Michael Ford - Z

Having taken care of the zombie, Josh rushed to the boat to make sure Stash was all right. He was sitting up, but he was holding his hand to his shoulder. “The damn thing bit me,” he said, wincing in pain.

Bit? Josh thought. Since when can animatronic zombies actually bite? Before he could say anything, several figures emerged from the tunnel behind him. He whirled around, his flamethrower aimed at chest level.

“Weapon down!” he heard Scrawl shout.

Josh lowered the flamethrower. Scrawl jumped into the boat and took a look at Stash. Behind him, Seamus and Finnegan exchanged glances.

“I’m okay,” Stash said weakly.

“You’re bit,” Scrawl said. “It’s game over. You know the rules.”

Stash began swearing, but he didn’t argue. Scrawl turned to Josh. “That was a big risk you took,” he said. “That z could easily have gotten you too.”

Josh couldn’t decide whether Scrawl was angry or not. He shrugged. “Stash needed help,” he said.

Scrawl looked back at the injured player. “Yeah,” he said. “He needs help.”

“What happens now?” Josh asked. “Do we keep playing?”

“You do,” Scrawl said. “We’ll get Stash out of here. You meet up with the rest of the team. They’re at the roller coaster. You know where it is?”

Josh nodded. “You’re sure you don’t need help with him?”

Scrawl shook his head. “We’re good,” he said. “You go. And hey, congrats on your first kill.”

In all the commotion, Josh had forgotten about the zombie. He looked over at the smoking mess on the floor. “Thanks,” he said.

Peering into the terrarium on Charlie’s desk, Josh watched as the mechaspider spun its web. Its delicate body moved from side to side as the silk played out from its spinnerets. The mechaspider’s intricately jointed legs moved in a slow ballet as the creature made its way around its web, spiraling out from the center and connecting to the glass walls of its enclosure.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” Charlie said. “It’s a golden orb weaver.”

“It’s really pretty,” Josh agreed. The spider’s oblong body shimmered in browns and golds, while its long legs were banded in black. A pattern of small white dots speckled its carapace.

“If it were real, I would feed it moths and bees,” Charlie said.

“Have you ever seen a real one?” Josh asked her.

Charlie shook her head. “Biologists are supposedly growing them in labs from frozen eggs, but it will be a long time before most of us see real ones.” She sighed. “Yet one more thing our ancestors ruined.”

“My parents won’t let us have any mechapets,” Josh said. “My mother is freaked out by them.”

Charlie laughed. “But doesn’t she make imaginary animals real?” she said.

Josh laughed too. “I know. It’s weird, right? But she says that at least those are real animals.”

“I’m saving up for a tarantula,” Charlie told him. “I know exactly which one I want. Avicularia avicularia, the Guyana pinktoe.”

“Pinktoe?” said Josh. “That doesn’t sound very spidery.”

Charlie shook her head. “You should see them,” she said. “They’re all black except for the ends of their feet, which are pink. They live in trees and never touch the ground. That’s what I like about them. They’re always looking down on the world.” She smiled. “I have almost enough to get one,” she said. “Two more kills and it’s mine.”

Josh walked away from the spider terrarium and stood at one of the windows, looking out at the street. It was Sunday afternoon. This time he’d told his parents he was going out to take pictures for a photography-class project. He felt bad about lying to them again—particularly when they’d told him to have a good time—but he’d really needed to talk to Charlie.

“How’s Stash doing?” he asked. It was still raining. A woman was walking by, holding the hand of a small child in a red raincoat. The woman was trying to cover them both with an umbrella, but the child wanted to walk in the rain and was pulling on the woman’s arm and laughing.

“I guess he’s fine,” Charlie answered. “Clatter was fixing him up.”

“Do people get bit often?”

“Not often,” said Charlie. “But sometimes.”

“Have you?” Josh asked her.

Charlie shook her head. “No,” she said. “And I don’t want to. The meatbags may not be real, but they can do some damage.”

Josh had been thinking about what had happened, and it bothered him a little bit that Clatter’s cyber-zombies could really hurt the players. Torching the meatbags was one thing. They couldn’t feel pain. But Josh and the other players could, and putting them in danger like that seemed… strange. “Don’t you worry about getting hurt?”

“It’s all part of the game,” said Charlie. “The wagerers like it to be realistic.”

That made sense to Josh. After all, they were paying big money. The more real the game seemed, the more interested they would be. And ultimately he benefited. He thought about the money sitting in the box in his closet. He’d been shocked at how much Clatter had given him at the end of the game. It was more money than he’d ever had.

“You were lucky to get that bonus,” Charlie said. “If I’d been a little quicker on the draw, it would have been mine.”

The woman and the child turned the corner and disappeared. Josh looked at Charlie, who was now lying on her back on her bed, her head hanging over the side. “Sorry,” Josh said. “I didn’t mean to steal it.”

“It’s okay,” said Charlie. “I’m just teasing. You played a great game. It wouldn’t surprise me if clients started betting on you.”

Josh felt a swell of pride at the thought that after only a couple of games he might be one of the favorite players.

“That’s what you really want,” said Charlie, sitting up. “Then, on top of bonuses, you get a bigger cut. Scrawl gets something like twenty percent of everything people bet on him.”

Josh whistled. “That’s impressive,” he said.

“I’m up to ten percent,” Charlie informed him. “I bet you’ll be there soon. Clatter likes you.”

Josh turned around. “I’m having a blast,” he said. “Thanks again for recruiting me.”

“Thank you,” Charlie said. “Clatter was so impressed by your game that he gave me a bonus for finding you.”

Josh gave her a stern look. “And you’re not giving me half?” he said, pretending to be angry.

Charlie laughed. “No way,” she said. “That’s one eighth of a mechaspider. It’s all mine. Besides,” she added, “I told you about Z. You can consider that your bonus.”

“That stuff is intense,” he said.

“It’s great, isn’t it?” Charlie said. “Wait until you try playing a game while you’re on it. It’s like you and the z’s are connected. You find them a lot faster.”

Josh cleared his throat. “Where can I get some?” he asked, trying to sound casual.

Charlie sat up. “You’re in luck,” she said. “I think I can spare a couple.” She got up and went to her dresser, returning with the silver vial. Unscrewing the lid, she poured half a dozen tablets into her hand, which she held out toward Josh.

Josh walked over to her and reached for the pills. As his fingers came near them, Charlie made a fist, hiding the Z from him. “I didn’t say they were free,” she said.

Josh looked at her. “How much?” he asked.

Charlie’s dark eyes sparkled. “It’ll cost you a kiss,” she said.

Josh hesitated. Was she kidding? He looked at her closed fist, then back at her face. She was staring him straight in the eye, not blinking. Slowly he leaned toward her. He saw her close her eyes and open her mouth. His lips touched hers. Her mouth was soft. He kissed her quickly and pulled away.