We start from where we left off when Aoto, Higa, Himari, and Carla split to gather materials. Higa and Aoto went down to the janitor's closet to grab the hazmat suits as they were told, their steps echoing through the empty floors as they had just barely made it from a zombie encounter, and then from the basement. "Why do we have hazmat suits again?' Aoto asked, still confused and annoyed at constantly being ignored by the two as they talked.
Higa placed a hand on his lip, digging deep into his brain to recall what had happened and why the staff needed them. "Remember when you left home early to cook for your little sister because your dad was at work?" Higa began, "Yeah, we the school had a chemical leak and had to fix it themselves, hence the hazmat suits."
"ah, so that's why," He scratched his head, sighing as well in blatant annoyance. "Hey, could you stop narrating it's getting creepy" Aoto growled up to me, his eyes darting in my direction. "I'm not a damn animal I don't growl!" He growled again. Annoyed, he sighed and walked down the hall as Higa confusingly followed behind him. At last, after at least three minutes of silence, they reached the closet.
"I'll try to pick the lock" Higa volunteered, placing a hand on his waist before his other pointed at himself with his thumb. "You just wait here until-" he didn't get to finish his sentence when he started hearing thumps in the distance.
"What's that?!" Higa asked in confusion, backing up as he was suddenly more on guard then he was previously. "Shit." Aoto backed up with an alerting look on his face.
"It's the janitor...Let's hope he's human.." Aoto warned. The air pulsed with each weighty thud, the sound of heavy footsteps echoing in the silence. The footsteps reverberated, each step sending a shiver through the surroundings, and through both of their spines. They had brought a few melee weapons with them and could only fight him 2v1 up close if he was a zombie.
As the Janitor crept over the corner, you could see his pale, distorted fingers. A sense of dread enveloped their bodies with each approaching step, the unsettling sound of joints grinding against each other echoed through the air, sending shivers down Higa's spine.
"I-I'll buy you some time!" Aoto yelled as he rushed toward Bob, though he had stopped dead in his tracks, it was just something about the aura the thing gave off. It wasn't just the fact he was muscularly defined, the passage of time seemed to slow within the deadly aura, as if the very fabric of reality resisted progress.
"Damn it." Aoto thought. "How the hell am I supposed to go up against that?!". He put on the knuckles he brought, the silver glaring in the singular light of the hallway, and took a deep breath, as he breathed he thought of everything that had happened up till now.
The wave, supposedly, happened because of the lab, but the people who were hit from afar weren't turned. So why is Bob zombified? And why are people who weren't turned away being eaten? Just as he opened his eyes Bob was staring at him, sniffing him.
Before Aoto, caught in the maelstrom, senses an immediate shock wave radiating through his body stemming from his gut. The once-familiar environment blurred, creating a visual distortion like a brief daze.
"Fuck!" Aoto yelled, nearly vomiting from the impact. At the same time, there was ringing that drowned out the sounds of Higa yelling his name, plunging the Aoto into a momentary episode of deafening silence. The world seems muted, distant, as if the impact has his perception of the environment.
"Why didn't he bite me?" He thought. Aoto, despite the dizziness and pain, gathered himself. And then it hit him, Those who were hit by the wave were the only ones getting eaten, which could theoretically mean they're also the only ones who wither when they touch the roses.
Since Bob was sniffing him, the people who were hit by the waves, or preferably the survivors must, have a certain aroma to make them appetizing. Since Aoto had never gotten hit by the wave, the zombies don't recognize him as food. Therefore making him a threat for them to beat to death…
Aoto took a breath again, this time keeping his eyes open, he was doing calculations, Size of the hall, and length "the zombies seem to have heightened strength even if the janitor is jacked he couldn't have hit me that far by himself. Assuming his speed is the same it would take at least half a second for him to get to me" Aoto thought, watching the brute.
Meanwhile, with Himari and Carla in the cafeteria, they had a bag full of medical tools, food, beverages, and more. They had been pretty well off and even found a few jackpots with emergency food.
Carla turned around, her hands appearing to be shaking as she held a fairly large bag in her arms and asked, "W-what if we don't make it out of this alive? You know, most high schoolers don't even end up making it out on the first day.."
Himari, a bit startled by the question, did her best to comfort the seemingly distressed girl, "don't think like that! we'll make it out!". Carla looked out of the first floor where the roses grew and completely. "We'll meet Aoto and Higa outside, they should be finished by now" She yelled as they made their way to the front doors of the school.
"A-are you sure? The janitor's closet is on the top floor. It'll take a very long time-" Carla was interrupted by the glass door shutting and locking behind her with a loud ring with Himari locked inside. The loud noise reverberated though the area, attracting the attention of everyone in the area, and regrettably, most of the undead in the area.
The emotional tone shifted with each creak and groan as they approached, heightening the sense of impending danger.
Aoto peeped the loud noise, his eyes darting toward the lower floor's window, counting the zombies in the area as he bit his lip.
You see, one true nature shows in a moment of absolute desperation. Whether you are selfish or selfless all depends on your true character. Aoto, losing his train of thought as the janitor approached him at speeds no regular human could see.
Maybe Mach 1, no, it was utterly impossible, too absurd for a human body to handle that speed...and yet, could it be? Aoto could only think of one thing, one singular thought that echoed in his mind. He readied his stance as that though's echo became a deafening ring, the only thing he had been thinking was 'Jump'.
Aoto looked at Bob as he approached him at max speed, grabbing his forearm as the berserk janitor lunged at the boy, he tightened his grip and flipped over onto his back, causing him to break through the window. Aoto grabbed onto the collar of his shirt for extra security as they fell 3 or 4 stories, Aoto's figure overlapping the sun as if he were a god on a cloud descending onto the earth for the masses and non-believers to see.
Bob's body hit the ground; there's a subtle vibration in the air as the impact reverberates, sending shock waves through the surroundings. Even from a distance, there's an imaginary tactile sensation, a sense of the ground shuddering in response to the force. Aoto was still standing, his face serious, slightly turning around to see if the startled Carla was alright.
"Are you hurt?" He asked. His voice was kind yet his eyes struck her like a sickle to the ribs.
"Y-Yes I'm good" Carla answered. As intimidating as the sight was, she was relieved to see his face, she felt...safe; it was as if that dread quickly vanished as she stared at Aoto's figure.
As the hoard slowly approached them, Aoto braced himself "God, I should've gone for a bigger jackpot for life insurance.." He looked over at the audience and smiled slightly.
"That's for me to know" He rustled her hair before he turned back around, facing the zombies, and smirked once more stretching as they closed in. "Looks Like Hell Came To Earth," Aoto couldn't help but cover his mouth with his palm, holding back a bit of a snicker