Unleashed: A Science Fiction Horror Adventure (NecroVerse Book 1)

by Aaron Bunce

  Randle looked at Anna, but doctor Reeds spun and caught her first, moving her out of the big man’s reach. The young male nurse pushed Randle in the chest just then and fought to move past and get to Jacoby, but the big man shook his head, mumbling something over and over again, and snagged him by the scrubs.

  “L-i-t-t-l-e p-u-k-es, l-i-t-t-l-e p-u-k-es, no good, no g-o-o-d,” the big man moaned.

  “What in hell is wrong with him? Why did he do that…hurt him like that? Argh! Let me go, I want to…need to see if Jacoby is alright,” Anna argued and fought. She heard a commotion behind her in the hall, but before she could turn to see what it was, Randle swung the nurse around, tossing him into the wall.

  The young man hit with a crash, his breath exploding out in a loud uuuugh.

  “Don’t just stand there, Bob, do something. He is out of control!” Reeds yelled at the other orderly. Randle pulled the ailing nurse away from the wall as Bob glanced between Randle and Reeds. He took a single, faltering step and raised a hand, but stopped.

  “Where is security?! I want them here NOW!” Reeds screamed.

  “Randle…hey, bud…” Bob said but jumped back as Randle snapped forward suddenly, driving his forehead into the male nurse’s face. The young man jerked back, blood spattering from his nose and mouth.

  “Another little p-u-k-e,” Randle cocked his arm back, fist clenched, bloody knuckles pulling white in the bright light.

  Anna looked from the nurse slumping in the big man’s grasp, to his bloodied knuckles poised to strike, and pushed away as she tried to fight clear of the doctor. She’d heard the sound of his fist smashing into flesh before, and knew somewhere deep inside that he’d kill the young man unless someone stopped him.

  Saliva slid free from the corner of Randle’s mouth, his tight, freakish smile seemingly locked in place. The big man rocked forward, but his fist froze in the air as a bizarre clicking-laugh filled the room.

  “Oh, R-R-Randle, R-R-Randle, R-R-Randle.”

  Reeds stopped trying to hold her back and they turned as one. Randle let go of the nurse, the young man immediately falling to the ground in a heap.

  “White shirt…white pants…eyes of white and black. Blood on white. Red…red on white. The color of anger and blood. So…so strong and tough, beating on little pukes. Little pukes like Jacoby. So strong…so tough…so big and angry. Just…like…father. You shouldn’t have hurt him…broke his head, cause now he can’t hold me back!”

  Randle grunted and swung around as Jacoby pushed up from the ground, his head lifting slowly off his chest. His body looked limp, only his legs moving as they propelled his body up the wall. He looked like a horrible, bloodied puppet.

  “Jacoby?” Anna whispered, but the voice couldn’t have come from her friend. It didn’t sound anything like him.

  “Randle, don’t! Please, just stop!” Reeds yelled and took several large steps towards the orderly. “We can sort this whole thing out…make it right.”

  “L-i-t-t-l-e p-u-k-e,” Randle growled in response, his hands clasping into fists.

  “Dude…Randle, just shut up, man. Get out of here and get some air, bro. You’re out of control,” Bob spat, the smaller orderly stepping forward and trying to take control. He turned to Jacoby. “You talking in riddles now? You fuckin’ freak! Get on the ground and put your hands behind your head. This whole thing is your fault, so just get on the ground. Do it now, or I’ll put you down hard.”

  Jacoby laughed again, but stopped suddenly and looked around, his eyes focusing in on Anna. He mouthed her name, and then looked to Randle and the male nurse bleeding on the ground.

  “Anna…what’s going on?” he asked. He looked groggy, confused, but then his expression changed, a strange smile curling into place.

  He pushed away from the wall and took a step towards her.

  Randle grunted and snorted, cutting him off, bloodied, tattooed knuckles lifting to strike, his eyes bulging and wide.

  “Crush, whoop, pummel, poor little Jacoby. Smash him, beat him…break him! Put him on the ground, just like father did. Why R-R-Randle? Because he doesn’t like to hurt, doesn’t like to make bleed. Not like you, R-R-Randle. Not like father. Red on white…blood on skin,” Jacoby said. She could see his mouth moving, see his chest rising and falling as he breathed, but it wasn’t him. It wasn’t his voice. This was strange, distorted…twisted.

  Then Jacoby’s face twisted again and he blinked. He looked to Anna, confusion written plainly on his face.

  “What in the fuck are you talking about? You were the one making a scene, freak…fighting back when the doctor was just trying to help you. We’re just doing our jobs. Now lie down on the ground, and put your hands behind your fucking head,” Bob spat and wedged his body between Jacoby and Randle.

  “No. Jacoby cowers. Jacoby wouldn’t fight back, but not anymore. Now, Jacoby has me. You shouldn’t get in our way. Go-go-go.”

  “Has you? Get in our way? What in the fuck are you talking about?” Bob asked, but Randle cut him off.

  “Little p-u-k-e’s not going anyw-h-e-r-e,” Randle growled, his voice rumbling.

  Bob turned back to Dr. Reeds, but the physician didn’t seem able to speak. Reeds looked to the nurse on the ground, the young man cradling his bleeding nose and moaning quietly. He met Anna’s gaze, mumbled something else under his breath, and looked back to Randle.

  Why isn’t he doing something?

  “Okay…sure, Jacoby, we’ll let you go. We’re just gonna take it easy now and head to a private room down the hall,” the smaller orderly said. His voice was quiet, his movements slow and measured, as if he was disarming a bomb.

  “Put the little p-u-k-e d-o-w-n,” Randle snarled, quietly, his fists shaking.

  Jacoby’s eyes moved away from the orderly, first to Anna, and then over her shoulder. She heard people enter the exam room behind her – the soft tread of shoes in the hall the only indicator.

  Anna half-turned, catching the movement out of the corner of her eye. Several station security officers slipped through the door. They wore slim, black body suits, gray honeycomb armor accentuating their knees, elbows, chest, and shoulders.

  “Gotcha,” Bob exclaimed behind her, and she turned back just as the orderly jumped forward and pinned Jacoby’s wrists to the wall.

  No!

  Jacoby’s smile widened and he moved in a blur. Bob lifted free from the ground, cried out, and tumbled back into Randle.

  The big orderly seemed to snap awake at the contact, his trembling form exploding into motion. Bob tried to jump on Jacoby, but snapped back as Randle yanked him by the shirt.

  “What in the f…” Bob cried as his counterpart flew into a rage. Fists and knees flew, Bob taking a knee to his ribs before a punch to the back of his head. He turned on Randle, his right fist swinging around in a wide punch, but the bigger man struck first, his elbow swinging up and catching him in the chin.

  Strong hands clamped around Anna’s arms and they pulled her back. She fought against them, but they were too strong.

  Doctor Reeds turned and started yelling, spittle flying from his lips.

  “Stop him…stop all of them!”

  The nurses ducked out of the way, pushing past the doctor as more security officers tried to force their way into the small room.

  Randle hit the smaller orderly over and over again, the man’s head snapping back and forth violently. The nurses were gone, and then the doctor. The security officers pulled them out into the hall.

  Anna watched as Randle threw Bob across the room, the smaller orderly almost pirouetting through the air before crashing against the stainless steel table. Randle turned his rage towards Jacoby, just as the security officer pulled her towards the door.

  “Jacoby! No! Leave him alone!” Anna screamed. Randle’s fists flew, his neck almost as red as his bloodied knuckles.

  “Miss please, we need you to get out of the way.”

  “No…stop him! He’s a monster. He’s going to hurt my fr
iend, my best friend,” Anna screamed and pointed right at Randle. The security officer turned, reached for a white baton on their belt, and managed a single step towards the two men.

  The big man’s fist swung in at Jacoby’s face, her friend just standing there against the wall, his expression and posture placid, bored. Then she blinked and Randle’s fist was in Jacoby’s hand.

  The orderly howled and reared back to swing with his other fist as more security personal crowded by, pushing her towards the door. Jacoby’s other hand caught the orderly’s fist out of midair, and then his face twitched.

  “R-R-Randle. You like to hurt…see pain…feel it? Does that make you feel powerful? Is it exciting?” Jacoby said, suddenly, his voice filling the room. They pushed her out through the door just as Jacoby smacked Randle’s hands aside and caught him by the throat, somehow hoisting the big man clear off the ground with a single, outstretched arm.

  “Put him down! Do it now!” one of the security officers yelled.

  “Down? Why down? I don’t want to hurt you, but R-R-Randle and I have some things to t-t-talk about,” she heard Jacoby say.

  Anna fought free from the security officer’s grasp and pulled herself back into the doorway. Four security officers surrounded Jacoby, the ends of their batons glowing red. She sucked in a breath to scream his name, to scream for them all to stop, but Jacoby turned and looked right at her. His dark eyes shone in the light, a strange, creeping shadow playing just beneath the skin of his face. His tongue flicked out of his mouth, and then he grabbed Randle with both hands and threw him into the air.

  The big man hit the ceiling, his bulk crashing into the remaining light in a shower of sparks and shattering plastic.

  “Jacoby!” Anna screamed as the room fell dark.

  They were in the hall next, the security officer dragging her along, moving towards the reception area. As soon as the officer stopped pulling, Anna tried to run back down the hall. She only made it a few steps.

  “Listen…I need you to stop. Please!” the officer yelled and jerked her back around.

  Anna tried to listen, tried to comply, but she couldn’t seem to break free from the compulsion to run, her arms and hands itching with the need to punch and hit.

  “Look at me!” the officer said. Her voice was husky and strong, the kind of smoky, sultry she remembered from her father’s cherished antique records. The thought grounded her a bit and she was finally able to still her legs, to stop moving.

  It was jazz. That’s what it was, she thought, regaining a bit more of herself. The scrolling scales of trumpets and saxophones, overlaid by sultry, sexy female singers.

  The security officer reached up, unclipped her helmet and pulled it off. Anna looked into her green eyes, the connection snapping even more of the fog away. The officer was taller than her, wider through the shoulders and chest as well. The sides of her head was cropped close to the scalp, but thick auburn hair swept back on top – and not the fake red she saw on so many women, but the real deal. Her complexion was creamy and smooth, the kind lucky women took for granted, wealthy women paid handsomely for, and the rest lusted after.

  Anna sucked in a breath, shook her head, and shuffled her feet.

  “I’m…I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me. I think it…”

  “Adrenaline. They call it ‘fight or flight’. It can make your vision tunnel and make you lose fine motor functions. I used to be a soldier and know it well. Keep your eyes moving and your brain engaged. Are you alright? Are you okay?” the officer asked.

  An angry buzzing noise sounded from the exam room and something crashed against the wall.

  Anna nodded, her eyes dropping to the patch sewn into the front of her bodysuit. It read A. Miranda.

  “What is your name?”

  “Anna,” she said, her voice shaking.

  “Anna, I’m Alexandria, but everyone calls me Lex,” the officer said, and scanned the chip in her wrist with a compact data point.

  “Ja-Jacoby. Please, don’t let them hurt him. This isn’t his fault. The orderly…he just went crazy.”

  Lex searched her eyes and took a breath to respond, just as another crash sounded in the exam room. One of the security officers stumbled into the hall and smacked hard against the opposite wall a heartbeat later.

  “Shit,” Lex swore.

  “Listen, I need you to wait out there. I have your data. If I can’t find you, I’ll message you on your com,” Lex said, pushing Anna towards the waiting area.

  “But…but,” Anna stammered, just as Jacoby appeared in the hall. He held Randle at arm’s length, the big man’s feet kicking and thrashing violently, his head and face bright red.

  “Drop him! Let him go, let him go! I’m not going to tell you again!” a security officer yelled. He hung around Jacoby’s neck, jabbing his stun baton into his back over and over again.

  “Bad R-R-Randle. Bad R-R-Randle. Doesn’t like it when others hurt him…does he?” Jacoby growled, smacking the big man into the wall repeatedly.

  Anna stumbled back down the hall as Jacoby flicked the officer from around his neck, tossing the man back into the darkened room. Lex approached, pulling her baton from her belt, the stun prong flashing from green to red. Jacoby looked at her and laughed.

  “Red! My fire…my hot, burning fire. You are the one I want,” Jacoby said, as Anna stumbled out of the hall and into the waiting room.

  1430 Hours

  Anna fell against the nurses’ station. Her head spun and legs shook, the sour taste of stomach acid creeping up her throat and into her mouth. She walked her way around the desk, but fell to her knees and crawled the rest of the way on her hands and knees. Anna barely made it to the trash can before throwing up.

  Her stomach cramped hard, buckling her over. Wave after wave of nausea rose up, pinching her guts all the way down to her privates. Anna emptied her stomach into the waste can, the plastic confines magnifying the sound of her retching. Hot, sour ick choked her throat. She pushed and pushed, her body fighting against the cramps, telling her she needed to breathe.

  A wave of darkness washed over her vision, the blinding canvas exploding with bright, brilliantly colored spots. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she finished and gasped in a ragged breath.

  Anna slumped back against the can and wiped her mouth on her sleeve. She swallowed – her throat and stomach were soar, the thick sensation and sour taste lingering in her mouth.

  “Ehh, lovely, Anna,” she grumbled, sniffled, and bent forward to spit into the can. She grimaced, and it wasn’t just from the smell. Paper and office waste filled the bottom of her can, the refuse now spattered with her sick.

  “Oh my god,” she whispered, gagging, “what did I eat that was blue?” A red bubble formed in the slimy mess, sliding down the piece of paper before breaking with a quiet pop.

  “At least you didn’t…piss your pants,” she said, reaching down and checking her pants. Anna let out her breath slowly, burped, and pushed up onto her knees. She looked around self-consciously and found the waiting room had gone quiet.

  It wasn’t full anymore, and most of the people had moved to the back, away from the desk and the hall.

  They’re afraid…afraid of Jacoby.

  She looked from person to person – the faces all drawn and pale, with red noses and dark bags under their eyes. Anna listened for a moment, her belly rumbling noisily as she tried to decipher what was happening to Jacoby. She heard voices, raised voices, the thump and squeal of rubber soles slapping the ground, and an occasional thump.

  Is he still fighting? Why is he fighting? And why did he say those things to the redhead…Lex. Why did he tell her that she was the one he wanted?

  Anna suddenly doubted everything? Did she really know Jacoby…like, really know him? Was he involved with Lex and she not know it?

  Anna gagged and burped again. She leaned over the can, heaved, and spit. She looked up to find the people moving away from her – some shuffled towards the ex
it, while others whispered to one another and settled into seats further away.

  One face stuck out of the crowd, the woman’s pointed jaw and pronounced cheekbones forever locked in Anna’s memory.

  Janice – the skeleton queen.

  Janice eyed Anna for a long moment, her glossy fingernails tapping loudly on the plastic seat next to her, and then she tipped forward in a violent coughing fit. Janice swiped at her mouth and nose with a tissue before rocking back in her chair.

  “You’re the girl, aren’t ya?” she croaked as Anna pushed off the ground.

  “I’m sorry?” Anna looked down at the waste can. She considered kicking it back under the desk, but then thought better of it.

  “I remember your face from his personnel file. Saw Jacoby at the desk, saw you with him. Been sitting here the whole time. Been waiting the whole time with everyone else. We heard the commotion in there. Heard him fighting with the doctors,” Janice said, stopping to blow her nose.

  Dark mucus blew right through the tissue, spattering her pants.

  “Ugh…this damn bug,” Janice spat, pulling the tissue away and looking at her pants. A glob of black mucus hung suspended from her nose.

  Anna jumped away as Janice snapped forward suddenly, the dark mess spraying everywhere. The people seated on either side of her recoiled, shielding their faces and complaining.

  “Oh, shut up!” Janice yelled, beating her fists against her thighs. She ripped a stack of tissues out of her pocket and began swiping at her face.

  The man to her right got up from his seat and walked.

  “That’s right, walk away,” she raged shaking a tissue at his back. “This shit…this nasty, ugh…” Janice raged, barring her teeth.

  Anna stepped back and moved to walk away, but could barely turn before the woman was out of her seat and blocking her path.

  “I was fine…you know, dandy, before this…his shit. Before Jacoby started fucking up – at work…all the time, like nonstop. And now look at him – can’t even take his administrative days off without screwing those up. Here he is at the clinic starting fights with doctors and nurses. Don’t get comfortable, sweetie, with your perfect, pretty hair and your skinny little waist. He’s gonna screw up again on the job, and I mean soon, and then I can send his ass packing on the next freighter. Fitting, too cause he comes straight to the clinic and gets right in. The rest of us have been sitting here forever,” Janice chattered angrily, her lips moving faster and faster. Anna wanted to push the woman, to smack her in the mouth, but a fresh line of dark mucus ran from her nose and over her top lip.