The rats' razor-sharp teeth tore into the officer's flesh, blood spraying as his scream cut through the night. Their knife-like fangs sank effortlessly into skin and muscle, grinding through bone and marrow without mercy. It didn't take long for the vermins to make short work of the human. In moments, his body was nothing but shredded remains.
The grotesque sight rooted Nobita to the spot, paralyzed in horror.
The wild animals attack… The disease Suneo warned about... It... it... finally reached here.
Below, heavy footsteps thundered down the corridor, mingling with anguished screams. They were already inside the apartment complex. But Nobita didn't have time to guess or ponder what to do next. There were too many questions and at this point he had to rely on instinct.
This room wasn't safe. Rats could squeeze through anywhere. The very walls of this apartment could very well be his tombstone if he did not act quickly. He and Fuuko need to make a move now and find some place safe.
Shoving fear aside, Nobita clutched Fuuko tight and threw on his jacket. Rationally, he should have packed all of his belongings and made a move, but time was scarce, and any extra weight would only slow him down.
Drawing a deep breath, he whispered, "Fuuko, stand guard."
She nodded, her small body trembling as thin streams of wind coiled around her frame. Weak but steady currents gathered, fragile yet brimming with force. She hadn't fully recovered, but she could still summon gusts strong enough to strike back. Whatever happened, she would fight to protect Nobita with everything she had.
Seeing her ready steadied his nerves. Nobita inhaled once more, then pressed an eye on the keyhole. Nothing moved in the hallway. The silence was jarringly at odds with the chaos he had pictured.
He turned the lock carefully, Fuuko clung to his shoulder as the door creaked open. The quiet was suffocating, enhanced by how dark the hallway is.
The emergency light overhead buzzed faintly, its weak red glow barely illuminating the surroundings. If anything, the red light only makes it more ominous and uncertain.
Nobita's fist tightened. Step by step, he pushed forward, eyes fixed on the glowing "EXIT" sign at the end of the hall that was somehow still working... Wait, if they are still working, then maybe...
At the elevator, hope vanished, it's dead. Of course.
Stairs, then.
But his steps faltered. The image of swarming rats gnawing through flesh clawed into his thoughts, making each movement heavier than the last. Just picturing them waiting below sent a shudder through him.
Should've grabbed a broom at least…
"Ahh…"
A groaning in the distance earned his attention. It wasn't the squeal of rats... It was a fellow human! And whoever it was… sounded like they needed help. Swiftly, Nobita threw away all caution and went down the floor.
On the third floor, the first thing he saw was wreckage, shattered plant pots, soil scattered across the corridor. The air reeked of mold, rot… and blood.
Ragged breathing echoed, mixed with low, guttural sounds, growing louder with every step. Someone was choking or in terrible pain.
He followed the sound around the corner.
There. a man hunched over, kneeling on the floor beside another figure. Nobita started forward to help, but stopped short at the sight of the man's blood-soaked green coat and the strange, violent spasms wracking his body.
Fuuko narrowed her eyes, every sense on edge.
"Sir? Are you alright? Sir..."
Before he could even finish the sentence, the man let out a big roar and rushed towards Nobita.
His speed was inhuman, his savagery startling. Nobita froze, too shocked to react. It was too fast, but Fuuko had been ready.
A fierce gale burst forth, slamming into the attacker and hurling him back.
The man crashed into the wall with bone-cracking force, then collapsed, body still twitching violently. He writhed for a moment before falling still.
"Fuu…"
Fuuko brushed her hand gently against Nobita's cheek, trying to soothe his shaken heart.
But Nobita stood trembling, stunned. Slowly, he staggered forward to see the man more clearly.
His eyes went wide. The man's flesh was rotting, visible veins could be seen around their limbs, though Nobita couldn't discern the color of it due to the pitch black compound. His mouth hung open, revealing bloodied teeth. His eyes were clouded white, opaque like those of a cataract-ridden corpse.
He looked… like a zombie.
Nobita froze, while Fuuko lowered her head, tail drooping. The shock etched across Nobita's face made her chest ache. She knew she went too far by killing a man, but Fuuko is not risking Nobita's potential life for his innocence. That man had chosen his fate the moment he attacked… but what if, because of this, Nobita grew afraid of her?
Her worry was cut short by a warm hand on her head.
Nobita drew in a long breath. Though shaken, he still managed to give her a reassuring smile.
"Thanks, Fuuko. That guy… he really looked like a zombie. If it weren't for you, I'd be done for."
It was a small attempt at a joke, a way to ease the tension. But when Nobita's gaze drifted past the man's corpse, toward what had been hidden behind him, his face drained of color.
Another body lay there, mangled, half-eaten. Tendons stripped bare, muscles shredded to ribbons. Worst of all, the victim's nose had been bitten off and lay on the ground nearby, dripping with gore.
"This… this is a nightmare…"
The sight nearly made him vomit, but there was no time. He clamped a hand over his mouth, forcing back the urge to retch as the sound of footsteps pounded closer.
Snarls, guttural and bloodthirsty, echoed through the building. They were coming, smashing through obstacles, destroying everything in their path.
They had to move. Now. The duo descended the other flight of stairs, meant to be for the apartment's internal fire escape. The complete submersion of darkness made it difficult to see, so slow and steady is the way to go. The young man's breathing was uncomfortably loud, making him keenly aware that those things out there could easily hunt him down should they hear him.
"MOJACKO, LASER GUN!!"
The familiar sound of his friend rang out. It's Miki's voice.
Nobita froze.
Miki?! She's here!?
Without hesitation, Nobita forgot his fears and burst out of the stairwell doors to the lower floors. His eyes widened at the sight of bloodthirsty rats and humans chasing Miki down from the end of the hall.
***
Miki sprinted at full speed, dodging slavering sewer rats and infected humans hot on her heels. Just as she passed an apartment door, it slammed open, another infected lunged straight at her.
"Hyaaah!"
She reacted instantly. Using her momentum, she leapt into a flying kick that sent the creature sprawling. Pushing off its body midair, she landed and kept running.
Nimble as ever, she weaved through the monsters, using benches in the hall as footholds to spring upward and doing a tic tac wall run, leaping over a cluster of infected spilling from apartment units lining the corridor. All the while, she pulled something like a speedloader from her pouch, trying to jam it into the revolver chamber mounted on the hilt of her strange blade.
On her shoulder, the alien creature, Mojacko panicked, rummaging inside its mouth with its tongue, searching desperately.
Out tumbled… a rubber duck.
"Not that! The laser gun!"
It tried again, this time it took out a wrench. Then a flashlight. Then… a sandwich.
"God damn it, hurry!!"
Miki urged as she dodged a swipe from a monstrous, catlike beast crashing in through the window. Missing its mark, the creature quickly turned around, then jumped at her again. She gritted her teeth, readied the cartridge stored within the blade before charging in. With a mighty leap in the air, she made an empower slashed onto its jugular. The energy-infused strike left a serrated explosion as it decapitated the head, resulting in a large explosion that blasted the infected behind it backward.
However, the shockwave also threw her off balance. Miki crashed to the floor, Mojacko tumbling off her shoulder and rolling ahead.
"Ugh." The brunette groaned, clutching her head. "One of these days, I will get a concussion…"
"Guhhhhh..."
The monsters' growls snapped her back. She picked up her weapon... But before she could stand up and prepare her gunblade, they were already upon her. She could feel it clearly. It doesn't matter if she manages to stand up and cuts down a few or tries to run... It's just too late now, they're too close. Time slowed, as the sound of their stomping and growling grew louder and closer.
No… not here. I can't ... I still have to...
"Like hell I am going down alone you bastard!" Miki roared, her grip tightening as she got ready to overload the gunblade.
"Miki! Get down!"
But before she could "self-destruct", a familiar voice rang out... She listened without hesitation, ducking low, leaving herself wide open, but she didn't care, she trusted him.
A roaring gale erupted through the corridor, blasting the infected back in a furious storm. Nobita and Fuuko burst from the shadows, worry carved across their faces.
"Fuuu!"
"Miki!"
The reprieve wouldn't last. The wind's echo, along with the earlier gunblade explosion, had drawn unwanted attention from other places. No time to waste. Nobita dashed forward, seized Miki's hand, and yanked her to her feet while Fuuko helped Mojacko up.
"Let's go!"
Miki nodded. Together, they bolted down the corridor, crashed through the stairwell door and slammed it shut before plunging down the stairwell.