And the next chapter has arrived! Took a lot of brainstorming but not a lot of rewrites for once. Thanks for sticking around, folks. We will reach an end to this! And I do believe I'll be ending it with this sequel, instead of turning this into a trilogy. Hope life's been going well for everybody!
Chapter 7
"He... he was obviously confused. He couldn't have known what he was doing." Nick immediately reacted to the accusation on Ellis, not with an argument saying that he didn't do it but that he hadn't meant to.
"And what if he did mean to do it, Nick? What if he was completely aware of his actions?" Rochelle argued.
Zoey hadn't had much else to say, she was still exhausted from the injuries she had obtained. She had finished off the glass of water and requested another though Nick had been peppering her with questions.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure."
"And it looked like Ellis? I mean he looks like Ellis to me but the rest of you..."
"It was Ellis."
"And he attacked you?"
"Yes."
"You're sure."
"Yes."
"Ellis attacked you."
"Look Nick, I think it's clear that Ellis is the culprit for their injuries. Now leave Zoey alone, she needs to rest and recuperate."
Louis and Francis were still mostly unconscious, though they would murmur and mumble every now and then. Rochelle still showed concern for them, as did Zoey, but Nick had faith that the two stubborn bastards would pull through. As long as Rochelle kept getting them to drink a little water.
Nick sighed inwardly, pushing to his feet slowly. He headed for his room, Rochelle's gaze questioning as he left the others. He collapsed onto the bed, pulling the pillow to his chest and sighing.
"What's happened to you this time, kid?" Nick wondered. Was it really possible that Ellis had attacked the others on purpose. Had he completely turned or was it just a moment of madness like what Ellis had had in the past.
It was obvious that Ellis wasn't going to be able to rejoin the group if it had just been a moment of madness. Francis, at the very least, would shoot first and ask questions later. Nick had a feeling that Zoey and Louis would be of similar minds.
So what are you going to do about it, Nick? Nick stared at the ceiling as he thought about it before reaching a rather simple conclusion. Every time he tried to plan something, things would go astray. Planning in a zombie apocalypse was like trying to count chicks before the hen has even laid the eggs. There were so many undetermined factors. This thought lead Nick to an easy conclusion.
I'll just let things go as they go. If I get the chance to look for Ellis or talk to him, I will try. If not, I won't go seeking trouble. Though we now have 6 survivors in one group, I'm a good hand with a gun and medical treatment. Best to not go risking my life on something stupid. They did always say that if you love something it will come back to you. Or... was that if it loves you? Oh Nick, you are losing your touch.
Nick shook his head, turning to lie on his side. Let things happen as they may, at any rate Nick. The conman advised himself. And if things with Ellis don't work out, put a bullet in him and call things square. It's time to get your life back on track. There's still a chance for a decent life, though perhaps not the kind you had initially planned. Remember: You've made it too far to die now.
With that last thought running across Nick's mind, he set his mind to rest and tried to get some sleep.
The next morning showed that Louis, Francis, and Zoey were fairing much better. Francis had woken up in the middle of the night, immediately complaining about how he had been right all along and no one had believed him. Louis woke a couple hours before dawn, shaking until Coach and Rochelle managed to calm him down.
When Nick came down the stairs in the morning, it was to find his colleagues collapsed around each other, completely passed out. Nick couldn't help a small smile. As much as he tried to deny it, these people had found a kind of soft spot in his heart- not that you'd ever hear him admitting to such nonsense. He was still able to cut ties if it ever came to that but for now, Nick could take care of his comrades.
What would Ellis do in this situation? Nick thought, before snapping his fingers. "Breakfast, of course." He said, scrounging around for something good. They'd already raided the house thoroughly so Nick already knew what he had to work with.
"Canned peaches it is." Nick said, feeling a little put out that he couldn't cook up a proper meal and surprise the other survivors. Then he shook his head at himself.
"Who are you anymore?" He whispered.
"What have... I told you about... talking to yourself?" Zoey questioned, one hand gripping her side as she limped into the kitchen.
"Best conversation I've had in a long while." Nick teased before looking over in Zoey's direction.
"Hey, what are you doing up?! Go lay down!" Nick ordered, pointing back into the living room.
"Water." Zoey rasped, showing Nick her empty cup. The conman wasn't sure he believed her completely, but he could easily indulge her wish.
"I'll get it for you. Now go lay down."
Zoey, of course, took no notice of Nick's commands. She did allow him to take her glass and fill it with water, at any rate. She accepted it from him when he handed it back but instead of heading back into the living room, she instead took up a spot leaning on the counter.
"I'm sorry, Nick." Zoey said softly.
Nick glanced over in her direction before shaking his head. "Don't be. It's got nothing to do with you."
"That doesn't stop me from understanding your pain. I've lost people, too."
Nick nodded. He really didn't want to have this conversation at the moment but it didn't seem like Zoey was picking up on his hints to leave him be. That, or she was outright ignoring them.
"If you need someone to talk to, Nick, I'm here. So are the others, I'm sure."
"Yes. I appreciate that." Nick replied, hoping that would get Zoey to go lay down again. She remained where she had been, however, her gaze curious as she watched him get the can's opened and peaches into bowls for the other survivors.
Silence fell in the room which suited Nick just fine. Porcelain clinked against metal as Nick finished getting portions set up for everyone.
"What do you plan on doing?" Zoey shattered Nick's quiet with that question, both on the outside and on the inside.
"Plan on doing what?"
"About Ellis."
"Nothing."
"You're just going to let him run around and live a damned existence?"
Nick shrugged. "You're making this into a bigger deal then what it is."
"I just thought that you might be the type to take mercy on your friends."
"You obviously don't know me at all if you think I'm the merciful type, Angel. It's always about me, nobody else matters." At one point, that may have been true for Nick. But now he knew that though it still held a kind of truth, other people mattered to him. Unfortunately for him, that meant he had made ties with people he was probably going to lose anyway.
"I don't know if I believe that to be true."
"Believe what you like. I don't care one way or the other."
"You're a stubborn ass." Zoey said, but there was no venom in her voice. On the contrary, she was smiling. She said it almost fondly.
Quiet fell between the two of them. The only sounds in the house were Coach and Francis' snores. Nick wondered how Rochelle could still be asleep with that racket going on. It was probably what truly woke Zoey up, and why she wasn't all that anxious to go back.
"So you're just going to leave him, then?" Zoey smoothly attempted to switch back to the earlier topic.
"Look, I saw what he did to you three, it's not like I'm chomping at the bit to die." Nick said, his mind drawing up the scenes he remembered of Ellis' infected moments. "Even if I thought I could kill Ellis and get away unscathed, I don't want to go hunting him."
Zoey's expression changed ever so slightly, softening. "You're hoping they find a cure?"
"I'm not a fool, Angel. I don't think CEDA is still alive at this point. The military has taken over and we all know their methods. Wipe out and start over, so Ellis is doomed either way."
"So you still hope Ellis will come back?"
"If he does Francis is going to shoot him."
"Fancis isn't the only one with his name on their hit list."
"That doesn't surprise me. Ellis tore you guys up and saving you put Rochelle and Coach in danger."
"And you." Zoey mentioned.
Nick didn't really have a response for that. Of course it had put him in danger as well, but that wasn't really a major concern to him. Zoey finished her glass of water slowly, her face thoughtful.
"So what about you? Are you going to hunt him down? Go out for revenge?" Nick asked.
"I don't think so. If I had died I might hold more of a grudge but I'm still in one piece. Louis and Francis are going to be ok, as well. If Ellis comes around again, I'll shoot him, but I'm not going to go looking for trouble. Besides, he's faster then a hunter and ferocious. I don't know how we're still alive, honestly."
That response started putting a theory in Nick's mind. What if, though Ellis had attacked them, he wasn't going for the kill? He was pretty sure if Ellis wanted someone dead, they would be dead rather shortly... so how is it that all three of the people Ellis attacked would be making it through. Could the kid have attacked them for more than having lost his mind.
"Hey Nick? Could you help me up the stairs so I can sleep on a bed not surrounded by thunder storms?"
"Sure, Angel."
"Why Angel?" Zoey asked as Nick gingerly placed a hand around Zoey's waist, supporting most of her weight.
"It's what Ellis called you. All the time." Nick said simply as they started making their way up the steps.
"Oh." Zoey replied, a small smile forming on her lips before she shook her head. "Ellis seems like he was a really great guy. I wish... that it didn't end this way."
Nick nodded. Out of everyone in his group, and probably in Zoey's as well, Nick still felt that Ellis was the most deserving of a happy ending. But the world doesn't play fair. It took Ellis' last chances of happiness from him. It had taken the kid's mother, it had taken Abbey, and now it took Ellis' last chance for a normal life.
"Hey Zoey?"
"Yes?" Zoey asked as they made it to the bedroom Zoey had showed Rochelle a day or two ago.
"Where did Ellis go after he attacked you? Did you see?"
"Nick, why do you want to know?"
"Call it Curiosity." Nick replied, shrugging. He could see Zoey reading his expression and body language. She didn't look surprised at the conclusion she reached. In fact she looked like she had expected as much from him.
"Back into the underground facility. Make it back in one piece."
Nick nodded, trying to put a puzzle together in his mind but he felt like he was still missing most of the pieces. At least Nick knew that he had been right that Ellis had gone back, though why Nick was still rather confused.
"Alright, sleep well." Nick said, turning and shutting the door quietly behind him. Nick went to his room, looking at the sword resting against the wall and the gun settled on the floor next to it.
"It's a stupid idea, Nick." He told himself sternly. "Confronting the kid might mean you have to kill him." But Nick wanted to know why. Was there still a chance for Ellis? Well, not in their current group. Francis wouldn't hesitate in killing the kid, there was no question in that.
"I've got to know." Nick finally decided, shaking his head at himself as he slid the gun over his shoulder and grabbed up his beloved katana. Nick was still surprised by how much of a risk he'd take for the kid, just to find out what had happened to him.
He checked on Rochelle and the other two, who were still sleeping soundly. He glanced back at the breakfast he had set out for them. "Hope you guys wake up before the flies get to that." Nick murmured before slipping out the door.
It was an overcast day, which truly fit Nick's mood. Infected milled about the house, knowing there were survivors inside. Nick dispatched any that saw him and attacked but mostly attempted to avoid confrontation with any of them.
Nick took the long way around to the warehouse, noticing there were more zombies in the area then there had been the day before. The alarms were probably summoning infected from all over.
"We're going to have to get out of here quickly." Nick noted. He slid into the warehouse without too much trouble, making it to the trap door which still lay open. "The pounding... was probably Ellis trying to get out. But if that's the case, why did he return?" Nick mumbled to himself. He flicked his flashlight on, pointing it down into the hole.
"Ellis?" Nick called into the darkness. He wasn't really sure if he wanted to face a wraith at the moment but he did want to see Ellis. So Nick began his slow ascent down into the darkness, flashlight turning this way and that as he headed further underground. "Ellis?"
Nick's line of sight took in the blood stains on the floor and walls, wondering if they seemed more numerous then the last time he'd been down.
"How far in here am I willing to go?" Nick questioned himself, pulling his shirt up over his nose- not that it was much of an improvement over the smell of death and decay that hung in the air down there.
The squelch of his shoes through unknown body parts hardly bothered him on his mission. Nick was considering finally putting this suit to rest and getting something new to wear. "Perhaps I can find another white suit along the way..." He considered as he continued to wade through the unknown. The sound of movement had Nick flashing his light in multiple directions, his sword in a position ready for an attack.
The light of the flashlight continued to move around the space, coming across a fork in the hallways. His light moved down his current path first, then turned to the right and just caught something evading the light. Nick attempted to point the light at it but it was much faster then his tracking abilities were. The conman cautiously crept forward, sword drawn and flashlight still seeking out the creature that Nick had in his sights.
Wraiths didn't shy away from the light last time Nick checked. They didn't shy away from much of anything, actually. They glided toward you, unwavering, and looking like death itself. They had caught Nick off guard the first time he saw them, as did most of the infected had when he first ran into them back when all this madness started.
"Where'd you go?" Nick murmured. He was no longer catching the earlier being in his light. "Aha." Nick said as he opened a door that had been slowly swinging back towards the wall further and slipping into the room. "Gotcha." Nick said easily as he finally pinpointed Ellis in the light of the flashlight. The kid threw up his clawed hands over his eyes in an attempt to escape the light.
"Found me." Ellis hissed, shaking his head. He made a leap for Nick, claws extended, knocking the flashlight from Nick's hands and tackling the conman to the ground. The light went spinning across the floor, smacking into a wall and stopping to rest with the beam of the flashlight lighting up Ellis' back. Nick couldn't see more than the kid's outline and gleaming eyes.
"What do ya want?" Ellis snarled.
Nick was quickly wondering if coming down here was such a great idea. He was staring death in the face at the moment, and he was still pretty sure he didn't have a death wish.
"I came to finish off the Wraiths." Nick stated, consciously aware of the sharp point of claws resting against his chest.
"Done." Ellis snarled, digging his claws into Nick's chest ever so slightly when the conman attempted to shift position. "You're lying." Ellis added as an after thought.
"Done? Did you?" Nick asked, tensing up from Ellis' painful warning. He was truly pinned.
"They were annoyin' as hell." Ellis said offhandedly.
"Impressive." Nick said. In a way, he could agree with finishing off things that were troublesome when you had the power to do so.
"Why did ya come here?" Ellis pressed.
"To get some answers." Nick hoped his voice sounded placating. He wasn't entirely fond of the kid being on edge. The conman could see when Ellis' eyes narrowed.
"Go Away." Ellis grumbled, removing his weight from Nick's chest and making a move for the door.
"Wait." Nick said, grabbing Ellis' ankle before he could move too far. He received a low growl for his troubles.
"Go Away." Ellis repeated, his voice reaching a more dangerous tone.
"What is going on with you?" Nick hadn't released his grip on Ellis, ignoring the growl and the warning in the kid's voice.
"Go Away."
"Why?"
"Go Away. Go Away. Go Away!" Ellis started at a roar but it fell quickly into a sob. "Go away, Nick. Yer gonna get hurt."
"I see." Nick murmured, pushing to his feet- keeping a grip on Ellis' coveralls. Obviously the kid wasn't that interested in leaving the room. The conman knew if Ellis really wanted to, he could disappear into the darkness and Nick would never see him again.
Ellis' body heaved with repressed sobs, his shoulder's slouched in a defeated position.
"Ellis. What happened?" Nick asked, his hands following the lines of Ellis' body until they reached his shoulders. He gripped them consolingly, wishing he could better see Ellis' face. The feeble light of his flashlight wasn't giving him much to work with at the moment.
Ellis just shook his head in response. Nick noticed the shine of something wet falling from Ellis' chin and realized the kid was crying.
"Ellis..." Nick whispered, cupping the kid's face in his hands, attempting to wipe away tears he couldn't see.
"Are they... are they dead?" Ellis whispered. He stood apart from Nick. Where as the Conman was holding the kid's face ever so gently in his hands, Ellis had made no move to hug or even touch Nick in return. He didn't yank his face from Nick's grip, at least. If you asked Nick, he'd tell you Ellis leaned into the his touch.
"No, they're fine. They're sore and they lost a lot of blood but Rochelle says they'll live."
"Rochelle. Coach." Ellis voice had softened quite a bit, and was rough from emotion. "How're they?"
"They're fine, kid. Alive. They miss you."
"They miss who I was." Ellis corrected.
"That's because they haven't gotten a chance to know this you."
"And they won't. I'm dangerous, Nick. I almost killed Zoey. And Louis. And Francis. I almost killed them, Nick."
"But you didn't. And you very easily could have, Ellis."
"'m Dangerous." Ellis argued.
"Yes, you are. But something stopped you from creating mortal wounds, Ellis. I don't know why you attacked them, but you didn't lethally injure any of them."
"Could have. If Rochelle didn' save'em."
"Hey, Coach and I helped."
"Mhmmm." Ellis said, tone on the edge of sarcastic, sounding a little more like his old self.
"Your doubt in me hurts." Nick murmured, a small smile gracing his features as well. This was going better then he could have hoped. Ellis smiled back before his expression grew grim. It wasn't hard to read the expression in the kid's eyes.
"You're dangerous, Ellis. I'm not denying that. But so is everyone."
"I doubt anyone else has ta fight the temptation ta kill. Tha's the difference, Nick. Not tha' 'm dangerous cuz of my abilities. I's cuz I want ta kill an' tha's unnatural an' unsafe."
"So. . . You're fighting a temptation to kill? Me? Right now?" Nick asked and Ellis made a move that brought Nick back to a time before things were so hard. Ellis gently placed his hand over Nick's, leaning in just far enough to brush the tip of his nose to Nick's.
"Yer different. Kinda special." Ellis seemed to be giving into Nick's charms, once again. His weight leaned into Nick and the conman accepted it willingly, sliding his hands down to rest on Ellis' shoulders. Things felt so normal all of a sudden.
"Special? So, I suppose you're saving me for last then. That kind of special?" Nick teased.
"No." Ellis began pulling away, his expression much more serious.
Nick fought the distance at first, before taking a step away from Ellis as well though he kept one hand placed on Ellis' shoulder.
"No?"
"No, Nick. The temptation has never been around you."
Nick realized Ellis was being completely serious and so grew more serious himself. "But you get the temptation around the others? Like... what? A hunger for them?"
"Yes." Ellis answered honestly, his voice growing soft.
"Well it's fine. We won't be around them anymore."
"What do ya mean?"
"I mean... well after your attack they're not going to let you back into the group. And I'm not interested in being separated from you. The only logical choice is to go where you go, Ellis."
"Nick, I don't want you to do that. To give up yer chance of safety." Ellis probably would have continued but Nick cut him off.
"Safety? You mean like the safety Coach and Rochelle were in when they were being experimented on for the second time? Perhaps you mean the safety that doesn't exist anywhere in the world anymore."
"Staying with the other humans is better than being around me." Ellis stated, his voice growing more stubborn.
"Not for me." Nick replied, shaking his head. "I've always preferred a solo existence. Now that I have you, I'd prefer a life with just you and me."
Ellis seemed to pause and think about this option. "So what? Gonna make me your guard dog, Nick?"
"Guard dog?" Nick questioned, suddenly reminded of the kids rather large imagination. "No. More like a body guard- pretty sure it's against the law to have sex with guard dogs."
Ellis chuckled lightly. It was the kind of laugh people make when they're not really amused with what you had to say, but try to laugh anyway because they know you're expecting it.
"So a tool to keep you safe, then?"
"And I'll be a tool to keep you safe. We'll be a team."
Even in the poor lighting, Nick could see that Ellis' expression changed. At first he was very considerate of Nick's words, before a grin split his features. It soon fell away, though. Nick could almost see the wheels turning in Ellis' head as he thought.
"What do you say, Ellis?"
Ellis opened his mouth, then closed it again. He rubbed at his chin, took his hat off and ran his fingers through his unruly hair. Placing the hat back into place, Ellis finally nodded. It was clear that the kid had reached some kind of conclusion.
"At least... well at least help the others get where they're going, Nick."
"Why?"
"Because they're our friends. And they need you."
"That's bullshit and you know it. They need me like they need a horde of infected." Nick argued, contrary to what he himself had been thinking the night before. He really didn't want to worry about the others anymore. He knew they could take care of themselves.
Ellis gave him a look Nick felt he hadn't seen in decades. The one where his feature's softened, his eyes grew larger, and the corners of his mouth turned into a pout.
"I see you still have that puppy dog look mastered." Nick said drily, his expression unimpressed. The conman attempted to look away but it didn't go over well and he could feel himself giving in. It seemed impossible to say no to Ellis when he made that expression.
"Fine. Fine. You win. But only if you promise me something."
Ellis' expression became cautious. "Yeah?"
"Promise me that you won't get yourself killed." Nick said softly.
"Nothin' can kill me, Nick."
"Except a gun. And Francis. And any survivor with a gun. Or weapon of any sort."
"Yeah, yeah. Like they could catch me." Ellis said, disappearing from Nick's sight. The conman's heart sank for a moment, believing the conversation to be finished. A moment later Nick jumped from a soft touch on his shoulder, immediately regretting his startle when he heard Ellis' snickers. He should have known better but Nick couldn't help it, the place was dark and it was hard to accept that the wraiths had been dealt with so easily. They'd been here just the other day and now they weren't.
"I don't hear a promise." Nick said in an attempt to hide his embarrassment.
"Alright, alright. I promise. Shake on it?"
Nick shook his head. "Come here." He beckoned Ellis closer. Ellis approached him slowly, gaze lingering on Nick. The conman leaned in, ever so gently placing a kiss to Ellis' lips. "Deal's sealed."
"I feel like I jus' made a contract with the ol' devil himself."
Nick chuckled and shook his head at that. "There was a time where making a deal with me was very similar to that. But not so much anymore." Nick said, reaching up and messing Ellis' hat up. "I can't believe you still have that hat. After all this."
"I's the second most important thing to me, Nick. Only thing more important is my coveralls."
"Really now." Nick scoffed, feeling disappointed with Ellis' answer. And then feeling annoyed at his disappointment.
"'m jus' kiddin' Nick. Most important thing ta me is you."
"That's more like it." Nick nodded, smirking at Ellis. "Do I have your word we'll meet up again after I get the others to safety."
"I promise, Nick. I'll follow jus' like before cept more sneaky."
"If they discover you, deal's off though, alright? I don't want them to know you're following us. They may decide to hunt you down if they do."
Ellis' expression easily read as unsure about this new aspect of the deal.
"I dunno, Nick. Pretty sure they're gonna spot me 'ventually."
"They're going to try and kill you if they spot you." Nick ground out. "Even Zoey said she'd shoot you on sight."
Ellis looked exceptionally hurt from that.
"Right Nick. Alright." Ellis finally agreed.
"And you're sure we can't just leave right now? Just the two of us?" Nick said playfully, trying to take back the hurt. He had meant to get the kid serious, not get the 'kicked puppy' look from him.
"'m Sure."
"Alright kid. We... probably shouldn't see each other during this." Nick added the last part grudgingly. He really didn't want to go back to not seeing Ellis, and the kid was still looking upset to discuss this as well. At least this time it would be different then all the others. He knew Ellis was alive and well. However, the other survivors knew of him now, too, which put Ellis at a higher risk of being seen and shot.
Ellis nodded in understanding. He didn't look all that surprised by Nick's addition to the rules.
"I just have one more question before I leave. What brought you down here?"
Ellis stared at the ground for a long moment. It looked like he was debating what he should say, whether he should tell the truth or not. Eventually he made up his mind, peeking up at Nick from under the brim of his hat.
"Forgot my hat." Ellis replied sheepishly, reaching up and tugging at the tip of his hat.
"Only you." Nick sighed before leaning down to press one last kiss to Ellis' lips.
Pulling away from the kiss wasn't so hard this time around. Nick knew it wouldn't be his last with Ellis, that he'd get another chance with the kid as soon as he got the others to some semblance of safety. Nick finally had a plan he was content following. This was something that Nick could see through.
Daydreaming about what the future could hold, Nick left the area. There was an infected or two waiting just outside the trap door, and a couple down the street, but they did nothing to dampen Nick's mood. It wasn't until he was through the door and saw the expressions on the other survivors faces that he realized he still had some explaining to do.
"I went to look for Ellis." Sometimes slipping the truth into a lie made it stronger, so starting with the truth seemed like a good base.
"You truly are a moron." Rochelle grumbled.
"Did you find him?" Zoey asked shortly after.
Dimming his good mood, Nick shook his head. "No luck."
Nick was questioned on where he went looking, what he had found, and if he had discovered anything actually useful.
"Well. The Wraiths are gone." Nick started. "Oh yeah, and those alarms are still drawing infected. We need to get out of here before every zombie across the nation comes skulking around here."
"Zoey, Louis, and Francis aren't quite ready to be moved around." Rochelle replied, placing her hands on her hips.
"Whatever. It's your funeral. Anyway, do we have any plans on where we're going after here?"
"Coach and I heard talk about a safe haven that's been built in an old fort." Rochelle said. "He and I were planning on heading there next."
"Not a bad idea." Zoey agreed.
"Really Zoey? I thought we wouldn't be settling down anywhere. Can't trust anyone."
"It wouldn't hurt to check the place out, Francis. Wouldn't it be nice to have a sort of normal life again? Somewhere undoubtedly safe from the infected?"
"Nowhere is safe from the infected." Francis growled.
"I'd just like to find a place not controlled by the military." Rochelle mentioned.
"So are you sure this is a real place?"
"Coach and I only heard murmurings from other prisoners, really. Nobody official spoke about it." Rochelle looked a little sheepish about her response.
"Do you have any way to find out if this is a real place?"
"Nothing besides actually going up there."
"I don't want to go chasing after a myth or something that doesn't exist. I hate wasting my time."
"So how would your time be better spent, Francis? Do you have a plan from here?"
Francis quieted down a moment, his gaze narrowed at Rochelle. He was just about to open his mouth to speak again when Louis cut in.
"Does anyone else have any leads?" Louis' voice was calm. Nick assumed the man was attempting to be the mediator, and calm the anger growing between Francis and Rochelle.
No one spoke up. "Alright Rochelle, it seems like unless we come across something better, this is our best bet. Where did you hear this place was?"
"South Carolina."
"Well at least we won't be walking across the world to Scotland or some such nonsense like that." Nick put in.
"That's not as far as I was expecting to hear. In fact, in all the distance traveled, that's not very far at all. So what's in South Carolina?"
"A fort of some sort, protected by water on three sides and the last side you can see for miles on who's approaching. It has land to grow vegetables and fruit to eat."
"Sounds promising."
"Do you think I'd go chasing after anything less?"
"So, is this an instance where a society is set up there or is the place open for using? Like a safe place to set up camp?" Zoey questioned.
"From what I understood, it's a society that built itself up apart from the government. Almost sounds too good to be true in that regard. Either way, even if it is overrun I think it would be possible to clear the place out and make a livable place for ourselves."
"I'm voting for the first option, myself. If there is still a society functioning there it would mean zombies can't penetrate the area."
"Don't forget, people can be stupid sometimes."
"If people were smart, this infection would have been contained to begin with." Nick grumbled.
"So, to South Carolina?"
"We head out tomorrow." Zoey stated, giving a small nod as added confirmation. The look that she received from Louis and Francis, on top of the concerned looks she received from Rochelle and Coach had her changing her mind. "I mean, we'll head out just as soon as we're all rested and healed properly."
"Do you know when that will be?"
"Not really, Nick. I mean we usually heal up pretty fast. Just give us a few days."
Nick nodded at that. "Don't rush anything, I was simply interested."
"Nick, Coach and I will go on a supply run in the mean time." Rochelle declared, receiving a groan from Coach and an arched brow from Nick. "I'm ready to head out when you two are, by the way."
Nick heaved a sigh, rolled his shoulders, and nodded. "Alright." He collected his gun, which was dangerously low on ammo, and his katana. "I'm ready as well."
Coach went about fetching his things in what seemed to be a purposely slow manner. He gave a nod once he had his guns and melee weapon in possession.
"Out into the madness we go." Nick said, opening the door for his comrades. He waved sarcastically back at the three injured survivors before shutting the door behind himself. Things had become a little more crowded with infected thanks to the continued blare of the alarms. It became a slight concern of Nicks. A few more days and they may surrounded by a swarm in the safe house. He put it to the back of his mind, they'd cross that bridge when they got there.
Nick found it increasingly hard not to search the surrounding area for Ellis. He wanted to know where the kid had strayed off too. He was probably following them right that moment, but Nick didn't want to know where Ellis was. As soon as he did, he'd keep trying to track Ellis' movements. Rochelle and Coach would probably be ignorant at first but later on it would be hard to miss that Nick was acting a bit odd.
"So what kind of supplies are we looking for?" Nick asked.
"The usual," Rochelle replied. "Food, ammo, medical supplies. If we can find morphine, it might help Zoey and the others cope with the pain. But mainly, we're looking for food and ammo. I don't know about you two but I'm pretty low."
"I have a couple bullets to my name." Nick replied. "I need to restock."
"I suppose this wasn't such a bad idea." Coach said, his voice still holding a grudging tone despite his words.
"On your left." Nick warned as a common infected went to attack Rochelle. And like that, they were caught up in a war they were all fairly used to. It was strange how he and his colleagues fell into a rhythm, one that was a little rusty thanks to their time span of not battling together and their missing of one teammate.
"Behind you Nick!" Rochelle shouted, before just shooting the infected down. Nick was at a close enough range that he could feel the splatter of blood along the back of his neck.
"Nice shot." Nick said, his voice only holding half the sarcasm. Though he was used to most parts of the apocalypse, Nick didn't think he'd ever be used to getting coated with gore truly. He could walk through it ok, see it and smell it, but as soon as it was covering him he had goose bumps rising on his skin.
"You're lucky. It was my last shot." Rochelle replied, giving Nick a thumbs up as she pulled out the crow bar she had found recently.
"We'll have to fix that." Nick called back to her, taking down two more infected that were running in their direction before his own gun clicked empty. He slung the gun over his shoulder before sliding the Katana free and attacking a third zombie that had made it within swinging range.
"Smoker!" Coach cried out, a few infected falling on him as the smoker began dragging him away.
"I got you covered, Coach!" Nick said, moving quickly in the larger man's direction. A couple infected stood in his way but they were easy enough to dispatch, slicing through one's head and then chopping through the neck of another. Nick pulled the infected off of Coach that were still clinging to the man, being drug by the smoker as well. Nick concentrated on cutting through the tongue before turning to the infected he had thrown to the ground, gouging the tip of his blade through on eye and slicing through the neck of the other. Beheading was one of the easiest ways to dispatch a zombie with a katana.
"Thanks." Coach wheezed as he got back to his feet. Nick covered the man's back until he was steady enough to fight again. The conman put some distance between himself and the retired football player after that, knowing better then to be in Coach's swinging zone.
"Guys! Over here." Rochelle called, gesturing at a building she was by. Nick and Coach quickened their pace in her direction, slicing and clubbing undead along the way. They were beginning to amass quite the crowd behind them at this point- one that they probably wouldn't attempt to take on even with their guns. One that they'd only fight if they got caught in the middle of it.
Nick was pretty sure he could feel the rancid breath of their pursuers on his neck just as he made it through the door, Rochelle slamming it shut behind them.
"That is not going to hold them for long. Let's see what we can find here." Rochelle said, clicking on her flashlight and beginning to move through the aisles.
"Are you really expecting to find anything unspoiled here?" Nick said, gesturing to the meat packages that were far past expiration date. It didn't help that the refrigerating system had also quit working.
"Our resident cynisist, everybody." Rochelle said playfully, though there was an under tone of irritation. A few moments later she was waving cans at Nick as if to say 'Who was right?'
Nick rolled his eyes. He had expected this place to be one of the ones raided by the Georgia base before it went down but perhaps they had had provisions set up in the base before hand. Nick had heard rumors about bases set up for a zombie attack but Nick thought that those were a joke. Perhaps the government is to blame on this
"Alright fellas, let's load up." Rochelle said, finding an abandoned basket along the way and beginning to fill it with her choice of canned goods. Nick and Coach hunted down baskets of their own. Nick started to search through boxed goods, but there wasn't much that the rats hadn't gotten into. Still, he found some salvageable goods before stocking up on cans as well.
"Next question. How are we getting out of here?" Nick could still hear the infected pounding on the doors in the front. Pretty soon they'd be swarming through this area, hunting down three meals on legs.
"Stores should always have back doors." Rochelle said, coming upon a door that led to the alley. "Ones that are also unlocked." She said, trying the door and finding it stuck. She took a step back and for a moment Nick took a step forward to shoot the lock but before he could shoot, Rochelle placed a well aimed kick at the door.
"Shit." She mumbled, obviously trying not to clutch at her leg as she fell back from the kick.
Nick bit back his laughter at her failed attempt at being a badass.
"Step aside, Rochelle. I've done this before." Nick said, guiding her out of the way with one hand before squaring up to the door. Nick took a couple steps back before walking forward at a brisk pace, one foot raising to kick the door near the handle. There was a sound of something shattering upon the impact of his foot, before the door went flying open.
Rochelle just huffed at Nick's sly grin before Coach told them to both get their asses into gear, the infected had heard the noise from the door and were taking interest in the alley.
"Alright guys, lets go." Rochelle said, limping to the lead. Nick once again held back his mirth, completely amused by the whole scene.
"You ok, girl?" Coach asked softly, keeping pace with Rochelle.
"Fine." She said, smiling lightly at Coach's concern but still keeping an overall sour mood.
"I hope that you're being fine continues to hold up." Nick said, all fun gone as a roar rent the air. "Because we're going to need you if we run into the tank that's in the area."
"What is it with tanks? Are they created when we come along or something?" Rochelle complained before Coach hushed her. They continued to sneak along the alleyway, taking down any infected they came across as quietly as they could.
"Shhhh. Do you hear that?" Nick hushed the other two though they hadn't been speaking. He wanted to make sure he wasn't hearing things, though, because if he was hearing what he thought he was hearing, they would not be able to continue down this path.
"Shit." Rochelle hissed as the sobbing grew louder. "Gooddamn package deal with tanks and witches."
"Shhhhhh." Nick repeated. "We need to back out of the area slowly. Hopefully she won't notice us."
The three began to back away slowly, eyes searching everywhere for the huddled figure of the witch. In Coach's focus on searching her out, he didn't see the trash can behind him until he was tripping over it. He and the can landed hard, creating an exceptionally loud clatter along the way.
A wail filled the air, causing terror to strike through the three survivors.
"SHIT! GODDAMN IT COACH YOU STARTLED THE WITCH!" Rochelle screeched, and if Nick were in the joking mood he'd have given her a hard time about how impressive her witch impression was.
The last of Coach's bullets rang through the air as the witch came at them. The sounds caught the interest of the infected and the creatures started to swarm into the alley. Realizing that he and the others were caught between a rock and a hard place, he stopped running from the witch, holding his katana at the ready. Rochelle and Coach couldn't run much farther before hitting a wall of infected themselves. They kept the common zombies off Nick's back while Nick held the witch at bay. It seemed for every swipe he got in, she also got one. Nick was exceptionally thankful for the adrenaline at the moment that kept him from feeling all of the pain that the witch's swipes were inflicting.
"We are not in a good situation." Rochelle stated. She had taken quite a bit of damage from the common at this point. Her sore ankle hindered her movements, and the cramped space of the alleyway made it hard for her and Coach to get a full swing through.
Nick saw an opening in his fight against the witch and immediately took it, raising his sword high before swinging it across. The witch's head fell cleanly from her shoulders but not before her claws embedded themselves into Nick's gut. The man released an 'ooph' of surprise before grabbing at the witch's wrist and pulling the claws out of his abdomen. He snatched up his basket that had fallen to the ground before pulling that arm to squeeze across his gut, his other hand feebly hanging onto his katana.
"Le's go." Nick tried to shout, blood spilling from his lips as he did. "Shit this hurts." Nick added, more to himself. The adrenaline was still high but it was beginning to fade.
"Nick!" Rochelle said, her voice full of concern. "Come on, we need to get back to the safe house."
Nick just nodded and began to hobble along in the lead. The pile of bodies Coach and Rochelle had built up slowed the oncoming infected but not indefinitely. They'd be back upon the survivors shortly.
"The opening of the alley is just a head. Come on guys, we can do this." Rochelle cheered them on, but things were looking bleak. Nick was beginning to lose feeling, which was even worse then feeling pain because he knew exactly what it meant. Things were not looking good for him.
How did I get into this mess? He questioned, wondering where the plan had gone wrong. Perhaps the plan to leave the safe house in general had been a bad plan. Things grew worse as they made it out of the alley to face off with the tank they had heard earlier.
"Oh god almighty." Coach whispered and Nick could clearly hear a sob from Rochelle.
"Guys. Ammo." Nick attempted to get their attention to a fallen soldier who had a gun and ammo falling out of his pockets. No concerns for the guy coming back either considering that his head was no where to be found.
"Thank the lord for soldiers."
Rochelle was still sobbing, her breath hitched as she tried to load her gun. Nick's fingers kept slipping from the blood coating them when he attempted to load his own gun. In the end he dropped his gun and snatched up the machine gun of the soldier with one hand, the other still clutching his gut and the basket.
"Please be loaded. Please be loaded." Nick said, attempting to grip the gun properly before firing at the tank. A barrage of shots went off as he pulled the trigger, but the shots went wild thanks to Nick's inability to keep the gun stable. Some of the shots hit the tank, luckily enough, but that only enraged the tank.
"I think we are finally out of luck." Coach said despairingly, attempting to shoot the tank down as well as it lumbered toward them.
"Not quite." Nick hummed, fingers crossed that he had seen what he thought he had seen. And that Ellis wasn't stupid enough to continue to hide... maybe he should have laid out rules about if he and Rochelle and Coach were about to die, show yourself anyway. Nick's worry was laid to rest as a shadow shot across the ground, attacking the giant's leg. The tank's attention was removed from the three living survivors for a moment as it tried to stomp off the creature that was digging into it's leg.
"What the hell?" Rochelle questioned.
"Go wi'h it." Nick said, smiling a little as Ellis clambered up the tank, attacking as he went. Around the time he reached the shoulder of the hulking beast, Coach crowed that he had discovered a Molotov.
"Incoming!" Coach called, but Nick grabbed his arm, preventing the throw.
"You'll... get Ellis."
"And the tank." Coach argued, attempting to free his arm. Nick twisted his grip, causing Coach to release the Molotov, falling towards the ground thanks to Coach's slack grip. Nick snatched it before it hit the ground, but he had to drop his Katana to do so.
"Boy, you've lost your mind." Coach growled, bringing his arm to his chest with a pained expression. Nick knew that the arm would just be sore. Even though he easily could have, Nick hadn't broken Coach's arm or even dislocated anything. He's just used the weaknesses of the muscles in the arm to force Coach's release.
"Guys we need to get out of here." Rochelle cried out as common began to swarm behind them. The fuse was lit on the Molotov and now the decision on what to use it on was resting on Nick's shoulders. Obviously, even Ellis wouldn't be able to stand up to fire and he was doing a decent job of distracting the tank. So Nick turned and threw it at the oncoming infected, lighting several of them up.
"I don't know if this is a better situation." Rochelle commented at the wall of fire hobbling in their direction.
"We have to... run pas'... tank." Nick said in way of explanation on how to survive this.
"We're gonna die. We're gonna die. We're gonna die." Rochelle began to murmur, but nonetheless followed Nick's slow hobble in the tank's direction. Common were attempting to surround them without going near the tank themselves. Perhaps the common had a sense of survival as well.
It was harder to keep stable on their feet as they got closer to the tank that was crashing around above them. Each step sent a shudder through the earth that had the survivors tumbling and tripping, struggling to stay on their feet.
"Watch out!" Rochelle shouted as a foot came down dangerously close to were Nick was stumbling along. It was close enough that Nick could have reached out and touched it if he had wanted to, but he chose to keep running.
"Gah!" Nick looked up immediately to see that the tank had gotten Ellis in his clutches and was slamming the kid into the ground. He tried to lift the gun he had been using as a crutch but it hurt too goddamn much. His muscles were not obeying his command anymore. The movement alone almost sent Nick toppling to the ground, which caused him to shove the nozzle of the gun back into the ground- most of his weight falling against it.
"Ellis." Nick choked, ignoring another dribble of blood that spilled from the corner of his mouth and down to drip off his chin. Nick wasn't the only survivor who slowed his pace, Rochelle was turning to see what was going on as well. She seemed undecided for a moment, but only a moment before raising her gun and firing on the tank. It released Ellis to turn it's attention to her instead.
Ellis lay on the ground, stunned, for only a moment before rolling to his feet and beginning his attack anew. At first the tank ignored Ellis as the kid sliced at the thick, mutated muscle of the tank's calf, but Ellis cut a string of muscle holding the giant up and then it had no choice but to notice that it was falling.
"Timber!" Ellis crowed as the monstrosity seemed to fall in slow motion. The crash caused a thundering throughout the area.
"Time ta finish this bugger off." Ellis said before disappearing into the crowd of fire a moment before returning with Nick's Katana. Ellis sized the tank up a moment as the thing rolled around and attempted to get to it's feet again. The limbs crashed around and Ellis chose carefully on where he began his climb. Large arms swatted at him, attempting to catch him once more but Ellis did his best to avoid them, only getting smacked around twice. Reaching the tank's chest, Ellis stood firm and tall before stabbing the sword through the Tank's eye and into it's brain. It stopped it's struggle immediately, trunk like arms falling to the ground and remaining there.
Meanwhile Nick and Rochelle had been forcing themselves to keep moving instead of stopping to watch. Coach hadn't paused for a beat after Nick had knocked the Molotov from his hand. He had started running and just kept going, making it to the door of the safe house and throwing his supplies and himself inside.
"Come on, Nick." Rochelle said, grabbing Nick's gun arm and pulling it over her shoulders. She flinched at the feeling of blood soaking into her side as she helped support Nick's weight, but made no comment on it. They began to move more quickly, both of their baskets still held tightly in their hands, Rochelle's in the hand she had at Nick's hip and his still in the hand trying to slow the flow of blood from his stomach. Damn them if this trip wasn't going to be absolutely worth every penny they had earned.
The next time Rochelle looked back, she could see a shadow taking down infected who were beginning to realize that the tank was no longer a danger. Those common attempted to chase after Nick and Rochelle, which is when the shadow would leap in and dispatch them.
"Where's Coach?" She asked, as her next scope of the area focused on spotting the big man. She couldn't think about Ellis at the moment- he was obviously doing a great job of taking care of himself and helping them.
"Las' seen runnin'... for the... safe h's." Nick said, fighting the slurs but it seemed like his tongue was among the muscles he was losing command over. Rochelle shook her head.
"Let's hope he made it there safely." She said. "Just like we're going to."
Nick just nodded, which made his world spin. The safe house was just a short run away, but it seemed to take forever hobbling along.
"We're getting there." Rochelle encouraged as Nick let out a groan of pain. The adrenaline had faded from his system and now he was feeling the pain for almost all it was worth. The pain came in waves, crashing through his system and causing him to shudder with how overwhelmed his body was by it. He clutched tighter to his basket and Rochelle while fighting to keep his feet underneath him, moving forward one step at a time. It was like every moment took concentration for Nick, and it was becoming harder to focus on anything.
"Ah!" Rochelle cried out as something ploughed into her back, knocking her and Nick to the ground. She could feel the hot air on the back of her neck before the infected bit into her shoulder. Rochelle couldn't help the scream that was torn from her throat, which caught the attention of the people in the safe house.
"Rochelle!" Francis hobbled out of the house, supposedly to rescue her. He raised his gun and the first shot missed everything entirely. Francis let out a groan. The infected tore the chunk of flesh from Rochelle's shoulder, causing her to scream again.
The sound was terrible for Nick. It was obvious that Rochelle was in pain but pinned as he was, there was nothing he could do to help her but listen to her pain. Francis' face twisted into determination as the infected went in for another bite, teeth sinking into the blood covered flesh of Rochelle's neck. Francis took more careful aim, and shot the zombie on Rochelle's back in the shoulder and then through the head. It's jaw was still locked into her neck, but Rochelle's scream had turned into whimpers of pain.
Zoey, Louis, and Coach had been slower on the uptake but were soon out of the house after Francis, covering the burly man as he made his way to where Rochelle lay pinned by the infected, and Nick lay pinned by her.
Francis gripped the head of the infected and attempted to wrench the jaw from the skull, so that he could free Rochelle without too much further injury. Unfortunately, his strength was not what it used to be thanks to him being at the beginning of recovery and couldn't seem to dislocate the jaw enough to get Rochelle's shoulder free. Francis bellowed in frustration as he continued to pull and pry at the teeth, trying not to hurt Rochelle. It became obvious that Francis wasn't up to the task, and he didn't want anyone else to hurt Rochelle further, so he decided he had to tear the head away in one piece which caused skin to tear away with the head. A sob could be heard from where her face was pressed into the ground.
"Rochelle." Francis said softly, shoving the corpse from her and scooping her into his arms. He wobbled around at first but was encouraged when Rochelle threw one arm around his neck, wincing slightly from the pain and clutching at the bite wound with her other hand, but focusing on pressing her face into his throat.
"I've gotcha." Francis soothed as he stepped away from where Nick still lay.
Zoey and Louis were there in a second and together helped Nick to his feet. The conman noticed Rochelle's basket lying on the ground and grabbed it up with his free hand, hanging onto it as tight as he could though it tried to slip from his grip thanks to the mixture of sweat and blood on his fingers.
Coach covered their backs as the injured made their way inside. Francis was only able to make it to the couch before his arms couldn't hold up any longer. He dropped to his knees before he could drop Rochelle, causing Francis's knees to thud against the ground and his face to end up nestled in Rochelle's stomach.
Rochelle clutched at her shoulder with one hand as blood spilled from it, but the other reached out to pat Francis' head in a thank you. Francis didn't mind too much that the acknowledgment got blood in his hair.
Louis was quick to fetch what was left of their medkits, tossing bandages in Francis' direction. The other man quickly got to work on bandaging up Rochelle's injured shoulder, first gently pulling Rochelle's hand from the wound. After that Francis cut away the sleeve of Rochelle's shirt as carefully as he could, pulling the fabric gingerly from the wound before wrapping a bandage around it to prevent any further bleeding. After he had finished that he carefully lifted her so that he could settle into the couch with her head resting carefully in his lap, his fingers smoothing her hair.
"I am not that injured." Rochelle choked out, attempting to sound tough. At any rate Rochelle didn't reject Francis' lap as her pillow or the hand smoothing down her hair. The only movements she made was to turn so she could see Nick and the others better. New tears welled into her eyes at the state of Nick, her gaze catching that he still gripped the handles of the baskets.
This was all her fault. It had been her idea to go on a supply run. Maybe if she hadn't been so eager to head out and pick up more food, they wouldn't be in such a sorry state. The guilt continued to wash over Rochelle and tears fell in a steady stream from her eyes as she watched the others try to help Nick.
"Nick, hang in there." Zoey said as they got Nick into a chair.
"Nnnn." Nick mumbled, not conscious enough to notice when they began to tear his shirt down the front to get at the worst of his wounds.
"Do we have any disinfectant or morphine or anything?" Zoey said as she rummaged through the medkit. Louis shook his head, expression grim.
"It was all used on us."
"Damn it." Zoey said before looking back at Nick. "I don't know what to do! I don't know how to help!" Zoey said as she gestured at the puncture wounds into Nick's gut. Coach held her shoulder gently before moving her to the side.
"I've dealt with this kind of wound before. I can handle it." He promised, though Coach wasn't sure they'd be able to save Nick with the meager supplies they had. Still, it was better to give them hope, and then allow the blame to fall on his own shoulders. Because it was his fault. He was the one who had startled the witch. If Nick died it was on his hands.
"Hang in there, boy." Coach mumbled as he set to work on what he was able to do. The others gave him room to work, but they continued to hover around. They only got out of the way when Coach snapped at them for blocking the light- after which Zoey fetched a flashlight and Louis moved to the kitchen where he paced back and forth across the kitchen floor- though his pace was slow and strained.
"This is going to hurt." Coach warned shortly before plunging a needle into Nick's skin to start sowing up the wounds. They didn't receive more than a grunt from Nick, though another layer of pain set in for the conman. It overwhelmed him shortly after, his vision already mostly clouded over.
The baskets finally tumbled to the ground as Nick lost consciousness all together, his world turning into blackness.