8th Floor Reception

I walked up to the door and slowly peered outside. The moaning was coming from down the hall.

I was in the base hospital of my city. Being 15 floors high, it was pretty modern. Each floor except the 1st followed the same outline. Well I think they did, they always looked the same.

I was on the 8th floor, which had most of the rooms reserved for people giving birth, or having just gone through it.

The elevators would be on either the east or west side, and be situated around the inside of the building. The corridors would go in a square shape and have 4 reception desks one on each corner area. The four corners would be relatively centered, and connected to each other. They would then branch outwards, with a few halls connected to them.

I hadn't explored too much when I had come to the hospital before, but about 80 % of all the rooms on this floor should have been patient beds.

If 2 of 3 people really have been infected, there should be more noise right?

The sound was coming from my right, and compared to the corridor I saw before, this one looked like it had been through a war. All the doors were either off their hinges lying somewhere or barely hanging on. There was blood and tar all over the place.

After making sure there was no one either way, I ran out and over to the room diagonally opposite mine. I got inside and saw nothing but more tar and blood. I repeated this process a few times, as I made my way down the area. I just had to check if there was someone else still alive in here. I couldn't be the only one that had survived.

And that's when I found it. About 7 rooms down, there was a bigger room meant to service a few more patients, because of private/public health care or whatever, I don't understand that stuff.

There was tar on 3 beds but around the 4th bed, there had been a fight, a broken staff was lying on the ground, the bed was flipped and there was blood splattered all over the window.

I clenched my fists, damnit, this poor bastard. With 3 of them around and the tutorial ticking on. He had no chance.

I continued to search the corridor, as I found a few similar cases of blood being splashed everywhere. But there was no bodies.

Do these things eat the body after we die?

I shuddered at the thought. My anger continued to rise as the sound of moaning got louder and louder. I slowed down as I reached towards the reception area. The moaning was clearer now; I crouched down and slowly moved over. As I peeked my head around the corner I caught site of them.

HOLY!

I quickly retracted my head, hoping none of them saw me. Shit, there were about 6 of them crowding around the reception desk. None of them had their heads in my direction and they were bobbing their heads back and forth.

The moaning suddenly stopped and…

*Crunch* *Munch* *Crunch*

I paled, oh no, please, no.

Don't tell me the moaning had been from a person, please.

But the moaning, had been going on for so long, and I swear I heard moaning from the other infected.

Vomit seemed to rocket up my stomach at the thought, but I forced it down.

*Crunch* *Munch* *Crunch* *Munch*

My anger reached its peak as I continued to hear that noise, they're eating someone.

THEY'RE EATING SOMEONE!!!

Rage gushed in me, but instead of the madness I would expect to come with it, only clarity remained. I slowly stood up, and peeked around the corner again. My grip on the blade in my hand had turned my knuckles white.

They were so focused on what they were doing; they didn't seem to notice me.

I could use this.

I re-counted them, there were 7, more than I saw before, and yes they were crowding around something on the ground. Probably a body. Damn them.

The cold calculated rage took away any revulsion I had when I thought about killing them and propeled me to do what I did next.

Almost as if I was a different person, I slowly started to stalk towards them. I surprised even myself at how quite I was being, as I made my way over. I seemed to know where to place my feet, so that I didn't step in any glass or alert them.

I got within 3 meters of them really easy, how the hell did that happen? I even questioned myself at this point.

Now I couldn't turn back. I needed to finish them quickly and efficiently if I wanted to walk away from this encounter.

I knew their weakness was their heads, if the head wasn't caved in or smashed, I think they would keep trying to get me. Not that being crippled wouldn't stop them. Getting their heads first would save me a lot of trouble and time.

I raised my blade and aimed at the 2 closest to me, I needed to do 2 quick blows to the head, and I needed them to die with one hit. I wasn't very confident in myself, and I wasn't sure if the blade was powerful enough. But I had to do it.

Mustering all the strength I had, as well as all the courage, I quickly smashed down on one of their heads.