Chapter 2

 

Although the moon above provided a great deal more light than two candles, Father Starr still felt much safer in the church. In there, he felt the presence of the Lord, and the sanctuary that only a familiar atmosphere could provide. Instead, here, he felt the forces of evil at work, as he walked alongside Ninten. They walked past a seemingly endless row of tombs. Some, Starr had presided over the burial, and many of these, he had given Last Rites to. The thought of the deceased reminded him of his departed friend, the undertaker of the cemetery and his only constant companion, Martin Lemley.

 

“Pippi!” Ninten yelled, his eyes frantically scanning the dark area before them. “Pippi, where are you?”

 

“Pippi, please, don’t fear us. We’re human, we’re here to bring you home!” Honestly, though, Starr could understand Pippi’s reluctance. The scene looked eerie, foreign, and the movement and sound of the ravens, with random rustlings and the sickening way the wind whistled through the air, was enough to terrify anybody.

 

“She has to be around here somewhere.” Starr detected desperation in his voice. “You don’t think…”

 

Starr shook his head, though he doubted that Ninten saw him in the dim light. Even the moon couldn’t seem to penetrate the dark clouds that loomed above. “Have faith, son. There are many places to hide here.”

 

“Yeah, Pippi’s tough. She even tougher than most of the guys I know. She could kick a zombie’s butt, no problem>’

 

He and Ninten had been searching for what felt like hours, but was probably a great deal less time. They had been quit efortunate in the fact that they had not encountered any of the zombies that Starr had seen roaming around the fields. But their luck would run out soon. He had to convince the boy that there was no use continuing this search at night.

 

“My son, your dedication to this task is truly inspiration, but we can hardly see our hands in front of our faces!”

 

“Pippi won’t wait until morning!” Ninten protested. “We can’t just leave her, okay?”

 

“Good Heavens, listen to reason! We’re no good to finding your friend if we’re dead.”

 

“And Pippi might be dead in the morning! We gotta find her, and I’ll keep looking by myself. Besides, what happened to having faith?”

 

The comment hit hard. Starr had always felt that he had faith, that he was of God’s elect, that he could handle anything that came his way. But, in the wake of this deathly quiet evening, in the very real fear of death, imaging coming face-to-face with the grotesque creatures of the damned, their fangs and glowing red eyes, ready to kill them in a tortuous manner that would leave their bodies dismembered and utterly pathetic, disturbed him. Starr had been desperately grappling for peace, but finding none, he was ready to give up And yet, this boy, Ninten, was willing to risk his own life to save his friend. _The folly of children is that they are not perverted by the reasoning that hinders us adults. God makes foolish the wisdom of the world, and favors those that the world rejects._

 

Starr sighed, feeling the weight of the evening’s stress upon his shoulders. He looked at Ninten, and took a deep breath, exhaling slowly, giving his body a chance to relax in a vain attempt to release the tension he was feeling. This was his charter, to help the living in any way possible, and it would be unbefitting for him to fall to fear. What would it say about the church if its representatives faltered in the face of opposition?

 

“Ninten, if you are this concerned, then perhaps it would be best if I went on ahead and you returned to safety.”

 

“Mr. Starr, maybe you’d better—“

 

Starr shook his head, but smiled, touched at the empathy on the boy’s part. He truly was a remarkable young man. “I couldn’t live with myself if I abandoned you here. Please, I know the graveyard like the back of my hand, and—“ Starr stopped, finding Ninten’s sudden change of expression odd. “Why do you look so frightful?”

 

“Mr. Starr, behind you!”

 

Starr’s eyes widened, and goose bumps shot down his arms. Whatever was behind him, lurking in a cemetery in the middle of the night, probably was not welcome company. He quickly turned around, and found himself inches away from a zombie. It’s pallid flesh hung loosely on it’s body, its glowing red eyes piercing into his soul. Saliva dripped from puddles that had formed around it’s fangs. Starr stood perfectly still, afraid that any slight movement would provoke it into action.

 

“Yes, human! Stadn there in terror. Nobody here to save you!”

 

Starr was too petrified to speak, watching in helpless horror as the zombie slowly descended on him. This was the end.

 

“Leave him alone!”

 

The voice came from behind, but Starr didn’t bother to turn around. He knew who the voice belonged to, and he felt that keeping an eye on the zombie was a trifle more important at the moment.

 

“And what does a little brat like you think you’re gonna do about it?”

 

_Don’t be reckless_ Starr silently pleaded, as Ninten stepped up next to him.

 

“This!” In one swift motion, Ninten swung a baseball bat directly in the zombie’s stomach. It staggered back, groaning, and Ninten took the opportunity to pound it in the head. The zombie took a futile swing at Ninten, as Starr stepped back, out of range in the fight. Ninten bashed it one more time with the bat, and the zombie collapsed on the ground.

 

“Is it… uh, dead? Again?”

 

“I think so. I was attacked by those guys on the way here. He was a piece of cake.” Ninten turned to Starr, though the elderly priest couldn’t help but keep his eyes on the zombie. He couldn’t quite register the thought with his mind that the zombie wasn’t going to jump up and feast on their bones. “I think we should stick together, Mr. Starr.”

 

Father Starr could do nothing more than nod. He was trapped, and they both knew it. Ninten wouldn’t leave until they found Pippi, and Starr knew that he couldn’t wander out here alone. He was forced to follow Ninten until they found the girl. “Shall we carry on?”

 

“Y-yes. Lead the way.” With that, the two continued down the row of old graves, every wary of the threat that the zombies could strike at any moment. They were lucky to have met just one, because he doubted that Ninten could protect them both against a whole hoard of zombies. Starr sighed, and shuddered at the thought of meeting more zombies, as the two trudged deeper into the cemetery.