Authors: Daniel J. Williams
His head spun as he let go of the driver’s side door and turned towards the side panel. He needed to make sure the nukes were still there. He pressed the door handle and pulled.
An explosion instantly ripped through the camp, followed by another as the meth lab ignited and exploded. A giant fireball swept through the camp, searing all within its range. Razor felt the ground shake under his tires and turned back to see a massive mushroom cloud lifting towards the sky. He couldn’t understand how that much explosive power could be attached to one body.
“That wasn’t five minutes,” he said, clearly pissed off. Their numbers were just cut in half. He knew the ambulance must have escaped or they'd all be dead. He was going to kill Mace slow and make him watch as he fucked or killed anyone close to him.
Lying on the ground, covered in dirt and debris, Dawson’s body remained intact. Small flames leapt off her body, fallout from the ambulance and RV explosions. Underneath her jacket, the heat started to melt the “explosives” wired to her body. Nothing happened. She and Mace were wired with silly putty.
The first infected burst through the shattered roll-up door of the trailer, shrieking loudly in a wild frenzy. As soon as it hit the light, it paused as the pain seared through its eyeballs. More slammed into it from behind as Maya screamed and the kids stumbled backwards in panic. The lift gate wedged into the middle of the wall, the adobe above it crumbled and broken.
Jim screamed, “Get back!” as the driver of the semi jumped out of the truck and sprayed the wall with automatic gunfire. A bullet burst through Jim’s throat and he fell to the ground, blood spraying, as Jade lined up the sniper rifle from the roof and took the biker out with a head shot.
Yvette screamed and ran to Jim's side. She pressed her hand against the neck wound, crying and shaking as blood spurted through her fingers. Looking up at her in panic, Jim grabbed her wrist, trying to help her keep pressure on his neck. His eyes started rolling back in his head. "Hold on!" she screamed as she tried to stop the bleeding.
Crying out in horror, Chelsea and her friends were momentarily frozen by the scene until infected bolted towards them from the trailer. Jumping off the lift gate, they shrieked in outrage at the sight of human flesh. Yvette screamed as she looked up and then they were upon her, their eyes blood-red and wild with rage. Jade stood on the roof of the amphitheater, firing repeatedly, hitting the first infected with a shot to the back of the skull as it grabbed Yvette by the hair and yanked.
Yvette’s horrible screams filled the air as the others jumped upon her, ripping her open. They converged on her dead body, tearing into it with teeth and hands. Jade couldn’t keep them off and screamed, “Run!” to Chelsea and the other girls as more infected stormed out of the trailer.
As soon as the tailgate crashed into the wall, Travis stood frozen, gaping at the rear of the truck as the adobe wall crumbled inwards, exposing it fully. Although blurry to him, the trailer appeared almost perfectly lined up to the catapult.
The roof of the semi stood just below its trajectory. With a second fireball already loaded in the catapult, Travis had been about to light it when the collision took place.
Travis sprang into action as soon as the first infected barreled out the back of the truck. Throwing the torch to the ground, he cranked hard on the lever, wrenching on it with all his strength. With each full rotation it lowered a notch. Travis remained so focused on his task, he never witnessed Jim getting shot or Yvette attacked.
Maya screamed, "Run!” in a panic as she and the other girls sprinted past him. Travis looked up to the see a huge infected fast-approaching, rabid and shrieking. The closer it came the clearer it came into view, and the greater the fear rose up in his heart. He lurched for the torch from the ground, throwing it at the fireball. It burst into flames a second before he pulled down hard on the lever, crying out as the huge infected raced directly towards him in front of the catapult.
The fireball sprang from the catapult at a high rate of speed, colliding into the head of the infected. Its head instantly disappeared as the fireball swept it clean off and headed straight towards the rear of the truck. It hit just inside the roof of the trailer and bounced inside as dozens more infected raged to escape their darkened prison. Huge flames erupted within.
Watching what he’d accomplished, Travis couldn’t help but giggle for a second before he turned and sprinted off. “I did it!” he squealed with pride. “I did it!”
As the girls ran towards the training center (their spot to converge in case of breach), Maya suddenly stopped. Chelsea and Kelly didn’t notice and kept running as Maya turned back for Travis. Unable to bear the thought of losing another friend, her heart all at once ached for his goofy attention. She would rather die than lose another person she cared about. At that moment she realized how much he meant to her. He was the only boy that was always there for her, no matter her mood or how badly she treated him.
Her heart pounded in her chest as she watched Travis launch the burning fireball into the trailer with the infected racing directly at him. She screamed, “Run, Travis!” as she loaded an arrow in her bow, ready to protect him from the swarming infected. To her amazement, as the closest infected shrieked in outrage and reached for him, Travis pulled the six-shooter he kept in his belt holster, turned while running, and nailed it in the head with one shot. He turned back, and the fearful look on his face turned to a goofy smile at the sight of her.
“C’mon!” he yelled, as he grabbed her hand, “I’ll keep you safe.” For the first time in a long time, he felt brave and valuable. He felt six feet tall.
On the roof, Jade picked off two infected that trailed closest before jumping on the Walkie-Talkie. “We’ve got roughly a dozen infected inside the camp. Jim and Yvette are down. Travis took out most of the threat, but they’re coming!”
Woody’s voice came on the radio immediately. “Stay on the roof and keep watch outside. You too, JB. We need to know if any new threats approach. We can handle this.”
Speeding towards the Alamo, Mace reached the debris fields and dodged through piles, the Harley smooth and in control. He suddenly noticed a huge plume of black smoke billowing up from somewhere behind the camp.
Glancing to his far left, he spotted the ambulance racing towards the camp, and his first thoughts centered around the ambulance lights. If the infected made it inside, the lights could prove useful at disrupting any attack.
Leaning into the bike, the Harley zoomed left towards the ambulance. Mace flew around debris piles as he rolled the throttle harder. He figured they had about a minute before the remaining bikers caught up. If the camp was overrun and unprepared for a second assault, it would fall.
Roger caught Mace’s approaching dirt trail and veered the ambulance to the right. Rolling down his window, Crockett stuck his head out as Mace pulled up next to them. They were both traveling at over eighty miles an hour. Mace’s bike wavered as he tried to pull close. Trying to keep his eyes on the road, he glanced quickly at Crockett. “Lights!” he yelled. “Follow me!”
Crockett understood immediately, more from reading Mace’s lips than hearing him clearly. Turning to Roger, he said excitedly, “Turn on the ambulance lights! It messes them up!”
Mace turned the Harley back towards the direction of the main gate. “Follow Mace!” Crockett yelled. The ambulance bounced over debris and briefly rocked as Roger adjusted the course of the vehicle.
Inside the infirmary, globs of sweat clung to Lisa’s grayish skin. At the sound of the tailgate crashing against the back wall, the urge to fight and protect sprang forth. Jason and Shawn were huddled in the back with Melissa. They would be the last room to fall.
“Get me my gun,” Lisa yelled weakly. “I’ll die before anybody touches these kids.”
From behind her, Melissa started to protest. “You can’t even grip one without…”
“Get me my goddamn gun and don’t say another word!” Lisa yelled hoarsely. The outburst almost knocked her out. Her head spun as black dots flashed in front of her eyes. Much more quietly, she said, “Just lay it on the bed and keep those kids back. Nobody is getting past me.”
“Everyone to the training center!” Woody yelled into the Walkie-Talkie. “Form a line in the middle and don’t break ranks!”
Twenty-four kids instantly spread the word or were already scrambling towards the courtyard. The remaining Rangers quickly dispersed weapons piled at the center as a line formed. The warrior princesses all grabbed bows, while the rangers armed themselves with spears and javelins.
Travis and Maya were the last to enter. Travis fired several shots towards the infected as they ran through. Bullets punched through dead flesh, missing the brain center that would stop all activity. The infected shrieked as they gained ground.
Entering the courtyard, Travis grabbed Maya and pressed her against the inner wall as the infected all sprinted past. Spotting the line of kids in the middle, the infected roared as they sped faster towards the small congregation.
“Now,” yelled Bailey, the head Ranger with Crockett and Bowie gone. Arrows and javelins instantly took flight as the racing dead barreled towards them. Arrows pierced rotting meat as javelins slammed through their bodies. The infected roared as they charged, and the kids screamed in defiance as they came together.
Dropping her bow as they stormed, Chelsea's heart pounded as she swiftly grabbed the spear by her feet and jabbed it upwards into an infected's head. It crashed into her as the spear punched through the back of its skull. Herman scrambled around her body and down her back leg as the infected slammed into her and Buster lunged at the infected from beside her. Clamping onto the infected's leg, Buster growled loudly as the zombie and Chelsea tumbled backwards. They all went down hard as Herman leapt from Chelsea's leg to avoid getting crushed. Landing on Buster's back, he momentarily looked like a lizard rodeo star as he clamped onto the dog's fur and Buster tugged and ripped at the lifeless infected's leg.
Bailey was suddenly in front of her, protecting her with his own spear as more charged. "Get back!" he yelled as she quickly crawled backwards, trying to scramble to her feet. His javelin pierced through a zombie's upper chest and it kept coming, pushing him backwards. Chelsea suddenly rushed it as she screamed in outrage, an arrow in her hand. She stabbed it deep in the side of the head with the shaft, looking at it in hatred as it went limp.
"Look out!" yelled Kelly as another one grabbed Chelsea's shoulder. Buster charged again, a deep growl sounding as he dug his teeth into the new zombie's leg. Herman remained clutched to the back of the dog, trying not to get dislodged as Buster's body writhed with determination, trying to rip the infected's leg from its body.
Maya's heart jumped as she witnessed the zombie grab Chelsea, and she darted swiftly away from the wall, lifting her bow at the infected's head. An arrow suddenly protruded through the zombie's forehead as Maya released it with a determined scream. It startled to topple over as a javelin split its head apart from the front. Kelly stood eight feet away, disgusted by the display but thankful she'd payed attention to Crockett's lessons.
Despite her initial shock at Crockett's physical touch, Kelly found she couldn't help herself from seeking him out for more javelin-chucking instructions and playful banter. She found that she couldn't get enough of him and found herself constantly thinking about him. In the process, she became deadly accurate with a spear.
The remaining infected were swiftly overcome as the children fought with the ferocity and skill of a trained army. Within a few minutes the threat from the infected was squashed.
Pressed against the inner wall facing Maya, Travis felt an adrenaline rush as the infected quickly fell. Doing the unthinkable, he kissed Maya directly on the lips. Her look of complete surprise turned to warmth for a split-second before she turned her attention back to the situation. Travis beamed.
Maya glanced back at him with a light blush covering her cheeks. “We need to get ready for a second assault,” she said, her face trying to remain composed. She couldn’t help herself and kissed him lightly on the lips. “Let’s go.”
“It’s Mace and the ambulance!”
Bailey caught sight of their vehicles and lifted the radio to report it. “Open the gate! They’re traveling fast!”
“On it,” Woody answered a second later as he rushed to heave the gate open. Pulling it wide, he spotted the dirt trail from the bikers in the far distance a moment before Bailey announced their presence. “We need to get ready,” Bailey said. “The bikers are coming!”
The Harley sped through the open gate, followed closely by the ambulance, lights flashing. As soon as he stopped, Mace was off the bike, gun at the ready. Woody rushed up to greet him. “Infected are all down. We lost two.”
Mace’s head briefly spun at the declaration before returning to the other immediate threat. “Close the gate!” he yelled. “Gang will be here any second.”
Staring at Woody for a brief second, Mace couldn’t help but ask. “That semi was supposed to be loaded with infected. How’d you take them all out so quickly?”
Woody couldn’t help but smile despite the oncoming threat. “Travis stayed behind and launched a fireball directly into the trailer. He’s a hero.”
At the mention of Travis’ name, Mace smiled himself. “Good for him,” he said appreciatively. Bailey's voice came back on the radio. They could both hear the urgency in his tone. “It looks like they’re going to hit us from the rear.” A second later he said, “Scratch that. Damn, they’re splitting up. They’re going to come at us from two fronts.”
“What do we do?” Woody asked, looking up at Mace.