Chapter 6: We Meet Again
Everything seemed to be the way they had left it. The lobby was in tiptop shape, and the lasers were not activated. In fact, nobody was there! There were no guards, no bodies, no guns, no nothing! It would seem as if everyone was called back for some reason. "What the hell." Jack started, but stopped as soon as he looked up the flight of stairs and saw nothing. He walked up slowly, and when he reached the top, he peeked around the corner. There was no one there. Jack through that the situation was getting even stranger. Did they want it to be easy for them to rescue the others? "Hey Jack, don't you think that-" Chris began, but stopped as soon as Jack raised his hand and silenced him. "Listen." Jack said. Chris stopped talking, and Jack moved closer to the edge of the wall, trying to listen to what he heard. He heard footsteps, and some clanking noises. He didn't see anything when he turned the corner to look, but the noises were coming from that hallway. "What is that?" Jack asked. He turned to Chris, who shrugged his shoulders. Jack kept listening, and then to noise stopped abruptly. Both of them listened harder, wondering if they were just imagining it or not. The noise started again, only this time it sounded like a grunt in a low voice, and then they heard a click, which sounded like the loading of a firearm. Jack shook his head, and wondered if it was just his mind thinking too hard. But he realized what was going on when he heard the steps getting closer. Jack felt hot air blow across his face, and it smelled terrible. He heard heavy breathing, almost right in front of his face. "Chris." Jack said, standing there, frozen in his place with fear. Jack was suddenly picked up off of the ground and tossed across the room. He hit the wall with his back, and toppled over, his brain thinking quickly, trying to assess what had just happened. Chris looked in astonishment, and that feeling was turned to fear when he felt something gliding around him quickly. He wondered if it was the wind or not, but soon he was picked up, and thrown halfway down the hallway. He hit the floor after flying all the way from where he was previously standing, bruised on his back and sprawled on the floor. He sat up quickly, and looked around with his eyes large, thinking several things at once. He looked down the hall at Jack, who was sitting on the floor with his back against the wall. Jack didn't sit for long. He was thrown to his side by some mysterious force, and then knocked backwards. He was taking several blows, and each one gave him a sense that whatever was hitting him was obviously a replacement for those simple guards that they had encountered before. He couldn't tell what was hitting him at all. What he felt were simple punches to his face and his stomach. He staggered backwards, unable to meet the attacker face to face. Jack heard a laugh, and then the invisible menace spoke. "You do not fight well when you're blind, human." Jack was wondering if this person had either smoked too many cigarettes, or was naturally this way, but their voice was so low and husky, that it seemed as if it wasn't even human. "Who are you?" Jack asked, looking around quickly. He might be able to follow their voice and then attack them. "Why might you want to know? How about we make a deal. I'll promise to fight fair, if whenever you are about to die at my hands, you beg for your life." The figure laughed. "Deal, you son of a bitch." Jack said, narrowing his eyes and raising his fists to a fighting position. "Jack, what in blazes is going on?" Chris asked, standing up and walking back down the hallway. "Macho boy wants to fight. I hope you brushed up on your skills." Jack commented, his fists still raised and his heart pounding, thinking that by the way he called them, "human," that this thing wasn't human himself. "Very well." the figure agreed, and Jack saw disruptions occur right in front of him. Whoever it was, they were de-cloaking, and when Jack got a good look at whatever this thing was, his assumptions were right. It wasn't human at all. "Oh my god." Chris gasped, getting a clear view of it, panicking because they had never met an alien race in the flesh, let alone have to fight with one that was obviously stronger, and probably faster then they were. The alien was tall, about six and a half feet or so, with broad shoulders and strong legs. It had armor plates on its arms, chest, and legs, making him look like a warrior from ancient times. He had no mouth, but his eye's glowed when he spoke. He had some kind of projectile weapon on his back, and a deformed sword of some kind sheathed at his side. "No weapons, right?" Jack asked. The creature stood for a moment, and then answered his question.
"I fight honorably. No weapons, just melee combat." The creature replied. Jack shifted uneasily, wondering if this thing had the upper hand because he was bigger and probably a lot stronger. The creature lunged at them both, his hands outstretched. Jack and Chris dodged him by sidestepping. He was quick on the rebound, and he swirled around and grabbed Jack's shoulder. He slammed his head against Jack's face, making him stammer backwards. He then began to strangle Jack with both of his hands, Jack desperately grabbing his attacker's hands, and trying to pry them apart. Chris leaped and slammed his fists onto the creature's head, making it release its grip on Jack and drop him to the floor. The thing turned its ugly head, and glared at Chris. Chris backed up, knowing this was gong to be a very rough battle. When the creature was about to pounce, Chris noticed that it suddenly stopped. The creature stopped, waved his head back and forth, and fell over face-first. Jack stood behind it, holding a dented fire extinguisher. "Thankfully I don't play by the rules." Jack commented. He spit on whatever it was, and pulled the mysterious weapon from its shoulders. "Christ, talk about good timing." Chris laughed. Jack was lucky this thing couldn't stand severe blows to the head, or else it would have whirled around broken his neck. "Come on." Jack commanded. He strapped the gun over his shoulders and began to continue down the hallway. Chris still had no weapon, but that didn't matter to him. When they reached the elevator, the one that they had crawled down, they saw that it was obviously out of order. "Guess we'll have to use the stairs." Chris responded to the sign. They turned and headed back down the other way, thinking if there were any more of those, things, waiting for them. But they had to find a way to bypass any security, without tripping and alarms, alerting any guards, or anything at all. The infiltration went off without a hitch. There was absolutely no one in the building it seemed. They found it to be the oddest thing that if they captured their friends then the base would be on high alert. Quietly making their way to the forty-fifth floor, they began talk to each other about how to dissolve the situation. "What do you think they are going to do?" Jack asked. Chris shrugged his shoulders and thought of only one thing that would happen; torture. Jack stopped for a moment in the hallway. The halls split into two different directions. The two of them couldn't figure out which way to go. Whatever path looked more deviating would be the ideal choice. "Now what?" Chris asked. Jack looked solemnly both ways. He gripped the strap around his shoulders and thought for a second. "Let's split up." Jack replied to the eerie silence. Chris turned his head swiftly. "But what if something happens to one of us?" Chris asked in a sort of panic. Jack smiled. "Then lets be sure to save the others persons ass when they do get into trouble." Jack replied. He then switched back to a serious look, and started to walk down the hallway on the left. "Hey, I don't have a gun!" Chris yelled back in the distance. Jack thought about that. He was the only one armed. He would have to manage some other way. "Here!" Jack yelled. He took the weapon off of his shoulders and tossed it to Chris. Then he turned back around and began to walk again. Chris did the same, and flung the rifle around his shoulders and proceeded down the hallway. The building seemed deathly quiet. Jack had no explanation for this, but his gut said that everyone was moved to one location. The danger must have been revoked in certain instance. The top of building seemed to wind up endlessly. Each staircase was another tiring climb after another. The next flight led to an extended hallway with adjacent rooms and a broom closet. The elevator they had destroyed earlier had been marked off-limits with yellow tape. Jack followed the hallway down and then walked up the next flight of stairs. When he turned the corner, it abruptly ended with a key- card door. Along with the card slot was a number pad. He obviously needed a keycard and a code to get inside. Jack began searching the compound for any kind of card. The science labs which he had come from were empty. All they contained were lab experiments and test tube glasses. Every keycard must have been with the soldiers and guards. Every soldier and guard was in the place he was trying to get to! In order to draw them out he would need to create a distraction. But how could he if everyone was locked tight behind a steel door and really thick walls. He didn't even know if they were on the other side of that wall! Logistics didn't matter anymore. All that mattered now was how to get in there. Everyone was gone, and that is the only section of the building he's seen that has been locked down. He could possibly draw them out. With the chemicals that were used in the labs, he could create a chemical reaction that could cause an explosion, or create a toxic spill or poisonous gas that would draw them out to investigate. He searched the laboratories even more, and when he came across a locked door that read the words, "caution" on it, his mind began to churn. He tried to smash the door down by ramming it with his shoulder. The door seemed to be reinforced by some kind of steel. By the time his shoulder was aching, and the door hadn't budged an inch, he quit. He was out of ideas. He would have to blow it open, but the chemicals he needed would be inside. If only he had that gun he might be able to open the door. The room got quieter and darker, and Jack began to get dizzy. He turned around, and looked around. He saw nothing. He was swaying back and forth, his mind in a jumble. "What.I.can't." he mumbled. He staggered forward and tripped over a chair. He landed on a desk face first and got more and more tired. Everything seemed to spin around, and as soon as he realized what was going on, he was just about to pass out. He opened his eyes as wide as they would go. He tried to keep himself awake. Jack's thoughts were rushing, and he finally figured it all out. The guard him and Chris encountered in the hall; there was another one. He couldn't see him but he knew he was there. "You." Jack whispered. He rolled over and hit the floor, trying to stand up, but unable to do so. He felt the same way he had when Gene and the others rescued him. Drugged and unable to operate, he collapsed. Everything turned into a haze. He couldn't do anything. This was something he could not resist. He closed his eyes with a small grin on his face, assured that he would be inside that security checkpoint in no time.
Everything seemed to be the way they had left it. The lobby was in tiptop shape, and the lasers were not activated. In fact, nobody was there! There were no guards, no bodies, no guns, no nothing! It would seem as if everyone was called back for some reason. "What the hell." Jack started, but stopped as soon as he looked up the flight of stairs and saw nothing. He walked up slowly, and when he reached the top, he peeked around the corner. There was no one there. Jack through that the situation was getting even stranger. Did they want it to be easy for them to rescue the others? "Hey Jack, don't you think that-" Chris began, but stopped as soon as Jack raised his hand and silenced him. "Listen." Jack said. Chris stopped talking, and Jack moved closer to the edge of the wall, trying to listen to what he heard. He heard footsteps, and some clanking noises. He didn't see anything when he turned the corner to look, but the noises were coming from that hallway. "What is that?" Jack asked. He turned to Chris, who shrugged his shoulders. Jack kept listening, and then to noise stopped abruptly. Both of them listened harder, wondering if they were just imagining it or not. The noise started again, only this time it sounded like a grunt in a low voice, and then they heard a click, which sounded like the loading of a firearm. Jack shook his head, and wondered if it was just his mind thinking too hard. But he realized what was going on when he heard the steps getting closer. Jack felt hot air blow across his face, and it smelled terrible. He heard heavy breathing, almost right in front of his face. "Chris." Jack said, standing there, frozen in his place with fear. Jack was suddenly picked up off of the ground and tossed across the room. He hit the wall with his back, and toppled over, his brain thinking quickly, trying to assess what had just happened. Chris looked in astonishment, and that feeling was turned to fear when he felt something gliding around him quickly. He wondered if it was the wind or not, but soon he was picked up, and thrown halfway down the hallway. He hit the floor after flying all the way from where he was previously standing, bruised on his back and sprawled on the floor. He sat up quickly, and looked around with his eyes large, thinking several things at once. He looked down the hall at Jack, who was sitting on the floor with his back against the wall. Jack didn't sit for long. He was thrown to his side by some mysterious force, and then knocked backwards. He was taking several blows, and each one gave him a sense that whatever was hitting him was obviously a replacement for those simple guards that they had encountered before. He couldn't tell what was hitting him at all. What he felt were simple punches to his face and his stomach. He staggered backwards, unable to meet the attacker face to face. Jack heard a laugh, and then the invisible menace spoke. "You do not fight well when you're blind, human." Jack was wondering if this person had either smoked too many cigarettes, or was naturally this way, but their voice was so low and husky, that it seemed as if it wasn't even human. "Who are you?" Jack asked, looking around quickly. He might be able to follow their voice and then attack them. "Why might you want to know? How about we make a deal. I'll promise to fight fair, if whenever you are about to die at my hands, you beg for your life." The figure laughed. "Deal, you son of a bitch." Jack said, narrowing his eyes and raising his fists to a fighting position. "Jack, what in blazes is going on?" Chris asked, standing up and walking back down the hallway. "Macho boy wants to fight. I hope you brushed up on your skills." Jack commented, his fists still raised and his heart pounding, thinking that by the way he called them, "human," that this thing wasn't human himself. "Very well." the figure agreed, and Jack saw disruptions occur right in front of him. Whoever it was, they were de-cloaking, and when Jack got a good look at whatever this thing was, his assumptions were right. It wasn't human at all. "Oh my god." Chris gasped, getting a clear view of it, panicking because they had never met an alien race in the flesh, let alone have to fight with one that was obviously stronger, and probably faster then they were. The alien was tall, about six and a half feet or so, with broad shoulders and strong legs. It had armor plates on its arms, chest, and legs, making him look like a warrior from ancient times. He had no mouth, but his eye's glowed when he spoke. He had some kind of projectile weapon on his back, and a deformed sword of some kind sheathed at his side. "No weapons, right?" Jack asked. The creature stood for a moment, and then answered his question.
"I fight honorably. No weapons, just melee combat." The creature replied. Jack shifted uneasily, wondering if this thing had the upper hand because he was bigger and probably a lot stronger. The creature lunged at them both, his hands outstretched. Jack and Chris dodged him by sidestepping. He was quick on the rebound, and he swirled around and grabbed Jack's shoulder. He slammed his head against Jack's face, making him stammer backwards. He then began to strangle Jack with both of his hands, Jack desperately grabbing his attacker's hands, and trying to pry them apart. Chris leaped and slammed his fists onto the creature's head, making it release its grip on Jack and drop him to the floor. The thing turned its ugly head, and glared at Chris. Chris backed up, knowing this was gong to be a very rough battle. When the creature was about to pounce, Chris noticed that it suddenly stopped. The creature stopped, waved his head back and forth, and fell over face-first. Jack stood behind it, holding a dented fire extinguisher. "Thankfully I don't play by the rules." Jack commented. He spit on whatever it was, and pulled the mysterious weapon from its shoulders. "Christ, talk about good timing." Chris laughed. Jack was lucky this thing couldn't stand severe blows to the head, or else it would have whirled around broken his neck. "Come on." Jack commanded. He strapped the gun over his shoulders and began to continue down the hallway. Chris still had no weapon, but that didn't matter to him. When they reached the elevator, the one that they had crawled down, they saw that it was obviously out of order. "Guess we'll have to use the stairs." Chris responded to the sign. They turned and headed back down the other way, thinking if there were any more of those, things, waiting for them. But they had to find a way to bypass any security, without tripping and alarms, alerting any guards, or anything at all. The infiltration went off without a hitch. There was absolutely no one in the building it seemed. They found it to be the oddest thing that if they captured their friends then the base would be on high alert. Quietly making their way to the forty-fifth floor, they began talk to each other about how to dissolve the situation. "What do you think they are going to do?" Jack asked. Chris shrugged his shoulders and thought of only one thing that would happen; torture. Jack stopped for a moment in the hallway. The halls split into two different directions. The two of them couldn't figure out which way to go. Whatever path looked more deviating would be the ideal choice. "Now what?" Chris asked. Jack looked solemnly both ways. He gripped the strap around his shoulders and thought for a second. "Let's split up." Jack replied to the eerie silence. Chris turned his head swiftly. "But what if something happens to one of us?" Chris asked in a sort of panic. Jack smiled. "Then lets be sure to save the others persons ass when they do get into trouble." Jack replied. He then switched back to a serious look, and started to walk down the hallway on the left. "Hey, I don't have a gun!" Chris yelled back in the distance. Jack thought about that. He was the only one armed. He would have to manage some other way. "Here!" Jack yelled. He took the weapon off of his shoulders and tossed it to Chris. Then he turned back around and began to walk again. Chris did the same, and flung the rifle around his shoulders and proceeded down the hallway. The building seemed deathly quiet. Jack had no explanation for this, but his gut said that everyone was moved to one location. The danger must have been revoked in certain instance. The top of building seemed to wind up endlessly. Each staircase was another tiring climb after another. The next flight led to an extended hallway with adjacent rooms and a broom closet. The elevator they had destroyed earlier had been marked off-limits with yellow tape. Jack followed the hallway down and then walked up the next flight of stairs. When he turned the corner, it abruptly ended with a key- card door. Along with the card slot was a number pad. He obviously needed a keycard and a code to get inside. Jack began searching the compound for any kind of card. The science labs which he had come from were empty. All they contained were lab experiments and test tube glasses. Every keycard must have been with the soldiers and guards. Every soldier and guard was in the place he was trying to get to! In order to draw them out he would need to create a distraction. But how could he if everyone was locked tight behind a steel door and really thick walls. He didn't even know if they were on the other side of that wall! Logistics didn't matter anymore. All that mattered now was how to get in there. Everyone was gone, and that is the only section of the building he's seen that has been locked down. He could possibly draw them out. With the chemicals that were used in the labs, he could create a chemical reaction that could cause an explosion, or create a toxic spill or poisonous gas that would draw them out to investigate. He searched the laboratories even more, and when he came across a locked door that read the words, "caution" on it, his mind began to churn. He tried to smash the door down by ramming it with his shoulder. The door seemed to be reinforced by some kind of steel. By the time his shoulder was aching, and the door hadn't budged an inch, he quit. He was out of ideas. He would have to blow it open, but the chemicals he needed would be inside. If only he had that gun he might be able to open the door. The room got quieter and darker, and Jack began to get dizzy. He turned around, and looked around. He saw nothing. He was swaying back and forth, his mind in a jumble. "What.I.can't." he mumbled. He staggered forward and tripped over a chair. He landed on a desk face first and got more and more tired. Everything seemed to spin around, and as soon as he realized what was going on, he was just about to pass out. He opened his eyes as wide as they would go. He tried to keep himself awake. Jack's thoughts were rushing, and he finally figured it all out. The guard him and Chris encountered in the hall; there was another one. He couldn't see him but he knew he was there. "You." Jack whispered. He rolled over and hit the floor, trying to stand up, but unable to do so. He felt the same way he had when Gene and the others rescued him. Drugged and unable to operate, he collapsed. Everything turned into a haze. He couldn't do anything. This was something he could not resist. He closed his eyes with a small grin on his face, assured that he would be inside that security checkpoint in no time.