Caius staggered backward, his mind racing. His eyes darted around the dark corridor, searching for an escape route. As the axe-wielding zombie lunged at him again, he quickly sidestepped, feeling the breeze of the heavy weapon as it sliced through the air.
Panting, Caius glanced up and froze. From the corner of his eye, he saw another figure rapidly approaching. It was the low-level zombie from earlier, but something was different now—it was running straight at him, faster and more aggressive than before.
"Great, just great!" Caius muttered, feeling the pressure build.
The low-level zombie reached him first, swiping at his midsection with its rotten hands. Caius barely managed to twist his body out of the way, the zombie's claws narrowly missing his skin. He stumbled and regained his footing, only to see the axe-wielding zombie preparing for another swing.
"I'm Rank C! Why is it stronger than me?!" he muttered under his breath, frustration boiling inside him.
The low-level zombie lunged again, forcing Caius to duck low. He rolled to the side, just as the axe came down hard, smashing into the spot where he had been standing seconds before. Caius could feel the cold sweat trickling down his neck. He wasn't just fighting for survival—he was completely overwhelmed.
As he got up from his roll, the low-level zombie charged again. Caius instinctively raised his arms, blocking its wild swipes, but the strength behind the attacks shocked him. He was forced back, struggling to keep his balance.
"Why are they so strong?!" he muttered, backing away, his legs feeling heavy with fatigue.
The axe zombie growled and swung its weapon sideways, aiming to take Caius' head off in one clean blow. Caius dropped to the ground at the last second, the axe whistling inches above his head. He rolled again, avoiding the low-level zombie that tried to grab him.
"Can't keep this up... I need to do something!"
Desperation crept in. Both zombies were relentless, and Caius felt his stamina draining with every dodge. He had no time to think, no time to plan. All he could do was react—duck, dodge, roll, repeat.
"Come on, think!"
he dodged yet another swipe from the low-level zombie. His back hit the cold wall, and he knew he was running out of room to retreat. His eyes darted around, searching desperately for something—anything—he could use.
Then, he saw it. A broken metal pipe lying on the ground, likely from the damaged facility. Without thinking, Caius dove for it, rolling to the side as the axe zombie swung again, missing him by a hair.
Grabbing the pipe, he stood up, gripping it tightly. It wasn't a sword or a proper weapon, but it was better than nothing.
The low-level zombie lunged at him again, and in a panic, Caius swung the pipe as hard as he could. It connected with a sickening crack against the zombie's head.
For a second, everything seemed to freeze.
The zombie's head flew off its shoulders, rolling across the floor, while its body collapsed in a heap.
Caius stood there, stunned, his hands still gripping the pipe. His eyes widened in shock.
Ding!
[Congratulations! You have successfully killed a zombie within the 1-hour time limit.]
TIME SCORE: 47 Minutes
Rank 12
"What... just happened?" he muttered to himself, staring at the decapitated zombie. He hadn't expected that. It was almost too easy.
His grip on the pipe tightened, but he barely had time to process the situation before he heard the axe weilding zombie growling behind him.
"No time to think!"
Caius barely had time to react. The axe-wielding zombie charged at him, swinging its weapon wildly. He ducked just in time, feeling the whoosh of air as the axe narrowly missed his head.
With quick reflexes, he sidestepped the zombie's next attack, its heavy axe smashing into the ground with a loud thud. Without hesitation, Caius gripped the metal pipe tightly and thrust it forward, piercing the zombie in the chest.
The zombie groaned but didn't fall.
"Come on!" Caius growled, pulling the pipe out of its chest with a squelching sound. He kicked the zombie in the stomach, forcing it to stumble backward, but to his horror, it stood back up, the wound barely fazing it.
"Why won't you die?!" Caius muttered, panic creeping into his voice. Then it hit him—he remembered what worked with the other one.
"Idiot! Hit the head!" he cursed himself.
The zombie charged again, its axe raised high. Caius dodged to the side just in time, narrowly avoiding the deadly swing. His heart was racing, and his muscles screamed in exhaustion.
With a deep breath, Caius gripped the pipe like a baseball bat. As the zombie turned to face him, he swung the pipe with all his strength, aiming for its head.
The pipe connected with a loud crack, sending the zombie's head flying off its shoulders. Its body swayed for a moment before collapsing to the ground in a heap. Breathing heavily, Caius dropped the pipe, his hands trembling.
"Finally," he muttered, wiping sweat from his forehead.
Caius stood there for a moment, staring at his trembling hands in disbelief.
"I'm... trembling?" he muttered to himself
A sudden scream pierced the air, snapping him out of his thoughts.
"Damn it!" Caius cursed, quickly picking up the metal pipe again. He knew that scream would attract more zombies. He had to move. Fast.
"I gotta get away from here," he muttered under his breath, his heart pounding as he started running down the opposite hallway.
As he neared the corner, ready to turn, his eyes widened. Ahead of him, he saw a group of students frantically running, their faces twisted in terror. Behind them, a horde of zombies was closing in fast—far too many for him to handle alone.
"Shit!" he cursed, instinctively stopping in his tracks. He was about to turn and retreat when suddenly, one of the guys in the group pulled his collar, yanking him off balance.
"Here! Eat this, gay!" the guy shouted, pushing Caius toward the zombies as he and the others bolted past him.
Caius stumbled forward, barely catching his balance before slamming into the wall. His heart raced in panic, but anger flared in him just as quickly. "What the hell, man?!" he shouted after the fleeing students.
But there was no time to be angry. The zombies were getting closer, and if he didn't move, he'd be their next meal.
With a growl of frustration, Caius gripped the metal pipe tighter and prepared to run, adrenaline pumping through his veins.
Caius was just about to sprint when, without warning, he felt himself lifted off the ground, slung over someone's shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
"What the—?!" Caius shouted, struggling to make sense of what just happened.
"Quit squirming!" a voice growled from beneath him.
Caius wriggled, trying to get free. "Let me down! I can run by myself!" he snapped, pounding his fists on the guy's back. "Put me down, now!"
The guy sighed, clearly irritated. "Will you stop moving already?"
"Not until you let me down, damn it!" Caius kept thrashing.
Suddenly, a firm slap landed on his backside. Caius froze, his eyes widening in shock. "What the—did you just slap me?!"
"Yeah, and I'll do it again if you don't stop wiggling like a fish," the guy grumbled, sounding exasperated. "Just stay still for a second, would you?"
Caius' face turned red with a mix of anger and embarrassment. "You're out of your mind! I can run! I don't need to be carried like a damn child!"
The guy carrying him let out an amused chuckle. "Yeah, well, you sure weren't running fast enough back there. So how about you relax?"
"I said, let me down!" Caius demanded again, now furious. He twisted his body, still trying to break free.
Finally, the guy slowed down and dropped Caius back onto his feet. "There. Happy now?"
Caius stumbled but quickly regained his balance, glaring at his so-called rescuer. "What the hell is wrong with you?!" he barked, rubbing his sore backside. "You slapped me!"
The guy, a tall and muscular student with an easy grin, smirked. "You wouldn't stop moving. Had to do something to make you stay still. Name's Trent, by the way. Nice to meet ya."
Caius fumed. "I swear, if you ever do that again—"
"Relax, man. Just trying to help," Trent said, his grin widening. "If I hadn't grabbed you, you'd probably be zombie lunch by now."
"I was fine!" Caius insisted, still fuming. "I don't need you carrying me, and I definitely don't need you slapping me around. Next time, just stay out of my way!"
Trent shrugged. "Sure thing, tough guy. But you gotta admit—it worked, didn't it?"
Caius clenched his fists, still glaring at Trent. "I can handle myself."
"Uh-huh," Trent said, clearly not convinced. He winked. "Just trying to keep you in one piece."
As Caius turned to move away, he muttered under his breath, "This day keeps getting worse…"