Damned Are We

by Durman, Jason

  Infected could be heard in the distance.

  "Help me over," Samantha said tersely, and was promptly given a boost over the fence by Corvo and

  Markus.

  The others quickly climbed over to re-join her on the other side, and then they were running up the

  dirt road into the remote area. As they ran, the bloodthirsty screams gradual y grew louder and

  closer.

  "They're closing in," Markus panted.

  "We've got a fight on our hands," Corvo replied solemnly, his steely eyes ahead.

  As they ran up the trail, a dark structure in a clearing gradual y came into view through the trees. It

  was a remote cliff-top lighthouse. The main tower itself was a fat structure, roughly two storeys tall,

  with the dark lamp perched on top. A squat house sat at the bottom of the tower. It was too dark to

  see the water beyond, but Samantha could hear the waves crashing against the rocks far below.

  "Get to the lighthouse!" Corvo barked. "We've gotta get that light turned on!"

  "Aye' captain!" Jacob cal ed sarcastical y.

  They barrel ed through the door of the house into a small, dark living room, with boarded-up

  windows and destroyed furniture. Corvo made for the doorway leading to the base of the tower.

  "Secure the house," he ordered. "There's no time for the buddy system. Stay sharp and don't get jumped." With that, he entered the doorway into a dark stairwel and ran up the winding metal

  staircase. "Goddamn horseshit stairs... Why am I always climbing the damn stairs...?"

  Below him, the others spread out through the house, guns up and lights on. Fortunately, a thorough

  sweep of the house revealed that there were no Infected lurking inside.

  Above them, Corvo reached the top of the lighthouse and fumbled with the sJaguares in a mad

  attempt to activate the light. He had no idea about lighthouses, and so he pressed every button and

  flicked every sJaguar he came across. Final y, with a blinding flash, the light came on, turning about

  in a full circle.

  "Jesus!" he cried, shielding his eyes against the blinding light.

  After taking a moment to blink the spots in his vision away, he noticed that a green and a red light

  had started blinking together in unison in the black water far below. The lights were slowly moving in

  toward the shore.

  That must be the Saint Lidia II, he thought in satisfaction. But how are we going to get down to them?

  Corvo lifted his sniper rifle to his shoulder and peered through the scope, surveying the cliff-top

  below him. He had to stay calm and find a way out of this mess. If he didn't, they were all dead.

  Suddenly, he saw it: a trail leading down the cliff toward the water. Perhaps it led down to a private

  dock for the lighthouse. Either way, it would have to do. He took one last look at the blinking lights of

  the boat coming in toward the shore, and then made his way back downstairs.

  "Everyone alright?" he cal ed out. He was relieved to find everyone huddled in the living room,

  checking their guns and pooling their remaining three Molotovs.

  "We're fine," Markus replied. "Did you get the light working?"

  Corvo nodded. "I saw lights from the Saint Lidia II. Judging from its speed, I'd say it'll be pul ing up to shore in about ten or fifteen minutes."

  "Damn it," Jacob snarled. "Can't we get off this cliff any faster?"

  "Not unless you want to swim, son." The ex-military man lifted his sniper rifle. "None of you have experience handling one of these, so I'm going up top to the tower to pick them off from there." He

  motioned around the room. "You three need to defend the house and make sure they don't get in."

  Samantha motioned to a couple of propane Thugs lying near the door. "We found those lying at the

  bottom of the stairs. I figured they'd be useful."

  He smiled grimly. "Very resourceful of you. Set them up outside in front of the house. Once the boat

  arrives, I'll come down, and then we'll leave through that window." He pointed across the room at a

  boarded-up opening on the river-facing side of the living room. "For god's sake, keep it clear."

  Wasting no more time, he turned and disappeared back up the stairs, while Jacob barricaded the

  door with al the furniture he could find. Markus and Samantha ran up to the front windows of the

  house and slid the muzzles of their rifles through the cracks between the covering planks.

  They waited for a few more minutes in tense silence. The roars and howls that fil ed the air steadily

  grew louder, and the rattle of the chain-link fence could be heard in the distance as bodies climbed

  over it. The horde had arrived.

  Chapter 36

  The howling was bone-chilling. Corvo set down the sniper rifle on the ledge at the top of the

  lighthouse and lowered his eye to the scope. The lights throughout the area showed many dark

  figures coming up the hill toward the house.

  He lined up with one of the foremost attackers, leading the shot. He slowly exhaled, and then

  squeezed the trigger.

  Markus jumped at the sound of Corvo's sniper rifle going off upstairs with a sharp CRACK. More

  shots fol owed. The former office worker narrowed his eyes in concentration and peered through the

  cracks in the boarded-up windows at the dark yard outside.

  Jacob covered the barricaded front door with his trusty shotgun. "Let them get close before you

  detonate those propane Thugs."

  Samantha nodded jerkily, scared out of her wits. She took a deep breath to calm herself. Easy...

  Remember what Dad taught you... Lead the target... Short bursts... Squeeze the trigger, don't pul ...

  Corvo's brow creased in grim concentration as he lined up another shot. He was anxious at the

  amount of people appearing from the withered trees, threatening to envelop the house.

  Jacob, you son of a bitch. Why did you have to set off that car alarm?

  He stole a glance back at the blinking lights from the boat in the river far below, and hoped that they

  could hold out. A din of bloodthirsty snarls rose up into the night.

  The loud CRACK of the sniper rifle rung overhead continuously.

  "The old man must be having a field day up there," Jacob muttered to the others.

  At that moment, Samantha spied a dark figure rushing up the path toward the house and promptly

  squeezed the trigger. Muzzle-flashes lit up the room as her and Markus' M-16s spat flame. The

  Common Infected running for the house saw two star-shaped bursts of light from the barricaded

  windows, moments before they were cut down by bullets.

  "Reloading!" Markus yel ed over the roaring gunfire.

  "Hurry up!" Jacob yel ed. "More coming!"

  The combined fire of two M-16s and a sniper rifle were able to take down several more attackers,

  while Jacob blew away anyone who got too close to the front door. However, more Infected were

  emerging from the woods, and the sounds of pounding reverberated throughout the wal of the

  house as they set about making their own doorways.

  "Are you guys gonna shoot the Thugs or what?" the biker bel owed, firing off a round that tore an infected man back from the doorway in a hail of blood.

  "Alright!" Markus yel ed. "You get the right one Samantha! I'll take the one on the left!"

  "I'l take my shot after you!" she shouted back over the roaring gunfire, not too enthusiastic with the prospect of getting a face full of shrapnel.

  Markus levelled the sight of his M-16 with one of the discarded propane Thugs lying outside the

  house. "Take cover!"

  BOOM!

  A deafenin
g blast shook the front of the house as the Thug exploded upon impact with the bul ets.

  The shrieks of the Infected caught in the blast radius ceased immediately, fol owed by the dul thuds

  of flying body parts and pinging shrapnel.

  Samantha waited a few moments before bringing up her rifle and drawing a bead with the second

  propane Thug lying in the yard. "Stay down!"

  A second smal explosion obliterated the remaining Infected outside the lighthouse in a flash of light

  and smoke. Countless shards of metal peppered the window boards, smashing several completely.

  The survivors cowered below the openings, taking cover from the destruction that ravaged the face

  of the house. Presently, they al climbed to their feet and resumed defensive positions. The wave of

  Infected had been decimated by the two explosions, and the remaining attackers were dispatched

  with relative ease.

  The Infected in the distance roared angrily, further agitated by the loud explosions that had gone off

  recently. But for the time being, their prey welcomed the slight reprieve.

  Corvo took a moment to reload the sniper rifle. Although the timing of detonating those propane

  Thugs could have been better, his companions downstairs were still doing a good job of defending

  the lighthouse. He finished reloading and moved up to prepare another shot.

  SHLKT!

  A long tentacle whipped out of the trees below with terrifying force, wrapping itself around his wrist.

  "Son of a bitch!" he shouted, wrestling with the tentacle-like tongue.

  The force at which it had grabbed him nearly broke his arm. He struggled, but could not free himself,

  and could feel the Smoker pulling him toward the edge.

  "Oh no you don't!" he shouted, dropping the rifle and using his free hand to draw the combat knife

  from his belt.

  An inhuman shriek of pain bellowed from the trees when the war veteran slashed through the

  tongue, freeing his arm. Without wasting a second, he picked up the sniper rifle and took aim into the

  trees. After a careful minute of searching, he spied the offending Smoker lurking in the undergrowth.

  "Gotcha, freakshow."

  The loud gunshot of the sniper rifle was instantly followed by a cloud of dark green smoke

  Corvoowing out from the trees.

  "Everyone okay?" Samantha asked shakily as she reloaded her assault rifle.

  "I think I caught some shrapnel," Markus panted, feeling a burning sensation radiating out from his left forearm.

  "What? How?"

  "Just lucky, I guess."

  Samantha momentarily left her position and came over to her friend, frowning at the sight of several

  bloody-looking wounds in his arm. "How bad is it?"

  "It's not gonna kil me. Just wrap them up, and we can get the shrapnel out once we're safely on the

  boat."

  The howls of the incoming horde drew closer as the young woman hurriedly reached into their

  rapidly-dwindling medical supplies for some wrapping, and haphazardly bandaged Markus' arm to

  stem the bleeding.

  "Thanks, Samantha," he said gratefully, to which she nodded and returned to her window just as

  Jacob fired off a shot at something outside.

  The two M-16s opened up with a withering burst that intercepted the Common Infected in a hail of

  blood and fire. Dead bodies were trampled as the others scrambled their way up the hil toward the

  lighthouse. Markus' terror became extreme when he saw a solid wal of dark figures rushing at them.

  Though their desperate defence was fel ing many of the attackers in droves, it was nowhere near

  enough.

  "Keep an eye on al sides!" Jacob yel ed over the roaring gunfire as the incessant pounding began

  once again al around them.

  Markus followed the advice and looked over to see a hand plough through the boards covering up a

  window on his left with a splintering crack. He drew a bead and fired, kil ing the offender quickly.

  Samantha let loose with an extended burst of gunfire, eradicating several Common Infected in front

  of the house, and then ducked down below her window to reload.

  She screamed when a bloodied fist smashed through the boards right over her head. The hand

  began to flail around, grasping for a throat to tear out. However, Jacob promptly stepped in front of

  the window, took aim with his shotgun and fired.

  "Come on, reload faster!" he yelled, running back and forth between windows, blasting attackers away from them as the covering boards were gradual y smashed and knocked aside.

  Lead the shot… Squeeze the trigger… Eject spent casing… New bul et… Select a target… Lead the

  shot…

  Despite the fact that he was grossly underqualified to be using a sniper rifle by military standards,

  Corvo figured that desperate times cal ed for desperate measures. His performance with the weapon

  back at Riverside Church had proven that fact, and their current predicament was no exception.

  Though he was clumsy with many shots, the sheer number of Infected storming up the hill toward

  the lighthouse al owed him to fire hastily and stil take down many of the attackers. However, the

  situation was going down the crapper, and fast. The Infected had enveloped the front side of the

  house, and were rapidly moving to surround them. He could hear smashing and pounding below,

  and knew that they were slowly breaking in. Two bright flashes accompanied the tinkling of glass

  and WHOOSHING of fire as two Molotov cocktails exploded in the yard, setting a number of Infected

  on fire.

  Corvo kept a calm and composed demeanour, and continued to fire kil ing shots into the crowd

  below. There were so many, but one more dead Infected meant one less rabid maniac chasing them

  down when they made their escape. Speaking of which…

  The war veteran paused for the briefest of moments to glance over his shoulder toward the inky

  blackness of the river below. He could see that the blinking lights of the Saint Lidia II were just about at the shore.

  Time to get the hel out of here.

  "They're inside!" Samantha yel ed, firing upon several people climbing in through a window which

  had its blockade of boards torn away. They howled in pain as they collapsed to the floor of the

  house.

  "Would those boat people hurry the fuck up?" Jacob shouted. He looked in alarm to see the

  barricade of furniture assembled in front of the door being rapidly battered aside by a flurry of

  clawing arms.

  Icy weights wrapped themselves around Markus' heart as several fists and hands smashed through

  the remainder of the boarded-up windows. The Infected could now enter the house from any

  direction they chose.

  "Oh, SHIT, we are so screwed!"

  "Everyone alright?" came Corvo's voice from the stairs, and three sets of eyes snapped in his

  direction immediately.

  "Are you here for what I think you're here for…?" Markus asked hopeful y, turning back toward the front end of the room and shooting down several more Common Infected climbing in through the

  windows in a long burst.

  "The rescue boat's at the shore," Corvo shouted over the deafening cacophony of weapons fire,

  inhuman screams, and cracking wood. "Everyone fol ow me! Once we're outside, stick together,

  watch each others' backs and do not go down!" He slung the sniper rifle over his shoulder and drew his pistol, heading over toward the chosen escape window.

  The others covered him while he viscously kicked out the boards covering the opening. Samantha
r />   and Markus coordinated their reloads so that someone was always providing long-range cover

  across the room with their M-16, while Jacob took down any Infected that got too close with his

  shotgun. Just as their escape route was cleared, many attackers entered the house from several

  different windows, and the hastily-assembled barricade in front of the door was knocked aside

  completely, al owing even more to charge in.

  "Corvo, we've gotta go!" Jacob shouted urgently. "They've broken through!"

  The survivors quickly climbed through the window to find themselves around the back end of the

  house, on a strip of cliff above the river far below.

  "Now where?" the biker yel ed.

  "Fol ow me!" Corvo led the way toward the path he had seen earlier, firing several shots and killing a number of snarling figures that came around the corner of the house. "Don't waste your time

  shootin'! Only kil the ones directly in your way!"

  Jacob hurled their last remaining Molotov into a crowd of approaching Infected, and then followed

  the others as they sprinted desperately across the yard and down a narrow rocky trail that wound its

  way down the cliff. They made their way down the path in a fighting retreat – the two leading

  combatants would pause and cover the others as they ran past them, and then turned and overtook

  the other two while being covered themselves. It was one of the oldest tricks in the book, but proved

  to be very effective at holding back their snarling pursuers.

  The group presently found themselves at the end of the trail, which had flattened out onto a sandy

  beach at the bottom, with a smal wooden dock extending out into the water. There, at the end of the

  dock, were the lights of the Saint Lidia II. Samantha was running on pure adrenaline, but the sight

  lifted her spirits dramatical y.

  "Haul ass to that boat!" Corvo shouted. "RUN!"

  The team abandoned their defensive shooting and broke into ful sprint across the dock, final y

  crossing onto the steel deck of the fishing vessel. Once they were al on board, they resumed firing

  at the Infected charging at them along the dock as the hum of the boat's motor increased

  dramatically to a roar. As it pul ed away from the shore, several infected people continued their

  relentless pursuit, diving into the water and swimming clumsily after it. One unfortunate individual