"Well, it's not just the police, the military has arrived too," George commented, while Yuki's worried voice could be heard in the background.
"Anyway, we should go… The protests are becoming more chaotic. If we delay, we could get caught up in a clash between the protesters and the police," I said, not giving much thought to the military's appearance.
"But I have to receive my medal at the awards ceremony," George said in a dejected tone.
"Let's meet at the library first, and then we'll discuss what to do," I said, trying to broker a compromise.
"Okay, should I take Yuki with me?" he asked unconsciously.
"Sure, stupid, or do you want to leave her alone?" Amy reprimanded, looking slightly less scared.
"Sorry, I was just asking," he said, then hung up.
We quickly went to our classrooms to get our things and then walked briskly straight to the library. Upon arriving, we noticed Yuki, who looked pale, and next to her was George playing on his phone while arguing and making fun of people in the game.
"Hahaha… Improve your aim for next time, idiot."
"I hope you prepared the things 'SirAlexFutureson' said, because today is hell… Hahaha."
"Dude, all of that is lies."
"Lies? … You should have seen how they riddled a guy yesterday in my neighborhood. After more than 20 bullets, the guy got back up. It only took one shot to the head that the son of a bitch didn't get back up… Hahaha."
"Are you kidding?"
"Hahaha… seems like you're one of those who didn't prepare… Good luck playing in hardcore mode… And pray it's not the zombies from WWZ."
After saying that, the guy George was playing with logged off. We were all shocked by what he said. I'd practically refuted what George had said earlier, even mentioning the "Zombies" in movies.
George looked at me and Amy, hoping we'd contradict something the kid had said, but now we all had doubts. Yuki, who hadn't said a word this whole time, just looked at us, terrified.
"Hahaha... Zombies," George said, letting out a nervous laugh. "All those hours of gaming messed up his brain... He must be crazy to..."
Just as I was thinking about what to do next, a sudden announcement came over the hallway speakers.
"Students! This is your principal speaking. I regret to interrupt the anniversary celebrations, but I'm afraid we will initiate an emergency protocol to safeguard your safety and that of the facilities… I will now turn you over to Sergeant Ellis, who will brief you on the situation."
"Attention everyone, because I will not repeat this message! Due to the protests, we will secure every educational and healthcare facility in the area that is operating. Your school will now be protected by my squad. We will keep you on campus for a while, and then we will inform you when you may return home."
"As you heard, we will remain at the high school while the military moves in to secure the entrances. They will not engage on campus, and when safe routes are available, you may leave. I strongly urge you to notify your parents or guardians of the situation."
After hearing the message, we were even more shocked. If we had only felt alarmed before, now fear overwhelmed us. George looked at Amy and then at me, trying to find a reason in one of us, but neither of us really knew what to do. Meanwhile, Yuki had moved a little away from our group to call her parents. The trembling in her legs showed how scared she was.
My case was the same as hers. I didn't feel safe with the military involved, especially knowing there were rumors of zombies.
I know I shouldn't be alarmed, but nothing has been going right since my birthday.
Ring, ring... Ring, ring, ring.
"Did you see the military coming in?" I asked, knowing it was my father's men calling.
"Yes, miss. We had to get in through the back door before they closed it so we could protect you."
"Are they inside?" I asked hopefully.
"Yes, we're close to the gym, but we don't know the facilities well, and if someone finds us, they could..."
"Don't move from there... I'll go look for you right away," I said, very alarmed at first, but then I calmed down.
"We'll be waiting."
"Fuuu… Good news," I sighed in relief.
I was about to tell the others the good news, but I noticed everyone was still on call with their families. I tried calling my dad, just like they were, but the call wouldn't connect.
The networks seemed to be blocked, although calls within a small range were still possible.
"Guys, the men my dad sent came through the back entrance and…"
"Why did your father send men?" George interrupted.
"Don't interrupt her," Amy scolded, glaring at him.
"As I was saying… They'll protect us until we can safely leave the high school," I told them in a relaxed tone.
"That's great!" Amy exclaimed, hugging me.
"Fuuu… That's a relief," Yuki commented, exaggeratedly letting go of her shoulders.
"Good thing, my dad told me to just walk when I could," George said ironically.
"Now we'll go to the gym and see if we can leave right away. Do you have anything to get?" I asked.
"My cosmetics… Nothing important," Amy changed her mind when she noticed my annoyed look.
"I need to go get my keys," Yuki said, panicking.
"Calm down, Yuki, I'll accompany you… George and Amy, go get your things, and we'll meet up in 10 minutes at the labs."
"Okay," they both chirped.
"Let's go," I said to Yuki, taking her hand and walking quickly to our classroom.
10 minutes later.
"Emily, here!" Amy called me from the entrance of one of the labs.
"Did you get all your things?"
"Yes, everything is ready," she replied.
"Emily, did you notice that the anniversary activities continued as if nothing had happened?" George asked me, and we walked quickly to the gym.
"Yes, I asked a friend if he had any information about the announcement, but he didn't seem to think much of it," I replied, while the shouts of celebration could still be heard in the background.
"How strange. Are we being too paranoid?" Amy asked.
"I don't know, but everything feels very strange," I commented.
"I had no idea the military could be deployed in this country to maintain order," Yuki chimed in nervously.
"It's not common for them to do that, but in the case of disasters or extreme situations, they can be mobilized with the president's authorization," I stated as I looked out the windows. "Looks like we're not the only ones worried," I thought, watching a group of colleagues talking on their phones, visibly alarmed.
"It's strange that they've been organizing whatever it is they're planning at the southwest stadium for weeks," George pointed out.
"Weeks?!" Amy exclaimed, startled.
"Yeah, a while back we went to ask the stadium management if we could rent the fitness center there, but they told us the stadium would be the temporary camp for Group 3… or Division 3, I'm not quite sure," George replied, staring up at the hallway ceiling, as if his memories were there.
"So, if they've been organizing it from that moment on, that means they already knew all this was going to happen, right?" Amy asked, shocked.
"It's a possibility," I replied doubtfully.
"They already knew," Amy murmured. "So, maybe it's a terrorist attack, or possibly a coup d'état?" she asked, alarmed, though clearly trying to avoid mentioning what the other boy had previously said about the game.
"Or maybe they're zombies," Yuki suggested nervously. We all tense immediately, the atmosphere becoming heavy again.
She instantly felt guilty, lowering her gaze to avoid us while nervously fiddling with her fingers. We weren't staring at her angrily; we'd all simply avoided the subject, denying the possibility that such things could happen.
"Relax, Yuki, we didn't mean to make you feel bad," I said as I hugged her gently and warmly.
"I know," she murmured.
We continued walking toward the gym in absolute silence. Occasionally, shouts of celebration could be heard, but to us, they sounded like screams from a horror movie.
Every time I heard them, I was on alert. My vision sharpened unnaturally, my hearing could pick up sounds I never thought I'd hear, and my skin prickled as if triggering a defense mechanism.
Judging the others were reacting, they were experiencing the same thing.
"Miss, this way," a man's voice came from one of the locker rooms.
"Tim, you're here. Where's Rony's father?" I asked as I looked for the other man my dad had sent to look after me.
Tim and the other man had been part of my father's team for many years. I'd known them since I was very young, especially Rony's father, although I no longer remember his name.
I met Rony's father over six years ago.
During the pandemic, I became infected before a vaccine was available, and at the time I feared for my life.
At first, my condition seemed stable, as I only had mild symptoms, but as the days passed, my health deteriorated.
Thanks to my father's connections, we got two vaccines much sooner than most. We were informed that there was a risk the vaccines wouldn't work properly, and that I could be left with after-effects at best, but it turned out to help me quite a bit, and I recovered quickly.
The second dose was given to Rony's mother, who, due to her nursing job, came into contact with the virus for her dedication to helping others. Unlike my case, the vaccine didn't have a positive effect on her, and her condition began to deteriorate.
She struggled for several days and eventually recovered but was left with permanent after-effects. After her recovery, she was diagnosed with mild pericarditis, which means she won't be able to do activities that require excessive physical exertion.
This affected her mentally at first, as her son Rony was only 3 years old, and many of the things she liked to do with him became impossible. However, with the support of her husband and Rony's love, she managed to pull through.
At the time, my father thought Rony's father might blame him for what happened to his wife, but he never did. He always showed gratitude to my father, and even now, he frequently says, "I owe you, Boss."
"Miss... Miss!" someone yelled at me.
"What's going on?" I asked, looking around, confused.
"I was answering you, but you seemed distracted."
"Oh… I understand," I replied, feeling myself blush. "Thinking about another pandemic affects me more than I imagined," I thought with annoyance.
"As I was mentioning… We went in to make sure you were okay, and now we're looking for an exit, but the military is guarding the main entrances. I would advise you not to try leaving until the situation calms down a bit."
"Is the situation outside that bad?" Amy asked.
"That's right, miss. Some police officers who entered the school clashed with protesters on the nearby streets. They were only able to control the situation with the support of the military."
"Actually, where are those officers who came in?" I asked Tim.
"We have no idea, miss. Only the soldiers are guarding the exits," he replied.
"They're probably with the police chief's son," George said.
Meanwhile, in the infirmary, third-person POV.
"What a disaster! It was bound to happen today; the party was going perfectly. Those poor bastards had to show up and ruin everything," a young man lamented outside the infirmary. "Besides, that despicable Emily didn't want to come with me to the celebration tonight. I just wish…"
"Young man, you shouldn't talk like that," one of the officers sent by the city police captain intervened.
"Shut up! Just do your duty and take care of me… And I also want to know the name of the man on the stretcher," the young man demanded angrily.
"Why do you need his name?" the officer inquired in a dry tone.
"It's none of your business."
From inside the infirmary, strange noises and some knocking began to be heard.
Pop, thud… Pop, thud.
The officer guarding the captain's son entered the infirmary and saw his colleague shoot the nurse caring for another wounded officer and then shoot his partner in the head.
Two shots, two bodies falling.
"What have you done?" the officer asked his partner.
"We have to get out of here... We need to get the young man to safety," the officer who had just fired the shot responded, alarmed.
"Why did you take out our partner?" he asked angrily, grabbing him by the shirt.
"He turned into one of those creatures... I had no other choice," he replied in a desperate tone.
"What happened? I just heard something that sounded like gunshots," the police captain's son asked.
"It's nothing, young man, but we need to get out of here," said the officer who had fired the shot, moving away from his partner and carrying the young man away from the scene into the infirmary.
The officer guarding the young man took one last look at the infirmary, unsure of what to do. This situation had gotten out of hand.
"It was just my imagination," the officer muttered, convinced he'd noticed a slight movement from the nurse his colleague had shot.
.
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[A/N: CHAPTER COMPLETED
Hello everyone.
Emily will face dangers she never imagined possible. At first, things will be chaotic, but surmountable. However, the setbacks will become increasingly difficult.
Will she be able to stand firm in the face of these challenges?
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Read my other novels
#The Walking Dead: Vision of the Future.
#Vinland Kingdom: Race Against Time.
You can find them on my profile.]