Chapter 25: Hotel

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

Ark sang softly to himself as Sion drove, ignoring the pointed looks he was receiving from the Smoker. He wondered how the survivors were doing after they left so suddenly without so much as leaving a note. He also wondered if they were mad, yelping as Sion hit a rough patch. " Oi! Watch the road!"

Sion struggled with the wheel. " I am being careful! But this road is not exactly smooth sailing!" He blew a strand of hair out of his face, making a mental note to cut it later. In order to deal with the conditions of the south, he and Ark changed his outfits when they had stopped earlier, the Smoker now wearing a simple black t-shirt and the familiar army style jacket wrapped around his waist. He wore a simple pair of brown pants and black shoes as well. Ark had switched out his old clothing for a pair of form fitting blue jeans, a red belt loosely hanging around his waist, a form fitting navy blue v-neck shirt. He still wore his old shoes, but he made a mental note to get some new ones once they found a city.

Sion hit a rough patch again, growling as he nearly hit his head on the windshield from pitching forward. Ark was not so lucky, smacking his head against the windshield, an irritated groan coming from the backseat, Sion and Ark both whirling to look at the covered backseat. Chad groaned and sat up from the seat, rubbing his head. " Can't a guy get some decent sleep around here?" he said angrily.

" What are you doing HERE?" Sion shouted, Chad covering his ears.

" Not so loud..." he complained. " I knew you two were gonna pull something like this, so I waited in the only available vehicle." he yawned again and stretched out, sitting up. " So, where are we heading?"

Sion shook his head, sighing. " South..." he said. " Ark had some sort of desire to go, and I felt as if I just needed to go."

Chad shook his head. " Did you guys say goodbye?" he asked, Sion and Ark looking away. " Guess that answers that. You realize if we ever meet them again, we're gonna get seriously pounded, right?"

Ark nodded. " I know..." he whimpered, trying not to let the image of a demonic Zoey overtake his mind. He looked back out at the area, yelping again as Sion hit yet another rough patch. " Are you AIMING for rough spots?"

Sion shot him a look. " We're in the middle of the goddamn forest! Excuse me for trying NOT to hit every damn tree!"

Chad held up his hands. " Easy you two... it's not like we're in a lot of tro-ugh!" he grunted as Sion hit the brakes suddenly, hitting his head on the drivers seat. " The hell was that for?" he whined.

Sion gestured out towards the scenery. " There's a bridge up ahead... but something's telling me to not cross it."

Ark had the same feeling, instead fumbling with the dashboard. " Any way to get around it?" he asked, Chad reaching for a map. They folded it out on the hood and took a few moments to figure out where they were, Ark's navigational skills less than stellar. " There's another way, but it'll take days." Chad finally said. After a lengthy game of rock paper scissors, which Ark was also less than stellar at, the small group agreed to head out on the detour, using the car as far as it would take them.

As it turns out, the vehicle only had twenty more miles in it before it died in a spectacular fashion, sputtering and collapsing on the dusty trail, Chad tempted to light it on fire but was convinced otherwise. Setting out on foot, they detoured around the bridge with few encounters, reaching a highway, the trip having took several days. Ark missed the survivors more and more with each passing day, but kept his head held high.

" Now where are we?" Sion complained, resting against a car hood. " All I see is abandoned cars and more abandoned cars."

Ark shrugged, pawing at a container he found, trying to unscrew the lid. He could smell something awful from inside it, but his curiosity got the better of him, cracking open the lid. It smelled similar to a boomer... but not really. It still smelt bad... was it juice? Curiosity winning over all, he stuck his tongue into the jar to taste.

" #$%^&*&%$##$%^&* -#$%^&#$%^&*!"

Ark collapsed to the ground, screeching bloody murder as he tried to get the taste out of his mouth, unable to even describe the putrid taste in his mouth with words. It tasted like everything he had ever eaten before, rotting away. Even the twinkie from his early days didn't cause him this much agony, the Hunter baying painfully before trying to claw his tongue off.

Sion ran to stop him, Ark mewling pitifully before taking the jar and throwing it away as far as he possibly could, whimpering the entire time. Sion watched the jar sail away and the contents spill out, a small horde of commons all attacking where it landed, even though there was nothing there. He slowly pieced it together, a smirk tugging at his lips, Ark holding up a single finger.

" Not. A. Word." he threatened.

All Sion could do was laugh.

Further down the highway, they stumbled upon an abandoned racecar, Ark examining it with a surprised sound. " What is this?"

Chad looked it over, Sion still snickering from the earlier events. " Looks like a racecar... but what is doing here? And it's all horribly banged up too. But... it probably would have taken it's owner further down the road if it hadn't been for all these abandoned cars."

Sion scratched at his ear. " It's been what, nearly five days since we left the others?

Chad held up his fingers. " A week, actually." he said, Sion rolling his eyes. " But we've covered a lot of ground. We rarely stopped, so I think we're well in the south by now."

Ark sat on the hood of the car, his mind buzzing. So many things had happened since that night in the rain... but he felt content with everything, even if he still missed the survivors. Now... he was searching for the song and the memories connected with it. It felt like a lame excuse, but he truly wondered... who was he? What kind of person was he before?

" Hey, Sion?" he asked, leaning over to look at Sion, who was checking the area around the racecar. " Do you ever wonder what you were like as a human? Before you got bit?"

Sion shook his head. " Not once. I don't want to." he said flatly, finding some discarded ammunition.

Ark was taken by surprise with Sion's instant and emotionless reply. " You're not in the least bit curious?" he asked, amazed.

Sion tossed the discarded ammunition aside. " What if the human I was before was scum of the earth? Would I be satisfied with knowing that? This body... maybe it was that of a murderer. Maybe a loving parent. Maybe a loner looking for love. I'll never know." his tone of voice suggested that the topic was no longer up for discussion.

Ark retreated from the conversation as Chad returned to them. " I saw more discarded ammunition along the trail... I'd say that the person or persons who used them had to abandon the car and head on foot down the freeway. What say we follow the leader?" he said, trying to change the mood.

Ark and Sion nodded and gathered their things, heading down the highway. Less than five minutes later, Sion stared up at the giant billboard. " Whispering Oaks fairgrounds ahead..." he said, looking back at them. Ark looked at Chad in confusion, not knowing what any of that meant.

" It's a carnival... with food, games, toys and rides for children. Probably long since abandoned. But we might find something there. " Chad said, lowering his head. " I wonder just how many children died while playing on their favorite rides when the infection hit." he said solemnly, his hair covering his face.

Ark placed his hand on Chad's shoulder. " Don't know... maybe kids helped before." he said, trying to cheer the human up. He had forgotten that Chad and Sion possessed the same disposition, with careful planning and clinical depression being their best traits. He would have to really work to keep them both in good spirits. He stared up at the billboard before continuing on, stepping onto the trunk of a nearby car. " ...oh my god..." he said, staring out at the scene before him.

Cars all littered the highway, some crashed and some parked where they were, the smell of death and decay evident in the area. Used to the scent, but not used to the magnitude, Ark crouched down and gagged loudly, unable to deal with the overpowering smell. His stomach threatened to empty itself of the snacks they had eaten for breakfast, Sion sitting beside him and rubbing his back gently. " We can find another way around if it bothers you that much." the Smoker said soothingly, trying to help.

Ark covered his nose slightly. " No... the trail goes through here, we have to go. Besides... if the others were here, they would tell me to suck it up and stop being a baby." he got to his feet and stumbled forward, passing the cars and trying not to look inside them.

Chad on the other hand, was pulling his head out of a vehicle, gagging from the smell as well. " Adult Caucasian female... most likely age 30. Has a small child by the looks of the toys in the back seat, but no body of the child. She suffered blunt trauma to the head, most likely died instantly from the car accident." he said, gesturing to the huge dent in the vehicle. "The child was either taken out of the car by a good Samaritan, or she was on her way to see the child when the infection hit. Body has been decomposing for over a week and a half, body would most likely only be identified by dental records now."

Sion whistled. " You're pretty good... did you get all of that from searching the car?"

Chad wiped his face gently, massaging his eyes. " No... when you take up a medical profession, sometimes you're asked to work graveyard shifts in the morgue. I was the unlucky guy who started in the morgue and worked up. I've seen more dead than living." he exhaled deeply. " We should keep moving... if I stop to do an autopsy on every body here, we'll be forty once it's done."

Sion and Ark both nodded, following the trail again until they found a tilted over truck. " Most likely the cause of the many accidents here." Chad said, trying to find a way around it. " That and the infected. "

" How do you know?" Ark asked, effortlessly leaping to the top of the truck. He gazed out at the area, spotting an off ramp and nearby searchlights.

" Because only half the bodies I looked at were bitten and clawed." Chad said, walking past Sion who was holding his gun with pale knuckles. " The other half died in their seats from impact or blood loss afterwards." he looked over at Sion, who was turning paler by the minute. " See something you don't like?" he asked.

Sion directed his eyes towards the ground. " Having good eyesight can be a big help, or a curse." he lifted his head and looked at the searchlights. " Lights... could mean some people. Or trouble."

Ark sighed. " Stop being so negative! We'll figure it out as we get there. The important thing is to get there!" He looked out at the scenery again. " Need to find lights. Lights far away." he pointed at the off ramp. " This is the way to go."

Chad and Sion didn't have any arguments, following behind Ark as they headed down the off-ramp. The small group was quiet for some time before Sion decided to try and start a conversation. " What do you think the chain of events are?" Sion asked, looking at Chad. " I mean, behind the infection."

Chad looked at him. " From a military or a civilian standpoint?" he asked, tilting his head. " Civilian; hear on news about deadly flu that is sweeping the nation and either heed the warnings to stay indoors away from infected or try to evacuate. Same as these people." he said, gesturing to the cars. " They were trying to reach a uninfected area and never made it."

He knelt beside a lit lantern and rifled through the ammunition that was piled up neatly on the ground, lifting the lantern to help him see. " Military; a highly contagious and potentially deadly virus has been leaked into the general community, is spreading fast. Must mobilize immediately to halt the spread and recover any survivors. Shoot anyone that appears infected, and quarantine anyone who's come into contact with infected until they can be tested for traces of the virus or until further notice."

Sion found more ammunition for his pistol. " You believe the military made this virus?" he asked, his brown eyes shining slightly from the lantern's light. Chad nodded. " No way in hell is this natural. I mean, a virus that starts in one place and is spread by various means, causing the people affected to become mindless beasts, driven only by lights and loud noises? Not natural in the slightest."

Ark sat and listened to him, most of the words flying over his head. " Then... is military helping, or harming?" he asked.

Chad snorted. " Come on, let's keep moving. And I say harming. Somebody doesn't want their little mistake escaping elsewhere, like another country, so for now, they're most likely halting any and all attempts to get out of America. Not to mention trying to save what little population is left, they're most likely also shooting people who could be, or are confirmed carriers."

" Come again? Carrier?" Sion asked, hearing some odd laughter in the distance. He whirled and looked around, but was unable to locate the source, becoming wary.

Chad groaned again. " When the human body comes into contact with any virus, one of three or four things happen. Take the infection for example, there are six cases. One, the person never come in contact with any infected. Two, person comes into contact with infection repeatedly, but no traces of it found in bloodstream, even after being bitten. The body has immunity against the virus, and would immediately filter it out of the blood once entered. Three, the person is bitten, and while the virus has spread through their body, they themselves show no symptoms of the virus. We call those carriers. Technically, they are infected and can spread the virus, but do not look infected themselves. Four, is you guys."

Ark looked a bit miffed to be included in the list. " What?"

Chad looked at him. " You've come into contact and have been affected by the virus, but not enough to consider you a serious case. Five is the ones who've come into contact and been infected, but are common infected. Special infected are the most serious case, as a very good percentage of them have lost their humanity. I doubt that if a cure was made, they would be treatable."

Sion looked at Chad. " What about us...?" he asked softly, climbing up the nearby hill towards a large billboard. " Can we be cured?"

Chad picked up a hunting rifle that had been left behind, checking the magazine in it. " Here, you'll make better use of it than me." he said. " And... I don't know." he told them.

Sion sighed and looked through the scope of his new rifle, lowering the weapon and making a face before looking again as the laughing got closer. " I think I see people..."

Ark and Chad both flew at Sion and his scope, both trying to see what he saw. " Seriously?" Ark said, Chad snatching the scope from Sion and looking through it. " It's just two... a young man and a woman." he said. " Both look like they're dog tired, but don't look infected."

Ark fumbled for the scope next, Sion yanking it back from both of them. He peered inside it again, watching the two. " They've been here a while. They're searching the rooms for medical supplies and food, but neither of them are injured. They must be doing a quick run to gather supplies for a third and possibly injured fourth teammate."

Ark looked at Sion. " Four?"

Sion nodded. " If I was injured, I'd want someone watching over me while I slept." he replied, letting out a cry of alarm when something small latched onto his back, giggling the entire time. They had been so focused on watching the pair of humans that none of them realized that something was sneaking up on them. Sion cried out again and yelped loudly as tiny sharp claws dug into his shoulders as the thing maneuvered onto his face, blocking his view completely, Ark and Chad trying to grab onto the little thing as Sion tried to move, instead falling off the billboard to the ground with a painful yelp.

Ark leapt from the building, landing on Sion and causing him further injury, digging his claws into the thing's back and trying to tear it off of Sion's face.

" Was that thing riding him?" Chad asked from up top the billboard, easing himself down slightly as he hurried to help. Neither Ark or Sion answered him as Ark drew back his fist and slugged it, managing to knock it away from Sion's face, the thing flopping over and giggling as it got back to it's feet. It was definitely infected, with eaten away lips and blood on it's mouth and arms, giggles escaping the chattering teeth. Small in size, it tried again to leap, but this time for Ark's face, it's long arms extended.

Ark leaned back and tried to duck, but the infected wrapped it's arms around Ark's neck, pulling itself close and leaning, forcing Ark's body to lean to the left even though he had no intentions to, a sharp scream escaping Ark's mouth as the infected tried to steer him away from Sion. Chad had gotten down next to them by now and grabbed a discarded baseball bat from the ground, swinging it and connecting with the small infected's hunched back, a satisfying crack heard as it released Ark, dropping to the ground where it was finished, Chad bringing the bat down on it's skull. The giggles finally ended when it died, Chad staring at the infected in horror.

" If this is the south, we're screwed." he said, Sion nodding and trying to do something about the scratches on his back and neck.

Ark in the meantime had huddled in the corner, trying to shake the mental image of being rode around like that from his mind. " Let...let's find those humans." he said, picking up his shattered pride. " They could be in trouble, with things like those around."

Sion nodded, getting to his feet. " Ix-nay on the kills-say though. Already got shot once, don't need another bullet hole to my growing collection of wounds."

The group headed towards the hotel room, finding one that was securely boarded up. It wasn't nearly as secure as a safehouse, but was well protected. Chad lowered the scope and handed the rifle back to Sion, the Smoker looking back in it, seeing the young man returning to the room. " I wanna see!" Ark said, fumbling for the scope, accidentally pulling the trigger and nearly shooting the young man.

" What the hell?" the man shouted, the woman jumping as well. " Someone just shot at me!" he said, nervously looking around.

" I'm sorry!" Ark said, practically bursting out of the room nearby. " Sorry, sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to fire, I was just trying to see if it was safe!" the man stared at him before tilting his cap gently. " Ya'll human and whatnot? Ain't been bit have you?" he asked warily.

Ark groaned and rolled his eyes. " No, I'm a rampaging infected! Of course I'm a survivor, and no I haven't been bit!" he shouted back. At that, the young man's face broke out into an energetic grin. " Well, hey there! I'm Ellis, and this is Rochelle!" he said, eagerly gesturing to the darker skinned woman . Rochelle nodded back at them, smiling softly. " Looking for the Evac as well?" she said softly.

Ark was instantly reminded of Zoey, his face breaking out into a wide, friendly grin. " Yeah... me, Sion, and Chad are all lookin' to get rescued." on his cue, Sion and Chad both came out of their hiding places. Chad gave them both a friendly smile, while Sion just had a wary look on his face. " Where is the place anyways?" Ark asked.

Ellis looked over at Ark. " Ya'll don' know where it is? We're headin' to the one at Whispering Oaks, but a friend o' mine got hurt... so we had ta stop to tend to him."

Sion put his hands in his pockets. " We just got here, that's why we didn't know." he said, Ellis and Rochelle nodding. Chad looked at the two, sliding his bag a little higher on his shoulder. " I can take a look at your injured friend... I'm a doctor." he said, lifting his head.

Rochelle beamed. " It's nice to meet someone like you. " She said, offering her hand to Chad. " Not many people want to help others in times like these."

Chad grinned widely and took her hand, shaking it gently. " I'm Chad." he said, giving her hand a firm shake before looking at the room. " Can we come in?" he said, Ellis nodding and knocking on the barricade. " Coach? We're back, and we've brought friends." he said, the door opening. A bit of a round man coming out, his dark skin covered in a sheen of sweat from working in the room. Ark could tell that the room was pretty warm, and he could smell blood and illness.

Chad gently smiled at Coach. " Name's Chad, I'm a doctor... is there anything I can do to help you guys?"

Coach stretched slightly, his school shirt damp from all the work. " We have an injured teammate... I'd be thankful if you could take a look at him. Been fighting all day with him to keep him down for healin'." His voice was very wary, it made Chad nervous. Ark and Sion could tell that the group was being friendly, but wouldn't hesitate in the slightest to shoot them.

Chad nodded and headed inside, motioning for Sion to turn on the light and open the windows. Once the light was on he could see his patient. A man was curled up on the bed in the hotel room, medical supplies scattered about, bloody bandages covering his shoulder. His eyes were closed painfully, breaths ragged as he laid on the bed. " This is Nick." Coach said, crossing his arms. " We were all travelin' together, and he got pounced by a Hunter or something, we found him in all the confusion with a torn up shoulder."

Ellis sat on the bed. " He can still fight an' everything, but he's hurting awful bad. Took a lotta medicine to get him under enough to carry him, what with his personality and whatnot."

Chad lifted an eyebrow. " Interesting personality. Let me see what I can do with him." he said, approaching Nick. Rolling Nick onto his uninjured side, he looked at the clothing that was being used as a pillow for him. " Sharp dresser, isn't he? But a white...er, was white... suit is not exactly ideal for trekking to safety."

Rochelle nodded. " Tell him that, he's always complaining about it too." She chuckled and hefted her axe onto her shoulder. " I guess you can say he'd be the most pessimistic of us all. Always complaining about little things."

Chad nodded. " I'll keep that in mind."

In the meantime, Ark and Ellis were becoming fast friends.

" One time, my buddy Keith and I went to the amusement park, and we were eatin' the cotton candy there, and Keith wondered if he could eat like five items from each booth in the whole park..." he continued on, Ark listening before interjecting his own tale.

" Well, when we were by the river, Sion and I tried to have a fishing contest and Sion was winning, so I jumped in the river to get more, but Sion decided he was gonna..." he told Ellis, rambling on.

Sion paled. " Oh god, there's two of them now."

End Chapter 25

Told ya I loved the south. As for how they got there, plain and simple, they didn't stop for anything, so they made damn good time down to the south. As for the incidents of the passing... totally ignored. Since when did I pay attention to the storyline anyways? Besides, we all wanna see Bill shoot Nick for that mouth and attitude of his. Not to mention, this is fanfiction, we're allowed to finagle with the laws anyways.

Ciao for now~!