Leviathan(58)

Frank fell into a chair in front of a terminal, putting on the communication headset that he had grabbed from Tolvanos. Connor ran back to the doorway, glaring down the hall.

He saw an entire platoon firing through the doorway, some kneeling, some standing, each man shooting continuously until the clip was gone and instantly inserting another to continue firing in a full-automatic blast of flame that never ceased and lit the corridor with hellish light. Then Chesterton screamed another command, waving frantically.

“Pull back! Pull back!”

Enraged, Chesterton grabbed a soldier and shoved him as a portion of the portal tore away. “Move, boy! Get out of here! It's coming through! Barley! Barley! Give me a tactical retreat!”

Instantly Barley turned and ran to lead half the platoon up the hallway. On Barley's order they turned at the doorway beside Connor's doorway. Barley continued shouting commands until half of them were kneeling, half standing. No one fired.

Then the big lieutenant roared at Chesterton, and Chesterton's men fled from the Observation Room doorway as the wall gave way, collapsing into the corridor with the beast half-emerging, forelegs tearing maniacally at the steel, rending, roaring. Almost instantly the dragon-head snaked through an opening to strike down, snatching a soldier from the ground, tearing the man instantly into blood-green shreds.

“God Almighty!” screamed Chesterton, lifting his hands as shredded flesh rained blood across them.

Screaming, tearing against the steel beams, Leviathan lifted its head to swallow a portion of the soldier down its throat. Chesterton had turned to charge full-speed up the hallway, blindly firing his rifle back over his shoulder. Connor watched all of them race past Barley's position, threading like lightning through the ten men who still held a disciplined formation and as the last of Chesterton's men cleared the standing-kneeling formation Barley screamed again, raising his rifle to his shoulder.

“FIRE AT WILL!”

Blinding gunfire erupted in the corridor and Leviathan's bright green eyes shut, head lowering. It began swiping the air with the forepaws, still half-held by the steel-granite wall and Connor whirled back to Frank to see the scientist bent low over the terminal, pounding violently into the keyboard.

Connor ran forward. “Do something, Frank!”

Frank raised his hand, speaking into the headset. “GEO, confirm voice control by Dr. Frank.”

“Voice control confirmed,” the computer replied over the wall speaker.

Frank rose. “I'm ready!”

Connor ran out of the doorway behind him, seeing Barley's team retreating in small steps.

“Fire grenades!” the lieutenant shouted.

On the command two grenades exploded against Leviathan's armored scales in roaring, mushrooming blasts and flame and blinding heat. Connor threw a forearm over his face, watching the beast fall back at the murderous impact, shaking. Then Leviathan bellowed and, in a titanic effort, began tearing itself through what remained of the concrete wall, dragging a hundred tons of steel bar and granite block in its wake to emerge fully into the corridor. Then it turned toward them with glaring green eyes.

A reptilian shriek thundered through stone.

“Retreat!” yelled Barley and together they were running.

Connor heard Frank screaming into the headset: “GEO, prepare to close the vault of Alpha Corridor!” But in the chaos and confusion Connor didn't hear the computer's reply. Then they were at the exit of the corridor as the steel walkway behind them trembled with a monstrous, pursuing stride.

And another.

Barley paused in the doorway, shoving the shoulders of those who came up, pushing them though the doorway while continuously firing his M-16 from the hip. Teeth gritted in a snarl, the lieutenant fired a grenade launcher attached to the rifle and another blast shattered the corridor, a scream echoing from the location of the impact. Connor fell through the door, the last man. He staggered up and whirled to see Frank still on his knees, staring straight down the corridor as Leviathan recovered from Barley's grenade, rising, always rising.

With a Dragon's wrath, Leviathan came for them.

Frank screamed, “GEO! Shut the vault door of Alpha Corridor! Shut it now! Shut it now!”

“Fire! Fire! Fire!” Chesterton bellowed.

Twenty rifles erupted in a volcanic stream, a solid wall of blazing steel with men standing and kneeling to fire grenades and clips that streamed into the face of the Dragon and Leviathan staggered, rocked by the continuous impact, armored scales lost in the flame of explosions and still it came forward, swiping the air, slashing, screaming, shrieking...

Connor stood his ground, watching as Leviathan rushed toward them, unstoppable and unkillable and enduring all they could deliver and then the gray titanium vault of Alpha Corridor slid from the roof of the tunnel, descending in the face of the beast, slamming shut at their feet.