The moment a horde of possessed inmates charged into the prison cell, John, Copper, and Lena retreated into the hallway.

"Run!" Copper shouted. "Run for your lives!"

John raced next to Lena. "How in the hell did you lose your shotgun?"

"One of those freaks grabbed it and tossed it over the ledge!" Lena answered. "I thought zombies aren't smart!"

"Those are not zombies!" Copper shouted.

"Then what are they?"

"We'll talk later! I see an elevator!" John reached the double metal door and slammed his fist against the button.

The doors sprung open, just in time for John and the others to dash in. He randomly pushed a floor button and watched the doors closed.

The possessed barely reached the elevator as the door closed on them. John leaned against the wall and sighed.

“What floor did you pushed?” Lena asked.

John stared at the yellow button. “Level seven.”

“If you want that collar off, we should head to the security office on level nine,” Copper suggested. 

John tugged the collar. It was locked tight around his neck. Still, it gave him enough room to breathe. “Is it bad?”

“It will automatically shock the living shit out of you if you use a weapon. Every collar was programmed to prevent the inmates from turning hostile against the prison guards. Removing it is your best option, but only the security officer has the tool for that. By the way.” Copper turned toward Lena. “Who the bloody hell are you?”

The zombie crossed her arms. “Lena Newman. I am here to rescue John and the others.”

Copper’s red light blinked. “You can’t bloody do that! They need to fix this prison before they can leave.”

“On who’s authority?”

“The director.” John pushed the level nine button. “He sent Copper to bust me out so we can stop this demonic outbreak.”

“Oh.”

John faced her. “How did you find me?”

Lena stroked her long white hair. “After you got arrested, I went into hiding with the ship. It took me a while to find you because collecting intel from the SPD was hard. I asked a few black market people to help me get the data. In return, I helped them on a risky task. And it worked.”

“What risky task?”

“It doesn’t matter anymore. I am here now, and I guess I’ll be joining your mission.”

“As long as you don’t become a pain in the ass,” said Copper.

Lena glared at the robot. “Can I punch this thing?”

“Copper is our key to move through this complex,” John explained. “Don’t scratch him.”

“I’ll scratch back if he scratches me.”

John chuckled until something banged on the top of the elevator.

“What the hell?” Copper shouted, staring at the ceiling.

More banging landed on the elevator, and tapping sounds crawled all over the exterior. 

John growled like a dog, sensing danger. “More damn company.”