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Day 3 of the Zombie Outbreak, 10:55AM
The trip out of Nimbasa City was filled with close calls and surprises. Hipp and Krag had to creep past several hordes who were happily feasting on fresh bodies, the smell of putrid flesh and the sight of a mass feast made Hipp wanna gag. Krag covered her eyes and helped her along some moments, but there were times where it wasn't enough. Hipp accidentally witnessed a Walker bit a chunk out of a dead Snivy outside the fruit market. Mutilated organs pour out of the Snivy's torn abdominal cavity, dropping to the ground in sick bubbly plops. Hipp grabbed Krag's arm, trying not to faint. The Scrafty rushed her out of the area before she could throw up again.
The city wasn't entirely dead. There were other survivors, though they were far from friendly. Several gangs of Pokémon had formed and were raiding nearby stores. They weren't hardened criminal, they were desperate Pokémon needing food and water. Most of the Pokémon looked young, their eyes filled with trauma and tears. One Pokémon, a Joltik, was sitting against the wall, crying a puddle of tears as other Pokémon walked by. Seemingly unaware of the tiny Pokémon's existence. Hipp nearly lost it and almost ran out to them when Krag clamped a hand over her mouth and whispered, "Focus on Petri, not them. There's nothing you can do for them and you know it."
Hipp nodded, she kept looking back at the crying Joltik until it was out of sight.
As they reach the edge of Nimbasa City, several humans had held themselves up at a Pokémon lab. The windows were boarded from the inside, and several doors were blocked with dumpsters and public benches. An SOS sign written in red-orange paint draped over the edge of the lap, hinting they needed help. Hipp could make out the lab coats of several scientists huddling on the roof, they stand with their backs straight, keeping a lookout for any Walkers or bandits. Hipp couldn't see any Pokémon, for some reason she had a feeling she didn't want to. Krag had that same feeling and advised to keep moving, they left the survivors alone.
They reached the edge of the city when the sun was fully out. Hipp couldn't help but cry, Krag patted her on the back and told her the worst was behind them, "Now we walk, but this time you lead the way. You know where the Pokémon Center is, it's up to you now to find it."
Hipp nodded, "Thank you for getting me through all that, I couldn't have done it by myself."
When she looked back, she saw the familiar skyline of Nimbasa City. Everything looked normal, like nothing really happened. The only signs of the apocalypse were the smoke columns billowing over the city, and the lack of birds...
Wait, Hipp thought, where's the birds?
She asked Krag if he saw any birds, he shook his head no, "Is that a bad thing?" he asked.
"I don't know," Hipp said, "just everything's a little too quiet."
The duo walked across an open field and made it to a patch of forests. Again, Hipp noted the lack of bird songs. The morning had begun, yet no bird songs. The Audino shut her eyes and listened harder. Nothing. It almost felt she was still in the city.
"We're officially still in the city," said Krag, "once we past the city limit, we should see more nature than man."
"Those things are out here," Hipp thought aloud, "and this time the Walkers are Pokémon . . . were Pokémon."
Krag glance around, nothing but trees and the occasional shrub. They'd gone far enough where the city's out of sight, but the weight of the apocalypse felt stronger than ever. For now, the two were alone.
"You know that Pokémon actually means Pocket Monster?" The Scrafty asked.
Hipp nodded, "Yeah, though nobody uses that term."
The two suddenly stopped, they both looked at each other in the eye as the wind softly blows through the trees. Despite the wind gusts, the forest was dead. Or at least nothing wanted to make noise, "Who are the real monsters," Krag asked, "us or them?"
"Why do you ask, Krag?"
"Well, Hipp, something had to do how humanity views us Pokémon. I never realized it until I saw my trainer's corpse get torn apart before me, something didn't settle well in my mind and I couldn't figure out what it is. That was what I was thinking moments before I met you.
"But now," Krag added, "I figured it out. Our trainers and your Nurse Joy held us back, held us back for their own purposes. They didn't really mean it, they fed and took care of us but they never really let us pursue our own interests. All my life I felt humanity's presence over my shoulder, my trainer controlled me with a firm hand. He wasn't harsh or anything but now," his voice trailed off for a second, "Now I wonder if I even like him."
Hipp blinked, not sure what to make of everything. Then she started making the mental connections, "Nurse Joy was very strict, kept us on a tight schedule. I never thought about it, and never question it."
"Now you're free, free from their codes and stumbling around. Once we find your friends, then what? What are we going to do? Do we even know what to do? Now I'm not talking about survival against the Undead, but on personal free-time. Are we going to sit around and watch reruns of Pokémon shows on the TV or work in improving our lives?"
The forest went silent, Hipp listened to her own breathing as she looked up at the sky. She only knew the world from TV, medical school, and the stories from trainers who come and go. But not the outside world, she never left Unova, and barely left Nimbasa City. All she done day in and day out was maintain the city's Pokémon Center and treat injured Pokémon as they come in. She loved her job, dedicated every centimeter of her life to it. Had the Pokémon breeders made her love her job? Dumped her into medical school and expected to help Pokémon? But was she helping Pokémon, or humanity?
"You okay, Hipp?" Krag asked.
Hipp nodded, "I'm fine, I just never thought of it that way before..."
"I wonder what the Nurse Joy would do at that other Pokémon Center," said Krag, "assuming it's still functional. Would you let her take you back into the system or you and Petri go out and do independent practice. You can do that you know, be a mobile Pokémon Center. You could make a living out of the zombie apocalypse."
Hipp shrugged, "I'm not sure, maybe there won't be anybody to treat. And besides, my skills are too precious. Me and Petri won't last long out here."
Hipp jumped when a loud mournful wail echoed across the forest, Krag raised his crowbar, "Those things are out here," he said, "we gotta keep moving."
The Audino said nothing.
"Hipp?"
Hipp said nothing, her limbs petrified with shock.
"Hipp, please. It ain't safe out here."
She glanced at Krag and nodded, he took her by the hand and she walked by his side. They continued heading north, Hipp peeked back every few seconds, wondering if something was following them. Whatever made that scream, it sounded like a Pokémon. No doubt Undead. If there were any Walkers out here, there weren't as much compared to Nimbasa City. There could be lone Walkers, maybe small hordes. So far Hipp hadn't seen any signs of a mass group, she hadn't seen any signs of her friends either. Had they made it through here? If so, were they already at that other Pokémon Center? No way of telling. Maybe they covered their tracks, which was smart, because something else might follow them. And since they were doctors...
Hipp adjusted the first aid kit, the straps snug tightly to her shoulders. Its feeling gave her a sense of insurance, like having a mobile Pokémon Center on her back. If she could get a hold of surgical tools, she might treat more severe injuries such as broken bones. Lacerations can be stitched, but broken bones must be mended and fixed with splints and casts. Damage to the skeleton could be a death sentence without medical attention, even if the wound's treated that person must be protected and cared for. Which costs time and manpower to daily activities. Hipp wondered what would happen if she broke her leg from the collapsing apartment. She would still be in the city right now, probably a slim chance of even meeting Krag. The thought sent chills down her spine.
"Are we almost there?" Krag asked.
"Just another 200 meters." said Hipp.
"Hipp, do Walkers feel pain?"
"I don't think so, that girl you put down . . . she didn't feel anything."
"I don't think that was a girl anymore, just a mindless husk of one."
"There's one thing I have no doubt of."
"What's that?"
"We turn into one of those things no matter how we die, and that's what's got me scared. What if one of my friends got sick from a bad bug and dies, would he..."
"We definitely need a pathologist," Krag told the sky, "and a neuroscientist. Somebody to answer some of our questions."
Hipp shrugged, "I don't think answers are going to help us."
A moment of silence.
"Well," said Krag, "at least they'll provide some comfort."
Minutes of silence went by, Hipp almost drifted off-balance every time she dosed off. Krag had to jolt her to get her back on track. She took a deep breath and looked back for the gazillionth time. Still nothing creeping up behind them. Good. Hopefully it would stay that way.
"I think I see something." said Krag.
Hipp looked up, a tan and white building loomed over the trees. When they got closer, Hipp saw what it was. It was the Pokémon Center Femur talked about. The windows were boarded on the outside. Hipp approached the window, black trash bags were taped over it. She couldn't see anything inside, "This place is barricaded," said Krag, "meaning someone's home."
She approached the entrance, the shutters were down and locked. Hipp pounded on the shutters, "Hello," she called out, "Anybody there?"
No response.
Krag touch her shoulder, "We gotta get up to the roof," he whispered, "they're not going to open this shutter for anybody."
Hipp nodded, "I think there's a ladder in the back, if there is then it should be built into the wall. Standard requirement for Pokémon Center construction, well, for newer ones..."
The two walked around back, a ladder of iron bars was built into the concrete near the back door. The back door, too, was boarded from the outside, no way going through there either. Hipp and Krag climbed up the ladder, they got to the roof and found the roof access door wasn't boarded. But was it unlocked? Hipp turned the knob, nope.
"Let me try." said Krag.
Hipp stepped back and watched Krag do his handy work. He lift up his crowbar and jammed the chisel end between the door and the frame, he wiggled it around in there for a moment and withdraw, "Well that's not going to work." said Krag.
"Kick it down?"
"You betcha."
Krag's jumped back and braced himself. He leaped up into the air and his foot glowed white, thrusting all his energy right into the door with a mighty kick. The metal door burst open, it swung open and slammed into the wall with a mighty thud. Krag bounced back and observe his handiwork, "If anyone's inside, they'll hear that."
He stepped up towards the door and called down the stairwell, "Hello, anybody in there!? We're not dead!"
"Cut it out, Krag!" Hipp insisted.
Krag snickered, "Like something's going to pop out and eat us?"
Hipp walked up to the stairwell, her sensitive ears picked up nothing from below. She turned to Krag, her eyes wide open. Krag nodded and raised his crowbar. He started down the stairs, tip-toeing to prevent his footsteps from echoing. Hipp followed behind, her body shaking down to her tail. When they reach the bottom steps, a dark hallway loomed before them. Hipp tried turning on the lights, nothing. Power's out. She huddled close to Krag, holding her breath while listening for suspicious noises. The place was dead. It felt dead. The backup generators weren't running and nothing was stirring. Like a suspense horror movie, Hipp was on edge. The world outside was in chaos, yet in here, everything was still. This place was shutdown and barricaded, yet so far, no survivors. Where were they? Were they hiding somewhere?
When the two reached the lobby, they got a horrific scene. In the middle of the room, a dead Nurse Joy laid on the floor. A rope tied around her neck. On top of her looked like an Audino, it was tearing out the nurse's organs and . . . eating them!? Hipp looked up at the ceiling, a bit of rope hang from a water pipe. She realized what happened. The Nurse Joy hanged herself, when she died her already dead Audino took her down and feast on her morsel. She stared at the Walker, looking for any signs on how it turned. Her right bicep was neatly wrapped with gauze, soaked with black blood. The Undead Audino snarled and grumbled monstrous noises as it tore out the liver and intestines, stuffing its bloody face with gore.
Oh no, Hipp thought, it got bit and died and the Nurse Joy-
Krag let out an ear-piercing whistle, the Walker turned and looked at the two. The Audino's eyes shined evil red, its mouth dripping with fresh blood. Hipp tried to scream, but it got caught in her throat. She tried to run away, but her legs were frozen.
Before the Walker got up, Krag was on it in a second. He knocked the Walker on its back with a Low Kick, then started smashing its skull in with the crowbar. Black blood splatter all over the ceiling and floor as the Walker gurgled to death. Hipp pressed her back to the wall, grabbing her face as she watched Krag repeatedly smash the face in till it didn't look like an Audino. It looked more like a headless thing with two curling antennas out of a red blob. Krag then smashed in the Nurse Joy's head, just to be sure she won't turn.
The poor Audino, Hipp thought, the poor Nurse Joy. They're tainted, tainted! Nothing but Undeath!
Hipp's eyes were stuck wide open, she felt her blood turn to ice, then drain out of her head. She felt cold and disoriented, the world was consuming her. Hipp felt her energy got zapped away and she collapsed to the floor, staring at the ceiling as Krag finished up.
"That about done it," he said, "Hipp, are you alright?"
He turned around and saw Hipp laying on the floor, Krag dropped the crowbar and rushed to her, "Oh no, Hipp!" he cried.
Krag got to his knees and held up Hipp's head, "Hipp, speak to me!"
Hipp just stared at Krag, she tried to speak but part of her brain had shut down. She couldn't move either, her muscles were paralyzed. All she could do was stare at Krag as he sat helpless before her, "Please," the Scrafty pleaded, tears forming in his eyes, "Please don't do this."
That was the last thing she heard when the world closed in on her.
TO BE CONTINUED...