Monster

Coach saw Ellis as an immature, inexperienced nuisance, Nick as some irritating redneck, and Rochelle as a childish, playful friend. But none of them had ever thought of him as a monster... Until CEDA stepped in.

It can be seen as Nellis. It's really just strong friendship and bromance, but whatever. Your choice. There's no blatant love here.

It's ALL from Rochelle's point of view, and its mainly about Ellis.

Not a one-shot, hopefully. Please leave a review if you enjoy this, and you may leave positive feedback or CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM. I don't want any flames. Go away if you don't like this sort of thing. I don't want to know your opinion on how stupid this is.

But please, tell me of any mistakes.

Valve owns all of Left 4 Dead 2.

And remember... Karma Charger is always watching. ._.

Monster

One

"Ellis, sweetie? Are you okay?" Ever since CEDA had summoned him out of the quarantine zone and into a private marquee beyond the grounds, he'd been quieter than usual. I thought something was up, and by the dark brooding in Nick and Coach's eyes, it was clear they thought the same.

"Boy," Coach began.

"What?" Ellis snapped, whipping his head round to face the older man. Coach paused for a moment, shock evident in his brown eyes. Even Nick had frozen, lit cigarette smoldering quietly, forgotten between his lips.

"You're not being yourself, honey," I explained cautiously. Ellis narrowed his eyes and pulled his cap lower.

"Whaddya mean?" he growled.

"That's it. You wouldn't normally do that, would you?"

"Ah don' care." Ellis turned his back on us, curling into a ball. His breathing was raspy; a rattling noise deep in his chest. I was worried. He had dark circles under his eyes, and his eyes themselves were empty voids. None of the earlier warmth was shown, only cold stares. I cast my eyes down to the floor.

"I'm going to bed," I announced. Coach and Nick looked at me, startled. Then Nick stubbed his cigarette.

"Me too. Goodnight." He left. Coach cocked his head in question, but left the room without a word. Ellis was left alone with me.

"Ellis... Ellis, honey..." I walked up and kneeled beside him. He looked up at me, eyes glowing orange. Tears streaked his face, and the shadows under his eyes were even more pronounced.

"R-Ro-" he hiccuped.

"What did they do to you?"

"Th-they..." Ellis took a shuddering breath. "They told me tha' th-they would infect me with th'Green Flu, t'see what would happen when they released me b-back here." I was shocked into silence for a moment.

"But... we're immune," I said slowly.

"Ah know... Ah t-told them tha', but they said they'd developed a n-new strain, and Ah'd be Infected... Ah don't want t'be an Infected!" Ellis was clutching at my shirt, fingers digging into my skin. No... they were claws. Claws attached to Ellis' fingertips where his nails were meant to be, sharp ends breaking my yielding skin like paper. I cried out and fell back. He gazed mournfully at me with wide eyes.

"Sweetie-"

"No!" Ellis crouched on the spot. "Ah can't - Ah won't hurt y'all no more. Goodbye, Ro." I stood, frozen, as Ellis leapt off the spot and crashed through a window. Urging my numb legs to move, I stumbled over to the broken glass and clutched the frame, ignoring the cuts on my hands. I stared out into the inky blackness, unable to see anything. Ellis was gone.

-Monster-Monster-Monster-Monster-

"What happened?" Coach came huffing into the room, pushing the doors aside for Nick, who was following closely. "Where's Ellis?"

"He left out the window," I replied numbly. I flinched when a hand landed solidly on my shoulder. Looking up, I saw Nick looking out into the distant shadows, his hand resting lightly on my shoulder, fist clenched in frustration.

"Why?" he asked quietly.

"Why what?" I avoided the question. I saw anger flash in his eyes, and then he was in front of me, glass crunching under his feet, and we were falling. I landed hard on the floor, all the breath knocked out of me. Glass cut into my back. Nick's hands were bloody, but he didn't seem to notice.

"Why did he go?" he snapped. "There is a reason, I can see it in your eyes!"

"I..." I sighed. "He was turning."

"What?" Nick stepped back, suddenly noticing all the blood on his palms. Then he looked back at me. "What do you mean by turning?" I wiped my eyes.

"He was turning into a Hunter!" I cried, trembling with the sobs that racked my entire body.

"What?" Nick stepped closed to me. "He what?" he hissed, grabbing my t-shirt and pulling me to my feet.

"Nicolas," Coach warned. Nick spun round, and stared defiantly at the eldest, before walking silently out of the room. I sank to my knees, my tears flowing constantly and hotly.

"I t-tried to get him to st-stay!" I hiccuped. "B-but I-" Coach pulled me into a tight hug.

"It's okay, baby girl, just cry. Don't talk for a while." I did as he said, balled fists around handfuls of his shirt. I sobbed my heart out until his shirt was drenched. He patted my back, soothing me with comforting whispers and murmured reassurances. I heard a clatter and the smashing of glass bottles, swearing and the slurred yelling of Nick, drunk. I cringed, burying my face in Coach's shirt. He hugged me tighter, still whispering. I could feel his pulse through his shirt. It was elevated.

-Monster-Monster-Monster-Monster-

I opened my eyes blearily. I was lying on a heap of sheets, covered haphazardly with more. I sat up, stretching the cricks out of my neck and limbs. I looked around. The window hadn't been fixed; tape merely strung across the wide gap. Coach was snoring softly in one corner, hand loosely clutching a piece of paper. Nick was in the middle of the floor, an empty alcohol bottle in one hand, puddles of more booze and vomit spaced around. I turned away, disgusted. But my curiosity was sparked when I saw the piece of paper Coach was holding had the all too familiar CEDA logo on it. I crept over, and was reaching out when a torch beam shone into the room. I stood bolt upright like a thief caught in the act. A CEDA worker was standing outside, torch scanning the room as if looking for someone. His light paused for a moment on Nick, so I silently dropped to the floor beside Coach, as if asleep too. The torch passed over us without hesitation. He searched the room for a while longer, then I heard the crackle of a communication radio.

"Model-Alpha Strain-Eight One is missing. I repeat, Model-Alpha Strain-Eight One is missing!" Almost as if a switch had been flicked, floodlights placed systematically around the camp blazed into life. I could hear screams of shock and confusion from the other members of the camp. An alarm began blaring, along with monotonous instructions of what to do.

"Please remain calm and step out of your dormitories. If you see any suspicious activity, alert CEDA immediately. Follow the instructions given to you and evacuate the area in a quiet, orderly way. If you do not follow orders, we will be forced to shoot to kill. We repeat, remain calm..." My head spun. The door was blasted off its hinges and CEDA workers swarmed into the room, hauling a groaning Nick off the floor and roughly shaking Coach awake. He stumbled out of the room. Then I was lifted, and dragged out of the dorm, and the CEDA agents led us away from the screaming, crying residents of the area. Children were wailing for their parents. One small girl ran up to me, clutching my trousers like a lifeline.

"Walk away, kid," growled the CEDA agent holding my left arm in an iron grip. A metal mask with shadowed glass hid his face, and he was wearing impenetrable armor. The child sniffed; she was barely even two years old, tears streaming down her freckled face. The soldier kicked out at her with a steel-tipped boot. She shrieked as she flew off my leg, sprawling into the dust.

"Mommy!" she screamed, before bullets ripped through her scrawny frame. She fell back, tear-filled eyes staring into the sky. I choked on a sob, staggering where I stood as her corpse was trampled by more terrified people. The agent pulled on my arm, and I was dragged onwards, still staring at her crumpled form. Then I was out of the grounds, the steel electrified doors slamming tightly shut behind me. The CEDA agent and I were now surrounded by more agents, dressed identically to the first. They were holding assault rifles, to defend us from any Infected that dared show themselves from the shadows. A Hunter's screech tore the tense silence, landing on an agent. The others carried on, seemingly oblivious to his screams of pain. The Hunter tore at the exposed flesh, bulletproof vest discarded to one side. Slowly getting drenched in blood, it left the dead agent and crept back into the shadows. The others continued until we reached the marquee privately set apart from the public grounds. I was pushed inside, forced to kneel beside Coach and Nick. Coach was now wide awake, and Nick, albeit with bloodshot eyes and a hunched stance, was also alert. I tried not to start crying again.

"Hello, civilians. You can call me Nema." A voice echoed behind us.

"Who-"

"What do you know about Model-Alpha Strain-Eight One?" I turned my head to see a woman standing behind us. Her tumbling locks of blonde hair, angled cheekbones and full red lips gave her the face of a supermodel, but she was wearing bulky armor and clutching a combat shotgun in place of a Gucci handbag. Her steel-tipped toes clicked on the cold iron floor as she walked around us. Her hands, swathed in torn cloth underneath metal panels over her fingertips and palms, were clenched stiffly around the shotgun's handle.

"What do you mean?" Nick rasped.

"Model-Alpha Strain-Eight One was the first successful turning. The Model itself, however, was the one I believe you called Ellis."

-Monster-Monster-Monster-Monster-

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