sinister as they appeared. Or it could be just as bad as it seems, said a nagging voice in the back of his mind, and you’re going to die, frightened and alone.
‘Stop it!’ Sam said to himself, standing up and slamming his hands down on the desk. He couldn’t afford to panic; he had to think. Not just for his sake, but for his sister as well. He had to come up with a plan and hope that if he could get Jess far enough away from the city then whatever influence the aliens were exerting over her would fade and perhaps she might wake up.
‘Great, so all I’ve got to do now is work out how exactly I’m going to get an unconscious fifteen-year-old zombie girl out of London,’ Sam said with a sigh. He couldn’t carry her any distance and even if he could figure out how to drive a car the roads were all blocked with abandoned vehicles. He realised that, unless she woke up from her current brainwashed state, he really only had two options. Either he stayed with Jess and waited for her to wake up or he left her here and tried to find somewhere safe to hole up on his own. It was an impossible choice.
Sam suddenly became aware of a low throbbing rumble that seemed to be getting gradually louder and louder. He hurried to the office window and saw that one of the smaller objects that had dropped from the bottom of the main alien vessel was heading in his general direction. He watched as the dark triangular object grew larger and realised with a growing sense of horror that it wasn’t just heading in his general direction – it was heading straight towards him! He ducked below the window, just as a bright, white light flooded the office. He crawled across the carpet, towards the door, as the building’s windows rattled and the white light swept back and forth across the offices. At the top of the stairs leading down to the warehouse area, he looked back over his shoulder just as the window exploded inwards in a shower of glass. Now he could hear another sound: the high-pitched whine of the silver jellyfish-like creatures that had shepherded them into the building earlier. Three of the creatures floated in through the broken window and glided towards the desk, their writhing tentacles reaching out and gently caressing the computer keyboard and monitor. Sam realised now what he’d done. Somehow, his attempts to find signs of life on the internet must have attracted the creatures’ attention and they had traced the network activity back to this location – which meant that now they knew that somebody here wasn’t really quite as asleep as they were supposed to be.
He hurried down the stairs as the three drones spread out, searching the offices for their prey. He reached the bottom of the stairwell and was just about to open the door that led back into the warehouse area when a noise from the other side made him freeze in his tracks. There were more of the creatures in there! He risked a quick glance through the glass panel in the centre of the door and saw several more creatures gliding between the rows of sleeping people, illuminating each of them in turn with a single burst of bright green light. He glanced back up the stairwell and felt a chill as he realised that he was trapped.
Silently heading back up the stairs Sam saw a small window, but wasn’t sure if he’d even be able to squeeze through it. He unlatched it and opened it, wincing at the loud creak from the hinges. He leant out and looked down. It was quite a long drop to the alley below, but there was a drainpipe within arm’s reach that he should be able to climb down, assuming he could first get through the window. He turned round and sat on the narrow ledge before pulling himself backwards through the window with a grunt. He reached out and had just managed to get one hand round the pipe when the door at the top of the stairwell exploded in a flash of green light.
Sam dragged himself further through the window, trying desperately to free one of his legs
‘Stop it!’ Sam said to himself, standing up and slamming his hands down on the desk. He couldn’t afford to panic; he had to think. Not just for his sake, but for his sister as well. He had to come up with a plan and hope that if he could get Jess far enough away from the city then whatever influence the aliens were exerting over her would fade and perhaps she might wake up.
‘Great, so all I’ve got to do now is work out how exactly I’m going to get an unconscious fifteen-year-old zombie girl out of London,’ Sam said with a sigh. He couldn’t carry her any distance and even if he could figure out how to drive a car the roads were all blocked with abandoned vehicles. He realised that, unless she woke up from her current brainwashed state, he really only had two options. Either he stayed with Jess and waited for her to wake up or he left her here and tried to find somewhere safe to hole up on his own. It was an impossible choice.
Sam suddenly became aware of a low throbbing rumble that seemed to be getting gradually louder and louder. He hurried to the office window and saw that one of the smaller objects that had dropped from the bottom of the main alien vessel was heading in his general direction. He watched as the dark triangular object grew larger and realised with a growing sense of horror that it wasn’t just heading in his general direction – it was heading straight towards him! He ducked below the window, just as a bright, white light flooded the office. He crawled across the carpet, towards the door, as the building’s windows rattled and the white light swept back and forth across the offices. At the top of the stairs leading down to the warehouse area, he looked back over his shoulder just as the window exploded inwards in a shower of glass. Now he could hear another sound: the high-pitched whine of the silver jellyfish-like creatures that had shepherded them into the building earlier. Three of the creatures floated in through the broken window and glided towards the desk, their writhing tentacles reaching out and gently caressing the computer keyboard and monitor. Sam realised now what he’d done. Somehow, his attempts to find signs of life on the internet must have attracted the creatures’ attention and they had traced the network activity back to this location – which meant that now they knew that somebody here wasn’t really quite as asleep as they were supposed to be.
He hurried down the stairs as the three drones spread out, searching the offices for their prey. He reached the bottom of the stairwell and was just about to open the door that led back into the warehouse area when a noise from the other side made him freeze in his tracks. There were more of the creatures in there! He risked a quick glance through the glass panel in the centre of the door and saw several more creatures gliding between the rows of sleeping people, illuminating each of them in turn with a single burst of bright green light. He glanced back up the stairwell and felt a chill as he realised that he was trapped.
Silently heading back up the stairs Sam saw a small window, but wasn’t sure if he’d even be able to squeeze through it. He unlatched it and opened it, wincing at the loud creak from the hinges. He leant out and looked down. It was quite a long drop to the alley below, but there was a drainpipe within arm’s reach that he should be able to climb down, assuming he could first get through the window. He turned round and sat on the narrow ledge before pulling himself backwards through the window with a grunt. He reached out and had just managed to get one hand round the pipe when the door at the top of the stairwell exploded in a flash of green light.
Sam dragged himself further through the window, trying desperately to free one of his legs
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