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Ghoom argued for a bit more, then agreed and went off to summon some cold bodies. I was about to look for someone else I could trust when I felt a buffet on my back. "Graah!" came a hearty greeting.

I sighed even as I turned. I knew who it would be, and I was not mistaken. It was Ooniver.

"Krogooh krahmawnghk!" he said, beaming. I felt like hitting him. He was the only zombie I ever met who made me wish I’d never changed. I hoped fervently he wouldn’t begin telling again of how he’d once detected a human trying to pass through our territory disguised as one of us, as though it was some kind of feat to detect someone stupid enough to try such a brainless stunt. For once I was lucky.

"Krong grmon?" he asked, looking at the girl. I didn’t bother to introduce him; he would do it himself, ten times over, as soon as he got a chance. "Gong rongsong," he added, eager to ingratiate himself with her. So I told him what she had to offer, and he went trotting off – as well as he could, having lost most of one foot, so he lurched sideways and ran in a course resembling a sine curve – to fetch others for the cause. As soon as he turned the corner I grasped the girl – she had not yet formulated a zombie name for herself, a process that takes, as we all know, at least a week – by the arm and pulled her in the opposite direction.

"Grish krok brugh Ooniverwa srgh," I told her. Fortunately I saw Ghoom returning then, at the head of a column, so we didn’t have to worry about Ooniver again. The girl and I hurried to Ghoom, who gave us one of his charred grins. "Graah," he said.

"Graah," we told him. There were at least sixty zombies with him. Where he had picked up such a force in such a short time was a mystery, but such were Ghoom’s talents. It was the reason I’d searched him out. He had his own woman with him, a tall, slightly stooping skeletal figure dressed in a bathrobe and shower cap. Her name was Gchorrh. She and I had known each other a long time, and Graah’d each other cordially. She and the new girl sized up each other, as women will. "Hoom brngg," Gchorrh said to the new girl, which was quite friendly, really, considering they’d just met and how women are with each other.

The new girl led us along a narrow street lined with tall buildings on both sides. We – Ghoom, I, and the more experienced of the others – kept a close watch on the rooftops, mindful that the street was a good potential ambush site, but no humans appeared with petrol bombs or guns. It was getting late afternoon by then, so the street was beginning to sink into shadow. Once it was dark it would be cooler and our energy levels would therefore be lower. I was about to mention this to the new girl, who’d probably changed too recently to be aware of the fact, but she turned and pointed to a building like any other. "Grhawl!" she exclaimed. "Grroh!"

"Kroop?" I asked, examining the building. It didn’t seem any different from the others, brick facing the street unbroken by any door or window. But she nodded emphatically, flashing the zygoma again. I tucked my loop of intestine back inside – fashion has its own time and place – and approached the edifice. Close to, there was something strange about the blank brick wall, but I couldn’t put my finger on it (not that I could, literally, having lost all the fingers of my left hand when I changed). Then the girl pushed past me and pointed. "Frrg," she said impatiently.

I think Ghoom and I saw the door then, at the same instant. It was filled in with brick so that it looked to be a part of the wall, but the bricks were loosely placed so their foraging parties could go out when needed, held only by weak mortar. Ghoom motioned and a platoon of his more able-bodied zombies hurled themselves at the door. It caved in with a crash.

After that it didn’t take a very long time. The humans were of course aware that we were outside, but they had never anticipated that we’d be able to detect their camouflaged door, and they were taken completely by surprise. We got them all – some thirty of them – in return for only a score of casualties sustained in the initial charge, when some humans had met us with shotgun blasts to the head and face. Mad with bloodlust, I personally ripped off a human’s arm with my teeth, shotgun and all. It was over in minutes.

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