“What’s got you thinking so hard, kid?” Daryl asked as he sat beside Isaac on the porch steps behind the house.

  “Bunch of stuff,” Isaac answered, his eyes still fixed on the sky. “Now that you and Tyler are working together, we’ll have to move out soon. And as much as I love fighting, some thoughts just won’t leave my head.”

  Daryl hummed. “Do tell then. Maybe I can help.”

  Finally, Isaac turned to face the man and shrugged as he did. “It’s nothing special, really. Just all the stuff about those Quarantine Sites you told us about. And then there is Elaine…”

  “Elaine?” Daryl furrowed his brow. “First time I’ve heard that name from you. I take it’s someone important?”

  “You could say that,” he reluctantly agreed. “Remember that last caretaker of mine I mentioned a few times?” The man nodded. “Elaine is his granddaughter. She is only a bit older than me and is the old man’s last remaining family. After everything he had done for me, I figured I could at least check up on her.”

  “I sense a but.”

  Isaac clicked his tongue. “We never really got along, so even if I find her and offer help, she will most likely refuse. Besides, I don’t even know where she lives… She inherited a house from her parents. I think it’s somewhere in those parts of the city, but where exactly? No idea.”

  Silence settled between the two of them for a moment.

  “Hmmm. I could ask around, kid,” Daryl offered. “There are over four hundred people here now. Somebody ought to know something. Just give me her full name, and I will take care of it.”

  Isaac hesitated only for a moment. “Thanks a lot. And it’s Elaine Blake. She is twenty, or maybe twenty-one now. About a head shorter than me, slim, with long black hair. That’s pretty much all I got.”

  Daryl snorted. “You sure? No eye color? Bust size?”

  Isaac flipped him off. “Screw you. I don’t know a lot of people, so I at least try to remember the ones I do. Even if I don’t like them…”

  “Sure, sure, kid. Whatever you say.” Daryl laughed, standing up. “I will leave you to your thoughts then. If you need anything, I’m inside.”

  “Yeah, just go,” he grumbled, turning away from the man. Another fading chuckle was his only answer.

  For a couple of minutes, he just sat there, not even thinking, just simply resting and staring into the empty sky hidden behind the Contamination barrier. Of course, his peace had to be broken sooner rather than later.

  “There you are, man,” James called out as he and Marie slid out of the house and stopped before him. “We’ve been looking for ya.”

  “And now you’ve found me.” Issac patted the stairs next to him. “What’s up?”

  Marie took the offered seat before speaking. “We did a few rounds around the camp… They are definitely doing better than us for now. Mrs. West told us they even have a small stash full of firearms. And they won’t be running out of food for at least a few days, too.”

  “They have a working generator too. Well, two of them,” James chimed in, still hovering over them.

  Isaac nodded. “Anything else?”

  “Not really,” Marie shrugged, leaning back to lay flat on the porch. “Most people here aren’t fighters, that’s for sure. There are quite a few kids, too. Mostly teenagers, though.”

  They all winced at that.

  “Isaac,” James spoke up, quieter than usual. “I’ve been thinking.” Marie sat up at that, shooting him a doubtful look. He ignored it. “And well… Maybe we could try clearing out those schools? I know the Quarantine might stop us, but come on! Marie and I are already level four, and you’re what? Six? Seven?”

  “Eight.”

  “Exactly!” James exclaimed. “We have to at least try. Nobody else is gonna do it. You heard that old guy. They are terrified of those places.”

  “For good reason,” Marie muttered, but her words went ignored.

  “Come on, bossman. Let’s just check out those schools. If we can’t handle it, we will turn back.”

  Isaac sighed, massaging his brow. “And what about your group? Shouldn’t you two go back? Our job is done. Soon enough, we’ll all be needed elsewhere.”

  “Tyler told us we can stay here for the time being,” James said. “Besides, wouldn’t it be a shame to split us now? We worked so well together, didn’t we? What do you say? One last job before we go our separate ways.”

  Marie snorted. “You say that like we’ll never see each other again. You plan on going somewhere soon?”

  The man shrugged. “You never know where we might be needed next. So? What’s the verdict? Just know I might go anyway.”

  “Really now?” Isaac rolled his eyes. “But fine, we can go. If that’s what you both want. Marie?”

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  “As long as we retreat if it’s too dangerous, I don’t mind,” she said.

  “Then let’s get ready,” Isaac announced, rising to his feet. “Wait for me by the barriers. I will talk with Daryl. Don’t want them sending out a search party.”

  At first, Daryl wasn’t happy to hear about their plan, but in the end, there wasn’t much he could do to stop them. The schools had to be cleared out, and if they somehow succeeded where others failed, everyone would be grateful. The children there had to be put to rest. On that, everyone agreed.

  And so, after wishing him good luck, Daryl let him go. Afterward, Isaac rejoined his teammates, and together, they jogged through the almost empty streets all the way until they reached the campus of the elementary school.

  The air got heavier the closer they got. Soon, when only a street separated them from one of the two school buildings, an Interface notification appeared before them. At the same time, they all did their best to ignore the muffled screeches and high-pitched wails echoing from within.

  Warning! You’re approaching a regulated Quarantine Site. The Immortal Mana in this area has been corrupted by the Broken Strain and is more harmful to certain Hosts. All monsters within this area are slightly enhanced.

  To destroy this Quarantine Site, kill all the infected within.

  Current progress: o%

  “Just like the Wests described,” Marie whispered, rubbing her arm. “I’m feeling sick just standing near it.”

  “And Virus Integrity?” Isaac asked.

  “Nothing yet,” she said. James nodded in agreement.

  “Let’s move, then. Slowly. The moment it starts to drop for any of you, back off.”

  “You got it, man,” James said, his skin adapting its new metallic gray hue.

  Isaac meanwhile summoned Root of Blood, while keeping his Virus Integrity displayed next to him.

  With him on the front, they took the first step onto the street, moving slowly, just like he had ordered. It wasn’t until they all reached the sidewalk on the other side that Marie stopped.

  “I can’t,” she called out, taking a couple of steps back. “It’s already falling.”

  Isaac clicked his tongue while keeping an eye on his own Integrity. “James?”

  “Still good, but I can feel my Viron very slowly draining away,” the older man answered, his gaze on his metallic skin. “Means I’m constantly taking damage. I should be good for a while.”

  Isaac narrowed his eyes. “You sure?”

  “Definitely. I’m not planning to die here. Don’t worry.”

  “Then go,” Marie said. “I will keep watch out here. And remember, I can heal you a bit if anything happens.”

  Right.

  The two men shared a look, and when the older one nodded, they moved forward again. Although, the silence didn’t last long.

  “Boss? What about you? All good?”

  Isaac glanced at his Integrity again. Once more, it dropped to ninety-nine percent only to return back to a hundred a second later. His Origin was proving its worth again.

  “I heal faster than it can damage me.”

  “Neat,” James muttered just as they reached the entrance to the school. “Let’s do it.”

  Isaac nodded. “Stay behind me at first, and the moment you see a Wretched, Analyze it. If their threat is higher than low, we’re turning around right away, got it?”

  “Aye, aye, captain.”

  Shaking his head, he pushed the swinging doors open and slipped inside the dark hallway beyond it. The distant screeches became louder, the wails growing in intensity. However, among all of those sounds, there was something else—a quiet, inhumane crying.

  A shiver traveled down his spine as he instinctively raised his sword. Next to him, James transformed both of his hands into blades.

  Let’s do it.

  And so, without hesitation, he stomped hard on the floor, the thud echoing through the entire hallway. Silence fell upon the building.

  Three, two, one.

  Like clockwork, screams erupted a moment later, accompanied by the noises of an entire horde approaching. The classroom doors on both sides of the hallways snapped open, allowing child-sized Wretched to spill out. They didn’t attack, though. No, they stayed a safe distance away, their glowing yellow eyes lighting up the area.

  “Low threat,” James muttered.

  But Isaac barely heard him. His focus was elsewhere—on something, or rather, someone else.

  At the far end of the hallway, close to the stairs leading to the next floor, two quite unique monsters appeared. They stuck to the walls, using their long claws to defy gravity. Even though they shared some features with the other Wretched, their bodies were emaciated, and their limbs twisted at impossible angles. It looked almost like someone tried to combine a spider and a human into one creature.

  Analyze.

  Potential Threat: Low

  Could have been worse.

  With a tug on his Viron, five Blood Daggers materialized at his side and instantly shot toward the two unique beasts. One jumped on the ceiling, avoiding the salvo, but the other wasn’t so lucky.

  [Crawling Wretched (LVL. 4) slain.]

  The horde moved, charging right at them.

  “Leave the wall walkers to me!” Isaac shouted, sending more daggers into the crowd. Five more corpses dropped to the ground, making the monsters behind them stumble.

  “Got it! Good luck!”

  Isaac grinned as Symphony of Blood came alive. He met the charge head-on, slicing through the first two small Wretched with a single swing. Four more replaced them, only to be put down by a wave of fresh blood that spilled over the crowd and cut over ten of them in two.

  The remaining Crawler also didn’t wait long to approach.

  Just as the first wave of Blood Draw ended, it pushed itself off the ceiling and pounced at him. It extended its arms and claws, all while grinning wide, showing a row of bloodied teeth.

  I think not.

  Using his superior speed and reaction time, Isaac sidestepped and reached out with his free hand. His fingers closed around the beast’s extended wrist, and without wasting a second, he threw it toward an approaching group of Wretched. A salvo of Blood Daggers followed, finishing all the monsters in one strike.

  “Boss! A little help!”

  At James’ sudden shout, Isaac darted toward his teammate and cut through the pile of Wretched that once more tried to bury him alive. The man’s Origin of Steel might have made him into a tank, but he sure moved slow. The narrow hallways probably didn’t help either.

  “Thanks!”

  With the crisis averted, they moved forward together, fighting side by side to avoid similar situations. It limited the use of Blood Draw to some extent, but maybe that was for the best. Even if the Wretched here moved a bit faster than the ones outside, they still posed no threat to him.

  Current progress: 24%

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