Following the truck, they took a right turn onto a road that was still wide and mostly open. Kenji noticed it started to look a little familiar when he observed that they were nearing the park where they had seen soldiers desperately trying to hold off wave after wave of infected. Jung-ho's truck began to slow, and Kenji assumed they were checking to see if those soldiers were still alive. To Kenji's surprise, they were.
Three men stood on top of a military truck’s roof, waving their hands trying to get their attention. Kenji braced himself against the seat in front of him as they quickly stopped. Jung-ho jumped out of his truck, running over to theirs.
“Me and my men are going to try to save those men!” he exclaimed, pointing across the park.
Muller nodded, “I completely understand. We can’t stay and help you, though. We have to get this woman out of the city before the bombs start dropping on the city.”
Jung-ho closed his eyes and sighed, disappointed, “I understand too. We each have our own duties we have to fulfill.”
“Maybe,” Muller started, “Maybe we can try to lead some away to make it easier for you to grab those men, but we can’t stay.”
“If you feel you have time to help us. Do you remember the way back from here?” Jung-ho asked, leaning in closer to hear Muller.
“Turn your truck off and wait, we will shoot at them and try to draw them away. You guys won’t be far behind us, right? We should be able to make it from here,” Muller said, reassuring Jung-ho.
Jung-ho ran back to his truck, which promptly shut its engine off and sat quietly. Muller directed Shields to move closer to the horde surrounding the men trapped on top of the truck. Kenji could see hundreds of bodies scattered across the park itself. These men had put up a good fight until they had been trapped. Kenji bounced in his seat ad they drove over the curb and into the grass, pulling closer to the horde.
They stopped about three hundred feet from the horde. King climbed up onto the platform, opening the gunner's hatch. The smell of smoke, death, and gunpowder filled the interior immediately. He didn’t waste any time lining up his first shot before Kenji heard the bang echo inside the vehicle. Kenji saw a Yokai drop, before hearing another loud bang, and another body fall, lifeless. Slowly the horde took notice, deciding the men on top of the truck were not worth their time. King took several more rapid shots, trying to make more noise before he let loose a full hail of gunfire.
Kenji happened to look back at the man who was cowering in the back, with his eyes closed. As he turned to look back out the window, he caught a glimpse of Evans’ face; it was one of hatred, and she was looking at where King stood. She quickly changed to a face of worry as she noticed Kenji was looking at her. Kenji didn’t know what to make of it, and now wasn’t the time to confront her about her odd behavior.
Casings fell down the open hatch, clattering into the base of the Humvee below. Once King’s mag was empty, he slid back down through the hatch, pulling it close. He sat back down before Shields put the Humvee into drive and started honking the horn. They turned slowly, turning around back toward the street. Kenji watched as most of the horde began to make their way toward them, chasing after the noise.
Once Kenji felt the tires hit the pavement shields gunned it, taking off down the road. It was mostly clear with the occasional abandoned vehicle in their way. Kenji tried to watch using the side mirrors to make sure Jung-ho and his men, would succeed in their rescue. It wasn’t long before they turned left, heading south before they passed the same market store that Kenji had seen when they had gotten off the highway earlier.
Shields ignored the on-ramp to the raised highway, instead driving up the off-ramp. As they reached the top of the ramp, they were free to go a little faster than before. There were hardly any vehicles on this side of the highway, but a few as people became desperate to escape, and they too drove on his side of the road. Kenji couldn’t help but feel odd yet again; from the raised highway, the city almost looked normal. The lights giving their artificial glow, as if people were still in their homes, or out having a night on the town.
Shields swerved from one lane to another, attempting to avoid the occasional car in the road. They had passed several Yokai who were aimlessly wandering before the sound of those heavy-duty truck drew their attention. As they moved from the left lanes to the right, Kenji noticed that several Yokai were blocking their path. Shields noticed too and gunned it once more. Kenji braced himself against the seat once more, awaiting the impact he knew was coming. A heavy thud echoed as they rammed into the first infected, sending it flying. Two more thuds rang out as they hit more of the creatures, and one bounced off the roof of the Humvee.
Quietly from the back, Kenji heard Evans muttering to herself but didn’t try to listen. She got louder as they hit another infected person.
“Stop hurting them… They are people…”
Kenji turned around, confused by what she was saying. Again, she wore a face of hatred and fire behind her eyes. Kenji didn’t recognize the woman before him, feeling as though it was someone else entirely, and Evans was gone. This new person turned to look at Kenji, smiling slowly into a wide toothy grin. Kenji felt dread and held his breath, watching as the toothy grin opened wide, and Evans grabbed the man next to her, tearing into the man’s neck.
As she yanked back, blood sprayed from the man's neck, covering Kenji and Jackson. The man cried out in pain, trying to grab his neck, only able to stare wide-eyed and gurgle as his blood pumped out into the interior of the vehicle. Kenji was dazed, frozen in place. He watched as Evans chewed the chuck of the man's neck she had torn off.
“WHAT THE FUCK?!” Jackson and King both exclaimed.
Muller turned around, trying to figure out what was happening.
Finished chewing the piece of flesh, she swallowed it, laughing. Her deep, cackling laugh, filled the interior, “HAHAHAHA!”
Muller tried to bring his rifle up to aim it at Evans but lost his balance for a moment as Shields turned the Humvee.
‘What the hell is going on?” Shields asked, trying to keep his eyes on the road.
“Evans, don’t move!” Muller shouted, training his rifle on her.
The man reached out toward King, trying to move away from Evans, who sat still, smiling with fresh blood dripping from her mouth. The man slumped over as he climbed onto the console toward King in the middle of the Humvee. Jackson was trying to wipe the blood off the side of his face, cursing. Kenji had luckily tried to turn as he saw what was happening and avoided most of it to his face. The interior smelled of nothing but copper and death.
Kenji began to wipe the blood off the best he could, keeping himself turned away from Evans. He had set down his katana to try and remove the blood. A hand reached out, with a familiar strength that only a Yokai could have. Looking over, finding the man who had just moments before crumpled over dead, had already turned. The now infected man quickly grabbed Kenji, trying to pull him closer, moaning with sickening wetness as the last bit of blood in his throat poured out of his mouth.
Kenji knew he couldn’t reach his Katana, even so, he wouldn’t have the room to swing it, so he tried to reach for his sidearm. The infected man pushed himself up, blocking Muller's line of sight to Evans. She took advantage of the moment, shoving the infected man forward into King. He wasn’t expecting this as the infected man was launched toward Shields, and King went flying into Muller. Muller pulled the infected man back quickly, aiming around King, trying to get a clear shot of the man. Shields was trying to hold the infected man off with one hand while driving with the other. In the confusion, no one had time to notice the car they were heading straight for. In the blink of an eye, their vehicle impacted with the stationary car, sending the Humvee flying through the air.
Chapter 20
Kenji remembered as the Humvee rolled, and he slammed into the roof, then back down into the floorboard. Pain shot through his body as he was tossed around inside the vehicle until it finally came to a stop. He tried
to move but felt sore all over. First and foremost, he checked for the Yokai, seeing that the infected man and Shields were both gone.
The windshield had been busted open, and Kenji assumed they had both been tossed from the vehicle. Muller and King were in the front seat already trying to open their doors. Jackson was moving too, groaning in pain. Kenji looked back to find Evans lying face down, and he carefully reached back to check to see if she was alive. He felt for a pulse and found one; she was unconscious. Kenji looked around and couldn’t find his katana, hoping he hadn’t lost it. His head pounded as adrenaline coursed through his body.
Knowing he had to move, Kenji tried to open his door. It didn’t budge at first, but once he gave it extra force, it flew open. Falling out, he barely caught himself against the door. Grabbing his sidearm from its holster, he scanned the area for any immediate danger. Kenji didn’t spot any Yokai close by, but a few off in the distance, heading their direction. He began his search for Shields and his weapon.
About fifty feet back, he could make out two people on the pavement and assumed they would be the infected man and Shields. Moving closer, he began to inspect them, finding it was, indeed, the soldier and the infected man. Kenji moved closer to see if they were okay. Shields’ right arm was twisted back the wrong direction, but he was alive and coughing. The infected man didn’t move, but Kenji knew better than to assume a Yokai was dead.
Kicking the man, finding that he too had survived, jerking awkwardly from the blow. The man tried to get up, using his arms, but couldn’t since they had both broken from the accident. Kenji didn’t care about sound restrictions aiming his sidearm at the man’s head. The retort was loud, but the deed was done.
Kenji kneeled next to Shields, “Are you ok? Can you stand up?”
“My…ribs…broken…” he wheezed.
“Alright, don’t move. I'll get help,” Kenji yelled, running back to the Humvee.
Kenji could see that Muller and King were already out of the vehicle, checking themselves over. Jackson was standing beside his door, rifle half raised at the still unconscious Evans.
“Shields has a broken arm and several broken ribs. We need to carry him,” stated Kenji.
Muller rubbed his neck, “Someone will have to carry Evans as well. Any volunteers?”
King shook his head, “’Ell no. After the shit, she just pulled?”
Jackson turned away, “I’ll help Shields, I’m not going anywhere near that crazy bitch.”
“Shit,” Muller said, “Fine, I'll carry her…”
Glancing around nearby, Kenji scanned the road for his sword, spotting it not too far away from where the Humvee stopped. He ran over to it, snatching it up, before throwing the sheath over his shoulder. Kenji looked at his watch, worried about the time, knowing before the accident they didn’t have much time, to begin with. His watch was shattered, and he could feel his insides sink as he wiped sweat from his brow. If he had to figure, it would be any minute before the bombs started to drop.
We need to hurry! I don’t want to make it so far, just to not make it out of here.
Kenji watched Evans as Muller pulled her out of the interior, holding her in his arms. Kenji felt the same sentiment King had expressed, but knew she still was valuable to them. Jackson had already helped Shields up, allowing him to put his weight on him.
“We need to hurry! We don’t have much time left!” Kenji yelled at them.
King was already ahead of the group, scouting ahead, “There are many infected moving this way from ahead!”
Kenji was already moving forward toward King, drawing his sword.
“You won’t need that; we are going to ‘ave to shoot our way through if we want to make it quickly,” King said, nodding toward Kenji’s katana.
Muller and Jackson joined them, carrying Evans and Shields.
“Lead the way, we need you both to cover us,” Ordered Muller.
Kenji and King took the lead as ordered; sheathing his sword, Kenji shouldered his rifle. He wasn’t as comfortable using it but knew it would be quicker if he made his shots count rather than using his sword. King had been right about there being quite a few Yokai moving toward them as Kenji took aim at one that had gotten close.
His rifle kicked back with surprising force as the retort of his rifle was processed by his brain. The shot, however, wasn’t accurate and went wide from his target. King was nearby and didn’t seem to share the same problem. It was clear King’s training far outweighed his, as he dropped a Yokai more than fifty feet away. Kenji felt underprepared, but he knew the others were counting on him.
He took aim again, remembering to breathe out like he had been trained to do. Kenji’s shot hit its mark this time, as he saw the Yokai drop to the ground dead. Silently cheering in his mind, before moving forward, he took aim at the next one. After a couple of minutes, they had cleared the immediate Yokai blocking their path. The gunshots would only draw more of the infected, however, so they kept moving.
Kenji guessed they still had at least five miles before they would reach the other side of the river and the airport. Safety was still so far away, but he felt hope as they moved along quickly, taking out any Yokai that blocked their path. There were only a few here and there as they kept their steady pace. Kenji could see ahead as they got closer to the edge of the city, and there were more and more vehicles creating a great pile-up.
Entering the parking lot of abandoned vehicles, Kenji noticed there were more Yokai ahead of them. A great many of them wandered in-between the cars and trucks left by their owners. Kenji had no doubt that some of the Yokai that roamed were indeed one and the same. It didn’t matter though; Kenji knew they had to push forward. There was a small gap in the middle of the highway to divide each side of traffic, and it gave them a perfect path to follow toward the river.
King moved ahead of Kenji, as he stopped to shoot an infected that would be too close by the time Muller and Jackson caught up. Kenji brought his rifle down to start moving forward when he heard King cry out in surprise. He turned to see that King was two cars ahead of him and had been surprised by a Yokai that was inside of the car he had tried to pass. King was stuck, being pulled back into the side of the car door by a pair of dead hands. Kenji sprinted to assist him, and quickly, grabbed ahold of King, pulling with all his might.
The Yokai didn’t give up and held firm, but with both men pulling away, their strength proved greater, and King came free. They tumbled back, and Kenji fell onto the ground, and King beside him.
“Thanks,” King said as he got back on his feet, “Guess we need to be careful of any open windows!”
Kenji nodded, picking himself up. Together they moved toward the infected trying to get to them. It was a young woman who was now held back by something as simple as a seatbelt. She reached for them and fought to move forward, but she couldn’t move more than a few inches. King aimed his rifle at the woman’s head before ending her. Kenji watched as her head snapped back and her lifeless arms dangled over the edge of the car door.
“Let’s stick together closer, just to be safe,” Kenji said.
King didn’t respond, but he knew he had heard him. Kenji and King lead the way again, taking their shots while moving forward, trying to keep their pace, but slower now. Kenji could feel as every second ticked closer to the countdown for the bombs to fall. Kenji continually checked behind him, making sure that Jackson and Muller were keeping up with them and were okay. Kenji and King stopped as they ran into a problem, though; the road split into two bridges that crossed the river. The bridge on the left looked less congested, and they took the chance that it wasn’t blocked all the way through.
Kenji stopped at the fork in the road, when he thought he heard a familiar sound from behind them. He turned around, finding a pair of headlights growing brighter. As they got closer, the heavy diesel engine roared as it moved along the road.
“It’s Jung-ho and his men!” exclaimed Jackson to the group.
Stopping, they a
ll breathed heavily from running for several miles while carrying two people and fighting. The truck finally reached them, stopping nearby, once they realized that they wouldn’t be able to continue further with their truck since the split in the road didn’t leave any wide enough gaps. Quickly the soldiers piled out from the back of the truck, and Jung-ho leaped out from the cab of the truck.
“We feared you had been taken by the infected when we saw your Humvee crashed back there,” said Jung-ho.
He turned toward his men, giving them an order. Two soldiers came over to help Jackson and Muller, offering them extra support.
“My men will lead the way through all this,” Jung-ho said, pointing ahead to the left through all the abandoned vehicles.
Moving as a group, Kenji stuck with the front. He knew time was short, but he wanted to kill as many Yokai as he could before they made it to safety. The soldiers took care of most of them but allowed him to take down the ones closest to him. This went on for a few minutes, and they had made great progress across the bridge when they all heard the noise. It was a whistling noise that grew louder and louder. Then the noise of the far-off jet engines flying through the atmosphere reached them. Kenji didn’t put it together at first, but then it clicked.
The bombs had been dropped.
The others seemed to reach the same conclusion when Kenji did. Everyone began to sprint or run as fast as they could, trying to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the bombs. Kenji ran as fast as he could, the whistling noise filling his ears, drowning out the thumping of his frenzied heartbeat. He knew they wouldn’t have long before those bombs engulfed the city in fire.
The bright flash and heat from the bomb exploding could be felt even at the distance they were at. Kenji instinctively ducked behind the nearest car. There was a shift in the air as the flames from the explosion sucked fresh air in, fueling its destruction. Kenji slowly stood up, looking at the city behind him. In the distance, the sky glowed orange, and even though it was nighttime, he could see the black smoke floating above the skyline.
What Remains (Book 3): Epidemic Page 13