Chapter 21: Through the Eyes of a Soldier

Three Days Later

The sun seemed to be endlessly shining these past three days as the survivors of the Columbus attack continued to repair the damage done to their city and expel all the lingering Biters outside their freshly repaired walls while Mark sat a top a high building that overlooked central park watching as the people continued to burn the bodies of the Biters he single-handedly killed.

"Did I really do all of that." he thought before looking down at his hands.

"What's happening to me." he thought before he heard the sound of a door opening and turned his head to notice a familiar Chinese woman and her daughter approaching him with mixed looks.

"What's on your mind?" asked Mark as he watched Yeulin and Bai approach him.

"Where were you these last couple of days, and don't give us a bullshit story Marcus. We both at least deserve the truth." she said while clutching Bai's hand tightly as Mark eyed his wife and daughter and swore he could almost feel the fear, anger, and sadness radiating off them as they eyed him closely and watched as he took a deep breath.

"I was bitten." said Mark to Yeulin's surprise as she watched the Dark Circle leader turn around and show his still evident bite wound.

"It happened during the fight at the country club, before me and that Cannibal came flying out the window. The bastard took a bite out of me." said Mark causing Yeulin's eyes to widen.

"I didn't realize it at first in fact I thought it just scratch or a cut from the glass. That's why I didn't say anything before we left the country club because I felt fine, until we got here and I passed out and they told me I was bitten." said Mark.

"Then why haven't you turned?" she asked.

"They say that while I was out. I came in contact with something that gave me a vaccine to the disease and overtime I will become Immune." said Mark to Yeulin's surprise.

"But as of now... I am infected and I carry the disease inside of me. Therefore I am danger to you, my daughter, to my friends, and to everyone else. That's why I've been keeping my distance and because the doctors are still running test on me, like what happened to me during that attack and why my eyes were orange." said Mark earning a scared look from Yeulin as she watched Mark face her closely.

"I'm a threat right now Yeulin and one mistake that could be a kiss, a hug, or scratch could turn you and Bai both into them and I don't want that for either of you and I couldn't live with myself if I was to blame." said Mark as Yeulin went to speak she was interrupted by Bai who outstretched her arms to Mark.

"I'm sorry but can't baby girl." said Mark as he eyed Bai with sorrow in his eyes before the trio was interrupted by the sound of a door opening and Link and Heather standing on the otherside.

"This a bad time?" asked Link as both sides decided to stay silent and not look away from the other.

"Professor Kate wants to do another test today Mark." said Heather earning a few seconds of silence from Mark before he started walking away from the edge of the building and past Yeulin and Bai, the latter of whom called for him the entire time as she watched him descend the stairs with Link and Heather.

"How you holding up?" asked Link.

"Normal for a guy who's in my situation." Mark replied.

"Hopefully things will get better." said Link.

"How are Lee and the others?" asked Mark as Link gave a smile.

"They're doing better a few bruises and digs but nothing really major." said Link.

"We walked in on Mercy doing one armed pushups and asking for another hammer." said Heather as she folded her arms over her chest earning Mark's attention.

"Link can you give us a minute?" asked Mark earning a nod from the blonde haired man.

"Sure I gotta get back to the wall anyway." he replied before walking away and leaving Mark along with Heather.

"What's on your mind?" asked Mark.

"Nothing." she replied with anger in her tone.

"Don't give me that I've known you long enough to know when somethings wrong so just spit it out or I'm gonna keep pressing." said Mark.

"Okay if you must know I want to know what the hell is wrong with you, first your immune, then your eyes are orange, and then your killing Biters left and right almost like it is nothing, and Diane isn't giving us much answers." she said earning a chuckle from Mark.

"I forget you love, care, and worry about me." he said with a chuckle.

"I don't love or worry about you." said Heather with her hands on her hips.

"Ah but you left out care." said Mark earning a slight blush from Heather.

"I don't care about you either." she said.

"Ah but you cared enough about me to watch me and my wife go down on each other." said Mark to Heather's shock.

"You knew about that?" she asked.

"Seen you through the crack in the door." said Mark with a chuckle as Heather looked away from him.

"If you must know, in honest truth they don't know what's going on with me and from what I can gather is these antibodies are fucking with more then just my immune system." said Mark to Heather's surprise.

"It might not look like it but I had a bum knee when I got here but now I don't. I had asthma as a kid and that affected my breathing now when I smell the air I swear I can taste the water in it. I used to wear glasses when I was young but grew accustomed to not needing them, but now I don't need them." said Mark.

"So you feel stronger and healthier?" asked Heather earning a nod from Mark.

"I feel better then I have in years." said Mark with a chuckle.

"And this something else they don't know." said Mark as he got a few inches near Heather's ear.

"I can feel and hear the dead." said Mark to Heather's surprise.

"What are you talking about?" she asked with a confused look.

"I can feel the Biters I know when they are around, I know where a herd is and where it's coming from, I know when they're feeding, and most of all I can understand the Cannibal's." said Mark to Heather's shock.

"Wait like you can talk to them?" she asked earning a shake of the head from Mark.

"They don't talk like you or I, but I can understand what they're saying. Like a know a few words in Spanish and Chinese that I can understand and the same goes for when they speak but only them the regular Biters don't speak, but they do listen." he replied.

"Listen." she repeated.

"The regular Biters they don't just become a herd on their own, they follow mutated Biters like the Cannibals and they act like Soldiers following the orders of a general. After they watched me kill that Cannibal they started looking at me like a leader and remember before they attacked I told them to come at me and they did." he said.

"So the Biters the regular Biter they listen to you?" asked Heather.

"I won't know until I test it out." said Mark.

"And how are you gonna test it out?" she asked earning silence from Mark as the group continued to Diane's office and entered the building where they noticed the woman waiting along with Professor Kate, Rachel, and a new face.

"Marcus it's good to see you." said Diane.

"What's this about?" asked Mark as he eyed Diane who turned to the new man in the room.

"Marcus this is Colonel Sam Durant, he runs one of the outpost outside of Columbus." said Diane as she pointed to a bald Caucasian man that stood about six two with sharp blue eyes.

"He's the prick with the slow Blackhawks." said Mark.

"The mouth on this one, who are you exactly?" he asked.

"Former Gunnery Sergeant Marcus Smith U.S. Rangers." said Mark.

"You're never a former soldier boy and you know that already." said Durant with a chuckle.

"You are after your country turns its back on you." said Mark to Durant's confusion.

"Marcus is the founder of the Dark Circle Gang and the leader of their Death Squad." said Rachel to Durant's surprise.

"You threw away your country to become a criminal?" asked Durant.

"Yeah after my country left me and my men to die." said Mark earning an angry scowl from Durant.

"Marcus is also carrying a cure to the disease." said Diane.

"Is he now, where'd he get that from." said Durant as he continued to eye Mark.

"We don't know yet, but we know he came in contact with something cured him and we're trying to find that out." said Professor Kate.

"We're also trying to come up with a plan for this approaching herd, because the last one was too much for us." said Diane.

"Who's to say there is a herd?" asked Durant.

"There is a herd." said Mark to everyone's surprise.

"I can feel it now, shaking the land with each Biters footsteps. There are more than over a thousand Biters, fifty Cannibals, and twenty five of those things with the arm and that number is growing with each passing day." said Mark to everyone's surprise.

"How long before it gets here?" asked Diane.

"Depends right now it's in a town just a few miles of here trying to pick every living being there, then there's another town south of it with a few people there. The longer the people hold out the more time we have." said Mark.

"How do you know that?" asked Diane.

"The Biters can hear us, but what you don't know is that they can smell the living. We smell alive while they smell dead. That sense alone is what get's them to move to areas with people, like right now Columbus smells really good." said Mark with a chuckle.

"Jesus, what else do you know?" asked Diane.

"I know there are more mutations that we haven't seen." said Mark to everyone surprise.

"Are you serious?" asked Rachel earning a nod from Mark as he took out a piece of paper and gave it to Diane.

"I tried to draw them but I'm not an artist." said Mark as the group eyed the five poorly drawn pictures.

"This is the one with the arm ain't it?" asked Rachel as the group eyed a picture of a Biter with one giant right arm while Mark nodded his head.

"We call those Brutes because of their brute strength and that arm. We've faced a couple and they're hard to beat but they're really weak against fire. Set them ablaze and they'll go down in a matter of seconds. My men lined our base with explosives just for them." said Durant.

"That's how we killed the one here." said Diane as the group turned their attention to a picture of a creature with a large top but no arms.

"Those are Rams." said Durant.

"Rams?" asked Diane.

"Yes they lose their arms over the course of things and without arms they aren't much of a threat. So they mutated in a way that made their bodies expand in size so now they ram their enemies head on and they can go through walls and all." said Durant.

"Any weakness?" asked Durant.

"Not that we know of, they can take a lot of bullets and even fire before dying." said Durant before the groups eyes fell on a normal size biter that was covered in green Mark's.

"What the fuck is that?" asked Heather.

"I call them Swimmers, we don't really have to worry about them since we aren't by a large body of water but if we go somewhere we might have to look out for them." said Mark before everyone's eyes fell on a Biter with six arms.

"We've seen these some of the men nicknamed them Spiders." said Durant earning a nod from Mark.

"They can climb walls, ladders, trees, and even buildings and get the jump on anyone. They aren't very durable to anything really but they are sneaky little bastards." he added before the group turned their attention to a picture that caught them all by surprise as they noticed that it was a drawing of normal Biter but what made it different was the large bat-like wing that it possessed on it's arms and it's large feet.

"Flyers." said Heather earning a nod from Mark.

"They don't really come here because of the cold weather but they're down south and out west." said Mark earning scared looks from the group,

"When will this shit end for good." said Rachel.

"This disease it adapts to make itself stronger against us. We hide in trees it grows extra arms to climb the walls, we hide behind walls and it creates creatures to knock walls down, we try to live on the water and there are Biters there waiting for us." said Professor Kate earning nods from the group.

"Exactly but there is...a safe spot." said Mark to everyone's surprise.

"I can smell it, there are so many people there it rings the dinner bell for miles." said Mark.

"Where is it D.C.?" asked Rachel.

"Japan." said Mark widening everyone's eyes.

"What the fuck?" asked Heather.

"Makes since this disease first hit America somewhere in the Midwest but the reports of it go all over Europe, Africa, and Asia. Japan being an island must have prepared itself." said Durant.

"Great so the only safe place here is on the otherside of the world?" asked Heather.

"Actually Japan isn't that far from the United States." said Mark.

"Still how are we going to get all the way to Japan from Ohio?" asked Heather.

"Planes probably get shotdown and so do boats." said Rachel.

"Exactly but you guys have the perfect bargaining chip." said Mark to everyone's surprise.

"You." said Diane.

"I'm gonna be Immune to this disease soon, if there is a government there in Japan. They'd want me." said Mark.

"Mark most likely they'll experiment on you so you could die." said Professor Kate.

"I'm willing to take that risk if it means keeping my family and friends alive, so let them cut me open all they want." said Mark to everyone's surprise.

"Mighty noble for a gang member." said Durant earning a chuckle from Mark.

"It is dumbass." said Mark.

"Mark are you having...urges like that of hunger?" asked Professor Kate earning a nod from Mark.

"All the time I can eat just about anything, but because I still have my free will I don't want to eat you. Plus because a lot of you look dirty to me...just unsanitary and my body is a temple." said Mark.

"Whatever asshole." said Heather earning a chuckle from Mark and the other Dark Circle members,

"Well what can you tell us about that attack and how you were able to wake up?" asked Professor Kate earning a shrug of the shoulders from Mark.

"I don't know I just woke up and heard somebody calling me, and I went while killing Biters along the way." said Mark as he folded his arms over his chest.

"And you're still not aware of anything you did out of the ordinary, while you were gone?" she asked.

"Nope I ate what everybody else ate, drank from the same water bottle, and went about my usual routine." said Mark.

"So you must have done something out of the usual." said Professor Kate.

"Well we can figure that out later, I need to use one the Colonels choppers." said Mark to everyone's surprise.

"And why is that?" asked Durant with anger in his voice.

"Those people at that first town are down and we can't do anything for them but that next town we might be able to get them out before that herd arrives." said Mark.

"Absolutely not, we can't risk any of our birds, resources, or you for that matter for just a handful of people. That's not the mission" yelled Durant.

"The mission...I forget you are a Colonel that means something to me." said Mark.

"Oh yeah what is that?" asked Durant.

"That you're nothing but someones puppet they pull the strings, while you have no free will at all. What's one life, two lives, or three for the sake of the mission." said Mark angering Durant.

"Let me give you a little story about me. When I was in Afghanistan me and team had a mission to get a high-valued person out of a terrorist controlled area. So we went in hard, took a lot of people out, and took a few loses. Next thing we knew a Chopper was flying overhead, and we thought we were SAVED...but we were fucking WRONG. They took him and left us, talking about they needed us to cover for them while they flew off in the sunset." said Mark with a chuckle.

"Me and five of my guys fought tooth and nail to get out of there, but in the end they died and me ,after being in the cross hairs of an explosion with brain damage, a broke arm, and no feeling in my legs. I got out of that city and you know what they did me, they shipped me back home without a fucking metal of valor or anything of that nature. They just rolled me off a plane and said GOOD LUCK." said Mark as he smiled at Durant while licking his lips before giving a low growl.

"I couldn't find a job, or use that degree I earned for anything, but when I got back on my feet you know what I did have...Military training and a lot of high paying criminals love that in a person. That's why I formed the Dark Circle and guess what-." said Mark as everyone took a step back while noticing Mark's eyes change to a familiar orange color.

"I took an oath to never let a person in need down again, this country sent my men to their deaths, but me I was the worse. I promised that I would do everything in my power to get them home, and I failed." yelled Mark his voice becoming more like a growl.

"Easy Marcus." said Rachel as Mark's eyes started to turn back to his regular color.

"So you can tell me that you aren't giving me a chopper, all that means is I'm going to take it and if you get in my way...I will put you down." said Mark with venom in his voice.

"And we'll be there to help you." came a familiar voice as everyone turned their heads and noticed Lee, Mercy, Trip, Reid, Kozik, and the other Dark Circle members standing in the doorway.

"We'll follow our brother to the gates of hell and beyond, and this situation is no different." said Lee as he put his hand on Mark's shoulder as a few seconds of silence went by the group.

"Durant get your birds in the air." said Diane to Durant's surprise as he turned to towards her.

"What?" he asked.

"If we leave those people to die what makes us any different then those undead freaks eating us. Now get your birds in the air and that's an order." said Diane earning a nod from Durant before he walked off.

"And make it quick that herds finished in the town over and is on the move." said Mark before he turned to Lee and the others.

"You guys sure you're up for this?" asked Mark.

"Damn Skippy brother." said Trip earning a nod from Mark.

"Alright me, Lee, Mercy, Trip, and Reid will go while the rest of you stay here." said Mark.

"Death Squad has all the fun." said Tavon earning a chuckle from Mark.

"I'm going as well." said Rachel as she took a stand beside Mark.

"Alright but we'll leave everyone else we still need strong guys here." said Mark earning a nod from the group.

"Think your men will let us into the armory?" asked Mark as he turned to Diane who nodded her head.

"I'll let them know you're on your way, but don't take everything we're still short on bullets." she said earning nods from the group before they made their way out of the office and towards the armory.

"Hey wait up." said Heather as she followed after the group.

"You tagging along princess?" asked Lee.

"Hell no, I've just got nothing better to do." she said before following after the group.

"I'll meet you guys there I gotta go pick something up." said Mark earning nods from the group before they watched him leave.

Yeulin

Things seemed to be going slow for the woman after having her talk with the Dark Circle leader as a sense of anger spread through her body that almost had her seeing red as she clutched the side of her head.

"Mommy." came a familiar voice as she turned her head and noticed Bai standing behind her.

"Are you alright?" she asked in her sweet voice causing Yeulin to chuckle while wiping the tear from her eyes.

"Yes, mommy's just got a headache." she said with a smile before kneeling down to Bai's level.

"Does Mark has something to do with that?" she asked surprising Yeulin who didn't respond before hearing the front door open as both girls turned their heads and noticed Mark standing behind them.

"What are you doing here?" asked Yeulin as she looked up at him.

"I had to pick something up." said Mark as he walked away from them and made his way to his closet and noticed his PSD Assault Rifle and MP7 Submachine Gun.

"Always not far from home." thought Mark as he picked up the weapons before checking his magazines.

"Where are you going?" asked Yeulin as Mark turned to her and noticed the worried look on her face.

"The next town over we want to get the people there out before that herd arrives." said Mark earning wide eyes from Yeulin

"Won't that be dangerous?" she asked.

"Aye, but we can't just leave them there to die." said Mark as he reloaded his guns.

"Marcus-." she started before he interrupted.

"Stop it! I already know what you're going to say and I'm not changing my mind. I can't be around you or Bai." said Mark.

"Mark I miss you and Bai misses her father." she said with sadness in her tone as Mark tried to keep his gaze away from hers already knowing that there were tears in his wife's eyes.

"Why is this shit so hard." thought Mark before he felt someone grab his hand and notice Bai standing beside him pleading eyes.

"Daddy's gotta go honey." he said only for the girl to tighten her grip on his hands as the strong urge to stay with them flooded his body.

"I'll be back to see you I promise." said Mark as he finally yanked his arm away from Bai causing the girl to cry as Mark felt the feeling of anger towards himself wash over himself again as he watched the girl cover her eyes.

"Forgive me." said Mark before he rushed out of the apartment leaving his wife and daughter to wallow in their own sadness.

Armory

The armory wasn't what anyone was expecting in fact it turned to just be an old gym on the otherside of town as Lee, Mercy, Trip, and Reid found themselves stripping out of their regular clothes and throwing on a pair of military cargo pants with extra pockets to carry their ammo, bulletproof vest, and black flak jackets.

"Why are we wearing these vest again I mean we're not getting shot at?" asked Reid as he picked up a new metal baseball bat and strapped it to his back, before putting a M9 Beretta in a holster on his right hip, then picking up an M16 Assault Rifle.

"Because it protects your shoulders just in case on get's behind you." said Mercy as he picked up a ball pen hammer and put on his side opposite of his holster that carried his M9 Beretta, before putting an entrenching shovel on his back, then picking up an AK-47 Assault Rifle.

"Whatever the case its useful." said Lee as he picked up his Machete and strapped it to his back, then putting his own M9 Beretta on his hip, then picking up an MP5 Submachine Gun just as Mark entered the armory.

"There's our Shotgun Warrior." said Trip with a smile on his face as he kept an M9 Beretta on his right hip, a small hammer on his left, and his Crossbow on his back

"I'm gonna need this back." said Mark as he tossed the auburn haired man his PSD Assault Rifle.

"The Scope and single shot should be useful for you." said Mark as he started to take off his white t-shirt.

"Something up?" asked Lee as he eyed Mark who was putting on his bulletproof vest.

"I just had a discussion with my wife, she's not happy about this." said Mark as he put on a black jacket.

"Well can you blame here she just got you back after so long, now she can't be with you...again." said Mercy as Mark strapped an M9 Beretta on his right hip and stuffed his MP7 in the back of his pants.

"Hey don't blame me blame the universe I didn't want this shit." said Mark as he loaded rounds into a Shotgun.

"Yeah but being immune from this shit that must be blessing." said Trip.

"Yeah, but get bit anyway and it's a curse." said Mark as he pumped his Shotgun before reaching into his box and grabbing something else.

"What are looking for?" asked Reid.

"I threw all my throwing knives and broke most of them, including my knife, and I don't think this is ready for the battlefield just yet." said Mark as he reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a double-bladed knife with a black handle in the middle, curved blade on one end, and a long blade on the other.

"Did you make that?" asked Lee.

"Yeah I got bored in that room and started going through all the metal scraps and made this." said Mark as picked up a combat knife and stuck it to his right hip, followed by a Bolo Machete he strapped to his back.

"Are you guys ready?" came a familiar voice as the group turned their heads and noticed Rachel and Heather entering the room. The latter of whom was dressed similar to the Dark Circle members but was carrying an MP5 in her hands, an M9 Beretta rest on her right hip, and a Glock 20 on her left.

"Yeah, but you might need this." said Mark as he tossed Rachel a baseball bat.

"Just in case they get close." he said.

"Hey how come you didn't get dressed in here sweetheart, you ain't got nothing we haven't seen before." said Trip with a chuckle.

"Because I have class unlike your fuck whores." she replied.

"Speaking of fucking, Mark you keep me up the night of the attack at the country club and I don't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing." said Mercy.

"Must have been a good thing but seriously I lost my mind in there. Yeulin got my name tattooed on her lower back and I didn't want to stop looking at it." said Mark earning chuckles from the group and a roll of the eyes from Heather.

"Wait you had sex?" asked Rachel earning a nod from Mark.

"Yes does that upset you sweetheart?" asked Mark as Rachel flipped him earning chuckles from the group.

"Alright let's go." said Mark as he led the group out of the armory and towards Central Park where the group noticed three Blackhawks being prepared and Diane, Durant, and the other Dark Circle members standing beside them.

"About time." said Diane.

"Exactly he has no disciple." said Durant.

"Discipline these nuts." said Mark before he turned to Diane.

"Any orders to give?" asked Mark.

"Just go out, get as many as you can, bring them back here, and above all come back alive." said Diane earning a nod from Mark.

"Alright let's go." said Mark as he led his group into the first Blackhawk while Durant and his men got in the other.

"I've never been in one of these things before." said Reid.

"Don't worry it's just like a car, just don't look down." said Mark as the pilots lifted the Blackhawks off the ground and started to fly them away from Columbus with everyone else leaving.

"Hopefully they are successful." said Diane.

"While there gone Rachel wanted me to run something by you about Mark, and something he did while he was out." said Heather earning a raised eyebrow from Diane.

Dark Circle

The ground almost appeared like a sea of green to Mark as the memories of his time in his last mission filled his head as he looked at his Death Squad members and almost swore that their faces were replaced by that of his old squad.

"Hey Sarge we gonna finish that race when we get back?" asked one of the manifestations, Caucasian man with short black hair hidden under his helmet that read Scott, as smiled at Mark with an M60 Light Machine Gun in his hand.

"You know he has unfair advantage short people are fast fuck." said another manifestations, a Hispanic man with a shaved head hidden under his helmet that read Sanchez, with a chuckle and a M4A1 in his hands.

"Not true man, he the perfect soldier you ain't beating that." said another man, a tall African American man with short black hair hidden under a helmet that read Jackson, with a chuckle and a Sniper Rifle in his hands.

"Seriously." said another manifestation, a Hispanic woman with long black hair that fell from under her helmet that read Diaz, as she shook her head with a M4A1 in her hands.

"Yo Mark." said Lee breaking Mark's concentration as he turned to his Death Squad members.

"Sup." he said.

"You good?" asked Mercy.

"Yeah, just having visions of my days with my old squad." said Mark.

"The day you got hurt?" asked Lee earning a nod from Mark.

"You know we aren't your old squad right?" asked Reid.

"Yeah...they were prettier." said Mark earning chuckles from the group.

"We don't have glamor but we get the job done." said Trip earning chuckles from the group.

"You guys might want to take a look at this." said Rachel earning the groups attention as they looked out the open side door of the Blackhawk and noticed that the town coming up towards them but what made their hearts stop was the hundreds of Biters on the ground below them.

"I thought you said the herd wasn't here." yelled Durant over the radio of the Blackhawk.

"It ain't, our herd is over thousand strong this is maybe three hundred at the most." said Mark as the Biters lifted their heads and noticed the three helicopters flying overhead.

"There they are." said Trip as he pointed to a rooftop and noticed twelve people hiding behind a makeshift barricade waving their arms at the choppers.

"Take us down." said Mark earning a nod from the pilot as he started to descend.

"Let's go." said Mark as he jumped off the chopper before it could even touch ground with the other Dark Circle members.

"Load up." yelled Mark before a blonde haired woman quickly approached him.

"There are others that are in a movie theater a few blocks from here." she said earning a nod from the Dark Circle leader.

"Durant we need air support, we're moving on another location with possible survivors." said Mark.

"Well then you better move your ass." he said.

"Do we have a clear path?" asked Mark.

"Go through the back of the building on your left." he said before Mark turned to Rachel.

"Stay with them we'll move on the ground." he said earning a nod from Rachel before she climbed into the Blackhawk while Mark and the other Dark Circle members ran through the building beside them.

"Let's go boys." said Mark as he kicked open the back door of the building and coming out on the street behind them revealing three Biters who were mere inches away from door.

"Eat it." thought Mark as he fired his Shotgun striking the Biter closest to him in the head sending blood and brain matter everywhere as the headless creature slumped down before hitting the ground with a loud thud.

"Yes!" thought Mark as he watched Reid and Mercy slam their weapons against the Biters head crushing them and sending blood everywhere while Lee rushed down the streets and cut down any Biter that got in his way.

"Come on." he yelled as a Sprinter ran at him arms first but with one spin of his Machete the Dark Circle Sergeant was able to decapitate the creature sending its head flying and coating him in blood.

"Let's go." yelled Mark as he drew his knife and sliced down any Biter that got to close while Trip stood back firing at the Biters that were out of their reach as he fired at a Biter hitting it in the left eye and splattering it's blood on another Biter.

"It's almost like old times." thought Mark as the memories of his old squad flashed through his mind as Lee, Mercy, Trip, and Reid cut down another swarm of Biters before they noticed a movie theater down the street.

"We're here." said Mark as he stabbed a Biter in the mouth before they arrived at the movie theater and noticed that the shutters were closed forcing the group to defend the front.

"Shit where are they?" asked Mark as he fired his Shotgun nailing a Biter between the eyes before it slumped down to its knees while Lee banged on the door.

"We're up here." came a new voice as the group lifted their heads and noticed a black haired man with a beard lower a ladder from the top of the theater.

"Alright Trippy first, provide covering fire." said Mark as he stabbed a Biter in the head with a knife as Lee cut the arm off another Biter sending the creatures blood flying while Trip climbed the ladder, followed by Reid, then Mercy.

"You first brother." said Mark as he shot down another Biter while Lee started to climb up the ladder before Mark followed after him just as a Biter grabbed his shoe.

"GET THE FUCK OFF ME." shouted Mark as he pulled his foot away from the Biter before giving a sharp kick that forced the creatures head to collide with the ladder splattering it in blood before the limp Biter fell to the ground.

"Durant we're here get us out." said Mark as he stood on the roof with the other Dark Circle members and six survivors.

"Alright hold-." started Durant before the group heard a loud screech and saw a flash of gray and red jump from almost out of nowhere and latch onto the side of the Blackhawk.

"What the fuck?" asked Reid as the group eyed the side of the Blackhawk and noticed a six-armed Biter hanging onto the side door of the Blackhawk.

"Spiders!" yelled Mark.

"Shoot it off." yelled Durant as he tried to fire at the Biter only for his bullets to fly widely before the head of the Spider was blown off by Rachel as she stood in the side of the other Blackhawk.

"Mark there's a shitload Spiders climbing the side of the movie theater, you guys have got to-." started Rachel over her Walkie Talkie before everyone heard a loud shriek and turned their heads to notice Spiders jumping onto the third Blackhawk and crawling inside where the the soldiers inside tried to fight them off before the pilot was attacked causing him to lose control of the Blackhawk before it crashed a few blocks away from the movie theater.

"GODDAMN IT." yelled Durant as he noticed the flaming Blackhawk.

"Spiders!" yelled Reid as the group noticed five six armed Biter climb onto the roof of the movie theater before rushing at them while twelve others came up.

"Damn." said Mark as he fired his Shotgun blowing the head off one of the Spiders and an arm off another.

"Get us out of here." yelled Durant to everyone's surprise.

"Are you sure sir?" asked the pilot.

"We can't get to them without losing the chopper in the process we're gonna have to leave and that's an order." stated Durant earning a nod from the pilot before he started to fly away with the second chopper in tow.

"What are you doing we can't leave them." yelled Rachel.

"Orders are orders mam." said the pilot before Rachel stuck her head out of the side of the Blackhawk.

"MARCUS!" she shouted earning the Dark Circle leaders full attention as he threw a dead Spider off him and noticed the Blackhawks leaving.

"No not again." thought Mark as the memories of his memories of his mission in Afghanistan filled his mind as he watched the Blackhawks leaving.

"Where the fuck are they going?" asked Mercy as he slammed his hammer against the head of a Spider killing it.

"We need to get out of here." yelled Trip as he shot down a Biter.

"This way." yelled a female survivor before the group followed her and the other survivors down into the movie theater before slamming the door on the Spiders who tried to break the door down.

"Bar the door." yelled Mercy as the group of Dark Circle members slammed themselves against the door in an attempt to keep the Biters out.

Columbus

Things seemed to have slowed down for Yeulin as she put Bai to bed before hearing a knock at her door and then quickly opening it and coming face to face with Diane and Professor Kate.

"What is this?" she asked.

"Yeulin we've got a few questions to ask you." said Diane earning a worried look from Yeulin.