Mana: Before The Rise - Chapter 301

Gaze leaned over to the side, she was in some type of facility, she looked at the barely visible person inside the container. A person being the source of a highly contagious disease, Rachel had told her something about that a long time ago. She didn’t think that she would encounter it this time as well.

“I met Tsiyi, there” Rachel had told her simply. “Although it was not him, but at the same time it was. His soul had moved on but his body stayed and seemed to have some sort of conscious…..” She mummed something and then. “He stole something from me, I don’t know what it is but ever since then…..” She trailed off. “In the many times, I met two version of him, one with and one without…..” She seemed a bit shaken. “The Tsiyi without the soul, is still around, I find it better to avoid him.”

Gaze frowned a bit, she wondered what about this version of him made her a little scared. “Tsiyi” she whispered slowly, she felt even sad. Although it was just a bit.

She kicked her feet and fumbled in her chair.

The progress of the survivors are slow, she can only choose to save the exceptional ones while leaving the weak behind. It why she did nothing but, set up until the prologue of the story with Dwight. The weeding out of the useless. Is also a tactic of survival.

Her powers are limited in order to keep this world balanced. She sighed inwardly, it will either take some time or no time at all.

A few days had passed, and Cameron station was already packed and set up with survivors, reunions had happened as they prepared for their large noise making movement. Gaze at set up a continuous alarm at the other edge of the City which was warmed about via phones and Dwight’s hosting.

Today is the day where the survivors are to leave the station as most of the infected are centered on the alarm system.

Once the train started rolling it, will make a stop in Kobe Town, some town, and villages. Then Aboti City where Dwight will join them. Before they head off into the abandoned town. Gaze still deems that the only place where they came make civilization. The Train is not completely full and still has space to pick up any left-over survivors. From those areas before the are overrun.

With this the southern side of the country would be almost secure and now she had to focus on the other areas. Gaze estimated that the town will eventually encounter zombies but by that time they would be fully secure. So long as they are able to rebuild a production facility, the produces construction materials.

Although abandoned and with the Train still in working condition the building materials could be spread to other survivor locations. Plus, with the former main cell tower communications may continue and help other survivors. The only problem is food and water, She can continue sending EPI drops, but as the population grows they’ll need a stable food source and the nearby water purification plant to be active. It was taking a year before the survivors run into food and water problems.

Things must be taken one step at a time.

South, West, East, North, and Central. She had to find valid locations. With the proper facilities and proception. The South had the abandoned town surrounded by mountains. The West had an offshore military-based island only connected by bridge and train tracks. The East the unfinished indoor city that was still under construction and abandoned due to the outbreak. The North had the snowy mountains but the large caverns inside had former research facilities that could assist in making a cure. Central has the locked-tight military facility where she is and its also where the disease originated from.

Central now for the next four years, cannot be broken into because of how many diseased inhabit the center of the country. The only way to get here is for the number of infected to dwindle and that can only be done if conditions are right and in favor of the survivors.

With a wave of her hand Computer Screens turned on and viewed Survivors in other places. They where working together, helping each other. Progress can be seen in their mentality and as these people who had once lost all hope are now looking for a new horizon.

Five months had passed.

Dwight had just finished another radio call, along with news he has been communicating along with three other fellow survivors Shelby Rights, Max Turner, Angel Smith. They had renamed the abandoned town Safe Valley. After the first month they where able to repair most of the buildings with the abandoned construction facility, leftover items where to damaged and repairing did not take long. Also, with the train running in perfect condition they had been able to pick up more survivors and get into contact with other outposts.

Supplest had been transported between each location through Leonard’s Train, After heading toward the military island, it was up armored for more protection. Including Autotargets and security cameras. Leonard, his daughter, and younger brother practically live in the train now.

“We haven’t heard from Lotus in long time….” Shelby said once they where done with radio call. Dwight and Shelby are the day shift personnel for the radio.

“…” Dwight was silent, a month ago, Lotus had stopped contacting them. The dead silence from her was unsettling, but the EPI drops are still ongoing, and he is still been giving their locations. Although it is from the EPI automated system.

Shelby was shifting through the computer, the big screen was showing she was looking at the map and seeing the locations of Infected, she pressed a bottom on the keyboard, she didn’t know what but a search bar popped open.

“what you do?” Dwight asked when he saw the search bar on screen.

“I don’t know” She said and then thought of something, she typed in ‘Lotus’

The search made the map move erratically, to a large facility like place in Central. A Purple point marked Lotus popped up, Shelby used the mouse and clicked the button on the purple point. And security camera popped up. It was outside a large well-walled facility. From there they could see that it was the base of the EPI drones, the machines are moving. The Camera continues to flicker, until it finally locks on to the fourteen-year-old staring nearly motionlessly out a window.

“Ah, there she is.” Dwight said, standing up.

“Is that Lotus?” Shelby asked, as Dwight was the only person to have seen her. The girl wasn’t doing anything other then staring, when an infected came into view. Which made their hearts drop as the infected came closer to her.

Finally, she moved looking at the infected before walked towards it calmly and moving out of the camera’s view. The camera shifted perspective, to view her walking past the infected. The infected did not even notice her.

Dwight and Shelby gave a shell-shocked look as the camera continued to follow the girl down the hallway. Until it lost track of her and continued to flicker through images until it found her walk down another hall filled with infected.

But like the other one, they all ignored her. Making Dwight and Shelby completely baffled, until she left the view of the camera and completely disappeared, the cameras continue to flicker until finally it gave up and said lost signal. The screen then zoomed out and returned to a regular map, with the purple dot still in place.