Chapter Text
Kris
The investigation was being started in her, Celina, Caleb, and Adam's room. Sam and Colby set out the flashlights, putting the Alice box in the middle of them.
Turning the camera on, giving a quick rundown of the room's history. Sam did most of the talking, Colby feeling more off. Finally, they began.
“Is anyone here with us?” Asked Colby.
Everything was silent for a moment, but then the blue flashlight turned on. Everyone let out a breath.
“Great, can you tell us who you were? Anything about yourself?”
Kris shifted, rubbing her forehead.
A familiar beep sounded. The Alice box.
“Danger”
Sam responded quickly. “Are we in danger?”
“Or are you in danger?” Colby added.
What sounded like a knock comes from the closet, and she whips around. “Did anyone else hear that?”
Celina nods. “Yeah.”
Kris gets up, heading for the closet. She reaches for the handle, turning it with a feeling of dread in her stomach.
Surprisingly, the dread doesn't dull when she finds it empty, save for a few hangers, but it multiplies.
“Empty.”
Everyone is quiet. Eventually, Sam picks up an EMF and places it in the closet. None of the lights turn on at all. The Alice box beeps, and their heads snap towards it.
“Need”
Colby looks up from rubbing his forehead. “Need what?”
“Energy”
Another thud from the closet. It's still open, and the group watches as the EMF lights up to red, the color growing brighter and brighter until- it goes out. Sam grabs the EMF, turning it on and off, but it's dead.
“Run. Outside. Now.” The Alice box states, each word coming in quick succession.
Celina is breathing hard, and Kris grabs her hand. “Are you okay?”
Celina shakes her head. “It's right, we need to go, now. Get the boys I'm finding Adam and Caleb.”
Her eyes are wide and scared and Kris immediately listens. She grabs Sam and Colby by the wrists and drags them out. They leave the equipment. Celina runs off to the other room where Adam and Caleb are currently hanging out. They run through the halls, not bothering with the too slow elevator, and they sprint down the stairs, more than once steadying each other.
Kris pushes open the door, and a wave of nausea crashes over her. A stench like rotten meat is coming from everywhere, everywhere, and she can't focus, she's coughing, and she panics.
When she's able to calm down, Celina is there with their husbands.
The smell is still there and she coughs again, covering her nose. Caleb smooths her hair back, and Celina is holding her hand, everyone else looking on with concern.
“Can you not smell it?” Kris is breathing hard.
Celina's eyes flash. “What do you smell? Is that what happened?”
Kris nods slowly. “Rotten meat, it's so strong, it's so much worse than the Crescent-”
“We need to go. That is not good, not good at all. We need to get to the cars right now.”
“Why, what-”
“I don't know, but what I do know is that we need to go.” She pulls Kris up, leading their group toward the parking lot at a fast pace. Caleb and Adam still hadn't said a word, probably worried, confused, or a mix of the both.
They fumble with keys, quickly unlocking the vehicles as another wave of stench hits Kris. She buckles again, but Caleb catches her and pulls her into the backseat. She's coughing again, hand against her chest. Her eyes are watering. Just before the final car door slams closed, a horrible wail sounds from the forest, making everyone bristle, hairs on necks standing the fuck up at the sound.
Kris feels the blood drain from her face. Inhuman screams sound from everywhere and Colby starts the car in a panic, tearing out of the parking lot.
The car is quiet, save for heavy breathing of exhaustion. Minutes pass and the headlights shine through the dark, and everyone is on edge, just waiting for something to jump out. The radio turns on unannounced, making them all jump.
“Did that just-” Adam starts, but is interrupted by a radio broadcast.
“Reports are in of graveyards and cemeteries being disturbed as bodies… rise from the grave. Yeah. We're in a real life zombie apocalypse. Stay vigilante, stay armed, know your shit. These reports come from all over, and it is thought to be an international happening. Stay safe out there guys.”
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Colby
He was not panicking.
Okay, maybe he was, but that wasn't the point.
Zombie apocalypses were not supposed to be real. They weren't real yet he was currently in one. He was freaking out, even if his calm demeanor didn't suggest it. There was no time to think, just to barely register that maybe this was the reason for what he'd been feeling. He sped down the road, knuckles white, gripping the wheel. Colby would get them out alive. No one was going to die. They couldn't. This was his crew, his best friends.
Just off the side of the road, he swears, for just a second he sees movement. His blood goes cold as a thin figure rises out of the night. A hand. It's a hand. Thin, boney, one finger missing, and extremely pale. Luckily there is an exit right opposite, and he swerves the car in a panic. Colby manages to right the vehicle before they crash, and he pulls off in the nearest parking lot.
“What the fuck was that?” Caleb asks from the backseat. Of course. They hadn't seen it.
He is still panicking, so he's glad Sam answers him instead. “There was a hand right off the side of the road. I think the broadcast was right.”
At first, he thinks they don't believe him and Sam. Then they see another hand.
This time accompanied by a head.