Godead

XLII

"...Specimens?" Blair asked hesitantly.

"Indeed. You see, Larson and Reinhart died in an... unfortunate accident where they were suddenly accosted by our afflicted colleagues. I tried gunning the afflicted down, but wound up shooting Larson and Reinhart, killing them both. Before then, the two showed no signs of the virus, and had the rare AB negative blood type just as I do. After death, however, they returned as afflicted soon after," Flood explained.

"You... carry a gun?" Blair asked warily.

"Yes. Target shooting was a hobby of mine. I'm a bit of an enthusiast, you see," Flood replied. As he noticed the look of suspicion on Blair's face, he turned to her. "I see this makes you uncomfortable. You can have my weapon if you like. Here." As Flood reached in his lab coat, Blair raised her shotgun, pointing it at the man as he paused in place.

"Don't move!" Blair said. Flood smiled.

"Please calm down," the scientist replied, slowly removing his pistol from his coat. He looked to Blair, holding the weapon out by the barrel as he handed it to her. Blair blinked, taking the weapon moments later.

"...Thank you," she said.

"You needn't thank me, my good lady. You're a policewoman, after all. With you around, I no longer need such a thing," Flood replied. "Now. Let me show you another interesting specimen." As the man lead Blair to a nearby cell, she quietly looked him over. She had her suspicions about him, but his willingness to hand over his firearm put her at ease. As the two moved to the next cell, Flood stopped in front of it.

"...Who is this?" Blair asked, looking to the woman trapped inside.

"This is Doctor Crenshaw," Flood replied. "She was... hiding within the lab from our colleagues after the calamities broke out. Unlike the rest of us who remained unafflicted, however, her blood type was not AB negative."

"What? You mean she's not a zombie?" Blair asked. Flood briefly paused.

"...No. She is. She turned afflicted only recently," the man said. Blair looked through the bars of the cell, noticing the woman inside sitting against the cell completely still.

"...Why isn't she moving, then?" Blair asked.

"Good question. This is what makes her such a... curiosity," Flood replied. "While the other afflicted seem to be mindless drones, Crenshaw simply lapses in and out of consciousness. When she's awake, she is sane, but shows signs of irritability, and is prone to fits of violence. This is why I've kept her locked up in that cell." As Blair looked on at the motionless Crenshaw, Flood quietly wandered to a nearby table. "...I just feel bad about leaving her in there all alone. Surely you'll keep her company... won't you...?"

As Flood spoke, Blair swiftly turned to him in shock.

"...What?" she asked.

Suddenly, she began to feel dizzy, ears ringing as the room began to spin. She raised her shotgun, but found herself quickly losing strength. As she looked to Flood, she realized he'd put a gas mask on. As Blair lost consciousness on the laboratory floor, Flood gave an eery grin.

"...Sleep tight," he said with a smile.

The following day, Claude and Zoe awoke on the couch of Michelle's house, both nude as they held each other close. They'd spent the entire night making love, and had all but passed out in each other's arms. As Zoe quietly stirred, she looked up at Claude with a smile.

"Morning, handsome," she whispered softly.

"Hey," Claude replied, the two gently kissing moments later. Claude looked to the barricade, noticing it was still firmly in place. "Looks like the place held up overnight."

"Yeah. Lucky us," Zoe said. The two stood up, getting dressed before heading to the kitchen. They made themselves some food, sitting down as Claude looked to the clock.

"Quarter to two. We really slept late, huh?" the boy asked.

"Yeah. Guess we went all night...," Zoe replied, the two lightly blushing. Claude's expression then turned dire.

"Misty... Blair... Abby... I can't help but worry about them," Claude said. "I feel guilty, you know? I mean, here we are enjoying ourselves when they could all be in danger."

"I know. Especially Abby. Just what the hell happened to her, anyhow?"

"Beats me. I remember what happened to a girl named Sara, though. She traveled with us briefly before getting shot in the head. We thought she was dead, but then she came alive before a giant centipede broke her apart and crawled out of her. Then there was that woman out front who had something similar happen."

"Abby was different, though. She wasn't a bug or anything, except for those weird wings on her back. Other than that, she looked more or less the same."

"Yeah. She knew who she was and could speak, too. I wonder where she is right now...," Claude said.

At that same moment, Abby wandered through the thick acres of woodland outside. She traipsed through the forest, a blank stare on her face as she walked nude through the woods. She hadn't a clue what was happening, and had difficulty maintaining a thought since her sudden transformation. Though she was confused, though, she found herself in a constant state of euphoria. It was as if she were at the apex of an orgasm at all times, and all the secrets of the universe were at the tip of her tongue.

As Abby continued through the woods, she stopped, suddenly spotting a large wooden house hidden amidst the trees. She approached the entrance, fluttering her wings as the door flew off its hinges and burst open. Abby stepped inside, looking around at the empty, disheveled interior. Finding nothing, she headed upstairs, coming across a bedroom moments later. As she went inside, a pair of zombies lying on the bed looked to her. They moaned, slowly approaching before stopping before her.

The creatures stood motionless, quietly moaning as Abby stoically looked on. After several moments, the zombies turned away, aimlessly wandering by and into the hall. Abby walked past them, looking around before spotting a walk-in closet. She threw it open, suddenly discovering a teenage girl's wardrobe. She wandered inside, combing through the selection of clothing dangling on the hangers. She tried on one outfit after another, clothes flying everywhere as she mixed and matched attire.

After several moments, Abby walked out to a full size mirror, looking herself over as the mirror reflected her slender silhouette. Her hair, once white as snow, was now pitch black and straight, eyes dark as midnight as her skin was pale as the moon. Abby tilted her head, curiously eyeing her own appearance before trying on an outfit. She put on the small black top and matching miniskirt, tearing her sharp, thin wings through the back of the shirt with two small holes. She then put on a pair of black and white striped stockings, finishing the outfit with a pair of matching heeled pumps. She looked herself over, giving a faint smile moments later.

"...Cute," she said with a smirk.