Arc 7: Cry Softly

Quinn poured over the latest results that were printed out and scattered over the floor. Her long hair masked her expression but our connection told me she was deep in thought, searching for patterns in the noise of data. Organ’s experiments were running concurrently around the globe, each team led by someone like Quinn. Over […]

The cathedral bell rang inside my head, swinging from side to side, striking my skull and producing a head-aching sound that coursed down into the rest of my body, sparking a fire in every cell. It spread into the rats that covered every inch of the inside of the cathedral and they pulsated as well,

The cracked concrete walls of the underground facility rattled with alien noises. I blinked, head heavy with exhaustion.  A H.E.S.P. agent bumped past me as a group of medics sloshed through the water back towards the exit, carrying Daria on a stretcher. Neve followed after them and she hugged me briefly as she passed.  She

Seth’s chest rose and fell as he swayed with the weight of the mismatched arms on his upper body. His silhouette was no longer easily distinguishable as human, with one arm fused to his side below his shoulder while the Aberrant’s massive arm was fused onto his back, behind his shoulder blade, opposite to his

The Painter, a corkscrew tower of images that even in stillness looked different with every passing second. Even the slightest of twitches threw its features around. I saw parts of faces at times in different spots on its body, a nose and philtrum, then a jaw and an ear. It was like at all times

I lifted a leg out of the water and kicked the glass. It barely made a sound. The alarm pounded in my ears as air was sucked noisily out through the vent by the Aberrant on the other side. I tapped my headset, but dull static was the only response. The signal wasn’t penetrating all

Seth, with his hand still on the wall panel, glanced nervously between Chase and I. “No. Not on the same team,” Chase said with a smile, answering Seth’s unasked question. “I was the one who started this game of cat and mouse. Nick is just the party crasher.” “You’re Chase, then. I must say I’m

The shark swam at the edges of the room, forcing everyone to shift their positions to keep both it and their human opponents in sight. The shark thrashed against its bonds. It was bleeding from the initial hail of bullets and I saw that the gunfire had broken some of the vines. Now the shark

Seth stood in the middle of the damp room, surrounded by his personal guard. I couldn’t see much with the fog and the flashlights pointed at me, but bits of metal flashed in the dark: earrings, watches, rings, necklaces. They were all dressed in suits, but worn casually, tie-less in some cases, cuffs rolled up

Daria’s eyes widened in shock. Her mouth moved but no sound came out. My vision wavered, strengthening and blurring at intervals. Tears were forming in my eyes. The Fisherman wriggled out from under me. I let him go. “Fuck. I…” It died in my throat. I should have noticed. “What? What happened? Nell, why are