A small drop of blood trickled down Barry's chin as the hulking man paced in front him. Behind him, a small group stood gathered, watching as Barry got the crap beat out of him. The large man rubbed his temples.
"We know the kid was here, Barry. Just do yourself a favor and tell us where or even who he is, and we'll be on our way." Barry looked up. The man was large, unbelievable large with short cropped blonde hair and sour disposition, though something in his face was oddly familiar. He was the classic villain of the movies he had grown up on as a child, the "This-will-hurt-you-more-than-me" kind of guy who delighted in every second of torture.
"I told you. Haven't foggiest." The large man's fist made contact once more before he took a seat across from Barry.
"Now, Barry - May I call you Barry?" He didn't wait for a response. "You're a man of science, so let me level with ya here. My friends and I here with The Light, we just want what everyone wants. A cure for this goddam disease. And if I understand everything correctly, that's what you're workin' on, right?" This time he looked to Barry for a reply.
Barry spat blood on the floor. "You could say that." His voice was weak.
"Good, good. Now why can't we work together? You do the science bit, and we talk care of the distribution. Before ya know it, world's saved and you're sittin' on a wad of cash the size of Texas, or at least what's left of it."
Barry spit out more blood before giving a lighthearted scoff. "Monopolizing pharmaceuticals won't save the country. Besides...they're not even in the building by now. You'll never catch them."
The man's eyes hardened. In a swift motion, he stood up, knocking his chair back was he did. He moved to strike when the door burst open, a small women yelling as she entered.
"Two kids gone down a garbage chute, Lawrence. Who know where it comes out." The group in the room jumped back from her anger despite her small size. She couldn't be more than 5'6", yet she commanded the room. That is, all but Lawrence.
"Then why aren't you going after them? What if that's the kid we're looking for?" His attention had diverted from Barry, though it didn't seem for long.
"They dove head first into a medical lab's waste, they aren't going far...Assuming they landed in a pile of used needles." She never broke eye contact with Lawrence, and Barry realized why the scene seemed all too familiar. He had only seen it every day for years.
"Get back there and bring me those kids before I feed you to a pack of rabid Infected, hear me?" The woman rolled her eyes, gave mock salute as she turned for the door, flipping the room off as he went. A long strain of expletives followed after, from both her and Lawrence. He turned back to Barry. "Now where were we?"
Scrapes and howls chased the group as they ran through the abandoned building. Wally's hand gripped Artemis's tight as he sprinted towards Bruce, away from the pack of biters. Behind them, Dick and Barbara did everything they could to delay the horde. Dick turned over tables and chairs as Barbara worked to ignite her lighter. With a spark it caught, and she quickly held it to the alcohol soaked rag, sparing no moment to toss it at the Infected. The bottle hit one square in the face and instantly exploded, dousing its in flames.
"Up ahead. Stairwell. We can barricade them off," Bruce hollered.
Artemis glanced over her shoulder at the fight behind her, mesmerized by Dick and Barbara. It seemed for each one they killed, another would take its place. They never ended.
"Artemis-"
They seemed nonplused by their surroundings, like it was the millionth time they'd done this. And it probably was.
"Artemis-"
The world slowed as she looked around. Blood spattered the surroundings. New biters seemed to surface out of nowhere and the room spun. Her face made contact with the floor.
"Artemis!"
Her eyes turned up in time to see Wally hovering over her. His shirt and face were speckled with fresh blood. In his hand he held a large rock that dripped down onto her shoulder. Wally set the rock down and pulled her up, leaving new blood stains on her sleeves.
"Come on. You have to run."
Blood and pus leaked from what was left of the now dead biter. She tried to run, but Artemis couldn't tear herself away. The broken face had been starting to grow fungus when it was still alive. Most of the biters chasing them were in a similar state. They were humanoid enough, some still had eyes, but most were blind, following the sounds of their heavy footfalls.
Dick ran past them with a large chair raised over his head. Artemis saw the door nearing close as they ran. Something clicked in head, and she raced forward to match Wally's speed. Bruce was yelling at the four of them while he held open the door. Barbara continued to pick a couple Infected off as Dick continued to bring more and more furniture into the tiny stairwell before them.
Their yelling was amplified within the small stone hallway. Wally pushed her forward through the door, and her feet caught on the steps. Dick arranged chairs and small tables around the door as Bruce attempted to shut it against the oncoming hoard. Over top all the noise, Artemis could only hear the screeches of the Infected outside the door. She fell back onto the stairs, watching everything in silence. Wally fell down beside her, his hands shaking. In his hand was the bloody rock he used to save her. She sighed.
This was nothing like they had imagined. When they were younger, they had pictured things much happier. Finally getting to learn to drive, seeing the outside world in all its beauty, a road trip.
Artemis took the rock from Wally's hand and let it drop to the floor. He jumped from the contact, but didn't shy away. Her mouth drew into a firm line as she wiped the drying blood from his face.
"You look worse than usual." Her words were soft, but she was certain he heard them.
"You didn't see any of that, did you?" His words were haggard, pleading. For once his green eyes barely met hers.
"See what?" It didn't seem to help much, and his eyes stayed focused on the ground in front of him. The world around them calmed, but Artemis kept a hold of his hand in hers. Bruce and Barbara leaned against the sides of the walls catching their breath. Somewhere in the piles of chairs, Dick could be heard groaning.
"Next time," Bruce panted, "you be more careful." Heat rose to her cheeks. It was the last thing Artemis needed after almost dying.
"I'm sorry, but it's only my third day out of the cage, so excuse me if I don't know how to handle swarms of the undead running after me." She glanced back to Wally before returning his hand to his lap. "We're fine, by the way. No bites, no broken bones. Your concern is touching."
"Don't take that tone with me."
"Then don't dish it out."
"Let's just get upstairs. We can find out where to go from there." Barbara's interruption was welcome, and Artemis silently thanked her. She looked rough. Barbara had done most of the offensive work, and it showed. Bits of her shirt was singed, and blood and debris littered her red hair though she didn't seem to notice The hard work suited Barbara well.
Upstairs wasn't much better. The higher up they went, the more the floors caved in making it harder to get across. However, Infected were few and far between on the upper levels, though the occasional wail could be heard from the floors below. Large holes in the walls opened up to city of Blüdhaven. Artemis inched over to the opening. Tall buildings surrounded them like trees. The concrete forest mixed with the growing foliage in a way that was almost pretty. Visiting a real city had always been a dream of Artemis's. To see the buildings, traffic, the people, a city alive with its citizens.
"This city's alive alright," she mumbled, "but it's trying to kill us."
There were plenty of cars for them to choose from. The issue was finding one with all the right parts. Abandoned cars stood frozen in time in the parking garage. Weeds and grew out of the slabs of concrete and onto the cars. Most had broken windows from looters, and almost all of them were out of gas.
"No one thought to just drive these out of here?" Wally asked. His hands slid over the dusty cars leaving newly polished traces on the hood.
"You ever been in a traffic jam, kid?" Bruce pulled his head out of the hood of an old pickup truck and shook his head.
"No, see we were born after the infection spread. Or do I need to remind you of my condition?" Artemis's kicked a small pebble along the drive. Her feet hurt and she was actually getting tired of the outdoors.
"What did I say about using that tone?"Artemis rolled her eyes and Bruce continued. "Even if people could manage to get the car stared, they wouldn't have made it through the checkpoints. Government was so convinced it would lead the spread of disease, but in the end, most people moved from here to Gotham."
"And there are strangely no Infected here because...?"
"Not enough room." Dick slammed the hood of another car, and turned back to them. He wiped the sweat from his brow and left a longs line of grease across his forehead.
"So what are we looking for exactly? Besides a car," she added eyeing Dick. She had only known him for a a few days, but she could already tell he had a knack for being annoying. No wonder he and Wally got along.
"Parts, gas, a motor...Keys would be nice, but not important." Curses came from Barbara's vehicle as she closed the hood. "Do you know how to drive a stick?" Wally and Artemis both shook their heads. "Then we are also looking for something that's standard. Maybe four wheel drive-"
"Which no one drove in Blüdhaven." Bruce yelled. He was already neck deep in another vehicle by the time the four of them had caught up to him. "This one might work, but we're going to have to be quick about it." He looked around like he was expecting an ambush. "It's going to start getting dark soon, and an engine is likely to attract some attention,"
Barbara got to work on the car, checking under the hood and body of the old Jeep. She was clearly a genius at everything, not just computers. "Comes with the territory when you're making generators out of old lawnmowers," she had said the night before. Dick got to work siphoning gas out of other cars into smaller containers for their journey. Artemis sat on the ground feeling useless.
She was apparently going to save the world by doing absolutely nothing.
Time passed slowly, and Artemis had moved to the side of the building, her legs dangling freely over the side. Barbara had moved to working on the actual car, all kinds of tools being pulled from her backpack. It had been remotely quiet up until she accidentally dropped the battery. Expletives flew out as she clutched at a red hand cursing the corroded battery, but the new one seemed to find its way in place soon enough.
"Son of a bitch this thing hurts!" The job was done, but Barbara's hand still flared red. Artemis smiled as Barbara swatted Dick away. He was overly worried about her hand and kept rambling on and on about infection. She threw her stuff in the back of the car and turned to look at the group.
"So, is this it?" It had happened a little too fast for her, and now she was suddenly time to leave it all. "We start the car and go?" Bruce stood up.
"We can go with you to the edge of the town, make sure you make it, but after that you're on your own." Artemis could only imagine what was going through his head - relief she was leaving, possible concern over their fate, dinner. She looked at Wally.
"You're driving."
He hopped in the front seat and looked around. "Uh, there are no keys."
"Oh, juuuust tap the two wires peaking out there under the steering wheel. Hopeful the wheel won't lock up when you do that. When you want to turn the car off, untwist the other two wires." Barbara threw her tools back into her backpack before piling into the back seat. "Ah," she sighed. "Cushions feel nice."
The wires sparked the car to life with a roar that made Artemis nearly jump out of her skin. Bruce talked Wally through backing out of the parking spot, impressively restraining himself when Wally hit the car behind them.
Outside the garage the motor brought the city to life. The unknown sound seemed to draw Infected out from all directions as they drove through the unfamiliar streets. The first slammed the hood of the car, splattering blood over the windshield. Bruce was quick to act. His torso shot out the window, though it didn't seem like he should fit. As soon as the thing appeared, it disappeared only this time it left even more blood.
"Wally, drive faster, turn when I tell you to. Dick, take left side. Artemis, make sure they don't charge us from the front." He must have sensed her anxiety because as soon as she picked up the old rifle, he called to her again. "Artemis. Just aim, and shoot. You'll be fine."
The first one was the hardest. It didn't particularly look human anymore, but it was still alive. Her finger pulled the trigger much faster than her brain registered. Its head split open right down the middle, and Artemis pulled the bolt back. Barbara whooped in the back over her shot, but she kept her eyes forward, picking off any Infected that dared get too close.
Her aim was miraculously good, and words like "natural" and "amazing" floated up from the backseat, although they were hardly words that made her comfortable. But she had to admit, there was something exhilarating about it. Her shots landed right where she wanted, and she was clearly a natural. All those years in the cell, yet here she was shooting like a pro.
The crowds chasing them thinned off towards the edge of town, but Wally refused to stop until he knew for certain they were clear. Bruce was out of the car before they cam to a complete stop, and signaled for Dick and Barbara to do the same. Artemis and Wally piled out, and the other three began organizing their packs.
"You have five gallons of gas in the back, but that won't fill the tank. If you come across a couple cars, don't be afraid to stop and siphon some out. Do not keep the car running at night if you're not driving. I don't care how cold it gets. If the battery dies, you die. Scavenge all that you can, and do not, under any circumstances, get separated."
Artemis looked to Dick and Barbara for some sort of comfort, but only found them smirking. Dick gave her a subtle thumbs ups which did nothing to help her confidence. Bruce cleared his throat.
"Did you hear any of that?" She rolled her eyes.
"Yes, I did." She glanced up to the sky that was quickly changing from afternoon to evening. "So, is this the part where we hug?"
Bruce narrowed his eyes, and gave the warmed goodbye he could muster. "Don't let anything happen to my father's gun."
Dick and Barbara gave quick hugs and words of wisdom. "You have to tell him sooner or later," the redhead said as they hugged.
"I pick later," she replied through a smile. "Go easy on the guys."
Artemis climbed into the passenger's side of the front seat, and Wally once again sparked the car to life. He paused for a moment then turned to look at her.
"Ready to go?"
"Not even kind of."
He switched the car into drive, and pressed his foot down on the gas. "Let's go then."
As a thank you for being the best readers in the world, I give you an extra long chappy. I appreciate all of your patience and kind words as I've been working on this. I hope this is an adequate thanks for all your support. Im actually...really proud of this chapter what with how long its been since the update and how busy I've been, so I can only hope you enjoy it.
This break has given me a chance to stop and think about what I really want in this story. We will occasionally be visiting Barry back at the lab, and we might even starting switching back and forth between Artemis and Wally, though that's up in the air. BUT! The roadtrip has started, and now the real stuff can start.
Thank you once again for being amazing. The chapters will start rolling again, though it may be a little slow.
~mags.