The ground trembled ever so slightly, rattling loose snow from trees and creating something of a strange ripple effect upon the loosely packed ground.
Of course, there was no one around to witness this small earthquake, the animals that had been present several moments ago had felt the initial
tremors and fled the area.
Slowly, the air began to shimmer as though someone was throwing random particles of glitter into the frosty air, and the trees began to bend out of
shape. A small mushroom cloud of warped air coalesced into light, as three figures that were simply not there moments ago crouched in the snow.
Slightly disoriented, the three rose to their massive feet warily. Covered in a thick hide of unkempt white fur, their large red eyes betrayed the
intelligence beneath the beastly exterior. The largest of the three gazed at the horizon, picking out with keen eyes a seemingly well hidden white
metal dome and a series of radar towers, covertly concealed by the evergreen firs that stood monument over the blue sky.
Speaking in a series of grunts, the three conversed quickly, their hands gesturing wildly as the biggest motioned in different directions for the
others. After a moment of what seemed to be argument then solution, two of the three set off in different directions. The third stared longingly at
the white dome for several moments, watching the others leave the area. With what seemed like a sigh, he trudged through the white powder, his goal
clear.
Yuri hated this post. Isolated, in the middle of nowhere, nothing to keep him company, just the hard-ass stares of the half-dozen or so Special Forces
soldiers to keep him company. And the cold. For someone who was raised in the bleak Russian winters, even this place was hell on earth. He may as well
be living on Mars. Luckily for him, he was good at cards, and the soldiers around him seemed to be paid in either cigarettes or vodka, of which he had
a plentiful stash. A stash he would give up at once for a night with a woman, or even just to have some female company and warmth for an evening.
He gazed over the banks of monitors before him, staring at the endless fields of white broken only by the occasional greenery of trees that persisted
despite the cold. All staff, even he as a scientist, had to take shifts watching for any signs of movement in or around the camp. As boring as the
place was, three nights ago there had been some action out on one of the frozen ridges. One of the soldiers had begun screaming about monsters,
followed by gunshots. Yuri had seen the blood as one of the crew despatched to retrieve whatever it was they killed, and there certainly was a lot of
it. Unfortunately, before he could examine the body, of which he was told was a polar bear, a jet black ex-cold war helicopter had thundered into the
area, almost like it was parked only a block or so away, and the special forces troops had turned up, and were yet to leave. Yuri, at this stage had
the door slammed in his face, as he was told a truck would be arriving tomorrow to retrieve the “bear” and remove it for study. Yeah right.
The lights flickered on and off a few times, drawing Yuri’s attention away from his thoughts for a moment. Nothing out of the ordinary, probably
just the generator struggling again. Then his ears perked up as what he suspected was a multitude of gunshots rang through the near empty hallways. A
distant shout followed as Yuri had a sinking sense of de ja vu.
It looked like the bears were back.
Invisible against the white backdrop, the creature watched as a black clad soldier approached warily, machine gun at the ready. The distraction had
worked perfectly as several of the soldiers, brought in by the last commotion, trotted off in the wrong direction, looking for another of these
things. Only one had stayed behind, guarding the gate. Movement and trickery had been enough to draw him out into the open, and now he stood only
metres away, his brawny fur covered arms at the ready. Like fluid he slinked beside the human, who was completely unaware of his presence. Like a
hammer his arm fell, the soldier crumpling into a heap in the snow. As he surveyed the area, the cameras at the edge of the installation were focused
right on him. Under the shaggy fur he smiled, despite the seriousness of his mission. The footage would somehow leak to the internet, where a bunch of
believers would hail the latest Yeti video, while the skeptics would tear it down piece by piece until it became another myth or legend, or forgotten
altogether.
Waving his arm in a tight circle, the creature vanished back into the snow, ensuring to leave a random trail of footprints first that ended abruptly
first. It was all a part of the game.
Yuri huddled under his desk, popping out only infrequently to watch in amazement at the video screens and to capture the moment with his cellphone.
Like a band of ghosts the white creatures, who were clearly not bears, seemed to pop up on one feed in one instant, then simply vanish and re-appear
moments later in a completely different part of the installation. The soldiers, highly trained and focused like lasers, fell like trees one by one as
the creatures subdued them. But Yuri did notice as he watched mesmerised, the creatures did not outright kill the humans, merely subdued each and
every one until he was all that was left.
A series of low thuds beyond the door marked heavy footsteps. Armed only with his phone, still recording, Yuri gazed upon the camera feed beyond the
heavy steel door.
The creature knew there was one more human behind this door that must be subdued before his mission could be completed. He could smell the fear from
down the hallway like it was right under his nose. As one, the others joined him, seemingly walking from right out of the walls. Grunting and
pointing, he relayed unintelligible instructions to the others, who vanished away without word. Standing before the door, the creature could easily
hear the human’s rapid breath and heartbeat. He raised his massive hand.
There was a knock at the door. Yuri had practically already wet himself with fear, knowing this giant shaggy beast, which had taken out fourteen
soldiers with ease, was standing on the other side. He had also watched as the creatures had somehow jumped from one point to the next, and knew full
well it could simply appear behind him. Instead it had knocked on the door. With a shaking hand, Yuri pulled on the handle slowly, revealing the
creature.
It easily stood nine feet or more, and was very heavy set. Red, intelligent eyes peered out from under the mane of white fur which ran in scraggy
patterns down the entire length of its body. Yuri felt an overwhelming urge to both wet himself again and perhaps flee, although he knew the creature
could follow him anywhere.
“Don’t kill me,” he squeaked in Russian, the only words he could muster. The creature instead pointed at the banks of screens, grunting an
unintelligible noise. Yuri slowly turned back, expecting to have his head caved in, to see the other two randomly jumping between feeds. Clearly they
were looking for something. Or someone. It dawned on Yuri what these creatures were after.
(Cont below)
edit on 10/1/2014 by 74Templar because: grammar