Do not go gently into that good night

Sam had snuck out early this morning. Adam hadn't even come home. The house was quiet when Kat got off that horrible chair. Quiet suited her. She needed to focus on sifting through the data she'd found.

With every file Kat scanned her dismay grew. There was something bad at the heart of Thiidian. Something evil. Venix corporation, a defense subcontractor who held many, many contracts with the Alliance military had found something here. 'Subject Alpha', they'd called it. God only knows why they were so determined to have it. From what Kat could tell, it had killed dozens of their own people, and cost them billions of credits. Actually, scratch that, that sounded EXACTLY like the sort of thing a shady private military contractor would be interested in.

Unfortunately she'd hit a severe stall, the redacted nature of the files, meant she was putting together bits and pieces that weren't even from the same puzzle. She still didn't have answers for how mycoviruses were involved or this so called pheromonal bombardment. That said, she had a disturbing feeling she'd experienced it first hand from Adam the other night. She tried to will her nipples not to stiffen at the memory of her nephews impressive cock. She failed, but that was the least of her problems. The blood she'd had analyzed showed trace levels of mycovirus in her and Sam, worrisome but not frightening. Only Cindi's levels were far too high. Kat had a sneaking suspicion this 'boy Cindi had known but hadn't spent much time with' might actually be her brother. So far the virus seemed dormant, slowly dying even. It seemed not to be able to reside within Cindi as a viable host. From a scientific point of view, it was great news. As an aunt, discovering you're blood relatives were having sex under the influence of weaponized biology was less great. She needed more data. Luckily, the universe provides.

"What's that?" Cindi asked from over Kat's shoulder.

Kat swiveled around to see her. ""A subsurface topographic map of the planet." She'd always appreciated her niece's genuine curiosity. Sam's eyes glazed over after just a few sentences. "Have you ever wondered why it never stops raining here?"

"Yeah. Like, A lot." Cindi replied dryly.

"Thiidian has a thousands of geysers, larger than most mountains on Earth around its equator, its the source of the constant rain. But what I never understood, and I think has been hidden from anyone who looked, was that the entire subsurface is littered with thousands of tunnels that drain into underground reservoirs to feed the geysers. Without them the water would pool into oceans on the surface and the rain would largely stop. It might even be hotter without the clouds though. The interesting thing is the Alliance doesn't officially acknowledge they exist."

"Huh. So why hide them? The tunnels I mean." Cindi bit the second knuckle on her first finger, face lost in thought. "There's something down there."

"Exactly my thought. I've been reading some of the bases' files, not the kind they want read, mind you. They reference an underground lab. Abandoned long ago."

Cindi's eyes narrowed. "This base was built on top of it."

"Correct again."

"Okay." Cindi looked confused now. "I thought you were looking up viruses. And what about my blood and what's going on with Adam?"

Kat took a deep breath. She had to tread carefully. "I think what's happening to your brother is connected to whatever is down in that lab. The Alliance brought me here to study a mycovirus. Your brother has an enormous quantity of that same virus in his body. So do you, Cindi dear."

Her eyes shot wide in panic, she clutched her stomach, rather tellingly. "Am I going to change like him?"

"No." Kat soothed her. "I really don't think so. The virus is dormant in you. Dying without interacting in your cells." Now for the part her niece might not like. "But we do have to talk about how you came to have so much inside you."

"I probably just- from being so close to him and all. Confined quarters on the ship." She mumbled, eyes cast down. Kat wished she could let her niece off that easily, but they were past that now.

"Cindi, both Sam and I have micro amounts of the virus in our blood as well. The amount you carry, couldn't possibly be added by anything other than direct ...injection. So either Adam donated blood for you, or..."

Cindi flushed pink, and looked down, mumbling something about 'just one time'.

"I understand. You and your brother weren't in control of your actions. Adam is sick. He needs help."

Cindi's fierce glare stopped her. He's my brother. We love each other. Maybe what we did isn't normal." It definitely was not. Then again, Kat had just danced over that line herself yesterday, so.... "But it isn't wrong. We aren't hurting anyone. Adam is going to get better, but that isn't going to change. NO ONE is going to take my brother away from me!"

Was she still under the influence of the pheromones? Unlikely, Cindi hadn't spent much direct or indirect contact with her, and while residual levels might exist, it wouldn't account for this behavior. It seemed Cindi had tied her heart to the boy. Unfortunate. She wasn't going to take it well, when she found out what 'helping' Adam looked like.

"You know I want to help him, right hun?" Her niece gave a **** nod. "Do you trust me?" An even more **** nod. No, in all likelihood. Really unfortunate, because Sam wasn't going to be able to assist her and Adam was compromised. She didn't know what Adam would do in any given situation. She really did want to help him though.

"We need to get down to this lab. Today. Before anything else happens. There's a way down. An elevator, that Colonel Agnetti used yesterday."

"Who?"

"He's the base commander. Sam asked me to keep an eye on him yesterday, only I haven't told her what I found yet." Kat wouldn't be telling Cindi either, if only she didn't need her help so badly. "I saw where he goes, the code he uses, everything I need."

"And me?"

"After he went down below, I lost the signal. He came back up thirty minutes later. I might need help down there. I don't know what's down there, but I NEED someone to watch over my should from up here. First and foremost, I hope you know how to boost a signal so we can talk when I get down there. Do you?"

"That's the easy part." Cindi smiled. "The hard part is going to be cracking any locks down below. Lucky for you, I was a pretty good amateur hacker before I left for school."

Kat felt relief flow through her. Just one more small almost unimportant thing. "You can't tell Adam what we're doing Cindi." Cindi tried to object, but Kat talked over her. "I want to help him, but he is an unknown quality. We're scientists, you and I. The only ones in the family. And we both know an experiment is ruined by unknown qualities. I need you to promise me you won't tell him until I get back. That's the only way I can help Adam."

Cindi stared at her, expression unknowable. Kat hoped an appeal to their common interests would sway her, but the girl was in love! It could go either way. Finally, she spoke up.

"I promise."

---

Power armor was a thing of beauty. The concept was centuries old, of course. The base even had a few Mark IV suits lying around. They used them for target practice. Back when the Confed War began, the long running idea was that soldiers in armor could be used as sort of miniature tanks. It had failed spectacularly. Putting enough plate on a man to stop a heavy shell or lasgun made him slow and unwieldy, which just made him easier to hit, the Confederates had a field day, blowing hole after hole in those 'bulletproof' suits. The Admiralty had a guaranteed contract with one of their defense industries, 'vital to the heartland of humanity' and all that. Men had died by the hundreds right up until the armistice. After the war, with the contract expired, the redesigns had come.

The new concept emphasized the infantry, in powered infantry. Gone was the idea of indestructibility. Replaced by mobility and lethality. Sure, there was protection from small arms fire, but it was really a glass cannon. Sam studied her enhanced form, the black underlay with with traces of midnight blue and gunmetal grey where the 'hard plates' formed. Normally the entire suit was like a second skin, supple and light, but when struck by an impact, the liquid layer, hardened and absorbed the energy. Artificial muscles, stronger than any human kept the operator light and fast, able to leap over three meter walls and land with a whisper. Thiidian might have been a wet shithole, but it had some very fine equipment.

Of course she still had to wear it in the rain.

---

Adam was a mess. He'd been walking through the rain for hours. Thoughts and regrets hounded him chased him the around the base. Of all the things to say after someone kisses you, I have feelings for someone else ranks among the worst. In hindsight, it filled in a lot of gaps. Sam had been oddly possessive of him for as long as he could remember. He'd thought that was just how she was. She'd had boyfriends, but if he was being honest with himself, she seemed to spend a lot of time in her relationships parading her new love interest in front of him. It kind of scared him. There was this whole other side of her he'd never even realized. And worse, how of what he thought was her personality was really just her pining over him?He wanted to give her space. He wanted to let things lie and when she was ready come to him. That was fair. Only, he'd started having a terrible feeling that just wouldn't subside. He wasn't hearing voices, not with the BB keeping them down, but still, some deeper part of him was trying to communicate. All he knew was that it was scared. It hadn't stopped screaming in hours. He had to find Sam.

He tried to reach his sister on Wave-comm, she was probably worried sick. No answer. Same for Aunt Kat. Weird. Alright, plan B. Adam knew she was on gate duty before the range yesterday, there was a decent chance she was back there today. He tried to come up with something, ANYTHING to say to her on the way. The best he managed was 'I'm sorry', it sounded pathetic even to him.

He found Sam looming at the checkpoint by the gate in full power armor, albeit, without any heavy weapons. Still, the sight of her was a relief, he could almost here the voice now, telling him to grab her and run. She caught sight of him and turned away, face pale and tight. Where was the anger, the firebrand, the challenge? Did he even know his cousin at all?

"Hey." He tried to get her attention. She kept her back to him.

"Leave me alone." She mumbled. The other marines looked up from their card game, faces wondering if they had to stand for the officer. Adam barked a quick 'at ease' and they drifted back to their game. "I need you. It can't wait."

She ignored him.

"What's the meaning of this?" A nearby captain rose from his nap and called out. He looked to Sam first who was still in a sullen silence. Then his gaze shifted to Adam, who he looked up and down, passing over his sodden flight leathers, for a moment, Adam was sure the man recognized him, then it passed. "Lieutenant, is there some reason you're out of uniform and not on your assigned duties?"

"He's not a lieutenant, Captain Valero. He's my cousin." Sam croaked. Adam had never seen her like this. "He was helping with my investigation-"

"Shut. Up." Valero, glanced over at the other soldiers. "Follow me, Lieutentant, and you as well, Sergeant." Adam tried to shoot Sam a questioning glance, but she had her eyes on the floor. Clearly miserable. Valero dragged them to a nearby awning where the rain muffled their sound.

"Have you told anyone, ANYONE about your investigation?" The captain demanded, his eyes piercing holes into Sam.

"No sir. I've-"

"Don't." He cut her off. "I've looked into it myself since we last spoke. It runs deep and it runs high. Agnetti may even be complicit." He gauged their reaction, their lack of shock seemed to satisfy him.

"Why don't you send a message to Alliance Naval Special Police or GalSec?" Adam wished he didn't feel a surge of dislike every time he cut off Sam, it was making it hard to trust this guy.

"Because without proof, its just our word against his. And people have been known to die on Thiidian. There are things here, secrets buried that have ended lives. I don't want to be buried with honors on Earth-Home."

"I'm sorry sir." Sam sounded crushed. "I-"

Valero raised his hand, cutting her off again. "Take him home. Keep him home. Use the armor if you have to. I'll have the duty roster changed to assign you to light duty in quarters. In a day or so, I'll have the information I need, and this will all be over."

"Hey!" Adam took a step forward. "Let's get one thing straight, I'm not one of your marines you can order around." Another step and Sam stopped him cold. Damn that armor of hers was strong.

Valero only had eyes for Sam. How deep was that relationship? Adam wondered rather bitterly. "You've got this handled, Sergeant Carter? I can trust you?"

"To the bitter end, Sir." She replied stiffly.

"You're too good for Thiidian, Carter. Far too good." And with that he left.

"I don't like him." Adam told her.

"Don't talk to me. Just walk." Sam led them back into the downpour.

As he followed his cousin home Adam had mixed feelings, on the one hand the internal voice seemed content, but on the other, he felt Sam slipping away. Retreating into that armor of professionalism he'd never even known she had. Sam had shared her emotions with him, and- he was starting to realize -only him. Sure, he'd helped her, been there for her, but when it came to to show that he trusted her enough to be **** with her, he'd never been willing to cross that line. They'd never been equals, Adam had treated her like a pet. Only, now at the finish could Adam seen the truth. He'd been failing her for years. Why did he ever think an apology could fix what years of keeping her at arm's length couldn't? Every step they took brought them closer to home, closer to closer that window to ...whatever they were. Platonic soulmates? Or enemies who were deeply in love? Somehow both and neither and something in between. He had to do something! Whatever they were, it was about to be lost, probably forever.

"Heeeeeey, I just have to duck in-" Adam scanned the buildings. "-to storage area four for a minute."

"That's an abandoned warehouse. Keep moving." She reached back for him, but Adam was already dashing inside. She followed, cursing him.

"Wheeew. Better in here, Samara." Adam didn't know why he had to needle her. Was it just habit? She usually pretended to hate it, but smiled when she thought he wasn't looking, she wasn't smiling now.

"Do you get some kind of thrill out of ruining my life, Adam?" Sam demanded.

"We need to talk."

"So talk."

"I've got a bad feeling, Sam."

She waited.

"Is that it? You have a bad feeling?"

"Its a really bad feeling. We have to get out of here. Off Thiidian, maybe."

"You're serious?" Sam laughed, and not the pleasant full belly chuckle he was used to. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

Adam grabbed her arm, but she ripped it free, nearly unbalancing him. "I'm serious."

"I don't care. Fuck it. You want to stay here. Do it." She flipped him off. "Valero was just trying to keep your dumb ass alive."

Adam dashed in front of her. She was strong in that suit, he had to use both hands to stop her. Sam screamed and shoved him back. "I beg you to stay and you leave, I ask you to let me go and you block the exit. Make up your damn mind Adam. Stop being a coward and tell me what you want!"

"I don't know what I want!" He roared at her. It was the truth, he realized.

"Then I'm gonna do what I want and if you don't want it, if you don't want me, you're gonna have to make me stop." She growled, but her eyes had that heat Adam remembered. His girl was back.

He didn't have long to celebrate before she charged him, shoulder checking him to the floor and following him down. Adam tried to go for a basic arm lock, but Sam was stronger now, and with her training, she was just better. She reversed and twisted, getting her legs around his neck. His vision swam, but that only hardened his will. He couldn't let her have it this easy. Adam knew the armor would absorb the impact, so he could slam her, so instead, he spun as fast as he could. Sam whipped away from him, nearly horizontal from the centrifugal forces, her face red. Before she could black out, she released and landed on her back before rolling into a low crouch.

"You afraid of me, Sam?"

"Afraid I'll put you on your back, dropout!"

"I thought that's where you wanted me, cousin." Adam sneered.

With a roar, Sam launched into a new attack, a barrage of punches and low kicks. It was all Adam could do to fall back, shielding his vitals. Sam's attacks were punishing, each one hardened by the armors electromusculature, and his own strikes were simply absorbed by the impact layer. He was just barely holding on when his heel hit the wall, and he couldn't back up. Sam's next punch laid him flat, and then her strong arm's wrapped around his neck. Her breathe hot in his ear.

"Say it!" She hissed. "Stop torturing me and admit this isn't normal. This isn't friendship. Or in my head. Admit you want me, like I want you. Tell me you don't wake up the middle of the night and wish I was next to you." Sam's breath was heaving with emotion. "I have loved you since I was twelve years old. I want you. And I know you want me too."

Sam was right. He was a coward. He was paralyzed, afraid to say no and lose her, afraid to say yes and find out what it would mean for them. One of these paths would lead to him losing her forever, and he had no idea which one it was, only that he couldn't bear that pain again.

"I can't!" Adam cried.

Sam let him go with a snarl. She whirled him around like a child's toy. Her hand clenched the short hairs at the back of her head and she dragged him into her attacking mouth. Her kisses were hot, hungry and pure need. Her tongue surged into his mouth to find his own, only to withdraw when she darted to the side to softly exhale in his ear, before biting him. Adam snarled with the pain of his wounded ear and grabbed Sam by the back of her neck, kissing her again and squeezing her perfect ass. Just hard enough not to engage the impact layer, Sam purred for a moment, then shoved Adam to the ground, pining him with one hand, the other tearing his clothes to rags. Her eyes feasted on his nearly naked body, licking her lips appreciatively as she trailed down his flat stomach to his engorged reproductive organ.

"You've certainly grown up in all the right places, Adam." Sam traced his cock lightly with her armored fingers, the cool polymer a strangely erotic sensation. He tried to speak, but Sam clamped a hand over his mouth. "Are you ready to admit it?" Adam just stared at her, mouth covered. "That's what I thought. So lets play a game, instead. Follow the rules, and I'll be so very nice to you, but if you break them, well, I'll have to punish you. The first rule is your palms stay on the floor." Sam glared at him until he dropped his hands. "Good. Time for a reward."

Sam reached her armored fist into a nearby bucket of engine oil and drizzled it down his chest, before wrapping her oil covered hand around his shaft and starting to pump, her other hand, lightly cupping and tickling Adam's ballsack. Sam was relentless, pumping and twisting, clenching at the base and gently flicking his crown with her thumb; when she blew ever so lightly across the purple head, Adam lost it. He reached down to grab her head and **** his cock into his mouth, only to gasp in pain, Sam clenched both hands hard, his balls felt nearly to popping, eyes watering, Adam froze.

"Tsk, Tsk. You broke the first rule already Adam." Sam chided him. He slapped his hands on the ground, but Sam didn't relent. "That's nice, but you still have to make it up to me." Sam touched some hidden switch on her arm and a long strip of armor from pelvis to coxis released and pulled back. Sam stood up and straddled Adam's face. Her pussy was burning hot, she grabbed him by the hair and thrust forward, grinding him into her labia and squeezing his head between her powerful thighs.

"Riiiiiiiight there, lover!" She called down to him as Adam attacked her clit. The sensitive little nub was shy, but he was drawing it out. A long scratching lick from the back of his tongue to the front, then rubbing it with the tip of his nose, followed by another lick. Sam's juices dribbled down his chin to blend with the oil pooling by his navel. "Faaaaaaster!"

Just then, Sam drove his face into her pussy, crushing him with her legs as she screamed her climax. Adam lapped up her savory cream as it flowed down his face. Sam dismounted him and shoved him back down.

Sam gazed down at him through lidded eyes. She was searching for something; her lust still roaring, but behind it, Sam longed so desperately for the words he couldn't say. She turned to go, but Adam grabbed her hand.

"Stop teasing me damn it! Admit it or let me go!" Her eyes were wild. Adam's silence infuriated her. Sam shoved him back down, kneeling around his head, her pussy mashed into his face, and simply attacked his cock. There was no other word for it. Sam's pumped furiously, while her mouth alternated, sucking, licking and biting in equal measure. One moment in loving worship, the next a punishing tug to his balls or nip at the sensitive crown. The surprise only heightened the feel of her sweetness, and soon Adam felt himself ready to cum all over her, his cock swollen and aching. He felt Sam tighten too, surely the beginnings of another powerful orgasm...

But before either of them could finish, Sam stood up and the cruel, cold air rushed back around his painfully erect manhood. "This isn't about you remember. Keep those hands where I can see them." Adam growled but complied, his fingers digging into the concrete, as Sam finally sat down on his hips facing away. His rock hard dick was nestled urgently against her stomach, the tip pushing past her navel, spitting precum over the black armor. It was angry about being edged for so long, and Adam felt the same. It took all his willpower not to try and grab Sam's hips, not that it would do any good. In that fucking armor, he couldn't **** her to do anything, so he just laid back and let her use him as a sex toy. She ground his shaft between the lips of her pussy, rubbing the sweet nectar all over him. The heavy ridge of his crown bumping repeatedly against her clitoris making both of them gasp. Adam groaned when Sam squatted over him, his blunt tip just barely pushing apart her sensitive folds. Sam kept edging downward only to bounce back up with a gasp. Her tight pussy refusing to allow him in.

"So fucking wide!" Whispered Sam, under her breath.

Sam took a deep breath and with a cry, took the first few inches. Adam nearly blew his load then and there. Each rippling inch of his cousin's pussy was exquisite. Tight, but soaking, nearly vibrating with each breath, yes, Sam was strong everywhere. She rolled her hips and made him cry out. "Yes. Fuck yes!" Adam groaned, determined not to come until he had at least gotten all the way in. Sam looked back at her cousin, she pulled her hair free and tousled it. Adam didn't think it was possible, but she looked even more beautiful than before. He clenched into fists, nails biting into his palms as he struggled not to cum. Sam rolled her hips again, flicking them back and forth, massaging his cock inside her all the while before plunging deeper still. With every inch that plunged deeper into her wetness, Adam felt himself lose more control. Sam pounded him with tiny thrusts, hips working like a metronome, she was milking the cum right out of him. He was so fucking close.

Sam spread her legs wide and leaned forward. Adam knew she was grinding his cock- her cock now, she had claimed it for herself -against her sensitive G-spot. She pushed deeper still, until only the last fat inch, stubbornly refused to enter. Sam's thick hips beat a fast tempo, and watching her spankable ass- easily the best ass he'd ever seen, an ass he VOWED to fuck one day - jiggle and bounce in front of him, it was all too much. He couldn't hold it!

"Sam! I'm gonna cum!" Adam shouted hoarsely. Adam felt himself release. His seed flowing from his balls- only to be stopped dead as Sam clamped a hand down on the base of his shaft, blocking his urethra And pumping like a madwoman.

"Not until you finish me off!" She growled. "Use your hands."

Adam grabbed a handful of tits and a handful of pussy. His fingers rubbing circles on her clit, his other hand cupping and squeezing through the armor, god he couldn't wait to fuck her when they were naked and skin on skin. His cock burned! He was going to die if he didn't come right this second! And then it happened. Sam came like a thunderbolt. Her pussy clenched so hard, Adam was nearly pushed out. "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" She screamed and popped off him, releasing her fist at the same time.

Adult exploded, his cock gushed pent up streams of cum all over her armored stomach, arcing higher to nearly hit Sam in the face. Adam's hips thrust weakly, his cock desperately seeking the warmth of Sam's pussy to empty itself into. Finally his flow slowed to an oozing trickle that pool in her navel. They rested, both of them trying to catch their breath. Sam on her back, laying spread eagle across Adam's chest.

She grabbed his hand and dragged it up to her face, giving it a quick peck, then rose to her knees. Before she could get any farther Adam's hand reached out and locked around her wrist. She looked back, eyes wary.

"I want you, Sam."

Sam smiled beatifically, before nestling into the space just under his arm. She gave him another peck, this time on the lips. "I know, Adam. I know."

---

"What's it like down there?" Cindi asked over comms. Her Aunt had just stepped off the elevator moments before.

"Well its definitely a cave system."

They'd waited a few hours to ensure Agnetti wasn't there, it wouldn't do to run into him down in all that darkness. Cindi wished someone was down there with her aunt, maybe not her, but Sam would be perfect, or Adam, if only Kat hadn't insisted on keeping this from him. Still, she'd picked the right girl for her tech support. Cindi was plugged into the base's main network, when a tripwire system had tried to alert Agnetti that someone was on the elevator, she'd killed it on the spot. So far so good.

"What do you see?"

"Not much. There was industrial lighting but most of its ruined by now. I'm not even sure which tunnel goes where." Her aunt's signal was crackling now, fighting to reach the surface. Cindi had had the brilliant idea to drop an old fashioned wire line, and a receiver down the elevator shaft. It was like using cans with string attached. Only Kat was getting farther from her 'can' now. "There's some old industrial equipment. Dozers, laser bore drills, a few bots, but they're all destroyed. Someone pulled them apart."

"Agnetti?"

"I don't ...think so. I'm going to start checking the tunnels."

"I don't like this Aunt Kat."

"Me neither hun, but we need answers." Kat reminded her. Cindi grit her teeth and pushed down her mounting dread. She wasn't even the one down in that awful place.

"I'm in the third tunnel, sweetie. I think this is it." Kat's voice was distant and distorted in Cindi's ear. Her next sentence was garbled feed.

"Aunt Kat! I can't hear you. What did you say?" Cindi called out.

"I found...ird tunnel....don't go....its not safe!"

"Aunt Kat! Aunt Kat!" Cindi shrieked into her headset.

Silence. Cindi's mind raced. It wasn't safe? Don't go? Like hell. She wasn't just going to leave her Aunt down there. Cindi keyed up Kat's pad, her Aunt's vitals were racing, but she wasn't injured as far as she could tell. Video wasn't going to work and she was too far from the elevator for audio, but the low wavelength beams on pads could punch through almost anything. Cindi fired off an old fashioned text message.

AUNT KAT. ARE YOU THERE? COMMS OUT.

Cindi waited, the fear making her squirm.

I'M OK. THE SYSTEM DOWN HERE IS UNSTABLE. THERE WAS A CAVE IN JUST AS I LEFT THE THIRD TUNNEL.

Cindi let out a breath she didn't even know she'd been holding in.

THAT'S GREAT. CAN YOU GET BACK TO THE ELEVATOR?

I FOUND THE LAB. GOING TO CHECK IT NOW. Came her aunt's reply.

Cindi wanted to scream. She was sitting here, unable to help while Kat was crawling around in the dark, with tunnels collapsing around her. Just when she was about to demand her Aunt return to the elevator, she checked in again.

THERE'S POWER. THE EQUIPMENT HERE IS FINE. PRISTINE EVEN. ODD. There was a pause and another message came through.

EVEN. ODD. FUNNY RIGHT?

Cindi didn't think so. YOU FOUND THE LAB. COME BACK HOME NOW PLEASE.

DON'T BE SUCH A SPOILSPORT, HUN. WHERE'S YOUR SENSE OF ADVENTURE?

It certainly didn't hang out in collapsing caves in pitch darkness, Cindi thought with no small amount of anger. Why had she agreed to be a part of this? For Adam, she reminded herself. Adam needs this.

WHAT DO YOU SEE?

BLOOD ANALYZERS. SCANNERS. ELECTRON MICROSCOPES. A GLASS CAGE. SOME GENE SEQUENCERS.

WHAT? Her aunt wasn't making sense. Glass cages?

GLASS CAGE????

There was a definite pause. YES.

DON'T YOU THINK THAT'S WEIRD?

NO.

Cindi's eyes bulged. Her Aunt was sounding less and less like her whimsical self and more just... off.

AUNT KAT I THINK YOU SHOULD-

IT SMELLS LIKE ADAM DOWN HERE.

---

Kat knew something was wrong. She was stumbling around this freakshow of a lab, and yet she didn't feel afraid, just giddy, like a schoolgirl about to get a treat.... or maybe a spanking? That coppery smell was everywhere, making her head spin. It hung in the air like a thick musk. Cindi kept blowing up her pad, poor girl though Kat couldn't handle her shit. Back when she was Cindi's age, she'd had a streak so wild, it would curl her hair. Oh yes. Kat could hang.

Kat managed to get to a console without collapsing. 'Project Adonis' information swam before her eyes. She linked her pad and started the download, she just needed to sit down for a moment. The next thing she knew she was lying on the floor, drool leaking out her face-hole. A mouth. That's what she called it. Why was her head so thick? No. Not head. Her mind? Her thoughts? The room was spinning. She wished Adam were here. God! That boy had a log between his legs! She giggled. Naughty katties get the cream! Katties? Kaaaaaaties? Kitties, that was it. Her nipples were rock hard. They actually hurt, like when she'd nurse Sam, the girl had such a thirst. Like mother like daughter. Daughter. Niece. Cindi!

Kat fought through the haze of her mind. Her clumsy fingers dragging across the pad, trying, failing, then trying again. Finally. She felt cool hand of a chemical cocktail pushing back her brain fog. This place was wrong. She had to get out of here. Just as she was about to stagger to here feet, she heard the unmistakable sound of someone opening the main door. It slid open with a hiss. Agnetti!

Kat lay still, her fingers typing furiously.

AGNETTI IS HERE!

Her niece's reply was ponderously slow.

WHAT?

AGNETTI JUST CAME INSIDE THE LAB.

Kat covered her mouth, her breathing sounding impossibly loud in silence of the room.

HE'S IN HIS OFFICE. I CAN SEE HIM.

Not Agnetti? Someone else then. No. Not someone. Something. Kat heard it closer now, the horrid shuffling wasn't someone scuffing their feet, it was an inhuman body slithering across the floor. Slithering closer.

Kat bit her tongue to keep her treacherous teeth from chattering. Whatever this was, it had been in that cage, she was sure of it. How it got out, without breaking the glass, that was one mystery she didn't care if she ever solved. What was she thinking? She wasn't a secret agent, she wasn't even a field researcher. Kat belonged in a lab, her information carefully filtered through a microscope. She could hear the monster getting closer. The rank smell of scorched metal made her want to retch. It was going to find her! What if it found Sam? Her daughter would come here, looking for her. She wasn't the curious cat her mother was. Stupid Kat, she amended. About to be violently murdered Kat. Sam wouldn't even think twice about risking **** to come look for her.

DON'T COME DOWN HERE. NOT FOR ANY REASON. I'LL BE BACK UP TOP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. TELL SAM I LOVE HER. That last part was probably a mistake, but she couldn't help it. Why hadn't she told her daughter she loved her more?

The creature was sniffing the air, trying to catch her scent, amidst the heavy copper musk, it was going to find her very soon. Before she could think to run, or beg or even fight, the lights went out. Kat couldn't hold back her scream, but it didn't matter. From outside an alarm began blaring and the creature left in a fury. Kat got up to run, only she couldn't even see. The light from her pad would be a blazing beacon to the creature just outside. Then, as if responding to her need, the glass cage popped open as an overhead light shined down upon it.

"Get inside." Kat recognized the crisp tone of Colonel Agnetti. Hard to believe that was last night. It seemed like so much had happened since then. "The Typhon will return. You don't want to be out here when it does."

Typhon. The word shook her to her core. Flashes of a **** and misery appeared before her eyes. Women and men torn apart like tissue paper. Worlds glassed by their own navies trying to contain the plague. A decade of madness and **** that had wiped out the entire Carter bloodline, except for her and Charlotte. For a moment, she was that little orphan girl again, starving and crying on the docks; clinging to her older sister while they begged for scraps. These monsters had stolen her past. And now they were back to take her future.

The cage glittered like the gilded trap it was. But in the far corner, Kat spotted a hole the creature- Typhon, she shuddered -had tunneled into the lab. Where it led, she had no idea, but it was away from thing, and away from the cage Agnetti wanted to put her in.

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