The last can of beans rolled empty across the floor. Rima licked the inside of the lid, her small fingers trembling. Aisha hadn't eaten in twenty hours she'd given her share to the younger girl, claiming she wasn't hungry. Shihab knew better.
Outside, the moans had grown louder. The infected could smell weakness.
"You should eat," Shihab murmured, pressing his last protein bar into Aisha's hands.
She shook her head, pushing it back. "You need strength to finish your task."
Rima curled against his side, her voice barely audible. "Will your family like us?"
Shihab's throat tightened. He adjusted the makeshift bandage on his arm, an accident happened yesterday and he doesn't even know how be survived . "They'll love you," he whispered.
The system's countdown burned in his vision:
00:00:59...
00:00:58...
Aisha suddenly gasped, pointing at the window. "Look!"
Dawn.
Golden light spilled over the broken city as the timer hit zero.
[TASK COMPLETE]
[Reward Unlocked: Family Location Data]
A map materialized before him. A blinking dot pulsed in the bay—three miles offshore.
Al-Nur Island. The old colony.
"Mom's alive," Shihab breathed. The words tasted foreign, sweet. "They're all alive."
Rima whooped, then clapped a hand over her mouth as the zombies snarled outside. Aisha's eyes shone. "How do we get there?"
Shihab studied the map. The dockyards. Qasim's territory.
He exhaled, rolling up the bloodied bandage. "We steal a boat."
The girls gasped.
"From bad people," he clarified.
Aisha grinned. "That doesn't count."
The abandoned gas station reeked of stale fuel and rotting meat. Shihab kept his weapon ready as he approached the rendezvous point, the two girls clutching the straps of his backpack. Aisha's eyes darted nervously at every creak of metal in the wind, while Lina hummed a quiet tune to herself, a habit she'd developed to drown out the moans of the dead.
A shadow moved behind the broken cashier's booth. Shihab tensed, finger hovering over the trigger, until a familiar voice called out.
"Shihab? Is that you?"
Karam stepped into the dim light, his face sharper than before, a fresh scar running along his jaw. Behind him stood three others, two men and a woman all armed, all wearing matching armbands with a white dove stitched clumsily onto them.
Shihab lowered his rifle slightly but didn't relax. "Karam. You're alive."
"Barely," Karam admitted, cracking a tired smile. He nodded at the girls. "Are those your sisters?"
"No, they are Aisha and Rima," Shihab said. "I found them hiding in an abandoned alley ."
The woman in Karam's group crouched down, offering the girls a small packet of dried fruit. "You're brave kids," she said gently. Rima hesitated, then took it with a shy nod.
Karam crossed his arms. "Once my group heard about what happened and how you took out a whole horde by yourself they insisted we recruit you. We've been looking for you since then."
Shihab shrugged. "I had no choice."
"That's why we need you," Karam said. He gestured to his team. "We're calling ourselves the Peace Seekers. We clear out infested zones, protect survivors, and take down the worst of the gangs." He paused. "Like Qasim's."
Shihab's grip tightened on his rifle. "Qasim?"
Karam's expression darkened. "His gang's been kidnapping people—forcing them to work in their camps. We think they're hoarding supplies near the bay."
Aisha tugged at Shihab's sleeve. "I hate bad people"
Shihab met Karam's gaze. "I need to get to Al-Nur Island. My family's there. And these girls' parents might still be alive somewhere in the city."
Karam exchanged glances with his team before nodding. "We'll help you. But we need fighters like you. The more territory we secure, the more people we can save."
The woman introduced as Rana stepped forward. "We've got a safehouse nearby. Food, medical supplies. You and the girls can rest there tonight."
Rima looked up at Shihab, her eyes wide. "Are we going with them?"
Shihab hesitated. He didn't know what he was supposed to do anymore. But Karam is a trustworthy guy. And if anyone could help him navigate Qasim's territory, it was a group like this.
He exhaled. "We'll join you. But our deal stands, you help me find my family and theirs." He gestured to the girls.
Karam grinned, extending a hand. "Welcome to the Peace Seekers."
As they followed the group toward the safehouse, Aisha leaned closer to Shihab. "Do you think they're good people?"
Shihab watched Karam's back, the way his team moved discipline
d, alert. "I think they're trying to be," he murmured.
And for now, that was enough.