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Post by MP on Mar 24, 2017 22:44:08 GMT -6
Pausing in the shade of the alley, Aaron felt the threat looming. He stiffened, head lowered, one palm to the brickwork as if to borrow some of its stability. He held his breath. Don't...DON'T...
He sneezed, the sound ringing in the narrow space. Groaned involuntarily. The ache of half-healed ribs returned with a vengeance at his body's treachery. Aaron waited for the worst of it to pass and then straightened, drawing in an experimental breath of dusty, industrial air. Satisfied that no further sneezes were forthcoming, he plodded on in the shadow of the dead factory.
Maybe it had been impressive in its time. Now, Aaron looked at the shell of the building, at the grime-streaked walls and their lines of windows leering out at the city like gap teeth, and felt only distaste. If something really had taken up residence in this abandoned industrial area, it had terrible taste in real estate. But then, that was probably the point. If the disappearances had not been so rare, if the location so remote, the WDSA would have investigated sooner. As it was, no one had been able to confirm there was something nefarious happening, and the response for now was just a few agents making the occasional rounds to clear delinquents from the area. Just precautions.
Aaron had already combed the area twice, more to give himself something to do rather than from any real suspicion. In light of the recent fiasco, he was still relegated to the lightest of assignments and was determined to at least do a thorough job of them. On this particular patrol, he'd encountered nothing more exotic than a small urban exploration group and the occasional teenager. Having ushered them from the premises, alone now in the stale factory air, he decided he was done here. Should move on to the next route anyway. HQ had radioed earlier about a cooperative effort - concerned about patrolling the larger neighborhood, he imagined - and tardiness wasn't a great way to start things off. Aaron was about to head out when he heard the hiss of a spray can.
He stopped dead at the sound, listening for the source. Then he turned after it. The hissing continued in spluttering fits as he tracked it to the dingy factory entrance. Personally he had nothing against graffiti artists - appreciated their work even, as long as they left it in acceptable forms in acceptable places. But he couldn't make exceptions, even for an area that so desperately needed the artistic attention. He rounded the corner, eyes flickering instinctively this way and that in the gloom and confirming just the solitary figure kneeling by the entrance. He approached it, clearing his throat in preparation to address the man. The sound echoed uncomfortably in the high, beamed ceiling.
As the figure stirred before the discolored wall, Aaron registered several things simultaneously. These thoughts came to him as if in slow motion, perfectly articulated and strangely detached. He thought: That doesn't look like spray paint. He thought: Elbows should NOT do that. He thought: That's just not right. The figure rose jerkily, joints unfurling in crooked, unnatural angles. It had not been facing the wall, as the bend of the limbs would suggest. In one blurred movement, the thing lunged the gap between them, the familiar wet hissing burbling from the depths of its patchwork face.
Aaron could move deceptively fast when he had a mind to. The thing was faster. It caught him mid-spring and brought them both crashing to the ground in a shower of dust and garbage. It actually rolled clear in the ferocity of its spring and came at him again in a mad scramble. Still struggling to his feet, Aaron rammed an elbow into its diaphragm, jabbed at its throat. His arm sank into loose, dough-like flesh, and the next instant its segmented tangle of digits latched around his torso. The agent managed a strangled curse, an arm and both boots braced between them as he strained throw the wiry body off of him. Even in recovery he was strong, but the thing slowly - inexorably - drew him in. His limbs, trembling with effort, abruptly folded. The thing sank mandibles home.
There was a grating squeal as one barb skirted harmlessly off the gleaming silver badge. The other sank neatly into his shoulder, drawing a steady trickle of blood and a garbled stream of expletives. With his weapons pinioned beneath its twitching body, Aaron headbutted the thing in what he hoped was its face, still streaming abuse. His free hand groped desperately over the ground and closed over the first thing it encountered. He seized the paint bucket by the handle and bludgeoned the creature with it. The improvised weapon made an unimpressive clunk as it struck, but it had one advantage: the rim of the bucket tipped over the head as he swung, and the slavering mouth parts vanished abruptly beneath a screen of yellowing plastic.
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Post by Pearl Dragon on Mar 25, 2017 16:06:21 GMT -6
From the other side of the factory, the sound of tires slowly rolling over the cracked asphalt road echoed off the cemented walls of the factory. The black Charger turned tightly around a corner of the building and pulled up so that it was neatly parked in a narrow alleyway between the factory and a barbwire fence. Once parked, the rumble of the engine cut off into silence as the driver cut the power followed shortly by the soft crank of a parking brake.
Stepping out of the vehicle, Stenson gave the area a once-over, running a hand through his hair in exasperation. This place was huge. If the WDSA insisted on having the place patrolled, he wondered why they'd send him to chase out the local teenage riff-raff instead of the local WPD. There was mention of assisting another agent in his briefing, but so far he had yet to spot any other vehicles parked anywhere near the abandoned factory, save for the few hunks of rust that had probably been there since the factory first opened God knows how long ago. Maybe they parked inside somewhere, there's plenty of hiding places to fit a car out of sight. He thought to himself.
Stenson looked up at the sky, gauging the path of the sun as it arced past the factory. For now, he was in a good spot, nice and shady, no glaring rays here. And an entrance to the old cement husk of the factory was nearby, also in the shade. He grabbed his radio from his belt and gave confirmation of his whereabouts and arrival. Once the 10-4 had come across in reply, he locked his car and began to make his way to the door leading into the factory. The place seemed quiet. Dead. No one here. And as he entered the building, it seemed the same was true for the interior. But as he stood, listening to through the dusty, spacious factory for any signs of intruders, a sound caught his attention. Some kind of scuffle. A fight perhaps? It wasn't uncommon for druggies and the like to get into fights over money or substances, especially in places such as this where most drug deals were known to take place. Making his way towards the sound, Stenson peered around a rather large cement pillar and caught sight of what looked like two men having a wrestle on the ground some distance away. But then...did people normally have limbs that bent that way? Stenson broke into a half run, adrenaline spiking in his system, which only worsened as he spotted the gleam of a silver WDSA badge on the coat of the other man being grappled by the weird-limbed...thing. "Hey! HEY!" Stenson called out, hand reaching instinctively for his holster. He stopped, of course, knowing that the two were much too close together to resort to the use of the gun just yet, but held his hand over the strap at the ready. "Stop! You, get off him!" The creature gurgled under the bucket and swung its head this way and that, holding onto the agent with strangling force. Stenson cursed under his breath as the creature continued its fight with the agent, pulling the man so that blood could now be seen drawing a crimson line down his shoulder where the thing had apparently bit him.
"Hold on!" Stenson abandoned the possibility of using his gun, seeing as there was no way he'd be able to use it if the creature continued to hold the agent, and instead hurried over to stand above the spitting bucket-headed creature. Kneeling down, Stenson wrapped his left arm around what he assumed was the creatures neck, holding the bucket in place for good measure, and curled his other arm up and under the two "arms" of the creature's right side. "Let go! You need to stop, you're under arrest! Let the man go!" The skin over Stenson's arm grew hard, thickening rapidly into a shell of granite to prevent the creature from biting him if it so happened to get the chance. Stenson looked at the man, finally recognizing him as an agent he'd seen around headquarters a few times, the name Aaron Telmore rising to his memory. "Couldn't help but notice you were having a hard time, Mr. Telmore. Can you pull free?" Stenson asked, straining a half-smile as he held the creature pinned against his chest, prying its right side as far off of Aaron as he could. Damn this thing was clingy.
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Post by MP on Mar 25, 2017 22:15:41 GMT -6
Aaron spluttered and kicked in the segmented grip, trying to bring a knee up into the creature's chest and push it away. Feelers twitched frantically over his shoulder, tightened on the back of his neck. Christ, he could hear the mandibles clacking behind the plastic, incessant. Deafening. Something dark and viscous drooled out from under the bucket, splattering the front of his coat and that was it - that was IT. Aaron twisted and got a foot in the spongy stomach. Kicked out savagely. Thought he felt it give.
Then there were arms around the pale neck. Someone was shouting orders, pulling the creature back. Aaron caught a disturbing glimpse of flailing legs as the thing's hold slipped, but the relief to his screaming ribcage was glorious. A grey face peered at him from behind the clacking, spitting bucket.
"Couldn't help but notice you were having a hard time, Mr. Telmore. Can you pull free?"
Aaron wrenched his other arm clear, grappling with a twitching feeler that was attempting to reattach itself.
"Trying," he gritted out through clenched teeth.
Slowly but surely the thing was peeling loose. An angry shriek sounded from under the bucket as it seemed to realize it. And then the thing was no longer clinging, but writhing, clawing, twisting almost fully around in its skin as it turned on the one holding it. The bucket bounced off the officer's face and clattered away over the floor as the creature wrenched itself loose and scrabbled at the man's face shoulders. For a horrifying moment as it reared, it looked like it might engulf the man, head and all. But it seemed the thing did not care for an uneven fight.
It clawed its way onto the officer's shoulders like a frantic cat, limbs contorted at unnatural angles, feelers flailing. After all the struggle to get the thing off, Aaron made a desperate grab for its limbs, trying to help the officer restrain it. Too late. It sprang at the walls in a flopping lunge, hissing wetly as it went. Jagged limbs squealed over the walls as it pulled itself, spider-like, into the rafters and fled in jerky, twitching leaps.
Aaron struggled up to pursue and had to stop, sucking in shallow breaths. He held up an apologetic hand when the man looked his way.
"Need a minute," he said. Glanced up after several careful breaths. "Thank you. Jones, right?"
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Post by Pearl Dragon on Mar 26, 2017 7:44:06 GMT -6
"Trying," Aaron grunted, as Stenson held the creature's arms back. He pulled back further as Aaron managed to pull away, and the creature screeched in retaliation as its grip steadily began to fail. All at once, the thing abandoned its hold on Aaron, flailing and squirming in Stenson's hold until the bucket came loose and bounced off the officer's head.
"Not cool!" Stenson grumbled as the creature twisted and pulled, trying its hardest to turn around in Stenson's arms until it finally managed to look the officer in the eye. Stenson looked up at the rearing monster, amazed at how impossibly it had managed to change its position in his grip, its limbs and body all curling in the most freakish of ways. He flinched as the thing made to lunge at his face, but instead felt it clambering at his head and shoulder with spindly limbs. Stenson ducked his head to protect his face and glasses as the creature gripped and pulled, claws digging into the bulletproof vest that mercifully kept the pointy bits from piercing Stenson's shoulder and back. Stenson knew by now what the thing was trying to do, and doubled down on his hold of its neck and arms. Unfortunately, the creature's unpredictible flexibility made this effort all too ineffective.
As Aaron made to help, Stenson lost the last of his steadily squishing grip on the creature's neck...or was that it's midsection now...and arms, somehow pulling loose and clambering over and off the officer's back. Stenson stood up to try and grab at the thing as it scampered off and away, but by the time he was turned around, it had already leapt out of reach, scaling the walls and disappearing into the rafters. Stenson let out a sigh, adrenaline still coursing through him from the struggle and watched as Aaron made to chase after the creature but quickly stopped, knowing it would be useless. He followed after Aaron in a few brisk strides, a look of defeat crossing his face, and Aaron held up a hand as he approached. "Need a minute," he said before finally looking up at Stenson, "Thank you. Jones, right?"
"Reporting to help, Sir. It's no problem, Headquarters insisted I come find you and assist in sweeping the factory. They briefed me on some of what is going on, but ultimately I assumed we'd be chasing out hoodlums." He sighed again, brushing dust and some of the viscous drool from his shoulder and arms. "Well, I guess we know why the WDSA wanted this place cleared. Do you need some water? I might have some in the car." Stenson stepped past Aaron for a moment, giving the man a quick pat on the shoulder as he passed, and gazed up and around at the ceiling of the factory. No sign of the creature. Its ability to vanish so easily among the rows of metal supports was impressive. "Any idea what we might be dealing with?" He asked at length.
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Post by MP on Mar 26, 2017 15:06:32 GMT -6
Aaron looked a little puzzled at this new information. While cooperation between their departments was not unheard of, it was unusual for something that was supposedly a trivial assignment. Watching the officer wipe dark slime from his vest, he couldn't help but wonder if there was something they hadn't been told.
"I'm fine," he said, waving off the offer of water. He went over to examine the now-vacant corner where the creature had been crouching in wait.
The strange liquid was splattered there in congealing pools, a slight splatter indicating where it had lunged at its intended prey. There were other faint traces on the walls, dripping down from the rafters where the thing had passed. Grimacing, Aaron removed a spare vial from his coat and scraped some of the stuff into it, nose wrinkled at the smell. He double-checked the seal for good measure.
"Any idea what we might be dealing with?" Jones asked behind him.
"I.." Aaron shook his head bemusedly, tucking the vial back in place. "I've heard of mimics but...they're not supposed to get that big. They're not even supposed to be here." Another frown as he glanced at the dripping trail. "And that's not normal."
He bit his lip, deliberating. After a moment, he glanced up. Tapped the vial with one nail.
"We can't afford to lose that thing, I know. But I want to get this analyzed first. There's something wrong with that thing. We should know what we're walking into."
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Post by Pearl Dragon on Mar 29, 2017 7:33:52 GMT -6
Stenson noted Aaron's decline of his offer of water and watched him as he investigated the area where the creature had originally attacked him. Aaron removed a vial and scraped some of the strange goo from the creature into it. Once the substance was properly sampled, Aaron finally addressed Stenson's question.
"I..I've heard of mimics but...they're not supposed to get that big. They're not even supposed to be here." He then glanced over the trail of ooze, "And that's not normal."
"Nothing about that thing seemed normal, if you ask me." Stenson noted, pulling his glasses off for the moment to inspect them for damage or any more of the black goo. "Should we report back to HQ, let them know what we've found? Although, the other option would be to pursue it, in case it decides to move to another location."
Aaron glanced up at Stenson, tapping the vial. "We can't afford to lose that thing, I know. But I want to get this analyzed first. There's something wrong with that thing. We should know what we're walking into."
"Come to think of it, it might be wise to do both." Stenson said, replacing his glasses, "We should do a quick sweep, see what else we can find, maybe track this thing to where it usually hides. The trail marks its path pretty well." Stenson pointed along the trail, following it up to the rafters. "I think I can see some of that stuff leading into that vent shaft there. Does that come out anywhere else in this place? I could keep following it, if you'd want to do a ground search and then head to HQ. Come back when you're done?"
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Post by MP on Mar 29, 2017 23:03:27 GMT -6
Aaron looked from Stenson to the dark flecks splattered along the floor. The depths of the factory yawned ahead of them, stairways and corridors trailing away into abandoned wings. The ventways at least were exposed, easy to follow against the skeletal interior of the building, but there were a lot of places to hide.
"Just a ground search," he agreed, moving unconsciously to take point as they went. "I want to be back with results and equipment before nightfall. You know how there can be...behavior shifts with some supers."
His voice rang uncomfortably in the vaulted spaces, and he fell silent as they proceeded deeper into the building, speaking only in undertones, and only to confirm an empty room. He saw no sign yet of human or human-like habitation, but he was taking no chances. Noise could frighten away the residents. Or attract them. Neither option was pretty. Aaron's eye lingered on every shadow, every bit of debris. He saw nothing.
At length, he glanced toward Stenson and nodded back toward the factory entrance.
"Can't wait," he said quietly. "Don't know how long the sample is good for." Privately, he thought he should also get the bite looked at in case he mutated into the next Spider-Man or something. Amazing as that would be.
"So you keeping an eye on the place or coming with?"
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Post by Pearl Dragon on Mar 31, 2017 9:32:27 GMT -6
"Just a ground search," Aaron said as he took the lead in the search, "I want to be back with results and equipment before nightfall. You know how there can be...behavior shifts with some supers."
Stenson nodded in agreement and followed behind the agent. As they checked around for any other signs of the creatures, noting empty rooms and lack of any further evidence within that section of the factory, Stenson made note of the vents overhead and where they branched off to.
Once they'd covered a majority of the surrounding area, Aaron finally turned to Stenson and nodded to the entrance. "Can't wait," he said in an almost whisper, "Don't know how long the sample is good for. So, you keeping an eye on the place or coming with."
"Probably best if I stayed," Stenson said, breathing out a sigh, "You hurry back, get that bite looked at, I'll stay here until you return. If they do have a behavior change at night, hate to say it, that might be our best opportunity to find them and maybe bring them in. Just...bring some kind of protection, if you can." He looked down at the agent's clothes as he said this, as if to note the lack of weapons or body protection. "Go on, I'll be fine."
Once the agent was gone, Stenson lingered for a good while, just standing and listening to the dark. As time passed, he would hear very slight, distant noises. Scuffling, the creaks and sounds of old, rusted metal, a strange noise somewhere in the areas outside of the factory that would either sound animal or human in nature, or perhaps a passing car on the lone roads and alleys of the factory district. Nothing too out of the ordinary. As the factory grew darker, Stenson relied on his heightened nightvision to peer into the shadows, looking for movement or tracing more of the vents to different areas of the factory.
Just then, Stenson noticed a single vent that he had missed earlier that branched out and away from the main vent. It cut an angular path up and over the metal supports of the factory ceiling before disappearing into a wall. Below, a single door that they had not noticed during their earlier search stood out behind a sheet of metal that was propped up against it, nearly hiding it from view. No wonder they missed it.... Stenson made his way across the factory to the door, peering behind the metal sheet. "Hmmm," He mumbled, holding the metal with both hands. With a grunt and a push, the sheet slid with a metallic shriek across the concrete floor, and Stenson let it lean against the wall just to the right of the door. He then grasped the handle, its surface rusted and dented from years of use and abuse, before cranking it open to reveal another section of the factory. "This place just keeps getting bigger and bigger.." he whispered to himself, stepping into the deeper factory and pulling the baton from his belt for good measure. He left the door open, hoping Aaron would spot it upon his return.
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Post by MP on Apr 1, 2017 17:36:00 GMT -6
Aaron hadn't thought much of the bite except to fold the collar of his jacket over the spot, the better to hide the bloodied fabric during the cab ride back. He was much more preoccupied by the possibility of where the mimic had come from, and the fact that it might see the lone officer left behind as a tempting target. He moved at a brisk trot through the hallways, focused on his own impatience. But by the time he'd reached the elevator, there was an uncomfortable numbness in his shoulder. He rolled it experimentally and frowned as he realized that he couldn't quite raise his arm to shoulder level.
His finger hovered between the elevator buttons, debating between medical and labs. After another hesitant swing of the stiff arm, he jammed the button for the latter. He couldn't detect any serious symptoms yet, and there was no telling how long he'd be stuck in medical once they had him. Better to drop off the sample first - make the necessary equipment requisitions - so that at least they made some progress in the meantime.
He almost clipped the sliding doors, which had not opened fast enough to accommodate his brisk pace, and glanced around over the field of sterile tables. Aaron hesitated as he noticed exactly who was currently on duty, still acutely conscious of her reaction to his last run-in. But he could not afford to be selective, with an unidentified super on the loose and an unsupported officer on its tail.
He called out only a cursory greeting, trying to communicate the urgency of the situation as he offered the sludge-filled vial. "I've got a code 217Q - unknown super. Need this analyzed ASAP."
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Post by tsukikoko on Apr 3, 2017 7:17:15 GMT -6
Sara had been peering down the microscope at some bacterial samples, humming quietly to herself and swaying gently, the back of her lab coat lifted up slightly by the giant tail ever present behind her; she had cultured from the skin of a humanoid super currently in isolation, trying to ascertain whether the colonies naturally present on the skin posed any risk to the staff, when a familiar voice caught her attention, the tone clipped and full of urgency. The scientist leant back from her microscope and took a few steps away before she turned (she was finally beginning to appreciate how long her tail was and how prone to knocking over various implements), a large grin plastered to her face as she greeted Aaron.
“Eeee, Aaron luv! Brought me a prezzie ‘ave ya? Well give us it ‘ere an we’ll -” she froze mid-stride, her gaze zeroing in on the blood just visible from beneath the man’s clothes, where the collar met his neck. Sara’s voice suddenly exploded – the volume that filled her laboratory nothing short of impressive – with a mixture of anger and fear, “AARON WHAT THE BLOODY ‘ELL IS THAT?! CHRIST ALIVE MAN COME ‘ERE, wait -” she ran to the other side of the room, pulling out a couple of sets of gloves from a box and jamming her hands first into one pair, then slid the second set over the top. On her way back over she grabbed a polystyrene box which, once the lid was off, the tell-tale steam of dry ice billowed out from within.
The woman bustled over to Aaron, all brisk efficiency tinged with worried frustration. She grabbed the vial from him and packed it into the dry ice, then returned her attention to him, trying insistently to get a look at his wound while firing questions at him, “The bloody ‘ell ya been playin’ at man? Fuckin’ ‘ell, is it a bite, like? What did it? We might need to get ya quarantined. Did ya ‘ave backup? Swear to god if ya went there by your bloody self... jesus. Ah know, ah know, shouldn't be mollycoddlin' ya like, but I worry alreet?” As she spoke, Sara tried to get an initial assessment of how bad Aaron's wound was, looking to see whether there were any strange changes to his skin, signs of infection or similar - if he let her.
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Post by Pearl Dragon on Apr 3, 2017 8:59:10 GMT -6
Silhouettes of the deeper factory's structure stood out in Stenson's heightened nightvision: support beams, conveyor belts, I-Beam clamps with long, snaking chains that looped downward from the ceiling, more metal sheets and pieces cluttered objects here and there, debris, and other old, assorted pieces of equipment.
Stenson made his way slowly around the equipment and structures, glancing underneath and all around for any signs of the creature from before. He followed the vent overhead as a guide, at least until it connected with yet another main vent that branched off into a mazework of other smaller vents. "Awwh, you've got to be kidding me." He sighed, looking over all the possible avenues the creature might've taken. No wonder this thing was so good at hiding, this place was the ultimate hide-and-seek environment.
The officer was about to break from his search in favor of waiting by the open door for Aaron when something caught his eye upon one last sweeping glance of the vents. A black line that seemed to sink downard from an open crack on the corner of one of the smaller vents. At first glance, one might've mistaken it as part of the shadows, but to Stenson, a peculiar 'dripping' movement was visible along the length of the line. The black ooze. Whatever that thing was, the mimic, it had halted in that portion of the vent and created a puddle which was now seeping and drooling from the open crack. Was....was it still there? Waiting?
Baton clasped tightly in one hand, Stenson crept as quietly as he could towards it, eyes trained upward at the cracked vent. He reached over to a conveyor belt, still keeping his gaze locked on the spot, and felt around for something, anything, until his hand passed over a small bolt. Perfect. With one swing, Stenson hurled the bolt up at the vent, and it "twanged" off the metal surface before falling back to the ground below. Stenson braced himself, waiting for an explosion of noise as whatever could be up there made to dash away through the vents, but....only silence followed. Whatever it was, it had already moved on and left a puddle of black tar slime in its place. Still, any lead was better than nothing, especially with so many directions it could've gone.
However, all the while Stenson was focused on the vent above, he failed to notice the shadow, no bigger than a cat, now skittering quietly out towards him from under a sheet of metal that had been leaning against the conveyor belt to his left. It had stopped just behind his foot and was reaching up with one spindly arm, a claw-like hand grasping towards the back of his pant-leg. Another clawed arm reached up to follow the first and then another, like a nightmarish spider feeling for its prey before committing to a strike.
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Post by MP on Apr 3, 2017 13:45:54 GMT -6
To his credit, Aaron did not flinch at the abrupt outburst. He was learning to recognize his coworker's loud brand of concern by now and stood patiently - though his ears reddened perhaps a shade - until she concluded her barrage of questions. When she paused for breath, he explained in level, but less formal tones than before.
"No, I know. Got bit by a...mimic, I think - never seen one like that before. Half dose. 'Bout half an hour ago. Venom might be mildly paralytic, but I'm not seeing other symptoms."
He raised his chin unconsciously, allowing Sara a clearer look at the puncture, but attempted to reason and protest all the same.
"Sara, the sample. I'll check into medical - this can't wait. There's a WPD officer still onsite and we need to know what we're dealing with."
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Post by tsukikoko on Apr 5, 2017 2:45:43 GMT -6
Sara fussed and fretted over the wound for a good few moments, until Aaron brought up the good point about needing to know the details of the sample and what they were dealing with. The shifter huffed and pulled away, “Why aye man, you’re reet. But ‘old your ‘orses, can’t ‘ave ya trailing more contaminant, I’ll get the medics down ‘ere, like.” Before Aaron would have chance to respond, Sara grabbed the receiver of the lab phone and dialed through to the medical bays, her voice changing to the clipped, professional tone she sometimes used. “Hello? Yes, this is Sara Summers down in me.. ahem, my laboratory. We have an injured agent, potential unknown pathogens from a suspected mimic, although the species has not yet been confirmed, I recommend the medical team take the necessary precautions. Yes, that’s right, lab 314. Yes this lab has secure containment if required. Thank you.”
With a click, the phone receiver was placed back on the base and Sara spun to face Aaron once again. She pointed to a seat as she swept round to retrieve the sample box from where she had left it, “Alreet sunshine, park ya bum. The medics’ll be ‘ere in just a tick, till then, tell me everythin’ ya saw, like. Can give ya a quicker verdict if I know what I’m workin’ with, ya know?” As she spoke, Sara was busy setting up various equipment inside a glass-fronted biosafety cabinet, including a vial of something that looked suspiciously like blood. The cabinet also had what looked to be a built-in microscope, for looking at samples while still alive, still within the safety of the cabinet.
While she worked, Sara listened to whatever Aaron had to say, though when the medical team arrived she did nothing more than give them a cursory wave of greeting. She was fixated on the sample now, alternating between setting up slides and then looking at them down the microscope. At one point, she made a ‘hmm’ sound and her brow furrowed, as she pipetted a drop of blood onto one sample slide and watched as the ‘mimic’ sample promptly engulfed it, the cells morphing and subtly shifting afterwards. She turned in her seat, looked over at Aaron from the corner of her eye, then turned back to the slides. To her surprise, the cells she had not added blood to had already died, forming a black sludge that no longer resembled anything like the cells she had previously viewed. With one of the still-live samples, she decided to test a theory; she poured blood onto the slide, swamping the ‘mimic’ sample and waited a few moments before she checked under the microscope once more.
The relief was almost palpable, the ‘mimic’ cells had died, unable to overcome the vast quantities of white blood cells still present in the blood sample. That was good, it meant whatever this creature was, it needed to completely engulf a target to be able to kill it. Sara spent the next few minutes cleaning up the cabinet and transferring the remaining live cells to a DMSO solution, hoping to store and keep them alive for later. Once she was done, the scientist span in her seat again, rose and approached a programmable freezer unit, talking as she did so, “Aaron, mate, whatever this ‘ere critter is, it ain’t a mimic… or.. not anymore, like. Someone’s.. done somethin’ to it.” She closed the door to the freezer once the samples were safely inside and slowly removed her pairs of gloves, her voice low, "Your mate... the WPD officer, 'e could be in real fuckin' trouble Aaron. This thing'll try to engulf 'im, it needs other organism's cells to live, like."
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Post by Pearl Dragon on Apr 5, 2017 6:58:00 GMT -6
Stenson walked forward, stepping closer to stand under the dripping vent for a better look. A soft scuttling noise sounded just behind him and he spun on his heel in surprise, glancing all around for the source of the sound. Only the cluttered mess of metal, chains, and rows of conveyor belts met his searching gaze. It hadn't quite sounded like a rat, too big, but then rats could grow to be the size of a small dog in places like this. And it didn't quite sound big enough to be the mimic from earlier.
Just then, another scuttling sound came from his right, as he turned with the baton clasped tightly in his hand, and then another from his left. Stenson turned this way and that, looking around desperately for the source of the noises. Nothing stood out to him, nothing was moving.
"Come out!" He barked, holding his ground. If whatever it was had been trying to scare him, he didn't let it show. He felt more anxious than afraid, and his adrenaline was spiking again, which he held on to in case he was about to need it in a moment. He felt something pulling then at the back of his ankle, followed by what felt like a small, emaciated child wrapping thin arms around his calf. Stenson yelped and kicked out, trying to dislodge whatever had a hold of him. He swung the baton downward, clipping the thing under the chin and knocking it away before it could deliver any kind of bite. It rolled backwards under a metal sheet and disappeared in a flailing scrabble of limbs. Stenson dove for it, reaching one arm under the metal and grabbed what felt like a wad of pizza dough, pulling the thing back out from its hiding place. As he pulled it out, he held it at eye level, keeping his arm outstretched to avoid the swing of its arms. It looked very similar to the mimic creature from earlier, but much much smaller. Stenson had a firm grip on it's scruff, pulling the skin-like flesh of it's neck and face back to reveal beady, insect-like eyes and a mashing set of mandibles that clacked rapidly at him. "You're under arrest." He said plainly, reaching behind his belt for the cuffs. Despite its change in size, he would still need to bring in it, see if it was intelligible or at least containable. Just then, another set of stick arms wrapped around his other leg, causing a startled expletive to escape his lips, as he saw another one climbing in leaping motions up his calf, past the knee, and grabbing with tiny claws onto the belt around his hip.
"Hey!" He cried, swinging his baton again, but missing as the creature ducked behind him and climbed up his back. Stenson dropped his other captive, who quickly joined the fray, now clawing and climbing it's way across his side and up to his shoulders. Stenson grabbed at the two slobbering monsters now biting and chewing on his vest, trying his best to dislodge them before they could find something soft to bite into.
He almost had a grip on one of the thin legs when he felt yet ANOTHER one, this one now bigger than the last few, scrambling quickly up his body, and followed by another of matching size. Stenson's heart hammered in his chest as he realized the extent of his situation. They had set up an ambush. Hardening skin across his arms and legs, Stenson threw himself to the side, into a large piece of metal to try and throw the creatures from his body, but instead only managed to lose his footing as he landed hard on his back, one of the creatures emitting a nasty squish under his weight. "GET....OFF....OF ME!" he roared, pulling and fighting the tangle of legs and mandibles now all clacking and snapping at his face, hands, shoulders, arms, and anything else that got in the way. The situation had rapidly gotten out of hand.
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Post by MP on Apr 5, 2017 10:29:56 GMT -6
Aaron began a steady recount of the incident at Sara's prompting, explaining the thing's disguise, its tangled appearance, twitching movements, and unnatural agility and strength. He described the sludge-like discharge and the officer's timely intervention - though he was careful to avoid mentioning just how close a call it had been. Then one of the team, attempting to gauge his pupil response, shushed him impatiently, and he fell silent.
He sat very still as the medics rustled about him, privately hoping the prognosis wouldn't be too bad. He felt fine. But then, the venom of the lesser manticore could drop a man before he so much as registered the pain. One could never be sure. He suddenly wished he'd stopped at requisitions first. Gotten supplies en route to Jones in case this delay turned out to be longer than expected.
He winced a little at an abrupt injection to his upper arm. Flexed his arm and rolled his shoulder obediently at their prompting. Smiled when Sara glanced his way.
The medics seemed satisfied with the examination. Gave their reassurances and were gone, probably to more serious things. His arm had returned to its usual functioning, and he wouldn't be the next Spider-Man after all. Aaron sat back in his chair, hands on his knees, relieved, to wait. It was the only good news he would have.
He listened to Sara's findings in silence, his face the same stony expression worn to crime briefings. At the word "engulf," he turned his eyes from Sara's face to the floor.
"Shit," he muttered reflexively. He rose, already tallying a mental checklist of equipment. Then again as the situation sunk in fully: "Shit."
Aaron spun on his heel and all but charged from the room, an odd, upward twitch of his hand the only parting acknowledgement to Sara in his frenzied distraction. Protective vests; helmets. Spell grenades. And a lantern. For a nocturnal creature, almost certainly a lantern. He was speaking into his phone as he walked. There would be a perimeter. Other patrols. But he needed to get back to the factory. Needed to get back with the equipment before Jones found the thing - or it found him.
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