To Become Whole

"My name isn't important, but I have a business proposal for you."

Those words kept ringing in Red's head as she slowly moved down the corridors of the Titan Heights apartment complex inside Titan Station... more colloquially referred to as 'The Sprawl' during her stay here. What was once a bustling living area where children ran down the halls and the occasional spat between the elderly could be heard, only alarms and large swathes of damage remained. It had looked like a stampede of feral animals tore through here, the stench of blood thick in the air. Screams could be heard in the distance, hundreds crying out for help while Death indiscriminately came for all.

She tried to prepare for this moment. She really did. Three years as an engineer on Titan Station, running around and fixing what needed to be fixed when it came to general maintenance and when accidents had occurred and damaged the equipment. It was something of a tedious time when she was on the clock at first... clock in, find out what was wrong, do some troubleshooting, fix the problem, and clock out. It admittedly helped to calm her down and let her understand the layout of the Station, knowing she had time to get her wits about her and her equipment up to snuff for any problems while fortifying a bunker down near the Titan Mines. It wasn't kosher, but better to have a safe zone.

She had even managed to get some extra resources when Sprawl Security figured out she was modifying her own RIG and engineering tools, and it had been better than what they could normally get from the station as actual weapons and armor. The SprawlSec officers that had become aware simply brought their favored gear to her apartment during off-hours and gave specifications along with the materials and a bit of extra pay, while asking her to keep quiet that she was doing this. She had questioned the logic in this, until she realized with the Sprawl undergoing economic depression due to declines in planetcracking since the destruction of the USG Ishimura, anyone who could upgrade equipment to such an extent on a small budget would be too useful to give away, let alone flood with requests if the secret got out.

All under the table, and as long as there were no visible signs of where the modifications came from then it was all fine and dandy to them. It even came with some extra benefits, the Sprawl Security often putting her on a priority list when it came to EarthGov sector repairs and usually getting her what she needed. Before long she had been sitting on a veritable treasure trove of resources she could utilize and repurpose, broken guns meant for scrap being handed to her to refashion or just use to procure additional materials. Of course they never learned how she did it... the myriad abilities she used in secret to achieve her goals and make scarcity something of a minor issue for her.

Those were peaceful times, and for a small while, she had deluded herself into thinking maybe everything was going to be alright. That the cheery disposition would last and the friendships would see the situation blow over, the forged bonds that were made between comrades being capable of weathering the storm.

Then the initial symptoms began to show up around her. Cases of insomnia, more and more people complaining of being unable to sleep, even up to only an hour at a time. Chronic headaches and complaints of hearing noise from her co-workers and the idle chitchats of those in the Concourse shopping mall section when she had been getting some groceries. As the number of complaints grew, so did her worries. Eventually they had turned violent, the SprawlSec personnel that had been dropping by for repairs bringing gear stained in blood and complaining that the number of homicides and suicides had been spiking suddenly. Worse yet, some of these cases involved the involved perpetrators receiving visions of deceased loved ones, and occasionally the damage they did was bad enough that she had been called in for on-site repairs of various sub-systems while they dealt with the perpetrator themselves.

She knew they were coming. There was nothing she could do to stop it.

A few days later the infestation began and swept through like a tidal wave. It took them mere minutes to turn whatever sector they were in into a scene of chaos and horror, leaving Red horrified. She never liked undead, they terrified her. It had been scary enough when she watched playthroughs of the game and had to imagine the carnage and the desperation of the Necromorph's victims. Now she didn't have to imagine anymore.

As if on cue one of the apartment doors exploded out, an inhuman roar being heard as the creature lunged towards her. The force had knocked her to the ground and made her scream, flailing as she fired off her Plasma Cutter at the thing out of panic. Two shots missed before the third one blew off its left arm and made it stumble back a bit, giving Red just enough time to keep firing and try to slice its legs off. It took four more shots but eventually the sickly creature fell over and went limp... its blackened skin and rotting green flesh inert as its last act was looking up at her with its glowing red eyes as the light faded.

"Fuck... fucking fuck FUCK!!" Stupid of her. Stupid stupid STUPID. Her frustration was enough that when she got up and walked over, she kept stomping its chest cavity in to try and split it apart some more, bone snapping under her boot and sinew splitting like fibers. She could feel it, which only made her need to pause and keep herself from vomiting at the sight. However twisted it was, it was still made from a human... a person. That's what she hated the most, each one was a life lost at minimum. She couldn't help but imagine the original person still in there somewhere, screaming as their body was re-purposed and piloted to run around and kill others while they were left to suffer inside a rotting, walking husk.

Then she could hear another scream, and she could see another one of the rotting black creatures walk out with a person still impaled on one of their bone scythes. The woman crying in pain before its other scythe made a sweeping motion to slice her head off, shaking a bit to get the new corpse off its limb before turning and glaring at Red. She didn't even know it was there, murdering others. But she knew now.

It didn't have time to even roar before everything went grey. Eight seconds of free time, all thanks to the symbol on her right hand. To her, that was eight seconds to line up some shots and fire a few rounds on both scythe arms so they would be severed. To it, she was the last thing it saw before both arms were blown off and the light faded from its eyes too, its usefulness gone with them. It wasn't enough to stop it from killing the woman, but at least it wouldn't kill anyone else.

"Yessss, be sure to tell yourself that every time. I'm sure sugarcoating it will work wonders when everyone around you is dying, then being raised only to kill others."

...fuck. It was HIM. The blonde, short-haired man walked out of the apartment the creature had burst from now seconds ago, his dark suit impeccably clean like the leather shoes he had. Glasses hid his eyes, but she could tell there was no kindness within them. He showed up a day or two before this all went to Hell, being chiding and sarcastic... but any surveillance she tried to use to figure out where he came from was useless, it was like he wasn't there.

"Will you just leave me alone already? You're not helping. ...you're not even real. You're just... fuck, just some hallucination." He seemed to mock a wound over his heart as he clutched his chest. "JUST a hallucination? You hurt me with such disrespect. If I was a hallucination, then I would be someone you knew. It only uses dead people to talk, so I'm more than that. I had to exist. Who am I, then?"

"Someone who's not important."

"Ouch." He smirked even as she walked right past him, taking a deep breath before slamming her foot down on the Slasher corpse to split it apart. Get rid of what she could. Yet for all that, it didn't stop him from talking... or stop him from pointing out the other noises. "I suppose they're all not important, either. So many of them begging for mercy, for someone to save them. They're not important, then? You're just going to run away, like you've run so many times before? Hero of the Year, ladies and gents."

That made her blood feel like it turned to ice as she turned, almost screaming at him. "That's completely different and you fucking know it! Dracula at the height of his power? Scion? The Great Old One Asura? I couldn't do anything about them! There's no way I COULD do anything, they would have slaughtered me if I went there on my own!" The screaming just made the man smile, even as the glasses begun to fracture and show cracks in the lens. "And so you let the natives do the bulk of the work, pretending you made a difference by helping them arm up. How... brave of you."

"Says the crazy voice in my head who only shows up when I'm getting scared or freaked out." Yet that was something of an understatement as she turned and tried to walk away, stomping a bit more than she meant to as she checked the clips on her Plasma Cutter. "I don't have to stop you. You'll just stop yourself, like you always have. Poor, scared little girl who doesn't want her adventure to end. The poor child who wants to be strong... but never puts the work in." It was unfortunate how he was right there as she turned the corner, still smiling. "Poor coward who would rather see others die instead of her."

There was no response from her. At least, no verbal response. The only thing she could think to do was raise her Cutter and squeeze off a shot at him. It did nothing but tear off the skin from the lower half of his face, leaving exposed bone and half of his skull as blood dripped down. The scent was almost overwhelming now as he snickered and adjusted his black vest a little, as if he wasn't bothered. "Yessss. Try to kill me. Drown me out, run away from it all. It worked SO well last time."

"Will you just shut UP?!" This was getting ridiculous. No, this was getting insane. Try as she might, she just couldn't get away. Her hands were shaking as she forced herself to not shoot at him anymore, trying to focus on something other than the screams around her. Anything. They seemed to almost be louder than before. Yet all it did was make the man chuckle, motioning towards the direction of said screams. "You want ME to shut up? Try telling them that. But I'm sure if you stay riiiiight here... they'll stop any minute."

Fuck. Fuck. FUCK. That's right, them. She turned and rushed down the hall, hurrying to try and get to someone, anyone to try and save them. If she could even just save one person...

But it was not meant to be, as the floor in front of her suddenly caved in. The momentum from her running made her unable to stop herself, and soon she found herself falling in and onto the concrete floor underneath the hallway quite unceremoniously with a loud groan. That... ow. Just. Ow. Her chest was going to be SORE after that one. Why on earth did she want them so... oh. Right. Vanity.

Of course, all of those thoughts went out the window when she looked up and saw IT moving towards her. A Necromorph walking towards her slowly, looking more sleek and alien than the others had been. It was like a new creature rather than a reorganized corpse, its five eyes bearing down on her as it raised its claws. The Ubermorph.

"SHIT." She only just had enough time to reflexively fire off a stasis blast at it, slowing it down enough for her to roll out of the way and get back up on her feet. This was bad. It was here already, and while she knew it would arrive at some point she didn't expect it to be within literal hours of the outbreak. She needed to be rid of it, at least for a bit... or it was going to make things impossible for her to do anything. She didn't have time for this.

She shot off another stasis blast to keep it slowed before activating her abilities again, pausing time for eight seconds once more. But what she did this time was different, focusing as two blades manifested from her wrists for the scant seconds needed to aim and slice away. What a Plasma Cutter would take its entire clip for, she took scant effort thanks to her enhanced strength to slice away all four limbs. Leaving it in the air for a moment before she grabbed it. When the time pause faded, she was in a prime position to throw the creature through a nearby laundry chute, its roars echoing as it fell down with loud banging... and faded.

She was beginning to have a lot more respect for Isaac Clarke for making it through this nightmare. ...wherever he was at the moment.

No, don't focus on that just yet. You've got time. As long as the Solar Array isn't fired yet, you've got time. Focus on the now, focus on the others, on where you are. As she looked around while the blades on her arm began to vanish, it looked like an industrial laundry room. Only there were white sheets stained with red in open machines, and a few severed limbs by the entrance of the door. Limbs that were too small to belong to an adult... no, don't think on that. It's too late for that. Focus. Get OUT of here, keep moving. She walked over to the hole the Ubermorph had made and jumped right up, clearing it with a single bound. Sometimes, it just felt good to be stronger than other people.

But sometimes it also was a problem, as she suddenly heard the sound of gunfire going off and catching her in the shoulder, making her stumble and spin as she slammed into the wall from the force with a loud cry of anguish. A second later it stopped and the sound of other voices replaced it. "Johnson you fucking tool, you nearly killed our tech girl!"  "Hey, you blame me for being jumpy? It could have been one of those things..." "Shut it and get the med kit out!"

...wait... was that...

Holy shit, it was. The SprawlSec team that had come by her place regularly to get their equipment modified, in one piece no less. Four of them seemed to be looking around and watching the doors and vents of the hallway while the one with a red cross on the helmet was opening a small suitcase he had been carrying around his waist, swearing under his breath as he tried to get her into a seating position. "Shit shit shit I am so sorry I didn't think I'm sorry thought you were one of them they just keep coming they won't stop they never st-" "JOHNSON, focus already!" The sixth member of the team had armor that was jet black and a golden glow to the optics, the identifier that he was the leader of Squad Gamma. A squad normally consisted of eight to twelve members, but for whatever reason they had opted to remain with six members... right between a squad and a fireteam, in all honesty.

"Ugh.. look, just... just don't worry about it, I'm fine. I'll be fine." She tried to shoo Johnson off of her, making him hesitate a bit before looking over the armor... then slowly closing the case. "...she's right, Sarge. Shot didn't even pierce the armor. Probably has some heavy bruising though, she'll be sore for the next few days." The sergeant shook his head slowly, his frustration made clear. "If we all live that long to bitch about it, I'm gonna let her get first crack at repaying the favor. Samuel, what's our sit rep?"

"Same as always, Sarge, fat load of FUBAR." Samuel's equipment had been more modified for hacking and electronics warfare, which ironically made him something of an engineer in his own right as he kept tapping away at a holographic screen in front of him. His gloves had kraken tendrils engraved into the hands, his idea of feeling he got his influence everywhere. "But if you want specifics, Medical Center's a total loss and whatever those things are, are pouring out of the Cassini Towers like no one's business. Subject Four and Subject Five are still loose and Tiedmann's losing his mind over it, but Subject Four's been heading to the Towers for some reason." Subject Four... wait, did they mean Isaac?

The sergeant shook his head again, groaning before speaking. "He wants to go to that death trap with the rock worshipers and the walking corpses, he's more than welcome to it. Not our problem. How the evac going?" Samuel kept pressing some buttons before pausing. "...not good. I'm getting reports of ships crashing into each other, there's no organization down by the ports. Colonel Barlett's apparently... asking for reinforcements on taking out Sergeant Weller at the Medical Center? He's supposedly gone rogue." "Fuck that, I'm not getting involved in that spat. Give me something that involves saving people, not helping those monsters with their job."

"Uh... hold on hold o-ah! Got one, there's a distress beacon down by the Transport Hub, there's some miners trapped and are requesting assistance in getting to safety. Got their RIG coordinates." The squad started to double check their weapons as the sergeant nodded, patting Samuel on the shoulder. "Good work, Samuel. Alright Gamma, let's get ourselves going! We get those people out of there, let's go!" Before Red could say anything, the man turned to her. "You want to come with? We went through Hell to find you, we thought you were going to be in deep shit." That they would care that much... she was about to respond before she saw him again. The man in glasses, casually brushing off his dark red sleeves before looking back at her. No. No that wouldn't...

Red shook her head. "It... no. I appreciate it but no. I've... I've got some stuff to do here. There's still people trying to get out. I need to at least try, even if it's just one person. One's better than none." The squad had looked at each other almost with concern, being silent for a few moments. She could tell they wanted her to go with them. To stay with them. "Look. It's for the better. I'm... whatever is reanimating these corpses is messing with me. I keep seeing things. I appreciate you guys coming. But I'm a liability. You need to get going. Those miners aren't going to hold out."

"...alright. But if anything happens, anything at all..." The sergeant held his arm up, expecting Red to do the same. She knew what he meant to do. Syncing the RIGs together would allow for communication, and it would be better than them tracking her by RIG IFF later on. At least, she assumed that's how they tracked her. She hesitantly raised her arm as well, the algorithms doing their work as coordinates and data transferred between each both their suits. "Alright. That makes me feel better already, we'd be screwed if we didn't have your tech savvy keeping us intact. I don't know what you did to these suits, but they've been life savers. If nothing happens in a few hours, we'll rendezvous at the EarthGov Sector. We can put in a good word to Tiedmann and get you in, that thing's impenetrable." Oh. Oh gods. There? But if Isaac Clarke made it there...

No. There had to be more than one gunship. She could convince them to get there, right? If things went to shit she could convince them to get out of there with her. "...yeah. We can meet up there in a few hours. Now get going, those miners need you."

"It's a plan. You better tell us how you jumped out of that hole in one leap when you get there though, that was crazy!" The group gave waves of goodbye before rushing off down the hallway, guns up as they kept an eye out. Within seconds they were gone, leaving Red alone once more... alone with her thoughts. Alone with the screams... and alone with him.

"Meeting at the one place you know they're going to die... that's cold of you. You know when they get there it's all..." He raised his hand up as he made a slashing motion across his throat... the wound showing up as blood started to pour out and stain his clothes. "The one time cowardice would have been the smart thing."

No words. Nothing to be said as Red double checked her Plasma Cutter before walking away. There were still people around. Still screams she could calm. But as she walked off, the man's voice had one final thing to say before it faded:

"You know this will only keep happening if you keep yourself weak. Eventually you're going to find something you can't run away from, and what's going to happen then?"