Edits 25/05/2019 Updated grammar, spelling and James Name.

Chapter 9

This was hopeless, Mike thought as bullet after bullet buried itself in the giant, and still it came. Not once flinching nor twitching at the rain of bullets tearing through it. He'd seen many monsters since this crisis started, but nothing as resilient as this guy.

The thing walked slowly as if it didn't need to hurry, as if it had all the time in the world to reach and kill them all, and the thought that it could be killed itself wasn't occurring to it. With each step it produced heavy footfalls and it still had that cold, annoyed expression on its face. What did it even want with them? The monster stopped as Mike released a spent clip from his pistol and inserted a fresh one from his pocket, and fired. Shots entered through the things head and chest but still, he wasn't dropping. His size made him hard to miss, but he didn't behave like he was feeling any of those bullets at all.

"I'm out!" Someone shouted over the bangs of several other pistols. They were fast running out of ammo. Why wasn't this guy dying?!

As the creature advanced towards them, they backed away. They were trapped anyway, because it was pushing them back into a dead end section of the apartment block. The only exit was through that smashed window James had fallen through. Hopefully, it was quick for him and he now rested in peace, not shuffling around like one of those undead monsters outside.

Click, click, went Mikes pistol. He was out of ammo and he had no extra clips left now. In desperation, he threw his pistol at the creature and it made sharp contact with its head, but the monster didn't even blink. Mike regretted that action a few moments later, because it was as if he'd given the monster an idea. It reached over as bullets pelted it, and wrenched an open, solid door off its hinges as if it were made of paper; and he tossed the heavy door right at them!

Thinking quickly, Mike ducked out of the way, through another open door. The others weren't so lucky, they caught the door firmly on their heads and went flying back. As Mike landed and the heavy thud came of the door impacting the far wall, the sound of gun fire behind him was instantly silenced. All he could hear was the slow, heavy footsteps of that big guy as he came closer and closer to his hiding place.

Gun fire then came again. But this was from much further away down the hall, probably from behind that creature. Bullets rang out from wherever, but Mike still got to his feet and backed away from the door when the massive figure literally punched his way through the wall and entered the small apartment. This guy was persistent, he also had no concept of doors. Mike quickly dashed back out the open door and ran past the hole as the giant struggled to turn around in the low ceiling, apartment building. Mike was certain he felt a breeze as a giant hand snapped shut just behind his neck.

At the far end of the apartment building some of the others had set up a barricade, made of old bed rails, doors and mattresses. It looked very feeble and Mike doubted if it would stop that Hulk like monster from breaking through it. Either way, he ran as fast as he could towards it.

"Mike, look out!" Someone cried from the barricade, and Mike turned around in time to see the massive creature advancing towards them rapidly, running so fast that Mike would've been ran down, had he not dived out of the way at the right moment.

The monster rushed past him like a speeding train and ploughed through the barricade as if it was nothing. His heavy feet instantly crushing whoever he stepped on. Those who had survived this assault, because they weren't in his direct path or were further away, began to retreat up the stairs away from the monster. It slowly started to follow them, the steps creaking badly under its weight.

Mike however, had problems of his own. He'd dived out of the way, but it was in that wall-less area with the staircase they'd destroyed to stop the undead advancing up it. Where not so long ago he'd killed an undead creature with a fire axe. The corpse still lay there, head split open. But the problem was he was now hanging off the edge of the floor which, thanks to the giants sprint, had become incredibly flimsy and felt like it might collapse at any moment. Worse still, all the noise they'd been making in here, firing guns and screaming for more ammo had attracted the attention of the undead. He could hear them banging on the walls and the glass outside wanting to be let in; and by the sound of it, there were a lot of them.

Glass smashed somewhere! They were in!

He desperately tried to hold on and pull himself up, especially when he heard the low moan of an undead; a low moan they only made when they had spotted food.

Not wanting to turn around or look, Mike heaved himself up with all his might and just managed climb up and get his foot out of the way as he felt clammy hands snatch and scrape at his sneakers.

He was now back up on the first floor, and he moved as far away from the edge as he could. He breathed a sigh of relief. More glass shattering and the sound of wood straining from below. Then a loud crashing followed by the moans of a sea of zombies entering the building. As he stood however, he heard the floor creak and sag underneath him. It was going to collapse!

Quickly, Mike ran out of the way as the floor collapsed from under him. His foot slipped and he landed on the now slanting floor. It had snapped at one end and fell in, creating a sort of ramp down to the ground floor. A ramp the undead could use to get up into the building!

Mike tried to pull himself back up to the first floor, his fingers gripping at the floor above, and he tried to drag himself along; spurred on by the countless moans of the dead. He felt cold hands grab his ankles and begin to pull on him. Without looking at who had him Mike lifted his one foot and tried to stamp down on it, but the thing refused to let go.

He pulled and heaved himself up, and when his torso was safely on the first floor with his legs still dangling down the ramp he turned over to see what was dragging itself up. It was a girl, blonde haired, white blanked eyed and paled skinned. When she was alive she might've been pretty, but with half of her right cheek missing and blood dribbling down her clothes she wasn't going to win any beauty competition now.

He kicked out with his feet, smacking her directly in the face. The persistent corpse moan and groaned as if it could actually feel these impacts, but Mike knew they didn't feel pain; except maybe hunger pains. Another impact to the face and Mike broke her nose and several blood stained teeth fell out of her mouth.

One zombie grabbing at his legs was bad enough. Imagine now a sea of them climb up to him, all with the intent of eating him alive. In desperation, he tried to pull himself away when his clawing fingers found something. A long piece of wood, a piece of wood that had come from the broken barricade.

Seizing his new weapon firmly in his grip he bashed the zombie at his legs over the head repeatedly until its grip faltered and he pulled himself free.

The moment he was clear, he crawled over towards the broken barricade. Many of his fellow Red Skulls lay motionless on the floor, dead. Would they become like these things in a minute? He wondered, because they didn't die from a bite. Well, before they did Mike decided to take anything useful from them, like a pistol he'd just taken from Rich's corpse. Rest in Peace. Mike took aim with his new weapon, and blasted a girl zombie that had just climbed the ramp and had just gotten to its feet. She caught the bullet straight in the head and her undead moans came to a sudden stop. She fell back into the pack hindering the other dead from climbing up.

More gunshots from upstairs. Even if Mike could stop this army of the undead, there was still that monster upstairs to deal with. Mike was fast considering abandoning this post and running upstairs. There was no way he could stop this army on his own. They'd probably have to abandon the hideout and escape through the emergency exit on the fourth floor.

Mike was about to run up the stairs to help his fellow survivors when he heard something, something unusual which made him stop.

"Now hold on a minute, mate!" Said a voice. A very calm sounding voice with a British type accent. There was now a man standing at the top of the ramp looking down at the zombies trying to crawl up. Where did he come from?

The man pointed down at one of the zombies. "Are those trainers?" He asked. "Sorry mate, you can't come in!" The zombies just moaned and groaned at him and some foolishly reached up to grab at him. But had started sliding back down the ramp into their fellow undead. "Moan all you like, those are the rules, if you're dead then you're not allowed inside!" With that, he reached into his jacket pocket and produced a long crowbar. He jammed it into the small gap, between the floor and the wooden ramp, and with one heave he not only broke it off, but it flipped over and it landed on top of the zombies trying to climb it. Halting their advance further into the building.

The man turned and Mike now got a better look at the guy. He was in a red suit that didn't look creased or stained or worn at all. As if it'd just been laundered. His head was also large, balled and green. He looked directly at Mike, his face was just as awkward. Apart from looking weird it was big, green, and rubbery. The man grinned, showing a row of perfect, white baseball card sized teeth.

His blue eyes rolled to one size and he listened to the moans and groans of the zombies below.

"Listen to them, the children of the night." He said his accent, now of someone from a 50's Dracula movie. "All chanting the words, FEED ME!"

Mike hastily lifted his gun to point at the green guy.

"Say, I'm looking for someone." His accent was American now and sounded like his usual accent. "Have you seen him, he's so tall..." the green guy mimed with his hands "So wide, pale, balled, wears a big leather trench coat, doesn't talk much, mostly indestructible? Essentially the Hulks inbred, white trash cousin." Who the heck was this guy? Was he something to do with that monster upstairs? "Only his mom says 'it's time for him to come in for his tea.'"

A loud thud came from upstairs and the building actually shook slightly.

"Ah, never mind. I think I know where he is." Before Mike could blink the green man whooshed past him so fast he couldn't believe it, and he was running up the stairs after the big guy.

Mike stood there and blinked a few times. Did he hit his head when the floor collapsed?

James didn't so much run up the stairs more like bounce up them. Wearing the Mask really made the world seem like a strange place. It was weird having your body mangled and not be able to feel it. It was odd when you had sharp objects sticking out of you, and not either bleed nor feel the pain. But it was preferable. Pain just held him back, without the pain thing he could do anything.

Getting revenge over David Brown was fun; but he'd completely forgotten that there were people back here in danger of a giant in a leather jacket. He must stay focused, it was easy to get distracted in this thing. Must remain focused and kill the monster before it hurts anyone else.

James reached the fourth floor and burst through the door frame; that had been made wider by the giant breaking through it.

"Heeeeeeeereeeeee's James!" he said sliding into the corridor on his tap shoes.

There it was! The giant! He was slowly walking towards a bunch of helpless people firing guns uselessly at it. James whistled to get the big guys attention. He wasn't scare of him, why should he be? He can't be killed while he wore the Mask. The tall man in the coat actually stopped briefly and turned around to view where the noise had come from.

"Hey there! Shouldn't you be green with bolts coming out of your neck?" James shouted at the giant man in the leather coat. The giant then turned around and began walking towards him! Which James thought of as odd since there are half a dozen people behind him who were begging for his attention, what with the guns and all. For whatever reason, it seemed James was his next target.

The giant slowly walked right up to him and James didn't move or falter, or show the slightest hint of concern for his own safety as the thing raised its arms above its head and was about to bring those powerful hands down on top of him. But at the last minute, zip! James moved out of the way just enough to avoid the hands which crashed into the floor, creating a sizable dent in it. Then before the giant could lift his hands up again James moved around the giants back and quickly climbed up onto his shoulders. Out of nowhere he pulled out of the folds of reality; what looked like two drills. One in each hand, and he placed them on either side of the giants neck. With a loud whizzing noise the two machines drove two Frankenstein like bolts straight into the giants neck.

"That's better!" James commented as he leapt down before the giant could grab him. It turned sluggishly around to view him again.

"Say Frank!" He decided to name the mute giant Frank, after Frankenstein's monster. "Are you related to Hightower? One eyed guy, carries a rocket launcher, has an unhealthy obsession with STARS?"

With surprising speed Frank grabbed James Mask covered face in one giant hand and literally crushed his head like and egg. James didn't feel anything as his skull cracked in several places and collapsed; and he was sure he was undoubtedly still alive due to the Mask protecting its wearer from harm. But for a second he was slightly shaken.

"I'll take that as a 'no' then shall I?" His crushed mouth struggled to say. James breathed in heavily and held his breath. His head then regained its original shape with a pop. Grinning James was hoping to see the look of bemusement on Franks face. But unlike Hightower, Franks face didn't seem capable of any sort of emotion at all, except that cold looking terminator like stare. "Oh, you're no fun!"

Suddenly, Frank reached out and grabbed at James' red suit, and he heaved him up off the floor so his feet dangled in mid air. Franks other hand came up and clapped around his head again, and he pulled hard. What was he trying to do, rip his head off? His neck didn't break however, instead he felt it stretch like rubber.

"Hey, what do you think I am. A stretch- arm-strong?" James could feel his face also begin to stretch out of proportion again as his head and back stretched with his neck. "I hope you have the number of a good chiropractor, buddy." He managed to mutter, "because this is really going to hurt in the morning!" The giant let go of his head and everything snapped back into place.

The mute giant raised his fist, and punched James incredibly hard in the face. His head fell backwards and impacted with the wall just behind him. The force of Frank's fist impacting both him and the wall, resulted in quite a few cracks in the brickwork. When Frank removed his fist James could feel that his entire head had been flattened and imprinted into the wall.

"You know, you guys really leave me flat." He never knew he was capable of these witty one liners. He just seemed to be pull these out of nowhere. Just like the cricket bat he'd just pulled from down the waistline of his trousers, and he whacked Frank over the head with it. Which didn't seem to result in anything but a snapped cricket bat.

"Oh, now that really isn't cricket old bean." James said imitating a very posh British accent as his head peeled off the wall and began to re-inflate back to its normal shape. "It's more like, boxing."

James, somehow now had a pair of big red boxing gloves on and he bashed Frank in the head very hard in the face several times. He then tried rapidly punching him in the chest, his fists a blur of motion. But Frank didn't seem to react. Finally James raised his foot sharply between the giants legs and kneed him in the nuts. But even that... Oh come on! What's with this guy?! Surely that hurt a little?

"Ah! That's why you're so grumpy." He said grinning to show his freakishly large teeth. "You were neutered as a child weren't you? Well, benefit for the human race. At least you can't reproduce."

Frank grabbed James' shirt again, and he lifted the masked man up and threw him down the corridor at the retreating gang members, who were exiting through that door onto the roof of the building next-door. James screamed as he flew straight at them. They ducked as James slammed straight into, and through the wall next to the door leaving an inverted James shaped hole, and he came crashing down to the floor on the opposite side. Still James had felt no damage to himself, or pain but he felt dizzy, so dizzy he didn't feel like getting up right now.

"Touchy I see." James said, tweeting birds circling his head.

The rest of the gang seemed too busy to notice the guy with the big green head across the roof with a flock of birds circling his head, as they primed their weapons ready to fire on Frank the moment he showed his ugly balled head. They probably assumed the green guy was another dead or something. What a surprise they were in for when he finally got his breath back... and when the world finally stopped spinning.

"What the heck are you doing?" Hissed a voice from someone coming close to him. He shook his head and the tweeting birds vanish. He turned his head which was still spinning to see it was Elaine Grant talking to him. Ah Elaine, be still my beating heart! He thought, as he felt his heart pounding in his chest. She was very pretty, he had to admit now. Especially when she was angry. Usually he wouldn't approach her. Let's face it, the world is going to hell, you've usually got more important things on your mind. But for some reason James now felt attracted to her, or was less afraid to show it.

"Hey, you know you're pretty when you're angry." He said, grinning as he quickly stood up and put his arms around her. "What do you say we grab a bite to eat after I return Frank back to special needs?" But Elaine didn't take this well. She broke his embrace with a quick swipe of her arms and took a few steps back.

"I said that thing was dangerous! What are you doing wearing that Mask again?" At first James didn't answer that question, because in the next few seconds he felt a sharp impact on his head as a flying heat radiator smashed into his head, knocking him back down again. Then James decided to answer the question as he lay on the floor with a large U shaped dent in his head. "What am I doing with the Mask? I'M GETTING MY ASS KICKED, WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?!"

The giant broke through the small door frame with ease and was on the roof with both James and the other survivors. Odd though, despite the fact he had dozens of other people wanting to play with him all the big guy seemed to care about was James.

Quickly James grabbed Elaine, lifted her up and sped towards the survivors before putting her down again. "You just wait here while I teach this guy a lesson." As he finished this though Frank forcefully grabbed the back of his suit and launched him across the roof again. He landed softly, rolling over and over until he came to the edge and stopped just before falling. He was already over the edge, but he grabbed the edge of the ledge with his toes and he hauled himself back up with his toe muscles.

Again the giant advanced towards him, ignoring all the other gang members firing guns at him. What's with this guy, he's being attacked by several other people why is he desperate to get at him? James lay on the floor, trying to get his breath back when Frank grabbed him by the left arm and violently lifted him up off the ground again. James eyes rolling around in his skull.

"Mind if we take five?" James said holding up his free hand to show all five fingers. But Frank didn't show any indication he understood as his own fingers clamped over James nose and he yanked on it so hard his small hooked nose stretched out. When Frank realised his nose wasn't just going to rip off he let go and the nose hung long and limply down towards the ground, almost three feet in length. The giant raised his hand to try something else, but James somehow... he didn't understand how, lifted his nose up by itself and produced a very loud elephant like squeal from the end of it and blasted Frank full in the face, spraying him with snot and mucus.

Frank was not amused. Didn't this guy ever smile? Or become angry? Or anything like that?! What the heck was with that moody look he seemed to have? Frank grabbed James' long nose, and using it like a rope he swung him by it over his head and smacked him into the floor in another futile attempt to kill him. It didn't work obviously, but it did cause stars to erupt from his head and circle him in a cartoon vision of dizziness.

"You know, I'm more universally known as the skipping rope." James said with his nose still trapped in Franks grip. He was yanked again as the giant slowly lifting him up off the ground by his nose so his feet were just inches from the ground.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, STOP! This is a waste of time." James pleaded and Frank actually stop, and looked like he was actually listening to him. "Now listen, Frank, sorry but..." James was conscious that smoke had began hissing out of his nose, as if he was smoking and blowing the smoke out through his nose. His mouth opened and he spat a large round, black orb into Franks face. The heavy metal ball bounced off him and fell to Franks large feet It was hissing as a short piece of string burned away from the top of it. It was on a very short fuse! "...this is gonna hurt you, more then it'll hurt me!" He grinned. Frank didn't have time to do anything useful as the bomb exploded with a very loud bang.

Not even an explosion seemed able to kill James while he was wearing this mask. He was covered in soot and the force of the bomb had thrown him high into the air. He was rapidly climbing higher and higher, but he felt completely fine. What about Frank he wondered? While in the air he noticed a large hole in the wall of the building opposite the street to hideout. Something burst out the other side of that building and rammed into the following building, leaving yet another hole in it. A 'Frank' shaped hole. James wondered briefly if Frank managed to survive that blast. But in reality he didn't care.

This was the life!

The ground receded away from him rapidly as he shot like a rocket further and further into the air. The bomb was powerful and produced quite a lot of smoke but he knew the other survivors and Elaine would be alright down there. Maybe covered in soot, but they'd be fine. He was sure of it, because he was wearing the Mask. Though he didn't know how it worked, it gave him the ability to warp reality into whatever freaking way he pleased. He wanted the bomb to only effect him and Frank, and so the Mask turned it into a reality.

His thoughts suddenly turned to Elaine Grant. What a hotty! All that long, red, flowing hair. Her cute little face, her ample bosom, oh! Why didn't he try to get her before?! Okay, he was a little shy at first, maybe because he thought it wasn't the time or the place to be thinking about girls. That and Jacob threatened to kill him. Well stuff that prick Jacob! Elaine thought he was scum, and so did he. To win Elaine's affections James was going to use these powers to help the hideout. He's already saved it from a zombie attack, and an attack by the Hulk's Goth son, but he could do so much more.

Hey, hold on. He could see the RPD from way up here he realised. Wow, it had seen better days by the look of it. A helicopter had crashed into the building on one side and there was a hole in the roof as if something had been dropped through. It also looked like there had been quite an horrific crash between a gas tanker and the wall just outside the back door to the precinct. Must've happened recently, because the flames were still burning bright, and out of those flames staggered countless undead. James was glad he left the RPD when he did. The place looked like it was going downhill fast, and he wondered briefly if Marvin or Chief Irons were still alive in that building.

Now hold on a second! The group back at the hideout needed weapons and ammo, especially after that fight with Frank; and the RPD had scattered ammunition cashes all over the place, he remembered! It was in case of a terrorist attack, the ammunition cashes had been moved to 'safer locations' to prevent them falling into the wrong hands. They were hidden so well that even the officers who worked there couldn't find them. That's one of the reasons they had been so unorganised and so unprepared for the zombie outbreak. They didn't have the fire power to hold them back.

Well then, while wearing this Mask he was sure as hell to find all the cashes and deliver the weapons right to those who needed them. But first he had to get down from his vantage point in the air. Though it was against every instinct he had, against every alarm bell ringing in his head... He simply did nothing.

SLAM!

He smacked into the ground as gravity returned him to earth much quicker than anything he could produce. Unless he could produce a cannon from his head, and wearing this Mask he guessed he probably could. His fall had been cushioned though by a car, a pale green hatch back which collapsed and crumpled in on itself with the impact. Slowly he got up, he stepped out onto the pavement and realised he had shards of glass sticking out of his body at awkward angles and 'awkward' places, and still there was no pain.

Man, he loved this mask!

He spun on his heels with laughter before heading off towards the front gate of the RPD. The night was still young, the zombies had overran the police department and James had weapons to locate.

LOCK AND LOAD!

To be continued...

Authors notes: James/Mask's fights with the Tyrants are based off the Mask's fights with Walter from the Mask Comic's and TV series.