Omega Virus (Book 2): Gamma Hour

by Jake A. Strife

  I glanced back and saw he held a device; a plastic gun. He put it on my wound and pulled the trigger. For the briefest of moments, I felt the prick of a needle. After, I stared in awe as the skin bubbled and closed before my eyes.

  My jaw dropped. “What was that? I’ve seen nothing like that!”

  He held up the gun. “A little something I whipped up in my lab.”

  “In your lab? I needed that treatment earlier!”

  He shrugged. “It wasn’t tested yet.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Wait, you injected me with something that wasn’t tested?”

  “In humans! It worked in the undead rats, so you know, why not?”

  “No more foot for you!” I pulled it back, looking at the top and bottom. On both sides, a scab had formed and stopping the bleeding.

  “What if I like, grow a sixth toe?”

  “Then you’ll be a toe cuter!” He grinned.

  Despite his appeal, I had to focus. I couldn’t think of romance. Not until I dealt with the sibling freaks.

  The far side of the car swung open. Two muscle heads stepped into the car. They were both wearing tank tops, showing off their guns, and their AR-15 rifles.

  “The jerk patrol” Mikey slumped his shoulders. “Stay quiet until they pass.”

  With a quick nod, I stared into Mikey’s eyes. They were so childish, I couldn’t look away. He smiled again, and he had the whitest teeth of anyone I’d seen since even before the ZPoc.

  That’s when the smell of rotting death filled the train car. My eyes moved to the door. The bastards had a pet...

  Behind them came the form of a skeletal-skinny, shirtless, leather coated corpse, complete with long bony claw-fingers; another level four.

  My eyes widened, and I looked back to Mikey in horror. He smiled and mouthed something, but I couldn’t read lips. It could have been, “Nice knowing you.”

  “Come on everyone! Look alive!”

  His loud shout made me jump.

  I swallowed hard. As the trio got closer, the stench of death became worse. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched the corpse walk the train. It stretched its arms, claws coming within inches of each person’s nose. Every few feet, the corpse spun on a scientist, sniffing in their scent.

  Each victim started in fear and drew a laugh from one or both of the soldiers.

  The shorter one waved his gun. “Come on, everybody! I want someone to make a wrong move! I wanna see Demi tear you a new one!”

  Anger bubbled within me. They had given the monster a name. Mog appeared in my mind. Had he survived the assault by the level fours? I left him facing two! A strong guilt crossed through my gut.

  That feeling ended as the soldiers walked past me. They said nothing, but Demi stopped. It didn’t look at me but sniffed the air.

  Mikey’s features changed from calm to confused. Any confidence I had, deflated.

  “What you find, Demi?” The tall soldier’s eyes darted.

  The corpse turned, gazing with blind eyes, sniffing at Mikey. Then it turned. With fear, I looked into the empty sockets.

  “Demi has a problem with this little girl!” Shorty pointed his gun at me. “This chica will get it now!”

  Beads of sweat rolled from my forehead, and I reached for my handgun. A drop ran to my nose and hung on the tip. If it fell, I feared I’d die.

  Demi leaned in close, sniffing my hair and then across my chest, up to my eye level and stopped. Our faces were only an inch apart. I sucked in my breath and froze. I could have passed for a statue.

  Demi reached out with its claws and hooked a finger around a lock of my hair, bringing it right up to its nose slits.

  A whimper escaped my lips as Demi opened its mouth wide and putrid smells poured over me. The level four corpse hissed, and I cried out, grabbing my gun. It recognized me as an impostor. My executioner lifted a clawed hand and aimed at me. Unable to shoot in time, I stared death in the face.

  LEVEL 22:

  DISRUPTION

  Demi’s bone claws were level with my eyes. My heart froze, and it hissed, bringing back its hand. It stabbed. The train lurched, flinging me to the side. I screamed, spun, and tumbled across startled scientists. Everyone landed in a pile of flailing limbs and curses.

  “Veronica!” Mikey’s voice came as my head spun.

  An explosion shook everything again. I squeezed from the pile, my eyes darting. Demi vanished. Corpses didn’t flee, so where the hell did it go?

  The two muscle-bound soldiers struggled to stand. They tried to use each other for leverage but kept falling.

  “What the hell was that?”

  “I don’t know! Let me go, idiot!”

  Despite the shaking, the train hadn’t derailed and still raced the tunnel, continuing to pick up speed. Mikey appeared above me. He reached out his hand and pulled me to my feet.

  “What’s happening?” I tripped backward but Mikey caught my arm.

  He held me steady. “It has to be the intruders! They’re attacking!”

  Another explosion shook the train, and the lights dimmed, replaced by emergency floor lights. I cursed and sought to move, but Mikey clutched my wrist.

  “Stop, I need to get back there!” He held too strong for me to pull away.

  “Nothing’s there except experiments and ammo.”

  “The ammo cars just exploded! My friends could be amongst the experiments!”

  Confusion crossed his face. “Your friends?”

  A quick glance showed Demi hadn’t returned. It’d likely gone to handle the attackers. The soldiers were back on their feet, holding their rifles. They stood back to back, aiming as if expecting something to attack.

  I narrowed my eyes. “We have to get by them!”

  Mikey tried to argue, but I pulled free and ran toward the back.

  A soldier spotted me. “No one goes anywhere!”

  I skidded to a stop and held up my hands. “My… My experiments! They’re in the back car!”

  “So?” Shorty shoved the gun’s end into my face.

  “What if they get free?” I bluffed. “The level fives aren’t controllable yet!”

  The soldier’s eyes widened. “Level five?”

  Mikey appeared beside me, and the soldiers aimed at him, unsure of what to do. They pointed the weapons at me again and furrowed their brows.

  “I’m her assistant.” Mikey’s calm demeanor convinced me.

  Again, the train swayed under the force of an explosion. In the distraction, I darted past the soldiers and Mikey followed.

  “Come back!”

  “Let ‘em go! I don’t want no level fives getting free!”

  With a whisper of thanks to the gaming gods, I hurried to the back and pulled open the door. A gap separated the train cars. Wind whipped by and threatening to sweep me away into the never-ending tunnel. My coat and hair flapped around, smacking me in the face as I measured the distance with my foot; I jumped.

  Mikey screamed, but the wind drowned his voice.

  I turned, and the wind stopped tugging at my hair. In fact, I felt lighter. I reached for my ponytail and it wasn’t there. The son of a bitch severed my hair to shoulder length!

  My eyes shot up, and I found the level four, Demi, on top of the train, its head tilted my way. A gasp slipped between my lips as Mikey leaped across the gap and pushed me into the next car. He slammed the door behind him.

  I grabbed at my remaining locks. “That bastard cut my hair! I haven’t cut it in four years!”

  Mikey exhaled and shook his head. “How about a thank you?”

  I didn’t give a damn.

  Huge crates and steel boxes lined the walls, with others in the middle, fallen over and spilling their contents.

  Mikey stepped in front of me. “Veronica, why is Demi after you? It didn’t recognize your scent!”

  I shook my head and shrugged. “I used a different shampoo.”

  “We’re put into the system by our natural scents. Every one of us. We’re categor
ized so that the level fours don’t attack!”

  I ignored him and squatted, reading the label on one of the smaller crates “What’s that?”

  “Vitamins!” Mikey put his hand on my shoulder. “Don’t change the subject! Who are you?”

  I spun on my heel and scowled. “Can we talk about this later? Just go back to the passenger car! You’re gonna get yourself killed!”

  “No, Veronica! I dislike G.O.D. Mode as much as the next guy, but at least you can do is tell me what you’re doing!”

  “See? You already know I don’t belong! And my name isn’t Veronica!”

  The entire car shook, sending crates flying and shifting. I spun away avoiding being crushed by the largest.

  “Why are they attacking? Do they want to derail us? Dammit, Zach, I’m on this train!”

  “Zach? You’re with them?” Mikey reached his epiphany. “You’re a member of Devil Code!”

  “I’m with the Gamers’ Guild. If they join with this Devil Code, then so will I.” I sprinted across the car.

  “Dammit, wait! What’s your name?”

  I arrived at the end and threw the door wide. Without stopping, I leaped across and flung open the next door, ducking inside before Demi found me.

  Mikey rushed in after me. I spun, ready to curse him out, to tell him to leave me alone, but he grappled me and slapped his hand over my mouth. I wanted to scream, but the look in his eyes showed pure fear. He looked past me. I turned to follow his gaze to find a terrible sight.

  The walls held different cargo. Strapped onto each side, standing shoulder to shoulder, were corpses. Not just any corpses, but level fours. Their heads hung to bare skeletal chests. None were moving save their swaying necks. The explosions rocking the train hadn’t awoken them.

  Mikey leaned close and put his lips to my ear. “Scent. It’s their sense of smell that wakes them up and makes them hunt.”

  I gulped and nodded. Mikey released me, and I hesitated before taking another step. Demi had detected I didn’t belong. This car had forty Demis; I was in trouble, but I needed to get past them to the experiment car.

  I sucked in a deep breath and took a stride into the gauntlet of corpses. No sooner than I had taken ten careful steps in, did one lift its head and sniff the air.

  I quickened my pace. To make matters worse, sweat formed over every inch of my body. If I didn’t calm myself, they’d wake.

  Another level four raised its head, turning in both direction. A claw slashed out, and I pulled my head back, but one slashed from the other side, and I ducked.

  Mikey waved his arms. “Just run!”

  With any speed I could muster, I bolted across the train, zigzagging. A claw caught my lab coat and spun, letting it go.

  Mikey followed, right on my heels. He didn’t need to come. No, he needed screamed at for being so stupid. I had to focus on myself!

  The exit door shined with hope. I came within several feet, but the last two corpses swung out their arms at the same time. Never athletic, I’d still played a softball game or two, so I slid, going under both attacks.

  My glasses fell away, as I scrambled, reaching and finding a thin cut near my temple. Blood dripped out, and the corpses went wild; hissing and screeching.

  I grabbed the door handle but stopped. Why didn’t I hear Mikey? I spun and found him standing just a few feet away, right past the final corpses. He looked at me, his eyes blank.

  I waved. “Come on, man!”

  He continued to look without speaking or moving. My heart cracked as I recognized the empty stare.

  “Not again...”.

  Blood ran to the nape of his neck, and his head toppled off his shoulders. He collapsed in a heap.

  “Dammit! I told you not to follow!”

  He hadn’t been a friend, colleague, or much else, but he’d saved my life and tried to aid my mission. Another death to weigh on my heart. Sighing, I left the car of wild, clawing corpses. They needed to die, but I didn’t have the time. If I stopped, Mikey’s death was in vain. G.O.D. Mode, or not, he had been a good person.

  Outside, I moved for the door, and felt a presence lingering. I pulled back at the last second as Demi’s claw swiped. It leaped over to my side, and stabbed, but I jumped across, pulled the door open and dove. The level four’s arm came in after me. I tripped and turned back, kicking the door, but the skeletal arm kept fighting. A growl built in my belly. I kicked harder, again and again, but Demi didn’t plan on quitting.

  Another explosion rocked everything. I didn’t understand how, but the train held together. Demi pulled his arm away, giving me the chance to slam the door shut. I slid the lock bar.

  When I turned, I found faces peeking back. Human prisoners stared through the bars of a big cage that took up most of the car. Each person stared out with depression. Two appeared, pushing past the others.

  Dyonna and Arik came to the front, and their mouths fell open.

  “Tiffany!” Arik held the bars. “Is it you?”

  “Girlo, I’m glad to see your face!” Dyonna shook her head. “You can’t get the cage open without the key card!”

  “Those sick bastards gave it to this bizarre corpse. They called it Demi!”

  Dread spread through my being. A battle with a level four... Even Mog feared such a strong corpse. What chance did I have?

  A lump formed in my throat and I patted my holster, making sure I had a gun. “I’ll handle it.”

  Arik grabbed my hand. I met his gaze and saw the pain in his eye. “Have you seen Charles? Tell me my best friend is okay!”

  My heart broke. How could I tell him? My eyes said enough. Arik released my arm and fell to a sitting position.

  Charles and Arik, best friends; they only had one another, even since before the ZPoc. Everyone had lost a person dear to their hearts. A return trip to Milpeg wasn’t needed to know my parents were dead. I’d never see them again, and I’d never mourned. Maybe one day I’d regret it, but for now, strength was my salvation.

  As I walked away, Dyonna called after me, “Girlo, whatever you do, don’t die! You’re only hope.”

  I glanced over my shoulder at the cage. Twenty or more survivors of every generation stood there. Each might’ve become an experiment.

  An old man and I met eyes. “Good luck...”

  “I know you can save us!” A girl of Kiki’s age wore a hopeful grin.

  A cacophony of reinforcement followed. For the briefest of moments, I pictured my mom’s face, and then my dad. I closed my eyes as tears threatened to form. I didn’t deserve to cry. Things weren’t over yet, but as I gripped the gun in my holster, the tears poured forth, filling the dried basin of my tear ducts. The rainstorm came, ending the drought in Tiffanyland.

  I held my gun. Nowadays, it held the most power. One shot could end the life of anyone and cause their friends and family pain. It could end a corpse if aimed at the head. But killing the undead was different. A single shot caused my several months bout of pain; a faked suicide.

  Just because Zach fired a gun, a bullet, into the heads of crazy men at the 7n20, didn’t mean he’d become a monster. I was the complete and total coward. The object of my heart... If I’d only had faith in him.

  No more fear. Even though the monster I was meant to face wasn’t alive, I knew if I’d fired the shot before, I could have saved Kiki.

  I took my first step to embracing the gun, embracing the bullet, the shot. The time to claim my role in the Apocalypse. No more running; not from corpses, zombeasts, or psychopaths. Tiffany the Coward existed no longer. The time of Tiffany; Zombie Hunter, had come.

  LEVEL 23:

  THE HUNTER

  I checked the pistol I’d stolen from the scientist at the lab; HP Browning 9mm. The door stood before me; a looming monster. When I stepped through, I’d face Demi, the evolved corpse. With a deep sigh, I unlatched the door and closed my eyes, preparing myself to punch death in its grinning face.

  “Here I go.” I pulled the door open.

&nb
sp; The wind rushed in and the train horn blared. I didn’t know if we’d outrun the attackers, but for the moment, the explosions had ceased. Did they realize we had survivors on board?

  I stepped out and shut the door. To my left, a ladder led to the train top; I swallowed hard. Demi stalked nearby.

  I grabbed the first rung. “You can do this, Tiffany.” I began my climb.

  Although only a dozen feet up, it took forever. Not to mention, inside I was a dead girl walking.

  I crawled onto the roof and braced myself against the strong wind. I crouched and had to balance, one wrong step and I’d die. Demi wasn’t on the cars ahead, nor on the ones in back.

  “Where are you?”

  I walked back and found the damage Zach’s group had caused. The bottom half of the last car remained attached, but nothing else. The train tunnel was empty.

  “Kinda hoped you’d be around, Zach... You promised if the zombies ever came you’d save me.”

  The stench of rot struck me. Every sense went on alert. I was downwind of the undead! I spun and fired. Demi, standing a few feet away, took two bullets to the chest, but didn’t notice. I rolled out of the way as the corpses claws stabbed where I’d been. Its momentum caused it to stumble toward the edge.

  “No!”

  If Demi fell, I’d never get the key card. But it took care of itself by sinking in its claws. The wind pulled Demi back, leaving a trail of deep gashes in the roof. It shrugged off its coat and hissed in my direction.

  The tides had turned, now I stood upwind of Demi the corpse. Sure enough, it caught my scent. A long smile cracked across its face, its fangs hanging from the roof of its mouth. Its jaw unhinged as it opened wider.

  It unleashed a scream so loud, a sonic blasted me out of my flops. I landed on my ass, skidding toward the side. My gun slid past my legs but I grabbed it in between the arches of my feet. I sat straight. Demi had vanished again.

  I leaned forward and seized the handgun, but I stayed on my back aiming and waiting for it to pop up and attack.

  Claws shot out of the roof, catching my shirt sleeve and slicing right through it. I rolled away, dodging another set of lethal daggers.

  Demi was inside with the other level fours! My chance at survival plummeted.