New Dawn Chapter: 074

Yumiko groaned and snapped her head in a peculiar manner.

"What...?"

Yui stared at Yumiko in shock. Her friend had been fine just a moment ago!

"Hey, something's not right!"

"She was bitten." Marin glanced down at Yumiko's wounded forearm, before looking into the blonde's murky eyes. They were slowly glazing over, her lids flickering. She swallowed a lump in her throat. "This... is bad."

Yumiko suddenly jerked forward, spitting a mouthful of blood.

"Yumiko?" Yui, in a daze, tried to foolishly approach her friend.

Marin grabbed Yui's wrist and dragged her away. "Get away from her. There's nothing we can do."

"No, wait. There must be something we can do—"

Yui squirmed and thrashed in defiance, but Marin's grip was firm.

"She's infected. Once someone gets bitten, their fate is set in stone."

There was nothing left to say as Yumiko suddenly arched her back. She threw back her head, letting loose an unworldly, guttural groan. Her mouth was dyed a deep, dark crimson, and the gums around her teeth began to decay rapidly until her face looked nothing more than a raw, sunken maw.

With a sickening crack of bones and the ripping of flesh, Yumiko's transformation was complete.

She slowly gained her footing, unsteadily approaching the girls. Her head snapped around, eyes devoid of color as they glared at them.

Yui whimpered, terrified as she staggered back, almost falling down on her rump if not for Marin supporting her.

"Yumiko..." Yui whispered to herself as her eyes blurred with tears.

Marin stepped forward, her grip on her trusty blunt weapon faltering from the exhaustion. As a result, her hands were trembling. Despite her best attempt at keeping cool, a fresh wave of tears obfuscated her vision. First was Gojo, and now Yumiko.

Granted, she wasn't friends with the latter, but it was crazy how her savior had turned in a split second. It made her wonder, 'When will be my turn?'

That thought shook her to her core, sending a chill up her spine.

Yui, much like Gojo, had given herself to fear. She'd be of no help.

"We have to move." Marin muttered, her voice hoarse.

Yui was still frozen in place, her wide eyes locked onto the grotesque figure of her former friend. "Y-Yumiko... it's me..."

Yumiko groaned, a gurgling sound from somewhere deep in her throat. She stumbled closer.

Marin didn't wait. She grabbed Yui by the arm and yanked her back. "She's gone! Run!"

Yumiko's hand swiped through the air where Yui had just stood. A split second slower, and Yui would've been dragged down. The shock broke Yui from her trance, and she stumbled along with Marin, their feet pounding against the pavement.

The noise—their footsteps, Yui's stifled sobs, Yumiko's rasping moans—only attracted more of them. From the far end of the parking lot, a cluster of zombies turned in unison. 

Their heads cocked toward the sound, and without hesitation, they began to shuffle, some quicker than others.

"Crap, they're coming!" Marin hissed, sweat dripping from her temple.

The school gates loomed ahead, half-open, bent inward as if someone had rammed them with a car earlier. Marin didn't care how they got like that. She only cared that it was an exit.

"Come on!" She barked.

Yui tripped over a loose stone, and Marin had to grab her again, practically dragging her toward the gate. The zombies behind them were gaining ground, too many to count now.

Marin didn't stop. She forced herself to push forward.

Together, with Yui staggering along behind her, they ran through bent gates, the horde of zombies close on their heels.

Marin panted. Her thighs and calves felt like gelatin. But there was no choice; either they ran and maybe live, or they stayed and definitely die. The zombies weren't fast, but there were too many of them. 

The sun hung low in the sky, casting long shadows across the pavement. Smoke from distant fires drifted through the air.

Marin's lungs burning with each desperate gasp. She kept a tight grip on Yui's wrist, half-dragging her along the cracked asphalt.

"I can't..." Yui choked, stumbling again.

Marin didn't stop. "Yes, you can!" She snapped, her voice breaking under the strain. "We're almost—"

That's when she saw it.

A bus. Coming down the road from the opposite direction.

Its engine roared like a beast. The vehicle wasn't stopping, plowing through the stray zombies shambling across its path. Blood smeared across its grill and windshield.

Marin's heart leapt.

"A bus!" She shouted, her voice hoarse. "It's a bus!"

Yui blinked in disbelief, but before she could respond, Marin was already moving. Her exhaustion vanished, replaced by raw adrenaline. She sprinted into the middle of the road, arms flailing.

"Hey! Stop! Please! Help us!" she screamed, her voice cracking.

The bus didn't slow.

Marin felt her stomach drop. Was it full? Were they refusing to stop?

"Stop! Please! We're alive!" She waved both arms frantically, stepping closer despite the approaching mass of steel.

The bus screeched to a halt, its tires skidding along the pavement.

Marin felt a flicker of hope, but there was no time to celebrate.

Yui ran after Marin, but she'd never been athletic, and the exhaustion had caught up with her before the zombies did. 

She stumbled, collapsing onto the concrete. 

"Damn it!" Marin was forced to stop and rush to help her.

She couldn't help but Gojo, but there was no way she'd let someone else die. She gritted her teeth, her arms trembling and aching as she struggled to drag Yui's dead weight to her feet.

Unfortunately, there was very little strength left in her. 

By then, the zombies had already closed in, at the forefront of the horde the very same person that saved Marin. 

"Yumiko…" Yui's teary voice died on her lips.

Yumiko's zombified face was reflected in Yui's widened eyes. 

Marin was ready to make a harsh decision; abandon Yui to her fate and make a rush for the bus.

However, a deafening gunshot echoed.

A bullet hole appeared between Yumiko's eyes as she fell back with a resounding thud, this time dead for good. 

Marin turned her head so fast her neck cramped.

It was the group on the bus!

The door swung open. A dark-skinned man bedecked in a rider's black leather jacket was leaning out, a gun in his hand as he aimed once again, and two more shots fired, creating new exit holes in two approaching zombies.

"Alright, step inside. The driver can't stay parked here for long." He called out, tiredly.

There was no sense of urgency in his words, as if the situation around them was entirely normal.

It took Marin a moment to process his words before she pushed Yui, and herself, into a quick shuffle toward the bus.

The zombies that tried to chase after them were shot down by the dark-skinned man and a glass-wearing, chubby guy leaning out of the window. 

Marin and Yui covered their ears as more shots rang out.

At long last, they stumbled inside the bus, collapsing onto the soft, worn upholstery with audible sighs of relief.

The man slammed the door shut.

The last of the gunshots was drowned in the thunderous roar of the vehicle's engine.

Shizuka gave everyone a concerned look in the mirror, biting her lip as she made the bus jerk in reverse before driving off towards their next destination.

Marin finally let herself rest. All tension leaked from her body and she was left a twitching heap in a sea of numbness and exhaustion. Her eyes, however, snapped open when the barrel of a gun was pointed at her and Yui.

The dark-skinned young man that had saved them was eyeing them up and down, a clear layer of distrust in his eyes. "Have any of you been bitten or scratched? Be honest."

Yui stared dumbfounded.

Marin swallowed, the gun pointed at her making her hesitate. Still, she shook her head. "N-No. I'm uninjured."

"S-Same! I haven't been bitten!" Yui exclaimed.

After several moments, the guy withdrew his gun with a nod. He gave them a scrutinizing gaze one last time before he addressed a very beautiful, purple-haired young woman. "Saeko, take them to the back of the bus and check them thoroughly for bite marks or suspicious wounds."

Saeko nodded, beckoning the pair to follow. She offered a disarming, apologetic smile as she stepped towards the rear. "We don't mean to trouble you, but there's no way for us to avoid this. Just cooperate and we'll make it a fast and simple thing."

It was not as if Marin didn't understand. After all, Yumiko hadn't been forthcoming, and look where it had gotten her.

So Marin sighed and went with her, Yui close behind. 

The rest of the girls, as if united by gender, also followed, at least to make some sort of human screen for Marin and Yui to undress and have Saeko inspect. Fortunately, after stripping down and displaying her soft, naked form before their eyes, none had spotted a single mark.

Once fully dressed, Marin went back to sit on one of the empty seats. Saeko gave the young man a thumbs up, confirming the result of her inspection.

He nodded, walking towards Marin and Yui. Despite having been saved by him, Marin couldn't help but be wary. 

Author's Note:

If you're enjoying the story and want to read ahead or support my work, you can check out my P@treon at P@treon.com/LordCampione. But don't worry—all chapters will eventually be public. Just being here and reading means the world to me. Thank you for your time and support.