My Sniper System in a Zombie Apocalypse World-Chapter 131: Connected

"Let’s wrap things up here," Jaxon said quietly.

He moved through the aisles, quickly filling his storage space. Canned food, chips, chocolate bars, and sealed goods vanished from the shelves one after another until most of the section had been cleared.

When he finished, he didn’t move right away. His gaze lingered on the dark aisle ahead where the creature had retreated.

Na-rin noticed the way he was staring into the darkness. "You’re thinking of following it, aren’t you?"

Cindy blinked and looked between them, then quickly understood what she meant.

"Brother... that’s dangerous," she said, worry creeping into her voice.

Jaxon stayed silent for a few seconds, weighing his thoughts. Then he turned back to them.

"Could you wait for me here?" he said calmly. "I want to check it out."

"Jaxon..." Cindy started. She looked at him, hoping he would change his mind. But the moment she saw his stubborn eyes, she already knew the answer. Her brother rarely changed his decision once he made up his mind.

Cindy sighed and shook her head slightly. She forced down the fear in her chest and stepped closer. "Then we’re coming with you."

"You don’t have to," Jaxon replied.

Na-rin spoke before Cindy could answer. "We are," she said firmly.

Jaxon studied the two of them, then he gave a small nod.

The three of them tightened their grip on their weapons and moved deeper into the darkness where the creature had disappeared.

Jaxon followed the dark trail of blood across the floor. The thick, sticky stains led them past the aisles and toward the back of the grocery store.

The trail ended near a stairwell.

The door was half open, hanging crooked on its hinges. A foul smell drifted out from the darkness beyond it.

Jaxon pushed the door slowly and stepped inside. Cindy and Na-rin followed close behind.

The stairwell was narrow and dim. Only a thin line of light from the store behind them reached the upper steps. Below was nothing but darkness.

The smell here was much stronger, rot, damp concrete, and something worse that made the air feel heavy in their lungs. Cindy covered her nose for a moment but said nothing.

Every step echoed in the quiet. Even the smallest movement sounded loud in the tight space. Cindy and Na-rin could barely see anything ahead, but Jaxon’s eyes had already adjusted to the dark.

The trail of black blood continued down the stairs, and without hesitation, Jaxon began moving downward.

They moved slowly, placing each step carefully.

Then... "Thick... thick... thick..."

A strange sound echoed from somewhere below.

The three froze instantly. The sound was faint, but inhuman. It sounded like something hard striking bone, again and again. Each tick carried a strange vibration that traveled through the stairwell walls.

"Thick... thick... thick..."

The sound echoed up the stairs and faded again. Cindy felt the hair on her arms stand up. "What... is that...?" she whispered.

Jaxon raised one hand slightly, signaling silence. They stood still, listening.

The sound continued for a few seconds, then it stopped.

The stairwell returned to complete silence.

Jaxon remained still for a moment longer. When nothing else followed, he slowly continued downward.

Na-rin and Cindy followed right behind him. But none of them noticed the movement above.

At the top of the stairwell, in the darkness they had already passed, something shifted quietly. A shadow crawled along the wall.

Then, slowly, a yellow eye opened in the darkness. It stared down the stairwell, fixed on the three figures descending into the dark.

Below, Jaxon suddenly felt a sharp chill crawl up his spine. His body reacted before his mind did.

As his stats had grown stronger, so had his senses. That invisible alarm inside him was ringing loudly now.

’Danger, behind, something was watching.’ But Jaxon did not turn around.

If something was following them, sudden movement might trigger it. So he kept walking down the stairs as if nothing had changed.

Na-rin noticed the small frown on his face, but she did not ask anything.

The shadow behind them moved. A long, twisted arm slowly stretched out from the darkness, reaching forward for a silent kill.

But Jaxon had already turned around.

His green-tinged eyes locked onto the creature the moment it revealed itself. In the faint darkness of the stairwell, the mutant infected finally showed its shape. Its body was thin and twisted, its skin dark and wet like rotting flesh. One long arm stretched far past what was natural, reaching for him like a spear.

Jaxon did not hesitate and pulled the trigger.

Thup. Thup. Thup.

Several suppressed shots burst from the M16, as the bullets struck the mutant’s head in quick succession.

Dark blood splattered across the wall as the rounds tore through its skull. The creature jerked violently, its body twitching as the long arm froze in midair.

It stopped just inches away from Jaxon. Then the body collapsed onto the stairs with a dull thud.

At the same time, a familiar notification rang softly inside Jaxon’s mind, confirming the kill.

Cindy slowly lowered her flashlight, letting out the breath she had been holding. "It’s finally dead... should we go back now?" she whispered.

Jaxon sharply raised one hand to signal silence, and Cindy kept quiet at once.

Jaxon’s eyes were wide as he stared into the darkness ahead, his expression tense. His jaw tightened slightly as he swallowed, as if something in front of him had caught him completely off guard.

Cindy and Na-rin exchanged confused looks.

Then their flashlights slowly lowered toward the ground in front of them.

The beams of light swept across the floor. And both of them instantly clamped their hands over their mouths, barely stopping the gasp that threatened to erupt. Cindy squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, fighting back the urge to vomit. This was beyond anything she could have imagined.

Before them was a sight that made their blood run cold. The entire lower floor was packed with infected. Hundreds... maybe thousands... of infected bodies were packed together in a grotesque mass.

They weren’t moving. They were frozen in place, pressed so tightly together that many of their bodies looked as if they were beginning to merge.

Black, pulsing flesh spread across the entire floor beneath them like some kind of living carpet. Thick strands of it stretched between the infected, connecting them together as if they were part of the same organism.

The surface slowly throbbed... expanding and contracting faintly, like a massive heartbeat beneath their feet.

The place where they stood wasn’t a floor. It was flesh.

For a long moment, none of the three dared to move.