The next morning, Jaxon woke up to the sound of gunfire and distant zombie growls outside.
Cindy burst into his room, her face pale with worry. "Brother! There are military trucks and soldiers outside. What should we do?"
Still half-asleep, Jaxon quickly got up and looked out the window. Two armored vehicles were rolling down the street, with about fifteen soldiers riding on them.
"They don't look like they're here to rescue anyone," he said quietly. "They're probably clearing the area of zombies." He turned to Cindy. "Tell Natasha and Mom to stay in their rooms. These zombies react to noise, so make sure everyone stays quiet, and no one goes outside."
"Okay, Brother," Cindy said before hurrying out to warn the others.
Jaxon took a deep breath and summoned his DMR. Peering through the scope, he began watching the soldiers closely from the window. They were less than two blocks away, close enough for him to see their faces through the scope.
.....
"Soldiers! Help! I'm here!" a woman screamed as she rushed out of her house, waving her hands in panic. She ran straight toward the armored vehicles, her voice echoing down the empty street.
"Ma'am, stay inside your home!" one of the soldiers shouted. "It's not safe outside! Go back!"
But she didn't listen. Her cries just drew more unwanted attention. From the corners of nearby alleys, zombies started to stagger out, their heads snapping toward the sound of her voice.
"Help me! Please!" she cried again, her voice shaking with fear.
The soldiers aimed their rifles in her direction, trying to get a clear shot. "Move to the side, Ma'am! Get out of the way!" one of them yelled, but she kept running toward them, blinded by panic.
"Run!" a soldier shouted again, but his warning came too late.
A zombie lunged from behind, tackling her to the ground. She screamed as its teeth sank deep into her shoulder, blood spraying across the pavement. The soldiers rushed forward, firing at the creature, but the damage was already done.
From his window, Jaxon lowered his rifle a little, his eyes narrowing as he clicked his tongue.
'Why didn't you listen?' he thought. 'That was just stupid...'
Jaxon adjusted his rifle, his eyes focused through the scope.
'This will be another chance to kill zombies,' he thought. 'They'll draw the horde and fight them head-on while I support from a distance. A win-win situation.'
Moments later, gunfire erupted outside.
"To your positions, soldiers!" a commanding voice shouted. "Fire!"
The soldiers unleashed a storm of bullets. Muzzles flashed, echoing through the street as they gunned down the woman, now turned, and the swarm of zombies closing in from all sides.
Watching from his window, Jaxon steadied his breathing and joined in. Each suppressed shot from his rifle dropped another target before it got too close to the soldiers.
'Hope they don't clear all of them,' he thought, tracking another target through his scope. 'If they wipe them out, I'll be left with no prey.'
Down below, two soldiers took cover behind a vehicle. One of them glanced toward the fallen bodies nearby.
"Hey, did you take those out?" he asked, confused. "I didn't see anyone aiming over there."
"No, not me," the other replied, reloading his rifle.
"Stay focused!" their officer barked. "More are coming, front side!"
Jaxon smirked a little as he reloaded another round. 'Perfect, keep them busy just like that.'
But the sound of gunfire had drawn even more of them.
From every street and alley, zombies started sprinting toward the noise. They were too fast. Their twisted bodies moved like wild athletes, charging in from every direction. Within minutes, hundreds had already gathered.
"Damn," Jaxon muttered under his breath as he watched through the scope. "Isn't this a bit too much? How did they get here so fast?"
He reloaded quickly and started firing again, each suppressed shot hitting its mark.
"Start the car!" the officer shouted. "We're pulling back! Move, move!"
The soldiers began retreating toward their vehicles, firing as they went. One by one, they climbed inside while covering each other, but the horde was already closing in.
"Go! Step on it!"
The engine roared as the vehicle tried to push through, ramming into the crowd. Bodies slammed against the armored sides, blood smearing across the metal.
Then...
"Crack, Crack."
The sharp sound of shattering glass echoed through the street.
Jaxon's eyes widened as he saw it. From every nearby house, infected burst through windows and doors, some leaping from second floors straight onto the vehicles and soldiers below.
"Infected from above! Shoot them!" one of the soldiers yelled.
But the vehicle jerked violently as it sped down the cracked road, making it almost impossible for them to aim. Bullets flew wildly, missing their marks. Then one soldier screamed. An infected had landed on top of him, biting deep into his neck.
That was only the beginning.
More infected dropped from above, crashing onto the vehicles like predators. Soldiers fought back desperately, but they were outnumbered, their formation broken in seconds.
Inside one of the cars, a zombie lunged at the driver. The man struggled, punching and pushing, but the fight caused him to lose control of the wheel. The vehicle swerved left and right before flipping over completely.
Bang!
It slammed against a nearby house, crushing part of the wall. The soldiers inside groaned, some crawling out, others didn't move.
The horde was already upon them.
'No!' Jaxon gritted his teeth as he saw it happen. He adjusted his aim and started firing rapidly, trying to keep the swarm away from the few survivors still fighting.
Thup! Thup! Thup!
Each suppressed shot dropped another infected, their heads bursting open one after another. But there were too many. For every zombie he killed, more came crawling from every corner.
Before long, the swarm engulfed the overturned vehicle completely, dragging down the last of the soldiers as their screams filled the air.
.....
The other military vehicle kept moving, swerving left and right as it tried to escape. The soldiers inside fired out the windows, mowing down anything that came close. But there were too many. The streets were packed with infected, and no matter how fast the driver went, more kept flooding in from every corner.
Zombies slammed against the sides of the vehicle, some even clinging onto it. The weight threw the car off balance until it skidded sideways. One of the tires burst, and the whole vehicle flipped onto its side with a loud crash.
Moments later, the swarm caught up. The soldiers inside barely had time to scream before the infected tore through the metal doors, dragging them out one by one. Soon, nothing was left but silence and blood.
'You've got to be kidding me!' Jaxon thought, his hands tightening around the rifle. 'They lost? Even with guns and vehicles? Now they've just brought more of those things here!'
He stayed still, watching from the window as the swarm spread through the neighborhood. He'd taken down dozens, but it hadn't been enough.