Previously…

Two gleaming eyes watched the female pirate enter the house. From the shadows the old wizard appeared. He had finally tracked down his prey and it was only a matter of time before his quarry would be captured. Many shuffling feet accompanied his appearance and his zombie warriors, former patrons of the bar known as the Gizzard's Throat came to his side. Above him, several shadows moved with purpose and the Negotiators made the scene. It was time.

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9-Trapped

What was that movie called? Night of the Living Dead? Hay Lin had forced him to sit down and watch it with her late one Friday night. Forget the zombies and the gory scenes; Caleb was most shocked to discover that the people of Earth used to be black and white! What a dreadful existence that must have been for their ancestors. Anyway, the movie was dull. Caleb found more terrifying things in the outhouses he used back on Meridian. The main character was a complete fool; trusting a band of untrained civilians to work as a cohesive fighting force against a horde of the walking dead. And what was with that ending? You mean he survived all that just to be killed by one of his own? Hay Lin told him that was known as irony. To him, it was an undignified ending to a moderately capable warrior.

And now he finds himself in the same situation as the movie's unfortunate protagonist.

The zombies had them trapped inside the cellar with no means of escape. His father was wounded – no thanks to Phobos! – and the former had drained most of his magic battling the legions of the undead. Since the enemy was in fact, undead, there was no life energy for Phobos to steal and the rebels would be damned if they'd let Phobos take any of their energy. They needed that to fight the zombies!

Caleb and Aldarn were exhausted from all the fighting. The two had done everything in their power to barricade the door leading to the cellar but their makeshift wall was weakening and it was just a matter of time before they broke through. Panting what he hoped were not his last breaths, Caleb turned back to his father who was being tended by Roiya of all people. The pirate's lavish blue coat was covered in gore and there were rips and cuts all over her body but she was otherwise intact. Many a zombie fell victim to Frostbite, that deadly magically enchanted blade of hers and it was she who saved Julian from being eaten alive and had carried him down to the cellar.

Phobos was too busy fighting for his own life to look after Julian. The mage was slumped against the far wall with half his head covered in blood. It wasn't his, though; rather it belonged to the leader of the marauding horde. The two had it out above the rooftop with Phobos gaining an upper hand before the other wizard played a trump card. Now their best weapon lay near useless with a small hole in his stomach. Nothing one of Roiya's potions could take care of. Now Phobos was indebted to her and that in some small way made up for him not helping Julian.

The only ones among them not harmed were Blunk and the ever talented Miss Pitterbee. The woman worked tirelessly on a way of getting them out of there but it would take time for her frail body to conjure up the right invocations from her god, Melenee. Blunk was assigned the task of watching over her while she did that. The passling was armed with a small mace Aldarn had given him. To his credit, Blunk performed splendidly with the weapon, smashing feet, knees, arms and heads when they were low enough to the ground. One thing can be said about the passling is that no one can ever question his resolve.

With the barricade set, Caleb and Aldarn stepped back to gather themselves. That wouldn't hold for long and neither of them believed they could hold out much longer. Their swords grew heavy in their hands and their bodies ached in almost every conceivable muscle. They couldn't even stand up straight anymore. Hunched over as they were, even the slightest wind could blow them over.

"How much time?" Caleb asked in a tired voice.

Pitterbee heard his question and did not answer at first. Her god required her full attention when asking a favor. All her energies had been put in making the connection via her orb so she did not appreciate the distraction. Blunk took her cue and turned to Caleb. "Shh. Cleric lady speaking with god man. No talking."

"Caleb." Aldarn started. The leader could not recall the last time he had seen his best friend so out of it. He looked ready to collapse at any moment. Still he beamed with pride for never had Caleb seen him fight so well. "We won't last long against that wizard."

"But surely Phobos softened him up?" Roiya asked from her place beside Julian. "I saw him strike that wizard with a lightning bolt."

"Besides," Caleb began. "His magic won't work down here. The wards will see to that."

"But wards can be broken, Caleb." Aldarn motioned to their barricade. "Just like that." He grimaced as part of the barrier broke apart and one very mangled hand reached in. "Pardon me." He excused himself, walked over to the hand, and chopped it off with one clean swipe of his sword. Had the creature outside felt any pain it didn't sound it out. Instead, the bloodied stump from whence the arm came continued to bob around at the base of the hole. Its severed arm was far from dead as it wriggled around on the ground. Aldarn stepped on the arm to keep it from moving any further and stabbed at the open palm. Even impaled, the arm did not cease to move.

Aldarn smirked. "Hm…for zombies, they fight pretty good."

"Too bad for us." Roiya said. She had bandaged another of Julian's wounds using a special silk cloth she found in a faraway land. The cloth not only prevented any more blood from seeping out but cauterized the wound without the need of burning or sewing. It also helped ease the pain but that was not Julian's biggest problem. He had been bitten by a zombie afterall.

"His fever's getting worse." Roiya announced.

Julian did indeed look worse for the wear. Sweat beaded off his forehead and his breaths were coming out in fierce gasps.

All present heard the stories. How once bitten by the undead one would become the undead. Caleb could not/would not let that happen to his father. I'd kill him first.

"Alright, listen up. The door is narrow so they can only come through one at a time. We fight in singular file, changing every now and then to give the others a chance to rest. We must buy as much time for Pitterbee to get us out of here. Phobos, you…Phobos!" The wizard was so busy catching his breath he hadn't even heard Caleb's words. Grabbing him by the collar of his tunic, Caleb glared into his golden eyes. "Wake up! We need to work together here."

"And what would you have me do?!" The mage growled. "Incinerate them with a wave of my magic hand? I've used up all of my powers, oaf! Without them I'm useless."

"No argument there." Aldarn said.

Phobos glared at him but Caleb pulled his attention back toward him. "Look, Phobos, we are not going to die here. There's too much at stake here for us to be eaten like herd beasts. Now if you are unable to fight then the least you can do keep my father alive by keeping him hydrated."

"You demote me to the rank of waterboy?"

"I am your commander, Phobos! Deal with it." He forced him back against the wall. Phobos looked ready to pounce on the rebel leader but held himself back. Caleb would get his. It was only a matter of time. Over these past few months the former prince had learned to embrace patience, one of his past flaws. Now he would wait and bide his time. When the time came, Phobos knew he would get his revenge on the boy for all the humiliations.

"Fine." Phobos went to Julian.

"Roiya. Aldarn. Get ready."

The three warriors prepared themselves for battle. Already the barricade was falling apart and more hands burst through it. They stood in single file with Caleb at the front of the line. Sword in hand he prepared for his toughest fight yet. So much was riding on their success and Caleb wasn't about to let those who counted on him down. They had lost too many people already. One face permeated his thoughts. When the first zombie burst through the door, Caleb raised his sword. "Ral, this one's for you." And then he charged.

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Sorry for the short chapter…and the long delay. When I was writing it I couldn't get beyond this point. This ain't writer's block, it's writer's wall. Anyway, I'm planning on continuing this story and hope the "wall" will crumble down soon.

Thanks to Nemrut, Strayphoenix, Worker72, Guardian's Light, Phantomwriter, newcomer XVDragon and everyone else for sticking with it as long as they have. Thanks guys.