Flux

by Chris McInally

  Taking one last look at the frigid corpse laid out at her feet, Lex moved on. Stepping away from the collection of rubble, she looked about the room for an exit. She wanted one that led to another ward preferably, so she could scavenge for other medications. Lex reminded herself that she had to keep going, she was wasting time inspecting the corpse of her would-be killer.

  Leaving the paediatric ward behind, Lex stepped through another set of double doors. As she exited the ward, she didn’t see the dark, slinking silhouette emerge from the ceiling alcove, trailing after her. Long and sinuous, the figure landed gently and silently on top of the ransacked medical trolley, barely disturbing it in the process.

  Leaping down onto the cold floor, the second carnifex sniffed at the lifeless body of its mate. Terrified, the smaller male had fled as the nest it shared with its companion was assaulted from below, hot projectiles shredding it. Now returning, it found its partner dead. The male carnifex nudged the limp female with its snout as if trying to will if back to life. The marsupial wailed when the female didn’t respond. After a while, the male carnifex became angered, whining and crying as it continued to prod its mate in an effort to get it to move. Finally giving up, the male reluctantly stepped away from the inert figure of its dead companion.

  Sniffing the air, its pink nose twitched. The smaller carnifex quickly picked up the scent of the animal, it and its partner, had intended to ambush. Snarling viciously, blood boiling, the little marsupial took off after Lex, exiting the ward, hot on her heels, preparing to finish her off.

  11.

  Brett didn’t waste any time. He went straight for the fourth floor. From there, Brett intended to work his way down, rendezvousing with Lex on either the second or first floor and then Conn, as they prepared to leave the hospital altogether. He wanted to get out of Brookeborough as quickly as possible, and back to the relative safety offered by Havenfort’s defences. This mission had been a nightmare, and one he was unlikely to forget.

  Brett climbed the steps two at a time, his long legs making easy work of the rising stairwell. Within minutes, he came to a door leading out onto the fourth floor. Vigilantly, the blonde-haired giant stepped out into a corridor, his eyes wide and alert, scouring the passageway. Several patients’ rooms lined the wall directly in front of him. Ignoring them, he turned left out of the stairwell and ventured onwards.

  It didn’t take him long to find what he was looking for. After about only fifteen minutes of searching, Brett found what he thought was a dispensary, nestled in a corner not far from an elevator. Slipping inside the little room, which wasn’t much more than a large cupboard, he began looting the shelves. Wrenching his duffel bag open, Brett used his long forearms to sweep medications into the waiting sack. Working away, he was laughing to himself, excited by his find when he heard a loud bang! the noise of which made him jump almost out of his skin.

  “What the fuck was that?” his voice shook.

  Brett looked through the viewing window, cut into the door, out into the empty corridor beyond. Waiting for a moment, he listened out for further sounds but none came to his ears. Nothing even moved. Or so it seemed.

  Just my imagination. Brett hoped.

  Opening up his second bag to fill it, the young man couldn’t believe his luck. The little room was packed with medications and other supplies. He felt like a youngster on Hallowe’en. Brett used to love Hallowe’en as a kid; going out to trick or treat with his friends, every year. Until he grew up and discovered pussy, of course. Amid his ponderings and jubilation, Brett emptied another set of shelves, the extra weight starting to slow him down. Some minutes later, shuffling like someone locked inside a fat-suit, Brett squeezed through the doors of the little dispensary. Moving out into the corridor proper, Brett made for another stairwell- not the one he had arrived through- this one off to his right. He was satisfied with his haul. It was time to move on as far as he was concerned.

  Just as he reached the white-framed door, Brett heard another audible thump. This one was unmistakeable. He was sure of what he had heard, this time. The noise as far as he could tell, came from further down the hallway. Interest piqued, Brett moved away from the tall door, a feeling of trepidation zipping through his body. Lugging the bulbous duffel bags with him, he quietly let the door shut behind him.

  Another thunderous impact sounded: bang! It was like someone was having their head bounced off a wall.

  Please let it be Conn getting abused by reivers! He knew that was unlikely. It wouldn’t make sense for him to be all the way up here.

  Brett continued edging closer to the other end of the hallway, his M4 gripped tight, holding it one-handed. He flicked the safety off, expecting trouble. After all, their entire mission had been plagued with bad luck and right from the beginning. As he reached the section adjacent to the dispensary he had just exited, Brett noted how dim the hallway had become. At the end of the corridor, he noticed there was a high window. Towering in front of him, the tinted pane of glass offered a view of the street below. Although, he wasn’t quite close enough to enjoy the full experience it otherwise would have provided. Still, from his somewhat reduced vantage point, looking out through the sheet of glass, Brett realised the sun was starting to go down. The inside of BPH was only going to get darker from here on out. He had to hurry. Even so, Brett wanted to know what was making that God-awful noise. The last thing he wanted at this stage was some big paleo-beast stalking up behind him, all because he had failed to check out a room or two. By all accounts, he had the drop on it, whatever it was. Brett had to take the opportunity presented to him.

  Remove the threat.

  To his right, Brett could make out the outline of a door. The shortest of seconds passed, before another muffled thud sounded. Brett saw the frame of the door and frontage of the wall physically shake, with the horrendous impact, causing him to jump back in fright. A thin layer of dust fell away from the ceiling around it as the impact occurred. Then unexpectedly, a second thump! sounded; the wall exploding in a swirling cloud of dust and plasterboard particles, leaving a massive gaping hole behind. Almost in slow-motion, two tall figures emerged from the maelstrom, locked in battle. At first, Brett thought they were apes, then he realised there wasn’t enough hair on their bodies for that to be the case. Even so, their animalistic grunts sounded rather primitive. The two humanoid-looking brutes exchanged punches and kicks, furiously walloping into one another, initially unaware of Brett’s presence. Totally enthralled by the martial display, Brett watched the two figures do battle for what seemed like an eternity, when in fact it was but a few seconds.

  Both were male in appearance and rather tall, almost seven-feet, he estimated. They were taller than him, in any case. Both of them possessed a tanned complexion, and long, straight, ginger hair, parted in the middle, which hung down to their shoulders. Wrapped around their waists were crude loincloths, harvested from some furred animals they had no doubt killed. Other than these, they wore no other discernible clothing.

  Continuing to roil about violently, the two males punched and wrestled like a pair of drunken street-fighters outside some grimy bar. Brett watched with each strike and manoeuvre as their muscles flexed and contracted in the heat of hand-to-hand combat, fine particles of dust eddying about them. One had the other pressed up against the wall to Brett’s left, driving his forearm and elbow into the other’s throat, trying to choke him. The other male- pressed as he was- struggled to breathe, blood pouring in twin rivers from his nose. Spluttering and coughing, he continued to strike out with his legs, whilst simultaneously trying to loosening the more aggressive individual’s grip.

  Brett felt compelled to focus his gaze on their seemingly large heads. Then, with his eyes locking onto some of their more prominent features, he came to a sudden realization. Both fighters possessed something that was known as an occipital bun, the anatomical feature giving the top of their heads a slightly pointed look to them. In addition, both had rather prominent brow ridges lined by bushy eyebrow
s, situated above wide noses.

  Neanderthals…

  Then all of a sudden, the pair of Neanderthals became aware of Brett. Still gripping one another, the two cavemen gently turned their heads to look at Brett. Curiosity seemed to instantly override any feelings of aggression or hostility they had previously harboured for one another. Slowly, the Neanderthals loosened their grip on each other, parting bit by bit, until they felt comfortable enough to stand side-by-side without striking out at one another. Alarm bells went off inside Brett’s head. The Neanderthal on the right, the one that had appeared to have the upper-hand in the fight before Brett’s interruption, watched the interloper closely. His cold blue eyes, narrowed; there was a kind of malice lingering in his steely gaze. Clearly agitated, the two humanoids began grunting and snarling at Brett, who took a step back. Then remembering the M4 in his hand he decided to stand his ground. A smirk spread across Brett’s face as the two towering cavemen gradually became more disturbed by his presence, and his apparent refusal to leave. Without warning, the Neanderthal on the right lunged at Brett, reaching out for the latter’s carbine, clearly not understanding the threat it posed to him. Brett didn’t hesitate, confident as he was in his technological superiority.

  “Eat this!” he growled.

  Squeezing the trigger, Brett let off a sustained burst from his assault rifle. The big humanoid stumbled backwards, his angry advance halted virtually instantaneously. The subsequent torrent of gas-propelled bullets mercilessly pierced his tanned flesh, innumerable wounds opening up the length of his broad, muscular torso. In the tight confines of the rubble-strewn corridor, Brett sneered as blood sprayed across the walls. The other Neanderthal instinctively shrunk backwards, throwing up his arms, in what would have been a futile attempt to protect himself had Brett chosen to turn the M4 on him.

  Taking his finger off the trigger, Brett kept his eyes on the crouching, submissive caveman who remained unharmed. He ignored the bullet-riddled corpse lounging inertly on the floor, satisfied it was dead. As far as he was concerned, Neanderthal or not it couldn’t stand up to that kind of a barrage of bullets. Brett stepped forward, the barrel of his assault rifle smoking slightly, the smell of cordite wafting in the air. Coming to stand over the second grumbling Neanderthal, he pressed the nozzle of his M4 against the side of the humanoid’s large head. Standing there, looking down on the helpless caveman, Brett felt powerful… and in control. These were feelings the young man hadn’t felt in a little while. He had been robbed of his command and his dignity by Lex and Conn. He was supposed to be in charge. This was his mission. Lex was his girl. Conn had taken her from him. Here was his opportunity to regain his sense of dominance. A wicked, leering smile formed across Brett’s face, making his emerald eyes glint.

  Do it! Screamed a voice. Do it! Do it, now!

  “Dumb fucking monkey!” Brett derided the quivering human.

  Brett squeezed the trigger and the Neanderthal’s head exploded, just like the Jack o’ Lanterns he and his friends used to smash up on Hallowe’en night, all those years ago. There was virtually nothing left from the lower jaw up. Blood and brains went everywhere, up the walls, over the floor, and even on the ceiling, Brett laughing as he saw wet, spongy-looking chunks plaster the roof above him.

  Out the corner of his eye, Brett caught movement.

  “What the?” Brett was too slow.

  A third Neanderthal appeared from beyond the gaping hole in the wall to his right. This one was different, however. Noting a quick flash of drooping breasts, Brett realized this one was female. Despite possessing the same complexion, ginger hair, and piercing blue eyes, she was slightly smaller in stature; her physique rather squat. Even so, she was quicker than her male counterparts which Brett discovered much to his detriment.

  The cavewoman appeared from out of the opening, ice-blue eyes focused on him. Charging forward, the cavewoman snatched at Brett’s assault rifle. The hulking human easily yanked the weapon free from her opponent’s hands. With a bellowing, visceral roar, the Neanderthal brought the rifle down in a sweeping, angled strike, cracking the butt of the weapon across Brett’s pale face. The impact that followed was savage. The sound of a rifle-butt slapping against human skin- and bone beneath- was utterly sickening. For a split-second, things went black inside Brett’s spinning head before the lights came back on. Next, as his vision returned, he saw flashing, dismembered balls of light, hanging in front of his eyes. Lastly, Brett felt the cold floor rushing up to meet the side of his face, his body landing with a wet-sounding slap, the side of his head smashing painfully into the solid surface of the floor. Slowly moving in from the outer reaches of his vision, a creeping haze swept over him.

  Brett lay on the smooth surface, lolling about like someone caught in the throes of a seizure, the cavewoman watching him intently, curious as to the movements he was making. In actual fact, what the primitive female didn’t understand was that his scrambled brain was trying to make sense of what had happened to him, rather like a boxer who didn’t know he’d been knocked out and lost the fight. His head throbbed with a pain and intensity quite unlike anything he had ever experienced in his short life. Not long after this, Brett’s world went totally black, his brain giving up and shutting down in an effort to keep him alive.

  12.

  Lex was growing more and more desperate with every minute that passed. She had gone through every cupboard and closet on floors one and two. Still, she had only managed to fill one duffel bag with supplies. In the last half-hour, she hadn’t found anything of any use, whatsoever. Now, the young woman was resorting to plundering patient’s rooms, rifling through desks and drawers and the occasional coat pocket. So far, her efforts were all to no avail. Lex was starting to get frustrated, her well-known temper sneaking its way to the surface.

  Spying a room, over to her left that she hadn’t visited yet- the last one remaining to her, in fact- Lex made her way inside. The small space had a musty smell to it that Lex didn’t like. The area was home to four beds. Each of these had the curtains drawn around them, hiding the actual beds from view.

  Parting a set of pale green drapes, Lex approached the bed beyond. A short set of drawers sat beside the empty bed, its white sheets, moth-eaten and slightly discoloured with dust. Wrenching the drawers open, Lex found nothing of use. So, she moved onto the next, and the next, both with the same result. Finally, she came to the last bed.

  After parting the drapes, she found exactly what she suspected: another empty bed. What’s more, the small cupboard and nightstand, flanking it on either side, were just as empty. It was at that point, Lex gave up. Crying out, she smashed the bed with her fists, knocking up clouds of fine dust. Tears came to her eyes. As the salty liquid streamed down her cheeks, she felt completely useless. Dropping down onto her haunches, Lex leaned up against the edge of the bed, crying into her arms, just glad that neither Brett nor Conn could see her like this.

  The carnifex prowled into the gloomy ward, moving warily about the open space, taking slow, cautious, calculated steps. It didn’t like being out in the open, preferring instead to do its hunting from an elevated position. This enabled it to take its prey by surprise, pouncing from a tree or perhaps from the top of a rock-face. Still, forced by circumstance and driven by a desire for vengeance, the creature made do.

  Breathing in deeply, the marsupial hunter’s olfactory senses registered a presence nearby. It recognised the familiar scent almost immediately. Excited by the sudden realization, the carnifex’s heart sped up, blood pumping more vigorously through its system. Its mate’s killer was close… very close.

  Too caught up in the emotional flood washing over her, Lex failed to notice the arrival of her visitor. The combination of her sobs, and the fact that she had her back to the entrance of the ward, allowed Lex’s stalker to easily outflank her. Landing on top of the soft covers lining the opposite bed, the figure made no noise whatsoever. The predator sat for a moment, sizing Lex up, preparing to strike, eyes narrowed to the thi
nnest of slits.

  Wiping the tears from her eyes, Lex spun to leave. She was greeted by a ferocious growl and a long, clawed limb swiping angrily at her reddened face. Gasping in shock, Lex stumbled backwards, narrowly avoiding the strike, falling clumsily against the hospital bed. Using the frame of the bedstead to rest against, Lex raised her MP-5 at her attacker. The carnifex hissed at Lex in response as if it was challenging her. Lips curling back, its hackles rose up, presenting like an alley-cat squaring up for its next turf war. The marsupial seemed to recognise the danger the weapon posed to it. As the nozzle flashed, lighting up the dusky surroundings, the carnifex disappeared with unnatural speed, melding into the shadows.

  Flustered, and with her heart racing, the young woman sat for a few moments trying to calm herself. Standing up slowly, Lex edged away from the bed, looking out into the ward’s common area beyond, eyes frantically scanning her darkening environment. Nothing moved… or so it appeared.

  Machine-gun gripped firmly, her duffel bags dangling from her shoulders, Lex entered the now much darker ward. Creeping forward, the frightened woman struggled to survey her surroundings. With the sun falling, Lex’s field of vision was fast becoming a dull tapestry of shadowy silhouettes, making various objects difficult to discern. Without warning, a guttural rumble reverberated throughout the ward, making her jump with fright. Lex had no idea where it came from. It seemed to be everywhere and nowhere, all at once. Lex was beginning to shake uncontrollably, fear overriding her nerves. Even though she didn’t realise it herself, the young woman’s breathing was growing shallower with each inhalation.

  “C’mon, keep it together,” she tried to coax herself, and control her trembling. “You can do it.”

  The sharp snarl sounded again. Lex froze, unsure what to do. Her eyes darted left and right, up and down. Still, she couldn’t see anything.