Claire was so engrossed in rummaging through the back of the truck that she didn't notice David approaching until he was nearly upon her. Her tail swayed lazily as she nuzzled her snout into every nook, snuffling loudly at whatever scent she found buried there. David banked around the corner of the main building, wings held rigid while he silently cut through the air, nearing Claire’s position he folded them and dropped to the ground, the impact kicking up a small puff of dust. Transitioning seamlessly into a loping run, he bled off speed, and only once he had slowed to a trot did Claire finally extract her head from the truck bed, snout now smudged with grit. She turned to face him, tail wagging slightly as she gave him a look that was half curiosity, half surprise.
“David! I thought you were gonna look around inside?.” Claire hissed suspiciously as she shot a worried look behind him, “Nothing’s chasing you, right?”
"What? No. Why do you always assume…" David trailed off in a slightly offended voice before continuing to the important part, “Anyway, look. I found, like, two Eggshells already. There might actually be people hiding around here somewhere. I thought I wouldn't be stupid for once and come warn you before I go back and really poke around…you know, in case something is actually chasing me on my way out next time.”
"Wait, really? Ugh, and of course I'm stuck outside again. Fine. You want me to hang around the front of the building then?” Claire sighed, shooting a wistful glance at the darkened windows of the main lab. She clacked her jaws together in irritation, and the sound echoed back dully from the huge building in the distance, causing David's ears to swivel around rapidly.
David shook his head, still squinting mightily in the sunlight after his eyes had rapidly adjusted to the darkness inside the observatory.
“No, just letting you know we might not be alone, even if you can't smell anything. They might just be holed up inside."
“I hope they're still here…" Claire muttered quietly. David couldn't help but agree, and he shuffled closer to shoot her a fair approximation of a thumbs up in encouragement.
“Here's hoping, honestly. I'd love to know why the hell the military got involved...and like a million other things” David’s ears perked forward with interest as he shot a glance back over his shoulder at the helicopters lined up neatly a few hundred yards away.
I wonder if I should just try asking Omega directly. You know what, I'll try sending another bug report or query or something when we're done here. Worst I'm gonna get is no reply...right?
“Well, have fun spelunking, I guess.” Claire grumbled as she bumped the truck she'd been investigating with her snout, "I'll just keep looking around out here. I'll roar if I find anything, or something finds me."
David gave Claire a distracted nod as he snapped out of his thoughts before turning and flapping upwards, zipping back towards the building's entrance through the hot dry air. He landed on the concrete patio, and he quickly slowed to a cautious stalk as he neared the empty shattered doors, not even breathing heavily from the quick burst of speed. Sweeping his gaze across the lobby, he noticed the front desk he'd already investigated still undisturbed, and wondered what it must have been like for the woman that had worked there when the government had arrived.
Creeping forward, David extended his senses, straining to detect any sounds or movements from within. Satisfied there was no immediate threat, he slipped through the doors and into the dimly lit interior. Dust motes danced in the few shafts of daylight filtering in through gaping windows as David's eyes rapidly adjusted to the dimming light again.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
He moved silently down the main corridor, talons clicking softly on the tiled floor. Faint scuff marks in the dust layering every surface betrayed where he had passed through recently, and his eyes narrowed as he realized he'd been leaving a trail of breadcrumbs without noticing. David's pulse quickened slightly as he neared the doorway leading to the cafeteria off the intersection where he'd originally paused, and he glanced at the ceiling thoughtfully.
Nope, not gonna hold me this time. It's all ugly drop ceiling…damn, would have been a good way to stop leaving tracks. Walls are all drywall and tile, I think it'd leave more of a mess than the tracks. Guess for now I just deal with – Wait a second.
David experimentally flapped his wings a few times, scrunching his eyes shut against the dust that billowed up and slowly resettled over the floor in a more-or-less uniform coating. It didn't look natural, but it had cleared his tracks and would have to work. If he had to run, he could just drop a cloud of Gloom and allow it to mix with the ambient dust while he high-tailed it. Still, he lifted himself as far from the floor as he could and attempted to tiptoe around as quietly as possible to minimize the contact his leathery wings had with the floor when he began to move forward through the darkened hallways. David quickly resumes his previous strategy of pulsing waves of Echolocation's forward, darting into position, and investigating his immediate surroundings before moving again.
He continued to explore the smaller rooms, finding only two more eggshells as he plunged deeper into the lab before something else finally piqued his interest.
Easing his head around a corner, David surveyed the entrance to the cavernous space his latest Echolocation had hinted at behind a pair of swinging doors, the waves dissipating into incoherent fuzz before they had returned. He approached carefully before slowly easing the left door open, cringing internally at the thunderous whine the rusted hinges produced.
A latticed girder framework supported a large complex looking piece of machinery that seemed to have been hastily brought in, and it dominated a large section of the room toward the back wall. Control stations with dark screens and instrument panels lined the outer rim of the auditorium, seemingly frozen in time and buried under mummified scraps of paperwork and a thick layer of dust. It was perfectly dark, and David would have to rely heavily on his Special to maneuver through the cluttered space as he slowly pushed the door open and stood in the threshold.
Scenting the air, David detected only stale musty oxygen and a faint hum just on the edge of his hearing that made him perk his ears curiously, unable to pinpoint the exact location it seemed to be emanating from. He slipped fully into the chamber, wings half-furled as he sidled closer to the towering scaffolding.
Below, tangled cables as thick as his neck snaked across the floor from large boxy devices that looked like they had cost more than most people would ever make in their lives, all leading toward the spire of machinery at the back of the room. His gaze traced over the nearest row of terminals, and he experienced a strange wave of nostalgia as he looked across the dusty screens.
It's weird to think this was all probably cutting-edge a few weeks ago…well, probably a lot longer. I don't even know what this stuff is, much less what it does. That sound is driving me nuts, what the hell is it? I know it's coming from somewhere here…
David roved the cluttered stations, curiosity piqued by the air of frantic busyness that was still evident in the room by the slew of personal effects still scattered about. A pair of glasses here, a rotten briefcase stuffed under a chair there, coffee cups and thermoses scattered about every few feet and shattered on the floor. David muscled an old electric wheelchair to the side as he squeezed past it, the small vehicle having been parked directly in front of a huge display screen that dominated the wall in front of it. On a whim, he stopped to fiddle with the controls built into the device, never having had the opportunity before and wondering briefly about the person that had once owned it.
Skirting the outer perimeter, he leaned in to examine a decommissioned monitor bank more closely, sniffing curiously at the faded smell of plastic when his ears caught the odd vibration again, this time locking on. David cocked his head curiously at the sound, poking his snout into the screen several times, half expecting some hideous creature to emerge and bite at him. Instead, the dust was knocked loose off the screen and he winced as the tiny, dim light was revealed, just above the power button.
No fucking way, that's what the sound was? I must never have been able to hear it before…
The light was extremely dim, just barely visible due to the total darkness of the room. David leaped atop the nearest chair, excitedly flapping his wings as hard as he could, scrunching his eyes shut and trying not to breathe when he smelled the massive storm of dust fill the air. He waited several seconds before wiping his face and muzzle on the inside of his wing, clearing his eyes before opening them. A small sea of fading, flickering lights glowed all around him and David sat stunned, swiveling his head around in awe.
Somehow, there was still a trickle of power.
David quickly ducked below the equipment and pressed his head against the cables, confirming the thin, almost invisible noise he felt more than heard was electric. Very few of the cables had power, but after several minutes of exploring he found a thick cable emitting a crisp, almost irritating tone and began to follow it across the floor and deeper into the building.