The Experiment Zombie Apocalypse

By M. Modak

This is what it looks like when the world ends. It didn’t start with a bomb. No army invaded. I’ve watched my classmates die or change before my eyes. I have seen whole swarms of them move around a person, cutting them with sharp claws or their teeth until they stopped moving. These, people, were once the Neo Humans, the ones who took Sapen's Golden Pill. But their enhanced bodies turned against them and all mankind.
Be ware, your world might be next...

• Language: English
• Publisher: M. Modak
• Release date: Dec 23, 2012
• ISBN: 9781301639342

M. Modak

I was born in a house in a small town in Mississippi and raised near the Louisiana bayou. By the age of ten, I had explored more than my share of mud holes, endless swamps, forest and long church pews. At ten years old, my family moved away from the woods and into a city on the east coast of North America. At 20 years old I was an assistant instructor teaching Thai Kickboxing, jujitsu, entertained other martial arts, and through them, I've learned that you never stop learning. I practice mindfulness, prayer, I study world religions and cultures, the History of Science and its advances on Earth as well as in space, North American history, politics and the potential of human nature. When I'm not on adventures with my family, I’m writing or studying. I also enjoy reading, swimming, gardening, painting, playing video games, movies, browsing used bookstores and caves and I love the great outdoors. M.Modak

Book preview

Episode 1

Episode 2

Episode 3

Episode 4

Episode 5

Episode 6

Episode 7

Episode 8

Biography

Help sick children

Dedication

Contact me

More books by M.Modak

Modaksguidetodreaming blog

@modak824

Episode 1

Intro

The clouds parted as sunbeams blazed down on a previously gloomy morning. Several BOOMS shook the earth as larger and larger crowds of people gathered, everyone was pointing up. The edge of the enormous black ship cut through the parting clouds, washing out its billowing shape letting more sunlight beam down onto the waiting people.

Sapen had arrived.

I leaned back, one hand still gripping the bike’s handlebar as my other hand shielded my eyes from the sun. I had been up all night. Since the news broke, everyone I knew had called or e-mailed me to tell me what everyone already knew; aliens were coming.

I thought about the message spontaneously received last night throughout the world, I am Sapen. I have come bearing gifts for this world and a message for all mankind. The dark age is over.

Then the electronics stopped working.

There were no images only the text message and that voice. It had an odd feminine quality to it though it was clearly male.

I guessed the government’s reaction would be outrage. Nothing electronically guided or computer coded functioned and yet the lights still worked. I thought there was a message in that. I hoped it was just a wise precaution by a powerful race of beings, which must have studied mankind and knew that we shot first and asked questions later.

At first, I felt oddly rejuvenated at the sight of the oncoming spacecraft. All my previously stated ideas about life existing throughout the universe had finally been validated; here was the proof. Nevertheless, for some reason, now that it was here, a mile above me… I didn’t like its look.

The huge ship continued descending. The sonic booms had stopped moments ago and silence started setting in. Even the crowd had stopped mumbling.

The mall’s parking lot continued filling in as people from all over were drawn by the spectacle. The new mall area stretched for nearly a mile and all of it was vibrating as the ship lowered.

The craft was much larger than I imagined. It was at least the same size of the mall’s main structure.

My cell phone started ringing. Then I noticed that everyone’s phone was ringing too. Beeps, Hip-hop and Beethoven tunes mixed as everyone stared at each other… the same question passing through everyone’s mind, Is Sapen calling?

The ringing stopped and a message appeared on the phone’s screen. Cover your ears and prepare for a change in pressure. I thought the message polite but before I could obey, a shock wave blasted the silence. My hands automatically cupped my ears and I swallowed hard. My ears popped.

The titanic vessel stopped as if locked into place, feet above the tallest tower. It slowly rotated for a few more minutes and I watched. Sharp edges made of huge triangles covered the ship like scales. Then I saw what looked like a break in the pattern. One large arch came into view. I watched it as the ship turned. It extended back into a silver dome, and I guessed it was the front door.

It continued spinning slowly reducing speed by the second, and then stilled, facing I-985.

I peddled my bicycle through the gathering crowd. Some of the others had seen the front door too and was going the same way, but most of the people just stayed put.

I peddled faster and within minutes, I was looking up at what had to be the Command Center.

A clear voice cut into the morning stillness. I heard the same voice that came the night before. A large, green hologram of a man with long blond hair, nearly as tall as the ship, appeared.

The voice said, I am Sapen. I have studied this world and have found compassion for its inhabitants.

There was a long pause as the hologram looked down upon the masses and smiled.

He continued, I have seen your physical suffering, I have heard your heart’s cry for peace. I am not deaf to the crimes committed against you in the struggle for energy.

He waited a few seconds then continued, I have come to give you a gift. Eternal life, strong bodies, efficient minds and global peace will be available to any who choose it for one year.

Lightning reached out from the ship and struck the hologram. It vaporized into a cloud of glowing yellow gas. Then a small figure penetrated the cloud, tucked and rolled in a long arch and landed gracefully on top of a nearby building. It was a man.

The man walked forward. He leapt off the building, twisted, dropped 30 feet to the parking lot below and stuck the landing.

I drove my bicycle as fast as I could toward the people surrounding the man. When I could go no further, I jumped off my bike, had the presence of mind to unwrap a short chain from under my seat and locked it to the bumper of a large truck. Then I ran down a grass hill, never taking my eyes off the man. When I could see him clearly, I stopped in mid stride. It was Sapen.

He looked 8 feet tall. A tight-fitting, white uniform covered his muscular body. Blond hair and bright blue eyes framed a gleaming smile. His form seemed… perfect.

I could hear people talking to him. The group below me was very cautious, and quiet. Sapen was waiting in their midst, obviously allowing everyone to take a good look at him.

Then an angry young man stepped forward…

Chapter 1

Mr. President, we have no control of our Phase One Attack Systems, General Hutchison said.

The president stood up and walked around his desk. He leaned against its front edge and rubbed his chin in thought. They had called everyone to the Whitehouse using Old Ham Radios. Messengers sent with hand written notes had driven old cars lacking modern computer chips.

What are our options? The President asked.

A young Colonel had been called in due to his special talents in ancient warfare. He said, Mr. President, our network is completely compromised. It’s global. All our systems are repeating the same thing: This interruption is temporary. It is for your protection and designed to halt any unintended nuclear attacks upon foreign soil."

But what are our options? The President pressed.

None sir, Colonel Jacob said.

None, The President repeated.

If you want a military solution, we have no response, General Hutchison said, We don’t know what weapons this alien, Sapen, has. We are no longer in contact with our drone fleets. Every Robot scout has been shut down. Our laser satellites will not respond to commands and none of our nuclear bases is on line. If he can disable all our networks, break all our unbreakable codes and allow only lights to operate then we dare not test his limits.

Advice,

The Secretary of State spoke up. She said, Wait and see.

The President struck the table with his balled fist and cursed. He said, I want every bit of Intel on this, Sapen, as possible.

General Hutchison leaned forward in his seat. He said, I just got an update. Colonel, will you turn the TV to channel 11.

The Colonel looked at the President as he lifted the remote off the table. The TV came on and the channel changed. The blank screen filled with Sapen’s image. His long blond hair framed masculine features. Full lips silently spoke as his blue eyes focused on the camera that was capturing his image.

Turn the volume up. The General shouted at the same moment a rush of noise filled the air.

The camera pulled back, showing the scenes around Sapen’s large form. Several bodies lay scattered around him.

The president wondered if they were all dead and as if in answer to his unspoken question Sapen said, They are only asleep. I assure you they will awake without injury.

Sapen jumped from the center of the crowd. Surprised screams erupted from several of the women. He landed on the top of the building behind him and waited.

The president asked, What is he doing now?

Sapen said, I am waiting on your team to review the events of the past few minutes Mr. President.

Before the president could answer, the TV flicked and the announcer’s voice said, The Alien, Sapen, was just standing peacefully in the crowd when the people parted. Burly men pushed their way forward. They taunted Sapen saying, This is our land, it an’t your world. Who gives you the right? and, Stop trying to control us."

Sapen replied, I have come so that you may live more comfortably, safely and enjoy a healthy life.

The three men didn’t seem to hear him as they started to circle. Sapen’s voice came again. As you can see Mr. President, I did not provoke these men. The president looked closer at the screen and saw that Sapen had not moved his lips."

The three men pounced and the video went into slow motion. Sapen blurred, but his image remained visible as he lightly touched each man on the neck. As they fell, five more men attacked. Sapen stepped to the side and two of the men collided with each other. He repeated the motion, touching each of the men on the neck before returning to his original position in the center of the crowd. All the men had fallen to the ground.

As one, the crowd backed away.

Sapen’s voice overlaid the sounds coming from the screen as the video returned to the present image of him standing on the roof. He was looking directly into the video: Citizens of Earth and Mr. President, I have studied your species and history. I assure you, you are quite predicable. Do not attempt to harm my ships or me. I placed your nuclear subs, stealth bombers, nuclear satellites and other weapons of war in stasis. I have come for one reason.

Sapen opened his palm for the cameras to see. A Golden Pill lay in his out stretched hand.

He continued, "This pill will change any individual who takes it into an eternally blessed being. I give this freely, though a show of respect and… appreciation will be required. All I ask is that you submit yourselves to me. I in turn will rid you of sickness, lethargy of mind, and freedom to become anything you wish. Now I understand that many will not want what I offer at first. Because of that reason, I will offer this drug throughout the globe over the next year. At that time, many will be healed and strong. The people of this Earth will have a great choice. That choice some will have already taken. It is to live as disease free immortals, functioning in enhanced bodies with purpose and a destiny among the stars. I will leave you the choice.

This offer will require time for Earth’s populations to hear and accept. During this year, there will be peace between nations. Those who behave themselves, obeying the peace, will have greater access to more of the technologies that control your lives. Those who resist will suffer a loss of those privileges and the worst offenders will undergo complete blackouts until they revise their positions.

The president whispered, Can he do that?

Sapen smiled, I already have. A liquid blue light poured down from the huge spaceship and shone on him. Slowly, the blinding light engulfed him. Moments later, it went out and he was gone.

The president said, "I want everything we have, I don’t care if it’s rocks, send EVERY weapon we have against that thing!

Then the Whitehouse went dark.

Chapter 2

That was how it began. I was 16 years old when Sapen appeared. He looked like a god that had just come down from Mount Olympus. He offered strength, life and security. His appearance, and the simple fact that huge spaceships orbited the planet, gave credit to his claims.

At the time, I assumed that the pill was just his evil trick played upon the suffering masses or at the very least; he had somehow failed at his larger goal, whatever that is. The Golden Pill would change us all but a year later zombies began to replace mankind. His immediate departure fit the profile too. After all, what could you expect when a zombie cyborg operating without empathy or compassion has altered the nature of man? What else would a creature like him do but abandon his malfunctioning experiments?

And there is the question of first cause. Even to this day, with all the knowledge I have, I still have not determined what was the first cause. For me, it started with strange dreams two weeks before the March 11th event, the day the lighting came. They were a foreshadowing of the experiences to come.

These visions were not wish fulfillment or reenactments of my present life, no, these dreams were real. I started looking for answers in books and on the internet. I looked up remote viewing, lucid dreaming and so on but none fit. It was as if I had been peering into another life, several actually, several other lives were coming to me in my sleep. And I could remember them all. Every detail, even the smells and how I felt as each moment passed still quickens my breath. I can remember walking through the school hallway during those weeks as if I was a zombie, lost in the implications of all I had seen. In one dream, I was a great scientist, in another I was a young man, a little older than I am now still grieving over the loss of his parents. Then there was the carpenter, the builder/construction worker who was laid off preparing for an interview. In my wildest dreams, I was an 8 foot elf living on a world waiting at the end of time preparing for the last battle that would decide the fate of all existence…

These dreams were no light matter. They seemed to have weight and I was bonded to each of the men from my dreams, for in a way, they were all me… I’m telling you this now because soon you will see that this story is but just a part of a much larger tale. I would not like to just drop all this on you at once, as I might have already done but rather I want to prepare you now, as I was also prepared when the lightning came. The strange thing about what happened to me when the lightning struck me is that I somehow expected it to happen. I only realized this after the shock wore off but I knew it was coming…

Perhaps Aughra was the first cause. You will have to discover what Aughra is later, maybe in another story but just be aware that men not gods made Aughra and that event nearly destroyed everything, and still might.

I will tell you now that when Aughra activated she stretched the bonds of space and time, entangled them and we, me and my counterparts, some of who are directly responsible for this disaster, were left to clean up the mess. Many others like me, spread throughout the multiuniverse, were the only ones in the whole world who knew what was going on. I felt crazy at times being the only person who knew what Sapen actually was and why he was attacking us or at least parts of his reasoning. I guess that is why I decided to write all this down before I leave. Those who were there, those who survived don’t need to be told. But the few remaining humans and their children need to know before what happened to us turns into some kind of myth and dream. I would have to write a saga to explain it all but I hope this is enough.

I’ve met others along the way who are deeply involved. They are beings from other, places. They have… shared their… knowledge and experiences with me in the most profound way. And they gave me powerful technologies, an advantage that turned the tide in our darkest hour...

By now you are wondering, what kind of book is this? Where are the zombies? Where is the blood. And I say, wait… keep reading… it’s coming. I must stop here so that I do not get too far ahead of myself. So, from now on I will try to show you what happened rather than tell you.

Chapter 3

March 11, 2021 was the day school ended. I awoke in my bed feeling a mixture of excitement and dread. The screams of countless people still echoed in my head. The scientist in my dream, Doctor Aurora, had activated Aughra.

I turned on the Web Viewer and the local news channel reported that, The Southeastern part of America had officially submitted to Sapen, minor communications are now allowed.

It seemed like it had been forever since I had seen a segment from the 24-hour news. Now that Sapen allowed minor communications, I tried doing an extensive search on the World Wide Web but the information stopped at the borders of our community. I could order pizza but I couldn’t call long distance and find out what had happened to my loved ones.

I wasn’t sure what was happening around the world, but my friend John had heard something about Florida. Old cars had taken a few people there and back but what they reported seemed trivial or unbelievable. He had heard that thousands had fled on sailboats to the Caribbean. Most of the people were doing the same things we were doing, going along to get along, but many so-called terrorist had been bombing some of Sapen’s scouting ships that landed. Sapen’s followers captured or killed all those involved. No one heard from the captives again.

I put on my clothes and took my data pad off the table then went down stairs. When my dad, mom and sister had taken the Golden Pill, dad’s bad knee healed and mom said her vision had improved and she was taller now. My older sister’s appearance changed too. She could alter her hair color overnight and her college test scores went from high Cs to A+.

If I took the pill there would be no more pain in my knees too. I had to study when it seemed that everyone else was out doing what they wanted, and they all made perfect scores on their test. It used to be the other way around. Being smart, really smart is what intrigued me the most. My friends could look at the data on our school’s text screen for only a second, turn away and recite the entire page. What would I do with myself if I had such a memory…

I liked the idea of being unbreakable too. My Martial Arts training could reach a level I could only dream of. If I could make my body do exactly, exactly, what I wanted it to do and many times faster than even Bruce Chi could have… just the thought had me questioning the sense in resisting something I would eventually take anyway. But, a sense of pride kept me from doing it. I still had time…

I walked into the kitchen and saw my mom leaning over the re-hydro heater. Without looking back at me she said, Are you hungry?

Her voice had changed again. It was less nasal, softer in its tone. I missed her old sound. After they had all taken the pill, after seeing her, then my dad and my sister become… perfect, the way they looked at me sometimes froze me in place. I realized that I was glad that she hadn’t turned around. There was something in their gaze. There was something in the way that they noticed everything I did. Even my heart rate was clear to them.

At times, I thought that Sapen was watching me through their eyes.

I glanced at the table and said, No mom, I’ll get something on the way to school.

I felt a conflict in emotions as I stood there close to the one person who I had always trusted. I wanted to stay near her, near my family but I also wanted to get away from here, now.

I resented Sapen’s control. It was subtle but total. It had affected all my relationships. He did not hide the fact that he monitored our cell phones, our cars and our web activity. All this was for our protection, to Stop the terrorist. But I wondered what other means he used to watch us. The feeling that machines, even my family, were recording everything said or done, reminded me of how the government had been doing just that sort of thing without a warrant. That fact, which Sapen had pointed out several times over the past year, had made it easy for so many to accept his spying rather than the Feds. Because of this, many of my friends thought we were advancing, but really, we were losing it all.

John told me that apparently, the US government had declared war with Sapen. The administration had been blue and much propaganda had been thrown-about during the election. Most of the red states were happy to abandon The Union and declare allegiance to Sapens New World Order after the White House went dark last year. This new government had no congress or even a capitol, unless you considered Sapen’s Mother Ship the new Capitol.

Sapen had started referring to himself as the High Lord, but he hadn’t, as of yet, made any of us call him by that title. In our daily emails, messages from Sapen sent to those not yet on the pill, talked about the glory that would soon come to mankind on March 12th. I didn’t buy any of it, though I held my tongue. There seemed to be a uniform prostration toward space. Everyone was healthy, super healthy and there was peace but it was not for me; the price was too high.

A creeping feeling gnawed on my insides. Traditional freedoms were gone. Our elected leaders were missing. When I was at school, all those on the pill had already started referring to him as the High Lord. The whispers of submission echoed through the hallways. All we need do was take the pill and everything would be taken care of.

The sound made me sick, nothing is free. The price of our safety was the loss of communication; what more will we have to pay tomorrow?

I worried that once we gave such power over us to Sapen, freedom, as I know it would be obliterated.

All my family lived in the south. No matter how much I secretly wanted to run away from my home and land, I had no way to find the resistance. Every social networking site that spoke against Sapen mysteriously stopped working. Every post that spoke of fighting back was deleted. People were disappearing in the night. What would happen to those I loved if Sapen learned that I had fled from his rule?

As I looked back at my mom, I knew why I went along with it all. But I waited for some sign from the President. I searched for any signal declaring that American still existed.

Before turning to leave, I saw dads County Enquire on the breakfast table. The cover story read, Zombies take over Government. Survivor tells all. Public warned to prepare for the worst. There was a picture from some old Night of the Living Dead film plastered on the first page. I touched the screen, flicked the magazine article onto my data pad. Then I ran out the door, jumped into my 1972 corvette, pulled the top down and left for school.

The sun was shining in Georgia but it was still a little cool. A few clouds moved past the blue sky as the smells of spring filled my lungs. The air whipped my hair into a mess and I felt great. A sense of excitement kept welling up inside my stomach. There were going to be several parties tonight. The anticipation was always greater than the actual event but I was sure it was going to be anything but boring.

The memory of my old girlfriend came to mind. Sandy was hot and so were all her friends. I was going to stop by her house first before going on to my best friend John’s house. I wondered who would be at her party. My guess was that the football team would eventually show up. It was a confrontation I hoped to avoid. I’d show up early and then politely leave after I picked up a friend.

I drove my powerful white Corvette with its rebuilt 454 LS5. My dad and I had worked on it all winter long putting it together and getting it painted. It was the best time I’ve ever had with him.

While we were building it, he kept telling me it was a project for a friend. Then when my finals came in, I had passed High School a year early, he walked me into the garage, handed me the keys and told me he was proud of me. The corvette was my graduation present.

However powerful and beautiful this classic machine was, many of the rich kids couldn’t see past their $40,000. SUVs that had AI’s for auto drive. To this day, I think they were really just jealous.

The roar of my Vett’s engine made me smile as I sped down the highway. This was the last sunny day I remember and although I think of other sun lit days following this one, none ever made me feel like that one did.

The school day started like any other. I parked and met my friends outside the main entrance where we talked and watched the freshman girls getting off the bus. Tonight, year end ceremonies were going to begin.

This was the last day of Sapen’s peace. Everyone was talking about what might happen now that over half the world’s population had taken his Golden Pill. Nearly everyone at school had taken it too… and they knew I had not.

High school was like a bad sitcom for me. I guess everyone can say that but the added pressure to join the Sapen Race, no matter how polite, often left me drained.

I was too excited for all this Sapen talk to bring me down. Tonight was going to get wild.

I wasn’t the most popular kid in high school. But at least before Sapen’s pill, I had a kind of social niche. I was somewhat of a nerd slash jockey gone wrong. Funny, after the pill almost everyone fit that description.

I was somewhere in-between class clown and loner. I had