Children of the Plague

Chapter Fifteen: Recovery

Chapter Fifteen: Recovery

Lanni climbed down into the elevator car and pried the doors open at sub-level two. Before she reached the loading bay, she heard muffled cries, the sounds of someone running, and a higher pitched growl, all fighting for attention.

She headed down one of the hallways that appeared after the safe zone vanished, towards the increasingly louder sounds. A man wearing a full length jacket, a gas mask, and light strapped to his forehead, crossed in front of her at a four way intersection. A metal canister, like a large fire extinguisher, was strapped to his back, and a cone-shape nozzle dangled from his belt, both bouncing and swinging wildly as he ran.

Behind him, a skinny, naked husk woman gave chase, and was closing the gap. Lanni stepped into her path and swung the butt of her spear into her belly. The woman was so light that Lanni’s blow lifted her from her feet and spun her in a mid-air somersault.

She hoped she hadn’t hurt the poor thing too badly. Most of the colonists no longer thought of them as human, but Lanni couldn’t let go of what they had once been. Not very long ago, this creature had been a typical woman, living a typical life.

The husk clutched its belly and coughed up blood, moaning between hacks. Before she could bend down to touch it and see if she could help, another bobbing headlight appeared from the direction these two had just come.

“What are you doing,” a voice with a strong jersey accent asked. She knew that accent. It was Leonard, the runner. As his light flashed across her, he skidded to a stop, putting his hands up like she was a cop, and started backing slowly away.

She almost laughed at his behavior, but she really couldn’t blame him for being startled or confused. He couldn’t possibly have expected to find a midget ninja with a spear waiting around that last corner.

White light filled the hallway from behind as the first runner came back to see what had happened to his pursuer. He walked cautiously towards her with the black nozzle held out before him.

“Careful,” Leonard said, still backing away. The husk growled in quick panted breaths. “Alright, now!”

“Just stay back, Leonard,” Lanni said. “I don’t think she’s as hurt as she looks. Just stunned, probably.”

Leonard stopped walking. He was about fifteen feet away, and his attention wasn’t on the husk. His frightened gaze was locked on Lanni. The whole scene felt wrong.

She didn’t need to look away from Leonard to know that the guy in the facemask was moving up behind her. He sounded like Darth Vader with a clogged vent, and his shoes scuffled across the floor with every step, like he was too tired to lift his feet.

“Uh… Leonard?” the guy asked. Even through the mask, she knew it was Mitch. He had been following Leonard around for a few weeks.

“Look, I’m not…” Lanni began. She intended to put them at ease before things got out of hand, but several small details came together in a big way.

Leonard wore his running clothes with a backpack slung over one shoulder. A police utility belt at his waist bore handcuffs, pepper spray, and a pistol, but he held a collapsible baton in his hand. An odd choice of weapons for someone forced to defend himself or a friend.

The husk cringed at Leonard’s voice, cowering on the floor like an abused dog. This wasn’t self-defense, or a random encounter with a husk that stumbled into their home. They were hunting down an escaped prisoner.

For half a heartbeat, the familiar pre-battle panic jolted through her. The reflexes, conditioning and training of her embedded martial persona took over. On the other side of that heartbeat, she had summed up her opponents, her advantages and disadvantages, and took the initiative.