"CHAPTER 9: THE UNKNOWN LETTER AND NEW HUMAN SETTLEMENTS"

I opened my eyes and felt a furry weight on my chest. Cupcake had barked and jumped on me as soon as he saw me awake. I hugged him and smiled weakly. My friends rushed to my side, worried and relieved. I didn't mention anything about my memories. I just said I had fainted from exhaustion and nothing more. The afternoon sun was shining through the window when the doorbell rang. Della went to answer it and came back with Axel. He had brought some groceries for us, but he didn't stay long. He said the undead were evolving faster and faster. He had seen some special ones in this area too. He warned us to find a safer place soon before they became too dangerous.

He left in a hurry, leaving us with many unanswered questions. The thought of the undead growing stronger haunted me. It was already bleak enough, but how long could we keep running? Would we ever find a safe place to live? We looked at each other, trying to recall any possible locations. But the government had issued an order to arrest us, so we had no choice but to hide. We turned to Della, hoping she had seen something useful in her vision, She gazed at us with sorrow in her eyes, unable to remember any of her visions. She felt like a failure and thought it was all her fault. We hugged her and told her it was okay, that we would find a safe place somewhere. But deep down, we all felt hopeless and clueless. We sat in silence, each in a different corner of the room. Even Cupcake, our loyal companion, was quiet, as f he understood the seriousness of the situation. I couldn't stand feeling helpless. I was always the most chaotic one in the group, but also the one who always cheered everyone up and told them to keep their hopes up. But I knew we were in a dire situation. I made up my mind. I told them I needed some fresh air and went to the backyard of my house. The walls were high and thick, they wouldn't break easily. I decided to work on my powers by learning to control my pyrokinesis ability. There was no sign of my family now. My besties were the only ones I had left in this world. I vowed I would do anything to save them. I practised. I focused on the fire inside me and let it flow through my veins. I felt the heat in my fingertips and ignited small flames that danced on my skin. I flicked my wrist and sent them flying towards a nearby tree. I increased the intensity and size of the flames until they became large fireballs that exploded on impact. I tried to aim them at a specific branch or leaf. I knew I would get better with practice. I practiced for an hour and then another drone flew over the backyard. It had a camera that followed my every move. It came down to me and dropped a letter in my hand. It didn't look like a government letter!

It said:

Dear Friend,

Imagine living in a world where you are constantly in danger of being captured and tortured by a ruthless scientist who wants to use you for his twisted experiments. That's the nightmare that many of us face every day in this city.

But we are not helpless. We are not alone. We are survivors who have escaped or avoided his traps and found a safe place to hide and plan our resistance. We are inviting you to join us and become part of our group of allies who are fighting for our freedom and dignity.

By joining us, you will be saving yourself and others from becoming his next victims. You will also be joining a community of people who care for and support each other in these hard times. You will have a chance to stand up to the evil that has taken over our city and restore hope and justice.

If you are interested in joining us, please follow these instructions to reach our shelter securely. Don't wait, as he could find you at any time. This is your opportunity to break free from his tyranny and join us in our fight for survival.

To get to our shelter, go to xxxxx.... ..... ...

We look forward to seeing you soon at our shelter. Together, we can stop him and reclaim our city. Thank you for considering our offer.

Yours sincerely,

Percy Stark

Survivors Shelter.

After reading the letter I dashed inside the house and headed straight to our room. There, I found my three friends sitting in different corners, while my pup Cupcake was snoring peacefully. I couldn't wait to tell them the news, so I blurted out everything the letter said. They looked sceptical and wondered if it was another one of Dr Oliver's evil schemes. But I recognized the name on the letter and felt a surge of hope. What if there were still other people out there who could help us? I argued with them, saying that we had nothing to lose by trying. Besides, we had Cupcake with us, and he could easily fend off Dr Oliver if he showed up again. He was such a brave and loyal baby. After some debate, they agreed to give it a chance. We packed some groceries and clothes since we were already at my place. Then I gently woke up Cupcake and told him we were going on an adventure. He seemed to understand and wagged his tail happily. He gave a loud woof woof as if to say he was ready for anything, and on a new adventure, we set sail We had a hunch that the place we were looking for was not too far away, so we opted to skip the portal and use our muscle power instead. I knew that using a portal would drain my energy, and I wanted to keep some in reserve in case we ran into trouble. I had a bad feeling that this could be another one of those twisted doctors' evil plots, and we might have to fight our way out. We mounted our bikes and pedalled through the streets, slashing at the undead creatures that lurked in the shadows. Cupcake seemed to enjoy the ride, sitting snugly in the basket on the front of my bike. He barked and wagged his tail as we sped along, oblivious to the danger around us.

We arrived at the address that was written on the letter and gasped in awe. The door was a magnificent piece of art, carved with intricate patterns and adorned with golden knobs. The house looked like a castle from a fairy tale, with towering turrets and arched windows. I was so amazed that I blurted out, "The door must be turned to ashes!" Emma punched me hard on the shoulder and scolded me. "Hey, don't be rude! You should knock first!" She was right, of course. Hannah stepped forward and knocked politely on the door. It opened slowly, revealing a tall boy who looked about 18 or 19 years old. He had sparkling blue eyes that contrasted with his dark hair, and a handsome face that made me blush. He smiled warmly and invited us in. "Please come in," he said in a friendly voice. To my surprise, my cupcake, who was usually shy and clingy to me, ran towards him and jumped in his arms. I quickly grabbed him back and apologized, but he said it was alright. He seemed to like puppies. We followed him inside the house, which was even more impressive than the outside. He pressed a button and the huge door closed behind us with a thud. He started talking enthusiastically as he led us to the living room. "You are all most welcome here. Please feel at home." I felt a strange sense of familiarity with him as if I had met him before. I asked him curiously, "Do I know you? Have we met before?" He paused for a second and then replied in a flirty tone, "Umm, we haven't met before, but yeah, I would love to get to know you." He winked at me and I felt my face heat up even more. He added quickly, "But let's first meet everyone else." I wondered who else lived in this huge place. Maybe hundreds of people could fit under one roof.

We met everyone in the living room. There were 10 people in total, including us four. Some of them had special abilities like us, and some of them were normal humans who had survived the apocalypse somehow. They all introduced themselves one by one, and then the boy who had brought us here spoke last. "Hello newcomers, I'm Percy Stark," he said with a confident smile. I immediately recognized his name from the letter and asked him how he knew about the government and Dr Oliver De Vil's evil plans. "You wrote that in the letter, didn't you?" I remembered his signature at the bottom of the page. He nodded and said that he had been keeping an eye on everyone with a drone that had a camera attached to it. He changed the topic quickly and said that we should go to our rooms and rest first. My cupcake ran after him again and I tried to catch him, but Emma stopped me and said, "Let cupcake go, Aana. He will be in this mansion only." I agreed reluctantly and followed a sweet old lady who showed us to our rooms. She smiled lovingly at us and said, "Children, if you need anything, ask Percy. He is the owner of this house and the in-charge of this shelter." I asked her confusedly how he became the owner and where his parents were. She said that his parents were business people who lived abroad and that he had been living alone since he was 14 with dozens of servants. But when the apocalypse happened, all his servants turned into zombies and he had to fend for himself. She said that she was a nanny for some children who lived in the house next door, but they had gone on vacation when the disaster struck. Percy saved her when she encountered a zombie on the street and brought her to his mansion. She kept praising Percy for his kindness and bravery until we reached our rooms. She bid us goodbye and left us alone.

I told Emma to come and stay with me because I was scared to sleep alone, but she teased me and said, "So admit it, you're scared to live alone." But being an Aries, my ego got hurt and I snapped at her, "Who cares? Just go to hell, bitch! I'll sleep alone!" I went inside my room and slammed the door in her face. After realizing what I had done, I opened the door slowly and saw Emma standing there with her arms crossed. I apologized sheepishly and she chuckled and said, "Go on idiot." She went into her room next to mine and I closed the door gently behind me.

The room was clean and tidy, spacious more than enough to live comfortably. There was a dazzling chandelier in the middle of the ceiling, casting a soft light over the room. There was a couch on one side, where I could relax and read a book. There were also some table lamps with cute designs on them, adding some colour to the room. I went and sat on the couch and thought about Percy. Why did I feel like I knew him? Was it some kind of deja vu? I shook my head and told myself to stop thinking about him. and I thought why am I like this lately.....