Cannibal Gumbo

As more zombies joined in on making Kaori a meal, she suddenly felt a small painless shock against her heart, as if it were being restarted. It was sudden and quick, and only a small frame of time passed before she felt another, this time stronger and jerking her body with it. 

A faint smile formed on her face as she began to recognize what was happening. She was just in a coma! 

She quickly opened her eyes, large and wide as excitement pushed her to. 

But she was greeted by nothing. 

It was the black room again that Persephone had originally put her in. Kaori twisted around looking for another light, an image, that would bring her back to her real body; but to no avail. 

Instead, after a few turns, she was met with Persephone, smiling at her as a faint, glowing light surrounded her; a true goddess. 

Kaori was bloodied, the marks of her bites still upon her body as she stood in front of the same woman that allowed her to go through that. "You lied to me!" 

Persephone only raised her arm out in front of her, before making a circle with her finger; summoning an image of Kaori on the spaceship still being eaten. "You're lucky only a few of them have gotten to you so far. You may be one of them, but you are still able to die. Just takes a bit more work on their part." 

"Let me go back to my own life!" Kaori protested. As if prepared, the goddess changed the magical image in front of the influencer to show her body still on the street; still covered by a white sheet and with coagulated blood still pooled around her cracked open head. 

"This life?" The beautiful goddess rhetorically asked. "You're more alive in this world I've put you in, and you're already half dead." Persephone made the image disappear so she could once again look at the helpless, zombie in front of her. "I have a lot of worlds to wander, so I will only help you this once without you working to earn it. If you wish for my help in the future, then earn it." 

Kaori's arms dropped limply at her sides as she stared wide-eyed with her mouth hanging open at the goddess. All she could think about is that she was just informed she was undead! "I'm a zombie!?" She screamed out, finally breaking her trance as she grabbed her head, dropping to her knees as if she were in peril. 

Persephone didn't answer her, instead, she nearly teleported to Kaori until she was only a few feet from her. "This is your last chance, don't waste it," she told her softly as she leaned down and placed a gentle hand upon her shoulder. 

The moment her hand touched her, Kaori's vision immediately changed back to where she was sitting against the glass. 

What felt like a while, was only a few seconds as, out of all the zombies that were heading towards her, only a total of 5 were on top of her. 

When she finally decided to try and fight back since she had no other choice but to, she realized she couldn't move anything, not even her eyes; It was like she was being controlled. 

Her body stood up on its own, knocking the undead from on top of her in the process. Her arm then raised out in front of her, with her palm up. 

Persephone's angelic voice left her lips, "burn." 

A sudden swirl of scorching flames erupted from her hand before lashing out at every undead being in the room that was trying to harm Kaori. 

Once every zombie dropped in a matter of seconds, burning, Persephone spoke once more. "I can't stay like this much longer. No physical form can hold me long term without experiencing damage. I have bought you some time, so make good use of it. I'll award you your bonus now for killing all of them, and don't forget to find the memories." 

And then she was gone, and Kaori was back in control, collapsing to the ground from her injuries once more. "I'm really getting fucking tired of being beat up," she snapped under her breath. Though upon hitting the ground she heard the slight shake of a backpack upon her back. "What's this?" she asked aloud, taking it off her back before quickly opening it up; and like magic, its contents entered her mind. 

She now had a dagger, a bag of chips, a bottle of fresh water, a Full-Heal Potion, and a magical map. Kaori also learned she was level 6 and had no memories stored. 

"Memories?" She shook her head as if to get the thought away, "I need that potion, first." She shoved her hand into the small, black leather backpack, unable to see anything, as she aimlessly moved her hand about trying to feel for it. 

Only a few seconds passed before a bottle appeared within her hand. When she pulled it out, it was the potion, and she quickly chugged it once more; her wounds instantly being healed. 

Wasting no time, she zipped her back pack up and shot up to her feet as if she never had her ankle chomped off in the first place. 

Not only was she able to stand again, but she was finally able to see; but only because the burning, rotting bodies of the zombies were still lit on fire. 

All 93 of them. 

It was quickly getting out of control, and the fire from the bodies were spreading to the numerous other control consoles; quickly becoming an electrical fire as well. 

Kaori darted towards the door, finally safe from the zombies, but now at risk of dying by fire. "Fuck, man! Someone help me!" She screamed as she ran full force into the door, creating a loud bang right before she proceeded to pound on it with both fists while she screamed for help continuously. 

First a truck, then zombies, and now suffocation by smoke while being burned alive?

Then the intercom sounded once more, but it wasn't AI this time, it was a man with a very thick, southern American accent. Though in the moment, he was her guardian angel. "Kaori? That you? By golly, thought you were cannibal gumbo. Where you at, beautiful?" 

She had no time to question him, "cockpit!" 

"Well hold onto your skivvies, we'll be there in just a moment, darling. I'll turn the power back on so you can get out, but these halls are crowded with these cannibalistic mother fuckers." 

Right, she thought, "thank you...er...sir!" 

"Sir!" She heard the man laughing hysterically as the power started to kick back on. "You must have gotten quite the bonk on the head. No need to thank me, princess, you're the heroine in all of this."