Beyond the Walls

Uncorrupted

Lucas finds himself in front of that door again. The door which is hard to tell if it was stained with white paint or red… it was old, and in a design of the pre-apocalypse world. It is heavily chained. At times he tried coming close to it, he was always grabbed back to the shadows and waking him up, as if her subconscious is stopping him from tapping what was behind those doors. So he just looked at it from a distance, resisting the urge to take forward to it. Surrounded by nothingness, He stood up and lost to temptation. He wants to break in.

“Brother?” A soft voice called from behind.

“Andrea?... Andrea!” He called back.

As if he had forgotten the door, he turned his back on it and came looking for the voice.

“Brother… ther” The girl kept calling, making him step away from the door.

“Brother! Look! I am all healed!” Andrea appeared on the side, out of nowhere. She spinned around and the hospital gown turned into a cute mini dress with a ribbon at the back.

‘She always likes those things…’ Lucas thought.

“Bro— *Bzzzt bzzzt”

The dark world vibrated and melted to look like another scenery. He was staring at his hazy reflection on an empty glass fridge. He is seeing a boy with long shaggy hair and an untidy appearance like a beggar.

There were hand prints and splatters of blood everywhere. He is staring at it as if he is trying to understand it.

*Swish

A passing image was caught in the reflected glass. Lucas came to look but there was nothing in there but an empty aisle for food. If one counts the mess everywhere, it’s not really empty.

He moved forward and scurried for any food when he accidentally kicked a tin can which sounded fairly loud in an empty food store.

About to resume scurrying for food.

*Growl

Stepping out to his line of sight is a woman with long curly hair with one eye stabbed by fork and the other is blood shot eyes. Maybe because he is squatting low that he was not spotted immediately.

‘EURGH!!!!!” The woman hissed at him, sounding like some sort of an animal.

*Thud

Trembling, his legs gave up as the woman dropped to the floor and began to sprint towards him. He only watch it happens

As it dawned on him, his eyes were still just following it.

*BAM

The woman flew out.

A person wearing a bonnet and large shirt with jacket came to rescue him. The boy watches the person approach the woman on the ground as it tries coming up.

*STAB

Setting aside the wooden plank, a long knife was brought out from it’s side and stabbed the woman on the ground.

As the person turned to look back at him, the hands carrying the knife were stained with blood drops just like the blood stains in the whole market.

“What the hell are you doing?! Huh?!” The person raised voice.

It was a woman’s voice.

“You can’t just stupidly watch and let yourself get eaten! If you can’t fight! RUN! USE YOUR BRAIN!”

Looking up under the bonnet is a messily cut black hair and a face that looks like healing from a beating.

“Mother?” He called.

*Zzzzzt

“ARGHH!!!” Lucas groaned at the electrifying feeling that forcefully opened his eyes. He had been zapped.

A residue of the electricity was still on his system when a light came out his back wrist. Technically, it was coming out from a watch attached to them.

*Ting

[Commencing Game 4: Test of Intelligence…]

Lucas didn’t stay still as the system was talking. He found himself inside a destroyed comfort room cubicle. He immediately scanned the surroundings and checked each cubicle and then looked at the hole in the upper side of the wall. There was nothing but trees and leaves.

[GOAL: Complete the Tasks. Time Limit: Undetermined.]

[... Task #1: Team Leaders find your members and the supplies and equipment.

Time Limit: None]

As soon as the system had stopped talking, Lucas approached the bathroom door and pressed his ear against it.

*Ting

A hologram map with two blinking points was displayed. He understood that he was a green dot and guessed the other one, the red dot, as the ‘Teammate’ he needed to look at. Pressing the option the map was retracted to the watch like item.

He went out of the door and took a moment to look around. He found himself in the middle of an abandoned theme park.

He immediately steps back to the side and sees a partially readable map of the park. Seeing that the allotted space for the map is big then the amusement park itself must be huge. The partial map is no use. He tapped the watch’s screen and was given options.

Task #1: Team Leaders find your members and the supplies and equipment

???

???

???

???

‘There are five tasks.’

Once again the Map was displayed and Lucas browsed it and compared it to what he was seeing before dismissing it.

It was only partially useful since the map provided to them looked like a map from before the apocalypse. He already noticed it earlier because of the sharp turns and proper road mapping, with rides collapsed and other blocking factors, the map can’t be 100% reliable.

He closed and picked up a thick wood lying around and began to navigate himself out. 2 minutes had passed but not a single undead nor any sound can be heard

The silence is eerily as if anytime now, something will jump out of the corners. There are alot of attractions here. A castle, rides,a parade car is placed in the middle of nowhere and stalls with half and dirty toys.

It didn’t take long for him to arrive at the first dot.

‘He must be around here then.’ He thought and looked at the unreadable sign. It was a ride with a large full circle facing slanted up.

Getting in, Lucas can feel his heart thumping as the entrance get’s darker for a moment. He peeked on the ticketing booth and found nothing but algaes and overgrown grass. He climbs up the ride and waltzes in because there are no doors anymore.

Rusty and vines enveloping some parts of the ride but even then he could tell, this ride is meant to be a ride standing up with a body harness and steel hand clutches on the sides.

He scans the surroundings and can see nothing at first or second scan. Opening the map again, he is in the right place.

‘Is it supplied here?’ He wondered and looked around again.

“AH!” He holds to this almost jumping out heart after seeing Jack strapped up to the ride. Well hidden.

Jack is still unconscious.

“Hey!” Lucas called but Jack didn’t wake up as soon as he touched Jack’s shoulders.

*Bzzzzzzt

Lucas' watch vibrated.

[Teammate (¼) ]

*Ting

This time Jack’s watch lights up. Lucas stepped back.

[Activating… Player’s force awakening…]

*ZZZZZZZT

An electrocuting surge at Jack’s entirety. “ARGH!!!!!!”

Same way Lucas was awakened. It took a minute or two before Jack was able to function well.

A hidden camera captures their reunion.

“Did you activate the same charge?” Macord asked.

“Yes sir.”

Macord frowned at the answer and looked closely at the screen. “...then how did he… in mere seconds?” He mumbled.

Zooming in Lucas’ face, there was no difference in his aura from the start to finish. Though his performance only shone in the second round, he was not focused much on the first round since there are other candidates that have more outstanding performance, like those two.

Liam was shown on the screen with two members awakened at his side. At his sides is another talent, Player 3, is a built as tank and attacker, he was able to hold himself against a horde and escape unbitten at times, Player 5, the only woman that made this far, have superior skills in sleath to the point she get past the camera most of the time. Tapping her record folder in his hand. A big all caps letter in red colour had been stamped to it. “CONFIDENTIAL”

‘Seeing her records sealed, she must’ve connections to the higher ups.’

But most impressive and Macord had high hopes is Liam himself. He had shown great leadership and was able to come up with strategies. Macord had to cut the number of players from 20 to 10 by Game 3 and had to separate into two wings the players because Liam's group alone is 16 in number.To be able to make loyal followers and influence them are rare qualities.

That is talent that needs to be checked… Unlike player 2, who always looked cowardly. He is indeed knowledgeable in undeads but there is nothing especially, take player 9 for example, he too is knowledgeable.

People can be educated, but some skills can’t be taught.

‘I don’t really get why they give this player more points than necessary.’ He complained as he disagreed with Lucas' ranking.

“I can almost hear what you are thinking ~ Macord.” Teasingly Yuslan makes way beside Macord.

“Remember, he had ‘Actor’ Skills, don’t be fooled by his cowardly facade. I can feel he is hiding something.”

“You just wanted to say those taglines.”

“How did you know?”

“......... How is the cargo going?” Macord decided to not pay attention to him.

As Liam found the 3rd member, Macord continued. “Prepare to open the crate as soon as one team is complete.”

“Yes sir.”

‘If it’s a mask then. I’ll peel it off.’

It took several minutes for Elijah to come to his senses. “Dude! You could just wake me up in a normal way, Why electrocute me?!” He complained to Lucas who already stopped listening and scanning the surroundings. They found Elijah on the artificial dried lake with swan boats to peddle.

*Ting

[Team 1 had successfully finished Task #1…]

“This quick?” Jack said frowningly.

[... Calculating Rewards …]

“Wow, rewards? Wonder that might be” Elijah said as he shook his wrists and grabbed his bag, it was his supplies and equipment. Each player is accompanied by their items except for the team leaders.

Task #1: Team Leaders find your members and the supplies and equipment (2/4)

???

???

???

???

There were no changes, it seems like the tasks will not update as long as the tasks are incomplete.

“Let’s go.” Lucas said as he held at the metal railing out the artificial lake. He flinched.

“Wh—”

Lucas immediately covered Elijah’s mouth. “Shh…” He led the two to the side and waited…

There was a faint growling in the distance that echoed in the park.

Both groups were alerted… In a long cry, everyone held their breath while hiding.

Lucas who has his eyes closed for a while bit his molars.

‘We need to find them real quick now.’ He thought. As soon as the cry stopped.

“We are going to run!” Lucas said and hastily came up.

“Why? What was that?!”

“It’s a mutant.”