Joon Woo kept seeing Pei Yi's limp body in his mind. It felt surreal. He half-expected the girl to get up and giggle, saying that she was playing dead. Like she always did when he went to visit Ah Long.

Her childish laugh rang in his ears. “Try and find me, Uncle Joon!”

He swore he could see her right-

“Snap out of it, Joon!” 

He blinked several times, the image of Pei Yi’s lively skipping as she hurtled down the living room fading into a scene of black and red. Aqra shook him by the shoulders, concern and anxiety carved into his hard features. “We’ve got to move!”

Joon Woo snapped into motion. Running like a robot, he followed behind the group as they ran across the large road and leaped across the small divider. Ah Long was ahead of him, his hand holding onto the single child he had left. Joon Woo gulped past the lump growing in his throat. If he was devastated by Pei Yi’s death, how was Ah Long taking it now?

He didn’t want to imagine the feelings that must be tearing at the older man. It was too much heartbreak to bear. He had to be strong. For Ah Long’s sake, he had to push through this wall of grief. Keep Ah Long and Pei Wen and everyone else he cared about safe.

Looking ahead, he saw Qiyu leading the group. She was keeping them in the grassy divide separating the roads. Ducking behind trees, they headed back the way they had come, towards the west. He caught up with Qiyu. Her face was ashen, her eyes wide with sorrow. She glanced at him and they shared a nod of understanding. Mourning would come later.

“Where are we going?” he whispered.

She pointed down the road at a two-story, long building. “Fire station.”

Joon Woo spotted a couple of stragglers scattered around and ducked down. The group followed his motion. He cradled his rifle to his chest, careful not to make a sound. With the rain no longer providing them cover, they had to take extra precautions.  

Behind him, Aqra said, “What’s the plan?”

Joon Woo looked to Ah Long but the hardened man was an empty shell. He hugged his remaining son to his chest, his eyes alert for danger, but it was clear he had no heart to make any decisions. 

“You’re sure there’s a fire truck inside?” he asked Qiyu.

She nodded. “At least two if I remember correctly.”

“Let’s go-”

“All together?” Shula cut in. 

“Yeah?”

Shula shook her head. “Those fire trucks might need to be charged at their stations before they can be powered up. We’ll be sitting ducks.”

“We’re also sitting ducks out here,” Aqra retorted.

“Better to be ducks in the open than ducks in a dark, empty building,” Qiyu weighed in.

Joon Woo glanced at their large group. “So we need to split into two. One team gets in there and drives the fire truck out. The other team waits here for the fire truck.”

Nods of assent rippled down the line. 

“Me, Qiyu, and Aqra will go,” Joon Woo said. “Shula-”

“I’ll go too. You need someone to make sure the fire truck is charged.”

“Fine.” Joon Woo looked around at the rest of the survivors. “Are the rest of you okay to stay here?”

Ah Long spoke up. “I’ll take care of them here.”

Joon Woo hesitated for a second. His gaze met Ah Long’s. The determined look in the older man’s eyes sent a tinge of relief through him. He nodded. “Okay.”

“Wait.” Shula rummaged around in her backpack and retrieved one of the sound bombs she was so fond of making. She shuffled back and handed it to Ah Long. “If things get bad, throw this far away. It’ll go off like a siren. Remember, you have to lob it.”

Ah Long weighed it in his hands. “Like a grenade.”

“Exactly.”

When Shula returned to her position, Joon Woo said, “Okay. let’s go. Shula, you stay in the middle. Qiyu, you take the lead. Me and Aqra will flank.”

Tossing one last look at the survivors huddled behind a thick clump of bushes, he prayed their mini-steal-a-fire-truck operation would go smoothly. The thought of losing anyone else made his breath lodge in his throat.

Aqra edged closer to him. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” Joon Woo steadied his breathing and sucked in a breath. “I’ll be fine.”

With that, they set off at a snail’s pace. They kept close to the ground, moving like a shadow that swayed with the wind. Joon Woo’s knees screamed at him as he inched forward, his thighs burning with pain. His rifle dug into his armpits when he shifted around. Age was a fucking bitch.

Several stragglers passed close by, possibly attracted by the sound from the school earlier. But the night had fallen deadly quiet. Avoiding the dull cone of light cast by overhead lamp posts, the four of them threaded softly. Thunder cracked far away, the dark clouds having moved on to the east, exposing the yellow round moon. Borrowing the sound cover, they hurried to the open entrance of the fire station.

Soft moonlight spilled through the gate's slats, illuminating the two fire trucks parked inside. They approached from the side, their footsteps soft and silent on the wet grass. Qiyu cautiously poked her head into the gaping mouth of the station. As she appraised the situation, Joon Woo and the rest kept watch. 

With his back against the wall, Joon Woo rested his rifle on his knees. His heart drummed in his chest as stragglers passed by them on the road, dragging their feet like the lazy bums they were. That is until they caught sight of fresh meat. He gulped and shrunk down into a ball.

Qiyu turned around to face them. She held up four fingers. 

Beside him, Shula blanched. Her lips thinned, her fingers digging into the bat. 

Joon Woo gritted his teeth. Four zombies inside would be hard. He mouthed, “Where?”

Qiyu dug a finger into the soil and etched out a square. She pointed to the bottom left corner and gestured to the four of them. They were here. She drew two rectangles inside the square. The fire trucks. Then she drew two crosses in front of the furthest truck and two crosses between them and the nearer truck. The zombies.

Following Qiyu’s drawing, Shula added the shape of a plug beside the square and pointed to it. Her lips formed the silent words “Charging station?”

Qiyu pointed to the wall behind the furthest truck.

“Fuck,” Joon Woo’s lips formed the curse word. He ran a hand through his long, wavy hair and examined the drawing.

Aqra leaned in and added four circles outside the square, labeling it with their initials. With a tilt of his head at Qiyu, he dragged his finger from her circle and placed it between the two trucks. Qiyu gave a thumbs-up. She would keep tabs on both trucks. Then he looked at Shula, pointed at Joon Woo, and connected their two circles. 

Joon Woo nodded. They were to proceed as a pair. Aqra dragged a line from their connected circles down the same path as Qiyu and on to the second truck where Shula would check whether the fire truck was charged and if not… the line continued on to the wall. Finally, Aqra took his circle and planted his finger in front of the first truck so he could scout out the situation on both ends. 

With the plan laid out, the four of them exchanged grim looks. After a moment of silence, no one voiced out any concerns. Aqra pointed at Qiyu, letting her know she could go first. She glanced around the wall, shifting on her haunches. Then, just as suddenly, she turned around and shook her head. 

Joon Woo cursed inside his head. The longer they waited here, the more likely they would be discovered, either them or the group waiting at the road divider. He glanced at Aqra for a solution but the man’s wrinkles had deepened in thought.

In that moment, Shula scrambled away from their formation before he could hiss a warning. He turned around, ready to pull her back when he realized what she was going for. A big recyclable bin stood behind them and the best thing about it? It had wheels.

A grin scampered across his face. Smart woman. 

He hurried to join her and together, they pulled it to where Qiyu and Aqra were waiting. Taking up their positions behind the bin, they moved as one. The bin was them and they were the bin.

A flurry of clouds obscured the penetrative glare of the moon. Joon Woo seized the opportunity and took the lead, pulling the bin forward into the open. Shula kept pace behind him, followed by Aqra and Qiyu. Inch by inch, the bin rolled towards the fire trucks, its wheels crunching on the tarmac. Joon Woo’s heart leapt into his throat as the soft growls from the station grew closer.

He poked his head around the bin. They were between the two fire trucks. The dark space seemed clear. He darted a look at Qiyu who nodded and barrel rolled away from them. Aqra followed suit, taking shelter under the first fire truck. The growls grew louder as they neared the other end of the station. A chill sank into Joon Woo’s veins as he stopped between the second fire truck and the wall.

The zombies were right on the other side of the bin, their bodies pressing against it, rocking the container against their backs. He glanced at Shula beside him. Her wide eyes stared forward at the patch of grass where they had left the group of survivors. Following her gaze, he almost gasped out loud when he saw it surrounded by the remnants of undead from the school. 

They were running out of time. If the zombies caught sight of them, they were done for.

Shula poked him in the arm. He darted his gaze back to her. She gestured with a scoop of her hand at the second fire truck. Nodding, he watched as she dropped to the ground and slid underneath the truck. He followed behind.

In the entrapping gloom, he shivered. Shula pressed forward until she caught sight of Qiyu’s beckoning hand. They slipped into the space between the fire trucks.

Qiyu whispered, “The first truck is a no-go. Second truck is clear.”

“How’s the battery level?” Shula asked.

“I think it’s dead.”

Dipping her head, Shula mumbled, “I knew it.”

As Joon Woo kept watch, Qiyu pulled a thick, black cable and placed it in Shula’s hands. “I connected it to the truck’s charging point already.”

“Good. Get into the driver’s seat. When I give the signal, turn it on and keep an eye out for the battery charge.”

“Roger.”

Shula motioned to Joon Woo. “Let’s go.”

They rolled back down under the truck and reappeared on the other side. Thumps resounded in the station as the two undead hit the bin. With their concentration focused on the blue container, Shula and Joon Woo crept forward to the charging station set into the wall.

As Shula quietly opened the door, revealing the metal panel behind, Joon Woo stood between her and the undead in front. He wielded his gun in front of him, the muscles in his body tensing in preparation for a fight. He could hear Shula softly tapping buttons behind him, each sound sending a shiver down his back. 

Then she shuffled back to the fire truck where Qiyu waited in the driver seat. “Do you see anything?”

A shake of Qiyu’s head.

“Try turning the engine on.”

Joon Woo inched closer toward Shula, his gaze still fixed on the two undead, as Qiyu searched for the switch. His heart pounded in his chest, hoping against hope that the charging station still worked.

“Found it,” she whispered.

Red flashing lights illuminated the darkness, turning Joon Woo's veins cold with terror. He watched in abject horror as the two undead stilled. The growls stopped.