METAVERSE GAMES: OMNIBUS

by William Kurth

  “Sounds like a plan to me, except if I see you at sunup I’m gonna kill you,” Andy said, without the least bit of emotion in his voice.

  In another few moments Keith was in only his boxer-briefs, t-shirt and socks.

  The shirt stays here too, you’re not worthy of it. Slowly Keith took off his blue t-shirt with the Voracious Soldiers emblem on the front and back. Logan immediately recalled the creature wearing that same shirt back at the railyard. He shuddered at Keith’s likely fate, if not his own now that Andy was acting crazy. Logan seriously considered shooting Keith right there and then, just to save him from it and to get Andy back on task.

  “Do I get to keep my socks?”

  “As a matter of fact, no, take them off. Ask another smart-ass question, and you’ll be leaving the rest here too.”

  Andy watched Keith slowly remove each sock. Standing back upright, Keith was met by the rifle stock of Andy’s CAR-50 slamming into his gut. Keith doubled over, emitting a loud oomph before he fell to his hands and knees.

  “On your feet, Probie!” Andy used the term the infiltration teams used for new recruits.

  Andy was seething, maybe even a little crazed, something that surprised both of his crewmen but especially frightened Logan.

  The lights dimmed for a moment before going back to full strength. Logan looked around in a momentary panic to see if the electrical system would hold. If the generator died or the lights shorted out, they were goners. Keith, bereft of all his gear and most of his clothing, doubled over on the floor and heaved. Logan thought how crazy the whole scene was. Ten thousand crazed DEVO’s outside, ready to burn them out of the building or bash their way in and here Andy was, holding a “Drumhead Court-martial.”

  The Voracious Soldiers, like all the other infiltration organizations, were paramilitary in nature, if not outright military in practice. Especially true when operating in the zone. Andy, as the team leader was no different than the captain of a vessel at sea. His authority was absolute in the DZ and could not be questioned.

  It was his right, under his group’s SOP or Standard Operating Procedure to execute a subordinate for cause when in the zone. Logan realized Andy had already utilized that authority once tonight when he killed David. But that was an act of mercy, forcing Keith out into the grips of the gruesome monsters was just pure sadism.

  Keith slowly got to his feet, looking dejected more than angry. He glanced at Logan and then Andy.

  Andy nodded to the door. “Start walking.”

  Keith, still bent slightly at the waist holding his right hand over his stomach and trying to catch his breath from the gut punch, hobbled towards the door.

  “Andy, please!”

  “Stay out of this, or you can be next. Remain here and monitor the DEVO’s and the systems. Probie and I are going for a walk outside.

  Logan’s mouth was agape as Andy shoved Keith forward into the pitch-black hallway. Why Andy had to do this now was beyond any rational explanation.

  As they left, he ran to the monitors. Outside, an army amassed in biblical numbers. Just beyond where the UV light beams flooded the parking lot and out of range of the flares Logan saw as many if not more DEVO’s than when he began. The only evidence that there had even been a battle was the destroyed and burning buildings. Every creature he destroyed earlier now replaced by at least one new one.

  Logan, his knees weak, let himself collapse into a chair just behind the screens. He pried his eyes off the things that were singularly focused on eating the humans inside.

  One of whom was about to be handed over as an appetizer.

  Logan removed his helmet and leaned forward. He ran his hand through his hair, damp with perspiration then rubbed his eyes before sitting back. His eyes focused on something that gave him hope as they narrowed to Andy’s sat phone lying on the desk in front of him.

  ***

  Keith stumbled and fell several times as he skittered barefoot down the hallway. Without his helmet and the integrated night vision, everything was pitch black. He had no idea if a door lay ahead, stairs or even debris that he might step on. Nevertheless, the man behind him gave Keith no quarter; every time the probationary team member slowed, the cold metal of a gun barrel jamming into his back pushed him forward. Feeling his way through the darkness with the creatures outside, their awful calls carrying into the hallway made the whole episode terrifying. He could not ever remember being more frightened in his whole young life.

  “Andy, please. I’ll tell you everything!”

  “Go ahead, Probie. You got till we reach the parking lot. I’m all ears.” The gun barrel jammed once again into his back propelled him forward into the darkness another few unsure steps. Feeling the cold tiles on the floor with his bare feet reminded him how vulnerable he would be when he went outside. Keith racked his brain trying to find a way to the water.

  “Are you still going to send me out into the darkness to become a DEVO if I talk?”

  “Time’s wasting. Guess you need to start talking and see if it helps. At this point, I don’t see that it will, but hey, try me.” Another jab of the gun barrel and Keith found himself bumping into a door.

  “Andy, please, I can’t see anything!”

  “Push the door open; it’s the stairwell. We’ll be outside in a half minute, you better start talking.”

  “I attained information about where that gold was and how to get it. Those bags that we got out is just a small part of it, there is maybe five or six times more left that we couldn’t carry out.”

  “So far you haven’t told me anything important, like the location, or who gave you the information and what is your agreement with them?” Andy shoved Keith forward through the door.

  “Are you still going to force me outside?”

  The answer came in a hard shove as Keith put his hand up to the wall as he felt for the handrail, his bare feet shuffling forward in search of the first step.

  Frustration at Andy’s attitude, but more than anything, fear overcame him beyond what he thought possible. Here he and David risked everything to get the largest trophy ever found. He thought Andy would be thrilled. Instead, he was going to feed him to the DEVO’s, then take the gold.

  That was the last bargaining chip he had with his crazed leader before being thrown out into the darkness. Watching the things violate David made the fear even more intense. He knew there was always a chance that he could get taken by the creatures, but figured he would go down shooting and save the last bullet or more likely the last grenade for himself.

  When the DEVO’s got you, they ripped your flesh off with their teeth eating you alive until you sort of died. After a day or two, you transformed into one of them. Truly a fate worse than death.

  Keith had no options now. He could run towards the pier, but he wasn’t even sure which way to turn. From the looks of his sadistic team leader, he would push him right to the edge of the light. With fresh flesh so close the things would endure the momentary agony of the lights to grab him. Once outside the protective glow of the building, it would be pitch black until his eyes adjusted to the light from the partial moon. If he ran, he wouldn’t be able to see where he was going, which would be teeming with DEVO’s regardless of the direction.

  “Fuck it, bro. I’m going to lay it all out, what you do is on you!”

  Keith’s teeth chattered as he gave the details of where the gold was and how they got it out, debriefing Andy right up to when they got stuck in the sinkhole. He hoped that information, particularly the location of the rest of the treasure would change his team leader’s mind as he slowly slid one bare foot forward at a time; feeling for each step, the gun barrel pushing him forward whenever he lingered.

  ***

  The brightness of the overhead flares fired off by the infiltration vehicle formed a column of light as it reached into the dark sewer as the manhole cover was thrown open. Climbing to the street through the opening Graybeard was bathed in the light that would keep him safe, at least until the
flares went out.

  The DEVO’s, scattered by the brilliance of the two mini-suns hovering overhead, had not gone far. He ignored the loud screeching and hissing just inside the rubble of a nearby building. The Outfit members he brought up with him found that hard to do; all but the most experienced looked around nervously.

  “Don’t get all trigger happy. Them DEVO’s will stay hidden. Figure we have another minute or two of light. Best to get to work.”

  His plan had been simple, at least to him. Use the AT-4 to punch a hole in the Radio Building and wait for the creatures to mass and have their feast with the INFIL-rats inside. Then at sunup, he and his crew could go in and clean out any DEVO’s and recover the gold. With luck, even get that Vulcan cannon and the rig it was mounted on along with other equipment and weapons left by the slaughtered infiltration team.

  Squinting at the Building, more specifically the powerful flood lights off the roof he realized the creatures would not go near it if those lights burned brightly. He would have to deal with them separately if the AT-4 didn’t sever the lines or take out whatever was powering them, most likely a generator.

  Graybeard crouched over the open manhole. “Thomas pass up the weapon.”

  A loud shriek accompanied by some rocks landing nearby startled the prospect, standing on the top of the ladder with his upper body poking above the street; the same one who had gotten Graybeard’s anger up earlier with his questions.

  “Hurry the fuck up, slick. If that light goes out before I get a shot off I’m leaving you topside!”

  The man handed Graybeard the weapon with shaking hands, not sure if he should remain on the top of the ladder or not. He decided he should, in case the boss needed something else from below.

  Graybeard ignored the rocks landing around them and the screeching close by. The things grew agitated that fresh meat was so close yet they couldn’t get near. A few, unable to contain themselves rushed out of the darkened buildings or the rubble only to go crazy when the intense UV light of the overhead flares touched their skin sending them screeching back to the cover of darkness. Both the prospects and more seasoned crew spun their weapons towards the threats, stepping back to the manhole as they did so.

  Ignoring the commotion around him, Graybeard went through the firing procedure read off to him by another Outfit member. His teeth chattered but he dared not take his eyes from the instructions to look for the creatures who momentarily exposed themselves; he was more frightened of the boss at that moment.

  Despite the man’s inability to correctly pronounce some of the unfamiliar words that he could barely read, Graybeard nonetheless got through the process as he knelt and steadied the weapon. Aiming it at the wall just to the left of the ramp leading down to the parking structure.

  If he hadn’t been so focused on steadying the weapon as he pressed the trigger, he might have seen the nearly naked man walking up that ramp with an armed man shoving him from behind with his rifle.

  Chapter Seventeen

  “I’m sorry Andy got you into this, Logan. I didn’t know it was a rescue mission. Even so, the regulation’s and your team rules are clear about that kind of thing. When Keith and… who was the guy that’s DEVO nourishment now?”

  “David.”

  Mia’s cold demeanor was what made her such a great pilot. She was indifferent to anyone or anybody except her beloved VTAL, and up until tonight apparently, Andy Crawley.

  “When Keith and David went that far in with no backup or support they screwed themselves and anyone who had to come get them. What made them do such a crazy thing?”

  “Trophies—”

  “We all go for the trophies, Logan,” Mia interrupted.

  “Oh, this is a little different. Legit gold bars; three good size duffle bags worth.”

  She blinked on full automatic before squinting.

  “Like a gym bag…?”

  “I mean a two-man lift type of bag! With a lot more to be had, if we can get to it before the Outfits.”

  “And you’ve seen this gold? Not heard from someone or read about it.”

  “I friggin’ loaded 450 pounds of it myself. According to Keith, there’s even more that he and David couldn’t carry.”

  Logan was now speaking in terms that the freelance pilot could relate to. A mercenary above all else, Mia grew suddenly more interested in the conversation. She no longer cared about the rescue mission Logan and Andy were on.

  It had been rumored that several high net worth individuals never got themselves or their treasures out of the city before turning into lurching corpses. Their rich heirs either had to hope that when the city could be reoccupied their gold, jewelry, art and money, as well as collectibles, would still be there… or take a more direct approach. For a hefty commission, an infiltration team could collect things for them. Typically a percentage plus expenses tallied right down to every round fired.

  The powerbrokers that succumbed to the virus, if they still existed, were nothing more than ghastly pale shells of their former humanity. Those individuals had no claim nor need for those treasures. Their heirs sometimes did, but it was a legal gray area within the DZ that had to yet work its way through the courts. In the meantime, possession remained nine-tenths of the claim. All that stuff laying abandoned in millions of homes, apartments, and penthouses, not to mention the vast commercial, retail and industrial areas, was up for grabs.

  Time was not on anyone’s side but the Outfits. It had been nearly three years since the virus, and the DEVO’s continued to exist. Food was no real issue. While their bodies required nutrients, something else kept them alive, or more accurately half dead. Some even believed undead. The virus needed little energy to exist and the creatures were kept in an odd suspended state of animation until awakened. The caloric requirements of DEVO’s were perhaps a quarter or less than that of a healthy human. One or two good size rodents every other day would suffice.

  Most scientists thought it might now be a decade or longer before the scourge could be eradicated, since they were not dying off due to natural causes. The only other option to ensure they were wiped out would be a nuclear strike. Such an action would affect more than just the Dead Zone, and it would vaporize all the accumulated wealth, art and real estate that was held dear. It would also make the whole city uninhabitable for years after. Then there would be the fallout, which would not remain over the city. No, it would float with the winds to nearby towns and regions. A nuclear strike, although considered at one time, was now a non-starter. Even then, the military or the teams would still have to go in and clear out those that would certainly have survived. There were concerns that the radiation, if it did not destroy them, could further mutate and make the things more dangerous.

  “Mia, are you still there?”

  “Yeah, just doing some quick calculations. I can be airborne in fifteen minutes. After that, it’s a quick ten-minute flight across the bay and into the harbor. I’ll come in low, just above the waves to avoid the authorities and land on the pad on top of your building, but only if you’ve got light. I don’t need any DEVO’s scaling the building, and jumping into the aircraft with you guys.”

  Logan’s mood swelled with his heart. “You got it, Mia! I’ll fire off the remaining flares from the rig when you’re on final.”

  “Great I’ll see you on the roof in less than a half-hour, make sure you and the gold are there. If Andy and Keith happen to make it I’ll take them, but I won’t wait.”

  “I’ll make sure, and thanks again, Mia!”

  “I’m not doing it for the thanks. One-third of the gold is mine. If that’s not to your commander’s liking, then let me know before I get there so I can go back to the book I was engrossed in before you called.”

  “Agreed.”

  Logan knew that under the rules governing the teams the deal he just made was binding. No doubt Mia had a recording of it. As per their quick agreement, the only way it was void was if Andy countermanded it, which would remove Mia’s obligatio
n to land and pick them up. With her and Andy on the outs, the only way she was going to do this was for the gold. No emotion, just business.

  It was little wonder Andy and her clashed; they were both the same. Logan closed the line.

  Logan’s thoughts turned to Andy and Keith and what was going on now between them. He looked to the ramp camera and saw Keith ambling up the incline, Andy behind. Logan was relieved that Keith wasn’t at this very moment being feasted on. Despite his transgressions, he was a good troop, and he had managed to get the mother lode of all treasures. They all had a way out now.

  ***

  “That penthouse had been searched at least a half dozen times before today, Keith.” Andy really had no idea how many times it had been searched, but remained skeptical about anything that he was telling him, particularly now about the location as they walked up the ramp.

  “There is a door that leads to what appears to be access to a mechanical room or rather a shaft that runs from the basement to the roof above the penthouse. The door, not hidden had been discovered, but no one looked beyond the pipes and electrical conduits that it housed. If they did, they might have found the hidden door behind them.”

  “All of those rooms have been mapped, following blueprints. I’ve been in that building myself, lots of panic rooms and other spaces that we just blew holes into if the dimensions didn’t look right. So far, your story is bullshit, and I’m about done with you.” Andy shoved Keith so hard he fell forward onto his hands, scraping them on the rough cement of the parking structure ramp.

  “That’s not where the room was, Andy! Christ, let me finish so at least you will know how to get the gold after you feed me to the DEVO’s!”

  Keith slowly got to his feet, watching Andy walk around in front of him. Standing, he faced the Voracious Soldier’s team leader above him on the ramp, blocking his path in case he thought about running, which was the exact opposite of what Keith was contemplating. He decided this is as far as he was going. Andy would have to shoot him. Even if it were a leg wound, maybe he would bleed out before the creatures got him. He was safe here in the light, but Andy could just as easily tell Logan to turn them off, or at least on one side. But he was done walking. Looking at Andy, he half expected to get hit with the stock again. Andy just stared.