Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

I stared at the figures closely and I can't fathom what they are doing. I could obviously tell what they were doing but... why are they doing it? They're just... eating... some of them and... themselves. A couple zombies in their vicinity are getting feasted upon and the ones that are not close to anything are eating themselves. The only time they stop eating themselves is when another comes close to them or when they hear a noise.

Most of them have their arms chewed up with bones sticking out but a few still have remnants of their knuckles still intact. One of the figures has most of the flesh from its shoulder eaten up so its arm that is connected to it is just swaying lifelessly.

"That is fucking disgusting." Oscar said.

Brian raised his axe up and swung it down on the one coming towards him. Marvin on the other hand stabbed the two that are still busy eating themselves with his spear. The bodies fell to the ground and they cleared a few more like it near the entrance of the Public Market.

Several of the bloody figures are now littering the space that we're in so I told them to stop.

"Stop luring them for now. Drag a few of them on the side of the road so our space to navigate into wouldn't be hindered by them." I said from the earpiece.

"But there's more roaming inside. Besides, I could easily walk over them, they're not that much of a hindrance." Brian said.

"Just follow him Bri." Ashley said.

"Just trying to say my opinion Ash." he replied.

"Sure, don't move them." I said.

"Wait, really?" I saw Marvin starting to move one of them.

"Yeah, I think Brian wants me to write 'Died by tripping over a dead zombie.' on his grave. Wait, we don't have graves, we just burn everyone. I'll just remember you, don't worry." I said.

"Can't you just tell me normally and not plan my funeral every single time?" he replied.

"Well, can't you just follow my orders then?" I said.

"Fuck it." he said.

I could hear a few chuckles from the earpiece but they decided to just move the bodies first before proceeding forward. I told them to place them on the street corner first and they moved back towards the truck to drag the ones near it first.

However, from inside the Public Market, I saw something that I thought was the same as them but wasn't.

It has the same features as the ones before but the difference is that its belly is bulging like a pregnant woman. Almost all of its flesh has been torn off but its stomach was the only thing left intact. It's like a person who suffered 3rd Degree burns but its stomach miraculously stayed the same. Kaley slowly raised her gun since the people below has their backs turned towards it but it did something that made my head itch. Marvin saw Kaley raising her gun and he also looked back with his pistol drawn and saw the figure we are currently looking at.

It didn't even look at us.

It just buried its hands that looks like bony claws to the nearest body in front of it and it started to drag it inside the Public Market. It's about to enter the entrance when it went out but Kaley immediately fired a shot when she saw it.

*psshew*

It fell to the ground but a couple more appeared and started to gorge on the one that Kaley shot. They just ripped its belly apart and made a feast of all its fluid and the small clumps of flesh that is stored in its stomach. They seem to have forgotten the one body their 'comrade' was dragging around and they just happily feasted on it instead.

The group near the truck were also staring at them but what's weird is those ones with the bulging stomachs does not seem to eat or even attack each other.

"Sky, permission to shoot." Marvin said.

The rest also asked permission which was surprising but I said, "Wait, can you aim on the one on the left?"

"Sure." he replied.

"Wait, don't hit its head." I added before he managed to fire the shot.

"What? Why?" Kaley was the one who asked.

"Just do it. I'm curious." I replied then they sent their gaze towards the zombie again.

He aimed only a bit lower since the one I pointed to is crouched then he fired a shot.

*bsshew*

*bsshew*

The first hit grazed its chest but the second one finally landed on its belly.

When it happened, the one eating quietly next to it turned its head abruptly and started to sink its hands towards the one Marvin shot. It ruptured its belly as it started to devour what's inside it be it the bile or the meal that the first one originally ate. The group with me is silent while I'm observing what just occurred.

"Are you just irregulars or a new type?" I thought to myself.

"What in fresh hell is that one doing?!" Oscar exclaimed.

However, the one it ate also started on picking the bits of its own flesh from his belly and it started to place it inside its mouth. The flesh it ate would just continually loop around his body and it would only get diminished when the one next to it ate the one it ate.

"That is some fucked up shit bro." Jared grimaced.

The others wanted to shoot that one as well but I stopped them again.

"Wait, let's see what it would do next first. Secure this perimeter, Jared, bring the drones out." I instructed them.

While that single one was left alone happily enjoying its buffet, the group did as I told them to do. Jared handed me the controller for the other drone while the others brought out the huge flashlights. It's several lumens high and it could light a small beam in dark places. While we're setting up the equipment and the others are securing the perimeter, the one we're slowly watching stood up normally and its stomach was about to burst open. The one that was getting eaten just continued on eating itself in an endless loop since it just ate what it already ate before in a vicious cycle.

"Do we shoot it now?" Jared asked.

"Just let him shoot it kid, I don't want to remember that when I eat later." Oscar said.

"Not yet old man, let it go inside. Let's see what it would do there. Shoot that one though." I replied as the kill was awarded to Jared.

Since its full, I think, it slowly made its way inside and the people with me shone the flashlights towards the two paths. We drove the drones slowly checking the inside. The place is really different from before, it used to have several shops with their goods displayed on whatever surface or area available. It used to have different kinds of sacks of rice on the flooring with their prices on it or bottles of different kinds of liquids that are refilled to be sold easily. Now, it's just a bloody path with varying degrees of flesh strewn about the sliding windows or on the cemented flooring. Several shops are still closed and that could mean that whatever supply is still inside for the taking.

Jared started to drive it around while I closely followed the figure slowly making its way inside. What's surprising is that it could actually avoid the small obstacles on the ground and it would sometimes walk sideways to get inside tighter spaces. It is very much different from the normal ones that would casually bump against everything in front of it. There are several more 'normal' types inside mixed with these ones though I still couldn't tell which is which from the angle I'm at.

"So far, the only way to tell them apart is if their stomach is still intact or not. But why are there so many of them here? Is this some sort of ne- no, well, it could be?" I thought to myself.

Oscar was patiently watching the feed on the controller and then it reached the halfway point of the Public Market. The first half is where the dry goods are sold and where my shop used to be located and the last half is where most of the wet goods are displayed. It involves fish, chicken, cows, and etc. There are several hooks on one of the stalls that has the meat that is indistinguishable from this angle still hooked on it and I can't identify whether the blood sprayed on some of them are from the humans or the animals that are butchered inside that place.

The figure we're following still slowly made its way towards the end of the Public Market where all of the wastes are stored for proper disposal later but what is shown in the feed made almost all of the people watching retch in disgust.

"Ah, shit." I thought to myself.