For a moment John struggled to understand what had happened as he, Perez and Edvin lay atop the rubble that only moments ago had been the stairs. One lone flashlight lay sideways on the concrete floor several feet from John, illuminating only a tiny portion of the space and leaving everything else in a veil of black.
Edvin coughed as he stiffly pushed himself up to a sitting position, "Everyone okay?"
"Yeah," Perez croaked after drawing in a deep breath.
John was the first to stand and took a painful step forward, picking up the flashlight. He shone it over to Edvin and Perez then reached out a hand, helping them up one at a time.
Once all three were virtical, John inspected the broken steps with his light, spotting immediately the answer to why they had collapsed.
"The stringers were sawed," he explained, pointing his light at the many areas where clear saw marks could be seen.
"Why?" Perez frowned.
Just then, the group of three heard a disturbing growl from the darkened recesses of the basement and John whipped around with his light. Nothing could be seen yet though, due to the many free standing shelving units that stood nearby, creating a labyrinth of keepsakes and memorabilia.
Perez was quick to realize that she had dropped her gun in the fall, "John, I need the light," she said, prompting him to turn back toward the rubble so she could look.
Edvin patted his pockets; he too had lost his weapon.
A breathy squeal soon pierced through the darkness as Edvin and Perez hurriedly hunted under the broken steps, lifting pieces of wood, but finding nothing.
"Shit," Perez whispered as the sound of shuffling feet and grating, wheezing breaths reached her ears.
John passed the flashlight over to Edvin and reached down quickly, picking up his gun which had landed not far from where the flashlight had been.
Meanwhile the sounds of an unknown number of screamers continued to perforate the stagnant air, moving closer by the second.
"Fuck! Where's my gun?" Perez hissed, anxiously rooting through the layers of broken wood.
The pitch of Perez' frustrated voice was enough to further excite the unseen infected, and all at once the shuffling feet sped up and a piercing shriek echoed off of the concrete walls, sounding too close for comfort.
John raised his gun, gripping it tightly in both hands and aimed it into the darkness, "Edvin- light!" he demanded.
Just as Edvin panned over, illuminating the open space between two stocked shelving units, a stark white face, contorted and hideous, burst forward from the veil of black and lunged toward John, its jaw unhinged and a sickening, gargled hiss erupting from its muddy mouth.
John pulled the trigger on his gun and with an ear-splitting boom, the screamer's body jerked fiercely backwards and dropped heavily to the floor.
Perez stopped searching for her gun, and instead wrenched the folding knife she carried out of her back pocket, "Okay- bring it," she muttered, taking on a defensive stance.
All at once, two screamers barreled forward, clawing and tripping over each other and the dead screamer on the floor. John fired, the sound ringing in his ears. He managed to take one out, but the other lunged toward Edvin squealing insidiously, the sludge in its mouth creating slimy strings that clung to its upper and lower teeth. Edvin backed up a step before rearing up his leg and thrusting his heavy boot into the screamer's gut, shoving it back several feet where it hit one of the solid shelves. Perez advanced toward the creature before it could recover, gripping its filthy shirt and plunging her blade into its right eye socket. Once the job was done, Perez threw the dead screamer to the floor, "Yeah!" She cheered breathlessly, her excitement befitting that of a soldier.
The squeals and hissing that swirled through the space were chilling, and the group stood ready in their corner waiting.
John found himself thinking only of Harley in those frightening seconds. He played out the very possible scenario in which he didn't make it out of that basement alive, and would never have the chance to see her to Sydney. There were things he needed to say to her- things he needed to see; the expression on her face when they arrived at a fully functioning CDC being paramount.
From the darkness hobbled out another screamer, this one an old woman, slow and- naked.
"Oh- Blech!" Edvin recoiled, the sight of swaying, saggy, withered flesh too much to bare.
The old screamer limped with difficulty toward John, her eyes much sadder than most of the screamers John had seen. Or perhaps it was merely a projection of what he felt for the fallen elder. He aimed his gun and pulled the trigger just before the old screamer made it to the growing pile of infected lying in the floor.
Before she even hit the concrete, another three screamers burst forward, viciouy shoving the elder out of the way and squealing like rabid hyenas. John's heart thundered, full of adrenaline as he pulled the trigger wildly three times, aiming the best he could at the three sporadic targets. One received a head shot and tumbled to the floor, one was a complete miss and the other took a shot to the nape of its neck.
The uninjured screamer dashed toward John at the same time the wounded one advanced for Perez. John was knocked up against the wall for a moment as the wild creature tried relentlessly to grab and claw its way closer. He held the screamer at an arms length with his weak shoulder and aimed his shaking gun at its head, squeezing the trigger and effectively killing his attacker.
Meanwhile, Perez preformed a take down move with swift precision and agility, knocking the legs out from underneath the screamer and causing it to hit the floor like a sack of potatoes. She leaned over it and with a rapid jab to the temple, the screamer fell limp.
Edvin, being the only one without a weapon ran up to the closest shelf and grabbed the only item which looked weapon worthy; a dusty, floral patterned ironing table. He had no choice but to trade the flashlight for a weapon, and sat the small light on the shelf in such a way that it illuminated the space just in front of where John and Perez stood, hoping it would suffice.
Just then, and like the parting of the heavens, a bright light shone down into cellar and a voice called out, "Hello?! John, Edvin, Perez?!"
It was Robby.
Perez stepped over to the rubble and peered up into the blinding light, "Yeah- we're okay. Could use a hand though- We got a Howler situation down here," she explained calmly.
All at once, another two screamers dashed forward. Edvin surprised one from the side, pounding it brutally with the old ironing board, while John spent two rounds on the other, larger crazed creature. The sound of wild shrieks, gunshots and bodies being battered with wood were enough to momentarily deafen John, Edvin and Perez.
"We'll find a ladder- Hold tight!" Robby yelled and quickly disappeared from the doorway.
While the three fought off one screamer after the other, none of them heard or saw Harley as she approached the door and looked down into the darkened basement.
She couldn't quite figure out why the guys needed a ladder as she sat down on the ledge of the threshold, then slid her body carefully off, her hands gripped firmly onto the lip that had been the first step. Behind her and a few feet away stood a rusted pole column, so she thought to make use of that and swiftly pushed herself off of the concrete wall and latched onto the top of the pole with ease, wrapping her legs around it for a sturdy grip.
Harley shimmied herself down and jumped the last few feet, landing on the cement floor next to the heap of broken steps, and only a few feet away from the battling trio. Still they hadn't noticed her, as all of their focus remained fixed on the steady flow of squealing, thrashing mongrels.
Gazing nervously through the darkness, Harley saw that John was alright as a cacophony of gunfire erupted from his handgun. She breathed in relief as she pulled out her serrated folding knife and approached, standing not two feet away from Edvin, "Havin' fun?" She said, announcing her presence.
Edvin whipped around in a blur, holding his weapon up, ready to strike, "Wah! Jesus!" He exclaimed as he lowered the ironing table.
Surprised, John aimed his gun at Harley before realizing it was her, "What the hell are you doing down here?" He growled as he lowered the barrel to the floor.
"What do you think, Einstein?" She frowned.
Perez shook her head in annoyance, "What part of 'stay here' didn't you understand?"
"I'm not a grunt. I don't just blindly follow orders," Harley spat, an insult aimed at Perez and her army training.
Perez looked ready to explode, but suddenly Harley's eye caught movement just between Edvin and the tall shelving unit. She acted quickly, slipping easily around Edvin's lumbering form and shoving away the lathargic screamer that had snuck up behind him. Harley hooked her hand under its chin, avoiding its snapping mouth and promptly skewered the creature through its temple, letting it fall to the concrete.
Breathing heavily, Harley glared at Perez, but only for a moment. Distracting her and everyone else was an ear-splitting crack and bang originating from somewhere deep within the cellar. They froze for a moment, listening to the anxiety-inducing noise, wondering what they were in for next.
Seconds after another piercing bang, a voice was heard, "Over hear, guys! There's a trap door!" Foss yelled from somewhere still unseen. Instantly an explosion of shrieks and gunfire permeated the space, and the foursome knew it was time to move.
Edvin shifted his ironing table into one hand and snatched the flashlight from the shelf, "Common," he instructed, leading the way.
Behind Edvin, Harley followed and behind her was John and then Perez. They shifted cautiously into the unknown space, surrounded by so many shelving units, they felt as if they were in a library.
Howling, wheezing screamers could be heard from every direction, and two shrill gunshots pounded the air, doing nothing to aid in everyone's focus as they inched forward. Edvin peaked around every corner with his light before moving on, his body tense and eager to get the hell out of that basement.
Just as they finally reached the end of the shelves, Edvin looked to his left and was thrilled to see the trap door. A narrow, cement stairwell led upward and out, but they would have to trample over the dead howlers who lay mangled on the steps. He picked up his pace, hurrying to the exit, but seemingly out of nowhere he was brutally tackled to the ground by an enormous Howler.
Harley witnessed the creature erupt from a dark doorway at the farthest end of the long basement, and sprung forward to intervene just seconds too late. She was quick to rush over to where Edvin lay fighting to hold back the hideous, drooling giant as it snapped and hissed and thrashed at Edvin's shoulders and face.
Edvin grunted and cringed at the creatures proximity, the smell alone enough to induce a rush of bile up into his throat.
Harley dashed over, grabbed a fistful of the creature's greasy, dark hair and viciously thrust her blade into the meaty area at the base of its skull, rotating her wrist upward and twisting to make sure the job was done properly.
Edvin shoved the heavy, sagging body off of him and hopped up quickly, shivering in disgust, "Yuch!"
"C'mon ya' big baby," Harley smirked as she walked ahead and began making her way up the stairs, stepping over filthy bodies.
"Keep saving my ass like that and I'll have to marry you," Edvin said smiling as he followed behind.
Harley snorted as she reached the top of the stairs and emerged into the crisp night air.