Just Another Zombie Christmas: Chapter 1
SCARETON, THE FIRST CITY
No one really knows for sure how it all started, some speculate that the reason is buried with the person or persons that may have known the truth of the matter. Saying buried is of course one of a hundred possible truths, because zombies eat the living, allegedly. Yes, I said zombies, and I sincerely apologize to any Near Deads perusing this, but I need the reader to understand that the unevolved forms of your society did things you are trying to forget about or amend.
You look slightly confused and that is partly my fault. I assumed that you already knew about Near Deads. So, what is a Near Dead? Well, there are folks that believe it is a new branding vernacular to change the face of horror, or a way to sell the public a new packaged version of the same old thing, but they could not be farther from the truth. It is so much more than that.
At a quick glance most judge it by its cover. If it looks like a duck, it must be a duck. However, it is this way of thinking that makes it hard for the Near Dead Society to change the mind of the common person. Truthfully, if it had a classification, it would be closer to, if not exactly, one word… evolution. Let me see if I can help you by shedding some light on the subject in a way that won’t sound as horrific as its history reflects.
Let me start with a little history of the Near Dead Society of Undead. I’ll take it slowly to help you visualize the full picture without judgement, because there will be parts of this story that may shock you or even force you to look away. I know that it sounds kind of dark for a Christmas story, but before we can embrace the niceties of where they are now, we need to wipe the blood off the walls and floors of their past.
Right…, in the beginning there was Scareton, Florida. A small pop-up township masked as a wealthy and affluent master-planned community, about an hour outside of Jacksonville. It became the very first societal territory of the undead cities that evolved into a city overnight. Its resort style amenities with community features like water parks, green spaces, fitness clubs, country clubs, and golf cart culture, made those with money flock to it like moths to a flame.
Scareton attracted all types of folks looking for single-family and multi-family median households with options in the $138,000 to $144,000 range, to the townhomes starting at $400,000 and exclusive pockets of multi-million-dollar custom residences, ready in record time. The community’s projection of 14,290 dwellings with reasonable village HOA and CDD assessments blinded the rich and successful to what actually lived, lurked, and hid among the community.
Homes were built quickly, worked on day and night by workers that seemed to never take a break. Fourteen thousand of the residences complete in less than six months from mention of projection. Soon, thirty thousand residents flood the households of Scareton, making it one of the fastest growing housing communities in history to build and populate every home in its township within two years of its conception, according to the demographic tracking from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Nine months after all 14,290 units in the community were moved into, the town went silent. Barricades blocked the main roads denying anyone access to the area and no one left it either. Relatives tried to contact their loved ones but failed to connect. Mail carriers and other US Post Office employees went dark with no mail entering or exiting the town, as well as all deliveries of goods and services. Strangely enough, only those trying to communicate with the town noticed what was happening, it was as if it never even existed.
Ten years later, forgotten by time, Scareton returned as city. No one knows how it came to be, only that it was now a city with all the paperwork and legalities of its existence in order. In addition, it identified it’s residents under a different sub-species of human known as Near Deads, previously known as zombies, with each resident of Scareton governing the rights and privileges of any other human.
Unlike other ethnic cultures, Near Deads include all ethnicities as their culture but identified as one unique ethnicity. Also claiming the same formal request, as many other ethnic communities, and that is to bury the name zombie forever. It is a word that negatively connects and identifies Near Deads with a history of violence publicly, and as such, needs to be removed from history to allow healing, growth, and healthy boundaries, from the hurtful and negative word labeling them as fiends or monsters.
So, society agreed, by removing the word zombie from all movies and literature reflecting any harmful light, view or depiction, of Near Dead Society in a negative way, worldwide.
That was the shiny part, now let’s look at the corners that the shadows cast from light. It started about four months before Scareton was a thought. Six medical interns working on a catch-all cure for several types of cancer accidently create…, wait, apologies, this story is about the Christmas that almost didn’t happen because no one believed Santa delivered toys to undead children anymore. Therefore, we will just have to circle back to the dark history another time…, sorry.
ORIGIN OF THREE
The first neighborhood of Scareton needed to be something that said a little about the past and gives a nod to future, thus The Matheson Reserve became the answer to that need. The name of the reserve pays homage to Richard Matheson, author of 1954’s novel, I Am Legend, the inspiration for George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead film later in 1968. Romero’s independent production is required for viewing for Near Dead students, not solely for the parts depicting them in a bad light, but for the focus, reaction, and rewards of the humans in the movie. One character, Ben, was the hero during a time of controversy and survived through the night helping others stay alive. However, as his reward, the posse shoots him and burns his body with the undead. This action is seen as a reason non-Deads, a term given to anyone not of the Near Dead Society, are to be kept at arm’s length, one hundred yards is better, but if a preference is given, they are to be nowhere in sight. Every home in Scareton is Near Dead owned and it started with the Matheson Reserve, all 188 single-family concrete block homes inhabited by Near Dead residents.
A month into development of the second neighborhood, Vigil Park, the perfect place to call home for any size family, a special ordinance was brought into action. Non-Deads were allowed to rent from Near Dead owned and operated apartment community properties. This introduced Vigil Park as the concept flagship of many newly formed communities titled MxNs, or Maxi-Neighborhoods, with every essential amenity provided for the residents of the luxury rental property. Complete with malls, restaurants, entertainment venues, grocery stores, and many other retail entities, necessary for a self-sustaining community to thrive.
A person could live, die, or convert, in this landscape without even stepping foot outside of its comfort. There is even a cemetery for those wanting to stay long term. Some Near Deads believe this was planned from conception, because death is no longer a result for them, however the developers claim it was a spur of the moment happenstance and not done deliberately. The undead jury is still out on this one.
Brilliant orange flowers seem to bloom everywhere they can fit all over the third neighborhood of Marigold Park. It is host to Ofrendas & Offerings, the largest marketplace in Scareton. Visitors from far and wide often come to purchase the best foods, drinks, sweet sugar skulls, calaveras, and traditional pan de muerto, bread of the dead, in the latter part of October in preparation of Día de Muertos. Beautiful arrangements of bright orange cempasúchil, or marigolds, can only be found in Marigold Park, and has become a multi-million-dollar production for Ofrendas & Offerings.
During the multi-day Mexican holiday celebration where families welcome back the souls of their deceased relatives for a joyful reunion, Ofrendas & Offerings gives away free food and flowers to anyone asking from October 31st to November 2nd. Kids get free sweet sugar skulls, Atole, Champurrado, and Horchata, all three days. Families continuing tradition also receive free Chocolate Caliente or Mexican Hot Chocolate, on November 1st to take home to honor the children who have passed away for their private ofrendas.
Marigold Park is also home to the Scareton Welcome Center. If you are checking out Scareton for the first time, it is worth stopping by. It’s a great place to get a feel for the community and see what Scareton has to offer. Most areas are Near Dead only, but the people there are friendly and can show you around, answer questions, and point you toward the different neighborhoods, model homes, Town Center, amenities, and some of the spots residents love. You can also check out the interactive maps, look at the Nile Water Park and Fitness Club, or hop on the Scareton Stroll Tour to see everything for yourself.
There is honestly a lot to see and do, so the Welcome Center is a great place to start. Whether you are thinking about moving there or just curious about the community, it’s worth checking out.
Okay, I think you get the point. It is a cool place, but I must stop or you may want to go there instead of reading in your comfy chair.
There are eight neighborhoods in total, Eternal Ridge, Corpsewood, Denny Landing, Sarah Station, and Weeping Willow Mile, are the final five rounding out the full count. We will visit the other soon enough, but until then, let’s get back to our Christmas story, shall we?
Coming soon: Just Another Zombie Christmas: Chapter 2: Condition Evolved
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