John said it was a bell. He lied. It was closer to a high-pitched squealing siren that went on for about ten seconds. Apparently, they were used to trying to rouse heavy sleepers.

Even though I normally set my alarm for 6:30, I was still tired and suspected that it was from the stress of the last week. I got up and pulled out my schedule as I tried to figure out which room I was going to after breakfast.

To my surprise, most of my first day was a basic review of my abilities as the trainers decided just how much I knew and where I needed to improve. They asked hundreds of questions as they evaluated all sorts of things. Fishing skills, archery, various kinds of snares, climbing skills, tracking, poisonous plants, bird alarm calls, guns, and the list went on and on. I turned out to be terrible at replicating the bird calls, although I could identify some of them.

I had never held a gun in my life, and they quickly decided I was not going to be carrying one even when we did go outside the fence. That wasn't exactly a surprise since rumor had it that a lot of the ammunition had been used up when the zombies first showed up, and it wasn't like a gun would stop a zombie anyway. I had occasionally used a recurve bow in the past for target practice, but from the sounds of it, they planned to take my archery skills up a few notches.

I was given several books on edible plants, survival basics, and some other things. I was supposed to read for at least an hour each day and ensure I retained the knowledge as homework for that night. Homework. At my age. At least it was something I was interested in - and it might even help me survive if a horde of zombies toppled the fences.

My past interest in nature finally proved to be a benefit. I knew at least thirty edible plants that could be eaten raw, and more that were edible once cooked, so I was ahead of most of the class in that area. The fact that I was comfortable identifying quite a few of the edibles from the poisonous look-alikes had them relieved.

The day passed by before I realized it, and if I could forget about the red-eyed killers outside the Fort, it was actually kind of fun. Once my class was over, I headed to the nearest shower area. With my hair now trailing just below my shoulder blades, courtesy of Kailey and a pair of scissors, it didn't take me very long to wash it. I quickly brushed and braided it before heading down for dinner.

I filled my plate and spotted Kailey, Evan, and John at a table near the back of the room. I sat down as Kailey continued chattering excitedly about her day. Apparently, she had a blast with the Cooks. One woman was helping her learn how spices interacted with various ingredients, particularly in soups and stews. There was supposedly a 21-year-old there who had excellent taste in shoes and fashion. Kailey finally stopped talking when she took a bite of her bun.

Evan and John were deep in a discussion regarding the pros and cons of what I assumed were various engine parts. It sounded like gibberish to me, so it was probably something to do with a vehicle engine. We all had one thing in common though; we had all enjoyed our day and looked forward to tomorrow.

I overheard a few voices with upper-class accents complaining and glanced over my shoulder. A group of people in fancy clothing were apparently not impressed that they had to work all day for their keep. I grinned. Too bad for them.

       The days practically flew by, and the zombies never managed to get through the chain-link fence. We learned so much, and with nothing really to do in our free time, we did a lot of studying that pertained to our "positions". I may have thought that I knew a lot about edible wild plants, but it turned out that I had barely scratched the surface when I opened a book on local medicinal plants.

I was also getting to know those in my group. Each group had a dozen people in it and was led by a Group Leader who often doubled as our trainer. Alex was my Group Leader, and I had mostly memorized the names of my eleven group members, most of whom were in their twenties or thirties.

Alex was in his late forties and seemed pretty laid back, and I didn't have any issues with my group members either. Then again, we were united by the slight distrust when it came to some of the methods that the trainers came up with to teach us. We had been here seven days, and our trainers were getting more adventurous.

Today was a prime example. The teachers in both my Foraging and Zombie Training classes decided that people learn better with real-life experiences – so they took us outside of the fence for real-life practice. As a result, I was currently standing outside a fence with an actual zombie that was chained up inside like a vicious junkyard dog.

I was thankful that there were several guards on quads luring unwanted zombies away while additional guards kept watch. Our teachers were carefully overseeing our first practices with a zombie. Needless to say, I was quite nervous and was beginning to second-guess my career choice.

We had come to this location since it had chest-high rail fencing. There was a zombie inside the fence, who very much wanted to be outside of the fence with us. It had a heavy collar around its neck, and it dragged a very long chain behind it in the dust. The chain was there in case someone had to stop it from chasing someone else. We could jump the fence easily enough, but the fence should stop the zombie.

Everyone took turns practicing various evasion skills in a game of catch-me-if-you-can with the very willing zombie. I watched as it chased after another guy in my group. This zombie growled a lot. Zombies were incapable of speech, although they had no trouble making moans, groans, some grunts, odd growls, and an occasional snarling sound.

Zombies weren't exactly part of the intelligence department either. Apparently, the one I had hit with a can was about as bright as the average zombie. In the open, they were fairly easy to predict and deal with. It was in close quarters and indoors that things got dangerous.

Foragers were getting additional zombie training classes, just so we had a better chance of surviving an encounter. I had voluntarily increased my running track time since eighty percent of survival against zombies simply involved staying out of their reach.

Their grip was quite strong, and once they got a good hold, it was hard to get something away from them. They weren't the fastest thing out there when it came to walking, but if they got their hands on something, they could swing their head down with startling speed for a bite. We witnessed that when we had tossed chunks of meat to them.

We were advised to stay at least fifteen meters, or about three car-lengths, from any zombie if possible. Although in my mind, more distance was better since you never knew if another zombie was about to appear in front of you. I had no desire to become a zombie snack. I also had no idea what I was doing out here with these crazy trainers...

I took a deep breath as I dropped off the wooden railing. It was my turn. I cautiously jogged along the fence until the current person passed me. I waved my arm before jogging away from the zombie. The zombie decided that I was the closest target and came after me.

My heart rate picked up as the rather-hungry and dangerous creature tottered after me. I held myself to a jog with a force of will. I was moving faster than it was, and a quicker pace would just tire me out. After a few laps around the pen, the trainer signalled me to climb up the tree in the middle.

I turned and quickly clambered up the large branches into the safety that high spots provided. The zombie groaned below, but it wasn't able to climb, even though these branches should have been child's play to get up. Another trainee waved her arms and distracted the zombie. It went after her as I quietly descended to the ground and ran over to the fence.

A zombie would usually pick the most visible person to go after, although hiding wouldn't help you much since they had a good sense of smell. The zombies would be able to locate your hiding spot by scent alone unless they were well distracted. Pretending to be a zombie didn't work either, so that tactic was out.

Once everyone had the dubious honor of allowing themselves to be treed at least three times, our teachers very carefully guided us through how to jump out of the tree with the zombie on the ground below us. The guards were close to the end of the long chain in case an accident occurred.

They advised us to never try it if there was more than one zombie present unless it was an emergency. Even then, we had to manage to get them all on the same side and distracted while we jumped off the other side of the tree. Apparently, a good sized tree branch that had been held in sweaty human hands for five minutes or so had enough human scent to confuse a zombie for around three seconds if they caught it.

Our trainers had been right though. Our skills improved drastically when we faced these red-eyed monsters that wanted to sink their teeth into us. Zombies were not nearly so scary now - as long as they were a safe distance away and we were in control of the situation.

*         *       *

       I carried a basket of beets to the truck and passed it to someone else to stack. Turning around, I went back to grab another basket. This farm had been abandoned when the zombies arrived, and we were collecting the supplies that we needed.

We had been at Wainwright for two weeks, and no one wanted to run low on supplies. There were almost a thousand people in the Fort now, and that many people could eat a lot of food. Those in charge of the Forager and Raider groups were making plans to loot every farm within an hour drive.

Today, we were at a smaller farm. It was small enough that only two Foraging groups and a Raiding group were required to collect most of the foodstuffs. I suspected that all of the Foraging and Raider groups combined had managed to get to almost a hundred farms over the last four days as we stockpiled supplies.

Our Group Leaders ensured that no hale and healthy people were on the farm when we arrived and then turned us loose to collect any food, needed supplies, or livestock that we could find. This included garden vegetables, like the beets I was carrying. We would also dig up any sort of fruit trees and shrubs still small enough to be dug up.

"Heads up! Unknown vehicles are approaching! Be ready to scatter if they are hostile!"

I blinked in surprise as a Raider Group Leader's shout broke through my wandering thoughts. We hadn't found any survivors over the last two days; they had become quite rare since zombies never tired and nothing seemed to stop them for long.

Groups of zombies would catch the scent of a hidden person and gather. Their weight could break glass doors, and even if they couldn't find a way in, the person in question was usually trapped with few supplies. Those who got to their vehicles didn't get too far before running out of fuel, and then they were sitting ducks for wandering zombies.

The two Foragers near me shuffled closer to the barn beside us in case we had to duck out of the way of gunfire. It hadn't happened to us yet, but one or two other groups had been caught off-guard by an unknown and hostile survivor.

The man beside me murmured, "Look at all of those vehicles..."

I watched the long parade drive along the highway. There had to be at least a dozen vans or small buses in the convoy – and they all looked like they had seen better days.

I spoke quietly, "Do you think they realize we are here? We aren't that close to the highway."

As remote as this place was, there was a chance that they wouldn't be expecting to see people out here, and they might not even be looking that closely. The third bus suddenly slowed down.

The man partially edged behind the barn, ready to duck out of sight as he replied, "If they didn't before, at least one of them has spotted us now..."

An older woman on my other side, Sheila, remained beside me as she uneasily watched the bus turn down the driveway. To my relief, the rest of the vehicles stopped on the highway and didn't venture down the long driveway.

The Raider Group Leader started jogging down the driveway to intercept the bus and find out if they were a threat or not. The bus stopped, and he cautiously went up to the door to speak with the driver. After a few seconds that seemed to stretch into hours, the Raider Group Leader got into the bus, and it continued slowly down the driveway towards our groups.

Sheila relaxed a bit. "They must be more survivors. He wouldn't have gone inside if they had been dangerous. It looks like our scavenging trip is going to be cut short today."

The man came out from behind the barn as he regarded the bus warily. On his way to Wainwright Fort, he had been shot by a stranger he hadn't realized was present, so he had reason to be cautious. "It isn't even noon yet," he said. "So they couldn't have been on the road that long today unless they drove all night. I wonder who they are."

The bus came to a stop, and the Raider came out as he went to talk with the two Foraging Group Leaders. I shrugged. "Not sure, but we are probably about to find out pretty quickly."

Alex whistled loudly and gave the hand signal for 'come here'. The three of us headed over as the rest of Alex's group members emerged from their hiding spots. The Raiders remained where they were since their Group Leader didn't signal them.

Alex didn't beat around the bush. "They're the only survivors from that big base that fell eleven days ago. Our group is going to drive the buses and larger vehicles for them. They are exhausted and haven't stopped driving since they escaped. Go take over for those who are driving. The current drivers are expecting you."

The other vehicles must have been using radios to stay in contact since they were already coming down the driveway. I was dubious but went up to the door of an approaching bus. It opened up as the driver let me in. His appearance startled me; he looked utterly exhausted and had dark circles beneath his eyes.

He vacated the driver's seat to drop heavily into a seat off to the side. "We appreciate the help. Thank you."

"You're welcome." I slowly took the driver's seat. This bus was quite small and only had six rows of seats. I was pretty sure that it wouldn't be too much different than driving the small bus that the Foragers used, so I shouldn't embarrass myself too badly.

There were a handful of others in the back, but they were already drifting off to sleep as I started to follow another bus being driven by one of my group members. None of the others in the back looked as if they were in any better shape than the driver. I really hoped that none were infected...

Upon our arrival at the Fort, the Guards took over, and we were freed to go for a shower and get some lunch. I walked into the mess hall and grabbed some food. I saw Kailey and Evan come in as I sat down at the table where John was already eating.

I thought about my stay here so far as I waited for Kailey and Evan to get to the table. If it hadn't been for the threat of death hovering, I could honestly say that my position was way more fun and enjoyable than my last job as a desk clerk. I enjoyed learning and looked forward to our various sessions and classes.

I had lost those ten pounds in no time. We had also run out of junk food a few days ago. Kailey was taking it hard, and as she slid onto the bench beside me, the first words out of her mouth brought up that very subject.

"Oh, I miss Doritos! We should find a Dorito factory!"

A guy passing by our table chipped in some knowledge. "Most of the Dorito chip factories are over in Switzerland, although I think there may be one down in Florida somewhere."

This caused Kailey to moan while pushing some beans around on her plate. She stared at them like she hoped they would magically turn into Doritos. Evan was eating one of the homemade buns while dipping it into his bowl of soup. He wisely did not comment that the beans were healthier than chips.

Kailey suddenly turned to me as her eyes lit up. "I heard that your Foraging group brought back some strays. Is it true that one of them happened to be some sort of medical overseer from one of the fallen bases? Do you know which base they came from?"

I looked around carefully. Our table just held the four of us, and no one else was close enough to overhear me. I leaned forward, and the other three leaned closer as well to hear my quiet voice.

"Yes, they were from that base in Manitoba. There are only fifty-three survivors. They gave us some news – and it isn't good. I didn't see the overseer, but one guy told me the story. Apparently, one of the people they rescued must have gotten infected just before reaching the base. He was allowed in since he had no visible injuries. Their base held over a thousand people at that point, and they weren't set up well. Just large rooms with lots of cots and sleeping bags."

I paused as someone else walked by before continuing, "He turned into a Swift sometime in the middle of the night. It was completely dark, and it turned into absolute chaos within minutes. There is even worse news. It turns out that if a zombie inflicts enough serious damage, that person can turn into a zombie in less than five minutes. This is especially true if they inflict a fatal wound or if the person bleeds out."

I exhaled slowly. "To cut it short, people were running around blindly in the darkness as they tried to escape. There were zombies outside the fence, just like there are here, so they couldn't go outside of the fence without huge risk. Zombies outside, zombies inside... not to mention that there was at least one Swift in the fray. The remaining survivors took some vehicles and fled in the morning. Five must have gotten blood into their mouth or into an existing scratch because they went into seizures on the drive here. They were quickly dumped outside the vehicle before they got back up. But that is why their nerves were so frayed – they were afraid to fall asleep in case someone else went into seizures and no one noticed."

I looked down at my mostly-full plate; most of my appetite had vanished, but I knew I had to eat.

Kailey stared at the beans on her fork in shock as she tried to absorb what I had just said. "Wow. Just... wow. I feel so bad for them."

John looked uneasy as his eyes flickered around the room. "We are still getting at least one person showing up here every day. Many show up with dried blood of some sort on them, either from a fight, injured friends, or even from thorn scratches. I don't like the sound of this. It's so frustrating that there aren't any symptoms of infection until the seizures hit."

I almost forgot about a rather important piece of information that the soldier had told me. I added, "The medical overseer did manage to make a discovery though. The zombie virus has an incubation period that varies from twenty minutes to seven days. Infection is usually spread through a bite, although any body fluid transmission can cause infection. The virus can even survive in the water although boiling temperatures will kill it."

John inquired, "It doesn't go over seven days?"

I shook my head. "No, he was quite certain about that. Seven days is the maximum. If you think you are infected, and you make it past seven days, then you are fine."

John nodded slowly. "That is good to know."

John looked up at something behind me. I turned around to see my Forager Group Leader. He had been part of the army before zombies appeared but studied botany in his free time. The knowledge he gained in his hobby was considered very valuable now.

I quickly swallowed my mouthful of peas. "Alex, are we heading back out?"

The lines under his eyes made him look a bit tired or stressed, possibly both. "Diane, yes. We are hoping to do more foraging; do you think you are up to it? We are planning to leave at one o'clock if most of the group is still able and willing. Tessa is down and resting in her room. Alec isn't feeling well; he probably has heatstroke again, so he is also remaining behind. I found everyone else and they are up for it. We are going to hit a small farm about thirty minutes from here instead of going back to where we were earlier."

Two people were down; that left ten of us and Alex in our group. I glanced at the clock on the wall; there were thirty minutes left for me to finish eating and get dressed in the brown leather clothing that the Foraging groups tended to wear when working.

"Sure, count me in," I told him.

He nodded and left. I quickly finished most of my food but pushed the chicken onto Evan's plate. He was happy for the additional meat. I didn't want to be too full while I was outside of the fence. The trainers had repeatedly told us that a full stomach slows our mind, body, and reactions – something we couldn't afford while working in an unfamiliar area.

I ran upstairs to change and got to the muster point with minutes to spare. I already knew that it was going to be a long day.

I had been right; we didn't get back until almost eight o'clock that evening. It was a late dinner, and once I ate, I slowly climbed the stairs as I headed towards my room. Considering how late we had worked, the nurses probably wouldn't comment if I decided to skip my evening run on the track tonight.

Kailey was reading on her bed, waiting for me to return. She filled me in on the announcements I had missed at dinner, although one of them in particular made me question the sanity of those in charge. One group was building a really strong cage, and they were going to try to catch a Swift. They were hoping to figure out if they had any weaknesses that we weren't aware of.

I was glad I wasn't in the group that was trying to catch one of those things. Granted, I had never even seen a Swift, but the thought of a fast and tireless zombie that could climb made my blood run cold.