Victor panted, putting his hands down temporarily. He never thought he’d run out of juice, but this endless aerial attack was really pushing his limits. His vision blurred with a light tinge of green as he focused his mind on yet another wave of missiles. Where are all these helicopters even coming from? Victor could feel his brain sizzling from exhaustion as explosions lit the skies for the umpteenth time.

Damnit, I really need a break…

A loud klaxon blared as if on cue with his prayer. What remained of the helicopters and tanks ended their assault abruptly, turning around to leave.

What the hell? Victor looked around wildly at the retreating forces. Is this some sort of trick?

“Hell yeah! Go home, you losers!” the chief guard yelled, bouncing up and down like a kid who had won his first shooting game. Cheers erupted around the settlement leader as the guards celebrated their apparent victory.

What was the point of all that? Did they really just give up? Victor mused, but now was not the time for contemplation.

“Inform the rest that the attack is over,” he commanded hesitantly, before leaping off the roof and descending slowly to the ground.

----------------------------------------

Though the siege had lasted for barely an hour, it was a miracle that the settlement had suffered zero casualties. Well, almost zero. While the rest of the residents returned to their resting areas with nothing more than a scare, the medical team were fighting their own battle, trying to wrest Masako back from the clutches of death’s grip. Brett paced outside the medical room worriedly, praying so fervently he felt as though his heart would explode.

William sat on the ledge of the rooftop, making sure he was out of range from the medical bay. He was beset with worry of course, but to physically feel his friend’s life slip away without being able to do anything… That would be too much for him. William could only pray that Granny’s attempts in the underground shelter to sustain Masako’s life had bought enough time for the medics team to save her.

The doors to the rooftop creaked open.

“What is it, Marianne- WOAH!”

William’s feet quickly touched the ground before he was tackled off the roof. Vivian clinged onto him and cried loudly.

“Where were you guys?” he asked, looking up at Marianne who walked in slightly behind her sister.

“Settling our familial disputes,” Marianne said with exhaustion in her voice.

“Are you alright?!” William stood up suddenly, having just noticed the bandage on her arm. Vivian almost fell to the ground as he hurried over to Marianne’s side.

“Yeah, my father shot me. The medics have removed the bullet already. Don’t worry, I’ll heal before you know it. We’re enhanced, remember?”

“How dare he hurt you.” William muttered, anger flashing in his eyes. “I’m gonna kill that sorry excuse for a father.”

“He’s dead!” Vivian bawled loudly. “It’s all my fault; I bit him accidentally and he turned into a zombie!”

“What an ironic twist of fate…” William mumbled.

Marianne sighed and sat beside William. “Now that both my parents are dead, Vivian’s the only family I have left. But to be honest, I feel kinda relieved.” She shook her head. “I don’t know; am I a bad person for feeling that way?”

“I don’t know the full story, but what I do know is that he threatened your life,” William said bluntly. “What kind of parent does that?”

“But he’s family!” Vivian suddenly cried out, letting go of him. “Families should care for each other, shouldn’t they?”

“Did he ever care for you?”

Vivian kept quiet, looking down silently and wiped the tears from her face. She gasped softly as William unexpectedly pulled her close into a warm embrace. “I’m sorry I said that.” He patted her back gently. Vivian sobbed in response, pressing her head in his chest. A lump rose in Marianne’s throat, but she swallowed it and looked away, blinking rapidly.

“Anyway,” Marianne stood up. “I heard the residents are going to have a celebration tonight.”

“I’m not going,” William said. “Not in the mood.”

“I know. Just giving you a heads up.”

“Will Victor be going?”

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

“I doubt it; he’s busy as it is already. Though he’ll probably need to give an obligatory speech.”

William stood up as well, prying Vivian’s hands from his shoulders. “Good. I have some things to discuss with him.”

----------------------------------------

“William. Hey dude!”

William snapped out of his daze, not realising he was already walking along the corridors of the medical bay. He peered into the room, which was now open. Masako’s bed was covered up with a curtain, but his senses had already told him what he needed to know. Brett walked up to him and gave him a big hug.

“I heard you brought Masako to Granny right in time. Thank you, man. Thank you for saving her,” Brett said, crying tears of joy and gratitude. William smiled warmly in return; he could get used to this.

“Her heart rate is remarkably low.” He frowned slightly. “What did the doctors say?”

“She’s still in a coma, but her condition is already stable. But that silly ol’ girl,” Brett started to slip slightly into his native accent. “What was she thinking, getting ’erself hurt like that. She wouldn’t be so lucky if she wasn’t a metahuman.”

“A word of advice.” William grinned. “If you like someone, let them know before you lose your chance to.”

“I- I didn’t say I fancy Masako!” Brett stepped back, putting his hands in front of him nervously.

“And neither did I.”

Brett covered his mouth like a pre-teen who had just uttered his first profanity. His shoulders sank, looking at William apologetically for some reason.

“Is- Is it really so obvious?” he whispered.

“Why’re you hesitating? You’re not still a teen, are you?”

“I’m twenty one!” Brett raised his voice defensively, but it quickly dropped again. “But Masako doesn’t like me. She probably thinks I’m too young-”

“And yet she spends most of her time with you.” William cut him off. “I wonder why that is?”

Brett looked at him dumbfounded.

“Figure it out,” William said, continuing on his way. “I’m sure you’re old enough to know what to do.”

----------------------------------------

William found Victor surprisingly free, looking out pensively at the horizon. He was standing in the empty courtyard, taking in the sea breeze that came along with the receding tide. William stepped carefully, avoiding the small fields of chickens that Victor had apparently decided to rear. He looked around; it was not too long ago when he was incarcerated by a submarine cable at the very same spot. The memory almost made him smile.

“You want to talk to me regarding Yuxia, yes?” Victor broke the silence as though he had eyes on the back of his head.

“Sometimes I forget just how perceptive you can be, old friend.” William grinned. “I assume you know what’s going on with her.”

“Yes, but it doesn’t matter anymore.” Victor turned around. “She’s left the settlement already. Of her own volition, might I add. I did not kick her out.”

Of course she did. That woman’s too damn prideful.

“Any idea where she went?”

“It’s not in my place to ask, even if I did get to see her before she left.” Victor turned towards the settlement wall decorated with blackened spots where the tank shells had hit it.

“We’re no longer safe here. Had the attack gone on longer, I would have collapsed from exhaustion and this place would be blown to smithereens.”

“If it’s any comfort, Firdaus was probably severely injured as well, or else he wouldn’t have retreated so hastily,” William said. “So it’ll be a while before he attacks us again.”

“Then we only have a brief moment’s respite to ourselves.” Victor sighed loudly, putting his hands behind his back. “Not even the end of the world can put a stop to that man’s ambition, it seems. I wonder whether we’ll ever have peace in our new time.”

“Actually, I’m not sure Firdaus is the main threat here,” William muttered.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Don’t you realise the timing of everything is too much of a coincidence?” William dropped his voice and moved closer to Victor. “We were attacked by only zombies the past two times; why were there none this time? Remember the assassins on the first day I was here? If Firdaus was really here for Vivian, couldn’t he have just used a stealth approach like the last time?”

“Are you trying to say that there’s someone else we should be careful about?”

“I’m trying to say that we should be careful who we let into this place. I don’t wish to pick at old scars, Victor, but you don’t exactly have a good track record of trusting the right-”

Victor raised his hand to stop William from talking and turned around, facing a man who was scurrying towards both of them from afar.

“Is there anything you need from me?” Victor asked the panting resident.

“No, leader. Not from you. From him.” The man pointed at William. “We’re having a celebration tonight. We would appreciate it very much if you could turn up and say a few words.”

William’s eyes widened. “M- me? Why me?”

“Don’t you know?” Victor grinned widely at him. “You saved everyone from the intruders. You’re a superhero now. Go enjoy the spotlight.”

William’s eyes darted quickly between Victor and the hopeful looking man.

“I’m not going to wear a spandex,” he said in a sharp sarcastic tone, before laughing with the two of them. The resident pumped his fists victoriously as William’s shoulders slumped in resignation to his fate.

The two men watched him bound away excitedly before turning back to each other. Victor placed a hand on William’s shoulder with a dark look in his eyes.

“Thanks for protecting our place, my friend. Help me look into this, will you? I have a feeling we suspect the same person.”