[Following this incident]

[The remains of what had once been Josephine lay scattered in broken heaps, still smoking from the impact of whatever had happened here. Had the mech been bombed? Or had it malfunctioned so badly that it blew itself asunder? It didn't matter. What mattered was the whereabouts of its operator.

Standing motionless amidst the smoldering wreckage and zombie corpses, Slugger is hit simultaneously by a hopeful feeling of relief and a deep sense of dread--relief because Pokey's remains are nowhere to be found, and dread at the notion that he may be wandering around somewhere an infected shell of his former self. And if the latter, then he would have to be put out of such a miserable existence. The matter would be swift and nearly painless.

Slugger's feet begin to carry him away from Josephine's mutilated, metal carcass, his eyes out of focus and his expression blank. He's not upset. No, not at all. Not the slightest bit. Why should he be? What did it matter if Pokey had to die? It wouldn't be the first time. Pokey would be back to normal tomorrow, alive and human. He would be back tomorrow as good as new. It wouldn't matter that his friend hadn't been there to- Yes, tomorrow. He would be back tomorrow. He would be back tomorrow. This train of thought continues while Slugger begins to search for Pokey or Pokey's zombie...

...and continues, until he thoughtlessly allows himself to fall victim to a swarm of zombies. That's when rational thought is violently thrown aside as well as the restless bodies of the undead, shaken off like flies. What rises above them is no longer a boy, but a beast. Soon, everything within a 10 yard radius of his initial transformation is flattened into the earth.]


Action; streets of Mayfield; anywhere
[Thundering up the streets on eight golden wheels is a creature Mayfield has never seen before--a 7 foot tall monstrosity with pointed ears, eyes as solid pink as those of an albino rabbit. His teeth are a dental nightmare that protrude beyond his lips with tusk-like fangs. Vehicles litter the streets, left behind by their zombified drivers. Slugger flips them out of the way like toys. Any zombie foolish enough to be in his path will be crushed to a fine paste beneath his oversized bat.

He's scouring the town and if he doesn't find what he's looking for soon, he will approach half the height of a telephone pole.]