CHAPTER XXII: THE FINAL TASK
I had longed for that meeting for a long time and finally you came to me, alone and determined as I was.
The covers of the tomes were decorated with sophisticated drawings that somehow created the illusion of movement when Kyle looked at them under different angles. All three books were kept closed by delicate metallic locks. They looked very fragile, yet the marine discovered that he could not move them, no matter how much force he applied. Then he remembered that opening them could mean instant death and stopped tampering with the locks. Corporal Harlan sighed – for the last months he had to deal with more supernatural artifacts and creatures than it was healthy for a human being. Once again, he quietly thanked Heaven he had not gone insane after the very first hours of terror in the overrun facility on Phobos. After that experience, even Hell itself could not really impress him, let alone alien cathedrals or machine gun wielding undead.
A quiet crackling filled the air seconds before a portal appeared near the two men. The Gatekeeper was finally inviting them to return. Beyond the portal, the marines found themselves in the familiar black marble hall. It seemed that the demon had visited the Plutonia research facility once again – there were more weapons and ammo backpacks by the wall. The Ice Revenant was gone and the marines had the feeling that the Gatekeeper would not give any explanations about its departure.
"I am impressed, humans. You survived the perils of a place that even I would hesitate to enter. And you have claimed the Serenity, Eternity and Infinity, as these tomes were known in the Elder age... Give them to me."
The marine stepped forward and handed the three essence into the clawed hands of the demon. He took them and spent a whole minute staring at them, touching their covers with veneration, just as a human would do when finding something lost a long time ago. For a very brief moment, a crooked smile ran through the demonic face, yet neither of the two men noticed it.
Major Boyd and Corporal Harlan had already taken off their space suits. Still indulged in his own thoughts, the demon made a distracted gesture towards the weapons and ammo, which hinted that they should pick them up. The Major was quite pleased to discover a shiny new plasma gun and a rocket launcher, in addition to a good amount of cells, rockets, and shells for the Corporal's sawed-off shotgun. With the backpacks, they could carry all that to the surface and give Dr. Stalker's forces a very hard time. Of course, he would reserve some of the firepower for the doctor's handsome head. The plasma gun was given to the Corporal, while the Major decided he would take the rockets to deliver some heat to the battle. The only thing they still needed was targets to shoot at.
The Gatekeeper came out of his strange stupor and turned to the already armed marines.
"These crude weapons, humans, are only a part of the help I can provide you. I will give you three more things. The first you will find soon after you enter the base – in a medical center nearby. As for the other two, they will step in, when I choose to aid you. I believe you can trust my intuition for strategy," he ended with an ironic tone.
Kyle was sure the demon was a skilled tactician. He only hoped the Gatekeeper would not overestimate their capabilities and leave them on their own in an overheated combat situation.
"Now... you will enter the facility from the secret tunnel that Stalker used to insert his creations to test them. He knows the tunnel has collapsed, but he does not know that I can get you beyond the rocky blockade. His mentor does not know much of Hell's secrets, and could not fully instruct him about my abilities. I have always known that ignorance is a path to defeat... Once inside, you will make decisions on your own. In two critical moments, you will receive my aid. Whatever happens, you must not allow Stalker to take the red crate through the portal. Within that crate is an artifact crucial to the survival of your race. Should that item fall into the clutches of the Makron..."
The demon frowned and trembled, as if he felt a chill.
"What is this artifact?" Major Boyd asked, "What is so important about it?"
"You will find out, if you capture it before it is too late. Suffice it to say, this artifact was the reason that brought Stalker to Io. Only here was it far enough from Earth or Mars for him to prepare his operation. And then, he only needed to take control over the base – that provided him with enough time to set up a gateway to Stroggos and escape with the artifact. He would doom your entire race with a single motion of his hand – when he gives that item to his dark partner."
"The whole picture seems quite clearer now," Kyle said, "We will do our best on this mission... we shall see what we will do afterwards."
The Gatekeeper nodded and made a swift movement with his hand. In the other side of the room, a small Gate opened, large just enough for a marine to squeeze through.
"This will not be detected... Stalker utilizes technology such as you have never seen before. It allows him to detect larger gates in the moon's vicinity, as well as track the destinations of those Gates. Should he escape through a portal, you could try to use his own technology to track him down. Of course, following him to Stroggos would be suicide, as you will have no chance of overpowering the forces that will wait for you beyond."
The demon noticed Kyle's grimace while he listened.
"What is it, human? You seem disturbed... just as if you know what creatures I talk about. Don't be afraid to share."
Kyle hesitated for a while. He knew the demon could give him more information about the new threat, though still he had his doubts and suspicions.
"Yes, I saw one of them... I saw it in a vision in the cathedral."
"The Circle of Truth has shown you a fragment of the future? Where did you see that creature? Did you feel that moment was distant in time?"
"It felt as if it would happen soon... like within a year or less. And about the location... it looked like Hell, though it was somehow different."
The Gatekeeper shuddered for a few seconds. The demon was apparently worried about something.
"If what you speak is true, then the storm is closer than I thought. The danger that looms above us is enormous – you cannot afford to make any mistakes. Now go – capture the artifact and kill Stalker, if that is possible."
The two men stepped towards the Gate, once again prepared for an intense battle. Beyond the frame of the portal, the marines could see blackness, which waited for them. Having passed through the Gate, it closed behind them immediately. Two rays of light erupted from their flashlights and lit a stone tunnel, which had one end blocked by fallen rocks, and a heavy metal door that blocked the other. Between these two ends was an irregular opening in the wall, which continued into a tunnel that appeared to have been drilled by human equipment. That was the entry point that Simon Stalker had used. It was not yet clear where exactly the tunnel went. For more than fifteen minutes, the two men made their way cautiously up the tunnel. Major Boyd considered it safe to whisper an important question.
"Corporal, what are these Strogg that you and the demon talked about? Do you think we might encounter them?"
"Sir, they look like cyborgs but... not like the simple cybronic constructs that the UAC experimented with. The so-called Strogg look like they were born from the nightmares of a mentally sick cybernetics engineer. They appear heavily armored and quite dangerous. I seriously hope we would not have to encounter any of them."
"Fine... I will have that in mind... Corporal, looks like the tunnel's end is near. Turn your flashlight off."
The two rays of light faded away, and the dim glow from the tunnel's exit was now visible. Cautious and expecting an imminent attack, the marines sneaked out of the hole and examined their surroundings. Major Boyd recognized the place – a rarely used electronics laboratory. Some of the gadgets in it could be useful. Something more important was the computer terminal that the Major could use to check the status of the base. A few clicks later, the terminal displayed a report – there were no fires or major damages to critical systems and structures. There were only minor issues that required the intervention of professional repair teams. The power distribution scheme was changed – all unused base sectors were shut down, and the other were put on low power mode. At the same time, Io Base Alpha's reactor worked at full capacity. All this power was redirected and focused into one of the unfinished dimensional research laboratories. The Major smiled – they had just found Dr. Stalker's exact location – portal research lab D-CRE-X0028-02. There were enough routes to reach it in time.
A few more clicks displayed the images from the nearby security cameras. Everything seemed clear and abandoned... there was a marine in the sector's infirmary, and it could not be determined if he was dead or just sleeping. And in the northern lobby, there was one of Dr. Stalker's mutants – standing still, with its gaze fixed on the eastern exit. The surviving marine was probably the "aid" the Gatekeeper referred to, and the mutant could be surprised and easily dispatched.
While the Major examined the terminal, Kyle had already finished searching through the lockers of the electronics lab. Among the useful things he found were a portable long-range motion detector, an armor repair kit, two helmets with integrated high-tech equipment, and one of the experimental multiple-use automated stimpacks. These could be very useful, if only they could figure out exactly what equipment and abilities the helmets had.
The marines quietly left the lab and moved slowly towards the northern lobby where the exit to the monorail was. To the left, Kyle spotted the infirmary door and gave the Major a sign. The door slid open without a noise and Kyle saw the unknown marine lying on the couch. The slight movement of his chest was the relieving sign that he was only sleeping. This changed quickly as the marine jumped suddenly and aimed something quite big at the intruders. He apparently recognized them as marines, but still stood with his weapon pointed at them, hesitating what to do. Kyle examined the young private carefully – he had a chaingun in hands, a few grenades on the belt, and was clearly panicked. His face looked very familiar... It took Harlan one more moment to remember exactly who the marine was.
"Private Shade Boaventura... lower your weapon, please. It is I, Corporal Harlan... I led the expedition into the crypts. Behind me is your commanding officer – Major Boyd. Lower the gun and calm down."
The private had recovered from his wound that he had received in his encounter with the hordes of Hell Knights. He slowly lowered the chaingun and whispered:
"I am sorry, sir, at first I thought it was them... they walked through this sector... I... I don't know what happened with the others... they were taken away... then those things retreated... on the monitor, I saw they left one of them in the lobby... and... and... I must have fallen asleep afterwards, I was so tired. I'm glad Dave left me that chaingun... I don't know what happened to him."
"That's ok, soldier," Major Boyd replied, "We could use an extra hand and the chaingun that it carries. We need to move out quickly, I hope you feel prepared to kick some abomination butts. And in case you don't know... Doctor Stalker is behind all this mess."
"Doctor Creep? Um, well, that is how many people called him. Not only marines, scientists and maintenance personnel too. I can't say it was unexpected... well, I suggest we should eliminate him... sir?"
"Correct, private. Still, our main priority is to prevent him from opening a dimensional Gateway."
"A portal? Wouldn't that attract them? The demons, I mean... I have not fought in the Great War but... I have seen the tapes... These demons, they are terrible, they might come through the gate!"
"Calm down, marine," Kyle intervened, "The portal would not attract anything. But, he may use it to escape, and that is what we do not wish to happen. Is that clear, Private?"
"Yes, sir. I will do my best to aid you."
The small group slipped out of the medical center after they loaded a backpack with medical supplies and gave it to the young private. According to the security cameras, the mutant in the lobby was looking towards the east, so they could sneak from behind and blow up the abomination's head. They moved slowly down the corridor. On both sides, there were doors that led to messy personnel offices. Several bloodstains on the walls were the only sign of the fate of those who had tried to resist the mutants' coming. Many of the systems were shut down, as more than seventy per cent of all power on the base was being redirected to Stalker's portal. Harlan assumed that more power would make his Gate more stable and able to resist the disruption caused by the passage of the mysterious artifact. The Corporal reasoned that destabilizing the power supply could be a way to halt the doctor's plan.
The lobby's door was right in front of them. Eager to prove his worth to his superiors, Private Boaventura stepped forth and gave the other marines a sign that he would go in first. The Major replied with a sign for the young soldier to be quiet. Shade stepped through the door, chaingun ready, and prepared to score his first kill for the operation. He turned to the right... and stood face to face with the burning red gaze of the undead creature.
The gun was aimed right for the marine's chest, the creature's arm was raised and ready to trigger the first bullet that would most probably be lethal. The private could not even shout or duck as he was stunned by the sudden change of situation. It was Corporal Harlan's quick reaction that saved him – the double-barreled shotgun was fired, without enough time for aiming. Luckily, the stream of pellets found the creature's head and turned it into a cloud of dead flesh and purple blood. The body collapsed to the floor and the lobby was once again quiet.
"What, what... why?" Shade uttered, "It was facing that door, and we saw it on the screen... how? Why did it..."
The Private was interrupted by a harsh and familiar voice that erupted from the loudspeakers of the colony's announcement system.
"It's almost like someone warned the mutant, isn't it? So, Major Boyd and Corporal Harlan return after their shameful escape. And they've brought a scared boy to serve as cannon fodder. Funny... I definitely needed some entertainment. I see you are in the sector's northern lobby. Good... if you barricade the doors you might survive for a few additional minutes. I am curious to see just how long you can fight with the supply of ammo that you have. So long... and send my regards to the Abyss."
Silence. Major Boyd intended to say something not particularly polite about Simon Stalker, when a beeping sound from the motion detector made them jump in place.
"Oh my..." was the only thing Corporal Harlan could say when he looked at the device's display. Normally, it displayed sources of movement as glowing dots. What Kyle saw was a solid white mass that came closer to their position like a tidal wave. There was no telling how many of them there were.
"People, we are in serious trouble," he yelled to the Private and the Major, "Try to push these benches to block the door and use this one as cover to duck behind. They are coming!"