Vacation

ooo000---000ooo

All across the island of Banoi, things were rapidly going from bad to worse.

As the number of infected steadily mounted, those who remained were attempting desperately to escape them, scrambling to find a safe place to hide away from the undead menace chasing after them. Even with as many that had already fallen, there were still perhaps thousands of tourists and residents of Banoi trying to find safety wherever they could away from the virus that was slowly spreading and ravaging the population, turning them into monsters.

The nearby city of Moresby was being overrun block by block as police officers tried futilely to cut off various streets and alleyways to keep the infected back, diverging them down different routes. Some survivors flocked to the church, others the police station, and still others tried to escape into Upper Moresby to hide with the well-defended Mayor. Already cut off, many just barricaded themselves in alleyways or in their apartments, stores, wherever they could to escape.

There were many that opted to flee further inland into the jungles, and others tried escaping on boats, yachts, even small airplanes from the Banoi airport to escape the island itself…

If only they knew what awaited them outside the island.

Near the northern portion of the resort sat a roadway leading further around the island to the city of Moresby, one that was packed with cars and a couple of buses trying to evacuate to it. Soldiers dressed in the standard uniform of the island’s small military known as the Banoi Island Defense Force stood around, wielding assault rifles and checking people before letting them pass the checkpoint to the other side of the island to get to safety.

Down below the surviving population was in a panic-people were running through the cars and being forced back by armed soldiers blocking the road with their barricade. Horns sounded, yells were thrown around by the soldiers to cut it out, and gunfire sounded near the beach as they shot at the infected who were running at them.

Shit was going to hell in a handbasket.

A helicopter flew over the nearby area, passing by as the soldiers on the ground started yelling, mostly into their radios and arguing over something. Things were slowly beginning to escalate around the checkpoint as the crush of fleeing cars and people increased and the soldiers knew it… civilians waiting to pass could see it in their eyes and how they were fidgeting around, gripping their weapons ever more tightly.

The peace shattered when someone in the back yelled, followed by the screech of an infected and blood curdling screams. People suddenly began running towards the front as several infected mixed in with the survivors, trying to find purchase.

The soldiers blocking the only way to safety turned their guns on the infected, but unable to find a way to shoot without hitting civilians. The infected rushed them, running and screaming towards any living being. With no choice, the soldiers open fired on them, firing into the vehicles and causing the entire roadblock to explode into a panicked frenzy of blood and chaos.

The hellstorm of lead rained down on survivor and infected alike; cars backed up and slammed into one other to try and escape. One car took too many hits to the engine and suddenly exploded, sending shrapnel flying and setting fire to the occupants inside.

Further down the road a horde of infected monsters were sprinting to get to the checkpoint, screaming and screeching loudly at the sight of such a large meal. The gunfire and explosions must have drawn their ire.

“Retreat! Retreat!” A soldier screamed and then yelled into his radio as the trucks began moving back towards the tunnels nearby, loaded up with soldiers and military supplies. “Ericson! Blow it! Blow the charges!” He ordered as he heard gunfire from above just before an acknowledgment. A loud explosion went off mere moments later.

He ran for his life as the rocks above began tumbling down, breaking loose and rolling towards the tunnel and road. The smaller ones fell down and smashed into the vehicles that had yet to back up out of the way, crushing the roofs and killing or injuring those inside. One of the busses tried speeding forward, breaking through the barricade before a bigger rock fell on top, smashing the entire driver’s side and causing it to topple onto its side and block the road, sending everyone inside flying around.

People screamed as one of the only routes to an evacuation point was completely destroyed, massive boulders and rocks crashing down and crushing anyone unfortunate enough to be under at the time. Behind them, the infected drew closer and the soldiers ran for their lives, abandoning them and their posts!

Unseen by all and watching from the shadows of a nearby hillside… a pair of sharp opal eyes watched the entire chaotic scene unfold. Moving back through the bushes, the figure disappeared into the shadows as the first group of survivors fell…

ooo000---000ooo

BOOM BOOM

SCREECH

BOOM

Dee and Lyra had managed to get into the stairwell to hide from the horde, but suddenly...

“Ahh! Shit!”

Dee flew down the stairs, tumbling and briefly hearing Lyra’s terrified cry for him. He slammed into the steps on the way down, his back sending shocks of pain through his body in the continued roll until he slammed into the wall at the bottom.

The infected didn’t give him much of a chance to retaliate and was on him, having tackled him and was now clawing at his clothes and trying to tear into him and rip his flesh apart.

Dee was quick however, despite the utter and agonizing pain he was in. Panic coupled with a surge of adrenaline and a primal need to survive gave him the strength to keep it from sinking its teeth into him.

“Get off of me you fuck!” Dee screamed, feeling its jagged nails digging into his arms and clawing to try and get past his defenses-screeches and snarls filled Dee’s ears and it only served to cause his heart rate to spike.

The missing sensation of weight in his right hand told him that he dropped his gun—not good! A look around and he saw it had been knocked aside a foot or so away from himself, but he could still reach it if he tried! But it would mean one less hand to keep the infected from getting at his neck, arm, any piece of exposed skin the monster could use to infect him with.

Avoiding another swipe of a clawed hand, he knew he had to chance it if he wanted to get out of this alive. His feeble punches were about as effective as hitting someone with a pillow…

Still worth a shot!

He pulled back his fist and smashed it into the man’s face—a loud crack ensued as the nose of the monster broke and his own hand stung violently. He held back a violent curse and punched again and again and again—the cheek of the infected split, blood gushed out of his nose onto Dee’s face and chest, one of his teeth went flying and for a moment, Dee thought he looked dazed. His growls and snarls were quieter, his blood red eyes blinking in a haze.

Taking the opportunity given, Dee bunched up his legs under him and grabbed onto his arms. And with a heave, he rolled back and pushed everything he had into his legs to send the oddly dazed undead monster flying down the stairs behind him.

With a moan he slammed into the wall, sliding down and onto the floor.

Scrambling fast, Dee got onto his knees and grabbed the handgun. He stood, aimed, and kept his finger on the trigger.

His target… it was a man, a security guard for the hotel judging from his attire. He was twitching violently on the ground, like he was having a seizure or something. High pitched growls escaped him in his struggles to get up, shoulders twitching and blood spewing from his mouth.

Suddenly… Dee found himself conflicted, that damned feeling hit him like a strike of thunder when he heard a half growled “H-help me!” from the Security Guard.

N-no… that shit’s true?!

Dee’s hands shook, blood running down one side of his face from a cut. He had heard rumors about that from the game, the rumors of the first stage of the infected in Dead Island were actually on the cusp of mutating into one of the different infected types. And during the first stage, they were essentially still alive and fully aware of what they were doing, even able to speak. And that just made what he had to do even worse.

He was killing someone who was still alive.

Snapping his head up, the security guard glared at Dee and growled again. Body still twitching, and his muscles flexing, he was angry and hungry for blood!

“D-don’t move!” Dee spat, tasting blood on his tongue as his entire body shook. He should shoot… he should’ve shot and ended this thing’s existence, but something was taking over, something that told him to stop… Fear? Hesitation?

He didn’t know, but he didn’t like it. He had a full magazine, fifteen 9mm parabellum rounds to send flying into this… thing, that’s all it was.

It wasn’t human anymore, it was a creature, a beast that wanted his blood, just like the others. It just happened to be someone who was still… alive. This was a thing that was slowly morphing into an unmistakable monster the likes of which would harm him, his friends, his very existence! Something that wanted to turn him and the others into flesh eating monsters...

So why couldn’t he pull the goddamned trigger?!

“Grrr! H-helrrrr!” The thing hissed out, body twitching still. Dee noticed his hands were ripped and torn apart, showing muscle and even the bone in some places leading up to his bloodied arms. “Rah!”

Dee’s foot slid back, his fight or flight instinct coming to mind and leaning towards running for it. “J-just stop.” What the fuck is wrong with me?! Just shoot him, damn it!

But he couldn’t pull the trigger, and he would immediately regret it.

The man roared and charged up the steps, arms outstretched, blood and spittle dribbling from his mouth, bloody and gnarled teeth open in a wide snarl, his blood red eyes locked on his own.

Legs shaking and unable to keep standing from his nerves, Dee fell back onto his ass, gun still aimed.

The infected jumped at him, landing on top of him once more… Dee was pushed back, the monster’s teeth were bared in a snarl, they came down...

BANG

The gun ended up being pushed against the guard’s head, and Dee was forced to pull the trigger… several times.

BANG BANG BANG

The body slumped down onto Dee’s, blood covering his chest and face now. And he wasn’t given much time before something slammed against the door nearby, forcing him once more to get up and get moving, he quickly grabbed Lyra and hastily dragged her upstairs in a panic and through another door, just as the one he and Lyra escaped through burst open.

Dee aimed his beretta down the hall and fired once more, his wrist aching slightly from the constant firing of the powerful 9mm round. He dragged an unconscious Lyra like she had done him down the hall, blood covering his entire shirt and part of his face from the fights. His eyes were wide and set in a glare at the infected who were currently giving chase after him and the mare who in her still injured state was panicking.

Slowly getting a feel for the gun, he fired again, scoring a headshot on one of the three chasing him before crashing through a door into one of the many rooms, dragging Lyra in and getting the strength to toss her inside. “I’ll lead them away!” Dee told her, giving her one last look before he threw the gun to her and closed the door, briefly hearing a “No!” before slamming it shut.

Turning around on his heel he ran down one of the other halls, body covered in a thin sheen of sweat and aching from everything that had happened so far—his vision was bleary, his ankles and feet felt hot, and his lungs burned. Behind him, the monsters gave chase, slamming against the walls and scrambling after him like a wave of bones and bloodied bodies. “Raaah!”

“Fuck off away from me you dirty bastards!” He yelled, sprinting down the hall in a straight shot for the end of the corridor where a utility door was situated, perhaps his only salvation at that moment.

He slammed through the utility door and closed it up just as the two more infected smashed into the metal, trying to get inside at him. They slammed their arms and bodies up against the door, their faces just barely able to be seen through the glass as they pounded on it, trying to shatter-

SMASH

One of them succeeded in it and snaked his arm through just as Dee was able to close and lock the door. He backed up—the arm of the infected writhing about, he was trying to squeeze through the small opening, unhindered by the glass cutting into his flesh!

“Rah! Hah! Raaaah!” The man growled, eyes locked on Dee’s own.

Dee backed up and hit the wall, his own eyes wide and glaring. His heart was pounding in his chest and his mind ran a million miles a minute. The entire weight of everything was close to crushing on him, but his mind still held on, fighting back the thoughts that threatened to overwhelm him as his body threatened to collapse… he was running off of adrenaline at the moment, and could only pray it wouldn’t give out before he found safety for both himself and Lyra

G-gotta fight my way past! he realized. Looking around the stairwell he was now in, he didn’t see any of the infected inside above or below and thanked his lucky stars. Casting about for a fresh weapon after leaving the pistol with Lyra, a glint of something to his right caught his attention and brought an immediate smile to his face, making him instantly feel less terrified.

On the wall up half a flight of stairs was a distinctive looking container of sorts with a glass door, and inside it… was a fire red axe.

Dee grinned and rushed up the stairs towards the box, shakily but quickly finding the opening for it and yanking the axe out. Its weight was heavy, welcoming even to him—he twirled it a few times in his hand and gave it a test swing before looking back towards the door. He walked down the steps and glared at the infected trying to get through...

He realized then there was no knocking them out. He had to kill them.

Heartbeat picking up again, he grabbed onto the infected’s arm and it grabbed onto him in turn, trying to pull him through. He was able to keep himself from being pulled closer, however, and instead wrapped the arm-the infected’s elbow facing down-on his shoulder before sharply twisting and then snapping it with a strong upward blow to the elbow, causing the former human to scream in pain and try to get free.

Seconds later, Dee pulled free of the now-useless limb and spun around before swinging his axe hard, bringing it down onto the appendage that was now stuck and wedged in through the small window. The heavy and sharpened steel cut right through, slicing through the flesh and cutting the bone in one swift movement. Blood gushed forth onto the floor—an ear piercing shriek of pain sounding from the man as he stumbled back.

Dee unlocked the door right after and heel kicked it open, sending the other stumbling back and onto the ground as the other was smashed against the wall by the slam.

Rushing out into the hall, Dee brought up the axe and brought it down into the other man, this time ignoring the half growled out pleas for help and focusing instead on downing them.

The axe fell into the infected’s stomach, cutting through the clothes and into the flesh making it scream out in obvious pain. He yanked it free and with another pained scream of his own, brought it back down, pike first, this time in the chest. Crimson spewed from the monster’s mouth, a punctured lung—he yanked his axe free again and brought it down once more, aiming for the head, splitting it wide open and spilling brackish goo and ooze onto the floor.

Dee ripped his axe free with a snarl—spinning around to deal with the one who had been pinned by the wall-

RAAAH!

Jumping at him with only one good arm, the monster came at him—forcing Dee to back up and trip over the dead body of the previous one he killed. He fell onto the ground, almost losing his grip on his axe from the shock. Body falling on top of him, he was immediately pinned to the floor, one arm trying to get at him and the other a bloodied stump spewing brackish pus-filled fluids.

“Grrr! Get offa me you fuck!” Dee growled, using the axe as a shield to try and keep the man from biting him. Though it was difficult, having a body that weighed upwards to two hundred pounds trying to kill him, someone who barely weighed much in the first place.

Dee somehow managed, however, through sheer force of will and determination to keep himself alive, he was able to keep the infected off of him.

He pushed everything he had into his arms, pushing the infected up and away from him. His arms burned, his chest ached, everything was threatening to give out on him second by second! And he knew he didn’t have much left in him for another round of fighting, this could be it!

Shit! Shit! Shit! He chanted, growling, “Aaaah!”

BANG

The loud gunshot echoed throughout the hall as the now dead infected slumped down on top of the axe. He reacted fast and kicked it off of him, scrambling away before turning around, to see who his savoir was.

...It was Lyra.

The mare stood in the hall, clutching her abdomen with her injured arm and aiming the gun with her free hand towards him and the now deceased infected. She shook, blood on her lips that trailed down to her chin; her shirt was torn as well, revealing the pale green underside of a breast.

Slowly lowering her hand and the firearm, she looked down at Dee with a half faint look in her eyes. “A-are you a-alright?”

Tired, achy, and most importantly… hungry, he gave her a pathetically weak nod and replied, “More o-or less… yeah.” He told her, though his eyes couldn’t help but flicker at least once to her bare area of chest. A few moments and the duo heard more screams sounding from somewhere inside the hotel.

“Come on… we’ve gotta hide!” he told her, ending up leaning on her as much as her on him.

“Right…” she answered with a grimace, still struck by how he had been willing to sacrifice himself to save her, holding the gun with with one hand while she did her best to hold him up with the other. Neither one wanted to get into another fight, both weakened and broken to the point of collapsing as they were, so they packed up and rushed as best as they could back to the room Dee had thrown her in. They both entered room 101 and shut the door—which was swiftly followed by him helping Lyra over to the bed and laying her down on it. He didn’t waste time after running over to the door, locking and blocking it with one of the couches, and managing to heft one of the easy chairs on it for added weight.

It took all his remaining strength, and just as he finished, he heard rapid moving footsteps outside followed by sporadic breathing… then those footsteps ran away, trailing off into the distance.

Dee slowly backed away from the door, slowly sitting down on the floor...

His mental and physical reserves exhausted, his body decided to finally give out, and he fell into the world of unconsciousness before he could do much of anything.

ooo000---000ooo

Derpy had flown through the rainy skies of the city before ending up on top of yet another building, a large building with a flat rooftop and a large parking lot… and from what it sounded like, hundreds of people running to and fro from it in a hurry. She had hidden from them of course, hiding on the rooftop and hugging the backpack and odd flintlock to her.

She had ended up sneaking to the edge of the building near the front to get a looksee after a few moments and saw many people rushing around, screaming and yelling as sirens went off all around the area. She had flown across the river to the other side and it was here that she found the city was… far cleaner than the one she had come from. It didn’t resemble the slums and didn’t feel so claustrophobic, and there were far fewer wrecks around.

The screams persisted however… those of the monsters.

The minotaurs in blue uniforms and their flintlocks rushed around—police officers, she thought, grabbing people and ushering them to go and run, others ended up in a fight with some people armed with either flintlocks themselves or clubs and pipes.

It was bloody mayhem and forced her away to huddle on the middle on the roof.

Derpy was terrified and she had no earthly idea on what she was going to do to stay safe. A weight that sat in the back of her pants reminded her and she reached behind her before pulling off the firearm she was given by the now dead male soldier… the weapon trembled in her hand, and she wondered who would force a male as young as him to fight?

Gulping down the knot in her throat, she examined it. She knew what a flintlock was, having heard about them several times from her friends who had dated the royal guardsmares briefly. She sort of knew how they worked, but had never used one herself… a part of her wished she had listened to Berry Punch and practiced at the Ponyville Ironworks Forge with one. But she never saw the point of them.

If push came to shove, she would have to use it… and even so… could she willingly take another’s life? Those things were attacking anyone without provocation, tearing into them like wild animals. Males, females, and children even; it was bloody chaos in this city. And she was trapped in it, unless she moved further inland, but the mare had no idea what was there.

Animals?

More monsters?

Safety, even?

No idea.

For now, she could hide on the roof… assuming none of the strange apes found a way up, monster or not, she wasn’t in the mood to find out if she was capable of killing.

A heavy sigh left her and she placed a hand against her head, gently rubbing her brow. Her mind was trying to think of a plan, to think of what she could do, what she should do. Dinky, as far as she knew-hoped-was still alive and somewhere island, hidden away safely…

Again, she hoped.

So where was she? In this city perhaps? If so, then where was the airship she flew in on?

When she flew over the city, she didn’t see it anywhere, no wreckage, no trace of it anywhere. So if it wasn’t in the ci-

BANG BANG

CRASH

Derpy’s head snapped up and she let go of the bag. Gripping the firearm in her hand, she carefully crawled over to the edge to peer over into the streets. The crowd of people that were there were screaming now, many rushing towards those odd carriages of theirs and getting in before zipping off onto the road. Some crashed into another in their panicked haste, other people, or the monsters.

Oh right, there were monsters rushing into the area from the alleyways and parks nearby, coming all at once like it was somehow a coordinated attack. A few dozen screams and shrieks all combining together in a mishmosh of sounds—the symphony of the damned filling the air, ghastly and frightening it was to her. She could do nothing but watch. As horrible as it made her feel, as horribly heavy the feeling the of lead in her gut made her feel… she knew as long as she didn’t make her presence known, she would be okay…

But still, knowing that she could help, and that she was unintentionally choosing not to help filled her with a sense of dread and self disgust that knew no bounds.

She could see the monsters rushing in, vaulting over the vehicles—crashed or not and landing on top of people before attacking them. Sudden loud bangs and pops sounded from the police officers as they fired their weapons, a rain of small metal objects tearing into survivor and monster alike, the screams of pain and roars of the damned making her flight response threaten to burst free again and make her fly off.

Derpy backed away just as she saw a few dozen rush towards the officers.

Moving back to the middle of the roof, she hugged the bag and held her firearm in one hand shakily. She was so scared, her body was locking up and the screams down below did not help matters any with figuring out what she was going to do.

Firstly, she needed to find Dinky, and pronto! But where? Where was she?

That was the biggest question the single mother had right now, one she was going to continue asking until she got the answer she desired.

“Damn it!” Someone suddenly screamed from behind and Derpy’s head whipped around. She heard something clanging followed by heavy breathing. “Come on!”

“Move your ass! They’re comin’!” Another one yelled, a male this time.

Derpy stood up, clutching the backpack and holding her weapon forward towards the backend of the roof. She shook and trembled, wondering to herself who was back there. She closed her bad eye and focused her one good one. The beginnings of a ladder sat at the backend of the rooftop, a metal ring wrapping around the top. A bloodied hand shot up before one of the apes climbed up onto the roof, panicking and gripping a bloodied bat in the other hand.

They backed up from the edge as another attempted to climb up. But then his eyes bulged out, he gripped onto the ladder and screamed out-“Aaaah! F-fuck! One of the-” He tried to cry out but he was yanked down onto the ground amidst vicious screams and snarls. “Haaah! Ahhh! Get offa me! No!” His screams and cries were drowned out by horrific gurgling noises and the sounds of flesh being ripped apart.

“Hank! No!” The female screamed, glaring over the side before backing away with panicked breaths.

Derpy stared at the female, shaking almost… Hank? She briefly thought before the female turned around and spotting Derpy.

Eyes going wide, she held up her bat, “Get away you freak! AHHHH!” She screamed loudly and running at the mare. “You monster!”

“I-I’m not one of those things!” Derpy cried, dropping the backpack. Her hand shook, fear fueled her legs into moving back, “W-wait!”

“Fucking monster!” The bat wielding maniac rushed her, screaming at the top of her lungs.

What is she doing?! I’m not one of them! Derpy flared out her wings and moved further back, dodging a quick swipe of the bat from the female, the bat itself missing by a mere inch and making the pegasus flap her wings to send her back, “Ahh! H-Hey!”

The two continued moving back, Derpy’s wings pushing her back and away from the crazy and enraged minotaur like creature. She rushed at the pegasus, swinging her bat back and forth, up and down, trying to get a good hit but Derpy remained out of range—but only just barely! Derpy would’ve flown away, it was an easy fix! Fear kept her grounded, however.

But then a moment of hesitation on her part ended with her getting a bat to the side of the head, a pained yelp left her and she stumbled to the right—blood spewed from her mouth, her ears rang, and she collapsed onto the ground. She didn’t know what happened after that, but she heard felt something hit her leg and heard a sudden scream.

“Ahhh!” A thump was heard after, did she fall? “No no no! Ahh my leg! No! Get away from me you monsters! NOOO!”

Derpy wasn’t entirely sure what happened… but she wouldn’t find out for some time, as her world fell into darkness.