Congratulations!
3rd Place Best Story - Zombie Survivor Contest
@ Minimates Multiverse
THE FIRST
By: WARBURGER
1
The last man on Earth was just bitten by a zombie.
His entire body winced as soon as the zombie sunk its teeth on his left shoulder. He forcefully pushed the zombie away and turned to face it. The zombie, intent on devouring human meat, lunged towards him. He quickly drew out his gun and fired. He hit the zombie on the stomach and it fell to the ground. It was still alive but the man knew it would die soon. He sat down on a rock next to the zombie and checked his shoulder. He pressed his right hand firmly on top of the wound to ease the pain. The irony of the situation made him smirk.
He was about to board his ship and leave the planet.
His entire body winced as soon as the zombie sunk its teeth on his left shoulder. He forcefully pushed the zombie away and turned to face it. The zombie, intent on devouring human meat, lunged towards him. He quickly drew out his gun and fired. He hit the zombie on the stomach and it fell to the ground. It was still alive but the man knew it would die soon. He sat down on a rock next to the zombie and checked his shoulder. He pressed his right hand firmly on top of the wound to ease the pain. The irony of the situation made him smirk.
He was about to board his ship and leave the planet.
2
He named his ship after himself. It was his way of sticking it to what became of the world and that he is abandoning it to go somewhere else. He does not know whether there are other habitable planets but the risk of the unknown is better than the alternative - a certainty of life spent with flesh-eating monsters.
Upon checking his wounds, the man resigned to his situation and lay down. The creature beside him is now lifeless. In front of him, he could see his ship with the door ajar.
Upon checking his wounds, the man resigned to his situation and lay down. The creature beside him is now lifeless. In front of him, he could see his ship with the door ajar.
For the last few years or months (he can never be sure as sense of time has long since left him), he was scouring the ends of the Earth to look for uninfected humans. What he encountered was just hordes of zombies. He killed a lot of them as he was very skilled in handling weapons. Having all the time in the world with nothing to do and having no people to talk with, the man perfected his survival skills.
The pain is now starting to subside. The man closed his eyes and patiently waited.
He knows not what caused this apocalyptic event. The scientific community was divided whether it was a mutation caused by expansive nuclear testing of every United Continent, or excessive cosmic radiation bombarding the unprotected areas, those countries which were ignored by Global Enclosure Programs. The religious lot claimed it was God’s punishment, or some Biblical doomsday. The man knew better. He was certain God had no part in this. His idea was far less complicated – overpopulation.
By year 2050, everyone was surprised when population reached 100 billion. It was at the same time that oil reserves were practically exhausted. The exponential growth of people meant greater demand for energy and food. Resources quickly dwindled. Societies slowly crumbled and men resorted to base instincts in order to survive. At first, crime rate escalated. There was rampant thievery and everyone became a crook, even those who were supposed to uphold the law. Then, governments collapsed and people had to fend for themselves.
The man’s breathing became rhythmic and slow.
By year 2050, everyone was surprised when population reached 100 billion. It was at the same time that oil reserves were practically exhausted. The exponential growth of people meant greater demand for energy and food. Resources quickly dwindled. Societies slowly crumbled and men resorted to base instincts in order to survive. At first, crime rate escalated. There was rampant thievery and everyone became a crook, even those who were supposed to uphold the law. Then, governments collapsed and people had to fend for themselves.
The man’s breathing became rhythmic and slow.
All animals became food for the starving masses. When all livestock disappeared, wild animals and domesticated pets followed suit. Then, the unconscionable happened – men rationalized eating babies. They considered babies less human because they lack self-awareness. This was the tipping point and there was no turning back. When all babies were gone, men started eating children. At first, parents captured other children to feed their families. Later, parents started butchering their own. Finally, men became monsters and started eating one another. This went on for several years until the cannibals transformed into something both more and less human. It could be due to the transmission of all types of virus and bacteria from consuming other living beings, or the nuclear radiation might have played a part after all. In the end, humans turned into zombies, hungry for another man’s flesh. They existed for the sole purpose of surviving, and that meant eating one another.
The Zombie Apocalypse did not begin with a plague making everyone a walking dead, nor was there any flash of light in the sky. It started from within.
There was no more pain. The man lay motionless.
There was no more pain. The man lay motionless.
After several minutes, he opened his eyes, checked his non-existent wound, stood up and entered his ship.
3
The healing process from a bite still hurts the man every time. Zombie bites were nothing though compared to being burned alive, when he was immolated by the Church for being a Knight Templar.
The man shut the door and went to the pantry to take nourishment before leaving. There was enough food for ten people to last a year. He had hoped to find any companion in his voyage. Unfortunately, he was alone. He is an immortal. Death could not touch him. The man has lived through all World Wars, Renaissance, Crusades and beyond. He met Albert Einstein, when he studied at Princeton. He sailed with Columbus and discovered the New World. He was nomadic in America when it was still his ‘Old World’. However, his memories are hazy. His brain is normal, and he cannot possibly remember thousand years of experience. His most distinct recollections are from recent past and the event that made him eternal.
The healing process from a bite still hurts the man every time. Zombie bites were nothing though compared to being burned alive, when he was immolated by the Church for being a Knight Templar.
The man shut the door and went to the pantry to take nourishment before leaving. There was enough food for ten people to last a year. He had hoped to find any companion in his voyage. Unfortunately, he was alone. He is an immortal. Death could not touch him. The man has lived through all World Wars, Renaissance, Crusades and beyond. He met Albert Einstein, when he studied at Princeton. He sailed with Columbus and discovered the New World. He was nomadic in America when it was still his ‘Old World’. However, his memories are hazy. His brain is normal, and he cannot possibly remember thousand years of experience. His most distinct recollections are from recent past and the event that made him eternal.
He finished his meal and peered at the window. Zombies formed outside. Some were eating the zombie he killed earlier while others were banging his vessel.
The man approached his seat and started the engines. He honored his situation by remembering the most important event in his life, two thousand years ago.
The man approached his seat and started the engines. He honored his situation by remembering the most important event in his life, two thousand years ago.
He was not aware how it happened, but his sisters told him that he died, and a healer resurrected him after four days.
4
4
The ship lifted off.
The man grieves for the world, and is terrified of the perpetual future that awaits him. Immortality is not a blessing, but a curse. He was the first living dead, and the last human alive.
The zombies stared at the ship zooming towards the heavens. If they can still read, they would have learned the ship’s name painted on its side – LAZARUS.
Thanks Luke for organizing the contest.
again! CONGRATULATIONS TO WARBURGER AND ALL THE WINNERS!
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