One thing I learned is that nowhere is safe. At every corner, there's something that can kill you.
Pennsylvanian Country, 13:58 15th March 2037, Jason's POV
The room was quiet. And even though I enjoyed quiet, it annoyed me at the time. I just felt so bored, with nothing but a tennis ball I found, bouncing it against the wall across from the single bed I laid upon then catching it, only to toss it again. There was more in this room than the last one I had stayed in, including a bookshelf with a few books that had been left here and a small chest of drawers next the head of the bed, a lone lamp sitting on top of it. Most of the furniture was made of wood, pine being my best guess. But the bed was made of metal, with a small crest-like shape at the top of the head. The curtains were opened, so the room was bathed in light.
After one more bounce, I caught it, but did not throw back as I sat up to face the door at the other side of the room. I beckoned to whoever was outside, "Come in!" The door knob turned slowly, and the wooden door creaked open. Standing in the doorway was someone I didn't expect Jill to be standing there, a hand on her hip. She didn't look too happy. Then again, when did she?
"You are needed. So get your ass moving out this door and to the barn!" I sat there with a confused look, and began moving after seeing her steel glare. That was enough to get me out of there, knowing how angry she could get. I hurried myself through the house, almost falling down the stairs. If I had, I would have been glad no one was around. It was a good thing the front door was open, or I would have had to worry about an injury to my face, around the center. I had to admit, I was curious about what they needed me for. I had been thinking myself as pretty much useless in the field, so it must have been Hank wanting help. But then I recalled all the others who were much more capable than me at his role, so that just confused me more. I soon, however, had a suspicion as I saw Hank and Lydia by a motorcycle. She was leaning against the red wall of the barn's side with a scoped M14 rifle by her side, and the mechanic was using his wrench on the bike. I didn't recognize the model, but I knew how to ride a motorbike. My father had got me to help him at his work, and one day a KPA officer came over with a motorbike in tow. He said he wanted it fixed in three days. My father did it in less than an hour, and had me test it. I got in trouble at first when we got caught, but my father's reasoning was enough to get us off the hook.
My eyes moved to Lydia's rifle. It had a brown leather strap running from the back of the barrel to the butt of the gun. All over it had been painted over with a forest multi-cam, and a net covered the body of the gun with strands of fake grass on it, making it look like it would blend perfectly in a grass field. The ACOG scope ran along the top of the rifle, just ahead of the bolt. Lydia had dark black jeans and a combat vest with green camo. The shirt underneath was the camo as the gun, making her almost the perfect camouflaged soldier. Her jet black hair was tied back into a ponytail, hanging past her shoulder blades, and only a few strands of hair hanged down above her eyes.
"Look who finally showed up." Hank lifted his head to see who she meant to find me, and a grin spread across. "Are you ready?"
"What for? Jill was absent on the details." I wasn't given an answer. Instead, Lydia walked up to me and placed a gun in my hands. It was an M9 pistol, with a black camo. It sent a feeling through me. A feeling of fear, and as I pieced it all together, I realized why I was called here.
"We need to pick something up from the old base. And from what I was told, Wyatt wants you to go." Of course. That guy still wanted me to prove myself. He had put too much faith in me, and that faith would get someone killed. But at least I could show off another one of my skills. Before she could retrieve her rifle and mount the bike, I was already on, looking over the handles. Both cocked a brow towards me in confusion.
"I know how to drive one of these. And since you're a better shot, you can ride on the back." She nodded, but I could tell by her face that she knew that wasn't the whole truth of why I wanted to drive. Yet she went along. I had to admit, she was...different. I had never met a woman like her. She was friendly when you got to know her, but would still sometimes act bitchy, as one would say. And she was barely friendly in the open.
She climbed onto the rear of the seat and held the sides, being careful not to have any of her touching me. I started the rev the bike when Hank backed away, and it wasn't too long before we lurched forward. I arched forward, my head almost resting on the handles of the bike. And once the farm was outside, I felt arms go around me.
"You tell anyone, and I rip your balls off." I gulped and nodded, going back to focusing on the road ahead.
Lydia's POV
Jason had told me the truth, since the ride had been smooth. He handled the bike like it was his own, though if I hadn't held on, I may have fallen off. But it did make me feel uncomfortable, and I think I scared him with my threat. Maybe I was a bit harsh with it, but that was just how I was. Ever since my father left me and my mother, I had grown a distaste for people. Then Wyatt had come along, and I began trusting again. And even though I hadn't gained his full trust, the kid was starting to grow on me.
We came to a stop in front of our old base. The old warehouse, which had been my first home after my mother's death. If I hadn't been found, I would still be wandering the streets like the alley rat I had been. I pushed those memories back before they distracted me from the present. My rifle was slung over my shoulders, and I armed myself with my holstered Glock 18 pistol, holding it at the hip and wandered over to the large building. We were outside the large double doors where we would store the vehicles. Looking back, I saw Jason putting the bike upright and making sure it would stay that way, then started walking towards me.
"Arm yourself." I noticed he was hesitant at first, then took out his pistol, but in a slow fashion. Now I could see what was wrong with him, as his hand shook slightly for a second. He was afraid of handling a weapon in the field. Which was odd, since he was good at firing a weapon. Did that mean he was afraid of killing? Perhaps I would have to bring it up with him, but not now. It would only distract him. But there was something I could do. "Jason-"
"Yes?" he asked back, and quite quickly at that.
"How about you holster your weapon. Just watch my back, and if you see something, tell me. Okay?" He nodded and with a quick movement the weapon was back. He must have been quite anxious with it in his hands. "Jason. Open this door, will you?" He stepped forward and grabbed the handle of the large door, and pulled as he walked sideways with it. My arm went up, my second hand holding the bottom of the grip. There was a sigh of relief when I scanned the room, finding it empty. We moved inside, and I turned on the small flashlight on the underside of the barrel.
"So where is this package we are getting?" he asked curiously. I answered without turning.
"We have a platform on the roof. We'll be taking a stairwell to the roof, and it's not too far." He looked at me with a surprised expression, raising an eyebrow with it as he went into the large hall lined with the rooms that were once our sleeping quarters.
"Wait, there are stairs here?" I nodded, a grin showing up on my face. "I never even noticed a way onto the roof. Or a stairwell. Where is it?" I pointed ahead to a door at the other end of the hall on the left. He didn't say a word, and judging by the look on his face, he might have felt stupid. Who misses the only door that looks different to all the others down the hall. Going down that hall brought back memories. I recalled the day I arrived here, and this hall was full of everyone, asking Wyatt where he had been and what he did, not bothering about the scared nineteen year old woman he brought with him.
I froze for a second, imagining myself there. Remembering the fear I felt with so many people around. It took all my willpower to return, the vision disappearing and becoming the old hall it was at present time. Luckily Jason didn't notice me space out. He was in fact ahead of me, almost at the door. I hurried to him before he could notice me being a bit behind and was behind him when he turned to me.
"Are you ready?" I nodded, keeping my weapon raised with the top of the pistol leveled with my eyes and my arms stretched out in front of me. Once again, nothing was on the other side. Nothing bad, at least. The stairs went for five flights, and they were all made up of metal. On the right side of the stairs, the railing spiraled up, but on the left there was the plain cement wall. Just as it had been when we left. I tested the first step, in case they had loosened in the short time they had not been used. It only creaked, but didn't move, so I continued up, taking it slow. I motioned with my left hand for him to follow, and he did so, taking it slow behind me. Every creak made me cringe, fearing that one of these steps wouldn't be able to take our weight. I balanced every step, taking it easy on the way up. Even the railing wobbled a bit as we held on. But it was soon over as we reached the top. I sighed once more with relief, my pistol hand by my side. I raised the other, and found it to be shaking, which was odd. Though it wasn't odd to find the boy's whole body shaking. He must have really been scared. I grinned at him, finding it somewhat amusing.
"You scared of heights?" He glared at me coldly.
"There's a difference between being afraid of heights, and being afraid of falling..and dying. And my fear is the latter." My eyes rolled and I turned away. "What, aren't you afraid of going splat against the hard ground?" he rebuked sarcastically. I ignored him, walking out onto the bridge we had made on top of the roof. The sun was hidden by the clouds, unlike what it was when we had arrived. It was almost dusk, so we had to hurry before it got too dark. And when it was dark, that's when the bad things came out of the shadows. Across the bridge was the platform, and sitting on top was a small case. I found myself surprised, because when they said small, I expected something a little bigger then a standard briefcase. Not something the size of a lunch box.
"That's it? We came all this way for a little tin? This can't even hold a gun! What's the use of it?!" I screamed in anger, kicking at the package. If not for the parachute attached to it, it would have gone sailing over the edge. Jason leapt forward and grabbed the chute, then pulled it up before trying to find an opening.
"What do you think it is?" I hadn't bothered to answer, since I was too focused on something in the shadows of the large building. The glint of steel was enough to send a chill down my spine.
"We need to go. Now." He sent me a confused look, then went back to inspecting the small tin.
"Hold on. I almost got-" I snatched it out of his hands, holstering my pistol with the other hand.
"Now!" I grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him to his feet, and then ran. I could hear his heavy footsteps against the metal behind me. The metal groaned under us, and that was enough to tell me that it would give way soon. Very soon. I stretched my strides further, then once it was within reach, jumped to the door, afraid the flooring beneath me would give way. It was a mistake, though, as I nearly sent myself tumbling down the metal stairs. And I would have, if Jason didn't skid to a halt behind me, almost collecting me and sending us both down.
"Are we going?" He seemed awfully rushed, and I had to resist the urge of kicking him down the stairs. At a steady pace, I went down the steps with him a couple of steps behind. However, I stopped myself from going further. It all happened as if time had slowed down.
First, there was the groaning of metal, and a haunting tap of steel against metal, the occasional scrape. Then, the steps in front of me suddenly burst open, a dark blur flying up through the new gap. I found myself on my back, my spine aching from the contact against the hard stairs. Before me was the top half of a metallic monster, like something from a nightmare. It was a midnight black, with a red stripe running down it's forelegs. A single red eye glowed in the center of it's panther-like head, and razor claws from it's paws. Then something at it's jawline began to glow, and I knew what was to come. Before it could use the stunners, I whipped out my Glock and fired into it's face. It let out a piercing screech, and fell back, taking a couple of stairs with it. Quickly pulling myself up, I looked over the gap. We could make it in a single leap, but the question was whether the stairs would hold our weight. I turned back, seeing Jason still on his back, his eyes wide with terror.
"Get up! We need to leave before it comes back!" He didn't respond, so I did the first thing that came to mind. And as it turned out, the shin was a really sensitive place. He yelped and frowned at me angrily. But only for a second when I turned back away and made my jump. I almost fell back, yet the railing had saved me. It shifted a little, though I still had a grip. Whirling around, I beckoned Jason over. He was hesitant, that was until there was something heard above us. Without another second of thought, he jumped forward. I grabbed him, almost falling backwards. After regaining our balance, we started down the last flights of stairs, running the rest of the way down. I let him run past, holding my gun at his head level. I then proceeded to follow him down the hall. Halfway down the hall, the robot burst through the door. I could see it was a different one, and it gave us a full view of it's body. Most of it resembled a large cat, except for the fact it had no tail and no mouth. It's shoulders were pointed and slanted towards the back, the front and side of it's legs covered in plated armor. The back legs were smaller, and had a rounded top that didn't further than the boundary of the socket it was held in. The back of it was humped towards the middle front, just before the neck. It had a flat chest under it's neck where two small pointed objects pointed out, being hooks attached to cables. Where the mouth should be, it had two electric stunners, capable of firing at medium ranges or touch contact to stun it's victims, with different power ranges, and sometimes being lethal. On it's paws, it had four razor sharp claws, the rear paw's claws being more shorter than the fore paws. When standing on all fours upright, the top of the small hump reached my shoulders. And in the center of it's head was that single, haunting red eye.
It must have had some kind of speaker on it somewhere, because from it came a snarl, followed by it taking a step forward, it's claws tapping at the ground. I slowly began backing away, Jason right behind me.
"Go. I'll deal with it." I didn't have to ask twice, because he ran without any argument. At the same time, his sudden motion had set off the machine. It came charging forward with a mechanical roar, it's claws reaching forward towards me. I fired a round into the central eye, and it tried to halt, but it's claws got caught in the cement, and it flipped over onto it's back. I quickly walked over and fired another into it's chin, finishing it off, before going to follow Jason. On my way, I holstered my pistol into it's holster on my belt around my waist and unslinged the rifle from my shoulder, then brought it to my shoulder. I walked at a fast pace, keeping my aim steady. The sounds I heard heralded the arrival of many more of those killer machines, and that made me want to get out more. I came out of the hall and into the vehicle bay, where Jason waited.
"What the hell was that thing?!" I was about to answer, if a third one hadn't come down the hall. I fired back with my rifle, hitting it dead center. But it only served as a distraction, as another robot dropped right on top of me, and using one of it's steel paws, it swiped my rifle away, with one of it's claws slicing into my cheek. The cut stung, but I couldn't worry about that at the time. I was about to reach for my holstered pistol, but it quickly pinned my arms down before I could. The large red eye stared at me, lighting my face with a bright red glow. The legs were heavy against my arms. The pain was becoming too much, and I had a feeling that at any time soon, they would snap under the weight. At that time, I knew this was the end. What a way to go. But my hope was restored when a bullet made contact with the joints behind the shoulder armor, and turned to find Jason with his M9 raised. He stood at an angle that allowed him to fire at the vulnerable position. It flinched, bringing it's injured leg up high enough for me to move my free arm and retrieve my Glock. One bullet later, the machine was gone, falling onto it's side. Jason came over and with his spare hand, pulled me to my feet. I ran without another word as two more came, one of them being the first we encountered. I held the boy's arm tight, pulling him through the door and to the bike, picking and slinging my M14 on the way. He stared it and I sat on the bike, and when we lurched forward, I watched as the warehouse disappeared into the distance, the monstrous machines with it. Once I was sure we were safe, I holstered my pistol and tugged at my slinged rifle.
Jason's POV
Along the road, we had almost crashed a few times, but that wasn't my fault. Well, not entirely. My heart was in my throat, and my head spinning, trying to grab a hold on reality. Those things, they were definitely not living. I had never seen such a thing, even in the KPA's ranks. And even still, I did not know what they were called. Lydia had been silent, and I had been too afraid, the image of the metal beasts fresh in my mind. Their dreaded razor claws, the awful glow of the red orb in their heads, and the sounds they made. You could swear there was an animal underneath all the steel, bred only to kill.
By the time the day had grown dark, we had finally reached the farm. Lydia hopped right off, but my hands were tight around the handlebars. It took all my willpower to pry my fingers from the rubber. I looked over at the black haired woman. She hadn't even thanked me for saving her life yet. Though I didn't jump to conclusions, realizing she may have been afraid as well. I had seen it in her eyes as the metal beast was above her, staring down with the red eye. Still, it would have been nice for a little gratitude. Maybe Wyatt would thank me for it. Coincidentally, he came as soon as I thought his name. His arm was in a sling, and I found it surprising he was out. Less surprising to find Jill with him.
"Did you get it?" he asked calmly, not noticing the scar on her cheek, for she had it turned away from him. She held out the small tin, which Jill took, almost snatching it. It didn't take log for her to open it, and when I saw her do so, I felt stupid. All you had to do was turn the lock on the latch, then lift it open. Wyatt wasn't focused on the contents, instead seeing a bruise on Lydia's arm. "What happened?" Lydia turned her face, only confusing Wyatt even more. Until she spoke.
"Stalkers. Stalkers were waiting for us." Wyatt said no more, and hurried off without Jill, with Lydia in tow. Whatever a Stalker was, it must have been bad news. I followed along, almost tripping when Jill suddenly ran past. They had all gone to the house, where I found them congregating in Wyatt's room.
"Jason! Quickly, come in" Wyatt called from his bed, sitting on it. Milo sat on the chair next to it with Lydia standing behind him, and Jill at her desk, inspecting the contents of the package we retrieved. Before anyone could speak, I beat them to it.
"Can I ask a question...what the hell were those things?!" Everyone stopped and looked towards me, then Milo answered. His voice had a grave touch to it.
"Stalkers. They are the hounds of the KPA, and strike fear in all men. They look like large cats, but act like wolves, have strength of bears and stalk the countryside at night. They are used commonly to capture prisoners, but can be used for killing. Most times, they travel in packs of six, one being an alpha." Just that word made me fear them more. From seeing those things, what would an alpha be like? Wyatt was next to speak.
""Many dread them. But I find it odd that you've never heard of them. Then again, they aren't very common in these parts. Those bastards will jump you, and you wouldn't have any time to react. And some are equipped with optical camouflage, which works best at dark." He turned to Lydia, leaving me to think on what he said. "We'll have to tighten up security. Lydia, I want you on patrol tonight. You see a Stalker, do not engage alone." She nodded, and then left the room. "Jason, get some rest. I have a feeling that there's gonna be some long nights ahead of us." I nodded, and left, almost walking into Lydia.
"Sorry about that" I quickly apologized before going past. But I didn't get too far as she grabbed my arm and pulled me back.
"Wait." I glanced back with a brow raised curiously. "I..I want to thank you. For before." I had a smug grin. "I could have died, and yet, the one person I doubted to do so, saved me." My smug grin disappeared and reformed into a frown. "I'm not saying your incapable of shooting at things!" she added quickly, and my frown disappeared.
"You're welcome." With that, I smiled and when she let go of my arm, I went to my room. Shutting the door behind me, I grabbed the ball and went away bouncing, knowing I wouldn't get to sleep with those Stalkers still fresh on my mind.
So that's another chapter. Hope you all enjoyed, and see you next time :)
