Monster Genocide is a five-part sci-fi thriller by local author A. Bradley Green, click here to start at the beginning. Or click here to catch up on the previous episode.
PART FIVE: THE FINALE
Night
Nil Zone 12
Sector 7
Ancient Factory City
Earth
There was a chill in the night air, enough that Rubin and Dean could see their anxious breath as smoke in front of their faces. They were cornered by nearly 20 demon dogs. The first flank rushed forward, snarling with gnashed jagged teeth.
“Dean! Let loose!” Rubin, dug his heels in, punching out with his gloved hand emitting a blast of plasma energy. “This is going to get ugly,” said Dean, just as 3 demon dogs leap into a face full of bullets from his gatling arm. Rubin fried 3 demon dogs that were flanking them, then cut down 2 more with his 8 shot quantum revolver. Dean laid into the advancing numbers killing 4 more before the rest backed off, watching from the shadows, getting smarter about their next attack.
Rubin Cross at the middle age of 72 had seen his share of battlefields in the Nil zones of Earth. And in combat, biolecs use primal instincts and humans use tactics. These demon dogs were applying human combat strategies. Familiar ones in fact.
Rubin looked down at his gloved hand and flicked his wrist to change weapon mode to discharge.
“We’re done here. Duck!”
Dean dropped to one knee firing as the demon dogs rushed in from all sides at once. Rubin held his gloved hand above his head and let off a plasma discharge, sending bolts of lightning out seemingly aimless. They found ground through the burning husks of over half a dozen demon dogs, enough to chase off the remaining numbers.
“Dean. We need to get inside and help Natty before…” Rubin was cut short by an explosion and the earthquaking shatter as part of the ancient building caved in where Natty and the clients were.
Maxwell Getty was a maniac artist who designed mythical weapons, things no one could recreate. Urban legend said he blew himself up in his lab along with all of his ideas and designs, which had never been replicated.
For example, the MG Remag Machine Pistol. A weapon that never needed to be reloaded because it only had one potentially explosive plasma charged round that returned like a stringless yoyo once it hit its target. The rarity for anyone to find one of these Maxwell Getty pieces was near impossible.
Yet Natty Kendal was palming one Maxwell Getty machine pistol in each hand. Her grip tightened on both handles as the plasma charged round in each weapon built up energy. She stared down those yellow eyes confronting her from the shadows.
Natty held her ground in the doorway, standing between them and a gaggle of over a dozen demon dogs. With a half-smile she pointed both guns out in front of her.
“Let’s go, gruesomes! Show me some teeth,” yelled Natty. Almost as if by command the demon dogs all charged at her at once. She held a finger down on both triggers releasing an explosive forward energy, cutting through the demon dogs and two concrete support beams which brought the ceiling down on what was left of the creatures.
Rubin and Dean rushed in to find Natty standing in front of a bloody pile of dust and concrete. The scared faces of their clients peeked slowly from the doorway. Rubin spoke up.
“We’re Team Cross. We’re not out of the woods entirely yet. We need to get you all out of here. Anyone injured or need medical attention?” Trish and Scott turned and were staring at Norm who stood behind them.
“Norm?”
Norm looked scared. He was holding the dead barrier cube. “It’s because I tried to leave the game,” said Norm. “They just wanted Team Cross, not us! This wasn’t supposed to go down like this!” Trish and Scott looked puzzled.
“Who wanted us dead, Norm?” Rubin asked Norm who was busy fiddling with the barrier cube with nervous hands.
“Bedlam! You have no idea what they are capable of?”
“Who is Bedlam?” Rubin said, stepping closer to Norm who was still looking at the cube in his hands.
“Team Cross was supposed to die. Now we all have to die.”
Norm pressed a button on the barrier cube and it sparked to life in his hand. The cube started to beep quickly like a bomb. Natty lifted her Maxwell Getty and pulled the trigger, blasting Norm off his feet, barrier cube and all, back into the room they were trapped in.
“Take cover!” Rubin yelled on the move. Everyone dashed in different directions as the barrier cube exploded inside the room sending out chunks of debris and smoke.
Natty stood and pointed her gun at Trish and Scott who had dived to the floor as the cube exploded.
“You guys on the same page with your boy over there?”
“We’re not even reading the same book apparently,” exclaimed Scott, hands up.
“It would have been nice if we could have interrogated that guy to find out who put him up to this,” said Rubin looking at Natty.
“He was gonna blow us up. Sorry.” Natty shrugged.
Trish stood up confused. “It was Norm who claimed he saw the job on the live-wire, he claimed the truck stopped working. He guided us in this direction. Was he the one who did all of this?”
“Seems he was a pawn in something he was caught up in,” explained Rubin.
“I want to ask you a few questions while we get you folks back where you belong.”
Team Cross returned Trish and Scott to their truck, which started right up after replacing the relay chip that was removed by Norm.
Rubin was in deep thought while driving back to Team Cross Headquarters. He would ponder Bedlam for the rest of the night. Why did Bedlam want Team Cross dead? Rubin was determined to find out. Their lives depended on it.
The End
To read the previous installments, click below. Monster Genocide is a five-part sci-fi thriller by local author A. Bradley Green.