TRACKS OF TERROR -- DAY 12: CAR 14 -- CONTAINMENT CRISIS (PART 1) ================================================================ Published: February 28, 2025 Author: Daniel Conderman Context: Recovered Conderman.Group interactive survival-horror serial Original URL: https://conderman.group/2025/02/the-scene-car-14-only-half-cleared/ YESTERDAY'S MIXED APPROACH -------------------------- Penny wanted to improvise, likely planning to rig the rumored emergency floor release to drop any unstoppable zombies into oblivion. Meanwhile, our gung-ho newcomer R.C. was all for a fight: storm in with shotguns, axes, and good old-fashioned fury. When those tactics clash, chaos is practically guaranteed. WHAT HAPPENED ------------- Penny examined the blueprint from the EmergenTek trunk and located a manual panel along the left side of Car 14's entrance. With a couple of survivors, she pried open the metal cover to reveal a tangle of switches and levers, probably controlling the floor release mechanism. They began working on the system, hoping to set a trap for whatever undead horrors lurked inside. R.C. and a small band of adrenaline junkies could not wait. They kicked in the door, shot first, and asked questions never. Their surprise charge took out a handful of standard zombies milling near the entrance, but the noise echoed through the metal chamber. It woke something else. Something inhumanly strong roared and slammed into R.C. with bone-crunching force, flinging him across the car like a rag doll. I ran in after R.C. crashed into a console, half-blinded by sparks. Blood ran down his face, but he was somehow still breathing. A massive, half-decayed figure--clearly an advanced experiment--lunged for us again. That was when Penny's plan kicked in. She threw a switch, and part of the floor behind the creature rattled open into the darkness below. We tried to bait it onto the drop zone, but it seemed cunning, or perhaps just enraged. We finally combined R.C.'s wild gunfire with Penny's lever-yanking to lure it close enough. One wrong step, and it fell through, shrieking all the way down. THE COST -------- R.C. is grievously injured: several broken ribs, maybe more. He is alive, but barely. We patched him up with whatever we had, though infection is a danger with his open wounds. Other survivors took scrapes and bruises, but the monstrous experiment was the real threat. If more of those things are wandering around Car 14, we are in trouble. That unstoppable creature was not the only occupant. We glimpsed silhouettes deeper in the car. More test subjects? Standard undead? Mist from cryo-tanks, or something like them, hangs in the air. CAR 14 -- ONLY HALF CLEARED --------------------------- The floor-release trap opened a large part of the car's center. The place reeks of chemicals, and random sparks flare from damaged consoles. We cannot secure the entire car yet; too much remains unexplored in the gloom. For now, we have barricaded the section we can manage. R.C. lies propped against the wall, pale but conscious, muttering curses between ragged breaths. Penny hovers near the control panel, triple-checking the levers. She worries something else will barge in while we are unprepared. We hear strange hissing beyond the flickering lights. It could be machinery. It could be something waking up. WHAT WOULD YOU DO? ------------------ Fight -- Press the advantage and attack any remaining mutants first. Sneak -- Scout around the open floor and avoid a brawl if possible. Improvise -- Refine the floor release and rig another trap before advancing. Persuade -- Calm the survivors shaken by R.C.'s near-death. Loot -- Search consoles, cryo-tanks, and cabinets for gear and clues. WHAT ELSE LURKS BELOW? ---------------------- We dropped one monstrosity into the void below the train, but the blueprint suggested multiple subjects. If the others are half as resilient, we are in for a fight. Tomorrow we will learn which choice helps secure Car 14--or whether we are stumbling into a bigger nightmare. Keep an eye on R.C. The man is tough, but even the toughest can fall.