Wasteland Rules: Born to Fight (The World After Book 2) (25 page)

   His arms were pinned to his side and even his
enhanced strength wasn’t enough to break the beast’s grip. She reloaded and
fired the entire clip into the gorilla’s back. Even if the rounds struck Derek
the suit would supposedly prevent them from penetrating, but they didn’t faze
the gorilla either. It roared deafeningly in the tight corridor and looked back
at her. The beast must have loosened its grip because Derek pulled an arm free
and grabbed for his sawed off shotgun. He pulled it free and stuffed it into
the beast’s mouth when it turned its head back. He pulled both triggers and the
monster’s head exploded spraying gore everywhere. The gorilla’s grip released
and Derek pulled free as the huge headless body slumped to the ground.

   “What is going on here?” Derek groaned as he
tried to pop his spine back into place.

   “I thought this was a research facility?” Rora
asked.

   “It’s the CIA; they could have been doing
anything down here.” Derek told her cynically. “I’m more concerned with how
many more of these things there could be.”

   “Let’s just get the part and get out of here.”
She suggested.

   “I agree, but I am curious what they were doing
here.” Derek replied. “Rule # 20, know your enemy. The Collective must have
been involved with this or at least aware of it. I want to know what I might be
up against in the future.”

   “Fine, but make it quick.” Rora agreed. “We don’t
want those dogs to come back.”

   “I doubt they will. We killed the thing they were
afraid of, so I think it will be a while before they get up the courage to
attack us again.” He said.

   “Let’s not take any chances.” She argued. “We
should move one before anything else shows up.”

   He didn’t reply as he examined the body of the
dead gorilla. Derek prodded the body with his carbine barrel and then got down
to look at it closely. He suddenly got real close to the body and started
pulling aside hair.

   “Whoa. This thing has armor plates surgically
attached. That’s why the rifle rounds had no effect on it. Somebody has done
some crazy experiments with animals here.” Derek said.

   “Wait.” Rora replied as a thought hit her. “What have
these things been eating for fifteen years?”

   “Good question.” Derek agreed. “But it’s not
something we can worry about. We need to get that part and get out of here like
you said. Lead on to the server room.”

   That was when Rora noticed that her tablet wasn’t
working anymore. The screen was cracked and blank. It must have been damaged
when the charging gorilla had knocked her into the wall. Seeing her frown,
Derek moved over to look at it. He shook his head and sighed.

   “How are we going to find our way through this
maze without the tablets?” Rora asked him.

   “No idea, but that’s why rule #16 is don’t rely
on technology. It always lets you down when you need it.” Derek replied.

   “A lot of good that rule does us now.” She
snapped back.

   “Come on. Use that magnificent brain of yours.”
Derek said jovially. “I bet you memorized the map. You don’t need the
computer.”

   “That’s true.” She agreed. “But I’m not sure
exactly where we are right now.”

   “Hmm. If we make a few turns can’t you overlay that
on the map in your head to figure out where we are?” Derek asked.

   “I think that might actually work.” She responded
in surprise.

   Every time she started to think of him as a big
dumb jock he surprised her. He had recognized her abilities and figured out a
solution to utilize them to resolve their problem. In fact, many of his
solutions to escaping the traps set for them had involved clever ruses or
plans. The SuPERHUMAAN improvements accounted for some of that, but he must
have been clever before that. She needed to remember not to underestimate him.

   Using the technique he had suggested, Rora
determined their location and got them back on track. She followed the
directions from the map in her memory and led them to the server room. Like all
the other doors it was completely unmarked. It too had a keypad and badge
reader. This time she didn’t have the wrist tablet to help her hack it. They
would have to open the door through more common means. She turned to Derek to
ask for a suggestion and found him already holding up a small block of C4
explosives.

   “Way ahead of you.” He said and moved to the
door. “I came prepared.”

   “I know, rule #15.” She replied, rolling her
eyes.

   “Roll your eyes if you want, but this bit of
explosives will do what your broken tablet can’t.” He called over his shoulder.

   How had he known she had rolled her eyes, he
couldn’t see her. Sometimes he was so frustrating because he always seemed to
be right. That was getting really old. Just once she wanted to see him be wrong.
The only problem was that it would probably mean they both died. Maybe that
piece of karmic justice could wait.

   Derek wired the door with the explosive and
pulled her around the corner. After a few seconds the charge blew with a loud
boom that echoed down the hallways. When they came back around the corner, the
door was blown open and hanging on by one hinge. Inside was a dimly lit room
filled to the brim with servers. Rora immediately went to the nearest one and
opened it. She needed to find the server that accessed the data storage for the
files.

    This server was empty, maybe it hadn’t been used
yet? She moved to the next one and then the next one. They were all empty,
reset to factory specs waiting to be used. A brief search of random servers turned
up the same thing on every server. It was like they had been set up and then
never used. What was going on here?

   “Derek, they are all useless.” She informed him.

   “What do you mean?” He asked, confused.

   “They are all empty, completely reset to factory
specs.” She explained. “There isn’t any data on them.”

   He cursed and said. “It was probably a security
measure. The servers probably wiped themselves after a set amount of time if no
one logged in and provided a security code. Now what do we do?”

   Rora pondered that for minute before replying. “I
have an idea. Something has to be running the environmental system. Use your
thermal setting to look for a server putting out more heat than the others.”

  “Okay, but what good will that do?” Derek asked.

  “If we can access that, then maybe I can figure
out where the storage rooms are. I bet they are still climate controlled.” Rora
answered.

   They searched the server room until they found
one server in the back that was much hotter than the others, indicating it was
in use. Opening it up, Rora discovered she was right and it was controlling the
environmental system. She didn’t find any climate controlled rooms, but she did
find something very interesting.

   “Look at this.” She told Derek. “This room is
using a lot of power and seems to be heated. Everything else is shut down, but
this room looks like it is in use.”

   “Let’s go check it out and see what’s there.
Maybe it will give us a clue about where the storage rooms are.” Derek said.

   “Do you really think so?” She asked.

   “No, but it’s the only lead we have. So…” Derek
replied with a shrug.

   “Right. Lead the way; I’ll give you directions as
we go.” She said.

June 24, 2029

Inside CIA HQ at McLean, VA

   Rora directed him to the only room that seemed to
be in use and Derek paused outside the door. He pressed his ear to the door,
but heard nothing. The rooms were probably soundproofed for security purposes.
He checked the door and remarkably it was unlocked. Readying his carbine he
prepared to enter and Rora did the same. After a countdown from three he burst
inside.

   The sight inside made Derek pull up short and
Rora practically collided with him. They found themselves in a large laboratory
filled with animal cages set haphazardly on every surface. Animals of all kinds
filled the various cages and they started howling or cawing or barking at the
sudden entrance. The smell of all of the animal feces must have been awful;
thank goodness they were sealed in the suits. Around the cages were pages and
pages of notes and pieces of medical equipment. Lab carts covered in devices
and junk sat at random places throughout the mess. Derek heard movement and
trained his carbine on a figure that emerged from the chaos.

   “Don’t shoot.” The man said. “It’s been so long
since I’ve had visitors. Is the war over?”

   Derek looked the man over. He was dressed in a
filthy lab coat that had once been white. His gray hair was very long and
straggly, reaching almost to his waist. A long filthy beard was held together
by a rubber band and drooped almost to the mains chest. He looked old, maybe
seventy years or more, and had a pair of thick glasses on his nose. Another
pair sat on top of his head, perhaps forgotten there. The man had piercing blue
eyes, but they had a hint of madness in them.

   “What war?” Derek asked him.

   “World War 3, isn’t that why they sealed the
building?” The man inquired.

   “Wait, I know you.” Rora said suddenly, looking
closely at the man. “You’re Dr. Strahn aren’t you?”

   “So you’ve heard of me?” The man said and
preened.

   “You used to work with my father, Dr. Carter,
years ago.” She replied.

   “I did. I did. How is he?” Dr. Strahn asked.

   “He was killed by slavers…” Rora said sadly.

   “Slavers…” Dr. Strahn said in a confused voice.

   “This guy is Collective?” Derek interrupted
tensely.

   “He was, but it sounds like he has been down here
since the Aftermath started.” Rora responded.

   “What is the Aftermath?” Dr. Strahn asked
plaintively.

   “Do you know what year it is?” She asked the
doctor nicely.

   “What year?” He said in a confused voice. “What
year?”

   “This guy’s brain is fried.” Derek stated
bluntly. “He has been down here way too long. The smell alone would melt your
brain.”

   Rora gave an involuntary laugh before replying.
“Maybe he knows where the storage rooms are?”

   “Storage rooms?” Dr. Strahn said suddenly.
“Nothing is stored here, it’s a research facility.”

   “What do you mean?” Derek said with an edge to
his voice as he grabbed the doctor by the collar.

   The doctor waved a hand around as he flailed in
Derek’s grasp. “Everything here is labs like this one.”

   “Where would you put a shuttle part if it came
here by accident?” Derek said with menace and squeezed tighter.

   “Nowhere.” The doctor wailed. “Nothing comes in
here by accident. Everything is strictly controlled for security and sterility
purposes.”

   “Derek, you’re hurting him. Let him go.” Rora
implored.

   “He has to know where the command module is; we
need to make him tell us.” Derek snapped.

   “He obviously doesn’t know. I’m guessing he
hasn’t left this room for fifteen years.” Rora said calmly.

   “Fifteen years?” The doctor said in confusion as
Derek released him. “I’ve been down here fifteen years. Why didn’t anyone come
get me?”

   “They’re all dead.” Rora told him carefully. “The
city was struck by multiple nuclear warheads. Didn’t you notice everyone was
gone?”

   “I’m not allowed to leave the room.” Dr. Strahn
stated robotically. “We are under an Omega level lockdown. You do not leave
your room for any reason. You wait for security to come get you.”

   “What about the guard dogs we encountered? Are
they part of an Omega level lockdown?” Derek asked him.

   “Dogs? You mean my K-10 project?” The doctor
asked. “What are they doing running loose?”

   “Your project?” Rora asked, appalled. “You
created those monsters?”

   “Monsters? No, the K-10s are the next level in
guard dogs, silent killing machines capable of easily taking down a man. They
are an advancement of the species.” Dr. Strahn said paternally.

   “Are you also responsible for that armored
gorilla thing that I killed?” Derek questioned angrily.

   “GROD! You killed Grod?” The doctor screamed, his
voice going up several octaves.

   He suddenly lunged at Derek and tried to strangle
him, but the armor prevented him from having any effect. Derek just looked down
into the crazy eyes of the doctor and shook his head. This guy was totally
useless; he had lost his mind after being alone here for fifteen years. He must
have released the creatures at some point and then continued to feed them.
Derek looked around the room for anything that could help them. Pushing the
doctor aside, he began searching the lab for anything useful.

   “See if you can get anything out of him.” He
instructed Rora as he searched.

   There wasn’t much of use in the lab, but Derek
did grab a few odds and ends he thought might be useful. He shuffled through
the notes, but most of it was gibberish. He pocketed a few pages that might be
of interest to the Society and kept digging around. After examining the entire
lab and the attached bathroom, he was convinced there was nothing of value or
interest here. It was a total dead end.

   “Anything?” he asked Rora as he rejoined her and
the doctor.

   “Nothing.” She replied dejectedly. “He seems to
be telling the truth. The building locked down and he stayed in here and kept
working. He seems to know that everyone else is gone, but is afraid to go
confirm it. He did confirm that he let the dogs and the gorilla out when he ran
out of food for them.”

   “So what have they been eating?” Derek asked.

   “I’m assuming they ate the corpses of the other
researchers. There must have been other people in here with him at some point.”
Rora replied.

   “What did he eat?” Derek wondered.

   “You don’t want to know.” Rora told him with a
grossed out look on her face.

   “Any idea where the module actually is?” He asked
her.

   “The only place it could be is at the research
center at Langley Air Force Base where it was supposed to be.” Rora said.

   “So why send us on a wild goose chase?” Derek
asked, shaking his head in confusion.

   “A wild goose chase!” The doctor suddenly cackled
and rushed off into the lab.

   “I don’t know.” Rora replied, equally stumped.
“But let’s get out of here. This place gives me the creeps.”

   “Agreed. We need to head back, rendezvous with
the chopper, and regroup.” Derek said, nodding his head.

   “What about Doctor Crazy there?” Rora asked
gesturing into the lab.

   “Leave him.” Derek said coldly. “We don’t have
room on the LTATV.”

   Rora nodded and followed him out of the lab. She
directed them back towards the elevator. It was quick going since they weren’t
looking for anything. He saw no signs of the dogs, but the two dead bodies were
missing and there were bloody drag marks. They must be off eating the
carcasses. They were about the round the last corner before the airlock when he
heard a slight whooshing noise. He stopped dead and put out an arm to stop
Rora.

   When she looked at him to ask why he put a finger
to his facemask to indicate silence. Listening carefully he could hear the ever
so slight sound of boots scuffing on the concrete. Someone else was in the
facility and it sounded like they had come in from the outside. He dared a
quick glance around the corner and his fears were realized. There were men in
black BDUs, black body armor, and black ski masks swarming out of the airlock,
at least a dozen of them. They were heavily armed with M4 carbines with underslung
M203 grenade launchers.

   Their positioning and movement indicated they
were professionals and likely special operators. There were no insignia or
marking of any kind that would let him know who they were, but he had to assume
they were hostile. Pulling back around the corner he waved for Rora to move
quickly back the way they came. They had to get to a more defensible position.
There were too many gunmen in too small a space to mount a real defense.

   “Black ops guys are coming out of the elevator.”
He whispered as they moved.

   “Who are they?” Rora hissed back.

   “No idea, but I assume they are not friendly.”
Derek told her. “This is looking more like a trap than a wild goose chase.”

   “What do we do?” She asked quietly.

   “We need to find a hallway where they can only
come at us from one direction. Any  thoughts?” He replied calmly.

   She nodded and told him she had just the place.
They moved quickly through the hallways, taking advantage of the fact that Rora
had memorized the layout. They reached a junction where a small hallway led off
to the right of the main corridor and ended in a doorway. The main corridor
continued on for a short distance and ended in thick double doors. Derek led
Rora into the side corridor and started rifling through his gear.

   “What now? Aren’t we trapped?” She asked
worriedly.

   “I have a plan.” Derek assured her. “I will
create a distraction and then ambush them.”

   “There isn’t a gas tank you can blow up down here
and I’m not taking off my top. What’s your distraction?” She said
sarcastically.

  He held up two spray cans he had taken from the
lab and shook them slowly with a big grin on his face. “I took these from the
lab. They ought to create quite a stir.” He said gleefully.

   “What the heck are those?” She asked, curious.

   “The doc’s notes said they were a pheromone spray
to mark targets for the dogs. They go crazy and attack anything with the
pheromones on them.”

   “How are you planning on spraying the gunmen? I
don’t think they are going to let you walk right up to them.” Rora pressed.

   Derek didn’t answer. Instead he pulled out some
electrical tape he had pocketed and grabbed a flash bang grenade of his
harness. He swiftly taped the spray cans to the grenade, creating a makeshift
explosive dispersal system. He could see Rora smile through her faceplate and
she gave him a thumbs up. Now they just had to wait for the gunmen to show up.

   They didn’t wait long. The gunmen must have had
some way of tracking Derek and Rora because they were only a minute or so
behind. They approached carefully and maintained cover, making sure they had
the pair trapped. They made no attempt to communicate, convincing Derek that
they were indeed hostile. The pair of grenades that came bouncing towards them
made the final argument.

   Derek pushed Rora behind him and turned away from
the blasts. The suits absorbed the concussive blast and stopped all of the
shrapnel. Swinging back around quickly, Derek hurled the makeshift pheromone
dispersal device up the hallway into the attackers midst. They ducked back into
side corridors but were still caught in the blast. An almost imperceptible mist
clouded the area and covered most of the hostile gunmen.

   Derek pulled back around the corner and waited.
Every few seconds he would fire a burst from his carbine around the corner to
keep the attackers back. When the screams and wild gunfire started a few
minutes later, he knew it was time. He advanced around the corner, gun firing,
with Rora right behind him. The carnage they saw was unbelievable. Rora gasped
but stayed with him.

   Without the armored protection the suits had
provided Rora and Derek, the gunmen were at the mercy of the attack dogs. The
dogs were tearing into the black clad gunmen. They were helpless to stop the
savage attacks of the steel fanged canines. Derek and Rora emptied their clips
as they walked slowly forward and reloaded. They resumed firing and gunned down
the remainder of the preoccupied gunmen. The sound of the empty shell casings
striking the ground echoed through the hallways. It was almost a mercy as the
pair ended the gunmen’s suffering.

    The dogs bared their steel fangs and looked like
they might attack Derek and Rora, but a few bursts scattered them. They fled
dragging a few bodies with them. It was all over in a matter of minutes. There
were no survivors. Derek and Rora reloaded again and he signaled to wait. He
waited for a few minutes to see if any more hostiles would emerge but nothing
happened.

   Relaxing slightly he went to examine the remains.
Pulling of the mask of the closest gunmen Derek was truly startled. The man had
no face! Oh, he had skin where a face would be; but he also had a mouth with no
teeth, eyes with no color, a hole where the nose should be, and no ears. There
was no hair or any identifying features whatsoever. A blank slate if you will.
It was creepy to look at. Derek pulled the masks off the other heads and
discovered the same thing.