Chapter 3 : Retreat
Riley Finn, Saunders and Harrison made it down to the 5th level, once again reaching the bottom of a stairwell only to come face to face with yet another damaged doorway. This time it wasn't the door itself that was smashed in, its solid titanium surface only marked with the odd brown burn mark. Instead, it was the wall beside it that had been blown open, once again proving the point that there is little point building an impenetrable door if you can just find (or blast) your way through the walls around it.
The hole in the wall was large enough that a small car could have been driven through it, had one made it down this far.
Overkill much? Riley thought sardonically to himself as they stepped through.
The level in front of them was clearly supposed to be similar to that of the 4th level which they had just passed through, the same containment cells and white surfaces filling the large open space.
The immediate difference of course was the bodies that also filled the area. Human, animal and demons lay sprawled along the floor, their bodies tangled together, different colored bloods streaking across every available surface.
'He killed them all,' muttered Saunders to himself, crossing himself as he did so.
'No,' replied Riley looking around him. 'See the lights above the cells? They're inactive, not even the green lights indicating the containment fields are still running. These demons escaped their holding cells, although how they did so, I'm not too sure. Shit !! If he cut the power to down here, there would be almost a minute before the backup would have kicked in and re-activated the fields. I told them this could happen, I fucking TOLD them., but no, "The power supply cannot be cut off from outside the complex Captain Finn!!". Morons..'
'So why didn't those upstairs escape? They were still in the cells weren't they?'
'Yes but like I said, they weren't the dangerous ones, mostly too stupid to realize what had happened. If those down here reacted the way I would have expected them too, they would have made it out of their cells before there was any time to set off the nerve gas..and most of the creatures on this level are extremely dangerous.'
'More so than the guy coming after us?'
Riley paused for a moment, his instinctive response to laugh at the idea cut short by the realization that after all that had happened to him, Xander might actually be as dangerous as some of the demons, changing his answer from a resounding yes to a more considered - 'Perhaps'
'So what killed them all here?'
'I'm not sure they were all killed here. The creatures that we encountered earlier ? They were most likely to have been held on this level. If they made it out, there's a chance that others did too. Take a look at the pattern of the bodies - it looks like when the fiends escaped, they went straight for the scientists already in the room. They wouldn't have stood a chance. See the bullet holes stretching here and here? The soldiers in the room must have reacted almost immediately - well trained. Looks like they took out a large portion of the demons before they were taken down themselves, not too bad. Still not as good as they should have done, if they'd followed my training manual, but they could have been worse.'
'If they were killed by the creatures, even if some of the creature escaped, then what killed the rest of them?'
'You have to ask? Xander killed the rest of them of course. The hole we just came through? - another of his little explosive blasts. I'd heard rumors he'd gotten good with explosives over the years. Guess he decided to put them to some use when he found this place again.'
The three soldiers reached the end of the long hall, their boots slick with the blood through which they had been forced to wade, efforts to avoid touching the bodies behind them complicated by the sheer number and volume of them. The door at then end of the hallway was open, held in place by a large bullet ridden body of a Ferangi demon, the shots having torn its chest apart.
Stepping through, the trio paused for breath, the effects of the long jungle hike combining with the attack by the entrance and the sprint down and through the depths of the facility.
'Ok, there's only 3 more levels below this one,' Riley filled the silence. The bottom one's the barracks and rec rooms for off duty personnel, 2 levels down are the offices, some additional tech labs and the communication room, and the level below this holds the simulator suites, training rooms and dissection labs. This facility isn't the largest we have, that's in Peru, but it's still one of the most up-to-date, even now.'
The three started down the stairs, their pace slowing as they caught their breath.
'Where are we heading?,' queried Harrison for the first time, until now having simply followed the man in charge, his soldiers instincts and discipline having kicked in automatically when their retreat began. 'We could have made a stand earlier couldn't we? If we keep going down we'll be trapped.'
'We need to reach the communication rooms on the 7th level,' replied Riley, the faintest of touches of scorn in his voice as responded. 'Our first priority is to try and get a message out to let them know what's happened here and see if he's accessed the hard drives. If he got into the mainframe, this isn't the only facility under threat.'
'You think he'd go after other sites?,' Saunders questioned.
'He wouldn't have to. All he'd have to do would be to leak the information out and they wouldn't last long. They'd either be torn apart by some of the larger demon clans or the governments of the countries they are in would take them over.
'Demon clans - what do you mean demon clans?'
'What the hell did you think was in this place?,' Riley replied sardonically. 'You've seen the things here, hell you fought against some of them this morning. You want to tell me you thought they were just some kind of animals no-one had ever seen before?'
'No....I don't know...I just...I thought..,' the soldiers voices petering out.
Neither of the two soldiers were truly accepting or understanding any of what was happening, their minds suffering from sensory overload, unable to continue with any logical line of questions. A part of their brain had almost taken over, the reflex area that enabled a man to continue past what should have been breaking point. They were following the man in charge of them, not really considering whether it was right to follow him or whether his arguments were making sense, but simply pulled along in his wake.
They passed the doorway to the 6th level, ignoring it even as they passed, Riley leading the way as they continued downwards to the 7th level where the communications equipment should lie.
As they reached the door, the first one they had found still intact, Riley could feel himself relaxing slightly.
Doesn't look like he made it down this far. Perhaps there was simply no- one left down here to continue communications or there was a systems malfunction. If the equipment's still intact, I should be able to bypass the security and piggyback a message on the secondary military emergency signal. .
Following the chain of thought led him to the obvious conclusion - there must have been a reason why they hadn't sent such a signal, and that meant that the odds on any soldiers still being alive down were fairly slim.
Shit
Well, the scientists don't know everything about the systems - I should still get a message out. They have to know who it is that's attacked the project. They have to know that Harris is still alive
Reaching out, he turned the handle to the door, the main security features being on the levels above and to the smaller rooms within the level. Even as the door cracked open, and he started to push through, his instincts kicked in, saving his life for the third time that day.
The faintest of sounds from the other side of the door was enough to send him diving backwards, away from the door, releasing the handle as he did so. As his body flew, the rattle of gunfire filled the air, following behind the bullets which had generated the sound.
The door was perforated like a cheese grater, the thin steel layer on top of the wooden core being no protection against the heavy caliber fire pouring through it. Riley's quick responses had kept him from harm, but the other two troopers were not so lucky. Saunders took two rounds in his right shoulder, the bullets tearing through the multitude of bones making up the shoulder joint and collar bone, his weapon falling from his fingers as the nerve signals required to maintain his grip ceased with the destruction of the nerves. Blood began pouring at an alarming rate from the hole.
Harrison was almost as unfortunate, receiving a round to his upper right thigh which span him round in a fast circle, the large hole torn through the muscle immediately pouring with blood.
'What the fuck!!,' exclaimed Riley in shock.
Can't be Harris, he's still up there somewhere
'Cease fire, cease fire goddammit!!' he screamed at the door. 'We're the fucking relief team! What the hell are you doing?'
'Relief team?,' a quavering male voice sounded, 'How do we know you're not the ones who attacked us?'
'Because if I was do you think I'd be standing here talking through this door or would I be inside carving you apart?'
The sound of silence from the other side of the entrance was broken by the sound of a weapon falling to the floor, its metal barrel clanging off the metal grid on the ground. As it did so, the door was pulled open from the inside, a spectacled figure peering round the side, a mixture of panic and relief written all over his face as he stood up, fear making his body tremble in the process.
Riley stepped across the threshold, anger written across his face, ignoring the muffled cries of his two companions as he snatched up the rifle now lying at his feet. Pushing his way past the terrified scientist, he looked around quickly, scanning the area for evidence of further personnel.
'How many of you are still down here?,' he snapped out, tension still running through his body despite his apparent recovery of control of the situation.
'Just myself, and Dr Rhodes,' the scientist replied. 'We were the only ones still down here - we were planning a major series of experiments in the next couple of days, and the rest of the group was upstairs on level 4 when it happened.'
'The soldiers?,' Riley questioned quickly. 'Is Captain Stevens still here? Did any of them make it out?'
'I don't know,' the quivering man replied, 'There aren't any down here - all I know is that the ones who were down here ran out after telling us to stay put and we haven't seen them since.'
'They didn't stay with the satellite equipment?'
'Two of them tried, they were working at the computer when the attack happened, but something seemed to be wrong. They kept shouting that the system was down and that the signal wouldn't send. They said that after the emergency pulse went out the system wouldn't make the satellite link. After a while they said it wasn't working and went to help the rest of them.'
'They gave up? What do you mean they gave up? They're supposed to stay at their posts until they get the signal out.'
'I don't know, ok! All I know is that when they couldn't seem to do whatever it was they were trying, they said they couldn't leave their friends up there.'
'Incompetents!,' Riley nearly spat with fury at the lack of discipline of what should have been specially trained marines. 'They deserved what happened to them! If they'd done their jobs, maybe we wouldn't be in this position.'
'What happened up there?,' the soft voice of a woman sounded, as she came into the room from a doorway to one side. 'All we heard were some screams and explosions but that ended hours ago.'
Riley studied the new entrant, raking her from head to toe in moments, taking in every aspect of her appearance. She didn't look dangerous, at least from her appearance. A slender brunette with tanned skin, her black rimmed glasses and the tight bun of her hair added years to her initially youthful appearance, assisted by the starched white lab coat she was wearing. The sight of her sent an idea flashing through his head.
She looks like...maybe that could come in useful.
'And you are?,' he questioned.
'Dr Marshall just told you - I'm Dr Rhodes. I'm heading the Phoenix project here ..well anyway, that's classified. You must be Captain Finn. I saw your personnel file when I first got here, but I didn't realize you'd be heading the relief team. I was told you were transferred off this project and its sister units...?'
As she said this, a muscle on Riley's face started to twitch, her words bringing the same repressed rage he had displayed earlier back to the surface.
"Transferred?" I suppose that's one way of describing getting thrown out of a project I'd been in from the start. Getting blamed for what happened. It wasn't as if I was even here when it went to shit. Just because...
Throttling back on his anger, aware that it would hardly help the situation if he lost his cool at this point in time, he replied with bite in his voice:
'It's Commander Finn now. In answer to your question, I was until I got called back to the center to head this operation. Something goes wrong again and after being out of project for years, they just order me back in. "You're best suited for the job Commander, you already have knowledge of the site Commander, the necessary clearance." Looks like they may have been right. You realize who it is that has assaulted this facility don't you?'
'No,' interjected Dr Marshall, 'The security cameras don't seem to working properly. We haven't known what's going on until you appeared.'
'Well doctors, it seems that a former subject of this facility has returned - Xander Harris.'
Dr Marshall didn't say anything at hearing the name, his slightly confused expression registering no familiarity at hearing the odd name.
Dr Rhodes on the other hand paled at the name, her knowledge of what had happened here all those years ago, the intent of the experiments performed on Harris and the resulting debacle which had ended a number of careers, not to mention lives, sending panic running through her system.
'Then we have to get out of here,' she gasped, her fear of the man on his way down outweighing even the shock caused by the events of the last 24 hours.
'And go where?,' sneered Finn, ' The elevators are shot, we had to make our way down by the stairs, going through the level to the cross-wells. The military unit that was supposed to be guarding the facility has clearly failed in its duty once more, just as they did the first time. No, we'll make a stand down here, try and get a communication out.'
As the discussion continued, the two forgotten troopers stumbled through the doorway, Saunders supporting his wounded colleague with his good shoulder, even as the bullet wounds to his shoulder continued to pour blood down the front of his uniform. Harrison was in little better shape, the hole in his leg also gushing blood, lessened now by the makeshift tourniquet created by his military issue belt lashed above the wound, his injured ribcage forcing him to lean against his colleague in order to maintain his upright position.
As he heard them come through the doorway behind him, Riley finally referred to the two who had accompanied him from the start.
'Dr Marshall, take charge of Saunders and Harrison. The emergency medical supplies should be in the case beside that unit, unless they've moved them since I was last here. There should be sufficient supplies to patch them up. I assume you do have some knowledge of human anatomy?,' he said, pointing to a large box fixed to the wall beside them.
Turning his attention away from the two injured men, leaving them to the tender mercies of Dr Marshall, he moved to the entrance to the communications room, punching in his 10 digit security number as he reached the key pad, his palm print and retinal scan being accepted at the same time.
Still haven't changed it even after all this time. Guess my backdoor into the security system wasn't found after all
He strode into the room, the female doctor trailing in his wake, looking at the equipment in front of him with an experienced eye. The machinery in front of him was clearly state of the art, in some instances beyond even that. Flat screens covered the walls, designed to allow multiple camera viewpoints at the same time, allowing different experiments to be monitored remotely while occurring at the same time. Indented touchpads covered marked areas on the work station tops, built into the desks themselves, their highly sensitive pressure pads replacing the keyboards which had still been in use when he used to work here, small voice command units next to each workstation to allow hands free control of the systems.
As he approached the communications sector of the room, separated slightly from the rest of the computer equipment, designed to limit access from the compound to the outside world, the doctor beside him spoke up, the nerves in her voice apparent as she spoke.
'What are we going to do if you can't get the signal going? That means we'll have to fight him, doesn't it? What chance do we have against him?'
At this, Riley's control fractured slightly, his pent up emotions leaking out at the sound of fear in the woman's voice, the thought of everyone being afraid of Xander really getting on his nerves.
'Against Harris? Please!! I knew him when he was just a civilian, and a particularly useless one at that. I was a hundred times better than him then, and no matter how much better he may be now, he'll never be better than me. You saw the results of the tests doctor. You saw what he was put through without achieving any results. You know what we had to do to get him to progress in the experiment don't you.'
'And I saw the tapes of the end as well Commander. I saw what happened when we...I saw the results of your suggestion!!'
'Watch that tone doctor. It was I that brought him in to the Logan Project, it was I that made the suggestion that began the positive results, indeed, it was I that brought the woman that caused the success in the first place as well. I agree that my final suggestion may have triggered a result that went beyond our expectations, but remember that I was not present when it was carried out. If I had been the results would have been very different, no matter what the review board said.'
His memories carried him back to meeting that had taken place in the nearby conference room.
*********
...the raised voices reverberated across the long table that filled the center of the room, signs of tension in some of those, tinges of disinterest and boredom in others.
'We've been conducting the experiment now for 8 months, and you've all seen the results so far,' stated one of the scientists assembled there, 'Negligible!! We've wasted all this time, manpower and equipment to no useful purpose whatsoever. The subject still shows no signs of recovering the memories and experiences of the two reported possessions. Any improvement in his fighting ability has been the result of continuous exposure in the simulator, and even that has been below what you would have expected from a trained soldier. This project is a failure and I recommend that it be terminated !!'
'We could still find a way to recover his memories,' pleaded one of the scientists running the experiment. 'We just have to find the correct trigger that will initiate them. If we can prove that the personas of someone has been possessed and returned can be retrieved, then we can use this in the Phoenix project. What could be any easier way to instill skills and instincts in a soldier than to implant him with those already experienced?'
'We are aware of the experiments purpose Dr Platt. You've been running scenarios for all this time, what makes you think there is such a trigger? You've killed him repeatedly, you've shown his friends and family dying in front of him and in his arms. You've beaten him to a pulp and still had no success. The hypnotism didn't work, the drugs didn't work - what else is there left to try?'
The scientists working on the project fell silent. This had been discussed between them in the recent past as the repeated failure of their attempts had begun to wear on even the most optimistic. None spoke up in response to the question, all apparent avenues had already been tried.
Riley Finn had watched the discussion from the corner of the room, his presence tolerated only on two grounds; his prior experience in the Initiative; and the fact that he was responsible for bringing the subject both to the attention of the Logan Project, and then, when they expressed interest, for bringing Harris to the facility in the first place.
As he watched the scientists who were heading the experiment losing their argument for it to continue, he felt himself fuming inside.
Weaklings! We can't end the project now, without finishing it. A few months in combat simulations? So he broke some bones, suffered some injuries, "died" a few times - so what? It wasn't real, he's still here, and he deserves worse than that for what he did to me, treating me like shit from the day I met him, bringing Angel up at every occasion, trying to spoil things between me and Buffy. It was his suspicions that started them all questioning the Initiative and its aims in the first place. And then he started them questioning me! What right did they have to demand I help them against my unit? All the time I was with them, helping them out when they fought, he never trusted me, never treated me even half as well as he did the rest. Well, I guess he was right in the end wasn't he? I showed him who was the better man. Who's locked in a cell now?
As Riley's mind ranted to himself while the discussions were going on, the scientists appeared to heading to a conclusion when he spoke up, interrupting his own thoughts, voicing the idea he had been carrying in his head for a few weeks.
'There is another option.'
The scientists looked at him in shock, disbelief that he had spoken up for the first time in one of the progress meetings.
'Well?,' queried the scientist arguing against the experiment, 'What is it?'
'Harris has gone through the simulator a thousand times, correct? He knows it's simulated. Even when he's drugged it can't replicate real life completely, so perhaps the way to trigger his memories is to involve him outside of just the simulator?'
'What are you talking about Captain? We can't just throw him into a combat situation, you've seen his performances.'
'I wasn't talking about a combat situation sir. You are aware of subject 269 yes? She was brought to the facility by myself at the same time as I brought in Harris.'
'We are aware of the background Captain. We are well aware that you were responsible for bringing the two into the project - this has already been noted..'
'Then you are aware of the relationship between the two subjects sir? You are aware that he loves her very much, that he would most likely die for her? He has fought for her and alongside her for a number of years. The interrogation sessions and the records from the Initiative make this quite clear.'
'We are aware of this Captain, please get to the point'
'Yes sir. My suggestion is this : Harris is aware that the simulations are just that - simulations. No matter how real they appear, a part of his mind is aware that they are not real. That part of his mind, the subconscious, is where the memories are locked, correct? So the knowledge that it is not real is preventing us from applying enough pressure to break through or to trigger the memories release. In order for us to break this barrier, we must make the scenarios into reality, at least in part. And the key to making the scenarios real is right in front of us - subject 269.'
'You are suggesting that we use the woman to somehow make the scenarios more real to him?'
'In part sir. The experiment for which she was being used ended a couple of weeks ago. She was targeted for termination at the end of that, until I placed a delay order on it for just this possibility. I suggest we use her within this experiment. Harris cannot fail to react if she is threatened, his profiling makes this very clear - he's loved her for years. We've tried using her image in the simulation, but that cannot substitute for the real thing.'
'This would involve putting her in physical danger in order for your idea to work, if I'm following you correctly Finn. If his subconscious recognizes when the danger is not truly real, then the only way to avoid this will be to hurt the subject, the girl.'
'I am aware of this sir, but as I pointed out, she is targeted for termination at present. It doesn't really matter what we do with her since the end result will be the same. It is unlikely that the sight of her being tortured within the scenario, knowing that it is real, will fail to generate an emotional response. And it is that emotional response that may cause his mind to revert back to his lost memories in order to attempt to save her.'
The room fell silent for a minute or two as the assembled brains considered the idea, mulling over the possibilities if they went through with this. Riley could almost see their minds ticking over, rejecting any moral qualms they may have once had. coming round to support his suggestion.
And when they agree, I get to see both of them suffer as they should. Seeing her hurting will cause him more pain than if it was inflicted upon him. What was the phrase they said Angel called him? Oh yes - White Knight! Well, knights are supposed to save the damsel in distress aren't they? You'll certainly have too now won't you? Whether this works or not doesn't really matter, as long as I get to see you both hurting. And while that's going on, I might even start on the rest of your little group - what was the name of that little lesbian friend of yours again?
He could hear a few muttered comments between the group assembled around the table, not really listening to what they were saying now. The scientists working on the experiment should leap at the chance to continue on a new track, anything to prove their months of work hadn't been wasted. The rest would have to agree that his idea made sense, that it was a viable option.
Scientists could be so easily manipulated. So intent on their books and learning that they couldn't see when they were being played by a professional.
The hushed conversation amongst the scientists petered out as they turned to face Finn, the expressions on their faces already telling him what he needed to know.
'It is agreed Finn. Subject 269 will be transferred to the Harris project and be interjected into the program immediately. The results of this addition will be evaluated in a month's time, at which point a decision will be made as to whether the experiment will continue. In the event that no further progress is made, both subjects will be terminated.'
'Sir, I request permission to be involved in this new line of approach sir. Given my close association with the woman in the past, I should be in a better position to offer advice to the team in charge. With that deadline, we will need to push ahead as quickly as possible and my knowledge may prove critical to this.'
'Agreed Captain. We had already decided that this would be the best method of approach. You are to liaise with Dr Drake Roberts, and for the moment, you are relieved of your additional duties on this base. Inform your commander as soon as possible.'
Saluting the group in front of him, Riley turned away smartly, all military poise and professionalism. Internally, he was laughing at the top of his lungs, marveling at how the world sometimes seemed to just bend to his desires.
Looks like my fun is just beginning..
*********
The smoke from the smoldering debris behind him curled around his body like a thin cloak as he stood at the top of the stairs, listening for any sign that the fleeing soldiers had decided to make a stand.
Not hearing anything ahead of him, only the occasional crash of debris falling from the levels above him, Xander continued down to the next level.
As he strode down the stairs and then through the first level of holding pens, his pace picked up, not wanting to waste any time looking though an area he had already cleared. As he passed the cells on either side of him, their tinted windows shielding most of the inhabitants from his view, he wondered whether any of the demons held here were as harmless as others he had encountered of the years.
The Initiative never considered whether they were using innocents, why should this place have been any better? After what they did to her, I don't think that hurting a few demons, innocent or not, would give them any pause
Reaching the end of the level, he continued down to the next layer of cells, pausing only briefly at its entrance to extend his senses before him. Not hearing a sound, his level of hearing ratcheted up to the point where he would have been able to hear anybody still alive's breathing, he continued through.
As he passed over the bodies of the demons, not bothering to step over them but walking over them as if they weren't even there, he took the opportunity to quickly glance around, looking to see if there were any new species amongst them that would be worth recording.
The sight of the soldiers and scientists among the bodies were simply ignored, a scene which, when he was younger, would have meant him passing out, no longer raising a flicker of interest to him. He had seen too many people die during his life, starting in high school and never ending, even after he had left. The results of his time here had only made the situation worse, as he became a marked figure to any of the multitude of beings from both demonkind and people who dealt with it.
Hmmm, a Denalgon demon. I wonder how they managed to keep that one alive? Their nervous system rarely lasts when they are caught, preferring to shut down without the company of their kin. Don't see any others here though - can't have been here long.
He reached the end of the corridor, slightly surprised that there wasn't anything new to him among the bodies and continued out through door, kicking the Ferangi demon out of the way as he passed, allowing the damaged door to close off behind him. For the first time since his ambush on the jungle floor, he was entering territory unfamiliar to him.
Even as Riley and small group with him were desperately trying to access the communications below, Xander reached the 6th level down, only one floor now separating him from those he was hunting.
The sight of the door as he passed caused him to freeze.
LEVEL 6 : SIMULATION ROOM AND LABORATORIES ACCESS LIMITED BEYOND THIS POINT
As he realized where he was, what must lie behind that door, emotions threatened to overwhelm him. The long years he had spent since being brought here, always alert for anything that might aid him in his search for the facility, seeking answers that could only be found in the databases in the levels below, had finally culminated in this attack on the building.
But even as he knew that the answers he sought lay not on this level but below, that those he might still have to fight would be hiding there, he could not move, his muscles truly frozen in fear for the first time in years.
There were only two places in existence that could cause that kind of reflex panic to course through his body, and although this was perhaps, and only perhaps, the lesser of the two, it still had the power to stop his downward momentum in its tracks, drawing his eyes and mind towards it as if with a magnet.
As his body cracked the door open, he paused on the threshold, not stepping through. A part of his mind called him forward, to enter the space where he had been forced to spent so much time, but even as he made the effort to advance, another part of his mind prevented him, screaming at him that he still had a purpose, a mission to complete.
Minutes passed by as he stood there, frozen in indecision as the deeper areas of his mind struggled to process his emotions, images of the past blurring with the present till they threatened to overwhelm him.
His body screamed his tension as he stood there, every muscle appearing to hum, to shake, until without any discernable signal, without any change in his surroundings, his body suddenly relaxed, the chemical reactions that had wound him up suddenly ending as his mind reached a critical state.
He turned away from the door, his face beyond calmness, beyond expression. He could have been a man taking his dog for a walk had it not been for the look in his eyes. No hint of pain, of feelings, were evident in those brown globes, the lack of life within creating an air of drive and purpose as he began his descent.
*********
Even as Xander had been making his way down through the complex in his wake, Riley had been trying the emergency override signals on the unit in front of him, punching code and after code into the system in an attempt to achieve contact with the satellite above.
The system rejected his codes again and again, throwing him out of the database before he could make the connection required. The standard codes he had been provided with before he boarded the helicopter hours earlier were entered, one after another, systematically working his way down the small list. As he reached the last of the numbers on the card he swore to himself in frustration.
Shit! None of the codes are working. How the hell did he do this?
He was left with only one option, a code he had built into the original system all those years ago. It relied on a separate transmission dish that was installed at the site upon its inception, and after the first few weeks of use, had been quickly replaced by the much larger transmitting satellite. The lack of any discernable linkage through the main system merely reinforcing Riley's belief that the main dish had been taken out along with the main power at the start of the assault
Punching in a radically different code to those he had tried and failed with, Riley finally managed to gain a link. Watching the signal power fade in and out, he cursed.
Those fools probably didn't even know it was there! If they'd had any sense they would have at least ensured it remained in working order. If it doesn't work now, and we can't stop him, they'll never know what happened here. Got to get that signal out.
The female doctor watched him as he tried to divert energy to the equipment, siphoning off the electrical power from the main dish, now no longer functioning.
A picture suddenly appeared on the nearest screen, static lines streaking across the vision, clouding the image of the medalled and uniformed figure sitting there.
Yes!! thought Riley to himself as he prepared to speak.
'General Davis sir. We may not have much time, I'm using an old signal generator which may not hold up. I have to report that most of the facility has been destroyed. All of the soldiers have been killed and there are only two surviving scientists. None of the specimens appears to be present. They are either dead or escaped.'
He was cut off even as he spoke.
'They're all dead - are you sure commander?'
'Yes sir, there do not appear to be any survivors, although there's still two levels that I've not had checked. Sir, I have to report that subject Harris is still alive. He appears to be responsible for the assault on the facility, and for the attack on my team.'
'Harris? We believed he was dead when they captured him. The reports stated that there was no possibility of him returning..are you certain that it was him commander?'
The screen flickered wildly for a moment, as the picture faded in and out.
'Yessir. It was definitely Harris. Aside from everything else, I caught a clear visual of the scar sir. It's highly unlikely that anyone else possessing such a distinguishing mark would have found this facility, and even more so, to attack it. I think you need to check the source of those reports regarding his death. There are also two other survivors of the team that came in with me sir. We suffered an ambush earlier today from what I have to assume were escapees from the facility, and incurred major casualties, forcing us to proceed in daylight to the compound. That's how we are communicating at this time. Unfortunately he was waiting for us when we got here. He killed almost all of the remaining men before we managed to get inside and make our way down here. I judged that reporting this matter was more important than making our stand earlier general.'
'You were right Finn. This may yet affect have more wide-reaching consequences - we're going to have to find how long he's been operating without our knowledge. Do you know what access has he had within the facility Finn? Has he accessed the databases yet?'
'It does not appear so sir. The two scientists do not report anyone else down here since this began. It seems that after taking out what was left of the army detail and most of the demons not killed by the base units, he proceeded back up to the jungle surface to wait for us to arrive.'
'You must stop him from acc___ng the computer ma___rame co_____der at all c_sts! He must ___ get his h____ on the inf____tion stored there.'
As the power levels being fed to the signal began to fluctuate wildly, the communication with the uniformed officer began to break up. Diverting the power from the picture to the narrower voice beam, Riley attempted to continue the contact.
'Sir, we're breaking up. I can't seal this area with only two wounded support staff and the two scientists sir. If I'm to get them out, we'll have to retreat to the last level and try to seal one of the smaller rooms while we wait for reinforcements.
'They won't ______ in time commander, and pre_____ng him access to the syst__s is critical. You are authorized to -'
The signal ended abruptly as a power surge blew the transmitter, the miniature satellite dish on the roof of the compound frying with a surge of sparks, joining the main dish as so much useless metal.
Fuck
Even as he fought to resist the temptation to pound on the now useless equipment, he was forced into action by the words of Dr Marshall, still standing by the entrance to the floor, his hands blood-soaked from the emergency treatment he had been forced into performing on the soldiers, trying to repair the damage that he had caused, even if it had been by accident.
'Commander Finn, I hear footsteps on Level 6. I think he's coming - what do we do?'
'Everyone into the communications room, now!!,' ordered Riley quickly. 'It's the most heavily secured of all the rooms on this level, and he can't risk blowing his way in if he's after the information here.'
The three men by the entrance scrambled to obey, the doctor supporting Harrison as he was half carried across the floor, his injured leg still leaking blood despite the improved tourniquet and bandages. Saunders followed with no more pace, the wound from his shoulder having proved much harder to treat, thick bandages wrapped around his upper body in an attempt to reduce the blood loss to little success, the sheer volume of the blood he had lost causing to come dangerously close to passing out.
Even as the soldier reached the doorway he collapsed, falling to the floor without warning, his head banging against the bottom edge of the door as he landed, the sound of the impact enough to make the nearby doctor wince, even as he rushed to his aid.
With the assistance of the female doctor, he dragged Saunders through, hearing the door slam behind him as Riley initiated the security locks. The heavy steel door sealed instantly, the small panel by the side of the door flashing red as the security systems engaged with the press of a button.
'Dr Marshall, do you know how to fire a gun?,' Riley queried, not surprised at the immediate shake of the head. 'Ok, here's the drill..'
*********
Xander paced down the stairwell, his back hugging the walls as he went, his right arm extended with the wrap-around weapon foremost. As he approached the next level, where the survivors were huddled, he slowed, every additional step taken slower than the last until he reached the landing.
Spying the door, riddled with holes, and then the floor, now covered with the blood that had poured from Saunders and Harrison, Xander almost smiled. At the sign of the evidence of the nerves and tension of his targets that must have caused this, he almost laughed.
Almost.
For when his mind had reached this state, this eerie state of calm, he never smiled, never laughed. He wasn't even sure that he could.
Crouching at the side of the door, he lowered his additional weapons and the duffel bag behind him as he extended a small metal device taken from his belt, the curved mirror at the end of the stick reflecting the image of the room beyond. He studied the reflective surface, trying to see if there could be anyone waiting for him, his eyesight focusing like lasers, his senses following.
Nothing.
He waited, cat like and motionless as he crouched, his muscles locked in an impossible stillness, listening for any tiny sound.
Nothing.
He held his pose for nearly 2 minutes, unwilling to advance even after he was certain there wasn't anything, or at least anyone, in the space ahead, and then, with a sudden flurry of motion, he exploded into the room.
His bent legs acted as a spring as his body flew into the air, twisting and curling as he span, his weapon extended as he moved. Landing on the cold surface of the floor he rolled, first sideways and then forward, all in one smooth motion, coming to a halt against the wall, facing inwards, his gun ready to fire at the slightest provocation.
In front of him lay a small atrium, a series of doors leading off to each side, a larger door directly ahead. The large heavy windows next to each door on the left indicated at once their purpose as laboratories. In a place where even to be inside normally required top level clearance, certain activities had to be performed in open view, and when that was the case, this was where they were performed, the fronting allowing spectators to observe and record at first hand.
He had never been to this level, or at least he didn't remember, which amounted to the same thing under these circumstances, but the purpose of those rooms might as well have been written across their entrances in neon lights.
Beyond a fast visual inspection through the glass, he ignored them. They were not what he was here for, not what he had gone to this trouble for.
To his right lay another series of doors, each lying open and unguarded. Sweeping inside each with speed, he quickly cleared them. For all their use as offices and meeting rooms, there was little chance that anything of importance would be stored there. Paper was a little used commodity here, information instead being recorded in digital form, heavily encrypted at all times.
To access any information beyond surface detail, there was only one place he could go. He needed access to the mainframe, to the machine that held the secrets of the facility, to the experiments that they had performed here, on him and his friend.
To a part of his past...
That place lay in front of him, the multiple security panels by the side of the titanium enhanced door doing the opposite of what they were intended for. Instead of warning him away, they acted only to draw him to the door beside them.
Before approaching the door however, he strode back into the stairwell, retrieving his additional weapons and bag, no longer hesitant as he returned, carrying his grenade launcher loosely.
Studying the door, he considered his options, quickly ruling out simply blasting his way through. If his rockets did make it through the door, or the walls around it, they would only serve to destroy what he had come all this way for, and if they didn't pierce the metal frame, the resulting back blast would only serve to create more damage to himself and the room he was in than to the entrance.
He approached the security panels, studying them closely as he reached the wall. He was well aware that they could not be simply opened up and deactivated by simply touching a few wires like a movie script. The military may not always spend their money wisely, but even they couldn't fail to get security apparatus better than even a private household could buy on the open market.
He ruled out trying to crack the system. The combination of retinal scans, palm prints and security codes could be cracked in time, if he had the specialized equipment with him, but there were faster ways through.
Placing his heavier weapons to one side, he pulled one of the small red tubes from the array across his chest. Flipping the small nozzle at the end open, he slide the tube up the door, leaving a thick trail of goo in its path. Emptying one tube, he carefully placed it aside, pulling another from his chest and performing the same operation.
In moments he had traced a path around the edges of the door, the trail leading from the floor to head-height in one long, continuous stroke. There was no immediate reaction from the substance against the metal, nor did he expect there to be one.
Reaching again to his body, this time to his utility belt, he pulled a small narrow pipe from its position by his hip. Placing it flat against the surface of the door, half covered by the transparent fluid, he held it in place with the point of a small blade pulled from his bag. A second knife was held in his right hand, the tip resting millimeters from the pipe in front of him.
Xander paused for a moment, exhaling smoothly as he did so, and as the final traces of air left his lungs, he rapped the second knife forward, striking the cylinder at its center.
The reaction was instantaneous.
As the impact of the blow triggered a chemical reaction, the thin pipe appeared to melt, mixing with the fluids clinging to the door. Even as the two liquids combined, the fluid he had traced around the door reacted to the chemical substance now introduced to it. A thin blue line streaked around the trail as a chain reaction was started, no sudden flames, no explosion, just a faint hissing sound.
Xander stood back as the chemicals went to work. The effect was like acid, eating its way through the normally impenetrable metal in slow but relentless motion. The pace of its advance through the door wasn't fast, allowing him time to step away, drawing the sword sheathed along his spine with one hand, and pulling two tiny objects from the pocket on his belt.
*********
Those on the other side of the door could hear the faint hissing side, even through the thickness of the metal, but only Riley recognized it for what it was.
'Shit,' he exclaimed as he waited, 'He's not trying to blast him way inside - something's eating through the door.'
For the first time since he begun the mission, a flash of fear ran through Riley's body.
Maybe I was a little overconfident. Maybe he really has improved as much as they said. I never heard them say anything about chemicals and acid though
The two soldiers backed up against the side wall, trying to hold their weapons at the ready as they did so, but with little success. Having regained consciousness only moments earlier, Saunders was fading in and out of awareness, and even before the door was half melted, he slipped out again, this time falling into a coma, the sheer amount of blood which he had lost causing his body to shut down in an attempt at survival.
Harrison tried to support his weapon, his broken ribs making arm movements difficult, his wounded leg causing him to wilt to the floor next to his now unconscious colleague, preparing himself for what was to come.
The two scientists retreated behind the furthermost desk, attempting to hide themselves from any immediate assault, the male doctor clutching the rifle on which's use he had been instructed only moments earlier.
The slow, unremitting hiss continued as the metal continued to be eaten away..
*********
...on the other side of the door, Xander waited in perfect silence in the center of the room as the reaction continued.
Seconds later it ceased, the door almost completely penetrated, only millimeters of the metal separating the two rooms where the acid burn had cut into the door.
The wonders of magic and science he thought. Enhance a little Coransic acid and what do you get? An acid that'll eat through anything but stop before it reaches the other side..
Stepping to one side of the door, he drew his breath in smoothly and then, with one vicious movement, he span around, swinging his leg up as he did so, the ball of his foot impacting on the center of the weakened door with tremendous force.
The door reacted as if it had been hit by a thunderbolt, the weakened seams gave way at the same time, sending the major part of the door flying inwards, impacting on the nearby desk, shattering it in the process...
*********
...as the door flew inwards, missing him by mere inches, Riley reacted instantaneously, letting loose with his rifle, the high speed fire sending bullets flying back through the doorway, filling the outer room with gunfire.
As his rifle clicked empty, he snatched up his second weapon without pausing, unleashing another volley of fire before diving behind a nearby workstation, listening for any sign of the advancing attacker...
*********
...while the bullets flew by Xander, standing with his back against the wall, his spin having continued after his foot impacted on the door, to send him across the doorway to the other side.
Again he almost smiled, hearing the man inside throwing himself through the air.
Pulling a white striped grenade from his chest for the first time, he pulled the pin and threw it through the now open entrance, hearing it bounce off a work surface before rattling to the ground..
*********
....and Riley winced as he heard the grenade fall, landing only feet away from him.
Shit. I thought he wouldn't want to damage the computers
And then the grenade went off the sound of the small explosion filled the air, almost deafening him...
Oh fuckkkk..
*********
The hiss of the escaping gas filled the room, rendering those inside unconscious in seconds, the trailing fumes billowing back out through the doorway as Xander carefully breathed through his nose plugs.
Waiting for the few seconds that it took for the gas to fill the room inside, Xander stepped across the threshold, ducking his head slightly to ensure that he didn't touch the outer acidic edges of the frame.
As the gas rapidly cleared, drawn out by the ventilation systems installed to protect the computers in the event of fire, he quickly made his way around the room, collecting every weapon he could find on or around the bodies lying there. The two scientists appeared to be minimal threat at first glance, and the grievous wounds that the two soldiers appeared to have suffered meant that there was little chance of them causing him much difficulty.
Which left Riley Finn..
Trust Riley to be the only one not to be injured from the support squad. Never let it be said that he didn't know how to dive out of danger and leave his men to take the shots
From his duffle bag he pulled a series of plastic strips, tying Riley and the two scientists to three of the nearby chairs, their wrists and ankles bound together in what would likely prove a highly uncomfortable position.
The two soldiers he left where they lay. By the looks of one of them, he wouldn't make it - certainly the pool of blood in which he was lying pointed that way. The injury to the second one's leg would be enough to prevent him moving far, but just to be on the safe side his wrists were fastened too.
Stepping to the nearby workstations, Xander studied the hardware carefully, circling the room to take in all of the equipment that filled the large space. Most of it appeared to be standard terminals for general use, if the term general use could ever be used for what went on here.
He finally approached the central unit, its slightly advanced position raising the possibility that if any one unit had more functions and access than the others, this might be the one.
Stepping towards it, he lifted his bag onto the surface alongside the touchscreen, pulling the chair out of the way as he did so. The solid frame beneath the key pad was dented slightly, a stray bullet having ricocheted across its surface. Xander rendered this scratch immaterial as, with a smash of his boot against the thin steel cover, he broke through, following up with his gloved hands to tear the sheet apart, allowing him access to the wires and hardware underneath.
Slipping the miniaturized computer from his left forearm, Xander extruded two thin wires from its end, pulling them out from the pad with his fingernails. Carefully, he slid the ends into two contact points buried within the equipment below the surface, leaving his unit on top.
Using both hands, he initiated his computers functions, touching his fingertips to the two small squares on the display screen. As his dual prints were accepted, the computer hummed into action, the screen lighting up as it did so, numbers flying across the screen faster than could be made out.
PLEASE ENTER ACCESS CODE : the screen prompted.
Xander quickly typed in a complex mixture of numbers and letters, the screen quickly changing as he finished.
INITIATING CONTACT.... ACCESSING SYSTEM....
The screen flashed the words up rapidly and then the small computer began to hum slightly.
Knowing that it would take some time for systems access to be achieved, even with the sophisticated equipment he had with him, and that the effects of the gas would last a few minutes longer, Xander took the opportunity to leave the room and level in order to check the floor below.
A fast visual scan was all that was required, the small compact rooms and open barracks leaving few places where opposition could be hiding. The lack of private facilities took him slightly by surprise, expecting at least the scientists in charge to have been offered better accommodation, but he supposed the limited space available prevented such privileges.
As the only reason for being down there was to ensure there were no nasty surprises that could cause him any problems, Xander was back up to the communications in only a few minutes.
His computer was still humming contentedly to itself at the front of the room, the lack of progress proving no surprise to Xander. A database with the level of secrecy and clearance of this one was bound to have major defenses in place, and he knew it could take some time before his system could gain access.
In the meantime, while waiting for his companions to regain consciousness, he filled the time by flipping through the small handful of paper files that had been lying in one of the nearby offices, skimming through the memos within.
Just as he uncovered one useful piece of information, the sounds of the people in the room stirring caused him to put aside the files and return his focus to them.
'Good evening,' Xander spoke softly, his voice not rising above a murmur.
'Xander,' spat Riley straight back to him, the scorn evident in his voice.
The remaining trio were silent, Saunders having lapsed into a coma, and the others too terrified of their position to risk antagonizing Xander if at all avoidable.
'Riley Finn as I live and breathe. I thought they'd fired you after my last 'visit' here, courtesy of your kind attentions?'
'What can I say? The best is always called back.'
'You're no longer the best now Riley, you haven't been for some time. You still don't understand what I'm capable of, do you? What you managed to turn me into?'
'Who gives a shit?,' replied Riley defiantly if foolishly. 'You going to kill us all in cold blood? Or are you man enough to take me one on one?'
'You want me to give you a chance?,' responded Xander softly. 'The same way you gave me a chance? The same way you gave her a chance?'
'You do remember don't you Riley? You remember what you did to her? What they did to her?'
'Yes,' replied Riley, 'I remember. I remember you cried like a little boy when we brought her out. How you couldn't stop pleading for her life. I remember..'
The memories of both men now flashed back, back to when Xander's nightmare and Riley's game had begun..
*********
His face pale, the blood drained from his features, his body crumpling in defeat, Xander could only stare helplessly at the girl he loved. The girl he loved with all his heart, more than anyone else in the world.
Xander knew he would go through a lot for his friends, knew that he would die to save most of them, as he knew they would for him.
In that moment he realized that dying would easy.
For the girl before him, faint bruises lining her jaw, the usual power in her body absent, he realized he would do more than die for. He would go to hell for her, suffer for eternity rather than see her hurt. And he knew he was going to suffer that and still not be allowed to die.
'Willow.......'
*********
Not quite as good as the first two perhaps but the next is bigger, badder, better and more importantly is complete. Depending on the feedback, you can all either wait another week for the whole thing, or have part earlier than normal (since its bigger than the others). Hey, maybe I'll just write more and put it all up early. As usual, I still need feedback, even if only to see if anyone wants me to continue. You only have to click on the little button at the bottom, it'll only take a few seconds and if you like it (or even if you don't) each review means a lot to me. If you've taken the time to read, you may as well take a few seconds longer to review. As before, suggestions will be welcomed with open arms/eyes/whatever - some of those made will be used soon.
Riley Finn, Saunders and Harrison made it down to the 5th level, once again reaching the bottom of a stairwell only to come face to face with yet another damaged doorway. This time it wasn't the door itself that was smashed in, its solid titanium surface only marked with the odd brown burn mark. Instead, it was the wall beside it that had been blown open, once again proving the point that there is little point building an impenetrable door if you can just find (or blast) your way through the walls around it.
The hole in the wall was large enough that a small car could have been driven through it, had one made it down this far.
Overkill much? Riley thought sardonically to himself as they stepped through.
The level in front of them was clearly supposed to be similar to that of the 4th level which they had just passed through, the same containment cells and white surfaces filling the large open space.
The immediate difference of course was the bodies that also filled the area. Human, animal and demons lay sprawled along the floor, their bodies tangled together, different colored bloods streaking across every available surface.
'He killed them all,' muttered Saunders to himself, crossing himself as he did so.
'No,' replied Riley looking around him. 'See the lights above the cells? They're inactive, not even the green lights indicating the containment fields are still running. These demons escaped their holding cells, although how they did so, I'm not too sure. Shit !! If he cut the power to down here, there would be almost a minute before the backup would have kicked in and re-activated the fields. I told them this could happen, I fucking TOLD them., but no, "The power supply cannot be cut off from outside the complex Captain Finn!!". Morons..'
'So why didn't those upstairs escape? They were still in the cells weren't they?'
'Yes but like I said, they weren't the dangerous ones, mostly too stupid to realize what had happened. If those down here reacted the way I would have expected them too, they would have made it out of their cells before there was any time to set off the nerve gas..and most of the creatures on this level are extremely dangerous.'
'More so than the guy coming after us?'
Riley paused for a moment, his instinctive response to laugh at the idea cut short by the realization that after all that had happened to him, Xander might actually be as dangerous as some of the demons, changing his answer from a resounding yes to a more considered - 'Perhaps'
'So what killed them all here?'
'I'm not sure they were all killed here. The creatures that we encountered earlier ? They were most likely to have been held on this level. If they made it out, there's a chance that others did too. Take a look at the pattern of the bodies - it looks like when the fiends escaped, they went straight for the scientists already in the room. They wouldn't have stood a chance. See the bullet holes stretching here and here? The soldiers in the room must have reacted almost immediately - well trained. Looks like they took out a large portion of the demons before they were taken down themselves, not too bad. Still not as good as they should have done, if they'd followed my training manual, but they could have been worse.'
'If they were killed by the creatures, even if some of the creature escaped, then what killed the rest of them?'
'You have to ask? Xander killed the rest of them of course. The hole we just came through? - another of his little explosive blasts. I'd heard rumors he'd gotten good with explosives over the years. Guess he decided to put them to some use when he found this place again.'
The three soldiers reached the end of the long hall, their boots slick with the blood through which they had been forced to wade, efforts to avoid touching the bodies behind them complicated by the sheer number and volume of them. The door at then end of the hallway was open, held in place by a large bullet ridden body of a Ferangi demon, the shots having torn its chest apart.
Stepping through, the trio paused for breath, the effects of the long jungle hike combining with the attack by the entrance and the sprint down and through the depths of the facility.
'Ok, there's only 3 more levels below this one,' Riley filled the silence. The bottom one's the barracks and rec rooms for off duty personnel, 2 levels down are the offices, some additional tech labs and the communication room, and the level below this holds the simulator suites, training rooms and dissection labs. This facility isn't the largest we have, that's in Peru, but it's still one of the most up-to-date, even now.'
The three started down the stairs, their pace slowing as they caught their breath.
'Where are we heading?,' queried Harrison for the first time, until now having simply followed the man in charge, his soldiers instincts and discipline having kicked in automatically when their retreat began. 'We could have made a stand earlier couldn't we? If we keep going down we'll be trapped.'
'We need to reach the communication rooms on the 7th level,' replied Riley, the faintest of touches of scorn in his voice as responded. 'Our first priority is to try and get a message out to let them know what's happened here and see if he's accessed the hard drives. If he got into the mainframe, this isn't the only facility under threat.'
'You think he'd go after other sites?,' Saunders questioned.
'He wouldn't have to. All he'd have to do would be to leak the information out and they wouldn't last long. They'd either be torn apart by some of the larger demon clans or the governments of the countries they are in would take them over.
'Demon clans - what do you mean demon clans?'
'What the hell did you think was in this place?,' Riley replied sardonically. 'You've seen the things here, hell you fought against some of them this morning. You want to tell me you thought they were just some kind of animals no-one had ever seen before?'
'No....I don't know...I just...I thought..,' the soldiers voices petering out.
Neither of the two soldiers were truly accepting or understanding any of what was happening, their minds suffering from sensory overload, unable to continue with any logical line of questions. A part of their brain had almost taken over, the reflex area that enabled a man to continue past what should have been breaking point. They were following the man in charge of them, not really considering whether it was right to follow him or whether his arguments were making sense, but simply pulled along in his wake.
They passed the doorway to the 6th level, ignoring it even as they passed, Riley leading the way as they continued downwards to the 7th level where the communications equipment should lie.
As they reached the door, the first one they had found still intact, Riley could feel himself relaxing slightly.
Doesn't look like he made it down this far. Perhaps there was simply no- one left down here to continue communications or there was a systems malfunction. If the equipment's still intact, I should be able to bypass the security and piggyback a message on the secondary military emergency signal. .
Following the chain of thought led him to the obvious conclusion - there must have been a reason why they hadn't sent such a signal, and that meant that the odds on any soldiers still being alive down were fairly slim.
Shit
Well, the scientists don't know everything about the systems - I should still get a message out. They have to know who it is that's attacked the project. They have to know that Harris is still alive
Reaching out, he turned the handle to the door, the main security features being on the levels above and to the smaller rooms within the level. Even as the door cracked open, and he started to push through, his instincts kicked in, saving his life for the third time that day.
The faintest of sounds from the other side of the door was enough to send him diving backwards, away from the door, releasing the handle as he did so. As his body flew, the rattle of gunfire filled the air, following behind the bullets which had generated the sound.
The door was perforated like a cheese grater, the thin steel layer on top of the wooden core being no protection against the heavy caliber fire pouring through it. Riley's quick responses had kept him from harm, but the other two troopers were not so lucky. Saunders took two rounds in his right shoulder, the bullets tearing through the multitude of bones making up the shoulder joint and collar bone, his weapon falling from his fingers as the nerve signals required to maintain his grip ceased with the destruction of the nerves. Blood began pouring at an alarming rate from the hole.
Harrison was almost as unfortunate, receiving a round to his upper right thigh which span him round in a fast circle, the large hole torn through the muscle immediately pouring with blood.
'What the fuck!!,' exclaimed Riley in shock.
Can't be Harris, he's still up there somewhere
'Cease fire, cease fire goddammit!!' he screamed at the door. 'We're the fucking relief team! What the hell are you doing?'
'Relief team?,' a quavering male voice sounded, 'How do we know you're not the ones who attacked us?'
'Because if I was do you think I'd be standing here talking through this door or would I be inside carving you apart?'
The sound of silence from the other side of the entrance was broken by the sound of a weapon falling to the floor, its metal barrel clanging off the metal grid on the ground. As it did so, the door was pulled open from the inside, a spectacled figure peering round the side, a mixture of panic and relief written all over his face as he stood up, fear making his body tremble in the process.
Riley stepped across the threshold, anger written across his face, ignoring the muffled cries of his two companions as he snatched up the rifle now lying at his feet. Pushing his way past the terrified scientist, he looked around quickly, scanning the area for evidence of further personnel.
'How many of you are still down here?,' he snapped out, tension still running through his body despite his apparent recovery of control of the situation.
'Just myself, and Dr Rhodes,' the scientist replied. 'We were the only ones still down here - we were planning a major series of experiments in the next couple of days, and the rest of the group was upstairs on level 4 when it happened.'
'The soldiers?,' Riley questioned quickly. 'Is Captain Stevens still here? Did any of them make it out?'
'I don't know,' the quivering man replied, 'There aren't any down here - all I know is that the ones who were down here ran out after telling us to stay put and we haven't seen them since.'
'They didn't stay with the satellite equipment?'
'Two of them tried, they were working at the computer when the attack happened, but something seemed to be wrong. They kept shouting that the system was down and that the signal wouldn't send. They said that after the emergency pulse went out the system wouldn't make the satellite link. After a while they said it wasn't working and went to help the rest of them.'
'They gave up? What do you mean they gave up? They're supposed to stay at their posts until they get the signal out.'
'I don't know, ok! All I know is that when they couldn't seem to do whatever it was they were trying, they said they couldn't leave their friends up there.'
'Incompetents!,' Riley nearly spat with fury at the lack of discipline of what should have been specially trained marines. 'They deserved what happened to them! If they'd done their jobs, maybe we wouldn't be in this position.'
'What happened up there?,' the soft voice of a woman sounded, as she came into the room from a doorway to one side. 'All we heard were some screams and explosions but that ended hours ago.'
Riley studied the new entrant, raking her from head to toe in moments, taking in every aspect of her appearance. She didn't look dangerous, at least from her appearance. A slender brunette with tanned skin, her black rimmed glasses and the tight bun of her hair added years to her initially youthful appearance, assisted by the starched white lab coat she was wearing. The sight of her sent an idea flashing through his head.
She looks like...maybe that could come in useful.
'And you are?,' he questioned.
'Dr Marshall just told you - I'm Dr Rhodes. I'm heading the Phoenix project here ..well anyway, that's classified. You must be Captain Finn. I saw your personnel file when I first got here, but I didn't realize you'd be heading the relief team. I was told you were transferred off this project and its sister units...?'
As she said this, a muscle on Riley's face started to twitch, her words bringing the same repressed rage he had displayed earlier back to the surface.
"Transferred?" I suppose that's one way of describing getting thrown out of a project I'd been in from the start. Getting blamed for what happened. It wasn't as if I was even here when it went to shit. Just because...
Throttling back on his anger, aware that it would hardly help the situation if he lost his cool at this point in time, he replied with bite in his voice:
'It's Commander Finn now. In answer to your question, I was until I got called back to the center to head this operation. Something goes wrong again and after being out of project for years, they just order me back in. "You're best suited for the job Commander, you already have knowledge of the site Commander, the necessary clearance." Looks like they may have been right. You realize who it is that has assaulted this facility don't you?'
'No,' interjected Dr Marshall, 'The security cameras don't seem to working properly. We haven't known what's going on until you appeared.'
'Well doctors, it seems that a former subject of this facility has returned - Xander Harris.'
Dr Marshall didn't say anything at hearing the name, his slightly confused expression registering no familiarity at hearing the odd name.
Dr Rhodes on the other hand paled at the name, her knowledge of what had happened here all those years ago, the intent of the experiments performed on Harris and the resulting debacle which had ended a number of careers, not to mention lives, sending panic running through her system.
'Then we have to get out of here,' she gasped, her fear of the man on his way down outweighing even the shock caused by the events of the last 24 hours.
'And go where?,' sneered Finn, ' The elevators are shot, we had to make our way down by the stairs, going through the level to the cross-wells. The military unit that was supposed to be guarding the facility has clearly failed in its duty once more, just as they did the first time. No, we'll make a stand down here, try and get a communication out.'
As the discussion continued, the two forgotten troopers stumbled through the doorway, Saunders supporting his wounded colleague with his good shoulder, even as the bullet wounds to his shoulder continued to pour blood down the front of his uniform. Harrison was in little better shape, the hole in his leg also gushing blood, lessened now by the makeshift tourniquet created by his military issue belt lashed above the wound, his injured ribcage forcing him to lean against his colleague in order to maintain his upright position.
As he heard them come through the doorway behind him, Riley finally referred to the two who had accompanied him from the start.
'Dr Marshall, take charge of Saunders and Harrison. The emergency medical supplies should be in the case beside that unit, unless they've moved them since I was last here. There should be sufficient supplies to patch them up. I assume you do have some knowledge of human anatomy?,' he said, pointing to a large box fixed to the wall beside them.
Turning his attention away from the two injured men, leaving them to the tender mercies of Dr Marshall, he moved to the entrance to the communications room, punching in his 10 digit security number as he reached the key pad, his palm print and retinal scan being accepted at the same time.
Still haven't changed it even after all this time. Guess my backdoor into the security system wasn't found after all
He strode into the room, the female doctor trailing in his wake, looking at the equipment in front of him with an experienced eye. The machinery in front of him was clearly state of the art, in some instances beyond even that. Flat screens covered the walls, designed to allow multiple camera viewpoints at the same time, allowing different experiments to be monitored remotely while occurring at the same time. Indented touchpads covered marked areas on the work station tops, built into the desks themselves, their highly sensitive pressure pads replacing the keyboards which had still been in use when he used to work here, small voice command units next to each workstation to allow hands free control of the systems.
As he approached the communications sector of the room, separated slightly from the rest of the computer equipment, designed to limit access from the compound to the outside world, the doctor beside him spoke up, the nerves in her voice apparent as she spoke.
'What are we going to do if you can't get the signal going? That means we'll have to fight him, doesn't it? What chance do we have against him?'
At this, Riley's control fractured slightly, his pent up emotions leaking out at the sound of fear in the woman's voice, the thought of everyone being afraid of Xander really getting on his nerves.
'Against Harris? Please!! I knew him when he was just a civilian, and a particularly useless one at that. I was a hundred times better than him then, and no matter how much better he may be now, he'll never be better than me. You saw the results of the tests doctor. You saw what he was put through without achieving any results. You know what we had to do to get him to progress in the experiment don't you.'
'And I saw the tapes of the end as well Commander. I saw what happened when we...I saw the results of your suggestion!!'
'Watch that tone doctor. It was I that brought him in to the Logan Project, it was I that made the suggestion that began the positive results, indeed, it was I that brought the woman that caused the success in the first place as well. I agree that my final suggestion may have triggered a result that went beyond our expectations, but remember that I was not present when it was carried out. If I had been the results would have been very different, no matter what the review board said.'
His memories carried him back to meeting that had taken place in the nearby conference room.
*********
...the raised voices reverberated across the long table that filled the center of the room, signs of tension in some of those, tinges of disinterest and boredom in others.
'We've been conducting the experiment now for 8 months, and you've all seen the results so far,' stated one of the scientists assembled there, 'Negligible!! We've wasted all this time, manpower and equipment to no useful purpose whatsoever. The subject still shows no signs of recovering the memories and experiences of the two reported possessions. Any improvement in his fighting ability has been the result of continuous exposure in the simulator, and even that has been below what you would have expected from a trained soldier. This project is a failure and I recommend that it be terminated !!'
'We could still find a way to recover his memories,' pleaded one of the scientists running the experiment. 'We just have to find the correct trigger that will initiate them. If we can prove that the personas of someone has been possessed and returned can be retrieved, then we can use this in the Phoenix project. What could be any easier way to instill skills and instincts in a soldier than to implant him with those already experienced?'
'We are aware of the experiments purpose Dr Platt. You've been running scenarios for all this time, what makes you think there is such a trigger? You've killed him repeatedly, you've shown his friends and family dying in front of him and in his arms. You've beaten him to a pulp and still had no success. The hypnotism didn't work, the drugs didn't work - what else is there left to try?'
The scientists working on the project fell silent. This had been discussed between them in the recent past as the repeated failure of their attempts had begun to wear on even the most optimistic. None spoke up in response to the question, all apparent avenues had already been tried.
Riley Finn had watched the discussion from the corner of the room, his presence tolerated only on two grounds; his prior experience in the Initiative; and the fact that he was responsible for bringing the subject both to the attention of the Logan Project, and then, when they expressed interest, for bringing Harris to the facility in the first place.
As he watched the scientists who were heading the experiment losing their argument for it to continue, he felt himself fuming inside.
Weaklings! We can't end the project now, without finishing it. A few months in combat simulations? So he broke some bones, suffered some injuries, "died" a few times - so what? It wasn't real, he's still here, and he deserves worse than that for what he did to me, treating me like shit from the day I met him, bringing Angel up at every occasion, trying to spoil things between me and Buffy. It was his suspicions that started them all questioning the Initiative and its aims in the first place. And then he started them questioning me! What right did they have to demand I help them against my unit? All the time I was with them, helping them out when they fought, he never trusted me, never treated me even half as well as he did the rest. Well, I guess he was right in the end wasn't he? I showed him who was the better man. Who's locked in a cell now?
As Riley's mind ranted to himself while the discussions were going on, the scientists appeared to heading to a conclusion when he spoke up, interrupting his own thoughts, voicing the idea he had been carrying in his head for a few weeks.
'There is another option.'
The scientists looked at him in shock, disbelief that he had spoken up for the first time in one of the progress meetings.
'Well?,' queried the scientist arguing against the experiment, 'What is it?'
'Harris has gone through the simulator a thousand times, correct? He knows it's simulated. Even when he's drugged it can't replicate real life completely, so perhaps the way to trigger his memories is to involve him outside of just the simulator?'
'What are you talking about Captain? We can't just throw him into a combat situation, you've seen his performances.'
'I wasn't talking about a combat situation sir. You are aware of subject 269 yes? She was brought to the facility by myself at the same time as I brought in Harris.'
'We are aware of the background Captain. We are well aware that you were responsible for bringing the two into the project - this has already been noted..'
'Then you are aware of the relationship between the two subjects sir? You are aware that he loves her very much, that he would most likely die for her? He has fought for her and alongside her for a number of years. The interrogation sessions and the records from the Initiative make this quite clear.'
'We are aware of this Captain, please get to the point'
'Yes sir. My suggestion is this : Harris is aware that the simulations are just that - simulations. No matter how real they appear, a part of his mind is aware that they are not real. That part of his mind, the subconscious, is where the memories are locked, correct? So the knowledge that it is not real is preventing us from applying enough pressure to break through or to trigger the memories release. In order for us to break this barrier, we must make the scenarios into reality, at least in part. And the key to making the scenarios real is right in front of us - subject 269.'
'You are suggesting that we use the woman to somehow make the scenarios more real to him?'
'In part sir. The experiment for which she was being used ended a couple of weeks ago. She was targeted for termination at the end of that, until I placed a delay order on it for just this possibility. I suggest we use her within this experiment. Harris cannot fail to react if she is threatened, his profiling makes this very clear - he's loved her for years. We've tried using her image in the simulation, but that cannot substitute for the real thing.'
'This would involve putting her in physical danger in order for your idea to work, if I'm following you correctly Finn. If his subconscious recognizes when the danger is not truly real, then the only way to avoid this will be to hurt the subject, the girl.'
'I am aware of this sir, but as I pointed out, she is targeted for termination at present. It doesn't really matter what we do with her since the end result will be the same. It is unlikely that the sight of her being tortured within the scenario, knowing that it is real, will fail to generate an emotional response. And it is that emotional response that may cause his mind to revert back to his lost memories in order to attempt to save her.'
The room fell silent for a minute or two as the assembled brains considered the idea, mulling over the possibilities if they went through with this. Riley could almost see their minds ticking over, rejecting any moral qualms they may have once had. coming round to support his suggestion.
And when they agree, I get to see both of them suffer as they should. Seeing her hurting will cause him more pain than if it was inflicted upon him. What was the phrase they said Angel called him? Oh yes - White Knight! Well, knights are supposed to save the damsel in distress aren't they? You'll certainly have too now won't you? Whether this works or not doesn't really matter, as long as I get to see you both hurting. And while that's going on, I might even start on the rest of your little group - what was the name of that little lesbian friend of yours again?
He could hear a few muttered comments between the group assembled around the table, not really listening to what they were saying now. The scientists working on the experiment should leap at the chance to continue on a new track, anything to prove their months of work hadn't been wasted. The rest would have to agree that his idea made sense, that it was a viable option.
Scientists could be so easily manipulated. So intent on their books and learning that they couldn't see when they were being played by a professional.
The hushed conversation amongst the scientists petered out as they turned to face Finn, the expressions on their faces already telling him what he needed to know.
'It is agreed Finn. Subject 269 will be transferred to the Harris project and be interjected into the program immediately. The results of this addition will be evaluated in a month's time, at which point a decision will be made as to whether the experiment will continue. In the event that no further progress is made, both subjects will be terminated.'
'Sir, I request permission to be involved in this new line of approach sir. Given my close association with the woman in the past, I should be in a better position to offer advice to the team in charge. With that deadline, we will need to push ahead as quickly as possible and my knowledge may prove critical to this.'
'Agreed Captain. We had already decided that this would be the best method of approach. You are to liaise with Dr Drake Roberts, and for the moment, you are relieved of your additional duties on this base. Inform your commander as soon as possible.'
Saluting the group in front of him, Riley turned away smartly, all military poise and professionalism. Internally, he was laughing at the top of his lungs, marveling at how the world sometimes seemed to just bend to his desires.
Looks like my fun is just beginning..
*********
The smoke from the smoldering debris behind him curled around his body like a thin cloak as he stood at the top of the stairs, listening for any sign that the fleeing soldiers had decided to make a stand.
Not hearing anything ahead of him, only the occasional crash of debris falling from the levels above him, Xander continued down to the next level.
As he strode down the stairs and then through the first level of holding pens, his pace picked up, not wanting to waste any time looking though an area he had already cleared. As he passed the cells on either side of him, their tinted windows shielding most of the inhabitants from his view, he wondered whether any of the demons held here were as harmless as others he had encountered of the years.
The Initiative never considered whether they were using innocents, why should this place have been any better? After what they did to her, I don't think that hurting a few demons, innocent or not, would give them any pause
Reaching the end of the level, he continued down to the next layer of cells, pausing only briefly at its entrance to extend his senses before him. Not hearing a sound, his level of hearing ratcheted up to the point where he would have been able to hear anybody still alive's breathing, he continued through.
As he passed over the bodies of the demons, not bothering to step over them but walking over them as if they weren't even there, he took the opportunity to quickly glance around, looking to see if there were any new species amongst them that would be worth recording.
The sight of the soldiers and scientists among the bodies were simply ignored, a scene which, when he was younger, would have meant him passing out, no longer raising a flicker of interest to him. He had seen too many people die during his life, starting in high school and never ending, even after he had left. The results of his time here had only made the situation worse, as he became a marked figure to any of the multitude of beings from both demonkind and people who dealt with it.
Hmmm, a Denalgon demon. I wonder how they managed to keep that one alive? Their nervous system rarely lasts when they are caught, preferring to shut down without the company of their kin. Don't see any others here though - can't have been here long.
He reached the end of the corridor, slightly surprised that there wasn't anything new to him among the bodies and continued out through door, kicking the Ferangi demon out of the way as he passed, allowing the damaged door to close off behind him. For the first time since his ambush on the jungle floor, he was entering territory unfamiliar to him.
Even as Riley and small group with him were desperately trying to access the communications below, Xander reached the 6th level down, only one floor now separating him from those he was hunting.
The sight of the door as he passed caused him to freeze.
LEVEL 6 : SIMULATION ROOM AND LABORATORIES ACCESS LIMITED BEYOND THIS POINT
As he realized where he was, what must lie behind that door, emotions threatened to overwhelm him. The long years he had spent since being brought here, always alert for anything that might aid him in his search for the facility, seeking answers that could only be found in the databases in the levels below, had finally culminated in this attack on the building.
But even as he knew that the answers he sought lay not on this level but below, that those he might still have to fight would be hiding there, he could not move, his muscles truly frozen in fear for the first time in years.
There were only two places in existence that could cause that kind of reflex panic to course through his body, and although this was perhaps, and only perhaps, the lesser of the two, it still had the power to stop his downward momentum in its tracks, drawing his eyes and mind towards it as if with a magnet.
As his body cracked the door open, he paused on the threshold, not stepping through. A part of his mind called him forward, to enter the space where he had been forced to spent so much time, but even as he made the effort to advance, another part of his mind prevented him, screaming at him that he still had a purpose, a mission to complete.
Minutes passed by as he stood there, frozen in indecision as the deeper areas of his mind struggled to process his emotions, images of the past blurring with the present till they threatened to overwhelm him.
His body screamed his tension as he stood there, every muscle appearing to hum, to shake, until without any discernable signal, without any change in his surroundings, his body suddenly relaxed, the chemical reactions that had wound him up suddenly ending as his mind reached a critical state.
He turned away from the door, his face beyond calmness, beyond expression. He could have been a man taking his dog for a walk had it not been for the look in his eyes. No hint of pain, of feelings, were evident in those brown globes, the lack of life within creating an air of drive and purpose as he began his descent.
*********
Even as Xander had been making his way down through the complex in his wake, Riley had been trying the emergency override signals on the unit in front of him, punching code and after code into the system in an attempt to achieve contact with the satellite above.
The system rejected his codes again and again, throwing him out of the database before he could make the connection required. The standard codes he had been provided with before he boarded the helicopter hours earlier were entered, one after another, systematically working his way down the small list. As he reached the last of the numbers on the card he swore to himself in frustration.
Shit! None of the codes are working. How the hell did he do this?
He was left with only one option, a code he had built into the original system all those years ago. It relied on a separate transmission dish that was installed at the site upon its inception, and after the first few weeks of use, had been quickly replaced by the much larger transmitting satellite. The lack of any discernable linkage through the main system merely reinforcing Riley's belief that the main dish had been taken out along with the main power at the start of the assault
Punching in a radically different code to those he had tried and failed with, Riley finally managed to gain a link. Watching the signal power fade in and out, he cursed.
Those fools probably didn't even know it was there! If they'd had any sense they would have at least ensured it remained in working order. If it doesn't work now, and we can't stop him, they'll never know what happened here. Got to get that signal out.
The female doctor watched him as he tried to divert energy to the equipment, siphoning off the electrical power from the main dish, now no longer functioning.
A picture suddenly appeared on the nearest screen, static lines streaking across the vision, clouding the image of the medalled and uniformed figure sitting there.
Yes!! thought Riley to himself as he prepared to speak.
'General Davis sir. We may not have much time, I'm using an old signal generator which may not hold up. I have to report that most of the facility has been destroyed. All of the soldiers have been killed and there are only two surviving scientists. None of the specimens appears to be present. They are either dead or escaped.'
He was cut off even as he spoke.
'They're all dead - are you sure commander?'
'Yes sir, there do not appear to be any survivors, although there's still two levels that I've not had checked. Sir, I have to report that subject Harris is still alive. He appears to be responsible for the assault on the facility, and for the attack on my team.'
'Harris? We believed he was dead when they captured him. The reports stated that there was no possibility of him returning..are you certain that it was him commander?'
The screen flickered wildly for a moment, as the picture faded in and out.
'Yessir. It was definitely Harris. Aside from everything else, I caught a clear visual of the scar sir. It's highly unlikely that anyone else possessing such a distinguishing mark would have found this facility, and even more so, to attack it. I think you need to check the source of those reports regarding his death. There are also two other survivors of the team that came in with me sir. We suffered an ambush earlier today from what I have to assume were escapees from the facility, and incurred major casualties, forcing us to proceed in daylight to the compound. That's how we are communicating at this time. Unfortunately he was waiting for us when we got here. He killed almost all of the remaining men before we managed to get inside and make our way down here. I judged that reporting this matter was more important than making our stand earlier general.'
'You were right Finn. This may yet affect have more wide-reaching consequences - we're going to have to find how long he's been operating without our knowledge. Do you know what access has he had within the facility Finn? Has he accessed the databases yet?'
'It does not appear so sir. The two scientists do not report anyone else down here since this began. It seems that after taking out what was left of the army detail and most of the demons not killed by the base units, he proceeded back up to the jungle surface to wait for us to arrive.'
'You must stop him from acc___ng the computer ma___rame co_____der at all c_sts! He must ___ get his h____ on the inf____tion stored there.'
As the power levels being fed to the signal began to fluctuate wildly, the communication with the uniformed officer began to break up. Diverting the power from the picture to the narrower voice beam, Riley attempted to continue the contact.
'Sir, we're breaking up. I can't seal this area with only two wounded support staff and the two scientists sir. If I'm to get them out, we'll have to retreat to the last level and try to seal one of the smaller rooms while we wait for reinforcements.
'They won't ______ in time commander, and pre_____ng him access to the syst__s is critical. You are authorized to -'
The signal ended abruptly as a power surge blew the transmitter, the miniature satellite dish on the roof of the compound frying with a surge of sparks, joining the main dish as so much useless metal.
Fuck
Even as he fought to resist the temptation to pound on the now useless equipment, he was forced into action by the words of Dr Marshall, still standing by the entrance to the floor, his hands blood-soaked from the emergency treatment he had been forced into performing on the soldiers, trying to repair the damage that he had caused, even if it had been by accident.
'Commander Finn, I hear footsteps on Level 6. I think he's coming - what do we do?'
'Everyone into the communications room, now!!,' ordered Riley quickly. 'It's the most heavily secured of all the rooms on this level, and he can't risk blowing his way in if he's after the information here.'
The three men by the entrance scrambled to obey, the doctor supporting Harrison as he was half carried across the floor, his injured leg still leaking blood despite the improved tourniquet and bandages. Saunders followed with no more pace, the wound from his shoulder having proved much harder to treat, thick bandages wrapped around his upper body in an attempt to reduce the blood loss to little success, the sheer volume of the blood he had lost causing to come dangerously close to passing out.
Even as the soldier reached the doorway he collapsed, falling to the floor without warning, his head banging against the bottom edge of the door as he landed, the sound of the impact enough to make the nearby doctor wince, even as he rushed to his aid.
With the assistance of the female doctor, he dragged Saunders through, hearing the door slam behind him as Riley initiated the security locks. The heavy steel door sealed instantly, the small panel by the side of the door flashing red as the security systems engaged with the press of a button.
'Dr Marshall, do you know how to fire a gun?,' Riley queried, not surprised at the immediate shake of the head. 'Ok, here's the drill..'
*********
Xander paced down the stairwell, his back hugging the walls as he went, his right arm extended with the wrap-around weapon foremost. As he approached the next level, where the survivors were huddled, he slowed, every additional step taken slower than the last until he reached the landing.
Spying the door, riddled with holes, and then the floor, now covered with the blood that had poured from Saunders and Harrison, Xander almost smiled. At the sign of the evidence of the nerves and tension of his targets that must have caused this, he almost laughed.
Almost.
For when his mind had reached this state, this eerie state of calm, he never smiled, never laughed. He wasn't even sure that he could.
Crouching at the side of the door, he lowered his additional weapons and the duffel bag behind him as he extended a small metal device taken from his belt, the curved mirror at the end of the stick reflecting the image of the room beyond. He studied the reflective surface, trying to see if there could be anyone waiting for him, his eyesight focusing like lasers, his senses following.
Nothing.
He waited, cat like and motionless as he crouched, his muscles locked in an impossible stillness, listening for any tiny sound.
Nothing.
He held his pose for nearly 2 minutes, unwilling to advance even after he was certain there wasn't anything, or at least anyone, in the space ahead, and then, with a sudden flurry of motion, he exploded into the room.
His bent legs acted as a spring as his body flew into the air, twisting and curling as he span, his weapon extended as he moved. Landing on the cold surface of the floor he rolled, first sideways and then forward, all in one smooth motion, coming to a halt against the wall, facing inwards, his gun ready to fire at the slightest provocation.
In front of him lay a small atrium, a series of doors leading off to each side, a larger door directly ahead. The large heavy windows next to each door on the left indicated at once their purpose as laboratories. In a place where even to be inside normally required top level clearance, certain activities had to be performed in open view, and when that was the case, this was where they were performed, the fronting allowing spectators to observe and record at first hand.
He had never been to this level, or at least he didn't remember, which amounted to the same thing under these circumstances, but the purpose of those rooms might as well have been written across their entrances in neon lights.
Beyond a fast visual inspection through the glass, he ignored them. They were not what he was here for, not what he had gone to this trouble for.
To his right lay another series of doors, each lying open and unguarded. Sweeping inside each with speed, he quickly cleared them. For all their use as offices and meeting rooms, there was little chance that anything of importance would be stored there. Paper was a little used commodity here, information instead being recorded in digital form, heavily encrypted at all times.
To access any information beyond surface detail, there was only one place he could go. He needed access to the mainframe, to the machine that held the secrets of the facility, to the experiments that they had performed here, on him and his friend.
To a part of his past...
That place lay in front of him, the multiple security panels by the side of the titanium enhanced door doing the opposite of what they were intended for. Instead of warning him away, they acted only to draw him to the door beside them.
Before approaching the door however, he strode back into the stairwell, retrieving his additional weapons and bag, no longer hesitant as he returned, carrying his grenade launcher loosely.
Studying the door, he considered his options, quickly ruling out simply blasting his way through. If his rockets did make it through the door, or the walls around it, they would only serve to destroy what he had come all this way for, and if they didn't pierce the metal frame, the resulting back blast would only serve to create more damage to himself and the room he was in than to the entrance.
He approached the security panels, studying them closely as he reached the wall. He was well aware that they could not be simply opened up and deactivated by simply touching a few wires like a movie script. The military may not always spend their money wisely, but even they couldn't fail to get security apparatus better than even a private household could buy on the open market.
He ruled out trying to crack the system. The combination of retinal scans, palm prints and security codes could be cracked in time, if he had the specialized equipment with him, but there were faster ways through.
Placing his heavier weapons to one side, he pulled one of the small red tubes from the array across his chest. Flipping the small nozzle at the end open, he slide the tube up the door, leaving a thick trail of goo in its path. Emptying one tube, he carefully placed it aside, pulling another from his chest and performing the same operation.
In moments he had traced a path around the edges of the door, the trail leading from the floor to head-height in one long, continuous stroke. There was no immediate reaction from the substance against the metal, nor did he expect there to be one.
Reaching again to his body, this time to his utility belt, he pulled a small narrow pipe from its position by his hip. Placing it flat against the surface of the door, half covered by the transparent fluid, he held it in place with the point of a small blade pulled from his bag. A second knife was held in his right hand, the tip resting millimeters from the pipe in front of him.
Xander paused for a moment, exhaling smoothly as he did so, and as the final traces of air left his lungs, he rapped the second knife forward, striking the cylinder at its center.
The reaction was instantaneous.
As the impact of the blow triggered a chemical reaction, the thin pipe appeared to melt, mixing with the fluids clinging to the door. Even as the two liquids combined, the fluid he had traced around the door reacted to the chemical substance now introduced to it. A thin blue line streaked around the trail as a chain reaction was started, no sudden flames, no explosion, just a faint hissing sound.
Xander stood back as the chemicals went to work. The effect was like acid, eating its way through the normally impenetrable metal in slow but relentless motion. The pace of its advance through the door wasn't fast, allowing him time to step away, drawing the sword sheathed along his spine with one hand, and pulling two tiny objects from the pocket on his belt.
*********
Those on the other side of the door could hear the faint hissing side, even through the thickness of the metal, but only Riley recognized it for what it was.
'Shit,' he exclaimed as he waited, 'He's not trying to blast him way inside - something's eating through the door.'
For the first time since he begun the mission, a flash of fear ran through Riley's body.
Maybe I was a little overconfident. Maybe he really has improved as much as they said. I never heard them say anything about chemicals and acid though
The two soldiers backed up against the side wall, trying to hold their weapons at the ready as they did so, but with little success. Having regained consciousness only moments earlier, Saunders was fading in and out of awareness, and even before the door was half melted, he slipped out again, this time falling into a coma, the sheer amount of blood which he had lost causing his body to shut down in an attempt at survival.
Harrison tried to support his weapon, his broken ribs making arm movements difficult, his wounded leg causing him to wilt to the floor next to his now unconscious colleague, preparing himself for what was to come.
The two scientists retreated behind the furthermost desk, attempting to hide themselves from any immediate assault, the male doctor clutching the rifle on which's use he had been instructed only moments earlier.
The slow, unremitting hiss continued as the metal continued to be eaten away..
*********
...on the other side of the door, Xander waited in perfect silence in the center of the room as the reaction continued.
Seconds later it ceased, the door almost completely penetrated, only millimeters of the metal separating the two rooms where the acid burn had cut into the door.
The wonders of magic and science he thought. Enhance a little Coransic acid and what do you get? An acid that'll eat through anything but stop before it reaches the other side..
Stepping to one side of the door, he drew his breath in smoothly and then, with one vicious movement, he span around, swinging his leg up as he did so, the ball of his foot impacting on the center of the weakened door with tremendous force.
The door reacted as if it had been hit by a thunderbolt, the weakened seams gave way at the same time, sending the major part of the door flying inwards, impacting on the nearby desk, shattering it in the process...
*********
...as the door flew inwards, missing him by mere inches, Riley reacted instantaneously, letting loose with his rifle, the high speed fire sending bullets flying back through the doorway, filling the outer room with gunfire.
As his rifle clicked empty, he snatched up his second weapon without pausing, unleashing another volley of fire before diving behind a nearby workstation, listening for any sign of the advancing attacker...
*********
...while the bullets flew by Xander, standing with his back against the wall, his spin having continued after his foot impacted on the door, to send him across the doorway to the other side.
Again he almost smiled, hearing the man inside throwing himself through the air.
Pulling a white striped grenade from his chest for the first time, he pulled the pin and threw it through the now open entrance, hearing it bounce off a work surface before rattling to the ground..
*********
....and Riley winced as he heard the grenade fall, landing only feet away from him.
Shit. I thought he wouldn't want to damage the computers
And then the grenade went off the sound of the small explosion filled the air, almost deafening him...
Oh fuckkkk..
*********
The hiss of the escaping gas filled the room, rendering those inside unconscious in seconds, the trailing fumes billowing back out through the doorway as Xander carefully breathed through his nose plugs.
Waiting for the few seconds that it took for the gas to fill the room inside, Xander stepped across the threshold, ducking his head slightly to ensure that he didn't touch the outer acidic edges of the frame.
As the gas rapidly cleared, drawn out by the ventilation systems installed to protect the computers in the event of fire, he quickly made his way around the room, collecting every weapon he could find on or around the bodies lying there. The two scientists appeared to be minimal threat at first glance, and the grievous wounds that the two soldiers appeared to have suffered meant that there was little chance of them causing him much difficulty.
Which left Riley Finn..
Trust Riley to be the only one not to be injured from the support squad. Never let it be said that he didn't know how to dive out of danger and leave his men to take the shots
From his duffle bag he pulled a series of plastic strips, tying Riley and the two scientists to three of the nearby chairs, their wrists and ankles bound together in what would likely prove a highly uncomfortable position.
The two soldiers he left where they lay. By the looks of one of them, he wouldn't make it - certainly the pool of blood in which he was lying pointed that way. The injury to the second one's leg would be enough to prevent him moving far, but just to be on the safe side his wrists were fastened too.
Stepping to the nearby workstations, Xander studied the hardware carefully, circling the room to take in all of the equipment that filled the large space. Most of it appeared to be standard terminals for general use, if the term general use could ever be used for what went on here.
He finally approached the central unit, its slightly advanced position raising the possibility that if any one unit had more functions and access than the others, this might be the one.
Stepping towards it, he lifted his bag onto the surface alongside the touchscreen, pulling the chair out of the way as he did so. The solid frame beneath the key pad was dented slightly, a stray bullet having ricocheted across its surface. Xander rendered this scratch immaterial as, with a smash of his boot against the thin steel cover, he broke through, following up with his gloved hands to tear the sheet apart, allowing him access to the wires and hardware underneath.
Slipping the miniaturized computer from his left forearm, Xander extruded two thin wires from its end, pulling them out from the pad with his fingernails. Carefully, he slid the ends into two contact points buried within the equipment below the surface, leaving his unit on top.
Using both hands, he initiated his computers functions, touching his fingertips to the two small squares on the display screen. As his dual prints were accepted, the computer hummed into action, the screen lighting up as it did so, numbers flying across the screen faster than could be made out.
PLEASE ENTER ACCESS CODE : the screen prompted.
Xander quickly typed in a complex mixture of numbers and letters, the screen quickly changing as he finished.
INITIATING CONTACT.... ACCESSING SYSTEM....
The screen flashed the words up rapidly and then the small computer began to hum slightly.
Knowing that it would take some time for systems access to be achieved, even with the sophisticated equipment he had with him, and that the effects of the gas would last a few minutes longer, Xander took the opportunity to leave the room and level in order to check the floor below.
A fast visual scan was all that was required, the small compact rooms and open barracks leaving few places where opposition could be hiding. The lack of private facilities took him slightly by surprise, expecting at least the scientists in charge to have been offered better accommodation, but he supposed the limited space available prevented such privileges.
As the only reason for being down there was to ensure there were no nasty surprises that could cause him any problems, Xander was back up to the communications in only a few minutes.
His computer was still humming contentedly to itself at the front of the room, the lack of progress proving no surprise to Xander. A database with the level of secrecy and clearance of this one was bound to have major defenses in place, and he knew it could take some time before his system could gain access.
In the meantime, while waiting for his companions to regain consciousness, he filled the time by flipping through the small handful of paper files that had been lying in one of the nearby offices, skimming through the memos within.
Just as he uncovered one useful piece of information, the sounds of the people in the room stirring caused him to put aside the files and return his focus to them.
'Good evening,' Xander spoke softly, his voice not rising above a murmur.
'Xander,' spat Riley straight back to him, the scorn evident in his voice.
The remaining trio were silent, Saunders having lapsed into a coma, and the others too terrified of their position to risk antagonizing Xander if at all avoidable.
'Riley Finn as I live and breathe. I thought they'd fired you after my last 'visit' here, courtesy of your kind attentions?'
'What can I say? The best is always called back.'
'You're no longer the best now Riley, you haven't been for some time. You still don't understand what I'm capable of, do you? What you managed to turn me into?'
'Who gives a shit?,' replied Riley defiantly if foolishly. 'You going to kill us all in cold blood? Or are you man enough to take me one on one?'
'You want me to give you a chance?,' responded Xander softly. 'The same way you gave me a chance? The same way you gave her a chance?'
'You do remember don't you Riley? You remember what you did to her? What they did to her?'
'Yes,' replied Riley, 'I remember. I remember you cried like a little boy when we brought her out. How you couldn't stop pleading for her life. I remember..'
The memories of both men now flashed back, back to when Xander's nightmare and Riley's game had begun..
*********
His face pale, the blood drained from his features, his body crumpling in defeat, Xander could only stare helplessly at the girl he loved. The girl he loved with all his heart, more than anyone else in the world.
Xander knew he would go through a lot for his friends, knew that he would die to save most of them, as he knew they would for him.
In that moment he realized that dying would easy.
For the girl before him, faint bruises lining her jaw, the usual power in her body absent, he realized he would do more than die for. He would go to hell for her, suffer for eternity rather than see her hurt. And he knew he was going to suffer that and still not be allowed to die.
'Willow.......'
*********
Not quite as good as the first two perhaps but the next is bigger, badder, better and more importantly is complete. Depending on the feedback, you can all either wait another week for the whole thing, or have part earlier than normal (since its bigger than the others). Hey, maybe I'll just write more and put it all up early. As usual, I still need feedback, even if only to see if anyone wants me to continue. You only have to click on the little button at the bottom, it'll only take a few seconds and if you like it (or even if you don't) each review means a lot to me. If you've taken the time to read, you may as well take a few seconds longer to review. As before, suggestions will be welcomed with open arms/eyes/whatever - some of those made will be used soon.