<span style="font-style: italic">Runningâ€¦<br/><br/>No, not runningâ€¦.<br/><br/> Heart pounding. Lungs burning. Eyes streaming. There was nothing more than the moment. There were no memories, no emotions, no past and no future. There was only the moment and the moment was NOW. <br/><br/>No, not runningâ€¦.<br/><br/>It could feel every footfall through its spine. Every crack of dry twig bit into the prone soles of its feet, stray leaves and dirt built up in a mush between its toes. Its legs were cold, damp with dew, tiny beads collecting in the thin, young growth of hair there, muscles screaming, protesting and angrily cramping, promising an agony that would last long into the night and signing their pledge with a dull ache now. <br/>It didnâ€™t matter. All of THAT could be fought through. WOULD be fought through! All that mattered was moving. Eyes trained ahead always, scanning and picking out the slightest betraying twitch of undergrowth. No consequences. <br/>It ignored the chemical stench of traffic fumes. They undermined everything, even the crisp, minty smell of trees and moss, even the oh so sickly sweet smell of rot that seemed to follow it everywhere, it had a different scent to trackâ€¦<br/><br/>Somewhere ahead there was a crunch of something plummeting into the forest debris followed by a yelp and a human voice. It didnâ€™t register words, it wasnâ€™t capable of understanding pleading, even the bird-like whimpering tone was lost on the creature, it only knew that its prey had slowed down and that it should speed up.<br/><br/>No, this was not running. This was chasing. This was pursuingâ€¦ <br/><br/>A bang suddenly tore through the air like a gunshot, it seemed to rip through the trees and tear them up by their roots. For a moment the creature faltered, stopping in its tracks, eyes wide, teeth bared and a terrified snarl. Things started to go dark. The world receded around it, slipping from existenceâ€¦<br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold">Bang.</span><br/><br/>Everything started to feel strange, its skin felt too hot, too cramped, sticky like the sweat from a fever the night beforeâ€¦</span><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="font-style: italic">Bang.</span></span><br/><br/>Itâ€¦ no waitâ€¦ where had he got that from? He was definitely a heâ€¦<br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="font-style: italic">Bang.</span></span><br/><br/>What was that? That banging? It had been unearthly and terrifying a moment before, but there wasâ€¦ there was something hideously recognisable about itâ€¦<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic"><span style="font-weight: bold">Bang. â€œâ€”naw, bring â€˜er down a lil bit, mate! Ayup!â€</span></span><br/><br/>It hit him like a ton of bricks.<br/>Freaking roadworks! Holy blue shambling mother of God! Fourth time this week! How long did it take them to build one road! What, were they paving it with lego bricks!? Come on guys! Get it together!<br/><br/>Clayton growled into his pillow and tried to bury himself as far into the thing as humanly (or inhumanly, depending on who you were asking) possible, trying to regain his grasp on sleep, the mood of the dream was still there, lingering on the edge of his conscience like the smell of burned toast in the kitchen a few hours after. His heart was still flinching awkwardly against his ribcage (it didnâ€™t so much beat anymore as much as twitch unregularly when things got a bit exciting, Clay didnâ€™t like to picture his anatomy muchâ€¦) and he swore he could still smellâ€¦<br/>-Noâ€¦. noâ€¦ nonononononono!<br/>No! God! No!<br/><br/>He bolted upright, kicking his blankets onto the floor, sitting a little dazed and too awake for this time of morning on his bed. It hadnâ€™t been a dream, or at least he didnâ€™t think so, itâ€¦ was that a memory?<br/>That smell he was followingâ€¦ it was perfume! Had he been hunting someone? Seriously? A girl?<br/>Clayton swallowed dryly and studied his bedroom, trying to gain some kind of mantle on reality again, waiting for the adrenaline to thin out. Characters from his favourite TV shows watched him from posters on his walls, shelves of assorted books and films (including the Zombie survival guide one of his fellow residents felt would make a FANTASTIC birthday present!) were propped up by shoe boxes from where heâ€™d never gotten around to fixing them onto the walls. His violin case all full of cheesy stickers heâ€™d taken from various placesâ€¦ that was the only thing heâ€™d really taken from homeâ€¦<br/><br/>Normality set in again. Clay sighed and hauled his skinny backside outta bed and lurched over to the window, yanking it shut and taking just a fraction of pleasure from slamming it hard enough to rattle in its frame!<br/><br/>He checked the alarm clock on the side. It wasnâ€™t due to go off for another two hoursâ€¦ to thinkâ€¦ some people CHOSE to get up at this ungodly hourâ€¦ nutters!<br/><br/>Clay pulled on the nearest pair of boxer shorts and a shirt from the other night and went to slink downstairs; at least he could get the GOOD cereals before the little people scarfed them down their greedy necks! Why stop there! At this rate he could lay claim to the TV remote and the cosy chair in the lounge! Now THERE was an ambition! Go big or go home!<br/>He paused by the door, dark eyebrows almost kissing â€¦<br/><br/>Better yetâ€¦ he skipped back a few steps, scooped up his alarm (still due to go off) and strolled out, carefully he stopped by his neighbours door, pressed his ear against the wood to check for breathingâ€¦<br/>â€¦ still asleep. Perfect!<br/>â€¦ and gingerly, he opened the door and placed the alarm clock on the floor in their room, before carefully closing it again, grinning like a cat all the while. HA! Two hours for now theyâ€™d get their payback for stealing the last can of coke from the fridge! That alarm clock rang like church tower!<br/><br/>Clay slunk off, running a bony hand through half a head of bed hair then stretching off the last of the morning. His back made a loud, satisfying pop. All of his joints had been doing that a lot more since he contracted The Disease, apparently the slight decay time between being put in the ground and, well, waking up, did a number on the human bodyâ€¦ once again, it wasnâ€™t something he wanted to think about. Denial was a sweet and happy placeâ€¦ and no, not a river in Egypt!<br/><br/>He raided the fridge and sunk down in the living room with a packet of uncooked bacon. He pulled apart the plastic with his teeth, mind too groggy to think.