Chapter 31: The Lab

Bravo Team

"Well," Mike started to ask, "Door number 1, door number 2, or door number 3?"

"Depends," Chrissy responded, "What'll I win?"

"Probably a horrible death." Dan remarked, matter-of-factly.

Stephanie was checking out the layout of the pristine hallway they were standing in. "Odds are the two on the left end up in the same room, and I'm not too gung-ho about checking the other one."

"Let's go right, and hope it's not wrong." Taylor suggested.

"I'm with her, " Alyssa agreed.

So they chose right, and the door was unlocked. As they entered the large room, they noticed three empty cages, and some monitors on the far wall ahead of them. To the right of the door stood a desk which was covered end-to-end with several computers. The room was probably about twenty feet by thirty feet, and the walls were a silvery gray, like stainless steel.

"Alright, let's check this place out thoroughly. Stephanie, check those computers to see if you can find some information about this place. Mike, stand guard outside the door, in case someone else is here. Taylor, see if you can find anything in those file cabinets over there. Alyssa, stand guard with Mike. Chrissy, see if you can find any helpful substances in that refrigeration unit."

Chrissy looked at her brother with a smile and responded, "So what do you want me to look for, some liquid meth, or some ecstasy."

"Real funny sis'. But please, spare us the illegal narcotics jokes." He responded.

The playful brother-sister banter was interrupted by Stephanie, "Hey guys, I think I found something!"

Everyone but Alyssa and Mike went over to the monitor and took a look at the information on the screen:

Entry 1, June 10, 2025

We managed to successfully splice together chameleon DNA and rat DNA. The rat genes were dominant, but they developed the ability to blend in with their surroundings. There were other side effects as well. The fur began to fall out in some places, and I noticed a decidedly reptilian appearance in the patches of "bald" skin.

Entry 2, June 12, 2025

Perry asked us to inject the new virus strain into the subjects, but the results weren't what we'd hoped for, so he ordered us to destroy them. I really thought we were onto something.

Entry 3, June 14, 2025

Unbelievable! The specimens that we destroyed have somehow been re-animated. But the thing is, they've grown to the size of St. Bernards! They are far more aggressive than before. Perry and I realized it must've been from the new virus. Therefore, we named the new strain "Lazarus", after the person in the bible that was ressurected by Jesus. Not that we're religious, but the name seemed to fit. We decided to test them in our "arena". They used their abilities to "disappear", and slaughtered five of our best agents. Because of their abilities , we nicknamed them "Commandos" after the military special forces known for their superior comabat skills, and their ability to "blend in" with their environment. We were finally able to tranquelize them and return them to their cages. It's a damn good thing there were only three of them, otherwise this place would be a cemetery now.

"Commandos huh." Dan said, "That explains the trouble we had bringing them down."

"This must've been the room where they were held. But if they couldn't escape, that means they were released, which means..."

Mike interrupted Stephanie's sentence, "...Someone knew we were coming."

The sound of guns being cocked could be heard by all as they turned and saw the entrance blocked by at least six soldiers in facemasks, and carrying assault rifles. Attempting to fight now would be suicide.

Alpha Team

Rick's attention turned to the trail that was obviously leftby the shark/crocodile hybrid. "We should follow this. Odds are, it'll lead us to the home of that thing."

"Yeah," Liz agreed, "It most likely came from some holding tank, maybe in a lab or something."

The team followed the trail, which led to a large sewage drain. The drain was apparently barely able to accomodate the giant beast that had escaped from it's holding tank. There were some deep gashes in the upper part of the cylinder where it's scaly spine had ripped through. There were also some chunks of it's scale-covered hide on the floor of the culvert, which means it was probably in pain as it squeezed through.

"Eww. No wonder it was in such a pissy mood!" Joked Hunter.

The low chuckles of the group were suddenly interrupted by the sound of the undead that had begun to shuffle toward the surprised S.T.A.R.S team.

"Who the hell invited them to the party!" Asked Liz, as the dozen or so zombies began to close in on the team.

A/N

Well, it's been a while, and I apologize for that. I know I didn't cover the Alpha team much this time, but I plan to give them a little more to do next chapter. As always, please review.