Zombies Vs Aliens: Respawn

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"Li, I found us a car!" Fred burst onto the beach, bouncing on his heels, covered in grease. I paused mid scrub, Wolf Girl squirming in my grip. Our cheerful idiot made a face at the sight of us. "You're giving her another bath?"

I glared at him. Of course I was taking advantage of this glorious body of water before we continued our trek along the desolate highway. I had no idea when I'd see water like this again. "Yeah, it looks like I have to give you one too."

Fred grinned. "As appealing as that is, I don't think you'd deliver." He crossed to the water, yelling at the Muppets to get out of his way. Apparently he was a little cross with them for pushing him into the lake last night. I doubt they would trouble him again, not after he tossed Bert clear into the trees. Fred knelt in the water, using sand to scrub grease, eyeing me as I dunked Wolf Girl under the water for a final rinse off.

"Hey, I think I can tell what color her hair is now."

"You think that's impressive, I brushed her teeth this morning." I swiped her hair out of her eyes as she sputtered, growling at me. She hadn't taken a swing at me or tried to bite, so I figured there was a modicum of a bond between us. "You found a car, a working car?"

"It's not the most impressive machine but I think it will run long enough to get us to a city. I think we're in New York."

New York. New York City was huge, a sprawling metropolis with multiple boroughs, a grid layout of streets, subway tunnels, and millions of citizens. Fred's warning whispered through my thoughts. If his theory was right, New York City would be crawling with the undead.

"Not near the city," he said quietly, reading my thoughts. "I think we're closer to the other side of the state, up by Rochester and Buffalo."

"What are we closest to?"

He shrugged. "Not sure, once we are on the road and see some signs, we'll get a better idea of what direction to go."

I towed Wolf Girl to shore, throwing a spare shirt on her. Short as I was, my shirt went to her thighs. It was mostly black, better to hide any blood stains she might acquire. Cleaned up, wearing a fresh shirt, Wolf Girl looked human again. Until she opened her mouth. Fred had our bags ready to go, so I rounded up the Muppets and followed him through the woods.

We emerged at a cabin in an obvious state of disuse. Its windows were boarded up; the door smashed in. I didn't have the urge to explore this house, sure what I would find. You see one decrepit house over run by the undead you've seen them all. Beside the house was a station wagon. Unlike the house, the car was in decent shape, a little rusted around the rims, but otherwise intact. A little too intact. We were surrounded by trees, the moldering roof of the house was coated in leaves and pine needles, but nary a one on the car.

"Did you clean it too?"

"Didn't have to," Fred practically skipped to the front of the car, brandishing a blue tarp from the ground. "Its previous thoughtful owners protected this bad boy from the elements. They even put blocks under the tires."

I frowned at it. "It looks like it fell out of the seventies." It had faux wood paneling, cracked vinyl seats, and a pair of fuzzy dice hanging from the rearview mirror.

"Beggars can't be choosers. Your carriage awaits, milady." The door hinge squealed in protest as he opened it. "I'll oil that later."

To our great surprise, the Muppets clambered in. "Wow, they really are like dogs." I muttered, turning to Wolf Girl. Her eyes were slits as she approached the car in a crouch, prodding a tire with her toe. Bert and Ernie shuffled around on the seats, making little squeaking noise I didn't want to think too hard about.