SNAFU: Wolves at the Door

Project Lupine Brian W. Taylor

An alarm blared — the nasal tone repeating over and over like a hammer beating nails into Rolf Alfredsson’s head. He heard but pretended like he didn’t.

“Yo, Red, get your ass up, man.”

Rolf groaned before opening his eyes. “How many times do I have to tell you not to call me Red?”

Lou ‘Sully’ Sullivan smiled, his teeth like headlights cutting through the darkness. “Shit, man, I can’t help your ginger complexion, or that the name’s already stuck.”

A light clicked on reflecting harshly off the white of the floor and walls. Everything was white in TriGenex’s classified laboratory, the actual labs, the living quarters, and even the bathrooms.

“C’mon though, for real. Dot will have our asses if we’re last to respond.” Sully rummaged around his footlocker and pulled out a fresh uniform — classic, black BDUs, with the TriGenex logo on the breast and back.

“Fuck Dot. And fuck you.” Rolf looked at the clock; he had only slept two hours. They weren’t paying him enough for this shit. Well, maybe they were, but that was beside the point. This job was supposed to be his ticket to early retirement.

A multitude of footsteps rushed along the hallways of the living quarters as scientists, technicians, and security personnel scrambled like ants summoned by their queen toward their duty stations. In this case, their queen was project lead Doctor Cecily Sturgess, a woman who was about as joyful as a dip in a frozen lake. She cared about her experiments and little else.

Something had to have gone wrong with the latest experiment if the queen had put out the call.

Rolf was beginning to think taking the security job at TriGenex had been a mistake. In truth he had only been employed a little over a month but in that short amount of time he had seen some ungodly shit — shit that already had him pondering early termination of his contract. Grunts like him weren’t supposed to ask questions or pay attention. In fact, they were paid to do the opposite. Rolf had always asked too many questions during his time in the United States Army; they had politely suggested he take his talents elsewhere despite his exemplary service record. His time at TriGen was turning out to be the sequel to a movie he wished he had never auditioned for in the first place.

Both he and Sully were suited, booted, and strapped in two minutes. They hurried from their quarters and followed the green line along the floor until reaching Lab One.

Consisting of five floors built into the heart of the Adirondack Mountains, the complex was shaped like a giant hourglass. Only the offices of the top floor were visible, while recreational, exercise, and cafeteria facilities dominated the second. The third and fourth floors housed the labs and associated personnel. Nobody ever talked about what lay below on five. Rumor had it that’s where they kept the test subjects.

Up until today, Rolf had considered himself lucky to have been assigned to the genetics half of the facility. He mostly stood around and watched over the scientists while they conducted their experiments on witless death-row inmates. Those same fool inmates had signed their lives over to science and their families received a nice sum of money. It seemed harmless enough until Rolf had seen what was left of the last batch of experiments. He guessed it would be better than waiting around in a cage to die though.

Nearing the lab, the two ex-soldiers heard shouts. Through the observation window they saw a guy in an orange jumpsuit strapped to a table shudder under his restraints. Dr Sturgess shouted orders at two technicians while preparing a syringe. Two other technicians ran around like chickens with their heads cut off, scrambling from station to station pressing buttons on various machines and monitoring vital signs.

“We’ve got a situation.” Their squad leader, Dot, looked from Sully to Rolf, her normally calm demeanor shattered. A line of sweat trickled down her forehead and rolled past her eye. Rolf appraised her reaction and surmised she probably had never seen any real combat. Her eyes lacked that hard edge he saw in the rest of his squad.

The inmate strapped to the table cried out, sweat pouring from every nook and cranny. As the rest of Rolf’s team lined up, the inmate shot up, tearing through the straps and ripping free from the metal clamps holding him to the table. Dr Sturgess shouted at the window but her words were lost as everyone watched in rapt horror as the inmate’s orange jumpsuit split, coils of muscle bubbling up through the material. Bones stretched, limbs lengthened in ways that went against nature or God, depending on what you believed. Hair rose in thick clusters all along its skin. Teeth clattered along the floor as fangs forced their way through.

What had been a man a few moments ago morphed into something… else.

“Oh my God,” someone, Rolf wasn’t sure who, murmured.

The creature stood upright, towering over the scientists. It snarled, saliva dribbling from its snout to chest. Dr Sturgess looked up, eyes wide. She scrambled to get away but a hairy arm connected with her chest. The air was forced from her lungs, her needle bouncing away. She landed on the floor in a heap and didn’t rise. The thing in the other room turned and looked at the window and growled — an imposing hulk of fur and muscle.

If Rolf hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, he would have never believed it. He had watched enough movies to know what he was looking at. And yet, he refused to think the word. Things like that weren’t supposed to exist.

“Holy… shit,” Sully said, giving voice to everyone else’s thoughts.

One of the technicians screamed.

The experiment was across the room in a flash. It lunged at the closest technician, opened its toothy maw and latched onto her throat. The thing shook its head from side to side like a predator would with its prey, blood spraying in wild arcs. Screams filled the room as the remaining technicians watched on in horror. One of them made a mad dash for the door while the remaining technician attended to the fallen doctor.

“Open the outer door. Now.” Rolf readied his HK416.

Dot didn’t move. She stood transfixed by the scene beyond the window. Her mouth moved but no words came out.

“Dot! Open the goddamned door!”

Dot jumped. With her eyes still fixed on the experiment, she slid a card through a magnetic reader beside the large window. A small light went from red to green. The outer door slid open with a hiss.

It looked like their squad leader checked out. Considering the circumstances, Rolf couldn’t blame her. He had commanded and fought with plenty of good men and women in both Afghanistan and Iraq and thought he had seen just about everything. After seeing that thing in the other room, he knew he was wrong.

“Sully and I will break right,” Rolf said patting his roommate on the shoulder. “Peretti, you and Kang break left. Cruz, get those people out of there. Everyone clear?”

Peretti and Kang nodded.

“You got it,” Cruz said pulling his Desert Eagle from its holster.

“Dot, keep that outer door clear.”

Their squad leader nodded, still unable to draw her gaze from the window.

Rolf entered the small hallway between the outer and inner doors, the rest of his squad close behind. The only thing keeping the experiment contained was a few inches of reinforced steel of the inner door. Once he pressed the large red button they’d be face to face with a savage beast who had already tasted human blood. He took a breath and jammed on the button. The scent of blood and wet dog lay heavy on the air. The experiment had finished with the first technician and had another cornered. The skinny guy slid down the wall, sniveling, snot bubbling from a nostril.

Cruz cradled a hysterical technician in his arms, running from the lab. They disappeared through the inner doorway unharmed.

The experiment leaned in and sniffed. The skinny technician shielded his head with his arms. Bloody drool dribbled down the experiment’s face. It reared back and howled. Just like a wolf.

Rolf motioned to Peretti. He and Kang moved like smoke through the lab, easy and silent. They came to a stop a few feet from the experiment, flanking the creature, rifles at the ready.

Rolf and Sully made their way from cover to cover until reaching the downed doctor. A trickle of blood ran from the top of her head. “Is she breathing?” he asked the technician attending her.

The technician — her badge identified her as Mara Leitch — nodded.

“Cover us,” Rolf said to Sully.

Sully cocked his shotgun as Rolf slung the unconscious doctor over his shoulder. He hustled for the inner door; the experiment paid him no attention.

“P-please,” the skinny technician stammered from across the room. He held out a hand toward Peretti, pleading.

The experiment let a clawed hand fly. With a sickening crunch, the cowering technician’s neck twisted sharply, three long lacerations running the length of his face. He slumped to the floor a moment later staring through unblinking eyes.

Peretti and Kang opened fire.

A hail of automatic gunfire filled the experiment with holes. The thing turned, seemingly more annoyed than injured. It dove over Peretti and Kang, cleared a work station, and was halfway across the room. As Kang turned, he barely had time to react as the creature closed in from behind. It clubbed him in the chest, swatting him aside as if he were a child. With a wheeze, Kang slammed into the wall before sliding down to the floor.

Peretti strafed sideways as he fired, moving toward the exit. Sully fired from across the room hoping to draw the thing’s attention. It didn’t work.

In a blur of hair and teeth, the experiment closed in on Peretti much faster than anything any of the ex-soldiers had ever seen. Peretti barely managed to avoid the chomp, teeth as sharp as knives snapping shut where a moment ago his head had been. Another inch and he would have seen the inside of the experiment’s mouth up close and personal. Peretti rolled aside and squeezed off another three shots. The experiment staggered back, crimson lines running from multiple wounds along its arms and torso. Anything else would have died ten times over.

Still, the thing advanced.

Rolf could only watch from the observation window as Peretti grabbed Kang by the BDU top and pulled. They didn’t make it very far before a claw punched a hole clean through Peretti’s chest. Still unconscious, Kang remained oblivious to the shower of gore.

From the doorway, Sully peppered the experiment with another shot. It focused on him with yellowed eyes, little trace of the human it had once been. Sully looked from the experiment to Kang. The thing raised its head, issuing another howl.

Dot pounded on the window.

Rolf slammed a fist on the red button and wasted precious seconds waiting for the door to fully open. He charged into the lab guns blazing, coming to a stop by the table where the experiment had been strapped. Sully seized the opportunity and hurried toward Kang.

The experiment growled, flexing its clawed hands. In an impressive display of strength, it ripped an entire workstation out of the floor and hefted it across the room. Instead of retreating, Rolf dove forward. He landed on his stomach and carefully aimed at the one spot he knew would hurt any male. Three bullets hit the thing between the legs. It dropped to its knees, clutching at its bloody meat.

Sully had Kang at the door. Dot was there helping to pull the wounded guard through the hallway and outer door to safety.

Rolf got to a knee and emptied his clip in the thing’s head. Fifteen bullets made fifteen new holes. It finally dropped. After a raspy gurgle, the thing stayed silent.

Even though he didn’t want to, Rolf knew he had to confirm the experiment was dead. After a quick reload, he approached with caution, stopping an arm’s length away. His gun remained fixed on the body, finger tensed over the trigger.

The experiment’s chest didn’t rise.

Rolf inched closer, sweat chilling his brow. He nudged the thing with his foot. It didn’t react. He eased a hand down and felt for a pulse. “Clear!” he shouted over a shoulder.

Even though the thing was dead, Rolf backed out of the lab without taking his eyes from it — he couldn’t shake the feeling the thing would get up. A hand on his shoulder made him jump. “Stand down. We’re clear.” Dot’s voice was composed, more like her normal, efficient self.

Rolf took a moment and exhaled a long breath. He wiped the sweat from his brow on a sleeve. “Anybody injured?”

“Dr Sturgess has a bump on her head. Nothing serious as far as I can tell,” Cruz said.

“Dot, get on the horn and see if you can get Doc Brogan up here to take a look at Kang and Dr Sturgess.” Rolf leaned against the wall and relaxed despite the jolt of adrenaline spiking through his body. “Somebody want to tell me what the fuck just happened in there?”

“I second that,” Sully said, looking at the two technicians and their unconscious leader.

“Genetic splicing.” Mara folded her lab coat and placed it under Dr Sturgess’ head. She looked over at Rolf; her green eyes would have pierced a hole through lesser men. “That,” she said motioning toward the lab, “was Project Lupine. We’ve been attempting to pair human genes with various animals. Until recently, we hadn’t had much luck.”

“You call that luck?” Sully grumbled. “Remind me not to invite you to Atlantic City.”

“They’ll never understand, dear.” Dr Sturgess pushed up to a sitting position. She rubbed at a spot on her head and grimaced. A splotch of crimson streaked her mostly silver hair. “What we do here is for the benefit of all mankind. Think of all the disease and sickness that decimate humanity but not animals. If we could only find a way to combine some of their DNA with our own, the results would be miraculous. Diseases like Alzheimer’s, Ebola, or AIDS could be eradicated at the genetic level. At least, that was our intent.”

“Look, no offense Doc, but I don’t give two shits about your intent. All I care about is getting the rest of our happy asses out of here alive.” Rolf motioned around the small group around him.

She shook her head. “You don’t understand. Once the alarm sounded, a quarantine protocol went into effect. Only the project leads and TriGen brass, seven of us in total, were to be evacuated along with our research.” Dr Sturgess held up a flash drive attached to a nylon strap from around her neck. She looked at her assistant, an expression of pain on her face.

“How could you?” Mara said backing away, betrayal lighting those green eyes. She sat next to the other rescued technician; they leaned on one another.

“Mara, Bernice, I’m sorry. TriGen wouldn’t have let us work if we didn’t agree to their demands. You must understand.”

“What about the rest of us? What about the facility?”

Dr Sturgess looked down. She licked her lips but said nothing.

“Answer the question,” Bernice said.

“An explosion would wipe out the facility and any evidence of our experiments. It’s supposed to look like an accident. Your families would all have been paid handsomely.” The calm, even tone in Dr Sturgess’ voice turned Rolf’s stomach.

“We’re all expendable.” Rolf shook his head, slowly letting the anger fall away. “I guess I should have suspected as much. Typical executive bullshit.”

“I hear that,” Sully said with a nod.

The alarm blared on. A few people in lab coats ran past seemingly uninterested in anything else but where they were going.

“I thought we were clear? Why didn’t they cut the alarm?” Dot asked.

“Each of the labs tried the same experiment at the same time. The only difference being the subject. Lab Two reported their subject expired shortly after the initial injection. Lab Three’s subject didn’t survive the transformation,” Dr Sturgess said.

“What about Lab four?”

“No one has had contact with them since the experiment began.” The doc looked down at her watch. “It’s been just over an hour now.” She pulled a handheld radio from her lab coat and handed it to Rolf. After trying to get ahold of anyone but only getting static, he handed it back.

“We simply didn’t know what effects, if any, the splice would have. That was Leroy ‘Pig Sticker’ Addison.”

“The cop killer?” Sully whistled. “That’s one bad dude lying dead in there. He killed a dozen cops with a Rambo knife or something.”

Dr Sturgess nodded. “It would seem the splice took to the more violent subjects — the more violent the better the splice. If only I had more time to discover why.”

Rolf grabbed the old bird by the lab coat and pulled her close. Through clenched teeth he asked, “Who was on four?”

“Richard Dean Novak.”

Rolf let the doc go. She took a step back and smoothed out her lab coat.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Cruz said. “The serial killer?”

Dr Sturgess only nodded.

Mara rose and moved closer to Rolf. “You lied to us, manipulated us. And you were prepared to throw us away like trash. For what?” She slammed a fist into the window. “So you could play God with your genetic experiments?”

“Out of everyone here, I expected more from you, Mara,” spat the doctor. “This could be the next step in human evolution. Ten years from now the world will be full of human and wolf hybrids. Think of the possibilities!”

Rolf could tell by the gleam in the doctor’s eyes there would be no reasoning with her. He saw complete dedication there. There was no telling how far she would go if push came to shove. He’d have to assume she’d do whatever it took to ensure her work survived, even if it meant stabbing each of them in the back. Unfortunately, right now, they needed each other–

Everything went dark.

The lab, hallway, and every other room lost power. A moment later the emergency generator came on. Yellow lights did little to illuminate the hallway. Visibility was poor at best.

“That’s just great.” Cruz stood and started for the door marked ‘stairwell’ when a scream echoed from somewhere below.

All eyes went to Dot as the small radio clipped to her shoulder crackled and popped. More than one of them jumped. A moment later a garbled voice came through. “…request immediate assistance. I repeat… all security forces are dead. The experiment… loose…”

“That sounded like Dr Dillard,” Mara said.

“Yeah, but what’s he doing on the security forces’ frequency?” Dot asked.

As if in response, the radio crackled and the blood freezing sound of a wolf howling vibrated the small speaker. Dot’s eyes went wide.

“We can’t worry about any of that right now,” Rolf said. “All we can do is get the doc here to her rendezvous point and persuade the powers that be it would be in their best interest to let us come along for the ride.” Rolf glared. “Have I made myself clear, Doctor?” He extended a hand and helped her to her feet.

“Yes, very clear.” She smoothed out her lab coat. “Allow me to make myself clear. The only hope you have of getting out of here is escorting me down to the fifth level. There’s a ventilation shaft that leads directly to the surface. A helicopter will be waiting.”

“Fine. But we play by my rules. I say stop, you stop. I say go, and you go.”

Sturgess nodded.

“Any objections?” Rolf asked looking from person to person.

“What about everyone else?” Bernice asked. “Are we just going to leave them?”

“They’re already dead,” Dr Sturgess said. Rolf could almost see her breath from the iciness of her words.

Another scream preceded running footsteps, the sound coming from the stairwell.

Cruz moved closer to the wall and raised his Desert Eagle. Rolf motioned Sully over to support him. “Cover our six,” he whispered to Dot. She moved a few paces away from the group, her rifle pointing off into the gloom.

A guy in a blood streaked lab coat burst through the stairwell door and tumbled over Cruz. The guy came to a stop a few paces from the door as it closed behind him. Heavy breathing could be heard from the stairwell. Someone, or something, was coming after him.

The guy’s face blanched. “It’s right behind me. We have to get out of here!” He clutched a shredded arm to his chest, blood staining the polished white floor below. “They all started changing. Costello. Beck. Coates. Don’t you see? They’re all infected!”

“Whoa, take it easy, buddy.” Sully moved toward him but the guy inched back.

“Don’t come any closer!” He looked down at his wound and grunted.

“Dot, get them in the lab,” Rolf ordered, seizing command. “Keep your heads down and don’t move until I give the signal.”

Without a word Dot gathered up the scientists and did as instructed. The wounded scientist refused to budge.

Cruz backed away from the door as a pair of feet slapped to a stop on the other side. They all heard something sniff the air the way a dog would.

“Oh, God, she found me.” The wounded scientist leaned against the wall and staggered a few steps down the hallway leaving a bloody trail. After another two steps he fell, sweat pouring from his body.

The door burst open.

The slender hybrid stood silhouetted in the doorway, a confused look on its face. It sniffed at the air as Cruz retreated. A tattered lab coat clung to her shoulders. The badge identified it as Ashley Costello. In her little photo she had much less hair and smiled. With one giant stride, the thing that had been Ashley was at the puddle of blood, lapping it up.

“Holy mother of God,” Cruz mumbled.

Sully eased up behind her, and double-tapped the beast. Ashley’s body slumped to the floor adding to the crimson puddle.

Rolf ran past the carnage and stepped into the stairwell. Gunfire from below. Someone was still alive down there. As he turned to head for the lab, the injured scientist jumped up to his feet, his body changing from normal to hybrid in about a minute. Cruz turned just in time to catch a claw to the jaw. He tried to scream but only a garbled whimper escaped. The hybrid was on him and biting as Sully opened fire. Two shotgun blasts tore chunks out of the thing’s back. It stumbled forward trying to stand, but fell.

Rolf hurried to his fallen comrade. Cruz was a mess of shredded flesh. Blood poured from his ruined mouth. He clasped Rolf’s hand and choked. Rolf squeezed back knowing it wouldn’t be long. “Hang in there, Cruz.”

With another shotgun blast, the infected scientist was no more.

“Sully, get one of those scientists over here. Now!”

By the time Mara ran over, Cruz was gone. Rolf handed her the Desert Eagle. “I hope you know how to use it.”

“I don’t understand,” she said, a frown creasing her brow. “He wasn’t part of the experiment. How did he change?”

Dot and the others turned to Sturgess.

“We don’t know,” the doctors finally replied. “It happened shortly after the first successful splice. One of the technicians got too close while recording a hybrid’s vital signs.”

Realization washed over Mara’s face. “Oh my God, Natalie.”

Dr Sturgess nodded. “Yes. We covered it; said she had a family emergency.”

Mara slapped Sturgess, snapping the older woman’s head sideways. “You son-of-a-bitch! You knew. All this time you knew what could happen to us and you said nothing!”

Sturgess responded with a smirk then moved to within an inch of her assistant. “Don’t be so naïve, Mara. You knew the risks when you agreed to work for TriGen. We all did. What happened to all that talk of changing the world? The first sign of trouble and you’re ready to throw in the towel. You’re pathetic and weak.”

Rolf pulled Mara back as she lunged. “Easy now. We need the good doctor in one piece.”

Mara yanked free and pushed past to the stairwell. Rolf motioned for Sully to follow.

“I want details,” Rolf said to Sturgess. “What makes people change?”

Sturgess hesitated a moment. “As far as I can tell it’s the scratches and bites. Unfortunately, we haven’t had much time to discover why. I’m afraid that’s all the information I can provide.”

“Things just keep getting better.” Rolf looked into the doctor’s eyes but wasn’t sure if she was lying or not. The old gal had a pretty good poker face. He supposed she had to in order to keep so many secrets from her staff.

Kang stood there scratching his head, taking in the scene. All eyes went to him.

“What? Why’s everybody looking at me like that?” He took a step back and raised his hands. “Take a look. My shirt isn’t ripped. No scratches.”

“Check him,” Rolf said to Bernice.

She jumped up and inspected Kang. “He’s clean.”

“Good. We need you.” Rolf handed Kang his weapon. “You and Sully have point. We move easy and slow down to five.”

Kang nodded and hurried to the stairwell.

“Let’s go, ladies. Time to leave.” Rolf herded Dot and the two scientists to the stairwell. When he saw that Kang and Sully were in position, he waved them down.

They made it down to four without incident. As they neared the door to five, a chorus of howls sounded from above and below. Sully gave the sign to stop and Rolf made his way to the front. “We’ve got company,” Sully said.

“We’ve got to clear that door,” Kang whispered.

Rolf nodded. He put an ear up to the metal and listened. Another howl cut through the gloom. There was no telling how many of those things were on the other side. Kang stood off to the left, weapon ready. Sully stood a step behind Rolf who was in position to turn the knob. When he did, Sully would be the first through with his shotgun immobilizing any immediate threat, Kang right on his heels.

Rolf held up three fingers. He brought one down.

Sweat trickled down Kang’s freshly buzzed head. Each infected person he had observed thus far started off sweating. Could Kang have ingested some blood earlier? Would it be enough to cause an infection? In the end he decided to trust his squad mate and Bernice’s evaluation. Still, he’d have to keep an eye on the guy.

Another finger fell. Rolf’s muscles tensed.

As the final finger fell, the door to the fourth floor crashed open above them. All eyes turned toward the sound.

Five hybrids poured into the stairwell.

“Go!” Dot yelled. She opened fire, spraying all five creatures as they closed the distance.

Rolf opened the door to the fifth floor and prayed it would be clear enough to make a stand. What he saw looked like a slaughterhouse. Blood and gore painted the walls and floor. Two hybrids ripped at a corpse fifteen feet away. The sound of them smacking and chewing was audible over the firefight in the hallway behind them. Three others fought over what looked like an arm a short distance away. More creatures stirred in the darkness beyond.

Sully and Kang advanced down the hallway. Bernice and Dr Sturgess were close behind. Mara looked from the doorway back to Dot unsure.

Rolf turned back.

One of the hybrids was down and moaning. Another limped. The biggest — a black haired beast towering over seven feet tall — advanced on Dot. A growl rumbled through its chest, fangs gleaming white through the gloom. She raised her gun. “Suck on this, Fido,” she said before pulling the trigger.

A click was the only thing that escaped the gun; her clip empty.

“Shit.”

The beast took to the air, its claws poised to strike.

Rolf squeezed off four sets of three-round bursts, hitting the hybrid in the eye, neck, chest, and abdomen in quick succession. It whimpered as the bullets tore into it. Dot dove aside as it landed with a thud. She fumbled for a fresh clip. Rolf slammed a boot on the hybrid’s neck holding it in place. Another three round burst ended its life.

Gunfire sounded from beyond the door. As Rolf looked over, a howl echoed through the stairwell from above. Dot shoved him aside just as a grey and black-haired hybrid swung at him. Rolf hit the wall and spun toward the door. The remaining two hybrids had Dot pinned down. She struggled beneath their weight. A brown-haired hybrid reared back and tore out her throat.

“NO!”

“C’mon,” Mara said, pulling Rolf by the sleeve. She led him through the door and straight into a pile of Bernice’s entrails. There was a blood stain on the wall above what was left of her.

Rolf expelled his empty clip and traded it for a full one. He turned toward the door expecting the hybrids to follow. They didn’t. Probably too busy snacking on Dot.

A shotgun blast sounded from somewhere in the distance.

“Where’s Dr Sturgess?”

Mara shrugged.

“Nine o’clock!” Sully shouted from somewhere ahead.

Gunfire sounded soon after.

Mara and Rolf hurried toward the sound. A door off to the side opened as they passed. It was too dark to see how many hybrids emerged from the room beyond.

Kang and Sully advanced slowly, Dr Sturgess close behind. She directed them toward an unfinished section of the complex. Sully turned and dropped a hybrid in a tattered black uniform, its rifle still slung over a shoulder. The doctor knelt and retrieved it. Yellow light reflected in the sweat covering each of them.

“Whatever you’re going to do, you better do it fast,” Rolf yelled from behind. He and Mara sprinted to catch up, numerous hybrids bounding after them.

Dr Sturgess pointed at a door. Kang opened it. The five of them hurried through, howls following them.

They found themselves in a spacious and mostly empty room. A pile of dead bodies had been stacked in a corner. Various medical supplies lined metal shelves on the other side of the room. Pipes and ducts lined the walls and ceiling. It looked as if the contractors ran out of supplies and left this section as bare as possible.

“Failed experiments,” Sturgess said moving past the rancid pile of corpses. She ran to the back corner and a door marked ‘ventilation access’.

Rolf and Mara pulled a metal shelf lined with disposable gloves toward the door. They slammed it in place just as it started to open.

“This isn’t going to hold long!” Rolf yelled.

The shelf rattled as the hybrids pushed and pounded on the door. Rolf and Mara pushed back but both knew they weren’t strong enough to hold back a pack of genetically-altered hybrids. The shelf was forced back a little with each blow — the gap between the door and wall widening.

Dr Sturgess slid a keycard through a slot then punched in a five digit code. A clicking noise preceded the door opening.

“Go,” Rolf said to Mara. She sprinted across the room and skidded to a stop as Dr Sturgess opened fire.

Kang took most of the barrage. He dropped to his knees, a look of disbelief on his face. He fell a moment later. Sully returned fire, hitting Sturgess in the leg before she disappeared through the door.

A hairy claw punched through the door. Rolf pushed back with everything he could muster, the tread of his boots squeaking as he fought for every inch. A multitude of howls sounded from the stairwell, hunger bleeding into their frenzied cries.

“What I wouldn’t give for a grenade.”

“Hey,” Mara said.

Rolf turned and she tossed him a fire extinguisher. “I could kiss you right now.”

She cracked a smile before helping Sully limp toward the ventilation room door.

The door flung open, the metal rack swept aside. Several sets of glowing eyes peered from the half-light beyond. Rolf tossed the fire extinguisher. It hit the first hybrid in the chest and clanged to the floor. Pistol in hand, he squeezed the trigger.

The hybrid squealed as the extinguisher exploded in a white cloud.

Rolf ran across the room to find Mara and Sully pounding on the ventilation room door. “What’s the hold up?”

“Door’s locked.” Mara said.

Rolf took Sully’s shotgun and obliterated the keypad and door handle. The wires fizzled as the first hybrid entered.

A howl resounded around the room.

A multitude of howls answered back.

The ventilation room door opened.

Mara helped Sully through. Rolf followed the bloody trail. He slammed the door shut and leaned on it. Much of the space in the small room was taken up by different machinery and a trio of air ducts. A trail of blood led to the rear of the room and the furthest air duct. A metal grate had been tossed aside.

Mara stuck her head in. “There’s a ladder.”

The air coming from the vent was noticeably cooler.

Sully limped over and slid down the door next to Rolf.

“Get over there and start climbing.”

“Not this time.” Sully moved an arm. Blood leaked through a hole in his chest. He flashed a toothy smile. “I survived the werewolves, but not the old lady.” A bitter laugh escaped him. “Fucking werewolves, man. Can you believe it?”

Rolf handed him his gun.

Sully nodded, much spoken between the two in that one action.

Rolf slid through the opening in the vent and started climbing. He didn’t look back when he heard gunshots, or Sully’s screams before a single shot echoed through the vent.

The crisp mountain air felt good on Rolf’s sweat covered skin. He emerged from the shaft to a setting sun that normally would have taken his breath away. A light dusting of snow covered the rocky ground beneath them. Mara shivered, clinging to the side of the mountain. She slammed the heavy grate closed behind them. Neither of them thought the hybrids would be able to fit in the shaft. Still…

They followed the trail of blood to a helicopter pad and made it just in time to see a helicopter whir away.

“Looks like we missed our ride.” Mara’s head followed the helicopter as it sped away.

“We better get moving. The temperature’s going to drop as soon as the sun sets.”

They moved past the landing pad and found a narrow path leading down. “Thanks, you know, for getting me out of there,” Mara said.

Rolf looked down and noticed a few drops of blood. “We’re not out of the woods yet.” A few steps later they found a discarded gun. “It looks like the good doctor missed her ride too.”

“We might be able to catch her if we hurry.”

A few steps later they found a tattered lab coat and the same flash drive Dr Sturgess showed them earlier.

Beside the flash drive were footprints. Hybrid footprints.

“Damn,” Rolf said.

Mara came closer. “What is it?”

Rolf pointed down.

“At least we got her research. Maybe we can help stop it.” Mara slipped the flash drive into her pocket.

A howl sounded in the distance and bounced around the peak of the mountain.