I do not own Highschool of the DEAD or its characters.
Updated: 10/21/13
Right before Tomasa gave the orders for the Strykers to move;
As Shizuka and the rest entered the mess hall they were met by the little round man they knew as 'Cookie'. He smiled and bowed before taking Shizuka by the elbow and leading her over to where his helpers were moving and stacking tables and chairs.
"Okay doc, let me tell you what we have for you. These two long tables are for you to do any cut work on. They will be covered in plastic when we are done. The small table beside them is for your tools. We're getting everything else out of the way so we can place wounded around the walls when you're done with them. I have buckets of water to wash things down, and hot water on the stove to sterilize stuff in. One of my boys went over to supply and got a case of bandages and other items you may need, they'll go get more if they have too. We're making sandwiches, coffee and tea for when this show winds down. Fighters are always starving when the fights over."
Shizuka looked at him in surprise, "Cookie you…you've done something like this before?"
He nodded with a smile, "I was Chief Petty Officer of the mess on the JMSDF Hyuga, a helicopter destroyer, before I retired. I've seen earthquakes, tsunamis and even some firefights with pirates. Mess cooks always doubled as orderlies for the medics so I have some training in first aid also."
He lost his smile as he squeezed her arm a little tighter, "I know this is your first time at something like this and I'll help all I can. One thing I am going to insist on is this; do not touch an enemy combatant until they have been checked for weapons. Do not! They might have a knife or a hidden gun on them and be looking to take out our medics, it's happened before."
Shizuka shivered a little with his words, but nodded in agreement as his smile returned.
"Now, let's get you settled in and hope clearer heads prevail so we don't need any of this."
000
Takashi crept forward through the trees and brush behind the rest of Squad 1. Tatsumi had taken him aside when they got out of the Humvee.
"Komuro, since you have not been in this type of combat before I want you to walk drag. If these people decide to fight us, I want you and that shotgun covering our rear and flanks, understand?"
Takashi nodded as Tatsumi patted him on the shoulder. "Good. Now keep your head clear, stay low and if shooting starts, go for cover. Be sure to watch for hand signals though. If you run into someone, call for them to stop and throw down their weapon. If they don't…well you know what you have to do. Most of all be careful, I do not want to go back to face that woman of yours and tell her I got you hurt," he had said with a smile.
They had worked their way into the trees and quickly moved to a spot where Tatsumi thought they were near the suspected hostiles. He signaled for everyone to get low, then they leap-frogged each other till Tatsumi signed for them to go to ground.
Takashi listened to the radio chatter as Squad 2 got into position. Finally they heard, "Strykers roll out, Squad 1 make your move, Six out."
Tatsumi leaned out from behind his cover, "Hello the camp! JGSDF! I'm Sergeant Tatsumi from patrol base Onohira! Lay your weapons down and…"
POW! POW! POW! POW! Tatsumi ducked back as the unknowns started shooting.
"Six, they have refused surrender and have opened fire on us! Over!"
"Six to all units! Weapons free! I say again, weapons free! Six over!"
Takashi heard the roar of the Stryker's engines as they maneuvered into a firing position.
"LAST CHANCE!" Tatsumi called out. "Cease fire and lay down your weapons or we will open fire!"
He was answered by increased gunfire. "All units open fire!" he called over the radio.
Takashi could tell the difference in the fire from the troopers. It was measured in single shots and short bursts rather than the continuous popping that came from the enemy.
He kept his head moving back and forth as he watched for movement on their flanks and rear. Glancing toward the front, he saw one of the troopers jerk as blood sprayed from a wound that appeared in his back as a bullet passed through him. The trooper then slumped to the ground unmoving.
This was so much different than fighting the undead. It was loud, deafeningly so, as the machine guns on the Strykers began to roar. He could hear people screaming now, some in pain, other calling for a charge or retreat.
He didn't know how long this madness had been going on before he noticed movement on his left. He waited making sure it was not one of his squad before rising up, gun to his shoulder, and calling out.
"JSDF! STOP WHERE YOU ARE AND THROW DOWN YOUR WEAPON!"
The figure, which Takashi could see was in blue jeans and a brown shirt, froze for a second before throwing their rifle to their shoulder and taking aim at him.
Takashi fired first.
The figure fell backwards, tossing the rifle to one side as it hit the ground. It did not move again.
Takashi started towards the figure, but bullets buzzed by his head and he had to take cover again. The fighting went on for several more long minutes before he heard people start to call out, "I SURRENDER! I GIVE UP!"
Takashi looked around as the gunfire slackened, but something felt wrong. That's when three undead burst out of the brush behind him.
"ZEDS! ZEDS ON SQUAD ONE'S REAR!" he called into his mic before bring his shotgun up. Three shots, three down and he was reloading.
000
The firefight had been going on for several minutes now as Saya watched the tree line closely. She had seen nothing to worry her, and Kohta was holding his fire because he did not want to mistake any of their people as enemy.
A group of men came out of the trees, moving backwards, firing in the direction they had come from.
"Hirano hold your fire till you hear me fire, over," Saya heard Giba say over the radio.
"Roger, over," Kohta replied.
Saya guessed Giba was using some type of loudspeaker, as his voice boomed over the sound of the gunfire. "STOP WHERE YOU ARE AND SURRENDER YOU'RE WEAPONS! DO AS YOU ARE TOLD AND YOU WILL NOT BE HARMED!"
Their response was to turn and start firing on the Strykers. They scattered in all directions scrambling for cover.
Over the radio Giba said, "Hirano, put a burst of warning fire in front of them and if they do not surrender, open up on them, over!"
"Roger, over."
Saya flinched as Ma Duce spoke for the first time. Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
A line of dirt shot into the air as rounds chewed the ground near the enemy fighters.
"LAST WARNING!" Giba called out.
They didn't stop, they returned fire.
Saya could see a snarl on her man's face as he depressed the trigger again. This time men flopped and flew through the air as the heavy bullets ripped at their bodies. Kohta fired small bursts back and forth as he tried to contain the men who were dodging all over the field.
Suddenly a round object about the size of a baseball arced through the air from behind the outer berm that was across the ditch from them.
"GRENADE! GET DOWN!" Kohta screamed and Saya dropped down inside the armored cabin.
There was a clang as something hit the top deck and a few seconds later a thump as the APC rocked slightly.
Popping back up, Saya realized the grenade had bounced off the deck and exploded behind them.
As she came back up, she saw a man climbing to the top of the berm with another baseball like object in his hand.
She reacted before she even thought. Grabbing her MP5, she quickly took aim and shot the man in the chest. He stood there for a second, eye's wide, before falling back to the far side of the berm. There was another thump, as the grenade he had in his hand went off when he dropped it. Dirt showered down on them as Saya froze.
She had just killed a living person.
000
Takashi quickly reloaded as he watched for more of the undead. Always reload as soon as you can, he remembered Toda and Kohta telling him over and over.
He had no sooner filled the magazine than two more zeds came into view.
"Six, Squad 4 has hostiles crossing the perimeter on ladders, east side!" he heard Samejima-san say.
"Komuro do you need backup?" Tatsumi asked over the radio.
Boom! Boom! He dispatched the pair before reaching for his mic, "No, small numbers for now!"
Reload and watch. He glanced over to the body of the man he had shot. There was no movement.
Four undead came into view and pulled his attention back to them. As he reloaded after killing them he noticed the .50 cal. fire had stopped. "I hope that means we're winning," he muttered to himself.
Off in the distance, towards the base, he still heard gunfire.
000
Same time as the Strykers opened fire;
Samejima and Squad 4 had advanced to the inner perimeter ditch and checked it as far as they could see both directions. When he heard the Strykers open fire, he had the troopers pull back to the tree line and squat in cover there as he listened to what was going on.
That's when he saw something shiny raise up over the outer dirt berm and drop down out of sight. As he watched, several men ran over the top of the berm of the outer ditch, and disappeared from sight.
He keyed his mic and said, "Six, Squad 4 has hostiles crossing the perimeter on ladders, east side!"
"Roger 4, Six copies over," was the response.
"Squad 4, hold your fire till they cross the last ditch. I'm going to give them a chance to surrender first. Everyone get under cover and stay there!" Samejima ordered.
He glanced over next to him where one of the SAT troopers stood behind a tree. The man looked at him and nodded with a thumb up.
Squatting low behind another tree, Samejima watched as the men preformed their crossing maneuver again over the middle ditch.
The men took their time coming over the last berm. When they did, it was in a rush. They dropped the long metal ladder, ran across it and headed for the trees.
Right into the waiting arms of Squad 4.
Samejima called out, "JSDF! STOP WHERE YOU ARE AND DROP YOU'RE WEAPONS! DO AS YOU'RE TOLD YOU WILL BE NOT BE HARMED!"
The six froze for a moment before two of them turned and started back towards the ladder. The SAT trooper was carrying a Howa Type 89 assault rifle. He leaned out and fired an automatic burst between the retreating men and the ditch. The bullets chewed up the ground causing dirt to fly in front of them, as they skidded to a halt.
The one of the two closest to the tree line screamed, "BANZAI!" and opened up with a long burst of automatic fire. As his partner unleashed also, the SAT trooper cut them both down with two short bursts.
Everything seemed to pause for a moment before one of the trailing men, who had tried to get back across the ladder, dropped his gun and ran forward. "PAPA! PAPA!" he screamed as he dropped to his knees and pulled one of the dead men close to his chest.
Oh dear god! Samejima thought, as he realized they had just killed the boy's father in front of him.
"THE REST OF YOU DROP YOU'RE WEAPONS AND RAISE YOUR HANDS NOW! WE WILL OPEN FIRE AGAIN!" the SAT trooper called as he saw Samejima staring in shock.
Rifles hit the ground as they were told, and the troopers came out to collect the prisoners.
Samejima walked out and stood looking down at crying boy. He could now tell the boy was only about Takashi's age or younger.
"This is Six, all units report, over," the radio crackled.
"Squad 2 no causalities over."
"Squad 3 no causalities over."
"Reserve Squad no causalities over."
Samejima keyed his mike, ""Squad 4 no causalities over."
"Stryker 1 we're fine over," Kohta called in.
"Stryker 2 all good over," said Giba.
"Squad 1, three dead, five injured, one bad. Hostiles have about twenty dead, seven wounded, four critical, five healthy prisoners, over."
Samejima keyed his mike again, "Squad 4 update, also have two dead hostiles and four prisoners, over."
"Tatsumi to Paddy, I need you to bring Stryker 1 around and clear a trail so we can get a truck in and evac the wounded over."
"Paddy to Tatsumi, on the way, over"
"Six to everyone, be watchful for zeds. Komuro has already had a run in with several so be careful, over."
000
Shone had to back up and drive Stryker 2 up on the berm of the perimeter road, so Stryker 1 could get by. Once they were clear, #2 sat overwatch, as Paddy moved quickly as he could to where they were needed.
Kohta was checking the .50 cal. and helping Paddy watch the road while they moved. He glanced back a couple of times at where Saya was sitting in the back. She looked to be fine, but tired. Adrenaline burnout I guess, he thought to himself.
They were met by Toda just past the last drawbridge north. Paddy stopped and dismounted so he and Toda could adjust the dozer blade where they wanted it. Kohta leaned over and listened as Toda told Paddy what he had planned.
"I walked a route out to here that I think will be best for clearing a path. It ends at a clear spot where we can turn the trucks around, but we will have to carry the wounded on stretchers for a little to reach it. I'll drive and you stay outside and watch for trouble," Toda said then looked up at Kohta. "Also, be on the lookout for undead, Hirano. Komuro has run into several already."
Kohta leaned down and called out, "Saya? I could use help on lookout." He was puzzled was she just sat there and did not acknowledge him.
Worried, he ducked down and came back to her, "Saya? Are you alright?"
She was in a daze, staring at the far side of the Stryker. Kohta slowly waved his hand in front of her eyes.
"Saya? Angel what's wrong?"
She slowly turned to him, "Kohta? I shot him, Kohta. I shot that man."
He pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her, "It's okay Angel, he was trying to throw a grenade in our hatch. You saved us."
"He just looked at me…like he was so shocked I had shot him…" she whispered.
Kohta didn't know what to do except hold her close and whisper that it would be all right. He had not acted the same way after he had shot Asami. He had wanted to die; she was drawing in on herself.
Toda climbed down into the APC from the commander's hatch and looked at them in surprise. "Hey Hirano, what's wrong?"
"She had to shoot a guy that was going to throw a grenade in our hatch. I think she's in shock."
Toda came over and told him to let her go and step back so he could look at her. He leaned over and got a good look at her face…and slapped her.
"HEY! WHAT THE HELL!" Kohta exclaimed as he grabbed Toda's arm.
"Wake up little girl!" Toda hollered. "You think you're the first to have to do this? Get up and get yourself straight! Your boyfriend needs your help watching for zeds! Do you want us to get bitten because you're having a pity party?"
At first Saya recoiled away from him, then her face changed as she started to burn. She charged at him and Kohta had to grab her to keep her from wrapping her hands around Toda's neck.
"WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE HITTING ME, OLD MAN!" she screamed.
Toda stepped back and smiled, "There she is, that sweet little fireball I know. Get her calmed down Hirano and let's get started. Wounded are waiting on us." He turned and went to the driver's seat as they both watched stunned.
She turned to Kohta and grabbed him by the front of his vest, "And you, asshole! You just let him hit me?"
"B…but Saya, I didn't…didn't know that's what he was going to do!" Kohta stuttered.
She shoved him out of the way and went forward to open the left hatch, MP5 clenched in her trembling right hand.
000
It was almost an hour later when Tatsumi realized he had not seen Takashi for a while. After calling a couple of times and getting no response he began to search with a little fear in his heart. He found him kneeling next to a body, not far from where he had last seen him during the battle.
Tatsumi walked up, "Komuro what's wrong? Didn't you hear me calling you?"
When Takashi looked up at him Tatsumi saw dirty tracks of tears, where they had run down the boy's face. Looking down at the body Tatsumi realized it was the body of a younger boy, no more than twelve or thirteen years old. He lay spread eagled on his back, with his eyes open and a shocked look on his face. His chest was a bloody mess from a shotgun blast.
Tatsumi knelt down and put his hand on Takashi's shoulder, "What's this brother? What's going on?"
Takashi sniffed, "I killed him, Tatsumi. I killed a boy younger than me. I've killed before, you know that, but…but this is a child that had his whole life before him and I ended it."
Tatsumi frowned, "Hey, I see the rifle there, he was trying to shoot you right?"
Takashi nodded, "Yes, I called out for him to drop his weapon, and he took aim on me. I was faster. I didn't know until after the fight was over he wasn't a man."
"I don't want to hear that from you," Tatsumi told him. "He chose to pick up that weapon; nobody made him do it. He was trying to kill you and your teammates. You did the right thing, don't let it get to you. If you hadn't done it, that might be you lying there."
"I know, but, it still hurts."
"I know bro, I know, but as they say, this too shall pass. You have to get up now and move on. We got a lot of cleanup to do and I need you. I'll get someone to take care of this."
Takashi nodded as he got up. Glancing down one last time, he gently closed the boy's eyes, shook his head and walked away.
000
The mess hall had turned into a madhouse of rushing, shouting people. Yukari and Cookie were handling small stuff, arm, leg and flesh wounds, while Shizuka was elbow deep in a sucking chest wound with Rei assisting her.
Shizuka grimaced behind her mask as she pulled the last suture tight. "Alright, Rei, give me gauze to mop up this blood and then we can sew him closed."
Rei gathered what the nurse wanted and threw it away when she was done. She watched as Shizuka sewed the skin of the man's chest with the curved needle while holding it in a set of forceps.
"I still don't see how you do that sensei," she said.
Shizuka shrugged as she tied off the last knot. "It's just one of those things you have to learn whether you are a nurse or a doctor. It's really not that hard once you get the hang of it."
"It just seems you know a lot for just a nurse, or are they all like that?" Rei asked.
"Oh no, I was well on my way to becoming a doctor. Hmm…well I guess the only one I really told that to was Takashi back at Saya-chan's house. The school nurse position was just temporary until I was dispatched somewhere else from the collage hospital," Shizuka told her.
"What do you mean?"
"I had finished my classes and was awaiting assignment to my residency. I would have practiced at a hospital somewhere and then, in two years, if I passed my boards I would be a real doctor."
"Wow," Rei exclaimed. "I'm glad you have so much more knowledge than I thought."
Shizuka grimaced as she tied of the last stich, "Yeah but I wish I knew more. Okay Rei, bandage him and get the orderlies to move him to the side. I'm going to wash and start on the next one."
Rei nodded and started to work as Shizuka turned away to find Urabe waiting for her with a bowl of water to wash in and fresh gloves.
After pulling off her bloody gloves, she pulled down her facemask and took a deep breath of air. She asked Urabe to get her a cup of coffee as she washed up, then she leaned over the next wounded trooper. He had a gunshot wound in the neck and Shizuka was sure the jugular vein was at least nicked. Someone had done a good job of binding it so she had a minute or two. Looking around she spotted Yukari stepping away from another table, as she finished with an arm wound.
"Yukari-san, please tell Rika or the Captain I need some people to donate blood. O-negative is the only type I can use safely."
Yukari nodded, "Yes sensei, I will see to it. I know how to collect it as well."
"Thank you," Shizuka replied as she watched Urabe come across the room, stepping around bloody spots Cookie's orderlies had not gotten to clean yet.
"Thank you, Urabe," she said as she took the cup from the young woman. "Are you doing okay? I'm impressed with how you are handling yourself."
Urabe nodded, "Yes sensei, I'm fine. The blood does not really bother me. Really I'm not a coward, I've seen and killed plenty of Them. It was just the thought of having to kill real, living people that shook me up. I joined the police to help people, not to hurt them."
Shizuka nodded as she gulped some of the hot brew, "I understand. You've done well and I want you to think about training as a medic. We don't have anywhere near enough help, and it would be good to have someone with police training that can go out on missions. Yukari and I don't have that training, though I'm sure Rika and the captain will be pushing for us to learn some."
Urabe smiled and nodded, "Yes sensei! It would make me very happy to help in that way!"
Shizuka set the coffee cup down and held her hands out for the young woman to put new gloves on them. "Well for now, help me fix this jugular vein and we will talk to the officers later about it."
A/N: It maybe several weeks before the next chapter gets posted. I've got cross country business traveling to do. Please leave a Review and/or Favorite.