A/N: Hey guys. This chapter took a LONG time to make. I mean it. I had to watch JackSepticEye nonstop to hopefully get his personality right and I don't think I did. I'll try in the later chapters I have him in, but this chapter took so much work that even if he is OOC I don't think I can go back to work through it again.
I think I'll make the next chapter Minx. or Ken. Maybe Cry. Dunno. I have a ton of YouTubers planned, but all the big ones are given. Well, almost all of them. We are still missing one, but he will appear later when his time is much appreciated. :)
Enjoy the chapter. I know it isn't good or anything, but still! ^^
Review, read, favorite, the goodies. :)
Walking with Corpses
Chapter 5
JackSepticEye POV
For a moment, I couldn't figure out if everything happened too fast for me to follow or too slow for me to keep up.
It took another moment to realize the scene was still going on.
Everything just kind of happened in slow motion. From start to finish, beginning to end, each second being seemingly longer than the previous moment. Footstep by footstep, grunt by groan, curse by swear; it was a very long phase that I did not like in the slightest.
Imagine being in a room. A dark, lonely room with no sliver of light to remind you that you are indeed in a room and not in the crevices of your questionable mind. Imagine that. Now, take the idea that there in the back of your skull, nudging at you, mocking you, is a little clock. A clock ticking each second and all you can do is sit and do nothing because, as I said before, you are in a dark, lonely room with no sliver of light to remind you.
That's how I felt as I watched everything happen in front of me, to me, because of me. I felt useless, and then I felt angry about feeling useless. I mean, I often get angry or loud about a lot of things, but this was different. It had to be different. For once, it wasn't horror games or indie games making me act the way I did, but reality and the fact that lives were being risked and not my viewer count or subscriptions, not that I balanced my career off of those but still.
I could hear the clock ticking in the background, could feel the sunburn holes in my back hours ago as if to tap its watch with a pointed look of "this is not going to go by quickly". Shadows grew and shrunk as the natural light arched its way into the sky and I noticed all of it with a growing sense of annoyance and paranoia.
Annoyance because I knew that noticing the slow advancement was not going to speed it up. It never does. Noticing the time only makes it drag out longer and longer, like stretching taffy out to blend in flavors and colors. The paranoia was an after effect that came with looking behind me, flinching at every sound, cursing at the smallest of mistakes, and, of course, fearing my own demise. Time made everything feel like a suspenseful horror game, as in slender or the walking dead.
A creature stalking your blood and drooling over the fancied thought of devouring your skin. The moon apathetically watching with silent bets on how long your string will get before being snipped. The shadows debating whether to leave your walking corpse because you surviving is as slim as with the width of paper. Leaves rustling with warning. Branches hiding your shivers. These were the things that time reminded me of.
That time was fucking limited, scarce, a nonrenewable resource.
And for some reason, it decided that stretching it out as long as possible was one way to solve the problem.
But the second that I crossed the street and noticed the car heading towards me, suddenly everything was speeding up and accelerating a million miles per hour. That whole phrase where you suddenly see your entire lifetime flash before your eyes like a movie on fast-forward? It was certainly not exaggerated, I can give you that much.
I saw my home, my computer, my girlfriend who didn't last as long as I hoped. I saw bits of my future that I was positive I imagined when it included certain people I knew were out of my reach.
What they never said about these experiences was that it was a bittersweet sort of feeling. Relishing moments of our lives in exchange for losing it? It didn't seem to add up and I briefly wondered if anybody else ever questioned it.
And then, as I stared ahead with wide, unseeing eyes, the headlights swerved and the car soon followed, rolling and rolling over until it ceased upside down.
The moments that followed after was to jump start my heart and to remind it that it indeed still had a body to help function. My lungs were shocked beyond belief and after some forced coaxing, they too regained the ability to breathe. The brain part was thinking of every calculation, every possibility of surviving what just happened and then throwing it out the window like waving a white flag of confusion.
For a second, I wanted to burst out laughing. I wanted to laugh and cry and hug the nearest tree like it was the most beautiful thing in my short lifetime. Even as I stared at the wreck, I could feel hysterical giggles bubble their way up my throat and it took all of my willpower to clamp down on it.
I was alive.
What were the odds of that?
More yet, it seemed that, in addition to my reestablished love of life, the accident caused time to finally restore itself to normal speed.
And with that, every single thought suddenly came crashing down like a ton of bricks. Roaring waves of everything that just went silent when danger was obvious and inevitable.
Breathing seemed like the hardest thing to do at that moment. The lungs that were beginning to work back at a normal pace were faltering and stuttering like a dying vehicle.
In the back of my head, the shock seemed like a valid reason for this, but it didn't help anything. I knew what I needed to do and it seemed the furthest thing from happening. Calming down. Focusing. Breathing.
"Oh god," I breathed in shakily, staring at the wreck. Those words kept repeating themselves in different amounts of intensity, different pitches of fear. Sometimes they were borderline hysterical and other times it was more like a monotone. My lack of words at the moment didn't bother me as my lack of doing anything really did.
I rubbed my face and closed my eyes, focusing on my breathing. It wasn't easy and that was putting it lightly.
"Oh god. Okay. Calm down. I did that. I caused that. Oh god. I need to do something." Organization helped clear my head. My lungs didn't feel as deflated, but I still didn't open my eyes. I needed to be perfectly calm. Or at least calm enough to do something without panic freezing me in place.
I forced myself to move forward and could feel a scolding voice in the back of my head. It was probably the rational side reminding me that I wasn't a child and this certainly wasn't the time nor place to be acting as such. "Yes, that's right Jack you fucking idiot. Do something and don't just stand here like you suddenly melted to the spot!"
My steps were rigid and almost stiff, like my legs were frozen. I had to use my entire body as momentum to move them step by step. My fingers were twitching so badly that I eventually resolved to clenching them into fists. Adrenaline numbed me to most of the fear and self-blame I felt at that moment. Thank god for that. If it hadn't intervened, I might have never actually done anything of use.
Because, really, my history had nothing that could have helped me in this moment. I was a youtuber. I was not a medical emergency person or someone who is certified in first aid. Sure I may be used to acting quickly and swiftly, because of horror video games and just gaming in general really, but that didn't mean I was effective. I was just quick on my feet and in forcing myself out of a fatal stupor. Additionally, I was a terrible person in the names of stress and even more so when I am placed on the spot. Give me a light and I will find a way to burn under it in attempts to push it away.
I was not made for this scene. I was not the one they needed.
But at the same time, I knew I was going to be the only one they had to rely on.
The world had effectively gone to shite the second I landed here. There was no way I could fish out my cellphone and call the local hospital (what even was the number again? 911?). I'm sure everyone was currently trying to fend for themselves or dead.
So that definitely left me as the only chance of helping them.
Fuck my life.
Forcing my legs to move faster, I picked up pace and soon became close enough to inspect the car. It had three people inside. One, was a guy with a pokerface mask. Silly thing in this sort of situation but whatever. Next to him was another guy and in the back, someone that might be a woman. The shadows did little to show their faces or forms.
Okay. What was next? First aid should be easy right? Right. Yeah. I'm the fucking boss. I can do this.
Check the area. Got it. Can do.
The car in itself had a tiny flame, but I wasn't an idiot. That little flame, if it hit a fuel tank, could spark one hell of an explosion. Taking off my jacket, I immediately attempted to put it out. At first, it seemed like I was going to end up like one of my Sims and possibly catch fire as well, but then it sizzled and faded to a black scorch mark on both the car and jacket.
Okay. Check. The scene is safe. Now to rescue. I can do this. I know I can.
No not really. I'll find a way to fuck it up but a boss never thinks that way. Shake it off Jack. Shake it off.
Going to the driver's side, I peered at the guy with the mask. His left arm was at an odd angle and some parts of him had some cuts and bruises, but otherwise he was fine. Well, besides being unconscious of course.
I tried to pull the door open first, hoping that some God will smile down at me and flick their finger to make saving them easier. There was no such luck. The door wouldn't budge. It was like the door jammed at the impact of the rolls.
Sitting down, I placed my feet on either sides of the door and attached my finger to the handle, pulling with all the force I could manage. Seconds ticked by and I was about to try for a different method when it creaked and finally gave way. Wiping the sweat off my brow, I let out a breathy smile and removed the seat belt, gingerly placing my hands to keep him suspended until I can safely lever him down.
I carefully handled his broken arm although it certainly was not easy. At all. Like, difficult as fuck when the car is upside down. Gravity was against him and I could hear a small whine in the back of his throat as tension was placed on the awkward angle. Wincing, I clenched my teeth and tried my best to get him down quickly and safely.
I managed to get him out after an excruciating amount of time. I briefly contemplated whether to drag him or not, but thinking of the injury the broken bone could become if not taken care of properly, I decided it would be best to just carry him.
He was light. Ridiculously light. No offense and all, but I expected Americans to be heavier than this.
But no, it was like he barely ate anything. I could feel some of his bones dig into my hold as I moved swiftly to a safe area. This made me worry. I was positive he could heal quickly and without any further incidence, but if he wasn't healthy to begin with (not to mention he still hadn't gained consciousness at all period) there could be more problems along the road.
Another thing that bothered me was the mask. The pokerface mask covered his face securely, not even moved an inch despite the crash. It seemed oddly familiar. Like I had seen another youtuber with it or at least the same symbol…
I sighed. No point in wondering about it now. I still had two others to save before I can even think of taking a break.
Shrugging his form into a better position, I carried him over to a tree away from the wreck and began to make my way back.
I was beginning to contemplate the mask design when I heard the blood-curdling screams and anguished cries.
The woman seemed to have woken up.
Cursing, I ran as fast as I could back to the wreck. Making my way to the other side of the car, I peered at the back seat window. The glass had shattered on impact making it easier to see who it was upon closer inspection.
"Marzia?"
Her hyperventilating paused for a moment as she tried to find the face that matched my voice. When she met my eyes, she squinted them as if confused or not trusting what she was seeing – possibly both.
"Do I… know you?"
I shrugged sheepishly. "Probably not. I'm a friend of your boyfriend though, a youtuber." I hoped that explained things. Youtubers were almost practically family. Co-op with one and they are bound to become best-internet-mates for life.
That and I didn't want to have to explain more than I already did. It wasn't fear or worry or any of that nonsense. I mean, I am a boss and bosses don't get cold feet on any occasion.
No, I enjoyed talking. It was great and it helped that I was a social butterfly of sorts. Still, like most people, confrontation was not one of my strong suits at all. I curse and laugh obnoxiously with hints of childishness to break the ice to avoid confrontation. I try to play it off and make light of the situation in preference to just… plummeting I guess.
In a way, that's how I lost a lot of what I had before all of this. My girlfriend and my old flat mates? They weren't too fond of this side of me, or much of my personality anyhow. It was fine. I had Mark, Wade, Bob, even Felix on YouTube for speed dial if the case ever presented itself. Like I said, co-op with one and you are bound by water to be best-internet-friends for life.
Blood being thicker than water be damned. In all my cases, water has always kept me a float where blood only makes things heavier.
So, that being said, I had to bite my tongue pretty damn hard in order to not laugh or try to force out some cheesy joke bound to make Marzia absolutely angry at me. Considering the severity and seriousness of this situation, my good humor was not necessarily going to cut it or calm her down as much as truth and bluntness.
"Friend? How do I know that?" How about the fact that I knew your name for one? Or that I haven't killed your boyfriend?
But I rolled with it. Taking a deep breath, I sighed.
"Here," I acquiesced. "How about I get you out first before retrieving Felix next."
She laughed. "And what? You could take me away or-" I toned out most of her bitter rants here. Not out of ignorance, but because it was a natural habit of mine. I found out real quick in rants that the beginning and the end were what usually mattered the most. When I finally tuned myself back in she was speaking, "-or rape me and I'll regret doing any of this."
I rose my brow in mild surprise and shrugged.
"Fine. I can see your point. I just hope you know that if I was a bad guy, and I'm not, I could get Felix out only to kill him in front of your eyes you know. I wouldn't do that, but the suspicious side of you is probably not wanting to take a chance where you could have saved him, hm?" God, I hated being mean and ruthless, especially to a woman. It just wasn't my style and it took control to keep my face from crumbling into thick apologies. Ugh, I probably sounded like a complete dick.
Marzia watched me for a minute before muttering a few choice words under her breath. At last, she nodded and sighed. "Fine."
Letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding, I smiled gratefully. "Great. Oh, and if you still don't believe me when I don't kidnap you then, I can ask him once he awakes." I let it sink in and watched the mistrustful look in her eyes fade away to minor suspicion as she nodded.
I let out a sigh of relief. Thank God. I didn't want to force her against her will to trust me. Never mind the fact that you can't force someone to believe your words are not full of shit.
I did the same process I did to get the other guy out on Marzia's door. The last door seemed like I was tugging hell and heaven side by side but this door was ten times worse. I could feel a few colorful words slip my tongue that would make a sailor blush in embarrassment, but of course that didn't help anything.
A few grunts and loud curses later I saw Marzia peak through the broken window. Apparently in the midst of my physical troubles she had unbuckled herself and gingerly lowered herself to the bottom (roof?) of the vehicle.
Awesome. That makes it a lot easier for me once I get this god-forsaken door open.
"You never did tell me your name," she mumbled, eying me as if I was a going to eat her or worse.
"Sean," I said automatically between grunts. Trust issues were not wanted in the potential undead apocalypse so I wanted to put those to rest as soon as I could. This normally meant answering whatever questions asked of me since that's all I could give.
When I looked up, Marzia was giving me a perplexed look. I blinked and went back to forcing the door open.
"What?" She asked at last, looking like my identity was on the tip of her tongue but not quite.
Pausing, I heaved a breath and glanced at her, "My name is Sean, or JackSepticEye, whichever suits your preferences."
"Irish I presume?" She asked and I laughed.
"Was it the accent that gave it away? Yup. Right out of Athlone, Co. Westmeath, Ireland." I winked for good measure and was relieved when she giggled back at me. She was warming to me which was good. I would have felt just plain awful if she was suspicious, or worse, afraid of me. I wasn't that much of a scary guy. I would know if I was.
Finally tugging the door open with a cry of success, I held the door out while Marzia managed to maneuver her way out of it. She was a lot better off than the guy I previously pulled out. She had some pretty bad bruises on her shoulder where the seat belt seared her skin as well as a few spotted ones on her arms, judging from what I could see under her dark blue hoodie.
Other than that, she was perfectly fine. Maybe shaken up and worried out of her mind, but that was to be expected.
After she got out, she stretched and then shivered as if remembering what just happened. A wave of guilt went through me, but I smiled reassuringly when she looked at me. God I'm a coward to not admit this. To admit my involvement in all of this.
It's just that I didn't want her to distrust me. Not until I had Felix out and hopefully conscious to rationalize the situation and calm her down. I knew for a fact that if I said "Hey, I kind of caused the accident that hurt you, your boyfriend, and the other guy" that it would not end well.
Marzia nudged my shoulder and I blinked, coming out of my thoughts.
"Now, we need to get Felix out of here." She nodded and helped me open the door. It was the easiest out of all three I did open. Maybe it was Marzia or maybe it was actually the least damaged. Whatever the case may be, I was so happy I didn't have to strain my non-existent muscles opening another door.
I held Felix up as she unclicked his seat belt. He was unconscious from the looks of it, like the other guy had been.
When he was safely on the asphalt of the road, Marzia checked him over. Like Marzia, he had a few bruises but nothing major. Overall, the driver got the worst of the impact. I winced, knowing it was my fault.
Marzia backed away with a smile and sat, legs crossed, in front of Pewds. I followed suit and leaned back on my hands.
"Not what you expected when coming to sunny Florida, huh?"
She shrugged and shook her head. "Not at all. I can't fix it though and going back in time is impossible. The only thing we can do is move on." She looked fondly at Pewds and I felt a pang of brief, unjustified jealousy as I thought of one person I would love to give me the same look.
Shaking my head to clear the images, I nodded in her direction. "Here here."
At that moment, Felix gradually opened his eyes. They looked confused, unclear, and certainly disheveled. He looked around until he met my eyes.
He sat up real quick only to falter from the sudden blood flow. Marzia and I stabled him as he met my eyes.
"Jack?"
"The last remaining Bossatronio from the planet Bossatron." I grinned and he sighed.
"Here for the party I assume?"
"You know it."
Felix nodded and then looked at Marzia in concern.
"Are you okay?"
"Just a little bruised is all," she smiled and shrugged. "Nothing I can't shake off."
Felix looked oddly suspicious before flitting his gaze around. "Where's Cry?"
I was confused. Cry? Where was he in all of this? It's kind of hard to tell who he is if I don't know what he looks like. Was he possibly still in the back of the vehicle? I was positive that I counted three people in the vehicle. Maybe he was…
"The guy with the pokerface mask?" I made a circle around my face and watched as Felix nodded.
I grimaced. Of course Felix caught it. I wasn't really good at hiding emotions after all. The best open book in the history of open books.
"What happened? Is he..?"
I caught on real quick and shook my head before he could finish. "No no! He's okay! He just got the worst of the impact. Last I checked, he wasn't conscious yet. I don't know when, or even if, he is going to wake up."
Felix stumbled as he jumped up and leaned on Marzia for a moment before going to where Cry leaned against a tree.
Kneeling in front of him, I watched as Felix placed two fingers against his neck for a pulse. He then placed his hand in front of Cry's mouth to feel for breath. I assumed from the relieved expression that everything was alright.
I shuffled behind the two, a little behind Marzia. Guilt was an awful feeling and it had me in its clutches. I hated being reminded of this feeling, but I didn't like being at fault for things that could have been avoided. It was because of this that I knew this feeling wasn't going to leave for a while until I was thoroughly forgiven – if I was forgiven.
Felix turns toward me and I could see the look in his eyes as well as the raise in his brow that he had suspicions. I would have questioned his state of mind if he wasn't suspicious of my turning up honestly. A random guy in the middle of nowhere? Yeah, there was something not right about that.
"I may not have been conscious at the time, but I know Cry wouldn't get into a car accident unless there was a pretty damn good reason to do so. That being said," he looked me over. "Speak. What were you doing here? Besides Cry's birthday of course."
"What do you mean?" I replied, wincing as Felix gave me the best "are you fucking with me" look.
Felix motioned the area of the accident.
"Here."
I sighed. "Stuff happened back at the airport after I got off and I decided to go on foot when it seemed that every car was either dead, out of fuel, or contaminated with a walker of some sort of caliber."
Felix pauses. "And I assume you were the one who caused the accident?"
I winced. "How do you know that I didn't just come out of the scenery afterward?"
"Because you're avoiding the question in defense." Felix smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Too many video games. I know when a character, or person, is lying to me."
My lips didn't move to tell him he was right or wrong. I could see the patience wearing thin as his form stiffened, still crouching in front of cry.
"Jack?" he warned and I flinched.
I nodded and let my guilt show itself. "Yeah. I caused it. I didn't mean to! I promise I never meant to, Pewds. I was making my way on foot from the airport, as I said, and I was about to cross the road to look at the cars across the street that were unoccupied. I just wasn't paying attention…"
My words drifted off as I noticed the pained look in Felix's eyes. I could see the annoyed expression being carefully hidden and judging by how Marzia shuffled closer to him in case things got bad, I could see she noticed as well.
However, instead of getting angry, Felix pinched his nose, closing his eyes.
I, on the other hand, was preparing a long list of apologies.
"Look," I paused my internal apologies. "I would get mad. Honestly, I would be pretty damn angry since that was reckless, and that's saying a lot coming from me of all people." He sighed. "However, it will not help in this situation. We need a unity, not a war full of grudges." One look from Marzia told me that she didn't expect this maturity from her boyfriend at all.
Silence fell in sheets as I let that sink in. Pewds seemed to go back to checking the wounds on Cry and trying to figure out a way to make his broken arm a little less hard to bear. I would have helped but I was in between wondering if Pewds would let me, first of all, and then if I could be of much help secondly. Felix seemed to know what he was doing after all so I remained silent, observing everywhere and anywhere.
Marzia was the one who eventually broke it.
Looking at me, she motioned back to the car. "Is the car alright? Just… just kind of curious since we have our stuff in there and-"
"No, it's fine. There was a small fire, but I put it out before rescuing you guys. It should be fine."
Nodding, Marzia stretched briefly and left to retrieve their stuff.
It was just Pewds and I. I mean, Cry was here of course, but conscious wise? It was only the two of us and the want, no, need to apologize, despite Felix's dismissal earlier, was growing.
However, it was clear that I should hold it back.
When Marzia was out of sight, Felix let himself crumble to the floor. It wasn't the crumble of exhaustion, but the crumble of becoming sick with worry and fear. Like having the adrenaline rush out of you almost as quickly as it appeared. Felix looked borderline questionable that I was becoming alarmed at his state.
He was sitting on the ground with his knees up and arms resting over top. His head rested between his elbows, forehead against his knees. His breathing was deep but a little ragged. I took a step forward but Felix shook his head, telling me he was alright.
I held a certain amount of respect for the man here. It didn't take an idiot to realize he was only being strong and calm for Marzia's sake. He knew what he had to do and he accepted the responsibility without a second thought. I know I would do the same if the chance rose.
Still, Felix was only human. He couldn't be some martyr the entire time. With how glued Marzia was to him, how she relied on him to make sure everything way alright, I knew he wouldn't have much of a chance to release these emotions. God, I could see the weight on his shoulders and I didn't envy him. I would take the load off his shoulders, at least some of it, but I knew he wouldn't let me.
Pewdiepie was an idiot like that. A fucking daft man who would use himself as a scapegoat before anyone could even fancy the idea of doing it for him.
Ugh.
Bloody fool I swear.
I guess that's why everyone, myself included, appreciates him.
The groan that escaped Felix's lips as he lifted his head made me grimace. He never looked at me accusingly, instead glancing at Cry in another reflection of uneasiness and discomfort. I swear I saw something else in those eyes though. I will swear back and forth – hell, heaven, earth, and back – that a brief look of absolute fear filled his eyes before blinking out to friendly worry.
It may have been just me, but that seemed pretty damn more than friendly. That was closer to a look you give to family or more.
Indeed I felt awful about the whole ordeal – God knows that will never go – but I was a tad curious about the look.
Still, I felt like I should voice how shitty I felt for the accident rather than the questionable bond with Cry.
"Look, I'm sorry, Pewds. I really didn't mean for this-"
Felix shakes his head. "Don't, Jack. Just don't. I know. I am still upset at you, but I can't help that. I mean, one of my oldest YouTube friends is unconscious and maybe worse! Anyone would be upset over that. I really do not need apologies right now. Just… don't worry about it, Jack."
He cringes as he says it and I shuffle. That was the saying he always told cry.
After a moment he offered a smile. "Look, if you really want to apologize to someone, apologize to Cry. He's the one you really need to do it to as well as the grandest thank you ever, you know?"
I nodded with a small quirk of my lips. I could see the stray hurt but I couldn't do much about that. I apologized and from now on I'll make up for it.
Scratching the back of my head and fixing my hat, I look around anxiously. "We should probably get going soon. Staying here isn't safe."
Felix hummed in affirmation. "We need to get a ride actually. By foot, I can probably carry Cry for perhaps a few hours, but if he isn't conscious by then, I'm going to be exhausted and worthless when I'm needed."
"Perhaps we could hotwire a car?" I offered.
He laughs and I feel a tinge of frustration out of habit. It was almost like a mocking laughter although I knew that was all in my head. "We need to see if there is a working battery, gas, the keys and who knows how many vehicles have all that in one sitting."
Finally the frustration leaked out. "Then what do we do, Felix?"
Pewds flinched and I regretted the reply for an instant. Raising a brow in my direction, he finally relaxed his tense shoulders and shrugged.
"I honestly have no fucking clue, Jack. For some reason, and I don't know why, but everyone seems to be looking up to me so far and I don't know why. I'm not a leader. I'm not meant to take the lead."
"You look and act more like a leader more than the rest of us, Felix," I answer truthfully. "I mean, I only have been here for what? Thirty minutes? An hour tops? I could immediately dub you as the leader. You or Cry at least, but you were my first pick."
A smile cracked across Felix's face. "Thanks. That means a lot, Jack. I don't plan to remain the leader, though. We need someone else to fill those shoes for me because they are too damn big for someone like me."
"Like who?" I countered, not really surprised by his answer.
Felix was about to answer when a scream rang out loud and clear.
Marzia.
Pewds is gone as fast as he can move. Dashing through the brush to where the car was if not getting hit with branches and whipped with leaves on the way.
I hesitated and looked at Cry's unconscious form.
Well, I guess I'll have to carry him. Can't just leave him here.
Cursing, I huffed the guy over my shoulders and followed the Swede.
When I got to where the other two are, I see the scene in front of me and swore louder.
Marzia was surrounded by three walkers. One was grabbing her thigh as she tried to shake it off. Its nasty claws were getting stuck in her jeans as she hissed and yelled out random phrases in both Italian and English. Luckily, she was elevated on top of the toppled vehicle. Still, that didn't give her much leverage.
She would have been fine if it was just her and the one walker, however, more seemed to join the single actor.
The other two were starting to join the first. Their steps were uneven, more than a little lop-sided, and slow, but it didn't matter if Marzia didn't get higher on the vehicle before they got there.
Felix crazily glanced around before picking up a large tree branch off the side of the road. He began yelling to attract the other zombies and I was about to question his sanity at that point. Remember what I said earlier? About this guy being a damn martyr? I was joking then but now I wasn't so sure.
He was looking to dig himself his fucking grave if he didn't stop rushing in God damn it.
The zombie on Marzia didn't budge, finding the close meal far more appetizing, but the other two turned sharply and if they could grin I swear they would have.
I only watched in growing horror as Felix seemed to grow more reckless as the time wore on.
Ignoring the first two, Felix ran straight for the one on Marzia and smashed his skull in repeatedly with the tree branch. I knew that branch wasn't as strong as Felix made it seem so most of it had to be force. That made Pewds seem scarier than before, and I was about to walk away from the protective guy a bit until he finished his… whatever he was doing.
The blood and bits that came from the zombie as Felix pounded his skull in was almost dizzying to the point of repainting the scene in front of me in crimson and black. I winced, remembering that this was real life and that no matter how much I wished this was a video game, it never could be.
Turning away from the two, I spotted one of the other zombies heading straight for Felix and of course the bloke didn't see him.
Fucking idiot.
I lay Cry down out of sight from the other zombies and ran as fast as I could to pull the zombie that was about to grab Felix away.
Right when I managed to touch its arm, I felt another presence on my shins. A second passed before I was pulled backwards and tumbling the ground. I winced as I tried to catch myself with my hands, scratches from the asphalt make them burn with every movement. I could feel blood begin to run down my skin at the parts impacted worse than the other areas.
I hissed and cursed, struggling in the zombies grip.
It began to climb up my back and with the weight of its dead flesh, I couldn't move an inch. I could see why this one couldn't exactly walk. It was more top heavy than the other two by far and for some reason I overlooked that in my haze to save Felix from being absolutely stupid.
I could feel the hot breath making its way on my skin. The hairs on my neck rose and stood on end like petrified deer in the middle of a highway. Everything seemed in to enhance itself to high definition and I didn't like it a bit. I noticed everything.
The body fluids were becoming soaked into my jacket and I could recognize the bony fingers that prodded easily on my form. The gurgling and heavy grunts showing the hard work this corpse was making towards his next meal was only increasing the fear and hyperventilation approaching high intensity levels.
Death and the fear of it entered my mind. Just like everyone else, I didn't want to die. Who ever wanted to die? Certainly not me. Hello? Last Bossatronio from Bossatron? I'm kind of an endangered species! I cannot die. Not here.
Panic began to make its mark on me as the internal rantings of being a boss mingled in every other phrase. Adrenaline coursed through my veins and I began gasping as air came out to quickly than I took it in.
In the background I heard shuffling. It was unsteady and closer to stumbling than anything. Next was a loud gasp mixed in with concern and fear. I mostly focused on this because narrowing on my inevitable death seemed less appetizing.
God I did not want to die.
Then the zombie stopped scrambling. I waited for him to move, to stop playing possum, but he didn't move. Pushing him off in one movement, I saw the guy with the pokerface mask – Cry I reminded myself – smiling thinly as the mask had rose to show his lips barely. The zombie on Pewds also fell off, dead once again.
I looked at Cry and I mean really looked at him. He was wavering, shaking violently, and huffing like what he just did rivaled running a few hundred meters. He just looked plain unstable and even more pale and waxy like than before if that was even possible. On top of that, I could just tell he was not seeing things straight. I couldn't see his eyes, but the way he was acting made it an almost guarantee.
Glancing between all of our shocked faces, he grinned a little more. He tried to rotate his head to look at all of us, but instead it only seemed to disorient him more. It didn't seem to waver his intentions nevertheless.
Smiling broadly like we were his favorite people in the word, he spoke clearly.
"Oh hi."
And then he crashed to the floor.
Well, he would have hit the floor if Felix hadn't caught him in time.
Looking at me, I could read the confusion in his eyes. I was confused too. I mean, I was positive and even Felix was certain that Cry was unconscious. One person does not suddenly jump out of unconsciousness that quickly just because his friends were in danger. It just wasn't possible at all. No medical journal could say it was physically possible.
I stood and dusted whatever I could off of me, staring in disgust when most of it was internal organs that fell off the corpse. Shaking off the excess adrenaline, I blinked when Felix held Cry out to me.
Taking him without question, I watched as Felix checked Marzia over. She looked shaken, borderline faint with all the raw terror. However, other than that she seemed fine. That's a relief.
I looked around the scene and saw that apparently Felix dealt with the other zombie about as successfully as the first and shivered roughly. Those images were never going to leave my head.
Since I was practically useless while carrying Cry, Marzia and Felix both teamed up to grab all of the items that were in the car. When Felix pulled out the final item, a Polaroid camera, I raised my brow. He tilted his head towards Cry and I nodded in realization. It seemed like the thing he would have. Kind of quirky but definitely his style.
I followed the two of them as they checked for a car, or vehicle in general, that had gas, a working battery, and keys. Every car had at least one of these, or two if we were lucky, but none had all three.
After a few cars, Felix let out a loud sigh. "If we can at least get a car with just a fucking battery I will be eternally grateful." It seemed like most of the old owners had the bright idea of taking the battery as they fled, probably to use it in another vehicle.
Looking at him, I chuckle. "Do you know how to hotwire a car? I take it you do if you're only asking for the battery?"
Felix chuckled nervously. "Actually…"
"I do," Marzia chirped up and Felix and I stopped dead. I knew I was gaping but this seemed like a pretty damn good reason to be gaping honestly.
Marzia? Pretty girl with fashion and all that girly stuff knowing how to hotwire a car?
Impossible.
"How?" I choked up and then cleared my throat. "How do you know how to do that?" I mean, I know how to do it, but I didn't expect her.
She shrugged. "Desperate times calls for desperate measures."
Felix shook his head in awe like he found a renewed reason to fall more in love with the woman. I rolled my eyes and began to move again.
I didn't know how much hours passed. It was a while I'll tell you that much. My arms were starting to get exhausted with carrying Cry. Sure he was light, but it still didn't change the fact that my arms were not made to carry a grown man for a few hours – or so I thought passed.
We were about to take a break when Felix let out a happy yelp.
He was peering into the driver side of an old Chevy truck. Looking at us with a wide grin, he waved around a few keys and whooped louder. "Look! The battery works as well. Man, this is great!" The excitement trailed its way through all of us as he continued to grin.
I will admit I was a tad disappointed to not see Marzia actually hotwire a car, but maybe next time. I wasn't going to believe her until I see it. Seeing is believing after all. Everyone knows that.
Throwing all the items into the bed of the truck, Felix helped me place Cry in the back seat. I decided to let Marzia take the passenger seat and sat in the back, fixing Cry so his head would rest on my shoulder and not in some odd direction likely to make him annoyed in the morning.
Due to my long history of horror games, I looked behind me before I entered the car.
I paused. Well, more like stopped dead in my tracks.
The zombies that were there before, dead once more as they should be, were gone. Not gone as in walking away or dissipating to fog. It was different from that and I didn't like the sound of different in a zombie apocalypse. What was left of them was instead of black ink substance as if they dissolved into oil.
Shuddering, I get into the car and hope that this was nothing more than a zombie apocalypse. Add in a new aspect and everything will go to shit before you can shout "wait."