DEGREES OF DEATH

17. THE LEADER'S BURDEN OF EMPATHY

The large window at the end of the third-floor library corridor overlooked a scene straight from hell. Down below, in the main lobby, dozens of Listener-phase mutants crawled and shuffled about. The heavy rain pouring in through the shattered glass doors made the marble floor wet and slick, reflecting the grotesque shadows of the creatures.

"Are you serious, Niel? We're crossing on those cables?" Xavier repeated, his voice an octave higher. He pointed to three thick black cables stretching from the library wall to a utility pole on the roof of the Student Center building across the way. The distance was about fifty feet. Below them was a three-story drop to the wet asphalt.

The storm winds howled outside, making the cables sway like giant black snakes.

"You've got two choices, Vier," Daniel replied without turning around. His sharp eyes were still calculating the risks. "You can crawl across that cable, or you can go downstairs and be their lunch. Pick one."

Xavier swallowed hard. He glanced down at the horde of mutants, then back at the terrifyingly swaying cables. "Fine, fine. I'll crawl. At least if I fall, it'll be a quick death."

"How do we open the window without breaking the glass and letting them hear us?" Bianca asked, her hand unconsciously gripping the bow on her back.

Daniel didn't answer. He examined the large window's mechanism. It was an old sliding model with a rusted iron latch. He had Xavier shine the flashlight on the bottom hinge. Carefully, using the tip of his knife (which he had retrieved from the mad librarian's corpse), Daniel scraped away the rust clogging the window track.

After five tense minutes, with a slow, silent push, the window slid open just wide enough for one person to squeeze through. A blast of cold wind and rain immediately shot into the corridor.

"Okay, listen carefully," Daniel whispered, his voice nearly lost in the wind. "Bianca, you're the lightest and have the best balance. You go first. As soon as you get across, find a solid handhold. We'll use you as an anchor."

Bianca nodded, her face pale but determined. She climbed out the window, positioning herself on the concrete ledge. Her trembling hands reached for the top cable. It was thick, coarse, and incredibly slick.

"I can't do it, Niel. It's too slippery," Bianca whispered in a panic.

Daniel thought fast. He tore a piece of cloth from the robe of one of the dead librarian-dolls nearby. "Wrap this around your hands. It'll give you a better grip."

After wrapping her hands, Bianca tried again. This time, her grip was stronger. With slow, calculated movements, she began to cross. Her body dangled from the top cable while her feet found purchase on the one below. Every time a strong gust of wind blew, her body swung dangerously over the chasm.

Everyone held their breath. It took three minutes that felt like three years, but Bianca finally reached the utility pole on the other roof. She immediately secured herself to it with her own belt.

"Okay! I'm safe!" Bianca shouted from across the gap, her voice carried by the wind.

"Kimberly, Chania, you're next! One at a time!" Daniel commanded.

With Bianca providing a stabilizing pull from the other side, Chania and Kimberly managed to cross more easily, though Kimberly's terrified sobs could be heard the entire way.

Now only Daniel and Xavier were left on the library side. And, most problematically, Xavier's ankle was still badly injured.

"How am I supposed to get across, Niel?" Xavier asked desperately, pointing to his swollen, bruised ankle. "I can't put any weight on this leg."

Daniel looked at Xavier's injury, then at his own back. He had already thrown the supply and specimen backpacks across. "Get on my back," he said curtly.

"What?! Are you crazy?! Your shoulder is shot, Niel! You'll never be able to hold my weight while crawling on a cable!"

"I didn't say I was going to crawl," Daniel replied. He pointed to the lowest, thickest cable. "We're going to slide down it."

Daniel took Alex's baseball bat from Xavier. He hooked the middle of the bat over the cable. "You hold on to my back as tight as you can. I'll hold on to the bat. We'll use it as a zipline."

The plan was even crazier than the last one. There was no guarantee the bat wouldn't slip or the cable wouldn't snap.

"No, Niel. That's suicide. Let me just try to crawl across slowly by myself," Xavier refused.

"There's no time, Vier!" Daniel snapped, pointing down. From the library lobby, a few mutants were starting to look up, noticing the movement on the third floor. "It's now or never!"

Xavier finally gave in. He struggled onto Daniel's back. Daniel let out a soft groan as Xavier's weight pressed down on his injured shoulder. With his good left hand, Daniel gripped the baseball bat hooked onto the cable.

"Hold on tight, Vier," Daniel hissed. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes for a moment, and then leaped from the windowsill.

WHOOSH!

They shot down the cable at high speed. The storm winds whipped their faces. The friction between the aluminum bat and the rubber cable created a deafening screech.

Below them, the mutants in the lobby began to jump, trying to grab their dangling feet.

"DON'T LOOK DOWN!" Daniel roared.

They were almost there. Chania and Bianca were at the end, ready to catch them. But halfway through the slide, Alex's baseball bat couldn't handle the weight of two adults and the high-speed friction.

CRACK!

The aluminum bent and then snapped.

Daniel and Xavier lost their grip. They fell the last six feet.

THUD!

They landed hard on the tin roof of the Student Center. Daniel landed on his back first, his head slamming into the metal. His vision went black for a second. Xavier fell on top of him, groaning as his injured ankle hit the roof.

"Daniel! Xavier!" Chania and Bianca ran to them.

Daniel coughed, trying to get up. His head was spinning. The pain from his re-injured shoulder was now unbearable. His consciousness was starting to fade.

"Niel... behind you..." Xavier whispered weakly, pointing back at the library building.

Daniel turned his head.

In the shattered third-floor window from which they had just jumped, stood a shadow. Not an ordinary mutant. The figure was tall, thin, and moved with a terrifying intelligence. It was the mad librarian. His head was bloody, but he was still alive.

The madman was holding Bianca's bow, which she had left behind in the corridor in her panic. He nocked one of the scattered arrows, drew the string with a trembling hand, and aimed straight at Daniel's group on the opposite roof.

His target wasn't Daniel. It was Chania, who was kneeling to check on Daniel.

"CHANIA, LOOK OUT!" Daniel roared, using the last of his strength.

Time seemed to slow down. Daniel saw the arrow leave the bow. He saw it cut through the curtain of rain. Chania turned, her eyes widening, but she had no time to move.

In that split second, Daniel didn't think. His body moved on its own. He shoved Chania aside with his left shoulder.

THWIP!

A sharp, burning pain pierced the left side of his abdomen.

Daniel looked down. An arrow was embedded deep between his ribs. Fresh blood immediately began to seep out, staining his rain-soaked shirt.

"Niel…?" Chania stared at him in horror, her trembling hand pointing at the arrow.

Daniel managed a bitter smile. "Damn… that actually hurts…"

Across the gap, the mad librarian tried to nock a second arrow. But before he could, a giant shadow leaped from the lower floors of the library and tackled him from behind. It was the Phase Two mutant that had attacked Daniel earlier. The monster tore out the librarian's throat, getting revenge for Daniel.

But Daniel no longer cared. His vision was blurring. The pain from his shoulder, his head, and now his stomach merged into an unbearable wave of agony. His legs gave out.

"Daniel!" Chania caught him before he collapsed onto the tin roof.

Daniel looked at Chania's tear-streaked face. He could hear the distant, panicked screams of Bianca and Kimberly. Everything sounded like it was underwater. Darkness crept in from the edges of his vision.

Sorry, Chan… I don't think… I can keep my promise, he thought.

His consciousness faded completely. Daniel passed out in Chania's arms, his body growing cold, blood continuing to flow from his wound, mixing with the rain that roared on the roof of a building besieged by the apocalypse.