30 minutes have passed. The subject shows no signs of movement.  

Wendy stares at her watch and frowns. It’s two o’clock, just in time for inspections. She can already imagine her supervisor on his way. That crotchety old man with the temper of a dragon. 

The doors behind her open with a bang and the stomping burrows into her ear. She puts the syringe on the table. Shoves her hands into her pockets. Any moment now, he’ll see the mess she has created. 

“Wendy! What have you done?” She feels him walking closer. 

“I told you to inject the virus into the dog and keep it alive. You did the complete opposite.” He throws his hands in the air, outraged. 

“Can’t you follow instructions, through that thick skull of yours?” The dog is clearly dead, lifeless on the table. Legs splayed awkwardly as if it had a seizure. Wendy turns around and bows, spine level.

“Sorry sir.” Her supervisor picks up the syringe, rigid cords in his neck on display. Narrowed eyes focusing on the leftover drops still inside. He slams the syringe back down.

“One milliliter, not five! What will I tell Ashford now?.”

“I apologize for my negligence. It won’t happen again, sir.” His footsteps fade, the doors shut with force. She then stands straight, observing her work. A few months ago, she would’ve bawled, choking on tears at the sight. Today, she only feels relief. 

She supposes she has developed an immunity to this sort of occurrence. The dog’s fate was sealed when it entered the facility. She reminds herself the dog is in a better place, rather than being stuck in limbo. Not quite alive, yet not dead either. 

The correct choice was to deliver a painless, merciful death. 

She drops her bag, limbs collapsing onto the couch. Seulgi, her roommate, nods at her. Eyes trained on the TV. 

“How was work?” Seulgi asks. 

“Fine. The usual.” The other girl hums, then points at the screen. 

“Would you look at that. Umbrella Corporation expanding into the tourism industry.” 

“Yeah. Risky business moves,” Wendy drones. Seeing the familiar red and white symbol is sickening.  

“Paraguas Line, ready to transport passengers across the Atlantic.”

“Funny name for a cruise line, huh?” she says dryly. 

“I think it’s brilliant. There’s the exotic Spanish feeling. Paraguas, umbrella—” 

“Ok, ok. I get it.” Seulgi her head, cheeks puffed out. 

“Shouldn’t you be more interested? Since you work at Umbrella.” 

“Umbrella’s pharmaceutical division, not its subsidiary,” Wendy corrects her. Seulgi stretches her legs, yawning, mouth wide open. 

“It’s late, I’m going to crash. I have to interview someone tomorrow.” 

“Who?” 

“You know him. Dr. Ashford, founder of Umbrella.” 

The German Shepherd whines, awakened by the swaying cage. Wendy huffs and lifts the cage onto the table. Breathing heavily through her nose, she pushes open the double door, heads into the hallway. 

Force collides with her and she stumbles backwards. Blonde hair obscures her vision, hands steadying her. 

“Oh hey Yeri.”

“You’re going for refills too?” She snickers at the casual undertone of Yeri’s question. Working here has caused them to trivialize everything, especially the nature of their projects. 

“New day, new dog,” Wendy replies, head bobbing. 

“Done with the poodles?”  

“Don’t underestimate poodles. They’re vicious little canines.” They walk down the hall, to the lab. Animalistic whimpers and low howls emanate from various doors. Similarly, they’re both accustomed to the noises. Overthinking leads to unnecessary worry.   

“We’re moving onto German Shepherds. At least my division is,” Wendy provides. 

“Hmm. Our latest test subject hasn’t arrived yet. I’ve been told it’ll be delivered soon.” 

“So you’re finished with the Dobermans?” 

“Yep. All of my team’s results are up for review,” declares Yeri. Reaching their destination, Wendy taps her ID on the sensor, unlocking the door.  

“After you.” A high-pitched scream rings in the air. 

“Did you hear that?” Her co-worker is frozen, eyebrows raised. Rapidly blinking. Nervous laughter escapes.

“I’m sure it was nothing. J-just another day of testing,” Yeri splutters. 

“But that wasn’t a dog,” Wendy counters.

“Then what is it? A human?” Their eyes meet incredulously. Her heart beats faster, pounding in her chest. The scream was a bit distinct, a bit nasal. Female. No. She shouldn’t entertain the idea. 

“Don’t joke around like that.” 

The hand strikes 11 o’clock. Night has fallen and Wendy hasn’t gone to bed, despite her shift starting at 6 in the morning. She paces back and forth, glancing ever so often at her watch. 

Seulgi still hasn’t come home. Wendy understands the other girl’s job has odd hours. Her work schedule isn’t fixed, being a reporter. Moreover, Seulgi did mention she was interviewing Ashford today, a striking individual. Head of a billion-dollar company, a savvy entrepreneur, and a genius researcher. Changing the world of science as they know it.  

It wouldn’t be unusual if Seulgi took longer to interview him. Definitely not. 

Wendy has met him once. She remembers all the employees huddled around the lab table. In shock from the demonstration of the new virus. The bed-ridden young girl was wracked with an incurable disease. 

They witnessed a phenomenon, years beyond the current capability of medicine. He had cured her with the virus. 

The entire room descended into applause. Nevertheless, she’s certain everyone had sensed his raging ambition. A corporate head, eager to pursue self-interest and maximize profit. Testing the virus on his daughter may have been a last resort, but the outcome has proven to be a success. The virus is capable of working wonders on humans and he will undoubtedly exploit it to its ends. 

In particular, she can’t forget today’s abnormality. The piercing cry echoing through the hall. 

During the last meeting, her supervisor had mentioned Umbrella’s next step. More vigorous testing on different subjects. Not just the usual dogs, pigs, rabbits, and rats. 

Wendy fears the answer. She doesn’t want to arrive at the logical conclusion.

Keys clatter on the counter. Shaken, Wendy ceases her thoughts, searching for the source of the sound. Her lips tug into a wide grin.  

“Wendy, why are you up so late?” Seulgi scratches her face.  

“I had a nightmare.”

AN: Zombie aus are common on aff so I decided to write a pseudo-zombie au instead. No actual zombies appeared which made it more fun to write this short drabble. 

Shoutout to all the hags here who know which video game this is based on (Resident Evil). I hope you guys enjoyed the easter egg references. 

Thank you for reading, commenting, and encouraging me to write.