Beep.
It was dark, but it was not empty. Something stirred. Voices. Echoes. Memories.
Beep.
"Something's wrong" said a disembodied voice.
"What do you mean, 'something's wrong'?" A second voice. "Check the monitors"
Beep.
Shadows began taking shape and form.
Beep.
"His heart rate is above normal" The first voice again.
Beep.
"That's normal after cellular reconstruction. Stop worrying. We don't have time to worry. The suits want this guy back in the field ASAP!"
Beep.
Faces began to appear out of the shadows. At least they appeared to be faces. They were difficult to make out. They seemed to be...wrong.
Beep. Beep.
"I am telling you, something is definitely not right here. We've never experienced difficulties with this one. Come look at these ECG readings."
Beep. Beep.
The faces became clearer, somehow familiar yet undeniably 'wrong'
Beep. Beep.
"Look!" exclaimed the first scientist. "Look at the ECG. And his heart rate, it is definitely increasing"
"****. Bring me the psycho-neural restructuring reports. NOW!" ordered the second scientist.
As the faces made themselves visible it was clear that they were disfigured, no worse than that, mutilated. They were twisted and contorted with agony, the pain forever visible in their eyes. Screams began to fill the air.
Beep. Beep. Beep
"Damnit! This pattern is different from the past ones. And what is this anomalous reading here? Why wasn't I informed of this?"
"It was a brief power surge during neuro-cellular reconstruction. It was well within accepted operating parameters. I didn't think it important enough to inform you." explained the first scientist.
"You better hope you were right. Hook him up to the MRI"
Beep. Beep. Beep
The screams were getting louder and they were accompanied by gunfire. Somewhere to the right the sound of crying children could be heard followed by the repetitive thud-splats of projectiles tearing into flesh. Then there was the smell. A foul, sickening, stench that brought memories of death and burning corpses vividly into view.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
"Oh ****. Now we're in for it. You should have told me about the anomaly sooner damnit!"
"Why? What's wrong?" asked the first scientist cautiously.
"Take a look at the MRI scan. It clearly shows brain activity in this area of the cortex; the morale centre."
"The morale centre..."
"Yup. Somehow we've managed to reactivate his 'conscience' and he's beginning to remember the things he's done"
Beep. Beep. Beep
The images were now really intense. Scenes of death and destruction in and amongst burning, half-destroyed buildings. Men, women and children of all shape, size and age were lying dead or dying. There seemed to be no escape from it...
Beep. Beep. Beep.
"What are we going to do?" asked the first scientist "His heart rate is rapidly increasing, the ECG is off the scale!"
"Pass me 15cc's of the HCN."
"You're going to terminate? You can't! Not this close to the resurrection period. He won't survive."
"You listen to me Dr." a pause as the second scientist glanced at the name tag "Drake. We have a better chance of getting out of this with our careers not to mention our lives intact if he is dead, not running around telling everyone about the project. We have lost optimum control of the situation."
"They'll never forgive us for losing a Class A soldier. They'll..."
He never got a chance to end his sentence. OmniSol4948A awoke violently from his nightmare. His arm easily broke free from its restraint; his closed fist caught the scientist square on the nose and, with a dull crack, sent him careening across the floor. At the same time he brought his leg up out of the restraint and made contact with the chin of the second scientist. The nano's weaker head cocked back and to the side in an awkward angle. The bones in his neck snapped and the scientist collapsed to the floor in a broken heap. On the other side of the laboratory the first scientist had managed to pick himself up. He stumbled towards the door and managed to hit a large red button as OmniSol4948A's fist struck him in the back of the head where it met his neck. His head flew forward and slammed against the wall leaving a trail of blood as the solitus scientist slowly collapsed.
Alarm sirens were now blaring and as the solitus hit the floor a large atrox guard came into the room. A swift, front kick to his midriff sent him back out again. The kick wasn't strong enough to down an atrox normally, but the guard was unprepared and he went sprawling into his backup who had only just started to enter the lab. Both guards stumbled to the floor. OmniSol4948A picked up the Sunburst that the first guard had inadvertently dropped and fired two rounds precisely into each guard's chest.
OmniSol4948A managed to stumble out of the underground complex and ran in a northerly direction for what seemed like hours before finally doubling over. He collapsed to his knees, throwing up quite viciously, tears of pain streaming down his face. He was only able to make it a few steps further before the grief, pain, guilt and remorse overcame him and he passed out somewhere in Newland desert.
