--Point of View: Crim--

I had never seen this many people out in the ruins. They were taking this very seriously. Originally, the plan I had in my head was to stay underground so I could be a little closer to Katie if she needed me, but that idea was quickly smashed to pieces. Floods of humans, all strapped from head to toe in their armored suits, made their way into the tunnels and it quickly became apparent I would be discovered if I stayed there. With a little patience and a bit of luck, I made it back above ground without being spotted. If I were seen now with all the big wigs down in the facility, they would attack first and ask questions later. Honestly, they would probably shoot regardless.

Above ground amongst the rubble was not much better. There were patrols all over the area. I did my best to keep low but after a few hours of close calls, I decided to take shelter up high. A nearby building would suffice. It was the tallest one around and made an excellent lookout. Slinking through the tight stairwells, the radio Tom had given me dangling from my neck, would bring me to the top floor before too long. From here, keeping an eye on the situation down below was almost trivial. All I had to be careful of now was anybody looking up and from my experience, nobody ever looked up.

Even with all the commotion happening below me, the morning was uneventful. Sure, there were a lot of people, but that does not mean they were doing anything of interest. Most, if not all of the soldiers up here were just standing around, chatting, and attempting to look busy. Unlike Katie and her group who often talked about things of interest, these people were pretty bland in comparison. They talked about how boring it was to be out here and how none of them really cared about what they found down in the lab. It made for a long day but that was for the best. A boring day was a safe day. I would prefer if Katie and the rest of the humans simply explored the underground, found what they needed, and left unscathed.

I did miss her. It happened so fast that before I had even realized it, she had become some sort of a crutch for me. Living in isolation for a couple centuries with nobody but your thoughts to keep you company tended to do that. Talking was something I enjoyed, even in my previous life and getting to do it again was warmly welcomed. Hopefully, after this is all over with, we will be able to meet up again. This, radio I believe he called it, would let me talk to them. I was tempted to try it out right now but decided against it. The time was neither right nor appropriate. It would be best if she contacted me first.

Almost dozing off, I continued to lazily lay upon the floor, my head wedged into a small hole that let me peek outside. The sun had reached its peak, signaling midday. It had been several hours. No news is good news they used to say. Did people still say that now a days? I would not have time to think about it because very abruptly, the radio around my neck let out a loud buzz before the sounds of yelling and panic echoed out from its small metal box. Half startled and half surprised, I leapt to my feet just as Katie’s voice filled the room.

“CRIM! Help! I don’t know what’s going on but please, I need you here NOW!” bellowed Katie’s voice from the radio, the sound of chaos resonating between her words. “Are you there?”

I dropped back down to the floor and started fumbling with the radio, trying to remember what Tom had shown me just hours before. If I prop it up like this and press on the side it should work. A small click escaped the device which was my signal to speak.

“Katie? Can you hear me. This thing is hard to use. What’s going on? Are you okay?” I asked, very worried.

After a few seconds, Katie’s voice returned, even more dire than before.

“Yes, I can hear you. I’m safe for now but I don’t know how long. Something is in here with us and its killing everybody.” She cried, her voice growing more and more desperate.

“Can’t you just leave? Get out of there!” I pleaded, picturing the long hallway and large entrance leading into the building.

“We can’t! The main doors closed as soon as everything happened. They are trying to get them open but its not working! Can you…” she was cut off. An explosion echoed through the radio before it went silent. I stared in disbelief for a moment before trying again, panic starting to settle in.

“Katie? Katie? Katie are you there?” I cried, yelling into the radio with no regard for who may hear. At this point I did not think it would matter.

I waited for an answer, but it never came. I tried again and again but after a few moments I realized I had to do something. Whatever was happening down in the underground was major and by the sound of it, I was the only one who was going to be able to do anything. If I had to expose myself, so be it. Katie was the only friend I had now, and I was not about to let anybody else die. My old friends and family were long gone, perished to both war and time. Losing another was not an option. Not anymore.

I took a single breath and leaped from the building, the stairs far too slow now that urgency was needed. As I landed with a thud, everybody turned to look at me. While I could not see most of their faces behind their masks, I could almost feel it. The fear. They were looking upon something they did not think existed nor thought they would ever face. I bared my fangs and dashed towards the nearest underground entrance.

Some of them screamed, others ran, but some of the soldiers that witnessed my arrival stood their ground and remembered their training. Radios were buzzing, commands were being shouted and the roar of what I later learned were called guns, filled the air. None of this concerned me at the moment though. I was focused on one thing and one thing alone. I would make it underground and rescue Katie. If I failed to do such a small thing I would not be able to live with myself.

Running faster than I ever had before, I became a blur as I raced past the troops above ground, their guns pelting me all over. They hurt but did little to slow my pace. Blood trailed behind me as I made my way across the terrain. A few bold humans tried to block my path with their transports. They failed to do so. I tossed them aside so easily I surprised myself, sending the iron clad machine sailing into the nearest structure with a tremendous crash. I did not want to hurt anyone but I would not let anything stand in my way. No sooner did that thought cross my mind when I was sent flying sideways, crashing through a few walls before ending up buried in a pile of rubble.

“What just happened?” I said to myself as I scrambled to push and claw my way up through the fallen debris. My side was killing me, and I dared not to even look at it. Whatever just hit me had done some damage. For the first time ever.

Emerging from my temporary tomb, I took a second to regain my composure before I saw a flash of light directly ahead of me. By pure instinct alone, my head whipped to the side as a massive iron cylinder shot past me, demolishing the rest of the building I had just climbed out of. It was then everything went blurry as my limbs moved on their own accord. In the blink of an eye, I was upon this machine and one more blink left it devastated. Split in two.

Regaining control, I stared in bewilderment at the absolute destruction I had just caused. This has happened a few times before when I accidently tossed myself into danger. My body, whatever it may be, tended to do what it wanted when I was in danger. It was almost like it was ensuring my survival when I did something stupid. Regardless of the reason, I was thankful for it now.

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After a few more bouts with soldiers above ground, I found myself at an underground entrance and hastily made my way down. There were even more men down here than I had seen previously. Lucky for me though, they had two options thanks to the narrow layout of the area. They could either face me head on and get thrashed or do the smart thing and step aside. Running full stop, I lowered my head and plowed through everyone and everything that got in my way. People were tossed aside, barricades burst through, and several people just running away terrified. I was not sure how I felt about it to be honest. It was rather odd being feared.

Skidding to a halt, I would soon find myself in front of the underground facility. I was also greeted by whatever soldiers they had managed to scrounge up that were either foolishly brave or had yet to see me. In front of all of his troops stood a man in a slightly more decorated suit, obviously the man in charge. He called out to his men.

“The beast has arrived. We will defend this post with our lives!” he cried out, motioning his men to attack with a swift wave of his arm.

Lead rained down upon me, pricking and ripping away at my flesh as wave after wave assaulted me. The pain was growing but it was still nothing I could not handle. With every step I took, I could see their lines waiver. They had never faced something they could not kill with bullets. They had never faced a monster like me. After what felt like an eternity, the attack ceased and panic started to rise up inside these men. I was almost within swiping distance of their commander.

“Out of ammo! Anybody got a mag?” shouted one of the soldiers, another one echoing the same line. Whatever it was, they must need it to continue their assault.

“ENOUGH!” I bellowed, my voice echoing down the long dark tunnels.

Everything went silent. No one spoke. Everyone was looking at me and I could tell at a glance their will to fight had just been extinguished.

“Move aside and you will all live. My business is not with you. You may see me as a beast but I’m far more than that.” I shouted, my pace quickening once again as I pictured Katie inside.

Some of the soldiers faltered, tossing aside their military training and choosing to save their own lives. They dropped their weapons and ran. The remaining people slowly backed away to open a path for me to wade through them. The commander though, stood firm, unmoving. He had seen many battles I am sure. He had seen his own version of monsters.

“So, you can speak you filthy beast. That does not mean we will let you pass.” He barked, looking back at his men and quickly waving them back into position. “Stay in formation privates! This is your duty! Do not yield!”

“You would die to protect something you know nothing about? When have I already offered to spare you from death? Humanity has not changed. Once a solider, always solider.” I said, nodding to the man with respect. “Unfortunately, you don’t have the strength to follow through with that.”

With a quick leap forward, I effortlessly knocked the man aside, throwing him to the ground hard. I hoped he would not be too banged up. Once their leader was down, the rest of the men regained their senses and cleared a path. I took it and left them be. I was not looking for a fight. Past yet another obstacle, I was faced with another. Down the long hallway I ran .The entranceway quickly came into view, but unlike when I had left earlier, the door was firmly shut.

As I neared, a few stragglers, obviously not part of the military, screamed and ran into the control room as they spotted me. I tried not to take it too personally. I barreled into the room, smashing the doorway a bit as I passed through it. I set my eyes on the first human I saw and yelled.

“You! This door. Open, NOW!” I ordered, stomping up and standing over the man, trying to be intimidating.

“Please no!” he begged, dropping to the floor, and curling into a ball. His legs must have given out. “We’ve been trying but it won’t respond!”

“Well keep on trying if you want to keep living!” I threatened, growling, and showing off my teeth a bit before leaping back outside to face the door.

I did the only thing I knew how to do. I clawed and slashed at the giant door. Huge gashes were left wherever I struck but the door, infused with mana, shimmered, and molded itself back to shape, healing any damage I did to it.

“I just need to go faster then.” I said to myself, taking a deep breath before winding back for the most vicious attack I could muster.

My claws were like hammer blows striking an anvil, the ring surely audible from a great distance. I clawed and I slashed until I started to make some headway. The door was doing its best to recover but it could only work so fast. I doubt it was designed to survive something like myself even if this place did give birth to me. A blind fury had taken over as I toiled away at the semi-impenetrable wall that blocked my only way to Katie. This thought was enough to push me well past anything I thought I was capable of. After some time of nonstop effort, I broke through to the other side. Glancing back, I could see the tunnel I had formed already starting to seal back up. This body did not tire but after all that, I did feel exhausted. Never had I pushed myself so hard. It was a little invigorating.

I was going to catch my breath but that silly idea was blown away by yet again more cries of terror and fear as the people who were standing on the other side of the door leapt away as I emerged. A few of them attempted to slip past me into the gap I made but the door was already doing its thing. I was stuck here now too but that was much preferred. Not bothering to even talk to anybody near me, I pushed through any that stood in my way, which was few. The ones that did simply stood awestruck.

“KATIE!” I called out as loud as I could, causing everyone nearby to drop to their knees and cover their ears. The glass even seemed to shake as my howl shot down the halls.

I yelled out her name as I sprinted down the hall, poking my head into every room along the way to shout. A few empty rooms and a couple filled with more panicked survivors, but still no Katie. Where could she be? To my surprise, after yelling her name for a good while, one of the scientists spoke up and called out to me.

“She’s….she’s with the commander. Down the hall and to the right. Last I heard they were heading to the lower levels.” Called out what sounded like a young lady. They were probably not much older than Katie herself.

I blinked, dumbstruck for a moment before giving an affirmative nod. “Thank you.”

The lower levels are where she said the trouble started so why were they going closer to it? I was so baffled but there was surely a reason. I reached the familiar end of the hallway and skidded to a halt before taking off down the right path. It would not take long to find them.

“Katie! Is that you?” I called out, seeing somebody up ahead that resembled her figure. There were several others as well, but they were not of importance.”

“CRIM!” she called out, turning around in an instant to reveal it was in fact Katie. I was so relieved and judging by the look on her face, so was she.

I moved even faster to close the gap, Katie breaking away from her group to do the same. As she did, the biggest and most impressive of them all shouted to stop.

“Halt! What are you doing private?”!” shouted Commander Dawn.

She did not flinch at all and kept on going. I met her halfway and she threw her arms around my neck. Seeing her up close made it obvious she had been crying. She was a mess. While the commander hooted and hollered from behind her, most likely furious for being ignored, Katie explained the situation.

“It all started almost an hour ago. There were explosions and people screaming down below. Everybody up here took shelter and hid. What else were we supposed to do? After the door sealed it just got worse. Everything got real nasty.” She said quickly, looking back over her shoulder in a panic.

“Well, I’m relieved you are okay. I was really worried when you suddenly stopped talking over the radio.” I said, glancing down at the device that was dangling from my neck.

“I will have to thank Tom again for that idea and I’m sorry to make you come here. We still don’t know what is wandering around down there but it needs to taken care of and well. I figure you are probably the scariest thing here” she said, finally releasing me from her firm grasp and stepping back.

“Wait, Crim. Are you hurt? What happened to you?” she suddenly cried out, lunging forward at me with her hands to feel at my side and chest. Her hands were covered in blood. “I didn’t notice at first because of your red fur but you are just riddled with holes. How are you even…”

“I’m fine. Don’t worry about it.” I said, shrugging a little. “I can’t even feel these wounds so I figure that means it can’t be too serious, right? Besides, we need to get you out of here.”

I could tell she was struggling internally with what I had said, not wanting me to be hurt anymore than she did. She sighed before quickly remembering what she had been doing before I arrived.

“My gosh, that’s right. We need to save Tom. He’s downstairs right now. I managed to get ahold of him on the radio, but he turned it off shortly after. Said he couldn’t risk it hearing him. I know he’s alive down there. Damn fool is too stubborn to die.” Katie said quickly, turning and motioning for me to follower. “Come one, we need to hurry before it’s too late!”