"When is the shuttle going to get here?"
"Why aren't there more of you here to protect us?"
"Please, my partner's missing, and I know she's alive…If we could just go look, I know we could find her."
"It's your job to defend us, so what the hell happened?"
Sergeant Neil Cohen was surrounded by an angry, demanding, and most of all, terrified crowd. As he shifted the plasma rifle slung around his shoulder uncomfortably, his grey eyes scanned the crowed.
"No one can leave right now," he began, trying to raise his voice above the others, "The only thing we can do right now is stay -"
"What? Stay calm? Yeah, looking how fucking well that turned out," a short, stocky man in a crumpled suit interrupted.
"Yes, stay calm and wait for help," Cohen finished. He raised his voice, trying not to concede his position, but judging from the way they pressed in even further, the crowd seemed unfazed.
"Yeah, well…" The man continued with his list of grievances. The crowd seemed to quickly follow suit, and Cohen stepped back unintentionally – their demands were taking a toll on him. The emerging migraine was a testament to that, and for a moment he was tempted just to leave them where they were until he reminded himself that it wasn't their fault.
At least, not for the most part.
He took a quick glance outside the window, wondering when the transport shuttles would arrive. Just like he expected, though, all he saw was the raging snowstorm, typical Polis IV weather. A mining colony on a frigid, perpetually snowing world, life here was often difficult: supply ships had trouble navigating to the planet's surface, the only way anyone could go outside was with specialized thermal clothing or in a vehicle, and due to the constant blizzards' tendency to knock out parts of the colony's power system, is was often cold inside as well. However uncomfortable life could be, though, Cohen knew that each and every one of the people in the room longed for the return of their old routines. And judging from their shouting, he guessed their way of coping was to get angry. Very angry.
"Just please sit down and –"
"Sir," a short, dark-skinned woman wielding a plasma cutter interrupted him, "The cameras show another group of them approaching." Unlike the man in the suit, this person's distraction would've been a relief had it not been for the specific news she had brought. As the crowd immediately silenced, Cohen guessed that they also knew what she was referring to.
There was only one group she could have meant by "them" – she was talking about the creatures that had wrought havoc on Polis IV. Dubbed "necromorphs" by one of the surviving scientists, they emerged from corpses, and usually with new, fatal upgrades. Their sudden appearance in the colony was unexplained, but the fact was that who they didn't kill, they isolated from the rest. It was the reason Cohen had established the safe zone – it was clear that staying in groups was everyone's best chance at survival. Still, the woman's news was troubling.
They're regrouping quicker each time. The grim thought crossed Cohen's mind, and from the woman's distorted expression, he knew she also realized it. Her name is Keira, he suddenly thought. He had encountered her during his own escape. Being only a private, she had quickly adjusted herself to his leadership. Even if she was the only other officer he had seen, she had provided immeasurable help.
He glanced back to the people anxiously, and for once, they were silent as they stared back. The tension in the air was palpable, but for now, Cohen knew that they would obey anything he ordered.
"Okay, Private," he began, turning towards Keira, "Go make sure the barricades are still holdin' up."
"What about the turrets, sir?"
He pondered that for a moment – the automated defense system would be of great use. The sensor-guided turrets would cover their backs, in addition to having greater firepower than the small arms they possessed. In fact, they were just generally more efficient than any human could be. However, during the initial stages of the outbreak, someone had used them rather extensively, and as a result, Cohen estimated they only had enough ammo for one more attack, and he wanted it to count.
"Leave them for now."
A look of concern quickly washed over Keira's face, but she nodded regardless and jogged away to fulfill her duties.
"The rest of you head back to the saferoom," he said slowly as he regarded the rest of the group, "Don't forget to lock the door." He didn't have to say what might happen if they failed to remember.
They were still for a moment before they backed away from him and began to head in the direction of the saferoom, which was basically a lockable storage room they had repurposed just for this. Cohen had his doubts about exactly how well it would stand up against direct attack, but the plan was to not let the necromorphs get close enough to find out.
And besides, it keeps them out of the way, he thought with a small touch of amusement and a large swelling of relief. With the people gone now, he renewed his grip on the plasma rifle and was about to follow Keira when his communication device erupted with static. He stopped dead in his tracks; one hand went to rest anxiously on his gun while the other reached to the on-ear device.
"This is Cohen," he answered quickly, trying to sound in control. Playing the role of the boss was easier without direct contact, he had found out.
"Sergeant?" It was the woman from earlier, the one who had escaped from some sort of hospital.
"Saya? What happened? You weren't answering your comm," he said, not bothering to hide the relief in his voice. After their last conversation, he had tried to reach her, but she hadn't replied. Although it had upset him, she wouldn't have been the first to be lost.
"I…I was attacked. I managed to kill it, but it knocked out some of the suit's functions." Her tone was slightly hushed, as if she were trying not to be heard.
"That's okay. I just thought…well, nevermind," he said, allowing himself a sigh. "Where are you now? Are you injured?"
"I'm okay, but I had to hide in a room to repair my suit, and then I heard one of those things outside, and I don't know if it's still there." The whole statement was one breath, and for the first time, Cohen sensed her fear. He didn't blame her, though – it was nerve-wracking just knowing they were out there, let alone being isolated and separated from certain death by just one wall.
"Listen, just…" He tried to think about what to tell her. "Just stay there for right now. I'm about to be real busy real quickly, and I won't be able to direct you. Repair your suit's tracking system, 'kay? Oh, and block the air vents if you can."
Saya was silent for a moment. "Okay," she answered hesitantly, "I'll be in touch."
She clicked out, and Cohen couldn't help sighing again. He knew that, at least for the moment, she was placing all her trust with him. If he let her down now…well, he didn't even want to think about it. There had been others like her – of the couple dozen sole, isolated people who had made radio contact with him, only six had made it to the safehouse. Their voices still lingered in his mind: some were hopeful while others were panicked to the point of hysteria.
He did his best to try and put them out of his mind as he began to head towards the barricade. There wasn't any time to reminisce now, and he was about to open the door and make his way into the hall when his communications device beeped again.
"Saya?" His heart began to beat faster as he waited for her answer. It was all too easy to imagine her steady voice panicked and shrill.
"Sergeant Neil Cohen?" It wasn't Saya – the voice belonged to a man.
"Yeah, this is he, but I don't exactly got the time –"
"This is Major Benson from P-Sec. Your shuttle will be there in approximately ten minutes." The man's voice was firm as he interrupted Cohen. "I suggest you gather any survivors and meet us at the landing zone right outside of your position."
"M-major, they're coming right now, we need to postpone the evacuation," he said breathlessly.
"That's not possible."
"Look, there's not enough officers to deal with the creatures and help evacuate, it's - "
"Listen, solider. There is only going to be one shuttle. We had to fight to allow even this one to come down – the executives have declared this colony lost."
"I…okay, major," Cohen answered. Even as he spoke, he could hear Keira firing her weapon, and his stomach clenched – he needed to be in there with her, not arguing.
"It'll be there in ten minutes. Make sure everyone's ready – there won't be another chance like this." With that, the major clicked off. Without hesitation, Cohen shut off his own communications device before he brought the plasma rifle to his chest and made sure it was loaded. He knew he had to get the people out of there, and he had a plan – if he could switch the automated turrets on, he just might be able to get everyone out of there. He took a deep breath and opened the door, ready to fight.