“Don’t work like that anymore,” said another one of the exes. This one was a woman. Its hair was shaved short and there was a ragged bite mark on its left forearm. It sneered at her from the circle of dead soldiers. “Don’t you get it, big girl? I’m the big one now. Way too big for you to kill.”
She fired again. The first shot was wild, and she forced herself to take a breath and aim down the rifle’s simple sights. The second round punched the talking ex in the shoulder. The third blew out its left eye and part of its cheek. It dropped to the ground.
“I’m not just one guy anymore,” said another ex. A thin black man with a skull tattoo on his bare arms. “I’m all the zombies in the world.”
She fired again and a black crease pulled open along the side of the ex’s skull, just above the Nest. There was a clang, she adjusted, and realized the rifle hadn’t chambered a new round. It was empty.
“Eight shots,” he said. “They don’t trust the exes with more’n that.”
Danielle grabbed the hot barrel like a baseball bat and leaped up at the ex. She swung, connected, and got a grand slam. The ex fell to the ground, its skull caved in.
“You know what, though?” said another ex. “‘Peasy’ don’t do it for me anymore. I need something—”
*
“—bigger. A good name for death incarnate.”
“You talking to me now?” asked St. George.
“A little out of practice,” said the dead man on the stretcher. “But it’s like riding a bike, y’know?”
“Good to know you’re still having trouble focusing,” said St. George. “It’s always nice when you can beat the bad guy the same way twice in a row.”
“You a church man, Dragon? My mama was, bless her soul. Made me go to church, do confession, all that. Didn’t see the point, but I did it to make her happy.”
“Yeah, you’re a model citizen.”
“You remember the story of Jesus and the pigs? That’s how I always remembered it. There’s a guy who’s all possessed and shit, and Jesus took the demons out and they filled up a whole herd of pigs. Hundreds of them. Remember that one?”
“Yeah,” said St. George. “The story of Legion.”
“Legion.” The ex smiled and its legs twitched beneath the gurney’s straps. Left, right, left. It took the hero a moment before he realized the exes were—
*
—walking towards her. They marched in lock step like soldiers. Like Nazis in old newsreels, with their rifles across their bodies.
Danielle ran towards the door. She couldn’t remember if it locked on this side or not. If it didn’t open they were going to reach her before she could remember the code.
She reached for the handle and the door opened. Sunlight poured in for an instant. A figure blocked the sun, a dark shadow her eyes couldn’t make out.
“On your knees,” shouted the figure. “On your knees, put your hands on your head.”
Another soldier moved in behind the first, and a third.
“Shoot them,” Danielle shouted. “He’s controlling all of them. You’ve got to—”
They slammed her to her knees and yanked her hands up. Way too strong for her to resist. She glanced back in a panic.
The exes stood like statues. Their weapons were up, just as they were when she’d entered. They were back in a circle. Back on guard duty as if nothing had happened. A few gaps stood out in the formation where she’d put down the talkers.
The light from the door vanished as Freedom stepped into the workshop. “Sweep the place,” he said. “Top to bottom. Make sure he isn’t here, too.”
Two of the soldiers moved off into the workshop, looking up into the rafters and under the tables. They passed the circle and the zombies took a clumsy step forward. One of the soldiers raised a fist and pointed.
“Stand down, soldiers,” barked Freedom.
The exes lowered their weapons to their sides. Some dropped their rifles altogether. They swayed for a moment and grew still again.
“Listen to me,” said Danielle. “The exes are being controlled by someone else. The superhuman we told you about, Peasy, he’s—”
“Doctor Morris, I’m taking you into custody for possible involvement in the assault on Colonel Russell Shelly,” said Freedom. “The MPs will be here shortly to place you under arrest and read your rights as they stand under the military code of conduct.”
“Shelly was attacked?” said Danielle. “How? Is he okay?”
“Colonel Shelly was beaten by your associate, Stealth, almost two hours ago in an attempt to force the release of you and the Cerberus battlesuit.”
She shook her head. “No way.”
“We have a witness who found her standing over him.”
One of the super-soldiers walked over and examined the bodies on the floor. “Damn it,” said Kennedy. “She took out three of them. Sorensen’s going to be pissed.”
“Screw him,” said Truman. “I just don’t want to go catch more for him.”
“Look, that’s not the real problem,” said the redhead. “I’m telling you, those things are not under your control.”