Title: Zombie - The Cranberries

11 – In Your Head

Looking back on it, Vin should have suspected something was wrong the second the lights shut off. However, being the absolute moron that he was, he brushed it off as a blown fuse and continued down the hallway, thus being completely unprepared when the floor disappeared from under him.

'Holy shit -'

He yelped in pain as his chin hit the floor – though that was probably what saved him from disappearing altogether. That extra second, however painful, allowed him to fling his arms out wildly and scrabble for a grasp on the carpet. Grunting with exertion, he hauled himself out of the hole and rolled onto the floor, heart hammering.

'What the -'

With an irritated growl, he turned on his watch mic.

'Vin to Trixie – something weird as fuck just happened and I need your help.'

There was a second of pause before Trixie replied.

'I'm in Headquarters now; do I need to get a fix on your location?'

'Probably,' he agreed. 'So get this, I'm just walking along, minding my own business, and the goddamn floor falls out from under me – some sort of trapdoor -' As he spoke, he saw the door slide shut mechanically. He narrowed his eyes. 'It just closed now. Definitely some sort of engineering rig, and I'm not all that sure it was an accident.'

'Alright, just give me a second – you're not hurt, are you?'

'My face is going black and blue as we speak,' he replied dryly. 'But I'll live, I think.'

'According to the scan, that trapdoor would have sent you straight to the basement. From what I can tell, the signal definitely came from Macbeth's office.'

Vin sighed heavily. 'Of course.'

'It's going to be a problem,' she agreed. 'Though it almost seems as – I'm busy, Zero, give me a minute -'

Vin brought the watch closer to his ear as he tried to make sense of the quiet muttering coming from Trixie's end, but the only thing he could hear was his own name, and a few words like "lost", "shut up", and "later, damnit".

He frowned slightly. 'Everything okay up there?'

'Yeah,' Trixie assured him, 'just . . . just keep an eye out for any more traps, okay. Call Zero if something seems wrong – you may need backup. I'll keep looking at the security system.'

He raised an eyebrow, even though he knew she couldn't see it. 'Is this Zero's idea, or yours?'

'Mine, obviously. Keep out of trouble, Vin.'

'You know I can't,' he replied. 'But I'll try. Thanks, Trix.'

He knelt down to inspect the trapdoor further. It was concealed remarkably well, as the shaggy carpet hid any definite outline it might have left. Vin wasn't sure if he'd even be able to spot any more trapdoors. He ran his fingers along the surface, feeling for anything that may have been out of the ordinary. He found a slight indentation, and with a sense of satisfaction, pressed into it.

He really should have done a better job of remembering where the trapdoor was.

'ARGH -'

This time he wasn't as lucky. He managed to grip onto the ledge with his fingertips, but the rest of his body was now hanging over a black abyss. He really didn't want to fall all the way down to the basement.

'TRIXIE!' he yelled. His watch immediately dialled her. 'TRIXIE, HELP!'

It wasn't like Vin was physically weak. Over the years, working in INK had been motivation enough to develop a level of body strength that made him a little larger than the average kid, and he had the muscles to show for it. But, in all fairness, it was really freakin' hard to pull yourself up by your fingertips. Already his grip was slipping, though he managed to hold on for a few minutes, hoping and praying she had actually heard.

'Vin!'

Down the hall, Trixie had thrown open the door and ran to meet him, grabbing him by the wrists and pulling him up. He groaned in relief as he fell down on the carpet for the second time in five minutes, shooting the trapdoor a vicious glare. 'Thanks babe.'

'Don't call me that,' she groused, though she didn't seem to mind too much. 'You're lucky Zero didn't get here first.'

He shot her an inquisitive look, flexing his sore hands. 'Where is she?'

She sighed. 'She was taking a shortcut, with that goddamn hero complex she has. But, I don't think it was actually a quicker route.' As though to prove her point, she pulled out her pen. 'Zero, it's alright, I've got him. I told you it wasn't a shortcut.' She didn't get a reply. Vin gave her an apprehensive look, and she tried again. 'Zero?'

Vin tried his watch. 'Hey, Zero, you there?'

Nothing.

He dialled Newton instead. 'Hey man, can you get onto Zero?'

'Give me a sec,' he replied. Trixie looked uneasy, and they both exhaled heavily when Newton rang back to inform them that she wasn't replying to him either.

'You reckon she's okay?' Vin asked worriedly.

Trixie merely shrugged, getting to her feet. 'I don't know, but we should probably look around.'

Somehow Vin thought that was going to be a lot more difficult than it seemed.

They didn't find her. Even scanning the entire security database yielded no results.

'Do you think it was Macbeth?' Vin asked that night at dinner, twirling his spaghetti around his fork. Newton, who was looking around at the cafeteria as though it would provide answers, bit his lip.

'It's more than likely,' he admitted. 'But look: Burt, Hector and Tom are gone, too.'

'You sure they're not just late?'

Newton gave him a deadpan expression. 'Dinner started half an hour ago, Vin. Something's definitely going on.'

Trixie also cast a glance around the room. 'You missed Jake and Little Fred. They're not generally the sort to pass up dinner, wouldn't you think?'

Vin snorted in spite of himself. '"Little", my ass. Fred's a giant, Trix.'

She gave a wry smile, though her gaze was calculating. 'What can I say, nicknames tend to stick. But think about it.' She leaned forward so that their heads were close together, and lowered her voice. 'Have you noticed that everyone who's missing is fairly big in stature? Or, they at least have a decent amount of muscle mass?'

Vin raised his eyebrows in indignation. 'Hey, I'm fairly well built.'

'And didn't a trapdoor appear beneath your feet this afternoon?'

Newton shot Vin a look. 'Well built? You're like a stick insect.'

'He's very fit, Newton,' Trixie replied. 'And strong. He counts as "well built".'

Vin, who been bristling at the first comment, looped an arm around Trixie's shoulders. 'Thanks, Trix. You're a real friend.' He poked his tongue at Newton.

'No, I'm honest,' Trixie corrected, elbowing him in the ribs.

'Anyway,' Newton said, cutting in, 'what does she want the stronger kids for?' He was now fiddling absently with the salt shaker. 'It explains why Zero's missing, but what's the reason behind it?'

'Let's go back to Headquarters,' Trixie replied. The look in her eyes was rather odd. 'The sooner we find her, the better.'

Vin and Newton had scouted out the basement, but to no avail. When they returned to Trixie at Headquarters well after midnight, they had been unable to find anything.

'Whatever Macbeth is doing, she's hiding it really well,' Newton said as they gathered around the computer. Trixie, who had been looking at the basement's layout via the security system, rested her head tiredly in her hands.

'I don't understand,' she muttered. 'How can she have managed to hide Zero? We should be able to track her, but . . .' Vin, noting her exhaustion, wordlessly grabbed three cans of energy drink out of the minifridge and passed them around.

'This isn't going to end well,' Newton said. He took a swig, before continuing. 'Almost every time she's kidnapped people, someone's gotten brainwashed.'

Trixie paused at his words. 'You're right,' she agreed. Her eyes were now starting to light up. 'She's taken all of the bigger kids, yeah? What if she's trying to utilise their strength?'

'If she is, then we're screwed,' Vin replied bluntly. 'It's a bit hard to run an espionage mission when Burt's stuffed you in the garbage can.'

Trixie held up a hand to silence him. Her head was cocked, like she was trying very hard to hear something. She put a finger to her lips. Vin, now rather confused, looked around.

The main door, which had been bolted shut for three years now, burst off its hinges.

The three of them instinctively dove for cover as splintered wood flew across the room, showering everything in a layer of dust and dried paint.

Zero stood in the doorway. Her frame seemed so much smaller without her leather jacket, which had clearly been abandoned in the last few hours, and she was wearing little but a singlet top, sports leggings, and her combat boots. Her hair flowed loose, and damn it was an attractive picture, but something was really wrong.

Her eyes were vacant.

'Shit,' Vin breathed. Zero kicked aside what remained of the door and strode into Headquarters with terrifying purpose. She immediately spotted them beneath the computer desk and sprung forward.

Vin wasn't naive enough to think she wouldn't get aggressive. If their presumptions were correct, and Macbeth had brainwashed her, then she would be the ideal soldier. She would do her job very well. Pushing Newton and Trixie aside, Vin leapt up and met her halfway, tackling her onto the couch.

'Run!' he yelled over his shoulder. 'I'll hold her off!'

'No!' Trixie shot back. 'We've got to help her!'

Zero growled in a way that could only be described as feral, and now Vin knew he was in trouble. He didn't want to hurt her – he knew he would never forgive himself if he did – but the situation was far too serious for him to let himself get beaten around. And he was the bigger person in this fight – if he pinned her down for long enough, they might be able to find a cure.

Zero threw him off with so much force that he stumbled backward into the cupboard, eyes wide with shock. She leapt at him again, and he was thrown by how catlike she seemed, that all he could do was force her to the ground.

'Careful!' Trixie shrieked. She ran forward and grabbed Zero's wrists, shooting Vin a wild look. 'Be CAREFUL!'

'I'm trying!' he hissed. 'What are you so – FUCK!'

They both fell backward when Zero kicked him sharply in the crotch and hurled Trixie aside as though she weighed nothing, leaping to her feet and snarling.

She launched forward once more.

'Call me crazy,' Vin said as he caught her in an iron grip, 'but I think I know what Macbeth's plan is here.' He swung his foot around to kick her behind the knees and hefted her up with his other arm so she was horizontal. He fought to keep her still as she spat and writhed, attempting to flip out of his hold. 'Get a rope, Newton.'

Once her hands and feet were secured, Vin threw her down into the beanbag.

'Careful!' Trixie and Newton yelped, both slightly wide-eyed.

He gave them both an incredulous look. 'What the hell are you both so worried about? She'll be fine.'

They all looked back at Zero, who was doing her best to wriggle out of the restraints. Knowing her, it wouldn't take very long before she managed it.

'I understand you're upset with her, Vin,' Trixie said, pulling a pillowcase out of the cupboard, 'but you have to be gentle.'

He frowned, watching her fold it into a long strip and wrap it around Zero's head like a blindfold. 'Why do you think I'm upset?'

She shot him a look that said don't play stupid. 'We know what happened. Yes, she has clearly been a bit irrational, but it has to be fixed before it gets any worse.' Once she was satisfied that Zero definitely couldn't see, she looked at Newton. 'Help me out here.'

'On it.'

Vin was staring at her, wide-eyed. 'What do you mean, you "know what happened"?'

'We know you slept together, dude,' Newton replied bluntly, 'and you both need to fix your shit so we can all get on with our lives.' He hefted up a device the size of a sewing machine and dumped it on the ground beside Zero's wriggling form (who was spitting mad, by the way. Trixie stuffed a handful of tissues in her mouth to shut her up.) and began putting a load of wired sticky patches on her temples.

Vin promptly collapsed on the couch, feeling faint. 'Well, shit,' he muttered. He pinched the bridge of his nose. 'What did she tell you?'

'That you told her about the time-travel thing,' Newton said. He paused long enough to glare at him. 'Thanks for not telling me either, jackass.'

'I'm sorry -'

'Yeah, yeah, I don't hold grudges. Anyway, she's been having a long-term crisis and that's how we found out.' He squinted at the readings the machine was giving him.

'Everything okay?' Trixie asked tentatively.

'I can't tell,' he replied. 'I'll need some time to figure out what's going on before I can fix it. But, in the meantime, there's also that other problem.' He gave Trixie a pointed look.

'What problem?' Vin asked. They both ignored him.

After a long moment, he gave up on trying to understand the strange way they were communicating with each other. It mostly seemed to involve a lot of raised eyebrows and scowling. If they didn't want to tell him the truth, fine. He supposed he deserved that much. 'Well, what are we going to do about this in the meantime?'

'We're going to have to find out how she did it,' Newton said. 'If it was by subliminal messaging, that'll be easy to fix. If not, well . . .'

Vin tapped his fingers on his thigh, chewing the inside of his cheek as he watched Zero struggle under Trixie's weight. 'If Macbeth's sent everyone to look for us, the others can't be far behind. Zero only had that advantage because she knew who we were.'

Newton looked back at the splintered door. 'Well, I'm gonna have to fix that before it happens, then.'

'Just pinch the door from the Drama closet,' Vin told him. 'No one will notice.'

'That's a good idea, actually,' he agreed, getting to his feet. He glanced down at Zero. 'Will you two be able to manage her on your own?'

Vin laced his fingers. 'Weeeell, if I had permission to knock her out . . .' He trailed off, looking meaningfully at the other two.

Trixie immediately shook her head. 'That's not the best option. We'll just have to do it the hard way.'

So, five minutes later, when Newton had left on his quest to find a new door, Vin was struggling to force Zero to sit still while Trixie jammed some sort of helmet-like contraption on her head.

Of ALL the days Mr Soper has to be away at a business meeting, it had to be today, didn't it? Vin thought bitterly. He then voiced that little titbit of irony out loud.

'Macbeth always picks the worst days to experiment,' Trixie agreed. 'But, we'll do what we must. Alright, now -' She cut off, typing a command into the machine. 'Now, all I've got to do is remove the information in her brain that is telling Zero to go feral. Once that's dealt with she should be fine. Well, no worse than usual, anyway.'

Vin snorted, though it turned into a yelp when he was on the receiving end of a particularly vicious headbutt. 'Argh, she's got a hard skull.' He used his forearm to push Zero back into the beanbag, effectively restraining her whilst keeping a safe distance. 'Have you noticed that everything seems very animalistic about it all?'

'I have,' Trixie replied as she worked. 'And it's certainly confirming my suspicions that Macbeth's recycling old methods.'

'Oh yeah, I remember,' he noted as familiarity hit him. 'It's kinda like that thing with the lions and the mule.'

'Zebra, you mean.'

'Like she can tell the difference.'

This drew a laugh from her, however small. 'That's true.' She then froze abruptly, eyes wide. 'Someone's coming.'

Vin then realised he could hear several sets of footsteps quickly approaching. 'Go through the chest passageway,' he ordered. 'You take the machine; I've got Zero.' He then pulled the headset off and haphazardly bundled its wiring together, shoving it at Trixie. 'Go!'

She didn't hesitate. Within seconds she had shut down the computers, dragged the nearest cupboard to block the doorway, and opened the chest lid. 'You go first,' she told him, pulling out her pen. 'I'll close the entrance.'

So, he scooped Zero up and threw her over his shoulder like she was nothing more than a sack of potatoes, holding her firmly so that she struggled as little as possible. He then dropped down into the tunnel while Trixie called Newton, telling him to meet them at Rendezvous Point A – a small clearing of trees in the forest east of Mr Soper's classroom. Just as the lid closed, they heard a muffled crash, followed by snarling. Vin didn't want to think about who was up there.

'What do we do?' he whispered, looking anxiously at Trixie.

She shook her head. 'I don't know,' she replied in a low voice. She scowled at Zero, who was still growling despite the massive wad of tissues shoved in her mouth. 'Can you shut her up?'

He huffed. 'Hey, if you want to carry her, be my guest.'

'I'll pass.' Her voice was tight, and she strode ahead of him, using the flashlight on her phone so that they could see. 'Hopefully Newton will know what to do.'

'Hopefully,' Vin echoed, but he couldn't help the little feeling of doubt in the back of his mind.

He hated these missions. He had never been able to get over the fear of them being his last.

11/12/2021