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If you take the time to read the story, please take a moment to leave a comment below. It would mean the world to me as the writer, and I would love to read your thoughts on the story, and my writing.

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Loud banging sounds echoed around the metal surroundings. Shuffling and running footsteps could be heard crunching the fresh snow between the shipping containers. “Keep running. Don’t look back!” came the voice of a male grizzly bear pulling along a young meerkat girl by the hand. They’re breaths came as white puffs before them in the air as they ran.

The pair came to a stop in front of one of the doors into one of the warehouses of the large shipping yard. Growls could be heard around them as the male started to bang on the door. “Hey! Open up! We need help!” he called, looking around quickly after; wary of having made the loud noise.

“J’ai peur…” (I’m scared) replied the female child as she looked around with him.

“Ne vous inquietez pas. Je te protegerai.” (Don’t worry. I’ll protect you.) replied the grizzly grabbing a nearby pipe. Shambling steps continued to approach the pair from the darkness as figures walked into the light nearby. Growls came from gaping mouths as slowly moving bodies with bites taken out of them advanced.

The meerkat female turned at the sight of them and slammed her fists on the door frightened. “S’il vous plait nous laisser entrer! Ll y a des monsters ici!” (Please let us in! There are monsters out here!) One of the bodies; a thin Dalmatian male lunged for the girl causing her to scream and recoil in fear. She opened her eyes a moment later to see the grizzly standing before her holding the pipe he’d picked up across the zombie’s throat holding it back. “Monsieur Jack.” she said in surprise.

“Vous ne pouvez pas etre ma fille, mais vous etes le seul d’entre nous a gauche. Courir Marie. Je vais vous proteger avec ma vie.” (You may not be my daughter, but you are the only one of us left. Run Marie. I will protect you with my life.) he said as he struck the zombie in the head with the pipe. The light in its eyes faded as it fell lifelessly over. The other zombies began to advance now, prompting the grizzly to take a step back.

“Monsieur Jack.” repeated the meerkat girl worriedly.

“Qu’est-ce que tu attends? Je l’ai dit brin!” (What are you waiting for? I said run!) he repeated. The female took a shaky step back as the eyes of the zombies turned to her. “Hey! Look at me you rotting corpses!” said Jack swinging his pipe in front of them. He could hear soft footsteps quickly moving away from his position and smirked at the horde before him. “Let’s dance you bastards.” he said as they began to lunge at him again.

A loud thudding sound echoed in the small empty street. The fairly large body of a male tiger fell and slid along the snow covered pavement before coming to a stop in front of the street. “You were warned Aitora. No brawling. I cut you off before, now you’re done for the night.” said the male at the door the tiger had just been pushed through. The bison male stood with his arms crossed as he watched the large feline stand. Aitora’s growled very lightly as he stared back at the hooved bartender. His eyes showed anger and ferocity, but he said nothing as his vision was clouded repeatedly by the white puffs of his breath, and blurred from his intoxication. Slowly he started to walk off down the street. He heard the door to the bar close behind him once he was a good thirty feet down the street.

The snow crunched lightly below the boots the tiger wore as he made his way down the street. He growled lightly as he huddled his army jacket up around his shoulders for more warmth as he went. The light of a passing car shined in his eyes and forced him to turn his head away for a second. The light was bright and painted a new picture in his mind. He looked around and found himself in another town. He was walking down an alley with a bear beside him. They were approaching the site of an unexploded piece of artillery. It was located on the outskirts of the small Filipino village. It was their job to disarm it and remove it from the area, but there was a complication neither of them had expected. There were two children fiddling with the bomb at the site. Quickly the pair moved to stop them, but the sound of gunfire stopped them in their tracks. They were being fired on from the nearby tree line. They turned to take cover, but before they could a bright light filled Aitora’s eyes as a force blew him backwards and out of his reverie. The tiger shook his head as the memory faded and the car passed before continuing on down the street toward his home.

He was halfway there when white flakes began to drift into his vision. He looked up at the clouds as it started to snow again. He followed one flake down with his eyes and caught it on his hands. It began to melt from his body heat before his hands began to warp in his vision. His white fur was suddenly tinted red and covered in dirt. He looked up and beheld a sight he tried to keep out of his mind. He was back at the Filipino village, and next to him was his now dead partner, but his eyes widened as he beheld the bodies of the two children he’d seen a moment before the artillery shell went off. They were lifeless as well now. He could still hear their screams of pain now. He looked at his blood stained hands as they changed back to being clean with the snowflake finishing melting on them. But something was off. Even though his sense had returned to the present, he could still hear screams. He looked around and another cry of terror came from around the corner to his right.

Marie ran through the shipyard pursued by the undead bodies. Because of her small stature they were able to keep up with the meerkat even with their half eaten forms. She tried multiple doors around the warehouse building, but all were locked and seemed to be barricaded from the inside. A growl tickled her hearing as she turned to see the fastest of her pursuers right behind her. She closed her eyes and screamed as he reached her before a loud thud echoed through the area. She opened her eyes to see the back of a white furred tiger in the after stance of slamming the head of the now lifeless lynx into the wall next to her. Aitora let a growl out of his slightly agape jaw. There was an almost feral wildness in his eyes as he turned to look at the remaining zombies. The sound of a child in panic had awoken something in his instincts. His heckles were raised as he reached behind himself to the hilt of the combat knife hidden in its sheath that ran down the inside of his camo pants suspended on a second belt. A menacing sheen gleamed off of the dark metal’s sharp edge as he pulled it out into view to match the nasty claws and fangs they were all showing him.

Footsteps lightly echoed as the undead monsters began again to advance one step at a time toward Aitora and Marie. The meerkat girl prepared to run again before she was stopped by the motion of the tiger male putting his left arm out in her path. He shot her a glance with his turned head that spoke to her in volumes. As frightening as he was to her, he was there not to hurt her, but to protect her. He turned his gaze forward again to see a snake male right in his face now; jaws agape and ready to take a bite out of him. In his mind a similar situation flashed through in an instant. He was back in the Philipines, and instead of a zombie, it was a terrorist soldier leaping at him through the brush. A short uppercut with his left hand both closed the attacker’s jaw and stopped his motion before an upward stab with the combat knife in his right hand put a hole from the bottom of his jaw up through its brain. All motion ceased after that and Aitora pushed the lifeless body down on the ground ready to face the next opponent. Another attacker, another memory flash as the zombie became clothed in the uniform of a soldier from his past. And just like the snake before him, the ram male found himself with Aitora’s combat knife sticking out of his head, albeit from the side this time. Aitora roared as his PTSD went into full gear. His semi-drunken mind perceived every threat around him as one from his time in the army. In spite of the fact that he was fighting zombies there was no fear to be found here. Only the ferocity of a man fighting back against a unit of enemy soldiers with nothing but his strength and his knife to rely on. In a few moments, the small horde was dead around them on the ground.

Aitora panted heavily as he stood in place. His stance was still defensive as he looked for more enemies. A light tap on his leg brought a quick glance down and an innocent face snapped him out of his violent arousal. A very small smile crossed his muzzle as he put his hand on the girl’s head and rubbed it softly. He was glad that she was unhurt. Marie stood there in awe of what she’d just witnessed. What could she say to this male who had fought to protect her? He hadn’t had to. In a way he was a lot like…Jack! “Monsieur Tigre, sil vous plait suivez-moi. Monsieur Jack est en difficulte. Vous devez l’aider.” (Mr. Tiger please follow me. Mr. Jack is in trouble. You have to help him.) she said quickly. Aitora cocked his head to the side and watched the small child run off a bit before turning to see if he was following. She motioned to him with excited motions. Even though he couldn’t understand her words , it was obvious by her actions that she wanted him to follow her. He cleaned the blade of his knife off with the snow on the ground before he wiped it on the shirt of one of his former attackers and turned to follow the girl. She wanted to show him something, and if it was still in this area, she was still in danger of being attacked.

He followed the girl over to the area where she’d last seen Jack. She looked around worriedly as he was nowhere in sight. A sound drew her attention to a catwalk running along the side of one of the warehouses. She looked up and beheld Jack still fighting off pursuing zombies with his pipe. She pointed up at the bear male and Aitora did a double take at what he saw when he followed her gesture as a familiar figure came into his view. That motion brought back another memory of forced motion from his past.

The humidity laced sunlight warmed the inner ear of the semi conscious tiger. His hearing was a constant high pitched tone as he faced the blue sky above him. He had been blown backwards by something and ended up on his back. Lightly he reached up to his head only to see blood and dirt mingled into the white fur of his hands. Pain wracked his body as he rolled to his side slowly. Then he saw them. The two boys that had been fiddling with the artillery shell were lying motionless less than 20 yards from him. Their positions were unnatural. It didn’t take much thought to know that they were dead. Tears came to Aitora’s eyes as he realized this. They were so young. It was a common practice for terrorist factions to use children for the more dangerous jobs since they were dispensable and untrained. These boys were wearing headbands that matched those worn by the group he and his partner had been fighting against. His partner? Wasn’t he right next to him? He closed his eyes as another realization hit him; when the bomb went off, the male was in front of him by a couple feet. He turned his head to confirm what he already knew to be true and saw him. The army jacket was torn and red. Pieces of shrapnel and debris stuck out of his still body in different places. He lay slumped up against the building he’d been thrown against by the blast. The bear’s head was down, and a trickle of blood ran over the nametag on his jacket that read “Cartwright, J”. Aitora closed his eyes again and shed tears anew as he tried to push himself to stand. Sharp pain ran rampant through his body as he looked down to see a few pieces of shrapnel sticking out of his own body. A feeling of rage welled up within him from the tips of his toes. It rose through his body as if riding the wave of pain coursing through him until it reached his mouth. His jaws parted and he let out a loud mournful roar to the heavens above as the sounds of an ambulance lightly came into recognition in the distance.

The snow itself seemed to flinch in the air on its slow descent to the warehouse rooftop as the sound of a roar echoed through the shipyard. All ten undead corpses looked to the right to watch one of them be hit so hard that he flew into the others like a wrecking ball. Aitora stood there panting lightly staring at the male bear now. Jack stared back surprised. Who was this, and where had he come from? “You look as though you are trying to figure out if you know me. Well I can answer your question and tell you that I’ve never seen you before, though you’re not an unwelcome sight. Let me guess, you met a little Meerkat girl?” asked Jack panting himself. Aitora didn’t respond, but instead motioned over to where Marie stood on the stair leading up the roof. They had climbed the walkway that led up the outside of the warehouse to where they currently were. “I told her to run. Listen. I’m sorry for getting you dragged into this, but could I ask for a favor?” asked Jack next.

Aitora raised an eyebrow at the male’s question. “I led a group of refugees from France here in a shipping container hidden on one of the ships that came into the harbor this afternoon. Unfortunately for us the container we hid in housed a bio-hazardous material we were unaware of until we were well on our way. It’s what made these zombies we’ve been fighting. Yes. The zombies are some of the people I brought here. It’s all my fault. The infection began to spread to some of the shipyard workers upon arrival as my zombified friends attacked them. That girl and I are the last of the group still not infected. I have to make sure that stays the case. I also have to destroy the source of the infection. For that I need your help.” he said as his breathing began to calm.

Aitora watched as the bear reached into his backpack and retrieved a set of four small explosive charges. “A little souvenir from my war torn homeland. I’m not actually from France, but the group took me in when I first arrived from my home. In return I offered to help them get here. As a refugee you have to be prepared for anything. I need you to locate the shipping container we came in and set these charges so I can blow it to kingdom come. I’d do it myself, but well…” he said as he turned his body to show a deep laceration in his side. Aitora’s gaze softened as the wound came into view. Marie gasped horrified behind him. “One of the bastards caught me by surprise with his claws. I don’t appear to be becoming infected, but I’m not long for this world either. Can you do this for me?” asked the bear seriously. Aitora nodded his agreement before Marie ran up and hugged the ursine male. Tears stung her eyes as she nuzzled the male softly.

“Ne pleure pas petite. Tu dois etre fort. Vivre de. Peux-tu faire ca pour moi?” (Don’t cry little one. You have to be strong. Live on. Can you do that for me?) he asked softly. Marie sniffled back her tears as she nodded her answer to him. “Pouvez-vous montrer le tigre du conteneur nous sommes arrives?” (Can you show the tiger the container we came in?) he asked next as he stroked her head softly.

“Oui Monseuir Jack.” (Yes Mister Jack.) she replied.

“Please take her with you. She will show you the container. Once you set the charges I will blow it and hopefully any traces of the biohazard to hell.” said Jack seriously. Aitora took the charges and with them the mission.

“You remind me of my old partner. I am glad to have met you.” said the tiger speaking for the first time since he left the bar. Jack nodded softly in response.

“Likewise.” he said as he held his hand out. Aitora shook the bears hand before he turned to complete his mission.

The zombies had been largely cleared out now. With no one else left in the shipyard to infect the few remaining shambled to and fro aimlessly. Aitora and Marie peeked around the other side of a warehouse and could see the few remaining nearby. The meerkat female pointed to a large red container in the yard. “Is that the one?” asked Aitora to confirm as he pointed himself. She nodded her affirmation and hung back a little to let the tiger go to work. Aitora took a deep breath. His mind was nearly sober now; and he thought clearly about what he was going to do.

A hyena female zombie stood still looking around the shipyard. Metallic jingling sounded as a small object bounced off of her head and drew her attention to the ground in front of her where it landed. It was a keychain with a couple keys on the ring. She growled and looked up again just in time to see Aitora closing in on her with his combat knife drawn and ready. He buried it in her skull a second later and continued on as he scooped up his keychain on the fly. One by one the remaining zombies were taken care of with swift motions from the tiger. A hippopotamus male and a couple avian zombies jumped at him from the other side of the shipping crate. He came to a stop as a new vision from his past flashed through his mind.

Orderlies and medical assistants were swarming around him. He was in a recovery room or a hospital. His commanding officer stood back looking surprised; having been assaulted by the tiger immediately upon waking after the blast that claimed the lives of the two boys, and his partner. It was a valiant struggle, and Aitora remembered hearing through the fight that he was to be discharged. He was no longer mentally fit for service.

He lost the struggle against the orderlies, but the zombies before him didn’t stand a chance as he made quick work of them. Nothing stood between him and the shipping container now. He moved to each corner and planted the four charges. Once finished he moved away from the area and regrouped with Marie.

The pair headed back to the rooftop where they last saw Jack. He was slouched over and holding his side. A smile crept across his face as he saw them approach. “All set?” he asked.

“Yeah. All set.” said Aitora in response. The bears hand was shaking as he pressed the button on the radio detonator. A loud explosion rumbled through the shipyard as the container was destroyed by the charges.

“That’s all we can do. I hope it was enough.” said Jack as he let his hand go limp now, the detonator bounced out of his hand as it hit the roof. “Tiger. Do me a favor would ya? Light a cigarette for me. They’re in my shirt pocket.” said Jack next. Aitora obliged the request and placed a lit cigarette in the bear’s waiting mouth. “Marie…listen to me. You came here to find your family. I can’t help you with that any more, but I know you can do it on your own. Promise me you’ll find them.” he said.

“Oui Monseiur Jack. Je promets.” (Yes Mister Jack. I promise.) she said before turning to run off on her own.

“Will she be alright?” asked Aitora concerned.

“Don’t worry about her. She has family here. She knows where to go. I promised to take her to them myself, but I know she’ll find them on her own. She doesn’t speak a word of English, and you didn’t seem to understand French, so though I know you want to help; you wouldn’t be able to help much. There are people here that speak French that can help her.” said Jack taking a drag of his cigarette.

Aitora nodded at the bears words, and sincerely hoped that the girl could find her family. “Looks like my time here is just about up. You should get going yourself. That explosion is sure to draw the local authorities. You don’t want to be here when they arrive unless you’d rather try to explain all of this by yourself.” said Jack next.

Aitora nodded again and turned to leave. “Hey…I never caught your name.” said the bear quickly.

“It’s Aitora.” replied the tiger.

“I’m glad Marie found you tonight Aitora. My name is Jack as you probably know by now…Thank you…very much…for the assistance.” said Jack with increasing difficulty.

Aitora turned to say something else, but the bear’s eyes were closed. His cigarette slipped from his mouth and fell seemingly in slow motion to be put out by the snow on the roof top next to him. “Life…Such a fleeting fragile thing…” thought the tiger to himself as he moved to exit the rooftop. He looked toward the east where the light of the rising sun was just beginning to lighten the clouds, and he headed back toward his home.

“And that’s the weather. More snow throughout the day and into the evening. In other news an explosion ripped through a shipping container down at the port early this morning. Half eaten bodies were found all around the area and workers were found barricaded in the various warehouses claiming to have seen the dead bodies walking around and attacking them. A worker also claimed to have seen a white figure through an iced over window moving through the horde of undead like a ghost, but due to the snow and ice on the window it could have been imagined by the male. Authorities did find a lone male with a detonator nearby on the rooftop of one of the warehouses. He was dead and authorities are not saying anything as to whether he has anything to do with the event. We’ll keep you posted throughout the day as more details emerge. Back to you Frank.” said the radio news reporter before a white hand hit the snooze button on the alarm clock it emanated from. Aitora rolled over and held his head as he tried to go back to sleep.

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If you took the time to read the story, please take a moment to leave a comment below. It would mean the world to me as the writer, and I would love to read your thoughts on the story, and my writing.

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Total Wordcount: 4,000

Art and Aitora belong to:  fc32

Original Post: This is a special piece competed quite a while ago. The story was written before the art piece was made.

Story is mine.