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The Two Survivors - Chpt 8 [English - US]

The Two Survivors [English - US]



Description:

 The Two Survivors is a fan comic and book series, created by Antony Bindilatti and in suggestion and in partnership with Priscilla2Warrior, also known as Priscilla McGee. The series brings together different stories from the characters from famous series such as Claymore (trademark of Norihiro Yagi and Madhouse Studio) and The Walking Dead (Robert Kirkman and Telltales Games by The Walking Dead: Michonne), all focusing on some journeys, some action. and some fun with your favorite characters (and some less).

 The story focuses on two young girls: Priscilla and Paige. Priscilla is a newly formed Organization warrior after taking her place as Number 2, and Paige is one of the survivors after a zombie apocalypse devastated Georgia and turned victims into Walkers.

 And when the two survivors meet, a long, tireless journey begins and they will have to fight to survive.

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Chapter 8

Minutes have passed since the remaining Predators left the burning camp. Tony was hiding in the middle of the local vegetation as he watched the last motorcycle leave the place.

With weapons in hand, he takes a step back, the orange color of the flames losing intensity as he drives into the darkness. After that, his silhouette disappeared.

////

In the cabin, in the middle of the night, the survivors were sleeping in their beds and on the couches. Alice and her children were in one of the rooms sleeping in the same bed, while Christine slept in another room. Paige slept on the couch in the living room with Priscilla leaning on her sword stuck in the wooden floor. Raj was counting the medicines and medical supplies they had gotten from the Predators during their escape. His eyes were getting heavy with sleep. For a brief pause, he yawned and went back to his tasks. Besides, he felt that it was enough for now, opting to go to bed.

Everything seemed normal. The survivors slept peacefully in a place they could call home. It wasn't much, but it was enough to get them through the night.

However, this peace would be short-lived. At this moment, the sound of motorcycles and tricycles could be heard getting louder. Priscilla's eyebrows furrowed, feeling that something was not right.

A few motorcycles stopped near the cabin. Their drivers got out with cans of gasoline and kerosene, pouring the contents on the door, floor, roof and walls. Priscilla frowned tightly, smelling the containers dumping all their flammable contents around the house.

And at the last minute, some bikers arrived with glass bottles towards the cabin. They contained kerosene with cloth handkerchiefs soaked in oil and gasoline. And at the tip, they set them on fire, turning the bottles into Molotov cocktails. The bikers, laughing with those homemade weapons in their hands, threw them against the cabin. Some of them broke on impact when they hit the floor, the roof and the walls, while others hit the glass windows and others fell intact, spilling kerosene that then spread the flames violently.

Priscilla's head turned from side to side, her eyebrows furrowing tightly. The smell of smoke began to bother the survivors, with Paige, Christine, Mark, Andrew, and Raj gradually waking up.

“Ugh. What is that horrible smell?” Paige asked, getting up from the couch.

To her unpleasant surprise, she heard the sound of the window being broken by an object being thrown with force. And as it fell, the bottle broke on the floor, expanding the kerosene bathed in fire around the place. Paige was shocked. Priscilla stood up with her sword and uniform. She headed towards the young sniper to help her.

“Paige, are you okay?” asked the Number 2 warrior.

“I'm… I'm fine.” the shooter replied. But from the smell of smoke that was making it hard to breathe and the fire spreading throughout the house, it was clear that it wasn't okay.

“What happened?!”

“I don't know! Someone must have done something to get us out of the game!” replied Priscilla.

During their brief conversation, they heard the sound of an object falling near them. It was a piece of the wooden flooring from the upper floor. The warrior countered it with her sword, saving herself and Paige.

“We have to find the others and get out of here! It's no longer safe for us to stay here with this arsonist devouring us with fire and smoke!”

“I agree, Priscilla!”

The two survivors ended their conversation and continued upstairs. Part of the cabin began to be devoured by the flames. Some pictures and paintings were losing their colors to a charcoal black. The walls twisted, with pieces of the floor and roof giving way and the windows shattered into shards. Priscilla went ahead to clear the way to the rooms on the upper floor.

Arriving at the top, the girls were shocked by the flames spreading violently. Paige was coughing from the smoke. As a measure to ease the inhalation, she covered her nose with the collar of her blouse.

“Alice! Mark! Andrew! Raj! Christine!” Priscilla and Paige called out their teammates' names. No response. The sound of the fire intensifying made it hard to hear anyone. Once again, they called out.

On the second attempt, the two heard a man's voice amid the flames. It was Raj.

“Priscilla! Paige! Over here!”

The two girls ran to one of the bedrooms. The access was blocked by several pieces of burning wood. Raj could be seen kneeling, with Alice unconscious, being supported in his arms. Andrew and Mark were close to Christine as she tried to revive the boys' mother.

When the fire started, Raj and Christine tried to rescue the mother and children and escape, but the adult woman was hit in the head by a piece of beam. The boys were frightened and Christine tried to revive Alice, but to no avail. The smoke they had inhaled was slowly taking down the survivors.

“Christine! Raj!” Paige called.

“Paige! Priscilla! Quick, get us out of here!”

“Hang in there! Help is coming!” Priscilla exclaimed.

It was too hot to move with her hands. Instead, the warrior used her sword, striking several blows at the rubble. Since there were several, she had to maximize her Yoki, breaking the pieces of wood at an impressive speed. And with the last movement, Paige ran to help them.

“Come on! Come on, before it's too late!” the young sniper called.

Paige, Raj and Christine got up to carry Alice on their shoulders. Andrew and Mark ran towards the exit. Since it was very hot and bright, they couldn't see the two boys running ahead. Priscilla helped the adults to get out more carefully. Paige was almost fainting, being helped by her guardian and the doctor.

////

Outside the cabin, Alice's two sons emerged partially marked with soot and coughing. The greatest danger of being killed in the burning cabin has passed, and now they have to wait for the others.

However, for their unfortunate situation, they heard the sound of motorcycles approaching. The light from the headlights grew brighter, frightening Mark and Andrew. One of them came at high speed, with the biker reaching out in line with the younger boy, grabbing him by the shirt and pulling him hard. Then it was the older boy's turn. The two screamed in fear, being separated during the chaos of the night.

////

Minutes later, the survivors were outside the cabin, destroyed by fire. Alice was gradually regaining consciousness. Her eyes opened, noticing a dark ceiling with several stars and a few orange sparks emerging upwards. Her breathing was a little compromised after inhaling smoke. Some coughing could be heard as she tried to expel what was left in her lungs.

Her recovery of consciousness was soon noticed by Raj, Christine, Priscilla and Paige.

“Huh? Priscilla. Paige. Raj. Christine.” Alice said as she tried to stand up.

Raj told her not to strain herself. “Slow down, Alice. You don't have to strain yourself to get up.”

Alice rested her left hand on her forehead, rubbing it. “What happened?”

“You were hit by a piece of the cabin beam. It almost hit your head hard enough to break your skull or neck.”

“Luckily the worst didn't happen.” Christine added, smiling at her.

Alice stood up slowly. Seeing only the four survivors, although two were missing, she began to get worried.

“Mark? Andrew?” the boys' mother called. Her eyes began to grow anxious. “Where are my children?!”

Priscilla and Paige looked at each other and then at Alice. They were worried.

“They were with us when we went to get you upstairs.” Paige replied, looking worried.

“But they left before we could be sure it was safe.” Christine replied.

“And after that, we left the cabin but there was no sign of Mark and Andrew.” Priscilla replied.

Hearing that, Alice's eyes were wet with tears.

“Mark… Andrew… where did you go?” she asked in distress. Her hands covered her eyes, her eyes falling apart with sadness. “I want my children. I want my children back.”

Paige, Christine, Raj, and Priscilla looked at each other and then at the boys' crying mother. They did everything they could to comfort her. They hugged her and stroked her hair.

“We're not giving up on your children, Alice. We're going to find them.” Priscilla said, determined to find Andrew and Mark.

“And we'll get them back safe and sound'” Paige added.

“I know you will, young girls.” Alice replied, recovering from her tears. “No mother wants to see her children suffer at the hands of any evil person in this world.”

“Come with us. We'll have a better chance of finding them.”

Alice shook her head forward. Determined and with her life force recovered, she stood up with the help of the girls. Suddenly, they heard the sound of Christine calling the three of them and Raj.

“Hey guys, take a look here!” called the young nurse.

Hearing that, the group approached her. Christine pointed out tire tracks on the earthen floor, with some crushed plants. There were some pieces of bottles, the same ones used to destroy the cabin where they lived.

Priscilla crouched down to look. Running her fingers over them, she could feel that they were recent.

“These tire tracks are recent. Someone passed through here, and in large numbers.”

“We know that the Predators had several motorcycles and tricycles.” Paige said, remembering the time they had been in that place. “But we destroyed them during our escape from the camp.”

“I remember they had a small detachment of bikers that operated outside of Marlon's reach.” Christine replied. She remembered them after the hard experience she had when they stopped her when Jackson and Caesar were alive.

“Yes. They were also the ones who captured me and took me to the Predator camp when I was in the clinic.” Raj replied, completing the nurse's speech.

“And from what I heard, their commander came close to being appointed by the Predators. I believe there was some conflict between him and Marlon.”

Paige was startled to hear that. “Are you suggesting that we are dealing with the survivors of the Jungle Predators?”

“Or with a group of exiles by Marlon for some power struggle?” Priscilla asked with a neutral look.

“Perhaps. But the fact is: these men know that we were part of Marlon's slave labor force and that they discovered that the camp was destroyed.” said Christine.

“Yes. Just before we went to sleep, I noticed that smoke appeared in the middle of that place.” said the swordswoman girl.

“But we didn't set their camp on fire!” Paige replied nervously.

“I know we didn't, Paige. But I know there was someone who stayed in the forest and must have set the Predators' camp on fire. Because of that, it provoked the survivors' anger and came after us.”

The two girls were about to continue their conversation in the middle of the night. However, they heard the voice of the kidnapped boys' mother, drawing Priscilla and Paige's attention.

“Hey guys, I don't like to interrupt your conversation, but I don't want to sit idle waiting for the day to break. We need to find Mark and Andrew and rescue them.” Alice said, standing up with an AK-47 in her hand. Raj, Paige, Priscilla and Christine agreed with her.

“I'll go ahead. I can follow the trail and guide you to where the Predators hid the two boys.”

With the conversation over, the group continued following Priscilla through the tire tracks on the dirt and vegetation. Paige looked at the still-burning cabin as she walked forward. The place she had once been sleeping grew smaller as she walked away from it. Then she looked back ahead.

////

Three hours had passed since the bikers set fire to the cabin where Paige, Priscilla and the others were sleeping; and kidnapped Mark and Andrew in the midst of the chaos. The survivors walked a long way, following Priscilla guiding the group through the tire tracks. Part of their faces and clothes were marked with ash and soot. They had no time to wash themselves or their clothes. And what was left in the cabin that could not be recovered was lost among the rubble. Food, water, medicine, ammunition and other supplies.

The survivors' eyes were dark and exhausted. Traveling without a regular rest made it difficult for the group to continue their journey to find the remaining Predators and rescue Alice's children.

Priscilla stopped to watch her colleagues approaching. The marks continued towards the forest. The same one they had left after defeating the bandits and the evildoers. Her heart raced as she remembered the moment she used her Yoki to kill Marlon and his men in order to save her colleagues and friends. She placed her left hand on her chest, gripping it tightly.

“Priscilla?” Paige called.

Hearing that, Number 2 turned to answer her. The group was gathered.

“The trail goes towards the forest.”

Paige and the others nodded and went ahead. As they entered the forest, they could see some rays of sunlight touching some rocks, bushes and trees. They could hear the sound of birds singing to each other. The waterfall and the stream echoed. And they could feel the breeze touching their faces, ruffling Christine and Alice's long hair.

////

The journey continued to be exhausting for the group. The survivors looked around them and there was nothing different, except for trees, bushes, rocks and some roots.

Everything became more difficult due to sleep, hunger and exhaustion from walking so much. When he was about to take another step, Raj fell. He was tired. Priscilla, Paige and the two women stopped to help him.

“Raj.” Alice called.

“Raj, are you okay?” Priscilla asked, trying to help the Indian doctor get up.

The other women came over to help him. However, Raj was exhausted. He no longer wanted to continue with the mission of searching for the Predators and rescuing Mark and Andrew. He kept the AK rifle in his hand and the bag of medical supplies on his back.

“Go. Go without me. I'll be a burden to you in the state I'm in.” said the doctor, wanting to be left behind.

“No, Raj. We're not leaving you to continue our search.” Paige said seriously.

“I need to rest after all this travel. There's no point in continuing in the state I'm in.”

“Raj, we can't stop to rest. Every minute we spend sleeping is another step for the Predators to take my children away. And I won't allow that!” Alice exclaimed. Sleep was also affecting her senses.

“Can't you see?! Sleep and exhaustion are messing with our senses and emotions. In the current situation, our coordination as a team will be compromised!”

“I won't accept this!” Alice exclaimed, almost raising her hand to slap the doctor in the face. Her eyes were red with anger and pain. However, Priscilla held her back. “Let me go, Priscilla!”

“Alice, Raj is right. We can't go on like this.” said the young warrior, holding Alice's hand.

“I… I won't abandon my children.” said the boys' mother, crying.

“I know I would do anything to save them and protect them from the dangers of the world. I know that.”

“Then help me! Help me… find them!”

In an instant, Alice burst into tears. She fell to her knees as Paige and Christine comforted her. Priscilla stood, her eyes almost blank, but a tear rolled down her face. She remembered when she was little and her mother would comfort her, chasing away the little girl's nightmares.

Priscilla knelt down to comfort Alice. She placed her right hand on her face, calming her in the process.

“We're going to find Mark and Andrew. But to do that, we need to have our strength back. If one of us stays behind, we won't have a chance of facing those guys and bringing your children back. We need to be united. All of us.” said the Number 2 to Alice, comforting her.

Alice looked at Priscilla's face. The warrior could see the tears streaming down from the distressed mother's face.

“But, Priscilla…”

“I know you would do anything for your children. Just like my parents did for me and my sisters.”

Alice hugged Priscilla tightly. Paige, Christine and Raj watched the two survivors in a moment of emotion and overcoming. The warrior's hand slid through the adult woman's hair, caressing her scalp.

“You're right, Priscilla.” the boys' mother agreed. “I'm sorry.”

“It's okay, Alice. That's why we are here. To help each other.”

Priscilla and Alice got back on their feet. Reunited with Paige, Christine, and Raj, the group continued to a clearing to rest. The journey into the forest was exhausting for the survivors. With a little food and water, they were able to eat enough to replenish their strength. Since there were no beds, they settled for the trees and the grassy ground to sleep.

////

At that very moment, Alice's youngest son opened his eyes. To his surprise, he noticed several men walking from one place to another. Some were carrying firearms, others were sitting, examining their vehicles, and others were talking to each other, laughing and drinking bottles of beer or whiskey.

They were outside several wooden houses, with thatched roofs and banana leaves to protect them from the sun, rain or any other environmental effects. Apparently they were in another camp. This one was a little far from the one belonging to the Predators that belonged to Marlon and Celine. Unlike that one, they didn't have diesel generators to power the floodlights or barbed wire fences and sharp wooden stakes. This one was poorly protected, with only vegetation and a few towers for protection.

Mark was scared. Seeing these people with guns was a sign that they wanted to keep him captive. When he tried to get up, he noticed that his feet and hands were tied with rope. He couldn't stand or pick up anything. He could only drag himself from one place to another.

And to top it all off, he heard the sound of two bandits approaching. And they took his older brother with them, throwing him to the ground roughly. One of them even laughed in the process. Mark crawled to see his brother.

“Andrew. Andrew.” his younger brother called.

Andrew heard him. Looking up, he could see the marks of a slap on his cheek, his left eye, and a cut on the right side of his forehead and lips, oozing blood. Mark was horrified, but the older brother calmed him down.

“Hey. Don't worry about it. I've had tougher times than this.”

The younger brother laughed at Andrew's words. Despite his attempts, they both knew they were in a very miserable environment.

“I don't think it was a good idea for us to leave the cabin alone that night.”

“I know, Mark. But you don't have to blame yourself for it.”

“What? We went ahead when we could have helped Priscilla and Paige get Mom out of the burning cabin.” Mark said, crying.

“Hey Mark. Listen, Mommy is coming to get us out of here. She's coming with Priscilla, Paige, Christine and Raj. They're going to…” Andrew said, trying to calm his younger brother down. However, just as he was about to finish speaking, he heard a man's voice coming into the room. It was Rudolf, the new leader of the Predators.

Seeing him coming, Andrew's eyes widened in fear.

“I hope you're not planning on becoming a punching bag, little boy. Otherwise, you'll meet the same fate as your brother.” said the man with a cruel look as he rubbed his fingers together.

Having said that, Andrew and Mark remained silent. The older boy had memory lapses because he was alone in a dark room, with a light bulb on. He was tied to a chair, receiving various types of punches, kicks and slaps from Rudolf. He went through several episodes of torture and pure humiliation. At one point, they threw his glasses on the floor for his boss to step on.

Rudolf approached the boys, maintaining his posture and patience. Andrew and Mark tried to distance themselves from him, but being tied by their hands and feet made it difficult for them to escape. In an instant, the Predators' boss came with an intimidating look.

“Do you know why you are being kept here?”

The two boys were quiet. They looked at the cruel man with some discontent after having been kidnapped by his henchmen. Rudolf took this as a negative response.

“Very well. I tried to get the boy to open his mouth and tell me who was responsible for burning down our camp. But I saw that he is strong enough.”

Rudolf placed his left hand on Mark's left shoulder. The younger brother's eyes widened in fear.

“What are you going to do?!” the poor boy asked.

“I guess I'm going to have to make you spill your guts.”

“No!” Andrew exclaimed, trying to get up. “Leave my brother alone!”

In an instant, the Predator leader delivered another blow, knocking Andrew to the ground.

“Andrew!” Mark shouted.

“Come on, kid! Quit the crying!” Rudolf shouted, pulling Mark onto his shoulder.

Andrew was slowly recovering. He tasted blood in his mouth, almost to the point of spitting it out. He could hear the sounds of his younger brother screaming and crying as he was dragged away from him.

“Let me go, you big old man!”

Mark struggled to free himself from Rudolf's grip. But it was useless. The man was strong enough to withstand the boy's shaking of his shoulder.

“I hate tantrum-throwing kids!” the man exclaimed in his thoughts.

Andrew closed his eyes, crying for not having done anything to protect his beloved younger brother from that perfidious and cruel man. As the two of them moved away into the distance, one of the guards passed in front of them towards the vehicles. After that, they were no longer seen.

////

An hour had passed since Priscilla, Paige, Alice, Raj and Christine stopped to rest. The group was back on the trail towards the place where the remaining Predators were hiding, keeping Mark and Andrew in custody. Priscilla stayed in front to guide her colleagues. Alice was a little quiet after being calmed by the swordswoman. She looked in different directions, showing a certain degree of concern for her children. She was unaware of the horrors that Rudolf and his men were practicing on them.

The landscape remained the same. Trees and local vegetation covered a portion of the horizon. Paige, Christine and Raj had their weapons loaded and ready for a possible ambush.

Halfway through the journey, something made them stop. The Number 2 Warrior pulled her sword from its carrier. The sniper continued toward Priscilla.

“Priscilla? What happened?”

The warrior extended the blade on the ground, indicating that there were more tire tracks. Some of them diverged from the original path to the point that it was difficult to trace a precise route. The others were astonished to see that.

“See? Several vehicles changed direction. This indicates that these men are smarter than we imagined.”

“What do we do?” asked the boys' mother.

“It's dangerous if we split up to look for Mark and Andrew.” Raj replied.

“Yes. But if we take the other trail, we risk taking longer to find them.”

“Even then, we'd waste more time searching in opposite directions.” Paige said.

“Yes.” Priscilla agreed. “That's why we'll need to go back to their camp.”

“Priscilla, I hate to interrupt you.” Alice said, interrupting the Organization warrior. “What would be the point of returning to the Predator camp if there's nothing left there?”

“Because I would expect to find Mark and Andrew there. Or at least one of the men who served Marlon to tell us about the former members of his cruel troupe.”

“Priscilla is right, Alice.” Christine replied. “Maybe we have a chance by following this path.”

The boys' mother sighed worriedly. She didn't want to go back to that place, even if it was to find some clue about her sons. The memories she had of there were of her sons being placed in separate camps for forced labor and she almost met a cruel fate at the hands of the guards when she tried to help a sick Paige. Hearing Priscilla and Christine's words, she decided to follow them with the warrior's plan.

“Very well. Let's proceed with the main plan.”

The survivors and the mother of the kidnapped boys continued on their way to the ruins of the Predators' camp. Everything seemed normal during the journey to that place. The survivors' looks expressed some concern for the safety and well-being of the boys.

////

At the same time, Mark was taken by Rudolf to a metal chair secured with bolts and nuts. The armed men tied him to the arms of that object in the dark room of the camp. He was still crying, so one of the men slapped him in the face, making him shut up.

“If you keep crying like that, I'll make sure to silence you by shooting you in the head!” the dark-skinned man shouted.

The boy tried to stay as quiet as possible. His attention shifted from one corner to the other. And as he turned to the left, he noticed a man with a black beard approaching Rudolf with a metal tray. The leader's hand reached out to pick up one of the items. It consisted of a bone saw, a syringe equipped with a needle and a vial containing some kind of poison, serum or other liquid component, a pair of barbed wire cutters and a hammer.

“Wh-what are you going to do?” asked young Mark.

“I intended to use one of these tools on your brother, to extract the truth about who was the unfortunate person who destroyed the Predators' camp. But I thought better of choosing you for this experiment.”

Rudolf lifted the syringe loaded with serum with his right hand. He observed the contents mixed with air bubbles. He tapped it with his fingertip.

“This truth serum will make you say anything I ask you,” the man replied, pushing the syringe's plunger inwards, expelling the remaining air along with a small portion of the serum.

The poor boy's eyes widened in fear. Seeing that device loaded to be injected into his vein reminded him of a few episodes from when he was little. Mark was afraid of vaccines and injections of serum with medicine, so much so that he cried out of fear to the point of not wanting to take them. Until his parents comforted him, calming the agitated and scared boy.

Rudolf approached Mark. With his arm exposed and held by the restraints and the hands of the other guards, the boy felt the piece of cotton soaked in alcohol sliding across his skin. In an instant, the needle entered his arm, causing pain in the process as the chemical substance traveled through his circulatory system. The boy's tears flowed in pain. He tried to hold back his tears so as not to be shot by the guards or by the cruel man himself who was pushing the plunger deeper, slowly injecting the serum.

The syringe was half full. As the leader of the Predators continued with the injection, one of the guards approached him. A Caucasian man with a tattoo of Pit Bull dogs on his right arm, short black hair and a scar on the left side of his forehead.

“Rudolf. Our men spotted the survivors from the cabin heading toward the ruins of the camp.” the sniper reported.

Hearing that, their leader turned around while still injecting Mark. “How many are there, Thomas?”

“One adult woman, one adult man, and three girls. One of them carries a large sword.” replied the man named Thomas.

Hearing about the group of survivors and their respective descriptions, Mark's eyes widened with happiness, feeling that his mother, Raj, Christine, Priscilla and Paige were on their way to find him and Andrew and rescue them. However, Rudolf's eyes showed his displeasure upon learning that the group had survived the cabin fire.

“Get your bikes ready! Go after them before they find us.”

“Yes sir.” Thomas replied. Then he and the other guards left Rudolf alone with Mark. The door, made of solid steel, closed with the last man leaving that dark room. The sound of it locking created a dark and dense atmosphere.

“Now that we are alone, I have several questions and I want you to answer them without any resistance.” Rudolf said, cruelly approaching the boy for the interrogation.

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