Charles gave a solid nod. “It’s a promise, Tiffany.”
Dyonna kept silent, and Kiki whimpered, chewing her lip to hold back her tears. I wanted to comfort her, but what could I say?
Before I could think, a Lonely One with short-cropped white hair came to the doorway. He and Virgil exchanged glances, and with a nod from the boss, entered the room.
“This is Don, he will give you weapons and supplies.” Virgil motioned.
Charles offered his hand to Virgil. “Your kindness is much appreciated.”
He glanced at his hand but didn’t shake. “Yes, I’m sure it is.”
Arik’s gaze lingered on me, so I looked away. I didn’t make eye contact with any of them as they left the room.
I regarded Virgil. “What happens now?”
He tilted his head with a smile. “You’re a good person. Your friends might have gotten themselves killed if they’d stayed.”
“I’m not good.” I glanced to the side. He didn’t know of my faked suicide, or my guilt.
“I will escort you to your room.” Another Lonely One appeared from the shadows.
He made me jump. “You were here the entire time?”
Virgil nodded. “I have my bodyguards, as you will have yours. This is Mog. He will take care of your needs.”
“Yay.” I twirled my finger in the air.
This Lonely had white hair tied back into a ponytail. I followed him without looking at Virgil again. My escort led me through the networks of caves, and after the first couple turns, I felt lost.
“This place is a maze.” I broke the heavy silence.
Mog kept his eyes straight ahead. “Yes, we guardians dug it that way for a reason; to protect ourselves from outsiders. Parts of these caves have existed for much longer than us.
“How long have you been here?”
“Since the day the apocalypse began, more or less.”
“Longer than Virgil?”
“No. He founded this city, before the virus outbreak.”
I took a deep breath. “How long has this Omega Virus existed?”
Mog shrugged. “It’s hard to say, but Virgil claims to be the first of our kind.”
We exited through a cave mouth and overlooked the huge cavernous city. I hadn’t even realized we’d been climbing. Stalactites dripped water, forming natural pools. The hues of the stones were pleasant, and rainbow colored. Despite the number of Lonely Ones wandering, they made no noise.
The silence was driving me nuts. “You’ll keep me here how long?”
“For the next three years, at least.”
I stopped in my tracks. “I’m a prisoner in these caves for three years?”
“You must stay until giving birth.” He turned around and placed a hand on my shoulder. “The upper land is no longer safe, first Silver must restore the world!”
I slapped his hand away. “I’ll go insane!”
“It is not for us to keep your sanity. We care only that goddess will be to term.”
“Three years? How will Zach find me?”
Mog turned back to the passage. “He will arrive.”
“To rescue me!”
Mog shook his head. “According to the great guide, your friends will not live much longer; the reason you are here. Their path is doom.”
“Wait, what guide? And what do you mean they’ll die?”
“Lonely ones own the guide. Your companions will meet death Bellaire as the guide has foreshadowed. To change it is nigh impossible.”
I grabbed Mog by his collar. “Take me to this guide, now!”
“That cannot happen. The guide is in our minds. It is how we connect to our goddess before she’s even born.” He believed his words even though I didn’t.
I let my fingers uncurl from Mog’s shirt. He turned on his heel and continued walking. Were my visions of the future from this guide?
Mog held out his hand and motioned for me to enter a side room. I glared as I walked by him. The room was okay; furnished with leather couches, albeit crappy ones, and a king-sized bed, along with tables and a generator. There were even cords hooked to a large television with a strange game system I didn’t recognize.
“This room is for me?”
Mog stepped beside me. “The guide foretold your arrival.”
“This has everything I need?”
He pointed at the video game console hooked up to the big 4K TV.
I scrutinized the games. “There must be something newer?”
The scraping of stone had me spinning to face the doorway where a giant rock now sat. I rammed my shoulder against the boulder and pushed hard, but I never got it to move. Once again, trapped.
With a sigh, I plopped on a beige, leather couch. As I sunk in, I sighed. I glanced at the game controller and shook my head.
Instead of playing, I spent the next hour searching the room, but to no avail.
I fell back onto the couch and rested. I needed to make my escape. There were no other options. Several minutes ticked by and my curiosity got the best of me. I scooped up the game control and turned on the TV. The console booted, and the picture of a forest appeared. A person’s arm wrapped around a tree. In big green letters, the name Omega Virus appeared.
“Is this some sick joke?”
In the bottom right corner of the screen, sat a copyright logo; G.O.D. Mode.
The words Press Start flashed on the screen. So I pressed the start button and waited. The screen went black and then gave the options New Game or Continue. I could have chosen new game, but I decided instead to see where someone else had left it. I clicked Continue. The screen showed a yacht in stormy waters.
A narrator spoke, “Having survived the terror of Rockport and the level two corpses, the group moved on to the port. They secured a vessel to travel to the Gulf Base. Upon boarding, our hero became ill. He’d not spoken of his bite; he had told no one he’d become infected.”
I stared at the screen with wide eyes. Zach stood on the deck of a yacht, looking over a railing into the water. Next to him appeared a figure wearing the cheesy zombie killing hat. I recognized it; the second person had to be Wesley James. They spoke of Jessie, and that Wesley had a secret to tell him. But a huge wave knocked Wesley’s hat in the water. The insane idiot dove into the ocean.
I pinched my arm, hoping to awaken from this crazy dream. “How is this in a video game? It makes no sense.”
“But it does!”
I shot up from my seat. As far as I saw, I was alone. I ran over to the door, but the heavy stone still blocked my way.
“Who’s there?” I spun back.
“My apologies, I’m right here.”
I turned to find a man sitting on the couch with a wide-brimmed hat. He wore a trench coat and had one leg crossed over the other. Long white hair hung in his face from underneath the hat. The man had a huge white grin. Although he looked human, he still had that hint of gray that identified him as one of the Lonely.
“My name is Dante, and I wish to speak with you.”
His voice froze the blood in my veins. I stared, incredulous. “How did you get in here?”
“Secrets, my dear.” Dante wagged a finger.
“Please, have a seat.” He held his hand out to the opposite couch.
I walked over and sat across from hm. “Tell me what you want.”
“To interlope.” He grinned. “That’s my thing, you see. Sticking my nose where it doesn’t belong. That’s what caused all of this.”
“Elaborate, please.”
“I came looking for you and Wesley at Epic Possibilities, but neither of you were there. Instead, I met your friends... Jeff, Jessie, and Dave.”
“Yes!” Within me, excitement grew. He knew of them. Could he tell me where they were?
Dante held a hand for me to wait. “Please, do not rejoice yet. I have news to tell you, but not their whereabouts.”
I placed my hands on my hips. “Then what? They are playing D&D without me?”
&nbs
p; “No, but they are looking for their dear Tiffany.”
“I know.”
“You do?” He chuckled. “Zachary, in particular. Well, how do I say this? He’s in love with Jessie.”
I furrowed my brow, and my heart crashed. He and Jessie were an item? But I loved him! How could he be with my best friend?
“You’re confused, but I can explain a few things. For instance; that Silver child will be a monster, not a messiah. You mustn’t ever marry, nor conceive a child with Zach.”
“Why are you telling me this? What do you have to gain by betraying your people?”
He waved his hand. “They were never my people. So I betray no one, and I trust no one.”
“Still!”
“What I gain is for me to know, and well, no one else.” Dante grinned. “No, a Silver Star must never be. Will you promise me this? I would hate to take her away for extermination.”
“Wait, what?”
“Oh, I know, poor thing. You love Zachary do you not? You always have. But he’s chosen Jessie now. Isn’t that a shame? Together, they will not bear the Silver Star. And that is all I want.”
My head dropped to my chest. “Why tell me this? Why mock me?”
Dante patted my knee. “I’m not mocking you, more so expressing my relief that a true monster shall never exist. Also, I will allow you the chance to see them again. You must remember, no having babies with Zach.”
“Fine, I don’t even want children.” I looked up, but he’d disappeared from the couch.
“Dante?” I stood. Had I imagined him? Was I going insane? He hadn’t answered my questions or told me significant info except that Zach was with Jessie, and to make me promise not to have a kid with him.”
“Oh, one last thing.” Dante’s voice came from behind me. I spun, and he was at the entrance. “Keep a tight hold of that locket of yours.”
I held the locket against my chest and cocked my head. “Why? What’s so special about it?”
“G.O.D. Mode desires your precious belonging.” He swept his hat off his head in a great bow. “They’ll do anything to get it.”
As he came out of his bow, he vanished into thin air. I stared, wondering if he’d ever been there.
I put my head in my palms. “How weird was that? He just wanted to be an interloper. Why would anyone care about my locket?”
I felt a gust of wind blow through the room. The boulder blocking the exit lay in pieces. I peeked into the hall, and just as at the cannibal encampment. No one stood in my way.
Dante spoke from inside the room. “Go to Bellaire; you’ll find your answers there. And maybe do me a huge favor?”
I feared what he wanted. “And that is...?”
“Together, with your friends, decimate G.O.D. Mode.”
G.O.D. Mode developed video games but had their hand in the Zombie Apocalypse. If Dante wanted them gone; that was a good enough reason. My priority was to find my friends, then I’d take out G.O.D Mode. I owed Dante. I walked out and steeled myself. It was time to escape the inferno.
LEVEL 12:
WARFARE
Hirool was not a choice. Not for one day; not for three years. They were psychopaths! They claimed to have access to a psychic guide! An excuse to hold me hostage. And an interloper threatened that if I had a daughter with Zach, he’d take her away and destroy her. It was insane.
With those thoughts stewing, I left my chamber and entered the hall. No Lonely Ones. Maybe Dante had made sure of that. As with my escape from Krool’s cannibals, in one direction, there came a noise; a low booming. It could’ve been voices arguing, or even thunder. The other way was best.
I turned and rushed deeper into the cave, tiptoeing past doorways, then rushing again. As I went, I contemplated what the mysterious interloper, Dante, had said, and why he had told me. What was his angle? Zach and Jessie were in love. She loved him, but did he love her back?
When Jessie and I had sleepovers, we played video games until we passed out. One summer we spent three weeks holed up in my bedroom. In our underwear, we did nothing but playing a two-player game where you go into the depths of hell and defeat the devil himself. That summer we didn’t leave the room; not eat, sleep or bathe. At the end of the marathon, no guy found us cute, or approachable. With rat nests for hair, we laughed at our terrible hygiene and lack of vitamin D.
Only a short time before that, she saw me reading a strategy guide at school and asked if she could borrow it. I let her, and then we became BFFs. That’s when I learned of her crush on the nerdy boy from school, Zachary Mastiff.
I explained my past with him, how we used to be an item, and that he ignored me as if I didn’t exist; after I moved cross-country for him. Then I did something for which I cursed myself; I told her to date him if she wanted. That’s when the stalking Zach began, and she dragged me along for the ride.
I stopped mid-stride and covered my face. Why was I thinking of such things? I faked my death to get away from Zach, meaning I gave up my chance. Jessie held the right to jump his bones.
Tightness spread across my chest, and sadness overcame my heart. Jessie couldn’t be with Zach; she couldn’t. I wanted to be with him. Zach belonged to my heart, not hers. Tears tickled the edges of my eyes and let them flow free.
“Wonderful.” I slammed my fist on the rock wall. It hurt.
Someone cleared their throat. I spun on my heel to find Mog standing there, arms crossed.
My tears stopped. “I was just looking for the bathroom?”
He glared so hard I thought he’d mount and kill me on the spot.
“It’s true.”
“It’s not.” Mog sent a death glare my way.
“Well, damn!” I put my hands on my hips. “You caught me. Throw me back in the prison cell, and we’ll go about our day.”
“I cannot.” He grabbed my arm and yanked me further along the hall.
I tried to pull free, but his undead strength overshadowed my own. “What’re you doing?”
“Do not resist.”
I had to jog to keep pace, or he’d rip off my arm. “Where are you taking me?”
Mog sensed my struggle and slowed. “Virgil means well, but a young girl does not belong here.”
My jaw dropped. “You will let me go? Isn’t this betraying your people?”
“These are my people, yes. But, I once had a child. She was younger than you, about your little friend’s age. It’s difficult to remember now; sometimes the process of becoming a Lonely One steals our memories. Because of my stupidity, she changed. I was overprotective and kept her in our home away from the world, homeschooling her; I never allowed her friends, a boyfriend, anything. Not even play video games, for fear she’d have contact with the outside world. She was so reclusive that she fell into a deep depression.”
“What was her name?”
Voices came from our left. We stopped and switched paths to another tunnel. “Her name isn’t important. But when her mother died in a freak accident, she turned her hatred on me. I’ll let no one else suffer like she did. We are out Virgil’s earshot... I ask that you let me escort you. To protect you and find out what Dante seeks.”
I felt a chill run along my spine. “Dante? Doesn’t sound familiar.”
“Don’t lie. Dante visited you. I overheard the whole conversation. Perhaps that’s what he wanted.”
“Who is he?”
Mog skidded to a halt. He kneeled and touched the ground with two fingers, eyes closed. “Virgil calls him the Interloper. He seems to have his hand in everything. He is akin to Loki, the god of mischief.”
“So you think he is working against you?”
“He works only for himself and he doesn’t make mistakes.”
I watched him as he tried to sense something. “How do you know all of this?”
“Because I have heard whispers of him everywhere, I’ve been since the apocalypse.”
“And where have you been?”
Mog stood again and shrugged. “Since
becoming a guardian, I’ve traveled all over the country.”
I deserved to know. “How long have you been a Lonely—I mean, guardian? Yes, it was painful...”
He regarded me with sad eyes. “It all starts with being bitten. Then G.O.D. Mode began their experiments on us before we could turn.”
“A game company performing experiments?” I cocked my heed. “Weird as hell, but okay. Were they after a cure?”
“They aren’t just a company.” He furrowed his brow. “They sought not to cure us, but to turn us into weapons. Once you’re bitten, the virus will always be with you. There will never be a cure. G.O.D. Mode made sure. They rounded up scientists who made temporary cures, which allowed us to live longer before becoming an undead.
“And then?”
“It doesn’t last. I’ve seen it for myself.”
Mog walked away, picking up speed, and I rushed alongside him. “They became one of you?”
“That is the nature of this virus. No cure exists. No antivirus.”
We came to a T-intersection. “Which way?”
A low thundering echoed through the caves behind us. Mog glanced back. “They realized you’re gone. I will do what I can to distract them. We’ll meet up later.”
He sprinted back the way we came, his feet a blur and never once making a sound.
I slumped my shoulders. “You forgot to tell me which way!”
I turned back to the T and tried to decide. There were no markings or signs pointing. Through my knowledge of video game mazes, I pondered. In a game choosing left often led to monsters, treasure, and such, but the right leads to an exit. I wanted the exit.
Thundering intensified with every passing moment, and that wretched tightness returned to my chest. I picked up my pace. They couldn’t hear my footfalls over their noise, so I ran full speed. The cave curved and soon became natural. This territory was home to level two corpses.
I made a sharp turn, and the ground vanished, sending me falling several feet before landing hard on my ass. As I caught my breath, I lifted my eyes. High above there was an orange flickering light; the only way out.
Omega Virus (Book 2): Gamma Hour Page 8
