A Case of Undeath
By
Silver-hawk
Prologue
In
the black of the night, illuminated only by curving searchlights a small figure
walked across the front of a building. Jack Diamond lay back against the wall,
holding his Hetler-Koch sub-machine gun in one hand he pulled a cigarette out
of his pocket, put it in his mouth and took out a lighter. Just as he as about
to light it... CRASH! Something must have torn down the fence behind the arms
depot he was guarding the front of! CRACK, CRACK, pistol shots rang out through
the night air accompanied by a burst of M16 fire. Jack dropped the lighter,
flicked the safety catch on his gun to off and sped round the side of the
building. A huge truck had smashed the metal fence aside and now strange creatures
were shambling out of the back.
"What are you
waiting for Diamond, Christmas? Don't just stand there gawping, SHOOT!" the
Captains voice was barely audible over crackle of machine gun fire. Jack took
aim and squeezed on the trigger, five shots entered a creatures exposed chest
and still it kept on coming.
"Sir, This is
just a theory but I think we might be dealing with something a little more
powerful than your average human Sir" Jack said slowly to Captain standing next
to him,
"No, you don't say," said the Captain
sarcastically. Suddenly a figure stepped from the truck wearing a gas mask and
carrying what looked like a flamethrower, "Diamond send an S.O.S. transmission
to the Special Tactics, Operations, Recon and Munitions section of the police
department in Nianso City." The Captain said. Jack fled to the comm room and
locked himself in, attaching the headphones and opening the channel Jack
grumbled,
"Why doesn't
he call them the S.T.O.R.M. Section like everyone else?" There was a beep, the
channel was open, "This is MD 26 transmitting to S.T.O.R.M. Section. We are under attack from strange creatures,
more powerful than humans and much slower. Requesting immediate assistance. MD
26 out." Jack stood up and went over to a locker. He took out a gas mask and
some more clips. He put on the mask, reloaded his gun and sat down. Cries of
agony split the silence. What was there to do but wait for the S.T.O.R.M.
operatives to come and rescue him, and any other survivors.
1
News
A tall
fair-haired man wearing black combat fatigues and a heavy duty, brown leather
jacket casually strolled down towards the S.T.O.R.M. office on the first floor
of the Nianso Police Department. (they were called NPD for short.) His name was
Captain Vincent Hawk. As he opened the door to the office a 20 year old girl
pushed open the door and dashed down the stairs,
"Hey Kit,
what's the... rush," but she was gone. Kit Marnley, a new operative, hardly
ever waited for anyone. Vincent went in and looked around.
"What's with
Kit?" Vincent asked a man lounging in his chair. Alan Cairvar looked up from
his newspaper,
"Oh the Chief
wanted t' speak t' her about something," Alan replied in his strong, Scottish
accent which Vincent would have recognized anywhere.
Vincent sat
down at his desk at the front of the room,
"Yet more
paperwork I see," Vincent sighed
"Not so fast
lad, this came through three hours ago," Alan handed him some paper. Vincent read it and burst out laughing,
"This guy
should stop drinking his mouthwash before he goes to bed! I mean, from the
description these things that attacked the Depot were, were, zombies!"
"Very funny,
but consider we tried to contact them and there was no answer,"
"Has anyone
investigated it yet?"
"Well we
would have but you obviously had a hangover or something so they sent some
coppers."
"I did not
have a hangover. I was merely playing snooker last night and got home late,"
"How late,
three o'clock in the morning?"
"Eleven-thirty." Vincent answered meekly.
The door
opened and Kit walked in, tears in her eyes,
"What's up
Kit?" Vincent asked
"The depot
that Jack was guarding, it was attacked last night and Jack's missing," she
burst into tears as Vincent came over and spoke to her.
"Were going
in to investigate, we'll find Jack, okay." Alan sat back in his chair, Jack
Diamond he thought One of Kit's friends isn't he? Yes, she seems
to speak about him a lot, I wander if...
"Alan, make
yourself useful and find Matt and Rachel, and stop daydreaming!" Vincent yelled
more than ordered.
Ten minutes
later all the S.T.O.R.M. members were in the office, Alan, the tactical
specialist, Matt, the demolitions and close combat specialist, Rachel, the
covert operative, Kit, the field medic and Vincent, the firearms specialist,
sniper and marksman. (Even though all of them could handle SMGs, shoguns and
pistols Vincent could handle any gun, anywhere.)
"Our plan is
simple, we go in. Find out what's happening. Find the survivors and get out. We
will be taking SMGs, Berettas, combat knives, Kevlar body armour and oxygen
masks. Any questions?" Vincent said coldly. There were no questions. The truck
left in ten minutes.
2
The
corpse and the friend
The truck
rumbled along the path into the depot through the destroyed security barrier
and into the centre of the depot. Vincent and Matt jumped out the back, SMGs
ready. They looked around the site before giving the all clear.
"What a
mess!" Rachel commented on the depot. Suddenly, as if from nowhere a creature
appeared, uttering a low moan as it approached. Three others followed it. the
S.T.O.R.M.s levelled their guns,
"That's close
enough, get down on the floor and spread your arms and legs apart," Vincent
commanded. The creatures didn't obey, "Open fire!" a crackle of gunfire ripped
through the silent depot, after five seconds the creatures fell.
"Doesn't seem
so funny now does it sir?" Alan joked
"I could have
worked that out myself Mr know-it-all. We search all the buildings for
survivors. Three of the warehouses came up blank with only a few zombies (as
confirmed by Vincent) inside them. When they came to the barracks they found a
man wearing a gas mask and carrying what looked like a flamethrower. Vincent
and Matt levelled their Berettas,
"Freeze, stay
where you are. Drop your weapon and put your hands on the wall." Vincent
commanded, his voice still cold.
"I know what
you want, my name is Mikhail Rukovosky, the flamethrower type weapon is a gas
sprayer."
"What does it
spray?" Matt asked
"You think
I'd tell you?" Matt walked up to him and placed the gun on the mans head,
"Yes, now
tell me,"
"You'll have
to find the lab in the mansion outside town, hahahahahaha!" CRACK, a bullet
whipped through the air and hit Mikhail in the head, Matt turned round to see
Vincent's levelled berretta smoking like an industrial chimney.
"He was going
for a knife," Vincent answered Matt's question before he'd asked it. A door
flew open and every weapon was trained on it.
"Hey, hey
calm down."
"Jack!"
"Kit!" They
ran together and embraced, then Kit took him back to the truck where the police
who had already been sent there were waiting. Rachel walked up to Vincent and
put a hand on his shoulder
"Relax," she
said and followed Jack and Kit out, the rest of them filed out. Vincent stood
there a moment and thought. Was she dropping a hint ? He shook
his head, walked over to Mikhail corpse and picked it up.
"We're not
done with you yet mate." He muttered to the corpse and walked out of the
building to the truck.
Back at the
station he put Mikhail's dead body down on the table in the office. Jack was
being questioned and everyone else had long since gone but Vincent was still
there, Mikhail, Mikhail I wondered if we'd ever meet again, well I'll just
have a rummage around in your pockets if you don't mind. Vincent found some
papers and put them in his desk for tomorrow, it was late and besides, Jake
would want to play the last three frames. Vincent left the station under the
watchful eye of the police chief. Chief Alium thought to himself you're a
good man, pity you'll have to go.
3
That's
Odd
Vincent
walked into the office looking shaken,
"Anything
wrong?" asked Rachel,
"Some fool
tried to shoot me as I walked up the steps to the door. I shot at him but
missed,"
"Did you try
and track him?" Vincent walked over to a window and closed the blinds,
"In this snow
I couldn't have. His footprints would have vanished." Vincent pushed a button
on the wall and the table with Mikhail's body rose from the floor,
"Is he still
here!" Rachel exclaimed in surprised
"He may be
dead but we need hi..." CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! the gunfire cut him short. Vincent
rushed to the window. Pulled out his Beretta. Opened the window and aimed
downwards, "Freeze, stay where you are!" He yelled,
"It's OK,
it's me, Matt." Matt was bending over a man with blood trailing from the man's
body, Matt's grey greatcoat hid most of the man but Vincent could see it was
the same man who had shot at him.
"Bring him up
here and we'll have a look at him," Vincent commanded. Five minutes later Matt
had the body upstairs, "Rachel, were you shot at?" Vincent asked
"No, but I
took my car downstairs, they might have missed me,"
"Hmmmmmm,
Matt call everyone and tell them to come in low and fast when they get here,"
"OK"
"As I was
saying we need the body because he may have something on him, I looked for
papers but could you look for anything else Rachel." As Vincent went over to
his desk Alan and Kit came in,
"Who are you
calling Matt? Kit asked.
"You guys,
were you shot when you came in?"
"No, why?"
"Me and
Vincent were shot at while we came up the steps, I guess that means he was the
only one," Matt jerked his head towards the body next to Mikhail's.
"No we aren't
running a funeral business," Vincent said, "Search that guy," Vincent flicked
through the papers, "That's odd," he said
"What is?"
Alan asked
"It's as if Mikhail was meant to die
and for us to find his papers, I mean it's got his identity and a work permit
but the only other thing is the location of a lab in a mansion, I don't like
it, it could be a trap."
"Yeah but
orders came through, we must follow up all leads or..."
"Or else we
get suspended, it's always the same."
"Well we've
got no choice, we have to follow this up,"
"All right,
we go, but fully equipped."
"Yes sir!" everyone said.
"Hey, I want
some answers," Jack Diamond called from the door, Vincent sighed,
"Well I
suppose you can."
