Sunday Post #501

 

 

Good news- my Movies That Suck posts return next week. And do I have a treat. 

In other news I am including chapter two of Camping, my latest story I didn't get to posting this past week.  

Here is this week's lyric. 

Lord, oh yeah  

When you need a friend  

 

Here is the lyric f/ last week and the answer      

And the sun comes like a god    

Into our room      

   Song of the week

PULP COVER OF THE WEEK: 

CAMPING

The alarms got louder as Joon and the others came out into the hall. Soldiers ran by, trying to avoid the newcomers, and the lights had dimmed to red. Stella led the way briskly back oto the operations center, her heels clicking on the floor. There was screaming somewhere. 

As they entered the op center everything was in chaos. The first thing they noticed was the Gate- it was humming and giving off strange flashing lights. Joon saw Maia start towards him, but then she hesitated when she saw who he was with. He made a hopefully surreptitious gesture for her to hang back... no sense giving anything away. The bigwigs were otherwise occupied, thankfully.    

"What's happening?" Stella demanded of a very shocked looking tech as she approached the Gate.

"There was an Incursion... ma'am," he stuttered. Joon noticed absently he had blood all over him. And what was that smell?

"The Gate started humming, and the alarms went off," the tech continued. Garza, according to his nametag. He looked like he was going to fall over. 

"Then the Gate went crazy and the... the tentacles came out. Started thrashing all over. Howe got grabbed..." Another tech came by to comfort Garza, and med staff were arriving. Soldiers were ushering people around and setting up a perimeter around the Gate area. Joon could see what was left of Howe, he was in two pieces. And there was a huge piece of tentacle not far away, still thrashing about even though it had been separated from wherever the rest of it was. 

"Guns don't work," the tech continued as he was led away. "The energy weapons, though..."

Mallory turned away in disgust. There was blood all over the floor. Stella was barking orders and the lights started coming back on. Joon had an uneasy feeling though. There were always risks, and unexplained occurrences, but if the Gate was just randomly going live now...

He turned to Stella. 

"Maybe we should shut it down."

"Are you serious?" she rounded on him. "That's not our decision to make."

"You could, for security purposes," he continued. "This research is important, but it'll benefit nobody if we get wiped out." 

 "Let me get this under control," she brushed an errant lock back from her forehead. "We'll talk about this later."

Joon nodded and went over to Maia. He wanted to embrace her- she had been in the room when it happened- but eagle eyed Mallory would no doubt notice and tongues would wag. He casually stopped as if checking on a co-worker. 

"It was a nightmare," she whispered. "One minute everything was fine, and the next... apeshit. Poor Howe got grabbed, and it... ripped him apart."

"They need to shut that down," Joon said angrily. "We are just losing too many people lately."

She nodded. 

"Are you going to be alright?" he asked her. 

"I will," she replied. He wasn't as sure. She was trying to be strong, he could see, but she had seen it close up.

"What was it?" he asked. 

"It was humongous. Some... thing... there was a green sky and all this heat. The tentacles came through and were thrashing everywhere. The guards opened fire and their bullets didn't do anything. Then a couple of the guys with the energy weapons... those pulse rifle things... cut loose and it retreated. Somehow they got the Gate closed, but this was... the worst yet."

"The whole place shook," Joon observed. 

"Yeah. It was chaos. The Incursions we've had previously never shook the whole place." 

Joon noticed Stella gesturing to him as her command group were heading for the exit. 

"I have to go. Talk soon... and be careful," he whispered to Maia. 

"I will... you too."

As he returned to the command group a soldier came up

"Ma'am"

"Now what?" she snapped. 

"the guards outside, ma'am. They're not responding."