Good Luck Charm
Good Luck Charm
~*~*~
“Maria, Olivia is calling for you,” Andrew cried as he threw open my door. I sighed as I got up to my feet, groaning as my back made a point of reminding me of my age.
“Andrew, I appreciate your family’s loyalty to me, but I’m getting a little long in the tooth to be doing this,” I pointed out. Andrew’s green eyes were pleading and I knew, as I had the day he had been born, I couldn’t fight those emerald pools.
“But you have the best record,” he whispered and I shook my head as I headed to the door. My pace was getting slower, but considering that I was still upright and only using a cane, not bad for a centurion.
“I’m not a damned lucky charm, boy, I’m an old woman,” I growled.
“You’re the only Eve left,” he whispered. I snorted at the old nickname.
When the plague hit it, it was like the old horror movies, the living dead everywhere. Most of the human race was destroyed but those that survived, we were tougher than most. Sadly the majority of the survivors were male, the women who survived were given the obnoxious nickname, Eve. Eves were treated differently depending on who they were and who they were with.
I was and still am an ornery bitch, back in the days when the living dead were beginning to rot apart and allow Humanity to return it was a good tool. I managed a group of teenagers, mostly male but with more Eves than you would think. Out of thirty of us, twelve were Eves. I fought hard to protect my girls and eventually we ended up with a group of men who treated us…well not great but better than the rest.
I walked across the compound, the high fences wouldn’t be needed for much longer, the living dead were rotting away, and soon Humanity wouldn’t have to hide. Children ran around me and I was nearly knocked over by a child.
“Steven! You apologize to your great-great-great-great grandmother!” an old woman growled and I looked at the shriveled woman before me, hard to believe it was my own great granddaughter walking her own great grandson. I patted her cheek as I passed, well aware that my body was in much better condition than hers.
“Sorry Eve!” Steve called to me, his eyes were wide as he looked at me. The advantage of being an adult Eve had been the extra years of beneficial medical care and nutrition through puberty. My legacy would be my good health as a child and teen.
Andrew led me to his home as if I didn’t know damn well it was his. The front room was simple, handmade furniture, some of it decorated with my own pettipoint. There were some old pieces back when the town first formed. I moved without his help into the backroom, the birthing room.
Olivia lay on her bed already soaked in sweat. Her body was tiny and my eyes narrowed, I didn’t like the practice of having children as soon as possible, but most used it. Her eyes looked up at me, brown pools that were nearly read, begging me to tell her it would all be alright. I hated that responsibility but I would try. I was the last surviving Eve, the last of the others had died when she fell off her own roof ten years ago, we were the only two to make it to menopause. The rest had died in this girl’s state, giving birth.
“Hush child, you keep your strength for pushing,” I ordered and all women turned to me.
“Eve Maria, thank God!” Olivia’s mother whispered and I looked at the child. Olivia was slight, birdy, a rarity and a dangerous one.
“Be prepared,” I ordered as I let go of my cane, one of the women caught it long before it hit the ground. I sat in the chair between Olivia’s legs. I could she was opening nicely, but if it would be enough was uncertain yet. I saw two women preparing water, needles, and thread. I saw another preparing the blade.
“What do you think, Eve?” an older girl asked, I could see one of my wards in her. She was the granddaughter of one of my students. Now and then time skips and I see the dead, not the living dead but those who were gone before me. I shook it off.
“It will be tough. She is narrow in the hips, if she survives this, she’ll be good for more,” I grunted as I looked up into Olivia’s frightened eyes. “Be strong girl, you’re not the first to do this nor will you be the last.”
“I don’t want to die,” she whispered and I smirked.
“No one does but this way is better than some of the alternatives, remember that,” I stated.
Time crept by slowly and I was getting ready to call it when I saw the subtle change in Olivia’s body, something had changed. Her screams reached a new point and I knew she would make it. A bloody head emerged from her body and I was thankful I wouldn’t have to slice through living flesh again. Soon enough I was placing a new little girl into her mother’s arms. As the family began to celebrate I slipped out of the home.
“Eve Maria, thank you,” Andrew whispered and I smirked.
“I’m no lucky charm, boy,” I sighed as I looked up into the night sky.
“You are, you led the Eves here, you bore more children than any of the others even though you were older,” he whispered. My legend was well known.
“I’m an old woman, I’ve just been careful,” I replied. I had given birth to nearly fifteen children, nine of which were girls with my hips. I didn’t lose a single daughter to childbirth, all my children were stolen by old age or the living dead still left.
“You brought us luck, thank you, Maria,” Andrew whispered and I nodded waving my hand at him.
The last Eve of the town, the oldest woman, not bad, but still, now and then, I wish I didn’t have to see young girls giving birth with a fifty-fifty chance of death. I was always dragged like a good luck charm and part of me enjoyed taking some of the fear from the girls’ eyes but that part was overwhelmed by the horrible thought of having to cut a living child from a mother’s barely alive body.
~*~*~
Author's Note: This October I bought SEVERAL zombie short story anthologies, I've been obsessing over the rebuilding of civilization part of it. I have realized that rebuilding after the zombie apocalypse is gonna suck, especially as a woman. My major thought is that I'm a woman and I'll probably be viewed as property or sex toy. I also have to worry about actually having hips wide enough to push a baby through. To all the women out there who have natural birth. Damn, you are strong, I'm a super coward and so I really hope that if I survive the zombie apocalypse, I find a nice group with say...a doctor in it.
~*~*~
“Maria, Olivia is calling for you,” Andrew cried as he threw open my door. I sighed as I got up to my feet, groaning as my back made a point of reminding me of my age.
“Andrew, I appreciate your family’s loyalty to me, but I’m getting a little long in the tooth to be doing this,” I pointed out. Andrew’s green eyes were pleading and I knew, as I had the day he had been born, I couldn’t fight those emerald pools.
“But you have the best record,” he whispered and I shook my head as I headed to the door. My pace was getting slower, but considering that I was still upright and only using a cane, not bad for a centurion.
“I’m not a damned lucky charm, boy, I’m an old woman,” I growled.
“You’re the only Eve left,” he whispered. I snorted at the old nickname.
When the plague hit it, it was like the old horror movies, the living dead everywhere. Most of the human race was destroyed but those that survived, we were tougher than most. Sadly the majority of the survivors were male, the women who survived were given the obnoxious nickname, Eve. Eves were treated differently depending on who they were and who they were with.
I was and still am an ornery bitch, back in the days when the living dead were beginning to rot apart and allow Humanity to return it was a good tool. I managed a group of teenagers, mostly male but with more Eves than you would think. Out of thirty of us, twelve were Eves. I fought hard to protect my girls and eventually we ended up with a group of men who treated us…well not great but better than the rest.
I walked across the compound, the high fences wouldn’t be needed for much longer, the living dead were rotting away, and soon Humanity wouldn’t have to hide. Children ran around me and I was nearly knocked over by a child.
“Steven! You apologize to your great-great-great-great grandmother!” an old woman growled and I looked at the shriveled woman before me, hard to believe it was my own great granddaughter walking her own great grandson. I patted her cheek as I passed, well aware that my body was in much better condition than hers.
“Sorry Eve!” Steve called to me, his eyes were wide as he looked at me. The advantage of being an adult Eve had been the extra years of beneficial medical care and nutrition through puberty. My legacy would be my good health as a child and teen.
Andrew led me to his home as if I didn’t know damn well it was his. The front room was simple, handmade furniture, some of it decorated with my own pettipoint. There were some old pieces back when the town first formed. I moved without his help into the backroom, the birthing room.
Olivia lay on her bed already soaked in sweat. Her body was tiny and my eyes narrowed, I didn’t like the practice of having children as soon as possible, but most used it. Her eyes looked up at me, brown pools that were nearly read, begging me to tell her it would all be alright. I hated that responsibility but I would try. I was the last surviving Eve, the last of the others had died when she fell off her own roof ten years ago, we were the only two to make it to menopause. The rest had died in this girl’s state, giving birth.
“Hush child, you keep your strength for pushing,” I ordered and all women turned to me.
“Eve Maria, thank God!” Olivia’s mother whispered and I looked at the child. Olivia was slight, birdy, a rarity and a dangerous one.
“Be prepared,” I ordered as I let go of my cane, one of the women caught it long before it hit the ground. I sat in the chair between Olivia’s legs. I could she was opening nicely, but if it would be enough was uncertain yet. I saw two women preparing water, needles, and thread. I saw another preparing the blade.
“What do you think, Eve?” an older girl asked, I could see one of my wards in her. She was the granddaughter of one of my students. Now and then time skips and I see the dead, not the living dead but those who were gone before me. I shook it off.
“It will be tough. She is narrow in the hips, if she survives this, she’ll be good for more,” I grunted as I looked up into Olivia’s frightened eyes. “Be strong girl, you’re not the first to do this nor will you be the last.”
“I don’t want to die,” she whispered and I smirked.
“No one does but this way is better than some of the alternatives, remember that,” I stated.
Time crept by slowly and I was getting ready to call it when I saw the subtle change in Olivia’s body, something had changed. Her screams reached a new point and I knew she would make it. A bloody head emerged from her body and I was thankful I wouldn’t have to slice through living flesh again. Soon enough I was placing a new little girl into her mother’s arms. As the family began to celebrate I slipped out of the home.
“Eve Maria, thank you,” Andrew whispered and I smirked.
“I’m no lucky charm, boy,” I sighed as I looked up into the night sky.
“You are, you led the Eves here, you bore more children than any of the others even though you were older,” he whispered. My legend was well known.
“I’m an old woman, I’ve just been careful,” I replied. I had given birth to nearly fifteen children, nine of which were girls with my hips. I didn’t lose a single daughter to childbirth, all my children were stolen by old age or the living dead still left.
“You brought us luck, thank you, Maria,” Andrew whispered and I nodded waving my hand at him.
The last Eve of the town, the oldest woman, not bad, but still, now and then, I wish I didn’t have to see young girls giving birth with a fifty-fifty chance of death. I was always dragged like a good luck charm and part of me enjoyed taking some of the fear from the girls’ eyes but that part was overwhelmed by the horrible thought of having to cut a living child from a mother’s barely alive body.
~*~*~
Author's Note: This October I bought SEVERAL zombie short story anthologies, I've been obsessing over the rebuilding of civilization part of it. I have realized that rebuilding after the zombie apocalypse is gonna suck, especially as a woman. My major thought is that I'm a woman and I'll probably be viewed as property or sex toy. I also have to worry about actually having hips wide enough to push a baby through. To all the women out there who have natural birth. Damn, you are strong, I'm a super coward and so I really hope that if I survive the zombie apocalypse, I find a nice group with say...a doctor in it.