Restless

Chapter 4

Footsteps resonated on the dark tiles, and then stopped. Eleni and Neri had reached the police station, more or less alright. Other than the unsettling radio incident, they were fine. That is, the few spare moments before they entered the building. Gym bags were slung over each of their shoulders, ready to collect what they came for. But now that they were inside, they wished they'd never come at all.

Bodies littered the ground, one or two still barely moving and groaning. Blood streaks were on the glass walls, that gave a perfect view of the ravaged parking lot on the other side. The dead wore police uniforms, some with guns in their hands. The remainder of the dead bodies were civilians who had partially rotted, blood seeping out of their skulls. Restless. A battle already happened here, but thank God they missed it.

The women let their jaws hit the floor, looking at all the bloodied corpses that were just a few sparse feet apart. Except one of them wasn't a corpse...it was moving.

The Restless women raised her head from the policeman she was devouring, and had blood and gore lining her rotted mouth. She got to her feet, and started to limp towards the women. They both took steps backward, knowing that they couldn't fight unless they had the weapons they'd come for. She growled, and grew closer every second.

"Neri..." Eleni whimpered, and took a step back. "We should leave."

Neri began to backpedal too, until she saw the silver barrel of a pistol glint in a dead officer's hand. She bent down, and wrenched it from the death grip of the corpse with a sickening snap. Holding it in front of her, she pointed it at the Restless, before realizing she'd never shot a gun before. She was a city girl, she never hunted a day in her life.

Trying to copy what Rick did on The Walking Dead, she quickly checked if it was loaded. It was, but had only two bullets. Neri pulled the slide back, improvising anything that she was doing. She then placed both hands on it, shakily holding the gun. Eleni backed behind her, and Neri closed her eyes as she squeezed the trigger.

There was a loud bang that made their ears pop, but the Restless fell to the black tile floor, limp. They were about to continue walking, but a faint whisper stopped them.

"Wait..."

Eleni peered over Neri's shoulder, and pointed to the officer that the Restless had been feeding on. He stank of death and decay, and it was a miracle that he was still alive, even though they all knew that it wouldn't be long before he passed. Neri turned on her heel, and looked at him.

His stomach had been gouged away, and his innards were spilling over the side of the giant cavity the Restless had carved in him. Blood ran in heavily defined lines from the bite on his neck.

"Come...here..."

They both tiptoed over to him, avoiding the bodies of the deceased. When they were within a foot of him, they sat down on either of his sides.

He wheezed, and his eyelids fluttered. "There were...so many."

Eleni took his cold hand, and cradled it in her smaller, warmer ones. It was moments like this that made Neri wonder exactly what Eleni's intentions were. She was always so kindhearted, and always thought of the best for people. It made Eleni sick whenever someone she loved--or even a complete stranger--was left behind, and she was always willing to help. Adding that onto her beauty and angelic singing voice, and you could've sworn that she was a goddess.

In contrast, Neri always wanted to save herself. Save others too, like Eleni, but only those who were close to her. Neri would only risk her skin for someone she knew was worth it. It was selfish, yes, but at least she could admit it. It was hard to look away, knowing there was someone you could've helped. But Neri brushed it off, knowing that the battle may never have been worth it if they didn't know the person. She had less emotion than most people, and would oblige to dirtying her hands for the better.