The first thing Adrian Black knew was pain.
A searing headache split his skull as consciousness returned. His mouth tasted like copper and dust, his limbs heavy as lead. The surface beneath him was hard and cold - a hospital gurney, he realized as his vision cleared.
*"What...?"*
The ceiling tiles were cracked and stained. Fluorescent lights flickered erratically. And the smell - god, the smell - like rancid meat left in the sun.
A wet groan came from his left.
Adrian turned his head slowly, every muscle protesting. What had once been a nurse in blue scrubs now shambled toward him, milky eyes unseeing yet somehow locked onto him, mouth working hungrily. One arm hung by strips of rotting flesh, fingers twitching.
» SYSTEM INITIALIZED.
» USER: ADRIAN BLACK.
» LOCATION: KING COUNTY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL.
» APOCALYPSE PROTOCOL ENGAGED.
» SURVIVAL PRIORITY: IMMEDIATE EVAC.
Golden text burned across his vision. Adrian blinked, but the words remained, floating at the edge of his sight like a persistent afterimage.
The Walker lunged.
Adrian's body moved before his mind could process. His fingers closed around a nearby IV stand just as the creature's teeth snapped inches from his face.
» COMBAT INITIATED.
» IMPROVISED WEAPON DETECTED.
» TRAINING MODULE ENGAGED.
White-hot fire lanced through his nerves as foreign knowledge flooded his muscles. His arms moved without conscious thought - thrusting upward, driving the sharp end of the stand through the Walker's eye socket with a wet crunch.
The creature collapsed.
Adrian staggered back, gasping. His hands shook violently as he stared at the corpse.
*"What the hell was that?"*
» SKILL ACQUIRED: IMPROVISED WEAPONS LVL 1.
» STAT INCREASE: STR 3.0 → 3.1.
A wave of nausea hit as his muscles cramped violently. He could feel them shifting beneath his skin, fibers tearing and reforming stronger. The pain made his vision swim.
» WARNING: CALORIC DEFICIT DETECTED.
» CONSUME 1200 CALORIES WITHIN 2 HOURS TO COMPLETE UPGRADE.
Adrian doubled over, vomiting bile onto the stained hospital floor. When he could breathe again, he wiped his mouth with a trembling hand.
The hallway outside echoed with shuffling footsteps and guttural moans.
*"Okay. Okay. Think."*
He forced himself upright, testing his new strength. The IV stand felt lighter in his grip. His movements were... sharper somehow.
» CURRENT STATS:
STR: 3.1 | PER: 4 | END: 3 | INT: 7 | AGI: 3 | CHA: 2
A bitter laugh escaped him.
*"So I'm a scrawny nerd with trust issues. Fantastic."*
Another groan from the hallway. Closer this time.
Adrian tightened his grip on the IV stand. The System hummed in his mind, cold and impersonal.
*"Alright,"* he whispered. *"Let's see what this thing can do."*
He stepped over the dead nurse and moved toward the door.
The apocalypse wouldn't wait.