Creatures of God

A Frantic Scattered Disposition

Bwerrrr! Bwerrrr! Bwerrrr! Bwerrrr!

"Hurry up! Get out of the way!"

"Secure the lower levels, now!"

"Get the students to safety!"

Boooommmm! Boooommmm!

The scene on the ground floor of Anderson Science Center was pure chaos. Explosions were rocking the building, sirens were sounding off, and people were running around like mad men. The Center had faced all matters of medical emergency before -- complex crush injuries, severe burns, penetrating wounds requiring massive blood transfusion -- but defending the building from a full-on, canine attack was something it had never faced. The Center was a healthcare facility, not a military outpost.

"... proceed to the shelters in an orderly fashion... "

Buried beneath the foggy din of alarms and explosions was the Interlink, acting as a public address announcer. It reminded the science community of Level 5 protocol, the highest order of response in case of a disaster. The calm, scripted recording was in stark contrast to the utter confusion gripping the Center. Instead, people regarded the overhead directions with a frantic, scattered disposition.

Aaieeeaaahhhh!

No!! No-oooo!!

Aaaahhhh-eeaahhhh!!

Adding to the pandemonium were cascades of gasps and screams coming from the main lobby and entrance. People had gathered at the front windows and were reacting to the outdoor happenings with horror and disbelief.

Invading mongrels were at a telescope distance. They had made an unimpeded entrance onto the campus grounds, leaping and rollicking, their powerful forelegs muscling over the grassy plains; racing one another as the only challenge to their ingress. A light, cool wind blew through their flying coats of fur.

At that moment, a small HP patrol unit arrived to intercept the animal horde.

"Don't let them reach the outer structure!"

The limited group of humans put up a barrier of resistance and clashed with the mongrels on the plaza plains, still far below the canines' destination.

"Create a wall!"

"Stay together now!"

The canines stopped to reorganize.

Whh-boooommmm!

Whh-boooommmm!

The mongrels shot rocket launchers and pulse cannons -- modified human weapons – blasting the humans' line of defense and forcing them to separate, back-up and regroup.

Whh-boooommmm!

Whh-boooommmm

"Retreat! Retreat!"

"Call for reinforcements!"

Inside the Science Center, Elliot made his way through the fervid masses to gain a better view.

Where is Aless?

He could not find his vampiric friend. The last time he'd seen him was in the library, discussing a safe-house strategy. He was supposed to have stayed within the pathology lab, separate from everyone else; however, Alessandro had seemed to have disappeared once again. Did he know, Elliot wondered, that a mongrel lynch-mob had come searching for him?

Where's Mimi?

Elliot turned his thoughts toward his other best friend. He breathed hard and felt light-headed. Why had he thought her joining the HP would ever be a good idea? The sight of the other fallen officers made him worried sick. He looked for his childhood friend among the chessboard combatants, but it was impossible to know if something terrible had already happened.