Zombie Drabble #235 “Extreme Measures”

They were shooting through the broken windows, making a last stand, when the world lit white-hot and the ceiling fell in.

Some time later, Joely woke in pain. He dug himself out from under the plaster and pieces of furniture, and started looking for the others. He found Chuy sitting on a lawn chair in the parking lot, surrounded by charred zombie remains.

“They nuked us, Joely. They fuckin’ nuked us, man.”

“Yeah.”

“Are we gonna get cancer now? Leukemia? Something like that?”

I laughed. “You’re worried about your life expectancy? Really?”

“I’m just saying, man, goddamn, this is Ohio!”

Zombie Drabble #234 “Bouncer”

“Every man for himself,” he’d said. Big guy, tough guy, the kind who must have been used to intimidating his way through life. “What’s mine is mine, and I ain’t sharin’.”

We all agreed. Later, when he got grabbed — and screamed for help — nobody was particularly disposed to move very fast. He was bitten, of course.

“It’s nothing,” he claimed, “leave me alone.”  But we knew better. Mr. Carey from the hardware store shot him in the head, and we divvied up his things. I got the cowboy boots and ten .45 caliber rounds. The boots are a little big.

SF Drabble #218 “A New Lease, Part 2”

Free. I had a new suit, an ident card with credit on it to spend, and absolutely no obligations to any creature living.

I don’t think I’ll stay in town. It’s mostly Oblogo guards from the prison and their families. I’ll always be a prisoner to them. The crawler leaves in an hour. I’ll head down the coast.

Eventually I’ll end up in the city. There’s a spaceport there, but where would I go? Earth? With the government always collapsing, it’s not very safe. And there’s no money to be made. Only local UN scrip on Earth, not Association credits.

Fantasy Drabble #158 “Last Line of Defense”

The King sat calmly on the throne, even as the commotion outside grew louder and nearer. Eventually he glanced towards Yink, who nodded and began chanting.

When the raiders burst into the throne room they were laughing and cheering, their swords and axes red with fresh blood, but the sight of the king refusing to flee in panic incensed them. Yink — an unarmed courtier seemingly praying for his life — they ignored.

Stupidity can be fatal. As the raiders reached the middle of the room they were already turning to dust, their armor falling to clatter empty upon the stone floor.

SF Drabble #217 “A New Lease”

At the end of a hot day under a sun far bluer than Sol, the work party was finally called in. One of the guards pulled me aside and rumbled, “You, human Brooks, go Warden.”

The Warden was waiting for me. “Your period of servitude is over. Time off for leading work party and general good behavior has been applied. Your debt is paid, and you have five thousand credits of savings from bonuses. Crawler will take you to town in twenty shorts.”

I started crying. I don’t know what the Warden thought was wrong with me. He looked uncomfortable.

Zombie Drabble #233 “Personal Habits”

I’ve gotten used to bathing in the river. They can’t get down to the bank on this side because of the retaining walls, and of course zombies won’t go in the water so I’m safe from the ones on the other side.

The fish population has exploded. Maybe the water has cleared of pollution, or maybe it’s just that hardly anyone is left to fish anymore. Either way, they dart past my legs, brushing my ankles and knees as I wash. Some of them are pretty big now.

I need to make a spear. The canned stuff is running out.

Wrote this “Found Note” last year for Lostzombies.com

SF Drabble #216 “Xenophobia”

Everybody’s head over heels for the aliens.

They say all the right things. They’ve given us all this awesome technology: medical advances, cheap power, that sort of thing. They’re even pretty, in a weird, ethereal sort of way.

Maybe I’ve watched too many episodes of the Twilight Zone, but I know they’re up to something. Something bad. Somebody’s got to stop them. If nobody else can do it, I will.

The Anarchist’s cookbook came in real handy. Wasn’t too hard to get the materials. Come the press conference tomorrow, I’m going to send them a message on behalf of mankind.

Zombie Drabble #232 “65dBA Day, 55dBA Night, Residential.”

“It’s driving me crazy.”

She had just come in. Roger looked up from his book and asked, “What’s driving you crazy?”

“The quiet: no cars, no trains, not even dogs barking. It’s eerie.”

“I don’t mind it, personally. It was way too noisy before. Especially next door.” The neighbors had been the type to hang out in the backyard with a stereo playing. As soon as the weather was warm enough, out they would come; but Roger hadn’t heard a peep out of them since the zombie thing started. They had either run or died. “Some people are so inconsiderate.”

Fantasy Drabble #157 “Big Shoes”

“Your Majesty, allow me to present Aelegron the Long.”

The King rose, stepped down from the throne platform as he only did for the most important of audiences. He took the visitor’s hand and clasped it warmly, happily. “I welcome you to my Realm, Aelegron. I understand your visit has been the subject of much excitement at court.”

“I thank your Majesty for his most kind welcome.”

“Tell me, friend, why do they call you ‘Aelegron the Long’?”

The visitor smiled and glanced at the King’s three daughters, who tittered in a corner. “Oh, just a childhood nickname that stuck.”

Zombie Drabble #231 “Time Is On Your Side”

“Grab him.”

Ritchie threw his arms around the zombie, pinning its hands to its sides. “Hurry up, man, this thing is strong.”

Pops knelt down in front of the struggling pair and started working the clasp on the zombie’s watch. “Keep him still for Christ’s sake!”

“You wanna fuckin’ do it?”

“Just keep him still!”

Ritchie held the putrefying corpse as tight as he could. He could feel its skin sloughing off under the suit coat. “Jesus, this had better be worth it.”

Pops had it off. “It’s a Rolex. And it’s still going. Okay, let go and book it.”