"Go left! Green metal door!" Isaac shouted as they sprinted back toward the alley he had initially come from.
The other man just shot him a quick nod, and when the time to turn arrived, he dashed left while Isaac ran right. It was the best decision they could have made, too, as once the monsters reached the crossroads, they hesitated for a moment, glancing in both directions.
In the end though, one of the beasts followed after the older man, while the other two stayed on Isaac's tail. Still, at least their momentary confusion bought the two survivors a few more seconds of freedom.
Good luck, man, he thought, throwing a quick glance over his shoulder. The other guy had all the information needed to survive. He just had to choose the right door. Now, if only I could make it out, too.
Isaac's eyes landed on the fire escape attached to his apartment building. The first ladder wasn't lowered, but that wouldn't stop him. It definitely hadn't stopped the younger him from climbing those things back in the day. Then again, back then, he wasn't lugging an overpacked bag on his back.
Just gotta get the jump right, he reassured himself internally as another trash container came within reach. It wasn't very tall, so climbing onto it only took a moment. Don't mess it up.
He tossed the crowbar, letting the tool clatter onto the fire escape. With another look over his shoulder at the approaching monsters, Isaac took a deep breath, got a running start, and counted his steps.
One. Two. Three. Four. Now!
He screamed as, with the final step, he leaped off the container. His hands flew forward and grasped the metal bottom of the fire escape. The muscles in his arms and shoulders burned from the weight they now had to support.
That's what I get for never hitting the gym. Isaac grimaced, struggling to pull himself up—and failing miserably. Oh, come on!
A screech echoed from behind him, and he barely had time to glance down before a searing pain shot through the bottom of his left leg. The source? One of the beasts that managed to reach his foot with its sharp fingernails.
Shit, shit, shit! Isaac hissed, gripping the metal bar even tighter and putting all of his strength into the next pull. Somehow—maybe thanks to the adrenaline now coursing through his veins—it worked, and he hurled himself onto the lowest level of the fire escape.
"Damn it," he cursed as another jolt of pain ripped through his leg. He tried to push it to the back of his mind for the moment and stood up, grabbing the discarded crowbar on the way.
More screeches and growls reached his ears from beneath the fire escape, but just like his injured leg, they went ignored. He had to get the hell out of the open. Those two beasts might not be able to do much alone, but if more came?
Isaac shuddered at the thought and limped up the stairs, each step taking more effort than he would have liked. He passed all the windows leading to someone's homes and stopped before the only one that opened onto the stairwell area.
One way to do it, he thought, raising the crowbar. With a sharp swing, the glass shattered, raining shards around him. He paid them no mind and pushed himself through the broken window, dropping into the silent and dark corridor.
However, the silence didn't last for long.
Muffled screeches soon joined the ones coming from outside, and it didn't take long for him to figure out the source.
Don't think about it.
Isaac averted his gaze from the nearest door and limped past it. Another agonizing trudge up the stairs brought him to the final floor—right to the door of his apartment. He quickly snatched the keys from his pocket and unlocked it.
Once inside, Isaac locked the door again and slid down to the floor, trying to calm his racing heart.
It was a mistake.
The fading adrenaline left a void, and pain came roaring back to fill it. His eyes snapped wide open as his gaze traveled down to his left leg, or rather to the two long gashes going across his calf. His sweatpants did nothing to protect the limb and instead were happy to soak in the blood dripping from the wounds.
Thankfully, the bleeding wasn't all that bad.
Still hurts like hell.
Isaac winced and, with a herculean effort, hopped toward his tiny bathroom on one leg. He flicked on the light switch and dug out a basic first aid kit from the small cabinet in the corner. He also snatched two clean towels.
Clean the wound, disinfect it, and bandage it. Just like you've done a hundred times before. No biggie…
Once he had soaked one of the towels under cold water, he dropped on the floor and rolled up the tattered leg of his sweatpants.
"Could have been worse," Isaac muttered, carefully dabbing the cuts with the wet towel. Not that there was much to clean. He never really had a chance to dirty them in the first place.
Now for the fun part, he thought, opening the antiseptic. He poured a generous amount onto the cuts and didn't have to wait long for the burn to hit him like a speeding train.
"Son of a—" He hissed as the sharp stinging spread through his leg. Biting down on his lip, he continued, dripping more antiseptic onto the cuts. If he was doing this, he was doing it thoroughly.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
At least a minute went by before the stinging dulled into a weak throb. Isaac grabbed the second towel and pressed it against his leg to stem the bleeding. The roll of gauze and bandage landed in his hand next, finishing the job.
"Not my best work, but it should do for now." He sighed, leaning against the wall and closing his eyes. With the cuts still bleeding, he would have to change the dressing soon, but for now, he bought himself some peace.
He snorted. "Peace… Right…”
The screams, screeches, and occasional gunshots never really went away. If anything, they grew more frequent and intense by the minute. Then again, if all of Galt went silent all of a sudden, he figured he would be even more worried.
I should secure the apartment.
Yet, just as he was about to move, his phone vibrated in his pocket. He fished it out and unlocked the screen.
Finally…
EMERGENCY ALERT: PUBLIC SAFETY NOTICE
The government of the United States of America has identified a highly dangerous and abnormal behavior among some individuals, which is attributed to an unidentified contagion. Citizens of the following areas—New York, Sacramento, Dallas, and Orlando—are advised to adhere to the following instructions immediately.
Stay Indoors or seek shelter in unaffected buildings. Lock and secure all doors and windows. Do not risk confrontations with affected individuals. Stay informed via official channels.
The government and military of the United States are working hard to provide help to affected areas. Stay put and stay safe.
Isaac gulped as the notification came to an end. "Oh… Four major cities are affected… Was Galt really that unlucky to be somewhat close to Sacramento? Shit…”
As if a second wind hit him, he jumped to his feet and hobbled back into his living room. He grabbed a small dresser standing near the entrance and shoved it against the door. Next were the windows, which he quickly covered with curtains.
His only bedroom was last, though there, he stopped by the window and took a final look outside.
Nobody was trying to fight anymore—at least here, the noises in the distance told a different story. The monsters still wandered the streets, but without anyone to face them, they moved aimlessly, as if confused. Then there were the corpses, lying in puddles of their own blood.
Although, even with the long distance, Isaac could still make out the telltale signs of black veins snaking across some of the corpses' faces. Guess he would be finding out soon if he had stabbed Mrs. Harper for nothing.
"At least I'm safe... for now," he muttered, hopping back to the living room.
There, he grabbed the discarded backpack and put it on the table in the middle of the room. He considered unpacking it but discarded that idea. Who knew when he would need to move again? Having some stuff packed from the get-go could be useful.
Though, I will need to repack some stuff to make it perfect. Not that he had the strength to do it now. His leg deserved at least a bit of rest before he decided to abuse it again.
His eyes strayed to the small TV standing by one of the walls. Might as well. Need more info anyway.
Isaac dropped on the couch and grabbed the remote. He activated the device, but before it could even utter a sound, he put it on mute. Most of his neighbors should be out at this time of the day, but he wasn't risking alerting any nearby monsters.
"Let's see then…"
He flipped through all the useless channels before finally arriving at one with news blaring across the screen.
"Critical Emergency: Outbreaks of unknown contagion all around the world," he read on the news ticker.
However, his eyes quickly focused on the other stuff shown on the TV. Cities after cities from a bird's eye view, all surrounded by the familiar green dome.
Moscow, New York, Hamburg, Osaka, Chengdu.
Those were only a few that flashed on the screen. Still, Isaac counted them all and breathed a sigh of relief when the list stopped at thirteen.
Hopefully, that's all there is. It's been barely an hour since this mess began. They could have missed something or just didn't mention it.
Isaac really hoped that wasn't the case, but predicting anything with an apocalypse right at their door was impossible. He would have better luck guessing the next lottery numbers.
But what now? How long do…
He trailed off as the image on the TV changed. It shifted from the aerial view of the cities to footage showing a group of people standing close to the edge of one of the green barriers. Someone in the crowd picked up a rock and threw it at the contamination zone.
For a moment, Isaac just watched, his eyes wide open. Then, a short laugh left his lips.
"We are so fucked."
The rock never made it to the other side. The moment it touched the barrier, it ceased to exist.
No flash of light. No explosion. Nothing. The rock simply disintegrated right in front of everyone's eyes.
Isaac wanted to tell himself that it was just a small rock, that humans might be able to pass through—but he wasn't that naive. The name of the barrier said it all, and the thrown rock only confirmed everything.
Like the glowing text declared, this was a Contamination Zone.
Nothing in, nothing out.
Isaac shut the TV, though not before catching the breaking news that South Korea had declared martial law. No surprise there—they had just lost access to the entirety of Jeju Island.
So to sum it up, some of the most populated areas in the world are now fighting budget zombies, while everyone outside the barriers can't do a damn thing to help us.
He let out a dry chuckle.
"This wasn't how I imagined my Friday going… That's certainly one way to start my unemployment..."
Not that his employment status even mattered anymore. The world was changing, and the only question now was, just how much? The glowing text mentioned something about different stages. So what was the next one?
As if the universe heard him, new lines of red text appeared in front of his eyes.
Phase One of the Breakout Stage initialized successfully. Phase Two will begin in 12 Hours.
Host scan finished. Bound Interface available. Displaying now…
Hold up just a damn moment, Isaac called out internally. What does it all mean?
His questions went unanswered as more information flooded his vision.
Name: Isaac Walker
Origin: Locked
Legacy: Locked
Virus Stage: 0 - Absorption
Virus Integrity: 92%
To fully release your Interface, unlock your Origin, and access additional functions, slay 20 Wretched. Be one of the first five hundred inside your Contamination Zone to achieve this feat and obtain special rewards.
Current progress: 3 out of 20 | Rewards claimed: 4 out of 500
