Chapter 6: The Bald Stranger

Franchesca’s POV

I thumbed through my hair as I listened to the professor. I had been suppressing a yawn since the start of the lecture. I guess I should have slept earlier last night.

Like ordinary days, the room was filled with second year medical students. I was probably the youngest among these lot, particularly because I skipped a few levels back in elementary.

In front of us, an image of the human thorax was projected on the screen. The professor diligently spoke about the proper ways of auscultation—something that I had long mastered before.

The professor stopped when the door squeaked open. Everyone’s attention shifted to the man that entered. His face was unfamiliar, despite the striking appearance of a bald head and thick brows. For a moment, he remined me of the hoodlums in movies.

He was a bit skinny, and his eyes were sunken and droopy. A bit scary, I must say. Still, I dismissed such thoughts. After all, it was never good to judge a person based on their appearance.

He ignored the professor, his eyes scanning the entire room. We locked eyes with each other.

To my surprise, he called out my name.

“Franchesca Voulie! I love you! I have loved you since I first met you! Please go out with me!” he shouted.

Suddenly, I found myself the center of attention. What was happening? Who was this person? I stormed my mind for any particular encounter, but I could not remember him.

Whispers and murmurs from my classmates filled the room. Some of the guys were chuckling. Somehow, this situation was awkward, embarrassing. But still, I tried to be calm and composed.

“Hey, baldie!” said one of the male students at the back. “You’re disturbing our class! The goddess will never go out with someone like you!”

Laughter from the male students came after that.

The short and plump professor said something about disturbing the class, but I quickly forgot about that. I was still deep in thought on who this person declaring his love was.

“Franchesca! Please go out with me!” he said, once again.

I knitted my brows. I had been confessed to numerous times before, and I rejected each and every one of them. A relationship was not something I would want right now.

I asked the professor for the permission to speak with him. After we went out of the room, I said, “I’m sorry, but I hardly know you.”

My voice was deliberately cold. I hope this conversation would be enough to push him away.

I stared at him, and I noticed that his smile had turned into a broad grin. I was creeped out, but I did my best not to run away from him. I held my ground.

“What are you smiling for?” I asked.

He seemed flustered of my question, but he was able to quickly regain a serious expression.

He said something about how he loves me, and some other things, but I brushed the thought aside. I told him that don’t know him and that I have no plans on entering a relationship right now.

An outright rejection.

Peculiarly, even those words seemed to have fallen on deaf ears. He merely stood there and paused, his mind probably deep in thought.

Then he said, “Franchesca Voulie. 20 years old. Your father works oversees. A civil engineer. Your mother died back when you were in high school, due to colon cancer.”

I have not met him before. How did he know that? Slowly, my curious face turned into that of terror. My intuition screamed at me that I should get away from this man, as far away as possible.

“Your sister is in the Province of Capo. A student of biology. Right now, your only companion is your dog, Benedict. He’s a large one, isn’t he?”

I took two steps back. I was about to run away when I heard things that only I should have known about.

“You have three diaries. The first one was written when you were nine. It’s mainly about how awesome your dad is. The second one was written when you were in high school. You were depressed about the death of your mom back then, so you wrote out everything in that diary of yours.”

What he had said was correct. All of it. But, how did he know that? It was something that only I knew about. I was pretty sure I have not told anyone about those, even my closest friends and my family included.

My curiosity got the best of me. I asked, “How, how did you know that?!”

Instead of answering my question, the bald man continued with his monologue. “Lastly, the third diary. It’s a diary filled with your hopes and dreams. About how you wanted to be a singer, but your fear of crowd was preventing you from achieving that. It’s also filled with thoughts of how handsome Aleck Frozen is.”

I stiffened. “I-I’ve never told anyone about that!” I said, my voice turned high-pitched and eerie.

He merely smiled and told me that I did tell him about it. But when? There was no way I would not be able to remember something as important as that.

Our conversation continued. He said something about this place becoming a warzone.

I did not believe him.

And why was he pleading at me to come with him? And what’s with those tears in his eyes?

For a moment, I thought that he was pathetic.

He should understand it too, right? There was no way that I would just come with him just like that.

I did not want to incessantly hurt his feelings, so I merely replied, “I can’t,” then went back to class.

There was this squeezing sensation within my chest. Once again, I have hurt the feelings of another person. Sometimes, I wondered why God created me like this.

I was pretty, gorgeous rather, I was sure. But that was not something I was too fond of. I would have preferred to have been born with an average face. It was not about being grateful for what we have, but it was about how life was more than just pretty faces.

I have learned it the hard way before. That there was more than to this life than what meets the eye.

“How’s it?” asked my friend, the moment I sat down on my chair. I could somehow feel that there were numerous people staring at me, probably trying to eavesdrop on the conversation.

“It’s nothing,” I simply said.

That man was creepy, definitely, but there was no reason to let this matter get out of hand. I chose to keep my silence.

After some time, the commotion eventually died down, and we once again focused our attention to the lecture.

Our class for today was about to finish when a blue window suddenly popped up in front of us. I was sure that everyone, including the professor, saw it too.

Surprise bitches!

Judgement Day is finally here!

Scream and fear! Your lives and souls are ours to devour!

We stared at the translucent screen in front of us, dumbfounded.

Little did I know that it was merely the signal for an upcoming nightmare.

The ground rumbled and shook. The chairs and desks toppled over, and cracks started forming on the ground. Debris fell like snow from the ceiling. I wanted to run for the door, but the violent shaking would not even permit me to stand.

I crouched as I tried to hold my balance. My judgment was probably clouded by now. I did not know.

I was scared. I prayed to God that he would spare my life. I begged, silently.

And the earthquake stopped.

We breathed sighs of relief. I tried to stand, but my legs had lost strength.

Seconds passed, and the door to our door flew open. The bald man from before boldly entered, his steps brisk as he approached my direction. He grabbed my hand then ushered me up. For some reason, the moment he touched my hand, I felt my strength returning to my body.

“We’ll be getting out of here,” he said to me. “Come.”

There was a moment of hesitation within me, but to my surprise, I conceded. I let him lead the way as we went out of the room.

It was probably selfish of me, but I left my classmates behind. I saw another man outside the room. Judging by their conversation, he was probably a friend of his. And there was a little sister too. Dried tears were evident on her cheeks.

I saw that one of the exits of the building was destroyed by the quake. We took the only available one, our steps quick and heavy. Even from our current location, we could smell the pungent stench of something burning. Smoke started to fill the building, and I knew that we had to get out of here at any cost.

After exiting the building, a horrifying scenario greeted us.

A large fissure destroyed more than half the campus. Buildings were toppled over, and numerous dead bodies were scattered about, crushed by the slabs of rocks and stones that fell down the ground. Smoke swirled upwards, covering the entire sky. It was hard to breathe, and visibility was becoming hazier with each passing moment.

I felt him tightening his grip on my hand. Peculiarly, it made me feel safe. He could probably feel my trembling fingers.

“H-Help! S-Stop! Aaaaah!”

“Help us! Heeeelp!”

“Monsters! Run! Ahhhhh! Stoopp!”

Not far from us, screams reverberated. My eyesight was not that good, but I was sure that something was killing the students that survived the quake. Moments passed, and I was finally able to make out the figures shrouded by smoke.

A small horn protruded out of their foreheads, and their slit-like eyes glimmered in malice and lust for flesh. Green metallic sheens covered their naked bodies, and a small tail flailed about on their backs.

I stiffed. Those were monsters. There was no doubt about it.

Screams of pain continued to reverberate, and shivers crawl down my spine as I saw the monsters slaughter the students one after another. They would laugh and lick their lips as they killed their preys.

The young girl with us suddenly shrieked in horror. I could not blame her, for I too wanted to shout and scream. It was horrifying, after all. But that shriek gave away our location.

A few of those monsters noticed us. With malice in their eyes, they approached our direction.

Oh God, I don’t want to die. Please.

I was violently trembling. My heart pounded out of my chest. Each passing second felt like eternity.

I wanted to run and escape, but my fear rooted me to the ground.

I guess this was it. I was going to die.

But something unexpected occurred.

The bald man with sunken eyes suddenly walked towards the approaching monsters. I was stunned. What was he thinking? There was no way humans could win against those things, those monsters.

Such thoughts ran through my mind as I watched him approach death. I could somehow see his impending bane.

Or so I thought.

Without warning, the bald man unsheathed a sword. So, that thing wrapped in newspaper was a weapon?

In the blink of an eye, one of the monsters was killed. Its head was severed from its body, and it rolled through the ground. He did the same to the other two creatures. Their heads fell down the ground with a loud thud.

I was struck speechless. Those movements were inhuman. I was no expert in this field, but even I could appreciate how smooth and fluid his movements were. Each strike was made not with vehement ferocity but with absurdly fine precision that warranted doubt of reality.

After killing the monsters, he stood there for a moment. He approached me then said, “Are you alright?”

I wanted to scream that I was not fine. That I was close to breaking down. But no words came out.

Seeing me like this, the stranger with bald head frowned. There was pain within his eyes. Was that for me? I was not sure.

“The Franchesca that I know is a strong person,” he suddenly said. “She’s strong-willed. A survivor. Someone who wouldn’t crumble to mere demons.”

What was he trying to say?

I did not know why, but the tears that I was holding back all this time suddenly flowed down after that. I sobbed, my hands covering my face.

A plethora of feelings. Fear, helplessness, anger, guilt, doubt. Like a violent maelstrom, the feelings within my chest overflowed.

The bald stranger seemed to be flustered after seeing me cry. I was ashamed, but the tears won’t stop coming out.

“Demons!”

“R-Runnn!”

Behind me, I heard screams and wails. It took me a few seconds more before I finally turned around, and my eyes widened in disbelief.

What were those monsters doing here? There were more than a dozen of them, and they were killing my classmates one after another. Slaughtering. Dismembering. Not far from me, I could see the headless body of my professor.

“Franches—”

I heard a familiar voice. I was afraid to look. I was afraid of what I would see. But soon enough, my fear and curiosity got the best of me.

I watched as my best friend was devoured by numerous demons, her limbs torn into shreds, her innards pulled out of her belly. She was no longer able to speak, but her eyes clearly pleaded at me for help.

But what could I do? I felt helpless, powerless. I was close to losing my sanity.

The warmth from a person’s hand brought me back to reality. I was still violently trembling, but the clouds within my mind cleared out somehow.

I gazed at man holding my hand. He was not handsome, and I could probably say that he was ugly. But his hand held a peculiar warmth that gave me strength to move forward.

Without uttering a single word, he ushered me, together with the rest of his group, towards the exit of the university.

We fled. We ran for our lives.

Upon arrival to the outside, the view of the burning city greeted us.

Buildings had toppled, cars blazed into flames, and smoke filled the sky. It was very hard to breathe, and our visibility was hazy, almost cloudy. From our current position, we could make out the dead bodies of numerous humans scattered about.

But the thing that bothered me the most was the numerous cackling laughter that echoed. The screams and wails of anguish. The blood lust that filled the streets.

The bald stranger said that we should probably go to the subways. I had my doubts about it. After all, there had been a massive earthquake. Most definitely, the trains would not be working. Moreover, there was the risk of the ground collapsing and trapping us underneath.

Did he intend to hide underground? I was unable to ask.

Thankfully, we arrived at our destination without hitch and strife. We stood there motionlessly as we stared at the flight of stairs that led deeper underground.

“Are you alright?” he asked me.

I forcefully tried to squeeze out a reply, but no words came out. Instead, my head bobbed once. I heard him sigh.

We descended the flight of stairs. Below, it was pitch black. I had this worry that some monsters would just suddenly grab us from the shadows.

“There’ll surely be monsters along this path,” the bald man said. In front of us was the flight of steps that lead towards the underground. “But this is far safer than staying on the surface.”

I stiffened.

I heard an ominous, hissing sound.

After receiving his instruction, the friend of the bald man took out a large flash light. For a moment, I wondered of how prepared this group was. Was that bag full of provisions?

The light was switched on, and a loud shriek from one of us echoed.

Well, I could not blame him. After all, even I was rooted in place after seeing those things, those monsters.

They somehow resembled rafflesias, probably twice or thrice the normal size. I was pretty sure those large sucker-like mouth could devour a person whole. Drools dripped down the sharp fangs at their center, and soft hissing sounds reverberated throughout the tunnel.

I had never realized that flowers could actually become such grotesque monsters.

The bald man took out a piece of wood then lit it aflame. Immediately, the plant monsters violently screeched after that. Were they afraid of fire? For a moment, that was what I thought.

But soon, I realized that it was the smoke they were afraid of. Was that also the reason they lived underground? After all, smoke had the tendency to go up.

A minute passed, and the bald man approached the now flaccid plant monsters. He swiftly cut them one after another. Their bodies quivered, they violently hissed, then withered and turned to dust.

By now, this single realization had solidified: This man knew what was happening right now. This man knew what those monsters were, their weaknesses, how to defeat them.

A sense of security and relief somehow washed through me. The quivering of my body stopped. For some reason, I felt safe when I was beside him.

The bald man seemed satisfied after killing those monsters. He led us further into the subway.

As expected, the trains were there, but they were not working. Or rather, there was no electricity. It was dark, and only the light from the make-do torch and flashlight was what illuminated what’s around us.

Sometimes, we would step over bones. I realized they were from humans. And the thought sent chills down my spine.

We continued walking through the dark tunnels.

“O-Over there,” said the little girl in our group.

We stared at the direction she was pointing at. Sure enough, there were silhouettes there. Two of them.

Well, I was not entirely sure. It was dark, after all.

After we approached, the light of our torch revealed their figures.

Two naked women. And wow, I had never seen anyone so beautiful before. Yes, I was called the goddess by many, but these two naked beauties easily outshine me in many ways. Just looking at them would give one the feeling that they would be sucked into a world of lust and flesh. And even as a female, I was not excluded.

“Help us!” said one of them. She was close to sobbing, and tears were evident at the corner of her eyes.

“Please! We don’t want to die!” said the other.

I see. As expected. These two were also victims of those monsters, huh? I somehow pitied them. Judging by their lack of clothes, they must have gone through a lot as they tried to survive until now.

I had this urge to hug them tight.

The bald man broadly grinned. He licked his lips then said, “Then, come over here.”

I noticed that the two naked women were hesitant to come towards us after seeing that.

Well, even I was creeped out by the bald man’s eyes. Those were clearly filled with malice, or maybe lust.

These two naked women have beauties far surpassing anyone that I knew. I inwardly prayed that the men of our group would not do anything to them.

As those thoughts ran through my mind, I heard an unsheathing sound. A moment after, two heads rolled through the ground.

I was stunned speechless. The bald man had just beheaded the two right before our eyes.

The little girl in our group screamed.

Why did he do that? What was he thinking? Why did he kill them?!

As anger boiled within me, he nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders then said, “It’s fine. They’re not humans. Look.”

My glare was still ferocious as I directed my attention to the corpses.

Wait, what was happening?

Before my very eyes, the bodies of the naked women slowly turned into gnarled wood. Their hair turned into leaves and roots.

“Dryads,” he said. “They take the form of humans and entice unsuspecting survivors. They’ll suck you dry until only your bones are left.”

I was unable to fully comprehend what just happened. He stepped over a pile of bones on his left. They cracked easily from his weight, then turned into dust.

“These bones… they’re not because of those demonic plants from before,” he said. I saw him lick his lips. “There’s so much bones in this tunnel. I wonder how many people these bastards have killed by now.”

The naked humans-turned monsters squirmed, but their bodies refused to move.

“You piece of shit! Human! I will kill you!” said one of them. The soothing voice from before had turned deep and ominous. “I will devour you! I will eat your flesh! I will lick your bones! You damn piece of sh—”

The bald man struck his sword deep into the monster’s squirming body. It screamed in pain, and he twisted his sword further in.

I heard him chuckle. “Are you saying something?”

He was enjoying this. There was no doubt.

He pulled out his sword then struck its body again, then again, then again. He only stopped after its body had withered then turned to dust. Without hesitation, he did the same to the other monster.

After that, he picked up a small stone on the ground. I did not have an idea what it was for, but he was broadly grinning after tucking it inside his pocket.

“Let’s go,” he said to our group. “We need to get out of this city as soon as possible.”

I stared at him in silence.

I silently thanked God that this bald stranger was with me.