Into the Abyss

[Dane Summers]

Using the car hulk as cover, he'd been putting bursts into the mass of mutants boiling out of the structure like hornets. The bullets were doing nothing to thin them out, and they were pressing closer. The rifle clicked empty, and cursing, fell back behind the cover, grabbing the mag out and tossing it away. He was contemplating a grenade when he heard more gunfire erupt.

"Get the hell out of the open!"

Ketsu looked over, saw Claus, and gave a thumbs up - reloaded his magazine, and started sprinting to the left, where a smallish building was setup, and looked like a fleet garage. He got about halfway there, hearing the heavy footsteps behind him, when something let out a gurgling roar and grabbed him from behind. The loss of momentum took him off his feet, and both himself and the creature that had caught up and grabbed him, fell to the ground. Pain again shot out through his body like lightning, and whatever the thing was, it had grabbed his already hurt leg and was doing its best to tear it off him. Ketsu kicked at it, brought the rifle around, only to have it knocked away. The harsh sounds of metal grinding against pavement cascaded over Claus's gunfire, the creatures guttural mewling, and his own labored breath. He kicked it again, but nothing. It was right on top of him now, and he was barely holding it off - its mutated grey flesh was ashen, and its muscles were like steel. He got his knee's up under it, held his left arm braced under its kneck, to keep the teeth away from his face, jerked out his sidearm, and emptied all fifteen rounds into its stomach and chest. He was coated with thick blood, and drying ketchup, the stench mingled together and was sickening.

He rolled the thing off him, and saw Dasha on a concrete dyke behind the battered down fences of the parking lot. She started yelling something, and then he saw the grenade launcher come out...

Breath, breath, breath..."oh sh-..."

He got up, ran towards her position, time slowing down, in line with his breath

And then white hot light lit up behind him - a force like a hammer blow picked him up, and sent him careening into someones old family wagon, long since forgotten. The world went silent, and the roar was just a deafening silence.

More pain. He was picking himself up, when strong hands helped him to his feet. Claus had him by his good arm, and was trying to say something to him, but there was no sound - just a constant high pitched ring in the depth of his ears.

''WHAT?!" He shouted, and couldnt make out what Claus said back, but by his mouth movements it sound like was also yelling "WHAT?!" at the top of his lungs. Ketsu smiled and laughed, and together they both made for the dyke that Dasha had claimed. Getting there, the ringing had subsided a bit, and Ketsu, still chuckling a bit...

"Dasha-chan, you really know how to make an entrance..."

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