A lively night unfolded on the streets of Kyoto as the Obon festival celebration was in motion.
Traditional lanterns cast a warm glow on the vibrant crowd, dressed uniformly in colorful yukatas. The air buzzed with traditional music, and the aroma of street food heightened the festive vibe under the starry sky.
The Obon festival, an annual event , was aimed at remembering deceased ancestors who were believed to visit at the particular time of the year. During this time, paper lanterns are hung to guide the dead, and Obon dances are performed.
Amidst the celebrations, there was a disturbance when a guy chastised a group for dressing inappropriately in order to dishonour the festival.
"This is utterly shameful," he uttered angrily. "The festival's purpose is to honour our forefathers, not to glorify ferocious monsters. He questioned aggressively, "What is the meaning of this costume?"
But his pleas were unheeded, and he only heard guttural groans as the throng moved forward, narrowing the distance between them.
Everyone who had been watching the situation was shocked to learn that the man who had been so loudly complaining only moments before was choking on his own blood. The man on the ground gasped, "Eccch.eccchhh.eccch.eccch," as he called out for assistance.
The crowd was startled when they saw this. As the guard suddenly bite into the neck of his victim, instantly, tearing gnawing and consuming the raw flesh.
"Aaahhhhhhhhh..." The scream of a horrified woman pierced the air as she collapsed to the ground, her fear and disgust nearly causing her to vomit.
In the chaos of the scene, a brave bystander attempted to intervene and separate the two figures on the ground. But as he reached out to touch the guard, he recoiled in horror at the icy coldness of the guard's skin.
On contact the guard's head snapped up, revealing a horrific sight. His face was deathly pale and streaked with blood, and tangled within his mouth like a mass of noodles was the small intestine of the man he had been feasting upon.
The bystander's eyes widened in horror as he stumbled backward, his mind unable to fully process the grisly sight before him.
The bystander's screams resonated throughout the air as he was dragged towards the guard's voracious teeth.
The people there were bewildered and frightened, unsure whether it was a show or whether they had been hypnotised into watching this heinous act.
They all scattered in separate directions, their screams echoing in the busy streets of Kyoto, they could still hear the distorted screams of the man being devoured by a creature no one was sure what to call.
The bustling streets became pandemonium as people ran all over in different directions, some not knowing the reason they are on their heels but driven by the horror that was visible on other people's faces. Security tried to locate the source of the chaos but to no avail.
The infected moved with dizzying speed and unnerving strength, easily tearing past obstructions. Their movements were strange and rapid, far exceeding the constraints of their appearance.
They tore through the streets of Kyoto, boosting their kill count and therefore their numbers. Kyoto's streets, which had been bustling only moments before, now resembled an end-of-the-world battlefield.
The streets, once illuminated by the warm light of traditional lanterns, were now red, with abdominal viscera scattered across the streets, the metallic odour of blood filling the air, along with screams of help and guttural moans from the growing number of the undead, and people fleeing aimlessly, leaving behind loved ones driven by a primal instinct of survival.
With each passing moment, the scene descended further into a chaotic frenzy.
The security personnel assigned to keep the normally peaceful Obon celebrations under control were compelled to abandon their post due to the immense chaos and destruction. Together, they joined the horde of panicked citizens who were all frantically trying to find shelter from the relentless attacks of the infected.
The story quickly went throughout Japan, spreading like wildfire as the dread descended upon Kyoto. The country was overcome with an unmatched sense of fear when televisions and cellphones started airing the graphic scene. The sheer sight of the devastation sent some people to their knees with sickness, while others could hardly believe how big the turmoil had gotten. The Japanese people were faced with a horrific nightmare as the world abruptly turned upside down.
"Japan, we interrupt this broadcast to bring you a special report of utmost urgency. We are receiving word of a developing situation in Kyoto that can only be described as apocalyptic. Scenes of carnage and chaos are being relayed to us in real-time, with reports of unconfirmed, seemingly supernatural creatures tearing through the streets of Kyoto. We urge all citizens to seek shelter, and await further information from the authorities. We will bring you updates as they become available."
"The authorities have not been idle in the face of this unprecedented catastrophe. In response to the situation in Kyoto, the military has been mobilized to assist in containment efforts. An elite unit has been dispatched to the scene, tasked with regaining control and safeguarding civilians.
With these words, the broadcast came to an end leaving the people of Japan frozen in their tracks, their ears straining to catch every word that spilled from the television.
Meanwhile, as the soldiers arrived at the scene, they were quick to dismiss the reports of "undead" as some sort of joke. After all, they were trained to deal with real threats, not something out of a zombie movie. They laughed amongst themselves, one soldier even remarking, "This should be easy. Just shoot 'em in the head, and they'll drop like flies."
However, as they moved closer to the infected, their laughter quickly died away. The infected turned towards them, their gazes locking onto the soldiers. One of the soldiers, still convinced it was all a joke, aimed at an infected's head and fired. To their horror, the shot only seemed to agitate the infected, causing it to rush towards them with a newfound fury.
The soldiers, now realizing the gravity of their situation, began firing in earnest. Their bullets hit their targets, but the infected seemed unfazed, shrugging off the attacks and continuing their relentless charge. Panic set in as the soldiers found themselves overrun by the horde, their weapons proving ineffective against the seemingly invincible creatures.
The once confident group of soldiers found themselves in a desperate fight for survival.
As the situation spiraled out of control, one of the soldiers, his voice trembling, managed to relay a fragmented report back to headquarters: "Command, this is Alpha Team... We're encountering heavy resistance... The infected are overwhelming... They don't go down... Sir, this is beyond what we can handle..."
The broadcast was abruptly interrupted by the sound of gunfire and a soldier's scream. His teammates' panicked yells rang in the background as they desperately tried to fend off the infected. The message abruptly ceased, leaving only static in its wake, a dismal reminder of the awful situation on the ground.
Back at headquarters, the command center was left in stunned silence. It was now abundantly clear that the gravity of the situation far exceeded their initial estimates. The ground team had been overrun, and the infected posed a far greater threat than anyone could have anticipated.
A portly figure moved quickly along an axis of the town, attempting to avoid an attack by a muscular figure, Brock.
Brock was a European man who settled in Kyoto. He was always rumoured to be homosexual, but there was no evidence to back this up until now, of course. Brock was hosting a homosexual party at his home while everyone else was rejoicing in the streets.
Everyone at the gathering was butt-naked, with various inscriptions on them. The inscription on Brock said 'YOU ARE MINE'. In the apocalyptic drama, the infected broke into the house, and Brock was a victim. He became infected and joined the other afflicted people in their horrifying haunt.
The fat man came up with a desperate, yet darkly comic, joke as Brock pursued him. "Some day I'll learn to eat less, but today ain't that day!" He let out a cry as he attempted to outrun the unrelenting Brock by throwing his weight forward. In light of his current situation, the irony of his remark, which was a reflection of his previous lifestyle, felt like a cruel joke.
As the sun rose over the ruins of Kyoto, the aftermath of the horrific events became clear. The city once filled with celebrations now carried a heavy air. The landscape was marked with remnants of chaos and the streets occupied with figures once known to be human. The morning sky, which was once a sign of hope, now held the collective grief etched in the city's wounded spirit.
Different survivors scattered across the city had different questions on their mind. What just happened? Why did this happen? How do they live on? What are those creatures among so many others? Having survived that horrific event, they were all hell-bent on surviving. Will they, though, as there is so much they don't yet know about the infected.