Veronika wiped away her tears as she crawled out of the small space in between the aisles. She stood up and glanced down at the sack she had gathered. "This is enough..." She steadied her breathing, managing to calm herself down.
This wasn't the first outburst she had. Thankfully these outbursts came when she was alone. It was normal. Living in such conditions would most definitely bring tears to the eyes. Especially for a teenager like her who's just been thrust into this world of death.
It didn't matter that she was the moth, the rustle or ghosthand. She was good at stealing and running away. But once she was cornered... Will she really have an escape? Will she really have the guts to... Her hands clenched around the handle of the Makarov PM. Will I have the guts to shoot someone?
She shook her head, clearing her mind of relating thoughts. Forget that, I'm the moth. I've never been cornered and I will not get cornered any time in the future... Veronika's lips curled up into a wistful smile. Well there was one time I got cornered...
Veronika shook her head. I need to get back to those two for now... She turned around, navigating her way around the wrecked store towards the window she climbed through. She threw both the sack and the backpack through the window. She followed swiftly after.
She threw a few glances around, making sure the surroundings were clear before running across the snow, making sure she stays low as to not alert a cannibal. Those things were mindless, barely perceptive. They mostly use their ears to spot things. Their eyes were almost useless. It was the Snejnay Ten that were the real danger.
Thankfully, she heard beforehand from those two that the Snejnay Ten hadn't started its hunt yet. The monsters were perceptive, sensitive and powerful, so it was best to avoid going out at the times they hunt in.
Of course, Veronika had once navigated her way around a Snejnay Ten before. It was one of the most tense moments of her whole life right next to the initial apocalypse itself. She ran across the street, spotting the duo peaking over the fence. She flashed them a thumbs up with a grin.
The two wore a pleasently surprised look seeing the sack she was carrying.
Once Veronika jumped the fence and held the sack of supplies up, the duo's eyes flicked from her to the sack, over and over. "Wha'dya think?" She grinned in triumph.
Dimitri held a hand up to his chin, slowly scratching in deep thought. "That's... Really good actually. Where'd you learn to do stuff like that?" He regarded her in a new light, one that conveyed his newfound interest in her.
Meanwhile Margarita was staring at the sack, her hazel eyes shining like bright stars. "Wooaah! That's more than we can gather in a day!" She exclaimed, making sure her voice was low so as she wouldn't attract the cannibals.
"Hehe~" Veronika puffed up her chest in pride as she let her hands rest on her waist. "I used to be a ballerina. So I'm really felxible." She flashed them a peace sign with a grin.
Dimitri stared at her silently, suspicion slowly appearing on his face. Do they teach you lockpicking as a ballerina? He thought inwardly. His eyes locked onto Veornika. She's lying. But is there really a reason to lie? Maybe it's embarrassing or something. He frowned slightly.
Margarita however, was less suspicious and more impressed. "Oh my god! You were a ballerina?! My dream when I was a child was to be a ballerina, right after engineering..." Margarita scratched the back of her head.
Veronika's interest was peaked at her words. "Engineering?" She turned towards Margarita, her expression conveying confusion and curiosity.
"I-uhh... I'm an engineer... Or I used to be. I worked at a defense plant. We used to make trucks, jeeps and... tanks and yeah, you get the jist of it." She rubbed her neck. "We also performed maintenance on all said vehicles."
Veronika's eyes widened as she stared at Margarita, her mouth open. "Woah! So you're a female engineer? But auntie..." Veronika trailed off, a smile widening on her face. "Can you operate a tank?"
"H-huh?" Margarita was a little flustered at the sudden question. She hummed, placing a finger on her cheek. "Well... Technically, I should be able to operate a tank. But, the thing about tanks is they're operated by more than one person you know." Margarita explained, scratching the top of her head. "Also, stop calling me auntie."
"Woooah. So would you be able to operate the weapon system, auntie?" Veronika tilted her head to the side in curiosity. A wide grin etched its way onto her features.
Margarita frowned slightly in annoyance at having been called 'auntie'. "Ugh... Yes, I technically can. But there's the whole thing about legality, qualifications and stuff..." She groaned as she threw her hands into the air.
"Legality? That doesn't really matter right now Margarita." Dimitri remarked from the side. He was quiet for the whole time as he didn't really care much about their idle chatter. But, the mention of legality stole his attention. "Look around you. You think someone would care if you commited a crime?" He raised an eyebrow at her.
"Oh, well..." Margarita, realizing her mistake scratched her cheek, feeling embarrassed. She huffed, leaning back against the fence. "Whatever, not like we'll find a tank anywhere near here..." She rolled her eyes. "Veronika's question was out of curiosity, right?" She turned her gaze over to a snickering Veronika.
"Hehehe- Huh? Oh, yeah. I was just curious, auntie." She smiled, beaming brightly.
"Well, let's go. Since we've got more supplies to gather. We have another mouth to feed. So we need to check out other stores and locations." Dimitri spoke as he gestured with his fingers.
"I'm not going alone this time. I already got this much for you." Veronika crossed her hands over her chest. I know what type of people they are. They're not like those bastards back then that became food for a Snejnay Ten. A dark look crossed Veronika's gaze. Well, at least these ones won't force me to get supplies for them. They'll meet the same fate if they do.
"That is true..." Margarita said, trailing off.
Dimitri nodded. "That much is clear. You did your part. It's our turn." His grip on his axe tightened slightly.
"Hey, don't expect me to not help out every once in a while. I'll unlock some doors for you for example." Veronika smiled brightly.
"That... will be appreciated." Dimitri nodded his thanks.
Margarita was slightly confused. "H-huh? But why would you help us if your part is done?" She tilted her head to the side in curiosity.
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"This concerns my survival as well, auntie. I didn't realize you were such a dummy!" Veronika joked, light mockery dripping from her tone. She lightly jabbed at Margarita's shoulder. "Aren't we a group now?" She giggled softly.
"A-ah..." Margarita rubbed her shoulder. She stared at Veronika for a while. Her lips slowly curled up into a soft smile. "Yeah, let's go."
The group traversed the town. Though, they made sure to never truly step into the center of the town. As hordes upon hordes of cannibals could be seen, lurking, awaiting for a prey to make a single mistake.
They climbed windows, went through alleys and lockpicked their way into stores. So far they had gathered a full sack of supplies. Dimitri and Margarita were surprised with how much progress they were making with Veronika around.
"Where'd you learn how to lockpick?" Margarita asked tilting her head to the side.
"Oh, it's just a party trick I learned. I end up forgetting my keys a lot so I always keep a pair of lockpicks with me." Veronika responded with a smile. Dimitri of course, didn't buy that at all. As long as she keeps helping us. I don't care if she's lying. He closed his eyes, releasing a small sigh.
Margarita bought Veronika's words with ease. "Wow, that's so cool. I wish I could lockpick as well... It would've been useful..." Her shoulders slumped. "Oh well, it is what it is." She quickly regained her resolve.
"Also, you said you used to do ballet, right?" Margarita asked as she turned her gaze over to Veronika. The blonde haired girl nodded with a grin. "That's soooo cool... And you're 15 years old right?" She had an envious look cross her face for a moment.
"Yeah?" Veronika furrowed her brows, failing to find the point of this conversation.
"Man... At 15 I was in highschool, fixing cars at my old man's shop." She huffed. "You're so lucky Veronika." She threw another envious glance over at the girl.
Dimitri was slightly stumped at Margarita's childishness. It was hard to believe that she was 31 years old when she looked 20 and acted like a toddler. Alas, She's still my superiour in engineering. I have to admit she was literally the best engineer on our team. He sighed.
"Let's fill up another sack and head back to the store. Erika is probably hungry by now." Dimitri spoke as he increased his pace. "Not to mention. I think there's only a few hours left till the Snejnay Ten starts its hunt."
At the mention of the Snejnay Ten, the two others' expressions tensed up. "So the Snejnay Ten in this area is active in its hunting?" Veronika asked tilting her head to the side. Dimitri nodded slowly, but then her turned towards Veronika with slight confusion and curiosity. "This area?" He asked as they walked.
"I..." Veronika found herself in a predicamant. She couldn't tell them she came from a town that was A kilometer and a half away from here. They'd know she was lying. "You might not know. But Snejnay Ten occupy about a full town or a village or a part of a forest. I came from another town a little bit far from here." Veronika scratched the back of her head, feigning innocence.
"..." Seeing as Dimitri wasn't quite satisfied with her answer she sighed and continued. "Well, I studied their behaviours a bit. I jumped from town to town for a little while... You know~ 'cause knowing a lot about the dangers you face is important." Veronika wiggled her eyebrows as she nudged his side with her elbow. Dimitri didn't seem impressed.
Veronika sighed again. "I learned that each Snejnay Ten has a certain hunting period. Some are aggressive and hunt often in small quantities. And some hunt once every few days at least, hunting a large quantity for a long time before they head to their chosen resting place." She explained waving a hand in the air.
Dimitri raised an eyebrow, his interest was peaked.
"So they're like bears when they want to migrate?" Margarita interjected from the left.
Veronika raised an eyebrow at her. "The second type, yeah." She nodded with a smile.
The last town that Veronika was in had a Snejnay Ten of that type. It was probably the only good quality that town had. As the alien creature often took large breaks after each successful hunt. So Veronika had an easy time mapping out its behavioral pattern. She could keep track of its hunting time and avoid scavenging in those times.
But seeing as this type of Snejnay Ten was more active than the other one... Veronika would have a harder time tracking its movements, considering that from what Veronika heard, its movements were eratic and unpredictable. "So you also assessed the Snejnay Ten's movement patterns?" Dimitri rubbed his chin slowly. "Interesting..."
Veronika's expression darkened. That guy is smarter than Margarita... I'll need to- The group's march was halted as the loud sound of cannibal hordes' wailing resounded through out the streets, the sound of flesh ripping coupled with it.
"W-what is-" Veronika's eyes darted to the source of the sound and she swiftly made a run for one of the open houses, she burst through the door, ushering the other two inside. "W-what's that?!" Veronika hissed in a whisper as the two others ran inside, breaking out into a cold sweat.
"It's the Snejnay Ten..."
"... Of this area..." Veronika realized as she swiftly closed the door shut.
[System access expired. Please enter an access code within 100 seconds]
[99...]
A robotic voice resounded, echoing and bouncing off the metal walls.
Deep in an underground military research lab. The start of it all, the research lab, site-27. Several bodies lay on the floor, unmoving. Pools of blood surrounding them as dried stains of blood stained the walls. Chairs were thrown askew and papers, crumpled and thrown about.
In a spacious part of the lab that was protected by a metal heavy door that had no handle, where the robotic voice resounded from. There were railings surrounding a certain area. It was an opening that caved deep into the ground, several metal support beams extended from the pitck dark blackness that was the pit to support the underground research lab.
Over the pit, there was a pod. A glass cylindrical capsule with green, glowing liquid inside of it. But the most notable part of the capsule wasn't the liquid, but what was inside... It was a human. A woman that looked to be in her early 20s, black hair flowing through the green liquid. She had milky white skin, smooth as porcelain.
She ported a completely white robe that extended from her neck, to her ankles with nothing else...
[10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0.]
[No access code inserted. Rleasing subject 007...] The pod, connected to the ceiling by several chains, slowly lowered down onto a small platform that was raised from the pit of pure darkness.
A soft hissing sound resounded as steam escaped the pod before the green glowing liquid poured out of the pod's interior, leaking through the raised platform and falling into the darkness. The woman fell from inside the capsule. Her body falling limply onto the ground.
[Release complete. Subject 007. Please follow the set directives.] The robotic voice resounded, but it didn't stop, it continued repeating over and over. But the woman was still unconscious. Her body unmoving. It wasn't until a figure, wearing a yellow suit that coffered its whole body rushed through a nearby corridor, flailing and screaming incomprehensible words that the woman twitched.
The woman's body slowly started moving on its own. Her body moving in impossible ways to force herself upright. Her neck's movements were still limp, uncontrolled. The woman's legs didn't struggle to hold her upright, they were just in an awkward position, bent in a weird way so as to not lose balance and topple over.
Then, slowly, the woman started moving, limb by limb, then finally when her jaw was able to move the woman spoke up, "local AI. What are the set directives?" She asked aloud as she clenched her fist and unclenched it, looking over her soaked state. The white robe however, didn't seem to be soaked, possessing special properties.
The woman continued checking over herself, awaiting an answer. [Release complete. Subject 007. Please follow the set directives.] Only the robotic voice resounded once more, filling the gap of silence. "..." The woman stared up at the ceiling. "Local AI. What are the set directives?" She asked again, her voice was rid of all emotions, impossibly even and stoic.
The robotic voice repeated the same sentance. "Local AI. What is the protocol for there being no set directives?" She asked, still staring up at the sky.
[In case of no directives being set. Subject 007 is to follow the main directives. Await for directives to be set.] The robotic voice resounded.
"..." She stared up at the sky. "Local AI. In case of there being no superior to set the directives. What should subject 007 do?" She asked.
[... Processing... Comparing main rules... New directives set. Subject 007 is to search for a authority-holder and inquire on set directives. Any and all means to achieve new directives are permitted.]
The woman, or rather, Subject 007 stared up at the sky. "Any means necessary." For the first time since she woke up. A single semblance of emotion appeared on her face, and it was a single twitch of her lips.
