The Dreamer's Epilogue-Chapter 8: Anxious
Chapter 8 – Anxious
Killing the Bulky Red Spawn gave Emrys and Océane a considerable amount of enhancement in their physical abilities.
It was when things got slightly interesting according to Emrys. By pure curiosity, when he asked those questions to Océane, she answered that her enhancement was mainly in her speed and endurance.
She barely felt improvement in her strength and other aspects.
That answer gave Emrys a crucial piece of information about how this worked.
’We do not have the same enhancement,’ he mused internally as he jogged with Océane toward her house. ’These enhancements are tailored to each. And now that I think about it, my strength is the one that improved the most. Hm, my body too. Should I say constitution, based on game design?’
He was slowly beginning to grasp his current situation. A situation that would become his reality if he survived.
His eyes flickered around him, seeing a sight that worryingly started to become a habit. Only destruction remained, with toppled buildings, ground smeared with blood, and piles of bodies perfect for a feast of crows.
The air around was soaked with the smell of iron, coupled with that of burn. Black smoke crawled out from crashed cars, adding to the forlorn atmosphere.
Emrys sighed inwardly at such a sight, then spared a glance at Océane beside him.
According to her, it would take at most one to two hours to reach her home if there were obstacles along the way.
Emrys was quite relieved to know that. He had accepted to help her with her brother, but not at the expense of losing his life.
He didn’t even know why he was helping her.
’Ah... I do,’ Emrys thought wearily. ’I do know why...’
Océane had been quiet during all this time except when he asked her questions. Emrys could understand why. She was certainly worried for her brother.
’Proprioception, huh...’ Emrys remembered the specific problem of Océane’s brother.
He knew well what it meant. How could he not? As a person who had schizophrenia, Emrys had been very interested in other types of disorders related to brain malfunction.
Proprioception was one of them. It was the capacity that helped one instinctively know the state of one’s muscles. Very primordial to walk. Because without it, one would have to focus every thought to lift one’s feet and walk with proper coordination.
It was way harder than it sounded.
Emrys could guess how hard it must have been for Océane and her brother with such a condition.
He clenched his jaw, his hands tightening into fists as he ran.
’If I can’t save my stepmother...’ Emrys’s heart wavered, ’...then I can at least save her brother. I need to.’
At least, with that... he would make himself believe he was not selfish.
But wasn’t doing that selfish in itself?
Emrys’s head was hurting with all those doubts, so he shut his mind down and continued on his way.
He wanted to say some nice words to Océane to ease her, but he was the type of guy who never knew what to say in those moments.
So Emrys simply fell silent and followed the anxious steps of Océane.
Soon enough, after almost an hour of random fights and relentless walking, they arrived in front of a weary apartment complex.
And with the recent destruction, it was far worse.
"It’s here," Océane said, voice weak. "Our apartment is on the second floor. The first door we will meet."
Emrys nodded, feeling a sense of danger inside this building. This was another improvement. His perception seemed sharper.
"There will be many red spawns inside," Emrys warned. "We need to be careful."
Océane absentmindedly nodded. Clearly, her mind was entirely on her brother.
Emrys exhaled and, this time, led the way.
Océane took out the gun she had gotten inside that car. As she didn’t have infinite ammunition, she had used it sparingly, wanting to save it for when the need arose.
But now it was time.
And she had gotten better at handling it.
The duo swiftly entered the building through the doorless doorway, directly meeting dozens of red spawns mindlessly wandering around the small entry hall.
The moment they stepped inside, all of them snapped their heads toward them with eerie intensity.
They were drooling, and their hungry red eyes wished for nothing but to feast.
They flung their heads backward, opening their jaws and screeching with all their strength before running toward Emrys and Océane.
Emrys’s eyes went dead cold. He was not good at hand-to-hand combat, but his little experience would have to do. It had to.
Océane used the knife Emrys gave her in one hand, the other holding the gun, while Emrys used his fists.
The battle quickly became chaotic.
Emrys dodged right, evading the weak slash of a growling red spawn. The monster’s body slouched inward, giving Emrys time to twist his body and deliver a vicious kick with his right leg to its ribs.
They cracked, the monster howled, then flew away, slamming into the wall.
Emrys didn’t have time to admire his work.
He ducked next, escaping an attack that slashed the air above his head, then swirled to tackle the monster down, making it fall on its back.
It screeched. But not for long, as Océane stabbed the knife directly into its left eye and pointed the gun at the middle of its slimy forehead.
Bang!
Its head exploded into a rain of vicious brain gore, splashing onto Océane’s face. Her eyes didn’t waver.
Emrys inwardly shuddered. He snapped his head away and continued the slaughter.
After many battles fought together, the two learned instinctively to coordinate better with each other.
And just like that, they slaughtered their way through the monsters, going straight to the second floor.
Soon, they reached it, drenched in blood, breaths ragged, with small wounds here and there decorating their bodies.
The weak red spawns were no real threat to them now, but they were too numerous to leave them unscathed.
"Is it here?" Emrys asked with a shallow breath.
Océane simply nodded and opened the door with her bloodied key, her hands trembling in the process.
The door creaked like wood scraping on a rocky floor, then yawned open.
Exhaling, the duo stepped inside. What greeted their eyes was the ceiling collapsed onto the ground, creating a carpet of shattered rock and dust.
Everything else in the small house — too small for two people even — was almost completely broken.
Océane’s heart was at her throat.
But then her heart dropped.
—End of Chapter 8—
