Barb sighed, looking down at her Fulci’s Pizza uniform. Celia had given her a “job,” at the mall’s food court, complete with a dress code. She wasn’t the only one, a number of other “rescued” civilians were waiting on the cheerleaders in the center of the mall, each of them wearing the uniform of a mall worker.

In the center of the food court Celia herself sat, in her own cheer uniform, laughing and sipping a fountain drink from a bright red paper cup while her subordinates each reported to her. The scene was a bizarre cross between a queen holding court and a spoiled girl out with her friends and her dad’s credit card. At her side, looking bashful and rarely speaking, was Cassandra, the cheerleader that had ventured out to rescue Barb and John.

John, Barb thought sullenly, glancing to the nail salon. Celia had separated them immediately, sending John away with the other tinies to paint nails and give massages, evidently that was all tinies were good for in Celia’s new world. I’ll figure out a way to get you out of there, she vowed, watching a pair of giggling cheerleaders walking in.

…

“I want green tiny,” the giant cheerleader said, leaning back in the salon chair as John looked up at her in distaste. The girl’s name was Tammy, a perky Asian girl with a single blue highlight in her hair and a disturbingly peppy attitude in light of their situation. All things considered, she wasn’t the worst of the cheerleaders, at least from John’s short time in the salon, he’d never seen her intentionally hurt anyone.

“Coming right up,” John muttered, hefting a massive bottle of nail polish and grunting as he waddled it over to the giant girl’s foot. He gripped the top and gritted his teeth, putting all of his effort into getting the cap off, but it wouldn’t budge.

“Aw, let me give you a hand,” Tammy giggled, bending over and gripping the top, twisting it off easily.

“God, tinies are so pathetic sometimes,” another cheerleader, a blonde with an arrogant face, chuckled. She her toes reached out and pinched the tiny woman who had been rubbing lotion on her own feet, giggling as the woman flailed and squeaked in fear. “You little things are lucky the Cheer Captain finds tinies cute,” she muttered.

“Monica be careful,” Tammy giggled, “if you hurt one, Celia’s going to make you run laps or something!”

Monica just chuckled, releasing the woman and letting her fall to the ground. Her bare foot hovered over the tiny woman, who cowered. For one terrifying moment John worried he was about to watch the cheerleader crush the life out of her, but the giant girl just chuckled, lowering her foot again.

“Hey, tiny, quit your whining and finish that massage! I’m on my feet all day keeping your ungrateful asses safe, the least you can do is lotion them down at the end of my shift!”

“R-Right away,” the woman stammered, scrambling to her feet and running to a small tin of lotion.

John sighed angrily, pulling the nail brush out and turning to his own set of feet. He wrinkled his nose a little, the cheerleaders mostly kept clean, but their feet were damp and sweaty from a day in their shoes, and it seemed that all of them wanted to come right into the salon for “treatment” after each of their shifts.

“Any word on whether the girls on the radio reached anyone?” the girl John was working on asked.

The other cheerleader, Monica, just sighed, “We got another transmission from that cop in Georgia, you know, the one who was in a coma or whatever when this all started? He and his group are dealing some local warlord, Nugan or something.”

“Ugh,” Tammy waved dismissively and looked back to the magazine she’d taken from the salon’s reading rack, “at first those people were really interesting, but I’m getting bored with them. It’s just same story over and over.”

“Agreed,” Monica laughed, “Celia also said a few of the emergency broadcast networks are in and out, but none of them are coming from anywhere near us.”

“Guess we’re really the queens of the world,” Tammy said with a smirk. “Hey, what’s the deal with Cassandra?”

“Apparently Celia didn’t want her going out for those people,” Monica said dismissively. “You know, for all her ranting about discipline she’s always had a weak spot for Cass, I wonder what she’s going to do?”

…

“Barb, hurry up with that pizza!” Celia snapped. The other girl glowered at her a moment as she slapped two red plastic trays on the table. Celia grabbed a slice, digging in with a moan, “Oh man, the cheerleader food is so good,” she taunted, winking at Barb, “but I’m sure you mall staff are getting by just as good on the MREs right?”

Barb didn’t reply, part of Celia’s bizarre caste system included freshly prepared meals from the food court while the rest of them were stuck eating canned goods and pre-made meals from the mall’s military surplus store.

“M-Maybe we could share some of the fresher food,” Cassandra said at her side, “just as a reward for all the mall worker’s hard work?”

Celia just glanced at her, and Cassandra looked away sheepishly. Barb glanced down and saw the tiny  man, the cheerleader’s old tutor, was still dangling between Celia’s breasts like a sick trophy. He was glancing at Cassandra, then he made eye contact with Barb, the pair of them exchanging a knowing look.

Sorry tiny, Barb thought miserably, I’d help you too if I could…

“Cheer Captain, I’ve got some stuff to report,” a middle aged woman with a handful of grey hairs announced. She had a gun holstered at her side, and while she didn’t wear a cheer uniform, a brightly colored sash across her chest marked the woman as one of the “new cheerleaders” that had impressed Celia during the trials.

“Go ahead Paula,” Celia said, taking a sip of her soda.

“Well, I took a look at the arsenal like you asked, we’re doing pretty good on bullets of all kinds, it’s incredible actually… you said you took them from a biker gang?”

“Yep,” Celia grinned, “some asshole named Blades and his crew were holed up in the mall when we got here. We took most of them out before they could use any of the guns on us, now they’re mine.

Paula laughed, “Damn girlie, I worked for some rough people before the end of the world, but none like you!”

“Aw, thank you!” Celia blushed, “so nice to see someone who appreciates all my hard work!” She looked around the table, “Well if the food and guns situation is under control, I think that concludes today’s meeting!” she said with a peppy grin. The various cheerleaders around the table muttered agreements and got up, Cassandra started up herself, but Celia grabbed her arm, “We should talk alone,” she said, a sweet smile on her face.

Cassandra’s heart skipped a beat, but she hung back as the others left. Soon it was just the two of them in the food court, along with Peter, dangling helplessly on Celia’s necklace.

“Cassie, to say that I’m displeased is an understatement,” she drawled, pulling the chain holding Peter away from herself and letting him dangle slightly in front of her. Cassandra looked on with a worried expression as the tiny man stuck on the jewelry went tense.

“I-I didn’t want to just leave that girl out there,” Cassandra protested, “I’m sorry Celi- Cheer Captain, it won’t happen again.”

Celia smirked, swaying Peter’s chain back and forth like a pocketwatch, “You’ve always been kind of a bleeding-heart Cass. Still, cheer squads need a girl like you to soften some of the harsher stuff that’s got to be said and done…” She gave a small smile, watching Peter sway but not really looking at him, “You’ve always been pretty good at backing me up in the past, so what’s this really about Cassie?” She giggled at Peter’s grimace, the spinning motion getting to him as she continued to toy with him. “It wouldn’t be about little Petey here, would it?”

Cassandra’s eyebrows rose, “W-Well, I think you should treat him better, but-“

“And what about you Petey?” Celia asked with a taunting smile, “are you and Cassie here in L-O-V-E?”

Peter’s face paled, “Celia,” he said in a low voice, “there isn’t anything between us, we were just friends, I’m your little Petey!” he said, a nervous smile coming over his face, “Honest!”

“Too strong Peter,” Celia chuckled, “I know you’re not nearly as broken in as you pretend to be most of the time.” She sighed and reached up, pulling the strings of dental floss that tied Peter into the jewelry. He tumbled forward into her waiting palm, flinching as if he half expected it to clench shut, pulping his tiny body.

“Celia…” Cassandra said nervously, looking back and forth between her friend and the tiny man in her palm, “D-Don’t hurt him, please-“ She was cut off by a look from Celia that she’d never seen before, sad, furious, and cold, all at the same time.

Suddenly her face broke into that familiar pep rally grin, “You guys!” she gushed, “if you wanted to be together, you just had to tell me!” She held Peter out to Cassandra, who looked at her warily. “Go on, take him!”

Cassandra reached out, cupping her hands around Peter, slowly drawing him away from the cheer captain. Peter felt his heart racing, and he could swear he could faintly feel Cassandra’s through her soft palms, both of them were on edge, but Celia just kept up her cheerful demeanor.

“I’m happy for you guys, really,” she insisted, “Why don’t you take Petey to your room and have a little fun with him?” Celia said, standing up and shooting her a wink. She glanced down at a few stains that had dribbled down from the pizza onto her cheerleading outfit, “Ugh, that’s the problem with Fulci’s Pizza,” she muttered, “too much sauce, too much splatter, you always get red on you… I wish this mall had a Romero’s, it doesn’t look as good but that’s a pizza with some substance.”

“Well, it’s the end of the world,” Cassandra said with a small smile, “any pizza at all is doing pretty good, right?”

“Right,” Celia said, smiling at her. “I’m going to go talk to the mall staff and see about getting this thing washed, take care Cass.”

“She’s not over this,” Peter said darkly, fighting the urge to hug Cassie’s finger. I’m not quite free but… goddamn it’s good to be away from her…

“No,” Cassandra sighed, “I don’t think she is, she really liked you, Peter.”

“Cassie,” he said softly, “she wanted to own me, not be with me…” he chuckled, “can you believe she thought you and I were…” he looked up at Cassie’s face, but she was biting her lip and looking away, stifling a giggle. Now it was his turn to blush, “Oh…”

“Come on Peter,” she said, standing up, with a grin, “We can talk it over in private…”

…

Peter looked up at the gigantic cheerleader, now clad in nothing but a white bra that contrasted nicely with her dark brown skin. Cassie giggled at his reaction, putting her arms down on either side of the bed and looming over him in an almost predatory fashion. She hadn’t wasted any time carrying him back to the converted back office she’d claimed as her own bedroom, and as his own erection strained against his pants Peter was having an ethical quandary.

“C-Cassie I’m the cheerleading team’s tutor,” he said uncertainly, God she looks amazing, “I-It might not be appropriate for us to… that is-“

Cassandra just laughed, sighing at his awkwardness with some amusement, “Tell you what, if there’s anyone alive back at West State, we’ll go and ask them if we violated any university policies.”

He blinked, in light of everything it was kind of a silly concern, he smiled, “So… a guy like me does it for you?”

“You’re a sophisticated grad student type,” Cassandra said, reaching for his pants, “and you’re super cute…” She grinned, “I’ll be honest, I’m kind of in to smaller guys too.”

“A lot of that going around these days,” Peter joked nervously as he felt his pants sliding down his body. He breathed out slowly, trying to decide what to do. I’ve been Celia’s pet for so long… he looked up at Cassie, who was now reaching down for his underwear. She hesitated, seeing his expression.

“Peter,” she said slowly, “If you don’t want this, if you don’t want me-“

“I think I do,” he said with a dreamy smile, “I just… wanted to be sure I had a choice.”

Cassandra looked sad a moment, “Celia… when it all started it was-“

“Cassie,” he said, “I really don’t want to think about her while I’m looking at you almost naked.” He grinned, “Come on, let’s have some fun while we can.”

“Sure thing,” Cassie breathed, reaching behind her back. There was a *click* and her bra fell to the ground, letting her enormous ebony breasts fall free.

“Oh… shit,” Peter breathed, “those could…”

“They could what?” Cassie asked with a smirk, “come on grad school, tell me what my boobs can do!”

“They could snuff me out like a light in a storm,” Peter said, breathless, “They could- UNF!”

Cassandra’s breasts came down, smothering the tiny man beneath an ocean of warm flesh. He could smell the soft floral scent of Cassandra’s bodywash of choice, an upscale one from an expensive mall shop that filled his nostrils even as she lifted herself back up, grinning at the stunned state of her tiny man.

“Stare at them,” Cassandra breathed, squeezing one of the celestial orbs, jiggling them together as Peter looked up, starstruck. She slowly brought a finger to her lip, sucking on it a moment, bathing it in her sticky saliva before bringing it down.

“Oh shit,” Peter breathed in sharply, feeling the tip of the girl’s finger slowly begin to play with his manhood. He obeyed her, looking up at her heaving breasts, letting the twin orbs absorb all of his attention, washing away the stress of the last few weeks as pleasure jolted through his body to the movement of Cassie’s finger.

Cassie’s face lit up in a grin as she watched the tiny man contort, his little hips grinding against her finger as he finally let the walls he’d had up since the outbreak crumble. She couldn’t help but sigh, enjoying the little noises he made. She slowed her motions, causing his eyes to shoot open and look up at her pleadingly.

“Beg,” she giggled, “beg me to cum.”

He cleared his throat, “P-Please let me cum Cassie!”

“Hmm… I’m not convinced,” she said with a smirk.

“PLEASE CASSIE!” he shouted, the slight motions of her finger teasing him now, haunting him with a climax that was just out of reach. “PLEA-“ he groaned, unable to finish the sentence as she slowly and forcefully pushed her moist fingertip against him again, savoring the way he struggled against it.

“Cum for me Peter,” she whispered, slowly dragging her fingertip along his erection in a way she knew would finish their game.

Peter gasped, seeing stars as Cassie’s smug smile and enormous breasts were seared into his mind. He gripped the side of her soft finger, dragging it up and along his body as he humped it furiously, spray his seed and embracing the digit like a lover while its owner watched overhead, an amused goddess indulging a mortal worshiper with a trip to heaven.

“You done?” she asked with a smile, feeling his motions slow, and then stop.

“Y-Yeah,” he breathed. He felt an odd longing as the warmth of her finger pulled away, lifting back to Cassandra’s faraway mouth as she stuck it in once again. She sucked on it a moment, tasting his seed before pulling it out with a *pop*.

“Yummy,” she said breathily, letting her gaze fall back down to him, “A girl could get used to that flavor…” She reached down to cradle Peter in her hand, scooping him up gently and bringing him up to the level of her face. He dreamily looked at her in a strange state of wonder.

“I keep worrying I’m going to wake up,” he muttered, chuckling softly, “like I’m going to open my eyes and be stuck back on that stupid necklace…”

“Nope,” Cassandra giggled, “I think you’re my tiny guy now… But where should I carry you?” she teasingly tapped the side her cheek in mock thought.

“Combat vest pocket,” Peter said without hesitation, “good visibility, and you won’t drop me.”

Cassie huffed in annoyance, “There is nothing sexy or fun about carrying a tiny in your combat vest pocket,” she said sternly.

“But it’s more practical-“

“Pick someplace fun and sexy!” Cassandra ordered, “At least for when we’re alone…” She held up her discarded bra for him to see and winked, “you could go in my top, bounce around with my boobs while I walk…” she giggled and leaned back, letting him have a view as she slid her free hand down the front of her panties, “Or you could go in my panties… front or back, tiny’s choice!” She bit her lip and propped a foot up, letting him see her sock, “Or are you one of those guys that wants to get scrunched under my toes for a while?”

Peter’s mind raced, They all sound amazing… he gulped, nervously as he tried to think of which one to ask for first.

“I guess I’ll choose for you,” Cassandra whispered, lowering him down between her legs.

Peter saw her pull the waistband of her panties open, and while he flailed slightly as she dropped him through the air, the sheer fabric of her underwear combined with the curled black pubic hair made a fine cushion as he settled in against her womanhood. The bright pink lips of Cassie’s opening contrasted with the dark skin around it, serving as a beacon to guide him closer just before she let her panties snap shut, trapping him against her.

“Oh yeah,” she murmured, flopping onto the bed and rubbing the outside of the fabric, kneading the tiny man in. “Much better than a tactical vest pocket,” she breathed.

Peter felt her soft wet lips parting slightly for him as she pressed him, and the stickiness of her lubrication began to soak him as his body was forced up and down against her as she slowly began playing with herself. He sank deeper into her womanhood’s embrace, the musky aroma of her arousal seeping into his pores, coating him as his face was forced roughly against her clit. Desperately he reached up to grab it, massaging it in time to the movements of her hand outside.

Cassandra gasped, “Good boy,” she said in a breathy voice, “keep doing that!”

He felt more of her juices bubbling out and coating him, mussing his hair as he kept playing with her pearl. He grinned as he felt her legs cross, trapping him between her mountainous thighs and building pressure around him as gave the fleshy nub a few final motions.

Cassandra squeaked, then let out a long low moan as the pressure around Peter’s tiny body became almost unbearable. Her body heat and the fast rhythmic thumping of her heart drowned out his senses as she finished her climax, staring at the ceiling as her chest heaved slowly.

Peter took a deep breath as she slowly uncrossed her legs, getting a good whiff of the musty aroma of her cum that now coated his body. He couldn’t help but smile, letting the juices dry on him while he relaxed against the silky fabric of her panties. Her body was pleasantly warm, and he wondered how long he’d be able to stay awake if he remained there.

“I think you’re going to stay in there a while,” Cassandra giggled, patting her crotch playfully.

…

Barb huffed angrily as she tossed her pizza apron on a hook, leaving the food court at the end of her “shift.”

My first ever job, she thought with a bitter laugh, hopefully my last one… She glanced around the mall, seeing a pair of cheerleaders walking away from the nail spa and gossiping to each other, guns on their backs. Her own hip felt empty without one, evidently Celia didn’t trust “mall workers” with weaponry, reserving it for the Cheerleaders. I need to find out where she keeps the guns, Barb thought, clenching her fists.

She finally made it to the nail salon, where the rescued tinies both lived and worked. The storefront was closed down, and the handful of tiny survivors were withdrawing into a series of TinyHomes that the cheerleaders had been kind enough to set up on the floor for them. The dollhouse sized dwellings were plugged in via extension cables that ran to the Salon’s wall, and Barb found herself wondering again just how long the city’s power would last.

Celia doesn’t even care, Barb thought bitterly, she’s just reliving high school or something…

“John!” she called, “you here?”

Her tiny friend’s face lit up as he saw her, and he all but sprinted to the store’s opening, “Barb!” he shouted, “are you okay? They’ve been making us do pedicures all day…”

“Celia made me a fucking pizza girl,” Barb said angrily. She sighed and bent down, letting him walk into her hand. After the day of tolerating abuse from the cheerleaders John couldn’t help but sigh in relief as he collapsed into Barb’s palm, and she frowned, hugging him tight for a moment and wishing there was something she could do for him then and there.

“Is it bad if I’m already missing the zombies?” John asked with a chuckle.

“Hey… we’ll figure something out,” she whispered, walking with him through the empty mall. She glanced around, most of the cheerleaders were retiring for the evening, and although there were a pair assigned to nighttime patrol, they didn’t seem interested in interrogating Barb.

She wandered into a deserted bookstore, collapsing in a padded chair outside of an empty coffee counter. She glanced at it and frowned as she saw the glass display, which in normal times would have held muffins, pastries, and other snacks, was empty, only crumbs remaining.

“Sorry the mall turned out to be a bust,” John said quietly.

Barb just chuckled, “It’s not like I had a better idea of where to go… Even if we got our gun back and blasted our way out of here, I’m still not sure what we’d do. I don’t know if you noticed, but I’m not exactly the best at planning my life out.”

“I don’t know how long this place has anyway,” John said quietly, eyeing the empty food display. “The other tinies are talking about trying to sneak out, but the ground outside is crawling with zeds of both sizes…” He smiled, “I can’t leave without you anyway.”

“I’ll keep my eyes open for opportunities,” Barb said softly, “I wish… I wish I was someone who knew what the fuck they were doing.”

John just laughed, “You’re doing better than half the action movie heroes I can think of, you’ll always be a badass to me.”

“Thanks,” Barb whispered, hugging him close.

“TOO TIGHT!” he wheezed, feeling his body snuggled against her cheek. She giggled, but loosened her grip slightly.

…

Celia sat on the rooftop of the mall in a folding chair, swirling wine in a plastic party cup as she regarded the moaning mobs of undead below. She’d relieved the man, one of the new recruits, who was supposed to be up here tonight, deciding she wanted the solitude.

Peter… you turned her against me, she snarled angrily, crumpling the cup and causing the cheap wine to splash across the rooftop gravel. With a growl she tossed the crumpled cup over the side, taking some satisfaction as it bounced off the head of a shambling zombie in a tattered business suit.

“Am I interrupting something?” Rhames asked neutrally.

Celia whirled around, looking down at the tiny police officer, “Where the hell did you come from?” she growled.

“There’s a tiny sized access elevator just back there,” he said, amused, “and for the record you had three tiny sized zombies in the maintenance vents… they’re no longer a problem.”

“What do you want, a medal?” Celia muttered.

“Given that any of those could have caused an outbreak in this mall, a thanks would be in order,” Rhames said, an edge to his voice.

“I should fucking stomp you for that sass,” Celia muttered, sinking back into the lawn chair, “but… good work.”

“You might want to wait to stomp me until I tell you what I found underneath the mall,” Rhames said, grinning. Celia raised an eyebrow, and he continued, “The city was working on a new subway stop, it was supposed to go right into the mall’s basement.”

Celia sat up, “Is it… secure?”

“I didn’t poke around in the tunnel too long,” Rhames said, “but they didn’t knock down the wall for giant access yet. Still, a few of you bigs with the right tools could probably tear a way through.”

Celia’s mind raced, “If we had access to the subway system… we could really extend our reach.”

“Or leave town,” Rhames said.

“Sure,” Celia chuckled, “I’ll get some girls down there to work on opening it up, checking the tunnels for zeds…”

“I couldn’t get the train to start,” Rhames said, “the tiny sized control panel seems busted, if I had to guess someone was working on it when something got them from behind. The big sized one doesn’t look much better.”

“So what then?” Celia asked, “we walk around underground in the dark on foot? I’m not wasting my girl’s lives on that…”

“Nope,” Rhames said with a grin, “that tiny your friend brought in? I asked around, he’s an aircraft mechanic, I’ll bet he can get that thing working. If you let me borrow him from the salon that is, also that girl that came in with him seems pretty protective… I don’t want to be watching my back if I put that kid to work.”

“He’ll be yours,” Celia muttered, “don’t worry about Barb.”

…

Cassandra was startled from her sleep by a knock on her door, “Mmm?” she muttered, grasping Peter and sitting up.

Celia pushed her door open, her freshly cleaned cheer outfit catching the low light with it’s sequins, “Cass, get up,” she said in a neutral tone, “We’ve got a job to do.” She glanced down at Peter and smirked, “Bring Petey for good luck.” She closed the door, leaving Cassandra and Peter alone.

“This is it,” Peter whispered, “She’s getting rid of us…”

“She’s not,” Cassie insisted, “I’m her number two, I’m who she goes to for things like… whatever it is.”

“Cassie,” Peter said hesitantly, “just… be careful, okay?”

Cassandra rolled her eyes, then reached under her bed. She came up a moment later with a snub nosed .357 magnum revolver. With a huff, she hiked a holster up under her skirt, fluffing it over the weapon and hiding it from view.

“How’s that?” She asked Peter with a smile.

“Better than nothing,” he admitted with a sigh.

…

“Hey Barb,” Celia giggled, prodding the girl with her foot, “rise and shine.”

Barb groaned, she was in a sleeping bag in the corner of the mall’s department store, and as she sat up she reached down and snatched John to her chest as he stirred, opening his eyes groggily. She’d brought him back with her the night before, hoping to spend time with him, and he regarded Celia suspiciously as he blinked sleep out of his eyes.

“Nope,” Celia said, wagging a finger back and forth, “you’ve got a job that doesn’t involve him.” Barb hesitated, and Celia frowned, “Put him down Barb, now.” She glared at Celia, eyes full of hate, but after eyeing the gun on Celia’s back, she obeyed, lowering John to the carpet.

Behind Celia’s ankle Rhames appeared, his weapon across his back and a stern look on his face, “John, Right?” he said, “You and I have a special job to do.”

John scowled, “Fucking house-tiny,” he sneered as he walked towards the tiny cop, “You’re the kind of piece of shit that- AH!” he shouted in pain as Rhames clocked his jaw, sending him sprawling backwards.

“HEY!” Barb shouted, but she was cut off by the sound of Celia cocking a gun, “Rhames there has my back,” Celia said with a sickly-sweet smile, “and I’ve got his, now come along Barb… we’ve got work to do.”

…

“Why the hell are you working for her?” John asked, looking back at Rhames as they walked through the mall’s tiny sized maintenance tunnels. “You know she’ll never respect a tiny, right?” Part of him wanted to turn around and leap at the other tiny, but Rhames was well built, and taller than he was, even without weapons he’d have no chance against the former police officer.

“I think the Cheer Captain is more nuanced than you think” Rhames chuckled, pushing John by the shoulder, “and if she isn’t… She’ll keep us alive until we can find someone better. Until then, I need you.”

“For what?” John asked angrily as they reached the end of the maintenance corridor. Rhames just chuckled, gesturing down. “Oh,” John said, eyes wide as he took in the giant-sized subway car. “Does… Does it run?”

“Not yet,” Rhames said with a smile, “but it will… this line was planned to go all the way out past the suburbs and into the countryside, the track’s already laid, it just never opened.” He gestured up at the dim fluorescent lights overhead, “The power plant in this city is a miracle of automation,” he muttered, “but it’s going to go sooner or later, then the lights aren’t coming back on… You think this city is dangerous now? It’s going to be about a million times worse with no water or power. I don’t care who else wants to come, but I intend to be riding this thing out past the city limits before that happens.”

John shifted uncertainly, “It’s… not a bad plan,” he admitted, looking down at the subway car, “but I won’t leave without Barb.”

Rhames just rolled his eyes, “I suppose that’s a you problem, isn’t it? Now come on, let’s climb down there and see how much of this thing we need to fix up.”

…

“So here’s the deal,” Celia said, strutting confidently through the empty mall while Cassandra and Barb followed her, “the parking lot lights are on the fritz again, we need those working or we have no visibility on the ground at night.”

“T-They’re routed through the parking garage,” Cassandra said nervously, “Celia, we don’t have a good way to secure that area…”

From his spot riding in the pocket of Cassandra’s tactical vest Peter gulped nervously, the parking garage… that’s where Celia “lost” the coach.

The parking garage itself was attached to the mall, a three-story tall concrete structure with a scant few cars remaining in it from the start of the outbreak, along with the derelict bus the cheerleaders had initially arrived in. The bottom floor of the garage was almost entirely open, allowing untold numbers of undead to wander in at their leisure, accordingly the Cheerleaders kept the doors locked and the garage sealed off from the rest of the mall and by Celia’s own orders nobody was allowed in it. The last time anyone had been inside had been when Celia and the coach had gone back in to see if their old bus would start… only Celia had returned.

“There should be an electrical box inside the parking garage,” Celia said coolly, “it’s probably just a fuse or something that needs to be thrown. The three of us will go in, check it out, and come back in here.”

“Great, why do I need to come?” Barb asked, crossing her arms.

“We need someone to hold the flashlight,” Celia said with a smirk, “and if we’re all getting chased by zombies… well I want to be with someone I know I can outrun.”

“Are you sure we shouldn’t take the whole squad in?” Cassandra asked, hefting her own rifle uncertainly.

“No, it’ll draw too much attention,” Celia said, “there won’t be more than a few zeds in there, we can get in and out quickly with just us… and besides, they’re least active in the morning.”

“I’m not going in there without a gun,” Barb said, nodding at the steel double doors leading into the garage.

“No dice,” Celia said, “mall workers don’t get guns, only cheerleaders do.”

“Celia come on,” Cassandra said, a pleading look on her face, “y-you can’t ask her to go in unarmed… we have no idea what’s going to be in there!”

Celia chuckled, “Fine, Barb? Go grab yourself something out of there.” She jerked her thumb at a dingy mall store behind them, one of the tacky shops that sold swords, crystals, and obnoxious t-shirts.

Barb glared at her a moment, then walked inside. In the back, behind the counter, Katanas hung on racks, large obnoxious Japanese lettering labeling each one. With a smirk Barb walked past the cheap stamped tin items and flicked open a glass case, withdrawing a sword that retailed for almost the price of a used car.

Aint it a crime, she thought wryly as she strapped scabbard to her belt, the only person who could look like a loser with this sword would be the sucker with the bread to buy it…

“Feel better, Samurai Fat?” Celia taunted, grinning at the curved sword at Barb’s side.

“Go to hell Celia,” Barb said sharply, surprising herself with the venom in her voice.

Celia blinked too, “Well someone’s grown an attitude since high school,” she growled, waving the two other girls towards the doors. She quickly typed a few numbers on the security pad of the large steel double doors, and there was a click as the magnetic locks disengaged. With a bright smile she opened the way into the garage, and Cassandra and Barb nervously entered.

“Fuck me,” Barb shivered, looking through the cavernous concrete tomb. A low moan rang out, and a solitary zombie shuffled out from behind a sedan with the windows smashed out.

Cassandra readied to shoot it, but Celia raised a hand, “You’ll just let them all know we’re here,” the cheer captain said with a smirk, “Come on, just step lively and don’t let any of them get too close.” She deftly jogged around the creature, her gear jangling as she beckoned the other two to her, “Come on guys!” she called, “I think the electric box is back by the old cheer bus!”

Cassandra nodded, warily speed walking around the shuffling creature as Barb hugged her close behind, her knuckles white on the handle of her sword. There was a crunch, and Barb looked down, her heart leaping as she realized she’d crushed one of the smaller undead. She quickly shined the flashlight down at the floor and squealed, seeing another pair of the things stalking towards her shoes like poisonous spiders. She hurriedly scurried ahead, leaving the tiny zombies in the dark behind them.

Calm the fuck down, she told herself, in and out…

“All right,” Celia said suddenly, “I think this is far enough from the doors…” She grinned and turned around, leveling her rifle at Barb and Cassandra.

“I fucking knew it!” Peter shouted from Cassandra’s vest pocket.

“Sorry Cass,” Celia said with a sad smile.