6. Better Life After Death

It was probably already midnight. Albert checked upstairs several times and returned with a disappointed expression because the storm had not stopped.

David looks seriously. The door in the corner of the room was connected to a cold, dark hallway.

It was likely that the storm would stop in the morning, so David decided to rest like the others were doing now.

David fell asleep next to Jess, who was busy connecting the radio channel with the radio on the mainland, but she never succeeded.

The monster's shadow kept appearing every time David closed his eyes. Then it turned into Eugene's face, telling him to stay alive.

David was in a schoolyard filled with dead bodies falling from the sky. The corpses were David's friends who had been bullying him.

David lost his balance because the wind was so strong. He didn't know how he came to be in this place.

Iris waved from the classroom with a panicked face. She ran down the corridor. A black shadow chased behind her.

When Iris arrived in front of David, the shadow disappeared. David thought the shadow had disappeared when it merged with Iris' shadow.

"Do you want to know who you are? Who are your parents?" Iris asked. She was wearing her favorite butterfly clip on the left side of her head.

"Come with me, David. Follow that black shadow. There is a better life for you."

Iris' shadow disappeared, trying to reach David's body like flowing water. David dodged out of the way.

"Dav, you will know who you are. You're not Earth-people. You belong to another world. The people here are like you; this is where your parents are."

David continued to run. Ignoring Iris' screams that echoed in his ears. His legs felt like the darkness was pulling them. His body wanted to be blown away by the wind. He kept running away from the black shadows.

David knew what Iris said was just a manipulation to get David killed.

"Dav, die with me. Face the monster! Turn around!" shouted Iris. Her voice was faintly audible as it blended with the wind.

David did not stop running. He stepped on the corpse of the history teacher and tripped over the bodies of the kids who used to bully him.

"David!" Jess exclaimed while shaking David's body.

David opened his eyes and realized he had just been dreaming. His breathing was so fast. Sweat the size of corn kernels fell down his neck.

"Are you okay?" asked Jess with a worried expression.

David stared at his surroundings in Albert's dim light. They had already woken up and packed their bags.

"Is the monster gone?" asked David, ignoring Jess' question.

"I checked. The black shadow is gone, but the storm hasn't stopped yet. We'll use another way," Albert explained as he readied his rifle.

David stood up and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He felt embarrassed when everyone looked at him with astonished expressions.

"Another way?" David gave a curious look.

Franky opened the door in the corner of the room connected to the dark tunnel. "I checked it out. This tunnel connects to a power line centered in the middle of the city."

"Do we still have enough time to get there on time?" asked David anxiously.

"I have communication with Vicky. He said he'll be waiting for us," Jess explained, making David sigh of relief.

"Can we start now, then?" asked Kourtney.

Albert turned on the torch and handed it to them one by one. "Be careful. There are a lot of wires down there!"

They started their journey with a sense of apprehension. David didn't know how long he would last in the darkness.

After about two hours, they had yet to find a turn. So far, they had been walking straight in the middle of an empty, dark, four-meter square tunnel.

David felt this was a real nightmare.

"How long will it take us?" asked David when they decided to take a break.

The wind from both sides of the path gave David goosebumps. He knew what would happen after his body felt goosebumps. It could be a sign of the arrival of monsters.

"Are you sure there's a way out, Franky?" asked Albert as he exhaled breathlessly.

"Before I became a deliverer, I followed my friend to repair electricity. He said there was a tunnel underground that led straight to the city's center," Franky explained.

"Does that mean this tunnel might not be one of them?" asked Danny in a worried tone.

"It might be, it might not."

"How could you ask us to make such an uncertain plan? What if there's no way out?" asked Kourtney with an emotional face.

"There must be," Albert intervened.

"We still have plenty of time to get to the airport. Vicky said he'll be waiting for us," Albert said.

They continued their journey with a sense of optimism. David looked back several times because he felt bad.

His half-sighted eyes often saw the black shadow on the hallway wall as the shadow of a monster when it was the shadow of Percy walking behind him.

"Hey, look!" Jess screeched as she pointed to a beam of light in the distance.

"Are we in the middle of the city?" asked David in disbelief.

"That's impossible. I don't think we've gone very far through this tunnel," Danny said.

"Let's go see."

Albert threw away his extinguished torch and walked in the direction the light was coming from. There was a door that was half destroyed.

There was a clear morning sky above. There was a wet ladder that they could use to climb up.

"It's not an electric tunnel, but it's okay. We can still get out of here." Albert forced open the remaining half door with a single kick.

Fresh air hit them. David could breathe normally.

This window door connected to what was previously a room. Two walls had been destroyed. The other wall was still towering, presumably two floors above.

They hurriedly left there before the wall collapsed on them.

"We're not in the city's center, but this place is very close to the airport," Franky said enthusiastically.

Albert and Percy scanned the surroundings with their weapons at the ready. There was no sign of life. There were only collapsed buildings and freshly rotted corpses.

David covered his nose with his hand. Staring at two vultures pecking at a human corpse at the end of the road. He felt sick, and Kourtney puked first, making everyone look away from her.

"I swear, I can't make this trip with a walk."

Percy headed towards a car with a cracked windshield. The key was still stuck in there.

"Are you sure you won't catch the monster's attention?" Jess asked, causing Percy to shake his head.

"Is there another way?" said Percy. Albert got into the front seat first. They got into the car.

The engine started, the only sign of life in the area.

"The airport is close to here. We should be there in about thirty minutes."

David sat in the back with Kourtney, still holding her mouth to avoid puking.

"Last night, I dreamed I was going to see the body of my son who invited me to die," Kourtney told David. "He looked so beautiful, wearing the clothes I bought him."

David recalled his dream about Iris. "What did he say?" David asked for confirmation.

"He told me to die with him. It was my first dream with him in a long time," Kourtney explained.

"I also dreamed the same thing. My friend told me to kill myself. He died in front of me because of the monster's attack," Percy shared.

David suspected that his dream had something to do with the current events. He wasn't the only one who dreamt of being asked to die. Was this a sign?

"I've dreamt about my wife many times since the apocalypse happened," Franky interjected.

David also often dreams about Iris. For some reason, David felt there was a theory he needed to solve from these dreams. Iris said there is a better life after death; he will find out who he is. David must die by a monster. That's what Iris wants. But what if Iris is just setting him up? What if the dreams are just a monster's trap to make him die?