'Karen? What...'
'Don't move,' she hissed through gritted teeth; not taking her eyes from the point on the upper landing.
The next few seconds all seemed to play out in excruciating slow motion for Andrew. Ignoring her warning, he began to turn. As he did, there came a deafening roar from behind and he caught a fleeting glimpse of a black, catlike creature leaping towards him. He was knocked from his feet as the creature landed on his back. Then there was just pain; the beast's huge claws sinking into his skin just below the shoulder blades.
He screamed a great belly scream but it was drowned out by the roar of the Luger that seemed to go off right beside his ear. The creature let out another almighty roar, but thankfully retracted its claws from his back. Andrew looked up to see Karen levelling the gun for a second shot, but before she could the - Panther? Could it actually be a Black Panther? - swiped the gun from her hand; scuttling it out of reach across the marble flooring.
The weight on his back increased, squashing the air from his lungs. The creature seemed to grow both upwards and outwards and Andrew thought it would surely break his spine. The pressure released slightly and he saw a huge bear claw swat Karen on the side of the head; sending her sprawling across the concourse floor. The weight returned and then he felt himself being lifted and thrown. He had time for a brief that was a fucking bear! thought before he landed; the side of his head connecting with the edge of the fountain and knocking him out cold.
After that, there was only darkness.
7
George knew the fastest route to the main concourse was by using the tunnels. But he wasn't willing to let the fate of their friends be decided on the whim of a demented computer. According to the map, the next best option would be through the main warehouse located on the ground floor.
They had both watched in horror as the Panther attacked Andrew and Karen. The monitors were old and dusty, but they couldn't disguise the blood pouring from Andrews back; the redness leaving a vivid smear on the white flooring. Karen had managed to get off a shot which had briefly stunned the creature, but then it had quadrupled in size and changed into a giant bear. It swatted Karen aside as if she was no more than an annoying wasp and then they watched as it sickeningly flung Andrew aside.
Andrew lay motionless against the fountain and George feared the worst. Karen was still moving, but instead of going in for the kill the bear picked her up, tucked her under its arm and disappeared off screen.
The entire attack could not have lasted more than thirty seconds.
There was a minute of stunned silence. George willed the fallen figure of Andrew to move, to give them a sign, but he just lay there motionless with blood pooling around him.
'What the hell do we do now?' asked Thomas.
'We go and help our friends, that's what,' he said, 'And we remain calm. If we start losing our heads, we'll never get Karen back.'
'Where did that thing take her?'
'My guess is the same place as your mother. Come on, let's go.'
They backtracked to the main stairwell which took them on a much easier route to the rear of the main reception. Although they didn't say so, the irony of the smoother passage wasn't lost on them. The main warehouse was still shrouded in darkness and George wasn't too confident of a particularly speedy journey.
'Is this really the only way?' asked Thomas.
'The only way that takes us directly to the centre.'
'The torch is gonna barely make a dent in that.'
'I know,' said George, 'We'll have to stick to the sides. At least then we will be able to keep our bearings.'
They used the light from the reception area to get a good understanding of where they were headed, and set off. There was some residual light for a short time, but pretty soon they were plunged into complete darkness. The torch helped a bit, but only in keeping them within touching distance of the wall. Without it, they would have almost certainly been driven mad by the blindness.
After stumbling around for twenty minutes, George thought they had made only a few hundred yards. He tried to read the map, but without a point of reference it was impossible. They were on the verge of giving up and heading back to the reception, when the light from Thomas caught something shiny against the wall.
'Thomas!' said George, 'Swing that torch back around.'
'Did you see something?'
'I'm not sure, shine it up against the wall.'
He swung the torch in a slow arc against the wall just ahead of them. The first pass revealed nothing, but when he swung it back at a lower angle, it showed a line of flat transport vehicles parked in diagonal parking bays. They were two seater trucks, sat low to the ground and obviously used to transport equipment around the warehouse. To George, they looked like open top golf carts with an extended loading platform to the rear. Each of them had a white cable snaking away to a line of sockets on the wall.
'Do you think they still work?' said Thomas.
'Unlikely,' said George, 'Not considering the amount of dust they’re covered in. But it might be worth a go.'
There were twelve trucks in total and the first six were dead as a dodo. The seventh was humming as if it had power, but they then struck gold on number eight. George flicked a red switch next to the steering column and the entire dashboard lit up, bathing them in a soft glow. There was no speedometer, instead a small computer screen was indicating that battery power was currently 100%.
'Does it have lights?' asked Thomas after disconnecting the power cable and jumping in next to George.
George flicked a few more switches - thankful to have more than just a thin beam of torchlight - and the truck's headlights sprang to life; hurting their dark adjusted eyes in the process.
'Will that do?' said George, squinting against the glare.
'Yeah, but I don't suppose there's a dipped setting.'
George toggled the headlight switch, but it only had an on/off function. He looked at the readout and was alarmed to see it already read 90%. 'This things going to use up juice pretty quick,' he said, 'If we don't get moving, it's going to die in the middle of nowhere.'
Thomas shuddered at the thought of going back to torchlight. 'Do you want me to drive?' he said, 'Looks a bit modern.'
George gave a wane smile. 'I've driven tanks through Holland,' he said, 'I'm pretty sure I can manage a golf cart!'
The controls were a simple drive/park/reverse combo with a brake and accelerator pedal on the floor. He stuck it in reverse and squeezed the pedal. For an electric cart it was surprisingly nimble and it took him awhile to get used to the accelerators sensitivity. Before long though, they were cruising along the warehouse floor with the glaring headlight beams cutting through the oppressive darkness.
George was well aware that time was of the essence and the need to put in as much distance before the power died. He was also acutely conscious that at the speed they were travelling they wouldn't have much reaction time if a stray object appeared in their path. It wasn't quite throw caution to the wind, but it wasn't far off.
It was an eerie journey. The truck was virtually silent apart from a faint whirring and the sound of the tyres on the concrete flooring. The headlights cut a thin beam for them to follow, but either side, it was complete darkness. Thomas still had the torch which he swung around from time to time, but they were now too far from the sides of the building to even make that out. Neither of them spoke, they just silently sat as the dark world passed by.
They had been travelling for twenty minutes and the power readout had already dropped to 30%. George hoped they were nearly there as their ride was quickly coming to an end. He couldn't even think about a return journey, his only thought was getting to Andrew and hoping to god they could do something to help.
Thomas tapped his shoulder. 'I think we're coming to the end of the line.'
At first George didn't see anything, but then sure enough, the trucks beams lit upon a wall directly in their path. The power reading had clicked to 1
5% and secretly, he sighed with relief. The approaching walled section had similar diagonal parking bays but only three trucks parked up. He swung the truck into an empty space, but kept the engine running.
'See if there's a power supply this end,' he said, 'We may need to leave in a hurry.'
Thomas hopped out and grabbed an unattached cable from the wall socket. He plugged it into the truck, but nothing happened.
'Try another,' said George.
In the end they had to go through twenty cables to find one that powered the truck. He slotted it in and the dashboard lights brightened with the fresh power. George turned off the ignition and climbed out himself. Ahead of them was a large set of double doors with the words Main Concourse: Restricted Access emblazoned on it. They headed through and found themselves in yet another dark corridor. There were no working lights, but compared to the complete darkness of the warehouse, it was a relief to have a little residual light seeping through at the end of the passageway. They passed through a second set of doors and found themselves in the glaring whiteness of the main concourse.
'We need to find the tramway,' said George, 'We can work out where they went from there.'
'This place is massive,' said Thomas, 'Where do we even start?'
'Keep on the ground floor and remember this entrance.'
'You wanna split up?'
'No. Not for now. We don't know what else is out there,' he pulled out the revolver and set off towards the centre of the concourse.
Thankfully it didn't take them long to find the central stairway and the elegant fountain. George was doubly thankful, when they found Andrew sitting up with his back against the fountain's edge. He was clearly in pain, but by no means fully incapacitated.
He gave a half wave as they approached, his face a mixture of deep gratitude and relief. 'Nice of you guys to show up,' he said with a grimace as he tried to stand.
'Don't get up!' said George, 'Let me have a look at those wounds.'
'It was a cat. A fucking big one.'
'It was a Panther,' said Thomas, 'We saw the whole thing.'
'You did? How?'
As George cleaned the claw marks with a shirt sleeve and fountain water, Thomas relayed their adventures in the lower levels and the surveillance room. The cuts were deep, but had already started to clot.
'You were lucky the claws only dug in and didn't tear,' said George, 'Otherwise it could have been a real mess.'
'I don't feel lucky George,' he said and pointed to his back, 'This hurts,' then pointing to the bump on the side of his head. 'But this fucking hurts. It turned into a bear! Can you believe it?'
'If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, then no. It explains what happened to Peter though.'
Thomas had gone to collect the discarded Luger, so Andrew pulled George in close. 'What are we up against here George?' he said, 'You said it took Karen. Why would it do that?'
'I don't know. But it wasn't interested in you, probably why you got off so lightly. As soon as you were out of the picture, it just picked her up and went, and that's what concerns me.'
'How come?'
'Because if it was after her, I don't want to think about what might have happened to the two he's already taken.’
Andrew looked at George, wide with fear as Thomas made his way back across the concourse with the Luger. 'That's my wife we're talking about!' he said, 'Has something happened to her?'
'Andrew, you know as much as I do. But I do feel we are close now and I'm not planning on losing anyone on my watch.'
'We may already be too late for that,' he said, and brightened as Thomas approached, 'Is that old gun alright.'
'Looks like it,' he said and handed it to George, 'There's a lot of blood over there and I don't think it's all Karen's. I think she winged it pretty good.'
'Is there a trail?' asked George.
'It's hard to tell, but I think so. Kind of stands out on this floor.'
Andrew tried again to get to his feet and needed George to steady him.
'Are you gonna be alright?' asked Thomas.
'Of course! Twas only a Panther attack. They're two a penny back in Reading.' he took the Luger offered by George and composed himself. He looked from George to Thomas and back to George again, 'It's the bear attacks that are a little rarer. Shall we do this?'
There was an awkward laugh from Thomas and then he lead them back to the scene of the original attack. There was a lot of blood, which George presumed predominantly came from Andrew, but there was also a thin trail leading away from the scene. It could have been the panther/bear, but George feared it could also have been from Karen.
A look passed between them and without a word, they set off behind George, following the trail of blood. The look was more than just an acknowledgment of what they had to do, it was a look that said whatever went down, they would face it together.
8
The last blow from Kane had sealed the deal, but miraculously Elida never fully lost consciousness. She heard the computer voice speak of the other woman and then Kane sending Dex to collect her. She then heard Kane command the computer to eject the pod and ready it for its new arrival. All of this she heard as if from a faraway land. Distant voices that she couldn't quite bring into sharp focus.
And then something very strange began to happen.
At first she thought the giddy sensation was down to the head injury; Kane had hit her pretty hard. She'd never had a concussion before, but imagined the phasing in and out was exactly what it felt like. But then the phasing changed. Instead of a giddy room spinning feeling she felt a coldness steel over her like an inky black oil. Slowly at first, and then gathering speed as her body lost the battle against it. She'd had plenty of out of body experiences before - especially with some of the unknown drugs she'd taken in her time - but nothing like this. This was like a takeover, as if buried inside the inky black coldness was a presence; a presence that wanted full control.
If it had been an instant thing she may have been able to fight it, but it was the gradual way it seeped in, pushing Elida further and further down until she was nothing more than a mere shadow in her own consciousness. When it was fully in control and Elida nothing more than a speck in the mind that was once hers, she felt the thing itself become conscious. With the consciousness came power and with the power, came pure evil.
Lord Lycheen had returned.
9
Dex returned to the lab with the dazed - but still very much with it - Karen in his arms. Still in bear form, he laid her on the waiting platform of the pod. Karen saw this brief respite as a chance to escape and attempted to slide off the pods surface. She was immediately restrained by a giant bear claw around her throat.
'What do you want from me?' she wheezed, gasping for breath and squirming against the power of the thing. 'Let me go!'
Dex didn't speak, but Kane slid into her eye-line on a wheeled office chair. 'Hello my dear,' he said. 'Welcome to the madhouse!'
'Who the fuck are you?' she said, still struggling for breath, 'And where are the two women you took?'
Kane held up a syringe full of blue liquid. 'Oh, they are both still here,' he said absently, flicking the syringes needle, 'As for who I am, you don't need to worry about such details.'
'The fuck I don't! What's in that thing.'
'Oh, this is just a little something to calm you down. Take away some of your...feistiness!' With Dex still pinning her to the platform, Kane held her arm and lowered the needle. Karen struggled and managed to free her arm before Kane pinned it down again. 'You really don't want to be doing that, missy,' he said, 'If this doesn't go in right, you die. Now, we don't want that, do we?'
Karen stared wide eyed at Kane, but did relax a little to allow him to insert the needle and inject the liquid. 'I'm going to kill you,' she said, tears welling at the corners of her eyes.
'Not in the next six to eight hours you're not,' he said and grinned a sneering, lop-sided grin, 'Now sleep tight. You've got a lot of work to
do!'
Karen could already feel a numbness in her fingers and toes. Dex had released his grip and turned back to his human form, but much as she tried, she didn't have the strength to even lift her head. The last thing she heard before she went fully under was a pissed off sounding computer voice.
'GREYFAER TRANSFER COMPLETE,' said the voice.
Kane frowned and looked up from the now fully unconscious Karen. 'What are you talking about? We haven't even connected the new subject.'
'DESTINATION HOST HAS BEEN FULLY TRANSFERRED. THE PROCEDURE WAS SUCCESSFUL.'
'Computer, can you please explain. Only one subject is connected and the new subject isn't even fully anesthetized yet. How can the procedure be complete.'
Whilst their attention had been on Karen, neither Kane or Dex had seen Elida get to her feet and shuffle walk her way to their side of the medical bay. One side of her face was beginning to swell and bruise, but if they had been looking, it would have been the eyes they would have noticed first. Eyes full of cunning and hatred.
'Kristian?' said the figure previously known as Elida.
Kane swivelled in his chair to face where the voice came from. It sounded like Elida, but somehow it didn't. 'What did you call me?'
The Elida thing smiled. 'Kristian Kane,' it said, 'My finest creation.'
Kane rose from his chair, sending it clanking back against the medical pod. 'I would have thought you'd have learnt your lesson by now bitch,' he sneered, 'Don't you know when to stay down?'
'I think you need to show a little more respect here...Kristian.'
'You really think you're clever learning my name, do you? I've had enough of you and your foolishness. Dex, she's all yours. Lose the spare!'
But Dex didn't move. Kane turned to repeat the order, but Dex was staring in awe at Elida. 'Dex,' he said, 'I gave you an order. Finish her!'
Instead, Dex took to one knee and bowed before the battered looking girl with the half shaved head. 'My lord,' he said.
Kane looked from Dex to Elida, unbelieving. 'What are you talking about. She's no lord. She can't be!'
Meadowbank: A dark fantasy thriller (The Shael Chronicles Book 2) Page 21
