
A routine test in a high‑tech research bunker takes a terrifying turn when the subject awakens to find the chamber empty, the monitors dead, and the whole complex eerily silent. Disoriented and coughing from a failed life‑support cycle, he discovers the facility’s corridors littered with abandoned equipment, dead rats, and the unsettling remnants of a dead security guard. With only a weather suit and a half‑loaded revolver for protection, he begins to piece together what went wrong, while the faint glow of emergency lights offers little comfort.
As he climbs the stairwell toward the surface, the devastation becomes clearer: heavy doors blown open, a massive water tank twisted into ruin, and a sky tinged with a foreboding red hue. The once‑busy installation now feels like a ghost town, hinting at sabotage, war, or a catastrophic accident. He must navigate the desolate landscape and uncover who—or what—has taken over the once‑secure research site.
Language
en
Duration
~1 hours (103K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2016-09-23
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1925–1993
Best known for the witty Retief stories and the long-running Bolo tales, this American science fiction writer mixed sharp humor with big-idea adventure. His work helped shape military and diplomatic science fiction, and it still feels lively and inventive today.
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