Chapter 4
Slowly Malik opened his eyes. He snuggled the blanket and sighed contentedly. It took him some time until he realized that Mariku no longer lay beside him. Malik looked up. The soldier had reoccupied his place at the window. "Did you sleep?"
Mariku looked over his shoulder. "I did."
"But not for long!"
"I slept enough." Malik made a derogatory sound. "Don't worry about me." Malik rolled his eyes. How could Mariku be so stubborn? He curled up and watched the soldier, who hadn't even bothered to put on clothes. He would catch a cold. Malik thought about the last few hours. He still had a cozy, satisfied feeling in his stomach. What happened still surprised him a little, but it had happened and it did them both a power of good. At least, he hoped so. Even though he now felt kind of stupid, because of the way he acted. Hopefully Mariku didn't think he was a wuss. He buried his flushed face in the pillow. Even though, Mariku could have been a little bit more careful.
It had started to rain, just as Malik had suspected it. The only good thing about it was not even the zombies liked the rain, and didn't show their ugly faces. Jonouchi sat at the open garage door on a couple of boxes and stared into the rain. Malik walked slowly toward him.
"I can't wait to get out of here," muttered Jonouchi and stroked the gun that lay beside him. "And if Mariku thinks I'll stay at the roof while an ocean is coming down from the sky, I'll shove my gun up his ass."
Malik sat down next to him. It was the first time since Honda's death that they spoke. "I don't think this will be crowned with success."
"Then I'll let you do it. I'm sure you're coming close enough." Jonouchi's grin was the biggest Malik had ever seen.
"What-what do you mean?"
"Oh Malik, I'm not an idiot. I know how it sounds when people fuck."
"Have you been eavesdropping?" Asked Malik upset. His cheeks were flushed. Oh great, more stuff Jonouchi could tease him with.
Jonouchi raised his hands. "I didn't. I just wanted to talk to Mariku once more, but after the noises I heard it was better not to disturb him."
"Sorry..."
"For what?" Jonouchi slapped him on the back. "Believe me, if someone deserves a good fuck in this unit, it's Mariku." He sighed. "He may be a killjoy, but he's the one who pulls you back out of the shit... at least as soon as he thinks you have been in there long enough." Jonouchi smiled. "Without him, we would all be fucked. Although..." His smile turned into a grin, "you have been fucked."
Malik gritted his teeth. "I'm leaving."
"Malik, no! No, stay! Tell me about it!" Jounouchi shouted after him, but Malik had already left.
"Everything okay?"
Malik literally jumped into the air and put his hand to his chest. It should be prohibited to be able to sneak in boots. "One day you'll frighten me to death."
Mariku didn't look impressed.
"I wouldn't go in there." He nodded toward the door that led into the garage.
"Why?"
"Jonouchi, he... well, he heard us last night."
Mariku sighed. "I'll make fast work of that."
Malik watched him. He and Mariku had not yet talked about what had happened. Would they even talk about it? Malik bit his lower lip. Was there even anything to talk about? They fucked, that's nothing special. Would it happen again?
Malik wasn't sure if he wanted it to happen again. It was nice to forget about everything just for a while. He had enjoyed the touches and kisses, but in this world there was no time for a relationship. Malik sighed. He would just wait and see how Mariku acted towards him.
"Shit, it's fucking cold," grumbled Jonouchi.
"At least it's not raining," Malik tried to cheer him up, but shivered as well.
"The ground is soaking wet. Does Mariku want me to get sick? Loving it!"
"Be glad that this is the last night. Tomorrow morning we're leaving." They had spent the entire day loading weapons and supplies into the Jeep. Mariku wanted to leave as soon as the sun rose. Malik was excited. Did other cities suffer like his hometown? Or even more? Would there be many zombies as well? Would they find more survivors?
Malik felt a tingling sensation in my stomach. He also couldn't stop himself from thinking about Mariku. His behavior towards Malik hadn't changed. Apparently it really was just a one-off. He should simply accept the fact, but it was more difficult than he had hoped. Even recalling Mariku's bad qualities didn't help.
"MALIK, DAMN! Are you asleep?"
"Huh?" Damn, he really needed to concentrate on his task.
"Is something the matter on your side?" Only now, Malik noticed the unusual small number of undead in front of the gate. He could just make out two. "Where are those bastards? Did the rain wash them away?"
Malik couldn't find an explanation.
"Maybe the storm this afternoon scared them away?"
"Hell, that storm almost scared me away." Jonouchi was right. It's been years since Malik saw such a terrible storm. The thunder was deafening, and for a short while they had no power. Mariku almost freaked.
Malik yawned. Being on the roof was boring when there was nothing to do. In addition, his clothes were wet and he was shivering. Jonouchi was right: in the end they'd get sick. As soon as Mariku showed up, he would complain extensively, even though Jonouchi would probably complain louder anyway.
"This is so pointless," grumbled Jonouchi. "As if I had nothing better to do!"
"What else would you have to do?"
"The satisfaction of my sexual needs."
"Give your hand a break."
"Screw you!"
They joked for a while and Malik was glad that they were able to do. Honda's death had hit them hard, but mourning for too long wouldn't help. They had to focus on their own survival.
Time passed slowly. Malik was cold and for the first time, he wished to lie in the dormitory under his blanket. He took off the night vision goggles and rubbed his eyes. Mariku would probably not allow that he took a shower before departure. If he got sick, he would whine until Mariku regret that he put them on the roof.
Malik stood up, yawning and stretching. He would fall asleep if the night continued like this. He should be happy not so see any zombies around, but it was still boring. He wanted to leave and get out of the city.
"Jou, anything happening on your side?"
"Not a scrap. And I'm freezing my ass off!" Malik sat down and closed his eyes. Mariku would certainly get angry when he saw him like this, not doing his duty. He could bite him. Malik touched his left ear. What were those noises? They didn't quite fit in.
"Jou, do you hear that?"
"What do you mean?"
"Be quiet and listen."
Jonouchi kept quiet and they both listened. Rocks fell on rocks and something fell into mud. At least it sounded like that.
"What the hell is that?"
"Let's check the sides, okay?" Since the area was surrounded by a high stone wall they only had paid attention to the barred gates. The property was monitored to a large extent by the cameras as well. Malik put on the night vision devise again and went counterclockwise along the edge of the flat roof in search of the source of the noise.
"FUCK! FUCK! SHIT!" Jonouchi screamed. Malik gripped his gun harder and ran to Jonouchi on the opposite side. Jonouchi yelled into his radio: "Mariku? MARIKU! GODDAMNIT! MARIKU?" The answer was static.
Malik looked down and his heart stopped for a second.
A hole.
In the wall.
It was not big, but big enough to crawl through. It was in the dead angle of the cameras. No wonder they had seen so little zombies. They were in the building. He had the creeping horrors.
"Something's disturbing the connection. SHIT!" Jonouchi grabbed Malik by the arm. "We have to go inside. Maybe... maybe it's not too late."
It was dark inside as they went down the stairs. Only the night vision devices made sure that they could see. They couldn't hear anything though.
"We must be careful," muttered Jonouchi. "I'll go first. You watch my back."
Malik nodded and followed Jonouchi further down the stairs. He breathed slowly, his heart racing. He tried to focus if he could hear anything, besides Jonouchi's steps, there was only silence. They tiptoed along the wall. Malik almost ran into Jonouchi as he suddenly stopped.
Malik's nerves were stretched to a breaking point. He'd wished for action, but reality just had to overdo it, right? Raising his weapon, Jonouchi swirled around the corner. Malik drew a sharp breath, but Jonouchi lowered the gun.
"Mariku, goddamnit, do you want me to blow your brains out?"
Mariku also lowered his weapon. "You'd be dead before you could pull the trigger."
"What happened?" Malik interfered. There were more important things to talk about than who would've shot whom first.
"I was on my way to you," Mariku said, "as the lights turned off."
"Mariku, there's a fucking hole in the wall!"
"WHAT?" He grabbed Jonouchi roughly by the arm. "And you're only telling me now?"
It was like everything had just waited for the moment Mariku had been informed, suddenly they heard gunshots. They echoed unnaturally through the empty halls. "Shit," muttered Mariku. He motioned them to follow him. They heard a loud scream. Malik got goosebumps. That wasn't a good sign. He tried not to be nervous. He had already been in more desperate situations and this time he was way better equipped.
The shots ceased suddenly. "Fuck, I hope everyone's alright," whispered Mariku and gave them are a sign to stay. He glanced around the corner, the gun ready to fire. Malik swallowed. He kept an eye on the way they had just come. Mariku fired two shots. Bodies fell to the ground and lay there for good. They continued on their way and went over the dead bodies on the floor. There were more than the two Mariku just shot.
Mariku pushed open the door to the video room. "Mokuba? Noah?" He only got a sob as answer. "Jou, Malik, keep an eye on the door. Mokuba?" Through the night vision device, the scene looked more bizarre than usual. Zombies were lying across the floor. The screens were black. Noah sat in the corner and pressed something to his body that had once been his arm. His face was serious as he looked up to his brother, who had raised his weapon. The barrel was pointed directly at Noah's forehead. Mokuba was shaking all over and even though Malik couldn't see his face, he was sure that he was crying.
Malik turned around and paid attention to the door. Jonouchi was standing in the hallway. Malik knew what would happen next and he also knew how Mokuba felt. He knew it all too well. He, too, had been forced to shoot his brother, but Noah still had his head on straight. Rishid had already been a monster. Malik shook his head. He didn't want to remember that.
"Come on," said Noah quietly. "Shoot me!"
"But, but," sobbed Mokuba and trembled even more. "I can't."
"SHOOT ME! I don't want to turn into one of them. "
"Noah..."
"I'll always be with you, okay? Always! Now shoot me before... before Mariku does it." Mokuba looked back over his shoulder. Mariku had already raised his gun. "It won't be long until... shoot me, please."
"I love you." Noah smiled as Mokuba pulled the trigger.
Weeping, Mokuba fell to his knees. He threw away the weapon as if it would cause him pain.
"Mokuba." Mariku put a hand on Mokuba's shoulder. "Let's go, Mokuba."
"NO! I can't leave him alone," sobbed Mokuba and grabbed the uninjured arm of his brother.
Mariku's voice was no more than a whisper, "Mokuba , he wanted you to live." He gently put his hand on Mokuba's much smaller one and loosened Mokuba's grip carefully. "Live on. For your brother." Mokuba fell around Mariku's neck and buried his face in his jacket. "Let's go, okay?" Mokuba nodded. "Jou, what's the situation?"
"Shots from below, but everything seems alright up here."
"Jou, you're watching our back. Malik, I want you to keep an eye on Mokuba. We get the others and then we get out of here."
They moved forward slowly. Malik's hand rested on Mokuba's shoulder. The boy was still shaken by sobs. Malik felt his pain. The loss of his brother would leave a void that could never be filled again.
The farther they came down the more uncomfortable it became. Malik kept Mokuba behind his back while they cleared their way.
Mariku raised his hand. "Stop! There's something wrong." They stopped and tried to see what was going on on the steps below them.
"Is that... Mai?" Malik asked in a whisper as he peered over Mariku's shoulder.
"Fuck." The bullets from Mariku's gun smashed the heads of the zombies. They hurried down the steps. Malik was feeling sick. Mokuba pressed himself against him. Malik felt the little fingers painfully clutching his arm.
Mai lay wide-eyed in front of them. Horror was written all over her face. The attack had come as a surprise. She wasn't armed. The zombies had her throat torn out and ripped open the stomach. Her intestines spilled out. "SHIT!" Mariku punched against the wall.
Two losses in one night and they didn't know what lay ahead of them yet. Were the others safe? Or was it all too late?
"Bakura?" Mariku roared through the hallway. "Yami? Anzu?"
"We're here," answered Anzu. They were further down the hallway.
"Losses?"
"Yuugi is injured, but it's not bad. Mai is gone. We don't know where she is."
Mariku took a deep breath. At least they were still alive.
"Can you come to us?"
"Negative! We barely have any ammo."
"Damn," muttered Mariku and checked his own magazine. He turned to Malik and Jonouchi. "How much do you still have?"
"Enough for a while."
Malik patted his pants pocket. "I have a spare magazine."
"Let's move then." He looked forward. "We're coming!"
They didn't get an answer, but heard scratching and furious blows against a metal door.
"Shit, so many!" Cursed Jonouchi. It was like the entire zombie population of the city was between them and the rest of their team. They were hungry and their meal closer than usual. Malik's shirt stuck to his upper body. He wanted to take off his jacket, but there was no time. The zombies had noticed them quickly after they had shot down some of them and were now trying to get a piece of them between their teeth.
Malik rammed his elbow into a zombie's rotten face before he hit him with his gun. He tried as best he could to save ammunition. They heard shots as they approached the dormitory.
"Mariku?" yelled Bakura. "Can you hurry up?"
"Oh, I just wanted to have a cup of tea," Mariku roared back and shot down two zombies at once.
The door came into view. "Malik, Mokuba, hurry up and get in. Jou and I keep these bastards at bay."
Malik pounded on the door. "Open the door, goddamnit!"
He pushed Mokuba in the room first, scarcely when the door opened a crack, and followed immediately afterwards. He leaned against the wall next to the door and took a deep breath. He fell to the ground and looked around. Everyone had a very strained face. Anzu had put her arms around Mokuba. Yami knelt beside his brother, whose right ankle was swollen. Otogi stood beside Bakura at the door, his weapon raised. Bakura let Jonouchi and Mariku in the dormitory.
"We lost two of our men," Mariku began to explain, "And out there is a fucking horde of these sons of bitches. We are short on ammo and," he glanced at Yuugi, "can you walk?" Yuugi shook his head. "Shit." He ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know how many are out there, but we have to get to the garage somehow." Mariku walked up and down, thinking aloud. "Jonouchi, you take Yuugi piggyback. Yuugi takes your gun. Can you do that?" The two men nodded. "You go first together with Otogi and Yami. After that, Malik, Anzu and Mokuba. Bakura and I will cover your backs. Any questions?"
Malik shook his head and came back on his feet. The faster they got out of here the better. "Watch your ammo." Jonouchi took Yuugi on his back. Mariku put his hand on the doorknob and waited until Jonouchi, Yami and Otogi had lined up. "Ready?" Everyone nodded.
Malik's heart started to beat faster again, and his body was pumping adrenaline through his veins. He joined Anzu and Mokuba, who was still trembling. Anzu's lower lip was bleeding.
Hell broke loose as Mariku opened the door.
Despite Jonouchi and the others doing a great job clearing their way, they only moved forward painfully slow. Malik got the feeling they would never reach the garage. He looked back and his eyes met Mariku's. They nodded at each other briefly.
"We're almost there," shouted Otogi.
Yami fell back. "No more ammunition," he muttered, using his weapon as a batsman. At least it was easy to decapitate the zombies. The rotted flesh was easy to cut through.
"Everything's quiet here," roared Jonouchi as he opened the door to the garage.
"Hurry up!"
Otogi jumped behind the wheel and started the engine. Jonouchi helped Yuugi on the back seat and then climbed onto the load bed to Yami. Yami reloaded his weapon. Mokuba and Anzu also sat down in the car. "Go! Go!" Mariku slammed the door.
"And who opens the gate?"
Mariku stopped. "Shit! Okay, just drive outside for now. We have more leeway outside and now we are better equipped as well." Mariku opened the garage door and then jumped back on the bed. It had started to rain heavily. At least only a few zombies roamed the grounds.
"What do we do?" Cried Otogi through the open driver's window as they came closer to the gate. Thunder rumbled. The zombies got more.
"Just drive!"
"Will it work?"
"We'll see."
Otogi floored the gas pedal. Malik closed his eyes. That would never end well. Had Mariku lost his mind? The impact with the gate made Malik lose his balance. He hit his head on Mariku's gun. Malik cursed and put his hand to his forehead.
"Everything okay?" Malik nodded slightly, even though he had the feeling his head would burst. At least they had managed to break through the gate. "To the west," roared Mariku. Malik clung to the sides. Good thing they had the box with the weapons and food properly secured. Otogi drove like a madman.
Malik shivered. The wind was icy and he was soaked to the skin. He rubbed his arms but it didn't help. He felt an arm around his shoulder and looked up. It was Mariku. "Come closer everyone."
"You are just looking for an excuse to cuddle with Malik," Jonouchi said, grinning slightly.
"Come into my arms, you bloody bastard." Mariku pulled Jonouchi close. Malik pressed himself against Mariku. It wasn't really helping against the cold, but it felt good anyway. They left the city behind. Malik looked back and swallowed. That was probably the last time he would see his hometown. He sighed and leaned back on Mariku. He wouldn't miss it.
