Fearsome Friday – Kinemortophobia

“Dr. Etger announced today that his lab has found a potential cure for prion based zombieism. Experiments carried out on rats that have been injected with the mutant protein that causes zombieism have been shown to have only limited symptoms of the disease after being injected with manufactured enzymes…”

I clicked the radio off. Other scientists had announced their promising cures to zombieism in the past. These of course were all promises they could not deliver on. “Back to work I go,” I muttered to myself as I tossed my bag back in my locker.

I double checked the pad lock was in place before I trudged back to the desk.

“Have a good break?” Lucy asked, her eyes were still fixed on the screens in front of her.

“Not nearly long enough. Anything I need to know?”

“Dr Burg is on his way up.”

“Uh-oh, is it another A-lister?”

“Yep.”

“Public know yet?”

“Nope.”

“Got it.”

As if on cue the ward buzzer went off. I glanced at one of Lucy’s screens. Dr. Berg stood there stroking his goatee as he waited to be admitted. I tried to get a glimpse of who was with him but he was blocking the view. I grabbed the metal ring off the hook and headed down the corridor. I would soon find out who our newest tenant was.

The residents must have sensed a newcomer was arriving on the ward. The noise became deafening as I reached the door, I could not even hear the sound of the twenty keys as I rattled them about trying to match them up to their twenty locks. Finally, I heaved the hefty doors open.

Dr. Berg did not look pleased. “It’s about time.” He snarled as he instructed the four men behind him to slide the large metal box on wheels in through the doors.

“It is just through here.” I shouted over the continued din to the terrified looking porters.

“He had his dose at ten. Knocked him right out. I suspect he will have phased over by the time he wakes.” Dr. Berg handed me a clipboard.

I slotted the clipboard into the holder outside the patient’s room, as if there was any point at looking at it. “Okay boys, let’s get him set up.”

They pushed the metal box through the doorway and then slid the locks open and took the panel off the door.

“That’ll do guys. We will take it from here.”

I saw their tension ease up as I screwed the last bolt in place. Then they almost skipped away from the ward once they were safely on the other side of the twenty locks.

“Okay big guy, you should be waking up any moment now and you will feel hunger like never before.” I again was talking to myself, that was what two years in this job had done to me.

His legs began to twitch as they flopped out of the box. Convulsions, jerky movements, balance issues and a rigid posture were the visible part of the last phase of transformation. This poor guy was a goner. There was nothing left of him that was human.

I pulled down the handle and slid the jelly like lump of flesh inside. Then closed the door and watched as it thudded to the floor inches from the metal box. Human flesh was what these poor souls craved the most but we obviously had to feed them on a diet of animal parts instead.

The twitching stopped. Slowly the figure emerged from the box. Then he finally came into view.

I couldn’t help but gasp at the sight of him. He was certainly our biggest A-lister to date.

 

 

 

 

This story is part of the Buddha Rocks Project hosted by Evelyn over at Filling a Hole. The photo used as inspiration for this post was chosen from the vast library taken by Eric Alder located at Bubba’s Place Deviant Art Gallery – Buddha Rocks.

I felt the story fit well with my Fearsome Friday feature. Kinemortophobia is fear of the undead. Undead can include vampires, ghosts or zombies but usually this term is in reference to zombies. Kine – means motion and mort – means death.

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