Horrific Shorts: Zombie Edition
Chapter 1251 - 1251: Story 1251: Subject: H-13

The facility was buried beneath three stories of ruin and a layer of lies.

Hidden deep below Sector Ten, once a biotech research zone, it had no name—just a number scorched into the blast doors: H-13.

Juno and Shade stumbled across it by accident—or fate.

The black box, after surviving the aqueducts, had begun emitting coordinates. A buried signal, unlocked by proximity. A breadcrumb trail to whatever "Subject: H-13" once was.

They followed it down rusted stairs and collapsed elevator shafts, deeper into the underbelly of the city. Deeper into VIREX's origin.

Inside, the air changed. Sterile. Pressurized. The silence wasn't empty—it was contained.

Then they reached it: a narrow hallway ending in a glass observation room. Beyond it lay a single chamber.

In the center stood a pod.

Inside, suspended in red fluid, was a boy.

No older than fifteen.

Pale, scarred, hair shaved down to the scalp. IV lines and neural leads ran from his spine into the ceiling. His eyes were open.

And he was watching them.

Shade stepped forward. "What is this place?"

Juno stared at the console beside the glass. Password locked. But the black box pulsed again, and the screen blinked to life.

Subject File: H-13

Status: Dormant

Project Classification: Hybrid Series - Class Omega

Notes:

"Cognitive function exceeds projected AI thresholds. Viral resistance complete. Empathic range: lethal. Memory cloning successful."

Then audio playback began.

A voice. Calm. Professional.

"Subject H-13 is the culmination of Project Genesis. Not a cure, not a weapon. A mirror. He becomes what we fear most—and remembers what we try to forget."

The boy's eyes closed briefly.

Then opened again.

Juno felt something. Not fear—recognition. As if he knew her. As if he'd lived her memories.

"Is he… one of the Feeders?" Shade asked.

Juno shook her head slowly. "No. He's what comes after."

Suddenly, the pod hissed. The fluid began draining.

Monitors spiked.

Heart rate: Accelerated

Neural activity: Overload

Containment breached.

The door to the pod slid open.

The boy stepped out, silent.

No threat. No malice.

Just stillness.

Then—without moving his mouth—he spoke into their minds.

"I am not your enemy. I am your proof."

The lights flickered.

Cameras swiveled. Automated guns descended from the ceiling—and refused to fire.

"Why are you here?" Juno asked aloud.

He blinked. "You are the last ones who remember what truth looked like."

Footsteps echoed behind them—security bots, reactivated.

Without a word, the boy raised one hand.

The bots froze.

Then fell.

Smoke curling from their sensors.

Shade stared. "We need to get out of here."

Juno nodded. "No. We need him."

The boy turned.

And walked forward.

No longer Subject H-13.

Just something awake.

And remembering.