The glowing "Safe Zone" timer above their HUD blinked down to zero.
SAFE ZONE EXPIRED.
The food court lights cut out. Darkness pressed in, broken only by neon signs sparking down the hall. And then…
' ' It's close to midnight--- and something evil's lurkin' in the dark. ' '
A totally kickin bass line throbbed through the Mega Mall's walls.
BAH-BOMM BAH-BOMM BOMM BOMM-BOM! BAM-BOMM BAH-BOMM BOMM BOMM-BOMM!
''Under the mooooonlight you see a sight that almost stops your heart.''
A doorway down the hall swung open and a pack of zombies flowed out like a slow river. Twelve of them, moving in a terrible, practiced stagger. Their heads snapped up in perfect sync with the bass; their feet found the beat and stomped forward.
BAH-BOMM BAH-BOMM BOMM BOMM-BOM!
Zekes and Julies HUD lit up, WAVE TWO RHYTHM PACK ZOMBIES.
The First Toy's voice crackled in both their ears — equal parts announcer and arcade speaker.
"Rhythm Pack: synchronized attack pattern. Time your shots between beats."
BAH-BOMM BAH-BOMM BOMM BOMM-BOM!
''You try to screeeeam-but terror takes the sound before you make it! ---YOU START TO FREEEEEEZE!---- AS HORROR LOOKS YOU RIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES!
The zombies' choreography was obvious now. On the first two beats they advanced; on the triple-beat they lunged. Every BAH-BOMM was a teleport of momentum. The group pivoted as one, arms whipping into swinging arcs timed to the snare.
Zeke shouted, "Three-beat lunge on the triple! Don't get clipped!"
Julie's HUD blinked a rhythmic metronome across her vision — little pulsing dots that matched the bass. When the dots flashed red, a lunge was coming.
Health — Zeke 78% / Julie 100%
Ammo — Zeke 48 / Julie 40
Combo — 0x Reset on hit
They opened up.
Zeke fired a sweeping arc on the first beat — the Super Soaker's stream was thick and humming, the neon liquid cutting like light. The lead two zombies hit the spray and stuttered, heads drooping. +10 XP flickered near Zeke's sight.
' ' You hear the door slam and realize there's nowhere left to run. You feel the COOOLD HAND! And wonder if you'll ever see THE SUN! ' '
BAH-BOMM — The pack moved. Zeke rolled across a fallen kiosk to avoid a snapping jaw. ' ' CHILLER! CHILLER-NIGHT! NO ONES COMING TO SAVE YOU AND FIGHTING FOR YOUR LIFE! ' '
BAH-BOMM — Julie timed a ricochet shot, she angled the stream off a stainless column, the jet pinging like a bullet, arcing into the head of a zombie that tried to flank them. It toppled, pixelated into emerald grids. Multi-kill +15 XP
' ' CHILLER! CHILLER-NIGHT! NO ONES COMING TO SAVE YOU, YOU GOT TO STAND YOUR GROUND AND FIGHT! CAUSE THIS IS CHILLER! CHILLER-NIGHT! ' '
BOMM-BOMM-BOM — The entire pack lunged in unison. A zombie clipped Zeke's shoulder — his Health dipped 78 → 72%. The First Toy chimed, almost pleased: "Gotta keep your rhythm, kid."
''You close your eyes----And hope that this is just imagination! BUT ALL THE WHILE---You hear a creature creepin' up behind---You're outta time.''
Julie reacted on instinct. She squeezed the trigger, activating Ricochet Stream unlocked earlier. The water beam ricocheted across five heads, each hit increasing their combo meter. Combo 3x. An orange meter on her HUD flashed: CRITICAL HIT READY.
' ' They're out to get you, there's demons closing in on every side-ooh! ' '
' ' They will possess youuuuu unlesssss you change that number on your dial! ' '
At the center of the pack, was a hulking zombie. He was broader and taller than the rest and wore a chain-stitched red leather jacket with matching pants. He pushed the rest like a battering ram. Their movement wasn't elegant; it was military precision, and it kept time with the music.
''And grisly ghouls from every tomb, are closing in to seal your doom-though you fight to stay alive!
CHILLER! CHILLER NIGHT!
Zeke ducked under a swinging arm, vaulting onto a fallen deli counter. The perspective gave him a point-blank angle. He lobbed one of the Bubble Bombs he'd picked up earlier.
PSSHH-BWOOM!
A giant soap-sphere bloomed, swallowing six zombies in a shimmering globe. They thrashed, arms slamming into the bubble's inner surface. For a beat they were harmless, buoyant, ridiculous—and then the bubble popped and they dissolved into glowing cubes.
+65 XP
Bubble Bombs: x2 remaining
The First Toy's voice softened into a conspiratorial tone. "Nice throw. Keep pressure on the left flank; rhythm packs hate disruption."
As the music pulsed the zombies reassembled, a new move triggering on the snare: they spun, a coordinated circular sweep that knocked back everything within reach. Julie's metronome blinked crimson: DODGE. She dove behind a low planter; Zeke rolled into a shadowed alcove. A studded heel clipped Julie's thigh — Health 100 → 90%. She forced a laugh through gritted teeth. "Okay, they dance mean."
The combat had a teachable pattern: Advance, stagger, triple-lunge, spin-sweep. Find the timing, break the rhythm, and the pack collapsed into chaos.
Zeke began to time his blasts between the beats. He counted silently — BAH-(pause)-BOMM-(shoot)-BOMM-(shoot) — the cadence turning into muscle memory. Each perfectly-timed shot increased the combo multiplier; white numbers cascaded upward with satisfying clinks: +10, +10, +25. A tiny virt-sound rewarded each precise cadence.
Mid-fight, a lone zombie — young, hoodie pulled up, face half intact — lunged directly at Julie. She slipped, the monster's fingers closing on her jacket. Her health dipped again: 90 → 82%. Zeke rushed and shoved the Soaker under its chin. Julie kicked free and jerked the barrel—an instinctive point-blank blast. The creature's jaw unlatched, then folded into light-shards.
ACHIEVEMENT: CLOSE CALL — +20 XP
A cascade of green pixels rained down in digital confetti. The HUD flashed a new message—
TREASURE DROPPED
A neon chest materialized where the biggest zombie had crumpled, like a glitch in the real world. It pulsed blue, then green. Zeke sprinted over, heart thundering, and slapped his palm on it. The chest exploded open.
ITEM ACQUIRED: Clown Decoy — x2 Temporary agro lure/defense shield; 5s
BONUS: Ammo +15
Julie smacked him on the shoulder. "Good haul. Throw a decoy when they do the spin sweep again."
The music surged, tempo climbing. So did the zombies' aggression. The pack tried to synchronize a double-snap: two fingers right to their temples, releasing a shrieking sound that caused a localized disorientation field. HUD warnings flashed DISORIENT Debuff detected; vision skewed. Zeke blinked, shook the distortion off. He and Julie activated two of the Clown decoys; and just as they'd promised — inflated into agro lure's that doubled as shields. Two clowns inflated in front of them like iridescent bubbles, absorbing the disorient burst.
The Clown shields popped with a wet ping; the disorientation should have flattened them, but the foam's bizarre physics kept their heads straight.
Zeke grinned wide, flushed with adrenaline. "We're actually doing it."
Julie looked at him, fierce and laughing, then aimed the last Bubble Bomb at the center of the formation. She wound up and heaved.
The bubble bloomed, swallowing the remaining zombies in a kaleidoscope. The music crashed into a single, shuddering beat. The mall's fluorescent lights flicked, then the rhythm collapsed. The zombies fell like marionettes with cut strings—slumped, then pixelated, then gone.
WAVE TWO COMPLETE
XP +340 — Level Progress: 42% → 70%
REWARD: Temporary Safe Corridor unlocked, 2 minutes.
Panting, both of them sank to the floor amid overturned chairs and scattered nacho cheese. The arcade-sensation of the fight left their hands buzzing, HUD numbers still glowing.
From the keychain at Zeke's belt, the First Toy's small painted mouth split into a grin. "Excellent. You dance well for infants. But the beat gets meaner. Club Inferno is only a warm-up."
tap… tap… skreee-slide.
A lone figure moonwalked across the food court tiles, sneakers squeaking. The hulking Lil Michael. His smile stretched too wide, eyes glowing a sickly neon green.
The squad raised rifles as one—
SPOOLSH!SPOOLSH!SPOOLSH!SPOOLSIH!
Streams of toy force enhanced jets crossed the dance floor, bouncing and ricocheting off the floor and ceiling. But Michael didn't flinch. He danced between the shots, twisting, spinning, popping—every move in perfect rhythm with the thundering bass line.
BAH-BOMM BAH-BOMM BOMM BOMM-BOMM!
The song echoed through the mall's cavernous halls, as if the walls themselves were singing.
And then, when he struck his final freeze-frame pose—arms snapped out, head tilted back—
the floor cracked open.
Dozens of hands clawed their way out from beneath the tiles. Faces twisted and pale. Rotting school uniforms, mall security jackets, ripped barista aprons.
"Zombie fans!" Zeke shouted.
The zombie fans surged up from the broken tiles, arms outstretched, swaying in time with the bass. Their moans weren't random—every groan landed on-beat.
"Uuuuuhhhhhh—AHHHH!"
They clawed at Zeke and Julie's ankles, fingertips brushing but never quite grabbing. The kids stomped free from the hands, blasting down with their neon-painted Super Soakers of Purity.
SPLOOSH—HISSSSS!
Zombie faces melted back in sizzling sprays, but instead of collapsing, the husks burst like piñatas.
+1 MED KIT.
+1 SPEED SHOES.
Zeke kicked the glowing sneakers into place—his HUD blinked:
SPEED MATCH ACTIVATED.
"Time to moonwalk your face in, buddy," he snarled.
He launched forward, every stride now keeping pace with Lil Michael's slick footwork. Where Michael spun, Zeke mirrored—except Zeke's fists connected.
BAM! health bar:100% <->75%
CRACK! health bar:75%<->45%
WHAM! health bar: 45%<->35%
Meanwhile, Julie danced through the mob, scooping up glowing BUBBLE BOMBS. She lobbed them in glittering arcs.
BLORP SPOOLSH!
A wave of soap-sphere explosions rippled through the zombies, trapping dozens in sticky rainbow bubbles that floated up toward the darkened skylights.
"Crowd's handled! Drop his meter, Zeke!" Julie shouted.
Zeke darted in, fists blazing faster than the strobe lights overhead. Lil' Michael slid back on one smooth moonwalk, hips snapping, jacket glittering in the half-light.
Zeke threw a right hook.
"Hee!" Michael ducked under.
Left jab.
"Haw!" Michael swayed with a spin.
Zeke lunged, fists pounding like pistons—
"HEE-HEE!" Michael squealed, dodging with impossible flair, every slip punctuated by his trademark noises. The boss's health bar barely ticked down—he was slippery, a style fighter.
Then Zeke managed to feint, catching Michael mid-lean. BAM! A clean hit to the ribs—his boss health dropped by a satisfying chunk.
Michael clutched his side, snapped upright, and let out a sharp, chilling:
"Shamone—!"
The neon lights above flickered alive, and from the shadows poured a fresh mob of zombie backup dancers—moving in perfect lockstep choreography, arms snapping to the same beat as the music.
Julie's eyes went wide. "Oh great, now it's music video mode!"
She primed her bubble bombs, while Zeke cracked his knuckles.
"Guess I'll have to dance harder."
Julie ducked behind an overturned food court table, bubble-bomb blasts illuminating her face. The zombie backup dancers kept closing in, snapping and shuffling to the beat, but then—ITEM DROP!
Floating above the carnage, a golden chest spiraled down into Julie's hands.
Her HUD pinged: ULTRA-RARE DROP: PANDORA'S BOX
Julie's grin spread. "Ohhh, jackpot."
She slammed it open.
The chest cracked with blinding light—then ZAP-ZIP-ZZZZAAAAM! dozens of radiant energy beams ricocheted across the mall. They pinballed between walls, pillars, and zombies—leaving trails of glowing afterburn in their wake.
Zombies were shredded instantly, their pixelated health bars blinking into zero. But more importantly—
Several bolts homed in on Lil' Michael.
He spun, he moonwalked, he twirled, beads of sweat flying as he dodged with lightning rhythm.
"Hee—hoo! HAW! HEE-HEE-OHH YEAH!"
But no matter how fast he danced, three of the blasts clipped him in succession—
His health bar chunked downward.
35%<--->3%
Lil' Michael staggered, hat tipping sideways, glittering glove sparking with static. He stumbled through one more half-moonwalk before falling to a knee, letting out a warped, groan.
"Shamoooooone!"
Lil' Micheal suddenly looked up at Zeke and Julie, his eyes glowed yellow as he spoke: ' ' Darkness falls across the land, the midnight hour is close at hand. Creatures crawl in search of blood to terrorize y'all's neighborhood! ' '