The Sludge: Part 2
Composure.
That was what Abigail had to emit as she tried to gather the team and take some sort of action. The three others with her were either in silent shock or uncontrollable hysterics, and Abigail could not blame them for such.
There is no training for what had just happened. What was left of James was still lying in the dirt, dripping with the terror that had taken his life from him, from his bare bones.
"Listen. We have to get back to base camp. We can radio in and get other agents out here." Abigail spoke but got very little response. She tried to center herself and get control.
"We have to move now. Whatever that was, it has gotten into the sewers. We can stop it. We have to act now, and quick!" The sharpness of her voice seemed to finally cut through. Even the member that was sobbing nodded in agreement, and the four began to trek back to the glow of the flood lights.
None of this makes sense. How did it gain that form? Why did it choose a human like shape? Why did it kill?
Abigail's thoughts swirled around as she moved at a quick pace. The rest of the team followed, each a few paces back of each other. Abigail looked back at them and felt a sting of pity. She did not want to be barking orders, she wanted to grieve alongside them, but the situation had escalated. This was why she was a lead agent. Abigail knew what she had to do, despite how much it weighed on her.
The group emerged from the darkness into the outer reaches of the illumination of the flood lights. Abigail saw the man who had alerted them to James's discovery, sitting down. He was leaning against one of the large generators for the light.
Darren. That was his name. It took Abigail a moment to find it in the recesses of her mind, and she began to yell to him and wave.
"Darren? Darren? We need help! There was an...incident..." Abigail's came to a stop and found no words left within her. The night had begun to lay heavily on her now, as the fog swam around the glow of the lights.
Darren had two bullet holes piercing the front plastic viewing window of his hazmat suit. His face was obscured by a scarlet splatter.
The other team members with Abigail had caught up and found Darren as well. The hysterical member moaned and fell to her knees.
"What the hell is happening?" Said one of the other members. His face was pale, and his eyes pleaded for answers that Abigail did not have. She went to speak, but could find no comfort. She was looking straight into his eyes as the sound of suppressed gun shots sliced through the night time static.
The man lurched forward and then staggered back, as several bullets ran through his body. Abigail fell to the ground and covered her head. She closed her eyes as the sounds of the next few moments became audible nightmares echoing throughout the forest.
The hysterical member's scream reached a tremendously high pitch, and then drowned in blood. A bullet had struck her in the throat, and her scream became a geyser inside of her suit. Her body swayed and then collapsed to the ground, followed by the thud of the third member, who had also been caught up in the assault.
Abigail's heart thundered in her chest, and her breathing was frantic. Her body trembled as she tried to remain as still and flat to the ground. Now silence stalked every passing second, each one driving the daggers of panic deeper into Abigail.
"Stand up!" A rough voice called out. Abigail could now hear the sounds of boots crunching on the loose gravel and dirt on the ground. She took a moment to calm her breathing, and then she pushed herself up. Abigail was facing away from the voice, and waited for her end to come.
"Turn around!" The voice rang out. Abigail almost flinched, thinking it was to be the firing squad taking her out, as they had taken her teammates…no….her friends. Abigail slowly turned around, and was now facing towards the exposed concrete room.
Standing in front of her were three men, all holding silenced rifles. Other men were in the room, working at tearing down and removing the tank from the tomb built just for it. Next to the three armed men was a blonde woman, in a dark gray business suit. Her hair was slicked back, and her face was twisted into an evil smirk.
The woman strode forward and came right up to Abigail. She looked her over, head to toe, and circling her as she did. After one full rotation, she looked Abigail in the eyes. Abigail maintained the stare down, her anger now matching the arrogance of the woman in front of her.
"You are the lead agent here, yes? The lead scientist?" The woman asked. Abigail was slightly confused at the question and did not respond. The blonde woman then delivered a strong punch right into the gut of Abigail, which sent her to her knees.
"Do not disrespect me! You are the one in charge here?" The woman said as she grabbed a fistful of Abigail's hazmat headgear and yanked it so Abigail was looking up at her. Through pained, panting breaths, Abigail replied. "Yes...yes.."
The woman smirked once more and then walked away from Abigail. She cruised past the armed men, but as she did, she relayed an order. "Take her. Perhaps she can be of use. In one way, or another. Let's get out of here. It's late and I don't want to slow the rest of the boys down." She continued on up the hill, and as she did, the hum of a helicopter could be heard, and it was approaching quickly.
The three armed men grabbed Abigail and stood her up. They pulled her hands behind her back and restrained them. They lead Abigail away, towards where the blonde woman was standing.
Abigail looked back at her team, their blood soaked bodies strewn about within the bright glow of the flood lights. Tears poured down her face as she was dragged up the hill, and she watched the lights go out and her team was swallowed by the darkness of the night.
Despite the terror that had befallen them, Abigail's fears were not about her destination, or her fate.
The sludge was still out there.
STAY TUNED FOR PART THREE TOMORROW
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