The Fog was the start of it all. Invisible to the naked eye, it crept over the land at a steady pace. Nothing held it back. Not wind, not metal…not even flesh. An unstoppable force of change. Nothing had, could, and would ever stand in its way.

    It moved towards the city, driven by its very nature and bolstered by the dry winds that propelled it forward. Far behind, in the center of the catastrophe that had spawned the cloud, feral creatures lurked. Waiting in the wings for the chance to move in. For a chance to feast on flesh.

    The city remained unaware, its population continuing their bustling lives. Cars screeched, horns honked, voices rang, and above all, the Fog continued its advance towards the unsuspecting town. Unstoppable.

2: Chapter 1

 

    Wren walked through the gates quickly, pulling out her phone as she went. She turned it on and checked her messages, continuing to walk as she did so. As usual, there was a new message in her inbox from her friend, Krista.

    Hiya!

    Smiling, she replied.

    What's up?

    Wren continued to walk quickly, moving around obstacles and people with ease born of long familiarity. Still looking down, she sat down on a bench to wait for the arrival of her friend.

    â€‹Did you see the news last night?

    No. Why?

    There was some weird stuff going on in Las Vegas.

    The phone continued to ring as messages were received and replied to.

    What kinda stuff?

    Creepy stuff.

    Like?

    â€‹Like zombie apocalypse sort of stuff.

    …you're joking.

    Hold on, I see you.

    K.

    Sighing, Wren turned her phone back off and put it into her pocket. Looking up, she saw Krista running towards her.

    "Wren!"

    "Hi."

    There was an awkward pause.

    "So, what kind of weird zombie stuff were you talking about?"

    Krista leaned in and lowered her voice, as if to prevent people from overhearing.

    "That website said that all of a sudden, at like, six o'clock last night, a lot of people just fell down and wouldn't get up. And then, like five minutes later, they'd get back up. Only this time, they were moaning, and reaching for the people who didn't fall down. It said that the guy who wrote the article started his car and ran over several of the zombie people and they got back up. Like nothing happened. Wouldn't it be so cool if it was really the zombie apocalypse?"

    Wren scoffed. "Yeah right. I think you're blowing this up way too much. They probably just had a psychotic break or something."

    "An entire city had a psychotic break, thought they were zombies, and started to eat people alive?"

    “Okay, I know that sounds crazy. But it's more reasonable than the zombie apocalypse. Besides, haven’t you thought that this could all be a hoax or something? A really elaborate one?”

    The bell rang for the start of school.

    "Well, maybe it is. But I don't think so. That thing seemed pretty serious."

    "Uh-huh. Like you haven't seen websites like that before. Were they real or not?"

    "...No, they weren't. BUT, you should still listen to me. It doesn't hurt to be prepared."

    "What, did you bring your 'handy-dandy' zombie survival handbook?"

    "Yes. And don't mock the handbook."

    The two of them began walking.

    Wren snapped off a salute. "Sir yes sir, no insulting the handbook! Understood, sir!"

    "Haha. Funny."

    "I try."

    They neared the gym, where they would change into their P.E. clothes for their first class of the day. As the doors opened and people started walking in, Wren breathed in. And frowned.

    "Do you smell that?" she asked Krista.

    "Smell what?"

    "It's just…something smells funny."

    There was a short pause.

    Then the first people started dropping.

3: Chapter 2

 

    There was chaos as more people started to fall to the floor. The few left standing were mostly kneeling, trying to shake their friend or friends awake. But no matter what they did, the people on the floor remained there, unmoving.

    A cry rose up when one had the presence of mind to see whether or not the victims were still breathing. They were not.

    Wren was standing still, somewhat in shock. The person right next to her had actually fallen into her, and Wren had barely caught them in time. Now, she still stood, trembling and supporting their dead weight.

    Krista, on the other hand, was turning her head, this way and that. She seemed unable to process the sudden stillness of many. Finally, she snapped out of it as the bell rang. She shook her friend.

    Wren did not respond.

    Krista bit her lip. She didn’t want to, but…

    She looked around for a large, heavy object she could use to smack her friend with. Finding none, she gave in and slapped Wren. Hard.

    Finally, there was a reaction. Reeling back, she dropped the body on the ground. The ‘thump’ it made snapped her back into reality.

    “What-”

    Krista shook her. “Are you listening? Can you understand me?”

    Still being shaken, Wren nodded her head before gripping her friend’s arms. “Stop shaking me! Yes, I can understand you.”

    Krista breathed a sigh of relief and stopped, stepping back once Wren released her.

    “Ok, just wanted to make sure. You were out of it for a while.”

    She glanced around at the chaos surrounding them. People grieving for their friends, people standing still in shock, others running into the other buildings to find their friends…

    Lowering her voice, as if it would make any difference, Krista asked, “Do you think that website was really telling the truth?”

    Wren shook her head. “I-I dunno. It’s just-I don’t know.” She was still trembling, mind racing through all the possibilities.

    Suddenly, the body next to them began moving again. It issued its first groan and raised a groping hand for Wren’s ankle.

    Yelping, Wren dropped her backpack and jumped away, kicking the hand. Around them, other bodies slowly began doing the same thing. Those who were too slow to back away had their limbs brought to gaping mouths and bit into. Once the scent of blood filled the air, the frenzy started.

    From the inside of the locker room, they could hear screaming. Looking at each, they spoke in tandem.

    “Run.”

    The two of them ran, dodging grabby hands that soon found other targets. Bodies began rising faster and faster, bringing more confusion to the chaos.

    Panting, the two raced into the lobby of the locker room, Krista still with her backpack, Wren without. Two people were trying to disentangle themselves from the mouths ripping into them, but were quickly being overpowered. Screaming continued to rent the air as Wren and Krista did their best to ignore the gore strewn on the floor and run up the stairs.

    Blank faces turned to follow them as the two ran, but lost interest when they disappeared. Though their scents still lingered, the feast near them was far more engaging. The zombies resumed their eating, and the pain-filled shrieks continued.

    Wren and Krista ran to the highest room in the building. Luckily, it was unlocked and unoccupied. They rushed and did their best to barricade the door. Once they did so to the extent of their abilities, both girls slumped to the floor, panting.

***

    There was a window, closed but unbarred. When Wren recovered her breath, Krista still breathing hard on the floor, she walked over to it. Peering out, she could see the carnage still going on.

    Krista joined her. The two stared out of the window for what seemed like an eternity.