INFECTED (Click Your Poison) (109 page)

MAKE YOUR CHOICE

“Y
ou know, I was just thinking the same thing. Not enough people appreciate the need to live it up,” Phoenix says. “On the eve of our triumph, Deleon’s off running more calculations. The thing works! Soon, the whole world will know it, and we’ll be the two richest guys on the planet—forever!”

He looks you up and down, as if formulating some decision. His eyes squint at you and you wonder what could be going through his mind. At length, he grins. Then it becomes a playboy’s smile.

“I like your style, Janitor. Nobody else gets me here. I was thinking about having some girls up to my place, throwing a real party in style. Why don’t you join me? Strictly as friends, of course. Though, who knows, get enough cocaine in me and I may change my mind—if that’s what you’re into. What do you say, want to see somebody stop aging for the first time in history?”

•
 
“Count me in!” This could be exactly your way inside the Company.

•
 
“Sorry, I value my job as a janitor too much to fraternize with the boss. I mean, in this economy, you know?” Wait until he leaves, then go check out
Deleon’s office
.

•
 
“Sorry, I value my job as a janitor too much to fraternize with the boss. I mean, in this economy, you know?” Wait until he leaves, then go check out
Rodent Testing
.

MAKE YOUR CHOICE

B
etter go to the hospital, right? The place is categorical pandemonium, and you’re here to help. The morgue completely rose, the mental ward went mental, and the ER declared a state of emergency. But be careful, there’s bound to be security in here somewhere, and they pack a sidearm full of brain kryptonite—bullets.

You moan. You can’t help it. It’s like humming when you’re happy, and you’re practically pulsating with excitement. Other gods and goddesses touched by the divine hand of
Gilgazyme
 ® roam the halls. Some were brought here, while others were drawn, like you.

Throngs of humans arrive with every passing minute. A paltry few hope for a cure for loved ones; more are trying to rescue those already interned within. Either group is certainly doomed.

A doctor chases after a nurse, his bloody teeth champing from behind a torn surgical mask. She flees into the crowd forming in the halls; close enough for you to see, but far-off enough that it’s a missed opportunity. Then your chance arrives: Meals on Wheels. A wheelchair-bound human pushes his way through the hall with manic terror. Being one who doesn’t discriminate on handicap, you follow him.

A corpse picked clean serves as enough of a speed-bump, stopping your prey in his tracks. And oh, sweet day! He’s unarmed. If that weren’t convenient enough, he’s seated at a perfect height for you to dig right into his neck. Seriously, neck meat is the
best.

Well, that was delicious; what’s next?

•
 
Umm, this bone has just begun to get gnarled on. Keep looking in the hospital!

•
 
The crowd is too thick; why not see what’s going on outside? You could valet in the parking lot.

MAKE YOUR CHOICE