HOTD: Tōshiro Nagi - Chapter 18: Final Stand

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(A/N: Is that a Power Stone I’m sensing? You should leave it here for safekeeping. Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of it.)

Word Count: 2984

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“It’s them!” Kohta’s voice rang out, jolting the group into alertness. “Distance: 300 meters,” he announced, his gaze fixed on the approaching undead through the binoculars.

“Go to the right,” Saya directed Shizuka, hoping to evade the approaching undead. Yet their efforts were in vain, as an even larger horde emerged from that direction as well. “They’re here too!” Shizuka exclaimed, her voice tinged with alarm.

“Then turn left there!” Saya commanded, her finger pointing towards the nearest intersection. Without hesitation, Shizuka swiftly maneuvered the Humvee around the corner, accelerating away from the perilous area.

“What’s going on?” Takashi questioned in a state of confusion. “The closer we get, the more of them there are.” Nagi shared the same sentiment, finding the concentrated presence of zombies in nearby areas peculiar.

He speculated that the barrier had been drawn back, leaving the important sections of the city protected while the vicinity of the bridge became a hunting ground for the undead.

This theory aligned with Saya’s father’s position as a politician and the leader of the ultra-nationalist organization in the Tokonosu prefectures. It wouldn’t be far-fetched to assume that the Takagi Mansion had been transformed into a survivor camp, given its strategic location and ample space.

A massive horde loomed ahead, leaving them trapped with no viable means of escape, Saya’s command rang out with authority, “Just keep going, don’t stop!”

Navigating through the sea of undead, Shizuka pressed harder on the gas pedal, propelling the Humvee forward with a surge of power.

The vehicle surged through the horde, its tires colliding with the bodies of the zombies, sending them flying into the air, their bones shattering upon impact with the unforgiving pavement.

“Stop the car! Stop the car!” Rei’s panicked shouts echoed through the vehicle. Rising from his seat, Nagi leaned over Saya’s seat and caught sight of the wire barricade looming in the near distance.

His eyes widened with urgency as he swiftly advised, “There’s a wire barricade ahead. Turn the car to the side.”

Following his instructions, the Humvee veered into a drift, its path altered just in time. The result was a gruesome spectacle as the onrushing zombies collided with the wire barrier.

The vehicle’s kinetic energy and weight tore through their bodies, severing limbs and causing grotesque dismemberment. Heads went flying, arms were torn asunder, and the window became a canvas of splattered undead blood.

Reacting swiftly to the impending gore, Kohta shielded Alice from the gruesome sight, using his forearms as a protective barrier. “Don’t look!” he commanded, his voice firm and resolute.

“We’re sliding too much!” Shizuka exclaimed in a state of panic as she struggled to free the Humvee from the entangled wires. “Stop! Why won’t it stop?”

“It’s the blood and guts from the zombies,” Saya explained, her voice filled with a sense of urgency. And indeed, she was correct. The relentless skidding of the tires over the blood-soaked ground, coupled with the vehicle being caught in the wire barricade, rendered it immobile.

“The tires are locked!” Kohta exclaimed, providing crucial information. “Release the brakes and apply gentle acceleration!” Acting swiftly, Shizuka disengaged the brakes and pressed the gas pedal slightly.

The Humvee surged forward, dislodging itself from its previous entanglement with the wires. However, their escape route was severely limited, with a concrete wall looming ahead.

Turning the vehicle around was not an option, as it would expose them to the approaching horde. Any delay could result in the undead overwhelming the Humvee and the group.

“Look out!” Takashi’s panicked voice pierced through the tension as the wall rapidly approached. With no other viable option available, Shizuka reacted quickly, her urgent shout resonating throughout the vehicle. “Hold on tight!”

With a forceful stomp on the brakes, the Humvee came to an abrupt halt, causing it to tilt forward. In the midst of the sudden movement, Rei’s grip slipped, and she was propelled off the vehicle.

Her body collided with the hood of the Humvee, flipping over and landing heavily on the unforgiving concrete below. The impact left her motionless, struggling to rise as the chilling moans and groans of the undead drew closer, encircling her vulnerable form.

Reacting swiftly, Takashi leaped off the Humvee and positioned himself in front of Rei, clutching the shotgun firmly in his hands. He followed Kohta’s instructions precisely, pulling the slide, aiming for the head, and pulling the trigger.

The blast from the shotgun dispatched one zombie with a well-aimed shot to the head, but the others were merely struck in the torso.

The recoil from the powerful weapon caused Takashi to stumble backward momentarily, but he quickly regained his footing. Frustrated, he voiced his complaint, “What the hell? I aimed for the head, and only one of them was killed!”

Kohta’s voice rang out from the roof hatch of the Humvee, offering his expertise, “You don’t know what you’re doing! The recoil throws off the muzzle, causing the shot to go high. Shoulder the gun and lean into it. Aim for the chest!”

Heeding Kohta’s advice, Takashi shouldered the shotgun firmly, leaning into it to counteract the recoil. With a well-placed shot, he dispatched two zombies, blowing them back with deadly precision.

Unrelenting, he continued his assault, taking down another undead with a swift shot. Amidst the chaos, Takashi couldn’t help but comment, “Ah, man. There are way too many.”

“Follow up the shot by quickly re-aiming and pulling the slide!” Kohta’s instructions echoed through the air as he assumed a sniping position, taking precise shots at the nearby zombies.

Takashi, once again, followed Kohta’s guidance, aiming at the targets and smoothly operating the slide. The shotgun roared, decimating the undead in pairs as their heads were blown clean off, leaving a gruesome mess of flesh and blood splattered across the ground.

“Woah, this is awesome,” Takahsi exclaimed, exhilaration coursing through him as he prepared to shoot once more. However, his excitement quickly turned to dismay when he realized his weapon was empty.

Fumbling with nervousness, he reached into his pockets for ammunition, but it slipped from his trembling hands, scattering and rolling across the grim battlefield.

Swiftly exiting the Humvee, Nagi addressed Takashi with a firm tone, “I’ll cover you for now, but move with purpose, Takashi.”

“You can’t! There are way too many to fight with just knives!” Takashi retorted, his voice filled with concern. As a zombie approached, Nagi replied without emotion, “Maybe for you, but not for me.” With a swift motion, he twirled the blade in his hand and drove it into the zombie’s skull, dispatching it efficiently.

“Saeko and I will take the vanguard. I want the rest of you to handle the stragglers and those at a distance,” Nagi ordered. Saeko stood by his side, ready with her bokken.

“Are you sure you don’t want to use the crossbow? The knives have a limited range, and you might get grabbed,” she suggested.

Shaking his head, Nagi responded, “I would love nothing more than to use the crossbow in such an open field. However, considering the sheer number of undead here, I would eventually run out of bolts, and it would be impossible to retrieve them all.”

Humming in agreement with Nagi’s reasoning, Saeko swiftly dispatched two nearby zombies, skillfully breaking their necks and crushing their skulls.

However, the horde of undead remained relentless as they closed in on the group, their hunger driving them forward. Nagi swiftly dual-wielded his blades, charging forward alongside Saeko as they unleashed a flurry of deadly strikes upon the surrounding zombies.

With their precise coordination, they covered each other’s backs and blind spots, effectively navigating through the horde while leaving a trail of carnage in their wake. Takashi’s gunshots echoed in the air, providing additional firepower to their onslaught.

As Nagi ran past Saeko, swiftly eliminating the undead that approached from behind her, she noticed Takashi’s trajectory and instinctively bent her back at a ninety-degree angle, narrowly evading the bullet.

The projectile whizzed past her once more as she smoothly executed a flip, landing with her hands on the floor. In one fluid motion, she swiftly uprighted herself and swung her bokken, striking down an approaching zombie with lethal precision.

“I missed,” Takashi muttered with evident frustration, his shots echoing amidst the chaos of the horde.

Oblivious to Rei’s teary eyes, her pain dismissed as a means to steady the gun, his focus remained solely on his target. “Damn it! Damn it!” he repeated in a fit of anger and disappointment.

Observing the challenging situation unfold, Nagi swiftly shifted his attention towards Saeko, who had just dispatched another undead.

“Let’s regroup with the others,” he suggested, his tone devoid of emotion. “Kohta will need to reload his gun soon, and Takashi’s current state makes him a liability. We’ll provide cover for Kohta until he’s ready to join the fight again.”

Nodding in agreement, Saeko and Nagi swiftly made their way back toward the Humvee, recognizing the urgency of the situation.

Meanwhile, Kohta, having depleted his ammunition, urgently requested someone to provide him with a magazine. “Can someone pass me one of these?” Kohta requested, displaying the required magazine.

“Kohta?” Alice called out, her voice filled with worry and confusion. However, understanding the urgency of the situation, Kohta urged her to follow his instructions.

“Come on!” he urged, his tone firm. Scrambling to her feet, Alice quickly made her way to the back of the Humvee, where Zero guided her to the correct magazine.

Grasping the magazine, Alice lifted it into the air for Kohta to grab. Her hands trembled with nervousness as she called out to him, her voice filled with a mix of fear and determination. “Here’s some,” she offered.

At that moment, something seemed to switch within Kohta. His eyes took on a sharp and dark intensity as he swiftly loaded the magazine into his gun. Without hesitation, he resumed firing, unleashing a barrage of bullets upon the relentless horde of undead.

This sudden development also snapped Saya and Shizuka out of their daze. Shizuka attempted to restart the Humvee, while Saya, with resolute determination, left her seat and headed to the back. Shizuka, perplexed by Saya’s sudden actions, questioned her, “What are you doing, Takagi?”

With conviction, Saya turned to face Shizuka and responded, “I’m going to pick up Komuro’s gun and use it!”

Alarmed, Shizuka voiced her concerns, urging Saya to reconsider. “It’s not safe!” she exclaimed. However, Saya turned resolutely towards her and replied, “I’m well aware of that, Nurse Marikawa!” before bravely leaping out of the Humvee.

Saya swiftly retrieved the shotgun, gripping it firmly in her hands. From his vantage point on the Humvee’s hooded latch, Kohta called out to her, “The shells are at your feet! Do you know how to use it?”

“I got it!” Saya responded confidently to Kohta’s query, swiftly loading the shotgun. Startled, Takashi and Rei screamed out her name in unison, trying to alert her to the approaching zombies on her side. Momentarily confused, Saya failed to notice the imminent threat.

Reacting with precision, Nagi sprang into action, launching himself into the air and delivering a powerful kick to the zombie, sending it crashing to the ground. With a swift movement, he mercilessly crushed its head beneath his boot.

“Focus on your surroundings, Takagi. This is the second time something like this has happened,” Nagi quipped, his memory flashing back to their harrowing escape from the school.

Slightly blushing at Nagi’s quip, Saya quickly regained her focus and joined him and Saeko in their relentless assault against the horde.

Despite their best efforts, the undead seemed to multiply with each fallen foe replaced by another. Time flew by, marked by the sinking sun and the mounting exhaustion that weighed upon the group.

Ammunition dwindled, sweat streamed down their foreheads, and a sense of despair crept in as the horde showed no signs of relenting. Saeko and Nagi, once agile and precise, found their movements gradually slowing under the strain of fatigue.

Escape seemed impossible. The barbed wire fence loomed before them, tightly bound and towering several meters high.

Jumping over it was out of the question, and they lacked the necessary tools to cut through the dense wires.

Nagi, maintaining a steady and composed demeanor, controlled his breathing, attempting to calm his racing heart.

Thoughts swirled in his mind as he considered their predicament. ‘There’s only one remaining option,’ he pondered stoically, rising from his leaning position against the Humvee.

Amidst the encroaching horde, the sound of a bark pierced the air as Zero leaped from the Humvee, dashing towards the undead and sinking his teeth into the nearest one’s shin.

Observing the puppy’s surprising fierceness, Nagi approached Saya, who was visibly fatigued and gasping for breath, her intention to swing the shotgun at the advancing zombies evident.

Acting swiftly, Nagi firmly grasped the weapon, halting her motion and locking eyes with her. “You’ve done enough. I want you and the others to seek refuge in the Humvee while I divert their attention. As long as you remain hidden and keep quiet, you should be alright.”

Saya’s voice carried a sense of urgency as she adamantly questioned Nagi’s decision. She insisted that he should join them inside the Humvee for safety. Saeko interjected, joining the conversation and expressing her support for Nagi’s plan.

“He’s not going alone,” Saeko asserted, stepping forward to stand beside Nagi. “I will accompany him. Saya, the reason why hiding in the Humvee is not a viable option is because the horde will remain in this area until they are lured away by something else, and we have no way of knowing when that will happen. This is our only choice at the moment.”

Nagi concurred with Saeko’s assessment, nodding in agreement. “She’s right. Rei is injured, Kohta will soon run out of ammo, and our equipment isn’t optimal. This is the best course of action if any of us wants to survive. Besides, we’re not particularly easy to kill, Takagi.”

“Saya,” she said, meeting Nagi’s puzzled gaze. Locking eyes with Nagi’s sharp orange orbs using her own intense orange eyes, she repeated with greater emphasis, “Just call me Saya.”

Saya’s unexpected action caught Saeko off guard, yet she couldn’t help but feel a hint of amusement at her courage amidst such a dire situation. However, Saeko’s brief amusement quickly faded, as their mission demanded their attention.

“Are you ready, Saeko?” Nagi asked, tightening his grip on the shotgun he had taken from Saya. Saeko inquired, “Have you finished talking with Saya?”

Nagi nodded in response, gesturing towards Saya as she assisted Rei and Takashi into the Humvee, with Zero following closely behind. “Now, our task is to break through the horde and create as much noise as possible on the other side.”

“Alright, I’ll take the lead. Make sure you keep up,” Nagi instructed Saeko as he charged towards the horde, gripping the shotgun by the muzzle and wielding it like a bat.

With a powerful leap into the air, he brought the gun down overhand, crushing a zombie’s skull before gracefully landing on the ground, relentless in his assault. Saeko swiftly followed suit, kicking back one undead creature while knocking away another with a swing of her bokken.

Reaching the stairs, Nagi scraped the shotgun against the concrete wall, producing a piercing screech that attracted the nearby undead. Meanwhile, Saeko struck her bokken against a pipe, creating a resonating thump that echoed through the desolate streets.

The resonating sounds lured the nearby undead, their relentless pursuit intensifying as Nagi and Saeko swiftly ascended the stairs.

With the horde in close pursuit, they leaped over a pit and reached the other side. Nagi forcefully slammed the shotgun against the rail, generating a resounding noise that reverberated through the air, further attracting the attention of the relentless undead.

However, despite their efforts, the noise alone wasn’t enough to deter the relentless horde. Some of the undead continued their menacing advance, dangerously close to reaching the Humvee. Just as the situation seemed dire, a group of individuals resembling firefighters emerged.

“Get the ladder! Get them out of there now!” commanded a woman’s voice, and the group swiftly complied, following her instructions.

They unleashed pressurized water upon the horde, forcefully pushing them back. As the undead stumbled and faltered, the firefighters aided the group in safely crossing over the fence to the other side, where they could find refuge.

Nagi pondered aloud, “Are they firemen?”

“I don’t think they’re from the fire department,” Saeko remarked. As they scrutinized the situation more closely, Shizuka expressed her gratitude to the leader, removing her headgear to reveal herself as Saya’s mother.

“So, she’s Saya’s mother,” Nagi remarked aloud, shaking his head in acknowledgment. Turning his attention to Saeko, he pressed on, “Regardless, we need to find a way out of here. The horde will soon converge on our location, and nightfall is approaching.”

Saeko inquired, “What’s your plan then? I’m not familiar with the surroundings here.”

Nagi responded confidently, “I know this area well enough to navigate. Saya’s house is situated atop the hill, so it should be relatively easy to locate. Let’s make our way there.”

With their decision made, Nagi and Saeko set off, leaving the immediate danger behind them.

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