A Rational Zombie

What is going on? The prey are supposed to be scared. How are they fighting back? Was the prey I ate different? That one closed its eyes and let me eat it. It begged God to save its life. Maybe, these prey don’t know God. The only way for them to live is to struggle on their own. All the others heard the commotion. They’re coming here now. If I don’t act soon, I won’t be able to eat my fill. But these prey killed an other. The other is on the ground, unmoving, his head split open. The prey hit him with a metal bar. The dead other is bigger than me. If I get hit, I’ll die too. Being consumed by hunger isn’t the only way to die. It’s good the others went into the store first. That could be me on the ground. I have to be careful. These prey are dangerous.

The others swarmed towards the shouting, but the prey were in an aisle. It was narrow. The others trickled in a couple at a time, tripping over each other. They’re so dumb. If they worked together, the prey would already be dead. There are more than twenty others. There are only five prey. But it’s not only the dumbness of the others. The metal bars in the preys’ hands are strong. They reach further. The others can only bite and claw, but they die before they get close. Are these really prey? Or are they predators? This is dangerous.

What do I do? Forget fighting with the others over food; I won’t even have the chance to eat. What can I do? All the others are in the way again. They’re always in the way. But I know what to do now when others are in my way. Throw. I can throw bricks at the prey.

“Half of them are dead! Just hold on a little longer! We—”

Thunk.

It hit. The prey is staggering, weakened. The smell of blood is rich, stirring my hunger. The others are going crazy. The prey I hit is down. The other prey are screaming. The others … are eating the fallen prey. They’re ignoring the ones still standing. Why?

“Get off of him! Get off of him!”

They’re so consumed by hunger that they’re ignoring everything but the food in front of them. How pitiful. They’re not fighting back after being attacked. This is unexpected. All the others are fighting each other to eat the single fallen prey. If they worked together, there would be enough for more of them to eat.

“Stop! Jessica, stop! He’s already gone! We have to go!”

The prey are running, and none of the others are stopping them, satisfied with what they already have. If they eat, will they return to their senses? How much time do I have left before the hunger rears its ugly head? Can I afford to wait and see? I can’t hunt four prey by myself, not if they fight back. What do I do? All the others are swarming the fallen prey, there’s no space for me. Can I make space? The others are eating. I can’t eat if they’re there. If I get rid of them, I can eat. How did the prey do it? The prey wasn’t as big as the others, but it killed them. With the metal bar.

The metal is heavy, but I can lift it. When they eat, the others ignore everything. If I attack one, will they attack back? I swung the metal bar. The other flinched but continued eating. Why isn’t it dead? I hit the other with the metal bar like the prey did. Was the prey stronger than me? It hit an other on the head, and it died. I hit an other on its back, and it lived. Maybe I have to hit its head? The metal bar crunched down, and the other stopped moving. Did it work? The other twitched and pushed itself back onto its knees. I swung again. And again. And again. And finally, it stopped. It took four swings to kill an other, five if I count the first one. Maybe the prey was stronger than me. It wasn’t as big as the others, but it was bigger than me.

Should I get rid of a few more? If the prey comes back and I’m all alone, it’ll be dangerous. I can’t kill all the others. The hunger isn’t awake; I don’t need to eat a lot. A portion of the leg should be enough. But I have to test. If others can be killed, I can be killed too. What do I have to avoid to live? I can’t let my head get hit. The metal bar kills others if it hits their heads. The brick staggered the prey when it hit its head. Protecting the head is vital. But where else? Is it only the head? Arms? Legs? But first, I eat. I pushed aside the dead other and bit down.

I stopped eating when the prey became too tough to eat. There’s a white portion. I can’t bite through it, only around it. Is this heavier than metal? I can’t bite through metal. I can’t bite through this. If I hit it with the metal bar, which would break first? It was the prey. The metal bar cracked the white piece, and with a few more hits, it broke. Breaking a white piece, is it enough to kill a prey? Are others like prey? They can’t be similar. Prey look like others, but they’re not the same. They’re scared. Scared of the others. To beat others, prey need metal bars. They don’t claw or bite. Maybe. I haven’t seen them claw or bite. But that doesn’t mean they can’t. What happens if the others use metal bars? Prey would always lose. But the others are too dumb, only using their mouths. What a waste. They can’t think. But I can.