The hall was still, silence wasn't far fetched. Chairs formally used by teachers were now occupied by the students who overthrew them. Their fresh corpse laying lifelessly at a corner.
Arthur speculated something to happen to the bodies but that wasn't his main concern now. "To be able to survive we have to put out heads together and combine our experiences." Ethan began.
In a squarelike formation, the four sat adjacent and opposite each other. Arthur made Ethan use the principal's chair and desk saying he was currently the highest authority in the school.
Julian and Marcus sat on the vice principals desks, while Arthur sat on a normal teacher's desk. The rest of the quadrants had collected the remaining desk, as expected Peter collected most.
'Needs more helpers in handle such a crowd, I wish him luck.' "Since we are now in charge due to our friend's actions. We must also figure a way to build a better place for those who followed us. "
Tapping his overgrown nail on the table, Julian said."I was a bit stunned when the apocalypse came. I was sleeping. So when juniors began rushing into the hall, I thought it merely was a huge battle between sophomores and final years."
"I thought the same too," Marcus added. "That was till I lost footing twice due to the shockwaves or resonances. Arthur you were outside from the very beginning you'll have more insight."
Ethan interrupted, "He was momentarily knocked out due to the first resonance." Surprised Arthur looked at him, "Momentarily? I thought I was out for hours."
"False, I saw you fall, I saw you rise. It was just as if you blinked." Ethan replied, "Wait I also saw you get crushed by a gravity pulse, Henry died to one of those and it was pretty horrifying. "
Hearing this Ethan went silent as if stunned by Arthur's words. ' He's contemplating, what are you hiding Ethan. ' " You saw that? " He asked Arthur, his expression a bit dark.
Arthur stared into his eyes searching for the truth, ' He plainly survived, someone took his place. There is simply no other logical explanation.'
Noticing the tension in the silence Ethan spoke, "Someone was behind me, she got crushed instead of I." Marcus and Julian briefly gazed at each other, then at Arthur.
"Let's keep that aside, we are all aware of the other phenomenons. But the last might be the cause of our persistent existence." Arthur said shifting the topic.
" We were both inside the hall the entire time, so apart form strange cosmic noises and the madness of time. I, Julian and the rest of the people in the hall are clueless." Marcus responded.
Hissing lightly Ethan continued, "While I was trying to find the way to my house. I saw eight huge symbols flash in the starry sky, after that was darkness. Then a holographic screen informed me on my commencing walkthrough. "
Those words enlightened Arthur, "Your walkthrough what was it?" He asked eagerly. "You say." Repeating himself Arthur asked."What was your walkthrough about?"
"Ohh, I just stood guarding an enormous crystal gate made mostly of rubies. The world was like an infinite huge mirror with a clear sky." He explained.
In a sadder tone, " However I don't understand why the world, was slowly being consumed by an internal darkness. Darkness seeping out of the gate I stood guarding."
"At the I just had to stop myself from completely fading away into motes of blue light. The darkness was very much harmless to me." Ethan concluded.
The group spent a moment in silence before Julian spoke up. "How did you stop yourself from fading away?" "I willed myself to remain, it was hard at first. I tried everything physically possible. But when I stirred my will into standing by the gate and protecting it, I completed the walkthrough."
" Why was mine then so difficult. I had to escape an earthquake, the hand of a giant, walk through a path of needles." Arthur complained waving his hands as he explained.
" Survive seven armoured beings, especially one while was trying to kill me. And at the end touch a glowing cube." He looked at his friends and made a questioning expression.
Julian made an expression to speak but held himself back as he wanted to ponder more. " It seems every one has a different walkthrough." Julian said eventually.
Disbelievingly Arthur objected, " Mine wasn't called a walkthrough, it was called a reawakening. Akin to me living a second or third life."
"Whether you are trapped in an infinite time loop, we know that this apocalypse is supernatural. Hence it is very unpredictable, we should be prepared for anything thrown at us." Marcus said cracking his fingers.
"The harder your first awakening might mean your potential. I haven't seen the true limits of your telekinetic ability but I know you are the strongest awakener present." Ethan added.
"Telekinesis sure is overpowered, but you shouldn't get cocky. We haven't awakened so it's left for the both of you to figure out the depths of your abilities." Julian explained.
Clenching his fists Arthur looked towards the middle school's hallway. "The system might help us in understanding it, but most importantly, we have to survive."
With that the meeting was concluded and the friends except Ethan stood to do other things. Other things were mostly mingling with their followers.
Arthur walked towards a girl who was standing at the window, looking into the middle school. "You know there is nothing there." He said staring at the wall beyond the window.
The sapphire eyed girl looked at him then slowly turned away, "I heard something…, something human." Caelith replied. Turning to the right and looking at the grade 8 classroom.
Its door was closed, its window painted red with blood and slowly something tapping against the window's glass. Creating an eerie rhythm if listened to closely in a quietness.
The left lead to the headmasters office and the middle school's main entrance which was at the end of the hallway. Brushing off the eerie vibes Arthur said. "Zombies were once humans."
She looked at him, her gaze soft and a bit comforting. "Why did you decide to join the villain, the bad guy. There better chances of your survival if you had stayed with Peter." Arthur asked.
"The ones who made you a villain wanted me and hundred others, to die in the hands of morbid creatures. You are actually our saviour." She replied in a soothing voice.
Arthur paused for a moment and tilted his head a bit,' Is it me or is the pattern on that wall starting to move.' " Excuse me, I would get back to planing on how to clear the death zone before us." He said walking away.
' I have to get rid of her, before it's too late.' he thought to himself walking across the hall to the place he dropped his firearms and ammunition.