Last Chance

"What? Me!" Yin stares at my cleaver over her shoulder as the red-haired wraith of her friend creeps closer. Even from this close, it's hard to tell that Crassia is undead now. The telltale giveaway of her invisible footsteps and drowned appearance are slight enough to be ignored by most. If it wasn't for the fact that James once almost died to a Drowned Soul himself when we first started adventuring I wouldn't know. "What's wrong with her?"

"I told you. She died in that river. What you're seeing is no longer human. Just a corpse reanimated by the virus. If you kill her, you can become a Hunter, like I was. Like I am." I correct myself as I remember that I accidentally hit Lvl 1 saving their party. "Either you kill her, or she kills you." I push the cleaver closer to her hand. When the wooden handle bumps her hand she pulls it back abruptly.

"There's no way…look she's…she's fine…" Yin stares at her friend as the shambling Drowned Soul comes into the open. A ray of moonlight illuminates Crassia's face and reveals the true extent of the damage. Her skin is utterly white, all traces of color lost to the river bottom. Only the mud caking her ragged clothes is dark brown under the moonlight. An expression of intense longing fills her forlorn face. When she opens her mouth to gasp for air, it sounds like she's speaking from underwater. Yin gasps as she sees what has become of her friend. "N-No! You were fine! How did this happen?"

"I-so-so…cold…can't…breath." Crassia hisses, her bloated fingers reaching out as if to grab onto the shore. She plods towards us in a way that's almost dreamlike. I shake my head, bonking Yin on the back of her head with my cleaver.

"HEY!" She swings around. "What was that for?" Sighing, I just drop the cleaver into her hand, forcing her to hold onto it or risk dropping it. "I told you, I'm not going to-"

"Your choice. In five seconds, she's going to try to kill you. Either you listen to my instructions and learn how to kill her, or I'm going to leave. Then she'll kill you and after she's done with you, she'll go after the rest of your friends." My dark words cause Yin's face to tighten. She glances at me, trying to confirm if I'm serious or not. Something in my face must tell her the truth because her knuckles tighten on the cleaver this time. "You're running out of time. Decide now."

"You…look…warm…" Crassia fixes her undead gaze at Yin. From this close it's like being stared at by a deadly predator. Any second, it might attack. That is all she is now. Just the dead, even if she possesses the same face and voice. One need to realize the truth in this cruel world. Or perish along with the old. "Can I…touch you…I just want…to be warm…again."

"Please. I can't do this. Help me!" Yin's voice grows panicked as she realizes I really will walk away. She turns rapidly from me back to her friend over and over. I shake my head as Crassia takes one more step.

"Too late. She's coming." I whisper, before falling away from her. Yin stares at me with wide eyes. No doubt in their mirror-like reflection she can see what is coming for her.

"GIVE IT TO ME! YOUR WARMTH!" Crassia surges forward, her red hair flowing backwards in one smooth motion as the undead virus in her compels her to attack her friend. Yin stumbles back, holding my cleaver out as if it will ward off evil. Unfortunately, it is not very long, and while I keep it sharp, it's hardly going to impale a Drowned Soul without any force behind it. The cute girl shrieks, helpless as she realizes her mistake.

"Heeeelp!" She screams. The Drowned Soul's arms have an unnatural speed to them. Now that she has cast aside her disguise as a person, she is unveiled for what she truly is. Just a predator controlled by the virus. Lunging forwards, she grasps for Yin's throat, desperate to drain her lifeblood. Yin lands on her butt, and I hear a gasp as the hard ground knocks the wind out of her. Crassia's short legs are empowered by death. Her bloated fingers reach for Yin's throat and the girl desperately rolls sideways to get out of the way. Okay…that was a little impressive. Maybe you do have some promise after all. However, a Lvl 5 Drowned Soul is much faster to recover than the clumsy Fresh Undead. Crassia lands on her hands and knees and is back on her feet in a flash long before Yin can regain her own footing. Staring at the cute girl's terrified face, I feel a tinge of pity. I remember my first fight against the undead. My heart pounding in my chest. I had the same weapon. Looking down, I see Yin has had the sense to keep holding onto my cleaver. Lucky for her, it's her only chance.

"I can hold it down for you. But only for a second. After that, I will let go and I won't interfere again." I step forwards towards the undead. Crassia hisses like a feral cat. Black river-water seeps out along with coagulated blood and bits of her torn lungs as she breathes heavily. I never understood why the undead still do that sometimes. Breath that is. They don't need to. The Drowned Ghoul turns to me. "Do you understand?"

"Just…get it away!" Yin tries to get to her feet while holding my cleaver. I snap out a punch at the undead girl's forehead, careful to avoid striking anywhere near the mouth. The bite of the undead is a death sentence. As a Lvl 5 undead, Crassia senses my punch and immediately lunges towards me. But I expected that. Retracting my punch before it hits, I follow her center of gravity, moving sideways and ducking underneath the Drowned Ghoul. A moment later I'm behind her. My hands come up like steel traps, curling underneath her neck and locking together. It's a disgusting feeling, her bloated body is too soft, yet oddly swollen in the wrong places. I can feel cold river water leaking onto my arms, my chest. It's like clutching a frozen, rotting, fruit. The smell of an undead invades my nostrils as Crassia flails in my grasp trying to turn around and bite me. Her nails scrabble against my coatsleeves, failing to tear the fabric. I steer the undead around, so she faces Yin, who stands there with my cleaver in hand, at a loss for what to do. Yanking up against the undead's chin, I force Crassia's snarling mouth up towards the sky, baring her neck.

"You can't be serious!"

"Last chance."

"You're going to die then." I don't know why I'm trying so hard to save this stupid girl. Maybe it's because she reminds me of Sasha. Of how we all were when we first started hunting the dead. That naïve innocence, the thought that maybe our loved ones could still be saved. I thought I had forgotten the feeling. But right now, I'm starting to remember. Maybe it's just how damp the Drowned Ghoul between my arms is, but my eyes are a little moist. I blink to clear them. My breath grows heavy. Without any stat increases holding a Lvl 5 is taking every bit out of me. "I'm going to let go now."

"You…you really would." Yin walks closer, my cleaver held tightly in front of her. She stares at her friend with horror initially as I hold the thing back. Eventually, her expression turns to pity. My arms are burning, and finally, I have to let go. So be it.

*Shing*

Yin swings my cleaver. Her blow cuts into Crassia's throat with a wet thump. But she's inexperienced and the cleaver is hardly a perfect blade. The shallow cut she inflicts only makes Crassia wail loudly.

"I-hate-you! You-hurt-me! DIE-DIE-DIE!" The Drowned Ghoul rages, her hands scrabbling on my forearms. Instantly, I let go. The zombie falls forward as I unexpectedly kick her in the back of the knee. Then I shove forwards with my own knee, bringing her down with me on top. "HUURRGH!"

"Finish her. Become a Hunter." I say, keeping my knee on Crassia's back so she can't move. "Humans are weak in the back of the neck. Right here." I touch the spot with a finger. It squishes inwards disgustingly. Yin looks like she's going to puke. She leans in, my cleaver held high. The cute girl from before is unrecognizable, mud all over her hands and legs and undisguised fear on her face.

"I thought you weren't going to help me anymore." She whispers.

"I won't kill her. But if you are willing to learn to survive, I can teach you the basics." I shrug. "Now kill it, I'm getting tired."

"She's a person." Yin retorts, her face a mask of agony. I just lift my knee slightly. When Crassia is able to get her face out of the mud she immediately begins to howl once more.

"Give-me-your-warmth!" Her rage is enough to make Yin shiver in fear. I push myself off of the Drowned Soul entirely. The zombie begins to rise onto all fours, her hands scrabbling in the dirt. With a tortured grimace, Yin makes her choice. Metal shines in the moonlight. A swish comes. My cleaver swings down on the weakpoint at the back of the neck. This time it connects cleanly. Crassia's howl is choked off. River water mixes with blood as her body tilts forward. First her head thuds to the ground and then the rest of her follows soon after. Silence is everywhere, broken only by Yin's sobs.

"I'm so sorry…" She whispers to the corpse. However, in a moment, it is replaced by confusion. "W-What is this? Why can I see this writing in the air? Congratulations on becoming a Hunter? Is this what you meant?" She whirls, her fingers seemingly waving in the air. In time, she will learn to adjust her HUD with her mind. But for now, the most intuitive way is to reach for it with her hands.

"Do you see it now? You've just hit Lvl 1." I look at her, remembering my first time seeing the HUD. She fidgets, her face scrunching up. "The higher your level becomes the stronger you will get. The only way to become safe in this world is to level up."

"This…this is ridiculous! You can't seriously expect me to believe that this is all some sort of game?" She whispers, but it doesn't matter what I say because she has already begun to believe. "If this is real, and I'm not saying it is, how do you level up?" I point at the dead Drowned Soul at her feet.

"There are two ways to level up. The most common way for most people is to kill zombies, the more you kill, the stronger you get." My explanation is easy enough to follow. She looks at the dead zombie and then at me.

"What is the second way then?" She asks hesitantly when I don't continue. Turning my gaze around the thicket, I shrug, pointing at her forehead.

"The second way is to kill other Hunters. For every Hunter you kill, half their accumulated experience will become yours. But I don't recommend it." Glancing her over, I smile coldly. "You're too weak, and since you only gain half of their experience, it's not worth the risk. Eventually, if you go down that path, you will pay a painful price."

"I see." Yin shivers, realizing that she's still holding my cleaver in her hand. "What level are you then?"

"I'm a newbie, like you. Lvl 1." I take back my cleaver and clean it in the grass. While I wipe away the blood of her friend, she looks grossed out.

"How do you know so much then?" She asks. This time, I don't respond. When my knife is clean, I stand. Suddenly, the bushes nearby shiver. I knew I heard something else in these woods. Yin startles. Despite becoming a Hunter she still thinks like prey and immediately tries to hide behind me. However, when the bushes part, she gives a cry of relief.

"Donovan!" Yin leaves my shadow as the blonde-haired boy comes out of the shadows. He has a wary gaze as he sees my cleaver in hand. From the brush, the rest of Yin's party appears. The girl with pink hair, Rui, who begged me to save Crassia rushes in and gasps as she sees Crassia's body. Yin embraces her as the other boys come awkwardly into the clearing. Their clothing is still wet, obviously they did not manage to get a fire going. So they're the ones who have been making so much noise.