Chapter 9: Another Sacrifice
2:10am
Harold and Izzy joined the rest of them as they made their way through the dark vent.
2:27am
They came to another grate; Duncan peered through and saw no sign of zombies, just a dark hallway.
Duncan carefully pushed it off, it made an ear shattering clang when it fell.
They all waited a minute before climbing out. No sound.
They all climbed down one by one.
Izzy was the last, she wasn't acting herself anymore. She very upset.
"Where's Owen" Lindsay asked?
"They got him" Harold sighed.
They took a minute of silence for the big lovable oath.
2:34am
They looked around and saw a hallway to their left and one going straight.
"What do we do now" Tyler asked?
"We keep moving" Gwen said taking the straight hall.
They followed.
The walked and walked, didn't dare open anymore doors.
2:45am
"Can we take a break" Tyler whined.
"No" Gwen said.
"Why not" Tyler asked?
"It sounds good to me" Duncan agreed.
"Okay" Gwen gave up.
"Let's just find somewhere to stay low for a couple hours" Trent suggested. "Where" Geoff asked?
2:47am.
They kept walking until they came across another door.
"Let's just wait in whatever this room is" Trent offered.
They agreed, because they just wanted six o'clock to come.
They entered; Gwen turned the light on and found no sign of zombies.
The room they currently were in was some sort of laboratory.
It had small table, several tables, sinks, laboratory benches, five empty rat cages, and several other things that would make it a laboratory.
They closed and locked the door from behind.
They searched the room for other exits, there were none.
They decided they would just hang out and maybe get some rest before heading out again.
The lights were already off, so they decided just to lay on the floor.
Harold agreed to be the look out in case of emergency. So sat on the window sill and looked out at the star filled sky.
2:54am.
He heard someone coming and looked over and saw Leshawna approaching in the faint darkness. She took a seat next to him and stared at the star filled sky as well.
"Can't sleep" Harold asked?
"Naw, just thought you could use some company" Leshawna responded.
"Nice night, horrible times" Harold said.
"I hear yah" Leshawna said. Then she sighed.
"What's wrong" Harold asked looking at her?
"I thought I almost lost you" Leshawna said.
"Oh, well, I'm here now" Harold said.
"I know, I just don't want to lose anyone else" Leshawna sighed again.
"If I have anything to say about it, we won't" Harold declared.
"Don't make promises you can't keep" Leshawna asked?
"No I mean it" Harold said honestly. "I mean I don't want to lose anyone else either. I mean why do think I was the one to check out the zombie on the other side of that desk. Because I would have rather it been me instead of Duncan or Courtney, even after all they out me through."
"I would've just let them get eaten" Leshawna said disgusted at the thought.
"Promise me Harold" Leshawna asked?
"Yah, Leshawna" Harold responded.
"If I don't make it, will you promise to keep fighting until the end" she pleaded, staring straight into his eyes.
He saw she was dead serious.
"I won't let anything happen to you" Harold promised.
"Promise" Leshawna said.
"Promises" Harold assured her.
They continued to talk and enjoy each other's company.
SKIPPING THE ENTIRE HOUR OF THREE OCLOCK AND HALF OF FOUR. THEY ALL SLEEP PEACEFULLY. THEY HERE SOUNDS BUT THE ZOMBIES HAVE NO IDEA WHERE THE 14 REMAINING COULD BE, SO THEY GAVE UP AND DID AS THEY USUALLY DO. NOTHING. THE ENTIRE TIME HAROLD CONTINUED TO KEEP WATCH AS THE OTHERS OFFERED, HE SHOT THEM DOWN AND TOLD THEM HE COULD DO IT AND THEY SHOULD GET MORE REST. ORDER WAS LESHAWNA, TRENT, GWEN, GEOFF, IZZY, TYLER, DUNCAN, COURTNEY AND SIERRA. BUT THEY ALL WENT ASLEEP.
4:33am
Harold felt exhausted, but was determined to stay awake with adrenaline.
He was now all by himself still looking out the window, he felt extremely board. So he stood up and started to wonder around the lab, in total darkness.
He was by the door when he heard ruffling sounds outside it. He stood perfectly quiet right next to it.
He heard the door knob jiggle as he saw the figure of someone or something on the other side, through the dense glass. A few minutes later they walked away finding it was locked. Harold took a sigh a breath of relief.
Then another figure came by and tried the door. Harold held his breath once more. He slowly backed away. The figures kept trying the door.
Harold accidently backs up into a metal rack full of beakers, it falls and everything breaks. Luckily no one was there.
Everyone wakes up at the sound of the crash. And the figures start to get more agile and aggressive. They started to pound and knock on the door.
Then one of them punched a hole in the glass. It reached its hand in and swiped air.
DJ screamed like a girl and Cody nearly wet his pants, nearly.
"Damn, we're trapped again" Duncan growled.
"They just won't leave us alone" Courtney groaned.
"We have to get out of her" Tyler panicked.
"That's the only way out" Leshawna pointed at the door.
"Maybe's there's another vent" Cody offered.
They all quickly searched the lab for one.
4:42am
"There's none in here" DJ panicked.
"We're doomed" Cody shrieked.
By now the door was severaly damaged, but somehow managed to stay in one piece. The glass portion though was almost gone, except several jagged pieces on the edges.
Gwen quickly ran to the window and saw they were somehow on the second floor. The ground was away to jump.
"The windows aren't an option" Gwen warned.
The zombie's faces peered in at them as they continued their rampage on the door. One of them was zombie Heather.
Harold jumped onto a table and started to jab his hand into the ceiling. He made a small hole. He started to pull and tear at the ceiling. Pieces of ceiling came flying everywhere.
"What are you doing Henry" Lindsay asked? Looking up at him.
"Making a way out" Harold said.
"What do mean" Leshawna asked?
"A way to the third floor" Harold said pulling a piece of pipe out of the way.
"I see" Duncan said. He got up and helped.
4:47am
There was now a gigantic hole in the ceiling, showing a light induced room on the third floor.
"Now go" Harold ordered.
Izzy, Leshawna, Lindsay, Bridgette, Gwen, Sierra, Cody, Courtney and DJ all made it up safe. Geoff, Harold, Duncan, Tyler, and Trent had still yet to climb up when the door gave way.
Gwen quickly gave Trent a hand, Bridgette and Izzy gave Geoff a hand up.
The zombies surrounded the remaining three.
A zombie grabbed Duncan by the ankle and tried to pull him off.
Tyler and Harold grabbed him so he wouldn't fall. Another zombie grabbed him by his other ankle and joined in trying to take him.
"Hold on" Courtney screamed.
Another zombie grabbed Tyler by his leg and tried to yank him off.
Lindsay and Leshawna grabbed Tyler and tried to yank him and Duncan up at the same time. Because Tyler still had Duncan by the hand.
Gwen quickly helped Harold up.
Geoff and Trent joined in and pulled Tyler into midair with the two of them dangling in midair.
4:52am
Duncan and Tyler were now safely on their backs breathing hard on the third floor, as they had just escaped.
"Once…more…we…escape" Tyler choked out.
"Yah, but how long can keep it up" Sierra pointed out.
"Can we get to the roof already" DJ screamed, very frightened.
"DJ we're safe now, there's no reason to scream" Geoff said giving the gentle giant a rather hard smack on his back.
This caused him to fall forward through the hole and into the wave of zombies. This in fact did give him a reason to scream as he got a face plant on the floor.
"NO DJ" Bridgette screamed.
As soon as he disappeared, they couldn't hear his scream anymore.
"We have to keep moving" Gwen said.
They gave him a moment of silence as they exited the room they were in.
4:55am
They were now standing in a very dimly lit hall.
"I wanna make a pack now" Gwen said.
"And what is that" Duncan huffed?
"That we don't lose anyone else" Gwen stated. "It's getting to unbearable of how our number has dwindled.
"I'm in for that" Leshawna stated.
"Me too" Lindsay added.
"Same here" Geoff also added.
"Let's get to the roof" Courtney offered, "We only have an hour left" Cody stated.
They started off. They didn't even know how to get to the roof.
5:02am
They came to a double pair of doors on their left.
"Mess hall" Cody said.
"I could use something to eat, I'm starved" Leshawna said holding her stomach.
They all agreed and passed through the double doors and entered the cafeteria, with the same very dim light. No sign of any zombie activity either.
They passed all the tables and made their way back to the kitchen. They went into the kitchen and looked around.
A huge center table for spice mixing and vegetable chopping. Counters line the entire walls except the big walk-in freezer and what looked like a back door. And a huge refrigerator.
"Okay spread and search" Gwen said.
They did as they were told and separated to find food.
Gwen and Trent searched the fridge and found food, rotten, spoiled and outdated food, from the 1940's old.
"We're not eating this" Gwen said holding his nose.
"I agree" Trent said closing it.
Leshawna, Harold, Lindsay, Tyler, Izzy, Bridgette, Geoff, Courtney and Duncan searched the cupboards and cabinets. They all came up empty handed.
Sierra and Cody went and searched the freezer, they stepped opened the door and stepped in. They turned the lights on and screamed. The door somehow closes behind them.
They were locked in with 10 zombies that looked like they actually enjoyed the cold. They saw Sierra and Cody and instantly charged at them.
Cody and Sierra instantly ran back and pounded on the freezer.
"Help" Sierra screamed.
Everyone else immediately ran over.
Duncan tried to open the door, but it was jammed.
Then they saw blood splatter on the small condensation.
"Cody, Sierra" Duncan screamed.
He finally got the door.
5:06am
Before he could open it, Cody came crawling between the small opening on the door, covered in blood. A second later, he was clinging onto the side of the door for life as a zombie continued to try and drag him back in.
"Help" Cody screamed.
Duncan and Gwen immediately grabbed a hand each and tried to pull. The zombie was to strong, Cody was ripped out of their grip and disappeared into the freezer. They could hear his screams.
5:07am
The door bursts open and the zombies are looking at the remaining 11 as their next meal. Fresh blood dripping down their chins.
"Run" Lindsay screamed.
They all backed away and ran toward the door.
Courtney however didn't get to far as a zombie grabbed her by the arm that halted her in her place.
"Let me go" Courtney screamed trying to punch in the face, but had no impact on it as it continued to try and get its teeth into her arm.
Duncan quickly skidded and pulled out his knife. He turned around and ran back for her.
A zombie tackles him to the ground before he can get within reach of helping Courtney. He keeps the blood thirsty zombie at bay as he holds it by the neck preventing it from biting him in the neck or face.
He looks over at Courtney, desperately trying to escape, she keeps pulling her arm in all directions preventing the zombie from biting it.
More zombies start to emerge from the freezer.
"Help" Courtney screamed.
Duncan was still holding his at bay. He made a life changing decision. He took his knife and threw it at the zombie that was attacking Courtney. It lands its mark and kills the zombie as the knife was lodged in its cranium, sending it to the ground.
As mentioned before, it was life changing decisions because the zombie on him sank its teeth into his cheek, pulling it clear off. Duncan screamed in pain.
"Run" Duncan managed to weakly choke out.
Courtney looked down and saw the knife lodged in the zombies head, and then over at the Duncan who now had a both cheeks missing.
5:10am
"Duncan" she screamed. He had saved her instead of himself and paid the ultimate price for it. She was about to go over and help him out, when she felt Gwen leading her away. As more zombies came charging at them from the freezer. Leaving Duncan behind.
Courtney having some tears in her eyes as she and the rest ran. Through the mess hall, and out the double doors and down the hall.
They didn't make it far as they skidded to a stop, a bunch of zombies came bounding on them from the direction they were going.
They saw another pair of doors and ran through them and down three flights of stairs. No other doors, they were headed to the basement, the last place they wanted to be. They ran down the hall.
But they skidded to a stop once again when more zombies came approaching from the other direction.
Not thinking, they split up and took three separate doors.
5:15am
Bridgette, Geoff, and Courtney took one door. They quickly opened it and slammed it closed. The zombies pounding and scratching it. They quickly turned the lights on. It was a storage room, small with crates and boxes.
They quickly searched the room and found another grate.
"Quickly" Geoff said peeling it off.
Geoff and Bridgette helped Courtney up.
5:17am.
The door came off its hinges and fell to the ground. The zombies came flooding in, charging at the make out couple.
Once again a life changing decision had to be made. Where one will not get out alive. Before Bridgette knew what was happening. She was getting shoved up as Geoff hoisted her into the vent.
5:18am
The zombies grabbed Geoff by the back of his shirt.
"I love you Bridgette" Geoff cried out before he was devoured and covered in the living dead.
"NO Geoff" Bridgette screamed.
The zombies came to the vent and tried to climb in. Courtney and Bridgette, both a bit teary eyed, quickly crawled in the other direction.
As said in the chapter two more sacrifices have been made, as Geoff sacrificed himself for Bridgette. Future, an unsuspecting ending, more zombies, one more sacrifice, and dynamite.