Free Web NovelChapter 264: Chapter 263 - It’s Back
ALJUN’S POV
The tank moved.
Aljun grabbed Lance by the back of his jacket and pulled him forward before Lance could look back. Marybeth caught Lance’s other side, but Lance was already running, his breath sharp and broken as he forced his legs under him. One hand kept pressing near his stomach, but he stayed on his feet because the tank had already taken another step.
"Run!" Arnulf shouted.
They broke down the street. Harry ran beside Arnulf. Archie stayed close behind them with his injured hand pressed to his chest, and Bert followed with his weapon raised. Chanse grabbed Tilly and pulled her forward, keeping her close to his side as she stumbled over the broken pavement.
Aljun looked back once and wished he had not.
The tank was still far, but the gap had already shrunk. They were sprinting, and Lance was running on whatever fear and pain had left in him, but the tank kept gaining. It bent without stopping, tore a chunk of concrete from the road, and threw it.
"Left!" Arnulf shouted.
Aljun yanked Lance sideways. Marybeth moved with them, and the concrete hit the street where they had been. The impact broke the pavement and sent pieces into Aljun’s back and legs. Lance stumbled from the pull, but he caught himself and kept running, teeth clenched as his hand dropped from his stomach and pumped at his side.
"Keep moving," Aljun snapped.
"I am," Lance gasped.
"Then don’t slow down."
A bent street sign came next. It spun through the air and hit the side of a building. Brick cracked. Dust fell over the sidewalk. Bert stumbled when he dodged, and Archie grabbed the back of his shirt with his good hand to keep him up. Tilly almost fell too, but Chanse pulled her close and kept running.
Every dodge broke their pace. Every broken step gave the tank more ground.
"Arnulf!" Aljun shouted as they ran. "She’s going to run once she gets close enough. We need to slow her down."
Arnulf looked ahead and pointed. "Garage. End of the block."
Aljun saw the concrete parking structure past the dead cars. It had low ceilings, thick pillars, and a broken entrance. They were all getting tired now. Even Aljun’s breathing had turned rough, and his legs were starting to stiffen. Lance was still running on his own, but Aljun kept one hand locked in his jacket and pulled whenever his stride shortened.
The tank threw again.
This one came low.
"Down!"
Aljun shoved Lance toward the pavement, and Lance dropped with him before the metal chunk cut over their heads. It slammed into a car ahead and shoved it sideways against the curb. Marybeth grabbed Lance’s sleeve before the sound finished.
"Up!" she shouted.
Lance pushed off the ground himself. His arms shook, but he got one foot under him, then the other. Aljun pulled him back into a run, and they reached the garage entrance as another piece of concrete hit the corner above them.
Dust spilled down from the broken edge. Lance ducked under it with one arm over his head. Aljun shoved him through the broken barrier before another projectile could hit.
Inside, the air turned colder. Their footsteps echoed against the concrete as they ran for the ramp.
"Ramp!" Arnulf shouted. "Stay on the ramp."
Lance took the incline with them, one hand dragging along the wall for balance. His breath broke every few steps, but he kept running. Behind them, concrete cracked as the tank reached the entrance. The ceiling caught her shoulder for one second. Then she forced herself through, breaking the edge of the opening as dust fell over her back.
"She’s inside," Aljun said.
Marybeth looked back once. "Keep moving."
The tank slowed in the garage, but not enough. The low ceiling forced her lower, and the pillars blocked a straight path, but she still pulled loose parts from the walls and cars and threw them up the ramp.
A car door hit a pillar and spun across the floor. A tire bounced off the wall and rolled between their feet. A broken concrete block struck the ceiling and rained dust over Tilly before Chanse pulled her behind a pillar.
Arnulf looked across the garage. "Separate. Make her choose."
"No," Marybeth said.
"If we stay together, she crushes all of us." Arnulf pointed across the level. "Chanse, take Tilly to the far side. Harry, Archie, Bert, with me. Marybeth, Aljun, keep Lance moving up."
They split before the tank threw again.
Chanse pulled Tilly between the pillars, keeping her low and close. Arnulf moved the other way with Harry, Archie, and Bert. Harry fired to draw the tank’s head toward him, while Bert struck a loose pipe against a car door and Archie backed them with his gun raised in his good hand.
The tank turned toward the sound.
Aljun pulled Lance higher up the ramp.
"Keep running," he said.
"I am," Lance said.
Marybeth shot Aljun a look. "Less talking. More pulling."
The tank threw something into the upper level.
"Lance!" Marybeth shouted.
Aljun dove sideways as the concrete hit the ramp near them. His hands slipped from Lance’s jacket, and he hit the floor hard. His palm scraped across the rough concrete as he tried to stop himself.
The crash shook the level.
For a second, Aljun heard nothing but a hard ringing in his ears.
Then Marybeth screamed Lance’s name again.
Aljun pushed himself up and looked back.
Lance was down. A broken slab of concrete had pinned one of his legs against the floor. He was trying to pull free, but his face had gone white. Marybeth had both hands on the slab, straining to move it.
The tank was coming up the ramp.
Not fast yet.
Close enough.
Aljun looked at Lance. Then he looked at the service exit ahead, a dark opening leading out of the garage and back to the street.
If he ran now, he could make it.
The tank’s head turned toward the noise from Arnulf’s group, then back toward Lance.
Aljun crawled backward.
His body moved before he decided anything.
He could live.
That was the thought.
He could leave them, get through the service exit, and disappear into the dark before the tank chose him. That was what he had always done. He found the opening. He took it. He stayed alive.
Marybeth pulled at the concrete again and failed.
Lance pushed at her shoulder, his mouth moving. Aljun could not hear him through the ringing, but he knew what Lance was trying to say.
Go.
Aljun looked at the exit. "Fucking hell." He ran back. His legs moved toward Lance before his fear could stop them.
Marybeth looked up at him with fear in her eyes.
"Pull him on three," Aljun said.
She nodded fast.
Aljun grabbed the slab with both hands. His scraped palm burned. He planted his feet and pulled.
"One."
The tank was closer.
"Two."
Lance bit down on a sound.
"Three."
Aljun and Marybeth pulled hard. The slab shifted enough for Lance to yank his leg free. He cried out and almost collapsed, but Aljun caught him by the jacket and hauled him up.
"Run!" Aljun shouted.
They ran for the service exit. Lance’s injured leg dragged for the first few steps, then adrenaline forced it under him again. Marybeth kept one arm around his waist. Aljun pulled from the front, cursing because Lance was heavier now, because his own legs were shaking, because the tremor under the floor had changed.
The tank was running.
"Fuck," Aljun shouted, pulling both of them with him.
He did not want to look back.
He did anyway.
They were going to die.
The tank’s eyes were locked on them now. She lowered her head and drove forward, no longer slowed by choosing targets, no longer distracted by the noise from below.
Then a gunshot hit her shoulder.
The impact twisted her upper body.
Harry stood near the lower ramp with a shotgun in both hands.
"Run!" he shouted.
He pumped the shotgun and fired again.
The tank doubled forward, one hand hitting the floor hard enough to crack the concrete. Aljun almost cried from relief, but he did not stop. He dragged Lance through the service exit with Marybeth beside him, and the cold air hit them as they burst back into the street.
Arnulf, Archie, and Bert came out behind Harry. Chanse and Tilly cut across from the side exit.
"Creek!" Arnulf shouted. "Get to the creek!"
Aljun saw the water ahead through the gaps between buildings.
Westchester Creek.
Black water. Broken railings. A narrow drop from the edge.
It did not look safe.
It looked better than the tank.
They ran toward it.
Behind them, the tank stood again.
Harry pumped the shotgun and fired, but this time nothing came out.
"Empty," he cursed.
The tank charged.
Arnulf turned and fired his rifle. The bullets hit her chest and shoulder, but they did not slow her. If anything, she pushed harder, her feet cracking the road as she came after them.
"Faster!" Marybeth shouted.
Aljun was already using everything he had. His lungs hurt. His legs felt numb. Lance was running beside him now, not cleanly, not strongly, but on his own feet. His face was twisted from pain, and Marybeth kept a hand on his arm to keep him from veering sideways.
The creek came closer.
The tank came closer faster.
Aljun heard her breathing now.
Heavy. Wet. Right behind them.
"Jump!" Harry shouted.
Bert went first, throwing himself over the edge into the dark water. Chanse followed with Tilly. Archie waited for Harry before jumping. Arnulf waited at the edge with his gun raised, firing until Aljun, Marybeth, and Lance reached him.
"Go!" Arnulf shouted.
Aljun did not think.
He grabbed Lance’s jacket and jumped.
The water hit like a wall. Cold closed over his head. He swallowed creek water and kicked hard, one hand still twisted in Lance’s jacket. Marybeth surfaced beside them, coughing as the current caught her shoulder and pulled her away.
Aljun broke the surface and dragged Lance up with him.
Lance came up choking.
"Hold him!" Marybeth shouted.
Something huge hit the water behind them.
The impact shoved them forward. Water rolled over Aljun’s head again. He kicked blindly, came up coughing, and looked back.
The tank had jumped in after them. ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
For one second, pure terror locked his body.
Then the tank sank lower.
Her weight dragged her down. The water swallowed her to the chest, then higher. She thrashed and tried to push forward, but the creek slowed her. The current pulled the group away faster than she could move through the water.
Aljun kicked hard, dragging Lance with him.
Marybeth swam beside them with the flow. Arnulf shouted somewhere ahead. Tilly cried out. Harry cursed and told everyone to keep moving.
Aljun looked back again.
The tank was still there, fighting the water, one arm reaching toward them.
But she was farther away now.
Aljun laughed once, sharp and breathless, then coughed water from his throat.
"We fucking did it," he said, tightening his grip on Lance. "We fucking survived."
