Dream Theater: Zombies in San Francisco

Photo by LaughingSquid.com

J______ and I were living in San Francisco when the city was suddenly hit with a case of zombies. They weren't so thick we couldn't go places, but we had to be careful whenever we left the apartment, even if it was just to go across the street. 

We escaped a couple of close calls, and then we finally got cornered. J_____ fought back and started swearing at the zombies and taunting them as they closed in… 

That's when we discovered zombies could be reasoned with, and they could control their behavior. We discussed it later, and J_____ said, "It must be a lot like quitting smoking or dieting."

And so we learned to live in a world with zombies. 

They looked pretty normal, even though they were obviously undead. They could speak, and hold a job, and live a more or less ordinary life. Most of the time they behaved themselves, but every once in a while one would lose its willpower and go on a rampage. You always heard about that in the news.

They had to put up with a lot of prejudice. There were special bars and restaurants where zombies could congregate. And whenever they did, they would screech and howl, speaking a secret zombie language that could be heard from a long way away, but that no one else could understand.

J_____ and I took a ski lift tour of San Francisco. We looked at the city from high above. All the buildings, even the houses, were outlined with white lights. It was a beautiful sight, even though I knew it masked a terrible reality.

Original dream date: May 20, 2004.