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2024-01-23 19:19:07The rain was pattering as Drake Miller ran through the walkway, hurrying to go home to his girlfriend, Regina Adams.
"Regina is going to kill me. I can't believe I'm late," he murmured upon arriving at the door to his apartment.
Panting, he contemplated, "But it wasn't like I planned to come home late. I had to get her the birthday gift from the store. I hope she likes it."
Drake stared at the bracelet box in his left hand. In his right hand, there was another box, much smaller, bearing something other than a birthday gift—an engagement ring.
"I can't wait to see the smile on her face when she says yes to me. Then we would be finally official. This is going to be the best night of my life," he breathed, his eyes gleaming with joy. One more nervous breath, and he turned the doorknob.
The moment he pushed the door open, he was careful not to raise attention to himself. A mischievous smile formed on his face as he planned to sneak up behind Regina, grab her by the waist, and playfully frighten her.
He walked into the sitting room, but it was as dark as the corridors.
"What happened to the light?" Drake murmured in a low voice. He used the dim light from his phone's screen to flash at the light switch, and he flicked it on.
His eyes widened at what was happening on the wider sofa, far from where he stood.
There was a man on top of his girlfriend, their naked bodies gliding against each other.
Eyes narrowed, Drake gripped his chest in pain at the reality before his eyes.
They stopped and separated quickly, the man putting on his pants, and Regina wrapping the duvet around herself.
"Dra- Drake, please, I can explain..." Regina gulped. Her eyes widened.
Drake Miller, still frozen in shock, the engagement ring case slipping from his hand, crashed hard on the floor.
"Drake, it is not what you think. I just—" Regina couldn't finish her statement before Drake clenched his fists.
"It is not what I think? Is that what you take me for? A fool? How could you be so shameless, Regina?" He yelled, and Regina trembled.
The rage boiling in Drake made him vibrate as he struggled to maintain his anger.
"You brought a guy to my house to satisfy your sexual needs? How could you be so heartless to do this to me? I went through hell to get a ring, so that I could propose to you tonight, and coming back home I see you letting another guy have sex with you?"
His heart throbbed uncontrollably as the rage became more difficult to control with every passing moment.
"Talk to me, you cheat!" Drake yelled, and she sprang up from the sofa in anger.
"Okay, fine! You caught me having sex with another man, so what?" She yelled back at him.
"I do not even wear your ring yet, so why do I have to explain myself to a loser like you?" Regina blurted, her words cutting deep into Drake like a kick to the gut.
"So what, is that what you're saying? You cheat on me, and you're telling me you do not owe me any explanation?"
Drake's anger now transforming into genuine confusion. Regina woke up every day to tell him how blessed she was to have him. Even in the early morning of that same day before Drake went to work.
"Yes, you heard me right. I do not owe you any explanation. After all, you're not my husband; I have the right to give myself to anyone I want. Besides, this is not just anyone," Regina said, a smile crossing her face as she turned to the guy sitting on the sofa.
"This is Leo, the best thing that has ever happened to me. In case you don't know, I'll let you know the truth. Leo is my husband; we've been married for 3 years now," Regina said, as she kissed Leo on the lip.
Shock gripped Drake harder, and his mouth fell open as an unexplainable pain coursed through his vulnerable heart.
"You were always too desperate for love, so you were just the right fool for me. I never loved you, not even for a minute of all the times we spent together," she said, a wicked smile on her face.
"Leo here lost his job, and we were having a hard time, so we came up with the plan to make you fall for me. Thanks to your desperation for love, I took all your money to invest in Leo's businesses," she said.
Leo, enjoying the show beyond doubt, stood to his feet and walked to stand beside Regina, wrapping his hands around her waist.
"So, if anyone is supposed to be happy here, it is you. I bet any real girl would never like you anyway, but my wife gave you herself just for her love for me. You should be happy for the privilege, fool," Leo said, and they both erupted in loud laughter.
"You fooled me, all this time, you were married. You only used me to get money, two of my companies went bankrupt because of you, and the last one is just at the verge of collapsing," Drake said, his heart aching.
"Well, Drake Miller, I think you got it wrong there. You no longer have any company left, not even the crumbling one you mentioned," Regina said, and she then shared a knowing smile with Leo.
"What do you mean by that?" Drake asked, uncertainty clouding his voice.
"Well, remember that night I insisted we both get drunk? I made you sign off all your properties to Leo. I would have left you that day, but I still wanted to stick around long enough to take this house from you too," Regina revealed, and Drake's heart stopped for a few seconds.
"That's a lie!" Drake yelled, his heart echoing in his ear.
"I can never do that, not even if I'm drunk," Drake screamed, refusing to believe the cruel reality.
"You may also check your account balances; I swept both accounts clean and left the last one with a little money in it. I bet it was the account you used in purchasing this ring," Regina said.
Drake could not bring himself to believe that the wealth he had amassed for over 15 years had been swept out in a single day.
His hands were shivering violently as he grabbed his phone from his pocket and tried to check his account balances. His phone slipped from his hand when he saw a 0.00 reading in his account.
He raised his head, shivering in shock and rage that coursed through his body, and then he lunged forward at them.
Slap!!
Slapping Regina in the face, Regina quickly retaliated, slapping back. And then Leo quickly kicked him in the gut and pushed him to the floor.
Before Drake could get up, Leo rushed over and laid brutal punches all over his face.
"How dare you lay a finger on my wife?!" Leo screamed as he continued to beat him.
Regina pulled him off Drake.
"You're lucky my wife stopped me," Leo said. At this time, Drake could barely hear his voice; there was blood all over his face, and he was drowning in immeasurable pain.
"I will report this to the police; you'll regret everything you've done to me," Drake coughed those words out, blood flowing from his mouth.
"That is if you live to tell the story," Leo said, and before Drake could comprehend what he meant...
Bam!!
Leo pulled out a gun from nowhere and shot a bullet into his chest.
"Leo, No!!!" Regina screamed in fear.
Drake's neck weakened instantly, and his head fell to the side. He gasped one last breath, and he was gone.
"We have to get out of here, now!" Leo yelled.
+ + + + +
It was only about 30 minutes after Regina and Leo had left that the blood from Drake's open bullet wound on the chest started to mingle with the heirloom locket he was wearing around his neck.
Drip, Drip!
The blood seeped into the locket, and suddenly, a tiny light emitted from its center, and it burst open.
Gasp!
Drake jolted his back up from the floor, his heartbeat returning. His eyes widened as he saw the bullet wound sealing up.
"What's happening? I should be dead," he murmured.
Suddenly, he heard a loud noise from outside, people screaming on top of their voices, and he ran to the window to check.
When he got to the window, his mouth dropped open at the first sight he saw—hundreds of dead humans raiding the streets, killing people.
"Zombies? Impossible…" He muttered in shock as fear gripped him.
In the midst of the confusion, he heard a female robotic voice call out from nowhere.
"SYSTEM ACTIVATED!"
UPGRADE COMPLETE
STRENGTH: 20%
SPEED: 30%
DEATH CHEAT: 3 LIFE PACKS
INFORMATION: Earth has taken a drastic turn in the minutes you were laying dead. An apocalypse has broken out on earth. The world is at the verge of its end.
GOAL 1: SURVIVE!
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Drake and Elisa huddled together, their eyes were fixed on the worn pages of the diary which was spread out before them. They read each page carefully in anticipation as they took note of the details that we're contained within it. Each word was seen as though it could be offering a potential clue to the location of the facility where the button was rumored to be hidden.According to the owner of the diary, the one who was not only a part of the experiment but also was the one who brought about the idea of the button, The experiment was not completed in any of the facilities they had thought. The ones on their list were the facilities where the experiment began. It happened that after each failed attempt, they would move over to one which they assumed was well equipped and at a more conducive environment. However, after several trials, they discovered that there were certain conditions which would be more suited for the experiment. And for the sole purpose of the experience, A speci
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The night was already far gone when Drake and Elisa made their way back from their encounter with the mysterious man whom they have come to know as a great scientist. Not just any scientist but one who was at the forefront of the whole project that led them to this very place where humanity has found itself. The conversation they had with this man went long enough. The discovered a whole lot by listening to the man speak for almost two hours.They learned that the button was created to put an end to the effect of the experiment instantly. Yes! the button was that effective. It is no wonder the it seemed to be so important to everyone who knew about it. For some reason, the man who had claimed to not just be a big part of the experiment but also the brain behind "the button" equally, said he has no idea about the actual location of the button. According to him, they must have done something to not just him but every other colleague of his who was sidelined. However, he gave them his
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Drake and Elisa set off in opposite directions, their footsteps echoing through the empty corridors as the moved in a hurry to be able to cover more grounds before there was any interruption. It is not strange for them to assume that there would be some kind of interruption at some point definitely. It has become a regular occurrence in their daily lives now especially when it has to do with the quest to find a solution to the apocalypse. It always felt as though all the forces. of the entire universe were gunning for them. At this point, it is safe to say that the had a target right on their back. In fact, it would be like an error if they finished from NeoGen lab in peace and left without any kind of interference or interruption. As they went from one room to another, they realized the entire place was almost empty. they both found nothing but dust and probably rats running around. Elisa might have been the one who saw the rat,and as much as she wants to tell herself that it is
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NEO GEN LAB
The night seemed to be very stretched out before Drake and Elisa. They had decided to find a relatively safe place to spend the night. There was no way they could go back to where they came from, not unless the next clue points them towards that place.. They sat in the car in silence both thinking about the same thing but not speaking up, their minds were full of not just the familiar feeling of disappointment but also many questions.Drake ran a hand through his hair, his brow furrowed in thought as he stared out into the darkness. "I can't believe they destroyed the institute," he muttered, his voice was filled with frustration obviously. "All the answers that may have been in that institute, everything has gone up in flames.. everything"Beside him, Elisa sat in silence, listening to him speak. She was equally frustrated. she could not imagine that all their effort was in vain. "It is like they are always one step ahead of us at every turn," she said to Drake, She sounded like she
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Drake smiled back at Elisa. He felt a bit better than he was feeling a moment ago. "Alright, shall we?"Elisa returned his smile again and then nodded in agreement.They began to walk along the narrow path. They tried to walk as fast as they could in order to leave that premises as soon as possible. The needed to get to the car early enough. Drake changed his mind on walking all the way there. They had parked the vehicle some meters away for two reasons: firstly, it was to avoid calling attention to themselves, secondly it was to protect the car. Right now Drake is thankful that he made that decision earlier because with what had just happened, there was no telling what those men would have done to the car if they had seen it. "Hold on, we can't walk, let me carry you. Running will get us there in a minute." He carried Elisa on his back and ran towards the direction of the car.As they approached the vehicle, Drake's mind was occupied and a bit troubled with thoughts of their next
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Drake and Elisa burst out of the building coughing so much that their chests were hurting so badly. Elisa would have probably collapsed if she was the one who had to carry her own weight herself. On the other hand, Drake got his determination from the fact that he felt responsible for Elisa, otherwise he also might have collapsed. But here he was trying to be strong for both of them. The strength he got from the system could not possibly get him through moments like this by itself. They were both breathing heavily, their hearts were pounding so fast...it felt like they were threathing to pop out through their mouths because of the rush and the fact that they had to hold their breath at some point in there. The were gasping for air, they both leaned against a large tree along the lonely path where they had stopped. BEEP!SYSTEM UPDATE:- Strength: 7% [100% * 22]- Speed: 17% [100% *2]- Power Stones: 0- Shelter Stones: 2- Death Cheat: 6 Life Pack- Copycat: 1 Unused- Skill Trans
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The Button II
Drake removed the flashdrive and placed it in a plastic envelope he found on the desk. He put it in his backpack and was set to leave. "I think we are done here. Let us get going" he said to Elisa. As the were about to open the door, they started to hear sounds coming from the outside. It was not a loud one. It was like faint footsteps approaching the building. They both stopped and looked at each other. "What is that... can you hear that?" Elisa asked Drake. She was sure she was not the only one who heard it, because as faint as it was sounding, it was quiet audible enough for someone on this kind of mission to hear. "I can hear it too" Drake confirmed. They decided against opening the door immediately. Instead, they went to one of the windows which faced the main entrance to peep. "I don't see anything. Do you?" Drake whispered to Elisa. "No I don't... not yet!" Elisa replied. She got am idea to try and scan through the walls. "I can see. we have company." She said "What do y
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The Button
It is safe to say that the silence was loud. Drake and Elisa could not say a word at that very moment. A thousand and one thoughts were flying through their minds. For some reason, it felt like the got the answer they have been looking for, yet they know quite well that the answer was not there. "Something was indeed wrong. Something was going on down here. Something quite scary" Drake finally spoke. I wish the video explained some parts in more detail though. What was that experiment all I have about in the first place? what were they trying to do?"Drake said like he was overwhelmed with the entire situation."The button he spoke about... do you know what he meant by that?. Elisa asked. "do you think it could be a metaphor or he was referring to an actual button?" she added. "I do not really understand everything, but I think it is an actual button. At that stage there was no need to be using metaphor. He mentioned facilities. I believe that there are no other facilities involve