CHAPTER 35 — Into the Dead Mall
Elion — POV
The deeper we drove into the city, the worse everything became.
Cars packed together like some had tried to flee and never made it. Some storefronts had collapsed inward, smoke stains trailed up brick walls. A scattering of zombies wandered the streets—slow, twitchy, unfocused—but hungry.
I tightened my grip on the steering wheel.
"Eyes up," I murmured.
Rea already had her gun raised. Delilah rested her hand on her blade. Alexiy curled closer behind my seat.
Meso, meanwhile, pointed cheerfully at my windshield like a GPS with attitude.
"Left up ahead," she said. "The mall's about half a mile from here. It has a big parking lot. And expect zombies. Possibly survivors... If they're alive, they'll either be grateful or hostile~" She said to relaxed at the idea idea of killing others... If anything she sounded almost excited at the idea.
"That's comforting," Alexiy muttered.
Meso smirked. "Statistically speaking, humans are worse than zombies."
"Statistically speaking," I said dryly, "your statistics suck. But If we come across survivors let me do the talking. I'll decided if we fight or flee or we could even exchange info, if they know anything."
"Okay~" she agreed without shame. "But they're never wrong."
Before I could answer, a zombie staggered into the road—thin, twisted, its jaw loose.
I didn't brake.
Instead, I reached inward and flicked my gravity control into a narrow field extending just beyond the SUV's hood. Telekinesis braided through it instinctively, stabilizing the distortions so the vehicle wouldn't jerk.
The air shimmered— barely visible, but dense. A compressed pocket of directional gravity.
The zombie stepped inside the zone and—
WHUD—
Its body slammed flat onto the pavement as if crushed by a falling slab. The SUV rolled over it with barely a bump.
Rea blinked. Delilah raised a brow. Alexiy looked impressed and slightly alarmed.
Meso just grinned.
"You're improving your control. Elon you're so efficient, so elegant. It's mildly terrifying~"
"You say that like it's a compliment."
"It is."
More zombies stumbled toward us, drawn by the engine's noise. Every time one got close, it collapsed face-first as the gravity field crushed it, making the zombies trip and fall and lay face down in the road until we passed.
By the time we reached the mall's massive parking lot, the SUV's tires were streaked with gray and red smears and half the undead in the area were plastered to the asphalt behind us.
The lot itself was a graveyard of abandoned cars.
Dozens—maybe hundreds— sat scattered or piled up. Windshields shattered. Doors pried open. Shopping carts overturned. A half-burned sedan still smoldered faintly.
And far beyond them—
The mall loomed.
A huge three-story structure with a cracked glass facade, banners ripped and flapping weakly in the cold wind.
"Definitely zombies," Meso said, tapping her tablet. "I'm reading heat signatures inside. And some movement on the second floor."
"Movement?" Alexiy asked.
"Humanoid?" Meso said. "Probably survivors. Hard to say if they're friendly or feral."
I pulled into a semi-clear section of the lot, at the entrance of the mall, better to have the car in a place ready for a easy exit. I cut the engine.
Silence swallowed us.
"All right," I said. "Let's move. Keep your guards up."
We cracked the SUV doors silently and stepped out.
The air was colder here, heavy with dust and the faint sour smell of rot. Shuffling moans echoed from somewhere inside the mall's glass entrance—which had been smashed long ago.
Rea motioned forward. Delilah flanked her.
The two women moved like professionals: fast, quiet, efficient. Rea shot one zombie through the eye. Delilah decapitated another in a single, smooth motion. Meso also fired a shot through a zombies head and it exploded like a watermelon.
We slipped inside.
The interior was dim, lit only by weak emergency lights and whatever daylight filtered in through broken windows. Escalators stood frozen. The air was thick with the smell of mildew and copper.
Somewhere deeper inside, a zombie moaned. Something metallic clattered. Alexiy shivered and stepped up next to me.
"All right," I whispered. "Let's stay close but, split by tasks. Stay within the first floor for now, and scream if there's something you can't handle. Meso, directions?"
She nodded.
"There are a few clothing stores here. A toy store is directly across from it. General supplies down the west wing."
"And after this?" Rea asked.
"The hospital," Meso said. "Then the warehouse, then the water treatment supply."
"Good," I said. "Stay alert. Don't get separated."
We slipped into the shattered front of the clothing shop. Displays overturned, mannequins broken, clothing scattered everywhere.
Rea held position at the front while the rest of us looted.
I grabbed durable pants, jackets, boots, socks—anything that would survive the apocalypse. Alexiy started picking out shirts for herself… then hesitated at a dark jacket and held it up against me.
"I think this would look good on you…" she murmured.
The blush was immediate once she realized what she said.
I stored the jacket without comment, hiding a smile.
Meso, meanwhile, plucked a sleek black coat off a mannequin.
"This one's my style," she said cheerfully. "And sexy."
I didn't bother commenting. We simply grabbed a bunch of clothes going from shop to shop. We shoveled clothes in the black wash bags and then I tosses the bags full of cloths into my inventory.
"Girls," I said, "hit that toy shop. I think it would be a good boast for morale. And for the kids."
Meso raised a brow. "You want… toys?"
"Toys, Legos, games, puzzles. Anything to fight boredom in the bunker."
Rea nodded approvingly. Delilah immediately grabbed two heavy-duty garbage bags. Alexiy looked determined.
We entered the toy store.
It was chaos. The definition of 'colorful' and 'destroyed'.
Shelves knocked over with boxes crushed. Stuffed animals trampled an torn. Action figures scattered across the floor like debris.
"Start filling bags," I said.
And they did.
Legos, Board games, Puzzles, Dolls, Plush animals, Plastic tools, Building kits, Even the video games and game systems.
Meso tossed in a remote-control car with a grin "For testing purposes," she said.
As they continued, I slipped away quietly.
Across the mall walkway was a jewelry store— its glass cases smashed, but plenty remained intact deeper inside.
Perfect.
I stepped in, activated Shadow Veil partially, letting the corners of the room dim slightly.
Behind a counter, I found rings— Diamonds, sapphire, ruby.
Necklaces— Gold, rose gold, silver. Some simple and some very detailed with a flowers.
Bracelets, earrings, pendants.
I gathered them carefully.
Not because I wanted to sell them.
But because I knew one day, Meso and Alexiy would need something more than survival.
Something beautiful. Something normal. Something that meant they mattered to me.
Spoiling them wasn't a weakness. It was strategy. Emotional armor. After all if I spoil them then maybe they might spoil me... Thoughts of Meso straddling me and Alexiy laying in bed with me flashed through my head.
I shook my head clearing my thoughts and focused on taking eveything that looked valuable, I even went to the back of the store to get the stuff they keep locked in the safes.
Because maybe I just wanted to.
I stored everything and slipped back to the toy store before they noticed.
Nobody noticed my absence, or if they did they don't bring it up. After I out the bags of toys in by inventory making me feel like Santa rather than a robber, we made our way to the next stop the General Supply Store.
This place was a goldmine.
We grabbed:
Soap, Shampoo, Toothpaste, Toothbrushes, Deodorant, Razors, Hair ties,Feminine hygiene supplies, and a bunch of "camping gear" like: Portable stoves, Paper cups, Rope, Duct tape, Gas canisters, Batteries, Flashlights, Thermal blankets.
Then—
"Elion," Meso said, gesturing to a shelf.
On it sat four solar batteries identical to the ones she showed me were powering her bunker.
"We're taking these." Her tone was absolute.
"These alone make living easier... a lot."
I stored them immediately. I knew that if we had more power then we could even power a radio signal, since Meso told me that all her bases are connected to radio towers.
************************************
The food court looked like a slaughter scene.
Tables were overturned, and there was dried blood smeared across tiles. A single, half-eaten corpse slumped near a burger stand.
A cluster of zombies fed on something behind the trash bins.
Rea handled them. She was quick and clean. The shots always to the head.
We were making our way toward the west exit when movement flickered on the second floor balcony.
I froze.
I saw six figures. They were armed, but they looked dirty, and hungry.
Survivors.
One held a rifle. Another a crowbar. All of them looked like they'd kill without hesitation.
"Don't look up," I murmured.
Everyone kept moving.
Meso whispered, "Let's avoid them. It's too unpredictable. People in these collapsed zones are worse than the zombies."
No argument from me.
We turned into a side hallway, quiet as shadows.
We were nearly done heading back to the SUV— packs full, bags stuffed, everything looted and shoved in my Inventory— when a thunderous metallic crash erupted somewhere deeper in the mall.
The floor vibrated.
Delilah's hand snapped to her blade. "What was that?"
Rea raised her gun instantly, body taut. "Not human."
Meso smiled—an eerie, fascinated little curl of her lips—and double-checked her magazine.
"Oh, this is going to be interesting."
My bloodline hummed. I activated my skills and gravity and frost pulsed around me, waiting.
"Stay together," I whispered. "Something's coming."
We edged back toward the entrance where we parked.
The sound came again— A dragging scrape. A guttural rasp. A far heavier step than any normal zombie could make.
Something large moved behind the collapsed display racks.
I felt it before I saw it. A wrongness in the air. An instinctive ripple across my Danger Sense.
Then—
It stepped out.
A zombie, but not.
Taller than any human in the mall. It's skin gray and stretched tight over corded muscle. One arm elongated into a jagged, claw-like weapon. It's spine arched backward in a twisted curve, and it's jaw was unhinged, sharp teeth protruding from torn gums.
Its eyes—milky, but focused—locked onto us.
"…Variant." I whispered
Alexiy froze in horror. Probably thinking back to the variant we fought in the pharmacy. Delilah lowered into a stance, and Rea aimed her gun ready to shoot. Meso's pupils dilated in fascination. I had told them about the variants I'd seen, and how they were much more dangerous than they appeared.
"That," Meso breathed, "Is so big..."
The Variant hunched lower, muscles bunching like coiled steel.
I stepped forward.
Gravity thickened in the air. The tile cracked beneath my feet.
"Everyone," I said quietly, never breaking eye contact with the monster.
"Get behind me."
The Variant roared.