Hey guys, here is the next installment of the Well Runs Dry arc as promised. I hope you like it and a big thanks goes out to my buddy acidic! If you haven't read his story HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD: Stories of the dead stop being such a nobody and read it! Love you all and the next part will be out soonish!
A bright light filled Duke's eyes as he walked through the door into a large white room. There were pews lined on both sides of the walkway he was on. He looked at himself and saw he was wearing a black tuxedo. He continued walking up and looked in the pews. He saw people he knew from Mumsfield and from military bases he stayed at. He got winks and nods up the aisle. He got to the front pew and saw his mother and father sitting there next to his sister. His dad have him a knowing nod and his mother mouthed "Good luck honey" through tears. He looked up at the altar and saw a turned figure awaiting him. He walked up the stairs and stood next to the figure in the beautiful wedding dress. He decided he had to know who it was, so he pulled back the veil. He took a step back as he saw who it was, it was Saeko.
"Christian. Why are you backing away from your fiancé. Come over here and make me your wife. Or do you want to kill me!?" said Saeko calmly then roaring. The room turned black in an instant. Saeko got closer crying and screaming. "You want me dead! Why did you save me then! Just to torture me!" she shrieked. Duke turned to run and then saw Saya in a wedding dress in front of him.
"You said you would marry me. Its time to make good on your promise." she said sweetly. Duke grew redder and redder. He back up as the two women closed in on him. He jumped over them and ran toward the door, but it opened before he could grab it. He went face first into a pair of breasts the size of watermelons.
"So forward on our wedding day~! Wait until the honeymoon you dog!" giggled Shizuka who was also clad in a wedding dress. The three women surrounded him and he just sank into the floor. They chanted "Who will you marry!? Is it me!? No me!" and Duke just curled up in fetal position.
"AHHHH!" shouted Duke as he awoke in a corner. He was covered in Mountain Dew cans and beef jerky wrappers. He looked at his surroundings and remembered where he was. He found a convenience store right before the bridge into downtown. He moved a shelf in front of the corner and set of cans on a string to alert him if They showed up. He got up and dusted himself off. " Oh thank God that was a dream. Oh sweet baby Jesus thank you." he said finally calming his beating heart. Duke looked down and checked his arsenal. He had his eighteen inch kukri strapped to leg, and one Colt revolver left with one full reload. He had the M4 with about 3 extra mags left, and he found a .38 S&W left under the counter with five rounds. Duke grabbed a touristy backpack with Hello Kitty on it filled it with beef jerky, water, and a few Monsters. He looked around the store and found a tourist book that had a map of downtown. "Alrighty, now let's find out where we are going." he said to himself. He knew he had to hurry but keeping up a good pace was key. Going to fast and being reckless would get him killed. He had been gone now for about a day and a half. They have bottled water back at the house and an okay amount of food, but I still need to be back soon he thought walking out of the convenience store.
He started toward the bridge, and the saw the barricade. It was all that kept the mass of Them in the city. Duke walked closer it it and climbed up on top, keeping low to avoid detection. He peeked over the wall and saw about ten of Them just wandering. One was repeatedly walking into the barricade, but didn't seem to notice Duke. Duke weighted his options. He could jump in guns blazing and waste a lot of ammo. He could snipe as many as he could with the M4, but that would alert too many from the city. He could try to kill them all with the kukri, but he didn't like his odds not knowing what was up the road. He had one option he hadn't explored. he could try and sneak past them by ducking behind parked cars. The bridge was littered with them and it would be easy to move from one to another. Duke decided this was his best shot so he climbed down the wall and hid behind a close car. Duke was almost caught by the one banging into the barricade, but he was preoccupied with the wall. Duke moved slowly and carefully, weaving through the cars. His boots made a light clicking, but no more than the noises of the shuffling of Their feet. Duke had crossed about a third of the bridge when he decided to stop to scan ahead. He saw about fifteen more of Them, but that was it. All was quiet around, but that was to be expected. This city was almost completely abandoned overnight. They only occupants were the undead maggots sacks that haunted the what used to be Tokonosu City. Duke glanced at the map to know where he needed to turn. Fujimi Academy was about fifteen miles from his current position. Duke kept on and cleared the next third of the bridge. Duke looked at his watch, he had been at this for about thirty minutes. He only had about five hours of daylight left, so he would have to get a move on. Duke sped up his pace and ducked around a large truck. When he did this his M4 knocked on the side of the truck, producing a loud clang in the dead silence. All of Them in a half mile radius perk up and saw him. Duke swallowed the wad of spit in his mouth, and ran.
He passed about three of them and they began to chase him. About thirty of Them were now hot on his tail, and more were ahead of him. Duke turned a hard right as he crossed the bridge. He took this opportunity to sling his M4 off his back and begin to spray it at the incoming horde. He stopped and aimed this time and began to pick them off. Just as he was getting in the groove, he heard clicking. Duke ejected the magazine and began running again. He loaded the next mag he had and jumped atop a nearby car and went back to shooting. He shot and picked about four of them off before the car was almost overrun and he had to go. He threw the empty M4 at an incoming one of Them. He drew the .38 and his Colt Navy and began to fire. He dropped about three of them before he heard clicking. He threw the .38 beaming on of Them and knocking it to the ground. Duke turned to look at the ten left chasing him, an ran into a street light. Duke looked up from the ground at Them who were within a few feet of him. No, it can't end like this. I have people depending on me. I can't die here, not yet! he thought drawing his kukri to defend his prone position. As They were about to connect with him, They all dropped on after another. Gunshots rang out as each one of them fell in a heap at Duke's feet. Duke got up and turned around only to be met with a gun in his face.
"Give me one reason I shouldn't just kill you right now." said a cocky voice. A man stood before him, though boy might be more accurate. He was about Duke's height, and was wearing all black. He had on black skinny jeans with a chain going from his pocket to his belt loop. He had a gun belt with a katana hanging on it and a large .44 magnum. His face was covered by a black ski mask, but some hair was poking through. Black, raven colored hair. Duke's mouth dropped, but he put one hand behind his back to get the backpack. Duke opened it and pulled out a Monster. "And we have a winner! Great reason for me to let you live!" the boy shouted snatching the beverage and drinking it a matter of seconds.
"J-Jason?" said Duke through tears. The boy pulled off the ski mask and sure enough it was Duke's childhood friend and mentor. Jason chuckled and made ghost noises until Duke slugged him in the arm. "I-I should be mad right now, but I'm too happy to be mad." blubbered Duke bear hugging his best friend.
"Hey, hey! Lets go get inside before more of Them show up. I don't want to have to save our ass twice in one day!" he shouted peeling Duke off of him. The two walked over an abandoned hotel. They climbed the stairs until they got to the top floor. Jason opened the door to a penthouse suite. There was no electricity, but candles and torches lit the place. The windows let in a large amount of light, but the day was fading. "Alright, I'm sure you have a lot of questions, and I could be a dick and just tell you what happened. But I think I'll let you have your fun."
"How are you alive, I thought I killed you?" asked Duke. Jason laughed and sat down on a sofa he dragged to the middle of the room.
"You, kill me? That's rich," Jason laughed, before grabbing a monster and started drinking it. "You know me, Duke. Big and powerful gangster, people looking down on me cause I'm young. I got a lot of big name enemies, bro. That night at the party, I got wind of a rival gang aimin' to hit me hard, but not on me. They were comin' for you." Jason frowned, looking at Duke seriously. "I staged that fight, so that they'd think that we weren't friends, that way they'd back off. I'd rather not see you dead, dude." Jason took a long chug of the energy drink, before smirking. "Then you just had to run me off the road, it was perfect! Everyone thinks I'm dead and that Clare skipped town!"
"Then where have you been?" Duke frowned, slowly taking this in. He couldn't believe that he played into Jason's hand like that. But that was how his childhood was, Jason pulling puppet strings from behind the scenes.
"I've been in Venice the whole time!" Jason said, shrugging. Duke was speechless. "I was out there to start up a branch of my gang out in Europe. It was a great location being a strictly port city. Then all hell broke lose. Clare had the idea to make the city a oasis in a sea of hell. None of the virus has gotten in to Venice so its a safe place. Safe, but completely unlivable. No land to farm and no gasoline to run boats. Fishing is very tedious, and is barely keeping the population alive. So then I came here to meet my baby mama." he said. Duke blinked.
"Your what?" he asked. Jason chuckled. He pulled out his wallet which was on the chain and showed Duke a picture. It was of an asian woman with red and black hair. She was a good 4 inches shorter than Jason in the picture. She was well endowed, having a large behind and a healthy chest. She was holding a baby who looked like an asian Jason if he was a little girl. She had his same grin and eyes.
"Her name was Yoko. And the little one was Yukiko. I met here when I was over here raising hell on a vacation. A got a message from her when I got back to the states saying when we fooled around, a little Jason found its way to her womb. I never forgot about them so I came here to find them." he said folding up the wallet and putting it back in his pocket. "So then I got the bright idea to try our Venice experiment out here. Japan is an island nation with everything we need to be self-sufficient." Jason got up and stretched a bit. "I am currently setting up and HQ and a secure area. So that explains why I'm here, now why the fuck are you!?" he chuckled.
"Well when daddy got posted here, we all wanted to go with him. I told him I didn't mind having my senior year in Japan. And then when all hell broke lose, I had to bury my family." said Duke trailing off. Jason grew more serious.
"Your parents were good people. They are in a better place. And Lillie was a saint. A fine ass sexy saint if I do say so myself!" said Jason lightening the mood. Duke laughed. His older sister and Jason always got in fights and Jason would hit on her nonstop. "Never did get her to even kiss me. Its a shame she liked good boys." he said stroking his ego. Duke got up.
"Well I have a new family to take care of now. And they are in trouble. I've loved talking to you and just seeing you, but I have a job to do." said Duke walking toward the door. Jason grabbed his arm.
"New family, you dog! Finally got that old monkey virginity off your back!" he jeered. Duke turned and laughed when he saw Jason's face.
"No, no he's still clinging. Almost shook a few days ago and its caused more problems than anything else. My new family is a group that cam through about a month ago. It two guys, three girls, a woman, and and little girl. Dog too. I have to get some supplies otherwise all our water is useless." he said. Jason kept grinning.
"Need some help with that?" he said with a mile wide grin. Jason looked like he was itching to fight. Duke knew it was no use telling him no, he might as well just accept it. Plus it could be quicker with two people.
"Yeah, I reckon I do. I'm all out of guns and ammo though. Got some spares?" she said chuckling. Duke knew the answer, but he liked seeing Jason's face light up anyway.
"Do I ever. Come on pal let me show my armory." Jason said throwing his arm around Duke's shoulder. Jason led him into the next room, and you would think it was painted with guns. There was everything from assault rifles to pistols to sniper rifles to shotguns. "Come with me. And you'll be. In a world of pure annihilation!~" sung Jason as he twirled around in the room.
"All right Willy Wonka. What are you gonna outfit me with?" Duke said through chuckles. It was just like the good old days, just with more guns. Jason brought out an MP5-A2 and a PSG-1 sniper rifle. Both were supressed and had tactical sights.
"Oh, and this for when they get close up." Jason said tossing him a belt of frag grenades. Jason grabbed his gun belt and slid his .44 magnum out and put an M1911 in. He grabbed an M24 SAW and hoisted it up. "Lets kick some ass!" he shouted walking out the door. "So where are we heading?" he asked walking down the stairs.
"An industrial supply shop near the school in town. The well where we live is contaminated. I need some pipe and iodine to convert a pool filter into a water purifier." he said right behind Jason. Jason grinned.
"So, tell me about these girls you dog. Any of them strike your fancy? You said you almost plugged one." he laughed. Duke shook his head. He was trying to avoid talking about the girls.
"Well, I got the hots for one. But I made her real mad. You see the woman, she liked drama and making my life miserable. So she asked the question who would you fuck, who would you kill, and who would you marry. I knew that if I picked the one I wanted to marry, it would greatly upset another girl. So I chose to marry the girl who would get upset if I didn't pick her, and kill the girl I like to preserve my happiness. But it backfired. The girl I picked took it seriously and tried to seduce me. Almost worked, but then the girl I like walked in and now I'm in a mess." Duke spat. He didn't want to talk about it, but he needed advice. Jason closed his eyes and stuck his tongue out.
"Hmm. Tough call. I can't say you made many wrong moves. But I know this will sound weird coming from me, but being honest with feelings is usually the best approach." he said plainly. Jason was right, it was weird. Jason never talked about his feelings, but then again Duke was never around him when he talked to girls. The two ran out of the hotel and got into a truck Jason had hot wired. "Alright Duke, hop up in the driver seat. I'm gonna be your gunner." Jason said jumping into the bed of the truck. He stuck the bipod in a makeshift stand and it was secure. Duke pulled out and headed off towards the school. The roads were littered with cars, making Duke drive slow. Every one of Them they came across Jason would kill on sight. The SAW was suppressed so it gave them a little more stealth, but the shells hitting ht truck bed cancelled that advantage out. Jason took off his shirt and laid it in the zone where they would land, but it did little to silence them. When the two reached Fujimi Academy, they saw a sign that read "Construction/Industrial Supply" in Japanese.
"You wait here. I'll go in and check it out." said Duke getting out. Jason gave him a thumbs up and went on lookout. Duke opened the door and drew his MP5 and turned on the flashlight. He looked at the shelves and saw assorted PVC pipes and some steel pipe here and there. He grabbed the correct size in PVC and in steel for good measure. Duke went into the back and found a big back of Triiodide used in breaking down slag. The triiodide was a more stable form of Iodine and reacted better with water. Duke loaded up the truck and hopped in the driver seat.
"We ready to roll out captain?" asked Jason. Duke tapped the hood twice which meant yes. The truck rolled out toward the bridge. Awaiting the duo was about thirty of Them. Jason prepared to fire, but the gun didn't budge. The bipod was locked and wouldn't budge. "Duke! The M24 isn't moving so we are gonna have to do this the old fashioned way!" shouted Jason. Jason ducked down in the bed. Duke sped up and plowed through the group. Duke slammed on the breaks and jumped out spraying with the MP5. Jason started popping Them with his M1911 and drew his katana.
"Fall back to the barricade!" shouted Duke. He didn't want to leave his precious cargo, but had not choice. Defending is easier if you have a control point with no possibility of rear attack. Duke and Jason ran and put their backs up against the wall. Duke pulled out the PSG-1 and flipped out the tactical x4 sight. He laid waste to the ones in the rear, while Jason grabbed the MP5 and knocked out the front few. Duke's rifle began to click when Jason threw his empty SMG at incoming charger. Jason drew his katana and began to hack away at the incoming horde. Duke took off a grenade and was bout to lob it, when a dark figure sailed above him. The figure slashed clean through two of the enemies before it. Duke looked to see Saeko standing in front of him with a bloodstained blade.
"Taking our time aren't we? We are about to run out of water you know." she said with smile. Duke looked up in awe at the beauty in front of him. She was in a white sundress now spattered lightly with blood. All she had on her was her sword. Duke stood up and drew his kukri.
"Sorry, had a bit of a run in with a long lost friend. Time to show you I am just as good as you with a blade." he chuckled. Duke lunged at the incoming zombie with the force of a mountain lion. He cracked the ribcage of it and then sheathed his blade in it's brain. Saeko smirked and kept mowing down the incoming waves of Them.
"Duke! Hate to break up the my-dick-is-bigger-than-yours competition, but I need you to get to the truck now! Drive up here, full force at the wall and don't stop!" shouted Jason running up to Duke and snatching the grenade belt off his chest. Duke nodded and he ran toward the truck. Saeko was ahead of him and got the message. They both sped to the vehicle and hopped in. Duke threw it in first and sped down the bridge. he punched it and plowed through cars that were slightly in his way. They made it over the last stretch and were almost to the barricade. It grew closer and Duke didn't let up. Saeko looked a little worried and looked at Duke. Duke was getting nervous two as there were only a few yards from the wall.
"FUCK!" shouted Duke as he threw it into fifth and didn't let up on the gas.
BOOM!