Chronicles of Connor: Zombie Rising

By Eric Wynn

The Chronicles of Connor: Zombie Rising, follows the adventures of Connor as he discovers that the world as he knows it, is in grave danger from a zombie apocalypse.

In an effort to prevent the zombie apocalypse, the government has formed a secret organization to combat the threat. Connor accidentally encounters the leader of this organization and when the kindly Professor Saint Graham saves Connor's life, Connor decides to enlist in this secret organization.

Connor soon discovers that the world is much different than he ever knew it to be. Not only do zombies exist in the world, but many other creatures both good and bad. Connor soon embarks on a series of adventures with his new friends and the world as he knows it will never be the same!

The Chronicles of Connor: Zombie Rising (screenplay adaption) won first prize at the 2013 Louisiana Science Fiction Film and Costume Festival.

• Language: English
• Publisher: eBookIt.com
• Release date: Apr 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9781456618339

Book preview

Eric

Book One

1. The Florida Keys

The Florida Keys and more specifically Key West, is an isolated outpost of Americana and a testament to a life less hectic. You will find no big box manufacturing plants here (The Key Lime Pie Factory is perhaps the biggest), no one driving fast and furiously and only a few thousand people (75,000 give or take a few) scattered over a chain of many islands, several not much larger than the street you probably live on.

What you will find in the Florida Keys is an abundance of people running away from the cold, hard, icy winters of the north. These people have sought out harmony, peace, and quiet among the coconut trees and the green oceans waters that surround the Keys. Many of these folk are a bit odd. That is okay, because in the Florida Keys, being a bit odd is quite welcomed.

Since their economy lacks a manufacturing base, the residents depend on tourism as their main source of income. Understanding that tourism and the tourist dollar are the main lifeblood of the communities, the Monroe Economic Development Commission has gone into overdrive developing a plethora of festivals, gatherings, and special occasions.

One such festival, among the many, is the Hemingway Days Festival held each July celebrating the Florida Keys most famous resident, Earnest Hemingway. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Hemingway, he was a hard drinking, big-fish catching, big game hunting, man who was just as apt to fight with you as have a drink with you. What made Hemingway famous was his writing.

This year, the festival organizers had invited Professor Saint Graham to be their guest lecturer. The Professor was an expert in both ancient and modern literature and was very familiar with the writing style of Hemingway. When the invitation had arrived, duly printed on heavy paper with a fine scroll of penmanship, and carrying a faint whiff of salty air about it, the professor was all too delighted to take part in the event and of course, take in the scrumptious foods that Key West offered.

The shallow waters around the Keys abound with lobster, shrimp, rock crab, grouper and snapper that are harvested each and every day when the season allows and the weather permits. The local sailors use fleets of small, brightly colored boats and during their respective seasons will fish every day and into the night. The small boats do not allow for long extended fishing runs and so the men normally return to their docks within 24 hours, heavy with the day’s catch.

This seafood bounty has provided the local chefs with an unparalleled opportunity to create seafood dishes that are unique and most varied. Many Keys chefs seek to embody the Florida flavors of limes, orange, and mango in their cooking for a unique regional style of cooking. Food lovers have long recognized the Florida Keys as a destination among destinations for the partaking of fresh seafood. This simple fact was not lost on the Professor. Who, when time permitted (and he made sure it always did), really enjoyed the consumption of sustenance in its many forms.

In fact, the Professor was well known for his eating habits. For those foods that he liked (and there were many), it was not uncommon for him to have at least two servings of each dish when possible. If the dish were especially tasty, three helpings would not be unheard of. Of particular attraction were desserts, of which the Professor had always served in twos! Therefore, this trip to the Keys served two purposes: one, a weekend to indulge in the Florida Keys’ unique seafood dishes, and two, a chance to mingle with others who enjoyed the life and writings of the great Hemingway.

On the appointed weekend in July, the Professor arrived at the Hemingway Days Festival and dutifully carried out his obligations as Grand Master to the gathered masses that had assembled in the local theater to listen to him. The Professor focused on Hemingway’s love of Africa and how the strange and exotic lands of Africa, so different from America, would serve as Hemingway’s inspiration to a life of adventure and excitement. Hemingway would accept no daily grind for him; he was a man who chose to embrace excitement, danger, and of course love on a scale as big as Africa itself.

The Professor was scheduled to speak for one hour; he spoke for two. He was scheduled for three breakout sessions with festivalgoers; he hosted those and another impromptu three sessions. The audience members were enthralled with the Professor and his gift of speech and storytelling and could not get enough of him. The crowds barraged the overweight, rather frumpy looking, Professor with Hemingway questions, of which the Professor was all too happy to answer with anecdotal evidence and stories. The Professor’s stories were so vivid that many of the audiences wondered if the Professor had not actually been with Hemingway at some point in his storied life. Which of course was silly, the Professor was much too young to have known Hemingway…or, so it seemed.

The Hemingway Days Festival committee would later remark what a marvelous success the Professor had been and they would later describe him as a most jovial individual, who seemed to have an uncanny knowledge of Hemingway. The crowds loved the Professor and his simple style of talking that seemed to be solely directed to each audience member who listened with rapt attention.

The committee also took note of the Professor as someone who also seemed ever focused on the consumption of food when he was not speaking. Apparently, they rationalized, talking builds up quite the appetite. The Professor seemed to have no limitations when it came to food. When not speaking about Hemingway, he was asking about the local eateries, which, the audience and committee members were all too eager to share with him.

For those who joined the Professor at meal time (the Professor hated to eat alone), it was quite the experience. It was during one of these meals that a committee member remarked to the Professor that he had to try the local Key Lime pie, which he described as, heaven by the fork bite!

The Key lime pie is a Florida specialty that was developed around the late 19th century. The recipe calls for the use of the very small, but very tart limes that are grown locally and were readily abundant. The settlers of the Florida Keys had learned to make use of these tart limes and used them in many of their cooking dishes. While a Key lime squeezed over seafood is quite a treat, it was in pie that the Key lime found its true calling.

However, this is neither a story about the Professor attending the Hemingway festival, nor his being a participating judge in the Hemingway lookalike contest, nor the many hours he spent joking with the fellow attendees. Our story actually begins with the Professor leaving the Hemingway Days Festival and driving northbound on US 1 back to Melbourne, Florida and the daily grind of his real job.

However, before he could return to the office, the professor was in search of more of that famous Key lime pie. A little to share with the staff, he thought to himself.

One of the festivalgoers, an elderly woman of fine genteel standing, had recommended a certain shop on Marathon Key. It had made the most wonderful pies and had won many awards for its Key lime pie. However, she could not remember the name of the shop or its address, just that it was a light green building with pink trim, right on US 1. The owners had mysteriously disappeared and the shop could be closed down, but if the pie shop was there, the Professor just had to stop in and sample the pastries.

Therefore as our story opens, we find Professor Saint Graham with his unkempt red hair, enigmatic youthful looks, ruffled clothes and portly physique driving northbound ever so slowly on US 1 looking for a pie shop. Not just any pie shop. But, a pie shop of exceptional quality, which may or may not be open for business because of some unusual troubles.

Who would have thought that this portly, disheveled looking man who resembled your high school English teacher, who enjoyed a hearty laugh and an even heartier meal, would be the leader of mankind’s greatest organization that you had never heard of; the Federal Initiative for the Suppression of the Terrifying, or as they liked to be called, Team F.I.S.T.

2. Golden Fried

Traveling northbound in his government issued sedan with the radio turned up to a very high decibel, Professor Saint Graham was in a most delightful mood.   He had every reason to be in a delightful mood. It had been a wonderful weekend; he had met many new friends, he had been the center of attention, and he had sampled a sizeable amount of many delicious new foods. Who could have asked for more?

Now, the Professor was in search of this pie shop of repute. Pie was a lovely thing. Everything goes better with pie, the Professor had once heard. Whoever voiced that nugget of reasoning was right. Now the Professor had wanted to bring some Key lime pie back to the office and share it with the staff and coworkers. But where was this pie shop?

The Florida Key’s unique geography allowed for only one central road (US 1) on which almost all business were centered. This made finding a business a rather simple task. Or, so you would think. The Professor had a simple description: look for the green building with pink trim. Which for the average person (the Professor was not average mind you) is a rather limited amount of data from which to make an informed decision.

But not for our Professor who fancied himself a bit of an expert at deciphering riddles and conundrums. The Professor was given a clue, from which he now had to decipher the where a bouts of this certain pie shop. Of course, you could replace pie shop with lost dog, secret message, hidden treasure, missing person or unsolved murder.   The mental effort for each of these enigmas is essentially the same and the Professor excelled at these games which was how he liked to look at the world; it was all just one big puzzle to be solved.

Marathon is the biggest city of the Florida Keys and the most populated both with residents and businesses. The Professor was happily driving up US 1 looking ever so intently at the brightly colored gift shops, the sea inspired restaurants offering their daily specials and the colorful roadside attractions. He had learned long ago to look for happiness in the little things of life. And today he was very happy.

Now the same could not be said for the drivers behind the Professor. Have you ever been driving along, determined on getting to your destination, when the driver ahead is driving at half the legal posted speed limit? Frustrating isn’t it? Well, that was exactly how the local residents felt driving behind the Professor. Fortunately, the folks in the Florida Keys are a good-natured lot. So most drivers simply passed the professor- he was a tourist after all. A few gave him the one-fingered salute, or honked their horn to alert the professor of their frustration. However, most simply smiled and moved around the man who seemed lost in his own world. The Keys folk are quite forgiving.

The Professor had to stop the car every so often and see the sights. He definitely needed a picture in front of the giant lobster erected outside of the dive shop. Then he had to stop in and peruse the shell shops. And, of course, he had to stop for some dinner on the way out. You have to eat before you leave the Keys. I believe it is a written rule somewhere in their county charter (or, so I have been told). And it had been three hours since lunch and his departure from Key West.

For his last dinner in the Keys, the professor had decided on the Marathon Drive-In, relic of a drive-in from a time when drive-ins were a wonderful American eating tradition. The Marathon Drive-In had seen its share of hurricanes in the past. The building was weathered from the constant sunshine. The paint faded. The weeds around the property were high and needed trimming. But to its advertising credit, the Marathon Drive-In had something no else had: a giant pink shrimp wearing a hat and holding a walking cane mounted on the restaurant’s roof. For the Professor who loved all things gaudy, it was just too perfect.

The Professor pulled his government issued sedan into the parking lot. The menu was mounted on a pole adjacent to the driver’s window along with a large red button for ordering. For his last meal, the Professor had decided on a double order of golden fried shrimp and a side of fresh cut fries. And, to chase it down, a large ice tea, extra ice, with a lemon or two.

The Professor pushed the red button for service and waited. Nothing happened. He then pushed the red button again. And still no response from the speaker. Huh. The Professor honked his horn. A man with a pink hat appeared in the diner window and waved to the Professor. Now we are in business," he thought to himself.

Within minutes, a carhop promptly appeared at the Professor’s window.

Welcome to the Marathon Drive-In, I’m Penny, she said, with all the gum chewing enthusiasm a twenty year old can muster doing a job they would rather not do, in a place they rather not be.

Well hello there, the professor responded with his famed politeness. I have never been here, and I was wondering if you had any recommendations this fine day. Maybe you have a dinner special or two? The Professor had already made up his mind; he was going to have the shrimp, he was just making conversation with this perky, twenty something waitress.

Well, we are famous for our shrimp, Penny replied, smacking her gum and looking at her fingernails. Penny continued, Most everybody gets a shrimp basket, it comes with French fries, and it’s a good size portion for one person.

Well then, I will have two of your famous fried shrimp baskets- please make the French fries crispy- and a large ice tea with extra ice and lemons. And, if I could get the ice tea first, I am really quite thirsty from my travels. And I do like lots of refills, if you don’t mind. The Professor asked ever so politely as he liked to do with those in the service industry. The Professor always respected the service help. In his younger days he had spent two summers serving at the local country club and knew what it was like.

Penny departed with the Professor’s order in hand. While she may have been bored and distracted, she was quite efficient in her task. She returned most hurriedly with a large tea, heavy with ice, and two lemons perched on the side. Several minutes later she returned with two baskets of shrimp and fries. Penny had been most accurate in her description of the shrimp basket; the baskets were overflowing with extra-large, fried shrimp cooked to a golden brown.

The Professor plunged all too enthusiastically into his dinner, and promptly burnt the top of his mouth on the first shrimp. Waving his had in front of his mouth the Professor should have been embarrassed. But, he was not.

The shrimp did not last long, nor did the thick cut, slightly salted fries. Penny kept the ice tea refills coming. He sat there in his car eating and thinking, breathing in the salty air, and listening to the music from the diner. Life was good.

On Penny’s third return to refill the Professor’s tea, he asked, I am looking for a pie shop nearby here. Not really sure of the name, I was told to look for a green and pink building with really good pie, the Professor asked.

You’re probably thinking of the Delacamp’s place. It is about a mile up the road on the right hand side. They make really good pie, or at least they used to, Penny replied, smiling and working extra hard for her much needed tip. Minimum wage for waitresses in Florida was quite meager.

Just a mile you say? Great, but why do you say they ‘used to make really good pie.’ Has something happened? This was the second time the Professor had heard this mentioned, and his curiosity was piqued.

Some kind of trouble. Mr. and Mrs. Delacamp disappeared several years ago without a trace. Poor Connor had to come home from college to help with the investigation, and now he is trying to keep the family pie shop open without his folks. But his heart is just not in it without them. Penny replied, her voice lowering a few decibels as if she was telling a secret.

That’s terrible. Do you think Connor would be there now? I would love to meet him, and I need to take a couple of pies back to the office with me. You say they are good pies?

Oh yes, the family has won many awards for their recipes. It’s just that Connor is not that into the shop anymore. In fact, the store closes at 7 p.m., and if you want your pie you better hurry. Connor does not always keep the posted hours. Penny, who was eager to see this customer off saw her chance to get rid of this man who had now asked for his third glass of tea.

The Professor settled the bill and left Penny with a thirty percent tip. She had been most helpful, and the fried shrimp were very good. But before leaving, he did ask Penny to take his photo in front of the drive in. The Professor did love his photos of all things gaudy.

3. Pie Please

Professor Saint Graham found Delacamps’s Delectable Desserts about one mile north of the diner, just as Penny had indicated. And, true to its description, the shop was green with a pink trim. Not the forest green you are probably thinking of, but more of a Key West sea green; a very faint green that makes you think of the shallow waters around the islands. A light pink trim outlined the building. Anywhere else but the Florida Keys and this building would have been out of place and very possibly cited for violating a local painting code. However, this was the Florida Keys, and here in the Keys, this building fit in perfectly.

It was almost 7 p.m. and the Professor was worried that the shop would be closed. However, when he pulled up he saw the lights were on, and so he wandered in. A small bell jingled as he stepped through the door, alerting the staff that someone had entered the shop. Inside, the Professor breathed in the aroma of a sugar sweetness laced with lime. His nose twitched and eyes sparkled. This is going to be good, he said to himself.

Decorated in whites and sea greens the pie shop was everything that a fancy coffee shop