Shaun Harbinger - Lightning - Fighting the Living Dead

I looked down at the Desert Eagle in its holster. Should I just blow my brains out now? If I waited until I was about to turn, I might not have the will to do it. I had no idea what signs to look for that would mean I was on the verge of turning. And by the time I recognized them, it might be too late, my brain already under the control of the virus.

The army would probably kill me eventually but how many innocent people would I tear apart before they managed to catch me?

I sat staring at the trees around me, letting my thoughts zone out. When I checked my watch later, the countdown told me that I had been sitting there for over an hour.

I was wasting precious time. If I was going to end this on my own terms, then I needed to get on with it.

A distant sound caught my attention. Standing up to stretch my aching muscles, I saw the Chinook coming over the hills, probably bringing more personnel to the camp.

As I watched the chopper’s approach, a shout went up near the building.

Recon One had blown the main door off its hinges when they had gone inside earlier but no one had thought to seal the doorway afterward, and now dozens of zombies were shambling out into the camp, attracted by the noise and movement.

Shots rang out as soldiers began firing on the creatures. As zombies fell by the doorway, others stepped over their bodies, arms outstretched as they lurched toward the soldiers, their hungry moans filling the air.

Chaos reigned as soldiers and zombies went to war. The soldiers were in possession of enough firepower to take over a small nation, but the zombies were among them, making it difficult for them to shoot without hitting other soldiers. The large number of personnel in the camp was a drawback when it came to fighting at such close quarters.

Some of the soldiers, seeing the futility of fighting a large number of zombies when they were unable to fire for fear of hitting their comrades, ran for the gate. Others tried to use their weapons as clubs. Some must have thought it better to risk shooting a fellow soldier if it meant they had a chance to kill a zombie and they fired their rifles. Soldiers and zombies dropped to the ground as shots rang out in the morning air.

The Chinook had reached the compound. It hovered uncertainly above the fence for a moment before flying to the grassy area at the back of the building, the pilot obviously deciding it was safer to land there. As it descended, I broke cover and ran for the gate, seeing an opportunity to get into the compound. The guards who had been stationed at the gate were running toward the melee in the camp to help their comrades, their posts abandoned.

Sprinting past the security guard station and across the parking lot toward the grounded Chinook, I saw the rear ramp descend to drop off a group of soldiers. They ran around to the front of the building to enter the battle raging there.

I crouched behind a blue Nova while they passed me. Their attention was focused on the chaos in front of them. No one even glanced in my direction.

As the last soldier ran past, I sprinted for the rear of the Chinook, taking the Desert Eagle from its holster. When I got to the top of the ramp, I ran up to the open doorway that separated the cockpit from the rear of the helicopter and leaned through, pressing the muzzle of my gun against the pilot’s helmet.

“Get us in the air,” I said.

The co-pilot looked at me with a look of astonishment.

“Do it,” I said, “or I’ll blow his fucking brains out.”

“Okay, okay.”

They both began to flick switches on the control panel. The rear ramp lifted up and closed.

“Get us up!” I demanded.

They complied, taking the Chinook up until it was above the height of the building.

“Now what?” the pilot asked. “What do you want us to do?”

“I want you to do exactly as I say. We’re going to pick up some precious cargo.”

ITOLD them to take us over the building to where the fight was raging. The situation on the ground had gotten worse. Bodies of soldiers and zombies were strewn everywhere. It was obvious that some of the soldiers had been shot by their colleagues, their blood staining the grass around them.

The ones that had been bitten were staggering toward the gate and into the woods, muttering the words, “Leave me alone” as the virus combined with the vaccine in their blood and compelled them to seek a quiet place to turn into hybrids.

Still more zombies were coming out of the building. There was such chaos in the camp that the creatures were able to get outside through the doorway without even being shot at.

In the mass of olive-green uniforms and white lab coats, it was easy to spot Sam, Jax, Tanya, and Doctor Colbert. They were fleeing the fight, heading for the gate.

“See those people?” I said to the pilot, the Desert Eagle still pointed at his head. “We’re going to go down there and pick them up.”

He shook his head. “There’s nowhere to land down there.”

I pointed at a small area near the parking lot. If we got there quickly enough, we would be there before my friends made it out of the gate. “There,” I said. “Land there.”

“There are zombies everywhere,” the co-pilot protested.

“We only need a few seconds,” I said. “Now do it, or I will shoot both of you. Believe me, I’ve got nothing to lose.”

They must have detected the desperation in my voice, because they took the Chinook down to the exact spot I had indicated.

The helicopter’s side door was located just behind the cockpit, so I could open it while still keeping the pilot in my sights. I was never going to shoot him or the co-pilot, but they didn’t know that, and I probably seemed crazy to them, which was enough to make them comply.

I opened the door and shouted, “Sam! Tanya!”

They saw me and changed the trajectory of their run, heading for the helicopter at full speed.

A zombie that had been in the area when we landed came around the side of the Chinook, moaning at me, his arms outstretched. I used the Desert Eagle to dispatch him, aiming between his eyes and pulling the trigger. The gun recoiled in my hand like a striking snake. The zombie fell to the ground and lay there, unmoving.

The sound of the gun spooked the pilot. He began to lift us back into the air. I whirled on him, pointing the gun at his face. “Don’t you fucking take off until I tell you.”

He removed his hands from the controls as if they were suddenly hot. “Okay, just stay calm.”

I noticed two hybrids break from the pack of shambling zombies and begin to chase Doctor Colbert and Jax. Doctor Colbert was the slowest runner, and Jax was hanging back to encourage her to move faster.

The hybrids were both ex-security guards at the facility, dressed in dark uniform, but both without their caps. They had once been a dark-haired woman, and a bald man with a moustache and beard. Now, they were monsters. They fixed on Doctor Colbert like a pair of lions selecting the slowest gazelle from the pack.

I knew there was no point in shouting at Doctor Colbert to run faster; she already looked like she was about to collapse. She was sucking in air like crazy, her face red and sweaty. Her legs were weak and unable to keep the pace Jax had set.

Tanya reached the Chinook and ran in through the door, closely followed by Sam. “Watch the pilots,” I said. “Don’t let them take us up.”

I ran out of the chopper, the Desert Eagle in both hands like I had seen on cop shows. But I was no cop, and this wasn’t television. I didn’t dare fire while Jax and Doctor Colbert were in the way.

But if I didn’t shoot, the hybrids would definitely catch them. Even now, they were only ten feet behind their prey. “Get down!” I shouted.