"Jaxon, one infected is climbing near the right wall," Natasha's voice whispered sharply.
Jaxon swiveled, eyes narrowing through the darkness. He saw it, a pale, clawed hand gripping the edge of their wall, the figure wriggling upward like a grotesque spider.
Thup.
His rifle cracked softly, the muffled shot echoing in the night. The zombie let out a wet, choking sound before falling lifelessly to the ground.
Jaxon's shoulders relaxed a little as he turned slightly and saw Natasha beside him, cautiously peeking through the window. The fear from earlier was gone, replaced by a look of determination. And somehow, just seeing her there calmed his racing heart.
'Right... no need to overthink this,' he thought. 'We'll get through this.'
A low, urgent whisper came from his left. "Brother… zombies have climbed into the neighbor's house." Cindy's voice was tight, trying to stay calm, but fear trembled underneath every word.
He turned, surprised to see her also peering through her binoculars, her small frame pressed against the window.
Suddenly, a scream ripped through the night. "Nooo! Don't come here!"
It came from the house next door, the one that had been quiet until now. Then another scream, then another. Shouts and terrified cries echoed from house to house as the horde moved, breaking in wherever they could, dragging the unlucky and the hidden into the swarm.
Jaxon's stomach churned. The quiet street he'd been counting on was gone. All around them, the world had turned into a nightmare of clawing, gnawing, and screaming.
He gripped his rifle tighter, scanning the chaos below. His eyes burned with focus.
Thup! Thup!
Every shot, every breath, every heartbeat, it was all that stood between his family and the hungry horde.
"Jaxon, the gate!" Natasha's voice rang out, sharp and urgent.
Jaxon's eyes snapped to it. He fired his rifle again and again, each bullet finding its mark.
Jaxon's eyes snapped to it. He fired his rifle again and again, each bullet finding its mark.
"One's climbing the left side of the gate," Natasha called out again.
Thup.
Another zombie twisted and fell, dead before it could reach the top.
"Near the walls..." Cindy whispered from the other window.
One of them had managed to slip inside, but... Thup. Another clean shot, another body hitting the ground.
Natasha and Cindy had become his extra set of eyes, scanning the streets, pointing out when a zombie tried to climb, jump, or squeeze through. Every word they whispered kept him on edge, but it also kept him alive.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
The swarm was pushing harder, their growls and guttural roars filling the night. They weren't just pushing; they were charging like a bunch of raging bulls at the gate. Some of them leapt high, limbs flailing, teeth snapping, desperate to get through.
Then, the cabinet they'd stacked against the latch toppled over with a loud crash. The metal of the gate groaned and creaked under the relentless weight and force.
Thup. Thup.
Jaxon reloaded, his shoulder burned from the recoil, his fingers shaking, sweat dripping down his temple. His shots were still accurate, but there were just too many of them.
The side locks couldn't hold any longer. The crowd pressed in, pushing and clawing.
BAAAM!
The gate gave way, ripped open by the relentless swarm.
"Fuck!" Jaxon cursed under his breath, his heart racing.
"No... they broke the gate!" Cindy's voice trembled, and Natasha's wide eyes reflected the same fear that was clawing at Jaxon's chest.
"Mom, lock the door!" Jaxon said, his voice sharp and urgent.
He didn't wait for an answer. He turned back to the chaos outside, raising his rifle to the window.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The zombies were relentless. They clawed and smashed at the reinforced windows, tried to push through the door, and shoved against the furniture they'd piled up. Each shot from Jaxon took one down, but more kept coming, pouring into the yard like a nightmare come to life.
The air was thick with the smell of rot and the sound of snapping bones. The screams of the zombies mixed with the groans and growls of the horde, making every second feel like it weighed a ton.
'Is this the end? Are we going to die here?' Jaxon's thoughts raced as he glanced at his family. They huddled together, trembling, fear etched into their faces. 'At least… if we die, we're still together.'
Then, a new, heavy sound cut through the chaos, impossible to ignore.
THUP-THUP-THUP-THUP!
The ground seemed to shake beneath the heavy beat of the rotors. The air vibrated, shaking the windows and rattling the door. Above the screaming horde, the roar of a helicopter split the night sky, drowning out the cries of the zombies.
Jaxon's heart skipped a beat. The horde froze, momentarily confused, their grotesque faces turning upward as the shadow of the helicopter passed over them.
"Did... did you hear that?" Cindy whispered, clutching Natasha's arm.
"Yeah," Jaxon said through gritted teeth, his eyes narrowed.
The wind from the helicopter stirred the dust and debris, adding a ghostly swirl around the yard.
The helicopter flew over their street, heading west. The zombies turned their heads, growling and raising their arms, like they were trying to grab it. Some of them even tried to jump from the rooftops, but they just tumbled helplessly to the ground, not even close to reaching it.
The weird, super-muscular zombie kept its eyes glued to the chopper, its gaze locked on the moving machine. The helicopter kept going west, slowly getting smaller and smaller in the distance.
Then, the zombie let out a guttural roar that echoed through the zombie-filled streets, a sound so deep and terrifying it seemed to shake the air itself.
Without even a second of hesitation, it started to sprint, its movements shockingly fast. Muscles rippled under its pale skin, limbs pumping with terrifying precision. Jaxon did a quick calculation in his head, it was moving faster than any human athlete, easily hitting speeds of forty kilometers per hour.
The horde paused. Even the ones who'd been clawing and smashing at houses froze, their grotesque heads tilting toward the sound of the roar.
Then, as if they were responding to a command, the swarm turned and started to follow the strange zombie. Every single one of them, even the ones attacking nearby homes, changed direction. They ran and stumbled, moving together toward the west, toward the chopper. Thousands of undead bodies flowing like a dark, unstoppable river.
Jaxon's chest tightened as he watched. For now, at least, the immediate threat to his family was gone. But seeing that speed, that control, and the mindless obedience of the swarm sent a chill crawling down his spine.