A few minutes into the drive, Major Coogler barked a sudden order, "Stop here."
Private Lucas immediately brought the jeep to a screeching halt in front of a silent house, its doors and windows roughly barricaded with wood.
"Major, whose house is this?" Lucas asked, his hand still tight on the steering wheel.
"Mine!" Major Coogler gets down the jeep. He didn't wait for an answer from the three Private's or the kids, he was already moving toward the front door.
The thick, roughly cut planks were quickly and messily nailed across the door, showing they were put up in a rush.
Coogler picked up a large crowbar lying at a corner of the house, it seems like he had hide it there. He then used the crowbar and push it into a gap between the wood and the door frame.
After several loud, harsh cracks, the wooden barrier broke apart and fell down.
"Get inside, all of you! Now!" Coogler commanded, his voice sharp and urgent, his eyes darting to the deserted street.
Private Lucas, Private Reynolds, and Private Rodriguez exchanged a quick, tense glance before scrambling out of the jeep. Matthew and his friends piled out right behind them, the eight of them quickly vanished inside the house.
The house was a vault of darkness and silence, the air thick with the faint smell of dust and stale air. The moment the last person was through, Coogler slammed the door shut, locking it decisively with three heavy, metallic bolts
Coogler switches on the lights and then turns to the windows to look outside, the faint lights from outside, coming through the broad gap between the flanks on the windows, were portraying Coogler as a tall silhouette to the group.
Matthew's group stood frozen Ethan, Sarah, Emily, and Ryan pressed against him their faces drained of color from shock and fear. The three soldiers, Private Lucas, Reynolds, and Rodriguez, positioned themselves as guards, their rifles held steady, ready to be raised in an instant.
"Major, I have one question!" Ethan raised his hands and asked with a sarcastic smile.
"What?" Coogler turns around.
"What is this place? And why are we hiding here?" Ethan asked.
"It's a safe house, boy." Coogler sighed, running a gloved hand over his short, blonde hair.
He walked over to a seemingly normal bookshelf against the far wall and pressed a hidden release switch. With a deep, grinding thunk, the entire shelf slid inward, revealing a steel blast door and a concrete stairwell leading down.
"Let's go down! You will be safe there." Coogler said.
"Major… Does General Adam know about this underground bunker beneath your house?" Private Lucas asked.
Major Coogler looked at his face for a while and then replied, "Shut your mouth!"
"Okay!" Lucas replied sarcastically. And then starts walking towards the stairs leading down.
Once everyone was inside the small, sterile bunker room lit by a single, buzzing emergency lantern Coogler leaned against the steel door, his exhaustion suddenly visible.
"I know you kids have got many questions within you, let's talk about it." Coogler said, he sat down on the ground, "Get a seat!"
Matthew, Ethan, and Private Rodriguez also sat down on the ground, Ryan, Emily, Sarah and Private Lucas sat down on the four wooden chairs in that small bunker room, while Private Reynolds sat down on a wooden stool.
"What the actual fuck is happening in Elyria?" Matthew asked directly to Coogler.
"This morning when we were maintaining the security in the Central Square during the Mayor's speech, we suddenly got news that the South Western side of Elyria was under attack. Some dangerous monsters are rampaging around the town and killing peoples!" Coogler starts narrating everything, "When we got the news that many of our soldiers are already dead while protecting the civilians. We quickly started evacuation of the whole town to the safe underground bunkers built across the town; we had lost many of our soldiers while trying to battle against them!"
"So, the army lost the battle against the monsters?" Emily asked, the fear can be seen on her face.
"Actually two?" Private Lucas replied immediately.
"Really?" Ethan turns to Coogler.
"Yes," Coogler confirmed, his gaze intense. "The situation is out of control. In the South western and South eastern districts, we've lost more than three hundred of our soldiers, police officers and countless civilians. Their wounds are… indescribable. The sheer brutality… it's unlike anything we've ever faced."
Coogler paused, looking at the floor, "They regenerate. The only way to stop them is to behead them. The soldiers who figured that out… they're mostly dead now."
"Yeah! We know that!" Matthew exclaimed.
"What?" Private Lucas asked.
"Yeah!" Matthew added, "Where do you think we got these fresh looking injuries from?"
"We killed two of those fucking monsters in our school!" Ryan added.
Lucas, Reynolds and Coogler stare at the group, they didn't even utter a single word, a wave of embarrassment was clearly visible on their faces.
"How the fuck, some 13 years old kids can kill a monster?" Private Lucas speaks up.
"Actually, these three boys killed them!" Emily added.
"And most importantly, we are 14!" Ethan added.
"I am retiring from the Army!" Rodriguez replied sarcastically.
Coogler turns his eyes at the three Privates again, looking with a little doubt.
"What?" Private Reynolds asked.
"They got two kills before you three." Coogler said.
"So what?" Reynolds replied, the embarrassment was clearly visible on his face.
"And one more thing, you also blind them by stabbing on their eyes, before directly going for their head." Matthew replies, with a baby face expression.
"Seriously?" Coogler asked.
"Yeah." Matthew replied.
"Major!" Emily says, "I have one question!"
"What is it?" Coogler asked.
"How did you know that we are in trouble here?" Emily asked.
"Actually…" Coogler said.
"We are the one who brought him here, on orders!" Private Lucas interrupted him.
"How?" Coogler turns to Lucas.
An hour ago, when Coogler was sitting on the hospital bed after his treatment, Azoff had sensed a wave of tension in Coogler's mind.
He wanted to speak to him. He stands up from his bed and walks towards Coogler but suddenly stops in the middle.
He turned around and went towards Lucas, Reynolds and Rodriguez sitting on the chairs near a table in a corner of the Medical Hall, they were ordered to help the medical staff by looking after the injured ones in the Hall.
"Major Azoff Kupferburg!" The three of them quickly stand up and salute him.
"I got one task for three of you!" Azoff said.
"What is it?" Reynolds asked, putting his hands down.
"Take Coogler out for a while," Azoff said, "to divert his mind from the earlier incident!"
"What if… he just denies us?" Rodriguez asked.
"Tell him, it's a patrolling duty!" Azoff added.
"And what if… we came across the monsters?" Lucas asked.
"You guys can kill at least two or three monsters." Azoff added, "And if more than two monsters came up at the same time, then just enter a nearby emergency shelter!"
"Okay!" Rodriguez exclaimed. They again saluted him and quickly went to Coogler.
"Major Coogler! We have been ordered to go on patrolling duty with you!" Reynolds announced.
"Patrolling duty?" Coogler asked to confirm.
"Yes Sir!" Reynolds replied.
"Okay. Let's go!" Coogler said and stood up to go with them.
"And by confidence, we noticed you five, trying to fight the monsters!" Rodriguez speaks to the group.
"So, we rescued you all, and brought you here!" Lucas said.
"By the way, Major, do you think it's safe to keep the kids here all night?" Reynolds asked.
"I think we should take you all to the nearby Emergency Shelter, your parents can be there also!" Coogler added.
"Yeah, Major's right. You might meet your parents there." Rodriguez said.
"Okay then listen. I have got a way to go to the shelter safely." Coogler announces.
Major Coogler walked over to a worn-out map lying on a small table, its corners curled from age.
Matthew, Ethan, Ryan, Sarah, Emily, and the three Privates Lucas, Reynolds, and Rodriguez all leaned in, their faces illuminated by the dim, flickering lamp.
"The main roads are completely dangerous to travel!" Coogler began, tracing a line on the map with his finger.
"What do we do then?" Sarah asked.
"Even if the Army is holding the line, every minute counts. The shelter is less than two kilometers from here, but the direct route is crawling with the monsters. We'll take the old service roads. They're tight, mostly unpaved, but it's the long way around the warehouse district and through the lower Beri Hills residential area. It's slower, but it offers more cover. Lucas, you drive. Reynolds, you and Rodriguez keep watch from the back. The moment we see one, we stop, you two suppress it, and Lucas drives around without engaging. We do not stop to fight unless we are absolutely forced to. Understood?"
"Yes, sir!" The three Privates affirmed instantly.
Coogler then looked at the kids, his expression softening slightly, "You five stick to the floor of the jeep. You have your weapons, but they are for absolute last resort. We are running, not fighting. Your priority is to reach that shelter."
Thirty minutes later, the group was ready. They all got into the military jeep, which they parked outside Coogler's house.
Lucas was in the driver's seat, his pistol was resting on his lap. Coogler sat in the passenger seat, next to Lucas, his sword strapped to his back, and his M16 rifle in his hands.
The five friends piled into the back, the metallic tang of fear mixing with the dust and oil of the vehicle.
Matthew, Ethan, and Ryan clutched the axes they had found; Sarah held a bent iron rod like a spear; and Emily gripped her baseball bat.
Privates Rodriguez and Reynolds stood at the back of the jeep with their guns, carefully watching the dark, broken-up streets.
Lucas drove the jeep slowly, the tires making a grinding noise over broken glass and trash. They could hear the distant sounds of shooting and the loud roars of monsters.
They drove into a narrow, blocked alley.
"Hold on," Reynolds said quietly, "Three o'clock, down the road."
Up ahead, about a hundred meters away, three large, black monsters with glowing eyes were walking into the alley. They looked right at the sound of the jeep's engine.
"Follow the plan!" Major Coogler ordered loudly, grabbing his rifle but not pointing it, "Lucas, turn slowly! We're turning back!"
Lucas quickly turned the steering wheel. The back of the jeep swung out as he made a fast three-point turn between two abandoned delivery trucks.
The monsters roared loudly out of frustration.
The jeep was almost safely past the first group of monsters when Rodriguez yelled, "More monsters! Behind us! They have trapped us!"
A bigger group of five monsters ran out from a side street, slobbering from their mouths. The small space the jeep had just driven through was closing fast.
"Lucas, drive forward! Go now!" Major Coogler shouted. "Reynolds, Rodriguez, shoot to distract them. Cause a delay, then get back in!"
But the two privates had already made up their minds. They jumped out of the jeep and started shooting, "Go! Don't look back, Major!" Rodriguez screamed.
Coogler kept looking at the two soldiers with painful eyes as he knew that they wouldn't be coming back alive.
"Get out of here, Lucas! That's an order!" Coogler yelled, turning his head to look back at his soldier.
"Mr. Lucas, stop the jeep, we still can get out of here with Mr. Reynolds and Rodriguez!" Ryan cried.
Lucas squeezed his jaw shut. He pushed the gas pedal all the way down, tears dropping down his eyes, he knew that he had already lost his only friend, Private Reynolds.
"Sorry, kids! I have to get you all out of here safely!" Lucas replies, while driving very fast past the first three monsters,
As they drove quickly past a hardware store that had fallen down, two more monsters suddenly appeared, blocking the next turn.
"Motherfuckers!" Lucas swears and quickly turns the steering wheel, driving the jeep down a path that went toward a dark loading area.
There, they saw a shocking sight. One of the new monsters, which was twice the size of the other monsters, stopped, and its body shook.
With a terrible, wet sound, it threw up a human body onto the road. It was Rodriguez. His arms were ripped off, his body was completely covered with blood, and his neck was broken. He was already dead.
A cold, deadly fury replaced the fear in Coogler's eyes. He didn't speak. He simply threw open his door, his sword flashing from its scabbard, and jumped from the moving jeep.
"Major Coogler! No!" Lucas shouted, slamming on the brakes.
Matthew saw the terrible way Rodriguez died and watched Coogler foolishly run toward the fight. A rush of powerful energy took away Matthew's fear.
He quickly grabbed his axe and climbed out of the jeep, and the others followed him, moving like they were in a shocked dream.
"Get back in the car! Now! Run to the underground bunker, it's just over that building! Go!" Coogler's voice was a loud, desperate shout as he started fighting the monsters.
He moved with his usual energy and skills, quickly and cleanly cutting off the heads of the monsters, one after another.
But as he turned to face that big monster, another one suddenly leaped out from the shadows. Coogler tried to block with his sword, but the monster was very strong, it shattered the blade, sending sparks and metal flying.
The monster's very sharp claws then tore across the Major's stomach with a brutal, wet swipe.
Coogler cried out and stumbled backward, clutching his injured belly as a shocking bright red stain of blood quickly spread across his uniform.
He was seriously injured, but he grabbed his rifle and fired wildly, forcing the monsters to momentarily back away.
"GO! RUN! DON'T LOOK BACK!" Coogler roared, his voice thick with pain and blood.
"We won't leave you here alone!" Matthew replied.
"Lucas, take them away!" Coogler shouts loudly and spits out a pile of blood from his mouth.
Lucas, his face white with terror, didn't hesitate. He grabbed Matthew, Ethan and Ryan, pulling them hard. "We have to go! He bought us time! Run!"
He forcibly dragged them down the street. Sarah and Emily, weeping, followed close behind.
"Let's go! We can't do anything! We are not as strong as Major Coogler!" Lucas cried.
As Lucas pulled Matthew around the final corner, the boy looked back one last time.
Major Pierce Coogler, his body slumped against a wall, was emptying his rifle into the horde, the useless bullets pinging off their hard shells, a final, defiant act.
Tears streamed down Matthew's face, but his jaw was set with a terrible resolve. He stumbled forward, a broken, bloody scene burned forever into his mind.
"They will pay for this. Every single one of them. I will kill each and every monster out there! Matthew cried loud, as he vowed to kill the monsters himself.
In the darkness, running toward the faint light of the emergency shelter, Matthew Roberts made a solemn vow, a silent promise to the falling hero and the fallen friend: he would kill the monsters and save humanity, even if it cost him everything.
Meanwhile, somewhere in an unknown place, a tall masculine man slams open a door and walks into a dark room, his face was visible due to the darkness, and it was impossible to recognise the person from behind.
"Everything's according to your plan! Sir!" The man speaks to someone in the same room.
"Okay. What's the update on the next plan?" The second man spoke up, his voice was heavy.
"We are on it!" The first one replied.
"Go now, I want the results. And one more thing, did you contact him!"
"Yes Sir!"
"Good! Now leave!"
That person was sitting on a chair around a table, with his legs on the table. His face was also not visible, they were speaking in a completely dark room.