Chapter 37: Hope

"Ahhh—!!!"

A scream so sharp exploded that it tore from May’s throat and split the entire battlefield.

She clutched the man in her arms, completely at a loss, only able to watch as his blood poured out like an unstoppable faucet.

"Ace?!"

Her hands shook as she tried to press against the wound, but nothing she did could stop the flow.

"Don’t... don’t cry..." Ace lifted a hand, wanting to wipe her face, yet that blood-soaked hand finally dropped powerless to the ground.

The light in his eyes was fading, one flicker at a time.

"Don’t..."

"Fuck! Ace!" Mitch’s eyes were bloodshot as he burst out from cover.

Theo reached them in a heartbeat, tore open Ace’s clothes, and stared at the wound.

"Missed the heart... by one centimeter." His voice was dry. "But the lung lobe..."

There was no hope. Everyone understood those three unspoken words.

The surrounding zombie tide, stirred into frenzy by the thick scent of blood, surged forward even harder.

Jack’s machine gun jammed. He swung the stock like a club and smashed an oncoming zombie’s skull until brains spilled. Alex leapt down from the roof, combat knife spinning in a tight, continuous wall of steel—but the zombies were endless.

Despair rose like a flood and swallowed them all.

May held the body that was slowly growing cold. Her mind was blank. She had even forgotten how to cry; only a high-pitched ringing filled her ears.

Are we going to die?

Is this... the end?

I refuse!!!

Right then—

Hummm—hummm—hummm—

A deep, massive roar rolled down from above the clouds. Every head turned upward of its own accord.

A huge military transport plane painted in olive-green camouflage tore through the thick cloud cover and appeared over them like a miracle. The bright red insignia on its fuselage—symbol of hope—stabbed straight into every pair of eyes.

A military aircraft!

"It’s... rescue!"

Mitch froze for a second, then pure survival hunger exploded in his gaze as he stared at the plane.

The brief cheer lasted less than three seconds.

More than a dozen black silhouettes launched from the roof of a nearby high-rise like precision missiles. One after another they slammed onto the transport’s wings and fuselage. Razor claws and teeth tore frantically into the thin metal skin.

"Shoot them down—now!"

Ray’s eyes nearly split with rage.

It was too late.

BOOM—!!!

The left engine of the transport erupted in a massive fireball. The aircraft tilted hard in mid-air, trailing a long stream of black smoke, and spun out of control like a giant bird with a broken wing.

In an irreversible arc, it corkscrewed straight toward the tallest half-collapsed building in the distance—the World Trade Department Store—and plummeted.

BOOM—!!!!!!

An earth-shaking explosion shook the ground. Flames and thick smoke dyed half the sky blood-red.

Hope had appeared right in front of them... and been blown to pieces right in front of them.

The thunderous blast acted like a signal. Every zombie in the area stopped attacking at the same instant, turned as one, and charged toward the source of the explosion in a mindless stampede.

A path to survival had been blasted open by pure force.

Ray’s teeth ground together with an audible crack. He glanced at the hollow-eyed May still holding Ace, then at the single remaining corridor that led toward another building.

He yanked the dying man from her arms, slung him over one shoulder, and roared at the rest like a cornered beast.

"All of you, get the fuck up!"

"Into the vehicle! Charge that building! It’s the only way out! Find a way to save him!!!!"

The pink RV became a charging beast, crushing debris under its tires as it raced toward the department store whose side now bore a massive gash from the crashed plane.

Inside the cabin, absolute silence reigned.

No one spoke. Only the uncontrolled, whistling rasp of Ace’s breathing and the soft, wet sound of blood foam bubbling from the corner of his mouth filled the air.

May held him, her entire body trembling. The man’s warmth was leaking away against her chest. Those peach-blossom eyes that always carried a gentle smile were now completely unfocused, unable to gather even a single spark of light.

"Faster!!"

Mitch smashed a fist into the cabin wall with a heavy thud, eye sockets terrifyingly red.

"Fuck!"

Alex clenched his teeth so hard his jaw ached and slammed his forehead against the seat back in front of him, shoulders shaking violently.

Jack sat in the corner. The two-meter-tall giant now looked like a child, both massive hands covering his face while muffled sobs leaked through his fingers.

May’s tears had already run dry. A constant buzz filled her skull; only one thought remained.

He’s going to die. Because he saved me. He’s going to die.

The vehicle jolted hard. Ray stomped the brake to the floor. The RV skidded to a stop right at the collapsed entrance of the building.

"Out!"

Ray jumped first, still carrying Ace, and charged inside.

But the zombies drawn by the explosion had already gathered into a black tide, packing the single entrance so densely that nothing could pass.

"Fuck!"

Mitch raised his sniper rifle, only to find his hands shaking too hard to steady the scope. Despair poured into every chest like wet cement, heavy and absolute.

May stared at the twisted, rotting faces, watching them greedily surge toward the dying man in Ray’s arms. A wild, bottomless hatred detonated from the deepest part of her heart.

Don’t you dare touch him!!!

You monsters—all of you can fucking die—!!!

In that single instant, the entire world fell silent. Every zombie that had been lunging at the RV froze mid-motion, as if someone had pressed pause. Then their bodies began to disintegrate from the inside out—soundlessly collapsing into piles of black ash that the wind scattered in seconds.

Not only the hundreds right in front of them.

Every living dead along the street, across the entire district, for miles around—wandering, howling, sprinting—turned to dust in the same heartbeat.

"...The fuck?"

Alex stared at the empty street, mouth open wide enough to fit an egg.

Jack lowered the hands that had covered his face and gazed outward in pure shock.

Ray and the others stood frozen, disbelief written across every face.

What just happened?

No one knew. But an absolutely safe path had appeared right in front of them.

"What the fuck are you standing around for?! Move!"

Ray recovered first. He charged into the ruins of the department store with Ace still on his shoulder.

The group burst into a relatively intact warehouse on the ground floor.

Ray laid Ace flat on the concrete. Theo slid to his knees beside him, sliced the clothes open with a scalpel, and without even a full glance thrust his hand straight into the bloody, mangled chest cavity.

The men formed a tight circle, so tense they forgot to breathe.

Seconds dragged into minutes.

At last Theo stood. For the first time, the usual icy mask on his face cracked. His lips were bloodless; even his voice carried a faint, almost imperceptible tremor.

"Through-and-through wound. Left lung lobe damaged. Major artery ruptured... No plasma. No ventilator. No sterile operating room... He has mere minutes left."