Tower of Babel Ch.10

Ch.10

 

The Tower, as secretive as it is, cannot hide from everyone. It had been two hours now since Ben entered the Tower. A diesel engine rumbled in the distance that became a military style truck with a cover drawn over its bed. As fate would have it, on this day, another form of super men arrived at the Tower.

The truck came to a stop marked by hissing hydraulics. The driver flicked his cigarette out the window. He opened the door, hopped out, and stretched his legs. The air he breathed felt cleaner than what he was accustomed to, so he pulled out another cigarette. He placed the tip of his left index finger against the head and it caught fire.

The passenger in the cab stepped out also taking note of the air quality. He coughed a few times, but soon the air around him filled with a thin layer of toxin, his usual atmosphere. The sun touching his pale skin made him feel uneasy. A smirk came across his face as he thought of the cancerous effects of UV rays.

The driver and passenger walked to the back of the truck and met each other at the tailgate. The driver took a drag and said, “Come on out. It's show time.” He slapped the back of the truck two times then stepped back. The gate fell and a group of unique individuals emerged.

The first to step out was some aberration not worthy of seeing the light of day. This monster almost stood seven feet tall, and his limbs, elbows to fingertips, knees to toes, were replaced with dense metal counterparts. Its most ghastly quality was the apparatus he possessed that took the place, and function, of his jaw and throat. One red optic lens stuck out of his face by an inch and his other eye, dead to him, listlessly stared at the earth.

Second in line to walk forth was a boy just over sixteen years of age. He wore a large overcoat that concealed his body. Poking out of the coat’s collar was a pair of brown eyes, a freckled face, and a weak chin.

A woman came after the boy. Her forearms were equipped with mounts embedded into her bones where she brandished her weapons. Hanging from holsters on her thighs swayed two titanium crossbows. The brim of her safari hat was low, and when she adjusted its position, the purple lights of her retinal replacements shined at her comrades.

The fourth person to walk out was a dark skinned man, not as tall as the beast, who still stood over most. His lean muscle structure added to his lengthy appearance and his attire was of a tactical nature, blacked out vest and pants of battlefield-tested design. Metallic protrusions covered key points of his body and his weapons, sheathed behind his back, poked over each shoulder.

The fifth and final person to leave the truck was their leader. He stepped out of the bed and the hydraulics lifted the vehicle an inch. As the man walked in front of his crew, they came to attention and awaited orders. After looking over each member, he turned towards the Tower and smiled. The leader wore sweat pants and nothing else. His muscle mass dwarfed bodybuilders and his eyes met with the monster.

The leader said, “Gather round,” his voice baritone. “Here is our chance to prove ourselves to all those who might have doubt of Bio-Machina's capabilities. Are you ready my children?”

“Yes, Deus,” the team said in unison.

“Ignis and Gulo, you two will be team Alpha. Corvus and Sagitta, team Beta. Senium, come speak with me after we disperse.” Deus walked over to the tall dark skinned man he had yet to assign an objective. “Magnus, you have a very important mission to accomplish. You will be the one to carve a path for the rest of us. Go now and lead the way, your brethren will be right behind you.”

Magnus nodded once then jogged towards the entrance.

“All of you know what we must do here today. We will be the ones to cleanse the infestation that plagues this Tower. Inside are beings augmented by unstable drugs, a certain chemical that rots the very soul of those it has tainted. We stand here not merely as the purifiers, but as the exemplary force for the true path of human alteration. Corvus, take off that silly piece of wardrobe and spread your wings, embrace your modifications.”

At first glance the boy looked like he wore a metal vest, but this vest was an artificial muscle group that assisted in flight. Two skeletal wings spread from behind the boy, reaching twenty feet in span. Black barriers energized, blocking out air running through its fingers, as he slowly waved his wings.

“Good. Team Alpha, your objective is to cleanse any, future potential, of the abomination within the tower as well as the people who would dare assist in creating such monsters.”

Ignis finished his cigarette and flicked it. “Got it. I’ll cleanse by fire.” Ignis looked over at the beast, Gulo, and asked, “Medium or well done?”

“Team Beta, you will establish a mid-mission rendezvous point. While on your mission eliminate all and any persons within the Tower.”

Sagitta put her arm around Corvus and shook him a bit. “Looks like it’s me and you again, mate,” traces of Australia on her tongue.

“This mission will be our crowning achievement. Go forth, Bio-Machina,” and the two teams entered the Tower.

“You need somethin' boss?” Senium asked. His voice sounds filtered through a system of rusted gears.

“There's a backpack full of storage drives and encryption equipment in the cab. I want you to gather what information you can and we will take it back with us. We will prove our superiority and thoroughly display this event. Once you've attained as much data as possible, return to me, and that will mark our victory.”

Senium coughed and said, “They say sitting in front of a computer all day can be harmful.” He then laughed as he made a wheezing sound. He brought his hand up to cover his mouth then wiped the blood against his dirty jeans.

Deus patted Senium on the back. The sensors on Deus’s hand deactivated so that he could not feel the crusty surface of this sickly individual. “Spread your poison as well, child.”

After Senium walked away, Deus addressed his internal audio and video log. “This is the commencement of Bio-Machina mission: Supremacy. The Bio-Machina team has assembled at the base of the enemies Tower and at 0840 entered said Tower to accomplish the mission. The group consists of operatives Ignis the team executive, Gulo the chaos technician, Sagitta the long-range combatant, Corvus the aerial combat expert, Magnus the close range combatant, and Senium the information dominance man. I will be supervising this operation, and as a show of faith, will let my operatives conduct themselves how they please while on mission. Current targets are all augmented human beings, all collaborators within the Tower, and execution of the executive order when provided to me by our benefactors.

“Please sit back and enjoy the display of what Madison incorporated can do for your tax payers' dollars. Mission log one concluded.”