MOCHA // OMEGA: Lavender Kunoichi #1

Chapter 10 // Husks

Chapter 10 // Husks

The sun clocked out and his sister took over the night shift. Behind the clouds were blue and purple gradients. Yoshi was cloaked and patrolling from the sky. While imperceptible to the uninitiated, augmented goggles, drones and the trained eye could spot it with ease. For this reason, Yoshi never ascended too high above the buildings. Tatsuki and Mocha jogged underneath the red torii gate and into the red light district. Unlike the rest of Omega, there were plenty of civvies walking around and establishments stayed open for business. Police usually avoided this area so it wasn't uncommon to disregard any city-wide directives.

Yoshi flew down to Mocha and emitted a few unsettling beeps and boops. Mocha's eyes got big. A black cube was hovering in the sky, appearing suddenly as if through teleportation. The outer frame of the cube was a slick black, but when the circular compartment opened from the bottom, the green guts of the ship were visible. Tiny particles dropped from the cube, the same way cleanup drones emptied their trash.

Mocha grabbed Tatsuki's wrist and ran, hurting him a little with how tight her grip was. The blood on her palm rubbed into his wrist. The escape hatch for the bunker was only 3 minutes away.

Collective screams came from nearby.

They turned a corner and saw a group of husks. They looked like regular humans except for their decaying gray skin, red eyes and the missing chunks of flesh all across their body. They were feeding on a woman's leg as she cried out for help. The cries ended as another husk put its forehead against hers and opened its mouth. A red fog transferred from the husk's mouth into the woman's and she began to convulse.

Her thrashing ceased and the husks stopped eating her. She stood up and her eyes shot open with the same red glow. She smiled like a wraith and ran toward the fleeing civilians. Every Omega civilian dispersed in all directions. Mocha drew her sword. Tatsuki aimed his pulse rifle and shot one of the husks in the face. The rest turned their heads toward him.

Tatsuki shot but missed most of his shots; they moved too fast to keep his aim steady. One threw its body toward them and continued pouncing as its only means of movement. Another ran with its back arched like its spine was broken. The one closest was sprinting like a track star, fingers straight and elbows locked. Every husk had its own unique screech and growl that utilized the voice box of the used-to-be human, spitting out the blood of their host with each vocalization.

Mocha did not hesitate and cut off the sprinter's head in a sideways swipe. She let the one with a broken spine close the distance and repeated the same cutting motion in the other direction. Two heads were on the ground and the glowing eyes faded to normal. Mocha poised her stance to stab the pouncing one but Tatsuki shot it midair. It writhed on its back like throwing a temper tantrum until Mocha stabbed its spongy forehead.

Despite the relative ease at which they eliminated the husks, the screams and cries for help grew louder all around them. What the husks lacked in solo combat ability, their quick multiplication quickly became overwhelming. What started off as 10 soon became hundreds of innocents turned to flesh eating creatures—collateral damage for the greater good. A group of girls in neon fishnets shrieked from behind. Yoshi and Tatsuki took care of them while Mocha carved a path toward the bunker. She ran backwards to let the husks think she was easy prey to pounce on, then she would spin and sever their bodies with a counter attack.

The husks tore through everything and possessed one after another. Husbands ate wives, siblings ate siblings, all before they were "spared" of their torment by turning into a husk themselves. The only ones safe were the animals. The few birds spectated the carnage like it was just a regular day at Animal Farm.

Yoshi used up any spare bullets it had on the husks. After the bot ran out of ammunition, it flew around stabbing one after another in the brain. The infected poured out from every building and chased down any human with a heartbeat. The streets looked like a parade was being held, or a concert with not enough real estate to hold all the attendees.