High School of the Dead + One

「Three Dead」

"We can handle one of them, but there's no way we..." Takashi's voice trails off, watching the devastation below as more and more students are eaten alive.

"The roof," Hisashi says, covering his wound with his other hand.

"The roof?" Rei repeats with a questioning gaze.

"We should barricade ourselves until help arrives," he explains, "Besides, on the roof we can see what's going on."

I bite my lip, hesitating.

"What is it, Yuki?" Takashi asks, tilting his head at my expression.

"It's just..." I stop, unsure of how to put it.

Hisashi looks down at me. "Go ahead and say it, Yuk."

Rei hisses under her breath at the sound of my nickname coming from Hisashi, but I ignore her. "It's just that there aren't any sirens," I say. "Things are this terrible, but there's not even a fire truck here yet. Rei said that 110 was busy, so people must be calling in, right? At the time, I thought it was because people in the school were calling, like all of the teachers or something, but what if it's not just the students and teachers? What if... what if..."

"What if this is happening in town as well?" Hisashi finishes for me, contemplating.

"That's crazy!" Rei argues, flailing her arms in frustration. "We would've heard about it sooner!"

He looks at her then back at me, letting out a sigh. "Rei has a point."

I nod, understanding what they're saying, but still. Something doesn't feel right.

The conversation is over after he sides with Rei. As more groans and dead footsteps fill the building behind us, we continue running along the hallway. It takes three flights of spiraling stairs before we reach a grey door, No Students Permitted Beyond This Point in bolded red letters above it. Takashi, who had taken the lead, shoves the door open with his shoulder, and sprints to the black metal railing lining the roof's edge.

Everyone's eyes grow wide, and Rei sucks in a sharp breath, shocked.

Even in the distance, we can see the dark smoke lifting into the sky, red sparks jumping everywhere. The road is drenched in blood—from both the dead and undead—and sirens from both ambulances and firefighters finally blare, adding to the chaos.

"Holy shit." Takashi's the first to speak, staring at the turmoil with disbelieving eyes. "It is happening everywhere."

Rei's equally astonished as she backs away from the railing, unwilling to believe it. "But everything was normal this morning!" she argues desperately. "Everything was fine minutes ago!"

I just stare, not answering. I understand where Rei is coming from—when Hisashi forced me up this morning and dragged me to school, everything was normal. And now, only five hours later, practically the entire city was in flames, like it had gone straight to Hell.

Out of nowhere, a strong wind attacks the roof, causing Rei to stumble forward. Hisashi quickly grabs a hold on her, helping her stand up straight. Takashi and I grab onto the railing, both of us looking around the sky. We come face to face with several camouflage helicopters flying overhead.

"Black Hawks," I breathe, remembering the book Hisashi showed me from his English class.

Takashi sends me a questioning look. "Like the American Military or the Self-Defense Force?"

I nod absently, mesmerized.

"Where did they come from?" he wonders. "They don't have any bases near here."