Read Online Syberian Sunrise by S. A. Lusher - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: S. A. Lusher
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opening and frowned at what he saw. The room beyond was about half the size of the cargo bay he'd just come from. The walls were lined with metal cylinders of the deepest black.
Each had a window that allowed someone to view inside, but when Enzo looked, all he could find was an empty interior. All the rooms were like this, rows upon rows of these containers. The color of the metal, not just black but midnight black, the color of black holes in deep, dead space, seemed to awaken some terror in him. They instilled a sense of primal fear, a gut reaction. Danger, they said, something dangerous is in here.
Was in here, he realized as he finally found some tubes that weren't empty. They had Slugs floating in them, suspending in some clear liquid. Inert, unmoving, held in some manner of stasis it seemed. Enzo frowned, studying the things for a long moment, then finally returned to the central corridor. He moved down its length, coming to the opposite end, and stepped into what must have been the bridge. Not much of a bridge, though.
Normally, human vessels had bridges that were packed with all manner of gear and equipment, at least a dozen workstations or more. Here, there were just two devices, what seemed to be a combination workstation and what might have been called a chair that grew straight out of the ground. Enzo studied the stations. They were flat, blank expanses of white material that might have been metal. He frowned, wondering how they worked, then realized that they must be holographic displays. While he wasn't exactly satisfied, Enzo figured he'd gotten all he could out of personally visiting the alien vessel. At least he'd confirmed that this was, in fact, where they'd harvested the Slugs.
But where had the Slugs come from before that? Why were they on this vessel? It seemed to be some kind of containment vessel, not a research ship...although he was in no position to make that assessment, given his utter lack of knowledge of the Cyr. Either way, he didn't like the idea of humans pulling the Slugs out and toying with them. The result had been obviously disastrous. Enzo traced his way back through the vessel, coming down the ramp and stepping back out into the cavern. Time to keep going up.
He glanced back up at the observation platform and froze. The lights were on. Someone was moving around up there. While he was still figuring out what to do, Enzo heard the crackle of a powerful intercom system.
“Uh...hello down there?” a voice asked, echoing across the area. “Are you human?”
Enzo hesitated, then figured that he might as well respond. “Yeah!” he called. “Who are you?”
“My name's Ramirez. Private First Class Ramirez.”
Enzo groaned. Not a fucking soldier. He hated soldiers. Okay, to be honest, he hated most people, but soldiers especially. They always acted like they were so...superior. Enzo remained where he was a bit longer, considering the situation.
“What's your name?” Ramirez asked.
“Enzo,” he replied finally.
“Come on up, then. I can send the lift down to you. Eve sent me.”
Enzo sighed and figured that was as close as he was going to get to a trustworthy situation. He began making his way across the cavern, towards the lift lashed on to the wall beside the observation deck, contained in a boxy structure of steel girders. The lift began to slide down to the bottom. Enzo crossed the cavern, still keeping the pistol in hand, and stepped onto the lift as it settled into place. He hit the up button and waited for it to ascend.
Having someone else around, physically there, in person, would be nice...to an extent. It was kind of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, he'd have someone there to watch his back, someone who might know more than he did about the facility or with certain skills that he didn't possess. On the other hand, now he had someone who might betray him. The Mutants were an obvious threat, but another human wasn't so obvious.
The lift came to a halt. He
Each had a window that allowed someone to view inside, but when Enzo looked, all he could find was an empty interior. All the rooms were like this, rows upon rows of these containers. The color of the metal, not just black but midnight black, the color of black holes in deep, dead space, seemed to awaken some terror in him. They instilled a sense of primal fear, a gut reaction. Danger, they said, something dangerous is in here.
Was in here, he realized as he finally found some tubes that weren't empty. They had Slugs floating in them, suspending in some clear liquid. Inert, unmoving, held in some manner of stasis it seemed. Enzo frowned, studying the things for a long moment, then finally returned to the central corridor. He moved down its length, coming to the opposite end, and stepped into what must have been the bridge. Not much of a bridge, though.
Normally, human vessels had bridges that were packed with all manner of gear and equipment, at least a dozen workstations or more. Here, there were just two devices, what seemed to be a combination workstation and what might have been called a chair that grew straight out of the ground. Enzo studied the stations. They were flat, blank expanses of white material that might have been metal. He frowned, wondering how they worked, then realized that they must be holographic displays. While he wasn't exactly satisfied, Enzo figured he'd gotten all he could out of personally visiting the alien vessel. At least he'd confirmed that this was, in fact, where they'd harvested the Slugs.
But where had the Slugs come from before that? Why were they on this vessel? It seemed to be some kind of containment vessel, not a research ship...although he was in no position to make that assessment, given his utter lack of knowledge of the Cyr. Either way, he didn't like the idea of humans pulling the Slugs out and toying with them. The result had been obviously disastrous. Enzo traced his way back through the vessel, coming down the ramp and stepping back out into the cavern. Time to keep going up.
He glanced back up at the observation platform and froze. The lights were on. Someone was moving around up there. While he was still figuring out what to do, Enzo heard the crackle of a powerful intercom system.
“Uh...hello down there?” a voice asked, echoing across the area. “Are you human?”
Enzo hesitated, then figured that he might as well respond. “Yeah!” he called. “Who are you?”
“My name's Ramirez. Private First Class Ramirez.”
Enzo groaned. Not a fucking soldier. He hated soldiers. Okay, to be honest, he hated most people, but soldiers especially. They always acted like they were so...superior. Enzo remained where he was a bit longer, considering the situation.
“What's your name?” Ramirez asked.
“Enzo,” he replied finally.
“Come on up, then. I can send the lift down to you. Eve sent me.”
Enzo sighed and figured that was as close as he was going to get to a trustworthy situation. He began making his way across the cavern, towards the lift lashed on to the wall beside the observation deck, contained in a boxy structure of steel girders. The lift began to slide down to the bottom. Enzo crossed the cavern, still keeping the pistol in hand, and stepped onto the lift as it settled into place. He hit the up button and waited for it to ascend.
Having someone else around, physically there, in person, would be nice...to an extent. It was kind of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, he'd have someone there to watch his back, someone who might know more than he did about the facility or with certain skills that he didn't possess. On the other hand, now he had someone who might betray him. The Mutants were an obvious threat, but another human wasn't so obvious.
The lift came to a halt. He
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