He woke up with a start at the piercing scream that filled the air. His eyes adjusted from the state of dream he had been in and registered the uniform that he had come to know as his school's. He blinked before his eyes scanned the room. Everyone was quietly taking notes as the teacher droned on in the background. Ichigo sighed, resting his head momentarily on his desk. His heart was still beating rapidly, testament to how frightening the dream had been.
Yet, he couldn't just see it as a dream. It had been too loud, too real to be a dream. But from his surreptitious glance around the class room, no one else seemed to have heard it. It was as if the scream had been for him and only for him to hear. It must've been the heat though. It was hot outside and the Cicada's were buzzing loudly...
Ichigo's eyes widened a little as he glanced outside the window. The Cicada's always buzzed their loudest around noon. Yet, it was eerily quiet. Not even a flutter of a wing could be heard. He couldn't focus with the teacher's voice still lecturing about who knows what, but he could've sword he'd heard some arguing outside. His gaze didn't catch anything important. It seemed to merely have been two students arguing about something trivial, he didn't pay it any heed. He grumbled, waking up all the way and partially listening to the teacher. But as he sat at his desk, an unsettling feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. A foreboding thought crossed his mind; Something terrible was going to happen.
'But what could possibly go wrong today'? Ichigo wondered as he jotted down a couple of notes. His gaze was brought outside once more, the strange scream echoing in his mind and striking an eerie chord within him. He could feel the hair at the back of his neck stand as he clenched his fists, fighting to get rid of that strange and unwelcome thought.
"This is stupid." He muttered to himself. Mercifully, the class had ended. He got up with a terse, jerky movement, and swiped all his materials into his pack, not really caring where they landed. He would sort it out later anyways. He walked out the door and immediately headed towards one of the vending machines outside and at the front of the school. He inserted the quarters and heard the machine register them. He watched passively as the claw-like device grabbed the soda and dragged it over to where it would be dispensed. It was this kind of mundane ordeal that would soon be but a memory to most of the human race.
The drink finally came out of an opening just to the lower right, exposing itself to his hand. He grabbed it and popped the lid with practiced ease. He sighed, running a hand through his hair. He looked at the soda, the damn thought making itself known again. He looked off to the side and saw the school gate. It was curious though, normally there would be no one at this time. Yet, there was a teacher arguing with someone outside. It seemed to be escalating, because the gym teacher, a somewhat fit man, was called up a few minutes later to be the 'muscle man' so to speak.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing here trespassing?" Obviously, he didn't have the smoothest linguistic skills, but his big size and rough demeanor should've been enough to scare anyone away.
But not this time.
Ichigo could see whoever it was on the other reaching through the gates. Whoever the creep was, really wanted to get inside. Ichigo took a sip and watched the scene unfold. The strange man put an arm through the bars of the closed gate in an attempt to grab the coach, Ichigo supposed. Then Ichigo's blood ran cold when the man managed to get a couple of fingers hooked on the coach's loose uniform and pull only to bite his neck. It must've nicked the aorta because blood squirted in a few quick spurts timed by the heartbeat.
"Call the police and an ambulance, he needs help!" A woman yelled, someone Ichigo was unfamiliar with. He didn't pay any attention to the school staff, but that didn't matter for the moment. An aide quickly ran off to the nearest phone, not having a cell phone herself.
The coach stirred for a moment and the woman was relieved. "Thank goodness you're alive coa—" The relief was short-lived, as was her life as the man reached out immediately and pulled her, biting her in the neck as well.
Ichigo stared, mouth dry as he saw what he had believed to be a fatal wounds barely register to the people now getting up. They didn't even grab the injury or make an attempt to stop it. The only thing they did was walk towards him once they saw him. What Ichigo saw chilled him. Those eyes, there was no light in them. There was no sign of life. All that was left was this bottomless desire for... for... for...
Ichigo gulped as he grabbed for his neck. Could it be? It might've been the scene he had just seen or his adrenaline making him go crazy, but he only cared about one thing as he ran down the halls of his school. He fled as fast as he could to his classroom, his mind racing frantically without actually forming any thoughts. He only had one singular purpose at the moment and when he barged back into his classroom, he made it known.
"What's the matter Kurosaki-san? Not enough opponents outside and now you're looking for some inside the class?" The teacher, one he didn't particularly like, sniped at him. He paid no heed as he forced his friends from their seats, starting with a sweet, auburn-haired girl.
"W-What are you doing Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime asked. She was bit taken back, blushing a little when a few of the students let out wolf whistles.
"Could this be a confession?" On girl remarked as Orhihime as she passed her by. Her heart hammered in her chest, oblivious for the moment even as Ichigo called Keigo and Mizuiro out with them as well.
"Something the matter? You don't look so good." Mizuiro asked, his calm and placid state completely opposite of Ichigo's own.
"There..." Ichigo fought to get his words out of his mouth, "There's been a murder outside."
Time slowed down for the group as they processed what the panic stricken teen said. "Are you sure about that?"
Mizuiro looked at Ichigo, but knew right away that this was true. Ichigo never could keep a straight face when telling a joke, but now his expression was grave and serious.
No joke.
"I see. We should warn..." The rest of his words stayed on his tongue as the redheaded lesbian, Chizuru Honsho, came out from the door, fuming as to why her Orihime had been taken away.
"Hey wait, don't you dare say anything to Orihime that will make me lose my chance with her!" She demanded, specifically targeting Ichigo with those words. "She is mine and just because you finally realized her feelings, doesn't mean you can act on them! I've worked harder than you, you know!"
Orihime's already maelstrom of a mind swirled as she realized the girl had just revealed her feelings to the boy she loved. Despite the gravity of the situation, she managed to feel a flush fill her cheeks as she turned to Ichigo.
Her spirit dropped as she noticed his brows knitted together and his expression long and dark. "We don't have time for this! We need to get going."
"Ha? Trying to sneak off with Orihime huh? Well, I won't let you! In fact, I'm coming with you wherever you go!" She couldn't possible let some man be the first to take anything precious from Orihime. After all, a woman's touch was much gentler.
"Knock it off Chizuru-san." Mizuiro said. He picked up his phone and dialed the emergency hot-line. His stoic face revealed a grim look this time as a message played, stating to call back again.
That only happened when there were too many phone calls coming at once.
"What's wrong?" Ichigo asked, his tone rough. His body was already tense, eager to flee or if need be, fight. He knew his friend wasn't one for much emotions, but to see his expression other than its usual aloof self... something must've happened.
"I just dialed the 110 and nobody picked up." It didn't take long for Ichigo to figure out what that meant.
Chizuru had just been about to ask what the hell was going on when a voice boomed out from the school speakers. "Attention All Students and Teachers! Attention All Students and Teachers! At the Present Time, There is A Violent Struggle Occurring on the Premises! Students, Stay with Your Teachers and Follow their Instructions!"
"What the...?" Chizuru heard the message as it repeated itself once more. What the hell was going on?
"Looks like everybody knows now. We better get some weapons in case this escalates before anyone else thinks the same thing." Mizuiro stated in a tone that was calmer than he was actually feeling. Had anyone paid attention to how he grasped his phone, they would've noticed his knuckles a pale white from the amount of force he was using.
"W-What are you...? Get away from me! No, plea—auugh! I'm going to die! SOMEBODY HELP ME!" A piercing cry fed through the speakers followed by a shrill noise of feedback before all that was heard was silent static.
Silence. The word hardly described a place such as a high school facility where students were always talking, doing something active, and even annoying their teachers to a certain extent. Then all at once chaos ensued as the floors of the school shook from chairs sliding as students got up from their seats. Loud, thunderous footsteps came next as said students fled from their class, ignoring what their teachers were telling them to do. It was a scene of panic, one that Chizuru, Ichigo, Mizuiro, and Keigo nearly fell into. They swarmed and dodged as they went against the current, trying to find the closest thing to a weapon they could. Ichigo and Mizuiro were the leaders for the most part as the rest of the company followed. Orihime huddled unconsciously close to Ichigo, his back like a wall and making her feel secure. Chizuru made an annoyed click with her tongue, but couldn't do anything but focus on where she was going because at any moment she could be taken by the tide of people streaming out.
"This should do the trick." Ichigo hefted the bat in his hand, feeling the reassurance of its weight. Keigo honestly wasn't sure what to do, having ended up with a mop as Mizuiro picked up a crowbar. He unscrewed the mop end, revealing the metal end of the pole and decided to stick with it for the moment. He was scared, completely and utterly, but at the same time having a weapon and actually using it in a scene of real combat... well.
That had been his dream ever since he went to a shooting range for vacation one time. No one knew that he was actually a military Otaku and knew almost all the weapons there were. He shifted the pole, feeling its weight and liking it though he much preferred a gun.
There hadn't been much left after they took those items from the locker. Someone seemed to have gotten the same idea as they did and emptied out the rest. Orihime was left with a screwdriver that Chizuru had handed to her, even though the auburn-haired girl didn't want to think about using anything to harm anyone. In the end though, Orihime kept it because Chizuru assured the girl she could take care of herself.
The group's rising mood was shattered when voluminous screams rang down the hall. They looked outside and could only feel cold fear at the slaughter that was happening outside. Orihime jumped back and let out a terrified squeal as students pushed each other down, bones being crushed by the sheer amount of footsteps covering the fallen. There was no togetherness; it was everyone for themselves. And when the group saw one of the students begin biting and tearing off large chunks of flesh, they almost lost their lunches. Everything was turning into hell and it hadn't even been fifteen minutes since Ichigo went up to warn his friends. Limbs were being pulled off and eaten like some morbid snack. Blood gushed everywhere as students went frantic and started attacking one another, even if the ones they were attacking weren't one of them.
"It isn't safe to go outside." Ichigo thought aloud. He clenched his weapon, his eyes wavering a little as the heat and the intensity of the situation started to get to him. He brought a resolve from deep within his mind, and that was enough to calm him.
For the moment.
"I-Ichigo, what's going on?" The boy turned towards Oirhime, her large and always cheery eyes filled with tears. Fear was evident in her features as her slender body shook with it. Her breathing was rapidly becoming shallower. She had been calm at first, but when she saw the bloodshed and the massacre happening outside, it had been too much too handle. "I d-don't get it! Why a-are people doing this to each other!"
Ichigo's face darkened as his lips formed into a tight frown. He didn't like seeing his friend like this, but there was nothing he could do to explain it. The only thing he could do was to protect her. "I don't know Orihime." He said, his deep voice pulling her from her fright. "But I'm not going to let anything happen to you."
"Oi, oi, now is not the time to be a knight in shining armor." Chizuru stated, her reason being more that she didn't want Ichigo to take Orihime away rather than actually caring what was happening outside.
"I agree." Mizuiro said, but was thinking along more practical lines than the jealous lesbian. "We need to get away from the chaos."
"But didn't you see? It's like, swarming down there!" Keigo interrupted, pointing outside to a canvas of blood and gore.
"How about the roof?" Ichigo suggested. The roof was as far away from the chaos without actually having to traverse the insanely dangerous grounds below.
"That makes sense, but we'll need something to barricade ourselves." He stated as they started jogging. They would need some cellophane tape, that stuff was ridiculously strong.
"Right. I think there are some tables already on the roof near the observatory. There was a club earlier up there when we went for lunch remember?" Ichigo looked to Mizuiro, running his idea through him.
The boy nodded. "That sounds great. They probably left the area, thinking it would be safer to get away from the school grounds."
Ichigo let a thin trace of a victorious smile cross his lips. So far, they were fairing alright. Even as he thought about the torn limbs and wailing cries, he felt that there was some hope as long as everyone was alright. He just needed to make contact with everyone else. He was pretty sure that Tatsuki could handle herself, after all she was the first in her Martial Arts class and was actually good enough to host her own class when the assistant couldn't make it one day on account of sickness. Same thing with Chad. Though not one to fight, he was immensely strong and he was pretty sure he could take care of himself.
The group screeched to a halt when someone came down a corridor off to their left. "I-Isn't that Wakisaka-san f-from current events?" Orihime identified the man, doing anything she could to get rid of the nasty image from before. She had calmed down considerably when Ichigo assured her his protection, but her mind was frayed and the backlash from the shock was making her tremble.
"Great, don't tell me he's going to try and stop us." Chizuru said grimly, she was ready to protest the teacher when Mizuiro called out to her.
"Wait! Something is wrong with him!" Indeed, there was blood strewn across his face as if it had been splashed. His teeth were bared to them, a foul smell emanating from it. His eyes, no longer human and were devoid of irises. The skin beneath his eyes sagged, blood pouring from it in a small trickle as he let out this bellowing moan that would quickly be known as the sound of death.
The once-teacher dragged itself towards Ichigo, whom had been leading. Ichigo gripped his bat. "Hey, don't you dare touch my friends." The boy growled, but it fell on deaf ears as the teacher picked up its pace, an eager moan sending dreadful shivers down the groups' collective spines.
As the man approached, Ichigo realized there was no time to be hesitant. He had to act now or possibly let not only himself get killed, but his friends as well. That didn't bode well and with a war cry, he heaved the bat straight across. The bat connected with the man's chin with a loud crack, Ichigo pleased with himself that he had let the man off with a glancing blow. What he saw next couldn't have been humanly possible. The man got up, his jaw obviously broken as jagged edges of bone tore through his skin. It ripped and bled until it fell off the sinews and was now hanging halfway down. Ichigo took a fearful step back, not understanding how the man wasn't unconscious or at least screaming in pain.
Mizuiro though, noted something else. There wasn't much bleeding. In fact, a normal person would've lost at least a pint of blood, but this man was hardly bleeding. That only happened when there was no heart that was pumping blood to the rest of the body, which would mean that said body would've already been in a state of decay.
Ichigo snapped out if it though, the next thing he knew, the teacher was practically breathing down his throat and was more than likely intent on ripping it out as well. By the time he reacted, he could only block, the man's half-jaw clacking against the bat in a failed attempt at a bite without his lower jaw.
"Jeez, and you call yourself a man!" Chizuru leapt from behind the man and despite her small stature and frame, she was able to bring the taller man to a kneeling position by kicking the back of his knees. "See? Piece of cake!" She said with pride and a little blush when Orihime looked at her with awe in her eyes.
The red-head wasn't prepared for what came next. The man's neck turned at an impossible angle. Not only that, but the hold she had the man in should've been impossible to break, even if he was stronger. That was one of the few things she could beat Tatsuki with when the fighter-woman tried to thwart her plans with Orihime. But now was not the time to think of those things, and soon, it would be permanent.
"Watch out!" Orihime cried out, frozen in terror when the teacher stretched its neck and bit Chizuru in the arm. She cried out, a burning sensation racing up her arm followed by an intense pain as it chewed on her nerves and muscles.
"Damn it!" Ichigo heaved his bat in a downward motion, bringing it on the man's head. It was like watching the tradition of cracking watermelons alongside the beach with friends, only with a skull and blood. The man's head caved in upon itself, blood flying every which way as one eye shot out and rolled to a stop near Orihime's foot. The girl, seeing the detached eye staring at her could not stop the sudden faint spell that occurred from the powerful shock of seeing body parts fly from such a close distance.
Keigo caught her and while at one point, he would've been giddy as hell to touch such a pretty woman, could now only stop his lunch from suddenly changing its plans and leaving his stomach. The girl was out cold and Keigo noticed that her body was cold to the touch. He became frightened, but Mizuiro reassured him that Orihime would be fine and offered to help him carry her.
"W-What was that?" Ichigo asked, adrenaline rushing through his system as his eyes darted around, noticing every movement down to the moving shadows caused by the day progressing into evening.
"He's dead." Mizuiro commented. The fiery teen turn towards his friend, his eyes expressing his disbelief.
"How can that be? This isn't a movie." Ichigo replied. The grim truth in front of him told him otherwise. How else would he have kept going like that? It would explain all the blood beforehand as well. He grimaced, his knuckles bone white due to his unbreakable grip on the bat.
"Gee, thanks for asking if I'm alright." Chizuru looked at the group, clutching her bleeding arm. Most of the skin near the bite was gone and the sinewy muscle was available for the world to see. It gushed blood, her vessels having been nicked.
"Here." Mizuiro ripped a piece from his jacket and wrapped it around Chizuru. It would stop the bleeding. For now at least.
"Thanks." She said gratefully, though she hid the fact that the area burned all the way up to her skull. It felt like something else was alive in her, crawling and using her body as a playscape. She grimaced when her heart felt like it'd skipped a few too many beats.
"Something the matter?" Ichigo asked, noticing the look on her face.
She snorted, dismissing his worry, trying to look tough. "Yeah, I just got bit, what do you think?"
Ichigo scowled, but said. "I get it, fine. We should keep moving." He turned to Keigo, who was trying his best to hold Orihime, but just wasn't that strong. Her body was using him as a wall or makeshift coat rack with his arms tucked underneath hers in an awkward holding position.
"Here, let me carry her." He stated, feeling that it was too much for him. Keigo apologized to him as he hefted Orihime on his back, her face nuzzling his neck. He wrapped his arms beneath her knees, being chivalrous and not touching her rear-end. Though he could feel just how much of a woman Orihime was becoming from the two amazingly soft mounds resting on his back. He blushed a little, but the grim reality of the present made him focus on more important things.
"Alright, let's go." He juggled Orihime a little, making sure that she wouldn't suddenly fall backwards and made her arms rest around his neck and her hands on his chest. The group ran, Chizuru dragging behind a little as she clutched her wound. As they walked, they began to notice a pattern. Those that turned crazy needed to be bitten first by those infected. They weren't sure if scratches did the same thing, but they would have to figure it out in case one of them happened to be attacked.
This lead to another major problem, one that Chizuru knew they would have to deal with. They barged through the door of the roof, the setting sun setting the sky on fire with colors of orange mixed with the smoke from a burning city. She clutched her arm, the pain becoming more agonizing as she began to feel like her lungs were filling with some sort of liquid. Mizuiro and Ichigo looked at each other, knowing what was happening. They didn't want to believe it, but it was regardless of what they thought. Ichigo turned away, his face crestfallen as he knew, even in these few minutes, that there was only one way to deal with such a thing.
He pushed the thought to the back of his mind for the moment though. There was a pressing matter that needed to be attended to. They had come through a swarm of 'them' while trying to escape to the roof. Most likely, 'they' followed them as well, so they needed to barricade the stairs that led to the observatory quickly. Orihime was placed gently inside the observatory were it was safer. They had checked, of course, to make sure it was empty before doing so. Quickly they placed tables and chairs and wrapped it together with some strong tape that bonded the objects together. The boys huffed, their adrenaline receding and leaving them tired. They had just made it in time. The door to the roof suddenly opened and out spilled a swarm of students with various states of damage. Broken bone dragged against the floor from bites taken to the calf area. Others were in varying states of dismemberment, but one thing they all had in common was that haunting and restless moan that escaped from their mouths, or holes when they didn't have one.
"That's giving me the heebie jeebies man." Keigo said, his body shaking like a leaf. He hadn't really done much with the pole except swat some of 'them' out of the way when they wandered too close.
The other boys remained silent, looking contemplative at the scene before them. Even though they didn't know they were up here, they were still coming up the stairs. Upon feeling the barricade the boys made up, their moaning became louder as they began banging against it. It held, but something told them that 'they' weren't the kind, whatever they were, to give up. 'They' banged and slammed against the barricade, bodies occasionally rolling down the stairs from a lack of balance. They would get up and do that routine all over again.
"Um, guys? I don't think Chizuru looks alright." Keigo gestured towards the girl, feeling very worried about her current state. Her body wracked with painful tremors as blood spewed from her mouth. It almost seemed she was having seizures, her tremors being so violent.
"N...No kidding?" She managed a pained grimace as she eyed the class clown. "What gave it away?"
Ichigo tensed up. He knew what was going to happen. While he hadn't been particularly close to Chizuru, she had been friends with Tatsuki and Orihime and that had been good enough for him to remember her name and occasionally talk to her. He walked up to her and knelt down, placing an arm on her shoulder.
Suddenly she grabbed him and pulled him close, the other boys immediately raising their weapons. It turned out though to be unnecessary since she was still herself, even if it didn't seem like she was going to hold on much longer. She coughed and struggled through the blood that was spilling out her throat. "She's... all yours."
Despite the terror he could see in her eyes at her approaching death, he saw a strong resolve in those eyes. For the entire time he had known her, he'd thought Chizuru's antics with Orihime had just been that: Antics. He stared into those eyes, which refused to give into eternal sleep until he gave her an answer.
He nodded, serious and with his own resolve shining in his eyes. With that, she let go and collapsed on the ground as a puddle of blood formed where her mouth was. Her body twitched a couple of times, the remains of her nervous system trying to get her to stand up even as her spirit had already left her. It was a haunting image, seeing someone die in front of you. It was even more haunting when that person stood back up with an insatiable hunger that seemed almost demonic in its nature.
Ichigo noted with a numb mind that his friends were up and ready to swing their weapons and ready to help him. Chizuru's body re-animated and reached an arm for Ichigo. He blocked it, grabbing it with a grunt, slight amazement at how strong it seemed to be. With the bat in one hand, he swung and permanently ended the unlife before him. With the sun setting, the blood that splattered almost seemed to paint a picture as it stained the floor, giving it almost a glorious feeling.
Tired and exhausted, he dropped the bat and headed into the observatory. The others followed, feeling safer in there as well. He sat down in one of the chairs, his eyes turning towards Orihime. She was still unconscious, her features still etched with fright even in such a state. No one said anything when Ichigo stared. They remained silent, knowing that Ichigo was prone to brooding.
"Hey. You did all you could." Mizuiro tried to comfort the boy.
"Yeah." Was Ichigo's sullen reply.
Keigo, used to being the comedic relief said in an up-lifting tone, "A-And hey! At least you get to protect a beauty like her! That's something right?"
Ichigo turned to Keigo and stared for a second before letting out a tired chuckle.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right." Ichigo turned towards the darkening sky. Plumes of smoke rose from many buildings that were burning to the ground. Rain would come soon and put out the fires.
But it wouldn't stop 'them' from spreading. From now on, the group of friends would have to fight for the right for humanity to exist.