"When chaos fills the hallways, you discover who you really are."
INT. DARK ALLEY BEHIND SCHOOL – NIGHT – LIGHT RAIN
A narrow, dimly lit alley. Trash bins overflow. Water drips from the eaves above. The distant glow of streetlights flickers off puddles. All is eerily silent—except for ragged breathing.
AYUSH leans against the wet brick wall, one hand pressed to his calf. Rainwater splashes at his feet. ANANYA kneels beside him, checking a dark bruise forming on his leg from the rooftop jump.
ANANYA(concerned, whisper)Your leg's swollen. Can you put any weight on it?
AYUSH(grits teeth)I'll manage. Just… keep pressure here.
She presses her hand gently, eyes darting toward the darkness. He nods.
Nearby, LUCKY sits huddled against a stack of crates, shoulders trembling. AYESHA kneels in front of her, grabbing Lucky's hand.
AYESHA(softly)Breathe, Lucky. You're safe… for now.
LUCKY(voice shaking)I thought… I thought I'd never get out.
AYESHA(hugs her shoulder)You did. And we're going to keep moving.
Suddenly, faint SCREAMS drift from inside the school. Each in the group flinches but stays silent.
AYUSH (V.O.)That night, the rain felt like judgment. We had survived the school. But ahead lay an empty city—streets crawling with the infected. No one was coming to help us.
KARTIK steps forward, flashlight in hand. Shadows dance on the wet walls.
KARTIK(quiet but firm)We stay low, stick to side streets. Main roads are crawling with them. Let's move—one wrong turn, and we're trapped.
The squad, still damp and exhausted, rises slowly. SHIVAM rubs his bruised side, wincing. DEV carries the backpack with glass bottles and a first-aid pouch. MANISH check over shoulders. TANYA clasps her arms, eyes haunted. ISHA curls her notebook protectively. BHARGAV lingers at the back, wrench at the ready. SANAA stays close to ANANYA.
EXT. BACK ALLEY NETWORK – NIGHT
The group moves single-file. Rain has eased to a drizzle. Each child's face is lit by a small LED flashlight, damp hair plastered to their foreheads. Puddles ripple under their feet.
KARTIK (whispering)Five blocks to the service lane beside the temple. Once we're past that medical store, we're halfway to the safehouse.
AYUSH (quiet)Anything else we need to know?
KARTIK(eyes scanning)Once we hit the temple alley, the alley narrows. Zombies can't sprint in tight spaces. We should slip past them.
ANANYA(nods)We stay close, no sudden noises.
They round a corner. An overturned rickshaw lies on its side, wheels spinning in mud. A flattened bicycle spokes protrude like jagged teeth. SHIVAM steps over it carefully.
SHIVAM(soft exhale)Feels like a ghost town… like everyone vanished overnight.
AYESHA(voice low)Not vanished. Worst than that. Some turned.
Their flashlights catch a figure hunched behind a dumpster: a young boy, late teens, clothing soaked in rain, face pale and lifeless. He drags one leg as he moans. The others freeze.
DEV(whisper)There's one…
KARTIK(raises hand)Five… four… three…
He counts down on his fingers. At "one," he taps AYUSH on the shoulder.
KARTIK (cont'd)Move—now.
They dart silently across the alley. The zombie boy's head snaps up, eyes dead but focused. He shambles forward, dragging his foot. His MOAN echoes.
ANANYA(voice shaking)Oh god…
They reach the far wall, pressing against it to avoid being seen. The boy stumbles into the open, sniffing the air. For a moment, time stretches—rain dripping off his chin.
KARTIK(quiet, urgent)On my mark… distract.
DEV picks up a loose brick and hurls it to the left, smashing it against a metal can. The loud CRASH startles the boy, who turns away and lurches toward the noise.
KARTIKNow.
They slip around the corner without the boy's notice.
EXT. ABANDONED SHOP FRONT – NIGHT
The group ducks inside a shuttered storefront—an old stationery shop. The lights are dark. Broken glass litters the floor. They press backs against the damp wall, breathing hard.
LUCKY(voice cracking)Is everyone okay?
DEV(checking everyone)Eleven. All here.
TANYA(voice shaky)We can't stay. They'll hear us if we rest too long.
KARTIKAgreed. We keep moving. Next stop: the medical store for supplies.
AYUSH (pulling Ananya aside)Your hands are freezing.
He slips off his damp jacket and drapes it over her shoulders. She glances up at him, eyes grateful but fearful.
ANANYA(soft)Thank you…
AYUSH(nods)Focus on the path. We're almost there.
EXT. SERVICE LANE NEAR TEMPLE – NIGHT
A narrow lane lined by vendor carts. A small temple sits halfway down, its doors ajar, light spilling onto wet pavement. Incense smoke drifts, mingling with the smell of rain. The lane is strangely calm—no zombies stirring here.
KARTIK(whisper)This is it. Keep low.
They move past the temple, carefully stepping around spilled offerings and wilted flowers. The quiet is almost too inviting. Isha cranes her neck, listening for any sound.
ISHA(whispers)It's… peaceful here.
ANANYA(voice barely above breath)Too peaceful.
Suddenly, a faint footstep echoes behind them. Ayush turns—sees a single, half-shambled figure emerging from the shadows near the temple entrance. A child's backpack swings from its shoulder.
LUCKY(whispers)Another one…
KARTIK(soft hiss)Move—fast.
They sprint past the zombie, who stands briefly confused. Ananya ducks around a vendor cart; the zombie's head snaps in her direction. She holds her breath while Kartik throws a small stone—plink—and the zombie lurches toward the noise, moaning.
ANANYA(quiet relief)That was close.
They slip into a side alley, walls plastered with peeling posters.
INT. MEDICAL STORE – NIGHT
A flickering EXIT sign above the door. The lock is rusted; Shivam uses a floor tile to pry it open. They slip inside.
Shelves line the walls—empty boxes, broken glass. On a counter lies a half-empty first-aid kit. Dev grabs it. Inside: a few bandages, antiseptic, painkillers.
DEV(grabs supplies)This is all we get.
SHIVAM(eyes fixed on the floor)Wait… someone's here.
He points to a figure slumped in the corner—a wounded man, mid-twenties, breathing heavily, eyes half-closed. His shirt is stained with blood. A deep gash on his arm oozes dark fluid.
SHIVAM (cont'd)He's hurt bad.
The squad freezes. Tanya moves forward.
TANYA(voice cracking)We… we have to help him—he's dying.
AYUSH(shakes head, voice low)Not safe. He could be infected.
ANANYA(whisper, determined)He's human. We can't leave him.
KARTIK(quietly, urgent)He's convulsing. He'll turn, infect all of us. We have to go.
TANYA(tears in her eyes)But… he's alone.
AYESHA(places hand on Tanya's shoulder)I'm sorry, Tanya. We have to think about the group. We can't risk it.
Tanya's lip trembles. She glances at the bleeding man—whimper in her chest—but nods reluctantly.
TANYA(voice breaking)Okay… let's go.
They back toward the exit, grief and guilt heavy in their eyes.
EXT. BACK ALLEY – NIGHT
They spill back into a narrow alley. The rain's picked up again, drumming on garbage bins and slippery plastic sheets. Each child's face is tight with sorrow.
AYUSH (V.O.)Sometimes survival means making impossible choices.We left him there—alone. Part of me still hears his breathing, begging for help.
KARTIK(voice soft)On to the next street. Keep moving.
They press on, the city's broken skyline ahead—streetlights flicker, power lines snap in the gusty wind.
EXT. BROKEN SHUTTERED SHOP – NIGHT
They reach a row of closed shops. One doorway has a half-open metal shutter: a small sweet shop—old tins of mithai still visible inside. The shutter creaks as Kartik slides it up. The interior is dusty but dry.
AYESHA(whispers)We can rest here—at least for a little.
They file inside, closing the shutter. The sound echoes. Bhargav pushes a stack of burlap sacks against the shutter, wedging them between floor and door.
BHARGAV(quiet)That should hold.
ANANYA(looking around)There's a stove in the corner. And those old water bottles on the shelf.
DEV(searching)Some of those tins still have sweets. Stale, but edible.
TANYA(sits on floor)I thought we were done for. I— I didn't think we'd make it.
LUCKY(sits beside Tanya)Me neither. But we did.
AYUSH(softly)We'll rest here. Tomorrow, we move again.
They gather in a loose circle on the concrete floor. Rain patters on the tin roof above, creating a lullaby of tension and relief.
INT. SWEET SHOP INTERIOR – NIGHT
Darkness fills the shop. One dim flashlight rests on an overturned crate, casting long shadows on the walls. Each face is lit in half—hope and fear intertwined.
KARTIK(quiet)Everyone okay?
They nod.
SANA(voice small)What if this never ends?
AYUSH(hesitates, then looks at Ananya)Then we keep surviving. Piece by piece, day by day.
ANANYA(leans head on Ayush's shoulder)As long as we're together.
KARTIK(resolute)This is just the beginning. Tomorrow, we find our way out of this neighborhood. We keep each other safe.
A moment of silence. ISHA reaches into her bag, pulls out a crumpled piece of paper. She recites quietly:
ISHA(softly, reciting)"In shadows deep and nights so long,We hold our hearts and press on strong…"
Her voice cracks. TANYA hums a sorrowful melody—the final lullaby of a childhood lost.
AYUSH (V.O.)That night, we let the rain wash over us—cold, relentless. We fell asleep to each other's breathing and the steady drip on the tin roof.No promises of tomorrow. Just the will to keep going.
[EPISODE 3 – END]