Gods, it sure has been forever! Two and a half years? Really? I'm sorry that I kinda forgot about this story…which is a shame because I was so excited for it when I began writing it. I'm not giving up on, though. Just have to figure out all that I'd had planned for the plot. That's all.

Also, the title of this story has been changed. I may have said before that I wasn't sure about the earlier title. Well, I finally figured out what I wanted to call it…thanks to the song by Breaking Benjamin which I was listening to when I realized that it was a good description for this story.

Hope everyone enjoys the chapter!

Chapter 3: Undead Armies Invade Berk

"What is that?" Hanson was unsure if he actually expected an answer.

"Nobody knows. Some are calling them 'the undead'."

Hanson could not believe what he was hearing. "Undead? Like zombies?"

"Not now, Hanson!" his father scolded. "We need to get to the SUV!"

As if on cue, a scream echoed through the night's cool air. Stanton looked over to where he had parked his vehicle and was met with a horrifying sight. The swarm of creatures was attacking the SUV where Valerie Haddock, Hanson's mother, was located.

Stanton knew that his son was not one to fight. He also knew that if Hanson stayed here, the boy would have no other option. "Hanson, go back through the building and out the back door. Go back to the house and stay with Toothless. You'll be safe there. We'll be there soon."

No one had to tell Hanson twice. He was scared out of his wits. In record time, he made it through the building and out the emergency door. The blaring of the alarm did not startle Hanson; this definitely qualified as an emergency in his book.

The bus stop was nearby. He just had to make it to the location…or so he thought. He had never been so anxious about waiting for a public bus, but today was no average day. What were those creepy creatures? Were there any nearby? Where did they come from? Were his parents okay? So many questions nagged at his mind and he had answers to none of them. It was all very unsettling.

In the distance, a bus quickly approached, heading for Berk. Hanson could not read the sign on the bus until it was passing the stop. "Not in Service. Great," he muttered to himself.

It was not long before another bus quickly approached. Hanson had just pulled out his bus card when it had already passed him. "Come on!" the boy moaned in desperation.

A short ways away sat a taxi that was preparing to leave. Seeing this, Hanson bolted to the vehicle. "Hey, wait!"

The driver rolled down the window. "You need something, kid?"

"I need to get home! Please, I'll give you all my pocket change!" Hanson exclaimed, showing forth a fistful of change.

Hanson could see the driver contemplating and weighing the options. Finally, he came to a decision. "Put away that change and get in." Relieved, Hanson pocketed the coins and got into the backseat of the taxi.

"Where do you need to go, kid?" the driver asked, making eye contact through the rearview mirror.

"Back to my home in Berk," the boy replied, clearly stating his address.

The taxi driver wasted no time, heading off in the direction of the destination.

It was a silent car ride and Hanson allowed his mind to wander. What were his options? Of those possible options, which were his best? He had often been praised for being smart, but he did not work well under pressure. Hanson could not even count how many times he had given wrong answers for questions he knew the answer to just due to this pressure. This was also the reasoning behind his lack of a girlfriend. Being attractive was not the issue; the issue was just talking to pretty girls, especially the Hofferson twins, easily the most attractive pair of twins in the whole middle school. They were probably even the most attractive pair of twins in the whole school district. In his head, he could just picture them, Ashley and Astrid.

"Kid!" His thoughts and visions were abruptly halted by the driver's voice. It was apparent that this was not the first time he had tried to get Hanson's attention.

"Yeah?"

"This is as close as I can get ya," he informed the boy, gesturing to the scene unfolding out the front windshield.

Up ahead was a mass of those creatures. "Them again? How the heck did they get here so fast?" Hanson wondered out loud.

"God only knows, kid," the driver spoke up in reply. "Now I want you to get out and run. I'll distract them. I really do hope that all works out for you."

At first, Hanson sat rooted to his seat. He had not considered the possibility that he would not make it back safely to his home. Now what was he going to do? It was only at the driver's persistent "Kid!" that he unbuckled his seatbelt and left the car. As soon as the door was shut once again, Hanson watched the taxi barrel head-on toward the hoard of heathens, never to be seen again.

While the creatures were distracted, Hanson quickly got his bearings. He was near to the Berk Schools Complex.

Well, guess I'll just have to go back to the school. Because it was late October, there should be sports conditioning. It isn't that late yet tonight. Don't the basketball teams have conditioning? Lauren Hofferson, a junior and older sister of Astrid and Ashley was the star player. There's my thoughts wandering to the Hofferson twins again. Come on, Hanson! Focus!

Quickly, Hanson made it to the school complex and headed for the high school. If he hadn't just run the whole distance to the complex, he would've headed up the hill to his middle school, but the high school was closer and time was of the essence.

Approaching the high school, he noticed the absence of sound. Usually the school marching band would be practicing, showering nearby Berk with glorious music (and the constant overly-loud tapping of the metronome).

Finding the main door, Hanson ran to it. Out of his peripherals, Hanson saw an approaching army of undead. Oh…great. Please be open, door, please be open… He grabbed the handle and tugged. The door didn't budge. Come on!

Behind him, the army had used this moment to their advantage and continued their advance. There was nowhere else to run. Was this the end of the line for Hanson?

Well, turns out this is five words short of my minimum limit, but…it's a pretty awesome cliffhanger, so I guess it'll do. It's close enough anyway.

I have to look back through my notes and see if I have the entire of chapter four written up yet. If not, I'll get to handwriting it. If it's not finished, I'm pretty sure it's almost completed.

Thank you all for reading and supporting So Cold!

Posted: December 31, 2015