"That's six kilometers, Five," Sam says. "Talyon and her Marshals are heading up the building. The governors' guards are trying to stop them, but they're not even slowing them down."

I hear gunshots below me, but I don't bother looking over the railing of the stairway to see what's happening below.

"And yeah, there's a gun fight on the stairs. I guess it's a good thing I told you to keep climbing since if you hadn't..."

"I would have been caught in the crossfire," I finish with a grimace. "Have you told Talyon about the governors yet? How they're all..."

"No. Nicole tried to patch her in, but she can't get through. She's probably too focused on the governors' guards. We'll need to figure out what she knows though, and who she could have been taking orders from if the governors have all been dead for months. I don't understand what's happened here, but our only answers are on that dictaphone. Switch it on while you run, and I'll work on finding you a safe way out."

I pull the dictaphone from my pocket and switch it on with a click. The first thing I hear is a ragged cough.

"This is Priya McGregor," A woman says. "Chief Engineer of the New Oban Project. These are my last words. God, I'm recording them on a dictaphone."

My heart breaks as she starts crying.

"It was... it was Marshal Talyon. She's gone power mad. She asked for a meeting with the board, said she needed more authority, more power to protect the city. She said that the outbreak we had six years ago may have been contained, but the filth and stench of the crime than ran rampant here still needed fixing, and only she could do it." She coughs. "Miles, the CEO, he laughed her out of the room. We all did...

"She must have poisoned the coffee. I only drank a sip. I can already feel it. My heart is beating so fast. So fast. I've managed to lock down the top of the building, to keep her out of the control system on the rooftop. If she gets up there, she'll have absolute control over New Oban. The gates, the power system, our missiles, even the weapons on our other marshals.

"My parents are dead. I haven't got anyone close to me. The New Oban Project's been my whole life." Priya lets out a bitter laugh. "I can't get a message out of the building anyway. Talyon saw to that. But I've activated Jericho Protocol. The building's locked down, the tower guards have the final order to secure against all intruders."

Her coughing gets worse. "Whoever is listening to this, you can't let Talyon take over. My access code is 607868. Get into the control system. Use it to lock her out. If she gets control, she'll destroy everything we've built here. My life's work. Please."

Click.

I climb on autopilot, my mind reeling at what's just been said. All this time it was her. These governors had everything on lockdown because of her...

And I just helped her by taking down the security system.

"I can't believe it," Halima scoffs. "It was Talyon all this time. She's been pretending she's been getting orders from the board when she knew they were dead. She killed them! She's the one who kidnapped Amala. She's been lying to us from the start."

"Yeah, and I doubt Talyon's going to think Five just left and didn't try to look into the boardroom, meaning she knows that Five knows they're dead," Nicole inputs. "She's going to try to tie up loose ends. We've got to get Callista out of there."

Sam huffs. "Don't you think I'm trying? Callista, all your exits are blocked except one. You're gonna have to cross over to the west tower, the one with all the zombies. Yeah, sorry. You'll cross over using the hallway system, which should be on this floor that you're coming up one, climb up it, and then cross over on the gantry higher up to get to the control room before Talyon does."

My face twists up. "Wait, why is the lower crossover between the buildings sheltered with sturdy walls and the higher crossover is a gantry? Are they wanting me to die?"

"Talyon probably does," Nicole mutters, which earns her a whispered rebuke from Sam.

"You have to do it. I'm sorry, sweetheart, but if you don't, New Oban, missiles and all, will be totally under her control."

I grumble in annoyance, but it dies away when I head to the floor and follow the signs that point to the crossover. I have my pistol and my axe as protection, and since the zombies were killed earlier today by Talyon, I can assume there aren't any V-Types I have to worry about.

I silently curse myself. I wouldn't have to do this at all if I hadn't helped Talyon take down the security measures. We all played right into her little plan and I feel so stupid doing so. I can't believe I was so stupid, so naïve.

I reach the crossover hallways after a minute or two, which makes my mental berating turns to a constant reminder to not look out of the large glass windows that show just how high up I am. I don't know how I'm going to get across the gantry.

You've been higher. You've jumped out of a plane and a helicopter before, and you were on an airship once. You'll do this just like you did all of that.

Like I did all that. Terrified and shaking.

My shaking thoughts of what is to come proves to be a good distraction of what's going on right now. I soon reach to door to the west tower. My hand hesitates before resting on the doorknob and turning it. With a groan, the door opens, and then I hear more groans from the undead all around. I can't tell where they're coming from, but it sounds like there's dozens just on this floor.

"Okay, good," Sam hums. "You've run seven kilometers and you're entering the west towers. Good. Uh, close the doors behind you. We don't want the zoms getting across to the other side, even if it is full of blood-thirsty agents of a totalitarian regime."

I shut the door behind me, shuddering at how worn down everything looks. Sam sucks in a breath, seeing everything I can through my headcam.

"Oh, wow. This tower's like an evil mirror dimensions of the one you were just in. Should be wearing a giant, building-sized goatee."

Although I try not to laugh, a snicker manages to slip past my lips. It quickly turns to a gasp when I hear more growling and groaning nearby. I quickly start running across the floor, looking for a staircase. If this one has the same layout as the east tower, I should be able to find a staircase at one of the areas I found the other three in the east building.

"I think up ahead there should be a staircase that leads you to the upper gantry so you can crossover again," Sam says, and I nod. I have to get to that control panel before Talyon.

Thankfully Sam's written down the access code that Priya gave, and he mutters it under his breath every so often so I can know what it is when I get there. Like Nicole said earlier, Talyon probably knows that we know about her and what she's done. She'll be coming for my head soon.

A flash of light from the corner of my eye slows me down, and I turn my head towards one of the doors on the floor that's cracked open ever so slightly.

I ignore Sam's questions and push the door open, and inside the room are tons of little screens all with different images.

"It's a security room," I say. "Must have left the cameras on during the evacuation six months ago."

"Why are you watching this?" Nicole huffs. "There's nothing on those screens except for zoms. You-"

"Look!" I point to on of the screens on my left. It's the only room without zombies. It's a little classroom, with children all sitting in small desks. The ages of the children seem to range from toddlers to children in elementary school.

The air around them looks smokey, as if there's a fog machine in there. The children all are looking ahead, but their eyes seem unfocused.

"Try to turn on the speaker, Five," Sam says, and I start fiddling with the controls. After about twenty seconds I find the right button, and with a soft click, audio fills the room.

"Obedience is happiness. Cooperation is contentment. Defer to authority. Respect your superiors. The law keeps us safe. The Marshals are here to help you. Trust the Marshals," A recorded voice says, and the blood drains from my face. "Obedience is happiness. Cooperation-"

I turn the audio off.

Sam lets out a shaky breath. "They're indoctrinating them. Must be the same gas the guards used on you earlier. It's making them suggestable."

My hand covers my mouth when I spot the little boy we saw being taken earlier today-Sandro. He sits in a seat in the back, eyes glazed over, looking but not seeing. He's sitting right next to-

"There's Amala!" I gasp. I remember her face from the photo Halima showed us all earlier.

"What are they doing to my daughter?!" Halima all but screeches.

"I-I think she's okay. Just subdued by the gas. When I breathed it in, it didn't hurt. I just... didn't really feel anything. Uh..." I take a closer look at the screens and panel. "I think the room where they're holding them is somewhere on the second floor."

"I'm heading over right now. Callista, run. Stay ahead of the zoms. Get to the control center and stop Talyon. I'm going to rescue my daughter."

As much as I would like to protest, I know I've already wasted enough time standing around here. I dart across the floor, but not without picking up a few zombies along the way, unfortunately. They aren't fast, so I save my bullets for now. I reach the stairway and start climbing, and within seconds my legs start to burn again. I grit my teeth in pain as the zombies moan and growl behind me.

I keep pushing, using the railing to help pull myself up. The zombies behind me stagger and struggle, and I send a thankful prayer to the Lord above that these zombies aren't V-Types. I'd already be dead if they were.

The minutes tick by painfully, and I try to focus on Sam's voice as he murmurs the code, trying to hold onto those numbers as a distraction from the pain. I can only wonder how far Talyon is up the tower. I had a head start, but the crossover will cost me time. Not to mention she has a bio armor suit, which could help her keep a constant pace.

Just where is she on the east tower?

"You've covered eight K, Callista. You're nearly at the top of the west tower. Stay ahead of those zoms and keep heading for the bridge back over."

"That's what I planned to do," I reply, my tone a bit snarky.

"Don't be mean," He scolds, to which I scoff.

"Mean? Me? Never."

"Don't be sarcastic, either."

"I'm currently running for my life and everyone else's. You gotta give me something to work with."

"You can work with me."

"Little hard to do that when you're all the way in Abel."

I can hear the silly grin in his voice. "I'm sure we can make it work."

"Oh, you're sure, are you?"

"Oh, definitely. I-" His words are cut off by the speakers squeaking throughout the building. "What the-"

"Runner Five."

I pale. Oh, no.

I can practically hear the grin in Talyon's voice as she speaks. "You have my thanks for unlocking the upper floors of Redwood Towers. It's true. I killed the governors. I couldn't risk them interfering with my work. Each time I stamp out the criminals of this city, they grow back like weeds! Something had to be done.

"So I let the zombies into west sector to show this city what would happen if they didn't change. They didn't understand, but thanks to you, they will. Once I reach the control room, I'll throw the city gates wide open, and all the filth and corruption will be washed away."

"She's going to wash New Oban clean... with more zombies," Sam whispers in horror.

"And if one of the zombies that comes in happens to be a V-Type..." Nicole trails off.

They'll all eventually turn to V-Types, and then we'll have thousands more V-Types in the UK. We'd stand no chance against them.

"The children, my citizens of the future, will inherit and rebuild what remains," Talyon continues. "The governors developed their pacification gas to allow violence-free arrests. So short-sighted. Using the gas, my reeducation program has made citizens who are fully compliant. They will understand that to survive, they must obey. One of my Marshalls is moving to arrest your friend as we speak. Stand down and I will show mercy."

My eyes widen as I continue to climb. Halima... What will they do to her if she's caught? What-

"She's a monster, Callista," Halima says. "Don't trust a word she says." There's banging through my headset. "Get to that control room. Nothing else matters."

There's more banging, then a clash as a door is broken down. Halima's breathing heavily, afraid. She stands strong.

"It's a Marshall, blocking my exit. I've got nowhere to run. Promise me that you'll rescue Amala, that you'll get her to safety."

I choke, my chest tightening. "I-I promise."

"I know you will." There's a pause. "Well, what are you waiting for?! I won't go down without a-" She seems to choke on her words as I hear a slight clicking noise. It's the same one Talyon's suit made when she got out of her bio armor. "I... Gus?!"

"Gus?!" Sam, Nicole and I all say at once.

The shock doesn't seem to last but a second for Halima. "You've got some bloody nerve showin' your face around me!"

"Halima, I'm sorry," He says quickly. "I don't deserve your forgiveness, but I can get you to your daughter. In all the confusion, I stole the Marshall's uniform and it's given me access to their secret files. Five's taken out the tower security systems, so we can get the lift outside the west tower security to the second floor, but we'll have to be quick."

Sam curses. "And you'd better be quick too, Five. You haven't got long if you're gonna get to the control room in time and those zoms are starting to catch up. Go!"

•

"Just a kilometer until you reach the control panel. The bridge back to the east tower is through that door," Sam says, although his voice is nearly drowned out by the moans and growls of the zombies behind me. My legs feel like they're going to give out. The stairs have sapped most of my energy, but my desire to survive wins out.

I reach to the door, practically slamming my body into it to get it open, then turning around and slamming it shut before any of the zoms can reach me.

"Good job."

"Thanks," I reply, although my voice seems to be sucked off by the wind that whips my hair around. My muscles tense as I look towards the long gantry connecting the two buildings. It doesn't look nearly as sturdy as the hallway crossover did, and the longer I look, the more I shake.

"I know it's scary, but you've got to cross. I know you can do it." His words are encouraging enough for me to take the first step out. I whimper when it groans. "It's rusty, but it's holding-"

"Ah!" I yelp when I try to take another step forward, only to be slammed into the railing by a gust of wind. My hands grip the railing so hard my knuckles turn white, and I take another few steps forward as Sam watches with baited breath.

"Just one foot in front of the other," I murmur to myself. "One foot i-in front of the-the other."

He hums in agreement. "That's it. You've got it. Just keep going, darling. You can do it."

Something breaks and clatters behind me, and I turn around just in time to see the door off its hinges being run over by feet of the undead. They spot me almost instantly, and start shambling over to the gantry.

"Oh, crap," Sam says as they start stepping onto the gantry. I quicken my steps while still keeping hold of the railing.

CREAK!

My stomach drops as the gantry groans and bends. Everything feels unsteady. Everything-

I scream as the gantry collapses on one side.

"Callista!" Sam and Nicole both scream.

I'm slung forward, the gantry hanging from the east tower, causing my front to slam into the bottom of the gantry where my feet once were as I hang on for dear life. Panic overwhelms me, blurring my senses as my breathing gets faster and faster.

"Sam!" I shout, tears stinging my eyes. "Sam!"

"Oh my God, Callista. H-Hold on tight," He babbles. "Uh, um, the bridge is still connected to the east tower, but it won't for long with you and the zoms dangling from it like that. You're eighty-eight stories high. If you fall, you're done for."

I sob, squeezing my eyes shut as my arms begin to ache.

"Not helping, idiot!" Nicole shouts, before calming her voice. "Singer, I need you to listen to me. You can't stay hanging like that and Halima can't come rescue you, so you're going to have climb up the railing to the edge and pull yourself up so you can get to the last stairway and get to the control panel. You have to. If you die now, New Oban will be overrun with zombies, possibly V-Types. If you fail, you'll have killed us all."

He scoffs. "And you say I wasn't helping? How the hell is that encouraging?"

"Because I gave her a solution to the problem. Singer, climb!"

I force myself to open my eyes and reach one hand up to grab a higher part of the railing. I grunt as I pull myself up. Bits of rust cling to my sweaty palms as I pull myself up a it more, then a bit more than that.

"That's it!" He cheers. "Keep going. You're doing so well, Five. You're nearly there."

I cry out as I grab onto the edge of the building, slinging one arm up and then another, clawing onto the building. I turn and look at the vast amount of everything, backing up until my back hits the closed door. I watch as the last part of the gantry that's holding onto the tower gives out, sending it and the zoms to the ground below with a loud screech of metal and moans.

"Oh, you were just in the nick of time. But you have not time to lose. Get up and running, Five. New Oban's depending on you."

I huff as I push myself to standing, open the door and find the closest stairway. With a heavy sigh I start climbing again, fatigue hitting me harder than ever before. It's only a few more floors, but each step is agony. I wince with every step, and the small sympathetic noises I hear from Sam doesn't help.

I look up and don't see or hear anything. It means that Talyon either isn't on this staircase, or she is and is behind me. I hope it's the latter. I can't tell where she is if she is on one of the other two stairways. I need to make sure that I'm ahead. If she gets ahead of me, there's no way I'll be able to gain ground. It's taking everything in me just to go the pace I'm at now, which honestly is a bit of an embarrassing pace for me.

But in my defense, my normal ten kilometer time is just running, not climbing stairs.

Still, I can't help but ask, "How much longer, Sam?"

"Half a kilometer to go. You're so close. Just keep going and you'll be able to rest soon, okay?"

I wince as I pull myself up a few more steps. "O-Okay."

"Oh no," Nicole says. "Singer, you've got company. It's Talyon. She's behind you and gaining ground quickly."

"You can stay ahead of her," Sam says. "I know you can."

Talyon calls for me, her voice echoing in the stairway.

"You're making a grave mistake, Runner Five!"

"Ignore her," Halima commands. "You need to stop her before she opens the gates or all of this will have been for nothing."

I grit my teeth. "You think I don't know that? I am trying! But I have run into New Oban, around the city, and I've climbed about six miles' worth of stairs. I'm running on empty and being Captain Obvious about how if I fail everything will be lost and it will be all my fault isn't helping!"

"Oh."

I roll my eyes. "Yeah. 'Oh.'"

I pull myself up that last bit, climbing and climbing until I don't see another turn that leads to more stairs, but just a door. I burst through it with all my strength, trying not to pass out right there.

"You've made it to the control center on the roof!" Sam cheers. "Ten kilometers, what a run!"

"Easy for you to say," I huff, shutting the door behind me and turning the wheel on it to lock it. I stumble to the control panel and hold onto it to keep me upright, although my arms shake from the climb earlier.

"I've found Amala, Five," Halima says tearfully. "I've gotten rid of that bloody indoctrination tape. It's like they're waking up after a bad dream." She sighs. "She's fine. The kids-they're all fine. You're safe, my baby. I'm gonna take you home."

Sam sighs happily. "Oh, Halima, that's amazing. I am so glad. Five, we're gonna make sure there's a city for Amala to grow up in. Punch in Priya's code in the keypad."

I do as told, and a second later the keypad beeps.

"Authorization accepted. Welcome, Priya McGregor."

I smile in relief.

And then the door behind me explodes.

I instinctively try to shield myself, but as I lower my arms I see Talyon stomp in with her armor. Her face is hidden, but I am sure she is wearing a crazed grin, as if she's won.

"Runner Five, what a marvelous race, and how plucky of you to lock the door behind you," She says. "But I have a laser cannon. One shot and pieces of you will be falling like rain over New Oban."

She points the cannon at me, and I stiffen as it whirs, powering up.

"Five, quick! Big, red shut down button!" Sam shouts, and my gaze snaps towards the control panel. I have never been so thankfully that this panel was built like the ones in the movies.

My hand slams down onto the button, and the cannon's whirring starts to slow down. My shoulders slump in relief when Talyon's armor basically spits her out of it, and she's left standing there, looking confused.

"There we go. Shut down her weapons and her armor."

"What? I-" She glares at me. "The override code. I suppose you got that from one of the governor's bodies, didn't you?" She laughs. "Oh, you've won this battle, Runner Five, but I have people loyal to me, ready to carry on my work. Try and turn them against me. I dare you. They won't believe a word you say."

If I weren't so exhausted, I'd throw her off the building.

My annoyance disappears, though, when Sam speaks in an extremely smug voice that tells me things aren't over just yet.

"Yeah, about that. I've had an idea. Callista, darling, would you mind, uh, turning on the city's sound system? And plug it up to your headset."

I blink. "Uh, okay."

A very cocky laugh leaves his lips once I've done as asked. "Halima, you ready?"

"I'm ready, Sam." The speakers squeal to life. "People of New Oban. This is Halima Hassan. Mum, Dad, if you are listening, I promise I'll explain everythin' later. And everyone else, I'm here to tell you that Head Marshall Talyon has been lying to you. But don't just believe me."

There's a click, and then it's Talyon's voice coming through the speakers.

"It's true. I poisoned the governors. I couldn't risk them interfering with my work. Each time I stamp out the criminal of this city, they grow back like weeds! Something had to be done.

"So I let the zombies into west sector to show this city what would happen if they didn't change. They didn't understand, but thanks to you, they will. Once I reach the control room, I'll throw the city gates wide open, and all the filth and corruption will be washed away.

"The children, my citizens of the future, will inherit and rebuild what remains. The governors developed their pacification gas to allow violence-free arrests. So short-sighted. Using the gas, my reeducation program has made citizens who are fully compliant. They will understand that to survive, they must obey."

I look at Talyon, who looks horrified now that her secret is out. I study her for a moment.

Funny how she's had no contact with any of the monsters we've faced in the apocalypse, like Sigrid, Van Ark, the real Moonchild, and yet, she's just like them.

"It's time to stop listening to people who want to control us. We can make New Oban what it always should have been," Halima says. "Peaceful, sustainable, equal. Where our children can grow up in safety."

I turn the speakers off, and when I turn back to Talyon, she's glaring daggers into my head.

"I only wanted to keep New Oban safe," She says, and Halima replies before I can.

"You don't make places safe by killing people. It's much harder work than that. Callista, you've saved New Oban today, and you've given my daughter a future. I don't think I'll ever be able to repay you for that, but if there's anything you need, we will be there for you."

I blink as an idea comes to mind. "Really?"

"Yes. And I promise you, we're not going to waste this second chance."

A/N: Here you go, guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I would have gotten it done this weekend but I graduated so this weekend was me and my family celebrating that I got my AA. Anyway, please be sure to vote and comment! Thank you and have a blessed day!