From The Deep

Chapter 4

Raleigh made it back to the comms center without trouble. She walked inside and found the intercom. She made sure it was powered on, pressed the button and spoke. Her words carried through the whole station.

"Is anyone still alive here? I'm up in the Communications Center. Help me, I'm injured." She was sure that would sufficiently draw all the crazies out of wherever they were lurking.

She wanted to bolt to the nearest airlock now, but she needed to make sure everyone was distracted long enough. She walked out holding the rifle and waited.

At first, she wasn't sure it worked, she was starting to think of what else she could do when the first one walked into her view. He came out from farther off, noticing her immediately and hastily advancing on her with a wrench held high. She shot him twice in the neck and two more times in the head. Another one was soon around the corner, a woman wearing a Science jumpsuit and white coat, wielding a syringe filled with something Raleigh couldn't identify. Raleigh shot her three times in the head, and she went down.

Eight shots left. Raleigh made sure to keep an accurate mental count, not wanting to be caught off guard. Another around the same corner, four to kill him. Two more together, both holding blades. Raleigh shot one of them three times in the head to kill him. She shot the other in the leg to make him stumble and took the time to reload.

"She has a gun," one called from somewhere out of sight.

"Go around."

"Kill her."

Raleigh started to back up, getting behind cover as one of them came up shooting an SP5 Security Pistol. A few bullets struck the wall where she had been standing. She waited for him to stop shooting and leaned out of cover, shooting him three times in the chest. He started to get back up and she shot him twice more in the head to finish him off.

Fifteen shots left. She started to move quicker now, focusing less on holding the line and more on retreating, only shooting when one got ahead of the others or when one came holding a gun. Four shots, another down. Five, one more dead. Three, there went another.

Raleigh fired the last three darts into the chest of a large man with a pipe. She ejected the magazine and loaded in the last one. She had no idea how many were left in this one. She shot one more infected with a gun four times and turned to run.

She certainly attracted the attention of most of the infected. The nearest airlock was a few rooms past the maintenance supply locker, she had seen it. Now it was a just a matter of getting there with all of these murderous maniacs on her tail. She opened the door, firing five darts toward her pursuers before ducking inside and shutting it up

"Clarke. It's Pierce, we found the two survivors here. We've launched. Your turn to get off."

Raleigh tossed the gun aside and opened the suit chamber, grabbing the helmet and attaching it to the suit collar. She strapped on the oxygen tank and struggled a little getting the hose connected to the back of the helmet. Raleigh opened the airlock door and took a step. Before she could get through, a hand grabbed her and pulled her back.

"I got you." He swung a Houlton tool at her and hit the front of the helmet, cracking it and knocking Raleigh onto her back inside the airlock. She was stunned, but alive. If not for the helmet, she would be dead

She kicked the button to close the airlock as the infected man lunged at her, crushing him in between the doors. He continued to try and attack her with the wrench. She crawled back and watched as his midsection finally gave out and he was bifurcated below the ribcage. The body went limp as the airlock filled with water. Raleigh swam out.