{Chapter 1- Where It All Started}
1735 Words
Kaede and Asumi are the best of friends and as they were on a bus heading back to their high school after a field trip along with about eighteen other students.
"We're still not there yet?" Kaede asked.
"Kaede, you were sound asleep the whole time, I thought you were dead." Asumi said.
"Huh?" She asked.
"Hey guys, I heard that the highway was closed due to some accidents." Said Minori.
"Yeah, so we'll be taking the shortest route back home." Mizuki added.
"I wonder what time we'll arrive at school." Asumi wondered.
"Yeah." Kaede replied.
While the students were enjoying themselves, the bus ran into some difficulties and had to stop for repairs in the middle of a dark forest,
"Ma'am, I'm going to take a look outside."
"Until we figure out what's going on, everyone, please remain seated!" Told the teacher.
"What happened?"
"Is it working?"
Kaede looked out the foggy window and her view was a dilapidated cemetery with some hands sticking out of the ground.
"What are those?" Asumi asked, her voice filled with fear.
"What are you guys looking at?" Mizuki asks
"That..." Replied Asumi.
"What the heck?" Mizuki followed her gaze and had her eyes widened after seeing the hands sticking out of the ground.
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In the Forest
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That didn't deter Kaede and the rest of the students as they began wandering through the dark forest, it's also getting close to dusk which makes the forest even creepier.
One reason for the students wandering away is the bus had a crappy connection for their cellphones, perhaps the woods had better reception... huh?
Being teenagers of course having excellent cellphone reception is the #1 priority in their lives.
"Out of range? I can't believe this is happening!" Yui said in disbelief.
"Well, contact from the bus was also hopeless." Minori said.
"Yeah, and we have to find some place to make a call soon..." Mizuki said as she shivered at the coldness.
"But still, did they have to make us search for it?" Yui questions in disbelief.
"Maybe the teacher's group has already found a place." Honoka said as she fell from exhaustion.
"Honoka, get a hold of yourself!" Said Yuzuki while supporting Honoka.
*Thunderclap*
"Are you kidding me?" Said Yui in disbelief.
"It just keeps getting worse." Said Asumi.
"Yeah." Joined Kaede.
As the group continued to walk, Hijiri stopped, shivering at the bad feeling of going forward towards the forest.
"What are you doing? Come on, Let's go!" Told Rin to Hijiri.
That stroll didn't turn out to be so merry as the skies quickly darkened with rain and lightning on the horizon. Luckily the group found an abandoned house in the middle of nowhere and headed in to escape the storm.
"I wonder if there's anyone inside?" Thought Mizuki, she then took her shoes off as her friends did the same, walked up to the door and knocked it.
"Excuse us! Is anyone there?" Mizuki asks.
"..."
"I guess there's no one there..." Said Mizuki as she turned back to her friends, she then opened the door and went in with her friends.
Perhaps they weren't too lucky though what that means won't be revealed until later. As the girls are resting and waiting out the storm they began to hear an eerie voice.
'Where are you?'
'Are you lost?'
'In the middle of the night...'
'Where did you go?'
'Are you hiding?'
'Where are you?'
'Have you left?'
'Or are you dead?'
'Run... Run...'
The voice was a female one and was singing an unknown song which had some creepy lyrics to it which put the girls all on edge. It being nighttime the large group eventually began nodding off.
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In the Morning
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The next thing Kaede knew it was morning though all of her friends except for Mizuki had disappeared.
"Mizuki?" Kaede said groggily as she had just woken up from her sleep.
"Oh, you're finally awake!" Mizuki exclaimed.
"Where are the others?" Kaede asks.
"Oh- um... The others left to look for help, but I insisted to stay here until you wake up. So... since you're finally awake, we can go look for the others, let's go!" Mizuki said as she offered her hand to help her stand up.
"Okay..." Kaede said as she took Mizuki's hand.
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Outside the House
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Kaede and Mizuki began to investigate the house a bit now that it was light out, they found a few disturbing notes flapping in the house which read.... The End!
What they meant was a mystery to Kaede and Mizuki who didn't want to stick around anymore and went looking for the rest of the students.
On their journey to find her mates they saw many odd figures near the house and in the woods. Two were creepy older people who tried to speak but couldn't, the other was a mysterious young girl who looked like she stepped right out of a horror movie.
Kaede and Mizuki had run into a guy in the middle of the woods, he himself looked to be quite the odd character,
"Why are you here?" questions the odd man.
"Leave this place at once!" demanded the man to the both of them.
"Um... we're lost." They both said at the same time.
"The temple gate is upside down? Why?" Kaede questions.
"They're guarding the gate." Replies the odd man.
"What?" Mizuki asks.
"Don't ask anymore, sometimes it's better not to know." Replies the man.
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Location Where Their Friends Are
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At the location Kaede and Mizuki once again some flapping notes which had the same message as the ones she saw in the house.... The End, and as she saw that note, she walked up to the shrine.
"Hey, Kaede, I don't think it's a good idea to pray in that shrine." Mizuki warned, but Kaede ignored it and kept walking.
"Mizuki's right, it's better if you don't..." Hijiri joined in.
Kaede ignored their warnings and prayed there anyway.
Seems as though the bus has finally been repaired and the girls are about to leave but one incident took place which may prove to be a very important event.
"What are you doing? Leave this place!" An old man demanded.
"What is this place?" Mizuki asks to the odd man from earlier.
"Zambi Village." He replied.
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Freesia Academy
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The name of the school is Freesia Academy and it seems to be one exclusive place where only the elite of the elites go though the girl's backgrounds is another thing we now nothing of.
The location of the school hasn't been revealed either but it's nowhere near a big city and the girls all live in dorms.
"We're here at last."
"I'm so tired"
"Welcome back, get some good rest." Said the security guy.
"For once I thought we wouldn't make it."
"Let's go to a salon." Yui suggested.
"Good idea!" One of her friend agreed.
"Hey, Mizuki..." Said Kaede.
"What is it?" The said girl replied.
"Can we talk later... In my room?" Kaede asked.
"What for?" Mizuki asked back.
"It's about that village... there's something about that village that's bothering me." Kaede replied.
"Okay..." Mizuki replied.
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In Kaede's Room
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Kaede was searching for something in her phone while she was waiting for Mizuki, when she heard a knock on the door.
"Come in!" Kaede shouted.
Mizuki opened the door and asked, "What is it that you want to talk about?"
"I wanna talk about that place we were in when we got lost. I found a documentary of it." Kaede replied.
"The village?"
"Yeah, look!" Kaede said as she showed Mizuki the video she wants to talk about.
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The Video
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'In a secluded region of Shinsu, deep within the mountains-'
'Where the ancient zambi religious traditions still remains.'
'Zambi is the existence between life and death.'
'Once known as coffin makers-'
'Calamity fell upon the village.'
'As a woman, once buried alive, rose from the dead-'
'In a village known as Zambi Village'
'Are you alive?'
'Or are you dead?'
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Video Ends
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"Are you saying that we should look for more information about that village?" Questions Mizuki.
"Yes." Replied Kaede.
"Okay, but... I think we should continue this research tomorrow. Since it's already kind of late." Mizuki suggested.
"Yeah..."
"Well, see you tomorrow." Mizuki stood up and left the room.
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In Asumi's Room
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Asumi was unpacking when all of a sudden the flower began to spin on it's own which put much fear into Asumi. She wandered over to check it out which may have been the last action she took as a regular human. As Asumi was checking the flower over and trying to discover why it started spinning a hideous creature appeared silently behind her.
Before Asumi could do anything the creature bit deeply into her neck as a vampire may do and perhaps it was a vampire. The bite didn't kill Asumi who didn't remember much of what happened and she headed to the bathroom to check out her injury. There Asumi ran into her best friend Kaede,
"Are you done sorting out you things? It's really exhausting isn't it?" Kaede asked as washes her hand, but there was no reply.
"Asumi?" As she said that, she saw that Asumi's hair is falling out.
"Asumi?" Kaede called out to her again.
"Am I still alive? Or am I dead?" Asumi questions.
A vampire can't see their reflection in a mirror but Asumi can, when she looked at one her features had become distorted though it's only when she looks at a mirror. Asumi couldn't take viewing her gruesome face and fled the bathroom to her room where she locked the door. Once again Asumi saw her reflection in a mirror.
"Asumi?! Open up!" Kaede shouted.
"Stay away!"
"Asumi! Asumi, open up!"
"STAY AWAY!"
"Asumi!"
It was too much to take so she quickly ran to the window and.... threw herself out! Kaede was finally able to get into Asumi's room, she dashed over to the open window but she was too late as on the ground below her was the dead figure of Asumi with blood streaming out of her head.
"Asumi..."
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'7 days remaining until we're gone'
[ * た ち が い な く な っ た ま で * り 7 * ]
- Writer
