Blood of Dragons - Ch 2

Chapter two: Occupational Hazards

Julian slumped against the chair as the glass became frosted. They must not be able to stand looking at him. And why not, he was a monster, an animal. Why wouldn’t they just let him go, let him devolve and lost what remained of his humanity in peace. Just let him lose himself far away from here.

“Blake?” He heard the woman, Clair, ask though the intercom, they must have forgot to turn it off.

“I think the answer lies in that outpost.” The boy, Blake, answered with a hint of dread in his voice. “You did say it was within the possible range.”

“You want to go there?”

“If that’s where the distress signal is coming from, then people there need help.” Julian’s eyes shoot open at that fact. Did someone else get infected? Was it spreading? “And if that’s where Julian came from, then it’s our help they need. You noticed it too, didn’t you?”

“Well, either that or he was missing details from his change. What does it mean?”

“Colour blindness… the fear of being around us… and it explains whey he was so far from civilisation.”

“Stars above.” Julian heard rage in her words, like she just spat some sort of curse. “The transformation isn’t going to stop until he loses himself.”

“Question is… to what? And what’s causing it? Well, we better get this ship in the air if we’re going to find out.” Footsteps echoed though the metal corridor as he heard them walk away.

Julian quivered in fear. He left to protect them from him, and now either they were turning into what he was, or they would be killed by them. The pain building up in his chest wasn’t what caused him to scream. It was the idea that his family was going to die.

They’re not your family anymore Julian…

The voice. That voice! “Get out of my head.” Julian whispered to himself.

They’re not your family anymore Julian. You’re not human anymore. You are a superior creature, a being of power, strength and grace. Give in to it.

“Get out.” He hissed, tears streaming from his eyes.

“Latitude, North… no surprise… 84 degrees, 12 minutes, 91 seconds. Longitude, West, 94 degrees, 172 minutes, 58 seconds.” Clair informed Blake as he entered the geological co-ordinates into the jet’s navigation system. “Kid went a long way. If that blizzard didn’t hit, he would have made it to the Queen Elizabeth Islands if he had the fuel.”

“He just wanted to get as far from them a possible.” Blake sighed, gripping the the controls with both hands. “Lets go.”

The hissing of the engines sent quakes though the ship for a moment as it ascended and it flew off east, stirring up snow in it’s wake…

“Burr… Remind me to wear better clothes when visiting areas that are sub-zero.” Clair commented. So far, she used the Combat-field on her armband to keep her warm, knowing that the energy field could trap heat under it’s ion-film. She also activated her holo-disguise, knowing that her alien qualities wouldn’t go over well, picking up some tanned human skin and a pair of dark green eyes, but she kept her hair the same knowing she could pass it off as a dye job. She emerged from the jet once it landed, outside a small camp made of collapsable buildings surrounding a large dome with the letters ‘GSO’ running down them, obviously the main building. “Everyone seems to have the right idea. All indoors.”

“You’d think that.” Blake said walking up behind her. “But something is wrong here. Can’t you feel it?”

“All I can feel is a cold chill from this weather.” She answered walking up to the main building, and it’s entrance. She was however stopped when she saw that the door had a retina scanner. She hoped someone was home as she knocked on the door.

It opened, revealing a young Japanese man wearing a jumpsuit. Behind her, Blake noticed he was foaming at the mouth. Not only that but his foot was twisted on a unnatural angle, there was a gash on his forehead and he looked deathly pale.

“Ah. You look like a helpful bloke.” Clair greeted. “Tell me good sir, could you tell me where…”

“Die…” The man moaned.

“Where to die?” Clair asked.

“You… must…. die…” The man lunged at Clair…

A bolt of raw energy hit the man’s chest and Blake hosted his multi-purpose Photon Blaster, content that the man no longer posed any threat to either him or Clair.

“I take that back. Your not helpful at all.” Clair sighed before turning his attention to the still human lying on the ground. “Please tell me what ever he has isn’t infectious.” She turned to Blake.

“He isn’t. But it’s not an illness. He was controlled by something though arcane means.” Blake informed her. “A mind control spell that blocked out everything but basic functions. And whispering instructions.” Blake looked at a name tag declaring the man to be Hiroki Yagami, Archaeologist. “Help me roll him over.”

Clair complied, helping him push the man over… she gasped at what she saw. Four long lacerations down his back. Claws.

“You don’t think?” Clair asked as Blake produced his phone.

Given in Julian. Become what you are meant to be. Human no more… they are insects compared to you now. And they won’t even be dirt compared to you soon. Give in Julian. Julian…

“Julian! Julian!” Blake’s voice rang out in the sick bay snapping the boy out of his line of depressing thoughts. He saw the intercom flashing, still on. “Julian! Are you even there?! I didn’t call for pizza by mistake again. They’re going to have one hell of a time getting to Kipper Range.”

“What’s going on!?” Julian called out, trying to stand, only to find that his centre of gravity had changed, forcing him to crawl over to the intercom speaker.

“Drat. Looks like I’m not getting pizza.” Blake moaned.

“Blake!” Clair snapped.

“Right. There’s a problem. Who’s in charge?” Blake asked.

“What kind of problem?” Julian demanded.

“Ugh… zombies and dragons kind of problem. We’re still not sure what’s going on.”

A cold chill ran down Julian’s spine. “Zoya Lagunov is in charge of the operation. All of this is her pride.” Julian answered Blake’s earlier question. “Just find my parents and make sure they’re okay.”

“I’ll do that.” Blake assured him. “Who are they?”

“Marshall McHamish, and Doctor June Foster.”

“No problem.” Clair said warmly. “How are you feeling?”

“Scared. I can’t walk upright anymore.” Julian then noticed the hiss in his speech.

“It’s going to be okay Julian. Okay. Just keep thinking of your parents. Hold on to those memories as best you can.” Clair instructed.

 “How is it going to be okay!?” Julian roared before catching himself. She was right. He needed to hold on to everything he has left. And right now, it was his mind, memories, emotions. He wasn’t going to let them go easily. He didn’t notice Clair calling out his name.

Your fighting a losing battle Julian… give up…

“No.” He growled. “I’m not a monster.”

Would your parents think that if they saw you now. They won’t see their son when they see you now. They’ll only see an animal. Something to fear. Something to hate. Something to turn away. They won’t love you anymore. Your not human anymore.

“Shut up!”

Why? Because it’s the truth…

“Julian!” Clair called out, then gave up.

“We’ve got a name atleast.” Blake said to her before walking though the open door. She noticed that it was warmer inside at least, mostly metal and glass and the smell of chemicals coming from an open lab irritated her nose, but she was able to follow Blake inside it and…

“LOOK OUT!!!” She screamed as something jumped off the top shelf of a cabinet full of glassware and tired to impale Blake with stone claws. Clair pushed him to the floor before it came to that. “Okay?”

“Besides the taste of metal in my mouth, I’m just great.” He said getting up and dusting himself off. Then came a sound like growling, but it could only be described as gravely.

“What’s that?” Clair asked.

“Either my pet rock has developed an attitude, or that’s something else entirely.” Blake answered turning to see a golem in the shape of a small, wingless and tailless dragon. “Okay. Not the pet rock. Clair!”

“Got it!” She ran into a store room to see what chemical goodies she could find. She got there in time to miss hearing the sound of glassware shattering when the gargoyle talked the shelves. She smiled at the sight of the label ‘Flammable’ and grabbed anything that had a flashpoint below room temperature. Using a dry towel left on the floor, the chemical smell meant it was used to clean up something harmless, she made few molotov cocktails from the organic chemicals.

“Clair!” She heard Blake call out, followed by several photon blasts. Using a zippo lighter, she ignited the wet towel strips that hung out of the bottles of organic chemicals, grabbed both bottles and ran back into the lab where Blake had the thing at blaster point, but it was still advancing on him.

SMASH.

She threw one cocktail at the golem. It hissed at the puddle of flames that spilt over the linen floor. She threw the other, causing another puddle behind the dragon golem. It scampered into a near by vent.

“Well done Professor Weli’sol.” Blake sighed.

“I would have thought all that noise would have drawn some attention.” Clair looked around, her work still burning away. “We might be the only one’s here.”

“Over there.” He pointed to a desktop computer still running. He got up from his corner and walked over. “Looks like a Linux operating system, shouldn’t be too hard to get some information out of it.”

“Are you hurt?” She asked concerned as Blake pulled out his macbook and thunderbolt cable.

“I’m fine.” He assured her, plugging a computer to each end of the cable, and starting a virtual machine on the laptop, another linux system. “Okay. Looks like there’s a decent attack area here. Give me a moment…” He started typing away and the computer beeped several times before the screen turned on. “There.” He switched keyboards and pulled up personal files.

“Anything?”

“Our friend Julian is in here. Parents brought him and his brother along. Looks like he a good kid. Just got caught up in a little trouble.” Blake explained to her. “Says here that his parents and little brother left the outpost. Helicopter from Fort Ellesmere to help search for Julian. Who hasn’t been seen since yesterday morning.”

“Then that means he was out there for some time. The transformation must have been the only reason he didn’t die from exposure after being out there for over thirty hours.”

“Zoya Lagunov is in the system as well. Biologist and Archaeologist. Strange mix of fields. Hmm… married on the eighteenth of August, twenty nineteen. Five years ago.”

“What about that one?” She pointed to another name on the file. Roderick Young.

“Lets see. Says he’s the head Archaeologist, lecturer at Harvard University… and a long list of qualifications to go with it. We better go and check out the other buildings.”

“Great.” Clair sighed, dreading the statement.

The buildings outside were simple, collapsable. Like pop up tents in a way, only studier. They were simple, probably only the size of a small apartment. But they tried several so far and found the place empty, personal belongings still there and in some, notes and photographs of resent finds. Neither teenager paid close attention to them, wanting to find life first.

Then came house number eight. They knocked, tried to open the door and found it locked. Blake produced a lock pick and probe to unlock the door. It opened. Clair was the first one to go in… she was nearly greeted by being impaled on an ice pick. The woman holding it, a blond haired, pale skinned girl with blue eyes and wearing a GSO uniform, looked at them with a mixture of fear and confusion.

“I suppose a cup of tea would be too much to ask.” Blake said, allowing relief to wash over the woman’s face.

“I’m sorry. I thought…” Russian, both of them thought.

“We got your distress signal.” Clair assured her.

“Thank god, I haven’t anything to eat or drink for almost two days. Those things overran the outpost yesterday morning. And we’re not even sure what happened to one of our youths.”

“Julian McHamish?” Blake asked.

“How did you know his name?”

“Found him earlier. Lead us right here in a way. But he’s a little worse for wear now.”

“What happened to him?”

“No important right now. He’s safe. I’m Blake Steorra and this is Clair Weli’sol.”

“Professer Zoya Lagunov. You don’t look like rescue personal, certainly not dressed like that.” She pointed out Clair’s outfit.

“This… was all I had.” Clair said a little embarrassed that she was caught out. 

“Just aslong as you weren’t bitten by those gargoyle things. They inject some sort of chemical that overpowers the nervous system, turning people into… zombies. It’s like they’re controlled.”

“But controlled by what?” Blake said. “That’s what worries me.”

“Then there’s what happened to Stella.” Zoya mentioned.

“Stella?” Clair asked. Zoya turned to the bathroom door in the corner.

“You can come out Stella dear.”

“Are you sure?” Asked a worried voice from inside.

Zoya looked at her visitors and back to the door. “I’m sure dear.”

The door opened. Neither Blake or Clair were prepared for what they saw.

“Okay.” Blake said finally. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t expecting this.”