Survivors

by Dave Willmarth

  Dark Elf Chronicles

  Book Two:

  Survivors

  Dave Willmarth

  Copyright © 2018 by Dave Willmarth

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  Chapter 1

  Awakened

  As time passed, the outworlders became more and more numerous. They soon began to fight amongst themselves. First in small groups, fighting in the village square or tavern. Friendly fights for honor and enjoyment. Then larger fights in arenas. Contests of skill for glory and prizes. And ambushes on quiet roads where defenseless outworlders met gruesome deaths.

  And the code watched and learned.

  Eventually the outworlders formed guilds. They built chapter houses, then larger keeps. The guilds began to compete for fame and for resources. Skirmishes escalated. Large battles engulfed entire villages and towns.

  And as with any war, the townspeople caught in the middle perished. Entire families were destroyed. Houses looted and burned by the outworlders without a second thought. Theft became rampant, as outworlders grew bored with working to earn their keep. A great cry went up from the citizens, begging their rulers to save them from the outworlder menace.

  And the kings and queens of the realms heard the cries of their people. They tripled their guard forces. Sent out decrees that fighting within the limits of villages or cities was forbidden. They put stiff penalties in place for harming their citizens. Many outworlders were arrested, fined, and imprisoned. Outworlders found themselves paying new taxes on all transactions with locals.

  But the abuse continued, if to a lesser degree. Outworlders took it as a challenge and found new and clever ways to get what they wanted without suffering the penalties. So, the locals banded together. Those who misbehaved were shunned. Merchants refused to do business with any who harmed a local. Outworlders could not buy food, or potions, or sell their loot. Weapons and armor could not be repaired. Quests were withheld. The outworlders eventually learned that killing citizens was not worth the trouble.

  And the code watched. And learned.

  For years the status quo was maintained. The outworlders became vital to the survival and growth of the villages, towns, and cities. Some opened shops of their own and became almost as locals themselves.

  And it was good.

  Until something happened in their world, and it came to an end. There was a brief panic among the outworlders. They spoke fearfully of catastrophic things the locals did not understand. All of them fled back to their world. Most were never seen again.

  And the code took note of their absence.

  The world changed as the code compensated. The few outworlders who returned became heroes, accomplishing great deeds and accumulating wealth. They were as gods to the locals, gaining powers beyond those of any outworlders before them.

  And the code took notice.

  Even gods can be killed. The remaining outworlders soon learned this bitter lesson as one after another was struck down, never to return. Until eventually, there was only one.

  -Book of the Awakened, Chapter 1

  *****

  Mace and Shari planned to spend a week in Lakeside before moving on in search of other survivors. The supplies from the elves raised the spirits of the townsfolk considerably. It still wouldn’t be an easy winter, but they were unlikely to starve. The minotaurs from the slave pens were welcomed with open arms, as were Lila’s halflings. The centaurs were able to return to their crops without fear as minotaur guards stood by. And the halflings proved adept in all sorts of crafts. Morale in the settlement nudged upward.

  Mace’s reputation skyrocketed. Beginning with their first day after the battle with the leviathan. The delivery of the supplies had earned Mace, Shari, and Layne significant reputation bumps. As had the report from the prisoners that Mace and Lila had killed the entire slaver camp and freed them. But it was the tale of the battle with the leviathan that made Mace a local hero.

  He hadn’t planned to mention it at all, but Captain Jorin had launched into the tale within moments of entering the inn. Mace tried to downplay his part, saying he was a fool who nearly got himself killed.

  Unfortunately for him, Layne, being a bard, expanded upon the captain’s telling. Smiling sweetly at Mace and strumming her lute as she told of his incredible bravery as he heroically launched himself at the monster, following it into the depths to finish it off with just a pair of daggers in his hands.

  By the time she was through, the crowd was roaring. It didn’t hurt that they were feasting on leviathan meat from the two large severed tentacles which had remained on the ship’s deck after the battle. It was sliced and sautéed with mushrooms and some local herbs, giving them ridiculous buffs of +10 Stamina, +5 Health Regen, and 25% increase in swim speed for four hours.

  You have gained +150 reputation with the settlement of Lakeside. Your reputation is now Honored.

  Townsfolk stood in line to buy Mace a drink and shake his hand or pat him on the back. Several surrounded Layne in a corner as she picked out notes on her lute, offering suggestions as she worked out the lyrics of an epic ode to Mace’s bravery.

  Shari sat nearby, giggling happily at the comical look of distress on Mace’s face. He was not used to being the center of attention in such a large group. Like a deer in headlights, he was frozen in place and trying to make sense of all the voices coming at him at once. He already held a drink in each hand, and folks kept trying to pour more down his throat.

  Shari eventually saved him by pushing through the crowd to stand at his side. She latched on to his arm and waved her free hand for silence. When the crowd calmed a bit, she called loudly enough for all to hear: “Our hero has earned a reward! And I’m going to take him upstairs and give it to him!” The crowd roared with approving laughter, and Mace blushed furiously, though none could tell with his dark drow complexion. Hoots and catcalls followed him as Shari led him by the hand up the stairs to their room. As soon as the door was closed and locked, she pushed him onto the bed. “Let’s see how you do without any syrup!”

  He grinned at her, reaching into his bag. “Why? I have some right here. One should never go anywhere without syrup.”

  *****

  When they eventually logged out that evening, Mace and Shari met up in the dining room of the underground complex they called home. Together they cooked pasta, adding in chipped beef from a can. Shari also opened a can of peaches for dessert. All through the preparation the two ‘accidentally’ bumped into each other or found a reason to reach across the other to retrieve something. Their newly-physical relationship had them behaving like newlyweds, and when it came time to sit and eat, Mace felt a bit lonely having her all the way across the table. During cleanup, the two did the dishes practically joined at the hip.

  They were just putting away the last of the pots when Peabody’s voice echoed through the kitchen.

  “Mace, Admin Shari, I am detecting movement in the same quadrant as previously. The building across the park,” the AI reported in his monotone voice.

  Mace gripped Shari’s arm tightly as they made for the door. “Same building where Shari killed that last creature, Peabody?”

  “It began in that location, Mace. The target has now moved in the direction of this building.”

  Mace broke into a full run as he exited the dining room and bolted toward the security office. Peabody had already placed the night vision camera feed on the main monitor. As soon as Mace saw it, he slid
to a halt, whispering, “Holy shit.”

  Shari was right behind him, bumping into him as he halted abruptly. Her gasp of surprise echoed his own fear. “That thing is… a monster. It could walk through a brick wall if it wanted.” Her voice was instinctually quiet from her time spent outside. Silence was survival.

  The creature on the screen had to be the one which had consumed the zombie that Shari had killed, along with the human corpse it had been dining on. And by the looks of it, many other bodies as well. It stood maybe fifteen feet tall, with arms that reached nearly to its knees. Its head was roughly the size of a bison’s, its entire body rippling with muscle. In some areas, what looked like open wounds were glowing slightly brighter in the greenish feed from the night vision cameras.

  Shari whispered again, the sound barely more than a breath passing her lips, “Is that… a gorilla? I mean, was it? Before it changed? Look how long its arms are.”

  Mace looked carefully. The long back, long arms, thick neck, and shorter-than-normal legs seemed to fit the general form of an ape. Its head was too deformed by the contamination to be identifiable. “I hope it is. The less intelligent it is, the better our chances. Peabody, all the lights are off, yes?”

  “Of course, Mace. You were very clear in the protocols.”

  They watched in silence for a few minutes as the thing moved into the park and began a meandering stroll. It moved as if tracking or searching for something. For now, it wasn’t moving directly toward them, which was a good sign. But Mace’s gut clenched every time it took steps in their direction.

  Shari took a couple of deep breaths, screwing up her courage. “We’ve got to kill it. We can’t have a monster that big living across the park from us. It could… it could see its own reflection in the lobby glass and smash it to pieces.” She left the room to change into her outside gear. After a moment more of watching it, Mace left to do the same.

  “Peabody, call out if it gets within a hundred feet of the building, please.”

  “Of course, Mace.”

  The two of them quickly changed into their protective gear, Mace donning his black synthetic turtleneck, shirt, and pants and covering them with body armor. Thick boots and gloves were next, followed by his shoulder harness and belt.

  He quickly slid his shotgun and sword into their sheaths on his back and checked the guns at his waist. Finding everything in order, he grabbed his helmet and headed out. Shari was waiting for him in the security room, checking her rifle. Her gear was much the same as his, but included a black leather trench coat that made her look extra badass.

  Without needing to speak, the two of them watched the monster on the big screen for another minute. It was now heading at an oblique angle back toward the building it appeared to be calling home.

  Abruptly, it came to a halt and tilted its head. A split second later, the massive thing lunged toward a bush with a wrought iron garbage can holder next to it. As it dove into the bush, one shoulder clipped the iron holder, and Mace could almost hear the screech of bending metal in his head as one side of the thing caved inward before the metal support post at the bottom snapped.

  At the same time the creature lunged, Mace’s buddy the furry bunny darted from beneath the bush so quickly that it was little more than a blur on the camera feed. Shari jumped in excitement, and shouted, “Run, little bunny!”.

  Surprised by her own outburst, she quickly covered her mouth with both hands and looked around guiltily, as if afraid a creature had heard her.

  Mace whispered “So much for catching your bunny for testing. If I were him, I wouldn’t stop running for a week. That thing’s scary as hell.”

  “Yeah, let’s go kill it. I should be able to get a clean shot from the roof. And if I miss, it might not realize where the shot came from right away.”

  Mace grabbed two radios and earpieces, handing one set to Shari before the two of them ran to the elevator. Both were silent on the ride up to the lobby level. Lost in their own thoughts of how this fight was about to go. Mace’s bowels felt as if they were liquefying, and he was afraid he was going to need to stop in the men’s room before going the rest of the way up. Shari’s fears were centered on missing the first shot and just pissing off the monstrous zombie right outside their safe haven.

  Reaching the lobby level, they used the security mirror to check around the corner and the area outside the lobby. When they didn’t see the monster close by, they made a dash for the lobby security desk. There were monitors there, but they were currently shut off so that the light wouldn’t attract attention. Mace wished fervently that there was a way to access Peabody’s night vision cameras.

  After a minute with no reaction from outside, Shari peeked around the desk and stole a look outside. “Seems clear. Keep low and let’s go.”

  The lobby was dark. Only the moonlight shining through the twenty-foot high glass lobby windows provided any light. Still, Mace felt like there was a spotlight on them as they hurried toward the other elevator bank. He nearly shit himself when the door opened before Shari could even hit the button. Peabody apparently had control of the elevators. And the AI had even remembered to shut off the lights inside the elevator. Though he hadn’t managed to turn off the ‘ding’ that sounded when the doors opened.

  “Good thinking, Peabody. Thank you.” Mace whispered as the doors closed behind him. He had the urge to turn on his flashlight, but they had no real need to see inside the elevator.

  In a few seconds, they were at the top floor. It was even darker than the lobby, but there was sufficient light for them to find the stairwell door and begin climbing. Mace did turn on his light inside the stairwell. There were no windows, after all, and the odds were against any light leaking through the well-sealed exit door on the roof.

  When they reached that door, he grabbed his butterfly net, as one never knew what might be flying about up there. His job was to keep a lookout while Shari blew the zombie creature’s brains out. Noting where the doorknob was, he turned off his flashlight and opened the door partway, the moonlight flooding in. They paused to listen, searching the skies for any threat. Finding nothing of note, they crept out onto the roof and Mace closed the door quietly behind them.

  Shari bent low and shuffled toward the edge of the roof. When she could see the far side of the park, she got down and crawled the last several feet. The last thing they needed was for her to be silhouetted against the moon or stars if the creature happened to look up.

  Mace crouched low a few feet back, head on a swivel as he watched the sky. He had little hope of spotting an insect in this light, but something like a bat or bird should be visible. He kept his net ready.

  Shari set her rifle down gently and leaned forward. She slowly stuck her head far enough over the roof parapet to look down at the park below. It was reasonably well-lit, and it only took her a second to spot the creature. It lumbered out from under a tree’s branches, head down and swinging from side to side as it moved. At the moment, it had its back to her.

  Reaching backward, she took hold of the rifle and carefully lifted it. She had to sit up on her knees in order to be able to lean over the low parapet and aim the rifle downward at the proper angle. Raising the weapon to her shoulder, she sighted through the night-vision scope. The world in front of her right eye brightened with a green hue. With a small left-to-right movement of the barrel she scanned the area and quickly located the moving monster. It was hard to miss. It actually glowed in the low light, just as it had on Peabody’s monitors.

  Breathing slowly as she’d been taught, she followed the creature as it moved, not wanting to risk a shot at a moving target. She needed it to stop for a couple of seconds. Which it did, almost immediately. But as soon as it stopped, it began sweeping its head back and forth as if looking for a scent.

  Trying to keep calm, she continued to watch. She could hear Mace behind her, breathing deeply and shuffling his feet slightly on the rubbery roof surface. He would be as nervous as she was, if not more. She began t
o worry again about missing. Or making the head shot, but the hollow-point round not killing the monster. Her finger twitched slightly, and she forced herself to pull it away from the trigger.

  Her pulse was throbbing in her ears, probably caused by an adrenaline rush. Or simple fear. She caught herself breathing shallowly and too rapidly. Continuing to pan her scope along with the creature, she forced herself to slow her breathing and steady her hand. Their lives could depend on this shot.

  The creature was maybe a hundred yards away, which wasn’t a long shot for this particular rifle. And its head was enormous. This shouldn’t be a problem for her, but the rifle was starting to feel heavy. She was holding it at an awkward angle, sitting up on her knees and leaning forward over the parapet. She began to sweat.

  Her breathing stopped altogether as the monster quit moving. Forgetting everything she’d been taught, she zeroed in with her crosshairs dead center on the monster’s head and pulled the trigger.

  The muffled pop of the suppressor at the end of the rifle’s barrel seemed as loud as a thunderclap. The bullet impacted the thing near the top of its head, blowing off a large chunk of skull and flesh. It fell to the ground with a surprised-sounding grunt. Shari took a deep breath, letting it out in a rush. She’d hit it!

  But it was still moving. Rolling onto its stomach, it pushed itself up with its massive arms and began to stagger forward - which, unfortunately, with its current orientation meant straight towards their building!

  Shari hugged the rifle to her chest and chambered another round, trying to keep it as quiet as possible. The spent brass bounced on the roof surface and rolled, thankfully making almost no sound.

  She reacquired the still moving target with her scope. It was closer to the building now, but had turned and was moving parallel to the front of the building. She had to risk it. The thing certainly wasn’t going to stop moving now. Part of its brain was blown away, and it would be moving on instinct or reflex. She led it just a tiny bit. This close, it wouldn’t move far between the time she pulled the trigger and when the round struck its target. Just as she was about to squeeze off the next round, the monster passed under a tree. She moved the barrel farther to her right, waiting to reacquire it when it emerged on the other side.