[M] Sleepers

[Tammika]

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Jackie Summers
Age: 25
Job: Geneticist and head researcher for MiltonCorp Labs a government owned research facility responsible for the proper extermination of zombies and developing new technique to fight them.



"You got fifteen minutes, Jackie." He held up his hands to stop the predicted onslaught of protesting and complaints. "No, make that ten. You don't even have the security clearance to be hear Jack, so if this goes bad, if you are wrong, all hell could break loose. Don't come screaming up from there with a shit load of zombies on your ass. Got it?" Grant held his rifle at the ready as him and six other men stood at the entrance.

Jackie started to respond but all the comments, both thankful and sarcastic, jumbled up into a pile and were trampled by the excitement of proving her colleagues wrong, finally. She stepped in behind him and put her hand on his arm, squeezing slightly. The gesture conveying both her thanks and her appreciation for making this one last attempt for her. If it didn't work it would mean her career was over, or they all die.

"The clock ticking, Rat, now get." This time he didn't turn around and look at her, but she understood her brothers ways. A sad grin pulled at her lips and she let go, hurrying into the dark corridor.

A makeshift dome had been put up over the new site on short order but the force field that surrounded it was no joke. The laser eye above the key-scan dock was capable of cutting her into two neat pieces in a matter of seconds and if that missed the ones on the turret would finish the job. Jackelyn placed her arm into the groove the soft blue light shining on her pinched face as the hum of the computer filled the small space. It scanned the stolen ID bracelet and her wrist. "Sorry, Parker, maybe you'll forgive me if I'm right." She wore an imprint of her senior lab tech's hand in a glove like form over her own, complete with regenerated cells for authenticity. It had taken three months to perfect it, mostly due to having to do it secretly.

The hiss of wind as the circular doors slid apart revealing the inner chamber startled her. After a split second of hesitation she darted through the opening before the timed door shut on her, dropping the glove as she ran. It couldn't be used a second time anyway. ...six minutes...

The tunnel was dark and eventually she had to hold onto the poles haphazardly stabbed into the tunnel wall to keep from slipping, just when she thought she would skid into a slid the floor leveled out revealing a small room and a second door. For this one she only scanned the bracelet and played the voice recorded on her bracelet. "Sleeper alpha thirteen." The second door slid away and a horrid scent hit her making her stumble back, then forward again before this door shut on her also.

"Cryogel may have been advanced then but this shit stinks after a few hundred years." Seven tall cylinders large enough to fit a full grown man suspended in the preservative glowed eerily inside the sleeper cave. Jackie approached the first one, tucking a stray curl behind her ear as her brown eyes squinted to read the markings on the base. "2012, bingo."

She slid the pack off her back and set to work, adrenaline causing the foul smell to fade into the back ground as she wove back and forth between the panel on the wall and the first unit. There was no way to only 'wake up' one of the sleepers, but she could prevent the others from escaping should they prove to be zombies. Without help she could only rebalance the fluids in one cylinder at a time. ...two minutes... After what seemed ages she finally balanced the chemical within the cryogel first and then added the specially made serum from her back pack into the injection point on the side of the tank. Jackie hit the drain sequence and watched as all seven tanks were drained of fluids. If she did it right only the man in the first tank would wake up.

"Times up Jacks, second guard is returning for inspection, get out of there now." Her brother's voice chirped from her own ID wristband.

"Two more minutes!"

She stared at the man in front of her, clothed only in a small pair of white shorts and suspended by a frame and life support lines running along his body and around his waist. As and after thought she hit the release button and watched the IV lines retract and the safety clamps release the body. Jackie crouched next to the glass with both hands against it, sliding to the ground as the body did. "Come on... breathe. Breathe" It would take thirty seconds for her to know for sure if the technique had worked. After that time the eyes and skin of zombies would take on a green or blueish hue from the absorption of the cryogel and one of the waking agents used when rousing a sleeper too early. A sleeper would maintain his normal coloring.

"Now, Jackie now!"

Before she could reply shouts and screams could be heard of her comm unit and muffled thumps was all that sounded through the thick doors. "Grant? Grant?!"

Three of the light on the sleeper unit flicked to red and alarms sounded. faint beeping indicating the subject had not regained full consciousness and was now entering a coma. "Shit what the hell?"

The door shook. Whatever was up top had reached the second door. Jackie drew her side arm and watched with horror as the last thee units began to move.. and turn a distinct shade of blue green. "Fuck fuck fuck fuck!"

Running to the opposite door that led to God knows where she began the opening sequence. Glancing back at the first tank. He was beginning to move and his skin was clear! She slammed the keys and the door opened only halfway revealing a second hallway. Weaving between the other tanks she squealed when one of the zombies lunged at her from his glass prison, pointing her gun at it but not firing. It wouldn't take much longer for him to be free.

She knelt before the rousing sleeper. "Hey... hey! Can you hear me?" When he opened his eyes she smiled at him. The whites of his eyes were white as they should be. Jackie hit the button for the cryo unit to open releasing more of the foul smell from the cryogel. "Come on. We have got to go." She held out her hand to him. The banging on the other door turned into a scraping drilling sound. "Come on!" She grabbed his arm and started to pull on him. if he wasn't able to move she would leave him if whatever it was breached the door.

Jira was in there for far too long, in the past he was as ordinary as anyone could get, but that was a looong time ago. He was actually thought to be dead, a tragic traffic accident which marked death for the poor boy. They managed to keep him barley alive on life support, and then the dome's that he was now sleeping in. There was no hope, they merely offered his body to science a little illegal yes, but it happened. As chemicals were pumped into his body over the years..changes started happening, even long after the place became abandoned power still ran into the generator before this entire incident little would anyone know that the boy inside was actually..evolving, accomplishing something no other human could.

Suddenly and all at once his body fell from the goop, his body forced into shock as one would..but it subsided surprisingly fast she could see his pupils dilate and return to normal as if his body..was more in control than him. "Uhnn.." He said his voice raspy from being in there so long not using any of his own limbs, he was brittle still. "W..where.." He said his voice struggling to get out. He'd see her then, in his current state he'd see her as good, the world around him almost glowing she'd seem more of an angel than another human. He blinked that odd blur around her refused to subside. He couldn't think as he felt the cold floor against his body.

All of his senses in over drive. She rose her hand to his. And weakly he reached to take hers. he had no idea what was going on or the state of the world but he couldn't help but feel like he had to trust her. He was delusional, he didn't know what was reality yet he seemed..competent despite what his body had gone through, had those chemicals being put into his body done more than simply cure him of some weird disease. She'd feel his wet soft hand, and odder still, the needle holes around his body were actually beginning to heal before her eyes as if his body had suddenly gone into overdrive..he seemed to be able to talk at least and have a slight mind of his own, he wasn't a zombie or didn't appear to be one. His skin was still soft, not metallic lifeless as his hand would wrap around hers. She could see his eyes were still slightly glazed an unavoidable side effect from being in that tube for so long, these delusions the weakness of his body that was being restored slowly.

Her voice echo'd in his ear the words sounding more like mumbles as if he was still getting over shell shock, he didn't know what was going to happen now but he was putting what trust he could in her because of his well being as out of sync as it was, he wasn't sure what should happen now and what or where they were going to go. She seemed worried but he couldn't really hear the zombies their voice masked by the shell shock and because of how far they were from him.

His body almost understood what his mind could not. His legs began to move with her as if he was running, he was starting to feel his legs almost unwind from their brittle stage as he ran after her. The world a blur but all he knew was that he had to keep up..he did not know why she ran and he saw her worried expression as something she did not have time to explain. His body slowly returned to normal, more normal than it was and enough to run as he was.

[Tammika]

Once they were through the door she pulled him through and hit the lock sequence on the outside, taking the risk this new corridor would lead out. Her sense of direction was pretty good and she had gone over the surrounding area with her brother before all of this.

Grant... She shook her head, he could handle himself and he was helping her willingly, he believed in her when no one else did, even though he was a soldier and she a scientist.

Not knowing his size she had crammed a generic worker suit into her backpack. "Here, put it on." She stepped close ready to help if need be, they didn't have much time. If it was zombies they break through in another half hour, if it was guards they be through even faster. "Do you have a name? I can't exactly all you by you cryo number. My name is Jackie."

Once the running stopped his breathing regulated almost instantly, his body was showing signs of being..a little odd in terms of how fast his body had all recovered, during their running his delusion went away seeing the scuffed perhaps ragged girl in place of a girl that was almost glowing as if he was having a seizure earlier from the shock. Yet again it all seemed to pass almost instantly his body had taken a lot so far and now his eyes had even returned to normal.

Jira felt..different at first when she let go he looked at his hands..they seemed to no longer have scars or cuts even the calluses on his hands had gone away..yet he felt somehow stronger. He looked at his arms..his legs they were a tad bulkier as if his entire body had essentially fixed itself while making him stronger..faster..smarter. He was all in all just better it all felt so weird though..in fact despite the temperature in this corridor he seemed fine. Like he wasn't too hot or cold. He was suddenly rushed clothing into his face and blinked suddenly remembering she was there.

"Uhm Jira, wait..what is going on..where am I.." Last thing the boy remember was being thrown into his wind shield..then darkness. "Is this a dream...did I die?" He asked..if she was a dream it was doubtful she could tell him that..but to him this entire situation felt surreal, the futuristic technology on the walls..his very understanding of what was happening around him.."Cryo..number?" He said before trying to slip on the suit..it didn't fit, it was a little too long but he could deal with it, he rolled up his pant leg so it wouldn't get in the way of his feet after slipping on the boots.

[Tammika]

"No Jira,you are not dead." Of all the sleepers this one hadn't even been willingly put into a cryostasis or maybe he lost some of his memory in the process. The chemical combination was much more stable now. If they knew what we know now we wouldn't be in this mess.

"I don't have time to explain but we have to get you to a safe place." She wasn' t sure if there was still a we but she had hope. "I'll give you the short version so as not to freak you out when you leave this sleeper tunnel. This is the year 2212 and you were put into a cryostasis state. You were possibly given altering drugs but we can figure that out later. For now trust me and follow me and hopefully we'll get where we need to be."'

Once he was dressed she headed for the end of the hall and was met by another door. She quickly entered the proper opening sequence and was met by a blast of cool night air as they door slid open. Before she emerged with Jira in tow she tried one last time to contact her brother.

"Grant, you there?"

"Yeah! We had a little trouble at the entrance but managed to get out of there.. most of us." Meet me at the usual and I'll explain it all. And be careful Jacks."

"No problem."

"I promise I'll explain it all on the way, Jira. Stay close."

She drew her gun again and slipped out the door after checking to see if it was clear.

Jira was taken aback..that explained the futuristic wiring and well..the gun itself, it looked old modern but could see a lot of high improvements. He actually took a step back as she gave him the info. He thought for a moment..he didn't really do well in the past, failed relationships always craving more, thats why he ended up in stasis. After the deaths of his parents he really lost the will to live, he wasn't close to them and it was something he regretted he decided he was just go 100mph for aslong as he could have. He was an amazing driver but for a straight thirty minutes he eventually crashed.

"Uhh..okay." He said a little..oon edge still with the entire situation that he had to now go through.

[Tammika]

"Come on!" She hissed at him. She knew he'd be in shock, but thought his superhuman instincts would kick in. he was designed to be a an elite soldier. Maybe his body had rejected the enhancement, the only way to tell was to examine him at her private lab, which is where they were headed."

The dome was built over the newest sleeper site in order to protect it from the common people and people like her. it wasn't attached to any laboratory or anything like that. They were just thrown up whenever one of the many sleeper colonies was discovered. This one was in the middle of nowhere. it would take an hour o two of walking to meet up with the truck to get them out of here.

Zombies had been awakening for the last twenty years and there has been little success in curing them or finding the reason for there mutation of sorts. All they knew now was that the first one was discovered during the last years of the war. An explosion uncovered a sleeper pit and over a hundred zombies emerged. The military secret had been discovered and her company had been assigned to basically clean up the mess. Or make a good show of it to calm the people.

For an hour they had snaked their way along the rock barren path by the light of the moon before they saw the truck right were they agreed it would be. she pressed her thumb on her comm band and a light flashed in the truck.

"That you Jacks?" a whisper replied.

Jackie grinned and motioned for Jira to follow her to the truck. soon they'd be much safer.

Jira mostly admired everything as he walked the hall way the technology behind it, he was amazed with it all..he wanted time to take it apart examine it, really..understand it but the sound of the various screech kept him on edge. He hadn't actually seen a zombie yet nor did he know what they looked like. He had played games with zombies sure but normally it was a game..and the zombie was slow stupid or the main character had a large gun to compensate for the main characters intelligence. This was real though, he had only one life and he was still trying to understand..all of this.

He looked up astonished at the futuristic truck. He followed inside still having no choice but to trust these people. he saw them then..the soldiers he could almost..empathize, the feeling of being lost, hopeless denial of these feelings. He could almost read it on all of their faces as he could with a lot of people in the past. He always knew what people felt and because of tihs was always considered one of the oddest people. None would open up to him like that even if he could tell.

[Tammika]

Scott was driving and two others sat in the back on guard in the small truck. Jackie opened the passenger door motioning Jira in first. After making sure he was settled hopped inside to sit beside him in the front.. The trip to her make shift lab was a long one and thankfully an uneventful one. If it wasn't for being so scared she would have fallen asleep from pure exhaustion. Adrenaline gives you a rush, but the resulting down could send you crashing don hard, literally, she was learning this the hard way. A lab was her territory, but current times had turned the average person into a mercenary fr the most part.

The rocky terrain was nondescript and they only passed one town. An abandoned desolate place that was really just remains of a small town, long ago destroyed by one of the largest zombie take overs that had reached the main city. The whole thing was flattened by a bomb to halt their advance into the larger city.

Soon the truck was pulling up to a secluded warehouse on what was thought to be an unprotected zone. It was... at least unprotected by any official government body. This was a private warehouse and when first view most would think it was one of many makeshift communities. A small band of families living together that didn't want to be lorded over by the local corrupt government body. It was in a sense and it was Jackie's second home and lab.

She led Jira inside and offered him a place to rest in one of the common rooms. It was as close as she could get for now until space was cleared for him.

"I know this is a lot to ask but since you have just come out of cryo...um.. a medically induced state of rest, I need to run a few tests to make sure everything is okay. I don't want to do thing without your permission..but.. some that have come out of cryostatsis have been extremely violent in reaction to it. We just want to be fully sure you are okay."
They would force him if need be. It would be for his own good, but he was a human first and she would explain all that was needed for him to understand the danger to them all and himself...if there was time of course. If he went berserk he was going to die quickly.

"Will you allow me to run a few quick tests?"

If anyone was looking at the odd boy dressed in mostly old clothing that appeared to be from the past which was an odd sight compared to what the mercenaries were wearing. He gazed out the window in dis-belief..the world he knew before was gone. Nothing was the same in fact despite his super natural regeneration he couldn't help but feel..lost like there was no longer any stability in his life. It seemed the only thing his body could not quickly repair was his psychology. The road ..everything it seemed so..deserted. That ghost town was the worst. Even as they passed it Jira couldn't help but just stare at it he could be near his own home town and wouldn't even realize it anymore.

Jira could almost sense the desperation in the air as he entered the warehouse. It felt very odd, normally he was the one who never fit in who always wanted more than life could offer nor did he know how to get a grasp on life back in his own time..but here people seemed so close knit this entire ware house seemed to be like one big family. He did not know if he was being accepted into it or if he was simply some sort of super human that was needed for something larger than himself.

"Uh..sure." He said after listening closely. He didn't feel very violent, the same loner, stoner, adrenaline junky who didn't seem to belong. Of course the amount of energy that flowed into his body was almost beast like. He felt like he could almost take on the world at the moment. "Do what you need to do." He shrugged looking at her as he waited.

[Tammika]

The range of emotions that passed over Jira's face wasn't missed by Jackie. It tugged at her heart to see it, but at the same time she was giddy with excitement. If he got the all clear it would mean she was right. She had properly narrowed down the main cause of the mutation, a reaction between the carriers of the gene altering drug and the system suppresison cocktail in the cryo untis themselves. If it could be properly contained when they are roused in the proper time frame the sleepers had a better chance of survival and less of a chance of going berserk.

"Thanks. It's really important. Come on, follow me." She led him to a lift that took them down to the lower level. This level was made up of a large lab on one end and her personal sleeping quarters on the other. Working late made it safer to sleep here rather than make the unsafe journey home. This was really her home anyway. It was where her brother stayed with his small team. The thought bothered her. she still had yet to ask if he had returned... if any of them survived the attack. Jackie didn't even know how they were discovered so quickly anyway.

No time for worrying. people died every second, her family wasn't immune to death and it would be selfish for her to dwell on it. He would send word when and if he could. Sadly this was a common way to handle it. Loved ones went missing for one reason or another in recent times. It was the only life she had known.

"Right over here Jira, please." She motioned with a hand to the opposite wall and hit a panel button on the wall. A curved door slid open revealing a small cubicle. "It's a de-con shower. It 99% successful in sterilizing and decontaminating the skin surface for proper analysis. It's timed so don't worry. Hit the green panel once you are done and the drying fans will kick in. The sterile gown will be on the shelf. I'll be waiting over here."

The smell of despair, sweat, machines, chemicals..it all entered his nostril as he saw the world this dump of a home that was offered. He wasn't in a position nor would he really care but the people he knew in his time would not have accepted any of this. Jira was in ragged clothing when he was placed inside of the tube those who had 'bought' the anonymous boy's body hadn't bothered undressing him they had put most of the chemicals inside of him so they could monitor every aspect of his life. The sudden shock of the environment he had barley even looked at himself however it was when the slight belly budge was missing he noticed something when he had taken off his clothing..he was larger..as if the fat on his body had turned into muscle..in fact everything seemed better. He threw his clothes onto the floor not really sure where else to throw it and saw the odd water from the shower. As it hit his skin it felt like a normal shower but he was tense through all of it in fact anyone who was trained in social work or in social situations would catch on his guard was up quick, but given his life and what had just happened why wouldn't his guard be up.

He hit the green panel after about 3 minutes not really relaxing in the shower as he flinched as the hot air hit his entire body in fact..the flinch was perhaps an over reaction being suddenly surrounded by them he pretty much backed up ramming his back hard into one of the covered fans, the bang would be heard for a little ways unless this area happened to be sound proof. He got back up and moved to the sterile gown slipping it over himself and moving to find her. "Hello?" He called out his voice was even tense as he entered the common area where he was told to wait.