A Song of Ice, Fire and the Dead
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Chapter 5: Alice in Dead-Land
"Row, row, row your boat, gently down the stream. Merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream!"
It was early morning as the Humvee crossed the river. Sitting on the roof of the Humvee were Kohta and the newest addition to the group, Alice. Standing in the gunner port was Saya, looking through the binoculars scanning the surrounding area for any signs of life or Them. Inside the Humvee, Shizuka sat at the wheel driving the vehicle through the river. In the back of the Humvee, Takashi, Rei, Saeko and Aegon were getting what sleep they could since they didn't get much of it last night. Rei leaned her head on Takashi's shoulder as she slept and Takashi's head leaning back on the headrest as he slumbered. Aegon sat on the other side of Takashi, his head bent forward snoring softly through his nose and Saeko had her head in Aegon's lap, her mouth slightly open and a rivulet of drool coming from her mouth.
"Again, again!" Alice cried out and she and Kohta sang the nursery rhyme once more. Once they finished the song, Kohta then said, "Now we'll sing the filk version!" With a wicked smile on his lips, he sang.
Shoot, shoot, shoot your gun! Kill them all right now! Bang! Bang! Bang! Life is but a scream!" Kohta finished the song with a maniacal laugh and Alice laughed as well saying, "That's great, Kohta!"
Having heard Kohta's version, Saya slammed her hand on the roof and rebuked him harshly. "Hey, you fat otaku! You shouldn't teach little kids a song like that!" she spat angrily. "Got it?! Don't bastardise Mother Goose!" she threatened.
Kohta whimpered in fear and defeat as the Humvee came to the riverbank. Shizuka then spoke to the rest of the group. "Wake up every one! We'll be on the other side soon!" she said loudly.
Rei was the first to wake and she smiled at Takashi who was still asleep. She then looked across at Aegon and Saeko and she smirked deviously at how Saeko had her head in Aegon's lap. Leaning across, she pulled on Aegon's cheek roughly.
"Argh! What the hell?" Aegon muttered as he woke and he looked at Rei and asked, "What was that for?"
"Must be nice~," Rei said sly looking down at Aegon's lap. Aegon looked down and he gave a startled squawk as he saw Saeko resting her head on his lap and he felt himself grow hard. Saeko woke up blearily, her eyes half open and drool on her chin.
"S-Saeko?" Aegon said to the indigo-haired girl.
"Good morning, Busujima-senpai!" Rei said cheerily, looking like the cat that got the cream. "You're drooling," she pointed out gleefully.
Saeko blushed and wiped the remnants of drool off her chin just as Takashi came awake. As Rei greeted Takashi, Aegon looked at Saeko who looked back at him.
"How… how was your sleep, Lady Saeko?" Aegon asked her timidly, feeling like a twit.
"It was fine," Saeko mumbled in reply as she adjusted the shoulder straps of the apron she still wore. "I apologise for sleeping the way I did. I was pretty tired from last night," she said sheepishly.
"It's no trouble," Aegon said to her softly. "Anything to help a lady in need," he added.
"Anything?" Saeko said with a slight smile on her face.
"W-Well, anything that's within reason," Aegon stuttered out nervously, feeling as though he put his foot in his mouth.
"I'll hold you to that, Egg," Saeko said with a soft chuckle. Then with a rumble and jerk, the Humvee climbed up the embankment and Shizuka put the parking brake and turned off the engine.
Aegon got out of the vehicle with Takashi and the others. Kohta prepared to hand Alice down to Takashi to set her down on the ground. But as Alice was about to be lowered, her hands shot to her dress and she squeaked out, "Don't look!"
Takashi looked at her and she said, "My… my underwear…"
Takashi's eyes widened in realisation and he made to say something comforting when Rei suddenly snatched Alice from Kohta's grip, holding the little girl to her chest and rebuked Takashi sternly. "You boys are so insensitive!" she chided. "We're gonna get dressed and you better not peek!" she warned as she took Alice to the back of the car where Shizuka had brought a selection of clothing for them to choose. While they were doing that, Kohta, Aegon and Takashi were deciding what weapons to carry with them.
"I have my sword, so I should be fine for close up engagements, but I think I would need something for long distance," Aegon said to Kohta and Takashi. "But I have no experience with guns," he added as an afterthought.
"Neither do I," Takashi said.
Kohta had a look of frustration on his face before he looked at Aegon and said to him, "How good are with you a crossbow?" he asked.
"I know how to use one if that's what you're asking, Kohta," Aegon replied.
"Alright, show me," Kohta said to him handing over the crossbow. Aegon examined it for a moment before holding the fore-grip in his left hand, bracing the stock against his right shoulder and with his right hand, he pulled back the bowstring. The muscles in his arm flexed and tensed as he slowly but assuredly pulled the string all the way.
"Whoa!" Takashi uttered in awe.
"Yeah, pulling back the bowstring of a crossbow takes strength and know-how," Kohta remarked. "Guess I don't have to teach you much," he said to Aegon who shrugged and said, "I suppose not, but we don't have many bolts for the crossbow. So until we can find more or make more, I'll have to be careful how I use it, or retrieve any bolts I use."
Kohta then handed the shotgun to Takashi and began to instruct him how to use. Then a barking caught Aegon's attention and he saw at his feet the little dog they had brought with them when they rescued Alice.
"Well, you're a feisty little thing, aren't you?" Aegon said to the little dog as he knelt down to pet the animal. "Full of piss and vinegar. And that's what'll count in all this," he added as he rubbed the dog behind the ear. "But what do we call you?" he wondered.
"I already gave him a name," Kohta said to Aegon. "I've called him Zero," he informed him.
"Zero? After the Raizen from World War 2?" Takashi asked the chubby boy who nodded.
"I would have thought you named him after that dog from a movie I saw a while ago, Nightmare Before Christmas I believe?" Aegon japed in amusement as he stood up and slung the quiver of crossbow bolts around his waist within easy reach. Takashi gave a short laugh at the pop culture reference and Kohta had a grin as well
Kohta then went back to teaching Takashi the functions of the shotgun. Aegon then went on lookout; he could see the devastation wrought by Them. "So They did make it across here as well," he muttered and he adjusted Blackfyre in its sheathe so that it could be drawn out easier.
The girls then announced they had finished dressing. Aegon and Takashi and Kohta then looked and saw what the girls had dressed themselves in. Rei was more or less still in her school uniform with gloves and kneepads. Saya had changed into a white jacket and black tank top with a skirt. Shizuka had dressed in a white button-up shirt with a short chequered skirt of yellow and orange and Saeko wore her school shirt with a black skirt that showed her right thigh and the string of her thong with long lace purple stockings and combat boots.
The boys must've been staring for a while because Rei asked them, "What? Got a problem?" She hefted the M1-A1 in her arms.
"Nothing. You look good," Takashi said to her. "But do you even know how to use that thing?" he asked looking at the rifle in her hands.
"I'll have Hirano teach me," Rei said. "Worst comes to worst, I'll just hit Them with it," she added.
"Oh, I'd be glad to teach you! Perhaps you noticed the standard issue military bayonet?" Kohta replied.
Aegon stared at Saeko who noticed and blushed a little. "Is something the matter, Egg?" she asked him.
"N-No. Nothing at all, you… you make it work," Aegon replied as he tried not to stare at the string of Saeko's thong.
"It was the only skirt that would fit me," Saeko said abashedly realising what Aegon was staring at. "I guess it's a little revealing," she added modestly.
"Not at all. It looks good on you," Aegon said feeling a little more confident in his words.
"Thank you, Egg," Saeko said gratefully. "Perhaps we'll find something for you, Takashi and Hirano to wear as well?" she added.
"I'd be comfortable in leather and chainmail to be honest," Aegon said.
"You'd look good in leather and chainmail, I think," Saeko agreed. "But it'll be difficult to find such armour in Japan," she said in amusement.
"Perhaps," Aegon said nodding his head. Then looking at the others, he saw Rei watching them with a mischievous smile on her lips. "Something the matter, Lady Rei?" he asked the girl who giggled and said, "Nope~. Nothing at all."
Rei then skipped off to talk with Takashi and Aegon looked at Saeko who shrugged, both seemingly confused by Rei's antics.
Aegon, Takashi and Kohta then climbed up the hill, armed with their weapons. Takashi took the left side while Kohta took the right. Aegon took the centre. Sweeping his faze carefully across the road, Aegon looked at Takashi and Kohta and shook his head at them. There were no signs of Them anywhere.
Takashi looked back down the hill and waved for the signal to come up. With a hum and roar, the Humvee rolled up the steep slope and flew into the air. It was sheer luck that Aegon yanked Kohta out of the way as the Humvee landed on the spot where the chubby boy was standing but a moment ago. Kohta was shaking at the near death experience he had and he was heard muttering, "All these zombies and I'm about to be killed by an Asian woman driver!"
Saya was looking through the binoculars and she saw the devastation and commented, "It looks like the river didn't stop Them."
"The news said it was like this all over the world," Saeko pointed out. "I don't know why any of us would think differently," she said dryly.
"But maybe the police are still on the job?" Rei said hopefully.
Saya gave a smile and said in a mocking tone, "Yes, and curbside garbage disposal should still be working too!"
Aegon stepped in front of Saya and said, "Don't be rude, Lady Saya. It's unbecoming of a lady such as yourself."
Saya blushed and muttered, "Yes sir, Sir Lancelot."
Aegon then looked at Takashi and said to him, "So, now that we're on the other side of the River, we look for your families. Whose do we look for first?" he asked.
Takashi then looked at Saya. "Takagi, your house is in area two in the east hills, right?" he asked and the pinkette nodded. "Then that's the closest one, so we'll go there first," Takashi said. He then sighed and was prepared to say something when Saya cut him off.
"I know. I'm not going to hold my breath," she said in resignation. Aegon then chose to comment on this.
"Even so. We must at least look for them so that we know what fate has befallen them," the Valyrian said placing a gentle hand on Saya's shoulder and giving her an encouraging smile. Saya looked up at Aegon and nodded, smiling at the gesture.
"But before we head out, we should eat and drink a little first," Aegon then suggested helpfully. "We don't want to do this on an empty stomach," he said knowingly.
"Yeah. I think you're right," Takashi agreed.
Saeko brought out some of the packed meals she had made last night. Kohta sat on the roof of the Humvee, chewing on a sushi roll, his rifle in his hands, keeping a sharp lookout. Aegon stood on the perimeter, breaking his fast and Saeko joined him whilst the others sat and broke their fast near the car.
"It all seems so quiet," Aegon muttered as he popped a piece of teriyaki chicken in his mouth and chewed. "But last night and yesterday, there were so many helicopters and planes," he recalled.
"I noticed as well," Saeko said as she ate her food. "But today? There's nothing. Not a single thing in the skies," she added as she glanced up at the sky. Aegon looked up as well and nodded in confirmation.
"Aye. It is this bad all over. Like the news said."
Then once everyone had eaten and the rubbish was bagged to be disposed later, the group climbed into the Humvee with Takashi and Rei sitting on the roof and Shizuka drove the vehicle down the roads. Aegon sat in the back with Saeko. Using a rag, Aegon rubbed off some dried gore from the blade of Blackfyre. He didn't have any cleaning materials beyond a rag to clean the Valyrian blade with, but he would be damned if he didn't keep the sword of the Conqueror clean as possible. Saeko sat with Aegon, cleaning her bokken with a rag of her own. Aegon watched the indigo-haired swordswoman clean her weapon for a moment. Saeko noticed him staring. "What?" she asked him.
"Nothing. Despite your bokken not being a real blade, you take very good care of it as though it were a real blade," Aegon said. "May I ask who taught you?" he asked respectfully.
"My father, Master Hayate Busujima," Saeko replied with a smile. "He taught me everything I know about swordsmanship; from the use and history of the samurai to the care and maintenance of a blade," she said.
"I see. It explains much about you," Aegon said with a smile. "But, what of your mother?" he asked.
"I never knew my mother. My father was the one who raised me and he told me my mother died giving birth to me," Saeko said sadly.
"I'm… sorry. I didn't mean to-" Aegon tried to say when Saeko smiled at him and said, "It's alright. You haven't offended me by any means. I've had a long time to come to terms with it. And my father still loves me as his own."
"But what about your parents?" Saeko then asked Aegon who had a sad angry contemplative look on his face before he spoke.
"My… father, he… he left my mother for another woman even though she loved him and my sister and I. She would not let the wet nurse touch me or my sister," he said darkly. "And when my… the man who had given seed to me left the wife who loved him and bore his children, he took a woman who was already betrothed to another and that started a war," he added grimly.
"It sounds like you resent your father quite a bit," Saeko remarked softly.
"So would you if your father left your mother for another woman," Aegon said bitterly. "Has your father taken any women since your mother died?" he then asked.
"I can honestly say that he hasn't taken any other women as a wife, nor taken any lovers," Saeko said with a small amount of pride. "Besides, any woman who would court my father would have to get my approval first," she jested with a smirk on her lips.
"And I imagine anyone who would court you would have to get your father's approval," Aegon said with a teasing smile on his lips.
Saeko blushed and looked away, looking embarrassed. Aegon realised what he meant by those words and looked away, a sheepish look on his face. Looking back at Saeko, Aegon made to say an apology when she laid a hand on top of his and smiled at him. Aegon gave a brief chuckle and smiled awkwardly back. Saeko smiled a little wider and went back to cleaning her bokken. Aegon resumed cleaning Blackfyre; looking out the window and seeing the floating cherry blossom petals, it was almost a serene picture of quietness and normalcy and Aegon was almost tempted to relax when Kohta's sudden shouted alarmed him.
"It's Them!"
Kohta was looking through the front windows of the car and in the distance were the shambling undead. "Distance: one-hundred and twenty meters!" the chubby boy called out.
Saya was beside Shizuka in an instant screaming instructions. "Take a left! Left!" With a swerve, Shizuka steered the Hummer down onto a left side street but to no avail as there were simply more of Them.
"Wah! There are so many!" Shizuka wailed as she took another road to avoid the zombies.
Driving onto a highway road, they simply ran into a large horde of Them shuffling and shambling on the road.
"Just run them over!" Saya screamed at Shizuka who did as instructed and the Hummer ploughed through the undead wretches. The car shook and rattled as each undead was crushed and broken by the heavy duty steel frame of the vehicle. Rei suddenly shouted.
"Stop the car!"
Saeko looked ahead and she gave a gasp. "Jesus Christ! There's a wire across the road!" she exclaimed. "Turn the car on its side so it gets the brunt of it!" she shouted.
With a suddenly flick of the wheel, Shizuka turned the Hummer on its side, the rubber wheels squealing as they slid against the asphalt road and on the blood, fat and whatever else from the corpses of Them.
Then the car hit the wire fence and the fence strained against the weight and momentum of the car and the undead that were caught between the Hummer and fence were killed from a combination of being crushed by the vehicle and their heads being separated by the metal wire. Dark contaminated blood splashed against the door windows and Kohta buried Alice's head into his chest, telling her not to look. The car slid and squealed.
"Why won't it stop?!" Shizuka screamed.
"It's the blood and fat we're slipping on!" Saya yelled at her.
"Miss Shizuka, the tires are locking up!" Kohta bellowed. "Release the brake and press lightly on the gas pedal!" he shouted.
"Huh? Oh, got it!" Shizuka shouted in replied. Releasing her foot on the brake but instead of pressing lightly, she slammed her foot down on the gas pedal making the Humvee surged forward towards the wall. Shizuka realised her mistake and said, "I'm not cut out for this!" she screamed as the car slammed into a light post. Everyone was jerked forward by the momentum and sudden stop. Rei suddenly fell off the roof of the hummer, her back slamming against the nose of the car before she rolled off and landed on the ground on her back. Rei was moaning in pain so she was still alive, but the undead came shuffling. Takashi leapt into the air with the shotgun in his hands, doing as Kohta had instructed him. He stood in front of Rei protectively, aiming the shotgun at Them and fired.
With a thunderous boom, the shotgun sprayed out 12 gauge pellets of lead, but they did not hit their intended targets. Takashi was nearly knocked onto his ass and looked at the still approaching undead in disbelief and shock. Kohta was immediately telling Takashi what he was doing wrong and told him what to do. Takashi followed Kohta's instructions and this time he succeeded in killing some of Them.
As Kohta started firing shots, killing Them with well-placed headshots, Takashi ran out of shotgun shells and he fumbled with the fresh shells in his pockets, dropping some of them onto the ground.
By then Aegon and Saeko had stepped out the Hummer, their preferred weapons in their hands. Aegon with Blackfyre and Saeko with her bokken.
"Takashi! Get Rei to safety! Saeko and I will cover you!" Aegon shouted at Takashi.
"No! It's too dangerous to fight so many with a sword!" Takashi shouted back.
"Just get the girl you damned fool," Aegon told him before he looked at Saeko and asked her, "Ready?"
Saeko smiled at Aegon who smiled back, both instinctually recognising a fellow warrior before they set to work, killing as many undead wretches as possible. Aegon hewed apart with Blackfyre, the smoky Valyrian steel blade covered in gore, and Saeko crushed the skulls of the zombies with her wooden bokken. Black blood sprayed onto Aegon's face as he sliced off another undead creature's head, his teeth bared in a ferocious snarl and he gave an animalistic roar of defiance. He didn't end up on this gods forsaken world to end up as some undead wretch's dinner and it would be a cold day in all the Seven Hells before he died.
Takashi had dropped his shotgun and was by Rei's side, grabbing the M1 and with Kohta's instructions, he fired the gun but he kept missing.
Aegon and Saeko backed up against each, their respective weapons stained with black blood and gore.
"So this is how it ends?" Aegon grunted tiredly.
"At least we die together, right?" Saeko said to him. Aegon looked at her smiled. "And I never got to tell you," he said.
"Tell me what?" Saeko asked him.
"It doesn't matter now," Aegon replied as he suddenly charged into the hordes of Them, giving a sharp piercing whistle. "Come on you bastards! Come and get me! Who wants a serving of Aegon?!" he shouted as loudly as he could.
"Ae-Aegon?!" Saeko shouted after him before she ran after him into the undead horde as well.
Cutting down as many in front of him as he could all the while giving a long high piercing whistle, Aegon was drawing the attention of Them away from the group. Dragging the blade of his sword against the brick and mortar of the walls, kicking up sparks and creating a loud gritty sound, Aegon ran up the stairs with Saeko following behind him, slamming her bokken against the railings of the stairs, creating loud echoes of ringing metal. But sadly only a few of the undead followed them up the stairs.
"Gods dammit all! That should've worked!" Aegon spat as he looked sadly at the rest of the group still trapped against the fence. Saya had gotten out of the car and had armed herself with Takashi's shotgun, ready to go down fighting.
But then out of nowhere, men and women clad in firefighter gear came running to the fence and using fire extinguishers, they blasted back the shambling hordes of Them.
The firefighters then helped Takashi and the others onto the other side of the fence to safety. Takashi looked out across Aegon and Saeko and waved to them.
Aegon waved back but he looked at the herd of Them and gritted his teeth. "There's too many!" he said in frustration.
"Agreed," Saeko said and she shouted to Takashi. "We'll meet up with you all later!"
Takashi waved his arms and nodded his head indicating he heard. Then Takashi turned to the lead firefighter and thanked them. The firefighter took off the helmet and Saya jumped in joy and ran towards the firefighter who was a woman and embraced her.
"They're safe," Aegon said in relief. Looking at the herd then at Saeko, Aegon said to her, "Come. We'll circle around and try to meet up with the others."
Saeko nodded in agreement before they both sprinted down the street, not quite sure where they were going but they had each other to rely on and that was what mattered.
As they ran down the streets, Saeko thought for a moment of what Aegon had said to her before he ran into the horde of Them. What was it that he wanted to tell her? Saeko had a faint inkling as to what it was that Aegon wanted to tell, she felt a chill run down her spine. An old memory had dredged itself up from the corridors of her mind. Quashing the memory down, Saeko focussed on keeping pace with Aegon as they ran down the darkening streets of Tokonosu City.
…
TO BE CONTINUED…
A/N: There! The fifth chapter of this done and dusted! Next chapter we'll see the big reveal of Saeko's past and the arrival of the Witcher character I hinted at in the last chapter. With Saeko revealing her past to Aegon, will he accept her? Find out next time!
Also, in other news, I've been thinking about my Infinity Convergence Crisis story and don't worry, I'm not thinking of deleting or rewriting it, but I would like to try my hand at a side-story of it so to speak in the form of a sort tropical island paradise story where the Dragonborn and the ladies of the Infinity Convergence Crisis universe are on a tropical island paradise vacation, with no media/news crews watching them and their every move. The shenanigans the Dragonborn and the ladies will get up to will be all sorts of island activities and fun times, as well as a little sexy times as well *wink, wink, nudge, nudge, say no more, say no more* but this is just an idea at this stage, so I might not write it, unless of course YOU all want me to? Let me know in a review or PM if I should write the idea as a sort of side-story to Infinity Convergence Crisis.
Anyway, that's about all from me so I'll see you all next time.
Be kind to one another,
Angry lil' elf.