Beyblade 1. Cold World

Summary - Post G Rev world championships & post Zombie apocalypse. Boris, embittered, has taken his revenge one step too far - Releasing a toxin into the water that infects humans with a reanimating virus. A few familiar faces survive the initial outbreak to fight the undead.

Rating - M for violence and horror, also for sexual content

**Tokyo at night. A far cry from what it once was. No lights, no sound, no people. Wrapped in a blanket of grime and pain, harbouring memories of what had once been; the city sleeps. For now. A street normally bustling, long ago lined with shops lies dormant. Broken windows expose the innards of shattered buildings, each one now murky and unwelcoming. A faint but icy wind blows through the street, disturbing the rubbish that litters the ground, lifting a piece of newspaper and leading it through a maze of upturned and abandoned cars. It stops, caught at the feet of a young man who stands in the doorway of a dilapidated building that had once been a pharmacy..**

Kai grimaced, tightening his coat around him. It was cold tonight, even colder than usual. He wondered if he would ever feel the sun's warmth on his skin again. Doubtful. Since the Infection the sun had all but retreated, burrowing off deep into space, away from this polluted and infected planet. Not that he blamed it, why give heat or light to a planet almost devoid of humanity? The real reason the sun had diminished was a far more sinister one.

What became known as "The Bolkov Infection" had taken everything good from the world, leaving behind it a ravaged and dangerous land of shadows. Boris, the twisted fool, enraged by his defeat at the world championships had retaliated by releasing a powerful toxin into the water supply. He couldn't rule the world so he may as well destroy it. But even he couldn't have planned for the subsequent results.

_7 months earlier.._

_Kai shook his head, watching Tyson in disbelief as he tried to sweet talk the waitress into giving him thirds. He was pulling out all the stops, finally using his status as World Champion to convince her, she looked irritated but piled more food on his plate. Grunting in disgust he rolled his eyes at Ray who sat opposite, but he just laughed easily and held up his own plate for the waitress. _

_Kai leaned back and looked around at the table. With the World Championships over and Tyson crowned once more, the BBA had arranged a reunion for all the competing teams. This reunion was taking place in the grounds of the stadium itself, and a lavish meal had been laid out, with everyone seated together on one long table. Despite the fact that it had been just a few days since the epic final battles, all of the teams had accepted the invitation – even the BEGA League, a subdued Brooklyn himself seated next to Tyson. Remarkably, given all that had happened the meal was going well, and the general mood was a relaxed one with all of the teams mixing and chatting. Kai wasn't usually one for large gatherings like this, but he and Tala had been officially discharged from hospital today, and oddly he had felt compelled to see everyone._

_His lips twisted up in wry amusement as he caught sight of Tyson furtively stealing a handful of chips from Max's plate. Some things never changed. He had found himself seated next to Johnny, the Scottish player from the Majestics, who was arguing profusely with Lee from the White Tigers over certain elements of his blade. They had even attempted to drag him into the discussion earlier but he declined with a derisive snort. Kai found himself strangely at ease, for some reason today he didn't mind being around everybody – even Tyson. He looked up at the bright sky, relishing the warm breeze. After everything that had happened. for the first time in a long, long time he felt almost content. _

_An agonised shriek bought his peaceful thoughts to an end, bewildered he looked for the source of the noise. He didn't have to look far. A few seats away Ming-Ming was convulsing on the floor, screaming and spluttering in pain. Her fingers clutched desperately at her stomach as she writhed around, moaning in agony. People were slow to react, most staring silently in shocked confusion. Enrique, who had been sitting next to her just seconds ago, flirting in earnest, remained frozen in his seat, a look of horror on his face. Max's mother scrambled out of her chair to her knees next to the tormented girl, desperately attempting to stop the violent convulsions, but the spasms worsened and she was forced to move away in dismay._

"_IT BUUUURNS" Ming-Ming screeched, gripping her stomach and rolling over onto her knees, she looked up at the people near her, frenzied eyes wide and beseeching, full of tears. "H..help me?" she whispered, before vomiting a fountain of thick blood so dark it was almost blue. Kenny, who had rushed to her side moments beforehand, stumbled back in horror, covered in her blood. _

"_What the fuck? Someone get help!" His hoarse cry broke the silence, and he fell to his knees next to Ming-Ming, lifting her head into his lap. She groaned , eyes rolling back in her head. Fuelled into action, many of the Beybladers rushed towards her, whilst others frantically began calling for help. Amongst the havoc, all but Kai failed to notice Max – he had clambered to his feet to see what had happened, but all at once his face had drained of colour and he too had dropped into a crouch. Now Max was clasping his hands to his stomach, eyes bugging out in distress, rocking. He let out a strangled moan, pitching forward onto the ground. _

_Disbelievingly Kai leapt to his feet and started towards him, pushing people out of the way. As he reached Max the blonde boy started to cough up the same glutinous, blue tinged blood as Ming-Ming. Appalled he took a step back, mind racing, knees trembling. What the hell was going on? A guttural roar sounded behind him and he spun around in time to witness Eddy slump helplessly over the table, blood dripping from his mouth. _

_Cold seeped slowly into his brain, time almost grinding to a halt as he gazed around, numb. The sound of his wildly thumping heart drowned out the panicked screams, as he silently watched the people around him begin to drop, one by one.._

Kai shook his head slightly as if trying to clear his mind of the memories, it didn't do anyone any good to dwell on the past, history couldn't be changed. Deciding he had already lingered in this place too long he glanced around, eyes swiftly scanning the deserted street checking for movement. Despite the pitch black his vision had become adjusted to picking out small details in the dark – he had had to adapt, they all had.

Sighing, he moved back into the empty pharmacy and picked up his rucksack. He shook his head bitterly in the darkness. _Mariah.. _Why the hell had she been so idiotic? So reckless? He had watched her, observed silently, impassively, listening to Ray's desperate protestations. He knew she wouldn't listen, she was ignorant before the end of society, and she was still ignorant now. How could she have thought that Lee was still alive after all this time? Because of a pathetic dream? Ridiculous. Kai had little patience for the pink haired girl, although he admired her tenacity, plus her catlike abilities were more than useful in a fight. However, clearly not useful enough to ensure her safety outside of the group.

Mariah had woken up that morning consumed by a dream that she had had, in which her brother Lee was alive and well, safe and barricaded in a hospital on the other side of the city. She had begun by begging Ray to come with her to find him, but Ray, although he loved her, was not stupid and had joylessly refused, trying to get her to see reason. When her pleas to the rest of the group had fallen on tired, deaf ears she had retreated to her room in an enraged sulk. As usual they had all just assumed that she would remain there for a while until she calmed down.

However, hours later when she still hadn't resurfaced Ray had gone to check on her, only to discover her room empty, her bag of weapons gone along with her lifeless Beyblade. There was no question about whether or not they would go after her. She had told them where the hospital was and they knew what route she would take, it would only be a matter of time before they caught up with her. Rescue missions in a world such as theirs were never without casualties, and this one was no exception. Just hours after they had set out, they returned with a shaken and bleeding Mariah - just flesh wounds, she would live, but Michael had received a more major injury..

Grimly Kai took the aged bottle of penicillin out of his pocket at rolled it in the palm of his hand, they had been lucky this time, most of the pharmacies had been gutted in this area. Hopefully this would be enough. As he slid the bottle back into his pocket his fingers brushed cold, smooth metal. He tightened his fingers around his old Beyblade. Dranzer.. He missed his Bitbeast immensely. With the defilement, and pollution of the world the Bitbeasts had all fled, not that he blamed them. He kept his empty blade now just for sentimental value, they were all but useless.

Slipping outside he braced himself against the wind, scanning the street for access to the rooftops. He didn't like being on the ground, it made him feel exposed and unprotected, especially with no one to watch his back. Brooklyn had offered to accompany him to get the medical supplies but Kai had refused, relishing the opportunity to escape from the cramped building they all shared. The old fire station they had converted into an almost impenetrable fort was great for keeping the infected out, terrible for keeping one's sanity.

Crossing to the other side of the road he leapt nimbly up a wall, grabbing onto a drainpipe. Climbing swiftly to the top he hoisted himself over the edge and onto the roof of an abandoned electrical shop – broken televisions still littering the street below. Without the help of their Bitbeasts the survivors had worked on their own physical strengths to survive, and only the very strongest had.

Many had fallen.

The Infected took no prisoners. They were fast, they were bloodthirsty, and they were extremely hard to kill.

With a quick look out over the silent city, Kai gathered his strength for the journey back to the others.

**Thanks for reading I hope you enjoyed it! the next chapter should have a bit more action, this was more of an intro chapter... :)**


	2. Let It Lie

**The Bolkov Infection had spread rapidly to all corners of the earth, no country remained untouched. It was an entirely effective way of wiping out the human race – perhaps the only more efficient way of mass destruction would have been via an airborne toxin. **

**However by infecting the water supply the virus ensured that the annihilation of life was complete, as everything that lives needs water to survive. The Infection not only obliterated most of humanity, it also caused the plants and wildlife to wither and die. **

**Within months of the initial outbreak the laws that once governed the world were methodically eradicated, as most of the population – including the law makers, no longer even recognised their own name. **

**The first wave of Infection contaminated around 65% of mankind - the tainted water, once ingested took around 3 hours to start working, in that time there were no symptoms. Nonetheless after a few hours the virus began to destroy their insides, causing excruciating pain and often brutal vomiting as it poisoned the blood, giving it a blue tinge. The victims then fell into a state of unconsciousness where the Infection worked on their brain, cutting it off from the rest of the body, mutilating the cells and corrupting them. **

**What awoke from this gruesome operation was barely even human. Savage, blood thirsty – only their basest instincts remaining. **

**In the following few months perhaps 30% of the remaining population were either killed or infected by those who had originally drunk the deadly water. Spreading the Infection was devastatingly easy – if you were bitten or got blood in any orifice you were infected immediately. Unfortunately it could also be spread by bodily secretions such as saliva and sexual discharge, meaning that those who were infected and didn't realise could infect others unknowingly in those few hours where the symptoms had yet to show. **

**The remaining 5% of the world lived in constant terror of the infected, with barely any hope for a brighter future. The sun was gradually fading away – leaving a cold and dim world behind. With no way of growing food and no water left safe to drink, any sort of future for the survivors seemed bleak. **

**In contrast, the infected could survive as long as they had sustenance, which was in abundance as they tended to eat each other – although unfortunately they preferred the taste of fresh meat.**

Tala shifted uncomfortably in his seat. A thick, tense silence had been hanging over the room for a while now. He glanced at Mariam exasperatedly. She sat at the kitchen table angrily sharpening the various knives they had collected, the sounds echoing around the massive room as she worked with unnecessary vigour. It had once been the communal area of a fire station, with many bedrooms nearby for the firemen working the night shift.

"That's it! I'm checking on them!" Mariam threw down the knife she had been working on and stood up. "It's been over two hours, surely she must be ready to talk by now.."

"Don't do it." Johnny cautioned, moving swiftly to stand in front of Mariah's door. "They are either fucking or fighting. You know how it is."

Eye's flashing furiously she slammed her hand down onto the kitchen table. "I want to know how can she live with herself after all the trouble she's caused! She should be made to come out here where she can be held accountable for her actions, not hide away in there like some snivelling victim!"

She pushed the table away crossly and started toward the door, but Tala quickly intercepted her – gripping her shoulders. "Mariam... Cut it out. You aren't the only one that's angry with her, we all want to know what the hell she was thinking," he spoke quietly and calmly, eyes locked on hers "But all we can do now is wait. Ray knows her a lot better than the rest of us, we just have to trust that he knows more about what's going on. If you storm in there now guns blazing you're only going to ruin whatever progress he might have made."

He squeezed her shoulders gently, met with only the slightest resistance before she sagged against him, burying her face into his chest. Her bitter reply was muffled. "Selfish bitch."

Tala ran a quick, comforting hand across her back, but he was inwardly troubled. She was usually much more rational and calm than this. Of course she had a hard side and would easily bite back if threatened, but she tended to be one of the more peaceful and understanding people in the group, why was she losing her cool now? Mariah must have angered her more than he had first thought. A relenting Mariam allowed him to lead her back to the table, where she sat silently, glowering at Mariah's room.

Johnny gave a sigh of relief, moving away from the door, "He's not getting any better you know," he said glumly, looking at Michael's room. "He didn't recognise me when I went in to check on him earlier, I think he's delirious. I was delirious once. I ate a gone off burger, I was in bed for days calling for Ronald McDonald to save me..." He trailed off as Mariam turned to glare at him. Coughing nervously, he continued "My point is – he's really in the shit."

"Johnny stop talking. Kai will be back soon." Tala spoke with certainty, if anyone could be counted on to come through for them, it was Kai.

Mariam briefly dropped her head into her arms, breathing deeply, then she stood up, shaking off the hand that Tala put out restrain her. "Please just leave it Tal. I'm not going to bother them, don't worry. Ijust want to see how Mike's doing." He held his hands up submissively, and she gave him a weary but soft smile, before crossing the room towards another of the many doors that ringed the communal area.

She knocked gently, listening for any sounds from inside. When none came she shot the others a worried glance, quietly opening the door. The room was lit dimly by a single candle, and she couldn't help but wrinkle her nose as the smell of illness hit her – stale, sweaty, unpleasant. She cautiously approached the bed in the corner of the room and knelt beside it, picking up a bottle of water from the bedside table.

"Michael..." She looked down at him miserably. Johnny was right. He was getting worse. His skin had grown waxy and pale, breathing coming in short hitching gasps. His eyelids fluttered slightly in response to his name, but that was the only sign he gave that he had heard her voice.

She lifted the bottle to his mouth, trying to get him to drink, but when he only managed a few meagre sips she sighed sadly, putting the bottle back on the table. Leaning over him she gently lifted the sweaty blanket, pulling it back to peer underneath.

It wasn't a pretty sight.

A ragged, deep gash stretched grotesquely up his left side, from hip to armpit. Smaller lacerations covered his chest, arms and hands. Brooklyn had tried his best to stitch up the wound but he had already lost a lot of blood, and it was beginning to look infected despite Brooklyns meticulous efforts.

She gritted her teeth angrily. This was all Mariah's fault. Naïve, self centred, attention seeking Mariah.

Mariam had even tried to be sympathetic to her when she had woken up overexcited after that stupid dream, after all it was never a bad thing for any of them to feel some form of positivity these days. But why on earth would she actually believe that her own dream was some sort of prophesy? When it dawned on her that Mariah was serious about going to find Lee she had taken a step back from the situation – let Ray handle it.

In hindsight she wished she had taken a firmer stand, Ray was too involved and could be a soft touch when it came to Mariah, but in truth she had felt sorry for her – one of the things that had originally bought the two girls together had been the loss of their brothers.

_Joseph_.. Fighting back the tears that had been threatening to fall all day, she turned her attention back to Michael. Tears could wait.

Covering him up again she wondered whether Kai would be able to find anything to help him. He had been gone a long time now, although these days time was a difficult concept, day and night all but merging into one dismal colour.

"How is he?" Tala's voice spoke softly behind her and she turned and went to him, burying her face in his chest once more, stifling a sob. He kissed the top of her head, stroking the small of her back comfortingly.

She was glad she had Tala, he was her silver lining in all this shit. She had been wary of him at first, his cold, steely exterior frightening her, plus his murky past wasn't exactly endearing - but friends and enemies had had to put aside past differences once the Infection hit. They had bonded quickly, their calm, collected personalities gelling easily, sure he could be a little cocky and rude but he had a warmth to him that she hadn't expected, she had found she could open up to him.

It wasn't long before she had started to notice cute little things about him that hadn't seemed important before – he would open doors for her, bring her food when she was feeling low, he had even started sticking up for her when Johnny was a dick.

He had been surprisingly shy about making a move, not wanting to spoil what they already had, but there had been no avoiding the inevitable. Their first kiss had been tentative, gentle, both enjoying being so close to one another. For Mariam it had been the happiest she had felt since the Infection started..

"He's not good," she whispered, leading Tala to Michaels bed "He's pretty fucking awful actually."

Tala bent down to examine the wound, frowning at the puffy skin around the edge. "That's definitely getting infected. Shit. Kai will find something, he knows what needs to be done." Mariam smiled slightly in spite of herself, Tala's faith in Kai was sometimes poignant, especially given the history between them. "Look on the bright side Mariam, it's been well over three hours since we got back, he's not properly infected."

She nodded silently, that was true, they were lucky in that sense, but as her eyes fell to the huge gash again she found it hard to be positive. She still had the memory replaying in her mind of Michael crashing through that car window – he had been forced to jump off of a roof to escape the masses of the infected who had followed him up there. He was a hero, drawing them away from a petrified, cornered Mariah who had been cowering on top of a cupboard in the hospital. He had lured them up to the roof whilst the others had rescued her. He had been so brave, he didn't deserve this pain.

The most bitter and furious part of Mariam wished they had just left her there. Now Michael might die, all because of her stubborn, childish refusals to see sense and not go off on some wild goose chase.

No, it wasn't fair. She needed to speak to Mariah and get a few things off of her chest. Now.

She moved swiftly out of Michaels room and towards Mariah's, and before Tala could reach her she was banging on the door with her fist.

**Hey, sorry I know this is quite a slow chapter but it's more just setting the scene and introducing a few characters – I know I promised action in the this chapter but I guess I got a bit hung up on the introducing :P**

**I want to reveal bits and pieces about the past as I go along, sorry if any of it's confusing.. **

**Thank you to the people who reviewed the first chapter, its really nice to know people like it! Any ideas are welcome :)**


	3. My War

**Hey, sorry this next chapter has taken a while – I've been on holiday but I'm back now :) **

**Also, this is a long one so bear with me.. Been trying to work out exactly where I'm going to take this story but so far it's evading me so I'm just going with it.**

**Thanks to the reviewers, my writings a bit rusty but you guys seem to like it so hopefully this chapter follows suite..**

Ray glanced wearily at the door, the knocking had jolted him out of the depressive stupor in which he had been sitting for the last hour. He made no move to answer. Slumped in the corner of the room he returned his head to his hands.

He could hear Mariam and Tala's muffled arguing outside, Tala attempting to calm her down again. He tried to be concerned about this but his brain just kept short-circuiting – going back to Mariah every time. He looked up at the bed where she lay, unmoving.

She hadn't reacted when Mariam had banged on the door, hadn't even flinched.

He bit his lip unhappily, staring at the floor. What was he meant to do? He had tried everything to get her to speak to him, at first he had been furious, demanding answers, but when this just caused her to cry even harder – almost hyperventilating, his rage had turned to concern.

Gently he had taken her in his arms, holding her close. He had tried reassuring her, wiping away her tears, but there had been no response. She wept freely, sluggish in his arms, allowing him to dress a deep cut on her hand but not speaking to him – refusing to even look at him. The tears were still coming even now – her small frame shuddering as she tried to contain herself.

He had never seen her like this before, it was so strange for her to remain quiet, compliant. Usually if he was angry with her there was no way in hell she would hold her tongue, even if she had clearly been in the wrong she would have something to say back to him.. But not this time. It was almost like something had broken inside of her.

He had known her his whole life, loved her his whole life and although they had never officially been an item it had always been there between them. In times of need they always had each other to turn to, emotionally and physically.

Mariam knocked again, louder this time and he struggled to clear his mind of the fog enveloping it. He knew she was seriously pissed with Mariah and this worried him, he'd never heard her this worked up before, especially over Mariah. The two were pretty close.

It wasn't that he didn't see where Mariam was coming from, he was pretty sure everybody would have something to say to her and with good reason. Ray himself still had a hell of a lot he needed to say – had even said most of it to her already, but when you didn't get a reaction what's the point?

Despite everything, he couldn't help but feel deeply worried, it sat in the pit of his stomach weighing him down like a stone. All of her recent actions had been so out of character, she could be impulsive and headstrong yes, but she was sweet and big hearted, never this reckless. It seemed like she didn't care any more, about her life or any one else's, why else would she have just gone off like that on her own, blatantly disregarding everyone else's opinions.

He could have forgiven her, if it weren't for Michael. His chest tightened painfully as he thought of him suffering in the nearby room.

If she had only listened to them – to him, none of this would have happened. Why hadn't she listened? Was she that far gone that even he couldn't get through to her any more?

He shook his head disgustedly, he had been sitting there far too long, moping like an idiot. He really wasn't doing anything to help the situation other than making himself feel pathetic. Besides, maybe Kai was back by now.. He knew seeing Kai would give him strength, it always did.

He got up, running a tired hand over his face to clear away the remnants of tears and opened the door to an indignant Mariam – Tala standing close behind looking apologetic.

"What's happening?" Mariam hissed angrily. "It's been hours!" Ray closed the door firmly behind him. He registered Kai's absence and steeled himself to speak. It was an effort.

"I.. I think we need to just leave her alone for now guys. She won't speak to me, won't even look at me.." He paused, exhaustion showing in his face. "She hasn't stopped crying since we got back."

"Good! She should be feeling like crap after what she's put us through!" Mariam snapped, crossing her arms across her chest hotly. "And I really don't care how upset she is, I want to talk to her."

"Please.. Mariam," Ray put a gentle hand on her shoulder, imploring her. "I know she messed up big time, but I think she knows that too which is why she's in this state.. She's got a hell of lot to answer for, but now isn't the time. Enough has happened today, let's just focus on what we can do to help Mike. Please?" His voice trembled slightly towards the end of his sentence.

Mariam's eyes softened as she allowed herself to take in Ray's appearance. His long hair was dishevelled and loose, massive haunted eyes staring out from above bags so dark they looked bruised. She hadn't seen Ray this fragile or vulnerable in a long time. Squashing the urge to hug him she gave a curt nod instead, stepping back.

"Look Ray, I'll leave it, but sooner or later she's gonna need to come out here and explain herself.. So don't worry, she's safe – for now." She replied in a more jokey tone, offering him a conciliatory grin.

Ray flashed her a tiny, pained smile, joining Johnny at the table.

Johnny regarded him in uncomfortable silence, it felt strange for him not to be that involved in the arguments that were going on at the moment. Usually he was right in the thick of it - his mum always said he never knew when to keep his mouth shut, but this was different. This was shit he didn't know about and didn't want to touch with a barge pole.

Talking of things he knew nothing about, he had no idea how to comfort Ray. He looked around frantically, eyes catching on an unopened can of coke on the side, darting to get it he offered it to Ray with an expression of what he hoped was sympathy on his face.

Ray looked at it blankly for a few seconds. "You could probably do with the sugar boost man.." Johnny ventured hopefully. Sighing, Ray nodded slowly and took the can.

"Thanks Johnny, you're right. I.. I don't remember the last time I ate or drank anything.." Relieved Johnny sat back, sympathy clearly wasn't his forte but this time he had done OK, maybe it wasn't so hard after all. He gave Ray a tentative pat on the back.

Mariam and Tala joined them at the table where they remained sitting in heavy silence for a few minutes, each lost in their own gloomy thoughts. The candle on the table sputtered and went out, plunging the room into near darkness. No one made any move to light a new one.

Never one to stay silent for too long, Johnny drummed his fingers on the table. "What a shit day. Jeez.. Been a long time since we had a fight like that, with that many infected as well." Johnny's words didn't inspire any further conversation from the others. "Where's Brook anyway? I haven't seen him since Kai left."

"He's sleeping. I think sewing Mike up took a lot out of him." Tala replied looking troubled. Brooklyn had been pretty hard on himself when Michael's condition had worsened despite his best efforts. As the only one in the group with any sort of medicinal knowledge he had a lot of responsibility on his shoulders, Tala thought he was very adept, having been patched up by him a good few times after certain nasty confrontations with the infected.

The four of them remained sitting in silence again, all too frazzled to try and speak. They were still sitting there like this when Kai returned about ten minutes later.

"Hey." Kai bolted the door behind him. "Where's Brooklyn?" He moved towards Michaels room. "Someone get him please."

The journey home had been more difficult than he had expected. He had been careless. He was spotted and chased by three of the infected as he neared the fire station, and he had had to sprint - leading them away and doubling back around the block into one of the old four tiered car parks. He had managed to get to the roof where he locked the door, trapping them inside – from there it had been easy, free running across the rooftops, just how he liked it.

He felt drained and impatient, the day had been gruelling. What he really wanted to do was go straight to his room and sleep, he couldn't really face being around other people. Studying the others, he saw how he felt written all over their faces, he would have to make the effort this time. He took off his bag and leaned tiredly against the wall, watching as Mariam rapped on Brooklyn's door, he resisted the urge to slump to the floor.

A few seconds later Brooklyn emerged, eyes puffy with sleep. He ran a hand through his hair, eyes meeting Kai's.

"What did you find?"

"Penicillin – it's old but it should still work. Bandages and gauze, some painkillers, also what I think may be Valium but you'll need to check them." Kai handed his bag to Brooklyn. "I'm going to bed." He started towards his room.

"Thanks Kai, seriously.. I'm not sure I could have gone out there in this state, I would have just been a liability." Ray said, looking at him gratefully. Kai turned to him giving a thin lipped smile in return, then nodded and went into his room before he could change his mind. If only they knew. There wasn't any point in telling them what had happened. Unnecessary drama, the infected hadn't managed to follow him here ultimately.

He shut the door and sank down onto the mattress, his vision swimming. Kicking off his boots he gingerly felt his ankle, it was swollen, somehow he had landed on it badly earlier. He was getting sloppy.

He could sense that Ray had wanted to talk – his face hopeful and needy, but Kai just didn't have enough strength for both of them right now. He lay back on the bed, sleep embracing him within seconds.

Outside Brooklyn was heading into Michael's room, grimly beckoning Tala to come with. "He's got what we need, we can only hope it's not too late."

XXX

Kai awoke a few hours later, groggily managing to wrench himself out of bed. God he wished he could have a cup of coffee.. It was one of the things he felt he missed the most about civilisation. He stretched and sat on the edge of his bed, contemplating his options.

It was unlikely that the infected would have been able to follow him back here, but he couldn't help feeling tense. Their sense of smell could be dangerously accurate.. If one of them had returned to where they had discovered him and followed the scent their home could be in trouble.

The infected were particularly sensitive following feeding on humans, their senses heightened – sight, smell, hearing and even strength. He thought back to the ones that had chased him.

One had been limping, dragging her torn, broken leg behind her. She had been weak, lagging behind the others. Not a threat. The other two he was not so sure about.

The one who had spotted him had given chase doggedly and immediately, one side of his face ripped away, a massive strip of skin flapping as he ran. His blood stained teeth showed through the side of his face – broken, ragged and grinding furiously. The blood was red. Human blood.

The last one had been a policeman in previous life, still wearing a ragged vest peppered in bullet holes from other survivors failed attempts to bring him down. He too had given chase with terrifying speed, but luckily Kai was smarter and faster than either of them.

He had obviously considered shooting them, but the noise of his handgun would have bought more upon him – plus he was too close to home. Drawn by noise, the infected were attracted to explosions and gun shots like moths to a flame. He had had to run.

He wondered if the two faster ones had fed recently, it certainly seemed like it. This left him with two difficult questions – who had the fed on? And would they have fed recently enough to have been able to track him..? He didn't want to think about either. If they had followed him he would know by now.

The old fire station was impenetrable to a point. The lower level consisted of a cavernous garage which was usefully secured by a heavy duty metal door which could be opened if necessary. Other than that the only other entry point into the building was a small back door, hidden away around the side. With only one window on the bottom floor – which they had boarded up long ago – the ground floor was safe.

The second floor they used for storage, and the top floor they used for eating and sleeping. The top floor was secured by a massive metal bolted door which lead to the stairwell, but if one was feeling adventurous they could always slide down the old fireman's pole which lead to the ground floor..

If the infected had found them they would hear the noise of them trying to get in pretty clearly. Kai hoped they were safe. He wouldn't tell the others straight away. They would only work themselves up about it.

Bracing himself, he left the safety of his room to find out what drama happened whilst he'd been gone. Maybe Mariah would have emerged, the silly airhead, hopefully not. He couldn't be bothered to deal with that shit right now, his head felt full of cotton wool and he was sure her voice could painfully penetrate it.

The main room was empty, all the doors shut.

Frowning he cocked his head, listening for sounds. He looked at his watch, 3am.. Surely they weren't all asleep? Suddenly sounds of laughter came from the room closest to his – Michaels room.

Allowing himself a glimmer of hope, but not quite daring to fully believe it, he stood outside the door listening to the snatches of conversation filtering through.

"Ha! I thought Mariam was going to hit me! I've never seen her face go that red, scary shit man.. Hey Tala is she on her.. OW!"

"Johnny, seriously just don't push it. It's not funny. One day I _will_ hit you where it hurts.." Kai chuckled softly, Johnny always knew how to get under Mariam's skin. "Tala don't laugh!" A soft thud sounded followed by more laughter. Kai guessed she had shoved her boyfriend over. As the next voice came Kai was filled with relief. Michael.

"Well, I guess nothings changed in the last day then.. You guys are still immature.." His voice was weak but humorous, but as he tried to laugh he started coughing lightly instead.

"Do you want us to leave you to rest again?" Brooklyn's anxious voice cut in.

"Nah its fine Brook, thank you again for sorting me out.. There were a few times when I thought I wasn't gonna make it, should have known you'd be able to heal me with those magic hands.." Kai couldn't help grinning, even in the face of death Michael had remained positive and good natured.

The Infection had taken its toll on all of them in different ways, but surprisingly Michael had emerged as changed for the better. The ego had dissipated and he had turned out to be an extremely genuine and kind person, even Kai had found it hard to dislike him.

"Where's Kai?" Michael continued. "I should thank him as well for risking his ass to get me the meds.."

"He went to bed as soon as he got back," Tala replied. "He looked pretty dead to the world, I'd give him another few hours to be safe."

Kai turned to leave, and found Ray standing in front of him.

"Eavesdropping at doors now are we Kai?" He raised an eyebrow playfully, but stepped back so Kai could pass.

"I don't need to go in. He's OK, that's all that matters." Kai opened his bedroom door. "You coming?"

"Sure, let me just get my dinner.. You want some?" He motioned to a can of peaches on the table. Kai shrugged.

"Sure."

Ray grinned, trust Kai to be as stony as usual even with the good news of Michael's recovery.. He grabbed another couple of cans of food and followed him into his room.

"Have you slept yet?" Kai asked without looking at him, instead lighting a few more candles. Ray settled down on the bed, using a knife to stab open one of the cans.

"Nope.. Sat up with Mariah all day, then once Mike woke up there didn't seem much point in sleeping." He inspected a shrivelled piece of fruit woefully. "Besides, I want to be awake in case she gets up."

Kai sat down on the bed and regarded the other boy reproachfully. Ray was his closest friend in the group but sometimes he felt he could a bit _too_ nice.. To the point of causing damage to himself. He wasn't a pushover as such, but he definitely allowed people to get away with more than they should at times.

"Hn."

Ray looked up at him, amber eyes wide and concerned. "Don't be like that Kai.. She needs me. As far as I can tell everyone else could care less about how she's doing, they just want to lay into her."

"And they're right Ray. She put us all in danger."

"I know! She fucked up - she really fucked up.." Kai glanced at him curiously but he was looking down at his lap, fists clenched tightly. It was highly unusual for Ray to swear. "But I'm worried about her Kai. The night before she had that dream she was acting pretty weird with me.. She seemed really on edge and nervous. When she spoke it was almost like she wasn't quite with it – vacant.. I slept in her bed and the entire time she was just tossing and turning." He looked up at Kai again. "I don't know if any of that is relevant, but even you have to admit that running off like that was pretty out of character. Do you think something happened?"

Kai didn't look at him. Ray was rambling. He didn't want to upset him and he could tell that he was just about hanging on by a thread.

But Mariah was always a touchy subject between the two, with Kai only just tolerating her at the best of times, plus given recent events he wasn't sure that he even had an opinion on her that wasn't negative. He grunted in reply.

"But hey, Michael's alright Kai.. I mean, Brooklyn did an amazing job. Once he had the meds and the dressings in place his temperature just kept dropping, I forgot how incredible antibiotics are." He looked at Kai eagerly, hoping the change of subject would provoke a response. "It really was great of you to go get all that stuff.." He trailed off thoughtfully. "Maybe now that we all know he's OK the others will go a bit softer on Mariah."

Kai sighed. His and Ray's friendship was one they both relied on heavily to keep their sanity, but sometimes Ray's naivety irked him.

"Just because he didn't die doesn't change the fact that it happened, or that it was her fault."

Ray's face crumpled, and on seeing it Kai almost wished he could take it back, but he needed to hear it. Mariah was a soft spot Ray held that infuriated him, she was bossy and flighty – entertaining at the best of times. He didn't understand how someone as gentle and down to earth as Ray had ended up so tightly intertwined with someone so immature.. Well, he did – family history and Ray's kind nature, but it still pissed him off.

"Look Ray.. Let her fight her own battles, you don't always have to protect her, she's an adult." He reached out to take a can of food, stomach grumbling. Ray said nothing, staring at his half eaten can dully, eyes defeated.

Mentally slapping himself, Kai relented. "Fine.. If the others kick off and you really need me, I guess I can back you." Sometimes having a best friend sucked.

At once Ray's face beamed with a relieved smile, he knew Kai would come through for him he always did. Feeling as if a massive weight had been lifted he settled back happily on the bed, spooning peaches into his mouth with renewed gusto.

**Thanks for reading :) next chapter up soon..**


	4. Chasm

**Hey guys.. I'm really sorry this has taken me so long, my laptop has been busted and I've been working so much, haven't had much time to write at all :( Got a new laptop now though, so hopefully will be able to update a little more regularly.. This chapter is very short but I just wanted to focus on Mariah for now..**

"Get a grip. Literally. Get a fucking grip on yourself. This is ridiculous even for your standards." Mariah's voice came out as a painful croak. She was wholly aware that she was talking to herself. Her room had been still and silent since Ray had miserably given up, abandoning her to slowly cocoon, wrapping herself in layer upon layer of guilt and grief.

It felt like he had been gone for days.

She was sitting up now at least - that was a start. Every inch of her felt weak and feeble, she wondered if she would be able to stand. The urgent stabbings of hunger in the pit of her stomach informed her she would have to leave the room sooner or later. That was a good point.. How long had it been since she ate..?

Gathering her knees to her chest she tried to concentrate. Her mind wouldn't focus on anything, misted up with painful memories and thoughts that just wouldn't leave her alone. She had tried countless times to reply to Ray, and even more times to sit up, but her brain just insisted on thrusting various images or recollections to the front of her mind, rendering her useless with tears.

Her pain surrounded her incessantly, her own personal rain cloud to dampen every thought. Ray's cuddles and gentle whispers had done nothing but add to the weighty hatred she now felt for herself. She had never ever meant for anyone to get hurt. That had been the last thing she'd wanted, it had been one of the reasons she had left in the first place..

At first she had wanted the others to accompany her to find Lee, thoroughly convinced of his safety and whereabouts. The dream had been so vivid. So realistic. She had never had a dream like that before – usually her dreams were dull and plodded along slowly, wearily, her mind just waiting to wake up.

But this one had been different. It had felt like she was there, really seeing him, she could even smell him – his familiar homely scent..

She had woken needing to be with him, intoxicated, caught up in a whirlwind of hope that she would find her lost brother. Stupid. It had just felt so real. She had wanted the others help, but as the morning had worn on she had begun to feel suspicious, not of them but of herself.

Did she truly think that Lee was still alive after all this time? Surely not. She knew the others all thought she was crazy, and maybe she was..

She recalled the journey home from her botched attempt to go her own way, her friend's accusing, stony faces. None of them had even wanted to look at her to begin with. She herself had pretty much just stumbled home, dazed, clutching desperately at Ray and trying to make sense of what had happened.

In hindsight she was as disgusted with herself as everybody else. But the dark, bleak truth of it was that she wasn't even sure she had ever really believed in the reality of the dream. But she had wanted to leave the safety of their home. For all of it to end – this stark, cold empty existence, she didn't want it any more.

Her decision was reckless and not thought through, a small part of her knew that her one man mission was likely to be a suicide one – and that small part of her couldn't have cared less.

Now – alone, hungry and racked with guilt, Mariah was shocked at the dark places to which her mind had descended. It was far from her normal sparky self.

She had realised her grave mistake as soon as she had reached the hospital in which she had envisioned Lee, the cold stench of the reality of decision hitting her along with the stench of the Infected..

What was she meant to do now? How could she go out there and face the people she loved and try to explain away a unbidden urge to destroy herself – an urge that had lead to one of those beloved people sustaining a horrible injury.. She shook her head violently as images of Michael sprung into her mind - covered in blood, head lolling against his chest as he was bodily carried home by Tala and Kai.

She needed to go out there and face them. Suicidal thoughts aside, she had a mountain of apologising to do. Through careful eavesdropping she had drawn the following conclusions – firstly and most importantly – Michael was making a good recovery.

Secondly, Mariam was absolutely and utterly furious with her. She whimpered softly at the memory of the emerald haired girl's words to Ray as he slipped out of her room. She wondered if she would ever be able to fix that particular friendship.

She wanted to feel scared at the prospect of facing her friends, but her brain had all but dulled down her ability to feel anything new.

Draining all available sources of energy she managed to stagger to her feet, the bedsheets tangled around her. She moved to the mirror.

_Wow.._

As critical as she'd been about herself of late, this was without a doubt the worst she had ever looked. She chuckled drily. Even in the depths of depression she had managed to retain that vain streak that Ray always teased her about.

Her pink hair was lank and greasy, plastered to her face with countless old tears – darker in places where Ray hadn't managed to remove the blood. The skin on her face was taut and shiny – rubbed red raw around the eyes. Her lips were dry, blood crusted around a cut on her lip that had been repeatedly chewed open.

How had she let herself get to this point? She wondered if she should clean herself up before going outside. She gazed at her reflection again, her eyes black orbs, pupils dilated to the extent that the iris was all but gone – her reflection stared back at her blankly.

No. She wouldn't bother cleaning herself up. She didn't have the strength, plus the desperately sneaky side of her figured the others might be more forgiving if her outward appearance matched how she was feeling inside..

She looked at her face again. Yep. She looked and felt like a piece of shit.

Nothing else left to do. She took a deep breath and started for the door, managing only a few tiny steps before her head swayed, her vision swimming. She caught herself, palms flat on the door. She breathed deeply once more. Steeling herself.

She pictured Ray's face in her mind.. Kind, ever patient Ray. She didn't deserve his love. She desperately fought back the tears, not that she really had any left to cry..

Ray would be out there, that was enough reason to go. Just seeing his face would ease some of the pain. She tentatively reached for the door handle, closing her hand tightly around the cool metal. She closed her eyes and pushed down, the smell of cooking filling her nose as she stepped outside.

**I hope you liked it! Next one will be up soon.. Thanks for your ideas btw Indie – got some good ones there :D stay tuned..**


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