《Hunting Divinity: Rise of the Blood Moon》 Chapter 1 Rain dances in the dark streets outside making me wish I was at home sleeping. Instead I¡¯m working the night shift at the main office for my city''s gas utilities. As an unarmed security guard who is desperate to pay rent I don¡¯t have much say in what shifts I work, but at least night shift pays better. I absentmindedly watch a transient person root through the dumpster of a restaurant across the street, letting the hours pass away. The monitors before me show the oppressive mood of the world outside. Heavy clouds hide what little moonlight there would be. And showers of heavy rain further to darken the streets by obscuring the street lamps. The clock sitting on my desk beeps indicating the turn of the hour. With a sigh I stand from my chair and grab my jacket from a coat rack next to the security guard''s desk. I take a walkie talkie, even though it connects me to no one, and start my patrol outside of the building. Taking up half of a city block, the base of the building is still impressive to me. Hugging the walls to stay out of the rain I check to make sure that the three doors leading into the building are still locked. Then I make sure no one is sleeping in the alcove leading to the garage gate before making my way back into the building, scanning a badge to unlock the door. The entrance of the building is an open room with elevators set off against the far wall and a door to my immediate left. The door to the left leads to a kitchen that¡¯s used for company events. Walking further into the lobby shows two more doors to my left and a small hallway to my right. One that leads to the fire command room and the other leads to a stairwell. The hallway leads to the bike room and one of the stairwells in the building. Through the bike room is one of the three exits of the building. Next to the bike room is a closet that the security guards use. I return to the security desk and make my note that everything is fine outside before sitting down and logging back into the computers before me. The clock reads ¡°12:06¡± sending my hopes for a quick night sinking. Only three hours into my shift and I¡¯m already bored out of my mind. I¡¯m jolted from my spiraling thoughts as everything starts to shake. The rolly chair I¡¯m sitting on slides around and I¡¯m thrown to the ground as the trembles grow and grow. A siren blares and the lights flicker. I crawl underneath the desk hoping to ride this out. Everything grows dark. ¡°Dear child, what is your desire?¡± A deep voice resonates throughout the darkness. Silence follows the question. Leaving the oppressive inky black to press in on me. The weight of the environment spurring my mind to grasp onto the only stimulus introduced. ¡°Who''s there? Where am I? What¡¯s going on?¡± I try to ask. My voice seemingly being swallowed by the darkness around me. Fear and helplessness creep into my mind as I try to look around. The usual sensation of knowing where my body parts and how they¡¯re moving are no longer present. The darkness consuming all sensations, only feeding into my worries of imminent danger. A sudden pressure grips my heart. My blood and body run ice cold as my lungs struggle to breathe. The sensation pushes my worries into full blown panic as I fight for every breath I take. ¡°I asked what you desire, child.¡± The deep voice states. His words seem to come from everywhere and nowhere. Born in the darkness and left inside of me. There was a quality to the voice I can¡¯t place. Innately, either through instinct or because the voice wanted it to be understood, I understood that the voice belonged to nothing even remotely human or mortal. The pressure on my heart increases. The sensation akin to someone¡¯s hands squeezing it with all their might. I struggle harder to breathe as fear and panic builds in me. ¡°I don¡¯t know?¡± I stammer out. The question barely registering as I fight against the darkness pressing in on me. ¡°TELL ME CHILD, WHAT IS IT THAT YOU DESIRE?¡± The darkness spits out. The darkness invades my mind and I feel my grasp on life slipping. Every thought is a fight to have. Every breath is a battle to be had. Every beat of my heart is a war to be won. Without realizing what I¡¯m doing an answer bubbles up. ¡°Strength.¡± I gasp out All of a sudden the darkness slinks out of me leaving a cold alien feeling inside of me. The pressure squeezing my heart dissipates and my lungs flair open without struggle. The fog growing in my head disperses and I¡¯m left feeling dazed but alive. ¡°Your world is about to change. Fighting the change will only lead to death. Embrace the change and let it change you too. There you will find your strength.¡± The darkness speaks. The void around me shifts as I feel the being speaking to me leave. My body feels heavy as the darkness moves around me. I feel as if I¡¯m falling but I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s me or the void around me.
Transmogrification Complete! Mana Saturation: 100% Cost: 1.5 Billion System Granted: Kushims¡¯ Insight
Just as lighting illuminates the night sky for a brief instant, a blue light illuminates my consciousness. I understand the meaning of the individual words written in the blue light, yet their combined meaning leaves me confused. Just as quickly as it came into being, it vanishes leaving me in the fading darkness once again. I jolt awake under the desk. My eyes snapping open as I grab for my heart. Breathing heavily I recover from the sensation of falling that broke me from the spell of sleep. Was it even sleep? The dream, if you can even call it that, is still prominent in my mind. The voice and darkness leaves me with a sense of foreboding. The world is changing and fighting it will only lead to death? This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Part of me wonders if I¡¯m going crazy or if I got some kind of brain damage. Did I hit my head during the earthquake? I¡¯m broken from my thoughts as a blue light shines in my face.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 6
Level: 0 DEX: 5
To Next Level 0/10 AGI: 5
Sex: Male END: 7
Age: 19 INT: 9
Class: N/A WIS: 7
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
N/A N/A PER: 8
WIL: 4
Free Attribute points: 0
My eyes dance across the floating screen inaitly understanding that it is detailing information about me. I must have hit my head and given myself a concussion or something. This is some hallucination brought on by brain damage, right? A repetitive screeching brings my attention away from the floating screen. I had either been ignoring it previously or it just turned on but the fire alarm rings out like some banshee. Foretelling of possible danger and a need to get to safety. Looking away from the floating blue screen causes it to vanish back into the either that had spawned it. Leaving me alone underneath my desk while the emergency lights flash in the lobby and the fire alarm screams. Even if I do have some kind of brain damage I have a job to do. If the building is compromised in some way the people inside are technically my responsibility. With a sigh I get out from under the desk. Standing from behind the desk I make my way towards the entrance. On the wall with the door to the kitchen is a fire panel. It lists off the cause of the alarm and if you have the right key you can even silence the alarm. I reach the panel and read the scrolling text on it. ¡°Earthquake alarm triggered¡±. I reach into my pocket to retrieve the master key that will let me into the panel. While doing so I look out the glass wall making the entrance into the lobby and see figures making their way towards me. A strange blue light floating over the heads of the closest.
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 10/10
The closest figure shambles forwards enough that with the light of the lobby I can make out their appearance. It¡¯s skin glows a nasty pale with black veins criss-crossing their body. The white of its eyes is a blood red with the iris being a pale blue. It¡¯s jaw opens revealing yellowed nasty looking teeth that snap open and closed. Yup, I have brain damage. Zombies don¡¯t exist and they definitely wouldn¡¯t have some kind of blue light telling me what they are. I scoff and go back to fishing in my pocket for the master key. I pull it out and line it up with the key hole when a loud bang sounds next to me I jump back, seeing the ¡°zombie¡± beating it¡¯s head against the window. More figures are close enough to trigger blue lights to float above them. More drag themselves into the glass wall between me and the outside. All beating themselves against it as they try to get at me. The window shakes with each strike they place against it. Their whole might goes into each blow. Blood spurts across the clear pane as one zombie fiercely hits its head against the window. AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH! Just then a scream rings out from the street and I watch as a man falls out from a car, blood gushing from his neck. A figure, with a blue light hovering above it, wriggles out after him. He crawls back away from the car, absolute horror permeating his voice. The blood from his neck painting the sidewalk. More of the zombies from the street shamble after him. As they do, the zombie in the car falls out, its arms reaching for the man instead of catching it¡¯s fall. A sickening thud sounds out and I see the blue hologram change above it¡¯s head.
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 9/10
Blood spills from the zombie''s skull as it picks itself up and continues it¡¯s crawl towards the man. Other zombies in the street finally make their way to the man lunging at him. He tries to fight back as much as he can but is no match. The group preys on him, blood spurting everywhere. I¡¯m stunned watching a man being devoured only a dozen feet from me. His screams dying off as flesh is torn from muscle, muscle from bone. My throat burns as bile threatens to spew forth. A loud crack and thud breaks me from the blood curdling scene. A zombie falls through the open doors. Blood leaks from it¡¯s skull covering the white of the floor. It recovers looking over at me. Its eyes lock onto me, hunger burning deep behind them. It¡¯s focus causes the hair on the back of my neck to stand. I understand as it starts crawling towards me, I¡¯m the prey and it¡¯s the predator. The window next to me receives more fervent attacks as the zombies behind it try to break through. Their hungry determined eyes locked onto me. Understanding dawns on me, brought forth by the realness of the panic in my mind. This isn¡¯t some hallucination, this is the zombie apocalypse. Chapter 2 I stumble back away from the zombies. Fear chills me to my bones. My legs move without command. Turning from the beings trying to eat me, I race across the lobby floor. My feet fail to gain traction causing me to fall to the ground. My head smacks against the cold floor. My vision blurs as I raise my head and try to get back to my feet. My clammy hands slipping as I push my way up. I get my legs underneath me, intent on getting as far away as I can. A tugging on my foot sends me skidding forwards. My face painfully slams into the floor. My eyes tear up as my nose howls in indignation at taking the brunt of the fall. Looking back I see a zombie crawling towards me, it¡¯s arm outstretched to grab me again. It¡¯s nails are a dry pale yellow. Black veins pulsating across its palm. It grabs onto my leg and starts dragging me back towards it. It¡¯s vice-like grip digs into me painfully. I kick back at it, knocking it¡¯s grip off of me. Freed from it I race to my feet. My heart sounds like drums in my ears. I lose focus on everything else as my whole being thinks of only one thing. Escape. The stairwell races into view and I don¡¯t hesitate to race in. I turn corner after corner as my legs carry me up the stairs. The sign indicating the fourth floor flashes across my vision. I stop dead in my tracks as a thought bubbles up through the panic. The panic room! There are two rooms in this building with an internal locking mechanism that isn¡¯t reliant on key or electronic locks. The fourth floor and the eighth. The room''s lock is a dead bolt that you press into the ground making it so the door can only be opened from the inside. I rush onto the floor racing past the kitchen/break area. I round a corner and skid to a halt before the door leading to the panic room. I try the handle pushing with all my might. The door flies open revealing a gruesome scene. Blood coats the wall across from me, pooling on the ground in an ungodly amount. A woman lies on the ground, her eyes unfocused as a man kneels above her. Blood soaked hands dig into her chest pulling out guts, and whatever mushy bits a person has inside of them, and shoving them into its mouth. The door slams into the wall with a great thud. Breaking the spell the room was under. The zombie snaps up from it¡¯s meal and turns to me, bloodshot eyes locking onto me. Something behind it¡¯s gaze switches as it stands facing me. The blue box above it¡¯s head flashing red as it starts to shamble towards me.
Zombie
Level: 2
HP: 15/15
HuuuUUGGGG! It moans in a horse voice as it stumbles forwards, blood covered arms strech out towards me. I backpedal until my back hits a wall. My knees feel weak as I watch it stumble towards me, faster than the ones downstairs. My legs give out and I fall to the ground as the zombie draws ever closer. It¡¯s eyes reminding me of one thing. I¡¯m its prey. This is how things are meant to be. This is how the world works. The strong prey on the weak. It¡¯s the same lesson my dad taught me through the eighteen years of my life. Prey are either used or run away to live another day. It¡¯s why mom ran away, it¡¯s why I ran away. The shackles of my designation in life weigh heavy on me as the zombie lunges at me. Instinctually I put my arms out holding the zombie at bay. It¡¯s teeth snap at me as it tries to push forwards. It¡¯s cold blood coated arms slapping at me as it tries to grab onto something, but my arms are just slightly longer. Why am I fighting this? It would be much easier to give in. To just let the predator before me just eat me. The world is ending anyways, what¡¯s there left for me? I didn¡¯t have much to begin with. Why not just give in and be the prey I was born to be? My elbows bend and the zombie slowly starts making ground on me. It¡¯s fingers latching onto my shoulders with an iron-like grip. Pulling it closer and closer. ¡°What was your desire?¡± A voice whispers in my head. Without hesitating I answer ¡°Strength¡±. The thought is brought forth without my conscious command. ¡°The world is changing. You can too.¡± A prideful voice echoes in my head. The voice brings a calm to my mind forcing out the thoughts of despair. With the despair gone, only a single thought remains, I can change. That single thought plants the seed inside of me. Who said I had to be prey? My father? My mother? No one ever called me prey but myself. It¡¯s the title I bestowed upon myself because I¡¯m weak. Because I never fought back. I¡¯m not wrong in that the world is prey and predators. But who ever said I had to be one of the prey? I grow hot as rage sweeps through my mind. I¡¯m no longer going to be the prey. I¡¯m no longer going to run away like mom did. I¡¯m going to grow strong and break free of the shackles life threw on me. AAAAARRRRRRRGGGGG! I roar out pushing against the zombie with all my might. It flies backwards while trying to pull me by my shoulders. I resist it¡¯s grip and kick out at it, knocking it off of me. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Freed from it¡¯s grasp I grab the first weapon that comes to mind, the baton attached to my duty belt. The baton extends out as I swing it above me. The zombie is still recovering from being thrown as I move to stand above it. I bring the metal down against the things head. I feel the bone cave in as a wet crack rings out. Brining the baton back up I glare daggers at the still moving zombie. ¡°I¡¯m not prey!¡± I yell out, bringing the baton down again. I feel drops of blood fly onto my face as the baton sinks deeper into the zombies skull. The red box above it¡¯s head flashes
Zombie
Level: 2
HP: 8/15
Its pale nasty arm reaches out grabbing me by my leg. It tries pulling me in, but a kick sends it arm flying. It rolls over onto its back. I stomp forwards, pinning it to the ground with a leg. It¡¯s hands wrap around my ankle but I ignore them as I bring the baton down again and again. It¡¯s skull caving in more and more with each swing.
Zombie
Level: 2
HP: 5/15
Zombie
Level: 2
HP: 3/15
Zombie
Level: 2
HP: 1/15
Zombie
Level: 2
HP: 0/15
The light above its head flashes black before disappearing. Yet I don¡¯t stop. I swing down with all my might over and over. Pouring out years of pent up self hatred and bottled aggression. I¡¯m not going to be the prey anymore and I never will be again. It¡¯s head becomes a pile of mush and only then do I stop. My chest rises rapidly as I struggle to get enough oxygen. PING!
Level Up
A blue light flashes before me in the shape of a box with letters. The box breaks the spell that the rage inside of me had over me. Level up? What does that mean? Like a video game? The light disappears and I¡¯m left with the gruesome sight of my attack. The blood and guts filling the hallway with a horrid smell of iron. Looking at it I see bits of hair here and there, a yellow tooth visible through the pink and red mush. My throat burns and vomit races out before I can stop it. I pull back retching, my eyes never leaving the body. The rage bubbles up inside of me again and I force myself to stop vomiting. I refuse to be ashamed of what I had done. I changed. I survived. I shouldn¡¯t be ashamed of that. Right? HuuuUUGGGG! Another horse moan breaks me from the shock of my actions. The girl who the zombie was eating starts convulsing in a sickening manner. Her body rises to a standing position, all the while pained moans continue to escape her. Her eyes roll and meet mine and I see the same pale bloodshot death behind them. Black veins bulge and race across her skin.
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 10/10
The zombie lurches forward it¡¯s eyes locked onto me. It takes it¡¯s first step and I hear the squeak before it¡¯s body falls to the ground, slipping on its own blood. It crawls forwards, dragging it¡¯s intestines behind it. The rage from earlier grows in me as I charge myself forwards. Within moments I¡¯m in front of this new zombie as it makes its way to a kneeling position, bits of it¡¯s guts falling out of the cavity in its chest. Before it can do anything I kick it back into the wall covered in its own blood. Raising the baton I swing down across my body, cracking it in the skull and sending it sprawling to the ground. I raise the baton high and pull it down with all my might. It smacks into the side of the zombies skull and I feel the bone cave in as I do so. AAAAARRRRRRRGGGGG! Pulling back for another attack I let out a roar. Then I feel vertigo as my leg is pulled out from under me. The wall becomes a ceiling and my head smacks into the ground blurring my vision. I feel my leg pulled more as the zombie starts crawling across my body. I kick out but it¡¯s already crawled past my legs. I sit up while swinging the baton at the monster. It flinches back from the attack but doesn''t stop. I watch as it opens its jaw intent on bitting into my chest. Panic races through me as I shove the baton into its mouth, holding it at bay. I grab the base of the baton with both hands and push back while trying to sit up. The monster weight shifts just enough and I twist. Throwing the thing off of me. I send a kick out towards it forcing us both apart before it could get another hold on me. I crawl back and to my feet before it can recover. It crawls to its feet and lurches towards me. I pull back swinging out with the baton like it was a bat. Another cracking sound sends the monster falling to the ground before me. I stomp on it¡¯s chest, pinning it in place. I lash out letting the baton smash into its skull over and over. The blue box above it¡¯s head flashing as I do so, blood spurting everywhere. The crack becomes a thud and the body stops moving. The box flashes a black color before disappearing. I¡¯m left gasping for air and feeling drained. PING!
Level Up
I read the prompt and when I¡¯m done it vanishes. Making me wonder if it was ever there to begin with. With it gone I¡¯m left alone with two corpses. Looking at them reminds me of the other zombies downstairs and why I ran up here. HuuuUUGGGG! The sounds of moans spread into the room and I feel the color drain from my face. More and more different moans start sounding. I race up and I realize what¡¯s happened. The zombies heard me screaming and made it to this floor. Through the glass window set into the wall of the hallway outside the panic room. I count at least three zombies shambling into view. Part of me wants to go out and fight them, the angry predator in me hungry for more blood. The other part realizes that taking care of a single zombie was hard enough. Three might be impossible without a better weapon. Mind made up I run to the open door slamming it shut. With the door closed I slam my foot on to the peg that secures the room. With the door locked I breathe a sigh of relief. PING!
Quest Complete:
Get to safety
Reward: Class Selection
Chapter 3
Quest Complete:
Get to safety
Reward: Class Selection
A similar blue box appears before me. The blue light floating in the air like a strange projection. Sinking to the ground I read through the text of the screen before me. Once done the screen vanishes, replaced by a new one.
Classes available:
Class: Attributes: Skills:
Warrior +3 to Strength +1 to Dexterity +2 to Agility +3 to Endurance +1 tp Perception Battle Focus
Mage +5 to Intelligence +3 to Wisdom +2 to Willpower Mana Manipulation
Unlike the other windows this one didn¡¯t disappear after being read. Instead it floats in front of me, following my gaze as I turn my head. It reminds me of the brief window I saw when this all started. The one detailing my personal stats. At the memory of the first blue screen a new window appears before me.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 6
Level: 2 DEX: 5
To Next Level 0/25 AGI: 5
Sex: Male END: 7
Age: 19 INT: 9
Class: N/A WIS: 7
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
N/A N/A PER: 8
WIL: 4
Free Attribute points: 5
I reread the page and after it disappears, leaving me with the previous screen of the classes available. I read through the class screen again and get the feeling that I am playing a game. The dream did say the world was changing. If the zombies aren¡¯t the end of the change then that would explain these screens. Whatever made the zombies might have also made these screens. That would explain why the zombies have floating boxes above their heads. Ever since the earthquake things have gone tits up. From strange dreams, to floating boxes, to voices in my head. I want to believe this is all some dream but the pain and exhaustion I¡¯m feeling is very real. With a sigh I focus on the screen. No matter what¡¯s going on this is my current reality. Dreamed up or not this is what my life is. Floating boxes and zombies. I can fight it, run from it, or embrace it. I¡¯m done running and I have no clue how to fight this. With my mind made up I read through the screen a third time. Understanding that it¡¯s presenting me with two choices. To be a Mage or Warrior. The choice seems kinda simple to me. If this is real, like I feel it is, then being a mage would mean magic. Like throwing fireballs or summoning golems to fight for me. All the possibilities of magic race through my mind. Excitement wells up in me as I imagine what I could do with magic. With thoughts of raining lightning down on the zombies I mentally select the Mage option.
Do you wish to choose the MAGE class?
Yes/No
The old window disappears, in its place a new one. I mentaly select yes and the screen fades. For a second nothing happens, then all at once I feel as if I¡¯m being electrocuted, set on fire, having my brain squeezed out of my skull, and like I¡¯ve been submerged into ice water. The sensations roll over me in waves leaving me breathless and wishing for relief. Fire then ice then electrocution. Each wave brings a different sensation as my skin feels like it¡¯s melted off, frozen in place, then shocked into being alive again. Like some weird Frankinstien. Inside of me I feel heat in my chest as something is forcefully filled in me. The liquid fire spills out from it¡¯s core and flows through my body following invisible lines. The liquid leaves me feeling like I¡¯m burning from the inside out. Yet at the same time my muscles and body feel frozen solid from the cold. And then there''s the mind numbing lighting coursing through me making everything so hard to focus on. I don¡¯t know how long I¡¯m left to experience this. After what feels like a lifetime the fire dies and the ice thaws. The electricity coursing through me stops being painful and leaves me feeling energized and alive. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. I open my eyes to a thudding headache but I quickly forget that as I look down at my arms. Blue lines of pulsating energy criss-cross my skin. After a second they fade leaving me looking bloodied like before. Glazing up from myself I¡¯m shocked at the room around me. The colors popping like never before. It¡¯s as if I¡¯ve been living life in black and white and I¡¯ve just been introduced to color. The white of the walls looks more like a washed out cream. The floor¡¯s blue carpet now looks like cobalt. The blood smearing the room now has different shades of red strewn in. The air still smells of iron and vomit but beyond that I can smell something else. It¡¯s as if I¡¯m more attuned with the world around me. My senses dialed up a notch. My brain is able to process the information better. I stand and feel light headed for only a second before the world settles into place and everything feels right. Examining my body I don¡¯t feel like anything is out of place. However I feel something flowing within me. Something that wasn¡¯t there before. Closing my eyes I try to focus on the feeling lying just beneath my skin. Trying to pinpoint what the sensation is. For a second I¡¯m left with just the strange feeling that something is flowing there. However as time passes the feeling becomes more concrete. My mind focuses on the feeling and I become aware of streams of concentrated energy flowing throughout my body. A lake of it pools in my chest with rivers flowing out of it feeding into streams that trickle down into tributaries that supply the energy to my whole body. I know innately that this energy is my mana. Focusing on the pond inside of me I¡¯m able to control the flow of it. Mentally urging more to flow down one river leading to my hand makes the dull glow brighten. The energy moves sluggishly at first but finally reaches the end of the river pooling into my hand. I feel my hand heat up and I open my eyes to look at the hand. An arctic blue light coats my palm. Blue cracks ebbing from my palm. Their glow dimming the further they are from my glowing palm. Letting my mental grip on the energy go, the light fades and the lines of energy criss crossing my arms disappear. Calling the energy to my palm again I watch as the lines appear and grow brighter where I want the energy to be focused. Pointing my palm towards the wall across from me I focus more energy into my palm. The heat grows and grows until I feel as if my palm is burning. Concentrating, I will take the energy out of my body. For a second I feel the energy reist, preferring to stay inside of me. With one last shove the energy leaves my hand and floats an inch before my palm. With a simple command I¡¯m able to push the energy forwards making it glide forwards. I command it back and it floats back. With a thought I make it do figure eights and loops around my hand. As I do so I feel the ball shrink in size as it floats and moves about. The energy sustaining it being burnt off. Commanding more mana to flow into the orb causes the shrinking to stop but nowI feel my pond slowly draining. Calling the orb back into me replenishes my pool a little bit. The viens only disappear when I let the mana inside of me flow naturally. Calling another orb out I play with it a bit more. My mind races with excitement. I¡¯m an honest to god wizard now, able to control mana. The blue ball flies around me as I forget the world. What are the possibilities of this energy? Can I make fire? Conjure spirits from other dimensions? I feel my heart beat fast as questions explode in my mind. I¡¯ve always been fascinated with things I didn¡¯t understand. I would spend countless nights secretly reading books about science and history. I use to try and ask my father questions about things like gravity but it always made him furious. Now I feel like Sir Isaac Newton or Einstein learning to understand the world around them. What is mana? What can it be used for? It feels warm in me and flows like a liquid but other than that I have no clue what it is. I focus on the golf ball sized orb floating in front of me and my mind focuses on a single question. What can I do with this? I mentally command the orb to fly into the wall across from me. It shoots out, racing across the room faster than I expected. I feel my control over it vanish when it hits the wall. The wall doesn¡¯t put up any resistance as a hole is burned into it, letting me see into the hallway beyond where the orb continues to fly. Through a door and into the restroom across the hall and into the concrete wall of the exterior where it smashes into, popping with a flash and leaving a small crater. ¡°Damn.¡± I whisper, surprised at the strength of the orb. Looking inside of me I realize that playing with the orb and forming it took over half of the pond of mana that I have. However as I wait I realize that something fills the pond up. It¡¯s slow but I estimate it¡¯d only take two hours to replenish the used up amount of mana. So following that logic it¡¯s about an hour for every quarter I use. Curious about the class I picked, I call forth my stats screen by thinking of Personal Stats. The blue box pops into existence shining it¡¯s familiar blue glow.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 6
Level: 2 DEX: 5
To Next Level 0/25 AGI: 5
Sex: Male END: 7
Age: 19 INT: 14
Class: Mage WIS: 11
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
Mana 13/28 PER: 8
WIL: 6
Free Attribute points: 5
Reading through the screen again brings only a few expected changes. The class now shows mage and I have a section for my mana. Looking through the screen I realize I have a section for free attribute points, where I have five to spend. If this is like a game then I can use those points to boost the listed attributes but without knowing exactly what the attributes affect I¡¯m hesitant to drop them into any. I haven¡¯t played very many games in my life but the few I have have made me want to hoard my free points until I figure out what kind of character I¡¯m building. Trying to puzzle out the effects of the attributes cause new windows to pop up as I focus on an attribute.
Strength:
Your ability to exert force on physical objects. It increases your damage with melee weapons and your fists.
Agility:
Your ability to move at fast speeds.
Dexterity:
Your ability to control your body with precision, especially at higher speeds.
Endurance:
Your ability to exert yourself physically for extended periods of time.
Perception:
Your ability to observe your environment and notice minute details.
Intelligence:
Your ability to learn quickly and remember more information.
Wisdom:
Your ability to recall information and gain insight.
Willpower:
The strength of your spirit and resolve.
Charisma:
Your ability to come across as likable by others and to have commands followed by failiars, summons, and tames.
Luck:
How often events turn out in your favor. Cannot be raised with Attribute Points.
The descriptions for the attributes were fairly bland but also gave some insight into what they¡¯re used for. Strength, Agility, Dexterity, and Endurance all affect you physically. While Perception, Intelligence, Wisdom, Willpower, and Charisma affect you more mentally. Going off the boosted attributes from my class. Intelligence, Wisdom, and Will Power must all affect my mana in some way. Intelligence probably increases my mana if mana is anything like my memory. Wisdom might quicken spell casting speeds. While Will Power might affect my control over mana. I wonder if there¡¯s some way to learn spells, maybe a spell book or something. Until I can get one I¡¯m just going to have to come up with spells on my own. Kinda like that blast I just made. Looking at my Attribute Points I decide to dump two into Strength and Endurance and the last one into Intelligence. I feel heat wash through my muscles and a minor electric shock course through my head. Leaving me feeling slightly more than I was before. Checking my General information again I see that my mana pool grew to 30. I let all the screens before me vanish and sit back on the ground. The world has changed and I¡¯m changing with it. I¡¯m not going to be prey anymore, always running and hiding, never fighting back. I don¡¯t want to be trapped in this room forever. I want to go out and explore and grow stronger. I want to embrace this new world and find all that it has to offer. Thinking about it logically I¡¯m going to need a place to stay and rest. Even if I want to explore this new world I¡¯ll still need a place to hang up my hat. A place that can be fortified against the zombies roaming outside. A sudden idea hits me and the more I think it over the more it just makes sense. This building is built pretty well and only has four entrances into it. The walls are made of sturdy concrete and steel. The doors and windows are made with some of the industry''s best bullet proof glass. I¡¯m going to clear this building and make it my home base, for now at least. But I still need better weapons to fight the zombies. This baton doesn¡¯t do a lot of damage. A memory comes to me offering an idea on where I could get a better weapon. The day shift for this building is worked by armed officers. One of which keeps his gun in the security lockers on the first floor. It may not be as useful as a sword or something in the long run, it¡¯ll help out a lot with the few in the building right now. Through the hole in the wall a flash catches my attention. The emergency light in the hallway flashing every few seconds in tandem with the alarm that I¡¯ve been tuning out for a while. Being reminded of the alarm I realise that the longer it¡¯s on the more zombies will be drawn to this building. With a plan in mind I decide to head to the first floor while clearing the zombies. There I¡¯ll turn off the alarm system and close and lock the front doors. That would make it so no new zombies can break in. Leaving me to empty out the building and move from there. I¡¯ll grow stronger in levels and make this building safe to stay at. Chapter 4 The hole in the wall lets in the eerie horse moans of zombies. I can¡¯t see any through the hole and I can¡¯t really tell if there¡¯s any left on this floor. But I know that doors are open throughout the building and on the ground floor means more can get in and wander freely around. ¡°I need to turn that alarm off.¡± I tell myself. Still looking at the hole I think back to the energy ball I made. It would definitely blow the head of a zombie off but at most I could probably only create two of those. If I¡¯m going to try and get that gun I¡¯m going to need something to help manage the zombies. Using my mana is the obvious tool to help me clear the building.However, I¡¯m going to either need a lot more of it, or find a better way to use it. Thinking back to the blue ball I¡¯m reminded of an anime my mother used to let me watch. The main character had died and was made into a spirit detective where he would help out the spirit world in exchange for being brought back to life. He was able to control an energy called spirit energy. With it the main character had a variety of attacks but the most iconic was the spirit gun. I grin to myself as the idea solidifies in my head. I take a portion of my pond and let it flow to my right index finger. Blue veins of energy glow throughout my hand, with the brightest being at my finger. I push the energy out of my hand. An arctic light casts shadows around me as the small blue ball of energy floats an inch above my finger, no bigger than a quarter If I can¡¯t learn any spells then I¡¯ll make them. I point my finger at the hole in the wall, in a gun-like fashion. I focus for a second on a poster in the bathroom. The distance being around 30 ft I figure this will be a good test of the distance and accuracy. With my target picked I will the ball to fly. It zips through the air leaving a sky blue trail in its wake. The ball slams into the poster just slightly off from where I had intended it to hit. The ball instantly burns a hole in the wall before popping in a small explosion. Leaving scorch marks and cracks on the concrete wall. Looking at the pond inside of me I estimate that I could probably fire off twelve shots before running out of mana. However, I don¡¯t think one shot would be enough to kill a zombie. I could always add more mana but if it costs too much then it¡¯s not a very useful attack. Either way I¡¯ll dub this attack my Mana Bullet. Thinking of my other long range attack I dub the other energy ball shot from my hand my Cannonball. With two long range attacks I try to think about how I could use mana in close quarters. Forcing the mana outside of my body burns off more mana. The further away the mana is from me the more it requires to be sustained. So maybe in closer quarters it¡¯s more effective or even damaging. In lots of shows and stories the characters can use energy to enhance their physical attacks, by wrapping or pushing it out of their limbs. Moving more mana to flow in my arm makes my arm glow with the familiar blue veins. However, my muscles don¡¯t seem affected by the energy. I punch the wall leaving a small hole in the plaster. Letting the energy recede into it¡¯s natural flow, I punch out again leaving a similar sized hole. Frowning in displeasure I start thinking of other ideas. Thinking of attacks where the energy is sent out after a strike to double the damage. I focus and mana flow into my hand, letting it grow almost unbearably hot. My hand glows brightly as I push the energy just outside of my body, floating on my skin. Then I close my fist and punch the wall as hard as I can. My fist punches through plaster and I command the mana to expand. The mana reacts to my command flashing brighter. It explodes creating a large hole in the wall, pushing out to the other side. I pull my arm back in shock and pain. My hand feeling burnt and abused. Wafts of smoke rise from the hole in the wall as well as my hand. Looking down at it I see no visible damage, but my hand definitely feels sore. The mana in my arm disappears leaving me drained. Focusing on the pool inside of me I can sense that the punch cost me a quarter of my mana. So it costs a lot and hurts a lot. Definitely not an attack I want to use. However, I shouldn¡¯t dismiss it. I sit down and let my mana pool replenish while trying to imagine other ways I can use it against the zombies. Thinking back to other forms of media I remember how some people can imbue objects with magic or use them as conduits. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. Taking stock of what I have, I take everything off my utility belt. Radio holder, knife, baton, pepper spray, and a pouch holding disposable gloves. The radio hoder is useless and I throw it across the room, it¡¯s bulky and gets in my way sometimes. The knife is small, about three inches, but maybe I can extend the blade with mana. Or maybe I can use it to control the knife remotely. The baton is a nice midrange weapon but requires too much effort to kill, maybe I can coat it with mana to be more lethal, kinda like the exploding punch thing I can do. Lastly is the pepper spray. Completely useless against the zombies, but I keep it on me just in case. You never know when you¡¯ll need to blind someone. As I go to put it back in it¡¯s hoster an idea strikes me. Mana kinda burns when I use it and I can still see the singe marks that my punch made. If I heat up the can enough it could probably explode. It¡¯d be a one time attack but it could be devastating. Getting to work on my experiments I pick up my knife. Holding it in my hand I close my eyes and command the flow of mana to the knife. The energy moves and builds in my hand and then nothing. The knife doesn''t heat up or feel connected to me or anything. Opening my eyes in confusion I watch as the mana leaves my body and pushes against the knife. However, it doesn¡¯t go into the knife. Instead I feel the mana push against the knife almost pushing it out of my grasp. With that idea scrapped I focus on another. I push the mana over the knife and onto the blade where it sits glowing a brilliant arctic blue. With the blade glowing I drag the knife across the wall expecting it to slice through like butter. Contrary to my expectations the mana just burns the white paint a little, not even making it easier to cut. Letting the energy dispel I drag the blade across the wall leaving a gouge in it. Just coating the blade isn¡¯t enough to make doing so useful. If anything it makes it more blunt I realize. What if the energy is moving? With that thought I set to work on coating the blade in energy, but this time I make it circulate while giving it little bumps, like the teeth of a chainsaw. It¡¯s slow at first but as I focus the energy builds in speed until I hear a soft humming coming from it. Slightly pushing the coated weapon into the wall causes the knife to sink in effortlessly. The mana chews away at the plastor like it was cutting through water. I cut off the flow of mana and the spell lasts a few more seconds before fading. I realize that it only takes maybe a tenth of my mana pool to start the saw. Then to keep it going costs about about a point of mana per minute. So I could theoretically keep the spell up for 27 minutes. Putting the knife back on my belt I mentally dub the spell my Mana Saw. Grabbing the baton I cast Mana Saw on it. I notice that it takes about twice as much mana to coat the whole baton in the revolving mana, letting the spell last I find that the upkeep is also doubled. So I have about thirteen minutes with the baton. Pushing the mana coated baton into the wall causes the same seamless cutting that the knife did. It can cut into plaster pretty well but what about a body? I¡¯m trying to make weapons capable of killing zombies and the only way I know to do that is to destroy their heads. Looking around the room I don¡¯t see anything that can be used to simulate a human skull. But what I do see is the corpse lying in the middle of the floor bleeding out. An idea crosses my mind leaving me feeling a little squeamish but I don¡¯t see many other options that are safe. I walk to the body standing over it¡¯s mutilated corpse. The smell of blood is more prominent here. Taking the baton I coat it in mana and with a thought extend the length of the baton. The blue light lengthens from one and a half feet to two and a half. It takes up vastly more mana but it¡¯s possible. I slowly push the spiraling mana into the sternum of the corpse. I feel resistance as the baton sinks into the skin then bone, but it¡¯s not much and with little force I push the button all the way through the thing¡¯s torso. I pull out causing blood to be flug out as the drops clinging to the mana are sent flying. Letting the mana disperse leaves me feeling mentally fatigued. With some effort this is probably more than enough to stab into their brains. I holster the baton and point my finger at the corpse. Letting a Mana Bullet fly into it causes a popping sound as the bullet hits the torso and explodes creating a small hole. Not deep enough to make me think of the spell as a killing shot. Then an idea hits me. I form a bullet above my finger and force it to spin. Once it¡¯s rotational speed feels sufficient I shoot the bullet at the body. The bullet flies faster than even my Cannonball and punches a hole clean through the bodies¡¯ torso before exploding with a muffled pop. With a smile I know I have my long range spell. I dub it my Rifle Round and it only costs slightly more mana than my Mana Bullet, leaving me about eight shots total. I move away from the corpse and sit in the corner, letting my mana replenish. Once I¡¯m at full I¡¯m going to start clearing the building. With my new arsenal of attacks I feel a lot more confident about taking down multiple zombies. Closing my eyes I let the time slip by as I watch the mana inside of me flow throughout me. Slowly but surely filling back up to max. Once I¡¯m full I take out my baton and walk to the door. I push down on the lock release with my foot and breath out trying to calm myself. I open the door slowly and leave the safety of the room. It¡¯s time to hunt. Chapter 5 An empty hallway greets me but the distant sounds of moans still permeate beyond the rhythmic screeching of the fire alarm. Looking left and right reveals no shambling bodies. I walk out and think of a plan to clear the floor. Each floor after the second is built generally the same, the tenth being the most different. A large rectangle with two sets of inner walls that make each floor look like a boxy eight. The inner walled off sections house the mail room for the floor, private restroom, small break rooms, and some meeting rooms. The elevators sit in the middle of one of the long walls. Following the wall with the elevator in either direction will lead you to the group bathrooms and the stairwells. One stairwell on either side of the elevators in the middle. After coming out of the elevators is an open hallway with a kitchen type set up for employees to eat and store personal lunches. Getting to the back wall you¡¯re met with windows that stretch around the whole floor except for the wall with the elevators. Cubicles fill in the empty space on each floor. Following the path I would take to patrol the floor leads me into a figure eight. I crouch and hug the wall with windows. I turn left and start walking. I check the mail room and find nothing to worry about and continue on. I reach the open space at the end of the floor, filled with cubicles. I walk around them all keeping an eye on the spaces beneath the desks that lets me see across the floor. Nothing moves or makes me think that a zombie is hiding in a cubicle. I make it to the corner of the floor and check the next hallway that leads to the stairwell and the elevators. Two figures stand in the hallway, one in front of each open door leading to the stairwell. The starwell further from me appears to have another zombie rocking just beyond it, occasionally coming into view. Not being able to see if any other zombies are on the floor I deliberate between using mana or trying to save it. I take a second and form a plan. I take my free hand and make a gun symbol. Artic blue light illuminates the corner I¡¯m in as Rifle Round forms before me. I close one eye and take aim at the zombie furthest from me. The spell fires off singing a quite whistling sound and leaving a sky blue trail floating in the air. The spell zips into the zombies head and punches a hole clean through, dissipating in a small explosion as it does so. The zombie falls to the ground, the blue box above it flashing black before disappearing. The body hitting the ground grabs the attention of the other zombie in the hall. With a hoarse moan it starts shambling towards the other zombie, followed by two from the stairwell closest to me. While a single zombie from the stairwell furthest from me shambles out and trips over the zombie. While I can¡¯t lock the doors leading to the stairwells while the fire alarm is going off I can close them. They automatically open when the alarm sounds but they aren¡¯t constantly being forced open, just held. So after the three zombies get far enough away I sneak forwards to the stairwell door. Pulling on it causes a loud click as the mechanism holding it open snaps and lets the door swing close. The zombies in front of me snap around eyeing me. They howl at me as they recognize me as prey. They start their slow shamble forwards. Expecting it this time I don¡¯t panic and run with fear like I did before. I¡¯m not the prey they think I am. The same burning anger rises in me as I bare my teeth. I stand and charge the four activating my Mana Saw around my baton. I let the anger eat away at any doubt in me, hesitating now will only get me killed. I meet the first zombie right in front of the elevators. I lash out with the baton aiming between the creatures eyes. With the force of my attack and the mana coating the shaft, the tip of the baton digs into the skull like it was butter. The numbers in the floating box above the zombies head decrease fast and in a second reach zero. The box flashes black and disappears. The zombie falls to the ground like a sack of potatoes, my baton sliding from the skull with ease. I lurch backwards as the next zombie lunges forwards grabbing out at me. I avoid it¡¯s grab and back peddle just out of it¡¯s reach. It charges forwards, tripping over the corpse at its feet. Not wanting to be tripped again like before, I slam the baton down on it¡¯s head before it could try and trip me. It¡¯s skull splits open with ease and it¡¯s health drops to zero in an instant. I jump backwards expecting another attack. The third zombie walks around the two corpses following me with a madness I¡¯ve never seen in any other creature. The hunger behind their eyes is almost frightening. I take another step back giving me a little more breathing room. I lunge forward like a fencer, my baton being my sabor. It digs into the eye of one zombie depleting its health fast as it¡¯s brains are turned to mush. I pull my baton free and watch it¡¯s body fall. A sudden pressure on my shoulder pulls me backwards. The grip of the fingers feels almost painful. Trying to recover I trip over my own feet falling to the ground. A new zombie falls into my view as It¡¯s pulled down by it¡¯s own vice-like grip. The zombie looks at me and lunges for me. I drive my baton into it only to find the black metal pressing against the zombies skull. My mana is no longer rotating around it like a saw. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Cursing to myself I push the baton forwards, throwing the zombie back a little. Twisting over to my belly as fast as I can I notice the zombie crawling to a kneeling position. I lash out slamming the black metal into the thing''s shin. Sending it toppling over to its side. It¡¯s head smacking the ground with a satisfying thud. Leaping up Leaping up and on to the zombie I straddle the monster, lifting the baton above my head. Casing Mana Saw, I feel the baton heat up in my hands as energy coats it¡¯s surface. Like it¡¯s a dagger, I bring the baton down. The mana-covered weapon chews through flesh and bone, eating away at brain matter until the zombie stops moving. The blue light flashing black and disappearing. I stand up quickly whirling around looking for another enemy. Not noticing any I let the spell dissipate and quickly make my way to the other starwell door. Peeking into the stare well doesn¡¯t let me see anymore zombies but I can hear their moans echoing around. I close the door hoping that the snapping sound wouldn¡¯t bring more zombies down on me. Looking back at the five bodies before me I¡¯m left feeling satisfied with my spells. Sighing I put my back to a wall and slide to the floor feeling tired after the fight. PING! PING!
Level Up
Level Up
Two windows pop up before me in quick succession with two sounds of a bell. They disappear after reading them. I open my stat screen and read over it. I notice that I¡¯ve leveled up twice and I now have ten free Attribute Points to spend. I contemplate on what attributes I should increase. Right now the most useful attribute I have would be my Intelligence, but I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s going to last forever. Thinking it over I decided to spend only half of my Attribute points, dumping them all into my Intelligence. PING!
Title unlocked: Enlightened
You are four times as smart as the average person. +10 to Mana
The new screen before me baffles me for a second. That¡¯s a nice surprise, it looks like I can also gain titles that give me buffs. I open my character sheet and read over it.
General information: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 9
Level: 4 DEX: 6
To Next Level 5/75 AGI: 6
Sex: Male END: 9
Age: 19 INT: 20
Class: Mage WIS: 11
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
Mana 50/50 PER: 8
WIL: 6
Free Attribute points: 5
So the more I kill the stronger I get, and the stronger I get the more efficiently I can kill the zombies. I smile to myself, I¡¯m a predator that grows stronger the more I kill. I stand after letting my mana pool replenish. Looking inside of myself I can tell that my small pond is growing. With a bit more points I might be willing to call it a small lake. I search the rest of the floor finding no zombies and make my way back to a starwell. Looking through the glass window in the door I don¡¯t see any movement but I can still hear muffled moans. I set my heart and slowly open the door and head towards the third floor. Chapter 6 Opening the door to the stairwell I make my way down to the third floor. Leaving the fourth floor for the first time since this all started feels as if I¡¯m in new lands. Although I¡¯ve worked in this building for months. The world has changed and I feel as if I¡¯m in a completely new environment despite knowing it very well. I peak over the railing and see two zombies standing on the stairs leading to the third floor landing. Taking aim with my left hand I ignore the blue veins glowing in my hand as I form two Rifle Rounds above my finger. I focus on one zombie and let the spiraling mana ball fly through the air with a whistle. Before it reaches its target I switch my focus to the other zombie and let fly the other ball of mana. Both drill holes in their target before exploding, dropping them instantly. I form another ball of mana and wait, listening and watching for any more zombies. After a few minutes of nothing I bring the mana back into me and make my way to the third floor. Peeking around the corner of the door I see no zombies in the hallway. I walk onto the floor bringing the door close behind me. The crack rings out but no moans follow. I slowly make my way around this floor checking meeting rooms and bathrooms finding nothing of note. The open spaces with the cubicles are empty as well and the break area. After searching the floor for ten minutes I¡¯m left satisfied that no zombies are on this floor. I make my way to the other stairwell and enter it. Snapping the door closed behind me. My finger burns with energy as I hear moans and shambling. A few seconds later a zombie stumbles down the stairs from above. It¡¯s eyes lock onto me. Before it can react I cast Rifle Round and let the spinning ball of mana fly into its head. It drops and tumbles down the stairs next to me. Peeking over the railing I don¡¯t see any motion from above or below. I wait a few seconds to be sure and after hearing nothing I make my way down and onto the second floor of the building. This floor is one of the only floors not like the others. It has a gym built on one side of the elevators. The offices for HR taking up the back middle space. And on the other side of the floor is a large empty room under construction. They¡¯re building more offices on this floor but construction has barely even gotten frames up for the walls. I sneak onto the floor and check the construction zone first. Two zombies shamble around with no destination in sight. I deliberate between a long or close range confrontation but end up picking close. The first floor is probably swarming with zombies by now and I don¡¯t want to burn through too much mana and end up having to wait even longer. While staying low and sneaking up behind the closest of the two, I cast Mana Saw on my baton. The mana cover baton digs into the back of the zombies skull killing it almost instantly. I guide its body to the floor careful to not alert the other. The other zombie stands about fifteen feet away. I sprint forwards covering the distance quickly, stabbing out with the mana covered baton. It eats away at skin and bone like it¡¯s paper, leaving a bloody gaping hole clean through its skull. Ping!
Level Up
I let the spell dissipate as I guide this zombie''s body to the floor too. Then I open my character sheet and examine my new level. I again have ten attribute points to spend and instantly drop five of them into my Intelligence bringing it up to twenty-five. I examine my mana pool and am pleased to see it rise to sixty. I leave the construction section and peer into the HR offices. Nothing greets me and I examine the small space. Leaving the HR offices, I sneak to the door to the other stairwell and snap it closed. Movement at the sound in the gym catches my attention. Three zombies shamble forwards and to the open glass door of the gym. I take a few steps back but it¡¯s too late. Their gaze is locked on me and they all moan their horse battle cry. HHHHHUUUUUUUUUUGGGGG! I stand and send my mana racing around the baton. Standing just a few feet back from the open glass ,I wait for the first of them to get to me. When it¡¯s in range I jab out, my baton like the stinger of a bee. It punches a hole into the zombie and I feel it¡¯s weight drop when it¡¯s health hits zero. I let it fall to the floor as I slash the next zombie across the temple. The baton digs quickly through the skull, stopping half way through as the momentum of my attack ends. I pull back on the baton sending the second zombie to the ground. Taking a step back I watch the third zombie try to climb over the two zombies at our feet, only to trip and fall forwards. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. While it lies face down I slam the baton down sending a spray of blood up into the air. With it dead too I look up expecting more zombies to emerge from the gym. But I¡¯m left just the obnoxious screeching of the fire alarm and the low hum of my mana ripping around my baton. I let the spell go as I sneak over the bodies into the gym. I form a mana ball above a finger as I check both shower rooms inside the gym. The stalls hold no hiding figures and I¡¯m left satisfied that the gym is clear of zombies. With a sigh I make my way to the water fountain and drink greedily. I didn¡¯t realize how thirsty I was until I noticed the fountain. Checking a large clock hanging on one of the walls, I find out that it¡¯s already six in the morning. In an hour or so the sun will start rising. I make my way to the glass wall of the gym and peer out at the city. Orange lights dot the city as buildings burn. I don¡¯t see any cars moving on the bridges or in the streets. The only lights are either from buildings or fires. I see countless bodies shambling through the streets. This really is the apocalypse. I need to lock this building down and clear it. I don¡¯t know what I¡¯ll do after that but first comes shelter. Everything else can be dealt with when it comes up. Watching a particularly large fire across the river makes me think of other people. If we all have access to these classes and mana then surviving in this new world is going to be a lot easier. Maybe I should try and find a group to explore this world with. The idea leaves me feeling sick for a second. Deciding that I need to focus on this building first I push the thought to the back of my mind. It¡¯ll be something to deal with later. I walk away from the glass, looking out at the city leaves me feeling uneasy. Part of me was hoping to see the police or military out there clearing zombies or something. While I am trying to embrace this new world, part of me wishes to return to the comfort of the old one. I figure six hours is more than enough time for the world to realize that things have changed and to start trying to fight back. I sit down and wait for my mana pool to replenish. I¡¯m going to need to be at the top of my game for the lobby. Opening my character sheet I decide that there¡¯s no point in saving points for a future I may not have. I dump three points into Endurance and one into Strength and Agility. Figuring that I should try to be a little balanced. Leaving me with no free attribute points to spend but feeling slightly stronger and lighter. I read over my Character Sheet.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 9
Level: 6 DEX: 5
To Next Level 25/100 AGI: 7
Sex: Male END: 12
Age: 19 INT: 25
Class: Mage WIS: 11
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
Mana 60/60 PER: 8
WIL: 6
Free Attribute points: 0
Chapter 7 Focusing on the mana pond inside of me makes me feel like it replenishes faster. I don¡¯t know how much faster but it¡¯s a noticeable amount. Opening my eyes I look at the clock and see that it¡¯s about seven twenty in the morning. The sun peeks out over the horizon and into the gym. Pillars of black smoke speradicly reach up into the sky. The city looks quiet even for this early in the morning. It¡¯s spooky and unsettling. No cars visible, no people walking around. I would be off shift by this point, already lying in my bed half naked. I stretch my back out and make my way into the hallway. With a deep breath I open the door to the stairwell. Taking this one will lead me to the hallway connecting the lobby to the bike room, and would give me access to the lockers that us security officers use. I figure with my Mana Saw I can probably cut the lock and get the gun. With that in hand, along with my spells clearing the first floor shouldn¡¯t be too difficult. The only issue is the zombies in the street. I don¡¯t just need to clear the lobby, I also have to silence the fire alarm. I can do that with the panel next to the front door or with the panel inside the Fire Command Center. While still on the third floor I think it over. The fire command center is probably my best bet in silencing the alarm safely. The panel next to the door is too exposed and if there¡¯s a lot of zombies in the street then there¡¯s probably a good bit in the lobby. And with the Fire command center I can close and lock the door behind me. So with that in mind the plan is to get the gun, race to the command center, lock myself in and silence the alarm. Then fight my way to the open front doors and close them. After that I should be able to clear the rest of the floor and start working my way through the building. My hand shakes as it hovers in front of the door. I know that I¡¯m scared and that this is probably one of the dumbest things I¡¯ve done. The zombies before have been easy to handle but they¡¯ve all been in small groups. I¡¯ve had time to react to them and evade them. The zombies are generally slow but if I have to deal with too many, or if I get surrounded then I¡¯m screwed. No point in worrying about what will happen. The best I can do is fight until my last breath. I¡¯m not going to be some prisoner lokcing myself into a small room. I steel my resolve and push the door open and peek over the railing. Four zombies stand in the landing for the lobby. I sigh and let the door behind me close softly. I take aim and cast Rifle Round, sending spinning mana shots into each of them. They all drop like hammers and I¡¯m left waiting for another zombie to stumble into view. After a few moments of nothing I crawl down the steps. I slowly round the corner and get a clear view of the door leading out of the stairwell. Two zombies stand looking down at the bodies of the other zombies. Before they can react I send two more Rifle Rounds into them ending their lives. PING!
Level Up
I let the message disappear and with it gone I feel my mana pool refill. I hadn¡¯t noticed earlier when I leveled up because I never was never focusing on my mana reserve. Looking back at it I realize that every time I level up my mana pool refills. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. I instantly open up my character sheet and dump the five new Attribute points into my Intelligence bringing it up to thirty and my mana up to seventy. Feeling refreshed and more confident, I exit the stairwell. No zombies stand in the hallway but two stand behind my desk and a few more shamble beyond it, blocking my view from the Fire Command Center. Taking aim at the zombie furthest from me I let a Rifle Round race out, drilling a hole clean through the zombies head. The sound of its body crumpling under its own weight brings the attention of the zombies around it to it. With the ones closest to me looking in the opposite direction of me I sneak forwards to the closet and open it¡¯s door. The door swings out blocking my view of the desk. I place my baton in it¡¯s holder on my duty belt and take out my knife. The blade should be long enough to cut the bolt holding the lockers closed. Four lockers greet me, two of which lie open. They¡¯re meant to be used by the unarmed officers on duty. However with just me working the night shift they¡¯re left empty. The other lockers are dedicated to the two armed officers stationed at this post during the day. I know only one likes to keep his gun here in the locker, his wife doesn¡¯t like guns being in their home. However I don¡¯t know who uses which locker. Flipping a mental coin I pick the locker on the left to start with. The blade of my knife glows an artic blue as mana coats it. A soft humming sound emanates from it once I start forcing the mana to rotate around the edge. I guess where the bolt holding the locker close is and place my knife above it, wedging the blade in the gap between the side of the locker and the door. With as much force as I can muster, I pull the blade down. It catches on something and a horrendous screeching sound tears out of the locker. The knife shakes as the metal resists the flow of mana eating into it. For a second I don¡¯t react, the sound and sensation being very reminiscent of the drill dentist used. Then the knife falls free and the door opens, but the damage is done. I hear the moans of dozens of zombies, as their attention is grabbed by a new fancy. Scared to do so but needing to know I peek around the door and see a dozen or so zombies shamble towards me. My face feels cold as the blood drains from it. As fast as I can I search the locker and feel dread as I don¡¯t find a gun. I drive the knife into the lock of the other locker making another horrendous screeching sound of metal being torn in half. I fling the locker door open and am greeted with the holster and gun of the armed officer. Thank you Mrs. Reddeck for making your husband keep his gun here. I snatch the gun and start backing towards the stairwell. I try to get the holster off the gun but can¡¯t with one hand. The zombies drawing ever closer I point the hand with my knife at the oncoming horde. I concentrate and let loose a handful of Mana Rifle rounds. Four zombies fall to the ground while more seem to stack over them. I turn and run towards the stairwell only stopping when I get to the entrance. I drop my knife and take out my baton and cast Mana Saw on it, the mana humming as it rotates fiercely. The rage from before bruns in me as I take my stand. The first zombie reaches me and I kill it in an instant with a jab to the eye. The next I lash out with a swing to the temple. Another jab sends a third toppling over. I¡¯m forced to take a step back as more zombies pile into the hallway. I swing and jab and smash my baton into the skulls of zombies but they don¡¯t stop. I¡¯m pushed further and further into the starwell. The moment I feel the steps behind me I know I¡¯m not going to be able to push my way back out into the lobby. Seeing no other solution I stop the rotation of my mana and push more out, extending my reach. Swing out in a large arc, knocks the closest zombies stumbling back into others. This buys me precious seconds of breathing room. I focus on the hand holding my baton and force as much mana into it as I can. A whitish blue ball of energy floats in front of my hand. I thrust my hand out towards the hoard and let the ball fly. My hand burns as the blue veins of mana flash white. The Cannonball burns a hole in the zombies closest to me giving me the space I need to escape. I run up the stairs two at a time and into the second floor. Slamming the door closed behind me. I back away from the window, hoping that if the zombies follow they won¡¯t realize that I¡¯m on this floor. I stumble back across the floor keeping my focus on the door. It opens into the starwell, so even though it¡¯s unlocked the zombies shouldn¡¯t be able to open it unless they know to pull. Within a few seconds I hear banging on the door as the zombies try to force their way through it, but it doesn¡¯t budge. I breathe a sigh of relief as I let a feeling of safety wash over me. I fall to the ground panting heavily. Well that didn¡¯t go well. Chapter 8 I sit listening to the zombies bang on the door while trying to figure out what to do. While waiting two pings informed me that I leveled up twice. I left the Attribute Points alone figuring that I should come up with a new plan before spending them. Watching the door shake with each thud becomes mesmerizing after a bit. The exhaustion of the short but fierce battle fades. I probably ended up killing a little over a dozen. My hand is caked in dried blood and still tingles from the Cannonball blast. Looking around the hall I see the alcove for the elevators and the other stairwell door. Then, as if I¡¯ve been struck by lightning an idea hits me. The zombies aren¡¯t standing around the fire command center door anymore. The majority if not all should be focused on the stairwell opposite of the fire command center. The other starwell lets out right next to the fire command center. If I can get to it fast enough I may be able to sneak past the zombie and into the command center. There I can lock the door behind me and silence the alarm. From there I don¡¯t know what I can do but I¡¯ll at least get the building a little closer to being safe. I stand and open my Character Sheet. I dump all my free Attribute Points into Intelligence pushing my mana up to ninety. I clip the gun holster to my utility belt and undo the clasp that holds the gun inside. I open the other stairwell door and start my descent. No zombies greet me as I make my way to the ground level. Peeking around the corner of the open door into the lobby I see the hoarder still swarming the other stairwell. Most are still trying to push their way in. A few more zombies shamble in from the street, drawn either by the horde or by the fire alarm. None however are in my immediate vicinity. I reach into my pocket to retrieve the master key for the building. My heart sinks, the key isn''t there. I check my other pocket and feel panic starting to build in me. Where¡¯s the key? What happened to it? Looking around the floor I see it lying on the ground twenty feet from me. Where I dropped it after being attacked from zombies outside the first time. My heart sinks further as I realize my only option is to try and get it. Checking the lobby I only have to deal with five zombies between me and the key. By the time I get to the key the other zombies will probably already see me, but if I can get into the command room I should be fine. The plan is shoddy at best but it¡¯s all I got. I raise my hand, fingers pointing like a gun. The mana builds as I take aim. One Rifle Round flies out and I start running to the key. The body hasn¡¯t even fallen before I take my next shot. Then the third shot and a third body hits the ground. The other two zombies turn towards me and let off howels of desperation. Blood and flem flying from their maws. I form two Rifle Rounds, simultaneously, and let them both go at the same time. Keeping my momentum I fall to my knees sliding forwards. I grab the key and turn around jolting to my feet. The zombie horde by the other stairwell is now starting to notice me. Their howels and moans for my flesh ringing out through the lobby. As I race to the command center a zombie stumbles out of the stairwell next to the command center. I take the baton in my hand and cast Mana Saw on it, the rotating biting mana humming with power. The weapon slices through the air as I snap the baton across the zombies skull. It¡¯s head flies to the side smacking into the door of the command center with a sickening thud. Still not completely dead, I pull back for another crack at it¡¯s temple. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it The mana around the baton races faster and sings as the baton swishes through the air. I slam the baton into it¡¯s skull digging deep into the bone and flesh. The baton glides clean through the skull and digs into the door leaving a groove in the thick wooden door. Releasing the mana surrounding my baton I focus on the door before me. I jam the key into the lock, turning it as I do so. I pek around and see the hoard stumbling forwards. The dead bolt snaps out of the door frame and I twist the handle as fast as I can. I pull the door open, turning around and letting off a few more Rifle Rounds. Three bodies hit the floor as I slam the door shut. Within seconds the door thunds in place as zombies try to beat it down. I breathe a sigh of relief. Despite making the idiot mistake of forgetting that I didn¡¯t have the key, the plan went somewhat smoothly. For having boosted my intelligence as high as I have, I¡¯m not the brightest tool in the box. Looking around the room I¡¯m greeted by a small desk in the center of the room. A large map of the building laid out over it. A chair sitting silently behind the desk. Against the wall with the door is a large panel of lights and words that I can¡¯t make heads or tails of. Against the wall behind the desk is a series of machines, one that spits out paper and another that has a digital display. A red box hangs next to the machine that spits out paper. Inside of it are the controls to the fire alarm. I open the box with the master key and press the button that silences the alarm. The building falls silent, aside from the horde beating on the door. I smile while plopping down in the chair at the desk. Mission accomplished. Now I need to get out of here and make sure no more zombies are in the building. With the hoard beating on the door I don¡¯t know how I¡¯m going to manage that. Maybe I can push the door open knocking enough back that I can get off a few shots with my long range spells and bullets from the gun. Speaking of the gun. I take the gun out of the holster. Looking it over I realize just how stupid I am. The gun doesn¡¯t have a clip in it. Checking the chamber reveals nothing. This gun that I stupidly risked my life for is nothing but empty cold metal. ¡°FUCK!¡± I shout. Annoyance and anger run rampant through me. How could I be so stupid. Thinking back to it, Officer Reddeck did mention that he¡¯s not allowed to keep the gun in the building while it¡¯s loaded. ¡°Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.¡± I sit in silence stewing in self loath and annoyance. So the gun is useless. Meaning I have to fight my way out into that horde with nothing but my mana and weapons. I sigh and try to calm myself. I¡¯ve fought plenty of them so far I can continue to fight more. It¡¯s not a huge deal. It is what it is. Turning my attention inwards I focus on my mana pool that now feels like the size of a small lake. I can get off maybe twenty Rifle Rounds before running out. So depending on how many are out there I can down a decent amount without getting close. That should be how I go at this next fight. Killing as many as I can from a distance. But how am I supposed to make that distance? Without many options or ideas I sit in the chair trying to figure out what to do. My eyes wander the room as I spin back and forth. From the wall to the door to another wall and back. Wall. Door. Wall. Door¡­ ¡°The Door.¡± I say out loud standing from the chair. A devious smile breaks across my face. The beginnings of a plan forming in my mind. All I need to do is wait for my mana to replenish and then I¡¯ll be ready. Chapter 9 After my mana pool completely refills I stand and make my way to the door. The gouge I had put in it earlier letting light in from the lobby. I take the baton out from it¡¯s spot on my belt. The cool metal feeling is more familiar in my hands now than ever. If it wasn¡¯t for this I probably wouldn¡¯t have made it this far. I silently thank whatever manager at my security company decided it was fine for an unarmed officer to have a baton. Casting Mana Saw on the baton illuminates the walls with a cool arctic blue. The mana coating the shaft sings and rotates viciously. At about eye level I slide the baton through the door. The wood chipping away as the fast moving mana digs into it, smoke rising from the spot. Like the name for the spell I saw a square into the door just wide enough for a head to pass through. With that done I let the mana coating the baton dispel. Looking through hole I can see the horde of zombies pushing in against the door. A slight burning smell rises above that of the zombies. However the sound of their moans heightens as they see me through the hole. Some try to reach their arms through. Holding my right hand as if it¡¯s a gun, pointer finger extended out and thumb raised up, I command the mana into the familiar spiraling spell. I pick a head and let loose, sending a Rifle Round into the horde. A cloud of blood mists into the air. I pick another head and shoot. Over and over and over until My finger burns from the excessive mana use. After the sixteenth or so shot I walk away from the door and sit in the chair to rest and restore my mana. After sitting for a second I get a familiar message. PING!
Level Up
I grin, feeling the mana pool inside of me instantly replenish. Opening my character sheet I dump the free Attribute Points into my Intelligence. Then I get back to work, Rifle Rounds zipping across open space, dropping zombies. After almost completely depleting my mana reserves I take another break. I make out only a handful or so more zombies in the lobby. Enough that I could probably take them with my Mana Saw. For a second I entertain the idea but ultimately decide against it. I¡¯ve set myself up to easily handle the rest. No reason to make it more difficult on myself. I sit back in the chair and rest my eyes. A pounding headache forming in the back of my mind. I watch the small lake grow inside of me mesmerized by the small moats of light forming into drops of mana. Opening my eyes I look at the finger I¡¯ve been using to conduct my mana and notice that the skin is a bright pink. Channeling mana out of your body like this probably isn¡¯t the best way to be doing it. In most media mages have wands or staffs that they channel their mana through. Wait. Should I be basing how mana works off of fiction? I know so far it¡¯s helped me make a few attacks but I have no clue how this energy actually functions. Who knows. For now there isn¡¯t much I can do about it. With nothing else to do just yet I close my eyes and focus on regaining my strength. After I¡¯ve regained a little over half of my mana I check out the little peep hole I made. The rancid stench of rotting corpses and copious amounts of blood greet me. I¡¯m able to count maybe four zombies shambling around the lobby, but more can get in until I close the front doors. Using my left hand to avoid burning my finger any more I conjure more Rifle Rounds. In seconds the four zombies are down. The blue screens above their heads flashing black for a second before vanishing. Listening for a second I hear feet still moving in the lobby. Looking through the peephole I made doesn''t reveal them. They must be closer to the door, maybe zombies brought in by the horde. Stealing my resolve I take my baton out and cast Mana Saw on it. The blue light stretching over the dark metal and humming in anticipation of the fight. I throw my shoulder into the door, the weight of the bodies piled in front of it making it harder to open. A gap wide enough for me to slip through opens and I lunge out. Six zombies stand in the lobby. Their blood shot pale eyes gazing over to me. The black veins in their pale skin bulge as their eyes scream in hunger. HHHHHHUUUUUUUUGGGGGGG! They moan and start shambling towards me. I carefully make my way over the mass of bodies beneath me and onto flat ground. The closest zombie lunges at me forcing me to pull back. My foot lands on a body and threatens to send me toppling over. However I manage to stay upright as I jab out into the skull of the zombie. The mana coated baton digs in effortlessly. Rapidly eating away at its life. It falls to the ground dead. I turn to the open doors, five zombies standing between me and them. I point my finger and let a Rifle Round shoot one zombie, downing it effortlessly. Taking a stand, I plant my feet and roar at them, daring the zombies to come for me. AAAAARRRRRRRRR! They respond in kind. HHHHHUUUUUUUGGGG! They lunge forwards as I charge lashin out with my baton. Sky blue arcs of energy trail my every swing. Blood mists the air as the baton passes clean through one zombie''s skull. The next I bring the baton down in a heavy downward strike. It¡¯s skull caves in and the body shoots to the ground. The next zombie lunges at my torso maw agape with anticipation. I jam my baton into its mouth pulling up on it as I do so. The baton digs through the creature''s skull and into the air bringing globs of brain and blood with it. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The motion forces me to take a step back as the momentum threatens my balance.Trying to correct my balance causes my foot to catch on something. My foot slips on the blood pooling the floor. My leg crumples painfully beneath me. I force the pain out of my mind as the last zombie falls onto me. Instinct guiding my actions, my arm races out grabbing the thing by its neck. It¡¯s teeth chopping down on nothing as it lunges for me. Barely being held at bay. Blood and drool leaks from its mouth. I go to bring the baton up and into it¡¯s head only to realize I dropped it in the fall. Looking around frantically reveals that it rolled just out of reach. My arm starts to buckle under the strain of holding the zombie back. Turning my focus back to it I quickly focus mana in my head. I feel heat emanating from my eyes as mana pools just behind them. Then the world is white as I shoot a stream of mana from my eyes. The energy bores a hole into the zombie and I watch it¡¯s hit points fade to zero.
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 4/10
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 1/10
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 0/10
The box above it flashes black and disappears. I end the stream of mana bursting from my eyes and lie there for a second. My eyes burning feeling dryer then ever. Blinking rapidly I know I¡¯m not trying that again. I crawl to my feet and hobble forwards. Every step with my left foot sending pangs of pain through me. I reach out grabbing the handles of the bullet proof glass doors. I pull back on them causing the familiar crack as whatever mechanism holding the doors open is disengaged. Sudden movement out of the corner of my eye makes my heart skip a beat. I jump back just as a zombie races into the door on my right. I fall back onto my butt shocked and spooked by its speed. It bounces off the still closing door and onto the sidewalk. It recovers fast and is on its feet in the blink of an eye. Is this even a zombie? A red light above it catches my attention and I only get a second to read it.
Zombie
Level: 12
HP: 30/30
It¡¯s hand snakes around the door filing it back open. It jumps at me. I roll out from its path and lunge for my baton. My fingers wrap around the baton but before I can properly grab it something pulls me by my leg. I roll onto my back kicking out with my free leg. The zombie is pushed off of me but it recovers far too quickly. I focus on the lake inside of me, grabbing as much mana as I can and shooting it from my finger. A laser of artic blue light jams into the zombies eye. It¡¯s head snaps back and the laser fades. I pull back crawling away from the monster. I focus and gather more mana into my palms. The zombie recovers anger burning behind it¡¯s remaining good eye. AAARRRRGGGGGGG! It roars, lunging for me. I push the mana out from my palm sending a Cannonball right into its torso. The beast is blasted back further away from me. It¡¯s body slides to a stop and doesn¡¯t move. I sigh with relief thinking the battle is over. I look for my baton and grab it only to freeze in place. AARRRGG! It belts out. It leaps into the air and it¡¯s all I can do just to get the baton between it and me. My back is forced against the floor as the monster pushes into me. Blood drips from it¡¯s open mouth as it breaks it¡¯s teeth on my baton. The metal bends in as the creature pushes down on me with more strength than I thought possible from a zombie. Focusing as best as I can I coast the baton with mana rotating it as fast as possible. The baton diggs into its mouth slowly eating away at it¡¯s jaw. It¡¯s lower jaw falls open as the tendons controlling it are eaten away. The zombie pulls back, breaking my concentration. The spinning mana evaporates as the zombie slams it¡¯s head forwards into the baton, bending it even more. Again and again the baton bends little by little. Even without being able to close its mouth the zombie is relentless in its pursuit to eat me. My arms strain with the struggle of keeping it off of me. Desperate, I think of something to do. Everything I¡¯ve thrown at it wasn¡¯t enough. Nothing I have packs enough of a punch. An idea pops into my mind. Mentaly I force a strand of mana out of my arm and down to a pouch on my belt. There the tendrils of glowing energy burn away at the fabric holding my pepper spray in its pouch. I warp the can in mana trying to push as much energy against it as possible. Praying that it¡¯ll work I wait for the zombie to pull back again. With it¡¯s jaw wide open I slam the pressurized can into its mouth. I feel my mana pool drying up quickly and panic rises in me. BOOOOM The can explodes in a cloud of red mist. The air instantly smelled of burnt chili peppers. The red box above the zombie''s head flashes black.
Zombie
Level: 12
HP: 0/30
Then it disappears. The thing''s body falls over, smoke rising from where it¡¯s head used to be. My eyes burn as the cloud of pepper spray falls on me. But I don¡¯t care. I did it. I¡¯m alive. Exhaustion racks my body and I can¡¯t help but to close my eyes. I know it¡¯s not wise to sleep here but I can¡¯t help following the intoxicating pull of exhaustion. The darkness consumes my consciousness and I pass out. PING! PING!
Level Up
Level Up
Chapter 10 I awake with a pounding headache and feeling as if my body had been chucked off a cliff. My face, burning as if I had sat out in the sun for too long. Sitting up sends the room spinning and I want to vomit. Looking around I find myself in the midst of a blood bath. Countless bleeding bodies are scattered and strewn over one another. The sight brings back the memories of everything that just happened. Panic creeping in, I check the doors to make sure that they¡¯re actually closed and locked. A quick shove proves they are and I sigh as the panic fades. With that I retrieve my baton. Teeth marks dance across the blood covered metal shaft. The shaft arcs upwards in a sixty degree angle. In all honesty I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll survive many more fights. Especially if there¡¯s any more zombies like the last one. Just the thought of the fast, strong, agile zombie gives me shivers. I almost didn¡¯t survive that one. I shake the spiraling dark thoughts and hosler the baton, which now sits at an odd angle on my belt. Looking inwards I find my mana reserves to be sitting at full. Finding it curious because I can tell that I wasn¡¯t out long enough to have regained the mana naturally, I open my Stats page.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 9
Level: 10 DEX: 5
To Next Level 13/500 AGI: 6
Sex: Male END: 12
Age: 19 INT: 45
Class: Mage WIS: 11
LUC: 4
HP 72/100 CHA: 5
Mana 80/80 PER: 8
WIL: 6
Free Attribute points: 10
Reading through it I notice my health is sitting just under a quarter. Curiously I find my mana refills every level but my health doesn¡¯t. Other than my level, health, Attribute points, and mana nothing has changed. Looking closer at my health an idea pops into my head. ¡°Can I die from a lot of smaller wounds?¡± I ask myself I retrieve my pocket knife and return to the fire command center. There I plop down in the chair. I take the knife out and examine my body. I¡¯m covered in blood and much and I wonder for a second about how infectious the zombies are. I know that if you¡¯re eaten by one you turn into one. But I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s just how the world works now or if the zombies are some disease. Questions to figure out later, it¡¯s best to just play it safe now and now get any zombie goo in me. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. With that thought I hesitate to perform the experiment I came up with. I need to know how this system works but I need to be careful. Rolling up my pants lef reveals my pasty legs covered in hair and no blood. I mentally thank whatever manager picked our uniforms for picking waterproof pants. I open my character sheet focusing on my health. I drag the edge of the blade across my calf, a stream of red blood follows its wake. My health drops from seventy-two to seventy-one. So I probably can die from a lot of minor attacks. That¡¯s something to keep an eye out for. Against the wall with the door built into it is a small first aid kit. Inside I find a waterproof bandage and gauze. I place the bandage over the new cut in my leg and then wrap it in gauze to be sure. Part of me wants to strip out the bloodied clothes but the other part doesn¡¯t want to be trying to clear this building without some form of protection. For now I¡¯ll leave these clothes on but getting new duds is definitely on the list of things to do. Thinking of things to do. I turn to the machines displaying information about the building. One in particular shows open entrances to the building. There three out of four dots are displayed in red. Meaning that the other two doors on the ground level are still held open and need to be manually closed. While the garage door is also still being held open. I groan as I realize that I¡¯m not quite done yet. However for the most part the still open entrances aren¡¯t a huge deal. The only way into the garage is through the stairwell and elevators. The stairwell entrance has a gate on it that needs an access badge to be swiped to unlock, so if I close that I don¡¯t have to worry about clearing the garage. Unless zombies can use elevators. I dismiss the thought for a second. The crazy fast and agile zombie pops up in my mind. If zombies can level up and gain strength maybe they can gain intelligence too. So the elevators aren¡¯t to be dismissed. With that in mind I walk to a different machine that controls the elevators. There¡¯s four in total. Two sitting on the ground floor, one on the tenth, and the last sitting down on the first level of the garages. A key switch sits in the bottom corner of the machine with ¡°Emergency Shut off¡± written around it. Knowing the master key wont work I leave the command center for the security desk. The entrance to the lobby already as a zombie trying to beat it¡¯s way in. Ignoring it I move over the bodies of the undead and to behind the desk. In one of the cabets lies a lock box full of keys. There I find one to the elevator controls and return to the command center taking it with me. I power down the elevators and return to figuring out my next step. The open doors are definitely an issue. The garage, I¡¯m sure, is to house as many if not more zombies than the lobby. Even with the fire alarm off the giant opening can let more wander in and the more inside the garage the more sounds they¡¯ll make. Meaning the more drawn in. So it¡¯s definitely something to handle but not a huge thing just yet. The other two entrances to the building lead to the bike room and kitchen. The kitchen has two extra doors that need to be passed through, both with a badge requirement to unlock. While the bike room has a door that opens directly into the lobby near the lockers. The doors in the kitchen don¡¯t open automatically and just unlock when the fire alarm is activated. So with the alarm deactivated the doors should be locked again, and if not they open inwards. Aside from that crazy high level zombie I don¡¯t think any are able to force those doors open. The bike room interior door also doesn¡¯t open automatically and should be locked too, but I¡¯ll check it before leaving the ground floor. There should be relatively few zombies in the rest of the building so clearing it should be next on my list. Laying back in the chair I stare up at the ceiling. I almost just died and I¡¯m already thinking about going and getting into another fight. Something has to be wrong with me. My stomach growls, reminding me I haven¡¯t eaten since yesterday evening. It¡¯s already approaching the evening. I should clear the rest of the building quickly and find something to snack on. Then I¡¯ll pass out and sleep the rest of the day away. There are a few comfy couches on the higher floors. Safety, food, rest. That¡¯s the plan. I close my eyes and feel the aches and pain through my body slowly ebb away. My mind is still beating with a low headache but the worst has passed. I leave the command center and make my way to the bike entrance. Trying the door proves to me that it¡¯s locked. Peeing in as deep as I can reveals no zombies but who knows. A shine catches my attention from the corner of my eye. Looking towards it I see the reflective casing of the camera. My mind lights up at realization. I race back to the security desk and check the computers. I power one on and wait for the screen to awaken. After a soft whirring I¡¯m greeted by a familiar log in. I type in my credentials. Once logged in I maneuver the mouse over an app with a diamond and monitors. Opening it reveals a new login screen where I put in new credentials. Then wait as the application connects me to the cameras in the building. A window pops up with thirty-six black screens. Each little screen displaying the same message. ¡°Connection Lost¡± My heart sinks as anger rises in me. ¡°Fuck.¡± Looking down at the icon where a wifi symbol sits shows that the machine isn¡¯t connected to any. Opening it shows that there¡¯s nothing to connect to. Wishing I had a phone to try and hot spot the machine I shut the system down and leave the lobby. I may not be able to get some intel on each floor but that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m going to stop. I¡¯m getting tired and I want to wrap this night up quickly. For a second I entertain the idea of just trying to nap in the command center but part of me can¡¯t relax knowing that there¡¯s danger in the building. I traverse the eleven flights to the roof access door, closing any doors remaining open as I do so. Once on the roof I see the whole city. Pillars of smoke rise in the air sporadically. In the hotel across the street I see windows applently coated in blood. The suddenness and randomness of the zombies'' appearances make me wonder where they came from. The desolate view makes me feel so small in the grand scheme of things. Here I am looking down on the apocalypse barely able to keep myself alive. Who knows how many people are out there and how many are alive. The small hope I had been harboring that the government or police were going to sweep through and save me vanished. Overnight the world had ended. The only movement on the streets below are the shambles of zombies. There¡¯s no other signs of life than me standing up here on this roof alone. I tear my gaze from the scene and make my way around to the other stairwell. From here I¡¯ll go floor by floor making sure the building is free of zombies. Making my way to the tenth floor I peer onto the floor not expecting anything of note. The tenth floor is the only floor after the second that isn¡¯t laid out like the others. This floor is home to the offices for the executives. So wrapping all around the outside walls are walled off offices, many with their doors closed. This floor still has a figure eight pattern to it though, just that the inner walled part of the floor is home to a storage room full of computer equipment and office supplies. Along with a large mail room. The other inner box on the floor is home to a break area with cushioned seats and high end coffee makers. I follow the outside wall peeking into each room as I do so. Most have random artifacts from their owner¡¯s lives. A pyramid of soda cans in one. Some baseball memorabilia in another. I round the first corner and continue checking the offices. I make it to the mail room and pop my head in there. As I do so I hear a thud sound from inside the storage room. The hair on the back of my neck stands, my heart beating faster and my lungs pulling in more oxygen. I take out my baton and make my way to the storage room door. I shove open the door, raising the baton above me in anticipation. My eyes scan for any movement. Three lie in the storage room, two men and one woman. One of them lying on the floor next to a counter rubbing her head. At the sound of the door being thrown open the three freezes looking at me. Their faces drain of color. The men curse and the woman starts to scream. Chapter 11 I stand in shock, staring as the three individuals fly into action. The woman lying on the ground sits up while pushing herself into a corner. The shorter man hides behind a shelf full of bundles of paper. The third man becomes a blur to me. Silver flashes before me as the man disappears. The next second I feel cold metal press against my neck. Dark black eyes peer into mine looking for something. Looking down I see a sword pressed up against me. ¡°Drop the weapon.¡± the man says Dropping the baton I leave my hand raised in the air. Even without the baton, I¡¯m not completely weaponless. With that in mind, I try to keep my nerves under check. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± The man asks ¡°Clearing the building.¡± I answer Calling on the mana inside of me I get it ready to race through me. The familiar power instantly heeds my call. It buzzes inside of me ready for anything. ¡°Were you the one that silenced the fire alarm?¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± I say ¡°How?¡± His eyes leave mine for a second as they travel my body. Stopping for a second on the gun and then continuing to the floor and the baton. Unsure of how my answer would be taken I hesitate to answer. As the moment stretches I feel the blade dig deeper into my throat. ¡°Answer now or I¡¯ll take your head off.¡± ¡°Magic.¡± I answer ¡°Do you think you¡¯re funny?¡± ¡°No sir.¡± I answer as fear starts welling up in me. The blade pushes closer into me and I feel blood leaking down my neck. Wanting to prove myself I send the mana I¡¯ve been keeping a mental hold of into and out of the hand raised in the air. The arctic blue orb¡¯s light reflects off the silver blade and into the man¡¯s face. His dark eyes leave mine and stare at the orb in astonishment. Then something behind his eyes seems to click into place. ¡°That¡¯s what the mage class gives you.¡± He says. ¡°What can you do with it?¡± I feel myself gulp as I think about his question. What can I do with it? Is it just a weapon? Is it a tool? How do I describe it? "Seriously kid, right now is not the time to be playing the quite game.¡± He pushes the sword deeper into me causing pain. ¡°What can you do with it?¡± ¡°I can make projectiles and coat things in it. The projectiles do a lot of damage and when I coat stuff I can make it easier to cut easier.¡± I stammer out. I feel my heart racing in my chest as panic wraps me. If this man wants to kill me can I stop him? If I was further away then yes but he already has the blade against my throat. He seems to take a second to go over my words. He analyzes the orb still floating above my hand then returns his attention to me. ¡°Alright so that¡¯s how you managed to get up here and silence the alarm. I have one more question. Whoa are you?¡± ¡°Joel Dylan, the night security guard.¡± I offer. Apparently satisfied, the man pulls the blade away from my neck and sheaths it in a shiny black scabbard. I call the mana back into myself and stare at the group, unsure what to do with myself. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. I breathe a sigh of relief once the blade is put away. My heart still races but I can tell it¡¯s already slowing down. However a strange burning sensation fizzles on my neck where the blade touched me. I ignore it figuring it¡¯s probably just the cut skin itching. ¡°My name is Mathew Decker, but please call me Decker. I¡¯m one of the board members. The woman is Angila, my secretary. And the man over there is Andy, the night shift IT guy.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t he one of those things?¡± Angila asks, still cowering in the corner. ¡°No he doesn¡¯t have the floating screen above his head.¡± Decker says. At that the tension in the air seems to dissipate. Angila picks herself up from the ground and Andy gets out from behind the shelf of paper. With the tension gone I take a good look at the three people. Angelia is a small thin person wearing khaki pants with a white blouse. Her bleach blond hair is let down coming to just above her shoulders. The remains of makeup attempts to hide the faint signs of age starting to appear on her face. Bags faintly apparent under her blue eyes. Decker stands tall above us, around six foot four. A form fitting black business suit shows that he is athletically built. His dark hair, streaked with occasional strands of gray, is held back by some kind of product, but either time or sweat has worn the product thin, as some strands seem to have broken free. In his left hand is a long sword that seems familiar to me. Thinking back to it, I''ve seen that sword in one of the offices on the tenth floor. It was on a wall above a desk with no picture frames, which I always thought was weird. Most of the board members had pictures on their desks but this one didn¡¯t. Instead the only decoration was that sword hung up on the wall. The last man, Andy, stands just slightly taller than my five foot nine height. He is dressed in light blue jeans and a shirt with some sci-fi show¡¯s art on it. Thinking back to Decker¡¯s words, something that''s been floating around in the back of my mind comes to the forefront. ¡°Wait. The floating menus and screens. You all see them too? They aren¡¯t some weird hallucinations?¡± I ask. ¡°Not unless we¡¯re all hallucinating.¡± Decker says. ¡°So what are you guys doing up here? What have you guys been up to all night?¡± I ask Decker seems to hesitate for a second. As he does so he reaches into his jacket and pulls out a pack of cigarettes. He places one in his mouth leaving it unlit as he chews on the butt. ¡°Where do I start?¡± He seems to ask no one in particular. ¡°Well I was working late with Angila here when the earthquake happened. We passed out or something and when we awoke we could see a screen floating before us. Before I could process what was happening Margrett, another board member, attacked Angila. I took this sword and cut her head off and managed to level up. After that I took Angila and we tried to get out of this building. We got to the fifth floor where we met a group of zombies in the stairwell. We ran back up to the eight floor and ran to the panic room. There we found Andy hiding. Once the door was shut I completed this quest to find safety and was made to choose between Warrior and Mage. I tried to ignore it but it wouldn¡¯t go away like the other menus. So I picked Warrior and after that the world slowed down and I realized I could move a lot faster. It¡¯s like there¡¯s a dial in my mind that I can turn slowing down or speeding time up. We tried to call for help but our phones aren¡¯t connected to any kind of service. Deciding that the police or military would roll through to save us we stayed in the panic room. We fell asleep and were only awoken when the fire alarm was silenced. Figuring that help had shown up we decided to leave the room, but Andy and Angelia were worried about meeting more zombies. So we came up here to grab something that could work as weapons. That¡¯s when you came in here. So why are you clearing the building and what have you been up to all night?¡± He says. I explain to them how I woke up on the first floor and all the fighting I had done. How I hoped to make the building safe and then work from there. They listen to my story and are shocked at how I managed to survive. ¡°So then if help isn¡¯t on it¡¯s way I think we should secure the whole building. From there we can focus on what to do next. How many more floors are left to clear?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Floors four and under are clear. So if this floor and the eighth are clear then only four more.¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll come with you. Andy and Angelia still haven¡¯t been able to choose a class and I think that¡¯s because they are both level zero. So maybe if they find a zombie and kill it they can pick a class or something.¡± Decker says. After that he turns to an object on the counter behind him. He picks it up and I recognize it as those paper cutting things with the large blades. He picks up a screw driver on the counter and undoes a few screws freeing the blade. While Decker did that Andy searched through different boxes trying to find a weapon for himself. I retrieve my baton from the floor and leave the group to continue trying to arm themselves. I make my way to one of the board member offices. Inside I find plenty of baseball memorabilia. Among the objects is a wooden bat with some baseball players'' names scribbled along it. I take it and return to the group. ¡°Does anyone want this?¡± I ask. Decker turns to me while handing Angelia the blade. Andy looks up, his eyes lighting up at the sight of the bat. ¡°Hell yeah, I¡¯ll take that.¡± Andy says. I hand him the bat and look at Decker. He looks over the group. ¡°Is everyone ready?¡± He asks. The group answers in the affirmative and we leave for the stairwell. Decker takes point leading us all while I follow behind the others. My eyes feel heavy and I feel drowsiness wash over me. I hope we can clear this building fast. Chapter 12 Decker leads us down the staircase to the ninth floor. He opens the door and peers inside of the hallway looking right then left. Once satisfied that there isn¡¯t an immediate threat he motions us to follow as he moves onto the floor, his silver sword held before him in a laxed manor. Watching him carry the out of place weapon makes me wonder where he got it from. And if he actually knows how to use it. Focusing on the weapon I notice that it¡¯s a long straight blade and not a curved one like I thought before. An oval shape sits above Decker¡¯s hand. The sword looks old but not out of shape. The metal shines with a silver light and I can tell that it¡¯s plenty sharp. The way Decker holds it makes me feel as if it¡¯s an extension of him instead of a tool to be used and discarded when done. I take my eyes off the weapon and close the door behind me, making sure to hear it click into place. Decker stands poised his eyes scanning the hall for any movement. While Angila and Andy hunch over themselves, obviously scared of what¡¯s beyond our sight. ¡°You two need to get classes if you hope to protect yourselves. I think you need to kill a zombie to get the first level to get the option. So if we find two stray zombies I want you two to take them down. Joel and I will back you up. Think you can handle that?¡± Decker asks the other two. Angila¡¯s face grows pale as she weakly shakes her head. While Andy puffs his chest in mock confidence. ¡°Of course I can.¡± Andy says. I stare at him unsure if his bravado is real or if he¡¯s trying to show off. With that set the group heads off exploring the floor. The ninth floor is laid out in a similar fashion to the ones I¡¯ve already cleared. Empty cubicle set up in the open spaces of the floor. While the walled off spaces keep most of their doors closed. As we round a corner that will take us to the other side of the floor Decker raises his hand for us to halt. Then he closes his eyes and tilts his head as if he¡¯s listening to something. ¡°There¡¯s three just ahead of us. Take it easy and try to isolate one of them.¡± Decker says. His eyes lock with mine at his last words. Understanding his meaning he motions for us to move forwards. In the open space of the break area stand three zombies all at level one. I conjure three Rifle Rounds, but before the mana even leaves my body Decker is already moving. He becomes a blur as he leaps towards the closets of the zombies. His silver sword raised above his head. Faster than my eyes can follow the sword appears inches above the ground spraying blood along the floor. Looking at the zombie I see part of it¡¯s skull missing. The blue light above it¡¯s head flashes black then disappears. The three spiraling bullets form just as the zombie¡¯s body starts to sag. My jaw drops open at the speed displayed before me. It was inhuman how fast he reacted. Before I can collect myself he¡¯s already moving onto the next zombie. His sword glides through the air just above the ground then disappears. Blood sprays into the air and appears in a line on the ceiling as the left arm of the zombie falls to the ground. Then the right followed by another spray of blood. Decker then takes a step back analyzing his opponent. The sword hovering just in front of him. My focus on the beautiful quick fluid movements of Decker is broken as a hoarse moan rings out across the floor. The last zombie starts making its way towards Decker. Arms waving out before it as it hobbles forward. Wanting to prove myself to the badass man in front of me, I send out the three mana bullets at this single zombie. It¡¯s head explodes in a spray of blood. It¡¯s name tag flashes black and I turn my attention to Decker. He¡¯s managed to make his way behind the zombie who is now kneeling on the ground. Decker holds it by its neck as it snaps it¡¯s jaw open and closed.
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 3/10
Examing the name tag above it¡¯s head leaves me pondering the anatomy of the zombie. In most media zombies can only be killed by destroying the brains. That¡¯s why I¡¯ve only been attacking them there. But if I can drop my health, supposedly to zero, just by cutting myself could you kill a zombie by dealing enough damage to its body? ¡°Angila come here.¡± Decker says His words break me from my inner thoughts as I watch Angila shakily walk forwards. Her fear is obvious in every hesitant step she takes. ¡°Don¡¯t worry it can¡¯t hurt you. Just hit it in the head a few times.¡± Decker says His words soften from his usual tone as he tries to calm her down. The frown present on his face before disappears as he looks at her. At his words Angila seems to relax a little as she quickens her hesitant steps. Once standing before the snapping zombie Angila raises the blade above her head. There the weapon hovers in the air. Her arm visibly shakes as she stares down at the thing. ¡°I can''t, I just can¡¯t.¡± She says She drops her arm as her shoulder starts shaking. ¡°What if they¡¯re not actually dead? What if we can cure them or something?¡± She asks. Decker sighs as I ponder her words myself. Why haven¡¯t I thought about that? Why haven¡¯t I hesitated to kill these monsters? I know I started fighting them out of self defense but then I started hunting them. Predator or not, some could definitely argue that what I¡¯ve done is wrong.
Zombie
Level: 1 Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.
HP: 2/10
Decker¡¯s sword appears through the zombies chest before I even registered movement. The sword drips with dark red blood. The zombie continues the clacking of it¡¯s teeth even as the sword in it¡¯s chest starts moving back and forth. I imagine having a sword jiggled around inside of you would be an excruciating painful experience but the zombie seems unbothered by the forign metal. Angila screams at the sight stumbling backwards. ¡°I know it¡¯s scary but even if this was something that could be cured there is nothing living about these things. You can¡¯t bring back the dead. These monsters are the husks of our friends, family and fellow humans. Do you really think they would be happy knowing that their bodies were being used like this? Knowing that they¡¯re eating their friends, family, and fellow humans? We need to free them from these cursed bodies. To relieve them from the pain of whatever existence has consumed them.¡± Decker says. Angila¡¯s scream fades as she falls to her knees before the scene. Her shoulders are still bobbing with sobs. ¡°I won¡¯t make you attack this poor soul. But I won¡¯t let him suffer and I can¡¯t let him hurt or torture anyone else with this curse. But I will ask you again, will you free him from this curse?¡± He asks. For a second no words are spoken. Just the quiet sobs of Angila. I¡¯m tempted to kill the zombie myself. Even if there¡¯s something we can do for the people that have become zombies I refuse to be hunted by them. I¡¯m done playing the part of prey and since that¡¯s what they see me as I refuse to tolerate their existence. Decker sighs and takes the sword out from the thing¡¯s chest, bringing its health down to one. He raises the sword up over his head, ready to bring it down. ¡°Wait.¡± Angila Whispers. ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± She stands to her feet. ¡°The world has ended. I need the tools to defend myself right?¡± She asks. Decker nods his head, maintaining eye contact with her. I can almost feel the sympathy behind his eyes. ¡°And this is the only way to get that class thing?¡± He nods again. ¡°As far as I know this is the only way.¡± At his words she breathes out deeply. She steps forwards to the still snapping zombie and raises her bladed weapon high above her head. With a battle cry as high pitched as a dentist drill she brings the weapon down. It crashes into the monster¡¯s skull dropping it¡¯s health to zero. Blood spurts from the attack landing on Angila. The zombie¡¯s name tag flashes black then disappears. Then the zombie¡¯s body falls to the ground after Decker lets it¡¯s neck go. ¡°I got some message that says I leveled up.¡± Angila says. ¡°Wait, it''s changed. Now it¡¯s showing me the classes. Which should I pick, Warrior or Mage?¡± Decker looks at me and then at Angila. He seems to think something over in his head. ¡°Go with mage. From what I understand the Warrior class wouldn¡¯t suit you.¡± Decker says. Angila takes a second while her hand dances in the air before her. Then as if she was struck by a bolt of lighting she falls to the ground, writing in pain. In a flash Decker is supporting her trying to console her but she just convulses. ¡°What¡¯s happening to her?¡± He asks, looking at me. My mouth opens and closes, at a lost for what is happening. My mind races as I think back to the process of me choosing mage. Then an idea hits me. ¡°I think she¡¯s being imbued with mana or something. It was an unpleasant experience for me too.¡± ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you say anything?¡± ¡°I forgot.¡± Decker glares at me and for a second I worry that he¡¯s going to use his lightning speed to hurt me. His gaze fills me with a sense of dissatisfaction. Dissatisfaction with myself. I feel myself avoiding his gaze in shame. I shouldn¡¯t have forgotten. I should have been able to warn her properly. I should be punished. I force myself to face the facts as I look back at Decker. An apology already rests on my lips but upon seeing Decker¡¯s eyes I freeze. His glare has shifted from disapproval to something like pity or empathy. Then he looks away with a sigh and continues to try and soothe Angila. In a few moments she stops shaking and a few moments later she sits up. ¡°What the fuck was that?¡± She asks, examining her arms. ¡°Do you feel like something is flowing beneath your skin?¡± I ask. ¡°Yeah. What is it?¡± ¡°Mana. Focus on it and follow it to its source. It should be like a lake in your center.¡± She closes her eyes in concentration. As she does so faint blue lines glow just beneath her skin. ¡°It¡¯s like there¡¯s a fire in my chest. Is this normal?¡± She asks ¡°I¡¯m not sure. Try pushing some into your hand.¡± I advise For a second nothing happens but then the lines in her hand grow brighter and brighter. ¡°It¡¯s hot.¡± ¡°I know. Try pushing it outside of your hand.¡± The glow in her hand brightens. Her palm becomes a light as energy escapes it. A blue orb the size of a ping pong ball escapes her palm and floats just above her hand. ¡°Is this magic?¡± She asks. Her eyes watching the glowing orb in amazement. Decker and Andy both fixate on the spell. The orb starts moving around as Angila grows more confident and experiments. ¡°Yes. I don¡¯t know much about it yet but it can be pretty killer.¡± To emphasize my words I push out five different mana balls and have them zip all around me. Leaving glowing trails of blue light. I command the orbs to slam into one another just in front of me causing a bright flash as an orb the size of basketball floats before me. I call chunks of the ball back into me letting it dissipate. The others stare at me, mouths open. All except Decker, whose eyes turn analytical. The corner of his mouth raises after a second. ¡°What can you do with it?¡± Decker asks. I take a second to think his question over. ¡°As far as I can tell it¡¯s an energy we can manipulate. I can make these balls that I call Rifle Rounds and a single one can kill a level one zombie easily.¡± To demonstrate I conjure the familiar spiraling orb. Just thinking the name I dumbed the spell causes my mana to react without my conscious guiding of it. ¡°Or I can coat something like my baton in it and rotate it like a chainsaw. It cuts through things well enough like that. But as far as I can tell I can¡¯t summon fire or create portals or anything crazy. It¡¯s just a malleable, kinda hot, energy.¡± He seems to ponder my words for a second. I call my mana back inside of me not wanting to waste too much. I already feel tired enough as is. Angila continues to play with her orb. ¡°I see. Once we have a chance I want to talk to you more about it. But for now I think we should all continue our way down. Everyone ready?¡± Decker asks. We all nod our heads. Angila lets the orb dissipate as we finish clearing the floor. As we make it to the eight floor Decker has the group stop and pulls me aside. ¡°We need to get Andy a class too. So if you can disarm a zombie instead of killing it then do so. If you can''t, I understand, just make sure nothing sneaks up on us.¡± He says I nod my head in understanding. While gazing into his eyes I realize part of me doesn¡¯t want to disappoint him. ¡°Will do, sir.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no need to call me sir. Decker is fine.¡± ¡°Alright. Decker.¡± The words feel odd in my mouth but they elicit a smile from the tall man. He stands up straight and pats my shoulder. At his smile and patting of my shoulder I feel something in me stir. The feeling is weird and unfamiliar. Words escape me as I try to describe it. After a moment I chalk it up to just something weird and push the memory of it out of my mind. ¡°Ready to go?¡± I nod and we make our way to the seventh floor. Chapter 13 We swept through the seventh and sixth floors finding nothing out of place. Only stopping so Angila could clean the blood off of her arms. Decker leads us through the floor having me check all the closed off spaces for any undead. Once we complete a pass of the floor everyone visibly relaxes. Decker shethes his sword and looks at me. ¡°So all that¡¯s left is the fifth floor?¡± He asks. ¡°Yeah. And technically the garage, kitchen, and bike room. But those don¡¯t let anyone through the building. Just into those areas.¡± He takes a second to think over my words. ¡°I think it¡¯s best if we take them sooner than later. Are you fine with that?¡± ¡°Yeah. Why do you ask?¡± He looks at me over a note of concern in his expression. ¡°You said you¡¯ve been fighting the zombies since nearly the start. You look exhausted.¡± His words remind me of the feelings that I¡¯ve been repressing for hours. I am exhausted after the hours of fighting and surviving. However I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to rest knowing that these things are so close. A slight tickle rises in the back of my mind as I imagine myself trying to take a break. It just doesn¡¯t feel like a good idea. Despite the headache growing in my head I don¡¯t want to stop until the whole building is clear. ¡°Yeah I¡¯m fine.¡± I lie. ¡°Let¡¯s hurry up though. I worry that there might be a horde in the garage.¡± He nods at my words and looks to the other two who are standing off to the side. Unsure what to do with themselves. ¡°Are you guys ready?¡± They nod their heads and Decker leads us off the floor. As we make our way down to the fifth floor I find myself growing to like the tall man leading the group even more. He seems so strong yet manages to be considerate and thoughtful. The two feel like they shouldn¡¯t mix yet strangely they do in this man. We make it to the fifth floor landing and instantly I feel as if something is off. Decker stands with the door barely cracked open. His body grows rigid. ¡°There¡¯s five in the hallway.¡± He whispers as he closes the door. He turns around looking at us. His eyes analyze our little group before closing in concentration. After a few seconds of silence he opens them. ¡°How many can you take out?¡± He asks me. ¡°In all honesty all five wouldn¡¯t be hard especially if I get the jump on them and have some distance.¡± ¡°Then take Angila with you to the sixth floor and to the other stairwell. Then go to the landing and wait for me and Andy to distract the group. If Angila is willing, try showing her how you use your magic to take them out. But remember to try and keep one alive for Andy to level up with.¡± ¡°How will you know that we¡¯re in position?¡± I ask ¡°I¡¯ll give you guys five minutes. More than enough time to get over there. After that I¡¯ll get their attention. If anything happens yell for us.¡± With the plan set and no other questions Angila and I make our way up to the sixth floor. Once there I explain to her how the Rifle Round works. We stop in front of the other stairwell door and let her practice the spell for a second. Watching her mana spin in place I realize mine glows a deeper blue and spins a lot faster. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s practice or my level but I get the feeling that my magic is more efficient than hers. With her understanding how to cast the spell we enter the stairwell and make our way to the fifth floor landing. Once there I crack open the door and watch the group of zombies. My mind races trying to come up with a way to nullify a zombie without killing it. If I wanted to take the time I could saw through it¡¯s limbs but I wouldn''t be as quick as Decker. I could try blowing hit¡¯s limbs off with my Cannonball but that seems wasteful. Then like glass shattering I get an idea of how to bind the zombie. It¡¯s probably going to be just as wasteful as my Cannonball but I need to experiment and see what all I can do with my mana. Just as my idea becomes more solid I hear a banging ringing through the hall. The zombies turn their attention to the other stairwell door and they start beating on it with a fierce intensity. ¡°That¡¯s the signal.¡± Angila says. I roll my eyes as I sneak out the door, slightly annoyed by her stating the obvious. Looking at her I see one Rifle Round humming in the air. Taking point I conjure three Rifle Rounds as I creep closer to the group. I could easily take them out from this distance but I need to get close for my idea of singling one out. ¡°Shoot the one in the back¡± I whisper to Angila. She nods and focuses on the one in the back. Her floating blue spinning ball of mana flies forwards. It punches a hole clean through the zombies head. Popping out of existence with a small explosion. The other zombies take note of the sound and turn to it. I take the moment and charge. Sending my three Rifle Rounds into the nearest zombies. They all hit home as I race up on the last one. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Concentrating I command the mana in me to pour out in tendrils. Both my hands light up and burn hot as four tendrils of pure arctic blue mana race out. They wrap around the zombies limbs immobilizing it. The zombie struggles against my restraints causing me to exert more mana. The health of the zombies starts slowly depleting. A health point barley every five seconds or so. Decker walks up behind me along with Andy and Angila. They all stare in awe at the spell being performed before them. ¡°Impressive kid. Alright Andy it¡¯s your turn.¡± Decker says. At his praise part of my brain lights up. I rarely if ever received praise in my life. Mostly from a school teacher. As such his words embed themselves into me. Andy walks forwards rolling his shoulders. A cocky grin on his face. I force the zombie into an awkward bow. With its knees bent and arms dragging on the ground. Andy stands above it looking down. His grin falters for a second as he watches the zombie bite and snap. The zombie tries to lunge and bite Andy but my magic holds firm. ¡°You can do this.¡± Decker says placing a hand on Andy¡¯s back. ¡°Of course I can.¡± He says then laughs. He raises the bat above his head. His arms shake as he does so. Then he yells out as if he¡¯s facing down an army of warriors. The bat smashes into the zombies head dropping it¡¯s health by a few points.
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 6/10
He isn¡¯t done as he raises the bat again and brings it down with another over the top battle cry.
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 4/10
And again.
Zombie
Level: 1
HP: 2/10
Then a fourth and final time. With it the blue light flashes black and disappears. Andy shouts out with glee as he pumps his fists in the air. ¡°Did you level up?¡± Decker asks. I draw my mana back feeling more exhausted than before. Looking at my pool I realize that between the Rifle Rounds and restraining the zombie I¡¯ve wasted about half of my mana reserve. Sighing I commit myself to no more flashy spells. ¡°Yeah and I got a complete message.¡± Andy says. ¡°Oh. Now it¡¯s giving me the choice of Warrior and Mage. What do you think, Decker?¡± Decker takes a second thinking over the two options. I can almost see the gears turning in his head. ¡°For now pick Warrior. I know it¡¯s not as flashy as a Mage but I think it¡¯ll benefit you more.¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± Andy¡¯s voice comes out almost disappointed. He focuses on a spot before him and then shivers as if someone poured ice over him. It only lasts a second before he stops. ¡°Do you feel like a knob has been placed in your head?¡± Decker asks him. ¡°It feels more like a lever but yeah. When I flip it up you all slow down. When I flip it down you all speed up.¡± ¡°Interesting. Alright guys, rest up. We¡¯ll be taking on the bike room next.¡± Decker turns his attention to me. ¡°That was an fascinating spectacle. What do you call that?¡± Taking a moment to think it over I come up with a name for the spell. ¡°Mana Chains.¡± He smiles and walks over to me. ¡°So what else can you do with your mana?¡± ¡°Honestly I¡¯m not confident. I¡¯ve come up with everything you¡¯ve seen so far but there¡¯s countless applications of magic as far as I can tell.¡± I answer. The magic this new world seems to support is vast and can be used in so many ways. I also believe I haven¡¯t even scratched the surface of what it can do. While casting fireballs and manipulating shadows is off the table, part of me feels like it won¡¯t be forever. Something in my mind tickles whenever I think about what mana can do. Examining my mana I can tell that it has so much potential than what I¡¯ve been using it for. ¡°There¡¯s more you¡¯re not telling me.¡± He says, eyeing me. Fear races through me as I imagine him getting angry. ¡°It¡¯s alright I¡¯m not mad, just curious. If you don¡¯t want to tell me that¡¯s fine.¡± He says ¡°No it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to tell you. I¡¯m just not sure what it is exactly. I feel as if the mana in me has so much more potential, like I¡¯m not using it right or something. I don¡¯t know.¡± He ponders my words and then shakes his head. ¡°That¡¯s okay. I feel the same way about this dial in me. Like when I slow things down it feels as if I¡¯m stronger and faster. But I think there¡¯s more to it then that. Like maybe I can push it further or something but I don¡¯t know. The world has changed so much in such a short amount of time. It feels like we¡¯re left to play catch up.¡± I agree with him. Life has been turned upside down and on it¡¯s head. Zombies now roam the streets. I can manipulate an energy inside of me that was never there before. And the floating screens. So many questions and so little answers. It feels like I¡¯m a toddler again figuring out the world through trial and error. I get ready to try and voice my similar feelings to Decker but before I can he turns around. ¡°Is everyone ready to clear the bike room?¡± He asks. ¡°We all agree and make our way to the staircase that I first took to get into the lobby. We make our way down following our familiar pattern of Decker leading us and me pulling up the rear. As Decker rounds the last corner to the landing for the lobby he freezes in place. Followed by Angila and then Andy. Leaving me too far up to see what¡¯s spooked them. ¡°Is everything okay?¡± I whisper. ¡°Did you do this?¡± Decker asks. He looks back up at me. Awe, shock, and fear all dance in his expression. Angila¡¯s face grows pale as Andy¡¯s mouth falls open. I force my way down and see what has them all in shock. The bodies of the horde I had to fight lie in piles on the landing. Dozens upon dozen lie dead at our feet. Looking at the carnage I realize just how stupid it was for me to take on that horde on my own. ¡°Yeah. And just to let you guys know there¡¯s even more in the lobby.¡± The three look at me in shock. Angila and Andy stare with fear and shock in their eyes. As if they¡¯re scared of what I can do. Decker on the other hand smiles with glee. ¡°If I knew a mage could do this on their own I would have had Andy choose that class.¡± He says. He starts walking over the bodies into the lobby. Angila hesitates but follows after him. She follows close behind him like a puppy scared to be left alone. Andy waits a little longer and mumbles something under his breath before following out into the lobby. I follow the three slightly worried about what they think of me. I want Decker to like me. The others I couldn¡¯t care less about but for some reason I care about what Decler thinks of me. We make it to the lobby and stop as Decker stares into the bike room. Her parts of the door open slightly and listens. I ready my mana for battle and take my baton off my belt. Chapter 14 ¡°Well shit.¡± Decker says. Inside the bike room just over a dozen zombies shamble around. The door to the exit is still wide open. With this being the only door inside the bike room from the building we¡¯ll have to fight our way through to the open door. ¡°How many do you think you can handle?¡± Decker eyes me. I look inside myself and examine my reserves. With just under three quarters of my mana I can easily handle over half of them with just Rifle Rounds. Getting up close and personal I can handle more. ¡°A good portion of them. Seven on the low end. All if I¡¯m pushed.¡± Decker eyes me over. ¡°Kid this isn¡¯t the time to be showboating.¡± Andy says. His words spark annoyance in me. Looking around I gesture to the countless dead bodies that we¡¯re forced to stand on. ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s showboating Andy.¡± Decker says. He takes a second while Andy huffs. I stare at him letting my annoyance with him be known. ¡°Alright, here is the plan. I¡¯ll open the door and you¡¯ll take down the closest, giving me space to get in there. Then Joel and I will fight our way to the other door. Once it¡¯s closed you two can try taking out any zombies you think you can handle. But you need to be dead sure you can do it safely. No bite or scratch can befall any of us.¡± Decker says He eyes me and I can tell he isn¡¯t telling me to be careful because he doesn¡¯t think I can¡¯t handle myself. But because he¡¯s actually concerned about me. We all nod in understanding. Decker opens the door and I rush into action. Four Rifle Rounds pop into existence as I race into the room. Taking stock of the situation I quickly count sixteen zombies spread throughout the room. With the majority being closer to me. Focusing on the two closest to me I shoot off two of the four rounds. Their heads vanish in a spray of blood. The next closest two meet a similar fate. Something black blurs past me and the next closest zombie is decapitated before I can react. Decker¡¯s speed amazes me not for the first time. Taking notes from him, I switch to melee casting Mana Saw on my baton. The blue energy builds in the bend, giving the weapon an weird ax look to it. While more mana hungry than just coating the shaft, I hope to preserve my trusty weapon by taking more strain off of the metal. I fly into action letting my mana chew away at the skull of another zombie. Decker already lashes out with his sword striking two more zombies. In the time it took me to kill one he¡¯s already killed two. Out of the corner of my eyes I watch the tall man almost dance through the crowd. His sword is darting out and about, hacking into the horde of zombies. It looks as if he¡¯s from some of those old kung fu movies. With half of the zombies already dealt with I¡¯m left a little shocked at how easy this has gotten. Before becoming a mage it took so much effort just to kill one. And now I can easily handle dozens. A zombie shambles forwards and I notice that it''s a level four. The light above its head is still a cool blue. It lunges at me faster than most of the other zombies but is still slow enough that I can easily doge. I wish I knew how much faster they got with each level. How does their leveling up even work? Do they grow stronger and faster with each kill or with each level? How much do they increase per level? I side step the lame attack and bring the swirling pool of mana set in the bend of my baton down. Blood gushes out as the mana digs into it¡¯s head. The zombie''s health quickly depletes to zero after only a few seconds of holding the baton down on its head. The blue box above it¡¯s head becomes black and I whirl around, ready for the next one. Decker lunges forward lobbing off two heads with a quick swing of his blade. Looking around I count only four zombies remaining. Looking beyond the open door to the outside I see more standing just on the street. Knowing that this could get harder if more press into through the open door I race forwards. I dive under the grasp of one zombie and roll to a stop before the door. I grab the handle, giving it a good yank. The familiar click rings out as the door is pulled close. In the corner of my eye I see a car flying down a road. Zombies fly and bounce off the hood of the vehicle. I watch in shock as the vehicle speeds away and out of sight. The sound of it catches the attention of the zombies on the street. They turn their focus off of us in the bike room and down towards where the car sped off. I can still faintly hear the roar of it¡¯s motor. The door closes and I remember where I am. Turning around reveals a single zombie remaining. Andy stands behind it moving faster than I expected from him. He takes the bat up and brings it down with a frightening crack. The zombie¡¯s health drops by six points. Before the zombie can even react to the violent attack Andy already has his bat above his head. He brings it down causing the blue light to flash black. Leaving us humans as the only animated bodies in the bike room. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°Good work everyone.¡± Decker says. Andy breaths heavily as if he just ran a marathon. Sweat beads on his forehead. And I¡¯m left wondering just how out of shape he is. While not a fat guy he isn¡¯t skinny either. ¡°Wow, that¡¯s exhausting. How are you keeping that up for so long?¡± Andy asks Decker. ¡°From what I can tell your battle focus is affected by your own endurance. I¡¯ve been running every morning since childhood. My Endurance stat is sitting at 11, what¡¯s your¡¯s?¡± ¡°I¡¯m at a three.¡± Andy says quietly. ¡°Try putting some stat points into it when you get them.¡± Decker says. Andy sits down, trying to catch his breath. While he does so, Decker turns to me. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± He asks, pointing at my baton. ¡°I call it my Mana Saw. My mana sorta acts as the teeth of a chain saw. It makes getting close and personal with the zombies easier.¡± While explaining the spell Angila watches me intensely. Feeling a little awkward by her attention I turn away and let the spell dissipate. ¡°When we¡¯re done I want to sit down with you and have you show me everything you can do.¡± Decker says. ¡°I can do that.¡± Silence falls between us. Andy¡¯s labored breathing being the only thing to fill the vacancy in our conversation. I war with myself by asking Decker for a request myself. In my experience adults don¡¯t like people asking them things. My father would have an extremely bad reaction to requests from me. But Decker seems different than my dad. More open and caring. ¡°Is there something you want to ask?¡± He asks me, noticing me hesitating to say something. Throwing caution to the wind, the part of me that wants to ask him wins the war. ¡°Could you possibly show me how to use that?¡± I ask, pointing at the still dripping blade. He looks at his sword then to me and smiles warmly. ¡°Certainly. But I warn you it took me just under fifteen years to learn to use this.¡± ¡°Really? Did you used to do Kendo or something?¡± I ask. Decker laughs while whipping the blood off of the blade. ¡°No no. When I was young my grandfather had me join a Shaolin Monastery.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°A temple that teaches Buddhism. Part of that is to gain wisdom through physical training. I learned to fight with a sword there.¡± Deckers eyes grow distant as he speaks. Not like he¡¯s looking at the screens but more like he¡¯s thinking about the past. My mind races with the new information. I mean how cool would it be to be taught how to use a sword. He¡¯s like some warrior monk right? Is that insensitive to say? I want to ask him so many questions about his time at the Monastery, about his fighting abilities, about himself. But I hold myself back. It doesn¡¯t feel like the time or place to be talking about those kinds of things. We rest up in the bike room ignoring the occasion beating on the glassdoor to the outside. I pondered what the person driving the car was doing. Maybe they escaped one of the garages downtown or were trying to get to someone. However I couldn''t shake a feeling of unease that the sight of the car gave me. Since all of this started I haven¡¯t seen a single moving vehicle until now. I assumed that was because everyone was just swamped by the zombies and overwhelmed but that still doesn¡¯t make sense. This city constantly has people driving on the roads, even if the zombie apocalypse sprung up there would be people rushing around in their cars. Wait, the earthquake apparently caused all of us to pass out right? If that happened to everyone there would have been countless car crashes. Just thinking about the speeds people travel on the highways at night makes me shiver. How many people died before they were even given a chance to survive. ¡°Which do you think we should tackle first?¡± Decker asks. His words break me from my thoughts. Thinking of it, the garage is probably jam packed with zombies. It would be better to tackle it after I recharged some mana. We might even try to level up Andy and Angila a little beforehand too. ¡°I think the kitchen should be next. But you and I should hang back while Angila and Andy try to get a few more levels. With how they are now I don¡¯t know how safe it would be bringing them into the garages. Especially if there¡¯s higher level zombies down there.¡± ¡°Higher level zombies?¡± Andy asks. ¡°Yeah, a level twelve almost killed me after I silenced the alarms. It¡¯s actually the one that put a dent in my baton. They¡¯re faster and far stronger than most humans at those levels.¡± ¡°I saw that level four you took down. I assumed their level was just how much health they have.¡± Decker says. I shake my head in the negative. ¡°No, everything seems to get boosted as they level. Health, defense, speed, strength.¡± ¡°Do you think any high leveled ones are in the garage or kitchen?¡± Angila asks. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I think they level up by eating people. So at this point I don¡¯t know how many can be high leveled right now.¡± Thinking back to any experience I had with high leveled zombies I remember the red glow that the boxes above of them had. ¡°If you see the blue box above them as red don¡¯t engage. I think it means that they¡¯re higher level than you.¡± I say ¡°Thanks for the heads up.¡± Decker says. Andy and Angila look frightened. ¡°What if we¡¯re attacked by one?¡± Angila asked. ¡°Call out for Decker or I and we should be able to take care of it.¡± I say. This seems to draw a frown from Andy but I ignore him. ¡°Alright so next up is the kitchen. Everyone ready?¡± Decker asks. I turn my gaze inwards and examine my refilling mana pool. The rain of mana slowly refills the small lake inside of me. However I realize that the mana is flowing more sluggishly. As if it¡¯s more of a syrup than a liquid. I chalk the change up to my tiredness and reaffirm myself that we should hurry up. ¡°Ready.¡± I say Andy and Angila agree and we set out as a group to the kitchen. Chaper 15 We leave the bike room and enter the lobby. I had almost forgotten the bloodbath this room had become. Countless bodies strewn about filling the place with a horrid stench of iron and rot. Angila stops and starts gagging, eventually vomiting. Andy gags too but manages to hold his stomach while Decker just covers his mouth and nose with his elbow. ¡°You really did all of this?¡± Decker asks me. I nod at him feeling shy for some reason. Andy looks at me with shock. ¡°You monster.¡± he says His words bring a frown to my face. Am I really a monster? Are you a monster for fighting to survive? Murder and death are a part of the world. Always have been. We have just been able to forget that it is through the modernization of civilization. I refuse to feel guilty because he doesn¡¯t understand this new world yet. I glare at Andy. My dislike of him is growing more and more. ¡°Monster? If it wasn¡¯t for him I don¡¯t think we would survive very long. Hell, I doubt we would have left that room. In my opinion he¡¯s our hero.¡± Decker says. His words of praise give me butterflies. My stomach is doing somersaults. ¡°Thanks¡± I mumble. Decker nods his head and we continue. I hear Andy mutter something under his breath only annoying me further. The kitchen is behind two doors set in the far wall after exiting the hallway with the bike room. Opening the door leads us into a hallway with two doors. One that leads to a storage area and the outside and the other to the actual kitchen. However the rooms are only separated by a thin wall and a door that¡¯s always left open. Decker cracks open the door to the kitchen and sticks his head in. Curious myself, I try something that I¡¯ve read in many books. Taking a small amount of mana out of myself I spread it out like a gas. I feel the gas spread out to just about fifteen feet in any direction from me. I can feel the contours of everyone and the hallway. In my mind I get a weird 3-D map of the area and everyone in it. Through the open door I get the sense of the area just through the door. A counter lines the wall and a table sits just outside of my view. ¡°Does anyone else feel a weird pressure?¡± Decker asks after closing the door. ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s like the air just got heavier or something.¡± Angila says. Andy just looks around in confusion. Curious myself, as I don¡¯t feel any pressure, let go of the small amount of mana filling the air. Decker¡¯s body grows tense as I do so. ¡°It just vanished.¡± He says. ¡°Oh. Wait a second, was it this?¡± I ask. I push out the gas like cloud of mana, filling the area around us. ¡°Yes.¡± He says looking at me with an eyebrow raised. ¡°Sorry I was trying an idea. I didn¡¯t realize you guys would feel it.¡± I say calling the mana back to me. "What does it do?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Well I guess you could think of it as magical sonar or something. I get a sense of the things in my immediate area, even when I can¡¯t see the area.¡± ¡°That¡¯s pretty useful.¡± Decker says. ¡°Can you teach me?¡± Angila asks. ¡°After we clear the building.¡± I say. It¡¯ll be a little weird teaching someone older than me something. But stranger things have happened since the end of the world. With the group expecting the pressure I activate what I¡¯ll call my Magical Sonar and examine the kitchen. Between I and Decker we don¡¯t find any immediate danger in the kitchen. We close the door and check the storage room. There a few zombies stumble around. ¡°Alright I¡¯m going to race to the door and close it. Angila keep your distance while Andy try to take out the closer too. Joel will watch our backs and make sure we aren¡¯t swarmed by anything. Everyone understand the plan?¡± Decker asks. We all nod and get ready. Decker throws open the door to the storage room and runs to the door leading to the outside. Using the back of his sword, he knocks back one zombie standing in his way. Andy belts out a battle cry and dashes towards the nearest zombie. Andy moves fast as he raises the bat and slams it against the zombies head. It falls to the ground with a thud but continues to move. Andy is forced to strike the zombie in the head a few more times before the light above it¡¯s head flashes black. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. The bat drips with blood and Andy stares at the mess he made at his feet. Unsure if he¡¯s taking pride in his work or horrified at it. Angila manifests a Rifle Round and knocks down a zombie in the far side of the room. By now Decker has closed the door and stands guard watching the two, ready to spring into action at any moment. I stand near the door we came through. Through my Magical Sonar I can keep tabs on the door to the kitchens and the one we just came through. It¡¯s weird being able to feel more than you can see. Andy picks himself up and looks around. Three zombies march towards him. Angila takes one out leaving just two. Andy charges forwards shouldering a zombie knocking it backwards. Then like a baseball player he winds the bat up and lashes out with a home run hit. The bat connects with the zombie¡¯s head sendinging it flying forwards. Before the zombie¡¯s body even hits the ground Andy already has the bat raised over his head. The brown wood blurs and connects with the head just as it touches the ground. It explodes in a mist of red and pink mush. Andy stands above his prey breathing heavily. Watching I realize that he¡¯s run out of stamina. That speed boost is impressive but how much stamina does a person need to keep it up? The third zombie stands to its feet looking at the heaving Andy. I look to Angila and see that she is bent over holding her head. I form three rounds of Mana Bullets and send them flying into the chest of the zombie. Each bullet knocks it¡¯s health down by two points. Andy seems to realize the danger looming over him as he tries to jump away from the zombie. He manages to trip over something and falls to his butt sliding a little. The zombie recovers from my minor attack and tries to lunge for the food right in front of it. In the corner of my eye I see Decker¡¯s body tensing as he readies to attack. Wanting more praise from him I conjure more Mana Bullets and let them fly into the thing. It¡¯s health drops to one as it stumbles backwards. After its health reaches one I realize that the Mana Bullets do nothing but carve tiny holes in the zombies flesh. Even though I¡¯ve attacked it enough to kill it, it¡¯s health sits at one. So you can only kill them through head shots. Does that mean you can¡¯t kill a person with lots of small attacks? Or is this because zombies can only be killed by destroying their brains? I push the thoughts out of my mind. At this moment it¡¯s no use trying to pulze out this strange system. The fact of the matter is that you need a headshot to kill the zombies. ¡°Go for its head Andy!¡± I yell. My words seem to stir something in the frozen man. He scrambles to his feet taking the bloodied bat with him. He winds up and swings out towards the zombie. The bat connects with a wet thud dropping the thing¡¯s health to zero. It falls to the ground leaving the room in silence. With the obvious threat gone Andy and Angila fall to the ground trying to recover from the small battle. Was I like this when I started? I¡¯m only level ten but I feel as if I¡¯m leagues above them. Thinking about levels brings a question to my mind. What are you thinking about kid?¡± Decker asks. I turned to Decker, shocked by his question. His dark eyes fall on me with an eyebrow raised. Can he read minds? This isn¡¯t the first time that he¡¯s realized I wanted to say something but wasn¡¯t. ¡°I was curious about what level everyone is at.¡± I say. After a second I get my first answer. ¡°I¡¯m level five.¡± Decker says. "Level three.¡± Angila says. ¡°Level two.¡± Andy says quietly. Out of them all Decker is the only one I feel like is near my level. Yet he is only level five. I wonder if that¡¯s part of being a Warrior or if it¡¯s because Decker has that monk training under his belt. Stuff to handle later. I conjure a ball of mana letting the blue light illuminate the dark kitchen. Being one of the only rooms with no windows to the outside it remains pretty dark. Walking through the place I find no zombies. I open the walk in freezer and see if anything in there is useful. ¡°What are you looking for?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Another reason I wanted to get to the kitchen is that I¡¯m starving. I haven¡¯t had anything to eat since yesterday evening.¡± I say. ¡°Sadly there isn¡¯t going to be anything to eat in here. We only stock the kitchen when we have catering events planned and during this time of the year we don¡¯t have any such events.¡± Decker says. My shoulders shag as I close the door to the freezer. ¡°Would it be wrong of me to break into the vending machine upstairs?¡± I ask. ¡°Bring me back a poptart.¡± Decker says. ¡°If you¡¯re going to get food, bring me back some chips.¡± Andy says. Angila remains silent as I look to her for any requests. With nothing else said I leave the kitchen and walk to the stairwell. I make my way up to the fifth floor where I find two vending machines. One full of snacks and the other of drinks. Preferring to not damage my baton any further I pull a ball of mana out of me. I force it into the shape of a long rod. I hold the energy like a bat. I pull back then swing out. Glass shatters to the ground under my attack. I hear a bag or two pop through the tinkling of the falling glass. I run the rod of energy along the edges of the vending machine clearing any remaining glass. I break into the other vending machine giving me access to countless drinks and snacks. I collect some pop tarts, chips, jerky, and water for everyone. A little bit later I¡¯m back in the kitchen dishing out my ill gotten gains from the vending machines. Is it ill gotten if a board member gave me permission? The food wasn¡¯t exactly filling but after so long without food it feels heavenly to just be eating something. As I eat I notice that with each bite my mana pool replenishes just a bit more. Jumping it from just over three quarters to nearly full by the time that I¡¯m done eating. After we all eat and rest Decker asks if everyone is rested and ready to look at the garage. Finding my mana pool full I agree along with the others. We leave the kitchen and make our way to the other stairwell near the fire command center. Once in the stairwell I make my way from the back and unlock the security gate that separated the garage and the rest of the building. Looking back at the others I receive a nod from them all. We start the descent into the underground garages. Chapter 16 Each step down brings the temperature down by a few degrees. It feels as if instead of descending into a burning hell I am descending into a frozen tundra. My mana responds to the cold by racing through my body warming me up by a bit. The concrete walls next to me glows with blue as viens of mana race just beneath my skin. I feel more alive then ever before. As if I¡¯m teeming with energy. At the thought of energy I realize I forgot something. I bring up my stats screen looking it over quickly.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 10
Level: 10 DEX: 6
To Next Level 60/250 AGI: 7
Sex: Male END: 12
Age: 18 INT: 45
Class: Mage WIS: 11
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
Mana 80/80 PER: 8
WIL: 6
Free Attribute points: 10
A quick glance through makes me realize that I¡¯m about to head into a fight that might be more rough than the lobby fight and I still have free stat points. I stop my descent as I put all my free attribute points into Intelligence, bringing it up to fifty-five. PING!
Title unlocked:
Genius
You''re more intelligent than any human in prior history.
I raise an eyebrow at the new title. Does that mean I¡¯m smarter than Einstein? Is that even possible? I don¡¯t feel very smart? It doesn¡¯t matter right now. What matters is that I have more mana. I reexamine my stat screen and find my mana now sitting at one hundred-and-twenty. Far more than the ten points in Intelligence should have brought it up by. Titles must be really useful. I should try to figure out how to get more. Imagine a title that gives me infinite mana. Just imagine the power that I could wield. At the thought of more power I realize something. Have the others been distributing their points? Does Angila know that Intelligence boosts her mana pool? ¡°Ummm...?¡± I force out. The others stop and stare at me. Is something up Joel?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Well. Have you guys been distributing your Attribute points?¡± I ask. ¡°No, is that useful?¡± Decker asks. I nod my head. Yeah. That¡¯s how I was able to take out so many in the lobby. I can boost how much mana I have to use by increasing my intelligence. Increasing my other attributes boost things like my strength and speed.¡± I explain The group takes a second to review their personal stats. Their eyes grow distant as they focus on invisible screens before them. ¡°So I should boost my intelligence?¡± Angila asks. ¡°Yeah. If I were you I¡¯d put every free point you have into that until it¡¯s at twenty or so.¡± I say ¡°What should I do then?¡± Andy asks. His tone makes him sound annoyed at something. I ignore it as I ponder on what attributes would be best for him. He seemed so out of breath after fighting a single zombie. So maybe. ¡°Maybe your Endurance. It might help you fight longer in that fast state.¡± ¡°I agree with Joel. How many points do you have Andy?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Just five.¡± ¡°Put three into Endurance and the other two into Strength.¡± Decker advises. Andy nods and soon his focus is off of the air in front of him. Decker takes a second longer to distribute his points while Angila is already done. Satisfied with ourselves we continue the descent. The smell of them hits me first. Upstairs and through the building it¡¯s been mostly ignorable, with exception of the lobby. But the stench of rotting flesh is horrid. My stomach gurgles threatening to evict the little food I just ate. I clamp down on the growing urge to vomit. Steeling my resolve and gearing up for the fight ahead. The blue lines under my skin glow in anticipation, warming me to my bone. Pushing a small amount of mana out, I focus my Magical Sonar to just the area in front of me. We get to the landing and I stop the group sensing a few zombies. I quietly relay the information to the group. We all tense up, mentality preparing for the coming battle. Then we make the final push. I materialize two Rifle Rounds noticing that they aren¡¯t pushed out of my body but instead formed from the cloud of mana that surrounds me. I push forwards letting the two zombies in the concrete entrance to the garage come into sight. The spinning orbs of mana zoom out striking the zombies simultaneously. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. Both die on contact with the mana, falling to the ground like empty sacks of potatoes. I race out over them and into the full garage and stop. Only a few zombies greet me. The rest of the group push around me into the open and stop in their tracks. ¡°I thought you said there would be a lot in here.¡± Andy says. ¡°I thought there would be. The lobby was swarmed with them.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t think about it. The goal is to close the garage door and secure the building.¡± Decker says bringing us back on track. Angila lets fly two Rifle Rounds, one after the other. Two zombies hit the floor dead. Decker races out to the control panel for the garage doors. If possible he¡¯s moving even faster than before, I guess stopping them to distribute their free Attribute Points wasn¡¯t a waste of time. He crosses thirty feet in less than a second. Once at the opening to the garage he slams his fist into the control panel and a beeping blairs out from the system. A warning that the gate is coming down. HUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNGNGGG!!!! The hungry horse moans of countless zombies echo out from the lower level of the garage. Motion in the street catches my attention. Zombies start crawling out from random places, as if they¡¯ve been hiding. One zombie with a blurred red light above its head races fast towards the garage. My heart races as I run towards the opening. If the zombie crosses the sensors to the garage the gate will roll back up and only close after thirty seconds of the sensors being uninterrupted. I call forth twenty points of my mana forming an orb the size of an exercise ball in front of me. In the time it takes me to take a single step the zombie manages to cross twenty feet. Out of the corner of my eye I see Decker tensing, ready to intervene the zombie. With another step I force the giant orb of mana in front of me to spin. The orb elongates as it does so. The sound of a large industrial fan drowns out everything else. With another step I let the spell loose. It zips through the air faster than my eyes can track. It crosses the garage and connects with the chest of the zombie. A loud explosion rings out as a white light blinds me. I stumble and fall, my face dragging on concrete painfully. My ears ring and white dots dance in my vision as I pick myself up. Through the small gap between the nearly closed gate and the ground I can see the high leveled zombie embedded in the door of a car parked across the street. The name tage above it is still glowing red.
Zombie
Level: 15
HP: 10/50
The gate closes with a metallic clang and the beeping of the warning ends. However the sounds of countless moans echo up from further into the garages. Decker picks me up and checks me over. ¡°You okay kid?¡± He asks. I nod in acknowledgement and turn to the tunnel leading to the second part of the garage. From just around the corner I see hands reaching forwards in the stereotypical zombie like fashion. Then a second later another red light flashes into view as a zombie breaks from the pack.
Zombie
Level: 17
HP: 60/60
My heart sinks. A whole seven levels above me. A level twelve was hard enough as is. Decker vanishes from my side, racing out to meet the zombie. His feet pump powerfully into the group springing him forwards. He reaches speeds that I¡¯ve only seen olympic level athletes achieve. ¡°Get on top of the cars.¡± He commands us. His words break Angila and Andy from their stupor. Andy¡¯s limbs become a blur as he races to the nearest car and leaps on top of it with a single bound. He slides on top of it¡¯s roof as the concrete ceiling of the garage only gives about two feet of breathing room. The acrobatic leap he just made astonishes me. A feat that I would never be able to replicate seems so easy for him. Is that the power of the warrior class? Angila starts racing to the same car. Unsteady legs failing her as she tries to hurry. I conjure a tendral of mana to catch her and force her back onto her feet. Together we get to the car just as the zombie and Decker meet. Decker slashes out at the zombies head in a horizontal arc. The zombie dips beneath him and continues racing forwards, ignoring the tall man with a sword. It¡¯s hungry eyes lock onto me as I realize the bloody drool falling from it¡¯s open mouth falls for me. Panic rises in me as the monster quickly closes the gap between us. I lash out with one of my new spells. Two tendrils of mana snake out from my hands. The glowing tendrils push into the body of the zombie and I quickly wrap them around the fast thing. It¡¯s body flailing as I lift it in the air. I feel my mana instantly start draining dropping from nearly full to almost half in a mere second. My eyes widen as I realize that I¡¯ve barely managed to slow it down at the cost of nearly half of my mana. My hand drops to my baton releasing it from it¡¯s place on my utility belt. The familiar spell of Mana Saw activates with barely even a thought. Blue light coats the metal shaft spinning in a fierce spiral. I take as many steps back as I can before releasing the tendrils of mana holding the zombie at bay. The tendrils snake back into me as I try to recover as much mana as possible. The zombie falls to the ground in a heap. Then not even a second later it¡¯s back on its feet racing after me. I form three Rifle Rounds letting them all go into its head. The three spells strike true with tiny pops. The zombie¡¯s health drops a few points but otherwise the spells barely affect the thing. Then it¡¯s on me. It lashes out with a swipe of it¡¯s hand. Long yellow nails trailing in the air as I barely manage to fling my head backwards. Then another swipe catches me in the side. I feel something crack in me as I¡¯m sent sprawling backwards. The zombie jumps, landing on me. It smiles in glee as I look up at it. It¡¯s apparent joy sparks something deep in me that I try to keep repressed. Rage boils forth as I lose focus on the world around me. Summoning every ounce of strength I have I buck my hips up. The zombie¡¯s weight shifts enough that I can twist it off of me. As it slides on the ground I conjure two more Rifle Rounds but instead of sending them into the beast I merge them. Growing from the size of a quarter to a ping pong ball I force the energy to spin even faster. The hum becomes a high pitched scream as the spell zips through the air. It plunges into the shoulder of the zombie, boring a hole clean through. The zombie spins in place falling to the ground as it loses more health. With the chance to breathe I throw myself to my feet and call more mana out of me. Six Rifle Rounds manifest from me. Higher level zombies have a better defense, just adding more power behind my attacks won''t do. I need the attacks to pierce into them. I combine three Rifle Rounds into a spinning orb the size of a tennis ball. Then I force it to spin faster and faster. It¡¯s shape elongates into long thick needles. I do the same to the other set of three Rifle Rounds creating two High Velocity Rounds. The zombie flashes to its feet and belts out a roar far scarier than anything Andy has managed. It¡¯s eyes almost glow with hatred for me. ¡°Come at me!¡± I cry back. I¡¯m not prey. I won¡¯t let these level gaps define what can and can¡¯t kill me. The world around me disappears as the zombie in front of me becomes everything. I can make out the black veins bulging just beneath it¡¯s skin. The red of its eyes almost glows with hunger. The zombie races forwards, its limbs becoming a blur. With only feet between up it leaps into the air, its mouth snapping open. The skin at the corners of it¡¯s lips splits as it¡¯s jaw opens unnaturally wide. I focus on it¡¯s head letting the High Velocity Rounds build up as much speed as they can. Decker races into the small world of me and the zombie. His silver sword slicing out at the zombie. It slices through one arm and then digs deep into its torso. Decker¡¯s leap carries him past the zombie, forcing the sword from his grip.
Zombie
Level: 17
HP: 36/60
The zombie¡¯s health drops by a chunk as Decker falls out of the small world I created. Regaining my focus I let the High Velocity Rounds sail with a roar that leaves my throat horse. The arctic blue needles of energy disappear leaving only a tail of blue light. They zip through the air with a high pitched scream. They collide with the zombie¡¯s eyes and instantly obliterate them.
Zombie
Level: 17
HP: 24/60
Then they dig deep into its skull, shredding everything in its wake.
Zombie
Level: 17
HP: 9/60
Like all my other long range spells the balls of energy finally explode.
Zombie
Level: 17
HP: 2/60
The zombie¡¯s head rockets backwards but the monster¡¯s forward momentum carries its body to me. Out of instinct more than anything else I swing my mana coated baton out with all my might. The blue energy connects with the pale skin of the zombie''s neck. Blood splurts into the air as the spiraling blue energy digs deep into the thing''s neck. I feel resistance as if I¡¯m trying to saw into concrete and not flesh. The weight of the zombie slams wholly into my arm as I feel something in my wrist snap. I howl out in pain but don¡¯t stop. I twist my body forcing my arm to push back against the zombie. I spin in place almost throwing the zombie off to the side. An ear splitting snap sounds through the small world of this battle. The thing¡¯s body slides on the concrete trailing blood as it does so. My eyes watch as red becomes black.
Zombie
Level: 17
HP: 0/60
PING!
Level Up
Chapter 17 The zombie''s body lies motionless as I hear my heart beat in my ears. My breath comes out in ragged painful bursts. Looking around I see a small horde of zombies leaving the second level of the garage. Most pooling around the car that Angila and Andy escaped to. Decker quickly recovers from his powerful leap and makes his way over to me. ¡°You okay kid?¡± he asks. I try to say yes but an extreme pain explodes in my side. Each breath I take stokes the fire of pain in my side. Looking down I raise my shirts looking at the skin underneath. Black and purple skin reveals itself. You can almost see the outline of my ribs by the hue of the bruised skin. I tentatively press against the area eliciting more pain. ¡®¡°You might have broken a rib. Stay back and don¡¯t exert yourself. I and the others should be able to handle this group.¡± Decker says. I nod and carefully walk to the wall that holds the entrance to the stairwell. I lean against the wall and carefully slide to the ground. Taking shallow controlled breaths as I do so. Almost scared to do so I open my stat screen.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 10
Level: 11 DEX: 6
To Next Level 480/500 AGI: 7
Sex: Male END: 12
Age: 18 INT: 55
Class: Mage WIS: 11
LUC: 4
HP 22/100 CHA: 5
Mana 120/120 PER: 8
WIL: 6
Free Attribute points: 3
I breathe a sigh of relief after watching the screen for a while. While my health is still frighteningly low it¡¯s not falling as I feared it would. I was worried that my lungs might be punctured or I might be bleeding internally. But that would most definitely lead to my health dropping over time. I dismiss the screen and turn my attention to the battle in front of me. Decker pulls the sword from the zombie¡¯s body with a gross suction sound. He takes a second to wipe the blood off the blade letting it gleam a nice silver. ¡°Angila!¡± Decker yells. ¡°On my signal start shooting the zombies closest to you.¡± Angila nods her head. Her face is an ashy pale color as she looks at the zombies already reaching for her. They push up against the car, rocking it slightly. Decker takes a breath, calming his nerves I assume. Then in a burst of speed I didn¡¯t think humanly possible he becomes a black blur. He rushes headlong into the crowd. His sword dances in beautiful arcs leaving a trail of blood in its wake. He dances in and around the zombies in the back. With each step he takes another zombie falls. With each swing of his sword another flash of black lights up amongst the blue boxes above their heads. I lose count after thirteen as he carves a path through the zombies. Then just as quickly as he jumped in he dashes out. He slows down considerably as he starts making his way up to the gate again. The zombies closest to him follow as well as those that were close enough to be sprayed with the blood of Decker¡¯s fallen enemies. I¡¯m left in awe as in only a few seconds he massacred over a dozen zombies. I¡¯ve done something similar, but I had the benefit of a barrier and using my mana. This man just jumped in head first and came out without a scratch. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°FOLLOW ME!¡± He yells. His words echo in the enclosed concrete space. The zombies further from his turn their attention away from the car. Something in them takes a second to decide that he¡¯s going to be an easier meal to get at. The hoarder starts their slow march towards him. However, a sizable amount still swarms the car refusing to be distracted from the meal just beyond their grasp. Moments after the zombies split into two groups, Decker thrusts a free hand up in the air. His thumb is sticking high. ¡°NOW ANGILA!¡± He yells. Blue lights float above the car coming from Angila palm. She takes a second to make them spin and another to choose a target. Slowly but surely zombies start dropping. Two becomes four then six and soon ten. The group around the car is thinned considerably, however Angila stops killing them. ¡°I¡¯m out of mana!¡± She hollers. Looking inside of me I find that my mana has been restored. I push past the pain and conjure Rifle Round after Rifle Round. The blue spinning balls of energy zip across the garage into the heads of zombies, killing them instantly. Each shot takes considerably more effort to form and maintain. I feel mana bleeding out of the orbs as I lose my focus on them because of the pain. However, I continue to pick them off. I only stop my assault when two more zombies remain by the car. Feeling more secure in Angila¡¯s and Andy¡¯s safety, I turn my focus onto Decker. His sword dances in the air as he slowly presses forward into the group. After a second he leaps back creating breathing space between him and the horde. As the zombies press in he starts a slow march forwards again. By the looks of it I know he won¡¯t be able to continue at that pace forever. Even at his level he has a finite amount of stamina. And his footing is going to get more and more difficult to maintain as the zombies continue to pile up. Looking back towards the car, anger flares up at me as I watch the most useless one of us cower in fear. He shakes on top of the car holding the bat close to him. His eyes are closed tight as if doing so will allow him to deny reality. ¡°ANDY!¡± I yell. ¡°Stop being a chicken shit and get your ass in gear!¡± My voice shocks me as I¡¯m brought back in time. To a moment where my father was screaming for me to come out of hiding. My voice sounds so much like his that I feel ice water wash over my spine. My words seem to have struck a nerve in Andy. I don¡¯t know if it was the name calling or because it was I that called him out but something seemed to have started a fire in him. ¡°FUCK YOU!¡± He screams back. His eyes snap open as he looks around. The two still rocking the car moan under his gaze. A blue orb manifests from Angila¡¯s palm drawing Andy¡¯s attention. She shoots down one of the zombies leaving a single one. That seemed to have struck more of a nerve in him than my foul words. He rolls off the hood of the car falling to its side. While the zombie beat on the trunk of it. In a burst of speed, nowhere near Decker¡¯s level, Andy dashes out from the side of the car. In a spinning attack he drives the shaft of the bat into the back of the zombie¡¯s head. The zombie¡¯s head flies forwards smashing into the window of the truck, bringing its health down to zero. Andy screams in triumph and turns to the horde. At his scream a chunk of the horde snaps their focus back. The single kill must have bolstered the guy''s confidence as he doesn¡¯t cower from the attention of the horde. Instead he belts out his battle cry that reminds me of a child pretending to be an anime character. He races forwards swinging his bat wildly. The zombies closest to him are knocked back by his wild attacks. The zombies that he knocks to the ground continue to move. He isn¡¯t doing enough damage to kill him. And he isn¡¯t taking the time to kill the one¡¯s on the ground crawling after him. Knowing that my words wouldn¡¯t be heard through whatever battle craze that¡¯s consuming him, I turn to my mana. Taking what I have left I push out my Magical Sonar until I feel his body. Focusing on his bat I let the mana in the air be a conductor for my spell. I cast Mana Saw on his bat much like I would my baton. His weapon glows blue and starts causing the blue lights in the air to flash black. I feel the mana inside of me drain little by little as he fights his way through the horde. Then suddenly I feel like someone dumped cold water over me. PING!
Level Up
My mana reserves fill to full as the screen in front of me vanishes. The sensation leaves me shivering. A pounding headache beats behind my eyes. Knowing that this battle is over I start manifesting Rifle Rounds. Ten instantly pop into existence in front of me. They still bleed off considerably more mana than before but I¡¯ve grown used to the pain. Taking aim at the still living ones at Andy¡¯s feet, I kill them with a thought. Ensuring his safety. I make sure that he¡¯s still in range for the Mana Saw before turning my attention to Decker. Despite moving at human speeds he¡¯s still facing down the horde as if it was nothing. His sword dances through the air as if it was a silver ribbon. Taking aim at the zombies near him I clear a path in front of him and to his side. He takes the hint and races out from his position with his back against the gate. He races down the ramp leading to the street, meeting up with the battle crazed Andy. At that moment Andy seems to collapse. The glowing bat falls from his hands as he stumbles to the ground. His body drops as if he was a puppet who had it¡¯s strings cut. Decker just barely manages to catch the man before he collides with the concrete floor. He starts dragging him back away from the crowd. As he does so, zombies lunge for them. My Rifle Rounds zip through the air covering Decker¡¯s and Andy¡¯s retreat. The horde grows more and more thin as the humming blue balls of man eat through their numbers. Within seconds the horde drops to just under a dozen. The headache in my mind now feels like someone beating me with a hammer. I ignore the pain and continue to deplete my mana pool. Once I¡¯m out of mana only seven zombies remain. A single bolt of mana zips out from above the car knocking the numbers down to six. Decker throws the unconscious Andy towards the car. He whirls around grasping the handle of his sword with both hands. The blade pointed towards the horde. Decker¡¯s shoulders heave up and down as he breathes heavily. Sweat drenching his long black hair. As soon as the first zombie steps in range of his sword he takes a harsh step forwards. The blade moves through the air silently as Decker raises it and brings it down all in one fluid movement. His foot stomps on the ground just as his blade slices into the skull of the zombie. It¡¯s health instantly drops to zero. The blade moves up leaving the zombie to fall deftly. Decker takes a step back bringing the blade back to the same level it was at before he attacked. Two zombies draw in close and Decker lashes out. The sword drops down to his right leg before being brought up in a diagonal arc. The blade traces through one zombie''s head, stopping just above the other zombie. Then the sword flashes and strikes down towards the ground, splitting the other zombie¡¯s head. Both zombies drop to the ground, killed instantly in the single strike. The fourth zombie lunges forwards, not giving Decker a chance to reset his stance. Instead his breath comes out as a hiss as his sword flashes again and swings upward. The blade passes through one arm and stops just above the monster''s head. Then with another powerful step Decker brings the blade down into its head. He quickly takes a step back analyzing the last two zombies. They shamble forwards, slowed even more by the bodies on the ground. Decker alters his stance, forming a wider base with his feet and positioning the sword up near his head. Then with a powerful twist of his body the blade races out piercing one zombie through its eye. Before the box above it¡¯s head even flashes black Decker pulls the blade out of it. He spins letting the blade arc out. Cutting into the neck of the final zombie. A spray of blood sails into the air as the head of the zombie falls to the ground. It¡¯s body falls as we all breathe a sigh of relief. The horde is dead. The building is cleared. We¡¯re finally safe. A booming voice breaks the silence of the garage. ¡°CONGRATULATIONS! A Safe Zone has been established. Owner of the Safe Zone is Joel Dyllan, for contributing the most in establishing the safe zone.¡± The voice rings through my head making the head ache only worse. The pressure in my head becomes too much. The shadows extend as I feel the darkness in my mind consume me. Sweet blissful sleep embraces me like a mother¡¯s hug. Chapter 18 I¡¯m hungry. That fact is undeniable. It bubbles up to my attention with gurgles from my stomach. The feelings and noises break the blissful spell that sleep had on me. Bringing me back to a bruised, battered, worn out body. Opening my eyes I find myself in a dark room. Stiff cushions support my weight as I sit up, finding that I¡¯ve been sleeping on a couch. My eyes adjust to the darkness and I realize I¡¯m in one of the meeting rooms with a couch and tv. The act of sitting up sends pangs of soreness ringing out through me. Emanating from my right side and wrist. Lifting my shirt I see that the skin is a mess of greens and purple. I drop the shirt and move to stand. Standing causes the pain to burn hotter but it¡¯s still a lot more bearable then I thought it should be. Curiously I open my stats screen.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 10
Level: 12 DEX: 6
To Next Level 223/600 AGI: 7
Sex: Male END: 12
Age: 18 INT: 55
Class: Mage WIS: 11
LUC: 4
HP 78/100 CHA: 5
Mana 120/120 PER: 8
WIL: 6
Free Attribute points: 6
My eyes quickly find my health giving me a little surprise. Granted I don¡¯t know how long I¡¯ve been sleeping for but for my health to recover almost half seems a little suspicious. Maybe the system heals us or maybe my mana has something to do with it. In lots of video games and stories magic can be used to heal people. Something in the back of my mind tickles at that idea. The idea that magic can be used for healing. Just the idea makes me feel like my brain is about to sneeze. It¡¯s a really uncomfortable sensation. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. I push the idea out of my head as something to explore later. The growing pangs of hunger emmintaning from my stomach demands my full attention. I make my way out of the tiny meeting room and wander through the floor. While most of the floors are similar in layout they all have their own uniqueness. I quickly realize I¡¯m on the seventh floor. I turn a corner to head towards the break room. As I do so I catch voices drifting through the floor. The words and their meanings lost in the distance. Following the voices leads me to the far end of the floor where the break room lies. The lights on the floor seem to have been turned off as even at night they would turn on when they sensed motion. Looking outside I see the night sky like never before. The city lies nearly completely dark aside from the random orange glow of fires. The sky is a beautiful dark deep shade of blue bordering on black. More stars than I have ever seen stand out like never before to me. Before I moved to the city I lived in a really small town known for how little light pollution there was. However, even the night skies from there could never compare to the sky right now. It¡¯s as if the heavens opened up revealing all of their secrets for the first time. A gentle hand rests on my shoulder. I come back from my gaucking at the beauty that the sky holds and realize I¡¯ve been standing there for a while. ¡°I¡¯m glad to see you awake. How are you holding up son?¡± Decker asks. ¡°¡®I¡¯m feeling a lot better actually. Did something happen to the power?¡± I ask. He sighs and turns his gaze to the same sky that I¡¯ve been marveling at. ¡°A few hours after you fell asleep the power went out. Not just here but the whole city. Like all at once someone turned the power off.¡± ¡°Damn that¡¯s not good. Doesn¡¯t this building have generators?¡± I ask. ¡°It does, down in the garage. But we elected not to turn them on. Other than powering lights and stuff there''s no real point in doing so. However, in the morning we are going to run them for a bit.¡± ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°With the power system already failing other infrastructure are soon to follow. Water being my chief concern. So in the morning we¡¯re going to try and collect as much water as we can.¡± ¡°Oh yeah that makes sense. Why don¡¯t we do it right now?¡± ¡°I worry the lights will draw unwanted attention to us. With the power out the electric locks throughout the building disengaged. I had to take that master key from you and make sure that the manual locks on the outside doors we¡¯re engaged.¡± ¡°Will starting the generators mess with that?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. Just in case I¡¯m going to have someone in the fire command center to make sure that the doors stay shut. We tested the radios at the security desk. They still work so we¡¯re going to start carrying those around. But without power we can¡¯t charge them so I¡¯m trying to think of a system to make them last longer.¡± ¡°We could use the cars in the garage.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think about that. Do the radios charge through usb or something?¡± ¡°No. But I have a power inverter in my car. We can use that.¡± ¡°Not a bad idea for the short term. Where is your car?¡± ¡°On third street. Just outside the doors from the bike room.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll add it to the list of things we need to get. Maybe in the morning we¡¯ll see about trying to bring that into the garage. I doubt we will get to it tomorrow but it¡¯s one of the things we should start working on. Right now I¡¯m more concerned with water and food.¡± ¡°Speaking of food, I''m starving. Is there anything to eat?¡± ¡°Yea but not much. I raided all the fridges and storage areas and between us four we only have maybe two to three days worth of food. More if we starve ourselves considerably. Come on, I''ll show you.¡± Decker motions for me to follow as he guides me to the area where the voices were coming from. There I find Andy and Angila sitting in separate booths looking tired. On a table is a neat pile of food lies. Assorted snacks, from the vending machine I assume, some containers of home cooked meals, and some microwavable meals. All in all it¡¯s not much. I know it takes a while for a human to starve to death but I¡¯d still rather not starve myself. ¡°So is there a plan to get more food?¡± I ask. Decker grabs one of the home cooked meals and hands it to me. Some spaghetti leftovers or something. ¡°No definitive plans. The restaurant across the street probably has some food. And then there¡¯s the hotel next to the restaurant. But I don¡¯t know how we are going to get to either of them.¡± Decker responds as I accept the food. ¡°The restaurant should have food. They receive a delivery every day just before midnight. If I remember right, the delivery truck had just driven off when that earthquake hit.¡± ¡°Then we should check them first. I¡¯ve never stayed at that hotel and only assume they have food because the hotels I¡¯ve been in usually have some kind of catering service.¡± The conversation finds a lull as I start eating the cold food. Decker collects the home cooked foods and takes them to the fridge. Then he places a few in the ice maker that each floor has. Despite the tomato sauce covered noodles being cold they taste amazing and fill me up. Once done with the meal I place the container and fork I used to eat in the sink. ¡°What if you and I scouted out the restaurant?¡± I ask Decker. He takes a second to think it over ¡°I just don¡¯t know. It¡¯s risky and dangerous. We have no clue how many zombies are in the streets or how many are in the restaurant.¡± Thinking it over, a plan starts coming together in my mind. ¡°I can use my Magical Sonar to see what¡¯s in the restaurant. We can see the street from the second floor where they were doing construction. Or we could go to the roof and go to the edge to look over. Between your speed and my Magic I bet we could run from any threat. If we take a radio we can relay information back to Angila or Andy if we need to make a run back here. If we leave through the front doors it wouldn¡¯t even take you a second to cross the street.¡± I say. Decker closes his eyes and rubs his chin in thought. Andy seems upset by something I said while Angila just watches silently. Her tired eyes blankly stare out at the space before her. The bags under her eyes are deep and evident. And if my experience with using mana is anything to go by, she¡¯s probably supporting a gnarly headache. ¡°Not a bad Idea. After we get the water we should work on that.¡± Decker says while looking down at his watch. ¡°However, for now I think we better get some rest. Only you and Andy have slept at all today.¡± At that Angila visibly appears to brighten up. A smile spreads across her face. ¡°What should I do?¡± I ask. ¡°With you being one of our heavy hitters I think it¡¯ll be good if you stay rested. But I¡¯d also sleep more comfortably if we had someone on watch in case anything happens. So I think we should start implementing some kind of watch. For now just try to stay awake but if you feel tired take a nap.¡± Decker says. With that being said the three stand up and make their way away from the break area. The seventh floor has two meeting rooms with couches and three break rooms with recliners. The break rooms are technically called nursing rooms but everyone uses them to relax. Chapter 19 I leave the floor and make my way to the roof. There I walk out and climb over the guardrail that prevents people from getting too close to the edge. At eleven stories up I feel as if I¡¯m on top of the world. Even though other buildings reach even further higher up. Looking down from the edge I can see the whole street between this building and the restaurant. A few zombies shamble around, unsure what to do with themselves. Leaving Everett street I follow the edge to Second street, where the garage is. I find this street almost vacant of zombies. The high leveled one I kept out is nowhere to be found. Part of me was hoping to try and snipe it from here. I sigh and continue my patrol. The third side of the building lines Stone street and shows a spacious lot behind the building. A few years back this whole block was a parking lot. The company bought it and started building this building, but didn¡¯t need the whole block. So the back half of the parking lot was sold to some guy who apparently was planning to build a skateboard shop. I have no clue what happened to that but it was never built. Instead the lot has fallen into disrepair and is used as free parking by the people who work in this area. More than a few zombies congregate in this lot meandering between cars. From here I can¡¯t make out any details about them or their levels but there''s probably twenty or more down there. I continue to the last side of the building, Third street. Looking down I see my car in it¡¯s cheap beat up beauty. Only a few zombies shamble here, seemingly heading down the street as a group. Maybe they heard something or the zombies in the lot are drawing them in. With my assessment of the streets complete I plop myself on the corner of Third street and Everett. A cold wind blows through, reminding me that fall is already here and that winter will be quick to follow. Looking down at myself I¡¯m revolted by the clothes covering me. The blue and black of my uniform shirt is almost replaced by the dried stains of blood. The temptation to remove the clothes grows too strong to resist. The smelly shirt falls to the ground leaving me in my black undershirt. It isn¡¯t covered in blood like my work shirt is but part of me still wants to get rid of it. However, I have no other clothes to change into. ¡°I was really hoping to take a shower.¡± I tell the beautiful night sky The stars are truly captivating. Their beauty is on display like never before. I wonder if this is the same night sky that the people in ancient times saw. No wonder we had such a drive to explore it and understand it. I wonder if we¡¯ll ever leave the planet now. Will the humans out last the zombies long enough to rebuild and start exploring space? Are the zombies some kind of divine punishment for dirtying the planet and trying to leave? The world has definitely changed. From the system to the zombies to magic. Nothing will ever be like it was with any single one of these things, but all three. It¡¯s demolished how life will be lived from now on. Another brisk wind blows through, sending a shiver down my back. My mana reacts almost on it¡¯s own, burning through my body. Instantly I feel warmer and remember the moments before the fight in the garage. The magic now present in this world has so many more applications then what I¡¯ve been using it for. All my made up spells only scratch the surface of what¡¯s possible. My mind wanders back to my thoughts on the healing properties of mana. I pull up my stats sheet and read my health at seventy-nine. Closing my eyes I focus on the lake of glowing water in me. The lake spills out into paths that trace through my whole body. The mana flows through these paths and splits off into smaller and smaller paths but it never returns to the source. I focus on a specific path curious as to where the mana goes. I know it doesn¡¯t leave me unless I tell it to. So it must be draining out somewhere. The path leads from my center and travels up and out towards the end of my hand. There it splits off into each finger that also has smaller and smaller diverging paths. At the end of the path is nothing. The energy just vanishes. No, that''s wrong. It doesn¡¯t vanish. It spills inside of me. Into my muscles and bones. Through my actual body and not these channels that only appeared after I became a mage. Ideas flood my mind as I wonder what the mana spilling inside of my body can do. The first thought I act on is one that concerns if mana has any healing properties. I follow the paths that lead to the right side of my chest, where the extensive bruising is. There I find a concentration of mana ebbing out of my reserves. Curiously I call for more mana to flood this area. I feel a drain on my mana pool as the extra energy glows alongs the paths. Once at the area the mana simply ends it¡¯s progression. Refusing to flood my body like I originally intended it to. Opening my eyes I see a blue glow in my side from under my shirt. If I push anymore the mana will just leave my skin like all my other spells. That same tickling sensation floods my brain. I know that this isn¡¯t the extent of what my mana can do. There is some way to let it flood my body. Closing my eyes again I concentrate on the area with the mana. This time I try to not just see the mana, but also the bones and muscles beyond it. At first nothing happens but the tingle in my brain tells me this is the right direction to be going. If my body is being flooded with mana then why can¡¯t I sense it like I can when I push it out of me. Like a reverse Magical Sonar. That single idea flips the switch in my mind. My mind races as I stop reaching out to the mana connected to my mana pool. Instead I reach out to the mana in my blood and bones and muscles. At first it¡¯s like trying to scream in a dream. Like I¡¯m trying to grab the moon through a lake. I refuse to give up and slowly but surely I feel the mana in my body. Like tiny moats of lights being collected. Different parts of my body open up to me as I feel the mana embedded in them. Through the mana inside of my bones I can tell that my fifth rib from the bottom is fractured in a few places. However, the mana seems to be stitching the bone back together. While keeping my focus on the bones I pull mana from my pool and focus it on those cracks. Instead of stopping at the end of the pathways or flowing outside of my body the mana drains into me. White hot pain burns where the concentrated mana touches me. However I know it¡¯s not damaging anything like I would expect something this painful to do. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Gritting my teeth I try to keep my focus on the bone. Guiding the hot mana to replicate the process that the mana was naturally doing. I feel the bones shift and crackle under the unprocessed energy. A few seconds into the process the pain becomes too much and my concentration breaks. I breath heavily gritting my teeth as I feel as if someone was pressing a hot poker into my ribs. Except the pain isn¡¯t external, it¡¯s as if my ribs themselves are on fire. The sensation lasts for an unknown amount of time as I grit and bear the pain. The fire dies down and I¡¯m left gasping for air through gritted teeth. Sweat drips from my face. Opening my eyes I find myself drenched in a smelly sweat. The smell is almost as bad as the rotting bodies in the lobby. I force my mind to focus as I lift my shirt. I gingerly poke at the bones expecting pain upon the touch. But I feel only slight pain as the bruised skin is poked. Curiously I open my stats screen.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 10
Level: 12 DEX: 6
To Next Level 223/600 AGI: 7
Sex: Male END: 12
Age: 18 INT: 55
Class: Mage WIS: 11
LUC: 4
HP 91/100 CHA: 5
Mana 96/120 PER: 8
WIL: 7
Free Attribute points: 6
My eyes fall to my health points instantly. Almost not believing what they were seeing. I dismiss the screen, excitement bubbling up inside of me unrestrained. My mind turns inwards and beneath the ley lines of mana criss crossing my body. Focusing on the previously fractured bones I find the white bone to be whole. No longer supporting any visible damage. Despite how painful it was, it worked. Mana can be used to heal. What about others? I can heal myself but is there a way to do the same to others? I don¡¯t even understand exactly how it healed the damage in me. How much damage can I heal? Gun shots? Viruses? Can I regrow limbs? Ides of instantly healing damage in the middle of battle fly through my mind. An undying immortal. The idea brings a smile to my face. I banish those ideas and try to imagine other ways mana can be used. If I can heal my body can I alter it? Make myself taller? Alter my hair color? How deep does it go? Can I alter DNA, or does mana just restore my body parts to what my body finds healthy. Does it just quicken my natural healing rate? So many questions and no one to answer them. Is this what ancient scientists like Aristotle or Sir Isac Newton felt like? So many questions and so little answers and no one to ask about it. It¡¯s like I¡¯m standing on an iceberg, only being able to see it¡¯s surface. Let alone whatever rests below the water levels. I¡¯m going to need to live long enough to experiment with this. And the mana to do the experiments with. At that thought I bring up my stat sheet again and examine my Attribute Points. I¡¯ve leveled up twice since I¡¯ve last dumped all my attribute points into intelligence. However instead of having ten I only have six. I know I didn¡¯t put any into anything so why do I have four less than what I should? The only answer that comes to mind is that as I level up I¡¯ll get less and less Attribute Points. Meaning that I shouldn¡¯t be so hasty in putting them into anything. Going over my attributes I try to imagine which ones would let me survive better. Being strong is almost always useful as well as being fast. Decker and Andy are a good example of this. Up until now my survivability has banked on the destructive force of my spells. In order to be more destructive I¡¯ve been needing to boost how much mana I have but that won¡¯t save me in every situation. What am I going to do when I run out? Just adding more to Intelligence doesn¡¯t mean that I won¡¯t ever run out. It just means that it¡¯ll take more effort to completely run out. With that in mind I should make sure that I can handle a few zombies without mana. Meaning I need to be stronger, faster, and be able to last in a fight. A sturdier body and a better weapon is going to be a must. Wait a second. My mind catches on the idea of a weapon. The sole word brings panic to me. My hand races down to my utility belt where my baton should be. It only finds the fabric that usually holds the weapon to me. My heart races as I remember something snapping when I fought that last zombie. I race down the stairs to the garage. Once down there I¡¯m met with the horrid stench of several rotting bodies. My eyes scan the area looking for the black metal. After a few seconds I find a piece of black metal in the shape of a ¡®j¡¯ and coated in dried blood sitting just a few feet from the wall. Picking up the cold metal my heart sinks. The top half of my baton shows me what that snapping sound was. Looking around I find the handle of the weapon half buried under a zombie. With the two pieces in hand I leave the foul smelling area and make my way back to the roof. There I sit watching the city silently crying to myself. It feels as if I lost a loved one. Before the apocalypse I only ever took the baton out during our training periods. I never once used it as an actual weapon. But in the first few minutes of the apocalypse it was the thing that saved me. It set me apart and let me be the predator I wanted to be. Granted the mana helped a lot, but these chunks of metal were there for me before I had magic. The baton was with me through every battle. It felt like a part had died with the baton. I know logically that the baton is just a thing. With my mana I''m still just as deadly if not more. But that baton meant more to me, it was like a companion to me. My first ally in the apocalypse. One of the few things I could rely on. I set the two pieces of metal on the bloodied shirt I stripped off earlier. They may be useless now but I can¡¯t bring myself to get rid of them. I turn my attention back to the streets below eyeing the zombies shambling around in the dark. The sorrow in me turns to anger as I watch the cause of my loss just shamble around. The zombies were the ones that broke my baton. They¡¯ll be the ones to suffer. Chapter 20 The zombies shamble far below me on Everett street. Their presence is only made known by their rocking movingments. My anger rises as I watch them. If I¡¯m a predator then my baron was my claws and they had the audacity to try and declaw me. Baring my teeth I point my finger down at the figures. Energy wells up inside of me as I form a Rifle Round. The spell illuminates my section of the roof. Adding an eerie feeling to the environment. I take careful aim despite the anger inside of me demanding me to just destroy. My first shot misses as does my second, third, and fourth. Realization dawns on me that I¡¯m simply too far away to hit them accurately. I still want to kill them but I¡¯m too far away. An idea that I know Decker would frown upon blossoms. I could just go outside. I may not have the master key anymore but it¡¯s not the only key. I walk down the eleven flights of stairs and head into the lobby. The bodies of the dead still cover the ground. We should probably figure out what to do with these. They¡¯re going to attract bugs and germs like there''s no tomorrow. I carefully pick my way behind the security desk. Once there I open a drawer and find a lock box. Inside of the lock box are keys to different areas of the building. Different colored lanyards indicate which parts of the building they go to. My eyes find a black lanyard and I pull out the key attached to it. The only other master key to the building. With it in hand I put the lock box back and make my way to the kitchen. The door that leads outside from the kitchen opens up onto Second street. Peering through the glass door I see only two zombies on the street. I expand my senses as I unlock the door, my mana fills the air giving me a mental map of my immediate surroundings. Once sure that my spell is active I leave the building for the first time since the start of all of this. The air feels more damp down here than it did up on the roof. As if the death of the day prior lingers like a fog. I form two Rifle Rounds letting them sing through the air as they punch holes clean through the two zombie¡¯s heads. Their bodies fall to the ground with damp thunds. My eyes scan the street worried the noise would draw another horde onto me. Up the street towards the north lies vacant cars and the shadows of a few shambling bodies. Too far to see me or hear the thuds. To the south is much the same, however in the far distance some kind of structure blocks my vision of the street. As if a wall was erected in the street. I want to investigate but the moans of the group in the lot behind the building draw my attention first. Pulling my knife out of its place on my belt I hold it at the ready. I sneak up the block to the corner of the building. Peeking around I count twenty-five undead. All with blue lights above their heads. Checking my mana reserves I realize I don¡¯t have enough mana to take them all out at once. At most I can conjure about twenty-seven Rifle Rounds. But between the shots I took from the roof and the ones I took down here I don¡¯t have enough mana at current. Maybe that¡¯s where I should focus my attribute points for now, assuming wisdom increases my mana regeneration. I throw those thoughts away as I focus on the battle I¡¯m about to engage in. I concentrate on my mana letting it coat the blade of the knife. Then I push more out creating a dagger about a foot long of rapidly spinning mana. The spell takes hardly anything to maintain but still costs a decent amount to start. Set with a weapon now, I calm my nerves and turn the corner. My mind races back to Decker¡¯s movements in the garage. He flowed like the waves of the ocean. Pushing into the horde then drawing back. I race out from the corner, the light of my spell illuminating the dark lot. I manage to kill two zombies before the rest notice me. Their bodies fall with similar wet thuds. I spin to my left jabbing the mana blade into another zombie dropping it¡¯s health to zero. The group howels their horse battle cry as they all move as a collective. I slash out cutting cleanly through zombie after zombie. After pushing into the group a little I take quick tentative steps back giving me space. My Magical Sonar tells me nothing is sneaking up behind me as I do. With the created space I analyze the group before me. With six down, twenty still remain. I take a deep breath letting the horde come to me. Once they¡¯re within striking range I begin pushing against them again. Blue arcs trail after my mana blade. The energy burns off with each strike. The zombies give little resistance as I slice and stab into their heads. As I feel like the zombies start to surround me I pull back. I quickly create fifteen feet of space between us while I catch my breath. Blood drips off my arms as I feel the slimy substance stick to me. When the zombies draw near I re-engage. Our dance of back and forth lasts maybe three more minutes as I cut down every single zombie. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s the level difference, as the highest level I fought in this battle was a level four, or my technique but zombie slaying has become a lot easier. Eying the area quickly I find no more zombies in the immediate vicinity. Further down any street I know I¡¯ll find more zombies. But none seem to be drawing near because of the battle I just won. I let the mana blade disperse plunging me back in darkness. I take a second to catch my breath before walking to Third street. There I find no zombie to be seen. Carefully I make my way down the street to my car. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Aside from some blood on the hood I don¡¯t find anything wrong with the piece of junk. I unlock the door and enter the cab of the car. In the passenger seat is the same backpack I¡¯ve had since middle school. It¡¯s an old sack that I¡¯ve had to repair myself many times. Giving it an almost ratty look to it. However, it¡¯s the only artifact that I felt was wholly mine as a kid. I bought it after secretly saving some money I made helping my neighbor rake leaves while my dad was at work. Inside the pack I find my off duty clothes, a bottle of water, and two ramen packets. I throw the pack over my shoulder and check the rest of the car for something useful. Nothing jumps out in the cab as I don¡¯t really have a lot to my name. Most of my income went to rent and food. The rest went to getting me clothes and a bed. I leave the cab popping the trunk as I do so. Inside I find the spare tire and a tire iron. I test the weight of the cold metal tire iron, finding it heavier than my baton. However, despite how heavy it is, it is¡¯t still the best replacement I can think of for my trusty baton. I carefully set the tireiron down against the car while I fish out that inverter I was talking to Decker about. I slip that into my backpack and close the trunk as quietly as possible. Then I make my way back to the driver¡¯s side and put the keys into the ignition. I put the car into neutral and start pushing it down the street to the now empty lot behind the building. Turning the wheel feels like I¡¯m having to pull someone up a hill. I take a second to appreciate power steering. It takes almost half an hour to push the heavy car around to Second street. I leave it in front of the garage doors ready to be brought in or to have the gas in it easily siphoned out. I put it in park and lock it back up. Armed with a new weapon I feel an itch to kill a zombie with it. Am I becoming addicted to this? If I am, that''s probably a bad thing. Right? I shake the thoughts away and make my way to Everett where I know a few zombies to still be meandering. Only three zombies stand in the street. I take a second to decide how I want to apply Mana Saw to the tire iron. I could make an ax with it or just use it like I was my baton. Experience tells me not to waste mana on the ax bit. Just coating the metal with Mana Saw is going to be more useful in long term fights. With that in mind I let the blue light glide out of me and over the cool metal. The metal warms up as the mana starts whipping around it in a clockwise fashion. Calling it a saw is kind of inaccurate. It¡¯s more of a mana drill but Mana Saw just has a better ring to it in my opinion. I crawl out onto Everett, sneaking up behind the closet zombie. It faces the hotel on the corner of Everett and Third, directly opposite to where I am. The tire iron sings through the air as I smash the heavy metal into the zombie¡¯s head. The mana chews into the flesh and through the bones directly to the brain. Blood and mush flies as it¡¯s caught and flung away by the mana. The zombie falls to the ground drawing attention from the other two. Their attention turns to me and they growl in hunger. HHHHHHUUUUUUUUNNGGG! The closest one lunges for me. As it does so I stab out with the tire iron like it was a saber. The mana digs through it¡¯s forehead like it is paper. It¡¯s health flatlines as it falls to the ground dying instantly. My attention turns to the last zombie as it¡¯s arms reach out for me. I charge forwards swinging out with the heavy metal. The momentum carries into the zombies temple and continues out the other side. It¡¯s head being bashed and sliced in half in a single swing. HHHHHHUUUUUUUUNNGGG! The cry of another zombie reaches my ears as I whip around. I feel it before I see it. A zombie races up behind me leaping into the air, it¡¯s mouth open and set on course with my shoulder. I drop to the ground letting the thing fly over me. It rolls on the ground for a second before quickly recovering. It turns to me and I finally get a good look at it.
Zombie
Level: 10
HP: 29/30
My heart rises at the sight of the blue light above its head. I bend my knees ready for it¡¯s next charge. I channel more mana extending the tire iron¡¯s reach by a foot. The mana hisses as I force it to spin even faster. HHHHHHUUUUUUUUNNGGG! The zombie moans as it launches itself in the air again. I side step it¡¯s quick attack just narrowly avoiding it. I twist following it¡¯s flying body conjuring a High Velocity Round as I do so. The zombie lands on all fours, stopping it¡¯s momentum instantly. It snaps it¡¯s head around staring me down. Anger burns behind it¡¯s eyes as if I wronged it for avoiding it¡¯s attack. Focusing on it¡¯s left eye, I send the mana heavy attack out. It slices through the air like a bullet, embedding itself into the thing''s eye. The mana explodes sending the left side of its face flying off.
Zombie
Level: 10
HP: 8/30
The force of the explosion sends the zombie sprawling across the ground. Before it can recover I leap forwards bringing the tire iron high above my head. As if I¡¯m trying to split the earth itself I slam the mana covered metal down onto the things head.
Zombie
Level: 10
HP: 0/30
It¡¯s head explodes in a mist of gore. PING!
Level Up
The blue box vanishes bringing a smile to my face. I check the street for any more unseen foes. Seeing none, I start making my way to the kitchen entrance. I stop and look back at the kitchen debating on if I should take a peek inside. Just looking at the building sends a shiver down my back. Warning sirens ring loud and clear in my mind but I don¡¯t know why. It¡¯s as if my body thinks it¡¯ll die just by going in there. Shaking the idea out of my mind, I return to the kitchen entrance. I will go with Decker to scout the restaurant tomorrow. Entering the building the fog of death lingering in the streets leaves me. I lock the door and return upstairs to rest. Chapter 21 After reentering the building I head to the second floor gym lockers. Once inside I conjure a floating orb of mana to illuminate the dark room. I take my backpack off, setting it on the sink counter. I take out it¡¯s contents and spread them out. At the sight of clean clothes my skin itches to be rid of the blood and gore covered garb I currently wear. Unable to resist the urge I tear the disgusting rags off my body and throw them away in the nearest trash can while setting my utility belt and it¡¯s contents aside. After doing so I make a mental note to retrieve them and set them on fire. My off duty clothes consist of cheap jeans, a black long sleeve thermal shirt, and a sleeveless hoodie. Once clothed in something clean I almost feel like a new person. We¡¯re going to need to go out and find more clothes for us. It can¡¯t be sanitary to wear the same thing over and over especially when blood and muck has become commonplace. I take a second to examine myself in the mirror. My brown hair is caked with blood and looking greasier than it¡¯s ever been. Along with clothes we¡¯re going to need to figure out a way to keep up our hygiene. Through the mirror I see brown eyes staring back at me. Usually I don¡¯t make a habit of examining myself in a mirror like this. But something in the back of my mind tickles compelling me to take a closer look. As I do so I see something in my eyes. Looking deeper I realize that they¡¯re glowing just barely. I pull the orb back into me, plunging myself in darkness. However it¡¯s not complete darkness. My body gives off an ever so faint glow. Is this a side effect of mana? The itch in my mind fades leavin me in the dark and feeling weird. Ever since the start of this I¡¯ve been having those weird feelings. As if someone is whispering in my ear but I can¡¯t hear them. In all honesty I¡¯m not a fan of it. It feels wrong somehow. I pack everything else back into my backpack and leave the room. I head up to the seventh floor and place the ramen packets in the pile of food. After that I head to my little conference room and lie down. Sleep over takes me quickly. ¡°Get up Joel.¡± Decker says. His voice breaks through my sleep waking me up. Sun light stretches across the floor through the windows. While not super bright it¡¯s bright enough to make me wince. ¡°What time is it?¡± I ask My words come out slow and deep as I have yet to fully wake up. I blink out the last bits of sleep as Decker answers me. ¡°It¡¯s eight in the morning. We¡¯re about to start collecting water.¡± I sit up stretching finally ridding myself of the haziness that sleep leaves me. ¡°Where did you get the clothes?¡± Decker asks. I freeze, unsure how to answer. Fear starts building in me as I worry that Decker will be mad at me. I swallow my fear. In my experience not answering is worse than answering. ¡°My car.¡± I let out. My voice is high pitched and quiet. In stark contrast to how it was only a moment ago. Decker eyes me for a second then shifts his gaze to my pack. For once I¡¯m unable to read the emotions behind his gaze. As a talent that I built up over my whole life of having to tiptoe around people, I¡¯m left even more worried at not being able to read him. ¡°Did you get into any fights?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Did you get hurt?¡± ¡°No.¡± Silence befalls us and stretches on into eternity. It¡¯s only broken by a wistful sigh from Decker. ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡± I say, figuring that if he¡¯s upset it won¡¯t do much to appease him. However, it makes me feel a little better about unintentionally upsetting him. ¡°Don¡¯t be. But I don¡¯t think it¡¯s safe for us to be going out there alone. If you got hurt we wouldn¡¯t know until it was too late. Or what if a high level zombie got inside. Did you lock the door behind you? I know you¡¯re tough but right now isn¡¯t the time to be risking your life.¡± Decker¡¯s words feel like daggers being thrown at me. Decker moves towards me causing me to flinch back. ¡°Hey what¡¯s wrong? You¡¯re not in trouble. I just want you to think things through a little more. Or run them by me first.¡± He says Decker moves to stand before me, placing a hand on my shoulder. He kneels before me looking into my eyes. Making me realize that I looked away from him, either in fear or embarrassment. ¡°Hey kid. It¡¯s okay I¡¯m not mad at you and you¡¯re not in trouble.¡± His words sound forign to me but I understand their meaning. I¡¯m just not used to hearing them directed at me. I¡¯m not in trouble. Is that even possible? ¡°Come on, let''s go eat and talk about the things we need to get done today.¡± Decker says. His words break the spell my spiraling thought process had on me. He stands taking his hand off my shoulder. He leaves the room only stopping and looking back when he realizes that I haven¡¯t followed. He motions with his head to follow and then gives me a warm smile. I stand and follow after him to the area where all the food is. He hands me some more leftovers as I sit down. The other two were already eating in silence. They must not have worked closely with one another. There¡¯s an awkward air of unfamiliarity around them. This entire group if I¡¯m honest. The only one to be unaffected by the air seems to be Decker. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Alright so the priority for today is securing as much water as we can in as little time as possible. So after eating we¡¯ll search the building for any kind of container. Bowels, cups, tupperware, anything that can hold the water. Then we¡¯ll go and plug all the sinks in the building. After that I¡¯ll head down to the garage and power the generator. Joel will be in the fire command center in case anything happens with the alarms. He and I will have the radios. If everything goes off without an issue then Andy and Angila will start filling containers while Joel and I fill up all the sinks. Any questions?¡± Decker says ¡°What will we do if something goes wrong?¡± Andy asks while gesturing to Angila. ¡°Honestly you guys won¡¯t know if anything is wrong unless the building¡¯s alarms go off. In that case keep a weapon at the ready. Joel or I will run up and get you to help secure the building again.¡± Decker says. Andy seems annoyed at the prospect of having to help secure the building. I ignore it already having profiled him as someone kind of lazy. With no other questions we finish eating. I go back to my room and retrieve my utility belt from my pack and slip it around my waist. It¡¯s an annoying model where a velcro belt slides through the loops of my pants. Then three straps buckle the actual utility belt to the velcro belt. I grab the tire iron and try to find a spot on my belt for it. The tire iron slides through the loop that kept my baton secure on the belt. It¡¯s a little loose but the bend in the metal prevents the thing from sliding out of the belt. A few jumping jacks later and I feel confident that the tire iron won¡¯t be going anywhere if I don¡¯t want it. With that done I take a second to ponder if I¡¯ll need my backpack. There¡¯s nothing in there I need so I leave it in the room and leave. We all start our hunt for containers. Each floor after the seconds has a quase kitchen area with two sinks and lots of mugs and bowls. We set out the bowels and mugs to be within reach of the sinks. Afterwards I raid the kitchen of all pots and containers. The hunt took a few hours and was boring to work on. Part of me itched to go back outside. I realize I¡¯m kind of growing addicted to hunting the zombies. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s that I get joy from killing them, a prospect I¡¯d rather not think about, or if it¡¯s the leveling up aspect. We regroup on the seventh floor after plugging all the sinks in the building with duct tape that Decker found. Decker hands me a radio and sends me to the fire command center while Andy is sent to the tenth floor and Angila to the third. Once in the command center I turn on the radio and wait for Decker. Moments pass in silence and I quickly grow bored in the dark room. I conjure a ball of energy to give the tiny space some light. ¡°Can you read me? Over.¡± Decker says. ¡°I can. Are you at the generator? Over.¡± ¡°Yeah, about to power it on. Be ready. In three. Two. One. Now.¡± The lights in the fire command center flash on. I hadn¡¯t noticed but the building was silent like I never experienced. The constant white noise of the building¡¯s fans and other hidden machinery had stopped when the power cut out. Now that it¡¯s back, so are they. My eyes scan all the electronics throughout the room waiting in anticipation for anything to go wrong. After a few seconds of nothing my spirit rises, figuring everything has gone smoothly. ¡°Any issues? Over.¡± Decker asks. ¡°None that I can see. Over.¡± ¡°Alright then start on the bathrooms on the first floor. I¡¯ll run up and help you shortly. Over.¡± ¡°On it. Over.¡± With that I clip the radio to my utility belt and race to the bathrooms in the hallway with the security locker and the bike room entrance. Once inside I hold my hands under the sinks activating the handle free water. After a minute I hear the door open and watch Decker walk into the bathroom. He makes his way to the two sinks next to the ones I¡¯m filling and places his hands near the sensor. We stand in silence for a bit. Long enough that I finish the two sinks I¡¯m working on and head to the last two. ¡°What¡¯s with the gun?¡± He asks. I jump at the sudden noise. After registering what he asked I look down at the metal on my hip. ¡°I got it from one of the armed officers'' lockers.¡± ¡°Why haven¡¯t you been using it? Out of ammo?¡± ¡°Kinda. I never found any for it.¡± ¡°So then why did you grab it?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t realize there was no ammo for it until I already had it.¡± ¡°Why do you still have it?¡± He asks. I shrug my shoulders. ¡°I guess I forgot I had it.¡± ¡°I see. Still it¡¯s not a bad idea to keep it on you. You never know when it could come in handy.¡± The conversation comes to a halt as Decker¡¯s sinks fill up. He leaves the bathroom to head to the girls room on this floor. Soon my sinks are full and I follow him. ¡°So I¡¯ve been meaning to ask. Did you hear anything in the garage before you passed out?¡± Decker asks. ¡°No. Like what?¡± ¡°Something about a safe zone and you having ownership.¡± ¡°Safe Zone?¡± I ask. At my words my vision fills up with a familiar blue light. However, instead of my stats or anything else that I¡¯ve seen, a window with a 3D map of the building appears in my vision. At the top is the name of the building, ¡®Northern Gas Offices¡¯. Underneath it is ¡°Owner:¡± and my name. Next to the names are the symbols for a pencil. On the left side of the screen lies lines of text in a similar fashion to my personal stats. Things like the number of occupants, floors, doors, bathrooms, sinks, and so much more. The list even gets cut off at the bottom of the sections. However, looking at the bottom of the building¡¯s stats section causes the information to scroll up revealing more and more information. On the right side of the holographic map of the building is a menu called ¡®Building Shop¡¯. Next to the title of the section are two letters. K and P with a colon next to it and the number two hundred and thirty four following it. Underneath is a list of different categories. Living room, Dining room, Bedroom, Bathroom, Workshop, Defense, Library, and more. At the bottom of the screen is a section of blank empty space. However, when I focus on aspects of the menu a description fills the space. For example when I focus on the ¡®KP¡¯ part the section fills with ¡®Total kill points¡¯. ¡°Joel what¡¯s wrong?¡± Decker asks. His words snap my attention from the screen. It disappears from sight leaving me confused. ¡°Um. I don¡¯t know. I think I got a new screen.¡± ¡°What kind of screen? Does it have to do with the words that echoed in the garage when we finished fighting?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I think so. It¡¯s like a building management tool.¡± I bring the screen back up by thinking of the words Safe Zone. With it up I explain what it looks like to decker. Trying to leave as little out as possible. ¡°So what pops up when you focus on the Bedroom section?¡± ¡°A whole bunch of bedroom items like beds, dressers, desks. Some of them look really weird. They all have a KP requirement.¡± ¡°How many Kill Points do you have?¡± ¡°Over two hundred.¡± ¡°Is it enough to purchase anything?¡± While looking through the bedroom section I find many items I can get. After a few moments I find a cheap night stand. It¡¯s basically just a flat piece of black painted wood with four legs. It¡¯s priced at just five points. ¡°There¡¯s a nightstand for five points. Should I get it?¡± I ask. ¡°Yeah, try it.¡± With his permission I purchase the nightstand. A prompt opens up asking where I want the nightstand to be placed. My focus turns to the map of the building in the center. The map shows a level for each floor and focusing on a floor brings up a top down view of the floor. I mentaly select an area next to me in the bathroom and confirm that¡¯s where I want the night stand. A sudden tug breaks my focus on the screen in front of me. To my left a large black orb the size of a mini fridge appears out of nowhere. The temperature in the room plummets as I feel as if the orb is pulling me into it. Then it vanishes leaving the ugly cheap nightstand behind. ¡°Jesus did you do that?¡± Decker asks. Decker stands with his sword in front of him pointed at the night stand. His face is pale and eyes bugging. He looks to me for confirmation. ¡°I think so.¡± I say Chapter 22 Decker¡¯s eyes flare to life. Ideas and thoughts burning brightly enough that I can almost read them. ¡°Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± He says after a short silence. ¡°Yes sir.¡± I reply. Curiosity burns in me wondering why he doesn¡¯t want the others to know of this. However, I don¡¯t want to upset Decker and I don¡¯t know if asking why would annoy him. I know asking my dad a question would generally annoy him. ¡°This is huge. Like majorly huge.¡± He says, talking to himself. He shakes his head and returns to filling the sink with water. ¡°For now don¡¯t mess with that menu. Let me think about it for a bit. For now we should continue collecting water.¡± I return to filling the sinks with water. Only stopping when the sinks are full. Steaming rises from the crystal clear pools of water. I wonder how sanitary the sinks are and if we really are going to drink from them. I mean while none of the water has touched my hands I feel as if just being in my presents is toxic. Dried flecks of blood that I know aren''t mine coats my hands. I¡¯ve rubbed the worst of it off but my skin has been stained a dark red from the muck. Just looking at my hands makes my skin crawl. I really need to shower soon. We go through each floor filling all the sinks. Decker and I finish before Andy and Agila filling the containers with water. So we take a portion of the empty containers and fill them up. After a few hours there are no more containers. Afterwards we pack as much of the containers in the fridges as possible. The ones we can¡¯t fit in them we pack into cupboards with paper towels covering the tops. With the job done Decker turns off the generators plunging the building back into silence and darkness. We all reconvene back on the seventh floor. Decker hands out food while being weirdly silent. ¡°What are we going to do about food?¡± I ask. Decker looks at me then to the pile of dwindling food in front of us. The plan of scouting the restaurant across the street crosses my mind. Something about the idea makes me feel like it¡¯s urgent. Like we need to get on it as soon as possible. ¡°We should get onto that. The sooner the better.¡± Angila says. ¡°Weren¡¯t you and Decker going to loot the restaurant across the street?¡± Andy asks me. ¡°I think we should go and at least take a look at it today.¡± I say. Decker checks the watch on his wrist and then heads to the nearest window. He looks at the sky for a moment before turning back to us. ¡°Joel and I will go across the street to scout out the restaurant. If it¡¯s all clear Angila will come over and start taking back as much food as she can carry.¡± Decker turns to Andy. ¡°You will stay by the kitchen door. Ready to unlock it and let us back in. In case anything goes wrong. We¡¯ll leave you a radio but don¡¯t use it unless you see a level twelve or higher zombie out in the street.¡± Decker turns to me. ¡°Get ready, I''ll meet you in the lobby in about five minutes.¡± With the plan set we all leave to our own areas. I head down to the lobby first. I carefully pick my way behind the security desk. There in a cupboard I find a black of black gloves. I grab a few pairs and put them in my pocket. Then I take another and put them on. Decker steps out of the staircase into the lobby followed by Angila and Andy. We make our way to the kitchen and then to the door leading to the street. Peering through the glass reveals no zombies on the block. ¡°Is everyone ready?¡± Decker asks. We all nod. Decker unlocks the door and hands his master key to Andy along with the radio he had. I make sure the radio I have is still on my belt. Decker pushes the door open and walks out onto the street. As he does so I notice Angila giving him a weird look. The kind that I imagine you¡¯d give to a loved one as they leave. I file the look away as something to think about later. I push out onto the street with Decker finding it just as empty as it was last night. My car sitting to my right looking like the piece of crap that it is. My mana expands out of me as I activate my Magical Sonar. We turn north and round the corner onto Everett street. The restaurant is across the street on the corner of Everett and Second. We cross the street quickly crouching as we do so. The entrance to the building points to the corner of the block and is closed. Above the door in fancy writing is the name of the restaurant ¡®The Corner Bistro¡¯. Decker tries the door only to find it locked. ¡°Got anything to open this door with?¡± He asks me. ¡°I do but it¡¯s loud. There¡¯s a side entrance on Everett.¡± I say. The restaurant¡¯s side entrance is usually always open even late into the night. The restaurant doesn¡¯t close until midnight or so and the workers spend hours cleaning the building. It¡¯s part of the reason why they get their deliveries so late. We walk up Everett street finding the pale green door that is the side entrance. A piece of wood holds the door just slightly ajar. Decker turns to me in confirmation that I¡¯m ready to go in. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. I take a second to feel around the entrance behind the door. Nothing out of the ordinary jumps out at me but just looking at the door causes the weird tingle in my mind to sound off. I feel compelled to go in there but to also turn and run. I shake the feeling from my head before nodding at Decker¡¯s unasked but implied question. Decker opens the door and we enter the kitchen. The first thing I notice is the smell. To describe the smell as death is a disservice to the smell. So rancid and rotten that my eyes water and my throat burns. Even the lobby and garage aren¡¯t this bad. The kitchen is dark, the only light coming from the open door. As soon as Decker lets go of the door it starts to close. The only source of light quickly vanishes, plunging us into darkness. I push out a small orb of mana to illuminate the room. The kitchen comes to life in an eerie faint blue as steely metal structures reflect blue light back at us. The kitchen seems to have been abandoned in a haste. Food and cooking utensils spot the ground and countertops as if they were dropped midway through use. Blood coats the ground, dried enough that it doesn¡¯t feel sticky to walk across. Two doors lead out from the kitchen. One leads to a set of stars while the other leads to the dining room of the building. Decker leads me to the dining room first. As soon as the door opens my body tries to vomit. If the smell in the kitchen was death then the smell in here is death¡¯s toilet after eating something foul. My light floats out illuminating a horrific scene of bodies strewn about in varying states of dismemberment. The doors leading to the street are blocked by a table. As if the people in here didn¡¯t want something getting in. However by doing that I guess they trapped themselves in here with something worse. However, despite the absolute carnage displayed in here not a single zombie can be found. I look at Decker trying to read his emotions but again I can¡¯t. It¡¯s as if he¡¯s put up a mask or something. ¡°There¡¯s nothing in here, let''s check upstairs.¡± He says finally. We leave the dining room and I feel relief almost instantly when the door to the room closes. Something about how the bodies were left tickles the back of my mind. Leaving me with an ominous feeling. However, I don¡¯t want to think about them. We walk to the other door in the kitchen and crawl up the wooden stairs. Being a three story building I was always curious what was on the upper levels of the restaurant. The second floor greets us with what appears to be offices. I assume this is where they do the business aspect of running a restaurant. Processing orders, managing menus and employees, or whatever requires paperwork. Along with the office space is a bathroom and what I guess would be an employee break area. It has a few lockers lining the wall with name tags on them and a large table with cheap looking chairs in the center. This floor doesn¡¯t hold anything of note for us though. And seems weirdly vacant of blood. Maybe whatever committed the sins that happened in the dining room didn¡¯t come up here or there was no one up here to be dismembered like the poor souls on the first floor. We press on to the third floor which I quickly realize is a living space. As we walk through the floor I can feel a pressure pushing back on my mana. The pressure is weird to describe as it doesn¡¯t feel like a physical object. More like the presence of dense mana that isn¡¯t mine. As we check the rooms the feeling that something bad is about to happen grows in me. A bedroom reveals a baby crib with blood splashing the crib and walls. Decker investigates the room before exiting it and closing the door behind me. I inveistage another room, finding a couch and a tv set up against a far wall. We clear a bathroom and make our way to the final room on the floor. We crack the door open revealing a tall figure standing in the corner. The blue light creeps across the floor showing blood pooling the floor underneath the bed. Two people lie on the bed having all their limbs chopped off and a cavity in their chest where their hearts would be. At the noise of the door creaking open the person in the corner snaps his attention around to us. Bloodshot pale eyes fall on us sending a shiver down my spine. Black veins bulge across the exposed skin of the muscular person. A silver object catches the blue light of my orb and I notice that the thing is holding a butcher¡¯s knife. My eyes snap to the red light above the thing¡¯s head.
Zombie Butcher
Level: 22
HP: 115/115
My heart races as my mana bruns white hot beneath my skin. The air catches in my throat. Decker''s hand grabs my shoulder as he turns to run from the room. The zombie roars louder and more fierce than any other zombie that I¡¯ve encountered. I turn and follow after Decker. My feet racing through the floor and down the flight of stairs. I hear something like glass shattering behind me as I run. With the fear of the zombie on my heels I don¡¯t turn to investigate, I just focus on getting out of here. Practically jumping down the stairs we make it to the first floor kitchen in seconds. Decker vaults over the metal structures in the middle of the kitchen, heading straight for the door as he does so. I race around but stop in my tacks as Decker flies past me back towards the stairs. The zombie stands in the doorway having just kicked the door in and clean off its hinges. Looking behind me I see blood dripping down Decker¡¯s face as he sits on the ground against the wall only feet away from me. My attention returns to the zombie butcher before me. It¡¯s eyes glaze over to me as a grin appears on its face. A sound akin to horse laughing emanates from it, sending shivers of fear down my back. Just looking in it¡¯s eyes I know that it can kill me easily. It¡¯s faster than me. Stronger than me. Out levels me by nearly ten levels. A zombie barely two levels above me nearly killed me. There¡¯s no way I can fight this. The zombie butcher seems to be able to read the defeat I feel. As it¡¯s smile grows even wider showing blackened yellow teeth. I¡¯m going to die here. That¡¯s what the whisper in the back of my head was telling me. It was warning me not to come in here. All it will take is one good strike and I¡¯ll be like Decker. I¡¯m not ready to die. I don¡¯t want to die. There¡¯s so much I want to experience in life. I was only now truly starting to live. For so many years I hated my life and myself wishing so badly for it to just end. I only recently started to feel like I might truly like living. Only recently have I started to feel as if I¡¯m not some weakling to be preyed upon by others. Like I have the strength to finally be my own person. To be a predator that doesn¡¯t shrink into a shell at the first sign of danger. I glance back towards Decker. The first adult to make me feel like I have value. Like my ideas and questions aren¡¯t something to be scared to voice. He doesn¡¯t get mad at me for asking questions nor does he get mad at me when I do something he doesn¡¯t like. I¡¯ve known him for barely 24 hours yet he¡¯s treated me better than my father ever has. And he¡¯s here about to die because I kept pushing for us to come here. His death is going to be my fault. Mine. Maybe my mom had the right idea by never coming back for me. Maybe I¡¯m just bad luck. Just my existence brings pain to others. I don¡¯t want him to die. Not because of my actions. If anyone here is going to die it¡¯s going to be me. Decker¡¯s been leading our little group since it¡¯s formed, keeping our needs in mind the whole time. He¡¯s put himself into danger for me and the others. The world would be a worse place without him. But without me, it¡¯ll probably be a better place in all honesty. If I¡¯m going to die here it¡¯ll be making sure that Decker survives. I face the beast before me. It exudes an aura of power that pushes in on my own. My mana pulses in response to my desire. It burns bright and hot in me. The usual warm lake in my core is a lake of fire coursing through every inch of my body. I glow a bright blue as the lines crossing my skin burn brighter then they have ever before. If I¡¯m going to die this thing is dying with me. Chapter 23 In the distance I feel Decker¡¯s sword lying on the ground where he dropped it after being kicked away from the door. Not sure if it¡¯d work I wrap the mana I have in the air around the sword and drag it towards me. I feel a pull on my mana core as the beautiful silver slade flys through the air into my hand. In an instant the blade is covered in burning bright artic blue mana. The spell singing out shrill sirens call for the death of those who can hear it. I bare my teeth at the zombie Butch and wait for it¡¯s atack. Something in it recognizes my resolve to fight and appears displeased by it as it¡¯s smile fades into a frown. It¡¯s large muscles flex as it hunches over. With a crack the zombie rockets forwards faster than I can respond. I feel the air leave my lungs as my feet leave the ground. Metal races around me as I slam into a wall and my vision blurs out of focus. I fall to the ground coughing and gasping for breath. I cough up blood and realize instinctively that something inside of me broke. I shake my head and try to focus on the fight. It doesn¡¯t matter how hurt I get. Or how painful this becomes. The Zombie Butcher dies with me. I roar out, coughing up more blood as I do so. My roar is a challenge to the Zombie Butcher to charge again. The Butcher responds in kind with a roar of his own. I recast the burning, shrieking, Mana Saw around the silver metal of Decker¡¯s sword. I take a stance that I believe is similar to Decker¡¯s. I hold the sword out in front of me ready to pierce or slice the zombie. It hunches over again readying for another charge. Knowing what to expect I conjure tendrils of mana. At the sound of the ground cracking under the pressure of the Zombie Butcher¡¯s charge I lash out with the tendrils of mana. They push into a metal structure next to me, throwing me out of the Butcher¡¯s way. As the Zombie Butcher flies past me I latch onto it with a tendril of mana. Using the tendril I pull myself onto the things back . I thin out the mana into a string wrapping it around the monster''s head and use it to hang on as the zombie tries to buck me off. It tries reaching for me but it¡¯s large frame prevents it from reaching me. With my other hand I raise the glowing sword and bring it down. The Butcher bucks at me and the sword narrowly avoids impaling the thing¡¯s skull. Instead the glowing blue energy laced sword plunges deep into the shoulder of the Butcher. It roars in pain or anger and tries to throw me off more viciously. It¡¯s all I can do to keep a metal focus on the rope of mana. I feel it¡¯s hands move the air around me as it tries to reach for me. But through it¡¯s bulk it can¡¯t. When it realizes it can¡¯t grab me it tries to throw me off by whipping its body from side to side. I pull tighter on the string of mana holding me close to it. Finally realizing that it can¡¯t shake or throw me it runs backwards smashing me into a wall. Pain explodes across my back as I feel the world starting to fade. The pain is far too great. I feel blood and vomit flood my mouth and spew out in a jet. Only through sheer force of will do I keep a hold on the mana wrapped around the things neck. The sword flies out of the thing and away from my grasp. The energy around it fades as I lose my focus on it. Just holding onto the tendril of mana around its neck takes a herculean effort. I close my eyes trying to focus on the burning fire within me. Every time I watched my magic pop or explode with any kind of force races through my mind. I take hold of as much mana as I can, intent on causing it to explode. However, I realize I¡¯m barely even able to pull out an eighth of what I have left in me. Worried that it won¡¯t be enough I force myself to collect more. It feels as if I¡¯m trying to suck in as much air as possible into my lungs. After the initial surge of mana the rest comes slowly and is stubborn. However, I ignore the full feeling in my mind as I force more and more mana to be ready. The eight grows to a tenth then to a fifteenth. But the whisper in my mind tells me it¡¯s not enough. Nowhere near enough. So I keep drawing and pulling more in. I feel my body be slammed into more and more things as bones break inside of me. But at this point I¡¯m so focused on the mana that I feel like a separate being. Watching my body be violated by an unnatural creature. AAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHH!! Decker screams as he powerslides behind the monster. His silver sword cuts through the thing¡¯s heels. I watch through half closed eyes barely registering what¡¯s happening. The zombie falls to its knees in a howl of pain. I continue holding onto it still trying to build up more mana. Before I even gain another percentage Decker yanks me off of the beast, the magical thread dispelling as my focus is broken. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Not on my watch kid!¡± He yells as he throws me over his shoulder. He races us back up the stairs to the second floor. We make it a window before Decker puts me down. He looks outside for a second before turning back to me. ¡°How badly are you hurt?¡± He asks Looking inside of me I realize more of the damage is to my torso, mainly my ribs. Running is out of the question but I should be able to walk. ¡°Ribs.¡± The word hurts to say. ¡°Broken.¡± Each syllable sends burning pain through my chest. ¡°Alright. I¡¯m going to throw you out the window. Get up and make a break for the building.¡± He says. The whisper in the back of my head screams at this plan. I can¡¯t tell why but it¡¯s not going to work. We¡¯ll all die if we try it. I shake my head in the negative before steeling my resolve. ¡°No. I can. Kill It. Just. Need. Time.¡± I say through broken gasps. Deckers looks at me unsure. I flare my mana letting the blue flaming aura engulf me to show my resolve. The sounds of the zombie¡¯s footsteps on the stairs echo up to us. Decker¡¯s eyes steel with resolve. ¡°I¡¯ll give you as much time as I can. Do what you have to.¡± He says. He turns around facing the staircase. His sword held out before him. He places one foot forwards and lowers his stance. Ready for whatever is to come. The fact that he trusts me and listens to me isn¡¯t lost to me. Before all of this I rarely ever spoke out and when I did I was dismissed or belittled. But this man before me is risking his life because of me. I shake the thoughts from my head and turn my focus back on my mana. The collected bit from earlier returned to my pool making me start all over again. However instead of trying to blow myself up this time I¡¯m going to shoot it with a massive Cannonball. Instantly an eighth of my power is expelled from me. A blue glowing ball of energy floats in front of me. I call on more mana forcing it out but It¡¯s slow and resilient to my demands. Unwilling to be added to the sizable amount I already have. But I ignore it¡¯s wants and force more and more mana out of me and into this ball. My skin feels on fire as the energy pushes out of me into a bright swirling ball of energy in front of me. The energy seems to generate a wind of its own as papers are pushed back away from it and I feel a pressure emanating off of it. In the distance I hear the clatter of metal on metal as Decker meets the Zombie Butcher head on. His silver sword dances through the air at incredible speeds. Unlike any of the other zombies, the Zombie Butcher matches Decker''s pace. Meeting blow for blow. Decker side steps a downward strike from the beast. His sword cuts through the air in a horizontal strike. It digs itself into the monster side spewing a black ichor as it does so. The Butcher roars out in pain as the blade passes through him. Forty percent of what I have in my pool glows before me. The mana takes on a darker color the more I add to it. No longer an arctic blue, the mana glows a heavy shade of navy. The size of the orb is now that of a large person. However, the whisper in the back of my mind still calls for more. The Zombie Butcher grabs Decker¡¯s head causing him to scream out in pain. The zombie lifts the man up and away from the sword, throwing him to the side. Decker screams out in pain once more causing wildfires of rage to burn in me. My mana pulses at the rage, freeing itself of it¡¯s unwillingness to group in large quantities. The orb jumps from the size of a large person to that of a small car as I dump more and more mana into it. The zombie takes the sword out from its side howling in pain. Decker lies collapse on the ground only a few feet from me. The Zombie turns towards him, hatred in his eyes. It stalks over to the man raising the metal cleaver in its hand. Knowing that I don¡¯t have the time I cut off the flow of mana to the orb. Instead I force it to spin in a clockwise motion. The pressure it gives off sucks the air out of the room as it violently rotates. It howls with power distracting the Zombie Butcher from the man at its feet. The zombie looks to me and the elongated High Velocity Cannonball in front of me. The energy crackles and I realize that I¡¯m not in complete control over it. Not wanting too much energy to bleed off I hurl the energy at the zombie. For a moment in time it¡¯s as if someone painted a blue line through reality. The concentrated ball of energy leaves a trail so bright that it looks to be drawn in the air. The orb strikes the Zombie Butcher dead center forcing it back against the far wall. The wall bulges and explodes outwards as the zombie is carried with the energy. There in the middle of the street the energy explodes, no longer able to sustain its shape. The energy rocks the building and shatters glass. I feel my head spin as my ears ring. Looking up I see a hole in the wall with no zombie floating there. My heart rises with relief. It¡¯s done. We won. And I¡¯m still alive. My laughter rings out as I feel nothing but joy. ¡°No.¡± A soft voice rings out in the back of my mind. My laughter instantly dies out as I watch the hole in the way. There¡¯s no way anything could have survived that. A crack rings out as pavement is broken under sudden pressure. The Zombie Butcher flies into the open hole of the wall. It¡¯s left arm is nowhere to be seen. The bone of it¡¯s skull is visible around burnt skin, it¡¯s blackened yellow teeth visible despite it not bearing them. In it¡¯s right hand it holds it¡¯s cleaver. The metal is bent and warped out of its normal shape.
Zombie Butcher
Level: 22
HP: 8/115
Chapter 24 The Zombie Butcher looks at me with absolute malice in it¡¯s gaze. Smoke still rises from it¡¯s burnt flesh. It¡¯s eyes flash red as it roars. AAAARRRRGGGGGGGHHHHH!!! My hand drops down to the tire iron on my belt. The slightly heavy metal quickly warms as mana wraps around it. The song of Mana Saw rings out as if it¡¯s my answer to the zombie¡¯s battle cry. The thing charges me. Now significantly slower than it was before. It raises its large knife as it draws close. In a flash the metal sings through the air missing me by a hair. My tire iron flashes through the air colliding with the zombies arm just in time to prevent me from being split in two. I watch as two health points disappear from the Zombie, as the blue of the mana digs into the things''s forearm. It roars in pain kicking out at me. I¡¯m sent flying into a pile of boxes. For once I don¡¯t cough up blood after being thrown into something. I quickly recover, mentally thanking whoever put the boxes there to cushion my impromptu flyt. I conjure a Rifle Round letting it sail into the thing''s face. It crashes into it¡¯s left eye leaving a dark bloodied hole where the bloodshot orb use to be. The zombie stumbles back from the attack as it¡¯s hand races to the socket. It roars with rage as it does so. It''s a single good eye locks onto me and I know it¡¯s going to take much joy and pleasure in killing me. It charges at me and I only have enough time to lift the tire iron to intercept it¡¯s attack. The force of it¡¯s blow rattles my bones and leaves my arms feeling numb. I ignore the pain and lash out with an attack of my own. A trail of blue energy arcs out behind the tire iron as it sails through the air on course with the things head. The tire iron flies off course. The mana around it disperses as I feel the metal leave my grasp. Pain unlike anything I¡¯ve felt explodes in my hand. Looking down I see that fingers are missing from my right hand. Blood spurts from the stubs where my pinky, ring, and middle fingers used to be. Looking up I see the Zombie Butcher smiling with glee. It raises it¡¯s mangled knife high above it¡¯s head. Ready for it¡¯s final attack. It holds it there just above it¡¯s head, enjoying it¡¯s moment of victory.
Zombie Butcher
Level: 22
HP: 0/115
A silver blade pokes out the middle of it¡¯s head. The zombie falls to its knees revealing Decker standing above it, blade in hand. Blood covers his face and one arm hangs limply to his side. ¡°I said.¡± He takes a heavy breath. ¡°Not on my watch.¡± He falls to the ground exhausted and in pain. I quickly follow suit. Every breath feels like broken glass is cutting my chest. But I¡¯m alive and so is Decker. We survived.
Level Up
I feel cold water flood me as my nearly empty mana pool replenishes in an instant. The sensation is so shocking I forget the pain I¡¯m in for a second. Then it passes and I¡¯m brought back down to earth. Where my lungs feel like glass and my fingers are missing. At the idea of my fingers my heart skips a beat. Looking around I see the three digits on the floor next to me. I quickly retrieve them and arrange them in proper order in my lap. Then I take them and hold them against their right stubs. I make a quick prayer to whatever Gods are out there watching over. Then I close my eyes following my mana pool to my hand. I travel the familiar path to my hand where I find the stubs that are my fingers. I faintly sense the channels that run along my detached fingers. Sparking hope in me that I may not be a cripple just yet. I pull as much mana as I can and force it out like I had done to my ribs the day before. The mana flows outside of the channels and into the flesh and bones of my body. White hot burning pain flares from my hand but I don¡¯t stop. I pour in more and more mana draining my pool to a quarter before the pain subsides. Opening my eyes I see my hand still glows an arctic blue. Almost too scared to do it I let go of the fingers. Expecting them to fall as I do so. Instead the fingers stay standing on the stubs. The light fades completely revealing that each finger has a circular scar from where they were chopped off. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. I flex my hand feeling my fingers respond. They bend and curl as if nothing had happened. Rubbing my thumb against them I can still feel with them. I feel tears well up in my eyes as I realize I got my hand back. ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Decker asks. His eyes bulge in amazement as he studies my five fingered hand. He reaches out tentatively touching the reattached digits. ¡°Magic. Heals. But it costs a lot. And it hurts.¡± I say My words come out stilted as pain still flairs in my chest. Closing my eyes I focus on my internal anatomy. Thirteen ribs sit broken while two others are fractured. Some vessels in my body are broken spilling blood where it doesn¡¯t belong. In all honesty I¡¯m surprised I¡¯m alive let alone conscious. I focus on the bleeding letting the mana pour out of the channels into my body. I watch as the energy clots blood, mends the broken and torn blood vessels and then dissipates. Leaving blood still outside of my circulatory system but I¡¯m no longer bleeding and breathing feels slightly easier. The tingle in the back of my mind gives me the sensation that I¡¯m not going to die anymore. At least not immediately. ¡°You just did it again didn¡¯t you? Can you heal me?¡± Decker asks. Regrettably I shake my head. ¡°From what I can tell I¡¯m just speeding up my natural healing. And still it took all I had to reattach the fingers and stop some internal bleeding. I still have broken ribs.¡± ¡°So you can¡¯t heal others?¡± He asks. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I haven¡¯t tried. But I don¡¯t think I can. I need to be able to feel inside of myself and know where the damage is. Then I flood that spot with enough mana to heal faster.¡± ¡°Fascinating.¡± He says. He moves over to sit next to me facing the large hole in the wall opposite to us. His breathing sounds even as we sit in silence. Regaining our strength and thinking over what just happened. ¡°The more time passes on the more dangerous this place is going to get.¡± Decker says. I nod my head. ¡°We need to figure out what¡¯s going on. The zombies, the magic, everything. We need more answers. I mean the name for this one changed. Have you ever seen anything other than just a zombie?¡± I hadn¡¯t and shook my head to show him that I¡¯m listening. I wholeheartedly agree with him. But I have no clue how to go about figuring this all out. I¡¯m barely able to keep myself alive. ¡°Can you access that building management screen from here?¡± He asks. I mentaly think Safe Zone bringing up the large blue screen from before. However this time most features seem greyed out. I maneuver the map of the building or access any of the building¡¯s stats. However I can still browse the store on the right side. ¡°Yeah I can see it.¡± ¡°Earlier you mentioned there was a pencil mark next to your name right?¡± I nod, eyeing the mark. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s possible to assign ownership to someone else?¡± He asks. Unsure I menatly focus on the pencil mark.
Do you wish to assign Ownership of your Safezone?
Yes/No
Thinking it over I only see one logical thing to do. I have no clue how to manage the building. What we¡¯ll need or not need. But Decker, he has experience. He¡¯s been leading us ever since I found him. If anyone should be the owner of the Zone it should be him. I mean isn¡¯t that part of the reason I was so ready to die to protect him? And to add to that this man actually listens to me. He treats me better than anyone in my life has. I mentally check the yes mark. Another blue screen appears in my vision.This one asking me to designate the new owner. I look over at Decker and mentally select him. His name fills in black space and then the screen fades slightly with grey lettering covering it saying ¡®waiting¡­¡¯. ¡°Are you sure kid?¡± Decker asks. His gaze focuses on a screen just before him. His eyes move from the invisible screen in front of him to me. ¡°Yeah. Besides, you''re already like the leader. And I think you¡¯ll be able to utilize it better than me.¡± I say A smile breaks across his face. ¡°I won¡¯t disappoint you kid.¡± He pats my shoulder while focusing back on the screen before him. Then the greyed out screen before me disappears. In its place a new message waits.
Ownership successfully assigned.
Decker¡¯s eyes glaze over as we continue to rest. I can feel the ambient mana inside of me already trying to mend my bones. It¡¯s like hundreds of fire ants are crawling through my chest. ¡°We should probably try getting back. It¡¯s dangerous out here.¡± Decker says I nod my head while standing up. The movement almost causes me to black out. Despite being out of the woods I still have broken ribs and lost blood. Looking down at Decker I see concern in his eyes. His empathy for me only hardens my resolve to make sure he doesn¡¯t die. He stands and yanks the sword from the zombie''s skull. He wipes the silver blade clean of the blood and puts it back in the scabbard attached to his waist. He undoes the binding holding the scabbard to his belt and then uses the sword as a cane. I grab my tire iron and strap it back to my utility belt. Then We hobble down the flight of stairs and into the kitchen. Once in the kitchen I get that strange tingling sensation in the back of my mind. My eyes gaze across the room landing on the door to the walk in fridge. Something about the door draws me to it. Be it curiosity or that insistent whispering in my mind. I hobble to the door, placing my hand on the handle. I look at Decker, requesting permission to open the fridge. He gives me a nod but his eyes scream to be on full alert. So I slowly pull on the handle releasing the latch that keeps the door closed. The door cracks open a hair letting out a gust of cool air. On top of the cool air is the musty scent of urine. Looking through the crack I see multiple figures shifting around in the darkness. Scared to know what the figures are, I conjure a floating orb to illuminate the darkness. Twelve people flinch collectively at the light. All pressed in on each other and watching the door in fear. ¡°Holly crap.¡± I say, surprised to find so many people. ¡°They¡¯re alive?¡± Decker asks. Chapter 25 The people in the freezer scream in what I can only assume to be fear and shock. I take a weak step back expecting them to attack. My movement seems to only heighten their fear as they recoil further into the freezer. ¡°Don¡¯t worry we¡¯re not the undead.¡± Decker says in a calm voice. The screams die down as the group realize that we haven¡¯t attacked them yet. And furthermore we are talking. A short girl stands up from where the group squated. ¡°Is¡­¡± Her words come out weak and horse. Looking closely I realize all of them seem to be shaking not out of just fear. Their skin is a bluish hue and their lips look dried and cracked. Cold air wafts out of the freezer with abundance. The cold draft is strong enough to make me want to shiver too. How long have they been here? ¡°Is it gone?¡± She asks. I can barely hear her words. Her voice comes out raspy and shaky. It¡¯s also broken up by the chattering of her teeth. The dots connect in my head and I put together what happened. The Zombie Butcher was probably one of the chiefs here that had turned. By eating everyone in the restaurant it probably leveled up fast. And these people probably locked themselves in here out of fear. ¡°Yes. We killed it.¡± Decker says. The girl¡¯s shoulders rise as if the weight of the world was finally off of her. A smile cracked her dry lips and I notice a small bit of blood flowing at the corners of them. ¡°Does that mean it¡¯s safe to leave?¡± She asks. Decker shakes his head. ¡°No. The streets are filled with zombies. And I¡¯m sure that there¡¯s more like him out there.¡± Decker says. The girl''s shoulders drop. ¡°Oh.¡± She says Her head drops and I see tears start flowing down her face. ¡°But I have a safe place. If you guys are willing to help out there¡¯s more than enough space.¡± Decker says. Her spirits instantly rise and for a second I imagine her emotions as a yo-yo. Being brought up and down with Decker¡¯s words. She furiously shakes her head in agreement. Then she looks back at the group on the floor. She seems to read something in their eyes as she turns around and addresses Decker. ¡°We¡¯ll come.¡± With that the group slowly makes their way out the freezer. Most of them keep a wide berth from me. I don¡¯t have to question why as even beneath the layers of clothes that I wear the blue glow of mana is evident. Peering into the fridge I notice lots of fresh food, fruits and vegetables lining shelves. Further back is another door that I assume is where they keep the frozen goods. Decker directs the group to grab what boxes of food that they can before leaving. The girl leaves the freezer without anything. Her eyes fall onto me and stay there for a second. Long enough to make me feel uncomfortable. I look away and she continues to a small hallway that I hadn¡¯t noticed before. There are more boxes of food, mostly dried things like rice and beans. She takes a large bag of rice probably weighing around ten pounds. She walks off towards the front door where Decker stands watching over the group of people. When everyone aside of me and Decker has something Decker turns to the outside and beckons me to follow. I shamble forwards nursing my still broken ribs. The group parts around me like I¡¯m infected with something. As I pass through I hear some of the whispering questions about my glowing. Once near the door I extend the small amount of mana out before me. I sense no beings on the block right outside the entrance. I give Decker a small nod before walking out onto the street. The same sense of a heavy fog greets me. Unlike last night however, this fog feels less full of death. Something in me reacts to the fog wanting to pull it in and make it my own. The practically empty lake of mana in me practically growls with hunger. The sensation is very much akin to being hungry. Just in a different way. Like if hunger and thirst were combined. I ignore the sensation, filing it away as something to think about when I¡¯m not weak, exposed, and guiding a group of people to the building. Everett street is clear of any zombie. I take the radio from off my belt, hoping that it wasn¡¯t damaged in the fight. Looking down at it I see that the antena¡¯s tip is broken off. My heart sinks as I worry if that¡¯s going to affect it. I press down on the button and hear the crackle of static. ¡°Open the door.¡± I say ¡°On it.¡± Andy says I turn the corner and see no zombies on the second street either. The door to the kitchen cracks open as Andy¡¯s head pops out. He looks up and down the street like some rat before catching sight of me. With the all clear and knowing that the door is unlocked I motion for the group in the restaurant to follow. They file out of the restaurant and into the street in a single file. They follow me around the corner and start piling into the kitchen. The short girl is the last of the group followed by Decker. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°Who are all these people?¡± Andy asks, watching the group pile in. As he turns his attention form the group of people he spots Decker. Blood cakes Decker¡¯s face and one of his arms hangs uselessly. In all honesty he looks like trash. ¡°Oh God what happened to you?¡± He asks, horrified by the image Decker gives off. ¡°Got in a fight. What do you think?¡± Decker shoots back. A grin spread across his lips revealing bloody teeth. His smile is honestly a little horrifying. But the reaction it inspires in Andy is hilarious. The chubby man stumbles back as the blood drains from his face. ¡°Alright, the kitchen is through that door. The Walk in fridge is to your left. Put everything in there for now.¡± Decker says guiding the people. They do as he asks. As they¡¯re putting away the food Angila appears through the doors that lead to the lobby. ¡°I hear commotion. Is everything alright?¡± She asks. As her eyes fall onto Decker and I, her face drains of color. ¡°Are you guys alright?¡± She asks, rushing to Decker¡¯s side. Her hands gingerly rise to his face. I can see that she wants to baby him but is too scared to. Out of the corner of my eye I notice Andy glaring at Decker and Angila. Does he have a crush on her or something? ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I¡¯ll be fine don¡¯t worry.¡± Decker says brushing away Angila¡¯s hands. He turns his focus to the group of new people, guiding Angilia¡¯s gaze. She only now realizes there¡¯s more people. ¡°Who are they?¡± She asks. ¡°We found them in the restaurant. We should probably give them some water and some time to warm up. Then we should discuss some things. Have them go to the seventh floor and give them as much water as they want.¡± Decker says. With his instructions issued Decker leaves the kitchen. I want to follow him but I don¡¯t want him to see me as a lost puppy. Instead I head to the seventh floor ahead of the others. Once there I take a protein bar from the pile of food and down it. I sit down and close my eyes focusing my attention on my mana pool. A large drop of mana falls into the lake as I finish the protein bar. Adding around three percent of my max. I focus on the process watching as the mana forms from within me. It then falls down like a rain drop into my pool. Causing waves to spread outwards. It¡¯s as if the nutrients or calories that I eat replenish my mana. But that¡¯s not how it usually works in the stories, right? From the stories I read, magic is either an innate talent people have that can do anything or it¡¯s something they can develop and do specific things with. Personally I feel like this isn¡¯t an innate power people just have. Instead it feels like something that needs to be trained and worked on. At those thoughts the tingle in my mind raises its head. Strangely I understand that it¡¯s telling me that I¡¯m on the right track. No words come from it. Just a strange gut feeling that I¡¯m doing something right. Remembering the hunger from the street I try to recreate the sensation. It¡¯s less me forcing the sensation back but remembering that my mana pool was hungry. The sensation returns with a sort of growl from my mana pool. I feel it tugging at the air through all the channels in me. Usually my mana flows out from the lake through my body. The only times mana flows the other direction is when I pull a spell back into me. However, that strange whisper in my mind makes me feel as if I should try pulling that weird fog in the air into my lake. I reach my senses out and find that strange fog in the air. It¡¯s far less dense up here on the seventh floor. But it¡¯s still present. All around me. Slightly pushing in on me like water does when you¡¯re submerged in it. I focus on that pressure that I feel from the fog. I mentaly picture it flowing into me but nothing happens as I focus on pulling in the fog. Trying to figure out where I¡¯m going wrong I focus on the channels stretching along my skin. Starting at the end I command the streams of mana to flow in reverse. It¡¯s sluggish at first but I feel it working. The streams start rolling back in on itself as I feel my mana pool fill a lot faster. As the mana in the channels flow back I feel that fog press in on me even more. Begging to be let in. Somehow on an instinctual level I know how to let in the pressure. Suddenly I feel as if I¡¯m in the center of a tornado with the pressure whipping around me wildly. The energy passes through my skin burning through my mana channels as it does so. The moment that the first bit of energy passes through the barrier of my skin I feel intune with the world around me. I feel insight flood me. I feel at peace. Mana is an abundant energy in the world present all around us and in every being. Having the ability to manipulate mana I can control not just the energy in me but influence the energy around me. However, the energy not in my body isn¡¯t attuned with me. So the most I can do is pull it into me. Imprinting it with my will. As the mana passes through my veins to my core I feel the fire ants in my chest vanish. I feel a rush as the energy passes through me. I feel like I plunged myself into ice after a harsh workout. Inside my mana pool I watch as the light rain becomes a torrential downpour. The energy from the world around me fills up my pool far quicker than what my body can produce from digesting the miniscule amounts of mana in the calories that I eat. ¡°Joel?¡± a voice breaks in through the storm filling my mana pool. Opening my eyes I see Decker standing a few feet from me, sword pointed to me. Behind him Andy has a weird smile cracked across his face as he holds his bat between us. The other people cowere behind Angila who has a spinning ball of mana floating in front of her outstretched hand. Is their fear directed at me? Looking down I see black veins criss crossing my exposed skin. Panic instantly rises in my chest. Am I becoming a zombie? Did I get scratched or anything in the last fight? Thinking back to it I did just stick my fingers back onto their stubs. I didn¡¯t take the time to sanitize the wounds or anything. And if all my mana does is hasten my natural healing then it¡¯s totally possible I got whatever makes a person a zombie in me. Fuck I don¡¯t want to be a zombie. ¡°Kid what¡¯s going on?¡± Decker asks. His sword no longer looks so cool when it¡¯s pointed at you. It¡¯s actually pretty scary. The silver coldness of the blade gives me a chill. Looking down at myself again I see that the veins are fading fast as a glowing blue light fills them. Hope rises in me as I desperately try to justify what¡¯s happening to me. ¡°I¡¯m not dead.¡± I blurt out. My arms rise in front of me as my proof. ¡°Look, it was just my mana. See.¡± I say hoping that Decker would understand. My eyes look into his eyes as I silently plead him to believe me. The black on my skin completely vanishes revealing only the blue glow of my mana being channeled. ¡°Stop using mana and let us see.¡± Decker says. It takes a second to force my body to calm down and let the mana settle. My skin returns to it¡¯s normal pale look with no glowing or black veins. Decker watches me for what feels like an eternity before relaxing. His sword lowers and I read relief in his eyes. ¡°What was that kid?¡± He asks. Chapter 26 I explain to Decker how I was replenishing my mana and how it¡¯s all around us. As my words drag on I see him relax more and more as behind his eyes ideas start spinning out of control. When I finish his sword is in its scabbard and Angila no longer has a Rifle Round trained on me. Andy on the other hand still holds his bat in front of him. As if it¡¯s protecting him from some monster. ¡°How can we be sure he isn¡¯t turning into one of those things?¡± Andy asks when silence falls. ¡°If he gets the screen above his head labeling him as a zombie then we¡¯ll worry about him being a zombie. For now I don¡¯t see anything wrong with him.¡± Decker says, rubbing his chin in thought. Andy¡¯s eyes burn with annoyance at Decker and me. Watching him get so bent out of shape around Decker and I, makes me wonder what we did to him. If anything he should be thankful to us. Decker tells the new group to find a seat as Andy and Agila make their way to their booths. Once everyone is sitting Decker is the only one who is remaining standing. He places his sword before him with both hands on the hilt. At his stance I realize he¡¯s moving the previously useless arm. How did he fix it? ¡°A lot has happened in such a short amount of time. We all have questions and we need to figure out how we¡¯re going to be moving forwards. First of all I¡¯m Matthew Decker but I go by Decker. I was a board member in this building before the apocalypse. The boy sitting over there is Joel. The guy with the bat is Andy and the woman that can conjure those lights like Joel is Angila. We all were working in this building before the earthquake. Who are you guys?¡± Decker says. The people from the new group all look at one another, unsure of who''s going to go first. Like in the fridge the short girl is the first to stand. Something about her seems familiar and causes that strange tickle in the back of my mind to flare up. ¡°I¡¯m Abigail Muller. I was working on becoming a chief when everything went down. I woke up to see my boss eating another coworker. We panicked when he turned his attention to another person and locked ourselves in the fridge. The only time we tried to leave we lost four people to him..¡± Her words trail off as tears start falling down her face. ¡°It¡¯s okay Joel and I made sure that he won¡¯t be getting back up.¡± Decker says. A guy in the group stands and introduces himself as Kenny, a waiter for the restaurant. Then one by one the people from the group stand and introduce themselves. Out of the twelve there are five girls and seven men. Most of them are either waiters or kitchen staff. With one person, Adam, being the closing shift manager. ¡°So how much do you guys know about what¡¯s going on?¡± Decker asks. Their silence answers Decker¡¯s question as he takes a moment to organize his thoughts. ¡°Alright so you all have seen Joel and Angila conjure those blue lights. And have heard us talk about magic like it¡¯s a real thing. That¡¯s because it is. At the start of all of this you guys should have seen a screen called your Personal Stats. If any of you have played any kind of RPG game it¡¯ll look familiar. It¡¯s not a hallucination.¡± Decker eyes the group making sure that they are still listening to him and haven¡¯t dismissed what he¡¯s said as nonsense. ¡°After you gain a level and complete a quest you¡¯ll be given a choice between being a Mage and being a Warrior. Choosing a mage gives you access to magic. Can you demonstrate Joel?¡± At his request I draw on my pool letting a ball of mana float above my hand. I take a second and manipulate the orb into a string that I send spinning around my head. Then I make it take the shape of a goldfish and swim around me. ¡°That blue light has the ability to fight back against the zombies. We don¡¯t fully understand it as demonstrated only moments ago when Joel was covered in those black lines. Choosing to be a Warrior is different. It¡¯s hard to explain but to put it simply I think it lets you push your body to its maximum output. So you can run faster and hit harder essentially.¡± To demonstrate his words Decker grabs three cups of water. He stands still for a second before throwing the water into the air. Three globs of water spread out but before they could hit the ceiling or fall back to the ground Decker swipes through the air impossibly fast. The globs of water vanish leaving Decker holding three full cups of water. At his display of incredible speed the group gasps. Not even a week ago what he had just done would have been impossible. But now the super human is capable and within our grasp. From mana to the speed the Warriors possess the world has changed and what we define as within human capabilities has changed with it. ¡°Are you saying we can do that too?¡± Abigail asks. ¡°Yes. The zombies roaming the streets aren¡¯t the only thing that¡¯s changed. If you still don¡¯t believe me think personal stats or stat screen or something else along those lines. A blue window should appear in front of you giving you numerical values to things like your strength and intelligence. By killing the zombies you can level up and increase those attributes. Becoming super strong or more intelligent.¡± Decker lets his words hang in the air for a while. Letting the new people process what they¡¯ve heard. To try and come to terms with it. ¡°The world has changed. We have to change with it or we¡¯ll die. We won¡¯t be able to lock ourselves into this building. We¡¯ll need to go out there to scavenge for resources.¡± ¡°So are you going to force us out there into that mess? Are you going to send us to die?¡± Herolt, a person from the restaurant, interrupts Decker. ¡°No, I won¡¯t force you guys to do anything. However, if you can¡¯t contribute in some meaningful way then I can¡¯t waste too many resources on you.¡± ¡°Who said you¡¯re the one that gets to be in charge?¡± Dave, another person from the restaurant asks. ¡°I invited you guys back here because I and the three others here worked hard to clear this building. To make it safe. I didn¡¯t have to but I think everyone one deserves a fighting chance at survival. But if you aren¡¯t willing to see that you¡¯re a guest then you can leave. If you want to stay then you need to contribute and you need to be willing to listen to me.¡± The hair on the back of my neck rises as Decker¡¯s voice lowers. I¡¯ve seen him get serious during combat and it¡¯s scary but there¡¯s something about the current Decker that truly frightens me. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. His words make sense and I agree with his message but the tone in his voice reminds me of my father. ¡°Like I said, I won''t make you guys do anything. Helping us collect the food from the restaurant has earned you guys a few nights stay here along with some rations. However, if you¡¯re unwilling to contribute I can¡¯t waste food or water on you when others are willing to work towards the group''s survival.¡± He again lets his words sink in. ¡°What about our families?¡± Abigail asks. ¡°In all honesty I don¡¯t know. They could be alive, they could be dead. If you want you can try and go back home. I¡¯ll give you two days worth of food. If you find them and they¡¯re in good health and are willing to help contribute to the groups survival they¡¯re more then welcomed here.¡± Decker answers. ¡°The world has changed. Survival is no longer working a nine to five to earn enough money to keep food on the table. Survival is now about life or death fights and scavenging for resources. You guys choose what you want. If you choose to help the group then we¡¯ll help you. We¡¯ll let you unlock your class and show you how to use it.¡± A silence falls on the group. ¡°I won¡¯t make you choose now. But by tomorrow night I expect an answer from everyone. If you stay you help. If you don¡¯t want to help then you¡¯ll have to fend for yourself.¡± ¡°Are you saying you¡¯d let us die of thirst or hunger if we don¡¯t do what you tell us to?¡± A woman named Halley asks. ¡°I don¡¯t have the resources to feed everyone indefinitely. And even if I did, how would it be fair to the people going outside risking their lives everyday to bring the food back so you can laze around in the safety of these walls.¡± ¡°This is slavery isn¡¯t it?¡± A man named Chris asks. ¡°You guys are free to do as you like. I am free to decide who can and can¡¯t stay here along with who is worthy of resources.¡± A few among the group grumble at this. Surprisingly I don¡¯t read any irritation in Decker. All he¡¯s asking for is for people to pull their weight yet they still act like spoiled kids. ¡°Here¡¯s the bottom line. You pull your weight and you can eat and sleep here. You don¡¯t then you don¡¯t get to eat. If you have a problem with that then leave.¡± Decker says. He jams the sword into the ground creating a thud to accentuate his point. He then turns from the group to me and beckons me to follow him. ¡°There¡¯s some things I¡¯d like to discuss with you.¡± He says addressing me. We leave the group behind and head up to the roof. Once the door closes behind us I see Decker¡¯s body relax as he flops into one of the chairs set up here. Silence falls over us as Decker rubs the shoulder of his previously bad arm. Reminding me that he was using it again. ¡°How did you get your arm working again?¡± I ask, unable to stop the question from coming out. He looks at me in surprise and for a second I worry that I¡¯ve upset him. ¡°I think that¡¯s the first time you spoke to me without being spoken to.¡± He says. ¡°My arm was just dislocated. All I had to do was pop my shoulder back into the socket. Hurts like a bitch and it¡¯s going to be sore for a while but at least I can use it again.¡± He finishes with a smile. His smile feels infectious as my face breaks into one too. ¡°Can I see your hand? I doubt I¡¯ll be able to heal your injuries but that doesn¡¯t mean I shouldn¡¯t try, right?¡± I ask. ¡°Go for it kid.¡± He says. I take his offered hand and close my eyes trying to get a feel for his body. I feel the mana channels in my body and through them I feel my own internal anatomy. But when I try to extend my view into Decker all I see is darkness. Even after emitting mana into the air all I can picture is the outline of Decker. With a sigh I let go of his hand. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I didn¡¯t think it¡¯d work.¡± He says. ¡°Besides that¡¯s not why I brought you up here.¡± ¡°Then why did you bring me up here?¡± ¡°I wanted to talk about the Safe Zone management screen. When you went through it did you notice the countdown?¡± I shake my head. ¡°What countdown?¡± ¡°At the top above the name of the zone is a countdown in red letters. I was hoping you knew what it was counting towards.¡± ¡°Is there anything you can make the screen visible?¡± In some games you¡¯re able to share your personal stats and other information. If the world is truly working on game logic then it might be possible. Decker sits for a second, his gaze glossy and focused on the air in front of him. Then a blue screen appears in front of him blocking my view of his face. Another screen pops up above his head.
Warrior
Level: 10
Hp 100/100
My eyes break away from his name tag to the familiar screen in front of him. As he said at the top above the name of the Safe Zone is a count down numbering 393 H, 51 M, 32 S. As time passes the last digit drops to 31 then 30 and continues with each passing second. ¡°How long until it reaches zero?¡± I ask. ¡°Just about seventeen days.¡± Decker says. ¡°Is some holiday coming up in seventeen days?¡± ¡°As far as I know, no.¡± My mind races for ideas on what it could be counting down to. Thinking about it causes the tickle in my mind to flair up. ¡°Whatever it¡¯s counting down to, it''s not good.¡± I say without thinking. ¡°What makes you say that?¡± Decker asks. He looks at me questioningly. ¡°Intuition I think.¡± I offer. He accepts my answer and returns to staring at the management screen. ¡°Either way I don¡¯t think we should leave this building and try to find another. We should build it up to be ready for anything. And in order to do that we are going to need more Kill Points and more levels.¡± He says. The screen vanishes as he turns his full attention to me. ¡°I have to ask you. Are you willing to leave this building every day hunting zombies and scavenging for resources?¡± As I register his words I¡¯m filled with a sense of gratitude for the man before me. He¡¯s saved my life and places his trust in me. How can I say no to him? He¡¯s the first person in my life that I¡¯ve felt like I can trust. And he¡¯s asking me for my help. The choice seems pretty easy to me to make. ¡°Absolutely.¡± I answer without hesitation. Chapter 27 A smile breaks across Decker¡¯s face. He stands placing his warm hand on my shoulder. ¡°I knew I could count on you. However strong you are, I don''t want you out there alone. Hopefully some of the others choose to help. At the least we should try and give the opportunity to get a class.¡± He turns around looking out at the city. An air of uncertainty spills out from him as he gazes at the city. Like in every apocalyptic movie pillars of smoke rise high into the sky. ¡°I don¡¯t know what''s out there and I don¡¯t know what the best thing to do is. But I do know that we can¡¯t sit idly by. With every passing moment the zombies have the ability to get stronger. It¡¯s going to boil down to them or us.¡± He says. ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Long term. Either the living will eradicate the dead or the dead will consume humanity. Until that moment the most we can do is take out as many as we can and survive.¡± Thinking it over I see his logic. Both sides grow stronger from killing the other. While the zombies have the advantage of growing their numbers at the same time as their strength. We living people have the advantage of critical thinking. The zombie Butcher was smarter than any other zombie but at most it was just an animal. ¡°So for now what do you want me to do?¡± I ask. ¡°For now, heal up. Rest and recuperate. Tomorrow night we¡¯ll see how many people want to stay. Out of those we¡¯ll find out who''s willing to be part of your scavenging party.¡± ¡°What if they don¡¯t want to be?¡± ¡°Well there¡¯s a lot to do in the building. We¡¯re going to need to remove all the rotting bodies. That¡¯s going to take a few days at least with that group of twelve. Then we¡¯ll need to remodel some of the floors into living spaces and such. We need to figure out a way to cook food. Along with other things. Lots of jobs for people to do. Sadly I don¡¯t see all of them being willing to do them.¡± ¡°Sounds like a plan.¡± I say ¡°On another note. How late do you think you can stay up?¡± ¡°Probably all night if I push myself. I¡¯m used to being awake at night anyways. Why?¡± ¡°I think I want someone I trust watching the food tonight. I don¡¯t know if anything will happen but I¡¯m worried about the new people. Some of them may try to run off with more food than we can spare. And you and I didn¡¯t nearly die for nothing.¡± My heart flutters at the idea that he trusts me. I agree to stand guard for the night and Decker leaves me on the roof. I sit down alone letting the breeze wash over me. It¡¯s chilly up here reminding me that fall is around the corner. Closing my eyes I pull in the mana from the air around me. As I do so I realize that there¡¯s less ambient mana up here but it feels lighter, burning less as it passes into me. The energy circulates around me as it flows into me. It slowly fills the pool in my core as I sit there. I feel at peace. The air around me shifts as I hear the flapping of wings. I open my eyes to see a crow land on the ledge of the building. It turns around with a few hops and stares at me. Bright electric blue eyes meet mine as the bird faces me. My brows furrow as I stare into the eyes of the large crow. A level of intelligence stares back through the strange colored eyes of the crow. As I focus on the creature a blue box appears above it.
Raven
Level: 3
Hp: 10/10
Oh so this is a raven. Does that mean the blue eyes are natural? The tingle in my mind rings off making me feel like it¡¯s not. So this little guy is a level three. Does that mean other animals can gain levels too? The idea of a level 20 wolf sends a shiver down my back. Given enough time zombies might not be our only issue to worry about. I should tell Decker about this. I cautiously turn my attention away from the large bird. I start pulling mana back into me wanting to refill my pool. After a few moments I feel the mana in the air change. Instead of fumbling towards me part of it glides off away from me. Opening my eyes I see a strange glow coming form underneath the feathers of the bird. I watch in shock and awe as the mana in the air slowly funnels towards the creature. As if it senses me watching it, it opens its eyes and caws at me. It almost sounds annoyed as if I just interrupted it. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I offer it. The bird nods and returns to drawing mana in. My mind races with ideas as I watch the bird. So not only can animals level up but some even have access to mana. Animals are going to be so much more dangerous in the future I can¡¯t even imagine. The food chain is probably crumbling in ecosystems around the world at this very moment. Animals eating each other gaining levels and strength. Do they get to distribute Attribute Points like we humans do? Do zombies? So many questions and never any answers. The tingle in my head rests silently as I contemplate the animal before me. After a few moments I decide that it¡¯s no use thinking about animals leveling up right now. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m playing a video game where days pass by in minutes. Only time will tell me how much the world has changed. I close my eyes and focus on my own mana pool. The energy in the air flows into me as I do so. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. I open my eyes when my mana pool is completely full and see that a few hours have passed. The sun has already begun to set behind the horizon. I groan as I stretch out feeling pain blossom in my chest as I do so. A caw stops me as the raven in front of me looks annoyed again. It spreads it¡¯s large wings and soars off into the sky. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I call out to it. I hear a door swing open and footsteps slap against the concrete floor of the roof. Turning around I see my eyes fall on to green ones. That Abigail girl slowly walks up to me and I get the feeling that I know her. She stops a few paces away from me. A sweet smile plastered on her cute face. A white chef''s jacket covers her torso hiding most of her small frame. Brown hair is let down reaching to just above her shoulders. ¡°Joel right?¡± She asks after our eyes meet. ¡°Yeah. And you¡¯re Abigail?¡± ¡°You can call me Abby.¡± ¡°Alright Abby. What are you doing up here?¡± ¡°Waiting to ask you something.¡± ¡°And that is?¡± ¡°Did you go to Applewood Middle School?¡± Her question catches me off guard as she¡¯s correct and I had expected her to ask about magic or something. While it¡¯s not uncommon for people to know of my hometown, few rarely know it by name, let alone the name of it¡¯s schools. I nod hesitantly but curious as to what she¡¯s getting at. ¡°Did you have Mrs. Fawley for fifth grade homeroom?¡± Again she¡¯s correct and I scour my memories for any girl that looked like her. I nod again slowly. ¡°How do you know?¡± She jumps up, startling me. She pumps her fists into the air and lets out a giggle that sounds as sweet as bubble gum tastes. ¡°It¡¯s me Abby! I sat across from you for like half of the year. I had blue hair back then and wore glasses instead of contacts.¡± She lists off excitedly. Her words finally jog my memory as I picture the mousy little girl with blue hair and large glasses that made her eyes look tiny. We sat across each other for half the year but rarely spoke to one another. However, we were the only two kids in the class who didn¡¯t really have a group of friends. ¡°Jesus, what are the odds?¡± I ask. Her excitement is infectious as I feel my heart race at the idea. Out of all the people to be stuck in that freezer and out of all the people to open it, it was us. ¡°What happened to you?¡± I ask. ¡°Lots of things. I moved away that summer and came here. After school I was working my way through culinary school. What about you?¡± ¡°I stayed in Applewood until I graduated. Then I moved here and started working as a security guard. Who would have imagined that we have been working across the street from one another for who knows how long.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve changed so much. Your eyes aren¡¯t glued to the ground any more. And you¡¯re a lot taller than I remember you being.¡± She says while laughing. ¡°Yeah a lot has happened since middle school. I mean you aren¡¯t a blue haired mouse anymore.¡± I say We both laugh. Once our laughter dies down an awkward silence falls us. Despite having lots of things we can talk about, our conversation seems to have ended. Looking at her I see that she has something she wants to say. ¡°Is everything alright?¡± I ask. Then it¡¯s like someone flicked a light switch. The glee on her face only a moment ago disappears, replaced by a sad little girl. Tears well up in her eyes as her head falls. ¡°I don¡¯t even know how to unpack that question.¡± She says followed by a sad chuckle. ¡°The world has ended hasn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Yeah. At least the one we knew.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you seem more sad about all of this?¡± She asks I take a second to think over her question. ¡°The way I see it, the world hasn¡¯t ended. We are still here. All it¡¯s done is change. Sure there¡¯s a lot of death in the world but that¡¯s just how life goes isn¡¯t it? Just now that death is at our doorstep and wants to eat us. I can either sit here and cry about it or I can try and do something about it. I recently decided to stop sitting around letting life pass me by. So I¡¯m doing something about it. I¡¯m fighting back against the zombies. I don¡¯t know. I feel like I¡¯m rambling at this point.¡± My words trail off as I feel like I¡¯ve wandered too far away from the topic. Honestly I don¡¯t know why I¡¯m not that upset. Just about everyone I knew beforehand is probably dead. But then again I didn¡¯t really have anyone that I cared about. No friends. No family. I was alone. ¡°What about your family? Aren¡¯t you concerned about them?¡± She asks. Her words bring forth a rage in me that I¡¯ve spent my whole life repressing. Memories of my father and mother flood me. Very few of them are good. ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about it.¡± I say. She takes in my words. She turns out to the setting sun. ¡°I¡¯m deathly worried about my family. My mom live across the river in Washington and my dad lives only a few blocks away. But those few blocks seem impossible to cross. I¡¯d love to try and go see them. To make sure that they¡¯re okay. But I don¡¯t have the means to protect myself or get there.¡± Her words fly into the air leaving us in silence once again. I watch as the last rays of sunlight sink below the horizon, finally bringing about night. Turning in the opposite direction I see the last sliver of the waning moon rise above the horizon. ¡°Can you teach me?¡± Abby''s voice breaks through the silence. Turning back to her I see the tears gone from her face. In its place resolve and determination. ¡°Teach you what?¡± ¡°To fight with magic?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ve just been doing whatever I can to survive. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m Decker who knows how to actually fight. Are you sure you want to be asking me?¡± ¡°Deadly. I want the power to fight back. I don¡¯t just want to be holded up in a freezer. I want my freedom back. And as you can see I don¡¯t have the body to fight hand to hand.¡± Something in her words resonate with me. When I first faced down a zombie I was imprisoned in fear and ran. The second time something in me changed as the desire for freedom and the ability to reinvent myself flourished in me. ¡°If that¡¯s what you want.¡± ¡°Promise me.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Promise me that you¡¯ll teach me.¡± I feel a flicker of annoyance build in me. Does she not believe me when I say that I will? ¡°Fine, I promise to teach you to fight with magic.¡± My words elicit a cute smile from her that dissolves the annoyance immediately. She thanks me and gives me another beaming bright smile. Chapter 28 After agreeing to teach Abby what I know about mana she leaves me alone on the roof once again. I stay for a moment watching the dead city. After not seeing anything I head back inside. I make my way down to the kitchen where I find Decker yawning. ¡°Ah Joel you made it. I was wondering if you forgot.¡± He says. He smiles at me letting me know that he wasn¡¯t upset with me. ¡°Sorry I was distracted by Abby?¡± ¡°Abby?¡± ¡°Abigail. The small girl that first spoke to us in the freezer.¡± ¡°Ah. What did she want?¡± I explain how she and I are old classmates and that she wanted me to teach her how to use magic. ¡°Do you think she¡¯s willing to join your scavenging party?¡± ¡°Probably. But I don¡¯t want to say yes for sure yet.¡± ¡°Either way she¡¯s going to have to leave the safety of the building to level up and become a mage. How do you feel?¡± ¡°My ribs are still broken but I should have enough mana to fix that now. Not tired at all, restoring my mana leaves me feeling refreshed. Like I had just woken up from a good nap.¡± I say. ¡°Damn. The more I learn about your class the more I feel like I chose the wrong one.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know sir. I feel like there¡¯s a lot more to this system.¡± ¡°Yeah you¡¯re probably right. I mean this Safe Zone Management screen literally lets you create matter from nothing. And it has some really interesting things that I can purchase. For 1000 points I can get a grimoire from the mages quarter section. Do you know what that would do?¡± I shake my head. Usually grimoire are tools to either record spells and rituals or to learn them. And I tell Decker as much. ¡°Yeah that¡¯s what I figured. That¡¯s not the most interesting thing though. There¡¯s crystals that I can purchase for a decent amount of points that can convert mana into different matter. I think that¡¯s going to be one of the first things we should work towards. If it works like it claims to then we might be able to get to the point where we are fighting each day for scraps.¡± His eyes dance with excitement as he reads over the invisible screen in front of him. Another yawn escapes his mouth making me realize just how tired he is. He doesn¡¯t have the luxury of healing injuries like I do. He¡¯s probably in a lot of pain and dead tired from the activities of today. ¡°Alright I¡¯m going to head up the stairs and get in a quick nap.¡± He says. He starts walking towards the exit of the kitchen. As I watch him leave the tickle in my mind flares up reminding me about the raven. ¡°He before you go.¡± He turns around. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°I saw a level 3 raven up on the roof. And I¡¯m pretty sure it could use magic.¡± His eyes widened at my words. He turns his gaze to the floor as I watch ideas race behind his eyes. ¡°That¡¯s going to be an issue. Don¡¯t tell anyone yet.¡± He says ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯m going to head upstairs. I have a lot to think over.¡± He says. With that he leaves me alone in the kitchen. I take a seat in front of the fridge and turn my focus inside of me. Fire ants still buzz in my chest as my mana naturally tries to hasten my healing process. I pull forth more mana slowly applying it to the bones causing them to burn as if on fire. Instead of trying to flash heal them I focus on the process happening inside of me. A strange substance forms in between the bones connecting them. As the mana burns and fizzles around the wounds the bone grows from the outside connecting the bones together. Then I feel the bone continue healing into itself replacing the strange substance that connected the bones. The mana itself seems to energize my cells, either providing the energy needed or the materials. Or a mix of both. Whatever it is, it''s fascinating to watch. It takes nearly all of my mana to completely heal all of my ribs. Some of them snap into their rightful place causing some more internal bleeding that I have to take care of. With my bones healed I scan over the rest of my body and find nothing else wrong. I spend the next few hours filling my mana pool back up. There¡¯s definitely more ambient mana down here but it hurts more when I pull it into myself. As if my body is burning off impurities in the ambient mana. The first time I cultivated mana I had gained a strange insight into what it is. It was as if the mana being drawn into me carried the information with it and I just so happened to hear it. It was as if that whisper tingling sensation in the back of my mind was brought to the forefront. A theory begins to take shape in my mind on why I¡¯ve been having that annoying tickling sensation. With mana being present throughout the world and me being sensitive to it then what if I can read it. That tickling sensation may be the mana speaking to me and I¡¯m sensitive enough to feel it. When I cultivate I¡¯m not hearing whispers because the mana from the world is flowing directly into me, not just surrounding me. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. It¡¯s like the barrier that prevents mana from entering me or escaping me is a door that I can open one way or the other. And when I get that tickling sensation it¡¯s because I can hear the words of the mana around me but It¡¯s muffled. At least that¡¯s the best idea I can come up with for my new found intuition. Hours pass as I go over everything I know about the system and mana. Trying to puzzle out everything. At multiple points I wish I had something to write all my theories down on. I debate going up stairs to look for something I can write in but decide against it. If Decker is worried that someone may steal the food or try to sabotage it then I want to be here. To not sully the trust and kindness he¡¯s shown me. My eyes begin to grow heavy as not for the first time I wonder how much time has passed. I feel sleepiness pressing in on the edges of my consciousness. However, I push back on it, denying myself the sweetness of sleep. Ever since I moved to the city I¡¯ve been working night shifts. It was hard at first switching over to being nocturnal but the pay was better. It let me keep up with rent and buy a cheap car. Trying to keep myself awake I pull up my stat screen to have something to read.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 10
Level: 14 DEX: 6
To Next Level 779/800 AGI: 7
Sex: Male END: 12
Age: 19 INT: 55
Class: Mage WIS: 11
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
Mana 120/120 PER: 8
WIL: 6
Free Attribute points: 12
Reading through the screen I take note of the free Attribute Points and my new level. A piece of me wants to use up all of the Attribute Points as it feels like they¡¯re burning a hole through my pocket. I quell that piece of me as I try to figure out what to do. There¡¯s still so much we don¡¯t know about the system and using the Attribute Points feels wrong. I can¡¯t redistribute them so everything is permanent. What if I learn that mana can be converted to like fire or something and I need more Willpower or something. If I waste all of them now I won¡¯t have any later when I need them. On the other hand I need more strength now. How many other ways could the fight against the Zombie Butcher have gone if I could have summoned more mana quicker. Or if I had more to play with. Or if I was faster, stronger, and so many other things. Using the attribute points can be wasteful. But not using them could be deadly. I made the decision to spend a few and keep some in reserve. With my mind made up I reread all the descriptions of the attributes trying to decipher how I should build myself. After reading through it a few attributes stick out to me. Wisdom will let me gain insight into information so it might make me more intune with mana. Possibly even boosting my mana recovery rate. Another one that stands out is my Willpower. While a little vague, the tickle in the back of my mind sounds off when I focus on it. Maybe it¡¯ll let me draw on more mana or control it more finely as I can exert my will over it. Who knows, but I do know that the tingle wants me to invest in it. With that in mind I decide to place four into both attributes bringing my Wisdom to 15 and my Willpower to ten. A shock runs through me as I feel something like a drop of mana enter my brain. It spreads out across the surface sinking deeper and deeper into me. Then I feel another shock in my core as a similar but different flavored piece of mana enters me. The sensations pass in a moment and I¡¯m left breathing deeply. I¡¯ve allocated skill points before and while I had similar reactions before I never felt that. It was like two different colored drops of mana entered me. Mana can alter my body, it speeds up my healing process considerably. So it¡¯d make sense on some level that it can alter other aspects of me. But why did this mana feel like it was colored differently? Where does it come from? Can I make my own different colored mana? Why can I sense it now? So many different questions flood me. Damn I really need to get a book to write things down. There¡¯s so much to think about and consider and I feel too disorganized to figure it out. Part of me wants to add more points into Wisdom to see if I can feel that drop of mana again. Maybe if I get a decent feel for it then I can replicate it. Granted I have no clue how I would go about changing the color of my mana. But maybe that¡¯s why I feel like we¡¯re missing out on so much with magic. If there can be other types of mana or we can change it¡¯s properties then we truly are only scratching the surface of what mana can be used for. Thinking back to it, Decker mentioned some rock that converts Mana into matter. Maybe that¡¯s the trick. That¡¯s how we take full advantage of mana. We find those rocks that can convert it. If other types exist then we could make wands or other constructs to utilize mana better. At that thought I feel my mana pool thrum and the tingle in my mind resonate with it. So if mana likes that idea then how do we get a hold of those rocks? Where can we find them? Thinking over it I think the best lead is the Safe Zone management screen. I hear footsteps in the hall outside of the kitchen. Breaking me from my thoughts. Looking up I watch as the door to the kitchen swings open. I summon an orb to illuminate the dark room and find a grumpy looking Andy. ¡°Decker told me to come get you.¡± He says ¡°Oh alright. Where is he?¡± ¡°Seventh floor.¡± Andy takes a seat in the darkness and I assume that he¡¯s here to guard for the time being. I leave the kitchen and head up the seven flights of stairs. Chapter 29 As I enter the lobby I see sunlight streaming in through the glass doors. Beyond them I see zombies milling around in the street. At the sight of me they moan and start shambling to the doors. Ignoring them as I race up to the seventh floor. There I find Decker in the area that¡¯s become the go to meeting place. Angila and some people from the restaurant sit in the booths. In total I only count eight people, including Angila, sitting down. Decker turns to me as he notices my arrival. A grin splits his face making me feel welcomed here. ¡°Good morning. We were waiting for you.¡± Decker says ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Did you wait long?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. So the people here want access to the class selection. I was hoping you could take them out and help them get their first kills.¡± Decker says. Looking over, I catch Abby''s gaze and remember the promise she made me make to her. I¡¯m willing to help her but looking at the other people I feel as if helping the other six to level up is going to be a headache. ¡°What about weapons for them?¡± I ask. ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about that. We can fashion spears out of the brooms and mops that the janitorial crew used. And in the garage some of the company trucks should have shovels and other tools.¡± Decker says. ¡°I think having such a large group outside is going to be dangerous. Especially if I¡¯m alone.¡± I say. ¡°I figured we¡¯d send only a group of five out at a time. And you won¡¯t be alone, Angila has agreed to help.¡± Decker says. Thinking it over I find no other arguments about helping the people get their first level. With Angila and I being two of the five that leaves three slots for the seven people. I want to take Abby out first leaving two more slots. ¡°Who are we taking out first?¡± I ask ¡°That¡¯s up to you. Take it easy and as soon as all of them have the class option, bring them back and take the other group out.¡± Decker says. ¡°Alright, does anyone want to go first?¡± I ask the group. Abby raises her hand first followed by three others. I randomly pick two and make my way down to the third floor. There we find the storage room for the janitors and find one broom and mop with wooden handles. All the rest are cheap plastic or metals that bend easily. I take the knife off of my belt and hand it to Angila. I ask her to fashion one end of the mop into a point or sorts. Taking the broom I form a tendral of mana imagining it to have a sharp blade on one side. The mana responds faster to my call and I feel that my control over it is better than before. The energy takes on the shape of a scythe. I command it to cut into the wood and feel giddy as I watch the wood be cut into. So either Wisdom or Will Power gives me better control over my mana. As before I raised either I couldn¡¯t make the mana cut into things unless I was rotating it like a saw. Looking back I see the group of two girls and one man just watching me and Angila fashion the wooden poles into spears. Keeping a mental focus on the spear that I¡¯m making, I turn to the group. ¡°Let''s head down to the garage and see if we can find a shovel.¡± I say. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. We walk down to the garage and I guide us to where the company cars are kept. Down on the second level of the garage sits three large trucks in a five spot space labeled ¡°Company Cars¡±. In the bed of the first truck we find a shovel like Decker said there would be. While still fashioning a spear I take the shovel out of the bed of the truck and hand it to the other man in the group, Rabecca. After I turn my focus solely back on the spear. ¡°You''re more assertive than usual.¡± Someone says. Looking back at the group I see Abby staring at me smiling. ¡°Is it because that man gave you a mission?¡± She asks. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Usually your head hangs low and you act like you¡¯re a piece of furniture. But right now you¡¯re standing tall and your head isn¡¯t hanging.¡± That spark of annoyance from earlier flares up. What is she even saying? I don¡¯t act like I¡¯m furniture, I''m just observant. And I don¡¯t hang my head. ¡°I don¡¯t hang my head.¡± I tell her ¡°Oh your face is scary now.¡± She says giggling to herself. Her giggles sound like what I imagine maple syrup to taste, I¡¯ve never had it. The sweetness of it only adds to the annoyance building in me. ¡°I don¡¯t have to teach you to fight.¡± I say. Her giggles instantly stop as a pout crosses her face. ¡°Don¡¯t be mean. You promised.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re being annoying.¡± Her pout deepens and I feel as if I¡¯m looking down at a puppy. ¡°Please teach me. I¡¯ll stop.¡± I sigh as the annoyance dies away in me. ¡°Fine.¡± At the end of our conversation I take a few more seconds to focus on the spear. Pressing my finger against it I feel as if I¡¯ve done as much as I can. Turning to Angila I see her brow furrowed in concentration as she widdles the wood down with the knife. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you using mana?¡± I ask. Angila stops and looks at me blankly. ¡°I tried but it didn''t cut well. I have no idea how you managed.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your Will Power and Wisdom at?¡± Angila¡¯s eyes glaze over as she reads through her stats screen. ¡°My Will Power is four and my Wisdom is eight. Is that low?¡± she asks. Thinking back to my base score I honestly don¡¯t know if they¡¯re considered low or not. I have no clue what the average is. Remembering the first title I got claiming I was four times smarter than the average person must mean that five is average. Unless the system calculates everything in some other way. ¡°I don¡¯t think so but it won¡¯t hurt to put some points into that if you get the chance. For now try imagining a current of mana running around the edge of the blade. Like a chainsaw.¡± I tell her. Her eyes close as blue veins of mana spread over her skin. The blue light coats the blade of my knife and I can feel more than see it¡¯s rotations. Nowhere near as fast as I was with it. She opens her eyes and presses the knife into the wood. The knife glides through the wood like butter shaving chunks off a lot faster than before. In only a few moments she¡¯s dones half of the work she had without the mana. As a group we head towards the lobby as Angila finishes the spear. I hand the spear I worked on to Abby and we waited for Agnilia to finish. Once done she hands the second spear to Kyle, the other member of the group. With everyone armed and ready to hunt I take a final assessment of the group. There¡¯s already two zombies on Everett street beating on the door. If they complete that quest thing by killing a zombie then all we need to do is find one other and this group will have their classes available. I take a second to think of the best way to make it easy for them to kill the zombies. I could always bind them with mana but that drains me quickly. However now that I can cut with my mana then maybe I can paralyze them or something. ¡°Let¡¯s head out the Kitchen entrance. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s safe to head out this way.¡± I tell the group. As we enter the dark windowless hallway to the kitchen I extend my field of mana around me and conjure a light. As we pass through the kitchen I catch sight of Andy. His eyes lock onto mine with scorn and anger. Personally the more I¡¯m around the guy the less I like him. Looking out the glass door I find no zombies in the street. I take out my master key and unlock the door and let the group file out. Once we¡¯re all out I lock the door behind us and I take point with Abby behind me followed by Kyle and then Rabeca. Angila takes up the rear keeping an eye out for any movement. Chapter 30 The two zombies bat futilely on the doors leading to the lobby. I stand at the corner of Second and Everett. Looking east towards the river I see no bodies. Looking west and past the two zombies I see figures a few blocks down. ¡°Alright I¡¯ll go and incapacitate those two. You guys wait here.¡± I whisper. Looking back at the group they all nod in agreement. Trusting that Anglia will keep any surprise zombie at bay I sneak out from around the corner. The closest zombie turns towards me, ceasing it¡¯s beating on the bullet proof glass.
Zombie
Level: 3
HP: 15/15
I stand waving my arms above me to silently get the attention of the other. The second zombie, a level two, stops it¡¯s banging and follows the level 3 with a moan. As the two approach me I summon three Mana Scythes costing me about 30 percent of my mana. When the level three is in range I dart to the side and charge the zombie. One scythe sweeps out at the zombies feet knocking them out from underneath it. My attention turns to the level two as I jump back away from it¡¯s lunge. A smile breaks across my face as I feel adrenaline pumping through me. Looking down on the two zombies I feel like I¡¯m in my element. Like I¡¯m the predator again. I run forwards kicking the level two zombie causing it to fly over onto its back. The attack drains a point of health from the thing. Through my Magical Sonar I sense the level three trying to get back to its feet. I spin on the spot reaching out with a scythe. The blue curved blade of energy snakes out towards the zombie. It rips across the back of the zombie¡¯s neck causing it to fall back to the ground like a puppet that had its strings cut. Returning my focus to the level 2 I find it rolled over onto it¡¯s stomach trying to get it¡¯s feet underneath it. Two of my scythes dig into its calves and pull the thing towards me. Once it¡¯s only a few feet away I send the third scythe cutting through its neck. Through my Magical Sonar I feel the level three¡¯s head moving but it¡¯s body remains motionless. Watching the level two only opening and closing its mouth. It produces an annoying clicking sound but is otherwise harmless. The fight lasted less than eight seconds and after pulling the Mana Scythes back into me I find that I¡¯ve only used seven percent of mana. The few points in Wisdom and Will Power really feels like it¡¯s made a difference in my combat ability. I make a mental note to not neglect my other attributes anymore. Min maxing is not how you should be trying to build yourself in this world. I take a second to scan my surroundings and find no other dangers approaching. I turn to second street and bekon the group of four over to me. They all have their heads peeking around the corner with their mouths open. As they approach I feel embarrassed by their attention. ¡°That was impressive.¡± Abby says. ¡°You have to teach me how to use those blade things.¡± I nod while turning away. ¡°Just stab them in the head until they die or something.¡± I say to the group. Abby stands above the level three, whose health has dropped from fifteen to ten. She looks down at the zombie, who despite being paraalyzed from the neck down is still trying to snap at her. ¡°I hope you find peace in the afterlife.¡± She says She raises the spear I gave her and hesitates. Her eyes focus on the zombie biting nothing but air. She closes her eyes and trusts down with the spear with all her might and a scream. The light above the zombie flashes black after the spear sinks deep into the zombie¡¯s skull with a wet thunk. Abby opens her eyes and they instantly glaze over as some invisible screen obscures her vision. Kyle takes the tip of his spear and brings it down on the other zombie¡¯s head. The bones crack and split as the skin parts from the blow. Chunks of a pale grey and yellow brain oozes out from the wound. The light above it¡¯s head flashes black and vanishes. Kyle¡¯s eyes glaze over as he deals with whatever screen appears before him. ¡°Did you guys get the class choice?¡± I ask. ¡°Yeah there was a screen saying that I completed a quest of gaining one level. Then another screen gave me the choice of a Mage or a Warrior.¡± Abby says. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. ¡°Same for me.¡± Kyle says. ¡°Good but don¡¯t pick just yet. From our experience it can be painful.¡± I say. Abby pouts looking sad at having to wait. Kyle looks at me but then frowns. ¡°The screen won¡¯t disappear.¡± He says. ¡°Shit I forgot about that.¡± I say. ¡°Try to deal with it for now please.¡± Kyle shrugs but Abby looks physically annoyed by my request. I ignore them and look for Rabeca¡¯s kill. Two blocks up the street is a group of four zombies or so. I tell the group to crouch and to try not to make much sound. We skulk up the block stopping when we get to the intersection of Everett and Third street. Looking up and down Third I see figures in the distance on each side. But both groups are at least three blocks away. Figuring it¡¯ll be safe I lead the group away from the block and head towards the intersection of Fifth and Everett. Fourth street holds no individuals close enough to be of concern so we continue our trek to the group. Once we are half a block away I turn back to my little group. ¡°Angila do want to try and take out a few of them?¡± I ask. She looks at me as she thinks it over. Then she nods her head and moves to the front of the group. She stops and summons a Rifle Round. The blue energy humming as the air whips around it. Holding her palm outwards she takes aim at one of the zombies. After a second she mutters something under her breath and the bolt of energy races out across the street. It splashes into a zombie causing a light to flash black above it. The zombie falls to the ground drawing the attention from the other three. They look down at their now actually dead friend and moan. Angila summons another Rifle Rounds and I realize that it takes her slightly longer than it does for me to do the same. I should have her boost Wisdom and see if it speeds up her channeling speed. Looking at the others I know that Abby wants to be a mage too. If I instruct her right I¡¯ll probably be able to figure out how individual Attributes affect the different aspects of using magic. Angila again whispers something under her breath, bringing me back to her assault on the zombies ahead of us. The blue energy races out and again kills a zombie. Leaving only two more. ¡°Leave the last one to me.¡± I whisper to her. She nods as she concentrates on forming another Rifle Round. The energy hums in place. Angila again mutters under her breath and kills the third zombie. I tell the group to hang back as I summon my Mana Scythes. As quietly as I can I race forwards to the last zombie. A blue tendril of energy snakes out from each of my arms as I sprint towards the last zombie. I feel it enter my range and swing out with one of the tendrils. The energy slams into the zombies side knocking it to the ground. It lands on its back causing me to curse mentaly as I had hoped it would land on its face. I run up to the zombie, placing my foot down onto it¡¯s chest. I take the Scythe from my right hand and fashion it into something like a narrow rectangular tipped shovel. It¡¯s arms raise up grabbing at me as it¡¯s mouth clicks trying to bite me. I ignore it¡¯s hands and push down with the mana around my right hand.The energy punches into its skin digging through it¡¯s throat. I feel the energy meet something tough and imagine the edge of my mana rotating like a saw. Blood flies from the wound as I cut through the thing''s spine. It¡¯s health depletes to six by the time I¡¯m done. I draw the energy back into me and take my foot off of the thing. It¡¯s arms drop to the ground but it continues to click it¡¯s teeth. I motion for the group to come over and tell Rebeca to finish it off. As she''s bashes into it Abby taps my shoulder. I turn to her, raising an eyebrow. ¡°Don¡¯t get annoyed.¡± She says Instantly I feel the annoyance in me flair up. ¡°But you''re a total badass.¡± I feel my face heat up at her compliment and close proximity. Trying to figure out how to respond, I stammer out the first thing that comes to my mind. ¡°Why would that annoy me?¡± ¡°You got annoyed earlier when I complimented you on taking charge.¡± The annoyance that was replaced by embarrassment flares up at her comment. ¡°Just be quiet.¡± I tell her Turning away I see the blue above the zombie become a black. Rabeca¡¯s gaze glazes over as she reads something invisible before her. ¡°Alright I got the screen with the choices.¡± She says. ¡°Good then it¡¯s time to head back. Keep an eye out for danger.¡± I say. We turn around and head down Everett towards our building. Leading the group we reach the first intersection. Looking up and down I find nothing close enough to be of much danger. We dart across the intersection and reach the intersection of Third and Everett. Looking to the north I see zombies shambling further away from us. Looking south I see a single zombie enter the intersection of Stone and Third from behind the building. It turns to me and I feel it¡¯s gaze lock on me. It howls in a sharp high pitched tone. Then it sprints towards me. As it gets closer the light above it¡¯s head flashes into view as red. My heart sinks.
Banshee
Level: 20
HP: 100/100
Chapter 31 ¡°GET BACK TO THE OFFICE!¡± I scream. I fish the master key out of my pocket and throw it behind me as I¡¯ve already started to charge the monster. My eyes glance over it¡¯s name tag again and I only have a second to ruminate on the unusual name. This isn¡¯t a zombie. My mana pusles in me as my skin grows hot. I feel as if I¡¯m on fire as I ready for the fight. Two Mana Scythes extend from my arms. The world shrinks as I focus only on the monster. Long white hair flows behind it as completely white skin almost glows under the sunlight. It¡¯s mouth opens revealing sharpened teeth that remind me of a shark. It screams again in that high pitched tone and I wince in pain. Only feet from me I watch as it raises it¡¯s hand ready to strike at me. At the end of it¡¯s hand five impossibly long spider-like fingers stretch out with four inch sharp claws for nails. Behind the red glow of its irises is the song of bloodshed. Bloodlust oozes from its very being. This is definitely not a zombie. It¡¯s hand races down towards me. I barely manage to lean back enough to avoid the blow. It¡¯s fast but it¡¯s not Decker or Zombie Butcher fast. My scythes race out cutting deep grooves into its chest. Black blood sprays from the fresh wound as I kick out, sending it tumbling back. I take quick steps backwards creating space between us. Behind me I sense the others racing towards the office. Out of the corner of my eye I catch Abby looking back at me with fear in her eyes. I block them out and focus on the Banshee in front of me. As it recovers from my attack I summon a High Velocity Round. The blue energy spins so fast that it¡¯s hum is a high pitched whine as it¡¯s body elongates. When the Banshee scrambles back to its feet I let the bolt of energy fly. The Banshee screams louder than ever sending waves of pain through me. Pain explodes in my knees as I fall to the ground. The world fades in and out as my grasp on my consciousness becomes harder to maintain. As I lose focus on my spell I feel it race forwards. My High Velocity Round connects with it¡¯s right eye exploding on impact. The horidious screaming stops as the Banshee reels from my attack. I shake the haze of pain that the scream created. As I do the world snaps back into focus. Looking up I see that half of the Banshee¡¯s face is now a mess of burnt and mangled flesh. Black ooze cakes its face and rolls down it¡¯s body like a sludge. Looking at it¡¯s one good eye I see that it¡¯s no longer just blood lust behind it¡¯s eyes but pure unadulterated hatred. It races forwards and I realize I don¡¯t have the time to reform my Mana Scythes. My hand drops to the tire iron on my belt. Claws flash in front of me and are only stopped from cutting into my shoulder by the shiny metal of my tire iron. It¡¯s nails rake across the metal missing me by a hair''s breadth. It¡¯s other hand races out at me forcing me to back peddle. I¡¯m forced on the defensive as it¡¯s all I can do to prevent it from cutting into me. Instinctually my mana races out over the metal as I cast Mana Saw. The Banshee''s next strike is thrown backwards at the force of my rotating mana. In anger it raises both it¡¯s claws high above it¡¯s head and brings them down. The tingle in the back of my mind screams at me as the claws race down. I abandon throwing the tire iron above me to block the attack and instead dive to my left. The claws slash through the air and their momentum carries them into the asphalt. Deep grooves appear where the claws pass through. I return to my feet and turn back to the thing. It¡¯s one good eye takes a second to spot me to it¡¯s right. In that time I¡¯m able to form another High Velocity Round. The energy whines through the air. It explodes on contact again causing another painful screech. My eyes water as it howls in pain. When the screaming stops I open my eyes and see that I manage to blow the left half of its face off. Revealing ashen colored bone and black ooze dripping from the wound. It whips around trying to see me but both of it¡¯s eyes are vacant holes. I breathe a sigh of relief as I feel a sense of victory wash over me. The Banshee snaps towards my direction causing the air to catch in my throat. Shit did it hear me breath? It screams again in it¡¯s painful high pitch. My hands raise to cover my ears in an attempt to block out that horrid sound. The scream stops, leaving me breathless. I take my hands off of my ears and see blood spotting my palms. Looking up I see the Banshee grinning. Fucking bitch. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it I feel the anger in me rise as my skin grows hot. She¡¯s taking joy in my pain. Like she¡¯s a cat playing with her food before eating it. Well I have a newsflash for her. I¡¯m not fucking prey anymore. I¡¯m the predator. I race to my feet feeling the mana in me pulse. I pull as much energy out of me as I can. Forming four tendrils of energy. With a thought they all take on the shape of scythes as I charge. At the sound of my footsteps the Banshee screams again. Expecting it I scream too. In hope that it¡¯ll help drown out the thing¡¯s retched scream. The pain is deafening and the world blurs but through the pain I focus on my mana. The tendrils lose their shape but I don¡¯t care as I don¡¯t need them to be able to cut. I close the distance between us just as the Banshee runs out of breath. I swipe out with all of the tendrils knocking her over. Her head lands on the ground with a wet smack. I wrap my arm with the tendrils and punch down at the things head. Black ooze sprays out across the asphalt from my atack. A feeling of satisfaction washes over me as I imagine the pain my attack caused it. Standing over the thing I place my foot on it¡¯s chest pinning it to the ground. I uncoil the tendrils and refashion them into scythes. As I do it¡¯s clawed hand snakes out wrapping around my leg. It¡¯s claws digging deep into my skin. Pain flairs from my calf as I feel something wet run down my leg. I grit my teeth pushing past the pain. Fucking bitch. My Mana Scythes race out one after the other cutting deeper and deeper into the thing''s throat. The light above the Banshee¡¯s head flashes as her health drops with each attack. Black ooze covers the street as the Banshee bleeds out from having its head completely cut off. The clawed hand around my leg falls limp onto it¡¯s chest. Through my Magical Sonar I sense my tire iron resting on the ground where I had dropped it. I wrap the mana in the air around it, lifting it and bringing it to my outstretched hand. I take a quick glance at the screen above the Banshee¡¯s head.
Banshee
Level: 20
HP: 28/100
I bring the tire iron up and then slam it down. Black ooze splashes out as the metal caves in her skull, dropping it¡¯s health by 15 points. I bring the ooze covered metal back above me. The tire iron falls down with a wet thunk as the metal caves in more skull revealing the ugly moosh of it¡¯s brain. The red above it¡¯s head flashes black and I feel a wave of victory wash over me.
Banshee
Level: 20
HP: 0/100
PING! PING!
Level Up
Level Up
I turn my attention to the sky as I howl in victory. Even though I fought alone and that the Banshee was six levels higher than me I still beat it. I am the victor. I¡¯m the one that gets to go on living another day. Joy races through me as I feel pride in my growth. I was the stronger predator. A tickling in the back of my mind stops my celebration. I turn around and see a group of zombies racing towards me. The pack numbers are somewhere above twenty and most are above level ten. However, I see no signs of a red light in the horde racing towards me. I calm my nerves as I try to back peddle. I start preparing my long range spells as I do so. My calf screams in pain as I put my weight on the leg. I stumble and almost fall but manage to catch myself. Motion catches my attention through my Magical Sonar as I feel hands and body enter my range. Sparing a look behind me I see a group of fifteen or so low leveled zombies shambling towards me. Taking a quick look around I find that I have zombies pushing in on me from both sides. The office building is to my back with Everett to my right. My mind races as I try to figure out what to do. As long as I don¡¯t get surrounded I should be fine. All I have to do is get down to Second street. With that in mind I turn my focus to the high level group and let loose with a barrage of Rifle Rounds. Behind me I set the Mana Scythes still active into a flurry of attacks. I feel blood and muck splash behind me as I create a blender of swinging scythes to protect my rear. I start taking slow painful steps towards the office hopping that no more high level zombies are brought to me by the horde forming around me. Their moans echo in the street as I feel and watch bodies drop. Within seconds I¡¯ve managed to hobble to the building, and place the building to my back. The two groups merge into one as the scythes now lash out before me in a maelstrom of destruction. Blood coats the sidewalk as zombie after zombie is cut into by my blades. I feel my mana drain with each attack. I stop casting Rifle Round and instead coat my tire iron in mana. The energy blazes to life as I swing out. My scythes start moving on their own as the tingle in my mind grows. I slash out knocking back zombie after zombie. I lose myself in the bloodshed. I forget my surroundings. The zombies become lambs to the slaughter and I their butcher. Blood soaks the streets and sweat drenches me. My lungs burn as they painfully try to pull in more and more air. I feel my mana pool burn away with each swipe of the scythes. Each passing moment takes more and more out of me. I ignore it all. The pain in my leg. The pain in my lungs. The growing hunger from my mana core. None of it matters. But what does matter? Does this fight matter? Why do I even fight? I started hunting the zombies because I want to be a predator. But what is a predator? I always saw my father as a predator. He was strong and didn¡¯t care what others thought. He did what he wanted. Used those weaker than him for his own gain. Is that what it means to be a predator right? To have the strength to do what you want? To ignore others and impose your will on them? Then why did I risk my life for those people? My father would have just left them. Ran and saved himself. It would have been so easy for me to have just ran. I had the key. I had the strength to make sure they would make a good distraction. Yet I didn¡¯t do that. Instead I gave them the key. I made myself into a distraction. And now I¡¯m running out of mana and the horde seems to only have grown. I don¡¯t see any situation here where I survive. I¡¯m not strong enough. ¡°JOEL!¡± A voice rings out through the street Chapter 32 The door to the bike room flies open as Decker and Abby race out of the building. Through the crowd of zombies around me I see them race over. Decker takes the lead as his silver sword swings out cutting into the horde. Abby catches up to Decker stabbing out with the spear I made for her. It strikes true, killing a zombie almost immediately. She stabs at another and another as she fights to get to me. Why are they here? It would have been safer to stay in the building and let this horde disperse. Did they really come to save me? But why me? I¡¯m weak. I have no strength to offer them. I¡¯m not a predator. The most I have to offer is my ability to use mana but any of them can use it too. Probably better than me in all honesty. Why waste the time and resources to save me? The two draw attention from the horde splitting it into two factions. One focuses on me and the others on them. I continue my hackinng and slashing at the horde in front of me. I cancel two Mana Scythes as I try to preserve as much mana as possible. Down to two scythes I¡¯m barely managing to keep the zombies from grabbing hold of me. Decker slashes out with his sword while Abby stabs out strategically from behind him. As they fight together I think of a sword and shield as I watch them. Decker almost acts as a wall for Abby to hide behind as she puts down zombie after zombie. My focus slips and I feel one of my scythes fade as the zombies push in on me. They stumble over the bodies of their friends chomping at the bits to get me. My arm feels sore as I swing the tire iron down at the zombies heads. My last remaining scythe works over time to just keep the zombies hands off of me. I know the moment they grab onto me I¡¯m finished. Yet I¡¯m so incredibly tired. I just want to go to sleep but something deep in me urges me to fight on. To not give in. To not give up. My mantra of being the predator repeats in my mind but I know it was just a lie I told myself. To convince myself to fight instead of run. I¡¯m just like my mother in that way. She ran and abandoned me with my father. She claimed she was going to come back for me. That she was leaving to find us a better place to live. Fifteen years later I ran out on my own to find my own place. My father put me in the hospital when she left. Blaming me for her leaving. And it was my fault. According to my mother he never once lifted a hand to her before I was born. It was my birth that changed him. My birth made her want to leave so badly that she¡¯d leave me behind. When I was younger I would try to fight back against him. But I quickly realized that only made the beatings worse. I would run and hide but I never fought back. And eventually I even stopped running from his drunken assaults. That is until I turned eighteen. I hadn¡¯t awoken to the cheerful happy birthday wishes of a loving parent. I had awoken to the drunk man looming over me. When he realized I was awake he yelled at me about how I¡¯ve been free loading long enough. That it was my turn to go out and earn money. He forced me to start working a construction job that day. A few months later I graduated highschool. My future was ahead of me and I only wanted one thing. To go to college. I wasn¡¯t looking for money or any help from him. I just wanted to let him know what I had desired. He beat me that night. When he finished I made my mind up. I had had enough. I collected what I could and ran. I hitch hiked to the closest city and found a place to sleep. With what little money I had, I got a hotel room and found a job working security. Then I got my own place and have been working to save up for college. My father was right ultimately. I¡¯m never going to go to college. The world¡¯s ended. That ship has sailed. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. So what am I fighting for? Why am I struggling so much for every breath? What do I have to live for? And to top that off there are people risking their lives for me right now. The worthless child who ruined his parents'' life. The worthless kid who was too scared to seek help. I¡¯m no predator. I¡¯m not strong. I¡¯m a rat being chased by a cat and found a gun and thought he could stop running and fight back. My core pulses in pain as my last drop of mana is consumed pushing back the horde around me. I¡¯m just a rat with a fancy gun and I¡¯m all out of bullets. I swing out with the bloodied tire iron. But even rats have survival instincts. A cornered rat will bite a cat. Fancy gun or no gun. I swing up, knocking a zombie¡¯s head back. Then I pull down, striking the zombie in the head powerfully. It¡¯s skull caves in and it drops to the ground. Killed instantly by the assault. Another zombie pushes in on me from my left. I grab out with my free hand holding the zombie at bay by its neck. Bringing the tire iron up I beat it across it¡¯s head once. Twice. A third time depleting its health to zero and leaving a bloodied crater in it¡¯s skull. Dropping the zombie I feel a steel-like grip pull me back by my shoulders. I twist, throwing the hands off of me. I swing out, knocking the zombie into the side of the building. I used to imagine what it would be like to be dead. Lots of people have their own personal beliefs. Some claim that there''s an after life that you get into after being judged. Others expect a level of reincarnation. Personally I didn¡¯t really care. I would daydream about it just being an endless stretch of nothing. Absolutely nothingness where you never feel pain or sadness again. I wrote about this hope of mine in a school assignment once. I was brought into the counselors office with my father a few days later. They asked if I was suicidal and if everything was going good at home. After that I never told anyone my hopes of death. I would occasionally imagine taking my own life. But every time I went to do it something stopped me. I felt like I didn¡¯t deserve the relief that it would offer. Is that why I continue to fight now? I swing down on a dazed zombie. Do I still need more punishment? More pain before I¡¯m worthy of death? The zombie grabs my leg, bringing it¡¯s open mouth to it. I stab down with the flat end of the tool. It easily passes through the thing¡¯s skin and skull killing it before it could bite me. Looking up I see the open maw of another zombie. Spit strings between it¡¯s blackened and yellow teeth. The rancid smell of decay and rot fills my senses. My arm races up pressing back on the zombie''s neck. It pushes in on me, grabbing me and trying to pull me closer. With all the strength I can muster I kick out with my good leg. Pain explodes from my other leg as all my weight crashes down on it. The zombie¡¯s grip on me loosens as it flies backwards, tripping over the bodies of it¡¯s comrades. Death is too kind a fate for a guy that ruined the lives of his parents. Who deserved to be abandoned. Who deserved every beating given to him. I roar out, summoning everything I have in me. Something in my mana pool pulses at my summon. I feel energy rush through me pushing back the growing fatigue. The bloodied tire iron raises high above me. Its shiny metal is nowhere to be seen under the gore coating it. My bloody knuckle is white with the effort of gripping it. It sings through the air as I bring it down with everything I am. The zombie¡¯s face vanishes in a gory hole. The light above it¡¯s head flashes black. Looking up I see a mass of dead bodies littering the street. To my left Decker and Abby finish off the last few from the group that broke. Abby looks up to me. Concern and worry burning in her eyes like dazzling stars. I see her mouth move but hear no sounds. Decker turns to me and I see worry written in his brows. It¡¯s funny, I never noticed all the wrinkles on his face. Has he always looked this old? They race towards me as I feel gravity becoming stronger around me. I stumble forwards trying to catch myself but the mass of bodies beneath me catches my foot. I fall on top of the dead bodies. Hands roll me over and I see Abby looking down at me. Her green eyes sparkling like seas of emeralds. Her mouth moves but no sounds reach me. Decker stands above her, blood covering his black tank top. When did he change clothes? The shadows press in on me as I feel cold. Something blue flashes before my eyes but it¡¯s too blurry to make out. My eyes grow heavy as my thoughts feel sluggish. The darkness races in as I pass out. Chapter 33 A warm bed greets me as I open my eyes to an oatmeal white ceiling. Sitting up and looking around I find myself in my childhood bedroom. A single twin size mattress rests on the floor. The only other piece of furniture in the room is a dresser my grandma left me before she died. The only light in the room is provided by the curtainless and blindless window. Outside of the room I hear the familiar snores of my father. The sound brings a sense of peace to me. I leave the room placing my feet carefully as I do. I avoid all the creaky floor boards as I make my way through the house I grew up in. I walk into the living room to find my father passed out on the couch. An empty bottle of beer lay toppled over next to him. The room reeks of alcohol. Habitually, I start collecting the empty cans and bottles from the room. If my dad woke up to a mess he would be upset. Why should he have to clean up the house when he pays the bills? My job is to keep the house clean and in working order while his is to pay the bills. I throw the trash away in the kitchen and search the fridge for food. I make my dad a breakfast of eggs and bacon as it¡¯s all that¡¯s left in the fridge. His snoring stops just as I turn the stove top off. His footsteps sound heavy as he walks down the hallway and into the bathroom. Then they grow louder as he walks into the kitchen. I place the plate I made for him on the table where he plops himself down. He digs into the food as I wash the dishes left in the sink. He finishes his food without a word and leaves the kitchen filling me with relief. It¡¯s always stressful being around him. I take the plate off the table and wash it too. Once done I check the clock on the stove top and realize that I¡¯m running late for school. Dad doesn¡¯t like being bothered by the school. So I¡¯ve maintained perfect attendance and have never been late. Not since an incident in the seventh grade. He threw away the books I took home from the library for that. I was then beat because the school called about payment for the books. I return to my room and quickly throw on clothes for the day. As I head to the door I hear my dad turn on the TV and some news show starts playing. He has a day of TV and alcohol ahead of him while I have a day of school. Dad was hurt at his old job a few years back. Because of that he gets a monthly disability check from the government. It¡¯s not much but it keeps the lights on and the water running, most of the time. My feet pound on the sidewalk as I run to school. The walk is usually thirty minutes and I always try to leave early. However today I seem to have overslept and couldn¡¯t leave without making dad something to eat. My race to school is uneventful. I walk into my classroom just as the bell rings. Drops of sweat slide down my face tickling me as they do so. I wipe the sweat off and try to focus on the topic of class today. However, I catch some kids behind me talk about me. Making comments about my sweat and smell. I feel my face burn with embarrassment. Do I really smell that bad? Tomorrow I¡¯ll wake up earlier to try and shower. I push them out of my awareness. It¡¯s best to ignore. It can¡¯t hurt if you ignore it. The teacher starts lecturing us on chemical reactions. The topic is fairly fascinating to go over once you look past the math. How different elements combine and react with one another forms everything around us. It helps with ignoring the comments of the kids behind me. Humans wouldn¡¯t be humans without chemistry. The universe wouldn¡¯t be what it is if things didn¡¯t react with one another in the specific way that it has. Just thinking about it blows my mind. That¡¯s the biggest thing I like about school. You can learn fascinating wondrous things that just make you think. The wonders of the universe are freely accessible. Sure there are people here to bug and annoy you. But you should ignore them. Books and facts don¡¯t annoy or bother you. Focus on them. I make a mental note to find some books in the library about chemistry during lunch. The rest of the lesson passes by with no issues. I take notes on the lecture and accept the homework given to me. After chemistry I have algebra two and we¡¯re going over mathematical proofs . I know most people don¡¯t like them but I find them kinda fun. They¡¯re kinda like solving a puzzle. And they¡¯re easy to get lost in. Halfway through math the teacher gets a phone call. All of us students are focused on writing down the material from the projection while the teacher talks. Once he¡¯s finished with the phone he tells me to go to the office. My heart sinks as I pack my stuff. My mind races as I try to figure out what''s going on. I walk to the office worried that I¡¯m in some kind of trouble or worse my dad is here. Once in the office I find the counselor and a new person standing and talking to one another. Once they notice me they turn to me and a smile cracks their faces. I can¡¯t help but feel that their smiles are a little disingenuous. ¡°Ah Joel, thank you for coming down.¡± The counselor says. ¡°This is Mrs. Blanchard. She¡¯s from the state and is here to talk to you about your recent assessment test scores.¡± ¡°Hi Joel, it''s a pleasure to meet you. Would you mind following me to the teachers break room?¡± Mrs. Blanchard asks. I give a stiff nod, still unsure what this is about. Do they think I cheated or something? Once in the room Mrs. Blanchard takes a seat and motions for me to do the same. I sit down and eye her skeptically. ¡°Don¡¯t worry you¡¯re not in trouble. Did you know that you scored remarkably well on that recent assessment test?¡± She asks me. ¡°No.¡± I say. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Well you did. One of the highest scores I¡¯ve seen in a while. I was so impressed by them that I wanted to come down here and meet you myself and maybe even test you a little more.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because you may qualify for more advanced classes but we need to see just where you are compared to the others.¡± A frown appears on my face. Do I really have to take more tests because I did well? Wouldn¡¯t it make more sense to give me less tests as I¡¯ve proven I know the material. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, they''re not particularly hard tests and they won¡¯t reflect poorly on you. They¡¯re just assessments on your critical thinking abilities and to see where you are in the material.¡± Mrs. Blanchard says. She pulls out a stack of papers and slides them over to me. ¡°The test is in three sections. You¡¯ll have forty minutes per section and a break in between each one.¡± She takes out a timer and sets it in between us. ¡°Take your time and don¡¯t stress about not finishing the sections. They¡¯re designed so you won¡¯t be able to. They¡¯ll get harder the further into them you get. The first section is a cognitive reasoning assessment. The second is a math benchmark assessment. And the final section is your reading and critical thinking assessment.¡± She rattles off. Without being given a choice to take the tests or not she starts the timer. Leaving me to work through the tests in silence. The first section is filled with weird riddles and puzzles while the next is a basic math test. The last section feels like a basic reading test filled with short answer responses. Once I finish one section she starts grading it while I get a break. By the time I¡¯m done I¡¯m told that I can return to my classes. The rest of the day passes by leaving me filled with slight annoyance at having to miss my lunch in the library. While my last class of the day winds down my teacher gets a call. She turns to me while on the phone and nods her head then hangs up. ¡°Hey Joel, can you go to the office real quick?¡± She asks me. I walk to the office annoyed at being called over a second time. Once there I find Mrs. Blanchard animatedly talking to the counselor and principal. When I walk in, the three turn to me. ¡°Oh Joel I have fantastic news.¡± Mrs. Blanchard says. ¡°You scored extremely high on those tests. You qualify for upper level classes. Sadly this school doesn¡¯t offer you those classes. However, we think we have a solution.¡± She beams at me making me feel awkward. ¡°There''s a program that the highschool in the city offers. You¡¯ll be allowed to remotely take their upper level classes. Isn¡¯t that fantastic?¡± The counselor says. I stare at them in silence. Unsure what to say. I was excited at the prospect of being challenged more in classes and learning more. But a part of me was scared how my dad would react to the news. ¡°We¡¯ve already contacted your father about this. Starting next semester you¡¯ll be taking the other school¡¯s advanced classes.¡± The principal says. My heart drops. Any hope I had of keeping this from my father vanishes. The words of the three are drowned out by memories of my father yelling at me for asking him questions. He always hated my curious side. He got mad at me for doing homework at home. He would yell at me if he caught me reading. The three¡¯s conversation dies down after a while. ¡°You should head back to class Joel.¡± The counselor says. I nod and return to class. The rest of the period passes as the panic in me builds. I don¡¯t want to go home. I don¡¯t want to see my dad but I know putting it off will only make it worse. I once tried to run away from home when I was in the fourth grade. One of my neighbors saw me and called my dad who came after me. That was probably the second worst beating he¡¯s ever given me. I walk home imagining the death-like state I dream of almost every other day. Where I am nothing in nothingness doing nothing and feeling nothing. The white door of our trailer home greets me with a sense of foreboding.I take a deep breath and enter. The sound of the TV greets me as I walk into my home. As the door closes the TV grows quiet and I fight the urge to shiver. He doesn¡¯t like it when I shake. My dad appears in the hallway that leads to the front door. He stands tall, somewhere over six feet. Long dark hair hides his dark piercing eyes. Aside from the beer belly that he¡¯s grown over my life he would probably be described as handsome. That is if he took care of himself. I feel his stare on me and can¡¯t help but to look away. He walks closer to me bringing with him the smell of something alcoholic. ¡°So you¡¯re some sort of genius?¡± He asks. His tone is flat making it hard to tell what he¡¯s feeling. Taking a glance at his eyes from behind his bangs I read annoyance in them. My stomach drops as he stands above me. His hand flashes out grabbing a handful of my hair. My scalp screams in pain as he pulls up on the hair. My eyes water in pain as I feel myself forced backwards. My back hits the door in an explosion of pain. ¡°You¡¯re just like your bitch of a mother. Thinking she¡¯s smarter than everyone around her.¡± My eyes open to see his dark eyes burning with rage. I nod hoping that if I agree with him my punishment will be lessened. ¡°You¡¯re nothing. You were born from nothing and will always be nothing.¡± He says ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I say. ¡°You will be. Bring me the stick.¡± He lets go of my hair. I nod and walk to the kitchen. Laying against the wall near the door to the kitchen is a long brown stick. Flexible enough to not break easily but strong enough to do some damage. I grab it and bring it back to him. ¡°Give me your hands.¡± I present him with my hands. He swings the stick down across my knuckles. The pain is instant and intense. I want to scream but that spurs him on. Makes him hit me more or longer. If I can just hold out he¡¯ll grow bored or tired and leave me be. He snaps the stick over my hands over and over. When he¡¯s done I¡¯m fighting back tears and watching blood drip from my knuckles. ¡°You aren¡¯t special. You aren¡¯t some genius. You¡¯re just like your mom. An annoying little bitch who thinks she¡¯s too good. Go clean yourself up and put this back.¡± He throws the stick at me. It hits me in my head causing a small burning pain. I pick it up off the ground weakly. The act of closing my fingers around the wood feels almost as painful as being struck by it. ¡°Yes sir.¡± I say. I put the stick back and go to the sink. I run my hands under the cold water. I hear the TV turn back on and feel relief wash through me. ¡°Get dinner ready soon.¡± He calls out through the house. ¡°Yes sir.¡± I call back. Silent tears fall down my face and into the pink water running down the drain. Anger rises in me as I push into the open wounds on my knuckles. Why did I ever take that test? Why do I have him for a father? I hate my life. But he¡¯s right. I¡¯m nothing. I¡¯m not strong like him. I¡¯m lucky that he¡¯s willing to keep me fed and gives me a place to sleep. The anger in me dissipates as I push it down. It''s easier to ignore it. To ignore the desire for release from my father. To ignore self loathing. To ignore it all. Embrace the pain. Let it wash away the anger. My nail digs deeper into the open wound. Eliciting more pain from me. The dream fades as I open my eyes to the tiled ceiling of my little conference room. I shake the memory out of my head and focus on the present. There¡¯s nothing for me in the past. Chapter 34 A cold draft washes over my body sending a shiver through me. Groggily, I open my eyes to a white tiled ceiling. A head ache pounds beneath my eyes and my body burns with an itching heat in various places. I sit up feeling sore all over. Looking down I find myself in a shirt and boxers. Bandages cover my burning calf and more wrap around the knuckles of my right hand. My skin looks paler than usual and I have a general feeling of weakness that I only remember getting when sick. Taking my gaze off of myself I look around finding myself on one of the couches in the conference rooms on the seventh floor. The world blurs and I get a strong feeling of dizziness as I look around. The room is bare like all the other times I¡¯ve woken up in here. However, this time I find the door closed. I swing my legs off the couch causing another wave of dizziness to wash over me. I do my best to ignore it and tentatively put weight on my injured leg. Pain flares up but it¡¯s a manageable amount. While putting weight on the leg I watch as a patch of red grows slightly on the bandage wrapping around my calf. My heart races and I feel my air catch in my lungs. I was covered in blood towards the end of the fight. I had open wounds and right now I¡¯m feeling sick. The worst thought comes to mind. What if I¡¯m infected with whatever is making the zombies out there. In most movies it¡¯s a scratch or bite that gets you. And I definitely got scratched and I definitely had their blood and slobber all over me. I quickly turn my sights inwards following the flow of mana throughout my body. I reach the cuts in my calf and see a small trickle of mana bleeding down into the wound. I watch as my mana charged cells combat some weird tiny blob shaped entities. My mana charged cells seem to have brought the battle to a stalemate. Neither side really has the advantage over the other. My hopes rise as I take command of my mana. Mana floods into my leg as I command it to seep into my calf. The blue energy burns hot in me as the forign entities start getting consumed by my glowing hot cells. The forign entities try their best to grow it¡¯s strength by forcing themselves onto some of the non energized cells. But it¡¯s pointless as more and more of my cells race down to join the fight. An unknown amount of time later and over a quarter of my mana all the forign entities in my leg perish. I roam my body focusing more mana where I find the forign entities wiping them out. A large cluster swarms my right hand and costs another quarter of my mana to wipe out. I open my eyes feeling exhausted, drained, and tired but I¡¯m free of those forign things. The tingle in my head tells me that I don¡¯t have to worry about them anymore. But part of me wonders what it was. If that was the zombie virus that means people choosing the Mage class is almost imperative to stopping people from becoming zombies. On the other hand it could''ve just been some infection. Honestly I have no clue but one thing is for sure. The Mage class is OP. With our ability to heal, form projectiles, and probably so much more it almost seems unfair to compare us to the Warriors. Why would someone choose to be a warrior when all it did was give you a speed buff? The tingle in my mind sounds off at that thought, making me stop. Is it not just a speed buff? If it¡¯s not then what is it? What does it offer if we pick it? I definitely want to ask Decker more about how it works. With that in mind I turn towards the closed door. Relief fills me as I realize the motion didn¡¯t cause any dizziness. Standing on the leg still hurts a little but nothing like before. I walk to the door and look out the glass portion of the door and wall. Streaks of light leak in through the exterior windowed walls but other than that I see nothing. Trying the handle, I¡¯m shocked to find the door locked. I pull on the door still not quite believing that it¡¯s locked. I call out for someone to help me but only get silence as an answer. I know I can break out of this room quite easily with my mana but there¡¯s a reason someone locked me in here. Or at least I hope so. I call out a few more times hoping that someone will hear me. After waiting for a bit I return to the couch unsure about what I should do. The desire to just break out grows as I stare at the door. Looking down I realize that I¡¯m missing my utility belt and all of my stuff. A glance around the small room reveals nothing. Annoyance rises in me as I wonder exactly what¡¯s happened. I feel it burning in me. I go through the effort of almost dying for those four and this is my thanks. Decker and Abby did come back for me though. The memory of them battling the horde with me races to the forefront of my mind. Why would they risk their own lives for me? It would have been easier for them to just let the horde finish me off. It would have been more resources for them and less dangerous. I¡¯m sure with time the horde would of dispersed. So why did they come back for me? My father would have just left me to die. Preferring to stay in and watch TV while I work to help pay my part of the bills or cook the food. The annoyance in me burns hot as I grow angry just thinking about my dad. I sigh and push the annoyance and anger down. It¡¯s not fair of me to be angry at him. It¡¯s my fault that he was the way he was. I wonder if he¡¯s still alive. He was probably living alone. If he didn¡¯t become a zombie then I¡¯m sure that he''d just be held up in that house. I sigh letting the embers of anger completely die out. There¡¯s no point in holding onto it. Instead I should be trying to figure out what I¡¯m doing here. The only logical explanation I can come up with as to why I¡¯m locked up in here is that they worried I was going to turn into a zombie. But if that is the case why waste the medical supplies, time, and effort to clean me up? Thinking about the medical supplies I turn my attention back to my leg. While I killed off whatever was trying to invade my body the wound itself is still open. Although my body is trying to heal it currently. I take about fifteen percent of my mana and send it to my calf. The cuts along my leg burn hot as the skin stitches itself back together. While looking inside of myself I can tell that I¡¯m no longer at any risk of opening the wound and bleeding out. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. I take the bloodied bandages off revealing five long white stripes of scar tissue circling the lower part of my calf. The stripes cover a third of my calf starting at the center of my shin and stretching around to the back of my calf. I toss the bloodied wrapping in the trash. I call out again hoping someone would hear me as I return to the couch. If no one comes by soon I¡¯m just going to break out. Something might have happened to the others while I was sleeping. If that is the case I shouldn¡¯t be exploring with less than half of my mana. I close my eyes and focus on the mana flowing through my body. I pull in on it forming a kind of vacuum in me. I feel the mana in the air react and drift towards me then into me. It¡¯s slow but steady as I feel a slight burning sensation run through me. Mana flows into my mana pool replenishing what I used to heal my leg. As the energy flows into me I watch it travel along the channels in me. While doing so I notice that not all of my channels are flowing with energy from the outside. My curiosity peaked, I stop filling my mana pool and focus on one of the channels not drawing from the outside. I try to move the mana in the channel and realize that it refuses to obey my command.Curious on if there¡¯s others I start moving the mana in each channel that I can find. I realize that I can only control mana in the largest of the channels while many of the medium sized ones and all of the tiniest refuse to obey me. Has it always been this way or am I just now noticing? I guess I haven¡¯t paid too much attention to the smaller channels. I mainly use the large ones and some of the medium ones to cast my magic. But this does raise the question. Can I gain control over these smaller channels and if so what do I gain from doing so? I focus on a medium sized channel running from near my heart to around my lungs. The mana flows down towards the lungs from around the heart. It refuses to listen to me as I command it to flow backwards or speed up. My brow furrows in concentration as I summon all the willpower I have. My consciousness becomes the mana inside of the channel. It lazily flows down spilling out a miniscule almost non existent amount into my lungs. After a while of trying to make the mana listen to me I give up on just commanding it to bend to my will. I go through my memories trying to come up with any kind of idea to help me. The tingling in the back of my mind makes me feel like I¡¯m onto something and that I shouldn¡¯t stop. I have control over the mana in my core and the largest channels. Does that mean that the mana in these smaller veins aren¡¯t mine? Or is it the size of the channel that matters? Or maybe something is blocking the flow of mana. My last idea causes the tingle in the back of my mind to explode with activity. As if it¡¯s excited for me to finally think this. Following it¡¯s guidance and my own instinct I focus intently on the channel of mana. It comes off a large river that leads from my core through my heart and up towards my head. Where it turns off from the main river I find some weird chunk of brown goo. When I focus on it the tingle in my mind tells me that it doesn''t belong. Turning my attention to another channel that I can¡¯t control I find another chunk of goo. The goo acts similar to a dam only letting a small amount of mana to trickle through. Alright so if this blockage is why I can¡¯t control the flow of mana in the smaller veins how do I get rid of it? The tingle in my mind offers no answer as it now sits quietly. Annoyed with it I turn my attention away from that tingle and back to the goo. When I command it to move like I would my will I feel nothing in me stir. It¡¯s as if I¡¯m asking a rock to move itself instead of picking it up myself. So if I can¡¯t tell it to move, how do I force it? Only one answer comes to me. I take a small percent of the mana in my core and carry it along the large river to the blockage. Once at the blockage I slam the mana into it like a wrecking ball. The blockage shakes at the impact and I feel excitement build in me. The tingle sings in my mind as if it¡¯s saying ¡°DING DING DING That¡¯s it. You did it!¡±. However the small amount I used wasn¡¯t enough to push the blockage much. I take more mana from my core as I command it to slam into the blockage. I feel pressure build in my chest as I push against the blockage. The mana inside of me burns away as if I¡¯m healing myself or using my mana outside of me. As the energy pushes into the blockage I see it slowly eat away at the brown goo. The portion I summoned dissipates moving the blockage only a tenth of the way through the channel. Feeling as if I shouldn¡¯t stop now I summon even more of my mana. I take a quarter of what I have in me and force it to the blockage. The brown goo screams as the pressure in my chest builds to an almost unbearable amount. It¡¯s as if I¡¯m about to sneeze and have a heart attack. But I ignore the discomfort and continue pushing, urged on by the tingle in my mind. The blockage shrinks and is pushed back further and further. I realize that the mana I¡¯m commanding won¡¯t be enough as it sizzles out inside of me. While still working on the blockage I summon more and more mana as reinforcements. The mana rushes in like a powerful tsunami. It crashes into the blockage pushing back on it. My progress on the blockage slows as the force of the mana dissipates. An idea blossoms in my mind as I pull back the mana pushing on the blockage. Then I command it to race back. Like the shores of the ocean, the blockage is bombarded with wave after wave. Each one pushing back more and more eating away at it just a little faster. I summon more mana from my core and use it to send another tsunami like wave into the blockage. I feel something in me crack at this attack. The blockage snaps in half as the mana crashes down on it. The goo rolls further back in the channel as the energy continues to crash into it wave after wave. It breaks down more and more as it reaches the end of the channel. I pull back all of the mana bearing down on it as I charge my final wave. I pull more mana from my core and hold for a moment. The mana rages inside of me demanding to be let loose on the remains of the blockage. At my command the mana flows. Like a crashing tidal wave it runs down the channel. It slams into the blockage with the force of a hurricane. It bites and eats away at the goo pushing it out of the channel but it doesn¡¯t stop there. It follows the strange substance through me devouring it into nothing. I feel white hot energy pour into me forcing me to take a quick sharp breath in. The energy flows around and through my lungs as they expand. I feel the cool air rush into me and it¡¯s like I¡¯m taking my first breath ever. I feel as if my lungs are stronger then ever as they pull in more and more cooling air. The fire in my chest is extinguished as the pressure around my heart dissipates. I feel the relief you get after a sneeze but way more intense as my lungs inflate. I hold the air inside of me feeling content with it. Then slowly I let it out. Shocked at how much lighter my body feels. Breathing is generally not something I think about doing. But when I did it felt as if I had to put more effort into pulling the air into me. But now it feels easier to satisfy my need for air. Curious I examine my lungs and find that the small channel that I just cleared now passes through my lungs. Instead of just ending near them, the channel now ends after stretching through both of my lungs. I open my eyes to find a new blue screen in front of me.
Skill Developed:
Channel Purification
You can now clear impurities in your mana system. Allowing you to control more mana inside of you and strengthen your body.
Chapter 35 I feel my eyebrow raise as I read over the new message. Skill developed? Wait, didn''t the class selection mention something about skill? Do we get skills just like in video games too? How can I see mine if we do? Like do I have a skill list? At that question a new screen fills my view making me feel stupid.
Skill List:
Name: Level: Proficiency:
Mana Manipulation 4 Novice
Channel Purification 1 Novice
I almost want to hit myself at not thinking about this earlier. When I picked the mage class I was told I was going to get access mana manipulation. Why didn¡¯t I think about skills back then? I just developed one so following that logic I should be able to develop more. But if that¡¯s the case why don¡¯t I have more skills? I feel like any of my spells could be a skill themself but maybe they¡¯re just an extension of my mana manipulation. Still I should have other skills like reading and writing. Right? Unless whatever entity that governs over this system doesn¡¯t deem those skills worthy of being on this list. Wait. Why am I assuming an entity governs the screens? I¡¯m not really the religious type. I¡¯ve always figured that the universe was just a series of atoms bumping into each other randomly. But the idea that some extraordinarily powerful entity governing this system and the world just feels right. The tingle in my mind hums as if to agree. So if it¡¯s right then something is governing the system but what? A memory floats to me as the tingling in my mind buzzes. When I had just woken up after the earthquake there was a message floating in a blue screen. My memory of it is kinda hazy but it said something about mana then some cost. But the last part of the message shines brightly in my memory.
System Granted: Kushims¡¯ Insight
The tingle in my mind fades as the memory fades. But part of it sticks with me in full clarity. So then is Kushims the name of the entity governing over the system? Is all of this Kushims fault? The zombies, magic, and these screens? The tingle in my mind is silent at my questions. I feel annoyed at it¡¯s selective participation. Sometimes it offers me answers clearly, other times it¡¯s just a weird feeling and then there are times where it doesn¡¯t say anything at all. I let out a sigh trying to get rid of my annoyance at the tingle. It¡¯s gotten a lot stronger the more I listen to it. So maybe if I hope to gain more insight from it I¡¯ll have to listen to it more. A knock on the window breaks my train of thought. Looking over I see a tired looking Decker. ¡°Hey kid. I¡¯m glad to see that you¡¯re not dead.¡± He says. I feel a smile break across my face. ¡°I¡¯m happy to not be dead sir. Thank you. For coming out to get me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. We gotta look out for each other don¡¯t we?¡± He says. He smiles warmly at me making me feel even happier. However, part of me still doesn¡¯t understand why he risked his life for me. Do people really look out for each other? ¡°How do you feel?¡± He asks. The same part that doesn¡¯t understand why he risked himself is shocked at his question. At his sign of concern for me. ¡°I¡¯m good. Been healing up, developed a new skill.¡± He nods and takes a few moments before responding. ¡°So I don¡¯t really know how to bring this up so I¡¯m just going to be blunt. You had infected blood coating you. You had a few open wounds. Do you feel like you¡¯re dying or turning into a zombie at all?¡± He asks. I take a moment to think it over. After waking up I never felt like I was dying. I definitely felt like I was sick, but not dying. ¡°I think I had some kind of infection but I was able to remove it with my mana. I don¡¯t know if it was just from having regular infection or if it was what causes the zombies. But as far as I can tell I¡¯m no longer infected by it.¡± Decker takes a moment to study me. ¡°You definitely look a lot better. When we were cleaning you off the scratches on your leg were secreting almost as much pus as it was blood. And you were extremely pale and cold.¡± ¡°I woke up feeling sick but now I feel almost back to full health.¡± ¡°Can you show me?¡± He asks I take a second to process his request. ¡°How?¡± ¡°Remember when I showed you the system management screen? Well you can share with me some information about you. It¡¯s usually your class, level, and health. Just consciously picture sharing that information with me.¡± Following his instruction I imagine myself sharing my personal information with him. A second later I watch his eyes grow glossy as they stare above my head. Then they return their focus to me. ¡°Your health is still not at 100 but it¡¯s not that low. Does your stat page say anything there about being infected?¡± He asks. Opening my Personal Stats I read through it trying to find anything about an infection. I find nothing but something else does catch my attention.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. 9
Level: 17 DEX: 5
To Next Level 50/1100 AGI: 6
Sex: Male END: 15
Age: 19 INT: 55
Class: Mage WIS: 15
LUC: 4
HP 87/100 CHA: 5
Mana 76/120 PER: 8
WIL: 11
Free Attribute points: 13
Both my Endurance and Willpower have increased. I don¡¯t remember putting any points into them and I didn¡¯t get any new titles or anything. Thinking back to it I did feel better after clearing the blockage and extending that mana channel. Maybe that can increase my attributes. The skill description did mention strengthening my body didn¡¯t it. So if that¡¯s the case then I need to work on clearing as many channels as I can. I should also look into progressing my Mana Manipulation skill too. ¡°No, it says nothing about being infected.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good. However I don¡¯t think I can let you out just yet.¡± I frown at his words as I imagine being stuck in this room for longer. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°The other people are scared. They need some time to be sure you aren¡¯t going to turn and eat them. Honestly they probably won¡¯t stop thinking that even if we keep you in there forever. There¡¯s just way too much uncertainty in the world right now. Emotions are running high and everyone is ??scared.¡± I take a second to think over his words. It makes sense but at the same time how long is he going to wait. ¡°When will you let me out?¡± ¡°Probably in the morning.¡± ¡°Oh that¡¯s a lot sooner than I thought.¡± ¡°Yeah I don¡¯t think we really have the time to waste.¡± He says. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Well while you were watching the food last night I went to the roof. You could barely see it but the sliver of the moon visible was red. I was curious so I checked a calendar in one of the other board members'' offices. On the day the countdown ends the moon will be full.¡± He explains. He leans against a cubical behind him and continues. ¡°We just had a conversation about who''s going to stay and who will leave. While doing so I told the group about the safe zone management screen. They didn¡¯t believe me until I summoned a chair. After that I told them about the countdown to give those wanting to leave a heads up.¡± I nod taking in his words. ¡°One of the guys from the restaurant, Kyle, I think. Said that it reminded him of a video he played. Where every seven days the moon would grow red and all the monsters would get stronger during the night. So while it¡¯s just a theory I think in sixteen days all the zombies might get stronger. So we need to prepare for that.¡± The tingle in my head resonates with his words. Making me feel as if he¡¯s right. ¡°So we have seventeen days to prepare for stronger zombies?¡± I ask. Decker nods. ¡°Not just zombies. I think the zombies evolve or mutate. That Zombie Butcher and the Banshee aren¡¯t regular zombies. The system even gave them different names. What if there¡¯s more different kinds? Both the Butcher and the Banshee were incredibly strong. Superhuman almost. Imagine them having sixteen days to get even stronger and then add whatever boost they could get when the countdown ends.¡± His words resonate with me as I imagine all different kinds of monsters laying siege to this building. If it was another Banshee or even a Zombie Butcher I could probably take them on my own now. But what if there¡¯s more. My heart sinks as I imagine the blood bath. We need to get stronger. Unimaginably stronger. But do I have it in me? I¡¯m not a predator like my dad. I¡¯m just a rat with a fancy gun. ¡°You¡¯re probably the strongest guy here. Even after fighting that Banshee alone and winning you manage to slay more than forty zombies on your own. That¡¯s more than double what that girl and I fought and we struggled with the ones we did take down.¡± My thoughts stop as I stare at Decker. Shocked at what he¡¯s said. Did I really manage to take down that many? I could have sworn it was less. However, despite how many I killed I still would have died if it wasn¡¯t for Decker and Abby. ¡°I know it¡¯s selfish of me to ask this. Especially so soon after you¡¯ve woken up from that battle. But we need your strength and whatever strength you can gain in the days to come. Will you continue going out there to get stronger so that you could protect us from anything strong?¡± He says. My heart leaps at his request. Of course I want to help him. But am I really strong enough? I¡¯m sure Abby could get on my level if given the time and the information I have. And to top it off I wasn¡¯t even strong enough to keep myself safe let alone others. ¡°I want to help. I really do. But I don¡¯t think I can.¡± I say My gaze shifts to the ground. My dad taught me that it¡¯s better to say no to something I can¡¯t do than to fail him later. He would get mad either way but if I failed him later then he would be even angrier. ¡°Can I ask why?¡± Decker asks. ¡°I¡¯m not strong enough to protect myself. Let alone protect anyone else.¡± I say I avoid looking at him. Scared to see his face of disappointment. ¡°Hey kid.¡± He says softly. His tone feels like cold water being poured down my back. I expected rage or annoyance but not this. Not something that sounded like he was concerned for me. ¡°Look at me.¡± He says. Tentatively I look up. Expecting his expression to be that of my angry father¡¯s. Rage and malice burning grooves into his skin. However, I¡¯m met with kindness and concern. ¡°You saved four people this morning. If it wasn¡¯t for you they would have died. They¡¯re alive because of you. And not just that they¡¯re stronger thanks to you.¡± My heart quivers at his words. ¡°You¡¯re an amazing, wonderful, strong kid. I know you have strengths that I could never possess. So you couldn¡¯t fight off a horde alone. I don¡¯t want you to ever have to fight alone. Not again. You won¡¯t be going out there alone. Abigail has already agreed to help you grow stronger. And there¡¯s others that are willing to help. You aren¡¯t alone and you aren¡¯t expected to fight alone.¡± I¡¯m left speechless as he finishes speaking. I don¡¯t know what to think. I¡¯ve known this man for less than a few days yet I feel more loved by him than anyone before. The memory of seeing him hurt in the restaurant brings back the promise I made to myself. I¡¯m not going to let him die. I may not be strong enough to protect him right now but I can grow. I can get stronger. ¡°I..¡± My breath catches in my lungs as my chest feels heavy. ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± I force out. A smile breaks across his face. ¡°Thank you so much.¡± He stands stretching as he does so. ¡°I¡¯m going to go get you something to eat. After that just rest up. We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow.¡± I nod and give him my thanks. My mind is still racing at the promise I just made him. I¡¯m a rat with a fancy gun but I now have to make sure that I take out anything that threatens us. I don¡¯t know if I have the power but I have to try. I can¡¯t just give up. Especially after Decker risked his life to get me. A few moments later Decker arrives with some food. He opens the door and gives it to me. He thanks me again before wishing me a good night. He disappears from my sight leaving me alone in my little conference room. The light seeping in through the exterior wall windows fades as night draws in. I finish my food and refill my mana pool. It¡¯s dark when I hear a knocking on the door. ¡°Joel, are you awake?¡± Abby asks. Chapter 36 Sitting up I look towards the door and see Abby standing next to it through the glass in the wall. She¡¯s no longer wearing the white jacket from the restaurants. Instead she has a white under shirt that has the occasional flecks of blood spotting it. ¡°Yeah. Is something wrong?¡± I ask. I stand and walk to the window. Standing before her in only a shirt and boxers makes me feel uncomfortable. I wish I had asked Decker for a spare change of clothes. I feel my face heat up as her eyes quickly dart down my body. They take a second to lock back onto mine. The green orbs of her eyes seem to almost glow in the dim light. ¡°Nothing¡¯s wrong. I just wanted to check up on you. How do you feel?¡± She asks. ¡°I¡¯m feeling a lot better.¡± I say. ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± A strange silence falls between us. Leaving me feeling even more awkward. ¡°Um¡­ Thank you.¡± I force out of myself. She takes a second trying to understand my words. Then her face lights up when she understands what I¡¯m thanking her for. ¡°I should be thanking you. If you hadn¡¯t fought that thing while giving us the chance to escape I think all of us would have died.¡± She says. I nod unsure of what to do or say. She¡¯s not wrong but still it feels awkward having it stated. As the moments turn to seconds a desire in me to understand burns. ¡°Why did you come back?¡± I ask. ¡°What?¡± She asks. I take a second to organize my thoughts. ¡°You made it back to the building and were safe. Why did you come back for me?¡± Moments pass between us in silence as I search her eyes. I can see thoughts behind them as she thinks over her actions. ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure. It just felt like the right thing to do. The world has changed so much and I don¡¯t even know if my family is safe or not. You¡¯re the only familiar person here and to just run and leave you to die after you risked your life to save me just feels wrong.¡± In all honesty I still don¡¯t get her reasoning. But even Decker said something similar. They think we have to look after each other. My father would have never subscribed to their ideals. He¡¯s a predator to the core. He would have left them for dead or he would feed off of their hard work. But if that¡¯s what it means to be a predator then do I really want to be one? I fought that banshee without thinking about the consequences. It even felt good to a point knowing that my actions may have saved the others. Granted I started to regret it when it seemed like I was going to die. But then Decker and Abby came back for me. They¡¯re willing to risk their lives for me. They may not be predators like my father but I want to be more like them. I want to be better than just a predator like my father. ¡°If that makes sense. I don¡¯t really know. Why did you put yourself in front of the Banshee and give us the key?¡± She asks, breaking me from my thoughts. ¡°I just did. I wasn¡¯t really thinking in all honesty.¡± I say. ¡°Well it was so cool. You were like some super hero.¡± She says her face is becoming animated. ¡°You were like ¡®get to the office¡¯¡± She says, lowering her voice a little. Even though she¡¯s mocking me I can¡¯t help but to laugh at her impression of me. She puffs up her chest and places her hands on her hips in a superman like pose. She holds for a second then breaks into some laughter. Our laughter dies down a second later and she continues. ¡°You then became engulfed in blue flames. It looked like something out of an anime. It was so cool.¡± She says. She looks away as she talks, her face growing red. I feel my own face heat up in embarrassment. Did I really look that cool? ¡°Then when I got inside the building the first thing I did was go to the man, Decker. I told him you were out there fighting some monster. He ran up and got his sword. While he did I chose the mage class. It was so freaking painful that I think I passed out. Next thing I knew Decker was trying to get people to follow him outside to save you. I volunteered as soon as I could stand. Once we got outside you were still burning bright in that blue aura and fighting like a total badass. I never expected to see something like that in real life. It was like some superhero film came to life.¡± She grows silent after her little story. Her face rises to mine as she seems to have made some decision. ¡°I know you already promised to teach me to fight with mana but I have another request. Will you help me to my family''s house? We don¡¯t live far, only seven or so blocks. I want to stay here but if they¡¯re alive I need to get to them.¡± Her green eyes stare into mine desperately hoping I would. My gut tells me to do it. To help her make sure her family is okay. But a darker voice in me questions why I should. Going that far from the office is risky. But at the same time I¡¯m supposed to be trying to grow stronger. And if we can get more people who are willing to defend the office that would be good. But the distance is a bit much right now. I owe her. That much is obvious. If it wasn¡¯t for her and Decker I would have been overrun when I was fighting the horde. I owe it to her to try and help. ¡°I want to help but I think we should check with Decker first. I don¡¯t know if just the two of us can get there alone.¡± I say. Her face falls, making me feel like an idiot. I want to apologize and tell her that I¡¯ll go right now. My mouth parts as I start to form the apology. ¡°Thank you. You¡¯re right we should try to get a few more people to come.¡± She says. It¡¯s all I can do to nod at her. She turns and runs off leaving me alone. I feel like I¡¯ve done something wrong. I return to the couch trying to push down the feelings of guilt in me. I lay down and slowly let myself fall asleep. Memories and dreams fly though me as I sleep. Only ending when someone¡¯s hands shake me awake. ¡°Rise and shine Kid.¡± Decker Says. My eyes snap open and are bombarded by light. I flinch and pull back away from the painful brightness. After seconds of blinking the pain away and adjusting I find Decker standing over me with a smile on his face. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°Good morning. How are you feeling?¡± He asks. ¡°Good morning. I¡¯m feeling fine.¡± I say. ¡°Good good. Here put these on and follow me.¡± He says handing me some black sweatpants, my utility belt, and my boots. I quickly get dressed and follow him to the eating area on the seventh floor. Once there I find Abby, Andy, Angila, and six other people. Looking over the group I realize we¡¯re missing four. ¡°What happened to the other four?¡± I ask Decker. ¡°They decided to go out on their own. They¡¯re still in the building but by evening I¡¯ll have them packed with some food and set on their way. But that brings us to why we¡¯re all meeting here.¡± He turns to the group. ¡°So we have under sixteen days left on the countdown. We need to prepare for anything before then but while doing that we need resources. Food is a must followed by water, weapons, clothes, and building material. Through the zone management menu I can set up some defenses but that will require us to kill more zombies. So I want to try and strike a balance with building stuff ourselves and purchasing anything else we need.¡± He stops talking, letting his words sink in. ¡°On top of that we still have countless bodies in this building to deal with. So here¡¯s what I¡¯m thinking. A group of four will be our hunting party. Their goal will be to go out and clear routes and spaces for scavenging. Another group of four will be a scavenging party. Their purpose is to mostly find resources and possible people. They don¡¯t have to also try and rack levels or kill points. The last group will be focused on getting this building ready for anything.¡± ¡°Who will be put into what group?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°I figured it would be decided by volunteering but I get that some people may not want to be part of a certain group. So if we don¡¯t have enough for a group we¡¯ll have to draw lots to figure out who fills in the empty slots.¡± Decker says. ¡°I volunteer for the hunting group.¡± Abby says. ¡°Me too.¡± Kyle says Everyone else proclaims what group they wish to work in. Angila chooses the scavenging group. Halley, Chris, Kenny, and Jessica all say they want to be in the building group. Rabecca chooses the scavenging group leaving Andy, Decker, and I unassigned. Decker turns to me. Our conversation from the night before flashes through my mind as I realize what he wants of me. ¡°I¡¯ll go with the hunting group.¡± I say. Decker smiles and turns to Andy. Out of the corner of my eye I catch Abby also smiling. ¡°What about you?¡± Decker asks Andy. Andy takes a second while staring at the ground. ¡°I want to be in the building group.¡± He finally says. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll join the scavenging group. That leaves one spot for the hunting and scavenging groups each.¡± Decker says, He pulls out a piece of paper from his pocket. He rips it into five strips and with a pen from a nearby cubicle marks them one through five. ¡°Alright one through three stay in the building group. Four will join the scavenging group while five will join the hunting group.¡± Decker says He holds the strips of paper so you can¡¯t see what number is written on them. Then he shuffles the scaps before presenting Chris with strips. He pulls number two. Next is Halley who pulls four. Her shoulders shag but she doesn¡¯t fight it. Kenny joins the building group by pulling three. Decker then turns to Andy with two strips in his hands. Andy grabs the paper to his right. The number five is written on it¡¯s base in blue ink. Andy¡¯s eyes fall at the sight and his shoulders shag. ¡°Alright that leaves you to be part of the building group.¡± Decker says while looking at Jessica. ¡°This is bull shit.¡± Andy says. A silence falls on our small group as Andy¡¯s face grows beat red. He breathes hard and heavy. His shoulders visibly rising with the effort. ¡°Do you have a problem with how we picked who does what?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Why do I have to risk my life? I already worked so hard to clear the building I shouldn¡¯t have to go outside and risk my life even more.¡± Andy says. ¡°So then other people should go out and risk their lives for you to just hold yourself up in here?¡± Decker asks. Andy fumbles for words but doesn¡¯t find any before Decker continues. ¡°Does anyone else have an issue with how we divided up jobs?¡± He asks. No one speaks up causing Decker to continue. ¡°I tried to do this as fairly as possible. If you aren¡¯t willing to work then you don¡¯t have to stay here. You can leave at any time. But if you stay you have a job to do and we don¡¯t have time to deal with you complaining. So what is it? Will you leave or will you do what you need to?¡± Decker asks. His voice drops low reminding me once again of my father. But instead of resorting to beating Andy like my father would have, Decker just talks to him. I can tell he¡¯s annoyed and angered by the guy but he hasn''t laid a hand on him. ¡°I¡¯ll work.¡± Andy grumbles. Decker sighs and turns to the group. ¡°Alright so first I think we should try and get some better weapons for everyone. Does anyone have any ideas on where we can find some?¡± Decker asks. The group falls silent as we ponder his question. My mind races back when I was having to learn the map of downtown as part of my training for the job. We went over quite a few businesses and I know where a few stores with weapons might be, but they¡¯re all a decent walk away. Then I feel like I¡¯m being struck by lightning as a single word passes through my mind. ¡°Police¡± I say. ¡°What was that?¡± Decker asks. ¡°The police station.¡± I slowly let out. As I think about it the more it makes sense. ¡°The police station should have the weapon lockers for the police and riot squad. Along with an evidence room that¡¯s probably full of weapons. And it¡¯s only three blocks to the south on third street.¡± I say. ¡°Do you think you can actually break into their armory and evidence room?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Given enough time I¡¯m confident I can. Especially if some of the other Mages help.¡± I say. Speaking of Mages, how many people have chosen classes? ¡°Wait, how many people have picked a class?¡± I ask. ¡°Oh yeah you were passed out for that.¡± Abby says. ¡°Well Decker took us out in groups and let us each kill a zombie so everyone has chosen a class.¡± Jessica says. ¡°Oh that¡¯s good.¡± I say. ¡°So then the Hunting party will set out for the police station. They¡¯ll clear the building and gain access to any place with stuff we need. Then over the radio they¡¯ll call for the scavenging team. We¡¯ll run over and collect what we can then run back. Does anyone have any issues with this?¡± Decker says. ¡°Umm. I have a request.¡± Abby says. ¡°Yeah?¡± Decker asks. ¡°After we clear the police station can we push a little further south to my house? It¡¯s only four blocks further down.¡± She says. ¡°Hmm. It¡¯s a little far but if everyone in the hunting party agrees to it I don¡¯t have an issue. As long as you guys run if any high leveled zombies show up.¡± Decker says. Abby grows visibly more hopeful. Her shoulders rise and her face brightens up into a smile. She turns to me pleading in her eyes. ¡°I¡¯m fine with going.¡± I say. She turns to Kyle. ¡°As long as we book it at any sign of issues.¡± Kyle says. Finally she turns to Andy. Her bottom lip sticks out slightly making me realize that she¡¯s pretty cute. Andy stares at her. His eyes travel down her body stopping at two spots in particular. ¡°You¡¯ll owe me.¡± He says. I feel something in me rise at his words. I grow hot and a desire to hit him burns in me. ¡°Deal. Thank you all so much.¡± Abby says. ¡°Alright hunters get ready. You should leave soon.¡± Decker says. We all rise. Ready to try and tackle the day. My stomach feels queasy at the thought of going outside again but I push the feeling down. I need to get stronger. Not just for myself but for others. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m a predator anymore. I don¡¯t think I have the temperament for it. But maybe I can grow stronger. Chapter 37 As the groups start to section off and get ready for the day Decker pulls me aside. ¡°So I realize you said something last night that I totally blew past without giving it a second thought.¡± He tells me. I look at him unsure about what he meant. ¡°You said something about making a skill. What did you mean by that?¡± Realization dawns on me and I once again feel stupid. For having such a high intelligence I really am not the sharpest tool in the shed. ¡°Yeah I made some skill called Channel Purification.¡± I say. I fall into an explanation of how I discovered the skill. Decker listens intently as I retell the story. Once done he scratches his chin. Then his eyes glaze over as he reads some screen in front of him. ¡°Fascinating. How many skills do you have?¡± He asks. ¡°Two.¡± I say. ¡°What are they?¡± ¡°Mana manipulation and Channel Purification.¡± ¡°Ah. I wonder if the skills displayed are related to our classes.¡± He scratches his chin in thought for a few moments. His eyes focus back on me as he dismisses whatever screen he was reading. ¡°Keep an eye out for any other skills or anything else the system shows you.¡± He says. I agree to do so and leave to grab something to eat. While eating Decker drops off my trusty tire iron. It¡¯s metallic surface feels cold to the touch but having it close to me makes me feel more comfortable. Once done eating I meet up with the other Hunters. The three of them gather around a desk. Upon getting closer I hear Abby explaining the route to the police station. ¡°So it¡¯s a straight shot down Third Street. It¡¯s about here but there¡¯s a park in front of it that usually holds a lot of homeless people.¡± She says. On the desk is a crudely drawn map of the few blocks around the office building. Where Abby is pointing is a square with ¡°Police Station¡± written inside of it. A large square taking up a whole city block rests next to the police station. ¡°So we might expect a decent amount of zombies around there. However, once we¡¯re inside I think we should be safe.¡± She continues. ¡°What about any zombies in the police station?¡± Andy asks. ¡°I don¡¯t think there will be any super strong zombies inside the building. The night crew for the police station is skeletal at best. They¡¯ve been dealing with a lot of officers who resigned recently. So the people in the office are generally filling out reports or watching the jail house. Probably no more than 30. But still be cautious.¡± I say. The company I work for works closely with the police department. We even have a few police officers that work from my company''s offices. They¡¯re the ones we call when we need a police officer on the scene. So I¡¯ve heard a thing or two about the inner workings of the police precinct. Andy glares at me while I answer. I ignore him as I turn to Abby. ¡°So once we get done with the police station, where is your house?¡± She takes a second to add to the map before drawing a rectangle a few blocks away. ¡°It¡¯s an apartment complex with three floors. Each floor has only a few house units. My house is on the second floor, the third unit. I live there with my father and two brothers. Otherwise most of the units have no more than five people.¡± She says. So as long as no high levels stand between us and her apartment then it should be relatively easy. I look at the small group. Andy is a warrior and already reluctant to be on the team. In a real fight he¡¯s probably useless. Abby has proven herself reliable and when I show her how to use magic I¡¯m sure she¡¯ll be a power house. My eyes fall on Kyle as I realize I have no clue what class he is. ¡°What class did you choose?¡± I ask him. ¡°Warrior.¡± Kyle says. Damn. I was hoping for another mage. But a warrior isn¡¯t bad, hopefully with a decent weapon he¡¯ll be useful. ¡°Well I personally don¡¯t have any questions. I¡¯m ready to go when you guys are.¡± I say. Abby and Kyle say that they¡¯re ready while Andy grumbles about his readiness. We make our way to Decker who hands me a radio and one of the master keys. ¡°Alright don¡¯t worry about taking anything back. Just clear the way to the stuff and radio when you¡¯re ready for the scavenging team. If you see anything or get in trouble, radio for help. We won¡¯t be far away.¡± Decker says. With that we head to the bottom floor and exit the building through the side door on third street. Dead bodies pile around us as I look at the carnage on the street. Dozens of bodies lie motionless. I¡¯m shocked by the carnage before me. Hearing that you slayed forty zombies and seeing it are two completely different things. Granted I have slain more than forty but when I cleared out the lobby I was taking pot shots from behind a reinforced door. Once outside I extend my mana into the air around us. My Magical Sonar picks up the others and stretches just across the street. Looking up and down the road it appears to be safe to start traveling. ¡°So¡­¡± Abby says. I barely catch her words as my focus is on if any zombies are around. She talks barely at a whisper next to me while surveying the road ahead of us. ¡°How do I use mana?¡± She finishes asking. I ground to a halt and look towards her. She holds a spear in one hand while looking at me quizzically. I totally forgot that I¡¯m supposed to show her how to use it. In all honesty coming outside without making sure that she could at least form a Rifle Round was just dumb. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. I continue walking knowing that we shouldn¡¯t waste time. While walking I turn to her, keeping half of my focus on the area in front of us. ¡°Manipulating mana is a lot of just mental imagery and will. If I want to make a spell I will the mana outside of me and then give it a shape.¡± To demonstrate I push a blob of energy outside of me. I¡¯ve always naturally given the energy the shape of an orb, that being what I¡¯m used to seeing from the media. However, I can feel that it naturally wants to expand in the air, saturating it with energy. Abby watches in amazement as I force the blue light into different shapes. In part I¡¯m trying to show her what I mean. However, part of me realizes that I¡¯ve been using mana inefficiently. In my battle against the Banshee I could have wasted less mana by using thinner tendrils of mana for my scythes. Or even my wasteful use of Rifle Round. I can now make sharp bits of mana so maybe it¡¯ll cost less mana to make needles to shoot at zombies instead of the balls. I play with the malleable energy forming all sorts of shapes. Needles to knives to throwing stars. The more complex a shape I want it to take, the harder it is to force it into the shape and to keep it there. Simple constructs like orbs take almost no conscious effort to sustain while blades take just slightly more. A few zombies dot the streets to our right and left in the intersections. I instruct Abby on how to form a Rifle Round. It takes her a few tries but she eventually gets the hang of it. I also take care of a few myself while experimenting with different shapes of mana. Using a needle like shape doesn¡¯t instantly kill any zombies. I think it¡¯s because I can¡¯t build up enough force or speed with them. However, using a thicker blade construct that looks like a crude throwing knife does a decent amount of damage, still not as much as a Rifle Round. It takes us very little time to get to the police station. When we reach the steps leading up to the front doors I¡¯m hovering around ninety percent of my max mana. While Abby claims to be resting around sixty percent. I ask her to keep an eye on our rear. To help her I instruct her on how I use Magical Sonar. It takes her a while to figure it out and when she does she tells me it only extends around eight feet. ¡°What are your stats at?¡± I ask ¡°I¡¯m level 5, Strength is at four, Dexterity is at six, Agility is at seven, Endurance is at six, Intelligence is at ten, Wisdom is five, Luck is seven, Charisma is seven, Perception is twelve, and Willpower is five. I also have 25 free Attribute Points.¡± She says. Either Willpower or Wisdom affects how much ground we can cover with Magical Sonar. I think it¡¯s a mix but I need to find out. ¡°Put a few points into Willpower.¡± I tell her. She nods and her eyes grow hazy. A second later they focus back on me. ¡°Now try to push your mana further.¡± She closes her eyes as I feel the air grow heavy. ¡°Oh wow that almost doubled the distance.¡± She says. ¡°Good. Now make sure nothing sneaks up on us.¡± I tell her So Willpower affects how much you can control. But still thinking about Perception should also have an effect on Magical Sonar right? If not how far you can see then how much detail you can pick up. Imagine how far you can push Magical Sonar. With enough points in Wisdom and Willpower you might be able to keep tabs on everyone inside of the office building no matter where they are. When it comes to scavenging it might be very useful to be able to feel what¡¯s in places we can¡¯t see. With that in mind I open my own stat page.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 9
Level: 16 DEX: 5
To Next Level 50/1100 AGI: 6
Sex: Male END: 15
Age: 19 INT: 55
Class: Mage WIS: 15
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
Mana 120/120 PER: 8
WIL: 11
Free Attribute points: 10
As I read through my stats my eyes fall onto perception. The tingle in my mind flares up just a bit as I glance over it. Does perception affect my Magical Sonar? Actually how much does the perception stat affect us? I only have ten free stat points but I can¡¯t get rid of the feeling that I should invest some of them into Perception. As I debate on adding to Perception it starts making more and more sense. It¡¯s dangerous enough outside of the office. Imagine how much more dangerous it is when you aren¡¯t aware of your surroundings. It honestly seems like suicide to not invest more in my other attirbutes like Perceptions. I dump two points into Perception. I want to place more there but I don¡¯t want to waste my points. Next I place three into Wisdom and Willpower. The more control I have over my mana, and the faster I replenish it the more effective I¡¯ll be at hunting. At least that¡¯s what I tell myself to justify spending almost all of my points. Once done allocating my free points I study my sheet. All of my attributes still feel low, except for my intelligence. But hopefully that will change with time. I mean that¡¯s why I¡¯m out here isn¡¯t it? To get stronger? With that done I turn to the others. ¡°Is everyone ready?¡± They all nod giving me the all clear to enter the building. The door swings open quietly leading us into an empty dark lobby. Chapter 38 The lobby of the police station greets us with dim silence and the faint scent of something rotting. Immediately in front of us is a wall with a large window set in the center. From the looks of it some kind of secretary would stand behind the window and guide people to what they need. To either side of the window are thick looking doors. Instead of wasting mana on a floating orb for light I command the mana in me to surge. Lines across my skin burn with a blue light casting new shadows across the room. I ignore the stares of the others as I push out the feeling of being a glow stick. We slowly make our way to the wall with doors set in it. Through the glass in the middle of the wall I can find a few desks. The door to the right seems to lead immediately into this office room while the door to the left leads somewhere unseen. I push my mana through a gap in the bottom of the window and use it to explore the room. The desks are messy and unorganized giving me the feeling that the room was abandoned in a panic. Yet I don¡¯t sense or see any bodies. With that I move to the door to the left. It¡¯s a solid metal door with no glass section to peer through. Through the gaps between the door and it¡¯s frame I can tell that the door is thicker than normal doors. My mana stretches beyond the door into a hallway but I don¡¯t feel anything within my range. I pull back my mana and move to the other door. I push mana through the gaps in the door exploring what¡¯s on the other side. I explore the office space again but this time I feel more doors lining the wall. ¡°Which door?¡± I ask the group behind me. Abby turns to Kyle who shakes his head. We turn our focus to Andy who just shrugs and looks wholly uninterested. ¡°Let''s try this one.¡± Abby says. I pull and push on the handle of the door only to find it locked. I take out my tire iron ready to saw my way through the door when an idea hits me. I¡¯ve used my mana as a kind of telekinesis before by wrapping it around my weapons. Can I use it to pick the lock in the door? I push my mana into the lock of the door. Through it I get a mental image of the locking mechanism. Five pins rest at different lengths with notches grooved through them at different points. I wrap the pins with my mana and push them up so that the grooves line flush with the rotating part of the lock. Then I push the rotating part of the mechanism clockwise drawing a bolt into the door. I hear an audible click as the mechanism snaps into the unlocked position. A wave of satisfaction washes over me. Instead of wasting my mana on cutting through the door I manage to unlock it barely using a percent. I push the door open letting the group walk through. As they do so I can¡¯t stop myself from smiling smugly. ¡°You have to show me how you did that.¡± Abby says as she passes through the open door. Now inside the office space behind the wall I realize we¡¯re in the dispatcher¡¯s area. Three desks line the wall with the window all with multiple monitors and headsets. The other desks I assume are work spaces for the policemen or something. After a moment of observing the room I count three doors. One set in the far wall next to some kind of supply closet. While the other two are set into the wall to the right after entering the room. Tags next to the side doors label them as ¡®Lunchroom¡¯ and ¡®Locker room¡¯. The lunchroom is the closest of the doors to me so it¡¯s the one I choose to check out first. As I walk up to it I call Abby over. ¡°Push your mana through the gaps around the door and try to feel for what''s on the other side.¡± I tell her. She nods and closes her eyes in concentration. A few moments pass in silence as I and the other two guys watch the girl furrow her brow in concentration. ¡°I don¡¯t feel anything on the other side but I also can¡¯t see the whole room.¡± She says. ¡°That¡¯s fine.¡± I say. I push my mana out to the other side through the gaps. Although I can¡¯t cover the whole room I do confirm that nothing is immediately behind the door. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. I push on the door and find that it¡¯s unlocked. Turning back to the other I get a nod from them before advancing. The powerful stench of rot and decay washes over me. My eyes water and it¡¯s all I can do to stop myself from gagging. Towards the end of the room four zombies stand facing the wall opposite to us. Countless flies buzz around the room hovering mostly around the zombies and an open refrigerator. My mana surges in me burning hot at the sight of the undead. Blue rectangles flash into existence above their heads indicating all of them are lower leveled than me. Three level ones and one level 3. ¡°Abby, do you have level three?¡± I ask. She nods as a blue orb of energy exits her palm. ¡°Alright, Kyle and Andy take care of the level ones. They shouldn¡¯t be too hard but Abby and I will watch your backs just in case.¡± I say. With that we rush into action. Abby lets her spinning orb of mana fly. It zips through the air leaving a familiar glowing trail. It collides with the head of a zombie dropping its health to zero. At the sound of the attack the other three zombies turn their attention to the falling zombie. Kyle races out his legs pumping powerfully against the ground. He¡¯s faster than any speed I could reach but still slower than Decker. His spear points out in a powerful thrust piercing into the skull of one of the zombies. The blue light above it¡¯s head flashes black. It falls to the ground and as it does so Kyle yanks the spear out of it¡¯s head. Andy stands behind me still unmoving. The bat in his hands hovers above the ground unmoving. I feel anger boil inside of me at the man''s actions. However, I¡¯m quickly distracted by the fight still going on at the other end of the room. Kyle back pedals as a zombie reaches out for him. His spear races forwards missing the thing¡¯s head. In that instant the tingle in my mind blares. Mana surges out of me instantly forming a spinning orb. The energy is already sailing across the room when I realize what I¡¯ve done. It crashes into the head of the zombie who is only inches from sinking its teeth into Kyle. It¡¯s head explodes as it¡¯s killed instantly. The last zombie falls to the ground after eating a face full of mana from Abby leaving us four alone in the bad smelling room. I take a second to make sure Kyle is okay before turning my attention to Andy. Rage boils inside of me as I look at the man. ¡°What the hell dude.¡± Kyle yells in a whisper. ¡°I was expecting you to take care of the other one.¡± Andy remains silent as he stares at the floor. ¡°I don¡¯t know if we can trust him to be out here with us.¡± Kyle says. I agree with him. I mean at this point if Andy is unwilling to fight with us then he¡¯s dead weight that we¡¯re forced to look after. Still it would be a waste of time to walk him back. It also feels wrong to just abandon him. ¡°Come on guys, let''s not fight. Andy, we can trust you right?¡± Abby says. She walks up to Andy forcing him to look her in her eyes. He squirms under her gaze for a second before snapping. ¡°Yeah.. Sorry I just froze. It won¡¯t happen again.¡± Andy says. ¡°Everything is good. No one is hurt and he¡¯s willing to help. Shall we continue?¡± Abby asks. I look at Kyle. Rage burns behind his eyes and I don¡¯t blame him. He nods and we search the break room finding nothing of note. We leave it and move to the next door claiming to lead to the locker room. While I feel like Andy is unreliable and shouldn¡¯t be with us I don¡¯t see what we can do with him. It feels wrong to just leave him behind but if we hope to check Abby¡¯s home we shouldn¡¯t be wasting daylight. I put my worries on the back burner as I focus on the potential danger in front of me. Abby pushes the door to the locker rooms open. A short hallway with three doors greets us. Two of which lead to the men¡¯s and women¡¯s locker rooms. The third door is labeled garage. All three doors reveal themselves to be locked. So I take a second to explain to Abby how I pick the locks with mana. She focuses on the lock to the women''s room and I hear metal quietly click against metal. Sure that she¡¯ll get it I turn my focus to the door leading to the guys side. I push my mana over to the other side of the door trying to feel for anything out of place. I get a sense of lockers and benches but no zombies. It takes me a few seconds but I manage to unlock the guys locker room before Abby unlocks the women''s. ¡°Is something wrong?¡± I ask her. ¡°I¡¯m not feeling that groove you talked about.¡± she says. ¡°Your perception may not be high enough. Let''s check the guy''s side then I¡¯ll unlock this door.¡± She nods and I feel her mana leave the locking mechanism of the door. We enter the guys locker room finding nothing. It¡¯s a small rectangular room with lockers lining the walls and some being set in the center of the room. Most of the lockers are left open and empty. Some have padlocks on them and a few others are closed. I open a few of the closed one revealing things ranging from deodorants, clothes, to food containers. Once sure that the room is of no threat we leave and I unlock the women¡¯s locker room. We find much of the same there. Empty and open lockers mixed in with locked ones. The room smells faintly of perfume and I¡¯m left to wonder if someone used it recently or if enough perfume has been sprayed in here that it¡¯s been soaked up by the walls. With nothing for us in the rooms we leave and head to the door sealing us off from the garage. Through Magical Sonar I can tell that the garage is a large open space. It takes me a second to unlock the door. As I do so the tingle in the back of my mind hums. The smell of the undead bombard my senses as I open the door revealing a horde meandering around a gated area. Something we¡¯ve done must have caught their focus as many in the horde turn to us. They howl with hunger and charge for us. HHHHHUUUUUUGGGGG! Chapter 39 The horde numbers just over twenty and as more and more notice us their howls grow louder. My eyes dart above the heads of the crowd causing my spirits to rise when I see no red lights. The group clusters towards the other end of the gated area that is the garage. A chunk of the gate lies on the ground leaving the area open to any other groups of zombies. Police and civilian cars dot the lot. My mana flares in anticipation of the fight. The tingle in my mind tells me that the gate should be the first priority. ¡°We need to get that gate up.¡± I say. I lock eyes with Kyle and an understanding passes between us. I summon a tendril of mana from my left hand and fashion it¡¯s tip into a blade. The tendril of mana is thin and fast but won¡¯t have the same push back power that my thicker tendrils do. I race forwards keeping my eyes on the fallen piece of fence. Kyle races next to me and pulls ahead. Through my Magical Sonar I can feel the muscles in his legs working over time to propel him forwards. And not just that, I can feel the muscles in his torso flex and relax as they keep him upright. The muscles in his chest and arms twitch with each swing of his hands. He reaches the gate first and with ease lifts the metal chain link. I make it there a second later and examine the edges of the fence. I don¡¯t find anything to connect this section of fence with the others. My heart starts racing at the thought that the fence is going to stay open. My eyes fall onto the thin metal wrapped around each other making the diamond like shapes in the fence. Then an idea hits me. My thin Mana Scythe snaps out cutting bits of the metal mesh making up the fence. I take hold of the metal wire and unthread it from the fence. Then I wrap it around the pole of the other section of fence. I twist it as tight as I can befor racing to the other side. Through the corner of my eye I see Kyle twisting the metal even tighter. Through my Magical Sonar I can tell that the horde has split off into two groups. One marches towards Kyle and I while the other heads towards Abby and Andy. I feel regret fill me as I imagine Abby alone with the unreliable Andy. Thoughts of him using her as a meat shield against the undead flash in my mind. Abby starts forming Rifle Rounds as I finish twisting another part of the fence. Once done with this part I bend down to the bottom corner of the fence and start unthreading metal here too. I split my focus as I form a few Rifle Rounds behind me. As I twist the section of metal around the post of the other section I shoot out with the spinning ball of energy. Using my Magical Sonar to aim for the heads of the monsters. I follow the racing energy as it crashes into the skull of one zombie. The energy explodes on contact quickly burning itself out of existence. I feel the zombie fall just as I finish twisting the metal as tight as I can. I let loose another Rifle Round as I race back to the other side of this section of fence. Kyle no longer holds up the fence and is instead focused on making sure that the fence is tight. I make my final cut in the bottom corner and twist off the section of fence. Once done I take a step back. It¡¯s short work and will probably only hold off a few zombies but it¡¯ll make sure nothing sneaks up on us. I turn on the spot and face the small group coming after Kyle and I. The group numbers just over ten even though I¡¯ve already taken care of two. My eyes dart to the group growing closer to Abby and Andy. It number just over eight and is quickly being handled by Abby. Blue bolts of energy race out from her pointed fingers. They strike true, killing the zombies. Andy stands at the ready with his bat but makes no motion to charge the group. I ignore the growing anger at me at his cowardice and place my full focus on the group before me. I can easily just create Rifle Rounds to handle them all but that isn¡¯t the most cost efficient way to dispatch them. Creating a thin Mana Scythe costs even less than a Mana Saw but it doesn¡¯t have the same cutting power to dig through the skull like paper. However, it is sharp enough and quick enough to cut their spine in their neck. With all of that in mind I summon another thin Mana Scythe and pull in my Magical Sonar to cover a radius of ten feet. With the cloud of my energy no longer spread over a wide area I can perceive a lot more detail. The individual sections of their spines become clear as day to me. I focus on the napes of their neck where the spine is closest to the skin. Then I zone in on the gaps between the sections. I leap forwards lashing out with the scythes. My energy slices through the air faster than my eyes can see. The blades of energy easily separates the brain from the rest of the body, causing the zombie to drop like a sack of potatoes. My next target suffers a similar experience as I get close to it. I could easily have the tendrils of energy snake out and keep me at a safe distance but that would require more mana to maintain. Another Zombie has it¡¯s skull pierced by the wooden shaft of Kyle¡¯s spear. He¡¯s finished tightening the fence and has joined me in the fight. Together we make quick work of the group. I paralyze the majority of the group while Kyle stabs into the rest. Once I feel that the group after Kyle and I aren¡¯t a real danger I turn my attention back to Abby. My Magical Sonar spreads back out covering the distance between us. Her eight now numbers three but have gotten quite close. Abby lunges out with her spear while Andy reluctantly swings his bat at another. The third growls it¡¯s horse battle cry as it leaps at Abby. She doesn¡¯t notice the incoming zombie as her gaze is locked on her spear that appears to be stuck in the skull of the other zombie. A Rifle Round sprouts from my finger as I point at the zombie bearing down on her. It screams through the air as I focus on the head of the monster. It crashes into the zombie just as Abby manages to pull her spear free. With only inches to spare the zombie dies before it could manage to sink its teeth into Abby. She looks up in shock as the zombie above her falls to the ground. Her eyes dart to me and I see her mouth ¡®Thank you¡¯. I turn away from her feeling like my stomach is doing flips. Andy bashes the brains of the last zombie into paste for a few seconds before stopping. Once satisfied he pulls up and looks at us as if he deserves some kind of reward. I ignore him as I turn to the paralyzed zombies around me. I pull my Mana Scythes back into me as I walk to the nearest zombie. I swing down with my tire iron until the light above its head flashes black. Then I move onto the next one. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Kyle and Abby soon join in as their spears race down smashing to the paralyzed zombies¡¯ skulls. Andy stands off to the side as if cleaning up the rest is beneath him. ¡°Those blue blades are really handy.¡± Kyle says. ¡°Yeah you have to show me how to make them.¡± Abby says. ¡°Push your mana out but don¡¯t make an orb. Instead imagine it taking on the shape of a blade. If your willpower is high enough you can give it an edge, but I don¡¯t know how high that has to be.¡± I tell Abby. ¡°Man I really should have picked Mage. Do you think there¡¯s any way to change our classes?¡± Kyle asks. I shrug my shoulders. ¡°Well remember how in order to pick a class we had to complete some quest?¡± Abby asks. Kyle and I nod. ¡°Well if you think ¡®Quest Log¡¯ A window will pop up. But mine is empty and I have no clue how to get more. Maybe if we can get another quest the reward might be to change classes or something.¡± She continues. I freeze on the spot. Did I really miss something so big as a Quest Menu? This whole system has acted so much like a game and even gave rewards for some quest that I completed. Why did I never think back to that or question it at all? I take a second to call forth the Quest Log. A blue light appears before me as my vision is filled by a floating blue box.
Quest Log:
Quest Name: Difficulty: Reward:
N/A N/A N/A
I shake my head as disappointment in myself fills me. While it¡¯s not particularly useful information right now it¡¯s important to figure out this system that is now governing our lives. ¡°How did I not notice this?¡± Kyle asks. I nod in agreement with him. ¡°I only found it this morning messing around. Did you know we also have a list of skills? Mine only has mana Manipulation.¡± Abby says. ¡°What? No way.¡± Kyle says. His eyes glaze over as he focuses on windows in front of him. Behind him I notice Andy¡¯s eyes also grow hazy. ¡°All I have is Battle Focus.¡± He says. Kyle stabs down at the last paralyzed zombie as he talks to Abby. With a quick survey of the lot I find no more zombies. However, on the street I notice a few being drawn in by the commotion. ¡°We should probably head back inside before anymore are drawn here.¡± I say. ¡°Good idea.¡± Abby says She gives me a quick smile as she yanks the spear out of the zombie''s head. She turns back to the station and starts walking. Kyle and Andy follow, leaving me in last. I take one more look at the street before following. It feels as if someone is watching me as I walk back to the police station. I don¡¯t see anyone in the street or in the building towering above us. I push the sensation out of my mind as I make it back to the building. Two doors sit in the wall of the police station. One is open and leads to the hallway with the locker rooms. The other is closed and has lockboxes set in the wall next to it. The group walks towards the closed door. A large square piece of glass is set in the center of the door. Looking through it shows what looks like a holding area of sorts. I unlock the door and we walk back into the building. We find ourselves in a small lobby-like area with a heavy door set into the other side of the room. A window sits next to it with an intercom placed into the window. ¡°Before we go any further I need to try and recover my mana.¡± Abby says. ¡°Alright this is probably a good place to rest up anyways.¡± I say. Chairs sit against a wall. I make my way over to them and plop down. ¡°So do you know of a way to recover mana quicker?¡± Abby asks. I explain to her how I pull more mana into myself. I also explain to her that her Intelligence stat will boost her mana pool. It takes her a while but the glowing blue lines on her body grow black. As they do I feel the air around me stir. I can see why the other people thought I was becoming a zombie. The black veins criss-crossing her body are very reminiscent of those on the zombies. As I examine them the tingle in my mind flares up. Does that mean those black lines on the zombies have something to do with mana? The tingle almost screams at me as I think of that question. So then are they constantly drawing mana in? If so, why can¡¯t I feel it? If I focus on the mana in the air around me I can feel it being drawn towards and into Abby. I don¡¯t get that feeling when I¡¯m around zombies. Granted I¡¯m usually preoccupied by the threat of the zombies to focus on the mana in the air around them. Knowing that it¡¯s going to take her a bit to replenish her pool I pull out the radio that Decker gave me. ¡°Hey this is Joel here. Anyone there? Over.¡± I say into the radio. I wait a second and then hear static. ¡°This is Decker, is everything okay kid? Over.¡± ¡°Yeah but I wanted to see if you knew that we have Quest Logs. Over.¡± The radio remains silent for a few moments. I assume Decker is looking through his Quest Log. A few seconds later the radio comes to life with static. ¡°Interesting. When you were going through the Zone Management screen did you see the Quest Board? Over¡± ¡°No I didn¡¯t. Granted I didn''t look through it too closely. Over.¡± ¡°Fair enough. I ignored it after seeing how much it cost. 500 kill points. I thought it was just some billboard for people to pin up requests but maybe it¡¯s more.¡± Decker falls into silence. A few seconds pass as I grow more and more curious. What if that board can grant us quests and what if we can get new classes or different skills as rewards. Or what if we can get new weapons or resources. Maybe we won¡¯t have to scavenge for stuff if the reward for some quests is something like food. ¡°We only have just over 300 points. When we get to 500 I¡¯ll purchase the board. Hopefully it¡¯s not going to be something useless.¡± Decker says over the radio. ¡°Sounds good sir. We¡¯re resting up before continuing. I¡¯ll contact you if anything changes. Over.¡± ¡°Alright be safe out there. Over.¡± With the conversation over I place the radio back onto my utility belt. I close my eyes and pull mana into myself too. No point in wasting this break. After a little under an hour my eyes open. Abby sits next to me, her knee bouncing at a fast past. Andy sits in a different chair on the other side of the room while Kyle stands looking outside the window in the door to the parking lot. ¡°Is everyone ready?¡± I ask. Standing up causes a wave of pleasure to run through my muscles as they are stretched out. Abby stands up and stretches too. ¡°I¡¯ve been ready.¡± Kyle says. ¡°I¡¯m good to go. Refilled my pool and boosted it.¡± Abby says. ¡°Let''s just get this over with.¡± Andy says. I turn my focus on the thick locked door before me. It¡¯s time to continue hunting. Chapter 40 The large door before me has no key hole like the other doors. Instead it just appears to be a slab of metal. Through Magical Sonar I can tell that the locking mechanism for the door is two bars that slide into the wall. A circular handle on the other side of the door controls the large dead bolts along with what I believe to be electrical motors. With the power out I can¡¯t just push the button on the other side of the door and make it unlock itself. Instead I wrap the wheel on the other side of the door with my mana. The mechanism is heavy. Really heavy. It resists me as I try to turn it. The weight is just too much for my mana. I pull back my mana after burning off about five percent of my reserves. Instead I move to the window set in the wall next to the door. Through my Magical Sonar I can tell that the wall itself is thin. I wrap my tire iron with mana and send it to spiral. The energy hums as I form tiny teeth in the blue energy. The energy coated metal slides through the wall as if it was nothing. A few seconds later the window falls out of the wall with a thud. ¡°Mana is really useful isn¡¯t it.¡± Kyle says. He sounds sad as he talks. Out of the corner of my eye I watch Abby pat his shoulder. I feel butterflies in my gut grow angry at this. I shake my head at the foreign feelings and return my focus to what¡¯s on the other side of the wall. Through the hole in the wall I see a tiny room with a desk, some monitors, and a chair sitting in there. It¡¯s pretty much just a closet. I crawl through the hole in the wall and turn towards the door. Testing the handle I find it locked. My mana enters the key hole and a second later I feel the bolt slide into the door. I swing open the door and turn to the large door separating me from the others. The metal wheel that is too heavy to move with my mana greets me. I take the cold metal in both hands and twist with all my might. The wheel slowly moves counter clockwise as I twist it. It takes a few turns but eventually I unlock the door. It swings open with a creek and I regroup with the others. We travel down the hall finding ourselves passing another office like space. It¡¯s empty and has two rooms that lead to different gender restrooms. We find another door that leads to the jail room. Five cells greet us, one with a group of four zombies. A zombie dressed as a policeman stands to greet us as we enter the room. Abby takes it out with a well placed Rifle Round. Kyle pikes the ones in the cells with his spear as we pass through the room. As we make our way through the building we encounter a few more policeman zombies. However the highest level one is level three. Abby handled it leaving me to mostly guide us through the building. After a while we stumble upon the evidence room. A locked door label ¡®Evidence¡¯ leads to a room with a desk in front of a caged off area. I unlock the cage door and we take a second to make sure that the evidence room has no surprise beings. Once sure the room is safe we continue our search of the building. We find a staircase leading to a basement. Following it we find ourselves in the armory portion of the police station. It too is separated like the evidence room. Inside of the portioned off section I sense three zombies. I call out to the zombies hoping to draw them to me. A few moments later they¡¯re pressing themselves against the metal bars preventing people form sneaking in and taking whatever they want. Kyle, Abby, and I each take out a zombie leaving me to believe the room is cleared. The moment the last zombie drops a booming voice sounds out. ¡°CONGRATULATIONS! A Safe Zone has been established. Owner of the Safe Zone is Joel Dyllan, for contributing the most.¡± ¡°What was that?¡± Abby asks. ¡°I think it¡¯s what happens when you clear a building of zombies.¡± I say. ¡°That also happened when we finished clearing the horde in the garage.¡± Andy says. ¡°I didn¡¯t hear that when you rescued us from the restaurant.¡± Kyle says. Thinking back to it there was no booming announcement when Decker and I killed the Zombie Butcher. Does that mean there was a zombie in there that we didn¡¯t find? We¡¯re we still in danger after the fight? I shake the thoughts out of my head. I¡¯ll head back later and see if I can find anything. I don¡¯t really care to be in ownership of buildings but I want to find out if the safe zones are established when we clear a building. If that¡¯s the case then knowing when to stop hunting in a building will be a lot easier. ¡°So do you have that zone management screen like Decker now?¡± Abby asks me. With a thought I pull up the large list of items. At the top now rests a countdown. ¡°Yeah I do.¡± I tell her. She mumbles something to herself and I¡¯m tempted to ask her to repeat herself. But a memory of asking my father that stops me. I logically know she isn¡¯t going to hit me for asking a question but for some reason I lose the interest in doing so. Instead I turn my focus back on the armory before me. I unlock the door to the part of the room with weapons. To be sure that a safe zone means that a building is clear we stalk the armory finding no other zombie. Satisfied we leave the basement and continue our search of the building. After a bit we find ourselves in a hallway with a closed door at the end. We cross the hallway and I unlock the closed door. Once I open it we find ourselves back in the front lobby of the building. ¡°So are we done?¡± Andy asks, ¡°I think so. We checked every room right?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure we did. So what now? Do we radio the others and stay here or do we head back?¡± Abby asks. ¡°I¡¯ll radio Decker and let him know.¡± I say. I take the radio off of it¡¯s place on my utility belt. ¡°Hey, it''s Joel here. We finished clearing the police building. Over.¡± Silent moments pass as we wait for a response. After an uncomfortable amount of time has passed I feel worry well up in me. ¡°Is everything okay? Over.¡± I ask the radio. Silence follows. I feel my stomach plummet as I imagine a horde taking over the office. Are the others in the middle of a fight right now? Is everyone okay? Should we race back? ¡°Sorry, could you repeat that? I didn¡¯t catch what you said. Over,¡± Decker¡¯s voice crackles out from the radio. His voice eases my heart as I feel relief flood me. ¡°We cleared the police station. What would you like us to do? Over.¡± ¡°Oh perfect. I and the scavenging team will be over in a second. Could you make sure that the street is clear? I don¡¯t want to be surprised by any nasties. Over.¡± ¡°On it. Over.¡± The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. I clip the radio back to my belt. I turn to the group behind me. ¡°Did you guys catch all of that?¡± I ask them. They all nod and we make our way back outside. Once on the street I see a few zombies milling about further up the block. I send out a few Rifle Rounds killing them all instantly. The street to the office is clear of zombies. After a few moments I see a group of four quickly making their way towards us. Just to be safe I ready the mana inside of me in case they¡¯re high leveled zombies. However, my precaution is unwarranted as I quickly realize the group is Decker and the others. ¡°How did it go?¡± Decker asks me when he reaches us. ¡°Good. Not a lot of zombies and we found the armory and evidence room.¡± ¡°Good good. Could you show us to the armory?¡± The scavenging group follows us into the building. Decker has Abby and Andy stay at the front door just in case anything tries to follow. Part of me wishes that he didn¡¯t group Andy with Abby. The guy just screams unreliable to me. I show the scavenging group down to the armory. They pull duffle bags and backpacks off of their shoulders. ¡°Where did you get those?¡± I ask them. ¡°The lockers in the gym on the second floor.¡± Haley says. The armory is full of guns, ammo, canisters of tear gas, riot armor, and other various items. Decker guides them to focus mostly on the guns and ammo for now. I have to unlock locks keeping the guns strapped to the walls. After some time they fill their bags full. ¡°This should last us a bit but I would like to eventually get everything in here over to the office.¡± Decker says. I nod and watch as the others lug the now full and heavy bags over their shoulders. We make our way back to the lobby where we find Andy and Abby waiting for us. ¡°We got everything we can. I think we¡¯re going to head back to the building. You said that you wanted to go check your home or something right?¡± Decker asks Abby. She nods her head. ¡°Yeah I want to see if my family is okay.¡± ¡°And it¡¯s not too far away?¡± He asks. ¡°Only about five blocks from here.¡± Decker looks back at me. ¡°And you guys are good with going?¡± He asks. I nod. Then I look at Kyle and Andy. Kyle nods too, leaving only Andy. He glares at me but nods as well. ¡°Well alright then. Be safe and run back if anything happens. Do you know the distance on these radios?¡± He asks me. ¡°Pretty far. My company used them to radio across downtown so a few blocks is nothing to them.¡± I say. ¡°Good. Radio if anything happens. If you can¡¯t make it back safely then hold up somewhere we can always work on rescuing you.¡± He says. I nod and watch them exit the building and head back towards the office. Once I know that they¡¯ve made it safely I turn back to the group. ¡°So are you guys ready?¡± I ask them. ¡°Are we walking there?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°I figured we would. Why? Have something in mind?¡± I ask. ¡°Why don¡¯t we use one of the cars?¡± He asks. I take a second to think it over. Why haven¡¯t we been using cars? I know the sound would probably draw attention but there¡¯s some cars that can be pretty silent today. Especially the electric ones. I guess we just haven¡¯t thought to use them since you don¡¯t see them moving around anymore. ¡°I think they would be too loud.¡± Abby says. ¡°I saw an electric car in the parking lot. If we keep it under 20 miles an hour it¡¯s practically silent.¡± Kyle says. ¡°But we don¡¯t have keys for it.¡± Andy chips in. ¡°It was a police vehicle. The keys should be somewhere in the building.¡± Kyle says. ¡°Why do the police have electric cars?¡± Abby asks. ¡°Environmental laws are starting to push for police and other government bodies to use more eco-friendly vehicles.¡± I answer. My mind races back to a conversation I had with one of the officers that helped my company. He was excited that the police were getting some new patrol vehicles and he was hoping that he was going to get to drive one of them. He later pouted because he wasn¡¯t one of the guys chosen to drive the new cars. We make our way back outside to the parking lot. Kyle walks up to black electric police car and walks around it. He pulls on the handle only to find the car locked. He circles the vehicle again and stops at the back end of the passenger side. ¡°It¡¯s number is 37.¡± He calls out. Unsure what to do with the information I open my mouth to ask him what he means, but Abby cuts me off before I can. ¡°Hey this lock is 37. Do you think the keys to the car are in here?¡± She asks. She stands next to the lock boxes set into the wall of the building. She¡¯s pointing at a lock in the third row of boxes. I walk over and quickly unlock the box. Inside we find some keys. Abby grabs the keys and presses on the unlock button. Lights behind us flash as the car next to Kyle responds to the keys. With keys in hand we walk back to the car. For a second we freeze as we surround the vehicle. Kyle stands in front of the driver¡¯s door looking down at Abby expectantly. ¡°I thought you didn''t have your license.¡± He says. Abby¡¯s face grows red at his words. Her bottom lip sticks out in a cute pout. ¡°And?¡± ¡°I think it¡¯d be safer to have someone that knows how to drive behind the wheel.¡± He says. She pouts more and part of me wants to say let her drive. But the guy¡¯s logic is sound. This isn¡¯t really the time to be playing around. Abby seems to get this without it being said. As a moment later she hands Kyle the keys. He unlocks the car and gets into the driver seat. Abby opens the back door and shuffles in. Andy opens the front passenger seat and stops moving. ¡°The hell am I suppose to do with these?¡± He asks He gestures to something in the passenger seat. I peek into the car and see some rig holding a computer and some other electronics hanging over the passenger seat. ¡°Give me a second.¡± I say. As I do so I push my mana out of me. I rake it over the rig following the wires that lead into the car. After a bit the tingle in my mind whispers to me. Giving me the feeling that it¡¯s safe just to cut the stuff out. With that in mind I tentatively wrap my mana around the cords. A blue ring of energy forms around the black cables. With a mental command the energy rotates fast enough to cause a humming sound. Then it shrinks. The cables fall as I sever them. Next I work on the metal arm holding the computer. For it I have to use Mana Saw on my tire iron to cut it out. Once it is Andy gets into the passenger seat without even thanking me. ¡°Thanks man.¡± Kyle says. I nod at him and get into the back seat with Abby. The car starts with a low hum and we make our way to the gate in the fence. I get out and open the gate letting the car drive out slowly. Once the car is on the street I close the gate and get back in the car. Abby guides Kyle to her home apartment. As she does so I pull out the radio. ¡°Hey, this is Joel. Nothing¡¯s wrong but I wanted to let you know that we found an electric car. We are using it to move around faster. Over.¡± ¡°Sounds good. When you¡¯re on your way back let us know. We¡¯ll open the garage for you. Over¡± Decker says through the radio. With that done we move silently through the streets. Occasionally we pass a zombie or two. I kill them with a Rifle Round as we pass. In almost no time at all we pull up on a three story building that Abby says is her home. As Kyle slows down in the street the tingle in my mind sounds off. However, I have no clue what it¡¯s trying to tell me. All it leaves me with is a sense of being cautious. We get out of the car, leaving it in the middle of the street. Kyle locks it once everyone is out. ¡°Alright, is everyone ready?¡± I ask the group. The group gives a collective yes. As we draw closer to the building Abby starts glowing a faint blue. I follow suit as I command my mana to be ready for anything. It surges inside of me filling me with a comfortable heat. ¡°Alright let''s go.¡± I say opening the door to the building. Chapter 41 The moment I pass the threshold into the building I feel a weight in the air. A certain stillness that is unsettling. As if the air itself is too scared to move. An eerie silence is only broken by our footsteps as we walk further into the building. We find ourselves in a lobby with a set of elevators in one wall and a staircase in another. Two hallways lead further through the floor to what I assume are apartments. A desk stands opposite of the entrance doors. On the wall on either side of it are mail boxes. The room would look nice if it wasn¡¯t for the strange coldness of the air. ¡°You said you lived on the second floor right?¡± Kyle asks Abby. ¡°Yeah my apartment is directly up the stairs and the third door on the left.¡± She says. ¡°Is the staircase and the elevator the only way through the building?¡± I ask. ¡°Yeah. But there is a fire escape on the side of the building.¡± Abby says. ¡°We should make sure the building doesn''t have any stragglers first.¡± I say. The others agree and we start heading down one of the hallways. Four doors line each side of the hallway with a number on them. As we pass by I try the door knobs to make sure that the doors are locked. We reach the end of the hallway with no issue and find no unlocked room. The second hallway is much the same but the last door on the left is unlocked. I send a pulse of mana through the gaps of the door finding nothing dangerous on the other side. We pop our heads into the apartment. Immediately a rancid stench assaults me. It smells like the worst outhouse you can imagine that has been left out in the sun for the whole summer. I breathe through my mouth and gag as I do so, immediately regretting the action. The smell is so bad that I can practically taste it. I¡¯m forced to cover my nose with my arm as we explore the apartment. Pictures of a large family permeate the walls. The kitchen, living room, and bathroom are all empty. They are also the first room you see upon entering the house. The further we creep in the worse the smell gets. We find a hallway leading off from the living room. The pale brown carpet in the hallway is host to foul looking black stains. The largest of which emanates from the door at the end of the hallway. I conjure a Mana Scythe as I grow close to the door. In my other hand I tighten my grip on my tire iron. My mana passes around the door and with it I can feel the contents of a decently sized bedroom. Yet I feel no movement. Hesitantly I swing the door open. It squeaks on old hinges, causing me and the others to cringe. Behind me I can feel Abby and Kyle tense. While Andy seems to be slowly backing away. Is he really getting ready to run? I push Andy out of my mind as I turn my focus onto the room. The smell is the absolute worst here. The simple furniture of most bedrooms greets us however an object on the bed immediately pulls my attention. The remains of a body lies on the bed. But that¡¯s not the weird part. Instead of looking as if it¡¯s been chewed into the body, it looks as if it¡¯s melted into the bed. I slowly creep further into the room. A strange sense of curiosity daring me to take a better look. The body seems to be that of an old man¡¯s. His face is contorted into one of either absolute shock or pain. My eyes gaze down the body where they lock onto the melted chest of the poor man. The bed underneath the chest also looks to have been melted away. Through the hole in the two I see a hole leading further below the home. The smell is so bad here that I have to pull myself away. Death has kind of become commonplace in this new world. With the living dead roaming the streets and danger around every corner I¡¯ve become a little numb to seeing corpses. That includes the smell of the undead. However, whatever caused that man to lose his stomach like that is by far the worst thing I¡¯ve seen. I quickly make my way out of the room and realize that I was the only one to explore deeper in there. As I make my way to the living room where the others are now standing I fight back the urge to vomit. My feet race as I realize I¡¯m going to lose the battle. Bile erupts from my throat with a burning sensation and I can¡¯t stop myself from opening my mouth. Luckily I don¡¯t live here as the vomit spews onto the carpet. A few moments later my stomach is emptied of all liquid and solid matter. Leaving me dry heaving for a few moments. Once done with that I feel slightly better but now have a horrid taste in my mouth. Looking up I realize that some of the others are vomiting too. Abby is in the kitchen spewing all over the sink. While Andy has found a house plant to evacuate his stomach into. Looking at Kyle I find him just watching us with pity. ¡°I don¡¯t vomit easily¡± He says after realizing why I¡¯m staring at him. I nod and walk to the bathroom. There I find some mouthwash and toothpaste. It¡¯s only now that I realize I haven¡¯t brushed my teeth in days. That¡¯s not something that I can let slide. I remember reading once in a book that before modern medicine that tooth decay was one of the most horrible ways to die. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. And while I have mana to heal myself I don¡¯t know if it can heal teeth. Teeth don¡¯t grow back and from what I can tell Mana just boosts the natural healing abilities of the body. So I''m going to need to find myself a toothbrush if I hope to avoid losing teeth or dying because of my teeth. I waterfall some mouthwash into my mouth and swish it around for a bit. The liquid burns my tongue and cheeks as it sloshes around in my mouth. Once the tingling is gone I spit it out. Then I pour some toothpaste into my mouth. I want to wipe the tooth paste over my teeth with my fingers but I have no clue what kind of germs I¡¯m carrying on me right now. Instead I use my tongue to try and spread the minty flavored paste. I spit out the remains of the hygiene products before leaving the bathroom. I hand the mouthwash and toothpaste to Abby who cleans out her mouth. ¡°Thank you.¡± She says after spitting out the mouthwash. Andy cleans his mouth next. Leaving the rest of us to wait for him. Once he¡¯s done we all leave the apartment. ¡°What do you think did that?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°Probably a zombie.¡± Andy says. His tone sounds as if he thinks Kyle is an idiot. It sparks more annoyance in me. ¡°I don¡¯t think it was a normal Zombie.¡± I say. ¡°I think it¡¯s probably a mutated zombie or different monster entirely.¡± I say. Andy grumbles something behind me. Part of me wants to stop and deck the guy. Everything about him just bothers me. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s still here?¡± Abby asks. ¡°I hope not.¡± Kyle says. ¡°Just be cautious. At the first sign of trouble we bolt. Okay?¡± I ask. The others nod and we continue our search of the complex. I take point as we crawl up the staircase. The second floor is structured similarly to the first floor. A lobby type area with two hallways leading off. ¡°My apartment is down the second hallway.¡± Abby whispers. ¡°We¡¯ll make sure the building is safe before checking your palace.¡± I say. I can tell that my words make Abby sad but she doesn¡¯t fight me. We slowly make our way down the second hallway checking the doors as we go. I stop at the second door we pass. The handle that all the other doors have is missing from this door. Where it should be is a whole where the door looks as if it¡¯s been melted. I slowly push the door open after making sure no zombies are on the other side. The apartment is structured almost exactly as that poor old man¡¯s. In this one we find three bodies in the living room. All having horrid gaping holes in their chests. The back of my mind tingles as I look at them but that¡¯s all it does. It doesn¡¯t offer any insight or warning of danger. It just makes me feel like I should remember the state of their bodies for some reason. We push further into the apartment and find a bedroom with something I¡¯d really rather not have seen. The room is obviously a baby¡¯s room. A crib sits in here with a hole melted through it. I stay here only long enough to make sure that nothing is hiding in the closet. Then I leave praying that I never have to see that again. The others once again seemed to have refused to enter this room and I don¡¯t blame them. After confirming that nothing dangerous is in this apartment we leave. I have more questions about the contents of the floor. What killed that family? The old man? What has happened in this place? We find a few more apartments with open doors or melted doors in this hallway. In one of them we find a zombie¡¯s head. It chomps at the air as if it¡¯s trying to lunge at us and eat us. Kyle pikes it without a word. Once we clear the hallway we go to the other one. Again we find rooms with open or busted doors. We find the remains of a few more zombies. All of which are in no state to be of any danger. We take care of them anyways. I even manage to gain a level after dispatching a zombie. A cool feeling washes through me as I feel my mana be restored to full. I leave my Attribute Points alone deciding to deal with them later. The third door on the left causes the whole group to pause. Abby stands before the locked and closed door. I can tell that she wants to barge in and confirm the status of her family. However, she holds herself back. We push on checking the last two doors on this floor. One of which is busted open. As we examine the apartment behind it we find a giant hole in the ceiling of the living room. Through it we can see into the apartment above. Yet aside from that the apartment is only host to two undead. We take care of them and leave. As we pass by the door to Abby¡¯s apartment she stops again. Her hand reaches up and knocks on the door. Three solid thuds sound out across the floor and with them my heart sinks. I feel the blood in me race as my mana burns hot. I extend my Magical Sonar ready for anything to run up on us. Inwardly I curse the cute girl. We still have a whole floor above us with who knows what. The monster that¡¯s been melting it¡¯s way through the people and apartments could still be here. And she wants to sit here and make this much sound? ¡°Dad? Daniel? Craig?¡± Abby whispers through the door. Only silence follows. Moments stretch on as I stressfully monitor the hall for any movement. Then the silence is broken. ¡°Abigail is that you?¡± A deep voice seeps out through the door. ¡°DAD!¡± Abby almost screams. Tears race down her face as I hear heavy items being shifted from behind the door. Then I hear locks click and the door swing open. A large man stands in the door frame. Bright green eyes like Abby¡¯s peek out from behind strands of long dark hair. A large beard hides most of his face. ¡°Daddy!¡± Abby says through tears throwing herself at the man. He swoops her up in a bear hug. Tears running down his face too. ¡°If we''re doing this now we should take it behind closed doors.¡± Andy says. His words break the reunion of father and daughter. Abby¡¯s father pulls her into his apartment and gestures for us to follow. We all pile into the home and out of the hallway. Abby¡¯s dad closes the door behind us, locking it as he does so. Once sure that we¡¯re safe for now I breathe a sigh of relief and pull my mana back in. I turn my gaze to the reunited father and daughter. Pangs of jealousy run through me as I watch them hug. When was the last time I was hugged by my father? Was I ever given a hug by him? I shake the thoughts from my mind. There¡¯s nothing there for me but bitterness and resentment. I need to focus on the future. And by that I need to figure out what we¡¯re going to do next. Chapter 42 The two break apart after some hugs and tears are shared. ¡°Where¡¯s Daniel and Craig?¡± Abby asks. Her father¡¯s smile drops. His shoulders shag and he hangs his head. His large hands rise to his face as he starts crying but not out of happiness. ¡°Dad, what''s wrong?¡± Abby asks. ¡°I had to do it.¡± Silence falls in the room as it feels as if the temperature is dropped by a few degrees. I feel my heart sink as connections form in my mind. ¡°Do what?¡± Abby asks. Pangs of pity cry out through me as I realize that the girl hasn¡¯t made the connections herself. I want to walk over there and do something for her. Give her a hug or something. I don¡¯t know. I just know that it doesn¡¯t feel right standing here doing nothing. ¡°What did you do dad?¡± Abby asks. ¡°Craig. He¡­ He attacked me.¡± Her father says. His words are broken apart by sobs. They come slowly as if he can¡¯t believe them himself. ¡°He was trying to eat me or something. I didn¡¯t mean to¡­.¡± He falls silent. ¡°Dad?¡± Abby¡¯s voice is barely audible. ¡°I shoved him away and he¡­¡± More silence. The memories seem too raw for him to go on. The pain and anguish in his face are so real I can feel my heart breaking in sympathy. I¡¯ve never been close to people. Let alone have any family that I truly felt love for. But just seeing the pain in his eyes makes me feel as if I lost someone important to me myself. ¡°He fell out of the window. Craig is dead and it¡¯s my fault.¡± Her father falls to his knees sobbing. His hands raise and the large man starts beating himself in the head. Each strike seems powerful enough to knock a man out. After a few strikes I see blood dripping down the side of his face. Should I stop him? I look to Andy and Kyle hoping that either of them will know what to do. They both look at the scene apparently just as unsure of themselves as I am. Abby stares at her father. Tears streaming down her face. She falls to her knees and wraps her arms around her father. ¡°Dad, it''s not your fault.¡± She says through tears. Isn¡¯t it? I mean he didn¡¯t mean to but he still indirectly killed his son didn¡¯t he? Granted his son was probably a zombie so it could be argued that he was just releasing his son from whatever torment that is being a zombie. ¡°He fell because of me. He died because of my actions.¡± Her father says through sobs. ¡°No. You didn¡¯t kill him.¡± ¡°YES I DID!¡± Her father yells. Silence falls, only being broken by the large man¡¯s sobs, as the two stare at one another. ¡°You¡¯ve been locked up in here since the start. Things have changed. People just turned into zombies. The undead. It¡¯s sad and there¡¯s nothing we can do about it. As the ones left behind it should be our duty to kill the zombies that took our friends and family.¡± Abby says. Her words sound like they belong to someone much older than she is. Someone much more wise and that has been through far more. I¡¯m honestly surprised to hear them from her. ¡°I wish I knew why Craig turned. I wish I could go back in time and stop it. But I can¡¯t. You made sure that his body wasn¡¯t used to hurt anyone. You saved him from that fate. So please stop hurting yourself. I still need you.¡± She finishes. Her father freezes at the last part of her speech. I don¡¯t think he bought the majority of it. But seeing his child before him. Telling him that she needs him. I think that¡¯s what¡¯s broken through to him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry my little bird.¡± He says, He hugs her again. Jealousy rings through me again as I wish I had a father like that. But I know I don¡¯t deserve it. I turn away from the scene. It¡¯s too much for me. I take a second to steal my heart before turning back. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°What about Daniel?¡± Abby asks her father. ¡°He left to go visit your mom after you left for work. I haven¡¯t heard from either of them since the earthquake and everything went down.¡± Abby¡¯s father says. ¡°We have to go search for him.¡± Abby says. She turns away from her father and looks back at us. Her green eyes pleading. I feel my stomach do a summersault under her gaze. ¡°I won¡¯t help.¡± Andy says. Tears form at the edge of Abby¡¯s eyes. I snap my attention to Andy as anger builds in me. ¡°Dude what the hell?¡± Kyle asks Andy. ¡°Think about it. How far away is he? Do we have any clue where he was when the earthquake happened? I¡¯m not going to risk my life on the vague hope of him being somewhere out there.¡± Andy says. I forcefully calm the rising anger in me as I notice my mana glowing just beneath my skin. Andy has some good points. Even if he was a dick about saying it. Still I don¡¯t want to be the one to tell Abby no. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. It was unfair of me to ask.¡± Abby says. ¡°We can go on our own.¡± Her father says. Abby shakes her head. ¡°No, it''s too dangerous. If he¡¯s alive we can only pray that he can survive long enough for us to grow strong enough to look for him.¡± ¡°That¡¯s bullshit. Who are these people anyways? To tell me I can¡¯t go looking for my own son.¡± Her father¡¯s voice rises as he grows more angry. ¡°Why haven¡¯t you gone looking for him yet? Or even your daughter? Why did you barricade yourself in here?¡± Andy asks. Abby¡¯s father shoots to his feet. His face is a bright red as he looks down at Andy. ¡°WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? DO YOU THINK I DIDN¡¯T TRY?¡± Her father yells. Abby¡¯s father stomps up to Andy. His hands grab Andy by his shirt collar and pull him off the ground with ease. ¡°The first thing I did was try and leave.¡± Abby¡¯s father says. His voice drops from a yell to an almost whisper. Every word drips with anger. ¡°I was swarmed by those freaks. I barely made it back in here alive. They beat against that door for hours and hours. It was only a little bit ago did they finally quiet down.¡± He says. Andy grabs the large man¡¯s hands, anger apparent in his face too. ¡°Let me go!¡± He yells. ¡°STOP IT EVERYONE!¡± Abby screams. Silence falls on us. Abby¡¯s father lets go of Andy who falls to the ground with a thud. He rubs his throat while glaring daggers at Abby¡¯s father. ¡°Jesus guys have you forgotten what¡¯s going on outside? This isn¡¯t the place to be fighting like this. Hell we should actually be trying to leave.¡± Abby says. ¡°And go where? Where did you guys come from? And what happened to the freaks beating on the door?¡± Abby¡¯s father asks. ¡°We¡¯re staying in an office building. It¡¯s secure and safe. I don¡¯t know about the zombie at your door. We¡¯ve only seen crippled ones.¡± Abby says. ¡°Wait, how have you guys been surviving?¡± The large man asks. ¡°We¡¯ve been fighting the zombies.¡± Kyle says. ¡°How?¡± Her father asks. ¡°You¡¯ve seen those floating screens right?¡± Abby asks. She blows into a short explanation about the system. How we can gain magic and how we¡¯ve been using them to fight back against the zombies. ¡°Is that why I¡¯ve felt stronger ever since barricading myself in here? I was given a choice between a mage and warrior. I picked warrior because I just wanted the screen gone.¡± Her father says. ¡°Yeah. We don¡¯t fully get it but the system has given us a chance to fight ba¡­¡± THUD! A loud bang at the door stops Abby¡¯s sentence in its tracks. All of our attention snaps to the door which is bombarded by louder and louder thuds. ¡°Dammit they¡¯re back.¡± Abby¡¯s father says. I push my mana outside of me and around the edges of the door. On the other side a single figure slams itself against the door with enough ferocity to cause the door to splinter. ¡°I don¡¯t think the door will last.¡± I say. ¡°Get what you need to. We may have to fight our way out.¡± Kyle says. Kyle raises his spear at the door. I can feel the muscles in his body tensing as he readies for battle. Behind me I feel Andy raise his bat as if it was some kind of shield. Abby¡¯s mana pushes on mine and mingles with it as she activates her Magical Sonar. ¡°What the hell is that?¡± Abby¡¯s father asks. He stares down at his daughter who is glowing a faint blue now. He takes a step back as he feels a pressure push in on him. ¡°Mana dad. I told you that we¡¯ve been using magic to fight back.¡± Abby says. The door thuds again and with the sound a visible crack along the door appears. With each subsequent thud the crack grows larger. ¡°Seriously we don¡¯t have a lot of time. Get what you need.¡± Kyle says. ¡°I only feel one but there may be more in the building. We never got to the third floor.¡± I say. ¡°Dad grab whatever you think you need and try to find a weapon.¡± Abby says. I can feel Abby¡¯s father hesitate. His mouth opens and closes as if he wants to say something but doesn¡¯t know the words. Then he turns and runs out of the room we find ourselves in. The door splinters more and I can finally see through it. On the other side a stocky beast of a zombie rams itself against the door. It¡¯s skin is a grey mess of what looks like cancerous growths. Abby¡¯s father comes back into the room holding a metal bat just as the zombie bursts through the door.
Zombie Brute
Level: 20
HP: 100/100
Shit. Chapter 43 The Zombie Brute stands before us staring at us all. Grey drool drips down from its mouth. Dark hollow eyes glow with a slight red light as it examines all of us in this room. The tingle in my mind screams at me as the Brute¡¯s eyes fall on me. I get the feeling that I need to run and run fast. My heart races as my mana burn white-hot in me. HHHHHHHHHHUUUUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGG!!! The Brute roars as it races forwards. Skinny yet muscular legs propel it forwards at incredible speeds. I leap to my side just barely avoiding the hulking brute. The beast races past me slamming into the wall behind me. The drywall cracks and caves and the rooms shake. Clouds of dust fall from cracks spreading across the ceiling. We all watch in horror as the brute recovers from its charge. It shakes itself and I realize that all the growths on its upper half make it less flexible. I focus on my mana and rake it over the brute. Tough growths cover the majority of its torso and skull. The only places without the grey ugly looking skin are the thing¡¯s thick arms and powerful legs. I conjure a Mana Bullet and toss it into the thing''s face. The ball of energy pops in front of the Brute eliciting another roar from it. I feel the Brute stumble backwards as it closes its eyes. A ball of spiraling energy races out, crashing into the Brute¡¯s head. It explodes with another pop. A faint trail of smoke rises from the spot that the energy hit but aside from that the Brute took no damage. ¡°It¡¯s skin is too tough for normal attacks to get through!¡± I yell to the others. ¡°It¡¯s legs and arms aren¡¯t protected though!¡± I wrap my mana around my tire iron. The energy spins to life as I form tiny teeth along it. The Brute finally recovers from the attack on it. It¡¯s red glowing eyes scan us all again and lock on me once done. Is it after me because of my level? The beast roars and charges for me. The monster is fast but it still takes time for it to build up that speed. Moments from it crashing into me I sidestep. I thrust my tire iron out, striking the monster in it¡¯s chest. The energy-clad weapon bounces off and I¡¯m sent spinning from the momentum of the beast. My shoulder groans in pain as I turn on the spot trying to bleed off the momentum. My eyes race up to the monster¡¯s name tag and I feel my heart drop.
Zombie Brute
Level: 20
HP: 99/100
My two attacks only did a single point of damage? Just how strong is it¡¯s armor? My mind races as I watch the creature. A plan starts to take shape as I think over everything I know about the Brute. It¡¯s attacks are simple, relying mostly on it¡¯s powerful legs and armor. It always takes a second to recover and find it¡¯s target. I pull energy from my core forming two balls. I stand still as I focus on the energy, spinning it faster and faster. In a second two High Velocity Rounds scream in my ears. The Brute focuses back on me after recovering from it¡¯s impact. I focus on the two glowing orbs in its eyes. With a mental push, I force as much speed into the needles of energy. The beast roars and I command the energy to attack. They blitz through the air leaving blue trails. They streak into the Brute¡¯s eyes where they grind for a second against them. Then they explode with a pop rocketing the monster backwards. Smoke wafts from the Brute¡¯s face. It roars in either pain or anger. The smoke around its face dissipates and I feel relief to see no red glow. My mana races into the sockets and confirms that the Brute no longer has any eyes. I glance up at it¡¯s tag and feel anger build in me.
Zombie Brute
Level: 20
HP: 91/100
HHHHHHHHHHUUUUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNGGGGGGGG!!! The monster roars as it spins in place. It¡¯s ears visibly twitch as it tosses about. ¡°What is it doing?¡± Andy asks. The monster stops and turns facing Andy. Then it¡¯s charging. Andy barely has enough time to position the bat between him and the Brute. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The Brute slams into Andy, sending him flying backwards. Andy slams into a wall creating a small crater. Then he falls down to the ground like a sack of potatoes. On the wall and the edges of Andy¡¯s hairline, I notice the red stain of blood. The Brute, either hearing the thud Andy made or smelling the blood on him, focuses on him. It roars as it starts charging for him again. Abby¡¯s father slams into the side of the Brute, sending it careening into the wall just next to Andy. The breast crashes through the wall and tumbles into the room beyond. Dust falls from the ceiling as more cracks from along it. ¡°Keep it busy!¡± I cry out. I focus on the mana inside of me, tuning out the battle before me. The Brute¡¯s strongest weapon is it¡¯s legs. With that in mind I call mana out of me. I can¡¯t just blast this thing away like I did the Zombie Butcher, nor can I overpower it like the banshee. I need to handicap it first. My mana spills out of me as I fashion it into a disk. The energy floats between my hands as I pour all my concentration into the construct. The energy resists my command to be as flat as possible but I ignore it¡¯s complaints. It¡¯s my energy. My power. It will obey me. The energy starts rotating as I imagine it spinning. I picture the edge of the circular disk being sharp as a sword. Then I picture tiny teeth along the edge. I don¡¯t know how much time has passed but I have a disk the size of a hoola hoop floating above my hand. It spins so fast that the edges appear white instead of blue. I take my focus off of the energy at my command and back to the battle. In front of me Abby¡¯s father picks up the Brute and tosses it like some wrestler. Kyle nimbly dances out of the way and skillfully jabs out with his spear. Abby stands off to the side with an expression of worry plastered on her face. I can tell that she wants to help but simply doesn¡¯t know how. The Brute crashes through a wall and into the kitchen beyond. It slides across the floor and slams into the far wall of the kitchen. Abby¡¯s father starts to stalk after the beast, his muscles bulging underneath his shirt. ¡°Stop! I need a clear shot!¡± I yell at him. He snaps his attention to me and then the circular blade of energy before me. Understanding seems to cross his face as he quickly back peddles out of the way. The Brute stands up and starts turning in place again as it¡¯s ears twitch. ¡°Hey ugly!¡± I call out to it. The Brute snaps towards me. It roars again and starts it¡¯s charge. It blows through the hole in the wall and continues for me. I pull back my arm and then throw it forwards. The blade of energy races out on course with the Brute. The energy loses altitude crashing into the Brute¡¯s thighs. The energy sends grey blood spurting through the air as it cuts into the things thighs. I mentally urge the energy on and I feel more mana being pulled from my core. The blue disk turns white as I imagine it spinning even faster. It slices clean through the Brute leaving a trail of white light behind it. The disk continues on leaving my range of control. It cuts through the floor then through a wall and into the street outside. From there it crashes into the ground cutting a thin line deep into the concrete. The Brute flies through the air as its momentum carries it¡¯s legless torso on. It crashes and slides along the floor only stopping when it slams into the wall. The stress in the room drops a few degrees as we all feel like the danger has been mitigated. Staring down at the Brute I watch it as it tries to stand to its feet. Grey muck oozes from the stumps of it¡¯s legs. Looking up I see that removing it¡¯s leg still did barely any damage to it¡¯s health.
Zombie Brute
Level: 20
HP: 76/100
¡°It¡¯s still not dead.¡± I say to the others. I walk up to the Brute and place a foot on it¡¯s back. I coat my tire iron in mana again and push it against the thing¡¯s head. It tries to grab me but it¡¯s arms can barely move let alone reach around to me. It¡¯s health drops slowly as my mana chips away at the growth. A point of health for every five seconds. ¡°This is going to take forever. Can you help me?¡± I ask Kyle. Kyle nods and walks up to me and the Brute. I take hold of his spear and let my mana coat it. Kyle then kicks the Brute over onto it¡¯s back. He places the energy-laden spear against it¡¯s burnt-out eye socket. The blue energy around the tip of the spear glows white as I force more and more speed into it. The energy chews away at the flesh of the Brute like a drill. Between Kyle''s considerable strength and my control over my mana we manage to chip away a few points of health every second or so. Abby¡¯s father walks up to us and grabs the end of the spear. He thrusts down and the spear pushes past whatever hard bits protect the thing¡¯s brain. It¡¯s health drops by thirty points in an instant and continues to fade. Within seconds the Brute stops moving. The red above it¡¯s head flashes black and I feel relief wash through me. PING!
Level Up
I recall my mana and let go of the spear. We all breathe a sigh of relief as a sense of safety falls over all of us. It really is easy to handle these guys when you have other people. If it was just me against the Brute I don¡¯t know if I would have had the time to make that disk. ¡°I leveled up. Is that a bad thing?¡± Abby¡¯s father asks. ¡°No dad. It¡¯s a good thing. We¡¯ll talk about it later. Shouldn¡¯t we get back to the office before anything else attacks?¡± Abby asks. ¡°That¡¯s a good point.¡± Kyle says. He yanks the spear out of the beast and examines the point at the end. Satisfied with it he turns his attention to Kyle. ¡°Who should carry him?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°I¡¯ll carry him.¡± Abby¡¯s father offers. He picks up the unconscious Andy in a bridal carry. He looks around the apartment then turns to the door. ¡°Is there anything you want to take with you?¡± Kyle asks. Abby¡¯s father shakes his head. Abby on the other hand looks as if she was struck by lightning. She races out of the living room. A few seconds later she returns with a book. ¡°I¡¯m ready to go.¡± She says. With that we leave the ruined apartment. Chapter 44 We make our way down the hallway carefully. I take the lead while focusing my cloud of mana on the area in front of me. Kyle follows behind me with his spear at the ready. Abby¡¯s father, carrying Andy, follows Kyle while Abby takes the rear, watching our back with her own mana. We make it to the staircase and I take a second to scan as far up as I can. Satisfied that nothing is close we make our way to the bottom floor of the building. The empty lobby greets us as we file out of the staircase. I push my mana out through the room to make sure nothing snuck in as we cleared the building. After a few seconds of searching I find nothing of note and motion for the rest to follow me. I cross the lobby floor and make it halfway to the door when a groan from behind me rings out. Looking back I see Andy gingerly touching his head. ¡°What the hell happened?¡± He asks groggily. I¡¯m honestly shocked that he¡¯s still alive. Just taking a glancing blow from the Brute hurt bad enough. Andy was hit head on and is already conscious. ¡°Shhh. We¡¯re going back to the office. Everything is okay.¡± Abby whispers to Andy. ¡°Wha-¡± THUUD! A loud thud rings out from the elevator door cutting Andy off. I turn back to the metallic doors across the room. My mana races out seeping in through the gaps. Behind the door a short hunched over person stands. It raises its hands to beat on the door of the elevator. After a few attacks it takes a step back. It clutches a weird shaped pouch on its chest and then hurls something at the door. Only it didn¡¯t throw something. The glob came flying from it¡¯s mouth. A strange sizzling sound emanates from the door causing the tingle in my head to ring. In only seconds the metal door of the elevator melts away as a black goop eats through it. Revealing the most disgusting and repulsive creature I¡¯ve seen yet.
Spitter
Level: 32
HP: 98/110
Strands of grey hair stretch down the length of the creature. It hunches over on itself as it carries what looks to be it¡¯s guts. The skin around where it¡¯s stomach should be is completely gone. Instead gusts drip out, spilling out on the floor around the monster. Greenish grey skin droops and sags on the frail looking body of the spitter. A single eye peers through the melted doors at us. However, that¡¯s not the worst part. The jaw of the Spitter hangs by a few strands of skin. The skin around it¡¯s throat looks melted as I can the pale pink matter of the things throat. Black ooze squirts out of it¡¯s permanently open maw as it crawls through the elevator door. The ooze falls to the ground and sizzles. Smoke rises from the spot as the ooze melts into the floor and out of sight. You¡¯ve got to be kidding me. Two high leveled monsters in succession? What the hell is up with this building? At least I regained my mana from leveling up. I feel my skin grow hot as my mana flares in response to the zombie. I can feel the muscles of the people behind me tense. The guts of the Spitter contract and seize as I feel a sense of danger build. The tingle in my mind screams at me to get behind cover as I watch the Spitter hunch over even more. ¡°SCATTER!¡± I yell out. I race towards the reception desk and leap over it. Just as I do I hear a disgusting retching sound as black ooze sprays forth from the mouth of the Spitter. The ooze sails through the air in a stream landing where we were standing seconds ago. Instantly the ooze sinks into the floor with a sizzling sound. A horrid smell fills the room making me want to gag and reminding me of the first room we entered in this building. With my Magical Sonar I can tell that everyone got out of the black ooze¡¯s way. Abby¡¯s father has his back to the Spitter while standing in front of Abby. Kyle ran to the entrance of the nearest hallway. Sure that everyone else is safe I focus my attention back to the Spitter. My eyes lock onto it¡¯s name tag and my heart plummets. Level 32? How? That¡¯s more than ten levels higher than me. No! You can¡¯t focus on it¡¯s level. You¡¯ve been going toe to toe with high level monsters since the beginning. It doesn¡¯t matter how high their level is. I coat my tire iron in mana. I force the energy to rotate as fast as it can. It grows white as I feel heat emanating off the tire iron. I conjure a High Velocity Round and send it towards the monster. It crashes into the thing¡¯s skull, rocketing it backwards. The Spitter falls to it¡¯s butt as the ball of rapidly spinning energy pops. My eyes glance up at the thing¡¯s health.
Spitter
Level: 32
HP: 91/110
It¡¯s strong but it¡¯s defenses aren¡¯t as high as the Brute¡¯s. If I¡¯m fast enough I might be able to sever it¡¯s spine or something. The Spitter recovers from my probing attack and stands to its feet. It turns its attention to me. It hunches back over and it¡¯s guts start convulsing again. The tingle screams at me to run again. I listen as I vault myself over the counter. A second later black ooze melts through the counter like a hot spoon melts through Ice cream. I roll to a stop in front of the Spitter. It focuses on me as it¡¯s guts start convulsing again. I bolt towards it focusing on the part of my mind that houses the tingle. A second later the familiar sensation rings through my mind. I dodge to the side narrowly avoiding a spray of black ooze. I quickly close the gap between me and the Spitter. I wind up a swing with my tire iron, white hot energy rapidly spinning around the metal. The tire iron swings out and up, cracking the spitter in it¡¯s open mouth. The bottom half of its jaw flies off as I slam the tire iron into its face. The white energy chews into the thing¡¯s face causing a spurt of black ooze. I recoil in pain as drops of ooze sprays me. I feel my skin burn away instantly. My mana dissipates instantly as I take several steps back. Looking down I see black dots along my hand where the ooze touched me. Looking up I see the Spitter take several steps backwards as it tries to recover from my attack. My eyes dart up reading that my attack only did 11 points of damage. Then they fall to where I dropped my tire iron. It lies on the floor covered in black ooze. Smoke rises from it as the ooze burns through the metal. I feel part of me break. First my baton and now my tire iron. Am I not allowed to have anything? I stare back up at the Spitter. It¡¯s guts convulse as it point¡¯s it¡¯s open mouth at me. The ringing in my mind screams at me to move just as the black ooze races out of the Spitter¡¯s mouth. It sails through the air right on track to me. I try to get out of the way but I know I won¡¯t make it. I¡¯m simply not fast enough. I close my eyes knowing that my death is imminent. It¡¯ll follow the pain brought upon by having my skin melted off. Moments pass with no pain. Enough time that the ooze should have definitely hit me. I open my eyes to see a blue wall floating in front of me. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Abby stands next to me, her arms thrusted forwards. From them a wall of mana is projected into the air in front of me. Black ooze drips off of it and onto the floor. The wall fades out of existence causing the ooze burning into it to fall to the floor. Looking down I stare at the ooze that should have killed me. Abby saved me again. I stare at her realizing that I owe her my life. She and I are basically strangers yet she¡¯s come to my rescue multiple times. ¡°This isn¡¯t the time to be resting.¡± She says. I snap back to the battle and focus on the beast in front of me. It¡¯s guts are already convulsing again. I watch the guts seize as notice that the movement comes from a large sack that hangs in the midsts of the other innards. The tingle in my head screams and I lunge for Abby. We fall and roll away from where black ooze now sits. The pouch contracted shrinking dramatically right before the ooze was spit. ¡°Aim for the pouch in it¡¯s guts!¡± I yell out. I conjure a few Rifle Rounds and send them into the mass of innards. I watch as Abby does the same. They all make contact exploding as they do so. Then a spear rockets through the air, with a whistling sound, impaling the pouch. My eyes glance at the thing¡¯s health.
Spitter
Level: 32
HP: 66/110
Those few low powered attacks did more damage than all of my other attacks combined. A plan forms in my mind. ¡°How many more shields can you make?¡± I ask Abby. ¡°Two.¡± She says. ¡°It¡¯ll have to do. Can I count on you to protect me?¡± I ask her. My eyes stare into the emerald sea that is her eyes. I see the resolution behind them as she answers and I know that I can trust her. ¡°Absolutely.¡± I stand turning my focus on the energy inside of me. I take command of the lake and start to drain it. Energy pushes out of me forming a large ball of energy. But I know that it¡¯s not going to be enough. Just like the Butcher I need as much mana inside of this attack. I feel the energy inside of me grow sluggish as more and more is drained out of me. But I ignore it¡¯s complaints and command more. From eighty percent to fifty to thirty. A ball of energy bigger than anything I¡¯ve conjured before floats in front of me. A wall of blue light flashes into existence before me as I continue to add more and more mana to the ball. I hear a sizzling sound but ignore it. I can trust Abby. Moments later I feel as if the ball is as full as I can possibly get it. I look to the convulsing pouch and know that the ball of energy is too spread out. Not sure if it¡¯s possible I start to imagine the ball of energy being smaller. It resists but then starts shrinking. I feel pressure build as the energy is compressed more and more. The arctic blue turns a deep blue then a midnight as it shrinks down to the size of a basketball. Another blue shield of mana pops into existence in front of me. The rancid smell of the black ooze threatens to break my concentration. I clamp down on my focus and push the ball of mana even smaller. PING!
Skill Evolution:
Mana Manipulation
Novice -> Apprentice
+3 to Willpower
I ignore the screen that appears in front of me as the tingle in my mind makes me feel as if the energy is ready. I lift my gaze off of it and focus on the Spitter in front of me. It¡¯s guts convulse as it prepares for another attack. ¡°Over here!¡± Abby screams. The spitter turns to her just as the black ooze sprays from it¡¯s maw. Abby leaps out of the way of the ooze just narrowly avoiding the attack. Thank you Abby. I focus on the pouch and command the dense ball of energy to fly. It zips through the air faster than any of my other attacks. It collides into the Spitter and I feel my control on it instantly loosen. The ball of energy expands incredibly fast. A wave of heat washes over me followed by air as the ball explodes. I¡¯m forced back from the strength of the explosion. I roll along the ground for only a second. I recover quickly and turn my gaze back to the spitter. It was knocked backwards into the elevator door. The mass of guts are nowhere to be seen. Looking up I read the red screen above it¡¯s head.
Spitter
Level: 32
HP: 1/110
Jesus, just how strong is this thing? That attack should have been more than powerful enough to kill it instantly. But it just so happens to have one health remaining? What kind of bull crap is this? Wait, is it still a zombie? Do we have to destroy the brain to actually kill it? I take stock of my mana reserves feeling that I barely have five percent left. I use what little energy I have left to form a Mana Bullet. I shoot the energy at the thing¡¯s stomach cavity. It explodes in there with a small pop. But it doesn¡¯t drop the thing¡¯s health. ¡°Aim for it¡¯s head!¡± I call out. I feel a headache pulsating in my mind as I stare at the blasted thing. I try calling out another ball of mana but the energy refuses me. Out of the corner of my eye I see Abby¡¯s father racing across the floor. He carries the broken half of Andy¡¯s bat. He closes the distance between him and the Spitter in a second. He swings the bat up in the air and with a mighty roar slams the wood down. A wet thud rings out across the room as the man swings the bat down over and over again. After five hits the single point of health drops to zero.
Spitter
Level: 32
HP: 0/110
PING! Ping!
Level Up
Level Up
I breathe a sigh of relief as a wave of ice washes through me. The lake inside of me instantly fills back up.
Hidden Quest Complete:
Reach Level 20
Reward: Class Selection
Accept Reward: Yes/No
I freeze as a new screen appears before me. After reading it I accept it instantly. Another class selection? Is there going to be a new option? The window vanishes and is replaced by a screen I only saw once before. This time it has more options then before. I skim through them feelings of excitement growing in me. ¡°Is it dead?¡± Abby¡¯s father asks. His words break my concentration and the window in front of me vanishes. I quickly think of Class Selection and the window appears before me again. Relief fills my heart as the worry that I lost the opportunity forever fades. Knowing that I¡¯m going to need to think about my options and that this isn¡¯t the time or place to possibly put myself in a vulnerable position I close the window and turn my focus back to the matters at hand. ¡°Yeah.¡± Kyle says while picking up his spear. It¡¯s now missing more than a foot from its original length. And it has no point like before. But with a little effort it can still be a fine weapon again. Abby picks herself up from where she had fallen. I walk over to her and help her up. My eyes lock onto her and I feel nothing but gratitude well up inside of me. She kept her promise. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Any time.¡± She replies. I feel as if she actually means it. As if she¡¯ll always be willing to risk her life for me. I don¡¯t know why and I don¡¯t really get it. But I know I can trust her. Aside from the burns on my hands and Andy no one is hurt. Abby¡¯s father collects Andy from where he put him down and then we leave the apartment complex. We quickly get back into the police car. I take the radio out from it¡¯s spot on my belt, glad that it¡¯s still working. ¡°We¡¯re on our way back. Over.¡± I tell the radio. A second later static crackles from the radio. ¡°Glad to hear it. We will have the garage ready for you guys to come in through. Over.¡± Decker says through the radio. I clip the device back to my belt and watch the building blur past. We¡¯re going home. Chapter 45 The office building quickly comes into view. Kyle turns onto Second street and I radio Decker again. We maneuver around my car and into the building. I expected countless bodies to be piled up but all of them have been moved to the sides of the building. Kyle guides the car to the electric car charger and we all file out. ¡°I¡¯m glad you all made it back.¡± Decker says. Abby¡¯s father brings out Andy and Decker¡¯s smile instantly drops. ¡°What happened?¡± He asks. ¡°We got pinned down by a zombie called a Zombie Brute. Andy got hurt in the attack.¡± Kyle says. Out of the corner of my eye I notice that Abby¡¯s face has gone white and that she¡¯s looking down at the ground. Does she feel sick? ¡°How was he hurt? Did he get any zombie muck on him?¡± Decker asks. He stands next to Abby¡¯s father peering down at the unconscious Andy. An expression of worry is painted deep in his face. ¡°He was thrown into a wall. I don¡¯t think he got any muck on him.¡± Abby¡¯s father says. Decker looks up to the large man holding Andy. ¡°And you are?¡± ¡°Ah sorry I¡¯m Abigail''s father, Nathen Muller.¡± Abby¡¯s father says. ¡°I¡¯m Decker. We should get Andy cleaned up. Follow me.¡± Decker turns to lead Nathen up to the seventh floor. He walks towards the stairwell door and stops. ¡°Joel, can you shut down the generator and then meet me up on the seventh floor?¡± He asks. ¡°Yes sir.¡± With that Decker opens the door and leaves the garage with Nathen and a distracted or sick looking Abby following. I head to the generator room on the bottom floor of the building. Once inside I find two large looking machines and almost instantly regret agreeing to turn them off. It takes me a while but I find a panel with instructions on turning off and on the machines. I follow them and plunge myself in darkness. I let my mana race beneath my skin illuminating the room slightly. Now that I¡¯m able to see the door I leave the room and head up the stairs to the seventh floor. There I find Decker and Angila looking over a nearly naked Andy. They fuss over the blood coming from his head. ¡°Do you think anything got into the wound?¡± Angila asks Decker. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I can¡¯t really find where the blood is coming from.¡± Decker says. I walk into the room and make a little coughing sound to announce myself. The two turn and look at me. ¡°What happened out there?¡± Decker asks me. I go over the events of the previous hour in my head. Once I feel like I have everything straight I launch into retelling the events. I end with the hidden quest and class selection choice. ¡°What choices do you have?¡± Decker asks. I pull up the Class Selection screen and read them out.
Classes available:
Class: Attributes: Skills:
Warrior +3 to Strength +1 to Dexterity +2 to Agility +3 to Endurance +1 to Perception Battle Physique
Wind Mage +1 to Dexterity +5 to Agility +1 to Endurance +1 to Intelligence +1 to Wisdom +1 to Willpower Wind Element Control
Water Mage +1 to Strength +5 to Dexterity +1 to Agility +1 to Intelligence +1 to Wisdom +1 to Willpower Water Element Control
Fire Mage +1 to Strength +1 to Agility +5 to Endurance +1 to Intelligence +1 to Wisdom +1 to Willpower Fire Element Control
Earth Mage +5 to Strength +1 to Dexterity +1 to Endurance +1 to Intelligence +1 to Wisdom +1 to Willpower Earth Element Control
Decker rubs his chin once I finish reciting the longer list. After a few moments pass he looks back to me. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°What do you think?¡± Decker asks. ¡°I was leaning towards the fire or wind mage skills. However, recent battles have also made me consider the Warrior class.¡± ¡°So we¡¯re assuming that if you choose fire mage you¡¯ll be able to conjure balls of flames and the likes, right?¡± I nod. ¡°Then maybe you should choose Earth Mage.¡± ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°If you can conjure earth then you can form walls and pits. You could also form weapons and other structures that may last after you stop supplying them with magic.¡± He says. What he says has merit. While being able to bring down volleys of fire balls on the zombies could be useful. It¡¯ll only be useful in battle. The others are very much the same, with little non combat uses. However, if I could summon walls of stone or earth then I could make this place far more secure. And I did just lose my tire iron. I¡¯ve been going through weapons far too fast. If I could make my own then that wouldn¡¯t be an issue. Seeing no down sides to his suggestion I focus on the blue screen before me. My eyes fall to the Earth Mage class and after a second of focus a new window pops up.
Do you wish to choose the EARTH MAGE class?
Yes/No
I select yes and brace for the pain. Nothing happens for moments. Then all at once I feel as if I¡¯m being set on fire from the inside. My vision turns inwards as I instinctively try to find the cause of the pain. My vision travels along my mana channels until I find a hot spot. There I watch as symbols burn themselves into the channels. Throughout my mana system random channels have these strange symbols burned into them. Creating a filter for my mana to pass through. While my mana is naturally blue once it passes through this filter it looks more like a murky purple. The burning sensation fades as the last of my channels gain this filter. Not every channel has the filter but close to half do. With the pain gone I sit up realizing that I fell. Both Decker and Angila look at me with worry on their faces. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Decker asks. I nod my head feeling a headache as I do so. ¡°How do you feel?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Mostly worn out. But at the same time.¡± I flex my fist feeling my muscles tense in my forearm. I definitely feel stronger than I did before. ¡°I feel stronger. Physically.¡± I finish saying. ¡°So can you conjure earth?¡± Decker asks. I let my vision turn inwards again. I focus on the purplish mana past the filter. It feels a lot heavier than my regular mana. It¡¯s slow to move and requires a lot more effort from me to control. I push the purple mana out of my hand, causing my hand to glow a purple. I expect a purple light to form an orb above my hand like my regular mana but that doesn¡¯t happen. Instead a brown clump of dirt amasses above my hand. The more mana I pour into it the more it grows. However, as it grows I feel it gets substantially heavier and harder to keep afloat. The weight of the ball becomes too much for me to hold. It drops to my palm with a quiet thud. With that I stop supplying the earthen ball with mana. I feel the mana in the ball hold it¡¯s shape even though it¡¯s just loose dirt. I examine the construct and find that it doesn¡¯t bleed off energy like my mana does when it¡¯s outside my body. Instead it holds firm even when I press on it, despite me not supplying any mana to it. ¡°Fascinating. Can you form rocks and metals too?¡± Decker asks. I shrug my shoulder and turn my vision back inwards to the weird symbols filtering my mana. The symbols glow brighter as I push more mana through the filter to form another dirt ball. I notice that only a few of the symbols glow while I make the dirt ball, while most remain dim. I stop making the dirt ball and focus on the symbols. It takes some effort but I can light up individual symbols by focusing on them. I tentatively push mana through the filter with a different set of symbols lit. Pain instantly radiated from the filter. Feeling as if someone is pouring acid through my blood. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Decker asks after noticing me wince in pain. I take a few seconds to calm myself and push the pain down. ¡°I don¡¯t know how to explain it but I have these filters in me now that I push mana through to make the dirt. However, I can make certain parts of the filter activate but that causes pain when I do so.¡± I say. ¡°Weird. Maybe you need to activate certain ones to make certain materials. But if you don¡¯t get the combination right you get some kind of backlash. Or it could be that you aren¡¯t activating those parts right. Or it could be that they are used for the other elements, like fire or wind and that¡¯s why you feel pain when you activate them. You don¡¯t have the right affinity.¡± Decker says. ¡°Guys I think we should worry about Andy right now. The bleeding is coming from this part of his head. And it feels far too squishy for a skull.¡± Angila pipes in. We turn our gaze to the man lying on the couch. He¡¯s far paler than before and it looks like the wound on his head is still bleeding. Decker turns back to the couch and takes out a first aid pack from next to the couch. He opens the pouch and takes out a bottle of what looks to be rubbing alcohol. He opens the bottles and pours the contents onto the man¡¯s head. There¡¯s a sizzling sound as the liquid bubbles. Once the bottle is empty Decker takes out large white pads of gauze. He opens them and lays them down where white bubbles froth up. Next Decker takes out a wrap of gauze and starts wrapping Andy¡¯s head. Once done with that the two work over the guy, washing him down with wash clothes and water. While they¡¯re doing that I feel awkward just standing there watching. I excuse myself and leave the two to their work. I feel bad for not doing more but what is there for me to do? As I walk away the tingle in my mind rings out making me feel that something bad is going to happen. I turn back to the room where Decker and Angila clean down Andy. I don¡¯t like the guy but I don¡¯t want him to die. He was one of the first people I found since all of this went down. I shake the thoughts from my mind. I shouldn¡¯t be focusing on that right now. Not when I have this new skill to figure out. My feet carry me to the staircase. There I find Nathen and Abby talking with Rabeca. It seems that Abby and Rabeca are telling Nathen what¡¯s happened to them since the start of the apocalypse. I avert my gaze and try to walk past. But as I do so Abby calls out to me. ¡°Joel come here.¡± I stop and turn to the group. With a mental sigh I walk over to them. ¡°I think I should be thanking you kid.¡± Nathen says as I walk over. ¡°What for?¡± I ask, feeling awkward. ¡°From the sounds of it you¡¯ve saved my girl here and you also saved us all back at the apartments.¡± He says. ¡°It was nothing. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± I say. I find something very interesting on the floor as I avoid eye contact with the large man. ¡°NOTHING!¡± He says loudly. ¡°My daughter¡¯s life is not nothing.¡± He pulls me into a large hug. I freeze and feel my mana react as if I¡¯m about to head into a fight. The man holds me firm even as I squirm to try and escape his grasp. However, after a moment I realize that the hug is quite warm. I remember my envious gaze when I watched him hug Abby. Is this how she felt? Warm? The large man lets me go and holds me at arms length. ¡°I am forever indebted to you. Thank you.¡± He says. My mouth opens and closes as the sincerity of the man¡¯s emotions. I¡¯m left at a loss for words. ¡°Yeah.¡± I get out. ¡°Dad stop, you''re embarrassing me.¡± Abby says. ¡°How could I be embarrassing you? All I¡¯m doing is thanking our savior.¡± I feel my cheeks heat up. ¡°I have to go.¡± I say. I hear protests from the group as I all but run into the staircase. My feet carry me two steps at a time. Why am I running? Why is my heart racing? I break onto the roof and let the cool breeze flow over me. I walk to the edge and close my eyes trying to calm my heart. I¡¯m no savior. I don¡¯t deserve that praise. So why are they giving it to me? I shake my head viciously. Forget it. Forget their words. Forget the hug. I push the thoughts out of my head and focus on the cold wind blowing against my face. My heart eventually calms down and I feel as if I can think again. KKKKKKYYYYYYAAAAA! The cry of a bird breaks the silence causing me to jump. I turn around letting my mana burn hot in me. Sitting on a table behind me is a familiar looking raven. It cocks its head at me as if to ask ¡®what¡¯s with that reaction?¡¯. It¡¯s electric blue eyes peer at me full of intelligence that no bird should have. ¡°You scared me.¡± I tell the bird. It crows at me again. Then it bends down and picks something off the table. A silver glint catches the sun. The raven spreads it¡¯s large wings and flaps them. It hops off the table and flaps over to me. Instinctively I raise my arm out in front of me. The bird lands on my forearm facing me. In its mouth is a silver ring with a black gem set into it. It bobs its head making me feel like it wants to set the ring down. I offer it my free hand and the bird drops the ring into it. ¡°Is this for me? Or am I just holding it for you?¡± The raven caws. Then it starts beating its wings. It rises off my forearm and caws at me again. Then it flies away. ¡°Thank you. I guess.¡± I call out to the bird. I look down to the ring in my hand. Silver shiny metal with a single black stone. As I focus on it a window appears in my vision.
Ring of Willpower
+3 to Willpower
My jaw drops as I read the window before me. Chapter 46 I look at the ring in my palm for a few seconds. Then I turn my vision to the sky, scanning for the bird. However, it¡¯s nowhere to be seen. I give up looking for the bird and start trying the ring on different fingers. After some testing I find that it best fits the ring finger on my right hand. With it on I feel a cold rush pass through me. Then I feel normal. I take the ring off and that cold feeling races out of me. I put the ring back on, this time I have my vision turned inwards. As the ring slides onto my finger I notice a force of oddly flavored mana run through me. It settles in around my heart and brain. Then I can¡¯t sense it anymore. When I take the ring off the strange mana passes out of me and back into the ring. I put it back on and open my Stats Screen.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 14
Level: 20 DEX: 6
To Next Level 1/2500 AGI: 6
Sex: Male END: 16
Age: 19 INT: 56
Class: Earth Mage WIS: 19
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
Mana 122/122 PER: 10
WIL: 18 (+3)
Free Attribute points: 11
When I take it off the +3 vanishes from the screen. It reappears when I put it back on. ¡°Is there something special about this ring or does all jewelry now boost attributes?¡± I ask no one. ¡°What?¡± A voice asks me. I whip around seeing Abby looking at me quizzically. When did she get here? I take the ring off and show it to her. ¡°It boosts my Willpower.¡± I say. ¡°Really? Where did you get it?¡± She asks. She quickly makes her way to me and looks closely at the ring. ¡°Umm. A bird gave it to me.¡± I say. Her gaze pops up to me. As her eyebrows raise in disbelief. ¡°Seriously?¡± She asks. ¡°Yeah.¡± I say looking away from her. She eyes me skeptically for a few moments. Then she shrugs as if she doesn¡¯t believe me, but doesn¡¯t want to press the matter. ¡°It¡¯s a pretty ring.¡± She says. ¡°You think so?¡± She nods. We fall into a strange silence. With me unsure what to do and her still eyeing the ring. I feel a little protective over it and place it back onto my finger. The cold sensation runs through me and vanishes. With the ring on she looks up at me. Her gaze shifts from the precious curiosity to something scary. ¡°Why did you run off?¡± She asks. My heart races as I feel heat wash through my face. I stammer for an answer but none come to me. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I say. ¡°It was rude to do. My dad thinks you hate him now.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I don¡¯t. I just¡­¡± I lose my voice at the end, unsure on how to describe what I felt. She stares at me and I feel as if I¡¯m being read like an open book. Her judgmental gaze falters and in her eyes I see pity. ¡°You know back in middle school you used to come to school with bruises all over you.¡± She says. I feel my blood stop in me as I¡¯m brought back to those times. To the beatings and being yelled at. To the fearful walks home knowing that dad was upset with me. ¡°I always thought that you were just one of those boys that played rough. But when dad saw you at the memorial day assembly, he said that I should be extra kind to you. I didn¡¯t know what he meant at the time but I think I get it now.¡± She stops talking and I just stare blankly at her. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I don¡¯t know what happened but I¡¯m here if you want to talk.¡± She says after looking into my eyes. Then she runs off leaving me in a bad mood and alone once again. It takes me a while to calm down. Remembering the past always leaves me in a bad mood that takes a while to disperse. On top of that my hand still burns from where the acid sprayed on me. So with a sour mood I get comfortable and turn my vision inwards. I spend some time finding all the damage to my body and then heal them. Once done I find that I still have three quarters of my mana left and still plenty of sunlight. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. To try and help distract myself from my sour mood I start looking for another channel that has some blockage in it. One found I use the same process as last time of forming thunderous waves to crash into it until it¡¯s gone. This channel runs from my core and down around my stomach. Once the blockage is gone I get a terrible urge to use the restroom. I race over to a bathroom on the roof and relieve myself. By far one of the worst experiences I¡¯ve ever had in a bathroom. I block the memory from my mind hoping to never think of it again. I exit the restroom and my stomach gurgles. Looking towards the sun I see that it¡¯s starting to set. Hours must have passed while I was purifying that channel. I walk down to the seventh floor where I see everybody except Angila and Andy gathered. ¡°Oh perfect timing. I was just about to send someone to find you.¡± Decker says. ¡°Take a seat.¡± I go to sit down and as I do so Abby hands me a bowl of left overs and fruits. I accept it and find a seat off to the side. ¡°Great. So there¡¯s a few things we need to go over. First of all are our short term and long term goals.¡± Decker says. I notice that no one else is eating. Did they already eat? Should I wait to eat? Abby glances at me and makes a motion as if to say go for it. I feel uncomfortable being the only one to be eating but I¡¯m starving. So I ignore the feelings inside of me and start wolfing down the meal. ¡°Short term we need to survive day to day. We can¡¯t just hold up here and pray someone comes to save us. The more time we spend in here the stronger the zombies get out there. But as someone has brought to my attention we also need to focus on more than just our strength. Hygiene, health, food, clothes. We need all of these things to survive.¡± I find myself nodding at Decker¡¯s words as I eat. He¡¯s right on all fronts. I¡¯ve even realized that we¡¯ve been neglecting certain aspects of survival. ¡°So I want to hear some ideas from you guys.¡± Decker finishes. We¡¯re plunged into silence and all I can hear is me chewing on food. Can the others hear me chew too? ¡°We can raid the CVS store that¡¯s over on Bergen Street.¡± Jessica says. ¡°Yeah and I think we should also look into hitting the Nordstrom Rack.¡± Rabecca says. ¡°What about the hotel across the street?¡± Kyle asks. The group falls into silence as Decker mulls over the ideas. ¡°I think that the hotel might be too dangerous right now but we definitely should send a group to clear it. As for the CVS we¡¯ll send a group over tomorrow to bring back some personal hygiene items. Nordstrom Rack is going to have to be put on a back burner. While making sure we have clean clothes is a must, it''s not as important as our hygiene.¡± Decker says. ¡°I think we should clear out all the buildings around us.¡± Kyle says. ¡°I think it¡¯ll be safer for us to come and go from this building if we don¡¯t have to worry about being ambushed by zombies from those buildings.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good point. So much to do and not enough people.¡± Decker says. ¡°What if we try looking for more people? This building is huge. I¡¯m sure it can house loads more.¡± Chris says. ¡°While I would love to be able to bring more people in, we have to make sure that we can take care of ourselves. If we come across people we should definitely offer them refuge here. But we can¡¯t make other people a priority until we can take care of ourselves.¡± Decker says. ¡°What about that safe zone thingy? Can we get supplies from that?¡± Halley asks. Decker¡¯s eyes glaze over as I assume he¡¯s looking through the Safe Zone screen. ¡°Most of the things on this list are just furniture, some I think can be used to help us. But I need some time to experiment with them. However I do appreciate you bringing it up because there is something I want to get.¡± Decker trails off as his eyes dart around looking at the air in front of him. ¡°Don¡¯t panic.¡± He says. Just then the temperature in the room drops. A sudden and strong tugging sensation yanks on me. I look over to the direction that I feel pulled in. There I find a large black orb the size of a large TV floating. Then it vanishes leaving a small billboard looking object where it was. A large rectangle made of some grey metal stands on two posts that dig into the ground. On one side of the rectangle is a black board that reminds me of a chalkboard. The other side is just the grey metal. ¡°This is a Quest Board.¡± Decker says. Curiosity brims in me as I put the empty bowl down and walk over to the board. When I focus on the black rectangle the board comes to life with blue letters. Dozens of quests fill the black space. They¡¯re broken up into four sections. On the left is the name of the quest, then the reward for the quest. Followed by the difficulty and lastly the cost. The cost of the quests is what first catches my attention. We have to buy quests? With what? As I examine the board I notice my name at the top. Next to my name is ¡®kill points: 221¡¯. So do we use kill points to purchase quests? Like how the Safe Zone needs kill points to purchase items? I read through the quests most of which give some kind of item as a reward. Some give experience and a few give skills. The quests that give skills catch my attention first. ¡°What do you see?¡± Someone from the crowd asks. ¡°It looks like you can purchase quests with kill points. They reward you with items, experience, or skills.¡± I say. I hear the crowd murmur as some other people swarm around the board. I ignore them as I continue to read through the quests. It seems that the difficulty of the quests is based on some kind of letter grading scale. The most costly quests are generally ranked S while the cheapest are ranked F. As I read through the large list of quests a few pop out at me as interesting. When I focus on one the slot for it extends with a description below the name, rank, and reward.
Available Quests:
Quest Name: Reward: Difficulty: Cost:
Vision Of the Night Skill: Night Vision +1 to Perception F 10
Spend 8 hours trying to adapt to the dark.
Sleepless Nights Matter Not Skill: Tireless Mind +2 to Endurance +3 to Willpower D 25
Stay awake for 48 straight hours without the aid of substances.
Scavenge Skill: Scavenging +3 to Luck E 75
Search 50 bodies for valuable items
Space in Space Skill: Spatial Magic +2 to Endurance +2 to Intelligence +2 to Willpower D+ 150
Carry 300 pounds for 1 miles without rest.
All of the other quests with skills as rewards cost more than my 221 points. Plenty of other quests are within my budget but their rewards are like 50 experience points or some kind of jewelry. A few quests have interesting items that I may come back to. But that voice in mind tells me to focus on the skill quests. As if they are more beneficial to me. So mostly out of curiosity I purchase the two cheapest skills. The moment I focus on the quests with the intent to purchase them a window asking me to confirm pops up. I select yes then pull up my Quest Log.
Quest Log:
Quest Name: Difficulty: Reward:
Vision of the Night F Skill: Night Vision +1 to Perception
Sleepless Nights Matter Not D Skill: Tireless Mind +2 to Endurance +3 to Willpower
A hand appears on my shoulder bringing warmth with it. I turn and find Decker looking down at me. ¡°What do you think?¡± ¡°I think this is going to become essential to our survival. Some of these quests offer weapons and armor. So that means we may not have to worry too much about scavenging for those items. Then others offer skills and even different types of magic apparently.¡± I say. ¡°Interesting. That¡¯s just what I was hoping for.¡± Decker says. He smiles at me then takes a few steps back and turns to the group of people. ¡°Honestly, there is still so much we don¡¯t understand about this system. But I promise you all that I¡¯m going to do everything in my power to make sure that we survive. Tomorrow we will send a group out to scavenge the CVS store. Is there anything else we should go over?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Do we have any plans on getting the power back?¡± Nathen asks. ¡°While we have generators in the garage I don¡¯t want to needlessly use the fuel. But I think I may have found a work around for that but I don¡¯t know how to go about using the new fuel source.¡± Decker says. ¡°Well if you need any help I¡¯m an electrical engineer.¡± Nathen says. It feels weird calling Abby¡¯s father Nathen. Almost like calling a teacher by their first name. ¡°Then I think you and I should have a talk later. Alright that¡¯s it for the night. Go and rest, tomorrow will be a busy day.¡± Decker says. Chapter 47 As the group starts to disband Decker turns back to me. ¡°Joel mind if we talk?¡± he asks. ¡°No sir.¡± ¡°Follow me.¡± He says. He guides us off the seventh floor and down to the gym on the second floor. The room is dark but the glass wall lets in enough moonlight that we aren¡¯t completely blind. ¡°What¡¯s your strength at?¡± Decker asks. I open up my stat sheet and read my strength stat. ¡°Fourteen.¡± ¡°Wow, that''s more than I expected.¡± Decker says. ¡°Have you been putting points into it?¡± ¡°Not really, but my new class did boost it a bit.¡± ¡°Well I¡¯ve been meaning to see how much the stats actually affect us. Do you mind helping me?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Not at all. What do you want me to do?¡± ¡°Well first off I want to establish a baseline. So I want to see how much you can bench and squat.¡± Decker says. I walk over to the bench press and eye the weights. Honestly I don¡¯t know how much to put on the bar. Before all of this I never really worked out much. Only when highschool gym would demand it. ¡°How much?¡± Decker asks, standing on the opposite side of the bar. ¡°Umm¡­¡± I say while eying the various sized plates on a rack near the bench press ¡°Let¡¯s start with 25.¡± We load the bar and I lay down on the bench. Decker notices my hesitance to place my hands on the bar. ¡°Do you know how to do a bench press?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t really done this since high school.¡± I tell him. ¡°No worries. Put your hands here.¡± He gestures to two spots on the bar. ¡°Then flex your back abs and butt. Plant your feet and don¡¯t forget to breathe. Breath in as you pull the bar close to you. Then out as you push the bar away.¡± My stomach grows tight as I plant my feet. I feel the skin across my back stretch as the muscles beneath it bundle up. The muscles in my leg contract and stretch as I plant them. I feel strangely powerful as I follow Decker instructions. As if I¡¯m a spring being compressed. I¡¯ve never felt this way while working out. Is it because of the system? If so, what part? I un-rack the bar and hold the weight in the air. It feels light. I breath in as I guide the bar to my chest. The sensation of building pressure in me rises. The moment the bar touches my chest Decker commands me. ¡°UP!¡± He barks. The spring inside of me explodes. The bar flies up faster than I expected. The bar almost leaves my grip as it rockets skywards. ¡°Alright, you definitely need to be heavier.¡± Decker says. I rack the weight and watch Decker replace the 25 with a 45 plate. I do the same and then get back under the bar. I lift the bar again feeling as if it¡¯s still far to light. The bar touches my chest and Decker barks again. I push the bar away with ease, finding this weight far too easy too. I rack it and grab the 25 plate and place it on my side of the bar. Decker does the same to his side and I get back underneath the bar. We continue adding weight to the bar until it gets too heavy for me to lift. Once we find my limit the bar has two 45 plates on each side and a 25 on each side. For a total of 275 pounds. ¡°So is that an increase from what you used to be able to do?¡± Decker asks. ¡°Oh yeah. Back in high school I was barely able to bench 135.¡± ¡°Interesting. Let¡¯s try squats next.¡± Decker runs me through the proper form of a squat. Then we start adding weight to the bar until I can¡¯t lift the bar anymore. We find that my squat max is 355. ¡°Alright, how many free attribute points do you have?¡± Decker asks. After a quick look I let him know that I have eleven points. ¡°Put one into strength.¡± He says. I do so and then follow Decker back to the bench. He adds five pounds to each side of the bar and then stands above it gesturing for me to lift it. I lay down on the bench and place my hands on the bar. I repeat my previous actions feeling that pressure build in me. TI unrack the wight and let it fall to my chest. ¡°UP!¡± With all of my strength I push up against the bar. The weight is tough but I still manage to raise it high enough to rack the weight again. ¡°Fascinating. So strength does have a direct impact on our bodies. Let¡¯s try squats.¡± We continue to experiment with the strength stat by slowly adding more points into it and testing how much stronger it makes me. For every point I put into Strength I can lift ten to twenty more pounds. Once done Decker sits next to me on the bench. I¡¯m drenched in sweat and already feeling soreness set in on my muscles. ¡°So then this system is actively altering our bodies and minds. I don¡¯t know how but it is.¡± Decker says. His words remind me of the drops of mana that appear inside of me when I boost an attribute. ¡°I think it has to do with mana.¡± I say. I explain the feeling I get when I boost my attributes and show him the ring. He takes it from me and places it on his left pinky. Then take it off and put it back on. He repeats the process a few times. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°Strange, I don''t feel that.¡± He says. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯m a mage or something.¡± I say. He hands me back the ring and I put it back on. ¡°How did you get that ring?¡± He asks. ¡°A raven gave it to me.¡± I say. He looks at me as if he doesn¡¯t believe me. However, he doesn¡¯t verbally question me. ¡°There¡¯s some other things I wanted your help with.¡± He says. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I ask. ¡°In the Safe Zone management screen there is this section for Mana converters.¡± He says. A screen appears in front of him as he points at the list of converters. The converters have names like Fire converter, Water converter, Lightning converter and more. ¡°I wanted to test them to see how they actually work. If the water one can give us an endless supply of water then we won¡¯t have to worry about scavenging for that.¡± He says. Another window pops up in front of him asking if he wants to confirm his purchase. It vanishes after a second and I feel the temperature in the room drop. A familiar tugging sensation pulls on me as a black orb appears a few feet from us. It vanishes leaving a blue glass looking orb in its place. The orb is about as big as a baseball and looks as if it¡¯s filled with water. Decker picks it up and examines the orb for a few seconds. Then he offers me the orb. ¡°Could you pour some mana into this?¡± He asks. I nod and take the offered orb. It¡¯s cold to the touch and is heavier then I expected. I command my mana out of me, causing my hand to glow blue. My mana wraps around the blue orb like it would my weapons. However, nothing happens. Unsure if it¡¯ll work I try to push the mana into the orb. Through my mana I feel as if there are numerous holes in the orbs that let my mana pass through. A familiar film catches my mana and I notice symbols glowing in the film. Water gushes from the orb and spills to the ground. The liquid is cold to the touch and shocks me so much that I drop the orb and lose my concentration on my mana. ¡°Fantastic!¡± Decker says. He grabs the orb and lifts it into the air. ¡°Do you know what this means?¡± He asks me excitedly. ¡°We don¡¯t have to worry about water?¡± I ask. ¡°Not just that. But we can power this whole building with a few Lightning converters. We can make flamethrowers with the Flame converters. There are so many uses of these things. And now that I know we can choose a second class at level twenty that means all of us can eventually use these.¡± He says in a rush. He admires the orb for a bit, his eyes gleaming with ideas. After a few moments he looks back to me. ¡°I don¡¯t have anything else I need help with tonight. You should get some rest.¡± He says. I nod and watch the tall man leave. I¡¯m glad he¡¯s the one in charge. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯d have all the ideas he does. I lay down on the bench starting to regret lifting all of those weights. My muscles feel weak and pulse with soreness. And on top of that I feel as if fire ants are crawling through my body. Wait, that means my mana is healing me. But what is it healing me from? I turn my vision inward and follow the burning sensation. Through it I find mana being poured onto my muscles. The fibers look thinner than they should and as I watch the mana slowly adds thickness to the muscle fibers. As I watch this an idea hits me. When you build muscles it¡¯s by breaking them down through working out and then healing them back stronger, right? So can I speed this process up with my mana healing? I flood my sore muscles with mana and heal them in a matter of minutes. When I open my eyes the soreness is gone. So I go back to the bench and lower the weight and start lifting. I alternate the muscle groups that I work out as I imitate workouts I remember from high school. Benches, Squats, Deadlifts, Curls and more. I stop once I feel as if my whole body is sore. I sit down and turn my vision inwards and start the healing process. I watch as the muscle fibers grow back slightly thicker than what they were before I worked out. Once I¡¯m all healed I open my stat screen.
Personal Stats: Attributes: Value
Name: Joel Dylan STR: 19
Level: 20 DEX: 6
To Next Level 1/2500 AGI: 6
Sex: Male END: 17
Age: 19 INT: 56
Class: Earth Mage WIS: 19
LUC: 4
HP 100/100 CHA: 5
Mana 122/122 PER: 10
WIL: 18 (+3)
Free Attribute points: 8
I feel excitement explode in me. Both my Strength and Endurance has gone up without me spending a single Attribute Point. That means that I should be able to increase the other attributes without using Attribute Points. Maybe Intelligence can be increased by memorizing a book or something. And Agility could be increased by sprinting for as long as I can or something. Dexterity might increase by working on my hand eye coordination or something. So that means I should stop dumping my Free Attribute Points into things and instead try to increase them myself. At this thought the voice in the back of my mind hums with approval. With that in mind I spend the next few hours working out and healing myself. When I increase my strength to twenty a window pops up in front of me.
Title unlocked:
Strongman
You are four times as strong as the average person.
After I get the title I find that despite my strength stat not rising my maxes on exercises have. Similar to how my Mana pool rose when I got the titles referring to my Intelligence. Once I increase my Strength to 22 and my Endurance to 19 I leave the gym and head back to the roof. I¡¯m out of mana and prefer replenishing it up there. Chapter 48 A cloudy night sky greets me as I walk across the roof. A cold wind blows causing me to shiver slightly. I find my spot on the corner of the roof and start pulling mana in. As I do so I feel the senses of my body fade as I become one with the world around me. With the mana floating through the air. As the mana passes through me I feel as if it¡¯s whispering to me. Trying to get me to listen to it somehow. I focus on those faint ethereal whispers trying to make them more real. As the moments pass I feel the whispers grow stronger and stronger. I realize that they aren¡¯t whispering any real words but instead it¡¯s more like feelings and ideas. The murky purple mana passes through the earth, permeating all that¡¯s in the ground. The purple energy doesn''t just make up the soil on the surface but also the stones and metal below. As soon as I grasp this concept the whispers fade back into the either that they came from. Leaving me with a full mana pool and a burning curiosity on how I can make more than just dirt. I can activate certain symbols by focusing on them, but doing so can cause me pain. I naturally activate a certain few when I make the dirt but that¡¯s not all that the purple mana makes up. So if the purple mana permeates stones and other minerals from the earth then can I sense the mana? I can sense the mana in the air so maybe I can sense the mana in the ground. With that logic in mind I head down to the garages where everything from the floor to the ceiling is made of concrete. Once in there I go to the second level to avoid all of the bodies. I find myself in a dark space with the only light coming from the ever so faint glow of my body. I sit on the ground and focus on the mana around me. Long moments pass as I try to sense the mana in the ground. However, as time moves on I get a growing suspicion that I¡¯m not doing it right. Thinking back to it I only noticed the mana in the air after I started to use my Magical Sonar. So maybe I need to use an Earth mana variant of Magical Sonar. But how can I do that? Any time I push the murky purple mana out of me it instantly forms into dirt. If the symbols are what controls what the mana becomes then maybe I need them deactivated for me to push out just earth mana. Grasping onto that idea I focus on the symbols forcing them all to remain dim. Then I start pushing mana through the filter. I instantly feel as if I¡¯m doing something right as I don¡¯t get any form of painful back lash. However, as soon as I try to push the mana outside of my body it refuses. No matter how hard I try to push it out of me I can¡¯t make it. Out of annoyance I slam my hand against the ground. ¡°Fuck why isn¡¯t there a manual to this!¡± I call out into the darkness. The moment my hand makes contact with the ground I feel the built up mana in my palm be expelled. It bleeds into the concrete below me pushing further into the ground. My brain comes to a halt as I realize what I¡¯ve been doing wrong. The ambient mana in the air must be like a pure form of the stuff. Elemental mana is probably made when that pure form interacts with the elements. It¡¯s probably impossible to expel the raw elemental mana into an area without its element. I shake the thoughts from my head and focus on the mana in the concrete below me. I lift my hand pulling the mana in the ground with it. The surface of the concrete bulges as I feel the mana drag the stones in the concrete with it. With a little more urging on my part I find that I can manipulate the concrete as if I was manipulating the pure form of mana that I can use. It¡¯s more sluggish and feels a lot heavier to maneuver but the pure purple mana can be used to control the earthen materials in concrete. I can even rip a chunk of the concrete out of the ground and make it hover in the air. When I try to fling the mass of concrete it flies through the air and smacks into a wall. However, unlike my blue mana it didn¡¯t zip through the air at almost bullet like speeds. It seemed to only move as fast as if I had physically thrown it. There goes my idea of making Stone Rifle Rounds and other Earthen variants of my spells. However, I can still make new weapons out of the purple mana. I experiment more with my control over the concrete when I push pure Earth mana into it. I find that I can give the material basic shapes but I can¡¯t give them much detail. After a while an idea strikes me. Can I pull the mana in the concrete back into myself? Like I do with spells I don¡¯t intend to fire. With nothing better to do I push some mana into the ground and pull out a chunk of concrete. I focus on the purple haze inside of the concrete and command it to flow back into me. Surprisingly it obeys. The purple haze flows back into me causing the concrete to lose its structural integrity and turn to dust. As the mana passes back into me I see a set of new symbols light up. Not the same ones that naturally light up when I push my mana through the filter. My heart races in excitement as I try to memorize the symbols. Once the mana is completely back inside of me I command the same symbols to stay alight. Then with a steady breath push mana through the filter. I flinch instinctively expecting there to be backlash. However, there isn¡¯t any. Above my hand a small chunk of grey material floats. I expel more mana causing the chunk to grow larger and larger. After a few moments I recall the mana back into me and watch the material crumble to dust. I repeat the process a few more times, finding that it becomes easier and easier to create the concrete like substance with my mana. After experimenting with the mana I find that it takes far less mana to manipulate the concrete already existing. On the other hand I have far more control over the concrete that I conjure. Being able to form letters and other fine details in the concrete that I conjure. After a while of playing with dirt and concrete a blue light appears in my vision.
Quest Complete: Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
Quest Name: Difficulty: Reward:
Vision of the Night F Skill: Night Vision +1 to Perception
The space around me instantly becomes brighter as I feel my eyeballs burn. It¡¯s as if I¡¯ve held them open for way too long and they¡¯ve become dry. I furiously blink but the sensation doesn¡¯t leave me. I rub and blink and feel my eyes water like crazy. After a while the sensation fades and I feel as if I just cried for hours. Blinking rapidly causes the lingering sensations of discomfort to fade. Looking around the dark garage I find that it looks as if I¡¯m in a dim closet instead of the inky blackness that was before. I can definitely make out far more detail than previously. Curiously I open my Skill List to make sure that it¡¯s the effect of the reward I supposedly got.
Skill List:
Name: Level: Proficiency:
Mana Manipulation 2 Apprentice
Channel Purification 2 Novice
Earth Element Control 4 Novice
Night Vision 1 Novice
As I focus on the Night Vision skill a new window pops up in front of me.
Night Vision
You can see in dark or dim places better than normal. As this skill progresses you''ll be able to see as well in the dark as you can in the light.
I knew that the quest was going to award me a skill but seeing the skill before me and actually seeing the effect fills me with a sense of satisfaction. Thinking back to the other quests that I could afford with my current points makes me wonder what their skills do. I assume that the one I have about staying up might make it easier to stay awake. So then what about the scavenging skill? With nothing better to do I race up to the seventh floor. Once up there I go to the quest board and find the scavenging quest again. All it wants me to do is search fifty bodies for stuff. There¡¯s plenty of bodies down here for me to do that. I purchase the quests and head to the first floor. Once on the floor I take out a pair of gloves and then get to work searching the bodies. Just touching them makes me feel gross and part of me wonders about the morality of looting dead people. I know most would say that I should leave the dead alone and that I should be more respectful of them. But they¡¯re dead. What do they care about? If there¡¯s an after life wouldn¡¯t they be more focused on that then what some dude is doing to their corpse? At least that''s what I like to think. To convince myself that what I¡¯m doing isn¡¯t essentially grave robbing. I mostly just find wallets and trash while I search the bodies. Some of them have jewelry which at first got me excited. However, after looking at the objects for a while no window pops up. Making me wonder where that raven found the ring on my finger. My hands grow tired around the thirtieth body but I continue. I¡¯m forced to ignore the smell as I go through the pile of dead bodies. Then it finally happens. After finishing looking through the last pocket of a body a window appears in my vision.
Quest Complete:
Quest Name: Difficulty: Reward:
Scavenge E Skill: Scavenging +3 to Luck
Pain explodes from the back of my right hand. The black latex glove burns away as a strange symbol is etched into my skin. I hear a shrieking sound and realize that it¡¯s my own scream. The pain seems to stretch on forever as a white light burns from the back of my right hand. Then the light fades leaving me breathless, drenched in sweat, and my hand feeling like it¡¯s been burnt. I focus on the still painful symbol burned into the back of my hand. A large circle covers the back of my hand with a triangle inside of it. In the space from the circle¡¯s edge to the triangle are strange symbols like the ones inside of my mana filters. The triangle has a circle inside of itself. And in that last circle are two tear drop looking symbols. One points towards my wrist while the other points to my fingers. As the pain fades I¡¯m left with what looks like a really odd black tattoo on the back of my hand. However, just looking at the symbol I know that there¡¯s something magical about it. Unsure on what to do with this tattoo I open up my skills list. I focus on the new Scavenging skill at the bottom causing a new window to pop up.
Scavenging
By placing your hand with the Magic Array on a corpse and then supplying that Array with mana you will be able convert the corpse into loot. Loot is dependent on level, luck, and other hidden factors.
I stare at the skill description not fully understanding what it means. However, it gave me clear enough instructions on what to do, far clearer than my other skills. Granted this skill feels different than the others. So with the instructions in mind I place my hand onto the corpse at my feet. Then I push mana into the symbol on my hand. Black mist expels from my hand as if my hand was some kind of smoke bomb. The mist quickly covers the corpse and then starts shrinking. The mist goes from being the size of an adult to child to baby then it vanishes into nothing taking the body with it. Where the body used to be now sits a pencil. I know the corpse didn¡¯t have a pencil on it before because it was one of the last one that I had searched. So then does the symbol on my hand convert the corpses into random items? Where¡¯s the logic in that? Where does all that matter go? However this works I think I figured out what we¡¯re going to do with all of the dead bodies. Chapter 49 I move through the lobby placing my hand on corpse after corpse. I fill the symbol on my hand with mana and watch the bodies vanish in black smoke. I find that Scavenging the bodies takes very little mana from me. Less than a percentage per corpse. I also find that after the fiftieth body the symbol on my hand starts to sting. Nothing useful comes from the cloud of smoke. The most useful thing that I Scavenge is probably a bottle of water. Once the lobby is cleared I head to the kitchen and rid that area of zombies. After I clear the bike room. Most of the items that I Scavenge are things like a scrap of paper or some other random piece of trash. However, when I Scavenge the corpses of the high level bodies I get things like that water bottle or a regular leather belt. Once the whole floor is clean from any bodies my hand feels as if it¡¯s been run under hot water for too long. I can see sunlight pour in from the street and realize that I¡¯ve been awake all night. Yet I don¡¯t feel tired yet. I wonder if it¡¯s from my increases in Endurance or from boosting my Willpower. Either way it¡¯s making completing the Sleep Matters Not Quest easier. With the first floor done I head to the garage and start clearing the bodies down there. I get some pens and other random items from them. Most of which seems like garbage to me. I did get a really strange item from one of the bodies. Its a chunk of metal the size of a quarter. It''s a strange shade of green and feels cold to the touch. It¡¯s blank on one side but on the other it has another strange symbol pressed into it. Through the shade of green I can see the faint outlines of what seems to be a tower or a set of towers. One large tower sits in the middle and has two others set on each side for a total of five towers. I feel like the symbol is suppose to have more minute details. But I can¡¯t make anything other than the towers out. I pocket the coin and continue hunting for bodies to clear out. Halfway through clearing the garage a window pops up in my vision.
Skill Evolution:
Scavenging
Novice -> Apprentice
+3 to Luck
The window reminds me of the one I got while fighting the Spitter. I open my skill list and read through them again. Finding only my Mana Manipulation and my Scavenging skills to be at Apprentice proficiency. So does each level of proficiency boost the power of the skill or is it just a numerical evaluation of my skill with the skill? The evolutions do grant Attribute boosts so maybe it¡¯s a mix of both? I don¡¯t know. All I know is that I should see if evolution has changed anything. I continue looting the bodies finding that I get less garbage and more just random items. Like I get seven more of those weird green coins and some different rocks. I pocket all of those hoping to use them to learn more about my Earth mana with them. Once the garage is cleared I go up through each flight of stares ridding them of the bodies. Then I go floor by floor making sure that the building is clean of rotting corpses. Once done I have fifteen of those green coins, multiple rocks and a new pair of shoes. At least I think they¡¯re new. They look like some old fashioned leather boots. But honestly I¡¯m too grossed out from knowing they came from a rotting body to even want to try them on. I open my skill list to see how far I¡¯ve ranked up my Scavenging skill.
Skill List:
Name: Level: Proficiency:
Mana Manipulation 2 Apprentice
Channel Purification 2 Novice
Earth Element Control 4 Novice
Night Vision 1 Novice
Scavenging 3 Apprentice
I feel satisfaction at seeing the longer list. I even feel joy at seeing how much my skills have grown. Part of me wants to go back to the board and purchase any quest that gives a skill a reward. I don¡¯t really care what the skill is. I just like seeing this list grow and my skill levels increase. There¡¯s a sense of satisfaction in seeing them. My stomach growls, reminding me of how much time has passed. So I head to the seventh floor, hoping that people are awake. As I walk onto the floor I start to worry about getting food. Back when it was just Decker, Andy, and Angila I wasn¡¯t too worried about just grabbing some food. But now that there¡¯s so many of us it feels wrong. So far I¡¯ve always been handed something so I don¡¯t really know how we¡¯re distributing food. I¡¯ve kind of been an outcast from the group since the beginning. I only participate when I have too. When I¡¯m given free time I¡¯m either off alone doing my own thing or I¡¯m with Decker. My worries are dashed when I find Angila sitting at a table in the break area of the floor. She¡¯s holding a mug in her hands staring blankly into it. I cautiously approach and give a slight cough to announce myself. ¡°Good morning.¡± I say. The blond lady looks away from her mug and over to me. ¡°Oh. It¡¯s you. Good morning.¡± She says. She turns back to her mug making me feel awkward. Have I done something to make her uncomfortable? The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. I decide to ignore her. If she doesn¡¯t like me then I¡¯m more comfortable just doing my own thing. I find one of the packets of ramen I took from my car. Since I brought it in, it''s mine right? I did just put it down as if I was offering it to the group. My stomach growls again, ending the internal debate. I pull out a bowl of water and place the dried noodles and seasoning into it. I find a fork and take a seat at a different table. I watch the cold liquid fail to mix right with the flavoring powder. Does the water need to be hotter for it to mix right? Like hot chocolate? With nothing better to try I place both hands around the bowl without touching it. Then I push mana outside of my body, forcing it to wrap around the bowl. While I can¡¯t conjure flames or anything, in my experience mana gives off some kind of heat. So maybe if I push enough mana I can heat up this water. I feel my hands grow warm as the mana around the bowl glows brighter. A few minutes later my hands feel as if they¡¯re burning and light steam rises from the water. I cry on the inside, wondering just how long it¡¯s been since I¡¯ve eaten something warm. Testing the noodles I find them at the perfect softness and greedily slurp down the cheap meal. Once done I drink the warm juice in the bowl and lean back. Feeling more satisfied than I have in a long while. Warm food always fills me up better than cold. Maybe I should talk to Decker about getting one of those fire convertor things. Maybe someone from the restaurant can use it to cook hot foods or something. ¡°How did you warm that up?¡± Angila asks me. I find her looking up at me from her table. ¡°I wrapped it with mana until the water was warm.¡± I tell her. She stands suddenly and almost races over to the kitchen area. She shuffles around some cupboards and pulls out a large glass jar full of coffee grounds. She pulls out more items that I assume are used to make coffee. Some white papers, a coffee pot, and three cups of water. She then hands me the cups of water. ¡°Please heat these up.¡± She almost begs me. Her eyes are filled with a kind of pleading that makes me feel that saying no would be wrong. So I take the mugs and wrap them with my mana. Then I set the mana to burn brilliantly while I watch her. She scoops out the coffee grounds and puts it into one of those white filter paper things. Then she sets that inside the coffee machine. Then she looks back towards me. ¡°How much longer?¡± She asks. I shrug my shoulders. ¡°I don¡¯t know. It could take a little bit.¡± Her shoulders fall at my words. But then they rise and she walks over to me. She places her hands near the cups of water and pours her mana over mine. The two energies mix in a strange way and I feel connected to the women standing next to me. Not in a sense that I know who she is as a person. But in the sense that I can feel the mana coursing through her. I can almost see the channels leading from her hands and up through her arms. The spring of mana inside of her is a glowing beacon drawing my attention. Yet as attention grabbing as the orb inside of her it, it feels wrong for me to see it. As if it¡¯s something very personal and private. I force my attention off of her and back to the mugs of heating water. Minutes pass and the water in the mugs let off a decent amount of steam. I pull my mana in at the same time Angila does. She takes two of the cups and I take the third, carrying them over to the coffee pot. The glass is hot to the touch but brings me a sense of warmth I haven¡¯t felt since the start of all of this. No more central heating. No more hot chocolates from my local coffee shop. Heat is going to be harder to come by, especially with winter just around the corner. Why couldn¡¯t the apocalypse happen in the summer? At least that way we wouldn¡¯t have to worry about winter so soon. Although on the other hand magic is a thing now. Maybe we can use it to become the masters of our environments again sooner rather than later. Maybe there¡¯s spells or magical items that can heat whole buildings. I watch Angila slowly pour the hot water into the coffee grounds. Making sure to not let the water build up too much. A dark liquid slowly drips into the glass coffee pot. The odor of coffee becomes far stronger and I have to wonder who drinks this stuff. I¡¯ve tried it in the past but the stuff has always been far too bitter for me. Call me a child but hot coco will always reign supreme. ¡°Is that coffee?¡± A deep voice asks. I turn around to see a tired looking Decker. The moments his eyes fall onto the still brewing coffee they almost bug out of his head. ¡°Oh my God that is coffee.¡± He practically runs over and marvels at the black liquid. He is practically bouncing on the balls of his feet as we watch Angila pour the last cup of hot water into the coffee maker. Decker grabs a mug from the cupboard and pours the water from it into one of the now empty cups. Then he takes the coffee inside of the pot and pours himself a glass. Angila follows suit leaving only one mug full of coffee left inside of the pot. Decker smells the liquid in his cup and then breathes a deep sigh of relief. ¡°I need a cigarette.¡± He says. ¡°Hey Joel, do you know where my office is on the tenth floor?¡± He asks me. I nod my head. I mostly know because it has his name on a plate next to the door. ¡°Inside of my office is a black jacket. Could you bring that to the patio on the ninth floor?¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± He smiles at me and then starts heading for the staircase. I notice that he still hasn¡¯t touched the liquid inside of the mug. He¡¯s only smelling it. I race up to the tenth floor and grab the jacket in his office. Then I run down to the ninth floor and find Decker sitting in a chair on the patio. I hand him the jacket and he takes out a carton of cigarettes and a lighter. ¡°Do you smoke?¡± He asks me. I shake my head. ¡°Probably best you don¡¯t. It¡¯s honestly one of my worst habits.¡± He places a cigarette in his mouth and pulls in deeply. Then he holds his breath for a few seconds. Followed by a slow and controlled exhaule. Smoke rises in the cold air and drifts away slowly. Decker then finally takes a sip of the coffee in his mug. Watching him smoke I¡¯m reminded of the only other time I¡¯ve seen him with a cigarette. If it¡¯s such a habit why haven¡¯t I been seeing him smoke more often? ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever actually seen you smoke.¡± ¡°Yeah I¡¯ve been limiting myself to a single cigarette before bed. But If I¡¯m going to drink coffee I have to smoke. It just doesn¡¯t taste right otherwise.¡± He says. We fall into a silence as we watch the quiet city. The sun is barely over the horizon but it looks like it¡¯s going to be a very sunny day. My breath lingers in the cold air hinting at the continual drop in temperature. ¡°If we make it past whatever the countdown is ticking to then we¡¯re going to need to worry about winter.¡± Decker says. I nod. ¡°You know I was thinking that we might be able to use a fire converter to cook hot foods. It might even be useful in keeping us warm.¡± I say. Decker looks at me causing me to feel awkward. Should I not have said anything? ¡°You¡¯ve changed a lot in such a short amount of time. Or I just didn¡¯t get a very good read on you kid.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Well I have a knack for understanding people. When I first met you I pegged you for a quiet outcast who followed instead of lead. But you¡¯ve been offering ideas here and there. And even sorta leading the Hunting party.¡± I know what he means. Ever since the start of this apocalypse I¡¯ve changed a lot. Before the earthquake I doubt I ever would have initiated a conversation with someone, let alone freely offer my ideas like I did just now. ¡°You know I used to have a son?¡± Decker says while looking out over the horizon. ¡°Used to?¡± ¡°Yeah. He would have been a few years older than you had it not been for a car crash.¡± Decker says. ¡°But that¡¯s in the past. We need to worry about the future.¡± I feel at a lost for words. What do you say to that? ¡°Yeah.¡± I offer him. It¡¯s not much but what else can I say? ¡°Say, where did you get that tattoo kid?¡± Decker asks. I look down at the rings on the back of my hand. It definitely does look like some weird tattoo. I explain to him the quest and how I spent the past few hours cleaning the building of corpses. ¡°Now that I think about it, the staircase did smell considerably better. You never cease to amaze me kid. You truly are something special.¡± He says. I¡¯m left speechless by his words. I¡¯ve never received much praise in my life. But this man has been offering it to me like I¡¯ve been doing something special. Like I actually deserve it. I haven¡¯t been doing anything special. I¡¯ve just been running from one thing to another with little to no thought put into my actions. What is there that I¡¯ve done to be deserving of praising? ¡°You asked me to teach you how to fight with a sword right?¡± Decker asks. I nod my head. The man pulls in another long drag of his cigarette. ¡°Give me five minutes. I¡¯ll meet you on the roof. We should have a few more hours before we need to get the day started.¡± He says. He stands and takes another drag from his cigarette. The tip flares hot and burns the rest of the white stick to the brown butt. Decker breaths out slowly and drops the still smoking cigarette to the ground. He drinks the last of his coffee and walks back inside. Leaving me with a sense of excitement. I race up to the roof, waiting for him to arrive. Chapter 50 Decker walks out onto the roof carrying his sword in its scabbard. He¡¯s wearing his black suit jacket that he had me grab. ¡°Ready?¡± He asks. ¡°Yes sir.¡± ¡°To start off you need to learn some basic stances.¡± Decker says. He walks over to me and then assumes a stance. He places his feet wide and with one foot just slightly ahead of the other. He bends his knee just slightly. I imitate his stance as best as I can. Moving my feet apart and slightly bending my knee. ¡°Where is your weight placed?¡± He asks. ¡°Umm. My feet?¡± I offer. He chuckles. ¡°Your weight should be more on the balls of your feet. This stance can lead into a few attacks. Mostly a powerful lunge, however it can bleed into other stances easily.¡± He says. He stomps forwards demonstrating what he means. Then he resets his stance and starts flowing into others. His movements remind me of a dance more than a fighting style. To understand better how he¡¯s positioning himself I activate my Magical Sonar. The mana wraps around the man and I feel his every movement. Down to how his muscles bulge and stretch. ¡°Do you get it?¡± He asks after returning to the original stance. ¡°I think so.¡± I say. Comparing his stance to mine I find that my weight is placed more on my heels then the balls of my feet. So I correct that and continue comparing how we¡¯re holding ourselves. His knees are bent less than mine so I fix that too. I also find that the muscles in his back are more tensed then mine, making him stand straighter than I am. After correcting a few more differences I find myself in a stance very similar to his. Once I get here Decker smiles at me. ¡°You learn a lot faster than me.¡± He says. ¡°Now do some jumping jacks and then get back into that stance.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°In a real fight you should be able to fall into this stance instinctively. You shouldn¡¯t have to think about every single movement of the body. So we¡¯re going to drill this stance until you can fall into it as easily as you breathe.¡± So the hours pass with me doing wild activities to shake the feeling of the stance from my mind. Then I try to get back into it. After a while Decker stops showing me the stance and has me perform it from memory. I find that memorizing how my body is supposed to feel in the stance is far easier than I expected. I assume it¡¯s from my high Intelligence stat. I should find a book and try to memorize it to see if I can actually remember better now. If my Strength stat is anything to go off of then I definitely should be able to memorize things far easier than I could before. I¡¯m starting to feel tired when Decker calls an end to the training. I can no longer see my breath hanging in the air anymore. ¡°I think it¡¯s about time we head back down.¡± he says. I feel a little disappointed at the contents of the lesson. I mean when I thought he was going to be teaching me to swing a sword it would have a lot more sword swinging instead of me just posing. ¡°I know this probably wasn¡¯t as fun as you imagined but a solid base will give you far more benefits then me just giving you a sword to swing.¡± He says while smiling at me. With that we leave the rooftop and head back down to the seventh floor. Once there we find most of the other people eating food. ¡°Good morning.¡± Decker says as he walks into the room. ¡°There¡¯s Coffee. Hot Coffee.¡± One of the people from the restaurant says. I guess Angila brewed a few more pots. ¡°Yes I know.¡± Decker says while smiling to the person. ¡°So today we need to handle a few things. Luckily for us Joel here has done us a huge service. Instead of moving all of those corpses outside he found a way to get rid of them.¡± Decker says while placing a hand on my shoulder. ¡°How did he manage that?¡± Abby asks. ¡°He has a skill that lets him scavenge the bodies. They evaporate into smoke and leave behind something.¡± ¡°What do they leave behind?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°Random junk.¡± I say. ¡°That''s like some shitty looting mechanic.¡± He says. I agree. ¡°How did you get the skill?¡± Rebecca asks. ¡°From the Quest Scavenge.¡± I say. ¡°That quest costs like 75 points. How did you get so many?¡± Jessica asks. ¡°He¡¯s on the hunting team dummy.¡± Rebecca says. I feel awkward at the attention and wish that someone would switch the topic of conversation. I look towards Decker hoping that he will progress the conversations. Lucky for me he does. ¡°Either way, that saves the Builders a lot of time. Now we can focus on actually fortifying the building.¡± Decker says. ¡°What about the Hunters?¡± Abby asks. ¡°Well first I think you guys should go to the CVS store and gather supplies from there. With the police car I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll need to send the Scavenging team after you. Instead I think I¡¯ll take them to Tom''s Hardware and Lumber. It''s over the Harris bridge but it has a complete lumbar yard and lots of other construction material.¡± Decker says. ¡°So we¡¯re going to be lugging back planks of wood all the way back here?¡± Rebecca asks. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°No, we¡¯ll take one of the trucks down in the garage. They¡¯re work vehicles so the keys are with the HR desk on the second floor.¡± Decker says. ¡°Is Andy okay?¡± Kyle asks. His question seems to cast a blanket over Angila and Decker. ¡°Sadly not. So I hope that it¡¯s okay to ask you guys to go to CVS without him.¡± Decker says. Personally I¡¯m fine with it. I don¡¯t mean to be mean to the guy but he didn¡¯t really do much. So now we don¡¯t have to worry about keeping him safe. Granted I failed at doing that anyways. ¡°That¡¯s fine with me. What about you guys?¡± Kyles says, looking towards me and Abby. ¡°My daughter will not be going out there again.¡± Nathen says. Silence fills the room as Abby glares at her father. He looks back at her with determination in his eyes. ¡°Dad, can I talk to you in private?¡± Abby asks. Her voice sounds colder than I¡¯ve ever heard. The two stand and walk to the opposite side of the floor. The tones of their voice echo back to us making me feel as if I¡¯m eavesdropping. ¡°So how about this coffee?¡± Someone asks. A small conversation springs up between that person and Angila about how she made the coffee. I¡¯m grateful for the conversation as it drowns out whatever conversation that Abby and her father are having. I get why he doesn¡¯t want her going outside. Every time she has so far she¡¯s been attacked by high leveled zombies. But at the same time leaving the building has been her choice. I think he should let her go. But I could just have a scanted view on controlling parents. I ran away on my own when he tried to stop me from going to college. The conversation on coffee ends when Abby and her father walk back to us. Her father looks upset but Abby has a smile on her face. ¡°I¡¯m going.¡± She says while taking her original seat. ¡°I¡¯m going too.¡± He says. Decker frowns at this. ¡°Actually I was hoping you¡¯d come with me and the Scavengers.¡± Decker says. ¡°My daughter¡¯s safety is my number one priority.¡± Nathen says. ¡°I get that. But you can¡¯t just focus on her short term safety. I don¡¯t know how much you know but we¡¯re preparing for a possible invasion.¡± Decker says. ¡°Invasion of what?¡± Nathen asks. A blue window appears in front of Decker. It¡¯s the Safe Zone management screen. Decker points towards the timer on it. ¡°When this hits zero we¡¯re assuming that we are going to be sieged by zombies or that the zombies are going to be stronger. Or any number of bad things. Your daughter has proven to be resourceful and capable of taking care of herself. But what happens when this building is swarmed with powerful Zombies?¡± ¡°What happens if she¡¯s swarmed out there?¡± ¡°Did she get hurt yesterday?¡± Decker asks. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Does she seem like she thinks she can¡¯t handle going outside?¡± ¡°No but how will me going with you help her later?¡± ¡°You will know many of the tools that we will need to fortify this place. You will save us time in collecting the right resources and start on getting our defenses built up faster. If you are to go with the hunting group I¡¯m sure that you can help them but only if they need a distraction. You¡¯re a lower level than her. If anything you¡¯ll be a hindrance to them. But if you come with me we can help you to gain more strength. You will help ensure the safety of this building. I don¡¯t see any benefits to you going with them.¡± Decker says. ¡°Then why doesn¡¯t she come with us?¡± Nathen asks. ¡°I¡¯m going with Joel.¡± Abby says. ¡°Why?¡± Nathen asks. ¡°He¡¯s the strongest person here. I feel safest when I¡¯m with him.¡± Abby says. Her words make my face feel hot and my heart race. Nathen on the other hand looks like he¡¯s been stabbed in the gut. He looks at me with a gaze I can not describe. ¡°Will you protect her with your life?¡± Nathen asks me. ¡°He already has.¡± Abby says. Nathen¡¯s expression softens at this. But then it instantly hardens back into something of resolve. ¡°Do you swear to protect her with your life?¡± I know the answer in my heart. He didn¡¯t have to ask me multiple times. Abby has already gone out of her way for me. I owe her. ¡°Of course. I swear to protect her with my life.¡± I say, meaning every word. Nathen smiles at this. ¡°Fine, I''ll come with you this time.¡± He says to Decker. ¡°Thank you.¡± Decker says. The room feels to lighten after this. As if the topic just discussed had caused a weight to fall onto us. ¡°While you¡¯re gone what will we do?¡± Jessica asks. ¡°Well there¡¯s still lots of blood and other gunk that needs to be cleaned up. On top of that we need someone to keep an eye on Andy.¡± Decker says. Some grumbles come from the people that are left to clean up the mess of the corpses. But it¡¯s not like they¡¯re willing to go outside and fight the zombies. So I don¡¯t really get why they¡¯re complaining. ¡°Alright, any other question?¡± Decker asks. Silence follows. ¡°Alright. Then finish eating then get ready. I¡¯ll meet the Hunters and Scavengers down in the garage.¡± With that people start to leave the area. Abby stands and gives me a strange look that I take as some kind of gratitude. After she and Nathen leave Decker turns to me. ¡°Thanks for helping with Nathen.¡± He says. ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything.¡± I say. This causes Decker¡¯s eyebrow to raise. ¡°So you¡¯re actually ready to die for her?¡± he asks. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Alright.¡± He says. Decker walks away after saying that. Does he not believe me? Why is the tingle in my head buzzing? Is it trying to warn me of something? It feels like it¡¯s trying to warn me. I shake the feeling and try to think of what I need. A weapon would be nice. Granted I can make one from concrete I should at least see if there¡¯s an easy quest that awards a simple weapon. That way I don¡¯t have to waste mana every time there¡¯s a fight on just getting myself a melee weapon. I walk to the Quest Board and start scrolling through the long list of quests. Some ask me to kill some number of animals for an item based on the animals. Like one wants me to kill fifteen wolves for a Dire Wolf Dagger. Whatever that is. After some searching I find this quest.
Available Quests:
Quest Name: Reward: Difficulty: Cost:
Basher of Brains Bronze Warhammer F 50
Kill 25 creatures with a hammer
I purchase the quest and then head to then start looking in all of the storage rooms of the building. In one of the IT supply rooms I find an old looking hammer. I test it¡¯s heft and take it with me and head towards the garage. Chapter 51 I find Abby, Kyle, Nathen, and Decker already in the garage. Nathen seems to be fussing over Abby while she appears to be annoyed. ¡°Joel come here for a second.¡± Decker calls out to me. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Kyle here was telling me that you can pick locks with your mana?¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± ¡°Alright then I think I¡¯m going to leave the other master key with the group staying here in the building. In case anything happens. The radios on the other hand are going to be an issue. Hopefully I can find something at the hardware store but I doubt it. Maybe check CVS to see if they had any radios for the employees.¡± ¡°So should I leave the radio here?¡± I ask. ¡°No, take it with you. My group will be taking two cars. If something happens we will work as either a relay or back up. But it will take a while to get back here or to you. So please be extra careful.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± With that Decker turns from me and heads lower into the garage. ¡°You ready?¡± Kyle asks me. ¡°Yeah. You?¡± ¡°Yeah, as ready as I could be. How did you sleep last night?¡± ¡°Oh. Ummm. I didn¡¯t.¡± Kyle looks at me with skepticism and slight annoyance. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°I took a quest that I think will give me a skill that¡¯s going to help me sleep less. But to complete the quest I have to be awake for 48 hours.¡± ¡°That¡¯s brutal. Are you sure you¡¯re good to come with us? Haven¡¯t you been awake for like 24 hours already?¡± Thinking back to it I guess I have been awake for quite a while. I wonder if those hours before I took the quest count. If not then I really should have taken a nap or something last night. ¡°Yeah I used to work night shifts. My sleep schedule was always iffy. I¡¯ll be fine.¡± I reassure him. ¡°You better. When we¡¯re out there we¡¯re a team. We watch each other''s backs. It doesn¡¯t work well if one of us is falling asleep.¡± His words carry a definitive tone of annoyance. And I understand where it¡¯s coming from. He doesn¡¯t want to deal with another person that isn¡¯t willing to pull his weight. But he doesn¡¯t have to worry about me. ¡°I¡¯ll say something if I think I¡¯m going to be more of a hindrance than a help.¡± I say. ¡°Alright.¡± The conversation ends there. Nathen seems to have finished whatever lecture he was giving Abby. He walks over to me and taps my shoulder. ¡°Can I talk with you for a second?¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± I follow the large man away from the other two. Once we stop, Nathen looks back at me. ¡°Do you really promise to take care of her?¡± He asks. I nod my head. ¡°Yes sir. I owe her my life. I want to make sure she keeps hers.¡± His eyebrow raises at that. ¡°What happened?¡± He asks. I give him a quick review of my fight with the Banshee and the horde after. While I¡¯m telling him this the lights in the garage flare on and I hear distant rumbling coming from machines further in the garage. ¡°I see. Well I¡¯m counting on you. If anything happens to her. Anything at all. I¡¯m going to take it out on you.¡± He says. His eyes scream of a fury. But it¡¯s not the same kind that I would see in my own father¡¯s eyes. It¡¯s not an anger that¡¯s really directed at me. But at something else. I don¡¯t know what. Seeing the anger makes me respect this man. He truly cares for his daughter. ¡°Alright before you guys go I want you each to take these.¡± Decker calls out. I turn to see him holding three hand guns and some clips to go with them. I walk over and take the gun from him. ¡°I don¡¯t think you should rely on them but in case of an emergency they might save you. But don¡¯t let the others see you with them. I want to save most of the ammo for whatever happens when the countdown ends.¡± Decker says. I take the pistol off of my utility belt and put this new one inside of the holster. It¡¯s not a perfect fit but it¡¯ll work for now. I hand the empty gun to Decker. ¡°Also.¡± Decker says while walking to a car. He tries the handle of the car and frowns when he realizes that the car is locked. ¡°Hey Joel can you get this?¡± He asks. I nod and walk over to the car. I shove my mana into the keyhole and fiddle with the mechanism inside. It¡¯s different from the other locks I¡¯ve worked on but in seconds I have it figured out and the door opens. ¡°Thanks. I didn¡¯t want to break the glass to get this.¡± He says. He reaches into the car and grabs a white disk from the dashboard. ¡°This puck is the key to remotely open the garage. Just drive up to the gate and the sensor should catch it. But to help the sensor place the puck on the passenger side.¡± He hands the white disk to me. By now other people are starting to file into the garage. Abby and Kyle stuff their pistols into their waist bands. We should probably look into getting them holsters too. Maybe we should go back to the police station. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. I take the back seat of the police car and hand the puck to Abby. She gets into the passenger''s seat and places the puck onto the dash. Kyle once again takes the driver¡¯s seat. ¡°Alright you guys be safe.¡± Decker says through the open driver¡¯s window. ¡°Please come back to me, little bird.¡± Nathen says while looking at Abby. ¡°And you two, please take care of her.¡± Kyle and I tell Nathen that we will. Then Kyle rolls up the window and starts driving to the exit of the garage. As we approach the gate rolls up, letting us out onto the street. The street is strangely empty, making me wonder if someone came out to clear the block. Kyle drives well under the speed limit but still faster than we could have ran. After a few moments of silence I ask him to lower the back seat windows. When he does I push out my mana into the area around the car. I can feel the individual grooves of the tires as they propel us forwards, occasionally catching rocks or leaves. I pull back my focus and instead just try to maintain an understanding of anything coming into the range of my Magical Sonar. The CVS is close but it still takes us a few minutes to get there. While Kyle drives I take out one of those strange green coins that I got from the bodies. Out of curiosity I push some pure Earth mana outside of me and into the coin, hoping that it would be made of some kind of metal. The energy passes into the coin and my hopes are confirmed. However, I don¡¯t know what kind of metal or stone that it is. I do take some time to play with the metal however. That is until we make a turn and find ourselves face to face with a horde of zombies, numbering well into the dozens. ¡°Shit!¡± Kyle says. The car slams to a halt as Kyle tries to reverse the vehicle. ¡°No wait!¡± Abby says. ¡°What for?¡± ¡°Joel and I can take them from a distance. If we¡¯re in this car we¡¯re safe, right?¡± Kyle looks back at me to get my input. ¡°I think we should try and clear them too. We need points for the Quest Board and the building. Along with us needing to level up.¡± I say. Kyle sighs and stops reversing. ¡°I¡¯ll back up when they get too close. If it seems like we are going to get swarmed I¡¯m booking it.¡± He says. ¡°Thank you.¡± Abby says. She looks back at me and gives me a quick smile before rolling down her window. She sticks her hand out the window and a blue ball of swirling energy emanates from it. Then the ball of energy flies out into the horde of zombies, exploding when it comes into contact with one of their heads. A blue light flashes to black and the battle is on. I form Rifle Rounds outside of the car and aim through the front window. Each shot kills a target with a small pop. After the fifteenth kill I wonder if this is the most energy efficient way to kill them. While making a Mana Scythe does take more mana than a Rifle Round I can have the Scythe last longer and even pull it back into me. Recovering what I used to make it, while only burning off what it takes to sustain the spell. So maybe there¡¯s a way I can create a long range spell that I can maintain and call back to me to not waste so much energy. With that in mind I start going over all my uses of mana. I have control over it at a certain range but beyond that the energy just flies out. The only spells that I¡¯ve managed to create that haven¡¯t exploded after leaving my field of control and on contact with an object are my Mana Scythes, that disk spell, my Mana Saw, and my sensory spells. Also that mana wire I made to hold onto the Butcher. My mind latches onto the thin cord of mana I conjured. It¡¯s really just a really thin tendril of mana. So with that logic I should have complete control over it while it¡¯s in my range. I conjure a ball of mana and fashion a tendril of mana to connect to it. I float the ball outside of the car and then command it to fly as far as it can. The ball soars over the crowd of Zombies. All the while a blue thread of mana follows it. I feel my mana pool drain a little as I¡¯m forced to create more and more thread. It¡¯s a strange sensation, kind of like pulling hair out of your throat. Not really pleasant. After satisfied with the distance I stop letting the mana thread be pulled from me. I feel the thread strain as the ball of energy tries to fly away, however the thread holds. I then start to reel back in the thread. Pulling the mana directly back into me. After a few moments the ball of energy zips back to my palm like some glowing yoyo. At it¡¯s sight I feel like a light bulb goes off in my head. ¡°What are you doing back there?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°If Abby is the only one trying to deal with this horde then I don¡¯t think it¡¯s safe to stay here.¡± ¡°Hold on. I''m making a new spell.¡± I tell him. Abby says something but I ignore them. Instead I focus on the ball of mana at then end of the thread. I flatten the mana, making it into a disk the size of a medium pizza. I move the string to the center of the disk and then focus on adding rotation to just the disk. At first the thread of mana tries to spin with it. Causing the blue glowing string to coil in on itself. However, after focusing on the thread I find that I can make it stationary while the disk still spins. I force the energy to spin so fast that it glow becomes a light blue instead of arctic. With that finished I think my spell is done. I¡¯ll dub it my Destructo Disc, after another show I use to watch with my mom. I pass the energy outside and then hurl it towards the crowd of Zombies. It races out cutting into top of the crowd. Heads are severed from bodies. With each body that the disk passes through I feel it slow down. After the fifth body I tug back on the thread of mana. The disk races back to me now glowing the familiar blue. I check on the pool inside of me and find that my disk indeed killed more zombies for less mana than my Rifle Rounds. Part of me wants to celebrate but I know that can be done when we clear this horde. So I pour more mana into the disk causing it to speed up again. Then I throw it out. In this fashion I kill and cripple dozens of zombies at the cost of killing a few with Rifle Rounds. After a few minutes of us fighting Abby levels up twice and we empty the block of the horde. I call the disk back to me pulling all of the mana inside of myself. While I didn¡¯t level up I still have over eighty percent of my mana remaining. Despite that there¡¯s still plenty of crippled zombies inside of the street. Kyle and I exit the vehicle to take care of these ones. There¡¯s no point in leaving the free experience just lying around. So the next few minutes are filled with me bashing brains in with a hammer and Kyle piking crippled zombies. Halfway through clearing the crippled zombie a blue light flashes in my face.
Quest Complete:
Quest Name: Difficulty: Reward:
Basher of Brains F Bronze Warhammer
A black mist covers the hammer in my hand. It feels cold to the touch and I drop the tool out of shock. The mist extends from the size of the hammer to two feet. Then it dissipates leaving a strange looking hammer. It has a really long dark wooden handle, almost the whole size of the weapon. The actual hammer had part is bronze and has a familiar hammer side. But the other side extends out into a hooked point. As I gaze at the item another window pops up.
Bronze Warhammer
Skill (active): Bash Costs:5 mana Effect: Causes a powerful shockwave upon impact
My jaw drops after reading the description. Chapter 52 My eyes race over the description once. Twice. And a third time before I snap out of disbelief. A weapon with a skill. A magical skill that costs mana, just like a game. Excitement fills me as ideas race through my mind. What else can have skills? Can I make my own items with skills? What does this skill do? At that last question my mind hones in on the idea of activating the skill of the hammer. But how can I do that? How do I activate the skill? I read through the description a fourth time, my eyes falling on the mana cost of the skill. So I need to use mana with this skill. So how do I supply the hammer with mana? My mind races back to me pushing mana into the water crystal thing. With that in mind I push my mana out of my hand and into the hammer. Except nothing happens. My mana rests on the palm of my hand as I try to force it out further. The mana spreads and covers the handle of the hammer as I try to force the energy into the weapon. The blue energy wraps around the handle until it covers a strange coppery colored section. The moment the arctic blue energy touches this section I feel a connection to the weapon. My mana races into the hammer and a connection is formed between me and the hammer. Much like I can sense the mana inside of me I can now feel the hammer as if it was part of me. There¡¯s a crystal inside of it much like the lake of mana inside of me. My mama fills that crystal and then pours out into a strange circle. The circle glows with symbols completely foriegn to me. Yet as I gaze upon them I feel some connection to them. Almost as if I can understand them. It¡¯s like staring at a blurry image that you can barely make out the subject of. Force. That is what the symbols remind me of. The concept of force. As in the energy influencing something. As soon as the correlation of force and the strange images is made in my mind the sense of understanding leaves me. And once again the symbols look as forign to me as Russian would look to a dog. Unsure of what to do next I find a still living zombie. It¡¯s buried under a headless corpse of another zombie. I raise the Warhammer and bring it down lazily. The moment the head of the hammer touches the head of the zombie a few things happen simultaneously. The moment the head of the hammer hits the skull of the zombie I feel the mana drain from the hammer. It races through the weapon, transforming as it does so. The mana builds as a new kind of energy inside of the head of the hammer and then releases with an explosion. A concussive bang rings out as the zombie¡¯s head explodes. No, that''s not a proper description. It¡¯s more apt to say that the head vaporized. Out of shock I let the hammer continue to fall. It hits the ground beneath where the zombie¡¯s head used to be and I feel the mana inside of it shift again. The blue energy is converted to a silver or gray energy as it reaches the head of the hammer. Then the asphalt explodes outwards in another concussive explosion. A crater the size of a basketball remains where a previously flat road used to be. I¡¯m left holding the hammer just above the crater and feeling a rising sense of giddiness. It takes a decent amount of mana but the skill of this weapon is far more deadly than anything I¡¯ve produced with my own mana at that level. I could probably kill that Butcher in a single hit, or that Brute in a few. ¡°What the fuck was that!?¡± Kyle yells running over to me. I smile as I look at him. I present my Warhammer. ¡°This.¡± ¡°Where did you get that?¡± Abby asks, leaving the car. ¡°There¡¯s a quest called Basher of Brains. This is the reward. It has a skill inside of it.¡± ¡°A skill?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s called Bash. When I feed mana into the hammer and then hit something the mana explodes out.¡± I say. ¡°Can¡¯t you do that yourself?¡± Kyle asks. Abby shakes her head before answering. ¡°Mana doesn¡¯t really explode. Not like that. It more or less just expands really fast. Kinda like air.¡± She says. ¡°Alright but why would you take a quest for a hammer when you already had one?¡± Kyle asks me. I shrug. ¡°I got the quest before I got the hammer. Besides this is a war hammer. Not just some regular hammer.¡± I say. Kyle shrugs and returns to executing the few remaining zombies. ¡°Just don¡¯t do that again. You¡¯re going to bring down another horde onto us.¡± He says. Knowing that he¡¯s right I grab hold of the last bit of mana inside of the hammer and pull it back into me. With the hammer empty of mana I hand it to Abby. ¡°I¡¯m going to start scavenging the corpses. I doubt I¡¯ll find anything useful but it seems the higher my proficiency with the skill the better loot. And you could use the experience more than me.¡± I say. She accepts the hammer and runs out into the mass of bodies. I kneel down and start the process of scavenging the bodies. Abby and Kyle finish before I do. We scan the area for any more floating lights. It¡¯s really lucky that the zombies have those stuck above their heads. It makes sneaking up on us much harder. Kyle sits in the car while Abby watches me work. ¡°So how does that work?¡± She asks. ¡°Honestly I have no clue. I channel mana into this symbol and touch a body. Then it turns to smoke and leaves something behind.¡± I demonstrate my words by causing another body to vanish. In its place a plastic bag now sits. The bag lazily floats away as the slight wind pulls it. ¡°Do you think that you''re rearranging the matter into new things?¡± She asks. ¡°I don¡¯t know. If I am, I have no control over it.¡± I say. Stolen novel; please report. ¡°How do you know that?¡± I fish out one of the strange coins from my pocket. I hand it to her as I cause another body to vanish. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± She asks. ¡°No clue. It¡¯s one of the items the corpses drop.¡± I say. ¡°It looks like money.¡± She says. ¡°I don¡¯t know. But I¡¯ve never seen one before I used this skill. So I doubt I have any control over what loot I get. If I did, I doubt I could create something I¡¯ve never seen.¡± ¡°I guess that makes sense. Then how is the loot decided?¡± She asks. I shrug. ¡°Maybe a god decides. Or we''re in the matrix and some computer program decides.¡± I say. ¡°I hope it¡¯s some God.¡± She says. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°If this was some computer simulation then wouldn¡¯t that mean that we¡¯re just lines of codes running through their routines. Wouldn¡¯t that mean we don¡¯t have free will? We¡¯re just doing as we are programmed to do.¡± She says. I guess she¡¯s right. If this is all a simulation then we are just robots doing as our code commands. With no true free will. But I feel as if I have free will. I can do whatever I want, I¡¯m not restricted to just doing the same things all the time. If I wanted to scream I¡¯m real I have free will I can. But that could also be my programming talking. Still I think she¡¯s onto something. We have free will. At least I¡¯m going to believe we do. ¡°Or we could be real people in the simulation. Kinda like we¡¯re playing a video game.¡± Kyle chimes in. ¡°That could be fun. Like this is all a video game. I mean it has enough of the elements. That would mean if we die we only stop playing this run through right?¡± Abby says. ¡°We¡¯ll if that was the case wouldn¡¯t we have memories of the outside world?¡± I ask. ¡°No and no. Maybe in order to get into the game our memories are wiped and replaced with fake ones so we can be immersed. And maybe the process of dying in the game could fry our minds.¡± Kyle says. ¡°Awe that makes all of this scary again.¡± Abby says. ¡°A little bit of fear is healthy for you.¡± Kyle says. ¡°Gods, video games, or simulations it doesn¡¯t really matter what¡¯s going on. What matters is that we survive to live another day.¡± I say. ¡°Agreed. And hopefully we can find time to have fun in between the surviving.¡± Abby says. Kyle nods his head as he looks down the other side of the street. ¡°Hey do you guys see that?¡± He asks. I stand and turn in the direction he¡¯s looking. Way down the street there seems to be something blocking the road. It¡¯s far too far away for me to tell what it is but something is definitely there. ¡°Is that a wall or something?¡± Abby asks. ¡°I don¡¯t know but isn¡¯t this the street that leads to your apartment?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°Yeah. But that wasn¡¯t there yesterday was it?¡± She asks. ¡°No it wasn¡¯t.¡± I say. ¡°Does that mean there are other people out there?¡± Abby asks. ¡°Hopefully. I¡¯d rather the living be building walls then some weird zombies.¡± Kyle says. ¡°Should we investigate?¡± Abby asks. Kyle looks to me and after a second of thinking it over I shake my head. ¡°No but we should let Decker and the others know. Who knows, maybe we can send a group over to investigate later.¡± I say. ¡°Sounds fine with me.¡± Abby says. ¡°Yeah. How much longer Joel?¡± Kyle asks. I look around noticing about thirty zombies left. Originally there were just over 70. ¡°Not much longer.¡± I say. I race through the rest of the corpses. The only thing of note I get is a crappy looking pouch. It¡¯s big enough to hold all of the green coins I got. I now have over thirty. After I finish looting the bodies I check my skill progression.
Scavenging 8 Apprentice
Scavenging is now my highest skill. I hope that when it levels up some more I can start getting some decent loot. Granted I don¡¯t know what kind of loot that could be. Maybe food or something. Granted I don¡¯t know if I¡¯d be willing to eat food from a corpse. But hey if I¡¯m hungry enough it could be life saving. That is if Scavenging can produce food. We all get back into the car and continue driving to the store. We don¡¯t encounter any other issues. Only the occasional zombie. Abby handles them while I restore my mana pool. ¡°You have to teach me how to do that.¡± Abby says. ¡°I can tonight if you want.¡± ¡°Perfect. You promised to teach me but you haven¡¯t done much of that.¡± Abby says. I can almost taste the salt in her voice. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. A lot has been happening.¡± I offer. ¡°I forgive you. But it won¡¯t continue any longer. Every night you will show me how you do everything you do.¡± She says. ¡°Alright.¡± The block with the CVS store has three zombies loitering on it. Abby easily manages them and Kyle pulls the car right up to the door of the store. Two large glass doors lead into the building. We get out of the car and peer into the building through the glass. ¡°Do you guys see anything?¡± I ask. ¡°Nothing.¡± Kyle says. ¡°Nope.¡± Abby says. With nothing better to do I beat against the glass of the building. I hear my thuds echo throughout the building. Then I wait. ¡°What was that for?¡± Kyle asks. ¡°If anything is in there then it heard me. If it¡¯s a zombie it¡¯s going to come over here to investigate the sound.¡± I say. ¡°Smart.¡± Abby says. With that we fall into silence. For several moments nothing happens so we beat on the doors some more. After a minute or so a zombie finally shambles into view. It''s wearing a blue polo shirt and khakis. It shambles to the door and I read that it¡¯s level sits at one. I guess only a single person being in the building makes sense. The apocalypse happened around midnight. I slide my mana between the gaps in the door and use it to form a Mana Scythe. I then sever the spine of the zombie causing it to fall to the ground. Then I pour my mana into the locks of the door and open them. Kyle steps forwards and kills the still biting zombie. ¡°You guys ready?¡± He asks. ¡°Yeah but how should we go about doing this?¡± Abby asks. ¡°I¡¯ve actually been thinking about that.¡± Kyle says. He gets back into the vehicle and maneuvers it so that the truck is facing the doors. Then I hear a popping sound and watch the trunk rise slightly. The car powers down and Kyle steps out. ¡°I figured we would fill baskets with stuff and then throw them into the trunk.¡± He says. ¡°Sounds good to me. But I think we should keep someone on the lookout.¡± I say. ¡°I can do that.¡± Abby says. I look at Kyle who shrugs and enters the store. ¡°Yell if you see anything.¡± I say. I leave her and enter the store. I stoop down and Scavenge the body of the CVS worker. After the mist dissipates a sock is left. I opt out of collecting it and instead get started on looting the store. Alt - 1 | Ch - 1 Whoever determined that essays are the best way to evaluate a student''s understanding of a subject needs to go suck an egg. I mean seriously there have to be simpler, easier, less time-consuming ways to prove my understanding of a subject. Or I guess proving that someone else understands a subject. Sighing I rub the dryness and weariness out from my eyes. Returning my focus to the blinking cursor on my laptop''s screen I read through the conclusion paragraph. Satisfied with the work I save the document and email it to a classmate of mine. Closing the browser I lean back in my chair and breathe out a sigh of relief. With that one done I should have made somewhere north of $300. Taking a glance at the time I realize that if I don¡¯t get ready for school now then I will be late. ¡°Fuck.¡± Shaking the fog of tiredness from my mind I set to work getting ready for my day. As I do so the smell of toasted bread and eggs wafts through the apartment I share with my aunt. My stomach growls causing me to hasten my dressing. I find the food still steaming on the table. Falling into our usual routine I sit down and dig in. Whoever said that eggs and toast are a bland breakfast clearly never had my Aunt¡¯s eggs and toast. I don¡¯t know what she puts in it but good lord is it delicious. The eggs nearly melt in your mouth from how fluffy they are. Washing the dishes I head back to my room to finish packing my backpack. Once done I check the time again and curse. I spent too long eating. If I hurry I might be able to make the bus. Bolting out of my room I race to the front door of our apartment only to be stopped by a tall slender woman with raven black hair and grey eyes that always remind me of thunder clouds. ¡°You¡¯re not leaving without saying goodbye.¡± Her voice is stern but her lips crack into a warm smile. ¡°Love ya, bye.¡± I say hastily as I try to go around her. She laughs at my attempt and grabs my arms. ¡°Not so fast. That¡¯s not how we say goodbye.¡± She pulls me into a tight embrace. Her arm squeezes just tight enough to convey emotions that are too strong for words alone. My arms wrap around her for a second before we part. ¡°That¡¯s better. But another thing. When I was scrying this morning I found omens of death in your path today.¡± Her face contorts into one of concern. ¡°I¡¯ll keep an eye out.¡± I give her, hoping that it¡¯ll alleviate her worry. ¡°As you should, but I worry it won''t be enough.¡± As she speaks she reaches for a woven lace necklace that sits around her neck. She removes the necklace revealing a thumbnail-sized crystal that glitters a beautiful purple color in the apartment¡¯s light. Instantly I recognize the necklace as one of the protection charms she sells at her shop. ¡°Here.¡± She says handing me the charm. ¡°I¡¯ve been charging this one for a while. Hopefully, it¡¯ll have enough power to protect you from whatever is going to meet you today. I can¡¯t have my little birthday boy dying on me.¡± I take the charm knowing that trying to argue with her will only cause her to forcefully put the necklace on me. And honestly, if it helps alleviate her worry then what¡¯s the harm? ¡°Thank you, but you know it¡¯s not my birthday today.¡± She smiles at my words and ruffles my hair. ¡°Hey stop tha¡­¡± ¡°Semantics, you were meant to be born today you know? You¡¯re just stubborn like Alice and didn¡¯t want to leave the womb. Be safe out there and have a good day Jason. Now go before you¡¯re late for school.¡± I try to prevent a smile from splitting my face. I''m stubborn like my mother? I don''t know why that makes me happy but it does. Probably because it''s another part of me I don''t associate with my father. Nodding, I race out the door and down the hall of our high-rise apartment. If only I had looked back. I would have seen a face of fear and concern unlike any I¡¯ve ever seen on my Aunt¡¯s face. I might have even heard her muttering to herself about letting me go to school in the first place. I might have stayed if I saw that face. However, I didn¡¯t. Leaving the building I jog down the handful of blocks to the bus stop that would take me to my school. As I get there I check the time again confirming that I shouldn¡¯t have missed the bus. Taking shelter in the bus overhang I pull out my phone and plug in some headphones. Music starts blaring in my ears loud enough to block out the hustle and bustle of the city around me. Time marches on as I wait for the bus. Cold gusts of air warn all that pay attention that summer is definitely over and fall is in full effect. Motion across the street catches my attention. Pulling my focus to a shadow rocking back and forth in an alley. Watching the figure it emerges from the shadows revealing a homeless person with disheveled clothes and greasy dark hair. Their skin is a pale shade, which isn¡¯t uncommon for the Pacific Northwest. The figure raises its head revealing a slacked-jawed, patchy bearded older man. However, none of that is what caught my attention. His eyes were dull. The usual twinkle of light that I expect from someone¡¯s eyes lies dormant. The sight of it sent shivers down my spine as if I was staring at the eyes of a dead thing. A loud car horn blares snapping my attention from the strange homeless man to a large black Ford tuck. It pulls up to the curb before me blocking me from seeing the man. The driver¡¯s window rolls down revealing a familiar older man. He flashes me a bright smile. ¡°Morning kiddo. Need a lift?¡± He asks with a slight southern accent. Before I can respond the familiar face of my best friend appears from the passenger seat. Sweet blue eyes curtained by blond hair peer at me with a pleading look. I ¡°Hey, Jay.¡± Abby says. At the request in her eyes, my decision is cemented. ¡°If it¡¯s not too much of a problem Mr. Walker. Morning Abby.¡± ¡°Course not son. Hop in.¡± I hear a click in the car doors. Opening the back seat I climb in. Situating myself I take a glance at the alleyway where I saw the man. Yet now it¡¯s just some dark dank alley again with no strange spine-chilling figures. He was probably just on drugs or something. That''s why his eyes were all dead like. ¡°Ready?¡± Mr. Walker asks. ¡°Yes sir.¡± His truck¡¯s engine revs as he pulls back into traffic. A ding from my phone pulls my attention to it. Checking my phone I find a text message from the classmate I emailed the last essay to. As I open the messaging app another notification dings on my phone, this time from a money sharing app. ¡°Someone¡¯s popular this mornin''.¡± Mr. Walker jokes. ¡°It¡¯s just my aunt.¡± I offer with a slight chuckle. ¡°How is Sabrina doing?¡± Abby asks. ¡°She¡¯s doing well. Stressed about bills but otherwise she¡¯s good.¡± ¡°Awe. I¡¯m sorry to hear that.¡± Abby offers. ¡°It¡¯s life.¡± I shrug. ¡°She still working that witchy shop on Eagle Street?¡± Mr. Walker asks. Checking the finance app I confirm that I was sent the right amount before answering the text message. ¡°Yes sir.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a shame. She¡¯s a brilliant woman. To see her wasting her talents on such a thing. She could probably be some high-end manager at some company or heck, even a CEO somewhere if she gave up that fantasy hobby of hers.¡± ¡°DAD!¡± Abby shrieks. ¡°What?!¡± He asks back confused. ¡°You can¡¯t just say something like that!¡± She reprimands him. ¡°What did I say?¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay Abby.¡± I offer in hopes of ending any argument. I shoot a text off to the classmate who sent me the money, confirming that I received it. Then I delete the messages and put my phone away. Besides, he¡¯s probably right. My aunt graduated valedictorian and graduated from business college with a master¡¯s. She even started working on her PHD before she had to drop out to take care of me. Shaking my head I banish the guilt that tries to rear its ugly head at the thought. Turning my focus back to the conversation I find Abby looking at me with a concerned look. ¡°You sure?¡± I nod in response to her. ¡°Sorry if I offended you or Sabrina in any way. It wasn¡¯t my intention.¡± Mr. Walker says. ¡°It¡¯s okay. No offense taken sir.¡± Silence falls over the car as we hit the highway. Traffic slows us down, but we are still way ahead of where the bus would be at this time. ¡°Did you ever receive the materials shipment you¡¯re waiting on?¡± Abby asks her father breaking the silence. ¡°It¡¯s supposed to be here today. Apparently, there are supply and transport shortages across the entire country. Jake said it has to do with other countries like China going on lockdown and not having anything leave or enter the country.¡± Mr. Walker answers. ¡°Jake¡¯s the one contracting y¡¯all right?¡± Abby asks. ¡°On a technicality. We¡¯re being contracted by the government but he¡¯s the one overseeing this project.¡± ¡°Why are the other countries on lockdown?¡± I ask. ¡°Depends on who you talk to. The news will say it¡¯s due to civil unrest. Jake says it¡¯s due to some disease sweeping the world. A conspiracy fanatic buddy of mine will tell you that they¡¯re gearing up for war with us.¡± His words echo in my mind bringing with it a recent memory of a post I read on some forum. It mentioned something about the government suppressing news about a plague that¡¯s supposedly to wipe humanity out. When I read it I disregarded it as the mad ramblings of some basement-dwelling internet troll. But what if there was some truth in what they were saying? ¡°What do you think dad?¡± ¡°I think there¡¯s no real point in speculation. The fact is they aren¡¯t importing or exporting anything and that¡¯s a problem. The world¡¯s economy relies on sharing and trading resources. If one country suddenly isolates itself, especially one as large as China, it¡¯s going to cause financial strain everywhere.¡± ¡°Will we be fine?¡± Abby asks. ¡°Don¡¯t know honey. I prefer to be optimistic but it never hurts to hedge your bets. This weekend we¡¯ll do some shopping to stock up in case things like toilet paper get scares.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± We fall into silence again as the exit to the school comes into view. However, instead of being able to enter the exit we had to get behind another vehicle stuck in the traffic blocking the exit. ¡°Well damn.¡± Mr. Walker expressed. ¡°You kids might wind up late.¡± ¡°Still faster than taking the bus.¡± I say. ¡°What do you think the hold-up is?¡± Abby asks. ¡°Dunno. Might be an accident.¡± Mr. Walker answers. Long moments pass as we wait for the traffic to move. The blaring of horns becomes a common occurrence as more and more cars start to pile up behind us. Eventually, we even start seeing people getting out of their cars to inspect what the hold-up is. ¡°Alright, kids I¡¯m going to see if I can find out what¡¯s going on. Stay here.¡± ¡°Be safe daddy.¡± ¡°Always am honey.¡± With that, Mr. Walker exits the vehicle leaving Abby and me to wait. ¡°You think everything is okay?¡± Abby asks turning to me. For a moment my mind races back to the fortune my aunt gave me this morning. Death is supposed to play a part in my day. For a second I think of letting Abby know this but the moment I catch her blue eyes shaded with concern I change my mind. ¡°Yeah. Your dad probably hit the nail on its head. It¡¯s probably some accident that¡¯s taking a while to clean up. It probably happened right at the intersection and that¡¯s why they haven¡¯t been able to push traffic along.¡± I answer. The concern in Abby¡¯s eyes fades just a little. ¡°I hope no one got hurt.¡± Nodding in response I let the conversation end. Her response reminded me just how caring Abby is. She never likes seeing people hurt and will be the first to offer someone aid when they¡¯re in need. Moments later Abby¡¯s father returns to the truck. ¡°Looks like a multi-car collision at the intersection. They got the full brigade of emergency responders up there. Even got some folk in suites running around taking reports or something.¡± He states as he gets into the truck. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Folk in suites?¡± Abby clarifies. ¡°Yeah, I think they''re the government or something. Got some blacked-out vehicles with government plates blocking off this ramp to the intersection.¡± ¡°Why would they be at a crash?¡± I ask. Mr. Walker shrugs his large shoulders. ¡°Dunno. When I tried to ask one of the officers there what was going on I got yelled at. The officer said that it was an active investigation site and that we needed to get back so as to not interfere.¡± ¡°So what do we do?¡± Abby asks. Mr. Walker took a look at the highway. Although traffic was piling up on in the right lane the other two still had moving vehicles moving. ¡°We should probably use a different exit.¡± Mr. Walker says as he carefully pulled back into traffic. His engine roared as we sped off from the clogged exit. The next exit was luckily free of any accidents. The car drop-off for the school quickly came into sight causing Mr. Walker to pull over to let us out. ¡°Alright, y¡¯all have a great day.¡± Mr. Walker said. ¡°You too daddy. Love ya.¡± ¡°Love you too honey.¡± ¡°Thank you for the ride, Mr. Walker.¡± ¡°Anytime kiddo.¡± With that, Mr. Walker pulled back into traffic to head off to work. Abby watched as he left before turning back to me. "Let''s go.¡± She said walking towards the school. Nodding, I join her as we walk towards our large school. The building is three stories tall and is recognized as one of the most prestigious schools in America let alone the Pacific Northwest. Originally it was apparently supposed to be a sister school for Cambridge but the project was abandoned due to funding. It was later bought out by a group wanting to start a private school. As we enter the school security checkpoints await us. Handing my backpack to one of the security guards I walk through the metal detector without a problem and retrieve my belongings after they¡¯re searched through. After Abby gets through we continue on our way. The senior lockers are kept on the third floor where they host most of the advanced classes. Only classes that need special accommodations like our science lab classrooms, gyms, and shop classes are held on the first floor, along with our library. Avoiding the ever busy elevators Abby and I use the main staircase to get to the third floor. Once on the third floor, it doesn¡¯t take much longer to get to our section of lockers. ¡°So what¡¯s the plan for your birthday?¡± Abby asks. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t think there are any plans.¡± I answer as I finish grabbing my books from the locker. ¡°Well, that won¡¯t do. You¡¯re going to be nineteen! We need to do something.¡± Abby retorts with mock annoyance. As she talks a presence settles behind me. One that instantly causes the hair on the back of my neck to stand on end. I fight the urge to let my annoyance reveal itself on my face. ¡°Wait a dang second. It¡¯s the Orphan¡¯s birthday?¡± A deep voice from behind me says. Without turning I already know the owner of the voice. A boy by the name of Derrick. Our school''s quarterback, who embodies the stereotype of the high school jock. Blond hair, blue eyes, and a sense of entitlement so strong it borders being dumb. ¡°And you¡¯re turning nineteen! What, were you held back or something? Are you so dumb that you had to repeat a grade?¡± He asks, laughing like he just told a great joke. His gang of football players and cheerleaders laugh with him. At his taunt, I feel a heat build in my chest. A desire to wipe the snarky grin off Derrick¡¯s face. To redirect the pain he intended to cause me back onto him. However, I don¡¯t act on the heat. I push it down into the depths of my stomach. Banishing it before it can cause any problems. Shrugging my backpack on, I continue walking to class. Ignoring the jock still laughing at me with his goons. ¡°What? Too stupid to realize I¡¯m talking to you? Makes one wonder how you got into this school. You know I overheard my father mentioning that he heard a rumor that your aunt is exchanging favors with the principal of the school for your tuition.¡± Derrick says, his voice dropping at the word favor. The heat in my stomach flares out of control. It blazes into an inferno of flames consuming me. It whispers to me to turn around and punch Derrick. To make him hurt for insinuating such a thing. But I don¡¯t do that. Instead, I take a deep breath and continue walking away. My stomach churning as I force the flames into a bottle. ¡°What the fuck is wrong with you Derrick?¡± Abby demands. ¡°You do realize that Jay''s grades are leagues above you right? If it¡¯s anyone''s family needing to exchange favors for tuition wouldn¡¯t it be yours?¡± ¡°Little Bitch.¡± Derrick growls. Turning I snatch Abby¡¯s hand and pull her with me. Forcing us further away from the loud-mouthed dick. ¡°That¡¯s right. Follow your cowardly loser boyfriend.¡± Derrick hollers after us. I feel Abby tense in my grasp and turn to respond to Derrick. I pull on her arm a little harder stopping her from responding. ¡°Jay, what the hell?¡± Abby asks. ¡°Leave it.¡± I tell her. ¡°Why? He shouldn¡¯t get away with saying shit like that.¡± She¡¯s right. But the teachers won¡¯t do anything about it. And if it¡¯s left up to me I would take it too far. But I can¡¯t tell her that. And I don¡¯t want to see her getting hurt by trying to protect me or my aunt. ¡°It just feeds into his ego. He wants to get under our skin. Walking away robs him of that satisfaction.¡± ¡°Still! We should tell a teacher or something.¡± ¡°And tell them what? That our star quarterback is bullying a nerd? It¡¯s a tale as old as time. It¡¯s not worth it.¡± ¡°Then what are we supposed to do?¡± ¡°Swallow the rage and live our best lives regardless?¡± I offer. It¡¯s the mature thing to do, right? Not the cowardly. If we engaged and fought back then we are just being as childish. Or at least that¡¯s what all the adults say. ¡°That¡¯s bullshit Jason and you know it.¡± Abby pulls her hand free stopping in the hallway. Her tone alone lets me know that she¡¯s still angry, still wanting to fight back against the perceived injustice. But she also dropped the nickname she gave me. She only does that when she''s really annoyed with me. ¡°It is what it is.¡± ¡°It¡¯s cowardly. If you want things to change you have to act Jason. If you want him to stop you have to make him stop.¡± I am a coward. ¡°He¡¯ll lose interest when he realizes he doesn¡¯t get the attention he wants from me.¡± Or at least that¡¯s what the psychology books say. ¡°Whatever.¡± Abby says storming off. Sighing I adjust my backpack and continue towards my first class. My stomach still churns with emotions I can¡¯t pinpoint or force out of my perception. Ignoring it I sit at my desk and get ready for the day. The morning flashes by in a blur. AP US History is followed by a PE class. Then I finish my morning with AP Chemistry before lunch. I barely paid attention to the classes as the feeling in my stomach only grew. Is Abby upset with me? Or was she just mad at the situation? Should I apologize to her at lunch? My eyes find the digital clock attached to the classroom''s intercom. Only a handful of minutes before it sounds off. Slyly checking my phone I find no notifications from Abby. However, I do find that I have a handful of unread messages from Sabrina. Curiosity consumes me as Sabrina rarely texts me while I¡¯m at school. Opening the messages I start reading them. ¡°Everything¡¯s fine but I was attacked.¡± I feel my blood pressure rise as I imagine a hundred different scenarios where Sabrina was hurt. ¡°Some crazy guy tried to bite me or something.¡± Fuck fuck fuck. My hands shake, making reading the next message harder. ¡°But your aunt is a total badass. I kick the fucker in the balls and was able to lock myself in the shop before he got to me.¡± A smiley emoji accents the last message. At the site of it, part of me realizes that she is really okay. She wouldn¡¯t use an emoji if the situation was bad. Relief floods through me lifting a weight off my shoulders that I didn¡¯t realize fell on me. Reading on I have to shake my head at my aunt. Why didn¡¯t she send everything in a single message or start off with something other than ¡®Everything¡¯s fine but I was attacked¡¯? ¡°The police collected the dick and took my report. I wanted to let you know before the news could get to you some other way.¡± The bell rings releasing us for lunch. Collecting my stuff I join the students in our march through the halls to where ever we chose to spend our lunch break. As I do I call my aunt. ¡°Hey. Hey. How¡¯s my studious little academic doing?¡± She asks in a chipper voice. ¡°How am I doing!? How are you doing? Are you okay?¡± ¡°I thought I texted that I was fine.¡± ¡°You¡¯re kidding right?¡± ¡°No?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t start a story like that!¡± ¡°But everything is fine.¡± Silence follows her as I refuse to respond to that. Hoping that my annoyance with such a claim is felt over the phone. ¡°Sorry, but how else am I supposed to start?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I sigh. ¡°Not by texting probably. Maybe even with a phone call.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to get in the way of your education.¡± She says with a laugh. Sighing I laugh as well. ¡°So you¡¯re okay?¡± I ask. ¡°Absolutely. I knew something bad was going to happen today so I was on the lookout for anything strange.¡± Sabrina falls into a better retelling of what happened. As she talks I find my usual spot where I spend my lunch. ¡°After the police left I sent you the messages and opened the shop. Kinda pissed that the whole morning was spent dealing with this shit though.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just glad that you¡¯re okay.¡± ¡°You kidding? I¡¯m the greatest Witch of the Pacific Northwest. Ain¡¯t no way some crazy hobo is going to get the better of me.¡± We both laugh. As we do my brain circles back around to something she said earlier in the conversation. ¡°Wait a second I thought the ill fortune reading you had today was for me?¡± ¡°No, it was for both of us. It honestly still has me quite worried.¡± She says. ¡°How has your morning been?¡± My mind races back to the encounter I had with Derrick. ¡°Abby¡¯s dad gave me a ride to school. Otherwise, it¡¯s been an average day.¡± For a moment Sabrina says nothing. ¡°Okay. But if something does happen don¡¯t hesitate to call me.¡± ¡°Will do.¡± ¡°Okay, I gotta get back to work. I love you. Talk to you later.¡± ¡°Love you too.¡± The call ends leaving me alone in the hallway. Taking a look at the time I find that just a little over half of our lunch break has passed. By now Abby typically has gotten her lunch and has joined me. By now I would usually be eating whatever bits of her lunch that she didn¡¯t want to eat. I guess she¡¯s still mad at me. Sighing I take out my headphones and play some music as I work on some schoolwork. A bell signals the end of our lunch break and I head off to my next class. Once in class, I find myself sitting behind Abby. Part of me wants to tap her on her shoulder and ask her if she is mad at me. However, the smarter side of me stops myself from doing so. It doesn¡¯t matter what she¡¯s upset about. She isn¡¯t interacting with me and walked away meaning that she wants space from me. I should respect her wants and let her have the space. As Mrs. Hernandez drowns on about the assigned reading I find my eyelids growing heavy. Her voice has a smooth cadence and flow to it. It always makes me a little sleepy. However, with a night of no sleep, I¡¯m especially susceptible to it. A little nap wouldn¡¯t hurt. Right? A sea of grey swirls around me in a void of nothingness. The boundaries I recognize as myself and the world beyond me blur as the mist invades me. Voices whisper in the swirls of grey. Nearly inaudible to me, yet a part of me knows what they are and who they belong to. Suppressed memories threaten to break forth from the swirls of grey around me. Memories of a night filled with violence, tears, and sirens. I push back against the grey mist. Refusing to let it bring those memories to the surface. As I do so the boundary between me and the mist becomes more solid, more real. Beyond the vague voices from memories of years past, a new voice rises to my attention. A demanding voice spears through the swirls of grey mist with the authority belonging to someone far too used to dealing with students. ¡°Jayson! I don¡¯t sleep on your time so why should you sleep on mine?¡± Mrs. Hernandez''s voice invades my mind. Ripping me from the world of grey mist and suppressed memories. My eyes fly open to find a furious Mrs. Hernandez standing tall above me. Her dark eyes peer past her red-horned glasses and down her nose to scrutinize me. ¡°I get it¡¯s hard these days for you kids with all your phones and video games consuming all of your time. But staying up all night wasting your time with them is no excuse to be napping in my class, Jayson.¡± Mrs. Hernandez scolds me. Now, I think it¡¯s time to see just how much you have managed to learn through osmosis.¡± Mrs. Hernandez leaves my desk and makes her way to her desk. Once there she begins to rifle through a filing cabinet behind her desk. My cheeks burn with embarrassment as I try to ignore the poorly hidden amusement of my classmates. ¡°Now you can all thank Mr. Jason for this Pop quiz.¡± She hands a stack of pages to the person at the front of each row of desks. With the expectation being that they will take a page and pass the rest to the person behind them. Groans escape the mouths of almost every student in the class as we receive the quiz. ¡°Thanks, orphan boy.¡± Derrick says from the seat to my left. His words wiggle their way through my mind. They try to ignite the flames of rage in me. Ignoring him as best as I can I force the words out of my mind. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Abby asks. Abby¡¯s dazzling blue eyes lock onto mine. Concern floods her gaze causing a twinge of guilt in me. A stack of quizzes appears on my desk. ¡°Yeah, sorry about this morning.¡± Something flickers through the worry. ¡°Not what I meant. You look exhausted." Taking a copy of the quiz for myself I pass the rest to the student behind me. ¡°Oh.¡± Is it that noticeable? ¡°Yeah, sorry, I didn¡¯t get much sleep last night.¡± ¡°Were you up all night doing other kids'' homework?¡± Sighing I nod. I know she doesn¡¯t approve of me doing them. But how can I say no to a little over a grand every week? She sighs and turns around in her seat. ¡°You need to take better care of yourself.¡± ¡°I will.¡± I say. ¡°Alright, these shouldn¡¯t take more than ten minutes. The time starts now.¡± Mrs. Hernandez says setting an old school alarm clock as she does so. With that, the sound of pens hitting paper fills the room as we begin the quiz. Questions about situations from the assigned reading fill the first five questions. All multiple choice and easy to answer, if you read the assigned reading. As the quiz continues the occasional cough escapes some of the students. Their coughing reminds me of the conversation we had in Mr. Walker''s truck. Specifically the idea that some disease is causing countries to shut their boarders. If it''s true then should I be worried about so many people coughing? The guy Mr. Walker heard that from was probably just misinformed or something. The timer makes a ding sound signaling that we only have five more minutes in the quiz. Turning my focus back to the test I get to work on the last five questions, which are in short-answer form. They ask for the thematic significance of scenes or iconography brought up in the reading. A little more tricky than the multiple choice but still easy enough to answer with time to spare. As I finish the last question my eyes gaze up at the timer sitting on Mrs. Hernandez¡¯s desk. With two minutes until it rings, I¡¯m left with time to kill. Part of me knows I should go over the answers I provided for the quiz, but I hate doing that. Instead, I let my eyes fall on the teacher grading assignments at her desk. An elderly teacher with only a handful of years before retirement. Honestly, despite her previous scolding, she isn¡¯t a bad teacher. Her voice can get a bit monotonous sometimes, lulling me to sleep. But if you respect her and do the assignments you typically have nothing to worry about. My eyes drift from her to the window behind her desk. A blackout curtain blocks my view from the outside. With the school being on a hill and the classroom being on the third story the window offers a decent view of the city. Because of that Mrs. Hernandez typically keeps the curtains drawn closed, in fear of the cityscape being a distraction to us students. From there my eyes fall to a partially built bookcase next to the window. Mrs. Hernandez refused the help of the maintenance staff stating that she is still spry enough to put together her own furniture. She always took a weird sense of pride in putting together all the furniture in the room. From the desk, she sits at to the bookcases lining the walls and even the standing closets. All pieced together by her now old and shaky hands. The timer buzzes signaling the end of the quiz. The pages are quickly passed to the front of the class and collected by Mrs. Hernandez. After collecting them Mrs. Hernandez shuffles the quizzes and passes them back out to us. As the quizzes get passed back, each of us are left with someone else¡¯s quiz. I take out a red pen and ready myself to grade the quiz before me. ¡°Who wants to read the first questions?¡± Mrs. Hernandez asks. A girl in the front of the glass with large round glasses and messy brown hair raises her hand. ¡°Alright, Lilly please read the first questions.¡± ¡°How many men does Grendel kill on his first night at Herot?¡± ¡°And who has the ans¡­r?¡± Mrs. Hernandez begins to ask but before she can get the question out she is racked with a coughing fit. As she coughs Mrs. Hernandez makes her way to her desk. There she rips some tissues from the box on her desk, using the tissues to cover her mouth as she coughs. After a few moments, her coughing fit subsides leaving Mrs. Hernandez panting. She removes the wad of tissues from her mouth, a line of viscus fluid strings from it to her lips. As I watch the string of saliva split I feel my stomach roil in revulsion and vomit threatens to ruin the quiz before me. From the sounds of the students around me, I¡¯m not the only one revulsed by the sight. Yet none of them say a word about it. If anything someone coughs in solidarity with the teacher. ¡°Sorry class. I must be catching something.¡± She says. She maneuvers to the back of her desk and opens a drawer. A moment later she dons a mask and returns to where she was before the coughing fit. ¡°Where was I?¡± She asks. ¡°You were asking us what the answer to the first question is. It¡¯s thirty.¡± Lilly says. ¡°That¡¯s correct. Who wants to read the next question?¡± Another student raises their hand and so the pattern continues as we go through the quiz. As we proceed I¡¯m forced to mark a few questions as wrong on the test before me. Part of me feels guilty for being the one to mark the page in red, but really it was an easy set of reading. The student should have been able to get these questions right. As time goes on I feel something grow in my mind. A sort of buzzing feeling that makes my brain feel like it¡¯s being mildly electrocuted. However, it¡¯s not painful more like someone placed TV static where my thoughts should be. As I ruminate on this strange sensation I feel something else begin to grow. The floor beneath me begins to vibrate as if someone is driving a large and heavy construction truck by this side of the school. But instead of leaving as quickly as it came it only grows. Quickly it evolves into a rumble that then rises to a world-ending shake. ¡°Get under your desks!¡± Mrs. Hernandez yells over the commotion of the earthquake. I quickly slide from my seat and find myself hunched underneath the desk. My eyes find Abby under her desk. She turns to me and our eyes meet. Fear floods the blue of her eyes as the shaking only intensifies. Someone screams as the ceiling begins to fall in. The clock on the wall is thrown from its hook. A picture of Mrs. Hernandez getting her college degree is sent flying and crashing into the ground. A sound louder than anything I¡¯ve ever heard blankets my consciousness. Pushing everything else out. It¡¯s followed by a light so bright that in the moment it hit my eyes my brain explodes with pain. Even closing my eyes doesn¡¯t let me escape the blinding light. Then the world becomes fire. Heat unlike any I¡¯ve ever felt washes over me in waves. Every single atom of my body is attacked by this heat. Burning me to my very core. Consuming my being. Then the heat fades, taking with it the blinding light. Slowly I open my eyes, fully expecting to be blind or worse, in an otherworldly realm described in religious texts. My eyes flutter open, blinking floating specks of light from my vision. Except the floating lights don¡¯t dissipate. If anything they grow more numerous and congregate together to form a floating blue box with words resting in it. Alt - 1 | Ch - 2 The call ended and Sabrina was left alone in her shop once again. A sigh escapes her as she pockets the rectangular device. Guilt welled up in her from lying to her sweet nephew. She hated to do it but knew that he wouldn''t handle the truth very well. The attack was far worst then she made it out to seem. There was something wrong about the crazed homeless man. Sabrina knew this for a fact as her wards did very little to protect her. Looking around her shop she resisted the urge to cry. Her meticulously organized shelfs now lie in a chaotic mess that caused something in the back of Sabrina''s mind to itch. She hated messes and her shop was exactly that. Her beautiful display of colorful crystal charms now lie scattered across her floor. She could even tell some of them had been broken in the attack. But right now she couldn''t worry about that. No Sabrina had more pressing matters to attend to. Even though leaving the mess as it was physically hurt her. No she had to figure out why her wards did nothing to stop the crazed homeless man. The wards around her apartment and the shop were some of the best modern day witchcraft could produce. Sabrina and three other witches worked together for nearly a decade to develop these wards. To top that off Sabrina added her own modifications. Witchcraft being the completive field that it is, where secrets are horded more closely then the gold that dragons of fantasy favor, it was important to ensure her place of study could not be disturb. So Sabrina had added some extra protections that would prevent her collaborators from easily breaking the words. The wards were even able to prevent an agitated Spector from entering her shop. The Spector had possessed some unlucky homeless person and tried to enter the shop under the guise of being a mortal. The Spector wanted to get revenge on Sabrina for banishing it back to the realm of the dead seven years prior. Yet the moment it tried stepping foot into the shop the wards attacked the Spector, tearing it''s spirits to shreds. Yet despite the power and capabilities her wards held it didn''t stop the homeless man from following her in and attacking her. One of the first wards any witch learns is to protect against Mortals with ill intent directed at the witch. The wards should have prevent the homeless man entry and sent a warning to a jade ring on Sabrina''s left hand. But none of this happened. No the homeless man stumbled in as if there were no wards to speak of. With the police already gone and a mess to clean up Sabrina decided to not open the shop up today. She called the handful of customers that were to pick up orders and explained to them that she is temporarily closed, but that she will open back up the following day. With that done she turned her attention back to the mess left after the attack. She knew she should clean it up but had more pressing things to check on. Her shop was split into four sections, yet the public only knew of three. The store front was where the customers could come in and place their orders or pursue her wares. Then she had a storage area that she kept larger merchandise or the overflow that wouldn''t fit on her shelves. The final public part of her shop was the office. The office had a desk with a computer and a safe under the desk. Or at least that''s what anyone other then Sabrina would see. A crafty deception ward covered a door leading to an underground section of the shop. This prevented anyone other then the witch who made the ward from recognizing the door was there. This hidden door led to Sabrina''s workshop where she could safely research witchcraft and make the items she sold. It just so happened that this is where the ward matrixes were also held down here. Sabrina made her way down to her workshop and began studying the ward matrixes lining the wall. From her observations nothing appeared wrong with them. Closing her eyes she reached for the familiar tear of magic residing in all living beings. While in college she joined an Occult study club out of curiosity and met Kelly. Kelly introduced Sabrina to witchcraft and taught her how to utilize this small amount of power. Grasping ahold of the magic, Sabrina focused her intent on sending the flow of magic through the wards. The magic flowed through the wards, folding and twisting itself just like Sabrina designed them to do. From everything she could tell the wards were still working. They were all still charged enough to be fully functional. None of them had any noticeable impairments in their physical weaving. Stumped by the lack of answers she returned to her office and logged into her computer. She navigates to her security system software and found the footage from the attack. Watching the attack she was left stumped as to how the man was able to get into her shop without tripping her wards. With the cameras not providing any more information to her Sabrina turned back to her mystical means. Returning to her workshop she scanned the bookshelf filled with tomes and spell books. Finding the book she was looking for she pulls it off the shelf and rifles through the pages until she finds what she was looking for. A spell that let one pursue their recent memories as if they were reliving them. The spell started with a handful of pages warning the witch of the dangers associated with the spell. The list ranged from being stuck in a comma where they experienced the memory over and over again until the witch''s body dies to causing permeant brain damage. Sabrina knew that with any spell she ran the risk of permeant bodily damage. Harnessing magic means harnessing the energy of the soul. So when magic goes awry it can cause backlash on the soul. This in turns causes physical damage. There are many theories on why this happens but Sabrina''s personal belief is that a person''s should and physical being are connected. Through this connect damage to one can transcend to damage to the other. This belief was corroborated by Witches of a bygone era discovering that they can marginally increase their magic by exercising regularly and eating healthy meals. This is why Sabrina cooks almost every meal for Jason. She wants to ensure the health of his soul by ensuring the health of his body. If only she could convince him to get back into exercising. Sabrina read through the spell and started mentally selecting which charms she''ll need. As humans have very little magic to work with, even with a healthy body, Witches had to find creative work arounds to protect themselves while also casting spells. Sabrina was informed that during the 16th Century witches had discovered how to imbue material with their magic. Since the magic of the soul recovered with time they were able to create batteries of sorts for their spells. Then around the time of the revolutionary war it was discovered that these magic batteries could have spells woven into them. Thus charms were invented and became a prevalent tool in any witch''s arsenal. They allowed Witches to activate multiple spells at one time. However, these charms were still pretty weak. It would take months for a single charm to be charged enough to be of any use to the Witch. Magic was lost in the process of charging the Charms. Yet this wasn''t a problem for Sabrina. While studying under Kelly the two of them discovered a means of folding magic upon itself. This could only be done with spells that required a physical weave for the magic to travel along, such as wards and charms. This allowed them to create and charge charms more quickly. A process that would take the average witch four months was shortened down to weeks. Yet this wasn''t a miracle fix for a Witch''s low Magic supply. While weaving the spell the Witch had to be excoriatingly exact with the weave. So exact then even being off by a millimeter could cause the whole weave to explode as the magic ran through it. It took immense concentration while weaving for one to successfully fold the magic in upon itself. Sabrina herself was only successful one out of five attempts, even after twenty or so years of experience. She could almost always tell when a weave would be successful as she would enter a state that she refers to as being Inspired. While focusing on a weave she would sometimes become so enraptured by the process it felt like her body would move on it''s own. As if it knew exactly what to do and acted accordingly. Collecting the charms she knew she would need Sabrina set to work on preparing the spell. On paper it''s a simple enough spell. Speak a few words, focus on the memory you want to revisit and direct your magic to bring you there. But that''s like saying programming is as simple as telling a computer what to do. Sabrina emptied her mind of any thought. A difficult task for nearly any human but with years of practice Sabrina entered this state as easily as if she was breathing. One here she could feel her Magic existing within her. Reading from the book a language long since forgotten to modern and historic man resonates through the room. A language so ancient it no longer has a name. A language believed to exist before humans did. As she spoke the Magic within her responded. It was directed to pluck the desired memories from Sabrina''s mind. With the memory in hand, the spell continued, directing the magic to send Sabrina''s conscious self back to the moment she saw the homeless man lying in an alley way. Sabrina found herself back on the sidewalk she always took to get to her shop. As she passed an Alley she caught motion out of the corner of her eye. Her instincts warned her that something wasn''t right. Turning she found what she assume to be a homeless man in the midst of a seizure. "FUCK!" She raced over to the figure to try and help. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. What are you suppose to do when you find someone having a seizure? Sabrina''s first thought was to stuff something in the man''s mouth to prevent him from biting his tongue off. Before she could retrieve her wallet she remember an article saying that you''re not suppose to do. So what was she suppose to do? Her hand changed trajectory and instead fished her phone out of her pocket. Dialling the emergency services she rested her free hand on the guys temple. The smell alone would be enough to caution her from getting too close to him. It was rancid and if Sabrina didn''t know any better he reeked of death. But all of those thoughts were quickly washes away as panic flooded her. The man''s eyes snapped open revealing a set of dull lifeless orbs. In one motion he launched himself at her, his mouth opening to reveal yellow dirty teeth. "FUCK!" She kicked back trying to get away from the crazy man. She was just trying to help. So what the fuck is wrong with this shit bag? Back peddling as quickly as she could she rummaged through her purse until her hand grasped a cylindrical device. Triumph welling in her she yanks the device out of her purse and points it to the crazy shitty homeless man crawling after her. A jet of red tinted liquid sailed from the mace in her hand, directed right at the man''s face. Sabrina didn''t let off the trigger and continued dosing the homeless man with the burning fluid. Yet he didn''t react. Instead the crazy homeless man pressed on, through the spray of burning, acidic bear spear. The man clasped onto Sabrina, sending a shiver down her spine. Heat flashed across her chest as a purple haze formed between the man''s hands and her. The haze expanded with a pop throwing the man off of her. "What the fuck?" Sabrina asked. Her protection charm had a high threshold to activate. It would take enough force to deal damage to make it activate. So what the hell was the guy on to make his grip strength enough to trigger it? Back peddling out of the alleyway she split part of her focus to sense the power left in her defense charm. It was strong enough to catch any attack that would be non-lethal. Well fuck that drugged bastard. Reducing her charm to be nearly useless. At full power she''s bullet proof for any civilian grade fire arm. Yet now here she is with some crazed, drugged homeless man chasing her and no longer having her full protection. Part of her felt naked without the full protection, luckily she kept a stash of these fully charged charms in her workshop. She had quickly come to the front door of her shop. Her shaking hands fumbled with the keys. Sparing a single glance she found the homeless man booking it down the street, only moments away from pouncing on her again. Sabrina instinctively reached for her pool of power. As she mentally held the power, ready for any spell she may try, it brought a sense of calm to her. Her hands stopped shaking and her focus sharpened beyond anything she could usually muster. The door unlocked and she rushed into her shop. A sense of relief flooded her as she knew her wards would now protect her from any danger. Mundane or mythical. Turning she watched for the man to run into the ward and be rebounded back to the street, unconscious. But that''s not what happened. The wards stayed inactive as the Homeless man barrel into the shop. He attacked Sabrina, causing her Charm to expend more of it''s energy to protect her from a bite. The man was sent reeling back from the Charm. He crashed into a display of crystals, sending the colorful rocks scattering across the floor. Sabrina was sent stumbling back as well but managed to recover herself quickly. Sabrina searched her shop, looking for anything that could assist her. She kept her dangerous charms in her workshop, out of the way of handsy customers. Yet she was unwilling to run deeper into her shop in fear of the homeless man chasing her and bringing what ever powerful magic into her workshop. Yet as she watched him recover she couldn''t sense any magic. All magic has a presence to it. Even a possession where the only magic was the tether binding the foreign soul to the body could be sense by any Witch worth the title. So why was this thing able to blow past her wards without a peep from her wards. Not even her alerting ward that simply made a chime when someone walked into her shop activated. So why didn''t they? Present Sabrina struggled with this question as she watched her past self reluctantly activated a devious charm wrapped around her wrist. The charm was initially designed by a European witch Sabrina had the pleasure of working with seven years prior. It appeared to be a simple threaded bracelet but it was actually the hair of the Witch charmed to bind a person. The bracelet was a one time use item and took several months to years to recreate. It took time to collect enough hair to remake it along with each strand needing to be charged and charmed. But with her protection charm on it''s last legs she needed to do something quickly. The binding charm warmed as she prepared it''s activation. Another reason she was hesitant to use this charm was that she needed to get close to the target of the charm. The homeless man rose from the ground. His dead lifeless eyes fixated on Sabrina. She couldn''t sense any emotions from him, but could tell there was a hunger to his existence. Not an emotion but a drive. Sabrina barely understood the distinction but knew that this creature was incapable of emotions. So this hunger coming off of it in waves could not be an emotion, not in the way humans experience them. Present Sabrina latched onto this moment. If it''s not capable of human emotions then what is it? Her wards focused on many things, but the trigger for most of them was the presence of a particular emotions. Mostly those that reflect an intent to do harm. So if this being is not capable of hosting such emotions then that could explain why it didn''t trigger most of her protection wards. But it doesn''t answer why it didn''t trigger the rest. Placing a pin in that train of thought present Sabrina focused back on the memory playing out. She had waited for the thing to attack her again. It lunged and she dodged to the side. It crashed through another display, sending her inventory to litter her shop''s floor. As the thing recovered she pounced on it. Her charm burned as it was activated. Like a serpent it came to life, slithering around her wrist, unbinding itself to form a long thin rope. It stretched to be roughly three feet long as it slithered off of Sabrina and onto the wrist of the creature. Sabrina struggled to grasp the thing''s free hand. It was stronger then Sabrina thought it should be. It jerked and bucked like some wild animal but Sabrina was nothing if not persistent. She strong armed the things arm until the serpent like charm could wrap around the free arm as well. The dark dark lit up with an orange glow as it wound back on itself, binding the creatures two hands together. As the glow faded Sabrina slowly let go of the homeless man. She breathed heavily from the exertion of the scuffle but she was the victor. In the moment Sabrina was too caught up in the moment to realize, but present Sabrina was paying more attention. She creature wasn''t human. It couldn''t be. When a Witch holds their magic, as if readying it for a spell, they are granted heightened sense. This includes being able to feel the emotions of others and the flow of magic in general. It also granted a small boost to a Witches normal sense, light sight or smell. So it was with this sense that present Sabrina was able to tell that the creature had no heart beat, that it''s skin was cold to the touch, that this thing harbored no magical energies. Sabrina had come across her fair share of puppeterred corpses. It was a favored use of magic by Necromancers. Yet even with those corpses their physical vessels were fueled by the magic of another. It was powerful spells that could be sensed a mile away to any Witch paying enough attention. Yet this thing possed no magic to be sensed, not even the simple energy of a soul, that all living things hold could be felt. So what does that mean? This creature was too complex of a construct to be a golem or familiar, even then there would be magic to sense. No Sabrina needed to accept the fact that this thing had no soul. That would explain why none of her wards had triggered, they aren''t aware of this thing''s existence. So how is it moving? How is it still struggling against her binding charm? Its teeth clack open and closed as it still tries to bite her. The memory faded as Sabrina contacted the police. She needed the police report if any of her merchandise was damaged and she had to contact insurance. Sabrina awoke in her workshop. Exhaustion plagued her body as the spark of energy in her dimmed to a near non-existent level. She calmed her breath and floped back on the couch left in here workshop. She wracked her brain for a better answer then what she had. Searched all the knowledge readily available to her for a solution that was less outlandish. Yet nothing came to mind. Sabrina could only reckon the confusion state of that creature to be Zombie. A human corpse without a soul being pupeterred by some mundane means beyond her understanding. "Fuck." She exclaimed. Jason No, now Jason is stuck at the damned High School packed to the brim with students and staff just like Sardines. She needed to get him out of there. If the zombie apocalypse is really happening then she can''t leave him to his own devices. He''d probably do something dumb like decide that he needed to get to her to protect her. If only Jason believed her when she spoke of magic. He would know that out of everyone in the whole city she alone was probably the most prepared to deal with the zombies. But he didn''t believe. She knew that his disbelief isn''t his fault. He hasn''t actually seen any of her charms in action. She could have proven magic to be real a hundred times over if he needed that much evidence. But he was still a boy. He may be on the cusp of manhood, but he was still her little boy. She wanted to bring him into this world of magic, to study it with him and experience its wonders together. But she wanted him to experience what little of his childhood he could. Sabrina loaded a satchel made out of genuine lamb leather, charmed to keep other charms in pristine condition, with different charms she''d made. Most of the charms were defensive but a handful were designed with offensive in mind. Any one of them is more than capable of killing a person. More than one was even designed to incapacitate a Grand Demon, long enough for Sabrina to start the exorcising ritual. Loaded up with the charms and a sense of urgency spring her on Sabrina left her workshop and closed her shop without cleaning the mess. She ran down the street back to her Apartment. She needed to pack enough supplies so that they can get out of the city. Sabrina knew one of her Witch acquaintances maintained a cabin up on Mt Rainer. That would probably be a good place to ride the apocalypse out. It should even be secluded enough that she can start training Jason in the ways of Witchcraft. Plans formed in her mind as she ran down the street. She keep hold of her Magic to keep better tabs of her surroundings. Every person she passed could be another one of those zombies. She was tired but knew this was no time to be resting. This was the time to act for if they don''t act now they may not have the time to act later. Sabrina was nearing the apartment. She could see the highrise building jutting above those near it. She was mentally organizing her bag and pondering what items to pack for Jason. Then the world shook. She was thrown to the ground as a wave of magic ran over her. Her senses screamed as they were overloaded with information. Her skin felt burnt. Her eyes were blinded by a light. Her ears rang from a defining explosion. The pain fades and Sabrina is able to collect herself. As she rises and open her eyes a set of floating words greet her but they are quickly forgotten as something march larger steals her focus. A tree larger than any mountain stretches above the horizon. Its branches stretch across the sky, slightly disappearing in the atmosphere. It was larger than anything had any right to be. While gazing at it Sabrina came to a realization, that the world she knew was gone. It was taken and replaced by one brimming with magic and possibilities. With that magic and possibilities, Sabrina knew dangers would be around every corner. Fuck. She knew today was going to be a shitty day. If only she could have seen the future for what it really was. She needed to get to Jason. Then her world was turned off. Her soul was stripped from her body and placed into a world made just for her by powers beyond her understanding. A world where she can experience the tutorial for the System. Alt - 1 | Ch - 3 Blue words dance in the air before me, forming a box of text. Similar to what I''ve seen in video games before. It takes me a moment but as I focus on the words they solidify enough for me to read them. [Your split worlds have become whole once more. Ygrix has taken root once again. Prepare yourselves, Mortals] [Please wait while the CyxTem finishes initializing] [CyxTem has finished initializing] [Prepare yourself Mortal. Your tutorial is about to begin] The moment I finish reading the floating text boxes before me I feel a shift in the world. A sense of vertigo washes over me, stealing my sense of stability. My brain alights with the static buz as my thoughts fade to silence. In the silence, among the static and waves of vertigo, I lose myself and am consumed by oblivion. I don''t know how long I was like that. However, my eyes snap open as if I was merely asleep. Before me, I don''t find the classroom I expected or the floating boxes. Instead, I find a rocky ceiling stretching before me. Sitting up I quickly realize that I''m no longer in the classroom but in some kind of cave. Enough light bounces around that I don''t struggle to make out my surrounds. I even feel a slight wind washing through the cave, making me think that I might be near the entrance. Unsure what to do I start walking towards what I suspect to be the mouth of the cave. How did I manage to get here? What was with that earthquake and that stange feeling of static? Questions race through my mind as my surrounding get brighter and brighter. Eventually I can make out the rustling of leaves. Turning a corner the entrance to the cave makes itself well known. As I gaze upon it a blue box appears before me. As if it had always been there, simply unseen or noticed and I am just now aware of it''s presence. [Tutorial Quest: Open your Status] [CyxTem has granted every Mortal with the ability to check their Status. To do this one must enter the CyxTem Command "STATUS"] [Reward: Information] As I finish reading the boxes I have expect them to vanish but they don''t. Instead they shrink to take far less of my vision, while also moving to the top left corner. Wathcing it do this I can''t shake the feeling that I''m playing some video game. Or better yet, dreaming that I''m playing a video game that''s in real life. I mean that has to be what all of this is. People don''t teleport after passing out into random cave. And people are granted quests by some bizzar floating boxes. No I''m experiencing an extremely detailed dream. I was sleep deprived and probably hit my head or something. Yeah that has to be it. Something in the ceiling of the classroom fell down and hit my head knocking me out and now my brain is experiencing a crazy dream due to all of the stress chemicals that build up from not sleeping. Aren''t dreams suppose to stop when you become aware that you''re in a dream? Why hasn''t this one stopped? Shouldn''t I be waking up? Closing my eyes I wait hoping that I''ll wake up quickly. However as the minutes pass I grow more and more disappointed. Instead of opening my to find the myself back in the classroom I find myself in the cave, facing the entrance. Sighing, I slap myself. Pain explodes across my cheek as heat simmers beneath my skin. My palm stings as my last gambit to wake up fails. It always works in the movies and book. Sitting down I suppress the rising panic that threatens to send me spiraling. No, panicking will only lead me to doing something dumb and possibly getting myself hurt or worse. No, what I need to do is figure out what''s going on, as I''m quickly loosing hope that this is just a stressed induced lucid dream. My mind races through the moments leading up to my awakening in the cave. The was an Earthquke that brought a weird buzzing feeling in my head. Then there were the floating boxes talking about worlds being joined back together and mortals. Then the warning of the tutorial and the tutorial quest. I can''t shake the game like vibes that my situation reminds me off. I mean the floating boxes even call this a tutorial. If I take that at face value it means that if I finish the tutorial quest I''ll either be taken to the starting point of the game, which I hope is back to the classroom, or to the beginning area of the game, which I hope isn''t the woods outside of this cave. Sighing I focus back on the still floating blue box in the corner of my vision. In it I focus on the segment instructing me to enter the CyxTem Command "Status". But how do I enter it? "Status" I command. Nothing happens. "Dammit." If this was a game then it would probably be some button I push. How do I push this game''s buttons? Maybe I do neet to hit some kind of button. Looking around I see nothing button like, but my vision does fall to the blue box in the corner of my vision. My hands swipe at the floating box but nothing happens. Instead it''s as if the box is superimposed on my vision, not something existing in the world itself. Damn it. What do I have to do? Why is the quest message so vague on how to open my status page. Aren''t tutorials suppose to be the hand holding phase of the game? Where everything is spelled out so that the players can learn the rules? I feel the heat of my annoyance start to warm my chest. Why isn''t this better explained to me? What does it want from me. I want to open my status page. I want to complete this quest and get out of here. The heat build in me as I fail to suppress it. "OPEN MY DAMN STATUS!" I yell, venting the heat in my chest. [Name: Jason Everett] [Status: Mortal] [Aetherium: 0] [Vitality: 1] [Strength: 1] [Endurance: 1] [Agility: 1] [Dexterity: 1] [Intelligence: 1] [Wisdom: 1] A new box appears before me. Reading through I quickly realize this but be the status page. As I finish reading through it vanishes and in it''s place a new box appears. [Tutorial Quest: Open your Status (Completed)] [Reward: Information on uses of a Mortal''s Status page] [CyxTem has been initialized. Every mortal has been gifted access to CyxTem. The Status Page is a display of the Mortal''s current attributes. From this page, a mortal can also view how many Aetherium points they have. When a Mortal has enough Aetherium points they can use their Status page to invest the Aetherium into one of their Attributes, permanently boosting the attribute.] So the status page is just like what a status page is in a video game. One that I can essentially level up from. But what is this Aetherium? Is this like experience points or something? Before I can get lost in my musings a new window opens before me. [Tutorial Quest: Open yourself to Aetherium] [Being able to sense the existence of Aetherium is the first step a Mortal takes on the path of Cultivation. In order to progress you must open yourself to this energy.] [Reward: Information] Sighing I watch as the quest box minimizes itself and retreats to the corner of my vision. Well now what? I need to "Open" myself to Aetherium, what ever that is. How does one even open themselves up to an energy? Do I need to stick my finger in it or something? Like an electrical outlet? Should I find some Aetherium outlet to stick my finger in to "Open" myself to it? Like getting an electrical shock? A chuckle escapes me as I try to soothe my tired and stressed self with a joke. I need a nap. My eyes feel so heavy that I struggle to get them to open again. My head feels heavy and my thoughts sluggish. My emotions blaze out of control as I''m too tired to keep them restrained. Shame wells up in me as I remember my annoyed outburst that let me open my Status page. What am I some child that through a tantrum the moment something does go their way? No I''m an adult and I need to be better then that. I need to be better then the exhaustion wishing to bring me into the Sandman''s domain. Shaking my head I force the sleepiness out of my eyes and force my control over my emotions again. I don''t have time to nap. I need to find a way back to the classroom, I need to make sure that Abby is okay. Then I need to get to Sabrina and make sure that she is okay. "OPEN ATHERIUM!" I scream out. My voice echos through the cave as my hopes that opening myself up to Aetherium would be that simple fades. What is Aetherium anyways? The quest box mentions that it''s an energy. One that Mortals use on their path of "Cultivation". What even is Cultivation? Am I supposed to be farming or something? Would that make Aetherium fertilizer or something? My instincts tell me that this isn''t the case but I don''t know what else to think. Thinking back cultivating isn''t just for planting, right? Doesn''t also relate to skills or something like that? My hand reflexively runs to my pocket where I expect my phone to be. However, it finds no such object as I was about to google what cutilvate means. My heart sinks when I realize that I don''t have my phone with me. How am I suppose to figure this out without being able to google my questions? This game is rigged. Sighing I go back to trying to figure out what Cultivating is. If I''m not meant to be a farmer then am I supposed to be developing something? If so, then what? I feel like I''m on the right track but I can''t figure out what I''m supposed to be cultivating. Sighing I switch trains of thought as there is no point in beating my head against a wall. So I''m suppose to open myself up to this Aetherium, but what even is Aetherium? I believe it''s an a form of energy, but one I''ve never heard of. It''s supposedly used to permenatly boost my attributes like my Strength. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. My butt grows sore enough that it steals my train of thought. With a groan I stand up, flexing my legs and stretching my back as I do so. Maybe taking a walk will help me puzzle this out. Looking towards the entrance of the caves a warm wind washes through making the bright woods outside even more enticing. Making my choice I make my way out of the cave and into the woods. The trees stand high above me casting the woods in shade. However, the wind blowing between the trees isn''t cold. Instead, it''s a wonderful warm wind that reminds me of a beautiful spring day. Making my way through the woods I let my thoughts return to my problem. So Aetherium is used to boost attributes and this CyxTem wants me to open myself up to it. My status page also has a spot for my Aetherium points. In order to accumulate Aetherium points do I need to open myself up to Aetherium? So that I can invest it into developing my attributes? My brain hangs on the idea of developing my attributes. My instincts make it clear to me that this is important to completing this puzzle. So is that what a Mortal on the path of cultivation is supposed to do? Cultivate themselves? I feel like I''m right but this seems too simple. And why does CyxTem want me to do this? What does it get out of me Cultivating myself? And how am I supposed to Open myself to Aetherium? Shaking my head I banish the growing despondency rising in me. As I try to solve this problem I just keep coming up with more and more questions. Which makes me feel like I''m not actually getting anywhere. The sounds of a stream steal my thoughts as I realize how thirsty I am. My throat itches with how dry it''s gotten and my tongue feels like sand paper in my mouth. Turning towards where the sound of the stream is coming from I start walking towards it. In a few moments I find a stream rushing through a groove in the ground. Looking up stream I find the stream bend and disappear behind the woods. Looking down stream I see a similar sight. The woods around too think to see any noticeable landmarks like mountain or any buildings. Turning my attention to the water I find the clearest water I''ve ever seen. My thirst demands I drink from this stream but I stop myself an article about ecoli races through my mind. Stopping myself I watch the water. With how clear it is and how fast it''s running I should probably be fine from Ecoli. But what if there is something else in the water? What if it isn''t even water? It''s cool and wet to the touch. It has no smell other than the pervasive scent of the woods. My thirst burns stronger as I inspect the running water. I mean, if there is anything in the water that can make me sick then I can always just go tot he hospital. Granted that''s if I can get out of this tutorial thing or find my way back to society. But if I can''t then I''ll need to find a source of clean water anyways. It''s a shame I don''t have the means of starting a fire to boil some of this water. I realize that I''m stalling from satisfying my thirst. If I want to get out of here then I''ll want a clear head. And this thirst on top of my growing tiredness is not doing me any favors. The cold soothing water washes through my mouth and then down my throat, instantly relieving the dryness. The water tastes heavy as it washes through me, setting into my stomach with a soothing chill that washes away the thirst, worries, and tiredness plaguing me. I drink until my stomach is sore and I''m more satiated. The moment I stop drinking the soreness in my stomach vanishes, leaving me with only the feeling of being content and satisfied. Free of my concerns and thirst I find a soft patch of grass next to a tree to settle into. I was right in that being so thirsty and so tired is only going to hamper my ability to think of a way out of these woods. A short nap will do me some good. My eyes close as I let the song of the rustling leave soothe me into sleep. The warm wind blankets me, relaxing my racing thoughts. The chill water satiates me and gives me a comforting full feeling. As I start to drift off into the land of dreams I become aware of a buzz in the winds around me. In the water in my stomach. The rays of light dancing between the leaves and branches of the tree. It fills the world outside of me yet not myself. I feel at odd with the world. As if I''m not a part of it. I feel less for it. The desire to be part of this world, alive down to the very atoms I know what to do. I open myself to this buzzing feeling. Allowing it to wash through me, to let me be part of the world around me. It fills me, lighting my being ablaze in dazzling warmth. Not the kind of warmth you feel when you open a running over. Or the kind of heat you get from standing too close to a fire. No this warmth is the kind of heat you get from hugging someone close and tight. It''s the kind of warmth that doesn''t overwhelm. It''s the warmth that blankets you to sleep. The warmth that brings comfort and equilibrium to yourself. The sort of warmth that grounds your existence. I lose myself in this warmth. Letting it balance myself. I don''t know how long I''m like this. But eventually, the sensation of being uncomfortably full of this warmth builds. As I become aware of it I find the warmth slowly fading from me. Leaving me out of balance with the world once more. My eyes open finding a new message box before me. [Tutorial Quest: Open yourself to Aetherium (Completed)] [Reward: Information] [Aetherium is the Energy of the Heavens. When a mortal Opens themselves to this Energy they invite it into themselves and by doing so binds it to themselves. By binding this energy a Mortal creates a new energy known as Aether. By doing this a Mortal becomes a Cultivator, or one who walks the path to Divinity.] Divinity? Am I supposed to become a God to get out of these woods? God dam it. Heh. Me dam it. If I''m supposed to become a God might as well start acting like one. [Tutorial Quest: Earn Aetherium Points] [Being able to use Aetherium is the first step a Mortal takes on the path of Cultivation. In order to progress you must earn yourself an Aetherium Point.] [Reward: Technique] Wait, I thought I already took my first step on the path of Cultivation. Am I not a Cultivator? Seeing motion from the corner of my eye I snap my focus to find out what it is. Exiting from the treeline I watch a short humiod-like creature stumble towards the water. The creature is short, standing no taller than three feet. It''s skin is a shade of grey that looks like nothing I''ve ever seen before. It''s head is oblong shaped reminding me of a mouthy baby from an old adult cartoon show. On the sides of it''s head droop too long leathery looking ears. While examining it the creature dips it''s primate like hand into the water, pulling a handful up to it''s mouth. As it drinks I can''t help but notice sharp claw like nails at the end of it''s fingers and sharp pointy look teeth resting in it''s maw. Slowly standing I being to back away from the unearthy creature. My foot lands on an unseen branch, snapping it instantly beneath my weight. The crips sound of the branch branding rings out above the rustling leaves and flowing water. The creature''s attention snaps to me, letting me see it''s dark orb like eyes. For a moment I can''t help but think of those grey aliens. However, that thought instantly vanishes as panic washes through me. The creature lets out a blood curdling scream before it pounces towards me. It stumbles on all fours like some crazed monkey. Backpeddling I try to run from it but its too fast for me. It''s claws dig into my bicepts as it leaps onto my chest. It open''s it''s maw as goes to bite me. Watching it''s needle like teeth plunge towards my chest I can only thank what ever made this creature for giving it such a small mouth. Pain flairs in my chest as a half-dollar coin zide chunk of flesh is ripped from me. The creature leaps back from me, a trail of my blood following it as it eats the chunk it took from me. At the sight of a piece of myself being stolen and consumed, I can''t stop the torrent of rageful flames that fuel me. The pain and panic instantly forgotten, replaced by a burning need to get even. To extract similar level of pain from this thing. To take from it like it took from me. At my rage the buzzing energy still resting in me spread out through my body. It rages through me like a wild fire, but instead of burning me to a crips I can feel it filling my muscles with strength. Rushing forwards I cover the distance between the small creature in an instance. Barreling into the creature I tackle it to the ground, sending us both rolling. As our momentum is spent I find myself ontop of the creature, it''s arms pinned beneath my knees. My blood drips onto it''s face only reminding me of the audacity that this little shit had. My rage grows as I find a rock lying next to us. It struggles beneath me snapping it''s needle filled maw at me, like it still wants to eat me. Fingers wrap around the rock and easily twist it from it''s place in the earth. Turning my focus back to the alien like shit beneath me I find it''s black tongue snaking out between it''s needle like teeth to lap at the beads of blood on it''s face. The sight of this sends the inferno burning through to ramp up. My body is filled with an unbearable heat as I bring the rock crashing down. Like a meteorite crashing into the Earth, the rock in my hand crashes down on the creature''s face. The struggling beneath me instantly stops as the rock is left in a crater so deep that there is no doubt in my mind that it''s not dead. As the realization that I just killed something materializes the unbearable heat filling me quickly fades. In it''s place terror. "Fuck. No no no no. I didn''t mean to. No no nonono. I''m not a murderer. I could never be a murderer. I promised myself. No this thing isn''t human. So it''s not murder right? It''s only killing. And people kill all the time. It attacked me first okay? It was self defense. Right?" I back away, as if putting physical distance between the creature and myself will be enough to distance myself from my actions. My mind races as I try to refuse what I just did. What I now know I''m capable of. No this couldn''t have been me. "I''m not my father." I whipser. Voicing the thought I refuse to acknowledge. [Level 1 Mountain Kobold Slayed] [Awarding 10 Aetherium] [Tutorial Quest: Earn Aetherium Points (Completed)] [Reward: Technique] [Error Code: 202257 Technique can not be imparted to User JASON EVERETT at this time] What the fuck? Did I break the game? Setting aside my spiraling concerns over killing the creature I force myself to read through the message again. I completed the quest but then this CyxTem thing could give me the reward? Well fuck you too then. I didn''t want it. [Tutorial Quest: Spend Aetherium Points] [Being able to use Aetherium is the first step a Mortal takes on the path of Cultivation. In order to progress you must spend the Aetherium Point you''ve earned.] [Reward: Information] Spirialing right now isn''t going to help me. It''s not going to get me out of the these woods and back to my friends and family. But what will they think of me if they find out? Shaking my head I stop that train of thought before it can even start. That''s for future Jason to figure out. Turning my focus back to the latest quest I can stop but feeling like something is wrong. Haven''t I already started on the path of Cultivation? Isn''t that what I was doing by opening myself up to the Heavens? "Status" I whisper out, hoping that I don''t have to yell it each time I want to see the page. As the page opens I breath a sigh of relief. Greatful that I don''t have to yell the words each time I want to see my Status page. However, it makes me wonder how quietly I can say it to make it open. [Name: Jason Everett] [Status: Cultivator] [Aetherium: 10] [Vitality: 1] [Strength: 1] [Endurance: 1] [Agility: 1] [Dexterity: 1] [Intelligence: 1] [Wisdom: 1] Ha, see I am a Cultivator. So stop saying I''m not. Fosucing on the page I think back to the uses of the Status page. Apparently, I''m supposed to be able to spend the Aetherium points to increase my attributes. But how do I do that? Focusing on my Vitality attribute a new window appears before me. [Vitality: 1 -> 2] [Costs: 10 Aetherium] Oh, so all I have to do is focus on the attribute. Thankful that I don''t have to make too much more sound, I turn my focus to the other attributes. As my focus zero''s in on strength a new window pops up. [Strength: 1 -> 2] [Costs: 10 Aetherium] Going through each attribute I find that they all cost ten Aetherium to increase. Closing the Status window on a whim I think Satus, while imaging the page. In a moment it appears before me with no verbal prompt. So that''s why it failed when I first tried bringing it up. It''s not a vocal thing, it''s about intent or something like that. I guess I didn''t want it bad enough the first time. Looking through the attributes I hesitate to increase any of them. I still don''t know why all of this is happening. Why am I going through this tutorial? Why did I have to kill that creature to get the Aetherium points? Will I need one of these attributes increased in the near future? Thinking back to the creature that attacked me on sight I wonder what else are in these woods. If I have to make my way through these woods to get back to society then I''ll want the strength to defend myself. I don''t want to kill anything else, but that fucker tried eating me. I feel the embers of rage threaten to stoke another fire in me. Pushing those feelings down I focus on the Status page before me. If nothing else I at lease need to complete this quest in hopes that it gets me out of these woods, but incase it doesn''t more Strength would probably make it easier to get out safely. Decision made I focus on my Strength Attribute and focus my intent on increasing it. I watch my Aetherium drain to zero and my Strength change to two. Then my body alights with buzzing energy. It sears through me latching onto my muscles. The buzzing energy seeps into my muscles lighting them ablaze in pain. Then it fades, leaving the muscles slightly larger and stronger then before. In moments I''m able to collect myself from the painful experience. As the pain embs into a background noise I focus on the new window displayed before me. [Tutorial Quest: Spend Aetherium Points (Completed)] [Reward: Information] [Aetherium is the Energy of the Heavens. When a Mortal learns to harness this energy for themselves they take the first step to the path of becoming a Cultivator. By harnessing this Energy a Mortal learns to open themselves to Aetherium and in doing so they will learn to create Aetherium on their own] So did I skip a step or something? Didn''t I already open myself to Aetherium? Isn''t that why my Status page calls me a Cultivator? Are these windows broken or something? [Turorial Quests Completed] [Reward: Item (Sacred Tool)] [By completing the CyxTem Tutorial Mortals have finished their first steps on the path of becoming Cultivators. It will assist you in your next step and those that follow. Until you arrive to the path of Divinity] [Prepare yourself Mortal for the world has become far more dangerous then you are use too. Only through conflict can you progress] Wait, what? More dangerous? How dangerous? A sense of vertigo washes over me, as the words around me spiral into oblivion. My mind reels as nausea threatens to consume me. Then it all fades just as quickly as it started. Opening my eyes I find myself back under my desk and no longer in the woods. Relief fills me until a scream breaks the silence. Alt - 1 | Ch - 4 The scream ripped through the room, demanding the attention of all that heard it. It conveyed a depth of fear that I''ve only ever experienced once before. It was the scream of someone who believed they were about to die. Heart racing I scurry to get out from underneath the desk only to freeze in place. My mind races trying to comprehend the sight before me. Mrs. Hernandez has Lilly wrapped in an embrace, her aged skinny arms pinning the slim nerdy girl against her. Lilly''s scream as Mrs. Hernandez opens her mouth showing blood-coated teeth. My heart sinks at the sight, my stomach flips, and my blood runs cold. Mrs. Hernandez attacks, biting down into Lilly, tearing a chunk of flesh free. Lilly stops her screaming and struggling, falling limp in the old teacher''s arms. Mrs. Hernandez chews the flesh before swallowing. Then she goes for another bite and another. I can vaguely make out other screams in the room but I can''t take my focus off the scene of my teacher eating my classmate. Each bite sends a new spray of blood into the air. The carpet beneath them is coated in the red liquid draining from Lilly. The scene only ends when Mrs. Hernandez goes for another bite and stops before completing her attack. Mrs. Hernadez presses her nose against the small girl and takes a deep breath in. Her face contorts, almost as if disgusted before she drops the girl. I can''t tear my gaze away from Lilly as she collapses on the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. Her glasses break on the fall, revealing a pair of lifeless brown eyes. She''s dead. I know this to be true but I can''t rectify this fact in my mind. How can she be dead? She was alive not even five minutes ago. This can''t be real. I must be dreaming again. This is all just a nightmare brought on by an over-taxed brain. None of this is happening, I just need to wake up. "GET AWAY FROM ME YOU FREAK!" Someone screams next to me, bringing me back to the chaos. Turning to where I heard the voice I find a classmate named Kevin backpeddling from a boy named Ben. Kevin throws anything his hands can find at Ben, to no success. Ben shambles forward, reaching out for Kevin. Ben latches onto Kevin pulling them both into an embrace that sends a spray of blood arcing through the air. Kevin''s white dress shirt turns red instantly as the two fall to the ground. What the fuck is going on? All around me, my classmates turn on each other. Some trying to get away from those who apparently have taken a liking to human flesh. My stomach churns at the scenes, threatening to empty itself of its contents. "AAAAAHHHHHH!!!" A scream breaks the trance that the chaos has upon me. A scream from a person I know well. A scream I never wish to hear again. For it contained a depth of fear only a person who believes their death is imminent can harbor. My blood boils as I turn to where I heard Abby''s scream, my legs already moving to carry me to her. Who the fuck dares attack Abby? Kind, caring Abby? The Abby that would never hurt a fly? Who has the fucking audacity? I find Abby trying to free herself from Mrs. Hernandez who has her slim wrinkled fingers wrapped around Abby''s forearm. Mrs. Hernandez tries to pull Abby''s hand towards her open bloody mouth. "GET AWAY FROM HER!" I roar as I leap towards them. Where does a teacher get off on hurting a student? Their job is to mentor and guide the next generation. Not eat them. Yet here Mrs. Hernandez is, already having killed one of her students. Is she not stratified with murdering and eating one student? No, now she''s trying to eat my best friend. I want to make Mrs. Hernandez pay. I want to make her scream. To hurt her like she has my friend, like she did to Lilly. No that wouldn''t be enough. I want more. I want Mrs. Hernandez to experience pain beyond anything she could comprehend. Heat surges through me, burning me from the inside out. Pressure fills me, threatening to cause my body to explode, yet it doesn''t. Instead, I feel a strength I''ve never experienced before. It feels as if every cell in my body has come alive, with the single focus of making Mrs. Hernandez pay for her atrocities. My hand reaches out grasping Mrs. Hernandez by her outstretched arm. Squeezing with all my might I feel something in the old bat''s forearm snap and part of me derives a glee from that feeling, knowing that it had to of hurt. Yet when I look to Mrs. Hernandez to see her response I''m met with the emotionally dull eyes of something dead. Her eyes remain unfocused. Harboring no emotion or thought behind them. The usual twinkle of life that I expect to see is not there. Instead, they remind me of a set of blue eyes that haunt my dreams. Eyes that I don''t get to see anymore. Eyes that when I last saw them lost their twinkle of life right before me. Mrs. Hernandez pulls her arm towards her mouth, letting go of Abby in the process. I quickly realize that she''s trying to bite my hand. To consume my flesh. Before she can I let go, pulling back just in time to avoid her biting into me. I hear her teeth crash against each other with enough force that a her teeth crack. Not finding her prize in her mouth Mrs. Hernandez turns to me. She bares her bloody teeth before lunging for me. In response I shove her back, sending her surprisingly light self flying back. She slams into a wall with a wet thud before falling to the ground. What the fuck? How did I do that? I''ve never been the strongest person around, I''m barely even willing to call myself average. Even with how light she is how the fuck was I able to throw her back into the wall? Blood coats the wall where Mrs. Hernandez collided with it. She lies beneath the dripping blood unmoving. Fuck, did I kill her? My mind reels at the sight. I murdered her. I''m a murderer. A monster. They were right about me. Mrs. Hernandez twitches. Her body spasms back to life as she slowly stands back up. Her dead eyes lock onto me and something twinkles beneath them. A carnal desire for something, a hunger. Mrs. Hernandez lets out a blood-curdling scream. One that reminds me of a beast about to pounce on their prey. She lunges, sending herself flying across the room back at me. She crashes into me sending the both of us to the ground. In the struggle, my head smacks against a table sending static through my thoughts. As I collect myself pain explodes across my shoulders. Opening my eyes I find Mrs. Hernandez''s blood maw flying towards my face. My hands race up, but is impeded by Mrs. Hernandez''s steely grip on my shoulders. I watch in horror as the teeth grow closer faster than I can react. Then they stop inches before my face. Looking past the cannibalistic teacher I find Abby holding Mrs. Hernandez by the hair. Only barely saving me from having my face chewed off. Our eyes meet and it''s almost like I can read her mind. Abby can''t hold Mrs. Hernandez back forever and she''s scared of what will happen when her strength fails her. Her fear reignites the brewing furry in me. With a roar, I break free from Mrs. Hernandez. My hands wrap around her throat, pushing her further away from me. At the sudden release of tension, Abby falls back, letting go of Mrs. Hernandez as she does so. I want to stop and help her up but the teacher before me steals my attention. Demanding that I not let her go. "Please stop this!" I plead with her. "I don''t want to hurt you!" But I do. I want to make her apologize to Abby. I want to banish the memories she''s reminded me of. I want her to pay for the pain I feel in my chest at those memories. But I want to be better than that. My English teacher ignores my pleas. Her mouth opens and closes as if she''s still trying to eat me. My heart sinks as I realize that she''s not going to stop. Not until she gets what she wants or someone stops her. What should I do? I don''t know how to stop her. I already almost killed her. I can''t let my anger get the better of me like that again. But how do I stop her from hurting Abby or myself? Another scream steals my attention, forcing me to watch as a classmate I barely recognize as a girl named Hazel struggles with Abby. Hazel''s jaw opens wide, almost too wide. In a moment the skin at the corners of her mouth tears, letting her jaw open wider than the human body was designed to do. Almost like a snake, her jaw unhinges itself as she leans in to bite my friend. Abby tries to hold the girl off but it''s clearly a losing battle. Abby reaches for a book and forces it into Hazel''s open maw. Her panicked eyes find mine and they plead for help. Her arms shake with the strain of keeping Hazel from biting into her. In that instant, I lose myself. The world turns red. Strength fills me as my body burns in an unbearable heat. Mrs. Hernandez is sent flying again as I toss her aside. No longer the focus of my furry. Abigail Walker knew many things to be true. She knew that she should have tried harder to convince her father that she was actually sick this morning. She knew that she shouldn''t of given Jason the silent treatment after the interaction with Derrick. Lastly, she knew she was about to die and would never get to tell Jason how she truly felt. Abigail watched in horror as the sweet girl she knew as Hazel chewed on an English textbook. Blood seeped from Hazel''s mouth as the skin at the corners of her lips was torn when Hazel opened her mouth. Abigail couldn''t hold the girl back forever and knew that it was only a matter of time before Hazel won their contest of strength. From there, Hazel would tear into Abigail, ending her life in a cannibalistic feast. Abigail could accept that she would die. She knew better than most that death came for all eventually. Abigail even thought that she had come to terms with this fact. Yet as she stared at the face of her death in its dull eyes she couldn''t stop the amount of regrets filling her. She regretted not having told her father that she loved him more. Regretted not showing how much she loved him. She regretted not cuddling with her cat even longer this morning. For refusing her fat tabby another snack. She regretted having spent the day ignoring Jason. If only she had known her life would of been ending she would of spent her last few hours being honest with her friends and family. She would of told Jason the depths of her feelings. She would of hugged each of her friends one last time. She would have skipped classes to give her father one last hug. Yet she didn''t know. She made her choices and now she is about to die. She felt the tears welling in her eyes. She wanted to refuse them freedom as that would just show her killer that they had beaten her both physically and emotionally. Abigail may lose in a match of strength, but she would not let herself lose a match of wills. The weight pressing down on Abigail vanished. Hazel''s clacking jaw no longer threatened Abigail. The quickness with which her imminent death vanished left her reeling and in a state of confusion. "What the fuck?" She asked no one in particular. Sitting up she found a sight that brought more questions and conflicting emotions than she could process. Before her, Abigail found the boy she has a crush on staring daggers at Hazel. His usual calm demeanor was nowhere to be found. In its place a vissage so consumed by rage Abigail almost didn''t recognize him. His brown, nearly golden eyes were dark orbs that promised violence. His usual easy-going smile was replaced by bared teeth. His frame usually appeared so skinny and slim, but as Abigail stared at him she could swear that he was larger than even life. Jason leaped over to where Hazel lay in a single bound, clearing nearly fifteen instantly. He looked down at the mousey girl before sneering and planting his foot against her chest. Abigail could have sworn that she heard something crack in that instant. Hazel reached up grasping at Jason''s ankle. A grimace took over Jason''s expression for only a moment. Something on the floor next to them catches his attention causing him to reach down and retrieve something Abigail couldn''t make out from her viewpoint. Jason swings his arms faster than Abigail could follow. The area before Jason explodes into a red mist as gore paints the carpet and wall next to Hazel. Then he attacked again sending another guiser of blood and grey matter to paint the wall. Blow after blow Jason rained his powerful attacks against the girl who surely had to be dead at this point. Abigail watched in horror as the boy she once saw captured a bug and released it safely outside to the protest of an entire class viciously attacking an already dead girl. The boy she knew would spend countless days sleep-deprived to work on other student''s homework so that he could help his aunt financially stood above a corpse and sneered at it like it was dog shit on the bottom of his boot. Abigail was scared. She knew this. She couldn''t stop her body from shivering. She couldn''t force her lungs to draw breath smoothly. She was paralyzed to the spot watching as her friend attacked the thing that almost brought her death. Mrs. Hernandez''s bony fingers grasped onto Jason''s ankle eliciting a quick breath of pain from the boy. He turned his murderous furry to Abigail''s English teacher. Abigail could now make out the hammer in his hand. A pink-handled tool that Abigail watched Mrs. Hernadez use to put together furniture. With a roar Jason kicked out at the old teacher, sending her crashing back. Stalking after her he kneeled down, and grasped the teacher by the collar of her shirt. He lifted her slightly as he brought the hammer back for an attack. Then as if it was routine for him Jason brought the hammer down in a stomach-churning attack. Abigail had to hold the vomit back as she watched Mrs. Hernandez''s face cave in. Brain matter and chunks of bone were sent flying. Mrs. Hernandez''s body fell limp and Jason let it fall to the ground. Blood pooled beneath their English teacher. Jason turned back looking panicly for something. His dark eyes fell onto Abigail sending a shiver down her spine. In an instant the rage monster that took her friend over disappeared, replaced by an expression of worry more in line with how she remembered him. "AAAAAGGGGGG!! GETOFFOFMEYOUSICKFREAK!" Abigail heard Sandy, the head cheerleader scream. Abigail found the blond girl pinned against a desk holding off another student. The male student pinning her down drew closer and closer until his teeth met the flesh of the cheerleader''s throat. Jason appeared neck to the boy, the pink hammer slicing through the air as if it were a bullet. The hammer crashed through the boy, sending his body flying back. Following the boy Jason latched onto the boy and rained a series of blows down that would ensure any creature would never be able to stand back up. Jason''s shoulders heaved as he rose from the boy''s body. Blood dripped from his now empty hand, void of the pink hammer. Abigail watched him look around for a moment before turning his focus to his blood-smeared hands. His face fell. His shoulders sagged. His body went limp and he slumped down to the floor, his eyes never leaving his bloody hands. Abigail was still scared. She was terrified of what she just witnessed. She was still processing the near-death experience. Yet as she watched her friend pull in on himself and spiral she couldn''t help but feel sympathetic pain fill her. He saved her. There was no doubt of that. He saved Sandy as well. But he was so vicious with his attacks. He was like a rabid dog. No, Abigail knew that was the wrong comparison to make. He was like a lovable dog pushed to violence to protect its human and now it shook in the corner of the room, terrified by its own actions. At this realization, Abigail knew she couldn''t sit idle while her friend lost himself in guilt and fear. She couldn''t let the fear still inside of her prevent her from helping him. Despite how scary he looked. How savage he was. Abigail stood and walked through the bloody classroom, being careful not to step on anyone lying in puddles of their own blood. She reached the think-shivering boy muttering to himself so quietly one might almost not realize he was talking. Kneeling down she wrapped her arms around him, embracing her shivering friend. His body stiffened at the touch but Abigail did not pull away. He smelled strongly of copper and she could feel her clothes grow damp from the blood caking him. Yet she did not care. All she was worried about was her friend. "Why?" Jason asked. His words were barely a whisper, yet Abigail heard them. The single question broke her heart. The pain and fear evident in his tone tore at her heartstrings. It reminded her of how her father acted after her mother gave him the divorce papers. Blood. My hands are covered in the sickly viscous red fluid. It''s sticky and refuses to come off of my hands. It stains everything I touch and fills the air with a copper scent so strong it makes me want to vomit. What have I done? This isn''t my blood, it''s the blood of my teacher, Lilly, and a third student I didn''t take the time to recognize. God, what kind of monster am I? An indiscriminate killer? Holly fuck I bashed their skulls in. Their fucking skulls. This isn''t just their blood coating my hands. I see strands of hair mixed within. Chunks of flesh and gore stick to me. Fuck, what have I done? Warm arms wrap around me bringing me into a tight embrace. The arms are thin but surprisingly strong. Following them, I find Abby kneeling before me, wrapping me in this sudden embrace. Why is she holding me? Isn''t she scared of me? I just murdered three people in a fit of rage. I''m still covered in them for fuck''s sake. So why is she here? Why is she holding me? Why would anyone be willing to get so close to a monster? Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Faint memories of a conversation I overheard threaten to be brought to the forefront of my mind. I try to refuse them purchase but the harder I focus on them the more clear they become. "Why in the hell would we take that thing home? It''s father killed our daughter. Your sister for Christ''s sake!" A gruff voice asked. "Exactly Dad. His father killed my sister, not him. Jason did nothing wrong. He''s as much a victim of his father as Tiffiny was." My aunt responded. "Just look at him, Sabrina! He looks just like his damnable father. He''s a ticking time bomb." My grandfather retorted. "I bet he''d do it in the middle of the night. Just take a knife to our throats." An aged feminine voice stated. "MOTHER! What is wrong with you two? He just lost his mother are you two seriously not going to take him in? He has nowhere else to go." Sabrina exclaimed. "Fat chance we''d invite the spawn of a monster like that into our own home. I don''t care what happens to him. He''ll grow to a monster just like his Father and there is no way I''d let such a thing into my own home." My Grandfather stated. Sabrina sighed at my Grandfather''s words. I was waiting for her to agree. Waiting for them to discover me eavesdropping. I was scared. Scared of what is going to happen to me now. Where would I go? "You two are shitty people. I can''t believe we are related. I''ll take Jason and you two can fuck off out of our lives." Sabrina responded. "JASON!" a scream breaks the memory forcing me back to reality. Abby kneels before me, concern emanating from her as clear as a cloudless sky. Her blue eyes looked between mine searching for something. "Sorry. What did you say?" I asked. Relief flooded her expression. Her eyes stopped searching and settled. A small smile broke across her face. "Are you okay?" She asks. How do I respond to that? My gut instinct is to say Yes, to alleviate any worry plaguing her. But another part of me knows that I''m not okay. I am barely hanging on by a thread. But asking for help would be shellfish of me. I don''t deserve her kindness and I can''t waste her time on me. So I answer with a nod. I lie to my friend and it tears something in me apart. Despite that, I know it''s the right move. My answer doesn''t satisfy her. I want to come clean to her and be honest but I know I can''t do that. "Are you okay?" I ask her to change the focus off of me. She scoffs at me. "Am I okay? Jason, you save me! I''m okay because of you." "I killed them, Abby. I murdered Mrs. Hernandez and Hazel and a third one. God I didn''t even take the time to try and remember him." "Jason it was self-defense. If it weren''t for you, then you, Sandy, and I would all be dead like Lilly is." Is that why she is so willing to be close to me? She doesn''t realize how badly I wanted to make them hurt. How much I wanted to see them scream in pain. How I only got angrier when they refused me any response. She doesn''t realize what kind of monster I am. Do I tell her? Do I explain to her how I felt? The desires I had? That would show her the true me. But would she still stay this close to me? I don''t think she would. She would leave just like my Grandparents. No, I can''t tell her. I can''t tell anyone. I got lucky and I can''t waste this. I can''t lose her as well. "FUCK!!! SOMEONE GET THE DOOR!" Sebastian screams. From beyond the door, a horde of lifeless-eyed people approach. My heart races at the sight. There are so many of them. How are there so many of them? My body moves on its own. The classroom flashes past me as I weave around the sea of chaotically positioned desks. Making it to the door I slam it closed just in time to prevent the tide of those freaks from getting in. BANG! The door shakes in its frame with such vigor I fear that it''ll be blown clean off its hinges. A second powerful strike sends the door rattling again. Then another bang followed by another and another. I brace myself against the door, knowing that my small frame would be no match for the amount of bodies on the other side. Yet I know that I can''t fail here. If they get in then we are all done for, we are all dead. "MOVE JASON!" Sebastian barks. He, a girl named Hanna, and a smaller boy who I believe is called Michael stand poised to knock over a bookcase to block the door. Catching onto their plan I nod at the tall dark-haired boy. Taking a deep breath I leap away from the door, turning to fight in case the others are too slow. The bookcase topples down with an explosion of sound. Books topple to the ground and the sound of wood cracking echoes in the classroom. The door bulges, no longer rattling under the attacks but still being stressed by the weight of the things on the other side. We watch in anticipation for the door to be blown off it''s hinges. For the bookcase to fail. For the horde on the other side to stream in. Yet none of that happens. We stand for several quite minutes, many of use too scared to even breath in fear of missing the sound of our barricade failing. Yet they hold with no obvious sign of failing. I don''t know how long we watched in fear but once someone else breathes a sigh of relief the stress vacates my body leaving me heaving for breath. I send a mental thank you to the person who made the bookcase. Wait, wasn''t Mrs. Hernandez the one who built it? And I''m the one that murdered her. Fuck do I deserve to even be alive right now? "Help. Someone, please help!" A voice I recognize but have never heard in such a worried tone pleads. Derrick has moved Sandy to an undisturbed section of the classroom. He holds something to her throat but he acts as if he''s too scared to actually touch her. It takes me only a moment to realize that she is bleeding. Sebastian races to Mrs. Hernandez'' large desk and retirees an orange bucket. He rifles through the bucket while racing over to where Derrick and Sandy are. Abby joins the group only moments later. "Move." Sebastian commands Derrick. I expect the jock to make some half-brained comeback. Or to even deck Sebastian for speaking to him in such a tone. I''ve seen him wedgie kids for less. Yet none of that happens. Derrick only nodded and shifted out of the way. Abby lifts the fabric Derrick was using to try and stem the blood flow. Sebastian has a first aid kit open next to them and has retrieved some alcohol wipes from it. The two set to cleaning the would. "What the fuck is going on?" Hanna asks. "Do none of you watch horror movies?" Michael scoffs. "It''s the fucking zombie apocalypse." "Do you ever touch grass? I always knew you were a basement-dwelling incel but I never imagined that you''d be so delusional. Earth-to-space cadet zombies don''t exist, dumbass." Derrick retorts. "If they aren''t zombies then what are they?" Hanna asks. "Fuck if I know. It''s probably like mass hysteria or some shit. Like that dancing shit in the medieval times." "Midevil time? What the fuck are you going on about?" "You know. Where all those people started dancing non-stop. People started dying and shit. Whatever is happening is probably something like that." Hanna gives Derrick a look that conveys how dumb she finds his response. Her toxic green hair curtains her smoky grey eyes, framing her face. She''s on the taller side and if it wasn''t for the school uniforms would be more at home in dark gothic clothes. "Well I''m not a fucking historian but it happened. Look it up. Besides, do you guys have a better explanation?" Derrick asks. "So you believe this is some mass episode of hysteria affecting an entire school?" Hanna asks Derick but before he can respond she turns to Michael. "And you think this is some zombie apocalypse. So how do with of you explain this?" Hanna thrusts an onyx stick before her. Wait, that''s not a stick, it''s a fucking spear. One end flairs out slightly before returning to a blood-stained tip. Where the hell did she get that? There''s no way security would let something like that into the school. "You know Derrick I stabbed one of them in the stomach four times while it attacked me. My attacks did nothing to deter it. I saw no expressions of pain. No panic or hesitation. Fuck I even stabbed the bloody fucker in the heart and it didn''t stop coming for me. I had to stab this through its fucking skull before it stopped. How does mass hysteria explain that Derrick? How does a zombie apocalypse explain this spear or that fucking tutorial Michael?" Hanna asks. Her body shivers slightly as she speaks. Her eyes latch onto each of us as if one of us will the answers she''s looking for. "No, whatever is going on more than a zombie apocalypse. It''s more than mass hysteria. Did none of you have that tutorial?" I almost forgot about that in the wake of the attacks. Her admitting to having her own tutorial eases part of me I didn''t realize was tense. At least I''m not crazy. "I did." I answer. "What was your like?" Hanna turns to me to ask. "Whatthefuck!" Sebastian exclaims before I can answer. "What did you just do?" Sebastian kneels next to Sandy but he is no longer working on cleaning her wound. His attention snaps between Abby and the motionless girl lying on the ground. Disbelief and confusion wash off of him in waves. "I think I healed her." Abby responds. "You did what!" Derrick asks while staring at Sandy. "How did you do this? What did you do to her?" "Well, I got this from that tutorial." Abby says holding up an onyx bracelet. The bracelet appears to be many tiny square-like stones lined next to each other, tethered together by an unseen string. One of the stones has a small charm dangling off that resembles a teardrop. "With it I can use my technique on other people." "Technique?" Derrick asks. "Yeah, didn''t you all get one from the tutorial? Mine lets me heal myself and with this bracelet others." "So you used some shady, bullshit magic? What the hell were you thinking? What if you just infected her with some fucking disease or something? Fuck we don''t know what this shit is." My heart beats in my ears as I watch the large jock berate my friend. Demands for violence and reperations whisper in my ear. My fists clench and it takes everything I have to not deck the ass. "Lay off her Derrick. Whatever she did she stopped the bleeding and that means that she just saved Sandy. Or would you of rathered we choke her to death to stop the bleeding?" Sebastian asks. "What?" Derrick asks. "Dude I''m not a doctor or anything but Sandy was bleeding out. I think her jugular or something got cut. None of my medical knowledge covers what to do when someone''s jugular is severed. All I know to do is pack the wound, apply pressure, or apply a tourniquet if the bleeding is too bad. None of which I know how to do on the neck. Whatever Abby did she saved Sandy from bleeding out or being choked to death in our attempts to stem the bleeding." Sebastian explains. "If she dies it''ll be your fault." Derrick angrily points at Abby. "No it''s not Derrick. Stop being an asshole." Hanna butts in. "So then we all had a tutorial?" "I did but I didn''t get a healing skill." Sebastian answers. "Same here, tutorial but different skill and sacred item." Michael adds. I nod again but wonder why I didn''t get a skill or item. Did only my tutorial bug out? The group focus turns to Derrick. Actual gazing at him I realize that he has a black glove on one hand now. It''s bulky and the glove stretches his arm, ending at the elbow. Whatever material it''s made out it''s thick, almost like leather. "So what if I did?" Derrick shrugs. "It mean that we all experienced the same thing and that this System thing is real." "Do any of you guys read fantasy books?" Michael asks. "Do I look like I have time to waste on that nerd crap?" Derrick annoyingly asks. "For a nerd, you''re pretty fucking clueless. Aren''t you guys supposed to be the smart ones?" "I''VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR SHIT DERRICK!" Michael explodes. Michael thrusts a black stick towards Derrick. Michael marches towards Derrick with a sneer plastered on his face. "I''m sick and fucking tired of you always picking on me. Well, guess the fuck what Derrick. I''m not scared of you and if you keep pushing me you''re going to realize that I''ll fight back." Michael stops ten paces from the jock, his right arm extended to point a stick no longer then a foot at Derrick. "And what are you going to do with a stick? Poke my eye out? This is not the time to be LARPing dude." Derrick scoffs. I feel something in the air shift ever so slightly. As it does a stone like mass appears from the tip of the black stick. As it seeps out of the stick it forms a dart like mass. Then it disappears from sight. An explosion across the room rings out, sounding as if someone just broke stone. Turning to the wall behind Derrick a crater the size of a softball is missing from the concrete wall. What the fuck just happened. Was that Michael''s doing? Is that stick some kind of magical gun? What the fuck. "Next one is going through your head." Michael slightly adjusts the stick in his hand. "What the fuck are you two doing?" Hanna demands. "With so many things out there wanting to eat us alive how stupid do you both have to be to fight amongst each other? Derrick stop being an Ass or I might just let Michael shoot you. And Michael, drop the edge lord act. Derrick is a dick don''t let him get under your skin. Now please, what do fantasy stories have to do with our situation?" The tension in the air holds thick for a moment. Michael glares daggers at Derrick while Derrick revels in the attention. I want to smack Derrick across the back of his head myself for being a dick. But as I watch him enjoy the state he''s pushed Michael to I know that''s just what he wants. Michael scoffs and turns away. The tension dissipates and silence falls on the room, aside from the moaning coming from the other side of the barricaded door. "There''s a sub-genre called progression fantasy. It''s a common trope in those stories that games like mechanics take over the world, causing an apocalypse. With the System, the tutorial, and now the zombies I can''t shake the feeling that we are living through something similar." Michael continues after letting out a breath. "So what? Are we like in the Matrix or something and they turned on nightmare RPG mode?" Sebastian asks. Michael shrugs. "I don''t know. But it''s the closest thing to an explanation I can come up with right now." It just seems so fantastical. I mean we''ve all imagined how the world would end. How we would react and survive. Yet the most fantastic apocalypse I ever thought about was a run-of-the-mill zombie apocalypse. Yet with all this System shit it feels like I''ve been thrown into some fantasy game. Abby is healing people while Michael is conjuring stone bullets. I can''t refute those facts. We all experienced a tutorial. We all have those floating boxes. So who am I to argue the fantastical nature of Michael''s theory? "I think I get what you''re saying. But it just seems too magical." Hanna says. "Of course, it seems too magical. Mikey over there is delusional." Derrick scoffs. "Derrick if you have nothing constructive to say then shut the fuck up. Do you have a better idea?" "I don''t fucking know. What if it''s some kind of attack? Like from some foreign nation?" "And what kind of attack would this be Derrick?" Hanna asks. "Fuck if I know. It could be China or some shit. Some kind of biological weapon in conjunction with holograms. Those float boxes and these items are probably here to try and trick us into fighting our own people. Just spreading the bio-weapon in the process." "Derrick, no offense but that seems like one of the dumbest ways for a nation to attack us." Sebastian stands from the unconscious Sandy. "Anyways, as far as I can tell she''s going to be okay but she has lost some blood. So it may take a little bit for her to wake up." "How long?" Derrick asks. "No clue, I''m no doctor." "Pretty useless for a Boy scout." Derrick retorts as he turns his attention to Sandy. His eyes soften as he looks at her. He gently caresses her cheek and for a moment I feel like I''m intruding on something personal. How can someone so mean care for someone else so much? "Anyways, what does it matter why all of this is happening? If we are going to figure out what to do next then we can''t sit here and theorize why all of this is happening. We need to figure out what we know to be true and work within that." Sebastian continues while moving towards the window in the classroom. "Has anyone tried calling the police or anything? My phone is in my locker so I haven''t been able to check." "No service, I think phone lines are down or something." Hanna explains. "Did you try calling emergency services. Any active carrier in the area is suppose to cover calls to emergency services." Sebastian continues his trek to the window. He moves with the gait of someone who just finished a growth spurt, still uncertain of their own pace. His dark, nearly black hair is cut short fashioned so that his bangs form curtains. He''s a wiry man built more for agility then strength. "Yeah I tried 911. The call wouldn''t connect." Hanna explains pulling her phone out from her pocket. She dials something and raises the phone to her ear. A moment later she shakes her had and starts fiddling with the screen. "No dice, I think what ever is going on is affecting WIFI too. Not even being on the school''s internet lets me browse the internet." Hanna pockets her phone and turns her attention to Sebastian who has made it to the window. Light floods the room but not the mid day light that it should be. No this is the late evening light. The fading light of day no longer provides heat and warmth to the world. This is the cooling light that soothes the world into night. "Guys." Sebastian says staring out the window. "Come look at this." Standing we make out way over to the window. Through it''s frame we take our first look at the world outside our classroom since all of this has started. While I can''t speak for the others about how they feel in this moment I can say that I''m terrified. The school grounds have remained relatively the same. Expect now bodies spuractically dot the landscape. I can still make out people running and people chasing. I watch one person be lunged on and attacked, sending a spray of red mist into the air. It takes a moment to trear my eyes away from that scene and continue up. The school is suppose to sit right on the skirts of a resedential area of the city. Once you''re off campus you are practically in someone''s front yard. So why is there a forest in place of where the houses and homes are suppose to be? The forest streches on for a few miles. It defiently streaches past where the down town was. So where the fuck is the apartment? Where is Sabrina''s shop? Where is Sabrina? I have to go. I need to go find Sabrina. I can''t loose her. I can''t be alone. "What''s that?" Hanna asks pointing to something on the horizon. With the setting sun it''s hard to make out what she''s pointing at. But it''s thanks to the setting sun that I can actualy see it. An orange glow not belonging to the setting sun. Just beyond the treeline the silloutes of tall, rectangular buildings stand. Within them a warm organge glow, sending pillars of black to the sky. The city is still there, just much further away then it should be, and its on fire. Fuck. "I need to go." My words slip unintentially. "What do you mean?" Abby asks. "I have to go. Sabrina is there." I answer. "How do you expect to get out of here?" Hanna asks. "Are you going to fight your way through the school?" Looking back at the budling door I waiver. Can I kill more of those things? Zombies or not they were once my classmates, my teachers. They were and still may be human. Do I have the right to end their time on this world? Does it matter? They will kill me and anyone else if given the chance. People or not they are a threat. Will I let that threat stop me from getting to Sabrina? Will I let them make me loose her? No I won''t. I can kill them. I know that I can. The question of if I should or shouldn''t doesn''t get to be questioned at this moment. I can worry about all of that later. Right now I need to get to Sabrina. I need to get out of here. What ever it takes. "If I have too." I answer Hanna''s question. "What about us?" Abby asks. "I don''t know. I won''t place you in danger but I can''t sit ideally by while I lose my only family. I need to get back to the city." "I''ll go with you. I have family there as well." Sebastian adds. I find his dark eyes locked onto mine. Something behind them resonates with me. A determination to do what ever it takes. At least I''m not alone in that sentiment. "I also want to get out of her, but we can''t just rush out there without a plan. We open that door right now and we die. Simple as that and you can''t protect anyone if you''re dead." Hanna says. "So what do you sugest?" Sebastian asks. "I don''t know yet but we need some kind of plan." "Why are you guys even talking about leaving? Help is on it''s way. All we have to do is wait for it." Derrick chimes in. "And how do you know help is on the way?" Hanna asks. "Duh, we are the largest school in the state. We''re the target of domestic attack, of course local police will be aware of this and on their way to help. If not them then surly the miliarty will be swooping in." "Derrick take a look. This is happening everywhere. If anyone is going to help they''ll need to deal with their situations first. Besides in all of the zombie movies the military will sweep through and kill us all to prevent the spread of the disease. Or if they haven''t already send some missile to blow us all to smitherines." Hanna exclaims. "You''re starting to sound like the incell over there. Those are movies, this is real life. They won''t just kill us, they will be trying to save us. Besides, all else fails my Father is the chief of police. Regardless of what is happening out there he has two sons in this school. He will be on his way." "Either way there isn''t much we can do while a horde of those things are locking us in." Hanna turns from the window and surveys the room. "We''ll need a solid plan on what we will be doing." "So what do you suggest for now? I don''t know how long I can wait." I ask her. "For now we quite down. Maybe those things are drawn by our noise. They may loose interest if they don''t hear us. We should also move do something about the bodies. It feels wrong just leaving them where they are." Hanna whispers to the group. "Isn''t it illegal to touch a body?" Michael asks. The group turns to Derrick for an asnwer. His father''s carrerr making him the most likely canadate to answer this question. "Don''t look at me dickwads. I''m not a laywer." He answers our gaze. "Illegal or not, if we are going to stay here then we''ll need to make this place more livable and staying so close to rotting corpses isn''t good for our healths. If we leave then we''ll likely need to fight our way out of here. We''ll need space to do so. So I suggest we set asied a chunk of the classroom to lay them out." Hanna states. She has a point but I don''t like how wishy washy she is on our plan. It doesn''t matter what the others will end up doing. I''m getting out of here as soon as I can. However, Hanna is right that I can''t just walk out of this classroom. That would just end in my death and probably the death of everyone here. "Alright, lets do this." I say turning to her. "Where should we put them?" "I think lining them against that wall will be the best place for them." She points to the wall adjacent to the door. "That way no matter what we choose to do they will be out of our and we won''t distrub them with whatever we do." It''s not much of a plan. Wait and see, but it''s better then nothing. I know the moment I see a chance to escape this school I''m taking it but I worry about Abby. I can''t protect her if I''m not near her. But I can''t wait, expecting someone else to ensure that Sabrina is safe and okay. Maybe I can convince Abby to come with me. That way I can protect her but also get back to Sabrina. Looking back at the orange glow of the city I can''t help the myriad of dark throughts from flooding my mind. Sabrina could be in any number of dangerous situation and I''m all the way over here, none the wiser. A warmth on my chest reminds me of the trinkent Sabrina made me put on before I left this morning. A smile creeps across my face as I hold the charm. If anyone can make sense of this System stuff it would my aunt, the self proclaimed greatest Witch of the Pacific Northwest. With my heart more at ease I join the others in their work. It''s going to be a while before I can get to my aunt, but that doesn''t mean there isn''t anything I can do in the mean time. Alt - 1 | Ch - 5 Books always talk about how heavy a person is when they are unconscious or dead. They chalk this added weight to the person not helping you lift them, but that never made sense to me. Their body weight is the same dead or alive, so how can they be heavier when dead? So I always wrote this factoid off as a way to depict the emotional toll associated with handling the dead. Now I know I was wrong. Bodies are so much heavier when they don''t help you to carry them. It''s unsettling how limp their bodies are. It almost feels disrespectful to even be touching them. Like I''m disturbing their rest or something. I avoid moving the ones I killed. I don''t even know what depths of hell exist for murders that desecrater the corpses of their victims. All I know is that I want to avoid those depths. I accept that I will be going to hell for murder but I''d rather not make my case worse then it already is. We line the bodies against the wall adjacent to the door leading out of the classroom. This way if we try to leave the room or if anyone comes in, they don''t have to step over or around any body. Taking a step back I look at the bodies lining the wall. Twentythree bodies in total line the wall. The majority are victims of cannibalistic classmates. I don''t know why but we separated them from those that turned cannibal but we did. We probably should of uses gloves and masked up to move the bodies. Granted most of us are covered in blood already, so it probably wouldn''t make a difference. If there is something to catch from moving the bodies we''ve already been exposed. Sebastian takes a desk and places it before the line of zombies. He grabs another and sets it next to the one he placed first. Soon enough we join in collecting the desks and placing them before the line of bodies. We fashion a wall of desks between us and the cooling bodies of our classmates. With the wall in place our silent, heavy work is done. The scent of copper is still heavy in the room and blood stains the carpet more often then it doesn''t. Yet with the bodies out of the way and partially hidden we can almost convince ourselves that we are trapped in a room with dead bodies. "I think we should look for supplies." Hanna quietly suggests. The moaning from beyond the barricaded door is still present. However, it does appear to have diminished in volume. I don''t know if our being quite has made them loose interest of or they''ve been pulled away by the sporadic scream plaguing our silence. The continued screams at least mean that there are other people still alive in the school. However, it also probably signifies the death of someone. As such non of us acknowledge the screams. "Isn''t that disrespectful? I feel like we already were pushing the boundaries of the law by moving them. Going through their stuff feels like we are crossing a line. Right?" Abby whispers to Hanna. "We''d only look for essentials. Like water or food." Hanna explains. "Do we have too? Doesn''t the emergency bucket have water and food?" "It has like two liters of water and a box of protein bars." Sebastian offers. "The supplies put in it are really only meant to last a few hours." "How long do we plan on staying here?" Abby asks. Hanna shrugs. "Does it matter? Better to prepare for the worst then to not." "I guess, but looking through their stuff and taking it just seems wrong." "You don''t have to do it. You''re right, we are crossing a line. But if my survival in on the line I doubt there are many lines I won''t cross." A cold expression clouds Hanna''s face. Silence returns to the room. I believe that the others were also contemplating what lines they are or aren''t willing to cross in the sake of survival. I know that''s what I''m thinking about. I''ve already crossed the line of murder. So how much further am I willing to go? I don''t really believe my survival is all that important, however what about other people. If Abby or Sabrina were in immediate danger I know there is nearly nothing I wouldn''t do to ensure their survival. I guess it doesn''t matter. We can push comes to shove those choices are almost always made in the moment. Until we are in the kind of situation where lines are being drawn in our morals we can''t really say how we''d react. I know I''d like to think that if Abby or Sabrina were in danger I would try to find a peaceful resolution to it. Yet recent history proves that I''m not that type of person. I''m a murderer just waiting for an excuse to be violent. Hanna stands up from where she was seated. She turns to Abby and gives her a look that I struggle to make out. It''s almost pity but it''s not. "I won''t judge you for not being willing to look through their stuff. Honestly I respect you for it. However, I''m going to look for supplies. I''ll only take things that are useful to us. Anything personal will be left where it is. Also, if I die you guys are free to take my shit. Free of any guilt." Hanna pivots and grabs the nearest bag to her. She starts searching it, leaving the rest of us to watch her. It only take a moment before Sebastian joins her. Should I join them? If we are stuck here long term it''s something that we would probably wind up doing anyways. But isn''t it too soon? Shouldn''t we wait until we need to look for supplies? Yet, wouldn''t it be wiser to know what supplies we have now instead of waiting until we need something? Knowledge is power and all that. If we know what supplies we have available to us now, we can better more informed plans. So, by that logic we should go through and figure out what we have available to us. But what right do we have to rummage through our dead classmates'' stuff? What right do I have? Abby stares at our two classmates searching through bags. Her eyes are clouded with indecision. She bites her dry lips as she watches them, trying to argue her way into helping. Standing I join Hanna and Sebastian. It doesn''t matter what rights I have. Abby is too nice of a person to be willing to go through our dead classmates stuff, yet she''s also too nice to let others do the work for her. So I won''t make her feel like she needs to make that choice. Finding a bottle of water I take it and hand it to Abby. "Rest up Abby. If things get dicey we''ll need you at the top of your game to heal us." She takes the offered bottle and thanks me. Cracking open the bottle she takes a small sip before passing the bottle back to me. "You need to take care of yourself as well." Accepting the bottle I can''t stop my heart from racing. Her blue eyes dazzle in a way that sends butterflies to my stomach. I don''t deserve her friendship, her attention, to stare at her gorgeous eyes. Banishing that train of thought I take a sip of the water. The refreshing fluid coats my mouth and slides down my throat. Despite being room temperature it has to be some of the best tasting water I''ve ever drank. I know that''s just the dehydration talking but it''s a real struggle to not down the whole bottle. Forcing the bottle away from my lips I hand it back to Abby. She caps the bottle off and gives me a warm smile. "Looks like you needed that." "I guess I did." "Don''t drink it all. We need to make what ever we have access to last until we can find more." Hanna chimes in. "Don''t worry, we only took a small sip." Abby answers back. Returning to the work we quickly get through the rest of the bags in the classroom. The three of us ended up finding around four liters of water, two sandwiches, and a two extra proteins bars. Hanna also found a lighter that she decided to take. She argued that it''s too useful of an item to leave behind. Since it was one of the generic gas station lighter none of us argued with her choice, however Derrick did grumble. Honestly I''m surprised he didn''t throw a fit at us going through our classmates stuff. With how antagonistic he''s been towards every other choice we''ve made it felt weird to not heard a peep from him. However, he seems to be completely distracted by his unconscious girlfriend. Which I can''t really fault him for, but it feels strange to see him care for someone else that much. Maybe in my annoyance and anger I demonized him far more then warranted. Derrick catches me watching him and glares at me. "What do you want Orphan?" On second thought Derrick is a dick. We don''t like Derrick. "It''s not much." Hanna whispers after we gather the scavenged supplies into a single pile. "Sure it''s no Trader''s Joe, but what were you expecting. It''s not like we''re going to be here for days." Sebastian chimes in. "It''s more then nothing so I don''t think we can be too upset." Michael adds. "What''s the plan with it?" Abby asks. "I don''t know. It''s clear to me we can''t stay here in this room for any real length of time. So what do you guys think we should do with it?" Abby asks. "Depends on what we''re going to do doesn''t it? If we want to hide out in this room until someone saves us then we need to ration this. However, if we plan on making a run for it, then I say we fuel up while we have the opportunity to do so." Sebastian says. "So then I guess the real question is what do plan to do?" Hanna asks. "I''m getting out of here." I state. "I''m with Jason. I need to get out of here and staying locked in this room doesn''t seem like a valid survival plan to me." Sebastian adds. Hanna turns to Abby, looking for her input. Abby looks uncomfortable from the attention for a moment. "I don''t know." She shifts her weight from foot to foot almost as if she''s rocking herself. "I don''t like the idea of fighting but I don''t like the idea of splitting up even more. I don''t want to be here forever but I get it''s dangerous right now." "That''s not much of an answer Abby." Hanna states. "I''m sorry. I know it''s not. I don''t know what to do here." Her hands shake as she wraps her arms around herself. "I mean, we''re just teenagers. What are we suppose to do in this situation?" "Wait for the adults. Duh." Derrick turns from Sandy to stare at us. "We aren''t in a movie or anything dumb like that. This is real life, the adults will be figuring this out soon and on their way to help us." "Again guys, this isn''t happening just here in this school. This is a city wide, if not world wide event. We can''t rely on the assumption someone else will handle this and save us. No, we need to be proactive otherwise we might as well invite those zombies in to eat us." Hanna states while staring at Abby. "I know I know. I''m just¡­" Abby falls into silence as her gaze falls to the floor. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Behind Abby Sebastian''s gaze locks onto mine. He mimes giving someone a hug and points at me then to Abby. I shake my head in answer to his request. She hasn''t given me permission to hug her. So hugging her out of the blue would be rude right? Sebastian dramatically mimes sighing and shaking his head in disappointment. Returning his gaze to mine he emphatically mimes wrapping arms around something and points between Abby and I. Abby''s shoulder''s shake as she stifles back tears. I want to help her. To give her the support she needs. So why don''t I? She hugged me earlier. So it should be fine, right? Tentively I lay a hand on her shoulder. Before I can offer her any support she whirls and throws herself onto me. The tears wet my shirt as she stops holding them back. "I want my daddy." She sobs into me. Her words come out almost childish to me, but I don''t fault her for that. I''m surprised the others haven''t broken down yet begging for their parents. I mean fuck, we watched and participated in the massicure of nearly our entire class. I want to be with Sabrina right now too. Part of it is so that I know that she''s alive and can be there to protect her as best as I can. The other part of it is because I''m scared. I want to be comforted by her. To have her tell me everything is alright and to rub my back like she does when I have a nightmare. I don''t want Abby to be scared. I want to get her back to Mr. Walker. As she sobs into me I know what I have to do. Protecting her isn''t enough. She needs to be able to feel safe and without her father around I doubt she will ever feel that way again. I want her to feel safe, to not be so scared or stressed. I need to get her back to her father. "Don''t worry Abby. I swear I''ll get you back to your father." I promise her. Her beautiful blue eyes glance up at me. Tears flow freely from her eyes, causing her makeup to streak worse then it already has. The fear behind her eyes breaks my heart and as I stare into them I know that there is no way for me to get out of this promise. "Do you promise?" She asks, scared to have the hope that I''ll do as I say. "Even if it''s the last thing I do, I will make sure that you get back to Mr. Walker." She snickers at me. "Eww. Don''t call him that, his name is George or dad. You know he wants you to call him George right?" "No he doesn''t." "Yeah he does. You know the other day he asked me if you are scared of him, because you''re always so formal with him. Are you scared of my dad Jason?" "What? No. I''m just being respectful." Abby laughs and pushes me away ending our embrace. She wipes her eyes free of tears. "You know, it''s okay if you are. He''s pretty intimidatingly sometimes. But I''ll let you in on a little secret. He''s just a giant teddy bear all scary on the outside but soft and cuddly." "I''m not scared of him." "Sure. Sure." She laughs. Her mirth dies out and she looks up at me. "Thank you. I needed that." "Anytime." And I mean it. I may hesitate at times, unsure on if I''m allowed to be the one to comfort her. But if she has no one else I won''t let her suffer. "As sweet as that was it doesn''t answer my question. Abby what do think we should do?" Hanna interjects. Abby''s cheek redden before she turns away from me. "You guys are right. We can''t stay here forever, so better leave while we have the energy to do so." "Alright and what of you Michael?" Hanna turns to the short nerdy boy. Michael''s brown eyes stare out from behind a circular frame of glasses. He clenches his jaw as he mulls over what ever thoughts he has. Something behind his eyes harden as he answers the question. "We can''t stay here. I don''t know where we will be better off but I know being stuck in this room is a death sentence. We should eat while we can, all else fails we can always just hit up the nearest vending machine or even the cafeteria." "That settles it then. Let''s divide this up between all of us. It''s pretty late, so we should get some sleep and work on getting out of here in the morning." Hanna states. The two sandwiches are split into fourths each, leaving eight servings of sandwiches. Everyone takes a serving, with Sandy getting two servings. We figured out all of us, the injured person needed the extra nutrients the most. We each took a protein bar and a cup of water to pair with our meal. The food sits before me on a napkin someone found. I know I should eat, that I need the nutrients and calories to live. But everytime I entertain the idea of idea of eating my stomach churns and threatens to send bile through my throat. Every time I reach out I catch sight of my red-stained hands and stop myself. What right do I have to eat when three people no longer can because of my actions? On a logical level, I get Abby is right. That it was self-defense to an extent. But I know on a deeper level it was more to me. I wasn''t fighting for my life. I was fighting to satisfy a dark desire of mine. I wanted to make them hurt. To vent my hatred and anger through acts of violence. I''m no hero who had to kill to end the suffering of others or myself. I''m someone who lost control and murdered people simply because the opportunity was there. Their attacking us was just the excuse I needed to let my savagery free. Someone like me doesn''t deserve this food. They don''t deserve to live when others are dead due to their actions. I don''t deserve this food. I don''t to live. But I have to keep going. At least until I can get Abby back with her father and after I confirm that Sabriana is okay. Then I can repent and die the death I deserve. "Jason you need to eat. We need all the energy we can get before we try to escape." Abby says. She pulls one of my hands into hers. With a disinfectant wipe in her other hand, she sets to work on cleaning my hands of the red staining them. The white rag quickly grows to being a pale pink color, leaving my hands to look more and more like they''re supposed to. "With your hands so dirty it makes sense you''d hesitate to eat. Hang on I have more wipes." Abby stands and walks over to her backpack. She pulls a container of the cleaning wipes out and hustles back to me. She sets to work on cleaning my hands. Watching her clean my hands I know that the blood will never be gone, not really. The red viscous fluid may no longer coat my hands, may no longer stain my skin, but I know it''ll always be there. Even now looking at them freshly clean I can still feel it. The flaking, copper-smelling, red stains are still there and no amount of washing will ever get rid of them. "That''s better. Wait, I also got some lemon-scented hand sanitizer." Abby grabs her backpack and fishes out a slightly yellow tube. She dispenses the opaque fluid on my hands and motions me to rub them together. She flashes me a warm smile as I rub the sanitizer in. My hands look far cleaner and now have a slight lemon scent, but the coppery smell of blood is still there. "Thank you." "That''s what friends are for. Now eat up, we need to keep our strength up." Nodding I lift the sandwich to my mouth and bite in. It''s stale and bland but as I chew my stomach gurgles in anticipation. With my last meal being breakfast I know that I was hungry, but even now my appetite is non-existent. Every bite is forced. Every time I go to swallow my body tries to reject the mush of nutrients and calories. As Abby''s blue eyes gaze at me I know that I can''t spit the food out. I know that she would worry about me if I didn''t eat. If she knew what kind of monster I am would she care so much for me? I quickly finish the meal. Even if she would see me as a monster that''s no excuse to let her worry over me right now. I just need to get her to her father and then I can tell her what kind of monster I am. That way she wouldn''t worry about me dying the death I deserve. "How are you feeling?" Abby asks me. I shrug at her in answer. I can''t exactly tell her without her realizing I''m a beast in human skin. Once she realizes that there is no way she''d let me help her get back to her father. Abby sticks her bottom lip out in a pout. It''s adorable and is almost enough to break my resolve. "That''s not an answer." Sighing I turn my attention away from her and to the view outside the window. Trees sway slightly in the unseen wind. It looks peaceful out there. The orange glow from the city is still present, but in the darkness provided by night, it''s hard to tell that it''s from a fire. "I''m worried about Sabrina. How much of the city is on fire? Is anyone working on containing the fires? What about the zombies? How bad is it over there?" Turning to Abby I find her blue eyes locked onto me. "I need to get to her, just to make sure that she''s okay." Abby reaches out and pulls me into another hug. She''s warm, more so than I expect. It''s the comforting warmth of home. It reminds me of sitting next to a lit fireplace and letting the heat envelope me. It''s soothing, more so than I deserve. Yet I can''t bring myself to break the embrace. "I''m worried about my family as well. I''m worried about my brothers. They were supposed to be coming home from college this weekend. I''m even worried about my mom." I can feel her trembling ever so slightly. I realize that she''s not embracing me just to console me, I know that it''s part of her reasoning. Part of her needs to feel the comfort of someone else. With this in mind, I return her embrace. She sinks into me and we stay there for a few moments. No words are spoken, we just bask in the presence of each other. Our worlds have been shattered. Modern society has lulled us into believing that the next day is all but guaranteed for us and our families. Now that guarantee is non-existent and perhaps it never existed to begin with. I mean any number of things could have killed us or our family without warning. A car crash, a brain-eating amoeba, a sudden stroke. Maybe our lives were never really guaranteed, we just took it for granted. "You should get some sleep." I tell Abby. The others have already laid down for the night. I don''t know if they''re sleeping but at least they are trying to rest. "What about you?" Abby asks. "Someone should keep watch, in case anything happens during the night." "But you stayed up the last night. Should you be the one to keep watch?" "I''m fine Abby. I''ll wake someone else up to take over when I''m ready to sleep." She gives me a look that says she doesn''t believe me. She''s right not too, but I won''t be telling her that. The truth is I''m scared of the dreams I''ll have. After a moment she nods and leaves me alone by the window. She finds someplace to lie out and tries to sleep. Turning my attention back to the window I watch the ever-shifting glow of the city on fire. It''s so far away, that I struggle to imagine the blazing infernos generating the glow. The heat from them must be insufferable and stifling. Hopefully, whatever buildings were engulfed in the flames were able to be evacuated before anyone got hurt. The room is silent as even the banging on the door has ended. The rest of the school remains silent and for a moment I could almost imagine that we are just camping out at school. I let the calmness wash over me as I try to relax without falling asleep. Taking deep deliberate breaths I force my mind to be clear of any thought. It''s a meditation practice I learned from a from Sabrina after she took me in. She taught to me in those first few months of being with her. I had frequent nightmares back then and this was her way of helping me. It''s goal is to relax my mind and body by being aware of nothing but my breaths. It''s suppose to ground me and bring me back to the presence. My chest expands, sucking air through my nose and into my lungs. I hold the air there for a moment that isn''t counted or quantified in any way. I release the breath when it feels right to do so, letting it out slowly and methodically. Then I repeat the process, focusing on it and nothing else. My mind wants to wander, to find something else to occupy it. But I let those thoughts flow away from me as I breathe. I deny any of them purchase in my consciousness. As I breathe I become aware of something in the air. Not aware in the sense that I''m thinking of it, but aware in the same way I am that I have a shirt on. It''s a knowing provided with subtle hints, from the weight of the shirt, to the texture of the fabric. I don''t have to focus on any of these to know the shirt is there, I just know without thinking about it, my subconscious mind processing the information for me. It''s in this way I know something is in the air I breath. It''s a weight to the air I can''t quantify. A buzzing excitement to it, that makes no sense for regular mundane air to have. It presses in all around me like gravity but flows away from me as easily as the air does when I shift. It flows and swirls in the air as if it were water with its own currents. It''s a familiar presence but without stopping and thinking about it I can''t recall why it''s familiar. As I continue my breathing I passively watch this presence and it''s flowing currents. My attention is drawn to the area around my left ear where the swirls become more violent. The presence becomes a vortex swirling around the earring dangling from me. The vortex converges on the charm and funnels into it, appearing to flow almost like water draining in a sink. My perception of it dwindles as it enters the earring but as I watch this phenomenon I become more aware of a tingling sensation coming from the earring. As I focus on this tingling I feel my awareness shifts and I find my focus now being internal. The world fades from me as I watch this strange foreign energy be forced into me. It flows from my head down through my neck and into my chest. There it meets with a different energy that I recognize as something familiar. Familiar in the way that it''s a part of me just like my hand, yet I don''t think I''ve ever been aware of this energy. No that''s not exactly right. I don''t know how I know this but I know that I''ve always been aware of this energy in my chest. It feels like it''s one of those constants that we unconsciously forget about because it is so normal to us. Sort of how you''re not always aware that your''re breathing. Or maybe it''s more like how we can''t really see our noses because our focus is always elsewhere, yet we still know our nose is there. The foreign energy meets with the familiar energy and something in it shifts. It stops being foreign and becomes one with the familiar energy. As I watch this process I become aware that I have a finite amount of room to store this energy and I''m quickly approaching that point. It''s like I''m overeating and can''t stop myself. As I approach this point the influx of foreign energy slows down. The closer I get to being full the slower the energy enters me. Eventually, it goes from a torrent to a stream ending with a trickle barely perceptible. Uncomfritable from the sensation I stop and open my eyes. My awareness of the energy inside me fades leaving me to no longer sense the flow of energy in the air. The sensation of having over ate is still present but not focusing on it helps force it out of mind. Soft breathes behind me remind me of the other people in the room. They''ve all found their own spots in the room to spread out. Most avoid the wall lined with the corpses of our classmates as best they can, with myself being the closest. From the sounds of their breathing, I don''t believe any of them are awake. I envy them. Being able to sleep in this situation. I wonder how many of them had to kill one of our classmates. I know Hanna did. Does she feel guilty about it? Motion from across the room steals my attention. Luckily with the power still going and the lights on I can easily make out one of the corpses twitching. Fuck. We''ve been calling them zombies but didn''t even stop to consider what that would mean. No, no I''m just freaking out for nothing. Zombies are made up monsters meant to scare people. They aren''t real and we don''t actually know what happened to our classmates. Corpses twitch a lot after death, don''t they? I know I''ve read that somewhere before. My hand searches blindly around me until it finds a rubber-handled hammer. Slowly I bring the tool-turned-murder weapon, to the ready. Standing slowly from my spot I watch the corpse go from twitching to full-body convulsions. Crack and snapping sounds from from the body, sounding like someone is cracking their knuckles. Another body starts twitching followed by a third. Fuck, if corpses do twitch after death I know for damn sure it''s not like this. "EVERYBODY UP!" I scream. "THE DEAD ARE COMING BACK!" Alt - 1 | Ch - 6 Hanna always found it easy to fall asleep. All she had to do was close her eyes and she''d quickly be whisked off to the land of sand and dreams. So she found it quite annoying that sleep elluded her now. She knew full well why sleep was unattainable for her. She was stuck in her English classroom surrounded by classmates of her that she rarely if ever interacted with and a wall linned with the bodies of her dead colleges. One of them was her best friend Kathrine. Hanna didn''t want to think about Kathrine but she couldn''t stop herself. The events following the Tutorial were playing on a loop in her mind. Kathrine had gone insane, rabbid even. She attacked Hanna relentlessly forcing Hanna to defend herself. Hanna killed her best friend and while she knew it was in self-defence she couldn''t stop herself from playing the scene over and over and over. Hanna tried to stay busy immediately after, keeping her mind off of her actions by focusing on their immediate survival. However now that the storm had calmed and they had nothing better to do but wait for the morning to try and make their escape she was plagued with guilt over her actions. Guilt wasn''t the only thing keeping her from finding the sweet bliss of sleep. Worry for her parents sprinkled her thoughts. They both worked on the other side of the river. Every indication she had pointed to this shit show of an apocalypse being city-wide if not world wide. She worried that if it was a city wide problem then her loving parents would mount a rescue attempt. Throwing themselves into the midst of danger for her sake. Hanna didn''t want this, but knowing her parents they would travel to hell and back for her. She missed her parents. She wanted to be at home, sleeping in her bed with her parents just down the hallway. She didn''t want to confront their mortality let alone her own or that of her friends. Hanna wanted to cry. She yearned for that release it would give her. But she didn''t. She needed to stay strong and alive if she had any hope of reuniting with her parents. She didn''t know how she would go about getting back to them. If miles of zombies stood between her and them then it was nearly a death sentence. To top that off she feels in charge of the survives in the English classroom. It was never directly stated but in the events following the Tutorial she took charge. They listened to her and she directed their efforts to ensure the group''s survival. After placing herself in that position does she have a right to abandon them and try to find her parents? Hanna knew that in life-or-death situations like this people needed focus. They needed a goal to focus on, a direction to keep them moving. Without direction humans have a tendency to stagnate, to passively let current events sweep them away. Hanna knew she couldn''t let that happen. If the current events managed to sweep them away it would sweep them into the jaws of one of the monsters wearing their classmate''s skin. So instead of sleeping and trying to rest before they try to escape the school Hanna was laying on the cleanest patch of carpet she could find. She kept her eyes closed but her mind was running a thousand miles an hour. That was until Jason yelled out a warning so loud she doubted anyone would be able to sleep through it. "EVERYBODY UP! THE DEAD ARE COMING BACK!" Hanna bolted up, her spear clutched between her hands. She''s never taken any martial arts or had any interest in violent sports that would lead her to ever holding a spear. Yet the solid black staff with a nasty point at its end felt familiar to her. It was comforting and provided her with a sense of security. It was a weapon, a way to defend herself, and in this situation, she was loathed to let it out of her grip. As the others stirred from their restless sleep a spine chilling snapping sound echoed through the room. The sound was reminiscent of a dog chewing on a bone. The sound set the hair on the back of Hanna''s neck to standing. From beyond the make-shift wall of desks, bodies begin to rise. They were unsteady and moved in jerky motions that made them appear to be action figures snapping into their set poses. The first one to rise to their feet turned towards Jason who now stood between the group of survivors and rising corpses. It''s jaw snapped open as wide as it could go. Then it roared a horse moan that Hanna knew if she tried to recreate, it would strain and stress her vocal cords to the point of not being able to speak for days. It lunged, crashing through the wall of desks. More horse cries echoed in the room as the other corpses charged through the barricade of desks. Jason was the first to react, catching the first zombie in the side of it''s head with a pink hammer. From the corner of her eye, she could make out Derrick standing guard over an unconscious Sandra. For a moment Hanna entertained the idea of leaving the two to fend for themselves. Out of everyone in the group, Derrick has been the most antagonistic. Barely willing to cooperate or provide any helpful ideas. But Hanna couldn''t sit back and let them fall prey to the monsters. She knew if she did that she would never be able to forgive herself. She knew she would always hold herself accountable for their deaths. The tall girl threw herself in between the jock and the cheerleader. Hanna thought it was funny. Usually in the movies, the jock is the one to be ready for any fight. Yet here she is, one of the resident emos in their grade standing ready to fight and protect the athletic man and unconscious girl. A zombie leaped at Hanna faster than a zombie should be capable of. The older movies always made the zombies out to be slow creatures that are really only dangerous in large numbers or when caught by surprise. But as Hanna caught the full weight of the charging zombie with her spear she cursed the creators of those movies. She was forced several steps back as the monster impaled itself on her spear. Unfortunately for her being impaled in the gut appeared to not deter or affect the zombie in the slightest. Hanna struggled back, knowing that she couldn''t give too much ground or she''d start stepping over Derrick and Sandra. A second zombie body slammed into the one caught on the spear, sending the three of them toppling to the ground. Hanna''s spear was wrenched from her grasp in the fall. She scrambled to reclaim it but was assaulted by a new zombie. She caught the zombie by the throat but she knew that she would not be strong enough to hold the zombie off. She worked a foot between them but even then the jerky movements of the zombie made it hard to control. Hanna looked around for anything she could use to kill the zombie. If only she could find a weapon to use her skill with. That''s all she needed. A medium for her skill. The skills offered by the system were a fascinating marvel. She was given the skill [Flowing Strike]. With it, her spear moved so fast she could barely see it. While in the tutorial she was able to catch the Goblin off guard with her lightning-fast strike, but speed wasn''t everything to the attack. Hanna couldn''t tell how it managed to but the strike would weave around any obstacle to hit her target. The weight pressing down on her doubled as another zombie fell onto her. Her arms buckled drawing the zombies ever nearer to her. It took all her strength to keep the zombie from sinking it''s teeth into her throat. She faced the maw of death and new she was too weak to resist it. But she wasn''t ready to die. She wanted to live, no needed to. Her family couldn''t risk their lives just to find out she was dead. She needed to live to make sure they had a daughter to get back to. She needed to live to atone for killing her best friend. She needed to live to lead the others out of this hell hole. It didn''t matter if she had a weapon or not. Hanna would make herself into the weapon if none were available to her. She stared down the maw of death, determined to overcome and vanquish it. Screaming she focused on the skill, willing for it to work. She imaged kicking out, sending the zombies flying. For a moment nothing happened. Hanna didn''t feel the skill activate but that didn''t stop her from struggling. Skill or no skill she''ll survive, she had to. With all her strength she kicked out, trying to throw the zombies off of her. Then it clicked, her skill activated and she felt her leg fly out. The weight pressing on her vanished as the zombies were sent sailing through the air. She wanted to take a moment to breathe, to collect herself. But this wasn''t the time nor the place. She needed to move, needed to act. Throwing herself back to her feet she searched around for the zombie baring her spear. She quickly found it racing after Sebastian whose blade blade sang through the air. She bolted after the two, apologizing to Derrick for abandoning him. However, even with her skill, her attacks weren''t potent enough to end the threat the zombies presented. To protect them she needed to be lethal and for that, she needed a weapon. Sebastian disappeared for a moment. The zombie stumbled in place, almost appearing confused by the disappearance of it''s prey. Hanna didn''t afford herself the time to ponder this oddity. She was determined to retrieve her spear. A dark, wickedly sharp blade cleaved through the neck of the zombie before her. It toppled to the ground, it''s momentum carrying it a couple of feel. Hanna felt hope at the site, her spear was in reach. All she had to do was reach out and grasp it. She never got the chance. A zombie tackled her sending her skinding across the carpeted floor. Heat seared through her back as pain exploded in her head. She felt something on top of her but was unable to focus on it. It was like someone replaced her thoughts with static that was too loud. The weight on top of her disappeared and hand appeared before her. Taking it she was pulled to her feet where she found Sebastian helping her up. He offered a small smile before turning and catching an incoming zombie. Forcing the static out of her mind she finally retrieved her spear. Whirling around she watched as a zombie bared down on Derrick. Derrick was raising the black bracer but Hanna couldn''t see anything happening. With no other recourse, she reached for her skill and focused on the spear''s ability. Her skill activated and she felt the cold material of the spear heat up. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. She was a dozen feet away. Too far to actually hit the zombie and too far to make it in time. But none of that mattered. Her spear flashed forward to the extent of her reach. Then the heat in her spear disappeared as an invisible force rocketed away from it. The zombie crumpled and fell, its attack forgotten in its death. A spear-sized hole was now present in its temple. Hanna wanted to breathe a sigh of relief. She wanted the fight to be over. But commotion behind her revealed that it wasn''t done. "ENOUGH"! Jason roared. Jason ripped a zombie off of Abby and threw it across the room. The body flew through the air, colliding into the stone exterior wall of the classroom. Hanna could almost hear the bones breaking from the impact. Jason didn''t stop. He surged forward like a tidlewave. The pink hammer in his hands screamed through the air as he caught the nearest zombie in the temple. The monster''s head exploded under the single attack, the zombie body spiraling away from the attack. A leap took Jason several feet to another zombie. He grabbed this one by the back of their collar, preventing it from charging into Sebastian as it had appeared to be doing. The zombie''s skull erupted in a guiser of blood as it crumpled to the ground. A single blow was all it took from Jason to end the monster''s undead life. Blood coated Jason, matting his hair and streaming down his face but that wasn''t what Hanna found terrifying about him. It was his expression of rage. It was monstrous, made worse by his glowing eyes. The lights still illuminated the classroom, leaving nothing to be obscured by shadows, yet Jason''s eyes still shined brightly making him look less human. He caught another zombie charging him by the throat, lifting it into the air with a single hand. He glared at the beast, and his forearm flexed. Something in the monster''s neck cracked leading to it''s body going limp, yet it''s jaw still snaped open and closed. As if it were trying to bite Jason with sheer force of will alone. It was dispatched in a similar matter to the others leading to Jason searching for the next zombie. Hanna couldn''t watch his terrifying strength in action as she was caught by a Zombie. The weight of the zombie pushed her back a few feet but she took this as an opportunity. With a twist she was able to throw the zombie off of her, letting it''s own momentum bring it down. As it rolled across the floor she leaped after it, her skill activating as she trusted the spear down. The black cross blade slid neatly into the skull of the zombie, arresting it''s movements. She tore the spear from the zombie and readied for another attack. She scanned the room for the deadly threat the zombies pose but none were found. Instead, she found an almost motionless classroom aside from the heavy breathing of her classmates. A clacking sound caught Hanna''s attention bringing her focus to a severed skull slightly twitching. The zombie that Sebstian had decapitated sat of the floor with it''s jaw opening and closing with enough force to crack teeth. Jason appeared before the abnormal abomination and threw the gore coated hammer down. The zombie''s skull split and buckled ending the monster''s movements. Blood and brain matter spilled out of the cracks making Hanna''s stomach heave. Swallowing the vomit Hanna forced herself to focus on something else, particularly what happened. They had called them zombies yet none of them really stopped to consider what that meant. In almost any media Hanna could think of zombies would turn humans with a bite. "We need to make sure they''re dead." Hanna told the room. "What the fuck is wrong with you? That''s desecration of a corpse. Which, if I need to remind you is illegal." Derrick stated. It took everything Hanna had to hold the sigh back. How dumb can this jock be? They''re in a god damned zombie apocalypse and he''s worried about the fucking law? Does he not realize the situation that they are in? "Derrick I''m going to say this only once." Hanna walked to the nearest corpse and plunged her spear into it''s skull. "We don''t have the luxury of worrying about laws. Zombies are wearing the fucking skin of our classmates. Those that they kill come back as zombies themselves." With a revulsive squelching sound she rips the spear out of the corpse. "We need to do what we can to survive this and that means ensuring that the dead stay dead. The law can come for us after we survive. So stop being such a blockhead and get your fucking head in the game." Hanna sighs and turns to the rest of the group. All of them are watching her at this point. Looking to her for the answers they need. For the direction that will lead them out of her. "We can''t let shit like worrying over laws or guilt for what we''ve done stop us from doing what it takes to survive. We all have family we want to get back to, so until we reunite with them we need to do whatever it takes to survive. Derrick, I know you want to sit here and wait for help to arrive but we have no way of truly knowing if help is on it''s way. We need to be proactive here. We need to save ourselves." Hanna watched the reactions of her classmates. Gauging who she can or can''t trust. For the majority they appeared to be in agreement with her. Aside from Derrick and surprisingly Jason. Hanna knew Derrick was unlikely to listen to her, too use to being top dog to listen to others. Jason on the other hand she''d image would be the first to agree with her. With how he was dispatching the zombies she thought he had longed accepted their situation. Jason''s gaze was casted down at the decapitated skull of the last zombie he killed. Hanna struggled to determine what he was thinking but he almost appeared like a dog who did something they knew they shouldn''t. Unsure how to use this information she filed it away for later use and pressed on. "I know it''s a lot. This isn''t fair and we shouldn''t have to deal with this. But we have a responsibility to our loved ones to try and stay alive. We have to do what we can to survive. To live on. I won''t ask any of you to help me ensure that the dead stay dead. But I will ask you guys to understand why we need to do this." Silence falls over the room as Hanna ends her speech. She can tell that she hasn''t won the room over but she doesn''t know what else to say. They''ll either agree with her or not. It''s not like she knows any of them on a close level. Sebastian took the blade in his hand and stabbed down at a nearby zombie with it. The blade sunk into the skull with barely any effort. He freed the blade with ease and turned to Hanna. "Survival takes what it takes. I''m going to make it back home even if it''s the last thing I do." He stated. Hanna was relieved to have someone agree with her. Part of her had worried that she was making the wrong choice. It was a small part, easily ignored but it was still there. Whispering doubt through her mind. "I''d rather it not be the last thing you do, so lets work together to get you home." Hanna replied to Sebastian. A stone shard blitzed across the room crashing into the skull of a zombie. It left a mist of blood in the air and a hole the size of a baseball in the zombie''s skull. Turning to Michael Hanna raised an eyebrow in question. "I don''t know how much help I can be. I''m not athletic or anything like that, but I want to survive. I''m with you." He answered her unasked question. "I was,nt to survive, but I don''t know if I can..." Abigail''s words died out as if she was unable to finish the thought. "Can what?" Hanna asked. "I can''t fight them." "Seriously?" Hanna asked. What did Abigail mean she wasn''t willing to fight the zombies? If it''s between life and death how could any not choose life? How could someone be willing to let death take them without a fight? "I don''t want to hurt anyone." Before Hanna could ask any of the questions plaguing her Jason stepped forwards. Soaked him blood, he strikes a grusome vissage that would appear more at home in a horror movie. The embers of anger still etched his usually calm face, silencing any thoughts Hanna had. "You won''t have to." He spoke to Abigail but Hanna felt as if he was speaking to her directly. "I''ll make sure you won''t have too." "Are you hurt?" Abigail sprung up from where she was kneeling, quickly rushing over to Jason. "You''re limping." Hanna only now realized that Jason was indeed limping. When she watched him earlier she could have sworn he wasn''t, but now that she''s focusing he''s clearly placing most of his weight on one leg. "Don''t worry about it. I twisted my ankle in the fight, I''ll be fine." "If you''re hurt you should say something. Injuries can get worse if they aren''t taken care. Let me see it." Abigail was already lifting Jason''s pants leg. "Stop, you do¡­" Jason began to speak but a glare from Abigail shut him up. Abigail held her hand over Jason''s exposed ankle. A faint golden glow emanated from Abigail''s bracelet. A tear shaped ball of light left the bracelt and floated gently onto Jason''s ankle. The glow died out as the ball of light floated into Jason. Jason''s face relaxed revealing the usual calmness that Hanna was used to. The blood still ruined the image she had of Jason in her mind, but it was easier to see that version of Jason without him glaring. "Does that feel better?" Abigail asked. Jason nodded in answer. He tested the ankle a bit before giving a more assertive nod. "Thank you." "So, do you have any ideas on how we can survive this?" Sebastian asked Hanna. Hanna took a moment to answer his question. Not because she didn''t have any ideas but because she had too many. She knew that they needed direction as a group but she knew they all had their own individual goals. She needed an answer that would provide direction to all of them while also letting them complete their goals. If she were to try and give them direction that lead them away from their personal goals they wouldn''t accept it. There is safety in numbers, so Hanna wanted to keep everyone together as much as possible. Hanna found herself wandering towards the window of the classroom. The city still looked so far away. The soft orange glow of unseen fires only confirms Hanna''s thought that in a situation like this, the cities are death sentences. Yet she knew Jason and Sebastian wanted to run right into that mess. "We can''t stay in this classroom. You''ve all heard the rule of three right?" She asked turning to the group. "Three minutes without oxygen, three hours without shelter, three days without water, and three weeks without food." Sebastian answered her. With a nod to Sebastian, Hanna continued. "We need to get our families and leave the city. The city has a population just shy of a million. If even a portion were zombies it would be bedlam there. So we need to get out of here, get our families, then leave the cities and find a place safe to stay until things are figured out." "Kind of a shit plan." Derrick stated. "It''s not a plan, its a goal." Michael chimed in. With fingers pressed to hips lips Michael looked to be deep in thought. His lips moved ever so slightly as if he was speaking to himself. "We''ll need supplies, we have no idea how long it''ll take us to get to the city or what supplies we''ll be able to get once we''re there. We need to figure out how large the forest is. Can we go around it or do we have to go through it? We also need to figure out where our families should be." Michael began to mutter to himself. "I don''t know how good of a plan we can make without more information." Michael focused back on the group, his final comment meant for the room and not himself. Hanna turned back to the window. The appearance of this forest changes a lot. What else has changed outside? Is it really their city sitting just beyond the forest? She wanted to believe it was, needed too. But it was like she was the blind trying to lead the blind. They had a goal but not enough information to make a plan. They need more information. "We should get to the roof." Sebastian stated. "We can survey the area and figure out the best way back to the city." "So how do we get out of this room?" Michael asked. "I have an idea for that but I don''t know if it''ll work. I think my Skill works on zombies, letting me hide from them." Sebastian stated. "You think?" Hanna asked. "I don''t actually know. I was using it after Jason warned us about the zombies and none of them seemed to come after me until I stopped using it. Granted I didn''t use it for long but even the moments during the fight that I tried they seemed to loose sight of me." "What''s your skill?" Michael asked. "It''s called Shadow Step. It reads like a generic sneak sk¡­" "Hey, do you guys see that?" Jason asked the group. He was pointing at something beyond the window. Following his fingers Hanna found a purple haze stretching down from the heavens. It moved slowly as if it was molosas, yet it persited in the air unaided. It appeared too solid to be light but Hanna couldn''t fathom what material could stretch and hang in the air like that. In a few moments the haze reached the earth without a sound. No stirs of dust or obvious signs could be witnessed that the haze was there. "What the fuck is that?" Derrick asked having walked over to discover what held everyone''s attention. "I don''t know¡­" [QUEST: Kill the Grave Walker] [Reward: Territory Core] [Penaltiy: Forfeitureof Life] [A Grave Walker has awakened. Kill it before it can realize its full power. A barrier has been placed to prevent it from leaving the area, this also means you''ll be prevented from leaving while it''s still alive. Failure to slay the Grave Walker before it realizes it''s power will result in forfeiture of live.] [Time Remaining: 71 Hours 59 Minutes 43 Seconds] "Well." Hanna sighed. "Fuck me." Alt - 1 | Ch - 7 I reread the quest over and over again. Does the universe take some perverted glee in trying to ruin my life? First it was the System and zombies, then it''s the random forest, and now this? The fuck even is a Grave Walker? And we only have 72 to find it and slay it? "You guys got the quest too right?" Someone behind me asked. The group started talking amongst themselves. It appears that the quest was received by all of us. But something stole and held my attention. On the school grounds below a single figure approached the purple wall. It walked into the haze as if it didn''t see it, only to stumble back and fall. The figure slowly recovered themselves before trying to walk through the wall a second time. Then a third and a fourth. Every time the figure tried it would bounce off and stumble back. "So what do we do?" A question from the conversation behind me dragged my focus back to the group. "We find it and kill it." Hanna declares. "Have you gone all murder hobo on us? The fuck is wrong with you Hanna? I know you''re all emo and shit, but murder isn''t going to get you the attention you so despretly want." Derrick made his way back to where Sandra was lying. "Get your head out of your ass Derrick. Do you really want to wait and figure out what it means by forfeiture of life? Because I can tell you. It means we''ll die." Hanna countered. "You guys are the ones with their heads up their asses. I''m the only one being reasonable here. This isn''t something we should be trying to deal with. It''s the job of the adults." "What if all the adults are dead?" I ask. My words lay a blanket of silence over the group as all eyes turn to me. I know they don''t want to hear it but it''s a thought that''s been scratching at the back of my mind for a while. Mrs. Hernandez was one of the first to go feral. How many other adults turned? How many books have I read where all the adults vanish or die of a disease leaving the children and teenagers to fend for themselves? "Mrs. Hernandez was one of the first to turn into a zombie, how can we be sure that the other adults didn''t turn also? Despite the power still working no one has made an announcement to the school. Which I take to mean that the office got overrun and is too dangerous for a teacher or other adult to get there." "I didn''t even think about that. Fuck, we need to get moving we don''t have much time to waste." Hanna says. "Can you guys keep it down? My head is killing me." An unfamiliar voice asks. "SANDY! How do you feel? Are you okay?" Derrick rapid fire asks Sandra. Derrick has the cheerleader pulled into his arms as he brushes strands of hair out of her face. The way he holds her speaks to a gentleness I''ve rarely seen in life, let alone from the large jock. Sebastian and Hanna both rush over to the couple. They begin fussing over her in what I can only assume is them making sure that she''s okay. After a few moments the blond cheerleader pushes the two away from her. "The hell is wrong with you two. Stop groaping me sickos. I have a boyfrie¡­" Sandra breaks out into a painful sounding cough. "Boyfriend." She wheezes out as the coughing fit ends. "Is she okay? What did you two do to her?" Derrick demands of Sebsatian and Abby. "Stop talking so loudly baby. My head is killing me." Sandra asks Derrick. "What is even going on?" "Fuck I''m sorry wasn''t thinking Baby. You got hurt and these two did some fuckery to try and help you, but clearly they fucked up." "So that wasn''t a dream? Kevin really bite me?" Sandra''s hand rose to her throat. Her fingers glosses over the scabbed skin and an expression of horror befell her. "I was supposed to have my homecoming picture this weekend! That fucking creep ruined them!" "Honey, I think your weekend was ruined by more then just Kevin biting you." Hanna says. "Let''s catch you up to speed, it''s the zombie apocalypse and we only have three days to kill a creature called a Grave Walker or we all die." ¡­ "Who gave the emo drugs?" Sandra asks. "Fuck if I know but she''s been on this shit for a while." Derrick answers her. A snicker from Sandra sends her into another coughing fit. This one lasts much longer then the previous one. As it pitters out Sandra is left looking noticeably more pale, beads of sweat dot her forehead. "I don''t feel good." Sandra says weakly. "You''re running a fever, though I don''t know how high." Abby explains. "I can try my skill again, but I don''t think it works on illnesses. You might have gotten an infection but your wound doesn''t feel warm to the touch, nor is it displaying any clear signs of infection. What are the symptoms you''re experiencing?" "Are you a Doctor or something? I don''t know. Headache, nausia, sore throat." Sandra answers. "Its the goal, or at least it was. I think the nurses office should have some medication to manage the symptoms but I think we should get you to a hospital as soon as possible." "That''s if we get out of here alive." Michael mumbles. "What did you say you little weasle?" Derrick barked. "Knock it off! Both of you!" Hanan positions herself between the two. "What the fuck is wrong with both of you? Derrick, being a dick isn''t going to help you or us as a group. Michael, being pessimistic here isn''t helpful. Our goals have changed, we need to find this Grave Walker and kill it. For that we need a plan to get out of this room and look for whatever that is. So unless you have something to say that will help us in getting out of here, keep it to yourself. Am I understood?" Her eyes blazed with determination as she eyed each of us. Her gaze left no room for interpretation. There was no room in her mind for us to not cooperate. "We''ll need better equipment." Sebastian stated. "Only three of us got weapons from the tutorial, and while Jason has the hammer I think we''ll need more if we plan to fight our way through the school." "That''s not a bad idea. We should also try and make some armor." Michael adds. "Where are we supposed to get armor?" Hanna asks. "We can probably make some out of paper or something. It''s not like we''re trying to stop a bullet. In the movies, they usually make bracers and shin guards with magazines or something. I was thinking we can use pages from the textbook and tape them down." "Alright, Michael help me strip pages from the books. Abigail, could you look for some tape? Sebastian, could you look for something we can use as a weapon?" Hanna moved to one of the bookshelves lining the walls. Michael followed her and the two began taking textbooks off the shelf and setting them aside. Abby moved to the teacher''s desk and began rifling through it, while Sebastian moved to a wardrobe standing against a wall. As the other set to work I find a seat to fall back into. I want to help the others but my skin feels like it''s on fire. To top that off my lungs burn as if I just ran a marathon. A hallowness inside of me was present after the fight that was threatening to give me a migrain. Using my shirt sleeve I wipe the lingering blood off my face. The white sleeve of my dress shirt came back a deep red. That''s right, I just killed more people. Why doesn''t this feel real? Is it the lightheadedness? The exhaustion permiating my body to my bones? I need to get some sleep, that would probably help me feel better. But there is too much to be done for me to waste time on sleeping. Shaking the cotton webbs from my mind I force myself to focus. A blinking blue box in the corner draws my focus. As I try to focus on the light a series of windows appear before me. [Level 1 Zombie Slain +10 Aetherium] [Level 2 Zombie Slain +15 Aetherium] [Level 1 Zombie Slain +10 Aetherium] [Level 1 Zombie Slain +10 Aetherium] [Level 1 Zombie Slain +10 Aetherium] [Level 1 Zombie Slain +10 Aetherium] [Level 1 Zombie Slain +10 Aetherium] [Level 1 Zombie Slain +10 Aetherium] [Level 1 Zombie Slain +10 Aetherium] [Level 1 Zombie Slain +10 Aetherium] [Total Aetherium: 105] As I read through the windows I realize that they are a record of those that I killed. Ten that''s how many I''ve robbed the lives of. But is it really robbing them of life? Are the zombies really alive? Hanna believes that they''re not and everyone aside from Derrick seems to be going along with that. None of them are treating me like the mass murderer I''ve become. Or are they? Hanna didn''t ask me to help prepare for leaving this room. I also saw the look of fear she gave me after the fighting ended. Maybe they are too scared to treat me like a murderer in fear of me retaliating. I don''t know what to think. The fog of exhaustion permiates my every thought, making them slippery and hard to hang onto. I really chose the wrong night to pull an all-nighter. Monster or not I can''t sit back and not help them. At least the void in me has filled slightly, alleviating the threat of an impending migraine. Rising from the chair I make my way over to Abby to help her. "How are you doing?" She asks me as I approach her. "Fine, just tired." "You should have tried to sleep earlier." "Someone needed to have stayed up." "But it didn''t need to be you. Out of anyone here, you probably needed the rest the most." "I''m fine." I shrug. "Clearly you''re not Jason. The bags under your eyes are deeper than the marina trench. You need to take care of yourself Jason." Her blue eyes bleed with concern and worry. Concern and worry for me. How can anyone worry about a murderer? Why does she not hate me? I know that she is a kind person, but she has to have their limits. "I''m sorry. I''ll do better of taking care of myself." I know it''s not much of a promise. I can''t prioritize myself in a situation like this, but hopefully, my words will put her at ease. Her expression does soften at my words so they must appease her a little. "You better." "So¡­ Need any help?" I ask. "No, I found some duck tape and scotch tape if we run out. Maybe Sebastian could use your help." Nodding I leave Abby to take the rolls of tape over to Michael and Hanna. I find Sebastian rummaging through the wardrobe. Costumes from plays that Mrs. Hernandez directed fill the closet as well as props. "Need any help?" I ask. "I don''t know. I''m trying to figure out what in here can be used as a weapon. I found an old wooden broom that I''m sure would make a sturdy enough spear. Do you think this would make for a good weapon?" Sebastian pulls a short wooden club. Taking the offered prop I find that it feels too light. Grabbing it on both ends I try to snap the prop and to my surprise, it splits in half as easy as a dry spaghetti noodle. With the core of the prop revealed I can tell that this was a paper mache prop. "Well damn. What about this?" Sebastian offers me a kite shield-like prop. The shield is clearly made of plastic and painted with some sort of metallic paint to give the sheen of metal. It''s also light but feels more sturdy in my hands. As I try to bend it the plastic resists enough that I doubt a zombie would be able to break it. "Probably. Try hitting it." I equip the plastic shield and present it to Sebastian to hit. He cocks back a fist and strikes the shield. A dull thud resonates from the hit but no clear signs of damage can be seen on the prop. Stress testing the plastic prop again only certifies my belief that it''s worth some use. "I think this should be of some use. Are there any more in there?" Sebastian pops his head into the wardrobe for a moment, "No looks like that was the only one." "Damn, a shield to keep them at bay while we attack would be nice. What else is in there?" "Not much if I''m being honest. Oh what about this?" Sebastian pulls a wooden bat out of the wardrobe and hands it to me. It''s an older thick Louisville slugger bat. It feels sturdy enough in my hands and is hefty to boot. "I believe it''s made of Ash but I could be wrong on that. If someone swung that full force I bet it could do some damage." Sebastian says as I swing the bat around. "No doubt about that. With this, we have seven weapons and a shield right?" "Are you counting your hammer?" "I don''t see why not." "Then yes, so we still need one more weapon. Do you think Mrs. Hernandez''s tool bag has anything in it?" "I don''t think so. Not unless someone wants to use a screwdriver." "That just seems like a bad idea." ¡­ Silence settles between us as we both try and figure out what else can be used as a weapon. As I look around the room trying to find something that could be used as a weapon I can''t stop my mind from wondering. Why is Sebastian also being so chill with me? I get that Abby is an incredibly kind person but why haven''t the others freak out? Why are they treating me like I didn''t murder ten people today? "Can I ask you something?" Sebastian whispers to me. "Sure." "Do you think Sandra is going to turn into a zombie?" His words were spoken lightly making it hard to actually hear him. As he spoke his eyes darted around to the others in the classroom. "What?" I whisper back. "I don''t want to freak the others out, but she was bitten and now she''s running a fever. In all of the movies, a bite is what turns people into zombies, right?" My eyes fall to the blond girl being cared for by Derrick. She is visibly paler then I remember her being. Which is weird, since she''s one of the most tan people I know. For the Pacific Northwest that''s not a huge feat to accomplish, but she took pride in her tanness. She would constantly brag to her gaggle of friends about how her dad pays for her to go to a tanning salon all the time. So for her to be paler then everyone else in the class right now, that is cause for concern. "I don''t know. I wasn''t expecting the others to turn, but I also don''t really know how any of this works." "That''s fair I guess. I don''t know. I can''t shake the feeling that she''s a ticking time bomb. It''s probably just nerves but would you mind keeping an eye on her? I''ll be doing so, but the more people watching the more likely we are to notice anything." "Why don''t we all monitor her?" "I highly doubt Derrick will like us accusing her of being infected or anything like that. I also don''t want the others worrying and outcasting her in case she isn''t infected." "Why are you asking me? Wouldn''t Hanna be willing to help without causing a fuss?" It takes Sebastian a moment to answer my question. He rubs his pointer finger with his thumb as he thinks over my question. "Honestly, I don''t know. I just feel like out of anyone here you''d be the first to react to her being a zombie. I think you''d be willing to do what it takes to make sure we are safe." Oh. I get it now. They aren''t freaking out over me being a murderer because it''s benefiting them. To them, I''m like an attack dog. A monster collared and used for their own benefit. I don''t know how to feel about this. "I see. Yeah, I''ll keep an eye on her, but I don''t know if I''ll be able to do anything if she does turn." "You underestimate yourself, buddy. Now, let''s get back to finding another weapon, would you mind checking Mrs. Hernandez''s tool bag? If not for a weapon then for anything useful?" If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. "Sure thing." Leaving Sebastian I make my way to my tool bag. Is being someone''s attack dog better than being a monster locked behind bars? I mean military personnel are trained to kill and in times of war, humans kill humans all the time. Yet when they return home they are seen as heroes. They''re still murderes but public opinion of them isn''t negative. I wonder how they feel about that. Do they feel guilty? Or do they accept that they did what was required of them? Did I do what was required of me? No. I did more. Far more. I gave into the rage and used the situation as an excuse to lash out. I''m not a monster because I killed or murdered people. I''m a monster because I can''t control myself. The tool bag doesn''t have anything of real note. I do find a roll of duck tape that I toss to Abby and the others. However, the rest of the bag is generic tools like screwdrivers, a level, a measuring tape, and a few other odds and ends. However, while rummaging through the bag an inclination of thought forms in the back of my mind. Making my way over to a desk I examine the framing holding the wood-like surface of the desk. Only four screws hold the desk surface down. It wouldn''t be hard to remove them. The tool back also had a chisel and with the hammer it wouldn''t be hard to gouge holes in the desk. Eyeing the pile of bags I visually measure the length of the nylon straps. "Hey, Sebastian?" I call out. "Yeah, what''s up?" He asks while making his way over to me. "What do you think about making these into shields?" I ask him tapping on the desk. Sebastian eyes the desk and I can tell that he doesn''t really understand. "Look," I say lifting the desk to show the four screws. "If we take the surfaces off we can use the chisel in Mrs. Hernandez''s tool bag to make some holes for straps." Setting the desk down I point back to the pile of bags. "We can use the straps to make the handles and arm braces." As I explain his dark eyes alight with understanding. "Fucking hell Jason, you''re a genius! I''ll get the surfaces off, you make the holes." Sebastian exclaims racing for the tool bag. Returning he hands me the chisel and sets to work on removing the screws. In the time it takes some to retrieve the hammer he has already removed one of the desk surfaces. Laying my arm against the surface I measure out where I think the straps should go. I plan my holes so that two straps will brace the surface against the arm while a third could be used as a handle for better control. I figure this way if we need our hands free we won''t have to set the shield down. "What are you two doing?" Michael asks as he approaches Sebastian and I. His arms forearms and shins are layered in paper in and tape. With the specs of blood dotting his uniform, I would almost mistake him for an extra on some zombie flick. Well, I guess that was the plan, wasn''t it? "Making shields for people." Sebastian answers him. "Sick. I was sent over here to send one of you for the paper armor fitting." "Here take over for me." Sebastian hands Michael the screwdriver. "We need two more surfaces removed from the frames." Michael takes the offered tool. Sebstian leaves, making his way over to the girls. Michael sets to work removing the screws and I continue my work in silence. Chisling holes out for the straps isn''t hard but still takes a decent amount of effort, only reinforcing my belief that these will make decent shields. "Hey, Michael?" I ask. "Yeah?" "You said this System stuff reminds you of some books you read right?" "Yeah, there are some litRPG books out there with very similar apocalypses." "So what happened to the people in those stories?" "It sort of varies from story to story. For the most part, the main character gets ridiculously strong and ends up fighting stronger and stronger enemies until either the day is saved or the hero sacrifices themselves for the better of mankind." "I hope we get the forming ending." "It''ll probably take a while but I''m sure the government will be rolling in to save the day. After they deal with their mess of course and restructure." "You think so?" "Dude, are you kidding me? The US military has enough ammunition to kill the population of the US like twice over. And that''s just bullets mind you. With all the larger mutations and classified arsenal, the government has I can''t see them failing to save the day." "How long do you think it''ll take?" "I don''t know. I guess it depends on how widespread this is and how much of the government has fallen. Probably not super long. But this system does make things weird." "How so?" "You know how we get Aetherium for killing?" I nod at his question. "Well, imagine if people using guns still get Aetherium for killing. What if the system awards Aetherium when you kill with like a grenade or some other ordinance? What if it works with nukes? How much does raising our stats actually affect us? Could the President or someone drop a nuke on like New York and gain god-like strength instantly?" Well, shit. How far would someone go for near god-like power? I don''t know if this System crap is capable of giving someone that sort of strength, but just the thought of it is terrifying. How many people have access to weapons of mass destruction? How many of them are willing to commit mass genocide for power? My gut tells me too many. "Have you increased any of your attributes?" Michael asks. "Not aside from the one the tutorial made me increase. Why? Have you?" "Yeah, I''ve increased my intelligence and Wisdom to see if it changed how much Aether I have." "How do you know how much Aether you have?" Michael gives me a deadpan stare that makes me feel like he''s calling me an idiot. As if the answer to my question is so simple a child would be able to answer it. "It''s on the status screen." "Really?" I ask. To my recollection the status page never said anything about Aether, but maybe I missed it. Summoning the page I read through it contents trying to find the section with my Aether count. [Name: Jason Everett] [Aetherium: 105] [Vitality: 1] [Strength: 2] [Endurance: 1] [Agility: 1] [Dexterity: 1] [Intelligence: 1] [Wisdom: 1] "Mine doesn''t have a section for Aether. Did you have to do something to unlock it?" "What stat did you increase in the tutorial?" Michal asks. "My strength." "Try increasing your Intelligence. That was the first one I increased and I didn''t have to do anything special to see my Aether count." Following Michael''s direction I focus on my Intellengence and bring up the upgrade window. [Intelligence: 1 -> 2] [Costs: 10 Aetherium] I brace myself and commit the Aetherium to the upgrade. The world goes black. Pain becomes my reality as every synapse is fried from an electrical current surging through my brain. A headache unlike any I''ve ever felt consumes me as my brain feels to be compressed. I don''t know how long the pain lasts but it couldn''t have been for very long. As the pain recedes enough to open my eyes I find Michael staring at me confused. He hasn''t moved from where he was removing the last desk surface. "You okay dude?" "Yeah." I answer, the pain receeding more and more with each passing moment. "Just wasn''t ready for the pain. How did you manage to increase it more then once?" "What pain?" "Wait. Does increasing your stats not cause pain?" "No. Does it for you?" "Fuck yeah, when I increased my strength it felt like someone poured liquid fire over my muscles. Just now with my Intelligence, it was like someone set off an electrical bomb off in my brain." "That''s weird. Didn''t you say that your tutorial acted weird or something?" "Yeah, I didn''t get a skill and it gave me some error code thing as well." "What do you mean you didn''t get a Skill? Weren''t you using one during the fight?" "No, not that I''m aware of." "Are you sure dude? Your eyes were like glowing." "Wait, seriously?" "Yeah man. Not gonna lie it was low key kinda creepy." "I didn''t even know. If I was using a Skill I don''t know how." "Weird. Maybe the System did give you a skill but it didn''t register because of the error. Did increasing your Intelligence reveal your Aether count?" [Name: Jason Everett] [Aetherium: 95] [Vitality: 1] [Strength: 2] [Endurance: 1] [Agility: 1] [Dexterity: 1] [Intelligence: 2] [Wisdom: 1] "No, I still don''t have a spot for my Aether. All it shows is my Name, Aetherium, and my Attributes." "Weird, mine is listed right underneath my Aetherium." "Well, this is some bullshit. Why is my Status screen all fucked up? Is there a help desk I can submit a ticket too?" I ask mostly in jest, but part of me was hoping the verbal request would cause a new window to appear before me. Letting me write out a complaint. "So, how much do you think increasing out stats affects us?" "Honestly, I don''t know. I have my Intelligence at three and my Wisdom at two, but I don''t really feel more intelligent or wiser. What about you?" "I only raised my Strength and Intelligence to two and haven''t really felt much of a difference." "If we had the time I''d love to sit and test out the system. I know increasing my Intelligence boosted my Aether by five points for level two and ten for level three. However, I didn''t notice any changes when I increased my Wisdom." "Do you trust this System thing enough to let it change you so much?" I ask surprised by Michaels''s desire to experiment with the System. If I''m being completely honest this System crap kind of scares me. I mean how is it changing me? What if increasing my Intelligence allows it to rewrite my memories or alter my personality? How is it even changing us? There are just too many unknowns for me to really believe in it. However, the skills the others got do make me feel that in this situation the System is needed. If we''re going to survive we''ll need every advantage we can get. Michael shrugs in answer to my question. "Honestly, part of me has always wished something like this would happen. Not the people dying and all that mind you." Michael quickly adds. "I mean I always wanted to live in a fantasy world where magic was a real tangible force. This System has granted that wish of mine to a degree. If I wanted I can create a stone bullet with nothing but Aether and my will. With my Skill, I can see further than I could ever before and I can even tell where everything is in relationship to me. I know it''s dumb but I want to explore this System and find out anything and everything I can about it. I want to see what it''ll let us do." Michael gets a thousand yard stare in his eyes. As if he is no longer mentally present in this conversation and has instead traveled to far-off lands. We finished removing the last desk and lays it in the pile next to me. "I''m going to go collect the straps." Michael stands and makes his way over to the pile of bags and sets to removing the straps from them. While he does that I continue my work on gouging the holes in the desks for the straps. As I work I go over Michael''s last comment before he got lost in his own thoughts. I get his enthusiasm to embrace the System. I mean who hasn''t dreamed of being more than human? Especially with the renascence of superhero media recently. I know I''ve had a few dreams where I was a superhero with superhuman strength and abilities. This system has already provided us with those superhuman abilities. Take my strength for an example. I still don''t know if it''s a skill or not, but I know for a fact that I wasn''t capable of throwing people dozens of feet into a wall hard enough to break a bone yesterday. Yet only a handful of hours ago I had done just that. How far will the System let us go? Is it worth the risk of exploring it to find out? Or am I just trying to find excuses to get into another life or death fight? To take the life of another living creature. Well, technically the zombies aren''t living. So is it wrong to kill them? Part of me feels like it is. Even if they were dead before I killed them do I have the right to do so? I know it''s classified as self defence and the more I talk with the others the more I feel like that''s how they see it. I don''t know what the right thing to do here is. Trust the system or don''t trust the system. Kill the zombies or don''t kill the zombies. I wish Sabrina was here. She always knows what to do. I miss her. I wish I had spent more time this morning with her. "Hey, Jason." Sebastian calls out to me. "It''s your turn, I''ll take over here for you." Nodding I hand him the hammer and chisel. He sits down and picks up where I left off leaving me to make my way over to Abby and Hanna. "Arm please." Hanna asks as I approach the two. "Hold on." I ask while unbuttoning my blazer. "I want them under my shirt." "Why?" Hanna asks as I start unbuttoning my dress shirt. "It''ll help hold the bracers in place." I answer, but really the blood staining the shirt has been sticking to my skin. It feels gross and I would love to have something to keep the shirt off of me. "Fair enough, just hurry up." Hanna answers. I finish taking the shirt off and offer my arm to Hanna. She takes it and starts layering pages against the arm, using the scotch tape to hold the pages together. After she layers roughly an inch of paper over my forearm Abby begins wrapping the pages in ducktape. Hanna takes my other arm and starts working on it. "How long do you think you can keep your skill up?" Hanna asks me. "I don''t think I have a skill, or at least if I do the System is being weird about it." "What do you mean? You have some super strength Skill right?" I explain to Hanna the error I got and the lack of Aether on my Status page. Abby finishes with my first arm around the time Hanna finishes with my second. Abby starts on my second arm while Hanna starts on my legs while I explain what I know. "Doesn''t really change much. You have some ability that gives you more strength or whatever. How long can you keep that up?" Hanna asks after I finish my explanation. "I don''t even know how I activate it or reactivate it. I wasn''t even conscious that I was using whatever it the ability is. So I don''t know." "Maybe you subconsciously activate it when you''re fighting?" Hanna theorized. "I don''t know. When the fight first broke out I was struggling with the zombies and it was like none of my attacks were doing anything." I explain trying to remember the fight clearly. However, through the haze of rage I was experiencing the memories are kind of fuzzy. "You''re eyes started glowing after you yanked that second zombie off of me. What were you thinking then?" Abby asks while finishing duck-taping my second arm. Forcing my way through the hazy memories I try to remember that exact moment. Initially, I remember feeling a lot of panic when the zombies attacked. They were far faster than I was expecting and weirdly strong. Initially, the fight was like trying to wrangle a small army of coked up rabid dogs. But as the fight drew on I grew increasingly frustrated, until I snapped. If I remember right I snapped when I saw that second zombie on top of Abby. It was only moments after I pried the first one off of her and the idea of something else having the audacity to attack her in such a manner sent me over the edge. I was consumed by my rage at that point and had a surge of strength. Wait, is that the key to the strength? Do I have to let myself go to my anger? My stomach sinks at that thought. What am I? Some kind of barbarian? What if I lose control of myself in my rage? "Well?" Hanna asks impatiently, snapping me from my thoughts. "Oh, ummm. I think I know what triggered the strength but I''m not confident in my ability to use it at will." "So you''re saying we can''t rely on that strength of yours?" Hanna asks. "I don''t know. If push comes to shove I think I can get it to work, but I don''t think we should plan for me to have that strength for every fight." "Well, that bite. Alright, give me your other leg." Repositioning the girls switch places and set to work on adding the last touches to my makeshift armor. As Hanna starts layering the pages on my leg I have to resist the urge to squirm. She''s surprisingly gentle and it almost tickles. "Can I ask what you think triggers the strength?" Abby asks. "Well¡­" How do I answer this without sounding like someone without anger issues? That would require me to lie to her, wouldn''t it? With everything else I''ve done today, I really can''t stomach the idea of lying to my friend. "¡­ honestly I think it''s anger. When I saw that second zombie jump on you I got so angry I saw red." Well, I said it. My anger issues are now out in the open. Now it''s time for them to recoil in fear or digust. They''ll start viewing me like some rabbid animal that can''t control itself. "So¡­you got that angry over me?" Abby''s face reddens as she mutters her question. "Well, yeah. They were trying to eat you." That''s not the reaction I was expecting. Abby bows her head further preventing me from making out her expression but her body language doesn''t scream revulsion or anything like it. I''d almost think it''s an embarrassment, which would make sense. Who would want to be used as the excuse for someone else lashing out with violence in their anger? The two girls finish their work quickly leaving my forearms and shins protected with the textbook pages. After they finish with my legs I retrieve my shirt and slide it back on. With the arm bracers, the fit is tighter then I was expecting in the arms but not enough to be restrictive. "Thank you." I say to the two girls. "You''re welcome." Abby mutters. "If you wanna thank me, figure out a way to get angry on command. We could really use that strength if we are going to get out of here." Hanna says. Getting angry isn''t the problem. It''s keeping control over myself and my actions. Should I try to explain that to them? No, that would be needless. If it does come down to that strength being the only thing able to save us I know I''ll be able to use it, if it is caused by my anger. "Will do." I answer her. I make my way back to Sebastian and Michael who have started attaching the straps to the shields. Taking a desk and a couple of straps I join their efforts in completing the shields. "Derrick. Your turn." Hanna calls out. "Sure, whatever." Derrick stands from where he and Sandra are and makes his way to the two girls. His quickness to agree without a snide remark confuses me for a moment. I''m surprised he is willing to go along with being armored up since we''re doing it to get out of this room. Well, whatever, it''s none of my concern. As long as he isn''t being an ass I don''t really care. The rest of the crafting goes by smoothly. With the three straps, we can keep the shields on while also being able to use our hands. However, if we aren''t holding the handle it''s easy for the shield to rotate around our arms, which might be a problem. However, having them is better than having nothing at all. "Hey Michael, you play video games right?" Sebastian asks. "Umm, yeah?" "Got any advice on what attributes I should invest in?" "Oh. Well that all depends on your build." "My build?" "Yeah, in video games you increase your attributes based off what kind of playstyle you wanna do. Some games have skills or spells locked until certain attributes are high enough. Or the attributes increase the effectiveness of the skills and spells." "I see. So how do you think this System works?" "Don''t know. If I had to guess I would think that the attributes affect our Skills. I''ve invested primarily into my Wisdom and Intelligence and I didn''t notice a difference in the power of Stone Shot, but it does feel to take less time to charge." "Hmm. So what attributes would you recommend that I focus on?" Sebastian asks. "What is your Skill again?" "Shadow Step is what the System calls it. According to the description it apparently lets me harness the power of shadows to step behind light, concealing myself." "Dude that''s dope as hell. It sounds like a classic rouge Skill, like a rebranded stealth. What about the Tutorial Item you got?" "Its ability is to get super sharp." "Wicked." Michael exclaims excitedly. "Dude, if I were you I''d try for a stealth assassin build. You know focus on being fast enough to end a fight before it starts." "So would I focus on Agility and Dexterity?" Sebastian asks. "That''s what I would do." Sebatian falls into a contemplative silence. He finishes a shield and sets it off to the side in a pile of completed shield. He looks around for a moment to find the next one but Michael and I are working on the last two. Finding no further work his eyes focus on something in the air. "What about me? What attributes should I focus on?" I ask. "What''s your skill?" Sighing I quickly explain that the system never gave me a Skill like the others. He listens quietly, nestling his chin in his free hands after finishing his last shield. "Isn''t it obvious then?" He asks. "Focus on strength and Intelligence or Wisdom. If I''m right about our attributes affecting our skills, then increasing your Strength should only lead to your Skill making you stronger. The mental attributes are so you have enough Aether to power the Skill." "Yeah, that makes sense. Thank you." I say while tying the last knot on the final shield. It makes sense when he puts it that way, but this isn''t a video game. Is min maxing really the best thing to do here? Which is better, being a master of one or a jack of all? Honestly, I''m hesitant to use this System. Not knowing what it''s actually doing to me drives me crazy, but what else am I to do? There''s a school full of zombies and something called a Grave Walker that we have to get through if we have any hopes of leaving. "Hey, fuck nuggets!" Derrick calls out across the room. "We need to get going." Wait, seriously? Now he wants to leave? "Weren''t you the one wanting us to stay put?" Sebastian asks. "Listen up you greasy twats." Derrick commands in what I recognize as his football captain''s voice. "We need to get Sandy to the Nurse''s Office. So stop questioning me and get your lazy asses in gear." Lazy asses? Who the fuck was sitting there doing nothing to help the group? I know it wasn''t Sebastian, Michael, Hanna, or Abby. Heat rises in my chest as my annoyance builds. I force myself to take long deep breaths as I force the heat into the pit of my stomach. Even if he''s an insufferable ass, I can''t let myself get angry. "What about the Grave Walker quest?" Michael asks. "Is someone cruising for a bruising? Did I not just say to stop questioning me four eyes? The adults will handle whatever the fuck the System is trying to make us do. Right now Sandy needs our help." "Derrick stop being an ass. But, has a point guys. We have a couple of days to deal with the Quest. Right now Sandy is getting worse and Abby believes that there should be some medicine or even a nurse in the Nurse''s Office." Hanna walks to stand between Derrick and the three of us boys. Her arms and shins are plated in the ducktape and paper armor that we all now sport. With her spear in hand, she looks almost badass like some of one of them cosplayers. "Fair enough, but what''s the game plan? I mean how do we plan to get to the Nurse''s Office?" Sebastian asks. "Have none of you nerds played football? We treat Sandy like the ball, I''ll be quarterback while y''all run defense. We''ll do a loose Wishbone formation since we don''t have enough team members to do it properly." Derrick makes his way to the whiteboard and starts drawing on it. "Jason will take the lead blocker position, while Hanna and Sebastian will flank the Orphan." He draws three squares side by side with the first letter of our names in them. He places Hanna to my left while Sebastian is set to my right. He then draws a triangle behind me and two squares on each side of the triangle. The square to the triangle''s left has an M placed in it while the one to the left has an A. "I''ll act as the quarterback carrying the football while four eyes and the emo flank me. If I had my boys with me then we could do the formation properly but we''d need three more people. The main idea is that the front line blocks and defends while the flanks fill in as needed." "You can drop the insulting nicknames Derrick, we''re going to help you either way." Hanna says as she retrieves a shield from the pile we made. "Alright guys make your final preparations, we''re going to be pushing for the Nurse''s Office as quickly as we can." "What if we come across other survivors?" Abby asks. "Sandy''s health is our priority right now. If they''ve survived this long they can survive a little longer while we make our way to the Nurse''s Office. We can swing back around after Sandy gets the help she needs." Hanna answers. "Give me a second to allocate my Attributes." Sebastian requests as his eyes focus on the air before him. "That''s smart, everyone make whatever Attribute increases you can." Hanna directs. Feeling uneasy about it I pull my Status screen up. It''s a necessary evil at the moment to make sure that we get out of this alive. To min-max or not to min-max, that is the question. I suppress a snicker at my lame joke as I focus on my strength. [Strength: 2 -> 3] [Costs: 15 Aetherium] [Strength: 3 -> 4] [Costs: 45 Aetherium] I confirm my choices in rapid succession, wanting to make the pain as brief as possible. In a flash, my body is engulfed in searing pain as I feel my muscles are lit on fire. It''s like my entire body is experiencing a cramp. The pain subsides a few moments later leaving me slightly winded. If only I had also tried to increase my Intelligence at the same time. Gritting my teeth I set to allocating the rest of my Aetherium points. [Intelligence: 2 -> 3] [Costs: 15 Aetherium] It takes me a moment to recover from the pain exploding in my head but as I do the others appear to have readied themselves. "Are you okay?" Abby asks me. "Yeah, sorry." I answer, retrieving the last desk shield, as Sebastian has taken the plastic prop one. "Let''s go." Alt - 1 | Ch - 8 My heart hammered in chest in anticpation of the approaching fight. Sebastian and Hanna stood slightly behind me of to either side of me. Their shields were raised and weapons pointed. Derrick stood next to the door, ready to open it when we were ready. With a deep breath, I steady my nerves. This wasn''t the time to be freaking out. It took a moment, but eventually, my heart no longer hammered. With a nod to Derrick, I signaled my readiness. He nodded to the rest who responded in kind. We were all ready. We knew the dangers lying beyond the rattling door and we believed ourselves repaired for it. The book case was lifted, sending more books scattering across the blood stained carpet. The door rattled insesently as those beyond it responded to the rucus. Derricks hands shook as he gripped the door handle. His skin was white as snow and sweat was evident on his brow. I could almost smell the fear rolling off of him. "Do it." Hanna ordered. Derrick jumped at the order and in doing so jostled the door handle. He didn''t open the door, but he didn''t have too. The pressure of the bodies on the otherside forced the door open. A stream of undead students tried to force their way in. They stumbled over one another like a horde of rats scurrying to their latest meal. They acted like wild animals with no regard for others of their kind. With a roar, I charged forward to meet the tide. With my shield arm out, I run into the closest zombie and bash the shield into them. I hear something break as the zombie is forced back into the tide of undead. My hammer lashes out at another zombie, caving in the side of their skull. Yet the hunger burning behind it''s lifeless eyes does not disapate. Catching the zombie with the shield I strike at the zombie again and again. It''s skull is a battered mess by the time the hunger dies out. I''m left with no time to watch the zombie die as another throws itself at me. I was barely able to get the shield between myself and it. I feel myself stumble back under it''s assault. A black spear lashes out, penetrating deep into the skull of the zombie before me. The spear vanishes and the weight pushing into me goes with it. Without thanking Hanna for the assist I push towards. I can''t stumble here. I can''t lose ground. Abby is relying on me. Hanna, Sebastian, and Michael are relying on me. Hell, even Derrick and Sandy are relying on me. Screaming my heart out, I throw myself into the fight. The heat in my chest builds as I lash out with the hammer. I wail blow upon blow into the zombies before me. They crumble and topple under my attacks, but I''m not fast or strong enough. Spear lashes out from next to me, killing those I can''t reach. A sword sliced through the air on the other side, slaying those I hadn''t caught. Stone bolts zipped through the air, striking the zombies threating to spill past the line of defence Sebastian, Hanna, and I formed. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Yet none of it was enough. The tide of undead appeared unending. I could feel the building exhaustion in my lungs first. A subtle brining that indicated I wasn''t getting enough oxygen. Then it progressed to that sting in your muscles as they''re used too much. The spear stoped flashing out so often from next to me. The sword became a less common occurrence on my other side. I could Hanna and Sebastian were growing tired. Even the steady stone bolts flying through the air started to grow less frequent. Weak. That''s what I was. What I always was. I''ve never known strength. I''ve never known what it means to be powerful. Only what it means to be weak and preyed upon for it. Too weak to stop my dad from hitting me. Too weak to protect my mother. Too weak to protect Abby. Too weak to do anything. I''m tired of being weak. I''m tired of not being able to protect those I love. I hate it. I hate myself for it. I hate this world for letting me be born so weak. I hate it all. I could feel the burning rage in me. The dark emotion demands that I lash out at the world. It promised me strength if only I was to let it course through me. I whispered dark desires of mine to force pain unto others. It sang sweet melodies of screams that proved I wasn''t weak. It scared me. My rage always did. It reminded me of my father. Of the beatings, he would give just because we annoyed him. It scared me because it always made me wonder what I was capable of. A zombie leaped at me. It crashed into my shield sending me stumbling back several steps. I knocked it to the ground, but before I could attack it another zombie pressed in on me. I send the hammer out, cracking it against the monsters temple. Pain explodes in my ankle. looking down, I found a zombie with its maw wrapped around my calve. It''s yellowed teeth dug into the layers of tape and pages, tearing chunks away. Pain and weakness always seem to go hand in hand. So, do I have myself to blame for this pain? Am I simply too weak to stop it? A wooden spear crashes through the skull of the zombie gnawing on my leg. Abby screams from behind me as she tears the spear free and sends it crashing back down into the monster''s skull. She was scared. She was panicking. I could hear it in her voice. The desperation to put an end to the fighting. To the fear plaguing her. The damn broke. I wanted these undead monsters pay. I wanted them to scream with pain as I eviscerate them. I wanted to tear them limb from limb and beat them to actual death. The heat inside me bubbled and brioled. I felt the ball of energy in my chest respond as it exploded to consume my whole body. Pressure filled me and ever cell felt alight with energy. Strength surged through me as my mind was consumed by rage. With a roar, I pushed out, sending a wave through the tide of zombies. They stumbled back, giving me enough room to swing the hammer in a wide arc. Heads were pulverized under my blow, but it wasn''t enough. It didn''t satiate my need for blood. The world was red and filled with an unbearable heat. Every breath I drew filled my lungs with fire. Every swing of the hammer sent burning shivers up through my arm. Every bash with the shield ignited explosions of painful, searing heat through my body. Blow after blow, I lose count of how many fall prey to me. Blood drips from the hammer and shield as if someone threw a bucket of it at them. I can feel the cold fluid coating me as well. Part of me knows that the blood should be warm, and it only adds to the sense of vileness I feel. The way their skulls cave in sickens me. How their brains spill out of their skulls, it''s like the guts of a squished bug. I want to vomit. I want to stop this violence. Yet the burning rage inside me doesn''t let me. It numbs the burning pain permeating my body. It deafens the screaming sense of wrongness I feel. I try to take a step forward to attack my next target, but I slip on the pooling blood. I fall to a knee and barely manage to catch myself before I fall flat. Zombies lunge at me, only being stopped by the wooden desk shield strapped to my arm.