DoomPet

Chapter 51

While Crüe and the Slayer drifted off into sleep, Samuel was on a mission. He had not made it back to his apartment near the infirmary; Instead, he got a ping to investigate and outer defenses. Something... or someone had just crossed over the threshold. He hurried through the sleeping city, his robotic feet tapping against the sidewalks and alleyways. As he neared the outer defenses he could see the gate, a reinforced steel door so big and tall you could comfortably fly a helicopter through it. There wasn't even a single scratch or dent indicating a demonic issue of any sort on it. Strange...

He decided to check the man door off to the side, in case the Slayer had decided to sneak out. Swiping a keycard, he opened it with ease, walking into a rather clean command center built into the wall. "Is anyone here?"

He peeked around corners and under desks until he spotted something out of place. On a closed door leading to the outside there was a small black strap caught in the crack. He opened it and caught the piece of fabric. What it came off of he had no clue, but it certainly looked military.

Closing the door behind him, he walked out into the space between the first and second doors. It was similar to the double door system of the airlocks from the UAC but this was built for preventing demons from getting inside the city. He opened the final door and stepped out into the outer world.

Greenery and destruction were everywhere. Ruined buildings with massive branches growing out through their busted out windows littered the landscape. The only thing that hadn't been completely destroyed was the road and sidewalks. Samuel walked along them, keeping an eye out for demons and whoever was trespassing.

He walked out through the thick underbrush and rubble; then, into a large clearing. Along the way, he had checked the sensors and detectors. They seemed to all be in working order so it certainly wasn't a false alarm. He kept walking, feeling more and more uneasy. The deeper he walked into the ruins of civilization the less trees he saw. They seemed to localize to water rather than grow up through the buildings once they were a mile or so away from the walls. He made a mental note to ask the biology department to research that.

Just as he was about to turn and head back he heard a low hiss around the corner. His body froze and he listened. It was high pitched and a constant singular volume. It didn't sound biological. It sounded like a machine releasing steam. A dread knight perhaps? He wasn't sure if he'd be able to take on a beast of that size, or outrun it. Panic exploded across his chest, burning him to action. He peeked around the corner to face his foe and to his surprise it wasn't a dread knight's augmentations hissing. It was a little punk dude wearing a cheap Slayer mask that mimicked his helmet and hoodie with a spray can.

Relief then anger flooded through Samuel. Why was a punk spray painting in the middle of a zone occupied by demons?! "Hey what's going on here?" Samuel stepped out around the corner and hollered at the dude.

They stopped and turned, staring at him through the eye holes of a Slayer mask. Two thoughts ran through their head. "Oh shit you gotta be kidding me" and "Can I outrun Samuel?"

They could in fact not outrun Samuel. By the time they turned he was already grabbing their arms and forcing them to the ground.

With one swift motion of his arm Samuel ripped off the mask and hood. "Holy- ELENA?"

Elena Richardson sat up, shoving him off of her. "I notified the ARC perimeter border that I would be doing research in this area. I-"

Samuel looked over at what she had been spray painting and almost burst into laughter, but didn't out of respect for his colleague. It was the mark of the Slayer with big black writing through it that read, "DELIVER US FROM EVIL!" He stood and helped her up, "So you're the one who's been sneaking out to spray paint?"