Zombie Survival System

At long last, the final night of the test fell on the examination grounds.

Unlike the previous nights, there was a strangely light mood among the gathered candidates. On one hand, there was no further need to survive for another whole day, so there was less of a motivation to rob others for their resources.

On the other hand, of course, hardly anyone had resources left to rob! Everyone who'd still had a few sips of water or a bit of food during the day had made a show of consuming them. They'd hoped this would make it obvious that they weren't a target for predators, and it seemed that their plans had worked. At this point, attacking others was more risky than it was rewarding—there was no way to tell if someone was hiding a weapon and just waiting to be attacked, after all.

Marlon was grateful that he no longer had an urgent need to re-open his wounds by attacking others. Like everyone else, he'd finished the last of his water, then left his bag open to make his resource poverty obvious. Now he just lay on his back in a corner of the testing zone, looking up at the shimmering stars. His breath puffed in front of him in the moonlight. 'Just one more test,' he thought to himself. 'Then it'll all be worth it. Everything I've worked for will come to me.'

There was a sound of footsteps nearby. Marlon sat up immediately, wincing in pain at his wounds. He laughed when he saw it was William approaching. "You coming to get some revenge?" he asked. "I might be hurt, but 'm not gonna be knocked out by a greenhorn like you."

William's voice was surprisingly confident as he replied, "Don't worry. I've already got everything I need."

Marlon squinted in the darkness, trying to see if William was hiding anything, like a weapon. But the smaller candidate's arms hung loosely at his sides and his clothes didn't seem to be bulging anywhere that might betray the presence of a stolen knife or gun. "So tell me something," Marlon said at last. "How does a guy as fragile as you survive two hard-ass tests when much tougher guys have already failed out?"

William smiled triumphantly. "It's simple. One word: adaptability. In nature, it's not the strongest who survive, but those who adapt the most quickly! Your brains are often more important than your muscles. And that's where I've got most people beat."

A new voice said from nearby, "Just look at yourself, Marlon. It's good proof that William's telling the truth."

The two young men turned and saw Alexandre approaching them. To their surprise, his skin was covered in a grid of dark lines.

"Shit," Marlon said. "You two have nothing better to do than annoy me tonight? Fuck's sake. You're gonna make me get up and beat the shit out of you both just to have something to do."

Alexandre smiled and replied, "Yes, because that worked out so well for you last time."