The scent of death and destruction was not alien to the mercenary. The bridge had been sickening, twisting even his hardened stomach. It was clear that the barricade on the other end had been breached and They had gotten through, but how many survivors had managed to escape? Corpses lined the river bank, many of Them stirring at the sound of the engines as their group of survivors sped past.
Had he bothered to look behind him Sousuke would have seen the steadily growing crowd of Them following in their wake. The closest were just emerging from the broken and sometimes burnt remains of riverside homes, but the bulk were nearly a kilometer back filling the entire street.
By noon the group had left Them several kilometers behind as well as found a spot where they could ford the river. Turning back south the scouts saw Them on the other side of the river; some of Them even began to cross the river only to be swept away by the current. Though the river was narrower the further south they headed it was far deeper. Things would change with the next large rainfall as the river would swell so that it could not be forded and its crest would nearly reach the bottom of the bridge.
The survivors headed north knowing that that they were leaving the others further behind. With the roads clear the group stopped for lunch, raiding an already looted gas station and filling up their vehicles in the process. It was Takashi who pointed out that Saya's family was closest to their current location, leading the group to head west.
There were more signs that They had passed through the area as a few houses had been barricaded and there was evidence that They had claimed more than a few victims. Still, there were a good number of houses and businesses that were barricaded. As the group passed many of those structures They moved into the streets to pursue the teens rather than continue pushing themselves against the barricades.
Sousuke and Takashi made use of their batons as they road ahead, taking aim not at the heads of the handful of zombies that came close to them but their legs. The reanimated dead felt no pain, but a broken leg severely hampered their ability to chase after someone. The thick leather jacket/Kevlar vest and biker helmets protected them from Them so long as there were only a few around the pair. As they rode further west though they were forced to ride more evasively and to use their handguns to thin out the number of Them in the streets.
Slowly but surely the group made their way west, leaving the riverbank far behind even as they encountered more signs that They had preceded them. After an hour the pair of scouts was forced to trail behind the Hilux and Civic as the group used the SUV to carve a path through the street. Simply trying to lead Them away was no longer an option as there were several houses that dotted each street that had signs of survivors barricaded behind their fences. If They stood in the group's way then the group needed to deal with Them, not push Them off onto someone else.
The high fences mixed with tall hedges hid plenty of Them and the sound of their engines drew Them out from the houses and into the street. What had once been a scattered handful had slowly become several dozen. Sousuke wasn't sure how much more the Hilux could endure as the constant collisions were sure to rattle the civilian vehicle's parts. Even military vehicles like the Humvee could only take so much jarring and rattling before they broke down.
Suddenly the Hilux swerved abruptly, sliding on the slick pavement before coming to a halt against something. Sousuke cursed as the Civic narrowly avoided colliding with the SUV. The narrow road did not allow for even the Civic to turn completely around, leaving the small car perpendicular to the road.
Pulling to a halt Sousuke reached for his guns. Taking careful aim he started to unload the firearms into the crowd of Them that filled the street. Takashi was also unloading his shotgun into the crowd, aiming for the thickest group before firing. Some of Them went down for good, but most were just knocked off of their feet. Still, it was slowing down the zombies' approach. Shinji and Kohta's muffled rifles joined the fray, mowing more of the zombies down, but they were fighting a losing battle. The unexpected roadblock had been hidden by the mass of zombies that had been milling about in the street. This was not a trap as the biker gang had set up, this was a defensive measure. Even as it kept the zombies out it also prevented the SUV and car from going any further.
Taking in the area Sousuke considered their options. Revving his engine he headed straight into the thickest group, leading them away from the car and SUV. Through his padding and body armor he could feel several hands groping at him as They tried to dislodge him as he passed.
"What the hell are you doing?" Kaname demanded.
He had not time to respond to her as he steered himself clear of a cluster of Them. In the midst of over two dozen of them he flipped on his walkie, "Just take out the ones closest to you."
"What are you doing?" Kyoko's voice cut in.
Taking his hand off of the walkie he revved the engine and began to perform a screeching donut in the middle of the intersection. With most of Them focused on him Sousuke reached into his back pack and pulled out several grenades. The first he lobbed at the largest group of Them between him and the others, "Fire in the hole!"
While not enough to stop Them, the explosion knocked most off their feet and injured most enough to hinder their attempts to get at the teens. Two more grenades flew through the air before he headed back towards the others.
He'd bought the others in the car and SUV enough time to evacuate the vehicles. Using the Hilux the girls managed to climb onto the three meter tall wall on one side of the road to circumvent the barb wire fence that had been hastily erected in the middle of the street. The vehicles were a loss, along with most of their extra supplies, but the girls would live.
Perched atop the wall as they were the girls cold not fire their shotguns at the horde of zombies without falling off, leaving the boys in a fix as they ran out of ammo in their clips.
"Reload," Kohta shouted as he ejected his spent clip.
Kaname tossed the plump sniper a clip for his rifle even as Saya reached into her pack for a second clip for Shinji. The teal haired girl's athletic abilities were proving to be very useful as she accurately tossed the clips across the street without unbalancing her position on the wall.
"I'm out," Takashi declared as he tossed his spent shotgun up to Rei. Saya tossed him hers. The non-lethal rounds would not stop any of Them, but it would help buy the group time by knocking Them off of their feet.
With Sousuke's help Shinji was able to climb the opposite wall before laying on top to take aim with his rifle. Sousuke quickly joined him. The wall was a good half meter wide, providing them with ample footing.
On the other side of the street Rei had advanced down the street as she attempted to lure some of Them away from Kohta and Takashi. Spear in hand she began to thin the crowd, careful not to let any of Them grab hold of her weapon. Saeko had taken out her bow and was picking some of Them off as well, giving the boys time to climb atop the Hilux and onto the wall.
With the group out of the zombies' reach Sousuke tapped Shinji with his foot.
Kaname was the first of the girls to spot the approach of the masked men. Most were adorned in flame thrower suits though a few wore firefighter suits. Holding his guns cautiously he watched as the newcomers stopped over a dozen meters away from the teens. One figure made her way past the others, extending her hands out to the side to signal that the others put their weapons down before she reached up to remove her headpiece.
"We heard some commotion and knew that it had to be survivors." The voice was definitely feminine but had an air of authority to it. "We weren't sure what to expect when we heard gunfire and explosions though. I never expected my daughter to have associated herself with someone who actually employed firearms and grenades though. Saya's always struck me as someone who'd rather melt guns down than use them."
The woman's red hair was a bit darker than her daughter's, but they shared cheek bones, jawline, and ears.
Surrounded by allies, only Sousuke remained guarded. As the others began retelling and sharing their experiences with the adults the mercenary checked his inventory and filled his emptied clips. Kohta and Shinji quickly followed suit as the teens were marched towards the Takagi residence.
"You won't need those where we're going," one of the men stated as he eyed the three teens and their seemingly impressive collection of weapons. "The Takagi compound is the safest place you could be right now. It was because of them that we were able to set up a defensive perimeter around the neighborhood and keep everyone safe."
"You don't know how hard it is to separate Sousuke from his guns," Kaname interrupted the man. "I've only known him for about a year and I can tell you it's easier to take a gun out of Charlton Heston's cold, dead hands."
The man blinked, unsure of the reference to the American actor turned gun lobbyist.
"Shinji's father is military, so he knows about firearms too," she added. "And Kohta's pretty good with them too."
Saya cast them a sympathetic look but it was her mother who ended that conversation with a knowing nod that prompted the men to allow the teens to carry their packs and weapons.
The Takagi's residence was not hard to find as it was the complex near the top of the hill. After walking only a few blocks the group could see the four meter tall walls that separated their complex from the city around it. In truth all of the houses in this area of the city were luxurious, but the Takagi's dwarfed them all. It was easily three times the size of the apartment complex that they had spent the previous night at, with each of the neighboring residences easily just as large as the apartment. There were many properties with a second house intended to house security though most were simply large houses with spacious yards behind wrought iron gates and tall brick and mortar fences.
Glancing down the streets it was clear that each street had been barricaded, some with barb wired, others with cement dividers that were used in construction, others with overturned cars. As the group marched towards the Takagi residence they spotted several groups consisting of men and women in fire-retardant suits, as well as a few accompanying tractors or forklifts.
While things appeared relatively normal there was a frantic air about the area. There were no blood stains anywhere, no broken windows, fence gates tied shut, or piles of furniture barricading windows, but there were plenty of people rushing here and there, most in the bulky fire-retardant suits.
The fact that the elder Takagi led the group into the family's estate and mansion did little to ease Sousuke's concerns.
"What's going on here?" Saya finally asked once the group was alone with her mother.
"I'm taking you up to your room so that you and your friends can relax a bit."
"That's not what I mean," the pinkette replied.
"You were expecting a nuclear strike, weren't you?" Sousuke asked.
Saya's mother turned to look him over, "You've picked up a very observant friend – and well-armed too. He doesn't look like someone that attends Fujimi though."
"We went to Jindai," Kaname interjected.
The woman's keen eyes narrowed as she looked at the quartet of Jindai survivors. "That does make sense – some of our constituents always bring up incidents that happen at Jindai as examples of what would happen if we loosened the gun-control laws."
Kaname buried her face in her palm, shaking her head, "I knew that was bound to happen." Taking a deep breath she stood tall. "Don't judge us because one idiot manages to sneak guns onto school grounds."
"It is good that those incidents are the result of only one person, but it's also unfortunate that only one person has the wherewithal to prepare himself for the worst case scenario." The usually unshakable Kaname balked at the woman's apparent praise of Sousuke. "Given all that's happened we did expect a nuclear war to break out, not a biological one. I know that science has advanced much in the past decade, but no one expected anything like this.
"When we heard that military bases had been hit we locked down the premises. Once we had our people prepared we set up a precautionary boundary. The police were too busy setting up barricades at the bridges to care about what our people were doing."
"It helps that you are a prominent right-wing politician," Kaname interjected. "With your own security force rather than the state provided security."
"It does," the woman admitted. "We've been moving our staffers and security into the neighborhood or at least into the adjacent neighborhoods, those who don't live on the premises that is."
"And the bunker?" Kaname asked.
"A remnant of the second World War," the redhead replied. "We've had modifications to it of course. My father-in-law expanded it so that it could withstand a nuclear blast, but we added generators, store-rooms and living quarters large enough to house a hundred survivors. Fortunately it was not a nuclear attack and we will be able to use the entire property."
"Which is of course self-sufficient," Kaname surmised. "I'm guessing that you have a large greenhouse, water filtration system, solar panels and wind turbines."
"How long have you been preparing this shit?!" exclaimed Saya. "I knew you two were crazy but this… this is beyond anything that I thought you were capable of!"
"Your father's family has long been concerned about the state of the world," her mother replied. "While we have taken steps to enlighten the nation about our concerns we also managed to pass local legislation that allowed us to take the steps necessary to prepare for the worst.
"Had you been here during school you would have seen the constant construction for what it was rather than just believing it to be a display of our opulence and flaunting our wealth. As it turns out our fear that humanity was close to exterminating itself were justified and the shelter that we've constructed will play a role in rebuilding not only this nation but the world."
"So it was more important to you that you have the foundation to rebuild the world as you see it than to save your own daughter?" the pinkette demanded.
There was obvious hurt in the woman's eyes as she gazed at her daughter. Many of the other teens had turned away, unwilling to intrude on this personal moment between mother and daughter.
"You have to realize that we've done everything in our power to find you," the elder Takagi finally said. "I hoped that you would be with Komuro and that he would see you safe to us, and I was right."
"Um, actually you have Hirano and Sagara to thank for that," Takashi said as he stepped forward to indicate the two teens. "If Hirano had not directed us to his father's office we might not have encountered Sagara and his friends. Without Sagara's knowledge of tactics and firearms we would not have been able to make it here."
Before anything else could be said an aid rushed to the elder Takagi and whispered into her ear. With a nod the woman dismissed her aid. Turning towards the two young men she offered them a bow, "Thank you for bringing my daughter back home. Thank you all. I apologize that I cannot be a better host at the moment, but please, make yourselves at home. I will have refreshments brought up for you and there is a bath available for you to use. If you please, the men may use the room and bath on the right and the women may use Saya's room and attached bath. I will return once I have taken care of a few pressing matters."
The brief but refreshing bath seemed to prove the elder Takagi's statement that the family had not splurged on their accommodations. True, they did have multiple baths, but that was more likely due to the fact that they wanted to segregate the men and women not because they simply wanted more bathrooms. The baths were large enough to hold ten at a time and offered only the simplest of soups and body washes rather than a large assortment of both.
Both Kohta and Takashi had marveled at the numerous scars that Sousuke bore. Shinji, who had seen the evidence of his friend's hard life at the beach and at the school pool, shook his head at the Fujimi boys, silencing them so as not to offend Sousuke.
By the time that the girls had finished with bathing and finding appropriate clothes to don the boys had already finished inventorying their weapons, ammo, stripped, cleaned and reassembled the guns, and packed their things away again. Unwilling to just head off on their own they had waited for the girls to emerge from Saya's room, lounging in the hallway and stealing bites from the food that was brought up to them.
Their quick meal was far healthier and lighter than any fare that they had had since the world had ended, but it was also a sign of how well prepared the Takagi and their people were. The fruits were probably grown on site while the meat tasted as though it had been flash frozen then rehydrated upon cooking. The seasoning was just enough to cover the treatment and packaging making it just appealing enough to a hungry soldier.
"So, what do we do now?" Kohta asked as he turned to the other boys. "I know that if the others had made it here they would have wanted to stay."
"I don't think Saya wants to stay," Takashi replied. "I've known her for a long time now, and I know she doesn't get along with her parents. It might be safer here for her, but I don't think she'll want to stay.
"Regardless of what she's going to do I know that Rei and I still want to find our parents. I know that you guys don't have to go with us…."
"It's not safe here," Sousuke stated. "It may appear to be safe, but did you see how many of Them were assaulting the first line of defense? Despite their preparation they did not prepare for the appropriate scenario. The bunker is enough to house 100 people for a year, but how many people did you see on the grounds? How many did you see in the neighborhood?"
The others exchanged looks. None of them had bothered to really count or keep track.
"I counted at least three hundred," Sagara stated. "Even if there aren't any more survivors being sheltered here that means that the food they put into their storehouses will only last 4 months, not a year. Even if a hundred of them are loyal to the Takagi family who's to say that the other two hundred won't disagree with them?"
None of the other boys said anything as they weighed his cautious words.
"Are those apples?" Rei's perky voice asked, turning their focus to the girls as they emerged from Saya's room.
"Yeah," Takashi replied. "We saved enough for all of you."
As they ate Saya and the boys stole glances out the windows at the sprawling grounds of the Takagi estate. Men and women scurried around, some heading out the open gate while others returned with more survivors. No one dared to ask if the young heiress was planning on staying or not.
With their light meal complete the group opted to tour the grounds as Saya's mother had yet to return. As the girls ate the boys went through their firearms despite the fact that they had barely discharged their weapons in the last encounter.
Once the food and weapon checks were completed the teens opted to explore the grounds. Sousuke made sure that the boys grabbed their guns and ammo, prompting the girls to bring their things as well.
It was alarming how light their packs were after their last encounter with the zombies had been. Nearly half of their ammo had been spent, and most of the supplies that they had brought with them from the apartment complex had been left with the vehicles. There were still two hundred shells for the shotguns, though they did not count the non-lethal rounds. There were just over two hundred rounds for the three rifles, and another two hundred rounds for the five handguns.
"Hey Princess!" a large burly man greeted as he waved Saya.
"Matsudo!" she exclaimed, startled by the big man's sudden appearance. The pinkette was engulfed in thick, muscular arms as the man picked her up in a bear hug. "But me down before you break me, Matsudo!"
The man, Matsudo, guffawed before finally relenting. "Look what I got?" he took one step back and turned to allow the teens to see the pickup truck that was hidden by his immense form.
"Our bikes!" Takashi rushed to examine the motorbikes.
"Well if it ain't little Komuro!" Matsudo smirked as he patted the boy's shoulder. "Where'd you pick these beauties up?"
"Well, you know how it is out there," the lean boy replied. "A guy's gotta have a nice ride to make it out there."
"I'll take your word for it. It was all we could do to rope these and pull them up the wall. I'm afraid the cars are a loss though."
"How bad is it?" Saya asked.
"Those things have been testing the barricades," the big man stated. "Those things can climb anything under a meter and a half, and if it's not sturdy enough they can push things around or knock it over. The wires slow them down too." He quickly scanned the area, making sure that no one could over hear them. "They've managed to get past all of our outer barricades. Nagi's taken a work crew and tractor to turn over a few cars and trucks – those hold, but there aren't enough cars to do that everywhere and it would keep us from being able to send people out."
"You're sending people out?" Saya asked incredulously.
"Your parents sent volunteers out to look for you," Matsudo replied. "So far no one's come back. It's likely that everyone that went out to look for you hasn't been able to find you because you're here already.
"They've also sent crews to help out the neighbors and collect some more supplies. We're going to need a lot more supplies if we're going to see this through."
"What's the situation?" Sousuke asked.
Matsudo shook his head, "I don't know. I've barely been outside the gate and while we have a good view of the district from the house on the ground we can't see over the walls.
"Anyways, I'll have your bikes fixed up by dinner. Why don't you go see Master Takagi? He'd know better."
They'd barely turned the corner from the garage when they came upon a group of adults. Given how stressful things were it did not surprise Sousuke to see them smoking. It was what Mao would do whenever she was stressed out.
"How the hell do a bunch of brats get guns?" one of the ill-mannered men spat out as he eyed the approaching teens. At that the other adults turned to examine the youths.
"What savage brutes," a well dressed woman in a too tight blouse proclaimed. "I'd heard that there were hooligans running about but I didn't think that the Takagi's would allow them to come here much less to let them keep their weapons."
"Those girls are probably whoring themselves off to the boys for some protection," one of the men snickered. "Of course I wouldn't turn them down if they were willing to give that up for my protection."
"Hey kid," the largest of the men said as he stepped forward, "do you even know how to use that thing? It's not like a toy gun you know. There are definitely consequences if you point that thing the wrong way."
"Why don't you kids give us those guns? It's our duty as adults to keep you kids safe after all," his buddy chimed in. Taking a few steps towards the group he looked down on the youths. The second man was tall and muscular, but the way he moved suggested that his frame was the result of lifting weights not from actually fighting.
The first man nodded, flicking his cigarette away before taking a step in their direction. "You really shouldn't be playing with those things," he reiterated.
"Do you know how to use this?" Kohta replied.
"Do you even know where the safety is? Or how to strip it, clean it, and reassemble it?" Shinji added. "What have you done to prove to us that you'd do better than we have? Do you know what we've done to get here? Do you know what's even out there?"
"If you kids managed to make it here it couldn't be too bad out there," the smoking woman replied. "After all, what could some children do that adults couldn't?"
"Then let's see you reassemble this gun," Takashi stated as he pulled out a Glock and quickly disassembled it before them. After possessing the gun for only a few days he was now able to strip and reassemble it thanks to Sagara's insistence that each of them know how maintain their weapons.
The display was apparently enough to convince the group of adults that the teens were more capable than they had initially surmised.
"Those rifles, they're military grade, aren't they?" The speaker was not part of the group of adults that had confronted the teens but belonged to a powerfully built man but had approached the group and the teens from the eastern gate. While Saya's face was nearly identical to her mother's her sharp, piercing eyes had clearly come from her father. The man moved with the practiced precision of someone who had been in the military. Unlike many of the other politicians and adults who worked out just to stay fit this man appeared to have balanced power, speed, endurance and dexterity as strode towards the two groups.
"They are," Sagara finally replied as the man gave him a measured look.
"That's a Barrett 98B," Takagi said as he eyed Shinji's weapon. "I'm pretty sure the JDF was still using the Howa 89."
"Is not standard for the Japanese military," Shinji replied. "It's from our personal collection."
"What an interesting collection," the man said as he eyed the teen's firearms. "It might be best to let you keep your arms rather than mixing them in with ours."
"Father," Saya's tone was tinted with a bit of anger "this is Sousuke Sagara, Kaname Chidori, and Shinji Kazama, they're survivors from Jindai High School." Again her father looked over the three teens. "You remember Takashi Komuro, and this Rei Miyamoto, Saeko Busujima, and Kohta Hirano. This is my father Nagare Takagi."
The powerful man lowered his head in a formal bow, "Thank you for bringing my daughter home."
"It's nothing," Kaname replied, slightly embarrassed by the man's display. "She's done as much as any of us really."
"That's not true," Saya interjected. "Sousuke's the one who took charge of the weapons and showed us all how to use them. Kohta and Shinji helped clear the way for Rei and Saeko to use their short range weapons, and you and Takashi lead us here."
Nagare nodded, "If you'll excuse us." Leading the teens away from the other group of adults he waited for them to be out of earshot when he finally turned to Sagara. "It is refreshing to have someone with military experience here."
The other Fujimi students glanced at Sagara and Nagare while Shinji and Kaname shrugged.
"Most of my aids joined some local militia but there is a vast difference between those who served in the military and those who in a militia," the man stated. "While they believe in protecting everyone, they also think to preserve the neighborhood by simply erecting barricades and closing off streets. They fail to see that we need to tear down some of the houses to create buffer zones."
"A moat would be useful too," Kaname added sarcastically.
"That's actually a very good idea," Sagara replied. "With the construction machines you could create a pit or moat to prevent the infected from putting too much stress on your resources, and you could use the torn up concrete to reinforce a wall or barricade."
"I've tried talking the neighbors into allowing us to do that, but they are insistent that such a measure would ultimately cost them money once order is restored," Nagare remarked. "The fools refuse to accept the magnitude of the disaster."
"Then you should fortify your own perimeter," Sousuke amended. "The walls around the premises are sturdy, but a well-placed explosive could easily lead to your defenses being overrun. The gate would not endure being hit by a truck and the fact that the road leads right into it makes it even easier to exploit. It would be best if you created a pit either before or after the gate so that if it were to fall you could rely on a secondary defense mechanism."
"But they need the construction vehicles to build other barricades," Kaname countered. "They can't just leave the neighborhood without defenses."
"They'll need to if they wish to survive. As it stands they are overextending their resources by having such a large perimeter to defend. It would be best to consolidate their resources to key points that are easier to defend rather than over-extending their defenses."
"Spoken like a true military man." The former soldier took a deep breath. "You are correct; we do not have the manpower needed to defend the neighborhood. As it stands there are multiple breeches in the north, south and east. I've ordered my men back and once they are back we'll have no choice but to lock down the compound."
"I do not envy your position," Sousuke said as he considered the situation. "We can buy your men time."
Everyone turned to look at him in astonishment but it was Saya that spoke out, "What are you saying?"
"Takashi, Rei; are you not looking to find your parents?" he asked them. "Are they here?"
The two exchanged a glance then turned to the mercenary. "He's right," Takashi finally admitted. "We need to go."
"But" the pinkette began only for Rei to shake her head.
"It's safe here," Saeko stated. "Just as it was with the apartment but in the end we left there too. I do not fault any of you if you wish to stay."
The remaining teens took turns eyeing each other and the compound.
"I'm going with Sousuke," Shinji finally said.
Kohta nodded, "Me too – I go where you go."
"Fine," Kaname sighed as she took a step towards the mercenary. Of all of them she knew the most about Sagara and what he was capable of.
"Thanks," Takashi whispered to the scarred teen.
"I'm going too," Saya added as she moved to join the rest of the teens. "I'm sorry father, but they need me more than you and mother do."
There was a look of pride as well as anguish in the man's eyes as he nodded at her. "What do you need?" His tone was firm and did not hint at the emotions that were swirling inside of him.
"We'll need our bikes," Sousuke replied. "We've already packed our things, and we don't want to put any more of a burden upon your supplies."
"The bikes won't be enough to transport all of you," Nagare pointed out. "Head to the garage, Matsudo's should be able to procure a vehicle for you."
"Thank you father," Saya said as she rushed to embrace the man.
Distant gunfire could be heard even over the din of the approaching vehicles.
"Make sure to say good bye to your mother," the proud man ordered her. "She should be at the garage checking over everything that was brought back."
As Saya led the teens back towards the garage Takashi and Sousuke stopped before her father. "We'll take care of her," Takashi stated.
"I know you will." Turning to Sousuke the two militarily trained men exchanged knowing looks before exchanging knowing nods. Military men put their faith in actions rather than words. Still, there were times when things needed to be said. "I entrust my daughter to you, to all of you."
The parking area between the gate and the building was slowly filling up as hooded men and women in their bio-hazard/flame retardant outfits returned to the compound. There were a good number of civilians mixed in with them as well, but most were in the unisex outfits scurrying from their vehicles.
A pair of armored TOMCARs awaited the teens as more gunfire and warning sirens were heard in the distance. The nimble vehicles were as large as a midsized SUV but were capable of enduring a beating. With only their weapons and the packs on their backs the teens managed to squeeze into the two vehicles once Sagara and Takashi claimed their repaired motorbikes.
"The sirens are just going to attract the zombies," Sagara stated as he eyed the growing number of infected. Though the garage was lower on the hill than the other buildings it was closest to the gates.
"You don't have to do this," the elder Takagi stated as she also eyed the men rushing to defend the gate. Only one in five possessed a firearm, the others bore bats, crowbars, large wrenches, or brooms handles.
Saya nodded, "I know, but I can't leave them."
"But you can leave us?"
The pinkette shook her head, "I'll be fine. Besides, someone needs to buy you guys the time you need to get everyone in here; it might as well be us crazy kids."
The two Takagi women embraced. "Be safe."
"We will," Saya replied. "Once we find Takashi and Rei's parent's we'll head back here."
A sudden flash illuminated the darkening sky, casting deep shadows and silencing the alarms.
"What was that?" Takashi asked as he rubbed at his eyes.
"An EMP," Sagara growled. "A High Altitude Nuclear Explosion, or H. A. N. E. – it's meant to disable electronics."
"It's a good thing the TOMCARs don't have any electronic parts." The mechanic was clearly happy at the idea, yet a sudden realization hit him. "But the gates and sirens aren't."
"Use the forklifts and tractors to close the gate," Takagi ordered as she realized the situation.
"Put any dead cars and truck in neutral," Sagara suggested. "Push them next to the entrance and then park them. You can position people atop the vehicles to batter the infected. Just have your people put on padding or leather so that the infected can't bite through to their skin."
"What are you going to do?"
"We're still going," he insisted. "We'll buy you as much time as we can, but you need to barricade the gate. Once that's done you can have people strip out the fried circuits and replace them."
He was glad that he'd had the others turn off their walkie talkies while they had bathed, but doubly glad that they'd stored several other units in their things without any batteries in them. From the chaos amongst those in the fire retardant suits it was clear that their radios were out as many ripped off their hoods/helmets so that they could be hear or bark out orders.
"Drive or shoot?" Saeko asked as she rushed over to the mercenary. "I admit, I may not be as skilled a shooter as you but I"
"I'll shoot," Sousuke said as he handed her his helmet. "I don't need your hair getting in the way of my shooting."
Rei rushed to join Takashi while Shinji and Kohta strapped themselves to the top of their respective vehicles. Saya and Kaname quickly turned on their engines, relieved that the vehicles weren't affected by the EMP burst.
"Switch to your back up walkies," he ordered them. Only Kaname, Saya, and Takashi pulled out their unused walkies, discarding the burnt out ones. "Testing, testing."
His voice blared out of the others' devices much to their delight, unfortunately his hunch that the other devices had been fried had been confirmed. "When we have a chance we'll see if the laptops work. They might have been fine if they were powered off, but now isn't the time to check that."
Shinji nodded as he checked the ammo of his shotgun. They were looking to do crowd control, but the two snipers would still be able to take out any of the zombies with the shotguns.
"I'll drop some smoke grenades once we're through the gate," Sagara stated as he handed Saeko his pack. "Takashi and Rei will head south and draw any of them that way. We'll head north. Take the TOMCARs east towards the Hilux to see if you can get any of our supplies out. If anyone finds a suitable place to hole up call it in, otherwise we'll head back to that hotel."
"Okay," Kaname's voice came in over the walkie even as the lights on Saya's TOMCAR came on. As the only one to have gone to a love hotel she had been the first to spot the building. The shopping district had been completely empty when they'd passed through it earlier in the day though the stores had been ransacked leaving little of interest to the group. The hotel with its security had been untouched though, and a quick sweep using Shinji's laptop and Saya's hacking skills had indicated that building had been vacant. The CCTV had shown no signs of any movement and the catalog of rooms available showed that none of the rooms were in use.
"Ready?" the mercenary asked.
Takashi nodded as he hopped on behind Rei while Saya and Kaname both honked their horns. The roar of their motors was enough to prompt those between them and the gate to make way.
Those in the street were in a crazed panic, some refusing to leave their vehicles, others attempting in vain to restart their cars, and a few running to the closest building. Meanwhile sporadic gunfire added to their panic as the defenders manning the gate began to pick off any of the undead that they spotted. Some on the streets had also taken to defending themselves from the undead attackers though most ran.
Once the teens were on the street Sagara dropped two smoke grenades. While the noise would attract Them, the smoke would mask the defenders positions along the gate as they sought to close it. Trusting in their outfits the men forced the gate closed before pushing several SUVs in to brace it as the teens provided a bit of covering fire for those that remained in the streets. With the gate secured the teens scattered, their motors drawing the attention of the zombies away from the other survivors and the Takagi compound.
Only the sound of the shotguns discharging reached Sagara's ears over the motorbike's engine. Not having it on made a world of difference as the Saeko raced away from the horde of zombies then pulled to a screeching stop so as not to leave Them too far behind. The short pauses gave Sagara enough time to pick out their path, shooting any of Them that he deemed to be too much of a threat to the pair.
After ten minutes of stop and go there was a considerable group of Them closing in on the teens. Sousuke estimated that there were over a hundred of Them behind the bike with another two score approaching from the north. With both clips to his Beretta spent he was forced to reload while Saeko navigated the streets. In the growing darkness it was becoming harder and harder for him to see up the hill though the lack of gunfire seemed to suggest that the others were a good distance away and that the Takagi compound was no longer besieged by the undead.
Another ten minutes saw the pair reach the barricade. While there were plenty of Them about, most seemed to be focused on the corpses that they were already feasting on. Sagara couldn't help but note that none of the victims wore the bulky fire retardant outfits that the Takagi's had provided their people with.
Taking a final look at the grizzly sight he pulled out a stick of dynamite and lit the fuse. Between the hissing fuse and bright light the explosive managed to attract over a dozen of Them to it. The two teens were a safe distance away when their present detonated. Turning east they set to find an opening to exploit.
"We've reached the Hilux," Shinji's voice announced via the walkie talkie. "It looks like we won't be able to get to anything useful from it since the street's still packed full of Them. We're going to head north and circle back towards the hotel."
"Copy that," Sagara said. "We've reached the northern barricade and are headed east."
"We're through the south and are headed east as well," Takashi stated. "We've reached the highway. There are a few of Them around, but they're not as thick here. We shouldn't have any problem avoiding them."