The following is from a journal discovered in an abandoned home, 3 years after a zombie hoard took over Savannah.  The author remains unknown.

I.

The Hive is swarming with them.  They’re taking furniture out from the lobbies and throwing them into the courtyard.  I asked Content Director Liam why they’re doing that, but he just shrugged.  Said he didn’t know.  I think that might have scared me the most.

I saw someone in the parking garage at the Hive.  They just paced back and forth.

We’ve managed to secure Tannex.  The students are gone.  It’s just Radio, here.  District, Manor, Port City Review, and Honey Dripper found other places.  We’re not sure where they went.  They asked us to come.  They wanted us to.  But Alicia said she was born in this station, and she’s going to die in this station.  She’s the General Manager.  It’s not our place to question that.

Production Director Michael showed up with everything needed to set traps along the gate.  We didn’t question it, either.  It just seemed like something Michael would do.

There’s a lot of us here in this small space.  The Music Department is clearing out the attic space so that we’ll have some place warm to sleep.  We got rid of most things, except for the giant blow-up swan.  Alicia said we should hang it up outside as a flag.  It could be a beacon of hope.  Let people know that we’re alive.  That they haven’t taken the station yet.

I worry, though.  We tried to stock pile as best as we could, but we’re art students.  We have mostly paint.  None of us are painting majors, but we have a lot of paint for some reason.  We compiled a make-shift pantry in the Administrator’s office.  The only thing left in the fridge is a carton of coffee creamer.  Web Guy Antony says that we should save it as a treat.  We keep telling him that it’s not milk, but I don’t think he understands.

Maybe he does.  Maybe he just doesn’t want to believe it.  We’re all in denial.

II.

Content Director Liam says that it’s suicide to stay at the station.  There’s a hoard across the street at the Hive. It’s only a matter of time until they come for us.  He wants us to leave.  He says he has a plan, but won’t tell us what it is—he’s secretive that way—but if we want to live, we need to leave here.  Leave Savannah.

I agree.  But when I look at our little station, I can’t bring myself to leave.  Like what GM Alicia said: I was born here, and I will die here.

It’s getting late now.  Our food is running low.  The Family Dollar across the street has been ransacked.  We sent Music Director Gabrielle, her assistant, Olivia, and Video Editor Cole to scavenge.  They returned with off-brand markers and a roll of toilet paper.  Both useful, but neither are food.

Production Director Michael said that we need to go to the Hive and find food there.  It’s our only hope.  But GM Alicia doesn’t want us to.  Michael said that he will come up with a plan.  I hope he will.

He left after that.  Said he knew a guy.  We asked his assistant Leon who that was, but he just shrugged.  He said Michael knows lots of guys.  It’s been about a day since we saw him.

III.

GM Alicia hung up the inflatable swan outside off of the security gate.  She wrote, “SCAD Radio” on it with one of the markers.  It looks awful.

I saw the figure in the parking garage again.

IV.

Michael came back today with a trolley filled with explosives, and everything we’d need to take on the hoard.  We didn’t question any of this.  It just seemed like something Michael would do.

We’re going to sneak into the Hive tomorrow.

V.

The team was made of Production Director Michael, Content Director Liam, Music Director Gabrielle, GM Alicia, and myself.  Camera Guy Jacob wanted to document it.  Liam tried to convince him not to, but Jacob didn’t listen.  He says it’s for the movie.  We gave up asking what movie.  It’s like Web Guy Antony and the coffee creamer.  Let sleeping dogs lie.

We left a handful of the DJs at the station.  The management assistants, Olivia, Leon, and Ashton are in charge.  The DJs tried to come, but they’re what will keep SCAD Radio alive.  Ashton is working on getting our broadcast back up.  We need them there.

Michael said these zombies would be distracted by sound.  I hoped he was right.  He put our PA system in a trolley filled with explosives.  Blasting Metallica, we sent the trolley down Turner Blvd and straight into the Hive.  When the hoard got close, Michael detonated the trolley.  Took out most of them.

Inside the Hive, I saw “THE NEST” spray painted on the parking garage.  It was hard to see if the figure was there.

We were able to get into the Hive.  The kitchen smelt awful.  Most of the food went bad.  We took what we could and filled the wagon with it.  A hoard started to build outside of the cafeteria.  A few made their way inside.  We managed to thwart them, but outside, it was another story.

They were everywhere.  There were much more than we have anticipated.

We lost GM Alicia.  We almost made it out, but she tripped.  Her fanny pack unhooked in the chaos.  She had filled it with mace, mints, and a deck of playing cards she claimed to be good luck.  But the weight must’ve been too much.  She didn’t realize that it had fallen off.  I saw her trip.  The others pulled me away before I could get to her.  I tried…

We were surrounded.  I thought this would be it.  Even Jacob stopped filming.

Then, out of no where, the Bird Up DJs descended from the parking garage.  They saved us.  They said they set up shop in there because it seemed cool.  And honestly, during these times, that’s enough explanation for me. They managed to keep the zombies from leaving the Hive area.  They said they were mostly students in that hoard.  They think that maybe, they just didn’t want to leave. We tried to bring the three of them with us back to the station, but they said we’d just hold them back.  They were probably right.

They secured the gate behind us and we made it back to Tannex. Without our GM.  The first thing I saw was the inflatable swan, the sloppily written SCAD Radio…

I get it now.

VI.

I woke up in the middle of the night.  Made my way down to the lobby and saw Liam and Michael packing up.  They said they couldn’t stay here.  It wasn’t safe.  They were going to head north.  They had a plan, but of course, Liam wasn’t going to share it.  He’s like that.  I said goodbye, and watched them leave in a trolley.

I noticed that the inflatable swan had fallen to the ground.