[Author's Note: Not much to say, here's Chapter 2, enjoy! =) As always, feedback is appreciated! --Foxmerc]

CHAPTER 2
Hell Broken Loose
The next day
Zoness research base
1123 hours



The day of the E3 experiment was probably the most enjoyable one I had during my time in that shithole of a base. The test itself was a blast; no one had seen anything like it before, and it sure beat just seeing the subjects twitch and puke. But the real fun came later, during the cleanup process.
A laser turret was installed in the roof of the chambers for just this kind of experiment. The techies turned it on, and the scientists counted how many hits it took to take the freak down…it was a lot, something like seventeen. The scientists were excited at the whole thing, of course, and ran off to their offices to do their thing, leaving me to oversee cleanup…which I didn't mind at all.
I entered the chamber with a few grunts and looked at the mess. The entire left side of the chamber was dripping with blood, flesh, and fur. No part of the leopard was recognizable, save for an arm here or a finger there. I grinned at the sight and laughed scornfully as one of the grunts threw up by the door. Damn weaklings…no wonder the Venom army was where it was.
I looked down at the perforated monster, then crouched for a closer examination. It was just as it looked from outside; a furless, bulbous, mess. Hesitating for only a second, I reached out and touched the skin. I thought it would push down, like a fleshy bubble, but it was rock-hard, like the skin was covering lumps of metal. Its arms and elongated fingers were the same way…they were more like razor-sharp claws now than tendrils. Tearing the leopard apart must have been as easy as opening a birthday present.
"Sir?" one of my soldiers said, his voice unsteady. I could see he was pretty close to puking also. "Should we, uh...continue?"
"Oh, quit your whining," I snarled at him. "Show some backbone for once."
I stood up and decided to get it done with before the wimps fainted…but I had a little fun planned. The incinerator we used to destroy subjects after they died was in the basement, a bit away from the cell block where the prisoners were kept. I ordered two of them to drag the monstrous corpse right down the hallway between the cells, giving the Cornerians a very good look. It was great, some of the facial expressions I saw through the bars rivaled that last look on the leopard's pretty face before it was torn off.
Speaking of the leopard, she had a place in our little parade as well, though there wasn't much left to drag out. Another of my assistants dragged the bloody pile of torn flesh and limbs right behind the monster, and it was obvious that they knew who it was; the girl probably made a big scene when she was taken from the cells. Most of the Cornerians turned away, but a few threw themselves at the bars, yelling and cursing at me. I loved that reaction…but they would get theirs soon enough.
After that was some good ole' R and R. I kicked back in my quarters and thought about the events of the day, chuckling again at some of the highlights. When a guard informed me later that night that there would be another test the next day at noon, I couldn't be happier. I even let the soldier go without screwing with him.

I had a grin on my muzzle for just about the entire morning the next day. We were getting closer…soon I'd have my money and I'd be able to leave that damn can. It was a good thought to think about as I walked down to the Playground…but an even better idea to mull over crept into my head. What would we do with the remaining prisoners if the experiment succeeded today? Oh, I had many fun ideas…I was so engrossed that I almost missed the door to the test chambers.
The Playground was even more hectic than usual. The success of the previous day, with the end in sight, was just as much a motivator for the scientists as it was for me. As I glanced over the active figures in white coats, something in the left test chamber caught my eye. The test subject was already inside, and apparently the geeks wanted to switch genders this time. It was a gray vixen, from what I could tell, in the same Cornerian Army attire. She sat in the far corner, hugging her knees to her chest, her head bowed. Knowing what her body would soon look like, I almost felt a pang of sympathy…almost.
Enghusen was talking rapidly to a few scientists over by the console, pointing to the cowering vixen. I moseyed on over to the good doctor, trying to hear what she was saying, but I couldn't keep up with the speedy geek language. When she was finally done, the coyote turned back to the chamber and her tail brushed me, startling her.
"Oh, it's you," she muttered, looking back down at her clipboard. "I was wondering where you were...knew you wouldn't miss this."
"Of course not," I said with a grin, my eyes roving down her loose blouse. Maybe I'd miss it to get a good look at those. "After yesterday, you raised my curiosity."
"Well, entertainment aside, we've made steady progress. This gas is the same as yesterday, the only difference being that we're testing it on a female now. You can expect a similar reaction."
"Good," I said, glancing again at the vixen. "Let's get it going."
I took my usual position leaning against the back row of consoles and watched the scientists scurry around, making preparations. The vixen never moved in her glass-and-metal cage, except to glance up with wet eyes a few times, then look back down. I stared at her the whole time, an odd feeling coming over me. One time, when she glanced up, she looked right into my eye. For a split second, I felt something that I thought I had left far behind…then nothing.
It was all forgotten as Enghusen raised her hand, signaling the gas. I grinned in anticipation as the deadly cloud swept through and filled the room, covering the quivering body of the still-sitting vixen. Moments later, when the vents cleared the room, she wasn't sitting still any more. Another scream of pure agony echoed through the Playground, though this time the scientists and I were ready for it. Her skin boiled, her fur disappeared, and the familiar lumps crept their way onto her body. The back of her head exploded, just like the male, which ended the screams. I watched in fascination, being able to enjoy it this time without the surprise of the last time.
This…is when the real shit hit the fan.
The end result looked and acted exactly like the male…but the final, fateful test had to be done. As before, the other side's door slid open and a new victim was shoved in, this time a male hare. His expression…let's just say I can never get tired of seeing expressions like that. But then…then something went wrong.
The vents in the roof of the chamber opened once again and green gas flooded the room. The huddle of scientists looked back at the techie working the console, their eyes wide with alarm. The poor bastard manning the console, a young-looking cheetah, was slamming the console frantically.
"They just opened!" he shouted in panic. "I can't close the vents! It's malfunctioning!"
The gas reached the hare and another ear-splitting scream resounded. Enghusen, being the sweet lady she is, walked quickly over, shoved the cheetah out of the way, and worked on the console. Her expression became more and more desperate and beads of sweat formed on her brow. She apparently wasn't making any more headway. Finally, the coyote shouted angrily, "Stand clear!" and hit the button to lower the turret.
My disappointment at not being able to see the hare decorate half the chamber lasted only a second. By this time, the hare had fully transformed, and the two monsters were looking at each other, and out the window at the retreating scientists. When the turret was lowered, it immediately began firing at the first monstrosity, causing it to flail and roar in pain. But the other creature looked at the turret…then did the deed that officially sent the base to hell. It leapt up to the ceiling, latched its deformed limbs onto the gun, and, with a loud roar, ripped it from its mount.
My eye widened at this, and I felt a pang of panic. Wouldn't it be just my luck to go all this time in this goddamn base and then die in it. All fell silent in the room, save for the sizzling sound of sparks from the gun's mount. No one had any idea what to do…even Enghusen looked frightened, staring back through the thick gas at her creations. Finally, as the scientists near the window slowly backtracked, the monsters decided to end the standoff.
Their rock-hard, disfigured limbs came down on the glass, over and over, their harrowing roars echoing through the chamber. The screams of the scientists mingled with them as all hell broke loose, mass panic, everyone running around in frenzied horror. The creatures continued beating on the glass, the impacts a hellish bass drum resounding in my head. A spider web of cracks started to show in the thick resin, small wisps of gas leaking through. I figured it was time to get the hell out of there.
I ran for the door, shoving panicked scientists out of my way, and bolted through just as I heard a loud crash. As I roughly slid the door shut behind me, sealing the leak in, I caught a glimpse of a rain of glass shards as the window finally fell. The gas billowed through the room, enveloping the crowd, their combined screams abruptly cut off as the door slammed home.
I stumbled backwards, staring at the door, my eye wide. Those goddamn stupid fucking scientists…couldn't they keep their crap working? But that was it…they were all dead. Well, that's not true; they were still alive…in some form. With that thought lingering on the edge of my mind, my first order of business was to grab a gas mask from an emergency box on the wall and put it on. Through the sound of my heavy, recycled breathing, I could vaguely hear the echoes of screams and crashes. I decided to book.
The hangar was topside, and the only way up from the submerged base a single freight elevator, a few corridors away. I ran for it, leaving the damn geeks at the mercy of their doing. It's their fault; let THEM die for it, not me. With any luck, I could just fly out of there and let the army deal with the mess.
However, I didn't get very far. As I rounded a corner, the base harshly quaked with the force of an explosion, throwing me off my feet. Cursing, I stood back up, only to be thrown by another explosion. This time, I didn't get back up. I remembered seeing a section of the ceiling break away, and a severed pipe falling towards me. Then darkness.


* * *


Outside the Zoness research base
1223 hours


The dark, sickening waters of Zoness stretched endlessly in all directions, a small island before me looking even smaller compared to the expanse. Of course, you could either call it a small island or an amazingly huge base. The gray, corroded metal box that sat atop the island took up almost every inch of land, and it was hundreds of meters long and wide. It also looked serene, but most things do from a mile above.
I took my Arwing down and closer to the base, wary as always for any anti-air. As I rounded the structure, I saw a horizontal rectangular hole in one side, the hangar. Squinting through the darkness inside, I also saw that it was empty. Whatever force had occupied the building was long gone. Probably just some bored scout making Pepper all jumpy.
Oh, yeah, the scout. Sighing as I remembered the conditions of the job, I flew back around and headed for the roof…I didn't trust the old structure enough to go inside the hangar. So all I had to do was peek inside, see if there was any activity, and "try to find the scout"…which meant that if something was up and he wasn't within five feet of the door, I was bugging out. The more I thought about what could be down there, the stupider I felt for taking the job.
I touched down on the grimy roof without anti-air blowing my dumb ass out to sea…so far so good. As the Arwing's canopy hummed open, I was greeted with the pleasant potpourri of raw sewage and whatever the hell consisted of Zoness water, made worse by the heat and humidity. Crinkling my nose, I hopped out onto the dirty metal and took a look around. All clear except for the single round access hatch, spitting distance away.
I jogged over, the rancid smell making the thought of entering the base a bit more likeable, and pulled the heavy cover back with a grunt. I crouched beside the hole and looked down into darkness, the only light coming from a flicker at the bottom of the long tunnel. Whatever it was, it meant that someone was home to turn the lights on.
"Shit…" I muttered to myself, staring down the black hole. Someone was in there, but the hangar was empty and no boats were around…didn't make sense. I rubbed under my muzzle, staring and thinking, trying not to breathe in too much. Finally, I stood and walked back towards my ship. Screw it…something was definitely wrong, and I didn't feel like dying on my vacation time. My part of the job was done.
But, of course, fate had other plans.
As I neared my ship, I felt a sharp vibration and the building beneath me began to rumble. I thought the whole place was going down as I staggered and nearly fell over. The vibration became more and more intense, and I grabbed the hull of my Arwing to steady myself. Then, with a deafening metal clang, it all stopped as suddenly as it began. The clang was followed by a tornado-like whooshing, and the next thing I knew, I was surrounded by a green gas. It billowed outwards from the sides of the building, probably from vents, and shot upwards, disappearing in the blue sky. After a few seconds, all was calm again.
I still held on to my Arwing, looking with a cocked eyebrow at the hatch. What the hell had just happened? What was that shit coming from the base? Biggest question…who vented it and why? I would think now that those were the questions that drove me. I always had a pretty free curiosity, and it surprisingly didn't lead me into trouble all that often. This time, however, caused enough trouble to make up for all my lucky times.
Just a peek, that's all, just climb down there and take a glance around. With any luck, I'd come across that scout and he could fill me in. Might as well give Pepper some kind of result for the cash he put on the table. What could go wrong if I just climbed down the ladder and took a quick little look? Really, what could go wrong?
How I could ever be that dumb, I don't know. You'd think seeing green gas that's probably anything but natural come shooting out of a known Venom base would be reason enough to leave, not to go in. But my curiosity got the better of me and I started down the ladder into the base, the sound of my boots on the rungs echoing as loud as gunshots.
When I hit the floor, I immediately took out my pistol and held it ready, scanning the corridor I had dropped into. The abandonment was evident immediately by the rusty walls and floor and the lack of furnishings. The flickering overhead light caused a weird strobe effect that immediately gave me a headache and cured me of ever wanting to go to a nightclub again. From what I could see, though, there was nothing odd about the interior of the base…but that was no reason to let my guard down.
I slowly moved through the winding corridors, trying to be as quiet as possible, the barrel of my gun taking point. Eventually the flickering light gave way to normal light, though it was still dim enough to make me squint a bit. If I didn't almost trip over a piece of debris on the ground, I would've missed the map on the wall that I put my hand on to steady myself. I brushed the blanket of dust off it, and it revealed a side-view of the facility. My jaw dropped.
The black line that indicated the waterline was on the upper part of the map. Below it was indicated a single shaft that ran down a few hundred yards, a cargo elevator according to the map, and ended with a huge box built into the island, almost touching the ocean floor. This other half of the base, while equal in length and width to the upper, had around twenty floors. The building I was in, which now paled in comparison, was only three. I didn't like some names of the rooms down there either, highlighted like a map to some demented theme park: Cell Block, Research Labs, Test Chambers, Gas Processing…fun for the whole family.
I folded my arms over my chest and absently tapped the pistol on my arm, looking at the map and thinking. If that scout was anywhere, he was either dead or in one of the cells. The cargo elevator went through all the floors until the bottom one, which housed the test chambers and the cell block. If I rode down there and bypassed all the other levels, looking for the scout should be a cinch. The dim light and shadows would make sneaking around easy, should there be any soldiers.
With that goal in mind, I memorized the short distance to the cargo elevator and continued. The same dim, grimy corridors lay before me until I reached it, and still no living thing to be seen, dead or alive. The only sounds I heard on my journey were my own breathing and the light click of my boots on the metal floor. No more vibrations, no more gas, no screams, no voices, no waiting room music…as the saying goes, the silence was deafening.
I finally reached the huge elevator, which was only a large platform used to transport mass amounts of heavy objects between the floors. The control panel on the platform was lit up, and after a few minutes of perusing the buttons, looking for the one to take me to the cell block, I decided on the one marked "Test Chambers/Cell Block"…and they say mercs aren't smart! Well, then again, the fact that I was even down there is a point for them.
With a grinding quake, the heavy, rusted gears got to work and the platform began to lower, its deafening rumble announcing to the whole base, "Here I come!" I crouched to one knee and readied my gun, just in case a wary soldier decided to give me a warm welcome. However, after a couple minutes, I didn't have to worry about that.
The first thing that alerted me that something was wrong was an eardrum-shattering screech of metal on metal. I grimaced at the harsh sound, but soon realized I had bigger problems. The platform stopped suddenly. I waited for a second, my breathing echoing through the long shaft, then slowly walked over to the console. A red emergency light was blinking, signaling that the elevator was stopped…no shit, thanks for telling me. So, of course, I did the only thing a normal guy who knows nothing about elevators could do; I kicked the console and repeatedly pressed the button for the ground floor.
I froze in mid-kick when another groan resounded through the shaft, this time followed by the platform rumbling. I put my foot down and backed away from the console, like I was trying to apologize or something. Suddenly, the platform fell and violently stopped a few feet down, continuing its rumble. I took the hint…last stop, everybody off.
I frantically looked around and saw an emergency ladder built into the shaft's wall. Well, this qualified as an emergency. Holstering my gun, I sprinted for the ladder and jumped just as the platform took another violent plunge…and this time, it didn't stop. I caught a rung on the ladder with one hand and dangled until I could find my footing. Looking down, all I could see was emptiness as the shaft ended in darkness a bit further down. I waited, panting, for almost ten seconds before I heard the deafening crash as the platform's remains slammed into the bottom.
"Dammit!" I shouted into the echoing emptiness, hitting the wall with my fist. My heart pounded in my chest as I hung onto the rusty, peeling ladder and looked around the shaft. Whatever genius that installed the emergency ladder had the bright idea to put it on the wall opposite the elevator exits, and it was a good fifty feet across the shaft. But if I climbed back up to the top floor, there must be a way across. I started climbing up.
As it turned out, I never made it to the top to see if my theory was right. After a few minutes of trudging up the grimy ladder, I reached my hand for the next rung and only grabbed air. Upon closer inspection, I saw that the ladder ended abruptly in a twist of rusty, warped metal. The age apparently had an effect, and part of it rusted and fell away, leaving a gap in the ladder. I couldn't see the other end.
There was no way up.
I stared in desperation at the bare wall where the ladder was supposed to continue. It seemed like a nightmare, or some sick joke, like I would wake up at any second and be lying on the beach on Macbeth, instead of hanging from a rusty ladder in an elevator shaft in an abandoned Venom base on Zoness. But there I was, cut off with no way up. But that was impossible…there's no way an entire research facility would depend upon a single elevator as its only means of entry and exit. I had to go down.
I suddenly felt really hot, whether it was from the base temperature or the extreme workout I was getting climbing the ladder. After wiping the sweat from my forehead, I carefully took my jacket off, one arm at a time, and let it flutter down the shaft. What the hell, I could always pick it up when I got down there. After a few minutes of rest, I started back down the ladder.
The ten minute trip down was thankfully uneventful, except for the sound of my breathing and the rhythmic tempo of my boots on the rungs. Finally, with a sigh of relief, I looked down and saw the mangled remains of the platform, my jacket resting in the center. I hopped off the ladder, my legs nearly buckling as I adjusted to solid ground again, and retrieved my jacket. As I put it back on, I looked out the large smashed-in door to the loading bay. It was about triple the size of the platform itself and held a few stacks of unmarked boxes. The rest of it was empty, no guards or surprise parties for me.
I scanned the room until I saw a door at the far end, still intact and closed. A sign next to it read, "Sub-level 20, Test Chambers/Cell Block." With a deep breath, I brought my pistol up and headed for the door. One way or another, I'd find out very soon whether I could leave the base.


--Chapter 3 coming soon--