No, I could hit him. Get the lab guy to do it—
Mercy pressed her face up to the glass, making sure she had eye contact with Flynn. “It’ll be OK Flynn, I’ll get you out, give me two minutes—”
Mercy turned and ran across the laboratory. She found Barnes standing over Dr Reyes, who was rubbing his wrists and coughing. Barnes gave him a bottle of water from a nearby bench.
Mercy bent down and snatched the water from Reyes. “You’ve got two of my friends in tanks back there, you bastard. You’re gonna release them right now or else you die. It’s that simple.” She pressed her HK45 to his forehead and stared, unblinking into his eyes.
Reyes nodded and gasped, “Yes, yes, sure. I can do that. Don’t shoot me. I have family—”
Barnes took a step back and glanced at Mercy, “He’s got GPS trackers for the alphas, and he knows where there’s a sat phone. It’s like Christmas and New Year all rolled up into one, I nearly wet my pants with the excitement—”
Mercy handed the water bottle back to the man. She read the name tag on his white coat, remembering it from before: DR DAVID REYES, BIOPATHOLOGY.
“OK Reyes, let’s go and free my friends. Then you can show my buddy here how to use the GPS tracker. Then you’re going to get some clothes for my friends and get us the hell out of here—”
Reyes nodded and took a gulp of water. Barnes pulled him up and shoved him towards the three remaining glass tanks.
This day’s on fire, this day is on fire—
Chapter 14
Resurrection
Reyes switched on the bank of screens at the rear of the laboratory. He logged onto the life support programme for the three remaining tanks. “They’re… incubation tanks, we’re incubating the new biotech in their bodies, allowing it to bed in—”
Barnes looked at Mercy, she shook her head.
What the fuck? I’ve got too many questions. Now is not the time, just get Flynn and Tawny free then we can bail—
Barnes glanced back at the laboratory door, “Where is everyone? Surely there’s more of your people down here?”
Reyes’s fingers worked the keyboard, “Yeah, there’s loads of staff in this building. They’ll be in lockdown by now, it’s security protocol… when the alarm’s triggered.” He paused and licked his lips.
“And?” Barnes growled, pulling out his knife and slamming it into the table beside Reyes’s hand.
Reyes paled. “They’ll be in the safe rooms in the level below here. The AI will sweep the building, find the problem and send in bots to neutralise the threat—”
Barnes stiffened, “Bots? Yeah, we know all about those critters. Met them in Annapolis. Get a fucking move on before I cut you.” Barnes pulled his knife out of the table and held it to Reyes’s neck.
Reyes trembled and punched more commands into the computer. A series of hissing sounds came from the three intact glass tanks. Mercy tore the plastic curtains down from around the autopsy table. She rushed over to Flynn and watched as a curtain of bubbles fizzed up through the green liquid. She pressed her hands against the glass and whispered Flynn’s name.
Flynn—?
Valves opened at the base of the tank and the liquid started to drain away. Seconds later the tank was empty. Flynn lay slumped at the bottom. Mercy clutched the plastic curtains she had taken from the autopsy area. She looked across at Tawny, concern etched on her face.
Incubation, hibernation, whatever… they’ll be cold, hungry, weak. They’ll need to rest up for weeks. I’ll have to leave them again to go find Rose—
Mercy looked away.
Stop overthinking dammit, just focus, get them out and away—
The glass tank disengaged from its metallic base and rose up on hydraulic pistons. Some residual liquid spilled onto the floor at Mercy’s feet. Flynn was naked, his skin covered in a jelly-like substance. Mercy swore, not knowing what to do. She wrapped the plastic curtains around him and embraced him whispering his name over and over.
Flynn, Flynn, Flynn—
To her surprise Flynn stood up. He pulled the tube from his mouth then the leads from his arms and chest. He wrapped the plastic curtain around him and jerked his head up, glancing over at Tawny. Tawny had removed her tubes and leads. She stepped down and stood, shivering in the dim light. Tawny’s eyes flickered an electric blue colour.
Flynn nodded, “We’re good Mercy. We’re strong, let’s get out of here. There’s trouble coming.”
Mercy, Flynn and Tawny joined Barnes and Reyes at the rear of the laboratory.
“Meet Commander Barnes, Navy SEAL with Constantine’s forces. Barnes, this is Flynn and Tawny, my people from back in New York—”
Barnes grunted and nodded at Flynn and Tawny. Flynn’s eyes flicked to the screens behind the computer terminal.
Mercy followed his gaze. She frowned, not understanding what she was seeing. Various camera feeds flashed across the screens relaying images from outside the National Mall’s perimeter wall.
What’s going on—?
“Oh my god,” Reyes said, his voice carrying clearly across the room. “They’ve executed the Deadfall Protocol—”
Mercy looked at Barnes.
“What the fuck is the Deadfall Protocol?” Barnes spat.
“They’ve released the enhanced alphas from their pens into the city. The AI will control them via their commander queens.” Reyes’s hands flashed over the keyboard and more camera shots came into view. Image after image of trap doors opening on city streets, filled the screens. All around the capital streams of undead burst forth, released from their underground pens.
My god, they were everywhere. They were under the streets… we were walking over them the whole time. Constantine’s land forces will be overwhelmed. This was all for nothing—
One of the monitors flickered and a different sequence of images flashed in a loop. Mercy tilted her head and pointed at the screen, “Reyes, what the hell is that?”
The answer dropped into her head just as Reyes spoke.
“That’s the destroyers, they’ve activated the destroyers too. We must be under attack, the Resistance must be close—” Reyes shouted.
Destroyers?
Mercy stared at the giant screen. Her
