The Cross of Mithras Vol. 1: EOD Operation Welcome to Hell (81 page)

  Vosler couldn’t believe that an ultra secure place such as that would have such inferior security. It reminded him of the hubris of High Command and just how expendable the EOD treats its military units. He was able to download the information contained in the computers with no trouble. After he finished downloading the information to his PDA they left and headed downstairs. They went down five flights of stairs to the room with all of those scientists.

  “Vosler… what are you doing here?” Eberhart asked him.

  “Both Project 21 and Space Core have found us. Right now they are attacking some of our ships in orbit. Time is critical. Our orders from High Command is to make certain that all the scientists here, leave immediately. We also have orders to provide assistance for your security.” Vosler responded. It had an immediate effect.

  Eberhart ran to inform Bondsteel of what Vosler said. Vosler heard someone yelled, “What!? No way no fuckin’ way!” Bondsteel came in to talk to Vosler while Eberhart ran to tell the other scientists who came in to here what Vosler had to say.

  “Like I told him, time is critical. You have to leave right now.” Vosler informed them.

  “I need to contact High Command.” Bondsteel said.

  Bondsteel, unsuccessfully, tried several times to send a message to High Command. Vosler knew that Esters, from his ship, was blocking all transmission from the moon. Bondsteel had no way of knowing who was blocking the signal, so he believed what Vosler was telling them.

  “How in the hell did they find us!?” Bondsteel yelled out of frustration.

  “I don’t know sir, but I’m certain that High Command would know. Sir, you need to leave and board the drop-ship at the laboratory. We have a ship in orbit ready to take each of you to a safe place. Time is critical. If you don’t leave now there is the possibility that the ship might get destroyed.” Vosler said in a understanding tone of voice.

  “Alright.” Bondsteel responded.

  “Do you have someone who can pilot that drop-ship?”

  “I can.” Dolores R. Greene said out loud.

  “Alright, you guys can leave and we’ll stay. The passageway to the drop-ship is safe.” Vosler said.

  “I need to activate the auto-guns.” Eberhart said. He went to a computer console and activated the guns. The guns will not target any EOD personnel. Vosler didn’t know it at the time but Eberhart saved his life when he activated those guns.

  The scientists then left and headed to the drop-ship. And just like Shannon said, when Dawson shot those hoses just like she instructed him to, the drop-ship crashed into the gravity lift destroying it. Shannon left and headed back to Conference Room, she didn’t feel like waiting for Vosler to return. When Shannon got to the Conference Room for some reason she felt sick. After a few moments she felt horrible about something but she didn’t know what it could be over. She was absolutely certain that it has nothing to do with the deaths of those scientists. Then she realize that it has something to do with her past. And now she understands why it is best for her to forget her past.

  After the scientists left Vosler and his team went down five flights of stairs to where the security was. As before the door had a glass window on it. Vosler looked in and saw three security guards. He then went inside and introduced himself. Vosler had one of the guards leave and tell the others what he said. After that guard left Vosler motion for one of his teammates to shoot one of the guards. Both Vosler and his teammate pulled out a pistol with a silencer and shot both of the guards in the back of the head. Vosler then saw on the video monitor that five security guards were coming (along with the one who left). He then had two of his men drag the two corpses out. Vosler and the rest of his team moved into a defensive position and waited for the guards to come in. When the guards came in Vosler told them to leave and do what they need to do here before all of them must leave. As the guards were leaving Vosler and his team shot all of them dead. Because they used their rifles they had no other choice but to rush the rest of the guards. But when they got into the room there was only two guards. They shot and killed one of them but the other one ran to a computer console.

  “See you in hell.” The guard said after he pushed a button.

  “You first.” Vosler said. He then shot the guard in the back of the head.

  “What the hell are you doing!? You fucking idiot! You just killed us all!” The male voice screamed through the intercom.

  Vosler could hear through the intercom that the rest of the guards were using their Electros. From the sound of it, it sounded like they were firing wildly at something. Whatever it was sounded like some type of an animal. Vosler and his team then heard the guards screaming and then there was silence. It had a chilling effect upon them. But they had to go and take a look. They had to destroy whatever the EOD was working upon.

  Vosler and his team left and headed downstairs. When they got at the bottom of the stairwell they saw two auto-guns pointed at the entrance of a metal door. After they went inside the room they saw that it was a huge cloning facility. From the looks of it, it appeared that the facility could make an army of clones. Each of the clones was in varying stages of development. All of the clones shared one thing in common: whatever the clones were they were huge, roughly nine-to-ten feet in height. As Vosler and his team went deeper into the facility off-and-on they would hear something. There was someone or some thing in the room with them. Then they realized that whatever it was there was more than one of them. What scared them the most is that they could tell that they are surrounded. When they passed the cloning vats they came across a section of cages. Each of the cages where big enough to hold whatever was being created. There was also trucks that could extract the cages and transport them. Vosler could also see a large elevator for transporting the trucks to the surface and from the looks of it, it appeared to come up near the gravity lift. He also saw a map of the facility.

  “Which one of you are alpha male?” The strange computerized male voice said. Vosler could not tell from where it came from.

  “I am!” Vosler said out loud.

  “Since you let us out… you saved for me.” The computerized male voice said.

  “Who are you!?” Vosler said.

  “They call I alpha male.”

  “What are you!?”

  “They call us Demon Xs. Are you scared?”

  “Should I be!?”

  “You will be.” The alpha male said. He then let out an eerie howl/growl.

  Vosler was no idiot nor some mindless gung-ho hell-bent on leather soldier, he knew what to do. He yelled out “Retreat!” at the top of his lungs. As all of them were running as fast as they could out of the facility, one of Vosler men was jumped at from the side by a Demon X. The Demon X was on top of the soldier eating him. As Vosler came near, the Demon X looked up at him and growled, Vosler then shot the Demon X in the head three times killing it. Vosler, surrounded, looked around only to see that the Demon Xs were ignoring him. He then turned around and saw the alpha male and what appeared to be the alpha female (both had cybernetic implants) standing several feet behind him looking at him. It was like they were saying, ‘Thank you for letting us out of our place of torment.’

  When Vosler got near the exit he saw that one of his female personnel was standing there providing cover fire for every one. As Vosler got a few feet from her he saw a big black shape come from his left side. When Vosler passed her he heard her scream. She was still screaming when he got out the door. He ran up the stairs with the rest of his men not far behind him. Before they got up the first flight of stairs they could hear the auto-guns shoot constantly. As soon as they went up six more flights of stairs they heard those guns no more.

  “Move you sons-of-bitches! Move!” Vosler yelled at the rest of his team.

  Everyone was running on pure adrenaline and fear. They could hear the auto-guns up above shoot at the Demon Xs. Off-and-on they could see out of the corner of their right eye a Demon X climbing up the side of the opening in the stairwell. The Demon Xs was ignoring them and going for those auto-guns. When they got up twenty more flights of stairs they heard those guns no more. It was far more likely that those guns just ran out of ammo. From that point forward anyone with a hand grenade took them and blindly threw them over the edge of the railing.  The rest took their rifles and pointed them downward over the railing and started to shoot at the same time they were running up. Off-and-on a Demon X came up from behind (a few came from up above than no more) on the stairs. Five of Vosler men never made it. They would hear a Demon X coming up from behind them, they turn and started to shoot, and was either overrun or turn to run back up the stairs after they kill the Demon X, only to die. Vosler made it up to the hallway that led to the crater with only five of his teammates, including both Viper and Corporal Harris.

  The last several flights of stairs was the most difficult for them. They were physically exhausted and fatigue from running up all of those stairs. When they were halfway through the corridor the auto-guns started to shoot, they stopped when Vosler and his team was several feet outside. Dawson was shooting any Demon Xs that came out of the door, but there was too many of them. Vosler and the rest of his team was so tired that off-and-on one of them would fall out of exhaustion. And then it happened, the elevator door for those trucks came up with Demon Xs. Dawson was too focused on the entrance to the underground cloning facility to noticed that the Demon Xs where coming up from the elevator. Vosler, his team, and Durante, was shooting at the Demon Xs that were coming from the elevator.

  “I’m out!” Dawson yelled. He then took his rifle and starting to shoot at the Demon Xs.

  Both Durante and Dawson kept on shooting after Vosler and his team got into the building. They kept on shooting up until and a little afterward, Vosler who was out of breath, said that they made it into the elevator. Durante ran to the Conference Room to get Shannon while Dawson ran to the elevator. The elevator with Vosler and his team in it got to the floor before Durante and Shannon got there. Dawson, standing in the doorway of the elevator, asked Vosler what were those things and Vosler told him. As soon as Durante and Shannon got there they all left the building.

  “Sir, there are two more gravity lifts out there. Both of them have a elevator for trucks. And sir, they go down to that underground cloning facility.” Vosler said when they got to the bridge.

  “Oh shit. Alright understood. Let’s hurry it up and get out of here.” Durante responded.

  Durante, Shannon, Dawson, Vosler and Corporal Harris got into one truck, with Dawson driving, and the other four got into another truck. Their trip back to their base was a perilous journey with Demon Xs either jumping at their vehicle or charging at them. Whenever a Demon X would charge at them whoever could would shoot at  them. Twice a Demon X managed to jumped on top of the truck with Durante in it. Those two Demon Xs was able to rip off the roof of the truck. It only made it easier for everyone in the truck to shoot at the Demon Xs. When the truck with Viper in it got near the natural rock bridge a Demon X jumped down from the bridge and landed on the hood of the truck causing it to flip end over end. Dawson narrowly avoid hitting it but he couldn’t slow down. When they got several yards from the wreck vehicle they heard the truck explode. Somebody in the truck must have survived and found a hand grenade in the truck and then used it.

  When they got back to the y shaped crossroad, instead of taking the route Durante had Dawson go straight over the rocky embankment. As they approached their base Vosler called the Security Station and had them activate the outer defenses. Durante ordered them to board a drop-ship and leave without delay. Shannon mentioned that before they leave they need to prepare a drop-ship for departure for them. As soon as they got into the base some of the Demon Xs made it into the base but was cut down by the gun emplacements. Nobody watched as the Demon Xs jumped at the electric fence until a gap opened up in it. By the time they got to the drop-ship they could hear the gun emplacements shooting until they too were overpowered and destroyed by the Demon Xs.

  “What are you doing?” Durante asked Shannon.

  Shannon was piloting the drop-ship with Durante in the passenger seat. She was hovering the drop-ship thirty feet above the ground. Demon Xs were all over the ground trying to jump at their drop-ship but it was too high. Some of them would jump off a drop-ship on the ground and come within inches of their drop-ship. But still Shannon wouldn’t budge. It was starting to unnerve everyone. Shannon was constantly looking at each of the monitors viewing the actions of the Demon Xs.

  “Put on your straps NOW!” Shannon said in a demanding tone of voice.

  “Why?” Corporal Harris said.

  “Just do it!” Shannon snapped back. With that everyone put on their safety harnesses.

  Shannon then rotated the drop-ship to the vertical (very dangerous for a ship about to take off), took off and went 400 feet up. Still watching the actions of the Demon Xs, she then dropped two of the fuel tanks (extremely dangerous), whipped the ship 180 degrees bringing the nose down, shot the fuel tanks before they hit the ground, did another 180 and blasted off into space like a rocket. When Shannon shot the fuel tanks they were only a few feet from the ground. The explosions from the tanks destroyed the rest of the drop-ships and in return killed all of the Demon Xs that was there. (Both the alpha male and the alpha female went into a nearby building when all the Demon Xs were jumping at the ship before Shannon took it up 400 feet.)