Infestation:

So beautiful and terrible, like a work of art dreamed up by a disturbed and fevered mind. This was the solution they offered us to deal with the infection. That most dreadful infliction that caused man to turn on each other in cannibalistic frenzy; where injury meant nothing least it was completly fatal, that caused flesh to rot yet foreign ligaments and hydaulic structures to grow among the bones, gradually changing what were once human from things rightfully regarded as zombies into hellish lumpy masses of pulsating and oozing masses grafted onto human bones. A mockery of man made of fungus, that walked like a man, made vaguely human noises of partially regurgitated words, and held prisoner the human mind. Early on they had us believe the human brain was intact, only hijacked by the infection that was using the body and base memories to spread its self like a zombie plague.

I blame our steadfast determination that the people inside could be saved; even as the bodies rotted off their bones and were replaced by horrid mounds of sticky fungal flesh hanging off the bones and protruding from the rot on which it fed. This allowed it to spread as it was illegal to destroy them, but killing it...it spread with or without a body, in water, in blood, saliva, urine, feces, even in its early stages and proved resistant to sewage treatment procedures as even small microbial strands were enough for it to spread. It adapted to treatments, it adapted to medicine, to see the final product, the eyeless growling oozing pale monstrosity grafted onto the human skeleton; that was enough for most nations to put a kill verdict and declare it a "zombie apocalypse".

But I see the solution, another infection, a predatory infection, the infection before would cause the victims to chase down and try to eat healthy and rotting meat, spreading to humans they came into contact with enough to spread some bodily fluid, while eating anything else yet thankfully not spreading to the rest of the animal kingdom. This new one was something else; I do not know how, and I would suspect many things if it were not so desperate, but what it created was a monster, not unlike paintings of demons and movies about hostile extraterrestrials, biomechanical in apperance, yet having human female and male features regardless of who was infected, with extended spines in the form of whipping tails with variable tips, spears, barbs, hooks, claws, and faces of armor, mask like, demon like, elongated, crested, elongated and crested, horn like protrusions, fangs, tentales fo various sorts for tongues; the variety was both horrible and beautiful as I stated before.

Their solution, to introduce a predator that is immune to the infection and take care of it, retaining a human faculty yet possessed of a strange alien logic and aggression. So they say, to introduce an invasive species to deal with another invasive species; it is a method tried again and again; failing essentially every time, only changing the ecosystem further. What I see is not a solution that will save humanity, but the beginning of a biological war for the future of the species, fungal abominations that threaten to exterminate the human race, or becoming another abomination to replace the human race.

******

Dr. Blecket puts down the report he just read, "what..was he an aspiring author or some shit before he became the military advisor?"

"I don't know," says Dr. Richards, "but we have to show that to all the knew personel being brought into this project."

"So these things are real?" asks Dr. Blecket, noticing the odd look he adds, "I mean the...report as it were gave a variety of descriptions, made it sound like an army of weird movie monsters."

"You have the clearence," says Dr. Richards, "so.." he stops and swipes a key card to the elevator going down to a secured level, "we have managed to breed seventeen individuals not counting three originals we have."

"originals?" thinks Dr. Blecket

"Despite what that overly poetic report may try to say we have no plan at this time to let them loose on the general public. Although the situation is growing more dire by the day,"

The elevator stops and they proceed down a disturbingly silent hallway like a hospital combined with a tomb, "it has been estimated that over a billion people have died thanks to this plague. Entire regions of the country have been abandoned. While not as quick and immediatly apocalyptic as initial reports and pre-reports regarding fictional outbreaks of a similar nature would surmise; it has caused massive fallouts in industry, commerce, and international relations. Normal military methods have been a bust, quarintine easily broken by how minute of strands can survive and are needed to start the infection again, and how many other organisms can act as carriors."

He swipes a card and they enter a monitor room, several people monitoring the computers, looking at screens of different things. Dr. Blecket only sees bits and pieces as he walks by, but they do indeed look like women in black exoskeleton armor with tails and wearing helmets. He is about to declare this a cruel joke being played on him when Dr. Richards hits a button by a door that sounds an alarm that causes the techicians to put on gas masks and air tanks before leaving the room.

"Uh...should we..." starts Dr. Blecket.

"No," says Dr. Richards, "its a precosion. Should the worst happen the halls are filled with a special gas; our current and only deterrent. Its not explicatly toxic, but you don't want to breathe it in."

They enter a smaller room and the door closes and locks behind them. Here there is a large clear wall, not glass, likely pressure resistant plexiglass. Inside is a well lit chamber with one of the creatures perched like a gargolye on a bed facing the plexiglass. Its body is armored, a smooth black carapace with human like yet armored breasts, claw like hands, spikes on its elbows, sharp inhuman toes, its chin and lips have the shape a human woman, but its nose is a ridge connected to a smooth and eyeless shell that splits back over its head into four sharp points. It looks to have hair that is woven into a braided ponytail with a rough looking tip. Its back is adorned by two spikes on its shoulder blades and short dorsal spines down its spine. It has a long skeletal looking tail with a spear like tip that waves about behind it more like a tentacle than a tail. It opens its dark red lips and a long black slimy and segmented worm like tongue slowly extends to over two feet. It waves about like the tail does.

Dr. Becket leans towards the plexiglass in the dark room, and jumps back as something rapidly hits the divider between dark and light. He watches as the braided black poinytail moves like a tentacle to rest back on its back, first rubbing against the spikes before resting.

"Paralyzing quills," says Dr. Richards, "its not hair, its just the same shape, it can shoot quills from that tendril on the back of its head. They possess a powerful, and definetly worth investigating venom capable of rendering someone's limbs immobile and voice mute, yet retaining all other functions."

Dr. Becket looks at the window, "how did you...make this...and wait...it can see us?"

"On the first," says Dr. Richards, "we didn't...that's the real secret you need to know working down here. We found the three originals, three very different creatures in fact, this is one of them. Her offspring are what the advisor was shown, the other two creatures...originals...we managed to catch arn't likely going to be used for any infection control deployment. This one and its prodigy are more controllable."

Dr. Becket jumps back as the creature lunges at the plexiglass right at him and bounces off of it with a flying kick.

"It likes you," says Dr. Richards.

Dr. Becket tries to force a smile,

"Its not a good thing," says Dr. Richards, "we should leave the room now."

The creature makes a hissing sound, its head turning, cocking with a smile as they leave.

"Who was she?" asks Dr. Becket crossing his arms.

"Excuse me?" asks Dr. Richards.

"Animals don't use martial arts," says Dr. Becket, "that was a flying jump kick, she was trying to break through."

"We...don't know," says Dr. Richards, his forth coming surprising Dr. Becket, "yes we are certain the originals were human...originally, but we didn't actually make them like they are now. Our best guess is a rival organism to the infection. Whatever changed them, made them immune to the infection, and has made them extremly violent towards it, they can sense it, detect it, and have biological means to destroy it on every level. We ended up capturing three that we found, I can't say how many others there are; even I don't have that clearance. My clearence is just over this department. Letting them run loose would have seemed like the best recourse, but they are also a threat to human lives, on more than one level."

In the monitor room Dr. Richards brings up a video on the big screen, "This is a previous attempt at communication, control, and interaction training for deployment purposes. It also illustrates why you won't be seen or heard by supect Apex-1 again."

Dr. Becket gives Dr. Richards a curious look as the video starts.