Chapter 3

Ten days after the virus outbreak—

All cities had fallen.

Zombies ran rampant.

Corpses littered the streets.

As the first city to discover zombies, ours had long since become a ghost town devoid of human life.

An eerie silence pervaded everything.

Zombies wandered aimlessly along the roads, stumbling as they walked.

Occasionally a patrol helicopter would fly overhead, its thunderous roar filling the air.

The zombie hordes would immediately chase after the helicopter's direction, running in a frenzy.

I watched as our food supplies dwindled, lost in thought.

If things continued like this, I'd starve to death before getting bitten by zombies.

I decided to discuss strategy with my zombie brother.

I took out the key, opened the bedroom door a crack.

I quickly tossed in a piece of raw pork.

I had to keep my brother fed, otherwise if he lost control and bit me, it would be all over.

"Lucas, I have a task for you," I coaxed him like a child, carefully negotiating.

My brother wolfed down the meat, his bluish face still smeared with crimson blood.

A door separated us, him inside and me outside.

"There's a Walmart superstore downstairs. I don't know how much food is left, but go grab whatever you can find. The more the better. Preferably instant foods with long shelf lives."

"Also power banks - it's been 10 days since the zombie outbreak, so power banks should still work. Grab several if you can. In case the electricity goes out, we can use them for emergencies."

"And drones, the kind that can be remotely controlled. With one of those, we can see what's happening outside and avoid danger if needed."

"The water supply station is on the ground floor next door. There should be stockpiles of bottled water in the warehouse. At this rate, the water will be cut off within two weeks. If we stock up on water now, we'll have drinking water, water for washing, flushing toilets..."

I rambled on and on.

All the stress and anxiety I'd bottled up over these past few days came pouring out in that moment.

I didn't know how much my brother understood.

I only knew that my brother still retained a shred of rationality.

That tiny bit of humanity that hadn't mutated was clinging on through our blood ties.

I didn't know how long it would last.

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