Thirty minutes had passed since we’d turned onto a private road.
Upon making it past a dense cluster of trees, we were immediately greeted by a chain-link fence adorned with an “Authorized Personnel Only” sign and a gray mountainside building.
“Hey, Shiiko...”
According to Shiiko, North River Co., being a PFIC engaging in eyebrow-raising research, had preferred to build its labs in rural areas away from civilization. Even lab four, where Shiiko worked, was no exception.
“Is that what I think it is?”
“You guessed it. The front entrance is right ahead,” Shiiko said, pointing.
“It appears we may have company,” Tetsuko added, loading up the Mossberg.
“Quite possibly.”
At the end of the fence was what appeared to be a gate. But this wasn’t just any gate; it was the kind of gate that could open and close automatically with a security booth beside it, where a security guard would rush out at the first sign of danger. The actual doors were just like the ones you might find in front of a school. They were made with sturdy-looking steel.
Thing is, not only were they wide open, but the security booth’s walls were peppered with bullet holes.
Someone must’ve tried raiding the place. But who, and to what end?
“Look over there, Hiroaki.”
With the space illuminated by our headlights, I could see a group of men clad in camo and multipurpose vests. “Huh. Those look awfully familiar.”
Is that AOR-2? No, it’s green MARPAT.
That was woodland, multi-scale digital camo used by the U.S. Marine Corps.
“I could understand JSDF, but what business could the Marines have had here?”
Then again, there’s civilian clothing along with the camo, so it’s hard to say if they’re really the Marines. Heck, even I owned some. Either way, could they be the “company” Tetsuko was talking about?
“We can think after we’re done.” Otoha grabbed her trusty shovel and reached for the door handle.
I hastily stopped her in her tracks. “Are you crazy?! They’re armed!”
They’re not just armed; they’re armed with H&K UMPs! With silencers, too! They must be the Marines. If not, they definitely belong to some kind of special forces.
“We’ll be fine.”
“Which part of ‘they’re armed’ did you not understand?!”
“Look closer. They’re all zombies.”
“I know, but still!”
Remember how Shino’s dad almost shot me? Because I certainly do!
“They’re only repeating past behavioral patterns.”
Yes, Otoha, her dad could’ve been simply repeating past behavioral patterns... but what if he wasn’t? Actually, even if that is the case, submachine guns can disperse bullets in a large area, and they’re hella dangerous. You never know when they might ricochet back at you.
“Besides, it’s not like zombies are capable of complex actions like firing a gu—”
Pssh-pssh-pssh. The dull sound of suppressed gunfire reached our ears as all the first-floor windows were turned into dust.
“You were saying?”
“Unintentional discharges happen sometimes. It’s nothing to worry about.”
“There’s plenty to worry about!” I hissed, resisting the urge to shout.
Then again, we can’t really sit around for much longer.
“Shiiko, keep your head down until we say otherwise,” I said, turning to face her. She was sitting in her wheelchair next to the G-Wagen.
“Will do.” Shiiko nodded without giving me lip, likely sensing the urgency in my voice.
“Shino, you watch the car. Stay inside so you can close the doors in case something happens. Only shoot at the last possible moment because gunfire’ll attract zombies.”
“Copy that.” Shino was in full Zino mode.
“Otoha, you and I will lead the charge. Uemura, watch our backs.”
“Roger.”
“As you wish.”
Once everyone had their orders, Otoha and I darted off in separate directions.
Could they be security guards? I mean, even the ones over at lab four were packing submachine guns, and those are obviously illegal in Japan.
It would make sense, given that they were working on a freakin’ time machine. That thing could be used for great good in the right hands... but it could also be used for great evil in the wrong ones.
Say, for whatever reason, you wanted Imperial Japan to win World War II. All you’d have to do is send back the newest weapon schematics, the enemy’s positions, or even the latest military tactics, and the rest would take care of itself.
I deployed the MP9’s folding stock, shouldered it as I placed my left hand on the foregrip, and fired.
The 9mm Parabellums left the barrel with a subdued pssh, making solid contact with the zombies’ upper bodies.
To compensate for recoil, I aimed at their chests and, wouldn’t you know it, the trajectory started steadily moving upward. By the fourth shot, one of the zombies had a nice hole in the back of its skull.
Who’s the best?!
I turned back to see Tetsuko, the Mossberg hanging from her back, one-shotting zombies with the other MP9.
Oh. She’s the best...
They say shooting a gun is like riding a bike or swimming; you never forget how. Anyway, I should probably take a page out of Tetsuko’s book and try my best to one-shot ’em to conserve ammo, since we’ve got a limited supply.
Suddenly, I heard Otoha say, “Hiroaki, cover me.” I whipped my head around to see her charging headfirst into the fray with her shovel aloft.
“Why, you little...!”
I taught you how to use that MP9 for a reason, you know! I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs.
Otoha drew a quick breath, got low to the ground, and took off. As she passed by a zombie, she did a half spin with her left foot and topped it off with a diagonal slash.
“Whoa.”
The shovel severed the zombie’s head from its body like a well-tempered blade. Now headless, the zombie took a few steps forward before collapsing.
“Learned it by watching zombie movies, my ass.”
Otoha’s one-on-one fighting capabilities were as remarkable as ever, especially for her size.
First to make the cut makes it a cut above the rest. At least, that’s how it goes in kendo. Obviously, she’d be facing off against a fellow kendo practitioner in a promotional examination, but she’d probably still wipe the floor with your average shodan.
After all, she’s mowed down countless zombies in multiple life-or-death encounters. She knows the exact angles and velocity needed to neutralize the zombie like the back of her hand. Practice makes perfect, as they say.
Tetsuko and I downed three zombies each while Otoha decapitated two. As an added precaution, she also decapitated the other six.
This all took place in under one minute.
“Well done.”
“I’ll ask again: who are you people?” muttered a bewildered Shiiko. Tetsuko had just wheeled her onto the scene alongside Shino, who was clutching the M700.
“Hiroaki, the guns appear to be in working order,” Tetsuko said, beating me to the punch. “Should we keep them?” Meanwhile, her hands had a mind of their own as they released the magazine, inspected it, ejected the chambered round, and checked it for jamming all at the same time.
Do I even need to say anything at this point?
“The .45 ACPs alone make it more effective against... zombies.”
I then had an epiphany.
9mm Parabellum cartridges were the most widely used submachine gun cartridge nowadays—at least, they had been. These UMPs were an exception in that SOCOM, finding 9mms lacking in stopping power, had officially purchased a small number of them loaded with .45 ACPs. In other words, they were perfect for incapacitating targets in a single shot due to their sheer power.