Mala (Zombie Apocalypse)

Puffs of smoke rose high, making the sky a slightly grayish color. While ensuring it was under control outside, I tried to look out of the narrow, dusty room in an empty building. There was no one but bodies strewn about the streets like trash. Cars and public facilities were damaged due to demonstrations and massive looting that occurred several years ago. But, I'm not sure, I don't know, maybe I've forgotten too much about the sea of people.

Looked up for a moment and looked at the cloud of smoke. Maybe a fire. Then, with stealthy steps, I approached one of the bodies lying under the electricity pole on the right side. The reaction that arises is always the same every time I encounters a lifeless body; I almost vomits stomach acid when I sees the condition of the corpse of a man wearing a security guard shirt with the name Sunaryadi on it. His face was destroyed with gaping bite wounds covered in flies on his left hand and both legs. I don't know what happened to the poor man until his right hand was no longer intact.

Scenes like this have become a constant sight since demonstrations and the pandemic. Even corpses that had become human skeletons were left lying like carcasses. But a scene like this is a nightmare that can't be avoided even if I try to wake up. My brown irises caught the knife and gun at his waist.

While saying a prayer in my heart that I didn't mean to steal, I slowly took the two weapons, trembling, then put them in the two back pockets of my jeans. Then I left the security guard's body and looked for another hiding place. Unfortunately, my stomach suddenly thrashing for filling made me think twice.

I have to find a hiding place that has a supply of food.

Barefoot, I walked warily and occasionally hid behind walls or cars. Not because of fear of being arrested by state officials amid a strange epidemic that has hit the country, but rather because humans who have met their end come back to life as something else. Something scarier than a predator that preys on humans. More greedy than state officials who fight over seats and treasures.

Sometimes, I also wonder about nature; women who are always considered weak by men have managed to survive this far. Walking aimlessly along streets is considered safe from 'them,' taking shelter at night in high places, and moving as fast as possible during the day without a weapon. The hot sun burns every layer of skin, especially the soles of the feet, which come into contact with the asphalt. What a fool! When you find an empty shop, instead of looking for footwear, I prioritize looking for food to maintain my life.

Raising my head while reading the street sign that says Boulevard Raya - a row of abandoned luxury houses and shophouses - is like a silent witness to the disaster that struck this place. My eyes widened when I saw one of the strange creatures walking alone in the middle of the road with a blank stare. With a quick movement, I ducked to protect myself behind a rusty dark green bus. My heartbeat was racing wildly, beads of sweat appeared the size of corn kernels, and I was breathing shallowly, afraid that the brainless creature would hear the slightest sound. Unlucky! Both hands trembled when I imagined whether my life would end in this place.

In my heart, I should have just hidden in that narrow room. However, hiding without knowing the outside situation is the same as slowly committing suicide. Swallowing hard, I crawled under the bus with quick movements without making any noise. I can see from here that both legs are clad in worn and torn brown pipe pants; the creature is walking unsteadily while occasionally stopping to find out what to look for.

He stopped about ten meters from my position. The closest distance for them to attack and take lives easily. As a result, my heartbeat became increasingly erratic; even for a few seconds, I held my breath. I crumpled my t-shirt to my chest so the pounding wouldn't get louder like the song that invited them.

The shuffling footsteps approaching the bus made me want to scream for help. However, there was no time left to avoid them, so I took the security guard's knife. I had to survive even though I didn't know how to kill that crazy predator. If vampires are killed in the heart, then where should I stick this knife into their body?

When pacing around like he was looking for something with a growling voice, all my nerve cells were forced to avoid the bus immediately, and I decided to crawl out of there. In front of this old bus was a rusty public transportation painted dark blue not far away.

Unfortunately, bad luck suddenly came when my right shoulder accidentally touched the bus's body. After being caught off guard by the undead, I ran to find a hiding place. He ran, almost keeping pace with me with a scary growling sound and cloudy white eyes.

"Ah, damn!" I exclaimed with my energy starting to run out.

My body fell onto the asphalt when I accidentally tripped over a pair of black flip-flops. Blood seeped from his forehead and knees. Pain and soreness. When I stood up, the living corpse would lunge at my body with its slimy mouth ready to tear flesh. Reflexively, I kicked him in the stomach quite hard, causing him to take a few steps back.

As if not giving up, his two blackened hands wanted to grab my body again, but fortunately, I was in a stable position to fight back. My right hand pierced his forehead, which was so soft, causing black and rotten blood to flow profusely. He just collapsed in the middle of the road, and I took the opportunity to run as fast as possible to find shelter without even looking back.

I don't know whether this method was able to kill him or not because all this time, all I did was hide and hide like a coward. Now, I no longer feel the nerves in the soles of my feet that touch the asphalt under the hot sun. Everything was numb except the survival instinct.

God, I don't want to die in that condition.

April 1, 20xx

I looked at the cellphone screen with disinterest while lying down on the guest sofa; almost every day, the news reporters displayed events that were being widely discussed, apart from political issues, demonstrations, news of the arrest of a drug kingpin, and the sudden death of several animals due to a strange disease. Finally, the old news that has not been resolved is the biggest river pollution in West Java and Jakarta. However, this time, it was due to a leak in one of the chemical factory tanks.

"What are you reading? You're so serious," said Restu, who suddenly appeared and sat before me, holding his laptop.

"Reading the news makes me increasingly dizzy daily," I complained. "If it's not the state, the people who act, then it's the officials. Just look at this..."

I showed my roommate a very sad picture of the Citarum River while staying in Bekasi. Like a children's cartoon, the girl with short hair just nodded and then shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't dare comment; I'm afraid of being arrested," she said with a chuckle. "No need to think about that yet, San. Think about the college entrance exam."

"Tsk, yes-yes."

I read the article again about the impact of the chemical factory leak on the historic river. The Citarum River is repeatedly polluted and always caused by humans themselves. Disposal of rubbish and waste and widening land for factories is increasingly intensive. This doesn't happen once or twice, but it seems like big business owners never get deterred by the law. Or it could be all because of the slickness that means the local community's demands are never resolved.

Restu turned on the TV on our right, and the next second, the 14-inch screen displayed local news with the same theme as what I read on the internet. The difference is that the news shows the victims who are starting to fall due to the side effects of the chemical factory leak in the Citarum River.

"The number of victims due to the Mahakam Sanjana chemical factory leak in the Citarum river is increasing. Today, there are twenty poisoned victims at Mekarsari hospital; five people have died, and thirteen others are being treated..."

"Tsk, if it's like this, where do our water resources come from?" Restu commented, shaking his head.

"Yes, you can buy a gallon of water," I answered casually.

"That's crazy. Our needs almost entirely depend on water. If we only use gallons of water and suddenly the price goes up, the people are in trouble, San. One gallon won't be enough."

"Yeah, no need to shower; just drink a gallon of water," I said with a chuckle.

The news anchor also broadcast about a disease that attacks livestock and now infects humans in the Karawang area. It started with a cattle farmer who suddenly experienced a high fever after bathing one of his cows, resulting in brain complications, then spread to residents around the farmer until there was a ban on eating livestock meat. The disease, which was originally caused by bacteria similar to Brucella, apparently also contained a virus of unknown type. This makes anyone faint without symptoms, although the initial signs are always accompanied by a high fever lasting several days. The streets there began to fill with people lying around helplessly.

"We are overwhelmed. All areas of the hospital are full...."

I still remember that the distribution of illegal livestock meat still exists even though the Ministry of Health has issued an order to withdraw the meat distribution and impose sanctions on the seller. However, there are reasons why traders are always selfish. As a result, many people end up becoming victims.

As you might expect, demonstrations resulting from the withdrawal of all meat from the market and layoffs in several slaughter factories took place until the bodies scattered on the streets came back to life.

I'm moaning in pain due to wounds on my forehead and knees, which still hurt even though the blood has dried. I peeked behind the glass window of someone's sedan. Tired of running in an uncertain direction made my stomach thrash even more. For the past two days, no food has been left except drinking water as a temporary support. The acidic liquid in my stomach was crawling up my throat; I took a drink bottle from my bag, and only a quarter of the bottle was left, which was not enough for the next trip.

I gulped down the remaining mineral water, which only moistened my dry throat. If it's like this, I'm sure that tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, death from starvation will come voluntarily. Looking around at the surrounding buildings, these tightly closed shophouses indicated that I was still in the Boulevard Raya area.

Oh, damn. Why is this elite housing complex so spacious?

My eyes narrowed to see a black object with a puff of smoke in the middle of the road. My distance from the object was around twenty meters, maybe less. There was something else on his side. Something is burning, but I don't know what. It could be wood, car tires or animals.

My stomach growled again and became more painful until I bit my lower lip to suppress this feeling of hunger. I looked around, making sure the creature wasn't there. At least right now, I don't know what the next few minutes will be.

Open the car door very slowly so as not to make a loud noise. The sun was very hot compared to before, a stinging sensation was felt on the soles of the feet as if reviving the nerve cells that died when they touched the asphalt of the road.

I jogged towards the object. It turned out that a black backpack contained a can of liquid milk, sandwiches and a lighter. My eyes widened with a wide smile, but it suddenly faded when I saw the charred object and corpse, making me vomit instantly.

Oh damn! Who burned them?

Suddenly, a loud car sound was heard. I hurriedly took my bag and food as a good fortune in broad daylight, then ran and hid behind a shop wall on the right side of the road.

The sound got louder and louder, making my ears hurt. I would feel like throwing a big rock at the car if I had enough strength. However, this time, I just kept my head down to protect myself when a bright red MPV crossed the road and hit and ran over the charred body.

Who are they?