Highbridge Rising | #ONC2024

Chapter Ten-Level Seven

As I read the sign near the stairway entrance, another wave of nausea threatened to overtake me at the realization that I had only reached level five. With a silent curse, I gingerly pushed open the heavy door, but any hope of stealth was dashed by the door's ear-piercing squeal, its echo reverberating though the desolate corridor. Hastily slipping though, I winced as the door slammed shut behind me, its resounding noise filling the stairwell.

Emergency red lights bathed the stairwell in a sinister glow, casting elongated shadows in every direction. Each shadow seemed to morph and contort, taking on a life of its own in the flickering light. My heart raced as the elongated silhouettes pulsed with an eerie rhythm, filling me with a creeping sense of dread.

Ascending the stairs, each step echoed against the pavement with a disconcerting clamor. I continued cautiously, my pace deliberate, every movement fraught with apprehension. Every corner seemed to harbor unseen threats, and I cast wary glances in every direction, half-expecting something to lunge out at me from the shadows.

Just as I reached level six, the sound of another door slamming open below, followed by chilling screams reverberating from below me. Without hesitation, I broke into a full-on sprint, my legs carrying me like they've ever done before. The nose bouncing off walls made it hard to decipher how close they were. My footing became treacherous, and I stumbled over a step, barely managing to maintain my balance. Gripping my knife tightly, I pressed on.

My steps faltered; my limbs heavy with the weight of exhaustion as if each movement were a struggle against quicksand. The approaching footsteps thundered closer, a relentless drumbeat of pursuit resounding in the narrow confines. Reaching the seventh level, I swung open the door, only to confront a pair of luminous blue orbs that pierced through the gloom like beacons of madness.

The frenzied figure lunged, propelling me at the stairs edge. Survival fueled my resistance as I sought to maintain a wary distance, my blade finding purchase at his neck, missing his head. I quickly try to dislodge the knife, but it slipped from my grasp. Needing to hands to hold him back, I was defenseless against his strong built stamina. His teeth, bared in a frenzied display, had fragments of flesh clinging stubbornly in the crevice.

The man's gaze remained fixed upon me, unwavering and chilling, like stones submerged in icy waters. A primal scream tore from my throat as I grappled with him, each moment slipping though my fingers like grains of sand. Despite my best efforts, fatigue clawed at my body, sapping my strength with each passing second.

I could sense his breath against the nape of my neck as his screams rang in my ear. With a sudden force from someone, it sent the zombie crashing to my feet, momentarily released me from his hold.

My gaze snapped over to my rescuer, Sammy, her figure emerging from the shadows wielding a gleaming metal rod. Her form streaked with crimson rivulets that glistened with sweat, as if she had traversed through a deluge of red and blue hues. My attention momentarily diverted as the threating man stirred once more, propelled by an insatiable hunger for flesh.

In a reflexive blur, both Sammy and I lunged towards the reanimated menace, a synchronized dance of survival, sending it hurling over the edge with a resounding crash against the metal railings below.

A chorus of anguished screams trailed in Sammy's wake as I peered down the staircase, witnessing the horde of undead converging upon us with relentless determination. Without hesitation, we bolted though the exit, the horde of pursuit echoing in our wake. Hindered by the enveloping darkness, I could only rely on the sounds of our relentless pursuers behind us, their guttural moans and frenzied footfalls serving as our ominous backdrop.

Blind and propelled by instinct alone, we raced forward into the unknown, the palpable dread of the encroaching zombies looming ever closer with each moment.