My heart was racing in my chest, the girl's screams still echoing and bouncing off the trees as I backed up slightly. She didn't seem all that dangerous but then again, looks could be deceiving. She tilted her head, fingers clutching at the branches as she shuffled down the tree the slightest bit, all the while keeping her eyes on me.

I slowly took a step back, never taking my eyes off of her while listening to any odd sounds in the forest. Everything had become eerily quiet as the child made her way down the tree before landing perfectly balanced on her feet.

Although, she hissed and dropped down on her butt, fingers grasping for her ankle. I frowned, as the behavior wasn't like any of the infected I've ever seen, much too human and intelligent for any of the zombies I've encountered so far.

Her fingers came back wet with blood, her eyes gleaming as she whined slightly. A low growl rumbled through her chest as she glared at the carcasses of the Beasts before her eyes found mine once more.

I didn't risk turning my back on her but neither did I want to blindly step backwards into the shadows of the forest. Who knew what kind of dangers were lying in wait for me there?

Taking another step back, I froze when the girl hissed at me, my muscles tensing as I pulled my bow in front of me as a reflex. She eyed it warily, shooting a glance at the two downed dogs before stilling.

As if she was waiting for something.

My eyes widened at the idea, taking a few more steps back until I froze. Heat pressed against my back, ragged breaths brushing over the hairs of my neck before I jumped to the side as a snarl exploded behind me.

Aiming at the creature was useless, as it was right in my face and had already grabbed me by the shirt, lifting me effortlessly as it roared. Spittle flew in my face as my heart raced at the sight of the creature's yellowed teeth, the young male's eyes bloodshot as it snarled venomously.

I swallowed with difficulty, as the male shifted his grip on me so I dangled by the throat. Dropping my bow and arrows, I desperately tried to pry his fingers loose, to get some form of air in my system before I just relaxed in defeat.

So.... this is how I'll die, huh?

My eyes closed on their own accord as I awaited death. I didn't want to see the male's sharp teeth approaching before it would tear me to shreds. I just wanted it to be over and done with.

A cold sensation nudged against my cheek as the creature snuffled before huffing when the female growled as well. I imagined they'd both launch themselves at me, sharing my corpse between them.

But I opened my eyes with a jolt of shock when I was dropped none too kindly to the floor, the male still hovering above, crouching protectively as the young female approached. My eyes flitted between them, detecting some sort of bond that they shared.

I would almost say the male was territorial and protective, in the way it growled and stared at me as the female approached, as if daring me to harm her.

My body froze as she approached, her nose nudging against my cheek as she sniffed me like a dog would sniff a stranger; warily yet curious of the stranger in its territory. The male behind her grumbled, brown eyes fixed on my form as it approached and sniffed reluctantly, baring its sharp teeth whenever I twitched in fright.

I jolted when the male snarled but he wasn't angry at me; he sat back and yanked the arrow he'd kneeled on away, eying it with such disdain and disgust I was sure he'd snap it in half. But much to my surprise, its eyes flitted to the two downed Beasts before those eyes flitted towards its female, and then towards me.

Grumbling, it tossed the arrow to the floor before stepping in-between the female and I, as she had been sniffing at my hair, fingers curiously plucking at my jacket. He gave me one last venomous snarl before heaving the female in his arms, her blue eyes fixed on my form as her companion gave a resonating roar before it lunged into the forest.

The second they disappeared, I flopped down on the floor, panting and shaking as adrenaline coursed through my body. The realization that I could've died very easily today made my heart stumble and race in my chest as my muscles twitched and quivered.

Holy shit....

I pushed myself on trembling legs, quickly gathering my arrows and yanking my bow off of the ground before I bee lined it towards my base. Whatever those creatures were, they were intelligent. Worst of all, they communicated with one another and if those two weren't the only ones of their kind, I'd be at risk from any of their kin becoming curious about me.

But why didn't it attack me at sight? Why did they simply sniff at me and decided to leave me alone?

"Fuck! G-get a grip man." I hissed to myself, as I was having a hard time trying to push the arrows in my quiver, my hands trembling so badly that I kept dropping arrows to the floor instead of in the quiver.

The reminder of both those infected touching me, sniffing me, made my skin crawl. By the time I got back at base and closed the door behind me, I was so disgusted I stripped and tossed my clothes on a pile, half a mind to burn them just to be sure.

I let the tub fill with hot water before I jumped in, scrubbing every inch of myself to the point that my skin ached and gleamed a red pink. Draining the tub, I let it fill once more before washing myself diligently, this time avoiding any of the fragrant soaps.

Somehow, I had a feeling that had been something they both had smelled on me. At least, that's the only thing I could come up with as to why they were smelling me in the first place. Nearly every single infected I'd seen had never taken the time to sniff at potential prey.

They had ran after it, either chasing it with animal ferocity or by stumbling into objects along the way, but their goal was clear; find the target and kill. Yet these two could've easily killed me, hell, the male had been choking me out before it had dropped me to the floor... after the female had growled.

Had she communicated with the male? Allowing me to live as I had unwillingly saved her life from the Beasts? I shook my head to get rid of the thought. Infected weren't intelligent enough for that, nor would they allow prey to escape from them, simply because it saved their lives.

There was no tit for tat in their world. The concept was even disappearing in human society as well, but still. They had let me live for whatever reason, allowed me to come back to my base. And for now, I was going to stay inside and not venture out.

If they had let me leave simply to follow me home, they'd be waiting in ambush out there. I couldn't risk exposure by trusting they hadn't followed me at all.

The room was quiet, save for the quiet gurgling as the tub drained while I dried myself off. Avoiding the clothes I'd previously worn, I padded towards my bedroom and opened some drawers, opting with the softest and most comfortable clothes I had, to avoid irritating my skin any further.

Even though I wanted to cook a fresh meal, I went for the canned food I had left, because I didn't want to risk it. Cooking a meal with those things nearby would surely gather their attention and that was just what I was trying to avoid.

So for the next few days I'd lay low, staying inside and avoid to make any loud noises or sharp smells. A shiver raced down my spine as I remembered the nightly roars and compared them to the roar of the young male.

Its not the same... There's another one out there. More mature from the sound of its roar.

Fear clenched at my heart and I closed my eyes in defeat. It seemed that while trying to avoid death for as long as possible, Death had decided to come to me. It was now up to my decisions on when I'd die.

And part of me was relieved that it would end soon. Because what the hell was I living for? I wasn't even living, I was surviving. There wasn't a goal at the end that beckoned me to come over, no family that waited for my return.

And when I glanced at the camera screens, my breath stalled and heart started to gallop wildly. Because standing there was the infected couple, sniffing around the base curiously.

But this time, they weren't alone; A big, muscular male was standing in the woods, eying the surroundings and roaming around. A spike of fear shot through me when it tilted its head back and roared loudly, making me cringe and cower as I recognized the powerful roars.

They've found me...