Chapter 29
Gun fire is our cue to make a run for it. I open the door and watch all the creatures as they surround the businesses across the road. Bullets zoom out into the streets, nailing the monsters left and right. While they begin huddling together, I devise my own plan for getting past them.
“You ready for this?” Travis asks, stepping up beside me.
“It’s too late to go back now.” I reply, focusing in on an alleyway across from me.
While the rain pitter patters all around, he grabs the back of my neck, pulls me in close, and kisses my lips firmly. Kisses me like this is the last time we may ever get to. When he pulls away his dimples have sunken into his cheeks from the wide grin on his face. I watch from the doorway where he left me as he sprints out into the rain; with his rifle strapped to his back, and pistol in his hands.
The next ones to leave are Colonel Kirk Samuels and Jace. They run out, one after the next, and are able to slip behind an abandoned car undetected. The Colonel peeks over the hood at the distracted aliens, yards away. He crouches back down and whispers something to Jace. Armed, they split up and run to businesses on different sides of the road.
Now it’s my turn.
Before I can make it out the doorway Katie whispers, “Be safe.” She is staying back with Cano to not only keep an eye on our prisoner, but also to be our only medic. She wanted to be out there, fighting with us, but we knew we couldn’t risk losing the only person here with actual medical training.
“Always am.” I reply, then sprint away.
The warehouse door shuts quietly behind me. I sprint across the road for the empty alleyway, only peeking to the side once. There’s so much gunfire, and other loud noises, that I don’t think they had seen me.
When I get into the narrow dead end, I post up against the wall. As I peek around the corner, an incendiary grenade lights up a few Grey Ones all at once. Their bodies engulf in flames almost immediately.
It’s working.
I pull back into the alleyway and face the brick wall. There are missing chunks and enormous holes. Probably from when they first plummeted from above. When their bodies crashed into buildings, it made them appear like ruins. Ironically, the destruction they caused will be something that helps us destroy them.
I use the damaged areas to climb up the wall. The bricks scrape into my hands with every move I make upward. Finally reaching the ledge, I pull myself onto the roof. Down the street, Kay and Justin stand on separate rooftops; waiting for their signal to go.
There are loud bangs from incendiary grenades blowing up below. When I peek over the ledge there groups of the vicious beings, their massive bodies on fire. Their screams pierce into the air as they burn to the ground quickly. Within seconds, their charred bodies fall silent and motionless in the streets while the Guerrillas continue to take them out, chunks at a time.
Right when I’m beginning to think we may win this war after all, a sudden roll of thunder has me worried. If it rains any harder, it could put out our fire before we can lead them to it. We need to hurry before that happens.
With a hushed tone I speak into the walkie-talkie, “Isabelle to Leon, how are we doing over there?”
“Almost done.” He replies, panting heavily.
“Alright. We’re going to start leading the Grey Ones your way. We’ll be there in approximately five minutes.”
“I’ll be ready.”
A painful shriek from below me brings my attention back to the war zone. Right below, Travis is pulling Luke away from an alien that has been set on fire. Its large body falls still on top of other blackened figures.
I shift my eyes to Luke, who’s propped in a doorway right below me. He’s bleeding pretty heavily. He doesn’t stop though. With a flame thrower in hand, he pushes back the monsters that want to eat him alive.
As I glance around, I realize that there are probably a hundred burnt corpses covering the blood-stained streets. But they’re not all aliens. The creatures were able to take out some other Guerrillas along the way.
When the explosions begin to come less often I realize it’s time to go. We need to get the surviving beasts to chase after us to the courtyard before our people run out of ammo and fire.
Three blocks have never seemed so far away.
The walkie-talkie shakes in my hand from the adrenaline pumping through my body. “Isabelle to Kay and Justin. It’s our turn. Let’s do this!”
As I step onto the ledge of the roof, I realize there are more enemies emerging from all around. Even with the fire continuing to light up the street, they’re not backing down. When someone on the sidewalks below yells that they’re all out of ammo I pull my pistol out. We need to get the monsters’ attention so they’ll chase after us instead of our survivors.
I glance to where Justin and Kay stand on the ledge of their rooftops. The guns in their hands are aimed at the newcomers. I’ll signal for them to begin shooting in a minute. But first, I’ll need to give Travis and the others a heads up.
“Isabelle to Travis.” I say urgently into the walkie-talkie.
“Travis to Belle. Are you okay?” He doesn’t attempt to mask the concern in his tone.
“I’m fine. You need to fall back. All the Guerrillas need to fall back. There are more coming this way, and we want to be the only ones they see.”
“Roger that. You heard her everyone; fall back. Fall back.” Travis demands. Gun fire ceases almost immediately while everyone moves inside the buildings to take cover.
When the creatures begin to chase after them, we start shooting from above. I aim directly at one that’s racing right for Travis’s building. When I pull the trigger, the bullet pierces right into a soft spot; stunning the beast for a moment. After clawing the bullet from its head, it looks up at me. Its membrane frill unwraps, revealing its serrated teeth. The smaller monster releases a deathly scream. And soon, they’re all staring up at the rooftops.
The creatures leave the survivors behind as they turn on us. None seem stunned from the bullets that ricochet off their protected skin. Rounding the corners are more on all fours, running straight for us.
Once the first one digs its long nails into the bricks, and begins clawing its way up, I know that this is our time to run. I tuck the handgun into my waistband and turn around. While I make a run for the other side of the roof, I can see Kay and Justin doing the same.
The gap between buildings is narrow. With the running head start, I easily make the short leap. Landing on my feet on the next rooftop, I use the momentum to sprint even faster. Behind me, is the sound of the first one clawing its way onto the roof. I don’t look back though; it’ll only distract me from the path ahead.
When I reach the ledge, I frantically search for a way down. After a few seconds, I find the fire escape on the side of the building. Behind me, the congested sounds become louder as more begin to chase after me. I race towards the ladder that leads straight down into the empty street.
Right when the first alien jumps across the small break between rooftops, I flip my legs over the ledge and let go. A loud thud echoes in the alleyway as my body lands on the metal stairs. Directly above, their claws scrape against the cemented rooftop.
By the time I make it down the stairs and reach the street, a group of the monstrous beings are descending the fire escape and old building. Their claws digging into the bricks while they eye their prey. They’re coming right for me, and fast.
A hundred feet to my right Justin and Kay are running side by side. They sprint across the street and dive through a broken window with a line of aliens chasing after them.
I follow their lead and jump through a broken window of another building. The small shop has been so destroyed that I can’t tell what it was before. Behind me, the sound of nails scraping on pavement is getting closer and closer. I dart across the room to where an old ‘Employees Only’ sign hangs on a backdoor. There could be a way out through here.
When I open the door, a foul stench
creeps up my nose immediately. Rotted human remains block the back door. It looks like they tried to escape, but were unable to make it out in time.
The glass shards in the front of the store crunch underneath the Grey Ones searching for me inside of the building. There’s nowhere else to go. I’m going to have to move the dead bodies away from that door.
When I reach the half-eaten bodies the rotting stench is so strong that I can taste it in my mouth. My teeth grind together as I fight the vomit working its way up my throat. I hold my breath as I begin to pull the pile of corpses away from the only exit. Goosebumps form on my body when my hand wraps around the gnawed bones. As I pull them down, the limbs tumble faster than I expect; landing on and around my boots. My hands desperately pull at the torsos blocking the doorway until it’s finally clear.
One bursts through the Employees Only door on all fours. Its solid black eyes scan the room until finally stopping when they land on me. I need to get out of here. My shoulder slams into the metal door twice before it finally swings open. Falling into the sunlight, I turn and slam the door in its ugly face.
“What the hell are you doing here?” A woman’s voice says next to me.
Panting heavily, I see two looters standing beside me. I immediately recognize them as the girl with the pixie cut and the bald looter from the bridge. The girl is drowning in a camouflage coat that’s splattered with red blood.
Up close, I can see Kawika’s tribal tattoo that goes from the side of his face, down his neck, and into his arm. He brandishes a hunting knife and steps towards me. I back up into the corner and reach for my lucky dagger, strapped to my thigh. Fumbling for the handle, an alien breaks down the door in between us.
The looters immediately turn around and begin to dash the other way; to where the alley opens up. The creature is so focused on them it hasn’t found me trapped in the corner behind it. While it chases after them, I search for a way out. Another one bursts through the broken down door and takes off after its companion. I’ll need to find another way.
I glance around and find a drain pipe beside me. I climb my way up the building, using the rickety aluminum. More screams erupt as aliens come running out below. Nearing the short roof, I twist back to see if they’ve seen me above. One of their muscular bodies leaps on Kawika’s bald head, knocking him to the ground. His screams for help are short lived when it sinks its teeth into him. I can’t watch this happen to another human being. I turn away and try to block out the noise of his crunching bones.
Pulling myself up and over the ledge, I check on the looters below. The man’s body has been ripped apart. Six of them are gnawing on the remains. While more come sniffing for food, I realize that the girl is gone. My eyes search down below for her short black hair, but she isn’t there. She must’ve made it out in time.
As I peek down at the watch Katie gave me, I realize that I only have a couple of minutes left to make it on time. The courtyard is only one block away from here. If I hurry, we can still make it. That means I’ll need to get their attention. And fast.
As they continue to sniff around below like a pack of wolves, I pull the pistol from my waistband. My hand squeezes the cold black gun as I aim at a figure below. A loud bang echoes through the alley; followed by another and another. The bullets bounce off the armored areas on two of their bodies. As they rise on hind legs, their large heads turn from side to side. It doesn’t take long for one to drop its head back and find me standing high above.
When their eyes narrow in on me, they immediately jump over each other like hungry hyenas. Their nails scrape as they dig into the brick building. With the rain still sprinkling down softly, I run to the other side of the rooftop. I begin to panic when I realize there’s no stair access, fire escape, or even a usable drain pipe.
I spin around and shoot a couple rounds at the first head to pop over the ledge. While that one falls back off the building, another claw reaches up. I pull the trigger again, hoping that I can push this creature back too. When it clicks, I know that I have two choices; I can stay and reload, or I can run and find a way down.
I tuck the pistol back into my waistband and sprint towards the building next door. As my heart pounds in my chest I throw my body over the gap. The moment my feet connect with the cemented roof, I return to my sprint. A dull cramp aches under my ribs. I push past it and scan for a way to get away. Attached to the front of the tall building next door is a fire escape.
With the congested sounds coming closer to my back, I leap into the air. My fingertips catch on the edge, barely enough to hold myself up. I dig into the wet brick and pull myself up. And just in time. One swipes its long nails at me, narrowly missing the back of my ankles.
The rooftop garden died long ago. What used to be a bed of flowers has now become a dirt pile of dead plants. I sprint across the roof until I reach the ledge above the fire escape. To my side, a few aliens have already made their way up and are racing towards me on all fours.
I flip my legs over the ledge and plunge to the first platform. It rocks back and forth, my stomach drops. I don’t have the time to be scared now. They’re coming for me. I climb over the unstable railing and mimic Justin’s trick during parkour. I let go and drop, catching myself on the outside of the next platform. My hands almost slip when I grab onto the wet railing, but I’m able to readjust quickly. I repeat the same thing again, landing on the second to last railing. When I look up, the creatures clawing their way down the brick building. More of them have shown up and are following the others down the wall.
I’m going to have to drop the next two stories before they can catch me. I aim for an abandoned car beneath my feet. My body plummets into the car’s roof, denting under my boots. Pain shoots through my ankles and up my legs. I ignore the pain and jump again. This time, my body rolls over my ankles when I land in the empty street.
Thuds of falling monsters echo as they land on the abandoned cars behind me. I round the intersection to the street where Leon should have the trap ready. My heart races as I sprint towards the familiar building.
I run inside the restaurant, but can’t see anyone else. It’s completely empty. Could I really be the first to arrive? The screams of aliens chasing after me are coming closer and closer. I grasp my cramping side and dash for the enclosed courtyard.
Pushing through the back door, I say, “Leon. It’s ti...” My voice cuts out when I find his dead body lying on the ground. His throat has been cut open from ear to ear. This wasn’t the work of a Grey One. Someone else had to have done this to him, but who? An empty five-gallon gas can sits by his side. I can smell the flammable liquid that’s been spread around the courtyard. He must have been able to get it poured out before he was killed, but where is the flame thrower? My eyes search for the weapon, but it’s missing.
The banging sounds from the creatures moves closer to the courtyard. They’re coming. I post up behind the brick wall right as one of the vicious beings breaks through the backdoor. It immediately darts for Leon’s fresh corpse. I want to stop it from eating him, but I know that this could be my only chance to get up to the roof before the others arrive.
I use the uneven bricks to climb up the wall. As I work my way to the top, I do my best to ignore the sound of his flesh and bones being crunched inside its mouth. The sound is almost too much to bear.
I wrap my hands over the ledge firmly, rain sprinkling down on my face, and pull myself up onto the rooftop. As I peek over the ledge, the alien throws its large head back and screams into the air. Its rows of razor-sharp teeth are covered in fresh blood. Leon’s blood. When it returns to finish eating his corpse I know that it has no idea that I’m right above.
More aliens come running out the doorway and begin surrounding Leon’s dead body. While a few begin to fight over his limbs, I reach for the walkie-talkie on my side. We’re going to need something to start this fire.
“Belle. Do you need help?” Travis says, walking right at me.
My head
pokes over the ledge and I stare at the predators below. “Someone killed Leon and stole the flame thrower. We need to find another one, right now.”
“Is that a gas can?”
“Yeah. I’m pretty sure he was able to empty it down there before he was killed.”
“Did the Grey Ones do it?”
“No. I don’t think so.”
“I have an idea.” He says. As he takes out an incendiary grenade from his pocket, he whispers, “Fire in the hole.” His fingers hook the pin and pull. I cover my ears and watch as he tosses it over the ledge.
It bounces off the cement, catching their attention, before exploding. Instantaneously, the courtyard lights up as the fire spreads down the gas line. Their painful shrieks echo all around as their bodies become engulfed in flames, creating even bigger flames.
“It worked!” I shout.
“We’re not done yet.” He replies, pushing me behind him.
When I look over his shoulder there are four of the creatures climbing over the wall. Travis pulls the rifle off his back and shoots at their heads. Their bodies jolt backwards, dropping into the fire pit below. I yank the pistol from my waistband and aim at a creature coming over the wall. I pull back on the trigger, but nothing happens. I never reloaded. As the beast starts to pull its hind legs over the ledge, Travis shoots it in a soft spot on its head. Its body flings backward, falling to its fiery death.
Suddenly, the fire access door swings open. Kay and Justin sprint out, their clothes covered in dirt. Justin slams the door shut and presses his back up against it. Kay runs over to the ledge where we’re standing.
“Ready to go?” She asks, in between breaths. She’s panting hard, like she hasn’t gotten a break from being chased.
“You know it.” I reply as I tuck the unloaded pistol back into my waistband.
The distance from here to the next roof is around ten feet. I should be able to make the jump. And hopefully, the creatures won’t. I can feel the heat from the fire as it grows larger and larger below. I hope the others don’t see it. They may not follow us if they do. Someone will need to stay behind to make sure all of them jump.
When I turn back to face Travis, I find Justin standing beside him. They both have their guns aimed at the stair access door. The rest of them should be up here any second now.
Thinking quickly, I say, “Travis. Justin. While Kay and I jump across, you two need to stay here in case the Grey Ones catch on. You guys can shoot them down and use your incendiary grenades to kill them.”
Suddenly, a loud thud comes from the other side of the stair access door.
They’re here.
“Quick, hide.” I order.
As Kay and I back up to get a running head start, Travis and Justin duck behind the brick wall next to the door. Between the two of them, they should have a few incendiary grenades and ammo. Within seconds the monsters break down the door. One by one, they begin to pile up on the rooftop. My heart pumps hard, like it’s going to burst out of my chest. Turning to the side, I nod at Kay. It’s time.
With my eyes focused on the building across, I sprint across the rooftop. Behind me, dozens of Grey Ones are chasing after us, and more are coming. I throw myself over the ledge for the building on the other side of the fire. As my body soars over the burning glow beneath me, my heart beat races.
The jump is further than I thought it would be. As my body begins to fall, I realize that I’m not going to make it.
My hands reach out, barely catching myself on the ledge of the roof. As my toes push into the bricks, I listen to the violent screams from the creatures. My heart continues to beat wildly as my fingers dig into the ledge. I muster up the strength to pull myself up onto the rooftop.
I only give myself a few seconds to catch my breath before standing back up. Adrenaline continues to pump through my body as I spin around to face the fire. I pull the lucky dagger from my thigh holster and wait, ready to fight back. Across the courtyard the aliens are still jumping for us. Their eyes are narrowed in on their prey as they throw their heavy bodies towards us. Each one dropping a few feet short from where I’m standing.
When the last dozen become too hesitant to jump, Travis throws an incendiary grenade. Most of them catch on fire and within seconds are lying motionless on the rooftop. The surviving beasts leap for my building, probably thinking that they can make it across. And a couple of them almost do. Their nails scrape against the wall as they try to prevent themselves from plummeting the entire way down.
Once I’m sure that all the Grey Ones are dead I pull the walkie-talkie off of my side. My hand shakes as I hold it to my lips and say, “Isabelle to Guerrillas… We won.”