Chapter 2- TERROR

Coach and Rochelle froze, and flashed each other worried glances.

Nick, however…

"Move!" He roared, pushing past the others, gun held high, and steady.

His gaze darted everywhere, catching phantom shapes in the swimming blackness. Worry gnawed at his insides as he looked for his companion, and he clambered through the iron bars, hearing the cries of suffering get louder.

After what seemed like too long for Nick's comfort, he found Ellis.

The sight that yawned before him made his stomach turn over.

Ellis was pinned under a Hunter, arms up in defense against the horror. Beneath him, Nick realized with dread rising, a substantial amount of blood mixed was mixed with the dusty rust coloured dirt.

His eyes swiveled over to Nick, and he opened his mouth in a silent scream.

Wasting no time, Nick leapt into action, pushing the infected off of the hick with a bone-crunching kick, and aimed a resolute shot between its effervescent yellow eyes. The shot echoed eerily in the metal structure, and the Hunter slumped sideways, as if in slow motion.

The conman stared at it for a second before tearing his attention away from it, bile rising in his throat. His gaze then settled on Ellis, steeling himself to assess the severity of his wounds.

They were far worse than he imagined.

The mechanic's arms, having been raised as a feeble defense(he had discarded his weapon in order to examine the 'squeeze chute'), had received the brunt of the attack , and, as a result, were shredded beyond recognition, and with a sickening jolt, the cardshark realized that the smooth curve of bone was visible between the torn flesh that was hanging from his arm uselessly, the indentation of cruel, forgiving claw marks discernable. Blood poured down the hick's still raised arms, pooling on his shirt, the crimson liquid blooming ever wider on the grimy fabric.

Nick's eyes traveled to Ellis's chest, and saw that there too, claws had been slashed across his skin, no doubt having been obtained when the infected pounced on him, and though these injuries were distinct, they were not nearly as severe.

"El…Can you hear me?" Nick spoke, walking over to his fallen companion, and bending down, trying to ascertain any more lacerations.

His breath hitched as his sight came to rest on the younger man's neck, realizing why the mechanic had it covered.

Deep set teeth marks, perfectly aligned, like the serrations of a cookie cutter had neatly scraped deep lines where the Hunter's maw had been shoved away. Nick then acknowledged, with a shudder, that if he had been a second later, Ellis would have a gaping hole in his trachea to show for this encounter.

"Yeah…" Ellis replied hoarsely, fixing Nick with a pained stare.

"What the hell happened?" Coach's voice boomed behind them as he and Rochelle caught up.

"Ellis is…He's hurt really badly." Nick relayed solemnly, swiveling to give a hard stare.

He watched as the other two survivors took in Ellis's condition, noting how quickly, like he, had become stone-faced in shock and dread.

Coach looked to Nick a second later.

"We need to get him to the safe house," he grunted slowly, as if not wanting Nick to believe, even for a fraction of a second, that he personally cared about the fallen teammate. He took his eyes off of the conman, and nodded toward the reinforced door within sight.

Swallowing his vexation, Nick nodded, and reached over to grab Ellis under the shoulder, Coach mirroring him on the opposite side, careful not to touch any of his wounds.

"Alright, we're going to lift you up on the count of three, and carry you to the saferoom so I can get you fixed up," Nick told the wounded survivor softly, and received a shaky nod in reply.

"1..."

Ellis pulled his legs up to help him push off.

"2..."

Nick slid a hand under the younger man's back.

"3!"

In a fluid motion, Coach and Nick simultaneously pulled the young man up, and Ellis pushed with his legs, steadily placing his weight on them.

With a wince, he gave them a weak pseudo thumbs-up, and began to walk towards the door with his arms held at an awkward angle, trying to keep anything from getting in his wounds, and with resolution, plowed forward with Nick at his side, steadying his gait.