Chapter 1: Prologue
Everything had happened so fast. One minute I was sleeping soundly in the abandoned farmhouse I'd taken shelter in, the next I was running for my life through the woods, a mob of crazed survivors hot on my trail.
I should have known my lonely existence out here wouldn't last. I'd gotten complacent, let my guard down. The first screams and gunshots had jarred me violently from sleep. By the time I scrambled out of bed to see what was happening, they were already breaking down the door. Their filthy, contorted faces appeared demonic in the moonlight. I barely managed to escape out the back entrance before they seized me.
And so I ran. I ran faster and harder than I ever had in my life, my lungs burning, my legs feeling like jelly. But I couldn't stop. I knew if they caught me, it would be over. I'd become just another victim of this lawless new world that had emerged from the ashes of the old.
The sound of their inhuman shrieks and whoops of excitement kept me moving forward. They were enjoying this twisted hunt, like a pack of hyenas toying with wounded prey before going in for the kill. I risked a glance back and saw their dark silhouettes gaining through the trees. How long could I keep this pace up?
I veered off the main path, scrambling wildly through the brush. My clothes snagged and tore on branches but I didn't care. Better to lose a scrap of clothing than my life. The distant highway was up ahead. If I could just reach it, find a working car.
My foot caught on a protruding root and I went down hard. The impact knocked the wind out of me and I gasped for air. No, I couldn't stop now. They were right behind me. I could envision their crazed faces, mouths hanging slack, teeth bared in excitement at the impending slaughter.
I forced myself to stand on wobbly legs, lungs and muscles burning in protest. My ankle throbbed where I'd twisted it, but nothing felt broken. No time to dwell on injuries. All that mattered was getting to the highway. Escape. Survival.
I limped onward as fast as my battered body would allow. Their excited shouts echoed through the trees, seeming closer with each passing second. How long could I hold them off? I'd run nearly two miles already, fueled on pure adrenaline. My chances of finding a working vehicle seemed slim.
Even if I did get to the highway, what then?
The woods were thinning up ahead. I was getting close. My legs felt like they might give out at any moment, but I pushed myself to keep going through sheer force of will. Just a little farther now.
Don't give up!
I stumbled from the tree line onto the blessedly open highway. The cracked asphalt stretched out before me under the cold moon. No sign of life or movement. Of course it couldn't be that easy.
Why would anything work in my favour now?
I didn't dare stop to catch my breath. I knew my stamina was nearly depleted, but I had to keep moving. Death awaited right behind me in those shadowy woods.
So I continued on, weaving unsteadily across the lanes of the abandoned highway. Each step was agony now as I fought against total collapse. I couldn't hear the mob anymore over the roaring in my ears. Maybe I'd managed to lose them. Or maybe they were simply biding their time, letting me tire myself out before moving in for the execution.
A vehicle suddenly appeared up ahead, emerging from the darkness. An old sedan, windows busted out, a corpse slumped over the wheel. But the keys were miraculously still dangling from the ignition. I very nearly cried out in relief.
I was within twenty feet of the car when the mob hit me from behind like a tidal wave. Multiple bodies crashed into me, throwing me to the ground. I hit the pavement hard, grunting as the wind was once again knocked from my lungs.
Before I could react, hands were grabbing at me from all directions, pinning me down. I thrashed violently, managing to pull a knife from my belt and slash it in wild arcs. It bit into flesh again and again, their shrieks of surprise and pain egging me on. If I was going down, I was taking some of them with me.
But it was no use. There were simply too many of them. The knife was wrenched from my grasp and eager hands began pummeling and clawing at me. Pain exploded through my body as I felt my ribs crack under their vicious strikes.
That's when I saw him. Taesung, the brutal leader of a rival group of survivors. We only had met each other a few times, but I'd often heard the horrific stories of his ruthlessness and cruelty.
The years had been kind to him, despite everything. He still had a handsome, chiselled face as I remembered. But his eyes were now wild, crazed with bloodlust. He'd become a savage, ruthless leader. The excited mob parted for him as he strode forward.
"Not so cocky now, are you Minjun?" He sneered down at me. I glared back defiantly, which only seemed to anger him more.
With my last bit of fleeting strength, I made one final attempt to break free, managing to drag myself a few feet across the pavement. But then Taesung stepped forward and delivered a forceful kick to my head. An explosion of white blinded me as everything started going dark.
As I faded out, I thought of everything I'd survived to get here. The initial outbreak in Seoul and chaos as society collapsed. The lawless marauders who overran the refugee camps. The desperate, solo journey north to find an abandoned village to wait things out. All leading only to this savage, unjust end at the hands of someone I once called a friend.
If I'd known this is how it would end, would I have fought so stubbornly to live? Or would I have found a way to go out on my own terms rather than being slaughtered like an animal by these monsters?
Regret washed over me. Regret at chances not taken, relationships not nurtured, time squandered on petty things instead of finding meaning. And most of all, regret that my flame was being so cruelly snuffed out by the very dregs of humanity I'd hoped to avoid, led by someone I once trusted with my life.
As the final bit of light faded from my vision, I sent up one last silent prayer for the safety of any others still out there trying to survive with their humanity intact.
Don't lose hope. Keep your light burning.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
TK_Selwyn
TK_Selwyn Welcome to my novel, and thank you so much for taking the time to read it. This is my first journey into creating a web novel series. I'd genuinely appreciate your thoughts and feedback.
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