2025-03-03 22:13:11Back At Ethan's Apartment
“Hey Fidel,come over here and help me with these bags!”
“Do you really need that much Jessica?”
“You can't understand got stuff,do you know how the conditions are at the place the military is moving us to? No! So just shut up and help me carry them!”
“Ok..”
Watching the Edward siblings argue over the stuff they were packing Ethan felt like he was in a romance w******l or something.
What sort of crazy plot twist was this?!
He found it funny that just yesterday he told old Jack that the military weren't coming for them but today they suddenly declared that they were coming.
Although he found it odd and wanted to caution everyone,he couldn't as they were all already hyped up. Anything he said at this point would only end up being ignored.
Another thing was that he was somewhat curious about how the so called Renegade apocalypse battalion were going to make it to this place.
As earlier mentioned,this apartment was built in the “contain as much people as possible style” with an estimated 250 people living there.
And that was a single apartment building.
Considering that there were three more buildings like this….he didn't dare to imagine how much monsters would be prowling outside!
“Hey kiddo don't you want to pack up? Were almost done with ours."
Taking his eyes off the arguing Edward siblings he turned to face old Jack. By “our’s” he probably meant both his stuff and the two kids cause in his right hand was a backpack which he threw on the couch next to him.
Come to think of it,ever since he saved those kids he had always forgotten them. Not that he meant to but rather they spent most of their time with old Jack.
Well he didn't mind though!
“Ive done my own packing!”
A simple short reply.
“Hm."
Nodding, old Jack,looked through the window at the Edwards siblings while a smile rose up on his face,at this point the two of them were already arguing a lot drawing the attention of both the other tenants and some monsters down below.
When one of the monsters roared though,they both shut up causing old Jack to chuckle.
"You know Ethan,being in this apocalypse….is not that bad. I mean I got to meet you and those two lovely kids. I kinda feel more…. alive”
Hearing old Jack mention that,Ethan's face immediately scrunched up. How could being in this godforsaken situation of constant fear be a good thing.
Yes,truthfully speaking,he had the respite of being free. Nobody had the time to look at him with a wicked expressions nor did anyone bully him.
However,there were still some good things that he missed from the normal days. Things like constant water,good food and the long walks through the central park whenever he was feeling lonely.
Those were all gone but then…at the end of the day just like old Jack said he did feel more alive.
Remembering those suicidal notes he used to write,he felt his face becoming hot. How dumb was he. He didn't really understand the value of life until last week when he saw people dying at the hands of those monsters.
So in a way,this apocalypse really wasn't that bad,no?
Looking at Ethan's constantly changing expressions,old Jack knew that the message he was trying to get through had hit home.
“Ethan no matter what life throws at you never give up. Even if it's a breath you have in you fight to protect it!"
" A person's life is like a flame surrounded in darkness. It illuminates the darkness while striving not to go off…..”
Pausing a bit,he looked at Ethan before asking
“......do you understand the point am trying to make?"
Ethan:”....."
Facepalming,old Jack felt exasperated before chuckling.
“Well there's no need to worry about it then. One day you'll understand what it means.”
Right when he finished his sentence,a series of cheers erupted from the apartment buildings.
“Were saved!"
“Hurray! I knew the military would never forget us."
“Mom,come look the military are coming,we don't have to eat dry bread again right?"
" Yes sweetie.”
“Yay!”
Cries like this and many more came from the buildings. Ethan and old Jack hearing this rushed to the window only to find that they couldnt see anything.
“ To the kitchen."
Hurrying to the kitchen they were finally able to see the much anticipated military and to eat they weren't surprised was a joke.
“They truly came!”
Surprise was evident on Ethan's face as he watched the convoy of military grade trucks rolling into the apartment complex. Just at a glance he could count up to fifteen vehicles,each sporting t some heavy duty guns,the kind only seen on the TV.
“But why do I still feel that something is off?"
Staring at a particular Jeepney—well the only jeepny in the convoy he felt especially uncomfortable. He couldn't place what he felt exactly in words but if he were to describe it the word ‘danger’ would suit it best.
Why danger? He also didn't know, but he was sure as hell that that jeepeny had someone that was giving him the chills.
As if to confirm that,the side window of the jeepny actually rolled down and someone looked at him causing him to flinch back in fear.
He could have sworn that he made eye contact with someone in that jeepeny.
Unfortunately, old Jack was not able to notice this as he was super excited.
“Haha kiddo, I told you we were going to be saved. Hurry go and grab the kids, let's get set. Don't forget anything .”
“Uhm..okay."
Staringa the the jeepeny for a while longer,he watched till he couldn't see again before leaving the kitchen. Heading to the kids he soon found them playing without a care for the world.
Sigh…the carefree life of children.
Holding them by their hands he brought them out to meet old Jack.
“We set?"
" Yea_wait a minute!”
Rushing inside the kitchen,Ethan soon came back out with his trusty metal rebar.
“I almost forgot it."
Now that would be bad,although,they were being rescued by the military,he wasn't keen on keeping his protection solely in another person's hands.
“What do you need that for? The military will protect us”
“It might just come in handy.”
“Oh…okay. Let's get going.”
Shrughing,old Jack announced before leading the way out of the apartment with the two kids in tow. His destination the apartments ground floor,the underground garage to be precise.
Long before the military reached here they had already given orders to quicken the evacuation process. Thankfully the undergarage was one of the place was safe in the building as no monster was able to get there.
Along the way the met some other survivours like the Edward siblings and the that firefighter from the first day. Also Steve who helped him out with the mob was also still alive.
Surprisingly one person he did t expect to still be alive—old Rodger was still alive!
They and many other people from the other three apartments all converged in the central underground garage.
Previous Chapter
Related Chapters
The beautiful beast. Chapter 15
After waiting for nearly thirty minutes without seeing the signs of the military the people gathered in the garage started to get restless. It was inevitable as they were already pumped up with the belief that the military was here to save them. Anything that seemed otherwise would only cause tham to get panicked. However,it seemed that they didn't have to wait for long as the sound of gunshots accompanied by the wails of monsters pierced the air. “Oh!” “They've started the attack!” “I told you not to doubt them!”“When did I?" " Don't let us fo–” Discussions like these filled the underground garage as the survivours started to chatter excitedly. For Ethan though,this was lie torture as due to the fact that he liked silent places. But for the moment,he just had to endure. Finally after what sed like eternity,a man's voice was heard from the public address system mounted at the top of the garage. “Scrrch…..good afternoon everyone,I'm Colonel Glenn from the Renegade a
The beautiful beast. Chapter 16
The drastic sound of bullets flying into the air shut down the rowdy bunch for a moment before they started panicking while they all bent low on the floor. “Ah!" “Why the hell are they shooting!" The whole scene escalated into chaos as the survivors yelled for their lives. However despite the cries of the survivors,the gunshots didn't stop. This went on for a while until…. Clank, clank, clank!The sound of bullet casings falling to the ground. Silence! “Hehe. Bastards!” Snickering, the soldiers looked at the crouching civilians with disdain. How dare they try to raise their voice against them! They were their saviours here! Right then the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from beyond the soldiers lining up causing the already chilling silence to go a notch more silent. “Boss!" " Salute!” Hearing the soldiers clamoring,Ethan couldn't help but raise his head up a little and he wasn't the only one. “Huh?" A man wearing a black windbreaker could be seen adva
The beautiful beast. Chapter 17
The moment Ethan heard George mention that a monster was among them a stifling sensation filled his heart. An ominous feeling of dread arose in him and subconsciously he gripped the metal rebar in his hands tighter while coming towards the front of old Jack and the two kids. “What?! A monster among us?” " How can a monster be among us!” " Mum am afraid!” Seeing the panicked expression on the faces of the survivors,George smirked while thinking to himself. “What if I add some incentives to it? They'll probably talk faster!" " Whoever can point out any individual who you noticed behaving strangely will be given special treatment." The moment he said so,everywhere went quiet for a while before they all started conversing excited,hushed tones. What he was doing was very simple,it was just pure psychology. He had observed that Ethan was isolated from the rest of the survivors. If his guess wasn't wrong,he probably didn't have a good relationship with the other tenants sav
The beautiful beast. Chapter 18
Dusting his palms of non existent dust,George turned to face the crowd only to see multiple scared faces looking at him in fear. Smirking he looked at them only for Colonel Glenn to come to his side. “Boss,we need to give them a reason to believe why what you did is right. Or else there might be situations of distrust and disbelief among them." "Hmm, that's true.” Nodding his head,George turned towards the crowd who flinched at his face clearly afraid. The hell, he just burnt three people alive! To a crisp too! Clearing his throat he began;" I know that I might appear as someone who doesn't appreciate human life. But you're mistaken! Those I killed are the accomplices of the monster.”Pausing, he looked at the faces staring at him."They are the easiest link that the monster will use to enter your midst before killing you all!” “I saved you guys and to prove it I'll have that monster in human form executed before you all!"" Men bring that monster here to receive his
The beautiful beast. Chapter 19
Few minutes ago…After receiving the punch from Ethan, George wasn't even able to form a barrier or shield around his body before he crashed into a wall and had rubble fall on him. Thankfully though, his physique was pretty strong, so he didn't feel any damage,not even a scratch! If it had been any other person like a normal human maybe,even an ICU wouldn't be able to save them. He was about to stand up to leave the rubble when he felt a weight press on him—not a physical weight but rather a mental weight. “I was beaten back in one punch from that monster? No!" Instantly his face turned black as he thought about what happened. He,a ruler of mortals was beaten by a puny,filthy monster.Unacceptable! Although it was just less than a week into the apocalypse and his awakening,George was already so mired in his delusions that he was a deity now that he was unable to accept that fact that he was beaten. “How dare he, argh!" " I am a king,an emperor and yet that disgust
The beautiful beast. Chapter 20
Feeling the soul chilling cold coming from Ethan, even George was surprised. “Even my flames are afraid?!" More reason to eliminate him! Seeing George having the guts to actually start contemplating when he was still standing q ball of rage unfurled in him. “I said what did you just say!" Snapping out of his thoughts,George’s mouth did an ‘oh’ before continuing. “Well,you see,I'm someone who doesn't like having threats hanging around me. I am a king,an emperor! I can't have something I can't control running amok before me.” “You Ethan are that uncontrollable variable!” “But we've not even met before!" “Am an emperor,do I need to know you before. The life of everyone is in my palm to do as I wish!" Listening to George's rambling,Ethan couldn't help but grimace. This guy was already delusional! But he still had one question in him that was burning to be asked.With shaking hands,Ethan opened his mouth,his entire body visibly shaking. “Why did you kill them,they
The beautiful beast. Chapter 21
Barnes city Somewhere in the city centre…. Vroom, vroom, vroom! A convoy of cars that had been heavily modified could be seen rushing through the cluttered highway. Cars,trucks and other vehicles were parked haphazardly all around making it a pain to navigate,but the vehicles the convoy was using seemed to have taken these into account as there were huge ramps in front of the cars allowing them to ram away most of the obstacles blocking the road. However,it was not always a surefire way as there were always some obstacles that proved too huge to be cleared by the ramps in front of the cars like the huge gas tanker in the middle of the road right now. Tush!!!! With he first car grinding to a halt,the other two soon followed suit. Looking at the overturned tanker in the middle of the road,Thomas couldn't help but click his tongue as he wondered what could have happened as he brought the walkie-talkie to his mouth.“. Skrrsh, skrrsh…..Obstacle ahead,Davey and James it's ti
The beautiful beast. Chapter 22
Inside an old looking house a young boy could be seen sitting alone in a dining table. The thing about the young boy though was that he looked like a young version of Ethan! He was obviously going to school considering how early it was and the way he was dressed. “Aren't you going to hurry up?! The bus is almost here!" " Almost done!” Gobbling down the last few spoons of cereal in his plate,he hurriedly wiped his mouth before grbbing his school bag hanging on the edge of the chair. “Bye mom.”“Take care of yourself son” SLAM!! Walking out of the door,the boy quickly made his way to the garage,there he unlocked his bicycle before riding it out of the garage. “Good morning Mr Jasper.” “Hey what's up kid?” “Hurry up so you aren't late to school!” Greetings like these and many more flew everywhere as the boy pedaled down the street. It was obvious at a glance that he must have been very popular in the community. The strange thing though was that all the peopl
Latest Chapter
Chapter 44
Demon fang mountain Countless military trucks and armoured tanks with the AADAF central military base logo could be seen making their way over the rugged mountain terrain. Despite how bad the road was,the vehicles hardly shook all thanks to how well designed they were. At a single glance there were about thirty vehicles here! “Halt! Where here." Inside the drivers compartment of each of the vehicles General Lebronsky's voice could be heard causing every car to come to a stop. “Fall into formation now!" Giving the next order,the soldiers in each of the trucks quickly rushed out of the vehicles before falling into neat formations. Clearly they had practiced this for a while now. Walking out of the military jeep that he was in , General Lebronsky along with the other powermasters from the volunteering camps made their way over. “Men…were here. This is the lair of the Xenogenic Alpha blade. I'm sure that your leaders have already explained the situation to you so I won't
Chapter 43
Afternoon. The time of the day when the sun was at its peak. Due to the special geography of Barnes city and it's environs it received a lot of sun daily. The highest temperature recorded in the day had once reached a staggering 41 degrees Celsius! While today's temperature wasn't that high it was still hot enough to cause one to sweat bullets. With how hot everywhere was the best thing to do right now would be to sleep and that was what the sentrys of the AADAF base were currently doing. While you might accuse them of slacking off on duty they couldn't really be blamed. Furthermore,the probably wouldn't have anything to do since the monsters that were supposed to attack them would be busy battling the Hellstrike expedition force so they really wouldn't have much to do. The strike force had left the camp over two hours ago and by now they should just be approaching the mountain range,the battle that would decide if humans could continue settling around this area would soon begi
Chapter 42
Inside the AADAF central base. The sounds of equipment and artillery being moved around could be heard in the base. Countless personnel were on ground to direct and coordinate the activities currently ongoing. WOOSH, WOOSH, WOOSH! Over a dozen armoured vans wheezed by as they drove towards a mini parking lot where they halted while military grade trucks reversed so that the ammunitions and supplies could be placed in them. Operation Hellstrike commenced today! Well technically not today as it had started ever since General Lebronsky first tabled the idea. However,in a sense it was still right as this was the first time that something tangible would be done. Previously the only thing being done was just preparations,today was the day that they would really advance to put the operation in motion. “Today finally came!" Standing at the edge of the window of the finally completed command center general Lebronsky muttered under his breath as he watched the proceedings bel
Chapter 41
On the highway leading out of Barnes city,a truck could be seen rushing past the buildings . There was a black motorcycle in the back while four people consisting of three men and a lady sat surrounding it. Inside the truck there were two men,one driving while the other was well not really doing anything bringing the total to six. Suddenly from one of the abandoned houses on the side of the road a tiger like monster suddenly jumped out with the intention of ambushing the truck. However,before it could even step on the asphalt,there was a bang and it fell on the spot having received a bullet to the head. Blowing the smoke off the tip of the gun,the shooter proceeded to place the weapon by his side while watching the number faces of his co travellers. As you might have guessed,the group was none other than Ethan and the five man group from earlier in the day. They were currently travelling together to the AADAF central base. Concerning the event that happened in the morning,
Chapter 40
“Here this should be the place right? Looks like a nice spot.” Followed by the rumbling sounds of an engine dying off a black a motorcycle stopped at the entrance of the Freetown convienence store. Taking off the helmet,the rider turned out to be none other than Ethan. “Luckily I was able to get here before nightfall.” By now the sun had just fully set and everywhere had gone dark. He really was lucky. After removing the key from the ignition and ensuring that everything was set,he started to make his way into the store but not before grabbing his weapons. Pushing the double glass doors open,he entered with utmost caution while gripping the saber with both hands,the sniper rifle on his back. Taking slow steps to minimize the noise from stepping on the shattered glass he soon fully entered. There was no way anything would catch him off guard like this! After entering though it seemed like there was nothing to worry about as there was no sign of a monster in the vicinit
Chapter 39
On a free express highway a dumb looking monster that looked like an dodo but with four legs stood in one of the bushes by the side of the road while glaring at its own reflection in a puddle of water. Today was the fourth day since it had last eaten and right now it was not an exaggeration to say that it could eat anything. While it could go out hunting,it dared not to as most of the monsters out there were stronger than it. It was just a rogue tier,venturing near them would be just like offering itself up for dinner! Thus it had devised this method of lying in wait by the roadside just to ambush it's unknowing prey and it was working out pretty fine as it git more food to eat. Ever since it had started this method it couldn't help but feel continuous pride in itself for devising this method. And it's prey you might ask? Humans of course!Since it couldn't hunt other monsters since they were stronger than it humans were the only meal it could affor-cough hunt!The
Chapter 38
Inside the AADAF military base… The sound of personnel rushing around inside the giant command tent could be heard as all kinds of military and technical jargon were being thrown around. Thankfully the tent had been upgraded into a bigger size thus accommodating everyone. “Is the neural connection stable?" “Yes we're at fifty megaherts right now." " Good, get you bring me a firse cable.” On a table,the corpse of a monster could be seen with countless wires sticking out of it's exposed brain. These were then connected to a monitor of sorts that had a down icon. Standing in the middle of this chaos was none other than General Lebronsky who was observing the proceedings. This was a commander level monster was recently captured all just for the sake of getting information. They had gone through a lot of trouble to get it but at least the efforts paid off. “Sir!, doctor Meyers said that the upload has been finished. We can play the clip now!” “Hmmm…alright then.” Nodd
Chapter 37
Honestly speaking,Thomas felt that he wasn't supposed to ask this question. In fact he shouldn't have asked if he was being logical here. However as the leader of the Raisin camp now he just had to. He had to be selfish for the lives of the over two hundred people that was at stake if he didn't. Looking at their faces he could see the hesitation and reluctance causing him to feel like this was a lost cause. He couldn't blame them though as their fears were pretty understandable. They had just fought with a commander tier monster and it totally wrecked them. Going up a against a Xenogenic Alpha tier monster two tiers higher?,that would just be like serving up their lives on a platter! They had visited the borders of death once and they weren't ready to visit it anytime soon. I guess I'll just tell the general that we'll not be joining the raid. Brother I tried but……sigh. Thinking to himself he knew that he couldn't push it any further. “Since there's no one willing to
Chapter 36
The first thing that entered his eyes was the huge circular metal table situated at the centre of the room. Seated around this table were the members of the Stinging nettles though they were visibly missing two members. The next thing was how bright the room was and the fact that there were some communication equipment there. In fact there was a wall mounted screen that was showing a 3D map of sorts directly opposite him. It was like this place was never cut off from the grid. How was that possible?! Since day one of the apocalypse power had been totally cut off with all electrical appliances and gadgets turning useless. Plus this place was on the outskirts of Barnes city,in an abandoned military training base!Even if there was electricity here previously,there shouldn't be any here now. This however, further affirmed his belief that what was about to be said in this room would definitely be weighty. It might truly affect the continued existence of the Raisin camp!
