It was clear that the soldier was clutching a wound on his neck. Bretz quickly pocketed the binoculars and readied his rifle.
“Sergeant, we have to move now,” he said. “We’re about to have at least to runners.”
Murphy nodded, the implications not lost on him. Runners were much harder to deal with, and given that they were already shorthanded, they’d need to be dealt with fast.
“You’re staying put, Corporal,” he said firmly. “My orders are to deliver you safely, and I intend on doing just that.” He motioned to six nearby soldiers, waving them forward. “Main building, eliminate all targets with extreme prejudice. Including our injured.”
One of the soldiers’ eyes widened. “Sir?”
“Did I fucking stutter?” the Sergeant demanded. “Those are the orders from the top. Quick death for those who are bitten. And when it’s clear, two of you get topside for diversions. Now move out!”
The group of six sprinted towards the dead and injured, guns raised and ready for action. As they made the turn on the back of the building, Bretz and Murphy watched through the binoculars as they formed a firing line.
The soldiers fired quickly, striking down several zombies in short order. They mowed down the remaining ghouls and then hesitated.
“Follow your damn orders,” the Sergeant muttered.
“They will,” Bretz assured him. “It’s not easy, what’s being asked of them.”
Murphy’s brow furrowed, and he lowered his binoculars. “You’ve been in their shoes, I take it?” he asked.
The Corporal shook his head. “Not pre-turn, but shortly after,” he replied. “Even with my life in danger, it took longer than I would care to admit.”
Several quick shots rang out, and they looked to see the job was done.
“Hope they’ve squirreled away some shrinks,” Murphy said, “because a lot of us are gonna need some time on the couch when this is through.”
Bretz shrugged. “Well, we are invading Seattle,” he pointed out, “maybe Frasier Crane survived.”
“One can only hope,” the Sergeant replied with a dark chuckle.
They watched two of the men climb up onto the roof and scanned the other four coming back to the formation. They looked at the other building and spotted one of the men waving at them, prompting Murphy to pull out his walkie-talkie.
“What you got for me, soldier?” the Sergeant asked.
“Sarge...” the soldier’s voice came back hesitantly, “I don’t know how we’re handling this.”
Murphy sighed. “Well spit it out son,” he barked, “what are we dealing with?”
“There’s probably a thousand of those things in the parking lot,” the soldier replied, “and there’s another couple hundred up the road about half a mile.”
The Sergeant lowered the radio, shaking his head and rubbing the bridge of his nose. He finally lifted it and held it to his mouth. “Standby,” he said firmly.
“Yes sir,” the soldier replied.
Murphy turned to his VIPs. “Well, if the other squad wasn’t shitting the bed, we could clear this out no problem.”
“We can still clear it out,” Bretz assured him. “You got the six of us in addition to your crew. If we’re smart, we can do it.”
The Sergeant shook his head. “My orders are to get you to the trucks, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
“With all due respect Sergeant,” the Corporal declared, “as soon as we fire up those trucks, we’re going to be sitting ducks. And those back alleys are narrow. If we don’t get a handle on the situation before we start those up, this mission is over before it begins.”
Murphy pulled out his map. “You’re right,” he conceded as he spread it open. “So, we have a thousand zombies in the lot, and more up the road there.”
“As soon as we start shooting, everything is going to converge on us,” Bretz pointed out.
The Sergeant nodded. “The shamblers are slow,” he said, “so we got what, ten minutes before the ones on the road join the battle?”
“About that,” the Corporal agreed.
“So we need to clear the lot and get men over to the other side to fend them off,” Murphy mused.
Bretz nodded thoughtfully. “I think if we send a few more men to the smaller building, they can provide enough of a distraction to buy us a little more time,” he suggested.
“Agreed,” the Sergeant replied.
“And if I’m overstepping my bounds, Sergeant, just say so,” Bretz said firmly. “This is your operation, we’re just along for the ride.”
Murphy shook his head emphatically. “Your input is Welcome, Corporal,” he replied. “Especially after your actions in Spokane.”
Bretz nodded. “So how do you want to play it?”
“We get a few more men on top of each building, and pull as many of those things to the far end as we can,” Murphy explained. “Put the bulk of our force straight ahead in the driveway, using the buildings as buffers.”
Bretz handed back the binoculars. “I would also leave a few men on either side covering the back of the buildings,” he suggested. “These things are sneaky, and the last thing we need is to be ambushed.”
“Agreed,” the Sergeant said, putting the binoculars back into his pack.
“I think once we set up the perimeter at the entrance, our focus should be clearing out the front of the main building,” Bretz added. “That will give us more real estate to deal with the reinforcements.”
Murphy cocked his head. “But if there’s only a couple hundred coming up, wouldn’t it make more sense to clear them out, first?” he asked.
“There are only a couple hundred that they can see,” Bretz warned.
The Sergeant nodded thoughtfully. “Valid point.” He whistled and pointed to six soldiers nearby. “Get up to the line, three on each building,” he instructed. “Set up at the far end and start drawing them to you. Go.”
They tore off across the parking lot, and then Murphy crossed his arms, turning back to Bretz.
“Okay Corporal,” he said firmly, “here’s the deal. You stay in the center of the action with me.” He pointed a finger at him. “Understood?”
Bretz nodded. “Understood, Sergeant.”
“Let’s move out, then,” Murphy said,
