To those of you that are reading:
This chapter is long, intense, and it was even shocking for me to write.
I honestly had no idea what was going to happen next. It just ... happened. I was a conduit.
And the parts that will shock you were probably the same parts that shocked me... ... D:
Also once again bear with me if there are any errors/unclear parts ... I'm submitting this in a hurry so that you can read it while I'm flying!
Rose of Dusk: OOH-RAH! :D
snowstormcat: Indeed; I would've made the same decision, too. I don't want to end up somewhere random! Especially not when I've finally gotten used to a place! There's certainly a lot of stuff in the works ... Lots of big things that would change the fate of many things!
WickedInentions: As always, your words make me speechless. I'm so glad you're enjoying the ride! Indeed ... I'm a bit of a tease when it comes to romance vs battles ... I can't decide which one I like better, either! X3 I shall be updating my mini-spinoff pretty soon as well ... and I can't wait to hear from you again!
M3D1C101: Hahahaha. I say "oh poop" quite often in real life ... XD
DancingInTheSand: YOU ARE. YOU PSYCHIC, YOU. And as far as my story amazing you ... AHHHH I LOVE YOU THAT IS SO SWEET. I just ... I can't even ... I have no words. c:
snakeyeslover2: I agree. Although ... she does tend to frustrate him... perhaps in more ways than one ...
Please keep gracing me with your lovely words and thoughts! I LOVE YOUR REVIEWS!
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The battle intensifies, and it becomes a battle no one anticipated.
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Between Dream and Reality
Zwischen Traum und Wirklichkeit
CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
Mad Rush
Raserei
Dr. Richtofen looked into Kathleen's terrified eyes, and his heart ached with a twinge of empathy.
Interesting. That was a rare emotion.
"Are you sure you vant to shtay?" he asked, his tone sharp.
She stared at him, red-eyed, a tear dampening her cheek. But she nodded.
"Just do it," she murmured. "I want to stay here and make sure we destroy that thing. Besides, I'd rather be with you guys than some random place I can't control. Even if it does mean I can never go home." Then she smiled at him sadly. "I wasn't anyone important in my reality, anyway."
He sighed. "Very vell zhen," he said quickly. "I vill go program ze teleporter."
He walked across the room, bending over and stepping into the machine. The electrical interface was dusty. He brushed it off, opening it and activating it. Lights slowly flickered to life. After waiting a moment for it to warm up, he entered a series of codes. He was aware of the eyes of the others on him, watching him with avid interest. Nothing made him angrier than being watched.
"Shtop vatching me," he snapped.
They all twisted around, staring at the walls and ceiling.
He turned back to the panel, inputting the last sequence.
The teleporter whirred to life, prepared for the transport.
"Gut," he murmured. He entered a code to set the time of activation, giving him a few minutes to arm the weapon. Then he stepped out, walking to his small array of mass destruction. He picked up the warhead, carefully accessing the controls. Everyone was watching him again. He sucked in a breath and ignored them.
Orange lights flickered to life around the tip of the cylinder. He wrapped his fingers around the end, twisting gently. A digital sound echoed through the room, and out of the corner of his eye he could see Kathleen flinch.
"Ve have time," he muttered, holding the ticking bomb. "Calm yourselves."
"How much time?" whispered Kathleen, looking at him.
His eyes were tense. "Four minutes."
He walked slowly over to the teleporter, carrying the armed nuclear weapon. Crouching down, he leaned over to place it in the center of the teleporter. He removed his fingers carefully. Then he stepped away, joining the others to observe the teleportation.
It was a tense minute. All of them stared at the bomb in anticipation. Everyone was panicked except for the doctor, who looked alive with hidden excitement. His eyes were flaming with pleasure at the implementation of his plan, and the prospect of destruction.
Finally, they were deafened by the loud sound of the teleporter's activation. It made everyone jump. They squinted as blinding white light filled the room, then watched as the nuke was enveloped in beams of purplish static energy. Richtofen's heart pounded. He was breathless.
Then the light faded, and the teleporter rippled with heat. The bomb was gone.
The others looked at each other with wide eyes.
"Holy fuck," Tank grunted. "I thought it was gonna blow on us."
Stone-faced, Nikolai pulled out his vodka, downing half of it.
Takeo blinked, leaning against the wall. "May this purify our souls," he murmured.
"What do we do now, doc?" asked Tank, tense.
Richtofen began preparing the Gersch device. "I am not sure how to verify vhether or not ze plan succeeds," he muttered. "If ze M.P.D. is destroyed, I may feel its presence leave me." He shuddered at the thought. "Zhat vould be glorious," he murmured. "However, it may have permanently altered my mind."
While Richtofen walked over to the teleporter, entering a few more codes, Nikolai frowned at him. "So what do we do?" he grumbled.
"Ve can destroy some minions," the doctor suggested. "Prepare your Wunderwaffen."
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Without the thunder guns, we would have been toast the minute we stepped out of the room.
Sure enough, the zombies had piled up around us, pressing against the door. When we opened it, five tumbled in. Luckily, Richtofen had his Zeus Cannon armed and ready. With a snarl, he unloaded a powerful round that sent most of the crowd zooming away down the hall. It was amazing to watch.
Since we'd left Takeo behind to recuperate, we closed the door firmly behind us, camping around it. There were so many runners now. No more walkers. And the crawlers were completely gone.
"Ze M.P.D. is displeased," Richtofen observed, taking out a row of them. "I vonder if ze veapon has exploded yet."
"You said four minutes, right?" Tank asked. "I think it's definitely been four."
The words had barely left his mouth when the oncoming crowd of zombies froze. All of them stopped, simultaneously.
I stared in shock. "It worked," I whispered.
Richtofen narrowed his eyes. "Do not be so sure," he murmured. The zombies twitched, moaning. Still, they stayed in one place. Tank lifted his gun to shoot them, but the doctor raised his hand, irritated. "Nein," he hissed. "Vatch zhem."
Then the doctor crumpled to the floor, clutching his face in both hands.
I watched in horror as an inhuman scream left his lips and he writhed on the floor, seizing.
"Shit!" Tank yelled, crouching down next to him. "Someone get over here and help me!"
Nikolai stumbled over.
"Grab his legs," Tank ordered, and Nikolai lurched over on top of Richtofen's knees, holding them together. Tank got behind his head, grabbing the doctor's hands and pulling them off his face. He clawed out at the marine, shrieking. Tank wrestled Richtofen's arms down by his sides, and laced his own arms around the doctor's chest, holding him still like a straightjacket. The three of them shuddered on the floor, jerked around by Richtofen's uncontrollable movements.
The doctor was still screaming like a murder victim. His eyes were wide open and there was a vein bulging in his forehead. He struggled hard against his captors. Then a horrible demonic voice escaped his mouth, chilling me to the bone.
"I hate you, Uncle Edward." Richtofen's lips formed the words, but they weren't his own.
He squeezed his eyes shut. "Get out of me," he hissed, his voice hoarse from all the screaming. "Kazhleen," he gasped, shocking me. "Kazhleen, teleport ze Gersch device."
Me?
I was the only one left.
Takeo was out, and Tank and Nikolai were restraining the doctor.
Yes. It had to be me. It was meant to be me.
Richtofen struggled against something else, either the voices or another wave of screams. Then he gasped again, breathless, staring at me wildly. "On ze side," he choked. "Ze switch." He closed his eyes. That was all he could get out before he started seizing again.
I hesitated for a moment, so disturbed by his pain that I couldn't move.
Then I twisted around, crashing through the door to the teleporter room.
Takeo stared at me as I ran to the Gersch device, fumbling it up into my hands.
"The war outside intensifies," he mumbled.
I stared at the sides of the circular weapon. It looked like a fat Frisbee. Yes, there was the switch; big and obvious. I left it unflipped, running into the teleporter. The panel was still open. I squinted at it in confusion. The lights were on all around it; one was flashing in the bottom. Then there was a large switch on the right side.
Did he mean to pull both switches?
Taking a deep breath, I pulled the switch on the teleporter, jumping out. Sure enough, the deafening noise started filling the room. Heart pounding, I flicked down the switch on the Gersch device, throwing it into the teleporter like it had burned me. It clanked against the metal, shuddering and making a terrible noise. Blue static energy surrounded it. It started to split open, and my heart stopped in my chest.
Then, suddenly, it was gone.
I blinked, taking a breath.
Takeo made a low noise behind me.
As soon as I found my feet, I ran out of the room. Tank and Nikolai were still holding Richtofen, who was thrashing and screaming hoarsely.
"I did it," I gasped, my voice weak. "I did it."
"You rock, Kitty," murmured Tank. He smiled up at me. His face was red and shiny with sweat from restraining the doctor.
I bit my lip. "I hope it worked."
The zombies were still petrified around us, an undead audience for the pain of the doctor. He managed to control himself again for a brief moment, gasping for breath. "Arm ze DG-4," he choked. "Like ze nuke." He squeezed his eyes shut. "Get out," he whispered. His strength was waning.
Tank nodded at me to go, and my heart throbbed.
I ran back into the room. Takeo watched me.
Remembering the doctor's caution when handling the prototype device, I picked it up carefully, carrying it to the teleporter. Did I need to enter more codes? I stared at the panel in confusion. I definitely wouldn't be able to do that. Then I noticed that the switch had reset itself. Perhaps the doctor had pre-set the coordinates, and now I simply had to let the machine cool down before I pulled the switch again?
The teleporter was still steaming from transporting the Gersch device. I touched the wall, and it was warm.
"It will calm shortly," murmured Takeo.
I nodded at him. Then I looked back down at the odd device in my hands. It seemed to vibrate. How had Richtofen armed the nuke? He twisted the end of it, but he'd opened something before that. I stared at the DG-4, completely lost.
"The dragon sleeps," Takeo suddenly whispered.
I glanced at him.
The teleporter.
I walked back over to it and stood by the panel.
Well, here goes nothing again.
I took a deep breath. Then I gripped the tapered end of the DG-4 with my fingers, twisting gently. It clicked around, making a digital noise just like the nuke. I heard ticking. Shit, it worked! I put it gently on the floor, flipped the teleporter switch, and jumped out before the static surrounded me. The noise was so deafening that I had to hold my ears. I turned around just in time to see the device disappear.
It was gone. I'd done it.
I'd done something, at least.
My heart was pounding as I ran out to tell the others.
"Done," I gasped, my chest tight.
That was when I noticed Richtofen, limp and silent in the others' arms.
At the sight of my face, Tank spoke up. "This happened about a minute ago," he explained. His eyes were grave. "I'm not a doc, but even I know he's not breathin' right."
Nikolai was staring at the doctor's face with a look of horror. "He just passed out," he bellowed.
The zombies were still inert, standing there like groaning statues. I fell to my knees beside the unconscious Dr. Richtofen, grabbing his face in both of my hands. "Shit," I groaned. He wasn't moving at all. I put my ear beside his mouth, and I could barely hear him take a shallow, rattling breath. My heart thumped, painful in my chest. "We've got to get him somewhere and give him something," I choked.
Tank hooked his arms under Richtofen's, lifting him up. "Jesus, he's heavy," Tank groaned. "And I thought he was skinny."
Nikolai shouldered one of the doctor's arms, and Tank took the other. "You've gotta go get Tak," Tank muttered. I stared at them for a moment, then twisted around to fetch the last member of our team.
He was still sitting against the wall, looking up at me as I walked into the room.
"I'm here to get you," I said, bending down beside him.
He reached up and threw his arm over my back. "This imposition dishonors me," he grumbled.
I hefted him up to his feet, helping him out the door. "Well, it honors me to help you," I murmured, smiling. He grunted. But out of the corner of my eye, I could see his face soften.
We made our way slowly toward the medicine wing, keeping an eye on the petrified zombies. They were scattered everywhere. It was so strange to see them standing there, completely still. And suddenly it was easy to tell just how many of them there were. Scores upon scores.
It seemed like it took hours, but finally, we made it.
"Where should we take him?" Tank asked, addressing me like I was in charge.
I frowned, thinking. Where would he want to be? Where could I find something that might help him?
"His office," I said quickly.
Takeo nodded. "Home brings comfort to a weary soul," he murmured.
We trekked slowly down the hall to his office door. Takeo helped me open it, still leaning against my shoulder. We piled into the room, group by group. I sat Takeo down at the doctor's desk, then turned around to help Tank and Nikolai with Richtofen himself.
"We need to get him on top of this," I muttered, walking over to the medical table. I dragged it out into the middle of the room. Nikolai hefted up the doctor's upper half, and Tank quickly grabbed the lower. Then they eased him onto the tabletop, gentle as a team of medical technicians.
That was when he groaned, stirring for the first time. We crowded around the table, staring down at him.
"Doctor Richtofen?" I murmured.
He grimaced, his face twisted in pain. "Adrenaline," he rasped, coughing.
"Where do we get it?" Nikolai asked.
I thought, frowning. "Have any of you seen refrigerators? Like, a lot of refrigerators in a room with medical stuff?"
Tank nodded. "Yeah, I'll take you there."
We ran down the hall and into a room filled with instruments. Scalpels, syringes, giant horrible scissors. And a row of small refrigerators in the back, faintly glowing, filled with tiny glass ampoules of medicine. I ran over to them, looking at the labels.
"Shit," I hissed. "These are all in German."
Of course.
"Wait," Tank yelled. "I found it." He opened a case, pulling out a couple of the tiny glass containers.
I walked over to him, frowning. "How do you know it's adrenaline?" I asked.
He held up one of the containers. It was clearly labeled in German: Adrenalin.
His smile could have melted icebergs.
We ran back to the doctor's office, medicine in tow. He'd rolled over onto his side, and his eyes were open, watching us come in. He glanced over at his desk, and we followed his gaze to see a tray of instruments. I went over and grabbed it, placing it on a stool nearby. Richtofen took a rattling breath. "Syringe," he gasped.
I stared at the mess of instruments on the tray. Yes, there was a syringe. There were a few syringes. One of them looked like it was sealed, so I figured it was the best bet. I picked it up, showing it to the doctor. He moved his head down slightly, a weak nod. Then he lifted his eyes to meet mine. Until this moment, I'd never seen him look terrified.
"You," he whispered, closing his eyes.
Tank held an ampoule out to me. "He wants you to do it," he muttered.
I looked into Dempsey's blue eyes, accepting the medicine. "Thanks," I whispered.
"No problem," Tank mumbled.
I broke off the neck of the tiny bottle, like I'd seen Richtofen do before. Then I removed the seal from the syringe, dipping the needle into the adrenaline. My heart was pounding. I pulled back the plunger, withdrawing all of the liquid into the barrel. Then I held it needle-up, and flicked it with my forefinger.
Tank whistled. "Hello, nurse," he said, smiling. I grinned back, glad for the humor.
Then I pushed the plunger up a bit, squirting out a thin stream of medicine.
When I turned back to Richtofen, he was looking at me with soft, pained eyes. I walked up beside him, grabbing his hand. "Where do I inject it?" I asked softly. He glanced down at his arm. I tried lifting up his sleeve, but he closed his eyes, bunching his eyebrows. I stopped, looking at him in confusion. If I couldn't lift his sleeve, then how did I …
I put the barrel of the syringe in my mouth, and grabbed the front of his jacket, unbuttoning it. I shoved it off of his shoulders, throwing it to the floor. Then I unbuttoned his undershirt, pulling it off of one of his arms. I pulled the syringe out of my mouth, holding the tip of the needle to his shoulder and glancing at him for reassurance. He looked at me unblinkingly. Taking a deep breath, I pushed the needle into his arm. Then I pressed the plunger in a tiny bit, watching his eyes. I hadn't even injected half of the liquid when he closed them, shaking his head. I pulled the syringe out quickly.
He gasped, his breath coming back, hunching up into a sitting position. We all stared at him, tense, as he coughed violently and clutched his chest. His face twisted with the effort of his body's response to the adrenaline. Finally, he relaxed. He took deep breaths, trying to regulate.
"Zhank you all," he rasped, weak.
Tank scratched the back of his head. "No problem, doc," he mumbled.
"As Takeo would say… It was my honor!" chuckled Nikolai.
Takeo grunted in the corner.
I was silent, staring at the doctor's face. He glanced at me briefly, then looked away. "Help me to my feet," he wheezed, and Tank and Nikolai eased him off of the medicine table. They held him up as he found his legs. "Ve must assess vhether or not ze device is destroyed," he whispered.
"Don't you think you should rest?" Tank suggested. "I mean … you were almost gone."
Richtofen closed his eyes. "I must see ze minions," he gasped.
So we took him out into the hall, where, sure enough, all of the zombies were petrified. Aside from the odd spit or hiss, they were completely still.
"Interesting," Richtofen murmured. "Bring me to one."
Nikolai helped him walk up to one of the maggots. He was inches away, and it didn't so much as turn toward him. Then he reached out and touched it. It still didn't move.
"Strange," muttered the doctor.
"What does this mean?" I asked.
Richtofen shook his head. "I shtill am unsure," he rasped. "Take me outside."
We exited the building, everyone carrying or being carried by another. It was dusk now, just starting to get dark outside. Unconsciously, we all walked faster, searching the sky for the moon. The building was in the way, so we stepped out farther into a courtyard, finally finding the waning white circle in the sky.
I don't know what I'd expected. Maybe a giant crater I'd never seen before, or fire, or something to show what had happened. But there was nothing. Just the same moon, glowing three fourths full. Richtofen sighed.
"As I expected," he said, hoarse. "Ve cannot see ze detonation zone from zhis distance. I suppose now only time vill tell … alzhough I am encouraged by ze fact zhat ze voices have not spoken to me since I regained consciousness."
"That was scary as shit," Tank said quietly. "It was like you were possessed."
Richtofen nodded. "In many vays, it vas a possession," he murmured.
Thoughtful and silent, we slowly made our way back inside. Tank and Nikolai dropped the doctor off in his office; I helped Takeo get to his own room. Then, realizing I was ravenous, I went off to find some food. On the way, I warily dodged the stiff, upright bodies of the undead.
What worried me was the fact that they were all still standing, like they were waiting for a command.
I shivered at the thought.
The supply room was still stocked with various edibles. I snatched a can and opened it, eating the contents without really tasting. It was beans or something; some kind of vegetable. But my mind wasn't on the food. It was on just about everything else.
Where in my life back home would I have ever even touched a weapon more powerful than a nuke? Let alone sent it to the moon and detonated it? Or held a syringe, and injected a man with adrenaline when he was on the verge of death?
My chest clenched. I walked back to the closet, grabbing a couple of cans. Then I filled one of the old empty ones with the tap water we'd been drinking. I gathered everything into my arms and headed off down the hall.
I had to put everything down to open his door.
He was sitting at his desk, his back to me, still and silent.
"You are later than I expected," he muttered, moving something across his broken desktop.
I blushed, picking up all of the cans and bringing them over to his side. "I figured you might be hungry. And thirsty." I pulled a stool over and sat on it.
He turned to face me. His eyes were sunken, but brilliant as always, measuring me. He closed them, and the shadow of a grin touched his lips. "Interesting how different one evening is from ze next," he said quietly. Then he opened his eyes to look into mine again, unblinking.
My heart throbbed. "You could have died tonight," I muttered, picking up one of the cans and opening it. I ripped off the lid a little too roughly, jamming a spoon into the contents.
He smiled, watching me. "I never vould have believed zhat even Dempshey vould help me shtay alive," he chuckled. I handed him the food, and he took the tin in one of his trembling hands, glancing back up at my eyes. "Und you are in disbelief as vell," he observed.
I shook my head. "It's just everything that's happened," I murmured. "It's impossible to believe."
He sighed. "Perhaps."
We sat in silence as he ate the contents of the first can, and then the second, washing it all down with the third. I collected the empty containers, putting them on the floor. He was quiet, deep in thought, staring at the crack in his desk. When he finally spoke, it was surreal.
"I vould have died tonight if not for you," he murmured.
I shook myself. "What do you mean?" I asked, confused. "Everyone helped. I never would've been able to carry you in a million years."
He closed his eyes. "Ze thought of you, Kazhleen," he said quietly.
My breath hitched.
Then he chuckled, continuing. "Disregarding ze fact zhat if you had left through ze teleporter, ve vould have all perished at ze hands of ze minions."
I grinned at that. "I guess I was meant to stay," I muttered, looking down at my folded hands.
"I believe you vere," he murmured. I looked over, and found his eyes searching my face. They flashed, and he took a breath. "I have a request," he muttered.
"What?" I asked, staring at him.
His eyes flickered. "Shtay vith me tonight."
I blinked. "Um…"
"To observe me," he murmured.
I frowned. "Observe you?"
He nodded. "Und tell me if you hear me shpeak in my sleep. Or if anyzhing happens."
I took a breath. "Okay."
Richtofen chuckled.
"Und so ze Doctor becomes ze Patient," he muttered, grinning.
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German: Adrenalin. ...
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Are you as dead as I am?
I mean, I finished this chapter, and I'm about to go pass out immediately. D:
IT EXHAUSTED ME.
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Comments, questions, suggestions? Tell me!
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Ze Doctor Says: "... ... *cough* ... I need your medicine ... ... in ze form of REVIEWS!"