Author's Notes - Jeez, this ending chapter took me long enough! I apologize for the extremely long wait, writer's block just had me writing drabbles for what seemed like forever.
I'm back. With the ending. For real this time. So enjoy.
Disclaimer - And now, for the last time, I don't own Left 4 Dead.
Even after the food and supplies had been packed, and all the guns had been reloaded, the survivors still felt uneasy leaving the outpost they had called home for the past week. This was most likely because the two Infected traveling with them hadn't stopped growling ever since the call with the army went through earlier. It made everyone cautious going back out into the woods, knowing somewhere out there, something was aggitating two of the most dangerous special Infected the virus had mutated. The only thing that would have this kind of affect on them would have to be a Tank, and that was an Infected they did not want to encounter. So far however, there hadn't been a sound in the forest that would give away a Tanks position. No thundering footsteps or angry grunting. Not even a cave the behemoth could be hiding in. The forest was as quiet and peaceful as it had been during their week long stay.
Bill didn't trust the silence.
Over time, the Hunter and Smoker's growling/coughing had grown more frequent, the Hunter even pacing on all fours in front of them, getting antsy the farther they traveled down the forest trail. The Smoker had been producing more smoke than usual, which had caused Francis to push him off the trail away from everyone (or just himself) to keep from suffocating. Currently, the Smoker was power-walking alongside the Hunter, using his height to his advantage and peering out over the bushes to see what was beyond them.
Whatever he saw made him stop in his tracks.
The survivors caught up to their infected companions and halted alongside them as well. Bill made the signal to keep quiet and listen carefully. The Smoker hadn't made a sound since he stopped, but it took a small kick from Francis to make the Hunter stop growling for a few moments. Bill looked between both Infected before shifting his gaze towards the bushes. Whatever they found behind these bushes would tell them exactly what had bothered the Hunter and Smoker so much.
The distant sound of human voices finally reached their ears, as well as the sound of revving car engines. The army had finally made it to the forest it seemed. They were so close to being rescued...
Bill gave the signal to follow him, pointing to the bushes to indicate the direction. When the team started moving towards their potential rescue though, the Smoker gave a quiet cough and backed away a few paces, clearly not wanting to go ahead any farther. The Hunter stood up on two legs and backed up as well, copying the Smoker's actions.
"Guess it's for the best," Bill stated to the Infected, "The army would have shot you two on sight anyway." He turned his attention back to his team and nodded to continue forward. With one last glance back at the two Infected, the four survivors worked their way through the thick brush to the awaiting army on the other side, not noticing the nervous glances the Infected gave each other.
What the survivors came upon seemed more disturbing than the tortured Infected. The army they had relied upon to get them out of the area was currently trying to keep a Tank from escaping the chains wrapped around its entire body. The more it struggled, the tighter the soldiers pulled on the chains, earning pained grunts from the large Infected. How they hadn't heard the Tank earlier became clear when a soldier on top of the Tank yanked at some of the chains near its head, revealing a makeshift gag stuffed messily down its throat. A line of soldiers surrounding the Tank stood with their weapons ready and poised to shoot the Infected down if it managed to escape. The worst part was the Tank seemed to have stopped struggling, its strength drained trying to escape the soldiers trap. The soldiers continued to pull and prod at it though, as if taunting the beast wasn't humiliating enough.
"Not again..." Bill sighed, his burnt out cigarrette dropping to the ground as he spoke.
"Old man, if you even THINK about saving a Tank, I swear I'm gonna-"
"Stay right where you are and drop your weapons!"
All four looked ahead to see the group of soldiers turning their guns towards them and ignoring the Tank. The soldier who had spotted them came closer, his gun aimed directly at Bill. "I said, drop your weapons!"
With much reluctance, all four dropped their weapons and put their hands up in surrender. Francis, not one to be told what to do by authority, dropped his hands after a few moments and pointed at the soldier, "You the guys we contacted earlier? The ones who said they were gonna send an armoured truck to come get us?"
The soldiers lowered their weapons in realization that these were the survivors whom they had been contacted by a short time ago. The commander dropped his gun to his side and motioned for the four of them to follow him.
"Sorry about that. You can't really trust anything that moves nowadays. Hey, didn't you guys say there were six of you? Where are the other two?"
Bill didn't miss a beat when he replied, "They were ambushed by a Hunter and Smoker while we were heading over here. Unfortuantely, both Infected managed to escape."
The soldier seemed to buy the lie and he waved it off, "Well, can't save everybody right? And if those freaks know what good for them, they'll stay clear of this place. These soldiers ain't in the mood for dealing with any more Infected at the moment." He gestured at the Tank and continued, "Caught this big fella by surprise by ramming the armoured truck right into its backside! Put up a bit of a fight, but once the chains were on, it had no chance. We were actually gonna have a bit of fun with the brainless oaf as soon as we rescued you guys, but it looks like we get to start the party early!"
All the soldiers raised their weapons in victory over their capture and proceeded to take turns beating the Tanks head in with the butt of their guns. The four survivors could do nothing but watch as the helpless Tank was beaten senseless by the army personel, all of whom were laughing and joking around the entire time.
"Bill, I'm not saying we should free the Tank, but shouldn't we try getting them to stop? I mean, this is just..." Zoey couldn't even finish, too horrified at the sight before her.
"I'm sorry Zoey, but I don't think there's anything we can do this time. The best we can do right now is wait for them to be done and then let them take us out of this godforsaken forest." He pulled another cigarrette out of his pocket and lit it.
"This is why I hate the army."
"For once, I'm gonna agree with you Francis."
"Why thank you Louis! See Bill? I'm not the only one who hates the army!"
Bill couldn't even manage to make a snarky comment back at Francis. He was just too drained from all the events that happened in the course of the week. A tortured Hunter and Smoker, the death of the monster who had tortured them, and now this. The army having the time of their lives beating a Tank into a bloody mess. Did the world go to hell when the virus spread? Or was it always this bad? The human beings they had lived alongside their entire lives...were they the real monsters all along?
"Alright men, I think the brute has had enough. Pull back!"
All the soldiers pulled away from the beaten Tank, some getting one last hit in before stepping back. The commander of the squad stepped forward with a lit molotav in his hand.
"Okay men, our mission is to get these survivors back to the safe zone in one piece! So let's get moving!"
After hearing the resounding 'Yes sir!' from his men, the commander held the molotav out to Bill, "So, you want to put an end to this thing?"
The war veteran stared at the burning bottle before shaking his head and turning away. The commander offered the molotav to the other three, surprised by the declined offer by all of them (Especially the biker. He looked like the rebel type). After he was refused by Zoey, he merely shrugged his shoulder and remarked, "Fine, I'll do it. Time to burn this bitch down!"
As soon as he threw the molotav, Bill remembered something troubling about Tanks. They were already fast and strong, but when set ablaze, Tanks seemed to have an adrenaline rush as their strength and speed increased tenfold. But then that would mean...
As soon as the Flames spread over the Tanks seemingly lifeless body, its eyes snapped open and immediately began thrashing in the chains.
"Sir! The Tank! It's still alive!"
The soldiers could only stare in utter disbelief as the Tank ripped through its chains with ease, before rearing its head back and spitting out the gag, a furious roar overpowering the noise of the trucks engine. While the soldiers just stared at the Tank they had thought to be dead, the four survivors ran over to their guns and got ready to Fire when the Tank started to charge.
"What are you idiots doing? Get your military asses in gear and shoot the Tank!" Francis shouted at the still staring soldiers.
Before the soldiers could make a move however, the Tank charged forward, stampeding towards the group of terrified military men, fully intending on ramming the truck as they had done to him. The survivors watched as the Tank hit the armoured truck with all of its adrenaline induced strength, sending the soldiers flying into the air and crashing down hard onto the ground. The four took the opportunity to begin Firing at the still raging Tank, knowingly putting themselves at risk not for the army men, but for themselves. This Tank had already taken quite a beating, but that didn't stop it from charging towards its new targets with as much fury as a bull seeing red. The survivors all dodged out of the way and continued shooting the Flaming Tank, being careful to avoid its vicious swings and charges, and trying to avoid getting burned by the spreading Fire on the ground as well.
"What's the plan Bill? We're gonna run out of ammo if we keep this up!" Louis shouted, reloading and dodging a swing from the massive Flaming fist.
Bill put a few more rounds into the Tank's backside before noticing the armoured truck didn't appear to be damaged other than the giant dent in the side. If they could only make it over there without the Tank running after them, then they might have a chance at escaping. There was no way they were gonna be able to outrun a Tank this angry without a distraction though.
Zoey had backed herself up against a tree, unable to move, completely out of ammo, and watching in horror as the Tank came straight for her, rage burning in its eyes as it came closer with each thunderous step. She closed her eyes, waiting for the bone-shattering blow...that never came. She looked up and saw what appeared to be a Smoker's tongue wrapped around the Tank's fist, preventing the giant Infected from finishing her off.
"Zoey, move NOW!"
She didn't need to be told twice as she bolted away from the Tank, looking back only to see the Tank grab the tongue and pull it forward, revealing the Smoker in the trees and pulling him to the ground. The Tank turned his attention back to the group of humans and got ready to charge them once again. Before a Hunter's shriek filled the air and a black hooded figure launched itself onto the Tank's back, ignoring the Flames and digging its claws into the raw flesh.
"Those...those are the-"
"People, if we want to get out of here, we're gonna have to hightail it in the armoured truck!"
"But Bill, the Infected-"
"Zoey, they're giving us a distraction! Let's make use of it before that Tank gets the better of them!"
As if on cue, the Tank rammed itself against a tree, crushing the Hunter and making him drop to the ground unconcious. Before the Tank could go for the humans yet again, the Smoker's tongue shot out and wrapped around it's legs, tripping it and sending it sprawling onto the ground.
Francis, Louis, and Zoey clambered into the back of the truck while Bill climbed into the driver's seat. With one last look at the fighting trio of Infected, Bill gave a salute before closing the door and starting up the engine.
The Smoker glanced over with his good eye at the retreating humans, before shooting another tongue at the weakening Tank. At this rate, the Tank would be dead soon, nintey percent of its body already covered in blisters and peeling dead skin. Although, even with the threat of the Tank gone, there was no way the Smoker and Hunter were going to get out of the clearing alive. The Fire from the molotav had spread too far, too fast, and any exit that was present before was now engulfed by a sea of Flames.
The Tank let out a weak roar before using the last of its strength to pull the Smoker forward and into the Flames covering its body. The Smoker didn't resist as the Flames made their way onto his body as well. If he was going to die right here, he might as well take a Tank with him. The Hunter let out a yelp as he regained conciousness, surprised by the Flames that hadn't been there the last time he was awake. He looked over to his now burning comrade, who in turn gave the Hunter a nod, letting him know that the humans were safe now. The Hunter nodded back before pulling his hood back and letting out one last shriek as the surrounding Flames closed in on him.
"I can't believe those Infected guys actually came back to help us..." Francis was stunned speechless as he recapped what had just happened.
"You see Francis? What comes around goes around! We saved them, and they saved us!"
"Yeah, they saved us Louis, but don't you think we could've tried helping them? We still had ammo."
"Zoey, I'm sorry but there was no way we were gonna make it out of there alive with what little ammo we had left. If it wasn't for those two, we'd probably all be dead. Either by that Tank or that spreading wildFire."
Zoey nodded in understanding, but still didn't feel right about leaving the Hunter and Smoker with the Tank. "I hope they at least got out of there alright."
Bill chanced a look through the side mirror, seeing nothing but a deep plume of smoke rising up in the sky. He doubted the Infected had gotten out alive, but it was best not to tell Zoey. She was already so emotional as it was.
The rest of the ride went by in silence, each thinking of what awaited them once they got to the army safe zone without the soldiers accompanying them...at least most of them were thinking that thought.
"Are we there yet?"
Author's Notes - Done. 'No Mercy' has finally ended! And it only took a few months of laziness and writer's block to think up a proper final chapter.
I hope you all can forgive the capitalized 'F's...I just can't help myself...
The ending isn't the best, I know, but I had to wrap it up at some point, and Francis seemed like the perfect character to end with.
So, I hope you all enjoyed reading! Let me know how much you loved the story in the reviews!
-RulerofFire