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allstarsstorymode867 · 3 years

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ALL-STARS -STORY MODE- CHAPTER 18 PART 4

Part 3

Part 5

Half way through the chapter, half way done!

Once again, it features @mortal-kombattore-115's CODZ OC, an Ultimis version this time ^^

He had risen out of where he was sleeping, yelled in terror with sweat rolling down his brow as it had caught his allies’ attention. “Are you alright, Edward?” Shaw was the first one to ask as Scarlett and P!Nikolai had walked over to where he was.

He breathed heavily as he was wide awake with a chilling feeling going down his spine, trying to form words of what he had dreamt or what he had seen in that dream.

“Ha… Ha... “ he then shook his head with a chill up his spine, placing his hand on his forehead as he had to shrug him off as he stumbled onto his feet with Frank West walking into the hall with his arms crossed and said “Well well well. Look who finally woke up, after we managed to get Dr. Barnaby here today.”

That got his attention and he had the courage to look at the photojournalist with a stare, then finally he asked “How… How long vas I out?”

“A couple of hours into the morning,” he answered before looking at the security door and continued “The old man was kidnapped by the guy who might be the one who started all of this-”

“And you two managed to get him back here, unconscious.” P!Nikolai added to his story as he and others looked at him as Dell then said “But Brad was injured before they could catch that yellow-bellied terrorist.”

Richtofen looked at Dell with little surprise and looked at Frank West, “Vas he alright?” he is concerned honestly, since that dream was bad enough, he felt like in this reality it could be worse.

“Medic, Jessie and Shaw had managed to stop the bleeding but he’s sick right now.” Frank continued as he looked at P!Richtofen and several others then asked “Which is why we have to get medicine for him.”

“I will go, we owe Brad so much.” P!Nikolai was the first before looking at P!Richtofen, “Since we have doctors here, besides Barnaby, to watch over him. And Dell is coming too.”

“Well, Ah can’t deny the bracket,” before looking over to U!Takeo with a soft smile, “Do ya think ya can come with us too?”

Ultimis Takeo bowed as he said “I am honored to go.” as Scarlett crossed her arms, “We’ll let you know if anything happens.” Shaw had said with little hope for them, “For a strange reason, we need to be more cautious, something about the mall is becoming uneasy to be in, not the zombies.”

“The psychos,” Frank understood his worry, “I am sure we can handle them with numbers.” before he turned and left the room with P!Nikolai, U!Takeo and the Engineer following behind.

6:32

They walked towards the North Plaza with Frank West leading the way, on the way, zombies, not too many yet a small group of them, they had no trouble killing them here and there but one thing that caught one of them off guard was a bug buzzing over the Engineer’s head.

Dell ducked and he looked to see what the bug was; a wasp, hovering over the Texan with gestation before going for him with fast speed but Frank intervened, pushing him out of the way as he said “Get back!”

The photojournalist swatted the hornet to the ground and one of its wings was damaged as P!Nikolai and U!Takeo found another group of the undead and took careful aim but they’re confused with the horde’s sudden change in their behavior. Zombies’ eyes were wide open and groaning in pain as one of them raised its hand to it’s head as if its suffering a headache.

Frank West was watching this as well but he was the only one that wasn't as surprised as the other three as he nudged Engie for this part and said “Watch this.” in a inhale of breath before he stomped onto the wasp that had advanced onto Dell, killing it.

The four of them had watched as zombies cried and blithe in agony as some of them had fallen to the ground and much to the three’s surprise and shock, their heads exploded, brain matter and blood caked the floor in puddles. Most of them were lagging behind before they too had met the same fate as their comrades while P!Nikolai had lowered his shotgun as U!Takeo stood down as they watched the bizarre scene happen right in front of them in confusion.

“What has caused these demons to die without either of us killing them first?” The warrior was confused as Frank had stepped away from the crushed wasp.

Dell looked at the photojournalist and said “Ya think these bugs had something to do with this?” as Frank looked back. He nodded.

“I had figured that part out already before we found you guys.” as he looked at the dead wasp again, “My guess is the same as yours, Engie.”

“And whenever you kill a wasp, it kills a whole horde, correct?” P!Nikolai had asked as he and Takeo looked over their shoulders. “Yeep, that saves you guys the trouble.”

Nikolai looked at the corpses and thought about it, if this is true, it could be useful to their advantage. Heck, it could save their ammo unless whenever they need to use them if there’s too much. This city is populated with zombies now after all.

“Is there any way to trap the wasps?”

“Jars are useful to keep these bugs in, then tossed it at any group of zombies you saw.”

“Rhen re rill make a note of it, West-san.” Takeo nodded as he turned and then looked at the store as wondered for a moment.

“Rhe store may be at the end of the hall, re must getting close.” before walking towards the end of the hall where the store is located with the other three behind him.

“You are good at leading the way when I was,” Frank was a little bit envious of U!Takeo walked to the doors. “I was using a map for this mall when you already knew it like it was on the back of your hand without one.” as the doors opened for them to enter.

Music in Seon's Food & Stuff grocery store was playing softly when they entered it, as they looked around; no zombies around but they couldn't let their guard down just yet but Frank seemed that he wanted to. Engineer looked at P!Nikolai and spoke up first after a long silence. “They started playing music in the 1930’s.”

The three looked at the Engineer as he continued “But stores aren’t the only ones to play it in them, boys.”

“...It is not comforting when it comes to zombies though.” P!Nikolai had stated the fact as he feared that Frank’s world was on the verge of a zombie apocalypse. He can only hope that even if his story gets out, the people and the government could be able to stop it, somehow.

U!Takeo walked over to the windows of the store with the sign that read “Pharmacy” and peered into them, scanning the room until he noticed something inside it and on the desk: a first aid kit.

“Men!”

He had called them over and Takeo pointed the first aid inside. Frank West smiled and patted his back as he said “Good to say heads up.” and then goes over to the double doors to go inside but when he tried to push them open, they were locked. He cursed under his breath.

“What is wrong, Frank West?” P!Nikolai asked upon seeing what he was trying to do, “The doors are locked,” Frank looked at them before looking at the doors again, “We need a key to open it.”

Nikolai patted his shoulder as he looked at the double doors, “Hold on.” Then he had gotten ready to kick it down and he did, a sound surrounded the store as the doors stood still but when he got ready to try again; a sound of a single cart was coming from the aisles nearest to them. Frank West looked to where it was coming from and so did P!Nikolai as well.

“Re are not alone…” he sensed someone in the store with them, the Engineer nodded as he looked at him and soon they went over to the aisles with weapons in their possession, looking into each aisle, expecting someone or something to be on the other side.

They then went into the aisle on the right in the middle, when they did this however, they heard someone pushing a cart from where they came and making U!Takeo unsheathed his sword to look but no one was found so far as others followed suit.

“Ahright,” Dell muttered, “This store wasn’t empty as we were led to believe it to be.”

“You think?” Nikolai was stern to the situation happening, “Keep your guard up.” he cautioned with a shotgun at the ready. Frank was ahead of them when something fell onto the floor and rolled into their mist, a lone canned food on the floor and a feeling had gone up his spine.

They turned to look for whatever caused it and a man was there, with a shopping cart that had torches, a pitchfork and knives stuck into it, making it into a weapon. Inside the basket was a woman, a familiar one laying in it unconscious.

This man appeared to be a normal manager of the store itself, he’s partly bald with brown hairs on top and on the sides of his head, yellow dress shirt, a green apron, tan pants and black shoes.

A name tag on the apron was “Steven Chapman” with a picture of himself as he scratched under his chin and the back of his neck then adjusting his red tie for a moment to compose himself as silence fell onto the grocery store and it was suffocating them as it felt like hours. Finally Steven places his hand onto the handle of the cart, seemingly normal until-

“THIS IS MY STOORE!!”

Psycho Encounter!

Steven Chapman

That caught them off guard when he exploded in an outburst, he then advanced towards them threateningly as he breathed slowly “all four of you… came to rob my store? HUH??” while they backed up slowly to keep a healthy distance from him then he yelled at them again “NOT ON MY WAAATCH!!”

“C-Calm down, sir! Someone is hurt and we are only here for medicine please!”

“It’s true, Nikolai is telling the truth!” Frank backed him up on their story, hoping this insane manager would let them have the keys to the doors but that seemed to anger him even more as he roared “Hurt!?”

Steven then grabbed the woman’s hair and then shook her head as he explained in a bellow, “That’s what this b!tch said when she came to vandalize my store!”

“Maybe she had the same reasons as us to do, we have to-”

“Shut it!” the crazed manager interrupted, “As you can see, I don’t take vandalism too kindly around here… I won’t allow it!” he gripped the handle of the weapon cart tightly so that his knuckles turned white from holding it.

“Now all of you listen to me, and listen good, partners…” he then roared “I DO NOT DORATE VANDALISM IN MY STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORE!!!” as he bug eyed and spit flying.

It wasn’t loud enough to wake the dead, but it shook the world around them as they looked at the manager who then ran towards them with the fire flying from the flares. They turned and ran off to different directions as he came out of the aisle they were in.

P!Nikolai turned around to look and he was after the Engineer as he yelled at them to get out of his store. “Words are not going to go through to him…” his brian said as he got out the hatchet and then tossed it at the manager, it barely got him on the arm but it did make him turn around towards the Russian’s direction. P!Nikolai found himself regretting that decision right away as Steven ran towards him and P!Nikolai ran to another aisle.

“No choice…” the sergeant thought as he cocked the shotgun back while he ran, “Have to take him out…!” as he spotted Frank West who waved him over, “Over here!”

He ran over to the photojournalist as the manager had barely missed him and stood by him with short breath. “Psychopaths…” he breathed, getting much generous oxygen in his tired lungs. “Is this what you meant, Frank?”

“Pretty much,” Frank had hidden behind the aisle that was located at the far end of the store, “Got a plan?”

“We have to put him down, if he does this to us then-”

“Nick, I am aware of how "putting someone down” is, and it’s not the first so far.”

“Me and my allies had done it before.”

Sounds of shotguns firing in the store that made both men ducked a moment as they heard Engineer cursing as he reloaded. “That was Dell…!”

“Mr. West, hold on.” Primis Nikolai peeked from the asie and saw Steven, with a shotgun rifle of his own as he was firing buckshot after buckshot until U!Takeo slashed him from behind. It had done damage but not enough as the manager turned his attention towards the samurai and rammed his cart into him. He grunts in pain from the flames.

“Takeo…!” he muttered as Frank stopped him, “Hold on, we need a plan!” as Nikolai turned to look at him.

Nikolai wondered for a moment and answered “We will distract him, you can get him while he is unaware.” and handed the rifle to him, “Do you know how to use it?”

“I’ve been trying to get a good aim.”

“Pony up!”

Engineer had wacked the manager, then ran off from him as he roared at him about assault with the cart with flames throwing from the canned flares. “Let’s hope your aim is good enough, I had to trust you with our lives for this.” as the Russian got out the hatchet.

“I am a lot better with a camera but yeah, I’ll give it a shot.”

He nodded as he listened closely to where the Engineer and Steven were, much to his surprise, they were making their way over to them, to where they were with stomping echoing the food store.

“Switch places.” He cautioned the confused reporter and he did, he was on the right side and Frank on the left,weapons at the ready.

“Get ready to run.” P!Nikolai stood his ground, waiting for one of them to pop out from the end of the aisle as his eyes were fixated towards. Feet are stomping louder and soon, a familiar hard hat wearing Texan appeared with the Frontier Justice in his hands as Nikolai shouted “Go!”

Frank felt like his feet had grown wings as he took off from the direction of the yells from the three, one was the Sergeants, the other the Engineer and the third being the manager.

He had found Ultimis Takeo patching himself up from the wound Steven had caused behind register 4, sword at his right side. “Ya alright?” he asked as he knelt down.

“I am.” he lied, to keep his pride in. “Liar.” Frank knew that from that tone of voice before he started to help but the samurai hastily refused. “I can treat my own wounds.”

“And risk an infection, best not.”

“I can do rhis myself, West-san. '' He does not want him to see the vines he had hidden inside his sleeves. “I rill have Medic rnd Richtofen treat me rater now rhat is the situation right now?” as he shakingly got up at Frank’s charging.

They heard a buckshot before the latter could explain, the Engineer was shouting at P!Nikolai to take cover and then threw a wrench at the manager. Frank then turned to Ulitmis Takeo and said “You guys gonna have to distract him while I had to blow him away…” before looking at the shotgun that the Russian had given him, “Literally…”

Takeo looked at the scene a bit longer before he nodded, turned to Frank West once again.

“You must take him down, res?”

“Yeah”

“I have little strength left in me to distract the manager.”

“Are ya sure?” Frank looked at U!Takeo who got up with his katana in his hand.

“I am, reporter.” as he buttons his shirt and coat with stains of blood on them. “In order to do that, re must have him facing towards you.”

Frank nodded, looking at the warrior as he limped and running towards the scene that’s unfolding before them. He paused and then whistled for their attention.

Engineer and P!Nikolai looked to see him as Steven was charging at them again, they hardly felt the impact when he rammed into their backs, making them fall down to the floor and ran for Captain Takeo who stood ready, closer and closer and closer the cart had caught up towards him.

The moment had come right before him and he stepped out of the way and, as he planned for the manager, he turned away from the cart to scream but he turned to yell at the young man with a command. “Now!”

The rifle was triggered, a noise rose to life, soon droplets of blood as well with Steven stumbled and made the weaponized cart fall and the unconscious woman fell out of it as well. Steven then limped over and grabbed one of the registers closest to him.

“My store…!” gasping with his blood pooling the ground. “My store…! Who will run my store if I’m gone!?”

One buck shot to the heart was critical, one quick way to kill a bear or a human mad man as Frank and others looked on Steven, unsure to help him, maybe out of fear that he would finish what he started.

“My food…? My sales…? And with them, my…” he coughed up blood that dripped onto the register with one arm dropped down. “Customers…?” before he adjusts his tie slightly before looking at the reader, strangely and says his last words.

“Have a nice daaay…” and fell to the ground. Silence was flooding the store-

“CLEAN UP!” Steven raised his head up, he shouted at someone that was non-existent, spooking the four in the process, “Register Six!” he then fell back down to the floor, finally bleeding out and gone.

The four walked over to Steven and inspected the handy work of Frank West, P!Nikolai was going to ask for his Olympia rifle back when he spotted the woman, laying unresponsive on the floor.

“Look!”

They all turn to look at the woman, Frank firstly thought it wasn’t a coincidence until it hits him: it’s the same lady from the Entrance Plaza as they went over to her. A groan from her and she rose up, the other three were a little tensed by this but Frank kneeled down as she only sat up right and held her forehead.

“Still with us in the land of the living?” he looked at her with a soft tone, “You are one tough cookie.” before he helped her up but she then pushed him away with a foul when she looked at him.

“Re are not here to hurt you,” U!Takeo tried to explain to the angry lady, “Re only wanted to help-” she then cuts him off. “I don’t need any help from the four of you! You don’t know a damn thing!”

“Heya, let’s not get off on the wrong foot here, ma’am-”

“It was you Americans on the ‘wrong foot’ here!” she spat out with hate, “You always looked after yourselves with fat meat!”

“Listen to us,” Nikolai stepped up to try to reason with the strange woman, “If it is what you hate, two of us beside the two men are foreigners as well and we had heard you are in need of medicine as well, maybe we can help each other.”

“He’s got a point there,” Frank added with little hope, “we’ll take you back to where-”

“I said I never wanted help! Americans like you are the ones that started all of this!” She is surprising and confusing them more and more at the same time, “You ruined Santa Cabeza and began this nightmare!”

She then turned without any more words and quickly walked out of there, leaving the group in confusion. Primis Nikolai watched her leave and out of sight, as he turned to look at Frank West and asked “What does she meant by “You ruined Santa Cabeza?””

“I don’t know but I think this has something to do with the zombies and the-”

“Wasps” Takeo interrupted with an annoyed tone, “I do believe they are related somehow.” as he looked down and something gleaming on the floor, he lowered his upper body and reached his hand out for the metal piece with a tag attached to it; a key.

On the tag itself read PHARMACY in capitalized letters, he turned and gave Frank the key in his hand as he said “Now let’s get rhat re came for.”

Engineer walked over to the doors with Nikolai, fearing that if there’s one mad man here then there could be more. He couldn’t blame them for that, the outbreak has put everyone on edge he thought as he goes over to them and with caution, he puts the key inside the slot and turns.

Click.

The sound gave way as the doors slowly opened for the group to enter freely. They looked around the hallway with shotgun rifles, a bat and a sword in their hands. They entered the check-in counter where the first aid is located.

Frank sagged it from it’s place and muttered “Let’s get the hell out of this store.” as Takeo nodded to acknowledge him.

Nikolai and Engineer are on the lookout for a horde of zombies but now with the information that they can use to their advantage as Takeo and Frank walk out of the check-in counter. Leaving the store without looking back except when the feeling of the undead and… something else was here. Watching them go.

*Something is following you…

Nikolai’s heart is pumping with fear and adrenaline, the text just below his chest wasn’t helping. He has to speak up for his group, just a peep. “Men…” was the first word that he could think of saying to the three, making them all turn to face him.

“I do not want to fear you all but Nikolai has the feeling that we are being followed.'' He informed them, Ultimis Takeo could sense the fret in his voice and much as he didn't like his Nikolai but he respected the Primis one better. The reason why is that he knew the battles and wars well, survival instinct and most importantly; he’s sober.

But something about the alternate version of the Russian had him on edge, if Nikolai was this tense up by sensing something threatening yet horrifying, whatever or whoever it was following them must be bad.

“You must be sensing that something is following us.” Takeo peeped up, he began to feel the same thing from the situation. Frank West seemed confused by this and spoke out “It could be just a feeling of paranoia, it could be nothing.”

“Frank West,” Engineer places his gloved hand on the photojournalist's shoulder, “Ever heard of the gut feeling when something ain’t right boy?” he spoke softly with the Frontier Justice resting on his shoulder. “If that’s the case, best keep your guard up.”

“He is right, we…” he muttered as his breath was lynched with worry, “We need to use it, somehow. We can’t lead it back to the security room.”

Frank seems to worry now but he keeps his cool as he thinks of a plan for this and half-remembers the zombies. “Well, since this town is infested with rotten walking corpses. We can just run through and let it deal with them while we leg it.”

“Rith weapons, re can be able to fight back if your plan does not go rell, West-san.” U!Takeo informed him, making him look at him with acknowledgement, Nikolai and Engineer stood by, already seeing a big horde of zombies ahead of them, seemingly unaware of their presence and stumbling by each other as others tripped.

“On three…”

“Da.”

“One… Two… Three!”

Without a word, they dashed towards the undead army as they began to notice. They ran in and began to fight their way through them. The other zombies behind them were shrieking in pain as well, a severed arm flew into Nikolai’s point of view and landed with a resounding thud just centimeters away from where he was when he was struggling to get the zombie away from him.

That confirms what he believed his guts to be the sense of dread; someone was following them. He now knows that and knows he can’t let them follow them back to where they were hiding, he can’t risk the summoning key falling into the wrongs. Much as he doesn’t want to admit that it was in Richtofen’s to begin with but still.

Primis Nikolai had mustered enough strength in him and pushed the rotten corpse off of him as it was met with a barrel at it’s temple and a bullet ripped through it.

“Frank!” he catches his attention, thrill and robustness in the fight for their very survival, “The wasp!”

Frank nodded and then he held the zombie with a bat holding it inches from him, rummaging as he didn’t notice one of them had grabbed onto his arm. “Hey, F*** off!* he shouted as he struggled for the untoten to let go of his forearm as it tried to bite into it but only getting the sleeve.

Sword came from the above out of the blue and two heads of the zombie rolled onto the floor, the face of Ultimis Takeo looking at Mr. West as he had taken care of the problem. “Thanks!” he yelled as he managed to get the jar with the same wasp in it.

Engineer is shooting one zombie after another as blood decorating his rusty brown overalls in drops as he yelled “Time to make an exit!” as Frank got ready to throw, a hatchet came out of nowhere and it struck Dell on the shoulder, making him yell in pain. Nikolai turned to look at what happened and he ran over to the injured Texan.

Engineer fell onto the floor, holding his right shoulder where the hatchet had struck him from behind as he muttered “Aww hell.” as he greeted his teeth, it was almost like the time back in 2Fort where BLU Scout had got him on the back with a medieval bat with spikes, yes, spikes on it. “Haven’t felt a hit like that since the Gravel War. I feel like I am going to pass out in a minute…” but his head rose up to meet the faces of the undead, he got a good look at them from up close and too personal for comfort.

Alarming and deathly faces with life-threatening injuries on their heads and faces, flesh and muscle revealing teeth and eyes ghostly white, empty of life and murky is almost soul-destroying thing he had to see. Corpses would eventually decay once the soul leaves the body.

“Uuugh…! More like any secon’!” he thought as he gazed at one face in horror. It reminds him of a song his father had sung after his mother had died. He almost swore that a woman was slinging this in his mind for anyone to hear.

Oh, Death

Won't you spare me over 'til another year?

Well what is this that I can't see

With icy hands takin' hold of me

Well I am Death, none can excell

I'll open the door to Heaven and Hell

“Well, this is it.” and he shut his eyes but what he heard next was glass shattering and the pained groans of the damned. He opened his eyes to see a familiar face, alive and well that helped him onto his feet.

No wealth, no land, no silver no gold

Nothing satisfies me but your soul

“Come on!” It was Frank who helped him onto his feet and managed to throw the jar at a horde that was surrounding him while he bled from the gash inflicted by the hatchet. Wobbled back on his feet, he held the injury with his shaking hand and cringed when he felt the warm blood pooling out of it.

“Ah gotta need a medic…!” he groaned in pain, Frank wanted to use the first aid but Dell had to stop him, “It’s for Brad! We’ll worry for mahself later.” as he is still holding the Frontier Justice in his other hand. A scowl on his pain purified on his face as he clanged onto the wound on his back.

When God is gone and the Devil takes hold

Who will have mercy on your soul?

Ultimis Takeo ran over to his side and helped the Engineer to stabilize his footing as he raised the rifle just beside Frank’s head as he jumped in surprise before a loud bang was heard.

The zombie that was coming towards Frank from behind fell down with a chunk of its head missing, brain matter and crimson pooling on the tiled floor.

Soon, four men were surrounding as a horde marched in, again, “There’s just so many!” Frank yelled in annoyance as he held the bat close to himself as he looked around for a way out.

Oh, I am Death.

I have come to take your soul.

Leave the body and leave it cold.

“この地獄を気に入れ..!” He raised his sword upright, pointing it at the several zombies on his way, he cannot use the power he had literally in his sleeves and as much as he does not want to use it around Frank West but he’s highly considering that option.

Nikolai was looking around but he was looking where he had gotten the feeling from, a figure that would confirm it and he had the feeling in his chest that they had hurt Dell to get them in a vulnerable position. He rather not know but he hoping, yes, hoping that the horde will kill them before they could.

My name is Death and the end is here...

They were ready, to fight or to die and be eaten trying to do so. Accepting their fate to be dinner for the walking dead but when the horde was getting closer, a hair ornament flew out of nowhere and struck one of the zombies’ forehead, making it fall backwards in a flash.

They were confused when they felt a figure run past them, wind following close and swiped the pin out of it’s skull. An Asian woman, dressed in Chinese WWII Medic uniform, white gloves, short unkempt raven hair as she clenched the ornament in her hand, blood stained the glove as she went to her another victim unfortunate enough to be in her line of sight.

It felt like the odds are even so they are able to go through the horde, guns blazing, beating, and stabbing too. Literally what they did with weapons as they had massacred their path through. They only stopped when Nikolai had stopped to turn to see if zombies or their stalker was following but much to his solace, whoever had thrown the hatchet was too busy slashing stumbling corpses surrounding them.

“We have to get away, right now!” The woman grabbed P!Nikolai by the forearm that snapped him out of his trance as he shook his head in bewilderment before running with them.

“That was insane.” the woman commented, out of breath as he ran. “Don’t mention it, come on, to the warehouse.” Frank West replied as he led them away from the scene fast.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Hold still, this will help a little.” The woman was giving Dell a bottle of medical alcohol. She had a bag of bandages, bandages, medicine, medical equipment and almost an empty pack of cigarettes in it.

He had drunk it a little as he did not want to waste the whole bottle, he felt like she needed it to clean the blood off his back and gave it back to her as he felt his throat burn with that warm feeling, the beverage was numbing the pain so it worked a little.

“Ah do appreciate the timing of you coming out of nowhere to save our skins but we handled the aggressive negotiation with the lovely residents of Willamette.” he lightly joked to her, making the WWII Medic giggled while U!Takeo, P!Nikolai and Frank West are keeping watch for any undead corpses walking around and any objects falling from the above, the storeroom with that cautious error will make any worker aware, even with an initial zombie outbreak if survivors are not careful enough.

The dress shirt was more red with his blood, even staining the overalls, and an undershirt with the sleeves ripped a little on the edges. The woman soaked a rag with the same drink and then went behind to clean off the blood. He hissed in pain when he fit the rag making contact on the wound, she was being very gentle on the injury as she is focused on it.

“Mind if Ah ask ya a name, ma’am?” Dell had turned his head towards her with his blue eyes, his helmet on one of the crates and goggles on his forehead since he could hardly see sometimes. It was often a manner of a soft-spoken Texan and it’s both a gift and a curse from his father and mother.

“I am Jin Bai Chen.” the woman introduced as she ringgit the rag to get the red liquid fall onto the floor, coloring the concrete. “I am a medic and I had heard they called you Dell?”

“Dell Conagher, Miss Chen, mah friends call me Dell but with mah teammates call me “Engineer.” or “Engie.” so call me the latter.”

“It is nice to meet you Mr. Con-ugh-er?” she mispronounced the surname, “It’s going to take a while for me to pronounce it, Engineer.” she continued awkwardly. The Engineer lightly chuckled under his breath, trying his best to ignore the pain on his shoulder. “Ah had gotten that a lot when I’d first join the RED Team”

“You can say that again, Dell.” Frank had his arms crossed as he looked at the two, making note that the way they wore may seem a few decades apart. Jin’s Medic uniform is from the late 30’s to early 40’s and the Engineer’s 60’s two years away to the first years of 70’s.

Jin shook her head as she finished cleaning the wound, she gave the bottle to Dell and said “I think you may need this.” as he took it from her with little confusion but he felt like she was going to do what he believed she was going to do.

She rummaged through her bag as he looked at her over his shoulder with interest, she got out a surgical suture, he kind of jumped and drink the liquor as she had realized what he did and shook her head with a soft smile curled on her red lips.

“I had gotten reactions like that from the soldiers.” she had explained as she got the thread through the suture and gotten it ready for its use. “Them being scared by a tiny sewing needle or just wanted to risk letting a cut get infected?” he asked as he closed the bottle, he can feel the alcohol hit him a bit better now. “It could be both, still since I had survived a war and I had never thought I would participate in this one.”

Frank got the warrior’s attention and they both look over to the procedure, “Do you think he could use something to bite down on, Jin?” he asked out of curiosity, she simply shook her head and said “No, they don’t but unless their limbs needed to be amputated then I could consider it.” and she then pierced the skin with a small needle, a sharp pinch had reignited the fire on the right shoulder of the Engineer, he could feel it through his drunk haze but it was numbed enough for him to burly feel it.

He greets his teeth through the agony with his eyes screwed shut, “Damn…!” he muttered as he clenched his fist that rested on his knees. She was very careful piercing through the skin as thread had danced over the injury as it bled a little again.

“Do you like to come back with us?” Primis Nikolai offered as the Engineer, being brass as nails, had endured the pain as much as he could, Sergeant Belinski can see why he preferred the medicine the Medic had and would never have to go through this again until today.

She had finished sewing the skin, the thread over the cut and open, she cautioned “Dell,” making him look at her, “This next part will hurt a little but brace yourself.”

He nodded and braced himself for the worse, it’d slowly happened and he was recovering from the alcohol-induced numbness and it was a bad timing as she pulled the thread gently yet hard to fully close the cut, pulling the skin together.

The injury was fully closed and Jin lightly tapped his shoulder while he was going to open the bottle again with his hands due to the aching. “Can I trouble you with that?” she asked as she pointed at the same bottle. He snakingly gave it to her while Frank came over to them with concern and cringed to the scene that happened.

“It must’ve hurt like hell.” He had commented as he kneeled to Engineer as he nodded and said “It hurts but ya know the medics had given soldiers a drink in the civil war?” as he looked at Frank West. “The alcohol beverage helps numb the pain so they can’t feel the doctors sawing their legs off.” Engineer finished as he felt the rag on the injury after she had it closed with a surgical knot and dressed it with the medical alcohol to clean it again.

It hurts, yes but Dell doesn't complain when she finishes again, Jin rummages her bag and then gets bandages out and then begins to wrap around his shoulder and chest. Jin had done it again at least a few more times until Dell’s right shoulder and chest was covered in bandages.

She cut the bandage with a knife and tied it to secure it, she then lightly patted his back. “Alright, I am all done now.” as she got the undershirt for the Engineer. He placed it on and as well with his crimson and normal red dress shirt and then placed the straps of his overalls. It almost looks as good as new except the blood.

“Engineer, do you rhink you can still walk until we get to the office?” Takeo asked as he helped his teammate up onto his feet again. “I had been through something like this before so it’s nothing new to me, boy.” Engineer smiled as he placed the goggles over his eyes once again and the helmet back on his head.

He groaned in pain, holding his right shoulder to sooth the warm, hurtful feeling coming from the wound. Jin looked at Dell with concern.

“Do not rub it too much, Dell, it will rip the stitches.” she placed her hand on his shoulder, he looked at her and simply nodded. It’s best to be careful until he goes to the Medic while he is fighting for his life.

“Are there others with you?” she asked as she looked at the three remaining members. “There are.” Frank answered, “But I think you’ll fit in the World War II section because of Tak and a marine.”

“Wait, one of the marines is here?” she was astonished, “Yeah. a corporal I think.” he rolled his eyes, the marines often get the girls, he thought.

“Then take me to the office, right now.” she demanded, P!Nikolai obied and then cocked the rifle back before saying “We must go now, we must not keep Brad waiting longer than we already have wasted.”

When he said that, Frank West looked at his wristwatch to check the time.

10:48

“Shi…” he muttered before turning and then running, leading the way with four teammates back to the rooftop.

Ultimis Takeo had no idea why but Jin Bai Chen looked familiar to him, had he met her before… Well, meeting her again?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

September 19th, 2006

11:54

Brad is going to be just fine, thanks to Jesse and Shaw and Jin’s help. A hand placed on his forehead to check the temperature, only normal warmth so far. “Mr. Garrison is stabilized,” looking at Jessie over his shoulder, “He’ll be fine for now.”

Jessie sighed in relief as Jin was sitting down next to Brad, in case that she’s still needed. Shaw looked at her, “You have done enough for now, Miss Chen, go meet up with the others in the back please.” he said, Jin bowed and then went into the back, closing it behind her.

“Still, two men injured yet survived the odds.” Shaw muttered, as he looked at Frank West, “I cannot comprehend how you would manage that.” Frank simply shrugged and then crossed his arms. “Pretty much, Shaw.” he replied but Jessie noticed something on his dress shirt: a spot of blood.

“Frank, are you alright?” she asked, Stanton looked at Jessie and then towards Frank in confusion. He too noticed the blood spat as well. Frank looked at them confused when she said ”You’ve got blood on you.”

“Huh?”

Frank realized and looked at the blood, remembering what had happened earlier yet he was amazed how quickly he forgot about it. “Oh yeah, it must’ve come from the girl we have saved.”

“The girl?” Shaw was a bit taken aback, standing up on his feet to face the reporter, “Was she hurt or…?”

“She’s alright, professor.” Frank had stopped him, Jessie walked over to the two men with worry.

“Where is she?” she questioned as she adjusted her glasses. Frank looked down at the ground as he turned around. “We had offered to help but she took off, I kinda wished we would’ve convinced her otherwise.”

Shaw shocked his head before checking his watch, “I guess she doesn’t have time to decide to trust in others.” he rationized. Jessie agreed, “Stanton is right, you can’t blame her for running away from your good looks.” she teased, earning a nod from Frank West in return.

“Anyway, she was saying something about Santa Cabeza before she left.”

“Santa Cabeza?” Jessie asked, inquired as she looked at Frank West with Shaw raised an eyebrow but they had heard a noise, they all turned to face the storage room as Jessie walked over to the door as Shaw tried to do the same.

The door opened and the same old man, Dr. Barnaby, was on the floor awake and alarmed to see her, he crawled away from the entrance as Jessie maintained her composure with a little delay.

“Dr. Barnaby,” she politely said, “You’re awake.”

Shaw had once heard from his old friend, Alistair, that looks can kill. He had laughed about it but now he had the feeling that Scarlett’s father was right as he saw that look on the fellow professor’s face: disgusted, confused, and angry.

“Santa Cabeza…?!” he growled, finally finding the words to say to this new information. “I should’ve known this…! I thought everything about that village was erased and forgotten!” he snapped angrily, looking at the group with a look of kill, “You have planned to dispense justice now?!”

Stanton Shaw and Frank West were confused and taken aback from what Barnaby had said, Jessie kneeled down, “Calm down, Doctor,” she reassured him as she reached for his arm, “We’re only following orders, we have to protect you-”

Dr. Barnaby pushed her arms away and shouted “Protect?!” wrenching his arm away, “More like imprisoned!” he accused, pointing a finger at this monarchy.

“Doctor Barnaby, is it?” Shaw walked over to the confect, “as a fellow professor, you must’ve known what Santa Cabeza was.” As he kneeled down, the brace on his leg squeaked a little as Dr. Barnaby’s attention was gone to Shaw. “And I think that Jessie is right.”

“Of course,” she insisted, “If you want us to protect you, we need to know the truth. All of it.”

“Just help us here, talk to us.” Shaw urged but then they heard a click and a snapping sound, they turned to see Frank West holding up his camera as he was standing there, awkwardly.

Shaw was annoyed and unpleased as he shooed Frank back a bit, grabbed the doorknob and then pulled the door to a close. Frank raised his hands in the air and let them hit his sides with fixed and crossed.

“Fine!” he mumbled, “I will get my information somewhere else, thank you very much.” as he walked a bit, his attention turned to the monitors as he headed towards it with an idea already formed in his head.

“Maybe I can track down that woman again…” he muttered under his breath, looking at the screens as Jin, Diego and U!Takeo walked in the room, wanting to inspect what had happened.

“What had happened-” Diego started to say but Ultimis had to stop as he looked at the monitors as well, on one of the monitors, the woman from before came up on a motorcycle in front of the store, she then got off of the bike and then entered that same store.

“You intended to go after her.” Ultimis Takeo said as he clearly knew that’s what Frank West was going to do, he nodded and got the bat off the floor and headed out, turning to the two and said “Re rill be back, wait here.”

“Of course, Takeo.” Jin nodded as they watched them go out the door. Diego and Jin looked at each other and the latter said “Well, since you are new, senorita, would you like to know me?” with a smile that a woman will fall for.

Jin shook her head and giggled before turning and returning to the room, she had been introduced to the group and already one man that caught her interest was the Ultimis Tank Dempsey, she had knew one of the marines is here and yet, she had jokingly said he may be the last one. To him, it felt like it was back in the times of him killing wave upon wave of zombies and like Takeo, something familiar about this woman but he can’t tell why.

Jin walked towards Medic as he was making another medicine with blood, medicine, yellow water that came from a body, and electricity to power it. “Oh Jin,” Medic greeted the woman with a soft smile. “Have you come to know what I have been making?”

“No thank you, Doctor,” she answered, “I am curious on how the Engineer was doing now.”

Medic was disappointed, “Oh, Dell, he is on zhe roof vith Pyro and Corporal Dempzey I believe, on zhe heilpad. I would’ve be happy to tell you all about zhis healing medicine.”

“I would love to, Medic.” She smiled a little yet this German was almost like the Butcher she had heard from the Chinese Soldiers and Marines but she maintained a polite expression however, he’s the field medic so they should be safe with one.

She walked up the stairs and found them, with a makeshift campfire made from a trash can, broken bench pieces as the metal scraps of what was once a trash can to begin with was cut away to make it a form of a barrel.

Fire softly danced inside the green barrel as U!Dempsey fed it with wood he had broken from the benches as the Engineer was sitting close to it with Pyro by his side, holding an axe close to themself.

A scar left behind by the injury is visible on the back of his right shoulder as his back faces the entrance to the security office. A noticeable bruise on his left shoulder as the skin was darkened a little from something that was heavy while he carried it.

The Engineer was singing softly under his breath, maybe to lighten the mood of the situation they were put in by an unknown entity as he sang “The sky is clearing and the night has cried enough. The sun, he comes, the world to soften up. Rejoice-”

“Hello?”

Dell jumped out of his skin as Pyro and Dempsey were getting ready to fight but was relieved to see it’s Jin. “Jeaus Christ, Jin, don’t scare us like that!” Dempsey breathed in air from the jump of adrenaline.

“I am very sorry, I thought I could check up on the Engineer and see how he is doing.” She explained her reason for being up here, sitting down on one of the chairs they had pulled up here and looking at the fire.

U!Dempsey scratched the back of his head with little unease, walking over to the forth one at the end, settled beside the medic and muttered “still, it’s badass that you saved their skin.”

Jin simply shook her head a bit with a soft smile that made the Marine a bit flustered with her eyes closed, “I happened to be there when I had come to.”

Come to? The three surrounded her had turned their heads to look at her, has the same thing happened to her as well? “Let me guess,” Dempsey was the first one to question her story, “You blacked out when you were doing something?”

Jin only shook her head, “I don’t remember anything but I had remembered being put inside a capsule that had the numbers 935 and that was it.”

U!Dempsey had a flashback when she had recalled, looking at the fire as a memory came back to him.

Dempsey was thrashing left and right to break free from the Nazis before being shoved inside something metal and glass placed over him. He was pounding on the glass as he saw a familiar man looming over the mechanical coffin by his side with a white lab coat and a sinister smile. It was Richtofen. On the coat was the number 935.

The memory ended there as he grasped at his forehead with a groan, Jin looked concerned as she placed her hand on his shoulder before asking “Corporal, are you alright?”

Ultimis Dempsey looked at Jin with bewilderment yet relaxed a little, “I’m fine, alright?” he answered as he removed the hand from his head to let it hand in front of it, “I’d just expressed a flashback, that’s all.”

“What’s it about, soldier boy?” Engineer asked out of curiosity, looking at Ultimis Dempsey with Pyro who tilted their head. “Something similar to Jin’s, I was forced inside a tin can with a 935 doctor looking at me like a damn weirdo.”

Jin was surprised, no doubt that number had to be related to their amnesia that could be also related to the events of what’s happening they were in.

“How did you wake up?” it was the only question Dempsey could think about. “I had woken up in a store with a startled man, it’s no doubt I am in the U.S.A since he had answered that.” she had explained herself, “He had also explained that these zombies had taken over the town of Williamette. I didn’t believe him at first but when I saw the horde myself, I wanted to wake up from this nightmare.”

“It’s a reality we lived in,” Dempsey said as he looked at the evening skies with his hands resting on the back of his neck and his legs resting on the other. “I knew my way around a meatbag or two.” before looking at her with a smile. The way he smiled had dusted pink on her cheeks and hooked her hair back a little.

“The different kind is this reality is the parasite type of a zombie,” Engineer had added, “The zombies had been affected by the element from where we had come from and here, they were affected by parasites in the form of wasps. The stinging pests.”

Jin was confused, where did they come from? Engineer could see Jin’s expression and said “From our own realities, dimensions if you like to call.”

“I know that,” Jin said softly as she rubbed her arms, “I just didn’t think the same thing happened to you all as well.”

“Tell me about it.” Dempsey commented sarcastically, Jin looked at him and then back at the Engineer, “What happened before you came is a long story…”

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