Hark! The Herald Undead Moan! (Last Man Standing)

A Very Dead Christmas is a holiday special of Last Man Standing, its a short story about a group of characters who live during Christmas in the zombie apocalypse.

Characters
Megan Snow

Story
II

'''Hark! The Herald Undead Moan!'''

Megan Snow

I had found myself walking along the shore of Long Island sound. I had snuck my way around zombies so I could spend my Christmas in the only place I could ever call a home. While I knew it was dangerous and every part of my logical mind told me to stay away, I ignored it. I started walking back to my cabin to get some supplies that I didn’t have a chance to get when the zombies over ran the camp. As I walked, I saw that the camp was truly dead as a fresh layer of snow had fallen over the ground the previous night. The snow was the first sign that the barrier that prevented the weather from affecting everything inside it was gone. As I walked, I let out a long breath from my mouth and I watched my breath become steam in the cold December air. A strong breeze blew in from the ocean and I pulled the collar of my jacket up to act as a shield against the cold.

I found myself walking up to the burned remains of the Big House and while most of the house was destroyed, I found the tornado doors in back still lead down to the in-tact basement. I looked around, checking for any signs of an oncoming zombie attack before pulling out my sword to break the lock on the doors and I pulled them open. I climbed down and went straight for a set of boxes in the corner and carried them outside and stacked them. I also found a shield and some rope, which I used to make a sled to pull the boxes with greater ease. I started pulling them to the Athena Cabin while I thought about how the camp looked so different only a year ago.

I thought about it, the Demeter cabin had really taken great joy in decorating the camp. Several of them worked together to help grow a giant pine tree in the center of the cabins. The Apollo campers used their skill in archery to shoot ribbons over the tree while the Aphrodite campers made beautiful ornaments for the tree. It was one of the few times that the entire camp worked together on something, even the Ares cabin took part by donating the tips of their best spears to be used as some kind of decoration. Even after the Christmas season passed, the tree still stood tall in the center of camp and I took a quick glance of it as I passed it by.

I eventually reached the front steps of my cabin. I walked up the steps and pushed the door open, which took some effort as the joints of the door knob had partially rusted over the past few months. The inside however was very much the same. Annabeth after finishing the rebuilding of Olympus had turned her sights on our own cabin. I’m pretty sure that by the time she finished, our cabin could take a direct hit from Zeus’ Master Bolt. I waited for the sound of thunder to roll across the sky as it normally would when we joked about that, but the sound was absent.

I pulled the boxes inside the cabin and placed them in the lobby. I opened the boxes one at a time to reveal the camp’s Christmas decorations. I pulled a few decorations from the fist box and began hanging them around the room. I told myself that decorating was pointless as no one would see it, but I would see it and that was enough. I opened the second box and found a fake pine tree that was only about three feet high. I propped it up onto a table and took the ornaments from the third box and started placing them on the fake tree. The last thing left to do was place the lights around the room and the tree. This only took a second as all I had to do was wrap the lights around several hooks hanging from the borders of the room and I used several extension cords to link them all together. I plugged the extension cord into an outlet, but unfortunately nothing had happened. I didn’t think it would as the camp was completely dark and electricity wouldn’t be working at this point.

It was dark at this point and I walked over to my bed and laid down facing the ceiling.

“Merry Christmas,” I told myself and looked up at the sky light at the stars. I sat there in the dark silence of the end of the world for I don’t know how long. It was during this long silence that I heard a sound coming from outside. I sprung to my feet and walked over to the window. I took a look outside and saw a large dark figure walking through the snow, occasionally stopping to sniff the air and I knew in an instant it had to be a werewolf. I slowly reached for the charms around my bracelets and pulled at them to extend my swords.

However, the werewolf heard the sound and I knew it because his head turned in my direction instantly and it started running in my direction. I ran away from the window and headed for the front door. I heard the sound of shattered glass and didn’t dare turn around and sprung outside into the snow. I ran as fast as I could to the center of camp, trying to find a good position to fight, but most of the things I could use for cover were destroyed. The doors to my cabin swung open and the werewolf ran at me. I circled around the large pine tree, but the monster crashed right through it and the tree began to tumble down. I jumped to the side and the force of the impact shook the ground and snow went flying into the air. I lost sight of the wolf and looked around frantically in hopes of finding it. I spotted it just in time to block a strike from its claw, but the force of the impact rattled my sword and it shattered to pieces. I watched in shock as I saw my own expression in the shattered pieced flying in front of my face before falling back into the snow. I tightened the grip on my remaining sword and slashed at the monster which backed up before deciding if it wanted to attack again, which it did. I raised my sword and managed to cut one of its arms. It stood on its hind legs and grabbed at the injured arm. I took this time to stab it in the leg and ran off as it started to lick its wounds, but I knew it would be back after it healed in a few moments. I found my way into the Hermes cabin, I don’t know why because as far as defensive positions go, the Hermes cabin was horrible. It looked like it would fall apart before the end of the world happened and now it didn’t look much better, but I felt drawn to it.

I walked over to Nolan’s bed and sat down for a second as I knew any second that demon would jump through that door and try and kill me; possibly turn me into just another zombie. I placed my hand on the bed and felt something under the sheets. I pulled them back and saw an envelope with my name on it. I took no time in opening it and found a hand written note inside along with two silver charms for my bracelets. I then started reading the writing:

“Dear Megan,

''I got you a little something for your birthday and I hope you like it. I had to go see Hephaestus himself to get these made. Anyway, I know that our time together is almost over and I’ll have to return to school soon. I just want to let you know that I’m always thinking of you and nothing will keep us apart. I’ll see you again at Christmas and you can expect something special. Until then, you’ll just have to wait.''

Love, Nolan Swift.”

Tears fell from my eyes and I read the letter and I held the two charms in my hand as they were the last gift that Nolan would ever give me. The werewolf took this moment to bust into the cabin as the door was blasted off its hinges. I wiped the tears from my eyes and grasped the two charms tighter and I felt them grow and change in my hand. They formed two twin swords that were lighter than my previous pair and hopefully stronger. But there was also a slight hum to them and I wondered what it was. I didn’t have time to guess as the creature charged at me and I blocked its claw with my sword. An electric shock ran through the monster and it was blasted back a few feet as if stunned. I didn’t give it a chance to regain its balance and I started slashing at it like a whirlwind, sending shock after shock into its body. I finally went for the death blow and sliced off one arm in a single motion before my other sword went right in between the monsters eyes into its brain, electrifying it to death.

I walked back to my cabin with my swords in my hand. I looked around and saw that the monster had knocked over my tree and some decorations. I spent the next hour cleaning the glass and fixing the decorations. I then took the plug from the wall and pulled out one of my swords. I touched the tip of it to the plug and for a second, the entire room came to life. The lights looked even more beautiful than I remembered and it really did feel like Christmas. This only lasted for a second as the electricity from my sword fried the circuits and it became dark once again. However, that one moment was enough for me as I truly felt like happy if only for a short moment and I slept soundly for the first time in a long while. The next morning I woke up and headed back to the warehouse where the rest of my new friends had been planning on what to do next.

Darkcloud1111 ~Fastest Hero Alive