“A whole lot of luck, look the rest of the group is down stairs, we need to get out of here.”
“Alright let me get Tim, he's with us.”
Jamal called for Tim and waited for him to find his way over, they decided it was best to leave the officers locked up.
As they were preparing to go back into the stairwell, the door flung open and people began running inside. Xavier backed up and grabbed Jamal by the shirt.
“Stay with me, we need to find another way down.”
They ran down the hall as fast as they could to the opening in the front of the building, they would have to climb down to the second floor. The concrete floor was collapsed in a small section near the northeast corner of the building, they could slide down the floor part of the way and jump down to the second floor. Xavier led the way, he kept his rifle in his right hand and carefully walked down the collapsed concrete, and then he jumped down onto the second floor in what was once the gift shop. Jamal and Tim followed, when they reached the bottom they walked over to the door of the gift shop, it was locked. Xavier aimed his rifle and shot through the glass doors shattering them, they ran down the hall and came out into the cafeteria.
Regina and Sheila were unable to find an alternate way out of the hospital in the dark, they came back to the group and waited for Xavier. When he arrived with Jamal and Tim the first thing he asked was for the location of the bus, Jake told him it was sitting outside of the loading dock area. He figured it was their best option at the moment, but they would first have to fight their way out of the hospital. Only Regina, Jacob, Jamal and Xavier had fire arms, they took the lead to fight off as many savages as they could, the rest of the group followed them to the stairwell. They stopped and checked their ammunition just outside the door, when they were ready, Xavier went in first.
When he entered the stairwell, there were five savages half a flight up, they turned to him and ran down the stairs. Xavier began shooting, he hit two in the head immediately; Regina stepped in and dropped one with three shots from her pistol. The last two jumped on Xavier and knocked him to the ground, Jacob stepped in and put his gun to the side of one of the savage’s heads and pulled the trigger. Regina shot the other savage in the head and helped Xavier off the floor. They continued down the stairs, the first-floor stairwell entrance was covered in bodies. They ran down the hall and through two big double doors that lead to the service hall, they continued to the loading dock area. The door was already opened to the outside dock, they slowed down and prepared for a fight. As they looked out onto the loading area they noticed most of the savages had abandoned the bus, only a few were still outside the walls and the loading area itself was clear.
They stepped out into the loading area and headed towards the bus, they only needed to load up and attempt to find a way out of the city while the majority of the savages were distracted with the invading troops. As they headed down the loading ramp, a crowd of people from the hospital found their way to loading area looking for escape. They needed to get to the bus and get as many people loaded as they could without being left behind themselves, they had to move quickly. Xavier boosted Jake over the wall so he could get ready to start the bus, he then helped Jamal, Sheila and Jacob up onto the bus. They began helping others over the wall starting with Mrs. Schulz, there were about 30 people to load up.
As Regina and Xavier were helping people over the wall, they were unable to see Sgt. Brent sneak into the crowd. He came up behind Regina and put a gun to her head, before Xavier could react, Officer Williams struck him in the face with his fist and then held a gun to him.
“Get your asses off that bus! We’re taking it.” Xavier knew they would kill them before they let them go, they needed to get the upper hand back. Jamal recognized what was going on and shouted into the roof hatch of the bus to warn Jake, Jacob drew his weapon and took aim at Sgt. Brent, Jamal took aim at Officer Williams. Lisa was in the crowd and went unnoticed by the officers, she tried to remain hidden in the crowd hoping she could catch them off guard. The other officers came out to the loading dock, Sgt. Brent must have gone to free them after Jamal, Tim and Xavier abandoned them.
The people began to shout and rebel against the officers, they had finally had enough and recognized they were no longer cops, but frightened cowards trying to maintain control. Tim began to make a move for Sgt. Brent, if he could hit him hard enough on the head while the gun was pointed away from Regina, he could knock him unconscious and disarm him. The people could keep the other officers at bay, Xavier would have to act fast, so Lisa could move on Officer Williams. Sgt. Brent made the mistake of firing a warning shot into the air to scare the crowd, Tim pistol whipped the back of his head as hard as he could. He fell unconscious and Regina pulled her gun and pointed it at the other officers, Officer Williams took aim at Regina. Before he could pull the trigger, Xavier rushed him, and they fell to the floor. They wrestled around for Officer William’s gun, but the officer was too well-trained for Xavier, he couldn't out maneuver the police officer. Lisa having never so much as being in a fist fight her entire life, stood helpless with the gun pointed at them both unable to get a clean shot. She wouldn't have taken the shot anyway, this would not have been like killing a savage, this was a police officer. Tim rushed over to aide Xavier, he pointed his gun at the officer's head screaming for him to stop, he surrendered.
It was very dark outside and until this point, Anna had no idea that she was in such close proximity to her husband, for the first time she was close enough to see his face. She immediately broke into tears when she recognized it was him, she couldn't speak, she just stared. As Tim held the gun on the officer, he caught a glimpse of a young boy out of his right eye, it was Charles. He recognized Charles instantly and couldn't believe his eyes, he looked around for his mother, Lisa. He saw her with the pistol pointer at the officer, she looked just as surprised to see him as he was to see her. She looked over at Anna, Tim followed her eyes and his heart dropped when he saw his wife Anna. He completely disregarded Officer Williams, lowered his gun and walked over to his wife. They kissed so passionately, it seemed the invading armies ceased their artillery bombardment and the savages halted their assault just long enough for them to embrace one another. The moment was interrupted by a scream from inside the bus, Jamal tossed his pistol down into the hatch to Jake, who immediately began firing at savages who were coming in through the windows.
The officers were taken over by the loading ramp and held at gunpoint by Tim until all the people were loaded on the bus, the savages had increased in numbers and it became harder to keep them out of the broken windows of the bus. Jacob stood on the roof of the bus with his pistol aimed at the officers, Tim backed up and ran over to the wall and was pulled up onto the bus by Xavier and Regina. As Jake shifted into drive, Jonathan ran out onto the loading dock screaming,
“They're coming! They're coming! Let us on the bus!”
Xavier hesitated, he didn't want to leave them to be beaten to death by the savages. As misguided as they had become, they were still people. Regina grabbed him by the shoulder.
“We can’t trust them, they’ll catch us with our guard down and kill us.”
“They aren't evil, they're just scared. I can’t live with letting them die on my conscious, can you?”
Regina dropped her hand with disappointment, but followed Xavier's lead. He yelled for them to come to the wall, the officers ran over and began assisting each other over and onto the bus. Officer Smith, Officer Williams, and the other two officers made it over just in time, but Sgt. Brent and Jonathan hadn't yet made it over when the savages poured onto the loading dock, they sprinted straight to the two. Sgt. Brent took a swing at one, but it was like punching a dummy, it absorbed the blow and tackled the Sergeant. Jamal and Xavier began shooting at the savages but there too many, they engulfed the Sergeant before they could even kill one of them. He fought as hard as he could, but it was futile, they pummeled him until there was no more movement.
&nbs
p; Jonathan was almost up the wall with Tim and Jacob trying to pull him up, several savages grabbed hold of him and began pulling him back down. Jacob and Tim held as long as they could, but the savage’s strength was overwhelming. The savages dug so hard at his body that their fingers and nails began to pierce his skin through his shirt, he screamed in pain. His skin and shirt began to peel off and his grip finally gave way, Jacob and Tim had reached their limits and had to let him go lest they be pulled in with him. As they let go, Jonathan clutched the edge of the brick wall desperately trying to avoid his fate, he looked up at the group and whimpered his last word. “Please.” One of the savages, armed with a piece of rebar with a chunk of concrete at the end, smashed Jonathan's head open. His blood sprayed across Jacob and Tim’s faces and his body went limp. The savages pulled him to the ground and bludgeoned his soulless body.
Chapter 7
What Now?
Jamal sat toward the rear of the bus, next to the broken window he defended from the savages as they left the hospital. He was sleep deprived and hungry. Jake took the group east attempting to leave the city by way of arterial streets, the highways were blocked and most of the artillery was being focused south leaving the group with few options. Jamal rested his head on the window frame of the bus thinking about his mother, Shanice. He hoped she was safe since she wasn't in the downtown Seattle area when the attack happened. She was all he had after the death of his father and older brother 4 years ago.
On a warm June evening, Jamal's father, Winston, decided to give his mother a break from preparing dinner, he suggested a Korean barbecue take out restaurant. As he prepared to get into his old blue Chevy Caprice to leave, his brother Marcus came downstairs and asked to go with him. There was a convenience store next door to the restaurant, Marcus had a craving for an energy drink and knew if he wanted it his father would make him come along to get it himself. When they got to the restaurant, Marcus told his father he’d meet him inside, he nodded and continued into the front door. As Winston made his order, he heard gunshots that sounded close by, he ran out of the door and over to the convenience store to check on Marcus. When he entered the store, he saw his son lying on the ground with a shotgun wound to the abdomen, his blue T-shirt was half soaked in blood within seconds. Winston was horrified and knelt down beside him and clutched him in his arms. The store owner was still holding the shotgun and pointed it Winston while he called the police, Winston never took his eyes off his son to notice, he just cried over his body.
Later, when the police arrived and began questioning witnesses and the store owner, Winston began to feel ill. He began sweating and had difficulty breathing. One of the officers approached him and asked if he needed the paramedics, thinking it was just from the stress and trauma he just suffered he declined. He still hadn't worked up the courage to call home and tell his wife that they lost their oldest son, they sat at home still, waiting for them to return with dinner. As he stood there, he overheard the conversation between the officer and the store owner, when he asked who tried to rob him, he said “The guy who ran off and the dead guy over there.”
Winston became livid and lashed out at the store owner, the officer grabbed hold of him and escorted him out of the store. When they got outside to the sidewalk he became dizzy and disoriented, he went silent very suddenly and collapsed in the officer's arms.
About an hour later, Shanice received a call from the police department, Jamal had never witness his mother so hurt. She burst into tears and began screaming “No” over and over, she fell to her knees and wailed uncontrollably. The sight of his mother that torn stayed with him until this day, and since then he did everything he could to be strong for her in every situation possible.
The night had seemed as though it would never end, it was as if death had descended upon the earth and forever shrouded it in darkness. The air was cold, and a wind moved in from the shore, it filled the bus through the broken windows as they traversed the metropolitan graveyard. The ride was unbearable, they rocked from side to side over countless bodies in the streets and craters from artillery rounds. There were far fewer savages in the streets than earlier in the night, most of them had certainly moved toward the heavy gunfire and explosions near the shore.
The people on the bus were exhausted and frightened, they sat quietly and hoped soon there would be a rescue or at least a place of refuge. Jake and Xavier began discussing their next move, riding around in a bus all night wasn't an option. Jake suggested heading back toward the freeway, Xavier told him how it was completely blocked and jammed with abandoned cars. Xavier regretfully suggested holding up in another building until morning, Jake countered with concern of invading troops finding them if friendly troops never arrived. Sheila walked over to the two of them at the front of the bus and asked, “Why haven't our guys shown up to help?”
Xavier had been quietly wondering himself, how the city could have fallen under attack and gotten no response, no help, no direction or control. It was odd, but there had to be an explanation, although at this point it wouldn't be a good one. Jake looked over his shoulder to Xavier from the driver seat.
“What do you think is going on here man?”
“The only rational explanation I can come up with is maybe when the Chinese and Russians bombed us they wrote us off as dead, and quarantined the entire city. Maybe, we’re fighting this war on several different fronts and just didn't have the resources to defend Seattle. I can’t really imagine that but, I couldn't imagine any of this.”
Jake couldn't come up with an alternative theory and neither could Sheila, it made sense.
Regina walked over to the front of the bus to see what the three were discussing, she thought it would be a good idea to stop somewhere and figure out what to do in the morning. Xavier didn't agree with this, but the group looked worn and needed rest. Regina reminded Xavier that there was still a chance help could come in the morning, there was no need to act as though it was the end of civilization as they knew it. They pulled in front of a hotel on 4th Ave in downtown, it hadn't been hit with artillery, but the lobby entrance looked destroyed. Xavier, Jake and Jacob got off the bus and walked toward the lobby, the street was littered with bodies but there were no signs of savages nearby. They walked into the lobby with their weapons at the ready, scanning right and left awaiting the ruthless killers to leap from every shadow. Broken glass covered the carpet and without lights they repeatedly stumbled over dead bodies, Jacob pulled out his cellphone and turned it on. Xavier knew what he was doing and copied, they could use the flashlight function on their phones to light up the lobby. When Jacob turned on his flashlight, he stood in shock at what it revealed. It illuminated a scene of a complete slaughter. Blood and bodies layered the floor all the way up the stairs to the second landing, Xavier hurried through the lobby and up the stairs. The second level was no different to the first, it was horrific.
The walls were gold in color and carpets brown with gold trim, the ceiling was white and gold with large chandeliers that hung throughout the lobby. A large staircase began at the center of the lobby and rose to the second level where lounge chairs and art sculptures made up the decor, it overlooked the lobby. The three men moved as carefully as they could to an emergency stairwell near the east end of the landing, they stopped in front of the door as Xavier reached for the handle. He asked if they were ready and then he opened the door, the stair well was clear. The savages must have struck fast, it didn't seem as though anyone had time to run.
They walked up the stairs and stopped at the third floor, if it was clear it would be where they held up until daylight. Xavier opened the door and walked out onto the floor, there were fewer bodies scattered about, it seemed as though most of the people trying to escape were killed downstairs. They swept the whole floor but couldn't get into the rooms, they would need to break in to get to the beds or any food that was in them. They decided it was the best they had, they began clearing the hall. Jacob and Xavier began moving the few dead bodies to the
far end of the hall where they would be put in a room as soon as they got one open, Jake returned to the bus to lead the group back to the third floor.
Jake had been gone ten minutes and still had not returned, Xavier began to worry so he ran down the stairs, through the lobby and out to the street to investigate. The group was split on whether it was a good idea to stop moving, Jake had been trying to convince them all to stick together. When Xavier arrived, the only thing he became concerned about was the large crowd of people making noise outside with savages still in the area. He tried to convince the group to talk it over inside, but they resisted, there was no controlling people who were this scared. He cut the officers loose and told the group that they were all free to do what they thought was best for themselves and their families. One of the men in the group, a young white man with black hair and black glasses and brown corduroy jacket, demanded the bus since the majority of the group was choosing to leave. Jake immediately protested
“Over my dead body, you wanna do your own thing, you find your own transportation.”
Xavier stepped in and told them to take the bus, Jake threw his hands in the air and walked away in disappointment. The man with the glasses immediately began moving to the bus, the majority of the group followed with the exception of five or six people and the officers. They loaded the bus, pulled away and headed west toward the water and then could be heard moving south further into the distance.
Jake was furious,
“You're going to have to explain to me why in hell you let them take our wheels brother.”
Xavier patted Jake on the shoulder and pointed to a smaller 15 passenger van down the street, in fact there were two of them. Jake put his hands on his hips and smiled as Xavier walked back into the hotel, it would be easier to maneuver through the city in a van than a 60-foot bus. They moved from the street back into the hotel, there was still 5 or 6 hours of darkness left.
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