Are We Alive?

Twenty-Five: Baby's Breath

Baby's Breath–Everlasting Love; happiness; pure in heart

I typed the words "Parade of Dead" and automatically, my mind just supplied a G note. But, I have a different MCR song in mind for this chapter.

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Winter ended two and a half months later and Spring was just beginning when Marshal started having contractions every now and again. Several false alarms kept everyone on edge.

"Constant Vigilance." Rin joked. Only Bon, Marshal, and Chelsea got the reference.

Finally, another week and a half and Marshal was ready to pop. A contraction came and she dismissed at as a false alarm again, but about half an hour later, another one came. A minute after that, her water broke.

That happened for hours, the time between the contractions slowly getting shorter. At fifteen minutes between each one, Rin got Yukio. He may have looked calm, but that poor kid was freaking out inside. His brother, on the other hand, was actually calm.

Rin put down blankets and Yukio had Marshal lay down on the recliner, putting the legs up so it was easier for her to lay. The maternity dress she was wearing was lifted so Yukio could see what he needed to. Contractions started getting more painful and Yukio monitored her dilation. So far, no complications.

Everyone else went to their places–they'd been planning for this for a while. Shiemi and Shura have been trained by Yukio to help him during the birth. Konekomeru and Izumo prepared the supplies and would check the babies when they were born. Chelsea was there for moral support. Bon, Rin, and Kinzou were on guard duty because the screaming would attract the dead. Shima watched the kids, but they could all fight if they needed to.

Marshal complained about her shit luck in having multiple children in the middle of the Apocalypse when there were no pain meds left. Chelsea held her hand and let her squeeze as hard as she needed to when contractions cane and went. The time between contractions got shorter and shorter until finally, screaming sounded from the house and Rin winced, standing anxiously in his place at the front of the house. They'd already secured the back and sides of the house, so the dead could only come from the street in front of them.

It took maybe an hour and a half before the dead had located the source of the sounds and finally made it to the house. They came in one by one for a blessed couple hours. Then, they came in small groups. Still fine, holding strong.

They started coming in bigger groups and the flow was constant enough that they couldn't afford to take any more breaks to eat and drink.

Finally, decently big crowd came for them and by that point, there were bodies piled up in a line like a barrier. The dead tripped over their own and simply crawled to the house. It was easier to kill them that way, but there were just so many.

Rin, Bon, and Kinzou were getting tired, but they didn't stop fighting.

Hours passed and there was a short break in Marshal's screaming. They wondered if all the babies had been born yet, but half an hour later, the screaming started up again and they all sighed.

Rin was getting shaky. It was still freezing at nighttime and he had used up most of his energy. He was shaking so bad he could barely hold his sword and axe. Bon wasn't much better off and Kinzou was shivering violently.

"Alright. We won't last much longer. It's time to herd the cattle. Bon, go get in the Subaru and blast the horn. Lead them around the cul de sac and out. I'll follow up with the Mazda. Kinzou, you pick them off until they're away from the house. Then you get your brother to bring you some food and water and stand guard on the porch. Got it?" At their nods, they separated.