A Lost Paradise
Chapter 1: A Wordless Melody
Paradise.
That single word elicits a fire within all of us. Every one of us is looking for some kind of paradise. Whether it is a person, some place, or any kind of thing, everyone wants some form of perfect paradise in the world.
Once we find that paradise, we feel complete. Some may find it in death; others may find it once they are born. But, some… some are still searching for that single sliver of hope.
Many times they may find it within their grasp, but it slips away once they least expect it. Be it some form of poverty or sudden loss, not many are lucky.
But, who could guess that one single event would cause every person on Earth to lose their paradise? One event that swept the streets with chaos and rotting carcasses, as well as walking rotting carcasses? No one, of course.
Kurosaki Ichigo was one of them.
Sitting on the rooftop of some abandoned hotel (but nearly everything was abandoned by now), he allowed his feet to dangle off the edge, allowing the breeze to blow through his orange tresses. His guitar case lay beside him, untouched. Peering three stories below, he wasn't surprised to find the walking dead scavenging on some week old carcass. Ichigo clenched his teeth and forced himself to look elsewhere.
He had been running through this town for hours, finding what he could. Ichigo found rooftops to be at his advantage, considering the zombies didn't have the ability to climb neither walls nor stairs easily. And just in case, he always secured the rooftop door shut.
A backpack was all he had with him, along with his precious guitar of course. This was what his life consisted of now, running from town, to suburb, to city, gathering supplies and fighting off the dead as he went.
The teen would rest whenever he could, which turned out to be rare. The dead were surprisingly quite noisy sometimes. Their constant moaning could be heard.
Ichigo rarely came in contact with other…normal people. He helped them as much as he could, but never stuck to staying in a group. Everyone had different goals. His was to travel to Karakura and find his family.
Once Ichigo had turned eighteen, his parents finally agreed to him going to Tokyo in order to make his dream become a reality—to make it big in the music industry. Playing the electric guitar and singing was his life, his passion, his paradise.
And it was gone the moment he had touched it.
The 'infection'-as he'd heard it been called—began after he recorded his first single by a miracle. The next day he'd woken up to the dead devouring the living. That first day was complete chaos. People were screaming and running for their lives, while others were being killed before their eyes.
It was shortly after that everyone started to realize what was happening, including Ichigo. He was quick to decide on saving his family. The teen knew they were alive, they had to be.
He let out a sigh before a thought racked through his brain. Looking around the streets, he saw a few zombies, not much to deal with. This could be a risky move on his part, but the melody in his head wouldn't go away.
Removing his guitar from its bulky black case, Ichigo made sure it was in tune before strumming lightly. It was a soft sound, considering it had no amp connected. He had lost his only pick long ago, so he was forced to use his bare fingers and strummed lightly to the tune within his mind. He hummed beneath his breath, peering down to make sure not a single zombie stirred.
The song had no lyrics, well at least not yet. There wasn't much to sing about. Ichigo definitely didn't feel up to singing about the living dead. Maybe, just maybe, if something interesting would happen, this song would have the words. But, now it was only a simple, wordless melody. He hummed along in thought. In fact, the melody could reflect the world. It was a simple tune without lyrics. But, it thrived and turned into something wonderful.
Now, the world was simply a wordless melody.
A loud gasp flew from his lips as the teen was startled awake. He shot up from where he lay, looking around frantically to conclude that whatever he had been dreaming of was not true. Panting for breath, Ichigo looked at the dark night sky and sighed. When had he fallen asleep? Looking to his right, he saw his guitar all snug in its case. He must have packed it up and fallen asleep after.
He lay back down, covering himself with his tattered blanket. I need to remember to pick up a pillow when I head out. I don't think my head can take laying on concrete rooftops anymore…
Looking over and squinting in the darkness, Ichigo tried to spot his backpack. His throat was dry and in need of the water bottle kept within the bag. He sat up abruptly once more when he couldn't see it.
Once his eyes adjusted to the lack of light, Ichigo searched the whole entire rooftop and it was nowhere to be found. "Shit," he cursed aloud.
Carefully peering over the edge of the building, in the luminous light of the streetlight, sat smack dab on the pavement, was his beloved book bag. Letting out a sigh of relief, strapping on his guitar, Ichigo headed towards the door that lead inside the abandoned building he was previously sleeping on.
Going through the hallways, he didn't dare look in the rooms. The carpet was blood stained, as well as some spots on the walls. It wasn't hard to guess where it had come from. Finding a room labeled 'Cleaning Services', he opened it to find a load of cleaning supplies. Ichigo picked up a red mop, quickly snapping off the mopped part, revealing a pointed edge. So, it was basically a sharp, red metal pole. The teen would need a weapon in case in ran into the dead.
Managing to make it to the bottom floor, Ichigo opened the glass door as silently as possible before tiptoeing to where his pack lay. Picking it up, he scanned the area before making his way back to the doors. He sighed (quietly, of course) to himself before pushing the door.
It barely registered in his mind when the door wouldn't budge. Blinking once, then twice, Ichigo once again pushed and pushed, but it wouldn't open at all. It was then that he froze and realized.
That's right, I…I locked it after going inside.
He smacked himself in the forehead. Great! Now what's he gonna do? He pondered for a second before shrugging and holding up his new trusty pole. With a smirk, Ichigo smashed the glass of the doors. It seemed like a good idea…until the loud, siren-like burglary alarm went off. With wide eyes, Ichigo backed away. "Shit!" Looking around frantically, moans were heard before—literally out of nowhere—a dozen or so zombies appeared, heading straight for him.
He had to think fast. Should he run around at night (which he'd learn to be very dangerous), or stay and fight this out until daybreak?
Clenching his teeth, Ichigo pushed the closest undead creature away from him before dashing down the abandoned and crowded roads, his guitar strapped to his back as usual, along with his tattered bag in hand.
He managed to at least knock a few over and out of his way as he made his way out of the town. Being the metropolis that Tokyo is, last he checked, Ichigo was currently in Fuchu City and it would take him a bit before he made his way into the next city. Tokyo was big, and it would take him a while to reach his home town.
But, he believed in his family and their strength.