For Her I'll Make An Exception

Was the arc satisfying XD?

"W-Why!" He splutters as the zombie gnaws through his neck. His arms jerk and in seconds he too goes under the waves. Now it is just Rui and Yin. I leave the shadow of the buildings as the zombies come in close. Yin stares at her false friend in horror.

"You pushed him!" She cries out. Rui attempts to back up. She's shorter than Yin though, and the river threatens to wash her away.

"Please! It was the only way to save us! He was going to abandon me!" Rui pleads, trying to reach the other girl. However, Yin has already seen the devil inside. She maintains her distance in the deeper water, just barely holding on against the current. The pink haired girl panics as the zombies get close. "Yin, don't leave me!"

"I…I…" Yin's good nature makes it hard for her to let go. I dash into the river as she starts to waver. Just as she reaches forward to take Rui's hand, I yell with all my might,

"Don't touch her!"

The shock of my appearance is enough to cause Yin to hesitate for a moment. The pudgy man surges up from the water behind and grabs Rui, dragging her back. She shudders, screaming all the while it feeds on her.

"N-No! AHHHH! PLEASE HELP ME! SOMEONE!" Her cries continue on and on as the other zombies catch up and begin to bite her entire body, tearing bits off here and there. Moments later, the undead turn to Yin who is still frozen in place, unable to move a she watches the last of her friends die. It must be an awful sight. However, it had to be done. She looks almost like a dead person herself as the zombies advance on her. They are going to do the same to her if she doesn't move. But then I am there. My cleaver is the Reaper's scythe.

*Thunk*

*Splash*

*Thunk*

I hew down the enemy like wheat from behind. By the end, the river turns a dark shade of brown as rotting zombie blood mixes with the fresh blood from Yin's dead friends. All the while, she stands there, frozen in despair. When I approach her, she's shaking like a leaf despite looking like a statue. Even when I grab her hand, she doesn't resist. Just keeps saying with chattering teeth.

"W-Why…why!" However, though I know why her friends die, I cannot tell her the truth. That they were poisonous vultures who would have turned on her eventually. This time, I am not her savior. Though I have come to save her this once, it is not for free. Her salvation must come at a price. I drag her to shore, her fingers limply held in my tight grip. The congratulations message for becoming a Hunter is already in my sight. It disappears slowly, the letters fading into the wind as I get my feet on the river bank. Once Yin is safely out of the water, I go around and collect dead wood. The dry branches and twigs crackle as I start a fresh fire beside her. All the while, she watches me with an eerie unseeing stare. I know what it is. Shock. She'll need to warm up to get over it. Gently, I take her shoulders and push her down. It doesn't take much. She soon collapses by the warm fire. The girl shakes and shudders, her body trying to escape the stress her mind cannot. I hold her and stroke her hair, whispering that it will be okay. It hurts me. What I will have to make her do next. But it is inevitable. My eyes linger on the river's edge as the moon shines down.

How many of them will come back?

It doesn't take long for the answer to rise out of the burbling river. Little splashes drip down on the mud. They are not Drowned Dead, so I can hear their footsteps coming. Yin hears them too, shifting in my arms. She raises her head tiredly, futile hope in her eyes. Perhaps she believes that some of her friends survived. That they are going to come back and be a party again. Unfortunately, only one of those things is true. Donovan, Jumoke, and Rui rise again from the water. Ragged wounds cover their bodies, and Yin gasps as she realizes these are no longer her friends. The Fresh Undead stalk towards us, hungry for warm flesh.

"No…Donovan? Jumoke? R-Rui?" She whispers through chattering teeth. "P-Please, say something! This can't be happening! This can't be real!" Her hot tears dribble down and I get my legs under me and drag her up with me. Yin doesn't want to rise. The cute girl's mind is almost broken. If it isn't yet, it might be after what I make her do next. Grabbing her right arm, I put the handle of my cleaver in her hand. She whirls back to me. "W-Why are you giving me this?"

"Your friends are gone. If you want to help them, if you want to live, you will put them out of their misery." I point at each of the three coming undead. "Choose, let them suffer eternally, or help them!"

"No…NO NO NO!" She cries as she realizes what I want to do. But I back away. I leave her no choice. From my past life, I already know that she is stronger than she knows. It takes an eon. She doesn't decide until her friends are almost upon her. "Why, why won't you help me? Why do I have to do this?" Her sobs tear at me inside, but I don't look away.

"Because you have to choose to survive in this world. Do you want to live? Or do you want to become one of them?" I whisper back gently. The first of the undead, Donovan roars as it gets close to her. His blonde hair is tattered and brown with blood. Mud drips from his fingers and feet as he rushes for Yin. At first, I'm afraid I've misjudged her. Maybe she wasn't as strong as I thought. But then she raises my cleaver and swings for his neck. Her wild blow misses, but I'm already moving. I pivot on one foot and kick her undead friend in the head, knocking him to his knees. "DO IT!"

"AHHHHH!" Yin screams into the night as she lets my cleaver fall onto the back of Donovan's head. His hands seize, the nerves forcing his body to dance as they fire one last time.

"AGAIN! HERE!" I point at the weakpoint, the base of his neck. Yin's tears fall endlessly as she raises the butcher's blade and drops it onto the spot. This time, she doesn't miss.

Thud.

Donovan's head goes down. I stand and duck under Jumoke's undead hands. The zombie stumbles, unable to understand where I went. Then I kick it in the butt and it goes sprawling. From the ground, Jumoke's head turns and he looks up at Yin with a disgusting, bloated grin. River water dribbles from his mouth as he roars. Before he can get to his feet, Yin hits him. Her aim is off, it takes two blows. But then Jumoke is no more. His body drops to the ground lifelessly for the last time. Finally, all that is left is the one I saved for last. Rui comes at us with a stuttering step, her limbs filled with holes.

"P-Please…I'm so…hungry…so cold…" She moans, though in her dull eyes, a wicked hunger gleams. Even dead, the girl is a devil, luring others into her grasp. I help Yin get up. She stares at her old friend with undisguised fear. Perhaps this is one is harder because it's a girl.

"I-I can't. Help me!" She shakes, trying to shove the knife back into my hand. "I'll do anything you want, just don't make me do this!" At this, I cock my head. Somewhere out the woods, I can hear leaves rustling. So the other one does come to town eventually. I suspected as much. Shrugging, I accept my butcher's blade back just this one.

"For her…I'll make an exception. But you'll have to honor your promise in a moment." I say, as I run forwards. Rui shrieks, her high-pitched cries trying to wake all the dead under the starry sky. "You dumb hoe! Never thought I'd come back for you again, did you?" I don't bother getting behind her. I want to see her face when my blade severs her head from her spine.

*Shing*

A flash of silver metal, the dull rasp of sharp steel running across a torn throat. Then her head tumbles off her short body, the undead virus losing control as the reaper takes away Rui's soul. Yin gasps quietly behind me, but I stay silent, savoring the moment. My breath is heavy though I haven't exerted myself much. A small part of the weight on my shoulders lifts as I realize she's dead. Now all that's left is…

"So-cold. Help-me-get warm!" Crassia comes out of the woods and I'm already returning to Yin's side. She shivers, watching her friend come near. This Yin has already slain two zombies. She knows that something is wrong.

"Crassia? You're so wet…" Yin whispers, looking at me as if hoping I'm going to tell her that her friend will be okay. Slowly, ever so slowly, I just shake my head, holding out my knife. "No…you can't make me…"

"You promised." I reply, pushing my cleaver at her. With reluctant eyes, she grasps the blade and turns back to the Drowned Soul. The closer she wanders under the light, the more obvious it becomes. Pale skin, white dull eyes, river water seeping from her mouth. Yin can ignore the signs no longer. "Now it's time."

"I…I'm so sorry!"

*Thud*