Children of the Plague

Chapter Nine: The Shine

Chapter Nine: The Shine

They all had the shine to some degree; infected humans, husks, and hosts. But the eyes coldly holding her gaze belonged to no creature Lanni had ever seen. This thing had managed a feat duplicated by only the strongest of offspring. It resisted the host's summons.

"I don't want to hurt you," Lanni whispered. If it had the presence of mind to ignore a host's compulsion, it could be an ally. She moved slowly, steadily, one step, and then another into the room.

The eyes blinked, a glittery membrane sliding diagonally across and then vanishing. It followed her, matching her step for step; revealing its silhouette with its movement. Well over seven feet tall, it had a mannish figure, if freakishly thin.

An intact row of shelves separated them, with another row in the same condition behind the creature. Further back, an area near the middle of the room had been roughly cleared.

It stepped back around the shelf behind it as Lanni reached the end of the one between them. A long-fingered hand curled around the corner post, holding on while it lowered its head to her level.

"I don't want to hurt you," it repeated in a high pitched, gravelly whisper. The inflection and pacing, however, mimicked Lanni's almost perfectly.

The air was thick with nanites, not like a focused scan or an attack, just oddly active.

"I don't want to hurt you," the voice repeated faster, but deeper in pitch.

"I don't want to hurt you," it howled from the clearing in a gurgling growl that spread across the room.

"I don't want to hurt you!" This time it stabbed at her from directly overhead, full of menace.

Lanni ducked and looked up at the ceiling, ready to defend herself. Only the empty ceiling stared back. Looking back, the man-thing had vanished.

She felt, rather than heard John and Rumiko. John, ever the strategist, wanted to leave the room and take his chances in the hall, but Rumiko braced for combat. Of the two, she was the tactician, always ready or preparing for action.

Despite her stolen words, Lanni agreed with Rumiko. She needed to kill this thing before it attracted unfriendly attention.

She rushed to the corner of the next row where she saw it last. Some kind of sticky goo covered the floor, and rotten cardboard clung to her boots as she moved.

"Hurt you!" the voice screamed.

Something heavy struck her between her shoulders, knocking the wind out of her. The force of the impact shoved her forward, and she caught the edge of the shelf to keep from falling.

A heavy aluminum can thunked to the floor at her feet. Once more her hiking pack's frame caught the worst of the blow. If this kept up, she'd have to consider wearing one on the front, too.

The shelf's legs popped and groaned, causing the whole tower to shift as they buckled. Already off balance, Lanni's grip slipped. She spun as she fell, landing flat on her back. Make that one more save for the backpack. The collapsing shelf's steel frame had corroded where it bolted to the floor, and had chosen that moment to collapse.

If she could get beneath the adjacent shelf, it might shield her from the falling beams. This time her backpack wasn't so helpful. Caught on something unseen, it held fast to the floor as she tried to roll out of the way.

She couldn't move. Paint flecks and dust rained down on her as she clawed at the breakaway buckle on her waist strap. It clicked apart and she tried again, but was still held down.