He turned, clearly responding to the sound of gunfire, and his dark gray lips drew away from his gray and yellow teeth as he lumbered toward the soldiers from behind.
Panic erupted from the girl and she backed into the wall behind her, wide eyes locked on the zombie that approached the soldiers, her friends. "Look out!" she screamed over the gunfire. The soldiers could not hear her and they were retreating right into the zombie that attacked from behind. Without thinking, she darted forward with speed she did not know she possessed and slammed palms first into the zombie as he grabbed onto one of the soldiers from behind, making him lose his grip.
The soldier wheeled around and watched girl and zombie tumble to the floor across the hallway. He darted out of the firing line, aiming his weapon at the zombie as he shouted, "Get clear, Princess!"
Though tangled with the zombie that struggled to right himself, she managed to pull away and scramble down the hallway, and as soon as she was clear the soldier fired a short burst into the zombie's head.
Seeing another door open, Zoe sprang up and pointed to it, and the soldier responded immediately, charging another few steps with his weapon held ready and aimed at eye level, and when the zombie emerged he sent a short burst into its head and dropped it as soon as it stepped into the hallway.
Looking to the zombie girl, he shouted over the gunfire of his colleagues, "I'll cover the rear. Get outside and see if it's clear."
Zoe nodded as she turned and sprinted to the doors to the outside, and she slammed into them and pushed them open as fast as she could. Stopping halfway to the Stryker, she saw that it had its back end open with two men guarding it from the inside, and she raised her palms to them as they both trained their weapons on her.
"Wait!" she shouted. "It's me!" She half turned and pointed inside. "There are other gray people in there and the guys are fighting with them! I got told to come out and see if there are any more out here."
The two looked to each other, then one asked her, "Do they need help in there?"
"I don't think so," she replied, "but there are a lot of them in there." The door burst open and she barked a scream a she wheeled around and retreated from it.
The soldiers began to charge out, then they turned to form two lines between the Stryker and the school, aiming their weapons back at the door.
Sergeant Morris was the last one out and he grabbed onto Zoe's arm as he strode toward the waiting Stryker, dragging her along as he stormed toward the Stryker, barking, "Get ready to put some fire on that door!" He continued on, pulling Zoe into the Stryker as he yelled to the driver, "Get the engine fired up and secure the front, then get on top to those MG's and watch our flanks." He sat the girl down and ordered, "Stay put. This is about to get messy."
She watched him load a new magazine into his rifle and stride to the back of the assault vehicle. Even in this frightening, high stress environment, she wanted to be involved, but she had been brought up to do what she was told. As the guns began firing again, she covered her ears and balled herself up in her seat, watching as the soldiers cut down the zombies that charged from the school. As they were funneled through the school's front doors, they were easy prey for the soldiers who fired steadily in short bursts. She could not know how many zombies were in there, but they seemed endless and just kept coming!
Zoe looked around her, flinching as the big fifty caliber machine guns on the vehicle's roof fired a few bursts. Her eyes fixed on ammo cans that were under the seats across the Stryker from her, and she remembered helping the soldiers before at the mall by taking them more ammunition. Springing from her seat, she grabbed onto the first can and pulled it from under the seat, dropping to her knees as she opened it and began removing magazines. She shoved one in each pocket and stood with two in each hand, then she cringed under the deafening noise of the machine gun fire. Looking about, she found a first aid kit, dropped the magazines into the ammo can and sprang up, darting to the box. She fumbled with the latch and finally opened it, then she reached in and pulled out some packs of gauze, which she tore open as soon as she got them out. Shoving a wad of the gauze in each ear, she stared blankly ahead as she assessed their effectiveness against the noise of the rifles. Satisfied, she turned and took the magazines from the can before she trotted to the men who fired on the zombies from inside the Stryker. For a moment she just stood there, watching the horror before her as zombies dropped one after another, many with exploding heads, and she shuddered as a sick feeling washed through her. Hearing the gun to her left fall silent, she looked to that soldier and tapped him on the soldier with the magazines in one hand, offering them to him as he looked to her.
In moments she had handed out all of the magazines and gone for more. Sergeant Morris did not scold her for getting up as she offered him one and instead kept fighting.
Within five minutes she had emptied two ammunition cans and was going for the third. She heard the heavy machine guns fire again and looked up. She remembered that he was guarding the flanks of the machine, the sides, and a nervous crawl started in her stomach. With a magazine in each hand, she turned and crept toward the front of the Stryker. She looked out the windshield, and her mouth fell open as her widening eyes found hundreds more zombies staggering toward them, and they seemed to be coming from everywhere!
With a cry of fear, Zoe turned and sprinted to Sergeant Morris, tugging on his shoulder as she tried to warn him, but she could not make words, only child-like whimpers as she tried to get his attention.
Holding his weapon ready, he looked over his shoulder at her and barked, "What!"
She was half turned, pulling on his shoulder as she pointed to the front of the Stryker.
Impatiently, he looked that way, then he raised his head as he saw what she was warning him about. Thinking quickly, he ordered, "Go get strapped in! We're leaving!"
Zoe obeyed quickly as he rallied his men and ordered them all inside, then she watched him run to the front and jump into the driver's seat. With the back still open, the Stryker lurched forward, turning hard to the right to get back onto the road. The men at the rear continued to fire on the zombies that still came out of the school, and many of them had started to run after the retreating assault vehicle. The big fifty caliber battery on the top fired ahead of them and toward the left side, cutting the advancing zombies to pieces.
As planned, the Stryker slowly retreated from the school and drew most of the zombies in the area right to it. Almost all of them from the school were now in pursuit of the big attack vehicle as it slowly drove away.
One of the other men hurried to the front of the Stryker and took the passenger's seat, aiming his weapon out the window and firing a few short bursts. Zoe joined them there, holding onto the backs of their seats as she watched where they were going, and watched them run over zombies that were not cut down by the heavy machine guns. When the gun beside her stopped firing, she patted his shoulder and yelled over the continuing gunfire, "Would you like some more bullets?"
He looked up at her and smiled. "That would be great, Sweetheart!"
Once again she found herself shuttling ammunition to the soldiers who were firing on the zombies that pursued them.
"Well," Tex confirmed as he turned the Stryker to the left to lead the Zombies away. "It's working."
Another soldier appeared behind him and informed, "We've already blown through half our ammo, Sarge. You got a plan B?"