Sunday, April 20, 2008

The Dust and the Breath (excerpt)

On his way home from buying a pint of ice cream, Tim Dahl is atacked by zombies. He finds himself a ghost watching his own corpse re-animate and set out to attack his family. With the help of two other ghosts and a burned-out goblin, Tim's spirit must find a way to save his family from his own corpse, as the middle aged father of two is comically caught in a struggle between warring powers from beyond.

Tim vainly tried to re-enter his own body, assuming he could possess himself with ease, but whatever bond had once allowed mind to control it was forever broken.

He hastened himself and made his way to the car. He passed through the ajar door and his hands passed through the steering wheel and key. He concentrated, trying to grab not the material car, but to turn the ignition of its phantom counterpart, which could speed him intangibly past the army of the dead, and back to town. He’d worry about how he’d make himself known to Erin and the kids when he got there, or what he’d do to protect them, but right now he knew he needed to be there before the zombies.

“Ain’t no bond ‘tween you and car like Vroom Vroom has with bike”, Dug offered, “Is no spook car for you to claim…”

Baron began to bark and react to get Tim’s attention.

“Not now boy”, said Tim… “Wait… Baron… you can see me!”

“Ami-nim-nimnals yes can see the dead.. and see Dug…”, Dug commented.

Tim got back out of the car.

“Baron”, he said in a happy voice, “Here boy… over to my side of the car… That’s it boy.. Get out…. “, Tim said clapping his hands.

Baron complied. Tim led Baron with calls and whistles and claps to the side of the road which was devoid of zombies. The zombies seemed utterly uninterested in Baron, their purpose apparently to bite and kill humans. Baron followed his spectral master to a point in the cemetery where they could now see Tim’s fleshly counterpart.

“Baron”, Tim said running over to his own zombie, “Baron… here boy… Get him boy! Attack”.

Ghost Tim stepped out of the way as Baron charged zombie Tim. All Baron’s wolf instincts came forward and somewhere, Tim reasoned, Baron knew like his canine ancestors who had fought and died with man on the fields of battle, that his pack must be protected from this menace.

Baron approached the Tim Corpse as it shambled, and Baron buried his head in its crotch and began sniffing vigorously. And by the wags from his tail, Baron apparently liked what he smelled.

For a moment, this heroic charge turned into a mix of bestiality and necrophilia paused the Tim Corpse in its tracks, but after a matter of seconds, Baron ran off into the cemetery to discover if urinating on tombstones or trees was more to his liking.

“Baron”, called Tim Ghost, “Baron… damn it…”.

Tim ran back to the other two ghosts…

“Okay… okay… I get it…. Everybody’s gonna die…. But…. Whatever.. force is animating these corpses…. Its gonna make my corpse kill my family… and even if the whole world is ending… my own family is not gonna be killed by me. That’s only happening over my dead body. Or… spirit. I guess”, said Tim.

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