Chapter 26

"Some" Jade answered.

"It's probably safer to wait up here until morning." Karim pointed out.

"You don't have all night." Crane remarked.

"Probably true."

"Hey Kyle, you up for a run?" Eyes darted to the blonde leaned against Crane sitting down. The reply came in a delay, Kyle having temporally closed his eyes.

"Yeah, I'll be fine…" Crane and Jade met each other's gaze, neither convinced but didn't see another choice.

"Crane, this is Brecken we need to pull out mate. We can get the antizin tomorrow."

"Yeah, we're coming. Get everyone else back to the tower already."

"You sure?"

"Yeah Brecken, get everyone to safety, we'll be fine." With a sigh of annoyance, Crane talked into the radio again. "Bozak"

"Yeah?" He could hear the smirk over the com.

"Help us get back to the tower." Jade gave him a look, Crane glancing to her. "We can always shove him into a zombie's way for fodder."

"Good point but we still have to be careful. There is no way back without that crane so we'll have to scale down the building."

"Here is the plan and listen up. We'll make our way from the bottom to the top and deal with a path; you guys start your way down the top."

"I'll clear a path." His feet stumbled trying to walk without Crane's support, his voice hoarse almost a whisper.

"Kyle, I'm going in the front and you're going on my back!" Crane protested.

"You know I get stronger at night, I can do this! It's my fault; you all got hurt to help me!" Kyle exclaimed, his voice, weak and bitter, lips pulling into a smile as his eyes glowed with the setting sun having stumbled against a pillar turning his back to the trio. "It's already starting…"

"You can still barely stand!" Not even a flinch, Kyle's gaze unwavering and Crane sighed. "Just a little bit but conserve your energy for now. And it's not your fault; don't even try to argue it. It's fucking Rais' fault… all of it is…"

"Crane… sorry… I'm hungry… but thanks for coming…"

"Kyle, what- NOOOO!" With a choked breath mustering all his strength, Kyle rushed to the edge and turned around with a sad smile, stepping over the edge and falling. 'See you around.' Crane rushed to the edge with Jade, their eyes following Kyle catching himself on a lower floor, the damage gone with a quick hand switch pulling himself in to disappear out of their sight.

"Fucking damn it Kyle!"

"Hungry?" Karim spoke up.

"We can explain later. Crane… we have to go, you have to trust him to come back. We need to get this guy to safety, to Lena. Kyle would want that." Jade gave a soft smile, her hand reassuringly on the man's shoulder crouched by the edge. Crane turned away from the edge, one arm giving Karim support, the other holding a weapon with Jade right by their side as they began the climb down and darkness minutes away with the horizon bathed in orange. It was a slow crawl, their hearts ready to jump with every minute into the darkness using the scaffolding, doors refusing to budge kicked in with a flinch knowing any viral close would be drawn like a moth to the flame. Three floors down, a rag quickly got used to further hinder Karim bleeding, the man picking up a discarded gun to shoot and be of use. Crane could feel strength seep through his veins himself, ever so slightly a growling mob turning to them and reaching with their decaying arms in the crammed hallway dispatched with Jade's kickboxing skills, slashes from Crane and a perfect shot to the head as Karim steadied himself against the wall.

Kyle's gaze shifted to his right hearing voices come up stairs, the boy crouched from sweeping the volatile before it could screech, clawed hand above the crushed head. They weren't familiar. He moved his body silently behind a crate, eyes narrowing snarling inside at a blur with red hugging the green ignored by zombie around. Flesh could be heard being cut, the group didn't have trouble or at least not yet. Hand turning to claws scraped the ground as fingers pulled closer, blood being craved. Kyle backed away looking for a window to escape as the voices grew louder and Bozak's group came into view illuminated by their flashlights. 'Fuck!' his limbs moved too fast turning around, the bloody thirst rushing through the veins of his battered body. The group jumped apart but Kyle's claws still snatched a victim bringing him down to the ground in a pounce hovering over the guy, gun sliding across the floor, its wielder pinned to the floor facing the boy just inches from his face with his own.

"Don't." Bozak's command stopped bullets wishing to be fired recognizing the blonde, a needle pulling out of his pocket with a grin. His heart pounded in his chest, the fear all over his victim's face as his hand crushed the wrist slowly, his face crawling closer as the mouth opened for teeth to reach with the canines seemingly slightly pointer if one looked too close for one's life. Kyle's eyes trembled darting right and left as his mouth opened and closed wanting to bite, the raised metal claws shining in the flashlights twitching to deliver an ending blow to rip the throat. A miracle that the spikes and fleshy claws didn't come out in the pounce washing away. His body yearned. His soul screamed. With a snarl closing, Kyle tore himself away and off the guy scooting back on all fours, lips in a snarl and eyes narrowed at the group. Bozak gave a sign with his hand behind his back and fingers moved to triggers to go for shoulders and a foot but the screech of a volatile stopped the intention gaining all attention as another of the group got pounced, the predator having silently rounded a corner. With a grin and sad laugh to himself, Kyle yanked himself from the scene to stumble into a run hearing the volatile writher in defeat as the whole group had turned on it.

"I definitely never want to climb with a bullet wound again." Karim remarked dryly. With the crane gone, the mines had to be avoided scaling down the side of the building using Crane's grappling hook. "Sorry, I need a minute after this."

"No problem, I'm surprised no zombies walked over the mines yet."

"You and me both."

Kyle smiled, his body crouched against the cold metal of the pipe, red gone from his eyes for now watching the zombies shuffle closer only to be tripped and impaled with a knife followed by confused moans as red flushed back in quickly hearing a volatile come closer. His gaze shifted to a discarded gun on the ground, no doubt from a thug from Rais now running around as a viral. The kid crawled out slowly, the volatile turning away and hands slowly closed around the AK. Feeling some strength in his legs, Kyle stood up, hands cradling the gun. The first shot rang out, zombie in front of him dropping as the howl of others resonated in response to rush to the noise.

"Bozak? You heard gunshots too, right?" Crane asked the duo, the trio on the move again.

"Didn't shoot but we have guns." Bozak came into a sight from the floor below with his group although a head was missing. The guy's eyes shifted to Karim catching his breath supported by Jade. "That's why you're so damn slow. Why carry dead weight?" The machete glinted in the light, tip pointing to the wounded man and Crane promptly moved himself in the middle with a warning frown.

"Kyle saved him; he's going to make it to the tower. Don't even fucking try."

"Fine, don't expect any of us to take a scratch or bite for him. But I guess if he made it this far, none of his organs are hit. Let's move. By the way Crane, where is your kid you pine over so fast?" His lips pulled into a smirk.

"He's fine that's all that matters." Crane growled.

The gun got dropped for another, the base floors of the tower rich with them from the fallen thugs. Red flushed the eyes sending the volatile rounding the corner to the noise further away as the monstrosity turned around, target instantly lost. Spikes rushed out impaling with a turn straight into the viral rushing at Kyle from behind unable to slow down from the sprint fast enough to look around in confusion. Turning his head, Kyle stepped back as a faster one at night stood right in his face staring straight at him causing the blonde's heart to beat just a little bit faster for a second slowly backing away and leaning against the wall in exhaustion. The boost and adrenaline rushing through his veins from overdrive slowly waned to his exhausted body having endured days of torment. He hated how much the prudent smell of blood didn't bother him. Loathed how the corpses of Rais' thugs snickered at him.

"Brecken here, you guys make out of the Garrison yet?"

"Getting there, you back at the tower yet?" Jade answered.

"Almost but we lost two guys to fucking volatiles."

"Fuck!"

"Kyle!" The group slowed down finding the blonde sitting against a wall with his head dipped. His gaze snapped up, spikes currently out with fleshy claws and locked onto the zombie ahead charging at the group the night having awakened a more lethal side. Kyle's legs stretched out tripping the monstrosity falling face first to the floor while his left hand swiftly reached for the machete on his back from his stuff and beheaded the enemy. The blade didn't move again right away, eyes with the hauntingly glowing iris watching the blood pool. Guns were pointed quickly and Crane's lips pulled into a snarl. "Fuck you Bozak…"

"I'll let them walk if you don't get in my way."

'Duck'

"Duck!" Crane quickly repeated, the trio getting down and the guns howled, Bozak turning to Kyle having jumped to his feet and scooped up the corpse in the same motion using it as meat shield, bullets meant to hit Jade and Karim for moving missing from the sudden drop. Two stumbled shoved over by Kyle with one receiving the dead for a second before the claws ripped open the guts spraying the walls red while the handgun beat another to the bullet.

'RUN!' Crane motioned for Jade and Karim to run with all they had, Bozak and two of his guys having had their eyes on Kyle shoved away as the trio dashed forward past the blonde who made an indecisive bullet the wielder's demise with more guts painting the walls. A rush crawled through Kyle's veins. The second one to have received the corpse tackle almost got trampled scrambling for his gun but changed to trying to use his machete only to receive a boot on the throat in a fatal stomp squashing it. Before more could ensue, everyone jumped back from a pounding sound followed immediately by two demolishers breaking through the wall. Bozak's eyes narrowed with a glare and snarl and motioned for the remaining group to retreat, Kyle stumbling away the other way fighting the urge to nibble on a corpse between the demolisher or lick his bloody hands. The screeches of zombies howled around them, the boom of destroyed wall resonating off the remaining ones in the building giving the faintest groan sending a shiver down everyone's spine as everyone ran for their hide to make it out on the bottom floor. Crane opened the door for Jade and Karim to get through, a second pause in their dash as eyes gazed into the building for the kid. The close screech of a volatile calling more didn't leave room to wait longer, Crane with a heavy heart turning away and Jade had the first firecracker ready with Karim taking a deep breath. It would be a long night of attempting the fastest stealth run any runner had ever done.

"You're finally back!" Zere greeted, Brecken's group receiving helping hands, Gerritsen peeking out of the warm reception.

"Where are Jade, Crane and Kyle?"

"Still on their way." Brecken replied.

"Hey, do we still have firecrackers left?" Rahim asked.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm going to help them, distract the zombies."

"Forget it, it's way too risky. They're good runners just trust them."

"Don't trust Bozak and his goons sill out there."

"Rahim if we're really losing them… I can't lose you too." Rahim turned away with a scoff, walking away towards the roof. "It's not up for discussion!"

The trio tensed almost stumbling hearing a scratch on metal, quickly looking around themselves and relief washed over Crane spotting two familiar eyes on a nearby roof. 'Hey dad…Keep moving, I'll be around might have to leave here and there.'

"They're coming!" The tower residents cheered watching them safely tuck into the safety of uv light just in time with baited breaths. Brecken greeted the quartet with relief being pulled in at the ledge. Despite the win for them, Karim was eyed warily, Jade the one taking charge and helping him to Lena already coming down the hall. All eyes moved to Crane and Kyle as Crane tried to lead Kyle to medical but the boy pulled away with a stagger. "I'll be fine, I just need to sleep." 'Besides, everyone should still keep their throat away from me for the night at least.'

"You and me both, still let Lena-"

"Crane, I said I'd be fine." A growl laid in his voice and Kyle glanced away from Crane quickly lowering his voice, the man confused at being pushed away. "Please, I just…" Crane didn't stop him as Kyle left to go to their room, Jade the one to pull him away insisting he got tended to as well.

"Hey, you guys made it back, we took down Rais!" Rahim cheered glad to see Crane already having run into helping Karim into the medical bay. "Hey where is Kyle?"

"He… needs time to himself." Crane answered.

Kyle lifted his head from the sink, green glowing eyes staring back at him and at the name he hated burned into his skin, the door locked behind him, the shirt on the floor, silent tears down his cheeks. Putting on a fresh one grabbed from their room, Kyle finished cleaning up and left, the permanent mark hiding underneath clothes never to be seen by anyone.

Two months later

"Who the hell is trying to attract virals at five am in the morning?" Crane groaned, holding a cup of coffee. The tower was buzzing, relief and smiles going unlike two months early when everyone was holding their breath with batch after batch of antizin safely brought back turning into crate with Kyle back on the scene after spending a whole week into their room only coming out for food and the washroom. Despite Crane's best efforts he couldn't help but feel there was still a gap between them, just a small one as Kyle didn't accept with bandaging his chest anymore and generally seemed to hide more scars under his shirt refusing to let Lena take a look from day one since the rescue.

"Your kid." Brecken replied with his own cup of coffee as the residents watched a merry go around being set up by Kyle giving it a shove to make sure it spun.

"Still setting up that playground for the kids right by the door, huh? Shouldn't know he wasn't there in the morning.

"Yeah, the kids can't stop talking about it. They keep hugging Kyle at every chance too." Brecken chuckled.

Kyle glanced upwards to see the residents watch trailing Crane for a moment. He knew that the elder one knew. Knew that Kyle hid something from him and while the blonde had completed absolving the mystery by showing him, he couldn't bring himself to do it eying the name with disgust. It didn't tear their relationship apart but that little dishonesty was a strain on both. For Kyle enough, to try to distract himself by going out hunting volatiles a lot at night or doing such things as setting up the playground or getting the museums started alone despite plenty of willing helping hands when they were in old town. The kid turned back to the playground with the fences set up, along with spikes, anything he could find done with only a sand pit missing. "What's left?" Crane asked with a smile, daylight gently beginning to bathe Harran having sent the volatiles running.

"A sand pit. I found a wheelbarrow already to use, just gotta haul the sand and shove the van in place."

"Let's go for a run then after some breakfast. Ate yet?"

"Not really much. By the way, bet I can get more sand here faster than you." Kyle answered with a little smirk.

I know this is super short and I have more planned, three arcs altogether (you can probably guess what at least one covers). This is already twenty six chapters though and while I don't really mind having it all together as one story, I think it's better if I split it into four stories which will be labeled in chronological order (Crane's Brat 2,3 and 4) while keeping the title the same because the summary kinda changes. Because the summary for this one wraps up with this and doesn't apply to the other arcs anymore as Kyle is now with Crane at the tower and the goals change with what happens further ahead.