Survival of the Un-fittest
Plot: Inspired by the episode "Rapture's Delight," Terry and a now teenage Libby do what they can to survive against the forces of the Anti-Christ, in this story of violence, danger, love, and sorrow.
Information: After seeing the episode "Rapture's Delight," and hearing that Greg was sent to Heaven and not Terry (and guessing that Libby wasn't sent there as well) I wondered what happened to them. And since no one came forward with a fanfic about that, I figured that I should do it.
Enjoy! (And please leave a comment. A writer likes to know when his work is appreciated.)
Part 1: The rescue
The dark red sky over the ruined city that was once known as Langley Falls, Virginia had just turned dark-red. It was night time. There has not been a clear sunny day on the earth for sixteen years now. What's to blame for that: global warming, terrorists, pollution?
No.
It was Rapture. In just one day, over 100 million people were sent to Heaven, and the rest of the people left on Earth had to fend for themselves in the war between the forces of Heaven and Hell. In just hours after the great armies of good and evil clashed, major cities all over the world were destroyed in the blink of an eye.
In the years following, the Great War still ranges on. Human survivors have learned to fend for themselves and hide from the forces of the Anti-Christ. God's armies don't hurt the people that weren't raptured. But stay out of the way of those—seen unfit through God's eye—and let them fend for themselves in a time of danger.
In order to protect themselves from the creatures of hell—that have taken up hunting down and killing colonies of human survivors for sport—was to hide. They stayed in the lowest corner of abandoned buildings, during the day, and they came out at night, with the cover of darkness on their side. But what was there to come out of hiding for? It was almost impossible to find the necessary provisions: food was hard to find—and if it was, people would fight over it like it was an offer to get into Heaven (which they all knew would never come)—water was an even more difficult task to find. The war had caused lakes and rivers to dry up; the water in the ocean was polluted with waste and the carcasses of the Anti-Christ's army making it unsafe to drink.
Survival was tough. But there are still people out there fighting for their right to live in this God-forsaken world. In Langley Falls, that was happening right now.
A dark figure dashed across the street. It was moving so fast, it was barely visible. When it reached the other side of the street, it leaned its back up against a building and slide along the wall, until it reached the entrance to an alley. It peered its brown eyes down the alley, to see if the coast was clear. There was no demon in sight, but the sound of a car being overturned came to its attention. The beasts of Hell were close, and the figure had very little time on her hands.
Her? Yes, it was a girl. She moved down the alley, with the cover of darkness on her side. From where she was, no one could see her. The earpiece in her ear came to life with static, and a male voice followed.
"Paradise to Angel," the voice said, and she pressed a small button on the earpiece and talked—quietly—into the little speaker.
"This is Angel," she said, in a calm, kindhearted voice.
"What is your location?" the man asked.
"I'm in the 5th street alley, two blocks away, over." She said.
"Any Hell-demons cross on your trail?"
"I heard a car being flipped over about a block away. It must be platoon of Razorbacks."
"Oh, I hate things." The man groaned. "Do you think you can make it?" His tone sounded more concerned then before.
She laughed. "Don't worry Dad; I can take care of myself. I was trained by the best."
"That's my Liberty." Terry said. It was her father.
"I'll come out on the left side of 7th street," she said. "Keep an eye out for me."
"Got it—over and out…Libby." The earpiece went dead, and Libby Corbin-Bates ran down through the allies and reached 7th street. She was just about to step out into the light, when a Razorback passed by. She almost screamed but leaped back into the ally before the monster could see her.
At sixteen, Libby was rather tall for that age. She her body was skinny, but the wiry muscles on her arms, legs, and chest were hard as iron. She had a square-shaped head, brown eyes, and blond hair that she had cut short. If it was one thing she was taught, it was that long hair was dangerous in this world. (Long hair could get caught on something, when trying to run from Hell-demons.) Her attire consisted of baggy combat pants, a tight black shirt, and an armored vest she made herself.
After dodging the Razorback—a hunchbacked creature with sickly green skin and giant spikes sticking out its back—Libby knew that there were more of them in the vicinity. She pulled out the crossbow she had holstered on her leg and loaded it with one of the arrows she had kept in a quiver on her back. She looked both ways down the street. To her right was the Paradise Hotel; on the outside it looked like the rest of the building in the city: old, worn out, and deserted. But that's not what it was to Libby. To her, it was home. To her left was the Razorback hopping its way down the street with its back with facing Libby. If she could make it to the other side of the street, she'd be home free. Libby stepped out of the alley—crossbow locked and loaded.
However, Libby didn't notice the plastic bottle in her path. The creaking of the plastic from her boots made a noise that echoed down the street and into the Razorback's small ears.
"Shit," Libby hissed, looked through the scope she had attached to her crossbow and aimed it at the beast's head. Just as the monster was about to let out a blood-curtailing scream that would have singled the rest of the Hell-demons in the area, Libby pulled the trigger on her crossbow. The arrow—with its razor sharp tip—whizzed through the air and landed in the Razorback's right eye. It dropped to the ground dead with Libby's arrow through its eye. Libby hurried over to the Razorback's body, pulled the arrow out of its skull, and took off the other way.
She came up to the front entrance of the Paradise Hotel, and looked around to make sure no one was watching her, and opened the door. The lobby of the hotel was a pigsty. There was trash and other garbage all over the place, rubble was scattered around the room, from the broken ceiling that crumbled long ago. Libby went over to where the elevators—that don't work anymore—and slipped through a door way marked "Employees Only."
She then climbed down a long, narrow stairway that opened up into a wide room complete with beds, food, water, weapons, clothes, and supplies. On the other side of the room from where Libby came in, a door that led to an adjoining room opened, and her father, Terry Bates appeared.
In the sixteen years since the Rapture, Terry grew taller, he gained a lot of muscle, his hair was a little longer, but his eyes and face were just a dazzling as they were before.
"Welcome home," he said, in a soft voice.
"Hi Dad," she said.
"So did you find what you were looking for?" Terry asked.
"It was hard"—she pulled the messenger bag she had on over her shoulder and dropped it to the floor, and tossed it over to Terry—"but I got it."
"Who could ask for a better daughter?" Terry said. He reached into the messenger bag and pulled out a set of disks.
"I can't believe I'm actually gonna see these." Libby said, after putting her weapon aside, and sitting on a couch that face a TV that hung on the wall.
"I can't believe our old house was still standing!" Terry said. "From what you told me on the wire, it sounded as good as new."
"It was pretty beat up actually, but it's still standing." She paused and shifted to a somber voice. "It brought back some very distant memories."
"Well let's hope these do a better job." Terry took one of the disks and popped it in the DVD player. Libby had not been this excited in years. The same goes to Terry, as well. After his partner—Greg—was Raptured, Terry and Libby were left behind to fend for themselves. At first, Terry was scared. The man he loved was gone, the world was going to hell, and he was all alone. But he still had Libby and that was still something. In the years that followed the Rapture, Terry trained himself to protect Libby whatever the cost. He killed any Hell-demon that dared to cross his path, and he did it all for his daughter.
And when she was old enough, Terry gave Libby a gun and taught her how to survive in the hardest conditions, how to kill Hell-demons, and—after getting his hands on some medical books—showed her the basics of treating the wounded. Even Libby was happy she had her father with her; however, she'd sometimes wake up in the middle of the night and hear Terry crying. There was no need to ask what he was upset about. It was pretty obvious. He missed sharing the same bed with Greg. Finally, one night, when Libby woke to the sound of Terry crying over Greg's absence, she put her foot down and asked if there were any home movies back at the house they lived in before the Rapture. Terry said there was but said he'd kill himself before letting Libby go on such a dangerous journey alone. But Libby said she was tired of seeing Terry so upset all the time, and knew that if she could just see old footage of him before the Rapture, and see how happy he was when Greg was around, it could make him stop crying all the time. After hearing that, Terry hugged Libby and said:
"When did you become such a strong young girl?"
"I had a great teacher." She said.
Before Libby set out on this journey, Terry went by the old CIA HQ and downloaded satellite codes so he could gain access. After the war started, all military satellites in space were shut down and left floating up there. Terry got back to the hotel, served as Libby's eye-in-the-sky as she as she made her way from down town back to the house she was raised in for the first year and a half of her life. See her old home, brought back a few memories: waking up in the middle of the night crying, and having Greg or Terry come in a hum a little tune until she was sound asleep once again. Another memory came to her. She also remembered her baby-self playing with her dad's in the living room one day, and knocking over a stack of blocks Greg finished making. After that, Greg covered her eyes from something, and did the same thing again when her surrogate mother got out of the hot tub.
Thinking about it now made her laugh. After remembering the mission, Libby followed Terry's instruction of the earpiece, and went into the den where she got the disks from the shelf and slid them into her messenger bag. With Terry's eye in the sky, she made it back to the hotel in no time at all. Now, as Terry put the first disk in, she giggled a little, and caught his attention.
"What's so funny?" Terry asked.
"I'm just excited!" Libby said. "What about you?"
"I've wanted to see these for years now."
"Well start it, sit down, and shut up." Libby said.
"As you wish," Terry mused.
Terry sat down next to Libby, and they relaxed themselves as the first disk played. Most of the disks were just long with not much happening in them. It wasn't until they got to the fourth disk, that the videos were edited. Libby saw the day she was born. Francine's water broke, Greg ran out panicking—which Libby and Terry laughed at—and watched Terry kiss Greg to shut him up—making them both aw.
"That's so cute!" Libby cooed.
"I had to give him so form of confidence." Terry shrugged. The scene the smash cut to the delivery room with Greg holding the camera, and Stan and Terry holding Francine's hands while she pushes Libby out.
Libby cringed. "Dang, did it hurt that bad?"
"Greg was still worried while he was filming this." Terry said.
"What stopped him this time?" she asked.
"When I put you in his arms, he said: 'I am in love with this baby!'" Libby looked back to the screen with a happy look on her face. The next started off with the camera showing off Greg and Terry's old neighborhood at night. There were Halloween decorations all over the houses, and the camera spun around, showing the inside of their house. There wasn't much décor, but when the camera moved into the kitchen where it showed Greg painting Libby's face to make her look like a zombie, she could tell that her father's were in the spirit of the holiday.
"I am I supposed be a zombie?" Libby asked.
"That's right," Terry nodded.
"Dad did a great job. What he supposed to be?"
"I think he was supposed to be a zombie—a gay zombie, to be exact." Terry said.
"What about you?" Libby asked.
"I don't think I was seen—"he paused when he saw his younger self hand the camera over to Greg, and point the lens at Terry. Libby had to cover he mouth to stop her from laughing out loud. "—never mind."
"What are supposed to be?" Libby asked, laughing.
"A famous singer at that time named Lady Gaga," Terry explained. "She was one of the more popular gay icons at that time."
"Did she have anything good?"
"A couple songs, yeah," Terry nodded. "God, I miss iPods!"
The next disk started with news coverage of a Gay Pride parade—which Greg and Terry were in—a video off Greg lying on a beach with Terry holding the camera. A few minutes into that, Greg asked Terry to be his partner and the Terry watching couldn't help but shed a tear. After that it switched to Greg doing a news report by himself.
"Oh, my God, I almost forgot about this!" Terry said.
Greg went on to say that temporary window had opened to allow homosexual couples to get married. Libby's jaw dropped.
"This is when you were allowed to get married?" Libby asked.
"That's right." Terry nodded, and held his head up to her, showing the silver ring on his finger. The image on the screen changed to security camera footage of city hall that showed Terry and Greg holding each other hand and hand. A few feet away from them, stood Francine with a baby Libby cradled in her arms.
"I look so cute in that dress." Libby cooed. They watched the wedding, and tired to hold their tears when the priest allowed Greg to kiss his husband—Terry.
And that was it. That was the last of the disks Libby picked up from her childhood home, and they both sat there not moving a muscle.
"That was amazing." Terry said.
"I can't believe Dad recorded all of that." Libby added.
"He was talented with a camera." Terry sniffled. Libby patted his shoulder.
"You really miss him don't you?"
"I'd give anything to see him. Even if it'd be just a minute, I'd tell him I loved him more than anything—next to you of course. And give him the longest kiss I could possibly give him."
"Too much information there," Libby snapped.
"My bad," Terry said. "What about you? What would you wanna say to him?"
"I don't know." Libby breathed. "The best memory I could think of is you two playing with me as a baby. I'd see Dad stacking up a whole bunch of blocks, and I'd push them all over."
"I remember that." Terry chuckled.
"But I don't think Dad would like it if he were watching over us right now, watching us both drowning ourselves in sorrow of him not being. And if you look at it right, as long as we keep thinking about him, it's like he's right here with us." She placed his hand over his heart, and a small smile appeared across his features.
"That's what he would say, if he were here." Terry said. "Your right, Libby, he is here, in the both of us."
They shared a quick hug. After that, Libby yawned and deiced to call it a night. Libby went sleep on the couch, and Terry went into the other room where he had his own bed, a few posters of half-naked men, his monitors that are linked to cameras set up on the outside of the hotel, and his radio that he keeps on all the time that could pick up a radio signal and listen to anyone trying to call for help out there.
In the years of raising Libby in this hell-bound world, Terry had stumbled upon many colonies of humans who were trying to hide from Hell-demons that hunt humans for sport. The creatures that are a part of the Anti-Christ's army are even worse than any chapter in the Bible had ever described. Razorback's were dangerous, but they were nothing compared to the big boys.
There were Skull Knights: tall, horned, sword wheeling creatures that are so thin, they're bones were almost poking out of their near-black skin. While they don't look like much, they're vicious killing machines that'll cut anyone down with they're razor sharp swords.
Trolls were twice the size of any living human. Although everyone assumes that their brains are about the size of a quarter, what they lack in brains, they make up for muscle and brutality. They carry giant clubs made out of solid bone that'll break open your skull in just one bash.
But out of all the creatures the Anti-Christ had unleashed upon the world—Trolls, Skull Knights, Ghouls, Hell Hounds, and Minotaurs (were all nothing compared to the real threat to humans): Hyper-Fangs—had to be the worst of them all.
Standing about the same heights as humans, Hyper-Fangs—with their saber-tooth tiger-like fangs that pop out of their mouths when they open them—can bight a human's head off with a single bite. The four-legged demons, with curved claws on the end of their hands and feet, and they are able to stand on their hinds legs and match up to the height of a full grown. The long, wild hair on their heads reach all the way down to their mid backs and their skin is a dark-red color.
Trolls, Hyper-Fangs, Ghouls, Skull Knights, Hell Hounds, Minotaurs—Terry hated the lot of them. After seen what those monster did to the world that was once a peaceful place, watching them die is like a gift from God. Although, he thought it was fare to say that God would never be on his side again. The last time God sent him a miracle was the day Libby was born. Now, looking around and seeing where he lives, and what he has to deal with every day—dehydration, starvation, demons, and so forth—he'd like nothing better that to die himself. But Libby needed someone to be by her side all the time. He's all she's got. If anything took Terry away from her, she'd be devastated. The only option he has to keep fighting for his daughter in the hopes that one day, he'd be able to die in piece, knowing that Libby was ready to fend for herself. But that time hasn't come. Not yet. Not yet…
Terry stripped the body armor he was wearing off and set it down on the side of his bed, exposing his muscular chest. Have a body like that was one of the major reason's he'd still wish Greg was around.
Damn, he thought, looking at himself in the mirror. If Greg ever saw me with this body, he'd tear off everything I was wearing. I'll put that on the list of things I do, if I ever see him again: kiss him, hug him, cry on him, and have sex with him until I can't breathe anymore! Terry brought himself back to reality and stared awkwardly into space. I need sleep.
And that's just what he did. Terry went to bed—with one of his hands under his pillowed where and loaded shotgun was kept gripped in his hand. He didn't know how long he was out. But the utter blackness of sleep started to light up. All of the sudden he was surrounded in by nothing but white. He looked around and saw nothing.
"What is this, some kind of dream?" He asked, and gasped. His voice; it sounded…younger. He looked down to the rest of his body and saw that he was wearing the blue suit he used to wear all the time before the Rapture. Then, everything around him started to change. A bright blue sky appeared above his head, houses, cars, and kids playing on the sidewalk materialized out of nowhere. He looked in front of him and saw the house he used to live it. It—and everything around Terry—looked as if the Rapture had never happened.
"Afternoon, Terry!" a female voice that he recognized instantly said. He turned around to see Francine in front of her house.
"Francine?" he said, almost panicking.
"Is everything alright?"
"I have no idea." He said. Then it hit him. This was a dream but it just wasn't any dream. It was as if his deepest thought had made themselves into a dream where everything was the way he wanted it to be: to back to a time when the Rapture never happened and Greg was still around.
"Greg!" he gasped, spun around and dashed into the house. As soon as he opened the door, there, on the couch, springing to his feet after Terry's sudden entrance was Greg.
"Terry?" Greg gasped. "What's wrong?" Terry stopped where he was standing and felt a set of tears run down his face. He leaped around the couch and wrapped his arms around the man he loved, and embraced him the most passionate kiss he had given him, since their wedding.
Terry pulled his head back from Greg's lips and looked at him with tears flowing down his face.
"Are you ok honey?" Greg asked.
"Never better," Terry whispered.
"Then why'd you just burst in like Superman…" Terry stopped him from going any further by snapping his index finger Greg's lips.
"Don't talk," Terry said, in a low voice. "Just…kiss me." He started kissing Greg again and sat him down on the sofa as he did. Greg cringed, when he saw Terry reach for the hem of his shirt, and stopped him from practically clawing it off him.
"What are you doing?" Greg demanded.
"Something I've wanted to do for a long time now." Terry said.
"Our little angel's sleeping upstairs." Greg countered. "We never do it in the day anymore."
"She's a heavy sleeper." Terry pressed.
"Good point," Greg shrugged, and resumed kissing the blond. He let him finish what he started, and let Terry pull his shirt off. Either if he was kissing the side of Greg's neck, his lips, or rubbing his hands over Greg's iron chest, Terry was giving it all he had. He had not had a sexual experience in years, and even thought he still knew this was all a dream, it felt all a little too real to him. The only time Greg moved his head away from Terry's face was to get a few breaths of air flowing into his lungs, as he—slowly—helped Terry take his clothes off.
By the time Terry was on top of Greg, as he lied on the couch, he was about to take his pants of when all hell broke loose. Blood curtailing screams were heard outside and they both looked outside to see meteors fall out of the sky; Hell-demons appeared and started killing everyone left and right.
"Terry, what's going on!" Greg screamed. Terry didn't have time to answer that. He was stopped by the sight of a large meteor coming right at the house. Right before it hit, everything went white again. The sound of Greg's screaming "TERRY! TERRY! TERRY!" but soon that changed to "DAD! DAD! DAD!" and Terry's eyes flew open.
He sat up from his bed with a jolt and a strong roar, as he pulled the shotgun out from under her pillow and cocked it. He looked next to him and saw Libby.
"What is it!" he asked, seeing the panicked look on her face.
"The radio!" she said. Both of them looked over to the radio and heard a voice. It was calling for help.
"Impossible," Terry hissed. He leaped out of bed and turned the volume up on the radio.
"WE ARE BEING CHASED BY A GROUP OF SKULL KNIGHTS AND IT LOOKS LIKE THERE ARE A FEW HYPER-FANGS WITH THEM. IF THERE ANY SURVIVORS PICKING THIS UP, PLEASE RESOPOND NOW; NOW, GODDAMN IT NOW!"
Without any hesitation, Terry picked up the speaker and held his mouth up to it.
"This is Terry Bates of the Paradise Hotel, what is your location!"
"What was your name!" the voice asked. It was that of an older man.
"Terry Bates," he repeated. "To whom is it that I'm speaking to, and where are you currently located?"
"Terry?" the voice said. Then it hit him. Terry knew the person he was talking to on the radio. And it was voice he thought he'd never hear again.
It was his father: Tank Bates.
Terry gasped. "Dad…is that you?"
"Y-your dad?" Libby cringed. They looked at each other in shock. Then Terry got an angry look on his face and clenched his fist on the speaker.
"Leave him," he whispered.
"What are talking about, he's your dad!" Libby countered.
"He wanted nothing to do with me." Terry grumbled. "Why should I help him?"
"He's your dad? What the hell, is there something you're not telling me!"
"Libby, this isn't the best time." Terry said.
"Damn right, there's not, my grandfather's out there with other people being chased by Skull Knights and Hyper-Fangs! Are your just gonna sit here and do nothing!"
"Give me one reason why I should." Terry said.
Libby knew what to say. "What would Greg think of you, if you left innocent people out there to be kill by the Anti-Christ's monsters?"
"Ouch," Terry hissed.
"You and your father may have had your differences in the past, but the moment the war started, none of the people on this earth were strangers. We become one. The Un-fittest: the ones that were left her to fend for ourselves. Alone—like your father is right now—we are nothing. Together, we are strong." Libby said.
Terry sighed and looked at Libby with a small smile. "You had me at 'What would Greg think of you?'"
"Good," Libby chocked. "For a moment there, I thought you weren't my father anymore."
"I am your father, Libby. I just have a hard time seeing to the truth in things, these days. I'm getting old, I guess."
"You're not that old. You still got some muscle left." Libby said.
"Then let's get out there and show them Hell-demons whose boss!"
"That's the Dad I know." Libby nodded. Terry turned his attention back to the speaker on the radio and said:
"Dad, what is your location!" Terry asked.
"We just drove by the mall!" Tank said. "Where are you? Are you ok?"
"I'm fine Dad," Terry said. "We're at the Paradise Hotel it's on…"
"I know where that is!" Tank interrupted. "We'll approach from the north. Do you have weapons!"
"We got plenty of 'em," Terry snickered.
"We'll be there in five minute! Have your weapons locked and loaded, when you see us come down the street." Tank said.
"Rodger that, over and out," Terry said, and sent the speaker down. He shot passed Libby and went into bigger room where he trekked to a large cabinet next to the stairs. He opened it. Stashed there was an armory of automatic rifles, sniper rifles, shotguns, pistols, explosives, endless supplies of ammo, knives, a compound bow, and a set of twin swords that were sharpened to the point where they could cut a Skull Knight in half with just one blow.
"How do we do this Dad?" Libby asked.
"The wolf and hawk maneuver," Terry said.
"Are you sure?"
"That's the best bet."
"Can I be the wolf this time?" Libby asked.
"You think you can handle a few Skull Knights on your own?" Terry asked.
"I think so," Libby nodded.
"Take the swords," Terry said. Libby reached into the cabinet and pulled out the twin swords that were held in leather scabbards, and strapped to a belt that would go around Libby's waist. Libby tied the belt around her waist and she now had two swords attached to the sides of her hip. Terry reached in and grabbed a sniper rifle, a gray hat, and face mask. With their weapons ready, they walked into the lobby of the hotel and split up from there.
The wolf and the hawk maneuver was a technique Terry came up with a few years back. He saw how good Libby was using melee weapons such as bows, knives and swords and the rest of the ideas came into him in a manner of minutes. The idea involved two people; one using swords, the other using a sniper rifle. Libby—the wolf—was to go out into the street and fight off as many Skull Knights and Hyper-Fangs that came here way. Terry—the hawk—was to position himself on the roof of the hotel, and cover his head and face with the mask and hat for camouflage, while using the sniper rifle to provide Libby with some backup while she gets Tank and the other survivors with him into the hotel.
This plan had worked many times before, but not ever under these circumstances. This time, Terry and Libby had more to deal with than just killing a few Hell-demons. They had people depending on them, and it made it all the more fun. Libby stepped out of the hotel's front door, went down the steps and positioned herself behind an overturned car in a crouched position.
As she heard the sound of big tires dragging along the cracked street from a few blocks away, she looked up to the roof, and saw Terry getting into position. With the mask, hat, and gray cloth covering him, he looked invisible to the naked eye. The gray her had covering him matched the same, worn gray color that the outside of the hotel had, providing him with perfect cover.
The sound of a Hyper-Fang crying out its thirst for blood caught her attention. Libby drew her head down to where she approached the hotel earlier. She saw a bright-yellow Hummer appear around the corner. It swerved left and right, dodging any and all obstacles in its way. After seeing the first Skull Knight come from around the corner, Libby pulled out her swords and readied herself. The yellow hummer was forced to a stop when an over turned truck stood in its path, and that was Libby's queue to take action. She lunged out from around the overturned car and dashed over to where the Hummer had stopped. Already she could see at least seven people jump out of the car. But she ignored them and ran out in front of 'em, standing in between the Skull Knight's way.
"Get to the hotel!" Libby shouted, not looking back them. She had no idea which one of them was Tank. Already, three Skull Knights were on her, pulling out their swords, and that's when Libby took action.
Before the first Skull Knight could even get his sword out of his sheath, Libby drove her black blade through the ugly monster's neck and out the back. She pulled her blade out, letting the monster dropped to the ground dead, and moved on to the next Skull Knight. This one already had its sword pulled out and Libby saw it coming. She ducked from a slash that would have cut off her head, and darted around the Skull Knight and spun around, slicing the Knight's legs off from behind the knees.
A shadow eclipsed over Libby's body. She looked up to see and ax wielding Knight raise its weapon high into the air, ready to kill Libby. But before Libby could even think that she was going to die, a gunshot echoed through the air, and a mist of blood popped out from the back the Knight's neck. It was dead before it hit the ground. Knowing that it was Terry who did that, Libby turned her attention back to the second Skull Knight—the one that had its legs cut off by Libby was now on the ground trying to reach for his weapon, but she kicked it away—and shoved one of her swords between its eyes. She looked down the street and saw five more Knights coming her way. Behind them, crawling on the sides of the building, were at least four Hyper-Fangs.
Another gunshot echoed through the air, and two more Skull Knights went down with one bullet. Libby started to back away, and looked behind her to see that the people from the Hummer were just moving around the truck. She had to buy them some time. Another shot echoed through the air, and one of the Hyper-Fangs went down. Now that she only had three Knights to deal with, Libby held her ground and readied herself for an attack. The sound of Terry's sniper rifle going off saw the end of another Hyper-Fang, leaving only two left.
Seeing that her father was handling the Hyper-Fangs on his own, Libby put all her focus on the oncoming Skull Knights. She lunged forward—using all the power the muscles in her legs could produce—and unleashed a whirlwind of attacks against the three remaining Skull Knights.
The first Knight came at her wildly swinging his sword. Libby used on of hers to block her enemies blade, and—with a grunt—she cut off the Knight's head at the base of the neck. Sensing that the last two were circling around her, Libby spun around low, holding her swords out in front of her. Her blades dragged across the second Knight's skin at the waist, cleaving it in two. Jill rose to her feet, blocking the third and final Skull Knight's blade from hitting her, and shoved her sword into the Skull Knight's mouth. The blade tore out the back of its head, and it dropped dead instantly, after Libby pulled her blade out.
A gunshot went off, and Libby heard thud, telling her that another Hyper-Fang had died. But after another gunshot went off, she didn't hear a Hyper-Fang fall the ground dead. She felt something land behind her, and she knew what it was. Libby spun around, ready to decapitate the red-skinned monster but her blades were caught in the monsters grasp. It tugged the swords out of Libby's grasp, and she looked at the monster in fear. She saw its mouth start to open, ready to deliver the killing blow. Libby tried to look fearless, but inside she was scared as hell. The Hyper-Fang's head moved in closer to Libby, and she knew that she was blocking Terry's line of fire. He couldn't kill the Hyper-Fang without killing Libby.
This was it: the end of Libby Corbin-Bates.
Or was it?
Libby felt a new presence come up to her. It stood right next to her, and reached the shotgun this stranger was holding down the Hyper-Fang's throat.
"EAT THIS!" the young male voice shouted, and pulled the trigger. The Hyper-Fang's head exploded, and it toppled to the ground in a lifeless heap.
Libby looked next to her, ready to thank the person that saved her life, and froze. She felt something that she had never felt before in her life: love. It was a boy, about a year older than her. He was tall, handsome, lean, sinewy, with short brown-hair, and green eyes. Libby stopped breathing at the sight of the boy, but the sound of Hyper-Fang's crying in the distance brought her back to reality. She grabbed the boy by the hand and rushed him back to the entrance of the hotel. By the time they got into the lobby, Terry was there, guiding everyone into the basement. Libby and the boy came around the corner, and were followed by Terry.
In the basement, when everyone calmed down, Terry finally stepped forward and gaze upon his father for the first time in almost twenty years. Tank, who was once big and stocky, had lost a tone of weight. He was thinner, but that could have been from the starvations millions have had to endure over the years, yet, Terry could see the ropey muscles on his arms and legs. He walked over to the couch and sat down next to his father.
"Hi Dad," Terry said.
"Hey, kid," Tank said with a smile. "How've you been?"
"Through hell and back,"
Libby came up to them, with the boy that saved her.
"Dad, this is the guy who saved me." Libby said.
"What's his name?"
"I…don't know. What's your name?" she asked.
"My name is Richard. But everyone calls me Rick." He said.
"I owe you my life Rick." Libby said.
"I just did what anyone else would do. I'm gonna go sit down for a minute. I need a breather."
"Go ahead," Libby said. After he walked away, Libby turned back to Terry and Tank. "Whew," she breathed. "That guy is cute."
"Don't get me started," Terry agreed.
"So…" Libby trailed off, looking at Tank. "I hear you're my grandfather."
Tank's brows furrowed. "Is this the baby you said you had all those years ago?"
"This is her." Terry confirmed. "Dad, this is Libby."
"Where did my son learn to raise a warrior like you?" Tank said.
"I have no idea," Libby shrugged. She was about to say something else, but heard a cry of pain. Libby was off in a flash, grabbing the medical kit. As treated one of the wounded, Tank looked at her in amazement.
"Never thought someone like you could raise a kid like that," Tank said.
Terry rolled his eyes. "You could at least thank us for saving you."
"Maybe we should talk about this in private." Tank suggested.
"Follow me," Terry said. Tank followed Terry into the other room, and sat down on the bed and saw his son look at him in disappointment.
He sighed. "Look, I know things weren't great between us the last time we saw each other, but you have to believe me, I changed."
"I'm not angry about that Dad—Libby already beat you to all that." Terry said. His tense face relaxed, and he walked over to the bed and sat next to Tank.
"She did?" He chuckled. "Smart girl,"
"She's my daughter. That makes her your granddaughter."
"I can see that you raised her right."
"I didn't do it alone." Terry countered. "With Greg watching over me, he's always with me."
"He got raptured?"
"That's right," Terry nodded. "I was devastated."
"If I had know at that time, and I was gonna get into Heaven, I would have given up passage for you and Libby."
"You did?" Terry gasped. Tank wasn't lying. He really had changed since the last time they saw each other.
"When everyone was floating into the sky, and I wasn't, I realized how much of an ass I was. There could have been a lot of reasons why I wasn't being raptured, but I had to guess that it was 'cause I never accepted my own son for he was." Tank said.
"So does this mean you could finally accept me as a gay man?" Terry asked.
Tank looked at him dumbfounded. "I'm telling you all this in a room with posters of half-naked men all around. Could I be more obvious?"
"True," Terry agreed.
"I guess it's fair for me to say that I love you son. I just wish we didn't have to go through this whole living hell just to realize it."
"I love you too Dad," Terry said, almost crying. He wrapped his arms around his father, and hugged him. Tank hugged him back. For the first time in a long time, Terry felt whole. He thought he'd never hear his father tell him that he was ok with him being gay. Now that he said it, he suddenly felt whole inside.
The door opened, and Libby entered.
"Sorry Dad is this a bad time?" she asked.
"No," he assured her.
"You two ok?"
"Seeing how he just told me that he accepted me for who I am, I think we're all right." Terry said.
Libby gasped. "Seriously, you cool with my dad being gay?"
"I've been cool with it for almost two decades now, Libby."
"That's so sweet!"
"Come on! Give your grandpa a hug!"
Libby lunged forward, and wrapped her arms around Tank, and hugged him for the first time in her life.
Terry couldn't have been happier than he already was. His family was starting to get back together, and things were starting to look up.
Back in the other room, Terry and Libby helped the people that were rescued, and gave them the best hospitality they had seen in years. Terry noticed, Libby constantly talking to that Rick fellow that saved her from the Hyper-Fang, and saw how he always left a smile on her face, when they were done talking.
"He is really cute, you know." Terry said to Libby later that night.
"Dad," she hissed. "He's my boy crush, find your own!"
"I'm just saying…"
"Ok," she scoffed, "I'll admit, he's gorgeous, but when do people have time for live these days?"
"You better make time," Terry said.
"Why?"
"Because he like's you too."
"Really—how can you tell?"
"The way he looks at you, when you're not looking says it all. Trust me, when I was playing football in high school, I stared at all the nude guys in the shower, while they weren't looking."
"I really wish I didn't have to hear that." Libby said.
"You see my point thought, right?" Terry asked.
"I guess," Libby admitted. "But I don't know how to approach a boy or anything like that. I've spent the last ten years learning how to kill Hell-demons and using weapons, unlike painting my nails, and talking about boys like most girls did before the Rapture."
"Then I think it's time for your old man to teach you a thing or two."
While Libby and Terry are talking about love and how to get to know a boy, the chaos still rages on the outside Paradise Hotel. In the high buildings, the watchful eyes of a Hyper-Fang keeps watch over the hotel, waiting for some poor soul to step out.
END OF PART 1
Libby le