Alternative Universe: by Nick Venom (free novel reading sites .txt) 📖

my age.” Alexia remarked, glancing at Braiden who was busy installing a fence over his small farm.

“None of them are my taste.” Nikki lied. She did have a crush but didn’t have the confidence to reveal it.

“Come on, there has to be some budding love here,” Kiya said. “What about Nick?” She directed her question for Nikki. 

Alexia’s interests were piqued, staring at Nikki. “Yeah, what about him?” She asked in a half-intimidating and half-curious tone.

“I’m telling you guys, I don’t have a crush on him.”

“You sure?” Kiya walked closer to Nikki, poking at her.

“Stop that,” She playfully said. “I’m going to say it again, I don’t like anybody.”

“Leave her alone, Kiya. We’ll reveal the truth soon.” Alexia joked, grabbing the bucket with the combined eggs. She carried them effortlessly towards the house with Kiya and Nikki at her heels.

Everything appeared perfect, everybody focused on their tasks. They kept their heads high and vision in the sky. They never watched the road.

 

TBC…

Episode Twelve "Hell Broke Loose"

Nick and Amanda reached the ranch’s westside, clocking in less than an hour. They sprinted through the forest as quickly as they could, reaching the ranch and barging in. “A horde is coming! A horde is coming! A horde is coming!” Nick shouted as they got through the fence and sprinted towards the house. 

Nathan propped his head up, sitting down on a bench outside of the house, staring at Nick and Amanda as they neared him. “What happened?”

“Zombies!” Nick shouted, out of breath. “There’s a horde on its way here!”

“Estimate?” Nathan asked, standing up. 

Nick shrugged his shoulders as his eyebrows went up. “Too many to count. 50? 100? Maybe more?”

Nathan shook his head, staring in the direction they came from. “How much longer do we have? An hour? Ten minutes?”

“20 maybe,” Amanda chimed in. She had already begun breathing in the fresh air, filling her lungs with treats. “For sure, we don’t… don’t have much time.”

“Okay, you two rest for a few moments. I’ll alert everybody else.” Nathan told them, resting a hand on Nick’s shoulders. Nick nodded, taking Nathan’s seat to catch his breath. 

Meanwhile, Nick and Amanda sat on the bench, catching their breaths. They were sweating profusely, running without taking a single break. They had to catch their breaths while running, constantly trying to catch oxygen that flew right out of the grips.

“I-I guess, we g-got our ex-exercise t-today.” Nick joked, wiping the sweat off his forehead.

Amanda nodded, resting a hand on her stomach. She breathed in deeply, inhaling before exhaling. She continued this process, calming herself and taking her mind off the incoming horde and sweat puddling on her.

Nathan brought everybody over, standing in front of Nick and Amanda. “Horde’s coming here. There may be a chance that they’ll pass by us, but that chance is slim. Instead, we need to figure out a plan to counterattack them.”

“What about we divide the ranch into sections? Like somebody takes care of one sector, another person takes another sector, and so on?” Kiya asked. She stared at Nathan, who sheepishly looked away.

“That makes sense. Most of our armory are close-quarters weapons, so we’ll have to be close to the zombies to deal with them.” Alexia added. She glanced at Grant, who peered his way into their conversation, and shooed him off. It wasn’t a conversation for kids.

“We have two assault rifles, two shotguns, a hunting rifle, six pistols, a bow, a spear, hunting knives, and a rusty musket. Ignoring the obvious lacking weapon, we’re stuck with close-quarters combat. The hunting rifle, bow, and assault rifles are our only bet of long-distance fighting.” Nathan deducted, 

“Couldn’t we have Amanda perched on the roof, overlooking the entire ranch?” Braiden asked, stepping into the conversation. His hands were dirty from farming, his palms full of calluses from working the equipment. He strapped his suit to his waist, treating it as a belt of sorts. “It makes more sense than having her on ground-level with us. She’ll be able to assist everybody easily.”

“I agree with that plan,” Nick said, standing up from the bench. He turned to Amanda. “I hope you aren’t afraid of heights.”

Amanda shyly smiled before shaking her head. “I’ll do it.”

Nick nodded at her before facing the others. “We bunker down at first in hopes that the horde passes by us. If they don’t, then we fight them. Braiden and Nathan will protect the northeast side while Alexia, Kiya, and I will be in charge of the southwest side. Nikki will be providing support, revolving from the northeast to the southwest sides. Amanda will be on top, providing support for all sides and calling out large clumps and flanking zombies. Is that clear?”

Everybody nodded their heads.

“Good, now let’s wait for these bastards.”

They rushed inside, equipping themselves with the guns and loose ammunition. Nick grabbed a pistol, holstering it in his pocket while brandishing his trusty compound hunting bow. He had a smile that resembled a hunter anticipating his new prey.

Alexia threw her spear to the side, grabbing an assault rifle and a pistol. She touched the assault rifle like a mad dog, hesitating to grab the rifle’s grip. She nearly shrieked upon touching it.

Nikki brandished a pistol, peering out the front window. She couldn’t see anything, her vision obscured by the trees surrounding the main road. Nathan approached her, resting a hand on her shoulder. He had an assault rifle in his left hand, his right hand resting on top of her shoulder. “It’s going to get real hazy soon. When all hell breaks loose, everybody will be up to their knees in problems.” He looked her in the eyes. “Be careful.”

“I will,” She whispered.

Kiya watched from afar, sliding a magazine into the pistol. She pouted as she watched Nathan touch Nikki’s shoulder, dissatisfied with Nathan’s treatment of her - or lack of if.

Amanda slid back the bolt, watching as a used bullet flew out. She loaded a magazine of five bullets into the gun, loading a bullet into the chamber. She peered through the scope at a wall, closing an eye to look through. She slowed her breathing as her finger lingered on the trigger. However, she didn’t press it. She was inside, aiming at a wall and not at a zombie’s head. There was no point in wasting a bullet.

Nick looked up as everybody finished equipping themselves “Hell will break out soon, so be prepared. Alexia, grab the ladder and get Amanda on the roof. As for everybody else, stay low and keep your guards up. As soon as we see that we’re the target, turn the safety off.”

Everybody nodded, moving in accordance with Nick’s plan. Alexia and Nathan helped Amanda to the roof while the others looked out the windows at the main road and the forest. They monitored both areas for the first zombies to appear. They hoped and prayed that nothing happened and hell remained under wraps. 

Unfortunately, hell broke loose.

***

Zombies trudged towards them, moving steadily. A squad of zombies reared their ugly heads into the property, blocked by the fence. They punched and grabbed at it but it was too sturdy for them to destroy. However, an entire horde was more than enough to crush the crude defenses. The horde split into three; a third hitting the west fences, a third hitting the south fences, and the final third hitting the east area - where Nikki and the others entered from. They poured in, making it clear that the ranch was their target.

Nick shook his head as he drew his bow, pointing it downward. “This is it. They’re coming for us, so-” He looked at everybody else “-let’s go kill these bastards.” He smiled a nervous smile before motioning for Nikki, who stood next to the door, to open it. She nodded, opening it and watching as he stepped out and launched an arrow towards the nearest zombie, hitting it in its head.

Alexia followed behind Nick, raising the assault rifle and pointing it at the zombie closest to her. She hesitated to press the trigger, her finger lingering on it.

“You’ve grown, Alexia. You’re no longer the small kid that didn’t know how to shoot anymore. You’re different, so show it.” Nick told her.

She smiled at herself, nodding softly, before dropping the smile and peering through the iron sights of the rifle, pressing the trigger. It fired off a few bullets that hit the zombies and took them down. “You’re right, I’ve grown.”

Kiya let out a small chuckle at their sibling relationship, enjoying the short conversation more than any words she shared with Nathan. Why have we changed? Wait, did he change, or… did I? She wasn’t sure if she truly changed or if Nathan changed. Who was sure of anything anymore amidst the apocalypse. Everything was empty; like her heart.

Meanwhile, Braiden and Nathan went out the backdoor, focusing on the zombies on the east---which were farther away than they expected. The two didn’t talk, focusing on shooting down the zombies to the best of the abilities. Neither of them had training, missing ninety percent of their shots. 

Braiden had less luck with a pistol, missing ninety-nine percent of his shots. He was forced to look down the small iron sight, barely able to see his targets. He lined up the sight and fired, missing the zombies by a few feet. “Damn thing,” he muttered under his breath. He hated how worthless he was in long-range fighting. Fortunately for him, a few zombies heard the gunfire and crossed towards him. Braiden raised the pistol, pointing it at the undead bastards, and fired off a few shots. One connected and put a zombie down, but the other two missed. Braiden quietly cursed himself before loading in a new magazine. He pointed it at the incoming zombies, unloading the entire magazine into the three zombies standing in front of him. Most of the bullets missed but the few that didn’t, connected with the zombies in their head. They dropped to the ground, earning Braiden four kills.

“I knew I was good.” He reassured himself, his ego slowly coming back with every new kill.

“Can it, Braiden! Focus on eliminating the horde.” Nathan remarked, lining an eye through the iron sight. Braiden nodded, pushing past Nathan, avoiding his line of sight, and got a better sight of the zombies nearing the house.

Nathan glanced down at Braiden, slightly frightening. Braiden noticed the movement, staring up at him. “I’m not going to use you as a human shield. That was my fault.” He turned back towards the zombies, popping off shots while missing ninety percent of his bullets even at a closer range.

 

Amanda slowed down her breathing, her finger lingering on the trigger. She closed an eye, peering through the scope with the opened one. She pointed the gun at a zombie, tracking its head. “Calm down, calm down.” She reminded herself. She kept the scope on the zombie, waiting for it to come closer before her finger lightly pressed on the trigger.

“You got this, you got this, you got this. It’s the same as hunting rabbits and deer. Animals - they’re animals, not humans.” She muttered quietly while her aim remained unwavering; her gun waiting for an order.

She gave the order.

She pressed the trigger and watched through the scope as the bullet embedded itself