Rash Decisions Pt 1
2134 Hours, March 17, 2554 (Military Calendar)
ONI facility B-X13, Asteroid Base, Bastini Baja System
"Hey Hayton, you all right?" asked a voice. It was a friendly voice. It made Lieutenant Hayton feel happy. Hayton's field of vision was hazy. He was returning to consciousness. What had happened? The Lieutenant felt a heavy spike of pain. He put his hand to his face and felt a warm, thick liquid. His mouth tasted of copper. As his vision returned Hayton realised it was blood on his hand. A dark-skinned man kneeled over him.
"How many fingers am I holding up buddy?" questioned the dark-skinned man. The Lieutenant's eyes focused and he counted three fingers.
"Three" answered Hayton.
"Good, your alright" said the man with a sigh of relief. The Lieutenant's vision finally cleared and he stared around his surroundings. He recognised the dark-skinned man as Sergeant. A.J. Johnson.
"What happened Sergeant?" Hayton asked. The Sergeant looked at a nearby operating table and then back at the Lieutenant.
"Don't you remember Hayton?" acquired Johnson. "Your test subject broke free and went mad. I'm afraid he killed your fellow spook". Hayton turned his head slightly to take a look at his fellow ONI worker. His corpse lay, twisted, swimming in his own blood. He remembered his project, he remembered it's straps buckling and the combat form knocking him to the floor.
"We have to find the test subject! We have to kill it before it evolves into a carrier!" shouted Hayton suddenly.
"Alright Lieutenant!" Johnson said, reloading his MA5B."But first we gotta get you patched up. Are there any medical supplies around here?
Sergeant Johnson opened the medical supplies cupboard and retrieved a can of biofoam and a few painkillers. The Sergeant swallowed one of the drugs and then turned to Hayton.
"Alright Lieutenant, let's get you patched up!" he exclaimed.
Hayton felt the cool satisfying feeling of biofoam on his head injury.
"Hey Sarge, are you alright?" questioned the Lieutenant.
"I think I cracked a rib or two, but it's nothing these painkillers can't heal" Johnson chuckled. He finished applying the biofoam and strapped a bandage around Hayton's head.
"Okay Lieutenant, let's go hunt some flood!" he growled.
The pair walked out of testing and towards the elevator that Hayton had ridden down to his experiment. Kalisa appeared on the elevator's console.
"Lieutenant, what happened?" she questioned.
"The test subject broke loose. It couldn't break free until I injected the hunter blood. Maybe the hunter's immunity isn't something we can transfer to humans. Ackerson was right" replied Hayton.
"I haven't seen the combat form, so it' still in testing. Find it!" exclaimed Kalisa.
"Yes Ma'am!" shouted Johnson. They returned to testing.
Dead ONI spooks lay dead, in the wake of the combat form or the test subject. It's bone structure was beginning to change as it quickly was evolving into a carrier form. It continued searching the corridors for more defenceless victims, so that when he released his infection forms they would easily be able to find hosts. Then they would spread to the rest of the facility and find more food. That's how the flood worked. Kill. Feed. Leave.
"No Pulse. This thing's tough!" exclaimed Johnson. The sergeant backed away from yet another dead spook.
"This must be a side effect of the hunter blood!" announced Hayton.
"Man Hayton. You and ONI really screwed up this time didn't you? The last thing the UNSC needs is a new race of super-powerful flood. Then again what can you expect from a spook. Always messin' with everything!" Johnson said in a huff. Hayton opened his mouth to speak and then stopped. The Sarge was right. He had messed up. He had to fix it!
"I know I screwed up, but if we kill this thing now we can fix it. We have to hurry. The hunter blood might speed the evolution phase up!" yelled Hayton. Johnson stood back slightly shocked by Hayton's rage. He looked down at the ground, thinking it over.
"Alright Hayton, let's fix your mess!" exclaimed the Sergeant. He charged down the corridor, assault rifle at chest height. The Lieutenant followed.
The test subject leaped down the corridor. He had to find a place to hide. He was evolving and if he was found in his evolving state, he could easily be killed. And he didn't want to go down without a fight. A small door stood to his right. The combat form reached for the door release and pressed it. Inside was a storage room. Perfect it thought. The test subject strolled in and the door closed behind him.
"The trail of dead bodies ends here" the Sergeant announced pointing at a small door. "It might be tough but it sure ain't clever!". Hayton hit the door release and the Sergeant charged in, rifle raised. Hayton followed. Johnson slowly stomped around the dark, small storage room.
Suddenly a large puffy figure stepped out. The combat form had evolved. Hayton watched as Johnson put his finger to his MA5B's trigger.
"No Johnson!" bellowed the Lieutenant. Too late. The Sergeant fired a quick three-round burst and the carrier blew in a gassy explosion. Hayton and Johnson flew back and the Sergeant dropped his rifle. The pair got to their feet and the Lieutenant shouted :
"Run!"
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