by Chesla, Gary
A loud groaning erupted from below as the dead rushed the bottom of the steps after seeing Mason standing at the top of the stairs looking down at them.
“What did you do that for?” Ed asked. “Do you think it is a good idea to get them all worked up. I don’t think they need any more motivation to come after us.”
“I want them pissed off and focused on trying to get up the stairs so they don’t hear us going out the back window,” Mason replied. “It’s called a diversion.”
“I wish we could divert them to go somewhere else so we could just walk out of here,” Ed said.
“We don’t have time to figure out how to do that,” Mason replied as he tied one end of the rope to the top of the bannister on the stairway, then began to unravel the rope as he walked back over the rear window.
Mason looked out the window then back at Ed.
“I’ll go down first and see if I attract any attention,” Mason said. “But when I give you a signal, get down there fast. If we are lucky, we might get a few seconds head start before they start after us in force.”
Ed nodded his understanding.
Mason tugged on the rope to be sure the banister would hold, then backed out of the window and repelled down to the ground.
Mason looked around to see if anything had seen him, but before he had completely scanned the area, the increased groaning told him what he didn’t want to hear.
“Time to move,” Mason thought to himself. “I was hoping to have more time before they spotted us, but I guess I’ll have to take what I can get.”
He looked up and signaled Ed to come down, Mason knew this wasn’t going to be easy, all he was hoping was to get a small edge, a head start.
When Ed landed on the ground, Mason grabbed his arm and pulled him closer, “We’ve been spotted and there are six of them coming up the street behind us. Unfortunately, we have to go that way to get out.
I’ll go first. Use your gun like a baseball bat, do not shoot unless you have to. The sound of gun shots will tell them all where we are, we are going to try to fight our way out of here as quietly as we can until we have no choice but to open fire.”
Ed nodded the followed Mason as he began to run towards the infected coming their way.
When Mason reached the first of the infected, he swung his rifle, leveling the first one when the butt of the gun crushed its skull.
He quickly directed his attention to the next walker.
Ed was beside Mason now, swinging at the walkers that were coming at them from the sides instead of head on.
Between the two of them, the made fast work of the six walkers.
Mason reached out and took Ed’s rifle.
Ed looked confused as to why Mason took his gun, but he understood when he saw Mason run Ed’s gun under his arm pit, wiping the blood and fleshy chunks from the gun.
Mason handed the gun back to Ed and said quietly, “You shouldn’t get their blood and guts on your skin, I don’t want to go through all this to get you out of here just to have you get infected.”
“Thanks,” was all Ed could say.
“Come on,” Mason said. “I believe we should have a straight shot at the entrance to this area once we get behind the end building up ahead. I believe we came in about two hundred yards behind that blue building. Hurry before something sees us.”
Ed and Mason ran down the final stretch of the back street, keeping close to the buildings in order to try and hide their movements.
When they reached the end of the street, they ducked around the side of the building.
“I can see entrance from here,” Mason said. “Once we get out into the tunnel, I think you will be home free, buddy.”
“How are you holding up?” Ed asked.
“I can feel myself getting weaker,” Mason replied, “but I think I have enough left to get out in the tunnel. Let’s keep moving.”
As they came out into the open, the sound of groaning began to echo through the cavern.
“I swear walkers can communicate,” Ed said as he and Mason began to run towards the entrance. “One of them sees you and it starts that eerie groaning and the next thing you know they are coming at you from every direction.”
Mason glanced back over his shoulder and saw the walkers begin to come out around and between the buildings. He was breathing heavier now than he had been before, “Let them come, as slow as they move and with our head start, there isn’t any way they can catch us before we reach the exit out of here.”
It took them a few minutes, their pace slowing as Ed hung back to stay with Mason who was now struggling to keep pace with Ed.
When they reached the door, Mason stopped, leaned forward and put his hands on his knees to catch his breath.
After a few deep breaths Mason said, “The door in the security barrier is open.”
“I thought we closed it?” Ed replied.
“We did,” Mason said. “It must not have been closed the whole way.”
“Do you think it was pushed open by the air from the ventilation system?” Ed asked.
“Maybe, but we better assume a walker ran into it and pushed it open,” Mason replied. “Let me go through the door first in case something is waiting for us on the other side.”
“I don’t think you are up to it, Mason,” Ed replied.
“Hey, there isn’t much left that they can do to me,” Mason said. “So don’t argue with me and just do what I tell you. I’m trying to help you, consider it my final good deed.”
Mason glanced back over his shoulder again to make sure the approaching walkers were still a long-ways behind them, then turned and walked through the door.
He stood about three feet past the door, took a quick look and waved Ed to come through.
As Ed walked through the door, Mason said, “Close and latch the door, will you Ed.”
“It will be a pleasure,” Ed replied as he took one last look at the mob coming their way and then at the underground city that had been built in the cavern. “You know Mason, this place is something to see.”
As Ed closed the door, a walker appeared from out of the shadow of the door and lunged at Ed.
Mason saw the walker start to move towards Ed and tried to reach out and knock it away before it could bite Ed.
But in Mason’s weakened state, he misjudged and ended up only getting his arm between Ed and the walker’s teeth.
Mason cried out in pain as the walker’s teeth sunk into his arm.
Ed was startled when Mason and the walker fell into him, knocking him against the door.
As Mason and the walker tumbled to the ground, Ed recovered enough to pull his rifle over his shoulder and ram the butt of the gun into the side of the walker’s head.
Ed knelt down to help Mason, but Mason said, “Lock the damn door first!”
Ed quickly turned and finished latching the door, then turned back to help Mason get up off the floor.
When Mason was up on his feet, Ed pulled out his handkerchief and handed it to Mason.
“Here, wrap this around that bite on your arm to keep it from bleeding so much,” Ed said.
Mason took the handkerchief and wrapped it around the wound.
”What’s the matter, you afraid I’m going to get an infection?” Mason said.
“Not funny, Mason,” Ed replied. “You got me out of there, now I’m going to get you out of this damn tunnel.”
“I’m dying Ed,” Mason said. “We both know it. It really doesn’t matter whether I die here or out by the plane.”
“It matters to me buddy,” Ed replied. “I’m not leaving you in here, you deserve better. Besides, I haven’t found that cold beer for you yet.”
Mason sighed, “OK, I’ll go as far as I can, but when I can’t go any further, you have to leave me behind.”
“Put your arm over my shoulder and I’ll help you,” Ed said.
“Not a chance,” Mason replied. “I could turn in mid step and tear your damn head off before you know wh
at is happening. I’ve got to do this on my own or you leave me behind.”
Mason started walking back down the tunnel.
“Remember, when I turn, put a bullet in my head,” Mason said. “The last thing I want is to wander around in this damn cave until I fall apart. With my luck, I could end up staggering around in this refrigerator for years.”
“Let’s keep moving before I decide to shoot you now,” Ed said.
Mason smiled and pushed on the best he could.
Ed and Mason walked slowly back towards the entrance for an hour and a half before they reached the control room near the front of the facility.
“I need another break,” Mason said and staggered over and leaned against the window of the control room. “To tell you the truth, I can’t believe I’m still here. The people I’ve seen getting infected in the past were gone within an hour. It must be the cold in this mountain. Maybe the cold keeps the virus from attacking your system as fast as it always seems to do.”
Ed leaned against the wall next to Mason, as Mason tried to catch his breath.
“I should have figured this out when we saw the control room abandoned,” Mason said and turned and looked in through the window. “This place should have at least had one person on duty.”
“Don’t think about that now, Mason,” Ed said. “Let’s just concentrate on getting back to the plane.”
“Maybe you should just go,” Mason said as he let his eyes drift across the equipment inside the room. “Who knows what will happen to me when I get out in the warmer air. I could change before your eyes. Maybe you should just shoot me now.”
“I said I’m not leaving you in this damn cave,” Ed said.
“What is that?” Mason said as he pushed his face against the window to look at something inside the room.
“What is what?” Ed asked as he looked back through the window.
“It looks like a hand-written note on the desk in front of the radar screen,” Mason said. “Would you go inside and get it. I wonder if it has anything on it that might tell us how the hell this facility got taken down by the infection?”
“I’ll be right back,” Ed said.
Mason watched as Ed went into the control room, walked over to the desk and picked up the sheet of paper with the writing on it that Mason had spotted.
Ed stood, reading the paper for a few minutes, then looked out a Mason.
Mason waved for Ed to bring the paper out so he could see it instead of him watching Ed just standing in the control room with his mouth hanging open.
The turboprop outside of Cheyenne Mountain
Pete held the radio in front of him.
“It’s been four hours since they went inside,” Pete said. “I have to go in and try to find them. They could need my help.”
“Negative, Pete,” the Captain replied. “If something happened that Mason couldn’t handle, I’m not risking you and the plane too. I want you to wait for another hour but keep your radio on and have the plane ready to take off at a minute’s notice. We will keep an eye on the entrance and let you know if you need to get out of there.
If they have been inside this long, I have to assume something has happened. If they had made contact and everything was going well, someone would have come out by now to notify you.
I must assume that something has gone terribly wrong.
I also don’t believe you going in on your own would do anything to rectify the situation.
We’ll wait another hour to give the men every opportunity to return to the plane, but if they don’t return, I do not want you staying there overnight.
We’ll watch the facility the best we can with the satellite, but without you and the plane back here at Granite Mountain, we wouldn’t be able to mount any type of rescue mission if we decided that there was anything we could do to assist them later.”
“But Captain,” Pete replied. “I feel like I should at least go up to the entrance to see if I can hear or see anything that might give us hint as to why they aren’t back.”
“Negative Pete,” the Captain replied. “I don’t like this any better than you do, but we have to look at the big picture.”
“Yes Sir,” Pete replied reluctantly.
“Pete,” Chervy interrupted, “I just spotted someone coming out of the entrance.”
“Can you tell who it is?” Pete asked.
“No, the front of the mountain is now in the shadows,” Chervy replied. “I can see movement, but I can’t make out who it is or how many, all I can say is it looks like there are more than one person coming out of the facility.”
“Could they be hostile?” the Captain asked.
“I can’t say,” Chervy replied.
“Pete, I suggest you start the engines and be prepared to take off,” the Captain continued. “If they are hostile, you will need to get out of there as fast as you can.”
The walkie talkie in Pete’s pocket began to crackle, then Mason’s voice came on.
“It’s Mason, Captain, I’ll call you back in a few minutes,” Pete said as he dropped the radio on his seat and ran to the side door of the plane and stared up over the hillside.
“Pete, do you read me?” Mason’s voice asked again.
“I hear you, Mason,” Pete replied. “Are you guys OK?”
“I could use your help,” Mason said. “Can you come give me a hand?”
“I’m on my way,” Pete responded, then jumped out of the plane and started to run up the hillside.
When Pete reached the crest of the hill, Mason had just made it to the other side of the crest.
Pete spotted Mason carrying Ed.
Pete then scanned the area, then looked back towards the entrance.
“Where is John,” Pete asked as he ran over to help Mason with Ed.
Mason looked pale and like he was struggling with Ed’s weight.
“John didn’t make it,” Mason replied.
“What happened?” Pete asked.
“It’s a long story,” Mason replied. “Maybe Ed can tell you about it when we get him back to the plane.”
It was then Pete saw Mason’s bloody sleeves.
“Take Ed before I drop him,” Mason said. “I don’t think I can carry him any further.”
“My God Mason,” Pete asked as he moved over to Mason and took Ed in his arms. “What happened to you?”
“I don’t think I have the time for the whole story, so here is the short version,” Mason replied. “We found the President and everyone stationed at Cheyenne Mountain. They had all been infected and are now walkers. When we got to the main area of the facility, they jumped us. John was killed. Ed and I fought our way into one of the buildings, but during the struggle, I was bitten. I managed to get Ed back out somehow, but I don’t think I have much longer. I feel like hell.”
Pete looked shocked.
“You better get Ed down to the plane,” Mason said.
“What happened to Ed, is he infected too?” Pete asked.
“I don’t think so, he wasn’t bitten or anything,” Mason replied as a sly grin spread over his face. “He went into the control room to get something for me. On his way back out of the control room, he fell and hit his head, knocking himself out cold. The clumsy bastard.”
“Let’s get back to the plane,” Pete said.
“I don’t know,” Mason hesitated. “I should probably stay up here.”
“Come on Mason,” Pete said. “I know how this works. If you are going to die, you should at least be among friends until the end comes. When the time comes, I know what to do.”
“Thanks,” Mason replied. “I don’t think Ed here would have had the guts to do it.”
“Let’s not talk about it,” Pete said. “Let’s just get down to the plane and relax for a while.
“That sounds good, Pete,” Mason said. “The time for talking is over. I’m ready for some peace and quiet now.”
They walked down the embankment, finally reaching the plane.
; Mason helped Pete lift Ed up into the plane.
Pete pulled Ed in to the cargo hold, then he returned a moment later and handed Mason a coat.
“Here, put this on,” Pete said. “You look like you are shivering.”
“Yeah, I’ve got the chills,” Mason replied. “One second I feel like I am burning up, the next minute I feel chilled to the bone. Thanks.”
“As soon as I make Ed comfortable,” Pete said, “I’ll be back and we can sit together for a while.”
“I’d like that,” Mason replied.
Pete disappeared back into the plane, grabbed a blanket and the medical kit, and went over to Ed.
After covering him with the blanket, he opened the medical kit and searched for the smelling salts to see if he could revive Ed.
Mason wrapped the coat around his shoulders and propped himself up against the right tire of the plane.
He didn’t know how much time he had left, but he wished it would just happen and get it over with.
Over the years, he had envisioned dozens of ways that his life would end, in a blaze of glory, or a single shot to the head, but never did he ever think he would go out like this.
But he at least would go out with the knowledge that he was doing what he wanted to be doing.
He also took comfort in the knowledge that the last thing he did was to save his friend.
He also knew that when he died, he would at least die among friends.
He guessed that if he had to die, it could all be a lot worse.
Mason laid his head back and tried to relax, hoping that after he closed his eyes, all would go black and be over quickly.
He had closed his eyes for no longer than a few seconds when he heard a scuffle taking place inside the plane.