"This situation is already fucked up, so I doubt you can make it worse." Max snaps as he crosses arms over his chest. His eyes are locked on the younger soldier, waiting for him to explain.
The younger soldier glances at Matt's lifeless body, watching blood soak the carpet before turning back to meet Max's gaze. "Well…uh…" He stammers as he shifts uncomfortably on his feet, his eyes flicking between the group and the body on the floor.
"Like my companion said…we…we don't know everything." He admits, his voice low, as if he is afraid someone is listening. "All that command said is that it started in Northern Minnesota…something broke out of a Government research site…"
Zephyr's head jerks up at that. "Wait. What facility?"
"Site-13." The older soldier answers.
Zephyr's blood runs cold at the news, his face draining with color. "Site 13…" He mutters, barely loud enough for anyone to hear.
The room falls into an uneasy silence, only occasionally broken by howls and moans of whatever lurks outside.
"So quickly summarized," The younger soldier speaks up again. "We haven't been told anything. Just something got loose. We got reports from towns located close to the facility of people attacking each other like they've become fucking animals!"
"Then what happened to the SWAT teams they said about on the radio?" Max questions, pushing himself off the wall. "They said SWAT teams were sent out to the 'riots'", He does air quotes when he says 'riots'.
"I'd say they're almost certainly dead," Luna replies. "And were probably much worse off than those at the concert."
The soldiers glance at each other, sharing a look of agreement between them.
Raven hugs her knees in the corner, clearly still horrified by the events of the last hour. "So nobody knows how to deal with these monsters?" She questions. "So the whole of the States is doomed?"
"They're not monsters!" The younger soldier blurts out, but immediately backpedals. "I-I uh mean…We don't know what they are. They keep moving even if we shoot in the heart, their only weak point seems to be the head."
"Zombies, they're zombies." Connor's voice cuts through the room like a knife through butter.
Everyone looks over at the barely awake young adult, all skeptical of his blunt assessment.
The silence that settles over them is heavier this time as everyone processes Connor's words.
"You're barely awake kid," The older soldier speaks up, a hint of frustration in his voice. "You're talking nonsense."
"N-No," Connor sits fully upright, leaning against the back of the couch. "That's what they are. Look at what we know; striking the brain is the only thing that takes them down, biting means infection and they're hungry for flesh. This is textbook zombie apocalypse stuff!"
Both soldiers shift uncomfortably, even the older one cannot deny that Connor has a point. These things behave a lot like zombies.
"I didn't sign up for this kind of war…" The younger soldier mumbles.
"Connor," Luna mutters under her breath, rubbing her temples. "Zombies are fictional. Do you want me to spell it out? F-i-c-t-i-o-n-a-l! Fake!"
Connor doesn't have the courage to argue back so he keeps quiet.
Zephyr hasn't said a word since Site-13 was mentioned, his face pale and his gaze distant, that is until Max notices it and addresses it.
"Zeph? You okay dude?" He asks gently, stepping closer to the Greek, who looks him in the eyes.
"Site 13…" Zephyr begins, his voice low and trembling. "Remember I told y-you guys about my dad having to go to The States for work? I-I'm pretty certain it was Site-13…"
He takes a deep, shaky breath before looking up at the soldiers. "Please tell me if anyone made it out…I need to know if he's okay…" His voice cracks slightly as his mind starts racing with worst-case scenarios.
The older soldier looks at Zephyr for a good long while. "What's your last name?" He then asks, his voice taking on a concerned tone.
"Ryder" Zephyr responds.
The older soldier's face darkens. "So far we know only one person made it out, their last name was Walker."
Silence fills the room. Zephyr's lips part, but no sound comes out. His bangs cover his eyes, not allowing anyone to see the tears that are swelling in his eyes.
"No…" His voice is barely audible as it starts to break. "No…no, no, no…"
He pulls his knees against his chest, resting his head on his knees before wrapping his arms around them as he starts to quietly sob.
Raven looks on with quiet sympathy. Max takes a step forward like he wants to comfort Zephyr, but he stops himself, realizing nothing can make this better.
Even the older soldier looks at Zephyr with sympathy, his stoic expression faltering.
Connor scoots closer to Zephyr, placing a hand on his best friend's shoulder, gently rubbing it. "
Zeph?" He calls out softly.
Zephyr slightly glances up at Connor, who gently brushes the bangs aside, revealing the Greek's tearful eyes. Connor gives him a reassuring smile and pulls Zephyr into a side hug.
Rather than resisting the embrace, Zephyr leans into Connor's shoulder, finding comfort as his head rests there, his sobs muffled against his best friend's shoulder. The others stay quiet, allowing Connor to calm him down.
Raven finally moves, getting up and walking to the duo before kneeling down in front of Zephyr.
"You're not alone," She smiles reassuringly. "We've got you, okay?"
Zephyr gives a small nod as he clings on Connor, who smiles gently, keeping him in the hug.
Silence fills the room, occasionally broken by Zephyr's sobbing which eventually turns into small sniffles as he gains his composure.
"We should all rest," Max finally says. "We've been going non-stop this entire day, and besides, it helps pass the time till help arrives." He tries to sound optimistic, but deep down, he isn't so sure.
The others nod. "We'll take turns taking a watch. I'll go first, we'll swap shifts every few hours." The older soldier responds.
One by one, everyone settles down, either on the couches or the floor, using their jackets or hoodie as a makeshift blanket.
Deep, guttural growls and snarls echo through the building with the occasional scream or the sound of something heavy being dragged across the venue's hallway floor as the group does their best to sleep.
After a while, Connor, who is still awake as his mind is racing about today's events, suddenly hears the older soldier speaking quietly.
"Angel, can I talk to you for a moment?"
The younger soldier's voice replies quickly after, sounding a bit tired. "Of course."
Connor doesn't pick up much more than that, his mind returning to his own world until he falls asleep.
A few hours later, Connor softly gets shaken awake. He opens his eyes and turns around to see Luna standing there, her hand on his shoulder, holding a flashlight in her other hand. "Come on, get up; it's your turn to keep watch." She tells him in a quiet but firm tone.
Connor blinks a few times before rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He then grabs his glasses from his hoodie pocket and puts it on, his blurry sight snapping into clarity as soon as he does so.
Luna hands him the flashlight. "Battery's low," She tells him in a hushed voice. "Only use it when necessary."
Connor nods, still half asleep as he drags himself to his feet. Luna walks back to her corner and goes back to sleep, leaving Connor the only one awake.
He carefully steps over the sleeping bodies, trying to not wake anyone up, and sits down next to the door, the only place where nobody is sleeping.
The once lively town was now dead silent, a huge contrast to how it was when he and his friends arrived here. He remembers how animated it was in the bar alone the night previous.
Now, it's quiet, sometimes broken by the footsteps of those things walking around and the occasional scream or guttural scream.
Letting out a sigh, Connor pulls out his phone, which still has service and unlocks it, the blue light a soft comfort for the young adult.
Wanting a distraction, he opens the application 'Clash Royale' and the starting up sound emits from out his phone.
In a moment of panic, he turns his phone off as a screech emits from somewhere around him. He hears a few pairs of footsteps running through the building, but whatever it was can't seem to track the origin of the sound and the footsteps quickly turn back into soft footsteps you'd hear when someone walks around.
Connor lets out a sigh of relief as the tension in his shoulders fades. "That was pretty darn stupid…" He quietly murmurs to himself.
Some time passes when he suddenly hears soft footsteps close by and he quickly turns on the flashlight, shining in the direction the sound came from, just to see Zephyr. His eyes are red and puffy, but the crying has long ceased.
"You're supposed to be resting, dude," Connor whispers, half annoyed, half concerned.
Zephyr just shrugs, not saying a word as he flops down next to Connor. The two just sit in a comfortable silence for a while.
"You think he is really gone?" Zephyr finally asks, his voice hoarse and quiet.
Connor hesitates for a moment. "I don't know…" He answers honestly before trying to comfort him. "But one thing I do know; he's the cause of one of the best people I know."
Zephyr doesn't say anything, he just nods, but Connor can see a small smile appearing on his face for a moment before it vanishes.
Another minute passes before Connor nudges Zephyr's elbow. "You know, I thought the end of the world would be something like AI taking over, climate change or the world being fucking obliterated in World War 3. Hell, even aliens sound more believable."
Zephyr snorts. "A zombie outbreak is unbelievable to you, a zombie fanatic, yet aliens are a possibility?"
"Who says these aren't just aliens possessing humans?" Connor playfully retorts and both have to stifle their laughter, finding the idea amusing, regardless of the hell they're going through.
After they quiet down, Connor looks at Zephyr. "You know, just a day ago we were bragging in the bar that we had a gig here, and now we're just in a knock off version of The Walking Dead."
"Which knockoff show, though? All Of Us Are Dead?" Zephyr questions, his upset mood having evaporated.
"Nah, that one was pretty good. I'm talking about something like Black Summer, the second season especially!" Connor gives a tired smile.
Zephyr stays quiet for a beat before breaking the silence. "You know, if you told me like a month ago that a zombie apocalypse would break out at our first gig, and I'd be crying on your shoulder, I'd be sure you were smoking weed."
Connor chuckles. "And I'd snap back with that you were long overdue for that cry. I don't remember the last time you cried." He retorts playfully. He loves bantering with Zephyr and is glad he has calmed down.
The Greek punches his Dutch friend's arm lightly. "Asshole"
"Love you too, man"
Another pause.
Zephyr shifts, resting his arms on his knees. "Do you think the others are okay? Like back in Europe? Our family, friends."
"I don't think it has gone global yet, so there's still hope, but I don't wanna think about it…"
Zephyr gives a small nod. "Yeah makes sense"
The sound of someone stirring draws their attention. They look and see Max turning around in his sleep, muttering something incoherently, but he doesn't wake up.
Zephyr looks back at Connor. "Thanks…for comforting me. You didn't need to."
Connor shrugs a bit. "You'd do the same. Besides, friends have to be there for each other!"
The two sit together, shoulder against shoulder, enjoying each other's presence. With those fiends' absence, it feels like they have something normal to hold on to; their friendship.
Suddenly the sound of gunshots break through the silence, immediately putting the two on high alert.
The shots also alert the others, the two soldiers instantly sitting up while Luna tries to go back to sleep, muttering something along the lines of "just a few more minutes…"
Max slowly sits up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes while Raven cracks her back.
"The hell was that?" She asks with a sleepy voice.
"Gunshots" Zephyr replies as he and Connor both get to their feet.
The group listens for a moment before more gunshots emit, along with some angered moans, growls, and footsteps from all around the building. The sounds are loud enough to finally wake up Luna, who mutters some curses under her breath, looking at the time on her phone and seeing how early it is.
"You think more units have been sent in?" Angel asks the older soldier as he grabs his rifle.
Before the older soldier can respond, the radio that was on his belt crackles to life before a deep, slightly distorted voice comes through.
"H-hello?"