The engine of the modified armored van roared like a beast.
Vroom!
Aria sat in the driver's seat, wearing oversized sunglasses she found in the glovebox. She tapped her fingers on the steering wheel to the rhythm of the heavy metal music blasting from the stereo.
Thump. Crunch.
The van plowed through a group of zombies on the highway. Blood sprayed across the reinforced windshield.
"Wipers," Aria said.
She flipped a switch. The wipers smeared the red liquid back and forth.
On the dashboard, Onyx sat like a king. The black cat watched the zombies getting crushed with bored violet eyes. Occasionally, he would paw at the glass when a head flew by.
"We are here," Aria announced.
She drifted the heavy van around a corner, smashing into a parked taxi.
Ahead of them stood the Grand Central Mall.
It used to be the jewel of the city. Five floors of luxury brands, restaurants, and a cinema.
Now, the glass doors were shattered. Smoke billowed from the food court. Bodies were scattered across the parking lot like discarded dolls.
Aria parked the van right in front of the main entrance, blocking a "No Parking" sign.
"Stay close, Onyx," she said, grabbing her [Chef's Cleaver] and the [Tactical Crossbow].
She stepped out.
The smell hit her instantly. It wasn't just rot. It was a sickening mix of expensive perfume, burnt plastic, and decaying flesh.
"Help! Help us!"
A voice screamed from the second floor.
Aria looked up.
A group of survivors was trapped on a glass balcony. Below them, a horde of zombies was trying to climb up a broken escalator.
"Please! You have a gun! Shoot them!" a man in a torn suit yelled, waving at Aria.
Aria adjusted her sunglasses.
"No," she said.
She walked past them. She didn't come here to play hero. She came here for the Chanel boutique on the first floor.
The survivors cursed her. "You heartless b*tch! I hope you get eaten!"
Aria ignored them. Their screams were just background noise.
She approached the luxury wing of the mall.
Here, the zombies were... different.
Most of them were wearing expensive suits and dresses. They were the rich customers who were shopping when the world ended.
A female zombie in a red Prada dress lunged at Aria. Her high heels were broken, her ankles twisted at a gruesome angle.
"Roar!"
Aria didn't even lift her cleaver.
"Onyx."
Hiss.
A black blur shot out from Aria's shadow.
Onyx moved faster than the eye could see.
Slash.
The cat's claws, wrapped in dark energy, severed the zombie's neck instantly.
The head rolled onto the marble floor.
Onyx landed gracefully on a display counter, licking his paw. He looked at Aria: "Too slow."
"Show off," Aria smirked.
[Pet Kill Shared Experience: +5 XP]
They continued deeper.
Finally, they stood in front of the Chanel store.
The glass display was miraculously intact. Inside, on a mannequin, was a beautiful black tweed jacket and a matching skirt. Limited Edition.
Aria's eyes lit up.
"Mine."
But as she reached for the door handle, her [Eye of Truth] flashed red.
[Warning!]
[Ambush Detected.]
[Target: Mutated Arachnid (Tier 1)]
[Location: Ceiling.]
Aria stopped.
She looked up slowly.
The ceiling of the boutique wasn't white. It was covered in thick, white silk.
Webs.
And in the center of the web, hanging directly above the black jacket, was a monster.
It was a spider the size of a motorcycle. Its body was bulbous and hairy. It had eight eyes that glowed green.
And in its mandibles, it was holding... a human torso.
Drip... Drip.
Saliva dripped from the spider's mouth onto the expensive jacket below.
Aria's expression went cold.
The temperature in the hallway dropped ten degrees.
"You," Aria said, her voice trembling with rage. "You are drooling on my jacket."
The spider hissed. It dropped the human torso and turned its eight eyes toward the fresh prey.
SCREEE!
It shot a stream of white web at Aria.
"Onyx, move!"
Aria rolled to the left. The web hit the floor where she stood, sizzling like acid.
"My turn."
Aria raised her crossbow.
[Skill: Crossbow Mastery]
Thwack! Thwack!
Two bolts flew. One hit the spider's leg; the other bounced off its hard carapace.
"Armor?" Aria frowned. "Annoying."
The spider descended from the ceiling, its legs clicking on the glass display cases. It was fast.
It charged at Aria.
Aria didn't retreat. She put the crossbow away and pulled out the Cleaver.
"Onyx! Distract it!"
The black cat meowed aggressively. [Shadow Walk].
Onyx teleported onto the spider's back. He dug his void claws into the spider's abdomen.
SCREECH!
The spider thrashed, trying to bite the cat on its back.
It exposed its soft underbelly.
"Checkmate."
Aria slid across the polished floor, right under the monster.
She gripped the heavy cleaver with both hands. Her Tier 1 muscles bulged.
[Strength: 25]
"Rip!"
She swung the cleaver upward with all her might.
SPLURT!
Green blood showered down like rain. The cleaver sliced the spider's belly open from head to tail.
Organs and silk spilled out onto the floor.
The spider collapsed, legs twitching in death.
[Ding!]
[Target Eliminated: Acid Weaver Spider (Tier 1)]
[Reward: +20 Agility XP.]
[Loot: Poison Gland x1, Spider Silk x5.]
Aria stood up. She was covered in green slime.
She looked at the mannequin.
Thankfully, the black jacket was behind the glass, safe from the battle.
She smashed the glass with the hilt of her cleaver.
Crash.
She took the jacket out. She held it up against herself.
"Perfect fit," she smiled.
She looked at Onyx, who was shaking green blood off his fur with a disgusted face.
"Good job, kitty," Aria tossed him a piece of spider meat. "Now, let's go find the shoe section. I need matching boots."