The Graylands (Ending)
Leif
The landscape was beginning to blur making it hard to differentiate between the Graylands and life here on earth for Wesson. It was like living in slate dank twilight without any hopes of the gray turning blue. It reminded Wesson of that old movie with Charlton Heston, “Soylent Green.” “Its people!” he thought and laughed to himself. This time it was live food instead of those tasty little biscuits the masses waited in line for. The sweat, the dreariness, THE GRAYNESS in both worlds was unbearable. His only joy now was stumbling upon a remnant of the past. He missed the simple things that he took for granted like a fresh apple, a sunrise, or the mini whirlwind of rustling leaves scraping along the sidewalk.
Wesson worried about his arm and horrible cough. He worried more about lasting long enough to complete this monumental task. His thoughts went back to a better time. He saw youth and his wife Pam, her gauze dress floating in the breeze waving back and forth and dancing in unison with waves of daisies in an open field. Her smile and doe like eyes looking up at him. He wanted to see her again.
The continuing onslaught of gray ghouls seemed to coincide with the deteriorating fabric of what once was. Wesson was tired but he took comfort in being with Tobit, Chris, Lucy, and Rachael. This was his family now and time was running short. This day was different and the sky was taking on a different hue today. A black aura. A sky that undulated in slow motion black gray and crimson tones. It reminded him of his vision precipitated by Nebiros.
Wesson and Chris were the first to awake and were both surprised how well the others slept given their daunting task. They sipped their coffee as they toiled over the old but solid CB radio, cell phones and parts from an old Panasonic boom box that you could record and play music on. No CD player but a cassette deck that made them think, “endless loop.”
There was an old Fender tube amplifier in the corner under some boxes that Chris used to drum out Smoke On the Water with before Rachael was born. He yanked it out of its dusty lair and thought If they could just record and amplify the cell signal that caused Nebiros so much grief it may buy them time. That is exactly what they did.
Like two nerds in electronics class, they hunched over the circuit boards, and assorted parts, smoke billowing from the soldering iron and cursing as they progressed. Chris and Wesson captured the signal within the ring tone and ran it through the amp. The squelching sound even at low decibels was unpleasant to say the least. With the knob on the amp turned up to 10, it felt like a razor encrusted electric ice pick was being shoved into ones’ auditory canal.
Wesson knew the cell signal booster alone wouldn’t end the apocalypse. He also knew he would have to battle within the Graylands with whatever and whoever he could muster. Jerry Garcia, the army of ghosts in the mist, Rachael and her powers. Then there was Lucy. Whatever it takes.
He also knew that if they were able to push Nebiros and the other demonic duo back into Hellion hibernation there needed to be a plan to stop the rising tide of Zombies that was started by the chemical mold spore concoction.
The THC Hunger deterrent was pretty much useless and it made Wesson question why the recipe was so important. Why was so much weight put on that formula? It didn’t make sense.
Tobit entered the room clutching the brown paper sack with the Zombie heart. He reached inside the bag and plopped it on the table. “Wesson!! Get over here! I want you to take a look at this.” “I was thinking about what Alfie had said. There is a reason he and the Cabal wanted you to have this heart.” (although the reasons may have differed) “I think Alfie had a change of heart!! Wesson let out a big “Hardee har har!”
Tobit may have been right as the information provided was meant to save the world rather than destroy it.
“Wesson! Grab that paring knife on the counter and hand it to me.” Wesson obliged. Tobit massaged the myocardial muscle like he was testing the ripeness of an avocado. As he cut into the rubbery gray tissue a gelatinous ooze spilled out releasing a gas that caused an automatic gag reflex. Tobit reached inside the aorta with his bony finger like an Aye-aye grabbing a tasty grub and revealed a capsule with a note enclosed.
it read:
LUCY IS THE ANSWER. THE TATTOO HOLDS THE KEY TO THE MOLD ANTIDOTE
Alfie was trying to make good on his bad deeds thought Tobit but didn’t dwell on it.
The five sat huddled together in the bunker and Wesson laid out the plan like a lieutenant speaking to a room of cops and detectives.
“I will go with Rachael to the Graylands to summon help from the army in the mist so we can storm and close the gate." He continued. “There have been a million and a half killed in wars just in our country and from what I have seen, some are still restless and would love to lend a hand.
Chris and Tobit will stay here and protect Lucy from Nebiros and his accomplices with the cell signal booster. The cell booster won’t work well on their turf. We need to protect Lucy with everything we have so the mold antidote can be duplicated and mass produced.
Tobit, call upon your old chemical engineer buddies and check around for every pilot, crop duster pilot and plane you can muster up!”
“Most of my buddies are dead but you may run into a few in the Graylands”, said Tobit. “I’ll do my best down here Wesson. You can count on that.”
“Good” said Wesson. “Any other questions?” There was silence.
Rachael sat on her bed and rocked back and forth, eyes fixed straight ahead.
“Rachael! Rachael!!”, Lucy yelled. “Are you OK?”
“Yes I’m fine. I see Nebiros. The gates of hell are opening. Civilization rise and civilization fall, because Nebiros rules us all. Civilization rise and civilization fall, because Nebiros rules us all.”
“Not anymore baby”, said Lucy. “Snap out of it!”
She did and Wesson took her little frail hand in his calloused paw. He thought,
we are in big trouble.
Wesson was surprised to see Jerry waiting for them in the mist and even more surprised to see Lemmy Kilminster all decked out in black donning a WW II army helmet. His t-shirt said Born to Lose Live to Win on the front, Motörhead on the back and Wesson liked that.
Behind him was an army of one hundred thousand ghost troops. A vast improvement from the dead soldier platoon he'd witnessed earlier. Most of the troops were young looking, armed to the teeth and they bristled at the chance to organize and fight evil.
“You read my mind Jerry.”, said Wesson.
“Thought you might need some help buddy.” Jerry winked. “I peeked into the real world and heard your plan. Thought Lemmy might be better suited to kick some ass. I’m built for weed but Lemmy’s built for speed. Tried to get Dio but Ronnie James pretty much wrote the Book of Revelation and he went straight to Hell.” Even Rachael had a chuckle out of that one.
The army assembled and disappeared into the silver gray star dusted milky way toward the gate. They were led by Rachael and Nebiros knew it.
Nebiros called upon his cohorts. Asmodeus, the king of demons commanded Belial, the wicked one to obliterate the army. Nebiros, in his rage made his first and last mistake. He left the gate in Asmodeus’ hands in order to pursue Lucy who'd betrayed him. Rachael could feel his rage as he collided and ripped through the ethereal veil toward Lucy and her protectors. There was no subtleness this time. No kneeling or explaining. The demon appeared in front of Lucy as Chris fumbled with the switches and knobs nervously.
YOU BETRAYED ME
Lucy thinks....
When there is no enemy within, the enemy outside can’t hurt you.
Nebiros coiled back turning red then a blackish metallic blue. A devil cobra appeared splitting its skin, tentacles flailing and fangs dripping venom within inches of her face, she was calm. She was at peace. Chris shouted “Adios Nebiros.” and flipped the switch on the old Fender.
The initial hum caused the diabolic demon to whip its head in his direction. Within seconds the amplified radiofrequency energy kicked in and all hell broke loose. His fury spun off in meteoritic fire spouts that raged hundreds of miles into the abyss. A vacuum of a thousand light years was sucked into one space the size of a quarter and opened on itself. Silence and then immeasurable propulsion rendered the beast into a spray of plasma drifting in the universe.
“Lucy! Are you OK?” Tobit and Chris reached out helping her to her feet. “Lucy we have to go. Wesson called me. He is headed to the gate with Rachael and has help but we need to get you over to my buddies’ lab so he can take a look at your tattoo and start producing the antidote. I have everything lined up but we have to go now.”
They ran from the bunker escaping the grappling Zombies. Several hungry “hangers” were dismembered as Tobit’s car sped off to the lab.
Rachael, Wesson and the marching dead could see the gate in the distance but arrived there in seconds. It wasn’t a gate per se but an opening in the universe. Asmodeus and Belial flanked the opening. Wesson saw his nightmares spilling out of the black hole, and heard a cacophony of desperate cries, moans, and wails too horrifying to describe. He saw all the bad he had done and none of the good.
Rachael saw and heard nothing. “Hold my hand Wesson”, her tiny voice tweeted. It was an odd contrast to the agonizing moans. He held her hand and saw through her eyes. A little child playing in the grass, arms flapping up and down like a little bird and laughing. The smell of fresh cut grass and moist rotting wood filled his senses. A warm breeze lifted the corn silk hair in little tufts as his mother watched from the picnic blanket. Tears now filled Wesson’s eyes and the demons cried.
“We have to feed the gate with the good, the lost and the innocent. Only love can stop it.” One hundred thousand souls marched to the gate. One hundred thousand who died and left their spouses, mothers, fathers, friends and lovers. “General Lemmy” led the way, baton in raised hand as the masses spearheaded the gate. Asmodeus and Belial blasted torrents of energy and fire toward the lines of soldiers toppling them over in wave after wave but the troops poured in like a hoard of killer bees disappearing with lightning speed into the blackness.
Wesson and Rachael were now watching from another liquid realm. Angels from all places came. Nasargie, Barbiel, Jehudiel, Raphael and others joined. Rachael was now the conduit of good and the battle was being won. The demons were outnumbered.
The last soul entered the gate and at that moment a tiny white light appeared from the gate. Total silence and then an expulsion of souls flying out to the heavens. The beauty was unfathomable as lavender plumes, and colors that you could hear and smell enveloped the angelic faces as they met their final destination. As the last soul dissipated so did the city in the mist, melting away as they watched. The gate was shut.
Wesson turned to Rachael and said, “I want to go home now.” She released his hand, and he did.
The last of the walking dead were eradicated and those infected were cured as a result of Wesson and Tobit’s concerted effort. The shadow government and military joined the public sector and flew the last duster plane containing a load of Zombicide over a remote area out west as rumors were circulating that a few of those putrescent pumpkin heads still existed. The Global Cabal and more importantly, evil was defeated.
Lucy, Chris and Rachael sat together on the front porch of their home. They stared out in the distance and saw the “life” coming back. It had only been three months but the sky was clear and bright with purplish hues. Tobit was busy in the kitchen as he was over again for Sunday dinner. He made a mean brisket and it was Rachael’s favorite.
After dinner they all sat outside and had coffee and dessert. Tobit noticed a rustling sound to his right and saw a poor little disheveled squirrel approach him in nervous little jerks. Tobit snapped off a bit of his peach pie crust and offered it to the mangy little feller. It gladly accepted and absconded with the morsel as quickly as it came.
THE END
SKMB -- September -- October 2016