Chapter 502: Laz’s First Day
Laz didn’t have any answers and went to bed still thinking on it. One fact to note is that Laz didn’t need to sleep anymore, at least, not the entire night. In fact, he could go days without sleeping and still be perfectly fine. Despite this, he made it a habit to sleep at least a few hours each night, even if it was only two or three. As for why he did that, it was because he knew that his brain enjoyed the shut off time as much as he enjoyed relaxing. Basically, it was like treating his brain to some rest and relaxation.
As for what he did when he wasn’t sleeping? The same thing he always did, exercise.
The moon was full tonight as he held himself steady, the weight of the massive SUV barely noticeable as he kept himself propped up in a hand stand, supported by only one had as his legs held the vehicle aloft. Laz was shirtless and only wearing a pair of shorts as his sweat covered body reflected the cool, blueish light that was being cast upon the ground. While the weight wasn’t enough to cause him any hardship, the strain of having to balance his body with the weight was where the difficulty was found. And doing all that on one hand was the true test of his power.
As he held himself there, he quickly pushed down and recovered, now supporting himself with his other hand in the same manner.
’Guess I’ll need something heavier soon if I keep growing. While this is tough, it still took almost an hour to feel the burn,’ Laz thought to himself as he closed his mind off to distracting thoughts and focused solely on his own balance.
It was almost dawn by the time he had finished. Getting up, he gently set the vehicle down as to not damage it. It wasn’t his after all. As always, Jill was right up next to him, rubbing his body down with a towel and bringing him a drink. At first, Laz had rejected this kind of care. But after seeing her face of disappointment, Laz ended up giving in and letting her do it.
’Long as it makes her happy,’ he figured.
"You have enough time for a shower and to eat before work. I already made breakfast for you," Jill told him with a smile.
Laz did need to eat and eat quite a bit. That was something Jill was responsible for as she found the task enjoyable to hunt. Luckily, they were pretty much in a country setting so there was lots of open land and forests where demon beasts lurked. As of yesterday, Jill had made it her responsibility to go hunt those down to get them some quality meat for meals. She needed to find something to do while he was at work after all and the thrill of battle was part of her enjoyment.
Even Laz had to admit she was rather good at it thanks to the lessons she had done with the attendants. On her first hunt, she had brought home a level three demon beast, one that was comparable to a foundation realm. To fight something the same level as her on her first hunt surprised Laz and invigorated her.
As for how to prepare demon beasts, she had found some video’s online and used those as reference. While normal humans couldn’t eat much of the demon beasts meat, maybe only a bite or two, it was considered a delicacy. As for why they couldn’t eat it, it was because of the energy in the meat of the beasts. Just a bite or two was enough to fill the stomach of a full size man. Any more than that would cause them to get sick or possibly even die.
As for awakened like Laz, it was just barely enough to sustain him. If he wanted a real meal, only a level four beast would suffice, but he hadn’t even heard of one being seen, much less hunted. This also reminded Laz of something he hadn’t thought of, mainly that the benefits of his time in the gate gave him a power boost that might others would be hard pressed to keep up with. He didn’t think he was the strongest person in the world, but unless someone had found an opportunity like the one he had, he couldn’t imagine someone who would have a higher realm than him at the moment.
’Not that it’s impossible,’ Laz reminded himself, making sure he never got a big head over things.
As Laz was ready to head out the door, Jill came out of the bathroom dressed in her battle gear with a tight camo tank top and camo leggings, her hair tied back and her twin bladed weapons at her sides. Other than those, she had the storage bracelet that Laz required her to carry with her just in case. She would have gone hunting naked if Laz didn’t take a stand on it. For her, it was about fine tuning her survival instincts and while Laz was ok with that, he also told her that failure to be prepared for any type of incident or accident was a failure to her training as an attendant, basically using her own lessons against her to ensure she was always well equipped. She had fought with him over it, but he didn’t relent and she had no choice but to agree and also promise that she would make sure the bracelet stayed with her the entire time, loaded with everything she could have needed.
Jill gave him a kiss on the lips as he walked out the door, not a long one, but just a small peck.
Laz could only smile in response since this was from Jill and not her other half.
...
Pulling up to the guards entrance, Laz went through the routine of having his car scanned, being scanned himself and then a retina verification before being allowed to enter.
Laz noticed he had a whole changing room to himself, something he asked about when he met his partner for the day, Vera.
"There used to be male guards over her, hun. But ever since the incident we aren’t allowed to talk about, male guards have been removed from this side of the prison which is absolutely insane if you ask me. I mean... fucking come on, it’s not like these bitches have any rights. So what if they are used as a bit of a reward for the guys who have to spend all day watching their asses. Least then they ain’t hitting on us all damn day. And speaking of which, it wasn’t even the guards fault. But because of the shit that happened, suddenly we are under a microscope and no one wants anymore shit to get out. So all the guys who were worth something were transferred over to the other side and the rest were let go. But thanks to that shit, we all been having to work double shifts just to meet the demand. And don’t go getting me wrong, I like the money. We all like the money, but what’s the point in the money if we ain’t going to have a life to spend it on? Just so my lazy ass husband can sit home all day like some sort of spoiled princess? I mean, yeah, he takes care of the kids and all, but he been spending way to much time at that neighbor bitch’s house, Cindy. And I told him, I said, ’if I find out you been sleeping with her or some shit, I swear to god I will cut off your dick and deliver it to her in a box for her birthday. Probably like her 18th birthday too... fucking whore..."
Laz let Vera go off for as long as she wanted as they reported to their assignment for the day, yard duty. The yard wasn’t exactly large enough to hold all the prisoners at once, so they only got to go outside in turns by block. Right now, it was A block’s turn. As the only block with actual criminal infected, it was definitely the most dangerous one to monitor.
"Alright, Alright. I’m done. Time to focus. Now see these bitches? They are the ones who deserve to be here. Every single one of them is a killer. Could be one body, could be several dozen. Don’t matter thought. Outside when they used their unholy powers, they thought themselves gods. But in here? They ain’t shit. Still got to be careful though. Even if they don’t got their power, their bodies are a bit tougher than even adult men so keep that in mind," Vera said, waving up to the guard tower to unlock the gate. They were going to be part of two teams to patrol, entering into the yard at before the prisoners were allowed to enter. At the moment, they were just standing in a hallway waiting for the two teams to get into place.
"I ain’t expecting no trouble, got some trigger happy mother fuckers up their with some keen eyes on them. The bitches start some shit, they get the dart and a few days locked into the hole. So unless they are dying for some quiet time, they keep their heads down and do their thing," Vera explained.
"What happens if too many of them get out of hand?" Laz asked, looking around to get a layout of the giant cage they were now trapped in.
"We got a few people on a specialist team that handles that, couple of female chosen with some really fucked up personalities. Oh. That reminds me. They hate these fucking bitches, a lot. Hence why they ain’t allowed to do guard duty. As for us normal folk though, they might not hate us, but they don’t particularly like us neither. So if you see one of them, you keep your head down. Understand Nate?" Vera said, with a real look of concern on her face.
"Got it," Laz responded, turning back to look at her. Laz had memorized the layout and could even see some weak links in where the fencing was mounted. If anything, the whole cage seemed pretty secure, but to his eyes there were some glaring weaknesses.
Laz and Vera Stood in position on one side of the entrance while two other woman stood on the other. They were all dressed in black, stab proof clothing with the word Guard written on the back in white letters. They each had an extendable baton attached to their belts as well as a radio and stun prod. As the women from cell block A walked in, every single one of them took notice of Laz and his strong frame. While he wasn’t tall, it was easy to see the muscles rippling through his shirt.
"Hmm... A bit old for my taste, but I’d still hit that."
"Oooo... A daddy. I haven’t had one in a while."
"Damn... I didn’t think they made old wood that thick."
On and on the comments went as the women walked in and spread out. The only ones who didn’t say anything were the ones who also had black scarves wrapped around their heads, but it wasn’t in a middle eastern fashion sense. Instead, it was almost like a mask that not only covered their face, but also their eyes.
Laz turned his attention to Vera quickly and she responded without even needing to look.
"Some sort of cult they started in her. While it sounds like some bullshit when they talk about it, since everyone of them is actually a model prisoner, the warden was more than happy to let them have their little head covering. But I’ll be honest with yah, freaks me out a little. See how they cover their eyes? Well if you ever see them without it, it’s the most fucked up thing. Their eyes are completely white, like... nothing else in them. That’s why they cover them. And in the shower, they stand off by themselves but no one messes with them. Looking into their eyes will fuck with your head. So although you will never be assigned shower duty, if you ever end up catching one of them without the mask on, don’t fucking look in their eyes," Vera said, her voice trembling. Even when she was talking about the chosen crazies, there wasn’t this much fear in her voice.
"What do they call themselves?" Laz asked, wondering.
"They call themselves the Cult of The Risen and do so for the most fucked up reason. They idolize this infected fucker who’s been all over the news and social media. Dudes a legend to them and I’ve seen the videos. Even if he is young, he’s fucking gorgeous. I’ll say that much."
"What guy?"
"The most wanted one in the country. The reason they call themselves the Cult of the Risen is because his name is Lazarus. You know, like the guy from the bible? The one who came back to life? They believe that if they believe in him hard enough, they can save themselves and even bring themselves back to life. What kinds of fucked up shit is that, eh? I mean... who the fuck knows what’s true or not anymore. But for fuck sake, coming back from the dead? Shit’s just... I don’t know man. I don’t know..."
Laz didn’t know how to respond. Looking at the women who walked by wearing the cloth like masks, Laz couldn’t help but notice how many of them there were...
’No fucking way... right?’
