Matt lowered his head for a moment and sighed, “Alright, I’ll go get Mitch and then we’ll attack.” While Matt was gone, Richard noticed Dr. Stone’s helicopter was parked near the hanger and he knew there was no turning back.
A few minutes later Matt returned with Mitch, and they paused at the opening to the base so Richard could go over the plan one last time.
“I want you and Mitch to take out the four guards up on the catwalks, while I shoot the ones near the central building. Then we’ll all run across to the lab facing us and blast open the rear doors with the pulse rifles. Once inside, I want the two of you to stay close to me while we search for Ethan and Dr. Stone. They are probably going to be in one of the labs since that’s where Dr. Stone’s test equipment is. If he has Ethan, the first thing he’ll do is test Ethan to see why he was not infected by the mosquitoes. Matt, I want you to cover the rear as we move from lab to lab. Mitch, I want you to provide cover fire as I clear out the labs. It’s imperative that we move quickly so that we can find and kill Dr. Stone before he escapes or harms Ethan. After we finish sweeping the labs, we’ll need to cross over the catwalk to reach the production facility. Once inside of it, we’ll have to locate and destroy the parent worms. Then it’s a free for all. Do as much damage as possible, and don’t forget that we need to destroy the mosquito hatching facility on our way over to the hangers. From there, we’ll hijack the tank that Matt scouted out. Remember, we have superior firepower, so make the most of it,” Richard said as he powered on his pulse rifle.
Mitch and Matt turned on their rifles and took careful aim at the guards up on the catwalk. On Richard’s mark they each fired two quick shots blowing the four guards off the catwalk. Richard took his shot and then ran out from the tunnel with Matt and Mitch following closely behind. As they neared the outer doors to the first lab, Richard lobbed a grenade at it and then waited for the explosion, before proceeding through the breech. Lights and sirens wailed in the background as Richard rushed through the building with Matt and Mitch right behind him. Pulse rifle blasts lit up the hallway as the three men opened fire on the Augs that were unlucky enough to get in their way. Richard led the charge, clearing one lab after another. He would hold his fire just long enough to make sure Ethan wasn’t in it, before blasting it to hell. The Augs could hardly even return fire, seeming confused and disoriented by the severity of the attack. The men wasted no time monopolizing on the chaos, destroying everything in their wake. Fire alarms blared behind them as the damaged labs burst into flames. Plumes of black smoke billowed high into the morning air as the assault continued. The men reached the final lab, but neither Ethan nor Dr. Stone had been located.
“Where do you think they are?” Matt asked as they searched the lab.
“I wish I knew,” Richard replied. “Perhaps they’re in the production facility,” he added as they raced towards the catwalk. The instant Richard kicked the exit door open with his foot, he came under heavy fire and had to retreat back into the lab.
“The Augs are trying to cut us off!” he yelled.
“What the hell are we going to do now?” Mitch asked in a desperate tone, but before Richard could even answer, Matt opened the door and tossed two grenades out of it. A split second later the lab shook violently and they ran for it. The resistance from below the catwalk was light and they quickly crossed over to the production facility. Once inside, they immediately came under fire from a group of Augs guarding a room towards the center of the building.
“That has to be it!” Richard yelled out as he ran down the ramp towards them. The Augs intensified their fire and all three men were forced to duck behind a concrete partition at the base of the ramp to prevent from being killed. Mitch tossed a grenade in the general direction of the Augs, and within a few seconds a fierce shockwave reverberated around the domed shaped building. As soon as the percussion ended, the men got up and ran towards the room, killing the last couple of Augs guarding it. Once inside, they saw two long rows of feeding troughs with a dozen adult pigs looking shell-shocked from the explosion outside their room. Richard quickly fired a single shot into each pig in rapid succession until the last one was dead. Then he ran over and cut open the first pig’s abdomen and pulled out its guts. A large flat worm wiggled out of the eviscerated intestine, and Richard stomped it to death with his foot. Then he shot each of the pigs a second time in the mid-section to kill the parent worm living inside of them.
“We’d better get going!” Matt yelled out as a group of Augs rushed into the facility from the opposing side’s catwalk. Plasma blasts started blowing large holes in the walls of the pig holding area as the men hurriedly tried to escape from it.
“Follow me!” Richard shouted as bits of concrete and wood rained down on them. Matt and Mitch fired over their shoulders in an effort to keep the advancing Augs at bay while Richard led them towards the back of the building. When Richard had a clear shot at the outer wall, he opened fire, expecting it to crumble away so they could escape the production facility.
“It’s reinforced!” Richard yelled out in frustration as he continued to fire at it.
“Are we trapped?” Matt asked with grave look on his face.
“Try to blast through with a grenade, we’ll cover you!” Mitch yelled back as he continued to fire at the hoard of Augs.
“We’re too close… the blast from it will kill us,” Richard yelled back.
“To hell with this!” Matt cried out as he tossed a little round orb at the wall.
“Get down!” Richard yelled when he saw what Matt had done. A split second later a shockwave of searing heat scorched their backsides and singed their hair. Richard wiped the dirt and debris off his head and then looked back at the wall as his ears rang in unison. A tiny beam of sunlight cut through the dust and debris, revealing a small crack in the wall. Richard fired his pulse rifle at the weakened structure, causing the crack to spread concentrically until a small portion of the wall caved in. The men ran towards the opening while the Augs shot wildly in their general direction. Upon exiting the building, Mitch tossed his remaining grenades in behind him, and a rapid succession of explosions ended their pursuit. As the men passed by the mosquito facility, Richard lobbed a couple of his grenades in through a small window as he passed by it. Moments later, the resulting explosions blew the roof off of the building and sent columns of water several stories into the air. Richard smirked momentarily, until he saw several Augs run out of a guard shack on the far side of the production facility that he had failed to notice before the attack.
“Head towards the hangers,” Richard shouted as Matt and Mitch followed after him. In the distance Richard saw a man in a white lab coat running to the helicopter followed by a figure that resembled Ethan.
“Stop!” Richard yelled out, but the men were too far away to hear him. A moment later the helicopter’s rotors started turning and the chopper quickly lifted into the air. Richard aimed his rifle at the helicopter and squeezed the trigger. When his weapon failed to fire, he turned and yelled, “Don’t let Dr. Stone get away! Take out the chopper!” Mitch paused momentarily to take aim at the aircraft, but before he could fire on it, he was shot in the back by one of the Augs chasing after them.
“Noooo!” Richard cried out, as his friend’s lifeless body fell to the ground. Matt immediately turned and fired at the Aug, killing him while Richard tossed his depleted rifle on the ground.
“Head for the tank, we’ll be safe in there!” Matt yelled as four more Augs raced towards them. Richard ran for the tank that was closest to them as pulse rifle fire whizzed past his head. As he was about to jump up onto the tank he heard Matt cry out, “I’m hit! Please help me!” Richard spun back around and sprinted towards Matt. He could see that his leg had been grazed, but the pulse rifle fire from the advancing Augs was blowing bits of dirt up into his face making it hard to reach him.