Chapter Text
Two pairs of footsteps echo between the tall buildings of the city. The sky is equally gray and dull, as is the ground, and the clouds hang low, covering the tops of the high-rise buildings. The atmosphere is chilly but humid with the promise of rain later. Yet another early autumn is arriving.
There’s a wide city road, the width of a four-lane one, with broken cars everywhere. Their metal roofs and bonnets are covered in thin layers of ash and dust, and old skeletons are leaning on them with flowers blooming inside their rib cages. The grass has started growing from between the tiny gaps in the asphalt and the white lines on the road are barely recognizable. The greenery is coming back.
This would be what they call the safe zone.
Wei Ying’s backpack is heavy as he runs, bouncing up and down. His whole body is uncomfortably sweaty. The loose tracksuit jacket underneath his vest clings to his skin, and his hair is about to fall out of the bun he made earlier in the midst of a zombie ambush—a desperate attempt to just get the annoying strands out of the way. He’ll have to grow out his hair for a bit longer, he supposes, so he can start wearing it in mid-length ponytails.
Mo Xuanyu is on the other side of the street. He runs until he has mentally calculated his route, and at one of the crossroads where there’s a big pile of broken cars, he changes directions, jumping on one of them and climbing his way up. At the top, he takes out his gun from his thigh holster—reserved only for emergency situations—and points it at the zombie who’s after him.
The zombie is in surprisingly good condition, energetic enough to keep up with them when they run. It must have been an athlete in his previous life. Mo Xuanyu waits until the zombie makes it to the first car. He keeps his aim on the head as the zombie smashes itself into the car clumsily and then tries to climb up like nothing happened.
It takes two bullets. Both in the head, since he can’t shoot the legs from that angle. Then, he takes a quick glance at the whole area and spots Wei Ying some distance away, shouting at him.
“Did you get it?” echoes his voice between the buildings, slightly out of breath.
“Yeah, I’ll be finished just in a bit!”
Wei Ying raises his hand to show a thumbs up. “Okay! I’ll go around this block! Meet you at the containers?”
“Yeah! I think this is the last one,” Mo Xuanyu looks around one last time, “I don’t see any other movement down the road! You’re good!”
“Thanks!”
Wei Ying continues running and disappears behind the next corner. It’s an easier climb to the other side of the wire fence through that route, and from the inside he can then open the northern gate for Mo Xuanyu.
Mo Xuanyu turns back to look at the still-groaning zombie. The dark blood has spilled all over the roof of the car. It’ll probably rust within the next few years unless the rain washes it away. Mo Xuanyu can smell it even from this distance—the scent of rotten flesh and old blood.
He hops down on one of the cars underneath, his boots making a dent in the bonnet. “I guess it’s time to get rid of you, you stinky little shit.” He puts away his gun, takes out his knife, and grabs the zombie by its greasy hair. Sinking his knife straight into the temple, Mo Xuanyu watches the undead's life go out. Then, he severs the head just in case, and leaves it there.
He runs to where Wei Ying is waiting for him, his smaller backpack intact and all the goods they gathered that day brought safely to the base. He’s happy about today’s haul.
When he gets to the gate surrounded by the containers—mostly yellow and red ones—Wei Ying is nowhere to be seen. Mo Xuanyu only spots Wei Ying’s heavy backpack inside the fences, and then catches a very quick whiff of the foul breath of a zombie before he hears an aggressive roar to his right.
He dodges, taking support of the wire fence and accidentally stepping on a bone on the ground. It cracks under his heel. His balance falters and the bone snaps in two. With the ache in his left arm, he thinks he has sprained at least something when he loses his grip on the fence and he falls to the ground.
Mo Xuanyu gets ready to kick the zombie into the chest, but before it can launch itself on top of him, something hits the side of its head. After the blow it lets out a hoarse roar.
Wei Ying drops the shovel on the ground and quickly yanks the zombie to the side. He violently throws it to the ground. Using his feet, he kicks the head of it, smashing its skull to pieces and getting blood everywhere on the asphalt around them. Lastly, when the roars turn into pitiful gurgles, he picks up the shovel again and gives it one more good hit on the head.
Mo Xuanyu shields his face from the blood splatter. When everything quiets down, he turns to look.
They say nothing. Wei Ying steadies his breath, throws the shovel away, wipes his chin with his forearm and then extends his hand. “What a menace.”
Mo Xuanyu grabs it with a smile. “Thanks.” He looks at the zombie, the state of the mushed skull and face. He’ll have to sever this head too. “You did well with that one,” he says.
Wei Ying’s messy bun has unfastened again, so he starts gathering it to re-tie it. “I noticed that one when I was climbing. Had to abandon the backpack and then come back to this side, otherwise you would’ve been left alone with it.”
Mo Xuanyu takes the shovel, testing its weight and then sinking the tip right into the zombie’s neck. “And this was the only one?”
“Mm-hm.”
With a few slashes Mo Xuanyu manages to separate the flesh. When the head is almost cut off, he uses his foot to put weight on the shovel to further separate the bones. He then grabs it by the hair, the heavy thing that it is, watches how easily the leftover skin tears, and throws the whole thing off to the side. There will soon be flies swarming around it.
Wei Ying clears his throat once and spits right on the headless body. “It must have followed us for a long time. What a persistent fucker.”
Mo Xuanyu agrees. “Both of those pharmacists were ridiculously fit.” He offers to give the shovel back to Wei Ying, but the latter refuses. “You don’t want it?”
Wei Ying shakes his head.
Mo Xuanyu nods and throws it on the ground with a clang, wiping his hands on his pants. “We’ll have to tell Jiang Cheng. We’ll let them know there might be others and avoid going out for the next few days.”
Wei Ying nods, wiping his sweat again. “Yeah. He won’t like it, but it’s what it is. At least he got the things he asked for.” There’s a smear of blood on his cheek.
Mo Xuanyu stares at it, then reaches over to wipe it with his thumb. “Yeah.” It’s better to not have any infected blood near any holes like the mouth, nose or eyes. “Where’s your mask?” he asks.
Wei Ying smiles back at him, “Where’s yours?”
Mo Xuanyu snorts.
They decide to go over together, not bothering with the lock this time. Wei Ying goes first and helps Mo Xuanyu climb above the green container right outside the fence.
On their way back, Mo Xuanyu thinks about the way Wei Ying had slammed that shovel right into the zombie’s face. “What was up with that shovel?” he asks, “because it was kinda cool. You were cool.”
Wei Ying gives him a proud chuckle. “It was my zombie killing shovel, obviously.”
“Your shovel?” Mo Xuanyu repeats. “Why did you leave it then?”
“I thought there might be someone at the fence who might need it more than me.”
"Fair enough, fair enough."
—
“Hey, shithead, we got your stuff,” Wei Ying says as he digs a small box out of the plastic bag and throws it at Jiang Cheng.
Jiang Cheng stops eating to catch it. With a stern look, similar to his mother when she was still alive, he reads the label.
He shows no emotion—just places it on the table with care. Wei Ying waits for the thank you, but the words never make it out of Jiang Cheng's mouth.
“Did you run into any trouble?” Jiang Cheng asks instead and continues eating his extremely plain porridge. He tries hard to appear as a leader, even to the extent that he sometimes forgets that he can talk freely with Wei Ying.
“Maybe,” Wei Ying answers as he takes off his gloves and sits down next to him. He puts down the bag. He tries to understand him, but it's getting harder these days. “These meds should be good at least for some time if they still work.”
Wei Ying digs out two other boxes and rereads the labels on them. “The pharmacy was kinda hard to break into. I would assume the temperature inside has stayed the same for years. If not, then we’ll have to go further in the city.” He notes that the due date isn’t even that far in the past. Just a couple of years.
“Was it humid inside?” Jiang Cheng asks, biting his lip on the words thank you.
Wei Ying puts the boxes back. “Actually, it was quite dry. When we got in, I thought it was the first breeze of fresh air the place has seen in years. We’ll have to go back if we wanna rescue something else from there before the humidity takes over. The clouds were hanging low today again. You probably saw.”
Jiang Cheng nods. “I did.” A pause. He looks at Wei Ying. “Anything else I should know about? You look like you want to tell me something.”
Wei Ying smiles. “Two pharmacists. Followed us all the way up to the fences.”
Jiang Cheng raises an eyebrow. “Were they hidden?”
“Never left their workplace.”
Another pause follows them. Jiang Cheng looks like he really wants to say something, but doesn’t know how to put it into words. It has been a stressful few days after Jiang Yanli’s first asthma attack in a long time, so Wei Ying understands, but sometimes it gets a little frustrating.
“Do you know how long these will last?” Jiang Cheng asks while rereading the label over and over.
Wei Ying hums, “Mm-m. I think she once told me one of these could last for fifty or sixty attacks at least, and that these other ones got like a hundred doses in them, but I don’t think she'll need them that often. Especially if they are old.”
Jiang Cheng sighs. She will be so relieved, he thinks to himself. “Alright. Leave them here, I will bring them to her.”
Since it looks like there is nothing more for Jiang Cheng to say, Wei Ying straightens his back and grabs his gloves. “Sure.”
As he stands up to leave, he makes it to the doorway before stopping and turning to him one last time, “You know, you're still allowed to talk to me casually. If that thought ever crosses your mind, that is," and then leaves without waiting for a response.
It might’ve been uncalled for. For a moment Wei Ying regrets it, but still he convinces himself to keep walking. Maybe he’s still affected by the adrenaline from the chase. Maybe he’s overthinking things after the tense greeting, and had just wanted to act out on Jiang Cheng to show his displeasure that he had to be the one to do the shit job again, only to be greeted with an ever-sour face. Again.
Wei Ying bites his lip. Jiang Yanli’s health has strained their relationship for a few months now. All they want is for her to be well. At least these medicines might be helpful for now, but it won't just magically get better.
Perhaps he could go on the roof to relax. He’ll make use of the free time he has while keeping an eye on the fence. The visibility might be bad in this weather, but he’ll rest better if he knows no more zombies have chased after them.
He makes a detour through his room but doesn’t bother taking off his gear.
—
Their current place is a military base that was originally established around the time of the first outbreak. The main base is an old storage building which was originally an emptied factory, and back when the military was active in the city, they quickly filled it with containers and built temporary barracks and added man-built extra floors on top of them, made out of planks and wonky steel pipes. More than anything, it looks like a construction site that was never finished, but it’s really useful and it does have enough room for a small community like theirs. They also have a smaller storage hall and some smaller barrack-like cabins which no one uses.
The wire fences around the base perimeter are a remnant of that time too. There are two circles, the inner and outer one.
When the small group Jiang Cheng and Wei Ying gathered first arrived there, some of the fences had holes in them and they had to be fixed. Zombies had gotten inside of the base, so they spent days cleaning the cluster and rotten bodies and other shit to make it habitable.
Looking back at it, they all agree that it has been very worth it. The sad thing is that it still feels very crammed these days because it hasn't been designed to house so many people simultaneously, for such long time periods.
Mo Xuanyu makes his way to the emergency staircase that takes him up to the roof of their watchtower building. He didn’t have to live through the worst early of the days of the base because he joined them later, but he’s eternally thankful for the opportunity granted by Wei Ying.
At first Jiang Cheng had been against him joining, but after some time and the quarantine process, he was eventually accepted. He isn’t sure if Jiang Cheng still dislikes him or not, it’s very hard to say. Jiang Cheng is fairly humorless in front of most of the people in their community. Apparently it’s tough love, as Wei Ying sometimes says.
After climbing the stairs, Mo Xuanyu finds Wei Ying on the roof. He looks around and spots him at the corner.
“I thought you would be here. What are you doing?” he asks as he walks closer, pondering between the options of sitting or laying down on the damp concrete. It hasn’t rained, but the mist is enough to make it wet.
Wei Ying leans over the edge lazily, jaw rested on his arm and the other holding the binoculars. “Keeping an eye on the gate. Breathing fresh air.”
“Jiang Cheng?” Mo Xuanyu sits down. He has gotten rid of most of his gear and changed into a much comfier set of clothes; some loose cargo pants and a hoodie and a thick bomber jacket.
Wei Ying puts down his binoculars. His cheeks are red from the chilly air, as are the tips of his ears and fingers that peek out from his half-gloves. “The usual. Still refuses to act normal with me. I don’t know what it is. Or, maybe I do know, but yeah. I’ll get over it soon, I think. I’ll have to, for Jiang Yanli's sake.”
“Don’t take it to heart. You know he probably doesn’t mean it,” Mo Xuanyu says. “And Jiang Yanli is what matters. Right?” He tends to look at Wei Ying with such genuine eyes that Wei Ying doesn't know how to act.
Wei Ying still sulks, “Mmh.”
Mo Xuanyu gives him a moment before continuing, “Well, we made it back alive, so that must mean I’ve also managed to gather some more good merits to my name. You told Jiang Cheng about the zombies, right?”
“Yeah… It’s just… You know. My mind convinces me of many weird things. Hard to get rid of the habit, still,” Wei Ying says and avoids eye contact, “and since we’ve been so tense lately, I lash out. It only feels bad afterwards, once I've calmed down.”
“I get it, I get it. But hey,” Mo Xuanyu takes out a worn out pack of cigarettes, “I’m gonna smoke. You want one?”
“I didn’t think we had any left,” Wei Ying says, looking surprised. He considers it for a moment and then accepts the cigarette and the lighter. “I don’t want a full one though. I’ll take a few hits and then you can have the rest. I think it’s better to not be addicted.” He lights it with the habit of an ex-smoker and offers the lighter back.
“I managed to get some by trading from this teenage boy once. Xue Yang was his name.” Mo Xuanyu puts both the pack and the lighter away. “This one is the last pack. I’ll have to figure out what to do after.”
“Xue Yang?” repeats Wei Ying. He inhales from the cigarette once, and then laughs with the smoke in his breath. “I haven’t seen him ever since he left the base. You ran into him? What the fuck. When?”
Mo Xuanyu grins, delighted about this reaction. “Yeah. Did he actually leave the base? That means he wasn’t talking shit. I thought he was lying. He’s one of those people who’ll say anything just to make their story more colourful.”
“Yeah, he was an ass,” Wei Ying agrees and takes another drag, “so I’m glad he left. But when did you see him?”
“I saw him right before I joined you. We spent a few days together in the city, didn’t I tell you?”
“Oh, you did… You just failed to mention it was Xue Yang you met and not some random guy. Wow. These must be some old ones then.”
Wei Ying looks at the surprisingly well-kept cigarette and inhales from it once more, and then gives it to Mo Xuanyu. It smells good and tastes like shit, but that’s only because he’s had such a long break.
“Don’t worry. I’ve kept them safely in our room.” Mo Xuanyu accepts it and pats his shoulder, “I was thinking that if we wanted to get more, I bet there’s still a store somewhere that has them.” He tries to flick away the ash, but when it doesn’t fall, he frowns and tries again.
“I won’t entertain the idea," Wei Ying says as he grabs the binoculars and continues looking at the fences.
Mo Xuanyu leans his back against the edge, blowing smoke into the misty air. They spend a long while in silence, just enjoying the comfort of another human to share their endless empty space with.
“I’ve never actually heard what happened to Jiang Cheng’s parents. Weren’t they taking care of you as well?” Mo Xuanyu asks. He has only heard the vague version of the story.
Wei Ying sighs. “They did, yeah.”
It hurts to reminisce through the same scenes over and over again. He wonders if it’ll ever get any easier to talk about it, or to even remember it and accept that it happened. “After my parents disappeared the Jiangs took care of me. Our families were close, so I knew them well. It was the only place I could run to other than home. Then, some time passed, but Jiang Fengmian got infected, and then… Madam Yu stayed behind and sent us away. We decided to stick together as three.”
Mo Xuanyu tries to blow out a smoke ring, but he fails miserably at it. “It's interesting that you still call her Madam Yu.”
Wei Ying can’t help but smile, "Yes, she was a force that could compete even with the thickest of storms. When we were kids, me and Jiang Cheng always used to joke that if there ever was a person to survive a nuclear disaster, it would’ve been her.”
“It's sad that she didn’t.”
Wei Ying snorts. He doesn’t mean to. “I always thought she never really loved Jiang Fengmian. I guess at her last moments she decided to prioritize a bit differently, and remembered that she actually had a husband.”
“That’s even more sad. A broken family until the very end, fixed only when facing death.” Mo Xuanyu sticks the pitiful bit that’s left of his cigarette to the ground. It dies with a very tiny hiss, and it reminds him of the athlete pharmacist he killed earlier that day.
Wei Ying lowers his binoculars and looks at him, “Never tell him that I told you though. I’m serious. If you mention that in front of Jiang Cheng or Jiang Yanli, I will punch you.”
“I get it, I get it. If someone asks, let’s just say I wanted to know what your story was. After all, you’re my long lost twin! And twins know everything about each other,” Mo Xuanyu jokes.
“I don’t know if twins sleep with each other,” Wei Ying retorts.
Mo Xuanyu shifts in place, finding a more comfortable position. “Of course they do. We can do whatever the heck we want in this world. Be whatever we want. But maybe we have to come up with something else then, like, I don’t know, something traditional. Would you rather be...boyfriends?”
He says it in a teasing way, knowing that Wei Ying doesn’t want to hear the word. What they’re doing is casual, and Mo Xuanyu knows about Wei Ying’s attachment issues. Too much loss in a too-short timeframe. He gets it. “Ah, but you still don’t want to be official, right?”
Wei Ying’s stomach does a flip. “I’d rather not...”
He doesn’t want to give that feeling, that thing, a name, because then it would become real, and he would have something to lose. He longs for the physical company of somebody, and Mo Xuanyu just happens to be the perfect person.
“Twins it is, then,” Mo Xuanyu says off-handedly.
“Sure, sure.” He guesses it makes sense.
Wei Ying agrees that it might be the only good thing about their so-called free world. There are no manmade rules or laws. You can give people all sorts of titles, names and statuses. You can have as many siblings you want, a found family, or you can even crown yourself as king in an abandoned five-star hotel restaurant if you think you can rule over a few survivors and some pitiful blocks of a metropolis. You can also have a twin to share your coldest nights with, or a casual whatever to fuck when you get lonely. That is the advantage—you can just say how it is, and then it shall be.
Wei Ying also agrees that they might as well be self proclaimed twins—as much as two unrelated but similar-looking people can be, in a situation where they end up fighting against zombies and living together.
Although Wei Ying had sworn to himself that he would not be collecting strays, he remembers the day when he first met Mo Xuanyu and immediately fell into bed with him. He had liked the idea, the visual of the two of them and how they appeared to others. He had liked it when he knew he could be with someone trustworthy and do everything together with him, rather than being alone. He had had enough of doing things alone.
Wei Ying just likes people, and in a world where there’s only a very small selection of them left alive, he is bound to making new friends at every turn. Even when he shouldn’t and even when Jiang Cheng always reprimands him about it. Stop bringing people into our base, Jiang Cheng would say when Wei Ying comes back from yet another morning jog, having left alone but having returned with a random person who might not even fit their community, who might be a traitor or who might have gotten infected and wandered off to the no-go-zone to disappear, only to be found by Wei Ying. It always means they have to go through the quarantine procedures, which means using up more time and effort and supplies, and someday you really have to stop, Wei Ying— but Wei Ying would insist that the more people they find and save, the more information they might get that might be of use to them.
His point had been proven once again when Mo Xuanyu had told them about a fairly untouched mall filled with stores, left as it had been five years ago. There’s even a sex shop, he had told Wei Ying, and the two of them had snickered amongst themselves while Jiang Cheng had groaned and left them be.
“Hey, by the way,” Mo Xuanyu says as he remembers it at the same time, “I think we should reconsider that mall I spoke about. The patrol rounds have been quiet lately, so there aren’t many zombies around currently. I think the city is clean enough for us to take a bigger group outside.”
When Wei Ying doesn’t answer, Mo Xuanyu continues. “It would be good for you as well. I know you’re going to be restless tonight, because today’s trip was so short.”
“Hm,” Wei Ying huffs. “You’ll have to keep me entertained tonight then.”
He finally gives up with the binoculars. He’s been staring at the same headless corpse for quite some time now. Maybe there’s no reason to keep looking, since he hasn’t seen any movement around the fence.
“You’re always thinking about what would be good for me. I never know what to say to that. About the mall though—Jiang Cheng might disagree—but I think it's a good idea. We all need that. His answer will probably depend on how you bring it up to him.”
Mo Xuanyu turns towards him, “Will you talk to him, or should I?”
—
“A-Zhan,” Lan Huan says as Lan Zhan steps on to the wooden balcony, “I have heard about the rumors. Are they true?”
Across the yard is a tall fence with spikes at the top. The lush treetops behind it sway gently in the wind, bringing along the usual smell of fresh rain in the woods.
“Mn,” Lan Zhan says and walks up to his brother. He stands next to him, with his hands neatly held behind his back together with the modern bow, meant for competitive archery.
“Be truthful with me. Do you really think we should go there? It is in the city, after all.” Lan Huan looks at him for a moment before turning his gaze towards the forest. “For the first time in a long time I feel like a difficult choice has come to me, in the form of a gamble. It is either an opportunity, or then a foolish risk.”
Somewhere behind the fence, a woodpecker lands on a nearby tree and starts pecking it. Lan Huan spends a moment listening to it.
Lan Zhan looks at the people patrolling the fence. “We cannot rely on the forest endlessly. We should be open to other options. This is our best chance to get many useful supplies at once.”
A gust of wind reaches them, shaking the trees as it comes and goes, and in the distance thunder can be heard.
Lan Huan sighs, but doesn’t show any signs of real frustration. “Maybe if it was only a small looting trip to a single store, it would be easier to say no. You know I am hesitant of the idea.”
Lan Zhan nods. Slowly, the wind is rising.
“But this mall, you said, is supposed to be untouched? That might be worth it, if it truly is the case. They have many different stores. It could mean a variety of useful supplies.”
“Yes.” Lan Zhan takes out a piece of paper, eyeing his handwritten message. “They say that the mall was left like it was when the first outbreak happened, and that no one has visited it since. It is deep in the city centre, so it is quite hard to get to. I think for this reason alone it is worth visiting, because it lowers the chance of anyone else having been there. I could go and make sure, first.”
Lan Huan, with a similar habit to their uncle, inhales and looks around before gazing down from the balcony. “That means you would have to use the highway. Do you want the car? Will you go alone?”
“Yes. I will use a car to get there, and then walk for the rest of the way. I will go alone.” It is easier to go around and escape when he is alone.
“Alright. If you promise to come back safely, you may go, but remember, if it is truly untouched, that only means there will be old walkers there. They are the most resilient ones.”
“I know, brother.” Lan Zhan knows Lan Huan sometimes worries excessively, but he reminds himself that as a big brother and a leader, it is his right. After all, mother is no longer around, and so Lan Huan obviously tries very hard to care for his closest family member who is still alive. Truly, Lan Zhan understands.
“Maybe I should visit Wen Qing then, while you are gone,” Lan Huan suggests. “I will try to ask if there is anything specific she needs.”
“She has not come out of the laboratory in a few days,” Lan Zhan notes.
“Indeed,” Lan Huan chuckles. “She is deeply invested in her work. Sometimes I wonder if it really is worth it to keep doing it, but then she always tells me about the newest developments and discoveries.”
Lan Zhan turns to look at the white building that rises from behind the trees in the east. “It looks like the mere existence of the laboratory and the responsibility of protecting it is a good motivator alone.”
“This is true. It keeps hope alive within the people here.”
They share a moment of silent understanding.
—
“We are planning a visit to the city,” Lan Huan says as the first thing when he steps inside the laboratory. The door behind him closes with a very soft click.
He stands on the doorway of an office room which is connected to a proper laboratory wing, with all its equipment still intact. It runs on its own generator—a water mill by the river, designed around the time of the first outbreak, built fast to ensure electricity even if the city loses its own.
“Really?” Wen Qing’s voice echoes from the back corner of the room, around where the microscopes are. She’s looking at samples so Lan Huan stays far away enough to avoid disturbing her or contaminating her samples by accident.
“Yes. My brother will go there first and find out if it is worth it, but I came to ask you if there was anything specific you might have needed.” Lan Huan’s eyes scan over the empty petri dishes and flasks scattered all around the tabletops. Wen Qing clearly has a project going on.
Wen Qing stands up and straightens her lab coat, removes her safety goggles and mask carefully. “Something tells me you are quite certain that we will go.” The mask has left red imprints on her cheeks.
“It sounds very promising.” Lan Huan knows Wen Qing doesn’t need the coat. She wears it out of habit. Perhaps it is some sort of a coping mechanism, to pretend that she is still working in a normal world, in her old workplace. She has lost her colleagues and her little brother to the virus and uses research as her escape. If only there was something Lan Huan could do to ease her pain.
“I could do with an actual coffee machine. What kind of a visit is it?” she asks.
“A trip to the mall,” Lan Huan answers with the type of gentle humor that comes naturally to him.
It makes Wen Qing smile. “Then if that’s the case, I can write a shopping list.” She walks towards Lan Huan and along the way grabs a pen and some paper.
“Please do,” Lan Huan encourages, and thinks about bringing some of the excess printing paper and pens to the kids to draw with. The office supplies in this building are endless.
Wen Qing writes something down on the paper and then hands it to Lan Huan. “Would you like some coffee as well?”
Lan Huan declines, “No, thank you. I am very sensitive to caffeine, you know this.” He puts the list into his windbreaker chest pocket.
Wen Qing looks at her self-made chemistry set up which she proudly calls The Drencher. She has built it underneath the fume hood, and made some tweaks and modifications along the months. “I have been using double the amount of water from the river. Weird how even as horrible as it is, you still get used to it.”
“Is there a specific reason?” Lan Huan asks as he studies the newest upgrades done to her set up.
“For me wanting coffee?”
Lan Huan nods.
“I’ve been staying up a lot. Literally watching microbes grow. It gets boring really fast.”
In front of the microscope table there is a large glass window, which opens up to a dark sample room. Inside, behind the two glass doors and the so-called airlock, Lan Huan can faintly see the rows of neatly organized petri dishes. He knows the virus grows there. Only Wen Qing is allowed in that room, mostly because they only have a limited amount of proper safety gear.
Lan Huan turns back to Wen Qing and politely watches as she mixes a new batch of the lamest coffee she can stomach. “Anything new? Any developments?” he asks.
Wen Qing lets out a sigh. “I’ve been trying to understand the rate it spreads. How it attacks the cells—if there’s anything we could do to slow that process down. It’s really vicious.”
“Didn’t you do that five years ago?” Lan Huan points out, not unkindly, but curiously.
Wen Qing turns on the heating mantle positioned under the water flask. Not ideal, maybe, but it’s required for the distillation process. “I did… But I am trying to think outside the box by revisiting the basics. In case there was something we missed. I was thinking about introducing human cells again, but I would need more samples for that. The ones I was looking at earlier were my own. I was mostly testing the equipment and trying to see if my idea could even work with the things I have here.”
“And?”
Wen Qing shrugs her shoulders. “And all I know so far is that I really am not good at drawing my own blood, and that I think better when I can build something nonsensical instead.”
Lan Huan gives her an encouraging smile. “Maybe we can find some volunteers for you.”
“That would be nice,” Wen Qing says, and takes out her second last coffee package, scooping out two spoonfuls and putting them into a medicinal pestle so she can grind and make it finer.
—
They keep their best cars inside the laboratory fences.
Lan Zhan turns the key in the ignition. He’s in the oldest SUV they have; the dusty gray one that he prefers to drive because it has the best visibilty. The engine thrums steadily underneath him and roars itself into life when he presses down the gas pedal.
A few rounds of revving, checking the gauges and testing what is functional and what isn’t, and then he’s mostly happy with it. Half a tank of fuel is more than enough.
Although it is his preferred choice, it hasn’t been used in months. One of the side windows at the back is still broken, the shattered glass replaced by a layer of plastic and lots of duct tape to keep the wind and rain out. The system for the seatbelt warning is also dysfunctional; it sometimes chimes even when it is connected, so they have left it fastened to avoid excessive unbuckling.
As Lan Zhan sits on top of the belt, he notices that his rear view mirror is missing completely, and that the windshield wipers are barely holding on. Someone must have driven that car after Lan Zhan last used it. If he looks at the windshield closely enough, he can still see some old blood in the thinnest of cracks, accentuating their existence and telling the story of a battle once fought.
The car in itself is perfectly functional. Lan Zhan brings around the corner, stops at the gate and slides down the window to give them the sign to open it. He carefully changes gears and drives out of the laboratory yard. As he waits for the window to close, he tests the brakes. He notices that the steering is a little bit wonky. It tugs to the left ever so slightly. He will have to keep that in mind.
He drives along the uneven path that leads him away from the laboratory. With overgrown greenery at the edges scraping the doors and windows, it can’t really be called a road, because it barely fits a full sized car, and the suspension in the car does an absolutely horrendous job of trying to compensate for the rocks and bumps.
When he makes it to the beginning of an asphalt road, the ride gets a lot steadier. That eventually leads him to the highway that will get him to the city. With him he has a bunch of arrows and his trustworthy bow, as well as a black pistol, some bullets, two knives of different sizes and some basic survival equipment in the trunk.
On the highway he drives slowly enough to avoid hitting the abandoned cars and bodies on the sides. By now, he has travelled the road so many times that he knows it by heart. He uses the different cars as reference points, knowing exactly where he is when he passes that bright red fire truck, or that spot where the fence is broken and an ambulance has driven off the road.
The closer to the city he gets, the more cars there are. After a very specific gas station he has to maneuver around a few tight corners between two fallen trucks and go right. The road ahead has originally been blocked by a collapsed warehouse which means that he has to take a small detour, and then he’ll finally have to take out his paper map. From that point on, he has to drive very slowly in order to not attract attention, and when he’s past the next few blocks, he can park his car and continue his route by walking.
—
“We should really do a scouting tour before we send more people in. Make sure it’s legit, and that no one else has been there,” Jiang Cheng says as he looks at Mo Xuanyu seated on the floor next to Wei Ying.
“That’s a good plan. I haven’t been there in months. It’d be worth it to know if there’s anything left to steal,” Mo Xuanyu says. He thinks it’s funny how the word steal is still being used, although they are technically not stealing from anyone. He cracks his neck once. “I can volunteer to go. After all it was my idea and I know how to get there. Do you want to tag along?” he asks and looks at Wei Ying. Their thighs touch, Wei Ying’s leg bounces up and down, and Mo Xuanyu doesn’t mind it.
“Yeah, of course.” If Wei Ying is being honest, he could admit out loud that living in the same small base for a few years has made him feel stuffy. Going out on every chance he gets is the only time he feels actually entertained. Instead of that though, he comes up with a reason to further convince Jiang Cheng.
“It would be good if we could find new clothes for the community. Some of the kids are growing up and can barely fit into their pants anymore. If there’s a pharmacy, we could get some more meds and supplies too. And you said there’s a supermarket on the ground floor? It might be swarmed with zombies, but imagine if it was untouched. It would be worth it. Get some variation in food at least for some time.”
He doesn’t need change, it’s okay like this. He can keep on living here, as long as it means it’s safe. He shouldn’t want to go outside just because he’s bored—but he will go if he is asked to. And then call it a shit job and get mad at Jiang Cheng.
Mo Xuanyu looks at him with the hint of a smile. He knows. “I’m ready to go whenever. It’ll take us a few hours to get there. If we leave early tomorrow, we can easily get back to the green zone by the time it gets dark. The mall is just between the red and yellow zone, and I know how to navigate there.”
“I don’t like this, but I trust you two,” Jiang Cheng murmurs. “The red zone is still quite active, and there will always be zombies that are strong enough to make it across the yellow and get to the green. Try to stay safe. Keep an eye out on any signs of other people, and try not to cause a ruckus.” They all know Jiang Cheng doesn’t like going out at all. He would rather stay in the base for months on end, and that has driven them into a few arguments before. “Do you need anyone else to come along?”
“Nah, they’d just slow us down,” Wei Ying answers truthfully. “Me and Mo Xuanyu will move fast.” Secretly, he’s excited. He has thought he’d have to wait for at least a few more days, but Mo Xuanyu has managed to talk Jiang Cheng to give them the early approval. Probably the successful trip to the pharmacy has something to do with it.
“And what if you run into people?” Jiang Cheng asks, emphasizing his previous point. With zombies might also come other people. They don’t fully know what has happened on the other side of the city, whether there are other survivor groups out there in the vicinity or if some outsider group has recently made it to their city.
“We’ll stay out of sight,” Mo Xuanyu answers for Wei Ying. “We’re good at that.”
They all know being outside while it’s dark isn’t actually that dangerous. The only disadvantage is that if they’re back late, they might struggle with their route back through the green zone. Humans can’t see well in the dark—but if they’re in an area they’re familiar with and which has been mostly cleansed of roaming zombies, they will be quite safe. Their biggest enemy will merely be their own imagination, or, like Jiang Cheng likes to remind them, the possibility of another group of people trespassing on their turf.
—
Back in their shared bed that night, Wei Ying feels the jitters of anticipation go all the way up to his limbs. He tosses and turns a few times, not being able to find a good position. All the possibilities and what ifs make his imagination run wild.
“Can’t sleep?” Mo Xuanyu asks from behind. They’re spooning, as their usual habit is. Ever since they’ve met, they’ve been sharing a bed. It feels safer that way.
“Mmhh,” Wei Ying mumbles with his back to him.
Mo Xuanyu slides a hand down his waist. His fingers do soothing motions on the edge of the hip bone. “Is it because of tomorrow?” It’s meant to be helpful, an act of grounding. Not too lightly, because that just bothers Wei Ying, but just enough pressure for him to focus on it.
“Mmm.” Wei Ying shifts and his voice becomes unmuffled, probably because he moves his mouth away from the blanket. “I haven’t been outside of the green zone in so long. I don’t know what to expect. I’m constantly thinking about whether something has changed, what if there are more zombies, what if it’s totally empty, what if there will be people again? Sometimes I wish I could just turn my brain off so I could stop going over all these possibilities.”
“It certainly has been a while,” Mo Xuanyu agrees. “So it’s to be expected. Try to get some sleep at least though. Or do you wanna do something to relax first?” There is a small, suggestive undertone that Wei Ying doesn’t miss. Mo Xuanyu’s grip on him tightens just the smallest of amounts.
“Maybe.” Wei Ying would say no, but then he would be lying. The more he gives into these whims with Mo Xuanyu, the more he thinks he will regret it later. Don’t get too attached to people, that would be the only rule he tries to follow. He fails miserably at it, because in his mind, impulses win over rationality.
Mo Xuanyu huffs in amusement. “Okay.”
As Wei Ying turns around and lets Mo Xuanyu straddle him and gently nudge their soft, clothed dicks together, he thinks about how a zombie with his own brain would look like. Would they be constantly distracted by noise and light? Would excessive stimuli be a good way to lure them somewhere? When they eat, would they be so focused on it that nothing in the world would make them stop?
“Wei Ying, you’re going somewhere else again,” Mo Xuanyu says, the small hairs on his legs tickling Wei Ying’s darker ones. His hands roam underneath Wei Ying’s shirt, and he feels his ribs, one by one.
“Ah, sorry.”
They really shouldn’t be doing this, but—
When Mo Xuanyu leans down to kiss his neck, Wei Ying feels the sudden want in his core. He bucks up his hips. “Don’t leave marks,” he gasps softly, “I don’t want Jiang Cheng to know.” At the same time, he’s already lifting up the hem of Mo Xuanyu’s shirt, feeling his lower back and sliding his fingers down his briefs. He likes to poke his blunt nails into the swell of his ass.
“You always say that," Mo Xuanyu says and gives him a slow kiss, "but I think he already suspects us.” He lifts his hips to help, and then Wei Ying follows, and when they’re both undressed from the waist down, Mo Xuanyu brings a hand to stroke them both at the same time.
They breathe into each other’s mouths in unison, and Wei Ying lets out a pretty, shaky, held back moan when Mo Xuanyu bites his lower lip. The pain from that is just on the edge of that's too much, but it makes Wei Ying's palms squeeze him harder in return.
It’s been a while since they have done anything like this. It's almost too good, too fast, to be this close to somebody and feel another man touch him. It doesn’t take long to get close. They don’t bother with teasing or edging either—tonight it’s only about the quick release, the small thrill of a secret shared between the two of them.
Wei Ying lifts up his shirt to bare his flat abdomen to him. “On me, on me,” he repeats, and his hand joins Mo Xuanyu’s as the latter nods. They both come on Wei Ying, one after the other, and afterwards Mo Xuanyu tells him to watch closely as he licks all the evidence off.
That night, Wei Ying sleeps fairly well until the early hours of the morning. A shift in their sleeping position and the heat coming from Mo Xuanyu’s body brings him back to a sunny day in a parking lot.
He’s in the hot backseat of the car. The door is open and it lets inside the smell of midsummer. The rays of the scorching sun land on his thighs and the cloudless sky above mocks him with its vivid blue colour. There’s the buzz of a bee passing by, the distant noise of people rolling their shopping carts.
An endless sense of happiness; his parents asking him if he would wait in the car if they left the window open. He says yeah, because a sixteen year old boy can surely wait in the car for a while, and then he closes the door and takes out his phone to play a game.
More heat. The window is open, but the car still gets hot. Wei Ying thinks about climbing out of the window and waiting outside—but then there’s smoke, followed by the sound of an emergency siren.
Drenched in cold sweat, Wei Ying flinches awake.
After realizing it’s just his madly beating heart and that the siren wasn’t real, he covers his face with his palms and silently releases a few sobs.
He pants. Breathes in and tries to control the exhale. When he has collected himself, he turns around and reaches over to Mo Xuanyu. The sound of the siren is eternally etched in his mind. Even awake, he can still hear it.
—
They do their morning routines together. Before leaving their shared container room, they help each other with their gear. Boots, cargo pants with lots of pockets, two thigh holsters for guns. Long sleeved shirts, zipped up hoodies and vests. Everything is color coded to be black or somewhere among the grayscales to make it easier to have at least partial camouflage in the city. It’s quite warm at this time of year, so they probably won’t need jackets. Mo Xuanyu wears his knife at the front of his vest, while Wei Ying wears his at the back of his belt, positioned horizontally for better movement and faster usage.
After such an awful night, it’s at least a partial relief for Wei Ying that things go as they have been planned to. When they make it to the yellow zone, they spot the first fresh body on the ground. Silently and keeping in mind that there could be more, they walk up to it side by side. Wei Ying looks around. Mo Xuanyu kneels and turns the body over to determine how it has been killed.
The foul stench hits Mo Xuanyu in the face. He grimaces and puts on his mask, “Definitely from the past few days. This one has been killed with a knife.”
Wei Ying also puts on his mask and studies the head which has been covered by a black bag. There are pools of blood beneath its legs. The knees and ankles have deep cuts on the backside, which were probably done to prevent it from walking.
“I don’t think it was the knife that killed it. Whoever did that didn’t bother to sever the head. They just covered it up with a bag and made it so that it can’t move. It was meant to rot and finally die on its own,” Wei Ying deduces.
For it to be unnecessary to remove the head or to destroy the brains, the zombie must have been a very slow one. He knows it’s not wise for humans to touch the infected organs, but when they can’t rely on guns, there have to be alternative methods. People also tend to get very creative in crisis situations. That might be the case with the covered head, or then the person just didn’t feel the need to be so cruel. Sentimental? Maybe. Forgiving towards zombies? Not that likely.
They leave the body there and continue. As they move to the side and walk along the empty pavement, they keep talking with very low voices, muffled by their masks.
“How far away is the mall?” Wei Ying asks. He tries to keep an eye on the storefronts and count which windows have been broken and which ones have not, or which buildings look like ones where more zombies could be hiding in.
“This way is the straightest one to get past the yellow zone,” Mo Xuanyu says and points at the road ahead. “Once we get to the big crossroad with a park to the right, we go a few blocks west, and then we’ll have to find an entrance to the mall. The main one is blocked because the building across the street collapsed on the road. There are a lot of small doors too, but most of them are locked. If there’s a glass one, those are breakable, but we won’t know what’s inside.”
Wei Ying nods. “Okay, yeah, makes sense.” He starts to consider climbing and all the alternative routes he can imagine to get inside a mall, but then he reminds himself to wait until they get there. Don’t get ahead of things. Focus on the present.
A few blocks away there is another killed zombie. This one has flies swarming all over it, and the decay has only started very recently. The clothes are torn, the belly is bloated and green, and it has dark purple and yellow bruising all over its skin. Even through their masks, the awful smell can be recognized. It’s very distinct. Wei Ying tries to breathe through his mouth.
“That looks like it was at the end of its life cycle. Probably just needed someone to topple it over and that was enough.”
Mo Xuanyu agrees. “But that means someone definitely has been here. Someone who didn’t mind getting their hands dirty, but who knew these ones wouldn’t be trouble if left unkilled.”
“Yeah.” Wei Ying feels an uncomfortable tug at his chest. The idea that someone might have made it to the mall before them. “Fuck,” he curses, “Is it really wise to continue? Should we head back?” he asks, mostly because it has to be said out loud by one of them.
“We won’t know for sure. We have to check it out. If we don’t at least get there, how can we know whether it is worth it?” Mo Xuanyu asks.
“Right.”
“We can’t return to Jiang Cheng without an answer,” Mo Xuanyu also reminds Wei Ying.
“...Right.”
They slow down their steps. They’ve been walking for hours, but the route has been easy so far. It won’t be too hard for a bigger group to use it.
The eerie silence of the city gives room for the birdsong in the park to stand out. They hear it before they even see the first lush trees of the corner.
“Okay, let’s go to the opposite side,” Wei Ying suggests and Mo Xuanyu trails closely behind. They go west, and make their way to the mall without any other new bodies turning up.
Like Mo Xuanyu had said, the entrance is blocked by a collapsed building. It has partly broken some of the wall elements on the mall’s side, but it looks like there is no easy way to just climb up on top of the rubble. Finding an entrance turns out to be a lot harder than expected.
They go around the block, carefully scanning all the possible entrances like stores that could have another door at the back, or restaurants that could be connected to the mall. One establishment specifically stands out.
Next to a digi-shop, there’s an abandoned noodle place with a broken window. It looks small enough to have been fully wiped out early, and somehow… a path has already been made there.
When they look inside, the tables and chairs have all been pushed to the sides. By following the literal trail where there is less dust, they locate some footprints on the dirty floor. They lead to the other side of the sitting area, through the kitchen and to a narrow backdoor that goes into an emergency hallway. At the end of it there is a door that has been left ajar.
Wei Ying holds his breath as he looks inside. This is it.
He gives Mo Xuanyu the thumbs up. They gently push the door open, and then they’re inside the mall.
—
“How was it?” asks Lan Huan when Lan Zhan steps out of the car. He has come to greet his little brother, with what looks like a thin stack of papers.
Lan Zhan slams the car door shut. He nods as a greeting, and then hands Lan Huan the map. “I have located it.” He walks around the car and opens the passenger door, takes out his unused bow and arrows.
Lan Huan sees him with a full stack of arrows still left. “It was an easy trip then?”
Lan Zhan nods.
“Good to know. I am glad you came back safely.”
While Lan Zhan goes to pick up his backpack, Lan Huan takes a glimpse at the map. He doesn’t expect the red mark to be so deep in the city. “That is quite far away,” he comments. He glances at Lan Zhan, sees him reorganizing his things rather silently, and so he just smiles and continues, “You must be tired. I have some food prepared for you. We can talk more after you have eaten.”
Like a little brother, Lan Zhan gives him a simple, almost inaudible, “Thank you.” After collecting all of the equipment, they start walking back to the base together.
As they walk the narrow forest path, Lan Huan is already counting the amount of people that would be suitable to send out. He will have to ask for the full details so he can brief the others of the mission, and then he will give his brother the list of supplies they need.
—
Jiang Cheng’s fingers tap nervously against the table. It’s a random rhythm with no clear sense or goal.
“It’s exactly like he said,” Wei Ying tells him at the breakfast table. “We found a way in. It’s intact for the most part, but...”
“But?” Jiang Cheng prompts.
Mo Xuanyu quickly picks up where Wei Ying stops, “But it’s very likely that someone has been there. Very recently. We found fresh bodies, only a few days old at most. And footprints where the entrance is.”
“Shit,” Jiang Cheng curses. “It means that someone else is on the move.”
Mo Xuanyu shifts on his seat and looks at the way Jiang Cheng rubs his temples. He continues, “The entrance is very easy to miss if you don’t know where to look, but we noticed that the way was basically paved for us. It’s inside a small noodle shop, just around the corner.”
Wei Ying leans forward with his elbow against the table, “I think it was only one person though. Couldn’t have been a zombie or a group. We didn’t see a single live zombie at the mall, although we were prepared for the worst. Maybe a lone wolf?” He turns to Mo Xuanyu, “Do you agree?”
Mo Xuanyu nods. “Definitely not a group. If I had to guess, I would say it was a man traveling alone. I couldn’t help but notice the shoe size being similar to yours.”
“Oh, really? You had the time to measure my shoe size?” Wei Ying asks, tone teasing.
“Yeah, because I know everything about you,” Mo Xuanyu says and sends a smile back at him, “but this same man might have killed those zombies we saw. Judging by the way that he kills, I feel like he wants to move silently.”
Jiang Cheng watches the exchange between them. “Well, is it still worth going to?”
Mo Xuanyu answers instantly, “Absolutely yes. No question.”
Next to him, Wei Ying nods again.
“And what if this person is still there? Hiding?”
Wei Ying smirks. “Then I will just have to talk to him.”
Jiang Cheng grits his teeth. “I would say no, but I know you’d do it anyway.” He sighs, “Well, whatever. We’ll prepare. We’ll take the guns too and arm everyone, just in case. I hope we don’t end up in a situation where we have to use them. I will lead. Mo Xuanyu will be in charge of the navigation. And you,” he says to Wei Ying, “until we get there, you’ll be positioned at the back. Be on the lookout, as usual.”
Wei Ying and Mo Xuanyu nod in unison. This is going to be exciting.
—
Back in bed, Wei Ying is again unable to sleep.
“You don’t think it’s Xue Yang?” he mumbles to Mo Xuanyu who is still changing clothes. He watches how the man takes off his pullover, puts on a t-shirt and throws his loose sweatpants on the floor.
“I don’t think so. He certainly wore boots, but he definitely doesn’t kill like that.” Mo Xuanyu turns off their bedside lamp, which is connected to a long white extra cord that has been pulled to the container from outside. Their base has a generator power grid, but the electricity is still limited.
He walks up to the bed and climbs under the covers, happy about the warmth waiting for him there. They settle into a comfortable position, facing each other.
“Although that kid was annoying, I still hope he made it alive to wherever he wanted to go,” Wei Ying says. His eyes get used to the darkness quickly, but since there are no windows, it stays fairly dark.
Mo Xuanyu speaks fondly when he remembers the day he last saw Xue Yang. “When we parted ways, he told me he would go south. It’s warmer there, so he figured there would be less zombies.”
“Oh. Well that’s kind of awkward,” Wei Ying laughs, “because to us he said he would be going to the north.”
Mo Xuanyu chuckles. “Who knows. Either way, I think that’s kind of admirable. Stupid, but admirable,” he admits. His hands find Wei Ying’s, and fondly he starts playing with his fingers.
“Where would you go if you could decide?” Wei Ying asks after a short silence. He returns the gesture, caressing his hand back. It feels good, to be touching something living, something warm like that.
“Hmm… I don’t know, but I’m quite happy that I ended up here.” There’s a genuine smile in Mo Xuanyu’s voice, which warms Wei Ying’s heart. Although neither of them sees it, Wei Ying returns the smile.
“I’m happy, too.”
Mo Xuanyu yawns. Then, “Would you go elsewhere if you could decide?”
Wei Ying closes his eyes. “Mm, I don’t know.” He’s tired. It’s been a long, long day of preparations. “It’s quite difficult to choose when you don’t know what it’s like out there. Maybe I’d like to know first. Go to different places, travel. Get out of this city to another, or maybe start living in the woods. As much as we spent time living right outside the city border with the Jiangs, and as much as I said it was the shittiest time of my life, I still miss nature. Things have probably settled down by now. With enough work and planning, you could start living there and grow your own things, that kind of stuff.”
Mo Xuanyu hums. Wei Ying’s voice is very soothing—it always makes him sleepy. “That sounds like something you’d do well with,” he mumbles softly.
“Yeah. That’d be so nice.”
That night they both sleep soundly, and Wei Ying is free of nightmares.
—