The Last Bastion of the Living: A Futuristic Zombie Novel (17 page)

“Take a breath,” Maria urged her.
“It helps you talk.”

“You
’
ve returned,” Dr. Curran assured the woman.

“That was fast,” Omondi noted, his dark brows furrowing over his eyes.

“The modified virus appears to affect humans in the same way the original virus did during the plague,” Dr. Curran answered.

“Women and children changed quickly,” Maria said, remembering her history.

“Or maybe I
’
m just more of a badass,” Cruz suggested, getting the hang of taking a breath before speaking.

The next few soldiers were younger and more recently enlisted. Jameson was among the next group and revived
in
seven minutes.

“Can I kill zombies now?” he asked.

“
Inferi Scourge
,” Dr. Curran corrected
.

“Whatever,” James said, struggling to speak above a whisper.

“You
’
ll be killing them soon enough,” Omondi promised.

It was disconcerting
to see
their fellow soldiers die and be resuscitated by the modified virus. Maria was glad that
they didn
’
t suffer through it alone as she had. A
ll
revived
disoriented, but seemed reliev
ed to have come back as
Inferi Boon
.

Dr. Curran
appeared
increasingly tired as the procedures wore on, her staff looking a bit haggard as well. Maria noticed
a few
taking stim-shots more than once. She didn
’
t feel physically weary at all
.
Omondi didn
’
t show any signs of waning energy either.

“I miss coffee,” he whispered to her at one point, his dark keen eyes watching a few techs sipping some of the hot liquid.

“You
’
re thirsty?”

“No, no. I was an addict. I always had to have coffee throughout the day. I think it
’
s the habit I
’
m missing.” He hovered over her shoulder, leaning
over
to whisper to her. Already there was camaraderie between them, a sense of
us
and
them
as they watched the doctor and her techs. “Do you crave food or drink at all?”

Maria shook her head. “No, no.”

“Do you miss anything?”

She gave a short nod. “Dreaming.”

“Dreaming?”

“Yeah. I miss sleep. Dreaming. Have you had the blackouts yet?”

“Three times.”

“It
’
s not like sleep at all, is it?”

Omondi
frowned
. “No, it
’
s more like being dead.”

“Exactly.”

“But then again...” Omondi shrugged “...
w
e
a
re
.”

The procedures continued for hours. The only breaks were when the newly
-
transformed
Inferi Boon
w
ere
transferred to the testing rooms. Maria glanced at the clock on Dr. Curran
’
s pad
,
discreetly noting the passage of time. When her
designated time to speak with Dwayne passed, she sighed
. She missed him so much.

Gideon Lanning entered the room in a white tech jumpsuit. Shoving his dark hair out of his face, he glanced around the room at his colleagues. If he was
hoping
for some reassurance, they gave him none. They treated him just as they had all the other volunteers. With a detached air about them, they strapped Gideon down as they had all the others. Because he was a lot smaller and leaner than the soldiers, the cuffs adjusted several times to capture his thin wrists.

“Gideon, you know what comes next,” Dr. Curran said, leaning over him.

His eyes darted toward Maria, searching her face. She wasn
’
t sure what he was looking for, but he seemed not to find any comfort. He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths.

“You volunteered, Gideon. You
’
re not having second thoughts, are you?” Dr. Curran asked.

“No, no.” Gideon shook his head. “It just feels different being on this end of the procedure.”

Omondi laughed heartily. “It
’
ll be okay, Gideon. Just a little prick and the world goes dark for just a little bit. You
’
ll come back and feel like a new man.”

The big man
’
s laughter alleviated some of the tension that had
been brewing in the room. E
ven Dr. Curran smiled one of her rare genuine smiles.

“Let
’
s begin,” Dr. Curran said.

Gideon opened his eyes, nodding.

Maria and Omondi retreated to a corner out of the way to watch. The techs finished preparing Gideon
,
then
stepped back
as Dr. Curran did a final check of his vitals. Looking up at the robotic arms retracted into the ceiling, Maria was glad that the transitions were now much more personal. With a nod of her head, Dr. Curran motioned to the lead tech who promptly administered the sedative.

Omondi bumped Maria
’
s arm lightly with his elbow and indicated with his eyes Gideon
’
s tightly clenched fists.
Gradually
, the fingers of the restrained tech
unfurled and Dr. Curran did a read
of his vitals.

Another injection resulted in all the monitors ceasing activity. As always, the moment of death made Maria uncomfortable. It was strange watching someone die willingly.

“Let
’
s bring him over,”
Dr. Curran
said.

The one thing Maria truly respected about Dr. Curran was that she
didn
’
t
ask of her techs anything she was not willing to do herself. She had administered the last few
injections of the
Inferi Boon
Vi
rus, but this time
deferred
to the lead tech. Stepping forward, the man
bent
over Gideon and the hiss of the injector slithered through the quiet room.

“He
’
s a little guy. He
’
ll be back fast,” Omondi whispered to Maria.

“How many do we have to go?” Maria wondered.

“About eight,” Omondi answered. “Tired?”

With a smirk, Maria said, “No, you?”

“If not for this damn feeling of being wrapped in cotton I would say this is the best I
’
ve ever felt in my life.”

“I know what you mean.”

The ungodly howl of an
Inferi Scourge
ripped through the room. A tech dropped a pad and leaped from the table as Gideon thrashed upon it. More clamps erupted out of the table, locking over his limbs as the man fought against his restraints. Bloody foam flecked his lips as he gnashed his teeth, his eyes locked on Dr. Curran. She
stood
close to the table, her eyes wide, a stunned
look
upon her face. One of her techs pulled her a few feet away from the table as the large robotic arms unwound from the ceiling. They immediately began to take samples from the howling man.

“What the hell is going on?” Omondi demanded, stepping toward the chaos.

Dr. Curran regained her senses and began to quickly tap away on her pad.

Though the sight of the rabid
Scourge
that had once been Gideon terrified her on some primitive level, Maria
advanced
toward him. His gaze jumped from one tech to the next as tears rolled down his cheeks,
his teeth snapping
. Reaching Gideon, she laid her hand on his shoulder. Consumed with the need to spread the virus and kill, Gideon continued to fight his restraints. He ignored her touch and her presence completely.

“Gideon,” she whispered. “Gideon, if you
’
re in there...”

Foamy blood and saliva slid down his cheeks as he grunted, his body seizing. His eyes rolled up int
o his head. H
is body went limp, his clenched hands once more going still.

“I asked you a question, Dr. Curran. What is happening to him?” Omondi said, towering over the table.

Dr. Curran barely glanced at him. “Give me a moment.”

“I want to know what is happening to my man now,” Omondi persisted.

Whirling about, Dr. Curran glowered at him. “
We
’
re
trying to assess the situation. I suggest you shut up.”

Omondi fell silent, but his mouth was twisted into an angry grimace. He rested his hand on Gideon
’
s arm, his stance protective.

Maria grabbed a sterile cloth from a nearby counter and
wiped
Gideon
’
s mouth and face. No one stopped her. The techs and Dr. Curran attentions were intently directed at the monitors and their pads.

“We
’
re not leaving you,” Omondi whispered to Gideon, leaning over him. “We leave no one behind.”

Resting her hand on Gideon
’
s chest, Maria felt the stillness of his heart. “How did you knock him out? I didn
’
t know we could do that to
Scrags
.”

The robotic arms were busy depositing their samples into the machines set along one wall. Dr. Curran
didn
’
t
look up as she answered. “We didn
’
t knock him out. Like I said, we
’
re trying to assess his condition.”

“
If you didn
’
t knock him out, why
—
”

“I said, Vanguard Martinez,
w
e
’
re
assessing his condition. Perhaps you had best leave the room while we work.”

“We don
’
t leave our people behind,” Omondi said.

“You
’
re not on the battlefield yet,” Dr. Curran snapped back.

“Is it over?” Gideon
’
s voice was a mere rasp.

Startled, Dr. Curran hurried back to his side. “Gideon?”

“Is it over? Am I turned yet?” Gideon stared at the doctor through cloudy eyes.

“Yes,
it i
s
. We had a slight...anomaly though. We
’
re going to need to keep you here a little longer than we anticipated,” Dr. Curran said
swiftly
.

“Anomaly?” Fear filled Gideon
’
s eyes. “What happened?”

“You
’
re going to be okay now, soldier,” Omondi assured him.

Dr. Curran glared openly at Omondi. “We will have to do more tests. The rest of the procedures will have to be rescheduled.”

“We need to move forward and soon,” Omondi reminded her.

“I am aware of the situation, Chief Defender Omondi.”

Silence seemed like the best option in Maria
’
s opinion. She wasn
’
t sure what she had just witnessed
,
but it had unnerved her. Omondi was a man of singular focus
,
as was Dr. Curran. They were already locked in a battle of wills. Maria kept her hand on Gideon
’
s shoulder and his gaze slid toward her. Fear was in their depths, and she squeezed his shoulder
,
trying to reassure him.

The door to the room opened behind them
.
Maria was not surprised when she heard Mr. Petersen
’
s voice.

“Chief Defender Omondi and Vanguard Marti
nez, could you please follow me?
”

Reluctantly, Omondi stepped away from the table
,
giving Gideon a thumbs up. Maria smiled at the frightened man
before following
in Omondi
’
s furious wake.

The door had barely slid shut when Omondi
’
s proper tones, edged with anger, cut through the air. “You said the procedure was safe.”