A Spitter once spit acid at me while I was pouring the Cola into Whitaker's door thing, and the AIs started freaking and shot me instead of the Spitter. :l
Anyway, I think I may do The Passing. What do you guys think? Do you want me to do it all to the Parish or just finish with this?
I rolled over, feeling the hard ground underneath me tighten my muscles. It was early. So early the sun had not yet come up. Coach was snoring somewhere over in the far corner. Rochelle had fallen asleep somewhere near him, since I had chosen my own corner and no one else was allowed in it.
Ellis didn't think it pertained to him. He had wiggled a little closer in the night, only to be shoved away by my foot. When I had fallen asleep he had been at least six feet away. Now he was pushing two feet. I was ready to kick him away again.
I seemed to be the only one up. I had woken up damn near four times. The Zombies outside kept bumping into the walls and getting into fights with one another. So I tossed and turned, thinking about my plan. When we got out of this...town, I was ditching these people. I could fend for myself. These people would be fine without me.
Well, that depended on how well they could fight. They didn't look like much, but they had made it through that first day.
I rolled over again and stared at the wall. The yellow wall. It was an ugly yellow. Might as well have painted the wall with yellow snow. The carpet was no better. An ugly color that I could only guess was some sort of maroon. Maroon and Yellow.
Maroon, yellow, and a brown front desk with a white top.
I rolled over onto my back and stared at the white ceiling.
"Dammit."
I sat up, looking over at Ellis, who had scooted a little closer. Rochelle and Coach were sound asleep. I pushed the thin blanket away and quietly stood, trying to think of something to do. I pulled my gun from my waist and counted its bullets. There was enough. I pushed a few items over and sat on the long desk, legs stretched in front of me. I took the gun apart and splayed the pieces on my lap. I had just only gotten this pistol the day before, but there was nothing to do. So why not clean it?
Rochelle rolled over, untangling the blanket from around her arms. She propped herself up by her elbows. "What are you doing?" She whispered, careful not to wake the other two.
"Cleaning my gun."
She laid back down and watched me for a moment, but said nothing else. I could see the sky turning a light blue outside the door, and the color reminded me just how early it was. I suddenly found myself tired, and I put the gun back together and slid off the counter. I was aware of Rochelle turning her head to watch me. I pushed Ellis over a few feet and curled back up on the floor.
"Nick. Time tuh get up." A rough shaking nearly rolled me over. I grunted and brushed Ellis away. I took my time actually sitting up, and when I did Ellis plopped down like a 5 year trying to show his parents something 'important'. He looked ready to say something, and I knew that was bad. The kid had trouble being quiet. I simply stood and walked to the desk. Rochelle handed me an ammo clip, and threw a small smile at a frowning Ellis.
"Hey, I know a gun shop we can stop at. Wouln' hurt tuh look aroun'." Ellis said merely.
"Looks like living here is finally paying of Ellis." I jabbed.
"Mistah, I don't think I like yer attitude." Coach stated without even looking at me.
"Well thanks for realizing that was a joke." Ellis and Rochelle looked back and forth at the two of us. Finally Rochelle knocked on the metal door, bringing to my attention that it was a little late in the morning. Coach brushed past me stiffly, and I silently wondered what his problem was. It was just one joke. I didn't mean much by it.
Ellis seemed to sense that and stuck right to my side like a lost puppy. Coach walked out first, intent on staying in the lead.
Like hell.
I quickened my pace and got ahead of him before he even reached the barricaded parking lot. He 'hmmf 'ed and tried to catch up. Within two minutes we might as well have been speed walking. Rochelle ran behind and grabbed both of us, pulling us shoulder to shoulder.
"You walk together, dammit." Ellis chuckled loudly and led the way down the road, shooting the Zombies that turned to attack. Coach and I did as Rochelle said, and stayed somewhat next to the other, but I was really a few inches in front of him.
The road was blocked off and we turned into the building to the left. No more then storage, the room was pretty empty and dark. I led the way down the stairs, jumping two at a time without listening to Coach's protests.
"Hey, I ever tell ya 'bout the time my buddy Keith said he got picked up by little green men an'-" The Hick's voice carried through the room quiet loudly, and it made me wonder how many Zombies could hear us.
"Ellis, Be quite." I forced, looking back at him to make sure he got it. The bottom floor of the storage building was as empty as the top. The dim lighting set the "Post-apocalyptic" mood, and intensified the sounds of the Infected most likely outside.
Coach made the move to go ahead, but I cut him off and headed for the silver door first. The metal handle was cold to the touch under my hand, nearly the same temperature as the room. The door stuck to the frame and I nearly had to slam myself into it to get it open. Coach offered but I did it myself. The bright light made my eyes burn in shock. A bright glare covered my vision as I heard the first aggravated squeal and fast moving feet. Rochelle shot the Zombie before it even reached the short stairs that led to the road, falling just short of the over-hanging highway.
Coach had taken my momentary blindness as a chance to lead, and began to play my own way against me. I tried to get in front of him immediately, but he blocked my path. The highway created a shadow that gave me a brief brake from the Georgia heat, but the road soon opened back up into the sun, and I silently wondered how the to Georgians standing in front and behind me even lived here.
I climbed over the steel railing that lined the right side of the road, cutting off the pavement from the small patch of yellow grass and bushes that formed a messy circle. Coach took his time getting over, and I took the chance to lead. The small hill covered a group of Infected that I hadn't paid enough attention to see. One looked over at us, shrieking once it had looked long enough. The shriek alerted the rest, and I found myself falling behind Coach willingly.
My pistol was beginning to feel light in my hands as the bullets inside slowly depleted, and the one thing I feared was suddenly running out. A Zombies milky white eyes rolled back as three bullets lodged themselves in his chest.
A tall wall of concrete stretched above the road that was cut off both ways of the road, but fell away underneath the high way. Leaping over the second railing, I searched the length of the wall for a way over, and easily saw the green dumpster. With Ellis four inches away I began to climb, gripping the dirt that had filled up the green container. Once at the top, I stood and waited for Ellis to climb over as Rochelle and Coach waited for their turn.
A deep cough made me turn, but I quickly dismissed it when nothing appeared. I turned back, gripping Ellis' wrist to yank him up. I suddenly let go when the long, slimy object wrapped around my chest, pulling my arms down and yanking me off my feet. The rope like worm pulled hard against my chest and lifted me a few feet off the ground, directly underneath the Highway, suffocating me as I kicked helplessly in the air. A loud hack covered up my own painful gasp for air. Rochelle shouted my name as Coach's shotgun blasted behind me. The tongue suddenly loosened, and I fell the eight feet that I had been lifted.
Coach gripped my arm and lifted me to my feet as I struggled to breath through the thick cloud of smoke that had fallen over us. The marks the tongue had made were beginning to sting, the thick goo that had covered it felt oddly heavy.
With a hard pat on the back from Coach my lungs had cleared, half of the tongue hung over the edge of the over-hang like a limp noodle.
"And that is why ya don' go ahead." Coach pointed out accusingly.
"I wasn't going ahead. I just turned my back." Ellis handed me my pistol and kicked the green tongue away as if it would attack on its own. Coach then took the lead, and I easily stayed behind him, somewhat hoping something would grab him.
What happens to one must happen to the other.
The burn on my hand began to burn worse once I had tried to pull the tongue off, and the goo nearly ate through the bandage. The building across the road was eerily dark, and the stairs that led to the next floor echoed the sounds from above clearly to my ears. The one florescent light buzzed and flickered from days of excessive use.
The upstairs was no better then the downstairs. A dingy room with poor lighting. The piles of supplies caught me by surprise. I didn't think these things would just be laying around in an apocalypse. Grabbing the remaining ammo clips I slid past Rochelle and towards that open door. The side walk was blocked but the railing was broken at the end of the building. I didn't get past the door, once I saw the mass of Zombies that had all migrated into the blocked street.
"Afraid uh heights?" Ellis misunderstood my movement and walk out instead, not caring to look down.
"Ellis!" I hissed, trying to grab him, but when the Zombies saw him it was like a Bee attack. One screeched and the rest knew about us. Ellis stood frozen in the middle of the overhanging sidewalk, surprised and somewhat apologetic as he fast-walked back inside. "We should prob'ly close the door..."
"Moron!" I slapped the bill of his hat as the first few Zombies climbed over the worn railing. Coach's shotgun blasted through the first few, but as expected from a shotgun it was a bitch to reload. Pistols weren't much better, but it sure beat reloading a Shotgun. Ellis' hunting rifle made my head ring, but the wave of Zombies fell easily at our feet. Once the last had fallen fast first over the railing everything returned to the quiet way it had been. Ellis looked somewhat guilty but didn't apologize.
The railing was split away from the building down the sidewalk, and offered as a hold as I jumped onto the CEDA bus parked below. The metal echoed coldly as our weight bent the roof. We were a good seven feet off the ground, and my legs nearly buckled as I jumped down onto the hard concrete below. Coach clearly didn't want to follow. His bad knee certainly wouldn't let him. But he did it anyway without much complaining.
This whole town may as well of been a big bowl. If one side of the road wasn't blocked by a tall wall of concrete, it had a boring ass building. Ellis knew the area pretty well, so I assumed he lived somewhere nearby. Sure I had been in larger cities with buildings all around. But a rural ass area didn't need this many walls.
So I wasn't surprised when Ellis pointed to the stairs. Coach cursed behind Rochelle but braved the stairs. I walked around the building, seeing that there were more stairs that led upward inside the gray bricks. Coach cursed a little louder.
The pathway stretched in front of us at the top, fencing on either side. Ellis pointed out the gun shop sign beyond. We began to sprint, hearing how the growls and grunts began to grow louder. More stairs led to the street that was cut off both ways, but the gun shop was open.
The inside smelt like leather, but surprisingly most of the guns were still here. Grabbing the combat shotgun, I moved to the back of the store, stopping just short of the door. The intercom's light was blinking the kind of blink that meant you weren't supposed to push it.
But like always, someone pushed it.
The static rolled on for a few seconds, and I nearly reached for the door before the Georgian voice echoed harshly throughout the quiet store.
"Why 'ello there. I have barricaded my self on the roof with ample provisions. But in mah haste, I forgot Cola. You run down to the store across the street and bring it to me, and I'll clear the path to the mall."
"The mall?" Rochelle said more to us then the man, but he heard.
"The Military is supposed to be hol'ing up there."
Opening the door, I could tell that this was our only option. "So we get your shit, and you'll help us?"
"Hell, I'll even throw in the guns ya stole from me for free. Get goin' now! 'Fore I change my mind."
The intercom light flashed off, and I knew there would be no more discussing it. But if the Military was in the mall, we were going to do it. Once I had cleared the stairs, I could see the Food 4 Less across the street. Its doors closed.
"Woah, wait. We're gonna do this? What if he's lyin'?" Ellis smacked away the leaf of a plant that brushed into his face.
"Its that or we walk around."
Coach was beginning to limp as he descended the next flight of stairs that led to the road, and I wasn't sure about him making the run back. I looked at the hedge that separated the store from the gun shop. We would have to run all the way around and back up the stairs. The closed door would probably let off an alarm, so we would have to be fast.
"Hmm. Ellis come with me. Rochelle, stay here with Coach and keep the stairs open." They caught what I was saying, and Coach looked almost grateful.
The gasoline truck that blocked our path looked as if he would tip on its own if the breeze was strong enough. It was balancing on its left wheels already. I stared at the store's doors, seeing that the security camera inside was still blinking. The alarm was still set.
I pushed against the double doors, but they didn't budge. It took a strong kick to bust them open, and that set off the alarm in a shrill ring. The shelves were empty and bare, some knocked over. I looked frantically through the dimly lit store for the soda the Jack-ass wanted.
Seeing it on the floor in the back of the store, I jumped clear over the counter and grabbed it, yelling to Ellis to shoot a way outside. The Infected were rushing over the wall outside, and could barely decide which way to go. Over half turned our way, since Rochelle and Coach were hidden from most of their view.
The hedge made our run a little longer, and the only thing I could do with the 6-pack was stuff it under my arm and hope my aim was somewhat correct. Rochelle shot the Infected in front of me, giving me the chance to sling my gun over my shoulder and sprint for the slot in Whitaker's door. Zombies flooded through the door that we had first come through, and I had to drop the Cola and clear them out before I could slam the slot open and drop the 6-pack in.
Ellis yelled behind me, being the only person that had followed me back. A green puddle surrounded his feet and hissed like a hot pan under cold water. Ellis jumped behind it and looked for its owner, seeing the trail of glowing green liquid that trailed back into the shop. The goo stopped sizzling after a moment, and a black burned trail took its place.
The Infected were thinning, but another small wave was coming over the wall, and Whitaker and had yet to blow the truck blocking our path. A high pitched screech came from behind me, a hacking sound came from nothing I could see, the lights in the gun store being so dim. A brown object flew to my feet and burst, showering my feet in green acid.
The puddle stretched to far to jump, and I my feet slipped over the first step on the stairs. I fell to the bottom, trying to bring the feeling back to my limbs after tumbling down the concrete. The screech was louder, but passed right over me. Looking up with dazed eyes, I could see the green acid falling from a taller woman, but she had already rounded the corner towards Ellis, who yelled again.
The deep explosion drowned everyone out, and the few Infected that ran from the store paid me no attention since I didn't move to avert their eyes. Sliding on my back a little to the left, I closed the door. The dim lighting was gone and I was laying in darkness. Coach's shotgun stopped and it was quiet.
"Nick?" Ellis called looking down the stairs. "You alright?"
"Fantastic." I lifted myself to my knees, and used the stair railing to stand on my feet. My forearm burned from the bruise that was clearly forming. The truck had been blown completely in half. The gasoline tank had been blown, and the force had cracked the road.
Looking at the acid patch that had burned into the concrete, I cringed back at the ugly, long-necked Infected that was laying spread-eagle in our way, shot in mid run.
"Ugly thing kept spitting shit at us." Rochelle kicked it out of the way and skipped down the stairs where Coach was standing.
"Good Luck! Ya hear?" Whitaker shouted out from his wooden barricade.
"Thanks!" Ellis shouted back. The truck was still burning, the gasoline leaked into the broken road, and I imagined it blowing for a second time. The mall parking lot was empty. Since the Infected had already been alerted after the alarm. A CEDA health station was set up but abandoned, and a person in a has-mat suit was laying under a table in his own pool of blood.
"I swear to God, CEDA had better be in that mall!" Ellis retorted as we walked around to its entrance, the red door hanging open. I thought I heard another low, rumbling growl. But I had nearly been deafened by that alarm, so I knew I must have been hearing things.
Oh...mah...gawd...
The paragraphs didn't fluck up again! :'D
I hate how even after that alarm and explosion, I walk into the parking lot and another horde is just standing there obliviouse.