[Bonus Chapter for Powerstones. Thank you to all that sent Powerstones]
[Bonus Chapter for Powerstones]
Liora looked at our brother in shock.
"Derrick?! What are you doing here?"
"Isn't it obvious? I came to get you guys," Derrick said, grinning as always. "Looks like you have your hands full there, Liam."
"Want to help?"
"Where's the fun in that?" he chuckled. "Though, since you don't mind, why don't you take Lily here off my hands?"
Lily was fast asleep on top of Derrick's head. No doubt she had gotten bored watching him slay zombies. It was only a matter of time before she was back to her former energetic self.
"No thanks."
"I knew you'd say that," Derrick retorted, still grinning from ear to ear. He seemed as if he was on cloud nine.
To be honest, I expected this reaction from him. The world turning to shit was probably his dream come true. Because of this, he got the chance to go on a rampage as much as he would like, and he wouldn't have to hide from the cops anymore.
A few days ago, Derrick broke out of jail. He got locked up after beating a man within an inch of his life. For what reason, you ask? The man stepped on his shoes, which he had just cleaned, and an argument ensued between the two.
The truth is, Derrick was a hothead looking for any reason to put someone down. His only weakness was the little ball of cuteness sitting on top of his head. My little sister Lily. Don't get me wrong, he loved our family and would do anything to protect any one of us. But it was quite obvious that Lily held a special place in his heart. Maybe it was her innocence and cheerful behavior.
Fun fact: Derrick was the one who taught me how to fight. Well, 'taught' is a bit of an exaggeration. More like he would attack me, and I would be forced to defend myself. This was normal for wolves, but I wasn't one for such extracurricular activities. Nevertheless, if I let my guard down with him, he would claw out my eyes with a huge grin on his face.
Derrick was the reason we weren't too worried about Lily since our parents were off on a work trip. We knew she would be safe as long as she was with him. Soon, the little ball of cuteness began to stir in her sleep and opened her eyes.
Her cute face lit up in a dazzling smile when she caught sight of me and Liora.
"Big sis Liora, big bro Liam! I missed you!"
She hopped down from Derrick's head and ran toward us. She then jumped with unnatural reflexes and wrapped her arms around my neck, adding some weight to my already strained muscles.
"Missed you guys so much!"
"We missed you too!" Liora retorted, which caused Lily to blush and hug me tighter.
It was then I felt a sharp pain on my shoulder. I glanced to the side to see Liora glaring at me while digging her claws into my skin.
"Y-Yeah, Lily, I missed you too!" I said. It was only then that Liora retracted her claws.
"So," Derrick said, folding his arms, "mind telling me who these two girls are you're holding and what happened to Liora?"
"Sure, but we should talk somewhere else. I don't think it's smart to stay out in the open."
"Hmm… Fine, let's go back to my truck," Derrick said, already walking off, leaving me to carry the four girls. I had Liora over one shoulder, Ava and Isabella over the other, and Lily swinging from my neck like a tree monkey.
With a sigh, I followed behind Derrick but couldn't help notice Liora glaring at him from behind.
"Where did you get a truck?" she asked in a demanding tone that would make you think she was the older sibling.
Derrick didn't even look back as he answered her.
"I stole it."
After a brief walk, we had left the school completely and were now outside the gate where a grey pickup truck was waiting for us. While outside for the first time since the apocalypse started, Liora's and my eyes were drawn to the condition of the street.
It was just as I expected. Carcasses lay everywhere, painting a picture of the suffering that unfolded. The scent of rot stained the air itself. I don't know if I'll ever get used to this new reality.
"A lot of the people in the city are dead," Derrick said, noticing our gazes. "Those who survived are the ones who left. Even now, there are still gun battles going on with the police and soldiers trying to kill zombies and any other abominations that spawned out of who knows where. I passed a few military vehicles on the road. For once, they didn't give a shit about me."
"What are they going to do?" Liora asked.
Derrick shook his head.
"Fighter jets have been deployed, and I heard they are planning to bomb sections of the city where the monsters are rampant. Just before the radio went out, they were urging us to leave the city."
"But we can't leave, can we?" Liora said.
"Not a chance."
They were right; we couldn't leave. We still had business to take care of here. Just then, as if sensing what we all were thinking, Lily spoke up with anger on her cute face.
"Big sis Allison. We have to go get her."
Derrick smiled and patted her on the head.
"Don't worry, Lily, we would never leave our pet ape behind," Derrick said with a grin.
"She is our mascot after all," Liora followed up.
My older sister Allison is the firstborn and eldest of all of us. Though she was the eldest, she was the biggest crybaby out of all of us. She was currently in her third year at one of the most prestigious law schools in the country.
We could still feel her presence in the city, so we knew she hadn't left. She was most likely still at her university.
"So here's the plan. Our first objective is finding Allison and making sure she is safe. Then we'll leave the city and try to find Mom and Dad."