A perfect ring of smoke escaped Joon Woo’s lips. He sighed as the nicotine made its way through his body, calming his nerves. Glancing at the half-smoked cigarette in his hand, he wondered when he would be able to summon the motivation to kick the bad habit. The zombie apocalypse should have been the perfect time to quit smoking. And yet, here he was, scavenging desolate buildings for supplies and cigarette stashes. 

He looked up at the blue sky. The sun was beating down hard, which was good for the electric scout car. The solar panels had been extended to the maximum, almost covering the entire car's surface. With the battery nearing depletion, they needed all the rays they could catch. Hell, they almost couldn’t make it to Pioneer Mall from Zone 0 today.

Luckily they had an extra group of supply runners with them today. The other two cars had taken off as a distraction, pulling the attention of all the zombies loitering around the tall housing complexes surrounding the mall. They were probably doing their tenth circle around the neighborhood. Hopefully, their car battery was in a better state. 

He caught a glimpse of his reflection in the convex traffic mirror at the front of the car park and smiled out of habit. Smiling was good for preventing wrinkles, although he could still see the lines deepening on his forehead. Mid-thirties did that to you, he thought with a grimace.  

He tilted his head to the side and admired his good looks. After all his work outside in the scorching sun, his complexion was getting a healthy tan. But his fringe was getting long. He needed a cut soon. There was no way he was letting his beautiful, twinkling eyes get covered by all those gorgeous curls. Besides, a shorter cut would complement his angular jaw even better. 

His clothes needed changing too. After wearing this checkered shirt on top of his usual V-necked tee for so long, it smelt funny. It was so hard to get something fashionable now though. Especially something with no blood or human insides on it. 

“Still smoking?”

Joon Woo gave a start and ended up coughing his lungs out. A grin twisted his lips as he looked up into the steely gray eyes of his team leader, Ah Long, who had stepped out from the back exit of the two-story mall. 

He laughed. “You know I can’t help it.”

“Such a handsome face like yours and a good, strong body… and yet you want to ruin your health on purpose.” Ah Long huffed as he heaved a cardboard box filled with medicine and bandages into the open top of the makeshift cart connected to the scout car. “It’s a waste.”

Slinging his rifle to the back, Joon Woo winked. “So you think I’m handsome. Are you hitting on me?”

“No one’s hitting on you, idiot.”

Joon Woo spun around. Spotting the sniper, Qiyu, with her blue-dyed hair and impish smile, he scowled. “I’ll have you know this face has attracted many suitors before the apocalypse hit. I had tons of students-”

“Yes, we know.” Ah Long cut in with a grunt. He ran a hand across his tiger-tattooed scalp. “You were Mr. Popular at your dance school.”

“Don’t forget all my fans back in Korea too,” Joon Woo added.

A groan came from the last person to exit the mall, a teenage boy holding two revolvers with an annoyed look on his face. “Is Joon Woo talking about his fans again?”

“Of course he is, Lee.” Qiyu shook her head in mock dismay. “When does he not fail to mention it?”

“Come on, folks. Let’s get this moving,” Ah Long cut in before anyone else could protest.

“So is that the last of the supplies?” Joon Woo asked as he examined the full cart.

Ah Long nodded. “Better not risk piling more stuff in the back. We don’t want the load to fall off and attract zombies to us.”

“Any cigarettes for me?”

“Nope.”

“Oh, come on.” Joon Woo groaned. He threw his finished cigarette to the ground and snuffed it out with the heel of his running shoe.

“Let’s go, people,” Ah Long ordered as he got into the car.

Joon Woo jumped into the driver’s seat and hit a button on the dashboard to close the solar panels. The battery indicator showed that they were at a comfortable 95% charge. Good enough for today. Qiyu and Lee climbed into the back of the cart and pulled the polyweave fabric up to hip level to deter zombies from climbing in.

“Are we going to the new base station today?” Joon Woo asked Ah Long as he strapped in.

“No. We’re carrying too much. We can make a second trip later in the afternoon.”

As Joon Woo turned the key in the ignition, the car started without a sound. Sometimes the silence made him miss the roar of the engine. Beside him, Ah Long radioed the other two supply runners to tell them the job was done. 

“How was the run today? Any upsets?”

Ah Long shrugged as he put the transponder back on the dashboard. “Nothing that we couldn't handle. Lee killed two zombies by himself. He’s getting better at shooting.”

“Good for the kid. He needs to let off some steam. He’s always so high-strung.”

“Most kids are like that over here. It’s the education system. Everyone’s so…kiasu.” Ah Long sighed. “Not sure how to explain that to you.”

“Afraid to lose out, right?” Joon Woo grinned. “I know. I’ve picked up enough of the local language to understand.”

“Wasn’t it the same in Korea?”

Joon Woo hummed as he drove. His sharp eyes watched out for any sign of zombie droves. 

“Yeah, pretty much. Lucky for me, my parents didn’t care too much.” Joon Woo laughed. “Either that or they knew I was a helpless case from the start.”

Amusement crept into Ah Long’s voice. “I can imagine that.”

“How about you then? I can certainly imagine you as the tiger dad.”

“I admit I used to put pressure on my kids.” Ah Long looked out the window at the rolling scenery of abandoned cars and decomposed corpses on the streets. “Since the apocalypse, I could care less. I just want them to survive.”

“Of course. Who cares about studies anymore?”

“Well, it’s still good to know the basics. Never know when you need to create a bomb from scratch or treat a wound.”

“That’s true.”

“Besides, they’ll need to earn their status as Zone 0 residents.”

“I’m sure they’ll be just like their old dad.”

“I hope not. I don’t want them to be supply runners. It’s too dangerous.”

“Fair point.”

Joon Woo navigated around a group of piled-up vehicles. They were near home. The landscape opened up from the tightly packed groups of tall housing complexes to the more low-to-the-ground industrial factories. Excitement built in his chest. Today was Thai for lunch and he couldn’t wait to sink his teeth into some tasty pineapple fried rice. Shula would surely complain about the smoke on his breath but she would have to deal with it.

“What… is that?”

Hearing the disbelief in Ah Long’s voice, Joon Woo followed the older man’s wide-eyed gaze out the windshield and into the distance. A spiral of smoke drifted into the sky where there once was a plasma shield. 

“Is that Zone 0?” Joon Woo gasped.

A tense silence filled the car. Ah Long grabbed the transponder. “Come in, Runner Two and Three. Do you see the smoke?”

The radio crackled. “Runner Two here. Yes, we see it. Is that Zone 0?”

“Runner Three here. We confirm it’s Zone 0.”

“Oh. My. God.” Joon Woo breathed. “What in the hell happened?”

Ah Long’s lips pursed into a thin line. “Safe to say we can assume the worst has happened.”

“But that’s not possible-”

Ah Long turned around in his seat, pulled down the glass panel between the cart and the car, and motioned to Qiyu and Lee. “Zone 0 is down. Be prepared for emergency procedures.”

Joon Woo heard them gasp before Ah Long closed the glass panel again. He gulped hard. The first ridiculous thought that passed through his mind was that Thai lunch was off. Then he wondered whether Shula and Aqra were safe. Or perhaps they were already at the backup zone.

Beside him, Ah Long filled up on ammunition and strapped the magazines to his waist. Oh my god, Ah Long’s kids. Joon Woo felt a chill run down his spine. He snuck a peek at the older man. Thick veins ran across Ah Long’s forehead as he worked his jaw, his deadly eyes set on his weapons. 

“When we reach Zone 0, you guys follow procedure,” Ah Long said. “I’m leaving you in charge.”

“How about you, boss?”

“I’m going to check on my kids.” Ah Long paused. “If they’re still there.”

Joon Woo’s brows furrowed. His grip on the steering wheel tightened. “They will be there, boss.”

Ahead, he could see the giant metal gates wide open. Straggler zombies were loitering around the entrance. Plumes of smoke rose from inside. A lone car zoomed out of the gates but it didn’t seem like it belonged to one of their convoy. He traded a look of dismay with Ah Long. What the fuck had they come back to?