"(I hope lamps and toasters aren't too expensive. I'd at least like to replace them before I go anywhere else)"
Ninten was thinking of a plan for when he got to Podunk. He wanted to try and replace the lamps at home since he felt bad for breaking them (despite it being in self defense), but he also wanted to replace the toaster his mom had to destroy. However he wound up getting so lost in thought, he didn't realize he had already reached Podunk until he had walked directly into a house.
"(Crap I hope nobody saw that!)" He hastily backed away and looked around. Thankfully it looked like nobody was looking in his direction.
"You ok there kid?" At least Ninten thought nobody was looking, but he turned to his left and saw a man with a concerned look on his face.
"Oh, um I'm fine just, i was thinking about a lot of stuff and... look, please don't tell anyone about this." Ninten said awkwardly. He hated embarrassing himself, and walking into something directly in front of him was something he wouuld never live down.
"Don't worry about it kid, your secrets safe with me. Not like everyone else doesn't have a lot on their minds lately."
"What do you mean?"
"You not from around here? The zoo animals have gone insane and the undead have been roaming around for the past couple of days. The entire town knows about it."
"Undead? As in ghosts and poltergeists?"
"Yeah, those and zombies."
"Zombies?!" The mention of zombies overshadowed what the man said about the zoo. "I barely live far so how have I not heard about it? Did they just appear today?"
"The mayor's trying to keep the media quiet so the only way to know about it is to come down here. As for when, I think the zombies and ghosts first appeared first started showing up about 3 days ago. Pretty sure the animals going crazy was around the same time as well so they might be connected. "
"Three days... (I guess that makes sense. The poltergeist was only yesterday.)" Has anyone been attacked?"
"Nobody's been seriously hurt as far as I know, but there's been a lot of property damage." The man sighs and looks a bit sad for a second. "My house got destroyed the other day. Ghosts tore it apart while I was out."
"Ohhh... I am so sorry to hear that." Ninten didn't know how to respond to that. He decided not to bring up that his house was barely damaged when it got attacked.
"Eh, don't worry yourself about it. I'm still alive and I have a place to stay for the time being so I'm fine."
"Well, I hope it won't take you to long to find a new one." Ninten suddenly felt extremely awkward and decided it would be best to leave. "I'm, really sorry but I need to go somewhere."
"Oh, don't let me keep you. Stay safe out there kid."
Ninten walked deeper into town, thoughts swarming about what he just learnt. "(Wow, I really hope I don't have to fight any zombies. How did they even appear in the first place?)" After a bit more thinking about zombies, he decided to head towards the department store to see how much lamps and toasters cost.
As Ninten walked down to the store, he noticed that there wasn't a lot of people outside. He wasn't used to the town being this quiet. Despite the reason for the silence, he found it somewhat relaxing and arrived at the store within no time at all
The department store was a massive tower with a different variety of stuff on each floor. This made it really confusing if it was your first time shopping there and while it wasn't Ninten's first time shopping, it was his first time shopping alone. Normally whenever he went there, he had either his mom or his sisters with him to tell him where to go. Even then he only went to the floor with sports equipment, the toy store, the food area and the drug counter to get asthma spray. He had no idea where everything else was, so he went over to the clerk by the door or ask for help.
"Hi there, do you have something you would like to return?" She said cheerfully
"No I-" Ninten was about to respond with a no, but he then remembered the bullhorn the hippie had given him earlier. "Actually would I be able to return this?" He pulled the bullhorn out of his bag and handed it over.
"Hm..." the lady carefully inspected it. "We definitely carry this brand, and it seems to be in perfect condition. Do you have the receipt?"
"Sorry, I don't have it."
"Ok then. I can give you 5 dollars for it."
Ninten thought for a second if he would ever actually need it. "Ok, that sounds fair." He decided that the chances of him needing a bullhorn were to low to justify keeping it. He quickly pocketed the 5 dollars.
"Will that be all you need?"
"What floor has kitchen stuff and lamps?"
"Those would be on the third floor sir."
"Thanks, have a good day"
"Come back soon." Ninten proceeded to the stairs leading up to the third floor, hoping that he had enough money to afford something.
—-
"Thirty dollars for a lamp? (Wow I had no idea they where this expensive.)"
"Is there a problem with that sir?" The clerk was trying to smile, but was visibly tired and clearly bored."
"Um, are there any lamps that are less expensive?"
"Sir, anything cheaper would just be a lightbulb attached to a string."
"(Ugh of course) Ok, I'll just go then."
"Have a good day sir."
"(Well I guess I'm not replacing those. I don't even want to know how much a toaster costs)" Ninten left the store and headed down to the exit, However on the way down he overheard an intriguing conversation between a boy and a girl. He recognized them as Mat and Cindy from his school.
"Did you actually get bit by a zombie?"
"Yea. It hurt like hell but I punched the sucker so hard it crumbled to dust."
"How aren't you scared?"
"Of what? I got it checked out and other then the bleeding I'm fine"
"I mean scared of turning into one!"
"What? Nah, it was three days ago. If I was turning into a zombie I think I would have felt something by now."
Cindy continued to question Mat as Ninten listened from a distance. "(So you don't become a zombie if you get bit. That's good to know)" after a bit he decide to talk to them.
"Hey guys, what are you two talking about?
"Hmm? Oh hey Ninten. We're not talking about anything important, I ju-"
"What do you mean nothing important!" Cindy interrupted. "You got bit by some random zombie and we don't know if your going to turn or not! How is that fine?!"
"Again, I would probably feel sick by now if I was turning into a zombie. Anyway, a zombie got the jump on me the other day and bit my arm pretty good". He rolled up his sleeve to show Ninten and sure enough there were bite marks around the middle of his arm. Other then that though it didn't look like anything had happened to it.
"It looks fine to me."
"That's what I'm saying but Cindy here insists on being paranoid about it."
"I'm not paranoid, I'm worried! After all the zombie movies you've dragged me to how could I not be!"
Ninten decided to interrupt before she could start ranting "How did it happen?"
"It's not an exciting story honestly. 3 days ago I was walking home from my friends place when I saw this wierd looking dude just standing there with a giant coat on. I tried to walk past him but as soon as I did he jumped me and bit my arm. I managed to beat em up before it could try anything else. I haven't seen any since then but I'm pretty sure other people have, so I've been keeping an eye out."
"I still think we need you need to go to the hospital again check it again just in case. I'm not having my friend turn into a zombie because he "thought it looked fine" Cindy added as he finished his story.
Ninten wasn't paying attention anymore though, his thoughts racing back to Pippi.
"(Oh no what if she was attacked! She's strong but there's no way she would be able to fight off a zombie.)" He decided that he had to look for her, but not before telling the mayor first.
"Hey, it was great seeing you guys but I need to be going now. Maybe I'll see you later.
"See ya Ninten." They said in unison. Ninten made his way towards the exit of the department store. Fortunately for him the mayor's office was right next to the department store, so it took him no time at all to get there.
"Hello, can I help you?" Ninten walked through the door and was greeted by a yellowish white room and a blond secretary behind their desk.
"Can I see the mayor? It's about" Ninten was quickly cut off.
"Kid, the mayor is extremely busy right now. I'm afraid he's not accepting visitors." The secretary said in a very annoyed tone. It's clear she's had to say this a lot.
"Please ma'am it's really important."
"Kid, we've had a lot of people come in recently over something important". She replied, putting emphasis around the word important. "Most of the time it's just the news or someone asking what the mayor's doing about this. Chances are the mayor's not interested in what you got."
"Please just listen!" Ninten was starting to get annoyed. "My neighbor's been missing for the past 3 days now, and I think these zombies have something to do with it. Can I please just report that to the mayor, I promise I'll be quick." Ninten wasn't a fan of lying, but decided to bend the truth about the length of Pippi's absence to try and make it sound even more urgent. He added some desperation to his voice for good measure. His sudden outburst surprised the secretary for a second, but she quickly regained her composure.
"... Well you definitely seem serious about it, and a missing person would definitely classify as imortant. Go on up. It's the first door to the left."
"Thank you. I won't take long."
"Good luck finding your neighbor."
Ninten walked up the suprisingly long flight off stairs and headed left like the secretary said. Sure enough a door with the word mayor in large letters on the front was the first thing he saw. The room was the same color as the one downstairs, with chairs and a couch in the center of it. He noticed the mayor was getting up from one of them to greet the him.
"Who are you young man?"
"My name is Ninten sir. I'm here to report a missing person."
"Ninten?" He swore he could hear the mayor say something about "dumb nicknames" but unfortunately he talked to quietly for Ninten to understand. "I suppose it doesn't matter. What's this about a missing person?."
Ninten decided to ignore the stupid nickname part. "My neighbor, Pippi Lindgren, has been missing for the last couple of days now, and I think the zombies might be responsible. She's a 7 year old girl and her mom is worried sick about her."
The mayor appeared to be deep in thought at this. "Well, one of the zombie reports we got mentions a girl going near the cemetery.." Ninten's heart sank after he heard this. "(Oh crap if that person is Pippi... I just have to hope it's not.)" Well can't you send police officers there to investigate?"
"Well due to the matters of the zoo animals and the undead roaming around, I'm afraid our officers are tied up protecting the town."
"Can't you at least send one?! A little girl is in danger!" Ninten has never had the greatest opinion of the mayor, but the way the he was treating the situation was only lowering it.
"Now now, no need to yell." The mayor was still deep in thought, but suddenly his face lit up with an idea. "Well kid, how would you like to find her?"
"Wait, me?" Ninten was going look for Pippi anyway, but was confused as to why the mayor himself would suggest the idea as well. "Why me? Wouldn't it be better to send an adult?"
"Well like I said the police are to busy to help and you seem to be more then willing to help. Besides I'm sure the child would be more likely to trust her neighbor and friend, well I assume you two are friends, then some random cop. Not to mention that if this child doesn't return then my reputation would be horrible during the election. I'll pay you if that helps convince you.
While the mayor's true motivation was selfish and he was clearly making up excuses to send Ninten before anyone else, Ninten didn't care to much. Besides, the offer of money was to much for him to pass up. He only needed a bit more to at least buy his sister a new lamp, but if he was given enough he would be able to replace everything that was broken in the poltergeist attack. "Ok then, I'll do it."
"Wonderful! Bring her back alive and I- I mean You'll surely be a hero!" The mayor then sat back down in his chair. "Now good luck out there kid, I have paperwork to do."
Ninten left the mayor's room, but not before noticing another person behind a desk near the door. "(Has he been here the whole time? How didn't I notice him?)" Deciding not to think about it, he walked back down the stairs and left the building.
Wasting no time, Ninten immediately started heading south to the cemetery.
"Hey kid! You're not seriously going down to the cemetery are ya?" As Ninten was walking through the residential district, an elderly man approached Ninten with a dumbfounded look
"Sorry sir but I'm in a hurry. I don't know how much time I have."
"Ugh kids these days always being reckless. First that girl goes down and know you too.
"Girl?!" The man immediately had Ninten's attention. "(He might be able to tell me if it was Pippi or not.) What did she look like?"
"Hmm? Well she was short and had red hair tied up into pigtails. I tried to tell her it was dangerous but she didn't care. Zombies probably got her. They'll get you too if you go out there."
"Ok yeah thanks for the warning I really have to go now." Ninten took off as soon as the man was done talking. "(Crap it had to have been Pippi! She's the only one I know that fits that description!) He started sprinting to cemetery to save time, but as he reached the path he noticed two figures in very large jackets standing there.
"Hey thereee..." Said the first one
"What are youuu doing hereeee?" Said the other. Their speech was slow and the air around them smelled putrid, which was more then enough to set Ninten on edge.
"Hey, I just need to get to the cemetery. (There's something off about these guys)"He felt for his bat and held it behind him, just in case.
"The cemetery? Whyyy would a kid like youuu want to go thereee?"
"Um.. That's, none of your business. I'm just gonna go." Ninten remembered Mats story and how the zombie that attacked him also had a big coat, but zombies couldn't talk right?
"I'm afraid youuu aren't going anywhereee! A gutsy kid Like youuu would make a fiiinneee zombie!
[Psuedo zombies A and B attacked]
Turns out zombies could, in fact talk. The first figure suddenly lunged at Ninten and scratched him on the arm before he could react to the threat. His coat somehow flying off in the process.
[Psuedo zombie A's attack. 7 damage to Ninten]
Ninten stumbled backwards from the attack and tried to put some space between him and his attackers. Without the zombie's coat he could see its true appearance. It's skin was unnaturally pale and falling off, and it's bones where practically sticking out of it body. It's eyes where the worst part though, as they were nothing but red dots in an abyss of blackness. Ninten tried to charge at the zombie and swing at it with his bat, but he was paralyzed by fear. He may have known they were real, but seeing one up close was absolutely horrifying for him. The zombies noticed his hesitation and took advantage of it.
"Whats wrooong kid, you seem scaaared!"
The second zombie let out an unnatural shriek to intimidate him more and charged at Ninten, but tripped while doing so and only grazed him a little.
[Psuedo zombie B's attack. 3 damage to Ninten]
The zombie fell right next to Ninten. He snapped out of his fear induced state and delivered a hard bash to the zombies head.
[Ninten's attack. 12 damage to Psuedo zombie B]
"Behind youuu!"
However while his back was turned, the other zombie circled around and tackled him from behind, pinning him down.
[Psuedo zombie A charged at Ninten. Dealt 3 damage. Ninten couldn't move]
While he was pinned, the second zombie got up and bit him hard in the side, drawing a lot of blood.
[Psuedo zombie B bit Ninten. 17 damage dealt]
His entire body hurt, but Ninten recieved a rush of adrenaline and pushed off the zombie pinning him down while bashing off the one on his side. He then delivered another bash to the zombie that bit him while the other fell to the ground from being pushed off.
[Ninten's attack. 19 damage to Pseudo zombie B]
The zombie fell to the last blow, crumbling to dust. But at the same time, Ninten started to feel unusually hot, distracting him enough for the remaining zombie to crawl to him. Ninten barely managed to turn around before he felt a sharp pain in his leg.
[Psuedo zombie A bit Ninten. 15 damage dealt]
The zombie bit him in the leg, making it difficult to stand. Ninten kicked the zombie off of him with his good leg, and then started repeatedly bashing it everywhere with his bat before it could move again.
[Ninten's attack. SMAAAASH! 36 damage to Psuedo zombie. Psuedo zombie turned to dust]
[YOU WIN!]
Ninten could only sit down in disbelief as the adrenaline left his body. Unfortunately he wasn't used to intense pain, and without the adrenaline he was starting to feel the pain of his wounds more and more, Rendering him barely able to move. However just as he was about to yell for help, the heat dispersed from his body and a voice rang through his head.
"(PSI Lifeup alpha)"
"(PSI Hypnosis alpha)"
"(Wow, did I get hit in the head? Why am I- wait lifeup was the healing thing in the journal! Ok, I just have to do as the book said. Take deep breaths Ninten. You got this.)" He held his hand to the bite mark on his leg and repeated the name of the technique through gasps of breath.
"PSI lifeup alpha..."
His hands started to glow a faint green, and he held it against his wound. After a couple of seconds the wound started glowing as well and sealed itself backup as the pain faded away. The blood that was surrounding the bite also seemed to vanish. The only remaining sign of the battle were a couple of bite marks that were barely noticeable.
[Ninten tried PSI Lifeup α. Ninten recovered 28 HP]
"(Wow... this is, amazing.)" He quickly repeated the process with the other bite and his scratch marks. They too, closed up and disappeared.
"(I wonder what the hypnosis one does. It wasn't mentioned in the journal.)" Ninten continued to sit down for a minute, this time due to exhaustion instead of pain. After a quick break and mentally reminding himself to be on guard, he continued to the graveyard, praying that Pippi didn't suffer nearly as much as he did.