Calculated risk

"So, are we all set?" Takashi glanced around the car's interior as he asked.

"...It's a bit of a tight squeeze, but we can manage" Rei responds as she tries to fit her self on the seat. Next to her and on her right, Takashi...on her left, Saya, followed by Saeko and then me. Kohta and Asami were sitting in their 'foot section' as per usual, Kiriko was on the front passenger's seat with Alice on her lap, and finally, Shizuka was sitting on the driver's seat like always.

I close my eyes and let out a yawn as i put my hand in front of my mouth, i might be wearing a mask, but well...you know...habits...

"Didn't sleep well?" Saeko asks as she turns to me.

"Uhh...not going to deny that" I shake my head and glance at her before looking back out the car's window.

Now...another thing that i didn't mention is that...with how tightly packed the back seats were at the moment...i had Saeko literally glued on me...again...not complaining...

"Leave it to the idiot to be half asleep in the important moment of the day..." Saya glanced at me with a slight smirk.

"Hmm...yea...it' just that...i ended up finding somebody to...hang out with..." I respond as i turn to her...Saya's face goes red as her eyes open up slightly.

"L..let's just go already...we need to get to that school, as fast as possible" She responds as she turns to look at the front windshield.

(Heh, the wrong fight you picked my dear chundere...)

And with that, the engine came alive...and the car started to move...

(In the end, it was in Asami's 'round' that the sun came up, and as the clouds didn't disperse all night...we couldn't leave earlyer...not the best way to start the day...as we now have like six hours left in order to reach the school...but...nothing to be too freaked out about...if we do find a road blocked by a horde and there's no other way around, we'll just use the dynamites...)

I let off another yawn as i keep thinking...

(Seriously though...i bearly managed to get any sleep yesterday...even after my little chat with Saya..)

"Hmm, turn left of the first clear intersection, then keep going straight" Kiriko, who had the map in her hands, points at the road ahead as she speaks.

"Mhm" Shizuka responds with a nod.

(Still...it makes me wonder...what would be the 'now'...was i not here with the group...like...Asami and the car would not be here for one...Shido would still be alive, probably stirring up a shitstorm in the elementary school...the estate would be a sizzling wreck, with Saya's parents being M.I.A...huh...so...in the end...i did make some sort of difference...didn't i ?)

As i took a deep breath, i found my self closing my eyes involuntarily...

(Ahh, for fuck's sake, i couldn't sleep all night...yet the moment the sun came up, i can't keep my fucking eyes open...i know i was more of a night owl...but this is getting ridiculous. Still...uhh...they...can probably handle this without me...so...i...can probably take a small break, right?...Yea, they can wake me up if something happens...)

And...The moment i decided that it was ok for me to dose off, i shut down almost instantly...it's funny how i was able to fall asleep in a moving car...but couldn't frigging sleep inside a sleeping bag when i was in pitch-black darkness...Oh well...at least the seat is comfortable...are Humvee seats supposed to be this comfortable?

I just...wish that whoever is poking my God damn sides right now...would stop. Uhh, if i knew that i'd end up being under attack, i wouldn't have taken off my trenchcoat...

Still...wouldn't it be nice to find my self in the elementary school after i wake up?...Yea...that would be nice...i mean...for starters...i do wish i had some more free time to spend with Saeko and Saya...hopefully, without any 'incidents'...like getting stabbed, decapitated and going on a one-way cruise on a sailboat...

Also, on a side note...i have the weirdest dreams when i keep drifting between awake and asleep...

I mean...i'm pretty sure we did NOT have a fireball spitting dragon in our car...not one with such a magnificent mustache at least.

...But...

Well...you know what they say...all good things must come to an end...and i'm pretty sure...that somebody is shaking me right now...

I open my eyes and focus on what was straight ahead of me...in other words, the windshield. I blink several times as i keep looking at it...

(That's weird...I'm pretty sure that i was sitting behind the driver's seat...not in the middle...how did i...)

I lower my sight...and see...purple lace stockings?...Yea...these...were definitely not my legs...

(...I'm sleeping on Saeko's shoulder ain't i...this seat...must be cursed...or blessed...depending on how one looks at the matter...)

Then, something started shaking me again...

"Ughh, just slap the idiot already, that should wake him up" An annoyed voice speaks up.

"I wouldn't treat Naier like that Saya." A different voice answers...

"W..well I'm just saying, you have been shaking him for almost half an hour by now..." Saya responds...

(...I'm...never letting Saya wake me up...she would probably end up trying to elbow drop me or something... )

"In either case, we should wake him up, we're near the bridge. And after that, it won't take more than thirty minutes until we reach the school. If we keep up with this speed that is" Another female voice joins the chat.

"Still...that was some good thinking, using the dynamite to bait the corpse away from the road" The same female voice continues.

"We have already used this same tactic before, figured it would work this time around as well" A male voice responds.

(We used dynamite?...Hmm...that kind of explains the flame-spitting dragon...still got no idea why he had a mustache though...in any case...time to 'wake up')

I lift my head from what turned out to indeed be Saeko's shoulder and shake my head...

"Good morning" Saeko leans slightly forward as she turns to look at me.

"Uhh...thanks...how long have i been out?..." I ask.

"About three hours" Takashi responds.

"Slept well?" Rei adds up with a slight smirk and a...rather sarcastic voice.

"...Right...sorry i ended up on you" I say as i turn to Saeko. She just...smiled and shook her head.

"You don't have to apologize Naier, i just want to be of use to you, in any way i can" She responds with the smile still on her face...and...the whole group...including me...ends up staring at her with a blank expression...well...all but Saya...who instead puffed her cheeks and narrowed her eyes as she shifted her gaze between me and Saeko...

(...well...she...laid that one out pretty plainly...way too plainly now that i think about it...)

"S...so, how far are we from the school?" I ask as i glance around.

"Ohh, we'll be at the bridge that connects the landmasses soon" Kiriko answers.

"And...we have, how much time left again?" I ask once again.

"Three hours or so. If we keep up this pace, we'll be at the school long before the extraction is over...we're doing good, no need to worry...Romeo" Kiriko responds with a slight grin as she puts the watch i gave her in her pocket...

"...Hmmm...Ohh! Romeo the Ninj..."

"Nope, nu-uh. Not happening...i'd rather be called ninja penguin" I cut off Shizuka before she could finish.

"Uhh...ninja...penguin?" Kiriko asks as she lifts an eyebrow.

"Yea, he is Ninja penguin the overlord !" Alice turns around and pops her head over from the front seat as she points at me with a smile.

"Ninja penguin, the supervillain overlord" Kohta adds right after.

(Ohh come on, you in on this too now?...TR-8R, we have a traitor in our midst...)

"Ohh Shizuka, take a left turn here, the bridge should be a straight line after that" Kiriko glances at the map before turning to look at Shizuka.

"Oki doki...ahh...i can't wait to reach the school, i want to take a hot bath and finally relax..." Shizuka giggles slightly as she turns the steering wheel.

And the moment she took the turn...the bridge came into view...and that...was all i could really see to be honest, as the surrounding area consisted mostly of tall buildings that hid any further view of...well...everything...Also, this bridge...i think it might be the same one that Takashi mentioned when he was talking about his mother, a bascule bridge. The reason?...simple...

"...Are you kidding me!?" Rei shouts as she looks at the bridge...which was lifted up...

"I...can't drive up that thing...it's way too steep..." Shizuka lets out a worried sigh and lowers her head slightly...

The rest of the group stayed silent as we drove closer to the bridge...There were also a couple of corpses roaming next to it. About...six...seven of them?...but in all honesty, we had 'bigger' problems to deal with right now...

"But...we're so close...we...we just need to get on the other side...so...why...why is it like this?...This isn't fair..." Asami was the first one to speak...

"Shit...we need a new plan, stat" Takashi lowers his head and narrows his eyes...

(Well, Saya was right...so...uhh...now...ok...let's take things, one at a time)

"We have three hours left...the third bridge is out of the question, it's way too far...then, we have the bridge by the shopping district...the road there has fewer intersections, meaning less space to 'move', and it's also supposed to have way more traffic, so the chance of the roads being blocked off by car wrecks is also higher...plus...we'll have to backtrack to even get there..." I look around the road through the windows as i speak...

"Y...you mean we're stuck here?...but we're so close!" Rei ends up shouting at me as she finishes her sentence.

"So, what do we do now?...You can't exactly blow up 'this' roadblock" Saya calmly speaks up next as she turns towards me...the rest of the group...just looked at her with a questioning look...then again, they don't know what i and Saya talked about yesterday night.

"...How about going on foot?" I ask.

"Huh? What do you mean" Takashi asks back.

"I mean what i just said...we're not too far from the school right? Like six blocks inland and four blocks to the left, if we can go diagonally, that's even less" I say as i fold my arms.

" That's true...but we still need to cross the bridge, i don't see anything that we can use to cross it, even on foot" Takashi turns to look at the bridge as he speaks.

"We have too many tall buildings around here, in other words, we don't have a clear view of our surroundings...now...right before the river, there should be some open space for pedestrians to walk on...so there 'might' be a small bridge for pedestrians hidden behind the buildings." I point at the front windshield, towards the road's corners next to the bridge.

"Hmm...we don't have much of a choice to we?...Ok...the most silent ones among us can go and check if there are any bridges around, then return, there are a bunch of them near the bridge, and we don't know if there are more of them hiding around...so, no guns...actually, no fighting at all, just look around and then come back" Takashi nods and looks back at me.

"Alright, sounds like a plan, so, who goes?" I ask.

"I can go" Kohta lifts his hand...and the whole group turns to look at him...

"What? Being silent is covert ops One-o-One, and i had training in that" Kohta responds as he looks back at the group.

"...You know, i'm not even surprised anymore...also, i'm going as well" I say right after, Saeko glances at me before turning towards Takashi, slowly lifting her hand.

"Ok, two people should be enough, just look and come back" Takashi speaks up before Saeko could say anything, She lowers her hand and turns to me.

"Just looking, no gunshots, no close combat" I respond as i look back at her and then at Kohta, who nods and turns to exit the car, with me following suit right after, and once we got out, we headed straight towards the bridge that was up ahead.

"I can see corpses in the alleyways between the buildings...and some of them are sprawled on the sidewalks too, could not really see them from the car because the benches and trees on the sidewalks blocked our view..." Kohta whispers to me.

"Yea...makes me wonder...if they raised the bridge with survivors still left on this side..." I nod as i look at the surrounding corpses.

"...Possible...but the street is a bit 'too' clean...and there's a relatively small number of actual dead bodies around...also, there is nothing around here that seems to prove that there was any sort of blockade or defense set up, no cop cars, no fences and no officers...dead or otherwise..." He responds.

"Hmm...true, maybe the just lifted the bridge and left then? You know, fewer points to focus on" I rest my hand on my shotgun as i look around, Kohta nods at me without saying anything else.

After we got near the bridge, we moved in separate directions. I went to check the left sidewalk that disappeared behind the last building before the river, while Kohta went towards the right one.

(Hmm...quite the fancy sidewalk this is, pretty wide with a brick-paved floor, bushes lining up in the middle along with oval lamp posts, and benches on both sides...add the river that's to the right and this would make for a relatively nice place to relax, was it not for the end of the world that is)

I walk up to the right corner of the sidewalk and look to my left...

(Still...nothing...i can't see a single 'thing' that connects the two sides...i do see a horde on the other side of the river though, on the opposite road...uhh...problems just keep piling up...)

I turn to look towards my right, past the corpses, to the side that Kohta was at...after a couple of seconds, he also turned to look me. I raise my hand in a 'questioning' motion...he shakes his head negatively.

(...Bullshit...Come on...come on...think...think)

I turn to look at the bridge as i lean on the railing...both sides were lifted to about...sixty degrees?...

(...Hmm...it's not 'Too' far to jump...not for me at least...would probably end up on the metal scaffolding under the bridge at worse...but i can climb that...the problem is...I don't think that all of us can make that jump...Shizuka and Saya for example...ughh, fuck...we got so far...only to be left hang...ing?)

And then...it hit me...

(...The rope...we have the rope that Kohta picked up!)

I instantly back away from the railing and motion Kohta to move towards the Humvee. After we picked up some distance from the corpses by the bridge, he walked up next to me.

"What's going on? Figured something?" He asks.

"You could say that. The bridge gap, it ain't 'that' big, as both sides aren't completely lifted...so...how about we just jump over the bridge?" I turn to him as i speak.

"Uhh...yea...uhh...you really think that all of us can climb up there and then jump over to the other side..." He 'asks'.

"We can help the ones that can't climb by themselves...and they won't have to jump over...we still have the rope you picked up don't we?" The moment i finish my sentence Kohta eye's light up.

"Holy crap, your right!" He shouts, then brings his hands to his mouth and looks around.

"Uhh, sorry" He says as he looks at me.

"Ehh, doesn't really matter...as i actually have a plan for the corpses as well...and things might get a bit...loud..." I respond. Kohta just...tilted his head.

"There's no real place to hide the Humvee around here...so, we'll 'ask' the corpses to...watch over it for us" I add up as i fold my arms.

"Hmm...that...would make them get away from the bridge...let's see what the others think" Kohta nods as he speaks.

After we reached the car, we got inside and informed the rest...both about the bridge...and the corpses.

"Hmm, well, we got no other choice on the part about crossing the bridge do we?...But uhh...surrounding the car with them...also means we'll have them coming towards us as we try to leave" Takashi responds shortly after i finished explaining.

"Not if we leave fast enough...before they encircle the car" I respond.

"...I guess..." Takashi just puts his hand under his chin as he keeps thinking.

"Well, if anybody has any better ideas, i'm all ears...but if we do go on foot...then we need to make use of all the time we have left" I keep looking at Takashi as i speak.

"...You're right...let's do this then..." Takashi turns to me and nods with a serious expression.

"S...so how do we even do this?" Shizuka asks as she keeps looking at the steering wheel.

"First, hit the horn, then, we exit the car and head straight to bridge, if we can't find an opening, we'll make one using close-range weapons...as shooting a gun will just end up ruining our own plan" I glance at my shotgun before turning to look at Shizuka.

"Ok...we should fill up our bags with some supplies for the trip...in other words...ammo and dynamite. We won't need food, sleeping bags or clothes as we are supposed to get there in less than three hours" Kohta adds right after.

"Actually, i think we better do take some clothes...or you'd rather end up with whatever they have there?...If they have anything at that is...also, take some medicine...now for food...well...i just hope the people there are well-stocked..." I open my bag as i speak and look inside.

"Ohh i have some of the medicine sorted in plastic bags, each bag should have a complete set of the things we might need, we can take a couple of them instead of randomly picking from the heap that we have in the bags" Shizuka turns towards us and points at the duffle bags in the trunk.

...And like that, we emptied our bags and started to refill them.

In mine, i got a good amount of shotgun shells and 9mm's, the extra clip for the P220, some clothes, a flashlight, the combat knife, four plastic bags of medicine and uhh...two sticks of dynamite...with the dynamite actually being in the outside pockets of the bag as they couldn't fit inside...

"I'm set" Kohta closes his bag and lifts his head.

"Ehehe...I got enough ammo to go for weeks..." He says with a silent...and rather creepy chuckle...

"Uhh...yea...i'm set too" I respond as i glance at Kohta.

And one by one, we all finished setting up our bags, though in the end, we decided that Saeko, Rei, Kiriko and Takashi would not take any with them, as they will be the 'front line' and we do want to move as fast as possible.

"Ok, so, we're all set?" Takashi asks.

"Hmm, just one thing...i only got two sticks of dynamite...did anybody take any more?" I ask.

"Uhh, i added a bunch in Shizuka's bag...mine and Asami's...are a bit...full..." Kohta responds.

"I got five in mine...as i also took whatever electronics we had that still worked..along with the textbook and some ammo for the gun" Saya says right after as she turns to look at the MP5.

(Hmm...ok, we should be good then...it's a shame i can't take the trenchcoat with me...as i really like it...but uhh...too noisy...too restricting)

"So...now we're all set?" Takashi asks...after a few seconds of silence...the group nods...

"Ok...Shizuka...hit the horn!" He shouts as he grips his shotgun.

"A...alright!" Shizuka nods and punches the car's horn.

"Come on let's go!" And with Takashi's final shout, we exit the car and run towards the bridge, the four members without bags in the front, the rest following close behind.

The moment we closed in at the corpses that blocked our path. Saeko rushed forward and 'divided' the two closest corpses in her position. She then turns around and waves her arm to us.

(My statement still stands, having Saeko around is like playing with cheat codes...and i'm loving it)

We all run to her and use the opening she created to get next to the bridge.

"Ok, step two, we need to climb up..." Takashi whispers.

"Kohta, got the rope?" I ask. He nods and tosses me the blue synthetic rope.

"Umm...i...am not a very good climber..." Shizuka looks at the bridge as she speaks and makes a sad frown.

"Wait here" I say as i walk up to the corner of the bridge.

(The road itself has a concrete layer so i can't use it to climb up...but...we can use the railing as a 'ladder'...the balusters are a bit far apart though...)

I nod, grab the railing and start climbing up.

"H...hey idiot, not all of us can climb that thing like some sort of monkey" Saya frowns as she looks at me.

"I could climb that though...does that make me a monkey?" Alice asks as she tugs Saya's sleeve.

"Ehh...no, only idiots can be monkeys, besides, you're a munchkin" Saya responds as she pats Alice on the head.

(That...was actually kind of mean...)

I shake my head and 'jump' to the next baluster...then to the next...and the next...until...i was finally at the top. After i steadied my self, I kneel on the edge and look at the other side of the river.

...It looked...clear...in all but one spot...two intersections to the left after the bridge, was a large horde, the one that i saw before.

(Holy crap, from down there i couldn't really make out how big this horde was...well...it's fucking giant...at least we have the dynamite, so it's nothing we can't handle, we can just 'ask' them to go for a freefall into the river...other than that. Hmm... the other side of the river has shorter buildings. Also, all the roads that lead inland, are uphill roads...quite steep ones too...wonder if that's why the buildings there are not as big...looking it from a distance, it does look like they ended up building that section on a rather tall hill...now as for the river...it looks like a twenty to thirty-meter fall from the road)

I turn around and look at the group before tying the rope to the railing i used to climb up, then let it fall. Takashi looks up to me and nods, and one by one, the group climbed up...with Kiriko going under Shizuka as...well...yea, there was a lot of...'pushing'...when Shizuka tried to climb up...the rest...did manage to get up here normally, including Saya.

"Ok...so...now...how do we go over the gap?" Takashi asks after everybody was at the top.

"...It's...very high up...falling from this hight would be..." Shizuka stares at the river below as she trails off, slowly kneeling down and hugging the railing that was next to her.

"It's too far to jump..." Kiriko looks at the other side of the bridge as she speaks.

"I have an idea." I say as i pull the rope up and start wrapping it around my arm.

"...Hey, Naier...you're not thinking of..." Saya stoped in the middle of her sentence as she stared at me.

"Jumping to the other side in order to tie the rope to use as a bridge?...It's...actually easier than it sounds" I say as i finish wrapping the rope around my arm.

"It...is?" Shizuka asks.

"The bridge has a metal scaffolding under it, even if i do miss my target, i'll still end up there...and if all else fails, the rope should keep me from falling into the river" I respond...the group just stayed quiet...yet...i had the feeling ...that Saeko did not seem to 'agree' with my plan...probably because she was staring at me...way too intensely...she didn't speak up though...Saya just stared at me like i was an idiot...you know normal stuff.

(Ok, let's get this over with)

I glance down, lean back...and jump...

It...didn't take too long to realize that i wouldn't be reaching the top of the bridge the way i was going...instead, i ended up 'grabbing' on the scaffolding...in a...not so smooth landing...

(ugh...crud...i think i just pulled my left arm...really need to work on my landings...)

I shake my head and start climbing up once again...

(...And now i feel like a monkey...god damn it Saya. I'll get you for this...)

I chuckle and keep climbing, ignoring my left arm while it was trying to my life hard...until...i was finally at the top.

"Nothing to it" I say in a silent voice as i take the rope off, pass it around the metal railing and pull it until it was completely stretched, then tie it up and turn towards the group.

"Alright, Kohta! I expect that you know how to 'use' this! So explain it to the rest!" Kohta salutes at me and turns to the others as he starts talking...telling them how to fold their legs and how to hang while they're upside down...among other things.

(...This is still risky...but we don't have much of a choice left...or time...and well...i can't think of anything else...also... does Kohta always respond with a salute when you half order him to do something?)

The first one to pass...was Alice...who...well...i think? was having fun?...she was giggling from start to finish...yep, she is definitely a monkey alright...Then was Saeko, who also got here effortlessly, followed by Asami, who believe it or not, managed just fine...sometimes i forget this girl is a trained cop...Rei and Kiriko passed after, both without any real trouble, then followed by Takashi...leaving...Saya, Shizuka and Kohta...

"Saya, make sure to keep your legs crossed and..."

"I'm not stupid, i can do this" She cuts Kohta off as she glances at me and grabs the rope...then turns to stare at the river below...

"Uhh...I know it's too late to ask now..but...why nobody took Saya's and Shizuka's bag when they passed?" I ask as i turn to the group that was already on this side...they all just...looked at each other...

(...Must i think of everything here?...i just hope the extra weight won't be a problem for them...)

I turn my head to Saya, only to see that she was already midway on the rope.

"..If my glasses fall, I'm holding you responsible Naier!" She grumbles as she slowly keeps moving closer...until, she finally reached us...

"Ok Shizuka, you're next" I hear Kohta say on the other side of the bridge.

"Umm...you should go first Kohta...i..." Shizuka keeps glancing behind her as she speaks...

"Miss Shizuka, don't worry you will do just fine" Kohta responds...

"No...it's not that...well...it is...B...but...if i go first...then...you'll see my underwear...I'm...wearing a skirt" She responds as she blushes...

"Uhh...well..." Kohta also blushes as his eyes start to 'wander'.

(...Wait...Saeko and Rei are also wearing skirts...does that mean that everybody on the other had them in full view?...Though...to be honest...Saeko's 'skirt' makes it hard NOT to see her underwear...even when she's just standing still...and Rei...well honestly i don't care...)

"Oh and please take Zeke too" Shizuka then hands the dog over to Kohta without waiting for his response.

"O...ok..." Kohta nods, take's the dog, puts it in his vest and grabs the rope...and easily comes over to our side...and the moment his feet touched 'solid' ground...

"I really want to punch you in the face for being a pervert...but you might end up falling...so give me Zeke and your bag...so i can punch you in the face for being a pervert" Saya glares at him as she leans her upper body toward him and puts her hands on her hips.

"W..what? But...i didn't look..." Kohta lowers his head slightly

"..Am i...not good enough...Kohta?..." Asami...then takes what must have been the best 'puppy eyes' face i have seen for quite some time...and keeps staring at Kohta...

While that was going on, i turn to look at Shizuka...she...had climbed up...but was not moving...she was just hanging there, upside down, hugging the rope...about...one-fifth of the distance...

"Come Shizuka! You can do it! Hooo!" Alice lifts her hand in the air and shouts...i guess she was also not paying attention to Kohta and Asami.

Shizuka, with her eyes tightly shut, nods and starts to slowly move forward...only to stop about halfway again...

"I...it's shaking too much! I'm scared!" She shouts as she hugs the rope again...

"Come on Shizuka! You're almost there!" Takashi shouts...Shizuka opens her eyes and looks at the rope that was pretty much touching her nose.

"H..hey...this part of the rope looks like a flower..." She says as she stares at the rope.

"A what now?" I ask as i tilt my head...

"A flower, the threads are opening up like a flower...it actually looks kind of prAAAHHH!..." Shizuka...didn't even manage to finish her sentence...as the rope snapped right in front of her eyes. I just...stared as she disappeared below the bridge.

"SHIZUKA!" Takashi's screams as everybody rushes to look over the edge.

The moment we looked below, we saw Shizuka hanging from the rope as she kept flailing her legs.

"I don't like this!" She shouts as she keeps flailing about.

"Shizuka are you alright?!" Takashi yells.

"Oouuu...I...can't do this!..." she looks down as she keeps holding on the rope...

"Let go of your bag Shizuka, it will lighten your load!" I shout.

"B..but we have things inside..." Shizuka responds as she looks up.

(Are you for real?!)

"If you fall the bag falls with you! Drop it and try to get your legs on the scaffolding!" I say as i grab the rope.

"O..ok.." Shizuka nods and lets go of the rope with one arm, letting the bag slide of her shoulder before grabbing the rope again.

"Grab the rope! Two of you stay near the edge so you can grab her, MOVE YOUR ASSES!" I shout as i finish wrapping the rope around my arm once again, untie it, and let my self fall backward. Jumping off the edge in the opposite direction from Shizuka, before i would end up falling forward with her.

And i then, started to slowly descend, in other words. Shizuka was being pulled up.

(Come on...come on...)

i glanced behind me as i kept going down...

(...For real now?)

I groan as i look at the corpses right under me...there must have been about...five of them?

(I don't have time for this shit.)

I grab the shotgun, aim it behind me...

And pull the trigger.

(So)

Again.

(Piss)

Again.

(The)

Again.

(FUCK)

Again.

(OFF)

Needless to say, aiming with one hand made the gun jump around like a fish out of the water each time i pulled the trigger...none the less, all the corpses under me, fell to the floor motionless.

"Naier are you alright?!" Saeko pops up her head up from over the edge and looks at me.

"Help Shizuka, I can handle this!" I shout.

"We already brought her up! She is alright!" She responds...i take a deep breath...and then let out a huge sigh...

(...Ughh...there goes another three years out of my life...still...glad she's ok...Especially now that i don't know if their...plot armor still applies...)

"These gunshots will attract too many of them, we need to go down and move away from the bridge right now" Kohta speaks up right after as he appears on the edge.

"Get down then, I'll deal with the ones that get too close." I respond as i let go of the rope and land on one of the corpses.

(Ohh your asses better be really 'dead' right now)

I grab the fallen corpse i landed on and toss it over the railing, into the river, then grab the second nearest by the foot and drag it away, while in the meantime, Kohta started climbing down.

"Ok, let's see, five shots fired. So i got four left in the gun" I turn to look at the corpses that were walking down the uphill road that was ahead of me.

(They are too close to the intersection, they will overtake it by the time everybody is down)

I take my bag off and open it, then take a couple of shotgun shells and reload the gun before shoving another couple in my pockets. I nod, get up, and walk towards the corpses, leaving the bag behind.

"Ok...So, who wants to re-die first?" I 'ask' as i stop and lift the shotgun.

To answer that question...it was some middle-aged office worker that was missing a...rather big part of his lower body...don't really want to know how he ended up like that to be honest...

I pull the trigger...and the office worker gets sent flying back losing an even bigger part of his upper body. And before that one could touch the ground, i was aiming to my left, pulling the trigger and sending another corpse flying back. Followed then by a shot to my right.

"Saya! Do you still have the five dynamites?" I shout without turning to look behind me.

"Yes! You will use yours now?" She shouts back. I glance to my left and see the horde that was two intersections away...they...were already moving towards us...

"Yes, we already got everything coming towards us, we can at least make one side piss off" I respond as i turn around...only to see Saya over my bag, with a stick already in her hand. Saeko was also already down, along with Kiriko and Shizuka, with Shizuka sitting on the ground, her head lowered and her eyes closed. Takashi was on the rope, Rei under him.

"Naier catch!" Saya shouts as she throws me the stick.

(Saya, you deserve a head pat)

I let go of the shotgun and grab the dynamite, then take the lighter out of my pocket.

"Once we're all down we will head towards the horde! We will use the second dynamite to make them fall into the river!" I shout as i light up the fuse and turn towards the uphill road...

(ok...i...always wanted to say this...)

"E.D.F!" I pull my hand back and toss the dynamite towards the street...and a few seconds later, an explosion went off next to a car...leading to a second explosion from the car it self...that ended up flipping over and crashing on the roof of the car that was in front of it...

"Uhh...note to self...never shout E.D.F when throwing explosives...it increases the chance for collateral damage...and alien invasions from giant bugs...obviously..."I chuckle as i turn around and head back to the group.

After picking up my bag...i glance at Shizuka, who was still on the ground...

"Can you walk?" I ask as i walk up to her and kneel down...she just nods without looking at me.

"Umm...I'm sorry about the bag" She says she keeps looking down.

"Come on Shizuka, who even gives a crap about the bag" I respond as i tilt my head slightly.

"Yea, we're all just glad that you're safe, so chin up." Kiriko, who was sitting next to her says right after me.

"We'd rather have you instead than the bag Shizuka, so don't worry" Takashi, who had climbed down the bridge speaks up as he stops next to us.

"Ohh, i bet you do" Rei says with a slight smirk as she narrows her eyes.

"Rei..." Takashi just turns to stare at her.

"...I know, i know, I'm just kidding..." Rei responds as she glances away.

"Well i don't mean to be the elephant here, but we need to move. Corpses from both the left and right side of the intersection are heading here, we need to go left before we end up blocked off" I say as i get up and turn around.

"Y...yes...everything will be over after we reach the school...i really want to take a warm bath right now...umm...by the way...what's an edf?" Shizuka nods and finally gets up with Kiriko's help...then turns to look at me.

"Uhh...over the top bug exterminators..." I respond with a shrug.

"You can see that we have a giant horde to are left right?" Saya turns to look at me as she speaks.

"Yea, i will use the second dynamite on the horde, so have yours on the ready" I say as we start moving. Saya nodded at me without speaking back.

In the end, we managed to pass the first intersection to our left before we ended up getting blocked off by the marching horde.

"There are...so many of them...what do you think might have happened here?" Asami asks.

"I got...absolutely no idea...uhh...maybe it is an 'old' horde, so maybe it managed to get this big by attracting stray corpses...i do know why they will be leaving though..." I answer as i take the second dynamite out of the bag's side pocket and light it up.

I take a few running steps and toss the dynamite next to the horde and towards the river that was to my left.

The dynamite flew in an ark, past the horde and towards the long drop that led to the river. Though it ended up exploding before it could even disappear under the street.

(Mr. Torgue would be so proud of me right now.)

The whole horde halted, and turned to the left, straight towards a twenty-meter drop into the river.

Or well...that was the plan at least...as...instead of going for a free dive, they ended up getting stuck on the W - beam guard rail...

"Really now?...Ughh...Whose smart idea was it to make the railing this frigging high? Are these types of guardrail even supposed to be this tall?" i groan as i look at the corpses.

"There are way too many of them there, we still can't pass through the road...and we can't wait until they either somehow fall over the railing, or squeeze to the left...as that blast just made everything that was behind us to start crawling towards us" Takashi shakes his head as he looks at the horde, then glances behind us.

"W..what do we do?" Asami asks.

"The last intersection we passed, corpses there should have moved towards the left part of the road" I turn around and point at the intersection that was a little further off.

"Yea, let's go, before they block it off." Takashi nods as he motions us with his hand and starts running.

Luckily, we were able to get near the intersection before too many corpses had managed to shamble past it.

"Ignore them! If we spend too much time here we'll get blocked off, just run past them!" Takashi shouts as he runs to the right corner of the road, aims at the nearest corpse and fires a shot from his shotgun.

"We will go from the left side!" He shouts again as he, along with the rest of us used the opening to run past whatever corpse was in front of us. After we reached the next intersection, we turned left and headed up the road that did indeed have most of the corpses shuffling towards the left part of the street...

"After we reach the next intersection we will go either left, or keep going straight. Depending on which of the two roads is safer to move in" Takashi whispers as we keep walking up the uphill road.

One we reached the intersection we checked the two mentioned roads...

Both had corpses on them, but the left one had most of them on the left side of the road. While the one that continued straight had them coming straight towards us...i guess the blast was too far away to make them turn left, as it instead seemed to make them head down the road.

"I say left" I whisper. The group nods and turns to walk towards the left...

"...The road that continues straight ahead after the next intersection seems to be blocked...if we turn left there, we'll end up straight in the horde...so...we'll go right" Takashi says as he glances at the distant intersection.

(Good thing these things are blind...i don't know how many times we used this trick to pass an otherwise 'dangerous' road..)

The moment we reach the intersection, we turned right.

"Oh come on..." Kohta groans as he stares the road...

Corpses...crashed cars...hell even part of the road had given way...yea...we were not going that way...

"...Shit, we can't go from this road either..." Takashi takes a few steps back.

(The corpses here are also moving towards the dynamite and, or shotgun blast..meaning the ones in the road to our right are coming right at us...at least the car wrecks block them off from flooding this intersection)

"So we go back?...the road by the river we took is probably crawling with them now..." Kiriko turns to look behind us.

"And that leaves only one intersection free, the one we just turned left to in order to come here...honestly though, that one didn't look any better than this one here..." Saya folds her arms as she looks at the distant intersection behind us.

"Could we use a car and crash it into the railing below? The road is pretty steep so it should pick up a decent amount of speed if we just let it roll down the road. Maybe it can rip a hole in the fence..." I ask as i turn to look at the horde on the downhill road to our left.

"...It's Possible...but...i need to ask...are you ideas always this wreckless?..." Kiriko turns to me as she speaks.

"This idiot? He never had a safe idea for as long as we know him..." Saya says as she narrows her eyes and looks at me.

"Hey, i had safe ideas...i just can't remember any in order to prove my point right now" I respond as i shrug.

"Well if we have a plan then we better put it into motion, the longer we stay here the worse it will get, there are corpses everywhere" Kohta lifts his gun and aims through the scope.

"We have no other road that can lead forward, let's do that." Takashi nods and turns to look at me.

"Uhh..Ok...car cannonball it is then" I scan the nearby cars as i speak. The intersection was pretty wide and i could see several cars scattered around...my eyes stopped on a nearby empty blue sedan. It was left right next to the road that went downhill, no corpses in the way, and its doors were wide open...

I run to the car and pull the handbrake down...

"Saeko, Rei, Miss Kiriko. We will hold off any of them that get too close, no guns though, or we'll cause ones on the two unblocked roads to come straight to us, the rest, push the car" Takashi points at the car as he turns to look at the road we used to come here. The group then quickly moves to his order...and once the rest were by the car, we pushed it towards the downhill road, until it started to roll by itself...

(Ok...now we wait...)

The car started to pick up speed...

Only to sway to the right and crash right into another car...about thirty meters down the road.

"It turned by it self...of course it would turn by itself..." I groan as i look at the car...

"Crap...this was too loud, everything is looking at us! Naier we need a new plan!" Takashi shouts as he looks at the corpses on the road to our left...

"Uhh...crap...Ok, uhh, Saya, give me a stick of dynamite, we will throw it towards the road we used to come here, that should stop the corpses from that road...at least temporarily, then the only threat will be from the downhill road as the other two roads are blocked by wrecks" As i speak Saya nods takes off her bag, opens it and tosses me a stick of dynamite. That i instantly light up and toss to my left.

The blast made the corpses that Takashi was looking at to change direction. He then motions the rest around him to follow him as he runs back to us.

"Ok, that bought us some time, whats next?" Takashi asks.

"Uhh...the road that goes uphill is a no go, it's in horrible state...backtracking is also going to be much harder as corpses there are all over the place now...and the road in the opposite side is also blocked...all we have left is this... "I say as i turn to look at the downhill road...

"...Uhh...is the horde...coming towards us?..." Shizuka asks as she stares at the bottom of the road...and...

"...They...are moving up the road...that dynamite blast probably made the ones that were not blocked by a house or wall to walk up the road" Saya responds...

"...Great...throwing that dynamite just trapped us all in here...nice plan Naier" Rei says with a sarcastic voice...the rest...just didn't respond to her statement...

(Great...should i take the silence as a fact that they agree with her?...well...now i'm sure that they are NOT going to like what i'm about to say next...)

"...We can use another car...but somebody needs to keep the steering wheel steady..." The moment i say this the group turns and looks at me like i said a bad joke...a very...VERY bad joke.

"What?! Have you gone completely crazy?! That's equal to suicide! There are too many of them down there! And they are also crawling up the street now! By the time the driver can jump off the car they will be rolling in them!" Saya shouts...

"I am open to ideas..." I respond calmly as i fold my arms.

"We can use the dynamites to make them change direction, i have..."

"The only road we can take by using dynamite is the one we came from, and everything is already heading towards us from that direction, we only have four of them left...and we'll probably have to use more than one just to pass the road we used...all of that, just to backtrack one road, and what if the intersection after that is..." I cut off Saya...

"I'll go with the car" Only to be cut off by Takashi.

"Like hell you are! This whole mess was not your idea to begin with!" Rei shouts...and the whole group finally turns to her.

"What! This isn't even the first time he puts the group in danger! If somebody should go, then it should be him!" She points at me as she shouts.

(...Holy shit...Rei...must really not give a single fuck about me..and while this 'is' my fault. Talk about no breaks...the moment push comes to shove she really becomes self a self-centered cookie...but...well...Takashi 'is' the 'love of her life'...even if she dumped him for Hisashi because...because i don't fucking know...)

As i think, Saeko quickly walks past me with her sword drawn...and straight towards Rei.

(Oh holy crap!)

I grab her shoulder and turn her around...only to meet with a glaring face...

"Focus, this isn't going to fix anything...she isn't in the wrong after all" I say as i stare at her...she just...keeps staring at me.

And...a shot echoed...

"If you guys got time to argue then make a damn decision! We're out of time here!" Kohta shouts as he glances at us before turning to look back at the corpses that were now crawling in the intersection.

"So...are you telling me that i should just accept...that you are going to go down with the car...Naier you promised me! " Saeko puts her free hand between her chest and leans towards me as she starts shouting.

(...This...must be the very first time that i see Saeko lose her composure...)

"Sae..."

"You...are not talking me out of this Naier, if you'll go, i'm coming with you...sadly...this is my decision to make...not yours. Let's just say that...you pulled the short straw in the matter" She smiles slightly as she keeps looking at me.

(...Was that a side jab?...i did say something like that to her in the clinic...)

"Uhh...the sword...i don't think the sheath is going to stop water from seeping in...Takashi, i'm leaving the shotgun and whatever shells i have here. i'll take the handguns, got some plastic bags in my bag from the medicine, i'll put them in there to avoid any water from getting into them...while the river shouldn't be sea water...i still don't want them getting drenched...and yea, Saya is right, there is no way to jump off the car and not get surrounded if we want it to hit the rail...so...we won't exit the car.." I take off my bag and then remove the sling along with the shotgun and hand it to Takashi...Saeko...kept looking at her sword...before she also walked up to Takashi and gave it to him...

"I will get the sword back after we get back out" As Saeko spoke...the...main problem came to mind...

(How...are going to get back up?...We can't just 'climb' twenty meters of vertical wall...)

"Ok, we can use that silver sedan that's over there then" Saya runs up to a nearby car and opens the front and back door.

(Hmm...the sea is not anywhere near here...so we can't hope for a beach...and both sides of the river are pretty much surrounded by a tall cement wall for as far as i could see...we could have...used the rope...but it snapped...and we can't go back there anyway...maybe there is a ladder somewhere on the wall...but i didn't check, i don't know if it has one, or where...and...there's another thing. Being it a 'river'...there'll be a current that will push us away if we take too long...

Ughh...God...fuck...didn't take me too long to fuck up the moment we went past the manga...what a fucking joke...)

I start running towards the car that Saya was at as i let out a silent sigh...

(Wait...'we' can use the sedan?...Ohhh no...)

"The windows are open...i know it sounds stupid...i mean...it is an idea you had after all...but...it might be safer to just fall with the car and exit after we are inside the river...from what i saw while we climbed the bridge, it must be about...fiften...twenty meters in hight?...Well? Stop staring at me and help me!" Saya shouts as she tries to push the car by her self.

"Uhh...you might be right...but..uhh...why do you keep saying we?" I ask as i reach the car and start pushing it.

"I...have to make sure that you won't ruin my gun..." She responds...

"...If you're that worried about the gun i can just give it t..." I turn to look at Saya...yet before i could even finish, She was already glaring at me with her cheeks all puffed up.

"...Saya, i don't even know how we'll get back up yet, i don't know 'if' we can get back up yet. Y..."

"Yet you let Saeko come with you...why won't you let me...I'm not just dead weight you know!" She cuts me off as she starts shouting again...

(Well...shit...)

"You...better leave the Mp5 then..." I respond as i turn to look at the road...the only thing i could hear now, was corpse moaning...and gunshots...

(I know...i know that i normally...i should flat out deny anything they tell me, even if they are right...i shouldn't let them come with me...but...)

The moment we bring the car next to the downhill road.

"Ok...We will follow the car as it goes down the hill...this intersection is starting to crawl with them...after that we'll..."

"...Guys, I really don't want to be 'that' guy here...BUT HURRY UP!" Kohta cuts Takashi off as he shouts while changing the magazine of his gun.

"Right...i'll check the horn...but i don't think it'll work...so don't count on it" I enter the car as Saeko slide across the hood and enters the passenger's seat...

"Saeko...are you su..."

"Yes Naier, i am sure...if you didn't want me to be like this...then you shouldn't have done to me...what you did in the clinic..." She responds as she turns to look at me with a smile...

"Huh?! W...What did you do to her?!" I hear the back door slam as the car started to move...i glance behind me only to see Saya glaring at me.

"...Fasten your seatbelts...and have the windows open...this might get...this will get...ugly..." I say in a deadpan voice as i turn to look at the road ahead...

(...You know...i should be mad at my self...that i'm letting my self allow these two to be in here...but...well...yea...i'm actually happy that they rather be 'in' the car...rathen than stay behind it...)

As the car starts rolling down the road, i open my bag...then take the handgun that Saya gave me along with the P220 and throw them in the bag before giving it to Saeko.

"It should have some plastic bags in there, empty them and put the handgun and magazines inside...and Saya, you might want to put your glasses there too..." I glance at the rearview mirror as i speak.

Saya didn't not answer, but took the bag and placed her glasses inside none the less...then...i heard duct tape...a lot...of duct tape...

"I sealed the bags with everything they could fit in...this...better work...i'll kill you if this doesn't work" Saya closes the bag and hugs it, leaving hers on the seat next to her.

(Not if i die first...)

And as the car picked up speed and started to close in to the horde...i pressed on the horn...only to come back with a negative result...

(Figures)

I then steer the car slightly to the right, so it would not hit the 'center' of the horde...it needed to have enough force to still crash though the fence after all...and seconds later...the first 'roadkill'...followed by a path carved right through the corpses...and then, the car crashed...right through the railing...

And while the car was in the air...i saw a ladder...straight ahead of us...then...i saw blue...

(Oh man...this is...hands down...THE most stupid idea i had so far!)

And right as i felt the car's front impact against the water...i realized...that i didn't wear my seatbelt...and...the world went black...