"Runner Five, Runner Three, Colonel De Luca, I'm approaching you from your nine o'clock," Colonel Sage says, and I notice the tension in Janine's face eases slightly when he finally reaches us. We only received his first message ten minutes ago, but time is of the essence.
"Colonel Sage, we were glad to receive your message." Janine looks over her shoulder. "As you can see, the V-Type are now a significant problem."
Peter makes a face. "Uh, a problem is an ingrown toenail. We've got a horde of a thousand zombified former bikers."
"Eh, I'd say about 800," Nicole corrects. "There were about 200 bikers that went gray, and the settlements that have fallen since then are what really added the numbers."
He rolls his eyes. "My bad."
"Even with those numbers, we have a way to destroy them," Sage says, looking at Janine expectantly. "Do you have the burn cubes with you?"
She nods and gestures to the pack she's carrying. "A small stock. I am wary of using the burn cubes willy-nilly, Colonel. My runners retrieved some from Sigrid's island, but there will be no more when these are gone."
He nods in acknowledgement. "I know how to use them to best effect. It's a plan I've been working on for some time."
I release a small breath. That is a relief to hear. If he's been looking into this plan for a while, that means there's less of a chance of all of us dying. Although I can only hope this plan doesn't rely on zombies being stupid, since well... they're a lot smarter than anticipated. I mean, we already knew they were smarter than regular zombies, but seeing how they literally parted for the pigs and killed them as if they knew they were a threat, and how they tried to outflank us, we have to assume they think like humans.
But what I don't understand is how some V-Types seemed more animalistic and normal zom-like in smaller numbers, while they're more tactical in groups. Nadia said it was if they had one mind. If somehow this new strain of zombie virus allows them to have one mind, we're in deep shit.
Dr. Feive said that her project's hive mind meant we could take down an entire country in a few nights, and there was only five subjects in that project, and we could die. If these zombies are anything like that...
"Uh, Janine, I should bow out now, right?" Peter asks nervously, wringing his hands. "Because you know-V-Types, me... could make a worrying immortal zombie situation."
"You and me both," I mumble under my breath, but thankfully no one hears me.
"There's no time for any change in personal. This plan requires pinpoint timing and several runners. We must hurry. Run!"
Sage picks up the pace, and we're forced to do the same. I can see the worry flashing through Peter's eyes, and I feel it when he grabs my wrist so tightly it borders on pain. Still, I don't say anything. After what happened at Sigrid's island, he's had this look of growing self-hatred of what he is and what he can make zombies into.
And it's hard to convince someone of their innocence when it comes to this. He chose to take Van Ark's treatments and so he feels like he should feel guilty for what he can do years and years down the road, even though at the time he had no idea any of this would happen.
If someone had told me that unkillable zombies were a thing when I was sixteen, I would have either laughed or had a heart attack. If you told me the unkillable zombies biting Peter or possibly even myself would make them healing zombies as well...
I can understand why he's feeling the way he is.
But apparently we have no time to change personnel. Even if we got Peter away, I'd still be here, and I'm just as much of a risk as he is. It's just that no one else knows it. We have to keep each other safe. Peter can't turn, but we still can't let him get bitten. I could turn and infect other zombies, and we need Janine's leadership if we want Abel to stand. Sage is one of our best allies. If we lose him, we lose a lot.
No one on this mission is expendable.
Which is why I hope Sage's plan is good.
"Follow me through this gate," He instructs, pushing the metal bars of the gate open. The hinges squeal from rust and lack of care, and I cringe when I see the dozens of headstones and other grave markers all around.
"Right. So this is... an enormous city of a graveyard." Peter's face twists in discomfort. "Dr. Necropolis visits the necropolis. Sounds like a really inappropriate kids' book."
"It's actually kind of lovely," Sam says, and of course he'd say that since he's not in the creepy graveyard with snow falling, the cold making it seem all the more creepy. "I mean, look at all the candles in the mausoleum windows."
"This place has been where my people bury and mourn the dead," Sage explains. "Unfortunately, it won't be so peaceful much longer."
"Just so you know, ETA on the V-Type horde is less than ten minutes. You haven't got long, Colonel Sage."
"Yeah, and the fact that you came to a graveyard where they could make an army of ghouls won't help much either," Nicole says skeptically, although rightly so. This graveyard is enormous. There's probably five hundred bodies buried here, if not more. "Mind telling us your plan, Colonel?"
Janine frowns at her tone, but Sage doesn't seem to be bothered by it.
"We have just long enough. There's a train which serves this necropolis. I've been using it to ferry my people to visit the graves. Mourners have observed that the ground violently shakes as the train passes. When you told me that the burn cubes are highly sensitive to movement, and that the V-Types are drawn to the dead-"
"I see," Janine interrupts with a nod. "We place the burn cubes in the crypts and withdraw. When the train passes overhead, it triggers them."
"Just as the as the V-Types have come down to enjoy corpse a la mode," Sam finishes." Clever."
Peter crosses his arms. "Not that clever."
I have to resist the urge to smile. After our last mission with Sage, I suppose I can see why Peter dislikes him a bit. Although he kind of already did before we had to save the caravan.
"The time, as Mr. Yao pointed out, is of the essence," Sage says. "Let's run."
He begins leading us through the cemetery, and I try not to look at the headstones as we pass them. I don't read their names. Even with the snow fall and the dead grass and flowers, the graves are surprisingly clean, even the plainer, more... recent ones with simple wooden crosses that have the names burned into the wood.
I haven't visited a cemetery in a while, not even the one in Abel. There's so much that's happened, and it would only make me feel worse if I went there to remember what's been lost. It's terrible feeling, and I want to get out of here as soon as possible.
Peter grabs my wrist out of habit, and I only notice when he falls a step or two behind and almost slows me down as well. He's looking around, brows knit and eyes full of questions I can't understand. His eyes always dart in the direction of a moan that comes from one of the nearing V-Types. They're so close, too close, and it while Sage's plan is definitely a good, simple and effective one, that doesn't mean it can't go wrong.
A lot of plans like Sage's has gone wrong when I happened to be a part of them.
There are some buildings in the graveyard-mostly small ones. They're clean, well kept, and Sage guides us through one and into what seems to be catacombs. My feelings of unease only grow, but I swallow it down and keep moving forward. I will feel better once we get rid of this massive V-Type horde. They're our biggest threat. While there will still be V-Types out there, and more Last Rider survivors, unfortunately, this horde has been taking entire settlements down and will continue to do so unless we stop it.
We may not get another chance. And if we don't get another chance, then V-Types will destroy the entire country and move on to the rest of the world.
"Okay, guys, got you on catacomb cams," Sam says. "Wow. It's massive!"
"The cemetery was built on top of an ancient burrow. People have buried their dead down here for centuries," Colonel Sage explains, and Peter sneers.
"Yes, and pretty soon, it'll be swarming with period zombies. Come on. I don't want to get bitten by a bubonic ghoul in a wimple."
Janine takes off her pack and unzips it, pulling out some of the burn cubes. I gulp when I see them without their protective cases. "We will run together and lay forty burn cubes in key structural positions. This represents almost one quarter of our total cube stock. We must trap the V-Types here so the cubes could destroy them all."
I open my own pack so she can put some in there. I hug it close to my chest, since having it closer to my body, as terrifying as it is, is the best way to keep me from accidentally dropping one and killing us all. Peter does the same. He stares at the cubes in his bag for a long, long minute.
"As soon as the charges are laid, we'll go to the signal station and send the train out," Sage says, but Sam quickly cuts in.
"Wait. Someone's down there."
He raises a brow. "Description?"
"He's uh... yeah, well, he's a man. Um... he's wearing one of your jumpsuits. Uh, medium build. His hair is... normal."
Nicole scoffs. "Oh, like a portrait painted with words. Colonel, the man is light skinned, no taller than 5'7, blond hair. His shoes are wet but there's no snow on them, meaning he must have been down here long enough for it to have melted but not enough for them to dry."
"I see," He hums. "Tell me the tomb he's visiting. Are there any objects near it?"
"Yes, sir. There's a guitar, looks nice, polished. The strings look as if they've been tightened recently."
"Ah. Dennis."
"You know your colonist well," Janine says, looking impressed. Peter looks the opposite.
"Keep files on them, do you?"
Sage nods. "On those in my care and on those I have lost. I refer to them often."
His skeptical demeanor falters just for a moment. "Oh. Right. Well, it sounded like a bad thing in my head."
"I know which tomb Dennis is visiting. We have enough time for a brief detour to collect him, but we must hurry."
"Yeah," Sam agrees. "Actually, you might want to be a little faster than hurry. The V-Types are at the edge of the necropolis. Go! Run!"
•
"Okay, guys. Dennis is just past that statue that looks worryingly like an Elder Scrolls Draeger," Sam says.
"A what?" Nicole and I both ask, and he sighs.
"Never mind."
"Dennis? Dennis, it's Colonel Sage."
As we get closer, the man in question turns to us, his eyes widening slightly. But then his shoulders slump, a certain look covering his features. It's one of deep sadness and odd clarity.
"Hello, Colonel," He says. His voice is soft, weak, sounding strained as if he's been crying, although there are no tear stains on his face. "Just listening to our song-mine and Jason's. Hang on."
He pauses the song on whatever device he has in his hand and then takes out his earbuds, turning his full attention to us. He doesn't seem surprised or curious that all these strangers are here.
"Dennis, the necropolis will soon be demolished. Didn't you hear the announcements?"
Dennis looks down at his feet. "I know we're supposed to leave. I just... I want to be with him."
Sage sighs in sympathy. "I know, but you can't stay here."
"No, I want to be with him."
My chest tightens as I understand the emphasis of his words. I can't blame him for wanting this. After I thought Sam had died I... tried to end it all. Losing the person you love feels like a sudden darkness has replaced everything. It swallows up all good thoughts, all good memories, replacing everything with the reminder that the person you loved is gone and never coming back. It's an agonizing pain, but we can't leave him here to die, even if he wants us to.
We don't just leave people like this, not good people, not when we have the ability to save them.
I grimace. I can already hear Nicole's reply to that.
But I'm not the only one who gets Dennis' words. Colonel Sage's lips pinch together, his grayed brows furrowing for a long moment before he speaks.
"I see. Dennis, if you stay, I'll stay too."
"Colonel, I must object," Janine says quickly, and Sam agrees.
"Yeah, that's not a good idea."
"Colonel De Luca, you and your runners laid some of the charges down as we ran, correct? Now lay the remaining charges in the eastern catacombs, then go to the control point. I'll wait for Dennis. He's my responsibility. What happened to Jason was my responsibility too."
Dennis quickly shakes his head. "It wasn't your fault."
"There's no time for debate."
"Janine, I'll stay down here and make sure they both leave in time," Peter says before shrugging nonchalantly. "It's not like I can get hurt."
I bite the inside of my cheek. Something about this gives me a great feeling of unease, but Nicole's words and sharp tone bring back my focus back to our task.
"Colonel De Luca, Singer, the V-Types are in the necropolis. You have to place those burn cubes and start the train, or all this is wasted and you and every settlement near here will fall. Now move!"
I flinch at the bite her tone has, but I don't disobey. She's right. If we fall hundreds of more people could die within a few days, and the V-Type horde would grow even larger if they managed to turn all these dead people into ghouls. And since they later turn to V-Types, things would only get worse from there.
We can't let that happen. I look down at my bag that contains the burn cubes, trying not to jostle them against each other. Forty burn cubes will be gone after this. I think we'll have a little over ninety left in the armory, but will that be enough to truly stop the V-Types? I mean, we could see if Valmont wanted to retry the pigs if we bring grenades to actually blow the V-Types up before the pigs eat them, but he seemed to drop that idea surprisingly quickly after it failed once. It's rather odd for a man who has a company that does so much trial work. Failed tests should be a normal thing for him.
We can't have another thing like this happen, though. We can't have another V-Type take down a large group of people, because we can't just use forty burn cubes here and there.
And even though Nicole has talked to Steve, he's already said because of how volatile they are, there's no way he could take one apart and see what exactly it's made out of without greatly risking getting vaporized. So finding out how to make more is unfortunately out of the question.
We pass some of the burn cubes we placed down earlier, and once we get to a point that we no longer see burn cubes, Janine and I start placing down the ones in our bags. They don't have to be close together, since the rumbling of the train will set them off. If one cube doesn't go off because of the train, the blast of the other cubes will be enough to keep the chain reaction going. This entire place will soon be nothing but ash.
It's a shame, really. This is such a large graveyard used to mourn the dead, but with it gone, so will about 800 V-Types.
"You're doing well in those eastern catacombs," Sam praises, and I'm glad his voice is brining good news so far. "Sage and Peter are still in the western bit, talking to Dennis. I'll patch you in."
There's a soft click before I hear Sage's voice.
"Dennis, it's time to go. You know Jason would want you to live."
"Then he shouldn't have gotten himself killed, should he? When someone you love dies, they say you lose a part of yourself. I've lost my heart." His voice beaks on a sob. "Can't live without a heart."
"Unless you're me," Peter mumbles before clearing his throat. "Colonel, you go. Janine needs you. I'll stay here with Dennis, and I can tell him how fulfilling life is and all that."
I frown. Since when has Peter ever talked about how fulfilling life is?
"And if you fail to convince him and are caught in the explosion?" He asks.
"Oh, uh, haven't you heard? I'm immortal. I can't die, and I mean that in a very literal sense."
"No, Peter, you don't understand," I cut in, and I swear I hear him jump. "Burn cubes can vaporize V-Types. If they can kill them, they can definitely kill people like y-you. P-People like you, immortal people..."
Peter doesn't say anything, but Sage does.
"You already knew that, didn't you? That's what you're counting on."
I've never seen Janine tense up so quickly. "Mr. Lynne, is that true?"
"Look, I-" Peter sighs in frustration that he's been caught. "I'm a-a liability. If a V-Type bites me, it turns immortal. The bit of thumb that we took from the zombie on the island-it's still growing. We can't have immortal zombies. We just can't! The one thing I was good for was a runner who can't be hurt. Now I can't even do that! This is the last thing I can do for the human race, Jenny! Just... just leave it."
Janine's eyes are wide, terrified. I know how she is, though. Even though she loves Peter, she'll put the mission first. She won't go back for him if those V-Types keep coming. From the glance she sends me, though, she knows that. She also knows that she can rely on me to literally drag Peter back to Abel kicking and screaming if I have to.
I nod, letting her know that if it comes to it, I'll go back after him myself. Him dying would be a stupid, stupid waste, especially since even if he died, zombies could still become immortal through me. And who knows if there happens to be others out there that might have been subject to Van Ark's tests and got the types of results we did. I think about that sometimes, although I try not to.
"It's not for you to determine your own worth, either of you," Colonel Sage says. "Consider what you owe to each other."
"I'm not strong enough," Dennis says. "It was Jason who kept me going, and now he's gone."
"If I'm strong, Dennis, it's because of the people who support me. We're all part of a greater structure than ourselves. Right now, the structure rests in only a few shoulders. The weight is huge. It's tempting to shrug it off. I've been tempted.
"But I see the people I support. The people who support me. Your unit, Dennis. Louise, Vijay, Arian-you should hear the way they talk about you in their sessions. And you, Peter. Sam, Janine, Maxine, Ellie, Callista-they need you."
"We do, Mr. Lynne," Janine says, and she grits her teeth. "I do. Please, say something."
There's a moment of silence.
"Peter," I start, "you're not-"
I hear moans echo through the catacombs, and Sam curses.
"Crap! Crap! The V-Types have started reanimating. Janine, Five, there are ghouls in the tunnels with you."
"Good thing we've placed the last of the burn cubes," I say.
"Good. Colonel De Luca, Runner Five, set the train in motion," Sage commands. "We'll all be out of the catacombs when it arrives."
Sam's voice shakes with uncertainty. "But-but there isn't enough-"
"Please, just believe in me. Go!"
Janine and I are already running. It makes sense that the zombies would come down here first, since the dead are easier to access here and there'd be less time worrying about digging up the graves. Although there is a possibility that some came down here while other V-Types are digging at the corpses up top. They're smart, as we've seen, so we must be prepared for V-Types up top as well.
I can hear the moans of the ghouls behind us. Do they know we're here? They seem to be able to know. I would assume it's because of our smell, but even the ones without heads are good at finding people. Whatever it is, they're coming for us, which is why I'm thankful when we reach stairs leading up to the surface and no V-Types on them.
I grab my pistol. It won't kill V-Types, but it could push them back if they happen to get to close.
Thankfully though, there are no zoms around the when we make it to the top. I hear Sam sigh in slight relief.
"Glad to see you back on the surface. Uh, see that signalman's hut? Get in there and get the train going. It'll take a few minutes to reach the catacombs. They've still got time to get out. Just enough time."
Janine doesn't look convinced. Her face holds a look of deep hurt and despair as we reach the hut and head inside. She surprisingly doesn't even try to hide it.
"Mr. Lynne was determined to remain."
"Sage is talking to him. Listen."
"-of self-sacrifice, Mr. Lynne. You've survived things that others could not. I understand that you perceive yourself as a threat now, but that's how you've always thought of yourself," Sage explains. "This is not a revelation; it's a pattern.
"You mask profound self-loathing with humor. You believe that you are worthless. You've been willing to lay down your life for others before. You want to do it again today. But that would be the easy route. You would die for them. The harder path is to live for them."
Sam patches us out with a sigh. "Peter's listening. He's not saying anything, but he's listening."
"Look, I know you guys care about Runner Three, but we've got other problems to worry about," Nicole cuts in, and as if on cue, I hear ghouls from outside. "Oh, isn't this perfect? Colonel, Singer, three ghouls outside heading towards you. From the looks of their clothes through this crappy camera feed, they followed you up from the catacombs. Start the train and get out of there."
"Uh..." I look down at the different levers, each with different colors. "Which one do we pull?"
"I..." Nicole pauses, and the longer she's silent the more I start to panic, especially since the ghoul's moans are getting louder. "I don't-I don't know. Damn it!"
"Uh, is there one that says 'on'?" Sam asks, and I flinch when Janine slams her hand against the wall.
"This isn't funny! This isn't the time for one of your bloody jokes!" She snaps, and I stare at her in surprise. "Tell me which lever to pull. I have no idea what to do right now and I need someone to tell me!"
My headset crackles.
"Janine?" Dennis says cautiously. "Sorry. I'm an engineer. The black levers are numbered. Should be a diagram in there. Pull the one with the same number as the track you want the train to take."
Sam sighs in relief. "Dennis, you lifesaver. Janine, uh, yeah. That's what you need to do. Five, lure the ghouls away from the hut. If they see you running, I'm sure they'll go after you, okay? Run."
I head out of the hut, stopping for a moment just to make sure the ghouls catch sight of me. I dig my nails into my skin, just enough to draw some blood. It starts burning closed a second later, but I'm hurt and healing. That's what ghouls go after. It's just one more way to ensure they come after me.
And they do, going at a surprisingly fast speed as they fallow me into one of the buildings on the grounds. It's a large building, looking kind of like a place where a funeral might be held before taking the body to its grave.
"We've got cams inside that building," Sam says as I run through one of the halls, weaving around some of the large stone pillars that are around some of the grand rooms before heading down another hall. "You're doing well. None of the ghouls are getting too close to-"
"Wait," Nicole says, and as soon as she speaks, I hear a faint beeping. "Oh, shit. Singer, there's a burn cube attached to one of the ghoul's robes. It must have triggered it when it bumped into the wall."
The beeping is getting faster.
"Oh, God. Five, get clear!" Sam screams, and I run down the hall as fast as I can, diving behind a pillar as an explosion followed by the ghouls screeching fill my ears, then silence.
"Five?" Peter calls through my headset. "Five?! Sam, is Five okay?"
"I-I'm fine," I say shakily, slowly walking out from behind the pillar. The entire hall is gone, and half the room that was on the other side of the hall, and a good three quarters of the pillar I used for shelter has been vaporized. "If I'd been a second slower though... I'd be gone. But I'm okay."
"They weren't kidding when they said those burn cubes were unpredictable," Sam murmurs, and I hear Peter sigh in relief.
"Oh, thank God. Thank God."
"Dennis, Peter, do you see?" Sage asks. "They need you. They've always needed you. It's time to return."
Dennis lets out a breath. "I see. Yes. I see."
"Come back to us, Peter," Janine says, and her voice shakes.
"Please," I add softly.
We're met with silence, and I'm already starting back for the catacombs to get him myself before Peter speaks.
"Sam, Nicole, how do we get out?"
"Right. Peter, Dennis, Colonel Sage, take the tunnel on your left," Sam says. "Janine, Five, they'll be coming out of the gate with the huge columns to the west. You need to be in place to meet them to head out together."
"Thank you, Mr. Yao," Janine says. I apologize for my earlier-"
"No, it-it's fine, Janine. I get it. If it had been Callista... I get it. But you haven't got long before the train goes over the crypts and sets off all those burn cubes. Run!"
•
"Colonel, Runner Five, over here!" Sage calls, and we rush over to meet him and the others.
"You're safe!" I smile widely even as we continue running, trying to get far away from the graveyard. "You're all safe."
When we come to a stop a few minutes later, Peter gives us all sheepish look. "Hi."
Janine smiles back softly before looking at Colonel Sage. "Thank you. You said what they needed to hear, and you've only known Peter briefly. I should have known what to say."
Peter sighs heavily. "It's-it's not your fault, Janine. Sage was right. The V-Types are just another excuse. It... it's not that I want to leave you. Leave everyone. It's... you'll all leave me, sooner or later. You'll go through a door and I won't follow, and... and then it'll just be me."
Tears suddenly sting the backs of my eyes. "Peter..."
"But maybe what Sage said is enough," He rushes on to say. "To be needed here, now."
"Peter, I don't say this as often as I should, but you're a great friend," Sam says. "One of my best friends."
He smiles. "Thanks. That-that means a lot. Of course, it might mean more if you weren't best friends with literally everyone in the entire world, but still. Uh, thanks. Really."
The ground shakes as a bright light hits the edges of my vision from the explosion. Remembering last time, I squeeze my eyes shut for a few moments, focusing on keeping my balance as the entire world seems tries to throw me down.
After a moment, I open my eyes to see the flames still rising, ash falling down instead of snow.
"Wow. Look at that," Sam whispers. "A whole horde was in there. You know, I didn't think we'd ever get one over on the V-Types."
"A victory at last." Janine smiles. "Colonel Sage, thank you. The V-Type threat is not gone, but it is vastly reduced. I don't know what we could have done without you."
I place my hand on Peter's shoulder. "Or you."
A/N: Here you go, guys! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please be sure to vote and comment! Thank you and have a blessed day!