Neckbeard Vampire: Nightbeard Rising

by David Morgan

  Chapter 25

  “Where’s Paxton?” Fantasia sounded anxious. “He disappeared yesterday and hasn’t come back.”

  “Chad’s missing too!” Randall said, as the guild assembled, preparing for their final attack.

  “What if something happened to them? We’re two men down! We could go after them—rescue them.” Mickey suggested.

  The group grew silent as they pondered the possibilities of the missing members. Cruxx spoke a single word, giving voice to everyone’s fears. “Traitors?”

  “Then we’re compromised!” Fantasia said. “We need to change the plan, alter the strategy. She’ll know we’re coming!”

  “No.” Dex said forcefully, “We have only one possibility left. We have to destroy her final resting place—besides, even if we were to abandon the plan? What then? Where would we go? Where would we begin searching?”

  “Follow the neckbeards?” Suggested Cruxx.

  “She would throw them out like the nightly garbage.” Dex said. “We would spend six months killing the nightbeards and re-educating the neckbeards, cleaning up what’s left of this town. Then we’d have to start from scratch.” He shook his head, “No. It’s now or never.” He shot a sideways glance to the doctor, who nodded as though privy to a conspiracy the others weren’t.

  “This is it—we go, and we go now.”

  They ran through a final check of their armor and weapons, and piled into two separate vehicles. In Randall’s car: Fantasia and Johnathan. Dex and Cruxx traveled with Mickey and the Doctor stayed behind in the safe house in case Paxton or Chad should show up.

  They drove through the town to the final destination—but instead of the army of neckbeards that they were expecting, there were only silent, empty streets.

  “Change of plans,” Dex said, “We’re taking a different route.” At Dex’s instruction, Mickey turned off of the main road and the second car soon followed. A few twists and turns later, they found themselves at a barely noticeable dirt road, which they travelled through at a snail’s pace.

  The road took them through deep woods before breaking open into a vast field. Slowly and steadily they moved forward, and presently, buildings rose up on the horizon. They were approaching the edge of town, having circumvented the entire city.

  The cars stopped. “From here,” Mickey turned to his passengers, “We go on foot.” As the second car pulled up, the team assembled. The vehicles parked behind large bushes, hiding them from view as best they could.

  “If all goes well,” Dex said, “We can take our time walking back here.”

  “And if it doesn’t?” Randall asked, worried about his car.

  Dex smiled, “The living dead don’t need cars.”

  They walked on in silence, skulking down alleyways and behind parked vehicles before climbing into the parking garage of an office building.

  With a few well-placed swings of his Warhammer, Cruxx broke through a back door with little problem. They climbed the stairs to the third floor, moving to a corner office with windows that looked out into two directions.

  “There,” Dex said, handing a pair of binoculars to Mickey. Dex pointed to an unremarkable white building across the street. Through the binoculars, Mickey could make out a small sign next to the main entrance that read, “Rayhollow Hospital.”

  “That’s where she is?” Randall asked.

  “Yes.” Now look, Dex pointed across to other buildings and Randall raised the glasses. “Look to the third floor of the building to the right.”

  Randall obeyed, steadying the binoculars as best he could. “I don’t see any---wait.” He said, taking note of a group of oversized plush toys. “I see them.”

  “Who?” Cruxx asked. “The furries.”

  “That’s right,” Dex said. “Count them. How many are there?” He asked.

  “About a dozen,” Randall said after a minute. “How many should there be?”

  “That’s a patrol—according to Jiggles, there will be four more of those stationed around the area.” He continued, “Randall, you will climb to the sixth floor of this building and find a balcony leading from the stairwell. You will stay there and signal to the furries when the time comes.”

  “Got it.”

  “Test your radios,” he turned to Johnathan and Randall—who put in earpieces and began speaking to each other. “Johnathan, you’re with us—and you signal Randall should something go wrong.”

  Mickey said, “The rest of us will go in from the rear. According to Paxton, she’s somewhere in there.”

  “We don’t know which floor?” Fantasia asked.

  “No.” Mickey answered, “We’ll search from bottom to top until we find it.”

  “Whatever happens,” Dex said, “We stay together. Does everyone understand?” He looked around. “If shit hits the fan and something goes wrong—our best chance of survival is to fight as a group.”

  The team nodded in agreement.

  “Good. Now let’s move.”