Alright, first big story. I don't know how long it's going to be, but I'm going to try to keep it to 10 or so chapters. Enjoy!

Colette ran down the hall, tracing her fingertips against the wall, trying to keep her bearings in the near pitch. She gasped for breath, the fire-axe slipping in her grip, the handle slick with blood and her own sweat.

She felt her foot catch on something, the fire axe clattering to the ground and skidding ahead of her as she threw her hands out, trying to stop her fall.

"Ah, fuck!" Hot pain shot up her arm when her hand slipped in a puddle of something, her upper body slamming into the ground at an odd angle. "Fuck, oh God, fuck," she gasped, slipping around as she tried to push herself up.

Colette stopped suddenly, her breath catching when she heard a low growl to her left, the air shimmering around the cloaked creature. She swallowed the thickness in her throat, her breath shaky and too loud. "Please, please," she whispered, her voice high and tight, "please just leave me alone."

The growl continued, interspersed with the strange chattering the creatures seemed to use as speech. Collette watched the shimmer crackle with electricity, blue flares of light flicking over the cloaked form, slowly revealing the creature.

She gulped, looking up the tall musculature of one of the things that had terrorized them for the past three days. His face was obscured by a large metal mask, dark ovals reflecting her fearful position back at her. There were tusks and fangs carved into the mask where his mouth would be, sweeping arches framing the forehead where a flowing symbol was carved. He cocked his head at her, thick hair flowing and clacking over one shoulder as he knelt down, one long wrist blade unsheathing slowly.

"Don't worry," a deep voice came from out of the mask, deeply sensuous and still carrying a hint of the smirk she remembered, "I'm a doctor."

It had begun a week ago, right after one of the best frat parties to celebrate the unnatural heat. Colette had been roped into attending, her dorm mate pissed off with her near-celibate lifestyle.

"Seriously," Amy had said, dabbing at her lips with red gloss. "This is the life the commercials promised us, the reason we all go to College in the first place!" Colette looked up from her Film Art text with raised brows, a large smile on her face. "No, that's the reason rich people go to College. We poor bastards relying on grants and scholarships actually go because we need and want a better life."

Amy made a rude noise and waved her hand through the air, bending closer to the mirror and adjusting her breasts inside her tube top, pushing them up. Colette watched her, chewing on the tip of her pencil thoughtfully. "Gotta say, though," she admitted, putting her book down, "it's been so fucking hot lately." Amy nodded and turned, admiring her ass in the tight, designer shorts that Colette was sure cost more than all the consignment clothes she'd packed into her little closet.

"So come out," Amy demanded, finally approving of her over all look and turning away from the mirror. "It'll be fun and you can finally get laid!"

Colette snorted but closed her book, dog earring the page and pushing the text to the back of her desk. "Yes, 'cause that's what I need," she said wryly, "to get knocked up by some drunk rich boy who's family will pay me off to keep the scandal from hitting the papers."

"And you can pay off your grants!" Amy cried, latching onto the faulty logic with glee and grinning widely. Colette laughed and turned to her friend with a disbelieving look on her face. "You don't have to pay off grants," she informed her, amusement thick in her voice, "They're given to you with no strings attached."

Amy's pretty face pulled into a small moue, her brows scrunching and full lips pursing. "They do that?" she asked, her voice high and almost grating if Colette wasn't so used to it. Colette only shook her head and smiled, wondering yet again how rich things like Amy were able to survive through College so long.

"Yes," she replied, trying not to laugh when she turned to her closet and began rifling through her paltry wardrobe. She considered a printed grey t-shirt, her head cocked to the side.

"No!" Amy cried, lunging forward and grabbing Colette's arm. "You can't wear any of that," she stated, her pretty facing twisting again in disgust. Colette frowned and looked between Amy and her closet. "Why the fuck not?" she demanded, vaguely insulted. Amy just rolled her eyes and released Colette's arm, fingering the t-shirts and jeans that made up the majority of her closet.

"It's the hottest Spring on record, and you're going to wear these?" she asked, flicking her fingers against each other as though she was trying to rid them of the stain of cheap jeans. Colette bit the inside of her cheek and swallowed, taking a deep breath so she wouldn't clock the brunette. "Well, yeah, I was. Not much of a choice," she snapped, trying to hold onto her temper. Amy huffed and rolled her eyes, her expression softening when she caught Colette's look.

"You can wear something of mine," Amy explained, sashaying over to her own closet and throwing it open, various garment bags toppling out of the over-stuffed space. "Hmm, let's see. You're really quite pretty," she said vaguely, pushing through her clothes, "if you just knew how to accent it you'd be really gorgeous."

Colette rolled her eyes, her lips pursing in irritation. "Thanks," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "next time I feel bad about myself I'll just remind myself to whore up."

Amy stopped and looked at her, putting slim hands on equally slim hips. "No need to be snappy," she retorted, grabbing a bag and shoving it toward the blonde, "I'm just trying to help."

"By telling me I don't know how to be gorgeous," Colette pointed out, taking the bag nonetheless.

"No," Amy explained patiently, tossing her dark curls, "by telling you to try. I'm not saying you don't know how, you just don't try."

Colette wanted to argue the point, but Amy had hit the nail on the head; most of the time she enjoyed the comfort of t-shirts and jeans, keeping warm with plain coloured hoodies and jackets on cooler days. Her blonde hair was always pushed into a messy pony tail, loose strands falling in front of her eyes and obscuring most of her face from the world.

Admitting defeat, she sighed and began to strip, Amy having made it clear the first couple of times Colette had run to the bathroom to change that it was really stupid for a girl to be so self-conscious in front of another girl.

She had to admit the dress looked good, though, smoothing the dark red material down her stomach and hips. Reaching only mid thigh, the mini dress had an asymmetrical neckline, held up by a single braided strap on her right side. "Hold still," Amy demanded, pulling the blonde hair free and shaking the strands out.

"We have the same shoe size, right?" the brunette asked from behind Colette, twisting her hair and pinning it. Colette nodded, watching Amy work, her hair quickly pulled and pinned until several loose strands framed her face, the rest pulled into a loose looking bun that sat low and to the side of her head.

"Perfect," Amy said, bending down and throwing shoeboxes aside until she found what she was looking for. Colette's mouth went dry, seeing the Louboutin logo etched in gold against the plain beige of the box. "Holy Crap, Amy," she sighed, her chest tightening at the thought of touching a pair of the designer shoes. "I can't wear those," she choked out, staring at the brunette.

Amy frowned at her. "You haven't even seen them, yet," she huffed, pulling the lid off, "they accent the dress perfectly."

"No-yes, yes they do," Colette said quickly, "but they're…those are really expensive shoes and I'm a sloppy drunk. Things are just falling off me, and those shoes…oh goodness, those shoes, they would not survive."

Amy looked down at the gorgeous studded stilettos, the nude color an almost perfect match with Colette's own pale skin, the red sole practically screaming money at anyone who noticed. Looking back up, she shrugged carelessly. "You can keep them," she said, pushing them toward Colette. "They're from two years ago, anyway. I haven't worn them for at least six months." Colette felt her jaw drop, staring down at the leather and metal she knew could probably pay for half her classes for a semester.

Looking back up at Amy, she felt something in her throat tighten and threw her arms around the ditzy and wonderful girl. "Okay," Amy laughed, pulling the blonde's arms from around her shoulders. "Just promise me one thing," she demanded as Colette pulled the shoes on and pivoted, admiring her sleek form in the mirror.

"Anything," Colette declared on a whim, grinning at her dorm mate who started to advance on her with tubes of gloss and mascara.

"When his family pays you off, I get half."

The party wasn't that bad, Colette had to admit. It was loud and stupid and the majority of the people were Legacy students who swapped yachting stories, but it wasn't alone in her dorm room during the hottest Spring on record, so Colette felt she had to give herself props.

So far she'd been hit on by six different guys and ground against by at least four others. Amy had slipped away half way through the night with a large, handsome guy who was paying for school with a football scholarship, flashing her blonde friend a quick grin and wink.

Colette now stood by the refreshment counter, not quite sure what to do but caught up in the energy so she didn't care. She felt a body jostle her, the drink she was holding sloshing over and just narrowly missing her expensive shoes.

"Sorry!" a deep voice came from beside her, yelling through the pounding music and screaming girls. Colette turned and smiled at the handsome man, his button-down purple shirt perfectly set against his dark skin. "S'okay!" she yelled back, leaning in to be heard. "You're wearing purple, all is forgiven." He laughed, a deep baritone almost lost in the pounding bass. "If I knew it was that easy, I'd wear purple all the time," he responded, placing a hand on the table behind her, leaning in close.

Colette smiled and leaned further into him, her eyes narrowed conspiratorially, her gaze just a little unsteady. "But then it would lose its magic," she confided, "and then you'd just be a guy wearing a purple shirt."

His full lips twisted in his handsome face, a grin splitting his features. "Am I over-wearing it now?" he asked, leaning in further until his lips brushed against her earlobe. Colette blushed, knew what he was doing and blamed the drink for not backing away. "Maybe," she said instead, her free hand reaching up and playing with the collar.

His dark eyes glittered when he pulled back. "What say we find some place quieter," he suggested, his deep voice wrapping itself around her brain and muffling all the protests that started to rise up. Nodding, Colette put her drink down and took his hand, following along behind him as he cut a path through the crowd, pulling her up the stairs to the dorm floors.

When they reached his room, he turned to her and before she could rethink anything, remembering her promise to Amy, she threw herself at him, pulling him down for a deep kiss.

He moaned into her mouth, large hands coming up and grasping her shoulders, pulling her closer. "Inside," Colette panted when he pulled away. Nodding, he fumbled with his keys before pushing the door open and nearly falling through when Colette leaned against him, pushing him into the room.

She was nearly naked, her bra off and panties in the process of being pulled down when the alcoholic haze cleared for a moment, her mind finally able to process what was about to happen. She stiffened, the long heel of one shoe catching on the bed covers when she tried to draw her legs up. The man, she didn't even know his name, looked up from where he was drawing her panties down.

"Um, my name's Colette," she finally said, sitting up and extending a hand awkwardly. He stared at her before chuckling, patting her thigh lightly. "Connor," he revealed, reaching up and grasping her smaller hand in his. "Right," Colette said, licking her dry lips, "hi Connor." She kicked her panties off, deciding it was too late to back down but wanted to stall for a moment longer.

Connor smirked at her and lowered a hand down to the curls covering her sex, brushing his knuckles through the course strands. "If you need some more alcohol, there's a party downstairs," Connor suggested, smiling.

Colette shook her head and lay back. "Sorry, just-I don't do this and it's a little…awkward," she revealed, starting to twist her fingers together. Connor chuckled and kissed the dip of her stomach, moving his hand further down and brushing against her moist lips. Colette gasped and arched off the bed, her long heels ripping the bed sheets, embarrassed that she'd forgotten how good that sensation was.

"Don't worry," he said, moving between her legs, smirk firmly in place, "I'm a doctor."

The day after, the power had gone down, encouraging the party into an extension as a majority of classes were canceled until the back-up generators could be brought online.

"It's weird," Colette said three days later, hunched over her Photography essay. "Why would someone destroy the back-up generators?" she asked, pushing a damp strand of hair behind her ear, wiping at the back of her neck with her hand.

Unfortunately, the power outage also took out their air-conditioning and most students who stayed on campus could be found lounging by the pools and fountains, many sitting in the shower rooms underneath cold water. Amy lay on the floor moaning, her pretty hair fanned out and scraggly against the carpet. "I don't know but they need to burn in hell!" she declared. "Oh, wait, that's what we're doing."

Colette snorted, pushing her essay away. "Fuck, I can't work like this!" she grumbled, throwing her pencil at her desk, watching it bounce off and roll on the ground. "Jesus fuck, I can't believe the entire grid is down."

The whole of the campus was shut down, the large mini-city quiet and dark. There had been a massive party the first day, many of the restaurants, bars and bistros on campus wanting to sell their food before it went bad.

Now, they all sat in darkness, all the food cleared out after the second day, the intense heat speeding the rotting process. Many students had opted to leave campus until the power came back up, spending their parents' hard-earned money, or their own loans, on hotels that had air-conditioning.

Amy had almost gone, but Colette had refused, wanting to stay close to the library for her homework. Unwilling to leave her friend, Amy had stayed as well. "We could be in a hotel in thirty minutes," Amy piped up, raising her head and looking at the blonde hopefully.

"Tempting," Colette said with a smile, "but I was thinking we could head down to that party at the frat again. Alcohol seemed to help last time." Amy's eyes widened and she jumped up excitedly, her previous lethargy forgotten.

"Yes," she cried, hugging the blonde, "you're finally buying into the hype!"

Colette just rolled her eyes, but had to admit that the Frat knew how to throw a party. And she looked amazing in those stiletto heels.

The killings started the next morning, the gruesome, twisted corpse of a deer strung from a tree greeting the remaining students.

The administration called it a sick prank pulled by the drunken students, but sent out a caution and curfew anyway. The next day, it was the smell of meat rotting in the intense heat that forced down the doors of several dorm rooms, skinless, headless corpses lying in different positions around the rooms.

By the evening, the administration had evacuated as many of the students as they could, giving the remainder until morning to pack and leave.

Colette woke up to screaming, several voices clamouring from every floor. It was still dark, the sweltering heat still oppressive even at night. Amy sat up in her bed, looking just as scared and confused as Colette. "What's happening?" she whispered. Colette shrugged, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and stepping down, slipping her feet into the sandals she kept by her bed.

"I don't know, but are you packed?" Amy nodded, her dark hair shining in the moonlight. "Okay," Colette continued, "me, too. Let's just get out now, kay?" Amy nodded again, slipping out of the bed and reaching through the dim light toward her. Colette caught her hand and squeezed reassuringly.

"It's okay," the blonde said, picking up her duffel and smiling, "we'll be okay."

Now, as she lay on the ground staring up at the creature that was dragging the blade along her cheek, she wished she was still asleep. "Please, please," she begged, her voicing catching, tears dripping down her face.

"It's okay," her own voice piped back at her and Colette felt her body seize with fear, her lips pulling back into a grimace as fresh sobs wracked her body. "Oh God," she sobbed, laying her head down, her body and mind giving up.

The creature growled again, pressing the blade into the flesh of her neck. Colette felt the tip slice through her skin and she jerked away, adrenaline forcing her body into motion. Kicking at the creature, it barely grunted at the impact, only sitting back as she pushed herself up and half-ran, half-slid to the dropped fire-axe.

Grasping the handle, blood oozing between her fingers, she turned to face the creature. It stayed kneeling, it's masked visage tilted toward her again and he rumbled. Colette frowned, tightening her grip on the fire-axe. "Come on!" she yelled, raising the weapon like a baseball bat, choking up on the wooden handle.

"You ugly son-of-a-bitch!" Amy's voice filtered out of the mask, just as strong and just as determined as when Colette had last seen her. She'd been run-through by one of the creatures after she'd struck at the mask with the axe Colette now held, screaming at him when his face was revealed. She'd been defending Colette, the blonde having backed herself into a corner of the laundry room when Amy had burst through the door with the weapon.

"Fuck you!" Colette shouted back, figuring the thing was taunting her. He remained crouched down, rumbling and Colette realized he was laughing at her; taunting her and laughing at her as if she was a toy he found great amusement in. She thought that that was probably true, the way the creatures had herded them around after locking the doors and barring the windows.

They had realized early into the slaughter that their cell phones were smashed, the screens cracked and batteries dead or gone. The remaining students had been panicked as, one by one, they disappeared, reappearing in the worst, most shocking ways and states.

"This is a fucking game?" She wondered why she was still talking, the axe slipping in her grip just a bit more. The creature rumbled again, this time his upper body shaking almost deliberately, letting her see his amusement. Swallowing hard, she tensed, ready to turn and run when the creature bolted up, his gaze focused on something just behind her. Colette felt her breath leave her in a high sob when she heard the tell-tale crackle of electricity just behind her, so close the hairs at the back of her neck standing on end from the charge.

Closing her lips tight, she couldn't stop the whimper that escaped her when she heard a deep rumbling growl interspersed with chittering and clacking. The creature in front of her leaned forward, his own growl harsh as he gestured around him. Colette realized they were speaking to each other and dared a glance behind her. The new one was larger than the creature in front of her, his mask surprisingly simple, flaring ridges around the cheeks and above the eyes were the only decoration besides a different flowing symbol on the brow above his left eye.

He gestured, his movements quick and agitated. Colette looked around, realizing her situation was dire. She was stuck in a hallway between two monsters, both blocking any chance of an exit. She tried to think, wondered how the hell she'd get out of there and why the administration hadn't shown up, yet. With all the noise being made and the campus eerily quiet in the power outage, she figured someone had to have heard. Unless they were dead, as well. Swallowing, she moved her right foot backward, hoping to be able to dart around the large creature and run down the staircase before they could catch up.

The monster in front of her snarled, and extended both wrist blades. Raising them, he advanced and Colette shrieked, turning away from him. The large creature behind her stepped around her, none too gently pushing her aside and into the wall, catching the smaller one and throwing him over his shoulder. Colette flattened herself against the wall, eyes wide, fire axe clutched against her chest as she watched them fight.

The first lifted himself, his hair swinging, one of the skulls hanging at his waist broken in half. The second extended a large spear, charging toward the smaller one, his metal boots impacting the floor with such force that the cheap wood and plaster actually cracked just a bit.

Colette watched them, unable to look away as they fought, the two large forms undeniably graceful, even in the dark. She was jolted back to reality when the smaller one smashed into the wall beside her, falling through the plaster and creating a hole large enough that Colette began to fall through as well.

She raised the axe out of instinct, seeing the large alien beneath her, falling against the hard body. She was stopped by a sick thunking sound, the handle of the axe pushing painfully into her sternum and belly. She gasped, her upper body pressing down on the fire-axe that was now imbedded in the thing's skull, bright green blood oozing out of the wound as the powerful body beneath her convulsed.

She finally got a good look at his face and wished it hadn't been so close. Colette pulled back, a small sound of fear and disgust pulled from her throat when she took in the alien face. Four mandibles surrounded a small, fleshy mouth, sharp fangs covered with green blood protruded out of the jaw. Its golden eyes were set deep into its pale brown face, dark red spots almost like freckles started at its forehead and extended up the long brow ridge, which was now split apart by the blade of the axe.

She was so busy staring into the fading light of its eyes, sitting on the powerful body and watching the thing that had terrorized her finally die, that she had completely forgotten there was another one.

A large hand grasped her arm and pulled her up, dragging her away from the body as she screamed and tried to turn. "Quiet," a voice she didn't recognize hissed from the mask, the large creature shaking her. Colette swallowed and drew a deep breath, trying to calm her breathing and suppress the fear that threatened to take over her body again.

Satisfied, it let her go, raising one finger and pointing deliberately at the floor, gesturing for her to stay. Colette swallowed and nodded, cringing away as the creature considered her for a moment, hair and beads clacking over his shoulder when he tilted his head before he turned away from her.

He walked to the wall where his blow had knocked the other's mask off. Raising his hands, he plucked at the hoses at the side of his mask, air and gas releasing with a hiss before he pulled the mask off. His back was turned, so Colette wasn't able to get a look at him, but she knew an opportunity when she saw one. Gathering her courage, she tensed when he knelt down to pick up the other mask, not waiting for him to stand before she'd pivoted and run off. She heard a sharp bark behind her but didn't stop, barrelling through the fire doors and running down the stairwell.

She didn't get very far, every door and window near an exit barred and locked, metal soldered and welded together. She screamed in anger and fear as she pounded against a piece of steel that used to be a shelf covering a window, her knuckles splitting and bleeding under the abuse.

"Fuck!" she screamed, hitting the metal again, "Where is everyone!" The building was near pitch black, every possible opening boarded up. What little light streamed through small cracks that had been left because the metal was just too small, but there was never enough room to break the glass to yell for help.

Colette slumped against the wall, exhausted, the adrenaline rush over. Something moved at the far end of the common room, crunching through bodies and broken furniture. Colette looked up, angry and tired, not even bothering to be afraid because that took too much energy.

"What the fuck do you want?" she asked as the creature stopped in front of her, his large body taking up her entire view.

It extended a hand, grasping Colette's upper arm and squeezing. With his other hand, he made the pointing gesture again, growling. "You wanted me to stay," Colette said tiredly, "but I didn't fucking want to." The creature growled again and shook her, rattling her teeth. "What do you want?" she asked again, her voice rising with hysteria.

"Safety is important," a pleasant, female voice came through the mask, sounding like an airplane safety instructor. Colette frowned and shook her head.

"What?"

The creature gestured toward her then toward himself before he made a gesture toward one of the doors. "Leaving?" Colette guessed, confused. When he nodded slowly, Colette bit her lip and frowned at him. "With you?" she continued, shaking her head when the creature nodded.

"No, I need to stay. The police need to know what happened." The creature growled and shook his head, shaking her more forcefully.

"People need to know what happened," Colette said, trying to move away from the grasp, not sure if he would hurt her or not. He growled again, this time with a definite edge to it and shook his head more vigorously, his beads clacking against each other loudly.

Colette swallowed and tried to collect her thoughts. "If I go with you, what happens?" she asked, biting her lip again. "You live," a gravelly voice said from the mask, a Western twang almost making it sound like Clint Eastwood.

"But why?" The question was out before she could stop it and Colette wanted to kick herself for her own stupidity. "Wait, no, don't answer that, please." He nodded and straightened, tightening his grasp on her arm and pulling her along.

"Hey!" Colette yelled, "wait, I didn't say anything." He just growled and continued to drag her along. She wrenched her arm out of his grip, flinching when he turned on her with a snarl. "I-," she stopped when her voice cracked. Licking her lips, she continued, "I need my stuff. If-if I'm going with you, I'll need my things. They're already packed," she continued quickly when he snarled, "I just need to grab it. I think I dropped it up on the third floor."

He nodded and moved in front of her, walking up the stairs first. When they found her bag, dropped near her dorm door when they'd found the first body, she quickly darted into her room, feeling in the dark until she found the shoebox she'd hidden underneath her bed. They'd left so many things, expecting to come back. Her throat tight, she swallowed her tears as the image of Amy handing the shoes to her so carelessly floated in her mind.

Walking out, she reached toward the creature when he turned, not touching him but keeping her hand near his body so she could feel where he moved. She briefly flirted with running again, but that would probably prove just as ineffectual as the first time and just piss him off more.

He easily took out the soldered doors, a gun strapped to his shoulder shooting a sizeable hole through the metal. It took a moment for Colette's eyes to adjust to the daylight, but when she did, she stopped, dropping her shoes and bag. It was like some sick Halloween prank, pieces and entrails thrown everywhere, intestines hanging from the trees like gruesome decorations.

"Jesus Fuck," she whimpered, looking around her, taking in the blood splattered everywhere. "What the fuck? Why?" She looked up at the creature that had stopped a few feet in front of her, growling coming from beneath his mask again as he waited. In the light, she now saw he had the other creature's head mounted on his back, like some weird trophy. He gestured at her to keep moving, but Colette shook her head, scared but angry and disoriented by the unnecessary gore surrounding her.

"No," she yelled, her voice thin around the lump in her throat, "No, what happened?" The creature cocked his head and looked around slowly, deliberately as if pointing out the obvious.

Colette shook her head angrily. "No, that's not what I mean. Why? Why did it happen, why us, why now? What did we do?"

The creature stood there, his hands curling and uncurling, strong muscles flexing as he shifted his stance. "Nothing," a deep, rumbling voice said, interspersed with clacking. Colette was taken aback, this one more natural than the others and she wondered if it was his real voice.

"So why?" she demanded again, her voice cracking. She looked away and to the fountain where several dark red masses floated in the now murky water.

He was quiet and Colette flinched away when she turned back only to find him standing in front of her. His mask was grossly impersonal, the grey metal almost cruel in its stillness, tilted as he looked down at her. She looked into the dark eyes, her own face reflected back. He raised a hand and placed it on her shoulder, growling again but not shaking her. She realized he was comforting her, as best he could, she supposed. He straightened after only a moment and his grip tightened as he began to lead her away again.

Colette sighed and bent to pick up her belongings, deciding there was nothing for it but to follow her unlikely saviour.

And first chapter done! Hope you enjoy, reviews and feedback always appreciated :)