Past 5 - Mission failed

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5 years ago

1 month after the virus broke out

I stood there silently, glaring at the dark sky. It was an open area, no roof or any walls. Bunch of children also stood with me there, glaring at me. I didn't speak anything, neither did they. All we could hear was loud gust of wind.

A sudden burst from behind interrupted that cold breeze. Someone entered in by opening the door.

A familiar voice.

"What is the meaning of this, Raiden?"

It was Sheila.

I didn't react to her appearance.

She closed the distance between us and pulled my left shoulder back, making me face her.

"I asked you what the hell happened here?" She was now shouting angrily.

I simply shook my head and said nothing.

She looked over the group of children which still stood besides me then clenched her fists in anger.

"Let's go in," she said as she turned around to get in where she came from.

I and all the children followed her.

Inside the gate there stood lots of men and women. Some older and some younger.

Toshi was amongst them too.

A man came forward from the big crowd. A old one, above 30 maybe. He had full beard on his face and hairs on his hands.

"Why are the kids back here?" The man asked, he also looked angry.

"The mission failed," Sheila replied.

"What did you say? Mission failed? Are you fucking kidding me?" He shouted.

"You heard me right. The mission failed. We are going back to our base. Now no more questions or I will throw you down with those zombies."

Everyone was speechless. They all just glared at Sheila and me and all the children. And no one asked any questions anymore, not even that angry man.

They all stood in utter silence.

Sheila moved ahead, crossing between the crowd to the other side. And, after a short distance she stopped as she came upon a railing. She leaned ahead and looked down. All she saw was the faces of more than 500 zombies.

We were inside a huge mall consisting of total 7 floors and we stood at the top most floor. All the floors down us were filled with zombies. The only thing that kept those zombies from coming to the 7th floor was the escalator connecting the 6th and 7th floor which was half destroyed from the upper side. Means the escalator couldn't lead those zombies to the 7th floor.

Toshi joined in to Sheila. "I understand the situation but there is no way we could kill all those zombies and get out of here."

Sheila didn't shift her gaze away from the zombies.

"How about using the lift?" said Kingslayer, a boy around same age as me. His hair all yellow and spikey. He had a little long tooth which always came out from the right side of his mouth, making him look like a vampire.

I also crossed the crowd and came towards the railings. "There is no electricity here so now chance of going from lift."

"Actually there is one," Toshi claimed.

Sheila finally looked towards us folding her both hands. "And what it is?"

Toshi stepped away from the railings and walked right. The 7th floor wasn't too big but there was several shops to the left and a little scary house themed room. On the right there was so little space only for the entrance of the lift. There were metal gates blocking the lift, just like in any normal lift.

"If we can open the gates we can just climb down on the ladders."

"Ladders?" I asked.

"Yes. There are always ladders inside the shaft to freely move up and down." Toshi explained. "If we are lucky enough and the lift isn't in our way, we can directly go down.

"But hey! What's the point of going down from there?" Kingslayer asked. "Aren't this whole place filled with zombies? So whatever floor we go, there will be those zombies waiting for us."

"The ground floor," Toshi remarked. "The entrance to the ground floor by the back side of the mall and all these zombies entered through the front side so I doubt there will be any zombie down there."

His idea was certainly correct and our only choice. After thinking about it for a while Sheila agreed and commended the group to take action.

It was Smith to act first. He took a big and sharp dagger and stood in front of the metal gate. Then he impaled the dagger in between the short gap of metal gates. He immediately took his dagger out and put the thick edge of his axe between the gap. He pushed his axe in the gate widened. The point came where he could put his hand through the gap. He held both the gates and pushed them away. The gates opened.

Inside the gates there was nothingness. A pure dark shaft. Smith backed off and Sheila and Toshi surrounded the opened entrance. They couldn't see anything except the dark.

Someone handed a torch over to them. Roshi flicked the switch of the torch. A beam of light reached directly opposite to us. We could see the ladder on the wall in front of us. He little by little followed the ladder down by the light beam.

Then a platform appeared. Roshi focused the beam on the platform. It was the lift, hanging with lots of wires. Roshi observed it's position. "It's on the 3rd floor," he claimed.

"Now what? This shaft is so small there is no space between ladder and lift. How can we get to the ground floor now?" I asked as leaned to get a better look at the situation.

"We simply cut the wires holding the lift." Sheila said and Toshi agreed with her as if they both were thinking the same thing from the beginning.

"Wait! Wait! Wait!" Someone from the crowd said. A face came out of the crowd by which Sheila looked really annoyed.

It was the man who questioned Sheila when she entered in the room.

"Our whole plan is based on the fact that the ground floor is not swarming with zombies but if cut the wires the lift will make a falling sound which will he really loud then the ground floor will be filled with the zombies in no time."

Well this time he really had a good point.

"We won't let the sound of lift go out," Sheila replied.

I was confused with that. Not letting the sound go out?

"Do not trouble yourself too much, Raiden," Toshi said, somehow he always knew what I was thinking.

"Boys! Pick up the guns at aim at those zombies down on the 6th floor. We are gonna cover up the sound from the impact of lift and ground with the sound of our guns." Sheila commanded.

I understand the plan and it looked quite clear to me now.

Everyone took their position. More than half of the crowd stood besides the railing and few of us were at the entrance to the shaft.

I and Toshi both held sharp swords in our hands. Smith and Wilson were right besides us with their big axe in their hands.

"Start cutting the wires. Now!" Sheila commanded. We did as what she said. "Fire at my mark." The others prepared themselves for the gunfire.

Wires were so thick, it was so difficult to cut them with just sword and axe but he made the wound on the wire more deeper.

One of the wires cut down. The lift started to lose it's equilibrium. The second one also cut down. Then Third and fourth wire couldn't handle the weight of the lift alone hence it break down. The lift fell with a sudden velocity. And Sheila gave them the sign to fire.

"Fire!!" She screamed.

Loud sound of gunfire echoed through the whole mall. Some men started shouting by seeing the enthusiasm of Sheila. In the loud noise of scream and gunfire I couldn't notice when did the lift hit the ground.

Toshi focused at the ground and the lift was all messed up. Totally crushed.

We noticed that the deep shaft had a little more depth even after the ground floor's gate. The gate to the ground floor was at least about 5 meter up from where the lift laid.

The gunfire stopped. They weren't given any signal to stop but everyone of them had a idea of the average time taken by the lift to reach ground.

Everyone gathered around that dark tunnel, wanting to take a peek but couldn't.

Now the main question emerged within everyone that who will be going down to check the ground floor?

No one said it out loud but they must be thinking it.

Toshi who had leaned before, stood up. He stood at the every edge of the shaft. And, I was just right besides him. He was about to say something and I knew exactly what he would say.

"I will go down to check the ground floor."

I said it before Toshi.