I had to move this story up to M rating. You will probably see why as you read through this chapter.

Day 3: Kill Me If You Can

"Hey! Where's Tom? Wake up! Jessie is badly hurt and Tom is gone!" Andrew shouted throwing open the door to the room where Sam, Sarah, and Zach lay sleeping.

"Mmm-neeyaaah" Zach yawned, rubbing his eyes. Sarah and Sam both stirred slowly. Andrew pounced on Zach who was nestled closely to Sam.

"DAMN'IT MAN! WAKE UP! TOM…IS…GONE!" Andrew yelled shaking Zach. Sam's head jerked up at the statement.

"W-What? What do you mean gone?"

"I fucking mean that he's gone. Not here. Disappeared. Poof! GONE!" Andrew replied, the veins in his neck protruding in stress.

"C-Can you…" Sarah yawned "…mmm…not be so loud? I'm sure he's just in another room."

"He is not in anybody's room. And he's not on either the roof or helipad! I checked! Twice!" Andrew said, his voice slightly cracking. Sam cast a worried glance at Zach.

"Tom is fine. I am sure he is. Maybe he went out into the mall…" the tallest teen trailed off.

"Tom…h-he never went out without us" Andrew's frantic voice began to quiver. A faint groan came from the doorway, drawing all four of the teens to look over. Jessie leaned against the doorway, clutching at her temple with a gauze strip.

"You're all so loud. My head hurts terribly…somebody slammed me into the desk last night…" she groaned once more. The teens exchanged confused glances.

"Did you see Tom leave at all in the middle of the night?" Sam frighteningly asked. Jessie shook her head.

"I saw him lying on the cushion bench by the door, but he never went towards the air ducts. Next thing I knew though, my head was flying towards the-OHMIGOSH! I just remembered! Where did it go?" she frantically gasped, turning around and running into the monitor room. The teens followed her and watched in confusion as Jessie tore apart the room.

"What are you…uhm…looking for?" Sarah inquired.

"There was a jar with a bee in it! It was right here on the corner of the desk last night, and now it's gone!" Jessie shouted. The other teens got on their knees and began looking for a jar.

"A bee? What's so important about a damn bee?" Zach irately asked. Another door opened, and Doctor Barnaby hobbled out, supported by his cane.

"YOU LOST IT?! That bee held all the secrets to this outbreak!" he shouted at Jessie who was still oozing blood from her forehead. Sarah got up and looked at the monitor screens for the various areas of the mall.

"A bee?" Zach repeated "What does a god damned bee have to do with any-" "Everything I've been researching you insolent brat!" Barnaby interjected. Zach, Andrew, and Sam stared blankly at the doctor whose face was undoubtedly flush from straining his vocal chords. Sarah gasped.

"I see him! H-He's in Entrance Plaza! Oh no! Zombies are swarming him!"

"Come on we got to go! He's in grave danger!" Sam shouted running towards the air ducts, tears leaking from her eyes. Zach and the other two nodded at each other, quickly grabbed their weapons, and ran out the monitor room, away from a sobbing Jessie and angry Barnaby.

Tom chuckled to himself as he cut through zombie after zombie with his katana. The monsters were stupid and slow, which posed no threat to Tom anymore. He feared no man, woman, or thing. Death was a weakling's fantasy. All his thoughts and fears faded away into nothingness, only to be replaced by power and hatred after he let the bee in the jar sting him, before crushing the creature with his bare hand. A new feeling filled his body; it was rather exciting and pleasurable really. All his physical capabilities had all been completely enhanced tenfold. It was as if his entire genetic code had been rewritten or altered.

A huge horde of zombies stood before the one lone teenager. The zombies moaned, Tom smiled, his teeth having turned into fangs. Tom jumped high in the air with his new abilities, katana gleaming in the morning sunrise, and slammed into the center of the horde. He spun in a circle, his blade outstretched, slicing through bone, flesh, and sinew all with equal ease. The first twelve of the many encircling zombies fell, whether by decapitation, dismemberment, or dissection. Blood shot out all over as the walking corpses fell in rapid succession. Tom licked his lips clean from some of the blood that had landed on him.

A zombie lurched forward, only to be met by the shaft of Tom's katana through its eye. Tom ripped the weapon from the monster, and twisted his body around to kick a zombie that had come up from behind. The corpse was hit heavily in the chest, and it flew backwards from the force of Tom's kick. The zombies behind it were knocked over as the kicked corpse flew into one of the support columns, and with a sickening squish, the flesh and stone bonded in a gruesome manner. He jumped onto one zombie's shoulders, decapitated three other zombies, before flipping forward kicking his undead 'platform' in the back of the head. He landed in another crowd, whirling around again and slicing all the nearby undead in half at the torso. Tom laughed maniacally as he continued to slaughter the undead.

"Oh god...Oh god. I hope he's alright!" Sam cried as the four teens ran through the warehouse and into Paradise Plaze. The gate to Entrance Plaza was shut for some reason, zombies clamoring at the steel, giving off decrepit moans and groans. They heard laughter coming from the plaza, but the zombies barred them from seeing what was happening.

"Damn'it! How are we supposed to get to Entrance Plaza now?" Sarah gasped. Most of the zombies were shuffling past the teens, oblivious to their presence, as if some unseen force was drawing them towards Entrance Plaza.

"We have to go to Al Fresca. What I want to know is why the zombies are all swarming...something must be happening there. Tom's in trouble I bet" Zach stated as he turned and headed towards the doors to Leisure Park. The others followed suit, dodging zombies just in case the undead were still hungry.

The teens entered the outdoor area, and much to their surprise, it was practically empty. There were few zombies anywhere, some corpses were dead on the ground, but for the most part, the area was empty. The four cautiously ran towards the Food Court doors. Andrew glanced to their right and he thought he glimpsed Frank entering the North Plaza. He shrugged it off and ran alongside Sarah who looked quite scared.

"Don't worry Sarah. You'll be alright. You're with me and Zach, nobody or thing is going to hurt you so long as I'm around" Andrew said comfortingly. Sarah nodded at him graciously, but the fearful expression did not diminish.

"T-Thanks Andrew, b-but aren't you worried t-that Tom is..." she gulped "...dead?" Andrew was slightly taken aback by the question. Sam who overheard this gave off a small whimper.

"I'm sure he's fine. Stupid on occasion..yes, but I bet he's perfectly fine" Andrew replied, forcing a smile.

"But there were like hundreds of zombies just in that camera picture! It was him against all of those things!" she cried. Andrew looked away.

The teens quickly reached the Food Court doors, and still there were no zombie hordes in sight. A couple of strays here and there, but no groups larger than three walking cadavers were present. The four then ran into Al Fresca Plaza. The outdoor plaza was more crowded than anywheres else, but all the zombies seemed to still flock to the doors leading to Entrance Plaza. The teens ran into the hardware stoor, collecting new weapons. Zach picked up a new sledgehammer; Andrew a shovel; and Sarah and Sam both grabbed lead pipes. All in all, the four now had a sledgehammer, shovel, two lead pipes, a golf club, and two pistols in their posession. After having left the store, the four reached the fountain in the central area, and Zach collected the Uzi out of the water.

"Oh...joy..." Andrew groaned.

The four now faced a problem. A horrendous horde of zombies flooded the doorway to Entrance Plaza, all of them moaning and groaning and clawing at the glass. The teens looked at each other with mixed expressions. Zach gave a small nod and ran to the parasols perched in some of the tables. Zach ripped one out and lowered it as a battering ram. Andrew and the girls lined up behind him, before giving a him a small nod that they were ready.

Tom continued to cut down zombies with his katana and limbs with ease. The stupid undead couldn't do anything to harm him. They just stood there and took the slaughter. Tom laughed once more as he lunged forward, throwing a sucker punch, that must've had the force of a speeding bus because the zombie flew backwards, knocking down all those behind it. A zombie lunged at Tom, who simply threw it to the ground. He raised his arm into the air and roared as he exercised his new power, punching right through the zombies head, leaving a pile of blood and brainmatter in the new hole in the floor. He spun around with his leg outstretched, roundhousing another zombie. The creature was sent flying into more of its undead brethren.

Tom began hacking and slashing at the horde of zombies around him that was quickly diminishing in size as the teen went on a rampage. Corpses, limbs, and blood littered the floor of Entrance Plaza. Tom punged the katana into the midriff of a female zombie, and ripped it upwards, slicing the zombie in half. He then lunged at another zombie, launching it into the air with a powerful knee, and then flipped forward, embedding his heel into the gut of the creature as he slammed it back to the floor. He followed up with a thrust of his katana into the torso of the next zombie. The creature stumbled backwards as Tom thrust his hands into the monster's mouth, and began to pull in opposite directions. The zombie gargled briefly as its head was ripped in two. Tom dropped both pieces and grabbed his katana when a squeak from further in the hallway caught his attention. He looked up and had the unfortunate pleasure of seeing his 'friends'.

Zach and Andrew both stood clenching their weapons. Sarah and Sam both had their hands clasped over their mouths. Tom stared at them blankly. He grinned smugly, bearing his sharpened teeth. The final zombie lurched towards him, which Tom simply lashed out his arm, and clamped his hand around the undead's head.

"T-Tom? W-What's happening? W-Who did this?" Andrew asked nervously, although the answer was pretty obvious. Tom continued to grin.

"TOM! What are you doing! Come on we got to get out of this mall!" Sarah shrieked. The others nodded in agreement.

"Shut up bitch!" Tom snarled, drawing an angered glare from Andrew, "Just who in the hell do any of you think you are? Who the hell do you think I am?"

"You're Tom Weir? A very close friend of ours. What's going on?" Zach responded. Tom's grip tightened on the zombie's head who writhed in his grip. Blood started to ooze from between his fingers before a quick crunch followed by a gushy squish sound followed the death of the zombie. He dropped the corpse as if nothing happened. Sam whimpered at the sight of the creatures deformed, mutliated skull.

"Wrong. That is who I was...who I am now? Hah. You're puny little minds couldn't even begin to fathom the power I now possess. Run along now before I get angrier" Tom growled. He took a step forward, and the girls stepped backwards, quivering.

"Angrier? You're kidding!" Zach exclaimed, "We're all going to get out of the mall by noon today, so come on!"

"Come on Tom! There's no reason to go on a zombie hunt again. We've seen enough of this hell hole and all these zombies. I just want to get the hell out of here and to a safe place. The others would agree with me too right?" Andrew asked glancing at his companions who nodded.

"Hah! Zombie hunting? Oh no no nooo...I was waiting for some live prey to show up! I'm rather hungry actually!" Tom scoffed with a gleam in his eye. He crouched on his hands and feet like an animal. The other kids drew their weapons. Something was wrong, it could be felt in the air. Zach stood firm with his sledgehammer out and Uzi in pocket. Andrew held his shovel tightly, having a holstered pistol in his pocket. Sam wielded the two lead pipes, although a tad awkwardly. Sarah clutched her golf club, she too also having a pistol resting in her pocket.

"J-Just w-what do you t-think you're doing?" Andrew stammered.

"I'm disposing of my problems" Tom hissed. He darted forward on all of his limbs, gripping the katana that made a continous clatter as it slapped against the tile floor. Tom moved excessively fast, too fast for Andrew to react. He was swept off his feet by a sweeping kick from Tom, who followed up with his other leg in a kick to the smaller boy's torso. Andrew skidded across the floor winded, his shovel crashed to the floor. Sarah and Sam ran up to the grounded Andrew and sat him up.

"TOM! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!" Sarah shrieked. Zach took a small step back as his former friend faced him, the fear and terror flooded all of his senses.

"Dude! Chill the fuck out! Why are you fighting us?!" Zach shouted. Tom laughed and lunged at Zach with his katana. Tom thrust his katana repeatedly at Zach who actually managed to parry some strikes with the wood shaft of his hammer. Zach blocked a vertical slash and shoved back. Tom stumbled back a little, narrowing his eyes with a malicious smile.

"Ugh...that...urgh...hurt..." Andrew groaned, clutching at his stomach. Sarah leaned him against his shoulder, Sam was knelt down beside him. They looked up and saw Zach slowly backing up as Tom beared down with continuous strikes. They saw Zach wince in pain as some of dodges couldn't prevent the blade from cutting into his arms slightly.

"He's trying to kill us. Why!?!" Sarah gasped as Andrew struggled to his feet.

"We have to stop him. Subdue him. Kill him. I don't know, but how?" Andrew grunted. Sam got up and ran towards the two duelers.

"TOM STOP THIS!" Sam shrieked. "STAY BACK!" Zach commanded ducking below another slice. Tom laughed as he kneed Zach in the jaw, knocking the boy backwards in a stumble. The other three teens gasped and watched in horror as Tom thrusted his katana at Zach's midsection.

"NO!" they all screamed in unison. Zach reacted just fast enough to throw the hammer up, Tom's katana piercing through the wood. The blade continued to come forward, albeit slower, until the very tip poked Zach in the abdomen. Tom frowned.

"Get the hell away!" Zach shouted as he twisted his hammer, wrenching the katana out of Tom's hand, and tossed it aside. He drew his Uzi as Tom jumped back. Tom smirked.

"Die you bastard! I thought you were our friend!" Zach bellowed as he fired his Uzi. Tom broke into a run and ran down the plaza, faster than Zach could follow with his aim. Tom bent at the knees and jumped at a column, digging his fingers into the concrete. Zach followed with his fire, but Tom jumped across the plaza to another pillar. Zach followed again, not paying attention to his ammunition level, and Tom continued to dodge until Zach's Uzi clicked empty.

"Shit! SHIT!" he growled as he fumbled with the gun, thinking it was jammed. He did not notice Tom jump up to the bridge above them, perch on the railing, and then jump into the air at Zach.

"ZACH! Look out!" Sam screeched. Zach looked up and dove sideways, avoiding Tom's kick. The tile around where Tom's foot embedded itself, had shattered. Tom snorted. Andrew ran up beside Zach and tossed him one of the pipes that Sam had, he was holding the other.

"Come on Zach. We have to stop him. He's going to kill everyone else otherwise!" Zach nodded. They stared at Tom who stared back, his head cocked to the side with a sinister smile.

"Go ahead. Kill me if you can." Tom snarled and dashed at the two boys. They charged him right back. Sarah ran up beside Sam and they both gasped. Just as the three were about to collide, Tom jumped up doing a corkscrew spin in the air, landing behind Andrew and Zach. They skidded to a halt and began to turn around as Tom lunged with a spinning kick. Andrew ducked under Tom's leg, but Zach wasn't so lucky. His arm took the brunt of Tom's shin, and he was thrown aside by the impact.

"Zach!" Andrew shouted as he dodged a punch from Tom. Zach was slowly pushing himself up.

"Where are you looking Andrew? I'm right in front of you!" Tom growled and grabbed Andrew by his arm. Andrew cried in pain as Tom twisted his arm around, making Andrew hunch forward. He then kneed Andrew in the stomach. He lifted one arm in the air and was about to bring it down on Andrew's elbow when Zach tackled Tom. Tom grunted as Zach lifted him and slammed him to the ground.

"Hmph. That all you got?" Tom snickered as he sprang back to his feet. Zach's face filled with shock and then pain as Tom slammed an open palm into Zach's abdomen, knocking the wind out of him. The aggressor then grabbed Zach by his shoulders and slammed him to the ground. Tom stomped on Zach's chest repeatedly, making the pinned boy cough blood. Andrew ran up behind Tom and jumped on his back, wrapping his arms around Tom's neck in attempt to choke him. Tom stumbled backwards and then fell with Andrew pinned under him.

"Release...me...!" Tom grunted and kicked his head back, smashing Andrew in his jaw. The smaller boy howled in pain as his grip loosened from Tom and the latter sat up. Zach was still on the ground like Andrew who was crying in pain. Tom loomed over the injured boy and raised his foot over Andrew's head. Tom then heard gunshots, and quickly flipped backwards. He shot a cold glare at Sarah who was aiming at him. The pistols quivered in her nervous clutches. Sam stared dumbfounded.

"Oh you stupid little whores" he hissed. Tom ran at them, twisting and dodging the gunshots as Sarah fired at him, though inaccurate. The two girls started to step backwards in fear as the distance between them and their assailant closed quickly.

"SARAH!" Andrew shrieked as he lurched upwards, blood trickling from his lip.

Tom threw a punch that connected with Sarah's stomach. Tom was facing Sam as the blow struck, and he sneered at her with an evil gleam in his eye. Time seemed to slow as the two locked eyes for a moment, and it was then that Sam realized the Tom she knew was 'dead'. Sarah's eyes bulged, the gun fell from her hands, and a weak cough escaped her lips with Tom's fist embedded in her stomach; time seemed to return to regular as Sam felt a slight breeze? Tom's speed had created a mini-sonic boom or something of that caliber, because Sam saw a distortion in the air between him and Sarah, before Sarah was launched backwards, slamming into one of the planters beside the escalators, falling unconcious or dead as she did not move.

"Saaarraaaaaah!!!" Andrew screamed in a prolonged cry. He struggled to his feet. Zach was doing the same, he was already at one knee. Tom took a few steps towards Sam who was petrified in fear.

"W-W-Why Tom?" she whimpered as the male stared emptily at her.

"Why you ask? Hah. Why should I answer to somebody such as the likes of you? Stupid little bitch" he growled angrily. He raised his left arm across his body in preparation to smack Sam. She trembled in her spot, unable to move. Tom grinned fiendishly and his arm started to come down. Sam was backhanded forcefully in the cheek, causing her head to jerk sideways, a red imprint on her right cheek. Tears started to well up in her eyes.

"Save it you stupid bitch. Nothing you can do or say will save you now" Tom growled, leaning his face closer to Sam. He sniffed her neck and slowly extended his tongue from his mouth, running it up and down her soft skin. Sam whimpered as Tom exhaled a noise from deep within his throat. His hot breath sent shivers down Sam's spine. He started to smile, bearing his teeth.

"P-P-Please...T-T-Tom...c-come b-back..." she sobbed. Tom lifted his head and stared into her tear filled eyes. The boy roughly grabbed her by her arms and pulled her against his body.

"I'm past the point of no return. Nobody can save me, and nobody can save you" he whispered in her ear. He moved his face back to her neck and pressed his mouth against it. Sam whimpered more as she felt his teeth painfull and slowly sinking into her skin.

"P-Please...don't...t-this...this isn't..." she weeped as she felt blood trickle from the bite and felt Tom's tongue flicked against her skin. A muffled growl echoed from within his throat. Tom was abruptly separated from his victim by Andrew and Zach who slammed into him with their shoulders. The girl cumpled to the ground on her knees and began to cry as well as clutch at the wound in her neck.

"I-I-I l-loved you...I r-really...d-did..." she mumbled in between sobs. Tom was stuck between Zach and Andrew who combined their strength and threw Tom through a shop window. Glass shattered everywhere and cut through the psychotic boy's flesh, leaving numerous cuts and gashes in his skin and tears in his bloody clothing.

"W-W-What ha-have I d-done..." she mumbled still as Zach picked her up off the ground. He shouted something to her, but his voice was faint and muffled, Sam could not hear him fully. She looked into his eyes which were filled with fear and concern. She saw Andrew picking up Sarah's motionless body off the ground. She looked up into the sunlight that shone through the glass ceilng panels. She squinted at the silhouettes that started to grow from the sky. Helicopters were hovering overhead, and soldiers were fast roping down (a la Rainbow Six). The glass above shattered as she glanced at the store where Tom was getting up, and she felt empty.

"Come on! We've got to go!" Zach shouted to Andrew who was crying as he held Sarah's body in his arms. Zach ran past him and up the motionless escalator, holding Sam in his arms. Andrew ran up after him as Spec Ops landed on the ground floor.

"I won't allow you to get away!" Tom shouted from the window that he was climbing out of. The Spec Ops shouted at the fleeing teens to halt, but the zombie threat was still iminent, so they placed their focus on that problem at hand. Some of the soldiers surrounded Tom with their machine guns ready, and he just stood there watching the others go. A smile worked its way across his face.

"Come on son. We'll take you to safety and get you cleaned up" one of the soldiers said to Tom. Tom's head lolled back and forth as he began to hum.

"Kid are you alright?" another asked. Tom continued to hum.

"Hey you brat. Answer!" a third soldier gruffly shouted. Tom lazily looked at them.

"Oh me? I'm quite alright...too bad for you though..." he sneered as he lunged at the nearest soldier who screamed.

A/N: OMFG

I finally got to this part. Oh wow it took me a while...I recently gained interest in writing a Super Smash Brothers fic (Which if you read please take my poll!). I hope I made this part good for everybody. One chapter to go and then the filler/epilogue! Yay!

Genetically enchanced Tom...oh man I wanted to do so much for this, but I wanted to keep it 'slightly' realistic. Buuut, I'm fairly happy with the outcome. Now all I have to do is finish the story up, which I hope to do soon.

To all my fans and reviewers, I thank you for reading. Hope you enjoyed this, and I hope you will enjoy the conclusion to DR:ZI.

DaemonShifter