Cassandra tucked Peter into the tactical vest pocket, smiling down at him as she readied her pistol. Barb nodded at her, unsheathing the Katana as the trio gathered around the back door of the pub. It had been locked when they’d arrived, and Barb slowly pulled the key ring she’d found in the back office out of her pocket, letting the metallic sound of the jangling keys fill the air while she unlocked the door with a *click*

“No going back now,” she said quietly, smiling at Cassandra and Peter.

She pushed the door open, readying her blade and then sighing with relief when she saw that the back lot of the store was free from any wandering ghouls. It wouldn’t last long, and even as they crossed the short distance to the parked delivery van they heard moans and shuffling footsteps, drawn by the sounds of their flight in the early morning.

“Whew!” Barb laughed as the engine started on the first turn of the key, “for a minute there I was worried we were going to do that whole thing where the engine won’t start…”

“How is it on gas?” Peter called.

“Half tank,” Barb replied as she pulled around the building, “but don’t worry, we aren’t going far.”

As the car came into view the mob of zombies, both tiny and giant, seemed to snap out of their lethargy, growling and stretching their arms out, feebly shuffling after the moving vehicle as it zoomed past them onto the roadway.

“Careful!” Cassandra shouted as one of the walking corpses bumped off the front of the car.

“I’m doing the best I can! They aren’t exactly sending out street sweepers anymore!” Barb replied, weaving around burned out cars and the occasional ghoul.

“We’re definitely picking up a tail,” Cassandra muttered, glancing back at the slowly growing crowd of zombies following them.

“Good,” Barb said with a mad grin, “when it all comes together, I want every zombie in town right up at the mall doors…”

“I’m still not sure I get it,” Peter said hesitantly.

“I’m going to get the mall open,” Barb said simply, “now come on, we’ve got maybe five minutes to grab everything we need out of here!”

She brought the van to an abrupt halt in front of Andy’s Guns, leaping out and cocking the lever action rifle she’d taken from the bar. Inside the shop a zombie lurched from behind the counter, eyeing them through the glass as Barb raised the gun to her shoulder. With a loud *bang* the front glass pane was shattered, and the zombie inside lurched back, dead once again.

The two girls climbed through the destroyed window, glancing around the shop. There were some looted shelves, and plenty of guns had clearly been taken, but overall there was a surprising amount of valuable weaponry and ammo still ripe for the taking.

“Shit!” Cassandra said, jumping backwards as a tiny sized zombie lurched for her fingertip from behind a box of .357 ammo. With a terrified squeak she quickly swatted it away with the barrel of her pistol. “Barb watch out, there are some tiny ones in here!” she called.

“Ugh,” Barb called, grimacing as she saw an inches tall tiny growling as it crawled from underneath a display case. As she watched more joined it, and her eyes went wide as a veritable mini-horde started towards her. “I guess now we know why this store had so much stuff left! You gat any of that hairspray left?”

“Two cans!” Cassandra shouted, tossing one underhand to Barb.

Barb caught it, pulling a lighter from her pocket with a grin, “Hasta luego,” Barb said, pushing down on the spraycan and sending a jet of flame down on the approaching undead.

“Careful!” Peter called, “if they wander into a box of shells you’re going to have bullets flying all over the place in here!”

“Don’t worry,” Barb said, reaching over the smouldering ghouls and grabbing another box, “I think I’ve got all I need!”

“Same!” Cassandra said, slinging a black semi-automatic rifle over her shoulder. She smirked a minute, “You’re sticking with the lever action?”

“I think it looks cool,” Barb said with a grin, patting the stock of the gun.

“Can’t argue with that,” Cassandra muttered.

“I’m going more modern with this one though,” Barb said, strapping on a holster that held a silver chromed handgun.

“Nice!” Cassandra smiled, “Peter, you want anything?” She wandered over to a small box on the counter, labeled “Tiny Self Defense Tools.”

“I’m not sure what good most of that stuff’s going to do,” Peter muttered. Most of the items were rather bulky for his size, and were nonlethal deterrants like tasers and peppersprays, designed to incapacitate a giant while a tiny escaped. He shrugged, “Ah what the hell, give me the little stun gun!”

Cassandra smashed the case with the butt of her revolver, reaching in and pulling the small needle sized weapon out for him. She smiled as she lowered it into the pocket with him, and as he gripped it he found he did feel a little better.

“It’ll give Celia a tickle at least if you see her again,” Cassandra said with a smile.

“All the same I’d rather not,” Peter said with a shudder.

“That bitch is mine,” Barb growled. “Come on, sun’s coming up and we’ve got a lot of friends bearing down on us.”

The commotion inside the gun store had drawn the dead out of closets, alleyways, dead shops, and all the other hiding places they’d found since the end. Cassandra felt her heart skip a beat as she saw the shambling legions pouring out of the husk of the city towards them. They were endless, a walking cloud of stench and disease, a legion of horribles that had devoured all hope and life and now set their sights on the last of the living foolish enough to cross their paths.

“And Ishtar said I shall throw down the posts of the underworld and the dead shall rise and outnumber the living,” Peter muttered, awed.

“Hey!” Barb shouted over the rising moans. She scowled at Peter and Cassandra’s still stunned expressions, and with a sigh she reached over and gently slapped Cassandra on the cheek, causing the girl to start. “Come on!” Barb said with a smile, “We’re the heroes, remember?”

Cassandra nodded and smiled weakly, “Y-Yeah… So what’s the next step?”

“You guys get back in the van and head back to the mall,” she looked up at the road they’d come down, now choked with shambling corpses, “Might want to take the long way around,” she suggested, “Also play some music and drive as slow as you can, like I said I’m having a party up at Celia’s castle, and every deadhead in town is invited.”

“Where are you going?” Peter asked as Cassandra started back towards the van.

“I’m picking up something to get us in,” Barb said, jerking her thumb at the propane dealership, and the large tanker truck parked on the side.

“Oh…” Cassandra muttered, her eyes going wide, “Uh… okay.”

“It’s going to be great, you’ll see!” Barb said gleefully.

“This isn’t a video game Barb, be careful!” Peter said hesitantly.

…

John and Rhames slowly crept through the darkened tunnels throughout the mall, wires running over their heads. The maintenance tunnels were from the malls construction, a sealed off labyrinth within the walls and ceiling through which the tiny sized workers had run wires, temperature sensors, fire control systems, and the myriad other delicate pieces of the mall which tiny electricians and plumbers had specialized in before the end of the world.

It was a long trek at their size, but they finally reached a lift in their own size, one that jetted them down to the basement and the half completed subway station with a hiss.

“Looks like I wasn’t the only one with this idea,” Rhames chuckled as they stepped out. There was a flurry of activity, several cheerleaders were looking nervously around, rifles at the ready. Behind them a line of people in mall worker uniforms were loading boxes into the train. One of them stumbled, dropping a crate which burst open, causing a clatter as several boxes of ammunition spilled out.

“GOD DAMN IT!” one of the cheerleaders hissed, “Pick that stuff up now!”

“Hey, ease off,” the mall worker, a middle aged man, “growled, this whole mall’s going tits up, you don’t get to yell at us like that anymore!”

The cheerleader sneered and for a moment it looked like she was about to raise her gun, but another one put her hand over the barrel, forcibly lowering it, “We don’t have time for this shit!” the Asian cheerleader, Tammy by John’s recollection, hissed. “If Celia finds out what we’re doing down here-“

“Oh, so this isn’t her operation then?” Rhames shouted, letting his voice carry to them.

It was almost comical the way nearly two dozen giant sized people with guns froze at the sight of the former tiny cop strolling up to them, a smug grin on his face. John nervously followed behind him, readying himself to run if any of the bigger people decided to end this confrontation with a stomp.

Tammy cleared her throat, “W-We’re just loading some supplies onto the subway car,” she said defensively, “In case-“

“From where I’m standing,” Rhames said, looking up at her with a grin, “it looks like y’all are planning on filling that train full of valuables and leaving your dear Cheer Captain behind.”

Tammy was quiet a moment, then blinked away a tear, “She killed the coach!” she said indignantly, “S-She… She’s not the same girl she was!” her hands trembled, “I just wanted to go home, to see my family again!” She sniffed and wiped her nose, glancing back at the other cheerleaders who had followed her down here, and the mall workers. From the grim stares and the scattered nods it was clear they were all in agreement, and she looked back down at Rhodes. “I’m leaving, and if you think you’re going to scamper back to Celia and tattle on us, then you’ve got a date with the bottom of my sneaker!”

“Well today’s your lucky day,” Rhames said with a grin, “because I’d like a ticket out of town too, and I brought you the only man in this mall that can get this thing started.” He gestured to John, who gulped under the gaze of so many giants.

How the hell does Rhames talk to these people like this? He wondered. He waved meekly, “Uh, hi… I can get it working pretty quick…” He stole a glance at Rhames, then at the crowd, “B-But I won’t do it unless you help me get to Barb!”

A series of groans rang out, “Kid we’ve got to get out of here!” one of the mall workers called.

“Every zombie in town is headed our way!” another one exclaimed.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing kid?” Rhames snarled.

“Those are my terms, take them or leave them,” John said. He looked around with a frown, “And where are the other tinies? Were you planning on just leaving us all?”

“I just forgot about them, okay!?” Tammy shouted angrily, “In case you haven’t noticed, this is kind of a stressful situation!” She sighed under the tiny man’s withering glare. “Hey, keep loading up the train!” she ordered the gathered crowd, “I’m just gonna run up to the Salon real quick and grab the tinies!”

“You’re not worried about tipping Rhodes off?” Rhames asked, crossing his arms.

“She’s got everyone who’s still loyal up on the roof looking for Cass and that Barb girl,” Tammy said, “the mall’s practically deserted… that’s why we’re taking all the supplies this thing will fit.”

…

“Where is everyone else?” Celia asked coldly as she patrolled the mall’s upper floor, looking down imperiously at the empty shops.

“They uh… aren’t coming,” Monica muttered, looking away. Celia’s fists clenched so hard they turned white, and Monica stepped back, “W-We all know that stuff Cass said is bullshit Celia-“

“Cheer Captain Rhodes,” she snarled, “It’s Cheer Captain Rhodes when we are on duty.” She spun around, looking at the handful of rescued civilians-turned-cheerleaders, Paula at the front. “What about you newbies? Any of you feeling like you can’t trust me?”

Paula chewed her lip a moment, “Boss, we’re with you no matter what,” Paula said finally, “but is this Barb girl really worth a big blowup over? Why don’t we just give her the tiny guy she wants and tell her to fuck off?”

“WE’RE NOT GIVING HER A DAMN THING!” Celia roared, “I don’t give away what’s mine! We’re going to kill her, Cass, and that little shit Peter and then we’re tossing them over the side to feed the zeds, do I make myself clear?” Everyone in attendance nodded silently, and Celia beamed, an oddly cheerful demeanor coming over her, “I’m so glad we’re all on the same page!” she clapped her hands excitedly, a game day giddiness coming over her, “Okay girls… and guys,” she giggled a moment, “Sorry to the new boys, it’s usually an all girl squad…” she breathed out slowly, “Anyway, let’s get to our spots!” With that she skipped off eagerly towards the front of the mall.

“That was intense,” Paula muttered, “D-Does anyone know if this mall’s got one of those blood pressure machines? I suddenly feel like checking mine…”

…

Peter gripped the side of Cassie’s pocket as she swerved the pub’s delivery van through the increasingly zombie filled side streets around the mall, “Careful!” he shouted.

“She said get as many of them as we can,” Cassie said, rolling the window down halfway. With a resigned laugh she turned the radio on, getting static as she slowly flicked through the stations.

“W-Wait! That one had something,” Peter said excitedly.

Cassie frowned, tuning the radio to the only station they’d found broadcasting anything.

“Hey everyone,” the voice on the radio called shakily, “you’re listening to DJ Donny Diamond, bringing you the best hits at the end of the world Not sure how much longer I can stay on the air, but let’s party it up until we can’t anymore! Here’s one that’s been at the top of our request list!”

“Hey ya Tom it’s Bob, from the office down the hall,” the song began to the slow strumming of a guitar.

“Holy shit,” Peter laughed, “I know this song…”

“Same,” Cassie said with a grin as she turned the volume dial. She made the turn onto the main thoroughfair of the commercial district, bringing the van into the expansive mall parking lot just as the main chorus began.

“All we wanna do is eat your brains, we’re not unreasonable, no one’s gonna eat your eyes”

…

Monica gulped as she saw the truly immense horde of the dead following the van into the mall parking lot, joining the already impressive horde that had been besieging them since their arrival. Her throat was dry as she slowly fumbled for her walkie talkie.

“C-Cheer captain we’ve got a situation!”

“I see them,” Celia muttered, “Wait until the van gets close, then pop the driver and anyone in it.”

“B-But the zombies-“

“The doors are shatterproof glass with magnetic locks,” Celia said calmly, “if a billion of those things were out there it wouldn’t matter, they can’t get enough force to get them open. They’d need something huge, something like a-“

A truck horn’s long angry honk blared over the congregating army of the dead, rattling the windows of Celia’s fortress and causing her eyes to go wide with horror. Outside a massive tanker truck labled “PROPANE” was rumbling into view, the four hissing road flares taped to the top giving it an eerie blood red glow against the low light of the early morning.

…

“WHOO!” Barb cried excitedly, tugging on the truck’s airhorn again and letting it ring out against the early morning sunrise. She grinned excitedly as she saw the masses of shambling corpses gathering around the mall, Cassandra and Peter did their part, she said, feeling the rumble of the truck as it entered the asphalt plain of the mall’s lot. She took a deep breath, reaching for a broom she’d taken from the propane dealership’s closet and jamming it against the accelerator.

Staring at the pavement racing by, Barb suddenly was less sure of her plan, but a quick glance at the quickly approaching wall of zombies, and the mall beyond it, hardened her resolve.

Tuck and roll! She thought dreamily, pushing the truck’s door open.

…

Celia could feel her heart hammering as she stared, frozen in place, at the eight ton explosive battering ram rocketed towards the mall’s main entrance, the road flares on top casting an eerie glow over their undead besiegers and stinging her eyes.

“TAKE COVER!” she shouted, leaping up from her spot on the second floor and sprinting away from the entrance as fast as she could.

…

“Holy shit,” Cassandra breathed, bringing the van to a halt and watching as Barb rolled across the pavement. She felt her heart race as she realized that a few of the straggler zombies were slowly shuffling towards the now exposed girl, groaning and forcing herself uneasily to her feet.

For a moment she worried she wouldn’t be able to reach her friend in time, but then all of them, living and dead, were drawn to the earth shattering sound of the explosion, a massive flower of orange fire rising into the air as the glass and steel were torn asunder. The shockwave knocked the first few hundred layers of the undead horde onto their backs, a bizarre cascading event that seemed to clear the path into the mall like the parting of the red sea, revealing a destroyed crater of a glass façade.

Barb recovered first, shrugging off the bits of asphalt stuck in her skin and the bruises she was sure were developing all over her body. With a wild whoop she drew her sword, cutting down the first of the zombies between her and the van. Cassandra numbly fumbled to unlock the door as Barb slapped the side, demanding to be let in.

“Get moving!” Barb said, rocking the vehicle slightly as she hefted herself into the passenger’s seat. She pointed at the mall entrance, “Those zeds are only going to stay down on their asses for about ten seconds, if we don’t get in that mall before they get up we’re fucked!”

Cassandra blinked, looking at how the zombies on the edge of the crowd were already starting to stagger back to their feet. With a snarl she pressed down on the accelerator, rocketing them towards the new entrance Barb had prepared for them. As they passed the zombies sat upright, rising alongside them like a rotting tide. The ride grew bumpy, and peter shouted and dove into the depths of Cassandra’s pocket as they got closer. Noxious smoke from the burning tanker stung their eyes as they plowed through the final few zombies, the ruined and shredded tires skittered onto the mall’s smooth tile a moment later, causing a triumphant crow from Cassandra as she braked in front of the mall fountain.

“We’re in!” Peter shouted, a mix of awe and terror rising in his voice.

“We’re not taking this van back out,” Cassandra said, pushing the door open and grimacing at the state of the tires.

“That’s okay, I’d say this exit’s closed to us,” Barb said, grinning as she jerked her thumb at the flood of ghouls slowly making their way into the shopping complex.

…

Down in the basement they heard the roaring *boom* as the battle raged upstairs, Barb, John thought excitedly.

“Hey,” Rhames growled, “don’t worry about what’s up there, worry about what we’re doing down here!”

“Oh I’m just about done,” John said, looking down at the spread of wires, “there’s just one last thing, I can connect the final wire here and it’s good to go… but if the wrong one gets connected, that motor is going to fry.”

Rhames frowned, “So connect the right one, what are you on about-“

“I just wanted to make sure you knew not to try to start it yourself and leave without me,” John growled, tightening his hands on one of the bolt cutters that tinies used to clip wires. With a roar he turned on Rhames, swinging the same bolt cutters that had freed him from the cage as hard as he could against the other tiny. There was a wet *smack* and Rhames crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

“Sorry about that,” John muttered, leaning down and pulling the tube shaped weapon off his back, “but like I said, I’m not leaving without Barb!”

He sprinted through the tiny sized maintenance cab, leaping out into the subway station where confused giants were murmuring to each other and still loading supplies into the train.

“D-Did you guys hear that?” a woman asked as John deftly dodged around her foot.

“Got the tinies!” Tammy shouted, hefting the basket of terrified tinies up as she sprinted into the station. She frowned as she saw John sprinting for the tiny sized maintenance lift, “Hey, isn’t that the guy who’s supposed to fix this thing!?”

“I’ll be back!” John shouted, grinning as they panicked, watching the tiny elevator shoot upwards and away from them.

…

Celia groaned, flipping onto her back as her vision slowly cleared. Gunfire rang out around her as the cheerleaders fired panicked bursts down onto the horde that was encroaching the first floor. There was another *pop* and suddenly one of the cheerleaders jerked backwards, clutching at her chest.

Who’s shooting at us? Celia wondered, blinking as she fumbled for her own gun.

Her thoughts suddenly went sharp as she felt hatred welling within her, “BARB!” she screeched, spotting the girl taking cover behind a Jewelry kiosk on the first floor. With a roar she leveled her gun, firing burst after burst of automatic gunfire down at where she’d seen Barb take cover, shattering jewelry cases and sending glass and priceless diamonds flying with each pull of the trigger. She scowled as she heard a *click* and reached down to her belt for another magazine. She didn’t have the time, and she was forced to leap backwards as Barb popped up from behind a rack of engagement rings, a lever action rifle in hand. Celia heard the gunshot, and felt the bullet whizz over her head as she screamed in impotent rage.

“Fuck you Celia!” Barb shouted, flipping a middle finger salute as the oncoming horde of zombies forced her to flee the jewelry shop, running deeper into the mall.

“Cheer Captain!” Monica shouted, “T-They’re coming up the escalators!”

Celia looked to where the other cheerleader was pointing, and her eyes went wide as she saw the first of the wave of shambling dead tumbling over each other as they reached the second floor. Another cheerleader quickly fired off a burst at them, cutting a few down but causing more to shamble over them to take their place, all with that unending and hungry moaning. The swell was unending, and the dead were fanning out, the tiny sized zombies writhing among their larger counterparts like maggots.

Something in the cheer captain broke. Without thinking Celia spun, stumbling slightly as she ran for the mall security cart they’d parked nearby. She leapt into the seat, starting it with a turn of the key and speeding off through the mall.

“CELIA!” Monica shouted as the cheer captain raced away, “RHODES!” She screeched, “YOU BITCH!”

…

“Where’s Barb?” Peter shouted as Cassandra ducked behind a cell phone kiosk, bullets sparking the floor around her.

“I lost track of her!” Cassandra shouted, slamming another magazine into her handgun. She spun and fired up to the second floor of the mall. *BLAM* *BLAM* *BLAM*

There were shrieks of surprise, then curses as the cheerleaders on the upper floor fell back. Cassandra grinned, spinning around and readying herself to run, but a bloated corpse in a funeral suit greeted her, hissing as it grasped her neck. Her gun clattered to the floor as her eyes bulged and she gripped its wrists, trying to force the corpse off her as the rest reached for her, their yellowed teeth showing as they opened their rotting maws.

“TAKE THIS!” Peter shouted, popping out of her vest pocket and firing the tiny sized tazer at the zombie’s head. There was a *pop* as the projectile lanced out, the thin lines of the wires uncoiling reflecting the mall’s fluorescent lighting like spiderwebs as the ghoul jerked suddenly, releasing the cheerleader and staggering back. Peter let it slide out of his hands as the zombie growled, stunned by the burst of electricity.

“Thanks!” Cassandra laughed a little madly, slipping out of the monster’s grip and sprinting further into the mall. She glanced backwards at the confused zombie, pulling the tazer prong out of it’s mottled grey skin. “You are the best fucking tiny Pete,” she said, patting his hair.

“I do my best,” he said with a weak grin, “that was the only one of those I had though, so don’t get close to these smelly fucks again… we tinies have way more sensitive noses!”

 Cassandra turned towards the unending wave of the dead swarming the mall, and gulped nervously.