Chapter 12: Ghoul

Heavy rain poured down on the deserted university filled with death, the flowing water washing away most of the filthy blood and fluids left behind; now, only the mangled, half-devoured corpses remained, with several zombies slowly shuffling around the courtyard and campus.

The heavy rain washed away any smell from the monsters that had once roamed this place, but the stench of decay could still be detected on some of the bodies, which were now turning into rotting piles of flesh and bones.

A young man sat in the middle of the courtyard, leaning against a concrete wall near where he'd been thrown when the boulder struck him.

He looked at the sky, watching the rain wash over his body.

"What happened?" Faust said to himself, looking at the ruins that should have been his university, a feeling of haze filling his mind.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a familiar voice coming from the direction of the building closest to him: "Well? Are you going to introduce yourself or what?"

He turned his head slightly, seeing a beautiful woman standing there. She was tall, with long blonde hair, wearing a torn shirt and shredded jeans and various wounds around her body, some more personal than the others.

She smiled at him, her teeth stained purple and yellow from whatever food she'd eaten, causing him to laugh. He chuckled lightly, then stood up straight, noticing something else.

"You're naked!" he exclaimed, pointing at her breasts, which were indeed exposed. "What happened here?"

Hearing this, she stepped forward, still smiling. Then suddenly, she disappeared. Not moving, but gone. A moment later, she reappeared beside him, holding a rusty knife. "I can see you, monster!" she whispered, without saying anything further, then lunged at him, stabbing the blade towards his abdomen.

As she did so, he grabbed the knife by its handle, yanking it away from her grasp, before his knee smashed into her stomach, causing the woman to vomit drool and the food she had eaten before blasting through the air and crashing into a slanted concrete wall with a bang, Faust used his "Eagle Eyes" to see what her problem was.

-Mildred Black Level 2 | Human (starving, suffering trauma and despair)

A 25-year-old woman, formerly an office worker before the world ended, was used as bait to save her co-workers after they enjoyed her body and tossed her from the office, leaving her to fight to the last hope, finding the young miss of the Salvatore family, hoping for salvation. Yet, there was no salvation, only a dead wasteland worse than the city centre.

She worked for the Salvatore family industries for 6 years before the apocalypse; in her spare time, she used to train with guns at the shooting range and archery and martial arts with her sister.

-Able to Become Vesta

-300 seconds before Infection enters the middle stages

"Oi, bitch, the fuck are you doing trying to kill me!"

He swung the knife at her neck, but she dodged like lightning, using her limbs to avoid the attack quickly. In response, he lashed out again, kicking her in the head and sending her flying far away. The woman rolled in the mud, getting up and kicking his gut. This, too, was avoided with ease.

Then, she appeared right next to him, grabbing his arm and jerking hard while slamming her other hand onto his ribs. She did this twice, each time making him scream and stumble.

'Fuck this slut; no way am I going to show mercy to her!'

As she moved closer, he tried to swing the knife upwards, aiming for her throat. But, she anticipated him perfectly, dodging and swinging at his hands, striking one of them badly enough to make him drop the knife before throwing herself upon him and pressing him down.

'Damn it; my body is so damn stiff since I just woke up; how long did I sleep!?'

Mildred's body paused for a moment like some clarity entered her mind as a single tear dripped from her cheek, her eyes pleading for him to end her life, grasping both his hands, pressing them against her bruised chest, sinking into her soft, ample breasts.

"p....please....."

'What's this woman's problem? Why suddenly becoming so human....'

He convinced himself that she was probably worth little exp, and he didn't mind having someone to help him carry shit. So he decided to keep her alive - as long as she cooperated.

"...p...please..." she begged, pressing harder into his hands, squishing her chest as if digging his hands into her chest further; it was then that Faust noticed.

His hands were grey, a pale colour unlike any ordinary human, and sharp black claws extended from his fingers, replacing his clear nails with a strange black tattoo filling his arm, like some street thug.

When he pulled away, Mildred's eyes widened in fear, seeing the glinting of those cruel blades. His breath smelled like blood, and she knew he would eat her soon as she fell back onto her plump ass shuddering in fear; her wounded body fully revealed to him.

Suddenly, he pushed himself off the ground, stepping away from the woman and crouching over to pick up the knife. With a quick flick of the wrist, he flicked open the blade, revealing it to be razor-sharp and dangerous.

With a wicked grin, Faust walked towards her, who lay back in the mud, staring up at him like a deer caught in a forest fire.

As he approached her, he gripped the knife tightly and pressed it against her throat, opening her mouth wide as he leaned in close. "Eat," he ordered. "Or I'll cut your fucking throat and dump you somewhere; nobody will ever find you."

The woman stared at him blankly for a moment, unsure whether to obey or beg for mercy; when he took out a small piece of beef jerky and placed it into her mouth, she snapped down, not caring about his strange hands, her soft lips and slimy wet tongue rubbing against his fingers. She sucked on the meat and devoured it like a rabid dog.

"Good girl," he said, pushing his finger between her teeth, twisting it gently as saliva dripped from her mouth. Her cheeks grew fuller, bulging with the flesh inside, puffing out as he placed another piece inside her mouth before handing her a bottle of water to drink.

'It's like feeding a pet hamster! She's quite sexy too; a little cleaning up and a wash, and she's on the same level as Sarah.'

Having ensured that she ate well, Faust searched the corpse pile nearby, picking up old newspapers, magazines, books, and junk. Soon, he found two flashlights, which he thought might come in handy, along with a pair of leather gloves and a katana which he recognised was the novice blade that Lewis used, only knowing that thanks to the keychain attached to its guard, the poor kid must have suffered...

"H-hey.... thank you so much... I....I....." Mildred tried to answer and thank him.

The past few days had been like hell, now suddenly, a handsome man with white hair brushed back, with a wild look, almost like a gangster with his neck, shoulders and arms filled with strange tattoos, treated her with more kindness than her co-workers of half a decade causing her great shock and unable to react.

'His eyes, they are so beautiful...' She thought, watching as he began to scour the area, picking up various weapons from the student's corpses, before handing her a longbow, similar to the one that her "friends" snatched from her before leaving her to die.

Her heart began to palpitate; breathing grew erratic thinking of those beasts' actions and what they did to her and tossed her away like used garbage; suddenly, a pleasing sound entered her ears, like the devil's whisper.

"Do you want revenge?"

The devilish man, with pale skin, tattoo's and scars over his forehead, looked down upon her; in his hand was a long sword, curved and shimmering in the moonlight; her heart fluttered.

'Is this man, my imagination, a figment of my desire at my death!?'

"I can help you kill all of them."

A gasp left her lips, his dry voice and seductive aura causing her to swallow a mouthful of spit; looking into his glowing eyes, with black light around them, there was no white sclera truly demonic, yet to her...

He was like her personal angel.

"P...please! Help me get revenge.....they...."

Mildred began to rise to her feet, the shudder of her legs, a slight stumble as she fell into his powerful arms, nothing like those nasty weedy twigs, comfort, and protection like her father used to give her as a little girl.

His rough hands, filled with black scars, stroked across her tearful eyes, shushing her with his deep, husky tone.

"But, it will come at a cost.

She didn't care; all she wished for was revenge, to let them feel the same despair she faced, alone in the darkness with bloody, mangled faces, desperately running for her life, with nobody to help her.

A determined light began to grow in her eyes, still weak slowly, but the flame of life rekindled.

"I...I don't care, anything..... as long as you help me kill them all!"

Her body pressed against him, still wearing nothing, as the rain caused her skin to become wet and shiny, sliding down his muscular chest and placing her soft cheeks against him, hoping he wouldn't abandon her.

"My name is Faust and...."

He stroked her hair, his demonic hand soothing her inner fears, making the terror and pain fade with his reassuring touch as she fell into evil willingly, thus announcing her name to him, her future guidepost and pillar.

"Mildred.... my friends called me Milly...." she whispered in a quiet voice, her body starting to change as she began to feel the confidence to fight her fears.

Faust smiled, his visage reflected on a broken shard of glass; he saw himself as the glass mirror, a broken man, once human and now ghoul, no longer held back by emotions like empathy and morals; he was something different, changed forever. He would make all his dark wishes come true.

His large hands lifted her pretty face to look upwards, facing him before his emerald eyes shone in the night sky, a beautiful spectacle as his mouth slowly opened, revealing his sharp, white teeth.

"I am a Ghoul!"