Chapter 16
"Run! Run!" yelled out Kagura as the ragged looking Doberman approached them, growling angrily. The torn skin of its cheeks tightened as the lips bared its teeth. With the group having walked in a disorganized fashion, they ignored Minamo's yells, splitting up in different directions.
Kagura ran down the nearest corridor, hoping to lead the dog away. Kimura found himself in a large room with more windows then walls and quickly sprinted to the exit. As Yomi vanished, Minamo and Ohyama stepped into one of the labs, pulling the door shut. Ohyama ducked down beneath one of the heavyset steel tables bolted into the floor. Minamo stood by one of the thick windows, having locked the door. She stood, waiting in case any of the others returned.
"Where are the others?" asked Ohyama, still beneath the table.
"They went in different directions."
"Miss Kurosawa…"
"Yes?" asked the soldier.
"How long do we give the others before we go and rejoin with Kubo and Yukari?" asked Ohyama.
Minamo was silent for a moment, peering through the dirty window. "As long as possible."
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Kagura allowed herself to stop, certain she could no longer hear the dead dog. She looked at what stood behind her, spotting no evidence of a hungry non living dog. The faint sigh in front of her immediately gave away what was waiting. Slowly she turned to spot the three waiting dogs.
"Shit."
They charged at her, Kagura jumping towards the nearby window. She groaned out in pain as she smashed through the glass, smacking into the hard granite floor. She rolled across the floor, hitting a weak steel set of shelves. She slowly stood up, blood slowly trickling down one arm where she had smacked into the floor.
She waited, holding her arm. She was trapped. The room itself was spacious. But only one window, only one door. She backed away, stumbling over a broken mop as one of the dogs leapt into the room. Both waited, staring at one another, Kagura looking deep into its amber eyes. The dog blinked once and charged at her. Kagura picked up the broken mop and thrust forwards. The dog barely let out a whimper as the wood pierced its chest, ripping out through its exposed bloody back. It fell to the floor, limping slightly.
Kagura paused, hoping it might give up. It growled and bared its teeth again, preparing to strike. Kagura sighed and pulled on the metal shelves, which fell to the floor, crushing the dogs head, splattering across the wall. She reached down and yanked the wood out of the dead dog, listening as the two remaining dogs growled outside. As she waited, she spotted the sledgehammer resting on the floor. She didn't have much time left; the others could only wait so long until they left.
The dogs glanced up as the door screeched open and Kagura stepped outside holding the sledgehammer in both hands. She paused.
"Come on" she muttered out loud.
The first dog leapt at her, Kagura swinging out with the hammer, cracking the dogs head open, one bloodshot eyeball hanging loosely out of its socket as the dog fell to the floor. The other dog charged towards her, and she swung down with all her might. The head acted as a middle man between the hammer and floor, the skull flattening and expanding sideways as it was completely crushed. Flesh and brain was scattered across the floor. Beside her the partially killed dog growled and she kicked out, snapping the dogs head back over its neck. Finally defeated it slumped to the floor.
With a loud clang the bloodied sledgehammer fell to the floor. Kagura stood tall, blood dripping from her wounded arm, one foot covered in dog brains. She didn't care though, and sprinted back along the corridor, ignoring the squelching noise made every other step.
---
Kimura slid the clip out of the gun and then pushed it back in again. He stood waiting in the rafters as the dead lingered around beneath him. He groaned out in discomfort, sitting in the cramped environment. He held out the gun, aiming at various people. No need in wasting the bullets, but he might as well get use to aiming at people now. He'd need to kill them to escape. Kill them…again. Killing a dead thing. He wasn't sure that was possible.
"Kimura!" yelled out a voice.
Kimura saw Yomi resting in the rafters too, a grille from a ventilation system resting close to her. Evidently the girl had managed to find her way into the shafts. He held up his hand.
"Get back in the shaft, go and find the others!" he called out.
"What about you?!" yelled back Yomi from the twilight.
"I can take…" He stopped as the metal beams shook beneath the scientist. She froze in surprise, gripping onto one of the metal chains that held the metal beam in place.
"Go Yomi! Get out of there! Get out of there now!" yelled out Kimura. He watched in horror as the support collapsed, metal smashing into the floor below. Yomi hung above the snarling masses, trying to hang on as the metal rings dug into her hands. She called out desperately as the zombies held up their hands towards the girl, desperately seeking meat.
"Kimura!"
"Yomi! Crap…" What should he do now, he didn't know, he didn't know. There had to be something. He gripped hold of the support and lowered his legs. Jump down, get Yomi, get out of there.
As he began to lower himself Yomi yelled out and fell to the floor. She screamed out in pain as the twisted metal ripped through her leg, tearing open a thigh and spilling blood across the floor. The fresh scent of blood made the creatures even more ravenous as the swelled around her, closing in on the girl.
Kimura leapt down and fired the gun, the bullet passing through the back of one of the beings heads and disintegrating the face. He held up the gun again, shivering as he heard Yomi yell out in deep pain. She screamed out, almost inhumanely as one thing bit down, ripping off three fingers. Another one swung out with a decaying hand, swiping away her glasses and ripping a deep slash into her face. The gathering creatures surrounded her, biting down into her arms and legs, slashing apart the laboratory coat. One opened its mouth wide and tore away a large part of her cheek, exposing white teeth.
"Kimura…please" she said weakly. Using the last of her power she climbed up, the creatures following her. "Shoot me" she said, standing above the bent over creatures. Kimura nodded sadly and she smiled as he fired the gun. Slowly she slumped to the ground as Kimura kicked the door open and stepped back out into the corridor. He slammed the door shut, and sprinted along the corridor, hearing no other creatures.
He was close to where he had been to start with. All he had succeeded in doing was allowing one of the survivors to die. Another great effort. He sighed, falling back against the wall. He'd let her die. He hadn't been able to do a damn thing and now Yomi was dead.
"Kimura…" said Kagura, surprising the man.
"K-Kagura" said Kimura.
Kagura paused, suddenly spotting Minamo waving furiously from behind the window. The woman unlocked the door, holding it open as the two stepped inside.
"They're back" said Ohyama.
"Where's Yomi?" asked Minamo.
Kagura glanced around. She hadn't seen the girl since they split up, since those dogs appeared. She'd been completely separated from the others for a short period of time. She then noticed the sullen look upon Kimura's face.
"She didn't make it" said Kimura in a dead tone. "Those things got her."
Slowly he pulled the door shut.