I don't know how long I ran.
My lungs felt like shredded bellows. Every breath was a rusty knife scraping down my throat. My legs were numb, just mechanical pistons firing on autopilot.
The world blurred past me. Wrecked cars, collapsed walls, trash everywhere. Everything was painted in the same shade of dead grey.
"Stop."
Shadow's voice. Cool. Calm.
I tried to brake, but my legs gave out. I face-planted right into a roadside puddle.
Splash.
Filthy water soaked my face. I didn't have the energy to wipe it off. I just lay there like a dying fish, mouth open, gasping for air that smelled like sewage.
My heart was hammering against my ribs. Thump. Thump. Thump. Like it wanted to break out.
"Stamina is pathetic."
Shadow trotted over elegantly and sat on a clean rock, looking down at me. His golden fur was barely dusty. Breathing? Steady. He hadn't even broken a sweat—or panted, I guess.
"Two kilometers and you're already a corpse," he said, sounding like a disappointed parent. "How did the System saddle me with such a weakling? Is this karma for chewing up too many sofas in my past life?"
Lying in the mud, listening to a dog roast me... the absurdity of it all washed over me again.
"What... what exactly are you?" I wheezed, voice raspy. "A demon? Alien dog?"
"I am Shadow," he answered flatly. "Your Host. Your Boss. And currently, the only thing keeping you alive."
He raised a paw and pointed ahead.
A double-decker bus lay on its side. Windows shattered, body rusting, but it was an enclosed space.
"Sun's going down." Shadow looked up at the lead-grey sky. "Nighttime here is ten times more dangerous than the day. That's our kennel for the night."
Kennel?
I let out a bitter laugh. Never thought I'd be homeless and sleeping in a literal dog house. But I didn't have a choice.
I dragged myself up, limping on my bad leg, and followed Shadow into the wreck.
Inside, it smelled like mold. Most of the seats were rotted through, springs poking out. I found a relatively clean spot at the back and collapsed. I was done.
"System. Open panel."
Shadow suddenly spoke.
Zing.
The blue holographic screen popped up in my retina again. Turns out, we share the interface.
[Tutorial Mission: SURVIVE (Completed)]
Rating: Barely Passing. (If the Host hadn't reacted fast, the Pet would be fertilizer by now.)
Reward: Newbie Starter Pack x1
"Open it," Shadow commanded.
A virtual red gift box appeared and unboxed itself.
[Received: Low-Grade Gene Repair Serum x1][Received: Compressed Army Rations (Beef Flavor) x2][Received: Purified Water (500ml) x2][Received: Rusty Machete (White Quality) x1]
A flash of light, and the items materialized on the dirty floor.
A vial of green liquid. Two bricks of vacuum-sealed food. Two label-less water bottles. And a... A rusty machete. It looked like a watermelon knife that had been left in the rain for a decade.
This was my starter gear?
"Tsk. Cheapskates," Shadow sneered. "Better than nothing, I guess."
He tapped the green vial with his claw. "Drink it."
"What is it?" I picked it up gingerly. The bottle was cold, the liquid glowing an eerie radioactive green. Looked like poison.
"Gene Repair Serum. It'll fix your leg and beef up that pathetic physique of yours," Shadow said, resting his head on his paws. "Don't die on me. Your death doesn't hurt me physically, but finding a new obedient servant is a hassle."
I hesitated. Looked at my leg. The bite wound was turning black. Infection. In a world without antibiotics, this scratch was a death sentence.
"Screw it."
I uncorked the vial and downed it.
I expected it to taste like battery acid. Instead, it was cool, like spring water. It rushed through my body instantly. Then came the itch.
I watched my leg in shock. The torn flesh was knitting itself back together right before my eyes. Scabbing over. Healing. The exhaustion deep in my bones evaporated, replaced by a faint but real buzz of energy.
"That... that's not scientific," I mumbled.
"You want to talk science?" Shadow scoffed. "Is you getting teleported by a magic dog scientific?"
He pushed a ration brick and a water bottle toward me. Kept the other set for himself.
"Eat. Employee meal."
I looked at the brick. My stomach roared. I tore the wrapper and took a massive bite.
Dry. Hard. Tasteless. Like chewing on compressed sawdust.
But I ate it like it was a Michelin-star meal. Wolfed it down. If I didn't eat, I wouldn't survive tomorrow.
Shadow ate with way more class. Chewed slowly. Even wiped his mouth with his paw when he was done.
Night fell.
Outside the bus windows, the world turned pitch black.
The wind picked up, howling like crying ghosts. From the ruins in the distance, the sounds started. The shrieks of zombies. The screams of things I couldn't name. The heavy dragging of something big moving across the ground.
I curled up in the corner, knees to my chest, the rusty machete gripped in my hand.
"Scared?" In the dark, Shadow's eyes glowed faintly.
"Yeah," I admitted.
"Good," Shadow said, voice cold. "In this world, fear is your radar. Only idiots aren't afraid."
He stood up, walked over, and laid down right next to my feet.
"Sleep. I'll take the first watch."
I blinked. "You?"
"You're wounded. And your combat power is zero." Shadow closed his eyes, but his ears remained perked up, swiveling like radar dishes. "If I let you guard, we're both dead."
A weird warmth hit my chest. This dog had a toxic mouth, a bad attitude, and treated me like a slave. But in this alien, death-filled world, the heat radiating from his fur was the only thing keeping me sane.
"Thanks," I whispered.
"Shut up. Sleep."
I closed my eyes, listening to the wind outside and the steady breathing of Shadow beside me.
My name is Victor. Yesterday, I was a corporate drone stressing about rent. Today, I'm a "Battle Pet" in the apocalypse. My boss is a Shiba Inu.
Life really is full of... surprises.