Drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip dripdripdripdripdripdropdripdropdripdropdripdrop a cloudy sky begins to pour heavily on the zombie infested NYC streets as the rain drops loudly, the clink clanking of a certain knight's armor was being covered up finally providing a much needed silence for stealth purposes in favor of The knight who was walking blindly uptown towards The Bronx with only a couple of stops here and there to collect minor meals and snacks when he was hungry. Fortunately due to the rain The knight was able to walk up to 65th street almost completely undisturbed by anyone or anything.
"It's weird that it's been 23 blocks since I last saw Bob and before that like an hour or so since I saw him after that fiasco downtown that gained him his name. No! No more thinking about Bob, focus! You have to get to The Bronx, it's a safe haven, it's gotta be a safe haven."
For some odd reason the rest of The knight's journey was fairly uneventful as he snuck past the strange circling zombie groups of about five zombies each group with the occasional fence gate set up strategically throughout the streets. Many rotting corpses can also be seem lying down behind the fences as if they had been gunned down while running. The weirdest part about the scene was many of the corpses seemed to have no bite marks on them at all resembling them turning into zombies.
"Hmmmm weird... I wonder what happened to all these people, walking through here seems very ominous as if something is going to happen."
The knight's statement would turn out a foreshadowing accuracy as after walking up 15 more blocks to 80th st without a single problem or interaction he suddenly felt eyes watching his every move. The shadows seemed to dance around him with the streets growing darker and darker due to time passing him by. Out of the corner of his eye The knight sees a rock fly by him hitting the building right next to him nearly missing his head. The knight paused mid step waiting for whoever threw the rock to appear and confront him. Minutes passed before The knight decided to continue walking and as he took his first step another rock flew past him causing him to stop once again. This time however The knight decided he was done stopping his trek through the street and continued his walk. After a few more minutes of rocks being thrown in his direction without a single one hitting The knight had enough.
"Okay! That's enough! I'm fucking done playing around now, stop fucking throwing these rocks at me especially since you're all terrible shots!"
Just as The knight finished his short rant a pebble flew by hitting him on the helmet he wore. Three figures stepped out of the shadows, each of them equipped with more rocks to throw and a melee weapon. The first figure was a short, but toned old man wearing simple jeans and a T-shirt with his melee weapon being the cane he's using to help him walk. The next two figures were twin girls, one wearing their hair long and loose while the other had it cut fairly short, both weilding a small silver knife each.
"Stop right there! My name is Ezekiel Reyes and these are my granddaughters, now may I ask what you're doing stepping into our part of the city? We will defend it with everything we have if it comes down to it. These old bones have still got some fight in them." The old man exclaimed while shaking his cane at The knight.
"Hey! Calm your old ass down I'm just walking through and why the fuck are you acting like you own the damn street? Like dead ass what the fuck do you mean your part of the city? There's only 3 of you here y'all can't just own an entire section of a city. Hell now that I think about it I'm pretty damn sure nobody owns it, if you haven't heard the damn apocalypse has arrived in the form of bitch ass zombies." The knight responded back to Ezekiel in a very annoyed tone still dodging the rocks being thrown at him by the twins.
"You underestimate our numbers and why is it that you are wearing all of that armor? Would it not slow you down when running away from the beasts? Or are you so arrogant in assuming that they are no threat to you despite how many have fallen to their clutches and were consumed." The old man asking the flurry of questions that can be confused as insults stumped The knight.
The knight's eyes were blanked and although nobody could see that due to his helmet it was almost laughably obvious he wasn't paying attention to the old man's onslaught of questions. After the old man had finished his rant The knight suddenly jerked as if possessed for a second.
"Huh? What's happening? Sorry, just felt a chill there for a sec, were you saying something?" The knight asked while stretching his lower back.
"Foolish arrogant brat, I can't stand brats. I swear one of these days I'm going to take my cane and strike it across their heads." The old man whispered to himself under his breath.
"Hey old man! Isn't it a sign of being crazy when you start talking to yourself? Hmmm maybe you have early stage dementia?" The knight teased the old man.
"Brat! My name isn't "old man" it's Ezekiel get it right before I get to using this cane on your head! And I'm not crazy you damn brat if anyone's crazy around here it's you!" The old man responded to The knight's idea of light teasing.
"Welp it's been fun Old Man, but I gotta run through real quick. You see I got places I gotta reach." The knight said in an attempt to end the growing awkward conversation between Ezekial and him with the two young ladies watching on, but cautious all the same.
The old man stepped to the side directly in front of The knight's path. Sensing a potential commotion between their grandfather and the suited up stranger the twins readied their weapons and stood behind as backup. The knight stopped surprised by the action the three former strangers now acquaintances as he considered them took against him by blocking his path.
"Uhhhhhhhm what in the flying fuck do you guys think you're doing? I just fucking said I had a hell forsaken place I had to reach so why the fuck are you blocking my way. Like I know the bitchy chat we had was probably the most communication you had in months since thing 1 and thing 2 here seem to be mute, but I don't got the fucking time for this shit right now. Deadass, if you wanna talk some more just wait for the possibility of me coming back, you don't gotta take the whole kidnapping route just to gain a friend." The knight ranted out at the three armed people in his way.
"Alright stop chattering like a damn robotic monkey, I'm standing in your way because we do not trust you at all. State where this "place" that's oh so important you have to reach is and maybe we might let you pass." The old man responded in a very mocking tone showing a great deal of disrespect for The knight who he believed has been disrespectful this whole time by continuously calling him "old man" despite him mentioning his name on many occasions throughout the interaction.
"Oh alright, that's actually a very simple fucking question to answer. I'm headed over to the Bronx, you see I got bored of my apartment here in the city, so I decided to head up and explore the shitty borough." The knight exclaimed, giving the old man a thumbs up with his other hand on his hip. The old man can almost see a white light coming approximately where The knight's smile should be if he could see it.
This answer shocked everybody in the area as time froze for a second before they all dropped their guard and their weapons. Laughter filled the streets as everyone believed that The knight was joking around. Once they all calmed down from their laughter to the confusion of The knight the old man Ezekiel began to frown.
"Huh? You're serious aren't you? You young adventurous fool don't you know that nothing exists beyond Harlem. The rest of the world including that borough you so happily want to explore is nothing but a zombie infested wasteland. You wouldn't last a day before the zombies tear apart that armour of yours that you so proudly hide behind and consume your very flesh." The old man said with a solemn tone of pleading.
The knight was momentarily shocked as he heard the words that came from the old man's mouth. These words changed The knight's demeanor as the confusion turned shock suddenly changed into joy. The knight quickly ran up to the now defenseless old man and hugged him, lifting him off the ground in the process.
"Hahahahahahah! Old Man I knew you didn't hate me! And don't worry for little ol me, I'm much stronger than I seem to appear. I mean I've gotta be, to travel all this way in zombie new york." The knight exclaimed while simultaneously revealing that the shock he had wasn't from the news the old man told him but the tone in which it was said which showed the worry the old man had for The knight.
"P-put me down you overactive brat! Did you not pay attention to a single word that I've said? All of that was pretty important information for you to know and I just gave it away free of charge to you. It's very rude of you to just not focus and instead go running off to who knows where in your head! Now focus! I'm trying to tell you that there's nobody left alive outside of New York City, The Bronx has been a dead zone for a long long time now. If you decide to just ignore my warnings and continue heading there you will be turned into zombie chow." The old man again attempted to convey to The knight who had put the old man down while he was screaming at him.
"I hear you and understand you, but you see I know that you're fucking lying to me cause what I've heard is completely different information. You see I have a friend named Bob and Bob told me way back in Chinatown that the Bronx would be a safe haven. It's gotta be a safe haven if it isn't a safe haven and the only people left alive in the entire world is here in New York then I only have one fucking question for everyone. What the fuck is the whole point of staying alive in this shitty zombie infested city? Why don't we just choose the easiest option especially for the planet and let the zombies bite us? I mean clearly the planet no longer likes us and food is gonna start running out after a while too unless you have a secret stash or a farm that could feed all the humans still alive." The knight sarcastically rants to the group after feeling a bit upset at being hugely underestimated.
"You're insane aren't you?" One of the twins finally speaks out with a deadpan look of disbelief on her face.
"Who's Bob? And Is he as insane as you are?" The other twin says in response to The knight's chatter.
The knight's head almost as if he had been struck by a light speed kick swerved towards the twins as his face twisted into a creepy grin that nobody could see anyway due to his helmet. The knight sprints quite quickly for a man wearing a full suit of armor towards the twins and makes a sudden stop in front of them as he screams out at the top of his lungs.
"OH MY GOD! YOU TWO CAN ACTUALLY SPEAK? You know for a second there I was beginning to think you two were mute, but it turns out maybe you're just shy and won't talk to strangers and wait... DOES THIS MEAN WE'RE FRIENDS NOW!"
The twins back up from The knight immediately so as to not be pulled into an unwanted hug just as their grandfather was a few moments ago. The twins glanced at each other as if conveying the same message.
"Yep, This guy is completely insane and has absolutely nothing going on up there in that covered head of his."
The old man fake coughs twice gaining the attention of The knight away from the twins nearby. He walks slowly but calmly over to where The knight is now standing and looks up at the helmet that covers The knight's head and face. A calm wind blows some leaves straight in between the two men which causes The knight to comically start swinging his arms frantically trying to remove the leaves from his sight.
"Fucking leaves! I swear I can never see leaves the same way again after September 29th 2006, such a sad moment I still tear up at the sight of them to this day. Anyway what's up old man why are you staring me down like an old cowboy movie's showdown? It feels like a tumbleweed should just come barreling through so we could start shooting, although I don't really have a gun so it wouldn't be much of a showdown." The knight breaks the silence between the two as it seemed like the old man would just continue to stare him down.
"YOU BLUBBERING FOOL! Stop your insistent yapping already, it seems less as if you're talking to me and more like you're monologing to yourself and a viewing audience. Now I have a proposition for you since you sound so adamant about leaving the last place in the world with humans and running off into the deadlands. Stay here with us for one night, just a single night to rest then you can go merrily on your way to your death. My conscience will be cleared as I will have done everything in my power to save you." The old man calmly explains to The knight after getting frustrated for a second. The old man raises his hand waiting for a handshake to seal the deal with The knight. A small smile can be seen on the old man's face as he thinks back to the neighbors and friends he couldn't save in the past and to atone for it and forgive himself he will try his hardest to save this strange person in front of him.
The knight raises his armored hand and grabs hold of the old man's hand lightly. As this happens The knight looks up to the sky and the buildings around them as he pictures what his life used to be like before the zombies and before the city went to shit. Shaking his head he focused back on the old man in front of him and shook his hand.
"You know what old man, fuck it, if you want me to stay for one night sure I'll stay for one night." The knight says while mindlessly nodding his head to the old man while shaking his hand..
The old man's smile grows as he claps his hands three times before turning around and walking towards 5th Avenue motioning toward The knight to follow him. The rest of the group came out of hiding from behind cars and inside stores to surround The knight, the old man, and the twins leading them to the hideout of the group. They move swiftly, but relatively silent other than the clinging and clanging of The knight's armor as he walks. The members of the group that were originally hidden moved quickly to dispatch the zombies on the street in front of them with a huge sense of trust and teamwork as two people took on one zombie at a time using melee weapons like bats, metal pipes, and knives. They were careful not to be surrounded by the zombies and were silent enough in their kills to prevent more zombies from bombarding them with numbers. The knight could see that each member had a pistol with them and yet decidedly didn't use them instead choosing to use close range melee weapons, some being small enough to have to be a foot away from a zombie to use it successfully. This action confused The knight as he continued walking on while observing the scene before him.
"Hey old man, why don't they just shoot the zombies in the head with their pistols? Wouldn't it make this whole thing go by so much more quickly so we can make it to this hideout of yours." The knight whispered to the old man who was walking next to him.
"What do you want? For the zombies to rush to our location from all the loud noises that shooting the guns would produce? Be sensible about things, I thought you knew these things seeing as to how you carry no guns on you. Now that I'm on the topic I've realized you have no weapons on you in general do you? How did you manage to get all the way out here without a single weapon on these zombie infested streets?" The old man whispers back in response to The knight. Lifting a single eyebrow in the process while glancing at him, his forehead burrowed with wrinkles showing his quite old age.
The surrounding group finish clearing out the path of zombies to the hideout and signal the old man to come quickly and silently as they didn't know how much more time they had before more zombies would arrive in the area. As one thing this group has learned is clearing out an area of zombies never lasts too long on the streets as more zombies begin to replace the ones that were killed. This created a need within the group to move swiftly and quietly so as to not speed up the already inevitable process. The group had finally reached 5th Avenue and now had to deal with the small groups of zombies outside of their hideout which turned out to be The Metropolitan Museum of Art next to Central Park. The group that had dealt with the previous groupings of zombies in their way quickly went back to work picking strategic angles of attack and surrounded individual groups of zombies at a time. While this was happening the rest of the group, which was waiting inside the museum, came out to support them by taking care of the other 2 groups of zombies so that they wouldn't get surrounded themselves as they were attempting to surround one group of zombies.
The knight whistles and says "Wow! Your group really works pretty well together, like goddamn! They're taking out a shit ton of zombies while being outnumbered as if this shit is easy as fuck." Giving a warm hearted compliment to the old man's group as they killed zombie after zombie without taking on a single injury.
"Yes they are quite skilled and seeing as they're finishing up their work, why don't we head on inside already?" The old man says as he continues walking towards the museum with The knight following closely behind him.
Once inside the museum The knight saw how everyone instantly relaxed with the stress of being outside, where the danger lurks, evaporated from their faces. Faces that once held grim frowns and anxious eyes that darted from place to place searching every corner, nook, and cranny, for potential dangers are now smiles and laughter with a sense of calmness surrounding the group. Members even began bragging about individual zombie kills and either how cool they looked or how many kills they achieved while outside. The knight got a sense of the scene being almost like a video game with missions happening outside, then you return to the safe zone for resting and to save the game. The group traveled the museum to where the remaining members of the huge group waited, The Thomas J. Watson Library.
"Everybody! We've returned back safely and have temporarily culled the surrounding groups of zombies, we shall be safe from a zombie hoard attack for a few weeks now that the job is complete. Oh! And also we've come with a temporary guest that we found on the streets on our return here. This armored man here next to me is "The knight" as he hasn't exactly been forthcoming with an actual name as of yet. Now let's all relax and go about our day!" The old man announced to the entirety of his group. His voice echoed within the large room as he looked around to see many groups and individuals. Some people were chatting and laughing while others were playing card games and some individuals were reading from the vast amount of books that the library held.
The room paused for a second as silence reigned while they all contemplated what they had just heard. The silence ended just as abruptly as the room exploded into shouts and cheers with the more reserved members returning to their previous tasks. The more raucous members raised their beers to the sky in salute to their elder and the guest he brought before also returning to their tasks.
"Wow what a lively bunch!" The knight said to the old man as he observed the actions taken by the individuals in their small little groups across the room.
"Yes well it isn't everyday somebody new joins us, even if only for a single night. News around here tends to be pretty grim since we lose a friend or family member to an outdoor expedition every few couple of days. We'll take any good news we can take to celebrate." The old man replies to The knight as he sighs remembering the old friends he lost either to old age or to the zombies, the former being the lucky ones.
"The parties are also to help us forget the times that make us wanna cry and instead remember the moments we live for. We then create new moments to live for so that we are never without hope, kindness, and warmth." The old man continues as he wipes some tears from his eyes that were threatening to fall to the ground.
Just as The knight was about to respond to the old man's words a shout can be heard from across the room. The knight looks over to see a very ecstatic and very drunk man motioning over to him. The old man chuckles as he notices The knight's reluctance to leave his side and gives The knight a sign to go on ahead.
"Go go, I'll be just fine by myself and you should be enjoying yourself considering it'll be your first and last night here according to you. Although if you decide to change your mind we will always be glad to accept you within our numbers."
"Thanks old man! And I'm not changing my mind, I know there's more out there and I wanna explore it all despite you claiming it's a "dead zone" there's gotta be living people outside of the city and I'm going to find them." The knight says filling the old man's heart with hope and sadness.
After The knight's speech to the old man he walked over to the still hollering drunk man sitting at a table with three other people. As The knight gets closer and closer to the table he sees that the group of four were playing some sort of card game before the drunk man paused the game to call him over to them. The faces of the three sober members at the table showed a deep annoyance with the drunken man as he smiles widely at The knight laughing deeply.
"Finally! You show up to our hic humble table. So then metal man hic come sit down so I can e-empty your pockets as well" the drunken man exclaims slowly while slurring his words and throwing an arm around The knight's armored shoulders.
As The knight takes a seat at the table guided by the drunken man who was more leaning on him than anything else one or the sober members, a muscular ginger with brass knuckles on his hands, sighs with a hint of anger and frustration. Just as he was about to get up completely over the antics of the drunk man, another member at the table sitting right next to him puts a hand on his shoulder bringing him back down and calming him.
"Dear, you know how my pathetic and foolish brother gets when he has the slightest bit of alcohol in him. Don't let his drunken actions anger you and make you do something you would regret later." A concise and firm voice comes from the aggravated man's wife.
"Enough with this family squabble and drama! I'm here to play some poker and get my money back from that drunken fool you call a brother." The last member of the table yells out to the others as his small frame disguises his deep and gruff voice, as if it was a weird mutation that caused the two details to belong to the same person.
"Ooooh we're playing poker? Deal me in, I can definitely go for some poker before I go off on my adventure." The knight says to the group ending the argument between them.
The group played for hours as The knight cleaned house with the three sober members only due to the drunken man passing out eventually to the enjoyment of "knuckles" as The knight began to call him. Soon the night came and went as The knight woke up early and left everything from the past day's game of poker to get going on his adventure. Once outside the building he turned around and gave a silent goodbye as he started to walk off towards the Madison Avenue Bridge to head to The Bronx and see what's so bad about the so-called "dead zone".