{ A LOST WORLD }
WEEK THREE Rick woke up and saw the ward door was barred. He remembered trying to reach for a letter and quickly got up. He unplugged the machine he had stopped working and looked around. The hospital was a mess. " what happened here?" Rick asked himself as he walked closer to the window that was closed. Looking outside the hospital, Rick saw a lot of people walking up and down in circles. He was confused. " Why are there a lot of people at the hospital? is there an emergency?" He asked himself walking back to his bed He looked at the bed where he had seen a letter from Martha but it was no longer there. Looking at the beautiful flowers, they all seem old now and withered. " How long have I slept for?" Rick looked at the calendar right in front of him. " Have I been asleep for three years? l or three weeks?" He asked himself checking out the year on the calendar. The static television began to make some weird sound causing a little bit of noise. Rick looked up and quickly went to have its volume reduced. He heard a loud bang at the door and wondered why his ward was locked. " Who is that?" Rick walked cautiously toward the door. He opened it slowly and noticed it was the nurse that was having him tested. Rick was about to open the door but he noticed something different about her. Her clothes were soaked with blood and her face was different. It looked worn out and awful. They looked like the face of a zombie. " What? I am dreaming? is this even real? Rick snapped all of a sudden locking the door behind him with the snarl getting louder at his door. Rick's mind went back to the herd he had seen right outside the hospital. " What the fuck is happening to me?" Rick hit his head severely looking at the mirror right in front of him. Everything seemed like it wasn't real. He remembered being taken into the ambulance and now this. Rick backed away from the door, his heart pounding. He felt a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. "This has to be a dream," he muttered, his mind racing to make sense of the surreal nightmare he found himself in. But the thumping and snarling at the door were all too real. He looked around the room, searching for anything he could use to defend himself. The room was sparse, with only basic hospital furniture and the now-silent television. He grabbed an IV stand, gripping it tightly like a spear. The snarling grew more loud, and the door shuddered as the nurse pounded against it. Rick knew he couldn't stay in the room forever. He had to find a way out, but he needed to think fast. "The window." He rushed over to it and tried to force it open, but it was locked tight. He smashed the IV stand against it, hoping to break the glass. It took several swings before the glass finally shattered. The noise was deafening, and he knew it would attract more attention, but he had no choice. He needed to get out of the hospital Rick carefully cleared away the remaining shards of glass and climbed through the window. He dropped to the ground below, landing awkwardly and feeling a sharp pain in his ankle. He winced but pushed himself up, hobbling away from the building as quickly as he could. Outside, the scene was even more chaotic than he had initially thought. People were indeed walking in circles, their movements jerky and unnatural. Their eyes were vacant, and their clothes were tattered. It was like something out of a horror movie. The whole city looked deserted and many cars were seen parked without proper monitoring. The whole place was in disarray. Many burnt corpses were seen littering the street Rick's mind flashed back to the letter from Martha. Where had it gone? He needed answers, and he had a feeling that finding that letter might help him understand what was happening. He took a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves, and started to make his way through the throng of zombie-like people. He moved cautiously, avoiding drawing attention to himself. His eyes scanned the area, looking for any sign of life or anyone else who might still be sane. He reached the edge of the hospital grounds and saw a small group of people huddled together near a burned-out car. They didn't move like the others; they looked alert and scared. Rick approached them slowly, raising his hands to show he wasn't a threat. "Hey," he called out, keeping his voice low. "I'm not one of them. Can you tell me what's going on?" A woman from the group stepped forward, her eyes wary but hopeful. "You don't know?" she asked, her voice trembling. "It's been years since the outbreak. The infection... it spreads so fast. We thought you were one of them when we saw you in the hospital." Rick's mind raced. "Outbreak? Infection?" He struggled to understand the information. "I was in a coma. I just woke up. Can you tell me in detail what you mean by infection?" " No one can say how it started but people started behaving abnormally tearing flesh and eating their fellow humans. Like some cannibal. " One of the women looked at Rick " Cannibalism you say?" Rick moved closer his face a little pale. He clutched his stomach as he felt a sharp pain from the jump he had made. " I think I have missed a lot. can you please bring me up to details?" The woman nodded, understanding dawning in her eyes. "That explains it. You've missed a lot. Come with us. We'll explain everything, but we need to get out of here before more of them show up." They were about to move when Rick had the sharp pain in his heart again. He remembered he had seen a system and he clicked yes. The encrypted message came again. " Can you see that? " Rick asked the woman standing next to him. " see what?" She looked scared. " I am not losing my mind and I am not turning into one of them." [ ZOMBIE SYSTEM ACTIVATED ] [ SYSTEM BOOTING IN 9,8,7,6,5,R, 3,2,1 ] [ TYPE OF SYSTEM: ZOMBIE SYSTEM ] [ NAME: RICK STILES ] [ AGE: 30 YEARS ] [ SKILLS ; NONE ] [ WEAPON; SILVER BULLET] [ OCCUPATION ; COP ] [ SYSTEM MISSION; KILL FIVE ZOMBIES TO ACTIVATE THE SYSTEM ] [ SYSTEM REWARD; YOU WILL BE GRANTED WEAPONS TO AID YOUR MISSION IN KILLING THE DEFECT ] Rick looked at the system and back at the woman who didn't understand what he was seeing. They heard a snarl beside them. Rick looked at the woman beside him and he felt scared. She was no longer humane. She was something else, plunging at Rick, he fell to the ground looking scared. Rick remembered he had been. given a gun by the system. He tried to push the zombie aside asking for the help of the woman whom he had been speaking with but noticed she had run away. Rick remembered he had been given a silver gun by the system. He tried guiding the zombie that wanted a piece of him and brought out the gun. Aiming for the heart. The loud noise of the gunshot makes the Zombie fall off him. Getting up, Rick saw the zombie get up too. " What? I shot the heart isn't this the part where it dies?" He asked himself as he noticed a herd of them were coming for him. Rick picked to his heels trying to find shelter for himself but everywhere he turned to had been blocked and the exit cut off. With his back pinned against the wall. He brought his gun and looked at the bullet. He was having just five rounds. "I need to make this count." He said to himself as he shot his first zombie in the head. It came down with a loud thud. Rick saw he was able to have his first kill and he saw an encrypted message. [ SYSTEM; CONGRATULATIONS ON KILLING YOUR FIRST ZOMBIE. KILL FOUR MORE TO UNLOCK A NEW WEAPON ] Rick fired his next shot until he was left with just a single bullet. Not knowing what to do, He gave up closing his eyes as the zombie got closer to him. The loud snarl became louder, Rick felt scared and wondered if this was real. Part of him wanted to find out if it was real or was just some plot to scare him. He felt a hand draw him and landed a blow to his face. Rick collapsed and passed out.Rick's eyes fluttered open, and he found himself in a dimly lit room. His head raced from the blow, and for a moment, he struggled to remember where he was. The recent events came rushing back – the hospital, the zombies, the strange system, and the group of survivors."You're awake," a voice said, startling him. Rick turned to see a man in his late forties sitting beside him. He had a rugged look, with a scruffy beard and a determined expression. "You had a rough time out there. You could have died out there. what were you thinking?" Rick tried to sit up but winced as he felt a sharp pain through his body. "Where am I?""You're safe for now," the man replied. "We brought you back to our hideout. My name is Greg, by the way."Rick looked around, noticing a few others in the room, including the woman who had initially approached him outside the hospital. She was speaking quietly with another man, her face filled with worry. Rick looked at the room and saw they were in a well-furnished
Rick and Emily stood frozen, eyes wide as the arrow's tip was pointed at their faces. The archer, a woman in her mid-thirties with fierce eyes and a no-nonsense demeanor stepped forward, her bow still drawn and aimed at Rick's head."Who are you, and what are you doing here?" she demanded, her voice showing she wasn't ready to listen to stories. " Details." She added looking at Rick and Emily Rick raised his hands slowly, signaling he meant no harm. "I'm Rick, this is Emily. We just need to get inside the station to gather supplies. We're not here to cause trouble." The woman narrowed her eyes, assessing them for a moment before finally lowering her bow. "I'm Lisa. This place is crawling with infected. You two have a death wish or something?" Rick sighed in relief as he lowered his hands. "No death wish. Just trying to survive. We heard a gunshot. Was that you?" Lisa shook her head. "No, but I've been tracking a group of raiders who were making their way here. Looks like they migh
"What was that for? You don't have to kill her." Rick shouted pointing his gun at Lisa while she also pointed her arrow at him. " She was slowing us down and killing her was the best option. The tension became palpable while both of them had their weapons pointed at each other. They didn't know the zombie was closing in on them. Seeing Emily's corpses the horde were over her eating every bit they want. Rick watched as he puked over the fence. He looked at the system message and picked, crackers. he wondered what the crackers were for anyway. Immediately it appeared right in front of him and Lisa was astonished. " how did you do this?" Rick said nothing but he turned back to walk. A was met by a stern face. The man's looks showed he was having a battered face with marks. He had a gun on one of his hands and a bow on the other. " I would drop that if I wear you." He looked at Lisa and back at Rick." If you haven't noticed, you are outnumbered," Rick replied walking closer to him. "
" Are they dead?" Lisa asked cupping Rick's face in her palms. "No, ark get them out in time. Here is. route and location they are. We are going to find them and join with them. I am sure we could be safe with Mark." Rick smiled knowing his family was safe. " But first we need to get dressed and have a warm bath. He stood up and walked about waking into his room and he had another severe headache. Rick groaned as he fell to the floor. Lisa watched and was scared not knowing what to do. She couldn't possibly call 911 everything was in shambles. An encrypted message appeared before Rick [ SYSTEM TASK; FIND A HOSPITAL THAT WOULD TAKE YOUR BLOOD SAMPLES. A MESSAGE WILL BE SENT TO YOU ON HOW YOU ARE GOING TO FIND THEM ][ SYSTEM REWARD; A NEW SUV RIDE WITH LOTS OF COMFORMITIES ] Rick felt his headache gone and looked at Lisa. " There is a change of plan. We need to find a hospital." Rick’s hands trembled as he read the system message. The headache that had momentarily paralyzed him fad
Lisa and Alex saw many people tied to poles that were being experimented on. Alex felt a sharp pain in his head again and he fell to the ground. The system sends a message again. [ SYSTEM MESSAGE: THE HOSPITAL HAS BEEN COMPROMISED, LEAVE AND MOVE TO A SAFE LOCATION][ SYSTEM REWARD; YOUR SUV AWAITS YOU JUST OUTSIDE THE HOSPITAL. MAKE IT THERE IN TIME BEFORE THE HERD REACHES YOU ] Alex got up " It looks like this place has been overrun with some shady people. The system just asked us to leave." He sighed looking at Alex's face. " Look, that is Doctor Morgan," Lisa shouted looking at Alex to walk closer to the Zombie with a white uniform. " I think whoever was outside there killed the real Doctor Morgan. We have to leave here as soon as possible." Alex looked at Lisa " Did the system tell you anywhere we are supposed to go?" Lisa quickly shot a zombie that was moving closer to them in the head. " I think there is something special about them. " Alex walked closer to the cage lo
Rick was surprised to see a zombie staring at him and Lisa as they unbarred the door. "What the hell is that?" Lisa shouted, helping Rick to have the door closed back. "We need a way out of here." Lisa looked at Rick, who was pacing up and down. The whole hospital had been taken over by the horde. Their noise was visibly heard as Rick kept pacing back and forth. The system had provided a ride, and all they needed was to get there in time. "Did you see that?" Lisa looked at Rick. "And can you stop pacing? You are making me nervous." "I didn't see what you saw, Lisa. I saw a zombie that was ready to attack us, if that is what you are asking of me." Rick said, gently rubbing his hands over his hair. He brought out his gun and checked the rounds he had left. He knew a few rounds would save them from the zombies. He needed a plan, and it had to be fast. "The zombie we saw when the door was opened was different. It is almost like she knew what she was doing." Lisa tried to gain Rick's at
Rick looked at Lisa and noticed she was getting hot. He looked at the SUV van and quickly ran towards it, trying to open the door. "Damn it!" Rick shouted. "What is it?" Lisa managed to speak, looking at Rick, who was getting worked up. They both looked back and saw Morgan walking towards them with the herd. Rick looked around and saw an iron bar that he used to pry the door open. He ran back towards Lisa and helped her to her feet. They managed to get into the SUV van just in time before the hearing got to them. "You can hide forever." Morgan shouted with her face, now a zombie."What did your blood do to her?" Lisa looked at Rick. "I am not sure. How are you feeling?" Rick looked at Lisa. He saw that her eyes were getting white and were looking horrible. He knew she was changing. Lisa noticed the look on his face and smiled. "You don't have to look at me like that." She said and coughed,vomiting some blood. Rick looked around the van and gave her a white cloth. The van shook gre
"Jack?" Rick said it in disbelief. "What the hell are you doing here?" He asked, picking up his baton. "The last time I heard..." "I was in Singapore." Jack replied, looking at Rick. He saw the state he was in and sighed. "I can't believe this would be the end of the world. I had always pictured the aliens coming for us, but now I can't anymore. It is too much for me to bear." Jack said it with a sad face. Jack and Rick had been childhood friends. They both planned to become officers of the law, but then Jack's parents went against it and had him flown out of the country. "What about your parents? Are they alright?" Rick looked at him, and he shook his head. "Are you telling me Singapore is in the same dilemma that we are?" Rick asked, looking scared. "Didn't you listen to the news? Almost all the countries are hit with the virus. There is no place to hide." Jack replied and looked up. "What is that?" He said, holding his baton firm. " What?" Rick asked, turning back to look at wh
Rick fell to the ground beside Joel, shouting his name as the little kid closed his eyes slowly. "I am sorry; I didn't mean to. I thought.." The man looked scared. "Hurry; we have a medic in the community," he said, leading the way. Without wasting time, Rick carried Joel, and the race began to save his life. "Hang on, Joel. We are almost there." Rick said each time, looking at Joel and wincing in pain. They got to the front gate, and it was immediately opened, with Rick running through. The man shouted and was given an emergency signal, and some nurses ran out of a makeshift hospital. They immediately carried Joel away into the theater once again to be operated on. Rick looked at the man who was looking worried. He wanted to pounce on him. "Are you telling me you didn't know you were shooting a kid?" He shoutedMany people were looking at Rick, who was losing his coolness. It was the second time Joel had been treated for a gunshot wound. "We can't afford to make an enemy right now
Martha looked at Rick as she looked back at Mark. "I am pregnant, Rick. Why don't we let this die down?" She said it slowly and with teary eyes. Before she could finish her words, a zombie walked in and bit Martha on the neck. Rick stood still while Mark shouted and ran towards her, trying to save her. Without wasting time, Rick grabbed Joel, and they ran out of the building. They tried to avoid most of the people who are now being bit by zombies. They shouted in pain as they turned. Rico, Lisa and Joel, who are now the only surviving members of the community, were able to walk out alive without the bite. "Where do we go from here?" Lisa looked at Rick, who had a bit of a worried look. His life was a mess, with his wife being bitten and his best friend becoming a zombie. "I don't know. The system charged me with the mission of locating Grimagar, and I must. I don't know why, but I think he owes me." Rick replied "Why don't we first get to safety?" Lisa looked up, and the skies were
Lisa looked at Joel's face. "Joel, dad is waiting for you. He asked me to bring you over." Lisa said with her hands stretched out to him. "Listen to me, Joel; I am your mother. Don't you answer her?" Martha scolded Joel with a stern face. "Is dad alright?" Jeol asked, lowering his gun. "He is; he wants you to come with me." Lisa said with a smile. Jeol took Lisa's hands, and they both walked out of the room, leaving Martha alone. Rick was about to walk out of the hall when Mark got up from the ground. His face looked as vicious and white as snow. "Do you think you can get away from here unscathed?" He snarled at him. Rick looked at him, and he knew he had become a human zombie. "How?" Rick said, slowly looking at Mark, who was enjoying his new form. "I don't have to pretend anymore; we are past friends now. Do you think I have loved you all this time? You took the most precious thing away from me, and you think we can be friends. She doesn't love you, Rick. as she loved me." Mark s
Rick walked into the council's midst as they planned the progress of the community. "You are not supposed to be here." One of the council elders said, looking at Rick, that he didn't care about what he said. "Since when?" Rick shouted at Mark. The atmosphere was tense as the men looked at both Rick and Mark. They didn't understand what Rick was saying. "She didn't love you, man. She never has." Mark replied with a cold gaze, making Rick even more angry. "Are you telling me you have been lying to my wife all this time?" Rick asked with anger visible on his face. "I don't understand why you would take this up with me when you should be talking to your wife." Mark replied. It was obvious that he wasn't remorseful about what was going on. Without wasting any more time, Rick climbed the table and raced towards Mark. He headbutted him in the face, and both men began to fight. The elders tried to stop them, but they were out of control. Lisa looked back and saw one of the men running to
Rick was immediately taken into the infirmary to heal. "You both need to start explaining right now!" Lisa said it with anger. "He entered my room, and the light was out. I had thought he was an intruder, and we fought. That was when Martha walked up to him and stabbed him. Nothing more than that happened." Mark said, looking at Martha, who also noted The doctor walked out with his hand soaked in blood. "We have managed to stop the bleeding. He should be up by evening." He replied and walked away. "I am going to stay with him." Martha said, looking at Mark and Lisa. Lisa looked at her with the corner of her eyes and back at Martha. "I don't think you should. I am going to stay with him. You both can leave now." She said she was looking at them suspiciously. Rick had been one of the best fighters she had ever seen. They had both gone through a lot together to get to where they were now. "Why would you want to stay with my husband? Is there something you are hiding from me?" Martha sa
"You both need to stop right now and take this out like adults. You see that he is dying." Lisa pointed at Joel. "Go ahead, doctor. Have the bullet taken out." Rick said he was staying by Joel's side. The doctor looked at the nurse, and they immediately prepared for surgery. The loud noise and pain of Joel were heard each time the bullet was tried to be removed. The time was slower than usual, but they finally had Jeol stabilized. "Thank you very much, doctor. I am indebted to you." Rick shook his hands. Dennis smiled. "I am only a doctor, and I am only doing my job." He said it with a smile on his face. Rick looked around and didn't see Martha. "Where is my wife?" Rick asked, looking at Lisa, who was a little sleepy. "She was here a few minutes ago and..." Lisa looked around and didn't see her. "Can you stay with him? I need to find her. We have some unfinished business, and we need to talk about it right now." Rick said that and got up to his feet. "Okay, but promise me you are go
"Put down the gun, Grimagar. You are making a very big mistake.Do you think you can walk out of here right after you shoot at anyone in here?" Mark asked with his face laced with anger. They had been distracted for a while, giving him the chance to grab a gun. "Why didn't you check on him before you brought him here?" Mark shouted at Lisa, who looked back at him with a furrowed eyebrow. "Put down the gun, Grimagar." Rick said, slowly walking towards him. The atmosphere was tense as everyone looked at Grimagar. He was like a time bomb that could go off at any moment. The door suddenly opened, and Jeol ran inside the hall with Martha right behind him. Grimagar saw a golden opportunity and immediately went for Rick's son. "Put him down!" Rick shouted "Say another word, and you will be sorry you said it." Grimagar was sad with a wide grin. Rick looked at Mark as if everything was his fault. "What do you want?" Mark asked, seeing that Grimagar was now holding Joel in his hands. "You wi
"We just need to kill Grimagar. He is the one instigating the battle. With him gone, we don't need to bother." Rick said he was applying pressure to his wound. "And who will be mad enough to move near him? Do I need to tell you that he is heavily guarded?" Marks stated the obvious."Well, I have just the perfect plan for the job, and it is being carried out as we speak. You need to tell the men to retreat." Rick said, walking out of his hiding place. "Fall back!" Fall back !!" Mark shouted, and the men ran without hesitation. Most of the men had fallen to either gun wounds or zombie bites. The men ran while the women covered their backs, shooting arrows at Grimgar's men.Lisa walked through the smoky gas looking for Grimagar, who was nowhere to be found. She bit into the necks of some of Grimagar's men, turning them into zombies. Lisa realizes another set of her powers. She also has the ability to turn humans into zombies if she wants to. "Where is he hiding!"Lisa shouted at one of
"I would need a name when all of this is over." Rick said, looking at Mark's face. Grimgar got out of his car, and with a microphone, he shouted Mark's name, telling him to give up the sanctuary or he was going to turn it into a burial ground. I looked at his face. "We are not giving up without a fight." I replied I held my walkie-talkie and spoke into it. "Fire a warning shot at one of his men." I commanded Lisa, whose hand was on the trigger. The loud release of the bullet echoed through the night, and one of Grimgar's men fell to the ground, injured. "Is that how you want to play this? he shouted at the top of his voice. There was silence, and nobody said anything. Suddenly, Grimgar and his men opened fire against the doorway. "Get out of there!" I shouted as the bullets penetrated the iron sheets. Bullets were flying everywhere as we all took cover. Mark looked at me and asked, "Do you think we can hold them off?" He asked as he began to sweat. "We need to try, or else we are al