The doors had been barred shut. The sounds of gunshots and screams from the other building were muffled by the howling wind. The broken windows rattled, coupled by the stomping of frantic men and women moving supplies underground.
Arthur shouted, "Hurry up! The blizzard is almost here!"
Some man grunted, "Stuck here with this awful place while my cousin's back at Washington probably lounging off..."
Arthur kicked him at his buttocks and said, "No dilly dallying."
The man clicked his tongue. He was confident that he could take out Arthur if it weren't for his broken nail. The man was wearing an orange coverall with the label of Maintenance on its back. His name was stitched on the left chest pocket named Hans Hühner. He was skinny with a sunken face. He lifts his box up, it contained a gun, an old revolver Röhm, and some of his rations. He glares at Arthur and then turns away when Arthur glares back at him.
Meanwhile, at the basement, Mike approached Nora and slaps her back. She turned her head towards Mike and gave him a dead look. Nora sighs deeply as she sits down beside a repurposed radiator. The radiator was connected to a small fist sized metal capsule. The capsule is colored yellow with a radioactive sign on it. It was a small nuclear core used on vehicles, now it is being used as a heater.
Nora hugged her knees and said, "I'm sorry I put you through that..."
Mike was surprised that he heard this from Nora.
Did Arthur literally scare her pride away?
Mike finally removes his helmet and placed it beside Nora. "I like you better this way."
Nora kicks Mike's shin. Mike groans in pain.
"Ow!"
He grabs his shin, "What you do that for?"
Nora rolls her eyes, "Boy quit whining. Ain't you got better things to do? Like, I don't know, help secure this area?"
Mike turned around from her limping.
Rude. What's her problem? I don't see her helping either.
Richard walked up to Mike while doing a lazy two finger salute. "You okay bro?"
Mike shrugs his shoulders. "I've been through worse. Not like I can do anything against a Ringer."
Richard slung his arms around Mike's shoulders and said, "Nevermind that, you survived a Rager horde! Be more confident."
Mike gave him a smiling nod. Then he remembered that the horde passed him by back there, could they have passed by them too?
Mike asked, "Do tell how you and Alan escaped that horde and how they did not follow us?"
Richard replied, "We didn't really do much except hide until they pass. There were lots of noise on the higher floors that they straight up forgot about us."
Richard turns to wave at another person and caught two water canteen thrown at him. The man was distributing rations. He handed one water canteen to Mike. The canteen was made of aluminum wrapped with leather. Mike knew that if they were distributing things like these, they will have to travel after the blizzard passes.
Richard continued, "Poor bastards back there were probably still dealing with the horde while a blizzard looms."
Mike was about to say something when suddenly a man yelled.
"I WON'T TAKE YOUR SHIT UP ANY LONGER!"
Mike and Richard turned towards the yell. They saw a man in an orange coverall pointing his gun towards Arthur. It was Hans. His arms were shaking and his posture was awkward. It was clear that Hans had never fired a gun before.
Arthur takes a step closer and the man yells,
"DON'T YOU DARE TAKE ANOTHER STEP!"
Arthur's veins are now bulging. It was clear that he was pissed at this man. He took one more step closer until the muzzle of the gun was pressed on his chest. He towered over Hans, casting a shadow over him and looked down on him. He grabbed the barrel of the gun and helped him aim at his own heart.
Arthur said, "Aim here."
Hans hesitated at first, shaking, then he closed his eyes as he squeezes the trigger, but then,
SCHLIIICK!
He was hit by a knife to his hand, splitting it in two, and causing him to drop his gun. He screams in agony as he grabs his mangled hand. Blood was dripping, staining his orange coverall. From their left was Nora, eyes focused, expression fierce, and arms stretched outward. She slowly lowered her arms and gave Hans a piercing stare.
Hans sweats, he groans in pain as he fell to his knees. Arthur squats down in front of him and picked up the gun. He flips the gun over, studying it, and then gave it to one of the onlookers.
Arthur said, "Stand down, Hans."
Hans glared ar Arthur, he sees the veins bulging on Arthur's neck. He points at them and shouted,
"He's one of them! Can't you see? He'd kill us all!"
Arthur sighs and he scratches his head in frustration.
Hans grabbed the embedded knife on his hand, yanked it, he bites through the pain, and with all his might drove the knife unto Arthur's neck. The knife dug deep, and with effort, Hans pulled it out. The gashing wound caused blood to spill out like a faucet. Yet Arthur did not react. Arthur is still giving Hans a dead stare.
Arthur said calmly, "Are you done?"
Hans could not believe what he was seeing. He smiles and laughs hysterically. He just stabbed a man on the neck and was unfazed.
Hans screamed, "You see? He's one of them!"
Nora walked up to Hans while he was screaming. Hans was frantically trying to convince everyone to get to his side. But no one was budging. Everyone was just staring at him, and stayed silent. He felt cold as Nora picked him up by the nape. Veins bulged out from Nora's arms, her forearm muscles tightened and was enlarged, she lifted Hans off the ground and with a single grip, crushed his neck. Hans flopped lifelessly to the ground once Nora let go.
Arthur stood up, rolling his neck. The veins on his neck and upper body slowly faded. The gashing wound had now closed. Not even a scar was left behind. He tilts his head left and right, making several chilling bone popping sounds.
Nora glares at everyone else and asks, "Anyone else?"
No one spoke a word. Not even a sigh, nor mumble was heard. Everyone turned around and went back to what they were doing. They were just about to finish finalizing the makeshift barriers to help block the freezing wind. Some had finished setting up fire barrels to keep the heat. Some got busy trying to activate the basement ventilation system using a mini-nuclear core they had.
Mike was frozen on the spectacle. He was just reminded on how the world widely differed from a year ago compared to today.
Damn, super zombies and superhumans...
The blizzard had finally arrived. The whole building shudders from the gusts of wind. They could feel it even when they were at the basement. Even with their heaters and fire, the walls were creeping with frost through sheer cold.
A few hours has passed, and the blizzard had finally died down. Everyone started to work together to dig through the snow blocking the exit. Before they dig the shovel, they would place a geiger counter near the snow to check for radiation levels. Only when its clear that they commit to digging. Within just a few minutes, they were out. They winced their eyes and used their hands to block the strong sunlight. It was already noon.
The streets were covered by snow and frozen Ragers alike. The Ragers were like statues, unmoving. Everyone was shuddering because of the cold. Almost no one is equipped to traverse through cold temperature. Most are wearing denim jackets or leather jackets. Only a few were prepared with wool and thermal jackets.
Nora took point, leading the group out of the basement and to the streets.
Nora shouted, "Move! Y'all better move your ass now before them Ragers thaw out!"
The group hastens their movement, the memory of Nora snapping a man's neck effortlessly were still fresh on their mind. Nora started walking west, everyone else followed. Not far from them were a single military truck powered by a mini-nuclear core.
Mike trudged through the snow, his motorcycle gear barely breaks the cold. Richard followed closely behind him, also shivering under his own motorcycle gear. Alan walked behind them still in his battle dress attire. Its barely even enough to keep the cold out.
They arrived by the truck, the group loaded their gear and supply inside. Arthur hopped on the driver's seat and fired up the engine. The beastly truck roared like a jet engine. As the last of the group had entered the truck, Arthur drove through the snow and into the roads.
Arthur yelled, "Next stop, Washington DC."