Bridgette Dubois stood in the doorway to the student union under a Welcome Visitors banner as if she owned the place. Ariel had actually turned her little sister loose to explore the campus alone while she finished a psyche paper. Bridge ambled nonchalantly, hands in her pockets, taking her bearings. It was a massive space, larger than her high school gym, with bookstore, game room and a snack bar.
Bridge brightened, making a bee line for the counter as she counted the coins in her pocket: enough for a coke and an oatmeal cookie. Life was good.
She found an empty table and settled in to enjoy her snack and watch the students bustle by. That's when she noticed the smart phone lying on an empty chair.
She wiped cookie crumbs off her fingers and picked it up, curious. She'd seen these things before but never held one. It came to life when she pressed the on switch. These things were supposed to have games on them, and Bridge paged through the icons until she came to something promising: Zombie U.
"Braaains!" cried the game. With an almost electric thrill, Bridge dove into the game. The graphics were great. She maneuvered her zombie through a miniature version of Ariel's campus, right down to the student union. With a wicked grin, her zombie followed a student through the door as he juggled a load of books, talking on his cell phone. Easy pickings.
The zombie pounced. The student screamed.
"What the frack?"
Bridge looked up, startled out of the game. A guy was walking by her table, staring at his cell phone and rubbing his ear. College students could be so rude.
She went back to the game and the zombie was already on to a new victim. A girl with a laptop sat at a table doing schoolwork. She didn't see the zombie coming. Bridge giggled. This was fun.
The zombie pounced and the student shrieked.
"No, no, no!"
Bridge looked up again. Some girl at a nearby table was shaking her computer. She didn't look happy. Bridge shrugged, slurped down her drink, and went back to the game.
The next victim was wearing earphones and didn't see the zombie coming. These students made the game too easy. They were engrossed in their electronic toys, too distracted to see the danger they were in.
Bridge reached absently for her drink, but it was empty. She checked her pockets. She had enough for a small one. She approached the counter, head still in the game, while the zombie stalked a student in line. The victim was texting, oblivious.
The zombie pounced. The student yelled.
"Crap!" said the girl ahead of her in line, clicking keys uselessly, staring at her cell with frustration. "It just went dead."
Bridge blinked. That was weird. The student's phone went dead just as the zombie struck in the game. She gave her order, reluctantly turning off the game and sticking it in her pocket.
She looked around sheepishly, but no one was pointing an accusing finger. She wasn't going to keep it. Just play with it a little longer before she turned it in to lost and found.
She took her drink and headed back to Ariel's dorm. How long could a dumb paper take anyway? Other students were shepherding their guests around campus and Bridge felt put-upon that Ariel wasn't here to show her the campus. But when she got to Ariel's room, her sister was still at her computer.
"I'm almost done," she called over her shoulder in a harassed voice.
Bridge flopped down on the bed, bored. She landed on the smart phone in her pocket and brightened. "Braaains!" groaned the game and she was off on the hunt for more unwary students. The venue had switched to a dorm now and Bridge followed a hapless student through the lobby, ipod wires trailing from her ears.
The zombie pounced, the student fell, and the zombie moved on to a new victim in this target rich environment. Distracted students were everywhere with their noses buried in computers and DVDs and stereos and the zombie made quick work of them as it shuffled up and down the halls.
Outside Ariel's dorm room a passing student sang out with an MP3 Bridge recognized and she paused for a moment to hum along. She looked back at the game in time to see the zombie pounce again.
"Aww," moaned the passing student as the music died abruptly.
Bridge froze. That was uncannily weird. The zombie turned into a room, approaching another clueless student with her back to the door, busily working away at a computer.
Bridge got a horrible feeling as the zombie pounced.
"Ohmygodno!" Ariel cried, staring at her blank computer. "I didn't make a save!"
"I didn't do it!" Bridge said, jumping to her feet.
"Oh go away, Bridge! Not now!" Ariel snapped at her sister frantically.
Bridge ran out of the dorm and onto the quad, shaken. She stared at the game, still clutched in her hands. "Braaains!" it taunted her. She wanted to throw it away but she couldn't. Her hands twitched. She wanted to play….
"Is something wrong?" A pleasant young woman with short red hair and a concerned expression approached Bridge. Willow Rosenberg proclaimed her visitor's badge.
Willow could see the girl was frightened. Her Scooby sense detected malevolence flowing from the gadget in the girl's hands. Calmly she took it from her.
"It's ok," she said gently, "I've dealt with this sort of thing before." She raised a little power and the evil thing withered and died. The smart phone went dark.
"It isn't mine," said Bridge, defensive. "I found it in the union. I'm visiting my sister." She waved vaguely at the dorm behind her.
"Bridgette!" Ariel called, rushing up. "I didn't mean to yell at you." The sisters embraced, chattering at one another.
Willow walked off smiling and went looking for the lost and found. "Looks like this thing's going to need a new brain." Chalk up another one for the Scoobies.