Dash Dash Dot Dot

Please Stand By

Willow woke with a jolt. She could hear screaming outside. She pulled the curtains aside and peeked out, careful not to draw attention. A couple neighbors in the building across from hers were yelling at each other, arguing over which of their parents they were going to go stay with, the two children stood between them crying and holding each other. She felt sorry for the children being stuck in the middle of something like this. And with this virus coming they wouldn't have a normal childhood, that's if they even survived in the first place. She shook her head and let the curtain fall back into place then picked up the TV remote and switched on the TV. Time to see how far this thing has spread now. Africa and Asia were almost fully affected. Indonesia was the stepping stone for the virus on the way to Australia, and so far there were no cases there, but it was only a matter of time.

She left the TV going but turned the volume down. They were still showing scenes of zombies attacking the living and the screams were starting to sound like a horror track. The news channels no longer bothered to warn that the scenes may be upsetting for young viewers; it was the only thing being reported on in the world right now. She would glance up at the TV every now and then, following the spread of the virus. The red stain that had been slowly moving downward had reached Indonesia.

The news channel flickered and then went to a stand by screen. Willow picked up the remote and turned the volume up, there was no noise so she changed channels and was met by the same thing on the screen. A message began scrolling across the screen. Please stand by for the Prime Minister of Australia. Wow, the government had to be scared if they were making announcements now. Willow curled her feet under her body as she got comfortable on the lounge chair. There was a series of beeps before the screen changed to a picture on the prime minister. He sat at a desk, the Australian and Aboriginal flags hung behind him.

"Good afternoon my fellow Australians. Over the past few days we have watched as the world has become infected by an unknown virus, which has lethal results. The death toll on the world is far greater than anything we have seen before. For the safety of yourself and others, we ask that if you have not already relocated to be with family then to stay inside your homes, leaving the streets clear for our armed forces to patrol without incident. In the next few hours we will be setting up community shelters in many areas for those that don't want to remain alone in their house. Once this virus hits our shores you will need to be extra vigilant. We do know that a bite is the main cause for the spread of the virus. With how quickly the virus has taken over, we still don't know how it started as communications with those areas infected has dropped significantly.

"In the event that the country loses power there will be an emergency radio broadcast, generators will ensure that the radio broadcast will remain active for as long as possible. Local radio stations may utilize the airwaves to keep you informed of happenings in your area, so please scan the channels so you can remain updated. We are doing everything possible to remain virus free, but from the reports we have received from other parts of the world, it may be near impossible to do so. What we have learned is that the infected are attracted by noise, so keeping noise to a minimum will work in your favor. We will strive to keep you all informed about the situation at hand, and should have a list of shelters for you in the next hour. Be safe and remain calm. Thank you."

The transmission cut back to the news stations, Willow jumped on the remote and turned it back down. Well damn, all we do now is wait. She stared at the TV screen, the inevitable was coming and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it. It didn't matter how prepared you were, it was going to happen. She thought about what the survivors in the affected countries were doing to stay alive. There weren't many reports about that, just about the spread of the infection. The survivors were probably so far and few between that they couldn't report easily, or didn't have time to set up an offensive. Maybe with the precautions the government was doing that there may be a better chance for survival.

She didn't like the sound of the shelters. Where would they be? How effective would they be at keeping the infected out? She decided against going to a shelter, she would rather try her luck on her own than go to a place that could just be a death trap waiting to happen. If just one zombie got in to the shelter then everyone inside would be infected too. At least at home she had her own bed and wouldn't have to sleep on the floor or a crappy emergency cot that the shelters would more than likely have. Plus she didn't have to share her space with anyone else, especially people she didn't know. Situations like this also had a tendency to bring out the worst in some people.

She shrugged it off and dug through her freezer, may as well make the most of still having electricity. Once that was gone anything in the fridge would have to be disposed of shortly after. The canned goods would be fine to leave in the cupboard until she needed them. While the frozen chicken fillets were cooking she looked through the cupboard, so many sauces and spices. There were only a couple things that wouldn't keep for very long, like the half loaf of bread and the fruit. She had enough food to get her through a couple weeks at least before things became dire.

She squeezed sauce into a small bowl and plated up the fillets then sat in front of the TV and watched as the red stain in Indonesia slowly moved towards Papua New Guinea and the top end of Australia. They also showed the red had moved through Russia and had crossed to Alaska, making its way towards the Canadian border. Willow shook her head, the carnage that must be present for the virus to have spread so far and so fast, she didn't want to think about how bad it would be once it got to Australia.