"Please Mommy! Please!" Veranda cried loudly, gripping Mama V's dress tightly, tears streaming down her face, looking so heartbroken...but her mother remained determined and strict.
Mama V sat on her couch in her sacred room where she delivered justice, had meetings, assigned messages and most of her queenly duties. It was the same place that Mel and Lesley were brought when they first arrived, and it was a subtle feeling of dejà Vu that Lesley stood before her, bound along with Mel.
A while ago, Mama V had barged into his room right when Mel was attacking. Not willing to risk human lives, Lesley reactivated [DEAD AURA] and grabbed Mel, using the Undead's momentum to toss him to the other side of the room.
Lesley had rushed over and pinned the Undead's limbs down, using all his strength. Mama V had been shocked and confused, but Lesley didn't even know where to explain so he just said the hard truth.
Mel was no longer a High rank zombie.
Strangely enough Mama V had smiled, which made Lesley really confused. Then she'd told her guards to bind them and bring them here, where she just said they were being kicked out. Veranda had walked in on that part and for the past three minutes had been begging Mama V to let them stay.
Lesley knew that wasn't happening but was happy to see her okay at least.
"No, Veranda. These two are more trouble than they are worth." Mama V scowled," First my guard, then my warehouse, my people and my daughter...no, I am not letting these two stay here a second longer. Especially now that zombie is practically useless to me."
"But they're my brothers!" Veranda's reply made Mama V sigh, her daughter had gotten too attached to these vermin.
"No, we're not Vee." Lesley gave the little girl a resigned look," We were never gonna stay here for long, you know that."
"But...who's gonna play with me?" Veranda's eyes flooded with more tears.
"You'll be fine." Lesley told her,"And maybe we'll run into each other when you're older."
It was highly unlikely, in their world of post apocalypse, where people died everyday, everywhere and all the time. However Veranda beamed and nodded vigorously, which made Lesley feel a bit bad about giving her microscopic hope but he knew it was for the best.
"So, we'll throw you back where we found you." Mama V waved her hand to signal one of her people, who Lesley remembered," Yur, get them out of here."
Yur, the same bastard who'd caught Lesley and Mel with his group came up and pulled Lesley by the rope tied on his arms.
Mel was behind them, a leather muzzle on his face and his arms tied behind his back in thick knots. Lesley had had to beg like hell for them not to kill him, which honestly made him reflect on things he had not wanted to.
So, after nearly half a month, Lesley and Mel were taken out of Mama V's warehouse and back outside. It was late morning and the sun was shining down on the desolation that was old Greenhit. Abandoned cars, derelict crumpled buildings and air like moldy fungus on bread. Lesley did not miss anything out here, but a small part of him was happy about exploring again.
That part of him was crazy!
Back to unprotected, zombie infested streets of a post apocalyptic city with nothing but the clothes on his back and an undead corpse for company. How did he do it before? Honestly he did not know, the warehouse had been comfy all things considered. He'd had modest, by apocalyptic standards, necessities provided, and he'd grown to like it. Made him think of the citadel-
Lesley clenched his fists as he looked up, his eyes gazing at the citadel walls on the far west of him. Now, he realized, he could try to get back in. Nothing was stopping him anymore, not even Death was there to do something.
"This aught to be enough." Yur said and nodded to the four guards who had come with him.
"Aren't you going to untie me?" Lesley presented his bound hands but Yur just smiled.
"Tie the zombie to that post over there." Yur directed the guards and Mel was tied to an old bent post.
"Hey, untie me already, I can hear zombies coming." Lesley demanded but the men just gave him a glance and started walking away." Fucking bastards, where are you going?"
"We left you near where we found you, our jobs done. You're on your own." Yur chuckled as they walked down an alleyway and left Lesley alone with Mel.
"Unbelievable." Lesley muttered," Actually not that unbelievable, he was always a jerk. Time to get these off "
Looking around Lesley tried to see if he could find anything sharp to cut the ropes off but then a thought struck him. He gazed at his bound hands with a thoughtful expression. There's no way that could work, he thought, but I could try and look for something too.
Lesley gritted his teeth and tried to snap the bindings with brute strength. He was supposed to be stronger than the average human, so time to put it to the test. The ropes grew taught, their threads slightly unraveling and coming undone.
"Come on! Come on!" Lesley pulled harder, his muscles straining like never before and...
Snap!
"Yes! Freaking finally!" Lesley smiled excitedly as he removed the ropes and flexed his fingers and hands. He'd noticed that he was stronger but the ropes had still been a challenge, meaning he wasn't at High rank zombie level.
"Wait a minute," Lesley looked at Mel and scanned his status again. Hearing growls, he untied Mel from the post and pulled him into an alley.
"Hey, Show me the rankings for zombies." Lesley asked his Bloodline interface.
[Here is the power system for Undead creatures;
|•|
UNDEAD CREATURES RANKING;
1. Zombie (Wisp)
2. Zombie Champion (Wraith)
3. Zombie Horror (Shade)
4. Ghoul (Spectre)
|•|
Further ranks are unavailable due to your low cultivation level.]
Lesley looked at the ranking system and his mouth fell open in horror.
What are those things? Weren't zombies the only things in this world?
"What are those other types of undead?" Lesley asked.
[Those are the evolved types for undead creatures and in brackets are their spirit equivalent.]
"What about High rank zombies?" Lesley didn't see where they fit.
[Error!]
[Your human ranking system is flawed and not beneficial. You are advised to follow the provided rankings by the Bloodline interface.]
"It's flawed?" Lesley felt like a thousand thunder claps had gone off in his head. If their rankings were flawed, then that means serious trouble if they run into the stronger things on the Undead ranking system.
[The Plane does not have the laws to sustain anything above the [Zombie Horror] undead.]
"Okay, but what about when that timer runs out?" Lesley indicated the Ascension and Descent timer on the interface.
[The outcome is unknown. However through analysis, [Ghoul] undead should become a possible evolution after the Plane Ascends and Descends New laws.]
"Fuck, two months till shit gets real." Lesley looked around trying to coordinate himself." Which way to the apartment building?"
It was better to go to a place they knew, than look for somewhere else. They could not use the same room, but maybe go next door, kill a zombie and take their apartment. Besides, Lesley wanted to use his other abilities too.
"Speaking of which," Lesley looked at Mel with a complicated look,"I have to get you back to the way you were. Come on."
Lesley pulled Mel along by the rope tied around his throat and wrists, the zombie followed him. It was only after two minutes that Lesley stopped and looked at Mel with wide eyes.
"Wait, you're following me. You're not just running away or shit. You're actually following me! You're still in there!" Lesley chuckled and almost hugged Mel but stopped himself.
Taking a deep breath, he pulled the zombie along and they carried on their way to the apartment building. He avoided large groups of zombies, but roamed near wandering lone zombies. To his delight, his [DEAD AURA] worked and they did not attack him.
Truth be told Lesley had not been sure about that ability, since his first test subject was Mel. Their relationship was strange and Mel has never intentionally harmed Lesley, except when he went out of control. So Lesley couldn't have been sure to attribute Mel, the current zombie, from Mel, the human like zombie for not attacking him.
But now he was sure that his ability worked, this didn't mean he was going to walk the streets like he owned the place. According to his interface, undead with stronger Spirit than him would attack him. He had no idea which undead had lower or higher Spirit than him, without stopping to check, which he did not want to do. He was fast, true but the last High rank zombie, which his interface told him using his memories was a Peak Level zombie, had broken walls with it's fists.
He took nearly a minute to snap his bindings.
After a while of walking, Lesley and Mel arrived at the old apartment building, the hole in Mel's apartment was still there. Wordlessly, the two entered the building, Lesley pulling Mel along. Instead of going to Mel's apartment, Lesley went two doors next to it. The door was locked but he had a solution.
Reaching into his pocket, Lesley pullet put a thin flexible wire and bent it in two. Twisting the two pieces, he made one a sharp point and the other a twisted shape. He got down on his knee, and started to pick the lock, his mind focused as he tried to remember what Veranda taught him. The little thirteen year old girl was a master at picking locks, she had a small cabinet back in the warehouse with locks to pick. Most afternoons, she had spent teaching Lesley the art of picking locks.
But he wasn't a master, it took him ten full minutes to unlock the door.
"Finally. My best time too." Lesley gave a smile and looked at Mel. He had dropped the zombie's rope, because he needed both his hands. Mel had simply walked from door to door, groaning with undead hunger. He was now near the end of the hall, so Lesley fetched him.
Opening the door, Lesley looked at the interior of the apartment. It was a modest place, with a bare dining room that worked as a living room. The kitchen had dirty plates in the sink, dusty and cracked with age. There were picture frames on the walls of cats and flowers, and a clock that had ticked it's last a long time ago. The air was stale, like a funeral parlour before winter with hints of dry jasmine and catnip.
"Good enough." Lesley gave a nod, he could work with this. He shut the door after them and opened the door near him, leading to a bathroom.
"Wait, how come this room has a toilet, shower and tub but yours didn't?" Lesley asked Mel with an accusatory tone. "Oh, you're still muzzled. My bad I guess."
Lesley removed Mel's muzzle and after finding a knife in the kitchen, it was rusty like an old lady's hip replacement, he used brute strength to slice the binds tying his hands behind his back. After that, he checked the other room, finding a bedroom with a king-sized bed, and nice blankets, untouched by moths. He couldn't wait to get a nap on it!
"But first," Lesley took his shirt off again and pulled Mel to sit next to him on the dining room carpet, there were no chairs or sofas."Mel, I want you to tell me about this."
Lesley pulled out a brown book, the same brown book he'd found in Mel's room, filled with dairy entries of the zombie's past life. He had kept it, secretly from everyone, even Veranda. It just felt wrong, to share or show the book to anyone. Call him soft, but Lesley wasn't one to divulge something private like a diary.
Mel looked vacantly at the book, groaning with no sense of understanding apparent. Lesley sighed, he'd guessed this might happen, even as he tried it. Mel had never shown care for this book, he practically avoided the contents, because he only got confused, uncertain and-
"Miserable." Lesley finished as he looked at Mel with a sigh. Opening his arms, Lesley hugged Mel and stopped using [DEAD AURA].
Mel immediately sensed the Life energy inside Lesley's body and opened his mouth, biting him on the shoulder hard. Lesley winced and gritted his teeth, his arms held Mel tightly from escaping his grasp.
[Warning! You have been bitten by an undead]
[Zombie has used [NECROS BITE]!]
[[UNDYING] activated]
[Your Vitality will drop by a quater every minute until you are undead]
[Solution; Absorb Aether from Ten Zombies or Wisps]
[Time till full infection; 2 hours]