AtoZ2014: Square

Square

It was the sound that any of them would have like to have heard. But life had a way of throwing a square peg into a round hole every once in a while…

With the first shriek, the group knew they were in the fight of their lives. Backtracking as quickly as they could, they looked for an option that would take them off the floor and out of the creature’s direct line of sight. It was their only chance.

“There!” Gerald said as he pointed to a ladder that leant against one of the shelving units.

Quickly scaling the ladder, all but one of the men made it up the ladder before the horde descending upon them. Screaming as he was plucked from the steel frame, Kevin fought off the monsters, but soon lost the battle as he was overwhelmed. Looking down, the rest of the group saw the faces of those who didn’t get a bit sizing up the ladder, the first trying to coordinate its limbs to climb.

“Pull the fucking ladder up now!” Bill yelled as he assessed the situation from the higher vantage point.

Doug and Gerald started to haul the ladder up toward them, but felt the weight of the creature on its end. Shaking in unison, they tried to dislodge the hitchhiker. It didn’t work.

Pulling his gun up with one hand, Gerald took aim and fired, the head of the zombie exploding as its hand lost its grasp. Finally free of the weight, they brought the ladder quickly to the top and joined Bill in his survey.

Below them the feeding frenzy continued alongside the keening of the others who were denied a tasty morsel. The noise grated on their nerves in the confines of the warehouse; what was a large space reduced as the empty space was filled with shrieking.

“I don’t know how much I can take of this…” Doug held his hands over his ears, trying desperately to block out the noise but failing.

Bill and Gerald both gave him a look, recognizing Doug’s lack of seasoning in the field. The pair shared a look between them, their gaze communicating how neither one wanted to have to deal with a useless member of the team.

“You see that window over there?” Bill pointed to the left as the gaze of the other two followed in that direction. “If we can make it over there, I think we can get out of here.”