HUMAN

Chapter 4 - Encounter

"Initially, I would've left you there until you are discovered by ally forces or until my backup power supply can no longer support you." I was shocked to hear this. "700?! You're bullshitting me!" I shouted, refusing to believe she was telling the truth.

"I am not programmed to lie." I collapsed on the cold metal floor. Devastated and did not know what to do. "Why. . .why did they place me in the cryo-pod instead of one of them?" I muttered.

"They will die. Your father's age and state of health cannot manage the effects of the serum, and will corrode his body over time. Meanwhile, Max will be killed by the serum; although there is not much evidence to back this up, the chances are too high since the cryo-pod is only a prototype." Anna said.

I nodded. "So, what do I do now?" I was soon given instructions on accessing the files that require a computer transfer. I sat on a nearby chair and waited for the stuff to transfer to the USB I plugged in. "You mentioned someone getting into the bunker? Who are they?"

"I do not know. My cameras will not function after almost a millennium. However, I suggest you leave here as I do not know whether they have good intentions." I nodded, sat up from the chair, and unplugged the USB. "Bring the device that is beside the computer."

I grabbed the circular metal device. It was thin in profile and no larger than my hand. "So uhh. . .what's this for exactly?" Anna didn't reply for a couple of minutes before the lights of the bunker shut off, including the cryo-pod that once had blue light illuminating from it.

"It is a communication device where I've transferred myself. However, my ability to control the bunker is no longer functional." "I see," I said, adjusting the earphones that came with the device. "Are you able to hear me loud and clear?" "Crystal." I tucked my hands in my pocket as the temperature dropped drastically.

"This room will be covered in ice within several hours. I advise that you move now." I swung my bag to my back and adjusted the straps to where it was comfortably tight on my shoulders. I rubbed my hands together once more to create heat and turned the lever on the metal door that led to the hallway and the floor above me.

"Shouldn't I be bringing a weapon?" I said and walked down the hallway, coming to a stop in front of a set of stairs that led to the back of the shelf that concealed the entrance. "Your father and Max had taken the remaining. You must lie low and get out as fast as possible." I pulled a flashlight from my bag and searched for someplace to push the shelves to the side.

The light revealed a gap in the middle. Squeezing my hands in, I began to push to the side. The cogs and mechanisms within the wall creaked and groaned. Trying harder, I created an opening enough for me to fit in.

"The serum is working miracles. You would need to apply a couple of tons even to move those by an inch." I gave a small chuckle, knowing that I could do something like that so casually. I panned the flashlight across the box-filled room to ensure the coast was clear. Heading towards the entrance, I heard a crunch beneath my foot. Pointing the flashlight down, what was revealed caused me to stumble and fall to the ground in shock.

They were bones. Bones of a human. . .no, it was not human. . .

It was Max.

I froze up, and my jaw began to drop as I realized that what lay in front of the entrance was the bones of Max, judging by the dog-structured skull sitting on top of the pile of skeletons. "No. . .no, no, no!" Tears began to well up in my eyes, but nothing fell. "You will be able to produce tears within 48 hours. Vincent, I know you are vulnerable, but dawn will soon break, and your chances of escaping are shrinking by the minute."

I didn't reply. I stared at the soulless bones and felt a cold shiver running down my spine. "Vincent, please. If Max were here right now, he would've scolded you for trying to sulk at his dead body instead of focusing on getting your ass out of here. Max would not like that, right?" She had a point, and I nodded.