"Hey guy.."
Silence.
"Is he alive?"
Silence.
"I'll see…"
I jolted up as a rock nailed me in the hip.
"Ow, what the-" I jumped up ready to pummel whoever woke me then realized my predicament and relaxed. I surveyed my surroundings. To my left, right, and back were natural stone walls and in front of me was a rusty cage door. Through the bars I could see three identical "cells" like mine. One was inhabited by a fairly large guy looking a few years older than me. He was sporting a scruffy beard and long ragged hair and was wearing an almost nonexistent t-shirt with holes and tears all through it, and jeans. To the right of him was another cell. Another guy, the same age, was leaning against the back wall of his cell. He had tanned skin and fairly long black hair. It was hard to make out the rest of his figure due to the only light being given off by a flickering bulb hanging outside the cells. The third and final cell, was empty and I figured its resident had left a long time ago due to the fully grown skeleton covered in rags huddled in the corner. Then my memory hit me. Ellie! I went to my jean pockets and found them empty.
"Don't worry, they confiscated all your stuff" the guy with the tanned skin uttered in a pseudo-reassuring tone.
"Have either of you seen a girl? The last thing I remember was a bunch of guys beating the shit out of me with a pipe and then everything went black." I asked urgently. The tanned skinned guy took a second to think and replied.
"Red hair?, about yea high?" He motioned his hand to about Ellie's height.
"Yeah, that's her, do you know where she is!?" I shot back excitedly.
The two guys looked through their bars at each other and looked back at me solemnly.
"Sorry but you best give up that girl, she won't be with us longer…" He stared at the ground.
"What?!" I grabbed and shook the bars in anger, "What do you mean she-" he cut me off.
"The people that you find yourself in captivity of are known as the Servants of the Maiden" he said cynically.
"They believe that by consuming the bodies of young girls they will ascend to the heavens and be free of our 'cursed' world, or at least that's what their leader, Father Dumas, tells them." I felt the guilt hit hard. If I'd never have showed Ellie the way through the wall then this never would've happened.
"No way, you're crazy…" I heard the tanned skinned man say surprisedly. I looked up and saw him looking at the other prisoner. The man was making hand motions, most likely crude sign language.
"What, what is he saying?" I asked curiously. The two stared back at each other for a couple more moments and then the tanned skinned man turned back to me.
"Well?" I begged urgently.
"Calm yourself, my friend here said that he has an idea for an escape plan," the man shook his head in disbelief, "Before you got here we had discussed a plan but with just us two we had no chance but with you it might just work," the man smirked.
"As long as you help me save my friend, then I'm up for just about anything," I said desperately, hopefully these guys weren't just some nut jobs because I was going to have to trust them.
"Sounds good, now before we discuss the plan, it'd prolly be best that we be on a first name basis, my name's Rob and this hulk over here is Brian," I nodded to Brian, as expected I got no response, which was still kind of strange.
"Well nice to meet ya, I'm Zane" I replied back.
"Ahh sounds like a rich kid name," Rob remarked. I shrugged.
"I think we will make a good team," he said confidently, "Now let's get this plan underway…"
I started to feel a tinge of nervousness. What might I be getting myself into….
"Hey guard, I think something is wrong with this prisoner!" Rob yelled in a feeble nervous voice unlike him. A big burly man wearing similar attire to the men that attacked me and Ellie stomped in.. His pants were made of various materials sewn together and a flannel jacket. As he crossed in front of my cage I noticed a the first instrument of our escape, a 7 inch KA-BAR military knife tucked in the back of his pants. I silently watched as he grumbled towards Brian's cell. Brian had his head leaning against the bars, groaning in a sickly manner. As the guard came within range of the bars, I noticed Brian give me a quick look and initiated the escape plan.
"What's wrong this ti-" the guard attempted before having his shoulders seized through the bars and slammed hard into them. Brian released the unconscious man's body and reached through and grabbed the keys from his pockets. Brian quickly unlocked the cell and repeated the process. Once we were free we grouped up.
"I can't believe that actually worked!" I exclaimed excitedly, but quietly ( I'm not that stupid).
"Yeah, 'Phase One: Secure the Keys' accomplished, but we don't have much time to celebrate though, it's time for 'Phase Two: Ascend From Darkness'!" Rob replied confidently.
"Wow 'Ascend From Darkness'? Very theatrical…" I said sarcastically. Rob pointed towards Brian.
"He comes up with the names, I just work here" Rob said dismissively, chuckling. Brian kept straight face and I could tell he was probably a little annoyed with our banter.
"Alright, well Zane, grab that knife and let's move!" Rob commanded. I nodded and snatched the blade off the man's body and checked it. Nice and sharp, perfect.
After a few flights of stony stairs we found ourselves outside two doors. To our left was a heavy steel door with a small caged window in it and directly in front of us was a wooden, ornate door. From the wooden door came the muffled sounds of voices, chanting strange words that I couldn't make out. I turned back to the steel door as Brian unlocked it with the keys and slowly squeaked it open. Inside the small room was a man sound asleep in an office chair. Up against the walls were lockers with big padlocks on all of them. I looked to Rob, who put a finger up to his lips, signaling me to be quiet. I did as he said and watched as Brian approached the man from behind and snapped his neck quick and easily like he had been doing it for years.
"Hey pick your jaw up off the floor" I heard Rob tease. I chuckled and walked into the room.
"So what's the next step?" I asked as Rob grabbed the keys off the dead man and unlocked one of the lockers.
"'Phase Three: Rain Fire'" he replied with a smirk on his face as he withdrew an AK-47 assault rifle from the cabinet.
"Jeez what kinda religious cult needs this much firepower?" I asked incredulously as I accepted the rifle and charged the handle. Just the sound of the round loading into the chamber filled me with confidence.
"One that is 95% war veterans and 5% fanatical doomsday preppers" he answered as he pulled another rifle out and charged it.
"I bet this thing will scare em" I said confidently. Before I could revel in the gungasm, Brian grabbed the gun from me.
"What the-" I stopped my objection as Brian's stone cold face stared down at me. Rob put his hand on my shoulder.
"You got your blade and we are taking the rifles" he explained. "Me and Brian are gonna storm out there and fire some warning shots to show these people we mean business, when you hear the sixth shot, that's when you commence 'Phase Four: Skewer The Winged Beast'!" He said with flair. He must've noticed the puzzled look on my face.
"Trust me you'll see what we mean" he assured. I nodded in affirmative.
"But one thing," I added "remember we need to save Ellie".
"Yeah, yeah, don't worry we will get Emily" he said waving his hand.
"It's Ellie…" I corrected.
He ignored me and moved to the big wooden door. This is where I started to feel a little nervous but I needed to keep my priorities straight: Save Ellie and get the hell out of here. I drew my knife and followed them to the door. Rob turned to me and held up six fingers then drug his finger across his throat. I nodded and watched as the two heavily armed men opened the door and tramped up the creaky wooden steps. Religious chanting blasted loudly from the upper level and I listened carefully.
Stomp, stomp, stomp.
"Alright you animals, hands up!" Rob yelled.
Gasps from all over.
"The heathens!" An unknown but stately voice proclaimed.
"Yeah, looks like you didn't realize who you were messing with!" Rob yelled again.
Bang, bang, bang.
I mentally counted to three.
"Get down on the ground!" Rob yelled and was followed by more screams and grunts as people dropped to the ground. "Line these three up!" I listened to the sound of struggling people as they were forced down. That was when I started to worry a little. I wasn't planning on killing everyone, I just wanted to get out of here, but if I have to I wasn't going to hesitate. I loosened my tight, sweaty grip on the knife. That was when I heard the next three shots…and three thuds to the floor. I quickly regained my wits and sprinted up the stairs to my surprise. I found myself standing in a small church that had surely seen better days. The padding that used to cover the pews and the carpet were almost completely rotted away and many of the stained glass windows were covered by boards, most likely defense against stray walkers or clickers. To the front of the building I could see Ellie and most likely the owner of the stately voice. Ellie was tied down on the altar wearing what looked to be a patchwork dress similar to the style I had seen before on the various thugs and her hair had been pulled from it usual ponytail to hang haphazardly around her head. She seemed to be awake but wasn't making any noise or struggle. Standing behind her, wielding a large rusty cleaver was a man of about middle age with a long graying beard and a bald head. He was dressed in a priest's outfit (that he got from God knows where) and had large cloth wings fixed to his back. I continued my observations and saw Brian and Rob standing with their rifles trained on the strange man. At their feet were three men, laying in pools of blood, and had bullet holes in their temples. The rest of the congregation was huddled in a group behind Brian and Rob. Rob gave me a wink and mouthed 'Skewer the Winged Beast'. I nodded and snuck up behind the rows of pews and slowly made my way to the altar. I listened as the two stalled.
"Alright Dumas, put down the knife and let the girl go or I've got some rounds with your name on em."
The priest chuckled.
"Your threat means nothing to me, if you kill me then I ascend from this wretched earth" the priest fired back cockily. I felt my heart skip as he quickly brought the knife centimeters away from Ellie's throat.
"Partake in the feast and we will all ascend together!" Dumas stretched his free arm out to Rob and Brian.
"Uhh, no thanks I'm more of a beef guy myself" Rob quipped only inciting the priest more. He pressed the blade to Ellie's throat, drawing small amounts of blood. I realized I had no time left, I needed to move quick. I swiftly jumped from behind the final pew and chucked the knife directly towards his chest. It buried itself into his chest about 5 inches causing him to recoil, dropping his blade and seizing the weapon lodged in his chest in an attempt to pull it out. I proceeded to run up to him and gave a swift kick to the blade shoving it in the rest of the way and sending him tumbling to the ground. I watched as his body went limp and I grabbed the large butcher knife. I hurried to the altar and severed the ties around Ellie's arms and legs. I brushed the hair from her face only to notice the whites of her eyes were the only things showing. She then started to violently shake and I realized the horror taking place. My mom, having been a nurse before the outbreak, taught me about many illnesses, including seizures. I remembered one of her tips was to find a flower called a peony (which luckily was very plentiful around here) and use the root to stop the convulsions. Before I had any more time to think, the front doors burst open. A large man wearing what looked to be a military grade Kevlar vest and fatigues walked in, an M4 assault rifle in hand followed by three other men of similar stature. I quickly glanced to Rob and he motioned and yelled.
"Get down!" I picked up Ellie convulsing body and dropped behind the altar as I heard bullets start flying. Amidst all the gunfire I could hear the screams of the people as they fled the church and run behind the protection of the gun toting men. I slowly peeked around my cover and saw Brian, Rob, and the armed men trading bullets back and forth recklessly. I realized that it wouldn't be long till they made their way to me. I readjusted my hold on Ellie and gathered my breath. I quickly made a break for the pew Rob was taking cover behind. Just as I would expect with my luck, the second before reaching Rob, a bullet caught my shoulder, lodging deep in my shoulder bone. Luckily the adrenaline flowing through me dulled the pain but I knew if I forgot to take care of it then it would cause other problems. I made a mental note. I looked to Rob.
"What are we gonna do, we are outgunned!" I asked loudly over the cacophony.
After firing a few shots he answered.
"Hell if I know, that guy with the vest is the leader of the Church's guards they call him Azriel" he fired again.
"This really fucks up the plan but-" Rob paused and I noticed that Brian was sending another hand signal to him.
"You really wanna do that?" Rob yelled back to him in an almost sad sounding tone. Brian nodded and Rob looked back at me.
"So what?" I asked impatiently, I didn't know how much longer Ellie would be able to hold on.
"'Emergency Phase Five: Raise Hell'" he replied solemnly. He then placed his rifle on the ground and slid it over to Brian who picked it up and held the two rifles, one in each hand.
"God be with ya, brother." He turned back to me.
"When he breaks cover, we go for that window and we just run, got it?" I nodded and readied myself. The next events felt like they lasted an eternity despite the fact that it lasted about five minutes. As soon as Brian uncovered himself and started raining lead against the men, me and Rob dashed to the window. I raised my leg and tried to kick the wooden boards covering the window. They cracked but didn't budge. Rob backed up and rammed his shoulder against the boards, splintering them and breaking the glass behind it. I quickly stepped through and looked back as Rob did the same. To my horror, I could see Brian fire the final rounds of his guns and then be swiftly cut down by the guards. I quickly looked away and purged the image from my mind.
"Go, go, run!" Rob yelled. I obeyed. As we fled I could hear the yells of the men trying to find us and the sound of an engine starting. As we sprinted through the forest I heard the sound of a twig snapping and a grunt. I turned around to find Rob hanging by his foot from a tree.
"What happened?" I shrieked.
"The bastards set damn traps, quick, cut me down" Then the shit hit the fan. I felt Ellie's body go limp. I put my fingers to her neck and found no pulse. To add to the horror, I could hear the faint sound of the men approaching and dogs barking. I assessed the situation. I could either risk all of our lives and try to cut down Rob which would most likely get us caught or just straight up killed or I could let him go and run hoping to find a secure where I could attempt to administer some form of medicine to help Ellie. The panic overtook me and the feeling of Ellie's heavy, unconscious body in my arms grew more and more cold and terrifying.
"R-Rob I'm sorry I have to go, I can't let her die…" I admitted sadly feeling my heart wrench.
"What, no you fucker you can't leave me here,Brian died to save us and your gonna just throw that away!?" He exclaimed in anger. I contemplated and gave in. I quickly laid Ellie down and picked up a nearby sharp rock and scraped it against the rope but to no avail.
"Hey you stop there!" I heard a gruff voice yell. About twenty yards away, Azriel, his dogs, and his men were quickly closing the distance between us, firing their guns in the air.
"I'm sorry…" I said one last time. I don't work well under pressure.
"No don't you leave me here!" Rob yelled as I scooped up Ellie and ran.
After hearing the sound of the dogs and men and Rob's objections fade I finally sat Ellie on the ground, took some deep breaths and went to making the medicine. I quickly grabbed some peony flowers and ripped the stems from them. I placed the stems in between two rocks and ground them up as best as I could. I took the concoction and placed it on Ellie's tongue. I then placed my hands on her chest and tried my best to give her CPR. After some compressions and no results I waited a few seconds, repositioned and try it one more. After a lot more compressions I felt a stir in her chest, a gasp and then shortly after I felt a sharp punch to my jaw.
"What the FUCK, were you doing?!" Ellie yelled at me angrily as I sat on ground holding my aching jaw.
"What do you mean?" I shot back, confused.
"Hmm let me see, the last thing I remember was being knocked out and now the the first thing I see when I wake up is your hands on my boobs! Yeah that's totally normal!" I instinctually face palmed.
"I was giving you CPR, your heart stopped!" I shot back slightly laughing at the situation. I saw her think and saw her realization but she quickly covered that emotion, as I would've expected.
"Well thanks or whatever…" She mumbled as her face turned to a light shade of scarlet.
"No problem, it was my pleasure" I replied just to mess with her. Bad idea, she hit me again.
"Well I guess we better start finding our way home" I explained as I rubbed the sore spot of my stomach where she hit.
"How the hell are we gonna do that?"
"Well I say we head west and see if we can find any landmarks that can help us get our bearings" I took her hand and helped her up.
"Lead the way, Lewis"
"Lewis?" I inquired.
"You know like Lewis and Clark?" She explained.
"Never heard of em" I shrugged and we started our trek.