Geist

[Mephisto]

Well, since this IS a writing board, I figured I would post part of a short story I'm working on. If you can't tell so far, it's based off of the Gamecube game of the same name. In the future, check out my TimeSplitters, Resident Evil, and Command & Conquer stories. I'm still debating whether or not I can pull off a fanfic based off of the Diablo series (among others). Hope you like it. Constructive criticism, comments, and/or spelling/grammar corrections are welcome. I will only be posting more sections or editing existing ones when I have a significant amount. Let me just say that this may look like the end. It's not. It's just the beginning. And don't read if you plan on playing the game and don't want spoilers.

 

Geist

 

-1-

 

There are three men standing in a poorly lit room full of computer terminals. Two are wearing army fatigues, holding their guns tightly. The other man - me - is sitting in front of one of the terminals, wearing civilian clothes under my mandatory bulletproof jacket. I only have a small pistol, while the others have what look like fully automatic rifles. I never could figure out why they only give civilians little pistols like that.

 

The taller of the two men is fidgeting with his weapon. "Hurry up! They can't hold them off forever!" Barely in a whisper: "I don't want to die down here!"

 

The shorter man, and clearly the leader, turns his back to the other man. He looks as if he's had enough of the other man's whining. "If I knew you were going to have a breakdown on us, I wouldn't have allowed you in the truck!"

 

I yank the cord to my PDF out of the PC. I swivel around in my chair and stand up. "Don't worry. I've got what we came for. Go do your thing." I walk through the door and, once I get the all-clear signal, step outside and around the corner. Sure enough, the two soldiers come running shortly after. There is a loud boom that nearly knocks all three of us off our feet. As I glance around the corner, I can no longer see the door we just came through. In the door's place is a ragged, gaping hole with dark black smoke pouring out.

 

The short man follows me around the corner. "I never get bored of doing that! Too bad we couldn't have just nuked this whole place. Oh well, one can't have everything. Let's get going before they swarm our boys and overrun this place."

 

"Sounds good to me!" The two men escort me down the hallway, one in front and one behind.

 

"Keep your gun ready! If you need to use it, use it. You know how, don't you? Point the end with the hole in it at the bad guys and pull the trigger. Even you can't screw that up. Just don't go punching unnecessary holes in our buds, or yourself, OK?" We take off at a sprint, the two military men in front and me bringing up the rear.

 

We get to the first intersection OK, but when we turn, we find that this building's security forces have blocked the exit. I spin around and start running down the opposite hallway. When I glance back, I see that the two men I came with are blocking the hallway, trying to buy me some time.

 

"Get going! You're more important! Don't make this whole thing a big waste of time. I don't want to die for nothing!"

 

"I'm going! I won't let you two down!" I turn back around and take off, not looking back. I take out our map of the complex and see that I am only a couple of rooms from our pick-up point.

 

I dash through the few remaining rooms and see the life line that is supposed to get me out of this mess. Standing next to it is one of the men I have seen only in passing. I seem to remember him from the helicopter ride in. He is trembling and swinging his flashlight into the dark corners of the room. The man turns around. When he sees me, he drops his flashlight and raises his rifle. "Stop, or I'll shoot! Oh, it's you. Good to see you. Now I can get out of here. Hurry up; you're supposed to go first. Where are the two we sent with you?"

 

"I... I think... they're dead. We ran into a blocked corridor. They told me to run down the unblocked section while they stayed to try and buy me some time." I hold up my PDA. "I didn't let them down. They have not died for no reason." I strap myself into the harness.

 

There is a sudden chill in the air. It feels like my whole body was just dropped into ice water. The sensation passes in an instant and the man beside me drops to the floor in convulsions. "Go! ... Get out of here! ... Now!"

 

"Helicopter, come in! Get me out of here! There's something happening down here!"

 

He suddenly stands up and raises his rifle. I see his finger tighten on the trigger. I see the muzzle flash. I feel nothing but numbness in my stomach. I get the feeling that I am still swinging in my harness. The blood is rushing to my head. Just before I pass out, I manage to raise my pistol and shoot the guy between the eyes. Darkness...

 

-2-

 

A flash of color… Faces… Hushed voices… A bright light… There is a tingling feeling in my stomach. I reach to feel my bullet wound. I can’t move my arms. I slowly open my eyes. I am hanging facedown over a pit in the ground. My head is the only part of me not locked down. I look down, or sideways, depending on your point of view. There is only a small discoloration where my bullet wound was.

 

A red beam shoots out of one of the walls. I try to see its source. There is some kind of laser mounted just under a glass enclosure in one of the walls. The laser meets the center of the pit and an evil-looking vortex appears. I get the feeling that something bad will happen if I don’t get out of here. I can’t move! The vortex begins spinning faster and faster. A beam of light shoots up from the center of the vortex and surrounds my body.

 

The pain! It feels like I am being ripped to shreds! Just as quickly, it is over. I can move! I look back down. What’s this? That looks like my body!

 

A voice seems to be speaking very slowly… “The test was a success! The first in the new line of our Spectral Ops!”

 

I look to see where the voice is coming from. There is a man standing inside the glass enclosure surrounded by men in white lab coats. His voice booms around the chamber with no visible means of amplification.

 

One of the men in lab coats speaks. “All vital statistics normal. This is the first time we have successfully removed the spirit from the body, while leaving the body in perfect health!”

 

It’s too much… I begin to black out again… Just before I lose consciousness: “Get it to the holding area. Put the body in our medical facilities.”

 

-3-

 

I slowly come back to consciousness. I groggily open my eyes and glance at my surroundings. I am in a container that is made of some transparent material. I attempt to pound on the glass, but to my surprise, my hand slips right through! I climb out of the container. Climb isn’t quite the right word. I thought about leaving the container and it felt like I just… glided… out of the container.

 

“Hey!”

 

The voice startles me. I whip around in an attempt to locate the source of the sound. What looks like a human appears almost in front of me! “Who are you? What happened to me?”

Edited January 28, 2006 by Mephisto