Chapter 23

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Narrator-

The Subjects stood frozen with their hand above their heads. Their hearts thumped so loudly in the cavity of their chests, each member was sure they could hear the heartbeat of the others.

While Adina's her palms ran with sweat, Valerie's mouth dried quicker than a scarf on a sunny day and her throat became parched. It appeared that Valerie's body had forgotten the earlier refreshment she had greedily gulped only moments ago. Matthew's armpits prickled with sweat, and Lauren was sure her hair was now glued on the back of her damp neck.

Khairo felt hot and uncomfortable, he was almost overtaken by the urge to loosen the collar of his shirt and free his neck, and possibly pant like a thirsty canine. Khiran couldn't ignore the cold sweat running down his spine as the barking of the dogs increased outside.

Meanwhile, Jackson's brain matter doubled in size, and the sweat on his brow weighed more than a thousand sizzling hot bricks against his skin.

Jackson-

This was all my fault. I should've never led them into the cabin. And now we were about to get caught, and in the end, we accomplished nothing.

I felt the urge to shift my eyes towards Adina. For some reason, from the first time I laid eyes on her, and we made eye contact, I always seem to feel better whenever her eyes caught mine. But I knew that I had to keep my eyes on the old man who had the gun pointed at my head.

The barking of the approaching dogs grew louder in volume, and I heart tremored and trembled with every bark my ears registered. This was bad. But I had to figure something out. Or else we could all die, or worse, we'd be taken back to the lab. By now I'm sure that Warlord was aware of the situation, which meant that Archer would only get more sadistic, and we'd probably be forced to become Warlord's war puppets.

I couldn't let that happen. We didn't get this far only to lose now.

My throat moved with a gulp, though the small amount of saliva felt more like grains of sand grinding against the dry walls of my esophagus. My throat was already parched even though I just drank water. Sighing softly through my nostrils, I attempted to shift my weight just slightly, but that only caused the old man to tense up and become even more aggressive.

"I ain't ask'n 'gain Who are ye?" The old man pushed with a gruff voice, and he made a show of pointing his gun even harder towards me and the group.

I raked my brain, but I was quickly running out of ideas, and felt cornered. No Pun intended. I tried to weigh out my options, but I didn't have many choices to go on. The odds were obviously not in our favor, but looking at the situation, the old man was the more sensible choice instead of facing the Warlord's army out there.

So I decided to sway him.

"Look," I began after sighing once more, "we don't want any trouble, but we really need your help." I decided to try my hand at a little honesty.

"Are ye fug'tives rahnin'n from d'police?" The Old man demanded, his lone eyes looking over our faces, lingering on Matthew's and Valerie's for a few moments longer, before looking back at me.

"Something like that." I admitted, trying to be as vague and yet as honest as possible in my response.

He didn't need to know all the details, or then he'd really freak out.

The old man looked at me, then back over the others. He looked away and grumbled something incoherent under his breath.

In that moment he looked away, Valerie quickly tapped my right side. I looked down at her, and she cocked her head towards the old man. I looked up from Valerie, and towards Adina. Who was standing on my right and she was already looking at me. I frowned in question, asking her for some form of permission or idea on her part when it came to Valerie, but she simply replied with a soft shrug.

Valerie tapped me again, her eyes shifting between me and the grumbling old man, meanwhile in the background, my ears registered that the dogs and approaching military were practically on top of us.

We had to move, and we had to move quick.

I frowned in uncertainty towards Valerie, and she rolled her eyes. I looked up at Matthew who stood a step behind Adina, but he also shrugged. I shifted my eyes to my left, but neither Lauren, Khairo, nor Khiran offered any idea, or argued against what I believe Valerie was suggesting.

I gulped, an uncertain heat breathing down the back of my neck.

I didn't want Valerie to hurt the old man.

"I won't hurt him." Her voice suddenly sounded in my head.

"What the hell? You have telepathy?" I asked her, my eyes shifting down towards her, and she looked up at me quizzically.

"I mean you can talk to other people in their minds? And you can speak fluent English this whole time?" I interrogated before I could stop myself, but she simply smiled and looked away.

I looked up at Adina., which suspected what happened, and she also chose to avoid my eyes.

Great.

I felt myself sigh. I didn't have may options, so I might as well work with what I had.

"Alright," I gave in, " just... be careful. If you can't get through to him, we'll figure something out." I gave Valerie the okay, and she smile softly, then focused her blue eyes back on the old man who had a deep frown resting on his forehead as he continued to grumble and argue with himself.

"Sir?" Valerie spoke up softly, and I could feel the other group members tensing up around me.

Valerie was a little unpredictable when it came to her powers, and the tension did not improve when Valerie's call caused the old man's attention and barrel to focus on her.

I noticed Valerie draw in a short gasp in my peripheral vision, and I almost wanted to have her abort the mission.

"Sir," Valerie spoke up again, "We need your help," she spoke quietly, and as far as I could tell, the old man was not under her control.

My eyes shifted to Adina, just as hers shifted to mine. She gulped nervously, then we both looked back between Valerie and the old gentleman.

"What d'you neead hep wit?" The man questioned, the gruffness in his voice faltering just slightly.

I lifted a curious eyebrow at his change in tone and watched on carefully.

"He will tell you," Valerie suddenly pointed to me, and the old man straightened his spine, but before he could get a word in Valerie warned, "After you help us."

My eyes looked between the ten-year-old girl, negotiating and baiting the elderly man. The room was still tense, and the focus I noticed in Valerie's eyes did not put my mind at ease either.

The old man squinted his eye towards Valerie, but she refused to look away. The man focused his one eye so much into Valerie's face, I feared that any little movement and his finger would push the trigger.

When he realized that Valerie would not relent, he scoffed and grumbled as he broke eye contact.

"Qu-ayt d' lil' negochator ain't ya?" He murmured to himself, then he looked away, his eyes moving over the dark wooden floor as he seem to silently debate what to do.

All this time, my ears kept track on the approaching dogs and footsteps. And I now registered the whirring blades of a helicopter flying above us.

The old man also heard the sound and released a huff before he turned the barrel of the gun towards the floor.

The audible relief in our chests could not be missed as we all sighed. I felt my shoulders sag just a little, and bringing my arms down, the cool sensation of my blood circulating more freely to the tip of my fingers was welcomed in the vascular channels of my upper extremities.

"Is'it d' poulice?" He asked, his tone much less urgent and gruff.

"Something like that." I replied once again.

And though the skeptical gaze did not leave his eye, he nodded then said "Good. I hate d'police. Move the chair ov'er, pouull 'd' car'pit. Gy'ait n'theare." He instructed, and as soon as we realized what he said, we scurried over and began following his instructions,

Narrator-

As the Subjects gained the old man's help and trust, back in the lab, the command center all turned their attention to the four creatures as Michael once again entered the chamber with Victor and prepared to wake them.

The first one Michael approached was Frank.

Michael snapped on a pair of medical gloves and decided to perform a sternal rub. Frank's back arched off the bed in response, before his pitch-black eyes snapped opened. As soon as Michael saw this, he rushed to the others, and performed the same maneuver.

Each of the creatures had the same response. The arching of their spine followed by the opening of their pitch-black eyes. Satisfied, Michael and Victor stood by the door and waited in silence.

"What are they waiting for?" Archer murmured to himself, the deep creases between his brow causing excess blood flow to blush his bald scalp.

Vivian sent him a side glance.

Mateo stood a few steps away from the crowd, but his eyes were not focused on Archer's creations and new obsession, but rather Vivian. He understood the risk of pursuing a woman like Vivian, but his stubborn ego was not allowing him to let her go. After their moments shared in the air ducts, Mateo realized that there was more to Vivian than a strict mask and stiff shoulders. He wanted to know the more.

Back in the chamber, Michael and Victor continued to wait as the creatures began to stir. There was a soft growling still audible in their chests as they moved their heads about, their eyes taking in their environment. They huffed and sniffled through their nostrils as they started to become more aware. The creatures noticed their restraints but had yet to see the scientist and soldier standing a few paces out of their line of sight.

Michael felt a cloud of doubt weighing on the back of his mind. His formula worked too well. The creatures looked too human. And that's what he feared. Something was going to happen. It was building up in the chests of the creatures. As a scientist and doctor, Michael could feel it. After all, they were his patients.

Archer scrutinized the creatures through the glass, then his sharp eyes shifted to Michael.

"What are you waiting for?" Archer murmured to himself, as he looked at the expectant gaze shining in Michael's eyes.

Everyone in the lab stood in tense silence. If the doctor was not pleased, then they couldn't breathe easy yet.

The creatures were not getting agitated, but rather curious. Their eyes flashed left and right, their necks straining up and down, as they began to release soft and incoherent sounds through their lips.

"Something's wrong with you..." Michael pondered with quiet breaths, "You're not done transforming yet." Michael continued, then his eyebrows rose in realization.

They're not done transforming yet!

"Victor, we need to leave. Now!" Michael began to urge Victor who instantly rushed to unlock the door with his biometrics.

"What are they doing?" Archer questioned as he realized that Michael and Victor were attempting to run from the chamber.

"Lock it!" Archer commanded one of his puppets who managed the door locks.

When Victor finished scanning his eyes, he waited for the door to click and hiss open, but instead he received a loud buzz denying him access.

"Michael, you do not leave that room until my creatures are corresponding properly." Archer spoke through a speaker connected to the chamber.

"But sir, they're not done transforming. You must let us out of here, or we will die." Michael explained in haste, his palpitating heart visibly trembling in his neck.

At the doctor's words, Vivian looked towards Archer with subtle panic in her eyes, and Mateo finally peeled his eyes away from Vivian as he realized that his friend and fellow soldier was also trapped in the room with the creatures.

"Well Michael, you gave me your word that this serum would work. If there is a mishap, who else should handle the consequences if not you?" Archer questioned, the bitter and taunting smile across his lips telling Michael that his death certificate was already signed, sealed, and on it's way to be delivered.

Michael's mouth moved, but he made no sound. His throat was so dry, a squeal could not rise past his larynx, and his brow dented in fear beneath his glasses.

Then the screaming began.

All eyes shifted towards the source of the scream, audible gasps erupting from the bystanders in the command center.

The creatures shrieked like banshees caught in a beartrap. The sound forced both Victor and Michael to cover their ears and cower their bodies against the wall.

Those in the command center also blocked their ears as the creatures squealed and screamed. Vivian covered her ears, and even Mateo was forced to pull his hands to his ears.

The creatures' neck muscles, arms muscles, and leg muscles all strained as the loud noise burned from their throat, just as the chemicals burned through their veins.

A second round of screams erupted from their throats and Michael found himself sobbing against the wall. The pain he heard from his patients reflected in his heart, and their dolor and malaise pulled at his heartstrings. Their sharp, high-pitched cries gripped and suffocated his heart, and prickled his brain like a million fiery needles.

The creatures huffed, grunted, only to scream again, and while everyone covered their ears and attempted to look away, Archer felt as though he was in absolute bliss.

With every scream, a tickling sensation ran up and down his spine, caressing his bald scalp. The sound and feeling in the atmosphere made him curl his toes. The creatures' horrific symphony to Archer was like having his scalp rubbed by long slender nails, brushed red at the tip.

Hearing their pain was one thing but seeing it on the creatures' faces had Archer's lips widening with a pleased smile. The Heat scientist was absolutely euphoric and on the brink of what appeared to be an orgasm due to the sensation of the screams burning through the sinews beneath his goosebump-dotted skin.

As the creatures screeched and bellowed, their blood vessels began to burn underneath their thin and pale skins. Their veins throbbed underneath their muscles, tatting and scarring the cells of their dermis and outer envelope.

"Oh what a masterpiece." Archer breathed out, his tone shaky and as euphoric as it was sadistic, his eyes drinking in the birth of the creatures' unique tattoos, made of cicatrized webs of vascular channels on every visible inch of their skin.

Once the burning sensation died away, the bodies fell limp. Michael was still sobbing. His ears rang and buzzed in the canals of his skull, his brain being violated by a pulsing thump that he did not consent to. His eyes were shut tight. Victor was unmoving against the wall. His head pounding with an unwelcomed ache, and his heart bumped loudly against his ribcage; the hold on his gun quavering with every short and uncertain breath which shot through his lungs.

The guard sat against the wall, his eyes wide and traumatized, his tongue heavier than a rusted anchor.

"Michael, stop bawling like a baby and check to see if they're alive." Archer instructed after the room had gone quiet for too long.

Michael's heart only hardened at the Head Scientist's taunt. The doctor had no idea why he suddenly felt so attached to the creatures. Maybe he felt pity? But no, it was more than that. Michael now felt responsible for the creatures. He was the one who managed to figure out the formula to reverse majority of the defect caused by the original serum, so he now felt obligated to manage their care and recovery.

However, with a man like Archer Glass in charge, Michael knew that there was no such thing as personal attachment. Picking his shoulders off the ground, Michael made sure to clear his face of any tears, then he began making his way towards Frank and his other companions with shaking knees.

Back in the forest, the Subjects had managed to pull back the chair and rug, just as the old man had instructed.

Once the rug was removed, the group noticed a wooden hatch with rusted iron bolts. Jackson and Matthew looked back at the old man in a quizzical manner, and the man simply chuckled and said, "whet? Bett'er prepa'red thnen sawry."

"Fair point." Khairo nodded, and Lauren sent him a look, which he pretended not to see.

Jackson and Matthew opened the hatch, and Adina was the first to go in, followed by Valerie, then Lauren, followed by Khiran, Matthew, Khairo, and finally Jackson.

However, before Jackson entered, he turned to the old man and said sincerely, "thank you so much."

"Do'nt thnank met jius't yeat." The old man replied, then with a motion of his hand, he urged Jackson to enter the hatch.

Once the hatch was closed, the old man pulled the rug back in place, and positioned the chair just as it was a few minutes prior. Then he grabbed his shotgun and waited.


_________________________________________

Hey guys!

Long time no update, I know. But I am back and invested in this story, and won't stop until I complete it. So expect a string of updates over the next few days, hopefully. 

So what did you think of this chapter? The old man turned out to not be so bad, but do you think the Subjects will be discovered? And what about what occurred in the lab? With Michael and Archer? What do you think is going to happen next?

Let me know what you think by VOTING, COMMENTING, AND SHARING!

Lots of ❤❤❤

-Tania.  


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