บท 15: The Haunting Smile
As Asher's consciousness slowly returned, he found himself lying on the cold, grimy floor of the corridor. Confused Asher pushed himself up, just for a grisly sight to greet his eyes. The bodies of the fallen zombies lay scattered around him, their limbs twisted and broken at grotesque angles. The ferocity of the battle that had ensued was evident in the carnage that surrounded him.
Shock and confusion washed over Asher as he surveyed the aftermath. Questions flooded his mind. How had he survived? What had transpired while he was unconscious?
Switching his gaze to his hands, now washed in the blood, only one idea came to his mind 'Did I do this?'
(Let me take control)
Suddenly, Asher started remembering something just before he lost consciousness. Shadow had said something about taking control. "Is he responsible for this? Even the bigger monster is dead," Asher thought, looking at the tall zombie that lay on the ground with a huge hole in its skull.
Reflecting on this, Asher turned around, but Shadow was nowhere to be seen. "Shadow? Shadow, where are you?" Asher called out, his voice echoing through the desolate corridor. But there was no response, only the haunting silence that enveloped the floor.
After not getting any response, Asher scanned his surroundings. At that moment, his gaze fell upon one of the lifeless undead lying nearby. A glimmer of hope flickered within him as he noticed something pinned to its clothes. "The ID card..." Asher mumbled in a low voice. Realizing the importance of the ID card, Asher swiftly retrieved it, his fingers brushing against the worn edges.
With the ID card in his hand, Asher turned his attention to the computer panel room. He navigated his way through the labyrinthine corridors, searching for the room.
"Unlike the 34th and 35th floor, almost all doors are open on this floor. And there are no more roars or noises. It seems that there are no more monsters on this floor," Asher thought to himself while making his way through the rooms, looking for the computer panel room. "By the way, if I was the one who killed those zombies, why don't I feel tired?" Asher stretched his arms as he mumbled to himself. "This is strange. I even feel a little stronger since I woke up. Is it just my imagination?"
As he reached the door of the computer panel room, Asher entered. Just like the room on the 35th floor, in the middle of the room stood a big computer panel and more than ten monitors, all turned off, reflecting Asher's chaotic and bloody appearance.
Approaching the main console, Asher carefully inserted the ID card into the designated slot. The screen flashed, and a series of lines of code scrolled across the display. Then a low, mechanical hum reverberated through the room as the AI, BOI-TEK, awakened from its slumber. The monitors flickered, and a synthetic voice filled the air: "An A-rank access card has been detected. Welcome. I am BOI-TEK, the Biotechnological Operations Intelligence. I oversee and manage all aspects of this facility. How can I assist you?"
"BOI-TEK, can you access the recordings of the camera footage on this floor?" Asher asked.
"Yes, I can retrieve the camera footage of the past three years," BOI-TEK replied.
"And the footage from before three years? Can you access that?" asked Asher.
"No, I can't. It seems that someone has erased them," BOI-TEK answered.
"Alright, Show me the camera footage of what happened on this floor in the past day," Asher demanded.
BOI-TEK complied, scrolling through the archived recordings until it reached the designated timeframe. The monitor before Asher displayed the previous events of what happened in the last 24 hours. However, since Asher didn't know how much time he had spent unconscious, he needed to search for the exact timeframe of the scene. Thus, he ordered BOI-TEK to fast forward, and finally, Asher was able to find the scene—the corridor where he had been surrounded by zombies.
Asher with his back to the wall was surrounded by Eight Undeads, their grotesque features twisted in hunger, and the towering above them all was the massive monster that Asher wasn't able to even scratch when he attacked him with the baton before.
As Asher watched the footage, he saw his lips moving, uttering words that couldn't be heard through the video's audio. But he still remembered what he was saying, even though he wasn't shown in the footage. Asher knew that he was talking to Shadow.
But Suddenly, Asher started seeing scenes he didn't have any memories of. On the screen, he saw a malicious grin stretched across his face. The crude smile seemed to materialize with an otherworldly force as if an unseen presence had possessed his very being.
As Asher observed the footage in awe and disbelief, his eyes fixated on the familiar smile that had been drawn on his face. Suddenly, one of the undead lunged at Asher, jaws snapping with ravenous hunger. But in a split second, the creature's head exploded as it was punched back by a strong force. Asher watched this scene, opening his eyes in shock. "What happened?" he thought. Whatever happened to the creature, Asher wasn't able to see. He just saw a blur in the scene followed by the explosion of the monster's head.
"BOI-TEK, slow the video," Asher demanded, looking at the scene.
Following Asher's order, the AI slowed the video to ×0.25. Just then, when Asher was able to see what happened on the screen, the undead monster approached Asher in slow motion. Then, in a blurred move, Asher's leg shot forward, a lightning-fast kick hitting the creature's skull with unnatural force. The impact created a visible shockwave, shattering bone and reducing the undead abomination to a lifeless heap.
"What is this...!?" Asher said with wide-open eyes, still fixed on the screen.
A chilling smile crept across Asher's face, his eyes glinting with eerie amusement. There was a twisted delight in his expression as he dispatched the creatures one by one.
With each strike, the zombies fell like marionettes with their strings severed. Asher's movements were fluid and precise, his strikes landing unerringly on vulnerable points, and with his inhuman power, he ensured instant death with no more than one blow.
The massive zombie, the towering monstrosity that had seemed invincible moments before, was no match for Asher's power. With a single, devastating punch, Asher shattered the creature's skull, sending splatters of blood and brain matter cascading through the air.
Throughout the onslaught, that unsettling smile never left Asher's face. It twisted and contorted, a macabre expression of dark pleasure. It was as if he reveled in the chaos, intoxicated by the sheer carnage he was capable of inflicting.
As the last zombie crumpled to the ground, the footage showed Asher standing amidst a scene of devastation. His body was drenched in the blood of the fallen creatures, his breathing heavy, and his eyes gleaming with a mix of triumph and something darker.
The footage ended, leaving Asher in a state of disbelief. He couldn't reconcile the scenes he had just witnessed. The power this body possessed, the sadistic delight he seemed to derive from the violence—it all terrified Asher to the core.
A shiver ran down his spine as he remembered that wicked smile, haunting his mind with its malevolent charm. Asher's hand instinctively reached for his face, as if to make sure that the twisted smile had gone away.
"Shadow!? Just what the hell are you!?"
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