Zombies Vs Aliens: Respawn

Chapter 7.2

 "This is a terrible plan," Fred muttered, one eye on the splattered remains of the zombies outside the fence as his nimble fingers stripped the wires in the Humvee's steering column. The vehicle sputtered, and coughed, but refused to kick into gear. Fred swore, leaping out of the driver's seat to fiddle with the engine. I kept watch from the passenger's side, Wolf Girl in my lap. Most of the back seat was taken up by J.D. and our new arsenal, rocket launcher included. I tried to quell the little thrill of excitement, but holy shit, we have a rocket launcher! The soldier kept his eyes on our surroundings, his mouth set in a grim frown.

                "You can get that engine going anytime, white boy," J.D. drawled, setting the rocket launcher on his shoulder. Fred gritted his teeth, gripping the hood hard enough to leave an impression of his fingers.

            "If you can do better be my guest."

            "Afraid I have to deal with these assholes."

            Fred craned his neck, swearing. Through the back window I could see them, a trio of aliens scuttling from the alley. We were out of time. I quickly shifted Wolf Girl into the seat, strapping her in, one eye on the advancing trio. Were they survivors from the group we saw before? They certainly appeared beat up enough, their suits stained and torn. One of them wore a cracked mask, he was the one which noticed us, or noticed J.D. rising from the Humvee's sun roof, aiming the launcher at them. Their weapons came up. Fred slammed down the hood, startling them and giving J.D. the moment of distraction he needed.

            The rocket fired. It was our first stroke of luck in a pisser of a day. I tracked it long enough to see two of the aliens dive out of the way before the projectile clipped the middle one, enveloping him in an explosion of fire. The blowback cracked the rear window. Fred threw himself into the driver's seat, flicking the wires together again as the engine coughed to life.

            "Ha!" He slammed a palm into the steering wheel, throwing the car in gear as the  aliens picked themselves up from the ground.

            "Tough bastards," J.D. muttered. The fire died away to reveal all three still standing. He pulled the pin from a smoke canister and lobbed it in their direction to mask our trail.

            "Hold onto your panties," Fred said, flooring the gas pedal. I braced myself, trying not to crush Wolf Girl as we shot through the streets of Rochester. There were more abandoned cars on the road here. Fred weaved through the wrecks with so many sharp turns I had to wedge myself by the dashboard to keep from flying around the cab. J.D. managed to stay upright and load a rifle. Some people have all the skill.

            "Holy--" I heard J.D.'s oath, peering through the back cracked rear windshield to see what ruffled his feathers. "This thing needs to go faster!" The aliens were closing in on us, hovering above the ground, gaining ground far faster than we were.

            "Lot of stuff in the way!" Fred retorted, glancing in the side mirrors. "Shit! Are they floating?" I punched his knee cap to get his attention.

            "Drive on the side walk, idiot, not like you have to worry about people."

            "Oh, right." He yanked on the wheel. I smashed my nose on the stick shift as the Humvee thumped over the curb. Fred winced. "Sorry."

            "Shut up, just drive." I looked at Wolf Girl, who clung to her seat belt for dear life. Her expression was pure panic. I couldn't imagine the shit storm in her mind. Why did I insist on bringing her with us? I gripped her hand, squeezing her fingers.