Generation Zombie

Chapter 18: Too Fast, Not Enough Furious.

The milky van zoomed past a signboard on the highway that said 'Welcome to Farewell! 70mph' in dusty red letters. Elham was going about 75mph, and the engine of the old van rattled with the effort. She glanced at the left side mirror and narrowed her eyes at the black motorcycle that steadily matched her speed. She stepped harder on the accelerator, going 80mph.

The wind freely navigated in and out of the windows, smacking their faces and lodging dust particles into opened eyes. Ruby's heart thudded in her chest. They were going too high above the speed limit. And wasn't the road slippery with rain? Isn't the van being pushed too far? The rattling of the engine was almost deafening to her ears now, along with the violent swooshing of the wind. She nibbled on her bottom lip and tried not to freak out.

Arthur closed his eyes and smiled against the chilly wind. The smell of earth soaked by rain calmed him, and for a moment, he considered poking his head out of the window of the passenger seat. However, the felt it wasn't the wisest thing to do. Elham was after all, going too fast, and who knows what might happen if something causes her to swerve?

Ajax was having the time of his life. He loved fast cars, and by simply closing his eyes, he could pretend to be in a Ferrari, back home in Florida, or further back home in Seoul, cruising the highways. What's better, he had found a Korean sheet mask in the hotel room. He sighed, and relaxed back in his seat next to Ruby. Any moment now, he would drift off to sleep. But it was okay... naps were good for the skin. And considering all the stress he has been through lately...

Ruby fixed her eyes on Ajax; something to distract her from the fact that she was in a rickety combination of metal, shooting through space faster than she had ever gone. Under normal circumstances, she would've admired his handsome features. But the sheet mask, ginormous sunglasses and camera-ready grin simply looked ridiculous in this situation. Could he not feel that they were going too fast?

"Listen, y'all be very careful with this new player okay? She's a d**g addict, and she's in withdrawal. She might also be a criminal, but I'm not sure and I don't want to jump to conclusions." Elham addressed everyone in the car, glancing again at the motorcycle through the side mirror.

Juniper revved her motorcycle and matched the van's speed once more. She could go faster —she usually went faster, but Elham was the one with the GPS that'll lead them to the airport. Her blonde hair whipped in the wind, even though half of it was covered by her black helmet. Under it, beads of sweat formed on her forehead, and her heart rammed against her ribcage.

It wasn't because she was going so fast.

Her body was craving for something she couldn't get her hands on. Once or twice, her vision would blur and goosebumps rose on her skin, unfocusing her with a wave of nausea, before it went away again.

Back in the van, Arthur sneezed and rolled his windows up a bit. "Don't be quick to judge." He replied to Elham's warning that Juniper was an addict and couldn't be trusted.

She cast him a dirty look before glaring back at the empty highway. "Are you deaf? I just said I didn't want to jump to conclusions." She snapped.

They zoomed past a barn, signifying that they were now in the outskirts of Farewell. In exactly twenty-five minutes, they would reach the central city and arrive at the airport. Or so the GPS calculated.

Ruby rubbed her sweaty palm on the rough fabric of her denim jeans. She swallowed and leaned towards the driver's seat a little, her seatbelt still securely in place. "Erm, aren't we going a little too fast?" She asked Elham in a strangled, tiny voice.

"We need to make it to the airport." Elham replied nonchalantly with a shrug.

Ruby huffed and settled back into her seat. "Doesn't mean we have to risk getting into an accident and become flattened pancakes on the road." She muttered under her breath, thinking of all the violent car accidents she had seen on the news and read about in books.

Ajax lolled his head to her direction. "Relax, Ruby..." He said, exhaling with satisfaction and smoothing down the edge of his sheet mask. "If you fret too much you'll develop wrinkles early."

Arthur grinned. "Exactly." He chirped in, for once agreeing with Ajax. In his opinion, Ruby worried too much about everything. Sometimes it was just better to relax and let it go. She had a lot to learn from Elsa in that arena.

"Live fast, die young baby. That's the dream." Ajax chuckled. He tapped her shoulder reassuringly and began to hum a tune.

Ruby parted her lips to say something, but in the next instant, an armored vehicle swooshed by the van and the almost-impact rocked the car to the side. Elham swerved and kept a death grip on the steering wheel, struggling to keep the car on track.

Another armored tank cut into their lane, and Elham reeled the steering wheel and swung the car into a corner. It careened to the side like it was about to topple over, until she slammed her foot down on the accelerator and it regained its balance, lurching forward. The tires squealed, smoke and burnt rubber filling the backseat.

Ajax screamed, holding on to Ruby who was also shrieking with her eyes tightly sealed shut. Arthur held onto the grab handle on his side of the door and tried to see what was happening outside.

Juniper's motorcycle was behind them, speeding to catch up and directly behind her, the two armored, tinted vehicles gave chase.

"What the hell? What is happening?!" He shouted to Elham just as she took another sharp corner and swore under her breath, the side mirror grazing a closed shop.

Her hand switched the gears and she stepped on the accelerator again. They were now closer to the main city and she had to be careful with the buildings and abandoned cars all around. Damn you Escaldo! "It's a side quest. The developers must've added it after that bastard stole my idea." She explained, slamming down on the brakes hard before swerving into a corner again.

Juniper's breath came out in puffs and fogged the glass of her helmet. She turned the sharp corner, her motorcycle grazing the asphalt and creating sparks. Her weight expertly moved to the other side, and the motorcycle was stabilized again, shooting after the van.

The first gunshot got to her tires just as that unfocusing hit of nausea along with the blurry vision hit her. Her motorcycle crashed into something, and then she was airborne; flying and spiraling towards death. Time slowed, and something in the air shifted. Her vision cleared; sharpening to the point that she saw the world in slow motion. Then the van moved under her and her feet landed square on the roof, indenting it.

The second and third gunshot rang, and Elham evaded with the car, missing the bullets by inches. Adrenaline kept her feet on the gas pedal.

"Arthur, think! Use your survival brain! What are we going to do?" She yelled, car swerving left and right, miraculously avoiding the deadly whizzing bullets.

Ajax and Ruby's screams was like a fast-paced background orchestra.

Arthur's head lurched forward, almost slamming into the dashboard. "I don't know, just drive!" He cried out, holding on to anything he could grab for dear life.

Juniper slid into the car through the front passenger’s window. "Give me the wheel." She instructed in a determined voice that stopped any intentions of arguing Elham had. The two of them exchanged spots in a dance of danger as the van lost control for a moment before Juniper brought it back on track.

Elham jumped into the backseat, bumping elbows with Ruby. Her eyes took inventory of the weapons they had. Her g*n only had three bullets left. “Give me your gun.” She said, then slipped her fingers into the holster on Juniper’s waist and retrieved it herself since the Russian-American was preoccupied with driving.

One of the front tires of the van rammed into a curb and the car veered off course. A swerve. A corner. And then they were on the track of an uncompleted bridge. Up ahead, a gap awaited them. Below, a deep river with a rocky bottom stretched wide. Behind them, the armored trucks were still in pursuit; shooting bullets.

“Gap ahead! Juniper, gap ahead!” Arthur warned, his heart in his throat. He was ready to pass out. He held his breath, already feeling the cold waters below engulf and drown him.

Ajax clutched Ruby to his chest. “We’re all gonna die!” He wailed, his sheet face mask upside down, and inside out.

Juniper clenched her jaw and grounded the gas pedal. Three, two, one, airborne!

Elham swore as the ‘98 Chevy slammed back down on the pavement. “I need to get a good vantage point, slow the hell-!”

The rear windshield exploded, shards of glass like bullets peppering the interior. Elham shielded her face. Arthur finally joined the screaming orchestra.

The car spun, wheels trailing smoke around the corner of Farewell ‘55 Street and Hello ‘56 Avenue.

More gunshots rang, Elham returning fire. There wasn’t any success though; the vehicles were bulletproof and she couldn’t see an opening with all the abrupt changes of direction going on.

A roundabout!

Juniper yanked the steering wheel. The tires screamed in agony, their rubber grazing hard against the road. “Hold on! Hold on! Hold on!” Juniper chanted in a high pitched shriek.

Ruby opened her eyes a fraction, her throat sore. She saw the armored vehicle loom closer. She passed out.

Elham looked over her shoulder. “Watch out for the—!”

The van crashed into a third armored vehicle that had intercepted the road, with a deafening bang!

All went silent as the car gave up the ghost and it’s engine died down. Smoke escaped the wrecked bonnet, and the shattered windshield’s glass rained down into the car. The security alarm system wailed, the air bag deflating.

Blood trickled down Arthur’s forehead as he sat propped by the airbag and unconscious. Juniper’s head had slammed into the steering wheel, instantly taking her out. Ajax passed out just as Ruby did, and Elham laid bent over the rear windows of the van. Half of her was in the van, the other half outside. Blood soaked through her purple chiffon hijab.

Seven heavily armed men alighted the tanks. Their faces were concealed under black masks. All seven of them aimed their guns at the wrecked vehicle and advanced cautiously.

When they made sure none of the five people in the car were moving, one of them signaled to someone in the tanker.

The bulletproof vehicle opened and a man clad in a shiny black suit stepped down. One could easily tell that he was Italian from the slicked-back, sleek black hair and neat beard. He glanced around his environment, nodding satisfactorily at his men’s work before lighting a cigarette and leisurely walking to the van.

“Only the woman.” He ordered the men in a thick, Italian accent.

“And the rest?” The bulkiest man of the bunch asked, as the other men lifted Elham’s b****y and unconscious body from the wreckage.

The Italian boss blew a cloud of cigarette smoke before throwing the cigarette down and stubbing it with the heel of his expensive Italian-leather loafers.

He stared at the van with a smirk. “The man-eaters will get to them before they wake up.”

They placed Elham in a tinted Jeep and the doors slid shut.

In the far distance, the zombies scattered around the town snarled and began their journey to the crash site.