The Life After ATLAS

Escape

July 6, 2035
"Are you sure this is going to work?"
"Yes, I'm sure," Irons says to his lead scientist. "If it worked ten years ago, it'll work today. Commence test 1."
Edgar, Irons' head scientist, powers up the test chamber with the compressed Manticore gas in its container. A KVA prisoner is being used as a test subject. Fear clear on his face, he bangs on the glass, hoping for it to crack. The surge of power within the sphere breaks the metal. Almost immediately, the KVA falls to his knees, clutching his chest. His efforts to break the glass cease as he falls to the floor, gas flowing through his ears and nose. Irons smiles at his defeated enemy.
"Sir," Edgar says. "Is that supposed-"
His words are cut short from a bang inside the chamber. The man still looks like a man, but his eyes are yellow, and whenever the head moved, streaks would follow.
"Yes, doctor," Irons grins. "That is supposed to happen.
*********************************
I flash awake, panting heavily. Beside me, Dawn slowly wakes up.
"Babe?" she asks. "Are you alright?" I look around, scanning the room. We managed to find a small room to spend the night.
"I'm fine," I say. "Just a bad dream." Dawn's hand rests on my chest, putting me at ease.
"I think we should get moving," I say as I pick up my BAL-27. The door creaks open, the sound almost deafening in the silence. I keep my focus in the middle of the sight, my finger on the trigger, ready to fire at whatever moves. My light comes across something on the floor. I look at it. It's a weapon I've never seen. It feels like an assault rifle, with a belt-fed system. I put my hand on what feels like a foregrip, but when I do, two panels at the bottom spring out. I let go of the grip, and the panels slide back in.
"The hell..?" Dawn questions, but I flash my light around the weapon. A plate read: OHM WEREWOLF LMG/SHOTGUN PROTOTYPE X
"Do you know of a Project Ohm?" I ask. Dawn shakes her head. I hand the gun over to Dawn, where I trust she'll keep it safe. We continue onwards, hoping for an alternate exit. As we approach a corner, I begin to hear noises. Dawn gives me her "Oh god I'm scared" look. I guess I'm not going crazy. Taking a grenade from my belt, I activate it to threat detection. I toss it, and what is painted is unbelievable. The pile of bodies were still alive! And they were feeding off a dozen corpses. Dawn hands me the Ohm. Well, actually, I signaled her to give it to me since I don't want her and the child to be injured. I take one last look at its flawless design before blue bullets of directed energy fly forward into the hoard. The shrieks sounded as the undead started falling in numbers. As I continued my hellfire, one used the wall to its advantage as a blow struck me in the side. I slam my fist into the creature's head, the sound and feeling of the skull cracking underneath my fist satisfying. I switched to the shotgun, and more bodies flew, or those that have bodies still. I stop firing, for the Ohm ran out of ammo, smoke rising from the barrel. I sigh a sign of relief, that it until I see a zombie at the end of the hall. Its devilish, unforgiving, deathly yellow eyes. Before I can reach for a grenade, the thing pounces on me, it's jaws inches from my face. I'm staining myself to keep it off me. Then, a bullet sprays blood out of its right temple. I push the body off me, and I look at the Service Number, and I want to scream. Nigel Potashnyk.
*********************************
Lennox looks at all of the survivors.
"One of you has to go," he says, swinging his Atlas 45 around, pointing it at everyone's head. Decker, Kahn, and Lilith flinched. Oz didn't. He looked at Lennox with a look of hatred, betrayal. Just looking at Oz reminded Lennox of when they were squad mates. They could be put in any position and still make it out alive. If things were tense, Oz would be in charge. He would be in charge of the squad, Lennox being second in command. He didn't hate Oz, he just didn't like how he was always the leader.
Looking at his squadmate, he ignored the cries of plea for everyone else. I'm sorry, old friend, Lennox thought as he pulled the trigger, sending a bullet flying, burying itself into Oz's head. Shocked, everyone else remaining started cursing Lennox for shooting their friend, but he ignored.
"Sir," one of his captains approached him. "ATLAS inbound, five miles out."
"They're earlier than expected," Lennox remarked. Looking at Oz's friends, he ordered his men to take them away. One by one, they went unconscious.
"We trusted you!" Lilith screamed at Lennox, who's back was turned. She continued to scream, but soon, she too was tranquilized.
"Get them out of here," Lennox orders as he walks back onto his aircraft. The soft hum of the engines means liftoff. And that means more fun.
"Sir!" one of the pilots says. "Ten Warbirds! Cloaked!" Lennox just smiles.
"Let them follow us," he says. "They'll do anything to get them back." He points to the three unconscious and one dead ATLAS. "Absolutely anything."
The battle started. The Warbirds uncloaked, and the battle began. The SENTINEL ship flew, it's four cannons returning fire to the Warbirds, which also unleashed a barrage of bullets and rockets. Like a sniper at target practice, the Warbirds fell, until three remained. The battle took them out to the Pacific, and Lennox's smile only grew. Where are you? he thought as he scanned the ocean.
"Sir!" a pilot screamed, and pointed.
"ATLAS is so stupid," Lennox said as he assumed control of the ship and killed the pilots.
*********************************
A rumble shook the building.
"You okay, babe?" I asked as I halt my climb. Dawn nods, and keeps climbing. You shouldn't be putting you pregnant wife through this, John, a voice tells me. I look around to try to find stairs. Nada. I shake my head, and keep climbing.
"John," Dawn calls. I look down. "What do you think that was?"
"Beats me," I say. "Could've been anything." I look up. I can see light coming from up top. At least we're almost out. A shriek grabs my attention. Looking down at Dawn, I can see zombies, and lots of them, trying to get us. However, they can't, just because we've already gotten a head start.
"Ignore them," I say as I continue the trek, barely able to reach the ledge. We're almost out, anyways, I think as I push up to the ledge. I grasp hold, the concrete cold to the touch. As I pull myself up, I close my eyes. I can just picture what struggles other people are facing, if there are any left by this time. Once I'm up, I reach my hand down, and grasp hold of Dawn's. I start to pull her up when I feel something dragging her down. I zone out, not hearing anything, only focussing on what lies at the bottom.
Dozens of undead are the gathered, jumping mindlessly, trying to reach us. I quickly draw my knife and hit the zombie grasping my wife's leg in the head, sending it tumbling down where it came. I haul Dawn up, shock clearly evident. The wretched screams of the undead are still echoing, the sound of their exos undying.
"You alright?" I ask as I put my hand on her shoulder. She furiously swipes it off, and turns her back to me. "I just asked-"
Dawn cut me off. "You almost got me killed! That- thing was on my leg, ready to turn me at a moments notice!"
"Baby, look-" I begin, but she cuts me off once more.
"THERE IS NOTHING LEFT! Can't you see?! The world is broken." She stares at me, her gaze cold, unrelenting. Her face distorted to show frustration. I can't do anything. I just stand there, looking at the floor. What can I say? I wonder. What can I say where she won't snap at me?
"Look," I say sternly, making sure she knows that I can also play this game. "There is only one way we can survive this absolute hellhole, and that's by trusting each other. There's no way we will survive out there if we can't get over a zombie nagging at your leg. Do you want to know what I had to go through in order to get here?" Dawn starts to break down. "That's how much you mean to me. And I'd do it all again if I have to."
"Please don't," a small whisper from Dawn says as she moves closer to me.
"Now," I say. "Back to the orig-"
Darkness surrounds Dawn and I. A blue and purple cloud of smoke forms a perfect circle around us as we feel weightless, yet know we're traveling fast. When we finally stop, the scenery is totally different. We're in a room that is illuminated by a pad on the ground and D-Type power generators all over the room. Beams of light come to my left, and more people are in the room. The room is underwater somewhere, and there is a tower located on the wall in front of us. A man dressed in an ATLAS janitor uniform is standing within a separate office, smiling at me, Dawn, and the other four survivors.
"Welcome," the man says.
"Uncle?" a girl questions. The girl is no more than 20.
"The fuck am I?" a boy with some sort of protection on his right forearm and ATLAS Infantry goggles frightfully looks around.
A man in a Police Guard outfit draws an ATLAS 45 and aims it at the man in the office.
Finally, a woman in SENTINEL gear grips her HBRa3 fearfully.
The man in the office speaks once more, his voice booming, projecting through the room. "My name is Oz, and you are my tests. This is an arena. Last couple standing wins." He pauses and raises his hands, his wicked smile growing. The young couple grab the AK12's that are by their feet. Dawn picks up a nearby AE4. I'm still holding my BAL27 somehow, while the Security couple do not look at us nicely.
Oz booms, "Let the games begin." On cue, doors open, and we're overrun.