GAMELAND Episodes 1-2: Deep Into the Game + Failsafe (S. W. Tanpepper's GAMELAND)

by Saul Tanpepper

  He hoists his backpack onto his shoulders and together we head over to Micah’s.

  “What’d you bring?” I ask.

  “Lunch. Water. A few…other things.”

  I nod. “Me, too.” But his pack looks much heavier than mine and I wonder what ‘other things’ means.

  He sees me looking over. His eyes soften and he says, “It’s a surprise.”

  “A picnic in zombieland? How romantic.”

  He laughs. “Not exactly.”

  Micah, Ash and Reggie are already waiting for us when we arrive, a few minutes after seven. I throw my pack into the trunk along with the rest of the gear: a couple other backpacks and a pair of large duffles.

  “’Bout time you guys showed up. Thought you were going to back out.”

  Reggie gives Kelly a long, meaningful glance, waiting for him to reply. But Kelly doesn’t respond. He opens the back door of Micah’s car and slides in. I notice he’s still got his backpack tucked under his arms.

  “Not much of a morning person, is he?”

  I roll my eyes and tell him to cut Kel some slack, that Kyle had a rough night. Reggie’s aware of the deets—they all do—and he immediately backs off. I’m glad. It just feels like so much of my effort is being spent on pretending everything’s fine between everyone to have to pile the Corbens’ situation on top of the mix.

  I push in next to Kelly. He’s got his Link out and is scrolling through it. I peek over his shoulder and see the ArcWare logo flash by.

  “Go back,” I say.

  “What?”

  “What was that?”

  “Nothing. Just dumping a bunch of old messages.”

  “Are you applying for a job at ArcWare?”

  “I said it was junk, Jessie.”

  “Can we go, folks?” Micah says, calling over to Reg. “We need to take advantage of the outgoing current. It’ll switch directions around ten. I don’t want to be fighting it.”

  Ash and Reg pile into the car. Once more I’m relegated to the middle of the back seat, but it’s just a short drive out to the edge of town, so I don’t mind. We’re meeting Jake behind his uncle’s store. From there, we’ll head down to Manhattan.

  When we arrive, Micah slowly drives around in back, where we see Jake’s van with its door popped open. All the windows of the whitewashed building are barred and there’s spotlights shining everywhere, even though the sun’s up.

  After he stops, we all tumble out but leave the car doors open, as if we’re afraid of making any noise, setting off any alarms. Micah whistles and Jake slips out the heavily-screened metal door of the store. It bangs shut, making us all jump.

  “Uncle Joe’s at an auction up in Albany,” he shouts down at us, grinning. “There’s nobody here.” He draws us around to the van and shows us the booty he’s gotten for us. “We’ll divvy it up when we get there.”

  Looking at the hodge-podge of equipment, I suddenly realize how little planning we’ve actually done for this trip. Other than the diving part, that is, and figuring out when to go and come back. And even that now seems pitifully inadequate. For such a dangerous proposition, you’d think we’d be better prepared. It’s like we’re all in denial. It’s been such a surprise how easy everything has happened so far, relatively speaking, that nobody wants to tempt fate by questioning our good fortune.

  But now I take the opportunity to bring up the possibility of encountering zombies. I know the others don’t believe there’ll be any, but still. “Shouldn’t we bring weapons?” I ask. “You know…just in case.”

  Reggie wraps his arm around my shoulder and says, “You’re a black belt, aren’t you? Isn’t that considered a lethal weapon?”

  Kelly rolls his eyes, but I have to give him credit for not freaking out about Reggie’s arm. It seems he can only be jealous of one guy at a time, and right now Jake gets the honors.

  Jake holds up a bandolier and pulls a sick-looking knife out of a sheath. “We’ll each get one of these.” Then he pulls a couple of longer blades from one of the packs. “I’ve also got a couple machetes, if anyone wants one.” He runs his thumb along the edge so we can see that they’re not very sharp.

  I shudder, and both Ashley and Kelly shuffle uneasily next to me.

  Micah steps forward. “We won’t need them. They’re just going to be extra weight and get in the way. Besides, we’ll only be there a few hours. Four tops. We get in, take some pics for proof that we were there, do a little exploring, pick up a couple small souvenirs and…” He pauses and looks at each one of us. I can smell alcohol on his breath, but he appears to be perfectly sober. “Remember, we need to leave there by three o’clock at the absolute latest.”

  “The Colonel,” I say, sighing. “Yeah, I know.”

  “Actually, I was going to say because of the currents.”

  “And the curfew,” Kelly reminds us.

  “Who’s the Colonel?” Jake asks.

  “My drill sergeant grandfather. He’s got it in his mind that I have to be home every night for dinner. He runs the house like he’s still a general and we’re his Omegas.”

  Jake frowns in confusion. I wave it off. “It’s a long story.”

  “Bottom line,” Micah says, trying hard to get us back on track, “we’re not there to take heads. Right, Reg?”

  “Aw, why not?” he pouts. “I was all itching to kick some Undead booty!”

  “There aren’t any, remember?” Micah says. “But in the unlikely event that we do see any, I’m pretty sure they’ll be so worn down and slow that you could sneeze on them and they’d fall over.”

  “Speaking of sneezing,” Kelly says, turning to me, “did you remember to bring your inhaler?”

  “You’re as bad as Grandpa,” I say, but when I pat my pockets I realize it’s not there. I remember taking it out right after breakfast for the first of my three daily puffs, but then…

  Then Mom and her creepy new boyfriend happened. I must’ve left it on the counter.

  I wince, waffle for a moment, then shake my head. “Can we make a quick detour at the house?” I ask.

  Micah’s face sours.

  “I already missed two doses yesterday, plus this morning’s.”

  He checks the time on his Link and grumbles. “We’re already running late. Why do you even need that thing? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you have an asthma attack.”

  “It’s not for asthma,” Kelly says. He sounds like he’s had to explain this a thousand times.

  “Then what the hell is it for?” Reggie asks. “Vitamins?”

  “I just need it, all right?” I snap. “Please. It’ll be quick.”

  Micah sighs. “I’ll run Jessie and Kel over to her house. We’ll catch up with the rest of you guys at the parking garage. You can start getting the equipment ready for everyone. If we leave now, we should only be about fifteen minutes behind you.”

  “How is Jake going to get through the checkpoints?”

  Jake points to the back bumper. “It’s got interstate tags for commerce. Uncle Joe uses the van when he does deliveries.”

  “Okay then,” Reggie says. “Are we good?”

  “I just need to lock up,” Jake answers. He reaches for Kelly’s backpack. “Want me to take that?”

  Kelly swings it out of his reach. “I got it.”

  He doesn’t notice the curious look Jake gives Reggie, but I do, and it makes me wonder once again why Kelly’s being so defensive. But Micah tells us to hurry up and get in and even before I’ve got the back door closed, he’s spraying gravel.

  Looking back, I see Ash and Reg climb into the van while Jake heads up the steps to lock the shop.

  ‡

  Chapter 12

  “Finally!” Reggie yells at us as we drive into the parking structure. His voice booms through it, sounding eerily hollow.

  I had pinged the others to let them know we were going to be later than we’d expected because Grandpa decided to give us the fifth degree and the guards were hassling us.
<
br />   Apparently the guards also hassled Jake. They’d torn the van apart, searching it. But they found nothing, and finally accepted his explanation that the equipment was for the store.

  Kel and I tumble from the car. “Is it too late to go?”

  Micah walks over from the rail. He shakes his head. “The tide’s still going out. We should be okay.”

  “The direction of the current will change in about an hour,” Jake says, checking his Link. “If we don’t leave now, we’ll be swimming against it.”

  This snaps us all to attention.

  Ash comes over and hands us our wetsuits. “I’ve been watching for the cop,” she says. “Same as the other day: there’s just one on patrol.” She looks at Reggie, who tilts his head at her and gives it a quick shake.

  He says, “It looks like they’re on the same sixty-minute schedule. He comes, hangs around for about ten minutes, then leaves. His last check was twenty six minutes ago, so…” He checks his Link. “We’ve got about twenty minutes to get suited up, grab our gear and get under water before he returns.”

  “I still think that’s odd,” Kelly says. “Why patrol? And why with such regularity? They might as well announce to the world, ‘If you want to do something illegal here, you got about thirty or forty minute window to do it in.’”

  “Bureaucracy,” I say. But something about it troubles me too.

  Ashley opens her mouth to speak.

  “Enough jibber-jabber,” Reggie quickly says. “We need to hurry to make our window. Otherwise we’ll have to wait till tomorrow.”

  Jake has already arranged the gear. Luckily, I’ve thought to wear my swimsuit under my sweats. The guys did too, but Ashley hesitates. Then she shrugs and strips off her shorts and tee shirt, right down to her undies.

  Jake stares openmouthed until Reggie slaps him upside the head. “Give the girl some privacy.”

  Out of the corner of my eyes, I see Kelly smile.

  I go over and block the boys’ view.

  “I can’t believe you forgot your swimsuit, Ash.” A part of me wants to believe it was an honest mistake, but I can’t help wondering if she did it on purpose, like she’s hoping she won’t have to go. She pretends embarrassment, but then doesn’t even try to be discrete.

  “Well, you forgot your inhaler,” she counters. I snap my mouth shut. Her actions haven’t put the trip at risk. Mine have.

  After the suits, we don our knife belts and hoist the waterproof backpacks onto our backs. Each one contains a pair of oxygen rebreather cartridges, light sticks, food and water and any other stuff we’ve brought. An extra cartridge is Velcroed onto our weight belt, along with a flashlight and another light stick. Each flashlight is attached to us on a short tether, so if we drop it, we won’t lose it.

  Kelly’s off to one side, his back to us, transferring what he brought into the sack he’s been assigned. I want to go over and see what he’s brought, but I know he’ll be upset if I do. He already told me once it’s a surprise, and I don’t want to ruin whatever it might be. Every once in a while, he gets a little romantic streak in him. Doing something special on LI would definitely give us something to remember.

  Jake finishes getting geared up before the rest of us. He passes around our goggles and masks, attaching the cartridges as he goes. “Kelly?” he says, tapping him on the shoulder. Kelly spins around as he stands, his eyes flashing. “Number three, right?”

  “I’m three,” I say, reaching over for it.

  After our practice dive yesterday, Micah put numbered tags on the masks and goggles so we won’t have to readjust them. They’re in order by our first names.

  Jake stares at me for a second before slowly handing me the mask.

  “Everything okay?”

  “S-sure”

  He drops Micah’s and Reggie’s equipment in their laps. They’re busy discussing last minute details. They mumble thanks before resuming.

  “No prob.”

  I glance over at Ashley, remembering how much of a fright she gave us toward the end of our dive. But she looks as cocky as usual, as confident and assured of herself as ever. Maybe it’s the way the suit clings to her body and her awareness of the boys’ hypersensitivity to it. I don’t know, but if she has any of the self-doubt left over from yesterday, she’s definitely not showing it now.

  Micah packs the last few things in his sack. I notice the old tablet computer and a few other electrical gadgets. I don’t bother to ask what he plans on doing with them as it seems pretty obvious. He wants to find an old terminal and see if he can hack directly into the iVZ infrastructure using one of the old nodes.

  Whatever. I doubt we’ll have enough time to find a working node, much less figure out a way turn it on, if it isn’t already, plus physically splice into it.

  He checks his Link and announces that we’ve got nine minutes at the most before the next patrol. It’ll take us three of them to get down to the walkway, leaving us only six minutes of leeway.

  “Ready?” he asks. “Last checks. Let’s make sure everyone’s good to go.”

  We buddy-check to make sure there aren’t any loose belts or straps and that everything that needs to be sealed is sealed.

  “Everyone got their Links?”

  We all dutifully hold them up. They’re strapped to our wrists so we won’t accidentally drop them.

  Micah holds his up and says, “Smile.” Then we’re all snapping photos of each other and laughing. Already I’m dripping with sweat and thirsty from the dry heat of the approaching day.

  “Okay, enough of that. Let’s go.”

  We shuffle off after Reggie, looking like a pack of upright seals that happened to get tangled up in a bunch of equipment. Kelly and I trail along in back. I look over and give him a smile. He smiles back, then turns his determined gaze forward again.

  Then, before we know it, we’re standing at the railing pulling on our flippers.

  Nobody hesitates. We’re all climbing over and are perched on the other side looking down into the water. None of us wants to think about what we’re doing for even a second longer than we already have, because to do so would be to realize the insanity of our plan.

  Micah takes a quick look around, then slides into the water, doing a perfect scissors kick that barely makes any noise or splash. We all follow, trying to imitate him.

  A moment later, we pop back to the surface: six black lycrene-covered balls bobbing in the water. The coolness of it feels so good on my exposed skin. I was seriously starting to float inside my suit, standing out there in the heat. Everyone else looks just as relieved.

  As one, we spit into our goggles, polish and rinse them, then slide them over our faces.

  Micah signals to Jake, who slips his mask into his mouth, then his head sinks into the water.

  Within seconds, the rest of us join him. The world and the hot sun and the noises of the dry August wind all disappear.

  Visibility is about thirty feet. Light sticks begin to glow. A beam of light stabs the murkiness. Then, one by one, five more join it.

  At nine thirteen a.m., we slide into the gaping mouth of the Queens Midtown Tunnel.

  ‡

  PART TWO

  Breaking In

  We didn’t so much break into Gameland as sneak in, although putting it that way might suggest it was a piece of cake. While it was easier than it should have been, there were more than a few problems, beginning almost as soon as we set off for LI. But each time trouble arose, we pushed even more doggedly on. I’ve lost count of how many times we should’ve turned around. At least a dozen. We should’ve cut our losses, but we didn’t. Not once did any one of us even try to force the issue. We just kept right on going.

  Stupid.

  Of course, it wouldn’t have mattered. Even before we slipped into that water, it was already too late to turn back.

  ‡

  Chapter 13

  Everything grows eerily quiet as the tunnel envelops us in inky blackness. The canned sounds of my ow
n breathing and the ghostly inhales and exhales of my friends around me seem loud. Every once in a while, there’s a click or a tap or some strange rattling noise. The sounds echo all around us, coming from everywhere and nowhere, telling us nothing about what might be making them.

  My eyes quickly adjust to the gloom. Five other glow sticks bob about me, looking like pastel St. Elmo’s fires: yellow for Micah and Jake, green for Ash and Reg, and red for me and Kel. Six flashlight beams pierce the underwater twilight and illuminate a surprisingly open passageway.

  Several of the flashlight beams converge on a vertical divider, separating what was once the southbound and northbound tubes. Micah had mentioned this earlier, and by prior consensus we all kick to the right.

  We’ve gone maybe a hundred yards in—it’s hard to tell exactly how far since there’s a definite push provided by the current—when my Link pings. I look down at the glowing screen and see it’s Ash:

  <>

  I quickly type back while keeping an eye out for Kel’s light next to me:

  <>

  <<:o}>>

  I type:

  <>

  There’s a pause and I glance up and try to identify which spot of green light up ahead is hers. Then, I get another ping.

  <<:o)>>

  I smile to myself and show the messages to Kelly. He nods and gives me a thumbs up, then urges me to catch up with the others.

  We encounter our first obstacle about ten minutes later. It’s actually not an obstacle, but it does make us stop. I don’t see it at first. Kelly puts his hand on my arm and gestures ahead, shining his light.

  It’s a school of fish, small ones, thousands. Maybe millions. They move like a silver fog, and the water is so thick with them that it seems as if they’re a single organism. We float there, entranced, until Micah waves at us and points to his Link, reminding us that we’re running out of time.