Patient Zero Hero.

It's fucking freezing..Damp, wet, miserable, freezing, cold night.

My toes feel it and the end of my nose feels it..

..I'm getting impatient..

"Any sign?" I bark into my com link.

<"Patient zero hero location on top of abandoned Wayne building across from your locat-">

"I know where the Wayne building is!" I spat to miserable cold to hide anger in voice.

< "Sorry detective Sargent Grey. Looks like four infected guarding the bottom floor.">

"Looks like or.. IS!"

Can't stop riding this young recruit colds getting to me.

< "Is? I mean is..">

Kids starting to get flustered need him calm.

"Take a deep breath kid...look at the monitors...are you sure."

I could tell the kid breathed deep looked at his monitors, before replying.

<"Yes I am sure detective Sargent Grey.">

"Good kid but thats to much of a mouthful when I'm in a firefight. Just call me Detective or Sarge."

<"Copy Detective .">

"Good. I'm gonna cut across Alfred park come round the back of Wayne building, you fly U.A.V over park. Scan every blade of grass in there."

<"On it Detective. Flying drone into park now!" "Scanning --- nothing on monitors-----scan complete park all clear--">

"Keep scanning any change let me know."

<"Copy Detective.">

Sticking to the shadows I moved stealthy. Well, as stealthy as this fifty eight year old carcass lets me. Despite what the scanners say I wasn't taking any chances.

Slowly I made my way through the moonlit park moving from cover to cover.

A quarter way in I come to 'his' statue.

Ten feet tall. Hands on hips, cape flowing, body of Hercules, a smile beneath the cowl.

That Mickey Mouse Disney smile was the biggest lie of all.

Bigger than what was carved into his pedaistill.

'In memory of the great Bat Man. Who gave his life for our city.'

He didn't give his life for this city. He ended his days a disgruntled middle aged has been, pathetically trying to get back into the spot light. Ending up opening malls and pizza kings.

He died choking on his own vomit sprawled on the floor at comic con. After bullying some fan to throw a punch into his long gone abs.

Superheroes everyone loves superheroes, right? Well don't believe all you read in the comics kids there all full of bull. Do you know who really loves superheroes?

Psychos that's who.

Before superheroes these nut jobs ended up locked in padded cells drooling and pissing themselves.

Then along came the legion of tight wearing American paranoia schizo's and suddenly the Psychos have a reason for living n-

-killingggg-fuuck!!

I felt my body been thrown in the air like I was hit by a freight train.

Sweet Jesus on a bike I landed hard. Twenty feet away.

The zombie stood under his statue in the spot I used to be.

<"Detective one of the infected in park. He must have super speed.">

No kidding Sherlock.

I pulled out my hand gun.

Zombie moved like a blur.

I fired.

To call my hand gun a gun just isn't right. It's more like a hand cannon that fires a wall of twenty exploding bullets each one capable of bringing down a rhino.

I call this hand cannon.

'The Bane stopper.'

The zombie wasn't faster than a speeding bullet.

It ripped to shreds.

I got up of my ass and walked over to the corpse that died twice that night.

The infected was under the control of its host patient zero hero who now knows I am coming.

May as well use the front door then.

<"Detective! Are you ok.detective?">

"I'm fine kid. One infected down."

I fired Bane stopper.

<"what was that???">

"Collateral damage kid. Keep cam link silent heading to Wayne building."

<"Copy Detective.">

I walked past his statue with bane stopper in hand. The top of its head blown off. No more fucking Mickey Mouse Disney grin.

So what was I thinking before we were rudely interrupted..

Oh yeah! Super fucking Hero's and Christ how those super egos need those psychos to justify their paranoia.

Ever think it strange how every week in the comics the villians always manage to escape?

Come back to fight another day.

Well in the real world our superheroes let them escape.

I kid you not. I seen it. Over and over.

We'd have the bad ass cornered only to be told to let him go.

'He's to far to give chase.' 'No you can't shoot him that's not sporting old boy.'

No Ming no flash Gorden. No U tubers messaging their super ego.

Yep. They let them go. They where only short of telling them,

'That was a terrible attempt now go off and get better.'

And you know what?

The psychos did.

Another comic book lie the bad psychos never win.

Bull.

Money covered up their successes.

Nine eleven, New Orleans, Japan's tsunami and the assassination of president Hilary.

You'd be surprised at how many times the bad guys won.

Patient zero hero is one of those Psychos success stories.

<"Three infected outside Wayne building 100 metres at your twelve.>

"Understood no point in hiding. It's expecting me."

I walked straight out the park gate and stopped.

The three infected stood guard outside the abonadoned building stirring me down like three gunslingers from some B western.

Fuck John Wayne I shot first.

The middle fell into pieces but the other two turned into blurs before I had time to aim I was on my ass again.

This time bane stopper was ripped from my hands.

The two zombies stood over me.

One was once a fat security guard held bane stopper in his hands.

The other long and thin Was once a down and out, his eyes dead long before he became a zombie.

They looked like an undead laurel and hardy.

The fat one eyes glowed red as he stirred at bane stopper.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." I said looking up. Hardy didn't heed my warning.

Two intense heat vision lazers shot out of his red eyes and melted bane stopper in half.

Hardy dropped to his knees beside me. I stirred into the two black sockets where his eyes used to be.

"That's the problem with new found super powers. No super body to match. Well, something like heat vision is gonna melt your eyeballs and half your brain.'

Hardy fell flat onto his face.

Dead again.

"Well that's another fine mess you got him into." I smiled at Laurel. He didn't appreciate my humour.

Grabbed me by the throat and lifted me up above his head like I was nothing.

Felt my world go black as he squeezed the life out of me.

To hell with it. I had enough of this life anyway.

Then he let go.

I fell down and stumbled back.

My eyes opened and I met his puzzled gaze.

He looked down at his chest. I followed his gaze.

There sticking out of his chest was a long six foot black blade?

He looked at me as if looking for an answer but I was as puzzled as he was.

Then he fell down and I started to put two and two together.

The blade was a rotor blade it was attached to the U.A.V flying drone which someone had crashed landed into the back of Laurel ramming it's rotating blade into his chest.

"Did you do this kid?"

I asked into my com link standing up.

<"Sure did Detective. Figured you needed air support.'>

The kid sounded pleased with himself.

"Hope you like paper work kid. You just totalled a million dollars worth of Gotham PD equipment."

<"Collateral damage, sir?">

I smiled.

"Least your learning kid, what's the
10-20 on patient zero hero?"

<"He's alone, Sarge and still on the roof in Wayne building.>"

"Alright I'm going in."

I walked slowly across the street and entered the abandoned building.

I still half expected Branson the door man to open the door for me.

But Branson hasn't worked the door in over twenty years. No one has worked in the Wayne building for over twenty years.

I found the stairs to the roof by memory and made the long climb up.

So as I was saying patient zero hero was one of the Psycho's success stories'. Just not in the way they expected.

He was called Doctor undead, or was it master undead? or the zombie maker? So many Psychos can't remember half the dumb names we called them.

Anyways, this psycho invented a virus that was gonna rise the dead and create Zombies.

I kid you not again.

He was a third rate Psycho at best but he succeeded he released his virus.

Nothing happened.

The dead did not rise from their grave. No undead. We caught him and locked him up. Thanked our stars we got lucky.

Or so we thought.

Another Lie in comic books.

Hero's never die.

In fact the mortality rate is fairly high most don't last longer than a year.

I know what your thinking Batman, Superman, The Flash, Green Arrow and the old reliables where around for like forever.

But when was the last time you heard of a new hero joining the old ranks?

It's very rare because few if any last the pace.

Yeah.

Hero's die.

When the flash died we realised our doctor zombie? undead? whatever! had succeeded.

The flash or something came back.

The virus only worked on people with superpowers.

Undead flash had the power to infect all it killed turning them into an undead army under its control.

Worse every one it infected had his superpower. We stopped the flash and his infected.

Just.

So a special task force was set up to keep an eye on the super powered.

When they die.

Take them out.

I'm the last member off that task force.

A task force of old Hero's who have no superpowers.

Names Dick Grey. I used to be Robin before it became a dirty word.

I opened the roof door and walked out.

There five feet above the roof.

Floated the super undead.

His heart cold dark and as lifeless as the night.

His dead black eyes barely if at all acknowledging my existence.

Our worst fears have come true.

I turn on the com link.

"Inform president Luther. God has turned. I need back up."