..
His mind was a chaotic mess of questions.
"How did I get back into my house?"
"Why was I in bed like nothing happened?"
"What brought me back?"
"Was what I saw real or a messed up hallucination?"
No answer came.
And outside… Something—or someone—was moving. Literally
..
---
Location: Earth – ??? – ???
Year: 2026
Date: February 17th
Time: 12:18 AM
POV: Third Person
---
Kai Renji "Shut up! We don't want that thing to find us" Kai whispered sharply, his voice barely audible as he led a group of three through the eerily silent streets.
The group consisted of two women and two men—their faces tight with fear, their bodies moving swiftly but cautiously.
Marcus Hale "You fucker," Marcus hissed back, his glare sharp. "You're the one making noise. If that thing finds us, I'm bailing."
Sofia Hayes "Guys, please, be silent—" Sofia cut in, her voice laced with urgency.
Then, her eyes widened. She pointed ahead.
"Look! There's an unscathed house up there!"
The group stopped in their tracks, their gazes locking onto the lone bungalow standing untouched amidst the devastation.
A safe haven?
Or a trap?
---
[ Time: 12:21 PM ]
[ POV: Third Person ]
---
Damian's dark eyes flickered as he observed the approaching group from his window. Four survivors, moving cautiously, whispering amongst themselves.
Damian Derulo 'They're looking for shelter…' he realized.
'This is clearly none of my business, but they are the only survivors I have seen so far' His fingers drummed against the window frame, as he debated.
A rational part of him urged indifference—letting them pass by without interference. But his survival will gnawed at him.
He could hear them now, their words carried by the quiet night.
..
.
Kai Renji "That house is intact," Kai whispered. "We could—"
Marcus Hale "—be walking into a death trap," Marcus interrupted, eyes darting around. "I don't like this. Why the hell is that place untouched?"
Hannah swallowed, stepping closer. "It doesn't matter. If we stay out here, we'll die. We should at least check if someone's inside."
Sofia Hayes, the fourth member, finally spoke. "She's right… But we should be careful."
They hesitated for a moment, then pressed forward, their footsteps light, cautious.
..
.
Damian's eyes narrowed.
They were too loud.
A low, almost imperceptible shift in the air made his skin prickle. He wasn't the only one who had noticed them.
Somewhere nearby, in the darker part of the silent town, something stirred.
Then—
A guttural snarl pierced the silence.
Damian stiffened.
---
Marcus froze mid-step. "Did you hear that?"
Sofia's breathing quickened, her pulse hammering in her ears.
Then, Hannah screamed.
All four turned just in time to see it.
Emerging from the shadows of a collapsed building, a towering figure stepped into the moonlight.
A zombie.
But not just any zombie.
Its gray, rotting flesh clung to a muscular frame, and its exposed ribs pulsed with unnatural energy. Its head twitched, nostrils flaring as it sniffed the air—its dull, milky-white eyes locking onto them with precision.
This wasn't some shambling corpse.
It had found them.
The four survivors froze as an overwhelming dread took hold of them.
The zombie grinned.
Its twitching, rotting face curled into a horrifying smirk, as if savoring their fear.
Then—
It launched forward.
Kai Renji "RUN!" Kai yelled.
They sprinted towards the nearest house, adrenaline pumping through their veins.
Marcus was the first to reach the door, nearly ripping it off its hinges as he barged in. The others followed in a panic, slamming the door shut behind them.
Sofia Hayes "Barricade it!" Sofia shouted, grabbing a heavy cabinet.
They shoved anything they could find—**furniture, shelves, even a fridge—**against the door, reinforcing it with everything they had.
*BANG!*
The zombie's body slammed against the door.
The entire house shook from the impact.
*BANG!* *BANG!*
It kept attacking, relentless. But the makeshift barricade held firm.
For a brief second, silence.
Then—
"GRAAHHHHHH!"
A guttural, monstrous roar tore through the streets, echoing across the ruined town.
A moment of eerie silence followed.
Then—
More roars.
Dozens.
From all directions.
The sound of the undead responding to the call.
..
.
Inside the house, panic set in.
Hannah paced frantically, her breathing erratic, her eyes darting around in terror.
Hannah Lee " we are all going to die! " she cried, collapsing onto the floor.
Kai, still catching his breath, quickly moved to her side. He knelt down, pulling her into a reassuring hug.
Kai Renji " Hannah, listen to me," he said, his voice calm but firm. " We'll get through this. We always do. There's no need to be afraid."
Hannah Lee "But we barely survived just one!" Hannah's voice cracked as she clung to his shirt. "How the hell are we supposed to fight a whole horde of them?!"
Her words hung in the air, suffocating the room with the weight of reality.
From the outside, the distant moans and shrieks of approaching zombies grew louder.
They were coming.
..
[ Time: 12:21 AM ]
..
Kai held Hannah tightly, feeling the tremors in her body slowly ease. The warmth of the embrace brought a fleeting sense of calm, dulling the ever-present fear gnawing at them.
Sofia watched from the side, her lips pressed into a thin line. A certain emotion flickered in her eyes.
She didn't say anything, but the way her fists clenched at her sides spoke volumes.
From the kitchen, Marcus strolled in, a smug grin on his face. In his hands, he carried several knives and a weed whacker.
Marcus Hale " Alright, lovebirds, check out what I found "
He dumped the weapons onto the table with a satisfied smirk.
Kai raised a brow. " Didn't you say you'd bail if things got dangerous? "
Marcus scoffed, pushing up his glasses with an awkward smile.
Marcus Hale " And leave you guys to use me as bait? Yeah, no thanks. Besides, we started this mess together, might as well see it through."
With that, Marcus knelt before the table, hovering his hands above the knives and weed whacker.
Then—
His fingers began typing in the air, as if working on an invisible keyboard.
The others watched in silence.
Something mystical happened.
The words he typed manifested from his fingertips, falling like glowing blue embers onto the weapons.
The knives on the table shimmered as inscriptions appeared across their blades.
Four knives glowed with the word [Harden], their metal darkening and thickening.
The remaining two were etched with [Sharpen], the edges gleaming with a lethal shine.
The entire process left Marcus drenched in sweat, his breathing ragged as exhaustion overtook him.
Kai quickly caught him before he collapsed. "Marcus, you okay?"
Marcus let out a shaky breath. "Y-Yeah... I'll live."
Kai studied the newly enhanced weapons. " Will these hold up better than the last ones? "
The moment he asked, Marcus slowly turned his head, glaring daggers at him.
Kai chuckled awkwardly. "Okay, okay, I take it back... What about the weed whacker?"
Marcus took a deep breath, steadying himself. "I—"
*BAM!*
A heavy impact rattled the front door.
Everyone froze.
Then—
*BAM!* *BAM!* *BAM!*
The barricade shuddered as something slammed into it with monstrous force.
Marcus's face paled. "Shit! They're here!"
He stumbled to his feet, grabbing the weed whacker. " Buy me some time! I need to inscribe on this! " he yelled before bolting up the stairs.
Hannah's grip on her knife tightened, her fingers trembling as she tried to steady herself.
Hannah Lee " Kai... I-I don't think I can do this..."
Kai gently placed his hand over hers, squeezing reassuringly.
Kai Renji "Hey, everything's gonna be fine. Just stay behind me."
He turned to Sofia, flashing the same confident smile. "How are you holding up?"
Sofia Hayes: "Pretty good. Didn't know you cared about me." she muttered before turning her attention to the front door.
Kai furrowed his brows. "What was that last part—"
*BAAM!*
The front door exploded inward, the barricade shattering into splinters as ten towering zombies forced their way in.
Their grotesque faces stretched into unnatural smirks, their decayed bodies looming over the three survivors.
The air thickened with the scent of rot and blood.
Kai instinctively stepped in front of the girls, gripping his knives tightly—one glowing with [Harden], the other with [Sharpen].
Calm breaths. Focus.
The zombies stalked forward, slow and deliberate, their piercing gazes fixed on the three humans.
Then—
As if answering some unspoken signal, every single zombie in the room suddenly snapped their heads toward the stairs.
Their expressions twisted, their bodies tensing like predators catching the scent of fresh prey.
Kai's stomach dropped.
Kai Renji ' Shit, they've sensed Marcus! ' "Sofia! Now!"
The moment he yelled, a fireball roared past him, slamming into the frontmost zombie!
The impact sent it flying back, crashing into the others like a bowling pin, its charred flesh hissing on contact.
The firelight flickered against the walls—
Then the zombies pounced.
..
[ Time: 12:36 AM ]
..
The battle erupted in chaos.
The zombies lunged—
Kai vanished.
"[Blink Step]"
In an instant, he reappeared behind the nearest zombie, his movements ghost-like, his knives flashing.
His [Silent Death] Resonance allowed him to move without a single sound, his blade slicing into the creature's rotting neck.
A deep, sickening gash formed—yet it didn't fall.
Kai Renji "Tch!" Kai clicked his tongue as the zombie turned, its grotesque grin widening.
Before it could react, Sofia rushed forward, her knives igniting in bright orange flames.
"[Flame Infusion]"
She slashed, the fire-enhanced blade searing through the zombie's flesh, its head dropping to the floor, black smoke rising from the wound.
Behind them—
Hannah raised her—slightly trembling—hand, water forming in mid-air.
"[Water Slash]!"
A sharp arc of water shot forward, slicing clean through another zombie's torso—
But it didn't stop.
Its upper half twisted unnaturally as it crawled toward them with its hands, still grinning.
Sofia Hayes "What the hell?!" Sofia shouted, stepping back.
*BAAM!*
A loud thud from the stairs—
Marcus stumbled down, his body weak, his nose bleeding.
In his hands—
The weed wacker, now inscribed with [Harden] and [Sharpen].
Marcus Hale "Damn it—" 'Inscribing two runes almost made me black out' Marcus panted, gripping the handle tightly. "Took… longer than I thought."
Kai saw the state he was in and quickly Blink Stepped beside him, steadying him.
Hannah Lee "You okay?"
Marcus wiped his bleeding nose, forcing a grin. "Just a little… side effect."
Hannah rushed forward, her hands glowing with a faint blue aura.
"[Soothing Waters]"
A gentle wave of water washed over Marcus's wounds, sealing minor cuts and easing his exhaustion.
But there was no time to rest.
The zombies came again.
The remaining six creatures charged, their movements now faster, more aggressive.
Sofia lit her knives on fire again, Marcus revved the weed wacker, and Kai vanished once more.
The battle continued.
..
[ Time: 12:43 AM ]
..
Kai's breath was ragged, his muscles aching with exhaustion. His Blink Step was slowing.
Sofia's flames flickered weaker. She was running low.
Marcus gripped the weed wacker with trembling hands, his vision blurring from overexertion.
Hannah's healing water had kept them in the fight, but she was drained.
And yet—
The zombies kept coming.
Just as a towering, grotesque zombie lunged at Kai—
A blur moved through the chaos.
A sharp whistle sliced through the air.
*SHING!*
The zombie's head flew off, severed cleanly.
A new presence emerged from the darkness.
A lone figure stepped into the room, weaving between the undead with effortless precision.
His long black sword carved through rotting flesh like paper, each strike swift and final.
His movements were cold. Calculated.
A dark hoodie covered his head, its shadow obscuring his face. A black nose mask concealed his lower half, leaving only his piercing eyes visible.
Dressed in black from head to toe, he seemed almost like a ghost, appearing from nowhere—cutting down the last of the zombies before they could react.
Silence followed.
The battle was over.
The four survivors stood frozen, their bodies screaming in exhaustion, as the newcomer lowered his katana, fresh blood dripping from its edge.
His gaze swept over them, taking in their battered forms.
Then—
Damian Derulo " Um… ah… hi? " Damian said as he raised his left hand in an awkward wave.
..
[ Some Minutes Ago ]
[ Time: 12:23 AM ]
POV : Damian Derulo
..
"GRAAHHHHHH!"
The guttural roar ripped through the silence.
I lay frozen beneath my bed, my breath shallow, my fingers clinging onto the floor tiles as if that would make me as still as possible.
Then—silence.
But it was worse than the noise.
Because then came the others.
More roars, more of them.
A chorus of inhuman hunger.
My blood ran cold. My body shook.
I hate this.
This fear.
This paralysis.
This weakness.
My mind screamed internally, but my body wouldn't obey. I squeezed my eyes shut, my teeth clenched so tightly my jaw ached.
I wanted to move.
But my body wouldn't let me.
Damian Derulo ' Move, damn it '
The roars outside grew louder.
Damian Derulo ' Move! '
With a shaky breath, I forced myself to crawl out.
My limbs felt like lead, but I moved. Inch by inch.
When I finally emerged, I took in several deep breaths, forcing my lungs to work.
Carefully, I pressed myself against the corner of the bedroom window and peered outside.
His stomach twisted.
A lone zombie stood in front of the house, pacing—waiting.
Waiting for its companions.
My pulse pounded.
Damian Derulo ' Shit.... What do I do? '
I wasn't stupid. The moment those zombies finished with whoever they were after, I would be next, I didn't know why they were ignoring me or why my house was unscathed, but I had a feeling that I would eventually be found.
My mind raced.
Damian Derulo ' Think… think… If novels and manhwas have taught me anything, zombies' weaknesses are their heads… But I need a weapon '
The second the thought crossed my mind, I almost smacked myself.
Silently, carefully, I moved.
.
.
.
.
.
.
To Be Continued.....