Magic Space: Struggling to Survive in the Apocalypse-Chapter 43: High Temperature, Snake Infestation 7

The high temperature was making the giant python extremely uncomfortable. It thrashed its tail agitatedly, flinging the snake carcasses in the floodwater into the air. Evelyn Ford held her breath and watched. Seeing it gape its mouth and flick its forked black tongue, she suspected it was suffering from heatstroke.

In the intense heat, the floodwaters had begun to warm. That was why the python had burst from the water, looking for a new place to rest. But the scorching hot surface of the building made it impossible for it to advance. Seeing it swimming about, occasionally slapping the water’s surface with its tail, Evelyn Ford thought of a way to deal with it.

She still had a little of the poison she’d concocted before. Evelyn Ford took out two fresh chickens and smeared the potent toxin all over their skin and inside their cavities. She would use the scent of the meat to attract the giant python’s attention. The instant it opened its mouth, she would toss the chickens in. The plan was risky, but Evelyn was about seventy percent sure it would work.

Evelyn Ford could have also heated a gas canister with an open flame and thrown it into the python’s mouth, causing it to explode from within. But the force of a gas explosion was unpredictable, and if it damaged the building, the consequences would be catastrophic.

The giant python continued its rampage. Its tail swept across the opposite building, instantly shattering the fifth-floor railings and windows. The halo around the sun had turned a blinding white, impossible to look at directly. Evelyn Ford put on her gloves, placed her crossbow to her right, and slid the window open about eight inches.

Evelyn Ford picked up one of the chickens and waved it in the air a couple of times. The scent of blood drifted across to the python, which immediately grew alert. At that moment, the chicken was merely bait; Evelyn herself was the real, living target.

She took out her whistle and blew a hard, piercing blast. The shrill sound made the giant python sway its head as it tried to pinpoint her location.

As it slithered closer, Evelyn could make out the rough scales and patches of half-shed skin on its body. She quickly tossed the first chicken toward its head. The giant python immediately gaped its maw. Just then, Evelyn threw the second chicken. The beast was incredibly fast, devouring the bait savagely. Evelyn could even clearly see the four rows of fangs inside its mouth.

She calmly took out a lighter and a solid fuel block. After lighting the block, she threw it. Her first toss was off; it only bounced off the python’s head. The block fell into the water and immediately burst into flames. The sight of the fire enraged the giant python. Having swallowed the two poisoned chickens, it began to thrash its tail furiously.

Without pausing, Evelyn threw another lit fuel block. The giant python had just opened its mouth to roar or hiss, and the block sailed right in. A small smile touched Evelyn’s lips. She picked up her nearby crossbow. This time, she aimed for the python’s weak spot.

A snake’s weak spot is at the junction of its neck and torso, right where its heart is located. If she could land one arrow there, the combined effects of the poison and the burning fuel would kill it. It would be dead in under ten minutes, no doubt about it.

The giant python was still thrashing its tail furiously. The burning fuel block was now inside its body; while it wouldn’t explode, it would continue to burn. The creature was being tormented by a searing pain from within. Evelyn pressed her advantage and fired a crossbow arrow.

Evelyn’s luck was running thin today; her first shot went wide. The crossbow arrow glanced off its scales, leaving only a shallow scratch.

’Don’t rush. Stay steady.’

Cold sweat slicked her palms. The constant exposure to the sun was making her dizzy. Evelyn gritted her teeth and fired the second crossbow arrow.

A direct hit. The arrow sank deep into its weak spot. The giant python let out a terrifying shriek, opened its mouth in fury, and thrashed its tail with all its remaining strength. Finally, it collapsed in a final, agonizing convulsion. It crashed down among the dead snakes in the flood, its massive body sending a spray of water and smaller carcasses into the air.

The hand holding her crossbow was trembling slightly. Evelyn stood at the window, silently watching the giant python sink beneath the surface.

Evelyn worried that other giant pythons might emerge, so she decided to keep the red brick wall she’d planned on demolishing. Three hours later, large patches of its skin began to fester and rot. Evelyn watched the scene outside through her binoculars. As the putrid stench of the python’s corpse began to spread, red-headed blowflies appeared, swarming above it.

「The next day.」

The snakes in the water were almost all dead. The water level had dropped to the third floor, exposing the mud and sand beneath. The areas that still held water had become muddy swamps.

The swamps were filled with snake carcasses, including the giant python, which was now swarmed by red-headed blowflies.

For the first time in two months, Evelyn Ford opened her front door. She was dressed in a protective suit and held a shovel.

When she saw the heaps of snake carcasses piled up in the hallway, Evelyn’s stomach churned. The piercing stench of decay was so strong she nearly gagged.

Getting right to work, Evelyn began clearing the snake carcasses, starting from her own doorway.

Mixed in among the snake carcasses were two human skeletons. Evelyn shoveled them up with everything else, opened the reinforced window in the hallway, and tossed them out below.

It took Evelyn three hours just to clear the tenth floor. She hurried back to her apartment to drink a glucose solution to regain her strength. After resting for half an hour, she finally felt some energy return.

She opened the door to the Collins family’s apartment next door, but when she saw it was carpeted wall-to-wall with snake carcasses, she immediately backed out.

Clearing the tenth through twelfth floors took Evelyn an entire day. She checked every single apartment. There were no survivors. By the time she reached Officer Graham’s front door, she had given up all hope. She tried the door to the Graham family’s apartment, but it wouldn’t budge. ’It must be locked from the inside.’ Just as she was about to turn and leave, she heard a faint noise from within. Evelyn froze, then started pounding heavily on the door.

"Mr. Graham? Mrs. Graham? Is anyone in there?"

There was no answer, and for a moment she thought she had imagined the sound. Evelyn took two steps back and kicked the door. On the fifth kick, it burst open. As she stood in the doorway, a horrendous stench assaulted her. She quickly held her breath and retreated several steps.

The apartment was filthy and chaotic, but thankfully, there were no snake carcasses inside. The balcony window was also intact. Evelyn checked the rooms one by one. Upon finding a bedroom containing three badly decomposed bodies, she quietly shut the door.

Finally, in the bathroom, Evelyn found Wendy and Officer Graham, both barely breathing.

Officer Graham was on the floor, a paring knife clutched in his hand. His emaciated arm was covered in a dense pattern of cuts. The sight left Evelyn speechless with shock.

She went over to check on Wendy. Aside from extreme weakness, she had no other injuries.

Officer Graham was in terrible shape. He was lucky to be alive, but he was severely dehydrated, and his wounds were festering.

Evelyn carried Wendy out to the living room and then dragged Officer Graham out after her. Just after she’d managed to get half a bottle of glucose solution into each of them, Wendy’s eyes fluttered open.

Wendy stared blankly at Evelyn, not crying or making a sound.

Evelyn gave her a little more of the glucose solution. Noticing a pile of empty beverage bottles in the living room, Evelyn pieced together what must have happened. They had likely survived by drinking whatever they could salvage from the floodwaters. When they ran out of food entirely, Officer Graham had started feeding Wendy with his own blood. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Officer Graham’s condition was dire. Even after she gave him several injections and poured medicine down his throat, he showed no sign of regaining consciousness.

The entire time, Wendy sat quietly to the side, not making a sound. Evelyn looked at her tiny, emaciated frame and her swollen face, then reached out and gently stroked her brittle, discolored hair.