Zombie Super Powers

Chapter 2

| Chapter 2

The enormous robot grabbed Ron’s shotgun and flung it several blocks away.

"What the?”

"Did a man bite you?" the robot asked in a deep monotone voice.

“Why did you destroy my phone and huck my shotgun into oblivion?”

"Did a man bite you?"

“Are you going to answer me you stupid machine?”

Ron hit the robot in the chest, bruising his knuckles. It was as if the thing was cemented to the ground. It didn’t budge.

"Did a man bite you?" it repeated in the exact same way. Ron figured he should reply if he didn’t want to find out the quick, hard, and fatal way just where his shotgun had landed.

"No he didn’t bite me. I think he tried to. He grabbed my arm, but I shot him before he could."

"That is good. You might not be implanted."

"Implanted?"

"You must come with me."

"I'm not leaving. I need to call the police and if I'm not here to open the store my boss will fire me. Let me make those calls."

"We must leave now."

The robot's arm transformed into a small seat, and he pushed it forwards towards Ron.

"Please have a seat. I will escort you to the Nanotech Solutions facility where you can be treated for your safety."

"I can't go with you, I'll lose my job."

And I need to see Valerie. Reassure her that this is still a safe place to buy breakfast, Ron thought.

"At least let me call my boss first and explain the situation."

"We do not have time for that."

In a quick fluid motion the robot reached out with his other arm, spun Ron around, and scooped him up into the newly formed seat.

"Hey!"

A latch whipped across Ron's waist before he could jump down. The robot then flew into the store on propelled feet, hovering over the broken glass. He stopped above the man with the hole in his arm, which Ron noticed had shrunk to half of its original size.

What is going on here? Ron thought.

The robot's other arm formed into a chair and scooped up the man whom Ron was certain should be a corpse. As they lifted away from the gas station Ron noticed the man was still breathing. He wasn't sure how that was possible.

The wind was brisk in Ron's face as city streets below looked like toy race car tracks whooshing by. Soon a forest came into view and the smell of the air went from stale to fresh as they sailed over dark green pine trees. Ron looked back at the man in the other arm chair and saw that he was wide awake. His arm was whole and fully functioning. It was no longer bleeding. He twisted his head and saw Ron, then began thrashing and clawing in his seat trying to reach him. It was the only time Ron felt glad he was sitting in the arm of a giant robot.

They flew for a while until the city was long gone from view. Ron didn’t take his eyes off of the other man until he felt the robot slow down. Ron looked down and saw only trees. They were going to land in the dense forest. He had expected a big gray building, but there was nothing.

Ron’s dark bangs danced towards the sky as they began descending towards the swaying trees. As they landed on the forest floor with a clang, small birds scattered into the sky in a flourish of flapping wings. Ron’s nerves were already stretched thin and the sound of the fleeing flock startled him. The robot walked forward three steps and then stopped. Ron waited for something to happen.