Rent' Apart

[Arkcher]

[right, so I think this is the seventh time I've tried to make this intro, and finally its turning out right.

we'll see if I can get the ball rolling this time.]

 

[First and foremost, while things will be re-introduced this will be a lot cooler and make more sense if you've read its prequel.]

 

[Also, copyright, dont steal my stuff, I wrote it and you didnt, mmkay? mmkay.]

 

 

 

Nathan Torrn leaned back in the drivers seat of his squad car, already very bored with today’s shift.

 

Not too long ago, he was released from the Police Academy, having completed all standard courses there, including a select few advanced classes. This, not being two weeks actually on the force, wasn’t quite as interesting a job as he thought it would be.

 

Calm as could be, he sighed and looked out the window, as few high school students passed this way and that, most of which looked just as lively as himself. Nathan reflected back on what brought him to this career in the first place…

 

His now deceased parents were fairly well-known scientists, majoring in biology and chemistry. They performed well, and had taken a number of years to perfect various ways to perfect and refine the human race, adding disease immunization and heightened perception and senses, along with enabling faster physical and mental build.

Though their work was cut short by a rivaling group of scientists calling themselves Harret, as their imperfect genetically-enhanced security guards were sent for piracy of the Torrn’s projects and decimation of their creators.

 

Nathan was a prime example of the given physical build, being noticeably tall and muscular, while his two younger sisters showed the given cosmetic condition and intellect, respectively.

 

Using his physical strength and ability, Nathan was able to infiltrate Harret and aggressively took out their executive offices, leaving it and its byproducts to destroy itself, leaving Harret labs to decay in to an inert state.

From this, Nathan was sent to a police academy and had more than proven his worth in determination and skill in taking Harret out.

 

“Torrn, you still out there?”

 

A voice crackled through the nearby radio, recognizable as the distinguished Officer Tapper.

 

“Affirmative.”

 

“Boring day, huh?”

 

“’Seems that things only happen around here when you’re off-duty..”

 

“Well, people aren’t about to go breaking the law when they know the police force is right next to them…”

 

“True, but… god, This is not the kind of thing I’d expected for a job like this.”

 

A different voice emitted through the radio’s speaker,

 

“Torrn, report to station B.”

 

“Oop, I spoke too soon. Be right there, sir.”

 

“Busted!”

 

“Oh, shut up, Tapper.”

 

Nathan lazily reached forward and turned the ignition, starting up the squad car, as he made his way back toward a substation. He knew nothing was terribly wrong, seeing how it was Chief Gauda, and his uninterested tone of voice.

 

Then again, it was unusual of the second-in-command chief officer to call out a patrol unit back this time of day. At 2:15 PM, the city of Orgonth was as uninteresting as ever.

 

In a few minutes time, Nathan followed a routine path back to the appropriate substation, and made his way inside, through the back door.

 

“Well speak of the devil, here he is.”

 

Chief Gauda announced as Nathan emerged through the door, drawing the attention of Chief Rimma and two very uninterested officers, who promptly just turned back to their computers and paperwork.

 

"We were just talking about you..."

 

“What can I do for you?”

 

Nathan asked, surprised by Chief Rimma’s presence, who usually stayed in the main station, where he is thought to come up with excuses to not do anything or take responsibility as chief of police.

 

“Couldn’t help but notice you grew bored with todays shift, Torrn.”

 

Nathan shrugged,

 

“You should try it sometime.”

 

Chief Gauda laughed quietly,

 

“We’ve had a project being planned for some time, and feel that since its scheduled to be carried out tomorrow, and you’re assigned to it, You should know about it.”

 

“Sounds good. What do we have?”

 

Nathan walked over to the table covered with various papers that the two executives were standing over.

 

“Finishing off Harret.”

 

Nathan’s heart skipped a beat, not expecting to hear from or of Harret ever again.

 

“… Wow. But, uh, Dare I ask what could possibly be there? I don’t expect we’ll be able to salvage much…”

 

Nathan asked, unsure.

 

“We don’t expect to, either. Then again, we really don’t know what to expect. We’re dispatching you and Officer Denton to go in and take a look.”

 

Denton was one of the other officers present, who looked up and made a quick emotionless wave at Nathan before returning to his paperwork. Denton was notable for taking everything too seriously, giving even the simplest of tasks the sternest attitude, and while he effectively got his job done, it usually wasn’t pleasant. Nathan wanted to protest this pairing, but didn’t want to look bad before those who could easily fire him. Gauda continued,

 

“Over the past few days, we’ve had a few contracted engineers getting some prep work out of the way. They’ve done well to do everything possible outside of Harret, the rest is up to you. Most notable of their accomplishments is control of their delta-grade security, which will allow access to subaltern rooms, which consist of over 60% of the rooms.”

 

“And, of course, higher-security will need in-depth interaction…?”

 

Gauda nodded, smiling.

 

“Exactly. We’ve recovered several beta or abandoned projects, numerous failed attempts at recreating your parents’ work, which is undoubtably one of the most secured pieces of information, supposing it is unharmed.”

 

Nathan nodded, speculating.

 

“Right now, Harret is inert and simply decaying. We cannot confirm anything, but if we can excavate anything… well, At best, we can not only recover the Torrn’s project and finally contribute it to the world in your name, but we can uncover everything else that Harret has done. I’m sure you’re well aware of their ability to genetically engineer and create bioforms.”

 

Nathan watched Gauda suspiciously. What could we possibly use Carnefice’s for?

 

“… Why would we want Harret’s projects? The Torrn project is enough, isn’t it?”

 

Gauda thought for a brief moment, obviously trying to word his response.

 

“We… have little interest in their end products, their.. accomplishments, the aftermath of their efforts. We simply feel it necessary to recover the steps on how to do it.”

 

Nathan felt an aggressive twitch in his left arm, as he got a rush of adrenaline, and tensed.

 

“You want to create more bioweapons, and seize our civilization…?”

 

Nathan snapped back, feeling energetic and rather angry. Gauda raised his eyebrows and stepped back.

 

Nathan swallowed, and stepped back as well.

 

“… Excuse me a moment, chief…”

 

Panting, he strode in to the nearest washroom, and forced up the sleeve along his left arm, revealing the slightly discolored yellow flesh along his bicep, which pulsated slightly, suddenly rather hot. Nathan leaned awkwardly over the sink and rinsed it, cooling it down, and proceeded to splash water on to his face, trying to catch his breath.

 

A long moment later, Nathan approached Gauda once more, having gathered himself.

 

“I, uh… sorry, I lost control.”

 

Gauda eyed Nathan, considering his decision on who to send in to Harret.

 

“Master yourself, Torrn. You’ll regret it otherwise.”

 

Gauda comfortingly put a hand on Nathan’s shoulder, and walked away, back in to his office. Nathan glanced about himself, noticing that Rimma was no longer present. Denton was giving Nathan a slightly annoyed look, as both of them could tell that being paired to cooperate in a task would pose as an obstacle itself.

 

[lol amidoinitrite]

[Horatio]

[ OUTSTANDING !!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for continuing! ]

[Arkcher]

[still trying to get the ball rolling :/ ]

 

Nathan watched as an unwelcome sight became. Not long after sunrise, he and his two sisters were driving an all-too-familiar path, one they had hoped not to traverse again. They drove to the top of a small hill, while the wide structure of Harret emerged in to view.

 

“Nathan, are you sure you have to do this?”

 

Heather spoke up, and Nathan turned around to respond,

 

“aw, There shouldn’t be much left in there. Its been too long, any Carnefices or anything should have starved to death or killed each other or something.”

 

“Harret was always full of surprises, none of which were very pleasant. I don’t see this as much different from last time.”

 

Heather tried to convince Nathan that things were out of order, and that sending just two patrol officers in was too dangerous.

 

“Well, This time we’ll have the police force at our back. If something goes wrong, I think we’ll get some support.”

 

“Like if you get impaled or shot, it’ll be all better because the force is outside..?”

 

Kerrigan remarked, snidely, not looking away from the road as she drove. Nathan sighed, slightly frustrated, but glad that this time there’d be more security with him to keep his sisters from going in.

 

“Nathan. ID.”

 

Kerrigan got her brothers attention and motioned toward two patrol officers, guarding the outer gate to Harret, still in poor condition from Nathan’s passing. He dug out his ID card from inside his jacket, and held it in plain view in front of Kerrigan.

 

“… I can’t see.”

 

“ah, You don’t need to.”

 

Nathan joked back, trying to keep a positive attitude about what he was doing, and pulled back in to the passenger seat to allow Kerrigan to drive them forward.

 

Surprisingly few news and press groups were present, with several more squad cars. Unusual for a project that should involve only a handful of men.

 

Kerrigan parked the truck casually, not in formation with the other vehicles. Nathan got out, and was soon found by Chief Gauda.

 

“Torrn! There you are.”

 

“Reporting for duty.”

 

Gauda half-smiled, but quickly changed countenance.

 

“Alright, cut the formality. You know what’s going on here, right?”

 

Gauda put a hand on Nathan’s shoulder and lead him toward Harret. Gauda was notable for enjoying time off more than he should, and getting things done at his own casual pace but effectively nonetheless. Quite the opposite of Officer Denton, who was standing in plain view, staring at Harret.

 

“Uh, Denton and I are going in and searching out any information we can get. … And, some technical guys and you will be controlling some of the lower-class security.”

 

Gauda nodded.

 

“Yeah, that’s... mostly right.”

 

Nathan looked at Gauda, confused.

 

“About half-way through taking control of Harret’s lower security, we ran in to some problems. A great quantity of Harret’s projects and information is inaccessible. It’s either not stored digitally, or not part of the main network. Some networks we’ve hacked in to lead to projects but cant be accessed, which implies that the computers storing them were destroyed or severed. There will definitely be some damage inside, but, of course, the threats have probably subsided.”

 

Nathan speculated for a moment, recalling the vast armies of genetically altered soldiers at Jared Mills’ disposal, and their various encounters, along with the said force engaging Carnefice’s and Imponitore’s.

 

“Don’t be dissuaded, one accomplishment we’ve made is that any meeting rooms or communication points inside Harret have been hacked, and we believe that they will be effective points for routine two-way communications. We’ll be standing by, but don’t expect any problems to arise.”

 

Nathan nodded in acknowledgement, now turning his thoughts to Officer Denton. Nobody necessarily liked him, and Nathan was no exception to this.

 

“Come on now, Denton is one of our best men. … He may not be much fun, but this shouldn’t be a long project.”

 

“Alright. When are we heading in?”

 

“As soon as you two are ready.”

 

Nathan nodded once more, and searched out his two sisters.

 

“I’ve got my cell. Let me know if anything happens.”

 

Kerrigan rolled her eyes, having heard this same statement countless times in the past. Nathan half-heartedly hugged her, and did the same to Heather, who seemed more annoyed than anything else at this ordeal.

 

“Good luck in there.”

 

Heather stated, still looking irritated. Nathan looked down at her, exchanging annoyed expressions.

 

“I’ll be fine. I don’t think any more Carnefices will be in there, or Seth or anyone else.”

 

Heather didn’t audibly respond.

 

“… Is something wrong?”

 

Nathan asked, uncomfortably.

 

“… No. Just hurry it up and come back out in one piece.”

 

Nathan wasn’t convinced.

 

“look, I just don’t have many fond memories of Harret. They killed our parents and almost killed you. Im just barely recovering from when they shot through me a few weeks ago. Past dangers may have subsided, but what if something new arises in there?”

 

“I doubt it, but like I said, we can call for backup if we need help. Just relax, I should be out in no more than, what, 2 hours..?”

 

“ Well, talking about it isn’t making those 2 hours go by any faster. Get a move on.”

 

Kerrigan interrupted.

 

“Alright, alright…”

 

Nathan turned around and headed back toward Gauda and Denton. Heather was unusually short with him.

 

“Gauda. I’m set to go.”

 

“Wonderful. Denton is on the phone with his wife, so we’ll send you two in shortly.”

[Horatio]

[ Phenomenal !!!!! Thanks for continuing !!!!! ]

[Arkcher]

[ Phenomenal !!!!! Thanks for continuing !!!!! ]

[Oh calm down, nothing awesome has happened yet. XD]

[Horatio]

[ Phenomenal !!!!! Thanks for continuing !!!!! ]

[Oh calm down, nothing awesome has happened yet. XD]

[ But I know your style and it is going to get good!!!!! ]

[Arkcher]

[... but I know your style and ... ]

[ D: They're catching on to my plans! -cowers- ]

[Horatio]

[... but I know your style and ... ]

[ D: They're catching on to my plans! -cowers- ]

[ Yup!!! ]

[Cheesus]

[lol amidoinitrite]

[lol youbedoinitrite]

 

[also, amidoinitrite would be a cool name for a metal alloy or something. like, am-(short i)-due-in-night-right]

[Horatio]

[lol amidoinitrite]

[lol youbedoinitrite]

 

[also, amidoinitrite would be a cool name for a metal alloy or something. like, am-(short i)-due-in-night-right]

[ More like a cold medicine. Of course, you could always have some metal alloy in the medicine! ]

[Arkcher]

“You ready to do this, Denton?”

 

Nathan stood before the main entrance to Harret, next to his companion Denton, who gave Nathan his trademark stern look, not kindly accepting the words of assurance.

 

“… Right. Let’s just go in and get it done.”

 

Nathan glanced behind him, at Chief Gauda who was standing among several engineers, some in trailers or other vehicles, and most in temporary computer set-ups. Gauda gestured Nathan to go on in, who hesitantly did so.

 

Nathan wasn’t sure what to expect, but walked through the doors regardless.

 

Main lobby looked like it would have been an admirable place, to give the building the illusion that it was a peaceful and enjoyable place to work, with a finished reception desk, and Harret’s title embossed in to the wall behind it. The reception desk was slightly scratched and damaged, with a vast number of papers strewn all over it. Nathan knelt down and picked up a few, scanning over them briefly.

 

They generally logged dates and names, who has clocked in at what time, their various accomplishments, ranks and tasks. The names and projects would be of significance, no doubt.

 

Nathan turned around, still able to see outside through the ajar doorway, wondering why nobody has come in to the front room. No more than ten feet in.

 

Regardless, he put the papers neatly on top of the desk, which stood out of place among the other unorganized papers.

 

“Alright… Where to first?”

 

Nathan asked, seeing two options. On either side of the reception desk were two doors, respectively labeled Research and Execution.

 

“… Execution, I’d expect the Research wing to just have unfinished projects.”

 

Denton finally spoke, but doing so authoritatively. Nathan shrugged, and followed Denton through the said doorway.

 

It lead to a hall, with several more doors on either side. The lower half of the walls had a great number of bullet holes and splatters of blood. About fifteen feet down the hallway was a long-gone Harret battalion, with his assault rifle and gear still on.

 

Nathan sighed in frustration, already being reminded of his first time in Harret, finding himself lost in a maze of hallways and research rooms.

 

“Alright, This will go a lot faster if we split up.”

 

“Right. You take that side, I’ll search here.”

 

Denton motioned toward separate side of the hallway, and entered the nearest door on the left. Nathan, to the right.

 

Effectively, nothing was there. A half-destroyed computer which could have contained useful information was close by, but looking at the main PC, it didn’t look like it was blasted apart or ripped, more of forcefully cut and pried open and the insides mangled. Perhaps Harret foresaw its downfall and destroyed any valuable information?

 

An overturned desk, a few shelves with various chemicals and samples on it, and a single biohazard containment capsule which was ruptured.

 

Nathan turned around and exited back in to the hallway and took the next room. As soon as the door opened, a rather foul stench emanated from that room in to the hallway, causing Nathan to step back and gasp. He held his breath and hurried inside, finding it quite evident that he smelled decaying flesh among other chemicals and the like.

 

A dead Carnefice was sprawled about the floor, with an overturned shelf nearby which must have contained test tubes, judging from the broken glass underneath it. Three other battalions were in various positions, all rather decimated. Nathan’s gut wrenched when he looked at them closer; They all had at least three large cavities in their body, which bore the rough shape and size of a cantaloupe. That certainly was new, and rather unpleasant.

 

Nathan hurried back out and took a few breaths before running back in. He looked at the rest of the scenery, and it appeared that a number of desks or shelves were stacked in an effective staircase leading to a coverless vent on the ceiling. Some four feet away from the opening was an impalement, a hole the size of a Carnefice’ tail, which must have taken out a fleeing battalion or scientist. Certainly something that was desperately trying to get away, but unsuccessful as evident by the gore hanging out of the small opening.

 

Bullet holes were found everywhere, along with claw slashes along the walls and parts of the floor. Again, Nathan stepped out, deciding he had seen more than enough of that rooms brutality. He panted for breath for a short while, and ended up looking down at the floor he stood on, and noticed that he was tracking blood in to the hallway with his shoes.

 

… That would mean its still wet, it hadn’t dried… Which would mean that this, assuredly, did not happen more than just a few days ago. Nathan’s heart skipped a beat at this realization, that somehow the Carnefices would have survived this long, or there are still biohazards lurking inside Harret?

 

[OH LAWD

its Resident Evil all over again.]

 

[and its not like you didnt see this coming, you knew it would happen sometime.]

[Horatio]

[and its not like you didnt see this coming, you knew it would happen sometime.]

[ Perhaps, but NOT so soon!!! Thanks for continuing! Keep writing, please!!! ]

[Arkcher]

“Torrn, what’s going on? You aren’t looking too well.”

 

Denton walked down the hallway toward Nathan, who was leaning against the wall, panting, looking rather pale. He gulped, and nodded, and gestured in to the room next to him.

 

Hesitantly, Denton stepped toward the open door, already scowling at the scent. Still in the hallway, he looked inside, covering his mouth in surprise, and stepped back.

 

“… Look… its fresh.”

 

Nathan motioned toward the trail of blood that he brought out, with growing anxiety. He really didn’t want to go through Harret again. Denton looked more angered than disturbed.

 

“This… is not a job for just two patrol officers.”

 

Nathan nodded in agreement.

 

“We’re going right back outside. They need to send in more suited units.”

 

Nathan felt slightly relieved at the thought of not having to take this by himself, and potentially losing his only ally, Denton.

 

“If there was that much damage so close to the entrance, I… What kind of damage would there be further in…?”

 

The two regrouped themselves and slowly made their way back toward the front room. Denton, the self-proclaimed senior, pulled out a handheld radio and announced their retreat.

 

“We have reason to believe that Harret has not died out yet. Send in a few armed forces, then we’ll take a look around.”

 

A response was given, but was drowned out by static. Denton motioned forward, and the two picked up speed.

 

Just as they passed the main reception desk, Nathan slowed down again, cautiously.

 

“… Denton.”

 

Nathan’s voice shook. Denton turned around, agitated. Being still, the room was more quiet.

 

“… Do you hear something?”

 

Dust was falling from the ceiling, in accordance to a hurried scratching sound, which was infrequently interrupted by a light pound. The scratching got louder.

 

Nathan and Denton stepped back, looking up at the ceiling. Something was definitely there, hurriedly digging through the ceiling tiles. A deep rumbling began…

 

“GET BACK!”

 

Nathan grabbed Denton by the shirt and forced him backward in time of a loud snap, followed by a deafening crash as the ceiling above them plummeted to the ground, creating a blinding dustcloud, debris flying everywhere, but the sound did not die down. Numerous cries and shrieks from some animal echoed through the room, and while the dust settled, unmistakably hundreds, thousands, countless small off-orange creatures tumbled down from above, streaming downward, and not hesitating in the least to proceed through the cracked or smashed glass doors.

 

Nathan and Denton continued stepping back in awe, watching as these small creatures poured out and through the now broken doorway, out in to the open. Few deviants landed roughly toward the desk, but turned to the rest of its group. One finally saw Nathan and Denton, and approached them.

 

No larger than an adult house-cat, the bare-skinned creature gazed at them for a moment, with surprisingly vicious looking claws born. It let out a loud cry, before lunging at the two humans, latching on to Denton, who thrashed at the creature trying to pry it off, before Nathan pulled out his pistol and shot at the creature from the side, knocking it aside, now idle.

 

The gunblast drew the attention of the remaining mass of creatures, who must have simply identified them as a threat. All making a rather high-pitched shriek, they swarmed toward their new targets.

 

“Run!”

 

Denton shouted out and sprinted through the hallway door, closely followed by Nathan who slammed it shut, underestimating their capability. They made their way through reinforced ceiling, how would a door like this stop them?

 

In short time, thick silver claws slashed their way through the thin alloyed door, before it gave way to the force of the small creatures, pursuing after their fleeing targets, who aimlessly sprinted down the hallway to its end, bearing much stronger doors.

 

The two rammed the doors open, skidded to a halt and slammed the doors shut again, pushing against it to keep it closed against the force of the door being tackled and clawed, though this time bore little progress for them.

 

“Torrn! Get that… pole!”

 

Denton pointed back at a fallen support beam, rather small but broken in two. Nathan grabbed both pieces and fit them through the handles of the door, as the beating and slashing died down.

 

Denton kneeled down, and Nathan leaned against a nearby wall.

 

“What were those things?”

 

Nathan spoke, not expecting an answer.

 

“You’re the Harret expert around here, Torrn. You tell me.”

 

“well… That exit wont be accessible for a while…”

 

Denton looked up.

 

“A lot of them were escaping outside just then.”

 

Nathan looked back at Denton, as a thought dawned on him.

 

“… That’s where Gauda was. And our alleged backup support.”

 

 

 

[mmkay, so while I continue trying to get the ball rolling, which will involve making like 2 or 3 updates every other day, I have come across a hinderance.

in... the ball-rolling.

 

said hinderance

is that

I bought a Wii o:

 

and right now, swording stuff on Zelda is more important than writing this out.

By the time I have the game beat, i'll have some more updates and awesomes.]

[Horatio]

[ Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you so very much for continuing! You are such a terrific writer! ]

[Arkcher]

[Mmkay.

Again, struggle to get ball rolling, but yeah, This time I have some progress.

I have about half an update worth of story, and a lot of notes for later happenings.

Limited compy access has left me with very much time to consider later events, so I have a much better idea of what im doing now. o:

 

so Update coming pretty soon.

You better. ... do it.]

[Arkcher]

[Long update is loooooong.]

 

“… Well, Maybe those things arent so tough."

 

Denton glanced over at Nathan, who speculated what was now outside. Nathan gasped, and hurriedly pulled out his cell phone and hit the appropriate speed-dial to call Kerrigan. He sunk back down, dreading the thought of what may have happened, but not knowing. His phone had no signal, it was useless.

 

"... Torrn, We need to find one of those communication rooms. Gauda said they would be around, and hes standing by."

 

"Right. Lets get going."

 

Denton stood up, and started wandering about the room. The ceiling wasn’t visible, any lights in the room were near doors, and were pointing downward. Sunlight barely made it through some higher parts of the walls and ceiling, giving the dim parts of the room a blue tint.

 

A series of biohazard containments were stationed off to the side of the room, which looked rather untouched. If there was anything inside or not, there was no telling.

 

“… How do we know where to go?”

 

“We don’t.”

 

Denton coolly responded, still looking over his surroundings. Nathan looked away and shook his head, and restrained himself from making a sharp remark back.

 

“We have two doors to go through,”

 

Nathan motioned to the two lit spots.

 

“Which do we go through?”

 

Denton kept looking around, slowly making his way toward the door closer to them. Nathan again sighed, and followed Denton to the door. As it drew closer, the markings on the sliding door became legible; “OMEGA-DELTA” was painted on it.

 

“… Omega Delta?”

 

The two said at the same time. Nathan stepped up toward the door, and placed his hand on it.

 

"... How do you open it?"

 

Nathan asked, looking it over.

 

"Whats that on the right?"

 

Denton motioned toward the side, as Nathan turned to the encrested lens nearby.

 

"... Retinal scanner?"

 

"Looks like it."

 

The two looked over the door and scanner one more time before directing their attention elsewhere, and proceeded through the next door that came in sight.

 

On it, was printed the word ‘OMEGA’ alone. The horizontal-sliding door wasn’t sealed, however. Nathan grabbed at the small opening and eased open the powerless doorway, which lead to a short hallway, one door on the left, two on the right.

 

Being reminded of last time such a situation presented itself, Nathan wordlessly strode to the lone door on the left.

 

It was a standard door, unlocked. Nathan opened it, and felt along the wall until he found a lightswitch, and turned it on. Flourescent lighting illuminated what must be one of the communication rooms.

 

Nathan stepped down the three-step staircase to the lower floor, and walked around the meeting table toward a large control panel, placed before a quite large screen. A blinking light on the panel caught Nathan’s attention: it was labeled ‘Channel Ready’. He pushed the corresponding button, and after a brief delay, the large screen flickered to life.

 

It showed static for a brief second, before it produced a patterned blue screen, with faded Harret logo in the background. Yellow text ‘Seeking…’ blinked in front for a short moment, before the screen flickered once more to a live feed from outside. A surprised-looking young man was displayed, apparently caught off-guard at his computer-based workstation.

 

“Chief Gauda!”

 

He leaned back and called, as Gauda soon came on screen.

 

“We’ve established contact.”

 

Gauda looked relieved, and scanned over the workstation before him.

 

“Torrn, Denton? Can you hear me?”

 

Gauda’s voice emitted from all around them. Denton nodded,

 

“Yes sir. Can you hear us?”

 

Gauda smiled, and sat down at the workstation, pushing aside the engineer.

 

“Gauda, What’s going on out there? Where are my sisters? Are they alright?”

 

Nathan shouted back, leaning against the control panel. Gauda looked uncomfortable,

 

“They’re… um…”

 

Gauda looked from side to side, nervous.

 

“Where are they?”

 

Nathan repeated himself, very stern.

 

“… Kerrigan is being air-lifted to the Orgonth Hospital as we speak, along with about six other crewmen and officers. Heather is with her, bearing little damage.”

 

Nathan cursed loudly and slammed a fist down on the edge of the control panel, putting a light dent in it. He was already breathing heavily, lowering his head, thinking back on what he could have done to prevent this.

 

“Torrn, Calm down.”

 

Denton commanded, sounding annoyed.

 

“Torrn, You have a job to do in there. Keep focus.”

 

Nathan did not move, but slowed his breathing and tried to take control of himself. His left shoulder was lightly pulsating again.

 

“All we can do it hope the medics can take care of your sisters while you take care of Harret.”

 

Nathan pushed himself off of the control panel, and stepped back, with his arms crossed, looking very displeased. Denton stepped toward the panel, and looked up at the screen, which presumably had a camera somewhere near it.

 

“Gauda, we had a few encounters in the short while we’ve been in here. How are things out there?”

 

“Not so good, Denton. About ten minutes after you went in, an innumerable amount of little critters came crashing out of Harret’s front entrance, we thought that… something had happened and they’d have just mowed right over you two.”

 

“Well how did you survive such an onslaught?”

 

“Those creatures were unthinkably volatile. Security took almost 75% of them just with the low-power firearms they had.”

 

“… Wow.”

 

“One bullet each, a simple wound did so much damage to those little buggers. After a few officers pulled out the big guns, high-velocity weaponry passed through about ten of them.”

 

“… Then it wasn’t a problem?”

 

“Well, we had to airlift some people. Those creatures are fragile and volatile, but by no means are they weak. Two men were rather gored through, I don’t think they’ll live through just three of those things getting close enough to attack.”

 

“One of them tried taking me down, but Torrn shot it off.”

 

“Its why we send two men in instead of one. Anyway, with that out of the way, Your main objective is to search out the Torrn project, and unlock the security-“

 

“Gauda.”

 

Denton interrupted.

 

“We were attacked once by those little creatures, and barely escaped that swarm of them. We have reason to believe some of Harret’s other byproducts are still active and running rampant in here. I only have a standard .380 pistol, and Torrn here has like a .76 magnum.”

 

“Inimical.”

 

Nathan corrected, but Denton ignored him.

 

“And you had to pull out assault rifles or shotguns or what have you, and you lost 6 men. With just these handguns, What makes you think either of us are going to survive in here? We need backup! We need more men!”

 

Denton shouted to the troubled-looking Gauda.

 

“I don’t know how soon we can get you backup.”

 

“And why not?!”

 

“We tried to go in through the entrance you did, but there's a solid wall of debris in the way. We could clear it out, but it wont be any time soon.”

 

“We can wait.”

 

“You’d just be wasting time. You’re already in there. Just be careful and find out what you can.”

 

“Maybe you didn’t hear me, Gauda.”

 

Denton glared up at him.

 

“Denton, I’m ordering you to carry out your assignment!”

 

The two stared at each other for a long moment, before Nathan spoke up,

 

“We’ll follow your orders, sir. Where do you suggest we start?”

 

Gauda sighed,

 

“Intelligence suggests there’s been an unauthorized security breach in the west wing of your sector.”

 

‘We’re already an unauthorized security breach…’ Nathan thought to himself.

 

“Go investigate that, it should give us a lead as to what is going on inside Harret. I need to… sort things out up here.”

 

Gauda sighed with frustration of all the things happening around him.

 

“Acknowledged. We’ll stop at any communication points to uplink to you.”

 

“Gauda out.”

 

The screen went back to the blue patterned state, reading ‘Connection Terminated’ before it returned to static, and turned off.

 

[Five ducks to whoever catches on to what game this story resembles. : D]

[while the last one closely resembled RE4. this one also resembles something awesome o: ]

[Horatio]

[Thank you for continuing! You are great at writing these kind of stories!]

[Arkcher]

[ : D bump for great justice?

anyone else reading this?]

[Horatio]

[ : D bump for great justice?

anyone else reading this?]

[Actually yes. If you look at the number of views, you will see that more people view it than you thought. They just don't post.]

[Arkcher]

[uPDATING FOR GREAT JUSTICE]

 

“We don’t want to exacerbate the situation, Denton. Insubordination or going against orders will only make things worse for us, and Gauda. If we go too far, Gauda will have our badges whe-“

 

“Don’t lecture me, Torrn.”

 

Denton snapped back, as the two continued down the hallway toward the far door. As it came in to view, it was quite apparent that it had been forcibly opened before. There were several dents in it, especially around the edges as it was forced open. Large scratches on the surface suggested a Carnefice was involved, and judging by the small bullet holes, it wasn’t carried out very well.

 

The still-legible text on the door read ‘ZETA-GRADE UNITS ONLY BEYOND THIS POINT’, and printed just below that, ‘Gamma – Delta – Epsilon’.

 

“Great, looks like we get to memorize some Greek letter grades.”

 

“Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, and now we’ve seen Zeta and Omega.”

 

Denton motioned toward the letters as he named them off,

 

“Lets just hope that’s all of them.”

 

Nathan stepped toward the door, and tried opening it. Upon contact, a few sparks sputtered out from the side, which looked like it used to house a card key slot. Nathan hesitated, and proceeded to pull on the sliding door, as its dents hindered its motion, grinding along the ground. Nathan took one step through before more sparks emitted from the half-active security device, causing it to try to close the door.

 

Nathan was pushed against the wall, pinned by the automatic door, trying to fight against it.

 

“Denton!”

 

Nathan gasped, struggling to free himself. Denton hurried forward and grabbed at the door and pulled against it, as it slowly grinded back in to its open position with both people pushing against it.

 

As it locked in to place, the electric hum of motors forcing the door slowed and died down. Nathan panted lightly, hurrying through the doorway, followed by Denton.

 

Through that doorway was another corridor, rather well-lit with a number of large windows to the right. They displayed some rather elaborate medical equipment. Some with small windows on tanks which appeared to contain Tossina.

 

“… Is… this where they created all those creatures?”

 

“I’d guess something like that would be further in.”

 

They watched the unidentified equipment pass by, approaching another door, which had a motion-sensor on it, and opened upon approach.

 

“Finally, we don’t get resistance from a simple doorway…”

 

Nathan commented as he emerged in to another fairly large room, containing a number of small passageways, which lightly resembled a maze of cubicle offices. To the side was another door, labeled 'Conference'. Without saying anything, Denton approached it and proceeded through.

 

Nathan paused, and followed his comrade. Sure enough, another communication point was inside. Once the two of them stepped in, the door closed behind them on its own. This time, Denton turned it on, and in a short moment, the live feed was brought up once more.

 

A different man was displayed this time, neither the previous engineer or Gauda. The stranger waved in a friendly way,

 

“Where’s Gauda?”

 

Denton asked.

 

“… No greeting or anything?”

 

The man asked, smiling. Neither Denton or Nathan were smiling.

 

“No. Where’s Gauda?”

 

“He’s since left. Hes back at one of the police stations with, uh, quite a load of paperwork. He used a few other words to describe it though.”

 

Nathan sighed again, frustrated.

 

“I’m the head engineer behind hacking through Harret, though. Chief Gauda gave me the the responsibility of working behind the scenes while you run through Harret, and you uplink to me rather than him.”

 

“Great. We said we’d uplink to you at any communication point we find, so here we are.”

 

Denton spoke fast, also rather annoyed. The man nodded,

 

“Right. Allow me to introduce myself, I’m Dieter Sylus, the one in charge around here.”

 

Nathan and Denton kept watching him, impatient. Dieter sighed, his countenance lowering.

 

“Your destination, the Delta Containment bay, is just ahead. And supposing Mark did these mappings right, You’re in Sector 4, western quadrant, floor 2. Keep going the way you were, and go down to floor 1, and through one more door is where we have a suspicious bit of activity.”

 

Nathan looked up at Dieter intently, trying to take mental note to get an idea of Harret’s layout.

 

“now In that small bit of your sector, there's been a minor power failure. The main computers and components in that area seem to be cut off, along with the main lights, but fortunately Harret had the sense to protect their security, and we still have camera feed from there, and a vague idea of which doors are being opened and passed. From this, we can confirm bioforms are present. Exterminate as needed. Investigate.”

 

As Dieter spoke, a small portion of the screen displayed a layout of Harret, as various places lit up as they were mentioned.

 

“Just be careful, its only two or three rooms away, so report back when you’re done.”

 

The two doors to the room unlatched and both slid open, apparently as per command of Dieter.

 

“Acknowledged.”

 

Denton responded, as the connection closed once more and he made his way through the appropriate door, closely followed by Nathan as they entered the dark rooms in Harret.

 

In short time, the two of them pulled out their flashlights, just illuminating what was in front of them, as the eerie atmosphere loomed from every direction, unseen. Nathan kept his handgun at ready, holding it and his light together, aiming through the blinding shadows. For it just being the main lights being off, there were absolutely no other light sources to be found.

 

From searching their close proximity, the only thing here was a few scratched up pieces of machinery, forklifts and the like, and a thin grated staircase leading upward. Several of the steps were dented, heavily damaged or even missing.

 

“Nowhere to go but up?”

 

Nathan asked, checking if Denton saw anything before they proceeded carefully up the stairs.

 

At the top of the flight of stairs was a door, blown off of its hinges nearby the archway it normally would be in. Beyond that was strong evidence of a fire, with a burnt smell and several black marks along the floor, walls and ceiling. A collapsed bit of ceiling blocked off a passageway, and a large hole in the floor limited their options to go down the present, even more damaged flight of stairs.

 

Carefully making their way down, small pieces of debris and alloys from walls and stairs littered the floor. A long-gone Harret battalion sprawled across the floor, with about four of those small creatures that had attacked earlier, were idly laying in various positions. Neither of these bioforms showed any sign of being present at the same time as the fire.

 

Nathan knelt down by one of the small creatures, and nudged it with the barrel of his gun. No response. He nudged it harder until it rolled in to a different position, studying it closely.

 

It was a four-legged creature, sporting fairly large claws, larger than one would think to grow on small limbs like these. Its main body was fairly small, and it somewhat resembled the shape of a frog’s abdomen, with clawed limbs, and a canine-like head.

 

Not particularly pleased or enlightened by this, Nathan stood back up, looking down at the creature, uneased. He and Denton spotted the doorway that must lead to the containment bay.

 

Several metal crates and large containers were present, most bearing now-illegible labels. The walls surrounding them were cracked, revealing a number of wires behind them. Broken glass was strewn, covering almost the entire floor, crunching below the two human’s feet. With firearms ready, they carefully stepped through, watching carefully. A deep grunt sounded from the far side of the room, as two beams of light from the two flashlights scanned over the area it came from. Nothing.

 

Nathan cautiously stepped forward, expecting at any second something to burst out from hiding and strike. But nothing came. Another grunting noise, this time followed by the stir of broken glass, while Nathan wildly aimed his light in the shadow, hoping to catch something moving.

 

From behind one of the large metal containers, slowly emerged a Carnefice. It had bloodstains all over, with Tossina still bleeding out in various places. It made eye contact with the two intruders, but didn’t seem phased in the least as the two held their guns ready at it.

 

Panting, the beast pulled itself along with its front limbs, grunting with each motion, slowly approaching the two humans as they stepped back, unsure of what to expect. The Carnefice’s luminous eyes moved from left to right as it slowly picked up speed, struggling to pull itself along, now out far enough to see that one of its hind legs broken, and the end of its tail removed by some means, and several deep cuts and wounds on its body.

 

The Carnefice, some ten feet away, weakly raised one of its clawed limbs, as if getting ready to strike. It quietly growled, before lunging forward, landing some six inches closer, crashing against the glass-polluted ground, landing with a thud, before Denton fired about four rounds of ammo in to its idle body. Nathan shot two in, before deciding it must already be dead. The Carnefice let out a quiet whimper-like sound, as its voice trailed off in to a cough, and it fell silent.

 

The two humans lowered their pistols, still watching the Carnefice closely. The left side of its body twitched, and it shook lightly, intensifying in its shoulder. The outer flesh finally ruptured as a very small amphibious-looking creature emerged, covered in Tossina. It shook itself off, and rapidly jumped off to the side in to the shadows. The two flashlight beams followed it, but lost it already.

 

“What was that thing?”

 

Denton asked, bewildered.

 

“I have no idea…”

 

Nathan spoke, looking around the room, confused.

 

[bALL IS ROLLING]

[Arkcher]

After a rather unsuccessful search through the room, the two left the destroyed containment bay, and scaled the fragile staircase.

 

What was that thing? That Carnefice had taken quite a beating, probably more than it would have lasted even that long through.

That tiny creature that jumped out... must have some significance.

 

As they continued down the next flight of stairs, the conference room sign came in to view, and the motion-detecting door opened for them.

 

Inside, the door closed behind them again with a clicking noise. Nathan continued to the communiqué components, leaving Denton at the doorway, curiously looking over the doorway. It locked itself. A small red light indicated such, and from where he stood, he saw that the other door had the same red light.

Before he could bring this to Nathan’s attention, Dieter was already onscreen. He didn’t look as enthusiastic this time.

 

“This isn’t good…”

 

Nathan hesitated, not expecting that.

 

“… What?”

 

“I was watching you from the security cameras. They have a night-vision filter, for situations like this.”

 

“Do you know what that little thing was?”

 

“Im not certain, but it strongly resembles a finished project Harret recently completed. Or rather, just before you came with the initial raid, Torrn.”

 

“… Great. What was it?”

 

“A really small bioform that they named after a mythical creature, Chimera. By itself, a Harret Chimera is almost harmless. Its body is about two-and-a-half inches long, but inside it has numerous telescoping, retractable limbs that can protrude from most anywhere on its body. It has little to no predatory behaviors, but acts similar to a hermit crab. Its very vulnerable without a hiding place, and when it sees fit, it houses itself inside of other creatures, parasiting off of them. It uses its high-numbered limbs to take dominance over the muscles of its host creature, using those predatory methods to protect it. It favors deceased creatures as a host, as it will meet no resistance. And, of course, I believe that Carnefice you came across was already dead, and being controlled by that Chimera, which is why it was so slow and unresponsive to its surroundings.”

 

Nathan paused, and looked down, wondering what could Harret want a creature like that for? The only rational explanation that came to mind was that it would be another military force, to reanimate deceased units, or dominate their enemies.

 

“There were a total of four to be successfully created, and its very likely that you just saw one. They’re too small to really keep track of, so as of right now we have no idea where any of them are.”

 

Dieter continued, frowning. He could be seen looking over various papers nearby, and comparing them to a computer to his side.

 

“Well, can you, with your layout of Harret, give us a way out of here? Its not very pleasant, and we don’t think we can take this ourselves…”

 

Dieter turned to the camera again,

 

“No. Harret was an underground operation, they wanted any entrances and exits closely monitored, and accordingly its most efficient to have a limited few ways in or out.”

 

Nathan cursed to himself in his mind, remembering how he got in to Harret the first time- He broke in through some air ducts, and escaped through a back door. He can, though, confirm the main entrance was out of access.

 

“Well, what do we do now then?”

 

“As you both well know, this place is home to a number of species. Military bioweapons. Created for destruction and violence. I think a good option would be to seal off further biohazard containment areas. We don’t want the Chimera’s to get in to one of the Imponitore’s.”

 

“Whoa whoa, whoa.”

 

Nathan raised his hand,

 

“Its been a number of weeks since I was last here. Are you implying that Carnefices and Imponitores are still rampant, and alive and sentient?”

 

“Well, yes.”

 

Dieter responded, confused. Nathan looked around,

 

“What did they eat? Is there enough water for them? How did they survive?”

 

Dieter shifted in his seat,

 

“Torrn, keep in mind that these creatures are not natural. They were engineered and created in this place.”

 

“I know that!”

 

Nathan snapped back.

 

“They were made for military purposes.”

 

Nathan glared at Dieter, losing patience.

 

“Supplies, food and water is always an issue of great consideration for any military force. The main bioweapons, being Carnefice... and… so on, are designed with that in mind. They don’t need food. They are self-sufficient and can only be brought down by fatigue or combat.”

 

“… Carnefice and… so on?”

 

“I was told that you knew that a number of computers were beyond access, either secured, or otherwise severed from the connection. There are three creatures that are categorized as finished, primary bioweapons. Carnefice is the first, two others are yet to be revealed. I have a strong suspicion that those numerous small cat-things that broke out, are one of those two. They’re a force to be reckoned with.”

 

“So what are those things?”

 

“We don’t know what they’re called yet. According to our maps,”

 

The layout of Harret was brought up onscreen again.

 

“some of the Delta-grade security computers with that information are in the northeastern part of your sector, one floor up. Not too far away.”

 

“And what are we to do with them?”

 

“Find out why we cant get to them. Physical interaction may let you take off its security, or maybe you could restore the network to it. You’re going there to find out what to do, essentially. I expect that after you do it, we’ll have more information on Harret’s products, particularly where certain ones are located and kept in preservation or suspension, so we can keep Chimera’s from reaching them.”

 

“Alright. Northeastern quadrant, restore Delta computer.”

 

Nathan repeated back, still not very excited about risking his life again.

 

“Get to it. There's one or two conference points between here and there. Stop by if you feel so inclined. I’ve released the locks on all Omega-grade security doors, so that you can get there. Move quickly, we need to quarantine the Chimera’s.”

 

“Acknowledged.”

 

The connection closed once more, and the two exited through the one opened door, while the door leading to the containment bay remained locked, leaving Denton with an uncomfortable feeling.

 

 

 

[so uh, Feedback is like, the most awesome way to motivate one to continue making updates.

kind of lets them know their work isnt going in to a black hole void of cyberspace. <__< ]

[Horatio]

[ This story is superb!!! If you don't continue, I will make sure AT & T keeps you on dial-up forever!!!!!!!! ]

[Arkcher]

[ This story is superb!!! If you don't continue, I will make sure AT & T keeps you on dial-up forever!!!!!!!! ]

[ OH GOD NO -writes- ]

[Horatio]

[ This story is superb!!! If you don't continue, I will make sure AT & T keeps you on dial-up forever!!!!!!!! ]

[ OH GOD NO -writes- ]

[ Just the response I hoped for. *waits* ]

[Cheesus]

[really awesome story, man. Kinda reminds me of Metroid Prime, sorta.]

[Arkcher]

[really awesome story, man. Kinda reminds me of Metroid Prime, sorta.]

[o:

 

see also:

...

 

The screen went back to the blue patterned state, reading ‘Connection Terminated’ before it returned to static, and turned off.

 

[Five ducks to whoever catches on to what game this story resembles. : D]

[while the last one closely resembled RE4. this one also resembles something awesome o: ]

 

However, I lack the promised five ducks, so you get bragging rights instead.]

[Horatio]

[really awesome story, man. Kinda reminds me of Metroid Prime, sorta.]

[o:

 

see also:

...

 

The screen went back to the blue patterned state, reading ‘Connection Terminated’ before it returned to static, and turned off.

 

[Five ducks to whoever catches on to what game this story resembles. : D]

[while the last one closely resembled RE4. this one also resembles something awesome o: ]

 

However, I lack the promised five ducks, so you get bragging rights instead.]

I want the ducks.

[Cheesus]

[w00t. Bragging rights.

-brags-]

[Arkcher]

[w00t. Bragging rights.

-brags-]

[yeah, except thats not the game this is resembling.

use madd nurd skillz and compare events and sceneries. you'll catch on.]

[Horatio]

[w00t. Bragging rights.

-brags-]

[yeah, except thats not the game this is resembling.

use madd nurd skillz and compare events and sceneries. you'll catch on.]

[ I want the ducks. ]

[Arkcher]

[w00t. Bragging rights.

-brags-]

[yeah, except thats not the game this is resembling.

use madd nurd skillz and compare events and sceneries. you'll catch on.]

[ I want the ducks. ]

Ask Divine Bovine or Jesseman, they might know what game it is and donate some ducks to your cause.

[Horatio]

[w00t. Bragging rights.

-brags-]

[yeah, except thats not the game this is resembling.

use madd nurd skillz and compare events and sceneries. you'll catch on.]

[ I want the ducks. ]

Ask Divine Bovine or Jesseman, they might know what game it is and donate some ducks to your cause.

I want YOUR ducks... and I want them NOW!!!

[Arkcher]

[Ducks aside, you guys probably thought I forgot about this story, didnt you? DIDNT YOU?! D:<

 

NEVAR]

 

Back in the large room with a maze of sub-rooms, Nathan craned his neck high and looked over the collapsible walls for a staircase. Sure enough, one was located a few hundred feet northeast of them.

 

“What are these…?”

 

Nathan thought aloud, glancing in the small rooms as he passed. Most of them contained file cabinets or deskspaces, some with lab equipment. The openings to the rooms had color-coded borders, so this may be an archive of some sort.

 

Up the staircase, led to a grated platform overlooking the rest of the room. Not far away was another door, labeled ‘DELTA-WING’.

 

Their destination being this direction, and being delta-security intensive, they proceeded through, meeting only a visual warning and no further security.

 

They found yet another short hallway with no distinguishing features, except for about five of the yet-unnamed creatures, glancing about the room, looking disoriented.

 

Hearing the door open, they turned their attention to the two newcomers, and accordingly let out their small war-cry, and ran forward, scratching the floor with each leap.

 

Nathan opened fire, hitting two of them before they could react. Just as described by Gauda, the abominations fell idle with just one hit. Denton followed suit, and struck two of the creatures, leaving one within its own attack range; it jumped up, about five feet high, before a final projectile caused it to explode in a spray of Tossina, blood and small portions of muscle, raining down on Nathan, who abhorred back in disgust.

 

"You alright, Torrn?"

 

Nathan wiped off the bits of flesh covered in blood, now with a rather disgusted countenance.

 

"Yeah..."

 

He responded, still taken aback. With one final shake, he proceeded through the far door, with the image of such creatures detonating burned in to his vision.

 

A number of deceased researchers were sprawled about the next room, with an overturned desk and various components of medical research equipment, most of which appeared to be X-ray intensive. Otherwise, a select few doors were present, one labeled 'Delta Axis'.

 

Harret certainly has its share of hallways and unused rooms. Where did Jared Mills get funding to make such a huge place? He was just a college professor…

 

Through the next door was a perpendicular hallway, straight ahead was a Conference room. Nathan and Denton exchanged glances, and proceeded through, noting there was only one door this time, which locked itself behind the two men.

 

“Hey, Torrn…”

 

Denton stopped Nathan just as he was preparing to uplink. Denton motioned toward the door, specifically the red light by its control panel, indicating its locked state. Nathan stepped over to it, and assuredly, the motion sensor did not respond.

 

“It did this in the other conference rooms, too…”

 

“And we got out of them. So, We talk to Dieter, and we leave.”

 

Nathan explained, annoyed, as he proceeded to open the link to Dieter.

 

“… What?”

 

Dieter asked, sounding concerned.

 

“I felt so inclined to uplink to you. Got anything new?”

 

“Not really. We’re picking up a few abnormal signals southeast of you, but until we can confirm its worth dealing with, I’ll just leave it alone and monitor some of the more important matters.”

 

“Such as?”

 

“You guys. Preparing some links to get in to the Delta computers once you restore connection. And a single bioform on another wing, I don’t know what it is yet. Too small to be a Carnefice, Way too big to be one of those little guys. … I dont know, Just get to your destination point, its not far.”

 

The map marked once again where the Delta computers were located.

 

“Alright.”

 

“You’ll be going up a secured elevator to get there, but of course, I’ve eliminated its level of security. There's another conference room, located just before the computer room, so uplink after or during your restoration.”

 

“Got it. Torrn out.”

 

The screen turned off once more, and the door unlocked, and opened upon approach. They turned left down the narrow hallway, ignoring the ‘DELTA-BETA’ signs placed about.

 

---

 

A woman spoke. It drew a young man’s attention away from his otherworldly realm of slumber, as he sat up straight to see his mother looking back at him from the passenger seat of a moving vehicle.

 

“Look, Caleb! We’re almost back home.”

 

She pointed out a landmark sign along the highway, signifying Orgonth Nevada, 32 miles away. Caleb yawned, and felt inside the front pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a cell phone, checking the time, and returning a few text messages, bearing the good news of his arrival.

 

Having just woke up, Caleb couldn’t remember exactly where they had gone off to, how long, or why. He shook his head lightly, his thick, light blond hair ruffling, somewhat straightening from the crumpled mess it consisted of moments ago. He focused more attention on the road ahead of him, headlights illuminating the dark freeway before them. To the left of his vision was his father, who looked just as fatigued as his son did. Nevertheless, they all anticipated a well-deserved night in their own beds for a change.

 

Caleb leaned back, as his father engaged in conversation with his wife, the exchanges being too quiet for Caleb to really pay attention to. She replied, this time Caleb tried to make out words from her statement, but to no avail. Further directing his attention to this, he sat up, and realized all sound around him was becoming muffled, and sounding like it was underwater. He looked out the window, senses askew, as the surroundings seemed to dim, fade to grayscale as time slowed down. A long moment passed, before reality came rushing back to him all at once by a screaming voice,

 

“LOOK OUT!”

 

His mother shrieked, pointing off road and grabbing her husband’s shoulder. Before Caleb could react, the deafening shatter of glass, and the force of the vehicle suddenly stopping threw Caleb against the driver’s seat harshly, as a deep growl accompanied screeching tires. The vehicle was rotating, though before they could determine which direction, gravity seemed to shift upward and throw the car in to a frenzy as it rolled along the ground, further smashing in windows and rattling the unsecured teenager around inside, leaving him in a daze once the vehicle made a complete stop, on its side.

 

A short moment later, Caleb summoned all the strength he could muster to climb upward, open the door and pull himself out. He recognized the luminous red lights of cars nearby slowing, but the harsh sound of his heartbeat seized his attention. He put a hand to his forehead, to find he was bleeding profusely.

 

A stirring caught his attention, as some unstable movement occurred on the other side of the overturned vehicle.

 

“Mom? … Dad?”

 

He glanced in one of the windows, the poor illumination displayed enough. The idle body of his father, face glistening with blood, clearly visible through the shattered window.

An unsettling grunt grasped his attention once more, as an abomination of a sight emerged from behind the remains of their car. A huge, hairless creature with fearsome looking mandibles and piercing eyes slowly crawled in to the open, with blood splattered all about it, along with another off-yellow substance still flowing from open wounds.

 

Caleb’s heart skipped a beat, as he stepped back in awe. He had never seen, nor dreamed that something like this could even exist! A strong fear instilled in his heart, as he stepped back again, the creatures optics fixing on this target. It loudly grunted as it limped toward him, causing Caleb to let out an audible cry of his own before stumbling on the uneven ground behind him, helpless. He turned his head to look behind him, and was immediately blinded by oncoming headlights, vehicles driving a little too closely, before slamming on their brakes and drifting to a stop, in short time several staturous men, resembling security guards, poured out of three utility vans, all shouting. The only real sentence he could make out was ‘Get the Carnefice! Contain it!’ before the massive creature turned around swiftly, swinging its large, thick tail behind it, the bladed tip careening right for his head-

 

“AAH!”

 

Caleb sat up with a jolt, heart pounding, as his real surroundings came to him. He was laying partly sprawled about in an office-resembling room, contents slightly askew. He put a hand to his head, trying to remember how he got here.

 

… This is Harret.

This place is the source of that strange creature that killed one of his parents, severely injuring the other.

This is the place he would exploit, single-handedly uncover to all, provide a real explanation for his mother’s demise, and prove to his home town the real threats growing just outside their borders.

 

Caleb looked up, and saw a large hole in the ductwork above him. He must have fallen through it, impacting him sufficiently to invoke this unpleasant flashback. Not losing focus, Caleb felt the floor around him, his hands meeting the barrel of a small pistol and the handle of a pocketknife that had escaped his hoodie pockets.

 

Replacing these commodities, Caleb stood up, muscles sore, determined to get to the bottom of this, solve the case on his own.

 

 

 

[sSBB style intro]NEWCOMER - Caleb Manés![/sSBB]

[Horatio]

[ Yeah!!! Thank you for continuing!!! ]

[Mushroom_king]

[Yaaaaaaay!]

[Horatio]

[ You really write well and I enjoy the posts as they are fun to read!!! ]

[Arkcher]

[so I ran in to a metaphorical brick wall, about six feet thick, and wide and tall enough to extend past ones line of sight.

Dunno how I didnt see it coming, but on the other side of this wall is some delicious cake. You must eat it. what the next section contains in raw form.

Theres like 8 things that happen about this point and Im at a loss how to do it. One of these is furthering the character introduction of Caleb and his Padré, and if you ask me Im not so awesome at working with characters properly.

And after that pivotal point are several events that havent been properly strung together chronologically, so this update might take a while.

 

so Ill stop rambling and keep trying to decide what goes in the next update.]