Zombies II: Inhuman Read Free Page B

glory."
    "So how did he stop you? I mean there are
three of you and Nate alone is like an army. It doesn't sound like
his gift was aggressive enough to handle you guys."
    "Oh, my father didn't use any powers against
us. As you say, his gift was not of that line of abilities. He had
built ways to stop us, fail-safes if you will to keep us in line.
He saw us as the great betrayers of mankind not himself. He took
out Nate first with a net actually able to contain him. He used the
hospital's sprinkler system against Arc. It was brutal. She took
days to recover. He even hurt me."
    "Hurt you? Are you invulnerable? Is that your
gift?"
    "I am many things," Victor turned to face
Thorne staring into him.
    "He's building them an ark."
    "An ark? I don't get it."
    "He's building an ark to leave this world
behind for the stars. He must be stopped before they allow him to
lead them into the void. Nothing awaits mankind up there but death
as surely as if they stayed here without our hands to guide them
and keep them safe. Will you help me save the human race
Thorne?"
    "How? I'm just one person Victor."
    "Samuel doesn't know you exist. It's unlikely
he has devised a way to counter your power. You can kill him with a
thought Thorne and afterwards your gift will make you the perfect
watchman to help keep the norms in check until they see the truth
of things. You would have a chance to create a paradise with me
unlike any this world has ever known. Eventually I believe we'd
even be able to reclaim this entire planet from the rotting grasp
which holds it now."
    Victor watched Thorne thinking over his
words.
    "I'll do it," Thorne agreed but even as he
spoke the words he reached out subtly trying to touch Victor's
mind. He had to know if Victor was sincere in his desire to start
over and rebuild or he if was just a madman bent on gaining power
for himself. He felt an unnatural wall around Victor's mind and
knew he had made a mistake.
    Victor's eyes glowed red with anger. He
grabbed Thorne by the throat with a single hand lifting him into
the air and dangled him above the horde of dead below. Thorne
fought against Victor's hold on him but the man's grip was like
steel and his flesh felt more like metal than skin. Thorne strained
to reach into Victor's mind. His eyes went wide as he realized why
he couldn't. "You . . . You're not alive,"
    Thorne gasped.
    "I am sorry you feel that way," Victor said
calmly. "Things would have been far easier for us all if you did
not." Blood stained Victor's fingers as they dug into Thorne's
neck. "My father felt the same after he finished me but I am more
alive than any of you will ever be. This is my world now Thorne.
Goodbye." Victor whispered sadly and released Thorne.
    Thorne screamed looking up at the thing that
called itself a man as he fell to the streets below. The dead
fought over his splattered remains in a frenzy as Victor wiped off
his hands and began planning how to defeat Samuel on his own once
more. The battle to come would be bloodier now but it was a small
price to pay to make his visions real.

Reapers at the Door
    The blaring of alarm klaxons tore Scott from
sleep. His worst nightmare had suddenly become very real. The alarm
could only mean one thing; the war had reached the Talon VIII
station at last. He rolled out of bed, dragging on his uniform, as
he clumsily tried to open a com-link to the bridge. No one up there
was either able or had time to answer his hail though he guessed as
the attempt failed.
    Visions of "Reaper" war-pods attaching
themselves all over the station's hull and spilling their cargo of
moving, violent, rotting flesh into the corridors filled his head.
The "Reapers" didn't fight space battles.
    Their ships dropped out of nether-space
already breaking up, spewing thousands upon thousands of boarding
pods at the enemy target they engaged. Nor did the "Reapers"
believe in combat themselves.
    Only one out of a hundred such pods actually
contained a "Reaper" shock-troop. The rest