Chapter 11: Into the Abyss
1302 Words
The cold from the lower levels seeps into my bones as we descend the staircase. Every step feels heavier, the weight of what we’ve discovered pressing down on me. The faint hum we heard before grows louder, reverberating through the walls like a heartbeat.
Kade leads the way, his pistol drawn, the beam from his flashlight cutting through the darkness. Finn is right behind him, clutching his rifle. Lila stays close to me, her knife gleaming in her hand. None of us speak; the silence is too thick, too oppressive.
The stairwell ends in a steel door marked with faded warnings: Biohazard Level 5. Authorized Personnel Only.
“Guess we’re authorized now,” Finn mutters, trying to mask his unease.
Kade examines the control panel beside the door. The buttons are worn, and the screen flickers erratically, but after a few seconds, he finds a way to bypass the lock. With a loud hiss, the door slides open, revealing a corridor bathed in dim, red emergency lighting.
The smell hits us immediately—a mix of decay, chemicals, and something else, something acrid and metallic.
“Stay close,” Kade says, stepping into the corridor.
---
The hallway is lined with observation windows, most of them cracked or shattered. Beyond the glass are rooms filled with broken equipment and strange, organic growths that pulse faintly. Some of the growths resemble vines, but others look like they’re made of flesh, twisting and writhing as if alive.
“What the hell is this?” Lila asks, her voice barely above a whisper.
“Part of the experiments,” Kade replies. “The fallout didn’t just affect the outside world. It changed everything inside this place too.”
Finn stops at one of the windows, peering inside. “Guys,” he says, his voice tight. “You might want to see this.”
We gather around him, staring into the room. At first, I can’t make sense of what I’m seeing. The floor is littered with skeletons, their bones twisted and fused in unnatural ways. But it’s the figure in the center that holds my attention.
It’s humanoid but grotesquely deformed, its limbs elongated and its torso unnaturally thin. Its skin is mottled and translucent, revealing black veins pulsing underneath. The creature is hunched over, its back to us, but I can hear its ragged breathing.
“Is it alive?” I whisper.
As if in response, the creature’s head snaps around, its glowing green eyes locking onto mine.
“Move!” Kade shouts, shoving us forward as the creature lets out a deafening screech.
---
The corridor erupts into chaos. Alarms blare, their shrill tones cutting through the air. Doors begin to open along the hallway, and more creatures emerge, each more grotesque than the last.
“Run!” Kade barks, firing his pistol at the nearest one.
We sprint down the corridor, dodging the grasping claws of the creatures. Finn turns and fires his rifle, dropping one of them, but two more take its place.
“They just keep coming!” Lila shouts, slashing at a creature that gets too close.
We reach another door at the end of the corridor. Kade slams his hand against the control panel, but the door doesn’t budge.
“Come on!” he growls, hitting the panel again.
Behind us, the creatures close in, their screeches echoing off the walls. Finn tosses a grenade down the hallway, the explosion shaking the entire facility and buying us a few precious seconds.
“Try harder!” I shout at Kade.
Finally, the door slides open, and we rush through. Kade hits the controls on the other side, sealing the door just as the first creature reaches it.
The screeching and pounding on the other side make it clear the door won’t hold forever.
---
We find ourselves in another chamber, this one dominated by a massive cylindrical tank in the center. The glass is intact, but the liquid inside is cloudy, obscuring whatever is floating within.
“What now?” Finn asks, his voice trembling.
“This is it,” Kade says, moving toward a nearby console. “The prototypes.”
The rest of us exchange uneasy glances.
“You mean that is one of them?” Lila asks, pointing at the tank.
Kade nods grimly. “The first generation. The ones they perfected before everything went wrong.”
He activates the console, and the tank begins to glow faintly. The liquid inside starts to drain, revealing the figure within.
It’s massive, at least eight feet tall, with a muscular frame and sharp, angular features. Its skin is a deep gray, and its eyes remain closed. Unlike the creatures we’ve fought, this one seems almost human—until I notice the claws on its hands and the ridges along its spine.
“Why are you waking it up?” I demand, stepping back.
“We need answers,” Kade says. “This thing might know what happened here.”
“Or it might kill us,” Finn snaps, raising his rifle.
Before we can argue further, the creature’s eyes snap open, glowing with an intense amber light.
---
The tank shatters, the creature stepping out with a fluid grace that belies its size. It surveys us with an expression that’s almost curious.
Kade steps forward, his pistol lowered but ready. “Do you understand me?” he asks.
The creature tilts its head, its gaze shifting between us. When it speaks, its voice is deep and resonant, each word deliberate. “You… are not them.”
“No, we’re not,” Kade says. “We’re trying to stop what they started.”
The creature’s eyes narrow. “You cannot stop it. The corruption has spread too far.”
“What corruption?” I ask, my voice shaking despite myself.
The creature turns its gaze to me. “The Genesis Project was not a cure. It was a catalyst. They sought to control evolution, but they unleashed chaos instead.”
“Why didn’t they destroy this place?” Lila demands.
“They tried,” the creature says, a hint of bitterness in its tone. “But the experiments had already escaped. They infected the land, the air, the water. Even now, they continue to spread.”
The pounding on the door behind us grows louder, the creatures outside clawing and screeching.
“Is there a way to stop it?” Kade asks, urgency in his voice.
The creature hesitates, its expression unreadable. “There is… one way. But it will require great sacrifice.”
“Sacrifice?” Finn repeats. “What kind of sacrifice?”
Before the creature can answer, the door behind us begins to give way.
“We don’t have time for this!” Lila shouts, raising her knife.
The creature steps forward, placing itself between us and the door. “Go,” it says. “I will hold them.”
“What?” I protest. “You’ll be killed!”
“Perhaps,” the creature says, baring its claws. “But my purpose was to protect. Even now, I will fulfill it.”
Kade grabs my arm, pulling me toward another exit. “Come on! We can’t stay here!”
Reluctantly, I follow, glancing back one last time as the creature charges at the horde, its roar echoing through the chamber.
---
We run through another series of corridors, the sounds of the battle fading behind us. My heart feels heavy as I think about the creature’s words. A great sacrifice.
Kade stops at a junction, consulting a flickering map on the wall. “There’s another exit this way. We’re almost out.”
But as we move forward, I can’t shake the feeling that whatever lies ahead will demand more from us than we’re prepared to give.
- Writer
