David and Nick headed Westward at a full-on sprint. Both S.T.A.R.S.
members were getting fairly tired, but their training gave them an edge on
exhaustion. The two operatives slowed to a halt once they reached the
barrier presented by a large, very high, chain-link fence. The metalwork
was topped with a spiraled length of barbed wire, to "discourage" anybody
from attempting to climb over it, from inside or out. Beyond that, they
could see a large, nondescript looking building. David found it vaguely
familiar, but he couldn't seem to place it. Ever since the car crash, he'd
been a little disoriented with direction. He wasn't even sure where they
were, as he'd been half-asleep when the rocket struck.
"Well, how are we supposed to get in there?" David let out a quick sigh after voicing his question, staring up at the fence.
Nick tilted his head some, and rested a hand on his chin, as he always did while thinking. "Hm. I see two ways. First, we could use my handy grenade launcher here to blow open a hole... second, we could find something to help us climb over."
"I don't know man... I don't think I like the idea of you wasting a grenade. Especially if that big tall motherfucker is coming back. And I don't exactly think we'll find a stack of boxes just arrayed at perfect intervals for us to climb up."
"Well, then what do you suggest we do, King David?"
"Hm. I say we should call up Josh and Dan, then meet them at the overpass. I bet the four of us can figure something out."
"Man... that is the stupidest damn plan I've ever heard. We can just get in now! Why bother with them?"
"Listen. We should probably do the SMARTER thing, and see if we can figure something out that doesn't rely on you blowing the piss out of something."
"Fine, fine. Call up the Captain..."
David rolled his eyes at Nick's comment, and unhooked his radio from its place on his vest. "Dan, Josh, you copy? David here, over."
Dan's voice came back in reply, slightly obscured by static. "Dan here. I copy, over."
"Hey. We found something we think we can use as shelter. It's pretty big, but there aren't many places you can get into it. Plus, it's got a huge fence all around it. Actually, that's the problem. We can't get in. So, I figure we can all get together at the overpass, Nick and I can lead you back here, and we'll figure something out. What do you think? Over."
"Alright. Sounds good. Josh and I can't find anything anyway. We'll meet you at the overpass. Over and out."
"Over and out," David shut off the radio and clipped it back to his shoulder. "Alright Nick. Let's get going. They said they'll meet us there." David blinked. Nick was standing where he had been this entire time, staring off at something behind the fence. "Um. Nick. You alright?"
"Yeah... yeah. I'm okay. I just thought I saw... well, never mind. Let's get going." The two S.T.A.R.S. team operatives walked turned and started walking back to the overpass. David watched Nick the entire way.
Dan let his hand drop from the earpiece on his headset, breaking the transmission. "Hey, Josh."
The S.T.A.R.S. marksman and pilot looked up from the ground, where he'd been examining something. Josh had, after all, been in the Air Force prior to joining S.T.A.R.S., and had been trained, if shot down, to track enemy soldiers, as part of his E&E (Escape & Evade) training. "What, Dan?"
"Any luck with that?"
"No. Can't tell what it was. Not human, but that doesn't mean much. Could be a deer, could be a dinosaur. Can't tell." The pair had been walking through a small, residential neighborhood that was situated just next to the highway, when Josh had noticed the tracks. They sat in somebody's yard, and seemed to trail off into the long row of hedges lining the street.
"Oh well. If it's a survivor, they'll just have to wait."
"Why's that?"
"David just radioed in. Says him and Nick found some sort of shelter, but they need our amazing brain powers to get in. We're supposed to rendezvous with them at the overpass."
"Sweet. I could use a rest. My legs are killing me. Let's get going." Dan nodded, and both of them headed back towards the way they came. They didn't get far, however, before Josh stopped cold. "Hey, Dan. Wait up a second."
"Why? What's wrong?"
"Just don't... move." Josh slowly dropped his hand down to the holster at his hip, gripping the holster of his Glock. The row of hedges next to him rustled, and as soon as Josh's handgun was out of the holster, a large, black thing, leapt out of the bushes. Before any of them could react, the creature's claws had slashed clean through Dan's radio. The radio dropped to the ground, sparking slightly, gouged from the beast's attack. Now, the S.T.A.R.S. could see it better. It stood about four feet in height, and was covered in greenish-black scales. Its hands had long fingers, and ended in sharp, three-inch long claws, which dragged near the ground due to its abnormally long arms. A row of sharp, white teeth grinned from the thing's mouth, and its eyes were tinted an ominous red.
"What the FUCK is this thing?" Dan's gun was already up as he spoke, and he was in the process of drawing a bead on the creature's skull. Before Josh had the chance to answer, the creature had turned towards Dan, opening its grinning, drooling mouth. Dan wasted no time in pulling the trigger. The Desert Eagle cracked loudly in the night, and Dan was positive that he'd just dispatched a threat. However, he was more than slightly mistaken. In what seemed to be the blink of an eye, the reptilian animal was high in midair, and the bullet was striking the sidewalk where it had stood a moment before. The leaping creature's arm was thrown out wide, and the claws drove straight through the air, slashing directly towards Dan's throat.
"Well, how are we supposed to get in there?" David let out a quick sigh after voicing his question, staring up at the fence.
Nick tilted his head some, and rested a hand on his chin, as he always did while thinking. "Hm. I see two ways. First, we could use my handy grenade launcher here to blow open a hole... second, we could find something to help us climb over."
"I don't know man... I don't think I like the idea of you wasting a grenade. Especially if that big tall motherfucker is coming back. And I don't exactly think we'll find a stack of boxes just arrayed at perfect intervals for us to climb up."
"Well, then what do you suggest we do, King David?"
"Hm. I say we should call up Josh and Dan, then meet them at the overpass. I bet the four of us can figure something out."
"Man... that is the stupidest damn plan I've ever heard. We can just get in now! Why bother with them?"
"Listen. We should probably do the SMARTER thing, and see if we can figure something out that doesn't rely on you blowing the piss out of something."
"Fine, fine. Call up the Captain..."
David rolled his eyes at Nick's comment, and unhooked his radio from its place on his vest. "Dan, Josh, you copy? David here, over."
Dan's voice came back in reply, slightly obscured by static. "Dan here. I copy, over."
"Hey. We found something we think we can use as shelter. It's pretty big, but there aren't many places you can get into it. Plus, it's got a huge fence all around it. Actually, that's the problem. We can't get in. So, I figure we can all get together at the overpass, Nick and I can lead you back here, and we'll figure something out. What do you think? Over."
"Alright. Sounds good. Josh and I can't find anything anyway. We'll meet you at the overpass. Over and out."
"Over and out," David shut off the radio and clipped it back to his shoulder. "Alright Nick. Let's get going. They said they'll meet us there." David blinked. Nick was standing where he had been this entire time, staring off at something behind the fence. "Um. Nick. You alright?"
"Yeah... yeah. I'm okay. I just thought I saw... well, never mind. Let's get going." The two S.T.A.R.S. team operatives walked turned and started walking back to the overpass. David watched Nick the entire way.
Dan let his hand drop from the earpiece on his headset, breaking the transmission. "Hey, Josh."
The S.T.A.R.S. marksman and pilot looked up from the ground, where he'd been examining something. Josh had, after all, been in the Air Force prior to joining S.T.A.R.S., and had been trained, if shot down, to track enemy soldiers, as part of his E&E (Escape & Evade) training. "What, Dan?"
"Any luck with that?"
"No. Can't tell what it was. Not human, but that doesn't mean much. Could be a deer, could be a dinosaur. Can't tell." The pair had been walking through a small, residential neighborhood that was situated just next to the highway, when Josh had noticed the tracks. They sat in somebody's yard, and seemed to trail off into the long row of hedges lining the street.
"Oh well. If it's a survivor, they'll just have to wait."
"Why's that?"
"David just radioed in. Says him and Nick found some sort of shelter, but they need our amazing brain powers to get in. We're supposed to rendezvous with them at the overpass."
"Sweet. I could use a rest. My legs are killing me. Let's get going." Dan nodded, and both of them headed back towards the way they came. They didn't get far, however, before Josh stopped cold. "Hey, Dan. Wait up a second."
"Why? What's wrong?"
"Just don't... move." Josh slowly dropped his hand down to the holster at his hip, gripping the holster of his Glock. The row of hedges next to him rustled, and as soon as Josh's handgun was out of the holster, a large, black thing, leapt out of the bushes. Before any of them could react, the creature's claws had slashed clean through Dan's radio. The radio dropped to the ground, sparking slightly, gouged from the beast's attack. Now, the S.T.A.R.S. could see it better. It stood about four feet in height, and was covered in greenish-black scales. Its hands had long fingers, and ended in sharp, three-inch long claws, which dragged near the ground due to its abnormally long arms. A row of sharp, white teeth grinned from the thing's mouth, and its eyes were tinted an ominous red.
"What the FUCK is this thing?" Dan's gun was already up as he spoke, and he was in the process of drawing a bead on the creature's skull. Before Josh had the chance to answer, the creature had turned towards Dan, opening its grinning, drooling mouth. Dan wasted no time in pulling the trigger. The Desert Eagle cracked loudly in the night, and Dan was positive that he'd just dispatched a threat. However, he was more than slightly mistaken. In what seemed to be the blink of an eye, the reptilian animal was high in midair, and the bullet was striking the sidewalk where it had stood a moment before. The leaping creature's arm was thrown out wide, and the claws drove straight through the air, slashing directly towards Dan's throat.