The Needle Tears a Hole

[xFuckDollx]

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The name's Cat. Or at least, that's what everyone calls me. I know, you're probably thinking it's short for Catherine, but actually my name's Maggie. Somewhere around the age of six or seven my grandmother started calling me Maggie the Cat a reference to some movie from years before I was born. Somehow the name stuck. Over the years some people started calling me The Cat. And finally they dropped the 'the' after a while and I became just Cat. I'm okay with that. It's a good name, better than Maggie I guess. No one is afraid of Maggie, but Cat, well some people will be a little more careful around Cat. Cat's mysterious, maybe a little dangerous. Cat might have claws. These days, it's good to make people think you might have claws. Anything that makes them think twice about fucking with you helps.

Of course, a cool name and pissed off look on my face isn't always enough. That's why I carry Cindy Lou and Big Bertha. Cindy Lou is my weapon of choice. She's clean, silent and requires no ammo. She's for the walkers. Big Bertha on the other hand, she's for the humans, the ones who are too stupid or too desperate to respect Cindy Lou. Big Bertha is usually loud enough to get their attention. And the holes it makes are pretty big too. Sucks that it's gotta be that way, but that's the world I live in now. That's the only world we have left now.

What's left of humanity and the walkers. Not easy sharing a world, with both groups trying to kill the other. Even worse when your own kind is disorganized and petty and running scared, everyone with their own idea of what should be done and who should be making the decisions. The walkers, they're all on the same page, all one mind. Eat people. Simple but effective when you think about it. Of course, I guess if you get right down to it, mankind's mission is just as simple...stay alive...no matter what.

"Time to go," I announced, banging loudly on the white door with it's chipped paint. "Randy. Gus. There's a herd coming this way. You've got two minutes, then I'm leaving you behind."

Turning away from the bedroom door, I stepped back over to the ragged looking couch where I'd slept the previous night. I hadn't bothered to undress the night before, other than taking my leather jacket off. You never knew when a walker would wander by. You couldn't afford to be caught with your pants down, literally. At least, not unless you had someone you trusted to watch your back. And I hadn't quite learned to trust anyone that much.

I heard movement from the bedroom where Randy and Gus had slept. I guess they had taken my threat to leave them behind seriously. That was good, cause I was serious. They had apparently trusted me enough to steal a little alone time the night before. I didn't blame them. Wasn't easy to find comfort these days. If you could find some in a lover's arms, you'd better not pass up the opportunity.

I was slipping Big Bertha back into her holster when the door opened and the two men emerged. Both were tall, athletic and relatively young. Probably one of the reasons they'd managed to survive so far. Old and overweight, not the best recipe for running from walkers. I grabbed the extra hand gun that I'd found in the apartment and slipped it into the empty holster on my other hip, before reaching down and grabbing Cindy Lou off the coffee table by the couch.

"Which direction?" Gus asked as Randy began to gather their bags. He stepped to one of the dirty windows and tried to clear a spot he could see through, but the grime just smeared.

"It's coming from the north east, and it's big," I replied as I grabbed the backpack full of food and ammo that I carried with me. I was already heading toward the door as I slung it over my shoulder. "We gotta move fast. I think west is the best option. Once we clear the city there should be some farmland. We can probably find a place there to hold up for a few days."

"We're right behind you," Randy said as I stepped out of the apartment into the parking lot. I hoped they were, but I wasn't slowing down.

As the engine of my Harley roared to life, Randy and Gus emerged from the small brick building, each carrying several bags. They piled the bags into the Prius they drove and as I pulled out of the parking lot onto the deserted street, they were close behind. Didn't take us long to realize that the zombie herd was even bigger than we'd thought and the streets were already starting to clog with shuffling bodies.

As the adrenaline began to flow through me, I loosed Cindy Lou from the make shift sheath on my bike. One hand on the throttle, I raced past the edges of the herd, using the curved sword to decapitate any walkers that got too close. I'd been in tighter situations in the last couple of years. Hell, I'd been in tighter spots in some of the strip clubs I'd worked at before the walkers came. We were almost clear of the downtown area when I heard screeching tires. I glanced over my shoulder and I slowed.

The Prius was on it's side, smoke pouring from the engine. Randy was trying to climb from one of the windows, but he seemed to be having trouble freeing his legs. As I circled around, I saw why they had wrecked. In the center of the road there was a lone walker. A girl. Maybe four or five. You could run a thousand walkers down without a second thought, but human nature when you saw a small child was to try to avoid it. Even an undead child.

Randy had finally managed to get out of the car but he was desperately trying to kick in the windshield so that he could get Gus out. A dozen walkers were closing in on them. Most people think walkers are slow and easy to avoid. They think that right up until they get caught. Truth is, when you're fighting for your life, everything speeds up, even walkers.

I sped past the front line of the small group of zombies and managed to cut down two of them. It wasn't enough. As I circled back around, I saw them surround the front of the car. Randy managed to take out one but that didn't deter the others. I stopped the motorcycle for a moment. There was nothing I could do. They were zombie food now. I decided not to watch the end. I'd seen it enough. Teeth and hands and blood and organs. Not pretty. Not human.

Time to go. Sheathing Cindy Lou, I surveyed my options, and chose a direction. With a roar of the engine I was in motion and moments later, I was gone. Within an hour, I had passed through the suburbs and soon the city would be nothing more than a memory. Just like Randy and Gus. I had a lot of memories like those now. More than my share, to be honest. I couldn't leave them behind fast enough, I thought, as I sped towards the farmland to the west.

 

[BeautifulDream]

Tasha

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“Hey babe, you finding anything?” The walkie squealed as Sara’s sweet voice filled the room.

Kicking a box out of her way, Tasha pushed the talk button. “Got a few cans of some sort of fruit, not sure if it’s good or not… you got anything?” She kneeled and picked up a back of cigarettes, hoping it wasn’t empty, but of course it was… she couldn’t be that lucky.

“Found a bottle of rum.” She knew Sara was smirking, even though she couldn’t see her. “We could always get drunk later.”

She laughed as she felt the urge to go down the road and join her in that very moment. Sara got very kinky when she was tipsy. But she knew they needed to find some more food, they were down to their last few meals. She found a few more full cans and tossed them into her bag. She pushed the door to the back room open and shined her flash light in before responding to Sara. “I look forward to it… but keep an eye out for anything that we can eat, we need food.”

“Yeah yeah I know…” Sara said. “I’ll keep looking, let me know when you’re done.”

Tasha searched through the room, grabbing whatever she thought they could need. She found enough food to last them at least a week if they ate very little, as well as some batteries that could be used for their flash lights or their small radio. Once she had gone through everything she pulled her walkie off her belt and talked into it. “I’m all done here… I got everything use able. I’m heading your way.”

She made her way out of the building and toward the main street, when Sara’s voice came back.

“Okay babe… I’m almost done here, I’ll meet you at the market in just a--- wait, hang on….” Tia heard the sound of something moving through the walkie then monstrous screech she had come to know so well. Walker! The walkie went silent as she heard a gun shot sound in the distance.

Her heart dropped. “Sara! What’s going on? SARA! Answer me.” There was no response. Shit! She thought as she pulled the twins, matching Beretta 92FS 9mm, jumping into a full run. The store wasn’t too far away, she made it there in only a few minutes. She slowed to a fast walk as she kicked the battered door in, unsure of what she would find.

She’d seen a lot of gore and death since the Walkers came, but nothing compared to this…

Her best friend and lover was on the ground covered in blood. Her neck ripped open and her eyes glazed as they stared straight at her. Even though her eyes were open she knew Sara was dead.

Tasha didn’t realize she was moving slowly toward the woman’s lifeless body until she dropped to her knees next to her. She felt tears sting her eyes. She felt her chest heave in as she sobbed. She covered her mouth with her hand, sick from the sight.

The only thing that snapped her out of hurt was when she heard movement behind her. She turned her body quick, lifting one Beretta up and pulled the trigger hitting the male walker right between the eyes. Spending 3 years in the military, she knew how to shoot.


It’s been about six months since she lost Sara. She shot her in the forehead and burned the store to the ground, with her body still inside. Now, still at the farmhouse where they stayed, it felt so empty. She hadn’t seen another living human since that day. She imagined it was because most of them were now Walkers. The rest were most likely already dead. She wondered if she was the last living human.

Tasha aimed her sniper rifle down to the field below, she adjusted the sights only a little before pulling the trigger, watching as the Walker’s head exploded behind him.

She was surrounded by fields, which worked out great because she could see any thing coming her way. The lower house was boarded up with only one way to get it, and it was only possible from the inside. Her domains was up in the attic, again blocked up well. There were two ways into her attic. The stairs that could only be accessed by inside and the window where she could climbed up onto the roof for sniping.

Anytime a herd came she simply remained still and quiet. They would scratch and pull on the doors and windows trying to get in, but they soon would get bored and leave the house be.

She moved to shoot another when she heard the deep rumble of a bike scream down the road. Another human? She wondered looking toward the road where the sound came from. She only had to wait a moment until the bike came in view, it was being driven by woman, and a fit one by what she could see.

Tasha shook her head, figuring the woman would never come toward her safe house, so she was surprised when the bike turned onto the dirt road and headed toward her.

 

[xFuckDollx]

I'd been riding motorcycles all my life, ever since that first time my grandfather had let me ride behind him when I was six or seven years old. He'd made me promise not to tell my mother and as I rode out of the suburbs and into the flat, green farmland to the west, I could still remember that feeling of rebellion. That and the sun warmed leather of the seat against my legs, my arms wrapped tight around Daddy Bill's waist, my eyes closed as the wind whipped against my face. It was fun and pure and innocent.

My second time on a motorcycle was nearly ten years later. I was fifteen and just beginning to develop into the willful, hormone crazed teenager that I would become. Boys had begun to pay attention to me the year before and by the time I hit fifteen, men were noticing me too. One of those men was Steven Kuhn. He lived around the corner from me. In his early twenties, Steven had joined the army when he was just eighteen and had been discharged after an injury had left him with a limp. He was handsome and tough, with a darkness about him, and just the type of person my mother wouldn't want me hanging out with. So naturally, I found myself attracted to him.

He would let me hang out in his garage and watch him while he worked on his bike. And every so often he would take me for a ride. I lived for those bike rides. The little taste of rebellion I'd felt as a young girl when I went for a ride with my grandfather was nothing compared to what it felt like to ride with Steven with his lean, muscled body and the chip on his shoulder and my eyes wide open. I would hold him tight and press my chest against his back while the engine roared and shook between my legs. I still remember that garage too. The smell of oil and gasoline. The dim light casting a yellowish pallor over the motley collection of tools and cans and auto parts that seemed to cover every surface. That garage became a part of who I was.

After my mother and I moved away from the neighborhood, I didn't see Steven Kuhn again, and I didn't get a chance to ride a motorcycle again until I was in my twenties. I'd dropped out of college and started working in strip club on the outskirts of town. The money was good. Good enough that after a year of dancing and getting guys to buy me watered down drinks, I had enough money to get my own bike. A year of lap dances and handjobs. It was worth it. If for no other reason than the fact that the Harley I bought would eventually save my life. I'd ridden away from the first wave of walkers on that bike, and I was still riding. Still running.

Cat quickly left the city behind, then the suburbs, following a slender two lane road that led into the rolling hills and green trees to the west. As quiet and serene as it seemed it was difficult to feel any comfort. She may have left behind the mass of walkers that was sweeping across the downtown area like a plague of locusts but she had no way of knowing what she was riding into. One thing she did know for sure, she was going to need more food and supplies. The bulk of what she'd managed to collect with Randy and Gus had been in the Prius.

About ten miles into the farmland, Cat saw a narrow dirt road that led to a small cluster of buildings. Deciding that it was as good a place as any to start looking for supplies, she slowed her chopper enough to make the turn. As she started toward the main house, something caught her eye. Sunlight glancing off of...a scope. Her eyes scanned the rooftops where she was sure she had seen the flash and sure enough she caught a flicker of movement. Some one was up there.

Cat considered turning around and leaving. People weren't keen on helping strangers like they were before the dead began to rise. They were just as likely to shoot her as they were to invite her in. Not that she blamed them. She wasn't big on trust herself. But, then again, if they'd wanted her dead they probably could have taken her out already, she thought. If they didn't want her there at all, they could have at least fired a warning shot.

Deciding to chance it, Cat continued on to the building where she's seen the movement, pulling up in front and killing the engine. Careful not to make any fast movements, she pushed the kickstand into place and climbed off the bike. "Sorry for dropping in without calling first," she called out loudly. "I was just traveling through and thought I would look for some supplies. Didn't realize there was anyone staying here until I'd already pulled off the road. The name's Cat."

 

[BeautifulDream]

Tasha watched as the girl parked the bike and stepped off, keeping the sniper rifle aimed at the girl’s head. She considered pulling the trigger and killing the girl right then and there, but Tasha wasn’t a killer. She would defend herself if needed, but the girl was most likely just looking for a safe place. Somewhere to spend the night, food to eat. She glanced around the room at her supplies, which were already running low. She couldn’t spare it. Food was hard to come by and if she fed this girl then she would run short.

Of course, she could always travel to the near by military base again to grab more MREs, but that was a risky journey. The base was crawling with Walkers last time she went. Hell she barely made it out of there. Luckily she also found a military jeep that still worked. So the trip would take less time if she did go.

It still didn't change the fact it was Walker Central.

She wanted to tell the intruder to leave, to go before she attracts more Walkers. But at the same time, she wanted the girl to stay. She had been alone for so long and maybe the girl had some news about what was going on.

“Shit…” Tasha whispered as she pulled the gun away. In the end she knew she had to do the human thing. She grabbed one of the twins and slipped a magazine in, cocking it back so it was ready. If the girl tried anything stupid, she would be ready to shoot her. Clicking the safety off she made her way down the stairs and unlocked the bolt on the door. The only accessible doorway was in the back, also bolted shut, she took the lock off and slowly made her way around the building, her gun at the ready.

The girl could be playing you… she may have more guys hiding out… she thought, her eyes scanning the fields around her before rounding the final counter to see the girl standing there.

“Cat… are you alone Cat?” She shouted across the drive toward the girl, the gun pointing at her stomach. “Are there any others with you I should know about?” She took small steps toward the girl until she was about fifteen feet from her. “I’ll find out if you lie, and one of us will most likely regret what happens then.”

 

[xFuckDollx]

It's funny how easy it was to be friendly and compassionate before the walkers came, before it could cost you your life. Now people can't afford to put themselves out for a stranger, not unless they might be able to give you something in return. It's all about survival now, for me, for everyone. You can hear it in their voices, see it in their eyes. We all fear the undead, but even when they aren't around, there is still plenty to fear...starvation...insanity...each other. Sometimes the desperation is almost too much to handle.

"I'm alone," Cat responded, turning slowly toward the female voice, her hands held up shoulder height to show that she wasn't armed. She'd intentionally left her weapons on the bike. It wasn't good to look too dangerous, especially when you knew there was at least one sniper rifle aimed at your head. "I was traveling with a couple of guys but I lost them back in the city."

"A herd," she added as she slowly slipped her jacket off and tossed it over the seat of her motorcycle. "Unfortunately, they had most of the supplies in their car. I was hoping to find some food and other things at one of the abandoned farms."

Cat finally located the source of the voice, spotting the end of a rifle extending from behind the corner of the building, then a brief glimpse of a girl's face framed in long brown hair. "I understand if you don't want me here. Just say the word and I'll move on. I'm sure I can find what I need at one of the other farms," she offered, doing her best to make sure the girl didn't feel threatened. Especially if she wasn't alone.

 

[BeautifulDream]

Tasha stood in front of the rotten farm house staring at the girl. Her finger moved to click the safe on the Beretta, the stranger appeared to be no threat. Of course, if she did anything to appear otherwise, Tasha could have the gun ready quickly.

She lowered the gun, resting it against her thigh as she glanced the girl over. She didn't appear to be bitten or scratched, she also didn't appear to be armed either. Appearances can be deceiving. That's one thing she learned when the world went to hell.

She nodded her head to the bike before pointing toward the second building a few steps away. "You can put your bike in there... it doesn't lock but no one will be able to get to it." She said with a slight smirk, she could see it perfectly from her attic and her sniper rifle made picking unwanted guest off easily. She took a few steps toward the girl and her bike, "I suggest we get hurry to get out of the field. Never know who's lurking around here..." She reached her free hand out, keeping the other at ready with her gun. "I'm Tasha..."

 

[xFuckDollx]

Simple human contact isn't simple anymore, not even a handshake. These days when you shake someone's hand you aren't looking them in the eyes, instead your scanning their hand and their arm, looking for signs that they might have been bitten. The slightest scratch can be suspicious. If you're not looking at their skin, you're probably looking past them, watching to see if they have friends hiding nearby, watching for walkers, watching for whatever the next surprise is going to be, wondering whether this is the one that finally takes your life...

"You can call me Cat," the brunette said as she finally stepped forward and accepted Tasha's hand in a brief, but firm handshake. As she stepped back, Cat turned her back to the other girl and moved toward her motorcycle. It was a risk, but it was also a chance for her to show Tasha that she was willing to trust her. It took everything she had to do it, and the whole time her skin crawled. When she reached the bike she sighed softly. Well, she didn't shoot me in the back when she had the chance, I guess that's a good sign.

Cat finally glanced back at the brown haired girl, "I'm gonna bring my weapons with me, if that's okay with you," she said as she reached for her sword and her gun. She moved slowly so as not to startle the other girl. Strapping her holster around her waist and slipping Cindy Lou's sheath over her shoulder, Cat turned back toward her host and started in the direction of the main house. "How long have you been staying here?"