Doom 3™: Worlds on Fire

30

THEO’S MOTHER SAT DOWN FACING HIM. “THERE,”she said smiling. “I figured out how to work it. Some nice hot cereal.”

Theo looked down at the bowl. Little clouds of steam rose from the bowl.

He looked back at his mother. “What is this stuff?”

She shrugged. “Hot cereal. Just like we have back home…” Then she hurried to add words. “On Earth.”

Another look down at the bowl. “It doesn’t look like the cereal on Earth.” A deep sniff. “Or smell like it.”

His mom rolled her eyes. “Just eat it, Theo, okay?”

“And then we can explore?”

“Yes—and then you and me…explore this place.”

The panels in front of Dr. Ishii came alive. One large screen showed that now he had a direct signal to the large dish outside.

But that didn’t mean that a message here would get out.

Ishii looked at the clock above the control board. How much time did he have to do this?

And then—

(Oh God, oh God, oh God…)

Would they believe him? A screen to his right changed. Words.

“DST Activated and Ready.”

The old Comm Center was online, separate from the main controls of Mars City. Ready for deep space transmission.

Ishii reached for the controls.

Kane moved quickly. Something about this place down here made him feel that time might be of the essence. Not just a crap mission Kelly dumped on him. Something to remind Kane of his status here. And with that, a feeling that he best be careful.

He was tempted to break into a jog, curving around the massive Convergence Chamber, when someone stepped out of the shadows.

“Hey, marine—where the hellyou goin’? Nothing down here.”

Kane stopped. The man’s nameplate said “C. Rodgers.”

“You see someone come by here?” Kane said.

“Me, no. Just got here. They like this thing checked every eight hours. Always the same. Don’t know why we check it.”

The guy sounded spaced. Could they get drugs down here, stuff to drink? Why not—you could probably get it anywhere.

Kane took a step closer to the man. “One of the scientists. He could have come this way. See anyone?”

Rodgers shook his head. “Just you.” Rodgers laughed. “And to be honest…I’m not even seeing you too well.”

Kane started moving again.

“What are we supposed to do here?” Rodriguez said.

Maria looked at him. “Look like you’re guarding something.”

Rodriguez looked around Alpha Lab. “Man, this place is big. What the hell they do here?”

Maria ignored the question. But she had to admit, this was strange, all the marine squads now posted throughout Mars City.

She looked at her PDA, wishing she’d been paired up with someone else,anyone else.

Campbell made sure the door to the weapons room just off Combat Prep was closed tight and locked behind him. He went to the gleaming silver crate. Unlike the other crates that had arrived in the transport, this one featured an electronic lock. No one was getting a look inside the crate, past the reinforced titanium shell, without the code.

Campbell entered a series of six numbers. The red readout changed to green, and he heard a series of loud metallic clicks.

He waited, then started to open the crate, undoing the latches that girded the top of the crate. Not an easy task. It took his full strength.

And there, inside, the prize. The secret.

Up, up, until the crate was fully open. A second case lay beneath, but this one was constructed of molded plastic compound designed to cushion what was inside.

He popped two latches and opened that.

And there it was. What the weapons team back at UAC dubbed the BFG. Almost too much gun for one person to hold, even someone with the upper-body strength of Campbell.

He was tempted to take it out, but someone without clearance could walk in here.

It was, quite simply, a thing of beauty. Enough firepower so that one person could hold back a small army. Campbell shut the plastic cover, then slowly, carefully, the metallic crate top, which automatically locked.

A small army.

Who knows,he thought.Stranger things have happened.

Swann walked into the lab. The volunteer stood naked in one of the pods, his eyes watching the scientists moving around.

Betruger looked over at Swann, but then went back to talking to his scientific team, moving between monitors and control panels.Maybe I cut it a little close, Swann thought.

He looked at a massive digital clock, counting down to the thousandth of a second. Just about five minutes to go, assuming they stuck to the exact timetable for the experiment.