Chapter 20: Aftershocks
Alpha Team, the mine
After the cave-in, Rick looked around to make sure everyone was still breathing and in one piece. They had escaped the initial fallout from the earthquake, but they weren't quite as lucky in the aftermath. Fortunately, no one had been seriously hurt. There were only a few cuts and bruises, and Liz was able to patch them up rather easily. After they were examined, they all looked around to see if there was any way out. After all, the entrance had been sealed off, and nobody wanted to remain trapped in the mine. Britney tried to reach the Bravo Team, but the thick cave walls surrounding them interfered too much with the frequency, and she was unable to get through. They prayed that all their friends and family were okay. After all, they must have been caught in the earthquake as well.
Bravo Team, the forest
Dan picked himself up, and he soon noticed that Alyssa was trying to push something away. Upon closer inspection, he could see that her foot was trapped under a heavy branch that had fallen during the quake. Mike went over to him, and together they tried to lift it off of her. Finally, after what seemed like forever, they were able to lift it just enough for her to slide her foot out. Chrissy immediately ran over to her younger sister, and examined her ankle. Nothing was broken, but it was slightly swollen, and Alyssa had a hard time standing on it. Chrissy made a splint, and gave her a sturdy branch to use as a crutch.
"Well," she said, "you won't be running any marathons, but you should be able to put more weight on it in a few hours, full weight in a couple days."
Tabby looked at her friend with concern, and responded, "If we live that long, that is."
"Hey," said Stephanie, "Don't talk like that. We're gonna get out of here!"
"Yeah," said Taylor, "but first we have to make it over that..."
Everyone looked, and noticed several trees had fallen on top of one another, creating something of an obstacle in their way. Jake looked and nodded, "Well, looks like we have some climbing to do. Alyssa, will you be able to make it?"
"Yeah, I think so, as long as I get some help." she responded.
"Easy enough, hop on." Dan said, as he easily hoisted his kid sister on his back, and began to climb the small wall of fallen trees.
Taylor was amazed at how strong he was, yet so gentle with his younger sibling, and he reminded her of Robert, who had always been the same way with her. As she watched, she muttered silently to herself, "Tank indeed. But gentle as a lamb." And she began to feel a lot more comfortable in her present company.
The original STARS, police station
As the dust settled in the police station, Chris noticed that James was unconscious on the floor. He inched his way through the debris to see what happened, and as he got closer, he noticed a combat knife sticking out of the UN Rep's chest. He'd been stabbed through the heart during the quake, and the large man now lay there, "Murdered!" Chris thought to himself. At that point, he heard the cocking of a gun, and when he looked up, Winchester had a 9mm placed at the temple of Rebecca's head, with his free arm stretched across her neck in some sort of chokehold.
"Well, Mr. Redfield, it looks like you were right in your suspicions after all."
Just then, Jill's voice rang out, "Drop it Winchester!"
Al looked at her and smirked. And with surprising strength, he flung Rebecca in Jill's direction, sending them careening into one another, knocking Rebecca out instanly, and Jill felt her own head bounce off the wall behind her, causing her to drop her gun. The next instant happened in slow motion, it seemed, as Chris charged, and a shot rang out. The last thing she saw before blacking out was her husband, the chief of STARS, falling back, clutching what looked like his chest, and blood flowing from the fresh wound.
Alpha Team, the mine
"Shit!" Joe exclaimed, "What the hell are we going to do now?!"
"Well," Rick replied, "We look for the way out."
The vast chamber seemed to be completely sealed off, with no way to escape. Suddenly Britney and Liz found a sign of hope. It seemed that the earthquake opened up a small gap in one of the cave walls. Britney was the first to mention it.
"Rick, look. There's a hole here. It's not very big, but we might be able to squeeze through. And I feel a slight draft, so an opening must be near by."
Hunter came over, and his hope faded, as he remarked, "There's no way us larger guys will fit through that."
"Maybe not," said Joe, "but the girls can. Maybe they can scout the other side. There might be something to help us increase the gap without bringing the rest of the place down."
Rick looked at Joe and nodded in agreement. "Liz, Britney, and Tiffanie should be able to fit through. I want you girls to go through, and take a look. Let us know what you find, and be careful, there may be more of those hellspawn around. Meanwhile, Joe, as the resident explosives expert, I want you to see if you can come up with a way to blast that hole open so we can all go through. But remember, this cave is still unstable, and we don't want to use even a small explosion unless we have no other alternative."
A few moments later, the girls had gone through, and after igniting a couple of emergency flares, they could make out the ledge they were standing on. About twenty yards to the right, they could see a ladder going down into the deep, dark chasm, and it looked like the only way to go.
"Well, ladies," Liz began, "Let's see what we can see."
Brit and Tiff both shrugged their shoulders, and the girls headed to the ladder. After descending at least fifty feet, they found themselves in another large chamber, but it was adorned by torches, that were still lit. As they searched, they found the entrance to yet another cavern, along the left side of the cliff-face. They entered cautiously, and as they made their way through a short tunnel, they began to hear more hungry moans. They drew their weapons in preparation for a fight, but the other chamber was empty. The moans now seemed to be below them, and they saw another hole in the ground. They looked down into it. With the little bit of light provided by the torches, they could make out, what looked like, about ten or fifteen more hungry undead corpses. They saw a ladder, and were relieved that the zombies seemed to be incapable of climbing it. At that moment, they heard an explosion, and felt the ground shake again. Suddenly the earth opened up, and they found themselves falling about ten more feet into the pit.
A/N
Wow! I can't believe I haven't updated since February. I hope you all like the newest chapter. Please, let me know what you think. The lack of reviews makes us writers feel bad. :(
Alpha Team, the mine
After the cave-in, Rick looked around to make sure everyone was still breathing and in one piece. They had escaped the initial fallout from the earthquake, but they weren't quite as lucky in the aftermath. Fortunately, no one had been seriously hurt. There were only a few cuts and bruises, and Liz was able to patch them up rather easily. After they were examined, they all looked around to see if there was any way out. After all, the entrance had been sealed off, and nobody wanted to remain trapped in the mine. Britney tried to reach the Bravo Team, but the thick cave walls surrounding them interfered too much with the frequency, and she was unable to get through. They prayed that all their friends and family were okay. After all, they must have been caught in the earthquake as well.
Bravo Team, the forest
Dan picked himself up, and he soon noticed that Alyssa was trying to push something away. Upon closer inspection, he could see that her foot was trapped under a heavy branch that had fallen during the quake. Mike went over to him, and together they tried to lift it off of her. Finally, after what seemed like forever, they were able to lift it just enough for her to slide her foot out. Chrissy immediately ran over to her younger sister, and examined her ankle. Nothing was broken, but it was slightly swollen, and Alyssa had a hard time standing on it. Chrissy made a splint, and gave her a sturdy branch to use as a crutch.
"Well," she said, "you won't be running any marathons, but you should be able to put more weight on it in a few hours, full weight in a couple days."
Tabby looked at her friend with concern, and responded, "If we live that long, that is."
"Hey," said Stephanie, "Don't talk like that. We're gonna get out of here!"
"Yeah," said Taylor, "but first we have to make it over that..."
Everyone looked, and noticed several trees had fallen on top of one another, creating something of an obstacle in their way. Jake looked and nodded, "Well, looks like we have some climbing to do. Alyssa, will you be able to make it?"
"Yeah, I think so, as long as I get some help." she responded.
"Easy enough, hop on." Dan said, as he easily hoisted his kid sister on his back, and began to climb the small wall of fallen trees.
Taylor was amazed at how strong he was, yet so gentle with his younger sibling, and he reminded her of Robert, who had always been the same way with her. As she watched, she muttered silently to herself, "Tank indeed. But gentle as a lamb." And she began to feel a lot more comfortable in her present company.
The original STARS, police station
As the dust settled in the police station, Chris noticed that James was unconscious on the floor. He inched his way through the debris to see what happened, and as he got closer, he noticed a combat knife sticking out of the UN Rep's chest. He'd been stabbed through the heart during the quake, and the large man now lay there, "Murdered!" Chris thought to himself. At that point, he heard the cocking of a gun, and when he looked up, Winchester had a 9mm placed at the temple of Rebecca's head, with his free arm stretched across her neck in some sort of chokehold.
"Well, Mr. Redfield, it looks like you were right in your suspicions after all."
Just then, Jill's voice rang out, "Drop it Winchester!"
Al looked at her and smirked. And with surprising strength, he flung Rebecca in Jill's direction, sending them careening into one another, knocking Rebecca out instanly, and Jill felt her own head bounce off the wall behind her, causing her to drop her gun. The next instant happened in slow motion, it seemed, as Chris charged, and a shot rang out. The last thing she saw before blacking out was her husband, the chief of STARS, falling back, clutching what looked like his chest, and blood flowing from the fresh wound.
Alpha Team, the mine
"Shit!" Joe exclaimed, "What the hell are we going to do now?!"
"Well," Rick replied, "We look for the way out."
The vast chamber seemed to be completely sealed off, with no way to escape. Suddenly Britney and Liz found a sign of hope. It seemed that the earthquake opened up a small gap in one of the cave walls. Britney was the first to mention it.
"Rick, look. There's a hole here. It's not very big, but we might be able to squeeze through. And I feel a slight draft, so an opening must be near by."
Hunter came over, and his hope faded, as he remarked, "There's no way us larger guys will fit through that."
"Maybe not," said Joe, "but the girls can. Maybe they can scout the other side. There might be something to help us increase the gap without bringing the rest of the place down."
Rick looked at Joe and nodded in agreement. "Liz, Britney, and Tiffanie should be able to fit through. I want you girls to go through, and take a look. Let us know what you find, and be careful, there may be more of those hellspawn around. Meanwhile, Joe, as the resident explosives expert, I want you to see if you can come up with a way to blast that hole open so we can all go through. But remember, this cave is still unstable, and we don't want to use even a small explosion unless we have no other alternative."
A few moments later, the girls had gone through, and after igniting a couple of emergency flares, they could make out the ledge they were standing on. About twenty yards to the right, they could see a ladder going down into the deep, dark chasm, and it looked like the only way to go.
"Well, ladies," Liz began, "Let's see what we can see."
Brit and Tiff both shrugged their shoulders, and the girls headed to the ladder. After descending at least fifty feet, they found themselves in another large chamber, but it was adorned by torches, that were still lit. As they searched, they found the entrance to yet another cavern, along the left side of the cliff-face. They entered cautiously, and as they made their way through a short tunnel, they began to hear more hungry moans. They drew their weapons in preparation for a fight, but the other chamber was empty. The moans now seemed to be below them, and they saw another hole in the ground. They looked down into it. With the little bit of light provided by the torches, they could make out, what looked like, about ten or fifteen more hungry undead corpses. They saw a ladder, and were relieved that the zombies seemed to be incapable of climbing it. At that moment, they heard an explosion, and felt the ground shake again. Suddenly the earth opened up, and they found themselves falling about ten more feet into the pit.
A/N
Wow! I can't believe I haven't updated since February. I hope you all like the newest chapter. Please, let me know what you think. The lack of reviews makes us writers feel bad. :(