ZERO (Complete)

Chapter Fourteen

Allie and Dane were chased down, captured, and beaten within an inch of their lives. Barely conscious, they were tied up and dragged into an enclosed structure. Allie was slow to regain her senses. Through her swollen eyes, she saw one of the men on top of her. Her shirt had been ripped open and she was about to be taken advantage of. She struggled to get free, but her arms and legs were tied securely above her head.

As the nasty man groped her, Allie did everything in her limited power to fight him off. She squirmed, screamed, spit, and even tried to bite him, but that only further provoked her attacker. The man slapped Allie and forced a dirty rag into her mouth. She spit it out immediately, which set him off. He grabbed her by the throat and began to choke her. He seemed to take pleasure in watching her struggle.

The champion spirit in her burned hot. With every ounce of fight left in her, she was determined not to give up.

Just when all hope seemed lost, she heard an all too familiar sound of a skull being hit with a blunt object. The man's eyes rolled into the back of his head moments before collapsing on top of her. Standing behind him was a battered and bloodied Dane, limping and holding a thick metal pipe.

"Dane!" Allie rejoiced. "How did you get free?"

Dane reached in his back pocket and held up a small knife. Adorning a blood-soaked smile, he held it out proudly and said, "I had this stashed in my sock."

Not wanting to waste any time, Dane freed Allie from the ties that bound her and helped her to her feet.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Seriously?"

"Well, you know, all things considered."

"I usually get paid after getting beat up," Allie said.

"I usually get paid after being groped."

"Was that a joke?" Allie asked.

"Yes, a terrible one. I'm sorry."

Allie didn't respond. Instead she put her hand on his shoulder and said, "Dane, thank you. Seriously. You saved my life."

"Twice," Dane said with a wink.

"Shut up," she shot back. "Look, we're still not out of the woods just yet. We need to figure out how to get out of here. How are you feeling? Anything broken?"

"I'm not sure, probably, but I'm still standing, aren't I?"

"Okay, good. I have a plan."

Just then, the door opened abruptly and another man entered. He saw Allie laying on the floor, tied up, with her shirt ripped open, her bare breasts exposed. Dane lay tied up on the other side of the room with his eyes closed. There was blood on the floor, but the man paid it no mind. Looking at both of them, the man turned his attention back on Allie, and undid his belt.

The trap had been set and the man took the bait. He crouched down and began to remove Allie's pants, that's when the cold steel pipe slammed into the side of his face. The dense thud of smashed flesh was a little unnerving, but given the situation, was highly satisfying.

Allie sprung back to her feet and removed the man's belt completely.

"What are you doing?" Dane whispered.

"Let's make sure he's dead," she said.

She flipped the man over and wrapped the belt around his neck. With her knee pressed firmly into the man's spine, she cranked as hard as she could. The man's head lifted off the ground and turned purple. Veins protruded from his neck and forehead as she held the choke, gritting her teeth with a rage and disdain unlike anything Dane had seen from her before.

"Okay, you got him. That's enough," Dane said.

"I have no sympathy for these less-than-human scumbags."

"Yeah, me neither, but there's still two of them left. What do you want to do? Same plan as these guys?"

"No, now it's two on two. Let's hunt them down like the animals they are."

"Cool, but you might want to fix your shirt... your um... things are hanging out."

Allie looked down at her breasts and covered herself.

"Don't worry, I didn't look. I mean, not for that long. Nice abs by the way."

With a trusty metal pipe in his hand, Dane walked confidently behind Allie. He was happy to follow her lead. Allie had a two-foot long chain, which she had bundled up. They searched room by room in the old facility until they came across a large open space with a table in the middle. Two men sat at the table, drinking beer and playing cards.

"Surprise, surprise," Allie said, entering the room. "You two may want to check on your rapist /cannibalistic friends. I don't think their feeling too good."

Both men stood up and grabbed their weapons — one had a baseball bat and the other had a machete.

Allie walked forward, releasing her grip on the chain bundle. It slowly unravelled and dragged along the floor. When she was within striking distance, the man with the machete lunged at her in a swiping motion. Allie's lightning fast reflexes quickly slipped out of the way. The man pulled back and chopped at her once again. This time, Allie whipped the chain up, causing it to wrap around the man's wrist. She tugged him just enough to knock him off his balance.

While still holding onto the chain, she spun around with a 360° spin kick that landed cleanly against the side of his face. The force sent him flying backward onto the table, breaking it in half and collapsing around him. Cards and poker chips flew up and scattered about. Allie removed the machete from his limp hand, raised it high in the air, and buried it into the centre of his chest.

The last man looked shocked. He gripped the baseball bat tightly and charged at Allie. He swung at her head, but missed. He swung again, but Allie was just too elusive. Each time, she moved just enough out of the way, but could feel the wind as the bat narrowly missed her face.

"Too slow," she said confidently.

Dane was quick to jump in the action. He ran toward them and positioned himself in between the attacker and Allie. The man swung at Dane, but the bat was met with the steel pipe. The man swung again from a different angle, but again Dane blocked it.

Dane then launched an attack of his own. Ducking down, he smashed the heavy pipe into the man's kneecap. The pain was excruciating as the man collapsed to the floor, screaming in agony. Dane stood over him being sure to put his foot and all his weight on top of the hand with the bat. With the other foot, Dane stomped down on the man's face several times with a deep seeded rage. The man's face became increasingly more unrecognizable.

"Here, let me finish him off," Allie said, removing the machete from the other dead man. She wiggled it loose and walked over to the unconscious man. With no remorse, she chopped at the man's throat, opening up a large gash.

"Jeez, couldn't you have just strangled him like the last guy?"

"What do you mean, I pulled this machete from the last guy's chest?"

"No, the guy before him. Never mind."

As their heartrates returned to normal, the pain and swelling increased. Both held each other as they hobbled outside with severe limps.

"Doesn't look like we'll be hiking back to camp anytime soon," Dane said.

"Yeah, but we have everything we need here," Allie said.

"Ew, you don't plan to eat those guys, do you?"

"What? No, of course not. I'm assuming they have food other than human flesh here. Why else would they live in the middle of nowhere?" Allie said.

Once outside, they looked out at the setting sun. It would soon disappear over the horizon and they would be shrouded in darkness.

"I don't suppose you know how to make a fire?" Allie asked.

Dane reached into his pocket, pulled out a lighter, and said, "As a matter of fact, I do."