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Post by FC4 on Jun 11, 2008 2:18:59 GMT
I think it is time for me to post a fanfic on this site. Since I had started Cyber-Lycan a while back but never got very far with it, and am now picking it up, it should be easy for you all to get caught up. Here we go.
Prologue July 4, 2030 Tony sat on the old couch in front of the television, watching the firework display celebrating the birth of America. The college dorm around him was dark, the only light coming from the television. Tony dug his hand into the popcorn bowl on a small wooden table, and frowned when he found the bowl near empty except for un-popped kernels. He picked it up and went into the small kitchen, dropping the bowl on the counter before looking through the small cabinets for another bag.
"You keep eating popcorn like this and you'll end up fat, Tony."
"Lay off Katie. It's the Fourth; and nothing makes me fat." Tony replied, and he wasn't far from the truth.
The twenty-two year old college junior was a skinny man, nearly six feet tall and hardly weighing past 130 pounds. His lanky form was covered by a black T-shirt and pants. He fiddled with the black sweat-band on his wrist as he mumbled into the cabinet about the lack of popcorn, then looking at his watch. Tony's brown hair was mushroom cut neatly, never falling over his hazel eyes. His egg-shaped face and prominent nose wrinkled as he pulled out an old bag of half-eaten popcorn.
"Lovely..." He groaned, tossing it in the garbage can and continuing his search.
Katie leaned one jean-covered hip on the counter, arms folded over her dark gray T-shirt. Katie was shorter than Tony but thin for her height. However, her form was more rounded out, curved, and effeminate. She rolled her dark brown eyes as Tony continued his relentless search for edible popcorn. She fiddled with strands of her straight black hair that were not held in her pony tail, before sighing and turning to a cabinet above her. She adjusted her small glasses as she opened it.
"Looking for this?" Katie asked a minute later, and Tony emerged from the cabinet looking over to her curiously. She tossed the bag in the microwave and hit the button. Tony grinned as the popping began.
"What would I do without you?"
"I ask that question to myself often." Katie retorted mockingly and moved into the living room, sitting down and watching the fireworks.
Tony stayed with the popcorn like an obedient dog, the popping almost in time with the fireworks. Tony was spaced out, and didn't notice when the popping continued without the fireworks in the background.
When Tony came back into the small and messy living room with the bowl in his hands and filled, he found Katie starring at the television screen, one hand over her mouth and tears welling in her eyes.
Carefully, Tony set the bowl on the table and sat down next to her, touching her arm lightly.
"Katie?"
When she didn't reply he looked over to the screen, to see a news reporter talking at a desk while a small image of a building on fire played beside her head.
"The White Mesa Research Facility and Scientific Museum is still burning, and rescue personnel are hesitant to approach, unsure if the explosion that occurred but moments ago could occur again. So far, no survivors or bodies in the area have been found, and no one is certain what could have caused the sudden explosion. The President is calling-" Tony ignored the rest, not giving a damn what that woman was going to do. Probably send in the National Guard, without enough supplies, and then expect them to improvise or something.
"Katie..." Tony spoke up again, looking at her as she leaned on his shoulder. "Isn't that where your dad works?"
Katie shook her head and broke into sobs again.
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Post by Vrek on Jun 11, 2008 2:40:33 GMT
...Is this based off that one game of Werewolf?
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Post by FC4 on Jun 11, 2008 19:17:56 GMT
Did you lurk in my games, Vrek? Why yes, it is, in a way, though changes alot of the game plot. In fact, though it starts similarly, it takes on a very different plot progression. Though you might see a lot of cameos. Chapter 1: Infection July 11, 2030 One week after the White Mesa explosion “Survivors have been found within the wreckage, though they suffer third degree burns on almost all of their body. Since the discovery of the first on July 5th, a total of seven survivors have been found. The first survivor, Jeremy Mucolon, has so far continued a steady recovery. Other survivors found after him are making recoveries as well, though more recent ones are still suffering a grim prognosis. We will keep you updated as we learn more.”“Being vegetarian isn’t exactly natural Rebecca. People are supposed to eat meat.” Katie said into her cell phone, pacing around the small floor space of the dorm living room. The sun shined through the blinds of the window behind the television, revealing the mess of magazines, newspapers, binders, and dirty clothes that littered the living space. “Well, condoms are known to break if you don’t use them properly.” Katie admitted into the cell with a sigh, folding one arm over her chest and slouching in place. “Sam can’t even use a fork right. What makes you think a condom would be different?” Tony inquired from the couch skeptically, munching on a bag of tortilla chips since they had run out of popcorn. Crumbs were sprinkled about on one of many black shirts he liked to wear. This one featured a 90’s Mario jumping on a Halo series Grunt with the words ‘Owned’ on the back. He always found it funny. Katie glared at Tony, who simply shrugged and picked up one of the magazines on the floor, a Playstation six magazine. “How did that console even last this long anyways? Dad always said it was crap.” He mused to himself, warranting a ‘what the hell’ expression from Katie. “Listen, Rebecca, if you were pregnant you would likely be having morning sickness a few weeks from now, when you start to actually get pudgy. Try taking the test a few more times and if it is still negative you aren’t pregnant, alright? Bye.” Katie responded into the cell phone before removing it from her head, snapping it shut, and pocketing it. With a groan she sat on the couch next to Tony and held her face in her hands. “So she thinks she’s pregnant?” Tony asked idly, flipping through the magazine. “Yeah. She’s suddenly gotten this craving for meat, raw meat in particular.” Katie replied through her hands before lifting up her head and shaking her hair from her face. No longer bunched in a ponytail it fell freely to her shoulders. “Well, pregnancy can do that to ya. Mum told me she had unbelievable cravings to eat red paint when she had me. Dad had a hell of a time keeping her out of Home Depot.” Tony chuckled, and Katie simply gave him another ‘what the hell’ look from beneath her glasses, before shaking her head. “Your family is weird.” Both fell silent for a while, and Tony continued to flip through the magazine. “Sam isn’t feeling too well either.” Tony remarked out of the blue, knocking Katie from her thoughts, which had been dwelling on White Mesa. She looked over to him as if stunned. “He told me this morning on AIM. He’s got a high fever and aches everywhere. He signed off after saying he needed to cocoon himself in his sheets and it would be too hard to type.” “Rebecca feels similar… though not really as severe as you make Sam’s sound. Think something’s going around?” Katie asked, worry crossing over her face. Tony just shrugged and continued to munch on his chips.
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Post by Vrek on Jun 11, 2008 23:29:00 GMT
Actually, no. I remember reading the sign up thread thinking, 'Why not?', but decided I was too lazy to learn how the whole thing worked. And the only character I think I'd recognize would be the one based of that Half Life webcomic. Gordy Frohman, I think?
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Post by FC4 on Jun 12, 2008 12:31:19 GMT
Gordon Frohman, yeah. He won't make an appearance though. Chapter 2: QuarantineJuly 12th, 2030. “Beremun.” The professor called out, and the student rose his hand to indicate his presence –not like he wanted to be there to begin with- and the professor nodded, marking on his attendance. “Delonear.” The professor called out a few minutes after calling other names, and Tony raised his hand. The professor nodded and marked his paper, adjusting his large glasses as he did so, and then called out another name. “He skipped Rebecca…” Tony whispered to one of his friends, Jake, who sat right next to him. “In fact… He skipped Sam too…” “Yeah… I noticed a lot of the guys in Dorm D are not called out lately today. In a lot of my classes.” Jake replied, rubbing his temples like he had a headache. “Katie sent me a text saying the same thing…” Tony loved a good conspiracy, and this had all the makings of one. So his attention was caught. Normally, he wouldn’t give a damn if a professor skipped even his name on the roster. “Think something’s up?” “Did I miss anyone here?” The professor asked, his aging eyes staring at the class through his thick lenses. Jake raised his hand. “And you are?” “Jacob Simson.” Jake replied, and the professor’s face visibly paled. He looked down his sheet and marked it accordingly, but with a more shaky hand than before. Tony caught this small sign and frowned, putting his chin on his hand and leaning on his desk. Hazel eyes stared intensely at the professor. “Something’s not right…” He muttered as the statistics class began. For once, Tony seemed to be actually paying attention, but not to the course material. He was watching the professor. Jake groaned softly next to him, knocking Tony from his stare as he furrowed his brow at his friend. “What’s up with you?” “Hangover…” Jake mumbled back, shaking his head. “Brittany invited me over to the party at Dorm A last night.” Tony grinned, shaking his head. “Told ya to lay off the drinks-“ Tony paused, looking thoughtful. “You never made it back to your dorm did you?” Jake shook his head in reply. “Woke up this morning in the alley behind Dorm C.” “Did you try to go back to D, and see anything?” Tony asked quickly, still whispering. Jake narrowed his eyes. “What is this, twenty-questions?” He spat, but shook his head and answered anyways. “Yeah. There were police all around it. Yellow tape and everything. Think I mighta saw FBI on their backs. Why?” Tony simply grinned knowingly, and leaned back on his chair, folding his hands on his chest. “You, my friend, are about to be arrested.” He left it at that. And indeed, half way through the class they had a break, in which the professor rushed from the room. Jake was still trying to grasp what the hell Tony was talking about when five minutes later FBI agents entered the room. “Jacob Simson?” They called out, and Jake looked terrified as he stood up. He didn’t say a thing as the FBI took him into custody and removed him from the room. The entire time Tony was watching with uncharacteristic interest. He only really became observant and serious when something interested him. And this interested him. After classes ended in the afternoon, Tony went to his own dorm and tossed his book bag in the corner of the living room, before taking out his cell phone. “Katie? Yeah, it’s Tony. Get over here. We need to talk.” Tony didn’t explain further and simply closed the flip phone, setting it on the small table. Clapping his hands together and rubbing them, he moved into his bedroom with a sly grin on his face and sat before his HP desktop, turning it on. The Linux Penguin logo came up, followed shortly after by his desktop, and Tony cracked his knuckles and set to work. The door closed and Tony looked over his shoulder, smiling at Katie. “Felt like wearing a skirt today?” Tony asked, eying the black skirt with a cocked eyebrow. She didn’t typically wear skirts, but it went well with the black spaghetti strap she wore with it. And she also had her hair down, slightly curled. Something was up. “I had a few… plans.” She said with a slight purr, then giggled. “And I see you hadn’t changed since yesterday.” Tony simply shrugged. “It ain’t dirty. Why take it off?” Tony replied nonchalantly, and his computer beeped. He turned to it, began typing rapidly, and then turned back to her. “You talked with Beck today?” “You know she hates being called that.” Katie snapped back, sitting down on Tony’s messy bed. “And no I haven’t. You talk with Sam?” “Nope.” Tony replied flatly, spinning his chair around to face her. He put his hands behind his head and smiled knowingly. “But I talked with Jake. And what he told me might interest you.” The way he said this warranted a skeptical expression from Katie, who adjusted her small glasses. “Oh really?” “Yeah really. Professor Sterelini skipped Beck, Sam, and Jake in attendance today.” “Sterelini can’t remember the name for a pie chart half the time, what difference does that make?” Katie interrupted cynically, warranting a waiting finger from Tony. “Let me finish.” He lowered his hands to his knees. “Jake told me he was also forgotten in all his other classes, including Beck and Sam. And some of his other buddies from his dorm too. Jake went to a party with Brittany at Dorm A, and got hammered so bad he never made it back to his dorm before morning and woke up behind Dorm C.” The computer beeped again, and Tony swiveled around in his chair to type furiously. Katie rolled her eyes, knowing where this was going. “Are you on one of your conspiracy hunts again?” She asked with a sigh, leaning to one side propped up by her arm. “You could say that.” Tony replied, smiling widely now. He turned back to her again. “Jake told me he saw FBI agents outside Dorm D, with the caution tape and everything.” “He was drunk off his ass, Tony.” Katie snapped, but Tony let out an ‘ah’ and held up one finger, swiveling around to face his computer again, and then using that one finger to hit the enter key. “But we are about to find out how trustworthy our buzzed buddy can be.” Tony said gleefully. Katie perked up, getting off his bed and coming closer, leaning over his shoulder to look at the screen. “What are you doing?” She asked, squinting her eyes at the monitor. “Hacking into the university security camera system.” Tony replied as if such activity was as common as brushing teeth before bed. Or waking up in the morning, since he didn’t always brush his teeth regularly. Sometimes a college kid just forgets such things in the midst of school work. The screen divided into four separate screens, and each one flickered to life as the cameras responded. Katie looked away from the screen to glare at Tony, who simply shrugged. “I’m not an information technology major for nothing you know.” Katie simply sighed, shoulders sagging, and turned her attention back to the cameras. “Don’t they know there’s a camera there?” “Apparently not. And on that train of thought, I love how low cut your top is.” Tony remarked, prompting Katie to roll her eyes as Tony switched through the cameras. “Wait, stop!” Katie demanded, holding her hand out as if that would stop the screen from changing. Both looked at the four camera screens, Katie with a look of stunned disbelief, and Tony with a smile. On the security camera hooked to a street lamp facing the front entrance to Dormitory D, they gazed at the scene of a CSI style lockdown. The entire front entrance was caution taped and FBI agents with pistols at their sides stood guard. The other screens focused on the back entrance, and the two floors. The ones on the floors were static, but the back entrance looked similar to the front. “Katie, try and call Beck.” “Rebecca.” Katie corrected, but she was already pulling out her phone from its place, clipped on the hem of her skirt. She popped it open and put it to her ear. A minute later she repeated the action, and then set the phone down on the computer desk. “Can’t reach her.” “That’s what I thought.” Tony replied, staring at the screens. “D is under quarantine and we weren’t told. There is something they don’t want us to know.” Katie frowned, knowing the look on Tony’s face. “Don’t tell me you’re thinking what I think you’re thinking.” “Yeah, I’m thinking that alright.”
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Post by Tabasco on Jun 12, 2008 20:12:28 GMT
This is very good stuff! I was actually disappointed when I realized that there weren't any more posts than this. ;D Keep it up, man.
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Post by FC4 on Jun 13, 2008 1:29:32 GMT
Chapter 3: Discovery July 12th, 2030 Tony squat in the bushes, looking across the road to the Dormitory D entrance through the leaves. Two men with blue vests and yellow FBI on their chests stood there, their arms at their sides. Yellow caution tape blocked much of the entrance. Tony frowned, and Katie came up beside him.
“This is stupid, Tony!” She whispered. “These men are armed. They can kill you. It’s illegal, what we’re doing.”
Tony snickered, picking up a pebble in one hand. “So is hacking, but I do it and you don’t seem to care.”
“Hacking doesn’t get you killed!” Katie whispered fiercely into his ear, holding him back with his shoulder. Tony’s mouth tightened to a thin line, and he looked back over to the building.
“You’re right.” Tony sighed, setting the pebble on the ground, but not removing his hand from it. Suddenly, he tossed the pebble across the street, and as FBI gunshots rang out he bolted to the other side as they were turned towards the pebble noise. The gunfire stopped just after Tony had reached the bushes beside the dorm. Tony gave Katie thumbs up, and she rolled her eyes.
She picked up a pebble as well, and threw it. She barely managed to get to Tony, and when she did she was sweating with adrenaline on high. She had half a mind to wring that smile off his face, but this was hardly the situation for this. She sighed at the denied pleasure as Tony carefully popped open the window and slipped inside. She got in as well; silently thanking God they weren’t seen. She shut the window as softly as possible, wincing at the noise it caused. The soft thud rang out like a gunshot in the stillness of night.
Tony looked around the room, trying to figure out where he was. It wasn’t too hard to identify the room, but it was which type that remained a mystery. Until he found the stand up toilets in one corner, and heard Katie’s remark.
“Toilet paper on the floor. Must be the boy’s room.” She whispered, and Tony grinned.
“Welcome to the throne room of man kind’s reign.” Tony proclaimed, before opening the door. He stepped but one foot into the lobby before a click sounded in front of his face, and he stopped.
The FBI Agent held the pistol level with Tony’s face, and he could feel his glare from beneath the shaded lenses over the man’s eyes. Tony slowly raised his hands over his head, and Katie did the same behind him. The man grabbed Tony’s arm and forcibly drew him out of the bathroom and into the lobby, literally tossing him on a chair before another agent grabbed Katie and did the same.
“Ow! Hey! Watch it!” Katie snapped, being thrown unceremoniously into a chair. Both agents leveled their guns to the two.
“You have no authorization to be in here. Now that you have gotten in, you cannot leave either.” The man who had handled Tony told them, his tone flat and stony.
“Care to tell what’s going on? And what’ll be happening to us?” Tony asked, cocking his head to one side questioningly.
“First question; can’t. Second, you are going to remain in this building till the quarantine is terminated, and be monitored constantly. Now, no more questions. Find yourselves a room to sleep in.” The man told them.
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Post by FC4 on Jun 14, 2008 13:07:01 GMT
Chapter 4: Inflitration July 12th, 2030 “Tony.” Katie hissed at the bed below her, seeing a soft glow of monitor light from below. They were in a small dorm room, sleeping on a bunk bed. She had taken the top bunk, as Tony insisted on the lower bed. Now she knew he insisted so he could be closer to the power outlet.
He didn’t respond, and Katie took out her phone, just about to text him, before cursing and pocketing it again. The FBI had cut off access to the phone service; she couldn’t get a signal in here. Her dark brown eyes cast a weary glance at the door, the hall light seeping through the crack at the bottom of the door. She could see two shadowed blotches under that door; the feet of an FBI agent.
Tony was doing something, and she wanted to know what he was doing at near midnight. She thought for a moment, and then smiled. What did she do when she was younger, and wanted to talk with her friends in class without teachers noticing? With all the technology sensing cellular usage in the classroom, they went old fashioned.
And tossed notes at each other.
She moved off the bed and down the ladder as silently as she could, moving to the desk and slowly opening the drawer. She found white lined paper and a pen in the darkness, and moved over to Tony, writing a note by the light of his monitor.
What you doing? Tony paused in his work, turning his head to look at her. In the faint light of the laptop he had taken from the desk, she could see the headphones he wore. He read the note, raising one eyebrow, and scribbled on it.
Hackin He went back to the laptop after handing it to her, and she looked at what he was doing. Her knowledge of technology was minimal compared to Tony’s, but she could see the familiar hacking program he ran.
Why would some random laptop from this dorm room have your hacking programs?
The guy said pick a room, so I did Tony wrote back, and then smiled slyly. Katie understood immediately. And it explained the videogame posters on the walls.
Tony moved his fingers lightly over the keyboard, hitting each key with methodical slowness that made each tap a mere pit of sound, near silent. It made his work slower, but it meant big baddy in front of the door didn’t hear. He leaned towards the screen, frowning, and then smiling.
?
Apparently they forgot about the building security network flaws. Its low tech, so they likely aint taught about it in training anymore. They set up their own camera network, but left the original intact, probably thought it was worthless. Just needed a virus removed. Tony explained, handing the note back to her. Katie broke into a wide grin when she read it, and then looked at Tony’s screen.
She could see multiple monitor displays, of various halls in the dorm. All were in black and white and grainy, but she could make out the FBI in each hall. And in one screen was a man standing before a monitor.
Tony had the headphones, so only he could hear each screen. Though old technology, the cameras were installed in each dorm in 2013, when it became American law to install miniature microphones with all security cameras. It was in response to some ridiculous court case back in 2010. He didn’t care; he was just happy the idiot had gone to the Supreme Court and won the case. It made his job easier right now.
“But sir… The men are on edge. The gravity of the situation is getting to them. We can’t keep them in the dark on what we are facing. The lack of knowledge is making them nervous.” Said a voice that sounded like it belonged to an authority. He reasoned it was the figure standing before a monitor on his security camera screen. Then another voice came on, that sounded decidedly more in-charge.
“I was under the impression these men were PROFESSIONALS, able to handle any situation. And what do I hear? Two KIDS got past you into the damned building!” On the screen, the figure moved not an inch, but Tony imagined he was cringing. And that made him smile.
“In all fairness, sir, we are not trained to handle THESE things, precisely. And the fact we have not told them the enemy gives them a cautious anxiety. Are you sure we can’t-“
“GOD DAMMIT JAMONSON! You better not have told them a word! If they find out about it, it’s been leaked. White Mesa administrators are working with us and demand utmost secrecy. I’m willing to give it to them, as they created these damned things with their experiments. If anyone knows how to handle them, it’s these white-coats. Secrecy, Jamonson. That’s an order.”
Katie pointed at one of the screens, in which they were currently getting a close up of an FBI agent’s face. He lowered his shades, and looked into the camera, revealing himself as a Caucasian with dark eyes. The exact color was hard to tell on a black and white screen. Tony frowned deeply. They’d been found out. The agent put his shades back on, then reached up a hand and covered the screen. Static followed.
“[censored].” Tony whispered, motioning hastily for Katie to get to her bed, as he clicked closed his programs as quickly and silently as he could. He pressed the shut down and closed the laptop lid quickly, removing the headphones and tossing them under the bed, the laptop slipping in after.
Not a moment later an agent entered the room, and looked wordlessly to Katie and Tony, who were lying in bed lazily. They weren’t stupid enough to even try faking sleep. “Is it time for our midnight piss break?” Tony asked sarcastically, as if questioning the agent’s intent. The man looked at him, then at Katie, and then moved closer to Tony, kneeling down. Tony could see over the agent’s back that there was a second agent with his hand’s on his pistol. He was powerless as the agent looked under his bed, and pulled out a laptop.
The power light was still on.
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Post by Kleidium on Jun 15, 2008 11:39:08 GMT
Pretty sexy story so far. father. Good work.
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Post by FC4 on Jun 24, 2008 22:45:43 GMT
Chapter 5: Enlightenment; The Hard Way July 13th, 2030 Tony and Katie looked at each other, barely able to see in the dim light of the room they had been placed in. He could still tell she was wearing jeans and a dark t-shirt, having changed out of her special outfit before their exercise in infiltration. And he could still make out her form, which he eyed. Her glasses gleamed in the orange light as she looked back at him.
“I suppose imagining me in a bikini is a stress-reliever for you?” She inquired, and Tony grinned.
“Would you prefer I imagine you nude?” Tony replied, tilting his head to one side.
“I’m debating that at the moment.” She responded, her own mouth tugging into a grin. “You are an idiot, you know that?”
“No, the FBI are the idiots. They are the ones who forgot to check the laptops.” Tony replied factually, making Katie roll her eyes.
“This isn’t a movie, Tony. This is the real world. The FBI are highly trained men, but they are still men. Men make mistakes.” Katie scolded him, shaking her head. Tony snorted.
“Mistakes that can cost them their jobs.”
“That’s enough you two.” came a decidedly authoritative voice, belonging to a big man who now stood in the doorway. The orange light of the lamp glowed on him, but battled and lost supremacy with the glaring bright white light from the room the door connected to. In other words, the lights from the common room were brighter than that of the maintenance storage they had been thrown into. He was nothing but a silhouette.
“Now, I want to know what the hell you two are up to here.” The man snapped. Tony recognized the voice, and smiled.
“Well, Jamonson sir, we are simply trying to solve a mystery.” Tony replied, and Katie shot him a glance warning him to shut up.
The man produced the laptop, which was still on, and set it on Tony’s lap. “And this?”
“My old buddy’s laptop. Looks pretty innocent huh? I guess you folks were all athletes and bookworms in your college days.” Tony remarked, and the man frowned.
“We found no hacking programs on that laptop during our searches, so how in God’s name did you-“
“An old trick, deleting the program from the computer. The only way to access it again would be to take a backdoor route into the operating system and access the hard drive code directly. All programs leave a data footprint on a hard drive that cannot be wiped away. Access that and use it to restore the program, if the code is designed to do so.” Tony explained, cutting off the FBI Agent. “Guess they don’t teach that in FBI 101.”
Jamonson fell silent, picking up the laptop again and frowning. Finally, he looked back at them. “What are your majors?”
Both Katie and Tony looked up in surprise at this question, not certain on the relevance of the question to the situation. Tony’s shock became a grin, and Katie remained dazed. “Information Technologies and Computer Programming.”
“Biochemistry.” Katie responded, her major a little more on the shorter side than Tony’s. Jamonson raised one eyebrow at Katie, then turned and left, slamming the door behind him. They could hear grumbling from the other side, something about being bested by college kids.
All was silent for another minute or so, before they could hear shouting from the other room. “God damn you Jamonson! A bunch of college tailgater’s outsmarted your men?! Of all the-” The voice sounded electronic, as if coming through a speaker. It was cut off by more shouting and gunshots.
“Jamonson, I demand to know what is going on!” That voice snapped again. They could hear Jamonson stuttering to answer as more gunshots echoed from above their heads, prompting Tony and Katie to look up at the ceiling. A loud thud brought silence to the commotion.
“That doesn’t sound good.” Tony stated.
“Aw shit. All units on Floor 2 report to Hall 2. Target must be neutralized.” Katie paled, looking worriedly at Tony. Both of them knew why she was so pale. That was Rebecca’s floor, and hall.
“Target neutralized.” Came the radio report loud and clear, after the gunshots had faded away again. “Female, race and age uncertain.”
“What do you mean, ‘uncertain’? Surely you can tell-“ Jamonson replied, only to be cut off.
“She’s covered in dark fur, sir, like an animal, and her face doesn’t… look human.” Came the reply, the man sounding obviously unsettled. Katie and Tony exchanged worried looks. “What is she, sir?”
“JAMONSON!” Snapped the same voice from before, tone more demanding than ever.
“I don’t know.” They could hear Jamonson’s reply, barely, as his voice was soft with… fear? Neither of them was sure, but Katie was visibly shaken by what she heard alone. Tony managed to keep a straight face, trying to be the strong man in the face of danger. They had to get out of here. But how?
Katie jumped in her chair, the ropes tying her making the entire chair bounce with her, as more gunshots and feral growls rumbled above them. Tony silently cursed as the fighting above continued, and looked to Katie.
“Just remain calm, Katie. We’ll get out of this.” Tony said softly.
“How can we Tony?” She whispered back hysterically, and in the lamplight tears glistened on her face. “We’re hogtied in a maintenance closet. They’re going to kill us.”
“No, they aren’t going to kill us.”
“Tony, they are killing something up there. If they don’t, whatever is attacking them will.” Katie hissed back, still hysterical. Tony fell silent, looking at his lap.
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Post by FC4 on Jun 30, 2008 3:21:08 GMT
Chapter 6: Carnage July 13th, 2030 An orchestra of gunshots, screams, snarls, and slams. That was pretty much all the contact with the world past that wooden door that Tony and Katie received, and it didn’t make them feel even the slightest bit better. Neither of them spoke, or even looked at each other. They did nothing but look at the floor; though Tony was doing a lot of wiggling, as if trying to escape the restraints.
This went on for the span of five minutes before Katie had enough, and shot him a glare. “You’re not going to wiggle free, so stop making so much noise!” She hissed at him, trying to not make noise herself. She had calmed down a bit from her previous hysterics, but panic was still in her with obvious flare. Tony stopped moving, giving one final shrug of his shoulders as he looked back at her.
“It was worth a try.” He admitted to defeat, looking back at the door. Both of them jumped in their chairs when something thudded against that door, and gunshots rang very closely.
Blinding light greeted their eyes as the door swung open, the light only blocked by the figure of a man. Jamonson walked behind them, first untying Katie. She watched him the entire time with a mixture of gratitude, fear, and confusion. Tony narrowed his eyes and remained unmoving. When he was finished, Katie rubbed her wrists as Tony was freed.
“Why?” Katie stuttered, looking up to the FBI agent as he finished freeing her boyfriend. Jamonson looked at her and sighed, shoulders dropping.
“You obviously are not affected by whatever is going on. You need to get out of here. Off of this campus, out of this city.”
“And what is going on, might you be so kind to state?” Tony interrupted, raising one eyebrow at the man. He walked out of the room without another word, leaving Tony and Katie more confused than before. Tony shrugged and walked out of the room with Katie behind him. Both froze at the doorway and looked at the body in front of them.
They were silenced, numb; unable to cry or scream. Both of them trapped in a storm of conflicting feelings of fright, curiosity, and sorrow, they weren’t sure how to react. They didn’t even know what exactly they were supposed to be reacting to.
It was humanoid for certain, looking very much like a human. But the body was decidedly inhuman. There was hair growing in thin layers along its skin, but not on the face. The face was also very unnatural; the nose looked longer than normal, and seemed more dog-like. In fact, it could very well have been called a small snout, with a nice set of fangs and a tongue hanging limp from its mouth.
“Someone’s been working out.” Tony remarked offhandedly if only to break the silence, after noting the body was very muscular. More muscular than expected of someone who dressed like a nerd, in a button down shirt and pants. Both of which were blood stained now thanks to the multiple shots to the chest. Tony stepped over the body while Katie bent down, looking at it closer.
“So, James, what’s the low-down? Who’d you shoot?” Tony asked, coming up beside the Agent as they both came to the monitors. However, it was Katie who answered, and when she did it made Tony gasp. It was his turn to freak out, though he did it in a calmer manner than she had.
She held the thing’s hand, looking at the long fingers and pointed fingernails as she answered the question. “It’s Sam.”
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Post by Vrek on Jun 30, 2008 5:47:36 GMT
Zo-my-gawd, plot twist! Maybe. ...Lil' bit.
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Post by FC4 on Jul 3, 2008 2:30:01 GMT
Chapter 7: Mercy Kill July 13th, 2030 “How… It can’t be.” Tony muttered, looking away from Katie sharply, staring at the ground.
“Tony… He’s wearing an engagement ring. Sam’s engagement ring.” Katie remarked softly, still holding the mutated hand. The fingers had swollen, and the ring was constricting the now larger digit, which had taken on a purple tinge. It was a golden ring with an inset emerald. Tony refused to look up, but his fists tightened.
A crash in the hall beyond made all three turn towards the entryway, and Jamonson clicked the safety off his pistol, holding it in front of him. Looking back to Tony and Katie, he moved towards the hallway.
“Get out of here.” He told them, before entering the hallway and raising his handgun in the direction of the crash. Nothing happened, and Tony stood there blinking. Katie turned her head to watch, rising to her feet. Jamonson moved down the hall and out of sight as she came up to Tony, putting her hand in his.
“What are we going to tell Rebecca?” She whispered, looking at Tony worriedly. Tony remained quite, unable to think up a proper response. That thing… it can’t be Sam, it can’t be! What’s going on here?
His answer was gunshots coming from the hallway, followed by Jamonson crying out. With a thud the FBI Agent hit the doorframe, his gun clattering away from him. Blood drizzled from his mouth, and from five lengthy gouges in his bulletproof vest.
“Maybe we should… follow his advice.” Tony grimaced, backing away from the body and dragging Katie with him. She was staring at Jamonson as she nodded. In the hallway a shadow quickly grew in size, and a scraping noise rose, like rats skittering over a floor. Tony wanted to turn and run, but something kept him in the room. A morbid desire, perhaps, to find out just what he was fleeing from.
Tony was not renowned for his survival instinct.
A humanoid figure reached the doorway and turned to look into the room, giving them a glimpse of the face. It was a monstrosity from a nightmare of a late-night movie-goer, if anything at all. Rounded and smoothed like a woman’s, that was about as close as it got to natural. The nose was outgrown; taking on a twisted pig-like form as it joined the jaw in a lengthened snout sporting teeth that from afar looked human. But the incisors were far too long.
And the body was covered in short red fur, matching the massive curled bush of red hair atop the beast’s head. Green eyes glared hatefully at them as it gripped the doorframe with lanky, long-nailed fingers. It seemed to be in pain, almost, as it stumbled into the room.
They continued to watch in frozen horror as the thin figure began to grow a little larger, muscles becoming more noticeable. And beginning to strain the buttons of her shirt. Based on the chest size it could only be a she. She clawed at the floor, crying out in muddled yelps, barks, and what might have been words, before falling eerily still. The nails were far thicker than before, more like talons now.
“Is it… dead?” Tony asked no one in particular, even though Katie was the only one capable of speaking to him anyways.
“I… I don’t know.” Katie replied, releasing his hand to move towards the body. She knelt down and looked over the once-woman-now-thing. “T-Tony. Tony!”
“What?!” He snapped back, rushing to her when she raised her voice. Katie looked near tears as she pointed at the monstrosity’s hand, which was constricted by a golden band with a single small emerald.
“It’s Rebecca.”
Barely had she said these words when she wailed literally into Tony’s ear, making him jump back in surprise. Rebecca had lashed out without warning, wrapping one clawed hand around Katie’s calf. Those claws began to mercilessly dig themselves into Katie’s leg, blood seeping out as she screamed and kicked helplessly.
Tony rushed forward, pulling back his foot before kicking out at Rebecca’s head. The shoe made contact, and that was about it. Her head jolted back, but she did not let go of Katie. In fact, she actually clamped her newfound fangs into his foot, her incisors digging through the manufactured leather and into his toes.
“AH GAWD!” Tony growled, gritting his teeth as she began to shake her head and tear at his foot. He flailed his arms wildly and felt something cold and metallic, wrapping his finger quickly around it.
The gun! It was like a gift from God, if there was one, and Tony pulled it towards him, wrapping his other hand around the handle proper. Rebecca continued to snarl like a dog and thrash, now ripping at Katie’s leg as she struggled. Tony turned himself around and aimed the gun.
“Get off you bitch!” Tony hollered as he opened fire, emptying the semi-automatic into her face. By the time his foot stopped moving against his will, there wasn’t much left of Rebecca above the cheeks that was in any recognizable condition. Tony continued to pull the trigger, but only clicks responded. Finally, he stopped.
Both of them were panting, trying to catch their breath. Tony dropped the gun to the ground and rolled onto his buttocks before scooting himself over to Katie. The woman was sobbing, tears rolling under her glasses and down her cheeks. Wrapping his arms around her, Tony guided her head onto his shoulder where it rested as she continued to weep.
They held that pose for a time, before Tony realized they had to treat their wounds and move on. Slipping his arms off her, he approached the now prone form that had once been Rebecca -now a hairy abomination- and ripped the shirt off. He didn’t care if he saw Rebecca’s breasts; he’d seen her bare at a block party two years back. The same party he had met Katie in, actually.
Besides, this thing didn’t even have breasts. It had hairy mounds with nipples. Disgusted, Tony ripped the sleeves off the shirt and began to tear it into wide strips. “We have to get out of here, Katie. We’ve got to stop your bleeding first, and get ammo from Jamonson’s corpse.” He told her as he began to wrap the shirt around her leg and tie it.
“We are going to die, aren’t we?” Katie asked, sounding dazed. The decent pool of blood on the floor might have been a reason for her current state, which made Tony only curse under his breath even more fluently.
“Not if I have anything to say about it.” He barked, tightening the strip. Katie cried out, before lashing out at his head with an open palm.
“Not that tight! I don’t need a tourniquet!”
“Well, now that you are fully aware of the world, you do it to my foot when I’m done.” He told her, wrapping a second strip onto her leg beneath the first. “And tell me how to reload that thing. I know it’s got to be more complicated than pressing a button.”
Katie sighed as he tied her leg up, and leaned over to pick up the handgun. It looked like one of the old M9’s, though it was much more powerful and accurate, a more compact and lightweight metal, and more user friendly. Katie clicked a switch on the side of the gun, and the empty cartridge fell to the floor. She waved the empty gun in the air and raised her eyebrows at Tony, who rolled his.
“Figures.”
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Post by Simmo33 on Jul 10, 2008 19:26:02 GMT
I just read all of the posts in the last quite-a-few minutes. Brilliant! I can't wait to read more.
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Post by FC4 on Jul 14, 2008 17:18:45 GMT
Chapter 8: Slow Retreat July 13th, 2030 Morning had already come as Tony and Katie limped from the Dormitory building, her leg wrapped and his shoe covered. They were holding each other up with their own shoulders, and Katie was holding the reloaded handgun at her side. Both of them looked undeniably tired, but raised their heads as one to gaze at the world before them.
It was empty. The courtyard of meticulously cut grass was void of the usual morning commuters, and the small streets were unoccupied by bikers and cars alike. Worriedly, the two stumbled down the steps and past the unattended FBI vehicles. They must have gone inside and died to whatever was in there.
“Hmm… Think they all have hangovers?” Tony asked softly, turning his head to Katie. She cocked hers to one side in annoyance, glaring at Tony.
“I highly doubt it.” She scowled back, before looking down the streets again. “But it would be better than the other possibility.”
“Let’s not think on that one.” Tony told her quickly, beginning to limp towards the courtyard, across from which was Dorm B; their home. Katie reluctantly followed, her finger hovering on the trigger guard of the gun. Only birds chirped as the moved across to their dorm building, adding their beautiful songs to the ghost-scene and to the ominous feel, rather than countering it.
Tony fumbled through his pants to find his wallet and pull out the card key, swiping it. A light blinked green and Tony opened the door into the first floor stairwell. There was a dorm entrance, but Tony never used it. He always took the back way.
Together the couple shambled their way up the stairs, ignoring the pain in their legs. They passed only one person in their trek to the third floor, a man leaning on the rail and rubbing his temples. Tony asked no questions and pulled Katie along to their floor. Swiping the card and entering the hall they made haste to Tony’s room.
Tony finally broke the silence between them when he closed and locked the door to his room. “We have to get out of here. I have a feeling that man did not have a hangover. We’ll grab stuff for me first then go up to your room and get your stuff.” Tony told her, tossing his schoolbag on the coffee table and dumping it of its contents, which were some books and notebooks but mostly magazines. Taking the emptied bag he went in his room and began to rummage through things.
Katie moved into the kitchen and began to sort through the cabinets, looking for something edible within Tony’s stores; which weren’t much. She tossed an assortment of ripe fruit into a plastic bag along with boxes of poptarts and travel cereal. Wincing as she accidentally put weight on her leg, she moved to the couch and sat down as Tony continued his activities. The gun clunked to the table over a Statistics textbook and she leaned into the cushions, closing her eyes.
Rebecca was dead… dead by Tony’s hands. All of Dorm D was dead, or had changed into that strange haired thing; something that wanted to kill. Rebecca had been trying to kill them. Katie opened her eyes and looked at the wounded leg, her lip quivering.
How many? She wondered as Tony emerged from his room with his pack over his back. He took one look at her and moved to sit next to her, putting one hand on her knee. “Are you alright?” He whispered, worry in his hazel eyes. She cast him a soft smile and brushed his cheek with her hand.
“Yeah, I was just thinking.” She sighed, though Tony’s concern made her feel better. His concern gave her a reminder of why they had still been together after that wild party six months ago. Why she loved him regardless.
That, and the fact he was so cute. “Yeah, well don’t think about whatever you were thinking of. I don’t like that look on your face.” He told her, picking up the gun from the table and placing it in the pocket of his leather jacket he now wore. “Come on.”
Tony seemed tenser as they moved to the fourth floor and Katie pulled out her own card. He visibly reached for the gun when the door was opened even though the hall was desolate, and his eyes were wary all the way to her room. He only seemed to relax once he was in Katie’s room and the door was locked.
Katie’s room was a polar opposite of Tony’s in nearly every way. She didn’t even have a couch, only a chair before a small television. Everything was clean and orderly, with Victoria’s Secret magazines and a bunch of other make-up/fashion journals stacked against one wall, and her textbooks against another wall. All the space on her floor was used for yoga exercises.
Katie used her walls as supports as she moved into her room and dumped her own bag over her bed, before rummaging through her things. Tony took on her role as food-gatherer, rummaging through her cabinets. What he found was also unlike his home; there was a large store of food that could be consumed by human beings!
“How come you never invited me over for dinner?” Tony asked aloud as he pulled out a few cans of vegetables and pastas from her cabinet, picking through them.
“Because I know I can’t possibly feed your appetite with healthy food alone.” Katie replied from her room. Tony grinned, understanding her immediately.
There wasn’t a speck of junk food to be found in this kitchen. Tony finally gave in and tossed a can of each vegetable type into a plastic bag, followed by some ravioli and soup cans.
“I see it takes an impossible crisis to get you to eat healthy.” Katie remarked from behind him, making Tony turn sharply and almost reach for the gun. He stopped himself though and simply grinned like a child caught with a hand in the cookie jar. “Well, I’m ready to leave when you are.” She told him, lifting her bag onto her shoulders. She had changed, like Tony, for travel. Her jeans were now kaki pants, and her shirt was now a clean cameo t-shirt with ‘You can’t see me’ printed in white over her bust. Her black hair had been done up once more in a ponytail to keep it out of her face. And over her shirt she wore a leather jacket matching Tony’s, though hers was shorter so it came to her belly button rather than her waist.
They were a Christmas gift from Rebecca and Sam, but they had never really found a reason to use them. Now they did. Tony grinned at her jacket and slung the food bag over his shoulder, before taking her hand and together moving for the door. He opened it, pulling it towards him and looking into the hall.
Not a moment later he withdrew his head and dived onto Katie, the door slamming behind him as they hit the ground. A roar filled their ears and heat washed over them.
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