Rise of the Desperate: Donald Carter's Zombie Survival Guide

Chapter 3: Leaving the Building (1)

[The power to manipulate electricity has been designated as the user's main power.]

[From now on, whenever the user defeats a zombie, the user will be able to earn points that can be used to boost the user's electricity powers.]

That was both great and not so great news for him. Donald could become stronger by defeating zombies, but that also meant he had to actively seek out zombies to fight unless he chose to wait for them to come to him. He grimaced at both ideas, but the lesser of the two would be to confront the zombies himself. At least then it would be on his terms.

"What about my fire powers? Will I be able to boost them too?" he asked.

Unfortunately, the user has chosen electricity to be their main power, so the user can't boost their fire powers.]

Donald scowled at the lost opportunity. While he wanted to argue the fairness of the situation, he bit his tongue. The system did say he was lucky to even have two powers when everyone would only get one. On the bright side, he could use his fire powers as a trick up his sleeve whenever he ended up in a dangerous situation. It wouldn't be as strong as his other power, but even a little fire could be dangerous.

"System, is there anything else I need to be aware of, like nearby enemies or a way to track down the source of the zombies?" he asked as he slowly made his way towards the stairs to investigate.

[Unfortunately, the system cannot tell the user where the zombies are or who is responsible. It is up to the user and the others to figure this out on their own.]

He should have known that wouldn't work, but it would have been nice if it did. Staring down the steps, he debated if he really wanted to try leaving the building this way. Bodies littered the stairs, and he had to cover his nose to block the stench. He didn't bother even looking at the elevator and stared in the direction of the fire escape.

"System, will you be able to at least tell me how dangerous the current situation is? You are supposed to make sure I survive if you want to live," he said.

[Considering the user's request...]

[The system can notify the user of the threat level being Low, Medium, or High.]

It was better than nothing. "Then can you tell me the current threat level?"

[The current threat level is Low.]

That could mean a number of things. It could mean that there were no zombies nearby, or at least only a few of them. In that case, the stairs might be a safe option. He would just have to be careful not to slip and find a flashlight so he could see where he stepped. Wait. Did the zombies react to light or sound? Then a flashlight might be dangerous to have.

"System," he started when the system cut him off.

[The system cannot tell the user the weaknesses of the zombies. The user will have to discover them on their own.]

With an annoyed huff, he decided to take the risk and go scavenging for a flashlight. There had to be something in the drawers. Doing his best to be quiet to avoid drawing any attention to himself, he took whatever he thought was valuable. There was quite a lot of stuff that wouldn't help, like documents, and a few of the cabinets were locked, but he did collect a small pile.

Donald managed to find a couple water bottles, snacks, box cutters, flashlights, and portable power banks for his phone. He wasn't sure why there were a couple of box cutters in the office, but at least they would serve as his backup weapons, though he hoped it wouldn't come down to it. It would mean getting into close quarters with a zombie and having a higher chance of being bitten.

As he stuffed them into a clean bag he found, he paused and stared at the portable power banks. Why did he need them if he could control electricity? He could simply charge his phone himself. However, after imagining what it would look like, he changed his mind and stuffed them into the bag. Donald hadn't tried his powers out yet, and he didn't want to risk blowing up his phone.

Throwing the bag onto his back, he considered the dead bodies. In a situation like this, it would be natural to loot the bodies, but he wasn't sure he could stomach touching them. It was one thing to go through their desk. It was another thing to feel through their pockets to find anything useful. After struggling with himself for a few moments, he decided to walk past them.

He might regret it in the future, but that was something for his future self to worry about. Standing at the edge of the stairs, he peered down before turning on the flashlight. Bright light filled the stairs, allowing him a clear view of his path. Donald swallowed before making his way slowly down the steps. His ears and eyes were on high alert for any signs of zombies.

Reaching the next floor, he scanned the area for any zombies before asking the system, "Threat level?"

[The current threat level is Low.]

Continuing down the stairs to the next floor, he could hear his heart pounding in his chest. Even the slightest sound set him off, and he tightened his grip on his ax. He made it two floors down before he encountered a couple of zombies. The moment he spotted them, he turned off the light and didn't make a sound. They didn't appear to have noticed him yet, but that might change if he tried to go down.

From what he could see, there were three zombies, but it was possible that there were more out of sight. He would need to be careful when dealing with them, and this was his chance to test out his powers. Putting the flashlight away so he could grip his axe with both hands, he took a deep breath. Psyching himself up for the fight, he waited until one of the zombies was close enough before he struck.

Swinging the axe, he felt a surge of power erupt from within him. Electrcity sparked from his hands down the axe. The moment the ax touched the zombie, its head exploded. He grimaced as bits of zombie brain got all over him. Some of it even got on his cheek, but fortunately, it didn't get into his eyes or mouth. The zombie's body collapsed to the ground, twitching.

[The user has earned one point for defeating the zombie.]