Onyx Contagion

As soon as Zac entered his class, he found the whole classroom turning their eyes to him while the first teacher of the day stopped what he was saying to look at him.

"Mr. Small, I see you're back." The chemistry teacher said to him with a smile as he gestured for Zac to come over to him.

"Mr. Reid." Zac nodded to the teacher before handing him a piece of paper with the principal's permission for him to be late for this class.

"Sit down somewhere and pay attention to the lesson, Mr. Small. I doubt you'll need to ask any of your classmates about what we studied last week, but if you have any questions, talk to one of them and ask for their notes." The teacher said as he looked at Zac and put the paper he had taken in his pocket.

He looked at the class and said. "But I doubt that the notes of any of them will help you. Few have the perspicuity to write down what really matters."

Most of the students there felt the push from Professor Reid, who didn't hide how weak they were when it came to their studies.

Most of them would end up with mediocre assignments. Reid was sure of that.

Aware that Zac had gotten into trouble because of a young man who would probably end up in jail or be murdered, he couldn't help but look at this class and the school itself with disgust.

Zac smiled and thanked Reid for his concern before settling into his usual seat.

On his way to his seat, he spotted Sean and said a quick hello before sitting down under the eyes of several classmates.

"Be careful not to get expelled, Zac, but you can forget about going to UNC. I've heard that a single suspension is enough to tarnish a student's record and prevent them from getting into the best college in the country." Murmured the young man sitting across from Zac.

Zac said quietly, hearing that black-haired young man's humorous and teasing tone. "You should be worried about yourself, Bobby. You won't even get into Walney College with your grades."

Walney College was said to be the worst in Ushal, with the worst employment rates for graduates in the first six months after graduation. With a rate of less than 50% of graduates finding employment in the first few months after graduation, graduates of this institution were highly undervalued.

"Tsk!" Bobby clenched his fists in anger. "You'll be lucky to get into any college. Dario will surely destroy your future, you piece of shit!"

Zac said nothing when he heard this and soon turned his attention to the chemistry class.

...

After the first three classes of the morning were over, the break finally came.

Sean went to Zac's side immediately after the teacher left the classroom.

"How are you doing?" Sean asked worriedly.

"I'm fine, man. I understand better now who he's involved with." Zac commented as he looked toward Dario, who was leaving their classroom with one of his cronies.

Sean looked in that direction and sighed. "The worst thing is not the group he belongs to. The worst part is his personality. Dario is a toxic person, Zac. All he wants is a chance to explode and poison those close to him."

"I see that better than ever." Zac's eyes narrowed as he thought about how to deal with Dario.

"But anyway, try not to think about him. It'll help you stay out of trouble." Sean tried to change the subject. "How's Amy?"

"As usual." Zac sighed as he stood up and walked over to Sean. "It would be nice if we had more money. But right now, we're dealing with her situation."

"I'm sorry about that. I hope things get better." Sean knew about Amy's degenerative disease.

"Don't worry... But how is your family? We haven't talked about your mom for a while. Is she all right? I hear there's a new virus, huh, Onyx Contagion? I hear this virus is spreading in your mother's city."

"Yes, there's a lockdown in Alavista. But she's okay. She lives in a neighborhood far away from the quarantined areas of the city." Sean commented on this concern. "But I don't know, man. It's bizarre. I wish she'd drop everything and come here."

Zac could understand his friend. Although Sean had lived with his father and the man's wife since he was a boy, the current crisis in Alavista was very bizarre. The Onyx Contagion caused people to lose their rationality and act brutally, even cannibalistically.

According to the rumors coming out of Alavista, when the infection reached the third stage, the infected began to behave basically like the zombies of fictional stories!

Not exactly like in fiction, where these creatures were practically immortal as long as their heads weren't destroyed. But those infected with Onyx Contagion lost all feeling in their bodies.

A shot to the arm or a non-vital part would not stop an infected person with the infection in its most advanced stage. Such a person might even die after losing a lot of blood, but until then, bleeding and less complex injuries were not enough to stop them.

Because these infected people used all their strength and acted like bloodthirsty animals, even professional fighters would find it difficult to deal with them.

If you weren't armed or wearing protective gear, it would be easy to get injured and infected by such a person!

The infection spread through bodily fluids, so a single scratch or bite was more than enough to infect. Even the air could carry the infection through saliva!

Zac knew what was happening in Alavista, so he was naturally worried about Sean's mother.

"I hope the situation in Alavista is resolved quickly," Zac commented as he squeezed Sean's shoulder and walked to the cafeteria with his friend.

After picking up their food, the two walked to one of the many tables in the cafeteria to sit down, eat, and chat.

But halfway through, a young man appeared in front of Zac with a strange smile.

"Zac, Zac, Zac... Do you think you'll come back here and everything will be fine as if nothing happened?" He said, aiming at one of the weak points in Zac's legs.

Standing side by side with Zac, he swung at the frowning blond young man, intending to knock the asshole out.