It started quietly—too quietly. Vario had been groaning in the break area all morning, clutching his stomach, and Nyx was already filming the incident for content. Bella had rolled her eyes once, twice, then decided to focus on restocking the shelves, thinking the worst of it would pass.
She was wrong.
By mid-morning, Gallo was leaning against the energy drink fridge, pale and sweating, muttering, "I… I shouldn't have sniffed it… just a whiff… I regret it…"
Bella froze. "Gallo?! Are you—"
He groaned and doubled over. "Yes. The turkey… the… ugh…"
Nyx squealed. "Ohhh! This is even better than I thought. We're having a full-on group sickness. Viral content gold!"
Bella glared. "Nyx! People are suffering!"
Meanwhile, Hadid Varro, calmly stacking beans, suddenly clutched his stomach as well. "I… feel… it. The… effect… I thought I could withstand it…" His eyes widened as he stumbled toward a cart for support.
Bella groaned. "No one is safe. It's spreading like a plague!"
Vario, still slumped against the soda shelves, weakly raised a trembling finger. "Tell… me… it's not contagious."
Nyx bounced on her toes. "I think it is! Imagine the chaos if it spreads to the entire store!"
Bella dropped the stack of chips she was carrying. "Nyx! Stop thinking about chaos and start thinking about medicine!"
Gallo tried to stay upright but ended up crashing into a display of protein shakes. "Curse you… deli meat…"
The group staggered toward the back of the store, clutching their stomachs, moaning, and occasionally collapsing onto whatever surface was nearby.
Vario groaned. "Bella… it hurts… more than anything I've felt in the past world… more than every villain combined…"
Bella, trying to help everyone, handed out water bottles. "Drink slowly… and… don't move too much. We'll survive… somehow."
Nyx, still filming, whispered in glee: "We need captions. 'The Day Aisle 3 Ate Turkey Dick.' This is history!"
Hadid Varro muttered between moans, "I… underestimated… the risk… of processed meats… never again…"
By noon, even the new arrivals, including Gallo who had only just started training at the store, were doubled over in sickness. Bella herself felt a queasy swirl in her stomach but forced herself to stay upright for the sake of helping everyone else.
Vario, weakly, croaked: "We… we are doomed… all of us…"
Nyx, crouched on a stack of empty boxes, whispered dramatically to the camera: "Who will survive the Great Aisle 3 Gastro Outbreak? Stay tuned…"
Gallo, rolling his eyes despite the pain, muttered, "I've fought dragons, demons, and armies… this… this may be the ultimate test…"
Hadid Varro groaned, "I… can't… even…"
Hours passed. The fluorescent lights hummed above them. Soda cans rattled in sympathy. Bella ran back and forth between the groaning heroes, handing out water and trying not to lose her own stomach in the process.
Finally, as the afternoon sunlight broke through the windows, the group, battered and miserable, slumped against shelves and counters. Everyone had survived, but just barely.
Vario weakly muttered, "I… swear… never… deli meat again…"
Gallo nodded, still leaning on a protein shake tower for support. "Agreed… next time… it's canned food only."
Nyx, still filming, whispered, "Ohhh… the highlight reel writes itself. 'Aisle 3 vs. Turkey Dick: The Outbreak Edition.' Legendary."
Bella, hands on her hips, glared at her chaos-loving friend. "Nyx… this is the last time. Ever. You are not allowed to touch food again."
Nyx pouted but smiled slyly. "We'll see…"
Hadid Varro, finally able to straighten slightly, muttered, "This… was… educational… in a terrifying… sort of way."
And so, Aisle 3 survived… another catastrophe. All groaning, green-faced, and slightly traumatized, but still alive.
The turkey dick in the trash, however, sat victorious.