Loud roars filled the teleport area, the ramp clatters as the demons stomped down. At the control station the automated sensors were already cataloging information about the recent arrivals.
"What happened to the fail-safe systems?" demands Wright.
"They should be working" Nexson explains.
Susan watches the aliens reach the bottom of the ramp.
"Dear lord, what have I done?" she asks, her response came in the form of another roar from behind the view screen.
The flat hoofs of the shadowy demons stomp closer. More aliens spill from the portal.
"We have to get out of here and quarantine the lab" shouts Mason.
"Rupert, we can't lose the computer logs. Upload to data bank eighteen" the Director commands.
"Got it" he replies
He focused on assembling the files, everyone else watch as aliens crawl from the gate and surge through the laboratory. The pair of Baron roar, a glowing pentagram appeared beneath their hooves. Portal energy spawns around them, hissing creatures with spiked arms and shoulders manifested from flashes of green light and there was no doubt about what they appeared to be. Demons.
They approached the control room and draw their sharp claws against the barrier and leaving deep scratches in the nano-mesh screen.
"Now upload over subspace to 10-42-89. Hurry" Wright says.
A Hell Baron pressed its clawed hand against the barrier, a swirl of green plasma emerged from its palm and began burning through the screen.
"Okay, it's done. Let's go" shouts Nexson.
Smoke was already brewing from the window as they headed through the seating area to the doors behind. The demon then punched its fist through the molten mass and applied all its strength against the small hole. The Baron rips a long gash in the barrier, paths of nano-relays within the material overload. The researchers stop at the entrance and looked back to see mobs of demons spilling through the newly formed passage as the Baron rips the hole wider. The Director uses his PDA to quarantine the laboratory.
"Command authorized, quarantine conditions in effect" chirps the station computer as the door closed and mechanical locks slid into place.
"That's not going to hold them" says Susan.
"It will buy us some time" the Director replies.
Demon were suddenly pounding the door, the supporting frame rattles.
"We've got to hurry, go!" says Kronos.
They jogged the long hallway, the tortured sound of ripping alloy comes from behind. They reached the monorail station, the Director calls a car to the terminal as demon break out of the lab, crawling along the walls and ceiling.
The monorail car stopped at the station with a sigh as the break pressure released. Demon began spilling into the station, the researchers scramble into the car as creatures raced closer behind. Kronos runs to the controls at the front of the car and slapped the command to start the electro-magnetic propulsion.
The doors slid shut, aliens began clawing the vehicle. The monorail car begins its slow startup, the creatures followed its movements as it speeds away.
"What in the hell was that? Were those devil horns?" asks Leonard.
"That's what they appeared to be" Rupert replies.
Kronos watches security footage from the lab on his PDA, it continued burning with portal energy and releasing creatures onto the base.
"Unless the marines can contain this, we may need to evacuate the station" he says.
"Some of you may get away unscathed but I'll be ruined if the station is overrun, it must be contained to Echo Labs" the Director states.
"We have even bigger problems the Phobos base has declared an emergency" he says.
"Allen, how could this happen? The communication program can't run on its own" the Director asks.
"It seems impossible, I'd have to study the logs" Dr. Mason replies.
"During the ritual I could see the alien's history, began Carmichael, I had a vision of the ancient Martians suffering this type of invasion with their own portal technology, they had the same kind of system but someone destroyed it to stop the aliens" she explains.
"Are you suggesting that we destroy the teleporters?" Director Wright asks.
"I think it's the only way" she explains.
"I can't believe we're entertaining this idea... Where's the monorail heading?" Rupert asks.
"I set the destination for the Command Centre" replies Kronos.
A pillar of energy forms within the moving car, a spiked brown demon manifests and attacks Leonard, he's thrown to the floor. Rupert grabs the fire extinguisher from the emergency cabinet, Susan stabs the Imp in the back with her ceremonial dagger. Droplets of blood streak over the wall and window, Rupert raises the extinguisher over his head and slams it into the demon's skull. It groans before falling over, Rupert is speechless as he drops the cylinder to the floor.
Victor quickly moves to the back of the car and removes the medical kit from the cabinet and places it on the seat beside Leonard. He screams in agony, bite and slash wounds were all over his body.
"This will stop the pain" he says, depressing a syringe into his arm.
He then applied a nano-tech healing agent to his most serious injuries, the monorail had already come to a stop at the Command Centre when he was wrapping the wounds in gauze-mesh bandages. A marine had noticed the blood splattered windows of the monorail and deployed medical personnel to the station.