Zombies'n'S**t Ep. 51

Knowledge Is Power; But With Power Comes Great Responsibility

I moved towards the back of the room where a large hole opened to the exterior.  The rain had begun to fall in earnest and the world was steadily being obscured by the downpour.  The building adjacent, as luck would have it, also had a large section missing.  I ducked into the other building, Carl and Sophia following.  Sophia raised her voice over the rain and said, "You're not serious about Tennessee, are you?"  I detected a hint of alarm in her tone.  I responded over my shoulder, "That's where he's from.  Damn hick."  Carl punched my ribs and passed me, "Do you even know where you're going?  It'd be faster if we went through the mall, dickless."  I shrugged, "I actually don't know where I'm going.  I am not familiar with this area.  Fart breath."

Sophia giggled, "Not sure if I want to say the 'don't make me turn this car around!' line or see how far you two are going to go with the insults and childish name-calling."  Carl turned around, "We've been doing this for decades, lady."  I paused and mused aloud, "Has it been that long?  Come to think of it, it has!"  I looked at Carl, "You look like s**t for your age."  Carl glared and Sophia shook her head, hiding her smile.

"Shut up and follow me,"  Carl made a rude gesture.  I chuckled and followed him, "How do you know this area, anyway?"  Carl crawled over a fallen bookcase and replied, "I participated in an attack a while back, you weren't there because you were recovering from the buckshot."

I glared at nothing in particular, "It was birdshot."  I heard a noise behind me and Carl and I turned back to see Sophia making a strained expression.  "What the hell is wrong with her?"  Carl asked.  I sighed, "She's a curious sort, she asks way to many questions.  If she doesn't, she liable to explode.  Spit it out."  Sophia stuck her tongue out at me, "Two questions, well one is more of a statement, and screw you John!"  Carl chuckled at our inside joke, but I stopped him, "Don't start with that again."

Sophia couldn't contain herself, "Okay, three, now.  One:  You were shot with birdshot?!"  Carl wheezed, I flipped him the bird and Sophia continued, "Two: what should he not start again, and finally what do you mean by an 'attack'?"

I sighed and looked to Carl for some assistance.  I should have known better; he was sitting with his legs crossed and chin resting on his hand with a grin plastered across his mug.  "Okay, okay," I looked back at Sophia who was, apparently, in the same state of mind as Carl.  F*****g story-time.  "Yes I was shot with birdshot.  Some a*****e shot me during an attack."  I held out a hand when she started to open her mouth to ask more("What's an atta-"), "We'll get to that one.  As for the second," I hooked a thumb at Carl, "this a*****e takes everything I say literally.  So 'bite me' makes him bite me.  So.  Yeah."  Sophia's mouth dropped and her cheeks reddened.

So.

Yeah.

"The last one..."  I trailed off as I looked at Carl.  His smile was gone and he was watching Sophia carefully.  I sighed heavily, "That is the one you are really not going to like.  An attack is just that.  Tons of us get together in large groups and wait for the Normies to do something to get our attention and we start trying to..."

Sophia wasn't blushing anymore.  She looked a little pale, but she finished for me, "You kill everyone you can get to."  I nodded soberly.  I could tell she was remembering what it was like on the other end of the barricade.  I looked back at Carl who seem surprised she didn't start backing away from us.  When Sophia spoke again, I watched her work it out, "So that's why you guys always seemed to wander around in hordes.  You were just waiting for us to make noise.  We always assumed you guys just stumbled around randomly.  With everything that I've learned thus far, it seems ridiculous now.  We really don't know anything about you."  She looked up at us and met our eyes, "I wonder if we could change everything."

Carl shook his head and I stepped off the bookshelf and put a hand on her shoulder, "You also know that something really bad could happen.  We don't even know what'll happen now that we have revealed ourselves to you.  And I somehow doubt that all the other Normies will be as understanding and trusting as you.  This is dangerous and unexplored territory we're in right now."

Sophia pushed my hand off her shoulder, shaking her own head, "So do you just want us to wait?  How long do we wait?  No.  We can change everything.  Now we have to change everything.  People are dying out there and we can stop it."

Author's Note

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this is probably the smoothest and most comprehensive dialogue thus far.