The bullet went through Katie's left thigh. Karen had said that she was lucky it didn't hit the bone but Katie was still confined inside the fort until further notice.
Katie stayed in a joint apartment with six other girls including Karen, Ryan's sister but Katie never spent much time in the apartment and she was going crazy.
Ryan and Stephen would come to visit from time to time and that was the only thing that kept her sane. Stephen showed up one day randomly.
"Where's Ryan?" Katie asked.
"Well that's a nice welcome. I brought you girls some food." Stephen waved a bag obviously full of food.
"Ryan is fighting tonight." Karen answered taking the bag from Stephen. "Wow, where did you get all this from?"
"I pulled some strings." Stephen said casually.
Karen raised her eyebrows and began distributing the food evenly to everyone before taking some herself.
"I want to go to the arena tonight." Katie said suddenly. Stephen looked at Karen.
"Can you even walk?" he asked.
"Yes." Katie said stubbornly.
"No. She can't even get down the stairs. I caught her escaping yesterday." Karen interrupted.
"I can too! I just might need a little assistance from time to time."
"Might as well. I mean she's going to go anyway." Stephen caved.
"Fine but you go with her. I hate that place. So…so barbaric." Karen said softly.
"Yes! When does Ryan go on?" Katie shouted.
"He's headlining" Stephen answered allowing Katie to put her arm around him.
"This is going to be fun." Katie smiled as the two walked out of the apartment.
"Why do you want to watch Ryan so bad? You see him fight all the time." Stephen asked as they tackled the stairs.
"He shot me I hope he gets his ass kicked!" Katie covered. Stephen laughed all the way downstairs.
They got good seats near the front before a lot of other people showed up. When a fairly decent crowd had gathered they began chanting "Kill! Kill! Kill!" to signal the start of the games.
The cheesy announcer's voice echoed all around "Ladies and gentlemen welcome to tonight's Zombie Games!" More cheering erupted. "We've got a great line up folks! We'll start off with Edward Jackson fighting a blonde brute with a weapon of choice. Following that gory act we have Michelle Artz who will give a fire demonstration with multiple chained zombies. And then we have our very own Ryan Briggs who will fight a three day old zombie bare knuckled!"
The crowd roared at the sound of Ryan's name. He was very popular in the Games.
"Finally we have a special surprise for all you kiddos that stay up late with us! And now without further ado Mr. Jackson!"
And extremely big and buff man burst into the cage screaming and shouting at the crowd trying to rile them up more. Katie recognized the man he was a member of another population control squad.
"Release the zombie!"
Katie was slightly disappointed when a small but lanky blonde female zombie limped its way towards Edward. "Oh this is going to be one-sided for sure." Stephen complained and leaned back in his chair.
Sure enough Edward pulled out a switchblade and threw it into the zombie's head killing it instantly much to the crowd's dismay. "BOO!" They all shouted disapproving of the lack of entertainment.
"Defiantly should have played with him a bit." Katie said watching Edward who was now flipping off the crowd.
"He got scared." Ryan suddenly appeared out of nowhere and stood next to Katie.
"Whoa. Shouldn't you be getting ready ninja man you're up after this Michelle girl right?" Stephen asked.
"Yeah just wanted to see how Katie is doing."
Katie blushed slightly. "I'm fine really go get ready."
"Alright I'll go. You guys might want to cover your nose for this one though." He motioned to the cage where a young woman was teasing three zombies. All chained. She lit a match and dangled it above one dropping it into it's open mouth setting its whole head aflame.
"Because it's mouth is dry the match does not go out." She explained letting the zombie flail before having water poured onto it's unmoving body.
"What a cynical bitch!" Stephen laughed as she handed a lit lighter to a zombie who them lit himself on fire as well. The smell was horrible but the crowd was enjoying the spectacle.
The third zombie lunged at the woman grabbing her by the hair and tried to bite into her. The crowd shouted as the woman tried to pull away. When she finally did the zombie was holding a massive clump of her hair and scalp while she lay withering on the floor crying.
"Holy shit I bet that hurt!" Katie said astonished as men came to drag Michelle out. "Ryan's up." Stephen pointed to Ryan standing by the cage door taping up his arms and hands.
The Michelle lady was crying hysterically as she was pulled out. The crowd was laughing and cheering. Some were throwing popcorn and other items at her. "Ladies and Gentlemen! Ryan Briggs!!"
Everyone in the place was on their feet screaming. "I think they love him more than we do!" Katie shouted into Stephen's ear.
"Speak for yourself!" He shouted back.
Ryan lid into the cage throwing his arms up in attempt to get the audience even louder.
"Release the zombie!"
The zombie entrance slid open and a fresh zombie who looked to be in his teens rushed at full speed towards Ryan. Jerking out of the way he managed to throw it into the cage wall rattling the chain link door.
The zombie spun back around and thrust it's way to Ryan again. Ryan ducked behind and smashed the zombie in the back with his elbow sending it sprawling on it's stomache.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!" The crowd chanted.
The zombie got up on it's hands and knees and Ryan kicked in it's head spraying blood and brains everywhere.
"Yeah Ryan!" Katie shouted along with the others. Ryan raised his fists in the air and climbed out of the cage high-fiving people as he made his way back to the fighter's louge.
"Seen enough?" Stephen asked.
Katie nodded and they began to stand when the cage door opened and a living man was thrown into the ring kicking and screaming.
"What the hell?" Katie asked as the man shook the cage door trying to rattle it loose. "No! Please! Let me out!" he kept screaming over and over again.
The zombie entrance was sliding open. "Oh god no!" The man shouted.
"That's an outlaw." Stephen said softly and sure enough the announcer came on.
"Well folks tonight we offer a sacrifice of the lowest kind!" The audience threw what was left of their popcorn into the cage. "Get me the fuck out of here!" The outlaw shouted prying and the door.
A zombie stumbled into the ring moaning and making it's way toward the desperate man. Another zombie crawled in followed by two more. "Damn. This is going to be a feeding frenzy."
The guards were laughing at the man who was screaming at them to let him out. Just as the first zombie grabbed a hold of him the outlaw made one last powerful push onto the door. It opened.
"Holy shit!" Stephen shouted jumping to his feet. The crowd panicked and tried to escape the arena all at once pushing the armed guards out of the way stopping them from simply reclosing the doors.
The first zombie plopped out of the cage and started reaching for people. "Stephen we're going to have fresh zombies inside the fort!" Katie shouted over the screams.
"We need to get out of here!" Stephen shouted back pulling Katie up. They were on the opposite side of the cage where the zombies began climbing out clawing and biting and anyone.
"What about Ryan?" Katie asked and Stephen ran for ward dragging her along.
"I think Ryan will be fine. Right now we have to get out!" Stephen opened a window and practically threw Katie out.
Katie looked back to help Stephen out. Some people were already beginning to turn and she knew it wouldn't be long until the whole arena was infected. Stephen leapt out the window then slammed it shut and grabbed Katie's hand
"Come on! We got to make sure the doors are secure!" Stephen pulled her around to the front doors. "Shit!" Stephen shouted dropping Katie and slamming his body into the opening doors. Katie couldn't tell if it was people or zombies trying to pry them open but Stephen's thin frame wasn't hold up well against them.
"Stephen! There are people alive in there!" Katie shouted desperately but limping to help him anyway.
"Let's just hope some of the escaped like us." Stephen grunted pushing the door back. "Where the fuck are those guards?!"
Katie pressed hard on the door. She could hear the people screaming and the zombies growling inside. "God Stephen we can't hold them forever!"
"We just have to hang on until the guards come!" Stephen pounded his body back up against the door.
There was a loud crash on the other side of the building. Katie looked at Stephen with wide eyes. "What was that?"
"It sounded like the window."
A young woman came around the corner covered in blood and bite marks. Almost her whole left arm was missing along with her right ear and half of her face. "Oh God." Katie whispered.
"HELP ME!" The woman shouted stumbling towards them.
"Stay back!" Katie looked around for a weapon.
"Please!" the woman continued to approach leaving a blood trial behind her.
"Don't come any closer!" Katie reached for a long wooden pole and grasped it tightly.
"Please, please I don't want to die. Help me please!" The woman was only a few feet away from Katie and Stephen and looking very pale.
"I'm warning you!" Katie bellowed holding up the pole.
"Katie!" Stephen shouted. The doors were beginning to bend inward. "They are going to get out!"
The woman's skin was now grey and she was losing her voice and breath. Her veins were purple and thick under her skin.
"Stephen she's turning!" Katie moaned.
"Katie kill her!"
"The door will break!"
"It's going to break whatever we do. We have to have a clear path to escape so kill her!"
Katie stood up but as she did the woman became a zombie and rushed forward. Katie swung the pole around and smacked it upside the woman's head. She fell back against the wall but was still moving. With a grunt Katie shoved the pole down through the woman's still intacted ear spraying blood all over her face.
"Katie. I'm going to let go of the door." Stephen warned her. "When I do just run to the vehicle depot. Ok? Don't look back no matter what. Keep that pole with you."
Katie nodded. Flashes went through her head. Almost a hundred fresh zombies will be released into the fort. Images of Ryan eating Karen and Noel haunted her mind.
"On three. One, two, three! Run!" Stephen pushed off the door and rushed forward.
The pain in Katie's leg was intense but all she could feel was the adrenaline pumping through her as she ran towards the vehicle depot. She didn't even care that she didn't have the keys to anything all she thought about was getting away from those things. As long as she heard Stephen's feet behind her she knew she was alright.
As they ran by the guard posts Stephen noticed no one was stationed there. "Fuckers!" he shouted loudly running to catch up with Katie and the chain link fence.
"How are we going to get in? The place is locked." She asked. The zombies were roaring in the distance but it didn't sound as if any were near.
"We'll have to climb over."
Katie looked up at the barb wire covering the top and shuddered. There was more roaring only this time louder. Katie scaled the fence trying her best to avoid the barbed wire but still received various cuts from her attempts.
Suddenly something exploded shaking the whole ground. "What was that?" Katie asked.
Stephen was half way up the fence when it happened and fell back down to the ground. "I don't know but it didn't come from inside the fort."
Katie looked out. Four zombies were wandering around in the streets chasing people. One turned to see Stephen sitting on the ground.
"Stephen climb!" Katie shouted. Stephen looked back and saw the zombie man running full speed at him. Cursing Stephen climbed to the top of the fence faster than Katie had. Once he was at the top he seemed to be having trouble with the barbed wire part.
"Come on jump!" Katie urged. The zombie ran full force into the fence throwing Stephen down onto Katie.
"Are you alright?" Stephen asked pulling himself off her.
"I'm fine quick we need to hot wire something." Katie jumped off the ground.
The zombie was still clawing at the gate. There was another explosion outside. "What the fuck is going on out there?" Katie shouted.
"Let's take an RV come on." Stephen forced the door to one of the few Death Mobiles open.
Katie climbed in and Stephen rushed to the front and began to pull out various wires. Katie went to the gun cabinet and pulled out one of the high powered rifles. Another explosion echoed shaking the RV.
The engine roared to life jolting a little. "You're amazing Stephen!" Katie breathed as she went up front.
"Save if for when we get out of here huh?" Stephen grinned and pulled out of the garage. Three more zombies joined with the other one outside the fence.
"Punch it." Katie said wiping the blood off her face.
The RV launched forward crashing down the gates and crushing the zombies beneath it. Stephen turned around and headed for the fort exit.
"Wait where are you going?" Katie asked.
"We can't go back they'll swamp us."
"Stephen we can't just leave everyone!"
"Katie what can we do? We'll just be committing suicide."
"What about Ryan? What about our friends"
"What about us Katie?!"
An explosion this time much bigger rocked the whole fort. Stephen slammed on the brakes. Before them were the Fort gates now completely destroyed beyond them stood and army of covered jeeps and hummers with mouted machine guns and various other weapons.
"Outlaws. Fuck!" Stephen shouted slamming his hands down onto the wheel.
"What do we do now?" Katie asked.
Stephen sat still for a second. "Punch it." He whispered and slammed his foot onto the gas. Katie watched as Stephen glared down at the vehicles.
"St-Stephen?" she whispered. "You uh might want to slow down Stephen. Stephen what are you doing?" she said getting louder as she spoke.
"Buckle up!" Stephen shouted as they got closer. Katie followed his orders and sat down shakily clipping her safety belt on.
The second before the RV collided with the jeeps Katie honestly thought that this was going to be the end for her. But the RV plowed right through the outlaws and ruble without much trouble and was on the outside road soon enough.
"Oh my god! Stephen you did it!" Katie laughed looking back and the wreck they had left behind them.
"Ar-Are they, are they coming after us?" Stephen stuttered looking nervous for the first time.
"No it doesn't look like they know what hit them." Katie noted out loud. Stephen let out a sigh of relief as they continued the drive in utter silence.
Katie went to the back after what seemed like hours. They hadn't encountered many zombies on the road perhaps they were all drawn back to the fort she didn't know.
All she could think about was Ryan and the rest of the people. She couldn't help but feel resentful towards Stephen but she knew he was only trying to protect her. Still the images of Ryan as a zombie along with Karen and the others caused her more pain then her leg ever could.
Stephen stopped the RV after awhile to get some rest. He walked back to find Katie already asleep with the tears drying on her cheeks.
"Ryan would have wanted me to get you out." Stephen said softly even though he knew she couldn't hear him before he drifted into an uneasy sleep filled with nightmares.