Dusk of Defiance (The Era of Ensemble Book 1)

by Woosey, JP

  “I killed her.” He laughed and cried at the same time. “I shot her right between the eyes.” He suddenly stopped laughing, but his weeping continued. “She should have chosen me. I was the better match for her.”

  “You killed her, and then released the virus?” Luke questioned, but he knew the answer. He was going down, and he was bringing everyone else with him.

  “I wasn't going to jail. I'd rather die...” He paused and glanced down to the weapons in his hands. “I could end it right now. We're going to die anyway might as well be on my terms.” He raised Luke's revolver and aimed it at him. “I've wanted to do this for so long.”

  Luke closed his eyes and tried to think of happier times. Spending time with his sister on his grandparents’ farm. His first date with Elizabeth. The moment he knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. He smiled. Content with the experiences he had... And then he felt sorry for the man in front of him. “Elizabeth chose me.” He opened his eyes and a bang echoed throughout the hallway.

  Chapter 29

  Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Smoke rose from the barrel of the revolver in Maxwell's hand, but Luke didn't feel anything. He checked his body, to make sure he wasn't just in shock. I heard two bangs. He looked up. Maxwell had clutched his stomach and was falling to the ground. Luke glanced around and noticed the silhouette of a man walking towards him.

  “Are you okay?” Ramiro asked as he came into focus. “He didn't hit you, did he?”

  “I don't think so.” Luke checked himself quickly again. “No. I'm fine.” He glanced at Maxwell who had curled up into a ball, clutching himself.

  “I couldn't do it.” Ramiro shook his head. “I just couldn't kill my son.”

  Luke placed his hand on Ramiro's shoulder. “We'll think of something.”

  A second thunderous crack whipped through the hallway as Maxwell fired another round. Blood splattered over Luke's face. He closed his eyes and when he reopened them he found himself with his hand still on Ramiro's shoulder. Ramiro thudded to the ground with a bullet through his head. Luke heard more shots from Maxwell, with his hand battle weary and unsteady. He missed. Rage built inside Luke and he sprinted towards his adversary. Maxwell tried to aim the revolver, however he was too weak. It took a tremendous amount of strength to raise and control the recoil of the weapon. He fired again only narrowly missing his target. He raised the firearm once more and tried his best to steady it, but Luke was already upon him. He kicked the revolver out of Maxwell's hands, and then stomped down on his head with vigorous force. Luke felt Maxwell's skull soften, but he didn't let up. There was no fight left in Maxwell. Luke didn't stop even though Maxwell was already dead. He continued to strike his heavy boots down onto Maxwell's head. The skull caved in and cerebrum splattered across the metal floor.

  Luke eventually stopped, but only because he was out of breath. He looked down at the unrecognisable corpse on the floor beneath him. He felt a little better, except it wasn't worth it. He turned back and jogged over to Ramiro. Blood seeped through the hole in his head. His hands were already cold as Luke grabbed him and tried to lift him up.

  “I would advise that you leave him, Luke.” Novalee spoke without emotion.

  “I can't just leave him here. He'll be feasted on by those creatures Maxwell created.” Luke felt his voice fade as he struggled to speak.

  “I can count seventy-six infected approaching your current location. I advise you to return to the Bastion.”

  “I can't just leave him here like this.” He felt himself getting more and more upset.

  “You need to return to your camp, Luke. I believe its defences are about to be overpowered.”

  Luke slowly dropped Ramiro's body to the floor. Can she lie to me? Would she lie to me? He pulled the M1A1 Carbine's strap and untangled it from Ramiro's clothes. He placed the strap around his neck, and then sprinted back to Maxwell to retrieve his revolver. He ran back through the twists and turns of the Engines and Power section of the ship. He could hear the shrieks and screams of the cannibals as they found the dead bodies lying on the floor. Luke knew they would fight over the two corpses. Tearing their limbs and skin off. You deserved a better fate than this, Ramiro.

  There were still abominations on the platform of the tram station. Albeit not as many as before. Just a few stragglers feasting on the already dead. Luke ignored them and sprinted past. Some looked up at him and shrieked. A number of them sprinted after him, others were content with their meals. Luke reached the tram and the doors quickly closed behind him. The infected crashed into the side of the vehicle. The glass panels of the doors splintered and gave way, as the tram began to move. One of the creatures had begun climbing through the shattered window. It scratched and tore its flesh as it squirmed through. Blood began to flush down the door. Luke retrieved his revolver from its holster and aimed it at the abomination.

  “There is no need to shoot it, Luke.” Novalee's voice sounded again.

  “Why?” Luke was beginning to get used to the, out of the blue, comments.

  “The tram will be entering a tunnel shortly. The infected will be torn in half.”

  Luke watched the cannibal as it struggled to move in the broken window. It was like an animal caught in a snare. A pest. It reached out its arms and tried to claw savagely at Luke. It couldn't reach him though. It snarled and growled with each swing. After every miss it seemed to get more aggravated and infuriated. The cannibal turned, twisted and wriggled in the broken glass, but it just sank deeper into the razor sharp shards. The tram went completely dark as it entered the tunnel. Luke heard a crunch, and then something drop to the floor of the tram. The tram exited the tunnel and Luke's vision returned. Half a corpse lay at the bottom of the door, slowly sliding towards him. He stepped away and waited for the body's movement to cease. He held his revolver in his hand, ready to fire if it moved towards him.

  “I detect no other life forms in the tram.”

  Luke holstered his revolver. “What's happening at the Bastion?”

  “There is an unusually high amount of personnel converging around the Bastion. They are probably infected.”

  “Probably?”

  “My estimates indicate a ninety-nine point nine percent chance that the personnel are infected.” Novalee waited for a response, but didn't receive one. “A resistance is forming within the camp. I have informed them of the pending attack. Before you met with Maxwell he received a call from Darryl...” She paused to allow Luke time to process the information she had provided. “Darryl warned Maxwell of what you and Ramiro were going to do. He in return told Darryl to sabotage the structure of the Bastion and to lead the infected there. The camp is still structurally weak. The odds of surviving the attack are slim.”

  “How do I stop the attack?” Luke enquired curiously. She must have a plan.

  “You cannot stop the attack. I am doing whatever I can to postpone it, but the infected will overwhelm the camp in a matter of minutes.”

  “So what can I do?” He was beginning to lose the last remaining hope he clung onto.

  “I am assuming you will want to rescue Megan and Juan.”

  “Yes.” Luke answered quickly.

  “There are only a few places on the ship that I will be able to lock down for you. If I take into account supplies needed before we reach Earth. Your survival odds are too low. The only viable option is to return to deep sleep. There are a few rooms left untouched. I will unlock the doors when you approach them. If there is a possibility of infected entering the cryogenic room it will not open. You are not the only person I need to keep protected.”

  “How many people are you protecting?”

  “Those numbers do not concern you. I will answer every question you have when we reach Earth safely. Luke, you need to trust me.”

  Luke took a deep sigh before he answered. “Okay.”

  “Very well. I have left instructions of how to reach the cryogenic room from the Bastion. The tram is stopping soon. Prepar
e yourself.”

  Chapter 30

  The station was empty. Just pieces of rubbish and a few limbs scattered across the floor. The doors slid open and Luke bolted out of the tram. He took cover by an overturned bench. Still nothing. He stood up steadily and jogged quietly to the double doors which lead towards the Bastion.

  There was movement ahead. Two figures sprinted in the hallway before him. Luke slowed and hoped they would pass without noticing him. One turned its head and saw Luke standing alone. It growled at him, but left him. It sprinted off to catch up to the other cannibal. Why did it leave me? Luke didn't have time to think about it. He had to hurry. He had to make sure his sister was okay. And Juan. There was a scream in the distance, but not from one of the infected. It was a person. He screamed again. Luke heard the pain in his voice. The man was in agony. Luke ran down the hallway and turned towards the screams. He heard more voices. He was closing in on them. He turned around another corner and found a man being feasted on still alive. The man shrilled with overwhelming volume. Luke grabbed the carbine which was fastened around his neck and aimed it at one of the cannibals. The man bellowed out again in pain. He's going to attract every flesh-eater on the ship. Luke aimed his rifle and shot the man. The screaming subsided. The only sound left was the ripping and tearing of flesh.

  “Why did you do that?” A voice whispered from within a doorway.

  Luke glanced in the direction the voice came from. He could see a small group of people. Three males, two adults and a child. The child was no older than ten. His hair was long and wavy, his face covered in freckles and his eyes frightened. “He was going to attract a lot more of those things. It's not safe here, you should move.” Luke began to move away from them and head for the Bastion.

  “Wait.” One of the men whispered again. He waited for Luke to stop. “I wouldn't go that way. There are hundreds of those savages. They're predators. It's not safe, we have no chance.”

  “I need to get to the Bastion. My sister is still there...” Luke wanted to sprint away from the group and ignore them. “Keep him safe.” He said looking at the small boy, and then he hastily jogged away.

  Luke knew he wasn't far from the camp. He was tiring though. “Are you helping that group we passed?”

  “I am watching them.” Novalee replied. “I will do what I can.”

  Luke was concerned with the artificial intelligence's answer, but he had no time to question it. The Bastion was close. He could hear the fighting. There were still people alive. He approached the double doors to the fortified cafeteria. They had been sabotaged. They wouldn't close. He stepped through them and walked into the large dining area. The overturned tables and furniture had been knocked down in places. They missed key structural components. Darryl must have sabotaged that too. Luke noticed cannibals still climbing over the makeshift walls. The gate was still locked, and two snipers were still in the towers. Only one was shooting though. The other looked too traumatised.

  “Hey, you!” The sniper called down to Luke. “You need to get in here. You need to help us evacuate people.”

  “Okay. Can someone open the gate for me?” He replied as he checked his rifle's magazine.

  “Can't do that. Those creatures will just pour in. We'll be overrun in a matter of seconds. You'll need to climb up the walls, like those beasts are doing.” The sniper reloaded his weapon and continued to fire into the Bastion.

  I can do this. Luke took a deep breath, and then began to climb up the unstable wall. There was an infected person ahead of him. It climbed with ease. He felt the structure wobble. He closed his eyes and held on tight. There was a bloodthirsty brute below him. It climbed much faster. He retrieved his revolver from its holster and shot at it. His bullet hit the abomination’s hand and it fell down to the ground. It tried to climb back up, luckily it was much slower with just the one hand. Luke returned to his own climbing and took another step upwards. He was too slow. He'd never save anyone at this speed. He breathed out quickly, began to bounce slightly up and down, and then leapt upwards. He clutched at the top of the ledge above him and steadied himself. I did it. He thought victoriously. The ledge dropped an inch. Luke's heart began to pound ferociously. He pulled himself up, as fast as he could. The ledge dropped again and he stumbled as he climbed to his feet. It's falling. Luke jumped over to the next section of the wall. He landed, the structure wobbled, but it didn't fall. Luke heard a crash behind him. He turned to look. The wall had collapsed, and it took a couple of the cannibals with it.

  Luke watched over the wall and looked into the Bastion. It was in complete chaos. People ran, leaving others to fight the infected on their own. Others hid in their tents, too afraid to do anything. The few weapons the camp had were put to good use though. The man in the sniper tower had a good aim. He took out several flesh-eaters who were closing in on a group of people.

  I need to get to Megan. Luke made his way down the wall to the ground of the Bastion. He grabbed his rifle, ready to shoot anything that got in his way. An abomination spotted him. It lunged for him, but fell backwards as Luke unloaded a round into its chest. There were other creatures around, but none were paying much attention to him. It was a frenzy.

  A fire had broken out somewhere in the camp. Smoke had begun to fill the room. I have to find them quick. Luke stumbled as he tripped over a body. The body moved. It was a man, he was still alive, but barely. He looked at Luke. Pleaded with him. “I'm sorry.” Luke said and jogged away from him. He could see the tent he had left his sister in. I hope you’re still here. He picked up his speed. An abomination ran in through the entrance of the tent. Luke's heart stopped. He sprinted as fast as his legs would let him. His muscles ached, but he battled through the pain. He reached the tent and entered it, his rifle held high, ready to shoot anything. The creature turned around as it heard Luke's breathing. He panted loudly, out of breath. It shrieked and opened its blood covered mouth wide. It was missing a few teeth, but it still found a way to feast. Luke raised his rifle and shot the infected brute in its left eye. The beast flew backwards. Blood covered the floor as it seeped out of the creature’s eye socket. Luke glanced around the tent.

  “Megan? Juan? You in here?” Luke said as he rested his hands on his knees.

  “Luke, is that you?” Megan replied from within the makeshift fort. She opened the entrance slowly and peaked out. She saw Luke and excitedly leapt out of the child like fort. “I'm so glad you're okay.” She jumped into Luke, like an excited, clumsy dog.

  “Where's Juan?”

  “Juan, it's okay.” Megan returned to the fort. “It's Luke, he's come back.” She smiled and held out a hand for Juan to take.

  “Is my dad back?” Juan asked as he emerged from the fort.

  “He's...” Luke stuttered as he tried to think. “He's going to meet us at a new place. A safer place. We can hold out there until we reach Earth.”

  Juan nodded and smiled briefly, but the noises from within the camp made him clutch onto Megan.

  “Where are we going?” She asked, holding onto Juan's hand.

  “There is a cryogenic room still in operation. We're going to sleep this thing out.”

  “Who's going to protect us? How do you know about it? Are you sure it's safe?” Megan asked a string of questions without letting Luke answer any of them.

  “I will be able to keep it safe, but you need to hurry.” Novalee's voice sounded.

  Who's...?” Megan stopped as Luke interrupted her.

  “I'll tell you later. We need to get out of here.”

  Luke led them out of the tent and into the streets of the Bastion. The fire was growing. The smoke was filling the room. He covered his mouth with his arm and grabbed Megan's hand with his free hand. He saw a few other people running away from the entrance. “This way.” Luke said as he followed the people.

  “Is that Kara?” Megan questioned, more to herself than to anyone else. “Kara!” She shouted.

  The woman turned around. “Megan?” Kara squinted, the s
moke made her eyes water.

  “We don't have time for this.” A member of Kara's group spoke as he grabbed her and pushed her through a passage in the wall.

  “A secret passage?” Luke said and jogged towards it. Dragging Megan and Juan with him. “Megan you go first.”

  “Okay.” She nodded and squeezed through the gap. She held out her arm for Juan to grab. He took it and was led through the passage.

  Luke began to cough. “Is everything okay on your end?”

  “Yeah. I see a doorway leading into one of the residence sections.”

  He waited for Juan to clear the wall, and then he attempted to fit through. His rifle blocked his way. He backed out and took the rifle off the strap around his neck. He passed it through the hole. “Megan take your carbine.” The gun disappeared through the passage, and then he reattempted to crawl through it. It was a tight fit, and he scratched both his left and right sides, but he managed to get through.

  “What now?” Megan enquired, watching Kara escape through the doors.

  Luke pulled up his wrist and checked his device. A map appeared with directions to a room not too far away. “We go this way.” He nodded to the doors. “And then we turn right. We follow the corridor until we reach a fork.” He led them through the doors and into the corridor. They could still hear screams and cries for help, but there was little they could do now. Luke glanced back to make sure Megan and Juan were keeping up. Juan held Megan's hand tightly. He's afraid, and he doesn't know he'll never see his father again. Luke sighed deeply. I will tell him when we get back to Earth. I'll tell him the sacrifice his father made so we could live.

  They reached the fork and Luke checked his wrist device to be sure what route to take. “It's down this way.” He led them into the darkest hallway. The further they walked, the quieter the screams of agony became, and then all they could hear was each other breathing. Luke was the loudest, he felt exhausted. I could use a sleep. Maybe even a lie in... For a year or two.