Abigail's Story: Chapter 02

With a magically enhanced Umbrella Abigail made her way down the hallway. The dim emergency lights cast a vaguely orange and sinister glow on the glossy linoleum, throwing shadows at the corner of Abigail's vision. The sound of metal being slammed into repeated in her ears and she wasn't certain if she was hearing what was happening or just the echoes of the earlier attempts to enter the classroom. Scrrrrrbamp! The sound of metal tearing apart and slamming against the ground had Abigail running, passing three hallway intersections before making it to the right one. She skidded to a halt and turned just in time to see the strange, twisted creature ducking into the classroom. The cold, slightly gritty feeling of its essence washed over here. It was definitely an undead of some sort. It wasn't one she had ever run into before, however. Still, if it was undead her magic would hurt it.

Not considering tactics- she didn't have time -she launched herself into motion once more. She threw herself down the hallway, rushing as fast as she could past the classrooms until she reached the broken open doorway. Umbrella brandished like both a sword and shield both; her she flung herself through the doorway. The creature was snarling and clawing at the door to the small bathroom the room shared with the one next to it. Abigail flicked the umbrella downward and backward, rotating her wrist slowly.

“Hey!” She snarled, her voice dropping to a dangerous hiss. Her magic following into the tone. An invisible hand reaching out to smack the creature, to get its attention.

It worked.

The creature turned around and opened its jaw toward her. Oh, god. Its was once a dog, a big one, but its head was twisted upside down and its mouth was full of razor sharp teeth. Abigail felt herself go cold inside; an icy calm flowing through her blood. Her body seemed to come alive, to have a mind of its own. This was what she was born for, this was what she was supposed to be doing with her life; fighting the undead. Hunting them, killing them, controlling them. She felt her lips twisting up into a grimace as the high of the fight started to rush through her. She took a step back, and then another, faking a stumble as she went to draw the creature toward her.

“C'mon boy.” She crooned, her power snapping out at him again. Without something physical to focus her energy, her magic, she couldn't do more than annoy and aggravate the undead but it was a good way to get their attention. To make them angry so they attacked.

It worked once more.

The creature snarled at her and lept toward her, she kicked her foot out and dragged a desk in its way. The creature's claws screeched against the metal top of it. Distantly, from the bathroom she heard a scream of horror. She thought she also heard herself shouting that it was alright, that she had everything under control but she couldn't be certain. Her body was its own entity now, the magic coursing through and guiding her. It was exhilarating and terrifying at the same time. When the creature crawled over the top of the desk and lunged at her she ducked backward, out the classroom door and swung her umbrella down at the same time. The glowing makeshift weapon connected with the creature's head and caused a sickening pop-sizzle-crack noise as its flesh started to melt underneath it.

The creature reared back and snarled in pain, and Abigail ran. She went across the hall and slammed into a classroom door. Locked. The creature scrambled out into the hallway behind her, she could hear its claws clattering against the floor. She lept to the side, spinning and bringing the umbrella down once more just as the creature swiped at where she had been. It managed to turn its aim just quickly enough to slash her leg, its sharp sharp claws shredding her pants and tearing open her calf. If she had been anyone else, had any other talent, she might have worried about it infecting her with some sort of contagion. The undead were particularly virulent most of the time. However, she was who she was and she was immune to most things that the undead carried. Worrying not about the cut, except for the pain, and the blood trail she would leave behind she drew her umbrella back and slammed it forward. The slightly rounded tip just missing the creature's eye and glancing off its very very thick skull. Still, the magic channeled through the umbrella acted like acid against the creature's flesh and bone.

Once more it reared back from her, and Abigail ran. She needed to lead it further away from the classroom, from its original prey. She ran past the first hallway intersection and went to the opposite side of the hall and slammed into classroom door. This one opened and she all but fell inside of it. She made a beeline for the bathroom, the creature fast on her heels. She jerked the bathroom door open and slipped inside just in time for it to slam up against the door. The door shuddered and buckled underneath the force. She limped to the door on the opposite side and exited into the classroom attached to the first. She took a deep breath and made her way as quickly as she could through the dark classroom.

Out the door and back into the hallway, she could still hear the creature lunging at and slamming against the bathroom door. She grimaced, her calf burning with pain, blood dripping into her shoes. She was suddenly grateful she had worn her flats instead of the heels she normally wore. Slowly she crept back into the first classroom. The creature was, indeed, still trying to break down the door of the bathroom. It clawed at the door, screaming out its primal frustration. Abigail continued to slink through the classroom coming up behind it. The blood in her shoe mde it squeak and she slipped slightly, knocking against a desk. The creature jerked around and spotted her.

It screamed at her and she took her chance. The umbrella was thrust into the creature's mouth, aimed downward to try and break through the soft palette at the roof of its mouth. She made her mark and her body heaved forward as she drove the umbrella home into the creature's head. It didn't even have time to scream before her magic was slammed through the umbrella and shot straight into its brain. One sharp, overpowering burst of magic. The brain liquified almost instantly. The creature's body sagged to the floor, and the smell of melting decaying flesh filled Abigail's senses. She shuddered and let go of the umbrella. It went down with the creature.

She turned away, her stomach clenching hard and then spasming. She bent over, throwing up next to the body. She slid down the ground and wrapped her arms around herself. The shakes began almost instantly, like she hadn't slept in too long. Like she was strung out and coming down from a caffeine or sugar high. Her vision swam and dotted, and she knew she was going to pass out. She turned and tried to crawl away from the disgusting body. She didn't make it far, before she found herself face first on the floor. Her cheek hit the cold linoleum and something sticky. Abigail wasn't certain if what she was laying in was her own blood from her calf wound, or melted flesh from the creature. Her vision darkened further.

One hard, body shaking spasm later and she no longer cared. She was lost to the darkness.