CHAPTER XI: DESPERATE MEASURES
The time was desperate and desperate measures had to be taken!
It looked like a human, and the body had actually been human before it had undergone some kind of horrendous transformation. The skin was deathly white, the eyes – brightly red. In the chest, there was a mounted submachine gun, connected by wires, and what seemed to be an underdeveloped third arm. The two regular arms held sharp knives that sparkled in the gloom. The face was locked in a cold expression of mindless hatred. This creature... and the many others that came together with it from the tunnels, they all walked in the same manner and arranged themselves around the two men. Then they stopped and stood still, waiting for the commands of their creator.
Dr. Stalker was smiling from his position in the observation room. He looked at his children, and the two marines that were trapped among them. What he could not notice was Major Boyd stealthily pressing several buttons on his PDA, whose screen changed to "message sent."
"So, gentlemen, it is amazing, isn't it? Technology that came from an ancient time, a time when it was not truly appreciated, and its creators were considered mad. The fruit of one of the most aspiring scientists of all time – the magnificent Doctor Schabbs, who experimented with biology, robotics, and even the occult. A man who achieved much more than his contemporaries. Surpassed them all, as he knew what was the secret ingredient to creating the ultimate killing machine. He never gave a name to his creation, and it was always referred to as the "mutant." Today, gentlemen, you will have the honor to be the first to be executed by the new army of the mutant. A day that would have been impossible if I had not found Schabbs's journal, which was always thought to have been lost or destroyed. But I do not see you crying because of the great honor that I have given you..."
Major Boyd seemed to be too angered to answer, and only gritted his teeth, while Kyle looked at the scientist and uttered:
"You... sick son of a... Science has always been meant to help humanity, not bring about its ruin by summoning demons or creating foul monstrosities."
"Ha! Please, Mr. Harlan, spare me the morality lectures. Are you naïve enough to still believe in the obsolete ideas of Homo sapiens and that humanity's existence holds any value? There are greater, more valuable things, my fellow human, things you cannot possibly imagine. I forsake the path of trivial discovery and exploration long ago. My new mentor and guide has shown me the path to true knowledge. And knowledge... is power!"
"And who is that brilliant mentor of yours?" Major Boyd quietly asked, "I am asking so that I know who will be the next one for me to kill after I am done with you."
Dr. Stalker did not reply, he only shook his head and murmured something to himself. He tampered with the screens for a few seconds then turned again to the two men.
"The clock is ticking, comrades. There is nothing to complain about – I am giving you the warrior's death – falling in battle, how honorable. Just close your eyes and relax, it will end quickly enough."
A subtle gesture and the inhuman creatures moved one step closer, each of them raising its left arm a little. Just as in the cavern with the Hell Knights, Kyle felt that there would be no escape for him. The creatures raised their arms a little more... and they suddenly froze as a beeping sound echoed in the hall. Major Boyd' PDA announced that a message had come, though the officer already knew what the text was. With a swift movement, he pushed the Corporal to the floor...
Just then, the room doors were shattered into pieces by an explosion, and the marines went in. Stalker shouted something in an unknown language, and his monstrosities turned towards the door. They waved their arms in a strange manner as the guns in their chests started firing with surprising speed and deadly accuracy. The first marines fell under the shower of hot lead, but after them came troops with plasma rifles. Blazing orbs of energy flew through the smoke, felling several of the mutants, spilling purple-colored blood all over the two marines, who slowly crawled towards the exit. A few meters more and they would leave the arena of the carnage. More marines had fallen, yet the chaingunners had arrived and repelled the waves of pale soldiers that came from the corridor.
"Seal the entrance! Seal the entrance!"
The Major's shout gave new strength to the marines, and one of them set off the charge that was set at the door. As the collapsing of wall panels and steel sheets ended, the Major stood up and called for the marines to surround the test center and block all exits. There were dead bodies and debris all over the area, and the troops had to organize themselves within the terrible mess. The medics ran around in disarray, while engineers tried to block the system that could open the exits from the laboratory. The Major could finally stop coughing and turn his attention to Kyle.
"I see you are okay, soldier. For my whole career in the corps... I had never seen such a thing. I have generally trusted scientists, but what I saw today could make me change my mind. What shocks me most is that all this happened right here under my nose... and I knew nothing! Now things have become clear – the supplies for the Stalker, his weird behavior and work routines... even what happened in the cave with the Hell Knights. But how? How?"
"Major, sir, what bothered me inside, and still bothers me now, is how Stalker could supply himself with the human bodies he used to create his mutants?"
The Major looked bitterly and sighed. He hesitated, but that was only for a moment.
"UAC Program ODDB477," he murmured and slapped himself in the forehead, "I forgot about it as there was no activity on that program for five years. It was a minor project... And the Stalker used this to his advantage, there is no other explanation"
"What is "Program ODDB477," sir?"
"Come with me, I will explain you while we walk there."
They left the combat zone, and headed into the base. Personnel wandered around chaotically, a clear indication of the disturbance that was within the colony. Marines ran towards the accident area, or still remained at their posts, watching for potential danger from the direction of the demonic crypt. The canteen was a total mess – the marines had left very quickly when the sergeant on duty received the automatic message that the Major had prepared long ago, knowing that the presence of Stalker would one day cause a disaster. The message was set to inform all unit commanders about the Major's exact location and that they had to arrive immediately, bringing as many men and firepower as possible.
They passed by the coolant dispensers and headed towards the elevator. The Major pressed the lowest button – "Underground Sub-Chamber 10" – which apparently had not been used for a long time. The screen asked for an ID and a password. After they were provided, the system noted "Access Granted" and the elevator started to descend.
"Corporal Harlan, I think you are well aware that the UAC were working on one special project concerned with crime punishment. A program that aimed at discovering technology that would allow criminals to be changed into normal people "for the better of all human society." Pure brainwashing, in my opinion... What you do not know is that the experiments failed and the UAC decided that they could not announce that to the public as the test subjects were left in a... rather crippled state. This is why these unfortunate guys were locked in cryo-chambers, which were consequently buried as far away as possible from the eyes of society. Buried here, at the lowest underground level of Io Base Alpha."
Kyle could not reply. He was used to the shady practices of the UAC, yet this time he felt quite sick. "No wonder they brought Hell upon us," he thought.
The elevator stopped. The doors opened slowly with a ghastly sound. The air smelled damp and stale, the floor was covered with a thick layer of dust. Many tunnels started from that point, all of them filled with metal containers. The containers were empty.
"As I suspected. Without anyone knowing anything, Dr. Stalker supplied himself with bodies and used them to his own foul ends." The Major was literally trying to squeeze the shotgun he held in his hands.
Kyle went further down the corridor – only empty containers. A quick glance at the security system showed that it had been broken years ago, assuring that no one would know if someone entered the cavern uninvited. The two men went back to the elevator and were on their way to the base, when the Major suddenly remembered something.
"Harlan, that cavern contained hundreds of containers. All of them were empty, yet we only saw about forty or fifty of these mutants up there. Where could all the other be?"
"Sir, you should contact your marines and warn them. It seems the enemy is quite numerous."
"After a few seconds, we are still too deep to reach the communication framework. A few seconds more."
A few seconds later, the radio suddenly came to life, as shouts, shooting and explosions came out of the speaker.
"Retreat, retreat! They are coming from all directions... They are too many... No, move back! Move back! What... We cannot hold them for much lo..."
A loud crack indicated the end of the transmission. As the door opened, the two men rushed out, seeing the base in chaos, alarms blazing, and colonists running in panic in all directions. Shortly afterwards they heard the rhythmic march of the steps – the steps of Dr. Stalker's undead minions. A marine tried to run from that corridor, but fell under a deadly spray of bullets. The Major and Kyle retreated towards the office sector of the base. Several powerful explosions made the ground beneath them tremble. Shooting, rhythmic steps, and screams came from all directions. They could only run, past computer terminals, between pipes, under flickering lights... among the chaos, which seemed to dominate their reality.
"Quick! Let's move towards the processing facilities, perhaps we can lose them in there." The Major could still not believe that he was forced into retreat.
As they passed by the infirmary, they noticed Shade Boaventura who was still inside. The door was locked, and the Major stopped for a second to shut the protective screens on the windows so that the mutants would not find him in there. They ran on, past the human resources management, in the direction of the Fuel Processing installation.
They took the left turn at the next fork, and were greeted by the sight of two marines, who had just fallen to the floor before the advancing group of mutants. The two men quickly ran back, ducking under the flying bullets. The other way was their only opened route of salvation as it seemed the Stalker had strategically placed his creations throughout the entire base beforehand.
"Major, what do we do now? This is the only route and it leads straight into the demonic crypt dig site. There we would be cornered!"
"That is our only choice. We must take our chances and retreat into the demonic crypt, Harlan. If we cannot do that... we will give those bastards one Hell of a fight before we go down."
A quick handshake was the only confirmation from Kyle.
Several more bullets flew above their heads as they rushed into the cabin of the monorail. The car started its journey and the marines had a few moments to rest. Through the windows, they could see that several buildings within the colony were on fire, and within them, there were still isolated firefights. They had to accept that they were defeated – quickly and surprisingly, by an enemy no one had ever expected.
Their sour thoughts were interrupted by the noise of something heavy falling on the monorail car, several seconds before a hole was blown in the roof and a mutant dropped in, right next to Kyle. The Major reacted fast and raised his shotgun. With a roar of accumulated anger, he blew a hole in the creature's chest, and it fell out of the car, leaving a trail of foul purple blood.
As they jumped out of the car, it was clear the road ahead was safe, yet they could hear the rhythmic marching from the right. Just then, the loud speakers roared and a rather hostile voice shouted:
"This is Doctor Stalker speaking. Throw your weapons and surrender – your lives will be spared. I repeat – surrender and you will not be hurt. This does not apply to you, Major Boyd, and Corporal Harlan! The moment my servants find you, your lives will be forfeit! Make it easy on yourselves and give up!"
"We do not have time; the crypt is our only chance!" The Major was definitely unwilling to meet any more of the mutants.
The dig site was right there, and they entered the cavern as several bullets ricocheted above their heads. Just a few meters more... and there was the entrance to the crypt.
Once inside the corridor of black marble, they turned back... only to see the crypt gate close tightly. They were trapped inside.