In the research laboratory of the Central Office of the SBU reined the usual working mood. Dullness of everyday life somewhat brightened the appearance of a new intern Lena Firsova for which zealously and so far unsuccessfully courted the junior researcher Vlad Solomin. Helen constantly was laughing at his last name, although by her opinion Vlad was a genius in computers. Almost Bill Gaits, but unfortunately not as rich, says more precisely – not rich at all.
Trying to show her desire to work actively and productively, Lena as a rule came at work before anyone else. Painted, slender blonde, attracted the attention of not only all men but also women's half-staff of research center. Only the interests and desires about Lena of men and women differed.
Men wanted to invite her to coffee, to the movies or wherever she agreed, but women, women too, for coffee, shopping and gossips. Lena had been liked by everyone in the office. She was kind, cheerful non-conflict girl.
Immediately she made it clear that married men can only admire her beauty from the close or far distances. As you wish. She was not a supporter of office romances. And she liked Vlad. But seriously did not take his courtship, although his jokes, happened, amused her. Lena was in love with Lieutenant of SBU Andrew Kovel. They even had one date.
Knowing that Lena comes to work before the rest of the laboratory staff, Vlad also began appearing on the work, or simultaneously with her, or even a few minutes earlier. So it was today.
Hearing that she came in the laboratory and felt so familiar and already pleasant and desirable perfume of Lena, Vlad turned his head away from the monitor, squinting, examined her and was pleased with what he saw.
‘Lenochka, but do you know what for we need love?’ He immediately went on the attack.
‘I’m guessing.’ Girl replied evasively, looking in the mirror at her pretty face.
‘That’s in order to explain the necessity of sex.’ Vlad explained with some satisfaction.
‘Hum. That's even how.’ Lena said slowly carefully tinting her lips. ‘Well, it seems, that time of knights’ gone.’ She added, glancing at Vlad. “I wonder how many hours he agonized before came up with this at the same time witty, but stupid joke?” She thought, while she was switching on her personal laptop. It was time to get to work.
‘By the way, about the knights…’ Vlad picked up a new topic. ‘Alas, the time of knights passed. But you must admit that the ladies are not the same too.’
Lena tilted her head to the monitor. She liked Vlad’s phrase.
‘And bonus.’ Vlad happily almost solemnly declared. ‘Modern girl in her youth must rely on their sexuality. But in the old age on her pension!’ Vlad was very pleased with his own elegant wit.
Lena could not resist and burst out laughing.
‘Listen, funny man, maybe that's enough for today? Vlad, do not be offended. Yes, it was funny. I enjoyed it.’
‘Seriously?’
‘Seriously.’
‘OK. Let's get to work. Tomorrow maybe I’ll figure out something else.’
‘Think - think. Maybe they give you the Nobel Prize.’ Lena joked.
Vlad’s mobile phone rang. After listening to the unseen caller, Vlad put the phone, turned to Lena.
‘Chief wants to see us. He wants us to be present at the unusual autopsy.’
‘Yeah?’ Lena surprised. ‘What there can be unusual?’
Vlad shrugged, picked up from his desktop his folder with documents. He always went to the chief with a folder in hands. So he, at least in his own eyes, looked more solid and confident.’
‘I do not know. We'll see. Probably some homeless man who stayed in the basement for several months. Well, we will going to face very unpleasant picture. Burr-r! Vlad winced, turned off his computer.
‘There is nothing we can do here. It’s our job.’ Lena said adjusting her skirt.
Vlad gave her a way and left the office.

* * *

When they entered the main lab of the Central Office, there was Professor Semenov with two assistants. On a metal autopsy table was laying a charred, blackened corpse. Vlad noticed it first. Lena did it a second later, and though she prepared herself to what she has seen and was ready as she thought, but her face yet got paled slightly; in the hands felt a chill. She loved to work in the laboratory. But only at the computer, doing some analyzes, organizing the results of research, but not to cut the decomposed corpse.
Vlad chuckled, delayed air, and then gently breathed. It smelled as usual. It could be better. In general it was the corpse as a corpse.
“And what for he called us?” He thought irritably, looking at the balding professor. “As if we haven’t enough our own work in the lab. Probably he will again teach us. How long he’ll be teaching yet? Everyone around teaches us what we shall to do as if we still little kids!”
‘Colleagues, do not stand there as if you’re the poor kin. This case is unique. They just now brought it here. At night, I’m personally gone to the scene of accident. What can you say? There are some ideas…Assumptions?’ Professor Aristarchus Aristarkhovich Semenov with a sweeping gesture invited the newly arrived young researchers to join the study of dead body.
‘We’re analyzing.’ Vlad said, coming closer. ‘Well, he looks not good. He looks like on him had overturned and then caught a fire the tank with gasoline.’
‘Almost. He jumped under the wheels of a van transporting explosives. It is strange that it was not torn to pieces.’
‘So, the shock wave of the explosion thrown him away. That’s why he survived, if I may say so.’ Vlad suggested, getting more interested in the lying on the table remains. Something was wrong in it. Immediately inside of him woke up a meticulous scientist. ‘Lord!’ Vlad exclaimed. ‘He has no eyes! But his mouth…’ He leaned closer look more attentively. ‘What? He hasn’t mouth too, has he? Flooded with molten substance?’ Vlad continued to examine the corpse, feeling the strange excitement. It seems that in their everyday life, there was something unusual and strange.
‘Look at his extremities.’ Professor advised with a satisfied tone. ‘Does nothing surprising you?’
Vlad frowned. At one extremity, he counted the four thin, long fingers. On the other extremity there was only one finger.
‘Do not see anything strange.’ He said, not understanding the Professor Smirnov’s hints. ‘Big deal! Missing fingers. Probable it was torn off by the explosion.’ Young scientist said
‘Vladislav, do not rush making your conclusions. Examine the extremities more thoroughly.’ Professor Semenov advised patiently.
Vlad put on gloves, armed with a pair of tweezers and goggles. Rose for a single finger left hand, carefully examined, turning it slowly before his eyes. Lowered. Took a second hand for the first most surviving finger. Signs of damage, torn ligaments he didn’t find. It turned out that the man was born fingerless or deep in his childhood lost almost all the fingers on one hand, and one on the second. Eyes could burn and eye sockets can be filled with molten substance. Mouth, too, could be filled with molten and solidified material. To find out everything for sure, it is necessary to conduct a detailed examine. First they need to clean up the corpse from the remnants of burnt clothes, and traces of unknown substance, which enveloped the corpse like a slick.
All this he said to the Professor after he finished his preliminary inspection.
Professor, agreeing, was nodding his head. Vladislav was his best student and Professor Smirnov didn’t hide his proud of him.
‘X-ray and ultrasound examination did?’ Vlad turned to assistant of Professor.
‘We just are going to do that. We like you were both present at the autopsy from the very beginning. For you it will be good practice and additional food for thought.’ Professor said instead of assistants. ‘Well, a will we start?’ Professor said, as though he had not decided when to start the examination. It seems that he still hesitated.
‘If we decided we have nothing to do else. We should do what we have to do.’ Vlad again donned his goggles. He already knew before him is not just a disfigured by the fire corpse of an unknown man. Before him lies a dissertation and it was thru! It would be a sin to miss this chance!
Laboratory’s staff, headed by Professor began to examine the remains of an unknown man. Already the first few minutes brought disappointment. Ultrasound examination gave no results. Scanner screen was empty. Ultrasound couldn’t pass through the corpse. It was unbelievable, unthinkable, but on the screen instead of the familiar ribs, bones, internal organs were visible only two white straight stripes of something.
Then they decided to resort to the good old X-rays. It immediately became everything in its place. The laboratory’s staff had crowded around the monitor. But as they peered into the inner structure of the corpse, they couldn’t identify even a single organ which was familiar to them. There were of course organs but their shape, size and location however, as the amount does not resemble the usual for the scientist picture.
‘Maybe under the influence of heat, the organs of a body mutated?’ Vlad suggested, twirling a pen in his hand. Personally, he did not understand, and hoped that his colleagues also did not understand.
‘I offer to increase a dose.’ Helen turned to the table on which lay a charred corpse. ‘It in any case will not hurt him.’
Dose increased. On the monitor were visible parts of the internal structure. But, as before, nothing familiar from the internal structure of the corpse, none of the laboratory staff did not recognize. Undoubtedly, inside of the corpse was something, but what exactly none of them did not undertake to say.
Professor Semenov, rubbed his forehead, looked around in bewilderment at his younger colleagues in science. There was something incredible. For all his years of practice, he could not tell what he saw inside the body. Maybe it's not a man? But who? The animal? But any mammals have the same set of interior organs as human being. Professor did not know what to think. The assistants pretended that they were studying the image on a computer monitor.
‘There is nothing to think about!’ Vlad said loudly. ‘Otherwise we’ll not see anything. We have to make an autopsy. That’s all. This is certainly not explaining why the equipment fails, but at least we’ll see all with our own eyes what and how ...’
Wearing protective clothing, goggles, masks, armed with scalpels, saws, clamps, and all that was necessary at the time of autopsy, laboratory staff began their everyday’s, as it seemed to them work.
The first cut was made by Professor Semenov. He did it and shuddered. Directly at his face in the air there was a green light dash five centimeters in length. It looked like a thick glowing needle. It had been seen not only by Professor. All saw it. Saw and froze in amazement. No one noticed where it came from. Perhaps the video cameras which were recording the conduction of the autopsy recorded it. More over none of those who were presented in the lab had any idea what it could mean.
Scalpel in the hand of Professor froze halfway. He didn’t dare to make a new cut. A second later it was too late. Bright band slid to the Professor and seemed disappeared inside of him. During about five seconds nothing was happening. Then there was heard a dull clap, and Professor Semenov had been torn to pieces. Organs, intestines scattered in all directions. By surprise, laboratory staff dumbfounded at first, and then they were caught by panic.
Professor’s assistants, who were closer to the front door, immediately escaped from the laboratory. Lena and Vlad were on the other side. Between them and the front door was a table with the charred remains of a corpse and Professor Semenov. And only then Vlad and Lena realized that Professor though had been torn to pieces, but his remains have not fallen to the floor, did not stick to the wall or ceiling. Internal organs, departure from the common center for some distance, still hung in the air. It seemed that between them, not even torn the ligaments and veins. Professor’s heart continued to beat, eyes continued to mindlessly watch. Two meters above the floor hung his brain. And Vlad noticed that the vessel in the left hemisphere was inflamed and it is possible that the Professor began to form a clot.
“It will be necessary to warn the Professor.” Vlad thought and crashed to the floor of laboratory unconsciously. His nerves could not stand such a test.
Lena Firsova which she didn’t expect from herself didn’t loose her consciousness, but was in a state of prostration. She did not know where she was and what was happening to her was a dream or reality. Instinctively retreated to the wall, she shrank back into it and looked at everything that happened with her eyes wide open. At this point, she does not even remember her own name. All her attention was focused on the brain of Professor in the vessels of which was continuing to pulsate the blood. Most of all at that moment, she was afraid to hear the voice of Professor pleading to collect him back. She even thought she could not imagine how she touches still living Professor’s organs. She vomited. Just right on the unconscious Vlad. But Lena did not notice anything. She did not even notice any more Professor Semenov’s organs which still hung in the air of the laboratory. All her attention was riveted to the table with the remains of charred dead body. She has no doubt that the cause of everything going on was just a corpse, which did not take any ultrasound or X-ray.
Then begun to going on something absolutely incredible. Corpse moved, came to life, stood up from the table, stopped in front of hovering in the air body of Professor Semenov.
The poor girl had never had a chance to see with her own eyes the walking dead, only in Hollywood’s films. What happened to her at that moment it is difficult to describe in common words. In the few minutes that they were still in front of each other, separated only by such an untrustworthy obstacle as was torn apart Professor Semenov, girl’s temples got gray. In one’s opinion, this is enough to fully describe how she was terrified
Seconds stretched like an eternity. The girl noticed that raised from the dead corpse was no longer burned and charred. Traces of thermal influence crumbled as husks, and the body of strange creature was new and in its own way, even beautiful. Skin, if it was skin, had a darker shade, smooth and shiny. Two arms, two legs, narrow torso, head. At the top of the head was a lighter shade. Eyes and mouth was not visible, as the ears and nose. But even from a distance the creature exuded strength and confidence.
Creature moved towards her. Lena shrank back, pressed herself into the wall and closed her eyes. No! She wants to see everything! She opened her eyes and began to follow with her glance the approaching to her creature. Here they are separated by three feet… two and a half. Creature stopped in front of her. It seemed to be studying her carefully. The girl was even sure that actually the creature has eyes; they are hidden in thick gray-black skin. She was not mistaken. On the face of being formed two long slits broken a few centimeters each. In one she saw the red eyes, the other was blue. Below was formed the third slot. Perhaps mouth. After a moment the creature raised its left wrist with one finger. One moment and the single black finger like a fan decomposed in five fingers. Between the fingers appeared a little color image.
And then the horrible creature talked to her with a raspy and strange voice. It was felt that in a world where it was, the voice is rarely used for communication.
‘Karum ra karen?’ Creature asked approaching closer to the girl his finger with a luminous image.
Despite of the fear and shock, Lena realized that creature was asking her about something. But she did not understand about what and could not concentrate. She shook her head.
‘Karum ra karen?’ Creature asked again its question without changing intonation.
Lena, narrowing her eyes, tried, despite of the scope of her tremors and weakness, to focus on the image. She knew the creature shown something to her. Picture between the fingers of the creature slightly increased. Lena realized that she sees a picture of a guy! Most of this it was a common guy but not some kind of a monster or zombie.
‘Karum ra karen?’ Creature asked its question for the third time. It seemed to the girl with some threat in its voice.
Lena strained her memory. Yes, of course, the guy's face was familiar to her. Somewhere she had seen him. Maybe studied together or maybe crossed in social networks. She could not immediately and for sure answer where exactly. Only in the Classmates she had more than three thousand friends. Perhaps, and this guy was among them. She did not remember. And how she could remember them all? That was impossible. But one thing she understood clearly. The corps which got alive from the dead without any doubt was looking for that guy.
‘Karum ra karen?’ Question had been asked for the fourth time.
Nerves of the girls were on edge:
‘I don’t know him! I do not remember!’ She cried desperately. ‘His face familiar to me, but I do not remember him! Seen him, but I do not remember.’
At this moment, in the lab broke the fighters of Alpha headed by Colonel Nikolai Podgorny. There were five of armed men. Seeing them, Lena burst into tears of happiness. For her, it was the happiest day of her short life. View people in protective clothing, masks on their faces, in flak jackets and carrying automatic weapons in their hands, gave her strength.
Soldiers of the Alpha have already been informed about the incident which happened in the laboratory and were psychologically prepared for anything. But the view of torn to pieces, and hung in the air Professor Semenov, forced them to be taken aback. There was a slight hitch. Trained psyche of fighters was not ready for such tests. Creature on the appearance of the people did not react. Not even turned. Though perhaps to see what was happening behind him, he did not have to turn around.
Lena took advantage of a hitch. Unexpectedly for herself, she suddenly pushed with force creature in the chest, and ran to the front door.
Almost immediately she heard a loud cry:
‘Get down!’
She realized that it was referred to her. Girl obediently fell on the floor, covering her head with her hands. Men opened gunfire. Wincing and presses herself into the floor, she hoped that the bullets rip the dead man who came alive to pieces. She suffered enough from him while was standing at the wall.
Special Forces soldiers of Alpha kept shooting. Barrier was the scattered, continuing to live their lives the organs of Professor Semenov. It was necessary to fire so as to not hurt, if it could speak, the Professor. There was hope that in some unknown miraculously way scientist will manage to put it in one piece.
The operation lasted only a minute or two. Soldiers began to bypass Professors with the left and right flanks, approaching to the unknown creature. And although they were firing without missing, but the bullets did not cause damage to the creature. In a distance of few centimeters from him the bullets melted just right in the air, and with the red-hot metal drops fell on the floor, burning the flooring. In the laboratory, there was a smell of burnt plastic. The Creature meantime approached the wall of the laboratory, somehow dissolved it and disappeared. Shooting stopped. People stared at Professor Semenov. Such a sight none of them has ever seen before.
Was hearing that there was no longer shooting, Lena, in the hope that with the horrible creature had been finished once and for all, lifted her head from the floor. On her hand was dripping blood. She was horrified. Did it hurt her? But it was not her blood. One of the bullets fired by the soldiers by a ricochet got in the Professor’s shoulder, and blood trickled down his arm, was dripping on the hands and head of Lena. She quickly got to her feet. Took a napkin and began wiping warm blood. She rubbed with such a fury that almost was not hurt herself with her own nails.
‘Elena, did you injured? Are you all right? What happened here? Who was it? Where’s the body?’ Colonel Podgorny was the first who broke the silence.
Lena answered only by waving her hands. She could not speak. She had been caught by a strong chill.
 

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