Artificial Earth

                                  20

Kenebeck Stadium
West of Marble City
5:00 a.m

        KENEBECK STADIUM WAS THE LARGEST stadium ever built on the artificial planet, with a total seat capacity of three hundred and thirty thousand people. It has a dome that covers the entire area, with large metal beams jutting out every twenty-five feet from the ground all the way up connecting at the center. Giant pillars ten feet in diameter each, twenty-five feet apart extended around the whole stretch of the stadium making it look like a Roman Colosseum.
      Ted Mullin's been working at Kenebeck Stadium for over ten years as part of a six men maintenance crew. He's known to his friends as "Old Teddy" fifty eight years old, short with grey hair and dark eyes, single with no wife or kids.
    "Darn storm...I'm supposed ta go on a vacation this weekend." Ted swore, talking to himself as he headed down the dark corridor leading to the generators down the basement. He was wearing blue overalls and was holding a tool box with one hand, flashlight on the other. The tunnel heading towards the main generator extended forty feet from the main door, pipes were stretched out above the walls of the interior, the light from his mini flashlight cutting through the darkness as he made his way deeper into the tunnel. At the end of the tunnel is a large circular room with dozens of pipes which were all interconnected to a huge cylindrical metal container, the generator lay at the base, directly below it. Ted took out the small hand radio strapped on his belt and pressed the switch.
     "Okay Bryan, I'm here." he said, speaking to the hand radio.
      "You better hurry up and get that generator working or we'll get our asses kicked by the lieutenant." Bryan replied.
        "Don't worry, piece of cake. Probably will take less than fifteen minutes." he said, placing his flashlight on top of the gas can beside the generator.
         "Okay, I'll tell the lieutenant...see you back here after, bottle's waiting for you."
         "Nice." Ted said, strapping the radio back on his belt.
         He knelt with one knee and opened the tool box, taking out a wrench.
          "Okay let's do this..." he said out loud.
           "Ted" a womans voice whispered fom behind.

          Ted quickly turned, startled. He took the flashlight then pointed it towards the opening where he came.
            "Who's there?" he nervously asked, looking at the opening, holding the wrench with his other hand.
             "Okay, whoever you are...you're not supposed to be here." he said, raising his voice.
               "Come out where I can see you." he added, standing up.
                No one answered. A dark mist started creeping towards him, like a shadow slowly inching it's way forward.
               "Guys? This ain't funny..." he said, pointing the flashlight at the mist. The mist backed away from the light.
                "Come on guys...If I don't get this generator running we'll all fry." he said, moving slowly forward.
              His flashlight flickered.
            "Oh shit!"
               The light went out and he was covered in darkness. Ted tapped the flashlight and a little light came back, just enough to see a bit.
               "Come on!" Ted said, tapping the flashlight.
              Something grabbed Ted by neck and lifted him a few feet off the ground. Ted dropped the flashlight and struggled, kicking at his attacker and swinging the wrench on his other hand, pounding. His assailant then bit him on the throat, drinking Teds blood as the wrench fell off his hand.

         Bryan was sitting inside the maintenance office waiting for Ted. A small lantern was on the table right next to him. He just got back after speaking with the lieutenant, telling him that the generators will be up and running in twenty minutes, adding an additional five minutes to give Ted more time.  He took out his hand radio and pressed the talk button.."Ted...Ted.." he said, looking at his watch....Static....he tried again....Static.
    "Geeez, What the hell's taking him so long?" he thought, asking himself.
     "Jimmy, Earl, come in..." he called out, pressing the talk button again.
      "Jimmy and Earl here, what is it Bryan?" the voice answered back.
       "Where are you guys?" Bryan asked.
        "We're in the shaft, fixing the vent." Jimmy replied.
        "I need you two to go to the basement and find out why Ted's taking so long, lieutenant's breathing down my neck." Bryan said.
         "Roger that, on our way." Jimmy replied.
         "The old guy's losing it." Bryan thought, openning his bottle of beer.

     
       Bringing flashlights along with them, Jimmy and Earl entered the basements door, both wearing blue overalls with white printed letters saying "maintenance" on their backs.
      "Old Teddy's getting rusty." Jimmy said, walking beside Earl.
       "Maybe he forgot how to run the damn thing." Earl assumed, looking straight ahead.
         "Probably." Jimmy shrugged.
         "Five bucks he's drinking down there."
          "You're on."
          They headed towards the circular opening, the beam of their lights searching the vast room. Ted was on the ground lying dead on the floor, his skin clinging to his bones. Behind Teds body the generator was torn to shreds, it's wreckage scattered behind Teds corpse. They moved closer, examining Teds body, lifeless eyes stared back at them, the body... dry, drained of blood, and the most bizarre thing of it all were the visible bite marks on his neck.
     "Vampire." Jimmy said.
      "What do you mean Vampire? Vampires aren't real..." Earl nervously argued.
        "So how do you explain the bite marks on his neck?" Jimmy asked, looking at the wound.
          "I don't know...listen, we got to get out of here fast, whoever did this might come back." Earl suggested, looking nervously around.
        Jimmy took out his hand radio and reported.
         "Bryan, Jimmy here, come in..."
          "Jimmy, what the heck's going on down there, where is Ted?"
           "Teds dead."
            "What do you mean Ted's dead?
            " Killed."
             "What do you mean killed? Man, if this is some kinda joke..."
             "No. This is no joke."
              "Dead? ...Killed....How?"
              "We don't know, generator's been torn to pieces and Ted....I...can't explain..." Jimmy went, looking at Earl who was nervously looking around.
            "Okay, you two better get your asses back here...I'll inform the lieutenant. This better not be a joke..."
            Jimmy strapped his radio back, taking his flashlight and moving away from the body.
         "What? We just gonna leave Ted's body here?" Earl asked, unsure.
         "We can't touch the body, let the examiner do that....  Let's go." Jimmy said, cautiously heading back towards the opening. Halfway through the corridor, a dark thick mist crept forward, blocking their way out.
"Stop." Jimmy said.
     "Get back!" Jimmy exclaimed, running back towards the circular room with Earl a couple of steps behind him.
      "We're trapped." he said flatly, turning, aiming his light at the opening.
       "Why? What's wrong?" Earl asked, confused.
         "Saw that dark mist...That's what's wrong." Jimmy pointed out.
         "What is it?" Earl asked nervously.
          "Don't know....but I ain't going through that mist."
"Why?" Earl asked, still confused.
"Because it wasn't there a while ago when we entered, it's moving and there shouldn't be any here in the first place."
           The mist just stayed at the opening, keeping away from the light, waiting for them.
           "It doesn't like the light, that's why it tore the generator apart." Jimmy said, still pointing his flashlight at the opening.
             "How can a mist tear a generator apart?....and why would it do that?" Earl asked, also pointing his flashlight at the openning.
             "It's not the mist...It's what's inside it.....and because it can only feed in the dark." Jimmy said, his hands shaking.
              "Wha..what do we do?" Earl asked, frightened.
              "Right now we need to find another way out, fast." Jimmy said.

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Authors note

Hi! I hope you're enjoying the story.
More twists and turns up ahead so keep reading and don't forget to vote, comment and share with friends.