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Description
Chapter 37: Plane
--
Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2
--

" See anything noteworthy?" Sion asked once Ark was up, the Hunter shaking his head. All he had been seeing for the last half hour was swamp, infected, and as a bonus, more swamp. Sighing, he slumped against the door, rubbing his forehead gently. The heat in the room was offset by the constant airflow between the bars, but having seven people in the room at once was still a tad unsettling.

" Not a thing." he finally answered, looking up at Sion. " Not even a bird or bug."
Sion put one hand on his hip. " Well, let's hope that serenity lasts, we're getting ready to go." he said, gesturing back to the others.

Rochelle was gently nudging Nick, who groaned and rolled onto his side, pushing himself up with the aid of his arms while Ellis attempted to fill the silence with one of his many Keith stories.

" My buddy Keith once tried building a house out of mud and stuff, didn't work out the way he hoped-"

" Does he ever stop talking?" Nick asked, getting to his feet and brushing himself off.

" Who knows?" Sion said, smiling a bit in amusement. Ellis was just being his usual rambunctious self, who was he to interfere? Besides, it reminded him of Ark.

Ark nodded and nudged the door open, the group setting out again. Thanks to the rest they all had, everything seemed clearer, and Ark was able to start examining all of the scents in the air. There was the usual scents of the infected, followed by the scent of the survivors, various smells mixed together. Coach smelled faintly of sweets, while Ellis's smell was loosing it's motor oil scent. Nick had a fading cologne scent about him, and Rochelle faintly smelled of fading perfume. All signs that none of them had even remotely considered the idea that their lives would be in constant jeopardy now.

The Hunter sighed as they walked across the walkways, trying to piece the memories of his past together. Who was he? Was he someone he would be proud of, or was this a new start for him? Did he have family? Sighing again, he looked over at Sion. " Hey, Sion?" he asked softly.

" Yeah?" the smoker asked softly. " What is it?"

" Do you ever try to remember?" he asked. " I mean, who you once was?"

" Never have." Sion replied swiftly and without much thought. " I like who I am."

" You never curious about it?" Ark asked, genuinely curious.

Sion shook his head. " Nope. I don't dwell on that I have no control over." he said softly. " I can't remember who I was, so I don't worry on it. Worrying only makes you feel worse."

Ark had never thought of it that way, but understood the wisdom in the Smoker's words. " Oh... well, thanks for answering." he said finally.

Sion smiled back at him before his skin crawled as they heard giggles, the group instinctively huddling together. " ...God I hate Jockeys..." Rochelle said, everyone silently agreeing with her as the laughing got closer before dying out with a loud squeak.

" … Did something else get it?" Ellis asked, looking at the others, still tense but calming down.

" Who knows, but let's get out of here before whatever did shows up." Nick said, Coach moving to the next walkway.

Ark looked out at the walkway before leaping gracefully into the nearby tree to look around, scampering through the branches with grace and ease. Being a Hunter had it's advantages, like increased strength and speed when it came to jumping and climbing things. Ellis watched with faint twinges of envy, but continued along the walkway. Chad, who had been quiet the whole time, simply looked on with faint apprehension of the whole situation, never one to be at ease when it was quiet.

" Something's wrong." he said finally, Ark stopping to look at him.

" What?" the Hunter replied, Chad pulling his gun closer to him.

" It's too quiet... I haven't seen any infected for minutes." Chad said, Rochelle looking at him. " But that's a good thing, we don't waste anymore ammunition..."

" If all the piranha's scatter, there's a shark." Nick said, growing nervous. " No common infected? Tank or something else."

" And today gets even better." Rochelle sighed, starting to look around for anything unusual.

" Not so loud everyone... we just need to stick together." Coach said, trying to lift their spirits somewhat. " As long as we stick together, we'll make it through this."

" Famous last words..." Nick said, heading into the nearby clearing, Ark leaping overhead to the next tree, snapping a branch. He was hit by the smell of a decaying corpse, gagging slightly as the smell overpowered him, stepping on another rotting branch and sending it crashing to the ground.

As he tumbled to the ground, so did a rotting corpse of a parachutist, the decomposing body landing on Nick, who happened to be examining it at the same time, Ellis wondering where on earth the guy had come from.

The effect was next to instantaneous, Nick created a huge racket trying to escape out from underneath the corpse. He had never been one to freak out over stupid little things, but when the corpse landed on him, a CORPSE, his thought process sort of derailed and headed off to go find a map, never returning. The cords of the parachute were getting tangled around his legs and the smell was everywhere, 100 percent offensive to 3 of the 5 senses, and he wanted it off.

In his mad dash to get out from out of his current situation, he brought both legs up and kicked the corpse off him, reaching down and tearing the cords from around his legs and getting up, his spine and skin crawling as he moved away from the corpse on the ground, green eyes feral. The second his mind managed to repair itself, he shot a glare into the trees, Ark yelping and moving out of sight.

" I guess we can safely say it's a good thing that there are no infected around."
Rochelle said, looking at Nick. " Because right about now, we'd be swarmed with infected alerted by the racket you were making, Nick."

Nick took in a deep breath, smoothing his suit with one hand. " Laugh it up if you will... let's just keep moving." his feathers were clearly ruffled, and it would take a good deal of coaxing to get him to calm down. Ellis thought about telling a funny story to ease his nerves, but sighed when Coach softly shook his head, taking his boot to nudge aside the corpse somewhat, making a noise. " Hrm? What's this?"

" Unless it's a jet to get us outta here, I am NOT interested." Nick hissed.

Ellis nudged out a notebook, the cover stained with blood. " Think he mighta been a reporter?" he asked, Chad going over to him. " Here, let me see." the older man said.
The medic took the notebook, holding it gingerly before cracking it open, looking at the contents. " …. It seems to be notes on the infected... perhaps he was studying this so he would be prepared upon landing?"

" Fat load of good it did him." Nick commented, still ruffled.

Chad rolled his eyes for a brief moment. " Settle down." he continued flipping through the pages. " Yup... Jockey, Charger... Spitter... they're all here. Detailed notes about what to listen for and what to do."

" Why'd he have it?" Coach asked, giving the notebook a critical look, not fully comfortable with the situation. " I would think word of mouth is a bit easier."
Chad put the journal away. " True... I'll look at it more when we have the time." he said, grabbing his gun. " Now, unless someone wants the dead man's things, I suggest we keep moving."

Coach offered a brief prayer to the corpse before gently nudging the M-16 out of the pale hands, checking the ammunition on it. " Never pegged you as the looting type." Nick said, one hand dangling at his side while the other seemed busy with memorizing the grooves of the magnum he possessed." Always figured you were the " Leave it alone, dead man's curse" sort of thing."

Coach gave Nick a sad smile. " I know that he ain't sufferin' no more... and I asked if I could use it, because right now, I need it more than he does. I know he'll understand." the bigger man seemed satisfied with the ammunition that had been stashed in the pockets, securing them as well, offering a Molotov and a bottle of painkillers to Sion, who mutely accepted. " Thank you, friend, you've helped us a lot today." Coach apologized to the corpse, lingering there a few minutes, Rochelle and Ellis doing the same.

" Please tell me you aren't waiting for a "You're welcome," because I don't think you're getting one." Nick said, a smirk on his lips.

" Tell me, is there a class you take to be an asshole?" Sion asked, massaging his forehead. " If there is, I KNOW you graduated with full honors."

" I've always been head of the class in what I do." Nick didn't miss a beat, Chad and Ark both sharing looks before sighing.

Wordlessly, Coach set out on the path again, everyone falling into line behind him, save for Ark in the trees. Since he was high up, he got a pretty good idea of what the area looked like ahead, and shouted down what information he could, scanning the trees for threats. One thing did bother Ark though as he traveled through the treeline, several trunks had been scratched deeply with large claws, the marks painfully visible. Someone had traveled through there before they had.... and was either marking a trail or simply attacking things in a fit of rage. Sighing, he leapt onto another sturdy branch, sitting there for a moment as the crew evaluated their newest discovery... a downed plane.

–

" Think zombies brought down this plane?" Ellis asked nervously, looking at the others. " Good lord...a whole goddamned plane?"

" Something brought it down, that's for sure." Coach said, looking at the wreckage. " Can't say for sure what it was."

" All I know is it probably brought a shit-ton of zombies into our area... they don't seem to die from long falls." Nick grumbled. " Except for that one time Coach fell on one and it died from the impact."

Coach gave him a sour look. " All in favor of Nick leading the search into the plane?"
Ellis seemed to be the only one who didn't say " Aye," Nick giving them all an exasperated look as he was forced to take point.

His nerves were already shot from the incident with the corpse, and he had no earthly desire to repeat that fiasco inside the plane, sloshing his way through the water. Several things pissed him off as it was, having to go through swamp water that practically was knee high at some points, infected rampages, travel with unintellectual beings... Ellis was a single-cell organism in his mind at the moment, so he didn't count. Coach was a dual-cell, which wasn't any better.
And then there was the subject of the infected they were traveling with...personality wise they were harmless, but they still posed a huge threat to all of their well being. He had mixed feelings about everything, but survival was still his top priority.

A loud splash from beside him had him whirling to face the infected attacking him, spluttering as mud was splattered across his face, panic rising again as he tried to shove the infected away from him. Reacting quickly, Ark leapt from the tree onto the mud-covered infected, biting it's shoulder and tearing into it with his claws.
" Tell me I did not just see a mud-man!" Ellis said in disbelief, Nick coughing and sputtering.
" No, you saw Santa Claus!"He shot back, wiping the mud from his eyes and spluttering again while trying to get the mud off his face completely.

" Stop teasing that boy." Rochelle sighed, looking around before stepping back to look up at the plane. " Hrm... How are we going to get through here safely..." she mused, looking through the wreckage.

" We could blow the door of the safety hatch," Coach began, pointing it out. " Easiest method, but it'll call infected for quite a distance."

" Any plan b?" Nick asked, looking at the hatch with disdain. " Because ammunition is isn't easy to come by in a swamp, save for shotgun ammo. Rednecks around here can't seem to keep anything else."

" Usually a shotgun's enough to get most things offa our porches." Matthew replied. " Unless it's a gator or somethin', then y' need somethin' a lil' bigger."

" You know, I never asked, but where did you live around here?" Rochelle asked. " You know the area pretty well."

Matthew pointed at the plane. " That's the only thing messin' with m' map of the area, but I used t' live in the plantation homes further up ahead. Our family's been here for generations. If there's any sort of rescue t' be had in this area, it's there."

" How far is it?" Chad asked, looking at the wreckage to see if he could squeeze his way through it, not liking all the sharp metal he was seeing.

" If we have a good pace, maybe tomorrow morning we'll get there?" Matthew said. " Or tomorrow evening, if we get held up by somethin'."

" Sounds like a plan to me." Coach said. " Now, let's blow this hatch and get things started."

" We're not going to vote on this?" Nick said with a sarcastic tone.

" No."

–
Once the hatch was blown, all hell broke loose.

Ark couldn't believe how much infected swarmed once the door was blown, and the mud wasn't making anything easier for him. Like the rest, it bogged him down, and pouncing provided only temporary relief. To make his luck even worse, all of the infected that could attack from a distance, like Spitters and Smokers, seemed content with assaulting the survivors from hard to reach locations. Matthew was unable to keep up with the fully infected variety of himself, simply because it was too taxing to try and spit every so often, his body makeup wouldn't allow it. To combat that issue, Chad gave him his pistols and had him watch the rear.

Ellis was taking most of the damage, having to defend the front while Rochelle and Nick frantically searched the back for some ammunition or something to stall the horde with, Rochelle locating a molotov. " Hey, Nick!" she said, holding it up. " This should help!"
Nick's shoulders slumped a bit. " Ro...either you toss that thing in here and burn us all up WITH the zombies, or you toss it outside in SWAMP WATER and get no zombies." he said in a careful voice, Rochelle analyzing his words for a second before slapping her face.

" Next time I have an amazing thought... tell me to let it go." she sighed.

" Will do, sweetheart." Nick said with a chuckle, ducking as an infected smashed the side window. " SHIT!"

He ducked down and fired at the head trying to get through the hole, glass raining down on his head somewhat as he grimaced, one arm wrapped around his neck to make sure nothing was going to hit it. Rochelle was lucky enough to keep out of the way, but most of the damage was already done, infected were trying to get their hands through the windows now.
" You must be a celebrity, those boys are dying to get a glimpse of you." Nick drawled with an amused smirk on his face, watching Rochelle hit one of the hands away with her pistol.

" Very funny, Nick... now help me out here!" Rochelle strained to keep her voice even. Nick allowed his moment of amusement to end, rushing over to her and opening fire on the heads in the windows. That was the great thing about them, there was little room for error, and only the blind could miss.

Helping Rochelle to her feet, both turned with an alarmed noise as they heard Ellis cry " I'm down!" along with a few terrified screams. " What found him, a Jockey?" Nick mumbled as the two scrambled over the slanted seats to find their teammate.

Coach was having a fiasco of his own, straining to reach Ellis but unable to, thanks to the repeated globs of acid being flung in his general direction. He hated it when Spitters had a bead on one of them, because the acid spitting monsters seemed to have a personal vendetta with whomever they targeted. It just happened to be his lucky day. Matthew seemed to be having little or no trouble with the acid, at some points practically standing in it without appearing the least bit harmed, a small fact Coach cursed silently at.

" Where's everyone?" he asked, ducking as another glob came flying at the two. " Matthew, can y' see them all?"

Matthew was scanning the field, nodding. " Ellis is outside, and quite a few people are tryin' t reach him, I see Nick, Ro', Chad n' Ark. Sion's tryin t' get close t' that Spitter, n' you and I are here, tryin' t' lessen the horde."

Coach sighed, hearing Rochelle gently helping Ellis to his feet, if the boy's grunts of pain were anything to go by. " Once they get up here, we make a break for the safehouse."
Matthew nodded. " Yes, sir."

–

" Ya'll... ya'll, I'm hurt..." Ellis whimpered, holding his side tightly. Blood stained the mechanic's clothing, and his eyes were clearly showing the amount of pain he was in. Rochelle was apologizing over and over to him, wishing she had got there sooner to help him, Ark whining softly as he looked at the damage.

" It can't be that far to the next safehouse... who has what in terms of health supplies?" Nick said with genuine concern in his voice.

" I think I have a health kit..." Rochelle said, checking her supplies. " Yeah, but it's just the one. We'd have to see what Coach and Matthew have.

" Isn't much, m' afraid." Matthew said, dropping down beside them. " Coach n' I had t' use our supplies while trackin' the Spitter. Sion got the Smoker though." he said softly.

Chad came over with his bag, motioning that they should help Ellis up onto the deck of the plane, the group managing to settle in the slanted seats, watching with worry as Chad examined Ellis's wounds. " … it's pretty bad. Fixable, but bad... you're staying out of zombie-hunting for a bit." he told Ellis, the mechanic weakly smiling.

" Aw... but that's m' new favorite sport!" he joked weakly.

Chad chuckled in reply, gently cleaning the wound. " Even top athletes need a break." he said, dipping one hand into his bag for more supplies.

" Ya'll get him cleaned up," Matthew said. " I'm gonna re-get m' bearings, so I can find th' way home." he said, dropping down. " I'll be back in a lil while..." he said, walking off.

" Why does he disappear so much?" Nick groaned, massaging his aching legs. No one had an answer for him, instead watching the bleeding mechanic, and the medic working to put him back together.

–

Matthew walked out some distance before looking up into the trees. " Alexander... get down here." he said coldly, the nearby tree branches rattling softly as a large Hunter landed, shaking himself off slightly. He wore a dark red sweatshirt, pulled up over his face, same as all the other Hunters.

" Surprised you remember your dear friend..." the Hunter growled softly. " I'm even more surprised you didn't sell me out to the humans."

" You're not worth it." Matthew retorted. " Now... what's going on here? I was attacked at the carnival... by your former co-worker."

" What can I say? We've always had a... good working relationship." Alexander said, a smirk displayed on his lips, showing bloodstained teeth. " I'd show him up, he'd try to show me up."

Matthew grabbed Alexander's collar, tugging his towards his face, seeing as how Alexander was a far cry bigger than him, standing over him at 6'5. " This isn't funny, Alex! That' makes twice now that I've been nearly killed by your friend's idiot grudge!"

" You and your brother are so alike."Alexander replied calmly. " Save for the fact that your accent disappears when you're upset, and your brother's accent appears."

" Keep testing me." Matthew hissed. " And I'll give you a matching burn on your other arm." he said in reference the the acid burn running up Alexander's left arm, the beginnings of the burn visible on his exposed hand.

Alexander let out a defeated sigh. " You two are no fun to play with. You want information? Fine. If you're looking for evacuation, head past your plantation home and go further down the road to the one that overlooks the river, there's a man there named Virgil, he's still ferrying people who can reach him out of the area. Where he takes them, I have no idea."

Matthew released the Hunter. " Not the information I needed, but thank you nonetheless."

Alexander rolled his eyes. " If you're asking me for my time, I can pencil you in for 10:30 on Wednesday." he ducked as a glob of acid flew at his head. " Touchy..."

Matthew wiped his mouth off. " What are y' doing here in the swamps? You know this is our territory..." he questioned.

Alexander smirked, waving one claw. " Word on the playground is that a group of survivors is trying to come through here. I figured I'd... check them out a little, see how well one bleeds."

" Not a chance in hell, I'll burn you." Matthew snapped. " Leave them alone, don't y' got bigger fish to fry... like findin' y' kid before y' coworker does?"

It was Alexander's turn to hiss, one thick clawed hand grabbing Matthew's collar and hoisting him up. " If my son is dead... you AND your brother will suffer. Along with the humans and any other thing I can get my claws on." he whispered. " It's not a threat, it's a promise."

Matthew made sure he could still breath before replying. " Then you had best get back on to looking for him... and leave us alone."

Alexander glared at him for a full minute before throwing Matthew to the ground, walking off. " You're too soft... relying on humans when all they do is take from others and kill us." he said, glaring back at Matthew with red eyes. " Put too much trust in them... all they will do is let you down. Mark my words." once he was done talking, the large Hunter leapt back into the trees and soon disappeared into the swamps, Matthew slowly picking himself up from the ground.

" Crazy fool... they're the only chance we got of bein' normal again." the Spitter sighed, brushing himself off and going around to finish mapping the area.

Description
Chapter 37: Plane
--
Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2
--

" See anything noteworthy?" Sion asked once Ark was up, the Hunter shaking his head. All he had been seeing for the last half hour was swamp, infected, and as a bonus, more swamp. Sighing, he slumped against the door, rubbing his forehead gently. The heat in the room was offset by the constant airflow between the bars, but having seven people in the room at once was still a tad unsettling.

" Not a thing." he finally answered, looking up at Sion. " Not even a bird or bug."
Sion put one hand on his hip. " Well, let's hope that serenity lasts, we're getting ready to go." he said, gesturing back to the others.

Rochelle was gently nudging Nick, who groaned and rolled onto his side, pushing himself up with the aid of his arms while Ellis attempted to fill the silence with one of his many Keith stories.

" My buddy Keith once tried building a house out of mud and stuff, didn't work out the way he hoped-"

" Does he ever stop talking?" Nick asked, getting to his feet and brushing himself off.

" Who knows?" Sion said, smiling a bit in amusement. Ellis was just being his usual rambunctious self, who was he to interfere? Besides, it reminded him of Ark.

Ark nodded and nudged the door open, the group setting out again. Thanks to the rest they all had, everything seemed clearer, and Ark was able to start examining all of the scents in the air. There was the usual scents of the infected, followed by the scent of the survivors, various smells mixed together. Coach smelled faintly of sweets, while Ellis's smell was loosing it's motor oil scent. Nick had a fading cologne scent about him, and Rochelle faintly smelled of fading perfume. All signs that none of them had even remotely considered the idea that their lives would be in constant jeopardy now.

The Hunter sighed as they walked across the walkways, trying to piece the memories of his past together. Who was he? Was he someone he would be proud of, or was this a new start for him? Did he have family? Sighing again, he looked over at Sion. " Hey, Sion?" he asked softly.

" Yeah?" the smoker asked softly. " What is it?"

" Do you ever try to remember?" he asked. " I mean, who you once was?"

" Never have." Sion replied swiftly and without much thought. " I like who I am."

" You never curious about it?" Ark asked, genuinely curious.

Sion shook his head. " Nope. I don't dwell on that I have no control over." he said softly. " I can't remember who I was, so I don't worry on it. Worrying only makes you feel worse."

Ark had never thought of it that way, but understood the wisdom in the Smoker's words. " Oh... well, thanks for answering." he said finally.

Sion smiled back at him before his skin crawled as they heard giggles, the group instinctively huddling together. " ...God I hate Jockeys..." Rochelle said, everyone silently agreeing with her as the laughing got closer before dying out with a loud squeak.

" … Did something else get it?" Ellis asked, looking at the others, still tense but calming down.

" Who knows, but let's get out of here before whatever did shows up." Nick said, Coach moving to the next walkway.

Ark looked out at the walkway before leaping gracefully into the nearby tree to look around, scampering through the branches with grace and ease. Being a Hunter had it's advantages, like increased strength and speed when it came to jumping and climbing things. Ellis watched with faint twinges of envy, but continued along the walkway. Chad, who had been quiet the whole time, simply looked on with faint apprehension of the whole situation, never one to be at ease when it was quiet.

" Something's wrong." he said finally, Ark stopping to look at him.

" What?" the Hunter replied, Chad pulling his gun closer to him.

" It's too quiet... I haven't seen any infected for minutes." Chad said, Rochelle looking at him. " But that's a good thing, we don't waste anymore ammunition..."

" If all the piranha's scatter, there's a shark." Nick said, growing nervous. " No common infected? Tank or something else."

" And today gets even better." Rochelle sighed, starting to look around for anything unusual.

" Not so loud everyone... we just need to stick together." Coach said, trying to lift their spirits somewhat. " As long as we stick together, we'll make it through this."

" Famous last words..." Nick said, heading into the nearby clearing, Ark leaping overhead to the next tree, snapping a branch. He was hit by the smell of a decaying corpse, gagging slightly as the smell overpowered him, stepping on another rotting branch and sending it crashing to the ground.

As he tumbled to the ground, so did a rotting corpse of a parachutist, the decomposing body landing on Nick, who happened to be examining it at the same time, Ellis wondering where on earth the guy had come from.

The effect was next to instantaneous, Nick created a huge racket trying to escape out from underneath the corpse. He had never been one to freak out over stupid little things, but when the corpse landed on him, a CORPSE, his thought process sort of derailed and headed off to go find a map, never returning. The cords of the parachute were getting tangled around his legs and the smell was everywhere, 100 percent offensive to 3 of the 5 senses, and he wanted it off.

In his mad dash to get out from out of his current situation, he brought both legs up and kicked the corpse off him, reaching down and tearing the cords from around his legs and getting up, his spine and skin crawling as he moved away from the corpse on the ground, green eyes feral. The second his mind managed to repair itself, he shot a glare into the trees, Ark yelping and moving out of sight.

" I guess we can safely say it's a good thing that there are no infected around."
Rochelle said, looking at Nick. " Because right about now, we'd be swarmed with infected alerted by the racket you were making, Nick."

Nick took in a deep breath, smoothing his suit with one hand. " Laugh it up if you will... let's just keep moving." his feathers were clearly ruffled, and it would take a good deal of coaxing to get him to calm down. Ellis thought about telling a funny story to ease his nerves, but sighed when Coach softly shook his head, taking his boot to nudge aside the corpse somewhat, making a noise. " Hrm? What's this?"

" Unless it's a jet to get us outta here, I am NOT interested." Nick hissed.

Ellis nudged out a notebook, the cover stained with blood. " Think he mighta been a reporter?" he asked, Chad going over to him. " Here, let me see." the older man said.
The medic took the notebook, holding it gingerly before cracking it open, looking at the contents. " …. It seems to be notes on the infected... perhaps he was studying this so he would be prepared upon landing?"

" Fat load of good it did him." Nick commented, still ruffled.

Chad rolled his eyes for a brief moment. " Settle down." he continued flipping through the pages. " Yup... Jockey, Charger... Spitter... they're all here. Detailed notes about what to listen for and what to do."

" Why'd he have it?" Coach asked, giving the notebook a critical look, not fully comfortable with the situation. " I would think word of mouth is a bit easier."
Chad put the journal away. " True... I'll look at it more when we have the time." he said, grabbing his gun. " Now, unless someone wants the dead man's things, I suggest we keep moving."

Coach offered a brief prayer to the corpse before gently nudging the M-16 out of the pale hands, checking the ammunition on it. " Never pegged you as the looting type." Nick said, one hand dangling at his side while the other seemed busy with memorizing the grooves of the magnum he possessed." Always figured you were the " Leave it alone, dead man's curse" sort of thing."

Coach gave Nick a sad smile. " I know that he ain't sufferin' no more... and I asked if I could use it, because right now, I need it more than he does. I know he'll understand." the bigger man seemed satisfied with the ammunition that had been stashed in the pockets, securing them as well, offering a Molotov and a bottle of painkillers to Sion, who mutely accepted. " Thank you, friend, you've helped us a lot today." Coach apologized to the corpse, lingering there a few minutes, Rochelle and Ellis doing the same.

" Please tell me you aren't waiting for a "You're welcome," because I don't think you're getting one." Nick said, a smirk on his lips.

" Tell me, is there a class you take to be an asshole?" Sion asked, massaging his forehead. " If there is, I KNOW you graduated with full honors."

" I've always been head of the class in what I do." Nick didn't miss a beat, Chad and Ark both sharing looks before sighing.

Wordlessly, Coach set out on the path again, everyone falling into line behind him, save for Ark in the trees. Since he was high up, he got a pretty good idea of what the area looked like ahead, and shouted down what information he could, scanning the trees for threats. One thing did bother Ark though as he traveled through the treeline, several trunks had been scratched deeply with large claws, the marks painfully visible. Someone had traveled through there before they had.... and was either marking a trail or simply attacking things in a fit of rage. Sighing, he leapt onto another sturdy branch, sitting there for a moment as the crew evaluated their newest discovery... a downed plane.

–

" Think zombies brought down this plane?" Ellis asked nervously, looking at the others. " Good lord...a whole goddamned plane?"

" Something brought it down, that's for sure." Coach said, looking at the wreckage. " Can't say for sure what it was."

" All I know is it probably brought a shit-ton of zombies into our area... they don't seem to die from long falls." Nick grumbled. " Except for that one time Coach fell on one and it died from the impact."

Coach gave him a sour look. " All in favor of Nick leading the search into the plane?"
Ellis seemed to be the only one who didn't say " Aye," Nick giving them all an exasperated look as he was forced to take point.

His nerves were already shot from the incident with the corpse, and he had no earthly desire to repeat that fiasco inside the plane, sloshing his way through the water. Several things pissed him off as it was, having to go through swamp water that practically was knee high at some points, infected rampages, travel with unintellectual beings... Ellis was a single-cell organism in his mind at the moment, so he didn't count. Coach was a dual-cell, which wasn't any better.
And then there was the subject of the infected they were traveling with...personality wise they were harmless, but they still posed a huge threat to all of their well being. He had mixed feelings about everything, but survival was still his top priority.

A loud splash from beside him had him whirling to face the infected attacking him, spluttering as mud was splattered across his face, panic rising again as he tried to shove the infected away from him. Reacting quickly, Ark leapt from the tree onto the mud-covered infected, biting it's shoulder and tearing into it with his claws.
" Tell me I did not just see a mud-man!" Ellis said in disbelief, Nick coughing and sputtering.
" No, you saw Santa Claus!"He shot back, wiping the mud from his eyes and spluttering again while trying to get the mud off his face completely.

" Stop teasing that boy." Rochelle sighed, looking around before stepping back to look up at the plane. " Hrm... How are we going to get through here safely..." she mused, looking through the wreckage.

" We could blow the door of the safety hatch," Coach began, pointing it out. " Easiest method, but it'll call infected for quite a distance."

" Any plan b?" Nick asked, looking at the hatch with disdain. " Because ammunition is isn't easy to come by in a swamp, save for shotgun ammo. Rednecks around here can't seem to keep anything else."

" Usually a shotgun's enough to get most things offa our porches." Matthew replied. " Unless it's a gator or somethin', then y' need somethin' a lil' bigger."

" You know, I never asked, but where did you live around here?" Rochelle asked. " You know the area pretty well."

Matthew pointed at the plane. " That's the only thing messin' with m' map of the area, but I used t' live in the plantation homes further up ahead. Our family's been here for generations. If there's any sort of rescue t' be had in this area, it's there."

" How far is it?" Chad asked, looking at the wreckage to see if he could squeeze his way through it, not liking all the sharp metal he was seeing.

" If we have a good pace, maybe tomorrow morning we'll get there?" Matthew said. " Or tomorrow evening, if we get held up by somethin'."

" Sounds like a plan to me." Coach said. " Now, let's blow this hatch and get things started."

" We're not going to vote on this?" Nick said with a sarcastic tone.

" No."

–
Once the hatch was blown, all hell broke loose.

Ark couldn't believe how much infected swarmed once the door was blown, and the mud wasn't making anything easier for him. Like the rest, it bogged him down, and pouncing provided only temporary relief. To make his luck even worse, all of the infected that could attack from a distance, like Spitters and Smokers, seemed content with assaulting the survivors from hard to reach locations. Matthew was unable to keep up with the fully infected variety of himself, simply because it was too taxing to try and spit every so often, his body makeup wouldn't allow it. To combat that issue, Chad gave him his pistols and had him watch the rear.

Ellis was taking most of the damage, having to defend the front while Rochelle and Nick frantically searched the back for some ammunition or something to stall the horde with, Rochelle locating a molotov. " Hey, Nick!" she said, holding it up. " This should help!"
Nick's shoulders slumped a bit. " Ro...either you toss that thing in here and burn us all up WITH the zombies, or you toss it outside in SWAMP WATER and get no zombies." he said in a careful voice, Rochelle analyzing his words for a second before slapping her face.

" Next time I have an amazing thought... tell me to let it go." she sighed.

" Will do, sweetheart." Nick said with a chuckle, ducking as an infected smashed the side window. " SHIT!"

He ducked down and fired at the head trying to get through the hole, glass raining down on his head somewhat as he grimaced, one arm wrapped around his neck to make sure nothing was going to hit it. Rochelle was lucky enough to keep out of the way, but most of the damage was already done, infected were trying to get their hands through the windows now.
" You must be a celebrity, those boys are dying to get a glimpse of you." Nick drawled with an amused smirk on his face, watching Rochelle hit one of the hands away with her pistol.

" Very funny, Nick... now help me out here!" Rochelle strained to keep her voice even. Nick allowed his moment of amusement to end, rushing over to her and opening fire on the heads in the windows. That was the great thing about them, there was little room for error, and only the blind could miss.

Helping Rochelle to her feet, both turned with an alarmed noise as they heard Ellis cry " I'm down!" along with a few terrified screams. " What found him, a Jockey?" Nick mumbled as the two scrambled over the slanted seats to find their teammate.

Coach was having a fiasco of his own, straining to reach Ellis but unable to, thanks to the repeated globs of acid being flung in his general direction. He hated it when Spitters had a bead on one of them, because the acid spitting monsters seemed to have a personal vendetta with whomever they targeted. It just happened to be his lucky day. Matthew seemed to be having little or no trouble with the acid, at some points practically standing in it without appearing the least bit harmed, a small fact Coach cursed silently at.

" Where's everyone?" he asked, ducking as another glob came flying at the two. " Matthew, can y' see them all?"

Matthew was scanning the field, nodding. " Ellis is outside, and quite a few people are tryin' t reach him, I see Nick, Ro', Chad n' Ark. Sion's tryin t' get close t' that Spitter, n' you and I are here, tryin' t' lessen the horde."

Coach sighed, hearing Rochelle gently helping Ellis to his feet, if the boy's grunts of pain were anything to go by. " Once they get up here, we make a break for the safehouse."
Matthew nodded. " Yes, sir."

–

" Ya'll... ya'll, I'm hurt..." Ellis whimpered, holding his side tightly. Blood stained the mechanic's clothing, and his eyes were clearly showing the amount of pain he was in. Rochelle was apologizing over and over to him, wishing she had got there sooner to help him, Ark whining softly as he looked at the damage.

" It can't be that far to the next safehouse... who has what in terms of health supplies?" Nick said with genuine concern in his voice.

" I think I have a health kit..." Rochelle said, checking her supplies. " Yeah, but it's just the one. We'd have to see what Coach and Matthew have.

" Isn't much, m' afraid." Matthew said, dropping down beside them. " Coach n' I had t' use our supplies while trackin' the Spitter. Sion got the Smoker though." he said softly.

Chad came over with his bag, motioning that they should help Ellis up onto the deck of the plane, the group managing to settle in the slanted seats, watching with worry as Chad examined Ellis's wounds. " … it's pretty bad. Fixable, but bad... you're staying out of zombie-hunting for a bit." he told Ellis, the mechanic weakly smiling.

" Aw... but that's m' new favorite sport!" he joked weakly.

Chad chuckled in reply, gently cleaning the wound. " Even top athletes need a break." he said, dipping one hand into his bag for more supplies.

" Ya'll get him cleaned up," Matthew said. " I'm gonna re-get m' bearings, so I can find th' way home." he said, dropping down. " I'll be back in a lil while..." he said, walking off.

" Why does he disappear so much?" Nick groaned, massaging his aching legs. No one had an answer for him, instead watching the bleeding mechanic, and the medic working to put him back together.

–

Matthew walked out some distance before looking up into the trees. " Alexander... get down here." he said coldly, the nearby tree branches rattling softly as a large Hunter landed, shaking himself off slightly. He wore a dark red sweatshirt, pulled up over his face, same as all the other Hunters.

" Surprised you remember your dear friend..." the Hunter growled softly. " I'm even more surprised you didn't sell me out to the humans."

" You're not worth it." Matthew retorted. " Now... what's going on here? I was attacked at the carnival... by your former co-worker."

" What can I say? We've always had a... good working relationship." Alexander said, a smirk displayed on his lips, showing bloodstained teeth. " I'd show him up, he'd try to show me up."

Matthew grabbed Alexander's collar, tugging his towards his face, seeing as how Alexander was a far cry bigger than him, standing over him at 6'5. " This isn't funny, Alex! That' makes twice now that I've been nearly killed by your friend's idiot grudge!"

" You and your brother are so alike."Alexander replied calmly. " Save for the fact that your accent disappears when you're upset, and your brother's accent appears."

" Keep testing me." Matthew hissed. " And I'll give you a matching burn on your other arm." he said in reference the the acid burn running up Alexander's left arm, the beginnings of the burn visible on his exposed hand.

Alexander let out a defeated sigh. " You two are no fun to play with. You want information? Fine. If you're looking for evacuation, head past your plantation home and go further down the road to the one that overlooks the river, there's a man there named Virgil, he's still ferrying people who can reach him out of the area. Where he takes them, I have no idea."

Matthew released the Hunter. " Not the information I needed, but thank you nonetheless."

Alexander rolled his eyes. " If you're asking me for my time, I can pencil you in for 10:30 on Wednesday." he ducked as a glob of acid flew at his head. " Touchy..."

Matthew wiped his mouth off. " What are y' doing here in the swamps? You know this is our territory..." he questioned.

Alexander smirked, waving one claw. " Word on the playground is that a group of survivors is trying to come through here. I figured I'd... check them out a little, see how well one bleeds."

" Not a chance in hell, I'll burn you." Matthew snapped. " Leave them alone, don't y' got bigger fish to fry... like findin' y' kid before y' coworker does?"

It was Alexander's turn to hiss, one thick clawed hand grabbing Matthew's collar and hoisting him up. " If my son is dead... you AND your brother will suffer. Along with the humans and any other thing I can get my claws on." he whispered. " It's not a threat, it's a promise."

Matthew made sure he could still breath before replying. " Then you had best get back on to looking for him... and leave us alone."

Alexander glared at him for a full minute before throwing Matthew to the ground, walking off. " You're too soft... relying on humans when all they do is take from others and kill us." he said, glaring back at Matthew with red eyes. " Put too much trust in them... all they will do is let you down. Mark my words." once he was done talking, the large Hunter leapt back into the trees and soon disappeared into the swamps, Matthew slowly picking himself up from the ground.

" Crazy fool... they're the only chance we got of bein' normal again." the Spitter sighed, brushing himself off and going around to finish mapping the area.