"Hump!" John exerted all his strength, hurling a chair at a Dead Walker's head. It went down with a splash.
"That makes ten," John announced after dispatching the creature.
"I'm at fifteen!"
"What did you say?"
"I SAID FIFTEEN!"
Their voices rose above the cacophony of growls, attempting to communicate with each other. Despite facing an overwhelming number of Dead Walkers, neither of them showed a hint of nervousness.
Yet, their progress was slow compared to the relentless tide of Dead Walkers pouring into the lobby.
"More are coming!" John pointed to the relentless horde inching closer to them. Being monsters, they seemed to have no regard for their own safety as they simple pressed forward pushing weaker ones aside.
"At least their sheer numbers are giving us some time," Kalsie sighed in relief.
The large mass of Dead Walkers in such a cramped space was creating a lot of resistance, making it challenging for them to advance. Furthermore there was still the barricading at the stairs that stopped them from moving further.
Their plan was simple: evaluate how long the barricade could withstand the Dead Walkers and calculate the time they could gain.
As minutes turned into moments, the two continued to take down as many Dead Walkers as they could. However, with the increasing numbers, it was becoming increasingly difficult for the barricade to sustain itself.
Bang! The first line of chairs and tables crumbled, allowing Dead Walkers to breach further in.
"First line breached!" John's voice rang out.
"Let's retreat to the second floor! I have a plan!" Kalsie yelled as he retreated.
Although only the first line of rows had fallen, the barricade remained intact. Nevertheless, both Kalsie and John decided it was time to retreat, unwilling to take unnecessary risks.
Once they stopped throwing wooden pieces, the Dead Walkers gained momentum. However, Kalsie and John quickly retreated by ascending the stairs, their bodies hanging over the edges of the staircase railing, heading back to the second floor.
Upon reaching the second floor, the cacophony of the Dead Walkers' growls lessened, granting their ears some respite.
Kalsie sighed in relief and took a sip from a bottle of water they had found in the building. He passed the bottle to John, who looked at Kalsie with a serious expression.
"Do you have a plan?" John inquired.
Kalsie nodded. "Didn't your team find a physics lab here?"
"Yeah, it's in that corner. But why?" John questioned.
"I believe we may have overlooked something crucial in there," Kalsie replied as he narrowed his eyes.
***
Noah anxiously asked Bella, "Bella, is it done?"
Bella, engrossed in her work, remained silent.
"Bella?" Noah pressed, still receiving no response.
"WHAT? Can't you see I'm busy making these? Wait for your turn!" Bella snapped, annoyed by the repeated interruptions.
Noah had been inquiring about the explosives she was crafting, similar to Molotov cocktails.
Their main ingredient was "chlorine trifluoride," a highly flammable and dangerous chemical they had found in the chemistry lab. Bella carefully stored it in various flasks and sealed them with cloth, which could be used to ignite the concoction.
Noah, taken aback by Bella's outburst, remained silent, wondering if this was still the same Bella he knew or someone else entirely.
Due to limited resources, each person was allotted three Molotov cocktails, and the order in which they received them had been decided through rock, paper, scissors. Unfortunately, Noah had the misfortune of being the last in line to receive his.
"Don't worry. You'll get yours soon." Jack taunted as he was the first person to receive the Molotov cocktails.
Noah remained silent but glared enviously at Jack and his Molotov cocktails hanging from his waist.
Sylvie asked Nicole about the situation downstairs. "Nicole, what's happening down there?"
Nicole replied, "While it seems that the Dead Walkers have entered the building, I don't believe they've reached the first floor yet. Kalsie and John must be holding them off..."
"Why did they have to go down there on their own? If it weren't for those barricades on the stairs, we could have gone down to help them ages ago! Now, all we can do is wait for them to return to the third floor and regroup with them," Fred grumbled in frustration after hearing her.
Fred and the others had also tried to descend and assist Kalsie and John earlier, but the barricade had proven insurmountable for them. They couldn't replicate what Kalsie and John had accomplished.
"Don't worry; they know what they're doing. We need to do everything in our power to survive! And you already know what kind of person Kalsie is," Nicole reassured her.
"I know that better than anyone! What's infuriating me is all these damn monsters! They just had to make things difficult for us! There are still two other buildings, but they're all after us!" Fred complained, irritated by the fact that most of the Dead Walkers had come to their building, while only a few had headed to the other two.
"No, that's not true. The building on the left... it was breached by the Dead Walkers not long ago," Nicole pointed out the building with the fewest Dead Walkers outside.
"Oh... did everyone inside die?" Sylvie inquired as she covered her mouth in shock.
"What else could happen?" Wendy shrugged her shoulder.
"No, they all rushed to the edge. Look at those tiny dots. They're hanging outside the windows, trying to stay out of reach of the Dead Walkers," Nicole explained, pointing to the people who were hanging from the outer edges of the building.
Sylvie, Wendy and Fred were left speechless as they observed six people desperately clinging to the building's exterior to avoid the reach of the Dead Walkers.
Sighing, Nicole added, "At least they survived the onslaught. To survive, one group hid inside the water tanks, while the other group clung to the windows on the building's edge. It just shows how dire the situation is in the other buildings. Compared to them, we're still safe."
Fred expressed his frustration, saying, "It would have been better if that scum and his lackeys were in that building," as he looked at the other building, which remained unharmed. He knew that Peter and his group were likely hiding in that building.
"We both share same sentiment, fatty." Wendy nodded with frustrated look remembering Peter' face.