The alleyway was quiet except for the constant sound of a broken tap leaking onto the shadowed asphalt.
Rows of aging brick buildings surrounded Noah and Levy on both sides, blocking out most of the sunlight. Rusted fire escapes clung to the walls overhead, while overflowing dumpsters, discarded pallets, and chain-link fences created countless blind spots, blind spots that would work against them in the narrow space.
Noah slowed his pace. A low groan drifted from somewhere ahead.
They came to a halt. Levy's grip instinctively tightened around his knife.
"You hear that?"
Noah nodded. The sound bounced between the brick walls, echoing through the narrow passage until it became impossible to determine exactly where it came from.
He took a cautious step forward, avoiding any can or glass that would reveal his spot. Nothing. This time, he gently kicked an empty Corona bottle farther down the path—still nothing.
They waited for several seconds, almost confident that something would appear, but nothing ever did. Levy turned to Noah, his shoulders rising in confusion. Noah turned to say something about being cautious when a walker lurched out from behind a dumpster barely ten feet away.
Its sudden appearance made Levy flinch, but instinct took over almost immediately. He surged forward, closing the distance in a matter of seconds, and drove his blade beneath the creature's jaw. It staggered for a moment before the light dimmed from its eyes, collapsing against the dumpster with a dull thud.
Even though he managed to take down the immediate threat, neither of them relaxed. Noah scanned the alley again, his eyes searching every shadow and doorway.
"That's exactly why I don't like this," Levy said as he pulled his knife free. "We can't see them until they're almost on top of us."
Noah gave a quiet nod.
If the neighborhood and larger intersections were dangerous because of sheer numbers, the alleys were dangerous for the opposite reason. Anything could be hiding within them, and they wouldn't know until it was too late.
Noah adjusted his grip on the spear, his gaze locked onto the road ahead.
"Stay close."
Levy didn't offer a joke this time but nodded solemnly.
Their footsteps carried clearly over the concrete.
Neither spoke.
Noah stayed in front, adjusting his pace to something slower and more deliberate than before. Every few steps, he checked ahead, then checked again, as if the first look was never enough.
Corners came up quickly.
Noah slowed before each one, sometimes peeking just enough to see what waited beyond, other times stopping completely to listen. The habit wasn't something he consciously thought about anymore.
Another low groan drifted from somewhere ahead. Noah came to a halt. Levy stopped immediately behind him.
They held still. The sound came again—closer this time. It dragged through the alley like something being pulled over rough ground.
A walker appeared around the corner, unsteady and half-collapsed, one leg barely cooperating with the rest of its body. It didn't notice them until it was already too late.
Noah stepped forward and drove the spear through its eye in a single motion. The walker stopped before it could fully enter the alley, its body sagging forward onto death's scythe.
For a brief second, Noah considered catching it, removing the opportunity for others to draw in on their location.
He let it fall. The body struck the concrete with a dull thud.
Levy noticed the hesitation.
"What was that about?" he muttered.
Noah adjusted the slipping backpack strap higher onto his shoulder.
"Wanted to see if that'd draw out any walkers in hiding."
Levy tilted his head for a moment, then nodded. "That's... actually kinda smart."
Noah's brows raised. "Why'd you say it like that?"
"What do you mean?"
"Like that was a surprise or something."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," he said, feigning confusion. "Onward!"
Noah shook his head, a smile finding its way onto his lips. "This guy."
They moved on with the same rhythm. Another corner approached. They slowed. Empty. He still didn't relax—thankfully so. He took only a few steps past it before something suddenly moved from a service doorway on his left.
The walker came out fast enough that there was barely enough time to register it. Its hand brushed Noah's sleeve, creating a slight draft.
He twisted away on instinct, bringing the butt of his spear up into its face. The impact knocked the walker off balance. Before it could recover, Noah drove his spear through its skull, pushing it back through the doorway it came from.
Darkness swallowed its upper torso while its lower torso hung slightly out the door frame. Noah remained still for a moment, staring into the dark opening.
"I didn't even see it," he said quietly.
Levy stepped closer and glanced inside. The room beyond was almost completely dark, the kind of space where shapes disappeared before they could be understood.
"There's not really much to see," Levy replied.
"I hate alleys."
Levy gave him a faint grin.
"Told ya."
The alley stretched on. Several loading bays lined the sides of the buildings, their doors hanging open at uneven angles. Each one was deep enough to hide up to ten walkers. Noah kept his attention on them longer than he liked.
A sharp scraping came from above. Their heads jerked up, generating enough force to give them whiplash. A loose metal sign swayed on its bracket, creaking as it moved back and forth in the wind.
They relaxed. Levy exhaled slowly, as though he'd been holding his breath without realizing it.
They continued deeper into the alley until it narrowed further between two buildings.
"Of course," Noah muttered under his breath. He slowed. Then stopped completely.
Levy turned to him, confusion tinging his voice.
"What is it?"
Noah pointed toward the pavement.
A thin smear of blood crossed the concrete, fading as it reached the edge of the path before disappearing around the next corner.
It wasn't much. Just enough to suggest something had passed through recently. Neither of them moved, but Levy swallowed nervously.
"...walker?"
Noah crouched slightly, studying the stain.
"I don't know."
The blood didn't give them anything useful. It could have been fresh.
It could have been old.
It could have meant danger.
Or nothing at all.
Noah stood again.
They rounded the corner together, expecting something to be waiting. There was nothing. The path beyond was empty. The blood simply stopped, as though whatever had left it had stepped out of the world entirely.
Levy let out a short breath through his nose.
"That wasn't helpful."
"Nope," Noah agreed.
He scanned the area once more before moving forward.
"I'd say it's still worth noticing."
"I've noticed."
The alley gradually cleared as the brick walls began pulling back far enough to let more sunlight through. Sunlight stretched across the pavement in uneven strips as the feeling of being boxed in slowly began to fade.
A few more steps brought them out of the narrow passage and into a wider intersection. Noah slowed then fell to a complete stop.
This part of the city was clearer than the last. It was far from empty, but walkers didn't horde together. They were scattered across the area in loose groups, moving without direction between abandoned cars and storefronts. Occasionally, several drifted toward one another before separating again.
Noah counted quickly.
Roughly thirty altogether. Not a horde if they picked them off, but enough that carelessness would still get them surrounded.
Levy followed his gaze.
"...I'll take this over the last intersection."
Noah nodded once.
"So will I."
He adjusted his grip on the spear with a grin. For the first time in several minutes, he could actually see what he was dealing with.
His gaze swept across the intersection.
"...Ready?"
Levy grinned.
"Dude. I was born ready."