by Mike Kraus
Rachel screamed over the sound of the guns. “We’ve got to get our asses out of here!”
Leonard fired off another round as he spoke. “Down or up?”
“How the hell would I know?!” Rachel fired another burst, then dropped out her empty mag and slammed another one in. Her time at the range came back to her in a flash, her muscle memory still good. “You’ve been here longer than I have!”
Leonard thought in a panic, trying to focus while still keeping the creatures in the back rooms at bay. Downstairs with the jail cells was very secure. They could retreat downwards, manually lock all the doors and hold out against the creatures. This had the unfortunate disadvantage of putting them in a position of no escape and they would have no way of acquiring more weapons with which to fight. The armory, though, while moderately small, still had enough room for everyone. Best of all, it was made of reinforced steel that would easily be able to stand up to the creatures’ assault and it was virtually overflowing with armaments. It was still a dead end with no way out, but at least it was a dead end filled with guns instead of prison bars.
Leonard pointed at the stairs and yelled for Marcus and Nancy. “We’ve got to go up to the armory! It’s reinforced and loaded down with more guns than we can use!”
Rachel looked at Leonard, searching his face for assurance that she could count on him. Rachel was tired, both physically and emotionally, and was struggling to keep herself together. Everyone she’d known or met was dead, and for once – just once – she wanted to be able to depend on someone who she could trust not to die just after meeting her.
Nancy’s screams derailed Rachel’s train of thought. “Oh God, they’re coming in!” To the front, the three creatures were just feet from the barricade and had raised the car into the air. Marcus saw what was coming and pulled Nancy back, knocking the two of them on their backs in the lobby. The car smashed through the front of the building, demolishing the barricade in one swift move. It tumbled over two times before coming to a rest on its roof where Marcus and Nancy had been standing. The three creatures leapt on top of the car, poised to attack.
“Everybody upstairs! Move!” Rachel fumbled for the last magazine in her pocket, struggling with it against the bulky backpack that was still on her shoulders. Her chest was on fire, her lungs ached and every muscle in her body was crying in agony for rest. Sam, at least, wasn’t a concern. He was barking wildly at the creatures, but still stuck to Rachel’s side, determined to protect her at all costs.
Marcus and Nancy got to their feet, but only Marcus still held his gun. Nancy’s had been knocked aside when she was pulled back. She tried to reach for it, but Marcus pulled on her arm. “Leave it! Just go!”
Leonard shouted as he charged up the stairs toward the armory. “Everyone follow me, now!”
Leonard McComb | Rachel Walsh | Marcus Warden | Nancy Sims
8:47 AM, April 5, 2038
In the second floor of the police station, Leonard was the first to burst through the door from the stairwell. His shotgun was nearly empty, and he jammed in a few more shells as he ran, pulling them from his pockets and dropping half of them on the floor. The sound of brass clinking on the floor was in stark contrast to the thunderous booms and screams from just outside in the stairwell. Half the screams were human, a combination of Rachel, Nancy and Marcus yelling in both fright and rage, while the other half were the inhuman cries of the creatures.
Round after round was poured into the beasts to very little effect. Of the seven creatures that they knew were after them, only two more had been killed so far. The remaining five were wounded but still very much in the fight. They moved like wild animals, sometimes on their legs and sometimes on all fours, charging at the four and then retreating, hiding behind cover and showing clear evidence of a pack mentality.
Grateful for the few second reprieve, Leonard leaned over, his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. Standing just outside the room filled with food and water, a thought occurred to him. Working as quickly as he could, he grabbed two large containers of water and flung them down the hall toward the armory. They bounced and crashed against the floor and walls as they rolled, stopping just a few feet from the open armory door.
Nancy came through the door next, propelled by a push from Marcus. She stumbled into Leonard, who caught her and held her upright. He pointed at the armory door at the end of the hall. “Get in there now!” Nancy nodded at him and ran for the armory, stopping just inside to look back and watch. A shout from Rachel in the stairwell sent Sam through next. He ran towards Nancy, who leaned down to grab and hold him, keeping him from charging back out to defend Rachel. Nancy grabbed the water bottles as well, pulling them into the armory and rolling them into the corner.
Marcus and Rachel came in next, one right after the other. They paused from firing for a moment as the creatures retreated. They could still hear them, though, as the beasts tore through the lower level of the building, searching for a way to reach the people on the upper floor without facing such a monumental defense.
Rachel ejected her magazine, examined it and shook her head. “Almost out.”
“Same here.” Marcus peeked back into the stairwell. The creatures were still downstairs, and he could see their silver flashes whipping back and forth as they ran along. The building, while still relatively dim, was beginning to brighten with the rising sun, making it easier to navigate and see their foes than before. Light streamed in through the barred windows downstairs, reflecting off the silver lattice on the creatures’ skin, betraying their positions.
Already halfway down the hall to the armory, Leonard shouted at Marcus and Rachel. “You two want to get in here or not?” The pair looked at each other and nodded, retreating down the hall, scanning each room as they went. The creatures still hadn’t followed them up the stairs, and while they all appreciated the break, Rachel became nervous, wondering what they were planning next.
Leonard McComb | Rachel Walsh | Marcus Warden | Nancy Sims
8:55 AM, April 5, 2038
The pause from the creatures’ assault proved to be a short one. From underneath the hallway came the sound of splintering wood and linoleum, and sections of the flooring began to give way as the creatures broke through from below, no longer satisfied with a direct frontal assault.
Rachel ran down the hallway, pushing Leonard and Marcus to hurry ahead of her to the safety of the armory. The armory was built like a giant steel box, and would keep them secure from the creatures even from below. Torn flesh mixed with pieces of wood and silver metal grabbed at the trio as they half ran, half jumped down the hall, hurrying to get to safety.
Taking advantage of the distraction, two creatures appeared in the door to the stairwell, pulling themselves in by the doorframe to gain momentum. Rachel was last in line, but Marcus saw the creatures first.
“Look out behind you!”
Rachel turned to face the first creature as it was mere feet from her. She pulled the trigger on her rifle, firing from the hip in the hopes of slowing it down. The bullet ripped from the barrel, tearing through flesh, bone and metal and skipped off the creature’s heart, sending it tumbling to the ground. The second creature didn’t even glance at its comrade as it leapt over the fallen body to reach Rachel.
Rachel’s rifle clicked, the last round having been spent on the creature that lay twitching in the hall. She held the rifle like a spear, thrusting the smoking end at the other creature’s face in an attempt to ward it off. With a snarl, it slapped the rifle away, knocking it onto the floor where it was seized and torn apart by the hands that were still grasping from below.
A barking came from behind Rachel and she turned halfway to see Sam break from Nancy’s grasp and run towards her.
“SAM!”
Rachel screamed at the top of her voice as Sam leapt at the creature, valiantly trying to protect his master from harm. Unlike in the train car, though, this creature wasn’t surprised by his movements. It deftly moved out of the
way, grabbing Sam by his scruff and throwing him to the ground. Sam yelped loudly as he hit the floor, then tried to scramble out of the way of the hands that reached up for him and from the creature that was coming at him. The creature was too fast, though, and grabbed Sam again, intent on finishing the job.
Time slowed as Rachel watched the creature lean over to deliver a fatal blow to her pet when, from behind her, Marcus appeared, diving at the creature as he screamed at the top of his lungs. This movement did catch the creature off-guard as Marcus barreled into it, knocking it over and freeing Sam from its grasp.
Sam crawled to Rachel as Marcus and the creature tumbled head over heels, with Marcus flailing away at it the entire time. Machete in hand, he hacked at the beast, unleashing a fury that had been building in his body for days on end. Despite the creature’s advantage in weight, height and strength, it was no match for Marcus. He opened wound after wound, gash after gash, tearing the creature’s face, chest and limbs to ribbons. Only when he felt a hand on his back did he stop and whirl around, raising the machete for another blow.
Nancy pulled back and Marcus stayed his hand, looking at her in confusion. “We need to get in the armory! Come on!” Nancy tugged on his arm and Marcus allowed himself to be pulled back towards the group. Rachel had taken up the spare pistol from Leonard and, together, they fired at the creatures reaching up through the floor, clearing a path for Marcus and Nancy to retreat to the armory.
In the midst of the gunfire, as Marcus and Nancy were almost at the door, the hands from the floor retreated, and the creatures in the floor below gave off a great cry. As a group, they thundered for the stairs, racing up and charging at the four.
“Almost out of ammo, people! Get in, quick!” Nancy and Marcus entered the armory and fell on the floor next to Sam, who Rachel had already pushed in beforehand. Rachel and Leonard followed next, firing side by side at the creatures as they emerged in the hallway.
Leonard’s pistol clicked half a second before Rachel’s, and they threw them to the ground. They grabbed the heavy steel door in unison, swinging it shut and spinning the lock. Seconds later they pulled back from it as it reverberated loudly with the sounds and vibrations of the creatures as they ran headlong into it, throwing their entire weight against the solid steel.
Undisclosed Location
March 12, 2038
A hush falls over the frantic scientists and they slow their rush, taking their places at their lab stations as a man in a suit and black tie enters the room. He walks straight up to the woman who placed the phone call, not even looking at anyone else in the room. Nervous glances are exchanged between the scientists, and the woman swallows, her gulp audible in the silence of the room.
“Report.”
The woman passes the man a clipboard with several pieces of paper, each containing a graph. “We still haven’t found the anomaly, but we’re working on it as fast as we can, sir.”
The man thumbs through the papers, skimming through the information. He throws the clipboard down on the table behind the woman. The sharp clap of the clipboard makes everyone in the room flinch. The man stares at the woman and she looks away, unable to hold his gaze. His facial expression is neutral, but his cold eyes have come to life. Fire rages behind them, anger barely controlled seeping through, nearly palpable to anyone who catches a glimpse.
“I’ll return in six hours. You have until then to give me an update, or I’ll find someone who can.”
Without waiting for a reply, the man turns around and leaves the room, walking out of sight down the hall, past the large windows and adjoining rooms.
The woman claps her hands, stirring everyone from their silence. “Let’s go, people! David, can you help me down in the receiving and processing rooms? I want to check their tank numbers against what they reported.”
The man who had been working with her the previous night nodded and followed her out the door. The woman mumbles as she walks. “If that jerk thinks he can scare me, he’s got another thing coming.”
“Susan, please be careful. You know better than to mess with Mr. Doe.”
“And what’s up with that name, anyway? Two years I’ve been here and everyone still calls him ‘Mr. Doe.’ Does he really think anyone believes that phony name?”
David and Susan exit the hallway into a large room, easily ten times the size of their lab. Large doors at the back of the room are connected to passages leading outside, where trucks make regular deliveries, backing down the passages to empty their cargo in the room. Boxes, barrels and crates are stacked near the doors, indicating that a shipment has recently arrived. Across from the doors stand large vats, connected to each other by a maze of pipes.
Several of the pipes from the vats connect into metal structures with clear windows on the front, along with computer screens and touch sensitive controls. Digital monitors show the construction process inside the structures, indicating temperature, percentage of foreign contamination in the raw materials and average hourly output numbers.
The entire room is automated, and only two technicians are present, walking around the room and verifying that everything is working as intended. Susan and David motion for the technicians to come over and they hold a whispered conversation.
“We need to see your intake stats for the last couple months, guys.”
The technicians look at each other questioningly, noticing the emblem on Susan’s lab coat that marks her as one of the few individuals in the complex who have nearly full access to everything onsite. “Sure thing; what are you looking for?”
Susan shook her head. “Can’t answer that, sorry.”
The technician points to one of the monitors on the assembly line. “This should have everything you need. Anything else, just let me know.”
The technicians wander off to another part of the room, whispering as they watch Susan and David work the machine, looking for any signs of foul play. Minutes pass and David jabs a finger at the screen, pointing out a series of numbers and dates.
“Wait, stop there. See that?” Susan stops scrolling through the information and looks to where David is pointing. For a few seconds she doesn’t realize what he means, then she looks at her clipboard, comparing the numbers to what is on the screen.
“No, this can’t be right. We get our numbers straight from the source, no interventions. How is this possible?”
Susan calls the technicians over, motioning at the screen as she interrogates them. “Who’s been monitoring this feed?” The shorter of the two technicians coughs and she turns to him, her voice bordering on anger and frustration. “A few hours ago, the numbers I reviewed in the central database showed a ten percent drop. These show that the level’s fine. When was this thing last calibrated?”
David taps Susan on the arm and she turns to him. “What?”
He says nothing, merely pointing at the screen. They watch as the numbers on the screen change, increasing and decreasing. The technicians gasp and move to the screen, but it shuts off as they touch it.
“Those were archive records! How could they be changing?”
Susan picks up the closest phone and dials the same number she did a few hours ago. “Sir, we found a source. Fabrication Echo, intake and processing. The archives’ records were being changed in real time as we watched.”
“Order a lockdown. I don’t want anyone in or out of the facility until the source has been traced and the violator’s been found.”
The line goes dead and Susan keys in a new set of numbers. Speakers overhead in the room crackle as the complex-wide speaker system is engaged. Alarm klaxons sound in the distance, signaling the closing of all doors in and out of the complex.
“Attention everyone, the facility is now under lockdown by the direct order of Mr. Doe until further notice.”
Leonard McComb | Rachel Walsh | Marcus Warden | Nancy Sims
9:09 AM, April 5, 2038
The four in the armory were quiet as the banging outside went on for hours. The creat
ures attacked the structure at every conceivable point, but were unable to penetrate the thick steel frame. For the first several minutes, each impact brought with it the certainty that this was the time they would break through. Once it became clear that the room was built too well to fall under such a barrage, the four began to relax, covering their ears with their hands and staring at each other. Unable to speak over the noise, they sat cross-legged in the room, hoping that the creatures would give up soon.
When the assault finally ended, it stopped as quickly as it had begun. With one final thud against the door, silence reigned over the armory. The four took their hands off their ears slowly, their heads aching from the onslaught.
Leonard was the first to speak as he stood up and rubbed his hands and head. “Ho-ley shit. Persistent little bastards, aren’t they?” Rachel, Marcus and Nancy all stood up as well, rubbing their extremities to get the blood flow restored.
