Alex VS Carter Part II

Alex ignored the taunt, feinting left before driving his knee into Carter's stomach. Carter doubled over but recovered quickly, slashing Alex's arm. The blade grazed him, drawing a thin line of blood. 

The fight pushed them closer to the far side of the bridge, away from the minivan where Sam and Chloe remained tied. 

Carter used the distance to his advantage, pulling a makeshift club from his belt. He swung it with brutal force, aiming for Alex's head. Alex ducked, catching the weapon mid-swing and wrenching it from Carter's grasp. 

"You're done, Carter," Alex growled, tossing the club aside. 

Carter laughed, a wild glint in his eyes. "You think you've won?" He reached into his jacket, pulling out a small detonator. 

Alex's heart dropped. "What are you doing?"

 "Ending this my way," Carter said, his thumb hovering over the button "You can have your bracelet, Alex, but you'll lose everything else.' 

Alex lunged, grabbing Carter's wrist and forcing the detonator away. The two grappled violently, the device slipping between their hands as they traded punches.

 In the struggle, Carter managed to slam his knee into Alex's stomach, sending him staggering backward, With a triumphant sneer, Carter pressed the detonator. 

A deafening explosion erupted as charges planted along the bridge detonated. The structure groaned and shuddered, chunks of concrete crumbling into the river below.

Alex barely managed to grab a support beam as the ground beneath him gave way. He scrambled to his feet, his eyes darting to the other side of the bridge. Sam and Chloe were still tied in the minivan, the vehicle perilously close to the edge. 

The explosion sent shockwaves through the area, and distant groans began to grow louder. The horde had been alerted.

"Look at them, Alex," Carter said gesturing toward the children. "You can't save anyone. You never could. 

Alex's fury boiled over. "You're wrong!

With a burst of speed, Alex tackled Carter, the two tumbling dangerously close to the edge. Carter landed a punch to Alex's jaw, but Alex retaliated with a powerful headbutt, dazing him.

"I won't let you hurt them, Alex said through gritted teeth, pinning Carter against a broken railing. 

Carter smirked, blood dripping from his lip. "This isn't over." 

With a sudden burst of strength, Carter shoved Alex back and leaped onto the crumbling edge of the bridge

 "Carter!" Alex shouted as the man teetered on the edge, holding onto a loose beam 

Carter looked back, his expression unreadable. "You never escape this world, Alex. You'll lose everyone, just like I did." 

Before Alex could reach him, Carter let go, plummeting into the darkness below.

Alex stared into the void, his chest heaving. He didn't know if Carter had survived the fall, but the damage had already been done. The bridge was destroyed, and the horde was closing in.

Turning back, Alex's heart broke at the sight of the children. Seeing the van overturned, time was running low, he couldn't come there on time. He was devastated, and he was starting to hate himself for being so powerless, he dropped to his knees as he looked in the distance at how the zombies overrun the place, trashing and looking around. He kept punching the earth and tried to scream so zombies could try coming over to him, losing himself to the pain and being heartbroken, his mind running all over the place, but the reality wasn't in his favor, forgetting that they can't pass over, but still, the noises he made, attracted another horde that was over his part of the bridge, the horde advanced like a living tide, snarling and snapping, their grotesque faces illuminated by the flickering fires of the ruined bridge. Alex stumbled backward, the weight of despair and exhaustion threatening to crush him. His chest heaved with ragged breaths, his legs trembling beneath him. He risked a glance back at the broken span of the bridge. The minivan teetered dangerously close to the jagged edge, its wheels spinning uselessly, the cries of Sam and Chloe faint but unmistakable.

"No!" Alex roared, forcing himself to his feet. He couldn't leave them. Not like this. Not after everything.

But the horde was closing in fast. Alex drew his knife, the blade slick with blood from earlier fights. He knew it wouldn't be enough against their sheer numbers, but retreat wasn't an option—not yet.

With a guttural yell, he charged toward the first wave of infected. The knife plunged into the skull of one, then another. A decaying hand clawed at his jacket, but Alex twisted, driving his elbow into the attacker's face. Bone crunched beneath the force, but more were already upon him.

A rotting corpse lunged, teeth snapping inches from his neck. Alex shoved it back into the crowd, buying himself a split second to grab the discarded club Carter had used earlier. Swinging wildly, he bashed through the swarm, each impact sending shards of bone and gore flying. He fought like a man possessed, every swing fueled by desperation and rage.

But there were too many.

An infected managed to latch onto his arm, its jaws gnashing dangerously close. Alex gritted his teeth and slammed the club down onto its head, the creature collapsing in a heap. The effort left him unbalanced, and another infected grabbed his shoulder, dragging him to the ground. He thrashed violently, stabbing upward with his knife, but he could feel his strength waning.

Alex kept trying to fight and seek a chance to go there, but the fatigue and the overwhelming size of zombies showed him another face so Alex was forced to retreat. As he fled, his heart ached with the weight of his failure. Carter was gone, but so were the kids- separated by a chasm of destruction and chaos.