The night continued to be deceptive as Han stared at the moon in the sky. Having to go through the entire house felt like an emotional journey, seeing the aftermath of life everyone was familiar with clashing with the new reality.
Han walked on the brick path, reaching the area where his mom, sister, and Grace were waiting for him and Harmony. The three of them looked weathered by what was happening though with varying degrees.
"How is it?" Jennifer asked him, concern on her face.
Shrugging his shoulders, Han answered, "It's pretty gruesome in there. From what Harmony told me, there were hired helped inside and looking at the mess the event happened while they were eating."
There was a gasp from his mother, her hands covering her mouth as she tried to contain her emotions.
Jennifer looked a little dazed at the news, likely she thought that this location was far enough away from those creatures' influence.
"Did Harmony's parents...," Grace tried to ask.
"We don't know. There are no bodies, but the amount of blood on the ground suggests that if her parents didn't become them, then they are likely dead." Han said.
Grace was quiet upon hearing this revelation. This was the difference between suspecting an outcome versus seeing the result. Han felt that this was normal, considering Grace and Harmony were the only two woman at the station when he arrived. If other women worked there, all of them were likely close to one another. Sometimes, women wouldn't care for another woman to be working in a male-dominated industry, but by Grace's silence, he suspected it was the former and not the latter.
"What are we going to do," Grace asked him.
"Why are you asking me? Do I look like a police officer or someone in a position of authority?" He teased.
Grace lowered her gaze, shame on her face from asking a kid what to do in this dangerous setting.
"Han, stop teasing her. You know that this isn't something a police officer is trained to handle." His mother chastised him. She still looked a little shaken up, but being a mother helped her through the majority of it.
Han grinned at his mom, happy to see that she was feeling better. Turning to look at where Harmony was standing, he snapped his fingers to grab her attention. She jerked at the sound and looked around. When she turned to face him, Han asked, "What do you plan on doing?"
Harmony looked confused by his question, asking, "I don't understand?"
"Being out in the open forever isn't something we can do, so we'll need to find shelter. Depending on what your plans are, we will either stay at your parents' place or move on to another location." Han said. His words framed in a manner that suggested either choice were equally suitable for them.
"Please! Don't leave me behind! You're more than welcomed to stay at my parents' home!" Harmony answered just as Han finished talking. Stepping towards him, she looked as if ready to grab him and prevent his departure. Desperation was evident in her expression.
Seeing her reaction, Han stayed silent. "Considering this home belongs to you, we would be your guests... though such things have always been distasteful in my mind. We'll just stay here shortly in order to not inconvenience you. I'm sure that there is only a limited supply of food inside." The words seemed to hang in the air.
"No! There's no need for you to feel like guests! You've already done so much for me, so please let me do this for you!" She was soon within arm's length of Han.
"Hmm...," Han pondered. Turning to glance over at Grace, he asked, "What are your plans?"
Grace looked at Han and then at Harmony. Turning to face Han, Grace asked, "I was hoping that I could continue going with your group?"
"But what about your duties as an officer?" He asked. As he looked at her, his words became sharper. "You wanted to follow the path of a police officer due to your own experiences, and it has shaped who you are. In this type of environment, I don't know if such habits are ones that'll compliment our current predicament."
"But... I...," Grace tried to explain.
"What happens if there are others who attack my sister and mother? How about Harmony? I may have to do things that go against the law." He made his voice gentler, "Are you going to be able to handle such things?" Approaching her, Han placed his hand on her arm. "I don't want you to have to choose between your ethics and the choices I'll ultimately have to make." Shaking his head, Han sighed in frustration. Letting her arm go, he began moving towards Harmony's house.
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"Han," his mother quietly called out to him.
He heard his mother and sister following after him. Harmony turned in the direction he was going as he passed her by. The house ahead of them seemed to radiate gloom but also a feeling of comfort. Though the blood spilled inside removed any of the remaining playful innocence it previously had and now reflected his group's mood. Seeing the windows in the house, it gave an impression of a lonesome and disheartened child that was left behind and waited for its parents, alone in the dark.
Walking up the brick path, he scratched his cheek and thought about the future. Raising a foot towards the steps, Han paused and turned his head to the side. "You're not coming in? At least have a night's rest before you make your final decisions. I understand what you're likely thinking, so don't feel obligated to tell us anything. Just rest up for now." Continuing up the steps, he headed for the door knowing that Grace would follow him inside.
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Inside of the kitchen, Han began opening up cupboards. With the blood on the floor, they were going to need to do something. "Harmony, where did you guys keep the bleach and cleaning supplies?" He asked her. Typically, cleaning supplies would be under the sink, but instead, he just found some rags and a red toolbox.
"I think my parents kept that stuff in the bathroom," Harmony said. Her footsteps let him know that she was heading towards the bathroom that had a hole in the door.
"I hope her parents were able to escape," his mother said.
"Judging by the sounds we heard at the station, I don't know if that's any better," Jennifer commented. She was carefully throwing out the food that was on the family table. Only a few areas on the table had blood on it, and the food was already beginning to smell sour.
"The sounds of those police officers are still going through my head," his mother said. "I was just worried about you when I came to the station, and didn't think that we would be in such a situation," she continued. Her breathing was shaky as she began to remember what had happened earlier. "What do you think those things are?" She asked.
As the clinking of plates sounded and were followed by a shattering noise, Jennifer pondered. "I thought it was similar to what I heard some of my classmates talk about, those movies where the dead come back to life, but after hearing the officer scream about the guns not being effective, I don't know anymore." Soon clinking of silverware was heard, followed by the clattering of metal as they went into the trash bin.
"As Jennifer said, I don't know what we'll be able to do against creatures that bullets can't stop," Han muttered. Leaning against the sink, he had his arms crossed. "Considering those things have been here before, I don't know how long we can hide here."
"If guns can't hurt them, how about traditional weapons?" Jennifer asked abruptly. When Han and their mother looked at her, she placed her hand under her chin and began nodding her head. "The university across from the mall had a club that was all about fighting using large weapons, like swords, spears, and stuff. My friends and I would sometimes go over and watch the matches; she was really into the whole sword fighting and combat scene." Looking up at the two of them, she said, "If we head over to where they kept their weapons, maybe we can use those against the monsters?"
"But we don't even know how to use those weapons properly," Han commented to her.
Her expression turned severe at his comment. "At some point, in order to survive with those things out there, we'll need to be able to fight them. To just rely on running away isn't a lasting strategy. If we can't fight them, then we may as well give up and stop struggling."
"Jennifer! How could you even suggest that?" Their mother gasped at the severity of Jennifer's words.
"I'm sorry, mother, but this is what we have to do. You heard the sounds in that police station. In the beginning, there was only one of them, but before we escaped there were already two. It's like when dealing with insects and how if you see one then it means that there are tens more in hiding." Jennifer shook her head, frustration on her face. "Han, I know that it's scary to think about going someplace where there are more of them..., but we need to do this," She said softly.
Her determination was a bit surprising. Being able to fight against those monsters is the main priority, just like what his sister said. For humanity to just run, it would mean the end of their entire race. When he looked at his mother, her face showed concern but a similar look. Though she chastised his sister's words, Han could see that his mother shared the same sentiment.
Sighing he just nodded his head.
Harmony's footsteps could be heard as she returned from the bathroom. In her hands, she held a bucket with a bottle of bleach inside. "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop on what all of you were saying."
"Don't worry about it. I don't see a reason to keep such things a secret." Han comforted her. Pausing for a moment as he looked at her, he said, "This is something that'll be dangerous, so I think it'll be better if you stay here."
Harmony looked relieved for a moment, but then said, "Though staying here is something I want to do, I want to go with the three of you." She looked like she was trying to gather the courage to voice her thoughts. "I know that this world is really dangerous, and want to be able to do my part instead of just running away."
Listening to her trembling breaths, he knew that she was terrified by the prospect of seeing those things again. In their small group, Harmony was the only one that saw what those creatures looked like, so he had respect in her desire to accompany them. This was going to be a dangerous journey, but the hopeful payoff would make it worth it.
Seeing his reaction, Harmony sighed in relief that he agreed with her thinking. She walked over to him and handed over the bucket. "I also grabbed some cleaning gloves. I thought they would help with cleaning this place, considering the blood everywhere." Reaching into the bucket, she pulled out a bundle of gloves.
"That was nice thinking. We should be careful around the blood, with how little we know about them." Han advised.
Harmony passed a pair to his mother and sister, as she also put on a pair. After everyone had a pair of gloves on, they continued to clean the kitchen and dining area. With the bucket, Han filled it with water and poured in a substantial amount of bleach. The air was filled with the dizzying smell though it was also a comfort to everyone. From under the sink, Han took a dish rag and soaked it into the mixture. Without ringing out the cloth, he got on the floor and began mopping up the blood.
If Han's mother and sister were paying attention to his cleaning, they would've noticed the blood mysteriously disappearing just as the cloth touched the blood. Leaving only enough blood to be soaked up into the rag, he then carried the rag over to the sink and rung it out. A waterfall of bleach, blood, and water cascaded into the sink to create a whirlpool as it flowed down the drain. Turning on the sink, he quickly cleaned it up as much as possible, though the rag looked cleaner than physically possible.
Once the trash bag was filled, Jennifer pulled out the bag and carried it to the sliding door. Han could hear her grunting with effort, and the clanging of various objects as it hit the ground outside.
With their methodical flow of work, the kitchen and dining room were soon clean. As Han continued to clean the blood trail lead down the hallway and out the sliding door, everyone else went to other parts of the house that needed to be cleaned up. It felt like the process helped to distract everyone from what had happened and tomorrow's journey to the university.
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In the room with the sliding doors, the four of them were relaxing on the sofas and chairs. They had finally finished the process of going through the entire house, reorganizing various things and making sure that it was habitable for them. Even though there was no way to know if they would be coming back to this location, once they headed out to the university, it was a smart thing to do, so that there would be a place for them to go back to.
"Han, what's going to happen with Grace?" Harmony asked after they enjoyed the feeling of the chairs and sofas they were sitting in. This question appeared to be something that weighed heavily on her mind.
Leaning his head back on the chair, he said, "I don't know. Grace needs to have the freedom to make her own decisions without anyone pressuring her."
"But being out there by herself isn't a safe thing for her," his mother added.
"That's true. But the problem is whether she's able to change her thinking to this new environment. As a police officer, her duty was to maintain the peace and uphold local laws." Lifting both of his hands into the air, he said, "This isn't the time for that kind of mentality, where death is a genuine possibility. No longer are people thinking about heading to work, or students pondering what schools they will be going to." Lifting his head and letting his arms fall back down, he said, "I know that I'm willing to do whatever it takes for us to get through this."
It felt like a cloud was hovering over everyone, each person with different things on their mind.
When Harmony's eyes met his, Han said, "Like with Grace, you're also going to need to prepare yourself for violent situations, where you may have to take a life." He gave her an encouraging smile, continuing, "All of us are worried about what's going to happen, but I think we can get through this."
Harmony awkwardly smiled back at him. "Maybe this time I'll be able to act and stand by others instead of running away?"
"The sun is going to be up soon, so we should all get some sleep. I'll keep an eye out for signs of the creatures since I'm still pretty awake." Han told Harmony and his family.
Though his mother and sister looked like they were going to protest at having him take the first watch, their eyes seemed to disagree as sleep overtook them. Harmony was nearly asleep in an instant.
Lifting his hand and watching the sparkling powder floating in the air, he smiled, "Sometimes having this power comes in handy." Turning his head to his mother and sister who were laying on the couch, he whispered, "Getting sleep will help the two of you process all that's happening, and hopefully you won't be weighed down too heavily." Looking towards Harmony, he added, "I also hope that you'll stand by us instead of running away if things go south." Han watched as a smile seemed to emerge on Harmony's face as if she could hear his comforting words.
Pulling out a book that he enjoyed, while growing up, from a pocket dimension, he looked at the cover that had the picture of a spacecraft flying through space with a man and woman holding one another on the cover. Smiling at thoughts going through his mind, he opened the book to the first page and began to read. A glowing ball of light hovered near his head and provided a dim light source to help him view the pages in the dark.