Keane watches eagerly as they enter the apartment. Within moments of entering it is clear Caius is not on site. They clear the apartment and move down to the next floor. Sebastian sits back with a sigh of relief. He doesn’t want someone else taking down Caius. Just thinking about it has a red flame glowing behind his eyes. Vorn stares at the unlikely group they make and can only imagine what it must look like to Anya.
The soldiers work their way down, floor by floor, using a fish eye camera to see around corners and thermal scanners to check for body signatures. When they come across an enemy they are prepared to quickly dominate and kill it.
Team B is no less proficient. The captain holds up a hand from cover outside the building and points at the cargo doors, indicating five. Five cold signatures. That means vampires. Quickly he pulls out a cook off grenade, while the others draw solid black swords made of Druid steel with runes of power etched into the blades. The grenade is enhanced with solar energy. It will not kill them, but it will blind them enough to allow the team to engage. All four slide on glasses made to protect them from the blast and allow them to see. Moving into position, they watch the camera until the five images are close enough together to get the maximum impact. He tosses the grenade and they move swiftly through the doors. It is silent as it flashes a bright hot blue light. They quickly sever the heads of the five stunned vampires knowing time is of the essence, silently they move towards the hidden doors leading to the basement level.
Magdalene warned them of the laboratory beneath the building, but they are not supposed to engage. All three lean close to watch the computer screen. “No…” Keane whispers as another soldier swiftly disarm the digital lock and they enter the stairway. The compound is ten levels below ground and can only be accessed through the hidden elevator upstairs or the loading docks. A freight elevator was installed to allow large cages to be transported easily in an out of the building. As they clear the stairway and move slowly down, Team C has entered the front of the building and is moving through each level.
It looks as if they are accessing the computers in the main lobby and collecting as much data as possible. Rushing into the labs they fill up plastic bags with samples from the refrigerated vaults. Keane is beginning to realize that the Hunter’s Guild must have an agenda of their own in mind. While the two soldiers are busy, the other two are clearing the rooms leading into the back offices.
“What the hell is that?” Vorn asks pointing to the front door.
A creature that can only be called a demon is staring through the front glass. It stands on two feet like a man, but this is no man. When Magdalene and Brody escaped it had made its way back to the only home it knew. It moves as a blur, the soldier at the computer fails to see it. Instead of attacking, it squats down and ducks behind a desk to sniff the air. Not caring for the scent of the soldier, it shakes its head and a single silver snake drops to the ground and slithers away. Around the desk chair, it slides silently, the scales on its body shifts to match the color of the carpet. It seeks heat, and the soldier is its target. Silently it passes under the computer terminal that the soldier is typing at. A quick bite to the calf of the unsuspecting man and he is immobilized in the chair. The toxin moves fast, passing through his body and straight to his nervous system. The force of the first seizure throws him backwards from the chair onto the floor.
The creature does not wait, he moves on into the lab where another soldier is stuffing items into a large duffel bag. He watches for a moment before cracking the door open and leaping through. This soldier looks up just in time to see the animal leaping at him. This one smells different and driven by hunger this soldier will provide the nutrients it needs.
Keane covers his face as the soldier’s blood sprays across the glass doors.
Sebastian doesn’t take his eyes off the soldier at the desk. After the snake returns to the wolf demon, the soldier on the ground begins to seize, but this toxin is not deadly. When the tremors slow a shift begins. The creature has infected the soldier and now he is becoming, something new. Similar to the creature who bit him but a different variation because he was a Guild member, not a werewolf. “The fool has done it!” Sebastian growls.
Vorn stares stunned as the soldier is infected. “Is it some kind of virus?” he gasps. The soldier rolls to his side and begins to vomit small silver worm like snakes! They instantly slither back towards his body. Over and over he vomits until his entire body is covered with liquid silver.
Keane is shaking his head and dialing his phone with trembling fingers. “You need to abort, get them out!” The director of the guild is already on it. He gives the command to abort.
“We can still retrieve the data!”
“No, don’t you see what we see. It is infecting them!” Keane yells. The director hangs up after arguing for a few moment with him.
“Damn Fools!” Keane yells, almost throwing his phone. “I warned them that these creations are not mortal. They should know better than this!” Jumping up from the computer, he moves back over to watch the rest of this unfold.
“You’ve done all you can for now. We can only watch and hope they listen,” Sebastian says.
Without
