--Phase 7 “The Light”--
“Get down!”
When all the hope was gone, a well-recognized voice echoed through the air like a ray of light in the dark time.
Allen knew the voice. His chest was tightening up and he felt a wave of heat wash over him. His heart was beating very quickly. Since the beginning of the zombie attack, he had been looking like he had lost all of his ‘life’, but now it was returning to his eyes.
Instinctively, the four guys dropped to the ground as a shot rang out throughout the surrounding wall. The gunfire instantaneously shattered all of the zombies, killing them all in the process. This would prevent any other zombies from reviving them in any way.
“Are you okay?” the man's voice asked in a calm tone. Dominique, Benji and Nathan turned to face the source of the voice. A shadow of a man emerged from the dark corner. The voice's owner was wearing a black army suit, a mask, and ballistic glasses that covered his face. He was just like the army that Dominique saw standing and guarding outside the door before.
‘This guy seems cool,’ Dominique thought. The person had the appearance of a video game hero. When he thought about it, his face flushed, and he swiftly shook his head. ‘No, this is not a dream! Damn it!’
Allen was smiling softly to himself and his eyes were closed. “What took you so long?” Allen mumbled some words in between his breaths. His breathing was rapid and his heart was beating really fast. It was beating so quickly that it felt like it may burst out of his chest. The name was like honey on his lips and tasted sweet in his mouth. How long he had been waiting to say the name again. “Kaien...”
The man in black suit appeared surprised and confused as he made no verbal or physical response to Allen. He was staring at Allen through his black military goggles and mask. After what seemed like an eternity, a gentle laugh could be heard coming behind his mask.
“Allen?” Kaien, the man in black, took off his mask and pulled up his goggles, revealing his face to the others. He was not a particularly large man, but he was well-built and had a gorgeous, charming face that was as calm and tranquil as the face of a priceless painting. When he saw the man he had rescued three years ago, he was speechless and somewhat bewildered by the realization that they were in the same place again. “Well, well, look what we have here.” He flashed a playful smile at Allen. “Do you like zombies or do the zombies truly like you?”
Allen laughed shyly. “Which one do you prefer?” Kaien looked at Allen thoughtfully before shrugging.
Benji, Nathan, and Dominique looked at Kaien and Allen back and forth, all having the same thought at the same time, ‘Are they flirting?’
Kaien was the first one to get his senses back. He immediately told everyone to follow him, “Hurry follow me. We need to get somewhere safe.”
The four guys trailed Kaien from behind as he gingerly made his way down a few halls, making sure the zombies did not notice their presence. They soon arrived at a therapist's office, Kaien unlocked the door and let them all in. After ensuring that the door was locked, he dashed to a large black bag that he had stashed on top of the cupboard. He pulled a machine gun, two handguns, and four shotguns out of the bag.
“Protect yourself,” instructed Kaien as they swarmed the weapon, grabbing as many ammunition and weapons as they could. Benji and Allen each got one of the shotguns, Dominique grabbed the machine gun and Nathan took two handguns. They also took various types of weapons with them, such as smoke bombs, smoke grenades, and flash bombs. Kaien, the man who just saved them, came extremely well-prepared and had brought a lot of supplies with him.
“Are any of you hurt?” Kaien questioned as he looked at the men. Three of them nodded and turned to face Allen. Kaien shifted his gaze to Allen and he saw the broken leg. He swiftly broke a nearby wooden chair as he used the stick to keep Allen’s leg straight, binding them on the broken bones so the man could somehow walk or even run.
“Are you the one they sent in?” Dominique dared to ask.
“Is it just you by yourself?” Benji continued to press the issue, and Kaien responded with a yes. He was completely unable to accept that as true. In the beginning, there were four of them, and they were on the verge of death. What do the people on the outside think? They must be crazy to send Kaien here to save everyone on his own.
“Don’t worry, it’s my specialty to deal with those things,” Kaien reassured Benji, making it clear that he needed no fear. “We need to minimize chances that they discover us before we leave this place.” Kaien smiled at them, his expression one of warmth and assurance. He kept his attention fixed on assisting Allen. “Less people, less mistakes and less sound.”
Kaien exuded such confidence and always seemed to have a plan of action. His presence and words were calming, just like the way he appeared to be. After listening to Kaien's words, each and every one of them was finally able to feel some relief and hope.
“Where will we make it out?” Benji asked as Kaien finished tending Allen and moved to examine the others. He was making sure they were not injured or infected.
“The drain system,” Kaien said. “We will get out from there.”
“Why?” Allen asked. It was different from the way he was from three years ago. “Is so dark and risky to go out from there.”
“Because it’s the only way out,” Kaien answered firmly. “The west wing was turned into complete ruins after the virus got there. We had no choice but to blow it up to avoid the virus getting outside. They also shut every entrance in this hospital and the rooftop, which leaves the drain system.”
As if the situation was not bad enough, and when it seemed like the situation could not get much worse, a nightmare began to unfold. They thought they could save the people in the west wing but they were wrong. The only thing they could do was to cling to the faintest hope that they would be able to save themselves and get out of there alive.