"Kung nakaligtas ka, maaaring nakaligtas din si Nate, hindi ba?"

Ilang minuto ang nakalipas, nagsalita na si Kimberley. Tumayo siya mula sa pagkakaluhod at pumunta sa likuran ni Laelyn.

"Hindi ko alam. No'ng sinundan ko siya, wala akong nakitang bakas niya. Ni hindi ko na nga naabutan kaya hindi ko alam kung saan siya posibleng dinala ng mga Kieran."

Nagsimula nang kalagin ni Kimberley ang pagkakatali ng kamay ni Laelyn habang nakikinig sa mga sinasabi nito. Napahinto siya sandali nang marinig ang mga salitang 'yun mula sa babae.

So even her don't know if Nate's still alive or not?

"Pero hindi ba malaki ang koneksyon niyo sa Nyasaaa? Hindi siya maaaring basta na lang patayin kung totoo man." Sa wakas, natanggal na din ni Kimberley ang tali sa kamay ng babae.

"Malaki ang koneksyon ng magulang namin. Nalaman ko lang ilang linggo bago ang apocalypse matapos kong maghalungkat sa mga papeles nila at makita ang logo ng kumpanya." Inalalayan ni Kimberley na makatayo si Laelyn dahil bakas pa rin sa itsura ng babae ang panghihina. "Nabasa ko ang iilang mga bagay tungkol sa Nyasaaa, ngunit hindi ko kilala kung sino ang kasamahan nina mama sa pagtaguyod ng organization na 'to."

Bumuntong-hininga si Kimberley. Ang kailangan niyang malaman ay kung sino ang nasa likod ng Nyasaaa Corporation. Naiinip na siya ngunit wala siyang magawa kundi ang maging mapagpasensiya at maghintay sa mga impormasyong maaari niyang makuha pa.

"As far as I can remember, Nyasaaa was first established way back 1976." Inisip ni Kimberley kung ano ang meron noong panahong 'yun. "Yes, Ebola Virus era. The corporation's goal is to invent a vaccine, pero ilang buwan lang ang lumipas, kaagad silang ipinasara dahil sa mga reports na natatanggap ng gobyerno na gumagawa sila ng mga ilegal na bagay at nagbebenta ng ilegal na gamot."

That explains why hindi gan'on katanyag ang corporation na 'to. Their service was terminated before people could even know them.

"Wala nang narinig ulit mula sa korporasyon matapos magsara hanggang sa taong 2016 kung kailan nagtapos ang Ebola."

Posible kayang may pinaghahandaan sila kaya nanahimik sila sa mahabang panahon? Maaaring sila din ang nagpasimuno ng Corona Virus.

"Kung iniisip mong sila ang nagsimula ng Corona, maaaring tama ka." Laelyn said out of the blue. "Nyasaaa's unsuccessful discovery of Ebola's vaccine lead them on creating something that is out of human. They released the Project Amdis."

Project Amdis.

The name is familiar.

Kimberley's mind flew for a minute trying hard to remember where on Earth she heard that name.

"Project Amdis is a microbiological creature, or a virus to be exact. The virus is said to give the victim an immunity with being physically hurt." Laelyn looked at Kimberley and see her staring blankly at something. Inisip niya na lang na pino-proseso pa ng babae ang mga sinasabi niya. "Pero sa observation na ginawa, hindi nagiging immune ang taong malalagyan nito kundi nagiging manhid."

People are really scary creature.

"The virus will attack the human's nervous system and paralyzed all the organs, including the brain. After that, the human body will die but the virus will take over the system. Dito na papasok ang proseso ng psychosis. The one that is infected with Amdis will experience sever phobia of everyone around them that they start attacking people and eat them alive. They will hear voices and will experience hallucinations."

"Pero hindi naman ganiyan ang epekto ng Corona sa mga nagiging biktima nito! The infected people experiences neither of psychosis and cannibalism. So, to summarize everything, Corona and Amdis is not connected to each other."

"Posibleng meron. Amdis reacts with RF electromagnetic waves."

"So? Anong connect ng Corona virus outbreak do'n?" Bakit hindi na lang niya diretsuhin? Kimberley doesn't care with electromagnetic waves, so what if it reacts to it?

"Nyasaaa personnel observed that people on Ebola virus era stays at home for their safety. So, the corporation thought of recreating the same scenario by releasing the Project Skyla, or the Corona Virus." Unti-unti, naiintindihan na ni Kimberley ang mga pangyayari. She was left speechless. "Knowing that people nowadays are focused in phones, the success of the plan is certain."

So, they used the Corona Virus... for them to make a way for Amdis. They created two virus that has different roles, yet has one goal. A total dystopian.

"Habang mas tumatagal ang quarantine, mas lalong nalalamon ng social media ang mga tao kaya halos lahat ng tao ay nasa gadgets ang atensiyon."

"Pero kailangang maipasok muna nila ang virus sa loob ng isang tao bago nila gawin ang paga-activate nito, 'di ba? Paano nila gagawin 'yun sa bilyon-bilyong tao?"

"You know how fast wind travels, Kimberley. Of course, they're going to use the air-transition." Kimberley bit upper lips because of frustration. "And another way is cloud-seeding. They planted virus on clouds until the condensation process."

That's how the apocalypse existed. From simple contagious virus named Corona virus, to the quarantines, to the Amdis plantation, and finally, to the last stage which is zombie apocalypse. Using the RF waves as the way of transmission is a witty yet wicked idea.

At first, Kimberley thought that the existence of this apocalypse is because some stupid people wants to resurrect dead people. That's what she usually read in books, so you can't blame her.

Humanity is getting scary as time passes.

Ngayong nalaman niya na ang pinagmulan ng lahat, mas lalong sumakit ang ulo niya. Parang hindi kinaya ng utak niya ang mga isiniwalat ni Laelyn.

Imagine how many innocent people got dragged, how many dreams ended, and how many lives are wrecked just because of someone's greediness.

"Nyasaaa wants to rule the world." Kimberley scoffed because of what Laelyn said.

Why do people admire power too much? Human are already powerful enough, so desiring to rule the whole world is nothing but pure stupidity. Hindi na lang makuntento sa kung ano sila.

"After the apocalypse, they will start the process of brainwashing." Napalingon si Kimberley dahil sa impormasyong idinagdag ni Laelyn. "Lahat ng zombie sa mundo ay magiging sunod-sunuran sa kanila. Sooner or later, the world will be theirs."

Hinawakan ni Kimberley ang kamay ni Laelyn para pakalmahin ito. Hindi siya sanay na may nakikita siyang emosyon sa mata ng babae. Simula kasi no'ng una silang magkakilala, wala na itong ibang ginawa kundi ang mag-poker face. Now, she can clearly see the fear in Laelyn's face.

"'Wag kang mag-alala, gagawin ko ang makakaya ko." Kimberley smiled at her.

"Pero hindi mo sila kakayanin!" Agad na umangal si Laelyn sa sinabi ng babae. Walang siyang ideya kung gaano katuso at kalakas ang mga Alaric.

"Maniwala ka, Laelyn. Maaaring hindi ko kakayanin mag-isa, pero hindi mo naman ako iiwan, hindi ba?" Kimberley wants to make sure that her friend won't turn their back on her. For now, Laelyn and Azi is the only one she can rely.

Sasagot pa lang sana si Laelyn nang biglang bumukas ang pintuan ng silid kung nasaan sila. Pumasok ang isang lalaking nababalot ng itim sa katawan kaya napatayo ang dalawang babae.

Huminto sa paghakbang ang lalaki nang makaharap na siya sa kanila. Nakayuko lamang ito at walang ginagawa pero pinanatili ni Kimberley ang kaniyang sarili sakaling may mangyari.

Nang mag-angat ng ulo ang lalaki, bakas sa mukha ni Kimberley ang gulat dahil sa nakita.

It was the crimson-eyed guy she encountered several times. Ito din ang lalaking nakalaban niya sa tunnel no'ng tumatakas sila ni Katarina.

Her jaw dropped. She can't believe what she's seeing now. Confusion is all over her face when the man in front of them smirked.

Aside from being the crimson-eyed guy she fought, the most disappointing part is it's Rehan.

The first friend she had in the apocalypse.

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author's note:
Hi! This is Biembeh again! Thank you for your consistency and reaching this part. For y'all knowledge, we are halfway in the ending of After Trilogy. Konting-konti na lang, matatapos ko na ang first ever apocalypse story ko.

There are some unexpected things happened in the season 3. Hindi siya kasama sa plot pero mukhang nadala ako sa sarili kong sinusulat kaya nailagay ko ang hindi dapat ilagay.

Anyways, hi @Chuwiee21, @MaePacion0, and @moonjay88 ! Thank you for waiting!