A/N: Sorry for the wait guys, this chapter occupied much more of my time then I initially expected. At first, I imagined it can write it in about 3,500 words. In the end, it turned out to be 7,000 words long, holy cow! But I'm very proud of this one. I hope you will like it.
Cheers :)
Chapter 8 – Ground Zero
Nora led the two of them through the dark hallways, illuminated only by the weak light of the lamps. Sound of their quiet footsteps echoed between the walls.
"Compartment syndrome, you said?" asked Nora, walking in the front.
"Yeah." woman with the braid replied shortly. She didn't seem very talkative, unlike her friend.
"Fuck. Boy's lucky he's dating a doctor." dark-skinned woman continued. "Mel doing okay?"
"Fine."
"She was so fucked up after Isaac talked to her."
"Isaac?"
"After he found out you left the base, he interrogated all of us. He was rough on her."
"Did anyone talk?"
"No."
Ben simply followed quietly behind, minding his own business, yet he still picked up some of their conversation. Who is Isaac? The question rolled through his mind, he even almost asked. He opened the mouth to speak, but closed it at the same moment. They are Wolves, they're just using me as I am using them. They aren't friends. He didn't know what they talked about. Nora and the woman with the braid were obviously friends, hence why Nora would risk her position within the WLF to free her friend that certainly did something she was not supposed to do. On their way across the lobby balcony, Ben remembered tailing Nora across it not ten minutes ago. He was prepared to kill her for Ellie. In the end, he found himself helping her. Others will kill me when they find out I helped the Wolves.
Muffled noise of conversation on the first floor forced the muscular woman and Ben to get crouched behind the crates on the balcony, their backs pinned at the hard surface of the crate, their shoulders brushed against each other.
"Nora!" someone shouted from below. Ben's heart rate accelerated. Did they find out about me?
Looking over his shoulder, he saw Nora leaning over the glass fence, eyes focused at someone on the first floor. "Where are you two going?"
Slight pause.
"To grab Abby."
Ben looked at the woman with the braid who was staring at something unknown.
"Boat's ready to head out." finished the voice from below the balcony.
Nora hesitated before answering. "I still got, uh, some boxes on the third floor." Short break between the sentences. "Can you two bring 'em first?"
"Boat's pretty full." different voice replied, a softer one.
Nora sighed. "Come on, I don't want to be here all day."
"Fine." said the first voice in a lazy manner. Ben allowed himself to feel some kind of relief when the noise of footsteps faded away.
"Thanks!" Nora exclaimed and walked over to them, taking a deep breath. "They're gone, let's go."
Without a moment of delay, trio resumed their hospital tour. Ben didn't exactly know where they were going, except that it was a dangerous place. Woman with the braid, Abby, had to gather some medical supplies or something in that place, needing his help because of the risk of going there alone. Thinking about the horrors that lurked inside, Ben's eyes lowered to the pistol holstered at his waist. Only six bullets. One glance at Abby's backpack stacked with weapons was enough to make his jaw drop. He had recognized the semi-automatic rifle, shotgun and the crossbow that was hanging on the side of it. And a holy freaking flamethrower, he gazed at it with awe.
The door that led into the southern wing – the wing Ben came from – was right in front, but they took a turn to the left, entering a hallway with a staircase. Staircase stretched downwards, leading to the first floor.
"You okay?" asked Nora.
"Always." replied Abby, short as usual.
The two of them were acting as if he didn't exist, especially Nora. She didn't mind his presence when she talked with Abby openly about some things.
"Manny's been worried sick about you." Nora dropped the bomb as she descended down the stairs.
Wait, what?
"He knows I'm here?" Abby asked casually, neither of them paying attention to Ben's face that had just changed six colors at the same time. Memories flashed, he remembered the WLF soldier with a man bun, the one that captured him and beat him up. Are we talking about the same man? They're his friends?
The thought disturbed him. What was the chance he was going to meet his friends?
"I bet he will soon." Nora explained. "He's on his way here with his squad. Hold up."
At the bottom of the stairs there was a double-winged door. On Nora's command, two of them stopped. She opened the door slightly and poked her head through it, examining the surroundings. "All clear."
First floor of the lobby revealed itself in front of them when the trio walked through the door. It was a typical hospital lobby, packed with sofas, chairs and other pieces of furniture that allowed the people in line to sit while waiting for the call. There was a counter on one side of the wall, presumably some kind of cantina, as Ben noticed the coffee machine and empty freezer behind it. Several hospital beds – the ones that had wheels – were scattered around the lobby in an unorganized manner.
"What's Owen's plan once Mel gets that arm off?" Nora asked.
Ben didn't pay much attention to their casual conversation, yet he couldn't not hear what they were talking about. He focused his attention on examining the lobby, scanning for any possible enemy appearance.
Abby answered in probably what was longest sentence Ben heard her say so far. "Um, he's been talking about Santa Barbara."
"He knows it's all bullshit, right?" Nora scoffed, "God, I feel so bad for Mel."
"Yeah, me too."
What's in Santa Barbara, he wondered for a second before brushing the thought away. He spotted a wide staircase on the opposite side of the wall, wondering if that's where those two soldiers Nora talked to, disappeared. As for Nora, she walked them through the door that led to another hallway that was probably the messiest place in the whole hospital. Old piles of boxes, cabinets turned over, shards of glass on the floor, old rags, wheelchairs and such were scattered along the whole length of the hallway, making for a true maze.
"All right.." Nora began, "..these floors have the ICU, the Trauma Center, and a few surgical suites."
"Sounds perfect." was Abby's reply, short as always. This one doesn't like talking. Abby reminded him of Ellie in a strange kind of way.
"There's a reason we haven't touched this area yet."
"Why?" Ben spoke for the first time since agreeing to help them, winning Wolves' attention. "What's the reason?"
Nora looked at Abby as if she's seeking her approval before answering, "It was ground zero for the whole city.. where they brought the first infected before anyone knew better. It's gonna be overgrown to shit."
Overgrown to shit? "You mean the spores?"
"Yep."
Ben sighed. That's real nice.
"You'll need masks in there." Nora stated when they continued through the maze of clutter in the hallway, avoiding piles of boxes, ruined cabinets and old, rusty equipment. The more they walked, the darker it became. There were no windows to provide with daylight, no lamps to illuminate the interior, just the flashlights Abby and Nora used.
"Here we are." Nora mentioned after a while. A lone door stood tall in front of them in the middle of the dark corridor. "Look for ambulances. They're containing medicine and I've gotten lucky before."
"Good idea."
Dark-skinned Wolf then turned her attention to Ben and gazed seriously. Her left hand outstretched, her fingers gripping the gas mask. "You'll need this where you're going."
Ben nodded, accepting her gift. Two Wolves exchanged glances, Nora placed her hand at Abby's shoulder, whispering. "May your survival be long."
"May my death be swift."
Ben reached with his hand at the door knob, twisting it. He walked inside, followed by Abby who said goodbyes to her friend. Two of them found themselves in the kids' play zone, judging by the paintings on the walls and overall decorations of the room. It was creepy in a way, illuminating the scribbles on the walls that seemed monstrous under the light.
"What was that?" Ben dared ask.
Abby didn't look at him. "What was what?"
"That.. long and swift thing."
"Just the slogan."
"Okay."
Two of them quickly looked around the room for anything that could prove useful. Abby found some old rags that she put in her backpack. Going further into the abandoned area, they noticed the overgrowth gradually appearing on the walls and floors. It wasn't easy to traverse the dark hallways of the abandoned part of the hospital. Not only was it dark, but the damage and rubble prevented them from walking straight through many of the doors. Cabinets that were overturned blocked their path, forcing them to crawl through the gaps or go around. Ben had to follow in Abby's steps since he had no flashlight of his own.
In one of the rooms, he came across a skeletal corpse wearing a white medical coat. There were still some parts of rotten meat attached to the yellow bones. And there was a note on the floor, crumpled in thin, skeletal fingers. Abby took her time reading it. Ben expected a few words from her, a comment or two about the content of the letter, but she kept her mouth shut. Lucky for him, plastic flashlight rested on the floor to the side of the skeleton. After two or three bangs, Ben managed to turn it on. Batteries were still working, much to his relief.
Back on their way, they encountered more corpses, former doctors and soldiers alike. Doors and windows were barricaded. Poor souls didn't know what they were facing, he thought, imagining what they felt at that time when the infection first started spreading. To face the unknown, I can't even imagine it.
"This doesn't look that bad." Ben commented upon entering the room that resembled the hospital's lobby in a way that it contained the balcony with the same glass fence. Only difference was that the vertical drop from the balcony was longer, or so it seemed, Ben couldn't see the bottom in the darkness. Room looked quite clean, much to his surprise, there was no overgrowth in it, and he also saw the door with a label above it. Label said Intensive Care Unit. It could contain the medicine Abby needed. As soon as we find the medicine, the sooner I can leave.
"Of course it's blocked. It would be too easy." Abby said in annoyed tone after trying to open the stuck door, turning around to walk past Ben, almost brushing him away with her shoulder. She seems an edgy person. Approaching the part of the balcony where the glass fence was shattered, she kneeled and jumped down, landing on the container below it.
I guess it wasn't that high.
Following her down, a chapel revealed itself before him. He knew some hospitals had built in chapels, filled with wooden benches and a small altar at the end of it. Few bookcases were placed around, leaning on the walls, holding dozens of books lined up on wooden shelves.
Behind the altar, a pair of patient beds lied covered in dust. A skeleton rested on one of the beds, its white coat covered with a spider web. Another corpse, another letter. Ben used the opportunity to snatch the letter before Abby, provoking an annoyed glance. Holding the flashlight above the letter, he illuminated the piece of paper and skimmed through the content.
I have no idea what's going on. Why don't they get us out of here?
I mean, are they seeing – or hearing – what's going on down there?
We've lost it. I think it's not about the containment. It's about protecting
the data from the research.
Our friends might still be alive down there.
You've seen what those things do. No one could've survived it. They are dead.
He didn't read all of it, but he read enough. Glad I wasn't around here when it all started, damn. Abby didn't waste any time, going from room to room, looking for medicine. Ben joined her, even managing to find some pills that could prove useful. He also found a backpack full of old portable medical equipment, only to turn it upside down, shaking out its contents. He had some extra space now, putting in the pills he found and the improved baseball bat, although the upper half was still sticking out of it.
They stopped upon reaching the end of the last hallway they searched. Using their flashlight, they illuminated the entrance to the restricted area. It resembled the entrance of the hospital isolation rooms.
"Emergency room." Abby said. "This is it. Ground zero."
"Ground zero." Ben repeated quietly, feeling the pounding of his heart getting stronger by each second. This is where everything started.
"Don't forget your mask."
Ben already had it on when she said. Abby put hers on as well and took off her backpack, unzipping it. A moment later, she held the double-barrel shotgun in her right, handing it over to him. "Take it. That pistol of yours won't do shit down there."
He gladly accepted the weapon, nodding to her as a sign of approval. They were quite a pair, both of them were very talkative. She even gave him the ammunition for the weapon.
"Lead the way." he told Abby, and she listened, opening the door to the ER, releasing the cloud of spores at the same time. Thin corridor was the only way forward. Ben walked past the hand washing only sink, following Abby, clutching the shotgun in his hands.
Twice they had to remove the dark curtains in circular corridors to pass through, coming across several beds containing long deceased patients. Only, the patients weren't exactly corpses.
"What the hell is this?" Ben whispered, looking at the deformity he couldn't recognize. What was once a human body was now a mass of deadly overgrowth that released spores that tainted the air inside. The fungus on the body was connected to the fungus that grew on the circular surface of the corridor. Ben has never seen anything like it. It terrified him. "This is here since the beginning."
"Okay.. this is a lot." Abby mentioned, shocked as much as he was. She was unable to remove her eyes from the corpse until Ben motioned to her that they should continue. The silence of the isolation room made his blood as cold as the autumnal air that crept through the open window. Yet, there was no whispering or rumbling. Only the sound of silence.
Another door blocked their path. Double-winged automatic door that opened with a button. Only problem was the power – there was none. Though, they were lucky enough to stumble upon a halfway open door with the gap just wide enough to allow them passage through. It was hard to see because of the spores, but it was recognizable enough that they weren't in a simple corridor anymore. A room that looked like a central chamber expanded in front of them, holding more beds and other medical equipment than all the corridors combined. More overgrowth too. This is.. holy damn.
What kind of monsters could lurk in the darkness of the ER, he tried to imagine. How many clickers or bloaters are we going to find in here? Yet they heard nothing. While exploring the chamber, Ben came upon an unusual fungal overgrowth on the wall. The sight of a human body sticking out of it – attached to the wall – sent the shivers down his spine.
"Damn it." Abby cursed, scavenging for medicine in the opposite side of the chamber. Ignoring her, Ben continued his pursuit of medical supplies. What he was looking for was a medical saw, sutures, antibiotics, clamps etc. Basically, anything that would help in amputation as far as he understood. Rummaging through the counters, cabinets and desks, all he found were a few boxes with pills. More than half were empty. He even found a medical box, only to be struck by disappointment when he opened it. It was empty.
"There's gotta be something around here, damn." he whispered, more to himself than to Abby who opened a drawer of the desk next to him. Ben walked into a room that was almost consumed whole by the fungal overgrowth. Another deceased patient lied on the bed in the middle of it, honed for years into a fungus that released spores and devastated the world. It was there he found another letter.
To whom it may concern,
You cannot treat us like this. I understand that many people are sick, but getting shoved in here and separated from my wife is unacceptable. I've been sitting here for over three hours without an update. The doctor put some ointment on my bite mark and then vanished. This thing hurts and seems to be getting worse.
Please deliver this note to your supervisor immediately.
Sincerely,
Don Carter
Ben read the complaint carefully and thoroughly. He even considered these letters interesting, even though they were terrifying in its own way. Still, they provided an insight on what people thought about before the outbreak, how they reacted to it, what they did in the beginning. Then he noticed there was more on the other side of the paper. He flipped it and continued.
Woke up starving, but can't keep anything down. Not even water. My head is fucking pounding. The screaming outside doesn't help. Why did you lock me in here? Someone needs to come. I want to see Sasha. I want my wife.
SAsha, HELp! Can'T keep mY ThouGhTs. BaREly wrITE thiS. CAN't sLEEp, too hunGRy. geT Me oUT!
hUNGRY. EYeS huRT. SAshA.
He dropped the letter, not realizing that his breathing intensified. His chest hurt him when his heart started beating rapidly. With a sigh, he kneeled, retaining his balance by gripping the metal construction of the bed.
Ben, is it raining?
"You okay?"
He snapped out of it, jumping back, hitting the bed behind him. Abby startled him when she touched him. Ben noticed her looking at him from above, leaning forward.
"I'm okay. Just.. nevermind."
She nodded and walked away. Ben allowed himself to remain in a sitting position for a few more seconds before resuming the search. Duo walked up to another automatic door, except this one was closed. Ben attempted to open it, but it wouldn't budge. Trauma Center was marked on the door.
Ben felt the light vibration in the walls and took a step back. A deep moan from the other side of the wall merged with the quaking.
"What the fuck is that?" Abby asked, holding her rifle at the ready.
Ben looked at her but had no answer for her question. To open the door, they need power. To get the power, they needed a generator. And there was no guarantee that the emergency room had a working generator. I'm not sure I want to go in there.
Something didn't feel right about it. "Guess we have to find another way in." Abby ordered, walking around the chamber relentlessly.
Do we have to? He wanted to ask, but decided it was best not to.
"Look." she said, calling out for him. When he walked up to her, he saw another automatic door he probably missed while searching the area. "It's halfway open."
"Cheers to that." replied Ben with obvious lack of enthusiasm and squeezed through the tight gap that sucked the air out of his body. He had to remove his backpack to complete the process.
Click. Click. Click.
The rhythmic clicking seemed to echo through the entire hallway. I hear you, he thought, somewhat relieved they will face something they've faced before.
"Careful." Ben warned. "We don't know where they are."
The warning was entirely unnecessary. Abby just gave him the look that almost forced him to bang his head against the wall. Thick and blue nylon walls were hard to tear off, but they didn't exactly isolate the sound. Ben wondered about the location of the clickers. Along the hallway walls stretched a set of rooms on each side. The area was reserved for surgeries, judging by the giant SURGERY labeledon the walls.
"Imagine, the first infected turned here." Ben whispered, clutching his shotgun tightly.
Abby scoffed. "Terrific."
Ben rolled his eyes, entering one of the patient rooms. He was lucky enough that the metal door was open. Automatic doors in patient rooms weren't double-winged as in the chamber entrance. Though, they still required electricity to open. Ben examined the room, eyeing the corpse-turned-fungus closely. Another body, grown into the wall, occupied his attention.
"Damn." he whispered, looking at the deformed face, able to see the mouth, part of nose and one eye only. Pair of yellow, rotten teeth was visible. I can't imagine how this feels, the agony..
He poked the fungus that has ingrown into its chest, releasing a small burst of spores into the already tainted air. It looked harmless. But he knew better.
The eye opened, and fingers encircled around his elbow.
"Aaaah!" he yelled and jumped back, almost falling on his butt. The stalker screamed at him, lunging forward.
A short burst of light illuminated the overgrown room when he pulled the trigger of the double-barrel shotgun, blowing the stalker's head into tiny pieces. Overgrown corpse flew backwards, hitting the wall. The explosive concussion of the gunfire caused a pumping feeling in his head until his ears opened again.
"What happened?" Abby asked, suddenly appearing at the doorstep. Clicking intensified.
Ben shook his head. "Nothing, he just surprised me."
"Come. I think I've found a generator."
Nodding, he followed her to a room they could only access by traversing through another one. Small, ruined part of the wall just below the ceiling allowed them to crawl in. The room itself was closed, the door unable to open without power. And there it was, a generator just like the one Jesse and him charged up on their way to the inside of Seattle. Reloading the shotgun, he kept guarding Abby's back while she tried to turn it on, hoping to restore electricity. Yet, Ben couldn't take his mind off that door. Trauma Center. What was behind it? What caused the quaking of the walls? He had to remind himself several times that this was the ground zero for the whole city. Oldest infected lurked in the dark of this hospital. They were as old as the outbreak itself.
"Bingo." she exclaimed when the generator started producing rumbling sounds, which meant only one thing. There was a control panel within the wall on the opposite side of the room. Illuminating the panel with the flashlight, Ben approached it, noticing a few faintly glowing screens. Skimming through the buttons, pressing everything he could touch, he realized he had to open a small screen to access the power buttons. His point finger poked the white button.
"Let there be light."
Light bulbs in the room were glowing faintly, providing for a little bit of light. The noise of a working generator filled his heart with hope to some extent. Small circle by the automatic door flashed green, allowing them to walk out.
"Yes!" Abby exclaimed excitedly, following him back to the corridors. Their excitement faded away quickly, though. The other doors that contained the clickers in their prisons opened, allowing them a free way out. Ben could see them in the corridor illuminated by dim light, staggering step by step, listening to kill.
Five, six.. Six of them. I wish Khan was here.
Instead, he had Abby at his side. Two of them managed to make a short work of the clickers in the end, much to his surprise. Most of them were killed using stealth, sneaking around and behind, then slitting their throats, bashing their heads in with the baseball bat and such. Strangling was not an option because of their superhuman strength. Good thing they don't have superhuman intelligence. Something seemed to trigger the alarm in the ER, turning on the red, rotational lights on the ceiling.
Last two were killed with bullets to their heads, ending their misery that lasted over two decades. Ben was glad he ended the agony they suffered. No one deserved that fate. With the clickers dead, they were free to search the wings for medical supplies, but once again, luck was not on their side. They found nothing.
Once they were back in the central chamber, they went back to the entrance of the Trauma Center. Ben couldn't help but not feel the shivers, remembering the noises on the other side of the wall. With one press of the button, door slided to open, stopping halfway. He widened his eyes when Abby took the matter in her own hands, opening the door by force and sheer strength.
"Wow."
She gave him a dark look with her dark eyes. "What?"
He simply waved it off, proceeding inside. Trauma Center didn't exactly differ itself from the central chamber aesthetically, except for the much denser overgrowth and a pair of flashing, red lights. His eyebrows pulled together upon witnessing a certain sight, another set of double-winged entryway.. except it was destroyed. Destroyed as if someone pulled the knobs and tore the doors apart. His heart was racing when the entryway revealed a dark narrow tunnel that led somewhere unknown. Its walls were made of fungus, and the spores blurred the vision much more than usual.
"Jesus.." Abby said, shocked as much as he was, "..what the fuck is that?"
"I don't know." he replied. "Let's just find the ambulances Nora mentioned."
Abby nodded, all-in for the plan. The exit to the parking lot was not too far off. After witnessing the fungal tunnel and destroyed doors, they didn't intend to stay longer than needed. Light blue color of the nylon on the walls switched to the red one upon the exit which was accessible via a metal fenced platform that led to the parking lot. Old cars were scattered around it, they noticed as they walked into the darkness again. Cars weren't the only decoration in the dark parking lot. Blood trails on the ground, splatters on the walls only made Ben feel even more uncomfortable about it. Abby probably felt the same, even though she kept quiet about it.
He expected to see several ambulances, but they came across only one. Entering to the back of it, Abby didn't waste any time and stared opening the drawers rapidly while Ben kept his guard up.
"Oh, thank god." she said in a voice full of relief, taking a deep sigh.
"You found it?"
"Yeah. A full box."
Ben smiled. We can leave now, finally. His relief was short-lived when his ears picked up the noise of hard footsteps that merged with deep, moaning voices, instantly freezing him up. He gripped the shotgun tightly, outstretching it in front of himself as cold sweat rolled down his forehead. On the edge of the ambulance back door, a red, bloody hand gripped the metal. Two of them remained quiet and frozen, hoping that whatever it was, it would go away if they stayed silent.
It didn't go away.
The monstrosity that appeared before his own eyes was something he had never seen in his entire life. Just a mere glance at it resulted in terror paralysis. It was a bloater, but also not a bloater. Something that resembled a stalker or a clicker hung by its side. A set of heads was visible in front, scattered around its torso. Half a dozen arms were thrashing around, gripping and tearing apart everything they touched. It was a super-organism composed of multiple stalkers, clickers and even the bloater – bloater being the central body – connected together by the fungus.
"Fuck!" Abby yelled in fear, jumping to the front seat of the ambulance through the broken screen. The monstrosity moaned, screamed and cried in many voices that buried Ben in his place. Without even realizing, he fired the shotgun in one of its faces, almost dropping the weapon because of its recoil. The monster didn't even flinch, let alone stop in its path of destruction, tearing the ambulance apart as it chased after Ben, and his life.
"Come on!" Abby snapped him out of it as she pulled him over through the screen, surprising him with the strength she displayed. Duo escaped the ambulance a moment before the infected monstrosity completely ripped it apart. They could do one thing only. "Run!"
And they ran, wherever their legs carried them, through the parking lot into the maze of corridors blocked by busted doors they had to open by force, all while chased by the conjoined king of the infected. Ben couldn't think straight, fear had conquered him. He could feel it, only a step behind. A hand that reached for him, he was an inch away from a cold death.
A swift turn to the left, then to the right and under the ruined entryway, and it seemed they were leaving it behind. Ben even felt hopeful when the ceiling collapsed on it, trapping it below the rubble. Yet, something told him they were still far away from safety. For some time, he could only hear a merged noise of echoing footsteps and his pounding heart.
Nothing.
Eyes darted around the silent hall shrouded in darkness. His breathing was heavy, chest expanded and reduced rhythmically. Did we lose it? He couldn't allow himself to feel hope. Not when he realized they weren't left alone. The sound of approaching footsteps had a wet sound of it, someone or something that has not learned to walk quietly. On the tip of their toes, duo moved into an intersecting hallway, silent as night. With their backs pinned to the wall, they decided to wait it out. The approaching footsteps were louder by the moment, and they could see it. A deformed gigantic shape that staggered between the walls.
It was blind. The faces sticking out from the fungi were overgrown. Still, he did not dare illuminate it with his flashlight, even opting to turn it off, along with Abby. Red light coated the monster, making the whole scene even more terrifying.
Please, turn around and go to the other side, Ben pleaded quietly.
Turn around.
Go.
That way!
Please!
Thick fungal armor and bubbles covered its whole body. It stopped, turning towards them. Ben kept his breath, not daring to make any sound. It was standing right in front of them, oblivious to their presence. Ben was breathing shallowly, his heart – that was pounding heavily – desperately needed the oxygen. Can it hear me? Can it smell me? His hair was wet from sweat, as well as arms, clothes and everything else. He felt the fear he had never felt before, the fear that was driving him to the edge of insanity.
And then, without any warning, the red lights around them went off.
Everything around him became dark and silent. As if the creature itself turned off. It didn't move nor produce any sound, even the ghostly sounds faded away. Without the light, Ben was unable to see a finger in front of his nose. But still, he felt the pressure of its presence right in front of him.
Still, nothing. No movement, no light, no sound. Anticipation and speculation were killing him.
Seconds passed. Minutes. Cold wall was frosting his naked hand, his legs threatened to collapse. He wished to scream at the monster. Kill me – or go back to your lair!
Then, with a bang of stomps and moans, it walked away.
The pair stood there for good two minutes before daring to make a sound, a movement. "Is it gone?"
"Mhm, I think so." Ben replied, whispering.
Carefully resuming their silent escape, sneaking by the fall, touching the cold surface with their right hands.
Without any warning, the concrete wall broke down in front of Abby, causing her to fall. He felt the last spark of hope fading away. Deformed voices erupted from the hole in the wall when it revealed itself, lunging at them. Ben jumped in side just barely enough to dodge the charge that collapsed an entire section of the wall behind him.
How is it so damn fast?
"Get up!" Ben said, helping Abby up. Two exchanged glances when the monster screamed in a deep, demonic voice. They were exposed to its wrath, presented with two options. First one was to wait it out and let it end with a painful, but quick death. The second option was much more tempting.
They ran.
Next obstacle they encountered was another door, blocked by an axe stuffed between the handles, to prevent the other side from opening it. Ben quickly snatched the axe while Abby pulled the handle.
His legs separated from the floor as something grabbed him by the shoulders. Almost immediately, the sound of gunfire exploded in the corridor. Abby shot the monstrosity that grabbed him repeatedly. Flashing it with the light, Ben was to look at the creature that was spawned in the hell of the hospital. Pain coursed through his body as it squeezed the life out of him. Holding the axe high, he cried loudly and swung it, deep in its flesh, aiming for the heads. .go! Combined with Abby's gunshots, it took a step back, and another one after that. Ben's right arm was burning from the relentless swinging. Left and right, he felt the axe sink into the flesh. Fingers that were closed around his shoulder and his waist let go, and he fell.
Crack. The floor collapsed, dropping all of them to the wet underground, the flooded bottommost floor of the hospital. Red lights flashed again and he rose, back to stand his ground, locking his eyes on the monster. He dropped the shotgun.
"Hey!" Abby called out. "Catch!"
He caught the rifle midair, clutching it tightly near his chest. Suddenly, he wasn't afraid as before. There was only one thing he could do.
Anger consumed him.
He raised the semi-automatic rifle up to his head, closing one eye as he aimed. Bang. First bullet pierced one of the heads, splattering the blood all over it. Still, it didn't even flinch. A burst of light almost blinded him when Abby used her flamethrower on it, setting the creature on fire.
"Just die already!" she taunted, pushing forward slowly until her weapon ran out of gas. Ben watched hopefully at the burning monstrosity. Тhe stench of the burning flesh filled his nostrils, turning his intestines upside down. Die, just die.
The combination of the bloater, the stalkers and the clickers screamed in anguish, its screeching voices banging in his ears. Out of blue, it rushed at them, taking them both by surprise, brushing past Ben's shoulder to knock him in ankle-deep water again. It carved its way through the wall, disappearing in the darkness.
"Where did it go?" he asked.
Abby looked at him and shrugged. "Be ready. It might come back."
And it did.
Why is it so damn fast? He thought when the monster burst through the wall on the other side of the room. How can something that big be that fast?
Two of them ran in opposite directions. The monster chased after him, through the chamber and the corridors. Ben ran wherever his legs carried him. Anger was restoring his strength and stamina, but he didn't know the useful way of channeling them. He fired the rifle each time he'd turn around to face it. Was the monster able to think? Several times, it cut through the other rooms and the walls, basically creating a shortcut in its way to get to Ben.
He turned over his shoulder to notice his chase was still after him, although a bit slower. It didn't matter, he ran into a dead end. It's aware I'm done for, he thought. End of the road. After everything he went through in Seattle to get to Ellie, there he was, cornered by a monstrosity. He didn't find her, didn't speak to her, yet his life will be over.
Overwhelmed by pain, he made a decision. He'd fight till his last breath.
Even though he'd much rather face the bloater alone instead of this horror, he charged forward, clutching the axe high above his head. It was slower than before. In the last moment before the collision, when he found himself in immediate proximity, he buried his right foot in the wet floor and turned to the left. Using the monster's weakness, he swung the axe downwards, cutting off the rotting hand that reached for him. The anger that accumulated in him was released in the barrage of wild swings and constant screaming.
Another hand reached from his left, he ducked and sliced it off from below. It surprised him when it lunged forward, grabbing him with the remaining three hands. Sharp pain filled his chest, the horror attempted to split him in two. The iron grip of its hands weakened suddenly with a jerk. Gunshots echoed in the hall, and Ben fell on his back as blood splattered on him from the bleeding monster.
Without a second thought, he was back on his feet, attacking the confused monster once again. One of the heads fell off, submerged under shallow water. Abby repeatedly shot it from behind, finally slowing it down, bringing it down on its knees. Picking up the rifle he dropped, he fired on and on until it stopped moving completely.
Blackened, burnt flesh was still smoking. Bullet holes were scattered on the entirety of its deformed body. Suddenly, its body started splitting in two with a slimy noise. Small portion of its body, roughly a fourth of its total mass, separated and fell on the flooded floor with a splash, gaining a humanoid shape. One of the bodies came loose.
"Jesus.." Abby said, deeply shocked, and approached, aiming shotgun – the one that Ben dropped – at the lone stalker.
It twitched, attempting to stand up, but Abby blew its head off, scattering it into the tiny pieces.
"Is it dead?" Ben asked, looking at the enormous pile of conjoined bodies.
"I think so."
Tottery legs disturbed his balance, he had to lean on the wall. His breath was hot and loud under the mask, blurring the visor.
"You okay?" she asked him gently, which surprised him.
Ben smiled weakly. "I am." He turned around, examining the corridor. "I can't believe we actually did it."
"Yeah. Me too."
Their happiness was short-lived, though. Silent moan came from behind him, sending painful shivers down his spine. He saw it rising back to its feet. The horror he had never faced before till that day was far from dead.
"No fucking way." Abby said. "You gotta be kidding me."
The bloater part of the monster was back on its feet. Although smaller now that the other part of the body was destroyed, it was still a bone-chilling sight and the strongest infected Ben has ever faced.
Two of them exchanged looks, nodding to each other. They shared the same intention. To finish what they started. He fired the rifle twice before it started clicking, warning him about the lack of rounds. Tossing the weapon to the floor, he switched it with a pistol he continuously fired until he was out of bullets. Why don't you just die?
It lunged at him, reaching full speed in a remarkable time. He was too late to dodge. Then he suffered the consequences.
Dull pain coursed through his back when he hit the wall, flying through the air. He could barely breathe as he fell on the ground, almost completely deprived of oxygen. Eyes couldn't see well, vision was blurry, and his head was exploding. All he could hear was a noise of muffled gunshots from Abby that merged with her screams and taunts.
I have to help her.
He crawled on the flooded floor towards them. The monster's attention was occupied by Abby, she probably saved his life by drawing its attention away from him. Crawling forward, his finger touched a wooden weapon submerged under water. Pulling out a crossbow from the water, he noticed a loaded bolt.
His vision was blurry, but he could still recognize the shapes in the distance, coated by red, flashing light. Every little movement caused a burst of crippling pain in his body, yet he managed to raise the weapon just high enough to aim, gripping the wooden construction with both hands.
Stop moving so much, his brain complained silently. He could only barely see the heads on its body. Instead of half a dozen voices, there was only one. Only one head that moaned at Abby who fought for her life. She could evade the monster only long enough. It clutched her with its remaining two hands, pulling her inside.
She screamed.
That one head that wasn't destroyed was on its back, looking right at him with its eyeless stare. One shot. There was no time to waste.
He pulled the trigger.
The bolt swished through the air, landing right in the middle of the last head, piercing its fungal armor and the brain. Abby stopped screaming and Ben heard a splash when her body hit the water. Another, louder splash followed when the monster collapsed. It was dead at last.
His brain couldn't process the information that he killed it. All they had to do was to aim at the heads. The last atom of strength left his body, and Ben, curled up, sat on the flooded floor.
And then, finally, the tears rolled down his cheeks.
x
