"Z-Zane..?"
No one could believe it. Zane was sitting right in front of them as if nothing had happened to him.
Slowly, Zane eased himself up and turned to face the others. Whether or not they were supposed to run or hug him— no one knew.
"Good to see everyone's still alive," calmly stated Zane.
Silence followed his remark. The biggest question across everyone's mind was; 'How is he alive?'
They were sure they had seen him die. His legs were crushed and his right arm was completely useless. Yet, Zane stood before them, not only alive, but also with zero injuries.
"H-How are you alive..?" asked Nick in fear.
"I'm here because I'm here. It's really that simple," replied Zane nonchalantly.
"That makes no sense!" interrupted Deandre. "We saw you die! Your legs were crushed and your right arm was no longer usable! How are all your injuries healed??"
Zane didn't answer. Instead, he placed his hands into the pockets of his black jeans and walked over to the Apocrypha boat.
"I got this for you so you wouldn't have to go through the trouble of getting one. Now all you have to do is get in and use it to take you to the Caribbean."
"W-What..?" stuttered Layla. "Why are you dismissing the question? Zane, you're supposed to be dead so tell me how the hell you're still alive!!"
"Anastasia... His body isn't taken over by an Apocrypha... Right?" queried Serenity.
Anastasia inspected Zane's eyes. She looked as closely as she could, but failed to identify Zane as an Apocrypha.
"H-He somehow seems human..."
"Of course I'm human. I'll always be human, no matter how I look or speak," replied Zane.
"But how, yo? We all saw you die, man! We saw the Apocrypha turn you into fast food!" declared Lamar.
Zane was starting to become annoyed by their constant barrage of questions. He wished they could just go silent and allow him to do what he came there to do in the first place.
He however knew better than to think so childishly. Of course, they would ask questions. They had seen him die and now he was standing before them— almost like a living ghost.
"Look, how I'm alive doesn't matter. It's best none of you know anyway. This was all a part of my plan."
"A part of your plan? What do you mean by that, Zane?? You can't just come back from the dead and tell us this is all a part of your plan!" argued Layla.
"Well, I just did."
Layla folded her fists tightly. She was so confused as to what was going on. She hated getting emotional, but this was overwhelming even for her. She had thought Zane was dead and now he reappeared before her as if he had somehow defied death.
"I don't get it... Just—"
"You don't need to get it. As I said before, it's best if you don't know. All I'm here to do is set the next stage of my plan in effect."
"The next stage of your plan?" inquired Anastasia.
Zane nodded as he wiped his hand across the wet surface of the Apocrypha boat.
"I told you to come here so that I could give you this boat. It should ensure your safety from other Apocrypha. Just watch out for the Anunnaki." Zane paused as he turned himself to face them once more, "Once you get to the Caribbean, stay there until everything's over. I managed to accumulate two months' worth of food. If things still aren't over by then, you'll have to locate a new source of food."
Nick then stepped forward and looked Zane in the eyes. Nick was concerned for his friend and desperately needed to know what had happened. It was however obvious that Zane had no intention of telling the truth.
"Okay bro, but one question..."
"Hmm?"
"Why are you talking as if you have no intention of coming with us? If you're finally back, then this is our chance of getting out of here and moving towards the Caribbean."
Zane shook his head in disapproval. He had no intention of traveling to the Caribbean and no one could change his mind.
"I already told you— I have a plan. That plan does not involve me going to the Caribbean. I had originally intended to get you all out of the US first, before separating from the group. Unfortunately, some unexpected situations arose and forced me to make some adjustments."
Layla now began to grow extremely worried for Zane. He kept rambling on about a plan, but what kind of plan would require him to dive back into danger? Especially when he was alone.
"You keep talking about a plan... But what kind of plan do you have? And what benefit will it have to us?" Layla paused and gave a depressing sigh. The situation was beginning to give her mild anxiety. "We need to keep running, Zane... Agitating the Apocrypha too much will only work against us..."
Before answering, Zane slowly paced himself over to Layla. He laid his warm hand atop her forehead with a half-baked smile.
"I have no intention of running, Layla. I looked deeply into things before I made my decision. Even if the Apocrypha defeats the Anunnaki and finds a cure to the virus, it still wouldn't guarantee our survival."
"What are you implying?" Suddenly asked Anastasia.
"I'm simply saying that even if we win the game, how do we know the Apocrypha will keep their promise? Remember, the Apocrypha are very prideful. If mere humans manage to evade them for an entire year, then that would only hurt their ego. Once that happens, who's to say they won't just slaughter us all for our insolence anyway?"
Everyone froze like a block of ice upon hearing Zane's words. It wasn't that they hadn't considered such an issue, it was just that it was their only real hope to cling to. Zane bluntly putting it forward really hit them.
No matter how they looked at it, the Apocrypha would always be in control. There was no way to be certain they wouldn't break their promise and slaughter all humans before 2020 ended.
"Okay... We get your point, but what do you plan to do, Zane? I don't see any possible way we can fight back..." Deduced Anastasia.
Zane looked at Anastasia calmly. The next words to leave his lips would cripple everyone in astonishment.
"I'll massacre every Apocrypha and Chimera that came to Earth."
Without a moment of hesitation, Nick jumped at the topic. It was absurd that Zane would even think of such an idea.
"What?? Did you hit your head or something?? How would you pull off something so reckless??"
"Zane! That's ridiculous!" also scolded Serenity.
Layla quickly extended her arm outwards, signaling them to be quiet. Zane had said that he had a plan. As absurd as it sounded, she was sure it had to be something good.
"Zane, I'm not about to call you crazy, but from my perspective; there is no way you can pull something like that off."
"Exactly! It's too risky— and why would you even go to such lengths? Killing every Apocrypha that came to Earth? That would be wiping out an entire army!" added Anastasia.
"They have it coming one way or another," started Zane. "They came to Earth and killed my family plus many other innocent people. They did that all for the sake of fun and food. I won't rest until every Apocrypha dies by my hand. I'll keep pushing forward until all my enemies are destroyed."
Anastasia wanted to complain. Zane's reasoning was understandable, but there was no easy way to go about taking down an entire army.
"What's your plan, Zane? Tell us..." she mumbled.
Zane's face hardened as he looked at Anastasia. That was something he wasn't about to do. Especially with her present.
"I have no intention of letting you know that."
"What? Why..?"
Zane took a short breath and turned himself back towards the sea. Slowly, he paced himself towards the edge of the dock.
"Anastasia, I don't mean to hurt you, but I can't guarantee your trust."
A moment of confusion took place as everyone processed Zane's words. They had been with Anastasia for weeks now and hadn't seen her do anything suspicious. Why would Zane say such a hurtful thing?
"What are you talking about, Zane? Why can't you trust Anastasia?" Inquired Deandre.
"Remember back at the Simpsons?"
Anastasia immediately froze as she heard Zane mention 'The Simpsons'. She knew exactly what was coming next.
"Anastasia warned us that the meat was human. How could she have known that if she hadn't tasted human flesh before?" Continued Zane, "I recall when we had just met her, she stated she hadn't tasted human flesh. This could only mean that she lied to us. Due to this, I can't trust her completely."
Anastasia stood silent without a word. Everyone stared at her in bewilderment, but no hateful intent was shown. They understood that there must have been a reason she had tasted human flesh before. Her lie wasn't justified, but developing trust issues at such a critical stage would only have a negative impact.
They also understood Zane's perspective. He wasn't trying to hurt her or brand her as a traitor, but he had to take the necessary precautions.
"Wait! Why would Anastasia taste human flesh, yo?" Suddenly asked Lamar.
A look of disbelief drifted across everyone's faces. Was Lamar just joking or did he really not know?
"You know she's an Apocrypha, right..?" Muttered Serenity.
"What??? No one told me that, yo!"
"Have you not seen her transform? Or even question how she's able to tell regular humans apart from Apocrypha??"
Layla facepalmed and signaled them to keep quiet. That topic was not the issue at hand.
"Okay Zane, but if you have a plan, I'm not letting you do it alone. I'm coming with you," demanded Layla.
"Me too!" agreed Serenity.
Naturally, everyone else also agreed. They wouldn't allow Zane to go alone.
Zane pinched his eyes at them. He wasn't sure if it would be a good idea to bring them along. However, he knew that there may be times when he needed their help.
"I went through all the trouble to get you the Apocrypha boat, only for you all to tell me this..."
"Zane, you have a point. If we're going to die anyway, it's best to die while fighting back. I want to be by your side as we do that." declared Layla.
"Then are you prepared for what's to come? It will be difficult and I wouldn't be surprised if some of us died on the journey. Are you ready to risk it all just for the sake of my plan?"
They looked Zane straight into the eyes. Their minds were already made up.
Lamar stepped forward with a huge grin across his face. He would make sure the Apocrypha paid for all they had done. It was time to fight back.
"Of course, yo! We the food that fights back!"