The Emtomology building had been very long and narrow. The main genetics lab room was vast and lined with rows of the dark black tabletop. Scattered every few feet were sinks and gas containers.
"Dr. Muller?"
The lights in the room were dimmed. The place seemed deserted. But the absense of noise worried Lykopis. She pulled her knife out. "Dr. Muller?"
Still nothing. Maybe I overreacted. Maybe there is not anyone here. Perhaps I should start searching around. She walked over to the other side of the room. Several dead cicades were sealed in plastic bags. Lykopis read the labels out loud. "Viral variation 14-24B, 18-97B, 21-63C...what is going on here?"
She grabbed the cell phone. "Drake here."
"It is Lykopis. I have found a lead -- sort of. At least some of the insects originated from Kiel."
"What makes you say that?" Lykopis explained about Kueper and the insects in front of her. "Shit. Lykopis, get out of there."
"I can look around some m--"
"Lykopis, out of there, now! Regroup!"
"Fine, I will see you in--" Lykopis let out a painful yelp and dropped the phone. Something had pierced the area of her back that her arms could not reach. She spun around widely, hoping to grab whatever was stinging her skin.
"As soon as that virus circulates your heart, you will make a pretty corpse."
The Amazon twisted around and spotted a gray-haired man pointing at dart gun at her. He put it on the table and pulled out a normal handgun. "Dr. Muller?"
"Kueper phoned ahead and warned me. Next time, Miss Vanguard, I suggest immobilizing the witness. Not that you'll have an opportunity to do so again. I just shot one of our own viruses at you."
Lykopis felt a burning sensation on her back. "How long before I die?"
"Forty seconds, more or less."
Lykopis broke into a run. "Plenty of time for me to take you out!" She leaped over the tables and dropped to the floor in front of Muller. Using the momentum, Lykopis sprang into the air to deliver a hard kick into Muller's jaw. She rammed the palm of her hand into his nose and then made a grab for her dagger. She was about to slice his abdomen when he fired three shots into her chest.
Lykopis fell onto the floor, clutching her bleeding chest. This is it, Amazon. All you longings and all your fears will be put away. Pull away the dolls, Lykopis. You will see Cerberus soon enough. "Stupid girl. It was a bluff. The mutations are too random to predict. You might have lived if you had just stayed still."
There was a tap tap tap and Lykopis saw three bullets fall from her chest. The bleeding stopped, and she could feel flesh and skin underneath the dried blood.
This had only happened once before. Back when Jack Merlin had offered to make her immortal. I am a goddess again...
Dr. Muller seemed to realize his mistake. "Oh shit."
Lykopis leaped into the air. Her white blouse was now stained read and her hands were covered in dried blood, but her blade was sharp as it drove into the doctor's shoulder. "You have genetically modified insects all over this campus. A swarm was spotted along the eastern United States coast. Now a swarm is heading here. There wont be much of the cattle industry left in Schleswig-Holstein after those bugs get through, right?" Muller nodded. "What is going on? Tell me! Or by Athena I will gut you now."
"Shit, I'm bleeding all over the place -- ah, don't push it in further! We sell genetically improved insects here. We've been using viruses to modified their genome. Scientist do that all over the world. We just managed to create meta-strains. The viruses don't seem to care about what host. They'll exchange DNA with any organism out there."
"And Maryland?"
"We sold a batch to some people interested in a biochemical attack on the US Government."
Lykopis dug the knife in further. "And why Kiel?"
"Another shipment was requested by some Columbian guys. Brood XIII excaped from the cargo ship. That's what is attacking the city now."
"So how to we stop them?"
Dr. Muller grinned. "That's the beauty of it, isn't it? Most people design a fault in their products. A chink in the armor. Something that they can control. Us? We made our product perfect." He began laughing. "It can't be stopped. You just the first one that's infected."
Lykopis threw the man across the room. "Some infection. You have made me invincable, fool." She began coughing. "Still, I better find Drake and tell him the news."
