Tension hung in the air...
Joker looked closely as the group got ready to check each other's bags for the lost items. "Okay, everyone," He said, moving forward with a dramatic gesture. "Let's solve this small mystery, okay?" He started by opening his own bag, turning it over, and letting everything fall out. There was nothing special, just the usual things he had collected—some canned food, a bottle of water that was almost empty, and a few bullets.
John did the same, showing his equally simple belongings, his eyes moving quickly between the others.
"Well, nothing here," Joker said with a big smile, liking the uneasy feeling of the others. "Sarah, your turn."
Next, Sarah slowly opened her bag. She let her things fall out: a little knife, a water container, and a few snacks. Her eyes met Joker's with a mixture of suspicion and fear.
Finally, it was Jane's turn. She paused for a moment before opening her bag and emptying its contents—some medical supplies, a flashlight, and a few candy bars.
"Looks like we're all clear," John muttered, his voice showing relief.
But Joker smiled, shaking his head slightly. "Ah, but we haven't checked everything yet, have we?" He gestured to Greg, who was standing to the side, his expression hard to read. "Leader, if you may..."
"There's nothing in there, just some personal stuff," Greg said, his voice tense. He knew that something was wrong since none of them had the stolen supply and he didn't steal them, but considering this situation, one of them might have fucked him over.
Joker's grin widened. "Just a quick search, old friend. If nothing turns up, well, we can all continue with our merry lives."
Under the group's intense stare, Greg hesitantly grabbed his bag, opened it, and let everything fall out onto the ground. The group gasped all at once. Among the usual things were several cans of food and packets of bullets—way more than Greg had said he had.
Jane pointed at him angrily, her voice high with rage. "You bastard! You are the fucking thief!"
Greg's face turned red from anger and embarrassment, "I didn't steal anything! Someone must have hidden it in my bag!"
Joker stepped back, enjoying the trouble he caused as Jane and John yelled at Greg, their voices full of blame and anger.
Greg lifted his hands defensively and tried to calm the others down, "I promise, I didn't take it! You have to believe me! C'mon, you have known me for years. I ain't a thief!" He pleaded.
John's face turned stern, and he held the baseball bat more tightly. "How can we trust you now? Maybe you've been stealing from us all this time!"
Joker enjoyed watching the situation unfold as doubts and disagreements grew into a big argument. He noticed Greg getting more and more worried, looking between the people accusing him and the supplies on the ground.
"Please," Greg begged, "I'm not the thief. We should be working together to stay alive, not fighting each other."
Jane made an angry face and moved closer with her own bat ready. "You'd say that, wouldn't you? Anything to save yourself." She slowly reached down and grabbed Greg's bag and three of the cans with her name written on them and showed them to everyone. "Found it! You motherfucker! I would have let it go if you were hoarding a few more supplies, but stealing from us... You could have just asked; we would have shared our food, you know that..."
Joker felt the tension getting really high, with the situation almost turning violent. He leaned in and spoke quietly, like he was sharing a secret.
"Maybe it's time for some justice," He suggested, with a mean look in his eyes. "After all, a thief deserves to be punished."
Greg paled and stepped backward, trying to avoid eye contact. Everyone was standing around him, giving him a dirty look. Jane and John shared a glance, their mutual anger driving them forward. They moved quickly and confidently towards Greg.
Greg stepped back, looking shocked and confused. "You're making a mistake!" he yelled, his voice filled with panic.
Jane was the first to strike, hitting Greg's shoulder with a bat. The blow made a disturbing sound, and Greg stumbled, groaning in pain, his eyes showing betrayal.
"Stop it!" Greg shouted, trying to block John's next attack. But John kept hitting him, and each strike landed hard and accurately.
Greg dodged another hit and quickly reached for something on his belt. He pulled out a knife and threw it at Sarah, who was standing nearby, watching the fight with growing fear, "Fuck you all! I'm not gonna go down without a fight."
The knife hit Sarah in the right eye. Everyone stopped for a moment turning their attention toward her. A thin line of blood was rolling down her face. A long second passed in tense silence. Sarah fell to her knees. Her breathing became irregular and short. She tried to touch the knife's handle. Then, without a word, she fell forward and died, the knife still in her eye socket.
A minute of deafening silence followed. Joker used this time to enjoy what he was seeing: the tension of the moment, the anger, the fear, and the despair.
Sarah lay there in a pool of her own blood.
"NOOOO!" Joker screamed, pretending to be surprised, and ran forward to her body.
Greg was barely standing on his feet, but he took out his combat knife and was ready to fight.
"HOW COULD YOU?!" Joker cried, holding Sarah's lifeless body in his arms. "We had rules! And you first stole and then killed one of us..." Greg's eyes were wide open, his face pale and sweaty. Joker could see that he was on the edge. "Oh, no... Sarah... You MONSTER! John, your sister is dead! DEAD! He killed her!" Tears rolled down J's eyes.
Greg's eyes went blank. He seemed to understand that it was over, and he made a last desperate attempt to get away from the group.
John, furious upon seeing Sarah's lifeless body, directed his anger towards his sister's killer with even greater intensity. The conflict quickly turned into a fierce fight, a dangerous struggle fueled by desperation and anger.
Greg fought with the ferocity of an animal trapped, but he was facing multiple opponents, and his actions became sluggish as fatigue and wounds began to affect him.
Joker watched the fight with satisfaction, enjoying every moment of it, 'Yes, yes. Just like that. Kill each other.'
"John, stop! We were friends! This isn't right!" Greg begged, his voice rough from yelling. But John's face showed no sign of their old friendship; it was just full of sadness and anger.
"You killed her!" John yelled, his voice cracking. The image of his sister's dead body was still clear in his mind, making him even angrier. He swung his stick wildly, trying to hit Greg's head, but he ducked just in time, and the stick passed over him without causing any harm.
Greg had been in many fights before; his past was full of struggles and fights for survival. But this situation was different. These were his friends, the people he was with in this crazy world, and yet, they were now ready to kill him. He felt a sharp pain of regret, knowing that Joker's tricks had pushed them into this madness.
He waved his knife in a defensive way, trying to keep them away. "It wasn't me! You have to believe me!" he shouted, his voice showing his desperation. "I didn't steal." He ducked another bat swing from John, "It was an accident. I didn't mean it."
Jane rushed forward, her knife shining in the sunlight as she aimed for Greg's middle. He barely managed to move out of the way, grabbing her wrist and twisting it. She cried out and dropped the knife. Greg's instincts took over, and he pushed her away, causing her to fall backward into a pile of broken pieces.
"Gaaaah!" Jane screamed as she felt something warm in her stomach. She looked down and saw a rusted iron rod sticking out of her belly, "Fuuuuck..." She choked up blood.
John, who was busy fighting with Greg, turned to Jane, distracted by her scream.
Greg took this chance. He lunged at John, and slit his throat with a quick movement of his knife. John fell to the ground, gasping for air and clutching his neck, trying to stop the bleeding. He fell to the ground, dead.
Joker watched the scene with great interest. He was expecting this outcome, but it was better than he had imagined.
Greg was panting heavily, covered in blood and sweat, his face showing a mixture of anger and despair. But he could barely move now. His right knee was shattered and he got broken ribs after taking multiple hits. He stumbled to Jane's body and kneeled beside her, tears rolling down his face.
"Jane, I'm so sorry," Greg said, his voice shaky. "I didn't mean to..."
Joker began to clap slowly, "Bravo, bravo. What a performance!" He walked closer to Greg, who was still kneeling next to Jane.
"What have you done?" Greg asked weakly, his voice breaking.
"Me?! I did nothing! It was all you, old friend! You killed Sarah. You killed John. You killed Jane. Well, technically, you killed them all," Joker replied with a big smile, enjoying Greg's misery. "But look at the brighter side; you are free! Free from all the rules and responsibilities, free from having to lead this group." His eyes lit up with excitement, "Now, isn't that exciting? Oh, the big bad villain is standing before me and I had to bear this great responsibility of punishing that villain for killing my ol' dear friends." A large grin spread across Joker's face as he lifted his gun and pointed it directly at Greg's forehead.
"Hehehe... Ahahahah... Cough! Cough!" Greg coughed up blood, looking up at Joker with a mixture of fear and hatred.
"Oh, yes, laughing, are we? Do tell me the reason... Your last words, if you may?" Joker tilted his head curiously.
Greg wiped the blood from his mouth and looked up at Joker with hatred.
"Look around you. Blood and fresh human meat. And guess what motherfucker? Zombie Hulk..."
[Bang! Bang!] Joker began to shoot at Greg, laughing loudly. "Ahahaha! I'm too lazy to hear your babbles. Haha! Hulk? What the fuck is that? Hehehehe!"
[ARGGGGGG!!] Suddenly the morning sky seems to darken, followed by a loud roar. A giant shadow appeared above Joker.
"Ah!" He looked up, but it was too late to dodge. "Hulk?! Fuck!"
[Baaaam!] Joker's laughter suddenly stopped when a huge shadow from a giant green zombie appeared over him. With a loud bang, the huge creature, made of decaying flesh squashed Joker under its feet.
The zombie was a giant compared to those mutated freaks. It roared loudly, and the sound echoed through the empty streets. Its green eyes looked greedily at the dead bodies around the area. Not caring about Joker's body under its feet, it started eating the remains of Greg, John, and Jane, its big mouth quickly tearing through the flesh and bones.