Apocalypse: Roach to Supreme Being

"What… I'm infected?" Dylon asked, stunned and confused.

"Yes, when that monster attacked you outside the canteen, you got infected," Torcose said, his voice trembling with fear. Seeing Lice transform, he was terrified Dylon could turn too. Now that he is inside the cramped kitchen, Torcose wasn't taking any chances.

"Grrrr… grrraa…"

Lice was closing in fast.

"Hey… what kind of nonsense is this? I'm not infected! Open the door now—everyone's lives are on the line because of your insanity!" Dylon pleaded, but everyone except Rosze and Bigbelly inched away from him.

Furious that his colleagues, with whom he'd worked for years in this hospital, doubted him, Dylon tore off his shirt.

"Look! Is there a single bite mark or scratch on me?"

They inspected closely—no bites, no scratches. Those who had backed away felt a twinge of guilt. "SORRY"

"Dr. Torcose, there's no bite mark on Dylon! Open the door now, quick—she's almost here!" Bigbelly urged, frantic. Exhausted, his body couldn't keep running; he needed rest. If he didn't get inside, Lice would surely tear him apart. But—

"N-No… I don't believe you… you're all lying!" Torcose stammered.

BAM!

Dylon slammed his fist against the kitchen door, his face seething with rage. "You fucking shit… open it now, or I swear I'll make you regret it!"

"N-No… I have to see my wife and unborn child… SORRY! …

"BAM! BAM! BAM!

Dylon pounded the door furiously as Torcose refused to open it. "Sorry ? Who is asking your sorry shitt...You… fucking bastard, open the door now!"

BAM! BAM!

"He's completely terrified, in total shock. He won't open it no matter how much we try. We have to run to the remaining benches and use them to defend against Lice," Rosze said, realizing Torcose was too paralyzed by fear to budge.

"Grrrraaaa!"Lice was nearly upon them.

"Shit… run to the benches!" Dylon hurled his shirt at Lice's face, making her crash into the kitchen door. The group sprinted away, with Dr. Bigbelly trailing behind.

"Haffff… hafffff… haaaa…" Bigbelly panted heavily.

"Dr. Bigbelly, hurry!" Rosze, worried, slowed down and grabbed his hand.

"Hafff… no… hfff… I can't…" Bigbelly was completely spent, sweat streaming down his face.

"No… we're all getting out alive!" Rosze insisted, propping up his shoulder. Seeing this, Dylon doubled back to support Bigbelly's other side, and they ran, their pace sluggish but pulling away from Lice.

"Grrrraaaa!"

"F-Faster! She's turning toward us… get over here!" Dr. Syrus shouted. He and three others were stacking benches to form a wall against Lice.

Moments later, they reached the other side of the benches, sealing the gaps with the last one.

"Hhhfffff… hffffff… hhaaa…" Bigbelly gasped, struggling to catch his breath.

"Are… are we safe here?" Syrus asked, trembling with doubt.

"For a few moments," Rosze said after a brief pause.

"T-Then we're going to die," Syrus stammered, shaking harder. Dr. Siri's screams still echoed in his mind, her body lying just meters away on their right.

Dylon scanned the area for an escape route. His eyes fell on a glass window behind them—half meter wide, two meters tall, used for ventilation.

Dylon realized one person could slip through, but the window wouldn't open easily for just one.

"Grrtt… grrraaaaa… grrraaaa…"

"Shit… we're trapped… hafff…" Bigbelly realized, panting.

"Yes, we need to think of something fast," Rosze agreed, knowing Lice could scale the benches.

"Dr. Syrus, Dr. Derek, help me open this window quick!" Dylon shouted, seeing only one way out: through the ventilation window.

The narrow ledge outside, pressed against the outer wall, might let them hold out and save their lives.

Derek and Syrus immediately turned to assist Dylon.

"Grrraaaa… graaaa…" Lice was just meters away.

"W-Will I die…?" Rosze's courage began to waver. Her calm demeanor cracked as she imagined her own death for the first time.Then, movement stirred on the right.

"L-Look… Dr. Siri is moving… h-has she turned too…?" Felix stammered, shaking uncontrollably.

"What… this is nonsense… she was dead, and now she's alive .This doesn't make any fucking sense.… Dr. Siri was right, we're all trapped in a nightmare… hahahaha… wake me up, darling, you're sleeping right beside me, aren't you?" Dr. Eithen began to believe he was in a dream.

Seeing Siri rise felt like something that could only happen in a nightmare.In his entire life, Eithen had never heard of the dead coming back to life in reality—no magic, no miracles. But now, it was unfolding before his eyes, convincing him this was just a terrifying dream, nothing more.

"Dr. Eithen… Dr. Eithen, pull yourself together! This isn't a dream—it's reality! If you go near her, those monsters will tear the flesh from your living body. By the time you realize it's not a dream, the agony will be unbearable, but it'll be too late!" Rosze grabbed Eithen's arm as he tried to cross the bench toward Siri, urging him to snap out of it.

For a moment, she too had believed it might be a dream, but memories of testing the Z-Virus with her brother Evelon flooded back. She convinced herself this was no nightmare but a horrifying reality she'd never even imagined in her worst dreams.

"Yes… Dr. Eithen, you're not dreaming. If you want to see your wife again, you have to stay alive," Dr. Bigbelly added, grabbing Eithen's waist from behind to stop him, his breathing finally easing slightly.

"B-But… if this isn't a dream, can we even survive…?" Eithen asked, sobbing.

"Grrrraaaa…" Siri had risen from the floor and was advancing toward them. On the left, Lice was dangerously close. They had no escape left by running.

"L-Look… we're definitely going to die," Felix said, glancing left and right, certain their end was near.Then, a sound came from behind.

"Kirrrrrrrrr…"

Dylon, Syrus, and Derek had pried open the window."Quick… everyone, get out through the window!" Dylon shouted, climbing out first, followed by Derek and Syrus.

"Grrrraaaaa… garararraaaa…"

The two monsters were just four meters away."Hurry… hurry!" Dylon yelled from outside.

"Arhhhhaaa… no… no…" Eithen, completely panicked, bolted toward the window. Dylon grabbed his hand just in time, saving him from falling off the second floor.

Rosze followed, and now only Dr. Bigbelly remained."Dr. Bigbelly, hurry!" Rosze screamed in fear as Bigbelly stood frozen.

"S-Sorry, Dr. Rosze…" Tears welled in Bigbelly's eyes. He knew his large frame couldn't fit through the window.

"W-What are you saying, Dr. Bigbelly… we don't have time!" Rosze's face paled at his words, realizing she hadn't considered the window's size.

"Grrrraaaaa… graaaa…" Lice and Siri charged at the benches, slamming into them with a—

BAM!

They tumbled over the benches, landing on their stomachs just two meters from where Dr. Bigbelly stood, facing Rosze.

"Grrraaa… grrrrttttt…" They slowly raised their heads, glaring at Bigbelly.

"Dr. Bigbelly… come quick! We'll pull you through from here… fast… fast!" Dylon shouted, understanding why Bigbelly hesitated. But he couldn't let a colleague—not just a colleague, but a friend—lose his life like this.

Bigbelly cut him off. "Sorry… Dylon… sorry Dr. Rosze, Derek, Syrus, Eithen, Felix… it's been great working with you all these years…"

As he spoke, he slammed the window shut. None of them had expected this from Bigbelly, the man who always smiled and treated everyone kindly, now standing before them, tears streaming down his face.

"N… NOOOOOOOOO… Dr. Bigbelly… open it quick!" Rosze screamed, reeling in shock. She pounded the window frantically from outside.

"Shit… shit… No… no, Bigbelly… what are you doing… please… no, man… open it… please…" Dylon, panicked, stammered as he shouted, his voice breaking.

"Thank you all… for treating this fat guy as your friend…" Bigbelly thought silently, tears in his eyes, his face heavy with regret that he could no longer stay with them.

In school, his classmates bullied him relentlessly for his size, leaving him friendless, feeling like a burden. High school was worse, with even more mockery. He barely made it through, and college was just as lonely—no friends, no one to sit with.

But when he came to City Hospital, he met these people, who became his friends, his family. He was happy here, truly content with his life.Now, knowing he'd never see his precious friends again, his tears kept falling.

"NOOOOOOO… DAMMIT… PLEASE!" Dylon felt a gut punch, about to lose a cherished —a "pig friend" he held dear. His heart raced as he pounded the window harder.

BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

But their luck had run out.

"Grrrrrrrrr… grrrr…" Lice, crawling on the floor, sank her teeth into Bigbelly's leg.

"Arhhhhh!" Bigbelly looked down and kicked Lice hard with his other foot.But she didn't let go. Siri rose and lunged at him.

"Grrrraaaaa!"

"Arghhhhhaaaa!" Bigbelly screamed in agony.

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Rosze cried out. She'd joined the hospital two years ago, and Bigbelly was the one who helped her most. They'd become close friends, their hospital life filled with joy. Now, her carefree, smiling friend was dying in agony before her eyes.

"Argggghhhbhhh!"

Bigbelly's screams grew fainter as he moved right, away from the window, clinging to the wall. He didn't want to die in front of his friends, so he shuffled to the side.

Now, he was out of sight. Only his pain-filled cries reached them.

"Arghhhhghh… ahhhhhhhhh!"

"Ahhhh… Noooo… dammit!" Felix's eyes filled with tears. Derek, Syrus, and Eithen, watching their friend die, sobbed in shock, unsure of what to do.

And suddenly

Bigbelly's cries stopped.

"...."

" Grrraaa....graaa "

The group realized he was gone—Bigbelly was dead.

"Arhhhhhhhhhbbbh!"

Dylon roared, tears streaming as rage at his helplessness consumed him.Rosze's mind went blank from shock, while the others just wept.

"TORCOSE, you bastard… I'll kill you with my own hands!" Dylon bellowed, knowing that if Torcose had let them into the kitchen, Bigbelly might have been saved.

"F-Forgive me… please forgive me…" a sobbing voice came from inside the kitchen.