No Rest for the DEAD

We burst out of the dojo, shinai gripped tight, adrenaline pumping through our veins. The hallway stretched out before us, a gauntlet of shadows and flickering fluorescent light.

Somewhere in the distance, screams echoed, bouncing off the walls in a cacophony of terror. But I pushed the sound to the back of my mind, focusing instead on the task at hand.

Saeko moved forward, her steps quick and silent, her eyes scanning the corridor for any sign of threat. I matched her pace, my senses heightened, my body coiled and ready for action.

As we crept down the hallway, the coppery scent of blood grew stronger, mingling with the stench of decay. It was a smell I knew all too well, a smell that triggered flashes of memory - gunfire, screams, the wet crunch of bone.

And then I saw the bodies.

They lay sprawled on the floor, limbs twisted, faces frozen in rictus grins. Blood pooled beneath them, dark and sticky, gleaming in the harsh light.

But it was the marks on their flesh that caught my eye. Ragged, gaping wounds, the edges torn and shredded. They looked like bite marks.

"Saeko," I said, my voice low and even. "Look at those wounds. They're not from a weapon. They're from teeth."

Saeko glanced at the bodies, her expression grim. "I see it," she said, her voice tight. "Just like in the stories. Zombies."

The word hung in the air between us, heavy and loaded. Zombies. The walking dead, the stuff of nightmares and horror movies. But this was no movie. This was real, and it was happening, right here, right now.

Before I could reply, a figure burst out of a doorway ahead of us, lurching and staggering. It was a man, or had been once. Now, it was a twisted mockery of life, its skin a sickly, mottled purple, its eyes wild and rolling in their sockets.

It let out a guttural moan and charged straight at us, teeth bared in a feral snarl.

I didn't hesitate. I sidestepped, my body moving on pure instinct, and stuck out my leg. The creature tripped, its momentum sending it crashing to the floor.

Saeko was on it in an instant, her shinai cracking against the creature's spine with brutal force.

But to my horror, the thing didn't stay down. It let out a gurgling groan and started to push itself up, its movements jerky and unnatural.

I stepped forward, my shinai raised. I could feel my heart pounding, my breath coming fast. But my hands were steady, my mind clear and focused.

As the creature lurched to its feet, I struck, my shinai whistling through the air. The bamboo blade connected with the side of the thing's neck with a sickening crack.

Its head snapped to the side at an impossible angle, and it crumpled to the ground, twitching and spasming.

I stared down at it, my chest heaving, my knuckles white on the hilt of my shinai. And then I saw the mark on its neck, a ragged crescent of torn flesh and congealed blood.

A bite. Just like the others.

I looked up at Saeko, saw the same grim understanding in her eyes. This was just the beginning. There would be more of these things, many more. And they wouldn't be easy to stop.

We ran, our footsteps pounding against the linoleum, echoing through the halls like gunshots. As we approached the stairwell, the stench of death and decay hit me. I held up a hand, signaling Saeko to stop. She froze instantly, her body tense and alert.

I edged forward, peering around the corner. What I saw made my blood run cold.

At the top of the stairs, a group of zombies milled about aimlessly, their movements jerky and uncoordinated. Blood painted the walls and pooled on the steps, the bodies of the fallen strewn about like discarded dolls.

I pulled back, my mind racing. We couldn't fight our way through that many, not head-on. We needed a plan.

My eyes fell on the fire extinguisher mounted on the wall. "Saeko," I whispered. "I've got a plan. But we're going to need that extinguisher and a whole lot of luck."

She glanced at the extinguisher, then back at me, a glint of understanding in her eyes. "Lead the way."

I grabbed the extinguisher, feeling its weight in my hands. I took a deep breath, then stepped out into the stairwell.

"Hey!" I shouted. "Over here, you undead bastards!"

The zombies' heads swiveled towards me, their milky eyes fixing on their new prey. They started shambling forward, their movements gaining speed and purpose.

I waited until they were halfway down the stairs, then I pulled the pin on the extinguisher and aimed the nozzle.

A jet of white foam burst forth, hitting the lead zombies square in the face. They stumbled, blinded, their momentum carrying them forward.

I kept spraying, the foam creating a slick, slippery surface on the steps. The zombies' feet slid out from under them, sending them tumbling down the stairs.

More and more of them piled up, the ones behind tripping over the fallen, creating a writhing, flailing mass of bodies.

But some were still coming, crawling over their fallen brethren. I glanced at Saeko, giving a short, sharp nod.

Together, we charged forward, our shinai at the ready. We struck at the downed zombies, crushing skulls with ruthless efficiency.

By the time we reached the top of the stairs, the way was clear, the remaining zombies reduced to a twitching, oozing carpet at our feet.

I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding, adrenaline still singing in my veins.

Saeko turned to me. "Quick thinking with the extinguisher. Impressive."

"I have my moments. Now, let's keep moving before more of them show up."

As we reached the landing, a scream pierced the air, high and shrill and full of agony.

A group of students huddled in a corner, their faces pale and streaked with tears. And surrounding them, a mob of the creatures, their fingers hooked into claws, their teeth bared in hunger.

One of the students, a girl with a red ribbon in her hair, let out a wail as a zombie sank its teeth into her shoulder. Blood spurted, a crimson arc that painted the walls and floor.

Beside me, Saeko tensed, her shinai rising. I could see the conflict in her eyes, the urge to rush in, to help, to save.

But I grabbed her arm. "We can't," I said, my voice harsh and strained. "There's too many. We'd never make it."

For a moment, Saeko resisted, her muscles coiled and trembling beneath my hand. But then, with a shuddering breath, she nodded.

It was the hardest thing I'd ever done, turning my back on those screams, on the wet, tearing sounds of flesh being rent from bone. But I knew, with a cold, sinking certainty, that there was no saving them. They were gone, lost to the ravenous horde.

All we could do was survive.

The hallway seemed to stretch on forever, an endless gauntlet of grasping hands and gnashing teeth. But we pushed forward, step by blood-soaked step, our breath coming in ragged gasps, our muscles screaming with fatigue.

Then we saw the sign for the nurses office. Unfortunately, a horde of zombies crowded around the windows, their hands smashing through the glass, their teeth gnashing in mindless hunger. They were climbing over each other, a writhing mass of rotting flesh and tattered clothing.

Saeko leapt forward, her shinai already in motion. She swept the blade in a wide arc, catching the lead zombie across the temple. Its skull caved in like an overripe melon, and it crumpled to the ground.

I was right behind her, taking a zombie in the throat. I felt the crunch of cartilage, the wet, tearing sound of flesh parting beneath the blow.

Zombie after zombie fell before us, their bodies piling up in a sprawling heap of mangled limbs and shattered bone.

As the last creature fell from outside, I saw Saeko dart forward, her shinai raised. I followed her gaze and saw a zombie hunched over a prone figure, its teeth tearing at the flesh of the student's neck.

Saeko's blade came down in a whistling arc, splitting the zombie's skull down the middle. It toppled sideways, its jaws still working, a chunk of bloody meat dangling from its teeth.

I rushed to the fallen student, my heart in my throat. It was a boy, no older than me, his face pale and streaked with sweat. Blood gushed from the ragged wound in his neck, pooling on the floor beneath him.

He stared up at me, his eyes wide and glassy with shock. His lips moved, but no sound came out, only a thin trickle of crimson.

I knelt beside him, my hand finding his shoulder, gripping it tight. "Hey," I said, my voice sounding strange and distant to my own ears. "I'm Kai. What's your name?"

The boy's gaze flickered, focusing on me with an effort. "K-Kazu," he rasped, his voice a thin, bubbling whisper.

I forced a smile, trying to project a calm I didn't feel. "Kazu. That's a good name. Strong."

My eyes flicked to the side, taking in the other occupant of the room. It was a woman, tall and buxom, with long blonde hair that fell in silky waves around her face. She had the kind of figure that would have turned heads on any other day - all curves and soft, inviting flesh.

But that wasn't important now. I turned my attention back to Kazu, trying to keep my voice steady. "Were you protecting her?" I asked, nodding towards the woman. "Trying to keep her safe?"

Kazu managed a nod, his eyes fluttering closed for a moment with the effort. "Y-yeah," he croaked. "Couldn't let them... couldn't let them get her."

I squeezed his shoulder. "That was incredibly courageous of you, Kazu. You're a hero."

Saeko knelt down on Kazu's other side, her face grave and solemn. She met my eyes for a moment, a silent communication passing between us.

Then she looked down at Kazu, her voice gentle but firm. "Kazu. You know what happens when you get bitten, don't you?"

Kazu's breath hitched, a sob catching in his throat. He nodded, a single tear slipping down his cheek.

Saeko laid her hand on his arm, her touch light and comforting. "Do you want your parents to see you like that? Your friends? Do you want to become one of those things?"

A shudder ran through Kazu's body, his face contorting in anguish. "N-no," he whispered, his voice thick with tears. "No, I don't want that."

Saeko nodded, her expression full of compassion and sorrow. "I can help you, Kazu. I can end your pain, make sure you don't suffer. Make sure you don't turn."

She glanced at me, a question in her eyes. I swallowed hard, but I nodded, a short, sharp jerk of my chin.

It was the kindest thing we could do. The only thing.

Saeko turned back to Kazu, her hand smoothing the sweat-soaked hair from his brow. "Close your eyes," she murmured, her voice soft as a lullaby. "It'll all be over soon. You'll be at peace."

Kazu's eyes fluttered shut, his face going slack. A final tear slipped from beneath his lashes, tracing a glistening path down his ashen cheek.

Saeko rose, her shinai gripped tight in her hands. "Thank you, Kazu," she whispered. "Your sacrifice will not be forgotten."

And with a single, swift thrust, she drove the shinai down, smashing Kazu's head in a spray of crimson.

His body jerked once, twice, and then went still, a final breath sighing from his lungs.

The shattering of glass snapped me back to reality, my head whipping around just in time to see two more zombies clambering through the ruined windows. Their eyes were milky and dead, their jaws slack and dripping with rancid saliva.

But before they could even fully enter the room, Saeko was on them, her shinai a blur of motion. She took the first one in the temple, caving in its skull with a sickening crunch. The second lunged for her, its grasping hands mere inches from her face, but she ducked beneath its reach, her blade coming up in a vicious thrust that punctured its eye socket and burst out the back of its head.

The zombies crumpled like marionettes with their strings cut, twitching and spasming on the blood-slick floor.

I turned to the woman, my heart still pounding with the rush of adrenaline. "What's your name?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

She blinked at me, her hazel eyes wide. "Shizuka," she said, her voice a breathy whisper. "Shizuka Marikawa."

I nodded, scanning the room for any other threats. "Shizuka. Did you manage to grab any medical supplies? Anything we can use to treat injuries, prevent infection?"

Shizuka's face brightened, a sunny smile spreading across her lips. "Oh, yes! I packed a whole bag full of bandages and antiseptic and all sorts of things. I always like to be prepared, you know?"

She held up a large, bulging duffel bag, looking very pleased with herself. I felt a flicker of hope kindle in my chest. With those supplies, we might actually stand a chance of making it through this nightmare.

"Great," I said, managing a small smile. "That's perfect, Shizuka. You may have just saved our lives."

She beamed at the praise. "Oh, it was nothing! I'm just glad I could help."

I exchanged a glance with Saeko, seeing my own mix of incredulity and exasperation reflected in her eyes. But there was no time to dwell on Shizuka's odd behavior. We had to keep moving, find a way out of this deathtrap.

"Shizuka," I said, keeping my voice calm and even. "Do you have a car? Something we could use to get away from the school, find somewhere safer?"

Shizuka nodded eagerly, her breasts bouncing with the motion. "Oh, yes! All the faculty members have their vehicle keys in the office. I'm sure we could find something there that would work."

I felt a surge of relief, a glimmer of hope. A car meant mobility, a chance to outrun the horde. It was the best news I'd heard since this whole nightmare began.

"That's great, Shizuka. Really great. So, where is this faculty office? Is it close by?"

Shizuka's smile widened, her eyes crinkling at the corners. "Oh, it's not far at all! Just on the other side of the campus, past the gymnasium."

"The... the other side of the campus?"

She nodded, looking quite pleased with herself. "That's right! It's a bit of a walk, but it's such a lovely day for it, don't you think?"

 The other side of the campus. Through the throngs of the undead, the blood-soaked halls and corpse-strewn courtyards. It might as well have been on the other side of the world.

Beside me, Saeko let out a soft, incredulous laugh, the sound tinged with an edge of hysteria. "Well," she said. "I suppose we'd better get walking then."

I shook my head, a bitter chuckle escaping my lips. "Yeah. I guess we'd better."