Yule

I remember the last solstice. The first, longest, bloodiest day of my undead life.

I find that the longer the days can gobble up the night, the longer I can remember the pain of my ancestors. Their climbing ambitions. The scale of ecstasy that we have reached. I have read through our histories. The navigation of the zombies in the human cities and towns. The villages.

How the humans tried to kill us off by separating us, by destroying our land with nuclear weapons. Half of Europe was destroyed that way. Yet, we are here, on top. Conquering Europe was only our first step, other continents had our name written on it. They didn’t realize their weakened their own forces with the nuclear radiation.

I remember the last solstice before we were slaughtered. But, we got them.

The day is the only thing seared into my brain.

The day of the never ending sun. The day of the never ending fire. The day of the dead awaiting a new life.

We were awaiting the solstice. Preparing with small bonfires, nature meditation spaces and the occasional dance with lutes and other strings. The richest of our people gathered the largest number of gems and stones in the center of the village. Our most valuable gems were guarded, usually. But, today, they were freely available for the town to use and use for protection, healing and other purposes.

“All of this to celebrate our liberation from the humans. I feel those buggers have been put in their place. Finally,” The Lordship signed to the head of ceremonies.

“We have to stay vigilant. Humans are unpredictable,” Ceremonies signed back.

It is 2045. I am still blooming in the dying ground of my undead youth. I was led to be in the circular position with the gems and gold, the rarest gems, adorned in floral patterns and petals. Some were placed in the highest places of the pyramid as they needed to be charged. Some were charged in the moonlight, now the ones that were needing the sun, were blasting through their force with high beams of radiation, light and sound.

The alchemist swooped in as our town started the preparations for the event.

Her dark, shifty eyes darted across to the gems. The Lordship handed her gold and silver. The alchemist handed them a very small bag.

“What can something this small do to any enemy?” The Lordship scoffed as they signed with reluctance.

“Just wait. You’ll find out. Spread it around the outskirts of your enemy’s base. Use emerald to protect yourself against the attack. It will bloom forth with such an unstoppable effect, which will not stop unless you sprinkle it with Ivy and salt, with crushed red rubies,” her voice sneered as she spoke. She gobbled a large brown seed with relish. She looked human but I knew she wasn’t. Her teeth were like canines, her eyes too wide and persuasive for a mortal. As if she could hypnotize you into being her slave forever.

As the part of the ceremony began, I felt a sense of urgency to run. I never had this human idea before, to run. I knew humans were cowards and ran away from danger. A chill fell in my bones. I saw our first glimpse of power in a heatless fire with damaged limbs and broken bones being immediately healed by the flames.

Most zombies with torn off limbs and broken bones would just have to rot while their bodies would be immobile, but with these new gems and the power they could hold, it was possible that they could walk again.

A wailing howl came out of the bright blue sky. A slam from behind. A cry from above. The burst of energy that leapt from the ceiling of the air into the bottom of the fire in the ground made me feel paralyzed.

I saw the strangest exchange of fire, light and energy leap out of the ground and cover the horizon with dusty flames, red smoke, so utterly terrifyingly, red.

“Bloodletters!” One of the villagers signed with terror. They all scrambled, burning up, being torn apart. Limbs and heads and eye balls scattered around the solstice ceremonial structure.

My flowers were singed at the bottom and I felt the pressure of the heat on my body.

I ran to the purple and red and yellow piles of gems. It felt so incredibly intense as I wrapped my form inside the cozy little house of earthen stones.

How I longed for Yule. My Pagan ancestors would never take this lying down. I want the shortest path to the enemy, and the shortest day possible to reach the monsters that seem to destroy our way of undead beginnings.

The return of light. I kept thinking this as the gems around me glowed.

I saw them steal the Lordship and take his brown bag. The Alchemist cackled at our plight. It sounded like almost a sob, a cry, a pained laugh I knew was evil.

She didn’t seem on our side, ever. Now I knew she was only on the winning side.

I ran. I ran like the stinking cowardly humans. No Bloodletter could touch me. It was a plasma radiating light that I felt coming off me, almost as if the gems cocooned my skin in a new substance. No one was left behind. I watched my village burn to dust as I hoarded the gems I could bring with me.

Yule. The short day that brings us new life.

Now, with my own rogue set of zombie-folk, we can eliminate any and all problems for our people. The scourge of the earth: Bloodletters. I love when the shortest day turns into new, bloody hope. It’s 2072. I have somehow managed to live longer than most zombies. Maybe it’s all these gems I carry and hide.

“Serenity? Are you coming?” The other zombie in my charge named Ebba signed.

We had just killed off a few Bloodletters we saw hunting for humans on the way to our destination, a slew of secret caves near Illinois.

I remember the last solstice. The first, longest, bloodiest day of my undead life.

I can’t wait to see the sky turn red again when it returns.

—-

Here is my first book in the free app for Resurgence Novels, I am Bexley. This chapter is part of the ongoing sequel, The Bloodletter’s Scourge(still a work in progress).