A Rational Zombie

Chapter 29

The prey died. The dome slipped off, sliding out from beneath the others. The preys face was exposed, its nose, eyes, ears, lips torn off by the others. While digging out its eyes, the spikes on the others arms damaged the preys brain. The dome is glossy, reflects the sun. It has a panel, a visor that moves on hinges. Most likely for eating. It looks like glass. But brittle. Pressing on it, I can feel it give. It doesnt seem like itd take a lot to break. Inside, theres a strap, a bit damp with blood. I see. To prevent the dome from slipping off, the strap goes underneath the preys chin. But it wasnt very helpful, seeing as its in my hands now.

But how sturdy is it? Theres two things I need to test: puncturing, smashing. Stabbing down with a normal wooden spike only leaves a tiny scratch. Its a bit disappointing that it left a scratch at all. What about smashing? This sluggish other will work. The helmet fits on its head quite snugly. And now, Ill swing the metal stick.

Crack.

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Is it still alive? Yes, its moving. The dome is cracked. But it worked. The other survived a lethal blow. Perhaps this dome was only good for a one-time use. If I hit it anymore, itll break. But Ill know exactly how many hits it takes to kill whatever its protecting the next time I encounter a dome like this. One swing. Two swings. Three swings. Bits of the dome are cracking off. Theres spongy white stuff underneath, almost like brains. Four swings. Five swings. Six swings. The other stopped moving. The white foam is broken, split apart. Black liquid is oozing out from between the cracks, staining the white foam.

It took seven swings to kill an other through the dome. Thats another seven lives. Was it a waste to test? No, spending to learn is never wasting. With the next dome I get, I wont suddenly die from it suddenly breaking. Ill know how close it is to needing a replacement. Oddly enough, the glass portion of the dome survived. It makes sense. I hit it from behind, not the front. Can it be penetrated with an arrow? To kill others or prey with an arrow, hitting their eye to pierce their brain is the only wayfor me, at least. The prey can kill others by hitting their foreheads. My arrows dont fly as fast, as hard, penetrating only through soft flesh, not bone. Its because Im small, lighter than most others and prey. The arrow isnt pulled as far back on the arrow shooters string. Or Im using the arrow shooter incorrectly.

Twang.

The arrow pierced the glass. But not deeply. It only scratched the others eye, leaving a web of cracks on the visor. Not enough to kill even at point-blank range. Hunting prey that have these domes, aiming the arrows at their heads is pointless. Piercing their clothes is better; the smell of blood allows for easy tracking. The preys clothes is torn, ragged. Large flaps revealing bloody flesh underneath. With enough time, the others can tear it apart. But its very useful, helping the prey survive for much longer than it wouldve without. I think I can salvage parts of it. Is there a way to repair clothes? How are clothes made in the first place? Are they created by prey? If they are, there should be a way to fix them. But maybe clothes grow on trees.

Inside the preys bag, there was the black box with the black finger. Its not really a finger, having no joints or flesh. Maybe its a big bone. But what is it? The prey was speaking into it. Or maybe it was breathing something in. It doesnt smell. And it doesnt taste like anything. Theres a button here. Pressing it does nothing. No, it does something. Theres a faint sound like staticjumbled, indecipherable whispering. Releasing the button stops the sound. Too bad I cant speak. Would groaning work? Nothing. What if I groan while holding the button? Still nothing. Its a mystery.

Patrick? Over.

A voice. Prey? It must be; others dont speak. But why is it coming from the box? Ill try groaning again. Nothing. Groaning while holding the button?

Patrick? Are you still with us? Over.

Prey are transmitting their voices through this black box? There was a similar box back by the fire. But no voices came out of it. It seems like prey have a method of communicating with one another, disregarding distance. How far away is the owner of this voice? Could it hear me if I banged my metal stick and arrow shooter together? That would seem pointless if prey can just shout. Thats right. The prey shouted before taking out the black box. The range of communication must exceed the range of their shouts. Thats dangerous. Does this mean the prey was calling other prey while stranded in the tree? Are they coming right now? Or maybe the prey was warning its companions that others were nearby, like the suspended-cans alarm system. Will the next prey I encounter be prepared? Theyll likely set up more traps, put up more ropes, create more arrow shooters. Winning against unprepared prey is easy. But organized prey with armor and domes protecting their heads, difficult.

What else is in the preys bag? Maybe something inside can help. Theres the glass jar with a film of black liquid covering its insides, the stink sauce that masked the preys smell. Are these more armored clothes? Theyre the same as the preys, black and green. Theyre rolled up, thick, hard to bite through. It seems like I wont have to worry about repairs. I can wear these. And theres thisthe flat metal spike. Not the same one the prey used; that ones still buried beneath the others. But its the same, about as long as my fingers and palm combined. Pointy at the end, made for stabbing. The side is odd too, extremely flat. Why is that? Im not sure. But stabbing it into an other, the metal spike penetrates with no resistance. This is much better than the wooden spikes. Its a shame the prey only had two.

Whats this? Another metal box. But its small, not even as big as my palm. Theres a hinge that flips, revealing a button. But pressing the button does nothing. It clicks, scraping against the pointed circle underneath. Odd. Is it broken? Buttons normally cause a change when it comes to tools prey have. Why is this one different? Wait. Was that fire? Pressing the button produced fire for a second. I finally found the tool prey used to create fire.