Omega Virus_Beta Hour

by Jake A. Strife

  I skidded to a stop. The Creeper looked at me. I couldn’t see its face, but I could feel its eyes, staring into my soul, sizing me up, deciding whose side I fought on.

  “I’m not with them,” I whispered.

  As if it heard me, the Creeper leaped across the street and ran up the side of the building, completely defying gravity. I watched him go and disappear over the rooftop, five stories up.

  The night returned to silence. The base sat just a few blocks, but Red and Blue said no one could get in without an ID badge. I saw no way around it. Even though fear riddled my being, I had to go into that alley. Swallowing hard, I made my way forward to where Red had dropped his rifle.

  Slowly, I kneeled down and picked up the gun, then inched toward the alley.

  When I made it to the corner, I peeked in. The moon shone down just enough to let my eyes see shapes. S several feet off the ground, a body hung from the wall covered in some kind of gunk. I could make out Red's mohawk. I didn't see Blue anywhere.

  My heart pounded as I stepped inside, gun at the ready. The path only stood five feet across, which didn't leave a lot of room to maneuver. As I reached Red, I could see the ID badge hanging from the lanyard. He'd tied it to his belt. Still I couldn't reach it. Lucky for me a dumpster sat right next to him. I strapped the gun to my back and climbed up.

  Red's head hung to his chest; throat ripped out. I almost felt sorry for the poor bastard. I came to the edge of the dumpster and stood on my tip-toes. I reached up.

  “Come on,” I whispered. “Just a couple more inches.”

  My fingertips grazed the bottom of the badge, and it swung away.

  “Dammit!” I hissed.

  I grabbed the wall and tried to find a handhold so I could get just a bit closer. I stretched until it hurt. The badge swung toward me, and I grabbed on.

  Red's eyes shot open, and a groan escaped his throat.

  I cried out and fell backward into the open section of the dumpster. I stared up in horror, watching the Red-turned corpse thrash about behind the gunk that pinned him to the wall. The dumpster lid fell shut, and I could still hear him.

  I sighed deeply and reached to open the lid when the rumble of hundreds of groans came from just outside. I could hear the Corpses stumbling through the alley, pounding on the outside of the dumpster. Where had they come from? It didn't matter. They'd trapped me like a sardine.

  “Oh no.” I gasped.

  I held the gun close to my chest, and I could only listen to the echoes of the undead pounding on my tomb. Now, they only had to wait until I came out, and they could wait forever. Unfortunately for me, I didn't have that luxury.

  LEVEL 27 – VENTING

  I couldn't escape. If I didn’t die of starvation first, I would eventually go mad. The Corpses groaned and pounded filling me to the brim with panic-stricken anxiety. I couldn’t breathe, and the putrid stink of old garbage didn't help.

  I wanted to shout for help, but no one would hear. As any normal teenage boy would do, I huddled into a corner and began to sob. The overwhelming truth that my world had been destroyed consumed me. I would never play video games again, I would never kiss Jessie again.

  “What did I do to deserve this?” I whimpered.

  My mind flashed to when Tiffany and Wesley were tied up back in the 7n20. I had managed to help them free, I had taken a life for the first time. Had karma brought its hammer down upon me? No, such things didn't exist. I'd become a victim of circumstance; bad luck on an extreme level. My luck had always been bad I had never won a single thing in my life. I sucked at competitive gaming. Useless! That described me to a T.

  Jessie flashed into my mind. The way she looked that first day, so pretty. She had rosy cheeks with dimples, and such pretty red hair. After being infected with the Omega Virus, she'd become pale like a Corpse; with blue lips and eyes that looked dead. There she lay, dying in an apartment, all alone, and I could do nothing to help her. If only I could get the vaccine, but that would take a miracle! Some kind of divine intervention.

  Just then the dumpster rocked so hard I flipped upside down. Three more explosions went off outside, and the dumpster did a barrel roll. I came flying out, skidding away from the fiery maelstrom of explosions that continued to go off in the alley. I stared with huge eyes. Grenades rained down from the rooftops, and the Corpses were being blown to pieces.

  Looking up, I saw several shadows leaning over, dropping the bombs. When one saw me staring, it alerted the others, and they vanished. A group of Creepers had intervened.

  “They saved me.” I breathed.

  I stood, picked up my assault rifle and Dr. Belmont's ID badge. For whatever reason, the mysterious group of Creepers had taken it upon themselves to intervene in my death, or maybe they just wanted the Corpses dead. Either way, I'd been given my chance. I turned and ran toward Monroe Street.

  I passed the first block, ignored the shamblers, and continued on. More of the rotting creatures were standing around a four-lane road. I easily dodged between them as they lifted their arms, coming up far too short. Thankfully none of them were of the running, screaming, or stretching variety.

  I reached the next block and skidded to a stop. The street sign read ‘Monroe Street.' On the corner sat a liquor store and the address, 3000. That meant the lab had to be near. I ran down the street to a dead end. I found a rundown building matching the address 3440. It looked like a defunct mess. Graffiti covered the outside, and the windows were dark and speckled in grime. No one could’ve guessed it to be a lab, or even a game development company.

  I approached the front door, and red laser dot appeared on the ground in front of me. A low humming and clicking sound came first, then a sudden flash of light. A machine gun fired off from a turret above the front door. The bullet trail tore up the road before me. Instinct alone saved me as I dove behind a pair of mailboxes.

  The machine gun fire continued for a few seconds and then cut off. I took a deep breath and peeked around the corner. As a gamer, how could I have missed an automatic turret?

  I leaned further out, and the gunfire commenced again. I snapped my head back into hiding, and it stopped. I found myself sucking in my breath. How had Red and Blue come to and from the facility without becoming Swiss cheese?

  Motion activated the turret, and again, I couldn't find a single thing to throw. The street looked cleaned out and had no way to sneak to the door.

  “How did you get in?” I asked.

  Somehow I had to disable the defenses. The building before me had a fire escape leading up to the roof, three stories up. That wouldn’t work. I would be riddled with bullets by the time I’d made it. I held the ID badge in my hand and flipped it over. The back had the address and something behind more damn stickers. I dug my nail into them and pulled them off one by one until finally I reached the bottom layer, and underneath it, a single line, ‘Present ID at front door.'

  I glanced over my shoulder to the street. The machine gun couldn’t have been setup before everything went to crap. That would definitely have constituted more than a disturbance of the peace. But according to the badge, if I presented it, I would get in. The idea seemed insane, but I had to risk it. I risked a lot for Jessie.

  With all the bravery I could muster, I spun around the side of the mailbox, holding the ID out before me. The rotating gun came to life as I stood with nothing but hope. It continued to hum but didn’t fire. I swallowed hard and took a few steps forward; the gun kept making the agonizing sound. I sped up and rushed under its range. I breathed a sigh of relief as the steel door slid to the side.

  The light from inside blinded me. I raised my arm to block the glare and walked inside. I felt as if I were walking into a UFO, the walls and floor were so white.

  The doors slid shut behind me, which nearly caused me to jump out of my skin.

  Holding up my rifle, I moved forward, also still holding out the badge. I scanned each side of the hall as I went, looking for traps. Maybe, I'd played too many video g
ames? It had made me paranoid. I started to step onto a tile and felt it begin to sink in. Pulling back, I froze, ready to dive, duck or even jump, but nothing happened. I kneeled down to the tile. It seemed to be loose. A glowing light blinked underneath the cracks. I couldn’t be sure, but it might have been a land mine built into the floor, or maybe even a trigger to another booby trap? I didn’t know, but from that point on, I stuck to the wall and took each step carefully.

  At the end, I found a lobby. Benches lined the walls, which were surrounded by a security desk. The walkway ran around behind the desk and disappeared behind another wall. No one stood watch.

  “Did you hear that?” A girl’s voice echoed from nearby.

  “Yeah, Pink, sounds like the security system again?” A guy suggested.

  “Green, I just wanna check to make sure.” She continued.

  My throat clenched as I looked for a hiding place. Straight to my right I spotted a sign for the Woman’s Restroom. I darted toward the door and pushed it open, spinning in and slowly setting it into place behind me. I put my ear up against the door.

  “The cameras check out,” Pink said. “Nothing was out there.”

  “Maybe it was just a stray dog?” Green said. “It was nothing! Let’s get back to the sack.”

  “You know the animals have all been collected already. I don’t know why I associate with you.” She replied.

  “Babe, we do more than associate!” He chuckled.

  “I have to piss, first.”

  “So lady-like!”

  I kept my ear to the door for a moment then realized I had hidden in the Women’s Restroom, and she had to piss. I cursed and spun on my heel. I flew for the last stall and ducked inside. I locked the door and climbed on the toilet seat.

  The restroom door creaked open, and the girl’s boots clacked on the tile floor. She walked past the first three stalls. I held my breath. Did she come for mine? As she opened the next door, I breathed a sigh of relief.

  There are awkward things in the world, I have to say, but for me, none like hearing a girl do her business. Closing my eyes, I shook my head and continued to hold my breath.

  When the toilet flushed, I felt as if I'd relieved myself. Strangely, this building had functional plumbing, whoever these people really were; they had it good in a desolate world.

  The woman didn’t even have her pants up before the bathroom door opened again.

  “Pink Baby, I just can’t wait!” The guy said. “There are a dozen other guys who could be checking out the security cameras. Not to mention Red and Blue should be back soon!”

  “Fine, dude.” She said. “I’m in the stall over here.”

  “Oh hell yes.” He replied.

  The guy walked in further and didn’t stop at her stall; instead, he stopped outside of mine. He tried the handle but the door held, and my heart stopped.

  “What the hell?” He said. “You tease me and lock your door.”

  “No in here!” she snapped.

  Her stall squeaked open, and he went in. I'd previously thought nothing more awkward than hearing a girl's business, but hearing two people doing it in the next stall took the cake. A sudden draft of cold air hit the top my head, and I looked up to find an open ventilation shaft. Not a huge one, but I could fit in, I just had to be quiet in doing so.

  As crude noises erupted from the stall next to me, I tried not to think about what they were doing. I looked up, and reached my fingers into the grooves of the shaft, then I lifted myself a few inches and braced my foot carefully against the wall.

  I wrenched my hand up into the shaft and pulled myself. My foot slid and in a panic I kicked the side of the stall hard. I froze. To my surprise, the noises from next door continued as they slammed into the walls themselves. They hadn’t even noticed. I whispered a silent prayer to the Gaming Gods as I braced my foot again and climbed all the way in.

  The shaft turned out to be so small I had to crawl on my hands and knees, but it proved better than being trapped next to a couple having way too much fun in the ZPoc.

  I found myself crawling past another vent opening; this one had the hatch on, but I could see into the room. Peeking through, I found a room with a long table, surrounded by five people in black hooded cloaks. Had I happened upon a satanic cult? All but one of them had their hoods up. The one who didn't looked no older than me. In fact, he looked like me, with dirty blonde hair and a rounded face. I couldn’t get a better look; he sat the farthest away, but it felt like I looked into a blurry mirror.

  An old voice spoke up from the very center of the table. The voice came from a contraption that looked like a circular phone base, but a blue column of light erected from it. The light twitched and flickered.

  “Grandson.” The old man’s voice spoke. “The first stages of the virus are going wonderfully. I am proud of you.”

  “Thank you, Grandfather.” My doppelganger said.

  “Your scientist, Dr. Belmont, has done well in modifying the virus, and the animal collection has gone stupendously.”

  “Yes.” The teen called Grandson said. “We've done our very best.”

  “Then this meeting is adjourned.” The old man sounded tired.

  “Wait!” Grandson shouted.

  “What is it?” The old man grumbled as the heads of the other figures turned to the young man.

  “Grandfather, what is to be done with the Creepers?” Grandson asked. “They're constantly trying to find their way into the facility.”

  “Grandson, are these Creepers not your product?” Grandfather asked.

  “Yes, sir.” He replied.

  “Then you are tasked with dealing with them. They are a product of the failed experiments. Do not let them destroy the vaccine.”

  “It is not like I meant to create viral hybrids!” Grandson slammed his fists on the table.

  “Don't throw a tantrum. Think of them as toys to test the new Lv03s on.”

  “The Lv03s are in short supply, and they seem blind to the Creepers. Gramps, you need to help!”

  “Respect your elders!” A cloaked woman interjected.

  “Sorry!” Grandson sarcastically said.

  Grandfather cleared his throat. “This meeting is adjourned. To the rest of the family, I wish you to return to your thresholds. Grandson, finish up your business here and return to the Gulf of Mexico Base. Await further orders there.”

  “Yes, sir.” Grandson grumbled. “I will retrieve the vaccine from Dr. Belmont and leave ASAP.”

  I silently cursed to myself. If I didn't find Dr. Belmont first, this Grandson guy would take the vaccines.”

  The blue light went out, and the group stood. One pair walked to Grandson as the others left through a double door on the far side of the room.

  “How dare you speak to Grandfather like that!” The hooded man said.

  “He is old and has lost sight of our mission!” Grandson shot back.

  “Do not take that tone.” The woman snarled.

  “Sorry!” Sarcasm again.

  “My apologies for interrupting.” A man said from the far side of the room.

  I looked over and saw him. He wore a long white lab coat. I recognized his face from the ID badge and video, Dr. Belmont.

  Grandson pushed past the cloaked figures, who turned and walked out after the others.

  “Actually thank you.” Grandson said. “You got me out of a boss battle.”

  “I have good news, Young Master,” Belmont said.

  “The vaccine?”

  “It is complete and in the lab. There are three vials of pure vaccine and one of the partial one. None of which have been clinically tested.”

  “Partial?” Grandson asked. “I asked you to make four copies of the pure one, you moron! I swear the Gaming Gods should curse you!”

  “But Young Master!” He pleaded. “The temporary one was all I could make with the Omega Strain. If I had the Alpha strain I—”

  “You know Alpha Patient Zero was hidden away by Beauregar
d!” Grandson pointed a finger in the doctor’s face. “You screwed up.”

  My head spun due to all this new information. Beauregard? Alpha Patient Zero?

  “I’m so sorry!” Belmont sounded terrified.

  “Don’t worry. You can redeem yourself.”

  Out of nowhere the long wail of a siren went off. Red lights flashed above the doors in the room.

  “The Creepers!” Belmont said. “They’re here!”

  “No worries.” Grandson grinned. “We’re abandoning this base. Leave our little gamer soldiers to fight it out and kill as many Creepers as possible. Let’s get the vaccines then head to the Gulf Base.”

  I watched the pair leave as the sound of gunfire filled the building.

  LEVEL 28 – THIEF

  In the halls beneath me, the Creepers were invading G.O.D. Mode Games. I'd risked my life this far, I had to keep with the bad habit, and follow Grandson. If he and Dr. Belmont got away with the vaccine, Jessie's fate would be sealed.

  I twisted in the shaft, aimed my foot at the hatch, and kicked with all my might. The hatch dented out, the gunfire and alarms drowned out the sound. I kicked again, and the hatch snapped off, clattering to the floor. Again I twisted and lowered myself from the vent. I landed in a crouch and glanced around the room.

  On each end of the long table, were doors. In each corner of the room were statues of game characters from upcoming games; an ebon-skinned girl with dual flintlocks pointed out, a large robot with a mighty hammer over its shoulder, a guy that looked like a roach hybrid holding a French baguette, and a girl with angel wings. All of my favorite game companies were under the umbrella of this evil company, and it disgusted me.

  Outside, the alarm continued to blare, but the gunfire lessened. The building shook so hard I nearly toppled over. The Creepers weren't screwing around.

  With my gun drawn, I rushed to the exit Grandson, and Belmont used. The door slid open, and I ran out into the hall. Looking both ways, I found a figure shambling at one corner a dozen yards away. A Corpse, which meant there, were more around.