Let's see how this chapter turns out...

~Miki

Wheezing.

It wasn't coming from Iza or Mei. It wasn't even coming from Aria. But it was there.

Wheezing.

Footsteps, slow and heavy, accompanied the wheezes. Aria's eyes slowly opened, the dim light of dawn poking in through the window, barely illuminating the room. Where were they? She blinked, then closed her eyes. That was right; they were in a house where none of 'them' could reach the survivors.

But the wheezing sounded so familiar...

A scream, loud and high. It wasn't from her room, but it sounded so close. Her eyes flew open, suddenly alert, and she froze upon sighting the source of the wheezing. It was one of 'them'. But how? They were on a big hill that required access via a ladder – a tall one at that! How?

A hand landed over her mouth, barely stifling the gasp that Aria made upon the contact. She slowly turned her head, trying not to make any noise to alert the thing beside the bed, and met the blue eyes of Iza. She wasn't smiling like she always was, nor was she calm. She was scared, worried.

Iza removed her hand and crawled back to Mei's side of the bed, beckoning Aria toward her. The girl lowered her feet over the edge, her shoeless feet softly hitting the floor without even a sound, and she crouched down. Aria followed, sliding along the mattress in hopes of not giving 'them' something to eat, and waited for Iza to show her what to do next. The other girl raised a finger to her lips, making a shushing gesture, and then laid down on her back, sliding herself under the bed. The moment she was gone from sight, Aria copied. Under the bed were both Iza and Mei, equally anxious looks on their faces as the footsteps of 'them' journeyed around the room.

More screams, all of them reaching the room. Aria tried to block them out, but the sound of blood hitting solid wall and skin tearing harshly was too much for her. Against her will, her hands began to tremble, the shaking travelling up her arms until she was shivering as though she had a fever. Iza's hand landed on hers, clasping it tightly. It wasn't just Aria who was trembling.

'Their' footsteps had made it to her side, walking the length of the bed until 'they' collided with the wall, knocking the lamp on the bedside table onto the ground. The light bulb and porcelain base shattered, a flash of light hitting their eyes as two of the girls cringed away, their trembles escalating.

What was happening? How had 'they' gotten inside? Could 'they' climb walls, all of a sudden? And what about the rest of their group? The boys? And the other girls? Why wasn't someone roaming the halls, keeping watch of any of 'them' getting inside? Hell, why weren't they killing the damn pricks?

Pricks, she thought cruelly. Sounds like you're more angry than scared, Carrot.

Please, don't start this now...

Iza's grip tightened on her hand. Aria had no doubt she was holding on to Mei, too.

Another scream, this time closer to their room. 'Their' feet moved away from the bed, twisting around to face their owner toward the room's door. 'They' began to walk toward the door, wheezing as 'they' did so, and finally leaving the room in search of the source of the scream.

Aria leaned over to Iza, bringing her head close to the girl's ear. "My weapons are on Mei's side," she whispered as silently as she could. "Pass them to me. Please," she added, remembering Iza's demand for manners.

The snowy-haired girl nodded, tilting her head to Mei and relaying Aria's wish to her friend. Although she could not see her, Aria knew Mei was reaching over for her sword and dagger. Iza's hand left Aria's for a second, reaching over in the limited space the mattress offered, and finally the jian was handed to the carrot-top. Just as Iza was about to hand Aria her dagger, Aria whispered, "Hold on to it. I might not make it back."

Iza's eyes widened, worry gone and fear only remaining. Mei lifted her head, half of her face shown from where she was.

"Are you fucking insane?" she whisper-yelled. "Are you trying to be a fucking hero? You may look crazy, but you're fucking stupid if you're going out there!"

She simply ignored Mei, pushing herself out and pulling her arm away from Iza, who tried to grab onto it in hopes of keeping Aria hidden. Aria gave them a reassuring smile and stood, holding her sword firmly in her hands. A small clinking sound came from her blade hitting the scabbard. Her damn hands couldn't stop trembling.

I will not die here, she ordered herself. I'll be damned if I die here, before I even get a frigging chance to see my family again!

A firm frown found its way onto her face as her feet slowly moved her in the direction of the door, one silent step at a time. She wasn't paying much attention to the room's details, but she knew one thing was for sure: Mei and Iza's weapons weren't in the room anymore.

The axe, which had previously been propped against the bedside table, was gone. Iza's sword, which had been right next to Mei's axe, was also gone. Aria had no doubt that Iza was smart enough to not fire her pistols in a house with 'them' in it.

If you do end up dying, Carrot, her annoying voice chimed, then perhaps it would be fair that I sing the song you wanted at your funeral – you know, the song you absolutely adored and demanded it be played if you died at a young age?

I swear, if you start to sing Oranges and Lemons, I will commit suicide and take you down with me. Fuck-knuckle, she added with distaste.

Funny – I'm not offended. And believe me, I find the song undesirable to sing, just like you do. I was thinking something along the lines of This Is War?

Aria's frown deepened as she left the room, pissed off at the irony she was pinning onto herself. Really, a song about war during the fight for her life? It may have been fitting, but it wasn't the best of times to be hearing it – in her head or otherwise.

She was left in silence as she spotted a couple of 'them' pacing the hall, wheezing and walking loudly as they bumped each other and walked into other rooms. Aria gulped and sucked in a deep breath, no longer trembling but still full of the fear and doubt she left the room with. Who was she kidding? She couldn't fight this many of 'them'!

Yes, you can, she reminded herself. You got into Kit's house, you killed the guy that bit Yomi, and you even killed a human being that was about to turn. What's a couple of freaks compared to those?

Everything, it seemed. She had help to get into Kit's house, she didn't kill the man in time to save Yomi and her mother from a similar fate, and she ended up committing murder when it came to Wendy's brother.

Nevertheless, her feet willed her to move. She slowly drew her sword and set her sights on the one closest to her – the one that had just left her room. The doors to every room were open, blood in each one save for a few. She knew those few were the rooms of people who knew what to do – like the rest of their group, for instance.

Movement from a room beside her. She jumped, turning to it and spotting none other than Roberto and Alec walking out of their room, Freddy and Jun still inside and remaining quiet. Both Roberto and Alec had their swords drawn, standing to Aria's sides as Freddy crept out of the room with Jun behind him, clinging to his jacket as Freddy led him into the room across from them. Aria guessed they were going there to get Iza and Mei.

One of 'them' was violently thrown out of a room, crashing into a wall and leaving a long line of red along it as 'they' slid down lifelessly. Well, 'they' were already dead... Either way, it didn't get back up.

The girl from earlier that morning – the one that followed Aria around before she left for bed – walked out of the room that 'they' had been thrown out of, a tall blonde woman behind her. The older girl's blue eyes met Aria's lilac before she drew her sword and attacked another of 'them'. She was like a blur, moving quickly and efficiently, getting the job done quicker than Aria thought possible. The three teenagers watched in awe as she took down three more in a matter of seconds. 'They' all fell to the ground silently, deader than before.

The girl looked to the three staring at her, and then smiled as she turned to the blonde woman.

"Follow me, Ms Marikawa," she said kindly. As the blonde woman followed her down the hall, the teens snapped out of their stare and glanced at each other, unsure of how to respond from what they just saw.

"Well," Alec said quietly. "That was entertaining."

Aria punched his shoulder, now annoyed with her rude awakening via zombie, and stormed off into her room, catching sight of Iza and Mei climbing out from under the bed. Freddy and Jun were at the end of the bed, waiting for them.

"Tell me this is a fucking joke," Mei growled, crossing her arms in front of her. "I swear, if someone dressed them-fucking-selves up like a zom-fucking-bee, I will fuck them up."

"Four uses of the word 'fuck' in one sentence," Aria observed. "You must be pissed."

"No fucking shit!"

Iza let out a breath of relief as she dashed over to Aria, angry. "Are you insane?" she growled. "You could've died!"

"Who could've died?"

They all turned around, surprised by the new voice in the room, and let out a breath each when they realised that the remaining three people in their group were walking into the room. Sora's walk was quicker than the younger girls' as she hurried over to them.

"Seriously, who?" she demanded. "And how?"

Mei pouted, glaring at Aria. "Schizo decided to go and be a hero and sneak out from hiding," she growled. "She's a fucking moron for doing it!"

"I was the only one with my weapons still in the room," Aria defended. "On top of that, I left my dagger with you in case I did die. Honestly, I was arguing with myself over this topic."

Roberto smiled at that. He said, "At least she's still alive, yeah?"

"Yep," Alec agreed, ruffling Aria's hair. She tried to smooth it back down, and then gasped when she realised at least half of the left side was sticking up. This was not her morning...

Iza sighed and nodded. "You're right," she admitted. She held out her hand, in which was Aria's dagger, and smiled. "Here," she added. Aria took it thankfully and tucked it away in its usual spot, wedged into a belt loop.

The group was silent for a moment, suddenly remembering that some of 'them' were inside the house (somehow, which had them all perplexed). They all glanced at each other, quizzical expressions on all their faces. Finally, Wendy smiled in realisation.

"We split off into groups," she whispered. "Leave one group here – to defend the fort, I guess – and two groups go off on a sort of hunt."

It was Iza's turn to smile, a plan forming. "I get it," she said slowly. "We have two teams go out and pick off 'them' while one team stays here in case none of us comes back. Although, the big question is who goes? Most of our weapons are missing."

"Say what?" Kit and Wendy gasped, eyes wide and jaws dropping.

Alec narrowed his eyes, glancing at the door before walking over to close it. He shut it silently and leaned against it, taking the cigarette out of his mouth and twirling it between his fingers. "I think I get it, now," he muttered. The whole group turned to him curious. He glanced up, briefly meeting everyone's eyes. "Our weapons are gone, save for the ones we either hid or kept on our person, and our doors were opened. I know for a fact that I closed our door when I came back into the room."

"After you went to get something to eat," Aria supplied.

He nodded. "And I heard you close your door, plus Sora went to bed with the younger girls just as us guys were deciding who was sleeping where. I saw her close her door. If that's not enough, none of 'them' should be able to get in here..."

"So this shit is deliberate?" Mei scoffed. "Why the fuck would you think that?"

It all made sense, if Aria thought about it. The guy with the piercings was pissed about more people staying at the place, Harold was quick to leave, and the trailers outside were covered with scratches and blood. What other way could they be connected, aside from the possibility that the trailers belonged to the guy that built the place, who could've secretly been a homicidal maniac?

"There's too many people here," Aria deducted. "They want us to 'earn our keep'. Prove to them that we can handle ourselves and survive."

Kit frowned. "But without some of our weapons?" she muttered. "That doesn't really make sense."

"It does, actually," Freddy corrected. "They want us to adapt – use our surroundings for either fight or flight."

Alec grinned. "Smart kid," he commented. He stuck the cigarette back in his mouth, which caused Wendy to frown and stare at it. "We're being tested, guys," he announced. "At least it's not a written one."

"Lame," Mei growled, "but also true."

Now it was Sora's turn to speak. "How would they have gotten 'them' up here in the first place?" she questioned. "Where would 'they' have been held?"

"That is a good question, my dear Watson," Aria muttered. "How, indeed?"

Mei groaned and flopped onto the bed. "Enough chit-chat," she complained. "Let's do something that's pro-fucking-ductive."

They were – figuring out what was going on was productive. Sort of. Taking action after figuring the stuff out probably made it seem more productive. But not as much as the doing part of the plan.

Alec had a plotting expression on his face while Aria glanced around the room, waiting for him to make a decision. The room only held one window, which was starting to show more of the light from outside. She grinned as a sudden plan came to mind, even if it was stupid.

"Screw fighting our way out," she told them, walking to the window. "Why not just go with flight?"

"Don't be a wimp," he called. "I'll catch you."

She gave him a glare. "Forgive me if I don't trust you to do that, Alexander," Aria growled. "I'm not small like Wendy and Kit, you know."

Alec sighed, glancing around at the crowd of survivors watching them. There she was, sitting on the windowsill and getting ready to jump, and she wasn't even seeing her own plan through.

"This is stupid," he grumbled to himself. He turned his attention back to Aria. "You're roughly the same height as Mei, Iza, and Sora. I caught them, they're not dead. Now just fucking jump so we can get this over with."

A blonde survivor walked forward, his eyes narrowed in thought. "If she keeps shouting, 'they'll' get to her," he advised. That only made Alec frown.

"Damn it, Carrots!" he commanded. "Get your ass down here before I come up!"

"Don't call me Carrots, bed head!" Aria paused. "And my nickname isn't a plural!"

A crash came from the room, causing Aria to jump – although, whether she planned to jump out of the room or jump from shock was unclear. Either way, down she went.

She landed on the blonde boy with a crash, knocking them both to the ground with groans. The carrot-top quickly got off of him, rubbing her arm and frowning. The boy slowly got to his feet, his cheeks a little red from the embarrassment of being squished by a girl smaller than him.

"That was painful," he groaned, hand flying to his head and rubbing a particular spot. Aria didn't seem to hear him, her attention focused on something else. Alec's eyes followed her sight, spotting their good friends Jason and Harold.

"You sons of bitches!" Aria suddenly yelled, storming over to them. Just as she was about to reach for her sword, the girl from earlier appeared beside her, hand snatching Aria's arm. Aria didn't break eye contact with Harold or Jason, but still tried to yank her hand free of the older girl's grip.

"That's enough, Aria," the older girl said. "Give them a chance to explain."

"What's to explain?" Aria snapped at her. Pure rage was painted on her face – it was a side to her Alec didn't think he'd see. "They set loose some of 'them'! They tried to kill us! What's to explain?"

Everyone around them was quiet, save for the one person they never expected to agree with the carrot-top.

"Schizo's got a fucking point," Mei growled. "Make us earn our fucking keep? Puh-fucking-thetic." Mei nodded to the older girl, smiling cruelly. "Let her go – these asses deserve it."

The guy with the piercings and tattoos walked forward, standing in front of Jason and Harold as the two took steps back. His eyes scanned the teenagers' faces lazily, and then he suddenly smiled. It wasn't a pleasant sort of smile. No, it was the kind of smile you'd get out of a serial killer who figured out a new way of getting a job done.

"Congratulations," he told them. "You've earned your keep. You survived out of those who were given a man-eater, which means you're allowed to stay."

Aria scoffed, her stance relaxing and her arms releasing her sword. "Given a man-eater?" she demanded. "That means you guys didn't subject yourself to this."

"But of course," Jason piped up. "How else would we lock all the doors?"

Screams came from inside the house, causing the girls to jump and the guys to snap their attention to the windows. It was different from before. Instead of closed windows and almost no way of seeing in, there were people trying to get out with 'them' attached to them. One man was hanging out of his window, pain contorting his face as a blue-haired woman gnawed his at arm and torso. Alec watched with interest, wondering what would happen.

"Help me!" he was shouting. "Shoot it! Please, shoot it!"

With a shrug, Alec glanced at Kit. She was watching, horrified, and had her mouth covered by her hands. Her skin was pale, like she'd seen a ghost.

"Kit," he said quietly. "Can I borrow your Pardini?"

Kit blinked in confusion, realising where she was, and handed the gun to him wordlessly. Alec nodded and thank you and turned back to the house. The man was still screaming in agony as the woman made her way up to his through.

"Help!" he shrieked. Alec frowned and held the gun out, aiming it at them. He kept it steady for a second, watching them carefully, and then pull the trigger. A silenced bang came from the Pardini, and the man was cut off mid-shriek. His body went limp, the woman still biting at him. Alec handed the gun back to Kit, proud of his aim.

Aria's jaw dropped while her eyes widened, everything going in slow motion. She no longer wanted to tear apart Jason and Harold, or even Tat Man. She didn't want to reason with anyone or watch the house. All she could think was, Did Alec just shoot him?

Slow clapping came from Tat Man, a smile in his voice as he praised her companion. "Excellent work – Alexander, was it? You've just proved our method right. We are all survivors. We are willing to sacrifice our fellow man for the sake of living another day– No, another hour."

The light from the sky was growing brighter, the sun slowly rising for them to begin the new day. The light revealed the damage, the damage revealed their inhumanity. Blood on almost every window, about two or three cracked from people trying to open them. Some rooms had only 'them' in them, walking around aimlessly in search of something to chew.

Somehow, she thought, suicide's looking pretty good. Compared to this, at least...

A small vibration in her pocket made her jump, her mobile ringing without a tone. Aria slowly looked down at her jacket pocket, reaching in as the girl released her arm. She felt like crying when she saw the number.

Daniel Mob.

Aria panicked and forgot everything, nearly hyperventilating as she hit the answer button. Relief flooded through her when she heard her big brother's voice.

"Oh, thank God," he sighed. "You're alive."

"What about you?" she gasped. "Are you–?"

Jason strode over and snatched the phone from her, a sneer on his face. Aria's mind went into overdrive, her need to hear her brother tell her he's safe overcoming her.

"Give it back!" she shouted. She went to lunge at him and tackle him to the ground (although, how she planned to tackle a burly man like him was beyond her), but was suddenly grabbed from behind by Harold. He lifted off the ground and held her back, clamping his hand over her mouth when she tried to scream something out.

Jason inspected the phone's screen and smiled to himself, bringing it to his ear.

"Daniel?" he said in English.

His eyes went wide as the new voice came through. The men in the helicopter with him leaned in close as he switched it onto speakerphone.

"Who is this?" he asked calmly. "Where is my sister?"

"She's safe," the man assured him. "Honestly, she's strong enough to hold her own. Stop babying her, Danny."

"Who are you?"

There was a stretch of silence when Daniel asked it. The man next to him – Lieutenant Colonel Hector – frowned, listening carefully.

"My name is Jason Bäumer," the man introduced. "I'm one of the men responsible for bringing Aria to a safe house to stay at."

"The fuck it is!" Aria's voice broke through. "Gimmie back my phone!"

Daniel gritted his teeth, unsure of what was happening. "Give her the phone," he said. "Please."

Jason sighed. "Nah," he decided. "I'm going to hold onto it for a while."

"Wha–"

"Tchüss, Daniel."

Jason hung up.

Ooh, the plot thickens :D

Shout-out to XDreamKillerX for the idea of the zombie fight club. I changed it a bit (the insane morons couldn't take their weapons without waking them, unless the weapons were away from them) and made it sort of different with the whole amount of zombies. I hope it was as good as what you thought it as :D

Also, the picture has been changed to Roberto. Unlike the other characters, I gave him some colour (mainly because I had more time and a fine liner to separate the hair from the clothes) and you can just make out that one of his eyes is red if you look close enough. Next character will be Iza.