Dead Days: Season 8 Part 28

"Do what you think's right. For Kesha."

Riley started shaking then. Because he knew what was right for Kesha. He'd seen what lengths Mattius would go to in order to protect her.

Despite his sins-despite his evils-he was fighting for her.

He cared about her.

He let go of a deep breath and walked towards Mattius, Kesha in his arms.

The closer he got, the more Mattius lifted that match, threatening to drop it, the more uncertain Mattius looked.

And soon enough, they were just inches from one another, Riley looking into Mattius' eyes, Mattius looking back into his.

"Take her," Riley said, his voice breaking. He could barely look at Kesha anymore.

Mattius opened his mouth. Then he closed it again, like he couldn't actually comprehend what was happening.

Riley held Kesha out. "Take her. Keep her safe. I'll know if you don't. I promise to G.o.d; I'll know if you don't."

Mattius went to put the match out. Then he stopped. He stopped, right before putting it out.

"Let's see how serious you are about that," he said.

He dropped the match.

"No!"

The doorway went up in flames.

Mattius stepped back, then. He stepped out into the corridor, as fire stretched up the wooden sides of the door, heat spreading into this room.

"Throw her," Mattius said.

Riley looked at the flames stretching all around. He didn't have long to make a decision. If he didn't act fast, he'd burn in here. They all would.

There was still a gap to get Kesha through.

"Throw her!" Mattius said. "If you're serious about saving her, save her!"

It was at that moment that Riley did what he knew he had to do. The hardest decision he'd ever had to make.

He looked down at Kesha, his eyes filling with tears.

"I'm sorry."

He kissed her head.

Saw Chlo and Jordanna watching him with uncertainty and disappointment all over again.

Then he threw her towards Mattius.

He watched her pa.s.s through the doorway. He saw her move by the flames. And for an awful moment, he thought she wasn't going to make it; that the throw wasn't enough.

Then she landed in Mattius' arms.

He looked at Kesha. Then he looked up at Riley.

"Now you'll know how it feels," he said, his voice quivery. "Now you'll know how it really feels. To burn."

"Mattius!"

But it was too late.

Mattius was gone.

Kesha was gone.

He didn't know what to do, as the flames stretched around the doorway, as they crept up the walls. The smoke was thickening. Soon, this whole room would be engulfed, and they had nowhere to go.

"Riley," Amy said.

"We need to find a way out of here."

"Riley."

"The window. Or out of a vent or-"

"Riley!"

Amy's shout snapped Riley out of his trance.

It was then that he saw she wasn't even looking at him. Neither was Carly. Or Melissa.

All of them, despite the flames teasing their imminent death, were looking outside.

"What is it?" Riley said. "What..."

When he looked out of the window, he saw it, and he understood.

"What do... what do we do?" Carly asked.

Riley didn't know what to say. None of them knew what to say.

All they could do was watch.

There was a crowd of undead.

Only this crowd of undead was bigger than the horde he'd seen a week ago.

It was at least twice as big.

Stretching out as far as the eye could see.

They just stood there as the creatures reached the walls.

They stood there as they pressed right up against the walls, the force of them going back as far as they could see.

And they stood there as the walls creaked and collapsed with ease, and the thousand strong army of undead moved inside.

EPISODE FORTY-SIX.

IN WAVES.

(FOURTH EPISODE OF SEASON EIGHT).

Prologue.

She felt the splitting pain in her skull, but there was nothing she could do about it.

Everything around her was blurry. There was ringing in her ears. Harsh, loud ringing that went beyond anything she'd ever heard before. She tasted a combination of two things, sick and blood. And in the pit of her stomach, she knew that she was in danger, and that something was coming her way.

But she was stuck here.

There wasn't a thing she could do about it.

She watched him drift further and further out of her line of sight. She'd heard him when he stood over her. She'd listened to every word he'd said, not really taking them in but still hearing the sounds as they came out of his mouth. She wanted to hear his voice forever. It made her feel at ease and more comfortable about everything.

But she knew what was happening to her.

She knew this was the end.

She felt the warm blood pool out of the side of her head. She'd taken a hit. Just one. But it'd knocked her right in the skull. She could taste the blood on her lips, and she knew that it'd be the last thing she tasted.

She was going to die here.

She just had to hope she died before the staggering silhouette reached her position.

She closed her eyes, then, and she realised she couldn't see through one of them anyway. It was blackened out, as if she'd lost her sight in it.

Not that it mattered, not anymore.

She just hoped everything else blackened soon, too.

Rather that than die at the hands of the undead.

Rather that than be torn apart and turned into a monster.

But when she opened her eyes again, she realised she could still interpret her surroundings. She realised she was still alive, which meant there was still a chance for her life to be taken away by one of the undead.

She cried as she thought of everyone she'd known, everyone she'd loved, and watched the silhouette stagger closer.

She smelled it right above her. She could hear its groans, even though they were out of focus.

She held her breath and readied herself for the end...

When she opened her eyes the next time, she wasn't where she expected to be.

It was dark. She was being rushed somewhere by two people. Maybe more. It felt like she was floating; floating through the car park, away from the breached fences and gates.

She felt herself floating and she became more at ease about this whole situation. At least she wasn't going to die by zombie. That was something that, if fully awake, she might've laughed at.

But she didn't have the energy, and she didn't have the strength. So all she could do was float. All she could do was fly and imagine she was soaring above the waves, just like she had when times were good...

When she next opened her eyes, she was completely still.

She was lying in a bed. It was a single bed in a cosy little room. She could hear wind whistling outside, and somewhere else inside this building, she could smell food cooking. It smelled like meat.

She lifted her head but instantly regretted doing so. It sent a splitting, agonising pain right through her skull, enough to knock her back down to her pillow. She could still taste blood on her lips. And in truth, she figured she might be able to taste blood on her lips for the rest of her life.

A reminder of what had happened.

A memory of the moment everything changed.

She heard footsteps then and they made her tense up. She didn't know who was coming. She didn't know what to expect. And she didn't know how much had changed since she'd fallen asleep. She didn't even know how long she'd been out.

"Who-who is that?" she said, but her voice was croaky. It even hurt to talk.

Yet still she persisted.

"Who's out there. Please..."

When the man walked into her room, she recognised him. Only vaguely admittedly, but she remembered his smile. He was one of the members of her group. Cameron, she thought. Or maybe Calvin.

"Well, it's nice to see you awake," he said.

She leaned forward and looked around. It was then that she realised she had a bandage around her head and a white patch over her left eye. She reached for it.