The System's words – RUNNER VARIANT SIGNATURES DETECTED! RAPID APPROACH! THEY WERE TRACKING YOU! – hit Ethan like a physical shock, cold dread instantly overriding any thought of scavenging fuel. Two to three minutes. It was no time at all.
"Glenn!" Ethan's voice was a harsh, urgent rasp, devoid of any attempt to disguise the alarm. "Forget the store, forget the gas! We've got company! Those fast ones, the runners from the highway! A whole pack of them, coming hard from the woods, north-east! My System says… " He caught himself, heart pounding. He couldn't say 'System'. "I saw them! Just a glimpse through the trees! They're moving incredibly fast, heading right for us! They must have picked up our trail from the pickup or the bridge!"
Glenn, who had been examining the convenience store's flimsy lock, straightened up instantly, his face paling. He didn't question Ethan's impossible sighting; the sheer terror and certainty in Ethan's voice were enough. He fumbled for his walkie-talkie.
"Rick! Dale! This is Glenn! Abort, abort! We've got runners, a lot of 'em, coming in fast from the woods, north-east! They were hunting us! Estimate two minutes, maybe less! Get the RV ready to move, now!"
The panicked reply from Rick was immediate, crackling with static. "Copy that, Glenn! How many? Can you make it back to the RV?"
[HOSTILE 'RUNNER VARIANT' PACK: ESTIMATED 15-20 INDIVIDUALS. ETA TO CURRENT LOCATION (GAS STATION): 90 SECONDS. ETA TO RV'S CURRENT POSITION: 2 MINUTES IF THEY DIVERT. RV STARTUP AND EVASION CAPABILITY FROM STATIONARY: LOW PROBABILITY OF CLEARING AREA BEFORE HOSTILE CONTACT.]
"No time to get back to you!" Ethan shouted, already scanning the dilapidated gas station. The RV was a good hundred yards away, partially concealed but too far for a sprint before those things were on them. "The store! It's our only chance for immediate cover!"
He didn't wait for Glenn's agreement, already sprinting towards the grimy glass door of the "Hank's Gas & Go" convenience store. Glenn was right behind him. They slammed inside, the bell above the door jangling with a sickeningly cheerful sound. The two dormant walkers Ethan had seen earlier began to stir at the sudden noise, their heads slowly turning.
"Barricade the door!" Ethan yelled, his eyes darting around the small, cramped space. It was a deathtrap, with large windows on two sides. "System, defenses! Weak points!"
[STORE DEFENSE ASSESSMENT: LOW. MAIN DOOR: WOOD FRAME, STANDARD LOCK (CURRENTLY FORCED BY HOSTS). WINDOWS: LARGE PLATE GLASS, EXTREMELY VULNERABLE. REAR EXIT: SOLID STEEL, BUT LOCKED FROM OUTSIDE. RECOMMEND BARRICADING MAIN DOOR AND WINDOWS WITH SHELVING UNITS. INTERNAL THREATS (2 STANDARD WALKERS) REQUIRE IMMEDIATE NEUTRALIZATION.]
While Glenn frantically shoved a heavy metal chip rack against the main door, Ethan turned to face the two reanimating walkers. There was no room for finesse with his bat. He drew his hunting knife. "Glenn, these two first!"
He lunged, plunging his knife into the eye socket of the first, then whirled to meet the second, which was already lurching towards Glenn's exposed back. A quick, brutal stab to the temple, and it collapsed.
[INTERNAL THREATS NEUTRALIZED. EXP +20. SP +10.]
Just as the second walker fell, the first of the runners slammed into the glass window beside the door with terrifying force, its rotting face contorted in a silent snarl, long, claw-like fingers scraping against the pane. The glass shuddered, cracks spider-webbing across its surface. Then another hit the main door, the flimsy barricade groaning.
"They're here!" Glenn gasped, his face ashen. He grabbed a heavy fire extinguisher from its wall mount, ready to use it as a club.
Through the windows, they could see them: a dozen, then more, pouring out of the woods with unnatural speed and agility. They didn't shamble; they bounded, their movements jerky but purposeful, heads swiveling as they scanned for prey. Their screeches, when they came, were high-pitched and chilling.
[WINDOWS COMPROMISED! MULTIPLE RUNNERS ATTEMPTING ENTRY! REAR STEEL DOOR IS BEING TESTED!]
"The back!" Ethan yelled, remembering the System's assessment. He and Glenn rushed to the rear of the store, where a solid steel door, presumably a delivery entrance, was now shuddering under heavy blows from outside. If that gave way, they'd be caught in a pincer.
"We need to slow them down at the front, buy some time to reinforce this!" Ethan said, his mind racing. The System shop. He had SP. He needed something, anything.
[SURVIVOR'S EXCHANGE: 'INDUSTRIAL ADHESIVE SPRAY (QUICK-SEAL)' – 35 SP. 'CALTROPS (ANTI-PERSONNEL, BAG OF 50)' – 40 SP. 'SMOKE GRENADE (NON-LETHAL DIVERSIONARY)' – 50 SP.]
The smoke grenade. A diversion.
Purchase: Smoke Grenade. Confirm.
[ITEM ADDED TO INVENTORY SUB-DIMENSION.]
"Glenn, when I give the word, be ready to shove something heavy in front of this back door!" Ethan yelled, pulling the smoke grenade from his pack, a move he hoped looked like he'd had it all along. "I'm going to try and buy us some breathing room out front!"
He raced back to the front windows, which were now cracking badly under the assault of several runners. He pulled the pin on the smoke grenade, smashed a remaining shard of glass with his bat, and hurled the canister out into the midst of the clawing creatures.
Thick, acrid smoke billowed almost instantly, engulfing the front of the gas station. The runners shrieked in confusion and irritation, their forms becoming indistinct shadows.
"Now, Glenn!"
They both heaved a heavy metal ice freezer against the back door, just as a sickening crack indicated its lock was beginning to fail.
The walkie-talkie crackled. "Ethan, Glenn, what in God's name is happening? We see smoke! The RV is moving, we're coming towards you, trying to draw them off! Get ready to run for it if you see an opening!" It was Rick's voice, strained and urgent.
The RV! They were trying a rescue.
The smoke outside was beginning to thin. The runners, disoriented but still aggressive, were starting to refocus on the building.
[RV APPROACHING STORE FRONT. DRAWING SIGNIFICANT RUNNER AGGRESSION. ESTIMATED WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY FOR EXTRACTION: 30 SECONDS, ONCE RV IS IN POSITION.]
"Rick's making a play!" Ethan yelled to Glenn. "He's going to try and draw them off the store! We run for the RV the second we see our chance! Through the front, it's our only way now!"
The roar of the Winnebago's engine grew louder, accompanied by the blare of its horn and the distinct thump-thump of Shane's shotgun and Rick's Python firing from within, creating a corridor of chaos. Runners turned, distracted by the larger, noisier threat.
"Now, Glenn! Go, go, go!"
Ethan kicked away the remnants of their door barricade. They burst out of the smoke-filled store front, into a maelstrom of confused runners and covering fire from the RV, which was now slowly, dangerously, rolling past the front of the station, its side doors open.
This was their only chance.