Pandora's Box

Chapter 18

“Leon?” Jennifer asked him.

Leon was gasping for air as he was covered by blood and bruises.

Both Alexander and Jennifer are so shocked, but Jennifer was speechless to see him there. There are so many things that she wants to ask him.

She opened her mouth but there are no words that came out from it. She is speechless, because she is petrified by the thought that her sister is harmed. Even she wanted to do so, her mind can’t stop to think like that.

He still gasps for air.

Leon saw what the creature can do, and he is so afraid, because he saw what the creature can do. He doesn’t want to come back, but when he saw Jennifer in front of him, his heart stopped for a second.

He became nervous so suddenly as it is still fresh in his mind. On what happened to her sister that is why he is terrified to see her sister, looking at him straight at his eyes.

Jennifer wears no expression right now.

She doesn’t know what to say to the guy.

“What are you doing here?” she asked. “Where is my sister?” she added immediately.

It’s the moment that Leon was fearing for...

He saw how that monster killed and played with her girlfriend and he is just there standing, fearing for his own life.

His throat went dry, as he tries to speak to tell her sister the truth about her death. At least she deserves to know what really happened. But before a word comes out from his mouth the memories as he watches in horror, with that man holding a scythe killing Cheryl.

He was lucky to survive, as his phone has an auto activation of its flash light which was flash straight into the Reaper’s face.

It released a bright light that hits its eyes which irritated it. It accidentally released him, but when he looked again the creature was gone.

There he realized that the monster flees, it was gone before he even realizes it.

The monster captured Cheryl, he tried to be brave, to save her. But fear made his knees too weak to even stand. His strength was enough for him to hide from its sight.

As he hides like a coward he can hear her horrifying screech, as she was killed. She was not killed instantly when the scythe sliced her neck and the creature squeezed her dry of terror that it can get from her.

Then the creature tried to find Leon, but when the Vanguard battalion came into the scene it changed its mind quickly as it choses an easy prey rather than exerting more effort over one.

There Leon don’t know what is happening at first but then he realized that there is rescue when he started to hear rapid gunshots.

A little bit of strength possessed him hoping that it will help him escape the nightmare. Slowly he checked the situation hoping that the specimen is distracted enough for him to escape through.

He took advantage of the darkness of the place, to hide from the soldiers.

He let them mind their own business while he sneaks past through. Since the soldiers are too busy preparing for the fight, they did not notice even the slightest of him.

He was successful and by that time, his strength was restored and he ran as fast as he could, adrenaline rushing through his veins. But when he saw Jennifer he was weakened again.

“Where is she?” she asked Leon again, but Leon just stares at the floor. “Answer me!” she demanded. “WHERE,” she grabbed his collar. “IS,” he forced him to face her staring him straight into the eye. “MY,” she forced him to get closer to her face. “SISTER?” she finished her question with her gritting her teeth.

Leon’s soul leaves his body as he feels the intense fear.

His knees weakened again, as he falls on his knees on the ground. He just can’t answer her question. He is not ready yet, to tell her the truth.

He was also pained because of her death.

Alexander grabs one of her shoulders, Jennifer looked at him with rage in his eyes.

“Let him be, let’s find out for ourselves,” he suggested. “We are in the right path since he is here,” he added.

Jennifer, looked back at him again, and she endured his weight, and threw him at the wall. It was not hard of a throw, enough to hurt him, but the shock was too much for his mind.

As the two walks through the hallway, Jennifer’s anger slowly turned into grief as she can’t help it but to think something bad happened. Alexander don’t know how to console a lady. He just let her be, since everything is uncertain even for him, he will not react in any way about her sister, since he knows that when it comes to this kind topic, he is a hundred percent sure, that he will be lectured by Jennifer. Ranting why her sister should die like that.  

She remained quiet, as she tries not to create any noise from her cries, she is trying her best to hide any clues. She does not want to talk anyone. But Alexander wants fold her to stop crying because her sister alive.

But repeating that mistake will only doom his chances at her since he is repeating it inside his mind again that there is no proof that her sister is alive and he needs to be honest to himself, when he saw Leon back there covered in blood and bruises, he got that feeling that her sister was one of the victims on what they haves sow.

He tried to be vigilant since he is sure that this lady in front of him is clouded with negative thoughts and sorrow.

“Just cry,” he whispered.

Back to Captain Reyes and his team who already encountered the specimen.

“Is the weapon ready?” he asked again.

“JUST A LITTLE OF MOMENT SIR!” one of them shouted as they checked the progress bar, and it is on sixty percent.

They continued to fire at the creature to prevent it from getting to the weapon and preventing it to hinder their plans.

“JUST FIRE AT IT!” captain Reyes shouted, as all of them aimed at the same direction, releasing many rounds of bullets towards the creatures. But the Reaper was already gone, one with the darkness as he hides.

Then like a monkey from above it used its scythe to hang and picks a target from the eighth. It scanned the situation and it feels that there is something wrong with the big gun. Its instincts told the specimen that it is dangerous.

When it picked a target, it let itself fall from the height and when the target is within its reach it used its feet as a hook on a nearby pipe and let its torso fell reaching the target with its scythe.

Without any remorse the creature used its scythe like a hook, getting the fish out from the ocean. Stabbing the soldier named Gonzalo in its chest. It pierced through.

Gonzalo’s eyes widened as he did not have the strength to shout or inform his comrades. But Smith the one with Gonzalo since the two of them were the ones tasked to operate the photon cannon that they will use to capture the specimen.

“CODE RED!” Smith shouted as he pulls out his rifle and began firing at the creature. But TF – 282 was quick to react with the gun as it boosted itself up using its hand and feet to climb high up.

Since it has the ability to manipulate light, it rendered their flashlights useless. Since a sudden flash to its face will cause a massive discomfort to the creature.

But the photon cannon has enough brightness to stun the creature like freezing a creature in the middle of the tundra.

The others reacted on Smith’s gunfire.

“What happened?” Reyes asked Smith and the soldier looked at him with a worried look on his face.

“Sir, Gonzalo has been compromised,” he said.

“SH*T!” he cursed. “Howard, Brandola, guard the weapon and Smith,” he ordered the two. The two men obeyed his order as they repositioned themselves near Smith.

“I’ll be damned,” Smith told himself as he encountered an error because the other one that operates the other side was gone. “Brandola!” he called to his ally and Brandola was quick to reach on his call.

“What is it?” he asked, as he looks around to check on the creature since they assumed that it is targeting it.

“I need you to operate the weapon on the other side,” he said.

“What?” he exclaimed.

“Just do it dude, if you want to live another day,” he said. Brandola have no choice but to bear with him.

He rushed towards the other side of the cannon, as he encounters a strange interface that he just encountered once in his life.

They were tasked to operate the cannon once but just a few of them passed and he is one of the unlucky ones who did not pass the test.

“Just tell me what I must do!” he shouted to Smith.

“I WILL!” he shouted back as he tries to overcome the error that just came.

“GOOD!” he shouted back.

As he faces the strange interface, it was familiar but he is not familiar with what to do with it. It’s like he is in front of a control module with so many buttons with no labels.

He felt the pressure because his team is counting on him.

Smith began to shout the instructions towards him.

While the creature threw down the corpse of a mutilated Gonzalo. The soldiers did not waste any time and they continue on firing towards the creature where Gonzalo fell. The creature started to move again finding its victim.