Max Brooks iPhone App: New Weapon in the Fight Against Zed

Here’s how I remember it:

The reports of civil unrest and widespread violence in a tiny southern hamlet first appeared on the newswires at five a.m. eastern standard time, Monday morning. Footage of a terrified local anchorwoman shouting about “dead folks getting up and bitin’” surfaced just in time for Good Morning America to offer the story up as a “news of the weird” segment between the latest troop casualty numbers and the day’s most scandalous celebrity gossip. It took hours for the networks to scramble some stringers and confirm what by then most of the residents of Dothan, Alabama already knew: the dead had returned to life and were attacking the living.

Even then, much of the public refused to believe what they were seeing. At the time, most considered the story to be – at best – a movie publicity stunt gone bad, and at worst, another example of the media misreporting a no less disturbing but at least more believable story, like a terrorist attack. Why terrorists would target a city morgue in a little visited corner of flyover country didn’t seem to be a question many of them were prone to ask.

By mid-day, the President of the United States and representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advised viewers to remain calm but vigilant, and to cooperate with their local law enforcement and health official in undertaking the following required steps to maintain the safety and health of their communities. None of us would learn what those steps would be; the last thing I was before the screen went to snow was a pack of flesh-eaters fighting over the scraps of the Secretary of State.

By late afternoon no corner of the country remained untouched by post-mortem violence, and while we had a pretty good idea of what was going on at that point, most of were not prepared to face it. Most. Not all.

There were those among us who had anticipated this day. We had heeded the warnings of supposed “humor” author Max Brooks, and we would survive. The Zombie Survival Guide became our Bible, and we practiced its tenets faithfully. Together, we lucky few pushed back the undead horde, creating the first safe zones through our efforts, and always thankful for the lessons Brooks had instilled in us.

Some of us wondered if he himself had survived. There were reports now and again of Brooks popping up at this or that small camp; rallying the troops as it were. It would be natural that the men and women of our ragtag army would hold on to these hopes, and I did not discourage them, seeing that they boosted our often sagging morale. Secretly, though, I held little hope for anyone’s survival outside of the safe zone, even that of the great Max Brooks.

Imagine then my surprise when the iPhone I still carried for sentimental reasons blinked into life one early August morning. I pulled it out of my pocket and stared at it abject confusion, having nearly forgotten how to use what was once such a useful device. It buzzed in my hand, and I nearly dropped it I was so startled. That’s when I saw the newly installed App. Brooks, it appeared, was still alive. Further, he had provided us with yet another useful weapon in our fight against Zed: The Zombie Survival Guide Scanner.

This miraculous program would allow us to detect the first initial signs of infection among refuge seekers, and occasionally – sadly – our own troops. No long would we have to depend on the mere naked eye and the rough ministrations of our field medics. I sent a call out for more iPhones and, miraculously, was able to locate seven more of the devices: enough for each of our combat patrols, provided that we cared for them well and had enough juice in the generator to keep them charged.

Looking back now, I feel that the appearance of the Scanner – and the implication that Brooks still lived – was a miracle. Surely we would have otherwise fallen to despair and general malaise during that first brutal summer…the first of many. While such hardships seem behind us now, I can assure you that they are not. The dead yet walk in places as yet uncontested by the living. Protect yourself by downloading the scanner, a free App. Scan all of your loved ones. Don’t trust anyone, and use the scanner to track the spread of infection among your friends and neighbors. Remember: “An unscanned friend…a potential zombie.”