In a sudden burst of ideas (aka watching too much of The Walking Dead), I'm actually starting an ongoing fic ^^ This particular fic is co-authored by myself and dendensushicosplay. I had the main plot and chapters thought out and asked if he would read over this chapter because he's better at writing action than me and we decided to make it a joint effort. And hopefully he'll keep on me so I update on time lol The title is from the song "A Kiss With a Fist" by Florence and the Machine :3
So I hope you all enjoy the first part, its kinda slow going I know but please let me know how you like it. I've never written anything like this before so I'd really, really appreciate any feedback (good, bad, constructive whatever you feel ^^) from you lovelies!
Summery: It's always a normal day at school when an Apocalypse decides to descend. One minute Eren is trying to pass his chemistry class & the next he's wielding a baseball bat against bodies trying to bite him. Along with Mikasa & Armin, they are forced into a world where all it takes is one bite & you're dead. (Modern Day Zombie AU; Rated for violence, language, & sexual situations)
Pairing: Eren/Mikasa
Rating: M (Violence, Language, Eventual Sexual Situations)
The Incident
It was only 1 p.m. and the world had already gone to hell. Eren swung his bat, knocking one in the head sending it down to the ground in a heap.
He hadn't been doing anything noteworthy when he realized something was wrong. He was walking to class, maybe looking for Mikasa and Armin. A chill went down his spine, filling his stomach with dread. He pulled his arms back and let the wooden bat crack against a skull, sending the thing down a set of stairs. Armin was probably with Mikasa somewhere and there was no place safer. He couldn't worry right now. Fingers brushed over his back causing Eren to swing his bat behind him, coming in contact with a groaning body. He wouldn't have even believed it if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes.
The scream had been first. Eren had taken off for the sound only to see what he thought was a person hunched over a hysterical girl. It wasn't until Eren shouted that the thing looked up at him, blood and God only knew what else dripping down its hollow face. Eren's stomach lurched;he had to resist the urge to throw up on the spot.
Eren bolted down the stairs when he saw an opening. Screams mixed with the sounds of the creatures moving through the halls filled his ears. People were still alive, running by him at top speed, but that didn't stop hands from reaching out around every corner grabbing and biting whatever they could get. Eren used the handle of his bat to push one away that came out from a nearby hallway. He had to get out of these halls but there was no way he could leave Mikasa and Armin.
"Dammit," he groaned, swinging his bat at another one coming at him.
He was lucky, some jock must have dropped the bat nearby where he saw that girl. He grabbed it and went after the thing over her; he had seen enough movies to know to aim for the head. The force the wooden bat hit with surprised even him. Eren watched the thing go down before turning to the girl laying on the ground.
She was already dead, Eren knew that much so he should have expected the way her body snapped back up, her arms lunging for him, but not even seeing it could prepare him. Eren raised the bat above his head before slamming it down on hers until she stopped moving.
He didn't notice the blood splattered on his uniform until much later.
Now the school was crawling with them, every exit was a pile up of struggling students and hoards of those things grabbing anything they could reach. The screams and shouts only seemed to draw them closer, so Eren kept his voice down even though every part of him wanted to call out for his friends.
The hallway to the left seemed empty enough as he made a quick turn. His hands gripped onto the bat he held up, ready to hit anything he could see. Nothing was there so far, just a few empty classrooms, all with doors wide open. The students must have already evacuated, or rather ran for their lives.
A loud scream made Eren's head snap back to the hallway he had just come from. A guy was pulling hopelessly on a girl who had gotten caught in the grasp of one of those things; their screams were only dragging more to surround them. Eren spun around to go help but it was far too late at this point; there was nothing that could save them now.
He felt the strong, chilling grip on his shoulders. He frantically swung his arms, his bat going at anything he could hit. The force of his movements sent him out of the creature's grip and into the classroom nearby. He landed on a desk, crashing into it and hitting the tile floor. Scrambling, Eren turned on the ground as he attempted to scurry away, hands still reaching for him. He raised the bat to hit it in its head, but the face lurking underneath the dead eyes made him stop.
"Thomas?"
The thing made no acknowledgement as it kept moving towards him, but Eren knew that face. They had second period History together. Thomas. Thomas Wagner.
Eren's back hit the wall of the room. He held his bat in front of him but he couldn't will his body to move.
"It's not him anymore. It's not him." Eren muttered the mantra as he gritted his teeth while the body that used to be Thomas kept moving forward at him. He had taken down dozens of these things and yet this was the first face he knew. His body was frozen.
It let out a noise and reached down for Eren.
"Move," he tried to tell himself. He kicked his foot up into its stomach, knocking it back but it came right back for him. Eren braced himself, his hands grasping the bat as hard as he could. The creature made a noise as it halted in its tracks.
Eren saw a long blade slice through its neck, its head and body falling in two different directions. It wasn't too much of a surprise to see Mikasa standing over him, her sword firmly in her hands.
"Go for the back of the necks," she said in her usually calm voice. "It avoids seeing the face."
Even though he knew they were in immense danger, seeing her face and hearing her voice sent relief through his whole body. She was okay. A little blood splattered, but okay.
She held out a hand to him, helping him up to his feet. "We should go before we get cornered in here."
Eren nodded, his grip tightening on his bat once more. He glanced over her shoulder. "Is Armin not with you?"
Something flashed across her face. Panic. "No, I figured he was with you."
"Shit. We have to find him." Eren rushed back out to the hallway, knowing Mikasa would follow.
More screams. More sickening groans. Where the hell could he be?
"Eren, we have to get out of here." She had her eyes down a nearby hallway.
He turned to look at her. "No, Armin is-"
"Smart. He probably figured it out before anyone and got out. If we stay, we will die. This place is overrun." She motioned him to follow.
Eren hesitated as she turned the corner, but he couldn't leave her either, not when he just got her back. He followed, finding her by an exit door that led down to a stairwell.
"If he's not outside, I'll come back in and look for him." She had her hand on the doorknob, her eyes meeting his.
"I think you mean we'll," he corrected. "If you think I'm letting you out of my sight again in this place, you're crazy." This was not the time for heroics. Not when one bite was all it took to lose everything. Eren saw Mikasa's face change, soften a bit as she looked at him but a nearby scream changed that.
"That was closer," she said, her face steeling up once more. "The stairwell might be overrun but there's no way the normal exits are any safer. You go down first and I'll follow backwards behind you, okay?"
Out of the corner of his eye he could see them slowly turning the corner at them.
"Eren."
"Okay." He looked back to her. Everything about this was crazy, but they'd have time to figure that out later. They had to get out first. Mikasa swung the door open and Eren went in, the door quietly closing behind them. The first flight seemed clear but he still held his bat up, ready to strike if needed. Eren could feel Mikasa's back brush up against his every now and then as she walked backwards. He glanced over at her, her dark eyes focused on the stairs above them.
He wasn't even sure he could properly express how thankful he was that her presence was back with him again. It was something normal. Something comforting.
They rounded the first corner. One more flight and the door outside would be right there. It was becoming increasingly clear they weren't alone. Eren could see them around the corner of the stairs, at least five bodies shuffling towards them.
"We have to go." Mikasa's back was pressed against him; he could feel her body tensing up. Eren turned his head to see a hoard of them on the stairs above them. He had no idea where they came from but it didn't matter. They had to move.
"Run," Eren whispered through his teeth.
Mikasa turned around, sword in front of her as he began to take off down the stairs. He swung his bat when they got closer, knocking one down. He jumped over the body as the sounds of Mikasa's sword cutting through flesh filled his ears. Another hit, another one down.
Eren could see the door, red exit sign shining. Mikasa took another one out next to him as he ran to get the door. He kicked the door wide open, feeling the warm summer air hit his face. He turned to make sure Mikasa was still behind him when he felt the hard grip of a hand grasp onto him. The ones behind them must have caught up already but the feeling was gone before he could make a move. The hand fell to the ground along with the body and the head. Mikasa grabbed onto his arm and pulled him out the door, slamming it shut behind them.
Neither of them needed to say a thing. They both started running as fast as their legs would take them to the front of the school. It was surprisingly quiet, nothing outside and the door seemed to stay shut keeping the ones inside for now at least. They were on the backside of the building, thankfully not the side with the track and fields. He didn't even want to think about what that looked like right now. It was strange though, coming from such chaos to a place where the world looked normal again.
Eren reached his arm out to stop Mikasa when they reached the corner of the school that led to the front and to the parking lot. Running in there head first would be a death wish. Trying to keep his panting as quiet as he could, he peered around the corner.
It was swarmed. There were some cars speeding away from the school, but the way to the parking lot was filled with those things lurking. Some were distracted and huddled around people who didn't make it out, but not enough distracted for them to sneak to a car and worst of all, Eren couldn't see Armin's blond head of hair anywhere.
"Any ideas?" he turned to Mikasa, whose eyes were also assessing the situation.
"We need to get to your car that way we can be safer moving and figure out a way back in for Armin. Running is dangerous but it's our only option."
Eren nodded. He figured it was going to be that way. "Hey," he nudged her with his shoulder. "We made it this far after all."
"You wouldn't have if I hadn't been there." Mikasa glanced over at him and he could see that small smile pulling at her lips.
Eren rolled his eyes. "Oh, my hero. Have any more bragging to do?"
Mikasa shot him a look, but couldn't hold back a light smile from his teasing.
"Ready?" he asked.
Mikasa nodded, holding her sword out. "Ready."
Eren ran out into the main area of the school yard knowing Mikasa was right behind him; that seemed to get some unwanted attention. They had to move. He scanned the area as he ran, eyes skimming for a good escape route. His eyes locked onto the area by the fountain. If they could run by that and jump over the fence, they could as least get his car.
His car. He drove Mikasa to school this morning. She kept hitting him on the shoulder because he had slept through his alarm again and was making her late. Her smile while she was doing it told Eren she hadn't been all that mad though. It seemed like years ago.
Mikasa's hand grabbed onto the back of Eren's jacket, halting him in the center of the school yard. Eren turned to ask her what the hell was going on, but he didn't need to, he heard it. A loud, revving engine filled the air causing those things to just pour out of the school and completely block their route. Fuck. They were trapped, and clearly the creatures had caught wind of them as well.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw the cause of the commotion. A blue SUV was barreling towards them, creatures flying in all directions as the car tore through them. Eren was one step from throwing himself at Mikasa to get her out of the way when the car skidded to a halt in front of them, momentarily blocking them.
"Well, it took you two long enough."
The sound of the voice sent relief through Eren's veins.
"Don't just stare at me, get in already." Armin gestured to the back seat doors.
Eren swung open the door closest to him and jumped in before quickly turning around and reaching his hand out to help pull Mikasa on. She grabbed onto his hand but was suddenly jerked back out of the car. Eren dove halfway out of the car, still grasping onto her as he saw the culprit. A few bastards had walked around the car, and one had its hand firmly holding onto Mikasa's red scarf pulling her into the rest of the ones reaching for her.
Her face was red, choked gasps coming from her lips. Eren reached over her shoulder, grabbing onto the tail of the scarf taking the pressure off her throat. He quickly wrapped his other arm around her and threw his weight back backwards, wrenching the scarf out the thing's hand and pulling Mikasa back in the car with them. Armin didn't even bother to wait for them to shut the door, the sudden movement of the car shut it good enough.
Mikasa had landed on top of Eren, but with the way Armin was driving that would have happened anyway. A sharp turn nearly had them falling off the seat. Eren reached down to hold up Mikasa's face. She was red and still breathing heavily but she looked okay. He ran his hands down her arms. No bites either.
"Be careful with that thing," he muttered, gesturing to the red scarf that was always around her neck. "Clearly they aren't as stupid as they look."
She nodded as he helped her sit up before he glanced up at Armin's eyes watching them in the review mirror. "Yes?"
"How was your day, kids?" he asked.
"I've had better." Eren glanced out the review window, they were leaving the school in the distance, but he could still see the staggering masses of bodies moving around. "How did you get out? We were looking for you." He turned back around, the familiar scenery of the ride home from school passing them by.
Armin had to maneuver through a sea of abandoned cars on the road; houses and buildings empty all around them. It looked like this might not have been a contained case.
"I knew something strange was going on. I was hearing strange whispers from people, seeing odd things. I must have been one of the first people who figured it out because by the time I got to my Grandpa's car, it was a blood bath by the entrance."
Eren could see bodies in the cars as they passed. It looked like some hoard had already gone through.
"I knew you two would make it out so I waited where I could see the exits better. Noise attracts them, as I'm sure you noticed, so since I was quiet and in a contained area they left me alone."
"But what the hell are they?" Eren asked, Mikasa watching the both of them quietly.
Armin glanced in the mirror. "Do you want me to really say it?"
"God no, please don't call them that."
"We need to call them something. This is happening and we need a plan."
"Biters," Mikasa spoke up causing Eren and Armin to look at her. "What? They need a name if you don't want to call them…you know. It just feels appropriate."
"Biters, huh." Armin turned down a side road that seemed a little clearer of cars. "Well, it makes sense. One bite is all it takes...from what I can tell, anyway."
"What's the plan then?" Eren said. "I know you already have one, Armin."
"Well, I had to do something while you two took your sweet time."
Eren kicked the driver's seat chair.
"Okay, okay," Armin rolled his eyes but there was a smile on his face. Eren knew it wasn't because of the situation, but they were together, they were safe for now. A little bit was right in the world again.
"I'm taking us home right now to make sure our families are still there. If they are, maybe they know more than us. If not…" Armin hesitated, his fingers tapping anxiously on the steering wheel. "I suggest we get supplies and go find them. We need to stay in numbers. The more eyes and hands we have the better."
It seemed like a fine plan to Eren but judging by the way these houses on their street looked he suspected he wasn't going to find his mom sitting at the table waiting for him. He had to swallow a lump in his throat.
"Your mom is more resourceful than any of us." Mikasa's voice made him jump. She always seemed to know what was on his mind. "I'm sure she's fine."
"I'm sure they're all fine." Armin put the car in park on their street, all three of their houses right in a row. Eren looked over at his house. He'd lived there all his life, Armin his neighbor since the day he was born. Mikasa moved in on the other side of his house when she was about nine and it had been the three of them from then on. It was still the three of them Eren had to remind himself.
"Okay, it doesn't look like there are any Biters wandering around," Armin said peering out over the steering wheel. "But be quiet. Mikasa, come over to Eren's after you check in on your house. I'll do the same."
She nodded in response as Armin unlocked he doors. She opened her door, grabbed her sword that had fallen on the floor earlier, and slipped outside, Eren following her so only two doors needed to be shut. Baseball bat in hand he took off towards his front door as he lost sight of the others. The door was locked which was a good sign; he carefully pulled his keys out of his pocket and opened the familiar wooden door.
"Mom?" he called as the door shut behind him. "Dad?" He walked down the hallway that led to the kitchen, normally where is mom was when he got home from school. "Mom?" A little louder. "Dad?"
No answer, and no one in the kitchen. He was about to walk out to check the rest of the house but something on the fridge caught his eye; a folded piece of paper with his name on it. He took it off the magnet and opened it to see his mom's familiar handwriting.
"Eren," it read. "If you're reading this than I'm sure you know what's going on. Your father called me when he had his suspicions from the hospital and made sure I had plenty of time to leave for somewhere safe. I know Mikasa and Armin are with you, so be sure to let them know her parents and his grandfather are with me.
"I wanted desperately to come and get you kids at school but your father said it was already too late and that we needed to leave right away. He said that Armin and Mikasa would be safe as long as they were with you, so you keep them safe, you hear me? I want to see all three of your faces at your father's research lab as soon as you can. I know it's a ways away, but just be safe. Your father said to stay together at all times, travel while its light out, keep up provisions and just get here when you can."
Her handwriting started to get rushed and sloppy.
"I love you, Eren. Be safe. Don't worry about me. Mr. Ackerman is with us, he knows what to do in these kind of situations. Just worry about yourself and your friends, okay? Love, Mom."
Eren wondered in anyone knew what to do in this situation, but everyone was safe. That's all that mattered. He looked up from the note to see Armin and Mikasa standing in the doorway.
"They're all safe. They're with my mom." He folded up the note and shoved it in his pocket. "We need to get to my dad's research lab. That's where they went."
"That's a few cities away; it's at least five hours on a good day." Armin crossed his arms as he leaned up against the wall.
"Longer since she said to not travel at night, and we shouldn't take the highway and risk getting stuck."
"Well, grab what you need and come load up the car at my house," Mikasa said, starting to leave the room.
"Why your house?" Eren asked.
She turned with a small smile. "My dad's a cop. Wait till you see what he left us."
Mikasa hadn't been kidding. Both Eren and Armin looked wide eyed over the collection of weapons left on her bed. Eren had changed out of his uniform and into some normal clothing, packed a few things in his backpack, including some nonperishable food and the note for his mom before meeting Armin at Mikasa's.
"I know your dad took us to the range when we were younger." Armin picked up one of the large rifles. "But something tells me I'm gonna be worse at shooting this than the pistol."
"The crossbow is yours, Armin." Mikasa held up a small note between her fingers as she gestured to the weapon leaning up against the bed. "My dad's orders. It's quieter in case we need a weapon without firing off the gun and its more your style."
Eren held up a gun similar to the one he remember shooting as a kid. "What'd your dad say about me?"
Mikasa was putting a smaller gun in the holster on her thigh, unable to keep a smile off her lips. She looked up at him before adjusting the sheath strapped on her back. "He said not to let Eren shoot himself on accident."
He grunted as he pulled on a holster around his waist. "Yeah, very funny."
"He said to take the handguns, you're in better control of those." She tossed him one off her bed.
Eren caught it, holding it in both his hands. What choice did they have at this point? It was life or death now. He slid one into a holster before grabbing the others off the bed too. Mikasa started loading everything else into a duffle bag, her own backpack slung over her shoulder.
"We still have hours of daylight so we should be okay traveling today." Eren grabbed his bag from off the floor and his bat before heading out of the room, the others following behind him.
It was strange, leaving the house he had been in countless times armed with weapons and supplies for a trip on the road in Armin's grandfather's SUV. Eren held the door open for them as they walked back outside. The sun was still shining over them, the air warm and fresh. It wasn't exactly the weather one expected for an apocalypse.
Armin popped the hatchback and started loading his bags in. He gestured for them to hand over their bags as well. Eren tossed his bag but held onto his bat; he felt strangely comforted still holding it. Mikasa was the last to get her stuff in, laying the bag with their weapons on top. Armin carefully shut the door before looking over to them.
"Okay," he said, rubbing his hands together. "I've got a map in the car so we can mark a good route. I'd say to use the GPS but when I tried to use my cellphone earlier there was no signal, so I'm assuming satellites and all that stuff that makes our life easier is out. We'll just go as far as we can."
"Sounds like a plan." Eren opened the backseat door gesturing for Mikasa to get in while Armin took the front seat once more. He looked around his empty neighborhood and at his eerily quiet house. He could almost see Colonel Arlert sitting on his porch where he liked to read in the summer, Mrs. A digging in her garden as Mr. A was pulling in the driveway on his police bike. Eren's mom would be at the door, yelling at Eren to not see how high he could throw his ball up on the house, Armin trying not to act excited at just how high the ball could get, and Mikasa standing with that scarf around her neck to hide her smile. It seemed like yesterday.
"Eren?"
He turned back to the car to see Mikasa watching him. "Yeah, I'm coming." He jumped in the backseat and shut the door. Armin started to drive down the road before tossing a map at them.
"I can get us in the right direction but just highlight the best route you can."
Mikasa grabbed the map from Eren's hands but he went to reach for the map she now held out of his reach.
"And behave before I have to split you two up." Armin glanced through the rearview mirror.
Eren shook his head as he sat back up letting Mikasa have the map. She started to unfold it on her lap; he looked at all the little lines, all the different ways they could go.
Yeah, the world had gone to hell. Yeah, everything they knew was over, but his family was still alive. The guns on his waist, on his back pressed up against his body as he sat; his bat leaning up against the car door. He fully intended on keeping it that way.
