Go For Stories

They were not given a chance to breathe as the doors had closed and were locked behind them. The albinoids began slamming into the doors with ferocious intent, sure to turn them into splinters within seconds. Nigel leaned against the doors, barricading them with the help of Jacob. Milly and Bec stood back, supporting a near unconscious Anne between them.

“Where to now?” asked Jacob. His chest rose and fell with each sharp breath and his skin had a pale, clammy sheen to it.

“Up,” said Nigel. While the plan had been to reach Security and gather weapons, Anne’s condition had changed that somewhat. With the creatures tearing at the door behind him, they would never make it that far before being overcome. Their only option at this stage was to get as many levels up as possible before branching out when the albinoids got too close.

“Research One,” said Bec. “We have to get to Research One.”

“Why there?” asked Milly.

She never got her answer as Jacob screamed and leaped away from the door. Nigel cast a downward glance and jumped back as well. At their feet was the face of one of the creatures. Its bugging, yellow eyes glared at them as it squeezed through the narrow gap at the base of the door. It worked its fingers through the slot and clawed at the floor. Its head and hands were twisted out of shape by the force of the door as it stretched towards them. Reaching. It flexed its elongated fingers in an attempt to grab them, to claw them, to tear them.

Nigel stomped on its head.

The creature shuddered and shrieked. Nigel stomped again. It twitched and fought to tear itself back through the gap. Its cries split the air and filled Nigel with a deep feeling of revulsion. The others stayed back as Nigel stomped it once more. Its head swelled with the pressure of Nigel’s boot and burst, spilling brain matter over the floor. The air filled with a thick, cloying scent. Nigel swallowed the urge to vomit and turned away from the mess.

“Research One it is.”

He pushed the others towards the first step, though they needed little encouragement at this stage. The creatures paused for a moment in response to the loss of one of their own before taking up the task of breaking down the doors once more. Based on the increased ferocity of the thumps, Nigel guessed they were mad at him.

They rushed up the stairs, Nigel taking one side of Anne from Milly, giving her a break from the effort. When they reached the next landing, they paused at the door. Nigel lifted a finger to his mouth and waited. There was no sound from behind the door, so he reached out with his spare hand and pushed. The door opened out to a floor empty of the creatures. He could hear them down below, shrieking and fighting. Milling around in a terrifying mass of white flesh and sharp claws. The hammering sound continued at the doors below them, distant now, but not letting up. The doors were designed to be unbreakable, but that meant nothing to these … these things.

He nodded to Jacob, who had the lead and stepped through to the balcony level with more than a hint of hesitation. He turned back and raised his hands as if to ask where to go. Milly moved forward and leaned towards the bannister as far as she dared, checking on the creatures. Not liking what she saw, she pulled back and moved away from the edge. They all hugged the walls, Bec and Nigel stumbling under the near dead weight of Anne. Trying to keep the noise down they made their way along the wall to the corner. From here, Nigel could just see the mass of creatures writhing and rolling. Scuttering over each other or standing with their weird, twitching movements. Never still.

He pushed closer into the wall as they moved, silent as possible lest they alert the creatures to their whereabouts. At this stage, it seemed the creatures were focussed on the doors below, but it wouldn’t take much to distract them. One creature’s wayward glance would be all it took to get the entire horde on them once more.

They stepped over the body of one of the complex’s cleaners, careful not to trip. The massacre had not been limited to the plaza, after all. The man lay face down in a pool of his own, coagulating blood. Peaceful now that he had nothing left to worry about. No longer concerned about fear or pain. No longer scared of these nightmarish creatures that came from nowhere and tore him down. Nigel averted his gaze, it was too much to think about. Their continued survival was the only thing he should be focussed on right now.

Halfway around the balcony, Jacob stumbled and swore under his breath. In response, there was an instant of silence that stretched from the plaza all the way to the nuclear reactor powering the complex. The thumping stopped against the door below and the creatures stopped their shrieking violence against each other. That instant was the longest moment of Nigel’s life. He looked around for the nearest door. It led to a conference room, but had been smashed off its hinges. There was no salvation through that door. Further along was the same. All doors were smashed apart as the creatures had swept through the place, killing all in their path.

The instant of silence strained to the point of collapse and, finally snapping, the noise picked up once more. Everyone breathed out in one long, collective breath and they continued their slow, silent trek to the primary research lab. Bec and Nigel lugged Anne, who had made a momentary recovery. She made to say something, but Bec clamped her hand over Anne’s mouth and shushed her as quiet as she could. Anne nodded weakly. They made it to the lab without earning the attention of the albinoids and they all gathered around the solid glass doors.

The doors had automatically sealed when the alarm had been triggered. Normally, there would be someone to run the unlock program once the situation was under control. However, the situation was hardly under control. Beyond the glass the lab remained undisturbed. It seemed that the missing people had taken its toll on the staff numbers and reduced the research team to a minimum capacity of none.

“Shit!” Nigel swore as quiet as he could. “Shit!”

“What?” Milly mouthed, keeping her vocal control better than Nigel had.

Bec pointed to a panel at the side of the entrance to the lab. A bright red light reflected off her face.

“The locks can only be overridden by voice command,” she whispered. “Only it has to be at a normal speaking volume.”

“Shit!” whispered Milly.

“Just do it quick,” said Jacob, taking Anne’s arm from Nigel and looping it over his shoulder.

Nigel stepped up to the panel and pressed the button.

“The complex is under lockdown,” the computer said. Though not altogether loud, it was loud enough. The silence came back, but this time it was followed by the sound of thunderous rage. The albinoids knew where they were. And they were maddened by the wait. Their screams doubled and the thumping against the door quickly became a rending, creaking noise. They had broken through and they were coming. “Authorised personnel only,” the computer continued. “There have been zero entries to this room since lockdown. State the access code to enter.”

“Access code … a-access code … umm.”

The sound of the albinoids racing up the stairs filled his mind. They bounced off the walls and tumbled over each other in their need to feed. The code was gone. Lost in the moment.

“What the fuck are you doing?” asked Bec.

“Access code …” He rubbed his eyes. The shrieks and chittering had replaced all numbers and codes in his memory. There was nothing else. He could hear the albinoids exit the stairwell. There was a pause as they searched the level, but it didn’t take the creatures long to find their prey. They screamed towards them, filling the air with their evil. Closing a tight, sharp fist around his brain. “Access code 4 6 2 F F Lavender 5,” he blurted as the albinoids raced towards them. Nigel didn’t look, but he knew they were close.

“Access granted.”

The doors slid open and the others fell through the gap. Nigel followed close behind and Milly slammed her fist on the close button. Nigel turned to see the beasts closing in on them. In slow motion, he could see their outstretched arms and raking fingernails slicing through the air. The doors hissed closed and the claws grated down the glass, scoring the surface with a wild screeching noise. The doors locked and a hundred nightmare demons fell against the shockproof glass.