Omega Virus (Book 1): Beta Hour

by Jake A. Strife

Time ticked to a stop. Jeff stared at Mrs. Green slack-jawed, and Tiffany balled her hands into fists. Without a doubt, we all knew the undead truth.

  Why were we all just standing around? So much for normalcy at Milpeg High; Normalcy had fled and pissed its pants. Did the group need leadership? Someone to tell them to run? Zombie games were my thing, not real-life zombies. Why me? I wanted to run home and hide in my bed while my aunt boarded up the windows. Dave turned to me, shouting, but I couldn’t focus him. When Jessie screamed, and tears streaked her mascara, I snapped back to reality.

  Mrs. Green closed in as the dead students and faculty rose. There were more than a dozen of the creatures and, even more, were coming from down the alley in both directions. How had everything happened so fast?

  Decision time.

  “Run!” I shouted, and led the way around the building, waving them along.

  The others followed as I rushed into the courtyard and past the fountain.

  Screams now came from all over the city of Milpeg. Undead filled the streets, and the population of the living dropped while the number of the dead skyrocketed.

  Bungalows spotted the campus. Sure we could hide there, but it would be temporary at best. Without food and water, we’d die.

  At one point, I devised a plan for such a scenario, but now that the zombies had truly arrived, it seemed idiotic. Go to the pawnshop and steal guns? They were likely already gone.

  “Keep going!” Tiffany cried from the back of the pack.

  The zombies rounded the corner, reaching for us, and closing the gap fast. A horn blared from the road. I turned just in time to see an SUV hit a bump, and crash through a bus bench. Zombies clung to its sides, and for a brief moment, I saw the woman inside, being torn into by a zombie child.

  I dove at Jessie, pushing her out of the way. The vehicle flew over our heads and crashed into the courtyard fountain. From there it flipped and careened into a brick wall.

  The destroyed wall opened to the city streets, where scores of the undead lumbered.

  Jeff pulled Tiffany and Dave up, as the sounds of chaos reigned. Car horns blared, sirens rang out, and loud popping gunfire filled the morning air.

  I tried to remember. In zombie movies, how did they survive?

  They usually didn’t.

  What about games? I tried so hard to think, but Jessie screeched as a hand grabbed her ankle from behind a bush. I’d never moved so fast. I stomped and shattered the zombie’s wrist.

  I waved the Gamer’s Guild along. “This way!”

  We ran off-campus, searching for safety. Some place had to be defendable. As we made it to the main streets, the full devastation became known.

  We turned in full circles, staring at the smoke and fire plumes. Wrecked cars were all over. Some had zombies stuck inside, trying to get out; others had people inside, zombies trying to get in. A city lost to the undead.

  An engine revved a few streets over, followed by more popping sounds. Could it be the cops? Were they organizing an evacuation? If we could get to them, they could help.

  I led everyone to an alley across a street blocked off by wrecked cars, but halfway down, a horde of zombies appeared, blocking our path.

  “Go back!” I said.

  “W-we can’t!” Dave whined.

  We were trapped. More zombies were filling the alley from behind.

  “You’ve gotten us killed already, dumbass,” Tiffany said.

  “But it’s not his fault!” Jessie said. “Zach’s an expert on this!”

  Whoever's fault, we had no way out. In front, were zombies. To the left a building; to the right, the same, and behind us another horde. My leadership had doomed us; I just sucked that bad at life.

  Jessie, grabbed my arm again, and smiled through her tears. “What grade did you get on that report?”

  I swallowed hard. “I got a C.”

  Hearing her pity upset me; it made me more upset than the looming certainty of zombies ripping us apart.

  I couldn’t give up. I had to get us out. Only one other direction remained! The rooftops.

  Spinning to Jeff, I said, “Let’s boost everyone up!”

  Jeff cocked a brow. “Dude, what about us?”

  “They can pull us up!”

  “We don’t have time to--”

  “Just hurry!”

  Jeff cupped his hands, and Tiffany jumped. With the added boost, she grabbed the lip of the roof and pulled herself up. She reached back for Jessie, and then Dave followed. It took both girls to lift him.

  The zombies groaned, having come with a few yards on each side.

  Jeff regarded me, and I shrugged. “Jump!”

  The envelope of fate sealed with me between two zombie walls, but one had to be thinner.

  “No, Zach!” Jessie cried. “We can’t leave him!”

  “He made his choice.” Jeff argued.

  I didn’t look up. I couldn’t bear to see any more tears.

  Dave called down, “Don’t be a wuss! Fight!”

  “Right, fight,” I muttered.

  The moment of truth.

  Zombie's hands grabbed for me. With a deep breath, I shoulder rushed the thinner group. I connected with the first, and it toppled, creating a zombified domino effect. I kicked off the face of an undead woman, clearing the last of the horde. I landed in the street beyond.

  My brilliant plan reached its end; I stood on a blocked off street.

  I backed into a pileup of cars and watched as zombies came from both alleys. From above, the Gamer's Guild watched my every step.

  I tore my gaze away and swallowed hard. For all my gaming and planning, I'd lasted all of ten minutes in a real zombie attack. I always thought I would be ready, but then what did I have to lose?

  Go figure. Achievement unlocked; ‘Gain Some Friends’. And then die.

  If only I could manipulate the world, and save myself.

  A revving engine came from nearby. I turned, and a motorcycle ramped into the air, soaring above. My mouth fell open. The glare of the sun blocked out the rider, but I could see he held two rounded objects. He flicked something off of each and tossed them to the sides. Both bounced into the hordes. I sucked in my breath as zombie bits exploded every which way in a flash of flames.

  The rider jumped off the bike and let it skid into a pile of cars.

  A black, red-feathered fedora fell at my feet.

  The insane rider had trapped himself, for every remaining zombie went after him. Before one even got close, he whipped out dual pistols from hip holsters and went into action. Gunfire raged as zombie after zombie fell to his bullets. They didn’t know fear, so they kept going and dropped like flies. When the dust cleared, only one zombie stood.

  The man aimed his guns, and both clicked. Instead of reloading, he holstered the guns. His heavy boots clicked as he walked right up to the last undead.

  He pulled back his fist and clocked the zombie in the jaw. It hit the ground, and he stomped its skull, sending brain matter spewing. Without stopping, he walked right up to me.

  The badass looked like a walking weapon if nothing else. The guy wore a long black coat with daggers lining the sides. He had a shotgun strapped to his back, and the two empty handguns belted to his hips.

  He leaned down to scoop up the fedora, and dark red hair fell in his face. “Oops, dropped my zombie killing hat.”

  “Who the heck are you?” I asked.

  Bearing a cocky smile, he extended his hand.

  “Who am I?” He chuckled. “The name’s Wesley James, and you better remember it.”

  LEVEL 03 - GAME ON

  Wesley James saved my life, and I couldn’t find it in me to thank the bastard. He exuded cockiness. During the Zombie Apocalypse, it would only get people killed.

  Wesley spun in a full circle. “What do you think? Nice job, huh?”

  “You’re a badass!” Tiffany shouted. “I like badasses!”

  I rolled my eyes. So badasses were the type to make her swoon? For some re
ason, that bothered me.

  With an exaggerated bow, Wesley swept the Zombie Killing Hat from his head. “O, speak again, bright angel! For thou art as glorious to this night, being o’er my head, as a winged messenger of heaven into the white, upturned, wondering eyes of mortals that fall back to gaze on him when bestrides the lazy-puffing clouds and sails upon the bosom of air.”

  To my surprise, Jessie and Tiffany giggled. I really didn’t like that.

  Dave stood up and held out his arms. “Um, guys? You know, ZPoc and all!”

  “Seriously bro!” Jeff shouted. “Run now, flirt later!”

  Wesley chuckled. “Run? Fear not! I have a vehicle that will transfer us away from this zone.”

  “What zone? You’re acting like this a game!” I said. “One, you wrecked your bike. Two, we wouldn’t have all fit on it!”

  Wesley turned on me, eyes wide. “Did you think I meant you?”

  I balled my hands into fists, and it took every ounce of my self-control not to blast him in the face.

  Wesley placed his hat back on his head. “I saved you once! Once! That’s all you get! No more continues.”

  Grumbling, I walked up to the building. “Guys, pull me up. I’d like to leave now.”

  Tiffany reached down, and as I raised my arms, she pulled back.

  “Um, not you! I was trying to help Wes up.”

  “Are you serious? You’re giving him a nickname now?” I shouted.

  Jessie, small and frail, reached her hands down. “Don’t worry, Zach. I’ve got you.”

  Jeff kneeled next to her and offered a hand as well. Together they pulled me onto the roof. Tiffany struggled on her own to pull Wesley up, and she didn’t look happy about it.

  Leaving her to her complaining, I scanned the city streets, and my heart sank. The four of the five tall buildings Milpeg boasted were on fire. Cars continued to crash while civilians were run over and killed, perhaps on purpose. An old man limped along the sidewalk below. He spotted us and stopped. I opened my mouth to call out, but pursuing zombies leaped from between the buildings. He didn’t suffer for long; an ambulance sped by, splattering his remains.

  A tight knot formed in my chest.

  “This has to be a nightmare.”

  Jeff stepped beside me. “It’s real bro. You were right. We are crap deep in the Zombie Apocalypse.”

  “Duh, guys! We need to GTFO!” Dave said. “We need to find food, weapons, medical supplies, and more food!”

  Jessie appeared on my other side and slipped her hand into mine. “Where can we go to be safe?”

  I couldn’t lie to make her feel better. “There is no ‘safe’ anymore if this is really it; the ZPoc.”

  “Attention, my teenage friends!” Wesley announced. “For I have decided, with the kindness of my heart, that I’m inviting you to my safe house!”

  I turned. “Why aren’t you there already, moron?”

  “Hey! He just saved your life.” Tiffany barked.

  “On accident, I bet!”

  Wesley patted the air. “Now, now, I’m sure he didn’t mean to call his hero a moron!”

  “You’re not a hero!” I said. “You didn’t know I was there!”

  “You’d be surprised what I know.” Wesley chuckled.

  “What the hell were you doing anyhow?” Dave asked.

  “Um duh, killing zombies!” he pointed to his hat. “See the Fedora? The feather is red with the blood of zombies!”

  “I saw that hat on sale at the hipster store in the mall,” I countered.

  Wesley glanced to the side. “Hell nah. Blood. Enemies. Believe it.”

  A long moan reached us from the street below. The flattened old man stood, his arm severed, and his entrails hanging to the sidewalk.

  “There’s no time for this.” Dave stomped his foot. “There are goddamn zombies everywhere!”

  He spoke truth. The number of moans increased. Our raised voices had attracted unwanted attention.

  Wesley drew his twin pistols and thrust his wrists forward. From inside his sleeves came ammo clips. He crossed his arms in a quick motion and popped the cartridges into place.

  “Hold on,” He said, walking to the edge. “I’m about to get a new achievement; being a badass again.”

  Jeff grabbed his collar. “You mean achievement; the suicidal idiot.”

  “Yeah,” Dave said. “Show us the safe house first. Then feel free to get yourself eaten.”

  Tiffany smacked Dave in the back of the head. “No one is getting eaten.”

  “Ow!” Dave whined. “You’re abusive; ya know that?”

  “C’mon,” Wesley pulled away from Jeff. “Let me do my job so that I can brag to the others.”

  I crossed my arms. “What’re you, part of some secret zombie slaying army?”

  “Uh, no, that would be stupid,” He said. “I would have been pretty bored until not that long ago. Given there were no zombies.”

  “Then you’re secret service?” Jessie asked.

  For all I cared he could have been a billionaire, vigilante.

  I nearly fell over when I heard his answer.

  “I’m a game designer!”

  I snapped. “A gamer? We’re gamers, and we can't do what you just did! Have you been preparing since you were in diapers or something?”

  “Haven’t we all?”

  The moans came from just under the roof. They were amassing, waiting for their buffet.

  “Here!” Wesley thrust a pistol into my hand, and then the other into Jeff’s.

  I fumbled with the weapon. “What's this for?”

  Wesley drew his shotgun and walked to the opposite end of the roof.

  Tiffany took the pistol from my hand. “Give me that! I need some points too!”

  I groaned. “This is not a game! We’re not ready for this!”

  “I’m more prepared than a wet-behind-the-ears noob!” Tiffany threw a glare my way.

  “I’m not a noob!” I said.

  Jeff shrugged, following Tiffany and Wesley.

  Dave patted me on the back. “Don’t worry; we’ll protect you!”

  “I don’t need protecting!”

  Jessie stayed beside me, trembling. “I never thought this would happen.”

  “The ZPoc?” I asked.

  “Zombies are unreal.”

  “Don’t be afraid,” I put my hand on her shoulder. “I’ll protect you.”

  “I’m not afraid,” a small smile curled at the corners of her lips.

  “Then what?”

  She grinned. “I’m kind of excited.”

  My jaw dropped, and she giggled. She seemed serious. I loved killing zombies in games, but in real life, we were all truly noobs. I’d never even played paintball or laser tag.

  Seeing the zombies below, I wondered why she felt that way. Maybe she had a bad life at home?

  The ZPoc would save her from all of that. But what about me?

  On the other side of town, nestled in a small suburb, were my aunt and her husband. They weren’t bad people, but I had a feeling I wouldn't miss them. We didn’t talk much, and we merely co-existed.

  I wanted to try and talk myself into going for them, but in truth, they were probably already dead. Too late for them, too late for Milpeg, the virus could quickly spread beyond city boundaries, and onto every state and country. Too late for the world.

  I turned to find they were already on the next roof over. I stepped to the gap between buildings. The alley below had filled with moaning zombies. To fall would be game over.

  “It’s not hard.” Jessie waved.

  Wesley lifted his hands. “Just run, and jump. It’s simple!”

  “Even a noob can make it!” Dave called out. “But I’ll catch you. No worries.”

  He had no intentions of catching anybody. I pictured him reaching for me. I didn’t weigh much, even with my backpack, but it could be too much for him. He would just let go, and I would become zombie chow.

  Tiffany shouted. “Hurry or we
’re leaving you.”

  I backed up, muttering, “How did Dave make this jump?”

  With all my speed, I sped forward. The ledge came, and I jumped. I flew through the air, assaulted by the groaners below. I landed on the lip and started to fall back. I flailed about, but Jeff grabbed my shirt and pulled me to safety.

  “T-thank you,” I said.

  “Don’t mention it,” He replied. “Just return the favor one day, yeah?”

  We walked to the next edge and looked down onto the new street. Thanks to a flipped semi, there weren’t many zombies wandering around.

  Wesley climbed down. He turned and caught Tiffany after she jumped. He even caught Jessie. But when Dave dropped, Wesley pulled in his arms, and Dave landed on his face.

  “Jerk!” Dave cried.

  Jeff and I climbed down, landing softly in the grass.

  Wesley reached into his coat, and then passed each of us a combat dagger. “Remember. Aim for the head. And don’t waste bullets.”

  “Unless you’re looking to score some points.” I mocked.

  “Only professionals get points,” He said.

  “Professional jackasses.”

  “Shut up, already!” Tiffany snapped. “You’re getting on my nerves!”

  I bit my tongue, resisting another pointless argument.

  Wesley led us across the road in a single file line.

  Tiffany followed just behind him. “So, you work for which company?”

  “Epic Impossibilities Games,” Wesley said.

  It sounded familiar, but I couldn’t be sure.

  Dave asked. “Make anything good?”

  “Sure,” Wesley boasted. “Strange World, Severed Chains, and GodForge. We’re even working on this VR game, DarkDayz.”

  Despite being one of my favorite games, I wanted to throw away my Severed Chains t-shirt and burn it.

  We avoided being noticed as we snuck between trees, bushes, and cars. Wesley led us across town to the Tech District, all without incident.

  Wesley pointed out a building with the Epic Impossibilities sign. “We have a lot of food, weapons, and medical supplies.”

  “What kind of company hoards supplies?” Dave asked.

  “The smart kind!” Tiffany groaned.

  Her touchiness wore on my nerves.

  We walked across the final street and came up before the building. “We were prepared for End Game. It was part of the job requirement to bring in non-perishables every Monday.”