"Should we, I don't know… step in? Stop her maybe?" James asked as they all watched Elaine tear through the remaining Wretched in the area.

She had been like this ever since leaving her aunt's home. Once their moment inside had ended, she gathered herself, told Isaac what she wanted to do next, and rushed off in search of the nearest monsters. Thankfully, after their initial clean-up, there weren't many of those left in the area, so she could handle them all on her own.

Thus, he shook his head, even though Tyler beat him to the answer.

"Nay, let her get the anger out," he said. "Might not be the healthiest coping mechanism, but in times like these, it's better than some alternatives. Though"—he glanced at James, frowning—"one of us should probably stay, close just in case. Would you mind? I want to have a word with Isaac."

James threw them a mock salute. "You got it, T. Just be quick. The princess has claws."

"Aye, aye, just go." Tyler waved him off. Once James was out of earshot, he spoke again. "She is holding up better than I honestly expected. What did ya tell her, lad?"

Isaac shrugged lightly. "Nothing, really. Elaine would have been fine even if I hadn't gone in. She is no stranger to loss."

"Ah… I see," Tyler hummed. "So should we expect any issues?"

Ah, so that's what this is about. Isaac sighed and shot the older man a bored look. "If you think I'm about to tell you we should head back to the camp and wait this out, you'll be disappointed."

"No, no." Tyler raised his hands in defense. "That's not what I meant. I was just hoping, as someone who knows Elaine best, you could tell me if there's anything we should look out for. Grieving people rarely make good choices."

Isaac rubbed his brow. "Trust me, 'knowing her best' isn't saying much. But… it will be fine. I will make sure of it."

"Very well, that's all I wanted to know. The big question now is what next? We could—"

"The medical center," Isaac cut in. "Elaine requested it, and quite frankly, I agree. You and her need at least two more levels before you try to face the mutants in the double-layered Quarantine."

Tyler hummed. "Could work… I'm just a bit worried about our Virus Integrity in that place—mine and the lass'. You and James, I know, will be fine."

"Well then," Isaac said as the Root of Blood appeared in his hand. "We better get you two another level and some Virality Gems before that."

That earned him a grin from the older man.

"I like the way you think, lad."

And just like that, they rejoined the other two at the front. But before anything else, Isaac pulled James aside and told him to focus on support for now. If they wanted Elaine and Tyler to get stronger before the hospital, they couldn't keep killing most of the Wretched on their own.

They could, however, cripple the monsters and then leave them at the mercy of their two weaker teammates.

Huh… Might be a good chance to learn some control…

By the time they got close to the medical center again, both Tyler and Elaine managed to hit level six, gain a new skill, and even advance their Virus to the next phase. Though Isaac also managed the last one, having only needed one more Virality Gem to break through.

Which honestly wasn't a surprise. He had been stuck on phase one of the Replication stage for a while now.

After that, however, he didn't even think of consuming another gem. He was already far, far ahead of his teammates, even James. And with their plans, he would see some progress soon, anyway.

"Is it me, or are there less Wretched around here now?" James muttered as they once again approached the medical center from the side. For now, though, they kept out of the Quarantine's range.

"Nay, you're right," Tyler replied. "Someone was here. Isaac?"

"Give me a minute."

Similar to the last time they were here, Isaac turned into his Legacy form and flew above the medical campus. The Interface notification returned, but it wasn't the same as the last time, at least not its final part.

Current progress: 9%

Someone's inside. I wonder…

He sped up and circled the area. It didn't take him long to find exactly what he wanted.

A group of survivors—about a dozen of them.

They were resting near the entrance to one of the many buildings that had previously been crawling with Wretched. To no surprise, he couldn't recognize any of them, but what caught his attention were some of the weapons they wielded.

Guns.

And not just handguns or smaller firearms. No, what those people had was some serious firepower. Big rifles, shotguns, and the like. Isaac wasn't an expert, far from it, but even he could tell that no ordinary civilians had access to weaponry like this.

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So either they had looted a weapon store, or they had those things even before the Breakout. And judging by the way those people carried themselves, he was willing to bet on the latter option. Or both…

This could turn ugly if we're not careful.

With that thought in mind, Isaac turned around and returned to his party. Once he explained what he saw, a tense silence settled between them.

"They must have some people inside and the others might be too weak to join," Tyler stated after a moment. "Doesn't change the fact we are outgunned."

"That's assuming they aren't friendly, T," James pointed out. "Let's just talk to them. And if they don't want us here, then we can try something else."

Isaac glanced at Elaine, but she was just staring ahead, her fist clenched. He wouldn't find a voice of reason there, not today, at least.

"I can go," he offered. "Then you ca—"

"No," Tyler stopped him. "If anyone goes, it's me. I even have a decent plan on how we can do this."

"All right, T. We're listening."

In his Legacy form, Isaac returned to the unknown group and settled on a tree just behind them. Even with his somewhat unique coloring for a raven, his presence went ignored, though that might be due to his stealth skill working overtime.

Still, he was right where he had to be. Now, he just had to wait for the rest of his team to move. Which didn't take too long, and soon, he spotted Tyler approaching in the distance.

This time, someone—a dark-haired woman—took notice right away. "Guys, we got company."

That put the entire group into motion. All of them rose to their feet and grabbed their guns. However, none were pointed at Tyler for now. A good sign, all things considered.

"Greetings, my good friends. Name's Tyler Thomson," the British man called out, giving a small bow. "Fancy meeting you all here. I take it you have someone inside clearing this Quarantine?"

A fairly young, bald man stepped forward. "Alvin. And yeah, we do."

"Great, great." Tyler smiled. "Then would you mind if my team and I took a look inside, too?"

Alvin frowned, looking around. "Team?"

Tyler shrugged. "Just a couple of people. I think you can guess why I came alone, hmm?" His gaze flicked to the rifle slung across the other man's chest. "Just a precaution."

"Fair enough." Alvin nodded. "As for your request… Give me a moment."

"Do your thing, lad."

With that, the younger man unclipped a portable radio from his belt and muttered something into it. What that exactly was, Isaac couldn't tell; he was just too far away. But judging by the widening smile on Tyler's face, it couldn't be bad.

Alvin cleared his throat. "You heard it. Go in if that's what you want. Just remember, whoever gets the loot, keeps it. We're not sharing."

Tyler waved him off. "Fine by me. We just want to check out this patient zero anyway." Then, without a warning, he let out a loud whistle. At the wary looks of the armed group, he grinned. "Sorry, just calling my team."

That's my cue, I guess.

Isaac jumped off the tree and, after soaring right above Alvin's head, landed next to Tyler. His quick transformation back into a human sent the other group into half-shock. He almost let out a chuckle.

"No need to panic. This is just my good friend Isaac," Tyler said, doing nothing to hide his laughter. "Oh, and there are the other two."

True to his word, James and Elaine jogged toward them. While the former looked as amused as his British counterpart, the latter kept her face expressionless. Evidently, their little stunt did nothing to impress her.

"Well then, we will be on our way," Tyler said, offering them another small bow. "Pleasure meeting ya all."

Before Alvin or anybody else could stop them, their small team ran for the children's hospital part of this medical campus. Once they were inside the lobby, James chortled.

"Damn, did you see their faces? I swear, if that's the reaction we get every time Isaac turns, we have to do it more often. Good one, T!"

The two men shared a high-five. Isaac, though, ignored them and approached Elaine. "How's your Virus Integrity?"

She frowned, looking at something he couldn't see. "Holding up. Hasn't dropped yet."

"Let me know once it does." Once she gave him a nod, he turned to the two men. "Guys, let's get moving. Time is of the essence."

James instantly straightened up. "You got it, boss. Come on, T, we go right."

Just like that, he and Tyler headed down the right corridor. Though before they could disappear behind the bend, Tyler's shout filled the lobby. "Remember to use the radio in case you find anything."

"We will," Isaac called out and followed Elaine, who had already gone left. "You know this place at all?"

She shook her head. "No, but all buildings should be connected. It's just a matter of reaching an area the other group hadn't cleared yet."

The corner of his lips twitched upward as Root of Blood slipped into his hand.

"Let's hurry then. I'm not letting some randoms with way too many guns beat us to the patient zero."

That earned him a small, almost unnoticeable smile from Elaine. Isaac counted it as a win.

"Isaac, wait a second."

As the Symphony of Blood vanished from his veins, Issac dropped the corpse of another Wretched and approached Elaine. For some reason, she was crouched in the corner of the room, her ear pressed against the wall.

"What is it?" he asked, only to be shushed.

"Come here and listen," she muttered. "Tell me you can hear it too."

Frowning, Isaac knelt beside her and mimicked her position. At first, there was nothing. Then, a deep, rhythmic thud washed over his ear. A few seconds later, another. Then another.

"That's like…"

"A heartbeat," Elaine finished for him. "We were right to come here."

By here, she meant the basement level of the medical center. Though where exactly they were at this point, they had no idea. After passing through so many corridors and rooms, they got lost quite quickly.

"There was a hallway that should lead in that direction," Isaac said, standing up. "Hopefully, it's close."

Elaine nodded and followed closely behind him, the light from her short blade construct illuminating the path ahead. Not that he needed it, thanks to his Darksight.

Soon, after killing a couple more Wretched and listening to the walls a few more times, they arrived before quite a large white double-door. Here, the rhythmic beating was unmistakable.

Elaine read the sign beside the door and groaned. "A morgue… Of course it had to be a morgue. Like, how cliché can you get?"

Isaac shrugged. "You can't say it doesn't fit."

"I guess," she grumbled before looking up at him. "The usual?"

He nodded. "The usual."

Elaine smirked as a bright glow gathered in her left hand. Isaac meanwhile positioned himself next to the large door and put a hand on the handle.

"Ready?" he asked.

The woman raised her glowing hand. "Ready."

The beast inside never knew what hit it.

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