Immunity Hunter

Chapter Thirty-Two - Jeiku Okamimuto

Things just keep getting worse. I didn't sign up for this. How could I have known things were this bad? If I could take it all back, I would.

"David!" I move through the halls looking for the skateboarder. "Where are you?" I know I need to stop yelling, but right now I couldn't care less if another Konadai attacks.

The halls are dark, limiting my sight to only a few feet in front of me. I still have my sense of smell and hearing. They come in handy when navigating the corridors. I have to find that guy. Hopefully, he didn't get himself killed trying to save me. I cup my hands around my mouth calling out David's name again. Nothing, not even a scream. I stop running, mainly because I'm out of breath but also due to not being able to see much around me. Being alone in this place sucks. The tiled floors are soggy wet, echoing my footsteps as I walk. I can't smell anything but mold. Within a few minutes, I make it to a set of double doors with a sign plastered to them. Light from the sun shines under the door. I strain my eyes to read it in this dim corridor. Do Not Enter? Yeah, right.

I kick open the doors. A blast of foul air slaps me in the face forcing me to fall to my knees gasping for clean air. The stink of rotting flesh fills my nose and mouth overloading my senses. I stare at the pile of dead Konadai in the corner of the room. It's clear someone was here weeks ago clearing out the place. Not only is the smell unbearable, but I can't hear anything around me. Only a deep, chilling silence sending horrifying shivers down my spine. My ears twitch waiting to hear some sign of life.

Okay, this is a bad idea. I put my arm over my mouth and enter the room then close the door behind me.

"It's about time you got here," says a voice from across the room.

"David?"

"Who else would it be?" David leans against a wall next to another doorway with his hands in his pockets.

I smile; relieved this asshole didn't get himself killed. "Glad to see you weren't turned into a midday snack."

He smirks. "Yeah well, you owe me, dog boy." David removes his hands from his pockets; they're covered in black blood. "That thing put up a pretty good fight, but it's no match for my Sound Blast."

I laugh, knowing that I do owe him for saving my ass. David walks over to me and throws his arm around my neck.

"Yeah, but anyway, where's Hikari? Did you find her?"

The mood changes quick. I hang my head, pulling away from David. I can see it in his eyes, he knows she's dead. I want to tell him that I tried, I watched her die and there was nothing I could do.

"She's ..." I hesitate, trying to pick my words carefully.

David grits his teeth and punches the wall behind my head. I don't know if he meant to punch me or not, then again, he probably wouldn't have missed if it was meant for my face. Without saying a word, he walks to the door across the room. He stops in the doorway, clinching his fist.

"We were supposed to watch her. I never understood why we needed a girl on our team, but orders are orders. We don't do too well with girls anyway." He turns to me with a sinister grin. "Looks like it's just you and me, dog boy."

He walks through the door into another corridor. "Are you coming or what?" he yells back at me. "The sky bridge is this way."

Of course I'm coming, I think to myself. There's no way he's leaving me here alone. A few questions flow into my mind. What sort of squad is this? They don't seem like a normal squad that I've met before. Three guys working alone that refuse to have any girls on their team seems like a no girls allowed club more than a squad. David got over the news of Hikari quick. He seemed more upset about a failed assignment than losing a squad member. But they did save Nevin and me, even if they didn't want to.

We walk through the large passageway passing a set of broken elevators. I look up and see a sign with an arrow pointing toward the "Sky Bridge". We're getting close. All that's left to do if go up a set of stairs to the third floor.

It's a good thing this area has a lot of windows because without Hikari's light we wouldn't be able to see much of anything. Moments pass, it feels like we've walked through the same hall three times already. I'm starting to get bored, part of me needs some action, but maybe I just need a nap. Finally, we make it to the bridge connecting the two towers that make up this insanely huge hospital.

"After you," David says, smiling at me.

I let out a small sigh while stepping through the entrance of the bridge. It's still bright outside, which is a good thing. At least we'll be out of here before nightfall. Everyone knows you don't want to be stuck here after dark.

It only takes a minute to cross the bridge. David makes sure to stay close to me. We get to a fork not sure which way to go. I turn to David to see if he has any ideas.

"We just need to go down," he says. I agree. Down is the only way out of here.

"Either end of this hall will lead to some stairs, I'm sure," I say, looking around. I'm not sure, but each hall has to lead to some sort of staircase. David nods, turning to go right. I follow behind him, focusing m attention on my hearing in case something tries to sneak up on us. If we keep moving, we should be in the clear.

The hallway gets dark again with no windows to let in sunlight. This is just great, now I can't see anything.

Something grabs my arm and I jump back. That's when I hear David laughing. The asshole is trying to scare me. I shake off the fear and keep moving forward. I can see some light shining from underneath some double doors in front of us. I'm hoping it's the staircase.

We both pick up speed and approach the exit. I grab on to the handle of one of the doors and pull it open. It's another hallway with windows on the left side. No stairwell, but we can now see where we're going.

David looks up and points at an exit sign above our heads. The arrow points ahead toward another exit sign. We follow the arrows until we reach the back stairwell. I swing open the door and to my surprise, the staircase is lit up by the glow from the sun. Each floor has a large window. These are the only windows that I've seen so far that haven't been shattered. David and I sprint down the stairs to the second floor. I stop for a moment to catch my breath. All this moving has me tired—and hungry. I knew I shouldn't have skipped breakfast. The dust and mildew clog my senses making my stomach turn.

"Are you quitting on me now?" David asks, slapping me on my back.

I glare at him. "No, I'm just trying not to puke."

He snickers and races down to the first floor. I catch my breath and follow him. I really don't want to get stuck in the place alone.

"Hold on!" I call after him.

David waits for me at the bottom of the stairs. He rests his hand on the door handle looking back at me as if to say "are you ready?" I nod, motioning for him to push open the door. We're nearly home free.