"Son of a bitch, now the fuckers are getting smart enough to throw shit. A motherfucking human body?" Chris said, eyes widened
"Come on you pussy, you act like you have never seen a body before." Python answered
"Keep your eyes peeled, whatever threw this could still be out there." Brooks said
"I say we just get back in the truck and keep going." Dr. Shofer said
"That's retarded Doc, with something out here targeting us." Doug answered, aiming his weapon into the various shrubs and trees all around them.
The roars can be heard once more, putting everyone on edge. The almost anguished sounding roars could make the hairs bristle on the back of their necks
"There's things out there in the middle of them woods
That'd make a strong man die from fright
There's things that crawl and things that fly
And things that creep around on the ground."
Doug thought from the one Charlie Daniels song he had forgotten the name for.
"Want to go back in the truck now guys?" Shofer asked fearfully
"We're soldiers Doc, and by extension you are too. We're trained for this shit." Chris replied
The screams of Python could be heard as the men all turned around to see him limping away from the towering, decayed beast dressed only in a pair of dark blue overalls.
It was the first time they all had a clear look at it. Brooks immediately recalls it as the zombie from the woods he had assumed was a hallucination of sorts.
"Holy shit mate" MacMillan said, eyes widened
They all fire their weapons at the creature, causing it to bolt back into the woods once more. Doug and the others all run to their comrade's side. They lay Python down against a rock next to the vehicle, MacMillan and Brooks keep watch for the beast while the others tend to him.
"This is bad, he's suffered a bite near his neck. We will not be able to save him." Dr. Shofer said
"There's gotta be something you can do!" Chris protested.
"I'm afraid nothing can be done, I'm sorry Chris." Shofer said, a great hinge of sadness in his tone.
"He's right guys, I'm done for. I'm infected, please, shoot me, shoot me please. I don't wanna be one of those freaks. I'll be damned if I don't go out like a true Ranger." Python said, grunting in pain. His left hand is beginning to twitch, one of the early onset symptoms of H2N3.
"Who's going to do it?" Asked Chris.
The others all look at each other. Doug draws his pistol without hesitation as he makes his decision. The very thing that every warrior always feared had been realized, the loss of one of their own.
"I'll do it"
He walks up to his brother in arms, aiming his pistol with great reluctance towards his head. Python promptly removes his combat helmet, setting it on the ground.
"I'm sorry brother" Doug said
"Me too, may God be with you motherfuckers." He answered, smiling his last smile.
With a single shot, he was spared from the unending misery of becoming a zombie. Marshall Douglas, callsign Python was now claimed from the evil plaguing the Earth.
"Rangers Lead the Way." Doug spoke after a brief silence as he put on his fallen friend's helmet.
After the deed is done, they all keep a lookout for the zombie, no time to mourn Python in the moment.
The beast charges out from the woods at them, attempting to run them through with a pitchfork; they all dive out of its way as it strikes the rear window of the truck, shattering it.
"Shit, the Creeper's back!" Doug yelled
"Creeper?" Brooks said
"What? Best name I could think of for that thing." He replied
"My God, it knows how to use a weapon." Dr. Shofer said, firing several shots into it with his MP5k. Though causing it to flinch, the Creeper only seems to be even more irritated.
It slowly advances towards them as the Rangers all fire their weapons into it, creating wounds in all of its upper and lower body as well as its head. This however does little to deter it.
"Bullets ain't doin shit to em!" Doug exclaimed
"Just keep firing, big bastard's gotta go down at some point!" MacMillan replied, reloading his M21.
The Creeper then throws its pitchfork at Brooks. He performs a roll and dodges just in time. Chris then runs back to the truck, having devised an idea.
"The hell are you doing?!" Brooks asked
"Keep it busy, I'm going to get the semtex grenades!" He replied
As the men keep firing, he prys the munitions box open with a crowbar as quickly as possible. He takes three of the grenades as he runs back over.
"Sticky going out, get down!" Chris yelled as the Creeper looked his way, running towards him. The others all seek cover as he pulls the pin. The Creeper roars at him once more, its mouth open wide.
"Yeah fuck you too freakface!" Chris said, throwing the grenade. It lands square on the zombie's chest. It stops to examine the beeping object on itself as it explodes, creating a pool of blood and gore. Only the lower half of its body remained.
The men all get up unharmed, running over to him.
"Kickass man, blew that motherfucker right to hell!" Doug said
"What about Python?" Shofer asked, looking at his corpse.
"Leave him be, we don't have a choice." Brooks answered as they walked back to the truck, cleaning out the broken glass before driving away. Doug looks at the body for the last time as it gradually goes out of sight.
The rest of the ride is mostly silent as they all come to terms with their loss. On the Helicopter it is no different for the first few hours.
"What the hell was that thing?" Chris said
"I told you those fuckers are getting smarter." Doug said
"He is correct, it appears some of the undead have retained at least a basic degree of problem solving skills, albeit in a subhuman manner. It seems whatever person the infected were before are still in there to a degree, internally screaming in agony in decrepit, horrid vessels they no longer have control over." Shofer stated
The rest of the men have no response, horrified by the accuracy of his words.
"Four more hours until we hit Dallas." MacMillan announced over the speaker.
"Finally, I never thought we'd get there." Chris moaned
"I'm going back to the sewer I was born and raised in. Yay." Doug said
"You were born there as well? Ryder was too" Shofer stated
"Oh good, now I really fuckin hate it." He replied in a deadpan tone
"We're just doing what needs to be done and getting out quick." Brooks said
"Since when has that worked?" Chris said
"When we arrive there, I want to be the one who disposes of Ryder. Everything he has done is because of me, and I refuse to die until I atone for my mistakes." Dr. Shofer requested with the most determined look on his face the Rangers have seen.
"You think you're up for the task Shofer?" Doug said
"There's nothing else in this world I would rather do Corporal Kendall." The Doc replied
"Okay fine, you just better not fuck up, the human race is at risk." Brooks said
"You think I don't know that? I'm going to make that bastard suffer for what he has done." Shofer replied
"Nice to see you've finally grown a pair German. Taking your second step to becoming a badass like me." Doug chucked
Shofer rolls his eyes at this before responding
"You primates never cease to amuse me." He moaned.
The helicopter finally lands on a massive building in the city of Dallas, Texas. The survivors set up a campfire for the night up on the roof.
Dr. Shofer is leaning against the rooftop entrance door smoking a cigarette while Doug is picking off the roaming zombies in the once lively streets with a DSR-50 sniper. Everyone else is sitting by the fire.
He lines his reticle up on his latest target, a zombified Burger Town employee with the word (Manager) on its name tag.
He takes aim and fires, taking off a massive portion of its skull as the piece flies somewhere in the street.
"That's for fucking up my order asshole!" Doug exclaimed
"Do you think we have ammunition to waste?" Shofer asked, annoyed
"Please, with all the munitions and shooters we got from the swamp people we're all set. Besides, I've always hated every rat bastard in this freakin shithole." He replied, firing at more of the shambling, aimless zombies.
"We've run out of fuel for the Heli, we're going to have to proceed on foot temporarily until we find another vehicle." MacMillan said
"So we have to walk down this entire building? Don't you have parachutes?" Dr. Shofer said
"Well yes but if we go down that way we could potentially land in a massive crowd of those muppets and become an UberEats meal." He replied
"He's right, we've handled everything else so far." Doug said, shooting several more shots.
"Hey, do you think you can wrap up whatever it is you're doing? This isn't a request just so you know." Brooks asked
"Last one, I promise" Doug replied, firing his last shot into the head of another zombified canine, most likely a Coyote though he could barely tell from the decay. He lays his weapon on the floor as he joins the others at the fire.
He boils some water for his MRE. He savors every bite, carefully making sure he still has enough food to last him at least a month hopefully.
"You guys want to know what I miss the most about the pre zombie world?" Chris asked
"What?" Doug said
"Strip clubs, and not the crappy ones here. The Jamaican ones are where it's at. I was taking at least two home every night. Basketball sized titties" He said
"Good God man" Brooks sighed, his forehead in his right palm
"You know what I miss even before all of this? Those arcade games that used to be everywhere in theaters, restaurants, places like that. Those were so fun to play, especially when your folks talked about stupid arse shit you didn't notice as a kid." MacMillan said
"I miss the damn Culver's man. Those double greasy as fuck butterburgers with the cheese curds and cheese dip for your fries. Jesus Christ those fuckers had delicious ass food. I'm a simple man, that's all I need." Doug answered
"Surprised that all that muscle never became fat." Shofer thought
"What about you Doc, you've been awfully quiet. What do you miss?" Brooks asked, genuinely curious
"Me? This may sound typical, but I miss my laboratory. Being a scientist and doctor wasn't just my career, it was my passion. I never loved anything in this world more than creating things that benefit the human race. The creation of military weapons technology is my only regret really, in addition to my role in the creation of these unholy beasts we fight every day."
"I expected as much from a lab coat. So you've never had a woman in your life?" Doug asked
"I've been with a few women but none really stuck. They were never able to handle a man of my profession." Shofer said
"Can't imagine why," Brooks said as they all broke out in laughter.
Dr. Shofer simply rolls his eyes at this, smiling faintly. For the first time in almost 25 years he feels like he has finally formed real friendships with people, even if they were savage primates like the Rangers.
The men all retire inside the helicopter to avoid the freezing temperatures of the rooftops.
At 0500 they all awake the second the sun rises. All five of them stare at the roof entrance door, ready to gun down whatever awaits them on the other side.
"Let's do this," Chris said as Doug shot the lock with his shotgun. Brooks takes point, their laser sights aimed at the various offices and doors in the room.
The first two offices were clear, aside from the several half eaten bodies that adorned some of the desks.
When they leave the offices, they see two zombies, male and female feasting on a female corpse at the end of the stairs. The zombie in a suit and tie moans aggressively at Doug before he shoots both of them dead.
"Eatin days are over freakbag." He uttered
After clearing several more areas of wandering infected, the Rangers finally make it to the massive lobby, one of the lights flickering repeatedly. A dead receptionist sits slumped on her chair, a human bite mark on her neck and a pistol in her hand.
The gift shop was destroyed and looted of anything with value and use while the rest of the lobby was relatively untouched aside from the various garbage and several bodies lying about.
A Chomper standing on all fours is devouring a grotesquely mutilated human corpse near the entrance of the building. It stops and turns its head quickly towards the Rangers, bits of flesh stuck in its razor sharp, monstrous teeth.
It lets out a bestial roar before rapidly running to them. MacMillan fires three rounds into it with his M21, killing it.
"If only I had the time to dissect one of these creatures. The mutations of the jaws and limbs are truly baffling." Shofer said
"I'll make sure to just tear off its legs for you next time we see one." Doug said as they all stepped outside of the office to feel the cool air of the once peaceful city. No living being around for miles and empty vehicles and trash and shit laying everywhere.
"God, it's like every typical apocalypse movie but worse." Chris said
"Let's just focus on finding a suitable vehicle so we can bag this bastard. We gotta follow those coordinates before we lose all trace of him. This hellhole is the least of our problems." Brooks said.
The sounds of a canine's howl pierces the air as the men hear growls gradually looming closer.
"Son of a bitch, Helldogs!" Doug exclaimed
An undead Belgian Malinois leaps onto an overturned police car, howling as more Hounds closed in, many German Shepherds and Labrador Retrievers.
The Rangers all open fire on the abominations. As they fell dozens more seemed to take their place.
Shofer shoots and kills the one on the Police Car, causing it to explode violently, likely from a buildup of gasses in the body he theorized.
"Mommy said not to hurt animals anymore!" He said
One Hound tackles Doug to the ground, attempting to go for his neck. He grabs it using his free hand to grip its head as he swifty breaks its neck while Chris kills the last one.
"Jesus Christ, fucking hate dogs mate." MacMillan said
"Me too, now let's go find some real transportation." Brooks said
The sounds of more undead could be heard from every direction. A massive horde of zombies attracted by the noise of the gunfire begin to sprint at the men en masse.
"Oh shit!" Doug yelled as he and his squad ran as if hell itself was chasing them.
They shot at several of the zombies chasing them as they ran, the horde growing ever larger. If they stopped for a fraction of a second, they would perish in one of the most horrific ways known to man
"Please God let there be a fuckin tank here." Brooks said
After a couple miles of running, the sight of an abandoned military checkpoint with a mounted M1919 Browning MG and a Humvee with a mounted M134 Minigun finally comes to view.
"Yes!" MacMillan said as they approached it.
Doug runs over to the gun, checking its ammunition container which fortunately has live rounds. He wasted no time in opening fire on the massive horde.
Brooks operates the Minigun while Shofer, Chris and MacMillan fire from the cover of the sandbags. Dozens of zombies are split apart by its stopping power.
"Die you ugly ass motherfuckers!" Doug yelled, refusing to not hold down the trigger.
The last few zombies are killed by Shofer and Brooks as the horde is finally vanquished.
"Christ, that was a shitload of them." MacMillan said
"The M1919, one of the most badass MGs there is!" Doug said, admiring his handiwork in front of him.
The undead lay splattered about in the already bloodied streets, massive bullet wounds in all areas of the body.
A construction worker zombie crawls about on the ground, its entire lower half destroyed from the Browning. It pathetically growls and crawls towards the Rangers, its intestines trailing on the ground behind it.
Chris takes notice of it as he draws his Taurus Judge revolver.
"Shut up bitch" He said, shooting it square in its face, cracking its helmet.
"Everyone in the Humvee, time's wasting!" Brooks ordered
The men drive off as they venture deeper in the overrun city, prepared to finish off Ryder once and for all.