Dead Souls: Alive

A New Order

Dead Souls Alive

XIII - A New Order

[Undisclosed Location]
[13 February]

Darkness made up every corner of the eye, not a single ray of light dared plant itself up man's irises, let alone the pupils to disclose his location. Glassy tools seemed to be in action, the noise of their collisions filling the ears of an awakening man, left profusely wondering. The mind; in a flabbergasted haze. The smog once clogging his head cleared and perception finally revealed to him. Light woke up, he rose and let himself rest unto his newest bed. Failure to decipher his location led to an ephemeral panic, until light finally greeted him. The blinding, sudden uproar forced a block from his arm and hand alike, before looking towards his fore. "Ah, so you're awake." A man's voice, muffled by the gas mask resounded. As if two voices hid in a single box.

"Worry not, you're safe, Aloysius Parthenos" Light was clustered with thought. The death of his closest comrade had driven a steam train within the inescapable walls of his head. Lost, isolated without a place in the world to migrate to. His maw attempted to interrogate, and yet his heart pulled back whatever words he had. Eyes looked up in hopelessness, light fading from his gaze. "Your friend's death was rather... unfortunate. Should I have made it there a bit earlier—" Within a heartbeat, he pounced. "Shut the fuck up! You promised to preserve the both of us, and now look at us! I shouldn't have trusted you, I shouldn't have!" Rage filled the very depths of his soul, his heart now letting out every single thread of despair it housed —  pulsating. "I did everything you told me... and now he's gone..." The donned man turned to face the juvenile, his entire visage masked by pitch blackness. He turned his posture and his dense, black, protective coat hissed like a snake.

"I am truly sorry, Aloysius." He apologized, laying down the beakers he held prior. "Though despairing over the dead is nothing but a derailing act. Let us get over it, there is a much greater cause to be met." Inching towards Light, who now — his dark, gloomy eyes — wept in sorrow, the man reached out to him with a gloved hand. "There is work to do, and you are needed jn this little project of ours." Light gave a daunting glare and a wipe to his tears ensued. Brushing away the helping hand with a thud, he neared the experimentation desk, eager to know just how the calamity consuming Azania was conjured. Even within the mask, one could see the devious smirk laying plastered on his visage. His malicious aura brushed against Light's darker one, even he could sense the dread buried within him. "So then, straight to work we go. Your gear will be found on the lockers to your right."

[Visinia City]
[13 February, 19h15]

"We've been driving for hours, the car's soon gonna die." Kieran, amongst another five said with a foul taste in his mouth. The group had already returned to the school, the devastation they witnessed was enough to discourage the lot. Jay's death was profoundly heart wrenching, the only clue from his remains was a necklace bathed in blood, given by his mother. They mourned in silence, though one of them bore no connection with the school and its people, and thus saw no reason to dwell much in the sadness. The addition of the car's owner, Ms. Araele made the car's capacity fill up to the brim. Luckily, she stayed in her room even after hearing the sounds of terror which swallowed up the school. "Yeah. We need to get to the Estate soon." Skyler's throat was clogged with sorrow, his speech was not as enthusiastic as his recent. "Right, I see it." Suddenly, hope was beginning to form as the group looked past the head lights. Their new, temporary home presented itself in the form of an estate locked with maximum security. Gargantuan vehicles shone their bright lights at the black sedan nearing the entrance. Intimidating, it was a mere portion of the Army. "Standard procedure. Do you think Janice will be allowed in?" Kieran suddenly asked, weighing the possibilities. "They won't know about the half infection. I hope." Wyvern said, finally stopping by the spiked entrance.

"Good evening. We seek refuge in the estate. Me and a few friends survived the surge of zombies currently swarming the city." To be as formal as possible, Wyvern used his manly voice and face alike to persuade the guard. Through luck, he was let through. "Please, you'd better be having food in your boot. There's limited resources in the estate. Things could get messy if we run out of supplies." The guard rose awareness, though the group was way ahead of time. Every millimeter of the trunk was used, not a single whiff of space was spared. Prior to their arrival here, they ransacked a few shops. The spikes were lowered and Wyvern drove into the estate. A few waves of light bathed every one in the car from the outside. Torches, inspection and precaution by the guards. "That went well. It's so secure." Skyler said, breathing a sigh of relief. Evan was fast asleep, and so was Araele. Soon, they reached the house number which corresponded with the car keys. Araele's apartment. "Damn, nice home."

[Visinia City, Magnus Estate]
[13 February, 19h45]

"She's really traumatised. She won't be of any help for a very long time." Araele spoke of Evan's current mental state, and things did not look as pretty as one could wish them. Skyler, Neo and Kieran could not stand to see her like this, helpless and afraid. Though they knew the condition was a temporary one. Biology never once failed them, and it never looked to any time soon. "How about your leg?" Skyler inquired, eager to know of Araele's own condition. "Holding up well. Remember that syringe you took from the nurse's office? It seemed to be an antidote for the virus, so I used it on myself..." Silence greeted them, loud enough to tear apart their ears. "So this means the virus is nothing new to all of our school's members. The nurse had a hand in this, so many moles, so little time. No wonder one of our students suffered the same fate as the monsters out there." He finished off. They were all gathered beneath her LED lit ceiling, white light bathing each and every one of them. The shower had been busy for quite a while now, as each of them needed to get clean. Only one person was short, Janice currently occupied it.

"A new plan should be in the making. We can't sit on our asses and wait for Azania's downfall. Finding the source should be our main priority." Before Skyler could catch his breath, Wyvern interferes. "Easier said. We've been looking all over the place for the source, and it doesn't look as though he's in the city. I believe he is using pawns to navigate the entire province, hence the moles you're talking about." He paused. "If we manage to capture at least one of these moles, we might be able to weed the nigga out." He finalised. "Neo's right. You four, Janice included, should go out and try to gather as much information as you can from the nurse's office. Possibly, she left evidence, the antidote is proof." Araele ordered. Skyler chinned up and set a new objective in mind, "We head out tomorrow." Upon declaring, "You'll need equipment." She finalised. Hope. Everlasting hope.

[Undisclosed Location]
[13 February, 19h30]

"So, have you recruited the students?" Sitting on the edge of a building, a feminine voice intoned into a cell, her lips beaming with a red glitter from the Moon's gradually arriving shine. In another hand laid a cigarette, halfway through its life expectancy with smoke hissing from its charred tip. Clouds once destined to rain now parted ways, rest presented itself in the most peaceful of ways. "Yes, though one of them failed to make it. I don't think he would've joined us anyway. Or should I say wasn't worthy enough? So I got rid of him." Replied the phone through its ear peace. The gentle lady laid the cigarette betwixt her lips and continued to puff, the scar running from her left cheek and over her nose bridge coughing to the unpleasant smoke. "I see. On my end, I've already discerned the other group's location, I'll get to sinking the ship before its long awaited departure." She blew into the phone before letting the cigarette butt fall from the 7 story building she rested on. "Get to producing more of it, and I'll simply provide and deliver." She said, now rising from the ledge. A step back let out a sudden clatter between her heels and the roof. Click, click, click, her slim and curvaceous stature neared a metallic door leading into the building to her below. "Patience now, Cataclysm has just begun." She murmured to herself, feeling a slight pulsation within her very eye. It seemed as though it bore a scar, as if embroidered with an X symbol, much reminiscent to...