Chapter Fifty-Six – Leaving a Gift Behind

Chapter Fifty-Six – Leaving a Gift Behind

“There was a time where the global market was, if not stable, then at least predictable. Prices rose and fell based on tangible things. Governments across the world had good reason to make sure that things stayed nice and even and that spikes, either huge growth or large drops, didn’t occur too often.

To say that the economy now is a wild, fluctuating thing would be a massive understatement.”

–Arthur Newton, Economist, 2045

***

We were halfway up the first set of stairs when I heard the familiar keening of a Resonator going off from behind us.

I paused on the next step up and tried to listen as best I could. I wanted to hope it was just a rat, but my luck was never that good. When the grenade stopped suddenly, as if someone had pulled the power, I knew things were going to get interesting. “Faster,” I said.

No one saw fit to complain.

By the time we had reached the first floor, I heard two more resonators going off below us.

“Ma’am,” the soldier at the very back said. “There’s only the ones on the stairs left.”

I nodded and refocused on the path ahead. “Myalis. I need something that will make the route behind us unpassable. Got anything like that?”

I have a few things that could collapse the building, but I think you’re looking for a more… temporary solution. There’s the Mark I Heavy Smoke grenade.

“To blind them?” I asked. That could work.

It acts more like an aerosolized acid that is heavy enough that it tends to stay more or less in one place in the air. And before you ask, no, this isn’t the sort of acid that will melt anything following you. It will ruin their lungs if they have them, and will injure most Models quite substantially.

“Good enough,” I said. “Give me a pair.”

New Purchase: Heavy Gas grenade Mark I, two units
Points Reduced to… 453

I held my hands up just long enough to catch a pair of surprisingly heavy canisters. They looked like energy drink cans that mated with an egg timer.

I shoved both in my jacket’s pockets and ran up the last few steps. “Monroe, can you keep everyone here safe? I’m going to give the monsters below a parting gift.”

“Yes ma’am,” he said. With a few gestures he directed his men towards the door to the main floor and two others towards the stairs leading up.

I nodded. It was nice working with professionals. I… couldn’t imagine myself working the way they did. Myalis was right to call me the lone wolf sort. I’d chafe under someone giving me orders like that, but I could appreciate how well his team worked together.

With the civvies huddling together in the middle, panting and gulping for breath and trying to get already unstead legs to calm down, I felt it best to give them a minute or two.

Returning down the first flight of stairs was a bit annoying. It got a lot more annoying when I heard something shuffling below. I paused, pulled out one of the gas grenades, then called down. “If you’re human, bark twice.”

The shuffling continued.

I was about to pull the red tab and toss the grenade down when I hesitated. What if it was someone?

Carefully, with my boots doing more of the work to keep me silent, I moved down one flight, then looked around the corner.

There were three people there. Humans. Or maybe ex-humans was better. They were shambling, walking with awkward steps. Wide-open mouths revealed far, far too many worms clogging their throats. Even their eyes, unfocused and filled with a primal pain, had worms wriggling out of the corners.

Right behind them, moving on long tentacles connected to a pod-like body, was an alien that I’d never seen before. But it was all-black except for a green underbelly, and that was enough for me to label it as trouble.

I pulled the tab and dropped the first grenade right by my feet.

The clunk had them looking up just as I flung the second over their shoulders. They followed it with listless gazes, then turned back towards me.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Creepy fucks, aren’t you,” I said as I pulled out my Trench Maker. “Sorry.”