System Of The Undead

Chapter 273: A Year Later...

A year had passed since that fateful day and the hope that Jason could be alive faded with time.

Rachel moved on with her life but she didn’t find another partner to take his place in her bed.

Lillian had grown so much to the point that she was no longer a lanky teenager but had chosen to add some muscles.

Bella never returned but they were aware that she had joined the Specters and allied with Mariam.

The community survived that fateful night and there was no explanation as to why the zombies suddenly retreated because of this; it wasn’t in their place to question it but what was stranger was the fact that the zombies couldn’t be found in that area.

The area was safe and Mariam couldn’t place her fingers around it but she knew that it was something rare.

Jason was presumed dead, there was no way he could survive this as there were a lot of bodies that weren’t found so Jason wasn’t an exception naturally.

Allison’s disappearance was treated as a casualty as well considering it happened on the same night as the zombie attack.

Shantel had grown quite popular in the community, not because of her looks but her contribution, she grew closer with Rachel and Lillian as well.

Rachel felt alone because everyone she came here with had suddenly disappeared except her sister.

It was all taken from her in the blink of an eye, reminding her that everything in this world was even more temporary.

"Sister, are you okay? You should get ready..." Lillian said, dressed in her traditional baggy clothes but she had grown out her hair and was slightly taller than she was a year ago.

This was growth but Rachel had become a shell of herself, she was just as beautiful but there was something dull about her aura.

"I’m fine, I didn’t get enough sleep last night..." Rachel responded.

"You’re still having that dream?" Lillian asked, stopping what she was doing to give her sister her undivided attention.

"Hahaha! I’m fine, it was just one of those nights,* Rachel brushed it off, knowing it wasn’t her sister’s responsibility to worry about her.

She was the younger sister for a reason.

"If you say so," Lillian dropped it because she knew her sister didn’t want to talk about it and it wasn’t in her place to pressure her into spilling but Rachel has been acting weird ever since Jason disappeared.

The nightmare she kept having was a voice calling out for help but the moment she turned around to save them, she woke up.

Every goddamn time to the point that it was frustrating her but Rachel knew that was no doubt Jason’s voice.

What if he was waiting for her to save him and she was nowhere to be found?

She couldn’t dwell on this too much and had to get ready to carry on with her day.

-

Two months ago, Clementine had gotten closer to finding Sam than she ever had been

The fact that he managed to evade her for so long only showed just how good he was but there was something strange, it was almost like Sam was getting sloppier and this was why she could find his trail.

This was unlike Sam but Clementine knew for a fact that it was Sam that she was following.

Day and night, without rest, she followed him diligently, the journey taking a toll on her physical appearance as eye bags had become a prominent feature on her youthful face.

But all of this paid off because Clementine finally found Sam. Sam was a mess, his hair was unkempt with dirt changing his hair colour.

Clementine didn’t recognize the man before her but neither did Sam.

"Who the fuck are you?" Sam asked, pointing a rusted knife in her direction.

Clementine didn’t know why he was always on the move when he could have found somewhere to set up camp for a couple of days/weeks but he just kept walking but to where?

"It’s me, Clementine," Clementine responded, thinking that Sam didn’t recognize her because of her changed appearance.

"Clementine?" Sam repeated like this was the first time he had heard that name in his life.

"Sam, what’s wrong with you?" Clementine asked.

"My name is Sam and your name is Clementine..." Sam repeated, there was clearly something wrong with him but when he said those words, his eyes sparked to life almost like his brain was just activating.

"A-Are you real!?" Sam shouted; the hostility in his voice told Clementine this wasn’t a rhetorical question.

"I-I am real, Sam!" Clementine responded, her heart was pounding because she couldn’t believe she had found him.

It has been close to two years since she last saw him and there was a drastic change in Sam’s personality.

"Clementine?" Sam questioned, his eyes seeing her as he walked towards her, hand outstretched.

"It is me, Sam," Clementine responded, tears welling up in her eyes as she carefully walked towards Sam, cautious because she didn’t wish to startle him.

Being alone for so long must have taken its toll on him and she could only imagine what he had been through but she was here.

She wasn’t ever going to let him go but Sam soon collapsed, she could only imagine it was from exhaustion but she noticed something slip out of his pocket when she caught his body from hitting the ground.

"Huh?" Clementine muttered to herself because she recognized this fragment, it was the same fragment that Jason had consumed that day but there was a difference, this one had lost its colour. It was like a dying lightbul or a fire but Clementine’s knowledge of this fragment was limited but she was smart enough not to touch it with her hands.

Sam had been exposed to this fragment for over a year, there was no telling what mutation had occurred within him.

But there was one thing she was certain about, the fragment had something to do with Sam’s current state.