Stage One: Hope in Darkness

Planes (Lara)

The truck plows through the horde of walkers. Shadow is manning the gun and that guy has scary good accuracy with that thing. Sam pops his head out on the drivers side of the car,

"Did you miss me?" He smiles down at us.

"Sam you son of a gun!" Ryan yells out over the gun fire. Smiling and running forward to climb into the truck. I follow suit, the herd is thinned enough that the rest of the troops can handle it from here. It was time to go get Belle.

"I was beginning to wonder what happened to you," I smile as Shadow pulls me up into the truck. He just flashes a wide, lopsided smile and returns to his position on the gun.

"Where to?" Sam shouts back.

"HQ" He gives me a confused look.

"That place is crawling with guards Lara," His voice is steady over the chaos.

"Annabelle is there and so is the Master," I tell him.

"Get going!" Shadow yells, guess I really am going to have to keep an eye on this weird obsession with Belle he seems to have going. His hands tighten on the handles of the gun, knuckles going white from the pressure. A dark look in his eyes. Dare I say he looked worried? Maybe he had actually found some kind emotion besides crazy inside that dark heart of his.

"You got it" Sam says. He punches the gas, the road bumpy thanks to the spend bumps. Shadow and I have to hold on for dear life. Over all the noise it is hard to make out but I am almost sure I hear Shadow whisper.

"Hang in there. I'm coming to get you."

The streets are almost empty the closer we get to the tower. What little forces remain are all at the weapons vault. The rest of the people seemed to have disappeared. Evacuated somewhere perhaps? Didn't matter really as long as they left this city to us.

Once we pull up to the man building we see three trucks parked out front. Men were coming out of one of them and rushing into the building. Probably on their way to get Belle. If she was still alive. I remember the broken window. I shrug the bad thoughts away. She is alive, she has to be.

I would have liked to sneak up and take out as many as we could quietly but someone else had other ideas. Shadow just unloads on them. Firing the gatling gun wildly into the mess of soldiers. They are taken completely off guard, the shots cause the men to scatter. All sense of leadership is thrown out the window. They are completely unorganized. This is what happens when you don't trust those you are with. Those of us that had to survive out in the wide world had built up trust and a calm that only comes with experience.

We rush the building, someone else climbs onto one of the other trucks and mans the mounted gun. Those who try to flee are quickly stopped in their tracks.

"Lara!" Sam calls from his truck, as I turn I see what he wants. Walkers. The last of the rippers pets. I could see the end of this horde. Nearly there. We had nearly won.

"Put them down!" I order and point towards the lumbering undead, "Stay here and guard the front. You come with me." Some of the other guys had followed us. I barked out orders like a seasoned general.

"Lara, I'll go with you" Ryan calls and Shadow was right beside him. Shadow had that look in his eyes. That one that said he had no need of my permission. He would do whatever he wanted and there was nothing I could do to stop him. My eyes slide to Ryan. These people needed him. The natural leader.

"No stay here. I need you to be my second in command" Ryan frowns and stops a couple of feet from me.

"You better come back," He wants me and all I can do is smile.

"You bet. You owe me dinner," He forces a smile as we separate and I head into the building with Shadow right on my heels. The elevator dings with finality and we step inside.

~~~~~~Annabelle

The halls are filled with his men. They all seem to be headed in the same direction. The same direction that he went. The same day Hannibal and I were bound to go. They must have an escape tunnel or maybe even a plane. Fucking coward gets one little injury and runs off like a little bitch. How many times did he make me endure so much more pain than that? Too many times to keep track. Guess you really can't handle a taste of your own medicine.

Hannibal and I dispatch of any who get in our way. It was all too easy really. Hannibal's size made them look like nothing more than playthings. And he is more than eager to 'play' with them. He was tearing these guys to pieces, The ones he didn't get to I stabbed or shot with my bow. I had to keep pulling them out of my felled foes just to make sure I didn't run out.

Lara and the others would be here soon. Good thing Hannibal and I left an easy trail of bodies to follow.

We come to a stop in front of a huge set of double doors. They are solid steel and needed some kind of passcode to open. I stare that little keypad down as if it will just give up and open for me. Damn it. What the hell would that psycho make the keycode be? This was going to be a pain in the ass to crack.

I jab at the old style keypad with its number and letters. Everything I can think of.

Master...

Doctor...

Superior humans..

I sigh, what the hell could it be. One little keycode between me and him. Key. Annabelle you are the key. His words from so long ago come back to me. It couldn't be so easy could it? I type in my name. The light above the door goes green and opens with a hiss. What a moron. For all his talk about his own genius he made the door code to his escape route the name of the person who hated him the most. I smash the keypad so the door stays open.

Beyond the door is a large room, A hangar. Rows of aircraft line the sides. Leaving a path like a runway in the middle leading outside. Now I just had to find the one he was on.

Hannibal move with stealth. Keeping our steps and actions silent. One little noise and it would give us away, everything in here echoed. Hannibal and I had been following the drips of blood all the way here but now they are gone. He must have found a way to stop the bleeding. Nothing could hide him from Hannibal's nose though.

The start of an engine draws my attention. Everything is focused on that one point. A plane starts to move and head out towards the runway. Damn it! I can't let him get away! Firing arrows at the plane engines in a desperate attempt to keep the plane from taking off. Most of the arrows are having no effect, that is until I get in a lucky hit. One of the shots weakens the metal paneling on the right side engine. The panel tears off as the plane picks up speed and starts to lift off.

I quickly switch weapons, aiming my rifle at the now exposed wiring. The shot rings out and I nearly scream in relief as I watch the engine catch fire. The plane managed to get off the ground but it is no longer gaining altitude. Its current momentum will take it outside the wall but with the engine on fire it won't get far.

Still I wanted to take no chances. I climb on Hannibal and we give chase. It is hard to keep upright without using my hands. My thighs scream from the strain. I am not giving this up. Every last bit of ammo I have is wasted chasing the plane. It costs several hundred yards outside the wall before it can't stay up anymore and comes crashing back down. That crash had to kill him right? Right then I make a promise to go check and find out. As soon as the city was ours. I have to know. I need to know.