Chapter 11 11: Memories!

Chaos, utter chaos.

The colossal horde of zombies tore through the gates like paper.

They pushed forward with their eerie groans, that looming threat of the enormous zombie tossing rocks and other zombies into the campus with its deformed muscular purple arm filled with creepy veins.

Although Alex was immune to infection double his level, there was no guarantee this monster was in that range; he was unable to identify it and dashed into the oncoming corpses.

"Ah!? My arm! How did it bite me from so far away, argh!"

One of the students was swarmed by zombies that seemed faster than usual. Alex used "Eagle Eyes" swiftly as he saw the white light from the student enter a zombie that began to glow

Novice zombie level 2- a being eroded by the virus created by the supreme god, only left with the desire to feed on flesh and blood.

Viral Infection (Passive)

'As I thought, they seem to advance in level by eating humans!'

Slash! A courageous group of five began to clear the area; Sarah and her guards used their swords with extreme speed, slicing the zombies with no remorse as their bodies dashed towards the next group.

Alex finally went into action, lowering his hips as he dashed into a small crowd of zombies, his left hand swinging out like a blade, tearing through one zombie's throat, snapping its spine while decapitating another with the novice sword.

Thick black blood splattered onto his chest as both heads fell to the ground; Alex didn't stop, dodging his body nimbly to the side, bending his waist.

He flipped his blade before slashing his sword across his chest, cleanly decapitating two zombies as the white light and coins entered his body, refreshing his body.

Alex took a deep breath, the zombies still surging into the courtyard, many of his fellow students now lying on the ground torn apart as he and Sarah's group were forced to retreat despite killing zombies on their way back.

"Haa… Hah…."

He looked around, seeing less than half the remaining students; sadly, the cute girl that flirted with him was there, but she shuffled towards him with half her jaw missing.

'A shame…'

Lifting his blade that shimmered in the moonlight, one person, one sword, he became unstoppable as he jumped into the 12 zombies; bites didn't matter, and claws were ignored.

-You have reached level 5: There are three attribute points; please use them well!

'Strength and 2 willpower!'

Alex didn't even think much; feeling the soothing sensation, he jumped back into the chaotic melee, tearing zombies off his fellow students before killing them both; his sword and fist were unmatched.

A warm stream filled his body as he felt stronger with more devastating muscle power.

That was, except for Sarah and her group, that became a chainsaw, ripping apart the oncoming zombies like a well-oiled machine.

Zombies began to overrun the students, their mangled faces filling their view as people cried out for help.

"Young lady, it's time we cannot fight any longer!"

"Young mistress now is the time!"

Sarah slashed across her body, the long blade slicing several zombies' heads clean off as her muscles began to ache and cramp; with a trembling sword, she turned to face her guards.

"Wait! We can still fight; if I leave them, everyone will perish!"

Suddenly, her two guards stared at her with shocked faces, they tried to dash forward, but it was too late….

"Eh?!"

Someone pushed Sarah out of the way, and a massive piece of rock the size of a small car fell like a meteor as it smashed into someone's body; a black suit jacket fluttered into the air, filled with blood and zombie flesh.

Sarah only saw a white flash, his beautiful face giving her a cheeky grin before the colossal stone smashed into his body before she could even say his name.

"Alex!?"

Clang! The university gate was pulled off its hinges as the zombies began to pour into the courtyard.

In the distance, another group of students were fighting, led by a fearless woman with a long spear as she ripped them apart and helped them retreat after heavy losses.

Claire wished to regroup and find Alex. However, they were at their limits; escaping with their supplies was their limit.

'Alex… I will come back!'

The group began to dash towards the side exit of the university and aimed to reach the large superstore in the city centre.

Sarah's guards and the remaining student's fought hard, and many of the hidden people began to fight desperately as they realised the danger of the threat; 200 versus 2,000 was an impossible battle as one cut, bite or wound meant a loss for the students.

"A-Alex?"

-

Alex felt strange; his body flying through the air was light and comfortable, with only a slight dull pain through his right chest as he crashed into the ground near the staircase to the helipad.

'Well, it could have been worse…. I can heal from almost death, but Sarah, maybe not.'

He tried to open his eyes or move, but nothing listened to him as a throbbing pain began to fill his body, like someone smashing his head with a hammer, then pulling on his insides, stretching them before releasing them quickly.

A loud howl sounded, something like a dog but felt much bigger; Alex couldn't be sure because several similar cries followed.

'Who let the dogs out?'

There were chaotic screams, cries and the sound of flesh being ripped apart in his ears, while Alex was peaceful, lying on the cold ground; at least he thought it was calm, now he couldn't even feel any temperature fluctuations.

The clashing of blades and mournful cries of several students sounded as countless people began to flee from the battle; their friends, lovers and even families were eaten before their eyes.

All morale was crushed as even Sarah, and her guards retreated; on the way, her feet began to stumble, seeing a muscular arm with a black shirt filled with blood.

It was half of Alex's right chest and his arm.

"Young miss, we need to leave!" A voice began to sound slightly feral and husky as it grew louder.

"Young lady, the bastards are here for YOU! Staying here is putting them all in danger!"

Her guards sounded desperate, and the sound of a scuffle and someone being dragged filled his ears; something like claws dragging along flesh sounded in Alex's ears.

"Quickly, get the young miss to safety! Alex is already DEAD! Look, you are holding half of his chest!"

A bitter howl, like that of a wounded beast, sounded.

Alex couldn't see the current scene only hearing them as Sarah's bizarre form began to rip apart the oncoming corpses, tearing them to pieces and crushing their bones as the last martial arts club members died.

Lewis lay 30 metres away from Alex; his face twisted in terror as several zombies devoured his stomach.

The clashing of a blade and claws sounded before it finally ended; for a moment, even the sound of zombies shambling faded.

Alex wanted to get up; he was already fine, just needed a little help to stand up, helping Sarah fight off the horde and that big cunt that hit him with that cheap shot.

Suddenly, along with the dull pain, he began to feel his thoughts growing hazy, and a sense of tiredness washed over him.

A violent and fierce shout entered his ears, causing him to laugh in his mind.

"He's fine; Alex cannot die!"

'That's right; you tell 'em I'll heal after a bit of spit.'

The female guards gasped, seeing their young mistress so distressed, with puffed-out fur, dilated pupils and grinding her teeth.

"Young miss…. He's gone; look at his chest. More than half of it is in your arms!"

"You should know this best, miss! Please, we cannot move out until you are safe; the students are dying because you are here!"

"He's NOT dead!"

Alex could only hear soft feet approaching him, wondering if they helped him stand up and fix his eyes.

However, Sarah's sobbing suddenly entered his ears as warm water droplets splashed onto his cheek.

'Don't cry; you're a big girl now. This isn't back when we were younger, and you hated the "scary older sisters" at home….'

He wanted to soothe her, tell her the truth and that he would be fine, just a few moments, maybe an hour, and he'd be fine!

Alex felt these women were exaggerating a bit; after all, his mind was working just fine, right? He could still feel the pain all over his body, which ruled out paralysis.

'Can ghouls even be paralysed?' He thought with a vague mind.

He wanted to shout, "I can still fight!" to rally her spirits, like when he fought against her bullies and got his ass whooped as a weedy little kid, saved by her before they beat him to death.

'Why are these memories so vivid right now? A mystery indeed.' Alex thought to himself in wonder.

"A-Alex, I'll be good and won't smoke…. Please…. Wake up….!"

Soft hands seemed to caress his cheeks and left arm, which was snapped in the wrong direction.

"I-I'm begging you…."

He felt her gentle touch, letting him know this wasn't a dream and Sarah was here; suddenly, her guards gasped and seemed to make noise rushing this way.

Alex felt a soft, warm sensation on his lips and was embarrassed that a girl had made the first move.

Unknown to him, Sarah looked up to her guards with a scowl, her lips covered in his thick red blood as she used her tongue to lick her lips clean.

Suddenly, the following words of her guard shocked him.

"Please, young mistress, you must NOT eat the heart of an infected; even a Silvan Werewolf cannot endure that taint! You will become the walking dead!"

Alex only heard a scuffle before several older female voices made a loud grunt before bodies seemed to smash into a distant wall.

Sarah had beaten her guards back, kneeling and picking up the bloody heart they knocked from her hands; her eyes trembled despite her heart filling with rapture.

He could only hear the sound of what seemed to be a wild wolf devouring some raw meat or something with lots of fluid as it splattered and dripped down onto his face.

His consciousness became dimmer, like walking along a path during a foggy evening.

Alex believed the drops to be her tears and wanted to stretch out his right arm, but there was no response.

'Silly girl…. Don't cry. I will be fine; I'm a ghoul…!'

A soft sensation pressed against his cheek as something seemed to flop down beside him before what he assumed were fingers began to stroke his cheeks.

"Hey…. Alex, you know I've always loved you. Ever since that moment, you fought against my bullies, no…. Before then."

Sarah sat beside his corpse, wrapping her hands around her knees as she was covered from head to toe in blood and flesh, while most of it was from Alex.

'I hope he doesn't mind. I devoured his heart; at least we are together now….!'

"It was your scent because you had a special scent. I became interested in you; mother said that's how werewolves chose their mate until I met you; it was like a stupid joke or fairy tale."

Her memories were filled with the image of a weedy little boy who came to their martial arts school and wanted to learn; from the moment she met him, Sarah finally awakened as an adult werewolf.

'Mother was so happy, wanting to bring you to our home…. So stupid, that woman acts nothing like a gang leader at home!'

"How I loved seeing you every Tuesday and Friday night; my heart would flutter as I snuck into the men's changing room and stole your used clothes to enjoy your scent; sometimes another would interrupt me, however…."

Sarah began to squeeze his cold, icy left hand, almost detached from his body as she trembled, trying to stop her voice from turning inside out, biting down on her lips as her face scrunched up.

"Y-young miss, this time is reall…."

"P-please…. I know, just a little longer, one moment more… Let me say goodbye…."

This time, Sarah didn't snap or snarl at the guards; instead, her face was downcast, without hope. Her face became a mess of snot, tears, blood, and flesh as it slowly dripped down.

"Understood; we will clear the perimeter. Also, he was a wonderful man, and even to the last moment, he never gave up; you chose an excellent mate, young miss…."

Sarah began to laugh, trying to mute the thoughts that came to her mind; these guards still remember the day Alex first helped her move forward as a werewolf.

Alex listened quietly as if a child was told a bedtime story by his mother, and the pain shooting through his body slowly faded as the guards stepped away.

"Hehe…. Sorry, where was I?"

A moment of silence passed as she began gently stroking what remained of his broken skull and hair; for Alex, the sensation was comforting and felt good.

Once again, the soft sense pressed against his face, with a quiet smack afterwards.

"I hate this; why…? Why must I leave you here…. Hey Alex, I'm sorry for not telling you I was a werewolf…. That day, the "Scary" older sisters you fought were my current guards; they all remember you so fondly in private; ignore their tough faces….!"

This was also agony for them; they long assumed he would become their master, the cheeky little boy who stormed their office and began to attack them "for his cute Sarah!" Now a fond memory of a brutal fight that almost killed him.

"Thank you for all the support this far; I could never have taken that first step without you beside me…. Now you won't ever leave me. You've become part of me!"

'Yeah…. Because you're now my Vesta, we're the same now, werewolf or not, you're now part ghoul!'

Alex thought in his hazy mind.

One last time, her eyes closed as she kissed his lips, sticking her tongue into his sticky mouth, filled with a coppery taste as she kissed him passionately, this last kiss her final goodbye as she killed her heart forever.

'Alex, I swear to follow the werewolf tradition; we are a faithful race, and even if our partners die, we would rather die than find another man.'

Smack! Their lips parted with a wet bridge made of blood and her saliva.

"It's a shame we only kissed though…." she muttered.

Sarah stood up, looking at him constantly as she slowly moved towards the loud helicopter guided by her guards.

The clacking of her heels grew quieter and quieter as she left the area, a soothing sound like a melody for Alex as his mind finally fell into a deep, dark sleep.

She tightened her fists as blood began to ooze from them, still turning back as she ascended the stairs to enter the helicopter, watching him even after she left the university area.

His last thoughts were being happy that she finally told him the truth; instead of using his "Eagle Eyes" skill, she told him first, causing his trust to deepen further.

'Let me kiss you for real when I wake up, Sarah!'

After Sarah left the area, most zombies began to vanish, like they were ordered by something else, slowly shuffling in different directions.

However, the university was a massacre; dead bodies, blood, and flesh painted the ground as the mutated zombie destroyed the martial arts club, school store, and gym.

A strange sound began to resound near the corpse of Alex Faust; his skin turned grey, and the broken bones crumbled, before slowly being reformed, quietly, more pristine and powerful; his organs melted into a grey ooze before the surrounding blood and flesh began to be sucked into that strange grey ooze.

Alex Faust was slowly becoming a true ghoul in body and mind as the solemn wind blew past the now-silent university filled with death.

It is a perfect place of birth for a ghoul.