Chapter 21：Awakeners... are they tasty
"Maybe I should check out some of these woke humans, see if they're any tastier."
Zane thought to himself, itching to hit the streets and test out his new killer skill, [Dead Zone].
He wondered who'd be the 'lucky' one to bump into him.
With that, he got up and strolled out the door.
Outside, the gnarly Zombies that spotted Zane instantly ducked their heads.
When the Zombie King walks, the undead bow down!
His three sidekicks had split to do their own thing; Zane wasn't about to drag them along.
With no particular place to go, Zane skipped the car and just ambled down the street.
The streets were trashed, strewn with shattered glass and stained with old blood. In the darker nooks, moss was already taking over.
Every now and then, a rat would dart by, snagging a severed finger to drag into a drain.
The whole scene was straight-up post-apocalyptic.
But there was Zane, cruising through like he was just out for a leisurely walk.
After about half an hour,
Zane stopped dead.
He caught a whiff of fresh blood—alive and kicking, a scent his sharpened senses easily picked up.
Glancing around,
he noticed a sign on a nearby gate: 'Zoo'.
Weirdly, the zoo was deserted, no Zombies or bodies, just old, dark purple bloodstains.
Looked like some beast had claimed this spot.
Risky for regular folks, but Zane wasn't sweating it. He walked right through the gate, and the place was dead quiet, just leaves rustling.
The animal cages were empty, smeared with blood.
Bits of fur and chewed-up bones were all over—clearly, something had had a feast.
Zane kept moving deeper into the zoo, heading towards the zookeepers' area. The building in front of him had its doors and windows sealed up tight with welded steel bars.
It was quiet inside, but Zane could still make out human breathing.
Their breaths were fast, a sign they were freaking out.
"People are in there..."
Zane noted mentally, but he didn't go straight over.
Not far off, two dudes were heading towards the same building. They were clearly after the same thing.
One guy was short and stocky with rough skin and a face like the moon's surface.
Super ugly.
The other was tall and skinny, dressed in a suit, looking like he just stepped out of an office, all neat and tidy.
Definitely not zoo staff.
They looked like they were on a supply run.
But judging by their peppy step and lack of desperation, they weren't hurting for food. They moved like they were in top shape, way beyond normal human standards.
"Could these guys be human awakeners?"
Zane mused, thinking it might be fun to pop their tops and take a peek inside...
The two guys, noticing the sealed-up building, figured there were survivors inside.
"Hey, there's live ones in here," the neat guy said, cracking a slight grin.
The stocky one nodded.
"Yeah, this could be a blast. Just hope there's some cuties inside..."
"Bet there are. I remember the zookeeper chicks being pretty hot," the neat guy added.
Relying on their awakener status, they felt untouchable in this wrecked world. With all the rules gone, they wandered around, hunting for supplies and beauties, doing as they pleased when they found women.
"Let's play it cool. First, let's con them into opening the door," the neat guy suggested.
The building was tough, sealed tight, and busting in would be a real workout.
The stout dude nodded, already down with the game plan.
He stepped up and knocked softly on the door, spinning a yarn.
"Yo, anyone home? We're from the official refuge's awakener squad, here to pull you out to safety."
"Oh?"
The folks inside, hearing about an official rescue squad, got all hyped up.
"Finally... someone's come to get us."
Inside were four folks: three female zookeepers and an old night watchman.
The old guy gripped a shotgun, loaded with tranquilizers, usually meant for the wild animals.
"Shh! Keep it quiet, don't call over that beast! And what if they're fibbing?"
"Should we open up?"
A petite young woman asked, her voice shaky.
In this end-of-days mess, who could you trust?
Another girl piped up, "I caught a broadcast from the refuge. It said some folks have leveled up and are out rescuing others."
"So... do we let 'em in?"
"Let's do it! We're almost out of grub anyway. If we don't, we're goners!"
"Alright!"
After a quick pow-wow, they cautiously cracked the door.
The two dudes slipped in, eyes scanning greedily.
Yep, there were some lookers here...
Comforting...
"Are you guys really from the refuge's rescue team?" one of the girls asked.
"Absolutely," the short, stout dude nodded.
The petite young woman chimed in,
"That's awesome, please, we gotta get outta here fast."
"Hold up, we can save you, but there's a catch, hehe."
"What's the catch?"
The girl asked, confused.
The stout dude grinned evilly,
"You gotta... make me happy first."
"What? This..."
The girl caught his drift, her face dropping in shock, but...
Another girl was already on edge.
"Everyone, watch out! They don't seem like any rescue team!"
"Aren't you sharp..."
Suddenly, the stout dude's face twisted into a snarl as he grabbed one of the girls by the throat, hoisting her up like a doll.
Her breath cut off, legs kicking wildly.
But against his brute strength, it was pointless.
The old man, seeing this, aimed his gun and fired, but the neat guy snatched the dart out of the air.
The reflexes of an awakener were no joke.
"This..."
Despair washed over them. They'd survived the Zombies and monsters, only to face death by their own kind, enduring such cruelty.
They might as well have been eaten by the Zombies.
At least that would've been quick!
"Help!"
One of the girls screamed, hoping to draw the monster, even if it meant going down with these creeps.
'Bang!'
But with a flick of his wrist, the neat guy knocked her to the floor.
"Damn it, seeking death!"
And the stout dude was about to go wild.
"It's the apocalypse, who's gonna save you? And I'm an awakener, I own this world!"
Clearly, these two thought they were the heroes of this new world!
But just then,
A deep voice boomed,
"Awakeners... are they tasty?"