I was sitting on the bloody floor, trying to fill my lungs with ragged breaths. As the adrenaline ebbed away, the deep scratches left by the rabbit’s claws and the bruises from those hard kicks began to make themselves felt. My ribs ached with every breath.

  The girl in the corner had long since dropped the broomstick; she was trembling, drawing her knees to her chest. Her eyes wandered over my face—now returned to normal—but that look of horror still lingered in her gaze.

  "What..." she said, her voice cracked and weak. "What happened to your face like that? Those teeth... that jaw..."

  I rubbed my face with my hand. My skin was smooth, my teeth were normal. But I could still feel that sensation, that savage power, on my palate.

  "That's my skill," I said, leaning on the floor to struggle to my feet.

  "Skill?" The girl's eyes widened. "Like in games?"

  "Yes, a skill. I guess you haven't realized what’s happened or what the world has become, huh?" I shook my head. "Didn't you look outside?"

  The girl's lips trembled, her eyes filled with tears, and suddenly the dam broke. She burst into sobs. "Everyone... everyone is dead! Those in the class... my friends... those little green things tore them all apart! Then that rabbit came and... and..."

  She covered her face with her hands, her shoulders shaking as she began to cry. This was pure trauma. She couldn't think logically; she was simply under the influence of the brutality she had witnessed.

  "I'm sorry about what happ—"

  I couldn't finish my sentence.

  CLACK! CLACK! CLACK!

  Sounds coming from the corridor cut me off. These weren't the sounds of panicked students fleeing or the dragging footsteps of a lumbering monster.

  These were the rhythmic, fast, and determined footsteps of hard-soled boots hitting the floor. And they were approaching rapidly.

  My blood froze. The first image that came to mind was the man in the black coat I had seen outside, taking down that massive eye monster alone.

  "Is it that man?" I thought. "If it is... and he finds me with my mouth covered in blood next to a dead mutant... would he mistake me for a monster and drive that sword through me without hesitation?"

  I couldn't take the risk. I had seen the coldness in that man's eyes. He wasn't a savior; he was an executioner.

  I turned to the girl. "We have to leave. Now."

  The girl looked at me with tearful eyes. "What? Why? I don't want to! It's dangerous outside!"

  "It will be more dangerous if you stay here!" I whispered, the sharpness in my voice making her flinch. "Do whatever you want, but I'm leaving. Just know that something—or someone—is approaching this way very fast. And if it's who I think it is, you'll probably die if you stay here. The choice is yours."

  Without waiting for her answer, I ran to the open window of the classroom. We were on the third floor. Below, right at the base of the school building, were thick bushes and ornamental plants. I opened the window all the way; the wind rushed in, carrying the smell of gunpowder and blood.

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  "What are you doing?" The girl jumped to her feet in horror. "Are you crazy?"

  "We can't go back through the stairs," I said, measuring the distance below. With my Agility points and those bushes down there... there was an 80% chance we'd get away with just a few scratches. "That thing is in the corridor. I'd rather break a bone or two than die. What about you?"

  The girl looked at the corridor, at those approaching footsteps. Then at me. There was a battle in her eyes; fear and the desire for survival were clashing. Finally, she nodded tremblingly and came to my side.

  She looked down and turned pale. "Wait... wait wait wait! Are we jumping from here? It's too high! We could get hurt—"

  Without letting her speak further, I put my hand on her back and pushed her with all my strength.

  "AAAAHHH!"

  "This girl’s mouth is going to kill me before the monsters do..."

  The girl's scream echoed in the air as she fell, flailing her arms and legs. Immediately after, I threw myself into the void.

  The wind roared in my ears. The ground approached rapidly.

  RUSTLE! THUD!

  First the sound of breaking branches, then the meeting with the hard ground. The bushes had slowed our fall but hadn't stopped it completely. I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder when I hit the ground, but nothing was broken. I absorbed the impact by rolling.

  I stood up quickly. The girl was lying next to me among the leaves. She was in shock but moving.

  "You!" The girl stood up and started shouting at me, her voice uncontrolled. "How did you know the bushes would slow our fall! What if I fell on the concrete instead of the bushes? What if I broke my leg? You are a total psychopath!"

  I lunged at her and covered her mouth firmly with my hand.

  "Mmmph!"

  I looked into her eyes with the most threatening gaze I could muster. My face was only a few centimeters from hers.

  "Listen to me," I said, my voice ice cold. I was whispering, but every word was sharp and clear as a knife. "If you keep talking nonsense and don't shut your mouth, I will leave you here and go. Our surroundings are full of things much worse than what you saw in that classroom. And if we get caught because of your damn mouth..."

  I narrowed my eyes. "I will kill you before the monsters do. Do you understand? So shut up and do as I say."

  The girl’s pupils trembled. Fear replaced anger. She slowly nodded her head.

  I took my hand off her mouth. She took a deep, shaky breath but didn't say a single word.

  We had to hurry; the scream the girl let out while falling must have caught the attention of at least a few monsters.

  I stood up and scouted the surroundings. The school yard was silent. A strange silence. Those massive insects I had seen from the window earlier, the flying creatures... they were all lying lifeless on the ground. Some had their heads missing, others were sliced in half. Clean, surgical cuts.

  "The work of that man," I thought. "Definitely that man’s work. He cleared the yard and now he's hunting those left inside the building."

  We were safe for now, but it wouldn't last long. Further down the street, outside the school fence, there were still moving shadows, snarling creatures. Chaos had spread through the whole city.

  "What should I do?"

  The first thing that came to mind was my family. My mother, my father, my sister. I had to check on them. But my home was on the other side of the city. I came to school by suburban train. And thinking those trains were running now would be foolish. If I tried to go on foot, my chances of survival over that distance were near zero.

  I needed a shelter. A safe place where I could make a plan and nurse my wounds.

  I heard a whisper beside me.

  "My house..."

  I turned. "What?"

  The girl was still sitting on the ground, but she was looking at me. Her voice was a whisper. "My house... My house is just two streets away. In a side street. I live alone, my family is abroad." She swallowed. "So... the house is empty. And it should be safe."

  I paused. This was an offer.

  Two streets. It was risky, but much better than ducking into a random shop or spending the night on the street. An apartment, a lockable door, maybe food and water. And most importantly, it being "empty." We didn't have the risk of encountering a mother or father turned into a monster inside.

  I tried to map out the route in my mind. If we used the side streets, we could avoid the main road.

  I reached my hand out to the girl. This time, not with a threatening but a cooperative gesture.

  "Two streets..." I said, looking into her eyes. "This is the most logical option instead of entering somewhere random."

  The girl held my hand hesitatingly, and I pulled her up. She brushed the leaves off herself.

  "You'll give the directions," I said, keeping my voice low. "I'll go in front, you'll be right behind me. And no matter what you see, no screaming. Is that clear?"

  The girl nodded. "Understood."

  "Good." I took a deep breath and turned toward the dark gap in the school wall that opened to the street. "Let's go."