Walking with the Dead

Chapter 7

Ariel zipped up her jacket and pocketed her knife again. She pulled me up on my feet though I fought the urge to tackle her or fall over. She nodded at me and ran to the exit of the department store. I looked around and heard another loud growl. I swallowed hard. That can’t be a normal undead.

I was to pull my pistol out when I noticed I am still bound. Holy—

Series of obscenities escaped my mouth and when I calmed down I sighed and ran down the first floor. At first, I thought everything is okay since there are almost five more people in the mall but a loud growl told me otherwise.

I noticed the Colonels were shaking as they held their guns and some held on a javelin. All of them are shaking. Since adrenaline is still shaking me from before I didn’t get the chance to stare and be stunned at the events that are unfolding in front of me. I saw Barcode typing furiously at his computer and ran towards him.

“Barcode! Barcode! What’s happened?!”

Barcode didn’t remove his eyes from the screen “, it seems like a hulk has invaded the territory, Xerxes. Apparently, with that around, I doubt anyone living in the vicinity are still breathi—holy damn, Xerxes?!”

He finally looked at me and scanned me from head to toe. Then he repeated that action for three more times.

I rolled my eyes and blushed at his reaction “, don’t ask. I’m not ready to talk about it. Can you get me out of these bounds?” Barcode was still stunned in seeing me but untangled the scarf. I ripped the remaining parts of my shirt left and zipped my jacket close. God, that’s embarrassing. I really want to punch her right now.

Barcode cleared his throat and suppressed some laughter before returning his attention back in the screen “, so you see, Xerxes. We doubt there are people around the vicinity anymore. The hulk out there is being contained. No, you will not rush out of there because Ariel said to retrieve the things you threw upstairs and put it in the van quick,” he scanned me again as I wiped lipstick out of my cheek “, so you are into that kinky stuff, aren’t you?”

I glared at Barcode and he got the message to shut up. Not wanting to disappoint Ariel, I ran back to the second floor and gathered all her stuff silently cursing the night. Upon gathering all of it, I ran back downstairs and piled her stuffs and my stuff in the corner.

Upon laying down her eco bag, the nearest window shattered and a Colonel from the Assault department rolled to the floor, blood evident. The women on the room shrieked before firing series of shots to the direction. I ran towards my shot gun and loaded it before pointing it to the direction they were shooting at.

My shotgun froze on the air as a cold sweat dropped down my face. If I wasn’t battling zombies for less than five years, I would’ve dropped the gun and fled for my life. The zombie is no doubt a hulk. It has a towering body that might have rivaled a house. The arms around it are scarred and bleeding with a chain decorated around it. It has a sword impaled on the back and for I know, that sword is hers.

The succubus.

I looked frantically for her ignoring the gruesome face of the undead. The lips of the undead is stretched out and held by some sort of wire that connects to the back of its head. The corners of its mouth is stretched by these wires giving the impression of fear. I don’t know if there are eyes, I’m not sure. I do know that its limbs are large and the body is not easily penetrable. How can a Sniper like me aim at something like that?!

My thoughts were interrupted by a war cry followed a slash of a sword in the undead’s leg. Ariel slipped down her knees and did a Matrix move while grabbing her sword again. To avoid the hulk’s hands that came crashing towards her.