18: CAYT -Emma-

I opened several canisters with the OCS label and mixed them together carefully. This mixture of chemicals needed to be handled carefully, as mixing them could cause a hefty explosion if not done right.

All I had to do was get past the hundreds of creatures at the door and then I could find my way out of the lab. I closed the canister and walked to the door. Shaking the canister I opened the door, tossed it out, and then quickly closed it. I had seconds to dive behind something before the door was taken off its hinges.

A smell of burnt flesh hit my nose as I looked around at the door. The floor was littered with hundreds of dead, or half-dead moths. It wasn't surprising that they hadn't all been destroyed, I had designed them to last as long as they could.

I hadn't done much to them. I took ordinary moths, edited their DNA a bit, and then gave them the chemical known as CAYT. From there I just watched them, and recorded what I'd seen.

I picked my way around the moths trying to ignore their cries of pain; their calls for help. There were more in the building so I had to be careful as I traveled through out the compound.

When Patrick had first given me CAYT, I'd done some researching in the old case files. The origin of the chemical was listed as unknown and the chemical make-up had elements I had never seen before. Patrick had been studying this chemical before I'd been born and so many failed experiments were attached. Despite the constant failures, I could see how beneficial the chemical could be if harnessed right. It could cure disease, power weapons, give an energy output that would leave nuclear fusion in the dust.

I crept past the open door of the observation room. Laying on the floor inside were two guards, clearly dead, judging by the lack of head. It was there that I'd first learned of the problems when using CAYT. The first being that it only reacted with organic cells, and the second being the unpredictable mental and physical mutations that it caused. The reaction the subject had to the chemical depended on many factors, but mostly on how it entered their system.

One project was stopped because a mixture of CAYT and various other chemicals caused some of the workers to go insane when entered directly into the bloodstream. It had been a massacre with only one person who had surprisingly survived, only to be given the death sentence for mass murder.

I walked past the origin of the outbreak; a small laboratory holding living moths that had been injected with CAYT, inside small jars. Several scientists and guards were scattered through out the room, missing various body parts. I gently stepped over the broken glass as I made my way across the room to a cell phone I saw laying on the floor.

I punched in the number and smiled when I heard him pick up.

"Hello?"

"Hi, it's Emma."

"Well, hello. I can say I am certainly surprised and glad to hear that you've survived this unfortunate incident."

"Mr. Bernauw, I need help getting out of here. I'm at the compound."

There was a slight pause on the end of the line, followed by a loud sigh.

"You see Emma, I have a team checking things out and if they can get to you, they will. How ever, I can not promise anything and as soon as my team is extracted, I'm going to level the entire place whether you're still there or not."

"So how long do I have?"

"I'd say . . . three hours. It could be longer or shorter though; we've already lost one of the team and I'm afraid it isn't looking good for the other two."

"I'll get out in time. Bye."

"Bye Emma."

17: Robby's End -Jay-

We each dove in opposite directions as the moth smashed into the place we were standing. I took the left, fixing my gun to its side as I ran. The bullets ate through its burnt flesh, splashing its insides all over the ground. I met John behind it and in unison, we turned toward the back end of the moth and unloaded the rest of our ammo into it.

As I reloaded I glanced around for any sign of Robby. I saw him running toward an alleyway as the moth chased him down.

"Shit! John, the moth is after Robby!"

"DONE!" John finished reloading and ran toward the alleyway.

Robby had his back against the wall, his gun hanging at his side. He was trying to reload when the moth hit him. The gun strap tore away and the gun flew on to the roof of one of the buildings. He dropped the clip and raised his hand in front of him. The moth dived toward him as Robby swung.

The sound that emanated from the alleyway made my stomach drop, and my eyes lose focus. The sounds of bones crunching and Robby's screams soaked through my skin and cut unseen wounds. My friend was dieing.

The guns were useless. Fire was useless. I had even run a car into this thing and it still had enough strength to take one of us down. It took Robby down.

"Noooooooo!", I ran toward it, John following suit.

I could tell that John was thinking the same thing as me. You can beat us till we bleed, you can take away everything we have, but the one thing no one can do is hurt a friend; unless they want to end up dead.

The Moth turned toward us, its gaping maw dripping with blood. It roared loudly as me and John leapt into its mouth.

16: The Four Musketeers -John-

Broken elbow or not, I wasn't going to just let this thing kill us that easy. As it lumbered toward me, I glanced to my left and spotted a car. Grabbing Jay, I dragged him over to the car as fast as I could and pushed him beneath it.

No sooner had I gotten him under, when I was slammed to the side by the moth’s flaming arm. I hit the ground rolling, trying to ignore the pain in my arm while putting out any fire. Exhaustion and pain made it hard for me to move, but I rolled to my feet and tried to lead the moth away from Jay. The ground shook as it got closer and I couldn't run anymore. I quickly spun around and ducked under the moth’s belly.

Running beneath it I felt the heat from its charred, flaming skin. I shoved the knife up in to the charred and burning areas, cutting them wide open. As I cleared the back of it, I could hear the creature’s screams of pain as fluid and some innards spilled from the cuts. I didn't look. I just kept running.

That's when I heard the buzzing above. Glancing up, I saw one of the smaller moths flying toward me. Why do things have to keep getting worse? I dived behind a trash can as a dart hit where I'd been running. The larger moth had turned around and was making its way toward me. I heard several loud popping noises coming from somewhere.

To the left Robby came running from an alleyway, his gun in his hands, firing away at the massive thing. He saw me and ran over as fast as he could, avoiding darts from the smaller moth.

"Are you alright?"

"I'll live. Jay's underneath a car behind that thing."

"Is he?"

"He's knocked out. Robby, I've thrown everything that I could at this thing, it won't go down."

"John, cockroaches can live a week with out their head. Bugs are known to live through extreme things."

The large moth roared and began running toward us.

"Robby, Jay tried blowing it up. I shot out its eye and sliced it up a bit. It's just not stopping."

The smaller moth flew around so that it could hit us and took aim.

"We have to move."

"Yeah."

At that moment a small plane flew in from the side, blasting away with small guns on its side. The small moth turned toward it and shot three darts. The plane dipped and weaved to avoid the attack and then turned off to the side.

"Stupid moth! John, why'd you have to go and get yourself in over your head?", Tim's voice came from the small craft.

Something about that guy just gets me angry, "Couldn't have gotten here sooner you little prick?!"

Robby pulled up his gun and began to fire at the gargantuan moth, "Now's not the time to argue."

I pulled myself to my feet and raised my fist at the small plane, "When I get back . . .!"

"I'm expecting it!" The small plane flew off to resume its battle with the little moth.

Robby's bullets weren't stopping the moth; only slowing it down. I lifted my gun with my good arm and just as I was about to fire, I felt a pain on the back of my head.

"Nice way to save my life!", Jay stepped next to Robby and began firing as well, "You could have just said duck."

"My way was funner." I lifted my gun the best I could and began firing.

15: Enter The Fray -Tim-

My fingers flew over the keyboard as fast I could get them. The satellite images showed the situation going from bad to worse. I needed to find some way to help and fast. I tried my best to ignore Patrick leaning over my shoulder.

He'd gotten his composure back, but you could see that he was still very angry. This girl, Saba's death, had been an unexpected development and anything Patrick didn't expect was a pleasant thought.

"So, after your done helping them, then you'll get me as much as you can on that damned Ben?"

"Shut up." I could find nothing I could do. These computers weren't sophisticated enough to get me what I needed.

"DAMN!", I slammed my hand on the keyboard, "I can't do anything to help them from here."

"If I could get you access to a remote controlled military plane, would that help?"

"You can do that?"

"Get up." I moved as Patrick sat down and began accessing the deeper files, the ones I didn't even know existed. Moving through the system with ease, he opened a program labeled, 'Emergency Exposure Procedure' and suddenly the screen was flooded with a first person view of a runway.

Patrick stood up, "It's just like a video game. The plane is not very large, almost the size of a hawk, but it has two weapons. Side mounted automatic rifles and as a last resort, the entire thing explodes on impact. Also, you can speak through it using a sophisticated radio system."

I sat down and clicked, 'Start Engine'.

Even as I worked my fastest, I knew I wasn't going to make it in time. Even if I didn't get there to save John and Jay, I'd make that thing wish it'd never hurt them.

14: Repay -John-

Up ahead, I spotted an abandoned gas station and sped toward it as fast as I could; not fast enough. My feet were knocked out from under me, lifting me head over heels and depositing me to the ground. My broken elbow slammed into the ground and as I yelped in pain, the moth’s head descended toward me, mouth open wide.

I was thrown off my feet as an explosion rocked the ground. I looked toward the beast to see Jay running toward me, away from the flaming wreckage of a convertible as it exploded. The fireball flew out toward us as I pulled myself to my feet and began running with Jay.

We leaped to the ground to avoid burning hot pieces of metal and moth as they flew all around us. Roars of agony could be heard through the flames and smoke as another explosion shook the ground. Soon all we heard was the crackling of the flames.

Jay sat up and turned to the fire, a smile on his face.

"Thanks." I sat up and looked at my elbow. It was clearly broken.

"I turned the corner, saw that thing about to chomp on you, and thought, 'Hey, that thing needs a hole in its side.' ", Jay laughed a bit.

A low whistling noise, and suddenly there was a large dart at my feet. One of the smaller moths had finally spotted us. Jay got to his feet and was just about to start running when a loud roar was heard from the fire. One of the giant moth’s limbs reached up and snatched the smaller moth right out of the sky. What was left of the car was hurled at us as the moth-beast pulled itself to its feet.

Thinking quick, I grabbed Jay’s feet and yanked them out from under him. He fell back as the flaming car flew over his head.

With a loud thump Jay hit the ground and stopped moving.

The huge moth-beast lumbered toward us, half its body on fire from the explosion and the other partially crushed by its own weight. I grabbed Jay and started to drag him. One glance told me he was breathing, but I didn't know how bad he hit his head. The moth was gaining on us quickly. With my elbow, I couldn't carry him any faster.

I glanced back at the abandoned building. We weren't gonna make it. I turned around and grabbed Jay's knife off his belt.

As I stood there watching a creature much larger than me rushing toward me, I got an image of the Snake Goddess (UC case2) in my head. Jay had risked his life to save me twice, and now it was time to repay the favor. I flipped the knife over in my hand and prepared for its arrival.

I was pretty sure I would die.

13:Keeping Ground -John-

The giant moth leaned its massive bulk to look me in the face with its huge multi-faceted eyes. There was nowhere to hide and I wouldn't get very far running. I stared at the creature. Was I scared?

Terrified.

My brother always told me that when you have your back against the wall, and your enemy is bigger than you; the best thing to do is show no fear, don't lose any ground, and make a big show.

Moth-beast opened its great maw, and roared like I've never heard a moth roar before. Bits of vomit flew out splattering on the ground and my chest, powered by the force of its rotten breath. By the time it closed its mouth I'd brought my fist back.

I swung my fist as hard as I could, slamming it into the moth’s beak. Caught by surprise, it pulled back its face with a small roar. I'm sure I didn't hurt it, but it was enough to give me time. I lifted up my gun and aimed for its eye.

Pulling the trigger, I fought the recoil as I tried to keep the gun trained on its eye. My ears began to ring as I watched the creature’s eye shatter. I was so busy keeping my self on target that I didn't see its limb come flying from the side.

The air was forced from my chest as it collided with me, sending me flying into a wall. Razor sharp jolts of pain flooded my mind as I landed on the ground. The cries of pain from the moth-thing were getting closer as I lifted myself to my feet. I looked up to see another limb swing forward.

Fighting the pain, I dived to the ground as the limb smashed the wall behind me. Dust flew through the air as the wall collapsed, leaving someone’s bedroom exposed. The moth turned to look at me with its good eye and roared again.

I pulled myself to my feet and started running. I didn't get far when I was hit in the back and sent sprawling. I rolled on my back, lifting the gun and pulling the trigger. Lead hit its paw as it came down to stop my movement. The recoil slammed my elbow into the ground with a loud crack. The moth-thing pulled back its arm in pain and roared loudly again.

I spun up in a run, looking for any place to hide from the certain doom that followed me. I'd already emptied enough ammunition in the thing to take down ten men and it was still coming.

I'd need something bigger than bullets.

12: Ah, Vomit. -John-

No one ever likes the feeling of being crushed, especially when it's because of a large moth creature who has a fondness for human flesh. The last thing I remember is Robby yelling for me to look out, and then I wake up halfway down the gullet of our friendly neighborhood moth man.

Maybe I was too big, or maybe it had other plans. For what ever reason, I wasn't about to just sit here. I still had my gun and a small knife so I could probably get it to let me go, but I also could get it to swallow me the rest of the way.

Thinking fast, I pulled my gun so it was facing down its throat and unleashed a horde of bullets. The sound was deafening but I didn't need to hear anyway. I felt the muscles loosen and I started to fall the way I didn't want to go, so I quickly yanked out my knife and slammed it into the side of the creature’s esophagus.

Down below me I heard a faint sound of hissing, then a sudden silence. The smell below reminded me of bad eggs and raw bacon, and it was getting worse. A blast of air lifted me from my perch and I was shot from the mouth.

Pain enveloped me as I smashed into the ground. I moaned and rolled to look up at the creature, and watched as the contents of its stomach fell through the air toward me.

The damn thing was puking on me.

11: The Sad Anger Of Patrick -Tim-

By the time I'd hacked into a satellite capable of showing me what was going on in Europe, things had gotten a little crazy. A huge moth-thing was searching for something near where everyone had been dropped, and a lone red convertible was making its way through the streets, closely followed by two smaller moth-things. John and Robby were nowhere to be seen, but I figured that was what the massive moth was searching for.

I had no communications with them and Patrick had decided that he had to keep a closer eye on me, so he lounged in a nearby seat. The pressure was phenomenal for me to do my best.

"It's not gonna help if you're looking over my shoulder."

Patrick laughed a little, "I'm your boss. I'm just doing my job."

"Could you do your job somewhere else?", I asked, my voice full of hopeful sarcasm.

"My trus-", Patrick was interrupted by the ringing of the phone.

"I hope someone died.", and I meant it.

"Hello.", Patrick answered. Then he was silent for a few moments.

The expression on his face changed from his normal to sadness in an instant. The phone dropped from his hand and he sat there staring into space.

"No. No. No." He fell to his knees, tears flooding his eyes. His body began to shake as sobs found their way from his open mouth.

"No, she can't be. She can't be gone! They took her from me! She was mine and they ripped her from my hands!"

I was completely surprised by his reaction to the phone call and the only thing I could think of doing was getting up, and putting a hand on his shoulder for comfort. Big mistake.

He slapped my hand away and pushed me so hard that I slammed into the opposite wall. The air left my lungs and as I gasped he slammed into me.

"YOU! You and your little friends killed her! That stupid bear and retarded-idiot! I’ll tear all of you limb from limb! None of you will survive my wrath! I'll kill your families one by one, and then go to your friends! Then once they are all DEAD, I will take my time torturing each and everyone of you until you scream for death!"

His strength was something I'd never felt. I'd been punched by many people but never have I felt this kind of power. It was as if I could feel his hatred flooding through me and picking at my soul with tweezers.

"I didn't do anything to you." Speaking was much easier after I'd caught my breath.

He loosened a little, "Ben, Ben Ashford . . . He did it. He's the reason she's gone. If he hadn't come in to the picture, then they all wouldn't be together."

He let me go and pointed to the computer, "Everything you can find about Ben or anyone that stays with him I need to know, RIGHT NOW! I want you to destroy his bank accounts and trash his life anyway you can."

"Who did he kill?"

"Saba, my Saba.", Patrick was near tears again, "They hit her with a car."

"Oh wow." It sounded like there was more to it, but to avoid anymore attacks I just let the suspicion pass, "Okay, but first I have to take care of that."

On the screen behind Patrick, the giant moth-thing had stopped searching and was now holding something in its mouth; something very human.

10: A Fighter -Emma-

The photo of my Father was all I had to look at in that room. The beast outside, moaning my name over and over again like it knew me.

It was at times like this when I wished I wasn't such a genius.

I stared at his picture again. It gave me strength to see him, because I knew how important he was. I knew that he'd died saving the world, saving me and Mommy. Well, just me actually.

Shortly after, we got the news that Mom was found in the bathtub with her wrists slit and jumbled letters sprawled across the wall; "JMCMBACFNBPBSZTDJBRO" followed by the words, "Find them and be saved." I'd been quickly put in to a home where my intelligence blossomed. I still can't figure out those letters or those words, but I won't stop trying. My Father wouldn't have given up, so why should I?

The door shuddered again as the specimen slammed into it again.

"Emma Kayser . . . find them . . . "

My breath caught as I heard it say that.

"Be saved."

How did it know? How could it know? Telepathic? That's impossible, but so is that beast outside the door.

"They are so close, but I am soooo hungry. I can't stop myself. So hungry." Another slam emphasized how hungry it was.

"GO AWAY!", tears flowed down my cheeks, "Leave me alone!"

"Emma . . . we need you to come to us. Come feed us. We are so alone."

I looked back at his picture. He wouldn't just give up.

Alex Kayser had been a fighter.

9: Escape In Style -Jay-

One thing I hate about being connected to weird things are the creatures. They always get tougher, always get faster, always get smarter, and no matter how many walls you put in front of them; they always seem to break through. So, when I was running from the massive moth beast, I wasn't surprised when the wall next to me exploded and threw the flying pieces of wall; its limbs trying to grab me for what ever reason.

Jump over the first, duck the next, and a swift turn to the right. Jump the table and there's the window. My freedom or my doom. I hate gambling.

Glass shattered around me as I flew from the second story of the Rott am Inn to the street below. Pain shot through my shoulder as I rolled into a red convertible with its top down. I swung my gun up toward the side of the house as the beast turned the corner, and then I let him have a taste of lead.

The creature pulled back quickly as pieces of hot metal slugs smashed into its face. I used what time I'd gained to glance into the convertible. KEYS!

One leap and I was in the car. I didn't take long before I was driving away from that Un-Godly creature. It was way too slow to catch up to me and I wasn't about to stop to let it. I was going to leave its buzzing in the dust. I could still hear it, as if it was close, and moving as fast as me.

A green dart oozing with purple fluid appeared in the seat next to me, and glancing back, I spotted a smaller version of the larger beast. Two more darts flew past my face. I swerved down a side street as another dart embedded itself into the asphalt behind me.

So there I was, sitting in a convertible with no idea how to get the hood up, wondering why this would happen to me.

And they start shooting darts. Life's just not fair.

8: A Week Ago -Emma-

The glass doors closed behind me as I rushed toward the chemical lab. The situation had gotten way out of hand. It was just a test; it was only supposed to be an experiment.

Behind me I heard the low hum of hundreds of thousands of wings as the spawn of test subject FE1314I985 pressed against the glass.

“ Emma . . .”, a wispy voice echoed behind me, “Come to us, Emma . . .”

A week ago, my life was completely normal . I was just a kid graduating high school. It was eight years before I was supposed to, but what would you expect for a child prodigy?

Now I’m here, running from something that I told them was too unsafe to keep alive.

“Emma . . .“, as I shut the door to the chemical lab, the glass door shattered, “Why do you hate us?”

I backed away as it slammed into the reinforced door.

“Don’t leave us! EMMA!”

I sat down against a counter and wrapped my arms around my legs.

The voice turned into a wail, “Emma Kayser!”

A week ago everything was . . . normal.

7: Something About Patrick -Tim-

Pain coursed through my hand as I slammed it on to the keyboard. John, Jay, and Robby were stuck with out communication in a creature infested area of Germany, and all I could do was frantically try to get a satellite image. That of course didn't go over so well. I couldn't hack in to the satellite with out permission from the government.

I had to get Patrick. I stood quickly and turned to see him stroll on in.

There was something about the guy I just didn't like. Something about his eyes, his walk, and his ability to gain immediate authority just by being there. He gave off this old and powerful vibe like something out of H.P. Lovecraft.

"Something the matter? I haven't heard any news from our ground units in quite a while."

Screw his authority.

"YOU!", I closed the distance between us quickly, "You sent them in to a dangerous situation with out any warning! You kept vital information from us that would have let us prepare accordingly!"

Now, I'm not such a strong person, but I'm not afraid to step up and wallop someone. Especially if said person may have killed all of my friends by being retarded. So I swung, and immediately found myself with my back on the ground and no idea how I got there.

"Now Tim, you did fine on your own. You hacked in to my system and learned all you needed to know." I was silenced by his face, full of killing intent as if I'd insulted his honor, as if I was beneath him. A bug to be squashed. My silence didn't last long, I could care less if his honor had been tarnished and I was willing to die for my friends.

"I don't have communication, you stupid-idiot! Something attacked them! They could be dead, and if they are . . ."

"You'll what? Try to hit me again? Learn your place before I show it to you! You think they’re dead? Let's see what we can do about getting proof before we go off the handle.", Patrick's face was emotionless now, "I'd hate to have to kill you before you do any real work for me."

I didn't blink. I didn't even look away, "Patrick, if they're dead . . . I'd hate to be you."

Patrick only smiled.

6: No Bones -Robby-

"Wake up!"

The world was blurry as I opened my eyes, and only shapes could be seen.

"Finally, are you okay?" The voice was John’s.

"I don't know, my head feels kinda weird.", I tried to sit up but fell back down as a wave of nausea hit me.

"Stay there for a bit. You took quite a hit to your head.", I heard him move away, "It's still out there looking for us. There's three of them, one on the ground and two in the sky. The two are smaller but boy, are they fast."

I blinked a few times and my vision slowly returned to normal. John and I were in a small kitchen near a gaping hole in the wall which, I assume, was made by one of us as we were assaulted. Fighting the nausea, I pulled myself to my feet and walked over to where John sat, looking through the hole from around the wall.

I glanced outside and spotted the largest moth-thing I'd ever seen. It was the size of a small plane and its eyes were the size of car tires. It stood on four legs and had two more of what looked to be hands, which it was using to lift cars while it searched. The two flying above were definitely much smaller but their eyes were about two times the size of the larger ones. They were flying back and forth across the area in a weaving pattern.

"Those two are the scouts. They're the ones we have to worry about. The big one looks like he needs to be close in order to see."

"Then all we need to do is distract the two in the sky and then we make our run for it."

"Where to?" Another wave of nausea hit me so I sat down.

"Well, this place doesn't even have a first aid kit, so I'm thinking a hospital."

"Did you try to get a hold of Tim?" I was hopeful for another plane, but figured that Patrick wouldn't bother sending one.

"Yeah, I hate to say it, but both of our radios are busted."

"Phone?"

"Power’s gone. Which reminds me, I figured out something interesting about our caterpillar friends." He got up and made his way to the other room. Following, I entered the dining room and was greeted with a sight that made me cringe. Each of the chairs were completely covered with the sticky webbing we had found outside. That wouldn't have been so bad if they weren't in the shape of humans; two males and one female.

"They're carnivores? How do they catch the humans in these positions? Didn't any of them fight back?"

"I don't know but I poked around and-" He swung his rifle, smacking into the male’s head, knocking it clean off with a squishing sound. Inside the nests were thousands of caterpillars and no human remains.

Not even bone.

5: More Than He Told Us -Jay-

The weapons he gave us seemed like over kill for what we were after. We needed high powered rifles for a few caterpillars? There was more to this than we were told.

We were dropped in by plane, landing in the parking lot of the only Inn within the small town of Arbing; Rott am Inn. We all shuffled quickly out of the plane and it slowly lifted into the sky. Our only escape just left.

Luckily we had radios.

"Hey, Tim?!", John nearly screamed into the radio.

"OW! Not so loud, I can hear you fine." His voice was fuzzy but it was there. Our only way out of this place was talking to him, not that I didn't trust him. I just didn't trust the information we'd gotten from Patrick, and I suspected that the second we became a liability, these radios would suddenly stop.

What can I say, my trust is very limited.

My turn to talk, “Tim.”

"Yeah?"

"Do you think you could do me a favor and check what kind of information Patrick has on this place?"

"Don't trust him either? I've already started worming my way in to his more . . . sensitive files. When I learn anything, I’ll let you know."

"Thanks."

The town looked normal besides the lack of people, and the occasional large mass of webbing the size of an ice cream truck. As we made our way outside the inn’s parking lot we came across one and, like the scientist he is, Robby was the first person to go over and began examining the fibers.

"Wow, would you look at this thing?", he could barely contain his excitement, "What if they're man eating caterpillars? Then we'd have to watch where we sit because one of them might nibble their way up your a-"

"Hey guys?", I'm pretty sure that everyone was grateful for the interruption. Robby is like that; always turning everything he can in to a very disturbing image. It was one of his quirks. Nobody enjoyed it, but they didn't stop it either because then Robby wouldn't be Robby.

"Yeah?", John responded while we all helped Robby collect some samples of the webbing.

"Okay, I think I've figured out why he sent us in with the kind of firepower he did. Apparently his "friend" was actually a squadron of armed men. He'd sent them in to retrieve a sample and document the situation. Seems they had perfect radio contact until they started to take pictures of the caterpillar nests, which I presume is the large cocoon that you people are poking at."

Patrick was keeping information from us, which was to be expected, but just pissed me off. Right now we could be working toward our real goal when instead we're miles away from home looking at the nests of killer caterpillars. Still, Patrick knew more about this stuff than we did.

"With the amount of nests we've found, these are going to create hundreds of butterflies." John had opened a hole in the nest and was staring at the writhing caterpillars that filled its interior.

Looking in, Robby laughed, "These are aren't gonna be butterflies. They're gonna be moths. I recognize the type. I've never heard of them making nests this size though."

By the time we noticed that it had gotten unusually dark it was too late. What ever had blocked out the sun landed on the ground with a thump. A blast of wind sent us all flying in different directions all at once.

I felt the radio slip out of my hand as I smashed into the upstairs of the inn.

I tried to lift my head but decided to black out instead.

Flashback Entry 4: Anyone Can Play -Robby-

Do you know what it's like to walk around your entire life with out having anyone who would understand you? Having no one who would give you a chance to prove your words to be true? My life was like that until I met them.

I had seen them at the library many times, playing a game I'd never heard of. Every day I listened to the story. A story of a group of heroes doing their best to save what was left of their world. I was entranced by the depth of the game and the opportunities that it presented.

The loneliness I'd felt my whole life seemed to slip away as I listened and soon I longed to join these heroes on their quest; to ride on the back of dragons and wield power beyond imagining. I felt some connection to these fictional characters and because of that, I began to feel a connection to the people they represented.

Something in me made me approach them and I'm not sure exactly what it was.

"Can I join you guys?"

"No.", a large guy piped.

I shouldn't have tried. Sadness filled me like usual as I turned to walk away.

"John, I'm not going to stop anyone from playing this game. It's not like it's an exclusive club or anything."

I turned back to them and the tall, skinny guy looked at me, smiled and said, "Sure you can play, but you'll have to make a character."

Over time I got to know them better and respect them each for their own brand of strength. Tim, the smart one whose talents were admirable. John, the tough one whose heart is bigger than his ability to reason. Jay, resilient and creative with just a touch of anger.

I didn't feel as alone anymore.

Flashback Entry 3: Done The Same -Tim-

I couldn't breathe; at least not very well. Pains in my chest caused me to sit down and gasp for breath. All this because I laughed at the internet?

I took a deep breath. More pain.

This wasn't happening. I wasn't ready to die.

"Dude, you all right?", John looked sincerely concerned, a first for me.

I shook my head, the pains were worse and I couldn't talk anymore. I was getting dizzy and it was hard to move. I was terrified. They had to call my Mother. They needed to get me help.

"Carl, call his house. I don't think he's okay. He's red in the face."

Carl rushed off and in only a few moments he came back, "She called a cab. It will be at his house in a few moments."

What? Why my house? Why not here? I needed it now. I tried to pull myself to my feet because I'm not the type to give up.

A person can go for a long time with an injury with out having much problem. How ever, there comes a point when it's just too much and the human body can not function like it used to. I was at that point, so it took me almost a minute to get to my feet.

"You can't walk." John walked over and put his arm under mine, and let me lean on his shoulder.

We began the trek back to my house which was three blocks away. The further we went, the weaker I got and the more pain with every breath. As we walked, John kept taking more and more of my weight until he was practically carrying me.

John carried me more than two blocks to the cab.

The hospital told me that I would be okay, it was a common lung issue.

When I asked him why he did that after I got out of the hospital, he just looked at me, "You would have done the same."

All I could do was smile and say, "Damn straight."

2. Europe -John-

"Hey! Wake up!"

I wasn't about to get up in the middle of the night. I rolled over, grunted, and fell back to sleep. A second later I was shaken again, and I recognized Tim's voice as he called for me to get up again. I opened my eyes and glanced around the room. No one was there.

"Dude seriously, pull your ass out of bed. Patrick is here with our next assignment." This time I noticed the distinct crackle of the intercom.

"Are you watching me sleep? That's just wrong.", I sat up in bed and reached for my shirt. It was a company shirt, and by company I mean evil syndicate run by Patrick Bernauw. A man as mysterious as he is rich. I had been waiting for him to call on us for a job.

"Shut up and get over here. Idiot." That was definitely Tim on the intercom. He'd been given the computer job, a low-risk information gathering type thing. Not that he couldn't hold his own, he was just better at computers than field work.

"So what's this about?", I had slipped on my shirt and the door to my room slid open of its own accord. It could be opened from the inside as well, but the master controls could open it. Another thing for me to worry about if I piss Patrick off.

"Caterpillars.", Patrick's smooth voice came over the intercom as I walked down the halls. Something about his voice gave it an old quality, though the guy looked like he was in his 30's.

"You're gonna need to tell me more."

"A European town named Arbing vanished yesterday. Every person just disappeared with out explanation, which is very unusual. I sent a friend up there to check it out and she sent me pictures of what looked to be webs. On closer examination, it was found that these webs weren't of arachnid origin. They were caterpillar nests. Nests the size of an SUV. I tried to tell her to get a sample when suddenly the phone hit something hard, and I heard her scream in the distance. It seems there is a hostile entity up there and I need you to be the rescue-research group."

"You think these caterpillars have something to do with it?"

"I can't say." I swear the guy sounded like he knew all ready, "I can, how ever, say that you won't be going in there empty handed. I've got quite the arsenal for you."

"When do we leave?"

1: Obviam Vita -John-

My name is Johnathon Nathon Miller, and I was once a good guy. I still feel that my cause is good, but my methods have certainly changed from my previous work. Now I have a goal and will do nearly anything to see that it's done, and done well.

I'm not much of a leader, but he knew how to bring Alex back and so I took the job anyway. Did I trust my new boss? No. Did that matter? No. He was better than that spineless Ben Ashford.

Don't understand? Well, let me catch you up to speed . . .

A while back a friend of mine, Alex, found out that our hometown was soon to be a crater, because of some ancient sun God. Alex, my brother and I went to see if we could avert this tragedy. Turns out we could, at the cost of Alex’s life. Alex decided to leap to his death and save the whole town with his selfless act. I could have saved him but my brother held me back.

I had to listen to his screams for ten minutes and I'll never forget how many times he yelled for help.

My brother and I, decided to go searching for Gods and other beasts, and destroy them as revenge for what their kind did to our friend. That's when we found Ben, and really it's all because of the book. Ben's biological father wrote a book and within the book rests hundreds of information on the creatures we were searching for.

One thing led to another and we soon found ourselves working side by side with not only Ben, but another friend of ours named Jay. Jay seemed to have a different type of motive and he really only wanted to bring Alex back. He was willing to risk everything and sacrifice any life to do just that. He failed thanks to the concerted efforts of Ben, my brother Carl, and a young, zombie girl named Crystal.

That's when P.B. contacted me directly and offered me this job. Jay had the right idea in finding a way to bring Alex back, but he had gone about it wrong. Patrick Bernauw, P.B.; claims to have a way to do it right and all I had to do was work for him.

So now I'm the leader of a team of hunters, all working toward the goal of bringing our friend back, while keeping our representative from using us to his own ends. To be honest though, as long as he's helping us bring Alex back, then we'll do what ever he needs of us.

Isn't life grand?