Secretary of Defense Bruce Arke picked up the phone, surprised to be receiving a priority call at this hour. He had been pouring over his daily briefings when his secretary hurriedly knocked and entered, letting him know that it was coming through on the secure line.

“This is Arke.” He stated, never a man to mince words or to be verbose.

“Secretary, this is Doctor Aldrich Saxe, CEO and Head of Operations for Engram Corporation. We have actionable intelligence of an imminent national security threat.” Saxe replied.

“What have we got, Doctor.” Arke answered, motioning to his secretary to bring him a pen and paper. He knew his next call would be to the President, and he had to have the details to hand.

“Sir, we have credible evidence of an extraterrestrial threat, which will be approaching our facility with the intent to destroy it. It has been identified as highly intelligent, dangerous, and we believe it is tracking the location of two of my people.”

“And this has already been verified?” Arke replied, his eyebrows raised as he listened to Saxe speak. He knew the man to be credible, and that he had the clearance to be aware of a situation like this. If Saxe said there were aliens on the way, there were aliens on the way. The existence of extraterrestrial life was an ill-kept secret, one that the intelligence agencies still tried in vain to keep. “How long?”

“Yes, Sir. As we speak, I have two persons of extraterrestrial origin on the premises. I will give a full report as soon as possible, but Sir, they have been here for 12 years, and in that time, they have been of tremendous service. They themselves are not a threat, and I don’t want harm coming to my people. We don’t know how long, but we don’t think this creature is going to wait around for my people to act.”

“Understood. I’ll get this to the Situation Room and brief the President. What’s the scope? Do we believe there are any additional targets?” Arke questioned Saxe, continuing to assess what would be needed. As they talked, he was already in motion, preparing orders for his teams.

“No, sir. My people believe that it doesn’t know we exist. It was able to identify them, and we don’t have reason to believe it will consider the rest of us anything but an inconvenience. They recommend we evacuate all civilians, and that we keep military presence to the absolute minimum. The being they know as Tenebris isn’t known to kill without reason, but if our forces engage with him, we believe the situation will escalate, and he will retaliate.” Saxe explained, keeping his answers as succinct as possible.

“Good to know. I’m still sending the President to a secured location. I don’t feel comfortable waiting to see if this all goes to hell. What’s your plan for engagement?” Arke asked then, mentally going over strategy and potential outcomes. “We will have people on the ground, but if there’s need for discretion, we’ll deploy Seals and Special Forces only.”

“When Tenebris is on site, we plan to have Whisper and Raden and their backup ready to attempt containment. At this point, we will leak to the media that there has been a breach of our viral containment facility, and that we believe a contagion may be airborne in the vicinity. I assure you, that is not the case, but we feel that Engram falling on our swords is the best way to keep the public away, and to ensure the true nature of the threat doesn’t cause a panic. ” Saxe continued.

“Sounds appropriate. When the target is in sight, I want my teams in place for support. Commander Afton will be my eyes and ears, and the standing orders will be do not engage unless he makes that call.” Arke said, continuing to shore up plans as he prepared to leave. “What is going to be done to neutralize this Tenebris?”

“My people are going to employ help from their home world, Sir. They have encountered him before, and they know what we’re up against. This will mean more of their people here, most likely, but I trust their judgement. We will do our best to see this doesn’t get out.” Saxe replied. “Can I count on your help to keep this contained, Sir? I need you to assure the President that we can’t pull out all the stops. From what I’ve witnessed, our tech wouldn’t give this thing so much as a rash.”

“Understood. I will ensure the response is appropriate from our side. Last thing we need is to have lives lost because someone couldn’t keep their head on straight. Expect my teams within the next several hours. I’m sending my best, and they’ll keep me briefed as the situation develops. Godspeed, Doctor.” Arke said, hanging up the phone. True to his word, Secretary Arke dialed the President as he grabbed his uniform coat, and hurried from the room en route to the White House.

In Engram’s Security Operations room, Szostak issued orders, his people carrying them out with expert precision. He poured over reports from personnel, ensuring that the evacuations were underway. Security teams swept each floor, verifying that all non-essential personnel were leaving as they had been instructed. Additional teams assisted the research teams in securing their work, and the halls were filled with teams carrying sensitive materials, ferrying them to the Deep Storage facility far below. He watched the proceedings on the security feeds, keeping an eye on their progress.

“Report, Valentine, how are we doing with evacs?” Szostak asked, the weight of the proceedings keeping his interactions as brief as possible.

“Not happy with how slowly it’s moving, Sir, but we’re getting people out as fast as we can. The hazmat teams have been deployed, and the extra procedures there are keeping people moving. It seems to be doing the trick, though, we aren’t seeing anyone question the evacuation, or stop for trivial things.” Aram Valentine saluted as he finished his report, and turned to speak to other agents. Calero stood beside him, accepting reports from the teams as they came and went, and keeping them from disturbing Szostak.

A large screen showed the world news as reporters began to pick up the story of the viral contaminant leak. Chyrons scrolled continuously with updates for the public, in their typical alarmist fashion. A glance out the window showed Szostak a caravan of military vehicles making its way up the twisting mountain road to the facility. Searchlights played over the area as reporters and news helicopters circled, trying to capture footage of the chaotic scene unfolding. Scientists, support staff, and others were streaming out the front doors, masked and garbed in protective gear. Szostak turned away from the scene, cursing under his breath that idiots were headed up here out of idle curiosity. He prayed that the military would get these lunatics off his mountain, and away from the facility before they were caught in the crossfire.

In the depths of the mountain below, Troy cataloged projects and materials as they came in, cross checking with previous records to ensure that nothing was missing. He adjusted his glasses, a trickle of sweat beading on the side of his head as he worked to get everything secured. He was exhausted, having worked at this pace since the meeting upstairs. Raden’s research assistant, Sara Borrero worked next to him, shelving items as quickly as she could. Her long, blonde hair was tied back from her face, and she moved with practiced ease through the massive chamber. Troy tried to keep his focus on his work, and forced himself to return to the manifest in his hand as she bent to put something on a lower shelf.

Keep it together, Troy! He thought to himself, shaking his head. I don’t think this is the time to grow the balls to ask her out!

“Everything ok, Troy?” Sara asked him, coming back for another case of samples bound for the freezer. “You seem a little distracted.”

“Yeah, fine, Sara. Just preparing for your everyday average possible end of the world.” He quipped, smiling at her in spite of the tension.

“Touche” She answered, slightly inclining her head to him. Her blue eyes sparkled with mischief. “Guess we better finish up down here, before Szostak comes down here to personally kick our asses.”

“Isn’t it crazy? All these years at Engram, knowing the things we do, seeing the things we see every day, and our own friends turn out to be the first contact the world has with other life.” Troy mused.

“Somehow it just fits, you know?” Sara replied with a shrug, turning back for a moment to face Troy. “They’re amazing, they’ve always been amazing. We spend 8 years in grad school, and they sweep in from another world and show us up.” She grinned. “Come on, let’s get this over with.”

Below the surface of his namesake world, Tenebris manifested himself in the darkness of the caverns. His left arm was misshapen, ending in a crude club. He was still missing part of a leg, but he paid it no mind. A sickly green glow filled the cavern as he wielded his twisted version of the power of Light. Remnants of shattered and broken teeth filled a hideous smile as he moved toward the barrier that had been his prison. He probed it with his power, which no longer relied on the consumption of beasts and creatures that crept along the surface. As he drove his energy into it, the barrier gave way, and blinked out of existence. Tenebris was free. The sound of his mad laughter echoed as he began to deform again, oozing his way through the cracks and crevices of the ground toward the surface.

As he coalesced again on the surface of his world, for the first time since the Lumhin had dared to defy him, the life around him seemed to shrink away. He stood looking at the sky, where he could see his mother Elthys, and her sister, Tyris. Their light shone in the reaches of space, appearing as twin pinpoints of light above him. Tenebris longed for vengeance. He would not be able to overcome them now, but he would find a way. If they would not submit to him, he would kill them. He would begin by destroying their beloved Lumhin. He would slay those who would not serve him. Allowing himself to disintegrate again, he began to move upward into the sky, and into the dark of space. His mind was bent on a distant world, where his quarry awaited his punishment.