A KNIFE, GUN, ROPE, BOARD, AND SCREAM"Where are you going?" Mysty hollered after Liliane who had just put down Hael on the reception desk and walked towards the southern hallways. "Hey!""We had made the call, Liliane." Odette advised, "Shouldn't we wait here. The police will be coming.""What did you told them that they are willing to come?" Liliane scoffs. "I don't trust them. None of us does.""We are short of options," Mysty retorted. "Zombies might've surrounded the museum.""As in movies?""Yeah.""Negative. I can't sense their growling," Mysty's sharp ear extended upwards to hear a nearby commotion but sensed stillness. "Why are you going back? We should stick together at the reception; in case we have to run.""Then why don't you run now. The entrance is beside the reception.""Chief and boys are still inside."Liliane rolled her eyes, "I'm going to the southern storerooms. Stored some firecrackers for the next new year. Listen and understand what I'm going to suggest.""I hope it can actually help," Riruru exclaimed before leaning closer to listen to the plan."We light the crackers to create fire and draw attention. The crackers are for noise and I guess, there's a smoke machine down the hallways. The police is just for decoration, we all are conscious of that. We can't be sure when we need some external help. Neither we can leave nor we can stay here because we have a responsibility, on par with the police forces. So, it's better to create a situation for them not to avoid. If we can do our job then why can't they.""Won't they realize, we have lit some crackers.""Nah," Liliane amplified with an obvious look. "They are dumb, you see. Fat tummies with small brains.""Centaur's descendants," Riruru stated as she realized what she is aware of. "My uncle informed me that during night, centaur police takes the charge. They are indolent but smart.""They are indolent but were smart. Don't forget that we are only descendants. Nothing like our ancestors.""Point.""And Mysty said there are no more deadlings."Odette mulls for a while and said, "Then I'll go along with you.""Me too," Hael shouts. "I've heard the wolves are stronger. At least I won't die with you. And on the bright side, you are a witch too! A witch wolf, I bet even zombies will be scared of y-"-Riruru slaps Hael's back and crouches down to lift him up. "We should stay together. I don't want to be someone's supper.""Me either.""Same here.""Okay then." Liliane said. "Stay together and follow me."--"Why am I dumber than a centaur!" Hael screams, cornered by a growling monster. "You all lied to me about wolves been stronger!""You yourself are admitting wolves been stronger!" Riruru yelled as her dart rope coiled down the neck of the attacking deadling. "Didn't you said there are no dead corpses.""I said, no growling sounds!" Mysty yelled as she loaded her gun hastily, resulting in a failed attempt. Anger and irritation shrouded panic, as she hit the corpse before her with the gun instead of trying to reload it again. All the few minute training of ammunition and loading in chamber was forgotten in a moment as danger came to take and relish its dinner. The hit was strong enough to make a certain yellow liquid burst open, spoiling Mysty's dress and face. She wiped the liquid on her face with her clean sleeves before yelling, "Why can't I hear their movements and snarls! Aren't they opening their mouths to growl?""Guess, we have a something suppressing it or maybe they are mute yet trying to speak," Liliane said as she dodged the felling corpse which landed among his defeated comrades, joining the pile at the corner. She stepped over the pile of beaten corpses and squat down while striding towards Hael at the further bend, to pick up her knocked kitchen knife.Hael shouted as three corpses moved closer towards him. As Liliane quickened her pace towards the panicked Hael, a bucket of water gashed down on the three deadlings from the ceiling. Odette, settled on the small ledge below the air ducts, signaled Hael who acted promptly. A taser gun was thrown at the corpses by Hael as he sprinted besides them to run towards the approaching Liliane."That was impressive," Liliane picked up Hael and looked up towards Odette, chilling on the ledge, away from trouble. Down from her seat, were electrified dead corpses turning into ashes after coming in contact with the deadly friendship of electricity and water. Odette pulled up her legs which hanged down from the ledge and shifted inwards with her back against the wall, away from the dangerous reaction. "Don't come down or I'll break your legs. Surely won't keep up and handle to bodyguard another living." Liliane said as she grabbed Hael from trouble who pouted but knew better, that it was futile and difficult for him to defend himself against dead moving things."Aye," Odette exclaimed before turning pale and pointed out behind Liliane. Liliane turned and found herself in front of twenty stanching corpses, with crooked limbs and uneven steps. From the corner of her eye, on the left side was Misty with two deadlings and on right side was Riruru with five of them. In total, twenty-seven to die with only a knife, dart rope, and two guns in the hands which are clueless to load and fire. "Liliane, take the gun. I can't shoot.""No." Liliane commanded. "I'll teach you how to load. Just aim from there. You have a better position than me while I have a better weapon with a mastered skill."Knifes, indeed are the best weapon of a mother and chef."What about me!" Mysty bawled as she hit another corpse with her gun. "Darn it! I'll use this wooden board!" She picked up a 40 cm board standing tall against the wall and smashed it on the nearing corpse's head. Upon force, the head exploded, followed by the yellow fluid, trying to stain the already ruined dress of Mysty. Mysty avoided the fluid this time before it could reach her skin or dress. "Please, don't be urine.""Odette," Liliane said as she faced the mob moving steeply yet slowly like a predator eyeing its prey. But a living has more control over life than dead as it takes a matter of time to re-position the predator and its prey. "Push forwards the cylinder release to check if the cylinder is empty. Load the ammunition by inserting the bullets in the holes.... (explains)""Wait!" Odette exclaims. "How do I aim?""That you have to figure out yourself!" Liliane said as she pushed Hael behind her to move her knife in the forthcoming corpse's head. It can be said that the descendants of werewolves have great strength and stamina as even after stabbing ten corpses, Liliane's grip on her knife never loosened except for once when a limping corpse knocked it down suddenly. The knife was pulled out from the corpse's head as it landed in the other one's stomach. Liliane placed her leg on the corpse's stomach to pull out the knife while her breath haltered with sweat trickling down. But the inner predator's rage didn't intervene as the descendant of werewolf lurched forward and downed two more corpses while shielding Hael. "Just push the trigger, Liliane! It's not like you are giving a license's test.""What if I accidently shoot you!""Then I'll make sure to put my knife in your body to drag you along with me.""Thanks. That helped a lot." Odette frowned as she decided to use the gun after taking in her surroundings. The corpses differ in strengths as Liliane stabbed four out of twenty whereas Mysty could only get rid of one after breaking her wooden board completely while smashing the dead's hardened head. On the other side, Riruru was with three corpses, sturdy in build resulting in her movements to dwindle while one of the corpses seized her collar and growled which somehow wasn't audible as if not articulated in the first place. Riruru's rope was down the floor away from her with her hands filling the weapon's absence as she punched the corpse who dodged neatly and barked another inaudible sound. If not for Odette's sudden surrounding scrutiny, no one would've noticed Riruru's struggle as her cries were not reaching the other's hearing.It was strange enough for the corpses sound to be suppressed but somehow how could Riruru's voice be muted. Odette moved her arm with the gun and aimed at the corpse which clutched down Riruru, ready to bite her neck off completely. Accumulating concentration, discarding nervousness, the bullet was released from its chamber, paralleling with air which it took along with to march straight towards the corpse's head and pierced it without remorse. The corpse's growled with pain which surprisingly reached every living's ears as if along with it, the supernatural force which compressed the sound was killed.Followingly, the suppressed sounds of all the deadlings were noticeable as the sturdy corpse landed down with a thud while Riruru get out of its grip and grabbed her dart rope, not before giving a silent thank you to Odette by a nod.Liliane's brow lifted upwards with appreciation as Mysty scoffed, "Shoot this dead thing too." Odette tightened her grip and shot the last corpse which alas couldn't strike Mysty down and taste her blood. How sad for it to die without a good meal. "Hey! You're good at this. Teach me later, okay."Odette didn't answer as her focus shifted towards Liliane and the adjacent ten corpses, much cheekier and aggressive than the others as they hurried their steps towards Hael who yelled. But before Liliane could stab it or Odette could use her gun, a baseball bat hit the corpse down. A metal rod broke the rotten bones of another dead while a flying iron rod strike down three consecutive corpses, killing them on the spot."Was that you shouting like a banshee!" Grey scorned as he picked up Hael on his shoulder while giving a thumbs up to the person on the ledge. "Good aim, Odette.""You can use ropes pretty well," the bald man said as he pulled Riruru behind him and drubbed down the two corpses in few seconds. Newt lifted his baseball bat and pounced on the corpses along with Liliane with a knife, Grey with a pipe, Odette with a gun and Hael with a banshee hum.--"How could a scream kill a zombie?" Hael asked innocently as he eyed the corpse, he personally killed with his screeching and yelling."Who would've thought we have discreet talented banshee!" Liliane derides as she picked up the crackers while Grey and Newt lifted the smoke machine in the storeroom. Hael scoffs as he helped with the crackers, with his mouth's curves lifting up in secret."Nice plan but too careless," A smack was gifted to Liliane by the chief. "But you handled it pretty well. Still, we had to interrupt you, how disappointing.""Help? You just wanted to have some fun. Only seven were left, we could've deal with them.""Without hurting yourself? What I can recall is that one of the deadling was behind you with its reddened eyes." The chief said, "If it weren't for Newt's bat, you could've hurt yourself.""I would've shoot that deadling," Odette exclaimed as she scrutinizes Newt with an odd look. "Though it was admirable for your help."The chief rolled his eyes as he helped the boys to elevate the smoke machine out, trailed by Hael and Liliane with their hands full of crackers. Soon the crackers were lit outside and smoke covered the museum. What remained was a dread silence and a wait for the police's arrival."Why do they turn blind eyes to the museum?" Riruru inquired as she stood along with others, few steps away from the museum which appeared to be set on fire with all the lightening and smoke but in reality, it was a deception meant to distract the forces. "There's something else other than police's languor, right?""Yes," The chief reminiscent the predator incident and sighed. "There is. Something more than this."Newt looked at the stressed chief, clueless of the incident which happened along with the predator attack.Only three people knows what followed down that predator occurrence which resulted in a distrust between police and the museum. Grey and Liliane exchanged glances as the tale begun, shared by the retired soldier.