Rise Of The Hunters - Chapter 85

There were footsteps in the gore, that Xun followed. The scratching was in rooms all around him, as he walked down the hall, but he ignored them, hoping to find his mother before Dr. Achak realized he was gone. He prayed that his friends were okay, and hoped they would forgive him for abandoning them.

His breathing was labored, and he could tell that the drugs Dr. Achak had given him were still working their way out of his system, as he came to a stop at a junction. The tunnel split in either direction, and he could see that the footsteps went back and forth both ways, before returning the way he had come.

Both ways looked the same, when he looked down them, and he couldn’t focus well enough to tell which way the prints had gone first. Xun closed his eyes and took a breath to calm himself. After several more, he could feel his heartrate slowing, and his breathing quiet. Looking at the prints again, he was finally able to see that they had gone left first, then right, before returning. Taking a wild guess, he turned right, and hurried down the hall.

It didn’t take him long to come to a room that had been entered. Pushing open the door, glaring lights met his eyes, and he was temporarily blinded after the dim hall. He stepped inside, and shut the door behind him, so that whatever was making that scratching noise wouldn’t be able to get into the room.

As his eyes adjusted, he was met with a chilling scene. A woman was confined to a large container, suspended in the air. She floated in a hazy fluid, with cords and iv’s running to her face and arms. He moved to the console panel in front of the strange contraption, and read the screen. Her name, Lola, was printed at the top, and he stared at it for a long time. That was his mom’s name. Glancing up at her, he watched her face twitch, and realized she was dreaming.

How was he going to get her out of that thing, then out of this lab, along with his friends, with the vampires in the way? And why did the vampires have her in this machine? He read everything on the panel, then proceeded to climb all over the container, trying to figure out how to get her out. He had come this far, he wasn’t going to leave now.

It had been about half an hour since he had found her, and he was currently on top of it, trying to pry the lid open with his knife, when the door began to open. He slid down, so as not to be seen by whoever was coming in.

XxxxX

Matilda paused outside the concrete door, still holding Tommy’s hand. They had bȧrėly managed to avoid Gerald, Byrd, and Xun’s dad as they left, and she was now trying to get up the courage to actually go inside.

“You need to hurry, there is only a small window of time while the vampires are busy, that you can get past them without being noticed.”

Nodding at the voice, she began to make her way into the tunnel. It was a long way, and she had calmed down a lot by the time they actually reached the doors. She just couldn’t stay scared when there wasn’t anything scary around.

“The vampires are in the room with the door that is slightly open. You need to walk as quickly and as quietly as you can to the very end of the hall, then go through the doors at the end. They are fighting monsters and shouldn’t notice you.”

Pulling Tommy behind her, she began tiptoe running, to make as little noise as she could. Tommy didn’t make any noise anymore, anyway, so she didn’t have to worry about telling him to be quiet. She glanced into the room as they ran past, and saw a man with tentacles waving all around him, and several people trying to fight him.

Swallowing, she kept running until they reached the door, then she opened it slowly so it didn’t make too much noise. Once they were through, the smell of the rotting flesh caused her nose to wrinkle, and she could tell that Tommy didn’t like it either.

“Follow the footprints, and turn right when you reach the junction. Xun is ahead and needs you.”

Xun was there! She was so happy to almost be at their destination, she took off running again, but had to slow down so she didn’t slip in the gore. It was awful. In no time at all, they were at the door, and she was pushing it open.

“Xun is hiding on top of the tank. You need to enter the code I tell you into the computer, just like we practiced before.”

“Hey, Xun! We came to help!” she announced cheerfully, and Tommy grinned.

XxxxX

Xun’s eyes all but jumped out when he saw little Matilda and her brother come through the door. What were they doing here, and how did they get past the vampires???

Climbing down, he came around to see Matilda purposefully entering codes into the computer controlling the machine. Jumping forward to stop her, thinking she was just playing around, he stopped short when there was a hiss. Turning towards the tank, he watched as the fluid began to drain, and it started to open up.

“What did you do?” he asked, unable to look away from his mother.

“I put in the code, to let her out,” said Matilda proudly.

“But, how?” he asked, stepping forward as his mother began to fall.

“I told her,” came the weak voice from the woman, as he caught her and slowly lowered her to the ground. She was cold and wet, but alive. She looked up into his eyes and smiled. He recognized those eyes, and smiled back.

“She was talking to me in my head. I couldn’t tell anyone though. They would have thought I was crazy, like my momma,” explained Matilda, crouching down in front of them.

“There should be clothes and towels in the storage cabinet against the wall, Matilda,” said Lola, her voice a little stronger. “I need to get cleaned up and dressed so we can get out of here as soon as possible. If those vampires get a chance, they’ll be coming to check on where you went, and how I’m doing.”

She cupped his face, and Xun leaned into her touch. He couldn’t believe both his parents were alive. A tear escaped down the side of his face.