I jumped off the couch and started frantically grabbing things. It was scary to be caught in a building you robbed, but it was even scarier to be caught in a building surrounded by monsters.
"Front or back?" Andy yelled through the loud noise.
"Gate at the back will take too long to open," I replied.
So we ran out the front door into the parking lot. It only seemed like a few minutes since the siren started. But there were already cracks all over the pavement, all angling towards the place, and I didn't want to know what had caused them.
We ran up the street, past more industrial buildings, and into the rich residential block. The road here was smooth. I counted myself lucky, since I still had no shoes. Between that and the pry bar still strapped to my belt, I was having a hard time picking up speed.
Still, Andy was barely keeping up. He lost a lot of weight in just a few days, but it came as a result of starvation, and not intense physical conditioning. His run looked more like speedwalking.
I tried to stay vigilant and on our next turn, noticed three raptors at the end of the street. They were headed towards the noise, and it didn't take them long to spot us.
"Dinos. Need to speed up!" I yelled at Andy, and it must have helped.
His legs started moving faster. We only had a few more blocks to the hospital. At this speed, the rocks on the ground were like walking over barbed wire, but the adrenaline helped me ignore that for now.
On the next turn, I couldn't help but stop. There was the largest seagull I had ever seen in my life, sitting on top of the blotchy cement hospital. It must have been at least 6 feet long, even with its wings closed. As it turned to preen its feathers, I could see teeth sticking out from its beak even from this distance.
Andy bumped into my back and swore under his breath. He grabbed my hand and pulled me along towards the building.
"We can't go there!" I whispered to him.
"We can't stay here, either. There are at least ten of them now!" He weazed back.
I didn't look back to check. Of course, there would be ten of them! The dinos reminded me of those smart dinosaurs from the Jurassic Park movie, and they always hunted in packs.
We scurried the rest of the way in a crouch, sticking to the sides of the buildings as much as possible. Whether it was because of our maneuvers or just due to sheer luck, we've reached the hospital entrance before the dinos reached us and without the seagull noticing.
Shards of broken glass peppered the floor by the gaping maw of the front entrance. I only realized the danger once I stepped on one and almost cut myself. There was no time to be considerate with my footing, so I just [Leaped] all the way into the lobby.
The reception area was a mess: half of the lights weren't working, there was broken furniture and drying blackish-brown splashes all over the floor, walls and even the ceiling.
I landed in something wet and could only hope that it wasn't blood. Andy didn't stop, running along the hallway and looking around in panic.
"Find stairs," I directed, looking at the doors on both sides of the hallway myself. "I doubt there is anyone alive on this floor," I said more quietly to myself.
My wet sock was sticking to the linoleum floor with each step, and I would have traded a password to my social media accounts for dry, comfy shoes right now.
When we reached an intersection, Andy went left, I turned right, and found the stairs immediately.
"Andy," I called.
The door handle glistened with brighter red splashes. This had to be blood. I squeezed my spear and carefully pushed the door open. It cracked open, but didn't give, so I pushed the wooden panel more. Something slid across the floor with a squelching sound, and the gap widened enough for a person to pass.
A wave of nauseating smell crawled into my nose and mouth. I've never been, but this is what I imagined a slaughterhouse dumpster would smell like.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
The light in here was still on. I stared, my mind lagging. Only a portion of the body stuck out: fuzzy black legs, a chitinous shell, and a myriad of beady eyes.
A hand covered my mouth. I was pushed into the gap before I could panic about the spider body at the base of the stairs. Andy almost carried me in, closed the door and leaned in to listen. Wetness enveloped my second foot, and I retched into Andy's hand, when I realized that I'd stepped into a spider's guts.
My heart hammered in my ears, drowning out everything else. Spiders. I hated spiders. I needed to run. To be anywhere but here. I twisted in Andy's arms, and he let go, not wanting to make noise.
I bolted up the stairs, wincing at every step.
That's it. Next stop would be a shoe store.
The second floor fared much better. There was still some amount of broken furniture and unpleasant sploches, but just a few feet away, I could see an untouched waiting room area. Andy came up behind me without a pry bar. I raised my eyebrows, looking at his hands.
"Used it to block the door," he explained.
I sighed and pulled my own pry bar out of my belt holder. It was really only hindering my movements.
"Thanks," he nodded.
A can of Coke tumbled down the hall, followed by muffled whispers. I'd never seen talking monsters.
I looked at Andy and jerked my thumb in the opposite direction. Another group of survivors didn't scare me. I just wasn't interested in talking to them. He shook his head and headed toward the voices anyway.
I considered waiting for him to return. Standing in bloody, wet socks was almost as bad as walking in them.
It wasn't exactly fear to stay alone that made me follow, I just… Wasn't in my best shape. And what if there were more spiders around?
We walked all the way to the small staff break room and saw a couple working to open a snack vending machine. They were doing their best to keep it quiet, but the machine looked sturdy enough to stop a bullet.
"Who are you?" Wispered a third man, who was on a lookout by the window.
His eyes were swollen and red, and his lips drooped in the corners. The room had a strong depressive vibe.
"Just looking for a doctor," Andy whispered back, lifting his arms.
"Good luck with that," a woman said, kicking a vending machine before catching it mid-wobble to muffle the noise. "The majority got evacuated with the patients two days ago. Those who stayed are home with their families."
I saw from behind how Andy slouched. I pulled a pry bar out of his hands, giving him my spear to hold and walked towards the couple.
"Here, try this."
The man took it and went to work popping the locks. The metal made an awful screeching noise, and we all froze, waiting to hear if monsters were coming. Nothing happened.
"Maybe you know where any of them live." I finaly asked. "We really need some help."
My words broke the freezing spell. The couple went back to grabbing food from the machine, ignoring my question entirely. I guess my offer of help didn't win them over like I'd hoped.
"We live on the east side of the hospital. All the rich neighbourhoods on the west are where doctors typically buy houses." The man on the lookout said. "I think there are a few nurses in the apartment building across the street from my house. I saw them coming home in the morning in scrubs."
"Do you know the address of the building?" I asked.
"Don't know the number, but there are only two apartment buildings along Thelma Street by the hospital. And you need the newer-looking one, with a grey roof."
"Thanks, man," Andy said.
The couple finished loading up and turned to leave. I held out my hand for the pry bar. The man hesitated, eyes darting to Andy, probably weighing whether Andy's size made keeping the bar a bad idea. He handed it over, and they headed toward the entrance.
"Hey, there is a pack of dinosaurs on the first floor," Andy told them.
"Shit… We'll have to go through the east window." The lookout man said.
"Yep…" the woman agreed.
"Good luck," said Andy as they disappeared into the corridor.
They didn't reciprocate Andy's politeness. How quickly people forgot basic manners.
"I hope they lead the dinos away," I said.
"Wouldn't that be dangerous for them?"
I probably should focus on filtering my out-loud thoughts better in front of Andy. I was getting too familiar with him.
"Let's check all the rooms," I offered. "Someone might still be here. Stayed with a patient, returned for drugs or whatever."
"Yeah, let's," Andy nodded.
I personally hoped we'd find some good drugs and new shoes for me.
We walked the second floor, opening every door. I was most afraid of stumbling on another spider lair. Without artificial lighting, enough daylight still came through the windows. But shadows gathered in the corners now. Shadows that could hide spiders the size of German shepherds.
We found two rooms with bodies. Brownish drag marks on the floor suggested someone had pulled them out of the hallway. The smell was enough to confirm they were dead. We didn't investigate further.
The entire time, Andy was wearing an expression of determination. It was clear that if we didn't find someone here, we would go knocking on people's doors.
Even from a distance, I saw the joyful bright colours of the balloons, toys and t-shirts. A gift store - my best bet at getting new footwear.
The store door hung open. The trio must have raided this place, too.
We stepped through the doorframe, and I gasped. A large window overlooked the city. Below, the trio was running down the street, a giant seagull chasing after them.
Chloe's Deck (4/10):
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Blue Card: [Leap]
Instantly leap forward up to 6 feet. Beware of obstacles. Cooldown 30 minutes.
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Blue Card: [Heal Wound II]
A medium burst of healing for a single target area you touch. Cooldown 1 hour.
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Green Card: [Spear]
Basic proficiency with spear weapons. Grants +5% damage and improved accuracy when wielding spears.
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Green Card: [Poison Tolerance]
Dulls the worst poison effects, giving your body time and chance to fight it. Does not work on lethal poison dosages.