Vindril clapped his hands together, a small victorious smile plastered on his face. Finally, after God knew how long, he had finally managed to find and modify the file that fully managed the entire surveillance system. Sweat was running down his temple, creating a cascade that was both uncomfortable and, quite frankly, quite unsightly. But he had all the right reasons to be like that.

To crack open all the failsafe codes that had protected the file, he had to go around them one by one, typing furiously like a madman. It might have seen like a painless thing to do to most people; he was, as a matter of fact, just pressing down some keys on the keyboard. In reality, the strain he had subjected his tendons had nothing to joke about. After a while of furiously typing, the fingers became rigid, and the burning sensation he that had slowly, but always increasingly, attacked his senses, made him wish to stop. It was only thanks to sheer determination that he managed to power through it.

Having taken care of the cameras, the trio immediately darted outside; even after glancing to the right, and then to the left, nothing seemed to have changed; the strange desolation that was reigning on that concrete floor was still there, giving the place an ire feeling that looked completely alien with how vibrant and green was the grass growing outside. Still, they sure were glad it was so; at least Vindril was for sure. Even if he didn’t have a chance to look directly at the all guards, and more importantly, how heavily were they armed, it was more then likely that they mimicked the once stationed at the barrier; or the slightly less equipped of the control room. Maybe they weren’t that armed, but they surely had to; at least partially. To walk around in a medical lab full of expensive materials while cladded in armor, with some heavy firearms that could potentially cause complete havoc, was something that wasn’t likely. But even if that was the case; he couldn’t breath a sigh of relief.

For surely, the lab was swarming with so many doctors, scientists, and armed guards that it would have been more reminiscent of an anthill than anything else.

A few seconds later, they forced their way inside the lab by cracking open a door that apparently led to some kind of storage. The plaque that was mounted right over the frame at least stated as much. And exactly as it was obvious, the room was indeed used to store many things; mainly shipping canisters, like the metal ones they had seen prior on the back of the track. Vindril walked over to one of those, and after opening its lid, peeked inside it. He amusedly laughed, perhaps without even noticing he had done so. Of course it was empty. Probably they all were. It would have been too good to be true otherwise.

“What?” asked Sully.

“It’s nothing.” answered Vindril. Effectively, it was true in more than one way. “It’s empty. Probably all of them are.”

Sully briefly laughed. “Of course they are! What did you expect? That we were going to simply walk in here undisturbed, grab how many vials we want, without any sort of effort? C’mon now.”

“I guess you’re-”

Luzir interrupted him before he had a chance to finish speaking.

“…Be quiet. Both of you. I need to understand if anyone’s outside. I cannot do it with your constant bickering.”

“Surely we’re not being that loud. I’m sure your big ass can do it even with us talking over you.”

“…It’s better to not leave those kinds of things to chance…combat is an art that requires the exploitation of every advantage, no matter how slight.”

The giant man crouched down and pressed his ears against the metal door that led into the lab inner parts. “…It’s foolish to act differently…”

Vindril looked…impressed, really. While he wasn’t a fighter, but could certainly handle himself well enough to save his skin, Luzir had always exuded…some real competence that wasn’t easily obtained. He made a mental note to ask him about his past someday; it surely was going to be a hell of a story. Of that, he had no doubts. Whatever that giant man was ever going to share it with him was another thing entirely.

“…Let’s go. I don’t think anybody’s here at the moment.”

A second later, his giant hand reached inside the clothes he was wearing. A pocket knife, the size of full human dagger, flashed right after. “…Still, be prepared to face opposition.”

“Don’t you think you’re acting a bit too aggressive?” asked Sully. Even if he had mimicked Luzir, and was now gripping his own weapon, Vindril could see that the halwerian, while ready to face whatever obstacle he might have found on his path, was thrilled to the idea of seriously hurting someone; let alone kill them. On that aspect, he was similar to him; kind of. Vindril wouldn’t have had much problems in shooting down some asshole that clearly deserved it. On the other hand, he got the impression that Sully wasn’t that way. But he also guessed that was partially why he liked having him around, aside his no bullshit personality.

“No.” said the giant sounding resolute. “…this kind of things require being prepared, Sul.”

Sul? Vindril smiled. Now that was the first time he had ever heard that nickname. That such a short nickname came out the mouth of a giant man made it all more amusing.

“Again with the Sul. How many times have I told you to call me Sully like everyone else?”

“…A couple…”

“A couple? More than that.” he stated without the shadow of a doubt. “Way more than that. And you know it.”

If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

Luzir smiled. Then, without warning anyone, he opened the door wide and ventured forward, leaving Vindril a bit surprised. The man could speak a little bit too quite; but he surely acted quite assertively when it was time to get things done.

//////

A series of white neon lights that were running at the center of the ceiling like some sort of endless line made them squint their eyes. That was especially true for poor Luzir, who was the nearest to their intense light. Height, while it was pretty handy in certain situation, had always its drawbacks.

Vindril was the one leading the charge. After they had adjusted to the new conditions they were in, it was quickly decided that Luzir would take the back, carefully observing if things ever got complicated, while Vindril would take the other side. But what about Sully? Well, the small halwerian was placed right in the middle.

To most people, that would have seemed like the most protected position; the kind that was mostly sought after for its highly chance of survival. On that particular case however, that wasn’t exactly true. The fact that Sully was currently enjoying a certain amount of protection, was an indisputable fact; but, and it was a big but, that came with a price. His job was to provide support for both of them in any way, shape, or form they required out of him. Which meant more work. Obviously, Sully wasn’t particularly thrilled by that.

“Care to tell me why exactly I’m the one that ended up in the middle?” whispered Sully. His eyes darted back and forth, trying to keep a careful watch over everything.

“…No particular reason.” said Luzir. “It’s just a coincidence.”

“So my size has nothing to do with it…. right?”

For the first time since Vindril had met him, Luzir sighed. “…Again? You’ve to let go of that misconception. You’re size is…irrelevant…on most scenarios.”

“Ah!” said Sully. “I knew it. I fucking knew it. I swear, one of these days I’m just going to-”

“What about his size?” asked Vindril curious. “That’s the first time I’m hearing any of that.”

“…Ignore him. He’s convinced that everyone is discriminating him about his size. It’s all nonsense…of course.”

“Nonsense?” asked Sully. “How can you say that? Do you know ho-”

“There are things were size is a determinant factor. Hiding under cover is easier with your size. Fighting against monsters is easier with mine. It’s a fact…not discrimination.”

“Bullshit…”

“If I may…” said Vindril, his eyes darting from looking ahead to looking at all the doors they were encountering. One had a small, golden plate that said “RESEARCH ROOM”; another had one that stated “OFFICE AREA”. “Does it really matter?”

“…What do you even mean?” asked Sully.

A sound that came from behind Vindril’s shoulders made him halt his advance. When he turned, ready to fight against anyone, around he saw first-hand how good Luzir really was at fighting. He didn’t even have time to think that everything was already over; the giant had already taken care of the couple of guards that had been patrolling the area, knocking them out with a powerful hit with the knife pommel. By the cracking sound that had followed after Luzir had hit their helmets, he must have cracked them open. All of that with just a single hit. Holy hell…

“Let’s move on.”

“Shouldn’t we like…hide them somehow?” asked Vindril. If their intent was to sneak inside the lab without being noticed, leaving behind them a trail of bodies wasn’t exactly the perfect course of action.

Luzir didn’t even look at him, preferring instead to resume his careful watch. “…Pointless. Let’s find our objective and get the hell out of here…before others come.”

Vindril stared at the giant like he was stating the obvious. Of course he knew that finding the lab, grabbing whatever they could get their hands on, and disappear was the best option. He fucking knew that. Anyone with a perfectly sane mind did too. But to leave those unconscious men laying right there in the open…Wasn’t it like throwing away the chance to remain undisturbed for some more minutes? Seeing as those guards were definitely on patrol, they had to report to someone at a given time, right?

Now he realized why Luzir said it was pointless. A sense of urgency soon followed after that. They had to find the laboratory. And they had to do it now.

Without bothering to look in front of him, Vindril scanned the plaque of every single door they came across. At the 4th, when his heart had begun to beat like crazy, he stopped in his tracks. There it was. The door that was going to let them inside the lab was right in front of him. The only thing left was to open it; and with the credentials they had stolen from the kidnapped doctor, it was a piece of a cake.

After inserting the I.D. the heavy metallic door emitted a depressurizing sound; moments later, it slowly opened by itself, using the mechanical contraptions it was equipped with.

As they sat foot inside the lab, with their weapons always pointed in front of them, they noticed something. Unlike what they all had initially thought, not many people were stuttering around. Vindril had thought, not without cause, that a complex as big as that had a long list of personnel that worked on daily shift, causing production to never stop. Well, he was partially right.

Production was indeed continuous, with products being constantly produced and sent off; the only difference was that they were mainly made by robotics arms, instead of flesh ones. Such was the problem with technological progress, he guessed. Not that he hated it. He just had to remind himself that most jobs were now using more machines then actual organic life. Well, that made things easier. With less doctors around, there were less chances of getting caught.

With a sprint that wasn’t there before, Vindril quickly climbed down the iron steps that connected the elevated position the entrance was to the full production lines that were constantly running down there. His eyes were, perhaps a bit unconsciously, fixed on the endless coming and going of those coloured vials. The price tag of those tiny, but utterly expensive, coloured vials made him salivate. Just a hundred of those would have fixed all his financial problems. And that was true even if he only took adrenalins, the less expensive of the two. To get his hands on boosters…now that would have made him really happy.

“Pack as much as you can.” said Vindril, already grabbing a vial from the conveyer belt. The colourful liquid stored inside was so vibrant that it almost had a hypnotic feel to it. “But be quick. I don’t want to stay here a moment longer than necessary.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice.” Answered Sully. He too had started to pack a few vials, shoving them in the pocket of his trousers.

Now, by logical conclusion, Luzir too should have gone packing stuff, right? Even if he was a warrior, he surely couldn’t have a problem in stealing a few vials from a lab that big. Instead, none of that happened. Vindril realized something was wrong when he looked up, after stuffing the tenth vials in the pocket of his jacket.

“What’s wrong? Help us out!” he said a bit annoyed.

Luzir’s eyes remained plastered on a wall at the far edge of the factory.

“…Something is coming.”

Vindril was confused. What the hell was he talking about? Well, he would soon find out what. Something was about to happen. Something dangerous…and potentially lethal.