There's a fine line between heroic and insanity-so fine it barely exists. Based on my experience, whether or not you succeed in your mission was usually what determined which side of that line you wound up on. You succeeded, and you're a hero. You fail and you were a fool for ever even trying.
I am almost always in dangerously deep "insane" territory. Granted, this wasn't exactly a new problem for me. I'd been winding up in these kinds of life and death situations long before I ever ended up here. The only difference now was-I had more of an understanding of just how screwed I actually was. It was astronomic, by the way, even by usual standard of reckless stupidity.
Storming a highly fortified tower crawling with hundreds of furious flesh eating zombies? Idiotic. Splitting up with Vox. To do this on my own? Insane. Trying to gather up supplies from this mess and getting us both to stay alive? Impossible. Thinking I could actually pull this off by myself? Hah! Let's just say, somewhere over the mountain's, my brother's were probably rolling their eyes. If I did die this time, I would be willing to bet good money's they would greet me with a smack on each side of my face and a long lecture-which was something that made a smile tug at my lips. God, I missed them.
Collapsed in the middle of the freight elevator of Northwatch tower, I listened to the ominous symphony of moans, and groans all around as the metal platform made its slow descent. The metal mechanics and gears groaned. Iron chains rattled. The metal frame creaked. All of it nearly drowned out the distant shouts of the zombies, who were probably now thoroughly aware of our presence in the mall. They were calling out to each other. They'd most likely would be waiting for me at the bottom of this elevator, ready to grab me take me down and eat me as soon as I showed my face. But that didn't mean I wasn't going to make them work for it.
Besides, somewhere in this abyss, Reid was waiting for a rescue. We'd gotten lucky and gained the help of a kid named Keon, who'd been secretly slipping information to the scouts. Thanks to him, Vox and I had been able to get inside Northwatch tower easily enough. Well, considering what we were up against, anyway. We'd sprung my best friend, Xerxes, from a near by horde of zombies, but that's where things started going off track.
Apparently, Reid, was fighting in same horde as Xerxes, but had gotten captured inside the mall, which was not something we'd planned for. He was somewhere in this tower, probably praying for his own miracle, and we couldn't leave him here to die. So, I made the hard choice. I sent Vox, Keon, and Xerxes away while I stayed behind to find Reid.
It had sounded good at the time. Good enough to convince Vox, anyway. There was just one small problem ... I'd used a lot of my energy just getting us into the tunnels, so we could access the tower. Now I was clinging to consciousness, fighting the swirling spots in my vision while I tried to figure out what to do. Somehow, I had to pull myself together. I wouldn't fail Reid, even if that meant he was the only one who got to walk away. He was my brother, even though not by blood. I would save him.
I stumbled and staggered as I got to my feet, my head swimming and my vision still spotting. Vox hadn't been exaggerating when he said that over doing it would drain me. This I imagined, must be how a little kid with asthma in gym class must feel like. I was on the brink of losing it, clinging to consciousness and control.
My mind raced, scraping together a plan. I had to keep it small, make my hits count, and string out my last bit of strength until I could reach Reid.
Then I'd unleash my katana-otherwise known samurai katana blade. If this is where I'd go down, than I'd take as many of these undead with me as possible to carve a clear path so Reid could escape. It would work. It had to.
As the elevator clattered and shook toward the bottom of the shaft, I took in a deep breath. My lungs burned. My body screamed in pain, like someone was splitting my head open, as I pulled out my katana and gripped my hands round the dragon handle. I could feel it rising-a deep chill that quivered through every part of me-as though I were being slowly immersed in freezing water. I closed my fists around the hilt, gritting my teeth and opening my eyes as the elevator came to a shuddering halt. There wasn't time to count them, but at first glance, I figured there were about thirty hungry undead zombies standing between the hall to the left and me. That was where our new ally, Keon, had advised me Reid was being held at as being a earned boy. These bandits call themselves "The Crazies", not really it's what my group, well family I guess you could say, what we call them.
A muscular very buff zombie shoved his way to the front of the ranks, groaning very loudly like shouting the order for the zombie's to try climb up to me. Makes me sick these crazies would be wimps to hide behind the horde of zombies here. To keep others out and at bay, while they have food to themselves.
I dropped into a crouch, gritting my teeth against the sharp pain in my throbbing brain as my blade flickered in my hands, the jagged tip, the midnight purple blade. I spun, dancing through maneuvers and feeling the hum of every zombie's hand. Two to the right. One dead center. Six more straight for my head. I cut them out of the air, bringing my blade down in perfect synchronization as my pulse roared in my ears.
My body hummed. My nerves blazed. Every movement, every second, brought me closer to the edge. But there was no stopping now.
"Nox" I whispered. Just the mention of his name sent another wave of chills through my body. "I'm going to need some backup."
He snarled and growled, it was an instant before I saw him materialized next to me, from jumping out the elevator, his shape as a black, shadowy canine with tall pointed ears, eyes like red neon bon fires, and a wide, toothy muzzle.
His smile was as wicked as it was disturbing to other's, and the sight of him made the front rank's of The Crazies hesitate. Some of them stopped dead in their tracks, their eyes wide as though considering an immediate retreat. "Don't get scared now. I defeated your little zombie horde." My mouth twisted into a menacing grin that probably looked a lot like Nox's. "We're just getting started." The crazies laid flat on ground dead.
It was a mad sprint. I had minutes left, maybe less. I couldn't feel my feet as I ran, hurtling headlong down the aisle's searching every confinement. Every step sent a surge of fresh agony up my spine. My vision swerved in and out of focus, sometimes dimming until I couldn't see at all.
"Reid!" I wheezed and gasped, barely able to croak out his name. "Reid, you better answer me!" I blitzed past every confinement, the shouts of other prisoners being thrown to the horde to keep them around haunt me, desperate voices called throughout the mall. Sometimes I caught a glimpse of their eyes, or their fingers reaching out desperately before thrown in to the zombies.
I couldn't stop. I couldn't save them all.
"Nox, find him!" I rasped.
He materialized trotting along ahead of me, than he'd appear further down the hallway, taking a sharp right.
The sudden strain of my energy again made both my legs go numb. I fell, barely catching myself before my face cracked off the cold rugged floor. My head swam as I lay listening to my own ragged breaths and the sound of The Crazies in hot pursuit. They weren't far behind me.
I set my jaw and willed my legs to work, dragging them into place when they tingled and threatened to buckle again. I looked up into Nox's flickering red neon eyes, burning like hot coals in the dark. I growled as I heaved myself up again. "How far is he?".
The further I ran through the halls of the malls lower levels, the less frequent the lighting was. It was nearly total darkness now, and all I could see of Nox were his glowing red neon eyes lighting my path in the gloom. Behind us, the sound of The Crazies grew louder and louder. They were gaining on us.
"H-how much further is-?" Nox stopped so suddenly, I nearly limped right past him. I approached a store that had seemed like it was closed with the bars down. It was on the opposite side of the hall than all the other's. I could only guess it was an extra special, deluxe kind of solitary suite especially for royal guests. Yeah, right.
"Reid," I shouted and beat my fist on the bars. "It's Ruvik. Can you hear me?"
No answer.
"You better not be dead in there! So help me, I will drag your soul back through sovengard if I have to." Skyrim was his favorite game growing up.
Still nothing.
My body burned with a surge of adrenaline and panic. How bad off was he? Would he be able to get out of here, even if I make a path for him?
