Total Apoc Trilogy (Book 1): The Horde Rises Read online

  THE HORDE RISES

  TOTAL APOC TRILOGY #1

  By

  TW Gallier

  * * * * *

  PUBLISHED BY:

  Rowdy Rooster Publishing

  Copyright 2016 by Thomas W. Gallier, Jr.

  Cover by Christian Bentulan

  This is a work of fiction. The names, characters, and locations within either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  TABLE OF CONTENTS:

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  List of other titles

  About the author

  The Horde Rises

  Total Apoc Trilogy #1

  "Dude! Dude!" Ralph screamed. "Wake up, Kyle!"

  "Hey!" I grumbled, dragged out of a really great dream about Bethanny D'Arcy. Only she wasn't the stuck up "cool chick" and cheerleader of high school, but a geek obsessed beauty who set her eyes on me. It was my usual happy dream for the past six years. "Leave me alone. It's Saturday."

  I glanced at the alarm clock next to my bed. It was just past 9 A.M., for Christ sake.

  "Get up," Ralph insisted.

  "Too early," I replied. "Go away."

  For the first time in months I didn't have to work on Saturday. Life was good. That meant a long day of gaming with my roomie, Ralph, and our friend, Olivia. First, though, I needed another three hours sleep.

  "Dude, you have to get up," Ralph continued, shaking my shoulder. "It's the end of world! The Zombie Apocalypse is upon us!"

  I stiffened and sighed. He was really pissing me off. Did he even knock before coming into my bedroom?

  "Man, you are such a moron," I growled. "Leave me alone! And stop smoking weed when you play Zombie Hunter. Stupid pothead."

  We both smoked a little weed to relax after work. I usually didn't smoke it while playing video games. Ralph did, though. He really liked weed.

  "I'm not high, man," Ralph said, yanking my covers away. "Get up and watch the news. It's real, dude. I'm not joking."

  "Ralph, I'm going to pinch your head off, dude," I growled, glowering at him.

  He wasn't getting the hint. Was he even paying attention to me?

  "No, look," he said, grabbing my remote off the nightstand. He turned on the bedroom TV and the news came up right off. "See? End of the world, doom and gloom, zombies running amuck."

  I sat up and stared at the TV. If it wasn't a movie that the pothead idiot turned on, then he was right. The middle-aged anchor looked rattled and disheveled, talking about all the crazy things going on. Apparently there'd been a full nuclear exchange after some Middle Eastern country launched missiles at the US. The missile shield saved us, and then Russia, China, and North Korea launched their missiles. Again, the shield over the US and Europe held, while the Middle East and old Communist Bloc countries didn't fare so well against the retaliatory nuke strikes.

  "According to anonymous sources in the Pentagon," the newscaster said. "Our missile defenses were totally expended after those exchanges, but then more missiles from the Middle East, and they haven't confirmed which country, were fired at us. Those proved to be gas warheads, and hit all of our largest cities."

  "We're still alive," I said.

  "Because we're north of the city, and the front going through right now is blowing the gas to the east," Ralph said. "Everyone who breathes the gas is killed and turned into a zombie."

  "No way, man," I replied.

  "Keep listening," he said, fidgeting like crazy with his cell phone to his ear. "It's the friggin' end of the world and no one's answering the phone at my parents' house."

  Someone started pounding on our apartment door. I heard our lifelong friend and neighbor, Olivia, shouting for us to open up. Ralph raced to the door while I continued to watch the news.

  "As crazy as it sounds, there really does seem to be zombies roaming the streets," the anchor said, looking like he didn't even believe it. News video of bedraggled men and women roaming aimlessly around filled the screen. When the camera zoomed in, I could see the blank looks on their faces. Most were covered with blood. Well, their expressions were blank until they spotted a living person, and then rage filled them. "We have video, too graphic to show on TV, of them killing and eating their victims. Those they don't eat rise up a short time later as zombies."

  "Is this crazy, or what?" Olivia asked as she rushed into my bedroom. She paused to look at me in my plain white tee and tighty whities. She actually checked out my junk. I quickly covered myself with a sheet. "Do you guys think they're real zombies?"

  I did a double take. Olivia usually wore rock t-shirts, jeans, and a cap on backwards. She was a total tomboy gamer girl. Yet there she was in a pink "Hello Kitty" midriff top, no bra, and the tiniest excuse for lacy panties. She never wore makeup, but now her long dark hair was bed head tousled.

  "Duh," Ralph said. "Look at them. I've played Zombie Hunter long enough to recognize a zombie."

  "This is insane," Olivia said, gnawing on her lip.

  I had to tear my eyes from her chest, and those perky nipples poking at the fabric.

  "Um… Give me the remote or change the channel," I said. Olivia's attention turned to her phone. She tapped on the screen, and then put it to her ear. Were they pulling a joke on me or something? "This is some movie and you jerks are punking me or something."

  Ralph pointed the remote at the TV. I watched the screen intently. He wasn't going to get away with pulling some kind of practical joke on me. The channel changed to 12, a local station. It was the same end of the world, zombie apocalypse coverage, just from a wild-eyed thirty-something blonde anchor. It was obvious she'd been crying.

  "Oh man, we're so fucked," I whispered.

  My blood ran cold. How could that happen? Had the world gone insane?

  "I can't reach my parents or my sister," Olivia said. "My sister isn't answering, and my parents' number comes back out of service."

  Ralph moved closer to the TV, looking all nervous. He looked between us and the TV several times.

  "No, dude, we've been training for this day our whole lives," Ralph said, actually looking excited. "The three of us are the best zombie hunters in the world."

  "Yeah, we rule Zombie Hunter," Olivia said. She gave Ralph a high five. "I'll go get my controller, and then we can go out and kill zombies. Moron."

  I was relieved to see she wasn't as insane as Ralph.

  "No, no," Ralph said. "I mean we know what to do. How to kill them. We're naturals for this shit, man. We'll be fucking heroes."

  All I could do was shake my head. "How many guns do you have, Ralph? I don't have any. I don't even own a machete. We're fucked."

  "No, no," Olivia said, perking up. "He might be on to something."

  "You too?"

  "Shut up," she snapped, dark eyes flashing. "Listen. Smith's Outdoor Life has tons of guns, and they are selling 'Zombie Bug-out Kits' as a sales promo. It might only be a joke to them, but I checked the kit out last week. It has everything a zombie hunter needs."

  "I can't afford to buy…"

  "Dude, you are so dense sometimes," Ralph said. "It's the end of the world. We don't buy anything. We take what we need. Money doesn't mean s
quat anymore."

  "He's right," Olivia said. "Oh, wait."

  Yeah, as if on cue, the screen changed to scenes of rioting in the streets and looting of stores.

  "I'm sure everyone else wants guns, too, so if Smith's isn't totally looted already, it will be soon enough," I said.

  "Oh! Oh!" Ralph cried. "Jax and Charlie bought zombie kits from Smith's last week."

  Jax and Charlie were friends living on the other side of the complex. Sometimes we all gamed together. I didn't really like them. They were kinda crazy spooky. Plus, they liked to sandwich Olivia between them on the couch, real close and personal. It was so bad that she stopped coming over when they were there.

  "So did Tommy," Olivia said.

  Interesting, but it didn't help us by my way of thinking. I didn't think they would share. Well, they might share with Olivia. They'd probably just shoot me and Ralph.

  Everyone was your enemy during the zombie apocalypse. At least that was true in the game.

  "If they went to work in the city today, then they are probably zombies now. Or dead," Ralph said. "We can take their bug-out kits."

  "Let's go find out," Olivia cried, heading out of the bedroom.

  "Mind if I put on a pair of pants first?" I asked.

  Olivia stopped and slanted an odd look my way. Then she looked down at herself, turned bright red, and crossed her arms over her chest. I chuckled when she squeaked before racing from the room.

  "Damn, I'd like to tap that," Ralph whispered. "Did you see her camel toe?"

  I did. It gave me thrill chills. I wasn't sure why she covered her chest and ran away, she was showing a lot more down below.

  "Shut up," I said. "She's more my type."

  "In your dreams," Ralph said as he headed out the door.

  "How did you know?"

  I rolled out of bed and pulled on my khaki trousers. I didn't own any hiking boots like they wore in Zombie Hunter, but I had some Nikes. Then I pulled on a red polo, wishing I'd pulled the trigger and ordered that set of camo fatigues.

  Picking up my phone and unplugging the charger cable, I called my mom's cell number. I got the no service message. So I call the house land line, but no one answered. I glanced at the TV, knowing they wouldn't have the foggiest idea what to do in this situation. My insides twisted. All I could do was try again later, so I stuffed the phone in my back pocket and headed for the living room.

  Ralph was waiting when I stepped out into the living room. He wore a blue hoodie, Zombie Hunter t-shirt, and khaki shorts. He looked exactly like his character in the Zombie Hunter game, down to the black socks and sneakers. Olivia returned then, now in a green polo, jeans, and hiking boots, with a baseball cap on backwards. After seeing Ralph, I was kind of hoping she'd show up looking like her Zombie Hunter character, a Lara Croft knock off.

  "Let's go," I said. "Tommy's apartment is closest."

  Ralph picked up his crossbow. Olivia shook her head.

  "A bow won't kill a zombie," she said.

  "How do you know?"

  "They are undead."

  "Crossbows work in Zombie Hunter," he insisted.

  "That's a friggin' game!"

  "We'll see."

  Sometimes I didn't think either one of them had two brain cells to rub together, despite both being certified geniuses. They would argue over the stupidest shit, though this time I did think she had a point. She just forgot how OCD about the game Ralph could be.

  I led the way out the door. Olivia's apartment shared a landing with our second floor apartment. I paused to look out across the city. The complex was atop a hill, so I could see the city spread out below us in the misty distance. The sky was bright and cloudless, but the view was hazy. Gas? The wind was pretty stiff from the west, so I felt safe enough.

  Then I noticed all of the fires. The city was burning. My throat tightened, heart hammering. Everything was just starting to sink in. The end of the world. The Apocalypse. I never really believed something like that could happen. And if not for a stroke of luck, I'd be at work near downtown that morning. I'd be dead or a zombie.

  "This is so surreal," I said, as Olivia slipped past me and started down the stairs.

  I followed her, with Ralph trying to rush me from behind. What was his big hurry?

  "Be careful," Ralph called. "Watch out for walkers and anarchists."

  We raced across the complex, noting the parking lot was mostly empty. In the current economy, most people had to work at least half a day on Saturdays. Tommy's battered old pickup wasn't in the space in front of his ground floor one-bedroom. Olivia started pounding on his door.

  "Tommy! Wake up!" she cried. "Tommy!"

  Ralph hurried around to the apartment's bay window. He used the butt of his crossbow to smash it out. It was loud and messy, and my first thought was we'd all be arrested for looting. As soon as he had a big enough hole, the skinny geek slipped inside. He opened the front door a moment later.

  "Where does he keep his bug-out kit?" Ralph asked.

  "Check under the bed," I told him. "Olivia, check the closet."

  There were a lot of boxes and stuff on the dining room table. I started sifting through that, while the other two rushed into the bedroom. Tommy had a regular prepper starter kit going atop the table: lots of freeze-dried food and knives, and even a katana sword. I couldn't tell if it was a real sword or a cheap display sword, so discarded it. If it was fake, I’d get killed the first time I tried to use it. Hell, since I didn't know how to swordfight, I'd probably get killed trying to use it anyway.

  "Got it!" Ralph called. "Wahoo! Good shit!"

  He came running out into the living room with a black nylon pack. I saw things like a machete sheathed on one side, binoculars, and a sleeping bag rolled up and hanging off the bottom. It looked pretty full, and heavy.

  "I'll open it up and check what's inside," Ralph said.

  "No time. Whatever he has, we'll take," I said. "Any guns?"

  "Yes," Olivia came out with a sawed-off shotgun in hand and wearing a double shoulder holster with two semi-automatic pistols. "I'm starting to feel like a zombie hunter now."

  "Hey, you don't get all of the guns," Ralph said.

  "You can have whatever you find at Jax and Charlie's place," she said, stepping back and narrowing her eyes.

  "No fighting," I said. "We're all we got right now."

  "You get the pack," Ralph said. "It probably has the ammo for your guns."

  "Thanks a lot," she said, eyeing it warily. "Is it heavy?"

  "Oh yeah," Ralph said.

  "You're a pig," she said.

  Ralph laughed, but helped her get the pack on her shoulders. Olivia made a face, frowned, and then looked determined.

  "Let's go," she said.

  I led the way across the complex. No one else was out and about. I wondered who was still asleep and in for a rude awakening, and who was hiding from the world. Thoughts of gathering all of the survivors in the complex together filled my mind, but for what purpose? Where would we go? Who would be in charge? If not me, then there was the real possibility our weapons and gear would be taken away from us and given to others the group thought bigger and tougher.

  It would be high school all over again.

  Neither Jax's nor Charlie's cars were in the parking lot. I paused to look their building over warily. All of the windows in the lower units were smashed. Why? Looters? Jax and Charlie shared an apartment on the top floor of the three floor building. None of the upper windows were damaged.

  "Olivia, you'll have to give up two of your guns if we're to go in there," I said.

  "Yeah. I think you're right," she said. "I'm keeping the shotgun."

  "I'm good with my crossbow," Ralph said.

  I accepted a pistol from her. I was a computer programmer, not a soldier or hunter. The only guns I'd ever shot were on video games. The weight of it surprised me. It felt solid, dangerous. Fortunately, I watched every action movie that came out, so I knew some things about guns. But, with
a pistol in hand for the first time, I felt inadequate to the challenge.

  "Do you know how to shoot?" Ralph asked, watching me looking the pistol over.

  That pissed me off. Ralph grew up with a hunter father and brothers. He'd actually shot guns before. So had Olivia. I'd always told them I knew guns, but my lies were about to be revealed.

  "I know enough," I said. I hoped. How hard could it be to point and pull a trigger?

  "Enough to get into trouble," Olivia said, shaking her head. "I've already rackd it. Don't do it again or you'll lose a bullet."

  "Cartridge," Ralph corrected her, earning him a dirty look.

  I processed that for a second. Charging a pistol meant to pull the slide back and chamber a round. I knew that much.

  "Does it have a safety?"

  "No," she said. "It’s a Glock."

  "Who says Glocks don't have safeties?" Ralph asked.

  "I heard a guy say that once," she said. "Besides, do you see a safety?"

  I started to get worried again. They were the gun "experts" in our little group, and they obviously didn't know half as much as I thought they did. We were all a hundred percent in over our heads. Olivia acted a good game, but I suspected she was as clueless as me. She was definitely already straining under the weight of her pack and weapons. Ralph was just fucking insane, but enthusiastic.

  "Leave the pack here, Olivia," I said. "Then we'll go up there and get those zombie bug-out…"

  "Aaaaggghhhh!" a middle-aged woman screamed, charging us with wild eyes.

  I had just enough time to note she was all bloody, missing a couple of fingers, and limping. Ralph shot an arrow through her heart. I aimed the pistol at her, but she dropped to her knees, and finally toppled facedown and didn't move.

  "Arrow through the heart stops them every time," Ralph said.

  "Are you sure she was a zombie?" Olivia asked.

  Chapter 2

  We looked back and forth between each other. Ralph shrugged, mirrored by me and Olivia. It was too terrible to contemplate, so I decided she had to be a zombie. After all, she was a bloody mess, missing body parts, so what else could she be? So I headed across the half-empty parking lot and towards the open-air stairs to the third floor apartment, with Olivia to my left rear and Ralph to my right rear. And it occurred to me that was exactly how we moved while playing Zombie Hunter. Old habits.