Footsteps resonated on the dark tiles, and then stopped. Eleni and Neri had reached the police station, more or less alright. Other than the unsettling radio incident, they were fine. That is, the few spare moments before they entered the building. Gym bags were slung over each of their shoulders, ready to collect what they came for. But now that they were inside, they wished they'd never come at all.
Bodies littered the ground, one or two still barely moving and groaning. Blood streaks were on the glass walls, that gave a perfect view of the ravaged parking lot on the other side. The dead wore police uniforms, some with guns in their hands. The remainder of the dead bodies were civilians who had partially rotted, blood seeping out of their skulls. Restless. A battle already happened here, but thank God they missed it.
The women let their jaws hit the floor, looking at all the bloodied corpses that were just a few sparse feet apart. Except one of them wasn't a corpse...it was moving.
The Restless women raised her head from the policeman she was devouring, and had blood and gore lining her rotted mouth. She got to her feet, and started to limp towards the women. They both took steps backward, knowing that they couldn't fight unless they had the weapons they'd come for. She growled, and grew closer every second.
"Neri..." Eleni whimpered, and took a step back. "We should leave."
Neri began to backpedal too, until she saw the silver barrel of a pistol glint in a dead officer's hand. She bent down, and wrenched it from the death grip of the corpse with a sickening snap. Holding it in front of her, she pointed it at the Restless, before realizing she'd never shot a gun before. She was a city girl, she never hunted a day in her life.
Trying to copy what Rick did on The Walking Dead, she quickly checked if it was loaded. It was, but had only two bullets. Neri pulled the slide back, improvising anything that she was doing. She then placed both hands on it, shakily holding the gun. Eleni backed behind her, and Neri closed her eyes as she squeezed the trigger.
There was a loud bang that made their ears pop, but the Restless fell to the black tile floor, limp. They were about to continue walking, but a faint whisper stopped them.
"Wait..."
Eleni peered over Neri's shoulder, and pointed to the officer that the Restless had been feeding on. He stank of death and decay, and it was a miracle that he was still alive, even though they all knew that it wouldn't be long before he passed. Neri turned on her heel, and looked at him.
His stomach had been gouged away, and his innards were spilling over the side of the giant cavity the Restless had carved in him. Blood ran in heavily defined lines from the bite on his neck.
"Come...here..."
They both tiptoed over to him, avoiding the bodies of the deceased. When they were within a foot of him, they sat down on either of his sides.
He wheezed, and his eyelids fluttered. "There were...so many."
Eleni took his cold hand, and cradled it in her smaller, warmer ones. It was moments like this that made Neri wonder exactly what Eleni's intentions were. She was always so kindhearted, and always thought of the best for people. It made Eleni sick whenever someone she loved--or even a complete stranger--was left behind, and she was always willing to help. Adding that onto her beauty and angelic singing voice, and you could've sworn that she was a goddess.
In contrast, Neri always wanted to save herself. Save others too, like Eleni, but only those who were close to her. Neri would only risk her skin for someone she knew was worth it. It was selfish, yes, but at least she could admit it. It was hard to look away, knowing there was someone you could've helped. But Neri brushed it off, knowing that the battle may never have been worth it if they didn't know the person. She had less emotion than most people, and would oblige to dirtying her hands for the better.
That was the difference between the two. Eleni was innocent, kind, and all-around pleasant to be with. Neri could be colder than stone, and was willing to sacrifice lives of people she never knew.
His breaths rattled in his throat. "You two...young women...are the last people I'll see."
"Don't say that," Eleni hushed him. "You'll see more. Up in heaven."
The man's smile actually returned to his face, making wrinkles around his eyes. "I want you two...to carry out my will."
Neri bit her lip skeptically. Is this worth it? I have to get Eleni to safety, and myself. We can't be distracted.
"Anything." Eleni nodded, tightening her reassuring grip on his bloody hands.
His smile wore away slightly. "I want you to...live. Live, and struggle."
"We can do that," Neri whispered.
"Live, struggle...take what you can, and go make a difference." He coughed, and blood began to run down his neck and sides again. "There's a door...in the main office. It leads to the basement, where...all the weapons are kept. Grab them and go."
Eleni nodded. "We will, sir."
His smile grew again, and his bloody lips parted into a full grin. "I have one final thing to ask."
Eleni urged him to continue.
"Shoot me. In the head," he murmured.
She was taken aback, and her brown eyes widened. "B-But we can't! I-I mean..."
"I will," Neri said, though it made her sick to her stomach.
"Neri!" Eleni cried, and grabbed her wrists to stop her friend from raising the gun.
"Let her," the officer whispered. "I don't...want to become one of them."
"You won't," Neri said, her voice solid as steel.
Eleni dropped his hand, getting to her feet to stop her. "Please, Neri, don't!"
"Eleni!" she yelled, and Eleni took a step back. "We...don't have a choice. It's what he wants."
"Thank you..." he wheezed. "Now go, live and struggle. Make a difference in the world."
Neri wracked the slide again, and pointed it to his forehead. He exhaled peacefully, a smile still plastered on his lips. Eleni's eyes glistened with tears. She pursed her lips and looked to the side as she pulled the trigger, sending a bullet into the head of the officer.
She lowered her gun, and turned around to pull Eleni into a hug. They stayed that way, silently comforting each other and offering a silent prayer to the man they never knew. When Neri stepped back, Eleni sniffled and looked away, finally pushing the issue aside.
Neri dropped the gun, not wanting to hold it for another moment. Not one that she had killed an innocent man with. "Have you been here before?" she questioned.
Eleni nodded, and swallowed thickly. "Yeah, once. I know the way to the main office, and then we'll follow the directions he gave us."
"Okay, I'll follow you."
The girls started again, Eleni leading, and Neri navigating her way over dead bodies. It took a minute or so to get to the main office because they were being cautious, in case another corpse decided to get up for a walk.
When they walked into the office, the sight that greeted them was the bloody skeleton of the concierge collapsed over the phone and the desk. Eleni guided them to the back office behind the counter, where a sign read "EMPLOYEES ONLY."
She jiggled the handle, but it was locked. They both sighed, and Neri ran a hand through her hair. Before Eleni could stop her, she walked over to the concierge, and reached her hand in her ripped coat pocket with a gag. Her fingers came into contact with cool metal, and she pulled the keys out on the lanyard they were on. She threw it to Eleni, rubbing her hands off thoroughly on her sleeveless, baby blue hoodie.
It took a few tries to get the right key, but when she found it, she kicked the door open. The stairs looked broken, but they were willing to risk it.
Hauling the gym bags over their shoulders and down the stairs, they began their descent into the cement basement.
One of the fluorescent lights still flickered, casting just enough light to see. In a black cage, predictably locked, was every gun of every shape and size. Opposite to the cage was other miscellaneous supplies, and both women nodded simultaneously. Eleni threw the lanyard to Neri, who turned to the cage and began trying the lock.
It took eight keys before she found the right, tiny silver one, and by then, Eleni's bag was almost full.
Neri's fingers wrapped around the barrels of any gun that she thought could be a good, lightweight, and be able to pack a punch. She settled for two classic AK-47s, two .357 Magnums, and a smaller shotgun for each. So that was one rifle, one shotgun, and one pistol for each of them. They filled her bag well, but she still had plenty of room.
Neri went to the wall that Eleni was rapidly emptying into her bag like it was Black Friday, and her eyes started scanning the ammunition. Rather than wasting time, she swept her arm across the shelf, pouring boxes upon boxes of bullets into her black gym bag.
Eleni had taken the streetwise approach, and gathered other meaningful supplies. She grabbed pitch-handled Swiss army knives, pocket knives, and any other knife imaginable, miniature first-aid kits, a solar-powered LED flashlight, and even got her paws on a few grenades.
"Grenades?!" Neri exclaimed, like Eleni was insane.
She just shrugged. "You never know."
When they left the supply room basically empty, they both decided that they were good enough. Before going back out, they got belt to wrap around their hips. Each grabbed an army knife, sliding it into its holster alongside the Magnums that each one had. They strapped the AK-47s across their backs opposite to the bags they carried, and pushed some cartridges of bullets into the little velvet pockets on the strap that went over their chests.
This left Neri's bag mostly empty, so they both grinned when they gained another idea. Both women ran up the stairs and out of the basement, over to the vending machines that were next to the entrances.
Each was filled with a scarce amount of Skor bars, Halls cough drops, baked ketchup Lays chips, and other random bags of junk, but it was good enough for them. Eleni took her rifle from over her shoulder and slammed the black, metallic stock of the gun into the glass.
It shattered and fell, and Eleni grinned. "I've always wanted to try that!"
Neri laughed, and began plucking bags and chocolate bars from the rings, placing them in her bag. Her bag was filled halfway, and it was enough for them to survive a week, at least. They did the same with the Coca-Cola machine next to it, except it took Eleni a few more tries to bash the stiff plastic. Neri grabbed cans of Pepsi, Dr. Pepper, Fanta, Nestea, but mostly bottled water. She couldn't take them all, because it was the cans that would way her down, but the water would definitely weigh the most.
After zipping it up, they turned to run towards the entrance. They slipped their bags over their shoulders, adjusted their belts and rifles one final time, and ran. Neri led the way, but was stopped by Eleni's scream.
Neri whipped around, and her eyes widened as she saw Eleni fall on her back on the ground, holding a Restless above her. It wriggled and clawed at her, its broken jaw dripping saliva.
She stood there in fear, too dumbstruck to react. Frozen in place.
"N...Neri!" Eleni screamed desperately, trying to hold the Restless above her at bay.
She groaned as it grew closer to her face, her petite figure unable to hold up the full-grown man. Neri's lips moved, but no sound came out.
"NERI!" Eleni shouted, her begging making no difference. Her hand's grip began to weaken, and the Restless fell closer to her with shriek. "NERI!"
Neri's legs wouldn't move. They felt like they were full of lead. Her grey eyes had clouded over, and her mouth hung open.
Finally, Eleni screamed as she held the Restless by the neck with her left hand, and her right one searched her belt for her knife. When her palm wrapped around the black hilt, she pulled it out and slammed it into the head of the Restless, until the blade was submerged in its skull. It fell limp with a cry, and Eleni rolled out from under it.
Neri collapsed to her knees, her quaking hands covering her cheeks. "E-Eleni! I'm so sorry, I-I just completely l-lost it, a-and--"
Eleni got up from the floor, breathing raggedly, and slipped her knife back into its leather holster. She half walked, half limped towards Neri, and fell to her knees beside her.
She offered a smile, and her hand squeezed Neri's shoulder. "I understand," she whispered. "I know what it's like to be scared."
Neri gulped.
Eleni stood up, and gave her hand to Neri. She pulled her to her feet, and Eleni gave her one last glance.
"We'll both have to toughen up from hereon out if we want to survive."