Apocalypse Park

Yet Another Evolution

The memory felt as if it had been diluted with water, stewing into a pot of porridge—blurry and muddled. All she could recall was lying in bed, drifting off to sleep. She had gradually felt hotter and thirstier... Then, a gentle male voice came from nearby. She quickly grasped his hand and whispered, "I'm so thirsty..."

—Suddenly, her eyes snapped open. For a moment, Emma thought she was going to see another pale face. She bolted upright, shaking her head. In the dim light, she took stock of her surroundings.

The once charming supermarket where she occasionally treated herself to imported snacks now seemed lifeless, dim, quiet, and utterly chaotic.

A slender white woman lay nearby, her face buried in thick red hair, sound asleep. On the other side of Amanda, a fair and delicate-looking young man stirred. Hearing Emma's movements, he opened his eyes slightly.

"You're awake?" Landon mumbled groggily, glancing at the clock on the supermarket wall. "Oh, it’s already past six in the evening?"

Awoken by their voices, Amanda tiredly rubbed her eyes and sat up. “No wonder I’m hungry…” Emma’s stomach growled audibly. She took a sip of water and muttered, "Even the little dried-up corpse has quieted down."

Indeed, the direction of the employee break room was eerily silent, with the shelves still barricading the door as if Selina had never appeared.

"I'll grab some food," Landon said, getting to his feet. He shuffled into the food section, yawning, and returned with some vacuum-packed duck feet and chicken legs.

The anxious tension that had hung in the air before they fell asleep had nearly dissipated now that they were awake. The three of them sat in a relaxed circle, eating and chatting.

“You know, you really don’t seem like someone who’s been on the battlefield.” Emma teased Landon, happily munching on a pack of cookies she used to love.

Amanda snorted at this. "Don’t even bring it up. After we joined the army, I had to train every day, while he was living the good life, relying on his shapeshifting abilities..."

"Hey, tell me more!" Emma laughed, pressing for details.

With his mouth full, Landon couldn’t defend himself. He hastily gulped down water to swallow his food, nearly choking in the process. The long-forgotten sound of laughter echoed through the supermarket, and for a brief moment, the new world didn’t seem so terrifying after all.

Hearing the laughter outside, Selina unhappily banged on the door, letting out a sharp shriek.

The three had fallen asleep to the sound of her screams earlier, and by now, they were completely accustomed to her presence. They didn’t even blink as they calmly finished their meal. With Selina’s piercing cries in the background, Landon sighed regretfully, "If only we could have some stir-fried dishes and rice."

That reminded Emma of something. She clapped her hands together. "Aren’t we heading upstairs soon to find Ethan’s body? His place has a stove, and it should still work—we could bring some rice up there. I can’t promise stir-fry, but at least we can manage some meat porridge."

The idea immediately earned enthusiastic nods from the others. Landon, full of energy, leaped to his feet and, with Amanda in tow, made several trips around the supermarket gathering supplies: Thai rice, mineral water, vacuum-packed meat...

But to their disappointment, no matter how thoroughly they searched the supermarket, they couldn’t find a flashlight. Each of them had to settle for carrying a lighter for lighting their way.

After resting for a few hours, they estimated that the sky outside had completely darkened. They packed their belongings and left the supermarket, locking the shutters behind them just in case. When they stepped into the elevator, they found that the sun had indeed set. The lobby on the first floor was pitch black, devoid of any life.

Unexpectedly, due to the mall's unique design, the sun’s heat had been trapped inside the building. Without the usual air conditioning to cool things down, the first-floor lobby had turned into a giant oven.

The oppressive heat was suffocatingly invasive. Within seconds, sweat drenched their backs. Coupled with the faint stench rising from the pile of corpses they had dragged out earlier, Emma couldn’t stand another second in the lobby. She hurriedly dashed out of the shopping mall, finally feeling a slight breeze on her skin.

It was clear they needed to come up with a plan to dispose of the bodies as soon as possible.

The long line of cars they had navigated earlier that morning still blocked the mall’s entrance. But unlike the morning, most of the vehicles had now run out of fuel and lay dead and silent. Only a few cars still clung to life, their engines faintly humming.

The traffic jam resembled a dying snake, motionless in the sweltering heat.

Emma led the group quickly across the road, avoiding looking inside the cars—she had seen enough of the dead. The apartment complex where Ethan had once lived wasn’t far from the mall, and after about ten minutes of walking, the three of them reached the base of the 38-story building.

Since the heat wave had struck, most of humanity had been wiped out in less than a day, leaving the power grid permanently down. They now had to rely on their legs to climb to the 38th floor.

As the only man in the group, Landon took it upon himself to carry the heavier supplies like rice and water. He followed the two women, puffing and panting as they climbed the stairs.

Although they were all "evolved humans," by the time they reached the stairwell on the 25th floor, everyone was exhausted. Emma, who hadn’t undergone any physical enhancements, was the first to collapse onto the steps, waving her hands frantically. “No more, no more, let’s rest… catch our breath, have some water.”

Amanda cautiously checked their surroundings with her lighter. Seeing nothing unusual, she opened a bottle of juice and handed it to the two who were sprawled out on the ground.

The sweet blueberry flavor slid down their throats, refreshing their bodies. Landon was about to compliment the drink when suddenly the stairwell door on the 26th floor creaked open.

“Is someone there? Honey, is that you?” A frightened female voice quivered from above.

In less than a second, all three of them sprang to their feet, instantly on high alert. The lesson Selina had taught them was still fresh in their minds, and before anyone could speak, Amanda shouted sternly, “Stay where you are! Who are you?”

The woman on the 26th floor seemed surprised that there were actually people below her. She gasped, and then, still trembling, said, “I-I live here… I came out to look for my husband. Who are you?”

The three exchanged glances. After a moment of thought, Emma called out, “I’m also a resident here. Now slowly step to the side of the stairs and show us your face.”

“W-why is that necessary?” the woman stammered but complied, cautiously stepping into view. All three of them craned their necks to peer upwards, illuminated by the faint orange light of Amanda’s lighter.

In the flickering light, a normal, clean human face appeared above the railing. The woman looked to be in her thirties, wearing a scarlet nightgown. She had a refined appearance despite her swollen, tear-streaked eyes, and was visibly rattled. The moment she spotted Emma, she seemed to relax slightly, letting out a sigh of relief. “Oh, it’s you! I’ve seen you before!”

Emma, however, had no recollection of her. But seeing that the woman wasn’t a Fallen, they lowered their guard and continued up the stairs.

The woman, feeling an odd sense of familiarity, quickly latched onto Emma. “You might not remember me, but I’ve seen you and your boyfriend walking downstairs a few times. He’s tall and handsome, right?” As she spoke, she glanced curiously at Landon and Amanda, but wisely refrained from asking any further questions. “My name’s Lily Evans . Have you seen my husband?”

Emma couldn’t even remember the last time she had seen a living person. She didn’t want to mention Ethan at all, but before she could respond, Landon spoke up. “…Sister Lily, what does your husband look like? Didn’t he stay home with you?”

Lily’s eyes immediately welled up with tears. “Last night, we went to bed together. But in the middle of the night, the power went out, and the heat woke me up. When I turned over, he was gone… all that was left were his pajamas. I’m sure he’s gone outside, but I just don’t know where... I didn’t dare move around during the day…”

It seemed that Lily Evans had been on the verge of an emotional breakdown and now couldn’t stop talking: “You tell me, how did the weather get so terrifying… I went downstairs to find the security guards, but I don’t know if they were unconscious or dead, just lying there… I was so scared…”

Emma nodded along sympathetically as she listened to Lily's story, offering her some comfort. But then she felt a gentle tug on her sleeve. Turning around, she saw Amanda motioning to her.

Amanda leaned in close to whisper, and as if Landon had eyes on the back of his head, he stepped forward at just the right moment, blocking Yun Kong’s view so she wouldn’t notice anything unusual.

“We’re here for Ethan’s body. We can’t let her tag along and find out about him, Amanda muttered quietly, as Emma slowly nodded in agreement.