Zombies (4 page)

“We walked,” said Michael, staring all about.

“Exactly.  Now follow me,” said Angelica, walking toward the campus.  The men fell in behind their leader.

“Don’t you just love that girl?” asked Michael, sarcastically.

“You had better be careful with talk of love until you figure out what kind of creature she is,” warned the professor.

“She is human like you
and me.  I would stake my life on it,” said Michael.

“All the same
, I wouldn’t be hitting on her until you know for sure.”

“I have no intentions o
f seeking a romantic relationship with the young lady,” said Michael.

“Then you wouldn’t mind if I d
o?” asked the professor.

“Hey, you are too old for her.  She is more my age,” said Michael.

“Just as I thought.  You are thinking about it.  Just remember my warning.  She may be from another world, and they frown on such relationships with humans,” said the professor.

“Will you guys stop talking about me behind my back?  And I better not catch
either of you looking at my butt,” said Angelica.  That warning startled them.  Was she, in fact, human and just playing hard to get? 

It only took a moment for Michael to recall what he had witness the night before.  Yet, he was human and had fought side by side with Angelica.
  That led him to the only reasonable conclusion.  “She is one of us,” said Michael, smiling.

“Yes, but what are we?  Have you considered that?” asked the professor, walking ahead to catch up with the young lady.

“You are just messing with my mind.  For all I know, you both are in on it,” said Michael, loudly.  He noticed the professor spoke with a chuckle and Angelica refused to turn around to face him.  Now he wondered if he was the butt of their joke and had been hallucinating during the whole experience.  After all they were studying the spiritual realm at school.  Maybe this was part of Angelica’s research, and the professor was helping her out with it.  That made perfect sense, yet he still liked the young lady and entertained thoughts of a carnal nature.  His eyes naturally landed on the shapely body of the beautiful girl, and he got caught.

“Michael, what have I told you about that?” asked Angelica.

“Shoot, girl, you can read my mind,” said Michael, totally dumbfounded.

“No, but you
r stares are burning a hole in my butt,” said Angelica, turning to face him.

“Oh, was it that obvious?”

“Well yeah, you can’t hide something like that.  Now stop doing it,” said Angelica, walking away. A few moments later, the silence was broken again.  “Michael!”

“Okay, then stop walking in front of me,” said Michael.

“Then pick up your big feet, or we will be late for classes,” said Angelica.  The professor laughed at the two of them acting like teenagers.  The young man decided it would be much safer walking beside them so he ran to catch up.

“So
, Professor, do you have anything planned for classes today?” asked Michael.

“That is a dumb question
.  Of course he does,” said Angelica.

“Actually I thought we might work on the witch trials
.  You know . . . to see if we can explain human behavior.  I figure there must be something to this good and evil gig.  Maybe there were witches in days gone by.  Then again maybe they are still among us,” said the professor.

“
Are you serious?” asked Michael, doubtfully.

“Sure, why not find the truth?  Isn’t that the purpose of our class?” asked the professor.  Michael noticed the young lady staring at the gentleman in confusion.
  Obviously what the professor said was troubling her, but why?

“I just thought of something.  How is Angelica going to be with both of us all the time?  I have classes to attend,” said Michael.

“The professor can cover it.  You are helping us with research.  The university loves that,” said Angelica.

“I suppose you
’re right.  Yes, that will work for me.  How about you, Michael?” asked the professor.

“If you can get it done, then count me in.  I am tired of all that
school work anyway,” said Michael.

“You will have no reprieve from the work load.  In fact
, you will be working your butt off if you stay in my classes all day long,” said the professor.

“How hard can that be?  Studying about witches and such is not work,” said Michael.

“I will be sure to remind you of that when you start complaining of being overworked,” said the professor with a chuckle.  By now they were approaching the entrance to Dr. Blanchard’s classroom.

“We have a few minutes.  Why don’t you two pull the files for the
Salem witch trials while I prepare my lesson,” said the professor.

“Do we have to work together?  I am afraid of touching her,” teased Michael.

“You are just being factious.  That only applies in certain circumstances, and you know precisely why,” said Angelica.

“So you say, but I perceive you have this thing against guys,” said Michael.

“Keep it up, mister, and you will feel the brunt of your folly.  And you know I can do it too,” said Angelica.  That reminded him of what he thought he saw the night before, but then again he could have been drugged.  Maybe that was it.  They were doing this to him to prove a point.  Now it was making perfect sense.  The two of them were reenacting the situation in Salem to prove how people’s minds can get all messed up during unusual circumstances.  Those thoughts brought a smile to his face.  That was the answer to what had happened in Salem centuries ago, and now it was happening to him.

“You had better wipe that silly grin off your face before I do it for you,” said Angelica.

“You don’t scare me,” said Michael.

“Oh yeah
?  Are you forgetting who I am?” asked Angelica, cocking her eyes.

“You are just a beautiful girl doing research for a dissertation so you can get your PhD,” said Michael.

“I give up,” said Angelica, throwing her arms into the air.  “There is no hope for you.  I am just wasting my time.”

“Children, must you continue this bickering?” asked the professor.

“There is only one child here, and I assure you it is not me,” said Angelica. 

“Whatever
!  Where is this file you refer to?” asked Michael.

“Look it up on your laptop,” said the professor.

“Shoot, I forgot to bring it.  I will have to use yours,” said Michael, eyeing Angelica’s.

“Don’t you dare touch my stuff,” said Angelica.

“There you go again with that paranoia of touching,” said Michael.

“Just keep it up and the next time the demons come for you, they can have you,” whispered Angelica
, attempting to keep her voice low so no one else could overhear her. 

“You guys did that to me.  There are no demons,” said Michael.

“Shhh, someone will hear you,” scolded Angelica as the classroom began to fill up with students.

“This is hopeless.  How am I supposed to work under these conditions?” asked Michael.  The discussion was interrupted by the sound of the buzzer signaling the beginning of classes.
  The students noticed the new members of the class, and the professor felt the need to introduce them.  While both were students at the university, this was their first day in this particular group of students.

“Have a seat
, class.  Please allow me to introduce a couple of unique individuals who will be conducting research while we discuss the Salem witch trials.  The beautiful young lady is Angelica, and her companion is Michael.  Both are excellent students versed on the subject of demons whether fabricated and otherwise,” said the professor.  The class observed the two strangers as they slowly took a seat. 

Immediately Michael seized the opportunity to sit in fro
nt of the laptop to begin his duties.  However, Angelica had other ideas about this arrangement and nudged him aside to take her rightful place.  Moments later they were jostling for the prime spot before finally agreeing to share the honor.  Their actions had not gone unnoticed. 

“Dr. Blanchard, it seems Michael doesn’t
want to work with the beautiful lady.  Mind if I change places with him?” asked one of the male students.  The classroom erupted in laughter with several of the guys whistling as a gesture toward the attractive girl.  They noticed her face turning from a porcelain white to bright red in color.  From that reaction, it was assumed she was somewhat shy, at least when becoming the center of attention. 

Noticing the stares, the professor
immediately stepped in.  “Michael and Angelica will work it out.  Now let’s get busy because as you know we have a lot of material to cover,” said the professor.  He opened his book and began to read silently from it.  After reading a few paragraphs, he paused to ask a question.  “So, Jean, assuming you read the assignment, what is your opinion about the bizarre behavior of the young ladies in question?  Were they faking the illness, or were they in fact suffering from some sort of mysterious medical condition?  Of course they claimed it was brought on by a spell cast by witches.  Charges were filed and many were convicted of witchcraft.  Some were even hanged.” 

After a lengthy pause
, the student began to speak.  “I believe it was due to the pressure being placed upon those accused of witchcraft to confess their wrong.  Many did just that and apologized, thus keeping them out of jail.  Of course they were branded by the stigma for life; but all the same, I can’t say as I blame them,” said Jean.

“Good point, but that doesn’t explain the unusual
condition these people were suffering from,” said the professor.  “Michael, do you have anything to share with us on the subject?”  He was totally caught off guard.  Angelica laughed and nudged him to send a signal.  He was so busy attempting to gain control of the laptop; he had not read anything being displayed on the screen.  However, Angelica had mercy on the poor guy and stepped in on his behalf.

“There are several medical theories being offered.  Some believe this to be the results of psychological hysteria.  As we all know
, they were under attack by local Indian tribes; and that could have a tremendous effect upon the inhabitants, especially the younger girls since they were often abducted by the so-called savages.  Others think it was the results of contaminated grain.  It is believed that a certain fungus will have the same effects as LSD; and in this case, it caused people to hallucinate. 

“
Then there were the animal diseases that could have led to this type condition, including infectious birds that may have spread meningitis.  Rabies is another condition that could cause extreme madness.  It is known to be spread from wild animals to humans. 

“
Then again the people were known to have internal strife and could have used this fabrication to rid themselves of someone they held a grudge against.  Any number of things comes up; and considering the primitive medical knowledge they had at the time, it is highly possible any combination of things could have led to these tragic symptoms.  One thing for certain is that they panicked and began putting to death innocent people,” explained Angelica.

“How do we know they were innocent?  Maybe the
re were witches or some sort of demons controlling their bodies,” said one of the female students.

“That is what these people seem
ed to think, and they went to extremes to remedy the problem.  Before long they were blaming each other for every calamity that came upon them,” said Angelica.

“What do you think was happening?” asked the student.

“It doesn’t matter what I think.  What’s important is what do you think about evil spirits?  Do they exist?  If so, where do they come from?” asked Angelica.  Silence followed.

“Those are all good points
, and I can see many of you are putting a lot of thought in this while considering the possibilities.  Your minds are opening up to the realm of the unknown.  Now let’s consider many of the bad things that are going on in the world today.  Why are there so many violent acts against others—against people they don’t even know—strangers in fact?” asked the professor.

“Are you referring to mass murders?  If that is where this is headed
, I have plenty to say about it,” said one of the male students.

“I suppose that is included in what I am driving at.  So
, Larry, what would you like to share with us on the subject?” asked the professor.

“Have any of you noticed the demonic look in the eyes of those mass
murderers?  I have and it is freaky.  They look like they are possessed by some sort of demon.  But what puzzles me most is why do they take their own life after hurting others?  Couldn’t they just hurt themselves and leave good people alone?” asked Larry.

“Good point!  Now let’s discuss it in greater detail.  First we need to consider the possibility that this is an anger issue and the person is unleashing that anger on others. 
Is it possible that the person could feel vindicated by hurting others?” asked the professor.