Apocalypse: Dawn of the Dead
WOO! Chapter 10! I can't believe that a story that I started because me and my friends were bored at Band Camp evolved into something like this. Seriously, thanks a ton, all of you. Most of all, I'd like to thank my awesome friends, who I based these characters off of (me being Nicholas). Without your suggestions, I doubt the story would be as unique and fun as it's been. Thanks for being there for me this year, as it hasn't been easy on me. To my readers, thank you for your support as well, without which I wouldn't have gotten where I am now.
Also, special shoutout to mybrodrivesmecrazy and Noskansho, thank you for your reviews last chapter.
So now the chapter we've been waiting for, the Zombie Slayers vs. Doctor Edward Richtofen!
Chapter 10: Infamous Night
"My father told me once that the most important thing every man should know is what he would die for." ― Tana French, Faithful Place.
Tallahassee:
"Liam, how much longer?" Nicholas asked the black-haired teen driving, tapping his Cobra impatiently on his knee as he spoke.
"Nearly there. Jess, you've got the transmitter, right?" Liam asked the girl sitting in the shotgun.
"Yep!" Jess said patting the transmitter in her lap.
"Hey, leave the M72 LAW in here. I doubt we'll need it," John said to Jess.
"Why?" Nick asked curiously.
"Well, if we've got a missile, I doubt we'll need a rocket launcher. Extra weight and all that." John said in tone that indicated that the answer was obvious.
"Good point," Judith chimed in.
"Let's see what's on the radio so we can find out how the news and media are taking this." Nicholas said turning to a country station.
"-complete state of chaos in Florida, as, and I'm not kidding on this, zombies are attacking people left and right. Reports suggest that this all originated in Bradburn County, where the first reports of the zombies originated."
"Seems legit," Judith said with a nod.
"Late Yesterday night, the first reports of, I still can't believe I'm saying this, zombies came in. After just a few short hours, over 90,000 people were confirmed dead in just Orange County alone as of tonight. "
"Florida has been declared a state of emergency as the zombie outbreak grows. Several thousand residents have already been evacuated thanks to the effort of the Red Cross, and the President is expected to comment on the outbreak sometime tomorrow."
"There are also reports of strange creatures roaming about. Some experts on…*sigh* zombies, say that they are mutated zombies. If you see any zombies, board up your house and find something to um, protect yourself," the reporter said uncertainly.
"She's taking this well," Liam said sarcastically.
"They said nothing about how they're combating the zombies," Nick pointed out.
"The National Guard is protecting the border to Florida, making sure the zombie threat does not spread to the rest of the United States. Residents who try to cross the border will be…um, shot on sight." The reporter said before Liam turned off the radio, scowling.
"What? Why aren't they fighting the zombies?" Jess asked the others.
"They are afraid. Afraid of the threat, and are unwilling to assist those who need help. Just like they were way back then, when the zombies attacked Earth before. What did the government do then? Nothing. They're trying to contain the threat…and this means we're on our own…We have to rely on no one but ourselves," Samantha said coldly as she reappeared in the car, sitting on the middle console.
"So, what's the plan?" Andrew asked Samantha.
Samantha looked at him and said, "We'll have to go into the lab and confront Richtofen directly. While we are keeping Richtofen busy, Jess will set up the Missile Guidance Transmitter and then Nicholas will contact Joe. Right before the missile strikes, we'll get out of the building and watch as everything Richtofen has worked so hard for be burnt away to scraps."
"Samantha, I've been wondering about something. What're you going to do after all of this is over?" Nicholas asked, causing everyone to look at the ghost, who seemed to be thinking.
"I'm…not sure. I could always pass on into the next life. But…" Samantha smiled a little and said, "I could always take back control of the Zombies and-"
"Then why are we helping you?" Andrew asked hotly, earning a cold look from Samantha.
"Because if you help me, you'll buy your world some time. I said Icouldtake control of the zombies, that doesn't mean that I will. I despise Group 935 for everything they've done to me and my daddy. They will pay. As for the rest of you, you've earned my favor, so I may not ravage this miserable planet just because of the kindness you've shown me." Samantha said, her tone light.
"Well, that'll have to do then," Liam said with a grunt as he slammed on the accelerator.
Group 935 Tallahassee HQ:
"All right, this time, shut the hell up! We've got no idea what Richtofen can do. We've got to be prepared, and more importantly, quiet!" Nicholas whispered angrily at Liam and Nick, who whistled innocently.
The warehouse they had stopped at was enormous to say the least. It was the size of a Wal-Mart, except it looked fairly run down and had no distinguishing characteristics about it besides a large telephone tower next to the building.
"Look!" Andrew yelled pointing to the tower as they approached the tower was glowing dark green, with green electricity charging all around it, but everyone had a sneaking suspicion what the green electricity was.
"Element 115 in electricity form…so it's green. Interesting...what is he planning?" Nicholas said in wonder at the tower that glowed with death.
Samantha growled and said, "Richtofen."
"Come on, let's go guys…" Nicholas muttered as the group headed into the warehouse. There was a thick steel door barring the entrance, which Andrew and Jax helped open. The door was rusted with age, and it was obvious it hadn't been used in a while. Andrew walked up to the large padlock on the door and swung downwards with Reaper, tearing through the padlock with ease while Jax fired his Thundergun at the door, causing it to open slightly after the blast.
"Nice job guys," Nicholas said as he pushed open the door.
Inside of the warehouse, they saw something they didn't expect. Instead of a rundown warehouse, the inside was a tastefully decorated room, complete with a crimson red carpet that led from the entrance all the way to the end of the room. Pictures and diagrams were plastered on the walls, all written in German.
"Where do you think Illuzio and Richtofen are?" Jax asked quietly, lowering his Thundergun slightly.
"Further into the warehouse. Come on, we're not going to find anything here," Nicholas said as he took a few steps forward.
"Or are you?" a familiar voice asked them with a small laugh. All of them looked towards a nearby pillar, where Illuzio stood, leaning against a pillar. He was smiling, a truly malevolent thing really, and said "Welcome to our humble abode in Florida. Would you like anything? Coke, Sprite, Root Beer, death?"
"What was that last one?" Nick asked.
"Death?" Illuzio repeated.
"You're supposed to say Root Beer," Nick complained.
"And you're supposed to be dead," Illuzio replied with a grin.
"What I can I say, we die hard," Nicholas grinned as he looked at Nick.
"You so stole that from Sonic Adventure 2 Battle," Liam said as he crossed his arms.
"Hey, it's a good line, and it's just before that awesome fight with Shadow too-" Nicholas began to say before Samantha floated out of Jax and said, "Where is Richtofen, Illuzio!?"
"In the back, through the huge steel door of course. He's nearly done with the 115 Amplifier's modifications. I'll stand aside while you take him out. Have fun!" Illuzio said warping on the spot in a flash of green light.
"He's up to something. I don't care if he wants Richtofen dead, we should kill him here and now!" Samantha muttered with hate in her voice.
"We have to go after Richtofen first, Sam. If we don't the whole world could be destroyed," Jax said to the ghost-child, who calmed down after a moment.
"Fine. Richtofen first, then Illuzio," Samantha relented after a moment. "So, is everyone ready?"
The group of teenagers, armed with supernatural and deadly weapons, nodded to the ghost girl, and Nicholas stepped in front with a grin.
"Let's go." Nicholas said lifting up his Raid and taking a step towards the door.
"Shouldn't we check in on Joe?" Andrew asked Nicholas, who nodded in agreement.
"Good idea, man…Hey Joe, how're things going on your end?" Nicholas said after pulling out his phone and calling his friend.
Air Force Base:
"YEAAAAAH! LIVIN ON A PRAYER!" Joe screamed as he fired three shots with his SPAZ-24, killing a Screecher Zombie and spraying carrion all over the floor.
"Man, I love shotguns. Seriously, when shotguns were made, like, angels got their wings or something," Joe sighed as he fell into a comfy leather chair he had rolled out of one of the other rooms.
Joe had finished the adjustments, after some effort and had the missile ready to go. Joe was just waiting for the command/signal/whatever from his friends, and he would lay waste to Richtofen's Lab. Joe sat down and relaxed for a few minutes before walking over to a makeshift workbench he had made as soon as his friends and Nick had left. Laying on it were a few of his experimental projects, based on designs he had found in the Riverside Cave and also based on his imagination.
He was amazed at the level of intelligence he possessed now, when it came to technical knowledge. It was as if C.N. had released his hidden potential or something, because now he could develop things that were merely a dream at the moment. With time, he could change the world with his ideas. One of which he was working on now, completing the fishing touches.
"OK, so if I attach this here, then it could…yes! I'm awesome!" Joe said as he finished his newest invention.
It was a portable magnetic field pulse generator, and if he equipped it onto the truck, it could blast away cars that were blocking the major highways and could even be used in combat...maybe. He had built this as a contingency, just in case they didn't stop Richtofen here.
"If I attached this to the truck, we could seriously kick some ass," Joe grinned as he stowed his invention in his backpack.
Suddenly Joe's phone started ringing on the desk, and he walked over to it and said, "Yeah, what's up?"
"Joe, how're things going on your end?" Nicholas asked his tall friend, who smirked to himself.
"I'm ready here. Waiting on your signal," Joe replied.
"Gotcha, we're heading into the Lab now. You should get a signal when we set up the transmitter. Wish us luck," Nicholas said to Joe with a small sigh. Joe pondered that for a minute before shrugging it off.
"Good luck guys, I'll be-" Joe began to say when he saw several Nazi zombies and two Screecher zombies stumbling in through the hole that led outside.
"I'll have to call you guys back, I'll be ready when you are. Bye!" Joe said with a small laugh, aiming his SPAZ-24 and ending the call with a flourish of his hand, snapping the phone shut.
"Bring it on, you slimy flesh junkies!" Joe yelled opening fire on the undead horde with a grin on his face.
"Joe's ran into some trouble," Nicholas sighed.
"Zombies?" John asked with a raised eyebrow.
"No, fairies." Nicholas replied sarcastically, earning a roll of the eyes from his friend.
"OK, I deserved that one. So, what's the plan for getting through that door? It looks way to thick for anything we've got, even that M72 LAW Jess has in the truck." Andrew said as he pointed at the door.
"Hmm…Good question. Sam, do you-" Nicholas began to say before he was interrupted by Judith, who walked in front of him.
"Hey, there's a door over there," Judith said pointing to a nearby, but smaller and much less impressive steel door, that was off to the side of the room.
"Awww! I wanted to go through the big door!" Nick whined, earning a slap on the back of the hand from Jess.
"Samantha, does this door lead to Richtofen?" Jax asked the ghost that floated by him.
"Yes. I can lead you to him through here," Samantha said after a moment.
"I knew I should've taken out an insurance policy before I came here. After all, Nicholas is leading us again." John sighed, shaking his head.
"I'd rather have Nick lead us than you, John." Nicholas said opening up the door with a smirk.
"Sweet." Nick said, sounding rather pleased.
"Don't get too misty on me, Nick. You're still the first in line for bait if we need to resort to that. Just so you know." Nicholas said to Nick, who kind of just shrugged.
"I'll take what I can get."
Instead of a room, there was a stairway leading down into the darkness.
"Samantha, can you…like, sense anything?" Andrew asked after a moment, not sounding remotely enthusiastic about going into the dark basement.
"Yes. This is the way to Richtofen, but there's something down there. Another experiment of Richtofen's no doubt…Something familiar, but bad…" Samantha muttered darkly.
"All right, keep the door propped open. Let's go," Nicholas said taking the first few steps, and activating his night vision glasses. The others began to descend into the basement as well, and were effectively blind.
"OK, the light switch has to be around here somewhere," Andrew said fumbling blindly through the dark with an annoyed growl.
"Here!" Jess said flipping on the switch, blinding everyone with the glare of lights. The group's eyes began to adjust, and then everyone turned to Jess, who was standing at the bottom of the steps looking smug.
"How'd you find it?" Nicholas asked, as he was the only one who could see in the dark besides Samantha, because ghosts can do that sort of thing apparently.
"Night Vision contacts!" Jess said cheerfully, bouncing on her feet.
"Where'd you get those?" Judith asked her best friend, who grinned even wider.
"Well, it was a reward for completing another Easter Egg I did back at the Stadium! I got 20 Gamerscore!" Jess explained as she walked over to her friend.
"What could you have done to get that?" Liam asked, sounding dumbfounded.
"Well…" Jess said, before launching into an epic tale that involved explosives, a game of Pac Man, and 3 gallons of Mountain Dew.
"Are there any more Easter Eggs you did we should be aware of?" Andrew asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Seven in fact." Jess replied coolly.
"W-what! But…HOW!"Samantha asked, her voice shaking with frustration and curiosity.
"I have no idea!" Jess said, sounding just as shocked as Samantha.
"Does…does this count as breaking the fourth wall?" Nick asked, sounding uncertain before Nicholas slapped him upside the head.
"Stop, seriously. If you do it again, there's no telling what will happen!" Nicholas warned his shorter friend of the same name, who sighed.
"OK, I promise I'll stop doing it, happy?" Nick asked Nicholas.
"Yes. Now into this tunnel of darkness and death," Nicholas said walking into the said tunnel. The group quietly walked down the staircase, making sure to be on the lookout for anything as they met Jess down below. They began to walk down a long hallway with grey stone emerged in an underground room, lined with cells. And where there weren't cells, there were what looked like coffins in the walls, or rather containment units as the teens realize after a few minutes.
"What…is this place?" Andrew asked after a moment, eyeing the containers with unease.
"This must be where Richtofen keeps his experiments," Jax said in reply, gripping his Thundergun tighter.
"I agree, I can sense-"
"Zombies?" a voice suggested from the darkness.
Suddenly a man walked out of the shadows, wearing a grin on his face as he regarded the teens in front of him. He was wearing a white lab coat, emblazoned with the emblem of Group 935, with a dark black dress shirt underneath with black slacks. He had a rather plain face, with black square glasses on, and he stood at about six feet, with short black, yet graying, hair and brown eyes. The man smiled at them, revealing a row of demonic looking teeth.
"Who…who are you?" Judith asked after a moment, wary of the new arrival. Liam stepped in front of her protectively, aiming his gun at the man.
"Me? I'm just a scientist in search of a way to improve the human condition. Nothing more than that," the man laughed in reply, crossing his arms behind his back even as the teens all raised their weapons at him.
"Your name! What kind of foul demon are you?" Samantha bellowed at the man.
"My name? Surely you remember me, my dear Samantha. My name is Henry Porter, and I am Chief Overseer of Experimental Procedures of Group 935 and creator of the very weapon you two hold in your hands." the man said pointing to Jax and John's Ray Guns.
"Porter? How…how are you still alive after all these years?"Samantha asked the man quietly, awed and terrified.
"That is a rather long and unnecessary story, one that none of you will probably know. Partly because I don't know the entire thing myself, and because I'm on a strict schedule. As for how I have survived this long, I suppose I can indulge your curiosity, Samanatha."
"After my Master returned from the moon, having recruited the remaining members of Group 935 to his cause, he rebuilt the organization from the ground up. Our research and achievements accelerated to levels we could barely keep up with, and along the way we discovered ways to truly improve the human condition…"
"Master Richtofen is not a perfect man, but he is a genius. That none of you can deny. Because of him, me and my associates are ageless. We have all subjected ourselves to many experiments, which have resulted in marvelous changes. Drastic…But marvelous changes. Element 115 has many forms and uses, and we have had time to develop it." Porter explained to the teens.
"How did you all escape from me?" Samantha asked Porter, who chuckled darkly.
"Magic, my dear Samantha. Illuzio, marvelous man him, is the key to all of this. The man has single-handedly assured the fall of this world…and the rise of the next. Loyal as they come and a true ally, that man is the reason all of this is possible. This world will be all the better for it." Porter said with a smile on his face, this one showing no trace of malice. As though he believed in what he was doing with no hint of darker purpose.
"What kind of world is worth taking over the current one?" Nick asked, but to his surprise it was John that answered.
"A Utopia of sorts, I would assume. One where scientific research like this is applauded, not condemned. One where violence can be suppressed easily and war and famine aren't problems. They want to convert this world into a Utopia by force." John explained.
"Give us a bit of time, and Master Richtofen will have an army grand enough to accomplish what he needs to." Porter replied, nodding at John to show he was at least on the right track.
"Kill him." Samantha said coldly, clenching her fists.
"With pleasure," Liam said aiming his AK74fu2 at Porter's skull now before firing his weapon, without a second thought, holding his finger down on the trigger.
Porter smirked as a shuddering light bluish-green aura appeared around him, much like a candle flame. Liam's bullets simply bounced off of the strange shield he had conjured up, causing Liam to swear as he frantically reloaded. Porter then vanished into thin air.
"WHERE ARE YOU!?" Samantha bellowed as she frantically looked around.
"Right here, you miserable ghost." Porter said reappearing as though from nowhere, his body reappearing before their eyes in a shower of particles, a wide grin on the man's face as he crossed his arms.
"How…did you do that?" Jax asked, taking a step back.
"Yes…you see, Richtofen gave me some rather…special abilities with his powers. For example, watch this," Porter said with a sick smile as he moved his hand toward Jax, who fired a shot from the very weapon Porter created, the Ray Gun.
The Ray Gun blast hit Porter head-on, but did absolutely nothing as the blast made contact with Porter's shield. Then Porter pointed a finger at Jax, who began to float in midair. Jax looked alarmed, but couldn't move his arms or legs, both of them pinned to his sides. Porter's grin widened as he flicked his hand and Jax was hurled through the air and slammed into the stone wall. Jax fell to the ground, twitching and his mouth open in silent agony.
"Jax!" Samantha yelled out, worry for her friend clear in her voice.
Porter laughed and said, "YES! Power…I can feel it running through every cell in my body! You will never defeat Master Richtofen, he is far stronger than I am due to absorbing Samantha's powers. And his own experiments,on himself. I doubt even that Illuzio could best him now that Richtofen is powered up again. The event in Bradburn County revitalized him from the preparations and experiments it took to get us here…We shall not fall now."
"KILL HIM!" Samantha yelled to the teens.
The group opened fire on Porter, who just laughed as the bullets, freeze beams, and lasers hit him, doing absolutely nothing to him. The aura around Porter simply changed a lightly darker shade of green, able to easily block all of the attacks aimed at him.
"Fools. Did you really thing you could defeat Group 935? We are all-powerful! WE SHALL NOT BE STOPPED!" Porter laughed manically, flicking his hand forward again, his eyes narrowing and his voice becoming very cold.
"We will avenge what we have lost…None of you will stop us from making her world." Porter said, a twisted smile on his face. Andrew yelled out as he was hurled through the air and slammed into a wall, his head smashing into it rather badly. Porter moved his hand and flicked it again, causing Andrew to move off of the wall and slam into it again and again, each time with more force.
"Stop it!" Judith yelled at Porter.
"Why? This is far too much fun." Porter remarked as Andrew floated away from the wall, his skull cracked open now.
"THAT'S IT!" Samantha screamed as she flew at Porter.
"What the-!" Porter yelled as Samantha vanished inside of his body.
"What…are…you-?" Porter said before he began convulsing. The man's face contorted in pure agony as he screamed and clutched his head, falling to his knees and letting out a howl of pain as blood streamed from his nose and the aura around him flickered weakly.
"W-w-w-what's g-going on! Get out of m-me…you…miserable specter!" Porter yelled as his eyes flickered yellow and his voice gained an ethereal tone.
Suddenly Porter's mouth opened and in Samantha's voice he said, "Shoot him now!"
Judith aimed her L115 Isolator and fired a perfect headshot. Porter yelled out in pain and stumbled backwards a few steps. Porter suddenly flashed green and Samantha was blasted out of his body. Samantha landed on the ground looking stunned, but had a triumphant grin on her face. Porter was bleeding now, dark red blood running down his face as the bullet wound in his forehead sealed up. He growled and yelled, "You…you have been a thorn in my side for the last time Samantha!"
"Hehehehe, like father like daughter!" Samantha replied with an evil smile from the ground.
"Get him!" Nicholas yelled firing his Dual-Cobra's at Porter who snarled in pain as the bullets tore through him savagely, causing him to jerk back in response to the force of the Pack-A-Punched revolvers.
Suddenly three large and heavy metal crates rose into the air and hurled themselves at the zombie slayers, who barely dodged them. Nicholas hurled his Bowie Knife at Porter, who redirected it with a flick of his hand and sent it flying back at him, causing it to embed itself in the wall next to Nicholas's skull. After getting blasted by everyone's weapons and being reduced to a bleeding wreck, having still been thrown off guard by Samantha's possession, Porter let out a yell of rage and sent everyone crashing to the ground with a wild swing of both arms.
"I…Underestimated you. Not again. I will expect this, and be prepared…" Porter panted as his aura flickered into existence once more. His wounds then began to seal up, until he was as unmarked as he was before the confrontation.
"Master Richtofen awaits you above. I hope he kills you all slowly." Porter growled before he dissolved into a cloud of particles.
Everyone ran up to Andrew and Jax, to check on them after being brutalized by Porter. Jax was checking on Andrew, who seemed to be knocked out. After a few minutes of shaking and trying, Andrew regained consciousness.
"That…hurt…" Andrew muttered as he sat up, eyes flickering open.
"You alright?" Jax asked Andrew, who nodded slowly.
"Yeah…just, just give me a sec" Andrew said getting to his feet with a wince.
"What the hell was with Porter? He should've died years ago," Nicholas asked Samantha.
"What I'd like to know is how he has the power of telekinesis." John asked chimed in, earning a thoughtful look from Nicholas.
"Element 115 has strange and unpredictable effects on the living it seems. He mentioned Richtofen was experimenting again…I suppose this is the fruit of his labors. What we can take from this experience, if Porter is alive, is that other members of group 935 may be alive as well."Samantha growled angrily.
The group continued to head through the dark underground, keeping an eye out for anything that could pose a threat in a rather paranoid manner after their brief battle with Porter. After about five minutes, they came across a large spherical room, which housed a variety of machines and systems designed to house and contain what was in the middle of the room.
It was a gigantic meteorite, faintly growing green, red, and blue at seemingly random intervals. It was about the size of an elephant, and even from far away, the group could tell that this was the source of the Element 115.
"How…where did they get this?" Jax asked, awed at the sight.
"More importantly, how can we destroy it?" Nicholas asked Samantha, who shrugged.
"I have no idea. But I think it'd be best if we disconnected the wires that are attached to the meteorite. It could be what's powering the 115 Amplifier," the ghost said after a moment.
Nicholas Andrew, Liam, and Jax began disconnecting the large cluste of wires that were attached to the mysterious meteorite. But it became clear that there was no way to possibly disconnect the wires. No matter what the group used, the wires remained still. The wires also appeared to be made of some strange material, because even Reaper could not cut through them.
"If only we had some giant scissors or something, like, something made of diamond." Nick thought aloud, earning some odd looks from his friends.
"Can't you use that annoying doll to cut the wires?" Liam asked, annoyed.
Suddenly Liam was hurled backwards and landed roughly on the ground.
"What the hell was that?" Liam yelled before the figurine on Nick's back began glowing.
"I…AM NOT…A DOLL!" C.N. bellowed so loudly that everyone heard him.
"What the FUCK!? THAT THING CAN TALK?" Liam yelled in a horrified manner.
"Of course, though I prefer to talk only to my host. Annoying as he may be, he does keep me entertained, and is the most worthy host I've had yet…"C.N. explained to the group.
"Wow…someone actually thinks highly of Nick!" Liam laughed.
"Oh leave him alone let him have a moment of glory for once," Judith admonished, and Liam sighed and said, "Yeah, OK."
"I can't cut those cords in this form. With my other form I could make quick work of them, but not in this state." C.N. explained to the teens.
"You have another form?" Nick asked excitedly.
"Yes, but I can't go into it now. You have to prove yourself to me that you're ready. Until then, you get the sexy figurine version of me," C.N. said with a smug tone in his voice.
"Am I the only one who thinks this 'embodiment of Chuck Norris thing' is just a load of horseshit?" Liam asked no one in particular.
"Then how do we disconnect those wires?" Andrew asked, ignoring Liam.
"Well, we'll just have to make sure that the missile hits the target then" Nicholas said reloading his Dual-Cobra's with a resigned sigh. The group took one last look at the meteorite and moved on, now hesitant to find out what else could be waiting for them in the darkness of the catacombs, or to find out if what awaited them above would be even worse.
Air Force Base:
"TAKE THIS! AND THIS! AND SOME OF THIS! AND MAYBE YOU'D LIKE SOME OF THIS TOO!" Joe yelled firing over and over again and running out of snappy one-liners by the second.
The zombies were coming nonstop now. Joe had run out of ammo for the SPAZ-24, and was now using his Calamity and Jane, trying to stem the flow of zombies, but he wasn't having much luck. Joe growled in frustration and kicked in a zombies leg and pistol-whipped it in the face. Joe dashed up the stairs and onto the metal catwalk, trying to escape from the zombies. A Screecher began to climb up the walls behind Joe, who turned around and stabbed it violently in the skull with his sickle, killing it.
"They just won't stop coming!" Joe muttered as he tossed a grenade down the stairs.
The grenade bounced off three steps and hit the floor, where it exploded violently. Several zombies fell to the ground, now with their legs removed. Joe made quick work of the crawlers and turned around to himself face to face with a twenty foot drop, which was from the Leviathan attacking Nicholas on the catwalk.
"This is ridiculous. How many more of them are there?" Joe muttered reloading Calamity and Jane.
Joe continued to fire until he ran out of Calamity ammo, and was just firing Jane. Joe pulled out a second grenade and hurled it down the Catwalk, blowing the floor up and sending twenty Zombies crashing onto the ground. Joe quickly looked around, looking for some kind of weapon to use. Joe spotted a mini-gun nearby and pulled out his Commando and unloaded on the group of zombies in front of him, emptying three clips into the undead hordes attacking him. Joe sprinted towards the mini-gun on the wall and snatched it up with a grin.
"Eat lead!" Joe yelled he started up the mini-gun and began unloading bullets nonstop at the zombies.
Five minutes later, Joe fell to the ground with a sigh of relief. About a hundred zombies lay dead, for good this time. Joe stepped over the body of a Screecher and opened up a pack of pop tarts that he had stolen from the Sam's Club.
"Hmm…I wonder if there's anything else around here I can use?" Joe muttered as he reloading Jane and walking towards a small maintenance room.
"Jeez, they need codes for just about every room in this freaking place." Joe grumbled as he put in another key code for the maintenance room, completely ignoring the sign that read "DO NOT ENTER."
"Let's see. A few useless machines that will be of no use to anyone except a hobo. A Tesla Coil which can be used for my personal project, and a wrench. Nothing!" Joe said angrily as he turned around and walked out of the room.
"Wait, Tesla Coil! That's exactly what I need!" Joe said whirling around excitedly and running back into the room and running over to the coil.
Joe walked back into the armory and began working on his own personal project. It was yet another contingency plan, besides shotgun to the face, and Joe was somewhat skeptical that it would actually work, mainly because he had yet to find all the parts for it.
But when he did...
Joe grinned and added the Tesla Coil to his invention and said, "Only a few more things to get, and then this baby will be operational…I hope we won't actually need it, but hey, its always nice to have a backup plan."
"Reah!" a Screecher zombie screeched from somewhere in the Armory.
"Well, back to the old grind" Joe sighed grabbing the mini-gun and opening fire on the newest horde of zombies.
Back at the Plot:
"Huh, first time I've done that" Nicholas thought with a grin.
"What are you grinning about?" Jess asked Nicholas as he was snapped out of his thoughts.
"Nothing. So how much further until we get to Richtofen Sam?" Nicholas asked the ghost girl.
"Not much further, I can sense him. It seems that Porter was the only member of Group 935 that's here, besides Richtofen." Samantha said in reply.
"What about Illuzio?" Liam asked Sam.
"He's far away from here. I cannot sense him at all." Samantha said, sounding relieved.
"So, do you think it's just Porter who survived from Group 935, or do you think there are even more of them?" Jess asked Samantha, who frowned.
"They should all be dead by now, because it has been many years and time should have claimed their lives…These experiments on the possible remaining members of Group 935 worry me…" Samantha said in reply, facing the teens.
"So you don't think there are any more of them that are alive besides Porter and Illuzio?" Andrew asked Samantha, who shook her head.
"No, I do...Porter all but confirmed it. Richtofen has shown himself capable of accomplishing the impossible several times over…the remnants of 935 are still out there, and every last one of them must pay for what they've done to me!" Samantha said angrily, her voice filled with hate and pain.
"Well, which ones do you know are dead? For sure?" Jax asked Samantha, who let out a growl of frustration.
"That's the problem! When I became…what I am now, Daddy told me to kill everyone who was with Group 935. Controlling several hundred mindless bodies at once and having them become killing machines is not an easy feat. By the time I figured out how to control the Zombies, they escaped to Earth again!" Samantha yelled angrily, her body flashed green in sheer anger.
"Samantha, please, calm down. We need you to be calm if we're going to actually survive this!" Jess said pleadingly to the ghost girl, who shut her eyes for several seconds.
Samantha's glow disappeared and she looked at the group and said in a harsh tone, "They will pay for this. They WILL pay!"
"We know Samantha, they'll pay for everything they've done to both you, and Doctor Maxis." Nicholas said in a soothing tone.
Samantha looked at each one of the teens, who were now risking their lives because of her mistakes, and her expression softened and she felt the rage leave her. These brave children were risking everything, and believed in her and what they were doing…She had to be calm and strong.
Samantha smiled at the teens in front of her and said, "Thank you. All of you. For helping me try to make things right."
"Richtofen deserves to die for what he's done, to not just you, but to everyone who's suffered at his hands. We only did what was right, Sam." Nick said seriously.
Everyone stared at Nick, amazed that something intelligent had finally came from his mouth.
"For once, I agree with him. He'll pay for everything he's done, don't you worry about that" Liam said to Samantha.
"Thank you. We should keep going," Samantha said, her smile fading slightly.
After a few more minutes of walking through the basement, they came across a stairway, leading upwards. Samantha looked at everyone and nodded, and as one the group walked up the stairway, leading to the one who had started all of this.
And there he stood in front of a machine, presumably the 115 Amplifier. He wore the same outfit he wore In the Black Ops Zombie game mode, except it was all black and red, and he wore a white lab coat over his uniform and the Nazi symbols were gone, replaced with the symbols for Group 935. His eyes were bright blue and he smiled at the teens with his teeth razor sharp, like a demon in the depths of hell.
"Greetings mine children…We haff not face to face as of yet, ja? I am Doctor Edward Richtofen, soon to be ruler of zis miserable world," the Nazi said looking at each of them, until his gaze finally fell upon Samantha.
Samantha let out a yell of fury and screamed, "RICHTOFEN!"
"Foolish child. You couldn't stop mine glorious plan 50 years ago, and you cannot stop me now. You see, it is already too late." Richtofen said with a deadly smile.
"W-what do you mean?" Judith asked cautiously.
Richtofen moved to the side, allowing the teens to have a clear view of the machine behind him. It was about ten feet tall, and was glowing green. It had a hexagon-like shape to it and seemed to be made out of titanium, though there were several 115 meteorites built into the frame of the machine. Green lightning flew across the device, which had several cords running to the telephone tower.
"This device vas activated not even ten minutes ago. Ze pulse has already reanimated millions of corpses all across ze Eastern United States of America. Even if you could destroy this machine, ze damage will still be done," the Nazi said with a grin.
"As Illuzio would put it…Its time for the show to begin," Richtofen breathed as he stepped forward, grinning sadistically as his body began to glow dark green.
"You'll pay for this!" Liam said angrily, causing the Nazi to chuckle.
"Really? I recall Dempshey telling me ze same thing, all those years ago. It is still a cliché and overused line, and does nothing. See? Look at vhere I am now!" Richtofen laughed.
"You've been hiding for the past 50 years, some of which has been in Florida, which as you may have noticed, sucks. Not much to brag about, Richtofen," Nicholas said with a smirk on his face.
"Silence! You are just children, you do not understand mine glorious plan!" Richtofen growled.
"World domination. New World Order. Zombie Army. Yawn. Honestly, if you didn't see this coming, you're as dense as Nick is," Liam said with a scowl, jerking a thumb towards the small teen.
"Even I saw this coming," Nick said with a grin.
"Zis is all a game to you all, isn't it?" Richtofen said in an amused tone.
"Until two days ago, yeah, it kinda was," Nicholas replied with a small sigh, which made Richtofen look at him with a piercing gaze, his eyes glowing bright blue for a moment.
"You…I see that look in your eyes, child. That weight on your shoulders…You know my burden, it seems. So fresh and raw…" Richtofen said in a quiet voice, devoid of any malice or ill-intent. If anything…he sounded sympathetic.
The teens looked at Nicholas questioningly, but the de facto leader simply said, "I don't know anything about a burden. I've always been a bit depressed, and you pulling this shit isn't making it better. If you think you know anything, then know that you hurting and killing people I care about isn't doing me any favors, Doctor."
Richtofen smiled a little then before closing his eyes, as if in deep thought. "Hmmm…I shall make your deaths swift and painless, so as to relieve your suffering…Well, your death will be swift, anyway."
Suddenly Porter materialized out of thin air and said "Doctor Richtofen. We must finish the preparations here, lest we fall behind schedule. Seam and Oswald need to know-"
"Of course. Let me deal with the children and the pitiful spirit, and zhen I vill join you." Richtofen said with a curt nod, and Porter nodded, and then faded away as he teleported.
"So. Vho Vould like to die first?" Richtofen asked the teens as he held out his hands. The Doctor held out his hands before a burst of force suddenly sent the teens all crashing t the ground as Richtofen's body was engulfed in a surge of raging green energy. It didn't take a genius to figure out just what the energy was, and that the teens were facing their death. Power poured from the madman, who grinned manically as electricity crackling around his body. Samantha gasped and shrank back, utterly horrified at the sight of Richtofen
"Jess, get it ready. Signal me when it's in position." Nicholas muttered to the brown-haired teen, who nodded.
"Bring it on you psychotic Nazi," Andrew said with a grin, stepping forward and leveling the scythe at the Nazi, who cackled with glee. Andrew threw himself at Richtofen, slashing at his neck, only for Richtofen to effortlessly catch the teen's blade with one hand and throw him across the room, causing him to violently crash into the wall yet again and slump down to the ground with a weak groan. Richtofen laughed quietly as he turned to the rest of the group, who was eyeing Richtofen in fear, but nevertheless stepped forward to challenge Richtofen, with Jax, Liam, John, and Nicholas stepping forward.
Nick hung back and muttered to Judith, "Stay hidden, and then snipe him while he's distracted."
"Good idea. Watch my back, he might have other Zombies around to attack us" Judith muttered as she aimed her L115 Isolator at the Nazi.
Jax began firing from his Dual-Wield Ray Guns, a silent scowl on his face as Nicholas unloaded onto the Nazi with his Dual-Wield Cobra's. John fired from his Winter's Fury and the Porter's X2 Ray Gun, both Wonder Weapon's spray the doctor with ice and energy. Andrew managed to get to his feet and fired with his Famas at the Doctor, unloading an entire clip into him. And Liam fired both his AUG-5OM3 and his AK74fu2 at Richtofen, who was quickly engulfed in a cloud of smoke from the gunfire.
"Did we get him?" Andrew asked with a grunt.
"Not even close," Richtofen said as the smoke cleared, revealing that he had taken no damage from the assault. His body was glowing bright green still, the aura around him still flaring around him. The teens continued to fire at him, but Richtofen seemed to be immune to their attacks.
They however, were very susceptible to his attacks.
Richtofen vanished on the spot and reappeared in front of Andrew, grabbing him by the neck and throwing him to the ground as he snatched the teen's scythe away from him. Richtofen laughed before flipping Reaper and firing the deadly spear end of it at Jax, who yelled out as the weapon tore through his arm. Richtofen then hurled the scythe with a laugh and clipped Jax on the hip, sending him crashing onto the ground. Richtofen smirked and swiftly moved out of the way, inhumanly quickly, as Liam stabbed forward with his sickle. Richtofen grabbed the teen by the arm and swiftly hurled him across the room effortlessly and caused him to fall onto the ground with a howl of pain, twitching.
John and Nicholas tried to intervene, but John was forced back as a bolt of shimmering green lightning struck down all around him. Nicholas stood alone as Richtofen turned towards him.
"What are you?" Nicholas asked Richtofen with a hint of awe in voice, something he couldn't help.
Richtofen's grin was horrifying. His response was even worse.
"I am a man. A man who has seen this world and what it can do…And who will see it burnt to the ground, and rebuilt from the ashes. The undead will act as my servants, before the final show begins...To answer your question…I am a man who will not be stopped." Richtofen said, his voice taking on an ethereal tone and a hard edge.
This was not the words of an insane man. This was speech of a man who was hell-bent on a goal…A man with a vendetta and a hate so powerful Nicholas could barely understand it.
Jess decided that this was her chance, now that Nicholas had Richtofen distracted, and suddenly vanished into thin air, thanks to the still active effects of Invizi-Fizz. She quietly snuck behind the machine and placed the transmitter next to it and pressed several buttons on it and folded the transmitter again. Richtofen glanced in Jess's general direction for a moment, causing her to freeze until he looked away.
"OK, it's set up. It's all up to Joe now…" Jess muttered as she pulled out her MP5K, taking a deep breath to prepare herself as Nicholas re-aimed his weapons at Richtofen, who laughed coldly as he raised a single hand towards the teen.
"All right, give me a second and…" Judith fired a shot at Richtofen with her L115 Isolator, having spent the entire battle making sure she had a clear shot at him. The bullet flew towards Richtofen, who cocked his head slightly to the side, causing the bullet to fly by his ear and embed itself into the wall not an inch from Jess's head.
"Eep!" Jess squeaked.
Richtofen chuckled again and said, "Fools. You do not understand the extent of mine powers, do you? I am blessed with complete and total control over mine zombified minions. I am a living generator of the energies within Element 115. I have complete control over the M.P.D! I am ageless as a result of Samantha's pitiful attempt to stop me…You have fought well, but this is the end."
"SILENCE, TRAITOR! You won't get away with this!" Samantha yelled at Richtofen, who laughed in reply.
"I already haff, mine dear Samantha. All I need is ten more minutes, and zhee 115 Amplifier will allow me to control enough Zombies to control the entire United States! The world will come soon after this…You fools are finished!" Richtofen cackled at the ghost girl.
"Damn it…" Nicholas hissed as he saw Jess jump from cover, firing her MP5K at Richtofen, who shrugged off the bullets like they were nothing. Nicholas then he noticed his phone was vibrating.
"Guys, stall him!" Nicholas muttered as he slowly crept away from the fight, where Andrew and Liam dashed at Richtofen in an attempt to kill him.
Nicholas hid behind a crate and flipped open his phone and said, "Yeah?"
"Nicholas, I'm getting a signal from a location close by." Joe said to his best friend.
"Joe, Group 935 is still alive and Richtofen is practically invincible! Are you ready with that missile?" Nicholas asked, a note of panic in his voice.
"Ready to go-eh, hold on," Joe said after a moment. BAM! "...OK, now I'm ready to go."
"How long will it take the missile to get here?" Nicholas asked Joe.
"Two minutes by my estimate," Joe replied quickly.
"OK, fire it in one minute. Call me again when you fire it, and call me a third time when we've got one minute left. Got it?" Nicholas instructed the teen.
"Yeah, be careful bro," Joe said with a note of worry in his voice.
"Right, you too." Nicholas said hanging up the phone and stepping out from behind the crate.
Andrew fell to the ground with a grunt as a blast of green lightning flew by him, narrowly missing his skull. Richtofen grinned down at him, with green static flying around his fingers as surges of black lightning flicked around Richtofen.
"Power…ultimate power..." Richtofen breathed as he shot a blast of green lightning at Andrew, who blocked it with the blade of Reaper, sending the beam skyward and tearing through the ceiling. Richtofen was engulfed in a beam of moonlight, his smile utterly demonic.
Nicholas fired at Richtofen's skull, which would've been a perfect headshot if he hadn't ducked at the last second. Then in the blink of an eye, he was in front of Nicholas. He had vanished and reappeared in a burst of energy, a wild gleam in his eyes now completing the mad smile.
"What the-!" Nicholas began to say before Richtofen grabbed Nicholas by the throat and lifted him into the air effortlessly. The teen fought for air, dropping his weapons onto the ground and trying to pry Richtofen's fingers away from his throat, but his efforts were useless.
"You…are nothing! You and your pathetic world vill bow down to me!" Richtofen whispered into Nicholas's face, rage and glee in his voice. Nicholas starred into those eyes for a moment, before he suddenly felt the phone in his pocket vibrate, meaning that it was Joe who had called. The Missile was on its way here, and in two minutes this entire compound would be reduced to a flaming pile of nothing.
"Never," Nicholas whispered back to the Nazi with the last of his breath, who smirked.
Nicholas suddenly yelled out in agony as green lightning shot from Richtofen into him. As he learned much much later on, this was a very very small amount of what Richtofen could do, but it still hurt unlike anything else the teen had experienced. Nicholas convulsed and choked as Richtofen electrocuted and suffocated him. The moonlight shone down, giving Richtofen an even more menacing look.
"Fools…all of you…you cannot stop me. Not now, not ever!" Richtofen said with a growl, his mouth barred into a horrible demonic smile.
Richtofen then stiffened up and let go of Nicholas, who fell to the ground, gasping for air. Suddenly Richtofen's eyes turned bright yellow and he stumbled backwards and yelled out in pain.
"GET…OUT OF ME YOU UNGRATEFUL LITTLE BRAT!" Richtofen roared as Richtofen fell to his knees, clutching his skull.
Suddenly Richtofen twitched and Samantha yelled out, "Get him! I can't hold him for much longer!"
Suddenly a shot rang out and Nicholas saw something collide into Richtofen's skull. Nicholas's eyes widened as he saw black blood gush out of Richtofen's face, the first shot to actually hurt him. Richtofen yelled and whirled around to see Judith aiming her L115 Isolator at him.
"Stay still, the next shot's going to go right between your eyes!" Judith said coolly as she took aim again.
"Fools! You vill pay for zhat!" Richtofen said as he brought up a hand, crackling with green lightning, and pointed it at Judith, even as the wound on his face healed. A direct headshot with a Pack-A-Punched sniper rifle, healed within seconds. A huge green lightning bolt shot at Judith, who gasped and remained frozen where she stood, until Liam came from out of nowhere and tackled her out of the way, narrowly avoiding the attack himself.
Suddenly there was a shout and Samantha flew out of Richtofen's body and fell onto the ground, looking strangely exhausted. Richtofen straightened up, clearly weakened, and said in a disorientated way, "You all are more trouble than I thought you'd be…I underestimated you, Samantha…"
"Guys! We've got to get out of here, now!" Nicholas said shakily getting to his feet.
"Aw, leaving so soon?" Richtofen said firing a blast of lightning at Nicholas, who jumped to the side and barely avoided it. Richtofen's aim was thrown off, but he'd recover, and this time he'd stop holding back.
"I am just toying vith you all. I haff not even begun to fight with mine full power," Richtofen laughed as he held his hand out, charging his fist with a deadly surge of energy.
John suddenly fired ten shots with the Winter's Fury around Richtofen, trapping him within a huge mound of ice. The mound stood twenty feet tall, and Richtofen was completely enclosed inside of the ice. Then, cracks began to form in the ice.
"RUN!" John yelled running towards the door, getting ready to freeze Richtofen again if he needed to. The teens who had been injured managed to get to their feet and hurried towards the door towards John, who was firing at the enormous padlock on the door. After three shots, it cracked in half after Andrew sliced it in half. Jax, Andrew, Liam, John, and Nicholas pushed and shoved the huge metal door, but it wouldn't budge.
"What are we going to do!?" Jess yelled as she kicked the door frantically.
"Get out of the way!" Nick yelled running up to the door.
Nick swung C.N. as hard as he could at the huge steel door, knocking the entire thing off of its hinges with a wicked shockwave of energy. Nick looked at the figurine with wonder, and noticed that there was something wrong with it.
"Guys…C.N…he's chipped," Nick said, pointing to a small piece of the hat, which had fallen off.
"One step closer, Nick. One step closer to unleashing your full potential." C.N. replied in a rather pleased tone, throwing everyone off.
"We've got thirty seconds!" Nicholas yelled frantically, only for a scream of fury to cut him off.
Suddenly there was a flash of green from behind them and Richtofen emerged from the ice block, looking pissed and shaking with anger.
"YOU WILL ALL BOW TO ME!" Richtofen yelled as green lightning shot from his body.
"Guys, run! I'll hold him off!" John said firing both of his wonder weapons at the Nazi as he approached them, fists clenched and radiating energy as John frantically fired at the Nazi while the others ran outside. The missile was easily visible in the sky, not even a two hundreds yards away.
"JOHN! GET OUT OF THERE!" Nicholas screamed at John, who smiled bitterly and remained where he was, firing at Richtofen as he approached. The missile came closer, and everyone ran for cover and barely got behind the truck before-
BOOOOOOM!
The colossal explosion from the missile sent all of the teens flying onto the ground. The heat from the explosion was hot enough to where even from the safety of the other side of the truck, they felt like they were in a furnace. About a minute later, the explosion had subsided and the teens slowly emerged from behind the truck, debris and fire and ash raining down everywhere.
The warehouse had been reduced to a flaming pile of nothing. Pieces of concrete were still burning, and there was a few scraps of metal left from all of the machines in the warehouse. There were no traces of Richtofen, to their relief…
John was nowhere to be found.
"John?" Nicholas called as he began to sift through the wreckage.
Nothing.
"John!" Jess called out.
Nothing.
"Maybe he got knocked out. Let's look for him." Samantha suggested tentatively.
Ten minutes of searching the burning wreckage, nothing. John had disappeared. He wasn't in the wreckage, neither was Richtofen, but that was to be expected. He had probably warped away, just like Porter had.
"Guys, I think we have to face facts…John…didn't make it out of there when the missile hit..." Samantha said softly.
"No…" Jax grunted.
Everyone stood at the foot of the wreckage, trying to comfort one another. There friend…gone. They had been through so much, and had survived through so many things. It had been as though their streak of good luck would never end…and then just like that. John was gone. Dead.
Forever.
Suddenly a noise cut through the group's grieving. It was a tall figure on a military-issue motorcycle came zooming into the parking lot. The figure had a Commando and a SPAZ-24 on his back, with two black pistols as his sidearm's. It was Joe.
"Hey guys, you won't believe…hey, what happened?" Joe asked, noticing the expressions on everyone's face, his own grin slipping off of his face.
"John…John didn't make it Joe…he's gone..." Andrew muttered as he sat down on the ground.
Joe looked at the flaming wreckage for a solid ten seconds, and then let out a sigh.
"I told you guys he'd be the first one to die, but man, I never expected this...I was just joking around with him," Joe said sitting down on the ground, looking miserable even as he said those words.
And as one the group mourned the loss of their friend John, who gave his life so that they could live. Richtofen had gotten away, and more death and destruction was lying in wait for the young zombie Slayers. So they cried, and let their tears fall freely without shame. As one they mourned, and as one they would forever remember this dark and infamous night.
End of Chapter:
Group 935 is back, the zombie-slayers lost an important member, and the zombies are still coming strong!
STAY TUNED! AND PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS GOOD AND AWESOME, REVIEW! It gives my miserable life meaning!
Hehehe, got a little overdramatic there. Anyway, please review and show your support!
Until next time, FlygonNick out!