The rotted railing snapped loudly in their ears, and the two YouTubers tumbled forward, yelling out in panic as they clawed at the air.
Chris felt his fingers brush against something, and he grabbed onto whatever it was. Sharp, splintered wood scratched his hands and jammed underneath his nails. He opened his eyes to see he had grabbed onto a wooden post, where part of the wood had rotted away, leaving a small cove in the side.
A sudden yank on his leg almost made his fingers slip. Looking down, he saw Trott gripping his ankle, and below him, rotten and bloated hands clawed at the base. Chris turned his head to look upwards, sure if he kept looking down his hands would slip.
The rest of their group was looking down at them in terror. Only the other Hatfilms trio, Team Crafted, Toby and Zoey were kneeling down to help them, while the rest must be trying to count how much time they'll have until more zombies come. The amount of noise they made on the fall had to attract some attention.
"Don't worry guys!" Ross yelled down to them. "You'll be alright!"
But they weren't going to be alright. The fall had dropped them quite a ways away from the top of the pier, and none of their arms would be able to reach them. Chris swallowed hard as the truth hit him.
Zoey suddenly stood up quickly. She remembered when they were on the boat, her and Joakim had dangled over the edge of the top of the boat to distract the zombies. She quickly tapped the nearest person to her, Toby, and told him her plan.
"You want to what?!" Toby asked in disbelief.
"It might be the only way to save them," Zoey said. "If we just-"
"F*ck!" Chris yells out, one hand slipping off the alcove. That hand was covered in bleeding scratches, but he placed his back. Trott hanging on his ankle wasn't helping much either....
A few minutes later, everyone of the group had Zoey by her waist or legs, and she was being dangled down to grab onto Chris' arms.
"I-I'm slipping!" Trott called. His hand moved down to Chris' sneaker, getting an inch closer to the clawing hands below. Chris started to swing at the movement, which makes his hand slip again. Trott is now kicking at the rotten hands which try to grab his own legs.
"Stay still!" Zoey said. She gets closer to Chris' hands, only an inch away.
A rotten hand manages to grab onto Trott's ankle. He yells out as he's yanked down, making Chris loose his hold on the alcove temporarily. Trott is yanked again by another hand, and then another. Chris has a harder time holding onto the alcove.
Just before Zoey's hand reaches Chris', Trott is grabbed and yanked by another, final, hand. Chris is yanked from the alcove, and both begin to fall.
Chris saw the others drifting farther and farther away. He suddenly felt very cold, and realized he fell in the water. Hands immediatly grabbed him on all sides, which kept him from getting a breath of air. His chest hurt as water poured into his mouth and nose, but that was the least of his problems when he felt pain along his arms, legs, neck and face. He screamed, and heard someone screaming along with him. He didn't have to turn his head to know it was Trott. His last thought before blacking out was hoping his family is okay.
***
The group on the pier stood in shock as they watched their friends be torn apart by the undead below. Their jaws hung open, until they came to their senses and pulled Zoey up.
Liam, who was watching the kids while the events turned, had a hand on each of the kids' shoulders. Elly and Caleb were holding onto each other, horror written across their faces. When the others turn to them slowly, without the two who fell, their expressions turn to grief and the two pull each other in a hug. Liam wraps his arms around them, and tried to comfort them.
