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Devil Seed

By

Gemma

The Ice Wolf

3

Larson St and Ripley Ave

10:53pm Monday

The streets had quieted down since nine o'clock that evening. Only an occasional car would pass by to make a turn or just zoom on through. A gentle breeze was blowing which caused the papers stapled to the electrical posts to rattle. There was an eeriness to it that even Aaron had taken a liking to. He sat inside of his car listening to the radio. He picked an easy listening station and set the volume on low. If anything he didn't want to be preoccupied with heavy metal of any kind while he was on patrol. He had chosen a not so conspicuous spot on the corner of Larson St. but he wasn't there to just sit. He was there to listen and to observe. This was the street where most of the sightings had been reported. If there was a carrier around he'd find it.

He turned on the heat tracker he had set on his dashboard. Nothing so far. The tracker itself was capable of scanning at least four city blocks. If anything decided to show itself all he had to do was follow the signal. He reached over to the other seat and opened a bag of chips he had stashed away for tonight. Right now he hated to chase anything on an empty stomach. The only drawback was that it would make him drowsy if he had to stay up for too much longer. He didn't like late night shifts. Unfortunately, this was the only time he would be able to do his job. Within about fifteen minutes he had managed to scarf half the bag, and that's when the tracker went off.

It let out a high pitched bleep, tracking the heat signature of something neither human nor fur. Aaron grinned as he glanced at the monitor.

"Gotcha."

He started his car and pulled away from the curb. If he was going to track down any carriers he had to keep on them. Of course he still had to follow the traffic laws on top of that so it made things a little complicated. He stopped at the first red light and looked at the monitor again. The small red dot on the screen was moving left. Aaron slammed on the accelerator right when the light changed. He wasn't going to lose this one. He swerved to the left and kept checking the monitor every time he had to stop.

Now the red dot was moving to the right. Aaron narrowed his eyes on the image.

"What are you up too?" he said.

It was too early to make any assumptions. It couldn't already be aware of his presence. Could it? He started down the right. Just as soon as he did however, the red dot started moving left again. Now he knew it wasn't just a coincidence. This thing was aware of him and it was trying to lose him. Now he couldn't follow the traffic laws. He slammed down on the accelerator again and continued in hot pursuit of the only signal he had. Each time it turned right he turned right. Whenever it turned left he turned left. With each turn and each block Aaron closed the gap between them. Just when he was making another left turn he saw what he was after. His headlights only glanced over it but he knew what he had just seen. A skinned lizard drawn in a silhouette was all he needed to see. While he was drawing closer to the creature he reached into his jacket and pulled out his .50 magnum revolver. When he had a clear shot he reached his arm out the window, pulled back the hammer, and fired. The creature jumped and started going faster. He had seen these things outrun cars before. Maybe this one just needed some motivation. Aaron took aim again, pulled back the hammer, and fired. The shot hit the street and the creature started picking up more speed. Aaron grinned as he pulled his arm back in.

"That's right buddy. Lead me right to them."

The creature turned right on the next street corner. Just as Aaron swerved his car around to tail it again he saw it leap through the window of a rundown building. Aaron grinned as he pulled over to the curb across the street and stepped out. Closing the door he walked around to he other side of his car and opened the door. Reaching inside he pressed a small button on the side of the seat and the seat folded forward. Behind the seat was a wrack of guns and ammunition most of which was modified. Picking up a sawed off, double barreled, twelve gauge he reached for a box of shells and loaded both barrels. He then reached back into the box and took two handfuls of shells and stuffed them into his pockets. Now he picked up a box of .50 magnum rounds. He took out his revolver and expelled the two empty casings, then loaded to more and put the revolver back in his jacket. Lastly he picked up a belt that was loaded with magnum rounds and a hunting knife and put it on then picked up a flashlight. With the final arrangements in place he closed his car door and walked across the street with shotgun in hand. Aaron looked at the sign hanging overhead and chuckled to himself.

"Well I'll be damned." he said in amazement. "An old YMCA. Kind of an odd place for these things to hide out at."

He quietly approached the door which had most of the boards removed from it. It was all to obvious that some jokers had been hiding out in this place some time ago. There was a lingering odor of ammonia in the air and the floor tiles cracked as he stepped in. It had been abandoned for so long that all kinds of vermin were probably making their homes here. He shrugged. The last thing he was going to worry about was hanta virus. Especially because what he was hunting for carried a far worse disease than that. Turning on the flashlight he started down through the lobby from the reception desk. He couldn't hear anything, say for the occasional rodent scurrying by. It was deathly quiet. He decided to start at the locker rooms.

Coming around the reception desk he headed down the hall for the mens locker room. He made his steps short and silent, checking behind himself every now and then to make sure he wasn't being followed. Once at the locker room doorway he crept in not making a sound. As Aaron stepped past the old rusted lockers he shook his head seeing the graffiti left behind. Some of it was wearing away but that wouldn't matter once the city decided to tear this place down. He suddenly froze. He could have sworn that he heard something. Quietly he listened, waiting for anything that told him he was on the right track. Seconds went by. Minutes.

Aaron hoped that he wasn't just scaring himself. He had a knack for being overly cautious one minute and then casting caution to the wind the next. This time his caution would be rewarded. From across the locker room came a low, loud, hiss. Now Aaron knew he was on the right track. Slowly, quietly, he crept to the other side of the locker room. He stopped just short of the last row of lockers and leaned up against it. Now he could hear the hissing without any difficulty at all. He slowly peered his head around the lockers. On the other side were the showers. Underneath a broken shower head was a creature that Aaron could identify in his sleep. The creature was approximately ten feet from nose to tail. It's head was like that of an alligator. It had six red eyes, a row of spines that trailed down from the neck to the end of the tail, claws the size of butcher knives, and the most evil grin which revealed two rows of razor sharp teeth with two long fangs hanging down past the jaw. For the most part it was skin colored but, a few portions of it's body were covered with a thick patch of fur.

Aaron pulled back behind the lockers and swallowed hard.

"This one's already an adult." he thought. "How long have these things been running loose."

His attention was taken back to the creature, hissing in the shadows.

"Whatever. I'd just better move fast or these things will be all over me."

In a quick burst of speed Aaron leaped out from behind the lockers and fired at the beast. It instantaneously flopped on it's back writhing in pain. Aaron stepped into the shower while loading two more shells.

"Does it hurt sweetheart?" he mocked. "Don't worry, I've got plenty of painkillers to go around."

He reached into his jacket and took out his revolver. Pointing it at the creatures head he pulled back the hammer and fired. Blood and chunks of bone and brain matter spattered on the floor. Aaron turned and walked out of the shower as the now dead carrier lay limp on the floor. Holding one gun in each hand he headed for the locker room exit. Just as he was half way to the door two more creatures slithered through the door, blocking Aaron's path. He just grinned.

"You guys aren't going to make this easy for me are you?"

One of them crept over to his left side, the other standing up right. Aaron had been through this before. Carriers were predatory by nature and when a particular prey is too much for just one at least two more will come out of hiding to aid in the hunt. These things were smart and strategic. So there could be no telling how many of them were actually in the room with him. The one to his left hadn't tried to get behind him so there was a good probability that there was another one already in that position. If he was surrounded, the options left to him were clear. The two carriers in his line of sight were snarling and drooling. The one in front of him hung it's long tongue out licking the air. It started crouching when suddenly, Aaron charged directly in it's direction, catching the creature off guard. Aaron jumped over it's head and fired a round from the revolver at point blank into the carrier's head. The one that had been on his left came leaping at him as he turned around. Quickly raising his shotgun he fired at it in mid air. The carrier was knocked back from the force of the blast and crashed into the wall. Just as he anticipated a third dropped from the ceiling and charged. Aaron fired his revolver hitting it in the leg. He fired two more times. The third shot killed it. It was all to apparent that they were aware of his presence now, but somehow the thought that they may have been watching him since he stepped into the building bothered Aaron like nothing else. He hated these things and even more being stalked by them. Carriers were intelligent and that made them extremely dangerous. They were trying to trap him just now, and there had to be more. For all he knew there could have been an army of the things however, unless he found a nest he could only confirm the area as a red-zone and not a hot spot. After reloading he weapons he slowly stepped outside of the locker room and continued his investigation, checking each of the rooms and passages for any sign that he missed one or two. It wasn't until he reached the swimming pool that he found what he hoped wouldn't be there.

Off to the far back of the deep end was a mass of black slime. On top of this mass were a patch of large oval shaped objects, most of which were broken open. Only two untouched ovals were left. The entire mass was lying in a small pool of water, courtesy of the large hole in the ceiling. The water gathered whenever it rained and that made it ideal for the carriers. They needed a great deal of moisture to survive. The one he had chased down earlier was probably searching for another water source.

"Aw hell. And here I was, thinking that I already got them all."

Stepping closer to the pool he heard something hissing behind him. He just walked into a nest and didn't even think to keep his guard up. Diving to his right, he rolled over and stood up again kneeling with both guns out. The creature that had been behind him was now standing where Aaron had once been. This carrier was at least three times the size of the others.

"So, big mama, you think you can take me? Well guess what, you don't have a prayer."

He opened fire emptying the shotgun and the revolver into the creature. It shrieked from the hot lead piercing it's flesh but the beast came charging at him with a ferocity that even Aaron couldn't compete with. There was only one thing to do in a situation like this. Run.

Putting his revolver back in his jacket and tossing the shotgun aside he made a run for the door on the other side of the pool. The mother carrier shambling after him. Tearing the doors open, he dashed in and closed them behind him. Seconds later there came a crash as the door shook. The mother carrier hadn't gotten through but the door wouldn't hold for long. Aaron switched on his flashlight and shined it on the door. The wood was already starting to split.

"You won't get me that easily you bitch."

Looking around he came to the realization that he was cornered in the storage room.

"Great," he thought out loud. "A store room."

Reaching for his belt he grasped the hilt of his hunting knife. Taking it out he pointed it toward the door. Examining the knife, he looked back at the door and then the knife.

"Yeah, right." he said putting it back in it's sheath. "I wonder what's left in here?"

Searching the floor he came upon a stack of long iron rods. Probably left over from the construction of the building. He started to grin. This wasn't over yet. With one more loud crash the door caved in and the mother carrier stood in the doorway. As soon as it was in Aaron picked up the first of the rods and threw it. The rod was impaled into the carriers left side. He picked up another one and threw. This one struck the carrier in the chest. The beast let out an ear piercing shriek as it backed out of the room. Aaron picked up three more throwing the first one as he reached the door, striking the carrier in it's right shoulder. As it backed further away it stood up on it's hind legs, snarling ferociously. It was trying to intimidate him now and Aaron had a perfect shot. He took it. The next iron rod went through the chest. The carrier staggered backward and fell into the swimming pool. It was still flailing about when Aaron stepped up to the edge of the pool. Grasping the last rod with both hands he jumped down and slammed it through the carriers head and held it there. It started flailing about, in a futile attempt to shake him off, but Aaron kept a firm foothold. He didn't so much as flinch. A minute later it was dead. Aaron stepped down from the beast and leaned up against the wall of the pool. He took a minute to catch his breath and sighed a relief. Reaching into his jacket pocket he took out his cell phone and started dialing. Two rings later he had someone on the other line.

"Yeah, this is agent 562 reporting. It's confirmed. I'm at the old abandoned YMCA. Send for clean up."

He looked over to the nest with two unhatched eggs.

"And a doggie bag."

Abandoned YMCA

Tuesday 12:44 AM

It didn't take long for a hazmat team to arrive on the scene. Aaron was waiting for them outside. Three black trucks pulled up in front of the building. As the men in hazmat suits filed out one of them approached Aaron. He was a fox with red fur, standing at about 5'8". He held his helmet under his arm.

"Well captain, looks like we already have our work cut out for us." Aaron said with a sigh.

The captain shook his head.

"It sure looks that way. Just what the hell happened in there?"

"Well, I found a nest and had a fight to the death with the mother and four of her boys."

"So it was a hot spot?"

Aaron nodded.

"Just a small one but it's under control now. I was a little surprised. They've already grown into adult crawlers."

"That means there's probably a bigger nest somewhere else in the city."

"Probably is."

"By the way, you requested a doggie bag?"

Aaron chuckled as he stood up.

"Yeah, there's two unhatched eggs in the nest. I need you guys to wrap them up and ship them to headquarters. Tell them it's a present for the research department."

The captain gave a quick salute and Aaron started for his car.

"Will do, and one more thing sir."

Aaron stopped to look at him.

"Yeah?"

"I know you're an agent and all but the men and I wish you would try to avoid doing these jobs on your own."

Aaron grinned.

"I'll keep that in mind for next time. You guys take care now."

"And you sir."

Aaron walked back to his car and tossed his shotgun in the passenger seat. He then got in and started the engine. As he pulled away the men were already hauling the first of the dead carriers away in a body bag. At least one hot spot was taken care of. The only question now was how many more were there? The thought of an epidemic chilled Aaron to the bone. If an epidemic was inevitable they'd have to evacuate the city, and that would take a miracle. Then there was Mia, the cute red panda from school who had taken a liking to him. If disaster struck would he be able to protect her?