I forced myself up to my feet, then nearly stumbled back down to the bed in the process. My bitten leg was numb and stiff. It wasn’t completely immobile, but I wouldn’t be running anywhere anytime soon.

Great. Just add it to the list.

Still dizzy, I felt like I could puke at any moment. I took off the helmet and tossed it aside. Any other zombies in the house would’ve attacked already, and if I did throw up, the last thing I needed was to get it all over my face. I was just about to limp out of the room when something on the floor caught my eye.

I blinked a few times, clearing my vision, squinting to make sure I was seeing it right. The familiar portrait of a founding father stared back at me. Yep, it was a dollar bill alright—flat and creaseless like it had just come off the print. Finding one on the floor of a residence like this shouldn’t be so unusual, but considering how meticulously put in place everything else in the house was...

Could it have something to do with the zombie? Now that I thought about it, the bill was lying exactly where one of the corpses—the creeper, I think—had been a few minutes earlier. A coincidence? I thought back to the description of the zombification cure; it had mentioned something about “drops.” I pulled out my phone and went to the encyclopedia—which kept a description of all the items and creatures I’d encountered so far—and found the message containing the word.

Description: Drop An item left behind by a slain creature. A drop is not always guaranteed from a kill, and some creatures will have a probability of leaving behind multiple drops. Items will typically be of the same tier or lower tier than the slain creature, with the exception of Tier 0 creatures, which have a small probability of dropping Tier I items, and creatures with tier modifiers, which may allow them to drop higher tier items.

It seemed my hunch was correct, though I still couldn’t fathom the how or why of any of it. And a single dollar bill? Seriously? Surely killing a fucking zombie is worth more than that! Actually, would this money even be worth anything at all, given the circumstances?

Well, it couldn’t hurt to hold on to, I figured, and slipped it into my pocket. Then I thought of something else: if this was the reward for killing the creeper, then surely the schemer—which was apparently worth eleven times as much in XP—might've dropped something even better.

I glanced over to where body had previously been, giving the area a careful look. A twinkle of light caught my eye, and sure enough, there was a little crimson gem-like thing lying on floor. Cautiously, I leaned down and picked up the object, scrutinizing it. It was hexagonal in shape and not very large, fitting easily into the palm of my hand, but it had some weight to it, giving it a feeling of authenticity. Maybe it was some kind of gemstone, like a ruby? If so, it could be worth a fortune, not that it would do me any good right now. Still, maybe it could be used as some kind of currency, or...

Another idea occurred to me. The "Scan” feature on my phone; maybe it was supposed to give information on things like this. It couldn’t hurt to try, at least. I went back to the main menu and tapped the button. What popped up looked like a typical camera app, with a white square outline in the middle. I aimed the camera at the crimson gem, placing it inside the white square, and a pair of windows automatically popped up.

Item: Unidentifiable (Intelligence too low) Item Type: Ability Gem (Tier II) Description: Unlocks a Tier II Ability in the XP Shop when absorbed. Weight: .4 lb Absorb Ability Gem? YES NO

The “YES” option was greyed out, but I tried tapping on it anyway. A third window popped up.

Ability Gems cannot be absorbed without the XP Shop open.

Figures. I still didn’t understand what the item was, but it seemed to have some value, so I slipped it into my pocket alongside the dollar bill.

Then I was off to search the rest of the house. I knew I was on a time limit, but with these injuries and the existence of powered-up zombies, I was no longer so confident about the hammer alone being enough. It was a longshot, but finding something like a gun would do me wonders.

I went for the bedroom down the hall first, searching through the closets, drawers, and even under the bed to find nothing. I also tested the lights, and like in the first house, they failed to turn on. It was probably a safe bet that the rest of the neighborhood, and likely the area beyond, would be the same.

Not good news, but I couldn’t say I was surprised. I went for the other top-floor room next. This one was a bathroom, which I found to be stocked similarly to the one in the first house. I considered taking some of the ointments to treat my wounds, but decided I didn’t have the time for the minimal treatment to be worth it. Instead, I picked up a small medicine bottle labeled “painkillers” that I'd found behind one of the mirrors.

God damn could I use one of these. That said, I knew better than to pop some random pills based on a generic label alone. Maybe that Scan function could help me out here, too. I gave it a try.

Item: Codeine Pill (x30) Item Type: Consumable (Tier 0) Effect: Suppresses some pain from mild to moderate wounds and aches for a period of roughly 4 hours. Toxicity Rating: 2 Weight: .2 lb

Eh, good enough for me. I twisted open the bottle and popped one pill into my mouth, swallowing the bitterness down quickly. Not a second later, I felt some of the agony permeating through my body begin to alleviate. Fast-acting stuff, huh? Maybe a little too fast-acting. Or maybe it was just a placebo effect. Either way, I did feel a bit better, and decided to just be appreciative as I slipped the rest of the bottle into my pocket and headed downstairs.

I’d already gone through the bottom floor earlier when I’d first broken into the house, but that had only been a cursory search. Going through it a bit more thoroughly now, I was rewarded with the find of a lighter in one of the kitchen drawers. Given the lack of electricity, the ability to start a fire could prove invaluable. After checking to make sure it was still functioning, I put it in my pocket.

Then, I found my eyes drifting to the liquor cabinet. I couldn’t help it; the painkiller had helped somewhat, but my shoulder was still throbbing and, equally importantly, my mind was seriously in need of some stress relief. All things considered, I’d say I was a pretty solid job of staying sane given the circumstances, but sanity is a fragile thing, and I felt like mine was on the brink of collapse. It might sound counterintuitive, but getting a little buzzed—just a little, I swear—might actually help clear my head a bit.

Yeah, that was some perfectly logical reasoning. No questionable self-justifications in there at all whatsoever.

Regardless, I pulled open the cabinet and fetched out a bottle of whiskey, cracking it open. Briefly, the thought went through my head that mixing alcohol and painkillers probably wasn’t the safest thing in the world, but hey, neither was trying to fight zombies. Just a little bit couldn’t hurt. Not like I was planning to get drunk or anything, just a little something to take the edge off.

I took a small sip, enjoying the burn down my throat. Not the best stuff I’d ever had, but nothing to complain about, either. I took another, bigger, swig, then sighed in relief before gulping down a third.

Then a fourth. And a fifth.

I was quite happily on my way to mindless inebriation when a spot of movement flashed in the corner of my vision. I stopped mid-gulp, nearly choking as I spit out the drink and ducked under the counter. I waited tensely, a full minute with my ears perked for any sound whatsoever, but heard nothing out of place. I could’ve sworn I’d seen something, but maybe it was just my imagination...

I slowly eased my head out from under the counter, then immediately ducked right back into hiding. Nope, not my imagination. There were zombies, alright. Several of them, in fact, but all on the other side of the front window. Thankfully, it seemed like they were just meandering around the house and weren’t actually interested in trying to get inside. Probably hadn’t seen me yet—thank fuck—but how could so many of them be out there now when I hadn’t even been able to find a single one outside before?

I could only think it had something to do with the two zombies I’d killed in here. Specifically, the schemer. The description talked about command abilities, but didn’t go into any detail as to what they entailed. Telepathic communication? A possible dead man’s switch that prompted all zombies within a given area to come swarming toward the location of its death?

I couldn’t tell whether that sounded far-fetched or very likely, but at least I didn’t have to worry about finding more zombies to kill. As for how to actually do the deed... I risked a longer peek out to see that the zombies were still trudging along, not appearing the least bit interested in breaking inside, but not wondering away, either. There were far too many for me to just go out there and start swinging the hammer, and even without my hobbled leg, I certainly didn't have the ability to sneak around killing them one by one, either. That wasn’t even considering the possibility of a superior variant being present. If there was another schemer, it might already have realized where I was, and this could all just be a trap to get me to do something stupid again.

No, stepping outside was just a guaranteed way of turning myself into undead fodder. But I couldn’t just let the opportunity slink away, either. I frowned in contemplation, trying to formulate a plan that wouldn’t end in my violent demise. There had to be something... Why couldn’t I have just found a gun? I’d never actually shot one before, but it couldn’t be that hard, at least if I could get the zombies all clumped together. Maybe some throwing weapons, then? The drawers were full of knives, but a few cuts sure as hell wouldn’t do shit to a zombie. I needed something with more impact, something that didn’t require precise aiming, but had plenty of firepower behind it. Something that could spread around a bit, maybe like an explo...

I stopped, blinked, and started to laugh as my eyes drifted down. The answer was right in my hand.

---

I tilted the bottle back, taking what was originally supposed to just be a quick sip of the liquid inside. I wasn’t getting drunk, honest. This was all for medical purposes.

I was back upstairs, in the room where I'd killed the two zombies not more than twenty minutes ago. From here I had a good view outside, both in the front and the back. The backyard itself was clear thanks to the fence, but there were a number of zombies lurking around the perimeter. The front, however, had no such protections, and it was here that the majority of the undead—even more than I’d originally seen—were meandering about.

Now that I had a bit of time to observe them in mass, I realized zombies weren’t a particularly diverse bunch. In fact, I couldn’t even tell the males and females apart half the time, as they were about the same size and build regardless of sex. Some wore tattered clothing, while others’ were mostly intact, but they all seemed to have at least one visible wound or injury, whether it be an open scar, some missing flesh, or a twisted limb. None were particularly easy on the eyes, and none appeared to be children or elderly, either, leaning me toward the suspicion that these things weren’t actually turned humans.

Which was good, since it alleviated any guilt about the fact that I was about to slaughter them all.

My preparations were just about set. I’d already taken a couple of trips downstairs, careful to stay away from the windows as I brought up all the liquor I could find, as well as a few bottles of cooking oil I’d discovered under the kitchen sink. Now all that was left was to create my weapon of choice and unleash it on the zombie menace waiting on the front lawn.

Taking a strip of cloth I’d cut off the bedsheet earlier, I poured some of the remaining whiskey on it. Once the material was generously dampened, I re-filled the bottle with another high-proof alcoholic drink, then tied the cloth into a knot in the middle and plugged one end into the bottle with the other end sticking out. I did a quick check to make sure the cloth was tight around the bottleneck before setting it down to inspect my crude creation. Having only ever seen these things on TV, I didn’t have much of a clue as to what to expect from the improvised weapon, but I did have a few ideas in mind to maximize its effectiveness.

Setting the makeshift Molotov aside for now, I grabbed two other pre-opened bottles of liquor and set them down by the window. I took a deep breath, then, before I had the chance to overthink it, lifted the window, pushed off the bug screen, and poked my entire upper body outside for all the hungry little flesh-eaters down below to see.

“Ahoy there, you braindead fucks!”

Several zombie head turned around, seemingly confused for a second, before they began tilting up toward me.

“That’s right, up here you lifeless bags of shit! I thought you maggoty motherfuckers were looking kinda hungry, so I got a nice meal ready for ya! A hundred and sixty pounds of fresh human flesh served up at a pleasant ninety-eight point six degrees. First come first serve, so get your rotten fucking asses up here quick!”

Alright, maybe I did have a little too much to drink. To be fair, though, I probably wouldn’t have had the balls to try this if I hadn’t been at least slightly inebriated. In any case, the plan to use my own body as bait seemed to be a swimming success. The zombies growled and gaped open their hideous maws as they trudged toward me with their awkward gaits. Even with such a delicious meal as yours truly right in front of them, the creatures’ movements were sluggish, barely even a match for an average person’s walking speed. If it weren’t for their horrifically monstrous appearances, it would’ve been difficult to even take them as a serious threat at all.

Once the zombies were close enough and packed tightly together, I picked up the two bottles of liquor I’d set down earlier. The creatures tried to claw their way up the wall, but were unsuccessful in their attempts to find any purchase. A few piled on top of their compatriots, but they did a better job of dragging each other down than of using each other’s bodies to climb up toward me. I counted over fifteen of the creatures in total, and some of the stragglers that had previously wondered off were starting to return to the action. In the distance, I saw several more zombies continuing to approach.

Ideally, I would have liked to have waited until even more arrived before making my move, but I couldn’t risk stalling any further. One of the zombies—apparently slightly more intelligent than the rest of its braindead brethren—had begun barging at a nearby window with a hammered fist. It didn’t quite have the intelligence to use a rock instead, but if I let it go on for too long, the other zombies might catch on, and then it would just be a matter of time until they broke through the double-glazed glass.

I poured the contents of both bottles onto the mass of bodies below, spreading the alcohol around generously while also being careful not to get any on the house itself. Once those bottles were empty, I tossed them out and grabbed two more, repeating the process several times until I’d used up my entire store of alcohol. It hurt my heart a little to see all the good booze go to waste, but hey, at least it was for a good cause.

After the alcohol came the cooking oil. By this time, additional zombies had joined the fray, and I made sure they were the first to receive the fluid. A quick glance up the neighborhood revealed even more of the creatures coming from up the street, and I mentally applauded myself for deciding against venturing up to that area earlier. Still, with just sheer number of them that were now approaching, I had to wonder if maybe I’d bitten off a little more than I could chew.

Too late to back off now, though. Once the oil was empty, I came back inside to prepare the Molotov. Pulling out my lighter, I flicked it on and held the bottle at a distance before slowly bringing the flame and alcohol-soaked cloth together. The moment they touched, the cloth erupted in flame, nearly making me drop the bottle in surprise.

What a shitty way to go out that would’ve been.

Weapon ready, I poked my head back out the window. Then immediately ducked back in as one undead came rushing up the wall on all fours, its rotted hand reaching out and very nearly grabbing my face. Fortunately, swipe caused it to lose balance, and it fell back down to the mass below. Before it had the chance to get back up for another attempt, several of its kind climbed on top of it, swallowing it into the mass.

A bead of sweat dropped down my forehead. That was close. Again, the zombies were proving they weren’t quite as predictable as I would’ve liked. I looked down at the snarling horde below, but it didn’t seem like any other zombies were having success in scaling the wall. Maybe that one was some kind of variant, too.

“Alright you little corpsefuckers,” I shouted down below. “You wanna play rough? Say hello to my little friend!”

With that, I hurled the Molotov down at the center of the mass, immediately retreating back into the house to escape the blast. There was no great explosion, or mushroom cloud of fire. I barely even heard the shattering of glass, but the crackle of flame and the rising screeches of the undead let me know they were burning.

Oh, and the smell. God fucking damn the smell.

I coughed, feeling like I was going to puke, but I managed to hold it in. I clasped a hand over my nose and mouth before slowly peeking outside. The putrid stench of burning corpses still managed to make its way up my nose and the smoke burned at my eyes. I fanned it away and checked out the situation below. The flame had spread around quickly, and it didn’t seem like the zombies were all that familiar with the stop, drop, and roll method. Most of them were still continuing their attempts to reach me by clinging to the wall, catching bits of the house on fire as well. I was a bit worried they were going to light up the whole place, but the lack of wind kept the flames from spreading around too much.

Not all of the zombies had been caught in the initial blast. One such fortunate creature decided to fix problem this by throwing itself into the flaming fray regardless. Soon enough, like lemmings over a cliff, the rest of the undead followed suit.

“Nice going, dipshits!” It certainly put a smile on my face to see so many dead bodies burning away, but it didn’t seem like any of the zombies had actually died just yet. I checked my phone to make sure, but yep, no new messages so far. That wasn’t too surprising; zombies wouldn’t die as easily to a fire as a human would. No asphyxiation, no shock; I literally had to wait for their brains to cook before they’d finally kick the bucket.

Guess I needed to help them along.

“Be right back boys, don’t miss me!” I ducked back into the house and quickly began raiding through the rooms for any and all flammable materials. I stayed upstairs; going down wasn’t really an option now that the zombies were aware of me, but there was plenty of stuff to find here. Clothes, bedding, rolls of toilet paper and paper towels were all tossed into the flames. I even found a bottle of rubbing alcohol, which I poured over some of the less flammable fabrics before tossing them down as well.

Finally, I was rewarded with the sight of one of the zombies keeling over, kicking and twitching a few times before ceasing all movement entirely, its still-flaming body burnt to a fine crisp. My phone buzzed.

Zombie (Creeper) slain: +2 XP Daily Quest I progress: +20% (4/5)

A few seconds later, another zombie followed suit, and a second and third message arrived on my phone.

Zombie (Creeper) slain: +2 XP Daily Quest I progress: +20% (5/5) Daily Quest I complete. Reward I: The XP Shop is now available. Select Reward II: +10 XP Daily Quest II unlock.

I didn’t waste time worrying about the reward for now, immediately going back to the main menu and tapping on the XP Shop.

Select a Character (1/4): Ryan Slater (C)

I selected my name.

Welcome to the XP shop! Filters for item categories and subcategories are available on the dropdown menu on the top-right. Alternatively, if you are looking for a specific item, a search function is available on the top-left. Word to the wise: spend your XP with care. Your purchases should not only prioritize your current needs, but also supplement your long-term build plans. Look for potential synergies, but don’t be too stingy! You may be tempted to save up for a major purchase, but excess XP will do your Character no good in death. Happy shopping! XP available: 30

In case the directions weren’t clear enough, there were two arrows pointing to the indicated menu options. I skimmed over the introduction and found myself looking at something that resembled a mobile shopping app. On the left were little pictures I assumed represented the item in question, some with thumbnails, others with little icons or logos. In the middle was the item’s name, and on the right, its price in XP.

I felt somewhat overwhelmed as I scrolled through the listings. The items didn’t seem to be in any particular order, alphabetical or otherwise, and the costs ranged from 1 XP all the way up to the triple digits. Some entries sounded like they were supposed to be weapons, others basic tools, accessories, or pieces of equipment, and many, I just couldn’t make heads or tails of. Curious, I tapped one at random.

Ability: Mend I Type: Restorative (Tier I) Requirement(s): Path of the Body I Effect: Recover from injuries equivalent to a 15% loss in health over a span of 10 seconds. Cost: 3 Stamina Cooldown: 30 minutes Price: 8 XP

The purchase button for it was greyed out, probably because I didn’t meet the requirement. What I couldn’t understand was what this thing was actually supposed to be. The effect sounded extremely useful—especially for me given my current injuries—but I saw no description or image of an actual, physical item. An ability... was it some kind action that occurred on purchase?

I shook my head. I was getting distracted. Before even considering any other purchases, I needed to make sure I got that zombification cure out of the way.

But first, a quick glance at the situation outside. Several more zombies had fallen to their second death, though their numbers hadn’t really thinned out thanks to the continually incoming reinforcements. None of the zombies seemed to be a threat to climb up to the window, but I closed it just in case, and turned my attention back to the phone. There was a little message box on the top corner of my screen I hadn’t noticed before, with an orange number next to it that ticked up with each increase in my available XP. I assumed these were death notifications that had been automatically minimized while I was in the XP Shop. Since there was no need to check them individually, I ignored the message box and went up to the search bar.

Let’s see, z-o-m... the entries automatically filtered out with each letter until there were only a few remaining. Disregarding the first couple of options, I scrolled down and found the item I was looking for. It had a little icon with a vial filled with bubbling purple liquid that certainly did not look ominous in any way, shape, or form. I tapped on it.

Item: Zombification Cure (100%) Type: Consumable (Tier I) Effect: Instantly removes all levels of Zombification. Toxicity Rating: 3 Stock: 1/1 Price: 4 XP

I breathed a sigh of relief on seeing the item’s price. I’d been afraid of some random bullshit like it costing 100 XP or something, but this amount was not only affordable, but would leave plenty of XP for further purchases. What did worry me, however, was that there was only one of the item in stock. If I got bitten again, I wouldn’t be getting another chance. There was also the issue of how I was actually supposed to receive the item. Was it going to be delivered by drone, or something? And how long would it take to get here? If it didn’t arrive before my time ran out, this whole exercise would be pretty pointless. Well, not buying it really wasn’t an option, so here goes nothing.

The moment my finger touched the purchase button, a small space above my phone began to shimmer, erupting into a series of tiny, pinpoint lights. I stared blankly at it for a moment, but before I’d even started to process what was really happening, the lights vanished and in their place was the small purple vial. It sat there for a moment, defying gravity as it floated in the air, before suddenly beginning to fall. I had just enough presence of mind to snag the thing before it could hit the ground.

I stared at the vial in my hand, struggling to comprehend the fact that it had just come into existence out of nowhere. Or maybe it was transported somehow? I stopped trying to wrap my head around the physical implications and just uncorked the vial and brought it to my mouth. My nose wrinkled—it smelled like cough syrup. I was a bit hesitant about drinking whatever foreign substance was inside, but I held my nose and forced the rim to my lips, tilting it up slightly. I’d only intended to take a small sip at first, but the moment the first drop of liquid passed my lips, the rest of the vial’s contents flowed into my mouth and down my throat.

I coughed. Yep, tasted like cough syrup, and left a nasty aftertaste. Well, as long as it did its job I had no room to complain. I opened my character page to make sure, and found myself free of any afflictions.

Well... that was it, then. A bit anticlimactic, but mission accomplished, right? Hooray!

Yeah, I just wasn’t feeling it. One little hurdle crossed, but had anything about my situation really changed? I was still alone, still injured, and still had no clue where the fuck I was or any way of contacting help. Not to mention I was stuck in a house surrounded by a horde of zombies that wanted nothing more than to tear off my flesh and devour me alive. And even if I somehow found a way to escape, what was waiting for me beyond? More zombies? Something even worse? What the hell was I supposed to do now?

I closed my eyes and sighed, starting to wish I hadn’t thrown out all of the liquor. The problem was simple: my situation was utterly bleak and lacked any kind of clearly defined solution. The daily quest and my infection had been a distraction from that, providing a simple short-term goal to work toward. With that now gone, there was suddenly nothing to stop me from looking further into the future, and the only thing to find there was utter hopelessness.

Or maybe it was just the alcohol making me over-emotional.

Either way, I realized the only way to keep myself sane was to ignore the long-term outlook and just take things one step at a time, focusing on short-term goals. With that in mind, I went back to my phone messages and saw that I had several death confirmations waiting.

Zombie (Creeper) slain: +2 XP Zombie (Creeper) slain: +2 XP Zombie (Creeper) slain: +2 XP Zombie (Creeper) slain: +2 XP

I swiped all of them away—plus a fifth identical message that just popped up—and back to the quest complete confirmation.

Daily Quest I complete. Reward I: The XP Shop is now available. Select Reward II: +10 XP Daily Quest II unlock.

The choice here was simple. 10 XP would probably be useful, but I already had around 40, and more XP would keep coming with every zombie that died. Compared to that, the second daily quest would likely give me a far more substantial reward, and would probably just consist of killing more zombies—something I would inevitably end up doing regardless. Might as well get an extra reward out of it.

Zombie (Creeper) slain: +2 XP

It really couldn’t have waited another second to die off? Before another kill could go to waste, I tapped my choice.

Quest: Daily Quest II Task: Slay 4 superior Zombie variants. Progress: 0/4 (0%) Reward: +25 XP or Daily Quest III unlock Additional Note(s): All Daily Quests must be completed before 0:00 of the following day.

Ah. Well, now I was immediately starting to regret that decision. Yes, I certainly planned to kill more zombies, but I also had no intention of running into any more superiors if I could help it. That’s what I get for being greedy and not just taking the XP reward, I suppose.

Zombie (Creeper) slain: +2 XP Zombie (Sprinter) slain: +6 XP Daily Quest II Progress: +25% (1/4)

Or maybe not. The “sprinter” didn’t give me nearly as much XP as the schemer had, but I could hardly complain. Judging from the name, I wondered if it was perhaps the zombie that had nearly scaled up the wall to me. Speaking of which...

I pulled up the window to check the situation outside. The zombies below gave a ravenous growl at the sight of me, and I gave them the finger in return as two more collapsed dead to the ground. The rest didn’t look like they were going to last much longer, but more kept coming to bolster the ranks. The fire was starting to stick to some parts of the house and spreading across the lawn, but that did nothing to keep the incoming zombies at bay. I made a note of the fact that the corpses of the fallen zombies were still lying on the ground. Come to think of it, the two zombies I’d killed in this room had begun disappearing at the same time, even though I’d killed one before the other. Maybe it had something to do with the presence of other zombies nearby? Something to keep in mind for later. Right now, it was time to figure out what the XP Shop was all about.