IceSolstice

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

[Derek]

You arrive at the classroom with a wide smile on your face, "Happy to see me back?"
The rest of the class cringes.
"What a pity. And I even brought gifts," you say jeeringly, presenting the additional food and water with a flourish of your hand as your group members set it down on your desk.
"U-um where did you find them, sir?" a student hesitatingly asks.
Sir? That's quite interesting.
"On some zombified students. Although," you add sinisterly, "I did kill some live people for it."
The students gasp in horror.
Another idiot reaches for a bottle of water, and you instantly whip out your weapon and stab his hand. He screams.
"Who said you could touch any of the supplies without my permission?" you ask menacingly.
He gasps, clutching his injured, bloody hand, "N-no one, sir!"
"In any case, I did say that only those who follow me would be rewarded," you set aside a portion of the food and water and beckon your group over, "Each person takes their equal share from this pile. You can choose to do whatever you want with it--even give it to one of these miserable beggars, but I suggest you save it for yourself."
One of the girls chirps, "Yes, because only those that contribute should receive sustenance. We need to be in our top form for us to get through this together."
Good good. The mentality is sinking in. "And what is your name?"
"Samantha Croxen, sir," she replies curtly.
You take one of the knives you found on the corpses and hand it to Samantha, "Use this well then."
Those zombies we killed were probably kids in culinary science. Not surprising for some of them to wander over to ninth grade down after hearing gunshots. A futile effort by those that didn't know how to use the tools they were given.
Samantha gratefully accepts, bowing, "Thank you, sir."

Just then, the announcement blares, "This is Irene [REDACTED]. Will Matthew [DATA EXPUNGED], Travis [REDACTED], Alicia [REDACTED], Phillip [REDACTED], Sam White, Adam [DATA EXPUNGED], Benjamin [REDACTED], and Kate come to the media center?"

It seems like there is another student group organizing things. Tempting to take out who seems to be their leader, this Irene person that is. But I need to establish a stronger base of power here. This area has been relatively untouched by others though, so they probably restrain themselves to the upper floor. Which makes sense, considering their "base" is the media center and essential places, such as the cafeteria, are predominantly located upstairs. It would be unwise to start a conflict with them now, especially since I don't know how long they've been preparing themselves. All I know is that they have nine people in that group of theirs.
Your thoughts are interrupted as two girls meekly approach you and ask pleadingly, "Can we join you? We'd do anything--anything at all! We're so hungry and thirsty!"
You stare at them for several moments before grinning sadistically and slide another plundered knife towards the two of them, "Then use this and kill that boy who tried to steal some water."
The boy shrieks with fear while one of the girls protest, "B-but killing another person is wrong!"
Your voice drops to a threatening whisper, "You girls did say you'd do anything after all. Was I wrong about that?"
"N-no, sir!" the second girl hastily amends.
"Then hurry it up. I have no time for dawdlers," you retort.
They give horrified glances to each other and the second picks up the knife. They start towards the boy, who now is shaking in a corner, staring fearfully back.
Stupid. You're an easy target if you stay in a corner like that.
"Oh yes, and I forgot to mention that whoever deals the killing blow will receive a bigger portion than the other," you add, smirking.
You notice their eyes harden with determination. The weaponless one whispers urgently to the other and they appear to reach a consensus. The first girl lunges at the boy, knocking him over and pinning him down. The boy screams as the second crouches over him and stabs him in the neck several times, only falling silent as his body goes limp.
They appear to work surprising well together.
"Congratulations on your first kill," you nod in the direction of the knife-wielding girl, "What are your names?"
"Ariel Knox. This is my fraternal twin, Lauren Knox, sir," she replies.
"So Ariel, you can keep that knife and take that bigger portion over there," you gesture to a pile, "And Lauren can take the other one. You may both join Nicholas and Samantha, however."
Four people.
"Yes, sir," they respond simultaneously.
You take the last knife from the pile, "And Lauren, you can have this as well."
Lauren looks shakily and the knife and takes it, "Th-thank you, sir."
Lauren seems more hesitant about this than Ariel. Although Lauren appears to have better planning than her. And we'll need to resupply ourselves with more weapons soon. We've run out of nice knives. And I doubt people could kill effectively with some of those swiss army knives we have now.
When Lauren joins her sister, Ariel, you notice Ariel giving Lauren part of her share.
Hmm... I wonder whether I should break up this cooperation they have. But this same synergy may be helpful later.
You yourself take a lunch break, eating leisurely while the rest of the class stares apprehensively at you.

Once you're done, you store the excess supplies in their appropriate cabinets and call for Nicholas, Samantha, and the Knox twins. They hurry over, eager to hear what you have to say.
"Alright. We'll be raiding the culinary science classroom. There should be ample kitchen utensils that we can use as tools there. I want Nicholas and Samantha to stay here to keep an eye on things. If anyone is insubordinate, you know what to do. The Knox twins will be coming with me to obtain more weapons."
Nicholas and Samantha nod. "We won't fail you, sir," Nicholas says confidently.
"Be sure that you don't," you turn to Ariel and Lauren, "Let's head out."

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

[Derek]

You walk towards the sound only to find your school police officer, Mr. Vitale, locked in combat with a horde of zombies. You grin, Today must be my lucky day...Although I do wonder why he's not using that gun of his. You glance back at your group and tell them to fall back for now, they obey and retreat to a safe spot, silently watching. You leap into the fray, weaponless. I can't have him knowing my true strength after all...It is awfully suspicious for a student to bring an actual weapon to school. Breaking their necks should be good enough. Since once the spinal cord is severed, the brain has no way to send signals to the rest of the body--even if the zombie manages to survive the blow. You proceed to kill a majority of the zombies, about seven if you had to guess, while the police officer finishes the rest with a combination of stabbing with a knife and whacking them with a baton. You act like you're exhausted, seemingly out of breath and ask, "Mr. Vitale, are you okay?"
"Yeah. I'm fine, thanks to you. What's your name?"
"Derek Strasser. And it wasn't much help, you probably could have handled it easily, considering you have a gun and all," you say cordially, holding out a hand to shake.
Mr. Vitale shakes your hand, "Nice to meet you, Derek. No, I couldn't use a gun since the noise only draws more of those wretched zombies around here."
"Well, I'm glad I could be of help. Do you know what the situation is like outside?" you ask innocently.
"I know that they have a quarantine set up, but," he leans closer and whispers, "It'll be a while before we receive any sort of help. I'd rather you keep this a secret, otherwise there might be mass panic. But you should wait it out in a classroom where you're safe."
You nod, "I understand, Mr. Vitale, I'll just do that."
He gives you a strained smile, Most likely exhausted and stressed by this whole situation...
"Mr. Vitale! Behind you!" you feign shock, pointing your finger at nothing while reaching for your knife with your right hand.
The instant he turns his head, you leap towards him and stab him in the back of the neck. He dies and you stand over the corpse triumphantly, grinning like a maniac, "Nice knowing you Mr. Vitale, while it lasted that is."
Out of the corner of your eye, you notice that two of your followers have started fleeing, one going up the ninth grade stairwell while the other runs down the hallway.
"You know guys, if you would just listen to me, nothing like this would have to happen," you deftly pick up Mr. Vitale's gun, disengage the safety, and shoot the one running up the stairs through the side of her head. Then you aim at the back of the second's head and fire. Both bodies crumple to the ground and you motion the remaining followers to come over. You start looting the corpse, taking the kevlar vest and police duty belt with a tazer, can of mace, flashlight, handcuffs, first aid pouch, radio, baton holder, and magazine pouch. You then pick up the fallen weapons, the knife and baton, and put them in their respective spots on the belt. Putting the vest and duty belt on, you smile sadistically, Can't wait to try out some of these on people...but first. You notice a horde gathering, as a reaction to the two gunshots. You hand Nicholas a knife and say, "Prove to me your loyalty. And that you can fight. The rest of you get to somewhere safe nearby. I'm pretty sure you all know what happens to those that try to escape from me, however."
Their faces pale, they stammer out a verbal agreement and hide somewhere close by, trying to make themselves less noticeable. Your eyes light up at the thrill of a battle, "It's really fun killing things, you know."
"I'll keep that in mind," Nicholas replies, warding off a zombie with awkward motions.
If he proves himself, I could teach him later on how to use that knife more effectively. Maybe.
You pull out your dagger and start a zombie slaughterfest.

No more zombies stand before you. You look around, noting the crass amount of bodies piled up. Nicholas is panting heavily beside you, sustaining minor scratches and injuries from the fight. Hmm. That was fairly impressive of him, managing to avoid severe injury. I wonder if those scratches will turn him into a zombie or something. That'd be a sight to see. Although it would be a shame since he has some use. For now.
You meticulously strip the other dead bodies of any valuables or useful supplies, "You guys, come over here to carry this stuff. We're going back to the classroom."
You twirl the officer's car keys with one finger,This first expedition has been a very successful one indeed.

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

[Derek]

The students do what you have instructed, one by one, they shuffle up towards the teacher's desk, now yours, and dump their backpack on the floor, and empty their pockets. One boy puts his backpack down meekly, then when turning out his pockets, he lunges at you with a swiss army knife. You catch his wrist, twist his knife arm behind his back, forcing him onto his knees.
"It seems that someone here is being disobedient," you say tauntingly. The boy struggles more at your comment. You pry the object from his hand, flip him over, and begin to strangle him.
"Even after all these warnings I have given you, it appears that some of you are still acting foolishly. I gave those two fairly swift deaths, but that apparently has to change to get this message across," you say in a menacing voice, hands slowly constricting the victim's throat.
The class retreats to the shadows of the room, paralyzed by terror. The boy in your hands flails around in vain, unable to stop his inevitable death. You laugh insanely, "You know, guns were always too impersonal for me. There's nothing like it, ending a life with your own bare hands."
The students start wailing in fear, only growing silent when you shoot them a glare. Such a nuisance, how weak people react to death.
The light dies from your victim's eyes and you decide that extra warnings should be placed. You walk over to the other two dead corpses, sever their heads, and prop them on your desk, facing the class. You do the same with the person you just killed, lining the decapitated heads neatly across. You smile at them sadistically, "Who's next?"
A timid girl obliges and walks forward, dropping all of her gear and turning out her pockets. And the process continues.

Once all the gear had been collected, you begin to organize the supplies. You create separate piles for food, water, weapons, materials, electronics, valuables/money, medical supplies, other useful items, and miscellaneous objects. After doing that, you place them in separate cabinets and lock them. At this point, a bold classmate walks towards you and says, "I want to join you."
You turn to him and ask, "Why do you wish to join?"
He replies stiffly, "Because I want power and you offer it. That and I always thought survival of the fittest would be fun."
You think for several moments, judging his true intentions, you smile and hold out a hand to shake, "Welcome aboard then."
The boy shakes your hand graciously.
"What's your name again?" you always had issues remembering the insignificant lives around you.
"Errr, my name is Nicholas Jackson."
"Alright then, Nicholas, you will have to prove your loyalty first."
He nods and asks eagerly, "Okay, what do I have to do? Oh and there are others who want to join you too."
Several others step forward, fearful, but in awe of your position. You hear several hostile whispers from the rest of your classmates, "Traitors!"
You take a step forward threateningly towards the dissenters and say loudly, "These people have made a move in the right direction. Which some of you still, have not."
You seize one of the complainers and slit her throat. The body crumples to the ground in front of the group of dissenters and they back away quickly.
"The people that join me shall be rewarded, the rest of you aren't punished necessarily, but will be if you resist," you motion to your group of followers, "Come with me."
They follow you outside the classroom, excited. Shouldering a bag of supplies, you eliminate the three zombies by the door swiftly.
"Alright, here is what we're going to do. We're going to recruit more people and pick up supplies along the way. And figure out the situation."
"What are we going to do about the students in the classroom? What if they try to escape?" Nicholas asks.
"Don't worry. These doors can be locked both ways," you twist the lock on the other side and close the door, "Now they can't escape even if they want to."
"Which is good since we don't want word getting out," concedes Nicholas.
You shoot him a look of approval. Perhaps he will be of good use to me. You faintly hear the sounds of someone desperately fighting up ahead.
You narrow your eyes, "Let's go investigate that."

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

[Derek]

You are bored. The initial hysteria from his classmates as a result of seeing a zombie had died out a while ago. Now people were fearful, speaking in lukewarm whispers about how they were supposed to get out of this, how they were supposed to survive. Some were also crying softly for food and water, Sucks to be them. Their fault for not being prepared, you smirk. But your irritation has reached a peak. The teacher had been trying to regain order, repeating futilely for everyone to calm down and that they would be rescued soon. But you can see in his eyes that he doesn't believe what he's saying. You glance outside balefully, you wanted to be out there, killing things left and right but instead you were trapped in this measly classroom. Time to do things my way.. You reach into your backpack, and pull out the dagger resting in there discreetly. Walking up to the teacher, you decide to give him one last chance and ask, "May I go outside?" The teacher, the fool he is, adamantly refuses and you unsheathe the dagger, grip him by the throat, shove him against a wall, and stab him repeatedly in the chest. And all the while, you laugh maniacally as his face is twisted with pain and shock. Once he stops moving, you pickpocket all the keys on him, throw the corpse to the side, and gauge your classmates' reactions. They look back, wide-eyed and fearful of what they just witnessed. Some had fled to the very corners of the room, others were hiding under desks, and then there were those that were flat out crying. You grin and address them in a low, threatening tone, "Everyone here now has to listen to me."

One brave soul steps forward and says shakily, "Y-you murdered him! How could you?! Why should we listen to a sick bastard li--"
His words are cut short as you stab him expertly in the throat. He gurgles, blood gushing from the wound, and dies.
You survey the rest of your classmates and ask, "Any more objections?"
This time they remain silent.
"Good. Now first order of business, no one here is allowed to leave the classroom without my permission. Although," you remind them darkly, "That should go without saying unless you want to be eaten by the zombies outside."
They all glance fearfully at the door.
"Second, everyone should empty out all of their pockets and put all their backpacks up here, on the ground near the teacher's desk. Anyone failing to comply will be," you gesture to the two bodies lying on the ground, "Disposed of."
The class nods fearfully in agreement.
"Good. In addition, anyone who is able to bring me more weapons, food, water, and other useful items shall be rewarded accordingly."
You stroll to the back of the classroom, noting, satisfactorily, how everyone shrunk back as you got near. You open the door, grab the nearest zombie, and stab it in the head. You fling the corpse to the side of the classroom, eliciting shrieks from your classmates at the sight. You get a tissue and casually wipe the blood off of your hands and dagger.
"And finally," you flash them a cruel grin, "As long you guys obey me, you won't have to worry about any zombies bothering you."

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

[Derek]

Your name is DEREK GALTON STRASSER. You unfortunately are stuck in your history class during a ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE, an event that DELIGHTS you. It has been at least a day since a schoolwide lockdown was implemented and you have been growing quite IMPATIENT. You are in your JUNIOR YEAR of high school, one that is frequently associated with a ridiculous amount of WORK. You do many SPORTS, one of which happens to be INTENSE MARTIAL ARTS. Your passion lies within DESTROYING everything around you JUST FOR FUN. You believe that emotions are for the WEAK, and that only the STRONG should be allowed to survive. You are CAUTIOUS, and therefore always have some sort of WEAPON on you. In a CONTEST of any sorts, you are not satisfied with just victory, only OVERWHELMING DOMINATION.

What will you do?

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

[Irene]

Once you finish with the announcement you raid the supply closet again. Since I'm here, might as well stock up. You stuff many rolls of duct tape into your backpack, a pair of scissors, handful of pens, two notepads, assorted colors of square post-its, and several meter sticks. If I could make a scythe, that'd be pretty cool. Except I can't even wield one. You zip up your backpack in a way to allow the meter sticks to poke out from the top of the bag and put it on. As you make your way to the exit, Mrs. Allen calls out to you, "Irene! You shouldn't go back outside! It's too dangerous!"
You turn around with a sympathetic expression, "I have to. Someone has to deal with the zombies before it gets out of hand. Everyone else should stay here and continue trying to get help from outside. That's our best chance for everyone's survival here. And besides, I've done this much practically unscathed."
"Stay safe. I wish you the best of luck. Oh yeah, don't forget to call your parents to let them know you're alive," Mrs. Allen concedes.
Ohhhhh snap. I forgot about them. Well crap. My mother is going to be worried...as an understatement. "Thanks, I'll try my best. And I'll go do that once I'm in the media center," you reply.

You exit the front office and spot several zombies almost plastered to the front office's windows on the other side. You inch forward stealthily and they seem to ignore your presence. Treading carefully, you grip your sword with two hands and swing ferociously at the zombie's neck from behind. Although it isn't fully decapitated, it slumps to the ground. Must be because I separated the spinal cord from the brain. Works for me. The two other zombies react to the death of their fallen comrades and start rushing at you. You clumsily dodge one, since you were not used to the added weight, and trip the second. The zombie sprawls onto its side and you stab it through the ear. The first zombie turns around and charges at you. You sidestep and bash the zombie over the head with your shield when it flies by you, knocking it to the ground. Putting your foot on the struggling zombie, you stab it several times in the base of the skull until all movement from the zombie ceases. Hmm... might as well loot them again. Debating on how long this lasts, any food, water, money, or valuables will be useful to us. You sift through the corpses' gear and fish out three smartphones, two TI-84 calculators, one TI-nspire, a pack of fruit snacks, another bottle of water, pack of graham crackers, one apple, and a bag of chips. That TI-nspire though. Someone's loaded. Storing all the loot in your backpack, you shoulder the backpack and make your way to the media center. Once you enter, you ignore Matt and Kate, seclude yourself in a corner far away from the others, pull out the cracked in iPhone, dial your mother's phone number, and press it to your ear. After several heartbeats, someone picks up and says a frantic "Hello?"
"Hi, this is Irene. I'm using a phone I--"
"Oh, thank goodness you're safe! I was so worried about you! I tried calling your cellphone so many times, but no one picked up! And then I tried calling our home phone and no one picked up then too! So I left several messages hoping you'd call back! But then I realized that you probably visited the school again today and weren't at home! I was so, so, so, worried about you! I'm so glad you're okay!" your mother says in a relieved, worried tone. She's crying too.
You sigh heavily, you knew this would happen. "Mother, I--"
"So where are you right now? What are you doing? Do you know what happened to Andre? Have you been eating? Or sleeping? What has the school been doing?"
"Mother, let me speak, please."
"Okay, okay, okay. I'm listening now."
You explain to her the current situation, and how you have seen no signs of your brother.
"You should stay inside the classrooms, where it's safe! Let the other people deal with all these zombies!"
"I can't, mother. I have to do something," you protest.
"I just want you to be safe. Please."
"Alrighttt," you say, wincing at the lie.
"Okay. Good."
"Well, what's the situation where you are right now?" you query.
"I couldn't get back home! They set up a quarantine around our area! I'm here with Daddy too."
"What are they doing though?" you ask.
"They say they're going to just quarantine the area for now."
"So no sign of support just yet?" you question.
"Nope."
"Okay, well I have to go do things now, bye," you say, trying to end the conversation.
"Stay safe!"
"Alright," you reply.
You hang up and sigh heavily, starting to walk towards Matt and Kate. So we can't count on outside help...Guess we'll have to stake it out by ourselves for now.

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

[Irene]

You frown, everyone is probably scattered all over the school by now. It would be immensely difficult to get everyone in one place, Unless...
You say to Phillip and Sam, "The media center is right there, you two should go there and wait for everyone else."
Sam replies, "Where are you going then?"
"I'm going to pick several things up first and then go to the front office, it's safer if you stay in the media center instead of out in the hallways," you respond.
Leaving Sam behind with Phillip, you make your way to the cafeteria. Good thing that no one is in here. Although I would want to feed everyone, it just isn't possible right now. We can only afford to feed the people who can help us secure our current situation, otherwise we'll all die. You unlock the door leading to the kitchen and eat a sandwich. Gotta stay healthy, especially now. You spy a water bottle and down the whole thing--it had been a while since you drank water. Normally you'd be fine with drinking less than eight ounces per day, but with all the zombie fighting you've been doing lately, you need all the water you can get. So naturally, you pick up a second water bottle and drink the whole thing as well. You also take a long knife just in case, you're a bit short on weapons after all. You lock all the doors behind you as you head out to the front office.

On the way, you encounter two zombies. Glad I didn't eat too much. I can still move decently well even with this much water in my stomach. You cautiously circle behind one, Brain stem consists of the cerebellum, which controls balance; the pons, which controls sensory information; and the medulla, which is vital to survival. Either way, aiming at the base of the skull should kill it. Just kind of wish I still had a baseball bat so I could stun it, throw it off balance and such. You start silently sprinting and tackle one, throwing it the ground face flat. You aim at the base of its head and stab downwards. The zombie is still twitching. You try again. And again. On the third stab, the zombie falls still. Piercing through bone is such a hassle. By now, the second zombie has noticed you and has begun rushing towards you, arms outstretched. You quickly kick the first corpse off to the side and perform a circle sweep to knock the zombie off balance. Wow. I'm rusty, but that wasn't half-bad. It falls and you stab it through the eye. Flicking the blood off your blade, you examine the bodies. Maybe I should actually loot them. Like Matt did. That backpack would be useful to store provisions. Maybe even a phone or two. So I can call people instead of wandering the halls, wondering where everyone else went. You carefully disentangle the backpack from the corpse and dump the contents onto the ground. Notebooks and binders scatter all over the place. You check the front and side pockets. Nice. There's a bag of cookies. And a water bottle. Looting the fallen bodies' pockets, you pick up two iPhones. Now I finally have my own Apple product. Let's see if I can crack into them. You mash random numbers and fail to get in four times. Then you try the combination 1-2-3-4. It unlocks. Wowwwww. These idiots. Oh well. At least it benefits me in the end. I'll figure out how to use this later in the media center. You place both phones, the water bottle, and your extra knife in the backpack. Need to stock it with more provisions and some medical supplies later. Hefting the backpack onto your shoulder, you finally unlock the door leading to the front office.

"Hi again, Mrs. Allen and Mrs. Lloyd!" you say cheerfully.
Both of them give you a wide-eyed look. "You have bloodstains over your clothes, Irene!" Mrs. Allen exclaims.
"I'm okay. Not injured or anything. But can I use the announcement thing for a quick second?" you ask.
"Sure," Mrs. Allen motions you to come over. She presses the appropriate keys and hands you the phone.
You say in a confident but serious tone, "This is Irene [REDACTED]. Will Matthew [DATA EXPUNGED], Travis [REDACTED], Alicia [REDACTED], Phillip [REDACTED], Sam White, Adam [DATA EXPUNGED], Benjamin [REDACTED], and Kate come to the media center?"
That should gather everyone. We need to fix those breaches as soon as possible.

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

[Irene]

You watch as Phillip beats the zombie repeatedly with his improvised ball-and-chain weapon.
"Not bad," you say to Phillip, "Although your weapons aren't terrible efficient."
Sam asks you excitedly, "Can I get a weapon too?"
Irene looks down at the kid with a sympathetic face, "It's probably better if you didn't. You'll do more than your fair share later on. And while you're distracting, a weapon would only slow you down."
Also because we can't afford to waste resources on someone who's going to die.
And who's fault is that?
Mine. I claim full responsibility for his death. But this is a necessary action.
The boy responds, "Okay, I understand."
Irene turns to Matt, "Now what?"

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

[Irene]

"Alright, I'll check the chemistry room really quick to see if Travis and Alicia are still there."
You make a short trip to the chemistry room, to find that everyone had left. Guess I'll go to the media center then and wait for Matt. You walk towards the MST stairwell only to bump into Matt again, this time with Phillip. You and Sam watch curiously to see what happens as a zombie makes his way towards Phillip.

Advanced Composition Period 6: Zombie Apocalypse

((Collab Post))

[Irene & Matt]

Matt opens the door, nearly hitting the kid running by. He can only see the kid’s back, but he looks fairly injured, with fresh blood running down his back. Not only that, the kid was limping awkwardly as he ran, and Matt watches as he nearly falls, pushing against the wall for support. The zombies barrel past Matt, moving unusually fast. Maybe they sensed that their prey was weak and vulnerable.

“Wow. Perfect,” Irene comments as she catches up with Matt, neatly dodging to the side as the zombies chase the kid.

Matt jogs to catch up to the closest zombie, spear held at the ready. It’s gonna be hard to hit its head as it’s running away, so I’ll go for the legs first. He adjusts his grip on his spear and prepares to swing low.

Irene unsheathes her sword, sprints to overtake Matt, sticks her foot out, and trips the lagging zombie. She watches as it lands flat on its face and steps on its back to keep it down. It struggles, and she knows that she can’t keep it down forever like this. So Irene stabs at its head repeatedly until it stops moving.

“Oh c’mon. You’re just going to get tired sprinting like that.” Matt complains.

Irene retorts, “But sprinting is fun! And I’m not sprinting all that much so I should be okay. Plus, it’s not like I’m by myself.” She speeds up again to catch the next slowest moving zombie , trips it, and holds it down with her foot. Irene then gives Matt an expectant look.

Matt grins and raises his spear like an executioner before a helpless captive. He brings it down with enough force to smash through the zombie’s skull and into the floor. Hitting the floor with his weapon at full force, unfortunately also puts too much stress on the shaft, and the meter stick handle breaks with an audible *CRACK*.
Matt frowns. gg too stronk. The stronk was just too much.

That’s one heck of a smile. Irene jumps back as soon as Matt swings down with his weapon to avoid getting blood all over herself. Her eyes widen when she witnesses Matt’s weapon breaking. Well crap. That’s not good at all. At least the zombie got rekt. Irene quickly unslings the baseball bat from her back and offers it to Matt, “Do you want this?”

He sighs and takes the bat. “Sure.”

“Sorry about your weapon though,” Irene comments, “You had put quite a bit into it. Are the knives still retrievable from it?”

“It’s fine, I’ll just make a new one. I’ll reuse the knives yeah.” Matt responds.

“Alright then. Let’s take down the rest of the zombies then,” Irene replies.

“So you can get your precious decoy haha.” Matt leaves the broken spear on the ground for now and swings the metal bat experimentally a few times.

“You make me sound like a bad person. I mean, if you’d rather fight an endless horde of zombies, be my guest,” Irene says nonchalantly, “And it’s not like I want to do this either. Unlike someone here.”

“I mean, I’ll probably get bored of this eventually. But for now, it’s fun!” Matt exclaims as he leaps on the horde, which had missed the passing of its backmost members. He crushes a knee with a low swing and rapidly brings the bat down on the zombies head until it’s no longer recognizable as human.

Irene shakes her head and kills another zombie with the same method she used before. I’m getting somewhat tired… She glances up ahead of her and notices the zombies slowly gaining ground on the kid. We need to finish this up soon--or he may not make it.
What? Live for now so you can send him into his death again?
Shut up.

Eww. Bats are so much messier than blades. Matt wipes his face on the back of his hand skips forward to the next zombie, planting the bat squarely on the small of it’s back and pushing hard. The zombie, already moving forward, starts to tip forward uncontrollably as it’s back arches, and it falls over, managing to trip up the one in front of it as well. The outstretched arms of the zombies as they fall brings down most of the rest of the horde. Tossing his bat aside, Matt leaps from zombie to zombie with his knives, planting a knee on its back and slicing and stabbing the back of the neck neatly to sever the brain stem.

Irene capitalizes on a downed zombie and swings twice at its neck to decapitate it. She looks up to see that Matt has dealt with the rest of the zombies so she walks over to the cowering boy and offers a hand. “We’re here to help now,” Irene says with a reassuring smile on her face.

The boy takes her hand gratefully and responds relieved, “Thanks for saving me! I thought for sure I was going to die!”

Matt bites his thumb to hide a laugh. You weren’t wrong about that.

“No problem. My name is Irene, what is yours?” Irene queries.

“My name is Sam, Sam White,” he replies.

Irene assesses the kid’s wounds, Yep. The wound on his shoulder is infected, he won’t last long at all. She looks straight at the boy and says, “You’re going to die.”

“What!? How?! I feel fine! My shoulder hurts, but I feel okay overall!,” Sam exclaims frantically, a look of anguish overcoming his features.

“The wound is infected by zombies. And there’s nothing that can help those,” Irene states levelly.

Matt nods in agreement, sliding a finger across his throat for emphasis.

“B-but I can’t! Not yet. Not now. I’m too young to die!” the boy wails.

“Yes. You’re going to die. And eventually fade from memory, with no record of your existence,” Irene responds nonchalantly, “Imagine, in about fifty years from now, no one will know who you are. You have not made a lasting impact with your life.”

And so the manipulation begins! Matt listens closely as he retrieves his broken spear and takes it apart, cramming the blades into his pocket, as well as hooking the hammer on his belt.

The kid’s face twists in agony at the mental image.

“However...there is one way you can be remembered as a hero, for now and forever,” Irene says calmly.

“How??” Sam asks, desperate.

Matt takes the Northface jacket off of a dead girl and cleans his blades thoroughly with them. He wipes his face clean as well, although his black hardcover-scalemail remains deeply stained with blood. Careful inspection of the armor reveals minor tearing of some duct tape, but nothing that couldn’t be easily fixed.

“You could help us out,” Irene looks around, “As of now there are too many zombies near the breach. We need a distraction.”

“So you want me to face those monsters again?!” the boy exclaims in a shrill voice.

“Yes. And I ask this of you because only you can do this.”

After his upkeep was finished, Matt starts to scavenge the zombie bodies, figuring that phones and keys should prove valuable. He finds one pair of car keys hanging from a lanyard, and 4 phones, three iPhones and one android. He manages to fit the loot into his cargo pants pockets, thankful for the storage space. With nothing left to do, Matt wipes the metal bat off and takes a seat next to Irene against the wall, the bat in his lap.

“B-but it’s too scary! I don’t want to!”

“Look at the facts. You are already going to die, no matter what, by the end of today.”

“I want to at least enjoy my last moments!”

Irene gives the boy an exasperated look, “Do you want to be known as the coward who could’ve saved everyone, but didn’t-- just because he was too scared?

Sam shakes his head.

Irene continued on, her voice getting more gentle “You can save everyone here in this building. Instead of dying somewhere, unknown and alone, you can be a hero, a savior. Your name will be remembered, for all of time, as the one who bravely faced a horde of zombies in order to let everyone else live. Think about it, do you have any siblings in this school?”

The boy whimpers and nods, “An older brother.”

“And while you will die, you can at least do something to help the people you love and care about. I know it’s scary, but you’re the only one who can do this.”

The kid shakes for several moments, steadies himself, and nods slowly, “I-I’ll help.”

Pretty effective manipulation. It wouldn’t work on me, but others are more gullible.

Good job, Irene! You have now successfully condemned a person! Yay. Fantastic. What a monster.
Shut up shut up shut up.
You awful person.
Beaming a smile at the boy, Irene says soothingly, “You made the right choice.”
Looking over at Matt and the freshman, Irene states in a more serious tone, “So here’s the plan. We’ll first transport all the materials needed to MST down. You and Travis can carry the materials while Alicia and I guard you two. If we find Kate, she can help with guarding. Afterwards, you and I will oversee the initial stages of the decoy plan, while Kate, Alicia, and Travis standby until the area is mostly clear. We can then scout for the location of the breach. Once we find it, we can have two people work on repairs, again probably you and Travis, while the rest make sure no zombies come close.”

“I’m almost certain the breach is by the lower parking lot doors. I’m also pretty sure that’s where the power was damaged, I smelled smoke and stuff,” Matt interjects. He feels slightly sorry for Sam, but he was probably going to die anyways, so he might as well live out his final moments being useful.

Irene gets up. “Alright then. Let’s go find the others and tell them. C’mon Sam,” Irene starts walking toward the chemistry room and motions for the kid to follow, “You made a brave decision today.”