"Come along then, Derek. Once more unto the breach." I said to my companion, as we left the lab.
"Do we actually know what we're up against? Or how to stop it? I mean, I'm just an immunologist, not Bruce bloody Willis." Derek asked timidly.
"Not as such, no." I admitted. "It's a work in progress."
"So we just blunder around until you think of something? Not much of a plan." He scoffed. "Isn't that like kicking a hornet's nest to count the number of bees?"
"I'm open to suggestions." I added tersely, before turning to him. I pointed a finger sharply into his chest. "You know as much as I do, which is very little. We don't know which species is behind it, what they hope to achieve, how many of them there are or why they've taken students down here. It's like trying to diagnose a patient without running tests. I don't exactly have a lot to work with, so we need more information. The only way to do that is to press deeper into enemy territory. If you've got a problem, by all means leave. I'm pushing on to rescue my girlfriend, and and many other victims as possible." I finished my rant, and stared intently at Derek. I knew he was right, of course, my methods were sloppy and dangerously foolhardy. I couldn't let him see my own doubt though. If I were to have any chance at instilling courage in him, I had to at least appear confident and in control.
A momentary silence hung between us, before Derek spoke. "I'm sorry, OK. I'm just not very good in a crisis. You have a personal stake in this too, I get that, but it all seems a little ad-hoc."
"Because it is. That's how Torchwood operates. There's not exactly a training manual on dealing with aliens, so you just rely on your wits and reactions. Gut reactions and good reasoning are our best defense."
"Of course. Of course." Derek said, accepting but slightly unconvinced. He reached into his pocket and withdrew a foil sealed blister pack, offering it to me. There were three tablets, each the size of a fingernail contained within.
"We call this 'The Cure'. It's a sort of cocktail of antivirals, immune boosters, and the highest grade antibiotics. All but guaranteed to purge your system from any pathogen stored within this facility."
"Sounds miraculous." I said, warily. "Why isn't it on the market if it's so versatile?"
"Because each pill costs more than my research grant. This is an insurance policy, a way of guaranteeing we're clean before we leave the facility. Nobody is allowed a second dose. Ever. This is the nuclear option basically. The best antibiotics we currently have as a species, and if something becomes resistant to it, we're screwed. So we use it as a personal safety net down here while we work on outright cures and vaccines."
"Fair enough. Might come in handy."
"Certainly if you have any plans on leaving this wretched place. Who knows what's in the air by now."
We continued walking along the hall in contemplative silence, pausing to check on the scientist I'd electrocuted earlier. The electronic parasite on his temple was dead. It had released its grip and fallen in a mangled sparking heap on the floor. The man's head was still bloody were the device had burrowed into his brain. He was unresponsive, and had no pulse. Definitely this time. I wondered what had killed him: was he 'dead' the moment the thing took control? Was it when it released its hold? Was it a result of my supposed non lethal taser? I couldn't tell. Answers could wait, as we were both startled by a sudden noise, from the lab at the opposite end of the corridor.
Derek audibly gulped with nervousness. "What was that? Another of the digital zombies?"
"Perhaps." I replied, uncommitted. We had yet to see any sign of the legless creature. "Only one way to find out. Be on your guard." Before we left the prone body, I took his security pass, just in case.
I led the way as we crept up to the door of the lab. Peering through the window, I couldn't see anyone inside, though my field of view was limited and there were a number of cabinets and tables obscuring my view. Wordlessly, I motioned for Derek to unlock the door with his security card, allowing me to enter. I stepped across the threshold gingerly, scanning left and right into the corners nearest me. Finding nobody, I beckoned Derek to follow me inside. We split up to flank the row of worktops before us. I followed around to the left while Derek went right. We reached the far side of the first row simultaneously, finding nothing hiding behind it. While I took a few seconds to investigate the area for potential clues, Derek was looking towards the second row of tables.
With a sudden exclamation, he ran forward, before I could react. He cried out the name "Ruth" as he did so, having noticed the body of a colleague of his slumped on the floor, her head just sprawled out from behind the corner of the row. I made to follow him, crying out that it was dangerous, before skidding to a halt. Before my eyes, the creature I had only glimpsed before now rose from behind the presses, propelling itself from the ground with its strong arms and grabbing onto Derek's upper body. The two grappled for a brief moment as I watched in horror, before the creature shifted its grip from Derek's labcoat to the bare flesh of his neck. With a sudden electrical discharge, Derek collapsed, as the torso-figure lept from him onto the worktop in front of me. I held my sonic probe aloft like a wand, as I took an involuntary step backwards.
For the first time I'd managed to get a good look at the thing responsible for Sue's abduction, for the rash of disappearances, the parasites and the death of several researchers, including poor Derek. It was merely an upper body, holding itself up on its arms while it also observed me. As I'd theorized, it was wearing metal gauntlets. In fact, it's entire figure was encased in a sort of metal exoskeleton. I couldn't tell if it was wearing armor or simply some form of automaton. Perhaps a cyborg of some kind? Tangles of wire and pipework trailed from its severed waist and droplets of oil and other, more mysterious fluids leaked from within. Strands of a pink, fleshly substance also hung from the wound, confirming my theory that this thing was a cybernetic construct.
Its armour was a dull silver like brushed steel and flecked with rust patches. Scores of scrapes and scratches adorned the metal, along with pockmarked dents. Its helmet had symmetrical pipes, almost like handles, emerging vertically from the sides, bending at sharp angles, and meeting horizontally at the top of the head. The eyes were black discs, betraying no emotion, with a tiny circle jutting from each like a teardrop. The mouth was merely a grey rectangle.
"You didn't have to kill him!" I yelled at the thing before me, angry at myself for letting Derek die.
"He was... defective." The creature responded, in an emotionless digitized monotone. Its mouth flashed with a blue light in time with its words. "His body was weak, his skull damaged. He was undesirable for Cyber Conversion."
"Is that what you're calling it? This parasite business. Cyber conversion?" I asked, while taking a further step back towards the door. The creature matched my movement as it shimmied forward on its table.
"The Cybermites are a simplified process. A method of ensuring an adequate labour force, and of control over targets of a sensitive nature. Full Cyber Conversion is reserved for adequate specimens."
"Cyber Conversion.... is that what you do? Upgrade other species, give them cybernetic enhancements?" I asked, feeling that answers were imminent.
"The Cybermen will do more than simply upgrade your kind. We remove class, and creed and colour. We remove emotions to create unclouded judgement. We remove your differences. We will make you like us, to serve the Cyberiad. We will unify your people."
"But what if we don't want to change?"
"It is foolish to resist. Emotional thinking is illogical, and counter productive. Without emotional conflict, without the need for sustenance or rest, you would be more efficient. It is logical."
"Yes, but at what cost? Why would anyone want that if it means losing their humanity?" I asked, still slinging towards the door. I'd passed the front desks by now, and the Cyberman kept from the rear row to the front to keep pace with me.
"Exactly. You will lose humanity. You will become Cybermen." The creature continued in its monotone. Its face an expressionless mask.
"And if we refuse, what happens to us then?"
"Then you will be terminated."
"Ah. Took much to ask that we could maybe live in peace then." I said, affecting a cheery tone.
"You attempt to mock. Your humour is merely a mask for the fear you feel. Your emotions betray you and weaken you."
"I beg to differ. But let's agree to disagree on a point of philosophy. Tell me, if the Cybermen are so mighty, why are you legless, swinging among the lampposts, capturing students?"
If the Cyberman was capable of embarrassment, its cheeks would be glowing. Instead, it stared at me with its unblinking orbs.
"My vessel sustained damage. We impacted upon the surface of this world. I was the only member of my crew to survive, though not without damage. This planet had not yet become technologically advanced enough to affect repairs, so I placed myself in suspended animation. After an indeterminate time, I was awoken by the effects of construction above my resting place. My ship leeched power from the generators of this facility, enough to restore emergency power and trigger my revival."
"OK, so you were short staffed. You needed the manpower from some new buddies to repair yourself and your ship, so you released the Cybermites. But why take students from the surface? Isn't that inviting trouble?" By now I'd reached the door of the lab.
"The Cybermite's control allowed the creation of an illusion that this base was still operational. Some were taken for full conversion, but other organic frameworks were necessary."
"What, were the staff here not of sufficient quality for you? Something doesn't add up, because you're too desperate to be picky here. No, I think you've got a problem with your conversion process. It's killing all your potential recruits, forcing you to expose yourself above ground." I stated, cockily. A plan was starting to form in my mind, but I couldn't get too excited just yet. I still didn't know if Susan was alive, and I was trapped in a room with a deadly cyborg, who I'd need out of the picture if I had any hope of rescuing Susan.
"You have been scanned. Your body is physically fit and your mental faculties are above average. You could survive the conversion process. You will be upgraded."
Things were escalating, and I tried not to panic. Not too much anyway. In desperation, I pointed my screwdriver at the Cyberman threateningly.
"Stay right where you are." I said, giving a noble if flawed attempt at a confident authoritative tone to my voice.
"Sonic devices and electroshock weapons are ineffective against the might of the Cybermen."
So much for that plan. I scanned the room for something else to use. Something that could either stop the Cyberman or slow him down. There was a canister of liquid nitrogen in the lab, but I didn't have the time or safety gear to mess with it. Instead, I aimed the screwdriver away from the Cyberman, towards one of the glass wall cabinets.
"One move and I shatter that glass. Instant lockdown for this room. There's 15 strains of disease locked up in there, shame if it got out."
"Your deception is obvious. Cybermen do not suffer from disease. It is only your body that will suffer and die." Damn. He had a point. This was a terrible plan.
"Yeah? Well, if you want to convert me, you won't want me infected. So back off."
"You are more difficult than is acceptable. You are not required for conversion. Other suitable candidate can be sourced. You are expendable."
"Oh yeah? Expend this!" I yelled as I activated the screwdriver. The glass case shattered, along with most of the vials and test tubes stored within. I instantly regretted both my course of action, and my pitiful choice of one liner. For a moment, the Cyberman stated blankly at the shards of the cabinet, as if failing to process the irrationality of my actions. As soon as I'd pressed the switch meanwhile, I'd spun around and swiped my spare security card against the door, hoping it would register before the containment seals locked in place. Luckily, I just managed to swing the door open as the alarms blared. The lighting in the lab switched to a red glow and extractor fans struggled to keep air within the room. I flung myself through the door even as it began to swing automatically closed. I could feel the rush of air behind me as the Cyberman pounced, followed by the relieving thunk of its bulk upon the sealed door. I took one look back at the creature locked within. I knew it was only a matter of time before it hacked its way past the defences or smashed its way out. I had to act fast, before anyone else could be harmed.
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