Just Over the Horzine

London, England, August 24, 2009

In the early hours of the morning, Horzine Industries was beginning to stir. The first person to arrive was CEO and founder, Kevin Clamely, a toned man in his late thirties. His brown hair shone in the sunlight as he scratched his neatly trimmed mustache. The sounds of his footsteps echoed throughout the establishment as his alligator shoes clicked with each step on the linoleum floor. After traversing through several spacious hallways, he stopped at room 408. He pulled a key out of his pocket and unlocked the door. Clamely sat in the swivel chair at his desk, re-reading Horzine’s latest weaponry reports. Half an hour passed when a rap at the door brought his attention forward. “Come in.” The door slowly creaked open, a noise Kevin deemed equivalent to someone smashing plates.

A husky woman peeked her head into the room before quickly bringing the rest of her body in. “You, um, you wanted these reports... sir?”

Kevin glanced at the front of the cream colored folder before him. “Oh yes,” he said as a small smile curled onto his face, “I’ll take that.” He snatched the folder from her hands and pulled out several documents. He began to skim them, but stopped as he looked past the papers. He noticed the woman was still standing in his office with a look of anxiety and enthusiasm etched on her face. It was obvious that there was going to be an unnecessary discussion, and he already had enough reasons to hate this woman; he hated those yellow, crooked teeth. That repulsive mole above her lips. That idiotic, blond, nineteen-forties hairstyle. He especially hated those gawking green eyes of hers. He placed the papers to his side and rested his head onto his intertwined hands. “Can I help you with something?” he asked with a subtly bitter tone.

“Well, sir, I was wondering,” she hesitantly began. “The rumors about Horzine’s latest technology; are they... true?”

Kevin gave the woman a cold stare. “Tell me something, Miss... ?”

“Gweneth Rutherford, sir.”

“Right, tell me, Miss Rutherford,” The CEO removed his black glasses and polished them as he continued, “what exactly is your job here?”

“I manage the specimen reports, sir,” she stated as she rubbed the back of her left hand.

Kevin placed his glasses back on. “Yes, yes, of course. See, I was a bit confused.” He began to tap his index finger on the desk. “I’m trying to remember exactly why someone with a responsibility like yours is more concerned about idle gossip than the lifeblood of this company.” The color on his employee’s face began to drain as she slowly slunk towards the door. “No seriously, can you tell me why?”

Gweneth anxiously gulped and stammered, “I... I was just c-curious.”

“Exactly! You were just curious, and curiosity killed the cat, you know.” He began to drag his index finger across his neck as he made a gurgling noise.

“F-f-forgive me, sir. I-I just—”

“Oh, never mind any of that, Miss Rutherford,” Kevin said as he waved her away. “Just try to remember that you shouldn’t concern yourself with baseless rumors. You’re not being paid to snoop around, you’re being paid to help craft the future. Now get back to work.” Gwenyth quickly let herself out the room. “Women...” Kevin muttered as he unknowingly began to rub the golden ring on his left ring finger.

For anyone who overheard gossip about Horzine Industries, he or she would hear a wide range of gossipy subjects. Only so much of this gab was true. While Horzine Industries was publicly known as an arms company, the truth of the matter was kept under wraps by Horzine’s employees. The British government had funded Horzine to begin cloning and experimentation on what were simply called “specimens.” Kevin began to browse the updates on each of the specimens in production.

In total, there were nine types of specimens under production: the clot, the gorefast, the bloat, the crawler, the husk, the stalker, the siren, the scrake, and the fleshpound. Each specimen was grouped off into three-inch thick, plexiglass containers with their respective clones and kept under constant surveillance with a camera placed in every corner of the room. Every three hours, a misty spray breezed through each of the containers, which effectively sedated the specimens. Should an accident occur, specimen laboratories had a door installed with an airtight lock; these locks were activated by red alarm buttons planted on the walls, ensuring the safety of any and all remaining staff members. Should this fail, the final safety measure was something only Kevin and the security staff were aware of: a firestorm would engulf the entire facility, leaving only smolders to their name.

The staff had been paid handsomely to manufacture these clones, so no one complained. Of course, even with all precautions taken, such experiments had their share of fatalities. Some specimens didn’t survive the conditions of the outside world for more than five minutes, and a small number of staff members were victims of workplace accidents. When it came to Horzine, working for them could be easy, the work itself was anything but.

“What the fuck is this?!” Kevin shouted, resisting the urge to tear the document into pieces. “The scrakes, why is their vitality so god damn low?” His eyes quickly skimmed the paper, searching for the guilty party. “Biotics, huh?” He placed the envelope in his desk drawer and walked out of his office, the scrake report gripped tightly in his hand. “I’m going to wring their necks.”

**********

Deep in the facility lay the biotic division. In here the blood, sweat and tears of every employee went into molding the specimens so they could become both deadly and obedient. The long halls were lined with nothing but metallic walls, echoing any and all sounds throughout the center. Usually there would be nothing but the sounds of machinery throughout the building, but today was different. If anyone were to listen hard enough, they could faintly make out a conversation near the back of the lab.

“For God's sake, Gary, will you stop pacing around for just one second?” said Dr. Victor Ingrahm as his giddy cohort couldn't hide his enthusiasm. Victor was a slim, thirty-four year old man who had short black hair and wore red glasses. He was the kind of person who would keep to his work and deliver results whenever they were needed. He kept quiet about his personal life, but occasionally he would open up to those whom he found to be trustworthy.

Dr. Gary Glover, however, couldn't listen to his fellow scientist’s request, and continued rambling about the week's planned events. Gary was almost as tall as Victor, shorter by a few centimeters. He rustled his flat, brown hair in the middle of his excitement. “I mean, can you just imagine for one second what this means? If we can master cloning, well... we'd be on the verge of being gods! I get giddy just thinking of what this could mean for the world. Can you believe it? Why, with that kind of power we ca—”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Victor finally chimed in, “however we don't get paid to imagine, we get paid to work. Now go to your station and do your bloody job before Mr. Clamely waltzes in here and decides to bring the hammer down on us.”

“Piss off, everyone knows that yank never leaves his office. It's not that big of a deal.”

Victor simply looked up, glared and said, “Back to work, now!”

Gary didn't object to Victor's command, he simply rolled his eyes and did as he was told.

After a half an hour's worth of silence passed, Gary couldn't help but strike up another conversation. “You have to wonder though, what’s this big plan Clamely’s got going on?”

“Excuse me?”

“Oh, you know,” Gary said, as he moved away from his compuiter screen to get a good look at his fellow scientist. “Clamely’s been going on about this big secret unveiling at the end of the week.”

Victor glanced in Gary’s direction. “Oh right, that. Well, I’ve actually heard a little rumor.”

“I’m listening.”

Victor got out of his seat and looked around the room for any eavesdroppers. When he knew there was no one around, he whispered, “Portal technology.”

Gary’s look shifted from curious to incredulous. “I thought we stopped working on that.”

“Apparantly not.”

“Is this still for the government?”

“I don’t know that much, but I wouldn’t doubt it.”

Gary leaned back in his chair, reflecting on this new information. “What do you think the government will use portal technology for?” he asked, “I mean sure we'd be the first to do it and all, but then what? What could they possibly need a portal for?”

To this, Victor said, “First of all, I’d imagine the plan is to use the portals for combat advantages. That way we can make pre-emptive strikes, stop bombings, and the like. Secondly, we weren't the first, Aperture managed to pull a fast one on us remember?”

Gary recalled the uproar that caused. When word reached Horzine Industries about this discovery, it was as if a witch hunt was called. Several scientists had been questioned or fired. “Hey, wait,” he said, “Aperture’s portals already do so much, how would these be any different?”

Victor tapped his chin as he tried to come up with an idea. Upon glancing at the door, his eyes shot wide, and he snapped himself back to working on his computer.

Gary looked at the door and saw a shadow looming behind it. Following Victor’s example, he paid attention to his computer once more.

The door opened and in walked Kevin. He approached the two scientists, with his arms folded behind his back. “Gentlemen.”

“Mr. Clamely,” Gary and Victor said in unison.

“I understand that you two oversee scrake productivity, correct?”

“Yes sir, we are,” Gary chimed in.

“Then I trust you’re fully aware that their vitality is near zero?”

Gary shot a nervous glance at his partner.

“It’s a regrettable fact, sir,” Victor said without skipping a beat. “But we think we’ve found the cause of that, and a temporary solution to those problems.”

Kevin’s eyebrows were slightly raised. “Really? What did you find out?”

“After running a series of tests,” Victor said, “we’ve concluded that the scrakes seem to have a poor immune system. So we’ve decided to add surgical masks onto each clone to increase productivity.”

“Surgical masks?” Kevin said in disbelief, “You two are working in a biotics... and you decide to add surgical masks and call that progress?”

“Survivability rates have climbed up from forty-three percent to sixty-five percent... sir,” Gary stated.

Kevin looked at both of his employees. “Are these numbers accurate?”

“We’ve triple-checked them, sir.” Or rather, I triple-checked them, Victor thought to himself.

Kevin looked as if he were torn between being in awe over their results, or in awe over how lazy an idea the masks seemed. “It’s... satisfactory at best. But I expect to see a more professional-looking specimen the next time I come down here. We’re scientists, here. You two can do better than slap a mask on them and call it a day.”

Victor said, “We’ll make them as best as we can, sir.”

“No,” Kevin sharply retorted, “you won’t make them better... you’ll make them perfect, understand?”

Both of the scientists simultaneously replied, “Yes sir.”

Nothing else was said as Kevin walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

The room was in complete silence until Gary uttered, “What a git.”

Victor gave his cohort a disapproving look.

“Oh, come on,” Gary said defensively, “I mean, the man just barges in here and insults us like that. We’re the ones that do all the real work anyway.”

Victor sighed. “Yes, but he’s also the one who signs our paychecks.”

“Part of me thinks the man is mad.”

“Gary...”

“I’m serious,” Gary stressed, “You heard how he said that those specimens had to be ‘perfect’. He looked like he was going to start slobbering all over the place. Why, just the other day, I had to deliver a package to Sector B. He was right next to those specimen chambers, rubbing those cases just like this,” he said as he moved his hand in a circular motion. “It looked like he was whispering something to them. And I don’t mean just like any whisper, I mean a whisper you utter in someone’s ear when you really fancy them.”

Victor appeared surprised. “That is a bit... odd, to say the least.”

“And this kind of man is working with the government?” Gary shook his head in disbelief. “Anyways... did you hear anything else about those portals?”

Victor glanced at the door before saying, “I really don’t think this is the best place to discuss that.”

“Fine. Besides that, what do you think the government plans on doing with those specimens? Surely we’re not going to sell them off as auction, right?”

Victor impatiently replied, “The super-soldiers are the future of the British military. They are our allies in our darkest of times and our protectors in times of peace. With these super soldiers at our disposal, London will become—”

“Will become the safest nation for the queen and its people. I know. That's the same rubbish they tell us every day!” Gary exclaimed. “But what do you think?”

Victor simply stared at his computer, typing away, every click-clack of the keyboard getting louder. Victor’s typing served as his way of telling Gary to get back to work.

Gary just rolled his eyes and sat back down, checking the internal temperatures of the latest batch of sirens.

It wasn't too long, however, until Dr. Ingrahm finally spoke up. “Off the record, I think something is wrong with all of this. Scientific advancements are one thing, but we're advancing way too fast for our own good. I mean, look at this facility. We've managed to create living, breathing creatures in mere months. They can think, they can act out, and they even can communicate. Fast forward to today. Suddenly we can make portals? Something just isn't adding up here, not to mention the precautions in this place aren't very thought out.”

Gary leaned back in chair. He asked, “What do you mean?”

Victor continued, “You see those fleshpounds in Sector C? Those metal prods could stop them from moving around but imagine if they broke out of those things! They'd be a bunch of running human tenderizers!

“Granted, this is all speculation so I'm not exactly looking to head for the hills just yet. We might as well wait and see.”

Gary didn't think his friend had it in him to speak his mind, what with the rumors floating around of scientists suddenly going missing once they spoke out against Horzine's intentions. “Yeah, you have a very good point, but at least we get paid well enough for this, right?”

Victor simply shook his head and said, “It's always about the dosh, isn't it?”

Gary looked surprised. “Are you kidding? Of course it is! Why else would I work in this hell-hole? The pay sure beats working at some pub every night, dragging the latest nonce out of the building before closing time.”

“That's exactly why we work all day, everyday,” Victor said nonchalantly, “to get those pounds.” His computer gave a small chirp, an Email notification. He read the message and stopped, his expression shifting from uninterested to curious. He uttered, “This can’t be...”

“Can’t be what?” Gary asked. There was no response. “Are you alright, Victor?” More silence. Gary stood up and walked over to Victor’s computer. He briefly saw a medley of images and numbers that were immediately minimized.

“What are you doing?” Victor barked.

“Sorry, you were just in your own world. What was that, anyway?”

“It’s... it’s nothing,” Victor coyly said. “Just sit back down and get to work.”

“Nothing, eh?” Gary said, raising an eyebrow. “It sure doesn’t look like ‘nothing’.”

Victor snapped his head towards Gary and growled, “Do you want Clamely to come back in here and see you yakking your gob?”

“Alright, fine, I’ll sit back down!” He walked away, shaking his head in annoyance. With his colleague behaving, under protest, Victor perused his message once more.

August 29, 2009

In the early hours of the morning, janitors scurried around the conference room. Chairs were being lined up, beverages and snacks had been prepared for press members, and reporters were placing their microphones on the podium nearby. There were even people that hung up banners which read, “The Horzine way is the safe way”. From a nearby window, Kevin gazed into the room. A proud smile formed on his face as he thought, This is it. Today, Horzine will show its dominance in the field of science. As more reporters began to trickle into the room, growing restless as time passed, he felt it would be rude to keep them waiting any longer.

The murmurs of the audience quieted down as he walked onto the stage. The rapid flashes of cameras from nearby photographers seemed to have no effect on his demeanour. He walked up to the podium and placed both hands on it before beginning his monologue. “I thank you all for arriving here today. This is truly a great day not only for science, but for the world. We here, at Horzine Industries, have prepared quite a treat for all of you. You shall all bear witness to what can only be summed up as the most important scientific advancement in history.”

A giant device covered in a white tarp was brought before the crowd. Everyone appeared very intrigued and wondered what was brought before them. Kevin took the center stage to unveil this device. “Now, ladies and gentlemen. What you’re about to see is Horzine’s gift to the world. I give you... portals!” With those words, the tarp was torn off the device. It was a metallic ring roughly two meters tall and one and a half meters wide with a conductor at the top and bottom of the ring. He looked towards the reporters, expecting to see many people in awe over this machine. However, despite the barrage of camera flashes, he saw deadpanned and lackluster expressions across the room.

“Portals, Mr. Clamely?” a reporter piped up. “This is your great unveiling? Hasn’t Aperture Science already done something like this?”

“You’d think so,” Kevin retorted behind a cheeky grin, “but if they actually put some thought into their design, then maybe their toys would be half as good as our technology.”

“So tell us, Mr Clamely. How do these portals work?”

“Well, as you’re all aware,” Kevin began, “Aperture’s portals can allow someone to instantly travel from one part of the world to another, they might have even made it possible to travel across the universe . While this sort of design would intrigue feeble minds, we here at Horzine Industries felt that if you’re going to send someone through a portal, why restrict a traveler to the confines of just a universe?” He walked towards the machine on stage. “Our portals have these capabilities, and so much more. I am proud to announce that we have created inter-dimensional portals.” This revelation caused the press to stand up as one; some people demanded an explanation, while others scoffed the very idea.

“With this device,” he continued, trying to quiet down the crowd, “not only can you travel to worlds beyond your wildest dreams, but you don’t even need to leave the planet. All that’s necessary is to enter your destination’s coordinates, and the machine will take care of the rest. Of course, if you’d prefer to stay on Earth, all it takes is the flip of a switch, and you’re traveling from country to country in seconds. Now, I bet that some of you are saying to yourselves, ‘This is impossible!’ However, I must stress that what we’ve got here is going to redefine what is and isn’t possible.”

“What a load of bollocks!” One reporter shouted.

Kevin gave the crowd a forced smile as he scanned the room for the source of the outburst. “I see that some of you hold your doubts about this machine,” he said as he gingerly patted the portal device. “Fine, I suppose I’ll have to prove it to you.”

At that moment, he flipped a nearby switch, which caused the machinery started to glow with a white hue. It began to emit a low hum, then built its way to a constant rumble. The CEO picked up where he left off. “I have Dr. Clara Neeman here.” A petite scientist with bulbous, red hair walked onto the stage, waving once for the photographers before standing on Kevin’s left. “Previously, we have sent mobile units into a parallel universe, and they have brought back objects from the worlds beyond our own.” As he spoke, he signaled for a nearby attendant to remove the cover from a nearby stand. Three enlarged photographs were revealed. One picture showed an expansive forest with trees that were colored many shades of purple. Another showed a world of fire and magma jets soaring into the sky. The last picture showed illuminated landscapes and brilliantly vibrant sunsets. Some members of the press seemed enthralled in these sights, while others were not moved. “Pictures are one thing,” he continued, “but nothing beats a first-hand experience. For this reason, Dr. Neeman has volunteered to be the first live test subject to enter another dimension.”

While the woman was being prepared for her departure, he said, “Now, this world we’re sending her to has been previously used as a test destination. There hasn’t been any signs of danger, so this would be the best choice for a test run. For safety reasons, we're having her wear a hazmat suit, should there be any sort of disease in this new world. Also, we’re equipping her with a belt that acts like a transceiver. It will relay her heart rate, temperature, and oxygen levels. If she’s in any danger, all she has to do is press the button on her belt, and a portal will open before her. This machine has a homing beacon installed, so the transceiver will lock onto its signal when the time comes. Should we deem her condition too unsafe, we will open a portal for her.”

“Wait just a tick, Mr. Clamely,” a different reporter stated. “Telling us that alternate dimensions exist and you’ve found a way to access them is one thing; but now you plan on sending a human being through your portal, and you don’t give her a camera or a microphone. Call me a skeptic, but without any definitive proof that your device actually works, the press is not buying this rubbish for one second.”

Kevin rubbed his hands together and calmly stated, “I’m glad you brought that up, because I was just about to get to that.” You stupid fuck. He paced around the stage and said, “Inside of her suit, we’ve established a tactical comm system, and an camera inside of her suit. The suit will give us a constant stream of what she sees and says, but cross-universe travel is a very tricky process, so we might not have a perfect connection. These are tests, after all.” Feeling shown up, the reporter yielded any further objections. “Now Dr. Neeman, your job is to go into that world and find something from the universe that can be brought back here. Nothing too fancy, but credible enough to prove to the crowd that this is all real, understand?”

Clara nodded her head and said, “Should be simple, sir.”

“That’s my girl,” Kevin said as he patted the scientist on the back. “Now then, are you ready, doctor?”

“Ready, sir.”

The device’s technician, Mark Jameson, pressed a series of buttons on the control panel before him. The device then began to rumble, and the floor began to tremor. A loud crack caused an elliptical, white portal to appear before the scientists on stage. The once-skeptical members of the press were in awe of the spectacle before them.

Mark got to work, as he got the video and audio feed to appear on screen.

“Good luck out there,” Kevin said as Clara was sent through the portal.

The nearby staff members immediately got to work as they began to establish a connection to the transceiver. The sound of static began to fill the room as the video feed was struggling to appear on screen.

“Dr. Neeman,” Mark said into his microphone, “this is Horzine. If you can hear us, please respond.” After what seemed like an eternity, a reply struggled to break through from the other end.

“I c——ar yo——n y—— hear me?”

“Repeat that, Dr. Neeman, you’re breaking up.”

“I sa—— I can hear you, can you hear me?” Shortly after the static subsided, the video feed made its way on screen. The frame-rate was choppy, but images of a murky swamp became the focus of everyone’s attention.

Kevin began to grin like a madman as he moved to the microphone and said, “We hear you loud and clear, Doctor. How do you feel right now?”

“I feel great! My word, this is amazing! It almost makes me not want to come back home,” Dr. Clara said with a laugh. “Wait a minute, what’s that over th—” Static took over the audio feed, and the video was replaced once again by a blue screen.

While Mark attempted to get the connections to work, Kevin said, “It seems that making a decent connection is harder than we thought. Don’t worry, we’ll have her back online in just a minute.”

One minute in, her heart rate began to decline.

Two minutes in, her heart continued to climb.

Five minutes in, her heart rate was at a considerably high level. A look of concern grew across Kevin’s face. The murmurs among the audience grew louder as the impending urgency of the situation grew.

“Think we should pull her out of there?” asked Mark.

“No, she’ll be fine, let's wait a little longer.”

Ten minutes in, her heart rate shows no signs of slowing down. After noticing the reporters becoming more and more rambunctious, Kevin said, “Alright, bring her back.”

The homing beacon was activated... but nothing happened. Mark deactivated and re-acitvated the device several times expecting to see the scientist appear before them. “Mr. Clamely!” he shouted, “There’s interference with the receiver on the subject’s end! The frequency isn't strong enough to get her back!”

“Then increase the fucking frequency!!!” Kevin snapped at the tech, holding no regard of the media watching his every move. The room began to overflow with the sounds of beeps and chimes coming from the machines, and the ever so restless mob of reporters. After many repeated attempts, the beacon finally did its job. The became silent for an instant. Dr. Clara had returned, but everything above her waistline was gone.

All eyes were focused on the sight before them. Most reporters were too stunned to react until her lifeless legs had fallen to the floor, spraying a small jet of blood towards the front row or reporters. The entire room was in an uproar. Some reporters screamed in horror while others made their way to the stage demanding an explanation. Without a hint of control in his voice, Kevin shouted, “Get them out of here!” and took this as his chance to leave. A slew of Horzine’s security members rushed onto the stage and shooed any and all reporters away as he stormed off the stage, hearing nothing but the press’ questions flying left and right.

While he marched down the hall, Dr. Rutherford approached from the opposite end. Before the woman had a chance to utter a syllable, she was swiftly shoved to the side as Kevin said, “I don’t have time for your stupid questions, you fatass!” Paying no more attention to others, he entered his office and slammed the door shut. He paced around the room, both hands on his head. “Damn it,” he growled. “God fucking damn it!” He slammed his fist into the wall and shouted, “Can’t any one of these shitheads do anything right?! We’ll be lucky if we get off with only a slap on the wrist. Now it’s my fucking neck on the chopping block!” Seeing the state he was in, he began to reassure himself that everything was okay.

“Calm down now. It's not like it didn't even work. We DID send a human to another world, didn't we?” A vile grin formed on his face as he let out an ominous chuckle. “No one can deny this company’s superiority now! And who does the world have to thank? Me... yes me. Without me, these idiots would be out there flipping burgers, wasting their lives away. I’m the god damn founder, for fuck's sake. They shouldn’t judge me, they should award me! I should get the Nobel Prize for this. Hell, why don't they just give me all of the awards while they're at it, since I'm just that fucking good!” He erupted into a laughing fit that slowly died down. He approached a nearby window and moved the curtain, revealing row upon row of specimens. “Besides...” he solemnly said, “I have yet to unveil my greatest triumph. Soon, my children, you will be unleashed onto the world! You will clean this world of all undesirables, and I shall become the most unstoppable force on the planet!” It was that moment when he received a phone call. He fished his phone out of his pocket and sharply answered, “What is it?”

“Oh, I hope I’m not interrupting something, Mr. Clamely,” came a voice from a meek scientist, “but I couldn’t help but notice all the commotion in the press room. Did something happen down there?”

“Don’t worry about that, just tell me you have something important to talk about.”

There was silence for a few seconds, then the scientist finally responded, “Oh yes, we have the test results back from our latest experiment.”

“Good, what happened?”

A rustling of papers and some murmurs later, the scientist stated, “Well, after looking the results over, we’ve confirmed that Project Thorne is a success. I repeat, Project Thorne is a success.”

August 31, 2009

In the early morning, a security guard walked through the halls, anxious to end his graveyard shift and sleep the day away. He yawned as he turned the corner, unable to hear the footsteps behind him. Before he knew what was happening, he was struck from behind, knocking him out cold.

Gwenyth rolled the guard’s limp body over and rummaged through his pockets. “A thousand pardons,” she said as she pulled out a key ring and a security clearance card. Once his unconscious body was placed in a nearby supply closet, the faux scientist made her way down to the biotics labs. She traveled down several floors until she found her desired location: the Sector B Observatory Labs. Pulling out the keyring, she fitted several keys until one of them finally unlocked the door.

She pulled out a cell phone and dialed a number. After a small wait, she said, “It’s me. I’m in Horzine’s facility, proceeding with reconnaissance... yes, I’ll confirm that after this is done... understood.” Gwenyth snapped the phone shut and placed it back in her pocket, switching it for a camera. She moved to the far end of the room where canisters of specimens were kept. The camera flashed again and again as its memory began to fill with pictures. Once satisfied, she placed a plug into the camera and attached it to her phone. The pictures began to transfer into the phone’s memory before it was swiftly sent to Gwenyth’s contact.

“That’s the last of that,” she said with a sigh of relief, “now to check on the—” She was interrupted as the door opened from behind her, revealing an amused Kevin.

“You know,” he began, “I could’ve sworn that I specifically warned you not to go digging around.” Kevin closed the door behind him. “Now you’ve gone and stuck your nose where it doesn’t belong. That’s a very un-Gwenyth thing to do. Or rather, it would be, if Gwenyth Rutherford actually existed.

Gwenyth swallowed hard as she bluffed, “I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about Mr. Clamely. I just got lost, that’s all.”

“Oh, cut your bullshit. We both know why you’re here.” The CEO began to walk closer. “So, who sent you? The government? America? Someone else? Please stop me if I’m right.”

She took a small, defensive stance. “I’m not revealing information like that. On top of that, you have nothing to threaten me with.”

“That’s because I have no need to. Now be a good little girl and tell daddy what you’re doing here.”

“You’re demented.”

A small smirk worked its way onto his face. “I try, but seriously, I saw that you were taking pictures. Just give them to me, and I’m sure we can arrange some sort of deal.”

Gwenyth put on a scowl. “You’re nothing but a coy old man, and it’s too late for you and your company,” she said as Kevin’s smile quickly morphed into a bitter glare. “I’ve already sent the pictures to my employer. It’s over.”

Kevin took a breath through his nose and said, “That’s just a damn shame.” He turned away from the woman and repeated himself quietly before whipping around with a silenced pistol in his hand, aiming it as the spy before him. “Now I have to kill you. We could’ve been such good friends, you and I.”

Gwenyth scoffed his threat. “So what? You’re going to sho—”

Without a second’s hesitation, Clamely aimed the pistol at her hip and pulled the trigger.

She let out an agonizing groan as she gripped her side while slowly balling up on the floor.

“No,” Kevin mused, “I’m just going to wave this gun around and talk to you for ten minutes. Of course I’m going to shoot you, you stupid cunt! Seriously, why can’t there be one smart woman on this earth.” He approached the huddled woman and knelt next to her. “See, I never really wanted to do any of this. Seriously, all I was going to do was use these handcuffs,” he pulled out said object, “then just fasten them onto you and send you out of here. Then you had to go and act like you’re the bitch with the pants on. Too bad, missy, you lose.”

In a vain act of defiance, Gwenyth spit onto his face.

Kevin slowly turned back to her and gave a small smile. “You’ve just reminded me of something. I wasn’t going to do this either!” He proceeded to shoot both of her knees, leaving her writhing in agony. “Now you’re just making a mess. I’m gonna have to take you to a more suitable location.” He grabbed her hair and dragged her through the halls.

She tried to muster the strength to break free, but her body wouldn’t respond. After what felt like an hour of being dragged, they arrived at a door on a lower floor.

He proceeded to enter in a button combination on a padlock. When a green light turned on, he turned to his prisoner and said, “You wanted to see them so badly? Well, I’m going to give you an up close and personal experience!” After he tossed her into the room, the door was locked shut and he walked away, ignoring the sounds of screaming and flesh being ripped from bones. “They already know, huh? Whoever ‘they’ are, they seem really eager to to ruin everything. They want to destroy all that I’ve worked for. They want to kill... my children. I won’t let that happen.” Eventually, he made it to his office. He saw several of his employees begin to enter the facility, unaware of Clamely’s murderous drive. Once he locked himself in his office, the lunatic began to talk to himself. “If she’s in on it, I can’t trust anyone.” He sported an evil smile as he said, “They’re so eager to ruin the surprise... so I’d better beat them to the punch!”

**********

It was only moments ago when Gary received an urgent call in the lab from Victor. “Gary! Listen to me!” he shouted, “You need to get to the Control Station, immediately!”

“Calm down for a second, will you? What’s got you all worked up?”

“The specimens are loose, that’s what!”

Gary was so shocked, he almost dropped the phone, “L-l-l-loose?!” Gary shouted, “What the bloody hell do you mean loose?! What happened?!”

Aiming to be louder than the screams of death in the background, Victor yelled, “While some of the scientists were working on the specimens, the doors just opened, and the specimens began to go berserk! The locks won’t work, and the alarm buttons are unresponsive. You need to get out of the lab and head to the control station. The specimens are working their way up from the lower floors, so you have some time. I managed to get a few scientists in here with me, but they’re going to find us soon. We'll be barricading the door when they do, so you need to haul ass! Get mo—” The line went dead.

Gary was frozen in fear for a few seconds, his phone slowly slipping out of his hand. The increasing sounds of fear and bloodshed began to trickle their way into Gary’s room. It wasn’t until the phone hit the floor that Gary made a mad dash to Victor’s office. He hadn’t even had enough time to get out of his yellow hazmat suit. As if it weren't difficult enough to run in a suit, the oxygen mask he had on made it awkward to move his head, and his wobbly green shoes made running from the specimens all the more difficult. He hadn’t run too far before he was face-to-face with a clot. This one was called a clot. It had pale-white skin, four sockets on his head, sported piercing, yellow eyes, and bore sharpened teeth. The most menacing aspect was its vice-like grip. A clot would never let go of its victim when it grabbed on.

“Oh god, no! Stay away from me!” Gary shouted in vain, quivering in fear as the clot continued to advance. He backed up until he hit a wall. Time seemed to stand still as the monstrosity walked closer and closer towards the doctor. Its gnashing fangs and menacing demeanor petrified him. He looked around frantically for something, anything to help defend himself, when by chance he saw it: a fire-axe in its box on the wall. With no time to think, Gary slammed his elbow into the safety box, breaking the glass. He grabbed the axe and took a swing, shouting, “Stitch this, you arsehole!” The axe almost sliced perfectly into the top of the clot's head. Its body twitched for a couple of seconds before falling limp. Gary was shocked at himself for a moment, taking a long look at the clot he just killed. After the initial shock of taking a life had passed, he yanked the axe out of the creature’s skull and took off again.

He heard horrifying sounds all over the laboratories as he ran farther and farther down. He heard bones crunching, flesh ripping apart from live bodies, chainsaws cutting through flesh, bodies being hurled against the walls, people being gutted alive, all surrounded by the groans and yells of the clone specimens. Only three hours ago, this place was fine. Now it's like I'm running through hell itself. Gary held onto the now-bloodied axe for dear life.

The scientist had been sprinting for ten minutes, forced to take many detours in order to avoid wasting strength on any unnecessary conflicts. Just a little longer, don’t leave me out here! Sure enough, Gary was rounding the corner and saw their office.

He heard Victor yell, “Run, Gary! Run for your fucking life!!!” These words spurred Gary on, because he was running faster than anyone could have anticipated. However, an air duct panel broke through above him and a different specimen fell to the floor, grinding Gary’s sprint to a halt.

The appearance of the clot petrified Gary, but this specimen chilled him to the bone. It was a gorefast, and it had no skin; its bare muscles were exposed for the world to see. It was missing its lower jaw, leaving its tongue hanging freely. There was a bandaged stub where its left arm used to be, while its right forearm was replaced with a blade that was almost a meter long. It slowly started to approach Victor and the other survivors, swinging its blade with every step it took. Gary started to approach the gorefast, planning on giving it a lethal blow to its spine.

Unfortunately, he hadn’t taken into account the noises his suit would make, and one squeak was all it took for the gorefast to immediately spin around and charge towards Gary. A million thoughts went through his mind as the gorefast closed in. It took a swing, but Gary ducked in the nick of time, narrowly avoiding decapitation. As if acting on instinct, he used the end of the ax to deliver a swift blow to the gorefast's temple, stunning it for just a second. Then, with deadly precision, he sliced the gorefast's head clean off. The creature began to stumble about, wildly swinging its sword-arm, before falling to the floor. Not a moment later, a stampede of footsteps could be heard from down the hallway.

“Wait for us!” a voice cried from the stairwell. Two exasperated security guards ran past Gary, a mob of clots followed close behind. He moved post-haste towards the office where his cohorts were waiting.

Once Gary made it to the door, he lost control of his pace and crashed into the wall, collapsing on the floor as he gasped for breath. With Gary inside, the guards worked to hold the door shut while the remaining scientists began piling objects against the door. When a suitable barricade was established, the groans and cries from the attacking specimens slowly moved away from the room.

“Has anyone tried calling the police?” one scientist asked aloud.

“It’s no use,” a security guard, James Wilkes, replied as he held a cell phone in the air. He turned on the speaker phone, and a message began to play.

“...riencing an unusually high number of emergency calls, and our operators are currently busy. Please wait on the line or try ca—”

The officer hung up the phone and leaned against the wall and let out a defeated sigh as silence set in the room.

One of the scientists, Steven Harrt, began to look through the nearby cabinets, quickly browsing each shelf until he stopped. “I knew we still kept one of these!” he said with a grin on his face. The man gingerly pulled out an old, brown radio and extended the antennae. He said, “If we can find the police, then not all is lost, eh?” Through trial and error, the desired broadcast finally got through.

“…blockade has been established.”

“Good, keep those civvies away from here. We can’t risk anyone knowing about this.”

“They’re here already?” Victor asked. “That’s a bit too fast.”

**********

Outside of Horzine Industries, several squads of police officers hugged the wall as they slowly made their way towards the front gate of the establishment. They shuffled in their riot gear as a voice came over their comm system.

“Now remember, everyone,” Police Commissioner Matthew Hansen said to his officers, “your primary goal is to gather evidence of any unethical experimentation within. If that anonymous tip we received plays out to be true, then you are to change your focus towards finding and arresting Kevin Clamely. Is that clear?”

“Yes, sir!” cried all police members.

“Good, move in.”

Two police officers carried a battering ram and bashed down the door. Several other officers began to file into the facility while Matthew took out a cigarette. His lighter barely began to work when several piercing screams came over the intercom.

“The bloody hell was that?!” He shouted.

The only noises that could then be heard over the radio were deathly howls, incomprehensible sputtering, and one officer who cried, “It’s got a bloody chainsaw!!!”

The next thing he knew, indescribable monstrosities ran out of the entrance and towards the remaining officers. Wasting no time, he shouted, “Open fire!”

**********

The scientists and security guards sat blankly as the sounds of gunfire and slaughter filled the airwaves. When the familiar sound of static was left, a security guard glumly switched off the radio.

Not even the police can stop those things… Gary thought to himself as he lied on the floor. He took a look around the room. The scientists he had worked with for years, the people he imagined were stoic beyond words, had fear and sorrow in their eyes. Their bloodied lab coats spelt out the ordeals that each scientist had encountered on their way to their temporary safety. He noted how similar the security guards appeared, when a thought crossed his mind. “Oi, you two,” He spoke, still out of breath, “what are you doing here?”

James gave the man a peculiar glance and said, “What do you mean, ‘what are we doing here?’ We had to get away from those things, just like you lot.”

“That’s the problem,” Gary said with anger brewing in his tone. “You wankers are security guards, yet you’re running away like school-children!”

James grimaced as he scratched his dirty-blond hair. “Listen, we did our job,” he countered, “but the only thing Mr. Clamely ever gives us is pepper spray and a bloody taser. When you’re up against that many buggers with shit weapons, the odds aren’t in your favor.”

“Pepper spray?! Tasers?!” Gary asked incredulously, “You mean you people didn’t have any sort of contingency plans for something like this?”

“We—” he hesitated before going on. “We do, but it won’t work.”

“And what exactly won’t work?” Victor asked.

James looked at Victor and said, “You see, we do have a plan... one that only security and Mr. Clamely know about.”

“So what is it?” Gary raggedly asked.

James crossed his arms. “It’s simple, we have two buttons that need to be pressed... and then the entire building is rigged to set the place ablaze.”

“What?!” a scientist exclaimed. “Are you mad???”

James held out his arms defensively and said, “Yes, I know it sounds extreme, but I think we’re running out of options.”

The scientists protested this notion as Victor moved forward. “Calm down everyone, please.” He faced James and said, “You say this plan won’t work. Why’s that?”

“Long story short,” James explained, “There are two stations that need activating. One is in security, and the other is in Mr. Clamely’s office. Once both stations are active, we clear out of here as fast as possible.”

“So the problem is...”

The second security guard, Maxwell Clarkson, chimed in, “The stations require security clearances to activate. The one in security requires several passwords, but Mr. Clamely’s station is much more complex. His station require fingerprints, a retina scan, and voice clarification. Naturally, only Mr. Clamely can activate the procedure from his end, and we haven’t caught sight of him today.

“So yes,” James said as he turned to Gary,” we ran... because there was nothing we could bloody do.”

Gary slowly stood up and placed himself in a chair. “Come on, there has to be some sort of plan.” Everyone in the room stayed silent, whether it be from the shock, or trying to come up with a workable solution.

“There is one option.” Victor said, attracting everyone’s attention. He walked over to a table, pulling his laptop out of its case and placing it on the tabletop.

James piped up, “I highly doubt we’re going to get any service while underground, mate.”

“I know that, but there’s a file I’m going to need.” After logging in, he said, “About a week ago, I received an Email with several files inside that caught my attention. I thought it was just a virus message, but I scanned it, and there was nothing to worry about. Inside, I found this.” He turned his computer around to reveal diagrams and charts, all stamped with Horzine’s seal. “You remember the portal machine they used at the presentation? These are the blueprints to it, and they’re our ticket out of here.”

Victor turned the computer back towards himself and continued, “I’ll admit, At first, I couldn’t make heads or tails of the blueprints, but whoever this guy is, he attached a text document that explains what each part does, and how to turn this machine on and off. However, these are incredibly complex schematics. I can only make out so much of this, even with these notes, but I understand enough to get the machine up and running. Not only that, but he even included a list of coordinates to major military bases and government facilities around the world. If I can make it to the machine, I can transport myself to a major military base and try to get some help. Now comes the hard part: getting to the device.”

“Leave that to us,” spoke Maxwell, “We can get you there, wouldn’t you say, Wilkes?”

James quickly turned around, saying, “What?”

“We have to; we know the ins and outs of this place, and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t know where the device is stored, isn’t that right?” the guard said, peering over James’ shoulder to look at Victor.

“It’s true,” Victor replied, “and that would alleviate the problem.”

“What about the rest of us?” another scientist asked.

Victor shook his head and said, “Absolutely not. We need to keep our numbers small.” Before anyone could voice their disapproval, he continued, “Think about it, have you wondered why those specimens are gone? It’s because they’re following noise. Right now, the loudest noise is the gunfire and screams from above; relatively speaking, we’re as quiet as a mouse. If we want to keep it that way, we can’t travel in large groups. A small party is easier to maintain.”

“Actually,” Maxwell said, “I was planning of escorting him myself.”

“Don’t be sodding stupid,” James interjected, “he’d need both of us if this plan is to work.”

“And what of the scientists here?” he countered, “It’s our job to protect them.”

“Are you really concerned with your job description at a time like this?”

Maxwell stepped up to James and said, “No, I’m concerned about the lives that are at stake.”

James’ face scrunched at the notion of this plan, yet he reluctantly said, “If we’re going to do this, then we need to do it right. I’ll be his only escort.”

“What are yo—”

“No more back-talk, understand? This way, you get to still watch over these scientists,” he paused to turn to Victor, “and you’ll still be able to get to the device. Am I wrong?” Maxwell begrudgingly complied.

Gary leaned back in his chair. “One little question, you were just going on about how shoddy your ‘weapons’ are. Did you plan on just blindly running into the fray?”

Steven said, “Oh, that’s right!” and immediately turned to the lockers and opened them. He muttered, “If I remember correctly, there should be... aha!” He grabbed several meter-long, metal poles and brought them to the guards. “I know it’s not much, but these should be able to crack a skull or two.”

While Victor began to copy down the list of coordinates, and security members gently moved parts of the barricade away from the door, Gary tapped him on the shoulder and said, “Here, you’ll need this,” as he offered his friend the axe.

Victor shook his head and said, “No. Without it, you’re left defenseless. And I’m not going to let you write your own death wish.”

“Look, it’s one thing for me to stay behind, but you at least need some efficient weaponry.”

Victor placed down his pen, turning to his friend, and said, “This isn’t open for discussion. It’s safest this way.”

Gary, with a look of uncertainty in his eyes, looked at the axe before shifting his gaze back to Victor. “Are you sure?”

With a reassuring smile, Victor said, “Don’t worry. I’ll come back here, you can count on it,” as he patted his worried friend on the shoulder. Once his list was complete, he placed it in his lab-coat pocket and turned to the awaiting security guards. “Are we ready to go?” he asked with a slight tone of uneasiness in his voice.

The guard nodded as he handed Victor a metal rod. “Now,” James began, “if we go quickly, it can take us about five to ten minutes to reach the device. That’s not including any of the buggers that we might run into along the way. If we’re lucky, we can avoid them completely, but I wouldn’t bet on it. So just keep an eye out for those things, and we should be able to make it.”

Victor asked, “What do you think our chances are of pulling this off, honestly?”

“Do you really want to know?”

After a moment of consideration, Victor shook his head.

“My thoughts exactly,” James said. “I’m going to take a listen to the hall. If I don’t hear those specimens, then we leave. Get ready to move.” He placed an ear to the door, waited for five seconds, then said, “I can’t hear anything, open it!” Without a moment’s hesitation, Victor and James quickly exited the room and made their way outside.

Gary whispered, “Good luck,” as the door was closed again.

The two men walked up an adjacent staircase. They passed by a faulty generator gated off by chain link fences. Sparks flew off and enshrouded the room in a yellow glow. Victor tried his best to not pay attention to the fresh blood splatters on the walls and floor, instead focusing on the upcoming room. James quickly held his hand in the air, stopping the scientist in his steps. Taking light steps, he intently checked each corner for signs of danger. When he deemed there was no threat present, the security guard signaled Victor towards him. “Okay, here’s the plan,” he whispered. “We need to head up these stairs. Once we do that, there’ll be a hall behind us. From there, it should be a straight shot towards the device.

“You stay put. Keep your eyes peeled while I check things out,” he insisted. The lone officer trudged up the stairs, paying close attention to his surroundings as he peeked his head into view. There was nothing to note besides the broken lights, the toppled racks, and scattered debris on the floor. Before he could say that the room was clear, he heard a strange hiss. He quickly checked the corners again, while the hissing grew louder.

Victor walked forward, intrigued by the noise, and quietly asked, “What’s going on up there?”

“There’s something over he—” James was interrupted as Victor yanked his shirt collar and pulled him away from the stairs. He was about to chastise Victor for his actions, when a crawler landed where he previously stood. The black-colored, spider-like creature crawled on the floor before it lunged at the two men, its claw-like hands eager to grasp a piece of flesh. James took a swing, hitting the specimen as it careened into the nearby wall. The crawler was seemingly unfazed as it crawled towards its prey. Another jump led to another strike, only this time, James pursued the stunned specimen and jumped onto it. During this one moment, Victor ran up and began to repeatedly strike the crawler until he felt a hand grab the pole.

“I think you got it, boss.” James said in a slightly surprised manner.

Victor looked at his work as he caught his breath. His weapon was dripping with a black ooze, the same substance that began to puddle around the creature’s corpse. The growths on its back were mangled beyond repair, its six eyes stared blankly at the ceiling, and its antennae occasionally twitched.

James patted Victor on the shoulder and said, “Let’s be glad there was just that one.” As if fate listened in on their conversation, several crawlers and clots began to descend the stairs towards the two men. “Oh, good job me, run for it!”

James led Victor down the hallway behind them and rounded the first corner on the right, knowing that a staircase at the end of the hall would lead to their destination. However, a crawler and a gorefast burst through an office to the right, raring themselves for an attack as the two men came into view. “Don’t take the time to fight them!” James advised, “You’ll just get swarmed. Just whack ‘em, then run!”

The gorefast charged at James, swinging its blade-like arm wildly. The guard blocked the strike and kicked it into the wall on his left.

Victor had been attacked by the crawler. He narrowly avoided injury, but a portion of his coat was ripped off in the process. Taking the pre-emptive approach, Victor swung at the crawler, making it fly like a golf ball into a group of oncoming specimens.

Picking up the pace, they ran up a flight of stairs and to a room dipped in a red glow. “The room we’re looking for is down this hall.” James said as he opened up a double door. When Victor went through, James closed the doors and pulled out his key ring to lock the door shut. One clack of a door later, and both men let out a sigh of relief, only to be startled when specimens began to attack the door. “That door will hold for a bit, but not long. Let’s go, we’re almost there.” A quick walk led to a metallic door at the corner: their destination.

“So you’re positive it’s here?” Victor asked as he pushed past the black barrel beside the

door.

As James flipped through numerous keys, he replied, “Hasn’t been moved since we did

damage control. Just keep an eye on the door.” James quickly found the key and unlocked the door, but it wouldn’t budge. “Come on, you bloody door, open up!” Victor noticed the double door at the end of the hall was beginning to show signs of wear and tear. James began to pull harder and harder, cursing the door as their danger became more evident. Just as specimens could start to reach their arms through the weakened door, James finally got the room opened. “Hurry!” he shouted to Victor. The scientist went inside the room; a flip of a nearby light switch left the lights inside flickering until they powered up. When he turned around, he saw James staring at the wave of specimens that tried to break through the locked door.

“What are you doing?! Get inside!” Victor yelled.

James turned to the scientist and said, “Don’t come out.” Quickly locking the door. Victor rushed for the door and unlocked it, only to face the same problem James had earlier. “Listen very carefully! That door isn’t going to last long, and neither will this one. As I understand, the device will take time to charge up. I’m going to buy you some time!”

“You don’t have to do this, please! Don’t throw your life away!”

“Why are you still gawking at me? You need to hurry up and start up that bloody machine! If you make it back, head straight for the offices, I’ll be waiting there!” Right after those words were uttered, Victor heard a door crash onto the floor, followed by several specimens heading towards the security guard.

James shouted, “Come on, you bastards!” as he banged the poles together, attracting a crowd. Victor could hear the noise travel down the hallway until it was drowned out by groans and cries. Not wasting another moment, he pushed himself past several filing cabinets and bookshelves; the desired device laid before him. He started to power up the machine as he removed the tarp that covered the device.

He recalled each step described to him in the message. Ok, that should do it, Victor thought as the device began to warm up. Now, let’s see that list of coordi— He froze as he reached his hand into his pocket and felt nothing. He slowly looked at his hand to see the hole previously made by the crawler’s attack. How could I be so stupid? Just as soon as a wave of hopelessness set in, it was quickly pushed out. No! I can’t give up! I just need to remember the coordinates to one place, just one! He racked his mind for any familiar numbers and attempted to input coordinates as accurately as he could. Once he felt confident about his choice, he ensured that the device would take him to a location on Earth. He put on the belt and waited for the portal to appear. Looking at the device it would be a minute until the portal was ready.

As he waited, he heard a dull thud from above. His hair stood on end as he quickly turned around. His breathing started to get faster as the thud began to increase in volume. He could also hear groans coming from the door, coupled with pounds and thuds that threatened to break down his only line of security. “Not now! Hurry up, you god damn machine!” At that moment, a clot broke through the ventilation shaft and fell onto the floor, its main focus on Victor. The scientist took a few steps back as he kept shifting his gaze between the portal and the specimen. The only weapons were the poles across the room, and he feared the door would break if he tried to make a run for it. When the clot was almost within attacking distance, Victor decided to kick the specimen with all his might. The clot stumbled over and fell into the portal device. As he readied for another attack, the portal appeared. The door was knocked down as more specimens began to file into the room. Victor quickly turned around and blindly ran into the portal.

Victor’s eyes were clenched shut as a flurry of sensations hit him at once. He’d feel itchiness one moment, then dehydration the next. Soon he felt sleepy, energetic, erratic, and twitchy at the same time. Once the sensations had hit their peak, they stopped, and Victor hit the ground hard. The scientist was tumbling and rolling on the ground until he came to a stop. He immediately felt a little woozy, but quickly regained his senses as he reached for the button on his belt, severing connection with Horzine. As he sat there, trying to catch his breath, he heard a familiar sound: a bird’s call.

He took note of his surroundings. Everything looked normal, completely normal: trees everywhere, animals running rampant, rivers and mountains decorated the landscape. He started chuckling; it was slow at first, but built up as he began laughing hysterically, having survived the entire ordeal. “I did it!” he cried. He put on his glasses; the lenses were cracked, but he could still make out most of his surroundings. Victor said, “Let’s get started,” as he began to walk out of the grove of trees, but something was wrong. He hadn’t taken five steps when it started becoming difficult to keep his eyes open. Shortly after, he was losing his balance, his head began to throb, and he was losing consciousness. “No... not now... I can’t... where the bloody hell... am... I?” was all Victor could say before he fell to the floor.

**********

Meanwhile, the rest of the hidden scientists had to once again play the waiting game. Gary noticed the laptop was still on, and began to walk towards it. I may die here, he thought, but if I can tell someone, anyone how to beat them, it will all be worth it. With a heavy heart, he began what he thought to be his final memoir.

“To anyone out there, anyone at all. If you're hearing this message, we’re probably all dead. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll run somewhere far away from this place. You see, there are nightmarish creatures here. These... things, they can’t be stopped. I don’t know how London is faring right now, but it can’t be good. You need to leave while you can. The things that have happened in these halls... my god, I can still hear the screams coming down the corridor. God knows how much time we ha—”

Steven quickly shushed everyone in the room and whispered, “I hear something!” Everyone stayed silent as the dull sound of footsteps could be heard patrolling the halls. Another scientist slowly crept away from the door, unknowingly backing himself into a table and knocking over a glass beaker. The resulting crash left everyone frozen in place. After a moment passed, Maxwell slowly crept to the barricade and pressed his ear against the stacked materials to listen for any other specimens.

“Is anyone out there?” Gary murmured.

“It sounds li—”

The blade of a chainsaw burst through the barricade, piercing the guard’s head and sending a shower of blood and brain particles on the wall. One scientist shrieked as Maxwell’s lifeless body slid onto the floor.

“Oh no, they're breaking through! Quick, bring that Twilight over here!”

What?

“Jesus Christ, that Twilight isn't going to last long, reinforce it with more Twilight!”

What's going on?

“No, They’re breaking down the Twilight, someone help us!!!”

Who's that, who's talking?

For Twilight's sake, calm down and grab some Twilight!”

Why are they...

Ponyville, Equestria

“Wake up, Twilight!!!”

Twilight Sparkle, the purple unicorn, jolted upright in her bed, breathing heavily. Her purple mane was shaken up with hairs frayed every which way, blending into the magenta and violet stripes of her hair. She wiped the sleepiness out of her purple eyes as she looked for the source of the voice. Next to her was Spike, a purple baby dragon with green spikes extending from his back. Twilight could see how worried he was just by the look in his dark green eyes.

“Jeez, Twilight, you were mumbling and twitching in your sleep. What was that all about?”

Twilight let out a sigh of relief. Okay, it was just a dream, she thought as a small smile formed on her face. “Oh it’s nothing, Spike,” she said, consoling her friend, “just a nightmare is all.” She placed a hoof to her chin and said, “It was frightening... yet fascinating. I should really write it down sometime. Do you want me to tell you about it?”

Spike replied, “Considering how you acted in your sleep, I don't think I wanna know...”

Twilight got out of bed and worked the kinks out of her legs. “Alright, time to begin the day,” she said to herself. The purple mare walked down the stairs and headed towards the kitchen, only stopping to organize any wayward books on the floor; such is life when one lives in the town’s library. Her home was actually a hollowed out tree, complete with its very own balcony and telescope, which she used to occasionally observe the many stars in the sky. It was the ideal home for a bookworm like Twilight, filled with information on anything and everything one would ever want to know.

Being a unicorn, her horn glowed as she used her magic to levitate a rolled-up paper and her breakfast, a crisp daffodil daisy sandwich and milk, towards the table she sat at. She unfurled the scroll, reading its contents. “Well, looks like we've got our whole day planned out, Spike,” she said in-between bites. “Once we check on everypony else’s preparations, we can begin to spruce up the library for the Summer Sun Celebration.”

“I know,” Spike said, “all the ponies in town keep talking about it, and how it's going to be so much better than last year's. Like as if we don't know that already.”

Twilight giggled at Spike's smart-alecky comment and said, “It'll definitely be a sight to see. I can just picture it now: everypony cheering as the princess effortlessly brings about the new season. Won't it be spectacular?”

Twilight's enthusiasm was met with a “Meh...” from Spike, as he shrugged and went about his business.

The celebration in question was strikingly similar to a New Years Day celebration on Earth, save the fact that this event marked the summer solstice. Twilight’s enthusiasm wasn’t baseless, as it was a time that brought about nostalgic memories from her fillyhood. It was during a previous celebration that she first saw Equestria’s elegant ruler, Princess Celestia, raise the sun. Every instance of that moment was burned into her memory. From the way the alicorn’s white coat and enormous wings complimenting her golden tiara, pink eyes, and bronze necklace fashioned with multicolored gemstones, to how the sun made her hair glisten in layers of blue, green, purple, and pink respectively. Even the radiance of her horn became an embedded memory in the young unicorn’s mind.

From that moment on, Twilight poured every waking moment of her free time into studying magic. Through a strange twist of fate, an entrance exam into one of the most prestigious schools in Canterlot, Twilight’s at-the-time home town, led her to meet both Spike and the princess. Her magical prowess was so impressive, she was immediately appointed afterwards as the princess’ protegé.

As Twilight kept reading the scroll, she realized something. Each word she read went right through her head, pre-occupied with a much more compelling matter. “You know,” she said, “I can't stop thinking about that dream. There’s something about it, but it just doesn’t make any sense. Is there something to that I’m missing?” She sighed as she rested her head on her hooves.

Spike faced his unicorn friend and said, “Oh, don’t worry about it, Twilight. You had a bad dream about some weird-looking creatures, just like anypony else could. That's all there is to it.”

Twilight shook her head and said, “Somehow, Spike, I doubt that’s the case. Maybe it’s my subconscious trying to tell me something.”

“Sub-what?”

“Subconscious: the part to anypony’s personality that lies in the deepest regions of one’s mind,” she explained. “It usually has to deal with dormant desires and the like.” Twilight’s eyes went wide for a moment. “If my dream dealt with a lot of creatures getting hurt, what if that’s what this is about? You don’t... you don’t think this means I’m a violent pony deep down inside, do you?”

Spike let out a laugh and said, “Come on, Twilight. You? Violent? I think we both know the answer to that one.” Twilight gave the dragon a half-hearted glare. “Sorry, Twilight,” he apologized, “I just don’t see any reason to get so worked up over it.”

A defeated Twilight rested her head on the table, blowing a puff of air into her hair. “It’s not like I want to dwell on this.”

“Well, is there anything you could remotely link to your nightmare?” Spike queried. “Like, I don’t know, an old friend? A promise from a while ago? Your cutie mark? Maybe a—”

“My cutie mark?” Twilight asked as she glanced at the mark on her flank: a six-pointed magenta star with five smaller white stars surrounding it. “I don’t know how in Equestria those two could be related.”

“I’m just throwing out ideas, that’s all.”

These marks were something that ponies could only get when they realized what made him or her special. In Twilight's case, her special talent was magic itself.

As Spike was about to add more ideas, a knock came at the door. “I'll get it.” As he opened the door, he was startled as he was greeted by a flurry of confetti and noise makers.

Twilight smiled and thought to herself, There's only one pony I know who could make such an entrance. Standing at the door was the the most energetic earth pony in Equestria: Pinkie Pie. Her hyperactivity and party skills were second to none, complimenting her bouncy personality. “Hello, Pinkie Pie,” Twilight said as she greeted her friend.

Pinkie returned the greeting, “Hi, Twilight! Hi, Spike! Are you both ready for the big celebration? Huh, huh, huh?” Her curly pink hair bobbed up and down as the earth pony jumped in place. “I just know its going to be the most super fantabulous, amazingly spectacular celebration ever!” She stopped bouncing and shot a beaming smile at Twilight, her blue eyes appearing to stare right into the unicorn’s inner filly.

Twilight chuckled and said, “Well, Pinkie, you do know the celebration isn't really until the end of the week, right?”

“Oh, I know. but that’s why I'm holding a pre-Summer Sun Celebration celebration, and you're invited! You know you can never start the party too early!” Pinkie Pie’s fondness of parties was the very skill to get her a cutie mark, which consisted of three balloons: two blue, and one yellow.

“Well, I'd love to go, but I still have a lot of things to do before Princess Celestia’s arrival. Maybe next time?” Twilight said with an apologetic smile.

“Okie dokie lokie, you do what you need to do. If you change your mind, the party will be in the plains. Byeeee!” Pinkie Pie hopped away, and Twilight shut the door.

Spike piped up, with a hint of annoyance, “Come on, Twilight. We have a whole week before the celebration, and there’s nothing that couldn’t be put off for a day or two. Can’t we just go to the party?”

“No, Spike. We can’t afford to waste any time. As a student of the princess, I need to be sure everything goes off without a hitch.”

He rolled his eyes and said, “Okay, fine. Where do we start?”

Twilight opened her mouth and was about to answer his question, but at that moment, an ominous feeling set in. What... what’s happening? Something doesn’t feel right about this. It’s as if I really shouldn’t stay here... but why? Before she could comprehend this feeling, a purple hand waved itself in front of her face.

Spike asked, “Are you really okay? First you have a crazy nightmare, and now you’re in your own little world... you’re starting to worry me.”

Twilight shook off the dreadful feeling and said, “I’m fine, Spike, don’t worry. I just spaced out for a bit.”

“Are you sure, Twilight?”

“Yep, don’t you worry.” She said as she patted her friend on the head. “Also, you might be right about those preparations. It IS a week until the celebration.”

The baby dragon looked up at Twilight. “Really? You mean we can go?”

“Why not?”

Spike became ecstatic and cried, “Alright! Come on, Twilight! Let's go! We gotta catch up with Pinkie Pie!” He opened the door and shouted, “Hey, Pinkie Pie, wait up!” Spike ran out of the house and Twilight started to follow him.

She still didn’t have a clue what all of this meant, but she didn’t want to worry her friend. I hope I’m right about this. Maybe going to this party will clear my mind. First her nightmare, and now this premonition of hers. As she exited the house, she stopped and took another look at her home with a bit of worry in her heart.

The purple unicorn thought to herself, Please let this just be a bad case of paranoia. Wait, what am I saying? This isnothing to worry about. I bet one of Pinkie Pie’s parties will be just what I need! So one day passes without checking on the preparations; I think I've earned the right to do so. After all, today looks like it’s going to be such a nice day.