Outskirts of the city of Lyon, southeast France, April 16, 2030 — 9:40 PM
Lyris was panicked and distraught, seeing Lorane surrounded by those little girls with white eyes. Paralyzed by fear, she could not move. A visceral rage seized him. He grabbed a large stone and smashed it against the window of a car.
—I promised you..., he thought briefly, before the gaunt horde lunged toward him, their gaping maws ready to devour him.
Lyris darted into the car and ducked his head so as not to look at their hideous faces. Very quickly, the horde pressed around the vehicle, frantically scraping at the windows which cracked dangerously.
—LYRIS! shouted Lorane from a distance.
He could no longer see her, only hear the echoes of her distant voice. The horror of the situation was almost paralyzing, but he gritted his teeth. Courage overcame his fear.
—LORANE! RUN! DON'T LOOK BACK, I'LL FIND A WAY OUT!
The zombies, excited, redoubled their attacks. The glass trembled under their blows.
—But, Lyris..., she murmured.
—DO WHAT I TELL YOU, LORANE! If you stay here, we'll both die. Please, run...
Lyris no longer heard her voice after a few minutes. A faint smile formed on his face. He knew he had lied to her to protect her. He had accepted his fate.
Lyris no longer heard her voice after a few minutes. A faint smile formed on his face. He knew he had lied to her to protect her. He had accepted his fate.
—Huh...?
Suddenly he felt another presence envelop him that chilled his blood, a dark, mischievous aura delighting in his suffering. He no longer heard the frantic growls. Slowly lifting his eyes, he noticed the infected being drawn elsewhere. In the distance he saw a migrant family, considered too "useless" and poor to have access to the safe zone. They were becoming the new prey of the starving.
Lyris climbed out of the ruined car and hid behind it, one hand over his mouth to stifle a cry of terror. He watched the scene, helpless.
—Help! Someone, please, come help us!
A disoriented man, armed with a club, tried to defend his wife and two children. He struck an infected in the head, but the creature, unfazed, seized his arm with brutal force. The man was dragged into the horde. His cries of pain and terror were heard as his body was slowly devoured by the monsters.
With eyes clouded by tears, Lyris clenched his fists and struck the ground in rage and helplessness.
It was a punishment, a grotesque torment orchestrated for him; each cry and each tear of that family echoed in the heart of the adolescent that Lyris still was.
—Mariam, run!, the man screamed, his voice broken by pain, but his last look was for his family, his smile full of sacrifice.
Lyris could not hear what Mariam answered, but he guessed the anger and desolation on her trembling lips.
—Lyris!, a female voice rose out of the darkness.
Lorane suddenly appeared, grabbing his hand and pulling him away from that nightmare. They ran without stopping. She squeezed his hand tightly, trying to hold back her tears, her eyes full of remorse and regret.
Southeast France, Saint-Cyr-au-Mont-d'Or, April 16, 2030 — 10:45 PM
More than an hour later, the pair reached the top of the Mont d'Or hill. Lorane, in tears, pointed to the horizon. She wanted to show Lyris the stars, but the only thing they could see was a city in flames — Lyon — given over to chaos.
—Lyris... I'm so sorry... I only wanted to see the outside... I should never have done this... I left that prison so we would live through hell..., she said in a trembling voice, dropping to her knees, her hands covering her face. She bit her lips to stifle her sobs.
Lyris sat beside her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.
—Lorane... You wanted to see the outside, right? Why regret it? We all thought the zombies were mostly to the north... And you know... even in this hell, I swear I'll stay for you...
Those words weighed on his conscience. Weak and scrawny though he was, Lyris was a determined young man shaped like a hero.
—Lyris, you're right — you already are, and I...
She took advantage of the moment to hold Lyris in her arms.
—This world is hell... But as long as you're here... I keep hope.
she said with a tearful, comforting smile.
—Still... the soldiers lied to us... They said the whole city was secured, but they abandoned the others... Those who are useless to them, they leave to those monsters...
said Lorane.
A cold thought ran through Lyris's mind. His mother. Was she, too, left to the infected and the soldiers like Léo? Without waiting, he took Lorane's hand and started to run.
—MOOOOOOM! he screamed, panic in his voice, heading toward Lyon's 1st arrondissement.