At the time of this writing there are barely any Dying Light Stories. So here is a contribution.
Some slight tweaking on storyline, I added a tiny extra scene and took a few liberties.
Enjoy.
Harran was an absolutely brutal place. Between psychotic murderous bandits and hordes of ravenous undead freaks, seeing or dealing death was as easy as breathing. Especially to a man like Kyle Crane.
But not this time.
Crane might as well have been a zombie himself when he had sluggishly made his way out of the museum. He still needed to meet up with Troy to get the amplifier but right now his body moved on autopilot. His mind wasn't able to fully come to terms with the fact that Jade was dead.
Every time he closed his eyes, even for the shortest moment, he could see her snarling visage charging at him. Ready to rip into his flesh with the savagery only a viral was capable of. Blood covering her mouth and chin from her first feeding as a zombie.
To her, he had no longer been Kyle Crane. He was simply food, and she had been hungry.
Running along the rooftops of Sector 0 when not focused was not the wisest course of action but somehow Crane managed to do it.
He still had a good ways to go when he could not take it anymore.
With a thunderous roar, he slammed his fist hard into a nearby wall. The weak wood breaking and splintering beneath the blow.
In a city full of zombies attracted by loud noise, this was also not a smart move.
He heard the growls of the viral before he saw it. The inhuman monster crashed through a nearby door onto the rooftop Crane was standing on.
With its eyes fixed on fresh prey, the monster sprinted toward him.
There were a dozen ways Crane could have ended the monster. A throwing knife to the head, kicking it off the roof, a simple decapitation using his trusty machete, all the man had to do was pick one. It was an easy choice for any rational thinking person in the Harran quarantine.
Crane was no longer in a rational mindset.
With a feral screech of his own, Crane charged the viral not even bothering to draw his weapon.
He barely felt it when his fist made contact with the side of the thing's skull. The viral was knocked back from the impact of the hit but where a normal human would be dazed by the strike, the viral recovered within seconds and made a move to pounce on its prey. That maneuver was instantly foiled when Crane planted a vicious kick to the viral's stomach. It took a few seconds for the viral to shrug off the hit and resume its attack.
This time, Crane drew his machete from his waist. The smartest move would have been to simply cleave the viral's head from its shoulders, or at least chop off some of its limbs.
Instead he ran the monster through the middle with the blade, but he didn't stop there. Crane yelled again as he pushed the blade hilt deep into its flesh. Still pushing, he shoved the viral back so many steps that the blade of the machete sank into a nearby wall, pinning the thrashing viral to the surface of the wood.
The best move would have been to rip the weapon free but Crane's mind was still clouded. Letting go of the weapon, he landed a brutal left hook to the zombie's jaw. Before it could shrug off the newest hit, Crane landed another nasty punch to its face.
Crane landed blow after blow upon the viral without mercy. All the while, Crane could hear the crunch as bone broke and cracked. Whether it was his own hands being damaged, or if it was the viral's bones, his mind was unable to process the distinction.
The man yelled louder and louder as he continued his assault on the still pinned viral. With each strike, he poured out his rage, his grief, his sorrow. All the things that could not be said.
By the time he was done, the viral was long dead and no longer recognizable as being once human.
Crane just stood there, breathing heavily. His hands covered in the fresh blood and gore of the slain viral.
Falling to his knees, Crane sucked in several deep breaths before finally letting out one last roar into the sky. He no longer cared if every zombie in the city came for him right then and there.
"Jade..." Crane croaked out as he clenched his hands into fists. It was all Crane could say, the only word that he could get past his lips.
Upon hearing the woman's name, his mind remembered something before her death. Even as she was turning, she used what little time she had left to fight to protect him. Slaying four of Reis' henchmen before succumbing.
But there was something else that happened, he was just now remembering it.
After killing the last of Reis' men, Jade had froze on while on top of him. While her body convulsed and was wracked with spasms, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. The woman had managed to throw it toward him seconds before her body went stiff and she changed completely.
Crane barely remembered picking it up before the now zombified Jade attacked him. Whatever it was, he had no idea. It was obviously something Jade wanted him to have but beyond that he had no clue.
After cleaning as much of the blood from his hands as he could on the dead viral's clothes, Crane pulled out the folded paper. Taking a deep breath, he opened it.
The first line struck him like a punch to the gut.
Dear Kyle.
Jade almost never, ever, used his first name. Sure she knew it but he was always 'Crane'. The few times she used his first name was when she was either extremely upset or deathly serious. Either way, Crane was feeling sick to his stomach. But he soldiered on and continued reading.
I don't have long, if you're reading this then... I didn't make it. One of the damn biters got me in the leg on my way to our meeting point beside the river. And you and I both know how hard Antizen is to find. I'm living on borrowed time now.
So Jade was bit before Rais kidnapped her? Crane had just assumed her infection was Rais' fault. The new revelation didn't make him feel any better though.
I don't know how long I have left, I may not even make it to the end of this. If I don't... I need you to fight on for me. For all of us Kyle. You may think you're no one special but you don't see what I see. Amir was one of the best men I ever had the pleasure of meeting, you two are so much alike. He never hesitated to help others in trouble either. It was that very attitude that got him killed but saved you. It was the exact way he wanted to die, sacrificing himself so that others could live on.
He was my best friend, losing him hurt. I thought I would never find another like him. But then you come along and throw everyone for a loop. You inspired them to do better, to be better.
A tiny part of me wanted to hate you for what happened to Rahim, to blame you for letting him die.
Crane felt that sick feeling in his stomach growing even stronger at the mention of the young man he failed to save.
But I know better. You two were close, almost as close as me and him. You never heard him talk about you while you weren't at the Tower. He idolized you, I was his big sister but you were his big brother. I don't know what his last words were but I hope he at least let you know before the end.
Reading that part made Crane choke up. He had to take several deep breaths to calm himself before he could resume.
I know it was you who was supposed to destroy that damn hive. But he couldn't wait and rushed ahead. You couldn't save him, if you had the ability I know you would have. Even with every biter in the city between you and him, you would have just crashed through to rescue him. I forgave you a long time ago for his death Kyle.
Even when you confessed you were here because of the GRE... you were letting it all out for me. And all I did was yell at you... push you away further. But you... you didn't give up. Just kept on fighting, reaching for me. You never gave up on me.
I don't regret many things Kyle, but I regret running away from you. I was angry, grieving. I should have just accepted whatever comfort you were willing to give. Maybe if I did... things could have been different. Maybe we would have traveled here to Sector 0 together. Maybe I wouldn't have been bitten. Maybe you and I could have... it doesn't matter now.
In case I never get to say these words to you, this is my final goodbye Kyle. But please, no matter what happens, don't give up. Fight on for all of us who have been knocked from the ring. You are the greatest hope this city has, I go to my grave believing that. So please Kyle... live on. Fight on, for me.
Crane could only stare at the contents of the letter as the words sank in. She truly believed in him, even at the end when she could have saved herself, she saved him instead.
Jade sacrificed herself, for him.
He had no idea how long he sat there staring at the slip of paper in his hands. Time seemed to just stand still. Eventually he tucked the paper, almost reverently like one would a priceless artifact, back into his pocket.
The city was still in danger from being bombed by the Ministry of Defense. He had a job to do. Crane had a feeling if Jade were here, she would be slapping him in the back of the head and demanding to know why he was still just sitting around.
The mental image brought a very tiny and brief smile to Crane's lips.
Crane took one final deep breath as he rose to his feet. Squaring his shoulders, he gripped the handle of the machete still buried deep into the viral's corpse.
Squeezing the handle tightly, he closed his eyes. He could almost envision Jade standing beside him, urging him on.
Pulling the blade free, Crane held the bloodied weapon up before him. There were thousands in the city still, innocent people guilty of nothing but trying to survive. Everything Jade did was so that they would have a chance to live. She surrendered her life to give him a chance to save them all.
"For Jade." Crane whispered beneath his breath as he set out across the rooftops of Harran. That woman gave everything she had to the people of this city every day.
So long as Crane still breathed, he was not going to let that sacrifice be in vain.
Let me know what you all think. I may do more depending on how this one is received.