Zane's vision was fuzzy. His body was tired and in pain. His adrenaline was about to wear off. He laid on top of the unconscious Layla not knowing what to do. The rain poured from above as they laid in a puddle of mud and leaves. The Apocrypha were closing in and he knew they were in trouble. Zane settled his heavy breathing as best as he could. Panicking would only work against them.
"Layla... wake up!" he called in a whispered shout.
There was no response. A horrific thought came zooming through Zane's mind. Was she dead? That would certainly be bad. He quickly moved his fingers under Layla's nose. He felt the air press against his fingers. She was breathing, just unconscious. The last thing Zane needed was anyone dying on him, especially Layla.
"Zane!" called Serenity who was still up in the tree.
Zane swung his head upwards placing his fingers on his lips. Serenity went quiet realizing something was wrong.
"Try your best to keep yourself hidden! They're coming!"
Serenity was unsure what Zane had said. He was trying so hard not to raise the volume of his voice, that she barely heard his words. She was however smart enough to know that something was very wrong.
Zane had to think quickly. He could tell the Apocrypha were closing in on them. What could he do? And how fast could he do it? He looked around in anguish. A burning jeep and an endless variety of trees. The jeep would surely bring Apocrypha towards them. Three unconscious humans and a frail little girl didn't stand a chance. If it turned out to be Rank 2 Apocrypha or higher then they would be in serious trouble. Zane had one option and it was an option that could easily get him killed, especially due to his injuries.
He forced himself up off Layla. The bones in his legs crunched like crackers. He clenched his teeth and stood tall with the pain. His facial expression as if someone was pulling his nails out one by one.
He grabbed onto Layla's arms and began pulling her body like a corpse through the mud. He didn't like the method but it was the best he could do for her. A patch of wild grass was not too far from them. He could hide Layla's body out of sight from the Apocrypha. The only issue were chimera dogs. If they were really rank 2 then they would inevitably have chimera dogs to trace the scent of humans. It was a frustrating situation for Zane.
"It's times like these I wish I was home chilling and watching Netflix..." he muttered to himself in annoyance.
Zane relaxed Layla's body in the patch of wild grass. She was completely out of sight. Only a good nose would be able to find her. He stopped as he searched Layla's body for her gun. He patted her waist repeatedly searching for the slightest bulge. There was nothing. He had to check her jacket next. He dug through her jacket until he found a 9mm pistol and two rounds of ammunition.
"Alright Layla... I didn't do this to be perverted. I simply did this so I can save our lives..." he mumbled painfully.
Zane stood himself up. He looked up at the tall canopy of the trees hovering over his head. The rain pitter-pattering across his face making it look as if he was crying. He took a deep breath. He was about to do the unthinkable.
Painfully, Zane stepped out of the patch of grass and moved through a few puddles a good distance away from the crash site. He then pointed the gun upwards into the air with one last shaky breath.
"Hey! All you dumb low-IQ Apocrypha! Wanna see if you're really superior to a human?! Come get me!" he shouted like a mad man.
Zane even went as far as firing two shots in the air completely giving his position away. Loud bellowing and roaring of Chimera dogs came into play. An intense chill ran through his body like a lightning bolt.
"Yeah... that's it... move away from the crash site. I'm over here..." he encouraged underneath his breath.
The Apocrypha almost instantly came into view. Chimera dogs grinning their hideous razor sharp teeth twirling their boneless head's 360°. Zane noticed at least ten Apocrypha alongside five other chimera dogs. He was biting way more than he could chew.
He swung his head around in the opposite direction. It was time to run.
Zane knew he could never outrun the Apocrypha, especially the chimera dogs. They were just too quick. He needed some sort of plan if he wished to stay alive. Unfortunately, he had none.
He ran as fast as he could biting his lower lip. His legs were completely messed up but he had to bare with it. His feet splashed through puddles as he moved. His breathing becoming heavier with each step. The blood from his wounds falling from his face mixing with the puddles beneath him. Some even being wiped off onto passing leaves.
He glanced back at his pursuers. As expected they were gaining on him. The chimera's roared and the Apocrypha smiling with their metallic-like teeth. Zane got his gun ready. The Apocrypha liked to play games which meant they probably saw this as a race. Shooting at them would inevitably result in them showing him aggression.
Zane looked back one last time deducing if it was a good idea. The chimera were now only 10ft behind him. Their claw-like feet sinking into the mud propelling them forward. This was their type of environment. Zane had no choice. He popped his gun out directing it behind him. A shot echoed through the forest. One chimera flipping over like a fried egg slamming into a next. The other three jumped over their brethren roaring in aggression.
Zane's heart rate increased exponentially. Was that a very sagacious move by him? He didn't have much of a choice or he would have lost a leg by now. The Apocrypha too weren't very pleased by his 'futile resistance'. They got their weapons out. Inclusive of human guns and other Apocrypha unknowns. Shots rocketed through the forest towards Zane. He dived desperately to his left taking cover behind a tree. One chimera dog sliding past trying to halt itself to a stop. Leaves, mud and water zooming through the air.
The tree behind Zane rattled violently as he covered his head. It creaked and cracked until it began to fall from the powerful weaponry of the Apocrypha. A chimera dog was ready to pounce him down. It dived at him as Zane rolled himself out of the way covered in mud like a member from an African Tribe. Just on queue, the tree came crashing down crushing the chimera underneath it.
Zane took a quick breath feeling saved for a short moment. Luck was still very much on his side. He scurried to his feet ready to move as quickly as he could. However, his feet had other ideas. He found it close to impossible to move his feet like before. They felt stiff as if they were suffering from rigor-mortis. Was it because he stopped moving? Zane could now only limp his injured body away. His feet basically being dragged behind him as he struggled to move.
"Crap! No... no... no... I can't get caught! Not yet- I-I have to keep going!"
The Apocrypha lined up their guns towards his head. More shots fired as Zane lunged himself towards the ground cowering in fear. Bullets and other liquidized substances made their presence known slamming into tree barks, leaves and mud. A few even grazing Zane's arms and the back of his neck. Things could only get worse when the other two chimera dived onto his back. Their claws sinking into the skin of Zane as blood mixed in with the rain that fell from above.
Zane thought he was dead. There was nothing he could do. He could no longer stand much-less run.
A sharp roar echoed through his eardrums like a bomb. He thought the chimera were ready to rip him apart until he felt their weight disappear from his back. He then heard aggressive roars and crying as if the chimera were fighting with something.
To Zane's astonishment, a black bear and a cougar were fighting off the two chimeras. They rolled through the mud slashing and biting at one another. Their fur becoming coated in mud and leaves. Zane really couldn't believe his luck. Did a pair of wild animals really just save him? Little did he know it was the opposite. The animals had simply picked Zane out as a target for their next meal. Seeing the chimeras ready to take their prey placed them in attack mode fighting over food.
Zane realized that the cougar and bear were losing. They were powerful but not powerful enough to take on the chimeras. Zane had to help them. He got his gun shaking the mud off it. He quickly fired two shots; one missing and the other slamming into the leg of the chimera.
"Damn! I was aiming for the head!" he cursed bitterly.
It was however enough for the two animals to take back control of the fight. The black bear growled and the cougar screamed with it's weird human like vocals. The chimera being ripped apart underneath bawling like injured dogs. Zane saw this as the perfect opportunity to get away. He dug his hands through the mud dragging his body forward. The rain splashing mud into his face and eyes constantly. His mouth tasted fresh and his heart pounding heavily.
Zane had forgotten about the Apocrypha. They bellowed in rage as Zane looked into their dark glowing purple eyes. Weapons arched towards him ready to fill him with holes. Zane got his gun in front of him refusing to die without a fight. His hands trembled unable to keep the gun steady.
"We win!" stated one of the Apocrypha ready to blast a hole through Zane's head.
Gunfire blasted through the air. Apocrypha screaming and bellowing wildly. Blood running like a river on the ground...
The cougar and bear ran off into the distance unable to take the sound of the rapid gunfire leaving the dead chimeras behind. Death was now present. Zane laying stagnantly on the ground. His eyes closed and lungs sealed off from air.
The heinous stench of blood filling the surrounding area.
"Is he dead?"
"I don't know, he seems dead..."
"Crap! Just when we thought we found one too!"
"We need to hurry and find some people before the next deadline or we're all gonna end up like him!"
Zane gasped filling his lungs with air. His eyes being flung open with shock. He thought he had died but he didn't even have a single fatal wound all over his body.
"Ahhh! F@ck he's coming back to life! Now we gotta deal with zombies too?? Shoot him!"
"Wait you jack@ss! He's still alive!"
Zane rolled himself through the mud in a panic. The Apocrypha that were supposed to kill him were now all dead. He quickly wiped the mud from his eyes as he adjusted them onto two figures. They were both fully grown men looking around their thirties equipped with assault rifles. One had light skin, dark brown eyes and a full head of black shaggy hair. He wore a 'I Love NYC' hat with a plain black shirt, black jeans and black leather boots.
The other was of dark complexion and was a bit muscular. He had a bald head and wore a black jacket with short black pants and a pair of dark leather boots. He seemed like the more commanding of the two.
"Wh-Who are you?!" asked Zane quickly.
"You're very much welcome for us saving you kid!" exclaimed the man in the hat sarcastically.
"Leave the kid alone Terry... He's obviously traumatized. Sorry about that... I'm Clement and this hat loving moron is Terry. What about you kid?" Inquired the other man.
Zane slowly sat himself up trying his best to be cautious with the two strange men.
"I-I'm Zane..."
"Zane huh? What are you doing all the way out here?" asked Clement.
"We crashed and almost died... A-Are you guys friendly? Please we need your help!"
Clement and Terry exchanged an intrigued look.
"You said we? You have a group?" interrogated Terry.
"Yes! Please we were being chased by the Apocrypha and got thrown off the mountain side! We almost died but I left them behind so I could draw the Apocrypha away! Please! We need your help!" cried Zane.
"Fine! No problem! Take us to them!" exclaimed Terry happily.
Zane found it a little weird how easily the two men accepted his request. He however didn't pressure the topic. He didn't have a choice because they needed the help. Zane tried forcing himself up onto his feet but they wouldn't respond to him as if they were dead. He grunted and cried as the pain set in.
"You damage your legs?" asked Clement.
"Yeah... aftermath of the crash..."
Clement and Terry smiled as they helped Zane up. They placed his arms around their shoulders as Zane directed them towards the crash site. The rain had finally let up as Zane thought he had finally corrected his mistake.
After five minutes of painful walking, they had gotten to the crash site. The jeep still burning and the scent of gasoline present through the air. Zane's heart thumped against his chest in worry. What if he had failed to draw all the Apocrypha away from the group? They could be dead.
"Serenity!" he called desperately.
"Zane?" she answered from above the tree.
Zane and the two men looked up at Serenity who was still holding both Almarie and Nick in the tree.
"Zane! Thank goodness! Are you okay??? You scared me so much when I saw you direct all the Apocrypha to yourself! I-I thought you might have died!" she cried with tears flowing from her eyes.
"I'm sorry to have worried you! But look, I brought us help!"
Serenity looked at the two men suspiciously. She somehow felt like she shouldn't trust them but they had no choice anyway.
"Come on little girl! Throw those two down! I'll catch them!" ordered Clement.
"Okay..."
Slowly, Serenity got herself down alongside the unconscious Nick and Almarie. Zane realized that a part of Serenity's jacket was torn. It was wrapped around the injured arm of Almarie who was as pale as a ghost. Zane smiled seeing just how useful Serenity could be. She had completely stopped the bleeding of Almarie potentially saving her life.
"Anymore friends?" asked Terry.
"Yes! It's Layla... I'm drowning in worry about her! I hid her safely in the bushes over there." declared Zane.
"I'm kinda sad you didn't come check on me first..." said a cool female voice.
Zane swung his hear around to see Layla. Her head had stopped bleeding but she had a piece of cloth wrapped around her arm as if covering a deep wound.
"Layla! You're okay! I was so worried!" screamed Zane happily.
"Well in all honesty I just woke up a minute ago. I was going to come look for you but here you are with two strangers. Based on how you look I'm assuming you did something reckless and dumb again?"
"Yeah... I'm sorry but I had to! The Apocrypha would have found all of you if I didn't!"
Layla walked over to him and placed her hand on his cheek, "Gosh you're so dumb... Can you even walk?"
Zane shook his head awkwardly in denial.
Layla sighed, "Geez, you're not the only one who can worry, okay? Don't drive my anxiety through the roof like that."
"I'll try not to..."
Layla got her gun from Zane's waist and removed the safety. She slowly pointed it at Terry's head.
"Now then, my gut's telling me not to trust you people. Answer my questions satisfactory and I might not lodge a bullet in your cranium."
Everyone froze in shock as they looked at Layla. Things were not over. Zane's mistake was not cured.