They were all in a building opposite from the hospital and watching the chaos that they were about to face. A heavy layer of sweat coated Ash's palm as he gulped with fear. He saw that everyone else except for few had a similar horror filled look on their faces. Ash didn't really know most of them. except for Rhys, Jule and Josh, everyone else of the 18-member team was a stranger that joined from the refugee camp. Having survived so far Ash was sure that none of them were wimps, especially since they were the elite raid team from the camp consisting of majorly with military and a few well-trained civilians. That didn't mean that they were immune to fear. Especially when facing a facility that was swarming with zombies.

Ash could already count 30-35 Zombies wandering aimlessly outside the building and no one knew how the situation inside was. This was not just escaping, they had to actually get in there and collect as much medicine as possible without dying first before escaping. Based on Ash's estimate of the power of the team, he still couldn't guarantee that most of them would survive this. 'Maybe this is where I will die.' He thought silently and shot a glance at Rhys who was observing the situation like a hawk. 'Why did he always bring me out for these life and death missions? Couldn't he instead take me along for a patrol run? If I get the chance, I really want to give him a punch!' Ash thought with a sigh. Right now, was the only time he could relax. Once they start moving there might not even be a chance to catch their breaths.

"Sir Ian, the situation looks very bad, how about we abandon the mission?" A woman in flexible letter pants and a tank faded tank top asked a very muscular man who stood with his thick arms crossed across well-defined pecks. The man, Ian, was apparently a former captain of the army and was the one in charge of the operation today. He was a soldier through and through. The values that usually deteriorates during times like these were still held on firmly by this man. He was the embodiment of justice, loyalty and honesty. He was also a man who took his missions seriously. Ash saw him glance sideways at the woman and fell back into thought.

"Rhys what do you think?" Ian asked after a moment of silence. It seemed like since they arrived at the camp, Rhys's reputation had soared significantly and now even a man like Ian was seeking his opinion on the matter. Ash also turned to look at Rhys as whatever he says might determine whether all of us returns today or not. He felt like Rhys's dark eyes flashed at him so fast that he thought that his mind was playing games with him.

"It is a difficult mission. We won't come out without casualties." Rhys responded to the question in an impassive voice. "With the number that we have a full-on frontal attack won't work. It will just spell all of our deaths. On the other hand, we also don't know what awaits us inside, so Elaine's opinion is the best method." The woman who had voiced the retreat relaxed and heaved a sigh of relieve as she heard the words. Ash narrowed his eyes suspiciously; it seemed a bit out of character when Rhys agreed so easily to retreat. Usually he would at least come up with a few plans to see if they would work. Maybe this place was completely hopeless and there was no way at all to retrieve the medicine.

Just when he thought that he heard Rhys's voice again, "but the we cannot go back empty handed. Every day we are fighting and getting injured. Without the medical supply, we won't be dying of a zombie infection but some other illness."

In the last few days the injured were piling up. Almost everyday someone would get hurt but they couldn't be treated due to the lack of medications. All the ones that they had were already used up and now the camp was running low. Angelica's brother had also recently fallen seriously ill. Some were suspicious that he had gotten infected. They would kill the boy if he didn't get better soon. He wasn't the only one in a similar situation. So, Ash was in agreement with Rhys that they had to do something, but this would be a serious sacrifice from their part as they were putting their lives on the line.

"Yes. We can't go back without the supplies. Every hospital in the vicinity would be like this so there isn't any sense in looking for another one. The people at the camp need this." Ian agreed. "Now then, anyone has a plan?"

When the question was directed at the group, everyone started coming up with various ideas that they thought might work. Ash looked back at the hospital building. It was quite a big structure. A retaining wall ran through the length of the front, dividing the main road and the building. Unless you wanted to step through the well-maintained bushes and flowers behind the wall, the only option to enter was through the wide main gate or the back gate for the emergency patience. The Zombies must have been all the people who went to seek medical advice after getting bitten or injured. It was no wonder that the building was flooded with the creatures.

"What are you spacing out for?" Jule who was standing next to him asked Ash. "Have you found anything helpful?" Ash looked back at Jule and shook his head. Every idea that came to his mind was very reckless. "That's a pity. With the way you were brooding I was sure that you were cooking a fabulous idea in that head of yours."

"Well best way to go about this is for some of us to create lot of noise and lead the majority of them away so that the rest can enter and gather the supplies." Ash said offhandedly. It was something that anyone with lot of raiding experience should know. He forgot that, although a lot of stuff had happened so far, the apocalypse had only started a few months ago. And the first instinct everyone would have is to flee or hide away. They wouldn't think deeply on fighting the creatures. Moreover, the refugee camp had been set up by the government. During the initial months, food was delivered as much as possible until the supply either ran out or the supply route got overrun. So, the refugee camp had just started going out on raids for the past one month. Although they were given special crash course training by the military, their actual on field experience was still little.

Ian seemed to have heard what he said to Jule and turned to look at him. It was indeed something that he was thinking about, but he was surprised that the boy who always stayed back at the camp would know something like that. He knowledge was refined by the battlefields and intense training from the army. So, he was shocked that the boy who looked very timid, had the same thoughts as an experienced soldier. He was in fact quite annoyed that a useless person was tagging along only to be Zombie fodder. But since Rhys's close mate had brought him personally along, he thought there must have been a reason. Now that he heard the boy talk, he thought that the boy must be the brain of the group. Ash didn't know that such a misunderstanding had occurred just because a fragile looking person had made a casual remark.

"Yes. You are right Kid." The captain came towards him as if he was completely convinced by something. The people who had been busy thinking up ideas turned towards them in confusion as they had missed the conversation. "Now how do you say we achieve that?"

Ash looked at the intimidating man before him and was shocked for a moment. He only came back to his senses when Jule gave him a nudge from the side. "W-Well..." he hadn't really thought it through. It was the most basic raid tactic, so he had assumed that everyone was already aware of it, but he only saw curiosity and confusion in everyone's eyes.

"A car?" Ash asked remembering a scene form a tv show that he had watched when he was in the lab. It was more of a question than a statement, yet captain Ian seemed to be very happy with the answer that he gave.

"Yes, you are brilliant." He praised without reserve while grinning from ear to ear.

"???"

"Few of you go out and look for available vehicles in the vicinity. It should be loud, fast and have a full tank of fuel." As soon as he gave the order, several people started heading out the door to complete the task swiftly. This was the efficiency and discipline of a soldier.

He then turned to a few other men and women who were keeping an eye on the situation using binoculars. "How is the inside looking?"

"Sir, it looks like there are quite a large number inside as well. It might be even larger than the number outside." A man in a military vest responded.

"Fighting against a large number with walls surrounding us is not the best scenario." Rhys said with a stiff expression. "Even after luring the outside creatures away, the odds are still against us."

"Mmm... what about the sniper team?" Ian went on asking, trying to take every opportunity into consideration.

The woman, Elaine responded to that, "Sir we will start on your signal." There were only two snipers, so they had to make sure that they took at as many as possible with the limited number of hands and bullets. Ever since thy supply route got cut off, they had to make sure that they used their ammo sparingly for any unpredictable future events. As such, they had few bullets in their possession.

Ian nodded at her, "shoot smart. I expect every bullet to hit a head." By the time the search team and scout team return, bring down the numbers inside."

All the preparation were done. The sniper duo were expertly bringing down the zombies that the saw through the windows of the hospital. Ash was still feeling uneasy. The building was big and they could only clear one side of it before adventuring inside blindly. Even with the preparation, the risk was high.

Soon the search team returned followed by the scouts who had grim looks on their faces. It was obvious that whatever they had to share was bad news. Two cars were found, other than the ones that they came in, since the rest had to make their escape as well after the mission. The scout team confirmed our suspicion, that the entire building was swarming with zombies, the few that the sniper team took out would not bring down the burden the raid team would have to face. Everyone had grim faces when they heard the news. The only advantage they had was that the zombies lacked intellect. But that wouldn't matter since they had more numbers on their sides.

Ash saw Ian grimace. He was a responsible captain so he should have called the retreat by now, but his eyebrows were furrowed, and he was biting his thumb while deep in thought. It seemed like he was having a huge internal battle with himself. Everyone else waited with their breaths held for their captain's decision. A deep sigh was heard in the room and after a short silence the captain spoke, "divide into two teams. One will drive the cars and lead the zombies far away. After they are at a distance find a way to escape. You are not to die doing anything reckless. After that return to the camp. Again, do not lead the Zombies back to the camp. Second team will enter the hospital and gather the supplies. Stick to the side that the snipers have cleared. Don't wander, grab and get out."

Ash frowned at his words; his impression of the man was that he was someone who would not take risks with his comrades’ lives. So why was he acting like they had to complete this mission no matter the cost. Also, most of the regular medications were easily available in the pharmacies scattered all over the place. The only explanation he could think of was that the ‘crazy scientists, who have been holed up in their labs since he arrived, have asked the captain to retrieve something for them that was not available in the pharmacies. Maybe they needed some equipment from here?

Since he couldn’t return by himself from this suicide mission, Ash decided to see if he could think of a safer way to enter and come out alive. Using the security car's alarm system to distract the zombies was a good idea but based on the numbers they had to do more if they wanted to survive. Ash thought back to the last raid that he went on where they used blood to distract a part of the zombies. A similar method was used during his escape with James and Josh during their first encounter. But it is dangerous to inflict wounds on themselves as it would have the opposite effect of what is intended. Unless they sacrifice someone, the Zombies would be attracted by their wounds and be constantly on their trail. Suddenly an idea popped up in his head. ‘we are raiding a hospital after all.’

"We need to get to the blood bank." Ash commented while the others were discussing and finalising their initial plan. Having already been on a raid with Ash before, Rhys and josh understood what he was implying immediately and agreed with him. Rhys explained how the blood from the blood bank would distract the zombies inside and take the attention away from the few humans who were entering the building.

"Do you have a blueprint of the hospital?" Rhys asked the Caption. Ian immediately pulled out a parchment and spread it open. The pointed out the location of the blood bank without much effort. Problem was that it was located quite in the centre of the facility. If they wanted to use it to their advantage, they would have to be able to get there in one piece first.

"It was a good idea but it seems it cannot be implemented." Ian said after studying the blueprint for a while. His impression of Ash had gone up another notch. The boy knew how to use his head. "Any other ideas?" He asked looking straight at Ash.

"Umm... we could use the air ducts to get there." Ash answered in a whisper feeling uncomfortable under the intense looks directed at him. He saw the captain’s eyes twinkle as he played out the scenario in his head.

"Yes! Excellent. If we divide into 3 groups, then this mission would go down much smoother. One team takes the cars and follow the previously given instructions. Three of you will enter the ducts and go to the blood bank. Make a mess there so that those monsters are led away. And the third team will enter from the front." Ian started giving out instructions and dividing up the teams. "Remember we are here for medications and a few equipment that the doctors asked us to get."

Ash was assigned to enter the air ducts with Jule and a man that he didn't know by name. To his surprise Rhys started arguing that he would rather accompany us than fight through the front. So, in the end the woman and Rhys were swapped. Both Jule and Ash looked at him confused. Why was he being so insistent to join them? Their mission was more on the easier side as the blueprint showed that the air ducts led right to the front of the blood bank. So all they had to do was open the door, break a few packages and then escape the same way they came. That was such a risk free and easy job that everyone was surprised that Rhys wanted to take the spot of the weaker member of the team. As someone with more experience, he should have taken the lead to lead the others through the building. No one knew what Rhys was thinking and he was not willing to comply no matter how much Captain Ian tried to persuade him otherwise.

Although unhappy, there wasn't much anyone could do so the plan was set into motion.

----------

The air ducts were small and tight. Squeezing through them was manageable but still an inconvenience for Ash but then he looked at the two much bigger men in front of him and grimaced. He couldn't imagine how uncomfortable they must be feeling.

Ash looked down through an opening that they were passing over and noticed several zombies walking around in ‘patient gowns’ as well as nurse uniforms and doctor coats. All of them looked gruesome and scary. Jule crawled forward in front of him and the shuffling noise resonated for a moment in the air. A nearby Zombie woman looked up at the ceiling from where she thought the sound came from. Ash held his breath and motioned Jule to stop. Everyone stayed still for a moment as they watched the zombie open and close her bloody mouth as she looked from one spot to another. After staring for a good few minutes, she lowered her head and limped away with short snarls. Everyone relaxed and were more careful with their movements. After around fifteen minutes of following the map, they arrived at their destination. Rhys who was at the very front, looked down through the opening and observed his surroundings. There were several Zombies walking around. He took out his pistol and adjusted the silencer on it before aiming from his elevated position. The muffled sound of shots reached Ash’s ear as he waited for some kind of signal for them to proceed.

Jule watched as body after body fell to the floor with each corpse having a very precise head shot. He admired Rhys shooting skills and his nervous heart calmed down at the feeling of security that it brought. He wasn’t one for fighting. It had always been his brothers who left for raids. This one was only his second raid mission since the zombie outbreak started. The other one was more like a quick patrol/supply run to the closest mall to the refugee camp. Most of the Zombies in that area had already been taken care of, so the ones they faced were the stay new zombies that wandered into the radius that had already been cleared. He had been able to take down a few Zombies. Although it made him sick to his stomach. All his non-violence and killing values that he had held onto throughout his life were challenged during that ‘easy’ patrol mission. Once he ruptured form there, he realised that he had to pull himself together if he wanted to survive in this new changed world. He didn’t want to be a burden to his brothers, and he couldn’t be a wimp when even his kid brother was volunteering to venture outside the protection of the gates. So, he had decided to sign up for this mission to get additional experience and get over the uneasiness in his heart. But this mission turned out to be completely different and on a high-risk level than the simple patrol he went out on. Jule came to realise that his brothers were risking their lives each time they ventured out. The grim faces of the captain and the others were not helping to calm his nerves.

There were only two people on this mission who kept his resolve from wavering. One was his brother Josh whom he didn’t want to disappoint and die on. He wanted to return with him back to the camp have a nice family dinner together with James and talk about the old, sunnier days. The other person was the boy behind him. Ash has surprised him considerably. He was much weaker than him in both physique and stamina. But he was maintaining a better mental state than him. Jule knew that he had already been on a life and dead mission with Rhys and Josh before. In fact, ever since he arrived, he had been a presence that stands out even without doing much. Jule didn’t know what the Ash had gone through to be so calm and collected in such a dangerous situation. All he knew was that he didn’t want to be ashamed when compared to the younger boy. Inorder not to lose face in front of the newer and weaker member of their team, he had to pull himself together and at least put on a brave front. That was why Jule was grateful of Ryhs’s presence in their team. He was like a large wall that blocked out all the dangers in front of them. It put his mind at ease.

“let’s get down.” Rhys whispered to the two behind him and proceeded to jump down lightly. He looked warily around with his gun pointed in front of him in order to kill any zombies that he had missed. Soon he heard another two set of feet touch the ground and he looked back to nod at the two. “Let’s finish this quickly.” All three of them moved towards the closed door that contained the refrigerated packages of blood. As soon as they entered the room, they felt that the temperature in the room was lower than outside. Since it was a hospital, the backup generators must have been working until very recently.

Without wasting any time, they took action. The packages were removed from the refrigerator and torn open so that the blood inside flowed out covering the floor. after a few packages the floor was already starting to floor with the red fluid. A metallic smell filled the air and all the red was making Ash nauseous. They were careful not to get any on their shoes or cloths. That would ruin the entire purpose. Soon distant roars and growls could be heard along with shuffling sounds of countless footsteps.

“We should get going.” Jules said anxiously.

Everyone was getting tense as the time ticked by. So far everything was going according to plan. As the zombies made their way here, the other team would notice the reduction on their side and start entering the building. Rhys was feeling anxious. Everything was going too smoothly. It made him worry. Usually luck wouldn’t keep favouring one person constantly. “Hurry, they will be here any minute.” Rhys instructed as he led the two back towards the ducts. Jules was the first one to go. His worries came true as he saw the problem that they had forgotten to account for. The ducts were too high to enter from this side without any assistance. Jule was not someone who was weak, yet he was struggling to lift himself up into the narrow opening that was at a much higher altitude than his head. They were in a hurry when they jumped down the air duct that they forgot to notice it. Hurriedly, Rhys knelled down as a stepping board. Seeing that the sound of the zombies was drawing closer from both sides of the corridor, Jule quickly used Rhys as a ladder and started heaving himself up.

Rhys looked at the approaching corpses in panic. They were already upon them and had spotted them. there was no longer time to help Ash up the ducts. He quickly glanced at the boy who was looking at the approaching horde with wide eyes and his heart unconsciously clenched. Without thinking, he grabbed his hand and started running. ‘This is not the place we die.’

“Come find us. If we can't be saved, then get the hell out.” Rhys shouted at Jule who was sitting in the duct opening with a horror stricken look on his face. Before hearing the reply, Rhys was already shooting and kicking his way through the Zombies. To his relief, Ash was not fear struck. After the initial shock, he regained his senses quickly and without asking any questions followed his lead. With both of them firing accurately at the monsters, they had a bit more chance of getting to anywhere that had an escape route. They were running at full speed. An intersection came into sight before long.

Ash was closely following behind Rhys. Although his body was getting painful with the effort of the fighting, running and panicking, he refused to complain aa it was a dire situation. Ash was feeling some sort of comfort that he wasn’t alone and deep down he was happy that the one stuck with him was Rhys who was very dependable and strong. Did he calculate this happening? Is that why he insisted that he come along with their team? While these kinds of thoughts were swirling in his mind, from the corner of his eye he saw something horrifying. Five zombies jumped out from the intersection and clawed at Rhys who didn’t have enough time to dodge.

“NO!” Ash shouted out in terror.

Rhys clutched his abdomen and saw the blood leaking through his fingers. ‘Ha!’ he really wanted to laugh. So, I will die here or turn into this monster. He quickly shot at the one that clawed him and backed away a few steps. He was infected for sure. The pain was ten times worse than a normal wound to the stomach. It was prickling him like a dozen needles, making it difficult to focus. ‘I have to clear a path for the boy!!’ A thought popped up as a pair of swimming blue eyes rushed in front of him after shooting at the immediate threat.

“We can fix this.” He mumbled with a shaking voice as his hand covered Rhys’s over the wound. Rhys thought that Ash was losing his senses because of the dread and fright. He saw several more zombies approaching attracted by the blood and noise. Ignoring the pain as much as he could he started rushing down the hallway to find somewhere safe to stuff the boy into. Rhys no longer cared whether he got more injured or not. He started fighting recklessly. Although the incubation period was 2-5 days, if the amount of the virus exceeds a certain amount then there is a possibility of the human turning instantaneously.

Ash’s hand was tightly grasped, and he was dragged along. His heart was feeling agony as he saw the number of wounds increase on Rhys. ‘What on earth is this idiot doing. Even I won’t be able to heal him if the virus spreads too quickly and reaches his brain or heart. “Ash see that door. That room should be empty. When I give the signal run as fast as you can into the room and lock it behind you.” Rhys shouted as he punched at another looming Zombie.

‘Of course, that’s the plan. But you are coming with me.’ Ash thought in his mind. Rhys looked horrible. Wounds littered his body. If he takes anymore damage, then Ash wouldn’t be able to heal him. ‘I don’t need your sacrifice.’ He saw a wide mouth approaching Rhys’s shoulder to bite him. ‘This is dangerous.’ Ash raised his gun and shot. It was empty. Frustrated he did the only thing he could. He blocked the attack with his own body. A familiar stinging pain assaulted hand. Ash quickly pushed the zombie away and kicked in its head. Rhys saw the wound and was his eyes ignited with anger. But before he could say anything Ash pulled him away from another bloods hand and pushed him into a room before slamming the door closed and locking it behind him.

Sound of clawing and biting could be heard against the door. Inside, two heavily breathing men looked silently glared at each other as their wounds dripped blood to the floor. “Are you insane?” Rhys asked finally unable to hold back his anger. He grabbed Ash by the collar and pulled him towards him. “DO YOU WANT TO DIE THAT BADLY.”

“JUST SHUT UP AND LIE DOWN IF YOU DON’T WANT TO TURN INTO A ZOMBIE” Ash shouted back in anger. Rhys was momentarily stunned. That was the first time he had seem Ash so angry. Making use of the confusion, Ash raised his gun and brought it down hard. The impact hit Rhys on his head and the already exhausted and heavily wounded Rhys fell unconscious. “I am only saving you because I need your help to get out from here.” Ash declared to blacked out man in his arms.