Chapter 8
At the Allen Mines, the entire desolate hillside was surrounded by police tape. Numerous police cars were parked outside the perimeter, with heavily armed SWAT officers patrolling the area, keeping unauthorized personnel at bay.
Ephraim Goodweather slowly approached and showed his credentials. Under the escort of an officer, he entered the dark cave.
The cave's exterior had been excavated into a large pit, with five white tents surrounding the area.
"Hey, Ephraim."
Jim, wearing a thick coat, greeted Ephraim with a serious expression.
"What's the situation?"
"We've sealed off the pit and found some unusual things inside!" Jim's eyes flickered, his voice urgent.
Ephraim patted his shoulder. He and Nora, both clad in white protective suits, followed a staff member into the mine.
As they ventured deeper, the cave walls began to show traces of an unknown sticky substance under the searchlights.
Ephraim's gaze fixed on a pool of the substance. He seemed to glimpse something within it.
"Nora, bring the UV light over!" Ephraim said thoughtfully.
Soon, the purple light illuminated the cave walls. Ephraim and Nora's eyes widened in shock.
The walls were covered in the glowing traces of an unknown liquid, far more abundant than they had initially seen.
Under the UV light, a tiny worm emitted smoke and burned up instantly in Ephraim's astonished gaze.
After a series of sterilization and disinfection procedures, Ephraim, feeling a sense of urgency, entered a nearby research tent.
Jim was watching a staff member carefully manipulate something. Ephraim approached as the man used tweezers to place a slide with the collected liquid under a microscope.
"What's in there..."
The staff member frowned. Ephraim took the microscope from him and looked through it.
The unknown liquid contained several tiny worms, wriggling slowly.
"Initiate Level 1 containment measures!"
Ephraim's face was unprecedentedly serious. Recalling the dead people in the hospital, he felt a sense of foreboding.
"Ephraim! An old man outside says he needs to see you!" A police officer suddenly entered the tent.
"?"
Outside the perimeter, Ephraim impatiently looked at the elderly man with white hair and a cane.
"Are you in charge here?"
Abraham's expression was solemn as he looked at Ephraim.
"Yes! What do you need?"
Ephraim tried to suppress his anxiety, speaking calmly. With the unknown outbreak causing chaos, he had no time to console an old man who had lost his family.
However, things did not go as expected. "Everyone here is infected. Anyone who came out of that pit must die. You need to cut off their heads to stop the Blood Master's plot!"
Abraham's face was filled with anger, his eyes fierce as he stared at Ephraim.
"What?"
Frowning, Ephraim looked at the old man who seemed to be rambling. He doubted the old man's sanity. "Sir, please leave. The CDC is handling this!"
Ephraim dismissed Abraham's warning and turned to leave. Nora looked apologetically at Abraham.
"You must cut off their heads! They will rise again, becoming bloodthirsty monsters!" Abraham shouted in frustration, soon being dragged away by Jim.
After tapping his cane in anger, Abraham drove off in his old car.
Nora, walking behind Ephraim, watched the old man leave, deep in thought.
In the mine.
"Ephraim, maybe you should consider the old man's advice," Nora suggested, looking at her longtime friend and colleague. "Cut off their heads? What century is he living in? I seriously doubt his mental state," Ephraim said, tapping his head in exasperation.
Ring, ring! The phone's ring echoed in the cave. Ephraim checked the caller ID and quickly answered.
"What? They came back to life?"
Ephraim's face showed surprise and urgency as he hung up and rushed out of the mine. ...
At New York Central Hospital's CDC unit, Ephraim marched in, followed by Nora and Jim.
The CDC unit was bustling with activity.
"They're the relatives of the mine victims, and there are some reporters too!" Nora explained quickly to Ephraim.
"Okay."
Ephraim ignored the crowd and went straight into the hospital. His eyes immediately spotted the people surrounded by quarantine tents.
Scanning the familiar faces, he approached a pale man.
"Doctor, I'm fine now. Please let me go home!"
The pale man stared directly at Ephraim, hearing a mysterious voice urging him to go home and see his family.
Noticing the man's unhealthy complexion, Ephraim frowned. The man's skin had an unnatural grayish hue, a potential sign of an underlying disease.
"Sorry, sir, but you may need to stay here for a while," Ephraim said firmly. But soon, the phone rang in the CDC office.
Jim rushed forward with a worried expression.
"Ephraim, we've been ordered to release all the survivors!"
"What? What are they thinking? These people are definitely compromised!"
Ephraim stared at Jim in disbelief. Quickly, he called someone, his expression changing rapidly during the three-minute conversation.
Soon, with the help of medical staff, the revived individuals were reunited with their families and taken home.
Looking grim, Ephraim didn't understand the higher-ups' decision. Nora, concerned, patted his shoulder.
"What about the deceased?"
"They should still be in the morgue."
Rushing to the morgue, Ephraim sensed he had overlooked something.
Entering the chaotic morgue, his gaze swept over the bloodstains on the floor, making his heart sink. Nora let out a scream.
"David!"
A bulky figure lay on the ground, his neck covered in blood.
Ephraim hurried over, Jim following with a shocked expression.
As Ephraim neared David, the bloodied man suddenly convulsed and sat up.
The sudden movement made Ephraim halt, instinctively pulling Nora back.
David, pale and shaking, staggered to his feet and walked towards Ephraim.
"David?"
Nora's face showed concern, noticing David's vacant eyes.
"Something's wrong with him!"
Ephraim's eyes were fixed on David's pale face. His once-close friend approached, pupils narrowing as he stared directly at Ephraim.
In the next moment, under their horrified gaze, David's cheeks split open, and a tendril shot from his mouth towards Ephraim like lightning!
(End of Chapter)