Cops, Robbers, and Zombies
The zombie outbreak reached its tenth day. The world creaked along, somehow still turning. Zombies had become easier to spot, and I was already planning for the future.
We had been living like nomads, drifting from place to place in the camping car. Sometimes we stopped at convenience stores with shattered glass doors to grab supplies. Other times we’d swerve to run over a zombie that suddenly lunged into the road, or sit stuck in traffic caused by some accident involving the undead. We even flinched at the sight of police cars with their sirens blaring.
Still, we steadily prepared for what was coming. Today was no different. We parked on the side of the road and reviewed our data.
‘The public authority has to collapse. No question.’
Tap, tap, tap. My fingers drummed on the table as I glared at my old flip phone. On it were the role models I’d studied for so long: drug cartels, mafia families, street gangs, terrorists. Could there be better teachers or seniors than the marauders already thriving in this apocalypse?
The first lesson I’d learned from those seniors was simple. The closer security got to a complete vacuum, the easier it was for outlaws to operate. That truth applied perfectly to the world right now, sliding deeper into the apocalypse.
Even basic logic agreed. Who was the marauder’s greatest enemy? Public authority. Therefore, public authority had to disappear. Starting with the police, for example.
‘Of course, this is a long-term plan.’
The world was still functioning, more or less. It wasn’t like I could wipe out every cop in the city overnight. But writing scenarios in advance to accelerate the collapse was only smart.
I spread the dark wings of my imagination wide. All kinds of vile, filthy terrorist tactics. Zombie lure bombs, biological attacks, splitting up small groups to draw them in before striking, subcontracting with other crews for joint assaults. I surprised even myself with how freely the ideas flowed. Was I really this kind of person?
“Ugh.”
I suddenly rubbed at the goosebumps crawling across my skin. It felt like my mind was rotting. I hadn’t been this kind of person before. The apocalypse had twisted me. To think it could turn an ordinary aspiring scenario writer into… this.
Around that time, Jeon Dohyeong glanced over at me.
“Are you cold?”
“A little. Isn’t it supposed to be spring? The weather’s weird.”
I changed the subject. He wasn’t a comrade I trusted enough to share every single plan with.
“You done checking?”
“Yeah, more or less.”
Jeon Dohyeong set down the red, blue, and black markers he’d been using to scribble all over several maps. Beside him lay the phone that had been printing out the data he’d gathered. While sharing data via hotspot with my old flip phone, he’d searched the city’s major districts. Police stations, police boxes, large supermarkets, hospitals—places that mattered in an apocalypse.
He spoke slowly, dragging out his words.
“I found some police boxes and stations that probably have firearms.”
His voice trailed off. He pointed at a few spots on the map, watching my reaction.
“Pretty much anywhere should have at least a taser or a handgun. There’s also a station with a regional armory that stores reservist weapons, and another that keeps hunting shotguns… So, maybe—”
I could guess what he was about to say. It sounded like the electricity thief was suggesting we rob a police station. Apparently, even though he was scared of zombies, he got excited at the idea of stealing from the state. His hands were even trembling, like he could barely contain his thrill.
“Wait, you’re not seriously suggesting we—”
But I waved my hand dismissively, looking horrified.
“What are two people supposed to do against a whole police station? We couldn’t even take a police box or local precinct.”
I quickly calmed him down. I had to stop this bold electricity thief before he did something stupid. If we were going to raid a station, we’d need more zombies on the streets, fewer police officers, and a crew of juvenile offenders to subcontract the job with. Plus, I’d need more people in my group first.
Jeon Dohyeong let out a disappointed sigh, his whole body slumping.
“Ah… I guess you’re right?”
The way it sounded like a sigh of relief was probably just my imagination. After all, this guy was a wicked electricity thief.
‘Managing even one comrade is exhausting as hell.’
Like the vicious criminal he was, the chances of betrayal or some reckless stunt were high. Just having him nearby wore on my nerves. I almost rubbed my eyes out of habit, then stopped, suddenly afraid of the virus, and lowered my hand.
Instead, I brought up the next objective—something that would definitely catch the electricity thief’s interest.
“A police station is too much. Instead, let’s rob some cops.”
“…Huh?”
Jeon Dohyeong blinked. He looked like he couldn’t believe his ears. His fingers started trembling again.
‘Looks like he likes the idea.’
He might not be ideal as a core member yet, but he definitely had the makings of a marauder. Having even one marauder comrade meant I could do things I couldn’t manage alone.
I smiled contentedly and made a gun shape with my fingers.
Bang.
“We need to get our hands on a handgun and a taser.”
Because zombies were too terrifying. If I had to fight them up close, I could get infected with the virus. That was genuinely frightening. Safe ranged weapons were an absolute necessity. They’d be useful even against opponents who weren’t zombies.
“…Having guns would be nice, but—wait, we can’t attack the police!”
Jeon Dohyeong suddenly jumped up in alarm. Since he used to secretly steal electricity, maybe outright robbery felt too raw? It seemed his reason had overpowered his thief instincts.
I frowned. There were plenty of justifications I could give him, or words to reassure him. The apocalypse was here, so why worry about the police? We needed to weaken them. They were already busy running around catching zombies, plus they had all sorts of other problems to deal with…
But I gave up on all of it and slammed my hand on the table. Jeon Dohyeong flinched and shrank back.
“Just listen to the scenario first. You need to hear what we’re actually doing.”
“Ah, okay…”
Jeon Dohyeong answered weakly. I leaned forward and held up one finger.
“Step one. First, we prepare a comrade.”
“A comrade all of a sudden? For attacking the police? Is that even possible?”
It was a reasonable question. He was doing his part as a comrade by pointing out holes in the scenario. I couldn’t get mad at that. I nodded and spoke the name of the reliable ally who would help us attack the police.
“We’ve got zombies, don’t we?”
Zombies could become comrades. They could draw the police’s attention and focus, tie up their feet, and even provide offense and defense. I continued speaking to Jeon Dohyeong, whose mouth hung open.
“We just need to find one. Step two. We report the zombie sighting to the police.”
“…Then we ambush the cops who come to subdue it?”
I nodded vigorously. Exactly. Right now, the police were the primary agency handling zombies. They dispatched officers according to the number of zombies, shot them with tasers, and once the creatures were paralyzed, cuffed their wrists and ankles.
“From what I saw online, one zombie only brings about two officers. And while those two cops are focused on the zombie, what if we ambush them?”
“It does seem doable…”
Jeon Dohyeong’s expression turned intrigued. He had clenched his fists without realizing it and was leaning forward. I drove the point home.
“They always come in pairs. One carries a handgun, the other a taser. If the ambush succeeds, we get both.”
Weapons that could take down a walking virus bomb from a distance. There was no way he could resist that.
Jeon Dohyeong wavered between instinct and reason for a moment, then squeezed his eyes shut. From his slightly parted lips came the words I had planted.
“The world really is ending… If lunatics like this are already showing up, we definitely need weapons…”
Was he insulting me after I’d saved his life twice? I frowned, ready to scold him, but he opened his eyes first.
“Let’s do it.”
“…Good.”
As long as he had the motivation, that was enough. This wasn’t some minor thing; we were talking about ambushing the police. I hid my unease and refined the scenario a little more. I didn’t mention step four yet.
And like a location scout searching for the perfect setting to match a movie script, we drove around looking for a suitable place.
A suitable place meant somewhere without CCTV. Or at least a spot with clever blind zones. Also, no occupied houses or parked cars nearby. The empty area had to be wide or long enough that we could park the camping car far away and approach on foot. And of course, there had to be a zombie.
These were incredibly difficult conditions to meet in the city, but surprisingly, Jeon Dohyeong provided the answer. He smiled sheepishly and turned his gaze out the window.
“Well, I have a few spots where I used to secretly charge my stuff. I don’t know about zombies, but the rest should fit.”
“Perfect. Let’s go.”
I nodded enthusiastically. Taking in the electricity thief as a comrade had been the right call. Who knew he’d be useful in this way? As expected, you couldn’t judge a person’s potential or abilities from the surface. Everyone had strengths others didn’t.
And so the camping car roamed the city. We even stopped at EV charging stations for quick top-ups now and then.
Jeon Dohyeong showed me one criminal scene after another where he had stolen electricity. Each time, I stared with my mouth open and clapped in genuine admiration.
“There are places like this in the city?”
“You find them if you look.”
At first he looked awkward and embarrassed, but the stronger my reactions, the prouder he became as he introduced each spot.
“This one’s good for late nights. If you only charge for a short time—”
He showed me a farm plot on the city outskirts where he’d opened an agricultural electricity meter on a pole to reveal an outlet. He pointed out a public restroom surrounded by construction barriers in an area slated for development. He even indicated an old public restroom at the base of a sparsely populated mountain.
“Honestly, if you charge for too long you’ll get caught. But if you do it quickly while passing by, it’s fine.”
At this point I was beyond impressed. The amount of power he stole wasn’t even that much. He just enjoyed the act of stealing itself.
‘This guy really is an electricity thief through and through!’
It was almost sickening. Even if the infrastructure collapsed and the power went out, he looked ready to steal electricity by any means necessary.
While I was shaking my head in disbelief, Jeon Dohyeong finally asked in an awkward voice.
“So… where should we do the ambush?”
“That would be…”
I snapped back to attention. The time had to be deep in the night. Since all the locations were decent, we just needed one with a zombie. As night fell, we searched until we found one in a wide field.
A dark field under the cover of night. We parked the car far away and crossed the field for a long time. I was panting by the time I turned on my phone. When I checked the time, it had just passed midnight and the date had changed.
I looked around. A simple farm shed with only a roof and floor, like a pavilion. Beneath an electric lantern, a zombie was shambling about. I spoke quietly.
“Let’s report it to the police.”
Eleventh day of the zombie outbreak. We set out to obtain a weapon that would let us safely deal with the terrifying zombies.