“Winters!” Colonel Reed shouts, looking back at him. “Open the bloody doors; where are the keys, WINTERS!”
It is now that Winters executes his plan. His fear and anticipation peak as his head turns from the gaggle of protesting officers to the wall on the left. His hand comes up and he presses the bright green button next to the roller shutter. The roller shutter jumps into life immediately. This is not an old juddering shutter, but a nice smooth quick one. Fresh air blows under the shutter as it rises nice and quickly. The air is carrying the loud screeches of the infected as they go into a frenzy, excited by the new movement and the light streaming out of the loading bay.
Adrenaline pumps through Winters. His head turns back to the officers as they realise what is happening and go into a panic. Some bolt back towards him and the safety of the door, terror etched across their faces. Others draw their sidearms to defend themselves, whilst others freeze in sheer panic and fear.
The first beast is through the gap before the roller shutter has risen even a meter, the creature throwing itself under the edge of the shutter before it springs to its feet to attack the nearest piece of new meat. Shots ring out around the loading bay from the officers who have pistols in their hands as they try to kill the intruder. They miss and the creature lands on its prey, biting down into it. More beasts quickly follow the first one under and the feeding frenzy goes to a new level. The officers running at Winters are taken down as they are hit sideways off their feet screaming at the top of their lungs. And teeth sink into them, their eyes pleading at Winters to help them.
Winters is unrelenting, however. His hand drops from the green button to press the button below it. The roller shutter goes into reverse and the door starts to close, just before it has reached two meters up. There are more than enough creatures inside to deal with Reed and his cronies.
Across the bay, Winters looks for Colonel Reed. He is backed up against the side of his black Defender with his arms outstretched. A creature has him pinned back as he tries to stop the creature's teeth from biting into his neck or face. For a moment, Winters thinks the once-mighty Colonel might succeed in stopping the creature from feeding on him.
The beast changes its tactics though, turns its head and sinks its teeth into Reed's arm. Colonel Reeds face instantly changes from fighting determination, to shock and to fear as he realises he has finally lost.
Winters has seen enough and not a moment too soon. Down on the floor, a creature’s eyes meet his as it looks up from the red-stained bleeding body below it. Winters doesn’t hesitate, and quickly backs out through the side door, pulling its handle as he goes. The door swings shut just in time for the beast to slam into the closed door.
Head spinning and body trembling, Winters has to drop to his knees before he passes out, the second time he has had to take action recently to stop himself fainting. He drops further down, forward, onto his forearms bringing his head down to get blood into it.
His curled-up position works, and he feels the arteries in his neck pump fresh blood to his brain, taking oxygen with it and the spinning slows. Feeling better, he rises back up to his knees and stays there, contemplating what he has done.
He has just slaughtered a big proportion of the military’s highest officers and the command structure of Operation Denial. Does he feel guilty? Yes, but for the loss of life, not because they were officers. The military will be better off and more effective without those men; he has no doubt about that. Many in the higher ranks of the military would thank him for taking Colonel Reed and his web of lies, deceit and bribery out of the game.
As for Operation Denial? Winters will communicate the unfortunate turn of events up the chain. Nobody is irreplaceable and a new command structure will soon be in place to take control of the operation. A structure that perhaps will actually improve results; they can’t get much worse.
As his wits return, Winters hears the screaming coming from beyond the door behind him as the slaughter continues. He may be mistaken, but he thinks he hears the rasping voice of Colonel Reed shouting, “WINTERS!”
Winter has no remorse for Colonel Reed. Some of the other officers that Reed had suckered into playing his game, maybe, but the Colonel, no. Reed has sacrificed countless troops today, desperately trying to cling on to his power and would have continued to do so, without a second thought—and that is just today. When he thinks back to all the operations in places like Afghanistan and Iraq in which Reed has tried to play God, Winters shivers. Some—no, most—of the operations were ill-thought-out and planned by Reed and his go-to tactic to rescue the situation and try to save face was more often than not to throw more troops into the lost cause. Reed had gallons of blood on his hands, was well past his sell-by date and today got his comeuppance.
As he gets to his feet, Winters contains no sorrow in him for the slaughter of Reed. If anything, he feels sorry for the infected beasts who are going to have him to contend with now.
Recovered, Winters starts the long walk back to the lift area to get back up to the command room and get on the phone to military command. He needs to make sure they know that the temporary command structure in place for Operation Denial, while Colonel Reed is relocating, will
