Chapter 19

Cpt. Pyotr Dregenhardt /// Tidal Shuttle Services HQ

The trip from the archive to here was only an hour or two but Pyotr could already feel the painkillers slipping, giving way to the throbbing distractions of his body's natural need for recuperation. He cursed himself, it was dumb to take a job in this state but between having to see all the squids had, and resisting the urge not to go full jomsviking on them made his anxiety to move almost unbearable, but with that stressor gone, he was now left to handle the consequences.

His shuttle had dropped him off on a public landing space, just outside of the facility in question, it was another large cylinder like building with dozens of large metallic cables running down into grounds far below in case of storms. Hanging off just to the left and right of the landing zone sat two massive outreaching alcoves, Pyotr could just make out metallic ramps that had scores of metal scars, probably launch and landing ramps that lead inside. Just as he was thinking that a cacophonous boom was let loose as a shuttle shot skyward at blazing speed. As his helmet adjusted for the sudden audio, and muting the area slightly, Pyotrs enhanced senses now picked up the rainfall more clearly than any other sound. Deciding boldness was the best policy here he made his way forward walking up to the door, it flashed yellow and remained shut. He waited for a few seconds before slamming his upper arms into the door in loud booming knocks. Again no answer

“Guess no ones home… fuck…”

“No, your not…. No comeone Pyotr…” T begged

Pyotr looked over to the launch ramps, and gauged about a 20 foot gap in between the edge of the public landing pad and there. He took a solid 15 feet lead up before letting his targeting computers gave him rough trajectory and magnetized boot location requirements, he kneeled down, and breathed deep. Leveling his eyes towards his target he looks up, breathes again, and lets loose. Running hard every footfall striking the ground like its an enemy combatant, Pyotr dashes forward leaping towards the curve of the wall. He soared through the air, the ground so far below that if he fucked up he’d be dead before he could even realize it. His boot strikes the curve of the building and with a hum pulls Pyotr down towards it before releasing as his other foot comes down not long after. Pulling himself forward he made his final leap towards the ramp, slamming down hard, but rolling to reduce the effect. Standing up with the storm to his back and a badly lit passage in front Pyotr’s hair started to stand on end.

The ramp lead further inside the facility, sparking metallic tentacles resembling assembly arms from back on earth hung from the left and right sides. Pyotr noticed a few floating light orbs making there way across the ceiling lighting the room in odd patterns. As he continued down the launch ramp he servos in his armor whirled and hissed as his body tensed with his growing paranoia. He drew his sidearm as it clicked into place unfolding from its holstered form. His HUD inside his helmet showed his heartbeat rising due to the stress, but all other systems where showing nothing about this place was amiss.

“T…”

“Hmm?”

“Prep a combat stim for me, something light, just enough to help me focus”

“Pyotr, doc said no….”

“T, for fucks sake i dont want to get jumped, just cause of some fucking doctors warning. Besides im gonna trust you on the dose…”

There was a momentary pause, Pyotr had shared a skull with T long enough to know already she was contemplating whether feeding him combat stims was actually needed. “Alright prepping stim now.”

Sparks flew and snapped from one of the nearby mechanical arms as T finished her sentence, causing him to jump slightly.

The smooth cocktail of drugs and chemicals slid into his bloodstream with the quieted hiss of machinery. As he prowled from shadow to shadow amongst the floating blinding lights offered by the orbs above. His flesh felt electric as adrenaline surged through his veins in response to the cocktail, his eyes darting from section to section, as he proceeded further into the awaiting hungry darkness. He clicked his vision across a couple spectrums, scanning as he went. More purple light flashed ahead and an alarm blared across teh ramp as a shuttle readied itself for launch.

Low speech announcements warned anyone that they shouldn't be in the way of the launching shuttle, as Pyotr shuffled off into one of the maintenance bay. Pyotr looked around the bay in question, simple enough, tools laid on the ground but no real dedicated signs of a struggle. Slipping past the oversized miracle pool that was probably used to help stabilize the shuttles when fixing them up Pyotr checked a door leading deeper into the facility. Locked. Twisting back around and crouching low, Pyotr waited behind a tool chest of some kind while the shuttle passed. It took a few more seconds for the engine to spool up before the supersonic boom cracks out as the shuttle is flung out to the sky riding along the ramp. His whole body shook with the force as the shuttle flew past, his head spun like he had just been concussed. He waited for the feeling of vertigo to pass before raising himself from his crouched position and began making his way forward.

Stretching back into the main section of ramp, Pyotr kept his sidearm at a readied position as he had to solo clear, and the second he approached a vertice he was exposed on the opposite side. He was currently cursing himself for not having a battle buddy for this bullshit. He kept a steady pace carefully clearing each section, with different light spectrums, but already looking ahead he could see a large terminal like structure, probably where they worked dispatch. Pyotr already noticed something was amiss, the oval door, which was used frequently in the design of this place was shattered laying on the floor before the egress.

“T, any chatter?”

“None, its dead quiet.”

“Emphasis on dead”

“We can just leave, Pyotr”

“Na, shits just starting to get interesting.”

Walking past the shattered door Pyotr gazed into the doorway offering as small angles as he could as he took a few cautious steps around the outside trying to get line of sight on anyone just on the other side.

Slinking through the entryway, on the other side he found a staging area with dozens of employee uniforms scattered around the area.

“Hey get me to one of the terminals.” t said through their link

Pyotr turned noting the ramp leading up to the second floor, and made careful strides up swiveling to face the oncoming directions pistol raised at any nearing corners or new angles. Nothing but shadows danced ahead of him. He stepped out into the large nervous center for the shuttle facility, making his way over to one of the central consoles. Setting down for a moment he placed his gloved lower hand on the console and watched as a loading bar appeared on his HUD, he already knew his partner wanted access, and she would tell him anything important.

Turning back down the ramp into the waiting area, he pulled out a ir light, and a knife from his side holsters, and held them aloft in his lower arms. Setting off down the corridor further inside the facility. After reaching his first intersecting hallway, T had some information for him.

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“So employee’s are all registered as **at work** and have been for the past few days… other than that this place is huge, meant to house about 100 employees working multiple shifts”

“Alright, so something clearly went wrong here, you got a map for me or am I going to have to explore this on my own?”

“I have a map, but i dont think youll need one, theres a blindspot, someone destroyed the cameras in this section here…” as T was speaking a sectional floorplan showed up on his HUD and a small section was highlighted in flashing red.

“Alright turn right and follow this hallway down…”

Pyotr only half focused to T’s instructions, as he proceeded down the hallway ensuring to clear as much as he could as he went. His two lower arms shifting alongside his poses. Lights flicked on as he made his way down the corridors, and the occasional beeps or movements of day to day work can be heard echoing off somewhere nearby, his eyes were scanning each new room he passed by step by step, simple and smooth down into the deep.The entire facility felt deserted, but he knew better. He couldn't explain it, but every inch of his body stood on edge. Finally making hsi way past the twists and turns he opened the final door to what appeared to be some type of meeting room overlooking a storage area. He finally picked something up, a distortion, form a side room leading his way from the main area into the smaller side room, he stopped a few steps short of fully rounding the corner.

He smelt it first, the smell of decay. Bacteria and other mechanism of death always had to leave something… something to return after the fact so they could continue to function later. Turning past the corner Pyotr finally laid eyes on the staff. A series of mangled corpses torn into tiny pieces and smears on the wall. Each type of creature carefully dissected organs stacked in neat piles, flesh wrapped over itself like a grand wrap of cloth. Skulls punctured and dotting the floor in 3x whatever the fuck many groups. But this smell the smell of this horrible morbid display was second to the scent of ammonia, and spoiled milk, even with air filters on his suit it was so pungent it pierced through like AP ammo. His gaze turned up towards the moving nightmare that hung from the ceiling shaking with such strange agonizing twitches and purrs.

The creatures' elongated limbs seemed to be segmented at a half dozen or so intervals on each limb, not naturally, but by some kind of disease maybe. Its skin stretched and pulled taunt over its body as its own muscles seemed to writhe and explode outwards like a eldritch horror. Small metallic spikes dot the entire length of its body, as short arcs of energy seemed to bounce along them cracking with force. Its head was the worst part, its skull seemed to no longer be contained by the flesh that clung to its edges with a desperate attempt of life to struggle on. Bone protrusions forced their way in every orifice and crease, the face seemed twisted into a constant screaming face of pain, and just like everywhere else the twisting muscles writhed underneath tearing the flesh when too many of the muscles contorted at the same time the flesh ripping and spewing black viscera as the wounds bled anew. Its eyeless sockets seemed to be leaking a constant stream of dark black fluid, piling and collecting at different angular holds creating an uneven trial like a rocky river, its ears were just pulsing sacks that sped with the creatures movements. Its head cracked like wood being twisted, as it turned and looked towards Pyotr.

“Pyotr, fucking RUN!!!” screamed T and Pyotr couldn't really give a reason not too, but before he could the things leg? Slammed onto the ground and shook the floor with force, Pyotr flashed his light over to tac flash and aimed right at this things face hoping to blind it. It didn't even flinch.

The thing slinked off the walls dark writhing limbs elongated well past what would naturally make sense cracking with the sounds of breaking bones as it peeled itself away from its hidden alcove.

“What the fuck…”

Pyotr’s body was reacting before his mind was comprehending what he was looking at taking his sidearm and aiming it towards this thing and letting three shots loose in a tight grouping. The things head jerked in response, flecks and sparks rocked off it likes it was made of metal… but then it looked back its eyeless sockets locking onto where Pyotr had just fired from and it screamed. Its mouth creaked and tore itself open wider and wider as it screamed louder and louder, Pyotr didn't wait to see what happened next he turn and ran, sprinting hard back down the way he came.

He couldn't see what it was doing, but Pyotr could hear it crashed and tore its way though the small meeting room, tearing through the wall. Pyotr could almost feel as its talons carved into the floor to gain itself purchase as it tried launching itself at the running aberrant. Pyotr ducked hard to the left into a small cubicle as the creature sped past slamming into desks and machines. It screamed again as it started to rise to its feet, Pyotr did the same rising and firing again and again at this monster.

“Its not on thermal, or uv, shit its not even making noise.” t said

The fuck it aint, thought Pyotr as he fired four more rounds before he turned and kept running. The creature tore its way through everything that came in front of it and it was catching up quickly. He ducked back out and around running down a long stretching hallway turning back and firing several times before cutting hard right into another waiting room area, he turned hard and waited just to the right of the door crouching and making himself small as the creature turned inside at full speed, tearing into a glass pane wall ahead of them. Pyotr took his chance and ran back out into the hallway as another horrible scream was let loose behind him.

Pyotr had lost track of his surroundings trying to outrun this fucking thing, lefts, rights, knocking over furniture as he went only occasionally stopping to set round after round into this things form. Nothing seemed to even be slowing it down, Pyotr only had one explosive on him and it was risky to use. He needed to slow it down, or at least hurt it enough so it slowed down on its own.

The screaming tearing sound of metal being forcefully sheared came echoing down the hallway before his HUD warned him of incoming debris. He dove forward slamming against the floor hard, going into a partial roll as two sheets of metal sailed overhead and crashed into a wall just ahead of him. He rose, firing what was left of his mag back in the direction of his relentless hunter. More sparks, along with minor body movements due to impact, as his mind tried to justify what he was seeing, the creature from the fucked lagoon started to sprint down towards Pyotr. Getting back up quickly Pyotr dashed through an adjacent hallway; he recognized this as one of the hallways back to the Terminal structure. The malfunctioning door was ripped back towards the beast as it pulled its way inside the hallway, simultaneously Pyotr had opened the action of his sidearm ejected the thermal mag and slotted in a new one, after that slamming the action home, turning and putting two more rounds hopefully somewhere in the creatures bulk. It seemed to pause as its head snapped upwards and Pyotr saw it look at one of the Floating light orbs before throwing what remained of the door it had just forcefully removed off its hinges. It struck the orb with force destroying it.

Suddenly shrouded in darkness Pyotr lost it, it dropped form all sensors as he checked left and right. Where the fuck did it just go he thought. Not wanting to press his luck Pyotr didn't hesitate turned and kept sprinting. He heard the thing thundering down after him, he couldn't stop, or turn around he just had to run. Flashing purple lights outlined the large doorway outside towards the ramp he was almost there, if he could get out there he could jack a shuttle and escape fuck killing this thing. “T, start trying to figure out how to fly one of…OOF '' the wind escaped form his lungs as something forceful struck into him form behind and sent him flying, his head cracking against the doorframe as his body skidded across the metal floor. He tasted copper then his vision faded to black.

Warning signs appeared all across his HUD, and he felt suddenly cold. He opened his eyes staring at an obnoxiously bright light hanging just in his line of sight, he groaned and rolled away from the discomforting light. As he did, pain shot through his body. His eyes opened, peeling his eyelids away from each other, his vision swerved and blurred. He felt the sudden urge to vomit, but held off, he knew he was still in danger, he knew he still needed to move. His arms moved slowly, finding little purchase on the garage floor.

“Fuck fuck fuck”

Pyotr wasn't sure what he actually said but that's what he assumed he was sputtering. He felt two strong sharp claws dig into opposite sides of his ribs as he's picked up off the floor. He spun as the piercing sword like nails dug into his armor pinching his ribs and stuttering his breath, the creature distorted features tore even further as it screamed again the bullet holes torn in its flesh becoming wider and more vile, spewing black liquid onto Pyotr visor. Pyotrs hands all 4 of them moved one slammed the knife home finding purchase in the things gooey eyeless sockets, but it didnt even flinch, his metal arm struck the beasts skull to little effect, his other arm tore itself trying to do teh same and now hung limply at his side, the final hand moved to level a pistol in this thing's face, he only made the smallest headway before being bashed into metal floor again blood spewed across his visors interior… his blood

“T, overload the battery”

“Wha…

His mind was fuzzy; he had no idea if she was doing it or not, he just had to trust his partner. The thing picked Pyotr up again, and as such his breath became little more than a wheeze. He opened one of his eyes, as his whole world spun like being dragged to the depths, a flashing light showed ** power supply safeties disengaged… emergency release Y/N?**

The thing spun Pyotr upside down once more as Pyotr screamed “YES!!!”

His backpack flung out with a high pitched whirring sound as it quickly became red hot before exploding in a burst of blue flame, igniting the horrid monstrosity.