DedKode - Connected by Chad R. Hunter

   

DedKode - Connected

by Chad R. Hunter

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GENRE:  Science Fiction / Horror 

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BLURB: 

Without warning, the demonic computing device rose up.   Red arcs of crackling electricity snapped out from the server and struck the men and women in the chest.  Involuntarily, they each screamed out in dying shrieks.  Each worshiper hovered off the floor, transfixed and held for feeding.

 DedKode moved forward but James knew it was too late.  He placed his hand out and stayed the young, undead hacker. 

 The worshipers continued to undulate and now fluids ran from their orifices; heavy thick drops collected in puddles beneath each of them. 

 Faces sunk in.

 Eyes rolled back.

 Limbs twisted and cracked.

After what seemed like hours, but was only minutes, of watching these men and women sucked dry of their lives, the bodies collapsed to the flooring.  Several landed in the pools of their bodily fluids - that which the server did not demand.

 The server hovered still, humming like a thousand computer room fans and the singing of a damned chorus.  The crimson energy that had drawn life from the worshipers crackled and snapped in oscillating arcs around the device. 

The room was still empty as DedKode's hacks were still running and fooling the security systems.

 "What's the plan now, Devon?" James asked, keeping his eyes on the demonic equipment hovering either obliviously or without care at his presence.  "Do we still try to shut this thing down and take it back or—" 

Suddenly DedKode held his hooded skeletal head.  Palladino's attention shifted to his teammate. 

 "What is it?" 

There was a feeling that stirred up from a buzzing between where DedKode’s ears once were to a deafening roar he could not ignore.  It was an energy, a swelling that circled the room, and DedKode could feel it in part.  "Shit, King James, look —" 

He pointed a gloved bony finger towards the now pulsating vibration only he could feel.  The zombie hacker directed Palladino's gaze to the dead, robed corpses. 

They were rising to their feet.

 Their hoods fell away and it was clear that they were once alive and were now resurrected dead.  Jaws were sunken in, eyes pulled back into black sockets completely void of life.  Mouths hung in slow, smacking moans and patches of hair fell with each step, covering the floor along with tears of desiccated flesh. 

Arms lifted up and bony hands reached out in trembling grasps. 

A hoarse cry rumbled from within breathless, shrunken lungs.  

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EXCERPT

The street was once Lake Shore Drive.  

It had been considered one of the most beautiful stretches of road ever constructed.  From nearly any point on the arterial Chicago road, one could stop and see the lake, Museum Campus, and other aspects of sheer magnificence.  

Testaments to humanity's architecture, designs, and vision literally reached up to the sky.  Willis Tower was legendary.  Floors and floors of beautiful windows that once caught the rising sun were now almost completely shattered.  Unimaginable amounts of flesh-cutting shards of shining triangles littered the streets.  

The Cloud Gate, lovingly referred to as "The Bean," was a mind-boggling, visually stunning stainless-steel sculpture that had once captured the imagination of both locals and visitors. Its mirror-like surface played tricks with reality, reflecting the city's vibrant life in mesmerizing ways.  

Now, the Bean was covered in scarred marks and awash in dark splotches of foul-smelling liquids.  Instead of laughing faces and optically-twisted visitors, what reflected in the artistically crafted curves was now a sea of countless reddish-white deathly stares of layers and layers of skulls lying under the landmark.  

The air was layered with gut-churning rancidity, not unlike the reek of meat left exposed atop rank garbage in the offensive summer heat. 

Even on a chill-bitten fall night, the gore was overpowering to all aspects of human interaction.

Nearby, the Crown Fountain had once captured onlookers with its interactive art, projecting the faces of Chicagoans on towering screens, spouting water from their mouths into the reflecting pool below.  Tonight, the fountain did not spray immaculate pristine waters but instead bubbled from time to time, as would a swamp.  The fluid within was greenish in colour and reeked of acidic bile and vomit. Flies had made the site a place of egg laying and maggot rearing. 

The Adler Planetarium once world-renowned for its celestial studies was a broken half-dome.  Immense cracks ran atop the once majestic structure that had brought countless visitors from across the globe.

The Field Museum had been a cauldron of the past and the present with future aspirations and wonder.  It was once the place where history was held in honoured perpetuity.  Now, whatever remained of mankind's history had been violated and pulled from the museum's halls.  

Glass cases had been shattered.  

Exhibits had been torn out and thrown asunder.

 Red, pink and white littered the stairs as intestines, blood and bone made a carpet atop the museum’s walkway. 

 Chicago was a city known for its sides - its South Side, North Side and West Side. Each was unique from its ethnic communities to its dominant food vendors and carts to its well-known struggles of parking.  Yet now, there were no sides anymore. 

 Now all that was gone.  Sides were identical - each area of the city, like each area of other metropolitan sprawls across the globe - were miles and miles of death.  

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Some say they are as tiresome as they are tireless.  They shamble.  They moan and, in some instances, they talk – always asking for brains.  We know them as the living dead, the undead and zombies.  The moving, hungry corpses have been with modern media for nearly eighty years.  We have faced them in movies, video games and countless books.  It has gotten to the point that many say enough, no more dead – living, walking or otherwise.  Yet, if it is true that zombies have been done to death, why do we still find appeal to the rotted, decaying monsters?  Here are five points why zombies remain important parts of fiction today.  

1. They represent a universal fear. Zombies are a physical manifestation of our fear of death, disease, and the unknown. They are also a unique monster in the idea that, like vampires and werewolves, they were once “us” but there is little left to connect with.  They reflect the fear of loss of identity and self.  Additionally, they are also a reminder of our own mortality and the fragility of life.
   
   
2. They are a blank canvas for social commentary. How many films of the Living Dead either begin with, end with or threaten the audience with a breakdown of society?  We see humanity at its best and at its worst when faced with flesh-hungry terrors, Zombies can be used to explore a wide range of social and political issues, such as the nature of humanity, the dangers of the mob, self-preservation vs. altruism, and the importance of community.
   
   
3. They are a source of escapism and entertainment. Zombie stories can be thrilling, suspenseful, and even funny. In games, the living dead make for cannon fodder and perfect enemies.  They can also be a way to process our own fears and anxieties in a safe and controlled environment.  There are few jump scares and lingering scares as bone-chillingly good as the zombie lunging from the shadows or a horde following you for a feast.
   
   
4. They are versatile and adaptable. Zombie stories can be set in any time or genre. They can be realistic or fantastical, serious or comedic. They can remind us of our fears in ancient times, in outer space, in any culture and in both scientific and supernatural settings.  In the zombie genre, the undead are still important because they remind us to be vigilant regardless of circumstances.  This versatility makes them appealing to a wide range of audiences.
   
   
5. They are a way to explore the human condition. What better opponent reminds us of our worst aspects than the monster that was us not long ago?  Zombie stories can teach us about ourselves and our world in ways that traditional stories cannot. Tales of the Living Dead forces us to evaluate what is important vs. what is not.  They can force us to confront our own fears and prejudices, and they can help us to understand the importance of cooperation and compassion in the face of adversity.

Here are some specific examples of how zombies have been used to explore social and political issues in fiction today:

• In the TV series The Walking Dead, zombies are used to explore the dangers of mob mentality and the importance of individual responsibility.
• In the film World War Z, zombies are used to explore the global refugee crisis and the challenges of cooperation in a time of crisis.
• In the novel Warm Bodies, zombies are used to explore the power of love and the possibility of redemption.

Overall, zombies are an important part of fiction today because they are a versatile and adaptable tool that can be used to explore a wide range of human experiences.  Given their relentless nature both in media and in concept, the living dead are here to stay.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links: 

About Chad Hunter 

Chad Hunter was born in East Chicago, Indiana. Raised by a single mother in the city's Harbor section, he is the youngest of four. Growing up in the Midwest and a proudly self-proclaimed "Region Rat," Hunter has written and published several books and novels. He has written for magazines and newspapers throughout North America and has been published in several languages. His writings have been called sophisticated yet humorous, sharp-witted and unrelenting. 

Most often, Hunter's writings have been considered so wide and diverse that they span a scale that would include multiple writers with multiple forms. If anything binds his varied styles, it is Hunter's theme of the human condition, humour and family closeness - all to the backdrop of romantic love, vibrant remembrance and even monsters themselves. 

Website: www.dedkode.com

Blog: https://dedkode.wordpress.com/

Twitter / X: https://twitter.com/DedKode1

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dedkode3

Join the community list - https://thededthread.aweb.page/ 

Shop - https://my-store-cf841e.creator-spring.com/

Hy.page -  https://hy.page/dedkode

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Chad-Hunter/author/B009F2D6X2

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE  

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