Chapter 3: Wheaten
The crowd of blurry faces shuffled past as I moved against the droves of people. Zheren and Bailey were still ahead, slowly widening the distance from me.
I couldn't loose sight of them.
With a few short bounds, I managed to catch up. People muttered and cursed under their breath as I pushed past them, while Zheren looked over his shoulder to see what was keeping me.
"Lawrence, you right back there?" He asked.
I nodded, "Yeah, fine. How much further till Wheaten?"
Zheren made a gesture with his head, nodding in a particular direction. My eyes followed his movements, until I saw what was up ahead. The Street before us ended in a wide T-junction, and on the southern face lay a large concrete building. It was no architectural marvel, just a gray concrete cube with opaque glass filling it's gaps. Light poured onto the building from various angles and sources, illuminating the structure. Despite the lack of imagination in it's design, the building looked quite impressive compared to the rest of it's squalid industrial surroundings.
Beside the main entrance to the complex was a large back lit sign that read 'Wheaten Laboratories', accompanied with what I assumed was the organization's logo.
Zheren and Bailey picked up the pace once again, knowing our prize was somewhere within that building... Looking at the fenced off perimeter, I felt a small flicker of nervousness as I spotted the guards dressed in immaculate blue uniforms.
The blue baseball caps and black boots grabbed my attention. Stern faces warranting their authority and callous nature.
However, when I spied the winged horse insignia embroidered upon their uniforms, my stomach dropped. In two lunging steps I caught up to Zheren, before violently slamming him against the nearest wall. People gasped and quickly moved on, not wanting to get caught up in the scuffle to come. I held him up against the wall by his vest, feeling the grit and grease that clung to it.
Zheren's eyes went wide with surprise, "L-Lawrence?! What the hell are you doing?" he griped, confusion and anger ringing in his voice.
I was fuming, I had to restrain myself from putting him on the ground with a split lip.
"Pegasus Horizons!" I seethed, through clenched teeth.
Zheren blinked, "huh?"
I pushed his face to look at the guards standing by the entrance.
"W-what about them?" Zheren asked, still confused.
"Why the hell is the PH corporation playing watch dog for Wheaten?" I elaborated, still angry.
A scowl formed across Zheren's face, "Pegasus Horizons bought out Wheaten a while ago..."
My face fell, "What?" I mumbled, loosening my grip on Zheren.
Zheren backed away from me, gaining as much distance as he could, while brushing himself off.
"Yeah, they kept it pretty low key... Not many people know about it yet. I... I thought you knew..." Zheren explained nervously.
I clenched my fist into a ball, "So, you're saying we're... going up against Pegasus Horizons."
Zheren glanced to the ground and back up to me, "Yeah... in a sense..."
I glared at him darkly, "I'm done." I said simply before turning to leave.
Zheren's eyes boggled, "What?! You can't leave, Wheaten is right there! We're a stone throws away!" he exclaimed.
"Don't care." I grumbled flatly, moving ahead.
Suddenly my path was obstructed by the fair haired thug, Bailey. He gripped my shoulder tightly and shoved a gun barrel right into my gut.
I froze, looking down at the small pistol he had in his hand, my eyes widening. He had positioned the gun in such a manner to keep it obscured from the passing crowds of people. No one was going to help me.
"Lawrence please... we could make a killing here, maybe enough to set us all up for life. Don't throw this chance away!" Zheren pleaded, trying to persuade me.
Although... the gun in my gut was doing a pretty good job already.
"It wouldn't matter, no one crosses Pegasus Horizons and comes out on top Zheren. Once you've made their shit list, you can consider yourself a dead man." I replied, as calmly as I could.
Zheren walked over to me and put a greasy hand on my free shoulder.
"Wheaten is merely a sub branch of the PH corporation, a sub branch that they haven't gone public with.. Pegasus Horizons wouldn't make a big song and dance about it, they'd just count it as a minor loss and move on. It's nothing to worry about." He soothed.
"You don't know what you're getting yourself into." I muttered.
Zheren fixed me with a cold stare, "I don't think you do either..." He said nodding to the gun pressed against my gut.
"I can't let you jeopardize the operation Lawrence... you're either with us, or against us... what's it gonna be?" Zheren asked uncertainly.
I could tell he didn't want to kill me and I certainly didn't want to die. I felt the sweat dripping down the back of my neck, between a rock and a hard place.
I sighed, 'eyes on the prize.'
"Fine, let's just get this over with." I grumbled as Bailey slowly moved the gun away from my gut, before stuffing it back into his vest.
Zheren nodded, "Alright, let's go." He replied in relief.
We pressed on, I followed both Zheren and Bailey as they crossed the intersection and ducked down a side passage that ran past the fenced perimeter of Wheaten. The fence only ran for a few feet more, before it was replaced by concrete wall, squishing us between the concrete and the scummy brick wall of the neighboring building. After a few more feet we reached what looked like some kind of metallic panel. It was completely sealed, there were no locks or opening mechanisms, just a flat metal surface.
"Get those masks on..." Zheren ordered, removing the cloth he tied around his arm, before retying it around his face to cover his mouth and nose.
Bailey and I did the same. I pulled my neckerchief up to my nose and tightened it, the sent of engine oil coming from the cloth nearly overwhelmed me. I began to wonder how sanitary it was wearing it. Zheren approached the door and gave it three sharp knocks, waited for a moment, before knocking on it twice again.
There was a moment of silence before a small hissing noise emanated from the panel. Then without warning, it opened. Large heavy steel plates slid past one another, until the interior of Wheaten was exposed. The whitewashed walls and tiled floors all blurred together under the radiance of the bright indoor lighting. Within the room was a dark haired man, dressed in a lab coat and tie, standing behind a rectangular control panel. He looked up, seeing the three of us dressed in black and remained fairly calm, surprised, but calm.
"Rahhe" Zheren whispered.
The man sighed in relief, "Perouso" he replied.
"We all good to go?" Zheren asked, stepping into the white room, followed by myself and Bailey.
The man nodded hastily, "Yeah, it's fine. But where's my pay? You said you'd pay upfront. Where is it? I wasn't risking my ass for-"
He was cut off by Zheren, "Don't worry, my friend will take care of that." He said, gesturing to Bailey.
Bailey casually walked up to the dark haired man and as quick as a viper, drew a silenced pistol, leveling it with the man's head. The man's eyes boggled as Bailey squeezed the trigger with cold indifference.
'Thwack!'
The man's head exploded backwards, blood showering the equipment behind him. He slumped to the ground like a rag doll. Dead.
Zheren, moved ahead to the console, stepping over the dead man before he hit a button. The door slid shut behind us, cutting us off from the outside world.
"Alright, let's go find that software" Zheren ordered, unzipping his pack and loaded the silenced sub machine gun with one of his sleek black clips.
I stepped around the dead body, avoiding the thick pooling liquid that oozed from the hole in the man's forehead. I was no stranger to death... you become accustomed to it in my line of work. Whether the guy deserved this fate, I couldn't say. He had made his choices and it had cost him. There was not much else I could say on the matter.
Zheren caught me staring at the body.
"That's the thing about treachery... it works both ways." He said flatly.
"He could have ruined our operation in a whole number of ways, It's better like this..." Zheren reassured, glancing at the body for the briefest moment.
I reached into my jacket pocket and removed my pistol, giving it a once over.
"Who's taking point?" I asked nonchalantly, trying to take my mind off the upcoming violence.
"I'll be up front, while Bailey covers the rear. All you need to do is stay out of fire, let us handle it." Zheren instructed.
I arched my brow, "You sure you want to play it that way?"
"Just do your job, and I'll do mine." Bailey sneered as he shoved past me.
My eyes glazed over, Bailey wasn't exactly the most socially adept guy, to say the least. But I had to put my faith in him despite his hostile nature. I watched as the thug crept towards the automated door that lead further into the facility. He hugged the wall next to the door and waited for Zheren's orders. Zheren joined him on the other side, his gun at the ready, gesturing for me to get back. He reached into his pocket, removing a white and orange access card with Wheaten's logo embedded into the top right hand corner.
I backed up to the wall, gripping my pistol tightly as Zheren gave the order to clear the next room. He swiped the card and a green light flashed, before the door shot open with a hiss.
The next couple of moments blurred into one.
As soon as the door opened wide, it revealed a well lit, whitewashed corridor with doors that ran down either side. Approximately five feet down the corridor were two surprised looking guardsmen, clearly shocked to see the three of us. One may have managed to curse, before bailey brought up his gun.
With a short burst of 'thwacks', dark red splotches skittered across their clean blue uniforms. Zheren stepped into the corridor, his gun raised and sweeping for any potential threats. I followed after him, my pistol raised and at the ready. I saw the two, now dead guards crumpled upon the floor, their guns not even drawn from their holsters. Zheren took the rear, unloading a few rounds into a nearby security camera, before covering our flanks.
I eyed the many metal doors that ran down the corridor, any one could've had an armed guard or two behind it.
"Zheren, there are far to many spots to cover, how are we suppose-" I cut myself off as the man in question made his way to a nearby door panel, before punching in a couple of numbers and swiping the strange card.
Suddenly all the door panels down the corridor, flashed with a solid red light, before I heard a loud uniform 'clunk' emanate from the doors.
There was a moment of silence before someone started banging against the metal door with their fist.
"Hey, is everything alright out there? I heard a noise... Trevor? Greg?" A muffled voice called from behind the door. There was another moment of silence before the door panel made a horrid ear splitting buzz.
"Dammit, the Door's deadlocked! We... we can't get out... HEY! HEY, SOMEONE HELP US!" The voice called.
A small satisfied smile crawled across Zheren's face. "That won't be a problem." He grinned, before taking the front of our formation once more.
I frowned under the black face cloth, "That key card, where did you even get something like that?" I asked, bewildered by the strenuous amount of tech and data Zheren had access too.
"Eh details, it's not important right now. We need to stay sharp though, the building might be deadlocked but their communications are still working fine..." he said raising his gun again.
I blinked, "You deadlocked the building?! How are we supposed to get out after we get the software?"
"Lawrence, we don't have a huge time window in order to wrap this up, let's get a move on." Zheren grimaced, a harsh tone present in his voice.
I sighed, he was going to keep me in the dark... for now at least.
"Fine, lead the way" I grumbled, bringing my pistol up again.
We progressed down the hall, Zheren leading the way. A bend appeared along the sterilized hall, Zheren ordered us to hang back with a hand gesture. He made a quick glance around the corner, before standing ram rod straight, his eyes wider than dinner plates.
"What's wrong?" I whispered.
Zheren peeked around the corner once again and sighed.
"Nothing, just got startled is all... the way's clear, let's move." He said, before moving around the corner.
I followed, and nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw the dual rotary cannons of a Halifax turret.
The gun was planted upside down on the ceiling, the Sycorax Industries logo stamped betwixt the two long black cannons. It was plugged into a mess of wiring and was still undergoing installation, but the mere sight of it was enough to shit yourself.
"So this is a Halifax gun? Thought they'd be bigger..." Bailey grumbled, clearly not impressed.
'Speak for yourself.' I thought, staring at the turret.
Zheren pressed ahead, gesturing for us to follow.
I hugged the wall as I passed the turret, keeping a watchful eye on it as I shimmied past.
The three of us entered another hallway, before an authoritative male voice resonated over the facilities PA system.
"Attention all non-essential personnel, the facility is currently under lockdown. Remain within your designated sectors and report to your superiors for further instruction. Any personnel found outside their sectors will be dealt with... severely."
The voice vanished as quickly as it appeared, leaving an eerie silence hanging in the corridor.
"Hear that?" Zheren mused quietly.
"Trying to hide the fact, we triggered the deadlock."He scoffed while shaking his head.
"They got no idea..." he muttered, almost to himself.
As we pressed on through the facility, Zheren would continually check his palmtop computer, making sure we were heading in the right direction. At one point Zheren paused at a thick metal door, glancing back and forth between his computer, and the door.
"We can cut through here, gimme a sec and I'll open it." He said, before the sound of voices echoed down the corridor.
"Alright guys look lively! We've got three bodies over in A-wing, all taken out by small arm rounds. We're dealing with a bunch of highly dangerous creeps here and we're not going to be tolerating it!" An authoritative voice barked, evidently the leader.
Zheren's eyes widened and his head snapped around to look down the hallway, looking for the encroaching guards.
"Crap..." He hissed before fumbling with the nearby door panel, trying to tripout the deadlock. Bailey took up a defensive position by the door frame, raising his gun and readying himself.
"You three, take the south corridor and sweep to the east. The rest of you are with me, maintain radio contact at all times." The guard ordered.
I heard the sound of boots echoing down the empty corridor. My gaze shifting between Zheren and the source of the sound. Out of the corner of my eye I caught Bailey slipping his index finger into the guard of his sub machine gun, resting his finger on the sleek black trigger, preparing for what was coming.
Suddenly there was a sharp hiss as Zheren swiped his card, and the door slid open.
Zheren was first in, scanning the room with his gun before gesturing for us to follow inside. We wasted no time. We slipped in behind Zheren as he fiddled with the door panel, closing and deadlocking the door once again.
We stood in a rather spacious laboratory, the walls here were steel, rather than the whitewashed concrete we saw out in the corridor. The place was empty save from an array of desks and monitors that displayed an assortment of readouts and data, much of which was beyond me.
However, the most intriguing thing about the laboratory was the luminescent yellow liquid, contained within seven large cylindrical tanks that were lined against the lab's walls. I squinted at the tanks and spotted a large dark shape floating in the yellow solution. I had to get a closer look...
Zheren's head perked up, as if someone had called his name.
He placed his free hand on the earpiece, sitting snugly on the side of his head.
"Yeah, I'm here... What about the coms traffic? They didn't get a line through did they?!... What? Other chatter? Who?... Fine, just keep an eye on them. Stay on those coms and let me know if something comes up."
Bailey and myself only heard one side of the conversation, but we were getting the gist of it.
"Problem?" Bailey asked in a monotone voice.
Zheren shook his head, "Nah, Trevino just found some unidentified group accessing the coms node. Nothing to worry about..." He said nonchalantly.
I approached one of the nearby tanks, forgetting about my two partners in crime, focused solely on the encased yellow liquid. I could clearly see the dark shape now, what it was I couldn't say. Placing a hand on the cool surface of the glass, I leaned towards the tank, trying to peer through the opaque liquid.
Probably not the best idea that went through my head, but on the plus side, I figured out what was suspended in the strange liquid.
What I saw... I could only describe as monstrous.
It's skin was wrinkled and leathery, with patches of manky dark fur strewn across it's body.
It had an elongated gory maw for a mouth, lined with rows of crooked fangs.
I gasped and stumbled back a few steps.
I rose my arm defensively, thinking the creature would break it's glass confinement and lunge at me. But after making an ass of myself in front of Zheren and Bailey, I realized the creature was dead. Maybe it had never been alive.
After recovering from the initial shock, I stomached a closer look at the creature. It was curled up in a twisted fetal position and it's form had some human resemblance, although it's features bared no resemblance to that of a human.
Upon it's leathery shoulder was a black, blocky serial number that read: 'C-0LO'. Looking down, the same imprinted serial number was imprinted at the base of the tank.
'C-0LO... is that some kind of ID tag?' I pondered, as Zheren and Bailey came to stand beside me, while observing the tank.
I looked around at the other tanks along the walls and they had similar serial numbers.
'B-0LO, D-0LO, what the hell is all this?' I thought again.
"What the fuck is this thing?" Bailey scorned, staring at the creature with disgust.
Zheren was quiet for a moment before speaking.
"I knew Wheaten dealt in Genetic modification, but... nothing like this..." he whispered, his eyes wide.
I whipped around to face him, "Y-you don't mean?!" Horrified that he would even suggest that.
Zheren fixed me with a grave expression, "What else could it be?" He asked solemnly.
I was at a loss for words, I didn't think this kind of thing happened. Last time I checked, human experimentation was strictly illegal and frowned upon... I guess that didn't apply to Pegasus Horizons...
The sound of muffled voices outside the lab door, drew our attention away from the genetic monstrosity.
"They're in lab five o' three, hurry up and get this door open!" A guard shouted.
The Blood drained from my face.
'how?' I thought, 'how did they find us?'
That was when I spotted the small security camera up in the corner of the steel lab.
We were so caught up with the contents we forgot to sweep the place for cameras.
"Shit!" I cursed under my breath, bringing up my pistol and blasting the camera away with one clean shot.
"I heard shots!" A guard called.
"That's it, initiate the incineration purge!" Another ordered.
"Incineration?!" Bailey hissed in alarm.
I didn't know what the guard meant exactly, but I knew it wouldn't end well for us.
I quickly turned to Zheren, "Get. Us. Out. Now!"
Zheren looked around the lab and saw a second exit, without delay we rushed over to it and hammered furiously against the door panel.
A calm computerized voice echoed throughout the lab and sent shivers running down my spine.
"Request for contagion purge of laboratory five,zero,three denied. Subjects A-dash-zero,LO through to G-dash-zero,LO are registered as important elements for Project-"
The computerized voice was cut off in a flurry of static, before returning seemingly far colder than before.
"Override command accepted, beginning purge in three..."
I looked back to Zheren, horror stricken across my face.
"ZHEREN OPEN THIS DAMN DOOR!" Bailey shouted.
Zheren's eyes were alight with fright, "The lock cycle still needs to finish!" he exclaimed, sweat pouring down his face.
"...two..." the computerized voice said.
There was a loud 'hiss' and 'clunk' before the door slid away.
"It's open! Go, GO!" Zheren exclaimed pushing us both through the open door way.
"...one..."
We rounded the door, clambering in a heap on the floor, before a large gout of flame burst from the opening.
I felt the heat surge through my body as the three of us cowered on the white floor.
Soon, the flames subsided and after a brief moment of silence, I heard the computerized voice sing out. "Purge completed, have a nice day..."
'That's one sick sense of humor.' I thought bitterly, as the three of us got to our feet.
"Jesus, that was close..." Zheren mumbled, looking at the black scorch marks the flames had left behind.
"This software better be worth it." Bailey seethed, checking his gun.
We had survived, however our victory was short lived. A group of three guards, armed with compact assault rifles rounded a nearby corner. We both froze, each party surprised by the others sudden appearance.
The guards were the first to act.
"O-open fire!" A guard commanded as they began to raise their rifles.
I gritted my teeth, "Gladly." I sneered under my breath, bringing up my pistol and firing in one smooth motion.
The bullet hit one of the guards in the arm with a wet meaty rip, causing the guard to topple over, clutching his now bleeding arm.
The other two hesitated, startled by the agonized yelps from their comrade.
Without being ordered by Zheren, we broke into a run. Bailey opened fire with his own weapon as we bolted, forcing the guards to take cover, stopping them from returning fire.
"Move! This way!" Zheren called, stress cracking his voice. Bailey and I ran after him, as we heard one of the guards alerting the others to our position.
"Hostiles are moving towards the Data Room via corridor nineteen! I've got a man down and requesting immediate backup!
We rounded a bend, following Zheren's lead to find a corridor that was lined with monitors, which blared some kind of promotional flick. Upon the monitors was a blonde haired teenager, no older than fourteen, dressed in a black suit and red tie. He shot the camera with a brilliant pearly white smile, before addressing it.
"Salutations, my name is Fermi Amati, CEO and Director for Pegasus Horizons. Here at the PH corporation we have a motto... to expand your horizons. And we intend to do just that. Currently Pegasus Horizons is entering in with a collaborative partnership with Wheaten Laboratories. One of the world's biggest researching firms, specializing in the highest quality GM foods, that you consume on a daily basis. What we hope to achieve with this new found partnership, is to increase our nation's GM exports tenfold. As well as financing Wheaten's endeavors to produce and deliver an even higher quality product to you, the customer. Together, Wheaten and Pegasus Horizons will be working hard for your benefit. After all... we're here to expand your horizons..."
We bolted past the monitors as a group of guards, armed to the teeth with weaponry followed.
"What do we do now, do we escape?!" I shouted over the advertisements.
"We need to get to the Data Room! If we can get to the Data Room, we can secure ourselves inside. Don't worry, I've got a plan!" Zheren replied, running at top speed.
"STOP!" One of the guards called as they chased after us.
'Like hell!' I thought as we turned another corner, just as a storm of bullets pinged off the surface where we were a second ago.
The corridor we had turned down was much shorter than the others, ending off with a circular metal door. We all grounded to a halt in front of the thick vault like door.
"This is it!" Zheren exclaimed, eying the circular door up and down. "The Data room is just through here!"
The shouts of the security guards echoed off the concrete walls, and Bailey doubled back to bide us some time.
"Can you open it?!" I yelled over the sound of the exchange of gunfire.
"Give me a second..." he replied, bringing a hand up to his ear.
"Trevino, relay that access code to me!" Zheren ordered hastily.
Making his way to an intricate panel beside the vault like door. He began hammering upon it furiously. Bailey let loose another round of gunfire before loading another magazine into his weapon. The guards returned fire, causing Bailey to fall back from his position.
"I can't hold em off, there's just too many!" Bailey exclaimed.
With more fiddling of the control panel, Zheren cracked the door wide open. The metal slid away, with a slow grinding screech, exposing a small dimly lit chamber. The room had a door, made from some kind of transparent material, supposedly leading to the data room. Beside the door was a metallic control panel with a small slot that required a key card.
An odd feeling struck up in my gut upon seeing the dim red auxiliary light. I began to ponder the exact nature of this chamber. However, with a mob of security behind us, we didn't have much time to think.
"Everyone in. Now!" Zheren shouted before running into the chamber.
Bailey and I followed while laying down an impressive score of gun fire, forcing the security guards to take cover, halting their advance down the corridor. Once inside the chamber the doors began to close automatically, the guards realized this and made a suicidal push, desperate to halt our advance. Bullets ricocheted off the closing metal doors as three guards advanced down the corridor. Bailey opened up with a fresh magazine, and one of the guard's head exploded, crumpling to the ground with a heavy thud.
"Man down! Man down!" a guard called, as the doors slid shut, joining together with a slow hiss.
Zheren pressed his back against the wall, staring at the metal door, sweat dripping down his face. His chest heaving up and down as he panted, clearly fatigued from the sudden volley of near death experiences.
Bailey was still facing the now closed vault like door, checking to see how much ammo he had in his remaining clip.
With a quick look around the room, I noticed the room had several security camera's located on the ceiling. The scattered gunfire from the guards had hardly left a mark against the walls, they even managed to hit the transparent door, causing the glass to chip slightly.
I figured this was some kind of security checkpoint, if you didn't have the clearance you couldn't get past. It would be near impossible to get through on force alone.
This was my chance...
Like a ghost I glided over to the panel, inserting a white and orange card.
A green light flashed around the panel and the transparent door, slid open.
Pistol still in hand, I aimed it directly at the key card slot, just to be sure.
'BLAM!'
Bailey and Zheren turned to see me step through the door before it closed behind me.
Zheren ran up to the door and saw the damaged key panel, a horrid look of realization crossed his face.
"Lawrence open the door!" Zheren seethed, his muffled orders falling upon my deaf ears.
"Lawrence!" He shouted, reaching for his back pocket, searching for his access card.
I turned to face him with a cold expression, slowly I held up both his card and palmtop computer.
Zheren's mouth fell slack as he looked at the key card and then to me.
"H-how?" he muttered.
"Swiped them off you when we took cover from the lab fire, it was pretty easy to get." I explained nonchalantly.
Zheren sneered before turning to Bailey, "Shoot him." He growled, stepping away from the glass.
Bailey raised his weapon and unleashed a silenced burst of controlled gunfire into the door.
I didn't flinch or back away as I heard the 'thwack, thwack, thwack' as the bullets collided with the door, forming fresh cracks within it's surface.
I chuckled darkly, "I wouldn't bother, you'll need far more firepower to blow open this door. And if I were you I'd conserve as many rounds as you can."
Zheren's hand shot up to his earpiece, fury burning in his eyes.
"Trevino! Trevino do you read!?" Zheren shouted.
I knew what the response would be.
"Trevino, answer me you fat shit!" Zheren screamed, a mix of fear and desperation twisting his face.
"The walls to the data room block all signals remember?" I stated, beginning to flick through Zheren's computer.
Zheren wrenched the earpiece off and threw it to the ground in anger.
"When I get out of here, you're fucking DEAD Lawrence!" Zheren growled pointing a filthy finger in my direction.
I looked up from the computer and cocked my head with a mocking smile,"Getting out? Not likely. I'd give you a couple of minutes before they'll have that door re-opened. And your benefactors aren't coming to save you. Why the hell would they help you? A mere contractor."
Zheren stared at me in shock, his expression screaming 'how?'
I rolled my eyes, "Did you really think I was that stupid? The access keys, the money, your equipment, your information. You were just a puppet, a tool for someone else. You're nowhere near smart enough to plan all this out, let alone have the influence to gather the info you had. So that begs the question... who is you're benefactor? Who are we working for!?" I scolded.
Zheren took a couple of steps back, shock and surprise clear on his face.
"What? No! There were no benefactors! We were working independently!" Zheren protested.
"Really?" I said flatly holding up the computer and showing it to Zheren.
"So how do you explain this?" I asked coldly.
Upon the screen was a document detailing a list of instructions for Zheren to follow, it read:
Zheren.
If you are reading this, then you've decided to aid us in our cause.
Wheaten has a lab set up in the Downtown area of Lower LA. Within, is a treasure trove of software, which we know you will make good use of.
What you do with this software is entirely up to you. We have no interest in it. This will be your payment, should you succeed.
What you'll be doing is giving us access to the facility, once you've released the lockdown, we'll take care of the rest.
Attached to this document are a list of access codes for the facility, as well as a couple of dossiers on a few individuals that may prove useful in breaching the facility.
We'll be supplying you with funds and equipment, which we will discuss at a later date.
Regards.
-E
Ps. It would be a good idea to delete this message after you've memorized it.
"Guess you didn't follow through huh?" I remarked, lowering the device.
Zheren staggered back, raising a hand to his head in dismay.
"This can't be happening..." He muttered.
"So who's this E character?!" I demanded.
"I-I don't know I never dealt with him directly! Only through dead drops and loose associates, I never saw him!" Zheren stammered.
I grimaced.
"Well then... I guess you're no use to me..." I stated coldly, turning to leave.
Zheren pressed hims hands against the glass.
"Wait!" he called.
"There might be something..."
I looked over my shoulder to stare at him.
"I was to release the deadlock once we got the software, after that we were to head along a specified route to our extraction. I don't know what they're after, but it wasn't the software I know that much..."
"Your point?" I asked gravely.
"My point, is that we were just the vanguard. They want something in this facility, I don't know what it is, but I've got a good idea after seeing those genetic screw ups back in that lab. Look, I'm sorry about leaving you in the dark all this time, but you can't just leave us here! It ain't human!" He pleaded, fear alight in his eyes.
I looked away.
"You know the thing about treachery?" I asked coldly.
No response.
"It works both ways..."
I walked ahead, keeping my gaze forward as I heard Zheren bang against the door desperately crying out to me.
"Lawrence! Please! It's not right! LAWRENCE!" He called.
I couldn't care less...