Narrator
Chapter 5 = Underground… New York City, New York of Earth #8189, New Years Eve 1012… Light returns slowly to Ash's mind, flickering like a dying bulb. A voice familiar, desperate pulls him back from the brink.
Aiden
"Ashton… wake up! Come on, wake up, please wake up! We have to get out of here! Come on, Ash! Please, they're coming!"
Narrator
Ash's eyes flutter open. His vision clears just enough to make out the silhouette leaning over him.
That voice. He knows that voice.
Ashton
"Aiden?" he croaks. "What are you doing here? Where's big brother?"
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His head throbs. The crash still clouds his thoughts, but Aiden's presence cuts through the haze.
Aiden
"I don't know where Edward is,"
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Aiden says, scanning the wreckage.
Aiden
"His vestigial aura in this area is too faint for me to get a firm reading. Listen, Ash, it's not safe here. We have to go."
Ashton
"No, we can't… not without…"
Aiden
"Listen to me," [voice gentle but firm]
Aiden
"I promise we'll find Edward. I know he's alive, if he'd died, I would've sensed it. But for now, we have to go. He'd want you to come with us."
Narrator
Ash hesitates, then nods. Aiden pulls him close, helping him to his feet. Ash glances back at the smoldering wreckage of the helicopter.
Ashton
I don't want to go, but he's right. I'm sorry, big brother. We'll find you somehow.
Aiden
"Can you run?"
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Ash nods.
Jay
"HEY, AIDEN! COME ON! WE HAVE TO GET MOVING!"
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Jay's voice cuts through the chaos. Ash turns to see him dual-wielding Desert Eagles, firing into a wave of infected. Tristan flanks him with a U.A.E. combat shotgun, Ven with an AK-47. Behind them, Sarah and Terra stand ready with baseball bats, their eyes locked on the encroaching horde.
Each shot draws more infected. The air thickens with tension.
Aiden
"Let's go,"
Narrator
Aiden flashes Ash a supportive smile. He draws his Hard-Baller pistol and joins the fray. Above them, the roar of jets splits the sky.
Ashton
"Shit! Those are bombers! Come on quick!"
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Ash and Aiden sprint toward a nearby manhole. Ash yanks it open, and the group descends into the sewers just in time. A shockwave rips through the city. The boom is deafening, followed by a silence so complete it feels like the world has stopped breathing.
Ash pauses, trembling, staring up at the sealed manhole.
Aiden
"What's up, Ash?"
Ashton
"My brother… he was in the chopper with me. He can't be dead you'd have sensed it. And you didn't find his body. Wait… were the weapons still in the chopper?"
Aiden
"There were no weapons when we found you,"
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Jay steps forward.
Jay
"I gotcha. You think some of those non-infected crazies raided the crash site and took your brother with them?"
Ashton
"Exactly,"
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Terra joins them.
Terra
"So what do we do? How do we find the ones who took your brother?"
Ashton
"Wait, I'm not done, I think I know what those bombers were carrying. If I'm right, the ones who took Edward will be forced to leave the city in the same direction we are. I'm almost positive the center bomber was carrying a thermonuclear device."
Narrator
Jay's eyes widen.
Jay
"You mean someone just dropped a fucking nuclear bomb on New York City? Shouldn't we and the ones who took your brother be dead?"
Ashton
"No. They dropped the bomb above the city center to destroy the highest concentration of infected. Judging by the shockwave, it was low-yield. We're on the outer edge, so we're safe if we keep moving. But we can't go to the surface. The radioactive ash could kill us. If we stay underground and head out of the city, we'll cross paths with whoever took Edward."
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Sarah frowns.
Sarah
"Why would America nuke their own city? Wasn't the quarantine enough?"
Tristan
"Desperation," [coldly]
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Answers Tristan, reloading his weapon.
Tristan
"The infected must be slipping through the cracks."
Ash
"Exactly, The military's probably stretched thin. A low-yield nuke might seem reasonable to whoever's calling the shots."
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Aiden checks his weapon.
Aiden
"We should get going."
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Aiden gestures for the others to ready themselves. The group tightens formation, weapons drawn, eyes forward. The sewers stretch ahead dark, uncertain, but full of purpose.
Ash raises his voice, steady and commanding.
Ashton
"Remember, everyone, we're underground now. Any fighting down here is going to be close quarters. We need to adjust our formation."
Narrator
The group tightens around him, listening.
Ashton
"Lighting's decent, Aiden, take the left flank with your Hard-Baller. Ven, right flank with your AK. Jay and Tristan, you're on point. Terra, Sarah guard the rear. I'll hold center."
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Ash pauses, glancing down at his empty hands.
Ashton
"Only problem I don't have a weapon."
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Aiden steps forward without hesitation.
Aiden
"Here. Take this."
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He hands Ash a backup 9mm pistol. Ash checks the chamber, nods, and moves into position.
Ven
"If we keep following these tunnels north, they should lead us out of the city. Let's move."
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Says Ven as the group presses onward, boots echoing through the tomb-like passageways. The air is damp, the walls slick with condensation. Time stretches minutes feel like hours until a distant sound halts them in their tracks.
Tristan
"What the fuck is that?" [startled]
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The low rumble of tank fire and heavy machine guns reverberates through the tunnels.
Ven
"Tank-shots, We must be nearing the edge."
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Relief flickers across his face, then vanishes as a sniper round whistles past Jay's head. The group dives for cover. Ahead, a massive Combat-Mech decloaks, its bulk blocking the exit.
A synthetic voice booms from the machine:
Combat Mech
"This area is under Government Quarantine. Your attempts to escape are a direct violation of Presidential Executive Order 0773 and FEMA Emergency Order 35C. Please turn around and proceed back into the Quarantine Zone. Usage of lethal force has been authorized."
Narrator
Jay ducks behind a concrete pillar.
Jay
"Any ideas on how to take out this bucket of bolts?"
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Ash's eyes narrow.
Ashton
"I know how to kill it. That thing's a Zorrin-Industries product. If I can get onto its back and reach the circuit access, I can shut it down."
Terra
"How the hell are we supposed to get anywhere near that thing?"
Ashton
"First, we disable its targeting system. It's on the right shoulder. Everyone concentrate fire there."
Ven
"Got it. Ready when you are."
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Replies Ven as Jay raises his voice.
Jay
"On the count of three. One… two… three!"
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Gunfire erupts. A symphony of bullets tears into the mech's shoulder, sending shards of metal and fiberglass flying. The tunnel fills with smoke and the deafening roar of combat.
The mech retaliates with its Impact-Cannon. A blast streaks toward the group, missing Ven and Sarah by inches but slamming into Aiden's shoulder. He screams as he is thrown backwards into the wall.
Aiden crawls behind cover, tears streaking down his face. The pain overtakes him, and he passes out. The mech's right arm explodes under the barrage, severed completely. With its targeting system destroyed, it fires wildly, its aim erratic.
Ash sees his chance. He bolts forward, weaving through the chaos. A sniper round grazes Jay's arm, sending him back down behind cover, clutching the wound.
Sarah
"JAY! Let me go! JAY!"
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Sarah breaks free of Terra's grip and scrambles to her brother, pressing her hand to the wound to slow the bleeding.
Terra steps forward, her skin hardening into Kinetomantium. She draws the mech's attention, standing tall as bullets ricochet off her armored form.
Ash slides between the mech's legs, leaps onto its back, and plunges his hand into the exposed circuit access. He rips out wires and core components, sparks flying around him.
The mech flails violently, trying to shake him off. It succeeds as Ash is hurled against the cement wall with brutal force.
He groans, dazed, watching as the mech stumbles, spasms… and finally powers down.