Pandemic

Dual Strain Industries

08:29 Hrs, September 13th

Laboratory Grid Hydra

The Guillotine Squad remained eerily quiet. They were listening to the clicking that seemed to come from all directions simultaneously. The circle they created slowly tightened on itself from instinctive fear.

"We're not gonna make it, are we?" Michael whispered sullenly.

"We still have a chance." Steve replied neutrally. "As long as we stay sharp and don't fuck up we should be fine."

Suddenly the echoing clicking stopped, the instant silence generating more fear than the actual sound.

Steve quickly scanned the ceiling with his flashlight, but found nothing. Michael began to fire and a screech was heard, green blood dripping from one of the tunnels. "Got it." He said with pride.

He was cut off by a barrage of gunfire from the circle of soldiers. "There's more than one! They're circling us!" Flashlights swirled around insanely as they strained to pinpoint the Adults' movements.

Blood spattered everywhere as an Adult penetrated the defensive circle. Steve looked down and fired at it. A lucky shot smashed grossly through its left eye and it fell back in a pool of green blood.

The center of the circle became a slaughter house as another descended from the ceiling. Control of the Guillotine Squad was lost as everyone ran every which way for survival. Michael charged at the blood drenched Adult, firing his rifle. The shots glanced off its body, and it charged at him. Its maw closed on his arms and gun. Instantly it was filleted in half as Michael let of a volley of shots into its mouth. He turned to see a third Adult picking off the fleeing civilians one by one. He shot at it but again missed the eyes. It jumped on top of him and tore off his left arm with a cascade of blood. Steve fired at it, but after 2 shots his gun ran out of ammo. The Adult turned distractedly and attacked him instead. Steve turned to run but witnessed someone who was dead and realized he must also be dead. Flames erupted throughout Laboratory Grid Hydra and the Adult was consumed by it.

Steve stared at her dumbly. "Olivia?"

She smiled lightly. "Thought you could use some support." Then she saw Michael. She rushed forward and knelt at his side. "Oh god."

His paling face looked at her weakly. "Am I dead?"

"No, not if I can help it." She replied. "Hold on. This is gonna hurt." Olivia took the steaming barrel of the flamethrower and pressed it against the bleeding stump that was his arm. Michael screamed as his wound was cauterized. Suddenly the lights came to life. The magnetically locked door clicked and whirred open.

Steve watched as what was left of the Guillotine Squad regrouped. About a dozen civilians and 7 soldiers remained. "Form another circle around Mike and Olivia. We still have to wait for C Squad." He looked down at Olivia. "How did you survive?"

"After several seconds the sandstorm choked out the flamethrower so I hid in the overturned tank which had a hole blown in the bottom of it."

A piercing roar cut off Steve's response then died away, leaving everyone in terror.

Olivia looked up at Steve grimly. "Alpha Prime."

"There's no way we can hold out against it now." He replied quietly. "We are all going to die."

"We still have to try. Everyone keep your eyes on all entrances. Don't lose focus now."

Another roar struck though the tunnels forebodingly.

"It's coming." Olivia whispered.

"But from which way?" Steve asked. Then he understood. "Run!" He cried out dashing forward.

Alpha Prime erupted out of the tiled floor, slicing through Mike and several civilians who couldn't get out of the way in time. Olivia narrowly dodged a fatal claw and triggered the flamethrower. "Run! Anywhere!" She yelled over the roar of flames.

"This way!" Steve yelled to the survivors as he pointed to the now open doorway. They ran inside and turned down a staircase. As they entered sublevel 3 they collided with Dean and the C Squad.

"Don't shoot!" They cried to each other.

"We can end this!" Dean shouted. "This way!" The combined remnants of the Guillotine Squad dashed down the transit tunnel that lead to Central Lab. "We need to get to Laboratory Grid Synchron which is about 2 miles away!" He yelled as he ran.

"2 miles? We'll never make it." Klutz noted depressingly.

"You have a better idea?" Steve retorted. "Shut up and run!"

A high pitched scream cut through them coldly.

"That was Olivia." Steve said. "It'll be coming for us now."

Suddenly Dean realized that some of the civilians were falling behind. "Let's go! Just a little farther!"

"We aren't even halfway there yet." Klutz whispered.

"I have a plan that can buy us some more time, but I need the civilians to make it to Central L-"

A deafening roar cut Dean off from behind. That was all the inspiration needed to push the civilians back on the breakneck pace.

They exited the transit tunnel and found themselves in Central Lab. Dean shouted orders as he ran. "All civilians spread out and hide! You stand a chance of surviving that way!"

Instantly the remaining civilians broke off and began to spread out throughout the building. Dean took the soldiers and ran into the transit tunnel leading to the Synchron wing.

"Dean! Those civilians are going to die!" Steve yelled. "Alpha Prime has thermal vision and will just hunt them down and kill them."

"That's the idea." Dean replied. "If Alpha Prime goes after them first it'll buy us some time."

"But-"

"Two dozen lives or the survival of mankind. It's not even a choice." Dean cut off Klutz as the first of the screams cut through the transit tunnel. "Good. It took the bait."

A roar sounded, followed by a series of screams.

"We don't have long." Dean said. "We have to find the Zephron, find the missiles, and find a way to fire them."

The tunnel suddenly got quiet. "The screams are gone." Klutz pointed out.

"That means it's after us now."

They entered Synchron and rushed to find the staircase upwards.

"Where is it? Where is it?"

"I can't find it!"

A roar flowed out of the tunnel.

"I found it!" One of the soldiers indicated a room in the back. They ran towards it and found the staircase leading up to sublevel 2. Laboratory Grid Synchron.

As the remaining soldiers ran up it they heard another roar, this time it was point blank. They turned to find Alpha Prime running towards them.

"Fire!" Dean screamed as he continued up the stairs. Steve followed with him.

The soldiers did as ordered but Alpha Prime simply slaughtered the men as it ran up the stairs.

"Retreat!" Klutz yelled as he ran out of ammo. Before he could turn around he too was ripped apart.

Alpha Prime rushed into Laboratory Grid Synchron and charged at the last two survivors.

Steve emptied his clip into Alpha Prime. "Hurry Dean!"

Dean still had his back turned as Alpha Prime jumped in the air to finish them off. "Now!" He yelled and they both dodged to the side.

Alpha Prime slashed through the steel container that was in front of Dean, shattering the glass contents within. A strange purple haze instantly surrounded it and slowly spread across the room.

Alpha Prime let out a piercing screech, unlike any sound it made before as it twisted and writhed about awkwardly.

"What the hell is that?" Steve asked nervously, backing away from the strange gas.

"It's Zephron." Dean answered over the cries of the monster.

Alpha Prime's body began to disintegrate and fall apart in chunks. But this time the flesh didn't regenerate. It let loose a war cry and charged at the two men once more.

Dean lifted and fired his weapon.

Alpha Prime was shredded and knocked back. It slumped down as the last of the flesh fell away, revealing an Adult. It went to charge once again but its legs failed it as they too began to dissolve. The invincible creature known as Alpha Prime was dying.

"Dean, is this stuff safe to people?" Steve asked nervously as the purple haze surrounded them and closed in.

"I'm not sure but I wouldn't breath it in." He said backing up. Dean's back hit a wall. They were trapped in the corner. "I guess we're gonna have to find out. I see the missiles over there. I think we can make it there and fire them before anything bad happens."

Steve squinted at the missiles. "Are they already loaded with the Zephron?"

The haze constricted upon them. "Only one way to find out."

They took a deep breath and ran though the mist. They reached the missles and Dean checked to see if they were full of Zephron while Steve searched for a firing mechanism.

He found a hatch on one of the missiles and forced it open. A large glass container filled with liquid Zephron sat in the center. "They're full of Zephron."

"Found the firing mechanism." Steve pointed at a big red button. "How original." He held his hand over it. "Ready?"

"Go ahead."

Steve pressed down the button. The ceiling opened up with loud metallic clangs, revealing the grey sky. The missiles spouted flames into the giant vertical tunnels built underneath them. Slowly several dozen missiles rose into the sky to their predestined locations while Steve and Dean watched in awe.

"We did it." Dean said simply.

"I can't bel-Oh my god."

"What?" He turned to face Steve. "Steve what happened to you?"

"The same thing that happened to you."

Dean looked down to find his flesh grossly mutilated and slowly mutating. "What's happening?"

"It's the Zephron. It does affect humans after all."

Dean felt his flesh slowly deteriorating as he fell to his knees. "Steve…Steve, what have we done?"

"We've doomed mankind." He answered sullenly. "To think that the only way to end the Pandemic would end mankind as well."

"I guess we really did manufacture our own demise."

The two men took their last breaths while the missiles containing the fall of both the Pandemic and mankind spread.