Chapter 55
"Oh, fuck," I muttered as I saw a handful of Lickers vanish into an alleyway in front of me. "Looks like I'm going to have to take a detour."
I shivered as the air continued to dry off my wet clothing, my fingers stiffening up before I cracked them against my hip and returned them to my rifle.
Moving out of the back alleys, I navigate the main street, avoiding the zombies that were ripping into the flesh of the dead that littered the ground, eventually making a right and continuing toward the precinct HQ that was on this side of the river.
As I neared the HQ, a door opened and a figure with a rifle in hand beckoned for me to come in, his finger covering his mouth to indicate that I should remain silent.
"You're SWAT?" the man asked as he closed the door quietly behind me. "I thought all of the officers in this precinct were dead."
"SWAT medic Mark Hall," I introduced myself to the man and the others that were grouped up and hiding in this apartment complex, about thirty people in all. "Can you tell me what happened here?"
"The Police fought off the zombies without any issues," the leader of this group began whispering. "But then there were some other kinds of monsters that came and the zombies got through the fence. We haven't heard anything from the precinct in an hour or so."
"Damn," I shook my head. "How many of you are armed?" I asked.
"I've got this," the man shrugged as he indicated the Ruger Mini 14 that was in his hands. "And we've got a few handguns to go around, but most of us aren't armed."
"We'll have to fix that," I said as I peered out the window. "Who would you trust to head into the precinct with you?" I asked as I pulled a fresh magazine from my pouch and swapped it out for the half empty one in my weapon.
"There's two guys here who are vets," the man shrugged. "Louis and Ed are keeping an eye on the other entrances right now."
"Go get them," I said. "We're going to go into the precinct to gather what we can find. Might even be able to find one of the armored SWAT vans there. We'll load up what we can get and then come pick up everyone before heading back across the river."
"I'll go get them," the man nodded. "I hope that you've got a plan for whatever monsters took over the station though."
"I've got one," I smirked as I patted the pistol that was holstered on my chest. "We'll just have to hope that the monsters don't know how to operate heavy weaponry."
"Valentine, we've got groups of survivors coming in with extra weapons and ammunition," Chief Douglass said as he looked at the map of the city. "We've managed to establish contact with the National Guard units that are quarantining the city and as long as we can screen people and get them to the checkpoints they'll allow people to be evacuated."
"We've got the basics set up here," Jill said as she gestured at the tent they had set up and the defenses that were in place. "What we need is a clear lane to get these people out through."
"The elementary school down the street should still have some buses available," Douglass replied. "I want you to take some people and bring those buses here. I want this station to be the main bastion of defense while we get as many people to safety as possible."
"I'll grab some people who I know can drive," Jill responded as she looked at the map that Chief Douglass had laid out. "Any news from the other precincts?"
"Negative," Douglass shook his head. "Mark was supposed to check on the south precinct. But we haven't had any communications from them in hours."
"Well, let's hope that he makes it out of that side of the city alive then," Jill said as she checked to make sure she had a round in the chamber. "I'll be back with however many buses we can get from the elementary school. You find a way to get the road clear to the checkpoints."
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"Alright, the path looks relatively clear for now," Alice muttered as she peered down the street, the other four members of the team that Jill had put together following close behind. "We should move now while we're still able to."
The group of six then moved down the street as an unusual fog seemed to descend down on the city, blanketing the city and making it so they couldn't see further than ten feet in any direction.
"Stick together," Jill ordered, Kevin Ryman, Alice, and the other three moving into a closer formation. "We don't know what sort of experiments are lurking around in the fog."
Alice nodded, the AK-74U in her hands steady as she scanned the fog around them.
"So, three of us know how to drive buses," Kevin said as they walked down the street. "What are the rest of us here for?"
"To make sure that the drivers stay alive," Jill replied. "Can't exactly get these buses back to the HQ if the ones who know how to drive them properly are dead. And while I'm sure that Alice, you, or I could figure it out. I'd much rather not have to attempt that."
"Fair enough," Kevin chuckled as they neared the gates to the Elementary School, the gates that normally looked warm and welcoming seeming ominous in the fog. "Did we ever manage to evac the kids?" he asked.
"Yes," Jill nodded. "They were some of the first people out of the city."
"Then why are the lights all on?" Alice asked as she raised the AK's sights up. "Because I'm pretty sure that most of these lights were shut off when we left."
"Keep your eyes sharp," Jill said as she squeezed her MP5 tighter. "We don't know who set up shop here now that the kids are gone. And I'm not sure that we even want to find out."
"Bus ramp is on the east side of the building," one of the drivers reported. "We'll have to make sure they're fuelled up and ready to go before we leave."
"Sneak around the not so abandoned school," Jill muttered under her breath. "This doesn't scream death or dismemberment to any of us, not at all."