—I'd better start walking. Luckily, the aquarium is nearby.
I turned around and headed straight toward the aquarium entrance.
—But what the hell just happened...
The path is destroyed. A massive hole lies in front of me. A crack born from the deepest depths of the earth; it's impossible to even see the bottom. The immense darkness makes it impossible to see inside.
—This is a problem.
There's no way to get to the aquarium; the crack blocks the way.
—I'll have to find another route.
!
I heard a faint sound coming from a nearby wall...
—A marker?
Embedded in the middle of the wall was a red marker. At first glance, the wall seemed to be in a terrible state. A familiar feeling came over me. I grabbed the marker and pulled it out of the wall... a crack echoed through the entire structure. Immediately afterward, the whole wall collapsed, brick by brick, a large section shattering into pieces.
—I think... I can get through.
With the wall destroyed, I can pass into one of the enclosures. According to the map, it's the bear enclosure...
—I should mark the new route and the crack that blocked me on the map...
It'll take a bit longer, but I'll reach the aquarium. I just have to make a complete detour north through the bear enclosure and then head east following one of the paths marked on the map.
That'll take me to the scorpion enclosure, which is also the zoo entrance, to see if the entrance is open. But if my hopes aren't fulfilled, the center of the area lies to the south, and farther east from the south-central area is the aquarium.
I just hope I don't run into the bears.
!
A horrible stench invaded my nose; it smelled like rotten meat.
I continued walking through the bear enclosure. It only took a few steps before I found a door in the wall just to my right.
—Good, I think it's an emergency exit.
Relief washed over me. I'll be able to get out of the enclosure...
—It's... locked.
I let out a sigh of anguish... but I found a radio hanging nearby.
—Ale-... Wh.. d... y...?
Noise came from the radio, a voice... that seemed to be saying something, though I couldn't understand it. Apparently there was no signal; the radio couldn't communicate. Even so, I decided to take it with me. It might be useful at any moment.
!
—What was that?
A crack sounded from the center of the enclosure. At the same time, the putrid smell spread throughout the area. A drop of sweat slowly ran down my forehead. My hands trembled slightly as I readied my weapon in case I needed it.
Don't freeze. Please don't freeze, damn it.
Vegetation was abundant inside the enclosure, but in a spot where the plants did not surround the area, there was a pool of blood. Beside it, a series of stains formed a trail. It led directly toward the exit. The only way to escape was to follow the path marked by what appeared to be fresh blood.
—Zzzzzz
Static began to come from the radio.
—Hello? I'm lost! I need hel-
I was left speechless as I tried to communicate... a bear stood before me. The animal was covered in blood. While the static continued, the bear was devouring the corpse of a cub of its own species. It had been completely torn apart and brutally mangled.
The bear was covered in bruises and puncture wounds in an advanced state of decay. Many of the wounds were filled with worms feeding on the animal's flesh. Its fur seemed stretched unnaturally, causing deformities. The bear's face was completely destroyed, yet its eyes were still visible, stained red with blood, their pupils fixed entirely on me.
Just being near the animal made my body tremble, on the verge of completely freezing. My breathing became heavy. My hands sweated as I gripped the weapon pointed directly at the creature. My eyes darted around the enclosure searching for an escape route. I found only one exit, behind the animal and beside the corpse of a person. Apparently the monster had already torn them apart...
My chest pounded endlessly, my heartbeat hammering through my ribs, consuming my entire body with total panic. Even so, I took a silent step forward. However, the animal noticed my presence and raised its gaze. It looked directly into my eyes. All while chewing on a piece of intestine in its mouth, blood dripping...
The radio's static wouldn't stop. It grew louder and louder until the bear opened its mouth, letting the organs it was devouring fall to the ground... its teeth were exposed, covered in blood and pieces of flesh that seemed to have a life of their own. The bear gave me no time to escape. It let out a grotesque roar and lunged at me, though I managed to avoid its charge and run toward the exit I had seen nearby. I didn't hesitate...
My instincts told me to run faster, that the animal would attack me from behind at any moment. I turned briefly to look. The bear was getting closer and closer, its murderous gaze fixed on me. Every heartbeat was proof that I was still alive, but also that I would eventually die. My hands gripped the weapon tightly.
It was now or never. I fired rapidly at the animal. I fired without stopping. Bullet after bullet embedded themselves in the beast's flesh. Six shots.
The animal fell, but it still showed signs of life.
—I'm not taking any chances.
I approached cautiously and shot it directly in the head, into its brain. Killing it once and for all...
—...
A sigh escaped my chest. Little by little, my senses returned to normal. The trembling stopped...
The radio's static had ceased. The anguish had passed. But something caught my attention...
—A piece of paper?
As I approached the bear's body, I stepped on a sheet of paper... it seemed to be a hospital note?
—What's a medical diagnosis doing here?
The paper turned out to be from the General Hospital of S.... The name was blurred, except for the letter "S." For some reason, the hospital's logo felt familiar...
"The patient xxxx xxxxx has been diagnosed with a severe case of pxxx..-xx..-.. and must receive immediate treatment. The trxxma proved to be very se-... Constant supervision is recommended."
Something else was written on the other side of the diagnosis.
"I am concerned about the family's condition. At this rate, the emxx-... could become f-..."
The rest was illegible. Without a doubt, finding something like this in a zoo is strange. It makes no sense...
My hands gripped the paper tightly. It was a feeling of familiarity... It unsettled me a little, but that damn feeling compelled me to keep the note...
—I'd better check the bear's body.
Although pools of blood no longer poured out, the smell was now overwhelmingly strong. Worms began emerging from the flesh, devouring the corpse at incredible speed.
!
Abruptly, the creature's stomach began to tear open, exposing its insides and allowing a lump surrounded by disgusting fluids to emerge.
—What is that...?
A... fetus?
It was a damn malformed fetus, the birth of a repulsive creature. That beast had been pregnant...
—Shit...
My vision suddenly blurred. My senses stopped responding properly. My body felt lighter...
Little by little, my eyelids grew heavier. The drowsiness became more and more impossible to resist until finally my entire body surrendered to sleep...
...