In Gotham, when a gun is pointed at your head, the smartest move is to raise your hands.
This wasn't the kind of apocalypse where people shot each other over a crust of bread—at least not yet. Lex Williams had no intention of getting his brains blown out over half a bottle of cola and a chocolate bar.
He raised both hands slowly.
"Hey, don't be so tense," he said. "If you want the Coke and chocolate, just take them."
"Shut up."
The voice behind him was low and firm.
A woman?
Being held at gunpoint by a woman was humiliating enough. What unsettled him more was that he had already checked the convenience store carefully. He had been certain he was alone.
So where had she come from?
Ceiling.
Lex flicked his gaze upward.
The shop lights were dead. The ceiling above was dark and cluttered with beams and ducts. If someone had been hiding up there, he never would've noticed.
She dropped down soundlessly.
Whoever she was, she wasn't ordinary.
Lex's thoughts accelerated. Based on her movement alone, even without the gun, he wouldn't stand a chance in a fight.
Outside, a faint buzzing sound grew louder.
Propellers.
The beam of a searchlight swept past the shattered storefront, flashing across the darkness before vanishing again.
The pressure against the back of his head lifted slightly.
"If you want to live," the woman said, "stay here and don't move."
Lex had no intention of dying. He was very willing to listen to women in moments like this.
She shifted position, stepping from behind him to stand parallel along the wall.
When the searchlight passed again, he finally caught a clear glimpse.
Brown hair. Striking profile. Black leather jacket. A presence that felt carved from steel.
She held an M1911 in her left hand. In her right, a bloodstained fire axe.
Even from that partial view, Lex knew exactly who she was.
Alice.
Goddess.
If he could cling to her leg, his survival rate would skyrocket.
No—wait.
Alice was powerful. Capable. Almost unstoppable.
But she was also a walking epicenter of catastrophe. Wherever she went, disaster followed.
Sticking to her might raise his survival rate… or cut it in half.
Better to stay alive on his own terms.
As he weighed whether to latch onto a goddess or run for his life, Alice suddenly turned her head and looked at him.
Lex immediately raised his hands higher, doing his best to appear completely harmless.
She didn't hesitate to eliminate threats. Zombies weren't the only things she killed.
"Hey," she said, calm and direct. "When you get the chance, use the back door."
With that, she moved along the wall toward the storefront.
Since she had decided he wasn't a threat—and even pointed out an escape route—Lex lowered his hands and followed her line of sight outside.
"Huff… huff…"
Two zombie dogs emerged from the darkness.
Each stood nearly a yard tall, bodies swollen and warped. Their breathing came in heavy bursts. Thick drool streamed from their jaws.
They looked like calves—if calves had been dragged through hell and brought back wrong.
The roar of engines intensified.
Two helicopters descended onto the street, rotors kicking up dust and debris. More than thirty Umbrella Special Forces soldiers jumped down in perfect coordination.
Helmets. Full tactical gear. Weapons raised.
They formed a defensive perimeter in seconds, rifles trained on the zombie dogs.
The next instant, one of the dogs lifted its head sharply.
It must have caught Alice's scent.
It launched forward.
Is it too late to leave?
Lex's heart pounded.
From the moment Alice mentioned the back door to the instant the zombie dogs appeared, only seconds had passed.
He wanted to run—but half a bottle of cola wasn't enough to restore three days of starvation.
And if he bolted too early and drew attention, he might get shot by either side.
Goodbye, goddess.
He slowly shifted one foot back.
He genuinely didn't have much strength left. And no matter how many zombie movies someone had watched, nothing prepared you for this in real life.
Glass exploded inward.
The first zombie dog crashed through the shattered storefront.
Bang. Bang.
Alice fired twice without hesitation.
Both bullets struck the same point.
Headshot.
The zombie dog's body continued forward from momentum, slamming into a shelf with a heavy thud before collapsing to the ground, sliding until it nearly touched Lex's shoes.
He could almost feel the hot breath that had left its mouth seconds before death.
Adrenaline surged through him.
A monster the size of a calf lay dead at his feet, its cloudy eyes still staring.
This was ten times more intense than any roller coaster.
The second zombie dog burst in immediately after.
Alice didn't even have time to adjust her aim.
She swung the fire axe.
Thud.
The blade buried itself completely into the creature's skull.
The dog dropped instantly.
Outside—
Clap clap clap—
Gunfire erupted in a deafening storm.
More than thirty rifles firing simultaneously at a single target.
The sound alone was overwhelming.
Survival instinct detonated inside Lex.
Without thinking, he turned and sprinted toward the back door of the convenience store.
Bullets tearing through the air behind him were far more terrifying than a dead monster at his feet.
He shoved through the back exit and stumbled into the alley.
Behind the store stretched a narrow corridor of shadow between buildings.
Lex didn't run blindly.
First, because something could leap out of the darkness at any moment.
Second, because if neither side had noticed him yet, sprinting wildly now would only attract attention—from soldiers or helicopters.
He didn't believe he could outrun a helicopter.
And he certainly didn't believe he'd survive a second miracle under machine-gun fire.
Gunshots continued to thunder on the other side of the building as Alice engaged in direct combat with Umbrella forces.
Lex pressed himself against the wall, forcing his breathing to quiet.
He had survived.
For now.