"Vo's going to throw those explosive parcels to the back of our direction. Dave, throw that bomb in front of our way should there be a lot of zombies on our way. Bring every weapon. Melees are much better. We run our way to the main gate."
"Ok guys, you understand that? Time to smack some zombies."
The chopper door slid open to Vo's hand. Dozens of zombies greet us with their nasty coughs and strong bursts of sneezes as we step out. Vo let out his bomb. It's the first time the bomb was put into action. First, the loud siren attracted them. It was a bunch of random beeps that gathered them in piles, zombies on top of another having no clue what the thing is.
Then comes the second one, the boom. Shortly after Vo pressed the button, the mob were shredded to pieces by the blast. The blown-up flesh splattered on the helicopter window panes. It left behind a plume of smoke and dust. And ... bodies
"RUN!" Vo yelled out.
We are running. More zombies are jumping off the windows, roofs, and balconies of the buildings on the roadside. From the alleys and the passages. They sacrificed their limbs, legs, and bodily functions just to get themselves to their prey. We are looking at the very moment closer to the brink of death than ever before.
Scattering this road, stretching to the gate ahead are many cars that look like a downright traffic jam, except that they're all empty, with no driver or passenger inside.
"Shite!" Someone shouted from behind. "They got me!"
At the same moment, zombies are running toward us from the front. I hurl my bomb and press the button almost immediately, for I was in a total panic. But to make matters worse, I realized that I did an awful throw just as my thumb pressed on the detonator. And BOOM! The bomb exploded dangerously close.
"AHHH!"
"Dude!" Dan yelled to the fallen guys. To make matters worse, they were the ones to carry Frando. All of them fell to the ground, with Fran slithering on the ground. Dan tried to go there, but Vo's hand reached out to him before he made a step and do something reckless.
"GO! Run to the gate!" Fran shouted to us on top of his lung, while being heavily beaten up by mobs of zombies. He struggled to stand and fight, but it seems impossible. It's just a matter of time until he's lost, consumed by the swarm.
"If we all die, then their deaths are in vain," Vo told Dan and everyone. "Time to go. Run to the damn gate!"
We are surrounded. At this time when silence is not an option, I take my pistol out, getting the best out of my last magazines. Anton let out his shotgun. I shot several more zombies dead. One ran just straight in front of me. I fired my last bullet.
Too bad, it only hit the shoulder.
Desperately, using as much energy as I could gather, I threw my pistol. I shut my eyes as if doing so can save me from that charging attacker - or make any difference between life or death.
Then a gunshot was heard, and the infected dropped just a step away.
"This is Silver Dock to ten survivors on the street, run to the gate ASAP!" A loud voice came up from somewhere ahead.
As I open my eyes, looking up, I see something that hadn't been present on the walls before. There is a line of dark spots after the bright sky, standing on the fortification walls. And on the towers. I swept my sight around and adjusted to focus to see that those are human figures. Soldiers. Then a pair of helicopters ascended to a height above the wall, hovering still on the position. One on the left, and another on the right. And the gate had been opened before us.
They started shooting. Vo screamed, commanding us to run.
Brrt! Brrt! A burst of projectiles they fired struck a rushing zombie, killing it. One, two, three, four. The zombies who are charging on us began to fall dead, one by one in quick succession like someone have pushed their kill switches. The helicopters launched their rockets, then numerous explosions went off on the road, all around, lighting up many infected in one shot.
We kept the pace, getting closer and closer to the gate. And I can see the gap between doors getting more narrow, slowly.
But after a moment, the door stopped moving. Something is obstructing the movement. I guess that the pair of the heavy metal doors have gotten its wheel thrown out of the track because of the crash with our helicopter. The door could only move a little before it finally stop, unable to close anymore. The gap is still wide.
The zombies will storm this port in no time.
We have finally passed the gate, followed by dozens of zombies. Soldiers are trying to hold them with bullets; infantries are firing from the wall and the others are deployed in the yard, putting suppression.
"Can't they just bomb them all?" Vo spoke out loudly, running through the gate.
"No clue!" Serx said.
The port is crowded with refugees and escapees. A lot of military vehicles can be seen, as well as stacks of containers around our way. People are out of the buildings in hasty strides, to the docked landing platform ships ahead. Panic has consumed this place.
"Announcement, we are departing at 07:00. Three minutes left until departure. Get on board immediately. To all passengers, we will leave in three minutes." A loud voice from a sound speaker can be heard just right above my head, from the communication tower.
We are still on the run.
More weapons are brought out of the base. In front of us, two military humvees are passing on our left and three Infantry Fighting Vehicles with much larger cannons. All of them started shooting, filling my ears with countless piercing noises. My pair of lungs felt vibrating.
"Look, that one ship is full!"
Man is flying a small red flag right behind the ship's gateway soon closing, giving the sign that the ship no longer allows for more passengers. There's no option except for the other ship. We turned left, then a sudden strong, loud blast came from the ship. Its main cannon had just fired. Five shots followed at a steady pace. I took a look behind and saw the dead zombies, debris, and fire scattering the ground near the main gate. The wall had been blown up to rubble, as well as the gate itself.
"Get away from the muzzle blast area. Keep running!" An onboard officer shouted.
Our ship we're going to board is just several dozen meters from the turn we took. Several people ran alongside us. We are approaching the metal staircase that leads to the deck.
We walked up the stairs.
Vo sighed, relieved. He's the first one to step a foot on the deck, followed by Dan, Serx, me, Anton, then the others.
"So much fires aren't those?" Dan said, seeing the soldiers and vehicles firing everything they got.
"Surely. We've just messed this place up, man." I said.
The zombies have spread around the large yard of this port. Cannons on the ships started shooting. Missiles are out of the helicopters. And high-caliber machine gun barrages never-ending stream of bullets. Explosions peppered this place. But those things are everything they could bring out to keep the swarms of infected at bay.
"KRI-595 complete."
"KRI-596 complete."
One by one, the ships lining the dock are complete. It should be about time until we depart. And more people are coming aboard this ship. People came in relief of reaching safety. The deck went from barely anyone to crowded quickly.
A gust of wind blows my face from above as three helicopters fly approaching this ship. My eyes followed them as they descend to the helipad and finally land on it. The doors slide open. Out of the helicopters are people in suitcases and neat clothes; the government executives. Grateful smiles are plastered on their faces. They waved their hands, randomly to the citizens on board.
The hangar door lowered down, revealing hundreds of chairs that have been set up inside. Several people headed there, but we choose to stay here for a while, on the edge. I rested my arms on the ship's deck railing. Wonder about our next destination as we gradually leave the port as the coastal wind blows my face.
The pandemic that changed the course of the world forever. I wonder about the shape of the city I came from, how would it look like today. I wonder what happened to all people in the island of Java. I'm sure not everyone could obtain a place to stand on the decks of these ships. Some of them had to survive on their homes, develop their own safe zones.
Serx is on my left. Somehow, I have no feeling of discomfort, not even the slightest bit, despite being quite close to someone who might be turning into ...
"How's life, Serx?"
"I hope so." He answered calmly.
.._ ---/\--- _..
END OF THE FIRST STORY.