The bus sputtered, coughed, and finally died, its engine shuddering to a cold halt amidst the crumbling remains of a long-abandoned shopping center. Kanata slammed his hands against the cracked dashboard, frustration boiling beneath the grime and sweat. The city was a maze of ash and silence, the distant skyline of Shinjuku a blackened silhouette against a blood-red sky.
Serizawa sat beside him, her face pale but sharp, eyes scanning the ruins beyond the shattered glass. "We can't stay here," she said, voice low and steady. "We need fuel if we want to get anywhere near the base."
Kanata nodded grimly. "Right. Takiya, Kanami, and Godou—guard the bus and watch our backs. Serizawa, you're coming with me. We'll look for gas." His voice was calm, but his gut churned with unease.
She gave him a short nod, then they slipped quietly from the vehicle into the crumbling streets.
---
The ruined mall was a skeletal shell of what it once was—shops with broken windows, skeletal mannequins still draped in tattered clothes, cars abandoned like carcasses in the parking lot. But the air was thick with danger. Kanata's senses sharpened; something about this place was wrong.
Serizawa walked beside him, clutching her pistol tightly, eyes darting from shadow to shadow. "Be careful," she whispered. "People here… they've changed."
Kanata grimaced. "You mean like the zombies?"
"No," she said, shaking her head. "Survivors. Feral. Dangerous. They don't trust anyone anymore. They set traps to keep others out."
As if on cue, a faint click echoed beneath their feet. Kanata's heart leapt as he grabbed Serizawa's arm, yanking her back just as her foot triggered a wire stretched between two rusted poles.
A hidden panel snapped open, revealing jagged spikes aimed straight at her.
Serizawa gasped, frozen for a moment before scrambling back. But in the panic, her shirt snagged on a jagged piece of metal, tearing with a loud rip.
Kanata stepped forward, yanking off his jacket without hesitation and wrapping it around her exposed shoulder.
Her cheeks flamed red, eyes wide. "Th-thanks," she stammered, voice breathless. The closeness sent an unexpected shiver through her.
Kanata's jaw tightened, trying not to meet her gaze. "We don't have time for that. Let's move."
---
The two moved deeper into the maze of ruins, keeping low and quiet. The traps became more frequent—tripwires, hidden pits, even makeshift alarms rigged to alert feral survivors.
Kanata's grip on his pistol never wavered, Serizawa close at his side.
Finally, they spotted an old gas station—half-collapsed, but with several rusted tanks still standing.
"We'll siphon fuel from the tanks," Kanata said. "Get it quick, then we get back."
As Serizawa bent to help, a sudden rustling noise froze them both. Kanata turned sharply, pistol raised.
From the shadows, a gaunt figure emerged—face wild, eyes bloodshot, and hands trembling like a cornered animal.
"Stay back!" Kanata warned.
The figure snarled, then lunged.
Kanata shoved Serizawa behind him, firing a warning shot that shattered a nearby glass bottle.
The feral survivor froze, then dropped, clutching his chest, eyes wild with fear and desperation.
Serizawa exhaled shakily. "We need to get back. Now."
---
The fuel was siphoned into jerrycans quickly, but as they hurried back to the bus, the ruined city seemed to close in around them.
Traps, shadows, and the ever-present threat of feral survivors made every step a gamble.
At one point, Serizawa tripped on a loose pipe, falling forward.
Kanata reached for her instinctively, but in the momentum she toppled forward—onto him, chest pressed against his.
Her breath hitched, cheeks flushed crimson.
Kanata's heart pounded painfully, but he stayed still, not wanting to disturb the fragile moment.
Serizawa pulled back awkwardly, avoiding his eyes. "Sorry," she muttered.
"No," Kanata said softly. "It's okay."
---
Back at the bus, Takiya, Kanami, and Godou were tense but alert. The area was littered with traps and signs of desperate survivors long gone.
Kanami approached Kanata and Serizawa, giving a sharp nod. "Got the gas?"
Kanata handed her a jerrycan, eyes flicking to Serizawa.
The tension between them was palpable, but neither said a word.
---
That night, as the group huddled around a small fire in the bus's shelter, Serizawa sat apart, her eyes fixed on Kanata as he sat silently, tending to the bus's engine.
The quiet hum of the dying city surrounded them, but Serizawa's thoughts were elsewhere.
Her voice was barely a whisper: "You're the only thing keeping me sane."
Kanata glanced up, meeting her gaze briefly before returning to his work.
---
The city of smoke and ash seemed endless—but so long as they had each other, they could survive.
---
To be continued