“Is she awake yet?”

“She’s been sleeping for a whole day now. Who knows if she’s pretending to avoid work.”

“If she still doesn't wake up then we would have no choice but to abandon her.” 

Why does this situation seem familiar? 

Lying limply with no energy. A damp cold floor. The only difference is that there were murmurs and there was a faint odour of about to be burnt food wafting in the air. 

[Thank goodness you’re awake now Major, please hurry before these witches dump you out as fodder!] the childish mechanical voice distressingly called out.  

Fodder? 

Alvis was dizzy. Slowly she forced her eyelids open. The glare of lightbulbs overheard drilled right into her eyes causing a momentary pain.

[The punishment was too painful it nearly turned me stupid.] Alvis wailed with bitter hate. After all, this damn AI told her once they would abide by Imperial Law. 

Fart! Despicable lip service.

[Hehe, if the doctor tells you that a needle doesn’t hurt. Would you believe him?] 00 was unrepentant while adjusting her body.

She ignored the teasing with a grumpy mood, [Where are we now?]

[C City Shopping Mall. Six o’clock in the evening, eleven weeks in the apocalypse.]

Alvis groped around, found that she was huddled in the corner and simply sat back. A pair of boots stopped right in front of her then there was a flash.

A sizzle of white lightning bolt burned the wall missing her left cheek. 

[Aiy, what arrogance. Is this mob asking for death?] 

Looking up, a young woman with a sneer stared at her. “What? Do you feel bad? Do you want to fight back? Humph. Then at least gain some ability, you trash!” 

[What’s her drama?]

00 responded in a tone as though reading a TV manual. [Your cousin is upset that her man took a liking to your face and saved you when you fell on the road yesterday.]

“Alvis, I will make you regret returning to this city. You should have stayed hidden whichever sewer crawled out from. Do you think I will spare you after what you’ve done to us? You thief!”

Dawn was about to shoot another lightning again when Alvis flipped over to the side kicking her feet along causing her to sway. The power she accumulated went off hitting a barrel of filtered water from a cistern. 

The floor flooded quickly. 

“You’re too old to be blaming other people with things that are clearly your fault. Aside from your little sparklers to threaten me, what else do you have?” Alvis muttered dusting her shirt.

The recent adjustment 00 gave her still had lingering effects that made her a little weak. When someone came up from behind grabbing her hair and shoulders, she hadn’t prepared until she was shoved into a metal cage. 

[Shit, what luck.]

“Dawn was kind enough to let you stay yet you still dare hit back?” a stocky woman shouted at her. 

Alvis curled her lips, “Should I lay down and offer my body for her to beat?”

“Shut up, you slut. Let’s see if you can continue to sass around later.” Dawn growled kicking the side of the cage making it shake. “I’ll make sure you’ll have a really good time tonight.” 

“Dawn, why are we keeping her? She has no use. With her weak body, she couldn’t even run an errand to collect food or beat up a zombie.”

“Yeah, she will only drag us down.”

“Look, she even made a mess. Stupid woman.” the one with thick makeup and bulky body added in. 

Dawn looked at the faces of her dissatisfied ‘sisters’ and laughed inwardly. 

Alvis, Alvis… who told you to live life so easy? 

She leaned down and smirked, “Since you wasted our water there is none for you. Listen up, nobody gives her water or food even if she licks your feet and begs.”

“She deserves it!” 

[Mental case.] 00 cursed.

[In these times, most people are actually.] Alvis said casually. 

This makeshift shelter on the top floor of the mall is made up mostly of about eleven women. Perhaps because of that, that they were called Team Harpy? Apart from the boss, there are five other men in-charge of security. All in all there are seventeen of them. The ladies hate her at first sight. They are wary that despite her having a weak body, she would be favoured. 

Another rival, another enemy. This makes her want to clap. 

“Girls, huddle around! It’s time to eat.” someone called out from a booth of Japanese food. 

At last, peace and quiet for her. Months after the virus outbreak, people quickly lost their bright and beautiful world. Zombies and mutated animals weren’t the only bad things. When the skies remain overcast so are people’s hearts. Some turned even dark with no hope for redemption. Everything has turned for the worse.

The military ceased searching for survivors and concentrated on defending the shelters from constant horde attack. 

Alvis thought about her miscalculation and as to why she ended up here when her mission is supposed to be just a block away. She should be home by tomorrow if no delay happened yesterday. 

She left Magnolia Park in J City to rescue a bunch of trapped children in an orphanage. It was the place where her sister was supposed to have grown up. She didn’t know if the unplanned stop this time would cause another problem. She had been punished the first time, she doesn’t want to repeat it. 

While in the midst of thinking, the food scent grew more and more intense but Alvis couldn’t be tempted despite them deliberately letting her smell it. Her eyes went to the huge pot with some mixed unknown things then looked away.

Even if it was the apocalypse and the horde is strolling outside, she managed to ensure a good living condition. Who would get jealous of them?

Guuu~ her stomach protested. 

Alright, it’s time to feed you. Alvis patted her tummy. 

Inside, Dawn was arguing with the current shelter boss why she saved her cousin without asking her. Had she known it was Alvis he picked, she could have secretly pushed her down the truck as food for the clamouring zombies and disguised it as an accident. 

The shameless bitch returned. Thinking of how she and her mother lost from her schemes before the outbreak makes her want to stab her to death. She shouldn’t be here at all if it weren’t for her. 

If only they had the money then she and her mother could have been living safely in one of the high-grade shelters made by the government, and if lucky, the espers like her. She could have bought a pass, reserved a room and waited for all of this to end! 

Now they’re outside wandering like ghosts and tramps. 

Thinking of that huge amount of money turning to waste, made her fury surge. It was all Alvis’ fault. 

Seeing the leader of his harem upset, the boss smirked. If it was not for her lightning ability, he would have tired of her already. He pulled up his zipper and pushed the woman currently crouching on top of the luxury bed. 

The naked woman had a common face but with luscious curves, she hurriedly snatched the robe to dress before passing by Dawn. A provocative smile was on her face. The espersor people with supernatural abilities have thrice enhanced senses thus when the woman passed she wrinkled her nose at the disgusting fishy smell. 

“You’re like a dog in heat doing it several times a day. Aren’t you afraid of attracting any disease?”

The boss guffawed. “Us with a new physique will no longer have those measly illnesses the old world had. You know it yourself, aren’t you asthmatic before? Look at you now, you can even compete in the Bedroom Olympics.”   

“Ah, so you don’t mind adding another woman to your collection. She has no ability, she is a waste of resources. Let her be bait for tonight.”

“No!” this time, the boss stood abruptly and stepped towards her, grabbing her jaw harshly. “Perhaps you’ve had enough favour and you’ve already forgotten your place. I can tolerate jealousy as long as it doesn’t cross my bottom line.”

“She’s dangerous. That woman is scheming and traitorous.” Dawn insisted on not backing down.

He flung her face to the side, then said in a teasing yet strangely mocking tone. “Well, aren’t you all?” 

Dawn tightened her jaw suppressing the urge to shout. She stomped out of the furniture store and headed back to the food court where Alvis was caged. As soon as she came she smelled something very familiar it made her drool.

Was that a… cheeseburger? 

She shook her head. How could that be? Most foods spoiled and rotted overnight when the second rain of the apocalypse came. Even tightly preserved foods grew moulds. Maybe she was too mad; she began to have a phantom smell. 

Alvis was sitting cross-legged with one hand on her cheek. Dawn glared, she has to dispose of this woman, the boss will be mad but he will not necessarily drive her out. Her ability is combat type and has a high level of attack power. He will not be so foolish to discard someone like her.

“If I were you, I would perform nicely on the boss’s bed tonight so that he doesn’t let go of you. The moment you’re out of his hold, I will be there to catch you.” Dawn told her with a sinister smile then took out a paring knife from her jean’s pocket. 

[Major, she plans to peel you like a potato.] 00 huffed. 

She can try. Alvis raised her eyes and sweetly smiled back. “Say, you haven’t heard of high-level zombies yet, have you? If you have you wouldn’t be living so leisurely inside this shabby mall.”

Dawn may be madly loathing her to the point of death but she still retained some sense for self-preservation, so when she heard what Alvis said, she felt uneasy. 

“What are you talking about?” she condensed a small streak of lightning on her palms. “Spill it or I will roast your face.”

[Here she is going after my face again.] 

“Only stiff and agile zombies are abundant here in C City. In some other places, there were more. Much more.” Alvis lowered her voice a few notes, “Stronger, faster and more powerful.”

Dawn did not want to talk to her feeling a coldness spread all over her body. She went out and snapped at the nearest to guard their ‘visitor’.

In the midst of her furious thinking, she suddenly stopped short. Wait, Alvis said there are more out there. She must have seen them.

Yet why does she look unscathed? The clothes she wore were clean until she was dragged around by them. 

She was reminded of the money again and her eyes widened. 

Could this bitch come from those secret shelters? If she is… then she most probably has a pass. 

Dawn shivered at her deduction. A pass. If she can snatch it, she can finally leave this hell!  

Alvis who was again was left in silence mulled over what happened right after crossing back to this world. Her mind drifted, going back to the time several weeks ago...