Battle Buddy

The baking heat pressed down on Richard, scorching him like a burning torch. Through his visor, he scanned the sea of sand stretching ahead of him, scattered igneous formations glinting like a constellation of diamonds.

A familiar computerized voice rang inside his ears. ‘‘No sign of hostile life detected, Corporal. Proceed with the sweep.’’

As part of Task Force Lazarus, he was one of the thousands of soldiers sent out by Headquarters to search the immediate area for zombies and other aberrant lifeforms that had to be destroyed. According to Colonel Beckham back at base, the eggheads had finally developed a vaccine capable of immunizing the survivors against the viral plague responsible for turning millions of people into ravening, cannibal monsters. But before HQ could proceed to build new settlements, they first had to clear out the zombie infestation.

The coarse grains of sand crunching under his boots, Richard strode forward, following in the direction of the glowing green arrows floating in his vision. Another ten minutes of this sweep and then he’d head back to the base. Unlikely he’d get any action today. Ever since his unit had cleared out that big nest of zombies, he hadn’t seen a single one.

A bead of sweat dripped down his brow and stung his eyes. This was boring as hell. No one to chat with except his battle AI, Roy. ‘‘Hey Roy, think we’ll meet any of those suckers today? This shit’s starting to feel pointless.’’

‘‘I understand your frustration, Corporal, but we’re almost finished with today’s sweep.’’

The following silence was thick in Richard’s ears, the quiet of a funeral parlor. This was a dead landscape, filled with dead things. His chest contracted, a biting sour tang washing through the back of his tongue. The last time he had passed through the desert enfolding Las Vegas, he’d been a ten-year-old kid enjoying an exciting road trip with his parents. Now this place had become a nightmarish hellscape plagued by the undead, surrounding the burnt-out husk of a city. 

It was engraved on his memory, the night he’d spent with Mom and Dad, staring up at the night sky glittering with stars, marveling at the quiet serenity of the desert. At least they’d both died before they could see the world go to hell. 

Well, this is the new normal now. Get used to it. Richard continued to press ahead. He could almost taste the cold beer that’d be waiting for him back at base. One step after another. One step- His visor lit up with a red glow, the jarring screech of an alarm vibrating inside his skull.

‘‘Corporal, there is a living human in the immediate area! Your priority is rescuing that person and bring them back to base.’’

Richard blinked. ‘‘You sure about that, Roy? HQ told us the zombies ate everyone here.’’

‘‘Positive. Retrieve this survivor.’’

Flashing coordinates materialized in his visor and Richard’s heart broke into a gallop. If there really was a survivor, he’d have to find that poor bastard and get him out of here before any remaining zombies sniffed him out.

The landscape passed him in a whirl, his legs breaking out into a fast sprint. When he arrived at a rock-strewn patch of ground, Roy’s voice chimed in again. ‘‘You’ve arrived at the location. The survivor is here somewhere.’’

Richard’s chest heaved in an explosive snort. ‘‘You got to be shitting me!’’ He raked his gaze over the landscape. Nothing. ‘‘There’s nothing here, Roy! Are you glitching on me?’’    He stomped his foot. A hollow metallic sound echoed across the empty stretch of earth. Richard’s heart leapt into his throat. ‘‘Roy, run an underground scan!’’

His helmet pulsed, a faint hum resounding in his ears.

‘‘Richard, we are standing on an underground bunker of some kind. I believe our survivor is in there somewhere.’’

Blistering energy shot through Richard’s veins.  ‘‘Nice work. Now show me the hatch.’’ A swathe of sand started to glow, illuminated in dazzling blue efflorescence.

‘‘That’s the entrance of the bunker, Corporal.’’

Dashing toward it, Richard dropped into a squat and began digging up the dirt with his gloved fingers. His hands worked with furious strokes like a miniature excavator, throwing up heaps of sand. As sweat soaked the back of his fatigues, his fingers scraped against cold metal. Lowering his gaze, he took in the shining steel panel with a handle protruding out of the soil, a massive lock securely wrapped around it.

Reaching for his holster, Richard yanked out his gun and fired point blank at the lock. It gave way in a screech of shattering iron. Grabbing the handle, he flung it open. A pit of absolute darkness stared back at him, even the shafts of sunlight swallowed in the intensity of the gloom.   

‘‘Roy, switch on my headlights.’’

A beam of light poured into the passage, revealing a narrow steel ladder descending into the shadows. Richard scrabbled down the rungs and his boots landed with a muffled thump on the concrete floor. Tilting his head, he scanned the surrounding space and then called out. ‘‘Hello, anyone here? Can you hear me?’’  

‘‘Hello?’’ A woman responded, her tone barely above a whisper. ‘‘Are you real? I mean, you’re-’’ It broke off, and the sound of a strangled sob rolled through the cavernous room.

Richard angled his head toward the voice, his pulse racing. ‘‘You’re safe now, miss. Come out and I’ll take you back to base. Plenty of other people there.’’ His eyes focused on the thin silhouette stepping into the pool of light spilling from his helmet.  

A pair of intense blue eyes met his stare and a young woman staggered forward. A ragged, stained t-shirt hung loose on her thin frame and she stumbled toward him. Tears stains streaked her pale cheeks and her bony shoulders quivered.‘‘I’m Sally. When-when the outbreak started, I hid inside here. Never thought I’d see another human again. Her throat hitched as her eyes misted with fresh tears. ‘‘I’m sorry.’’

Richard moved in to catch the woman when she stumbled and encircled her waist with his arm, holding Sally upright. ‘‘How long have you been here, Sally?’’

‘‘Six, maybe seven months. Her voice cracked. ‘‘My dad knew about this bunker. Built it during the Cold War when the Soviets were threatening to nuke us.He started leaving rations for us here in case something bad happened.’’ She sniffed and brushed a stray strand away from her cheek, tilting her face toward Richard. Her eyes glimmered in the lone shaft of sunlight peeking inside. ‘‘Praise God that you found me. So long without anyone.’’

Richard grunted, his jaw stiffening. After the outbreak, he didn’t believe in God anymore. According to scripture, God had created a world where mankind was supposed to flourish. Well, the zombies had killed off most of the living. What kind of God would allow something so twisted to happen? It was a sick joke, fate bringing him back to the place where he’d experienced the happiest moment of his childhood, only to see it transformed into a zombie infested dump. Nope, life was nothing but random chaos. Most of it bad.

He steered Sally toward the ladder. ‘‘Come on, let’s get out of here.’’ When her knees buckled, he shook his head. ‘‘Never mind.’’ Scooping her up, he slung the petite woman over his shoulder and made his way out of the bunker.

As blinding sunlight soaked them, Roy’s words chimed in Richard’s ears. ‘‘Well done, Corporal! I knew you’d be able to pull it off.’’

The corners of Richard’s mouth tugged into a smile. ‘‘Thank you, buddy. I appreciate that.’’

‘‘Who are you talking to?’’ Sally’s brow scrunched up, her eyes narrowed into tiny slits against the glare. Sweat was streaming out of her pores, drenching her t-shirt. ‘‘I don’t see anyone.’’

‘‘That’s my battle AI, Roy. I know I shouldn’t be chatting with a computer, but it gets lonesome sometimes when I’m all on my own out here.’’   

A giggle bubbled out of her. ‘‘Wish I’d had one down there. It’d have been nice to have someone to talk to.’’

‘‘Awesome thing about Roy is that he’s always so sweet. Rather have him around than my drill sergeant from boot camp, that’s for sure.’’ Richard winked at Sally. ‘‘And feel free to compliment him. He deserves all the praise he can get.’’

‘‘You’re making me blush, Corporal.’’ Roy’s reply had an ironic twinge to it. ‘‘My predecessor, Tim, was all business. He’d have made for a lousy conversationalist.’’

Sally’s eyes twinkled and she gave Richard a playful nudge. ‘‘You’re so cute, both of you.’’

Richard’s cheeks tingled. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d talked to a woman about something other than zombie killing missions.

A sibilant hiss echoed through the dry air and Richard’s heart plunged. What the hell was that!       

His eyes flew toward an enormous sand dune. Its surface rippled like a pool of water and a skeletal form emerged from it like a snake slithering out of a hole. A pair of vacant eyes gawked at him, and the stench of rotting flesh hit him in the face. The zombie shuffled toward them, fold of rotting skin dangling from its cheeks. Alabaster-white bone gleamed against the mottled grey of its face, and it opened its mouth wide, readying itself to take a bite.  

Dropping Sally to the ground, Richard yanked his pistol out of its holster and fired. A single shot between the creature’s eyes. The zombie stumbled back, its head dissolving in a spray of bone shards and decaying meat.

The dunes around them writhed and more zombies shot out of the desert sands. Adrenaline pumped through Richard. He let off more shots. Fire. Reload. Fire. Reload. One shambling figure after another tumbled down. Behind him, Sally’s scream rattled through the blue sky. No time to soothe her now. Had to focus on killing these assholes.

Roy’s urgent tone jangled in Richard’s head. ‘‘Corporal, I’ve sent out a distress signal to any units in the vicinity. Can you hold out until help arrives?’’  

‘‘I’ll do my best.’’ Cordite stung Richard’s nose and eyes, a haze of gunpowder wreathing around him. More spectral figures converged on them, the sunlight shimmering across their cadaverous flesh. His chest tightened, the sickly-sweet stench of death enveloping him like a toxic haze.

‘‘Corporal, you’re down to three rounds!’’

Richard’s mouth peeled back in a snarl, the flashes from his gun barrel lighting up the corners of his eyes. If it came down to it, he’d save the last two rounds for Sally and himself. Better than getting eaten alive by these foul things. 

The screaming whir of propellers rang across the desolate landscape, drowning out the moans of the living dead. Richard jerked his head skyward.

Its sleek form cutting through the hazy clouds, a drone hovered over the seething horde of zombies. Its nose hinged open, revealing a nozzle that glittered like a cut diamond. A vast tongue of bright orange fire shot out, descending on the lurching corpses. Anguished moans rose to a chorus, leaving zombies littering the sands like charred crisps.

‘‘I picked up the signal of a patrol drone and fed it our coordinates.’’ There was a smug note to Roy’s words. ‘‘Nasty beasts, those zombies. If I had a body, I’d say that they make my flesh crawl.’’

Richard’s head swirled, a buoyant giddiness sweeping through his gut. ‘‘You saved our asses, buddy. Best friend I’ve ever had, human or AI.’’ 

Turning back toward Sally, he gave her a shaky thumbs-up and helped her to her feet. ‘‘We’re safe now.’’

Her mouth breaking into a quivering grin, Sally clutched his wrist. ‘‘I don’t know if this is allowed, but maybe we can grab some coffee back at your base? Together?’’

A warm glow kindled within Richard’s chest, a smile sliding onto his face. ‘‘I’d like that very much.’’