The brief numbness from the adrenaline faded like a receding tide, and intense pain instantly flooded every nerve in Sam's body. He felt like a broken toy, violently dismantled and then haphazardly pieced back together. Every breath tugged at fractured ribs, and the searing pain of torn muscles made it almost impossible to stand. His legs felt like pillars filled with agony as they supported his body to run.
"BANG! BANG! BANG!" John, leaning against the office building entrance, fired the last few rounds from his Glock pistol at the zombies pouring into the hallway from outside, momentarily holding them back. He hadn't chosen the stairs, knowing Sam's current state made climbing impossible. He spun around abruptly, grabbed the heavy wooden door of what looked like a security office nearby, and practically dragged Sam inside. He slipped in himself and slammed the door shut with all his might.
"Click!" John quickly turned the lock, then immediately scanned the room. He spotted a large wooden desk and chair inside. "Partner, together!" he grunted. Both men, gritting their teeth against their respective pains, began to push the heavy desk, wedging it against the door. Immediately, the frantic pounding and snarling of zombies echoed from the other side. The relentless THUD! THUD! THUD! hammered against their nerves like a drumbeat.
Temporarily shielded from the direct threat outside, Sam finally couldn't hold himself up any longer and slid down the wall to the floor. With the adrenaline completely gone, the accumulated agony erupted like a volcano. He clenched his jaw tightly, veins bulging on his forehead, his body trembling uncontrollably from the intense pain. Even so, he forced himself to look up, his gaze wary and scrutinizing, towards John, who was also leaning against the wall gasping for breath, right hand clamped tightly over his bitten shoulder.
The office filled with the sound of their ragged breathing and the incessant, horrifying banging and snarling from outside. The dead air felt thick, each second stretching into an eternity.
John leaned against the wall, looking down at the gruesome bite mark on his right shoulder with a bitter smile – the skin around the wound was already taking on an unnatural purplish-blue hue, several swollen veins twisting beneath it like worms. He took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, trying to break the suffocating silence with a touch of dark humor:
"You know… partner," his voice was raspy, "sometimes I think you joined the wrong line of work. You should've joined the Marines. Then you could be sitting comfortably in an armored vehicle right now, using a heavy machine gun… to turn those… uh, what were they called again?… Right, 'zombies', into paste."
"The Marines? Spare me," Sam managed a grimace, the pain making even speaking difficult. "I can't handle waking up at 0400, let alone eating those crappy MREs every day." He glanced at the clearly worsening wound on John's shoulder, then lightly patted the pistol on his own thigh. "So… what's your plan? Need… help? If you can't bring yourself to do it."
John's gaze flickered around the room – there was another closed door on the side, likely leading to an inner corridor. No zombie noises came from that direction for now. But he didn't answer Sam's question, just pressed harder on his bitten shoulder. The muscle underneath felt like it had a mind of its own now, twitching and burning. He could feel a strange, violent 'vitality' spreading rapidly through his body, like soup heating up fast on an induction cooker, about to boil over.
"Partner… if it were you," John's voice trembled with pain and suppressed emotion. He struggled to lift his head and look at Sam. "What would you do?"
"Me?" Sam answered almost without hesitation, with brutal honesty. "I'd probably take the gamble. Bet that I have some natural immunity, that I won't die." Of course, he didn't mention that even if he did turn, he'd hope, right up until his consciousness faded, that he'd become some kind of super-powered zombie variant, maybe even regain his senses eventually.
"Heh… I won't be that lucky…" John gave a pained chuckle. His trembling left hand reached into the inner pocket of his uniform jacket, fumbling until it retrieved an old photograph, its edges worn white. He lowered his head, his dark, rough fingers tracing the smooth surface over and over, cherishingly.
"Partner… what did you say happens… after you get bitten?" John asked, his voice raspy.
"Probably…" Sam didn't describe the horrific transformation directly. Instead, he mimicked the monsters outside—making guttural "uhh… ahh…" noises from his throat, his eyes glazing over, reaching out with stiff, aimlessly grasping fingers. "…like this." He demonstrated the end of life and the beginning of another 'existence' with an almost comical imitation.
"Ha… well that's… stupid and ugly." Unexpectedly, watching Sam's clumsy performance, John managed a weak smile, a mixture of pain and acceptance. He tremblingly held up the photo he'd been clutching, turning it towards Sam. "Take a look, these are my treasures. My wife, Michelle, and my little Tanya… Look from a distance, I can't guarantee I won't suddenly lunge and bite you."
Even from a few feet away, Sam could make out the gentle smile on the face of the curly-haired Black woman in the photo, and next to her, a little Black girl pouting slightly, looking a bit unhappy but still incredibly cute. In the picture, John and his wife were lovingly touching little Tanya's head together.
"That day… at the amusement park, we were supposed to get ice cream," John's eyes softened immensely, lost in the memory. "But the line at the shop was too long, we didn't get any. My little Tanya didn't cry, surprisingly, just looked a bit put out… Just then, one of those street photographers came by, so we took this picture." He gently brushed his finger over his daughter's pouting face on the photo. "She has lots of smiling pictures, but this one's my favorite. So real, like a little grown-up… So cute."
"Of course, this is the only one I carry, can't give it to you." He turned the photo back towards himself protectively, gazing at it deeply one last time.
"Listen, Sam, if… if you make it out of here alive, and you run into my family… please tell them…" John's voice started to break. He ran a hand through his hair, struggling to find the words. "Damn it, it's so hard... thinking of the last words of my life is really damn hard..."
"Lend me a bullet, partner." Suddenly, John looked up. His eyes were completely bloodshot now, veins standing out. His body was convulsing violently from the virus's progression and the suppressed agony. But the uninjured hand holding the photograph was remarkably steady.
Sam watched him silently, ejected a single, gleaming brass bullet from the spare magazine in his pocket, and gently tossed it to John.
With trembling but precise fingers, John caught the bullet, painstakingly pressed it into his Glock's magazine, then racked the slide forcefully, the mechanism clicking sharply. He pressed the muzzle against his own temple, then looked at Sam, his eyes holding a pre-release calm. "Partner… go through that door. I think… I want to spend a little more time with my family." He gestured towards the side door leading to the inner corridor, which was still quiet for now.
Sam didn't say anything more. The frantic pounding on the main office door was getting louder, more intense; the ordinary wooden door could give way at any moment. He gave John one last deep look, nodded, and left the office, thick with the scent of impending death, to the man who chose to end things on his own terms, as a human.
Just as Sam was about to pull open the side door, John's final words reached him from behind, tinged with an exhausted relief. He chose a very cliché line, like something from an old movie, as his epitaph:
"…Just tell them I love them."
"And… partner, even though it was only one day… it was good working with you."
Sam's steps faltered for a moment. Ultimately, he didn't turn back, just nodded again, pulled the door open, and disappeared into the darkness beyond.
System Notification: Rescue the Elementary Students Mission Completed. Total Reward 32 x 10 = 320 Hope Points.
The pale blue prompt box floated in Sam's vision, confirming the children's safe evacuation. ["That fast? Miller really put the pedal to the metal."] Sam thought briefly. At least the kids were safe for now.
He had just pulled open the side door leading to the inner corridor, not even fully stepping through, when a muffled but decisive gunshot echoed from behind him—BANG.
Sam's steps froze, his body stiffening for an instant. He didn't turn back, just unconsciously raised a hand and lightly touched the cold badge on his chest. ["…Partner."] He whispered inwardly, a complex, unidentifiable emotion welling up inside him.
Just then, the pale blue panel popped up again uninvited:
System Mission Updated: Rescue Family Member Objective: Find and rescue John's daughter, Tanya, trapped in their home. Mission Reward: +300 Hope Points. Failure Penalty: -150 Hope Points. Time Limit: 71 hours 59 minutes 58 seconds
["His daughter's at home?! Wait… just the daughter? What about his wife? And there's a time limit? Three days?"] A cascade of cold information flooded Sam's brain, each piece carrying ominous implications. But what made him feel even more absurdly annoyed right now was—["Where the hell does John live?! I don't even know the address! Is this mission popping up now just to fuck with me?!"]
He swung a frustrated fist at the semi-transparent panel in front of him; of course, his fist passed right through. Sam took a deep breath. Now wasn't the time for other thoughts. With a hint of uncertainty and experimentation, he mentally recited: "Exchange List."
As soon as the thought formed, the panel before his eyes instantly switched, morphing into something resembling a game store or skill menu interface:
Temporary Exchange List (Low Tier Access) Activated. Enhancement Category Source: Zombie Crisis
Category: Basic Enhancement (Based on current world human genetic template)
Comprehensive Physical Enhancement: 1200 Hope Points
Strength Specialization: 500 Hope Points
Agility Specialization: 500 Hope Points
Perception Specialization: 500 Hope Points
Category: Mutation Enhancement
(Insufficient access level, locked)
Sam's gaze fell on the panel nearby, which clearly displayed his current balance: 1395 Hope Points.
Sam looked at the "Comprehensive Physical Enhancement" option, which resembled a supermarket combo deal, priced at a hefty 1200 points. Although the other specialized enhancements looked cheaper, the word "Comprehensive," along with its significantly higher price, seemed to imply a more well-rounded improvement. Now wasn't the time for penny-pinching.
["Hope this thing isn't a piece of crap…"] Sam used his finger to tap it. Actually, he didn't know how to make an exchange this way. In fact, when he extended his finger, he felt he was being foolish, because this blue panel seemed to be displayed on his eyes.
But, in that instant, the panel before his eyes rippled violently, like the surface of water disturbed by a stone. Countless lines of text he couldn't possibly read fast enough, filled with various biological terms and data streams, scrolled down like a waterfall:
[Selection Detected: Comprehensive Physical Enhancement... Access Confirmed... Hope Points Deducted... Enhancement Protocol Initiated...]
[Bone Density Fortification in progress... Osteocyte Activity Increased... Material Structure Reorganization...]
[Cardiovascular System Optimization... Vascular Wall Resilience Enhanced... Hemodynamic Efficiency Improved... Myocardial Fiber Reinforcement... Structural Adaptation Underway...]
[Mitochondrial Function Augmentation... ATP Synthesis Rate Increased... Single Energy Release Threshold Elevated...]
[Red Blood Cell Oxygen Capacity Enhanced... White Blood Cell Phagocytosis Efficiency Increased... Platelet Coagulation Factor Optimized...]
[Muscle Fiber Remodeling... Muscle Bundle Density Increased... Muscle Fiber Resilience and Explosive Power Synchronously Enhanced... Nerve Conduction Velocity Optimized...]
[Sensory System Baseline Augmentation... Pain Threshold Adjusted... Cellular Repair Efficiency Increased...]
[...]
With every line of text that flashed by, Sam felt an earth-shattering transformation occurring within his body. It was an indescribable sensation, as if every cell in his body was thrown into a furnace, broken down, reshaped, and reforged in fire. Intense surges of energy, like high-voltage currents, coursed wildly through him, from the surface of his skin deep into his bone marrow. There was pain, yes, but stronger still was an ecstatic, violent feeling of rebirth, like breaking out of a chrysalis. He could clearly 'hear' his bones emitting fine, crackling sounds, like bamboo growing rapidly, could 'feel' his muscle fibers tearing and reweaving themselves into a more powerful form. He felt like a deflated balloon instantly filled with high-pressure gas, every inch of muscle brimming with explosive power.
When the frantically scrolling text finally stopped, leaving only a concise notification: Comprehensive Enhancement (Level 1) Complete. Current Hope Points Remaining: 195. Next Level Enhancement Cost: 2500 Hope Points. Single Stat Enhancement (Strength/Agility/Perception) Cost: 1000 Hope Points. Category: Mutation Enhancement
(Insufficient access level, locked)
Sam shot up from the floor. Just moments ago, the agony that had tortured him—the stabbing pain of broken ribs, the burning ache of torn muscles—vanished as if it had never existed. Replacing it was an unprecedented feeling of power. He could clearly feel the surging strength within him, his senses sharpened incredibly; he could even hear the faint scratching sound coming from a room somewhere upstairs. Right now, he felt more like a real 'monster' himself.
"Haah… huff…" Sam couldn't help but gasp for air, not from exhaustion, but from the slight euphoria and unfamiliarity of his body suddenly possessing immense power. He clenched his fists, feeling the power that seemed almost ready to overflow.
He hadn't lingered downstairs for long. Just as he was experiencing his 'rebooted' body, the distinct snarls and heavy footsteps characteristic of zombies echoed clearly from upstairs—something was coming down.
Sam looked up towards the dark stairwell leading upwards. Instead of fear, a cold, almost bloodthirsty smirk touched the corner of his lips.
He began to move, stepping onto the stairs.
He was even… getting a little excited.