::::EXCERPT TWO::::

It took over 12 hours. Somewhere, we knew the sun had come up. We just couldn't see passed It. 12 hours. TWELVE godforsaken hours...and the climb seemed to take even longer. On the other side was The End. We knew. We could feel it. One way or another, this was it. So, limbs shaking, hearts pounding, exhausted, muscles tight, we climbed. One by one. We climbed. It was an odd feeling, the wetness. But we kept at it. Then, at last, we came to the top.

Looking down, we could finally grasp it. The pile was at least 2 stories high. Not to mention what the floor consisted of. Good news was there was finally more light coming from the other side of the stadium. The sun was there. We already knew it was. Just lost for a while.

"Is it ova?" the rage once again brought out Bawstin.

"I...think so..." he can sense my hesitance. Always can.

"You bit?" for the first and last time, I hear concern in his voice.

"No.....you?" same.

"Nah...what the fuck...." an odd sense of defeat on his breath.

"I think we killed 'em all..."

"Whaddya mean awl?"

"All of.......THEM."

"The zombies? No fukkin way?"

"Do you see anymore?"

We stumbled down the heaping, slippery, red mass of bodies, weapons in hand. We can't have killed them ALL. We knew that. Of course we did. We didn't survive this just to get picked off by some half-assed-fatty-straggler zombie. He'd get his.

Breaching the double doors of the stadium we stood. Examining. The sun was hot, but, the air billowing from the stadium was hotter. The stench of death was undeniable. But once you've been fighting for as long as we have. It's just another warm breeze.

The soft touch of the sun on what little skin was exposed was welcoming. We can feel it as it cakes and dries ours victims to us. Who were they kidding? They came in here with no weapons, some with missing limbs, and expected what? Mercy? They were all pussies. We had their number. Knew where to hit. Cut. Bash. Shoot. These ASSHOLES killed ___*spoiler*___! We'll never get them back. Some we even had to give BACK to Death.

You should all be here today. But that wasn't your story, it was ours. For that, we are truly sorry. To all that have left us and all that remain. We love you. As Men would. All of this....is for you.

At the entrance we stood. Still clinging to our last lines. Machete. Katana. Our hacking friends. Then it struck us. There it was. Nothing but bodies. For miles. We did what we came here to do. Now's it's ours.

"We challenged...and they came. We won." the confidence back in my throat.

"...xtreme"

Not a whisper. Nor mumble. Spoken as if to conceal darker means. Weak, but more powerful then any word uttered before it. The only word worthy of the exploit.

"Time for phase two..." he says through a tired and battered head. His smile, bigger then ever....

That was an excerpt from "Xtreme: The Origin of the End of The World". More to be followed. In book form.

TVOG