"Run Brie!" I yelled. 'Please run!!' I sobbed internally, scrambling up the hill after the creature. I was never going to make it in time! My mind was screaming at me while flipping through dozens of simulations and outcomes each worse than the last. I tried to move faster, but my calve muscles screeched about the unusual stretching they were receiving. I was going to have to take up yoga or something. I bent forward, grabbing tombstones and anything else I could use to pull myself forward on the incline. Brie had started to back up as the creature neared her. 'Faster, faster!' I shrieked at my body internally. But this was it, the maximum speed uphill I was ever gonna get. My lungs were fighting for air, and I was forced to watch as the shadow creature tackled Brie, knocking her out of my sight over the hill.
"NO!" I screamed, and all the rage and fear I felt fueled a much needed adrenaline surge. I shot forward, cresting the hill, looking for Brie. She had fallen between two rows of chairs, the creature hovering over her, pawing at her.
"Wherrr..sss..ittt..." It hissed at her. She was shaking her head in confusion, as it snatched off her gloves. "Wherr...ssssss...ittttt." It wheezed angrily at her again, as it yanked her arms around, ripping at the sleeves. I grabbed a collapsed folding chair, barreling towards the monster, and mustered all of my strength.
BANG! The chair made solid contact with the thing. It fell away from Brie, pieces of its skin flying.
"You ok?" I panted at Brie. She nodded stiffly with wide eyes. I turned towards the creature lifting the chair to strike again, only to discover it on the ground, a shovel protruding from its neck. I looked up to see the same man back again. I looked at him curiously.
"Almost everything dies if you cut off its head." He said simply with a shrug. "I'm Kaden by the way. I think we got most of the guests out." He reached out a hand to shake. I flinched internally. In my raw state, touch was an undesirable stimulus. As if hearing my thoughts, Kaden retracted is hand.
"Ah, sorry." He laughed. "I'm probably all covered in goo aren't I?" Actually, he seemed quite clean, not even a dark hair out of place or more than a speck on his bronzed skin. I sighed with relief anyway since I got out of another sensory overload.
"Rue." I said to him, "And this is Brie. Thanks." Brie had managed to pull herself up and was clinging to me in shock.
"Yes, thank you! I owe you my life!" She gushed "I don't recognize you, are you a friend of the family?" Brie placed a finger on her chin, tilted her head slightly and batted her eyes. She was obviously attempting to flirt. I smacked her with my shoulder. Kaden seemed flattered with the attention though, and they chatted for a few seconds as I was watching the corpse. There were splattered bits of what looked like old meat scattered around it, but the main body seemed to be dissolving in on itself, the shadows consuming it. I kneeled, watching as all that was left behind was an ugly dark puddle of goo. I was not remotely interested in touching the stuff, but Brie immediately crouched next to me to poke at it with her fan.
"What do you think it wanted?" She asked. I shrugged. She continued to stir the mess with her fan.
"Stop playing with that!" I scolded, swatting her hand away.
"Hey, I'm a scientist and this is what we do! We observe stuff and form hypotheses about it, and run experiments to see if we're right!" She bickered back. I was opening my mouth to retort but was interrupted.
"Girls....GIRLS!" Kaden practically shouted to get our attention. "There are more of those things out there and people are seriously hurt. Not to mention, I don't think everyone can see them, and from what that creature at the cave said.." My attention snapped down the hill. Nothing was there, but I felt a chill anyway, and thought I could hear a low chuckle. "..they appear to be looking for something..." Kaden trailed off. I got the disturbing feeling I was being watched, and when I looked up, Kaden was watching me curiously. Brie had her fan back in the goo.
"Brie! I swear, you're worse than a child!" I snapped, grabbing at her hands. Something on them caught my attention. I quickly turned her hands over, looking for traces of the goop, but saw nothing. She pulled her hands back and as she did I saw it again. Some strange purplish after glow as her hands moved.
"Wherrrsssitttt" I heard the seething whisper replay in my mind. "Wherr....sss...ittt". The ripped off gloves, the torn sleeves.
"Wherr sss ittt, WHERE IS IT? Artifact; where is it! Brie, where have you been lately? What have you touched?" I gripped her hands again and examined them as I asked. She pulled them from me again and stood up, crossing her arms.
"Nothing unusual, not that it's any of your business. I work in a LAB you know." She said haughtily. I stood up too.
"Anything new? Different? Strange? Any change in activities? New test samples? Bought something out of the normal recently? Work with me Brie!" I urged. Kaden's eyes sparkled with interest, looking from one to the other of us.
"Nothing different!" Brie exclaimed, feeling the pressure. "We got a new batch of samples in yesterday and the museum sent in a pair of what looked like very old shoes for carbon dating, but we didn't have time to do any of that because we're in the middle moving offices right now."
"Brie, did you help them pack?" I asked, my voice rising.
"Of course I did!" She snapped, "Some of the things that come in for testing are highly sensitive! I even personally packaged and placed...the shoes..." Brie paused, frowning. I could see the pieces clicking together.
"The shoes..." Brie moaned "Where is it? They were so strange, we'd never seen anything like them. They seemed to pre-date any shoe making attempts previously studied, so the museum thought they had a rare find on their hands...." She babbled
"Brie, Brie... Brie honey... BRIE!!" I yelled. She blinked and refocused on me.
"Where are they now?"