J. Knoll - Zoe, Undead

"She doesn't mind if I have a beer," Eric informed before taking a drink himself. "In fact, my gal's so awesome that she'll even get me one and open it." He looked to Morgan. "When was the last time you did that for someone?"

Morgan took a sip of her own and replied, "Has Hell frozen over yet?" She looked to the wall, her eyes finding Zoe, and she raised her chin, greeting, "Hey! Didn't see you there."

Zoe turned her eyes down and just nodded.

Josh was the first to approach her, stopping a few feet away as he asked, "You want a beer?"

"She's seventeen!" Morgan spat.

Looking over his shoulder, Josh countered, "You know, under the circumstances of that whole zombie apocalypse thing, I'm sure the legal drinking age can be lowered for a while." He looked back to the girl and raised his brow. "Want one?"

Zoe shook her head and politely declined, "No, thank you."

He motioned behind him with his head. "So Morgan was telling us that you're about half zombie."

Turning her eyes to the side, Zoe nodded again.

Josh took a drink of his beer before he said, "And you're fighting for our side."

Eric also approached, and he sat down beside her, nudging her shoulder with his arm. "Going to spend some time with the rest of us misfits?"

She shrugged.

Morgan sat down on her other side and took a slurp from her can, then she looked to the girl and observed, "Got you a new shirt. How many of those do you have?"

"This one and two more," Zoe replied, looking down to the hat she still held.

"We need to get you into an official ZRT shirt," Morgan insisted, "that way you don't get shot by mistake."

"I already have been," the girl informed. "I've been shot six times now."

The group got very quiet, and finally Eric asked, "So, how long did it take you to recover? I heard zombies can recover from body shots in an hour or two."

"It was pretty fast," the girl replied, her eyes still low.

"You know," Josh suggested, "If we were all like that then we wouldn't need a medic anymore."

"Oh, sure!" Eric barked. "Then I wouldn't be as important!"

Many of the group laughed, and Eric joined them.

Zoe could see that this group was very close, that their friendship was very tightly knit, and she could not help but feel left out yet again.

But, this day it was not to be allowed.

Morgan nudged her again and informed, "Seriously, I have a couple of extra shirts, one a tank top, and I think you're about my size. Want to try one on? You've already got the hat."

Quiet for a moment, Zoe stared down at the cap and finally informed in a low voice, "This was Sergeant Morris' hat. The zombies got him yesterday."

That silence gripped the group again and they all exchanged looks. All could tell that she was close to him, that she missed him, and now they seemed to be on a mission beyond killing zombies.

Morgan slipped a hand around the girl's shoulders and pulled her close to her. "I'm sorry to hear about him, but, now you've got us to kick around with. Unless you start trying to eat people."

A smile was forced from Zoe and she glanced at Morgan, assuring, "I won't. Promise."

"That's good," Eric declared. "Eating people can be a real obstacle if you want to make friends."

"Well," Josh started.

"Don't!" Morgan ordered harshly.

He held his palm to her and took another sip of his beer.

A soldier came through the door to the roof and looked around him, his eyes finding the pink clad zombie girl, and he announced, "Colonel Halstead's looking for you, Princess. You need to get to the conference room."

Zoe turned her eyes down and nodded, conceding in a slight voice, "Okay."

Colonel Halstead was sitting where he always did when Zoe entered the conference room, and he looked up from a report he was reading when she walked in. Seeing she was not alone, he looked behind her to Josh and Morgan, asking, "Did I call you two?"

"Negative," Josh assured. "We're just tagging along with Zoe here, and we're hoping we can sign on with your fine organization."

"Congratulations," the Colonel announced dryly. "You're in." His eyes found the girl again and he scolded, "You were supposed to be here almost an hour ago, young lady."

Zoe's eyes were already fixed on the floor as she meekly offered, "I'm sorry, Sir." She took the cap from her head and held it with both hands as if she was holding something of great importance. Her steps were light as she made her way around the table to where the Colonel sat, and she gingerly laid the cap down in front of him, backing away after she had done so.

Halstead picked it up and looked inside of it, reading the tag within, then he straightened it, curled the brim slightly and laid it back down near Zoe. "Hold onto that," he ordered. Leaning back in his chair, he folded his hands in his lap and eyed her with an authoritative look. "I was told that you stayed outside to fight the moaners by yourself. That true?"

Zoe nodded, staring at the floor.

"You'll stick with your team from now on," he ordered. "You'll follow orders and fight as part of a unit. That clear?"

In a meek voice she answered, "Yes, Sir."

He nodded, then, "Did you get something to eat?" When she shook her head, he commanded, "Get to the chow hall and…" He trailed off as the door burst open, and he looked that way.

Doctor Caswell rushed in first, then Doctor Kavorski and a lab tech behind him in a white lab coat.

Rachel had a folder full of papers in her hand and hurried to the Colonel, and when she got to him she slammed them down in front of him, declaring, "We've isolated the virus! The strain in Zoe is much weaker than the others we've cultured, no doubt by its unsuccessful bout with her autistic brain. Colonel, we have something we can work with here!"

Doctor Kavorski stepped forward and took her side, adding, "This virus we found in Zoe is not quite as aggressive as the others. It affected her body as it meant to, but it was unable to take control of her nervous system. We can confirm this with a few more tests, but I'm willing to bet that the virus that infects her can't even be passed on! Unlike the other victims, her body continues to fight it."

"So what's all this mean?" Colonel Halstead growled.

"It means," Doctor Caswell replied, "We are one step closer to a vaccine!"

Everyone looked to Zoe, and her eyes darted nervously from one person to the next.

The Colonel nodded. "Well, Private Princess, it looks like you just got a whole lot more important to us than working recon."

Her brow rising up slightly, Zoe hesitantly asked, "I'm… I'm important?"

Doctor Kavorski answered, "You're the most important person here."

Turning to the Colonel, Rachel insisted, "This means we can't risk losing her. We simply can't take any more chances with her. For God's sake, she could hold the future of mankind!"

The Colonel's eyes slid to the girl again.

"Just imagine," Kavorski added. "We could send inoculated soldiers out to fight off the zombies without any risk of any of them becoming infected. We could also bait out wild dogs, cats… Everything that could be infected! This could mean the end of the zombosis epidemic!"

"There are a few more things we should talk about," Rachel informed. When she had the Colonel's attention, her eyes flitted to the zombie girl.

Motioning to the door with his head, Colonel Halstead ordered, "Go get some chow, Princess. We'll talk later."

Zoe nodded and complied, "Yes, Sir," then she turned and strode to the door.

Morgan and Josh followed, and Josh half turned and waved to them, bidding, "See you later, General."

CHAPTER 11

They all watched as the door closed behind the girl and the zombie fighters, then Doctor Caswell pulled a chair out and carefully sat in it, her eyes on the folder she had dropped on the table near the Colonel.