Creeaak…
The sound of a heavy wooden door opening slowly echoed through the blood-soaked halls of the Cathedral of Dreams as something entered within.
Wet footsteps flopped against the stone floor, each louder than the last, with the coagulated crimson liquid melting under its feet.
Near the central altar that resided at the farthest point of the room lay a blond-haired boy whose body was just barely sticking out of a crevice that led deep below.
"Grrg?"
From a distance, the visitor watched him curiously, puzzled by his strange appearance; however, it's gaze quickly caught on a small space to the boy's right.
There was a girl's body, one that was mangled and bruised with dirt and grime, yet the smell from the child was something vile that the intruder couldn't resist.
The stench of death.
In an instant, the creature lunged forward, soaring through the air directly at the corpse with the ferocity of a starved lion.
Thud.
As it landed on the ground, the room seemed to shudder with the visitor stepping closer and closer to the perished Eleanor.
"Grrrg."
When it was finally within grabbing distance, it slowly extended its putrid, slimy fingers toward the girl's golden locks of hair, caressing them caringly.
"Grrg! Grrg! Grrg!"
Each sound that came from its tight lips reverberated through the chamber, gently rasping against the cathedral walls.
Ripppp…
Tearing flesh appeared across the creature's face, revealing a gruesome mouth with sharp canine-like teeth that dripped with saliva.
It carefully positioned itself above Eleanor's head, making sure to expand its mouth wide enough to devour it in one bite.
"Grg!"
The ghastly expression it wore across its rotted face contorted into a smile before diving downward towards the girl's skull.
KRKK!
From the creature's side, an explosion of pain slammed into its ribs, knocking it over in one blow that sent it tumbling to the ground in a loud thud.
With a croak, the monster snapped its head around in an impossible direction, facing the thing that had sent it flying.
"W-What the hell are you!?"
Aaron's voice rang out through the opulent hall as he held a metal rod in his right hand, staring down in disgust at the decayed human.
"Grg! Grg! Grg!"
Its screams were nothing but horrific clicks of its vocal cords that the boy quickly realized were hanging out of its neck.
He gagged silently as he raised the pipe over the choking creature's head, muttering a prayer under his breath.
"Find peace in death."
Crack!
Aaron grimaced at the sight, nearly shutting his eyes; however, he knew his weakness would get him nowhere in this hellhole.
I knew the Old Man wasn't joking when he said the city was destroyed, but zombies? I thought those were nothing but myths…
His eyes scanned the room, noticing the walls that had previously been a brilliant, divine white, now covered in a filthy crimson.
All the nuns…
While he did not know the situation outside the sealed cathedral, he could assume the worst from what had just transpired.
We might've been brought from the mausoleum, but whatever he's doing down there is causing all of this…
The terrifying image of the monstrous demon who had nearly snuffed out his life flashed through his mind as he turned his attention back to the girl on the floor.
Once I complete this pact, you'll be back. But until then…
He bent over, placing his metallic weapon to the side as he stretched his arms around Eleanor, lifting her onto his back in one simple maneuver.
She's lighter than I thought…
Her skin brushed against his back with the cold feeling of death weighing heavily on the boy's mind; however, despite that, he knew that he had to complete this goal.
"Let's go."
…
"This is worse than I thought."
Aaron, after walking through the crumbling city, glanced around the corner of a ruined building, spotting magenta and black particles floating through the air.
The magenta ones cause near-immediate death upon contact, but the black ones turn you into one of those monstrosities.
He sighed as he watched the orbs pass uselessly through a horde of undead terrors that hunted the survivors from region to region.
In the entire time that he had been following the group, he had never seen a single man, woman, or child escape their grasp.
On their own, they were nothing but frail husks of mass, but when faced with a pack of them, they could rip you to shreds in seconds with razor-sharp claws or the teeth they hide behind their sealed lips.
If I remembered correctly from that map the baker showed me earlier, then the town hall should be in the same direction they are headed…
Therefore, to achieve his mission, he had tailed the horde of zombies, forced to watch them slaughter helpless civilians.
"H-Help! S-Somebody help me!"
In the distance, the sound of a helpless man screaming echoed through the empty streets, hitting the rotten creatures' ears immediately.
Horrifying smiles formed as the skin on their faces peeled back in delight, realizing they had found their next prey.
Aaron gritted his teeth as he watched them begin their hunt.
Dammit… I'm too weak to save anybody…
Every death had been worse than the last, with each victim meeting a way reminiscent of forbidden torture methods.
Turning his eyes to the floor in shame, he readied himself for what was to come.
This is my opportunity to get past them.
And with that thought, he secured Eleanor safely onto his back, holding her legs between his arms and the metal pole in his hand.
He walked slowly, careful to prevent any sounds from notifying the creatures of their next meal, inching his way through the rubble with his eyes set on the large castle on the horizon.
There it is…
As he noticed the town hall only a few blocks away, his pace quickened with his slow and steady approach being replaced by a mad dash towards the structure.
Rocks cracked and ruins collapsed as he ran at max speed to the building, signaling to the undead creatures that lurked in wait for his presence.
"Grk?"
One of the smaller ones broke its neck in an attempt to locate the cause of the noise; however, its head just dangled there, focused on a figure running through the debris.
"Grk! Grk! Grkk!"
Its hurried shouts reverberated throughout the entire region, alerting every monster within a kilometer of Aaron's existence.
Then, as if in a collective hive mind, thousands of rotten eyes glanced at the blond boy and the deceased girl who was attached to his back.
"Gack!"
"Geok!"
Various excited noises left the decaying creatures as they dropped whatever they were doing or eating, rushing to the scene of living and deceased prey.
Aaron himself had planned for this development and was doing everything in his power not to be phased by the hordes of horrifying monsters that chased him.
Just a little further…
His life nearly met a quick end when he stumbled over a rock; however, as he steadied himself and looked behind him, he knew that he had made it.
In piles all around him lay the scattered remains of the former power station that supplied energy for the entire city.
Canisters of gas surrounded him with logos marking them as heavily flammable and extremely dangerous for use.
One single spark reaching their contents could single-handedly spell the doom of thousands of civilians who lived in the area, causing them to be kept secured inside the warehouse under lock and key for years.
However, as the Great Sea Wall collapsed and the fires rampaged through the city, this one building was left unscathed except for seven cans of the material that had been left outside for unknown reasons.
Aaron reached into his pocket, slowly revealing a small lighter that he had lifted off the scattered remains of a man, whose body had been ravaged by the monstrosities that now tailed him.
Attached to the object was a handwritten letter from the man's family that read as follows.
"Happy birthday, Daddy! Mommy and I got you this lighter since you are always complaining about starting the furnace at work, so I hoped this could help you!"
It was a thoughtful gift to this man, so thoughtful that when Aaron found his remains, not a single mark grazed the item.
Only his closed hand gripping the object tightly over his heart as one final act of love for his family.
Now, as thousands of the same creatures that took this man's life ran like beasts down the narrow street towards Aaron without a hint of remorse for the lives they ruined.
Click!
The blond-haired boy opened the lid and ignited the flame, still holding the tiny paper in his hand out of respect for the kind father to whom it was addressed.
"You can rest now."
As he spoke, he turned away from the approaching horde, throwing the lighter as far as he could towards the canisters of gas that sat on the edge of the road.
The zombies stopped for a moment in unison, leaning over the canister that the burning object had hit, staring with curiosity.
In one last gesture, the small creature that had originally spotted Aaron raised his head only to notice the boy running as fast as he could away from them.
"Grk?"
Then, with that quiet grunt of confusion, the gas caught ablaze.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!