Chapter 10 #2
“I don’t think she was alive.” Nera was watching the other bodies with a hawk’s gaze.
“It must be some sort of infection,” Nik pondered.
The thud of running footsteps sounded and Galen and his team, as well as Gunn and Solomon, poured into the room.
“Holy shit,” Gunn muttered.
One uniformed woman hustled over and knelt by Datarr. She had a green cross on her sleeve and a med-kit on her back. She cut the remnants of his boot off and got to work.
Galen studied his dead team members with a grim face. If he felt anything, he didn’t let it show. “What the hell happened?”
“Agent Lambert…came back to life and attacked Datarr.”
“We need to destroy the bodies,” Nera said.
Avril nodded. “I agree with Darc.”
The medic hissed out a breath. “Sir? Ma’am?”
They all turned and Nik got a look at the man’s injured leg.
Uh oh. The agent was clearly part-aquatic, obvious from his large eyes and the pale blue tint to his skin.
There were bloody claw marks at his ankle, but that wasn’t the problem.
The problem was the black, sludge-like substance they could see under the man’s blue skin, working its way up his veins.
“What the hell?” Datarr’s face was sheened with sweat. “Get it out. Please! Get it out.”
The medic lifted a medscope. “I’ve already tried the medscope…it had no effect. I’ll give you an antibiotic, but I think we need to get you back to the ship and into the medbay.”
He gave a jerky nod, then he stiffened like he’d been hit by an electrical shock.
Galen frowned. “Datarr?”
Suddenly Datarr swung out. He backhanded the medic and she fell to the floor with a sharp cry. Another agent, a tall, brawny man who towered over Datarr, dived at him.
Datarr’s hand shot out and he grabbed the other agent around the neck and lifted him an inch off the ground.
Fuck. Nik took a step back and raised his pistol.
Datarr pulled the struggling guard closer and made a noise. A growl.
He turned and they all saw that his wide eyes were changing, blackness leaking into them.
“God, what the fuck?” Galen stared, his gun aimed at his agent.
Suddenly, Nera flew forward and jumped into the air, her sword glinting above her head. One quick, controlled swing of her blade and Datarr’s head was removed from his body. It hit the floor and rolled, and his body collapsed.
The tall agent stumbled backward, his gaze horrified. The medic got to her feet, shaking a little.
Nera straightened. Black blood ran down her sword. “I suggest you check they aren’t infected, then have your team decapitate the rest of the bodies before they also decide to feast on our insides.”
Galen gave Nera a hard stare, then he turned with a jerk and nodded to his team. “Do as she says.”
“Zombies.” Avril held a closed fist pressed to her chest, her eyes as wide as moons. “They’re zombies.”
Niklas frowned. It was an old Earth term for reanimated corpses that rose from the dead with a hunger for flesh.
He suspected there was a scientific reason for this.
Most likely a virus, no doubt mutated by radiation.
Reanimation of corpses was abhorred throughout the galaxy, but it did happen.
Zayn and Ria knew that better than anybody.
He looked at the bodies littering the ground.
Still, this was something far, far worse than recycling bodies.
“I suggest we get back to the ship and recall the other team as well,” Galen said. “Until we have a better handle on this situation.”
Gunn snorted. “I am out of here.”
Avril cast one wistful glance at the artifacts, then nodded at Galen. “Do it.”
After the gruesome task of decapitating the bodies was carried out, the group moved out together.
“It seems wrong to leave them here,” Avril said.
“We can’t risk any contamination on the ship.” Galen’s tone was as hard as stone.
They kept moving and everyone had their weapons drawn. Nik stayed close to Nera. She held her sword in a relaxed grip but was watchful. He was pleased to see Jonas move in beside them, a laser pistol in his hand.
“Okay, Jonas?” Nik asked.
The younger man nodded. “Wasn’t expecting zombies, though.”
“None of us were. Good job on the Olmec head and the skull.”
Jonas flicked a glance his way. “It’s a good start. Sun Stone tops it though.”
Nik hid a grin. “We’re all sharing the pay at the end.”
“It’s not about the e-creds. I want the recognition.”
“You’re young. You’ll get it. It just takes time.”
“I don’t have time.” Jonas stepped out into the lobby, leaving Nik wondering what the kid was so desperate to prove. And to whom.
Overhead, beautiful golden rays of sunlight filtered through the dome casting bright stripes over the floor.
“The other team is coming from the Special Exhibitions Hall. They’ll be here in a moment.” Avril sighed. “I didn’t want things to turn out like this.”
Nik felt a pang of sympathy for her. He’d once lost a young trainee astro-archeologist on what should have been an easy, safe dig.
It had been a horrible experience. He opened his mouth, planning to offer something sympathetic, but just then Nera stiffened, and his attention zeroed in on her.
She was staring at the collapsed eastern wing, her head tilted slightly.
“What is it?” he asked.
“Something…” Nebula eyes met his. “Something’s coming.”
Damn, her hearing was good. He lifted his laser pistol. “Avril? Galen? Something’s heading this way. Eastern wing corridor.”
The agent frowned. “I don’t hear—”
The first of them shambled out of the doorway and into the lobby. It was moving faster than Nik would have thought possible, with an uneven gait, like it no longer had full control of its muscles. Despite the mottled skin and gaping mouth, it was clear that it had definitely once been a man.
A part of Nik had initially hoped that whatever had attacked and killed the team had been some sort of mutated animal, like the mutant cat he and Nera had fought.
But as more zombies flowed into the lobby, he knew he’d been wrong.
Some humans had clearly survived the nuclear bombs of the Great Terran war…and over time had become something else.
Laser pistols whined, green laser fire filling the room. Nik aimed and pulled the trigger. He saw even more of them pouring out of the eastern wing. Dammit. There were too many of them. He was vaguely aware of the other security team arriving, adding their weapons to the fight.
Zombies fell, but more kept coming. Nik heard the sound of a blade swishing through the air and looked to his left.
Nera was leaping and twirling, her sword swinging in dangerous arcs.
Heads were lopped off, and zombie limbs hit the ground.
She had a focused look on her face—no horror, no strain, just focus.
But he knew even she couldn’t keep this up forever.
They kept fighting. Some of the Institute agents were shouting. He saw one get pulled into the horde of zombies.
“Get him!” Galen yelled. “Concentrate fire around Mahmood.”
The creatures scrambled over each other to get to their prize. The agent’s screams were abruptly cut off.
Nik shot another zombie in the head. Suddenly, something slapped against his chest, splattering black blood over his armor. He saw a severed zombie arm drop to the floor.
He spun…and saw Gunn grinning at him. The treasure hunter tossed another zombie body part in Nik’s direction. Several hungry zombies raced after the trail of blood, rushing toward Nik, eyes glowing and jaws open.
Asshole. Nik pushed Gunn out of his head and focused on shooting the zombies racing at him. They herded him across the lobby, but he took them down.
“Everyone, get to the exit,” Galen roared. “Get back to the ship!”
Nik looked up and realized he was now a long way from the door. There were a lot of zombies between him and the exit.
He caught Nera’s gaze through the mob of zombies. Then a creature rushed at him, making a horrible moaning growl.
He kicked it. As it fell, he kicked it again. As it hit the floor, it turned its head and he swore the damn thing smiled at him.
“Niklas! Watch out.”
Nera’s shout came a second too late. Another zombie flew into him, and together they crashed into the floor.
Pain radiated through his back and he skidded across the tiles, the zombie sliding with him.
Fuck, the first one had been a decoy. These things had some sort of intelligence and had been working as a team.
He wedged his hands against the zombie’s chest and fought to keep it away from him. It gnashed its gruesome teeth furiously. Its eyes looked soulless in its bald head that was covered by that ugly, mottled skin.
He spotted his laser pistol beside him. He had one chance to get this right.
He moved one hand and snatched at the pistol.
The zombie was already pushing forward, its gaze on his throat.
Nik jammed the pistol into the creature’s face and fired.
Even with part of its face gone, it was still trying to get at him, moaning and snarling.
A sword slashed down and the creature’s head rolled away.
He looked up. “You should have gotten out!”
Nera extended a hand. “You’re welcome.”
“You were right near the exit.” Anger poured through him. “Why didn’t you get to safety?”
She just raised a brow. “We need to keep moving.”
“Phoenix? Darc?” Galen’s voice came across the static-filled comm line. “We’re all out. Where are you two?”
Dammit. Nik eyed the distance to the entrance, and the mass of zombies busy chewing on the agents they’d managed to kill. “We’re on the other side of the lobby, we’ll—”
“No time.” Nera pushed Nik and pointed. Another mob of zombies was loping in from a different corridor.
Completely cutting them off from the front door.
Shit. His chest tightened. Now they had nowhere to go.