The Audi A6 shined in the mid-afternoon sun as Leon drove down a gravel road in Basalto Mexico. The town of Costa Prisma he passed on the way to the quarry was gorgeous, despite being evacuated overnight, and though he was on a mission, he considered visiting the beach once he was done, if he was able to.

Honestly, he had no idea what he was getting into. The head of US-STRATCOM woke him with an urgent mission. The details were imprecise, but he was ordered to drive to Mexico – a 22-hour trip with few breaks – and retrieve a mycologist named Paisley Christianson. The woman in question had gone missing from a university lab in America ten years ago and reappeared via an urgent distress call from within the BioVerse research facility.

It seemed easy, but Leon knew it never was.

In Paisley's call, she had claimed that time was running short. A bioweapon was in the facility. She didn't reveal much in her call, as it had been cut soon after, but it was enough for US-STRATCOM to name her a person of interest.

Leon took an uneasy breath. At least nothing could surprise him now, or so he thought.

Passing the sign near the entrance of the ravine, Leon drove down to the guard house. The gate was down, so he parked and got out; the heat of the sun beat down on him, and immediately he regretted wearing a long-sleeved tactical shirt. As he went inside, he noted a desk in the corner with a few pictures on it; a family of three who appeared to be of Mexican descent, most likely residents of Costa Prisma.

They were safe, he assured himself.

To avoid pulling the residents into whatever might happen – there was no telling when a bioweapon was involved – US-STRATCOM partnered with the Mexican government to evacuate the small town. There were no reports of an outbreak, but the government had to seal up the town on account of the water in the quarry turning black.

Leon could see it from the guard house; its natural water was polluted. He curled his nose in disgust, suspicious of what might be lurking beneath the surface of the water – he had his fair share of monster-infested lakes. Ignoring it, he pressed the switch to raise the gate, then got back in his car, driving to the facility.

As Leon parked in the lot, he noted the number of vehicles around him. Were the scientists not evacuated too? He stepped out and opened the trunk of his Audi, retrieving his upgraded Matilda from the case in the back, making sure to store as many clips of the 9mm ammo as he could. Once his tactical knife was in place, secured in its holster on his left shoulder, Leon walked towards the building.

He was annoyed to see that the doors and windows were secured by ballistic panels. Someone didn't want something to get out. But how was Leon meant to get inside? He spotted an emergency latter at the side of the building and sighed. Nothing was ever easy. Holstering his sidearm, he climbed up to the roof.

The view of the quarry was a bit unnerving, but Leon ignored it and located a locked door that he believed would lead him into the facility. It was unfortunate that it was locked, considering whoever tried to use the roof to leave was unable to. Drawing his gun, he turned the bolt and opened the door, walking through.

The scent of rot hit Leon in the face like a ton of bricks. It was unlike anything he had ever smelled.

Keeping his gun close, he descended the stairs to the 3rd floor, noticing that the emergency lights were on; anything not in their path was consumed in darkness. He turned on the compact light he had attached to the Matilda and peered down the hall, seeing what appeared to be thick black tendrils caked on the walls as far as the elevator. He had never seen anything like it.

Was it the result of a virus? Perhaps the powers that be were wrong.

Crinkling his nose in disgust, he trained his gun on the tendrils and cautiously descended the hallway. So far there was nothing that stood out to him. He wasn't sure what to make of the black mess, but it didn't seem to be lethal.

Coming to the first room, Leon noticed that the door had been completely torn off the frame; claw marks marred the metal. Whatever had been locked inside was now gone. But what put him at unease was the giant inhuman-shaped hole in the far wall. Sunlight poured in from the outside and Leon could easily see the quarry. Did something fall from the 3rd floor into the water? He shuttered to think so.

As he peered around the room, he made note of the clusters of what smelled like rot attached to the wall. Seeing an ID card on the floor near a storage locker, Leon walked over and picked it up.

Avery Andersen, it read. Zoologist.

The lively eyes of a gorgeous woman stared back at him. Where was she? Where were any of the scientists? Leon shoved her ID card into his pocket and turned, stepping on some broken glass on the floor. As a result, he heard a noise from behind him; something shifting around in the storage locker.

"Is someone in there?" He asked.

When no one replied, he trained his gun on the locker and cautiously yanked it open. Hiding on the bottom, beneath a lab coat, was a person. Leon widened his eyes. Why didn't they answer him?

"Don't be scared," he stated as he leaned down. "I'm here to help. I can get you out."

The person hesitantly took the lap coat from their head and peered up at him. Those same lively eyes Leon saw from the ID card were wide in fear.

"Avery Ander––"

She hushed him, bringing a trembling finger to her lips.

"Be quiet, or else it will hear you."

What will? Leon clutched his gun. He took her ID card from his pocket and showed it to her.

"You're safe with me."

Avery shook her head as tears filled her eyes.

"No one is safe here," she whispered.

What did she mean? Leon noticed that her lap coat was covered in whatever black mess was in the hallway and on the wall. And across her arm was a deep claw mark.

"Are you OK? What happened here?" He asked.

Avery slowly pointed a finger at the cluster on the wall.

"It came out of there."

What did?

Leon was extremely confused. He stared at the cluster a moment, thinking that perhaps Avery was unsure about what she had seen, but a clawed hand emerged from it. He watched in horror as a human-shaped monster with sharp uneven teeth walked toward them.

"What in the hell is that?" He asked as he pointed his gun at it.

Avery shook in fear.

Then the monster lunged at them.

Leon pulled Avery from the locker before the monster tore into the metal with his sharp claws. He shot three bullets into its back and head, but it didn't so much as falter, turning around to face him. The said man groaned in annoyance and fired two more shots at the creature then grabbed Avery by the hand, yanking her towards the door.

As they ran out into the hallway and towards the stairwell, a sudden tremor overtook the building. Avery yelped in fear as she was nearly knocked off her feet. Then to her horror, the roof caved in at the top of the stairs, showering them in plaster. The way was blocked.

"Let's go," Leon ordered, yanking Avery down the hall. "We need to get to the elevator."

He wasn't sure what had caused the roof to collapse in on itself, but he knew that it must be strong. As they entered the elevator, Leon pressed the button for the 1st floor. The doors closed and the cab began to descend but a noise from within the shaft rang in his ears; the safety cable snapped and the cab plummeted.

Darkness surrounded them.