Van Helsing Rising - Helen Scott Page 0,1
a flashlight pointing at the thing's face, and what I see in the circle of light makes my stomach turn. The shifter looks like he is frozen mid shift. His face is part wolf, part human. Usually when we take down a shifter they either remain as a wolf or revert back to human, depending on how far gone the shift is. I've never seen one frozen like the one in front of me now.
"Obelisk Research Facility," Crash states as he hands me the security badges he's taken off the bodies.
"Research facility? What the fuck are they researching?" I mutter.
Grunts of surprise sound over the ear piece from Dragon and Phoenix. We hadn't been able to get any info on what exactly this structure is or who owns it. Too many shell companies and paid off officials.
"At least now we know what we're walking into. Nice of them to spell it out," I say with a sigh.
"There may be civilians inside," Crash says, his voice only audible through the ear piece even though we are standing right next to each other.
I nod. "Be aware of civilians and possible innocents."
We walk back to the door together, and I swipe the security badge. It beeps and a red light flashes. They know we are here.
"I tried," I say before placing the explosive I've pulled from my belt on the lock.
We back away, and after a few seconds, the sound of breaking metal reaches my ears. The door easily pulls open after that, the smoking hole where the lock had been making it obvious what’s happened. It doesn't matter anymore though. Stealth is no longer an option, so a full clean-out of this research facility is going to be needed. We have protocols in place for exactly this kind of thing, so it doesn’t worry me.
It’s empty at first, though I know from the papers that are scattered around in different rooms and abandoned cups of coffee that are still steaming hot that they have most likely pulled back to a more secure location. We sweep through the building, clearing offices and what looks like on call rooms, pushing until we come to a door at the end of the hallway. It’s the only place they can be.
There is no way for us to open the door without being in the line of fire, so I brace myself as Crash pulls the door open and stands to one side. Almost immediately a bullet hits my vest and it feels like all the air has been knocked out of my lungs. I've experienced it many times before though, so I push the feeling aside and focus on the enemies that are firing at us.
As far as I can see there are no civilians present at this "research facility", just supes with guns and their prisoners. Most of whom look unconscious or dead.
We fan out as we enter the room, firing back. I know at least one of us is bleeding. I can sense it. The pops of rapid gunfire suddenly stop as we realize there is no one left standing other than us. Crash doesn’t waste any time in doing his thing, confirming that they are, in fact, all dead, and if by some chance they’re not, putting them out of their misery. "Want anything off them?" he asks.
"Anything interesting. Also photos, especially any that are half shifted like the one outside so we can show the Prez," I reply. Our president will want to know what the hell was going on here, what this research facility was actually up to. "Hard drives and stuff, too," I add. It might take us a while to decipher or even get into it, but it could be useful in determining if there are other facilities like this one.
Now that I’m sure we are safe and everyone is either dead or will be shortly, I start to look around. Rooms that are essentially prison cells fan out around the center of the room where we are standing.
Each one is occupied with someone who looks like a regular human being, not that I can be sure these days. I've seen too much shit. We aren't in the business of killing innocents though, only those that deserve it. Supe or not. Most supes never draw our attention because there are too many out there fucking up that we stay plenty busy hunting them down.
Letting these people out of their cells without knowing what’s going on isn't on my to-do