Griffeth City, Shopping District

The sun is setting and slowly fading away from the horizon while the darkness ensued the world and night has come.

When he was in an unconscious state his body was slowly dragged away in the shopping district where the entrance that going towards it was protected by a wall that made out of sandbags.

On the top of the wall there are some patrol that constantly going back and forth while overlooking the area below them as they are equipped with high end guns in their hands.

"Hey kiddo! We're here."

When he got hit on his abdomen the pain that he receives woke him up as he started to violently coughing and after the pain ease when he was about to move his hands he immediately realizes that it was tied with a rope.

*Cough* *Cough*

"You are finally awake, this would take a shorter time than dragging you around the road."

There is an old man with a craggy face in front of him standing there while holding his hunting rifle that pointed at his face as he spoke in a hoarse voice before helping him to get up.

'I'm so stupid for being careless. Why did I even shout or relax when I escape the school, anyways?'

He was regretting on relaxing his guard when he was already in the safe zone.

"Move! The patrons couldn't wait any longer for new products!"

When he was still slightly daze, he heard the man shouting at him while urged and pushed him forward in going towards the wall.

"Is this a safe zone that the government built?"

Ziv was confused on seeing this man-made wall that maybe created a few days ago as he asked the man beside him to obtain some information.

"Of course not. This is a shopping district where you can buy fresh goods and merchandise."

When seeing he got confused by the wall that built here the old man simply introduced him about this area as he grinned maliciously at the end of his sentence.

After asking that question Ziv kept his silence as he continue walking towards the large door that was the entrance inside of the shopping district.

"Felix! It's Larry!" the old man that called himself, Larry shouted as he call someone on the top of the wall.

"Oh Larry! I have never seen you being so active these days just treat us for some rum later." a middle aged man in the top of the wall respond to his call.

"Bet ya!" Larry replied to his request as the door slowly open a gap before they move inside.

'What type of people are they? They built a wall that protected the whole shopping district, while there are patrols that armed with guns. If they are not from army, then outlaws?'

While they are walking inside, he got surprised when he carefully observed his surroundings, especially the environment beyond the wall that it's protecting.

There are no zombies, chaos or even razed buildings that could be seen in this bustling shopping district, while the side of the road was filled with stalls and customers that armed with guns.

"Move kid! Kenny's shop will be closed if you walked like that." Larry pushed him as he notice that he was lagging behind.

"Okay. Don't worry I was looking around."

When looking around the stalls at this shopping district make him feel odd, especially when he notices that they are selling meat, but there is no animal that was hung and display in the meat hook outside.

While carefully looking deeper at these stalls, he was shocked by what he saw as there were some alive humans that was hanging on meat hooks inside while the vendors and butchers was going back and forth to the body while chopping, slicing or skinning them.

Those people that were hanging was howling like an animal that was begging for mercy and asking for some help to those people that was passing by.

'A hell that emerges to the surface. Why is this happening when the situation of the city was getting worse?'

His face darkened while grimly thinks about the possible outcome that he may end up to when he keep on staying here as he shudder at the thought of it.

As he deeply engross on his thought there suddenly a voice of plea and cries that came from a woman nearby.

"Y-You don't have to do this to me! I-If you want I could do anything for you! Just please don't kill me!"

There is a beautiful woman that was kneeling on the ground while she beg for mercy with fear and despair evident from her voice as the butcher in front of her was just smiling at her coldly.

"Now, I'm getting excited when you start begging in front of me. Don't worry, I won't kill you I promise."

The butcher licked his lips as he crouches in the same level of the woman's face as he looked at her in the eyes.

Before chopping one of the woman's fingers that was touching the ground with his butcher knife.

"I couldn't really get out of this ecstasy! Yes!"

When the butcher was having ecstasy while licking the blood that splashed in the knife, the woman that was kneeling on the ground was struggling in pain as she started to curse at them.

"Ah! Y-You're no different than a vile beast! You pig!"

When the butcher heard her curses he felt amused by what he heard as he patiently explained at her.

"Ha! You just compare us with those non-intellectual creature? I bet you didn't understand what you are saying, do you?"

"Our ancestors also applied the law of the jungle before the civilization progress and when the humans started making and applying rules in our society. It will restrict us from our acting like our ancestors, but when the rules suddenly broke from its origin the result will much worse than you can imagine."

"I'll show you inside."

After explaining all of that the butcher smile maliciously as he dragged the woman inside his shop before Ziv heard a cries of panic and desperation.

Having witnessed the scene that played out just now, he understands a little bit about what's going on.

'When the humans make an uprising in government, it may result chaos that will lead to the deaths of thousands or even millions of people while they will try to kill, plunder, rape or even burn an entire city to add more turmoil.'

'But, when the rules suddenly broke the humanity will experience an endless chaos and terror, while the humanity will succumb themselves from their inner demons that they couldn't release into the society before.'

'The most concerning thing in here is there is a chance that it may influence me in the future?' Ziv thought deeply while he was walking as he staring absentmindedly at his feet.

"You ain't like what yer seeing, kid?" Larry, who is behind him suddenly asked as he saw that he became downcast.

"Don't pity your own friends around here. You are going to be next!" he added while laughing as they slowly moving forward in their destination.

They continue walking for a while before arriving at a shop that was selling meat with a lot customers while the butcher was a tall brown bearded man that has a fat body.

"Hey! Come're check this out! New arrival from the wild!" the man was shouting to attract people on noticing his product that was laid on the table.

"Hey Kenny! Got you a fresh meat!"

When Larry approached the shop, Kenny noticed him in the corner of his eyes, but he didn't talk to him right away instead he still continue selling on his customer.

After taking care all of the customers that were buying at his shop in the period where the business isn't busy at all, he immediately approach Larry to ask for his goods this time around.

They talked for a while to haggle the price before reaching an agreement where they are both satisfied with the result as Larry handed out Ziv on Kenny.

"It's okay. You're in a good hand." Kenny said as he pushes him inside the shop while in his surprised Ziv obediently follow what he done seemingly he was resign to his fate.

After gloating over the fact that he got a plump and cheap meat the attitude of this meat was much better than the people that got brought up here.

When Ziv was locked up in the room where the meat was stored he stare at Kenny's neck with cold eyes.

'Killing him is easy, but escaping here is impossible as of yet.'

Inside the room, there were several people that were locked up similar to him while the majority are students and only few adults.

The other students were hugging together with fear on their face, while some of them are talking to each other seemingly planning to escape from this place, but regardless of what they do they didn't bother him nor talk him.

While the only exception was an energetic young girl around 18 years old with black hair that has an apple cut hairstyle, fair complexion and black eyes.

She sat next to him as she whispers at him while asking for some question.

"Hey! Are you shy type why are you not talking? Or you got sh*t on your pants?" she asked as he teases him when he got a serious expression on his face.

"Hm." Ziv just snorted as he ignore the teasing of this young girl.

"I'm Claire, what's yours? Don't act so mysterious you are not handsome." the young girl introduced herself as Claire while she tried to urge him from talking.

"Ziv." Ziv said his name without adding anything other than that.

"It's too boring to talk with you. Well, it was too boring to be locked up in this room for 3 days after getting caught by Larry when we're escaping from the zombie tide that happen in Leiron City near the capital." Claire pouted as she suddenly recounted why she got caught in this place.

"Why am I saying this to you?" Claire was also confused on why she said that.

"A zombie tide that happen 3 days ago? How did that happen?"

While Ziv didn't miss to ask a question about what she said as he want to know some answer to this topic that let him got puzzled.

"I'm flattered by your first time talking to me. Also, that's true, there's a zombie tide that happened in the capital towards the Leiron City."

"A soldier that was rescuing us said that there is a zombie virus that was quietly spreading in the country, because there's a separate news station in every region the military was late to receive the information on this topic and when they decided to resolve the issue it was already too late."

"Some people also suppress any leak of information on this topic from the public, they said it's a precaution to avoid chaos and panic, but instead of helping the situation it becomes disastrous. The massive influx of zombies also leads the people to abandon the capital as they couldn't handle the pressure it gives." Claire explained at him all the information that she got.

"It explains a lot if that's the case, but why is it.. nevermind." Ziv mutters as ponders on what she said, but immediately stopped when he was thinking aloud.

"You discover something?" Claire curiously asked as she looks at him while blinking.

"No, it's nothing. Anyways, you guys didn't have any plan to escape from here? We die if we continue staying here." Ziv brushed off her question before asking her about this issue.

"It's too easy to say that. Those people that have done that was already dead because that Kenny outside is kinda strong, but what makes it impossible to escape here was the patrol outside. They have guns and stuff that can kill us for sure." Claire said helplessly as she pointed out the problem.

"I could use that to my advantage." Ziv mutters as he stroked his jaw while thinking about some plans to escape this predicament.

"What?" Claire asked as him when she didn't hear his word that he mutters just now.

"Oh.. It's nothing, just thinking about other things." Ziv shrugged her question while he closed his cold eyes that emitting a cruel light.

'When the stage is set, the performer would start appearing.'

They talk and chat for a while before he decided to sleep to conserve his energy for anything that may happen later.

Claire also didn't bother him anymore while she also sleeps beside him as if her battery run out.

...

When the night was quietly passed and the bustling atmosphere of the shopping district slowly died down before silence ensued the area.

While in the center most part of the shopping district, there's a 3 storey building that was extravagantly decorated with ornament while it was guarded by armed men that holding pistols and MP5.

On the top floor, there is a bunch of people that was seated on the long brown table while the atmosphere of the room was lively as they are eating their full and laughing heartily.

"We never thought that your Intel had been true, as expected to Boss!"

"Of course, that's expected who else was leading us in our operation, isn't Boss?"

"That's true, our operations suddenly expand because of Boss instructions!"

*Chatter* *Chatter*

"Silence."

These people were flattering and boot licking the man that was seated on the main chair of this table.

He is Antonio "The Executioner" Castello a mafia boss that was in the most wanted list of FIB and police because of Illegal manufacturing of guns and human trafficking.

While Antonio has a plain face that paired with black hair and white skin while his facial feature was average that didn't attract too much attention when placed on the crowds.

"I know you all are satisfied with our plans running smoothly, especially those f*ckers that was always behind our back was preoccupied by the zombies running rampant in the city."

"We could do anything in the open without hiding like some rats that we used to do before. We will start our plan in this city before we will start conquering the entire country while establishing a huge empire that was created by our own hands." Antonio ambitiously declared with authority while laughing maniacally afterwards.

The people that stayed silent when Antonio started talking started clapping and daydreaming about their future as they thought about the empire that they will build.

In the opposite building of where these mafia's staying at right now.

"Target Confirmed. Permission to take action."

There's an armed soldier with advance tactical equipment, observing them with a m24 Sniper Rifle in the distance while staying in a prone position as he spoke at the walkie talkie on his shoulder.

"Permission denied. Wait for reinforcement." the voice that could be heard on the walkie talkie replied at his request.

"Roger that."

The soldier helplessly dismount his sniper rifle before he stood up as he walked towards his colleague who was sitting on the couch.

"Anything new?" the other soldier that was sitting on the couch asked him.

"We can do nothing, but to wait and stay here for a few hours until they issue the command, Jones." the soldier that dismounted his gun replied at him while feeling tired of this situation.

"We got another borting mission this time, Greg." Jones exclaimed while yawning.

"Yeah! But, after this mission, we could have some beer at the bar all me." Greg suggested at him.

"Even with this sh*ttiest situation?" Jones asked back as he got confused by his suggestion.

"I'll chug it all down even if it's the sh*ttiest situation was happening or not." Greg smiled at him as he was replying to his question.

"I'll take your offer then."