Chapter 5: Safe from the DEAD
Author's Note Part 1: Welp, I ended up waiting a couple days before continuing this, just to make sure I got this chapter right. Depending on how much I'll be fitting into this chapter, either this one or the next will contain the second biggest change to the HOTD portion of the story, the first having been the Quarantine. Not only that, but this chapter and the next will continue to expand upon relationships, as well as have minor changes alongside the bigger one that I basically spelled out at the end of the previous chapter, and one change that I hinted at already occurred in an earlier chapter.
Also, either after this chapter or the next one is posted, this story will actually probably go onto Hiatus for a bit. I want to be able to focus on my other stories on this site as well, not to mention after the big change occurs, it will actually be the end of the first "Arc" of this story. So far, I have three or four arcs planned for this story, before it'll go onto an indefinite hiatus until Dying Light 2 comes out and I can play it, so that I can decide where I want to take this story, and whether to follow closer to the HOTD manga canon, or take from the second DL game…
One last thing. There's a scene I have in this that might cause a fair number of you to question it. It will be explained in the second author's note, since I do have a valid explanation for it… Though how many of you will accept it as a valid explanation is up in the air, since sometimes it isn't accepted even in movies and published books, let alone Fanfictions…
Anyways, I'll go ahead and let you guys get to reading the new chapter!
3rd Person POV:
Shortly after the group entered the flat, Zach had everyone look through the rooms to ensure it was actually safe, and no one had managed to get in a different way and turn before they arrived. He had Shizuka and Takagi remain by the door with Kohta to guard them, while the others went through the rooms to make sure they were all clear. Fortunately, luck seemed to be on their side, since the entire flat was clear, with no signs of anyone being there for the past few days.
After looking around, Shizuka was quick to suggest a bath, and the three boys of the group were quickly ushered up the stairs and away from the girls, who announced they would be cleaning themselves first, the three males not putting up much resistance as they simply shrugged, and made their way up to the second floor in order to leave the girls on the first to undress.
Walking up into the Master Bedroom, which was the only area present on the second floor of the flat besides the balcony that could be seen through a set of glass doors. Zach took a quick glance through said doors, noticing the bridge in the distance illuminated by spotlights, and shook his head, already having an idea of what could be occurring there. However, he shook this off when he saw the TV set up, and after a quick search for the remote, turned it on in order to see if they could get any more news.
The three teens in the room watched as the screen turned on, and even though it turned onto a news station, the screen didn't show much besides the station's logo spinning, before a female anchorwoman's voice spoke through the speakers. "The newly dubbed "Tokonosu Virus" that appeared only forty-two hours ago, has spread throughout Tokonosu City at unprecedented speed. The number of people infected by this new virus in the city has already reached over one million. Because of it's powerful infectiousness, and the paralyzed system, it's speculated the number could reach up to two million, within only the next day or two, and centers for disease control, appear to be stymied. There is talk of bringing in doctors Imran Zere, and Allen Camden in order to get their expertise on what could possibly be causing this virus, and attempt to create a cure." The anchorwoman reports, making Zach give a small smile.
If anyone can figure this shit out, it's those two. He thinks to himself, his hand rising subconsciously to rub at the wound along his neck, even as his smile changes to a small frown. Although there's also the fact that knowing those two, it's possible they'll end up caught up in this mess as well, in an attempt to have better access to the Virus to combat it… He thinks, shaking his head at the thought. Still, at least if they do, they'll have the full backing of the GRE this time to get better equipment and such…
"It is our duty to report, that our network staff, in an effort to keep this station on the air, have been given permission to bring the broadcasting team to an undisclosed, offshore facility. Unfortunately, this will be the last broadcast of the scheduled program. Goodbye everyone, and good luck." The woman finishes, and Zach's mind can only focus on how close those words were to the phrase that he heard every day at sunset back when he was in Harran. Meanwhile, the other two flinch slightly at the announcement from the TV.
In an effort to get their minds on something else, Zach turns off the screen, and then looks around the room, before noticing the two lockers that were present a couple meters to the left of the TV. Zach grins, before bending down and taking off his backpack to open one of the side pockets, making Takashi and Kohta turn to look at him as he takes out a swiss army knife multitool, and a few paperclips.
"Uh… Zach? What're you doing?" Takashi asks as the brunet stands back up, tosses his backpack onto the bed, and walks over to the right locker, kneeling down in front of it to look at the lock on it.
"What's it look like I'm doing? I'm seeing what Shizuka's friend has in here." He says, bending the paperclip the way he'd been taught in Harran, and fitting it into the lock, along with the knife option of the multitool. "Since Shizuka led us here with the key, and told us about her friend, we can assume she's out of the city at the moment. Meaning anything that she has in her flat, we can find a use for." He tells them as he starts messing with the lock, twisting the paperclip to the left in right as he attempts to find the sweet spot that would open it.
"Alright, and where the hell did you learn to pick locks?" Takashi continues, making Zach pause as he turns around to give the raven haired teen a "really?" look, making the other teen flush as he realized what he just asked the Harran Veteran. Pretending Takashi didn't just ask him a stupid question, Zach turns back around and continues trying to open the lock, cursing under his breath when the paperclip snapped, and he was forced to try with another one.
"Well, at least from the looks of things, we can expect something good in this one…" He mutters, getting raised eyebrows from the two behind him at his words, even as the second paperclip snaps in his hands seconds later.
"How can you tell?" Kohta asks as Zach starts to be more careful about how much he tries to twist the lock so as the keep the paperclip intact for longer to find the right spot. In response to the teen's question, Zach speaks up as the lock manages to turn the slightest bit, before getting stuck once again.
"Back in Harran, we were able to classify locks fairly obviously. "Easy", "Medium", "Hard" and "Very Hard". Ninety percent of the time, the locks that were "Hard" and "Very Hard" to open, usually contained items that could help us survivors immensely in one way or another. And the one I'm opening now…" He trails off, as the lock finally turns completely, and gives a click as it unlocks. "I would classify as "Hard". Now, show us what you have in there." He says with a smile as he stands up, and opens the door. The sight that greets the three gets wide eyes from them, and smiles from Zach and Kohta.
"…Now this, will be helpful… Very, helpful." Zach says, his eyes turning to the second locker beside him.
"Ammo! Binoculars! Arrows! And a Crossbow!" Kohta exclaims in excitement, even as Zach quickly kneels in front of the second locker and starts to open it, this time having an idea of what it might contain, and thus realizing that the lock will likely be just as hard, if not harder, than the previous one, and tries to pick it much more carefully.
"So, what? We have ammo for guns we don't have?" Takashi asks, making Kohta grin as he turns to his fellow raven haired teen.
"And what do you think is in the locker next to it?" He asks, getting wide eyes from Takashi as he realizes what Zach and Kohta are thinking. However, all three's attention is brought off the new items they've possibly found by the fairly loud shouts and squealing that they hear start up from the direction of the bathroom downstairs, making them all pause to listen, and gain slight blushes at the sounds.
It takes a minute before the trio is able to get over the noises and the reactions they cause, but eventually Takashi speaks up as Zach does his best to continue picking the lock. "Well, they sure sound like they're having fun."
"…You wanna go have a peek? You know we're supposed to, right?" Kohta asks, a slightly perverted grin on his face, only for the other two to turn to him with surprise at his words, before Takashi flinches while Zach is quick to turn back to the locker and avoid looking at the raven haired gun-geek.
"I don't wanna die just yet." Takashi responds, Zach nodding even as he manages to get the lock to move just a bit.
"Here, here." He agrees, now moving the paperclip only the smallest of margins as he does his best to open the locker. Unfortunately, it doesn't stop the paperclip from snapping, and Zach mutters swears under his breath as he grabs another, and continues to try and open the lock in the same position, now moving the paperclip mere millimeters as he tries to get the right spot to unlock it.
"You know, we could just use your crowbar to force it open?" Takashi says, making Zach pause, before he continues to pick the lock, speaking up as he gets closer to opening it.
"We could, but since there's the chance the keys to the lockers are actually here, we can still use them if we find them, so not breaking them is preferable. This isn't a bad place, and I'm already thinking of ways to alter it a bit to make it safe for the coming months…" He mutters, as the lock finally clicks, and a grin spreads over his face as he's quick to stand, and fling the locker's door open.
The sight that greets the teens gets wide eyed surprise from Takashi even though he'd been slightly expecting it due to what the other two said, and wide grins from Zach and Kohta. Although as the second starts to geek out and celebrate over the new discovery, Zach's grin slowly slips off his face as he thinks about this more. However, he doesn't bring up his new thoughts yet as Kohta starts to laugh at their discovery.
"I just knew it!" He exclaims, a manic grin on his face at the numerous guns lined up in the locker in front of him. Meanwhile, Takashi can only look at the sight in front of him with a bit of wonder.
"So she lives here with a friend of hers, isn't that right? Who is she? Sarah Fucking Palin?" He asks in shock, while Kohta is quick to start assembling one of the guns from the locker, since they'd been placed into storage in parts to make sure they fit. Only a few seconds later, he pulled back on the pin as if chambering a round, and aimed it down at the ground, looking through the sight as he started to list the information of the gun after looking it over for only a couple seconds, the same manic grin still present on his face.
"Springfield M1A1 Super Match. It's semi-automatic. But M14 series full automatic is nothing but a waste of bullets anyways." He says, completely ignorant of the fact that Takashi was standing beside him somewhat awkwardly, attempting to speak up and get Kohta's attention to have him stop the unnecessary explanation he's giving. Zach, meanwhile, realizes that Kohta is mostly lost to them at the moment, the gun geek totally lost in the discovery of the weapons, while said gun geek continues. "I can put twenty bullets in the magazine… That's illegal in Japan. Illegal." He finishes, before giving a slightly demented chuckle at the thought.
"Hellooo? Hirano?" Takashi continues, his awkwardness still present, but also gaining a bit of worry as well as he continues to watch his fellow raven haired teen look over the guns in front of them.
"Knights SR twenty-five round- No, you can't get that in Japan. So they just completely modified am AR110!" He exclaims, looking over the new gun in his hands with a large grin. While Kohta continued to look over the guns in the second locker, Zach had moved forwards and put together the Crossbow from the first one. At the sight of it, Kohta's grin widens as he speaks up once again. "That a descendant of the bow Robin Hood used! Barnet Wildcat C5. Made in Britain. You could even kill a bear with it!" He exclaims, making Zach nod as he turns the Crossbow, looking it over from multiple angles, before he goes back into the locker for the arrows for it.
As he did this, Takashi did something similar in the other locker with a sigh, eventually pulling out a shotgun from within, and making Kohta turn in surprise, before gasping as his eyes practically lit up at the gun Takashi was holding. "That's an Ithaca M37 Riot Shotgun! It's a super sick shotgun made by Americans! It played a big part in the Vietnam War too!" He exclaims, while Takashi lowers it, and looks it over, though not as impressed as Kohta, since he wasn't all that into guns.
"I see…" He says, pumping the gun, before swinging it around a bit so that it ends up pointed at Kohta. However, Zach is quick to grab the barrel, and push it up so that it's pointed at the bedroom's ceiling instead, a serious look in his eyes.
"Takashi, never aim that at someone outside of a combat situation, even if it's unloaded. One faint squeeze of the trigger, and whoever you're pointing at will get hit by anything in the chamber, bullet or otherwise." He tells his friend, Kohta speaking up behind him.
"But, when you do point that at something… Shoot to kill." He ends seriously, both of their words making Takashi stare at them, before lowering his gaze to where his hands are holding the gun.
"Roger that." He tells them in a slightly bland voice, before his mouth twitches into a slight frown, and his voice lowers. "…I hope that's the only thing I need to point at." He mutters, the other two knowing right away that he's referring to the Biters, and getting a sigh from Zach in response.
Better to prepare them now, then wait for an actual situation like that to appear. He thinks to himself, not liking that he's going to be breaking their hopes slightly, but also realizing it's the best thing for them right now. "…Unfortunately Takashi, that's practically impossible." He says with a sigh, placing the Crossbow down so it's leaning against the side of the bed as Takashi and Kohta turn to him.
"What are you talking about?" His friend asks with more than a little annoyance and hesitation in his voice, getting a sigh from Zach as he runs a hand through his hair, trying to think of the best way to explain this to them, since he'd also have to explain it to the others downstairs as well.
"Look, you've seen what it's like out there with the Biters and such, right?" He asks them, getting nods from them in response. "Well, with the city going to shit, and the government practically saying it's not going to do anything about what happens inside these walls except give us supplies… People are going to start to break. In more ways than one." He says, his eyes flickering between the stairs, and the two in front of him. "Best examples I can think of? What happened to Takagi, and what nearly happened with you, Kohta." He says, making the raven haired teen in question look at him in slight confusion and surprise.
"Me?" He asks, pointing at himself as he asks, and getting a nod from Zach in response as the brunet continues to frown.
"Yeah. Think about it. The way that Takagi broke? She started ranting. Raving about what little she was able to hold onto from the way the world worked before the Biters showed up. Then, when she couldn't deny it anymore… She broke. She collapsed, cried, screamed. She accepted that the situation had changed, and everything was actually happening, but it upset her to the point she had to physically and vocally be upset about it for minutes on end." He explains, getting flinches from the other two as they remembered what happened to the pinkette only a couple days ago.
"I, guess that makes sense. But what does that have to do with aiming a gun at people?" Takashi asks Zach with a frown, making the brunet look at his friend with his own frown deepening, even as his eyes slightly sharpen at the question.
"I'm getting there. And it actually has to do with something similar to how Kohta was acting earlier today." He says, making Takashi raise an eyebrow in response, even as the other raven haired teen tries to think about what Zach might mean.
"You mean when he started going crazy over the gun I tossed him on the bridge?" He asks, making Zach shake his head in response.
"No, I'm talking about shortly before that, when you and Rei were still separated from us, and we were leaving the bus behind." He explains, making Kohta's eyes widen as he realizes what Zach is talking about.
"You mean when I shot and purposefully missed Shido?" He asks, making Takashi look at the other teen in surprise, only just learning about this, while Zach nods his head at the gun geek.
"Yeah. That rant you went on. Being able to kill now? Both the Biters, and actual people, mostly in regards to the ones who had fun at your expense in the past? That's gonna start coming up in other people when they realize that it's unlikely they'll actually be prosecuted for those things." He says with a frown. "It's why I stopped you. I'm sure you weren't actually gonna shoot him, at least not at that point, but I didn't want to risk either Shido or any of his followers saying something that tipped you off the deep end." He explains, before sighing as he once again runs a hand through his hair.
"The bullied and the bullies. The psychopaths and the maniacs. The people who will snap under the new events happening, and the ones who stay sane, but get desperate. All of these are people we're going to have to look out for in the coming months. Because none of them will have a problem taking the first weapon they see, and killing you with it if it means they can have fun beating you to death, or if it means that there's one less person in the Quarantine using up the resources available." He explains, getting horrified looks from the other two, and making him flinch as he realizes he might be pressing this too hard.
"That, doesn't always mean that you need to kill them though." He admits, turning to the side slightly as he says this, since he knew for certain people, killing them was the best option, usually for numerous reasons, and sometimes it was worse, and it was actually the only option. "Sometimes, you can just avoid them. Go around them if you see them and can tell they'll be trouble, or run away from them if they can't catch you, and escape. Fighting isn't always the be all end all." He explains, before sighing. "But for the ones who enjoy that? The ones that aren't desperate and do these acts purposefully? For fun? Those are the people that should be taken care of. So that they're not a threat to others." He explains.
After his explanation, the bedroom went silent for a bit as the other two thought over Zach's words, and what it meant for the group as a whole. After a few minutes, Zach turns fully to face the other two, a serious look on his face as he met both their eyes. "Which I why, I'm going to be teaching a number of people in this little group of ours, the most important rule those of us in Harran were forced to learn quickly, if we wanted to stay alive while venturing through the city if we didn't have heavy weapons or armor." He tells them, making them look at him in confusion.
"And, what's that?" Takashi asks, getting the first grin from Zach in a while since the serious conversations started.
"Climb, or die."
Approximately five minutes later, Kohta and Zach were sitting on the floor with the guns in front of them, and surrounded by the boxes of ammo they'd found. The two were loading the clips and magazines they would be using in the near future, since Zach had denied explaining the quote he had said, telling the other two he would explain it in depth at a later time when everyone in the group was together so he wouldn't have to explain it twice, like he would already have to do when it came to telling the girls about facing actual people in the future.
"Hey, will you help too, Komuro? It's a pain in the butt to put the bullets in." Kohta says, Takashi picking up a magazine from the floor, and Zach quickly taking a few seconds to show him which bullets go into it, and which way they were supposed to go. After doing so, Takashi spoke up as he started to load the magazine.
"What? Did you practice with airsoft guns?" He asks the gun geek beside him, making Kohta give a slightly self-satisfied smile at the question.
"No way. With the real ones." He reveals, surprising the other two beside him who turn to look at him with shock clear on their faces, though Zach's is quick to go away when he really thinks about how much Kohta seemed to know about guns, and how fluidly he used the makeshift one, as well as the pistol Takashi had thrown to him earlier.
"What are you saying?! You've done this before?!" Takashi exclaims, making Kohta go back to loading the bullets calmly as he explains.
"When I went to America, I was trained by this instructor, who used to work for a private military company Black Water, for a month. He's an ex-captain of Delta Force." He tells them, making Zach give a slight grin, tinted with slight envy since that sounded both awesome, and it probably would've helped him quite a bit back in Harran when he was first starting to use the pistols he found, and the few "Hellbeasts" made at the Tower… As for Takashi, he could only stare off into space in shock at the new information he'd just learned.
"Oh my God, the class nerd's a card carrying member of the NRA… I'm really glad we're on the same side." He mutters with a good amount of relief present in his voice, Zach chuckling to the side as Kohta agrees. "And if that's your secret life, what's this chick's deal? These guns are definitely illegal, aren't they?" He asks, making Zach and Kohta think about it, before the "class nerd" gives his thoughts.
"It's legal to purchase the guns in parts. But it is illegal if you put them together in this way. Whoever lives here definitely knows what they're doing. And that makes sense to me, since Ms. Shizuka said her roommate used to be in the military." Kohta explains, making Takashi frown at the explanation.
"So you can get away with anything as long as you're a cop." He says, making Kohta shrug before he continues.
"It's obvious the person isn't an ordinary citizen. An unmarried police officer usually lives in the dormitory. But to think this person is renting a room like this? Either her parents are rich, or the man she's dating is rich, or she's involved with some… Funny business." Kohta says, making Zach turn to look at him.
"That, or her job is totally legit, but Ms. Shizuka is underselling her friend's status and she's rich enough to be able to rent this place… Which I could totally see being the case, knowing that Shizuka's slightly ditzy." He admits with a light chuckle, getting a smile from Kohta in response as Takashi finishes a magazine, and decides to take a look out on the balcony to survey the area, since the magazines weren't easy to fill for him like they were the other two.
"Yeah, that's also a possibility." Kohta admits, before frowning slightly as the two hear the girls get a bit louder as they continue with their time in the bathroom, now causing the two boys to wonder what they could even be doing in there to cause all the yelling and squeals. "They should probably keep it down in there…" Kohta mutters in slight annoyance, both due to the fact that he can't try to peep, and due to what the noise could cause. However, Takashi speaks up from his place on the balcony, getting the attention of the other two.
"It's okay." He tells them, making the two turn and see him looking out towards the bridge with the binoculars they'd found. "I know the Infected respond to what they hear… But they're not hearing the girls…" He explains, making Zach stand up and walk out the doors to stand beside him, and follow his gaze, even if he can't see as far as the raven haired teen.
For a few minutes, the two simply stand out on the balcony, looking out of their safe haven at the city below. While Zach looks around the immediate street, noticing the lights on in the convenient store a couple blocks away that Shizuka mentioned, while Takashi is looking through the binoculars at the events occurring on the bridge further away. It doesn't take him long to get tired of watching the Biters rip apart people and eat them, and he shoves the binoculars into Zach's chest, the brunet quickly grabbing them before Takashi lets go and they can fall to the ground.
"I'm getting sick. Here, I've had enough." He slightly grows, upset at what he's forced to watch. Zach sighs, bringing the binoculars up to his eyes and adjusting them to see better, having practice from back in Harran on how best to use them to spot certain areas of interest. It's a mix of better, and worse, than Harran… He thinks to himself, noticing the differences between the two cities in regards to vehicles and other obstacles that would be present in streets.
Back in Harran, the main bulk of vehicles were on main roads, but there were a good number of them in the side streets as well, making them either a danger if you got your back pressed against one with one or more of the infected mere meters away, or a blessing if you were able to escape a few Biters, and climb up on top allowing you to either kick in their heads, or wait them out until they got bored if the vehicle was tall enough. Here in Tokonosu, however, the vehicles were only present in driveways, or on the main road. It almost seemed like people on the side streets didn't even try to use their vehicles. Guess that makes them smart, since backing up the side streets would be even worse for them. He thinks to himself.
A few seconds later, as he continues to survey the areas of the city he can see from his place on the balcony, his gaze is drawn to a large collection of bodies. The thing is, this one is different from the hordes of Biters, or the piles of bodies he'd seen in Harran. This one was a large crowd of living people, with a man at the front facing them. What's more, is that there was a small news crew behind the man filming whatever was happening, with a smaller crew beside a van within the crowd itself. A frown appears on Zach's face as he thinks over his options for a few seconds, before lowering the binoculars slightly in order to look over his shoulder at the two other guys in the bedroom. "Hey you guys, turn the TV back on." He tells them, getting their attention, before Takashi reaches for the remote and does as he says.
When he does, it shows the events occurring on the bridge from the view of the crew next to the van, the feed showing the man at the front of the group through a number of heads. The man in question almost seemed to look like a down on his luck, unemployed former construction worker… Though that's just the first impression Zach got from his appearance as he walks back into the room to get a better look at the events he'd been watching from further away on the balcony. Seconds after he walks back into the bedroom, the man on screen starts shouting at the crowd.
"Don't tolerate the tyranny of the police department!" He shouts as he throws a fist into the air, the crowd copying both his words, and actions not even seconds later, getting surprised and confused looks from the three watching these events. "We strongly condemn this biological weapon! This, circulation of the Tokonosu Virus developed by our government and America!" The man continues, making Zach go wide eyed at the words, before he pauses to think about it, and doesn't know whether to laugh or sigh at the man on screen, as the camera feed changes to the woman he'd seen standing behind the yelling man.
"Right now, this group, which is protesting the lock down on the bridge, has started their demonstration! As you can see, tensions here are running extremely high!" She exclaims in an attempt to be heard over the shouting of the group behind her, before holding up a sheet of paper with writing filling the entire thing. "We don't know what kind of group it is. According to the flier distributed by the group, the main focus of their protest is to condemn those who allowed this Virus to spread." She continues, making Zach scoff at her words.
"Right. Because the people around this city just let themselves get attacked and turned into Biters." He says in disbelief. "Jesus, at first I thought this guy might've been smart. But no, he's just lucky, and more like David than anything." He continues while rolling his eyes, making the other two turn to look at him.
"Smart? Lucky? What are you talking about?" Takashi asks him, making him turn to his friend, and think about answering his question since it seemed like it'd been long enough, and they were safe enough that he could answer it. Unfortunately, before he can decide, the trio's attention is brought back to the TV at the sound of a gunshot. What follows is a far off shot of a policeman shooting into the crowd of infected, and taking down what Zach assumes is a Biter, before being forced to shoot a woman after she's turned by her infected Daughter. Unfortunately, that's not the end of things.
"See what they've done?! You see?! They're killing off citizens at random! Don't tolerate the tyranny of the police!" He shouts, and the crowd once again agrees with him mere moments later, making Zach's eyes widen in surprise and shock, before narrowing as he growls at what he's watching happen, and his hand tightens into a fist, mostly ignoring the man's ramblings, and only paying attention again once the screen shows what appears to be the police captain on screen, raising his gun and aiming it between the man's eyes. Another gunshot echoes out from the TV, and the man falls dead to the ground, the police captain's gun smoking as the chants that the crowd had been giving up until now, devolve into screaming, and the news is forced to change to static due to the events shown prior.
"Oh man… This is insane." Kohta mumbles from his place leaning against the foot of the bed, Takashi beside him and Zach standing to the side.
"Holy shit…" The second raven haired teen says, raising the remote to shut off the TV, before just staring at the blank screen for a few seconds, and then speaking up again. "We need to get the fuck outta here." He says, making Zach immediately bring his attention to his friend.
"Hell, no." He says, with such emphasis behind it that the other two turn to face him. "Takashi, this is honestly one of the safest places we can be right now. Both from the Biters, and to an extent, other people that have already snapped." He says, turning a bit to look out the glass door and pass the balcony. "The high fences will keep out the zombies for the most part, as long as we avoid making any loud noises. Being this high up also gives us a good vantage point, and makes it easy to spot anyone who might try to do anything." He continues, before lowering his head.
"Unfortunately, it's not the best it could be at the moment… It's gonna take me a bit of work, but our best bet is to stay here for a few days." He tells them, turning around to face them. "Given the time, I could make this into a Safe Zone for us. Not exactly a place to stay for the entire Quarantine, but a place we can return to in order to rest on the occasional night if we're nearby." He tells them, making the two share a glance, before looking back at him.
"Why night? And why would we come back in the first place if we found a better place?" Kohta asks, making Zach sigh as he walks over towards them, and sits on the end of the bed so that the two are sitting against the foot of the bed on either side of him.
"I'll admit I'm getting kinda tired of saying this, and you guys are probably getting tired of hearing this, but I'll explain it later when we're all together… Honestly, I think I'll just see about explaining everything I can think of in depth when we're all together so that I can get everything out of the way, and explain it all at once to you guys. With that being the case, I'll probably do it tomorrow. With how this place seems to be, we should have enough food and other stuff to last us a few days. So taking tomorrow to explain everything I can probably isn't a bad idea." He tells them, getting an agreeing nod from Kohta, while Takashi thinks about his words.
"Makes sense, I guess." He mutters, turning his attention back to the TV in order to think more on what he'd just watched, and what Zach was just talking about. Meanwhile, Kohta turns his attention to the guns lying on the floor in front of him, not geeking out over them, but now thinking about how they'd be used in the near future. Meanwhile, Zach, was trying to think about what he'd need to do to make this place an actual Safe Zone for the coming months, as well as trying to figure out what he should explain to the group the following day.
However, the trio isn't given long to dwell on these thoughts, as they're quickly distracted by something else occurring less than a minute after silence fell. And it starts with Zach feeling arms suddenly wrap around his neck, and a large, soft object being pressed against the side of his head, while the sound of giggling echoes in his ear. He's quick to discover that the object in question is, in fact, one of Shizuka's breasts, which is only just barely covered by the towel she's wearing. Said towel hardly covering her modesty in the first place.
Fortunately for Zach, he's quick to realize this, and react in time to stop the blonde's hand from moving further down his body than his stomach, already knowing where she was reaching, though slightly confused, and more than a little flustered at the fact that she was in the first place. However, he's unprepared for the fact that by stopping her, she's quick to turn her head and give him a fairly heavy kiss on his cheek, making his cheeks burn bright red in response to her action.
Oh, it'd be a lie to say that Zach had never taken a look at Shizuka and seen her as a woman, aside from just being the school nurse and his therapist. The fact that up till now he hadn't really been thinking of getting with anyone had made it so his feelings never really went beyond perhaps a small physical attraction. That being said, her current actions were throwing his thoughts into a disarray.
As a result, his first reaction was brought about by his time in Harran, but much less violent due to his mind still acknowledging that it was Shizuka who was doing this to him, and not a Biter or Looter attacking him. As a result, instead of snapping her neck back like he would an attacker, his hands instead come up in order to simply push her away from him so he can get his thoughts back in order. Unfortunately, he wasn't exactly paying attention to how he pushed her back, and as a result, both his hands grasp onto soft, pillowy mounds. Only a few moments later, he can hear Shizuka give off a moan of pleasure brought about by his actions.
The moan causes Zach's mind to go blank and then quickly return to normal, causing him to let go of Shizuka's breasts, and turn to face the TV, where he can see his own face in the reflection, and the red obviously present in them, as well as Shizuka holding her breasts behind him. At the same time, he ignores Takashi's face of confusion and surprise, and the fact that Kohta's now standing a couple meters away from him, staring at the blonde in shock at her actions. "S-sorry about that Ms. Shizuka!" He exclaims, though in a lower voice than actually yelling. Unfortunately, this doesn't seem to dissuade the blonde, as he's quick to realize when he sees her get close to him once again, and her hands wrap around his midsection, with her breasts pressed against the back of his head.
"Oh, come on. I didn't mind Zachy." She tells him with a light tone, before lowering her head and giving him another kiss on the same spot as before, making Zach almost certain that steam was rising from his head by this point. "We've gotten to know each other so well during our sessions." She tells him, and at this point, Zach is almost certain that he could hear a slightly sensual note enter her voice, utterly flooring him. Fortunately for the brunet, Kohta gives a choked gasp at the blonde's words, getting her attention and making her raise her head to look at where the sound came from. At the sight of Kohta, she gives a light giggle, before turning to make her way towards the raven haired teen. "Come to darling." She tells him.
In response, Kohta raises a hand in surprise, a goofy smile on his face, no doubt caused by the fact that her towel doesn't cover much, and her crawling towards him gave him a clear view of her cleavage. "Me? Darling, me?" He asks, turning slightly while giggling as the blonde raises up slightly once she makes her way over to him, a smile on her face.
"Good boy, good boy. So, you want a priiize?" She asks him, before planting a kiss on Kohta's cheek. Unlike Zach, however, the raven haired teen is unable to take the situation he's been put in, and blood comes gushing out of his nose, before he collapses onto his back on the carpeted floor of the bedroom. As this happens, Shizuka sits on the bed, and looks down at her "victim" with a sensual smile on her face, licking her lips a few moments later. As this happens, Zach gets up, and walks over to Shizuka, even as his cheeks remain red.
"Uh, Shizuka?" He asks, making the blonde turn her attention back to him. Her sensual smile remains on her face, and she leans towards him, her hand once again reaching for his nether regions as her other is placed on his shoulder to steady herself. While Zach doesn't stop her from keeping herself from falling, he does once again redirect her other hand, his blush still not going away due to her actions.
"Aw, are you jealous Zachy?" She asks him, her breath coming out once more in a sensual tone that has Zach's mind doing flip-flops trying to figure out what's going on, and how he should be feeling about all this. "Don't worry, it was just a kiss. I can make it up to you by doing so much more." She continues, leaning forwards to be even closer to him, and making him tense up slightly at what she's insinuating. Luckily for the brunet, his salvation comes in the form of Shizuka's face losing it's sensualness, and instead sagging slightly. "Oh… I'm, actually quite tired now… I just might pass out…" She says, and mere moments later, she starts to lean forwards once again.
However this time, it's caused by the fact that obviously, even with her hand on his shoulder, she is actually tired enough to not have the strength to keep herself up. As a result, Zach is quick to keep her from falling, and allow her to lean on him to keep her from falling to the floor. "Ahh… I'm so sleepy." She mutters into his chest. While making sure she doesn't fall, he hears the door to the balcony open, and turns to see Kohta walking out.
"You know, I could use some help here!" He yells at the raven haired teen quietly. Unfortunately, he doesn't gain any help from the gun geek as he's still too out of it to be able to help the brunet.
"Duh… I like turtles." Is the only thing Kohta can say in response to Zach's words, before he continues to walk out onto the balcony, getting a slightly annoyed sigh from the brunet in response. However, he's quick to remember his other friend, and turn to him in hopes of getting help. Unfortunately, he's out of luck as Takashi is quick to raise his hands.
"Oh, no. That's all yours bud." He says, standing up and walking around the teen to look for more useful stuff in the bedside table.
"You bastard." Zach says to his friend, though without any real heat to it as he sighs, and starts to move Shizuka around so that he can position her in such a way that he can lift her onto his back, in order to carry her to the living room downstairs. Unfortunately, it seems fate wouldn't make it that easy for him. After lifting her up by her legs, he was once again reminded of just how big and soft her breasts were, as they pressed against his back, bringing his blush flaring back to life in his cheeks. "Alright… Shizuka, I don't want to drop you, so hold on-" However, he quickly cuts himself off when he feels her breasts stop pressing against him, and can practically feel how the blonde is starting to lean back and fall to the ground, due to her sleepiness making it so that she can't follow his advice.
"Shit!" He exclaims, quickly altering his hold on her so that she won't go falling again. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on who you ask, this forced him to hold Shizuka's ass in his hands, grasping them to ensure the blonde wouldn't fall. He could hear Takashi give a choked mixture of a laugh, and gasp of surprise behind him, but ignored it when Shizuka once again gave a pleasured moan, this one going for a few seconds and not cutting off like earlier, since he was forced to continue holding her this way to keep her from falling.
"Ohh, you're touching my butt Zachy. Why didn't you just ask, you naughty boy?" She asks him, before giving him another kiss on the back of his neck, which was where his blush had spread to by this point, and he wouldn't be surprised if his entire face was red. However, luck seemed to finally be on his side, as Shizuka started to mutter instead of actually talk, and her head fell onto his shoulder, allowing the teen to give a sigh of relief, and start towards the stairway.
I… Have no idea how to feel about everything that just happened. He admits to himself, sighing once again as he gets to the stairs, before pausing at the sight of Rei standing on them in a shirt that probably belonged to the flat's tenant due to its size on her, and giving him a look of surprise at the sight in front of her, a blush on her cheeks. "…Alright, first of all… We were minding our own business." He tells her, before she can go accusing him or the other two of anything. "Shizuka just kinda… Showed up, before falling asleep. I'm going to put her in the living room." He says, Rei narrowing her eyes in response to his words, and making him worry about what might be going on in her mind at the moment…
"Heeyyy… You actually look really good in threes!" She says with a bright smile, getting a look of utter confusion from Zach, both because that definitely wasn't anywhere close to what he thought Rei might have been thinking of, and also because it was just so random. "It's just that suddenly there's a bunch of you!" She manages to say, before collapsing onto her ass, and gaining a more dazed look.
At the sight in front of him, Zach becomes more confused. However, he quickly remembers how Shizuka was acting only a short while ago, and turning his head slightly so that he can actually sniff the air near the blonde's mouth, Zach finally puts the pieces together on what happened to both the blonde and his fellow brunet, sighing as he realized that the two of them had gotten drunk. Although whether they were only slightly buzzed, or full on drunk, he wouldn't know unless he was present if they did this again. Which he was hoping wouldn't be the case until they got a more secure base so that they could be better defended if they did get full on drunk.
"Great… Now we definitely shouldn't leave until at least later tomorrow…" He mutters, thinking about the hangover these two would likely have, before looking over his shoulder back into the bedroom to see Takashi walking back into the room from the balcony after checking on Kohta. At least, that's what he assumes his friend had been doing out there. "Hey, Takashi! They're drunk! And by that, I mean Shizuka and Rei over here. Mind helping her out while I bring Shizuka downstairs?" He asks, making the raven haired teen look up, see what's happening with Rei, and nod to his friend, even as a frown shows up on his face. Zach nods back, before turning around, and making his way around the girl at the top of the stairs, and then walks down the stairs to the first floor of the flat.
It took Zach less than a minute to get to the living room, but unfortunately for Shizuka, Takagi was already asleep on a couch with the only pillow that Zach could see. As a result, the brunet looked around, and found a blanket that he could use. Setting Shizuka down, he covered her with the blanket. Letting her sleep on the soft, red rug that covered the floor, was actually better than putting her onto the couch without a pillow, since it wouldn't exactly be the best for her neck. He knew that from experience, after all.
After making sure Shizuka would be as comfortable as she could be for the night, Zach let out a sigh, hoping that Takashi could keep Rei's attention, and Takagi and Shizuka would continue sleeping until morning. Which only left… "Saeko." He mutters, though from how she's acted, he's unsure if she'd have even joined the other girls in consuming the alcoholic beverages they'd apparently found somewhere.
Shaking his head, he stands up, before deciding that he might as well get a drink and a slight snack before he starts on getting this place better set up as a Safe Zone. With that in mind, he heads to the kitchen, intent on searching the fridge and cabinets for something quick to eat. However, upon stepping into the kitchen, those thoughts quickly fled his mind as the blush from a couple minutes ago quickly returned. Although this time, he was quite certain it was a full facial blush, along with a good deal of his neck, brought upon him by the sight in front of him.
Standing in front of the stove was Saeko, but much like the other girls, her outfit had changed drastically from the school uniform. And while Shizuka was only wearing a towel after bathing, in Zach's opinion, Saeko's outfit, while a bit more modest, was even more erotic. The purplette had tied her hair into a high ponytail, and she was wearing a frilly white apron, as well as a black thong. And that was it. Zach choked on nothing at the sight, getting Saeko's attention and making her turn to face him. Seeing that it was the brunet, she gave him a small smile from her place by the stove.
"Ah, Zach. Midnight snack will be ready soon. And tomorrow's lunch as well." She tells him, making him attempt to clear his throat, and avert his eyes slightly.
"Oh, uh, cool. That's… Yeah, that's cool Saeko." He tells her, coughing a bit. The purplette notices his actions, and raises an eyebrow.
"Hm, what's wrong?" She asks him, before realizing why it was that he wasn't looking at her. "Oh, this thing? Yeah, terrible, isn't it?" She asks him, lifting the front part that covered her breasts slightly, and then letting go, allowing it to bounce slightly. "I couldn't find a size that fits me, so until I finish doing laundry, I'm wearing this. But, I guess it's a little too revealing." She says to him, making him clear his throat at her words.
"…If you want my honest opinion? It looks good on you." He admits, his blush receding only slightly as he admits this. He wasn't entirely sure why, but admitting this to Saeko was almost easier than dealing with a flirty Shizuka. In response to his words, Saeko was surprised, before giving him a smile.
"I see. Thank you, Zach." She thanks him, getting a nod from the brunet in response as his blush continues to go away now that he was slowly getting used to the sight in front of him. Although despite the blush receding, another part of him was still very much focused on her current state of dress.
"It's no problem Saeko. Although being honest, you seem to be able to pull off pretty much any outfit." He tells her, making a very slight blush appear on the purplette's cheeks at his compliment, before he coughs a bit as he walks towards the stove, and as a result, the purplette as well. "Anyways, the other two are upstairs. I think Takashi is talking to Rei, and Kohta is keeping a lookout on the balcony, so we should be safe enough for now. Especially since the Biters all seem to be congregating towards the bridge." He tells her, making Saeko give him a warm smile in response to his words as he looks over the food she's making.
"I see. You, Takashi and Hirano are looking out for us, and that's sweet." She tells him, noticing his slight blush at her words as he turns a bit and walks closer towards the cabinets, making her smile as she moves closer to him. "I want you to know how much that means to me, Zach." She tells him, leaning forwards slightly so that she's just barely leaning on him, her mouth right next to his ear. "I mean, I really want you to know. Really." She whispers to him, smiling as the brunet stiffens up in response to her words and actions.
What she didn't realize however, was the affect she had on Zach at that moment. He'd spent the past couple days facing the hordes, getting to know the purplette to the point of being closer to her than the others sans Takashi and Shizuka, facing another horde, and then finally getting to a relatively safe area, only to then be hit numerous times over the course of maybe five minutes by numerous scenes and events that had his hormones running on high. Saeko's actions in this moment were the tipping point for Zach, and the small voice that had been in the back of his head for close to a day now after meeting the girl, managed to shout louder and make itself heard.
The purplette was shocked when she suddenly found herself against the counter in the kitchen, the brunet she'd been lightly teasing only seconds ago holding her there while he met her eyes with his own. For a split second, her sight flashed back to that scene from all those years ago, back in the alleyway where she'd discovered her true self, before returning to the current situation when she was able to tell the two instances apart. For one, Zach wasn't that much bigger than her, only a few centimeters at most, instead of the meter or so distance from that time. Also, his grip, while firm, was not tight around her arms. And unlike that man in the alleyway, he wasn't looking at her lustfully like she was a piece of meat.
Oh, she could see the lust in his eyes, and was quite a bit surprised at the sight since they'd only known each other for a little over a day. But that wasn't the only emotion present in his eyes. There was also something else, and while she wasn't exactly the best at reading someone through their eyes, she got the feeling that the look he was giving her was a way of letting her know that her words had got his attention focused on her. She's broken out of her thoughts a few seconds later when he speaks up, making her pay attention to him as he speaks to her while continuing to look her in the eyes.
"Saeko… Your words, actions and current state of dress are all affecting me in numerous ways right now. Not helped by the fact that I was just teased by a slightly drunken, flirty Shizuka. I am on a razor thin edge right now of doing something I might regret, and am only holding back due to the fact that I don't want to wrongly assume something, and end up hurting you, or both of us." He tells her, his eyes leaving hers for a moment to roam over her body, before returning to her eyes once again, though she could see the desire in them just a bit clearer now. "So tell me… Do you really, want me to know?" He asks, his voice lowering just a bit, so it was a whisper as he leaned in slightly closer to her.
Saeko thought on his words, as well as her previous actions from a few moments ago. And then, she thought about what she'd learned about Zach over the past couple days. His personality, his actions, what she'd managed to learn about his history, as well as his overall appearance. And then, she thought about their current situation. Zombies roaming the streets, the city quarantined from the rest of the world, and the need to fight for their lives likely to happen every day for the next number of months, where every day could be their last. And thinking on all this, Zach's words to her, and what they meant…
"…Yes, Zach." She whispers, leaning forwards a bit as well so that she could stare into his eyes with her own, both of them smoldering slightly as they stared at one another. "I really, want you to know." She whispers to him. And that was enough. Zach leaned forwards, and captured the purplette's lips with his own, causing Saeko to reach up and put her hands on the back of his head to pull his head closer to hers so that she could deepen the kiss. It only lasted for a few seconds before the two parted, but it was a deep, hungry kiss that they shared, driven by their new attraction for one another, and the fact that it could very well be their first, and only, kiss in the Outbreak they were stuck in.
Catching their breath, the two shared a smile, before Zach leaned in and gave her another kiss, this one less hungry, and also slightly quicker, before he pulled back. "Well, alright then." He whispers, breathing a bit deeper due to their previous action. "Guess that settles that." He continues, placing his forehead against hers, making the purplette give him a small smile in response. "So, seeing as this happened over the course of a couple days… Work it out as we go along?" He asks her, getting a light laugh from Saeko in response.
"Yes, I suppose that would be the best option." She admits. The both of them realizing just how fast this seemed to be going, but considering how different their current situation was compared to just two days ago when they were still in school, and likely would've had all the time in the world to get to know each other at a normal pace, and not have to worry about their lives ending each day, they both figured this wasn't all that surprising.
Hell, it might be almost twice as fast, but Crane and Jade ended up having a thing for one another after… What? Less than a week? Zach asks himself, though flinches slightly at the thought of "The Scorpion". …I blame teenage hormones for this going quicker. He mentally grumbles, before being brought back to the current times as Saeko places a kiss on his cheek, giving him a small smile after doing so while separating from him and going back to the stove, speaking to him over her shoulder as she does so.
"Well, I need to continue making our food. I suppose you should go back to looking out for us. I'll let you all know when the food is ready." She tells him, making the brunet chuckle at her words as he nods, walking towards the kitchen's exit as he does so.
"Fair point, Saeko. I guess I should get started on making this place an actual Safe Zone then." He tells her as he continues walking. However, since he needed to pass her to leave the kitchen, he decides to surprise her one last time, and grab her chin, before turning her head to face his and give her another deep kiss, the purplette returning it after a few moments. Separating from his new lover/girlfriend, Zach gives her a smile. "I'll see you in a bit." He tells her, making Saeko give him a small laugh as she turns back to the stove, and the brunet exits the kitchen, intent on searching through the flat for items and such that he could use to make it a better Safe Zone than it currently is.
Author's Note Part 2: Right! That's it for this chapter, but I think I covered a good deal in it. And, got through everything in the sixth episode except for the after credits scene, which I'll be adding to a later chapter. For now, I'll start this Author's Note by touching upon the numerous changes I've made to canon, as well as the scene I put in there at the end.
- The reveal that Zere is still alive:
So I've hinted at this a bit in earlier chapters in a few different ways, but in this one, I'm outright telling you guys that as a result of the situation in The Pit going slightly differently, Zere lived through the events, joined Camden in his lab, and with two heads working together, a "cure" was actually made for the infected people in Harran, who had yet to reach the Viral stage.
- Zach lockpicking the lockers, instead of breaking them open:
So, pulling from the game once again, Zach lockpicks the lockers that Rika has, instead of using the crowbar to pry them open. As stated in the chapter, this is because he knows how to, and because it will allow the lockers to actually be used in the Safe Zone once they find the key.
- Zach's explanation on the people they'll have to face:
So, having gone through Harran, Zach decides it's best to get it out of the way quickly that Takashi's wish isn't exactly gonna come true, for numerous reasons. They will have to fight actual human beings in the near future, for multiple different reasons, and unlike with Biters, the group won't be given time to have hesitation, since unlike the zombies, people can run at you.
He tries to break it to them a bit softer, but is still a bit blunt at times with his explanation. He's not exactly the best at explaining this stuff in a nice way, since back in Harran it was much better to just be blunt about it after the first month or so stuck in the city.
- The "Hellbeast" being a thing that was used back in Harran:
Right, so this is more a passing comment, but also builds a bit more upon the weapons from "DLC's" that will be included in numerous ways. The Hellbeast will not actually be showing up in Tokonosu City for this story as far as I'm aware at the moment, since Zach, while knowing it's a thing and what it's technically made of, does not have the knowledge on how to make it, without it blowing up in his hands.
- Zach stressing more than Kohta that they should stay in the flat, and make it better defendable:
So, this is gonna end up being the other big change, and while it didn't happen this chapter, I'll be taking next chapter to have him start, as well as explain numerous things to the group at large. Unlike when they were forced to completely flee the flat like in canon, Zach has the knowledge to make it into a Safe Zone. So, instead of breaking out and allowing the zombies to flood the inside after they leave, Rika's house will remain a place they can return to for rest, and restocking supplies after it becomes a proper Safe Zone.
- Zach being Shizuka's target, and not Takashi:
First of all, I want to get out of the way that despite this scene occurring, there's not gonna be too much that actually comes out of it. Saeko is still very much the main pairing in this story, and Shizuka will not be joining her in a double pairing with Zach.
That being said, this change occurred due to the fact that what Shizuka said in her drunken state was true in certain ways. The two know each other fairly well from their therapy sessions, and it would be a lie to say that Shizuka wouldn't be on board with getting with him, or having sex with him, even when not drunk. Just look at how perverted she is even when she's not drunk. However, the main reason I won't be including her as a pairing, or a "fling" for Zach in this story at any point, despite how on board with it the blonde might be, is due to what I said in the first Author's Note of the first chapter.
I already have some plans in the works for an "Adult!HarranVeteran!OC paired with Shizuka" story. Admittadely, I'm still stuck on numerous parts of that story, hence why I hardly have any notes for it written by this point, but that one will be one where Shizuka's perverted nature is plain to see whenever it's not a serious situation. Because I can't be the only one who gets the feeling that if she was in an actual relationship, she wouldn't have qualms about being a mix of romantic, and perverted towards her partner.
- The big one that I'm sure numerous people will be on the fence about, Zach x Saeko starts here:
So, this is the scene that I'm sure I'll be getting a good deal of questions about, so I'll explain it here. While not exactly as close as people should be before starting a relationship of any sort, Zach and Saeko have started to get to know one another off screen a couple different times. So it's not like the two of them don't know anything about one another besides their appearances. They do have knowledge on each other's personalities and such.
Also, as stated in the chapter itself, the driving force behind this happening quicker than it would otherwise, is also brought on by the situation they're stuck in. The Quarantine has the very real threat of ending any of their lives at any point. (Though not exactly for the story itself, since I'm not really one to write unscripted character death… Sorry for all of you who wanted that part to be a bit more "realistic".) I mean, I mentioned it, but think about Crane and Jade. It was, pretty damn obvious that despite knowing each other for maybe a few days (longer if you include doing all those side quests), the two had a thing for one another in the game.
Now, add in teenage hormones, facing off against actual hordes a few different times over the past couple days ramping up the adrenaline and such, the bathroom scene and what Saeko went through during it, and then Zach becoming the focus of Shizuka mere minutes beforehand, and all of that mixes up in a cocktail that ends with the pent up emotions and hormones releasing themselves in a way that works off the bits of emotion the two already have towards one another.
Is it still pretty fast? Absolutely. But I also figured that these were all valid reasons for this to occur at this point. Hell, sometimes, this happens even quicker in published works and movies, so it happening here in a fanfiction isn't too much of a stretch, I don't think.
And, that's all the changes I can think of mentioning for this chapter. Jeez, these just keep getting longer and longer, don't they? Unfortunately, that probably won't be the case for the next one. The events will be almost entirely original, so I won't be pulling from the anime for it. As a result, it will probably take a bit longer to get out, and it'll have a much shorter word count as well probably. Just to forewarn you guys.
But, all this being said, I suppose I should get to the reviews from the previous chapter!
NazgulBelserion: Thanks a bunch! I've been trying to, though in this case, it's more of a "Biter" Outbreak, since Virals aren't actually a thing for a few different reasons here. Unless you were talking about Zach's explanations about what went down in Harran. As for Takagi not screaming, that's mostly brought about by the fact that Zach is able to make it so the situations where she does scream don't happen at all.
Granted, this won't happen all the time, and she'll still end up screaming and such in the future, but he will be among the ones to remind her that she was the one to discover they work off sound, and yet she's the one who's yelling most of the time.
Calderoneric758: In regards to the Fallout 76 portion of your review… I'll admit that I can't exactly answer that. Not because of spoilers or anything like that, but because I haven't actually played, or seen anything of the game at this time. I think I get what you mean, and that it's similar to Fallout 4, but in this case… That's kinda up in the air for the moment. I'm still not sure if I'll be following the Manga more closely, or any direction that DL2 goes after it's released. So, at the moment, I'm not entirely sure. Sorry about not being able to give a more coherent answer.
As for the OVA… I'll admit, that's kinda up in the air for me at the moment. I have plans for the story just before the Hiatus this will go on until DL2 is released, and depending on how things go, the OVA might not even occur. However, if it does, then yes, it will most definitely be built upon when it happens.
Pyrojack25: Yup! Night two has started, and already things have started to change, and become a little crazy for the group! As for the zombies, I'm glad you enjoyed my little take on those differences and such.
As for creating the Safe Zone, that will be expanded upon in the next chapter, so you can look forwards to that. And in regards to guns… Well, that's kinda up in the air at the moment, especially since I'm pulling from the anime in regards to that, and not real life. Already, we see numerous people using firearms in the anime, even when they don't look like they should have them in the first place. So I can only assume they were found and looted fairly early on. But, I'll probably try to expand upon that a little in the coming chapters.
DivineWhiskey: Well, the normal Biters and such don't actually have the UV weakness, the more Uncommon Infected and Nocturnal Infected, however…
Tactical-Magician (Ch.1): Thanks a bunch! And I'll be doing my best!
Guest: Well, as stated, I won't actually be pairing her with Zach, since I have another story in the works that you'll probably enjoy more, since she is the pairing in it. But I'll admit, I decided to alter that little scene earlier due to your comment, so I hope you enjoyed it. There might be a couple others like it in the future as well…
Kept123: No problem! Glad you enjoyed it!
Dcraus (Ch.1): Another story suggestion? Well, this time is a bit more believable, but one that would still take me a while to actually start if I ever did. I still haven't finished RoTSH, and in regards to Grand Order, I'm only a few levels into Orleans… But, I'll at least keep this in mind for the future.
Adam110902: Thanks!
Wendel Santana: Well, here's the next chapter for you!
And that's it! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, I certainly had fun writing it all. I hope to see you all in the next chapter, which will hopefully be just as enjoyable to write and read as this one!