100 Systems Invasion

7. Infectore

Wind breezed past from the half opened window of Amy’s second-hand car. Wade’s smoke dispersed right away, leaving no air pollution in the back seat. Seth’s entire body was rigid with dreaded expectation.

[Welcome to the end of the world.]

Still appeared on his screen. Typed in simple font with futuristic blue background. The clock ticked, but nothing extraordinary happened.

Seth didn’t know how to feel about this. Amy’s anticipation of an epic mad story to tell could be dwindling any second now. However, trepidation soon washed over him as police sirens sounded from the road ahead, casting red and blue lights amongst the bottleneck of cars.

Dong!

[Failed to send Love is Everything! Survival Kit due to unexpected increase of activity in the System's database.]

[The System will try again within 48 hours with a bonus package.]

Huffing in displeasure, Seth pocketed his phone again. 

Wade turned to face him, scrutinising his pale face and bloody clothes. “Dude, you’re the runaway killer, aren’t you?”

He should at least change. “Give me your hoodie.”

The chainsmoker scoffed. “My hoodie isn’t gonna change your face.” And he smiled. “But, this will do.”

“Argh!”

A punch landed on his nose. Again, not even twenty four hours since the one from his ex, Sarah, last afternoon.

“The fuck you do!”

“For your own good, man.” Wade shrugged. “Unless, this is what you want to tell me? Is this it?”

Amy looked at her cousin. “Just wait and see.”

Twenty minutes of hellish queue later, two police came up and knocked on Amy’s window. The one with a heavy beard asked, “Where are you heading, miss?”

The sandy blonde answered in a bubbly tone. “Cold Spring. Just visiting our grandma, camping a little on the weekend.” She said without any discussion.

The other police, one with far too much muscle mass for his height, inquired after. “Who are you going with?”

“My cousins.”

“Name?”

“Amy Palmer,” the sandy blonde pointed with manicured fingers. “This is Wade, Howard, and the little one, Marnie.”

At least, she didn’t call out Seth’s first name. He closed his eyes, then buried himself in Marnie’s furry, pink blanket to cover his bloody clothes. Feigning asleep, he closed his eyes against the police’s torch.

“What’s wrong with his face?” The bearded uni gestured to Seth’s bruised nose, now stuffed up with tissue.

“The kid got into a fight in school with her bully. Holden doesn’t like it, so he went to the bully’s home and started a fight with her father. You know how it goes.” The police officers probably didn’t believe that, so she added, “You should see the other guy.”

The muscled police pulled up his phone, showing a picture taken a few hours ago. “Have you seen this guy?”

“No,” Amy lightly replied. “What’s with him?”

“Seth Holden is a suspect for the Heatz café accident.”

Oh, he’s a suspect now? Seth obviously did not mind being called a suspect. But they surely did not treat him as such.

“Too bad, we don’t know him.”

The police nodded, about to move out to the car behind them. However, the bearded one stalled. “What’s the kid’s name again?”

“Marnie.” Amy said, meeting the police’s gaze with ease. She didn’t expect his next question.

“You mean Marnie Witherspoon?”

“I don’t–“

“Aaaaaargh!”

“Help!”

“Get away from him!”

Commotion broke from the car behind them. The police hurried to reach there, leaving Seth and the others free from their scrutiny.

“What’s that?” Amy peered from her seat, turning her back to get a clear look of what happened behind.

Seth pulled off the blanket, catching someone running from a cab with a gash on her forehead. Tailing on her heels was a man with a strange expression. Mouth wide opened and hands flailed by his side, he scrambled like a drunken man on a sprint.

“Help!”

The woman threw herself to the police. The muscled uni took out his gun, pointing it at the stumbling weird man. “Stop right there and put your hands up!”

Dong!

Seth took his phone at the notification tone, seeing what was displayed on the screen.

[1infectore in 30 feet radius detected.]

“Infectore?” Seth narrowed his eyes. Could it be the term for that stumbling, drunk man who mindlessly chased after the woman?

Things instantly escalated when the drunk man refused to cease his movement and bit the muscled police.

“Shit, man! Did you see that?” Wade laughed as he watched the police try to get the drunk man’s teeth away from him.

[2 infectores in a 30 feet radius detected.]

Seth frowned at the update. Looking out behind the sandy blonde’s car, he was startled that the woman with gashed forehead was behaving similarly to the drunken man. She stumbled on her feet and bit the bearded police officer's arm.

“Let go of my–“

“Gggrraaaah!”

“Jesus! What’s wrong with you two?”

“This is an assault on a police officer. We can charge you for felo– stop!“

Chaos ensued.

And seconds later, another notification sounded from his phone.

Dong!

[4 infectores in a 30 feet radius detected.]

Seth’s eyes widened. Now he was sure of it. “Fuck me sideways. Don’t tell me they're goddamn zombies.”

“Shit, I don’t believe this is happening to me!” Amy commented from the driving seat. Without any more words, she stepped on the gas pedal and left the premises. Better be safe than waiting out for their curiosity to subside.

“Slow down, Am! I lost my roll because of you,” Wade chided from her right, looking back from his open window with longing.

“Not the time for your roll, Wade! You can ask Seth for it later.”

Seth, given a stern and somehow pleading stare by Wade, shook his head adamantly. “I don’t have any.”

“Don’t expect any help from me before you give one to me.”

He shook his head at the nonsensical chain smoker. There could be something frighteningly similar to zombies and Wade demanded a cigarette from him.

“Watch out!”

Someone was standing still right in the middle of the road. Amy stomped on the brake. Seth almost planted his face on the driver’s seat. Alas, he wasn’t the best brother in the world. Marnie’s sleeping form lurched from the seat, causing her to fall down and hit her head.

“Owie …” She cried. Bullet tears rolled down her cheeks as she clutched her head, but Seth had bigger priority in mind.

Instead of moving out of the way, the man leaped at the car’s hood, clawing at the windshield. His mouth was wide open, excreting copious amounts of greenish droll and showing his murky yellow teeth. A crazed look in his eyes. “Ggrrraaaah! Ghhooorrggh!”

Dong!

[1 infectore in 30 feet radius detected.]

It’s a fucking zombie.