Chapter Ten
Amelia, Judy and Russel walked through the halls with a P-Sec escort. They all wore their E-T RIGs. Amelia carried a whole case of tools with her. She had been beyond surprised when West had called her out of the blue, and said they had managed to kill one of the creatures.
"About fuckin' time we got some good news," said Russel.
"Amen to that," said Judy. In short order, they arrived at the scene, and it looked about as bad as Amelia had been expecting. The area looked like a warzone, with bullet holes, broken pipes, blood, and acid holes.
West looked up as Amelia arrived, and for a change, he smiled.
"Well, Doc, take a look," said the Security Chief. Amelia and her team came forward and stared at it in both fear and awe.
It was dark and shiny, almost like a beetle, and Amelia couldn't ignore the insect-like characteristics of it. They also were shocked how big it was. Amelia estimated it was a good two meters tall when standing. Most notable was the long, eyeless head. The top was a smooth, shiny carapace, that had a wet shine to it, as did much of the rest. Four tubes jutted up from the back, and a strange spike just under the back of the head. The long tail laid across the floor, the individual segments reminding her of spinal vertebrae in form. As Amelia came and knelt, she noted the long fingers and the claws that tipped them.
"Holy shit," Judy said as she kept her distance. Russel, though, came closer.
"Little SOB got big in a hurry," he mused. Amelia nodded as she opened the case and produced some metal tongs. She moved the head to get a better look at the face. She noticed how the teeth and claws all had a shiny, metallic look to them. Amelia looked it over, and noticed the skeletal look to it, and how thin it seemed. What was even more odd, was how some parts looked like ribbed tubing and other inorganic things that, if she didn't know better, almost reminded her of machine parts. It was all so odd.
"Thank god we finally lucked out and managed to take one down. I was starting to get worried," said West. Amelia took a swab and ran it over the head and put the swab into a tube for analysis.
"It's clearly very hardy," said Amelia as she took samples and photos with her RIG.
"No shit. The damn thing took nearly five-hundred Pulse Rifle rounds to take down. And the only reason they were able to was someone brought a Stasis module," said West. Russel whistled at that.
"Damn! Fucker's tough!" the Nurse said. Judy nodded.
"Is it just me, or does that outside almost look like armor?" Judy asked. Amelia nodded.
"Most definitely. Even from here, I can say this is some of the toughest organic material I have ever seen. If it's able to resist an acid like that, it likely is acting like an organic Kevlar of a sort," said Amelia almost offhandedly. West looked down at her and then at the creature,
"Shit, that would explain a lot, and why it could take a burst at close range and get back up," West mused. Amelia didn't reply as she took a piece of the creature that laid near the body and put it into a bag. Thankfully, none of it hissed or burned through anything, though the body was more than a little precarious where the blood had eaten through the floor, and no less than three levels below that.
"I can't even begin to imagine what kind of conditions would make something evolve into a life form this extreme," said Amelia as she took more samples.
"Beats me. That's your field. But the good thing is we showed they can be killed, like anything," said West with some energy. Russel looked at West.
"Well, maybe you should get all your boys and girls Stasis modules," said Russel.
"That's a great idea," said Sammers, startling them all. "Sorry, I was so tied up with everything afterwards." Sammers then walked forward and stared at the face of their enemy. "So . . . this is what they grow into," he almost whispered. Amelia nodded as she took her last samples. Sammers looked down at the hole through the floor, and down almost to the very bottom of the colony. "Didn't realize how bad the damage was. Have to get Engineering on it," he mused. West nodded.
"Yeah, my teams reported power outages in some areas, and those holes would be easy for any of the other things to slip through," replied West.
"Speaking of that, how many more do we think there are?" Sammers asked. Amelia sighed as she stood up.
"Well, we know of four for certain here in the colony from the four births we saw. But if the two colonists and two P-Sec officers who went missing were also victims-" Amelia began.
"Then that would be eight. Fuck," said Sammers. She nodded.
"Worse, there were the two that they brought up to the Castle," she said, letting that hang. They all were silent as that sunk in, as did a cold feeling in their guts. Sammers blew out a breath as he put his hands on his hips.
"One thing at a time. West? How about the blood?" Sammers asked.
"Seems to have stopped, thank god," replied the green-haired man. Amelia nodded.
"It seems the acid reacts with oxygen, so this will eventually neutralize it. Problem is how long that could take," she said, indicating the huge hole. Sammers nodded.
"Any ideas about how to contain or stop the acid?" he asked Amelia. She was thoughtful.
"Well, superacids we know are often contained in Teflon containers. Most spacesuits and RIGs have a layer of Teflon in them, and it's used for various purposes. If we could get enough together, we could maybe make a tarp or similar to wrap the body for easy and safe transportation. Though, against an acid this powerful, I'm not certain how well it will work." Sammers nodded and looked at West.
"All right, get to Engineering, see how much Teflon you can get and get the body moved. Amelia, any suggestions for where to store it?"
"The few refrigerated containers I have in the lab are nowhere near big enough for something like this," she said, motioning to the large creature. West looked thoughtful.
"And I doubt it would fit in any of Briggs' Morgue drawers. But maybe we could put it in one of the cold rooms down on Storage?" Sammers nodded at this, but chuckled, despite himself.
"Would have been fun to see the look on Briggs' face to wheel this thing in on a stretcher, but agreed." He then looked at West. "All right, let's get this thing on ice, and start patching things up. I'll see about how many Stasis modules I can scrounge up, but since we can't contact the Castle, we'll be limited to what we have down here. I just hope it's enough." With that, Sammers turned and headed for Operations, while West gave orders. Amelia and her team packed up the samples and headed back to the lab with their escort. Amelia stopped to look back at the black body that lay supine upon the floor.
"Seven more," she mused aloud before turning to leave.
None of them were aware they were being watched.
XXX
Amelia sat down and looked at the slide under the microscope. She checked a snapshot of her previous sample. The cells in the samples looked very much like those she had looked at before from the spider-hands and pods, with that same, strange look of bones, ribbed tubing and other odd bits. Now, after having seen what she was assuming to be the adult phase, it made sense. "So strange," she mused as she noted some things, compared the images. Again, before today, Dr. Amelia Kyne would never have imagined such a thing was biologically possible. Yet, here it was.
She also had been provided a sample of Teflon that had blood from the creature applied to it by West and his team. Much to her shock, the acid still ate through, but at a greatly reduced rate. While shocking, it did give Amelia some hope they could at least have some form of protection against the blood. When she looked at the claws of the creature, though, she could see how such a creature would be a very lethal predator. Matching this against its sharp teeth, it was obviously a carnivore, or at the very least, omnivorous.
"That thing is ugly," said Judy from where she moved a roller cart filled with tools. Amelia looked up at her, and gave a soft smile.
"Ugly is a relative term, but I wouldn't want to run into one in a dark hallway," replied Amelia with some humor.
"Let's just hope West and his teams can find and kill the rest of them," said Russel as he carried a stack of boxes. "Um, anybody wanna lend a hand?" he asked from behind the boxes stacked so tall they hid his head. Amelia and Judy giggled at this as they went to help.
XXX
Sammers stood in Operations, West with him as they went over the map of the colony.
"Okay, so we killed the thing here, right outside Engineering, on Sublevel Two. The disappearances were on the same level, but other side. My teams were all ambushed down in Sublevel Three," said West as he tapped the map and highlighted the mentioned areas. Sammers nodded.
"So, what do you think?" Sammers asked. West put his hands on his hips.
"I'm still trying to see a pattern, but I've got little experience with animals, let alone aliens. Right now, I'm just hoping Dr. Kyne's assumption that they're solitary hunters is right. Will make tracking them down a little easier." Sammers was silent for a moment.
"What if they're not?" Sammers asked, and West eyed him sideways. "What if they really do work together?" West shook his head, as if trying not to think about it.
"I'm just hoping they don't." He looked at Sammers. "Because if they do, we're royally fucked," said the Chief of P-Sec. Sammers was quiet, then looked back at the map.
"Any further sightings or signs?" he asked.
"Not yet," West replied. Sammers glanced around the map, trying to spot any pattern, any tell, any clue that might help them.
"I let people know we killed one, if nothing else, to ease some of the tension," said Sammers. West nodded.
"Good. Shows them we're getting things under control," said West.
"Are we?" Sammers asked as he looked at the map intently, but his focus was elsewhere. West gave a soft sigh and patted Sammers on the shoulder.
"You're doing your best. We all are," said West as he straightened his jacket. "I'm going out with my team. I'll let you know if we find anything," said West as he left. Sammers didn't look up as the door swished open and closed. He glanced at a holographic picture of the dead creature, then back to the map.
"Where are you hiding?" he asked no one.
XXX
Amelia pressed the doorbell and waited. Jessica answered the door a few seconds later.
"Hello, Amelia," Jessica greeted. Amelia smiled, glad to her the stammer was gone from her voice.
"Hello, Jessica. I wanted to check in on you, make sure you were okay and doing better." Jessica smiled softly and ushered her in. As soon as Amelia was in, she hugged her, which Jessica reciprocated. Amelia pulled back and smiled. "I have some good news. West and his team managed to kill one of them," she said. Jessica looked surprised.
"Really?" Amelia nodded. But she made sure not to mention to Jessica about the creatures having taken a person from within fifty meters from the apartments. They sat and Jessica gave Amelia some hot chocolate. Amelia smiled and hummed.
"This reminds me of hot chocolate me and Terry had when we visited Kreemar," said Amelia, trying to make some small talk. Jessica perked up at this.
"You've been to Kreemar?" Jessica asked, and Amelia smiled and brought up a photo in her RIG. It showed her and Terry, both a few years younger, against a snowy background. Jessica's eyes lit up and she giggled. "Real snow . . ." she whispered in awe. Amelia smiled and nodded.
"Was really something. I felt like I was back in time on old Earth," said Amelia as she reminisced.
"I heard that Kreemar was an early Weyland-Yutani Terraforming project," said Jessica, and Amelia nodded.
"Yes. Too bad it takes so long and is so expensive. Would be nicer to Terraform planets rather than tear them up," she mused.
"Yeah, I doubt I could ever save up enough to visit," Jessica mused. Amelia chuckled and shook her head.
"We had it paid for, since Terry went there as part of his philanthropic work for the Church." Jessica sipped her drink.
"Oh, I forgot he was so involved," Jessica said. Amelia nodded.
"Terry always wants to help people. Bless his soul." Jessica could hear how Amelia missed her husband.
"Well . . . when you get through this and get home, think of the story you'll have to tell him." Amelia laughed at this.
"Yes, I wonder what his reaction will be that we found actual aliens," Amelia chuckled. Jessica was silent, and looked at her.
"Amelia, what do you think? Do you think they will find the others?" Jessica asked, and Amelia thought for a few moments.
"Well, the more we learn about them, the better we can react and protect ourselves. Since they already managed to kill one, I think they can stop them," Amelia said. She hoped that was the cause, but had to stay positive. Amelia shook her head and smiled at Jessica. "But, anyways, I'm glad you're doing better. Whenever you feel up to it, you're always welcome back." Jessica nodded.
"I think I'll be better tomorrow to come in," said Jessica, and Amelia smiled.
XXX
Three P-Sec officers flanked Ethan as he was released.
"All right, you can go, but keep out of trouble, you hear me?" one said, Pulse Rifle slung in front of her.
"Yes, Ma'am," said Ethan in a small voice.
"All right, get outta here. And grow some damn brain cells!" shouted another P-Sec officer as Ethan skulked off from P-Sec headquarters, keeping his head down and shoulders hunched. He had wanted to ask for his Marker pendant back, but knew better than to push his luck again. He scurried away as quickly as he could, looking more like a rat than a human. He hurried down the halls and corridors, avoiding people until he at last arrived back at his apartment. He shouldn't have been surprised to find it had been searched, and his personal terminal confiscated. He sat down on his bed and wept quietly.
XXX
Back at P-Sec headquarters, Nathaniel Abaddon was yelling as armed P-Sec officers led him out of the front door.
"You heretics can't violate my rights like this!" Abaddon yelled. They were not intimidated. The Unitologist preacher grumbled as he stormed off. West watched with his officers.
"Sir, do you think it's a good idea to just let them go like that?" a Detective asked. West looked at him.
"It wouldn't be if we weren't going to keep an eye on them," said West meaningfully. The Detective, a bald man with a beard, nodded his understanding. "Ellis, keep on eye on Abaddon, see where he goes, what he does and who he talks to. Stay back, stay out of sight." Detective Ellis nodded and headed in to get the gear he needed.
XXX
Tom and Warton sat in the bar, sipping beers and talking. Other people were animatedly talking, most of it about the fact they had actually managed to kill one of the creatures.
"Thank you so much," said a woman and Tom waved it off.
"I just helped a little. Real credit goes to P-Sec," he said humbly, Warton smiling at this. Word had gotten out that Tom had helped kill the creature, but Tom, ever the humble fellow, just said he helped a little. Warton knew the truth, knew they would have been dead if not for him.
"Hey, come on, man. You should be able to bask in it a little," said Warton. Tom didn't smile.
"I will once it's over. Don't forget, there's more of those things," Tom reminded, and Warton almost choked on his beer, having forgotten. Warton coughed and sputtered a bit, Tom stayed silent.
"So, what do you think?" Warton asked quietly. Tom glanced at him sideways.
"That thing was the stuff of nightmares. If I lived to be two-hundred, I'll see it every time I close my eyes," replied the elderly miner.
"Well, we killed one, so the rest can't be that bad, right?" Tom looked at him, and it was a cold look that actually kind of scared Warton.
"There's an old Samurai saying. 'After a victory, tighten your helmet cords'. Just because we we killed one doesn't mean it'll be a cakewalk." At this, they were silent. After a few minutes, Warton spoke again.
"What was your impression? With how it acted, moved?" Warton asked. Tom sighed gently and sipped his beer.
"It reminded me way too much of guerrilla tactics." Warton raised an eyebrow. "I think . . . it was testing us." Warton felt cold at this. "Like it was testing boundaries, perimeters and patrol areas. Like a scout." Warton almost dropped his beer. Warton recovered with a nervous chuckle as he patted Tom on the arm.
"H-hey, man. I think you're giving them way too much credit. I mean, they're animals. Right?" Tom was silent, instead sipping his beer as he thought.
XXX
Ellis followed Abaddon through the corridors of the colony, staying back and just out of sight. He tailed the crazy Uni preacher carefully. He recorded as much as he could. Where he went, who he talked to, when and where. Ellis wore plain clothes and had changed his look and even wore a wig to not look like his normal self. It seemed to be working thus far, as neither Abaddon, nor his "flock" had recognized him yet. Something Ellis was grateful for. He had his doubts his Divet pistol would be a lot of help against all of them, should things turn south. These Unis were crazy, after all.
Unitologists had been all crazies right from the start, and had always attracted the unsavory, unstable elements of society. Every now and then, you'd see a newsflash of some crazy Marker-head wigging out and assaulting someone who "mocked their faith" or worse. He didn't blame West for keeping a very close eye on the freaks.
Ellis saw them moving around a corner, and scampered to catch up, but not look like it, or be seen. Not always easy. He just barely caught up just in time. Abaddon and his cronies went right at the next junction, and he hurried to catch up. He walked quickly, so as not to appear like he was following them, and maybe tip someone off. He peeked around the corner, and they had slowed a bit. He walked around the corner at a normal pace, trying to look casual. He could hear just a bit of the conversation.
"You're sure?" Abaddon asked the woman, sounding surprised. Ellis' brows furrowed.
"Yes. I saw it myself. It was . . . amazing," she replied. They turned the corner up ahead to the left as Ellis tailed them.
As he was approaching the corner, a hiss startled him. He almost reached for his gun, but realized it was only a pipe venting steam. He sighed and collected himself. He rounded the corner and just saw Abaddon and the others disappearing around the right bend up ahead. Ellis stayed close to the wall to not attract attention. He moved as quickly as he dared. He made sure he was on the opposite side of the hall, away from where there were large pipes and conduits. The side he hugged was smooth wall, save for a door. Just as Ellis passed the door, it swished open.
A huge hand grabbed him around the face, the fingers long and black as the darkest night. Terror gripped him as he realized what it was. He reached under his jacket and grabbed his pistol, but, to his shock, the thing grabbed his wrist so tightly, he felt the bones grind together and his arm tingle. It smashed his hand against the frame of the door, shattering his hand and dropping his pistol. Pain lanced up his arm as he tried to scream, but the insanely-powerful hand kept his mouth closed and covered, the long fingers wrapping entirely around his skull. Detective Ellis couldn't even let out a squeak as he was dragged into the dark, the door swishing closed as he and his captor vanished into the shadows.
XXX
Amelia was looking at her samples in greater detail. The one that intrigued her the most was the tiny shard from the exoskeleton of the creature. Even a look without a microscope was amazing. It reminded her almost of a polymer of some kind, but also had a look that reminded her of bone, but not quite. Even stranger still, it had what was left of some skin covering it. Or some kind of membrane at least. Looking at it through her microscope, she could see her early guess had not only been right, she had been way behind. It was, indeed, similar to Kevlar, but even more. These things were indeed well-armored. She didn't know much about guns, but she knew the Pulse Rifles West and P-Sec used were loaded with ammunition designed not to penetrate armor, and thus could not cause a hull breach of a ship or colony. With these creatures, though, that meant they could absorb hundreds of rounds before they could crack the outer shell, to say nothing of causing internal damage. She noted these findings down in a file she was preparing for West and P-Sec to help them in fighting the others of its kind.
"Hey," greeted Judy. Amelia looked up as the younger woman offered two cups.
"Cafe Mocha," she said with a wink. Amelia smiled and saved the document and took the cup gratefully.
"Thanks." Judy nodded. The younger Nurse-Tech looked at displayed data and huffed.
"I still can't believe that little freak did that," said Judy. Amelia sighed softly and nodded.
"I'm just glad it wasn't worse than it was. If he'd recorded the creatures hatching from their hosts, and shown it, I have no doubt people would be panicking," said Amelia.
"Some people don't seem to use their heads," said Russel as he moved some boxes of items. Amelia murmured softly and sipped her drink.
"Yes. And some people prefer to let others do the thinking for them. Sadly, there's lots of them around these days." Judy and Russel nodded. They looked up as the door swished open, and Jessica walked in.
"Jess!" exclaimed Judy happily. Jessica smiled and rubbed her arm.
"Hey, guys. I know it's a bit late in the shift, but need an extra pair of hands?" she asked, and Amelia smiled.
"Always," Amelia replied. Russel grinned as Jessica came in.
"Wait till we tell you what's been going on," he said with a wave of his hand as the four began to converse and Jessica got her needed gear.
XXX
Ethan sat in a corner in the bar, trying not to be seen. He had finished a beer and was working on another, when a shadow fell across his table. He shrunk down, not wanting to look up.
"Why so down, brother?" said a familiar voice. He looked up, and it was Preacher Abaddon, along with other Faithful. Abaddon smiled at him. "This is no time to be down, my friend. It's a time to rejoice!" Ethan looked down at his beer.
"I, uh, don't want to cause any more trouble," he said softly. One of the others grinned as he leaned down and slapped his hand on the table.
"Hey, don't worry about those pigs. Who do ya think bailed ya out?" asked the bald man who was a little older than Ethan, but younger than Abaddon. Raltan, Ethan remembered his name was. Ethan looked up at the smiling group, who motioned for him to come. Ethan glanced around, saw the venomous looks the other people shot them, and agreed. He stood, wobbled a tiny bit, and followed.
"I'm so glad we found you, brother Ethan! We have new, most wonderful news!" proclaimed Abaddon as they walked through the halls. The group wound through the twisting tunnels and hallways of the colony until they arrived at their designated private meeting place. Upon the door was sacred Marker Script, reading Truth. Ethan followed them in, and Raltan glanced around before he locked the door. The dim room was lit by candles, images of the Marker and the Script upon it decorated almost every free surface. Abddon looked at the woman, who brought up a hologram recording from her RIG. Ethan watched, and was shocked to see a large, black creature laying on the floor a distance away as P-Sec officers aimed their guns at it. Abaddon grinned wider as Ethan's eyes widened. "You see?" Ethan looked at him and nodded.
"They've changed once again," Ethan said softly.
"No, my dear boy. Not just that." Ethan looked at Abaddon, who chuckled. "You see, I may be a layman Preacher, but I have a brother who is Enigma. And he has some amazing information that most of the Faithful are not made aware of." Abaddon indicated the dark creature. "And here it is. They are here. The Heralds," he said in awe. Ethan looked at him.
"The Heralds?" he asked.
"The Heralds of the Marker," said Taylor, the woman.
"They come to bring the Word of the Marker," said Raltan. Ethan was in awe.
"The mighty Heralds come, to make ready the Faithful for the Universal Awakening and Convergence!" Abaddon declared, and made a gesture crossing his arms with the tips of his fingers pointing towards each other, echoing the twin horns of the images of the Marker, which the others did as well, including Ethan. After a few moments, Abaddon lowered his arms, as did the rest. He looked at them and smiled. "Now, come. We have work to do."
