Pandas: Hello and welcome to the next chapter and the new year! ^^

Kat: Hahaha it's not New Year...

Pandas: It's the first day of the new year, Kat.

Kat: But New Year's Day/Week starts January 23rd this year.

Pandas: You are talking about Chinese New Year, aren't you?

Kat: Hahaha. What other New Year is there?

Pandas: The one we celebrated midnight yesterday. I drank champagne. I also had a bloody hangover. A mild one but still. I've had worse from caffeine hangovers. Do not drink five gigantic mugs of tea in one day, kids.

Kat: But it's not even the start of a new lunar cycle yet...

Pandas: But it is now 2012.

Kat: But it's gonna be year 4710 on the 23rd. lol (not at China) This explains China's age.

Pandas:The western world wants to be different and lie about their ages.

Kat: Ehh? Lying is not a respectable trait, aru.

Pandas: Da.

Kat: So...think we should end the a/n?

Pandas: Yep.

Germany looked out on the other nations, waiting for something to be suggested. The other countries looked as if they had no ideas, and they sat in silence, thinking, until America decided to suddenly ask, "Hey Liechtenstein, what's wrong with your eye?"

Switzerland glared at him as she answered, "Oh, it's nothing, it's just been hurting for a while."

"Can you open it?" asked America. "Maybe something is wrong or something."

Lichtenstein had kept her eye closed up till that time, saying it hurt to much to open, but now they all watched with horror as, wincing, her eyelids seperated. The eye was dead, dull, and lifeless, like those of the zombies outside. It looked wrong in her still living skull, misplaced. Timidly, she asked what was the matter, but they did not have the heart or the stomach to answer.

Switzerland was wide eyed, barely able to comprehend what was wrong with his little sister. How had this happened? She was acting fine.

"Big brother, what's wrong?" she asked, becoming scared of the answer. Wordlessly, France handed over his mirror and Liechtenstein saw her ailment. She squeaked and dropped it, but thankfully his mirror didn't shatter.

"What is going on here, aru?" asked China. From what he knew of strange western 'zombies', you only turned into one if you were bitten. So what happened to Liechtenstein?

England suddenly realized what had happened. He had a pain in his left side that he previously thought was a stitch from running from zombies, but no, he now knew it was more serious than that.

He slowly lifted up his shirt and what he saw made his stomach turn. He gasped, staring down at his rotting side and the white of his lower ribcage poking through. The skin was an unnatural greenish black color near the edges.

His hand flew to his mouth and he quickly dropped the material, the other nations staring at him. England slowly opened his mouth, meeting the gaze of the others.

"This...we all have it. We're all rotting. It..it's probably because we're nations. The zombies still count as our citizens, apparently. We...shit, this doesn't stop, we'll all become the living dead."

The room was silent for a minute, the weight of that statement hanging in the air, filling their lungs and choking them.

"Англия, did you not say before that this was most likely caused by magic? If so, is there some way you could reverse it?" Russia asked.

"No, I don't usually have to combat masses of undead so I don't remember any spells to do so. They're all in my spell book but that went missing from my hotel room...it was this morning, actually, wasn't it? Anyway, even if I did have it, if I didn't know what spell was used to start this it would still be difficult to stop them. However, it would boost the power of my magic a little."

"So, basically," America said, "you're useless."

"I am not useless, you git! I still have my swords and many spells memorized, and I know how to fight!"

"Whatever. But where could that book have gone? If you think it'd be so useful, and since we have nothing better to do but to sit around and wait to turn into zombies, we could look around for it."

"I have no idea where it is. I looked everywhere. The only thing I can think of is that it was stolen."

"So, wait, your book is missing and the zombies started appearing around that time and someone probably started this. This sounds like someone is trying to kill us all and the world on purpose!" America said. "Some bad guy is trying to have the apocalypse! As the hero of the world, I have to find him and stop his evil deeds!"

"America?" Canada started timidly, but he wasn't heard over his loud laughter.

"England," said Switzerland, his eyes serious and trying to mask his worry, "Do you have any idea of what person that knows of your book would want to do this?" The man shook his head.

America moved off from the main group as England began listing every living person who knew he practiced magic. A red box on the wall next to a fire hydrant with a clear glass cover had caught his eye. Inside was a hose and a long ax with red edges on its head.

Without hesitation, he hefted his table leg and swung it at the glass. It shattered into a million pieces, the glittering shards littering the floor. As soon as it had been broken, a loud, screeching alarm went off, assaulting the ears of the nations. America ignored it and reached in, hands closing around his new weapon.

"America, you idiot, what the bloody hell are you doing?" England yelled over the wail of the alarm. The younger nation grinned and held up the ax, dropping the leg of the table.

"This weapon is much better!" he yelled back.

"Dammit, America, all the zombies will come here now, what the hell is wrong with you?"

America hadn't thought of that. Suddenly, there was more glass breaking and zombies stumbled in, reaching out for their potential meals.

The nations froze, mouths dropping open as they realized they recognized them. There was a short man with indigo eyes that used to be so innocent, now uncaring and cold as he stumbled forward next to a much taller man who's gaze was still intimidating even when he was dead. A spiky headed individual was nearby, and there was also a shorter man with silver hair and another with a curl behind them. The Nordics had not made it back to their hotel room.

America recovered from the shock and lifted his ax to strike the Sweden-zombie, but England shouted, "No, you idiot!" He pulled the other nation back with as much force as he could, stopping him from destroying the zombie's head.

"Everyone, just run!" yelled England, trying to drag America away. The other nations begrudgingly complied, turning and sprinting for the exit.

"Why wouldn't you let me kill it?" asked America, confused. "It's not Sweden anymore."

"We don't know if it's not!" yelled England. "With humans, when they're dead they're dead, but with nations it's more complicated! Poland has come back to life before, so there is a slight chance they can too and we shouldn't risk it by causing them any more harm!"

America frowned but kept running, and soon they found the exit which was unfortunately swarmed by zombies drawn by the scream of the alarm. The large group beat their way through the gathering crowd and ran, trying to find a place for shelter.

A few followed them but most stayed behind, more concerned with the loud noises. America had everyone follow him, saying he knew a place they could stay for a while.

Finally they reached an old, plain looking building that looked like no one had gone in for years. The heavy metal doors and the bars on the windows were rusting and it creaked when America pried one open.

"America," England started, "Is this...a jail?"

"An old, abandoned one!" Alfred laughed. "Welcome to your new home!"

Pandas: Reviews make adorable kittens yawn~

Англия = England