Chapter 14 - Mother

"Keep running!" I shouted. 

We had successfully escaped the zombies in the super-center. But we weren't safe yet. My dreams have never been wrong before, so rather than wishing it weren't true and being scared of the things that will happen, I'll use them as guides to survive.

Rina had been running faster than everyone else, it wasn't that Demi and Lia were slow, they just kept up with my pace. So when Rina, who was ahead of everyone stopped, I got worried.

I had wondered if I was too late or if I had given wrong directions as we ran, but that wasn't the case.

"All you keep doing is shouting directions without explaining a damn thing. We're taking extremely long to get back to the car because of you, so don't you think you owe us an explanation? Or did you suddenly  recall you dream?" She asked frustratedly and suspiciously.

Before I could respond Demi intervened, "Are you seriously trying to start something now? Just shut up and do what she says. May will explain everything to us when she knows we're safe."

"Bullshit! I can't keep running when there's nothing to run from! I need an explanation now," Rina demanded. 

She was acting strange again. I'm not sure why her attitude took a complete one-eighty but I had a bad feeling about it.

The next events seemed to happen in slow motion. The three of them were arguing when The End appeared. 

'Duck'

I quickly grabbed Demi and Lia's heads and forced them to the ground with all my strength. A light post zipped through the air and pierced the building. If we had still been standing, our heads would been impaled.

A horrified expression masked Rina's face. At first, I thought she was worried about us but when I looked to my left, I saw the woman who had raised me for eighteen years.

Her beautiful appearance had contorted into a pale, bloody, grotesque creature. Eyes rolled upwards and hoarse groans escaped her throat. 

I remember now, the reason I desperately wanted to avoid this zombie wasn't just because she was dangerous, but because I didn't want Rina to get hurt.

"Mrs. Z?" Rina's voice trembled as she called our to her.

But this was a mistake. After all, what stood before her was a creature who was attracted to sound.

The zombie lunged forward, but Rina was frozen from shock. Demi quickly reacted and shot its leg before it could reach her.

We hurriedly got off the ground as it turned towards us. It's hands morphing into fleshy blades that extended to the ground. For a moment I had forgotten she was a mutant.

Though made of flesh, the blades were extremely sharp. It went after Demi, and slashed at him but he thankfully dodged, the building behind him getting sliced in the process.

Lia jumped in to help him, a nano-steel bat in her hand. They were holding their own against it perfectly, but they were struggling to kill it.

I looked around, hoping to find The End but she wasn't anywhere in sight. I didn't know what to do. I've become dependent on her, trusting she'd always be there for me when I was in danger.

Danger? That's right. I wasn't in danger right now. Demi and Lia were keeping the zombie occupied. However, it looks as though I overreacted because they didn't need my help. Demi had found an opening and striked to slice her head off.

He would've killed it, but Rina intervened. She rushed forward and punched Demi in the side throwing him to the floor.

Her action surprised Lia, causing her to loosen her grip on her bat. The zombie's strength took the advantage as it's blade sliced into her shoulder. A pained curse left her mouth as she threw the zombie off, dropping her bat in the process.

"Lia!" I exclaimed and ran towards her.

I didn't have a weapon so I picked up her bat.

'Dodge left and strike'

I dodged left of its slash and hit it as hard as I could knocking it off balance. 

"Stop!" Rina yelled.

'Step back and strike to the right'

Rina had lunged at me, but when I step back she fell to the floor and I was able to hit the zombie's head. But I wasn't strong enough to take it's head off.

'Run to the right and shoot'

She tried to grab my feet but I ran just in time. I picked Demi's gun up and just as it was about to regain its balance, I turned and pulled the trigger.

It's lifeless body fell to the ground beside Rina, and she let out a painful cry.

"No!! Mrs. Z!! Wake up! Please don't go! Mrs. Z!! Mom!" She cried over and over again as she kept shaking the corpse.

"Are you okay?" I asked Demi as he held his left rib and stood up.

"I'm fine, I didn't expect her to punch me. Let alone with her weapon too," he paused as he looked at her, slouched and crying over the zombie's corpse. "Normally I'd be pissed off, but her mother had turned into a zombie. Her reaction was understandable."

I didn't say anything and ran over to Lia, "We have some medical supplies in the car. Do you think you can make it? Should I ask Demi to carry you?"

She let out a small chuckle and ruffled my hair with her uninjured arm, "It's not as bad as it looks. I can manage. "

But she couldn't. Her pained screams were still fresh in my mind. I took off the jacket Demi had given me and wrapped it around her shoulder to try to stop the bleeding.

"Let's hurry to the car, we need to look after Lia's wound. Can you carry her Demi?" I asked.

She rejected and said she was okay, but if she was she would've tried to punch Demi for picking her up. Seeing as how she didn't spoke volumes. After grumbling for a bit she accepted her faith.

There was just one person left. The other two weren't on good terms with her but they still felt sorry for her. They knew we had to leave but were conflicted on how to convince her to leave the zombified corpse of her 'mother'.

I quietly spoke, "Rina...we have to go."

She sniffled as she responded, "Why? Why don't you...s-seem su...prised?

I didn't respond. I was planning on making up something later on, but now that this happened, I wasn't sure what to say.

She slowly stood up and wiped her eyes, her voice still trembling, "You...you didn't know...right? You said...said that she... was hiding...safely..."

"I never said that, you were the one who assumed she was safe. All I said was that she distracted the angry mob so I could get away," I explained, my voice devoid of all emotion as I recalled what she did.

She looked surprised at my response and lack of emotion, her mouth opened and closed before she said "She was your mother."