Dedicated to value-yourself

"Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars." ~Khalil Gibran.

COLORADO USA 1984

National Security Base CEPEX

"She's beautiful," Cross noted twisting the cigarette in her mouth as she walked around the circular glass enclosure.

The creatures' pale skin was covered by long dark hair that fell to the floor in a black pool. Like ink over a white canvas. It appeared humanoid in structure. She moved closer to the glass, bending down to get a better angle at the chained specimen.

"What's the species' origins?" She turned to Mary, her lab-coat tour guide.

"We're still testing, she is different than any other we have come across so far." Mary shifted her glasses, nervously sorting through the chart. "But, um, we have discovered something rather remarkable. She appears to have the chemical make up of a living bomb."

Cross raised an eyebrow. This promotion came with quite a few secrets it would seem.

"Explain."

"Well the creatures biochemical makeup contains high amounts of hydrogen and phos...."

"I think it would be easier if I showed you, Commander!" An older man's voice announced from behind, causing Mary to jump. His military coat flashing rank as he strode up to the pair. A grisly man with perfectly trim grey hair and a mug weathered by years of combat and secrets.

"Who can really understand this science jibber jabber anyway." He laughed patting the little lab coat girl on the shoulder. She winced uncomfortably at his touch.

"Commander Cross," Cross extended her hand.

"Admiral Jack Nicholson," He lifted his hand from the girl giving Cross a firm shake. His piercing grey-blue eyes narrowing to size up his new boss, before returning to a smile. "My friends call me Strike."

"Interesting nickname, can't imagine how you got it."

He let out a belting laugh. "A woman with spirit! You'll need that here."

Prick. She blew a puff of smoke in his direction.

He lifted a near by cup on one of the worktables, motioning for her to use it as an ash tray. She took one last drag before snuffing it out.

"This way." He led the way, guiding her and Mary back down the same hall he had so grandly appeared from. "Don't want to miss the show," he smiled.

"Get up!" One of the guards yelled behind them.

She glanced over her shoulder. Catching a glimpse of the commotion, as agents entered the cage poking and zapping the creature to submission while it wailed and struggled against the chains.

Anderson guided them towards an elevator swiping his key card and hit Eight.

"We got the best seats in the house ladies!"

There was no ding on arrival, the door simply opened to display a massive glass-paneled room with rows of chairs that looked out over a long slab of tarmac outside the base. She suspected it was used for flight demonstrations. The room's shape reminded her of the VIP box seats at Fenway Park. The same park her ex had proposed. Being reminded of him left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"Make yourselves comfortable," Admiral nodded to the seats, walking off to talk to one of the guards stationed near an exit door.

Cross and Mary made their way down the rows of seats, claiming two chairs directly in front of the glass. Mary shifted nervously beside her playing with something in her pocket. The spindly librarian of a woman irked her with her constant fidgeting.

"Alright they're almost ready!" The Admiral strode up behind them, walkie in hand, positioning himself in front of the glass beside her.

Cross leaned forward in her seat to get a better look at the small group walking out onto the paved platform.

The creature was chained at the neck, its arms restrained behind its back. Struggling against its bondage; the two agents yanking it forward like a disobedient dog on a leash.

"This could be a big step forward for us in bio-warfare. Wait till you see it Commander, this puts us leaps ahead of the Russians!" The Admiral leaned forward; his face almost pressed to the glass. Smiling at his trophy.

"Right there Lieutenant." He radioed into the walkie.

The party outside halted, turning the creature to face its audience in the sky.

The two agents holding it stretched out the chains fastening them to hooks in the ground backing away behind metal barricades.

"Deadeye ready?" Admiral radioed in.

"Target locked awaiting release code."

"You're going to kill it?" Cross stood up walking closer to the glass. About 1200 yards away was a sniper tower.

"I told you it would be easier to show you." He grinned.

"I thought you wanted this thing alive?"

"Ha-ha! Trust me, Commander, it's not that easy to kill, it takes diamond-tipped bullets to even pierce the damn thing. Plus if we don't do this every so often, well let's just say things could get a lot worse."

He put the walkie up to his mouth. "Dead-eye you are clear to engage, Code ECHO VICTOR ECHO."

Cross could hear Mary getting up from her seat behind them, shuffling to the back of the room. She must not have the stomach for violence.

"Affirmative." The radio cracked back in response.

She held her breath, waiting.

The creatures head snapped up to look at them.

She knew that look.

Shit!

The gun went off. The creature twisted its head, the bullet missing its mark grazing the collar on her neck. It had wanted this, planned for it. It was enough to weaken the metal, with a crack it was free. Her eyes could barely keep up, with lightning speed the creature closed in on the closest guard, her hands punching holes through flesh and bone, like cannon fodder, leaving a bloody husk.

"Fuck"! The Admiral Banged on the glass. "DO NOT ENGAGE! DO NOT ENGAGE! Execute plan C. I repeat DO NOT engage!" The walkie crackled back in silence.

The creature had made its way to the second screaming man. Disarming him before he could even get his gun up, punching a rather large hole through his stomach.

Its head twisted now to focus on them.

Cross could only watch in horror, as it made its way closer, a black death approaching on a swift wind.

The creature leapt up, claws digging into the wall as it scaled the side of the building.

Cross scanned the room, Mary was nowhere to be seen. The guard and the Admiral had their guns at the ready. She instinctively reached for her own, cursing when she remembered they had taken it at checkpoint.

"Don't fire! DO NOT fire!" The admiral's eyes were wild. As he tried to organize the chaos through his walkie. "Jim," he addressed the guard, "load the tranquilizer, we'll only have one good shot." The guard's hands fiddled with the bullets, shaking.

Her head whirled at the sound of glass crunching, the creature's claws digging into the bulletproof glass its head peering in. It had a gun in one of its hands.

"Everyone get down!" The Admiral screamed hitting the floor.

It raised the gun to its head and pulled the trigger.

Cross made a beeline for the door. A deafening roar filling her ears as the blast picked her up slamming her into the far wall.

Shattered glass whipped through the air as a wave of scorching heat exploded through the viewing room instantly melting her back and the side of her face. She cried out, her eyes swimming then everything turned black.

"Com.. der... comman...commander...COMMANDER!"

Cross groaned at the offending sound ringing in her ears. Mary was hovering over her like a buzzing bee. Her hands scanning her body, dabbing on a cool liquid and wrapping up her mangled flesh.

Her eyes and nostril stung with the smell of burning fabric and flesh.

"Shhh, please Commander lie still. You have at least several broken ribs from what I can tell." Mary murmured, soothing her in hushed tones.

"Oh God!" Cross pivoted her head, to see the top of the Admirals face at the far end of the room, contorted into what looked like a melting wax figure. The rest of his body covered by debris.

She wanted to vomit. To run. To scream, but her throat burned and there was nowhere to go.

From out of the corner of her eye she saw a black inky mass growing atop the pile of shattered glass and burning chairs.

It pulsated, swirling and contorting until it resembled a human shape, features becoming more defined.

"It's regenerating" Mary whispered. She sat perfectly still pausing her nursing care. Cross did the same trying to quiet her breath while keeping one eye on the forming face.

How the hell did it survive? Cross wondered now seeing the forming face of a creature that moments before had put a bullet through its head.

Its body curved into the shape of a woman revealing hips and breasts, its eyes popping out from the skull and its ribs closing around a perfectly beating heart surrounded by a golden cage. It wobbled on its feet surveying its surroundings, still in a daze.

For the first time she heard it speak, the soft wispy voice of a frightened child, so far removed from the devastating power she had just witnessed.

"Where am I?" The language wasn't human yet it seemed to resonate in her brain in a way she understood.

Cross held her breath. She could see the creature's face clearly, its piercing blue eyes scanning for signs of life.

It spotted them. Blue eyes fixated on her own as it wobbled towards them tossing melting chairs and debris out of the way as it went. Mary shuffled back rummaging around frantically in her lab coat pocket, for what, she didn't know but it wasn't likely to help them now.

Reaching a shaky hand Cross searched her jacket pocket, wincing at the pain of movement, as she pulled out the squished box of cigarettes. If she was going to die it would be with a smoke in her mouth. Reaching out an arm she lit it on a nearby burning mass of melted rubble and took a deep hull. It was a sweet burn.

She watched the smoke rising from her mouth, swirling in with the rest of the burning air. How she wished she could be that smoke, hovering over to be whisked away on a breeze, indifferent to the chaos that surrounded it.

The creature loomed over her.

She closed her eyes.