Everyone was silent. But it was broken only by the sound of John's firm voice.
"Alright, listen up. If you want to survive out there, you need to stop thinking like kids."
He stood in the middle of the cracked, oil-stained yard, holding a rusted metal pipe in one hand and gesturing with the other. "Monsters out there don't care how old you are. They don't care if you cry, beg, or scream. So you better learn to move, strike, and defend like your life depends on it. Because it does."
Loid stood at the side, still recovering from the events at the supermarket. His mind raced with what happened—Michael's betrayal, the hallucinations, the monster that spared him. But his face showed nothing. He clenched his fists and joined the group.
Noah, Han, and Marc stood across from John, all holding various makeshift weapons—an iron rod, a wooden plank with nails, and an old fire extinguisher.
John pointed to Noah. "You. Show me your stance."
She stepped forward confidently. "You're not the only one who fought before, you know."
Loid's eyes lingered on her. There was something different about Noah. Her movements were sharp, but her eyes… they were filled with sorrow.
John smirked. "Not bad."
"You don't need strength to survive," he began, raising the rod. "You need instincts. Control. Calm under chaos."
He gestured to a rusted barrel.
"Marc, show me how you'd strike this."
Marc hesitated, then swung with full force.
"Wrong," John snapped, grabbing his wrist. "You went in too loud. Too fast. In the real world, that move would get you killed."
Noah smiled faintly. "He's always been impulsive."
Loid chuckled. "Guess it runs in the class."
Noah glanced at him, their eyes locking for a second too long.
John continued the training for over an hour—how to use objects around you as weapons, how to stay hidden, how to move without sound. Loid watched, absorbed. And when it was his turn to spar with John, something… changed.
John lunged with a strike—but Loid, instinctively, moved faster than expected. He didn't think. His body did it for him.
Clang
Their weapons clashed. Loid had blocked it… perfectly.
Everyone froze.
John narrowed his eyes. "You've done this before?"
Loid shook his head. "No… I don't know how I did that."
John didn't press further, but his eyes stayed fixed on Loid a little longer than before.
They trained for over an hour—learning how to stay low, how to disarm, how to swing without hesitation. Loid noticed something strange. With every swing, his reflexes sharpened. His grip tightened. His body felt lighter. His hearing more focused.
It wasn't normal.
He brushed it off.
Suddenly, a loud screech echoed in the distance.
Everyone froze.
"They found us," John whispered.
They didn't have time to think. The group packed their things and made their way out of the oil station through the back exit John had scouted earlier. The street outside was coated in ash, and the smell of burnt rubber filled the air.
As they walked through an abandoned parking lot, a sound of bones cracking came from behind a truck.
"MOVE!" John shouted.
A tall, twisted creature leapt from the shadows. Its limbs bent in unnatural directions, and its skin looked like dried concrete, cracking as it moved.
Marc swung his bat first, missing. Han followed with a kick to the back of its knee—it staggered but didn't fall.
John jumped in with full force, striking it across the head. "Go! Keep moving! We hold them off!"
Loid's vision blurred again. A whisper echoed in his ears.
You're stronger now… let it out…
"No!" he muttered, trying to resist it. But his body surged forward. He ducked a swing from the monster and landed a clean strike to its ribs—breaking them instantly.
Even John looked surprised.
They kept moving. More monsters began appearing. They weren't like the ones before. These were… different. Faster. Hungrier. It's like they sensed something in Loid.
After the chaos settled, they found shelter in a half-destroyed small bookstore, hidden between two collapsed apartment blocks. It was cozy, filled with dust, but still held some untouched chairs and a couch.
They lit a small fire in the middle and took a moment to breathe.
Loid sat on the window frame, staring outside. Noah walked over and sat beside him.
"You're quieter than usual," she said.
Loid forced a chuckle. "Guess being hunted makes you talk less."
There was a silence between them. Not uncomfortable. Just... heavy.
Noah looked down. "You asked me earlier who I was, right? Well... I guess I should tell you."
Loid turned to her, his eyes softening.
"I lived a normal life. Or at least, it looked normal. I was the top of my class, everyone thought I was perfect. But behind closed doors… my mom left, my dad drank, and every day I came home not knowing if the door would open with a fist or silence."
Loid didn't speak. He listened.
"I kept going because I wanted something better. I fought through everything to survive. And when this virus hit… I thought, maybe it would just be another storm to weather."
She looked at him.
"But when I saw you… on the ground, bleeding, giving up… I couldn't let you die. Not someone like you."
Loid blinked. "You don't even know me."
Noah smiled faintly. "Maybe I don't. But I see it in your eyes. You're carrying something heavier than any of us. And I don't think it's just guilt."
He looked away. "You're not wrong."
Han and Marc shared some old crackers they found. The group ate in silence. John stood near the fire, keeping watch.
"You think this is the end of it?" Marc asked.
"No," Loid answered.
He felt it again—that strange pulse inside of him.
This wasn't over.
Something was coming.
Something darker.
And deep down… he feared it wasn't from outside.
It was coming from him.
Loid then muttered while rubbing his hands..
"After all of these fights, what's our goal exactly? I just.. don't understand. It's like we are lost, every step leads us into the unknown"
"Don't lose hope bro. I am sure that the government have done something to save us." Han said.
Everyone looked pale. They were tired, not knowing what to do..
Will they continue following the pattern of defeating monsters and changing shelters once in a while?