Beyond the Walls

Piece of Cake

In the post apocalypse world, the lands were categorized to three kinds of lands. First is the Land of the Walls, where human civilization has continued for the last twenty years. Second is the Unclaimed Lands. In here, there was nothing. Plain and empty. No humans nor undead live here. They are empty and unoccupied spaces. Usually these are the lands that had been wiped clean by the humans and just waiting for another wall to be put up so more people could live and as for the third and last kind of land is called ‘The Promise Land’. This is the name that the government gave to the lands that are inhabited with undead or mutants. It was almost impossible for humans to be able to live in these lands due to the evolving nature of the mutants.

Now that the world of human had entered stability and civilization once again. These lands were kept a secret in majority of the humans. The mere existence of a mutants already brings enough fear. What more can a landfill do?

Bordering in a ‘Promise Land’ is an amusement park with humans playing hide and seek with a certain type of mutant.

Lucas and his teammates all peek from a booth and see a mutant passing by.

Yesterday, he already briefed them about this type of mutant. Though every mutant varies from each other, some share similarities. Like these mutants loitering around.

These mutants are called “Hunched Back Ghouls.” He said. Hunched Back Ghouls are hunching back undead mutants with no hair and shrunken red eyes. Their blade-like teeth inside their mouth are all looking dangerously sharpened. Its body is almost like composed only with bones and wrinkled or sagging skin. Their specialty is grabbing on things with their long hands.

“Remember, Don’t let them see you.” He warned everyone.

Aside from the qualities, He had mentioned, it was given that these mutants know how to Run and when they are locked in target, they don’t give up. It was only luck that Lucas and Aaron were able to escape because the place they were in was very confusing.

They were lucky yesterday and

“The item is in that place.” Lucas opened his map and pointed at the direction of a wrecked ship, called ‘Vikings’. That would be the name of the ride If Lucas read the signage right.

The half ship was hanging upwards on the side while the other half was crushed underneath as if some sea monster had taken a bite on the ship.

“What are we looking for?” Kiko asked.

“It doesn’t say.” Lucas meekly answered as he looked at the unbalanced position of the ship ride.

“Are you sure? Or did you just miss something? Take a second look.”

Lucas was not able to look at Kiko’s scrutinizing look.

“Since when did they give us a detailed task to do? Huh?” Jack asked back.

“I think we will be able to tell it at once, when we see it.” Lucas intervened but not averting his eyes on the ship.

“What is it?” Aaron, who is watching the sides lean towards Lucas and asks in a low tone.

“Ah? Huh?”

“What is it, the thing that bothers you?”

“Ah… That, it’s just that I think the swing is hanging up dangerously, if we went all there, there’s a possibility that it may collapse.”

“Then we have to choose someone who will go in there alone. I ca–”

“It can’t be you. It needs to be someone light, agile and good at climbing.” He is saying that but he already has a person in his mind.

“You can just tell me straight man. That would be a piece of cake.”

Elijah, confidently declared it. Lucas packs him a small bag and hangs it around his neck.

“I’ll be back in a sec.” He salutes to Lucas and starts to approach the ride, stealthily.

There was no problem with him going in. WIth the use of binoculars Lucas monitored him as much as he could.

“Binoculars are damn expensive. You bought useless things.” Kiko complained as he took a bite of his crackers.

The binoculars are one of the things Lucas brought with his points. It cost around 35 pts “...He returned to his usual meek attitude as if is advertising that he is a pushover.

Lucas can't monitor Elijah much after he gets in because of view obstruction.

"Where is he?" Aaron asked after a few minutes. Lucas had been trying to locate him but maybe because he used to be a thief that Elijah is best at hiding his presence.

'Why did he have to use it now?' He bit his lips.

"...!" Lucas' shoulder perked up and immediately turned to look everywhere.

"Why? Why?" Jack asked, Kiko was also alerted.

"You didn't hear it?" Surprisingly Kiko was sensitive. Like Lucas he tries to pick up where the sound was coming.

“It sounds like a music box.” Kiko continued.

Lucas then remembered something that resembles a music box. In his memory, his child self is laughing as he goes up and down while he is gripping a stick in front of him and whenever he is turning around, he will see her bright and young mom waving at her, snapping pictures.

“Carousel” Lucas mumbled and checked the carousel’s location. It was only around the corner. The sound is not too loud but it was played in an abandoned place, of course it’s faint and broken sound is traveling around the area.

“Stay here, I will check what is happening.” Lucas said.

“Should I go and check instead? Don’t get me wrong but, if you die, then we will go with you. Since you are the only one receiving quests. Ours only shows the current … Ah yeah. It’s called GPS” Kiko said.

Lucas put the binoculars in his hands and said, “I will not die…” He said without confidence which irritated Kiko more.

“Whatever.”

Lucas can’t let anyone go to check because, Aaron’s heavy footsteps and well built body. It will be hard to find a proper hiding place for him, just in case, things go wrong and most of all he needs someone to be in there when Elijah comes back. Next is Jack, though he is reliable but that’s just it. Lucas is still suspicious of him. He quickly turns over to his side after being with Liam all these rounds. While Kiko, is kiko. He cannot predict him yet.

Most of all, he needs to know what that sound is. No mutants around him went out of their hiding place and he clumsily ran from one hiding place to another, which made the watchers feel awkward. Lucas looks like he is playing if you ignore his worried face.

Maybe because of the sound that the area is somehow clear. Turning the next corner from a distance he could see the carousel from a distance, but only a portion of it. The sound was definitely a little louder.

He squinted his eyes. ‘I should have brought my binoculars’

‘Ha? It’s moving?’

*thud

He quickly turn to see in the direction of the sound, it was coming on the round down store which is only two meters forward from her spot.

“...!!!” He immediately pushed his body back to the wall to avoid being spotted by the hunchback ghoul. Shakingly he opened the pouch hanging in his neck. A strong smell of putrid had come out. The smell was always there but now that he opened it more, it was like standing near a septic tank diving right into it.

He removed it from his neck because it. He distanced it away from his nose. Then took a mirror out and placed it by his boots. He watched the ghoul sniffing the air and it growled a little. It froze from the spot for a second and it turned sharply to the carousel direction and it dropped on it’s four and spirited away like a rabid dog.

Few more seconds and he came out from his hiding place. He ought to come back to his teammates but something compelled him to follow.

It didn’t take for Lucas to have a clear view of the carousel, and to its horror, it was really moving, in a very very slow place and because it’s broken that the sound and rounding of it is not flawless anymore.

“AHH!” He heard a scream before he saw a person running inside the Carousel. It was Brandy and he is being chased. They are like playing tag. Barely missing the grabs of the ghoul, they make more noise.

Lucas turned away from Brandy and looked at the surroundings.

*Swish

A mutant was killed by a long arrow pierced in it’s head. Brandy escaped its clutches and scurried away.

*Swish

Before the other ghoul is killed, Lucas is already running away at full sprint. For humans like Lucas, he can deduce where the arrow came from and seeing a silhouette from a distance confirmed his suspicions and it is really really bad news.

Turning one corner after another, he is reaching his teammates when turned the next one he is faced by another mutant but because it’s back is on him, he was not spotted immediately.

“..!” He lost his balance and tripped himself sidewards because of his attempt to stop.

The mutant is turning around and he is falling.

*Screech

By some dumb luck, Lucas slides away from it’s view to a fallen booth place.

“Uwargh!” The undead sniff the floor. There he found traces of fresh blood, pouch and some scattered ghoul fingers.

It growled in disgust and ran away.

Their own kins are effective in driving them away. Lucas would be delighted to see it but right now, he is holding back his cries as he is grabbing his wounded arm.

“I, I need to go.” Even injured in the sides of his face, he crawled out the booth and unsteadily turned the last corner. He is seeing the half ship now and turning to the opposite side, he sees his teammates.

As soon as he took his first step…

*Creak creak

Then a creaking sound started.