  Jeremy

  Ken

  Amy

  Daniel

  Vincent

  Jeremy

  Ian

  Max and Rocky

  Reverend Mathis

  William

  Garett

  Ian

  Amy

  Ken

  William

  Vincent

  Ian

  Earl

  Jeremy

  Ranger

  Ian

  Ken

  Amy

  Garett

  Reverend Mathis

  Max and Rocky

  Jeremy

  About the Authors

  Other Works

  Thank You

  A Quick Recap

  To the reader:

  I highly recommend that you read Book One in the Aftershock Zombie Series before you begin this book. But, just in case you can’t, won’t or need a refresher if you have, here is a breakdown of the story and characters from book one.

  First, the story:

  Aftershock begins with the zombie outbreak. There is no big government explanation or news story to tell those not shambling around searching for brains to devour what has happened and what to do. They are left on their own to find safety and supplies. Everything in the system has collapsed, and each person has to come to grips that help is not on the way.

  What they do have is a mysterious flyer that fell down from the sky. On it, there is the promise of a sanctuary and a map leading them to New Jersey of all places. Each group needs to decide if they are willing to risk it all to head off to an unknown destination that could be more dangerous than the undead monsters they will have to face to get there.

  Some of the characters have a secret that may be the way to save what is left of humanity. A few of them are immune to the zombie outbreak. They only know this because they have been bitten, but didn’t turn. No one knows what caused the outbreak in the first place, so knowing why someone is immune is out of the question. Many of them haven’t shared this information with anyone yet out of fear.

  Characters from Aftershock whose stories continue in Breakdown:

  Daniel: Foul mouthed and angry at the world, Daniel was a grunt in the Army when the zombies showed up. His commanding officer had sent him alone into a barn in what Daniel would describe as a suicide mission. He was abandoned by his unit, left with a bite on his leg and shit in his pants. Eventually he ended up with Reverend Mathis and his group. The Reverend wanted Daniel to take a leadership role, but Daniel had no interest in it.

  Amy: At the start of the outbreak Amy finds her brother eating her sister-in-law in front of his three children Garett (16), Zoe (12) and Hannah (5). She suddenly becomes the adult in charge of three kids in the midst of the zombie apocalypse. She realized how important her role was when she was bitten by a zombie, as she assumed the children would be left alone. But that wasn’t the case, as she was immune and recovered from the bite. The small group walled themselves up in her house until the flyers end up in their reach and they decide to head towards NJ. She finds Mick in an abandoned town, and he joins their small group. Amy watches in horror as Hannah is killed by a truck in a place she had hoped would be their new home. Soon after, they meet a group of preppers that are headed towards NJ, too. Garett befriends a girl his age, Emma, who they “adopt” into their small family after her father is killed during a supply run.

  William: Most people would be traumatized seeing their parents die in front of them. Not William. His calm, detached nature allows him to look at the world through a different set of eyes. Where others saw zombies devouring the living, he saw people invading others’ personal space. When he teams up with Ian, he is eager to learn how to be a good soldier just like his friend. His attention to detail and literal interpretation of directions makes him a fast learner. Ian feels a sense of duty to protect William, but at twenty-four years old, William wants to be self-sufficient. That can be difficult when those around you see you as disabled.

  Ian: Locked away in some secret government lab, Ian’s immunity was being tested by doctors who refused to treat him better than a slab on the table. The outbreak ripped through the building leaving Ian on his own to escape and head as far away from his now deceased or undead captors. Lucky for him, all his years of military training gave him a leg up on being prepared for the chaos he would muck through on his way to NJ. He was alone until he found William fending for himself without really understanding the danger he was in. Aftershock ends with the two of them reaching the sanctuary on the flyer.

  Wayne: Wayne’s story starts with him locked with his family in an underground bunker. He spends his time connecting with other preppers on his HAM radio. As much as he hates to admit it, he realizes along with the other preppers that they can’t just ride this one out underground. Those that are close enough to get to the sanctuary in NJ meet up and make a caravan together towards the destination on the flyer. Wayne is the leader of the group without ever really being given the power or title. Every day they let a new member lead the way, but in the end, the large decisions land on his lap. He feels trapped by the responsibility.

  Reverend Mathis: A Methodist Pastor, Reverend Mathis was in his church when the zombies came. First, the humans attacked him and his wife. They desecrated his church with their actions, killed her, and left him for dead. His faith was broken, but a group in need brought him back to the warm embrace of God’s love. Just as he grew his flock, Daniel arrived like an answer from the Lord All Mighty to a prayer for help keeping them safe. His interactions with Daniel have been a test of faith, though, as his resistance to the Lord’s call has caused a rift between them. Daniel went so far as to beat the Reverend to a bloody pulp, but forgiveness is the Pastor’s nature, and he holds no grudge.

  Max and Rocky: Just a good ole farm boy and his dog, Max and Rocky are an unlikely duo to survive long term in the zombie apocalypse. Max found out he was immune to the zombie outbreak when a friend took a bite out of him and his parents spent days waiting for him to die. He miraculously survived, but when his mother was bitten, she was not immune and his father shot her. Just a short while into Max’s journey with his father towards NJ, the nine-year-old had to shoot his father when he was infected, too. This left Max and Rocky on their own. They spent some time with Daniel, the Reverend, and their group, but left due to their constant bickering. At the end of Aftershock, Max and Rocky are on their own and unsure of where they will go next.

  Mick: Before the outbreak, Mick was a bit of a dead-be
at. He was divorced with two children that no longer had any interest in talking to him. His days were spent going to work, then the bar. Rinse. Repeat. The plant shut down as the world fell apart, and Mick and his buddies were left keeping seats warm at the local dive. That all changed when they were attacked there, and Mick escaped with a bite that he was somehow immune to. Amy found him after he had run out of booze and smokes. Before her, his plans never stretched more than his next drag or drink. He quickly fell hard for the woman and her family, and became the protector of their group.

  Vincent: A commercial fisherman off of Long Beach Island,NJ. Vincent and the crew of his ship were at sea when the outbreak occurred. One of the crew brought the sickness with them when they went out on what would be their last trip. Vincent had to fight to stay alive as his fellow shipmates went down one by one. In the end only Earl and himself made it back to land, but not before one of the zombies bit Vincent. Once he discovered his immunity, he decided God chose him to start the new human race, and he began the search for a suitable queen. Jessica, a famous author, had the misfortune of being in his kingdom, and proving she was immune, too. She escaped with the help of one of Vincent’s men, and a well timed breach of their defenses. He had be holding her hostage, and forcing her to attempt to repopulate the Earth with him. Earl, now Vincent’s second in command, will be the only one left that will be in between Vincent and his violent tendencies towards his subjects.

  I

  Breakdown

  A Continuation of Aftershock.

  1

  Ian

  William and I did our time in quarantine. It wasn’t half bad. For three whole nights I could sleep relatively soundly and the food was gourmet compared to all the garbage William and I had been eating.

  You could do a lot worse for a bunkmate than William. He fascinated the shit out of me. His take on everything was pure logic. And he was smart as hell, too. He had memorized his Chain of Command from the C.I.C. all the way down to me (I was honored to make the list) and he could talk through every single step of breaking down an M4, which can be hard to do without one in your hands.

  One night, while we were just shooting the shit, I asked William about the scar on the top of his head. It was pretty gnarly even though the hair around it had grown in and covered most of it up. He told me that a neighbor had tried to kiss him there. I didn’t get it at first, but as the story went on, it started to clear up. He went on for about five minutes, relaying the story of what had to be his mother’s death with zero emotion, which was creepy in and of itself, but when he got to the part about the kiss, I about jumped out of my bunk. From the way he described it, almost like he wasn’t even involved, just reading it out of a newspaper, it all but had to be that he was bitten. And that meant he was immune like me.

  I hadn’t told anyone about my little mishap, not sure about what the reaction would be, but if I survived a bite and William survived a bite… There had to be others. I know that’s why they kept me at the hospital in Virginia instead of just capping me and throwing my corpse in the furnace. I had to wonder how many others there were out there immune to whatever the hell this was.

  I decided to keep this information under my hat, figuring it better to wait until I could make more sense of what it meant. Besides, this was back when I still didn’t know if we were really being held in quarantine, or just being held captive.

  After we passed the three-day mark, we were let out to meet the rest of the group. Mike explained that this was really just a waystation and that most of the survivors they were harboring were holed up at an airport about 20 or so miles away. He said William and I would have to visit there at some point and make the introductions to the rest of the leadership committee. He had already told about them about us via their daily radio communications. Apparently, anybody with a useful skill was given, well, not “special” treatment, but maybe a little more attention. My military experience was apparently a commodity.

  The Major wasn’t kidding about this place being in the middle of nowhere. It seemed about as far into the sticks as you could get in this state. Mike called it the Pine Barrens. And to think, I’d always figured New Jersey was all factories and toxic waste…

  Mike gave us the rundown as William and I ate breakfast our first morning out of quarantine. We were given plates of smoked deer meat, some kind of rough bread and real, honest-to-goodness eggs. Like I said, gourmet after canned goods and vending machine garbage.

  “This place used to be one of those historic village-type places,” Mike began, “You know what I’m talking about? The kind of place they would take school trips to and tell the kiddies about what life was like in olden days. Well, this place was an iron works about 200 years ago. There’s still an awful lot of bog ore out there in the river. Anyway, there’s the old bunk houses that you’ve already seen, the mill, the main house, what’s left of the forge… Lots of old buildings with good heavy walls.”

  “That’s great and all,” I said, “but where did you get the eggs?”

  “Chicken coops,” Mike said, pointing over my shoulder at twin rows of low, wooden huts. I did, in fact, hear the clucking from within and couldn’t help but feel a little like an idiot.

  After breakfast, Mike continued the tour. They had some makeshift radio equipment, CB and HAM, in the mansion and had maintained communications with the airport and even a few other small groups in the area. Comms with those groups had become more sporadic the longer this all dragged out. Like maybe those people kept thinking somebody was going to come and save them, right up until the dead were at their door. Mike said they had scout groups out most of the time, collecting resources, looking for survivors, keeping tabs on a group to the north the was getting sizeable, but keeping mostly to themselves.

  I was more than a little impressed with the work they had done. Wrecked cars were piled at the two road entrances. Fortified ranch fence ran almost the entire perimeter and tripwires had been set through the gaps. Mike explained that the alarms were all silent, which I thought was smart. Any kind of noise seemed to bring those bastards out of the woodwork in droves.

  As if on cue, a little, red light flashed on the side of his radio.

  “South fence again.” He shook his head and called to some of the men. “You may as well come along. It’s the next stop on the tour anyway.”

  I motioned for William to follow me as we took off toward the point of contact, but he was already in tow, weapon in hand, that same steady, matter-of-fact look on his face. We headed out on foot into the woods to the south. A group of about a dozen zombies had tripped one of the alarms at the perimeter and had gotten themselves tangled in the barbed wire strung there. One had nearly succeeded in freeing itself by ripping off most of one its legs down to the bone.

  Mike leaned close to me and said, “This isn’t the largest group we’ve seen in a while. Though it is starting to thin out around here.”

  I nodded an affirmative and leveled my weapon at the one closest to me.

  Mike shook his head, “Too much noise. Don’t know how many more are out there.” He turned to the rest of the group that had gathered, “Fix bayonets.”

  The group did so and moved in to deal with the undead. It looked like they had practiced this maneuver a hundred times. Shit, for all I knew, they probably had. Mike pointed to me, William, and three others to go out past the wire line. “Move out one kilometer in a straight line then sweep your way back. They move in packs. If there are any stragglers out there I want them dealt with, but quietly. We don’t leave these things alive.”

  We headed out into the woods and moved slowly into the trees. Even as we passed out of sight of the fence, I saw several of the group that stayed behind begin to police up the area. They had put on heavy leather gloves, the kind linemen used to handle high tension wires, and were pulling the bodies out of the snarls of wire. By the time we had made it out to one-click marker, I could smell the bodies burning. It still kind of reminded me of roast pork.


  We spread out a little and proceeded to work our way back to the compound moving slowly in a swaying arc. One of the guys found signs that some zombies had been through, and by that, I mean he found chunks of flesh that had scraped off onto the jagged stump of a fallen tree. We made it back to the fence without any additional contact. Cleanup efforts there had just completed, the smoldering remains of our uninvited guests lay in a pile. Two men remained behind to make sure the pyre didn’t start a forest fire and the rest of us headed back toward the main house.

  Outside the back entrance to what had been a mansion a hundred and fifty years ago and was now central command, we stripped off our dirty fatigues and washed up.

  William asked Mike, intent on calling him “Sir” even though Mike had told him it wasn’t necessary, how many zombies he had killed. There wasn’t any wonder or even curiosity on his face, just that same calculating look he got when he was training with his weapon or washing his hands or figuring out whether to eat the bread or the meat first at dinner.

  “Don’t really keep track, kid. I would say…” He scratched his chin affecting a thoughtful pose, “Somewhere between fifty and ten thousand.”

  I chuckled a little as William pooched out his bottom lip and nodded. He was a great mimic for facial expression, but I knew he was only aping what he’d seen others do. Mike’s answer seemed to sate him though and he went back to digging through the pile of clean clothes trying to find a pair of pants in his size.

  Mike turned to me, “You two will likely be headed over to the airport tomorrow. You’ll be introduced to command there and then they’ll figure out what to do with you. Everybody gets a job. I’ve already talked to them about both of you. Could be you’ll end up back here with me guarding the quarantine. Can’t say that would upset me. I kind of like you two and we can always use more people around that know how to handle themselves. They’re busy over there, too. The area was more densely populated so there’s more attention, but then again, we’re the ones broadcasting our location.”