With the Eds reunited as well as Konrad explaining the current situation with his new suit, the growing group of survivors had managed to make it to the hallway where the teacher's lounge was. At that time, Principal Sato had made his discovery known to everyone else.
"So the zombies are blind, it seems," Double-D noted. "That does make sense. They seem to shamble with no purpose unless someone is close by."
"It's Zombie 101, Double-D!" Ed pointed out.
"When we get to the teacher's lounge, we should take a moment to rest," Konrad said. "Lord knows we need a break after what we've been going through for the past hour or so."
Suddenly, an ear-piercing shriek rang out from nearby, causing Eddy's eyes to widen in horror as he recognized the source.
"SAYA!"
Much to everyone's shock, Eddy began sprinting full throttle toward the place of the scream.
"EDDY, WAIT!" Double-D called out as everyone else followed after him.
The group turned a corner and saw that the situation had resolved itself already. To the left stood Takashi and Rei with a baseball bat and broken mop handle respectively. In front of them was Saya, holding an electric drill that was still spinning with the brain matter of a dead zombie still holding on to the bit, and Kohta loading a fresh rack of nails into his modified nail gun. To the right was the school nurse Shizuka Marikawa, with Saeko right beside her.
"Saeko." Konrad called out.
Hearing the voice of her boyfriend, Saeko's eyes widened at the suit he was wearing but could easily tell it was her beloved as she ran into his arms, the two sharing an embrace.
"Saya!" Eddy called out as he ran to the Takagi Scion, who was staring straight ahead with blood caking her face, unresponsive.
"Ed! Konrad!" Kohta smiled as he saw his two best friends, though he was as surprised as everyone else at the suit the latter was wearing.
"Glad to see you're all still among the living!" Matthew joked as he looked at Takashi, Rei, Saeko, and Shizuka.
"Matt-Kun!" Shizuka cheered as she glomped the older McGee, her ample breasts smothering his face.
"Can't breathe...! Gonna die happy...!"
"Marikawa-San, please release Mr. McGee before he asphyxiates." Kyoko sighed in exasperation as she pulled the nurse off him.
Rei had joined Eddy in checking on Saya, the pinkette looking to be on the verge of a complete mental shutdown. Konrad frowned behind his mask as he gestured for the teacher's lounge.
"I think introductions can wait for the moment. Everyone inside the teachers' lounge."
After checking to make sure the coast was clear, everyone headed inside. The lounge had a small couch in the middle of the room, there was a small TV in the corner of the room, file cabinets were alongside the walls, and there was even a small kitchen in another part of the room.
Double-D and Ed sat on the ground with their backs against the wall, Eddy and Takashi were talking to each other to get their minds off things, Saeko was cleaning her bokken with a towel she just found, Yuuki, Toshimi, and Misuzu sat on the couch in the room, Rei was sharpening her mop due to it almost being dull, Matthew and Kyoko were talking with Shizuka as she explained how she and Saeko managed to escape the undead, Kohta was reloading his nail gun, and Saya was cleaning herself in the small sink.
As for Konrad, he went to the back of the room and opened the locker there with the key he always kept on hand. He then grabbed his gear bag and gun case and returned to the group.
"Oh, thanks for reminding me, Konrad. Got a little present of my own." Matthew smirked as he headed into the back of the room next.
As the older McGee did that, Konrad placed his gear bag on the desk and pulled out a combat vest made of lightweight Kevlar affair that wouldn't stop any bullets but did carry all his magazines and another holster for his pistol.
"Ed, put this on. I can't exactly wear it myself now."
"Okie-Dokie!" Ed said as he was tossed the combat vest while Konrad took the magazines and holster before opening the gun case and assembling a SCAR.
"Most of you already know me. Konrad Subaru Normandy, Class 3-A, member of the Kendo Club, member of the Disciplinary Committee and boyfriend of Saeko Busujima."
Saeko just playfully smiled at Konrad, who returned it behind his mask as he went back to his task and started looping a 3-point harness to his rifle before reaching for the green dot sight/3x cope combination, installing it to the top rack. Kohta could barely stop himself from salivating at the sight.
"At least I was a student here."
"What do you mean was?" Shizuka asked.
After finishing with his SCAR, Konrad began assembling an MP5 next as he continued to speak.
"As of 1330 Japan Standard Time, I activated 'Operation: Guardian' in accordance with the rules and stipulations laid down by the local, prefectural, and national government and cross-examined by JSDF. I am now an active military agent working under US-SOCOM jurisdiction, under the command of Colonel Smith at the Okinawa base."
"Okay, but how does that explain the suit?"
"Honestly, I don't know. I heard a weird computer in my head say that it was 'Operation: Alcatraz' but-"
"It was a failsafe made by your parents in case the worst of the worst happened."
Everyone looked to see Matthew coming in, having pulled out a Colt Python 357 that belonged to his and Eddy's grandpa in his army days as well as a Winchester 220 Swift Varmint Rifle.
"A failsafe?" Konrad asked.
"Your mother works at Umbrella, right? Well, Umbrella does more than just pharmaceuticals. It also does stuff for the military as well." Matthew explained. "Your parents had worked on a tactical combat armor made of nanotechnology that could sync up to a wearer's DNA, increasing their physical characteristics and giving them a host of new abilities."
"So Konrad is some kind of comic book super soldier now?" Eddy asked.
"More or less. I don't know all the details but there was some really bad obstructive bureaucracy involving some of Umbrella's less-than-legal dealings and something that happened with your birth. Your parents killed two birds with one stone by giving you the Nanosuit when you were still a baby, making sure you were prepared in case everything went to shit...which is pretty much what's going on right now."
"I see..." Konrad hummed as his Nanosuit magnetized his SCAR across his back and holstered his pistol after topping off its magazines while attaching a silencer to the MP5. "I'll have to talk to my parents about shooting me up with nanomachines when I was only a baby when I get to them."
Konrad grabbed a diver's knife and tossed it to Kohta to use in case of emergencies, followed by a Swiss Army Knife he gave to Double-D while keeping a K-BAR fighting knife for himself.
"Anyway, suit or no suit, it is now my job to do my level best to save and protect as many students as I can. And I am authorized to do anything in my power to accomplish that goal."
"And why didn't we know about any of this?" Saya snipped angrily, having mostly recovered now.
"Honestly, I doubt we were meant to learn this much about your military connections, Konrad," Double-D admitted.
Konrad nodded. "Double-D's right. In a perfect world, you would have all graduated, blissfully ignorant of the trained killer in your midst and the deadly weapons he possessed. In fact, until the dead started standing up and eating the living, only four people in the school knew about me. The principal had to because the rule was that I had to announce to him and him alone that I was going active. He also had the authority to activate me if he thought the school was in danger."
Principal Sato nodded. "Indeed. Though I could only activate him. The real authority was his father, Colonel Lawrence Normandy."
"Only he has the authority to stand me down. A safeguard, of sorts, to ensure some rival politician couldn't harm or kidnap anyone by standing me down before word could reach the higher echelons of government." Konrad added.
Matthew chuckled. "And a little fun fact...I actually served under Konrad's old man myself. I was privy to a few secrets, even back at Mondo-a-Go-Go. It's why I also had a couple of guns stashed here as well."
"Mr. Shido knew about me because his father was the biggest opponent to me being armed in the school and tried his best politicking to have me arrested and my father removed from the country." Konrad continued. "I feel now that I'm active, he'll try even harder to make me out to be a criminal. Assuming he survives, that is."
"Kinda hoping he doesn't..." Kohta scowled as he looked away, Rei nodding in agreement.
"And the fourth and final person to know the truth about me is our lovely nurse, Ms. Marikawa, thanks to her friend Rika Minami of the Special Assault Team in the prefectural police force who helped me file the necessary paperwork to legally move the weapons here. Miss Marikawa was also kind enough to offer the use of her locker here in the lounge to store my stuff."
Shizuka giggled. "You're welcome, Kon-Kun!"
"Yeah, great you're a crazy killer cyborg super soldier from America and we're all friends now." Saya lazily twirled a finger in the air. "Go, team. Now what?"
"We need a better idea about what's going on," Takashi said and went to turn on the TV in the corner.
As everyone took some time to unwind and figure out what to do next, Eddy decided to get a drink of water and headed to the fridge, only to find something that surprised him; Saya putting on a pair of glasses.
"You wear glasses?"
Saya jumped slightly before throwing a towel at Eddy, who didn't really protest much since it didn't hurt him.
"My contacts dried up and they're aggravating to put on!"
"Oh, okay, never mind," Eddy said as he pulled the towel off his face.
"Why do you like me wearing glasses?" Saya asked while hopefully trying to make Eddy look like a fool.
"Nope."
"What?"
"It just gives me another reason to tease you."
"Why you…!"
"Ha! The great Saya Takagi can't stand a-AHHHHH!" Eddy cried as Saya tackled him to the ground.
Eddy was now on the ground with Saya on top of him. To make the situation worse, Eddy's hands were on her waist while Saya's hands were squeezing Eddy's chest.
"Now what do you have to say about me, idiot?!"
"That you are such a…!"
Before Eddy could finish, Double-D had just entered the room. He saw Eddy on the ground with Saya on top of him. Both of them look at Double-D with blushes on their faces.
"IT'S NOT WHAT YOU THINK-!"
Double-D sighed. "I'll leave you two 'lovebirds' alone."
Meanwhile, Ed noticed Takashi had a rather distant look on his face while searching through the channels on TV. Konrad noticed as well and disengaged the mask of his suit, which receded to show his face as he sat down with his cousin.
"You okay, man?"
Takashi paused for a few seconds before answering.
"No."
"What happened?" Ed asked worriedly.
"Hisashi. He got bit as we ran to the roof. He turned into one of those things and tried to bite Rei. I… I had to… to…"
"Hisashi?" Double-D gasped as he heard that. "Oh...oh no..."
As Yuuki moved to comfort her boyfriend, Ed and Konrad sat Takashi down while Kyoko took over flipping through the channels.
"Talk to us, bucko." Ed gently said.
Takashi proceeded to explain the harrowing trip to the roof, how Hisashi had gotten a walking corpse into a headlock and the damn thing broke its own neck to spin it 180° and bite him in the arm. He described Rei's close brush with death when she stabbed one of them in the chest instead of the head despite them already learning that you had to go for the head to put them down for good. He talked about barricading themselves on the roof using equipment from the Astronomy Club and the long wait for help as Hisashi got progressively worse. How Hisashi had begged for Takashi to kill him so he would stay himself. How Rei had denied reality saying Hisashi would get better, only to break down into tears when Hisashi had finally stopped moving. He explained how Hisashi's corpse rose to its feet, how he was forced to bash its head in, and the argument between him and Rei after as she accused him of being jealous.
Konrad and Ed frowned a bit at that but let him continue. He explained how the two of them made peace and left the roof. And he finished with their run-in with the others outside the teachers' lounge.
Knowing what they needed to do, Konrad helped Takashi to his feet while Ed marched his way over to Rei and dragged her over to the washroom. Konrad gently pushed Takashi into her and closed the door on them.
"Talk. Talk about Hisashi."
"Impromptu couples' therapy?" Principal Sato noted. "How very forward of you, Konrad."
Everyone then heard crying coming from the washroom and Saeko moved over to wrap her arms around Konrad. Yuuki did the same with Double-D and Ed hugged both Toshimi and Misuzu, who hugged back.
"Care for a hug as well, babe?" Matthew playfully asked Kyoko, who scoffed and pinched his nose before pushing him off.
"In your dreams."
Seemed like love was blossoming all around because Konrad could faintly hear both bathroom residents say it softly and opened the door a crack.
"Guess Miyamoto-San got everything off her chest." Principal Sato said.
Konrad nodded. "When you two are ready, feel free to join us."
He left the door cracked and took Saeko's hand as they made their way over to the TV where a newswoman was reporting on the 'killer virus'.
"Are they okay?" Kyoko asked.
"Not yet. But they're healing."
Everyone turned their attention to the TV in order to hear what had to be said.
"The government is doing its best to handle the situation. The death number in the Saitama prefecture has already reached ten thousand. The government declares a state of emergency. There are…"
The newswoman was interrupted by the sound of gunshots as the cameraman panned to the left showing some corpses in body bags sitting up only to be put down by police gunfire. Then they showed more walking dead approaching and the cameraman stumbled. The last bit of footage before the studio cut the feed was the poor bastard getting his guts eaten out by several assailants.
Matthew cursed. "I told that bitch to get a new job..."
By now, Takashi and Rei had made their way over. They still had tear tracks on their faces, but they were holding hands so that was something.
"Wow, I can't believe The Walking Dead is officially a reality now," Eddy commented.
"Now what?" Yuuki asked worriedly.
Konrad put a finger to his chin before turning to Takashi.
"You said Hisashi was bitten, and you made it to the roof before he turned right?"
He stiffened but nodded.
"And he started screaming and going into convulsions before he passed?"
Another nod. Double-D began putting the puzzle pieces together himself.
"Then whatever this virus or plague or disease is, it attacks the nervous system." The sock-hatted boy deduced before turning to Shizuka. "Miss Marikawa, can you die from overloading the nervous system?"
"Well, I didn't study much about Virology or Neuroscience, but it sounds right. Especially if you overload the neurons in the brain."
"Figures this would be easier if Konrad's Mom was with us right now..." Eddy commented.
"The point is; the bite itself doesn't kill you but once the virus hits your nervous system, the only way out is a bullet to the brain," Konrad said. "In theory, you could be spared a fate as the walking dead if you amputated the affected limb quickly enough. But a bite on the torso, neck, or head would be fatal."
"Oh!" Kyoko gasped as she smacked a fist into her hand. "So that's why the tourniquet didn't work on Mr. Teshima, the sickness was already attacking his nervous system."
"Yeah, but we didn't have all the facts at the time. So that ass was toast either way." Matthew muttered.
"So, it fries the nervous system." Saya was furiously thinking. "I think it might also burn out most of the nerves that handle most of the senses except for hearing. I don't think they can see or smell, but they come out of the woodwork when they hear anything that sounds like dinner."
Principal Sato nodded. "That is correct, Miss Takagi. One of them looked right at me, but turned away to chase after the sound of a watch alarm Mr. Normandy had set as a distraction."
"So, as long as we stay quiet, we should be okay," Toshimi noted.
"And as long as we stick together, we'll all survive!" Misuzu finished.
Kohta gave a thumbs-up. "I know for a fact we've got each other's backs!"
"Now all we need is a method of escape," Matthew spoke up.
"I have a car!" Shizuka chimed in before frowning. "But I don't think it will fit all of us."
"What about the buses?" Rei asked. "You know, the ones the coaches use when we have a competition in another school. They keep the keys here, right?"
"Yes, we do. I'll go get them." Kyoko said and hurried off, Matthew following close behind.
"Okay, we've covered transport. What next?" Eddy asked.
"Has anyone been able to call the police?" Shizuka asked. "Nobody answered when I tried to call from the infirmary, and I forgot Rika's number."
"You don't have a cell?" Saya asked.
"Not with me. I usually keep it in my car during school hours."
"Of course, you do." Saya turned to everyone ese. "Does anyone else have a way to contact the outside world?"
"I used Takashi's phone to call my dad, but he couldn't hear me. The line cut out after a few seconds." Rei answered with a tear in her eye. "I don't think cell phones are going to work."
"I think I do."
Everyone looked to Konrad before he took out a satellite radio the size of a brick cell phone from the 1980's.
"What is that?" Principal Sato asked.
"It's a direct encoded line to my dad in Okinawa."
Suddenly, Konrad tuned in on the right transmission before feeling it buzzing inside his brain.
[CONTACT LINK ESTABLISHED: COLONEL LAWRENCE NORMANDY]
"Prophet, this is Alcatraz, come in Prophet. Over."
"Prophet, Alcatraz, report. Over."
Konrad felt a wave of relief rush through him at the sound of his dad's voice still among the living while everyone was confused, unable to hear him from the transmission.
"Is...Is the radio transmission happening in his brain right now?" Eddy asked.
"The Nanosuit provides Konrad with a built-in wireless communication satellite network array!" Ed realized excitedly.
"That shouldn't be physically possible, but these are physically impossible times..." Double-D sighed.
"Guardian activated at 1330 hours. Over." Konrad reported to his father.
"Activation confirmed. One-three-three-zero hours. Sitrep. Over." Lawrence replied.
"Pack size, fifteen. Enemy, unknown. Numbers, unknown. Gear acquired. Requesting evac… Break." Konrad took a deep breath. "Enemy resembles undead. Over."
"Say again all after 'enemy'. Over."
"I say again, resembles undead. Think George Romero. Enemy seems to be blind. I say again, blind. Hunts with sound. Center mass ineffective. Headshots lethal. Over."
"Motherfucking Umbrella finally did it..." Lawrence was heard muttering before continuing. "Prophet copies all. Forces are thin. Evac unavailable. Use own means to E&E. Over."
"Rally point?"
"Okinawa base if you can. Otherwise, use best judgment and keep me posted. I can spare a pigeon. ETA five mikes to your school. Over."
"Alcatraz copies. Will report bivouac locations when I can and will keep GPS ping at three-zero mikes. Over."
"Rodger… son?"
"Yeah Dad?"
"Stay safe."
"You too Dad."
"Contact your mother."
"Got it." Konrad then closed his eyes and tuned in to the internal transmission from his Nanosuit before hearing his mother's voice.
"Konrad! Konrad, are you okay?!"
"I'm alive, Mom...Project Alcatraz...this suit..."
"I know, I activated it. All of Japan is infected but not just here, the whole world is in chaos over this mess. Just keep as many people alive as you can."
"I've got all my friends safe, Mom. We'll try to find more survivors."
"Got it. Stay safe...I love you."
"Love you too, Mom."
Konrad then turned to his friends, who all looked at him expectantly.
"So, figured out what the suit is?"
"Well, Matthew was right about it being a failsafe in case something like this happened," Konrad affirmed. "I relayed the situation to Dad and he'll be sending an ultralight solar-powered drone to keep an eye on us. I also provided him with the information we came up with here."
"I doubt the military is just gonna go drop a nuke on this area." Eddy quipped. "They want to rescue survivors, not wipe them all out."
"As assets become available, I might have the opportunity to call in support elements. An A-10 would be nice, then you'd see why America's enemies all over the world fear the BRRT." Konrad smirked.
Kohta and Eddy snickered, they plus Ed and Double-D were the only ones who got the joke.
"Be that as it may, we're on our own right now," Matthew said as he and Kyoko came back. "I think it's time we get moving. Grab whatever you think works for you and prepare for the worst."
Takashi nodded. "Then let's move. If we can make it to the busses, then we can just go to our homes and reunite with our parents that way."
"I've got the bus keys so when you are all ready, we can go," Kyoko said.
"The news is useless," Saya said, turning off the TV that had gone to static. "It's pointless to stick around here."
"I've got my medical bag so unless you've been bitten, I'll do what I can," Shizuka said.
Kohta made sure his nail gun was loaded, Saeko and Ed checked their bokken and bat, Eddy tapped his crowbar against his heel, and Double-D gulped as he readied his Swiss Army Knife. Toshimi and Misuzu picked up some hockey sticks and Matthew passed his golf club to Principal Sato.
"Take the lead Takashi," Konrad said, arranging the marching order. "Kohta, Matthew cover him. Kyoko, Shizuka, Double-D, Principal Sato, and Saya stay in the middle, and everyone else spreads into a loose circle around them. I'll take the rear. If I have to get loud then run and I'll draw their attention until you're clear, then I'll slip away from them and regroup."
"This is an effective formation," Saeko said.
"What if we find other survivors?" Toshimi asked worriedly.
Misuzu nodded. "We can't leave them."
"We save who we can, but we might not be able to save everyone," Konrad replied truthfully. "If they're bit, leave them. If they're surrounded, don't be a hero. You can't help anyone if you're dead."
"In this game of survival, that is an upsetting yet true fact..." Double-D frowned.
"If it comes down to it, we protect those that are with us right now." Principal Sato said grimly.
"Well, Konrad's got that awesome suit from his parents. I think we'll be pretty okay." Kohta said optimistically.
"Okay, weapons collected, guts clenched, nerves steeled?" Eddy asked everyone, who nodded. "Alright...LET'S DO THIS THING, PEOPLE!"
In the next chapter, our group of survivors make their triumphant escape but in the process, a sacrifice must be made to ensure the safety of everyone else. Who will be the one to lay down their life for the sake of the others? Find out in the next chapter!