Primary Force - Chapter 8 - Day of the Living Dead

Day of the Living Dead

The day began like any other day in downtown Pleasantview. People walked the sidewalks, vehicles cruised around the streets, and shop owners greeted everyone with a smile as they made their daily exchanges. No one could foresee the dark cloud about to form over his or her quaint and humble city.

It was with a scream that could wake the dead that people began to notice that something sinister was afoot. Much to their surprise, it appeared that the dead had in fact woken up and were now listlessly strolling upon the pavement.

Meanwhile, Ebon Huntress was relaxing by the pool at the new East Side Center. Besides being the leader for Team Rainbow Super Force, she had also held many functions and gatherings for the local citizens. Due to the additional stress and burden, she decided she needed some time to herself. She had just gotten comfortable when Emerald Guardian came rushing out to tell her there were reports on the news about zombies downtown.

Following Emerald into the conference room, Ebon listened while the newscaster reported a most startling development in the downtown district. Ebon signaled Chromed Avenger on their communications system to find out if he was aware of what was going on. He informed her that his computer systems had already alerted him as soon as the news reports had started broadcasting. Although the news reported that the so-called zombies just seemed to be harmlessly meandering around, Ebon decided to send in a couple members to bring one back for study.

Tangerine Mistress and Cyan Aide arrived downtown and discovered they had many zombies to choose from. Although they certainly seemed harmless, the number of zombies seemed to be increasing before Tangerine and Cyan's eyes. Sensing the urgency of this new information, they quickly picked one of the zombies and began escorting him back to East Side Center.

Once back at the lab, Emerald Guardian began running a series of tests to determine the validity of their subject as being a zombie. After being reassured that Emerald wasn't in any real danger, Ebon dismissed her teammates and returned to the conference room to allow Emerald to continue testing in peace.

Ebon watched the news with much trepidation as reports reported ever increasing numbers of zombies. Some eyewitness reports indicated that ordinary people were turning into zombies right before their eyes. Ebon began to fear they might have an epidemic on their hands.

Hours passed by before Emerald paged Ebon to meet him outside his lab. Once there, he explained that his test subject was not actually a zombie, although it was nearly identical to the creature of folklore. Emerald indicated that his test subject had originally been a perfectly normal living being. However, the cells of the body had become necrotic. Emerald offered no reason as to why this was occurring, or how it could have come about in the first place.

A signal from Chromed Avenger interrupted them before their conversation could go any farther. He indicated that while scanning the security cameras Team Rainbow had installed that a rather interesting individual seemed to be dancing in the street. Chromed proceeded to put the camera feed on the computer monitor in Emerald's lab so they could all view the peculiar individual. Ebon instantly contacted Violet Haze and asked him to take Tawny Bimbo with him to investigate.

Violet Haze and Tawny Bimbo arrived downtown and approached the person that Chromed Avenger had shown on the monitor. He was a thin yet muscular man that seemed to be dancing in the middle of the street while all the zombies shuffled around him. Violet and Tawny cautiously approached, unsure of what to expect.

"You, there. Stand still and identify yourself," instructed Violet.

The odd man stopped dancing and straightened up to his full height. For a moment, a smile appeared on his face as if in enjoyment of his situation. However, the smile quickly faded and a shadow fell upon his countenance.

"You sah," the man spoke with a thick island accent. "You, sah, mi' be tinking to yaself, who am I to be dancing roun in da street? You, sah, mi' be tinking to yaself, why dat is? Maybe you, sah, di' naw be hearing my mumbo jumbo. Well, den you, sah, naw be understanding what it is I be doing."

Violet Haze and Tawny Bimbo stared at each other briefly, each looking for a clue as to what the man might be saying. However, before Violet could ask for an explanation, the strange individual continued.

"Don be tinking you mi' be knowing everytin there is to know about everytin. You don be knowing me, and you don be knowing my zombis edah. For deh are belongin to me, and deh be becoming mah army.

"You be seeing dat everyone round today is a zombi whether they be knowin it or not. Everyone be goin about their lives but not be livin. Dey be goin bout da same routine day aftah day and not be realizing dat deh already be zombis. So I be takin dem ovah and givin them somethin to be doin. Soon I be takin over all da zombis in da world. Den I truly be da zombi lord. Now you be knowin who I am, and now you be knowin what I be doin. And now I be tinking you need to be leavin."

Without warning, a large crowd of Zombies suddenly began to converge on Violet Haze and Tawny Bimbo. In the back, the self-proclaimed Zombie Lord laughed loudly and then returned to dancing in the street.

"We've got to stop him," Tawny exclaimed. "If he really is the one causing all of these people to become this way."

"I agree," Violet acknowledged. "But there are too many zombies in our way now to get to him. Moreover, we don't want to hurt the zombies if there is any hope of turning them back into the people they were. We need to return to East Side Center and ask Ebon Huntress what our next move is."

Back at the East Side Center, Ebon Huntress watched as the news report indicated the zombies were starting to become violent. What once was a small number had now turned into most of the population, and they were terrorizing the city like an angry mob. After Violet Haze returned and explained the encounter with the Zombie Lord, Ebon decided she would track the Zombie Lord in an attempt to find the true source of his power.

Using her best stealth abilities, Ebon cautiously followed the Zombie Lord to an old out of the way graveyard. Keeping well hidden, she noticed how he seemed to be reciting incantations over a very old cauldron. Deciding that this must be the source of his power, she quickly summoned the rest of the team to assist.

Ebon Huntress emerged for her hiding spot as the rest of the team arrived. However, as soon as she revealed herself, the Zombie Lord summoned a mass of zombies into the graveyard to help protect himself.

Ebon instructed her teammates to hold back the crowd of zombies without injuring them for as long as possible. She then indicated to Tangerine Mistress that the cauldron appeared to be the source of his power. However, when Tangerine attempted to purge the device from our world, she was surprised to find that her powers had no effect on it.

As the mass of zombies moved closer in to surround them, Ebon began to fear she was facing a no-win situation. Since Tangerine's magic had failed to do the job, she quickly indicated to her teammates that she was open for suggestions. At that point, Chromed Avenger suggested that if the laws of magic were not yielding fruitful results, then perhaps the laws of physics would apply.

Ebon Huntress instructed Captain Crimson to attempt to melt the cauldron to the ground. Putting forth his best effort, Crimson set the cauldron ablaze till it was glowing white-hot. Try as he might, the cauldron refused to melt. Meanwhile, the Zombie Lord laughed heartily from a safe distance.

Chromed Avenger then instructed Azure Maiden to deep freeze the cauldron. She proceeded to produce an ice blast so cold that the very air around the cauldron turned to ice.

Catching onto the plan of attack, Choral Blush stepped forward producing a sharp sonic blast shattering the cauldron into thousands of pieces. Upon destruction of the cauldron, the zombies stopped their advancement and began to shuffle about without purpose.

"No!" Zombie Lord shouted. "You be havin ruin everytin."

Attempting to take advantage of the confusion, Zombie Lord dived into the masses hoping to hide amongst his creations and make his escape. However, Cyan Aide was able to spot him and using the skills he had developed in training, quickly apprehended Zombie Lord. Cyan then turned Zombie Lord over to the local constables after they arrived on the scene.

Ebon Huntress gathered her teammates together to discuss how they were going to turn all the zombies back into normal people. They stood around watching helplessly as the zombies shuffled around like mindless automatons.

The team turned around when, as if in answer to their collective question, the cauldron suddenly re-appeared. Ebon stood shocked in amazement and Chromed Avenger look completely perplexed as Tangerine Mistress began to walk around and examine the artifact.

Deciding that since magic didn't appear to have any effect on the cauldron, Tangerine suggested that she might be able to use the cauldron to turn zombies back into normal people again. Carefully casting a spell, Tangerine whispered a short incantation waiting for a response.

As if waking from a long sleep, one by one, the zombies turned back to normal citizens. Even the clouds parted in the sky allowing the sun to shine down as if on a new day. The members of Team Rainbow began escorting the bewildered individuals back to their homes so they could return to their normal lives.

Since the cauldron was obviously too dangerous to be left unattended, Ebon Huntress decided it would be best to bring it back to the Bunker for safekeeping until such time they could figure out a proper way to dispose of it. Chromed Avenger placed the cauldron in a storage room and left hoping he would never have to deal with it again.

So concludes the eighth chapter of Team Rainbow Super Force. Stay tuned for Chapter 9: The Silenced Voice

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