The three walked closer to the group of people. Once they were near them, the person they recognized ran to them.
"Johnathan, Ivan, Danny. Thank god you guys are safe!" The person said, hugging them.
Johnathan smiled and hugged back. "It's good you're alive August."
August was a girl with a small stature. She was 5 ft 2, had short brown hair reaching her neck, and was of Chinese descent. She was still wearing her school uniform.
"Ya, it's good you made it out safe," Ivan said with a smile.
August let them go after a quick hug. She looked behind her and gestured to the people she was talking with to greet the three boys.
Four people walked up to them. Three of them being girls and the last being a guy. "Hey" "what's up." They greeted.
Johnathan and the other two turned their attention to them and greeted them with a smile as well.
"Hey, it's nice to meet you guys. Names Danny." Danny said.
"Johnathan."
"Ivan. It's a pleasure."
"Bob. Nice to meet you guys." The boy introduced himself. He had on a grey zip-up sweater and black jeans.
"Karen." A caucasian girl with long brown hair and an average face said. She was wearing a blue skirt and a black hoodie.
"Tiffany." A blonde said, also average-looking said. She had on an oversized pink hoodie and purple joggers.
"Nice to meet you guys. I'm Teana." She has dark skin and curly hair. She was wearing blue jeans, a pink shirt, and a zip-up sweater over it.
"What school did you guys go to?" Danny asked, starting a conversation with them.
"The four of us go to river high. It's a public school near you guys." Karen answered.
"That's cool. You guys play any sports?" Ivan asked.
"I play soccer and basketball," Bob answered.
"I play volleyball. Not good at any other sport though, haha," Teana said with a laugh.
"Same. Both Karen and I are on the volleyball team with Teana." Tiffany said, answering for both her and Karen.
"What about you guys? You guys play any sports?"
The three, hearing Bob's question, nodded and explained what they played.
"We're all on the soccer team here. I'm a striker." Ivan answered,
"I play CM," Johnathan said.
"I'm LB." Said, Danny.
"That's cool. You guys play any other sports." Teana asked.
"I don't but Ivan and Johnathan play tennis."
"That cool." Said Karen.
The group continued to talk about other things, like what they experienced and how they got there.
Apparently, the four escaped their school when the students were turning. They had the same suspicions Johnathan and his group had. However, unlike them, they only killed one zombie with all their efforts, and from what Johnathan and the other two could tell, they got no crystals.
They also made their way straight to the base when they got the alert. August, though, killed two, but the other person she escaped with sadly died on their way to the base. Johnathan didn't think she had eaten a crystal, but he wasn't one hundred percent sure.
In the middle of their conversation, three soldiers with guns in hand walked up to them. The group stopped talking and waited for the soldiers to say what they wanted.
"I'm pretty sure you've all been talked to before entering the base about joining the army, but I would like to ask again. Is anyone interested in joining? There will be benefits if you do."
Johnathan thought about what he said before asking "what benefits would we get." The soldier who asked continued and said, "You would get priority for food, training, and a bigger space for resting. We would also excuse your family from working hard labor jobs."
Johnathan got confused. 'Hard labor jobs? Ahh, of course, the government wouldn't let hundreds if not thousands of people live here free of rent and food expenses. It's not a bad idea to join. Not only would they train me in using guns, but I'd also be able to use my powers.'
"Can we think about it for a bit longer? We just got here and I kinda want to take a break from everything that's happened."
The soldiers, hearing Ivan, nodded and left.
After they left, the group continued to talk. "Are you guys gonna join?"
"Nah, Johnathan. I'm not cut out for the army." Bob answered.
The rest of them, including August, said the same thing. It was expected. They were only teenagers, and fighting zombies definitely wouldn't be exciting. Hell, if Johnathan didn't have superpowers, even he would feel the same way.
"What about you guys?" Karen asked.
"We don't know yet. But the benefits sound good." Ivan answered.
"Did you guys go to the reception and get your room numbers yet?"
Hearing August, the group tilted their heads in confusion.
"There's a reception down that way. Go there and ask for your room number. They'll ask for your name and give you an empty room." Explained August while pointing straight ahead.
"Thanks. We'll go there right now. It was nice seeing you. Nice meeting you guys as well. Wish you guys the best." Ivan said, turning around and walking towards the reception.
Johnathan and Danny said bye as well, before following Ivan to the reception.
"Hello, what can I do for you?" Asked the lady at the reception.
"Hi, can you please give us our rooms and explain what there is in this base," Ivan asked.
"Sure thing, boys. This is the first floor. It's normally the hangout spot, but right now, it's just a waiting lounge of sorts. If you look at that door real quick, you can see the sign. It's says shooting range, so as the name says, soldiers normally go there to shoot and try out their weapons. The second floor to the twelve floors is all apartments. There are around 1.2 thousand apartments altogether, so you guys are lucky. The fourteenth and fifteenth floors are all classified. Only soldiers and people working for the army get clearance for it."
"Thanks." The three said after the explanation.
"Can we get our rooms now?" Johnathan asked.
"Yes, you can. Names, please."
The three gave their names, and once the lady got them, she gave them their rooms.
"Johnathan, room 1002."
"Ivan, room 1003."
"Danny, room 1004."
"Thank you." They said and took the keys the lady put on the counter.
Before they left, however, Danny asked, "sorry, but can you check if these people have rooms yet?"
Danny then said the names of his parents and sister.
The lady smiled and went through her list.
"T-"