At the same time, outside the academy...
Those who could fight were giving their all to keep the zombies at bay, in the hope someone would arrive to help them out. The hope of help was the only driving force for them to keep fighting. But as more and more of them collapsed, the hope slowly began dwindling.
The students who just walked out of the tunnel had exchanged one hell hold for another. Did they think they would be safe outside? No, but they thought they would at least have a fighting chance.
Undead were everywhere, but so were some familiar faces.
"Hey, look! The professors are here!" A second-year student yelled and ran toward them, "Professors, we are here! We can-"
The happiness of reuniting with living people had blinded their vision. They thought every familiar face would extend a helping hand to them, but that wasn't always the case. By the time the student realised what was happening it was already too late.
The undead jumped on her and began feasting on her flesh. Her screams sent chills down the spine of whoever witnessed the brutality of the undead.
The so-called professor turned around to reveal her grotesque half-eaten face. Her facial bones were in plain sight as a bunch of muscle fibre and skin tissue grabbed onto her body. A futile attempt to maintain her lost identity.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtThe students had not expected to see their friends, seniors and even some of the professors have been turned into the undead. These were the people who ventured into the unknown to gather information and if possible, strike back. However, they met a horrible end.
"Shit, everyone form a circle. Make sure your backs are facing each other. Those who do not possess offensive abilities fall back to the centre." Layla immediately shook herself back to reality and took charge, "Do not leave any space between each other. If even one of them manages to break through the circle, we'll all die!"
Her idea might have bought them some time if they were facing vampires or other werewolves, but not against these newborn zombies. The undead professors finished digging into the student and then turned their attention toward the rest of them.
If the zombie professors were to regain a bit of their intelligence, they would have mocked their students for setting up such a weak defence. But right now, there were no professors or students. Just predators and prey.
"Damn it! They're too fast!" Gabriel, a blonde second-year student, shouted. "None of my attacks are working!"
"Keep trying!" Layla yelled back while shooting icicles on the zombies herself, "We have to hold them off!"
Even though Layla was standing in front of the zombies, for some reason, they weren't attacking her. Neither were they targeting the ones who could fight back. Instead, it appeared they were only attacking those that couldn't attack them properly.
It almost felt as if they could smell who were the weak ones and decided to get rid of them first. Layla noticed something weird.
The more people these undead killed, the more intelligent they became. It would also explain why there were attacking the weak ones first. They wanted to get more intelligent before engaging the strong ones in combat.
The zombies weren't behaving like mindless creatures anymore. They were more like a pack of scavengers. Their teamwork and strategy quickly managed to overwhelm and injure countless students in an instant. Every micro-movement of theirs had a purpose.
"Damn it, they are playing with us." Layla mumbled, "They don't want to kill us at once, but make a show of it."
The situation was dreadful, and yet she couldn't help but feel a bit humiliated. However, the humiliation she felt soon turned to anger.
"Back off, I want to have a chat with the brats." Servina appeared in front of them with her lackeys at her toe, "How do you like a glimpse of your future? Lovely, isn't it?"
Behind her were a dozen others, all of whom were wearing some kind of weird black suit that covered them entirely.
Facing off against the zombies was a difficult task, but facing off against these people and surviving was... impossible. They could feel it in their bones.
The aura around the lady was... suffocating. The students literally began having difficulty breathing as soon as Servina appeared in front of them. Even though they had their gas masks on.
"A glimpse of the future?" Layla retorted, "You really think we're gonna let your pathetic asses roam freely? You might kill us, but you'll be following our suit soon enough. Who do you think we are? We're Lycans, no matter how many underhanded tricks you use, we will decimate all of you!"
"Fiesty, aren't ya?" Servina smiled, "Well since I've taken a liking to you, I'll keep you as my pet bitch. Might be fun to see the kind of make you'll make when your friends die because of your big mouth."
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmSaying so, Servina nodded and one of her servants pulled Layla away. While the rest of the zombies surrounded the remaining students.
"The king will kill you! Deja will not keep quiet! You will pay the price!" Layla screamed at Servina who promptly slapped her mouth shut.
"Ah, so that's why you were acting so cocky," Servina pulled Layla's face close to hers and licked her exposed neck, "What do I have to fear from a kingdom that's about to collapse? The king you're so hopeful would come to save you, is already dead. HAHA!"
"Wha..."
"Don't bother with the details," Servina slapped her away, "kill them."
Servina's soldiers made their move, but suddenly tentacles shot out of their shadows and wrapped around their legs, preventing them from taking a step further.
Servina immediately let go of Layla and turned around, a portal had been opened behind her. All of them were so wrapped up playing around with the mutts, they didn't notice it yet.
In front of the portal, a white-haired person was standing. His arms were deep in his pocket as his gaze pierced right through her. Also, he wasn't alone.
Behind him were three shadowy figures. The thing that troubled Servina the most was the aura of death revolving around all four of them. Were they undead creatures just like her?
"Just who is he..." Servina absentmindedly let go of Layla, "How can he breath in the smoke and remain unaffected?"
"Ashton!" Layla happily exclaimed. There was hope for them after all!