The Antarctic Contagion by Raymond Brocklesby

Author:Raymond Brocklesby
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Action, Thriller, Antarctic, Virus, Science Fiction
Publisher: Freedom Publications
Published: 2025-06-04T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8: The Traitor Within

The thudding at the server room door grew louder, more insistent, each impact resonating through the chilled air like the beat of a diseased heart. Peterson and Albright, or the monstrous puppets they had become, were no longer just testing; they were attempting to breach. Splinters of metal or insulation dust puffed from the door's edges with each blow.

“Vance, have you got anything usable?” Rostova yelled over the din, her riot gun aimed squarely at the shuddering door.

“Copying encrypted files now! It’s slow... they’re massive!” Vance’s voice was strained, his fingers a blur on the keyboard. He was trying to transfer the ‘Project Chimera – Sub-Zero Initiative’ directory to a hardened data chip. “A few more seconds!”

Aris, meanwhile, had the station’s internal broadcast system cued up. “Commander, I can try a localized audio blast on this level – maximum volume, disorienting frequency. It might buy us a few moments, but it’ll draw anything else in the vicinity straight to us, and it’ll definitely confirm our position.”

“Do it when I say,” Rostova ordered, her gaze unwavering. The door buckled visibly, a long, jagged tear appearing near the locking mechanism. A grey, clawed hand, unmistakably Albright’s, shot through the opening, blindly scrabbling.

“Now, Aris! Vance, get back!”

Aris slammed the activation button. A piercing, multi-frequency screech erupted from the PA speakers in the corridor outside – a sound designed to disorient, to cause pain. It was deafening even through the insulated door. The scrabbling hand retracted. The pounding momentarily ceased, replaced by enraged, inhuman howls.

“That’s our cue! Go!” Rostova yanked open the server room door, which now hung crookedly on one hinge. She fired the riot gun. The gas canister hit the closest figure – Peterson – squarely in the chest, exploding in a cloud of acrid smoke. The creature roared and staggered back, but didn’t fall. Albright, seemingly less affected by the gas due to its position further back or a different physiology, lunged forward.

They spilled out into the utility corridor, Vance clutching the data chip. The air was thick with the tear gas and the unearthly shrieks of the infected. The strobe light Vance had dropped earlier lay shattered on the floor.

“Back to the main levels! Sarah, can you seal the sublevel access behind us once we’re through?” Rostova yelled into her comm.

“Affirmative, Commander! But hurry!” Sarah’s voice was tight with anxiety.

Their retreat was a chaotic scramble through the darkened, narrow passageways. The disorienting audio blast had bought them precious seconds, but the creatures were already recovering, their pursuit fueled by an unnatural rage. They could hear them crashing through the sublevels behind them, the sounds of their approach drawing sickeningly closer.

As they reached the stairwell leading up to Module Alpha’s primary level, Aris, bringing up the rear, noticed something. The heavy toolkit Vance had used to bypass the server room lock, and which he’d slung over his shoulder, was gone.

“Vance! Your toolkit!” Aris shouted, glancing back into the gloom of the corridor they’d just exited. It wasn’t there.

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