The decline of Liberty

[PresidentKiller]

Sorry for the slight delay. Here it is! Enjoy!

 

 

 

An Even Darker Secret - Part II

 

 

Somewhere below the desert – Bone County - Winter 2001

Saturday – 6:48 AM

 

Everything is still pitch-dark and eerily quiet. Claude wakes up after a long night wondering about what to do next and with a terrible pain in his back from the fall.

 

Claude: “This sucks! How are we getting out of here?”

 

Shinji couldn’t sleep. He immediately replies.

 

Shinji: “I don’t know. I don’t like this at all!”

 

Claude: “We need to find a way out.”

 

Shinji: “Forget it! We can’t even see each other, how are we gonna do that?”

 

Shinji and Claude both move their arms around trying to touch something, but they don’t find anything.

 

Shinji: “This is useless.”

 

Claude: “Maybe we should try to walk to the same direction together until we find something.”

 

Shinji: “That creepy voice said we should stay right here!”

 

Claude: “f*ck it! I’m not obeying a stupid robot or whatever that was! I’m outta here!”

 

Shinji: “All right, but maybe we should try to find each other first.”

 

A huge noise is heard and a very bright light starts shining and everything turns white. Claude and Shinji get blinded by it.

 

Claude: “What the f*ck? Are we dead now or what?”

 

Voice: “Nope. But you’ll wish you were.”

 

Shinji: “Who’s that?”

 

Voice: “That’s unimportant. You’re now test subjects for a little experiment we’ve been developing here.”

 

Claude: “Experiment? In the middle of nowhere? What kind of experiment?”

 

Voice: “The kind of experiment that keeps a company in business and a government happy.”

 

The brightness is reduced and Claude and Shinji can finally see. They’re in a huge room filled with medical equipment around them. As they look at their surroundings, a man with glasses and a lab coat approaches them from behind.

 

Shinji: “Are you the man with the mysterious voice?”

 

Man: “Shut up. You need to come with me now.”

 

 

Somewhere in the desert – Bone County - Winter 2001

Saturday – 7:15 AM

 

Ray suddenly wakes up inside the car, very surprised.

 

Ray: “What the hell? What time is it?”

 

Ray looks around him and around the car. There’s nothing out there.

 

Ray: “Where are they?”

 

Ray gets out of the car and starts walking around, trying to see something but there’s only the desert and the sky.

 

Ray: “Goddammit, where the f*ck are they? Where am I?”

 

Ray keeps looking around until he hears a sound far away. He immediately turns back and tries locating the sound by walking towards it. After several minutes, he finally reaches a huge barbed-wire fence with several warning signs hanging off of it.

 

Ray: “What the hell is this place?”

 

Ray takes a look around the fence, trying to find a way in.

 

Ray: “I guess those idiots were right. There’s something fishy going on here.”

 

Ray keeps walking around the fence. He tries looking inside but it’s still just the desert and the sky all over it.

 

Ray: “This is very strange.”

 

Ray sits down to think for a minute. As he does this, he feels something underneath the ground. He brushes off some sand and discovers a keypad.

 

Ray: “What the hell?”

 

Ray remembers the code Shinji found at the hacker’s place.

 

Ray: “Yes! That f*cking piece of paper is in the car!”

 

Ray leaves his jacket hanging off the fence and goes back to the car immediately. He grabs the piece of paper from the glove box and returns to the keypad.

 

Ray touches a button on the keypad. A four-digit number is requested. Ray takes a look at the code.

 

Ray: “Dammit, there’re so many numbers on this paper!”

 

Ray types the first set of 4 digits: “1226”

 

Ray: “Come on!”

 

The keypad makes a beeping sound and hides itself on the ground. Ray puts the piece of paper in his pocket.

 

Ray: “Oh, that’s just perfect! sh*t!”

 

The ground starts shaking. Ray immediately moves out and notices a small hatch opening in front of him.

 

Ray: “Well, I better check it out.”

 

Ray takes his gun out and reloads it, then goes inside the hatch.

 

 

Somewhere below the desert – Bone County - Winter 2001

Saturday – 7:36 AM

 

Ray walks through a narrow and very badly-lit hallway.

 

Ray: “I wonder if those kids are around here somewhere. I can’t believe those nerds were right!”

 

A couple of men are heard talking nearby. Ray immediately stops and prepares his gun.

 

Man: “As you can see Mr. Miyamoto, everything is ready to begin testing H-795 as planned.”

 

Miyamoto: “Are the subjects ready?”

 

Man: “Yes sir. These intruders have been administered with heavy doses of sleeping pills. They’ve been out of it for the past 24 hours and we’ll begin the H-795 treatment in about 12 hours from now.”

 

Miyamoto: “Alright Dr. Clarkson. I just hope this new drug works better than the last one. We’re losing a lot of money in Equanox-related lawsuits. The Army is not amused and the board is very angry, they wanted me to let you know that this is your last chance! If this doesn’t work out, we’ll be out of Area 69 and all government contracts will be terminated by the end of the month!”

 

Clarkson: “I’m perfectly aware of that, sir.”

 

Both men get into another room and their voices are no longer heard.

 

Ray: “What’s going on here? Am I really at Area 69?”

 

Ray walks towards the end of the hallway. He reaches a door and quietly goes through it.

 

 

Sample Room, Area 69 – Bone County - Winter 2001

Saturday – 7:49 AM

 

The room is filled with some medical equipment and plenty of cabinets with several bottles of assorted substances. There seems to be nobody around. Ray sneaks behind some cabinets.

 

Ray: “I must find these so-called intruders. Claude and Shinji might be there.”

 

Ray takes a look around and approaches the nearest door. He quickly takes a peek inside. There’s a man in a lab coat typing away on a computer.

 

Ray slowly opens the door and gets inside the office.

 

 

Office, Area 69 – Bone County - Winter 2001

Saturday – 7:53 AM

 

The man keeps typing away. Ray quickly closes the door and points the gun at the man’s head. The man immediately stops typing and looks at Ray.

 

Man: “What do you want? Please sir, I have a family!”

 

The man puts his hands in the air. He looks very scared.

 

Ray: “I don’t want to hurt you. I just need to find some people.”

 

Man: “I don’t know anything about them! Please!”

 

The man starts crying.

 

Ray: “Just tell me where you keep your so-called subjects… and… and give me a damn map of this place!”

 

Man: “The subjects are on the 12th floor, and the map can only be seen from the different terminals on the walls but you need a keycard to access the control interface!”

 

Ray: “What? I don’t understand a word you’re saying! And how come this place has 12 floors? We’re under the desert for Christ’s sake! I would’ve noticed a building that tall!”

 

Man: “There’re 40 underground floors, or at least that’s what I know. And there’re security cameras on each terminal. There’s no way you can reach that floor without clearance as many doors can only be opened with the terminals!”

 

Ray looks very confused.

 

Ray: “All right. I’m taking you with me!”

 

The man immediately freaks out.

 

Man: “No, please! I’m telling you I have a family!”

 

Ray: “And I have business to take care of! It’s nothing personal. Let’s go!”

 

Ray takes the man at gunpoint and both head towards the elevators.

 

 

Elevator Lobby, Area 69 – Bone County - Winter 2001

Saturday – 8:01 AM

 

Ray and the man arrive to the elevators but there’re no controls next to or between them, only what looks like a screen with some gizmos around it.

 

Man: “That’s the terminal, there’s a camera on top of it and will see you as soon as I slide my card!”

 

Ray: “Well, you better pray for your family when you do that! I’m hiding behind you!”

 

Ray points the gun to the man’s back and kneels down to hide from the camera’s view.

 

The man is very nervous but successfully opens the elevator’s doors. They both get inside and wait for the doors to close.

 

 

 

Read Chapter 57 Edited December 22, 2011 by PresidentKiller

[Gaja 90]

And we got more quality reading material!!! Cheers buddy!

[PresidentKiller]

Hey guys, I wanted to let you know that a couple of new chapters will be posted in a week or so. I know the year is ending (already!) and this story needs to be finished so I'll be hard at work on the holidays to make that happen. Stay tuned.

[PresidentKiller]

The next chapter will be posted over the weekend.

 

 

An Even Darker Secret - Part III

 

 

Testing Room 12-K, Area 69 – Bone County - Winter 2001

Saturday – 8:37 AM

 

There’re people all over the room aimlessly walking around in circles. There’s some medical equipment and cabinets on each side of the room.

 

Ray and the man get into the room and look around.

 

Ray: “What the hell is going on here?”

 

Man: “I honestly have no idea.”

 

Ray: “What are you supposed to be testing with these people?”

 

Man: “It’s a new drug but I don’t know what it is for!”

 

Ray quickly walks around the room trying to locate Claude and Shinji.

 

Ray: “Where the hell are they?”

 

Man: “What do they look like?”

 

Ray: “One is an Asian kid wearing a rather expensive suit. The other one looks tough and is wearing a black leather jacket.”

 

Ray and the man look around. They finally find them in a corner, awake but are completely unresponsive.

 

Ray shakes Claude.

 

Ray: “Come on kid, talk to me!”

 

Claude looks at Ray. He stays silent.

 

Ray: “Come on!”

 

Claude starts blinking repeatedly and tries to say something.

 

Claude: “Wh… what? What is this place?”

 

Ray: “We’re at Area 69. I don’t know what happened to you but we gotta go!”

 

Claude: “Area 69. Really?”

 

Ray: “Yes! Did you find that nerd we’re supposed to be looking for?”

 

Claude: “No! We just fell down here and then some scientist took us to this lab and injected something in our veins. I don’t remember anything else after that!”

 

Claude has a terrible headache.

 

Claude: “My head f*cking hurts, man!”

 

Ray now shakes Shinji up but he doesn’t react at all. He looks completely lost and unaware of his surroundings.

 

Ray: “What are we gonna do?”

 

Claude: “We need to find that guy and get the hell outta here!”

 

Ray looks at the man.

 

Ray: “Listen pal, if you want to see your family again and in one piece, you better help us find this kid and something to return our friend back to normal. Do you understand?”

 

The man is scared.

 

Man: “Yes, yes… of course. Let me make a call, please!”

 

Ray: “All right, but no monkey business, ok?”

 

Man: “I’ll just ask something so I can help you.”

 

Ray escorts the man to a phone. The man takes the headset and dials a number.

 

Man: “Tiffany? Hi, this is Gerald, how are you? Could you please tell me the file numbers for the new drug tests on the 12th floor?”

 

Gerald grabs a piece of paper from one side of the phone and writes down what Tiffany is saying.

 

Gerald: “Alright Tiffany. Thank you.”

 

Gerald hangs up and takes the piece of paper and reads the numbers.

 

Gerald: “I need a terminal to look these up.”

 

Ray looks at Claude.

 

Ray: “Wait here with Shinji, kid. We’ll be right back.”

 

Ray goes back to the elevator lobby with Gerald.

 

 

12th Floor Elevator Lobby, Area 69 – Bone County - Winter 2001

Saturday – 8:59 AM

 

Ray hides behind Gerald as he did before. Gerald opens up the terminal and types down the numbers on the paper. After a few seconds, a rather large document is printed on several sheets of paper.

 

Gerald takes the document and reads it carefully.

 

Gerald: “Well, it seems your friends have been administered a drug called H-795. Since it was commissioned by the military, I have no clearance to get the details on what this particular drug does. All I can tell you is that it’s still in a very early testing stage.”

 

Ray: “And how do you know that?”

 

Gerald: “It doesn’t have a commercial name yet. ‘H-795’ is just a code.”

 

Ray remembers the conversation he overheard when he entered Area 69...

 

Ray: “Do you know any of these men? Miyamoto or Clarkson?”

 

Gerald: “Miyamoto is the head of Zaibatsu Pharmaceuticals here in San Andreas. Dr. Clarkson is a researcher from the U.S. Army. Why?”

 

Ray: “They were talking about this drug, but according to Clarkson’s words, the treatment wasn’t supposed to start until later.”

 

Gerald: “Well, maybe he changed his mind.”

 

Ray: “I don’t like what you’re doing here, Gerald. Why are you testing a drug like this?”

 

Gerald: “Don’t look at me, I’m just an analyst. I check test results and compare them. I don’t know where the data comes from or how it was obtained.”

 

Ray: “Can you at least try to get more info about the drug?”

 

Gerald: “I’ll try to look in the archives, but it’s usually well-guarded.”

 

Ray: “Let’s try something. Do you have any test results from this drug?”

 

Gerald: “We can go back to my office to find out.”

 

Ray goes back to the testing room and gets Claude and Shinji while Gerald activates the elevator. They all go back to the first floor where Gerald’s office is located.

 

 

Gerald’s Office, Area 69 – Bone County - Winter 2001

Saturday – 9:15 AM

 

Everybody get into the office. Ray closes the door while Claude and Shinji lie down for a bit. Gerald sits back on his computer and looks for the test results.

 

Gerald: “I found some results. Apparently testing began 20 days ago...”

 

Gerald analyzes the results and thinks for a few minutes.

 

Gerald: “Well, the subjects haven’t reacted well to the first batch of the drug. It says here that some of them ended with brain damage or terrible stomach problems. Holy sh*t...”

 

Gerald is shocked.

 

Ray: “What? What’s going on?”

 

Gerald: “These results are terrible, and the drug is being tested with humans!”

 

Ray: “Don’t look so surprised Gerald. I’m sure worse things have happened here!”

 

Gerald: “I’m genuinely surprised. A drug with these results shouldn’t be tested in humans!”

 

Ray thinks for a moment.

 

Ray: “Can you compare that drug with Equanox?”

 

Gerald: “Equanox?”

 

Ray: “Yes. I also heard Miyamoto and Clarkson talking about it.”

 

Gerald goes back to the computer and gets Equanox’s results, he then runs a program to compare both results and produce a summary of similarities and differences between them.

 

After a few minutes, the results are finally ready. Gerald takes a look and quickly stands up with a shocked look on his face.

 

Ray: “What’s the problem?”

 

Gerald presses a key on his computer. The summary comes out from the printer after a few seconds; Gerald grabs it and looks at it more closely.

 

Ray starts getting anxious.

 

Ray: “Come on, say something!”

 

Gerald: “They’re almost the exact same drug, but the side effects of H-795 appear to be more lethal, although there seems to be something in the composition of the drug that prevents these side effects from happening. Now I understand the terrible results, this safety mechanism doesn’t always work, apparently.”

 

Ray: “What does it mean?”

 

Gerald: “Well, Equanox is a failure because it keeps people awake for days and they eventually end up in the hospital with terrible diseases. According to these results, H-795 also keeps people awake for days, but they never feel tired and many eventually die from exhaustion.”

 

Gerald gives another read to the documents.

 

Gerald: “15 people died in the past 24 hours. Some of these subjects got here just a couple of days ago.”

 

Ray: “I heard Clarkson talking about sleeping pills. They put these people to sleep first and I guess they wake ‘em up and keep them that way with this new drug.”

 

Gerald thinks for a moment.

 

Gerald: “He shouldn’t do that. The sleeping state should be natural, not induced. The components in those sleeping pills must be messing up with H-795’s safety mechanisms.”

 

Gerald looks at Claude.

 

Gerald: “Did you take any sleeping pills before the drug was tested on you?”

 

Claude: “I don’t remember what happened at all. It’s freaking me out!”

 

Gerald: “I’ll see if the computer has something on you.”

 

[PresidentKiller]

Hey guys. Sorry for not being around lately, I've been very busy with work after the holidays so I haven't been able to keep writing as much as I'd have loved to. I'll post a new chapter shortly and remember that the end is near so prepare for it.

 

Hope you had a great Christmas and I wish you the best for this new year!

[Dr-Mayhem111]

The story is great, I read the whole thing. I know it's a few years old, but it's still great. A movie should be made in GTA IV for the Liberty City scenes and GTA V for the Vice City scenes. I really enjoyed this story, took me eight days to read. Thank PK for doing this story.

 

- Dr-Mayhem111

[LibertyKing]

You are learning English and Claude learned to talk !!! Love it !

[Karl_Esto]

Sorry for perhaps unnesessary bumping but I'm very looking foward to the next chapter.I have read all other chapters up to the most latest one.Will look foward to see the ending for this.

Keep on going.

[The Last Gamer]

Hey there PK, I really enjoy your story, specially the fact that Claude is talking, and he met Tommy, and he's back in SF! Also, I like that you drew his childhood up to the point he met Catalina and he raced in the countryside of SA. I wonder if CJ makes a brief cameo here... waiting for next chapter!

[GingerSkullpion]

Sorry for the bump, but I've just got round to reading this again for the first time in years, looking forward to the ending now.

[VProductions]

Sorry for the bump, but I've just got round to reading this again for the first time in years, looking forward to the ending now.

Sorry man but I think it is cancelled

[GingerSkullpion]

That'll suck if it is, one of the best fan fiction stories I've read on here.

[TonyZimmzy]

One of the originals that inspired me to write. I'll be catching up on this soon enough. I can't see it continuing now; it's been a year and a half or something since he's updated it.

[Master of San Andreas]

I don't think this is cancelled, if you look at PK's sig it says that 'The decline of Liberty will be back eventually' He was inactive for like a year before he came online recently.

[PresidentKiller]

Thanks for the comments and I'm glad I inspired many people to write after reading this. Sorry for the VERY late reply but I wasn't as active as I used to and probably never will. However, this story is still being updated from time to time (I just haven't posted anything because I keep making edits to the newer chapters). IT'S NOT CANCELLED but as you might've figured out by now, it's not getting updated regularly. I'll try to get my sh*t together and post something in a couple of weeks.

 

Again, sorry for the massive delays but life sometimes takes all the time you have. Thanks!

[Vercetti42]

Lol the bump is so old, the post above yours is actually from my old account.

 

Glad to see you back either way. I'm a big fan of this story.

Edited June 30, 2014 by Vercetti42

[PresidentKiller]

Yeah, I know I take quite the time to post around here but I'm glad people still show interest. I promise you won't be disappointed.

[Trillest]

Welcome back! You are a very talented writer and I can't wait to see what you have in store for us

[Francesco Bonomo]

I absolutely love this story, even though it is not finished. I found myself extremely invested from the first chapter, onwards. This inspired me to write Bad Blood and I truly am grateful to PresidentKiller for giving us this, the best he could. Maybe I'll never see the end but no matter what, I will continue to love every word that is typed.

 

Also I bumped this so others can see it and experience this amazing trip as well.

[Mokrie Dela]

Well you made a legitimate reply so it's not a bump, which is just as well or we'd have to have words!!

[Carbonox]

I remember this, may have even been the first story I ever read on this site. Need to catch up with all of the chapters at some point even while knowing the sad truth that it's been in the unfinished state for quite a while.

 

Nice to see Claude get a legit personality in this one though.

[VERCETT1]

aw man, I just bumped into this story and turns out it got canceled :(