Modern/Delta Green - The Beginning of the End (Updated Daily: Sep. 8)

[talien]

Guppy and Archive peeked around the corner of the Smith house. There was no one there. The savage wind whipped the trees and bushes.

Then a monstrous mottled form lurched into view. It was a walking corpse, bloated from its time in the water. It had no face, the eyes and nose long since rotted away to form a death mask. A chainsaw was gripped in both hands. With a sharp jerk, it buzzed to life.

"What the hell?" sputtered Guppy. "Why does it have a chainsaw?"

Ettringer ran past him screaming, stopping short at the sight of the hulking behemoth before him. His mouth clamped shut and he ran back towards Guppy and Archive.

"Keep it away from me!"

Guppy drew his pistol and fired twice. The bullets made little "puft" sounds as they penetrated the walking corpse. The only response was that water streamed out of the holes. It kept coming, holding the buzzing chainsaw over its head.

Archive drew his own Glock and took aim. They gave up ground one step at a time, firing as they went, keeping the plodding corpse at a few feet distant.

"What makes you think that's going to work?" asked Guppy.

"Magic," said Archive with a smirk. He took careful aim with the enchanted Glock and aimed at the thing's forehead. Archive pulled the trigger.

The chainsaw-wielding zombie's head snapped back. Then it slowly looked turned to look at Archive, murderous hate in its eyes.

Ettringer fell to the ground, gibbering in terror. Guppy was torn between keeping his distance from the thing and abandoning Ettringer.

“Shoot the chainsaw!” shouted Guppy. He took careful aim and fired his Beretta. It ricocheted off the spinning blade.

The chainsaw swung sideways, badly gashing Guppy's arm and slamming him into the side of the house. He fell to the ground, unconscious.

Archive held up the amulet of the Elder Sign that he wore around his throat. "I invoke the power of the Elder—"

The chainsaw struck a glancing blow on Archive's shoulder. He screamed and dropped the Elder Sign, tripping over Ettringer. Ettringer crawled over him.

The corpse that was formerly Henry loomed over Archive with chainsaw held high.

It was interrupted by the sputtering fire of two Glocks on full auto. Hammer smashed through the second story window, flipping through the air as he fired. He landed on his feet, still firing.

The bullets ravaged Henry’s corpse, but it didn’t slow him down. He simply turned and, revving the chainsaw, advanced on Hammer.

Hammer stood his ground. He kept firing, bullet after bullet, until click-click-click was all that came out of his Glocks. He was out of ammunition and time.

Once again, the corpse raised up the chainsaw. Hammer didn’t flinch.

SPTANG! Gas spilled from the tank of the chainsaw as a bullet perforated it. The chainsaw sputtered and died.

Henry looked for the source. Above him, Jim-Bean was leaning out the window with his G36C extended.

Shaking the chainsaw in confusion, the zombie dropped it in front of Hammer. Hammer coolly reloaded his Glocks.

Henry’s corpse reached over its shoulder…and pulled a wicked-looking machete out of a sheath on its back.

“He carries backup weapons?” asked Jim-Bean in surprise. “Does this thing have a Home Depot card or what?”

Ettringer screamed, and Henry’s corpse turned to stump its way towards the doctor. On his hands and knees, Ettringer crawled around the corner.

Hammer emptied another two clips into the thing’s back as it walked. “I can’t stop it!”

“I don’t think anyone can.” Jim-Bean climbed down out of the window.

Ettringer and Henry’s corpse turned the corner of the house. There was another scream.

“Ettringer!” shouted Hammer, jogging up to the side of the house.

Ettringer’s head rolled around the corner. Of Henry’s corpse there was no sign.

“Now what?” asked Hammer.

“Where else?” said Jim-Bean, helping Guppy to his feet. “The Springer place.”

[talien]

“Federal agents! Open up!” came Hammer’s voice from the other side of the partially ajar door to the Springer household. It was a massive place, a mansion, with sweeping steps that curved up both sides.

When there was no answer, Hammer kicked open the door, both pistols at the ready.

Hammer crept into the room. The other agents filed in behind him.

The place looked as if it had been hit by an earthquake. A marble pillar was collapsed on one side of the room, and cracked statuary was everywhere. A rumpled red carpet was splayed out the length of the hallway into the room. Oil lamps flickered up and down the length of the upper level.

“Something very bad went down here,” said Jim-Bean. “And I don’t think it was Henry.”

“You’re right,” said a young woman’s voice from atop the balcony. “It was me.”

Lucy Ennis, her long dark hair covering much of her face, leaned over the banister.

“Lucy?” asked Jim-Bean. “Lucy Ennis?”

The door slammed shut behind them. Then the multiple deadlocks and bolts locked the door, seemingly of their own volition.

“He won’t stop,” whispered Lucy. “I can’t stop him. No one can.”

“Who?” asked Jim-Bean. He started making his way up the steps along the left side of the stairwell. “Henry? Your father?”

She slowly nodded.

“What happened to Bernadette Springer?” asked Hammer. “This is her place…”

Lucy pointed up at the ceiling.

An old woman hung from the chandelier, a cord tied around her throat. Her tongue stuck out from her mouth, her face purple.

“She killed herself?” asked Guppy.

Lucy shook her head. There was no way the woman could have hung herself from that height without assistance; the chandelier was over twenty feet off the floor.

“Lucy,” said Jim-Bean, almost close enough to touch her. “I understand your pain. I’ve been there. I was a patient of Dr. Ettringer’s—“

WHAM! The door shuddered off its hinges.

“He’s here,” said Lucy.

WHAM! The door buckled as hinges shrieked under the unstoppable force.

“Positions!” shouted Hammer, directing Archive and Hammer to either side of the door.

WHAM! The door blew through the hallway, smashing into the far wall. Plaster and dust filled the room.

Father and daughter were united. Henry Ennis stood, the machete in one hand, gore dripping from the blade.

“Fire!” shouted Hammer.

Hammer, Archive, and Guppy unleashed their pistols at the thing. Henry barely jerked from the multiple impact.

“You knew about the orphanage!” shouted Lucy. “You knew about the cult all along!”

“He moves slowly,” said Hammer, shouting over his shoulder at Guppy. “So keep backing up and—“

“Hammer, look out!’ shouted Archive.

Henry was right in front of him, somehow closing the distance without making a sound. The machete lifted up.

“Duck!” shouted Jim-Bean.

Hammer ducked just as the marble pillar whistled through the air. It smashed into Henry across his upper torso, slamming him into the side of the right stairwell.

Hammer looked up at Jim-Bean in disbelief. “Did you do that?”

Jim-Bean shook his head and pointed at Lucy. The power that Lucy was exercising was far beyond what he’d ever witnessed at the Psychic Research Association. He’d seen spoon-bending, maybe shifting a box of matches around on a table. But this…this was off the charts.

The rubble at the stairwell shifted.

“Archive, get down!” shouted Hammer.

But it was too late. Henry hurled the pillar off of him and it struck a glancing blow, clipping Archive’s shoulder. He spun and fell.

“You sold poor Sophie to that bastard at the orphanage,” shouted Lucy, “in exchange for his silence!”

One of the marble statues whistled through the air, smashing into Henry’s head. The zombie paid it no mind as it turned and began to advance up the steps towards Guppy.

“Uh...guys?” squeaked Guppy.

“Jason’s potion really did its job,” shouted Lucy. “Too well. I should have left your dead body at the bottom of the lake when I drowned you the first time!”

“The first time?” asked Jim-Bean with an arched eyebrow. He slowly drew his SIG Sauer.

“It’s got to have a weakness!” Guppy stumbled backwards as Henry climbed the steps. “Maybe fire!” He grabbed one of the oil lamps off the wall and hurled it at the zombie.

It was a perfect shot, the oil lamp smashing over the corpse of Henry’s head. The head burst into flames.

But it kept coming. A grinning skull, its eye sockets vacant and wreathed in fire took a swipe at Guppy as if he were an irritating gnat.

The machete smacked Guppy sideways, hurling him down the steps. He lay still at the bottom.

“I blame myself,” said Lucy. “I should have known you wouldn’t be able to stop killing.”

Cracks appeared in the marble steps in front and behind of Henry. The zombie looked down…

And then was plunged thirty feet below into the basement.

Lucy didn’t notice Jim-Bean, her dirty hair clouding her vision and her brow furrowed in concentration as she glared down into the hole her telekinesis had created.

One bullet in her head and Jim-Bean could end it. He was convinced that Henry’s rampage was somehow tied to her. But if he was wrong he’d have killed an innocent teenager for nothing.

He kept her talking. “Lucy? What did you do to Henry?”

“I squeezed him…” she didn’t look at Jim-Bean. “Then I squeezed the furnace.”

The familiar sound of screws firing off of the boiler down below signaled what Lucy meant. She was superheating the furnace to critical mass.

Hammer ran over and dragged Guppy off the steps as the masonry continued to crumble inwards.

Jim-Bean’s finger tensed on the trigger.

“Jim-Bean! Grab Archive!”

Jim-Bean yanked back his pistol, swearing quietly to himself, and ran over to pick up Archive.

“What about the girl?” asked Jim-Bean.

Hammer had Guppy hoisted over his shoulders in a fireman’s carry. “Forget her! This place is going to blow!”

They jogged out the back door, under the balcony, just as the boiler exploded.

[talien]

Lucy calmly stepped out of the house as the roof collapsed. Debris seemed to avoid her, despite falling shingles, splinters, and beams.

She took a few steps towards the docks and the agents and then fell to her knees. “It’s over! It’s finally over!”

Jim-Bean put Archive down on the ground next to Guppy. Hammer ran to get the van.

“Lucy, I know people who can help you.” He took her hand. “If you’ll come with me…”

There was a groan from the flaming wreckage.

“Oh no,” said Lucy quietly. “Oh no.”

Jim-Bean looked up.

A smoldering hand shoved a section of the roof aside.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” said Jim-Bean. “C’mon kid, let’s go, we’ve got a van…”

Lucy shook her head. “We can’t stop it! We can’t stop it!” she pressed something into Jim-Bean’s hand, then shoved off of him. Lucy backed up towards the dock. “He’ll never stop! What the hell was in that vial?”

“What vial?” asked Jim-Bean in vain. “Who’s Jason?”

“It’s too late for that,” said Lucy. “It’s too late for everything.” She whirled to face the relentless corpse of Henry. “Come on dad! What are you waiting for?”

Henry rose up out of the wreckage. With one shuddering step after another, it pounded towards her.

“Lucy it doesn’t have to be this way,” said Jim-Bean. He drew his SIG. “If we can get enough firepower—“

“There’s not enough firepower in the world to stop dear old dad. But I know how.” She glared from beneath her tangle of black hair at the undead figure. “I did it once and I can do it again.”

She backed up onto the dock. Henry followed her until she reached the end. She stopped.

The corpse stood, flesh crackling, its bright white skull grinning at her. Hands clenched and unclenched; if it was indecision or Henry was merely savoring his revenge, Jim-Bean couldn’t tell.

“I’m sorry daddy,” whispered Lucy.

Then the entire dock folded in on itself like a ruler cracked over God’s knee. Both ends smashed together and it sank nearly instantaneously into the depths of the ocean, leaving only red bubbles in its wake.

[talien]

“Any luck?” asked Hammer.

“Found an email from Jason, but that’s it,” said Jim-Bean. "It’s vague – talks about a potion given to him by someone else, who he doesn’t identify. It was sent through an anonymous remailer and encrypted. The Redlight boys are working on it.”

“And her psychic powers?” asked Archive.

“Dr. Ettringer knew about them,” said Jim-Bean. He kept the latent memory that had surfaced to himself. “He convinced Lucy’s mother to have her committed to Arkham Asylum so he could keep conducting his field experiments. As a Majestic-12 friendly, he recruited psychic talent; sort of like an American version of the PRA.”

“I want to know how Lucy found out about Sophie,” said Archive with a frown. “The only people who knew about that were me and Hammer.”

Guppy tapped on his cistron. “It’s in your report.” He tapped a few more keys. “Looks like Ettringer was granted special access to review your file when he did a keyword search on ‘Ennis’.”

“That son of a bitch,” snarled Jim-Bean. “So he KNEW what would happen! He was pushing her and that was the only way he could get Lucy to use her powers…”

“Thus the ‘field trip’ to Runville. Don’t tell me,” Hammer addressed Guppy. “He read our file on Robert Monroe-Tyler too.”

Guppy nodded. “Yep.”

“So Ettringer has all the right ingredients,” said Jim-Bean. “He finds out about Sophie’s murder at the Labib Orphanage and learns the names of the cultists from your mission logs. Add one an angry latent psychic and stir to a boil.”

“But he didn’t count on this Jason person and his magic potion,” said Hammer. “Or whatever the hell that vial is. Did we get anything off the corpse?”

“Redlight confiscated it,” said Guppy. “We’ll be lucky if they tell us anything.”

“Yeah, right,” said Jim-Bean.

Jim-Bean patted the pocket where Lucy’s thumb drive was, the one she pressed into his palm just before her death. There was an entire book titled Flagitious Fragments. Written verbosely and containing long passages of unsettling descriptions, the book explained how to nurture latent psychic abilities.

It was one piece of evidence Majestic-12 wasn’t going to learn about.

[talien]

This scenario, “Silicon Dreams,” is a GURPS Black Ops scenario from Pyramid Magazine by Jonathan Souza. You can read more about Delta Green at Delta Green. Please note: This story hour contains spoilers!

Our cast of characters includes:

• Game Master: Michael Tresca
• Jim “Jim-Bean” Baxter (Charismatic Hero/Telepath) played by Jeremy Ortiz
• Joseph “Archive” Fontaine (Dedicated Hero/Acolyte) played by Joe Lalumia
• Hank “Guppy” Gupta (Smart Hero/Field Scientist) played by [bJoseph Tresca[/b]
  (creepyportfolio.com)
  
• Kurtis "Hammer" Grange (Fast Hero/Gunslinger) played by George Webster

Silicon Dreams is another one of those scenarios that’s big on ideas but doesn’t have much advice on how to execute them. The plot revolves around the unfortunately named Morgana Lafayette. Her supposed connection to the Greys is what propels the rest of the scenario.

In actual play, the agents had absolutely no interest in Morgana. While she was admittedly a key person, there were a lot of other key people to focus on, specifically the ones in power like the CEO. The agents put together their usual infiltration plan, led by Guppy and Jim-Bean, except that it didn’t work out as well as they hoped. Then I turned the tables on them. After nearly killing the agents, I pressed them for time to keep the plot moving along, which required some drastic measures on the part of the team.

And then they did what they always planned to do: an out-and-out raid on the bad guys’ headquarters. Which was what I wanted all along, but it wasn’t entirely clear how the agents get from Point A (Morgana) to Point B (raid). Although there was quite a bit of explosions, I got the agents to that point anyway.

When we came to the big finale, I was very pleased. I removed the open conflict with Greys (for obvious reasons, if you know Delta Green) and replaced it with the creepy ending to Hangar 18. Hangar 18’s aliens were pretty terrible, but the rest of the movie creeped me out for years after I saw it. I wanted to reproduce that bizarreness, as well as remind the agents that they are dealing with something far more sinister than UFOs.

Defining Moment: Jim-Bean, realizing that Archive can heal himself, forces a surgeon in mid-surgery to release him.

Relevant Media

• Silicon Dreams: from Pyramid. If you play in any sort of modern game and need resources, you can't beat Pyramid.
• Yours Truly, 2095: I heard this song on the radio as a little kid and it stuck with me forever -- the computerized voice in a song was new at the time.
• Hangar 18: A really cool concept for a movie, marred by goofy looking aliens and some oddly light moments in the script.

[talien]

I sent a message to another time
But as the days unwind, this I just can’t believe
I sent a note across another plane
Maybe it’s all a game, but this I just can’t conceive.

--Your Truly, 2095 by ELO

BOSTON, MA--Sprague’s feathered haircut and piercing eyes filled the team’s cistrons.

“A few days ago, Centurion Computing Systems released a new palmtop computer called the Centex. This computer is equal or better to the Cistron that we issue to Majestic-12 agents. In addition, we've been hearing reports from inside that they're going to release new technologies that are equal or better to our own. There's a suspicion of possible interference by extra-terrestrial influences. You're to discover if this is due to extraterrestrial influences or possible compromise by someone in Majestic-12. Guppy, you’re mission leader.”

Sprague’s image winked out. The other agents looked at Guppy.

“Wow, big time for you, huh?” asked Jim-Bean.

Guppy jutted his chin out. “It makes sense. I am the technology guy!”

“Sure, sure,” said Hammer. “So what’s the plan, Mission Leader?”

“Give me a minute.” Guppy tapped away on his favorite keyboard within the team’s van. “Ah, okay. Here we go: Centurion Computing Systems started up in San Francisco. It has twenty-two employees. None of them are Majestic-12 front companies either.”

“So we’re off to San Francisco?” asked Hammer. “That’s on the other side of the continent!”

Guppy shook his head. “They recently moved into a new office complex in Samson.”

“Still on the other side of the continent,” muttered Hammer.

“Who’s the CEO?” asked Jim-Bean.

“There are four top people: The head of CCS, Walter Morrow; his two best friends Nick Allyson and Wang-Li Gi; and the girl that gave them the garage to work in, Lisa Patterson. They’re the inventive and creative parts of CCS.”

“A regular Apple,” smirked Hammer.

“I’m going to put taps on all of them,” said Guppy. “But in the mean time, we have to get to Samson, CA as soon as possible.”

Archive leaned back in his seat. “And how, exactly, are we going to get there? It’ll take forever to drive…”

“The gas is too expensive,” said Guppy. “Sprague would never approve it. I’m going to call in SPIDER transport.”

Jim-Bean cocked his head. “SPIDER transport? What the hell is that?”

Hammer sighed. “You’ll see.”

[talien]

SAMSON, CA—“That was…horrible,” said Jim-Bean, cracking his neck.

“We got here in twenty-four hours, didn’t we?” muttered Guppy.

“Sure,” said Jim-Bean. “But a bus? And a cargo plane with chickens in it? I thought the cabin was going to depressurize there…”

Archive looked a little green. “I could do without the HALO drop at the end.”

“We’re here,” said Guppy, checking his cistron. “Nothing much on the taps. Just a mixture of work e-mail, bad jokes and stories, and some erotic commentary about the relationships in the office.”

“Yeah, hilarious,” said Hammer. “Now what?”

Guppy held up one hand. “Uh oh. Get a load of this.” He uploaded the GNN stream to their cistrons.

“…CCS just announced a new computer system known as the Navi. According to reports, the Navi has unparalleled processing power and will be released later this month.”

“That can’t be good,” said Archive.”

Guppy shook his head. “We’re going to have to see this technology up close. We’ll need to get into their headquarters.”

Jim-Bean grinned. “My specialty. I can whip up fake IDs for all of us. Who would you like to be today?”

Hammer rolled his eyes. “Just make me your driver.”

Archive cleared his throat. “Uhm…what do you mean, exactly?”

Jim-Bean looked Archive up and down. “On second thought, you can be my bodyguard. Guppy, you’re my chief technologist. I’m multi-billionaire playboy Bean Jaxter. Can you spread some press releases about me to make it look convincing?”

“Sure,” said Guppy hesitantly. “But that will all be recent…”

Jim-Bean waved him off. “Ask SINNER to hack some GNN sites. Let’s go back three months at least. Too bad me dear old mum just kicked and left me this huge fortune.”

Archive was aghast. “Do these plans actually succeed?”

“Rarely.” Hammer checked both of his Glocks. “That’s why I carry these.”

[talien]

A black limousine pulled up to the non-descript headquarters for CCS. Hammer was in the driver’s seat dressed like a limo driver. Archive sat next to him dressed in a security uniform. In the back, Guppy and Jim-Bean wore tailored suits.

Hammer lowered the driver’s side window. “Mr. Jaxter here to see a Mr. Morrow.”

The security guard looked askance at the limo. Hammer noted that there were tired shredders in addition to the gate barring their entrance. CCS took its security seriously.

“ID please?”

Hammer handed him the forged papers. Majestic-12’s covers were usually impenetrable.

The security guard picked up a phone. There was a lot of “uh huhs,” and “yeahs,” and then finally an “okay, I’ll tell them.” He turned back to Hammer. “Mr. Jaxter’s busy right now but he’s happy to make an appointment.”

They expected this. Jim-Bean rolled down the window. “Who is this?” he shouted in his best eurotrash accent. “Who are these people? Why are they not letting us in?”

“Sorry sir,” said Hammer, feigning discomfort. “I’m sure they’ll let us in.”

“You!” Jim-Bean pointed at the security guard. “Who are you?”

“Me, sir?” The guard stuttered. “I-I’m afraid I can’t let you in without an appointment.”

“An appointment? Are you serious? Do you know who I am?” Jim-Bean threw up his hands. “Do you know who I have with me? I heard about this Navi system and I want in!”

“You’re welcome to call Mr. Morrow’s office…”

“No,” said Jim-Bean curtly. “I don’t not feel very welcome at all!” He whirled and pointed at Hammer from inside the limousine. “You! Get this insolent cur on the phone!”

“Right away sir.” Hammer leaned over to the security guard. “If you could give me the phone number?”

The guard nodded and handed a card to him. Hammer punched in the number and handed the cell phone. Before he could answer, Jim-Bean leaned forward and snatched it from him.

“Hello? Who is this?”

“This is Mr. Morrow’s secretary,” said a husky feminine voice. “How may I help you sir?”

“This is Mr. Jaxter! Perhaps you’ve heard of me? The billionaire? I saw the GNN press release about the Navi system and I want to speak with Mr. Morrow right now!”

“I’m sorry sir, but you’ll have to make an appointment.”

“An appointment?” Jim-Bean barked out a laugh. “I have one of the world’s most renowned computer specialists with me and he wants an appointment? What kind of operation is this?”

The woman’s voice never wavered. She dealt with rude snobs all the time. “Sir, I’m sure Mr. Morrow is very interested in what you have to say, but I’m afraid you’ll have to make an appointment.”

“I don’t believe this!” He threw the cell phone down on the ground and shouted at it. “You tell Mr. Morrow that when he finds time, he can call me at this number! I’ll be at the Frederico Steak House for the next few hours!” He kicked Hammer’s seat. “Drive! Get me away from this junk factory!”

Hammer glowered at him. “Yes, sir.” Then he threw the limo in reverse and forcefully hit the gas, jarring Jim-Bean and Guppy.

As they pulled away, Jim-Bean sighed. “I know, I deserved that.”

The team kept up the façade at Frederico’s, eating steaks and drinking wine. Or at least, Guppy and Jim-Bean did. Hammer and Archive at their meals at a separate table.

Still no call.

They headed back to a swanky hotel room, large enough for all four of them.

“Remember,” said Jim-Bean. “Don’t let yourself be seen walking the halls or it’ll blow our cover.”

“Do you think we can afford this?” asked Guppy nervously. The CIFA credit card had taken several large hits in the name of Jim-Bean’s façade.

“Think of it this way,” said Jim-Bean, wrapped in a silk robe. “I’m spending the money you saved on SPIDER transport.”

[talien]

The next day passed with no phone call.

Guppy looked at his cistron. “Nothing on the taps. Nothing at all,” he said glumly.

“Now what?” asked Hammer.

“We should try again,” said Guppy. “Maybe announce a rival technology or something.”

Jim-Bean waved him off. “Relax. These things take time. We have to really sell it. I’m sure they’ll come around.”

“I’m not so sure,” said Hammer. “These guys aren’t as stupid as GNN. They’re suspicious of anybody interested in their technology. If they’re the real deal, they might not even care about the money.”

They clambered into the limousine again. “Sooner or later, everybody cares about money,” said Jim-Bean. “They’ve got an aggressive release schedule. They must be burning cash like mad.”

Hammer shifted gears and they took off down the hilly streets of Samson.

“So what’s your plan this time?” asked Guppy.

“This time you get on the phone,” said Jim-Bean. “Talk some techno babble at them, really dazzle them. Tell them something about alien technology that only someone like you would know. That should—“

The car lurched.

“Jesus!” exclaimed Jim-Bean, leaning forward to address Hammer. “I know you were mad at me for kicking the car yesterday but could you take it easy on the hills?”

Hammer’s gloved hands were curled into fists on the steering wheel. “I’m trying!” He stomped on the brake pedal a few times. “No brakes!”

“What?” asked Archive. “What do you mean no brakes?”

“Try the emergency brake!” shouted Guppy.

Archive grabbed the emergency brake lever with both hands and pulled. Nothing happened.

“Someone cut the brakes!” said Archive.

Horns honked as Hammer tore through a four-way intersection, blowing a stoplight. “Not…” said Hammer through gritted teeth, swerving the limo to avoid pedestrians, “…HELPING.”

“Seatbelts!” Jim-Bean struggled to buckle himself in.

Hammer pulled the wheel hard just as they reached another intersection at the end of a hill. A green sedan had the right of way. The driver swerved at the same time, but Hammer couldn’t apply the brakes. Tires shrieked as the limo tipped sideways. It struck the other car, which propelled the limo up in the air.

They tumbled in slow motion. Then the ceiling crunched as the limo landed upside-down.

Hammer struggled out of the car. Archive crawled out the other side.

“The others all right?”

Jim-Bean and Guppy helped each other out of the limousine. The smell of gas was everywhere. Helpful bystanders shouted to them, but the smoke made them hesitate. Other cars further back honked in irritation, not understanding the dire nature of the situation.

An unmarked black van came screeching to a halt a few hundred feet away.

“Is that our backup?” asked Guppy.

“It would be,” Hammer drew his Glocks. “If any of us called for backup. Get down!”

[talien]

Four men in full SWAT assault uniforms and machineguns piled out of the van and began peppering the limousine with gunfire. The other agents fired back.

“There are too many civilians!” shouted Hammer. “We have to get out of here!”

Jim-Bean squeezed off a few shots in the direction of the black van. “And go where?” he shouted back. “They’re not going to just politely move to a deserted park.”

“This is going to attract attention,” said Guppy nervously. He fired his Beretta blindly through the smoke at the hit squad. “If the GNN cameras show up…”

“That’s it!” said Jim-Bean. “Guppy you’re a genius!” He flipped his cistron and dialed 911. “Hello? There’s a firefight going on in downtown Samson. Yeah! Corner of…can you see the sign?”

Archive strained to see through the smoke. “Fifth and Ninth!”

“Corner of Fifth and Ninth! Hurry, the two gangs are heavily armed!” To demonstrate his point, he held the cistron next to his SIG and fired it in the direction of the van.

“What the hell did you do that for?” asked Hammer.

“Who do you think has the better cover?” asked Jim-Bean. “The guys with the CIFA badges or the guys in the unmarked van armed to the teeth wearing bulletproof vests?”

“Good point,” said Hammer. Bullets ricocheted near his head, forcing him to duck behind the limo.

“Uh, guys…?” asked Guppy. “I think I smell gas.”

He looked down. Gas was pooling at their feet.

“Run!” shouted Hammer. He shoved Guppy in front of him and broke into a sprint just a spark ignited the limousine in a fireball.

[talien]

Jim-Bean sat up from the hospital bed. “Can I go now doc?”

The Samson Hospital doctor on call shook his head. “I wouldn’t believe it if I didn’t see it with my own eyes. Not a scratch on you.”

“Well I wouldn’t say not a scratch…”

The doctor indicated Guppy, who was groggily stirring. “Fortunately for you whoever was trying to kill you fled the scene when the police arrived. Your friends weren’t quite as lucky. Mr. Gupta suffered second degree burns. We’ve given him something to handle the pain but he really shouldn’t be moved…”

“Can he stand?”

“Yes, but with the medication we gave him—“

“He’ll be fine. What about Ham—I mean Grange?”

“After you, he’s in better shape. Mr. Grange must have been at the perimeter of the blast.”

Jim-Bean looked around. “Where’s Fontaine?”

The doctor’s expression became grim. “Mr. Fontaine is in emergency surgery. We’re removing debris from his…”

Jim-Bean hopped off the cot. “Sew him up.”

“What?” The doctor shook his head. “You can’t just—“

“I said sew him up,” said Jim-Bean. “Guppy, can you move?”

Guppy groaned and slowly propped himself up on one elbow. “I…I think so.”

“Now look here,” said the doctor, “I don’t know who you are but these men are in no condition to—“

“We’re federal agents.” Jim-Bean moved to fish out his badge from his pockets, then realized he was in a hospital gown. “Where’s my things?”

“We have them in a safe. We also notified the police, since you were carrying firearms.”

Jim-Bean rolled his eyes. “With my gun is a badge. And that badge represents CIFA. And if you don’t release us right now I will have you all brought up on federal charges for obstructing an investigation. Now WHERE are my THINGS?”

The doctor backed up and barked a command at a nurse. A few minutes later Jim-Bean had his clothes, his gun, and his badge back.

Hammer joined him in the waiting room, followed by a limping Guppy.

“CCS is going to be wrapping up their operations,” said Hammer. “If they’re bold enough to attack us in broad daylight, they’re not above wiping their offices clean by whatever means necessary. We have to move tonight before they remove all the evidence.”

“But Archive’s still in surgery!” said Guppy, his eyes swimming a bit from the painkillers. “We can’t—“

“Sure we can. He’s into that mystical healing mumbo-jumbo, right?” Jim-Bean stalked towards the door marked RESTRICTED PERSONNEL ONLY. “He can just heal himself.”

“Hey!” shouted a security guard. “You can’t just go in there.”

Jim-Bean held up his CIFA badge and pointed his pistol at the security guard. “Try and stop me.”

He backed his way into the operating room. Archive was splayed out on a table, an IV drip connected to one arm. A staff of surgeons were busy extracting debris from his flesh. The lead surgeon whirled.

“What the hell? Get this man out of here!”

The nurses started tugging at his arm. “You can’t be in here!”

“I’m getting him out,” said Jim-Bean. “Sew him up.”

“He could die!” shouted the surgeon, unruffled by the fact that a pistol was pointed at his head.

“So could you if you don’t do what I say,” said Jim-Bean. “Now. Sew. Him. Up.”

Ten minutes later, two walking-, one drugged-, and one half-dead agent limped out of Samson Hospital.

[talien]

It was 3 a.m. when Hammer finished snipping a man-sized opening in the CCS perimeter fence. Thanks to Guppy’s hacking, he had found a hole in their surveillance cameras. They padded over to a side door near the office connected to a warehouse.

“Our target is that warehouse,” whispered Guppy. “We just need to get inside there.”

“Yeah, sure, piece of cake.” Jim-Bean looked over his shoulder at Archive. “How you doing buddy?”

Archive, despite the serious of his wounds, had fresh scars that had already healed. “The spell’s taking effect.” He winced. “But it still hurts.”

“Yeah, spells,” whispered Jim-Bean. “Whatever that crap you do, if it makes you feel better, go with it.”

“You’re one to talk,” whispered Hammer pointedly.

“Can we please focus on the mission?” Guppy fiddled with the lock and it popped open. A map appeared on all their cistrons. “There’s one guard station and no way around it.”

“If they have half the firepower they threw at us in the street before, it’s going to be impossible to get inside,” said Hammer.

“Just get me to a computer terminal,” said Guppy. “I’ll take care of the rest.”

They snuck up to the flickering light of a bay of monitors.

Hammer snuck a peek around the corner. A guard loudly slurped his coffee.

“…now we’ve got the government involved,” said one of the guards. “They really effed it up this time.”

Hammer turned back to his companions and held up for fingers.

Jim-Bean nodded. Hammer counted down from his four fingers.

Three. Two. One.

Hammer fired his Glocks and Jim-Bean sprayed the room with his G-36 assault rifle. The guard screamed and shouted, diving for their weapons.

Guppy and Archive followed up with pistol fire. Three guards were down. The last one leaped for a red button.

Gunfire raked his back, but his palm hit the alarm as he went down. Klaxons went off.

“Damn it!” shouted Jim-Bean.

Guppy shoved the guard’s corpse off the seat and began furiously typing. “I think I can stop it.”

“Even if you could,” said Hammer, “it won’t stop them. They’re not stupid. They’re on high alert. This place will be swarming with guards.”

Guppy shook his head, eyes glued to the monitor, fingers dancing across the keyboard. “I’m not going to shut it off. I’m just going to redirect it. We’re in Zone One.” A schematic of the complex appeared on one of the screens. “So there’s about to be a fire in Zone Four.” Zone One stopped flashing and Zone Four began pulsing.

“Can you find their computer system?”

Guppy tapped some more keys. “Mother Trucker! It’s a closed system.”

“What?” asked Archive.

“It’s not on a network. The only way I can get past the security in the warehouse is to be at a terminal there.”

Jim-Bean had been uncharacteristically silent. When they all looked at him, he was in his underwear, shrugging on one of the guard’s uniforms.

“What are…what are you doing?” asked Guppy.

Jim-Bean zipped up the pants. “It’s time for me to do a little hacking of my own.”

[talien]

A guard jogged up to the two men at the security station in front of the warehouse.

“Hey! What are you guys doing?” he shouted. “There’s a fire in Zone Four!”

“We’re not supposed to leave our post,” replied one of the other guards.

“Yeah, yeah I know, but we think it’s a prelude to an attack. The government raid is going down – but if you want to let Mr. Morrow know that you guys didn’t follow orders…”

The two guards looked at each other and then jogged off in the direction of Zone Four.

Jim-Bean pretended to jog behind them, but just ran in place.

“I can’t believe that worked,” said Archive.

Guppy ran over to the security console. “Retinal scan,” he snorted. He tapped a few keys on his cistron and held it up to the scanner.

An eyeball appeared on screen. The retinal scanner flashed a green beam onto the cistron. Several bolts unlocked and something twisted and groaned inside the foot-thick reinforced steel door. Then it whisked open.

There was a large plastic curtain between the entryway and the rest of the warehouse. Shouts came from behind them. The guards were coming back.

Guppy tapped a button on the other side of the door. The noises the door made when it open became clear as bolts locked and swiveled, locking the door into place.

“Hope we can find another way out of here,” said Archive.

Hammer shoved aside the curtain and then stopped short.

“Now I know why Guppy was mission leader,” he said quietly.

Before them was a thirty-foot diameter saucer, twelve feet from top to bottom. The entire exterior was made of a dull-like material that looked like lead. Three curved triangular windows protruded from the front of the craft.

“Oh no,” whispered Guppy. “Not again!”

[talien]

As the agents approached the ship, a klaxon blared out.

“Warning, warning!” said a calm electronic voice. “Magnetometer readings rising.”

A single entry ramp opened from the bottom center of the craft. The craft rises slightly to allow the small steps to lower. Mist spilled out of the entrance, glowing with a yellow light.

“Let me know what’s inside there,” said Guppy. “I’m not going in.”

Hammer sighed. “Guppy, we could really use your help in there.”

Guppy crossed his arms. “You remember what happened last time. I’m not going in.” He hesitated. “For your own safety.”

Hammer frowned and stepped inside, with Jim-Bean and Archive close behind.

Inside was a low-ceiling interior made of a soft red-brown adobe-like material. It was carefully and ergonomically shaped. The ceilings were gracefully arched and the corridors serpentine and smooth. The floors were made of a shiny black material which under close scrutiny was covered in tiny green and purple writing. Every square foot of the ceiling was covered in tiny sigils.

“You seen one of these before?” asked Jim-Bean.

“Yeah,” said Hammer. “It looked exactly like this. In fact, I’m starting to think this is the same one.”

They passed through a peculiar tunnel with patterned walls. It was clear the ship was much larger on the outside than on the inside. Corridors wound more than thirty feet and opened into large rooms that were somehow all jammed with in the tiny craft.

“How could you even tell?” asked Jim-Bean. “Maybe everything they make looks the same?”

They made their way to what looked like an engine room. A row of inert boxes were about knee high. In the center of the room were strange symbols. A single platform flanked by flimsy bars acted as an elevator of sorts to the next level up.

“Guppy!” shouted Hammer. “Get in here!”

Guppy sounded very far away. A few seconds later he jogged in, his gaze intently focused on Hammer only. “They’re trying to blow the door.”

“Concentrate on the ship for a moment,” said Hammer. “What does this look like?”

Guppy hesitated, then started looking around at what passed for the ship’s engine. He ran his cistron over a few mechanisms. “This is an N-fusion drive,” he said. “It uses hydrogen as fuel, scooping it up as it goes along.”

“So it’s safe to say humans didn’t build this?” asked Jim-Bean.

“No humans I know,” said Guppy. “It normally takes one million degrees to power something like this.” He was starting to talk faster, overcoming his fear. “Plus, this craft isn’t capable of interstellar speed.”

“So where did it come from?” asked Hammer.

“A bigger ship,” said Guppy.

They took the elevator up.

There were panels on one wall lit by silhouettes of different creatures; some recognizable, others utterly alien in appearance. In one corner was a glass tube with what looks like a frozen armadillo. Another was a similarly shaped human-sized chamber, although it was not currently occupied.

Guppy’s eyes turned to slits. “I remember that chamber.”

“What’s it for—“ began Jim-Bean, but Hammer cut him off with a shake of his head. “Oh, right.”

“What do you think of these symbols?” Hammer prodded, pointing at one octagonal wall.

One table was covered in a forest of protruding crystals, while one octagonal wall had a series of odd symbols identifying a variety of buttons.

“I recognize these symbols!” exclaimed Archive, who hadn’t felt particularly useful until that very moment. “The symbol matches the Nazca lines of an ancient astronaut, which are huge lines in Peru that can only be seen from the air.”

“Can you translate them?” asked Hammer.

Archive nodded. “The symbols are similar to a language known as Aklo, which has appeared in the ancient pyramid of Tepanapa in Cholula.” He tapped a few keys on his cistron. “I think I can…here we go.”

Weird, winged cylinders with starfish like protrusions on the top and bottom floated through space towards a planet. Then they surged towards it like dolphins diving deeper into the water.

“The creatures from beyond came to Earth to live under the sea, at first for food and later for other purposes,” said a mechanical voice. “It was there that they first created earth life—using available substances according to long-known methods. The more elaborate experiments came after the annihilation of various cosmic enemies. They had done the same thing on other planets, having manufactured not only necessary foods, but certain multi-cellular protoplasmic masses capable of molding their tissues into all sorts of temporary organs under hypnotic influence and thereby forming ideal slaves to perform the heavy work of the community, known as shoggoths.”

Silhouettes appeared on the screen as the cistron and the ship’s computer interacted. Weird, pulpy forms made of eyes, mouths, and tentacles oozed onto the screen.

“When they had synthesized their simple food forms and bred a good supply of shoggoths, they allowed other cell groups to develop into other forms of animal and vegetable life for sundry purposes, extirpating any whose presence became troublesome. These vertebrates, as well as an infinity of other life forms—animal and vegetable, marine, terrestrial, and aerial—were the products of unguided evolution acting on life cells made by the Old Ones, but escaping beyond their radius of attention.”

Silhouettes of small rodent-like vermin skittered onto the screen. Evolution sped up as each version of the rodent was advanced by millennia, becoming more bipedal…

“They had been suffered to develop unchecked because they had not come in conflict with the dominant beings. Bothersome forms, of course, were mechanically exterminated.”

Some of the very last images depicted a shambling, primitive mammal, used sometimes for food and sometimes as an amusing buffoon, whose vaguely simian and human foreshadowing were unmistakable.

“Wait…is that thing saying what I think it’s saying?” asked Jim-Bean.

“That humanity is a mistake,” Guppy said tersely. “That’s all we are. An accident.”

Sensing the tension in the room, Hammer urged them onwards to what looked like a bridge.

It was strangely devoid of chairs of any sort. In the center of the room was a single console made of the same black stone-like material that the floor was composed of. It was covered in a complex array of sigils.

“Let’s see what this does!” Jim-Bean tapped a sigil.

A row of red beams fired out in a straight line from the ship, cutting through some equipment in the warehouse like butter.

“Don’t touch that!” shouted Guppy. “You have no idea what it does!”

Jim-Bean withdrew his hand from the sigils. “We could use this to escape! Now are you going to get us out of here oh mighty mission leader or what?”

After a moment of indecision, Guppy pushed Jim-Bean aside and tapped a sigil.

The ship began to power up, shuddering as it lifted a few feet above the ground.

Guppy tapped another sigil.

A symbol appeared on the screen. GNN footage played: war footage, a news broadcast, coverage of a gas shortage, and news about the upcoming election. It ended with the same symbol, which looked like a an odd boxy humanoid with a square for a head, two long triangles for arms, and two short triangles for feet. Three concentric circles were in its abdomen.

“Is that supposed to be us?” asked Jim-Bean.

Archive nodded. “Yes. That’s Aklo for human.”

The screen flickered. Computer analysis of power plants and military complexes flashed by, all narrated in a buzzing language that was offensive to the ears.

“What is that all about?” asked Jim-Bean.

“Landing zones,” said Archive breathlessly. “I think—“

The screen was interrupted. The buzzing voice rose and began repeating. A dot appeared on the screen, with concentric circles emanating from it. Another dot was moving towards the dot in the center.

“What the hell is that?” asked Hammer.

Guppy tapped more sigils. The view of the warehouse outside the saucer turned a transparent green. They were able to see beyond the doors.

“What happened to the guards?” asked Hammer.

“Maybe we scared them off?” theorized Archive.

“No, it’s something else,” said Hammer. “They know something.”

Guppy pointed at the screen. “Look!”

The x-ray view of the warehouse blurred as the ship’s surveillance systems zoomed in on the image of a jetliner. Several boxes of something within the belly of the jetliner pinged along with the buzzing voice. It was heading right towards them.

“Is that jet carrying…explosives?” asked Jim-Bean.

Then the plane hit.

[talien]

Jim-Bean, his feet up on a table, flipped through the channels on a nearby television. A GNN newswoman narrated.

“…a terrorist attack on CCS headquarters. It is believed that terrorists posing as Saudi billionaires attempted to purchase CCS’ computer technology, and when they refused, a suicide bomber rammed a jet full of explosives into the facility. All CCS staff are presumed dead. The death toll currently stands at forty five and counting. We’ll stay on this story as news develops—“

He flicked the channel.

“—UFO was spotted over North Platte Air Force Base. Officials aren’t talking and none of the staff were willing to speak with us on the record. But one person who spoke on condition of anonymity said that there were actually human-like alien hybrids on the UFO, and that this is further evidence that a race of genetically cross-bred mutants are being…“

Jim-Bean lowered the volume.

“We’re lucky Sprague doesn’t have our heads,” said Hammer. “And by that I mean, explode our heads.”

Jim-Bean shrugged. “CCS wiped out? Check. Returned Sprague’s missing saucer? Check. Terrorists blamed for it all so the U.S. government can tighten its stranglehold on America? Check. Far as I’m concerned this mission was damned near perfect.”

Archive winced, massaging his arm. His wounds still hadn’t fully healed. “Speak for yourself.”

“Yeah, tell me about it,” said Jim-Bean. “I’m still cramped up from that little cross-country jaunt.” The television they were watching had a DVR connected to it. Jim-Bean paused the screen. “The next time we have to travel across country, no more SPIDER transport.” He jabbed a thumb at the screen. “We’re taking one of those babies!”

Paused on the screen was the blurry image of the UFO flying over Platte Air Force Base.