Chapter 68 Under the Skyway

"So that's what makes us all feel like someone was watching us," Timothy rubbed his chin as he examined Carl, my squirrel. I wonder if he had seen squirrels in his whole life before. I feel like Carl is the last squirrel ever living on this planet and I can't believe I found him here.
Timothy volunteered to drive since his left shoulder is getting better and Jayson's always been the one who was in charge of driving. I guess he"s extra lively today because of the good food that Roanie had prepared last night. I can"t hide the fact that I, too, have extra energy to spare since I really ate my full last night and despite the heat of the day, I don"t feel sluggish, unlike the other days that had passed.
And maybe because I also get entertained with Carl who is circling inside the car which makes the others feel amused too. Only Jayson is looking outside the window of the car. He seems stern over something and maybe it"s because I am sitting in the passenger seat with Timothy keeps on looking at me while I laugh at Carl"s silly movements.
"You seem really fond of animals, don"t you?" Timothy asks, his smile never fading on his lips while glancing at me and back to the empty road in the middle of the heat of the sun. I like that he appreciates Carl"s presence in our group just like the others. Carl keeps on going at Mona"s side of the car and he gets calm and relaxed when she caresses his fur. Carl must like Mona"s gentle hands, the hand of a healer.
"How many hours until we reach the location, Jayson?" Li asks who is just sitting beside him but Jayson seems lost in his thoughts which made me feel worried for him. He"s been acting strange last night and I wonder if it"s because of Carl. But that makes no sense! He"s being jealous of a squirrel? Really?
Li had to ask the question twice before Jayson noticed him, "Oh yeah. I think it"s just two hours left." He answered as he looked at his holographic map from the high-tech wristwatch he had from Roanie"s things. It calculates our location to the destination into how many hours we could reach the place so we could all prepare ourselves if something suspicious would happen.
I just think Jayson is too distracted over something that I cannot understand.
Just like what Roanie had planned before, she made soup, and some meatballs with crackers so we don"t have to pull over just to prepare lunch and eat. We are just so close to the place where we"ll meet the soldiers and then they could finally secure and transport us to Zone twenty-eight without worrying for our safety anymore. I wonder how they are dealing with their supplies but those are two Military vehicles and the other one must be for their supplies until we all get back to Zone four.
I just have no idea how we are going to explain to them what had happened to the helicopter and to Col. Morgan and his people. Will they believe us? They have to. Besides, if they look at the place through satellite imaging, they would see the remnants of the helicopter. We"ll tell them everything, especially about Roanie and what we had witnessed as we drove all throughout Zone twenty-three.
It was almost two in the afternoon when we reached the place. There is a barricaded highway that connects Zone twenty-three to The No-Man-Zone which is still positive with radiation even though it"s been fifty years since the last war had happened.
"Do you think they have any flying transporter to use to get us all past this radiated zone?" Timothy asks as he stops the car a little too far from where the barricade is standing.
"I don"t think I would love the idea. I have a new fear of being in a flying machine because of the crash that happened to all of us. I don"t want that horrifying experience again. Ever!" Li exclaimed, recalling the memory of being inside a hurling and burning helicopter. The memory made me also shudder in fear and that, I wish, would be just a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me.
"Do any of you see two armored cars in the area? I don"t think I"ve seen any since we entered this city," I ask them while stretching my neck to look for any huge vehicle in this place. The last time I remembered, the Armored cars that the military used were color khaki.
"Negative. I don"t see any armored cars in here," Li answered, looking worried already. He keeps on looking around the palace but I confirmed that no Military car is in there near the barricade.
"You have gone so long. I think they might have gone back to the place where you came from. It"s understandable because you've been away for almost three weeks already and I don"t think they would wait for that long especially since there are places that are already infested with Creepers. If I were one of the soldiers, if something had happened, I would assume you were already killed in that helicopter crash together with the other soldiers, or if you survived, you might have already been eaten by the Creepers." Roanie explained, her eyes on the empty area and the silence of this place makes it eerie even in hot weather.
"T-THERE! I SEE IT!"
Carl squeaked when he almost fell from my shoulders the time that I turned my body to look in the direction that Li is pointing. There, under a skyway not too far from here, are the armored cars that we"ve been looking for. I knew they were still here! It would be a long way to go back to the bunker again without completing their mission. I feel so elated to see the soldiers and I admire their patience with us. They are really serious about this mission even if it"s only just a personal request from me.
All of us cheered inside the car and even Jayson"s moody face had turned into a gleeful smile once we all found what we were looking for. Roanie gaped, not believing her eyes after seeing how unbelievably faithful those soldiers are, that we"ll come here no matter what.
Timothy drove down the skyway bridge, ten feet away from the convoy. There are cars around and of course, corpses are everywhere, making the place smell so awful that we all retch when we get out of the car.
"Guys, let"s take the things that we can and approach those men. We shouldn"t waste more time." Jayson uttered in a strict voice which made us all silenced as we all covered our noses from the rancid smell of the dead bodies. There are some that are looking purplish already and some are green which makes it more disgusting.
"Goodness, they are all rotting in here. Why did the military choose to park their vehicle in this place." Li uttered in a low tone while he covered his nose which made it a little funny.
"There is something wrong in here," Jayson observed, and when we all reached the vehicle, there was someone standing beside the armored car, his back facing us.
All our faces lit with hope when we ran towards the soldier but when our footsteps made noise against the concrete rod, it swirled its body in a strange way that all of us stopped moving in an instant, all aghast to see the rotting face of it as it senses our presence.
"F*ck! No!" Timothy cried in disappointment, his voice echoed under the bridge. Seconds later, we heard more moaning and groaning as Creepers appeared from a different direction, trapping all of us in the middle of the road.
"Sh*t, It"s the worst day in my life ever!" Li cried as we all flinched against each other, our backpacks touching as we faced the Creepers who were now walking slowly towards us.
Most of the skin and muscles on their skin look like they are melting down from their skull, revealing the terrifying bones underneath their rotting skin.
I quickly took my gun from the holster and shot the first that leaped towards Mona. I didn"t think of putting the suppressor on it because what happened today is just so unexpected, wondering what happened and why these soldiers all succumbed to becoming one of these Creepers.
Jayson made multiple shots and then loaded his gun for the second time, "These soldiers might have gotten a problem with this vehicle that they weren"t able to get out under this bridge! I think they ran out of ammo already and some attempted to escape the place in the hope they might survive from these Creepers."
"What are we going to do now?! There is no one to accompany us to Zone twenty-eight! We"re all trapped!" Roanie cried as she shot three more Creepers in front of her.
Before we even thought of running inside the car, the door of the armored car opened and a soldier called all of us, his face looking awfully terrified, "COME INSIDE!"