"So, you know what you need to get?" I ask as i lean my back against the concrete wall fence, eyeing the clinic's front entrance that was over the road to my right.
"Yea, if it's in there, i'll find it" Kohta responds as he brandishes the Ar-10 in his arms.
(I can't see any corpses around...yet i can bet my mask that the moment i open fire, shit will pop out from every single direction possible.)
"So, you all ready?" I ask as i turn to look at the group.
After a short silence, they all responded with a nod. I then move away from the wall, giving the shotgun in my hands a quick glance.
"Still, are you sure it was a good idea? Leaving Saya to do that by her self..." Takashi asks as we start moving.
"Saya's smart, she'll figure out how to handle this...not to add that she would probably try to chew your fingers off if she heard you ask something like that." I respond as i chuckle and turn my sight towards the clinic once again.
ABOUT AN HOUR AGO...
I was standing alone by the door that led outside, the same door that we used when we first arrived at the mall. There were two corpses on the other side of that door right now, 'staring' right back at me.
(Hmm...other than these two chumps, the road behind them is relatively clear...so the question now is, who do i take with me to the humvee?
Kohta is too slow...Asami is still part of the other group, plus she is stuck on Kohta like glue...meaning...either Takashi or Saeko.)
"Well, you look like a god damn hooligan now." A female voice cuts me off from my thoughts. Turning around i see Saya walking next to Takashi, who had an aluminum bat resting on his shoulder.
"At least it's easier to swing." Takashi responds.
"Saya? Are you going to barricade the door after we leave?" I ask as i tilt my head. Saya then turns to me as she folds her arms.
"You said you wanted to ask something of me, what was it?" she asks.
I nod and lean my body to the side, making sure that nobody was behind them. Seeing me do this, both of them turn around to look at the empty hallway.
"I saw an electronics store on the second floor, the other group seemed to have completely ignored it so, could you check it out?
See if there is anything inside that is still functional. Batteries should still work even after the E.M.P blast, so you can use them to check any battery-operated equipment...
Just remember, you're just checking, don't take anything, if you get spotted, say exactly that...
And be careful, if things don't look safe, then don't do anything." I fold my arms as i finish speaking...Saya...responds by rolling her eyes.
"I'm not five, i can handle my self." she says as she tilts her head with an annoyed look.
"I'm not saying that you are Saya, but one of theirs nearly raped somebody, i'm just worried about you." I respond as i stare right back at her.
"I...i said i'll be fine...stop being an idiot..." Her face goes slightly red as she looks away.
"Then...you better not need any rescuing by the time i'm back, I'm an evil overlord, not a knight." I say as I lift both hands.
Saya then turns to me with a smirk, her face still slightly red.
"I thought you were a penguin." She says with a smug look.
"As long as you understand...sure." I replied as i folded my arms. Saya looked...slightly displeased with my reaction, as she ended up pouting.
"You...Uhhh...want me to leave you two alone?" Takashi asks as he looks at us. Saya darts her head to him...and delivers a swift kick to his shin before stomping off.
I turn to look at Takashi as he was hopping about, the leg that Saya just kicked folded in his arms.
"You said that...to Saya of all people?...You crazy?" I ask as i tilt my head, yet before he could respond.
"Huh what happened here?" I turn towards the male voice to see Kohta walking towards us, along with Saeko and Asami.
"He brought forth the wrath of Saya..." I answer as i glance at Takashi before turning to Kohta again.
"Ohh, so that's why she was running like that...but...wait...Asami does not understand...if she was mad...why was she smiling like that?" She asks as she puts her finger next to her mouth.
(Hmm...our chundere made a slip-up ehh)
"No idea, but in any case...are we all set?" I ask as i shrug and look at the now assembled group, they all nod after looking at each other.
"Alright...so...who knows where the clinic is at?" I ask again.
"Asami used to go there for checkups when she was a kid, she knows how to go there...Oh, and some people from my group are on their way, they will barricade the door again after we leave." She replies as she raises her arm.
"Good...good...uhh...Takashi, Saeko which one of you will come with me to go get the...stuff?" I ask a third question as i point my thumb behind me.
Saeko tilts her head questionably, while Takashi just nods.
"I'll come." He replies.
"Alright, as long as you can run that is." I point at his leg as i speak.
"I'm fine." Takashi responds as he kicks the air with that leg.
"Alright...we have two corpses outside...the doors open towards the inside so we can't knock them down by kicking the doors...
Hmm...two people will open the doors and two will deal with the corpses, if they get inside during all this, we will just drag them outside afterward...
...If anybody has a better idea, i'm all ears" I say as i turn to stare at the two corpses on the other side of the door.
And after a short silence.
"I want to try out the bat, so i'm taking one of them." Takashi speaks up, signaling that we are going with my plan after all.
"I will take the other one then." Saeko adds up.
I nod and move to the door, Kohta following behind me shortly after.
"Alright, on three open the door, then use it as a shield and hide behind it." I say as i stare at Kohta, he just nodded with a serious expression.
"One." I tighten my grip on the handle
"Two." Lightly kick the door to get the corpses' attention.
"Three!" And swing the door open.
The moment the doors opened, the corpses charged inside, only to get knocked down to the ground seconds later.
Saeko stabbed one of the corpses in the face as she lunged forward, killing it instantly.
Takashi also 'stabbed' the other corpse in the face with the tip of the bat, sending it stumbling backward as it fell on its ass. Before it could react, Saeko then took a step to the left and with a fluid motion, severed its head.
And as i moved away from the door, i spotted several members from the other group in the far end of the hallway running towards us.
"Go! We will deal with these two!" Hiro, who was part of the group that just arrived shouted at us.
I nod and give the group one last glance before exiting the mall.
And the moment we crossed the door, we run past the field until we reached the street.
"Alright Takashi, with me. Asami general direction towards the clinic?" I turn to the cop as i check my surroundings.
"Ohh, umm..ahh...It's...it's straight to the left from here and then...then two turns later you go left and then next turn you go right and...then straight" She says as her face starts taking an anxious expression.
"Ok, Me and Takashi will go straight down from here, we will meet up midway...On the uhh...first intersection you need to turn left, wait for us there.
If it's hostile keep going at a slower pace so we can catch up to you." I say as i turn around and start walking away, motioning Takashi to follow me with my hand.
Several steps later i turn around to see Takashi next to me. I glance at the grouped up corpses in the distance to my left.
(Can't see the cop girl anywhere...not that i can do anything about it with Asami here...
And i can't return here after getting the guns...as I might get spotted by the ones inside...plus i don't have the time to waste on this now)
I turn around again and start running down the street with Takashi right next to me.
With the road being wide enough, and the fact that this was the same road that Saeko went full genocide mode, we moved with ease around the few corpses that occupied the street. And after going over the first intersection we kept moving straight.
"What are we going to take with us?" Takashi asks as he keeps running next to me.
"A shotgun, a rifle, one more handgun and...three bags." I answer as i keep looking down the road.
"Huh...wait...the numbers don't add up." He responds.
"Shotgun for me, i already have a bag, Rifle for Kohta and the first bag, Handgun for you and the second bag.
Saeko seems to be allergic to guns and since she will be using the sword, better if she is not weighed down by a bag. The cop has the gun we gave her, so bag only" I answered as we reached the next intersection.
I slow down and raise my arm then look to my right.
(Clear)
I motion Takashi with my hand and start running again.
"Allergic to guns?" He asks.
"I tried to give her one, but she avoided it like it was cursed" I answer. Takashi just stayed quiet as we run up to the tree cluster.
(Looks clear, but better i don't take any chances)
I pull the bokken from my bag's side straps and start walking towards the trees.
Thankfully no corpses were present there and more importantly, the car was still there, seemingly untouched.
"Alright, i got the keys, we open the trunk, take what we need and disappear. " I say as i run to the back of the Humvee and lift the net before reaching into my pocket for the keys...
(Uhh...what?...)
I start franticly looking in all my pockets.
"What's wrong?" Takashi asks as he looks at me.
"Nothing, just a minor set back..." I answer without turning to him.
(FUCK!...where are they?!...Did i leave them in the building?...
No...i'm sure i did not take them out of my pockets...think...THINK YOU DAMN MORON...
Come on, come on...Uhhh...let's see...
I took the keys from Shizuka...
I exited the car...
I locked the car...
And then i...uhh...)
I dash to the driver's door and lift net.
(...Ok Saya, maybe i'm an idiot after all...)
I think as i take the keys out of the door's keyhole and turn to Takashi, then lift them to head high and jiggle them.
"See, just a minor set back." I say as walked towards the trunk...Takashi just...stared at me.
"You...forgot them on the door?" He asks as he sighs.
"Yes i did." I answer casually as i open the trunk.
Takashi, while still giving me a weird look, moves closer and looks inside the car.
I leaned into the trunk, lifted the second net and picked the two guns before strapping them on me. Takashi grabbed a bag and passed it over his shoulder.
(Right, bag.)
I remove my bag and take all the semi-folded clothes off, leaving them on a box. Then take the second P220 along with the empty magazine out of my bag and turn to Takashi.
I poke him with the magazine to get his attention. He turns to me before taking the gun and magazine with a nod. After that, i pick two more bags, fold them and shove em in my bag.
"Next, ammo for the guns" I say as i get inside the tunk and open the red box with the shells, i grab a couple of handfuls and toss them in the bag.
(If these go off while i'm running...ohh boy.)
I then open the rifle ammo crate and shove a handful of bullets in the bag, along with three filled Ar-10 magazines that were left next to the green crate.
(Ok...we should be good, let's get going.)
I turn to Takashi to see him staring at me
"You done?"I ask
He just nods and exits the trunk. I do the same and then close and lock it before pulling the net over.
"Alright three guns, three bags and some ammo, let's get out of here." I say as i turn around to leave.
"Naier...do you like Saya?" Takashi asks as i walk past him.
"Where did that come from?" I ask i turn to look at him.
"Well...the way you two spoke...i have known Saya since i was in kindergarten...and...i don't think i have ever seen her listen to anyone like that before..."He responds.
(And what does that have to do with whether i like her or not?)
"She probably just understands the situation." I answer back.
"And Saeko..." he speaks up again.
(Ohh for fuck's sake dude.)
"The way you rushed to her was..."
"Do you like them?" I cut off Takashi, causing him to freeze.
"I..."
"My answer would probably be similar to yours, just exclude Miyamoto from it." I cut him off once more.
"We...should keep moving, the last thing the team needs is both of us getting killed here" I say as i turn around and start walking away, only to turn around again shortly after.
"Come on, the longer we take, the worse it'll get" I point towards the general direction of the mall. Takashi finally nods and starts walking.
(Should i be worried about getting stabbed in the back now?...)
After we got out of the tree cluster, we turned left after we took a quick look around.
"Ok we need to go two intersections straight, then turn left...after that, we keep going straight again, the others should be on that street" I say as i look at the road ahead, the bokken in hand.
"We should pay more attention in our surroundings now, all the stuff we took will make us ring like dinner bells." Takashi responds. I turn to him and nod before pushing the two guns towards my back. And like that was started moving down the road.
And by moving...i mean sprinting like your life depended on it, two intersections were not VERY far in terms of distance, but each step we took caused every single deadhead to turn to us.
"Should we use the guns? We could deal with the ones straight ahead so we don't have to zig-zag around the street." Takashi asked as we swerved around the corpses.
"No, remember we just left the mall, shooting the guns right now might arouse suspicion from the survivors that are inside." I say as i keep running.
(Though i must admit the idea seems very intriguing.)
Upon reaching the first intersection we climb on the hood of a silver sedan that was in the middle of the street and move to its roof.
"Take a couple of breaths, wait for the nearby corpses to get near the car, then we jump over them...or go from a side has no corpses." I say as i kneel down and balance my self by placing one hand on the roof.
After a couple of seconds, corpses had indeed gathered on both sides of the car, the hood and trunk were still clear though with only two corpses closing towards the trunk.
"Ok, let's go. Down the hood and then straight to the road ahead." I turn to Takashi as i speak to see him nod.
We slide down the windshield and jump off the hood before taking a sharp turn to the left. Then we kept running straight until we reached the next street, were moved to the center and kept going straight.
Only to be stopped halfway through.
"Uhh...you still don't want to use the guns?" Takashi asks as he looks at a group of kneeled down corpses that were behind two crashed cars, munching on...you know what.
"The corpses are gathered to the left part of the street...uhh...yea...don't take any chances, ready your gun, we will go from the right side and...fuck it, shoot any corpses that are in our way, if that group gets a sniff on us and we are not clear to run...yea...get your gun" I say as i grab the shotgun by the barrel and bring it to the front, before holding it normally.
I pass the bokken between my back and the bag, then kneel down put the butt of the gun on my hip and pump it as i keep my hand close to the ejection port.
(One, two, three, four...Four shells.)
I then start loading the shells back into the shotgun before getting up and looking down the sight.
"Right, sight's dead...still...as long as it knocks them back, i won't complain." I say as i lower the gun and walk to the right part of the street, Takashi following right behind me.
Right now, other than the kneeling corpses, which must have been around...ten? twelve? We also had three corpses on the right side of the road.
I lift the shotgun once again and walk straight towards the first two corpses that were shambling side by side.
"You got the third one after i deal with these two?" I ask as i keep moving towards the corpses that had now been notified of our presence.
"Got you covered." I hear Takashi say from right behind me
I take several steps forward, to the point that if i extended my arm, the shotgun would touch the corpse's hands, i then pull the trigger.
Both corpses get sent flying back, one with one side of its head blown to bits, the other having its shoulder and a small part of its face blasted off.
The third corpse that was a little further back did get a couple of pellets in the torso, causing it to jerk its upper body backward, but remained otherwise unaffected as it kept shambling forward.
Takashi then runs past me, jumps over the two corpses that laid on the floor and took a sideways swing at the third corpse's face, causing it to stumble to the left before hitting the ground. He then walks over it and starts whacking it on the back of its head repeatedly.
I take a glance at the grouped up corpses that were now on their feet, slowly turning towards us. I run past the two fallen corpses, one of which was actually still moving about and stop next to Takashi.
"We got to move! the group is coming after us!" I shout as i turn to look at the corpses and walk past Takashi.
He stops beating the everliving crap of...uh...what used to be a head and turns to me with a nod. It's funny how even after he went ballistic on that corpse, he had no blood on him, not even a single drop.
Thankfully, as all the corpses had apparently gathered here, the road ahead was clear. So we just had a straight run towards the next intersection.
"And they called me ruthless, i think we need to switch titles here." I say as we reach the next intersection and look to the left.
Takashi just shrugged as he chuckled and cleaned the blood off the bat with his sleeve.
"The intersection where our group is at should be after this road. let's go." Takashi says as he starts walking. I follow behind him as i check around the intersection one last time.
Compared to the last two streets, this one could be counted as empty, plus whatever corpse did roam about, had also flocked to the left part of the road, leaving the right side safe to traverse.
(Whoever got all these corpses to gather back there caused quite the commotion, judging from how everything here tried to get there.)
As we kept running down the road i started making out several figures on the intersection that was up ahead.
(Purple hair, orange hair, chubby ball...and several bodies laying on the street. Yep that colorful bunch is our group alright.)
Kohta was the first one to notice us. He started waving, causing the other two to turn their heads towards our direction.
And once we finally got close.
"Did somebody order guns?" I say as i take off the AR-10 and hand it to Kohta.
"And this should have two bags folded up inside, along with some extra mags and a couple of spare bullets for the rifle." I say as i pull the bokken from its temporary sheath, take the shotgun off and hand my bag to Kohta.
He quickly gets to work as he opens the bag and takes one bag from inside, he then shoves the AR-10 mags and bullets inside. After that, he takes the second bag and walks up to Asami.
While Kohta was talking with Asami i turn to look at Takashi to see him...trying to give the handgun to Saeko? She responded by shaking her head and motioning to her sword.
(...Did he just try to...huh...well, looks like you are in the nope squad as well buddy...)
I hold my self back from chuckling...or thinking too deep into what i just saw...and turn to Kohta.
"we ready?" I ask as i kneel down, leave the shotgun to the ground and wear the bag.
"As ready as we'll ever be." Kohta replies as he gives the rifle a quick check...with Asami staring intensely at him.
"Uhh, buddy, i think you just mesmerized somebody." I say as i point at the female cop.
Kohta tilts his head and turns towards the staring Asami.
"Are you...a secret agent?...Asami...is supposed to be a cop, but she can't even understand what you're doing to that gun..." She said as she kept staring, her eyes wide open.
Kohta, seeing the chance...took it upon himself to...educate Asami...
PRESENT TIME
"Oh and Kohta, no more gun talk please." I say as i give him a quick glance, he responded by laughing awkwardly.
"Alright, let's go find that plasma." I say as i nod to myself and with quick steps, i move towards the clinic.
After we reached the front door, i pushed it with the shotgun's muzzle, yet the glass door did not budge. So i grabbed the handle and pull it towards me next, the door then opened with no real resistance.
And so, we slowly walked inside, scanning the insides of the structure.
While the building had no lights, i could still see clearly thanks to the sun's rays, as it was still in the middle of the day.
To my left, next to a giant glass wall i could see an open space that should have been a waiting room, toppled chairs and ripped manga littered the floor along with spilled drinks ripped clothes and...well...blood.
To my right, about four to five meters from me, i could see a semi-closed wooden door, the words 'staff only' on a metal label that hanged on the door. Next to it after a couple of meters was a white door and after some meters was another white door. Examination rooms if i had to take a guess, in total about four of these doors were on the right wall before the wall itself ended.
Opposite of that wall, in other words, next to the waiting room. Was what i suspected to be the reception room, the wall that was facing the waiting room had nothing on it, but there was a medium-sized hole in the wall that was facing the white doors. Next to that hole, i could see two brown doors, and next to these doors i could see wide, single-pane windows, so i doubt these were examination rooms...storage maybe?
Now between the reception and the examination rooms was a corridor, wide enough to fit...two and a half Kohtas?
And on the far end of that corridor, i could see a wall, the corridor there split to left and right. The wall on the far end was also made of windows from half side up.
So visibility was pretty good over there too.
(I can't see a single corpse...but...I know this place is like a god damn clown car.)
I raise my hand and motion the group to move forward, we walked all the way to the corridor where the reception window was at.
I looked inside the hole to see it empty, behind the small reception room i could see another half-open door with the label 'storage' on it. I turn to the group and motioned them with my hand.
Kohta was the first one to come up to me, and after he looked at the storage room door he gave me a thumbs up. He then pointed at the right wall inside the reception room, where i could see a single door.
I nodded and looked at the first brown door that was next to the reception then pointed at it before looking at Kohta, to see him nodding as well. With my weapon ready i then moved to the right and looked through the glass window that was next to the brown door.
(This is weird...wasn't this the room that had the first signs of corpses in the manga?...It's completely empty...)
And at that same moment.
'CRASH'
A loud sound echoed to my right, where the rest of the group was at.
I turn my head only to see the door with the 'staff only' label wide open as corpses poured out of it...a lot of them
(OF-FUCKING-COURSE THIS WOULD HAPPEN!)
"Back! Fall back! First door after the reception room leads to the storage room behind the reception!"I shout as i run-up to the group and point behind me.
The group quickly runs past me before i take several hops back and turn around, i take off my shotgun and remove my bag before tossing it to Kohta.
"You know what we need, fill my bag as well, i got the shotgun and it's about time i used it." I say as i turn to the corpses that were slowly getting up and looking towards our direction.
I take several steps forward...before Saeko walked past me. I then grabbed her arm, causing her to turn to me.
"I will be using the gun, too many, too close, you will get caught in the fire if you charge in...help Kohta, me and Takashi will use our guns to hold off the corpses" I say as i look at her.
She stared at me for a couple of seconds before nodding. She then run past me and entered the room with Kohta and Asami.
"We just need to hold them away from the door, we can leave from the back windows once we are done." I say as i lift my gun and aim at the corpses.
Takashi nods and aims his handgun...but does not shoot.
"I...never fired a gun before..." He says as he looks at it.
"Matters not, look at them, just aim at the general direction and pull the trigger, you will hit something...and...watch our back." I respond as i close one eye, look down the dead sight and pull the trigger, sending the nearest corpses back as they crashed into the ones behind them.
(I really need to get rid of this sight)
I think as i pump a new round into the chamber.
(Five)
I take a big step forward and point at the nearest corpses before pulling the trigger again, causing even more of them to get sent flying back. How many? i could not tell...could be five...could be ten, as with the way they were clustered together shotting one corpse caused three of them to fall down.
I take a step back and pump a new round into the chamber.
(Four)
By now i also noticed that corpses were starting to gather in front of the clinic's entrance.
(They will join the party too huh...we need to hurry.)
I take a step forward again and pull the trigger, causing the wall of corpses to get retracted once more. Takashi was probably getting used to the gun as i heard a couple of shots coming from his direction.
"How much longer!" I shout.
"We are done with the Plasma! We are filling the bags with other stuff now!"I hear a male voice shout back.
"Well hurry it up! They brought friends!" I shout as i pump the shotgun again.
(Three)
And then, the sound of glass breaking.
"Ohh...this is bad..." I say as i lower the shotgun slightly and stare at the outside corpses as they plummeted into the waiting room.
I quickly lift the shotgun and pull the trigger as i take a step back.
"Alright! Hope you're ready, we are leaving. NOW!" I shout as i turn around and motion Takashi with my free arm, he nods and turns around as well.
"We are almost done!" Kohta shouts.
"You ARE done!" I shout again as i pump another round.
Seconds later i see Kohta exit the storage room, the two girls following behind him shortly after. And once they joined up with us, they turned to stare at the oncoming...uhh...horde
"Holy sh..."
"Move, move. The back has only a handful of corpses." I cut Kohta off as i point at the four corpses that were by the corridor's split.
I raise my shotgun, aim at the four corpses as i walk towards them and pull the trigger, sending three of them to the ground.
I then pump a new round and start running towards the last standing corpse...or at least...that was my initial aim...
As the moment the three corpses hit the ground, more corpses started spewing out from both sides of the splitting corridor.
"REALLY NOW!?" I shout as i grind to a stop, turn around and run towards the second wooden door to my right. I give the doorknob a twist...but the door didn't budge.
"Ohh, for fuck's sake..." I groan under my breath as i kick the door take a step back, then point the shotgun at the window next to it...
(Wait...i got only one shell left?...lost count...and no time to reload...)
I lower the shotgun and look at the corpses as they closed in from both sides, i could see the other members of the group shout something as they looked around, but i could not really make out what they were saying.
(Looks like...i will have to copy you on this Takashi...this better work...or we're so screwed)
I raise the shotgun over my head, point at the ceiling and pull the trigger. Seconds later i looked up to see a hole, big enough to fit three of us at the same time, i let go of the shotgun letting it hang on my side as i put my hands together and bend my knees slightly.
"Kohta! You got up there yesterday!" I shout as the group turned to stare at me, thankfully, Kohta got the idea pretty fast as he run up to me and using my hands as a ladder he climbed up, successfully going up to the second floor.
"Clear!" He shouts seconds later.
"Takashi you are up!" I shout, he nods and proceeds to do the same, also getting up with no real trouble.
"Naier behind you!" Saeko shouts as she backsteps from the corpses that were shambling towards us from the opposite side, i instantly grab the shotgun and take a blind swing with its butt, hitting a corpse flat on the side of its face.
"Help the girls up! And throw me a gun! I'm out!" I shout as i extend my hand towards the hole and take a few steps back.
Takashi throws his handgun and extra clip to me as he leans his upper body over the hole as he extends both arms, Kohta following suit shortly after.
"Naokoka! Grab on quick!" Kohta shouts as he looks at Asami.
"No time to think officer, move it!" I say as i grab the gun and let the magazine fall to the ground. I then point the gun at the corpse i just swung at some seconds ago and pull the trigger. After that i kneel down and pick the second magazine before aiming at the marching corpses once more, in the meantime, Asami used the opening to move ahead of me and grab Kohta's hand.
As they pulled her up, one of the corpses from my side tripped on a fallen body and 'lunged' forward, gabbing Asami by her shoe, causing her to start screaming.
I run to her and touch the gun's muzzle at the corpse's head as it reached for the leg it just grabbed, its mouth wide open. I pull the trigger and grab Asami's leg as i push her up.
"Saeko you are up next!" I shout as i aim at the corpses once again and blast off another head.
"You should go first." I hear Saeko say as she stood next to me.
"I have a gun, it's safer for me to hold them off, this was not a request Saeko, You. Go. First." I say as i glance at her before shooting again, Saeko just stayed quiet.
"Saeko! Take my arm!" Takashi shouts as he appears on the hole again.
"Go! I will be right behind you." I say as i keep aiming the handgun. Saeko finally sheaths her blade and grabs Takashi's hand, while i shot the gun's last round.
While they pulled her up, i eject the magazine and shove the second one in the gun, yet before i could even put a new bullet in the chamber. I felt two hands grabbing my shoulders.
"The fuck?!" I shout as i bend my body sideways and 'roll' my self to face the corpse that had its hands on me.
I was instantly met with an open mouth as the corpse pulled me towards it, i grab it by the neck as i press on the gun's slide lock, causing the slide to move forward and load a new bullet in the chamber. I then put the gun between me and the corpse as it slowly brought its face closer to mine.
"Ghh, Piss off already!" The corpse jerks its head back and releases me from its grip the moment i pulled the trigger, I then shove it back, making it fall on the corpses behind it.
I turn around to see Saeko looking at me with her hand extending from the hole.
"Naier! Take my hand!" Saeko shouts as she leans even more over the hole.
The problem was...the corpses i was holding off had now moved passed the hole...and the corpses behind me were less than a meter away.
I glance at my gun before darting my head around, my sight stopping at the windows to my right.
I bend my body forward and run towards the window before turning all the way around and running straight to the opposite wall.
Using the momentum i run a few steps up the wall, then turn my upper body around and aim the gun at a corpse that was making out with the other side of the window. I pull the trigger two times as i put strength in my legs and spring from the wall, straight towards the now cracked window. And with the sound of shattering glass, i smash through the window and crash into the corpse as it fell backward.
The moment i hit the ground i roll to my right and look at the corpse
(Bullet to the head...good thing i didn't miss...)
I then look at the rest of the room. One corpse was to my left, a couple of meters away, two straight ahead of me, behind some metal tables that had several bottles on them and one last corpse was by itself at the far left end of the room.
"NAIER! NAIER!" I hear a female voice scream seconds later.
"I am fine! Get going, i will find another way out!" I shout as i get up and aim at the corpse to my left before putting a hole right between its eyes.
I then turn to the other two corpses to see them walking towards me as they dragged along the tables that were in front of them, I proceed to give both of them a third eye before turning to look at the window that i just smashed through. The only thing i could see was hands sticking out of it, thankfully though they didn't seem to be able to get inside.
I nod and turn around before aiming at the last corpse as it shambled towards me. And one gunshot later, the room was clear. I then take the magazine off and look at it.
(Two bullets left...)
I put the gun into a pocket as i turn to look at the windows again.
"Yea...not getting out this way...hmm..." I turn my head and look at the other end of the room, i could see several windows that led outside and i could not see any corpse on the other side either.
"Yea that could work" I say as i start walking towards the windows. Yet...i did not go too far.
"Saeko? Saeko! what are you doing!?" I hear a male voice shout.
I dart my head around only to see a pair of legs in black boots and stocking going over in an ark towards the smashed window.
Saeko went over the corpses and landed in the room...but...not far enough, as a couple of hands managed to grab her school shirt from behind.
"The Hell?!" I shout as i dash towards her. And as they jerked her backward, she stabbed her sheathed sword against the wall behind her, in order to stop her self from getting pulled back.
The moment i got close to her, i hugged her by passing my right hand behind her neck and pushing it over to my left shoulder, i then lift my right leg and stomp against the wall. The moment i managed to stabilize my self i looked at the hands that had taken hold of the shirt.
I follow a pair of hands with my eyes until i could see who the owner was, then pass the handgun over Saeko's shoulder with my left hand and shoot the corpse straight in the face. I then did the same thing again for another pair of hands, and the moment the second corpse let go, we got yanked backward as Saeko broke free.
"Saeko! Are you alright?!" The same male voice could still be heard from inside the hole.
"We...we are both fine! Now get going before i'll have to plug that damn hole!" i shout again.
After a short silence.
"A...alright, be careful...you remember the way back to the mall?" The same voice responds.
"Yea! Now get the fuck out of here!" I shout back again...and then...silence.
"Ummm...Naier..."I hear a female voice next to me
I look down to see i was still hugging Saeko...
I let her go and stare at her.
"Are you alright? no bites?" I ask
She gives her self a quick pat-down before nodding, all the time without looking at me.
I take several steps back, before sitting on a table with a silent sigh.
"Alright, Saeko...what the fuck was that?" I ask, and Saeko finally looks at me.
She stayed quiet for some time, seemingly thinking of what to say.
"What do you mean?" She responds with a question.
"You know very well what i mean Saeko, you nearly killed your self with this stunt you just pulled." I say as i point my hand at the window.
She stayed quiet as she averted her gaze.
"It was nothing..." She responds in a low tone.
"Nothing?...Saeko you nearly killed your self..." I say as i narrow my eyes.
"And what does it matter..." She responds in a low tone again.
"The what?" I ask as i tilt my head.
"I NEARLY CHOPPED YOUR HEAD OFF!" She screams at me as she turns her head, her eyes going wide as she leans forward.
"No, you accidentally, nearly chopped my head off" I respond.
"And what is the difference!...were you not fast enough...i...i wouldn't have even realized what i did until it was already too late!" She shouts back at me.
"You wanted to kill me?" I ask bluntly.
"What, no! I...!" She starts shouting again.
"Then, that's all i care for" I cut her off.
She stops shouting and just stares at me for several seconds before looking away.
And... a couple of minutes passed with me staring at Saeko...and Saeko looking away.
"I...don't deserve..." She says in a low tone.
"You don't deserve?" I repeat her words.
"I don't deserve this kindness..." She replies.
"Why?" I ask and i lean forward.
She grabs the collar of her shirt as she keeps looking away from me.
"I...i'm not who you think i am..." She replies.
And after another short silence, she takes a deep breath.
"Four years ago...I was walking alone at night...and i got attacked by a man...
I had my bokken with me, so i was able to defend my self...I ended up breaking his shoulder blade and femur..." She says as she turns to look at me, i decided to stay quiet as she spoke.
"And i enjoyed it..." She says with a meek voice
"I enjoyed inflicting pain on him! Making him suffer!" She shouts.
"I kept attacking him not because he tried to force himself on me, but because i liked it, i felt exhilarated as i watched him writhe in agony!" She keeps leaning towards me as she shouts.
"I am nothing but a monster..." She turns her head away again and tightens the grip on her collar.
I take a deep breath as i close my eyes and get off the table.
"Then...let me rephrase my last statement." I say as i walk closer to her.
"As long as you stay on my side...i won't care..." I say as i look at her.
Saeko turns to face me with a perplexed expression, yet, she did not speak.
"Because, i'm the one who gets to decide who i want to be kind to...not you...and sadly for you, you've picked one of the short straws on the matter." I say as i place my hand on the top of her head.
Saeko...just lowered her head slightly...
And in a quick motion, she leaned forward...until she ended up with her head on my chest as one of her hands grabbed on my jacket.
"I'm...sorry...my knees...buckled..." She says as she keeps her head lowered.
I just patted her head before i passed one arm around her back...
With her still holding on to me i take a few steps back, dragging her along before leaning on the table behind me. I lower my head until my chin touched her head and give the corpses behind the windowed wall one last glance before closing my eyes...
I...do not know how long we stayed like that...but it must have been for quite for some time, as my legs were starting to get numb.
"I can't promise you that i will make your life any better...but...i can promise you that as long as you stay with me, i will stay with you...
Also...on a second note...Uhh...it's not that don't like this but...uhh...if you keep grinding on me like that...we are going to have an accident on our hands" I say as i dart my eyes around without moving my head
"... And...you don't want to?" She responds as she passes her arms around my sides and to my back.
The realization of what Saeko just told me came with a short delay...but...
Instead of freaking out...or...you know...having another sort of reaction...
I...just could not shake off that feeling of guilt...
(I would expect my self to be panicking right now...but...why do i just feel like shit?...)
"...You...are mentally overloaded now...i...must not take advantage of the situation..." I say as i look away.
"...Hmm...but...i though you were an evil overlord...shouldn't you be trying to take advantage of situations like these" She responds as she turns to face me.
"You're really trying to put me in a corner here ain't you? And I thought i was supposed to be a penguin..." I say as i keep looking away.
Saeko stares at me for a moment before speaking again.
"Is it because of Saya?" She asks right after, causing me to dart my head to her.
"...The what who what now?" I ask as i felt cold sweat run on the back of my neck.
"You said...i picked one of the short straws...so that means there should be somebody who picked another...and she is the only other girl you really interact with...plus...the way you acted at the manor...you seem to at least care for her..." She says as she stares at me.
I take a deep breath and close my eyes.
(I could easily deny it...it's as easy as saying no...but...that would be a flat out lie...and...maybe this is why i feel like crap right now...because i also like Saya...)
"Nobody said that i was a shining beacon of morality..." I say as i open my eyes and look at the corpses over the window, who seemed to have given up on trying to get in and were just standing there now.
Saeko responded by tightening her grip on me and lowering her head...
And...several minutes passed in silence once again.
"Your promise to me...are you really...going to keep it?..." Saeko asks as she lifts her head to look at me again.
Glancing back at her i could see her staring at me.
I look away for a couple of seconds before bringing my hand to my mask. I then take it off along with the balaclava and turn to her.
(No hiding behind a mask for this...it's sink or swim)
"I want you with me Saeko" I say as i stared right into her eyes.
She responded by putting one of her hands to my shoulder and lifting her self up, bringing her face closer to mine. To the point that all i could see was her face.
"But what if Saya..."
"No matter what happens with Saya, i will still want you with me" I cut her off.
Saeko responded by tightening her grip on my shoulder as she moved her face closer...
And...then...neither of us spoke.
...We couldn't speak, even if we wanted to.
