The Village of Dead Souls: A Zombie Novel

Scattered voices echoed off the white marble pillars, which surrounded the forum under a cloudless blue sky. Several small groups of citizens in tunics and robes debated various
topics,
while making grand hand gestures to accent their point. Prometheus stood at the edge of a discussion at the bottom of the bright
marble
stairs. He noticed a strange
scent
of dust on the gentle breeze. With the recent rains, the tall Greek man with chiseled
features
wondered what could be kicking up dust in the city this morning. The elderly man in a flowing robe next to him said, "We have an obligation to remember the dead. We are their descendants and
if they disappear from our memories,
they will perish entirely. Many of our sons have gone to sea only
to have them not
return. This is why I give an offering at the
Temple
of
Poseidon
each morning." The man noticed his friend did not pay full attention to his words. "
Perhaps,
the
gods
will grant us a bountiful catch when the fishermen return."

Prometheus smiled and replied, "Poseidon has favored us for many seasons and I do not see him taking anger with us now. We have built a new temple near the
sea,
which should only provide him more pride. I talked to good Callius just this morning. He spoke of calm seas and gentle winds for our men."

A woman with long dark
hair,
wearing a maroon
dress,
caught his eye as she filled a terra-cotta jug with water from the fountain in the center of the forum. Prometheus stopped listening to his friend and wondered
whether
he should approach her. It had been many months since he had seen a woman with the stunning beauty she held. Perhaps, he might offer to help carry the jug as a way to introduce himself. He excused himself from the conversation. "I'm
sorry,
my friend, I must end this discussion for a matter of loveliness has just
arisen
."

As he turned to walk toward the fountain, distant loud voices caught his attention. They came from several blocks away and sounded like a large crowd in an argument. The yelling seemed to have caught the attention of all in the
forum, because
the debates trickled to a stop and heads turned in the direction of the noise. The
woman,
who came for
water,
set the jug down and turned toward the source of the sound. Prometheus took a few steps closer to her as the voices grew louder. The clink of
clashing
metal swords mixed in with the commotion. Isolated screams of women and men stood out from the common sound.

A young
man
from the
bakery
frantically ran into the
forum. W
aving his arms, he called out, with
panic
in his voice, "Spartans! Spartan soldiers are attacking the city."

The
people
in the forum panicked and ran to the streets, which exited the city center only to be pushed back by the hordes of citizens escaping the advancing army. The city gathering center filled with terrified civilians who ran in all directions, adding to the chaos.

Spartan soldiers burst through the crowd
swinging
swords and pikes. The unarmed townspeople offered no
challenge,
and
they
quickly fell to the
army,
as their blood trickled across the ground. Several of the men threw rocks at the
soldiers,
but the military leather and armor simply deflected the useless attempt at resistance. Two Spartans grabbed the
woman
in the maroon dress next to the fountain. One soldier grabbed onto her long hair when she tried to run
off,
causing her head to jerk
back,
as her body slammed to the ground.
Running to her aid
Prometheus screamed, "Stop!"

He clenched his fist tighter than he had ever imagined. As if it was second nature, he
leaped
into the air and on the way down, he smashed his fist right between the two face shields of the soldier who held her hair. Blood splattered across his hand and wrist
, and
he felt the man's nose shatter under his knuckles. The Spartan fell backwards into the fountain. His heavy armor held him on his back underneath the water. A second soldier thrust his
xiphos
into Prometheus' ribs. Without concern to his fate
and
with blood pouring from his
wound,
saturating his white tunic, Prometheus reached down and grabbed the water jug. With a long wide swing, he broke the vessel over the soldier's helmet. As the Spartan fell backward,
his sword
flailed and
it
slashed open Prometheus's throat.

The Athenian didn't feel his body hit the ground
and
the world moved in slow motion about him. The sounds of the battle
around
the forum disappeared with only the blue sky filling his
vision
. Into his view, he saw the face of the woman he tried to save. With an expression of deep concern, she caressed the side of his
face,
while she kneeled over him. As his sight faded to white, another Spartan grabbed the woman by her hair and pulled her away.

Surrounded by nothing but white, Prometheus felt his legs lift him off the
ground, but
he put no energy toward this movement. He slowly walked through this strange void with confusion racing inside his head. No more pain, no bleeding,
and
he had the energy of a child which only added to the
bewilderment
. A few yards in front of him, an image
appeared
, as if a fog began to settle. He recognized the outline of man in a flowing silk toga. This elderly man with white
hair
and a muscular build stretched out his hand and said, "Prometheus, come walk with me."

As he moved closer to the stranger, he said, "You know who I
a
m
,
but I do not know your identity or where we are having this conversation. I would offer
gratitude,
if you could so kindly inform me
of
both. Do you know what happened to me by the fountain? I believe my injuries are in need of immediate attention."

The white foggy void settled and Prometheus could see stairs leading to enormous pillars at the front of the largest temple
that
he had ever seen. It stretched so far into the
distance that
he could not see the opposite end. Walking next to him, the elderly man replied, "I would imagine with all the temples you have made in my honor
that
you would recognize Zeus when you met him for the first time."

Stunned to hear those words, Prometheus stumbled through his thoughts to find his next words. "Do you mean to tell
me,
I am standing on
Mount
Olympus
with the king of the Titans? This truly is a
position,
I
had
never expected to be. Perhaps this is only a dream brought about by recent events."

The deity gave a slight smile. "I promise you this is no dream. As you made a valiant attempt to save the maiden by the fountain, you were killed by the soldier who slit your throat."

Prometheus quickly felt his neck where he had been slashed with the blade and found it to be whole, no cuts, and no injuries. The stab wound to his ribs no longer existed. The two beings stopped at the top of the stairs. Prometheus gazed at the elderly man. His mind would not let him believe it
could be
this easy to stand next to such a powerful god. "I do not feel as if I have died. My condition feels better than it has been in many seasons. The pain in my
knees, which has burdened me for years,
is no longer present."

With a pat on the back, Zeus replied, "I
promise,
you have passed from the
life,
you knew as a mortal. I have chosen you from many who have gone before and after you."

"Your words only offer me more confusion. Perhaps you could offer advice which
would
clarify my situation."

The ancient divinity smiled and said, "All the gods have come together for a special purpose. It is time to give the human mortals the gifts they
need,
if they are to continue their growth and evolution. They have reached a point where thought and advanced use of the elements will no longer provide for a sustained existence on your world."

"I see no fault in our existence." Prometheus gazed into the temple and spoke as if he simply debated a friend in the forum. "We have evolved and adapted to provide all we could ever need. Many of our luxuries provide pleasures beyond basic necessity."

"
Indeed,
you have done well with what you have been provided. However, as you advance and
evolve,
so does the world
that
you have yet to discover. Just like the Titan of your namesake, you will
take
a gift to the
mortals,
which will help them to inhabit their world. Only this
time,
it will be given with my blessing."