T-Plus 16

Ready and refreshed, the two teams that were prepped and rested had gathered around the entrance to the main corridor. Of the two staying behind, only Soup had joined their group to see them off. The Chief was further in, reorganizing their supplies and the crates they’d pried open in the hangar. Oliver adjusted the straps of his backpack, shrugging his shoulders until the new length of the straps laid comfortable on his shoulders and back. He stamped his feet on the ground, making sure his boots were properly tied before looking up to see the others making similar last minute adjustments.

“We’ll wait for you guys to climb down to the second floor first,” Oliver said, nodding his head at Daniel’s trio.

His fellow technician nodded, turning his gaze over to the two that were making the climb down with him. Joey, after being able to sleep in after two nights in a row, looked ready for the climb and do battle “in the name of science.” He was practically hopping as Daniel and Oliver stared at him. Richardson, the one who had gotten the most rest out of all of them, was also already prepared, and he gave a nod to Oliver’s words.

“Right, let’s go.”

With Soup leaning against the entrance, waving them off, the six of them headed toward the area that would lead them downstairs. Oliver habitually flicked on the light that rested on his shoulder before realizing there was no difference in his field of vision. With a light cough, he switched the flashlight off again, noticing to his relief a few of the others had done the same thing, and the awkward echo of switches being turned off sounded for a moment. From beside him, he could see Emerson, who was the only one who didn’t have a dedicated flashlight to begin with, was holding back her giggles, her shoulders shaking.

They stopped a distance away from the hole that led down to the second floor. A quick glance downwards revealed one of the answers they were hoping for. The emergency lights had activated downstairs too. At their current vantage point, they couldn’t tell if it extended further than the area around the elevator and stairs, but that was enough for now. One peek into the stairwell, and the group could see the dim lights line the bottom of the wall, leading downward.

“Well, at least we can conserve battery,” Emerson said lightly.

Oliver’s trio waited at the top of the stairs, watching on as the other trio rechecked their straps before attempting the climb down. From their vantage point at the top of the climb, they couldn’t see any aliens wandering the general vicinity of the bottom of the area, although that didn’t mean there weren’t any out of their sight.

“How do we know there are no rock aliens embedded in the rubble?” Richardson asked, his eyes fixed on the path they were taking.

Daniel kicked a pebble down in response, and the group watched it bounce and clatter down the rubble. When it neared the bottom, instead of the clack they were all expecting, they only heard a light tap before it bounced to the bottom with another clatter. Their eyes focused on the oddity, watching for any movements. The intern kicked another pebble down, and they watched and listened again. The same dampened sound happened again, but this time in a different location.

“You had to open your mouth, man,” Joey complained, turning toward the Navigator.

“Better than being taken by surprise,” Richardson snorted in response. “So now what?”

The Navigator glanced over to Daniel and Oliver’s trio who hadn’t made their descent yet. They all exchanged looks, staring down to the bottom of the rubble where there was a high possibility of rock aliens among the gray slabs.

Daniel ran his hand through his shaggy hair, sighing as he stared at their original pathway. He motioned them away from the opening, moving towards the stairs.

“We’ll have to force our way through the nest. Better than lowering ourselves down onto them.”

With Daniel’s trio in the lead, the group continued together. The dim lighting lit their way as they descended. Oliver kept his hand against the wall, his fingers tracing the cold metal. Daniel walked several steps ahead followed by the intern, who kept peering around the bend, almost running into Daniel when he craned his neck too far. As they neared the second floor landing, the other senior technician paused in his step, holding his arm out to catch the intern before he tripped forward.

“Following the original plan, we’ll run out and lure as many out with us while you guys get past. Hopefully they’re not all rocks, otherwise this’ll be interesting.”

He turned back to the Navigator and intern who were behind him.

“Ready?”

The two nodded in response, and the trio headed down together. Oliver, Toast, and Emerson waited for their footsteps to disappear in a flurry of sound around the corner. Motioning for the two scientists to follow at a distance, Oliver followed the others. In the dim lighting, he could see they’d run onto the landing and onto the second floor. Joey’s voice was the loudest as he ran around, voicing his panic to the other two avoiding the aliens with him.

As promised, most of the aliens were cleared out of the stairwell, although a handful of the slower ones were still loitering. It was a mix of rocks and normal aliens. Their attention was still on the trio running away down the second floor, their voices leaving the vicinity. Oliver did a mental count, noting the three normal ones. Those were easy to dispatch. The trouble was the two rocks ambling close to the widened second floor entrance. Toast poked his head over Oliver’s shoulder. Emerson was right behind them, peering around the technician’s other side.

“What’re you planning on doing?” the scientist asked.

“We’ll have to kick over those rocks first while running past the normals,” he said, pointing at the two moving gray blobs. He turned to the two scientists. “I’ll deal with the rocks. You guys can make it past the others?”

Toast and Emerson exchanged looks before nodding. Toast patted the technician’s shoulder with a laugh.

“Easy.”

After a few more checks, Oliver headed out first, rushing out to kick over the first rock alien. It fell over, its concave face covered by the rubble. Its arms waved as it reoriented itself. The sound of rocks hitting a wall sounded from it. Without turning back after toppling the first, he shoved the second one, which had turned to face him. Its mouth had closed, the sides of its face bulging in preparation to spit at him. With his push, it missed and instead hit the wall behind him, skimming the top of his shoulder. As the second one fell, the other aliens that were still in the stairwell and those that had given up on their chase of the other trio made their way toward him. He slammed into the nearest one, splattering its matter on the ground while also distancing himself from the recovering rock aliens.

Oliver clambered to his knees, seeing the other two rush down the stairs while avoiding the outstretched flesh-colored arms. He stumbled after them, rolling under another arm that reached for him. He stood, tripping on a piece of loose rubble. He rolled down several steps, holding his head to avoid later consequences. Oliver looked up to see where the aliens were after his tumble and saw a number of tentacles reaching for him from the ceiling. His eyes widened as he flicked on his lights, pointing them up at the ceiling.

A cluster of pink and gray aliens dotted the ceiling, high above the emergency lights. They clung to each other like bats in a cave, their arms reaching down toward him as tendrils. Oliver blanched at the scene, rolling further down the steps away from them. He pressed forward, turning his light off and keeping his head down until he reached the two scientists.

Emerson and Toast had slowed their steps, waiting for him, but still moving downwards away from the second floor landing. Once he stabilized his footing, he caught up with them, quickening their pace. They didn’t stop until they came across the, by now, dark stain on the steps from Daniel’s earliest injury. They were nearing the first floor landing.

They came to a halt, skirting the dark pool, leaning against the walls or resting on the steps. Emerson sat down, leaning her head back on the steps as she massaged her legs. Toast stood straight, his hands on his hips as he took deep breaths with a wild smile on his face. Oliver crouched on the steps, his head in his hands as he thought back to the ceiling of the second floor landing.

He looked up, flicking on his flashlight to check the ceiling they were resting under. Only the distant white tiles of the ceiling were revealed as expected. He moved the flashlight back and forth, checking all the corners he could just in case. Once he was sure there were no aliens creeping up over their heads, he sighed and turned off his flashlight.

Toast sat down a step below Oliver and Emerson, turning his head back to speak to them.

“Aliens on the ceiling?” he asked, glancing up once the flashlight was back on Oliver’s shoulder.

Oliver nodded in response, pointing behind them. The two scientists glanced over their shoulders up the way they came, their shoulders tensing a bit more with wariness.

“It’s been a while since we’ve been to the first floor, huh,” Emerson said, turning back toward where they should go. “I wonder if anything’s changed.”

“Where should we check first?” Toast asked, recovering his energy first.

“My room’s the closest,” Oliver reminded. “We’ll see if my PC’s still working. Then we can make rounds around the rest of the Residential ring. Did one of you grab Soup and the Chief’s badges?”

Emerson fished out the two cards from one of her coat’s inner pockets, holding them up in the light. She put them back once Oliver gave the nod of confirmation. Oliver got to his feet, releasing one long sigh. He shook his limbs out before reaching an arm out to help Emerson up.

“Let’s see if the lights are on down here too.”

Following the trail of blood down, they reached the first floor. Unlike the last time they’d come down these same steps in a flying panic, the way was lit, and they could see any dangers that would approach them from afar. Oliver leaned against the frame of the entrance, peering out as far as he could into the corridor. The trail of blood continued out toward the right, going past the area of the Space Elevator. When he leaned out and peered leftward, he could see splatters decorating the floor in the far distance.

“Anything?” Toast asked, stepping up beside him.

“Nothing... which is odd,” Oliver said, furrowing his brows.

Oliver flicked on his flashlight again, checking the ceiling above them in all directions. Nothing stood out from the smooth ceiling. He stepped out into the corridor and looked both left and right. Nothing happened. He turned, gesturing for the other two to come out of hiding.

“No new stains, I think,” Emerson muttered as she and Toast observed their now lit surroundings. “At least the others should’ve made it down here uninjured.”

The technician nodded, heading in the familiar direction of his own room. The two scientists followed, keeping their guards up in the silence. WIth every step, they got closer to a large splotch of dried blood. When they came to it, they gathered around it, staring down at it.

“We’re right back at the beginning,” Emerson muttered as she looked down at the floor, her loose hair shielding the expressions flickering across her face.