Zombie Mall Read online

  A couple of guards come and take the old man away before he continues. They treat him kindly and walk away. You turn to the other prisoner next to your cage. She’s breathing heavily.

  If you… Go to…

  Wake the prisoner and talk Section 105

  Call in a guard to watch the other prisoner Section 106

  Section 71

  Go to the office

  You start climbing the stairs, but you stop when someone shouts at you.

  “Halt! Stop!”

  You raise your hands by instinct and turn around. Just a few steps away from you, a mercenary points his rifle directly to your head. Before you can orchestrate any word, the office door behind you opens and more mercenaries come out. Nobody cares about your explanation.

  One guy comes forward and puts a collar to your neck, the same kind the zombies wear. You protest, and struggle. Somebody knocks you down with the butt of his rifle. You fall to the ground, bleeding.

  The collar lights go on, bright red. Your brain buzzes in pain. The mercenaries laugh.

  “It stings isn’t? Is not meant for living people!”

  The pain increases without end. And then, you feel how bullets go through you when one of their bosses walks into the scene.

  “Quit doing that. We need more workers”, he yells at the others.

  The mercenaries return to their post, and let you out to bleed out. Your brain still works when you heart stops. Your thoughts, your personality and all of you vanishes away. You feel the hunger for brains and flesh, but the collar makes you obey.

  YOU DIED

  If you… Go to…

  Start from the beginning Section 1

  Section 72

  Enter the dark room

  Careful not to make any noise, you kick the wedge aside and open the door. You turn on the lights, and quickly cover the door window. Inside, kneeling on the floor you find a dozen soldiers, gagged and tied up. Some heavily beaten up and unconscious.

  Without any time to loose, you untie the closest woman soldier. She’s crying. She helps you untie the rest, until everybody is free. They tell you that the people outside are mercenaries. They overpower them and took control of the zombie workforce. The rest of their unit is dead… and working for them. They only kept the rest as bargain chips, just in case.

  The only way back to base, to safety, is through brute force. Quickly they organize two teams. One will seek control of the zombies, the other will attack the leaders of the mercenaries.

  If you… Go to…

  Join the group targeting the zombies Section 107

  Join the group targeting the mercenaries Section 108

  Section 73

  Head towards the rocket

  A long line of people awaits boarding. Being so close to the huge space ship reminds you of how small humans are. People present some special credentials before boarding, one that you don’t have. However, there is no time to go back. There are just a few ahead of you, and you wonder what will happen if they discover you are not part of the approved crew. Sweat runs down your chin.

  Suddenly, an alarm sounds. The entire world goes nuts. People panic. The speakers warn.

  Perimeter breached. All personnel to designated stations.

  In the middle of the agitation, people controlling the line opens the lane and hurry everybody on board. Saved by the bell, you head on with the rest. Passing the gate, they hand you a mask and a chip card with a seat number. You reach a large lift that carries your group to the boarding gate near the top of the vessel. As the elevator moves up, you see the nightmare below. A large horde has breach the gates, destroying everything they touch.

  Sitting in the spaceship, you ready yourself for the final countdown. The cabin where you are sits maybe 60 or 70 people. The engines roar. “G” forces pin you to your sit as the rocket gains velocity and reaches orbit. The blue sky outside becomes black when the atmosphere falls behind.

  Whatever your destination may be, you’ll have time to explain yourself. For the first time, you’ll rest and sleep secure.

  YOU SURVIVED

  If you… Go to…

  Start from the beginning Section 1

  Section 74

  Board the cruise ship

  Being isolated in high sea in a luxury vessel sounds like a great idea to wait out the apocalypse. Security seems more relaxed. You see all sort of people boarding, military and civilians. You blend easily in the crowd and follow the indications of the crew.

  Soon after boarding, somebody handles you a pair of clean sheets and a key card with an assigned cabin. No questions asked, no pleasantries either. The personnel acts in a hurry. They look very concerned.

  Your cabin is located below the float line, and has no windows. It is a small room, with two bunker beds. Nobody is there yet. You place your stuff on the free bed, and use the toilet. You wash your hands and enjoying the luxury of indoor plumbing. then, an alarm sounds and you hear a large commotion outside.

  If you… Go to…

  Head for the top deck Section 109

  Stay in your cabin Section 110

  Section 75

  Type 004

  Thinking that the lowest number is always the one that saves the days in the movies, you type 004. The keypad makes blips, and something seems to happen with the door. You hear something unlocks, and then locks again, multiple times. Sparks explode out of the box, and a massive electrical failure cascades through the place.

  You hear shouts and screams behind you. Soldiers run here and there. Then, the shooting starts and an entire line of zombies falls down to gun fire. Others, cramp up on top of army men as they devour them. The line of zombies you walked in, now looks at you with hungry eyes. Their collars blink brightly red.

  With your back to the locked door, the undead surround you, taking slow steps towards you. There is no escape. They smile. You know they will enjoy eating you. They are starving to death.

  YOU DIED

  If you… Go to…

  Start from the beginning Section 1

  Section 76

  Type 404

  “Page not found” is the title for the Internet error code 404. Clever to put it on a note. As far as you know, only humans can read. A few others would know what it means. Still, even for the apocalypse this relaxed security is just plain lazy.

  The door unlocks and you walk inside. Lights turn on as you walk down a large corridor with water tanks on each side. Each tank has a person floating inside, connected to many wires. There are hundreds of them, lined in rows as far as the eye can see. Each one displays on the glass a set of continuous data, including a heart beat.

  At the end of the huge deposit, there is a glass laboratory. Inside, personnel in lab coats work around computers and machines of all kind.

  If you… Go to…

  Study the activity in the lab Section 111

  Enter the lab Section 112

  Section 77

  Type 000

  You enter the code, and a blip sound rejects the code. A trap door under your feet opens wide, and you fall down a shaft. After bouncing around for a while, you land feet first into a room filled with garbage of all kind.

  It takes a few tries, but you stand up on a pile of debris above the water line. There is only a light bulb in the room, and the place swarms with rats. Grabbing a pipe, you swing it around an knock dead cold a few of them. The rest disbands, all but one.

  Suddenly, a mechanical noise rumbles through the room.

  If you… Go to…

  Attack the rat, make it clear you are not dinner Section 113

  Stay away from the rat, and investigate the noise Section 114

  Section 78

  Call out for someone

  A sudden feeling of claustrophobia grows on you. Your begin to hyperventilate. You may loose consciousness.

  “Help! Someone! I don’t feel well!”

  Your breathing keeps speeding, and your mind is going all over the place. You feel you are going
mad. Soft music begins to play through the speakers. The soothing tone helps you calm down as you focus on the melody. Then a voice, crispy and calm says:

  “We won’t hurt you. When you calm down, we will talk”

  You focus on your breathing and calm down as much as you can. The music continues for a while. Then, it stops and the speaker voice talks again:

  “Fear not. You are safe.”

  At that moment, the door opens and a zombie walks into the room. You freak out. He stands still for several minutes until you calm down again. Then, he frees you from your handcuffs, steps back and watches you untie your feet.

  If you… Go to…

  Ram the zombie and escape through the door Section 115

  Wait and attempt to communicate with the zombie Section 116

  Section 79

  Demand to be released

  You struggle in your chair, trying to free yourself. The handcuffs are very tight, and go around the chair. The chair is also fixed to the floor. You yell, demanding to be free. Nothing happens for several hours. Then, the door opens and a soldier woman appears with a bottle of water. She’s human, and not wearing any collar. She smiles at you as she offers water to drink.

  “Drink well. You will have food and water at regular intervals. Quarantine is hard… but we all survive.”

  You ask questions, that she doesn’t answer. She leaves quietly and locks the door behind her. You hear a buzz, then your handcuffs in wrist and ankles fall to the ground. You’re free to walk around the room. The wall behind you looks scary. There are splatter marks of blood everywhere, all the way to the ceiling. You try the door. Locked. You are trapped.

  If you… Go to…

  Wait for the next food delivery and attack Section 117

  Try to communicate with the guard Section 118

  Section 80

  Jump and slide down a tentacle

  Balancing yourself, you swing and jump. Mid air you hold onto one of the tentacles. It is slippery, just what you need. You slide down as if it were a firehouse pole. Close to the ground, you let go and land on your feet.

  The witch attacks you with a large knife, ignoring the beast above her head. You evade the attack, and sucker punch the witch on her way down. She drops the knife at your feet. You hurry to grab it. In pure hate, the witch jumps at you determine to scratch you to death. She never gets the chance. A tentacle catches her mid air, and the monster eats her, head first. You watch briefly as her legs move frantically out of the beasts mouth. In a mostly comical way, the monster slurps her in like a noodle.

  Knife in hand, you head for the exit door, lashing out anything that crosses your way. You reach the door just in time to see dead cultists raising as undead. They charge against the beast. The creature, focuses on these resilient food that dares to fight back. On your way out, the last thing you see is the creature fighting the zombies away, falling back into the dark zone. The storm fades away, and you are left alone. No zombies, no monster, nothing at all. You calmly walk out of the hall, and lock the door.

  YOU SURVIVED

  If you… Go to…

  Start from the beginning Section 1

  Section 81

  Let go of the rail, and hope to land on something soft

  The creature is pulling you in. Half body still in the dark zone, it struggles to come out. You let go of the railing and land on a pile of corpses. You roll down to the floor, but alive and with only a few scratches. Unexpectedly, something bites your leg. You shake it off, but a few teeth are still there.

  The creature grabs everything on his reach, trying to pull itself into our reality. The portal behind it sucks everything in. Cultists and zombies nearby fly in, unable to resist.

  You fight off the pull, but your leg hurts. You loose footing and crawl on the floor. You are about to make it, when a tentacle grabs you and violently pulls you into the void.

  YOU DIED

  If you… Go to…

  Start from the beginning Section 1

  Section 82

  Hold on with all your might

  Crying in despair, you hold on to the rail for your life. The creature slashes out tentacle after tentacle, wrapping your legs and waist. Another one and gets your shoulders. You hold on. Tentacles tighten, and your bones break. You scream in pain. Then, the monster pulls violently and your fingers snap.

  The creature holds you up in the air, while you scream. In one savage movement, each tentacle pulls in opposite direction, ripping apart your body in four parts.

  YOU DIED

  If you… Go to…

  Start from the beginning Section 1

  Section 83

  Follow along the procession

  The dark procession chants as they walk. A skinny woman at the front raises her arms. Her long, blonde hair falls down her shoulders. Without the evil inside, she would be an attractive woman. Her face is now distorted and dry. She smiles and rumbles about with a prepared speech: Blah, blah, blah… the end of the world and such.

  The discourse goes on for hours. She blames men for the evil in the world, how “sisterhood” is the solution, and how the sins of the fathers brought the zombie plague. The whole speech is a train of delusional thoughts. Only global warming is missing and you have it all. After each sentence, the entire crowd repeats over and over:

  “Su-Sa-Mun! Su-Sa-Mun!”

  Then, a group of cultists brings a man to the front. He’s been badly tortured, can’t barely stand by himself. They intend to sacrifice him to their fake goddess.

  If you… Go to…

  Stay in character, and see what happens Section 119

  Take action, help the man Section 120

  Section 84

  Stay in the shadows, avoiding attention

  You move into the main hall behind columns. You spring from one to another when nobody watches. Mainly, you stay in the shadows. The cultists surround a strange altar, where an old witch leads the ceremony.

  On the side of the scene, and closer to the last column, you see a cage with children. Two women guard them. However, they seem more interested in hearing the speech than in looking at the cage behind them.

  Your mind rumbles about how to take these children to safety.

  If you… Go to…

  Create a diversion Section 121

  Wait for the right time to act Section 122

  Section 85

  Run downstairs and save the children

  You storm into the room. The cultist, running for their life, ignore you in your quest. The children scream in terror. Behind you, the mummy jumps from one acolyte to another. It grows in size with each new trophy it consumes.

  You search the body of one of the guards. Find the key and open the cage. The children rush out. You carry the smallest in your arms. You all hurry through the door, as zombies fight each other. Some, loyal to the mummy. Others, thirst for blood.

  “Run, children. Run!”

  Door after door, you fear the undead may follow you. You pray not to find any other along your way. This time, your prayers receive a quick answer. You make it outside without a single scratch, children and all.

  The earth rumbles, as the battle below rages on. The powers of the mummy grow. Zombies in the parking lot flood the mall. The battle of the undead has just began.

  You rush the children into a van, and take off. You head north, as far away from this place as you can go.

  YOU SURVIVED

  If you… Go to…

  Start from the beginning Section 1

  Section 86

  Find a weapon, save the children

  The mayhem below reaches epic proportions. The mummy not only harvest organs, but the victims turn into her servants. The plain kills turn into zombies. Each other confuses the other for the next meal. It’s a whole new mess.

  You grab a crowbar, and weight it on your hands. Take a deep breath, and just when you are about to jump into action, you pull down the fire alarm. The additional distraction adds to the confusion.r />
  You have to fight cultists to get in. Everywhere you look, undead fight against undead. You can’t tell what is what, but are happy they don’t chase you for a change.

  You reach the cage, and with the crowbar force the door open. The children rush out. You point them to the exit behind you. You walk last, covering their escape.

  The mummy stands atop a pile of corpses. She rips her bandages, as her body fully recovers. Clear, soft skin covered with tattoos of some ancient curse. She stares at you. All the undead stop fighting. Silence falls in the room.

  If you… Go to…

  Run with the children Section 123

  Attack the mummy Section 124

  Section 87

  Check the kitchen for food

  Carl

  You are under attack and must fight this monster. If you win, keep reading. If not, find the You are dead page at the end of the book.

  Zombie Carl is now dead. Laying against a wall, it will not move anymore. Just in case, you bust his head open. You can never be too careful when it comes to the undead.

  You go through the kitchen, open every door and cabinet. Luck strikes hard. The pantry is full of canned food. The meat locker has only rotten food. Well, one out of two is not bad when it comes to food. You have enough food to last for weeks, if not more.

  Out of the kitchen, you find leaflets talking about a vaccine for the zombie “decease”. It seems it didn’t work, you tell yourself. Other papers talk about the great opening for the restaurant. It was supposed to be ready a couple of days after all hell broke loose. Tough luck.