Andy ran forward towards the ballpit’s entrance. Behind him, Clara opened fire, pelting the horde with small-arms fire. More zombies’ heads snapped around at the sound, crooked teeth bared in lipless snarls. Andy tasted the metallic rush of his Augmentation’s synthetic hormones kicking in. There was a spring in his step as he darted sideways and climbed a set of foam padded stairs. Drawing his 9mm sidearm, he fired sidelong at any zombie which peeled away from the main group. His Evasive Fire skill guided his aim like a soft finger on the muzzle of the gun, as the AI implant calculated trajectories with inhuman speed and precision. Their skulls exploded in puffs of white powder–the contrast of brightness from his headlamp against the black of the warehouse made them look like eruptions of snow.
Ascending the stairs, Andy glanced around the maze of netting and foam pads, trying to get his bearings. The scientist had begun shouting over the gunfire. “I’m here.” “Help me.” “Please god.” Etcetera. It did make him a little easier to locate. Andy chose a direction and set off. Ahead, the floor dipped into a long ball pit, inside which several smaller zombies lingered, unable to climb out. They had waded towards the edge while Andy lingered, arms extended like children asking for their mummy to pick them up. Above the ball pit were three thick rope swings. Andy ran and jumped onto the first, stick-thin fingers brushed his boots as he sailed through the air and grabbed the second rope. He transferred his momentum, swinging over the pit. He whooped with delight, feeling like a superhero. At the opposite side, a zombie lunged for him but fell face first into the ball pit. Andy laughed and grabbed the third rope, letting go of the second, flying through the air as deftly as a bat.
He landed on his feet, pointing his pistol ahead of him. Nothing approached yet, but behind him, a group of undead had triumphed the stairs and were pouring into the ball pit. They waded on top of one another to get to the other side. Andy wanted another go. It’d be more fun with more zombies in the pit, definitely more difficult.
“Please god,” the scientist screamed. “I can’t hold on.”
“Ugh.” Andy turned his back on the pit, ducking as the ceiling lowered, trying to navigate towards the multicoloured slides where the man was trapped. Thick foam bollards blocked his way, obscuring his view. Squeezing between them, Andy was crushed by the rotation and spat out the other side. His torso wanted to go left but one of his boots got wrapped around a post heading right. The maze was built for kids, not a gangly man in steel toe capped boots. Andy squinted as his headlamp reflected off the colourful leather of the foam padding with disorientating brightness. He turned the light down and fell forward between the padded cylinders like a freight train forced through a car wash.
Finally, as he landed on the other side of the maze, a child zombie leered above him. Andy rolled onto his feet and aimed his pistol, before knelt before him was his own reflection, distorted to look fat at his hips and bulbous at his head. He looked around, dizzied by a dozen funny-mirrors. The faces of zombies appeared and vanished in the dim light. He could hear their footsteps on the padded foam, and the occasional slap as one ran into a mirror, but couldn’t find his bearings. Drawing his pistol close to his chest, Andy stuck his other hand out, navigating the mirrors by touch. He needed to find the exit, fast.
Attention: Inebriation Inhibitor module operative.
That’s right, this was nothing he hadn’t seen before while hammered. Andy unfocussed his gaze and relaxed, taking a swig from his hipflask to get in the mood of roleplaying being drunk. Shifting shapes pulsated and grew in the dark, but then the gleam in one of their eyes caught his attention. Andy fired before his analytical mind could get in the way and burst its skull. He wobbled forward, bashing into mirrors and bouncing off them, slaying zombies in his way, spraying the mirrors with chalky white detritus.
His magazine ran dry as he reached the end of the maze, but one final zombie charged towards him–a small thing about hip height. Scraggly blonde hair still clung to the stretched flesh on its skull. It wore a faded purple t-shirt with the picture of a rainbow donkey giving a thumbs up.
Andy booted the zombie like a football. It flew through the air, hissing shrill with rage, landing with a thud and crunch. Andy reloaded his pistol and followed it around the corner to find he had arrived at the multicoloured slides. Below, the man dressed in a lab coat was still clinging for his life. There were less zombies at the bottom of the slide now. Many had been drawn away by the gunfire, but many still remained, penned inside the netting, unable to leave even if they wanted to. They jumped and groped for the man’s legs like stray dogs baying for food. Andy glanced towards the warehouse’s exit, where two white flashlights floated in the red glow of a flare, punctuated by muzzle flashes. Andy spotted the outline of the Augmented woman dancing ahead of the flashlights, her speer’s sheen glimmering in the dim light, cutting zombies to shreds.
“Help me, please.”
Andy returned his attention to the scientist on the slide. “You’re from the facility then?”
“Please, throw something down.”
“Do you have the tech?”
The man’s face twisted with confusion. His eyes went wide as they stared into Andy’s. His short black hair clung to his scalp with sweat. The glasses he wore had been cracked in one lens clung precariously to his head.
“Why are you here? You got what you wanted already.”
“I want the payload,” Andy said.
“You have it!”
The man slipped and fell down one rung in the slide. Zombies clamoured beneath him with renewed fervour, leaping up to grab his feet. One snatched his shoe, but he wriggled his foot loose. It gave Andy an idea.
“Take off your shoes and socks,” he said.
The scientist just looked at him with incredulity.
“For grip,” he added, checking the maze of mirrors behind him for anything approaching. The obstacle course seemed to have slowed the zombies pursuing him.
The scientist kicked off his shoes and socks, then tried to climb back up the slide. To his right, zombies charged up the purple slide, which had the most divots and was easiest to climb, falling sidelong across the rainbow to swipe at him. Andy took a couple shots at the climbing zombies, sending them tumbling down, but he wanted to avoid making too much noise until they were on the move again.
“I can’t,” the man panted. “Please, I’m too weak. Lower a rope down.”
“There’s no rope,” Andy said. “Climb.”
“Please.” His grip loosened on the slide’s edge, and his face rested on the green plastic. “Shoot me.”
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“Okay, but, do you know where the payload is?”
“One of yours took it already.”
“One of who?”
“The goths.” The man slipped down the slide with a squeak. “Please, have some compassion. Don’t let me die like this.”
Clearly, the scientist knew something else, but there wasn’t much time to hash things out. Removing his leather jacket, Andy held one end of the sleeve and knelt down, dropping the other end down the slide. The scientist hauled himself up and grabbed the other sleeve. Andy braced against a railing and heaved, but lifting weights had never been his strong suit.
“Climb,” Andy said. “You’re too heavy.”
Something moved in the corner of his vision. Andy’s Killer Instinct triggered, but he hesitated–to draw his weapon, he’d either have to let go of the jacket or the railing, and he really loved that jacket... Already, he was too late. The child zombie which he had kicked was back for vengeance. The zombie collided with him, spinning him around, sending him tumbling down the slide. Below him, a pool of flesh lapped like waves against the slide, desperate to swallow him whole. Without his jacket on, a bite or a scratch could infect him in seconds.
Andy slid down on his back, grabbing the railings and drew Julie. As soon as he held her smooth polished wood handle, power swelled through him. He pulled the trigger and detonated the nearest zombie’s chest, but there was no miraculous Vortex power, no passionate release of energy.
“What’s wrong?” he said, skidding downwards inexorably. He guessed he should have been listening in the jeep. Something wasn’t working, this position wasn’t right. Rolling backwards, he put his feet beneath him and crashed into the horde.
With his feet planted, he fired from the hip. The energy ignited in his toes, rushing through his feet and legs, engorging his thighs, pumping through his chest, setting off fireworks in his skull. Julie exploded. The Vortex Shot reduced the bodies clamouring on top of him to ruin, sending a shockwave of zombies flying. Andy pushed his back up the slide and fired again, bursting zombies to smithereens, clearing a path. Everything was dead, or lay at his feet, including the scientist, who huddled whimpering at his heels.
Andy grabbed his leather jacket and threw it on, shooting three more zombies which tried to get up while he dressed. He seized the scientist by his collar and pulled him up, then raced towards an exit. The scientist followed behind as they climbed into a foam padded crawl space. Andy navigated the maze upwards, twisting and turning, climbing to get away from the horde. Those which had been on the periphery of the Vortex Shot recovered and raved after him, but struggled to comprehend the maze. They flung themselves at the netting on either side of them, reaching through, snarling and trying to tear the rope with their rotten teeth.
Andy kept climbing, pausing to reload Julie as the scientist caught up. At the top of the maze was a balcony surrounding a large ball pit, like a children’s dream version of a hotel plaza. On the opposite side of the balcony was a vertical red slide and a corkscrew blue slide. Each ran into the ball pit at the centre. Andy checked their surroundings, there were no immediate threats. Gunshots still thudded from where Clara held the exit, but they were less frequent now. That was a good sign.
Andy turned on the scientist. “Are you bitten?”
“No. Not bitten. No, look.” He rolled up his sleeves and showed his neck. His hands shook and he smelled pretty abhorrent.
“Right, we’re leaving then,” Andy said, spotting the red flare at the exit. “Which way’s out?”
Suddenly, the gunshots from Clara rang out in rapid fire. Andy’s radio squawked awake.
“They’re coming from outside,” Clara said. “We’re falling back to a trampoline zone.”
“Okay, hold on,” Andy said. “I’ll be one sec.” He unslung his assault rifle and searched for a way down. It seemed like they’d dealt with most of the zombies in the play area, but shadows cast by the red flare near the exit depicted a steady stream of undead coming in from outside. It seemed like there was an exit on the other end of the ballpit, but it would probably be quicker for him to just cut the rope nets in a straight line towards Clara.
“Wait,” the scientist said as Andy cut the ropes. “My colleague is still here somewhere. Riddhi! Come out. People are here to rescue us."
A face popped out of the ball pit below. A dark skinned woman looked up at them with beady eyes. “I’m here,” she squeaked.
“Does she have the payload?” Andy asked.
The scientist opened his mouth, but couldn’t meet Andy’s eyes. “She’s essential to the mission.”
“Oh yeah, I’m sure she is.”
The woman below screeched as Zombies invaded the ball pit, falling over the sides, wading towards her at the centre. She ducked back beneath the balls to hide.
Nearby was the blue corkscrew slide. Figuring it was the quickest way to the ballpit, Andy jumped in and skidded down. It was a tight squeeze, but he picked up speed towards the bottom, shooting out the other end into a pool of multicoloured balls. He flopped around as the balls displaced, kneeling in the pit. Aiming with Enhanced Precision, he fired at the invading zombies. Killing them was child’s play. He blew their brains out, flinging their bodies back to sink beneath the colourful balls.
Andy rose and waded towards the centre of the pit. “Lady, come on out.”
The first man he’d saved came shooting out of the blue slide behind him. “Riddhi, it’s safe to come out.” Suddenly, Andy’s foot kicked something solid underneath the balls. He flinched and aimed his assault rifle at it. A small face appeared beneath the balls, glaring up the barrel of his rifle. It squeaked.
“Payload?” Andy said.
“What?”
“Riddhi,” the male scientist beckoned, stumbling over and practically falling on her. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the pit. “We’re leaving now. We’re going with these people.”
“Who are you?” the woman asked.
“Andy.”
“Who do you work for?”
He looked at her blankly. No one. That was a stupid question.
“Which way now, sir?” the male scientist asked.
Andy nodded towards the exit. Another stupid question.
“We don’t have any weapons,” the man said, eyeing Andy’s sidearm.
Andy picked a blue coloured ball out of the pit and passed it to him. “Go wild.”
Andy waded through the pit and climbed over the foam barrier. He was near the exit now. The red flare was glowing low, lighting the scene where Clara and the others had made a stand. The dead were piled up, their skulls blown to pieces. Limbs twitched in the heaps, incapacitated but not fully destroyed. Andy pointed at the male scientist’s bare feet. “Don’t get bitten.”
Combined, they had killed the majority of the horde, now only stragglers remained dotted around the warehouses’ various playpens. They leaned against the netting, hissing at him, scrambling this way and that to find a path through. The real danger was coming from the entryway. Zombies roamed in, from the street, probably attracted by the sound of gunfire. There could be hundreds out there, more than the bullets they had.
Beside the entryway was a cafe area with an accessible roof. There was a crack of pistol fire from that side of the warehouse. Behind the cafe must be the trampoline park where Clara was. But before he relieved her, he had to make sure they weren’t going to get surrounded.
Unpinning three grenades at once, he slung them into the entrance doorway then darted behind a padded pillar. The explosion rang like thunder, reverberating around the steel walled warehouse, deep and bassy against all the foam padding. The entryway crumbed as the brickwork collapsed on the zombies coming through. He fired into the carnage, killing everything that still moved.
“Abigail is bitten,” Clara’s voice crackled over the radio. “I need backup. The trampoline park is-” She was cut off by the sound of gunfire.
Andy’s heart raced. He flew into action.