Epitaphs will be a recurring feature, spotlighting the characters who really rule the Empire – the zombies shambling in and around Jefferson Harbor, the fictional city in which the novel takes place.
Last summer I held a contest at daviddunwoody.com inviting readers to send in limericks about Death. I thought it would be fun to profile the rotters in the same way.
Gene the Trashman
Empire is set in the year 2112. The military are losing in their war against the undead, and have pulled out of Jefferson Harbor, Louisiana. One of the few civilians to stay behind is Gene, who lives at the city landfill. But he’s not long for this world – not with a pulse, anyway – and soon joins the zombie ranks, which leads him to a fateful encounter with the Reaper.The trashman came down from the mound
But there was no meat to be found.
"Are there no living left?
I can see only Death.
Then from his flesh I'll take my pound."
The Clown
Image by Bret Jordan
A decades-dead party clown is another of the Harbor’s more colorful inhabitants. His unique appearance is disarming to one of the city’s survivors, and places the rest in jeopardy.
Image by Bret JordanHe has that same old painted smile
Over black lips brimming with bile.
And despite his skin woes
He still wears that red nose -
It fools the kids once in a while.
Feel free to respond with comments, verse, or requests for zombie profiles from Empire!
Clowns are very creepy. Zombie clowns would be so much worse.
ReplyDeleteI think the realization that a clown isn't really smiling is the death of childhood.
ReplyDelete