The Decaying World Saga (Book 1): Tribes of Decay (26 page)

Agnes handed him the rifle, but no one else moved.

“Go.”

The shout caused Jonah to jump. Rowan squeezed Garret on the shoulder, but didn’t say goodbye. He pulled Mia with him as she tried to get Garret’s attention.

“Let him go,” he said.

Mia nodded, but it took another shove to get her moving again. Rowan was in place, his back against the wall and his hands cupped at his waist. He had to bark out orders to get Jonah to move.

“Get ready, you’re next.”

Mia slipped her foot into his hands and steadied herself. Rowan lifted and she pressed her hands against the wall as she rose up. Mia stepped onto his shoulders then gathered her balance before motioning for Jonah to go. Agnes glanced up from the doorway to follow Jonah as he began his climb when the sound of footsteps brought her full attention back to the entrance. She knew their time had run out.

“They’re coming in.”

Jonah grabbed Mia’s legs as he put one foot on the railing and the other in Rowan’s hands. The boy’s grip tightened around her ankles at the sound of Agnes’ alarm. He was up in front of Mia in one quick move, grabbing at her shoulders. Jonah had one knee in place when the shooting started. He wobbled at the sound of the first shot and the tremor was enough to pull Mia away from the wall.

“Hold still,” Jonah cried. “I can’t hold on.” He threw his hands forward as Mia’s arms shot out on either side, trying to grab a hold of the wall.

“Get up there,” she said.

Jonah kept climbing as the shooting intensified. Garret fired a burst of rounds into the storage unit and the notification kept the soldiers from rushing the platform. The exchange was enough to get Agnes to move away from the opening. She wrapped her arms over her head and pressed in close to Rowan.

Mia felt Jonah get his feet set and the pressure built on her shoulders as he stood straight up. She looked up between his legs and discovered that he was at least a foot short from the bottom of the platform above them. He pressed up onto his tiptoes and the move sent a shot of pain down her back. The result was obvious before he admitted it.

“I can’t reach it.”

“Keep trying,” she said. “There’s no going back.”

He started to respond, but stopped before the words got out. Instead, he took a long look at the underside of the grated platform. Mia tried to think of words of encouragement, but he cut her off.

“Hold on,” he said. “This is probably going to hurt.”

Mia didn’t know what to expect, but she put the pieces together when he bent his legs. Jonah’s backside tapped her on top of the head before he sprang upward with enough force to fling Mia off the wall. She felt Rowan move beneath her, his grip tightening like a vice around her ankles. Rowan took three steps toward the railing before he had enough leverage to lean back. The result sent both him and Mia slamming into the wall. Mia smacked the back of her head against the concrete with enough force to daze her. She looked up through blurry eyes to find her brother dangling from the underside of the platform above them.

“Let me down,” she said. Rowan complied and she was standing beside Agnes a moment later, all three looking up at Jonah. “Be careful.” She recognized the ridiculousness of her statement the moment she said it.

Jonah held still, his eyes running along the bottom of the platform until finally he began to sway. He kept the motion going until he reached out and grabbed another handhold. He slid his fingers between the grates as he went, moving hand over hand. He was near the edge of the platform when Garret confirmed the lingering concern in the back of everyone’s mind.

“I think they’re coming again.”

No one had time to respond before a burst of rounds erupted from the darkened interior of the storage unit. Mia pressed herself against the railing, but her vantage point only provided a vague outline of several figures popping out from behind the remaining supply crates. It took her a moment to realize that Garret wasn’t firing back. She found him slumped over on his side, his eyes still open, but struggling to line up the barrel of his rifle on the doorway. Rowan took a step toward him when Mia reached out and pulled him back. His head snapped around as bullets whizzed by his face.

“Keep going,” Garret said between clenched teeth. He jerked his arms forward and pulled the rifle up, firing into the unit.

Mia looked up in time to see Jonah pull himself over the railing of the platform above. The crudely concocted rope dangled down over the cavernous drop as he tied it off to the corner post. He looked down at them and flashed thumbs up before turning his attention on the opening adjacent to the platform. Rowan didn’t waste any time, snatching the rope and handing it to Mia.

“Climb.”

Mia grabbed the end of the rope and started up. The firing continued all around her and she was sure she’d be shot at any moment. She never looked down, keeping her eyes focused on her brother who’d repositioned himself at the railing. Jonah grabbed her hand when she was within reach and together they got her up and over.

Agnes and Himu started to climb before Mia reached the top. The siblings watched helplessly through the grates as the gunfire intensified. A soldier rushed out from the doorway with his weapon aimed directly at Rowan. Mia’s heart stopped beating until the soldier took a round in the neck and fell forward, but the relief was short lived. A burst of rounds lit up the storage unit behind him, several hitting Garret.

Rowan grabbed the fallen soldier’s weapon, slung it over his shoulder and leapt over the railing, grabbing the rope midair. His momentum swung the rope far out beyond the platform, nearly flinging Agnes and Himu off in the process. Himu’s terrified shriek rose above the gunfire. Jonah and Mia were able to grab a hold of Agnes before her grip failed, but Himu was left to finish the climb on his own. Rowan was eye level with the platform a moment later, his fear rushing the adrenaline through his veins.

“Get in there,” he yelled as Mia tried to come back and help him up.

Jonah pulled her in the opposite direction and Mia plunged into the doorway aligned with the platform as several soldiers took aim below and fired. Rowan danced across the grates as sparks erupted beneath his feet. He took to the air, springing forward, leaving Mia with nowhere to run. She took the full force of him as he passed through the doorway and was left lying on her back.

“Is everyone in?” she asked before her vision cleared. Mia sat up to find Jonah, Rowan, Himu and Agnes staring back at her. She gave them a moment to catch their breath then got to her feet. They had a long way to go and their window of opportunity was closing. “Keep close, there’s no telling what we’re going to run into next.”

26

The ascension was far more time consuming than Mia hoped. The remaining soldiers ran in small packs, most trying to make their way to the higher floors. A total lack of control became more evident with every encounter. A number of soldiers were firing at one another, some apparently still loyal to the commission that had abandoned them some time ago, while others had already reverted to pure survival mode.

The topside invasion was far worse than anyone imagined. The dead lurked the halls in search of the living. There was no sense of order, only the chaos of a war already lost. Bodies littered every passage, some covered in bullet holes, others still being feasted on by the undead.

The trek was a difficult stop and go process. Agnes lagged behind, forcing the others to wait for her every time they moved. Himu wasn’t doing much better. His view of the state of the soldiers appeared to temper any thoughts of calling out for assistance. His crudely wrapped hand was soaked through and the paleness of his face spoke volumes. Jonah stayed close to him, pushing him when he needed it and pulling him when nothing else worked.

“How much further?” Rowan had asked Agnes the question a few times and her sporadic answers were starting to concern everyone. “Are we close?”

Agnes looked down each direction of the four way split, including the way they’d come. The passages were littered with signs of bedlam. Blood marked the walls, mixed between chucks of missing concrete from a barrage of gunfire. Mia watched the frustration rise in Rowan’s eyes.

“What about you?” she asked, forcing Himu to look at her. He’d slid down to his butt when they stopped and focused on the condition of his hand. “You’re not surviving this any other way.”

He managed a grin once he finally realized she was talking to him. “And neither are you,” he said. “Hell, we’re not surviving either way.”

Mia crouched down in front of him, pulled her long bangs behind her ears, and looked him in the eyes.

“Do you want to die?”

“He’s not going to—”

Mia waved off Rowan’s interruption. “Do you?” she pushed and Himu’s grin faded. “You see, I think you want to get out of this just as much as we do. You may be a part of it,” she paused, “you may be the cause of this for all I know,” she leaned in closer, “but I don’t think you really want to give your life to save any of it or any of your precious secrets.”

Himu stared back at her and she could see the dilemma bouncing around in his mind.

“You’ll let me go?”

Mia pulled back, as if struck by the question.

“You’re a monster,” Agnes roared as she reached over Mia to try to get a hold of him. Jonah held her back before she could grab him. “A monster.”

Mia could plainly see the hate on the old woman’s face. She was surprised that Agnes had been able to hold herself back for so long. Mia concentrated on Himu, trying for a moment to ignore the truth in Agnes’ words. She studied him, looking for any hint of the deceit hidden beneath the surface.

“If you survive,” she said. “If we survive,” she corrected herself.

Himu pursed his lips.

“Not much hope in that,” he said.

Mia stood up.

“It’s the only promise I’ll give you.”

Himu took a deep breath then let out an unnecessarily long sigh. He waved Mia toward him as he cradled his hand.

“Help me up.” She did as she was told and left him standing with his back against the wall. Himu scanned the hall, focusing his attention on the markings near the ceiling at each turn. “We’re closer than you think,” he said at last.

“What are you looking at?” Rowan asked.

“Those are identifiers,” he pointed at the markings. “Location indicators.” Himu groaned. “We won’t get any higher.”

As if on cue, the entire hall shuddered and the overhead lights flickered on and off. The tremor stopped and only a portion of the lights returned.

“What was that?” Mia asked.

“Shut down protocol,” Himu said. “It’s part of the defense system. Access to the other five hives is closed off to prevent contamination, although I would guess it’s too late now.”

“We don’t need to get to any of the other hives,” Mia reminded him.

“True,” he said, “but it also means all of the elevators are shut down as well. There are no stairs connecting the first and second levels, leaving us trapped right where we are.”

Himu smirked and Mia crossed her arms.

“But?” she asked and Himu remained tight-lipped. “How about we find a small room to leave you alone with Agnes for a while.”

“But,” he continued, “there is another way. A way few people know about.”

Mia shoved him.

“Lead the way.”

Himu appeared to relish his newfound importance and it ate at Mia as much as it did Agnes. He led them through a series of rounding passages, back in the direction of the central open shaft. A startling number of bodies lay scattered along every hallway. Himu brought them to a stop at the entrance to a crossing hallway before Mia had time to process the significance of the discovery.

“We have to get through there.”

His good hand stretched out toward an open door midway down the hall. Shadows slipped across the opening out onto the wall adjacent to the entrance. The sounds of hushed conversation filled the background, mixed between clanking metal. Himu took a knee and waited, apparently satisfied that he’d kept up his end of the deal.

“What is that?” Rowan whispered.

“An armory,” Himu said then elaborated. “The soldiers’ weapons are kept in there.”

The understanding hit everyone at once.

“And that’s where we have to go?” Mia asked.

Himu nodded. Rowan checked the number of remaining rounds in his rifle. Agnes had schooled him as best she could with her limited knowledge, but he proved to be a fast learner. Mia waited until he was done, knowing full well one gun wasn’t going to save them. He finished and looked up with a confident nod.

“Ten,” he said.

Mia’s heart sank. She knew Rowan’s ten rounds and Jonah’s knife wasn’t going to keep them alive for much longer. There would be no way of knowing what they were up against until it was too late. She cursed herself for not searching the dead soldiers they crossed on their ascension out of the bowels of the hive. The rising noise creeping out of the armory told her they couldn’t turn back now.

“There’s no other way?” she asked Himu and he shook his head. Rowan took matters into his own hands, slipping past everyone else. Mia grabbed a hold of him. “What are you doing?”

“We can’t just wait here,” he said. “The dead have already gotten in and the infected can’t be far behind. Once they start coming,” he shook his head, “it will be over quick.”

Mia struggled, refusing to let go of him.

“I don’t…we can’t…” she tried to find something to say.

Rowan put his hand on top of hers.

“We have to keep moving.”

He pulled away from her then took a step out into the hall. He took another step before Mia grabbed him again and jerked him back behind cover. She pointed toward the opening and a pair of soldiers. They carried a long crate between them out into the middle of the hall then away from the corner Mia and the others were hiding behind. A train of soldiers followed the first pair, most carrying a wide array of weapons. Mia waited until the last of them disappeared around the bend in the hall before turning to face the others.

“I guess everyone gets lucky once in a while,” she said before darting off.

Mia knelt at the entrance to the armory and waited for everyone else to catch up. A quick glance revealed a long, but narrow space, the walls lined with racks from the floor to the ceiling. The far side of the room opened up to the massive cavity running the length of the hive and the distant sound of combat echoed in from somewhere far below. Mia made a quick decision to take them in. She grabbed Himu around the collar and forced him to follow her.

“How is this going to help us?” she demanded. “You were trying to get us killed.”

She pulled her fist back in front of his face and he threw his hands up in defense.

“Wait, wait.” He motioned out at the platform running the width of the room along the open wall. “Out there, I swear it.”

Mia shoved him and he hit the ground on his knees with a thump. A quick inspection revealed that the platform lining the armory was unlike any of the others along the hive’s central cavity. Slotted firing positions were evenly spaced down the side of each railing post. Mia’s eyes were draw to the view above and the domed ceiling covering the top of the cavity. Rowan joined her on the platform pulling Himu with him.

“There it is.”

They followed Himu’s gaze to an opening in the wall on the level above them, this one lining a hallway instead of another platform. Rowan’s face flashed with instant recognition.

“That’s where we started.”

Himu met his stare.

“And?” He looked from Rowan to Mia. “This doesn’t change our deal.”

She studied the open hall.

“How do we get up there?”

Himu walked to the far end of the platform and focused on the wall beyond the railing. It took him a moment to find what he was looking for. He signaled for Mia to follow him. She reached the edge and he pointed at something.

“Look at the grooves in the wall.”

Mia had to lean back at an odd angle to find what he was point at, but once she found the first cut out, her eyes picked out the rest. A long series of slots ran the length of the wall up from the edge of the platform to the end of the opening in the wall on the floor above. She looked down at the terrifying fall beneath them before turning back to Himu.

“The deal still stands,” she said then stepped around him. She looked for her brother and found him and Agnes going through the last of the empty weapon racks. “Anything?”

“They took them all,” Agnes said.

She and Jonah started toward the platform when something caught the boy’s attention. He jumped up and down, filled with excitement as he reached between the adjoining racks in the far corner of the room. The view of what he’d found stunned Mia beyond words.

“Mia?” Jonah whispered.

“It’s father’s sword,” she said as she tried to process what she was looking at. Jonah held it out for her to take and she gently ran her fingers down the hand-carved scabbard. “How?” She took it from him and unsheathed the blade with one quick motion, holding it up in front of her face. She was overcome with an incredible sensation of her father’s presence. Mia thought for a moment that her emotional wall might come crumbling down, but her father’s words echoed in her mind.
I’ve seen it in you. You have the heart of a warrior. You are the future of our people and their survival will fall to you.

Jonah rested his hand on top of hers.

“Are you all right?”

Mia nodded. “It’s time to go,” she headed for the platform. “It’s time to get us out of here.”

They made quick work of the slotted ladder. Rowan was the first to climb with Himu and Jonah close behind him. Mia waited at the bottom for Agnes to clear the railing before starting up. The small group gathered with the closed doors of the main elevator directly behind them and the entrance to the security station at the far end of the hall.

The floor suddenly shook, this time hard enough to force everyone to hold on to something in order to keep their balance. The entire hall went dark and the response was terrifying. An eruption of dead-speak echoed up from the open cavity in a roar of approval. A blinding flash brought the light back, if only sparingly. It took a moment for Mia to realize she’d instinctively drawn her sword from the sheath she tied off at her waist.

“Is that it?” she asked nudging her head toward the door at the end of the hall.

Himu nodded.

She and Rowan started forward at the same time, neither willing to let the other go it alone. They reached the midway point and cleared a side branching hall.

“This is where we came out,” Rowan said. “Where Himu brought us to chase after Jonah and Dr. Olric.” He took a long look. “There were others trapped in those cages.”

Mia slid her hand across his shoulder.

“We can’t help them now.”

Her eyes lingered on him until he slowly nodded.

“Nobody can help them,” he said.

They covered the rest of the distance as the sounds of fighting echoed down the side branching hall from somewhere beyond their view. Gunfire clashed with carnal growls and a chorus of chilling shrieks that rose above it all. The fight was near and closing with every heartbeat. A number of cries for help reached the security station door the moment Rowan held out Himu’s access card over the control panel.

The door opened, revealing a room with little fanfare. Rowan and Mia stepped in together and they were surprised to find a single soldier staring back at them from across the room. Mia guessed he couldn’t have been much older than Jonah; his baby face filled with dread. He sat in front of a wide desk topped by rows of screens covering the entire wall.