RE.FU:GE

The sniper's asymmetrical jet-black leather attire that covered the lower half of his head shrouded his young complexion. A single press of a side panel on his goggles detached them to leave it resting on top of his slicked-back black hair. His blue eyes gleamed with hope, but a sliver of uncertainty and undecided fates retained in the dullness of his irises. Armed with a tactical sniper rifle with a skull decal striped on its base, the man approached Lyn and Alfaic carefully, who nestled upon the former's back holster. With each approaching step, the man's oversized belt that contained copious amounts of ammunition pouches, lethal grenades, and escape countermeasures rattled nonstop to signal; he was well-equipped for retaliation.

The two of them met by the fire station's overpass, careening off seven stories from the ground. Lyn approached the man with caution, still nominally phased by the acidic trauma occurring seconds before locking eyes with him. As the first human male she had ever encountered in her life, Lyn realized the potential usage of his information to learn about her forebearers.

"Fuck, thank god," The man's gruff voice called as he held his sniper rifle tightly by his grip. He exhaled a sigh of relief as his breathing patterns rapidly increased out of the blue. The man's flustered nature and unusual increase in anxiety seemed to catch Lyn in a confused daze. He bent down and took a deep breath, reverting to his original state, but seldom relaxing. "I didn't think I'd find anyone here."

Lyn examined his face by tilting her head to the side. She did not speak.

The man blinked twice before stowing his sniper down to his side with his fingers near the trigger. "You... you saw those things," He said, losing his breath immediately after attempting to keep his nerves composed. "They almost got to you, just like they almost got to me. You're okay?" He asked, concerned for Lyn's safety.

Lyn remained silent, observing his behavior. She tilted her head to look out of the overpass window.

"I couldn't handle it much earlier," He mentioned. "It's all been too much for us to handle, I know-"

"There," Lyn stated, pointing toward the glass window from the overpass. She fixated her glance at the lush skyscraper in the far distance, surrounded by heaps of vehicles and everlasting mounds of bloody rot growths. "Guidance to there. Now."

"You-" The man's startled expression seemed taken aback by Lyn's forceful request. "So, you know about that place? That means... you know about what's in the tower?"

"No," Lyn replied.

"Shit," The man regretted his poor choice of words at the moment by pacing left and right while taking deep, shallow breaths. "Well, I guess it doesn't matter anymore. I thought you were one of the survivors behind the tower. They've... they've got outposts set up behind the tower to keep people safe. But what's in the tower is nothing but materials and scrap. Nothing worth mentioning there."

"Life." Lyn blatantly stated out of the blue.

"Y-yes, life," The man responded to her unusual behavior, unaware of her identity. He held his hands up toward his side while keeping his sniper resting under his suited armpit. "Look, maybe we got off on the wrong foot with this imaginary debt... but forget it, okay? I'm Lordran. I was planning on heading back to their camp, but we were attacked. And then, I thought you were one of those things-" Lordran held up the sniper rifle and aimed it indirectly toward Lyn.

Alarmed at the idea of Lordran being potentially hostile, Lyn slipped her left foot back and brandished Alfaic, retaliating at his sudden threatening motion. Her false perception reignited her pain indicators, curling her black eyebrows in absolute terror.

"Hey, hey!" Lordran cried, stepping back and holstering away his sniper rifle. He created a short distance between the both of them to ensure safety and security was on their side. "N-no, you've got it all wrong. I'm not going to hurt you. I realize... I realized that you weren't one of those things, so you don't need to worry, okay?"

"No more pain." Lyn exhaled, memory racing in disquietude. Her agitated mental state became the defining factor for trust.

"Pain?" Lordran asked, unsure of her intention. "What are you talking about?"

"No... more... pain." Lyn shook her head in fear of the stinging pain returning.

"Pain..." Lordran repeated, studying her orchid eyes. "I get it. No, I won't hurt you," He admitted and continued speaking, although he would routinely stutter and gaze away from the repercussions of pure tension. "Look, I came here and... I came here with someone trying to find survivors and supplies. He didn't make it, and ever since then, I've been trying to get back to that camp. You have to trust me, okay? We can help each other out."

After a few seconds of pure silence, the two of them communicated with each other with their eyes, staring into each other's pupils to seek approval for a temporary partnership. Lordran lightly smiled at Lyn, indicating his friendliness. Lyn returned to her neutral facial expression after sensing no potential danger between them, placing Alfaic behind her back holster. Although, she was wondering why Alfaic refused to speak or step into their conversation, considering her knowledge of how it savored the pleasure of conversation.

"Okay." Lyn starkly approved.

"See? Everything's going to be fine," Lordran repeated, stepping closer to Lyn's radius with his palms facing outward. "Let's start over, okay? I'm Lordran. What's yours?"

Lyn blinked a single time before cocking her head lightly toward her shoulder to remember Alfaic's perceived name for her. "LYNB..." She began but stopped midway. "Lyn." She corrected.

"Lyn. That's... a nice name." Lordran repeated after her introduction. He turned toward the general area where he arrived to unite with Lyn after the rotten creatures assaulted her with acid. With a single tap of his left finger toward his temple, a holographic device projected a floating screen of a detailed tactical map of their surroundings. The map was interactable, which Lordran utilized to highlight significant areas around the station. "I've done some studying with the layout of this place, and the fastest way toward that survivor bunker is through the underground tunnels on 2F."

Lyn observed the holographic map. The map's general accuracy strongly declined after the station's floors and architecture collapsed with the arrival of the rotten creatures. Several pathways that did not exist in person were still present on the outdated map.

"See that place over there?" Lordran asked, pointing his finger at a smaller cabin section of the fire station outside the overpass. The cabin section was highlighted as unique above all other buildings for its maroon exterior. "I highlighted that place on my map earlier. There's a shortcut we can take there to the underground tunnels, but we need to try and remain out of sight. We don't want to piss off those bastards and bite off more than we can chew."

"Okay." Lyn accepted.

Lordran turned around to backtrack toward the cabin but swiftly backtracked to face Lyn with his hand and arm extended. Lyn gazed down at his leather-gloved hands, oblivious to the invisible tether of partnership he had offered for survival's sake. The intent was invisible to her eyes, and each beating second made Lordran unsure of Lyn's commitment to the task.

"You with me? Or are you out?" Lordran asked, concerned for Lyn.

Lyn nodded, before extending her hand out in the same manner that Lordran did. He swiftly snatched her hand and shook it to assemble their partnership. Before moving away, he pulled a tactical assault rifle from his line of gadgets stowed on his back and replaced his accepted hand with it instead.

"Take this with you. When the time comes, you gotta pin them from afar. You can't ever let those things get close to you again. Got it?" His voice trembled in more uncertainty, highlighting an even bigger stake hidden behind his confident resolve.

Lyn clutched the assault rifle tightly and nodded once more. "Okay." She said.

Lordran turned away and scanned the surroundings in front of him, leaving Lyn momentarily to ensure their safety from the rotten creatures.

While rotating her wrist, Lyn examined the assault rifle carefully; painted on the base of the chassis was the same skull decal on Lordran's sniper rifle. The custom-painted black acrylic presentation of the firearm was freshly made from scratch not too long ago; it would have passed off as a brand-new gun. She held the rifle by the textured grips, opening and closing her hands to accustom herself to the handling of the firearm.

While moving to adjust to the weapon, her index finger accidentally pressed against a lock nestled on the side, folding the rifle's barrel and chassis in half while extending a small holster for safe transportation. She glanced at the weapon's flexible capabilities before nodding in acceptance. She placed the rifle on her back holster where Alfaic was resting upon.

Then, a sudden realization hit her. She turned her head to the side, eyeing her back with maximum confusion. "Blade," She called. "Why did you not speak?"

Alfaic remained silent.

"Blade?" Lyn repeated, eyebrows slanting in frustration. "Blade, are you there?"

Lordran sped up to Lyn, beckoning for her to follow with a swift gesture of his hands. "Lyn, the coast is clear," He hissed in a low tone to avoid the possibility of nearby rotten creatures hearing in on his conversation. "Come on, let's move!"

Lyn acknowledged his request with a nod, but not before slightly turning her head again to wonder why Alfaic remained silent. She followed Lordran along the seventh floor toward a tight gap between the opposite side of a broken floor, shimmying across the ledge to avoid harm. As the two moved cautiously through, the blood-curdling and bubbling sounds of infected creatures struck fear into Lyn's senses, making her uneasy at the thought of pain.

The two finished shimmying across, catching a descent of stairs and moving to the sixth floor. Nests of more blood flies and infected bugs brooded Lyn's mind with conflict. She slowed her steps, trembling before the wake while Lordran remained calm. He turned his head and guided her with another beckoning from his hand.

"Come on, let's move quickly." He said.

The two descended the stairs toward the fifth floor, stopping in the maze-like voyage as the entrance to the other descending floors crumbled into debris underneath the weak foundation they stood upon. Lordran paused in his steps and turned to the nearest hallway, spotting two more rotten creatures walking mindlessly on their slumped toes.

Their sewen heads grew increasingly bulkier, indicating that something nestled within their bodies had to potential to mutate and further increase their hazardous behavior.

Lordran equipped his sniper rifle and aimed it at the leftmost rotten creature, highlighting it with a precise red laser sight to ensure his next bullet would be his only one. Their ovoid bloated heads made them simple target practice for veteran and amateur marksmen; only fear could cloud their judgment between pulling the trigger or cowardly retreating.

Lordran kneeled on his right and pivoted his balance with his left foot. After attaching a suppressor to the sniper's barrel, he eyed Lyn to his left. "Target practice for the left one, and a chance for you to show me what you got on your right," Lordran upheld. "Those things are blind as bats, but they can smell you. If you're gonna go in and fight, make it quick and quiet."

Lyn nodded in understanding and brandished Alfaic from her holster. As its golden electrifying energies surged through the blade, Lyn dashed through the hallway with each of her steps making a clop. Lordran held his breath as he eyed the leftmost creature with his scope, waiting for the opportune moment to strike in unison. Both creatures croaked and snarled in response to Lyn's movements, making Lordran grip his sniper much more firmly in fear.

Lyn slid on her knees once more, delivering a crippling slice toward the right creature's legs. The resulting blow sent it falling to the ground, crawling only momentarily to devour Lyn. Lordran blasted two sniper bullets into the leftmost creature, taking the parasite down within it while Lyn jabbed Alfaic into the ovoid head of the one she crippled.

Lordran moved closer after they successfully took down their enemies in stealth. "You got the hang of it," He complimented before advancing toward their destination. "Come on. We need to get down to the first floor."

Lyn eyed Alfaic as she held it, pinning its lack of use throughout their short encounter. Unsure of why there was no response from her sentient blade, she chose not to dive into it further and maintained a neutral expression of composure as they moved on.

On the third floor, the dim lights flickered rapidly in the narrow locker hallway. White tiles were spread across the floors, splattered with the blood of the freshly deceased and devoured. Freezing bursts of air engulfed Lyn and Lordran as they stepped into the room. The unusual shift in temperature had Lordran proceeding further with even more precaution.

As he equipped a flashlight, Lyn caught one of the side doors to the fire station wide open to reveal nothing but the darkness within. Lordran shined his flashlight on the tiles they stood upon, checking for hostile creatures. Lyn advanced as she advanced toward the open door.

A slithering rattle shook Lordran's nerves. He turned behind him and caught nothing of importance near the stairs. A distracted Lordran gave the unknown assailant enough time to strike its prey. A white noodle-like tendril camouflaged into the white tiles underneath Lyn gripped her by the ankle firmly. The leech-like tendril's original position was camouflaged through the colors of the blood-shaded tiles, catching her by surprise.

"LYN!" Lordran cried, reaching for a holstered machete on his side. He dove toward her, hoping to split the tendril from Lyn's ankle, but it was too late.

Lyn released her grip on Alfaic as the tendrils multiplied into many, wriggling around her and taking total control of her movement. She struggled to release herself from the tendrils, attempting to reach for Alfaic. But to no avail, the creature dragged her into the dark abyss of the side door, slamming and locking itself shut.

Alfaic landed in a puddle of blood, laying still without a single utterance of a word.