John floored the accelerator, the police car lurching forward, sending the few monsters that had just lunged onto the rear bumper flying off, hitting the pavement hard behind them.
"Main Street Elementary?" John asked, rapidly turning the steering wheel, navigating the chaos to find a route downtown, while glancing back at the newly arrived officer in the rear seat. "Miller, what the hell is going on?!"
Sam took the opportunity to quickly size up the officer named Miller. He was white, with very short, neatly trimmed brownish-blond stubble, sharp eyes holding the alertness of someone in danger, and strikingly blue eyes in the dim light of the car.
"Situation's bad!" Miller reported breathlessly, his voice unsteady from running and stress. "Those… damn things, they're spreading too fast! The whole downtown area is chaos! Military can't respond in time, it's just us cops out here now!"
He paused, seeming to gather his thoughts, then spoke rapidly, "SWAT prioritized securing a few of the middle schools, but they don't have enough manpower! Command issued orders for any available patrol units like us to head immediately to Main Street Elementary, assist with evacuating the kids! That school's security… you know, even a nutjob with a gun could break in easily! We have to get those kids out before the situation completely collapses!"
Miller finished in a rush, then looked at John questioningly, "Didn't you receive the direct order?"
"My orders were just to rally downtown, no specific location mentioned," John replied grimly, eyes fixed on the increasingly chaotic road ahead.
"The latest updates went out via emergency broadcast and TV stations, telling all civilians to stay home, lock doors and windows, and wait for the military," Miller said, starting to fumble with several half-empty magazines, consolidating bullets into one, the metallic clicks echoing softly. "Our mission is just to get the elementary school kids out safely, then we can evacuate ourselves." He frowned, looking at the barely full magazine in his hand – this little ammo wouldn't last long.
"So… the nearby middle schools are secured then?" John's voice held a slight, almost imperceptible tremor of tension as he stared at the chaotic traffic flow ahead.
"Yeah, SWAT should have taken over, organizing the student transfers now," Miller answered, still sounding rushed.
"Good…" John seemed to let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. Sam was almost certain his daughter was in that age group.
"Hey, I'm Sam, nice to meet you," Sam said, feeling the atmosphere was a bit stiff, tentatively extending a hand towards Miller in the back seat.
Miller looked at him with some surprise, shaking his hand briefly. "Miller. Didn't we… just see each other at the briefing a few days ago?"
"Meeting again in a crisis counts more, right?" Sam offered a casual excuse.
"What happened back there? What was your situation?" John cut straight to the point, asking urgently.
"Just now?" Miller wiped sweat from his forehead. "Lina and I got the order and headed for Main Street Elementary. On the way, we ran into a couple calling for help, trapped in a small glass-fronted shop at the corner, several… 'those things' banging on the door outside. The husband was bracing the door with his body, saw our car, and yelled desperately at us. He… he suddenly shoved the door open, threw himself at the monsters outside, buying his pregnant wife a few seconds to escape… We couldn't just leave them…" He paused, his voice lowering slightly. "It's probably better Lina took the pregnant woman and left first anyway. She's only been on the force two years, her shooting… honestly, isn't great. Better suited for resolving disputes or giving talks at the community center, not this kind of scene."
"Want some coffee?" Seeing Miller sweating heavily and looking pale, John offered the half-empty, already cold cup of mocha he was holding. "Don't mind that I drank from it."
Miller didn't refuse, taking it and gulping down most of it in one go. The cold coffee seemed to steady him slightly.
"So… these things are completely out of control now? Everywhere?" Sam couldn't help asking, his voice a bit dry. "What about command? Do they have a plan? This spread is way too fast." In the movies, didn't they always cover things up first, letting it brew for ten days or half a month before it really exploded out of the city?
"'Zombies'? That's… a good word for them." Miller gave a bitter smile, but his eyes were filled with fear. "I don't know the specifics either! Lina and I were just handling a routine noise complaint on the street, and then suddenly… these things just popped up everywhere! Biting people! Shooting them in the arms or legs does nothing, even hitting the chest just makes them stumble, you have to hit the head! And… and people who get bitten…"
His voice dropped, trembling noticeably. "Getting bitten… really turns you into… into a 'zombie'. I saw it with my own eyes… Jeff and Jesse from our squad, right in front of me, got tackled and bitten on the arm. A few minutes later… they just staggered back up from the ground, their eyes looked exactly like those monsters, and they came right at us…" He shivered violently, unable to continue.
Meanwhile, the road conditions outside were deteriorating rapidly. Abandoned vehicles littered the street, some crashed together, others overturned like heaps of twisted metal. John had to slow down to a crawl, carefully maneuvering between the obstacles. And the "zombies," like sharks smelling blood, emerged from every corner, frantically lunging at the moving "tin can," pounding on the windows and doors with their bodies and seemingly numb fists. Loud BANG! BANG! BANG! echoed incessantly. The windshield was already spiderwebbed with cracks, smeared with viscous dark red blood and unidentifiable debris, with liquid even seeming to seep through some fissures.
"Can we really make it to the elementary school entrance? Is this road even passable?" Sam couldn't help questioning again, looking at the nearly blocked street and the monsters constantly hitting the car.
"There's another road on the south side of the school, an access road, usually less traffic, just takes a bit longer to get around," Miller answered, his gaze fixed intently on every shadow flashing past the window, while his fingers repeatedly traced the trigger guard of his reloaded pistol, body tense, ready to jump out and fight at any moment.
The road ahead cleared up slightly. John seized the opportunity and floored the accelerator, the police car roaring forward, sending several zombies in the way directly under the tires. Sam could clearly feel the intense vibration as the car rolled over bones, accompanied by the sickening crunching sound.
"Seriously, don't we have any other gear?" Sam asked, unconsciously weighing his Glock in his hand. "I'd much prefer a rifle, even just a semi-auto."
"Forget it," Miller replied from the back seat. "Regular patrol like us, we don't usually get long guns. But, there should be other officers heading to Main Street Elementary with ammo and rifles. As long as we can fight our way through with these damn handguns, we can resupply there."
"Then take this." Just as Sam and Miller were talking, John suddenly pulled a spare magazine from his belt and passed it back without looking. "I only fired one shot back there, this one's basically full. We're almost there, everyone get ready!"
"Got it, John." Miller didn't say more, taking the magazine, quickly checking it, then gripping the inside door handle tightly, leaning forward, eyes fixed outside.
"Move!" John roared before the car had even fully stopped. All three doors flew open almost simultaneously as they burst out into the chaotic street!
The moment Sam landed steadily on his feet, the pale blue panel popped up again in his vision, displaying cold text: Mission "Face Your Fear" Completed. Reward: +300 Hope Points. New Mission Issued: Rescue the Elementary Students. Reward: +10 Hope Points for each child successfully evacuated from the city. No penalty for failure.
Before them stood a typical two-story public elementary school, its red brick facade somewhat weathered, an empty playground beside it, swings creaking faintly in the breeze. This was Main Street Elementary – an utterly ordinary place. The main entrance featured standard double glass doors, now completely shattered, sharp shards littering the ground at the entrance, glinting dangerously in the near-noon light.
The appearance of the three officers acted like a beacon in the darkness, instantly drawing the attention of the nearby wandering "things". Several zombies that had been milling around the school entrance or emerging from the shadows on either side immediately turned, letting out guttural growls, and shambled towards them with surprising speed!
No words were needed. Years of training and the current life-or-death pressure created perfect synchronization between John and Miller. John took the left flank, Miller guarded the right. They raised their guns almost simultaneously, accurately blowing the heads off the first two zombies that lunged towards the entrance, splattering foul blood. Meanwhile, Sam checked behind them. Sure enough, one of the zombies that had chased their car earlier had caught up and was now closing in, claws outstretched. Sam spun quickly, raised his pistol, and fired!
System Notification: Zombie Kill x1 Confirmed. Hope Points +5. Quest "Zombie Killer" Progress: 2/100.
The cold notification flashed and vanished. Sam had no time to dwell on it, following John and Miller, crunching over broken glass as they rushed into the school building.
The scene inside the building was even more horrific. The entrance hallway was littered with several mangled corpses, blood staining the floor and walls. The air hung thick with the heavy smell of iron and an indescribable stench of decay. A few zombies in faculty uniforms, movements stiff, eyes vacant, wandered aimlessly down the corridor. Further down, several smaller figures in school uniforms, faces deathly pale, none older than twelve… child zombies, let out faint, heart-wrenching whimpers.
The three officers (including Sam, the imposter) didn't hesitate. They raised their weapons and took down the nearest zombies posing an immediate threat—regardless of whether they were teachers or students in their previous lives—with precise shots. They ignored those further away that hadn't noticed them yet, maintained a tactical formation, and continued rapidly deeper into the school building.
"Are we… too late?" Sam asked between gasps as they ran, feeling his lungs burning, a sharp pain starting in his side. Damn it, should have done more cardio instead of just lifting weights!
"The kids are most likely gathered in the indoor gymnasium! It's large and relatively defensible!" John yelled back to Sam without turning his head, eyes scanning ahead vigilantly. "If the gym's fallen too… then we'll just have to fight our way out ourselves!"
Just as they were about to reach the end of the long hallway, a figure in the same police uniform suddenly darted out from a corner ahead. Seeing them, the officer immediately hissed urgently, "This way, Quick, Follow me!"
The sudden appearance nearly made Sam jump out of his skin, his finger instinctively tightening on the trigger, almost firing accidentally! Fortunately, John and Miller beside him reacted faster. Recognizing one of their own, they didn't hesitate, immediately changing direction and following the newly appeared officer into the adjacent corridor.