The Shadows of the Human Mind

Unrelated stories that take place in a setting besides Star Wars...

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The Shadows of the Human Mind

Post by Xalsin »

OOC:

http://www.sw-e.com/forum/viewtopic.php ... 6&p=148693

Not much I can say about this thread... It's the product of boredom, insomina, and waay to much time on my hands, a combination that's been much too common these days. If you're interested in joining, let me know.

IC:

It was a warm sea of fuzziness, a seductive maelstrom that pulled with a deceptively strong undertow. No matter how often he came to the surface, the man always seemed to be pulled back under the colorless, senseless waters.

Perhaps it was a dream. Perhaps it was a dream within a dream. There was absolutely nothing to gauge the experience on. There was nothing to even convince the man that it was even an experience at all. It was beyond sensory deprivation, it was complete deprivation of every mental ability from memory to reasoning.

Suddenly (or was it sudden? maybe it had always been) there was a light at the end of the tunnel. It was a muzzy looking brownish light that seemed to lack any sort of definition, but it was not darkness, that was all that mattered. The man who had no identity whatsoever moved towards the light in an ambigious way, not walking, not swimming, just... moving.

The light grew brighter and brighter, slowly taking on more difinition and detail. There, just beyond that archway of darkness.... The man passed through the threshold, finding himself laying in a hospital bed. He stood there a minute, staring dispassionately down at himself, who was laying listlessly in the bed...

With a gasp of in rushing air, the man opened his mouth as a rush of intense confusion and disorientation overtook him. He opened his eyes, sat up in bed, desperately trying to make sense of everything he saw around himself.

An empty hospital room. Yes. But who was he?

He searched deep for an indentity. It was remarkably long in coming. Ezekiel Danner. More commonly known as "Zek". Beyond his name, though, he couldn't remember... well, anything. There were fragments of memories, but not even enough to give him a clear picture of himself.

Before Zek could ponder his own identity further, the door to his room opened, revealing a nurse in a tight fitting outfit, who smiled as she entered bearing a clipboard under one arm.

"Good morning, Mr. Danner, and welcome back. It is good to see you've awaken. The doctor thought you would probably wake up today."

Zek looked her over, trying to find any flint at all to spark the flames of memory. She was tall, with light brown hair that she wore back in a simple pony tail. Light blue eyes shone with a strange fire from above a rather plastic looking smile.

She was attractive, Zek realized, very attractive, but there was also another quality that he couldn't place exactly. It was a sort of fakeness about her as if he could just reach up and peel her face off to find a different one underneath.

It was hard to understand what she was saying. There was something wrong with his ears that made all her words sound very wobbly and garbled. Add to that the distraction of her appearance, it made it extremely hard to think striaght.

"Where am I?" Zek asked hesitantly. He didn't feel comfortable talking freely to this woman, yet she seemed to be the only latch to reality.

Her voice started warbling worse, and Zek thought for a minute he was going to pass out. "You're...t... Sain... Marci's... ical cli..."

Zek closed his eyes, squeezing them shut with all his might as the world seemed to go for a spin. When he opened them again a moment later, the nurse was standing over him holding a small plastic cup with a pill in it.

"What's this?"

"It'll help with the headache." She said pleasantly, her voice still warbling, but better now. She was leaning so close to him that he could feel the heat of her breath playing against his face. He was about to protest that he didn't have a headache when it hit him like a hammer.

Zek reeled backwards against the bed as it felt as though someone were trying to split his skull open from the inside out. With his eyes involuntarily squeezed shut, he gropped for the pill until it was put in his hand.

He promptly swallowed the small white pill, and just as promptly, the headache stopped, leaving Zek gasping for air. Everything seemed to normalize with the pill, but that did little to calm Zek's nerves.

"What's happening to me?" He asked, an edge of panic creeping into his voice.

"I wouldn't worry about it, Mr. Danner." She straightened and walked over to a little counter in the room, making some notes on her clipboard. "You had a rather nasty fall while you were out rock climbing. You're lucky someone found you, or you would have died out there. As it is, you've been in a coma for two weeks. The doctor said there would be some strange side effects in the short term, but there should be no long term damage."

The nurse wrote the last of her missive, closed the cover on the clipboard, and turned back to him, a little stiffly.

"I will leave you now to get some rest. I'm sure you're tired after this traumatic ordeal."

Ezekiel hadn't been feeling tired up until the moment she mentioned it, and suddenly he found himself struggling to stay awake. He watched her walk over to the bed, leaning over him to turn off the small lamp next to the bed. "Sweet dreams, Mr. Danner."

It was in that moment that Zek knew something was seriously wrong but he didn't even get a chance to try to think what before he was asleep, very pleasant dreams rushing up to greet him.
Last edited by Xalsin on Wed Oct 21, 2009 2:39 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Posts: 3187
Joined: Mon Apr 21, 2003 12:24 pm
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Post by Xalsin »

"Good morning Mr. Danner." The rather cheery, slightly accented voice cut into the dreamless sleep Ezekiel had been having. He opened his eyes, fighting back the wave of disorientation that seemed to strike everytime he awoke. Hadn't the paint of the room been a different shade of green when he had gone to sleep...?

Presently his eyes drifted over to the man who had spoken. It was a middle aged gentleman, perhaps in late forties or early fifties. His black hair was speckled with grey that was slowly becoming more prominent. From behind a pair of silver framed spectacles, his gleaming blue eyes studied Ezekiel with a rapt attention, as if delving into every detail to its fullest.

He was well dressed in a simple but elogant three piece suit, and held a stylish cane with a silver head to complete the look. Behind him, the nurse Zek had previously spoken to was hovering like a hawk riding thermal currents looking for prey.

"I trust you are comfortable, hm?" The man spoke again as the silent stretched on. Ezekiel couldn't think of what to say at first, but finally words began coming to his mouth as he slowly began to remember things from his previous bout with reality.

"Who are you?"

The man frowned. "Your condition must be worse then I previously thought. I am Doctor Garret Knight... You do not remember me? We spoke at great length yesterday...."

Ezekiel struggled to think, to remember, but there was no memory that came to mind associated with the man in front of him. Slowly he shook his head.

"Well, short term memory loss is not uncommon in situations like this. I can't say that I am too surprised. The treatment we gave you yesterday likely has produced some side effects as well."

"Treatment?" It was Zek's turn to frown now. He remembered something about a nurse... a pill... was that the treatment?

"Oh dear, you've forgotten everything?" The Doctor made a slight tsking sound, jotting something down on a clipboard. "I am disinclined to repeat everything that was spoken yesterday, but I must bring to your attention yet again the fact that you've sustained severe brain trauma and agreed to undergo a rather experimental form of treatment to restore the brain tissue. It could be your only hope for avoiding permenant and irrevocable damage."

Again Zek tried to remember. It was the most frustrating thing of his existance, like trying to dig a sliver out of the skin. Everytime he tried to grasp it, it was pushed in deeper.

"I... I don't remember anything..." His voice was near panic. It was like nothing he could ever have imagined, losing the very things that made him who he was: his memories. "You've got to help me, Doctor."

"Of course, Mr. Danner. I will do all I can. But you can help us help you. By understanding what will be happening. The treatments will likely induce severe hallucinations and dillusions. There is the possibility of you turning violent. We need your cooperation in the days ahead in allowing us to do our job."

"What is this treatment?" Zek was starting to get more and more nervous about this whole treatment idea. And some distant voice in the back of his mind kept screaming that this whole situation was.. wrong somehow.

The doctor leaned forward, seemingly rather excited about the topic. "As I mentioned, it is highly experimental. We will be giving you a series of injections into your brain, which will run a metallic solution through it. Don't worry, the compound will eventually be absorbed into your body as completely harmless minerals. But before it breaks down, we will be using a series of energy waves, from electricity to X-rays to stimulate various parts of the brain in different ways. The compound will act as a conductor, hopefully to bridge gaps that have formed in your brain. I do not anticipate there being any pain, but it is still in the experimental stages."

Zek leaned back, tears coming unabbiden to his eyes. The whole thing was just overwhelming and unbelieveable. How could this be happening?

"When will the treatments start?"

"Your first treatment was yesterday..." The doctor spoke slowly, noting Ezekiel's surprised expression.

"That's why I am here, actually. It's time for your next treatment. I had hoped that you would remember this, but memory loss was an expected side effect. In fact, you've probably had some strange hallucinations or dreams as well. I just want to reassure you that these are to be expected, so do not be alarmed. Are you ready to begin the treatment?"

"I thought there wasn't likely to be any lasting side effects?" Zek spoke haltingly. The nurse and doctor looked at each other with a slight look of confusion.

"This procedure-"

"The nurse. Her." Zek interupted. "She told me that there wouldn't be any lasting damage. So why is all this necessary?"

The Dr. Knight looked questioningly again at his nurse, whom gave a little shrug and leaned in. She whispered her words, but Zek could still hear them as clearly as if she had been shouting. Strangely enough, her voice seemed to be coming from somewhere behind him. "I haven't spoken to him, Doctor, except when you were present yesterday."

He gave her a microscopic nod, then turned back to Ezekiel, fixing him with a stare that convinced the patient he was losing his mind. "Mr. Danner, I assure you that there is the potential for long term damage, the actual likiness is yet to be determined..."

"She.. told me..." Zek trailed off, suddenly unsure if what was dream and what was real.

"Most likely you had a hallunication of some sort, Mr. Danner. I do not mean to sound impatient, but I would like to start your treatment right away. Are you ready?"

There didn't seem to be any recourse but to go along with them. Ezekiel just nodded, his throat closing to prevent him from being able to say anything else.

"Very well. Nurse." The Nurse opened up a styrafoam medical tray, pulling out one of the thickest hypodermic needles Zek could have possibly seen in his life time, as well as several smaller ones.

"I will be administering a local anethesia, which will make the actual compound injection painless." The doctor spoke as he picked up one of the small needles and stepped over to Zek."Just hold still, you won't feel a thing."

Zek felt one latex gloved hand rest on his head, which was the first time he realized that he had no hair. In truth, he couldn't even remember what he looked like, but he had the distinct impression that he had had hair until recently, even though he couldn't remember what it was like.

The needle pierced just inside scalp, injecting its contains into the capilleries of the region, instantly numbing all the nerves in the area. Zek tensed, then slowly relaxed as numbing spread to cover the bad portion of his skull.

"There, now, Mr. Danner. That should make this much more comfortable." Dr. Knight said soothingly. Ezekiel thought about asking him if he had been in much pain last time, but he found that his jaw seemed to refuse to open. Yet that fact didn't even seem to bother him. Suddenly, nothing really seemed to matter.

The nurse stepped over to the doctor, delivering the large syringe into his waiting hand. Zek just watched dispassionately, though he kept finding himself staring at the nurse. She was attractive, after all. If only situations had been different, he thought, then maybe...

The thought was rather rudely interupted as the doctor rather forcefully shoved the needle through his skull. The anethesia did nothing to prevent him from feeling the excruciating pain that drilled through his skull and finally tickled against his brain. As the plunger was depressed, he felt the contents empty into his brain like liquid fire...

A scream tore out of his throat like a bullet leaving a barrel. For a moment, his vision was faded red, and all sensation left him except for the pain in his head. In that moment, which might have indeed lasted forever, Ezekiel ceased to exist, except for his pain.

Finally, his scream faded away, the pain died, and his vision returned, much like a hungry animal returned to food after having been scared away.

Zek opened his eyes, looking around the room in panic. It was a different room then the one he had been in a minute ago. There was a large apparatus at the end of the room and a dozen or so computer consoles. The nurse was pushing his rolling bed towards the apparatus while the doctor walked along side her, limping heavily on his cane.

"Mr. Danner, are you alright? What is wrong?" The doctor asked in alarm, stepping over beside him. He was silent a moment, gropping for words. What was wrong? Something about pain? But there was no trace of that pain now... Was it another hallunication? He had no way of gauging what was real any more.

All Zek could do was shake his head, tears openly streaming down his face. "I want to get better, Doctor... I can't take this much more."

The doctor's lips squeezed together in sympathy and thought. "I know, Mr. Danner. We're doing all we can. The worst should be over in a few days. For now, Mr. Danner, we need your full cooperation."

Zek just nodded, trying to wipe away the tears. "Yeah." He said though clenched teeth.

"Can you move yourself over to this bed?" The doctor asked as the nurse pushed his hospital bed up next to the bed that seemed attached to the apparatus. Zek nodded and slid across to the slightly more firm bed.

"There, that's fine, Mr. Danner. There's just one last thing you can do for us. We need you to put these on." Dr. Knight held up restraints that were attached to the table.

"What?" Zek asked in surprise and alarm.

"Please, Mr. Danner, it's for your safety and ours. If something goes wrong, and you go into convulsions, this will prevent you from hurting yourself."

His breaths were coming in very rapid, shallow huffs now, but Zek nodded reluctantly. The doctor snapped the restraints on his wrists and ankles, effectively holding him to the table.

"Try to relax, Mr. Danner. You won't feel a thing." The doctor gave him an odd smile as the aparratus lowered an extension from the ceiling to envelope Ezekiel's head.
Last edited by Xalsin on Mon Feb 11, 2008 8:52 am, edited 1 time in total.
Posts: 3187
Joined: Mon Apr 21, 2003 12:24 pm
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Post by Xalsin »

"Ezekiel." It was a feminine voice calling him, as if from a great distance away. Zekk turned his head to look in the direction of the oddly familiar voice, but all he saw was a blurry image of a woman dressed in white standing in a doorway.

"Ezekiel? What's wrong? What are you doing here?" The woman stepped through the doorway, drawing closer to him, but she still remained blurry and out of focus. As she drew closer to where he was laying, he became aware that she was dressed in red, not white.

It didn't matter the fact that Ezekiel couldn't see her clearly, he knew instantly things about her. He knew that she was familiar to him, the sort of familiarity that was born from having spent much time with her. Someone important to him, though the reason why eluded him at the moment. As did her name. And her face.

In fact, he couldn't remember any details about her, only vague impressions and feelings. No matter how he tried to focus on her, she only remained blurry, so instead he focused on the question.

"I don't know... Where is here?" The words left his mouth slowly, as if his tongue was stuck to the roof of his mouth. He wondered if she could even understand what he was trying to say.

"What do you mean? What's the matter with you?" The question sounded alarmed and urgent. Ezekiel fought against a sudden attack of tiredness. This seemed important.

The words had barely reached his ears when the woman in front of him shrieked. "Zek!"

Two shadows appeared behind her, wrapping themselves around her arms and hauling her out of the room.

"Visiting hours are over, Miss." A very deep baritone voice spoke. The last word Ezekiel heard before the doorway closed was "Zek!"

She was in trouble, she must be. Zek tried to stand, tried to get out of bed. Throwing both legs over the edge of the bed, Zek jumped up, only to discover that there was no floor beneath his feet. Only darkness greeted him as he suddenly was falling down a deep pit, with nothing above, below or beside him.

Ezekiel screamed at first, a scream of alarm and fear at the fall, but his scream tapered off as he realized that he was not falling, but standing in a dark corridor.

He was aware of walls on either side of him, but he could not see him in the darkness. Somewhere there was a door, and behind that door, there were voices.

"I know the odds of him surviving are small, but think of the implications if he does!" It was a male voice, a very excited one at that.

"I have been thinking of the implications, Doctor." It was a female voice this time. Not a familiar one, but a strange and cold one. "Perhaps better then you have. You could be opening Pandora's box. It might be impossible to stop this once it's started."

"Do you really think me so stupid? I have taken every precaution." The male voice grew very angry. "Precaution!" He shouted the last word of his sentence like an echo. "Precaution, Precaution! Precaution!"

There was a sound like a scream and a gunshot, a high powered rifle. But it did not come from where the voices were, but somewhere behind him.

Ezekiel spun woozily, his mind frantically trying to keep up with what's going on. This all seemed so familiar, as if he had done this before, like the deja vu of waking up from a reoccuring dream.

There was a light up ahead, and Ezekiel ran towards it, skidding to a halt as he exited where ever he had been and found himself on a cliff edge.

It was a bright, sunny day the high cliff top, not a cloud in the blue sky. Behind him was a forest of trees and shrubs, no sign of any door way back the way he had came. Birds sang merrily, unconcerned with his plight and confusion.

On the ground there was a sniper rifle, a Walther WA2000, and a communications head set, as well as a Colt .45 pistol. There was a .45 brass not far from the pistol, still smoking from its recent shot.

Ezekiel frowned at the scene. It told him a lot, but he didn't really understand it. There was something missing...

The rifle was expensive, he knew. Probably the most expensive rifle in existance, but it was worth it. Yes, he knew a lot about guns. It had something to do with the work he did. The work he did....

But they weren't here to kill anyone... Just to watch from the cliff edge... That was all...

But she was gone...

There were fragments of images, thoughts, and memories, like pieces of a puzzle. Yet he couldn't put in them in any order to get them to make sense... No, something was still missing...

He looked over to the cliff's edge to see what they had been watching, but there was nothing below. Only blackness, like someone had draped off the entire country side.

A pain arched up through his spine into his skull like a lightning strike. He heard a crack and was certain it was his own skull. His hands tried to move up towards his head, but they couldn't. Wouldn't.

A scream clawed its way all the way from his lungs to his mouth, finally escaping as a howl.

"Mr. Danner!" Some one was screaming back at him.

Silence. Blackness. Nothingness.

Ezekiel slowly opened his eyes, the world swimming in and out of focus again. There was a woman, dressed in white. It was the woman.

He opened his mouth to speak, but a groan was all that came out.

"Can you hear me, Mr. Danner? Are you alright?" She leaned very close to him, so close that her face came into focus. It was the nurse. That wasn't her, was it? Who was her? Zek didn't even have an answer to his own question.

"What happened?" The question really didn't even come close to summing up Ezekiel's confusion, but it was the best he could do.

"The treatment's over, Mr. Danner. We transported you back to your room, but we were afriad to take off the restraints because you were... well, thrashing violently."

"What time is it?" He wasn't even sure why he asked, but for some reason the time seemed important.

"9:00 AM, Mr. Danner. Do you feel okay?" The nurse asked as she took his pulse and blood pressure.

"Yea. Sure." He spoke in a low murmur, letting his head lull back to look at the ceiling. There was a spiderweb pattern of cracks on the ceiling, as if something had been thrown up there forcefully. Strange, it didn't remember seeing those before...

The nurse unbuckled the restraints and helped him slid back into his regular hospital bed. "Try to get some rest, Mr. Danner. You've got to sleep if you're ever going to get better."

Ezekiel just nodded. He felt very tired, as if he had just ran a marathon. It wasn't until he was just falling asleep that he remembered: he always felt tired when they told him to. Or was that just in the dream....?
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Post by Xalsin »

One eye opened, and then the other. The room was dim, and slightly out of focus, but other then that seemed normal. Ears strained to hear over the thudding of a heart beat which seemed to grow louder. Breath was held, but even with every attempt made to detect minute noises, there was nothing but a faint hum. Something akin to air currents blowing from a vent softly.

Ezekiel sat up slowly, his eyes questioningly searching the room. But there was nothing to give any sort of answer to the questions in his mind. He felt remarkably awake and alert for the first time in... Well, a while, that's all he knew.

In fact, that was all he knew. All he had was his name, and scattered assortment of dreams, images, and memories. The problem was that they were so scrambled together that he couldn't possibly draw a dividing line through them.

Okay. Zek drew a deep breath, slowly letting himself relax. It was time to get some answers.

His first step was to do a basic assessment of himself. There was an IV in his arm, which he found troublesome, a rather standard looking medical bracelet around his wrist, and his only clothing a white gown.

Even as he examined himself, it was like seeing himself for the first time. The features, which must have always been with him, were foreign.

He was well toned, he saw, though he had the distinct impression that he had been laying in this bed long enough to have his muscles start atrophying. That also was troublesome.

He also had circular scar on his right shoulder. Something that looked suspiciously like an old bullet wound. That made Zek wonder even more about his unknown past.

He reached up, and touched the top of his forehead. It was bald, just as he had thought. But I used to have hair... Didn't I?

With a reluctance that came unconsciously, his fingers moved along his scalp towards the back of his head. There was a bandage there, over a very tender spot.

So that part of his dream had been true. They had actually stuck a needle through his skull and into his brain. But was the rest of it true? Had they really tied him down to do some sort of treatment on his head?

What did it all mean?

Think, damnit, think! Zek gritted his teeth in concentration, willing himself to make sense of it all.

There was something about hiking. He had fallen... Hadn't he? No. He was looking for someone who had fallen.. No, that wasn't right. But he was looking for someone. Or was it a something?

But there was someone else involved. A girl. Yes, there was a girl.

"Guardian Angel." Zek murmured. He stopped breathing the second after he said it, surprised at how that term had just slipped out of his mouth. It was something out of his memory, something having to do with the girl, but...

What does that mean?

Zek's head shook in frustration. This was getting him nowhere. It was time to go for a walk and see if he could find something to jog his memories better that way.

The man turned his attention to the IV machine first. He didn't want to start it beeping by just pulling out the IV. Leaning in a bit, Zek squinted in the dim light at the keypad of buttons and reached out to touch one, with the intent of finding someway to disable it.

Before his finger even reached the pad, there was an arc of electricity from his outstretched hand to the machine, which gave a strangled beep and promptly died. For some reason, that seemed quite normal to Zek. At any rate, it didn't seem worth dwelling on. He pulled the IV out of his arm, rather haphazardly, cursing softly as squirt of blood shot out of his artery.

There was no gauze in sight, but Zek did manage to stumble over to a paper towel dispenser on the wall, which he used to stauch the flow. He felt a little dizzy being upright, but he was determined not to let that stop him.

The cool metal latch of the door swung easily under his hand, as he pulled the door open and peeked out into the hallway.

It was like no hospital he had ever seen.

The hallway was tight and narrow, almost claustraphobically so. The beds must have just barely fit down the hall way, which meant there would be no way for traffic to get around a bed in the hallway either.

The lighting was poor and there were no windows to add any sort of natural light. It was all flourescent, casting a vaguely bluish tinge to everything that seemed strange and piercing to Zek's eyes. His eyes seemed remarkably sensitive for some reason, but there was no time to consider this at present. Zek was on the hunt for answers, and he intended to find them.

Zek stalked down the hallway with practiced ease, naturally moving quietly and gracefully. Something about that made him wonder exactly why he had practiced ease that made his movements so smooth. What exactly had he done for a living before ending up here?

At the next door, he stopped. There was nothing on outside of the door except for a room number to give a clue as to the room's occupants or contents. Zek decided that it might be informative to check out what other patients were in these rooms.

The door cracked open under Zek's insistant hand. It was a hospital room, just like the one he had just left. There was a lone figure, laying down in his (or her) bed. A bright light from the ceiling shone down on the figure, bathing the whole scene in a milky white light that seemed to Zek to be unnecessarily bright and uncomfortable. To add to the patient's obviously unfortunate situation, there was an oxygen tent drapped over the bed, and the faint hiss of gas could be heard.

Zek crept forward silently, an odd feeling in his stomach growing as he approached the person.

It was a man. Or, at least, Zek was reasonably sure that it was. The misshapen person had seen better days, if the bandages covering him from head to toe were anything to judge by. The only place that was not bandaged was the man's face, which was obscured by the oxygen tent, and his stomach.

Zek winced. The man's skin on the his abdomin was a dark bluish, almost purplish color. There were also stitch marks, as if the man had been operated on several times. Whatever this man's condition, it was not natural, that much Zek was sure of.

Ezekiel made a precursory check of the room, but found nothing. No personal affects, no identification (other then a bracelet with a number on it, like his own), nothing.

It wasn't right. Ezekiel couldn't exactly place what his suspicions were, but he certainly had suspicions, and they were growing.

For a moment, Zek was tempted to wake the individual, to see if he had any more insight into this place, but decided against it. Whatever this man had, Zek wasn't keen on even the chance of it being contagious.

Even as Zek turned back to the door to leave, he knew someone was waiting for him on the other side. It was unavoidable. So Zek went ahead and opened the door as nonchalantly as he could manage.

It was the nurse who stood there. The slightly strange looking nurse, who was remarkably good looking. She smiled lifelessly at him as soon as their eyes met.

"Mr. Danner. It would appear that you are lost." She spoke slowly and suggestively, as if offering him a quick way to simply return to his room and not raise a fuss. But a fuss was exactly what Ezekiel had in mind.


"Yes, it would appear that I am. I wish to speak to the doctor immediately." Zek spoke as assertively as he dared, making it appearant he was expecting to get his way. In fact, he was.

The nurse smiled again, but there was still not a trace of warmth in it. "Of course. Dr. Knight is waiting for you in the lounge. If you would follow me, please."

Ezekiel followed as the nurse led him down the hallway and through a series of turns. The whole time, Ezekiel did not see one other person. It was as if the nurse and him were the only ones in the building...

Finally the nurse reached a set of thick, metal double doors. The doors swung open, unabidden, on heavy duty motors which emitted a loud humming noise. Zek followed the girl in to what had to be the strangest hospital lounge ever seen.

Dr. Knight was sitting at an oversized desk in the center of the room like a center piece, a light shining on him from the high ceiling above. There was a bank of computer monitors along the far wall, all of them off. To Ezekiel's immediate right was a set of lounge furniture, which, Zek supposed, was the only reason this room was called a lounge at all. Off to the left was several large cabinets, each at least seven feet tall. The whole room was dark, with a very utilitarian feel, not exactly the sort of place one would come to "lounge".

Dr. Knight stood with the aid of his cane upon seeing Ezekiel. "Ah. Mr. Danner. I see you are awake. I must say, it is earlier then I expected. Most unfortunate for you."

Dr. Knight walked over towards Ezekiel. Though the gait was little more then a hobble, there was something about him that instantly triggered Ezekiel's fight or flight reflex, and he had to restrain himself from jumping at the doctor or the nurse.

"What do you mean, Doctor? What is this place? What is going on?"Ezekiel drew himself up to full hieght. It was time to get some answers, and he was going to get them, regardless of what it took.

Dr. Knight simply held up a hand to stave off the flood of questions. "Please, Mr. Danner. I have very little time for your games. It is unfortunate that you have awaken so quickly and forced me to deal with you in such a matter. I would have preferred a much more civilized relationship between us. However, things being as they are, I will explain your situation to you, though I must say, I do this out of courtesy, not out of obligation."

Ezekiel just crossed his arms as Dr. Knight drew a deep breath.

"Whatever your past loyalties, whatever your history, you are mine now, Mr. Danner. The only thing you are entitled to from your past is your name. That is the only allowance you are given. Other then that, your past is not your own any longer."

The doctor's eyes squinted as he took a step closer to Ezekiel, making Ezekiel's heckles raise. He said nothing, waiting for the doctor to finish.

"I will be conducting a series of experiments on you, as we had agreed. You can either cooperate. Or, I will do it without your cooperation. It matters very little to me, but it will matter a great deal to you."

"You haven't answered my questions." Ezekiel narrowed his eyes back. Yes, somewhere in the back of his mind he realized that he had once been quite good at playing the tough guy.

"Nor will I!" The doctor snapped angrily, his eyes suddenly burning like an intense fire. "You will come to understand that my word is law in this place, and everyone one does as I say. Whether they like it or not. I do not have to explain or justify myself to you or anyone else here."

Dr. Knight took another breath, visibly relaxing. "Pardon my anger, but I do get frustrated when people assume that I obligated to do what they want. That is not the case. Now, Mr. Danner, you must choose whether you wish to be cooperative, or not. As I said, it matters very little to me, but the difference it will make to your quality of life is quite astounding."

Ezekiel gave a snort. He didn't even have to think about that one. "Call me defiant, but I've never been one to play cooperative."

Dr. Knight gave an easy shrug. "Very well. As I said, it means very little to me." He walked over to his desk pressing a button on his desk. "I should like to introduce you to someone."

A side door opened and three men walked in. Each man was dressed in a thin sort of body armor that was colored black with red highlights. On the breast of the outfit was an esignia of a red circle bracketed by two crescents with a sword bisecting the circle.

Two of the men followed behind the third. Both of them wore helmets made of a similiar material to their armor, which covered their faces. The third man, however, had his face visible. And what a face it was.

The man had strange growths coming out of his forehead. They were... horns. There was no other way to describe it. The horns curved back along his black haired head finally coming to points just above the crown of his head. Each horn protruded from the skin just above each of his amber colored eyes.

As if that weren't enough to make him seem wierd, his mouth was full of teeth. Many, many teeth. They were very small, very sharp looking teeth, but there must have been a hundred of them in three or four different layers. His tongue was forked and flicked out occasionally like a snake.

Ezekiel eyed the... man... warily. Whatever the hell it was, it was not human. At least, not any more. Yet at the same time, the sight of him didn't surprise Zek nearly as much as he would have thought such a sight would have. Almost like he had seen things like this before...

"Mr. Danner, I would like to introduce you to Chiv. He is the captain of the Obsidian Blade, which is my guard force. He takes his job quite seriously, and he's quite good at what he does, as your presence here shows." Dr. Knight smiled slightly, but the smile faltered, as if he just realized he had spoken something he had not intended.

Zek caught it, and knew that he had something to do with the last part of that statement. Unfortunately, it wasn't much to go on and he didn't have much time to think about it now.

"Chiv, Mr. Danner has decided to be uncooperative. He is now your responsibility. Please make sure he gets back here for his appointment. I've already emailed his schedule to you."
The doctor turned away. Chiv gave a grunt of acknowledgement, then turned to Ezekiel, who was mentally steeling himself for a fight. Chiv was big, very big, and Ezekiel was atrophied, but he'd be damned before he went without a fight.

"What you fail to understand, Mr. Danner," Chiv's voice sounded like a tea kettle about to boil, "is that we can cause you pain without even having to touch you." Chiv's beady eyes focused in on Zek intently.

For a moment Zek felt nothing, then it gripped him like a vise around his head. Zek opened his mouth, but didn't even manage to get out a sound before the pain dropped him to the ground in excruciation.

"As you can see, Mr. Danner, You have no hope of resisting." Chiv stood over him, poking him in the face with the steel toe of his boots. "Bring the worm down to the processing room. He is checking out of the cozy hospital now."

All Zek could do was groan as the two other soldiers picked him up by his arms and dragged him from the room. The last thing Zek saw before passing out again was the Doctor watching him with a disinterested expression before returning to the paper work on his desk.
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Post by Xalsin »

Drip. Drip.

Water fell drop by drop from the darkness above. It was impossible to say it's source. But it refused to fall faster then a drop at a time. The sound was maddening.

Drip. Drip

There were hands in the darkness. At first Zek thought that there were many of them, but it was only one pair of hands. Outstretched, as if handing him something. But Zek could not see anything in the hands to take.

There was a low thrumming sound that was loud, yet at the same time, quiet. The wind whipped his hair around, even though he was indoors.
Strange... I seemed to remember being bald... He thought distantly, but the thought seemed alien and foreign, as if it did not belong here, so he let it die.

Turning around, he found out why the wind was so strong in here. He was actually high in the air, falling. Far below him, a land shrouded in darkness rushed up to greet him. A scream of terror escaped his throat, but it too seemed distant and alien, as if another voice besides his own was screaming.

Zek was pretty sure the impact of hitting the ground must have killed him, but he couldn't quite remember ever actually hitting the ground. A moment later, he found himself on a plateau over looking a small clearing in a jungle. Everything was so indistinct, he couldn't quite make sense of it all.

He turned again, this time finding himself back in the hospital. It was always so strange to actually see one's self in the third person, to actually stand over one's self, yet that's what he was doing.

"Zek?"

He looked up at the voice, seeing a woman dressed in a ghilee suit, her face covered in warpaint. In the outfit she wore, she was unrecognizable to him, yet Zek couldn't shake the feeling that he should recognize her.

She usually wears red. It's her favorite color. She refuses to drink coffee with cream or sugar in it. The facts about her were automatic to his mind. Yes, he knew those, but he didn't know who she was. That wasn't so unusual, was it?

She didn't say anything else. She just turned and walked away. For his part, Zek didn't say anything either. After all, he didn't know her.

He looked back down at himself laying in the hospital bed. His own eyes were rolled back in his head, his entire body was slumped into an unnaturally relaxed position. Zek knew a dead person when he saw one, and he could see that... he was dead.

Even as he watched, the body began to decay. The skin darkened, dried and cracked, whithering away in seconds. The muscles beneath likewise rotted away and within a minute, there was only a skeleton laying there in the bed.

Zek took a step away from the bed, horrified. His back hit the wall, which crumbled on contact. Falling through the wall, Zek descended with a scream down an endless chute which ended all too soon when Zek cracked his head open on the hard stone ground, watching the blood leak out of his skull...

It would have been a scream, but all Zek could manage was a loud groan as he awoke, his hand automatically going to his skull. There was a bit of surprise as he found that it was actually in one piece, but it was a welcome surprise.

Levering himself up, Zek surveyed his surroundings. He was in small cell, metal on every side. Apart from small cot and a hole for sewage, there was nothing of notice in the cell. Except for a water nozzle which was dripping water into a small bowl, drop at a time.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

There was only one light in the room, embedded into the ceiling and completely inaccessable for any reason. No way to tell time, of course, and nothing to provide a diversion.

Heaving a small sigh, the man pulled himself up on to the cot, wondering how long he had been in here. He had the distinct impression that it had been a while, but he couldn't remember having been in here at all, so it was impossible to say with any certainty.

Even as he was considering the question, he made several startling discoveries. The first was an object had appeared to have been surgically attached to his forearm, right on the wrist. It was small, probably only weighing a pound, and roughly a rectangular in shape, but contoured to his arm. Steel straps wrapped aroun his arm, keeping it secure. He could also see two tubes connecting into his arteries intraveniously.

Zek moved his wrist experimentally. It was pretty comfortable, for the most part, but he did not like the idea of having it there. Especially since he didn't know exactly what its function was.

His second discovery, on the coattails of the first, was a steel band wrapped around his neck. There were wires that ran from electrodes on his bald head to the collar and another set that ran to electrodes positioned on his glands just beneath his jaw. These did not make him feel comfortable in the slightest.

"Good morning, Mr. Danner. I see that you are awake." It was the doctor's voice, coming from some hidden speaker. Zek looked about the room, looking for the camera that must be in the room somewhere, but he could not find it.

"I do apologize for having to treat you like an animal, but I must say that you brought it on yourself for the most parts. And there is no telling what side effects your treatments will have on you. You've already turned agressive once. Poor Dr. Kine was put in the infirmary for several days because of you." The doctor went on quite conversationally.

Zek just sat there rubbing his temples harder and harder. He had no idea what was even reality any more. Strange visions and images would periodically flash before his eyes, but never would it connect with anything to make any sense.

"Though I do have some good news for you: your last treatment is coming up soon. After that, you will be released into a more... suitable environment for what will be your new nature. And I must say, my collegues and I are Quite eager to see what you are capable of at the end of your treatments. I will see you shortly."

"Wait." Zek spoke, even though he had nothing to say to the doctor. Nothing that had been said made any sense to Zek, so he couldn't very well question it further. In truth, he was starting to feel desperate for any sort of human contact.

Only silence greeted his word, however.

"Hello?"

Nothing.

Zek slumped back, his hands covering his face. His treatments were almost over, whatever that meant. At least it gave him something to look forward to.

Drip. Drip. Drip.
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Post by VagueDurin »

Darkness... All there was was Darkness. Shadowy, concealing darkness enveloping the world around her... How long had she been in this lightless place? She couldn't even guess. There was room to move... almost. For that she was greatfull. She could shift about just right in the small space in order to stretch out her sore muscles. There was no sound, not light, no nothing. Angela just existed, here in this void of nothingness, for what purpose she could only imagine. For all she knew she could be yards below the surface of the ground and buried alive...

But she wouldn't scream for help. She wouldn't give in... she'd rather be killed than do that. She hugged her knee's to her chest and wept silently, fiery red hair cascading down around her face as she clenched a pair of dazzling hazel eyes closed, and did her best to think of anything but the plight she now found herself in...
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Post by Xalsin »

The door to the prisoner's cell had no marking, no name, no form of identification of the girl within. They had no name by which to call her. But that would change soon.

She had been in isolation for the last several days, as per the doctor's orders. He had even forgone an initial interrogation, feeling that she would be more cooperative if left this way. Other then a small bloodsample being taken, she had been left strictly alone. Chiv did not share his feelings in this matter, but he respected the doctor's wishes. It was always wise to respect the doctor's wishes.

The wheel on the solid steel door groaned as it was turned, a thick steel locking mechanism disengaging. It was probably the first sound the female had heard other then her own heart beat and breath in the time she had been down there.

The heavy door swung outwards, the bright hall lights must have seemed piercing to the girl. Chiv gave a malicious half smile and stepped in, as if stepping right out of a nightmare.

The scooted back wordlessly, probably unable to believe what her eyes were telling her. But yes, that was point. The Doctor was quite good at getting pyschological reactions.

Chiv squatted down in front of her, letting her get a long and hard look at his face. "Come, my pretty. The doctor would like to speak to you."

Grabbing her by the arm, he hoisted her up roughly and dragged her from the steel cell among a row of similiar steel cells.

It was but a five minute drag and the prisoner was delivered to the doctor in a small room containing two chairs and a table, all of which were bolted to floor. The doctor sat behind the table, diligently typing away at a laptop computer. Next to the computer was a sealed metal box.

The doctor looked up as Chiv entered the room, depositing the girl roughly into the chair.

"Chiv." The man spoke disapprovingly. Chiv growled and slinked out of the room.

"I do apologize for such unnecessary treatment. Chiv is my guard captain and is quite zealous about his work." He spoke, eyeing the lady with his deep blue eyes. After he finished doing whatever it was he was doing on his laptop, he closed it, turning his full attention to the girl.

"Now, proper introductions are in order. I am Dr. Garret Knight, and I'm afriad you've stumbled across a secret that I'm keen on keeping. This puts you in a rather disadvantagous position, I'm afriad. You see, whatever your intentions were here, assassination, I assume, you've failed. You're partner is dead, and you are in my custody." The doctor spoke sadly, as if he took no joy in communication such dire news.

His voice brightened slightly. "Still, it isn't hopeless. I am willing to make sure you have everything necessary to be happy. All I ask for is that you answer a few simple questions. Provided you are cooperative, I will reciprocate such cooperation. If you chose to be uncooperative..." Dr. Knight sighed. "Well, there are many fates worse then death, as you may discover."

"But enough of gloomy talk. First, my dear, it is quite inconvienant not having anything to address you by. Could you tell me your name?"
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Post by VagueDurin »

She truely couldn't believe her eyes. What was this thing that had opened up her box? It was hideous looking, to say the least, and an unnatural sort of shiver foudn its way up and back down her spine as the... creature... took hold of her arm and began to drag her out and down a corridor. She knew better than to resist. He was obviously stronger than her, and she would have no chance of survival.

It was a short travel to the room in which the doctor sat and as Chiv left, she focused her attention on the man across from her, listening intently to his words. She knew that they could be lies... all of them... But it still pained her so to think that Zek could be gone... and that his last thoughts might have been about how she had failed to keep him safe...

Steeling these thoughts away for another time, she leveled her hazel tinted gaze towards the doctor in front of her.

"Rhaine." she said simply, voice short and unemotional. "You can address me as Rhaine."
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Post by Xalsin »

Dr. Knight smiled slightly. "Very well, Rhaine. The next thing I'm going to need to know is who exactly sent you here. Judging by some of the equipment you were carrying, I have to say I find it highly unlikely that you do not come from some sort of military service."

The doctor toyed idly with a pen taken from his pocket as he spoke, watching every slight movement she made, almost as if looking for some sort of weakness.
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Post by VagueDurin »

"Please Doctor Knight. Don't insult me with such a question. You know I'm not going to tell you who sent me here. Even if I did know who it was."

She replied off hand non-chalantly. Inside she was preparing... or trying to prepare... because she knew this was going to change swiftly from a pleasant conversation to something... else...
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Post by Xalsin »

Dr. Knight's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "No insult intended, Ms. Rhaine. None whatsoever. I do believe I have the right to know who it is that wants me dead. Is that really such a large thing to ask?"

Only a stoic silence greeted him as a reply.

He drew a deep breath. "I do not know why you insist on being so difficult, Ms. Rhaine. This could have been so easy and painless for the both of us, but now you insist on making it so difficult."

Behind her the door opened. As if summoned back from his nightmare, Chiv re-entered the room. With two large steps, the lumbering beast of a man crossed over to where the prisoner was sitting. One hand landed on each of her shoulders, holding her effectively to the chair.

The doctor opened the case beside his laptop. There were a collection of hyperdermic syringes within, each filled with a different liquid ranging in color and viscousity.

"You see, Ms. Rhaine, I could simply inject you with any number of these compounds. They would break your will, they would make you beg to answer questions. The side effects can be quite problematic, however. It tends to destroy brain tissue. It's very seldom permenant, but, well, if you were to accidentally lose your long term memory even temporarily, for instance, it would be very inconvienant for me."

He sighed again, selecting a particularly large syringe.

"So, perhaps you would like to rethink your answer? Or, if you wish, you can tell me a bit about your partner. He seemed like an interesting man, and since he's dead now, it certainly can't hurt. Ezekiel was his name, yes? " He watched her closely again, paying specific attention to her reactions to his questions.
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Post by VagueDurin »

She started resisting now. Struggling against the massive hands that held her securly against the chair, she kicked at the table but it was of no use, everything was securely bolted to the floor and she was stuck... "You're sick!" She said towards teh doctor as he approached her with the needle. His mentioning of Zek made her feel hollow on the inside but she couldn't deal with that right now. She continued her useless struggle with Chiv, hazel eyes unable to hide the reaction she had to Zeks mentioning as she prepared for the worst...
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Post by Xalsin »

"Sick?" The doctor echoed mildly. "No, Ms. Rhaine, I believe you will find that it is you who are sick. But not to worry. I am a doctor, after all."

Chiv's hand shifted on her shoulder, clamping down on a pressure point on her neck. Her entire body went rigid under the pain, and Dr. Knight used that oppertunity to inject the syringe into her arm.

"There." The doctor stepped away as Chiv released the pressure point, leaving her gasping for air.

"That may cause some strange side effects. It hasn't fully been tested yet. Do let me know if you start to feel at all unusual, hm? But you should be feeling a bit more relaxed now, Ms. Rhaine. Perhaps you even feel like cooperating a bit more?"
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Post by VagueDurin »

She felt the needle go in, and a slight burning sensation as the contents were emptied into her system. Chiv finally let go of her neck and she collapsed forward against the table, gasping for breath. "Why?" she asked in a ragged voice, not expecting any form of an answer. A few seconds later she straightned up, but those seconds seemed to be all the substance needed. The room suddenly spun around her and the once sharp edges oft eh chairs and table began to haze and blur. She felt her eyelids grow rapidly heavier and suddenly her thoughts were murkier than the mighty muddy herself.

Trying her hardest to focus through the fog, she searched the room for the doctor... "What... What is this? What have you done to me?"
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Post by Xalsin »

The doctor did not even bother answering the question; it wasn't like it was the first time he had heard that question. Kneeling down so that he was more eye to eye with her, he used his thumb to pull her eyelid up, checking the pupil dilation and responsiveness.

"She should be sufficiently disorientated. It's likely she will have a hard time remembering this with any clarity after the drug wears off." He spoke to Chiv almost conversationally as the large man backed away a few steps, relegating himself to the background.

Dr. Knight turned his attention to the girl. "Now, now, you mustn't ask such questions such as that. It's not so much what I have done to you as what I can and will do to you if you continue to be uncooperative. So, let's start again, shall we? How about your name? Is there anything more you want to tell me about who you are?"
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Post by VagueDurin »

The room slowly darkened a few shades as he spoke, then tinged a deep purple. And just as slowly as the lights dimmed, the walls warped their way inwards, until the only thing in the room that would come into any real focus was the doctor itself... the rest was just a swirl of colors and shapes.

Her name? Why... why wouldn't he know her name?

"Zek, quit playing around. You know my name." She spoke, outwardly her voice was slow and slurred, yet still understandable... inwardly it was as clear as ever... and in her minds eye, the figure in front of her wasn't the doctor at all...
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Post by Xalsin »

Dr. Knight smiled. It was an interesting effect the drug was having on her mind, and he was deeply fascinated as always to see just how far the human mind could be bent out of shape.

"Yes, of course I know your name, but I like hearing you say it. Won't you say it just once?" The doctor replied immediately, playing along with whatever dillusion she might have been having.

"Zek might be a reference to Ezekiel. That could be useful if we need to break him further." He murmured quietly in Chiv's direction, who simply nodded.
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Post by VagueDurin »

In her mind she rolled her eyes at him, though the effect was lost as her drugged system merely let one eye drop slightly.

"You're such a goof sometimes. It’s Angela, Angela Rhaine. Happy now?" she asked.

The doctor shot a smile in Chiv's direction, who gave a slight growl of satisfaction. "Yes, dear, very happy. Now perhaps you wouldn't mind telling me what we're doing on this island? I seem to have forgotten…"

“Hell if I know, Zek. You got the briefing, remember? You know they wouldn’t let a class III like me in on the whole story… All I know is we’re here cause another wack jobs messing with the heeby geebies. I’m here to keep your ass from being dead, just like last time.”

The doctor frowned slightly at this. If it indeed turned out that Ezekiel was the one he should have interrogated, it would be quite frustrating for him. "Yes, but you must remember something, Angela. What about the people who sent us here, what do they call themselves? It was a government agency, wasn't it?"

“Were they serving cocktails on the drop plane and I missed the stewardess? The Combine isn’t a gov’t agency. We aren’t affiliated with anyone, plausible deniability, remember?”

"The Combine..." The doctor muttered, glancing questioningly at Chiv, who merely shrugged.

"Tell me one last thing, Angela... This is important... How do you feel about me? And how do you think I feel about you? We may have to break Ezekiel after all. There are more questions here then I thought." He spoke the last bit towards Chiv again, and quietly. Not that he was worried about Angela being able to make any sense of it at this point.

Somewhere in the murkiness of her conscious mind a beacon sounded. Zek knew exactly how she felt about him, and he her… They’d never shared such information with each other verbally, but it was a continuous back and forth game they’d played since they’d first met nearly… He wouldn’t ask her such a question… ever… and since he just did… No. This wasn’t Zek at all… Slowly the walls began to straighten and her focus started to return to her.

“No. No you’re not him! He’s gone! You’re-“

"Spare me the theatrics, Ms. Rhaine." The doctor straightened, holding up a hand to forestall any further comments from her.

She tried to shoot up out of the chair, arms outstretched, reaching for the doctors throat, but before Chiv could even think about knocking her down, she tumbled herself, no coordination, or fine motor skills left inside of her after the effects of the drugs found her in a helpless heap on the floor, looking up at the doctor with groggy eyes.


"Take her to the hospital. I may want to do a follow up on any side effects of the drug. It did seem to wear off a bit too quickly, but that perhaps can be attributed to her mental strength. I should have enough to work on Ezekiel effectively." Dr. Knight gestured dismissively, and Chiv grabbed the girl.

An involuntary whimper escaped her numb lips as she was hoisted up and half dragged half carried unceremoniously from the room and down another corridor… the door hadn’t even closed behind them before she slipped into unconsciousness… The brute took her into the hospital and she was placed in a room. Restraints were placed around her wrists and ankles, securing her to the hospital bed. Chiv took one last glance at her over his shoulder before he left the room and once again, she was alone in the darkness…
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Post by Xalsin »

What bothered Zek most was that he never remembered being in transit. It was always either in this room or that, but never any memory of having travelled between the rooms. He was somewhere in the hospital, although
he was unsure if the hospital was in the same building as his cell or if it was seperate. It was impossible to tell.

As if all the rooms were in the same space... He never got to finish his paradoxal thought. The door to the room he could only describe as the "treatment room" opened, and Dr. Knight walked in. The older man looked rather harried, as if running behind on a busy schedule.

"Dear, dear me." He muttered to himself, setting down a laptop on the desk before turning his attention to Zek.

"Ah. Mr. Danner. So we've finally come to the end of your treatments. This is very exciting. I expect to see some rather dramatic changes in you at the conclusion. So far your body has tolerated the treatments quite well, and this final session should be the cataclysm that brings from the blossom from the bud, as it were."

Zek just watched him blankly, not really sure what he was talking about. Everyday it was getting harder and harder to sort real from dream. Perhaps he hadn't been awake in a long time. Perhaps he hadn't slept in a long time. It was impossible to say.

He tried to move, but found that he was bound securely to the chair via several steel straps. Strange, he hadn't even been aware of them before.

The doctor sighed and walked over to him with a strangely uncertain gait.

"I hope you can appreciate the rather difficult position I'm in." He started to say slowly. "You see, it appears there are things in your memory that could be quite helpful for me to know. And yet, at the same time, remembering them could interfere greatly with your treatments. After all, having some sort of anchor completely nullifies the disorientation and detactment from one's past."

Zek just stared at him, a completely blank expression of puzzlement on his face. He had no idea what the doctor was talking about.

The moment of silence stretched on, Zek not knowing what to say, and the doctor lost deep in thought.

"Well. This far into treatment, it couldn't possibly set you back too far." The doctor said abruptly, coming to the end of his train of thought. "I need to know about the Combine."

The blank look continued.

"Think, Zek, think!" It was the use of his nickname more then anything that sparked something in Zek's mind. After all, not just anyone called him Zek.

He remembererd bits and pieces. Faces, but no names. Places, but no context.

The Combine. The Shadow Watch Combine. It wasn't enough to clearly remember what the Shadow Watch was, but it was enough to remind him that he wasn't supposed to be talking to people like this.

"I don't care what you do to me, Doc. I won't betray my people."

The doctor stood. "I can see that I'm wasting my time with you. Let's get on to the treatment. After that, I daresay, it won't matter much what you think. And if any more members of your Combine come this way, then good! I can always use a fresh supply of subjects."

Maybe it was the same as it had always been. If that was so, then everything it was uniquely horrifying and torturous.

First was the injection into the cranium, the liquid fire in the brain, then the apparatus around the head. There was the vague impression of intense pain, but it was so extreme as to almost feel distant. He could hear himself screaming like one of the damned. He felt like one of the damned.

...."watch him for an hour and if he stablizes, release him into the Hunting Grounds..." Zek gradually became aware of voices. His eyes fluttered open to find that he was laying on a gurney, strapped down with an abundance of steel bands. "I have to go check on our newest patient. Call Dr. Hildago if there's any complications with him."

He snarled at the sight of the doctor standing over him, next to the nurse. For a moment he struggled with the bounds, but they were too strong to be broken.

"Very well, doctor." The nurse replied, completely unresponsive to his snarl. Even as the nurse pushed him away, he did not cease to struggle, hoping that he could break free.
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Post by VagueDurin »

A figure traveled carefully down a hill. A hill on an island... An island in the middle of the ocean... Where she'd leapt from a plane to be... The figure belonged to her... in some sense of the word... She was his protector... his... gaurdian angel... There was a dense fog everywhere, obscuring her vision... she could barely make out his shape anymore... as it moved farther away... She adjusted the scope on the sight, trying to get a better focus... slowly it came back into veiw... but just for a second... there was a noise... a rustling... a gunshot...

A hoarse cry echoed through the empty hospital room. Tears stained her face as she struggled limply against the restraints that held her to the bed... "Zek?" She wimpered into the empty room... What had happened? What had she done? ...
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Post by Xalsin »

The door to Angela's "hospital" room opened quietly. Whether it was the noise that had attracted attention, or it was just a twist of fate, the doctor entered the room minutes after her cry. His hand moved over to the light switch, which activated a series of flourscent bulbs, flickering on grudgingly.

For a moment Doctor Knight simply stood in the doorway, observing the girl struggling against the restraints which held her to the bed. He watched her tears, which she could not wipe away for that second, then slowly moved closer.

"Good morning, Angela." He pulled the stool over next to the bed, sitting down next to her and looking down at her. "I trust you are adjusting to your new environs, emh?"

He wrapped a pressure cuff around her arm, taking a blood pressure reading.
After he marked down the results on his computerized clipboard, he turned his focus back to her face, wiping at her tears with the back of his hand.

"You know, you are a very lovely woman, Miss Rhaine. It need not be this way, you know, you locked in this miserable room. I have been needing a new lady of the house as of late. It has been awfully lonely up at the house since Miss Jennings left. Perhaps you would be willing to fulfill that position. In exchange for a few guarantees of good behavior, of course."
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Post by VagueDurin »

The room was familiar... but she couldn't remember ever being there before... and the man was familiar... but she couldn't remember meeting him before...

"What?" she asked, voice hardly carrying through the room. "Who are you?"
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Post by Xalsin »

The doctor smiled a touch at this. He had not expected the drug to have an amnesic effect. That was certainly worth noting. It probably was just a short term memory loss, it was quite likely it was temporary. He couldn't imagine the drug of having that strong of an effect.

"You do not remember? I am Doctor Knight, the head doctor of this institution. You were caught trying to break into this building with a rifle, which is why you are restrained." He said, leaving his story ambigious intentionally, just in case her loss of memory gave him the oppertunity to twist his story in a different way.
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Post by VagueDurin »

Blinking, she stopped struggling at the restraints... "You... You locked me up... in that- that box! and you stuck me with a needle... What are you?" she asked as she glanced nervously at the restraints...
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Post by Xalsin »

The doctor sighed at this, his shoulders slumping a bit. "My dear Miss Rhaine, I believe the worse of my crimes is being misunderstood. After all, what would you have done if you had caught someone with a rifle out to kill you. I am not a monster, I just value my privacy more then others, is that such a crime? Yes, I have authority on this island, but is that such a crime either?"

He shook his head sadly. "However we're not here to discuss my situation, but yours. Your partner is dead, your mission to kill me as failed, and the only way you will ever leave this island alive is if I say so. So, the question arises again: do you wish to remain in this room for.. well, a long time, or do you wish to become the lady of my manor? I could use a good woman to keep the day to day affairs there in order..."
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Post by Xalsin »

It was like looking through a kladascope at an explosion. Colors flashed and sprayed in every directions, in a maddening pattern that defied all explanation or description.

Somewhere there was a steady beeping sound, fast and constant, and somewhere even closer there was a constant thudding sound that seemed to be in time with the beeps.

Ragged breaths torn themselves from between Zek's lips, as if working hard to escape from his body. He didn't blame them. He wouldn't have minded escaping from his body either.

There was pain from his head... well, pretty much everywhere, actually, but the worst of it seemed centralized around his head.

He tried to look around, but even though he was seeing things, his mind refused to process the information, leaving him blind with sight.

Worse then the pain, worse then the confusion, worse then the disorientation, however, was another sensation in his mind. It was like... worms. Inside his mind, eating away at everything that made him who he was.

He didn't even know who he was exactly, but these... worms, were eatintg it.

And somewhere, there was someone screaming. It was a long, blood curdling scream, the sort of scream the damned gave went learning their fate. One devoid of any hope.

He struggled, a bit, but his body had gone completely numb. In fact, between that and his odd sort of blindness, he wasn't even entirely sure he was actually moving at all.

The screaming stopped suddenly. About as suddenly as he realized he had been him screaming.

Darkness.

Silence.

Numbness.

Isolation.

Slowly, Zek opened eyes, afriad of what he would see. Indeed, the sight that greeted him was not something he had wished to see.

It was... another world. It could be described as that. Zek had time only to look around the bluish landscape with its corral-like constructs for a second, before his vision suddenly flashed to another world.

This world was confined to a sterile white room, with several monitor screens arrayed around the room. In the center of the room was where Zek was laying, strapped down to a hospital gurney.

There was an older woman near by, dressed in white, doing very little but watching him.

Zek looked down towards his feet, suddenly becoming aware that things were... not the way they used to be. Or were they? He couldn't remember anything except for Zek, which seemed to be him.

He looked towards his hand. Five massive fingers each which ended in a retractable claw. His arms were extremely well muscled. His eyes focused intently as he watched the muscles bulge under the skin as he flexed. He felt... Powerful, yet at the same time, he had absolutely no idea what was going on, where he was, or anything.

A growl eminanted from his throat, as he pulled against the bonds once more.

The woman began speaking. Although there was no one else in the room, he did not feel that she was speaking to him.

"The Subject, known as Subject Z, is awake. Vitals have stablized, it appears it survived the transmorph process. Hyperprogressive steroids were activated by the energy surge, as predicted. Results appear to be acceptable. It is noteworthy that the subject has remained quite docile. The administration of the agression syrum known as Rage is recommended. Subject Z is ready to be transferred to the Hunting Grounds."

Zek had a very hard time making any sense of the woman's words, he just looked at her.

"Where am I?" He asked the woman. Or rather, he tried, and found himself a little more baffled when all he heard out of his own mouth was a inquisitive sounding growl.

He tried to speak again, but it was as if his higher functions were not communicating with the rest of his body correctly. Somewhere inside him, he had the distinct feeling that was the problem precisely, but his mind felt too scrambled to ponder the question further.

The woman had stopped talking, and was staring at him with a strange smile.

Two men entered the room, looking towards her.

"Here." She handed one of them a small mini-disk. "These are the medical notes on him. Make sure it gets to the pack master."

"Yes Dr. Hildago. We've done this before. " One of the two men said, and they promptly began wheeling Zek out.

"You'd better get that chain on him while he's still out." One of the men, and the other began locking a chain around Zek's neck. He gave a low growl, but didn't struggle, still alittle too numb and confused to have a clear idea of what was going on.

The hallways slid by as Zek watched, trying to make sense of what his eyes saw and his ears heard. He tried to think of something, anything, but his mind felt blank, like a brand new disk.

Guardian Angel. The phrase came to him like from a dream, but did very little quell the confusion. Still, it gave him something think, even if he didn't know enough to actually think about it.

Guardian Angel.... Guardian Angel...

The trip wasn't long. Or maybe it was. Zek could hardly even tell, since there seemed to be nothing to base time on in his mind. All he knew is that suddenly he was in a large concrete room full of people.

"Here's your new one... Looks pretty strong, but it's as docile as a baby right now. Here's the doctor's notes."

"Eh, just stick it on my desk. Those doctors say the same thing everytime, as if I care."

"Very well."

Zek heard the voices, but didn't even feel inclined to turn his head to see who was talking. He was pretty sure it didn't matter.

"Alright, get it out of that gurney, and get an agression compound ready. We'll see if we can't get a bit of life out of it."

The two men (Zek could tell it was the same two men by their scent) detached the table straps, allowing Zek to stretch his legs out a little further. For some reason, his legs seemed more comfortable in a more curled up position, which didn't feel normal... just comfortable.

Zek wasn't given a chance to ponder this either.

The gurney was forcibly flipped, spilling him to the hard concrete. A snarl escape his throat, but it was merely reflexive. He still felt no motivation to even pick himself up.

"Get another chain on him. If he's as strong as he looks, I don't want to take the chance of just one person holding him." Another chain was thrown around his neck. Zek turned his head and watched with dull eyes as the man ran the chain through a tube. The tube was connected to a handle, which was in turn connected to an arm brace that would allow one to hold a dangerous animal on a chain without it getting close enough to attack the holder of the chain.

"Okay, give him the injection."

There was a sudden sting in the back of his neck, causing Zek to give a cry, which sounded more like a howl. For a moment, he just squirmed abit at the pain and then...

Rage. Pure and unbridaled rage. The kind that seldom exists outside of nightmares, which is what Zek was sure that he was having.

There were men everywhere. Zek didn't care which one, he just knew that he wanted to kill one of them, to sink his claws into tender skin. Without any sort of conscious thought or decision, he threw himself at the nearest man. The chains jerked taut, threatening to choke Zek, but he didn't care.

Pulling with all his might, he broke free of one of the chains, and leapt on his prey. Claws extended from his fingers, sinking into the hard body armor that surrounded the man. There was horrid screeching noise as Zek raked his claws across the metal, leaving deep gashes.

The other men came to their comrades rescue. striking at Zek with shock prods, and some old fashioned sharpened sticks, they were able to drive him away from the downed man.

They were all screaming, yelling, and talking, but Zek couldn't hear anything any more. All that filled his eyes was a humming sound that only served to increase his anger.

They continued to drive him back with the prods until they had pushed him into a cage, which shut remotely.

Zek growled leaping at the bars of the cage. He tore at them with his hands, but they were strong.

A couple of the men stood by the cage for a few moments, talking amongst themselves, but gradually, they left until Zek was alone. Alone with his raging thoughtlessness. And now there was nothing left to vent his rage on...

A loud growl escaped his throat, and he slumped to the ground. His rage would have to wait.

Guardian Angel.... Guardian Angel...
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Post by Topgun220 »

A pitch black sky illuminated only by the half crescent moon, below it lay the ocean just as black reflected the image of the moon back. A single black raft floated towards the beach a shadowy figure could be barely noticed on the raft. As it hit the beach the figure jumped out and pulled the raft ashore into the jungle only twenty feet off the beach. The figure stopped next to some heavy brush as it pulled out a camouflaged tarp and covered the raft. Then the figure reached behind its back and pulled an object into its hands as it checked the object. The figure was a man and he moved into the jungle holding a MP5 with a silencer attached. He wore all black camo with an all black ammo vest and a 9mm berretta on his right hip holster. He wore a black ski mask to cover his face from view as he moved with a skilled quiet creep through the jungle.

He ran through the jungle for some time until he made it to a village, a few scattered fires with huts and the inhabitants inside still fast asleep. The man crept up to one of the huts and peeked inside. An old man smoking an Indian pipe sat on a stool next to the fire looking into it. The man quickly yet stealthily opened the door, entered and closed it behind him. The old man turned to him and the man in black put his finger to his lips signaling him to be quiet. The man in black knew the language the old man spoke and he asked the old man with a whisper.
“There were two more like me. Where are they?”

OOC: Xalsin I didnt know if you want to rp the old village man or if I could so i left it open.
Niko says:
were so lame
Kit_Fitsu says:
but awesome at the same time
Niko says:
its so contradictory
Magic Man says:
agreed on both acounts
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Post by Xalsin »

The elderly man's brown eyes went wide at the sight of the man who had just entered into his meager hut. His first thought had been it was one of the Sword Enforcers entering to perform some mischief, but the way the intruder was dressed dispelled that. And if he wasn't from the Obsidian Sword, that left only one possibly: a Troublebringer. Whenever people like this showed up, it always meant they'd probably be getting trouble from the Obsidian Sword soon.

"No, no. I don't know anything about that." The man stammered in Spanish. "We don't want any trouble, no trouble here. Maybe your friends are at the manor or the hospital..." He lefted a shakey finger, pointing towards the southwest.


*****************

Zek must have fallen asleep, because when he opened his eyes again, there was no Zek. Or rather, Zek was just a faint speck of an existance somewhere within his beastly heart, striving and fighting as hard as he could not be extinquished under the drowning waves of rage and inhumanity.

There was hardly a flicker of self awareness. Yet, at the same time, he was vividly aware of everything around him, every little detail, sound, smell, and sensation that was occuring to the body. He wasn't even sure if it was his body any more.

Zek growled, pacing back and forth in the small steel cage in found himself imprisoned in.

Fight it, Zek, fight it.. Some voice urged him somewhere from inside, but fighting it was just too difficult. He was dimly aware of the fact that there was an attachment on his left forearm pumping cubic centimeter after cubic centimeter of drugs into his system. Undoubtedly, that's why it was so hard to fight against this horror that was growing inside of him, and rapidly becoming him.

He took to walking on all fours now. Either his legs had gotten shorter, or his arms were longer, but he found that he could move much quicker on all fours. Of course, there was no were to go. Just back and forth. Back. And forth.

Fiiight iiiit.... The voice inside begged again, but Zek didn't even know how to fight it. He couldn't remember having ever been any way but the way he was now. For some reason only the phrase "Guardian Angel" stuck with him, yet it was complete gibberish to him. He had no idea what it meant, yet it was still an anchor to keep whatever shred of identity was within him from slipping away forever. All he could do was hold on, and even that he couldn't do forever.

His thigh still burned from the brand he had been given, marking him part of Packmaster Xavier's pack. He wasn't really sure how he knew that or what it meant, but he couldn't deny the fact that he knew it. Just like he knew that there were three people in the room on the other side of the one way mirror, playing poker. He didn't understand, he just knew.

Snarling a little, Zek settled back down. There was little else to do but wait at the moment.
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Post by Topgun220 »

The man in black having gotten the information he wanted quietly and quickly left the hut just like he entered. He creeped back into the jungle and activated his throat radio. "This is birdwatcher to Everwatch i have not found the two birds yet but i have a lead on the birdcage over." A voice from the command HQ of the operation came back.
"Roger that birdwatcher if things get rough out there you know how to get us." The 'Birdwatcher' moved through the jungle until he came upon the hospital. It looked over run with growths and totaly abandon. But looks could be decieving and the 'Birdwatcher' knew this. Instead of crossing the open ground and opening the front door he circled around the hospital to where he had a covered entry by window. After taking a good look inside and being satisfied nothing was there he took out some glass cutting and began to cut a hole large enough for him to climb through. He placed the cut glass to the side and pulled himself through the window.

He skillfully landed inside without making a noise. He held his MP5 against his shoulder in a ready position as he carefully crouch walked his way to the door of the room. He slowly opened the door to the hallway and light shone through into his eyes blinding him for a seccond. He waited while his eyes adjusted to the light and he could now see the well light hallway that was to narrow for three people to walk side by side. Not exactly perfect if he got spotted but there was nothing he could do about that. Or was there? He closed the door and returned to the room. He took a small portable flashlight out and looked about the room. He found what he was after moments later, an airduct. He got a swiss army knife out and unscrewed all the screws holding it in place. He quietly laid the vent cover on one of the tables next to the vent. He climbed inside of it, only four feet wide and three high it was a tight squeeze but not that bad. He began crawling through the shaft slowly so no one could here the thin metal being bent as he placed his body weight on it. Like this he moved through the building and he was begining to hear voices, two. One was definately a woman's he knew he was getting close to somebody.
Niko says:
were so lame
Kit_Fitsu says:
but awesome at the same time
Niko says:
its so contradictory
Magic Man says:
agreed on both acounts
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short and crappy, but it gets me back into the swing

Post by VagueDurin »

"How do you know i won't kill you in your sleep?" She asked defiantly, yanking once more at the restraints with no reward.
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Post by Xalsin »

The doctor's face hardened a touch. "What you fail to understand, Miss Rhaine, is that on my island, my word is law, and my authority is ultimate. All obey me on this island, whether they want to or not. This will include you. If you do not choose to obey me of your own free will, I will leave you in this place, where you will be the test subject of many mind altering drugs. Provided that these do not result in your death, I will employ a series of syrums known as MindKillers, which will destroy your personality, memory, and much of your cognitive reasoning."

He gave her a smile, that, under other circumstances, might have been considered pleasant. One of his fingers traced along her jawline absently as he spoke. "Admittedly, you would not be as pleasant as a companion that way, but you would be completely unable to rest my talents."

Dr. Knight leaned in very close to her, his breath playing lightly against the side of her face. "I have powers, Miss Rhaine, powers that can break a man's mind and force people to do what I demand. I have other powers, too. Powers that I believe you would be better off not seen demonstrated. So you see, Miss Rhaine, even if you did try something so foolish, it would be a race to see whether my bodyguards could subdue you before I killed you."

Chuckling ever so slightly, Dr. Knight straightened. "Now." He spoke again, louder this time. "I do not have all day. So, would you rather spend some more time in this little room, thinking things over in utter solitude, or would you rather forget your stubborn foolishness and come with me to the manor?"
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Post by Topgun220 »

The man continued to stealthily crawl along the airducts until he came over the vent where he saw a man dressed like a doctor talking to some one else that he couldn't see. The man had a feeling it was someone he was looking for. but he couldn't be sure he needed more information before he revealed himself. He would listen to the conversation then move farther down the airducts to find out more info about this place.
Niko says:
were so lame
Kit_Fitsu says:
but awesome at the same time
Niko says:
its so contradictory
Magic Man says:
agreed on both acounts
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Post by Xalsin »

She shuddered against his breath as it tickled the side of her face. She tried to move away but the restraints held her effectively still. She looked at him through hazel eyes, wet with unshed tears.

She was no good to anyone stuck in this bed... she had to get out... to get back to her leadership, to let them know what had happened here...

"Fine..." she spoke softly, looking away from him.

The doctor smiled down at her. "I'm so glad you see the reason in my offer."

One of the doctor's hands came up and turned her head to face his. He leaned down and kissed her on the lips. Even if she had tried to avoid it, there was no struggling against him at this point.

After the unwelcome kiss had needed, the doctor undid her restraints. "Now, let us think no more of your foolishness... You will find a much happier existance at the manor."

Looping his arm through hers, he helped her out of bed. She was still shakey, and still weak, having to lean heavily on the doctor just to keep her feet under her in the first place.

Outside the door, two guards were waiting for him patiently. "Take her to the Jeep. I must go check on a few things, but I'll be along shortly."

The guards half dragged, half carried the girl out of the "hospital" and put her in the back of a rugged, if old looking, ex-military Jeep. The exact make and model of the Jeep were hard to tell, but they didn't exactly look American in manufacture.

Dr. Knight stopped off in his office, turning on the computer monitor attached to his personal machine. It took him only two minutes to download and read the status report of Subject Z which had been uploaded on the Island's communication server by Packmaster Xavier.

The synopsis read:
Subject Z is stable and healthy. Rage has been administered successfully. Subject shows no signs of humanity and is estimated to be at full readiness.

Dr. Knight smiled, pleased to see that the latest additions to the Transmorph process had been successfully implimented with no side effects.

Quickly Garret issued orders to the Packmaster.

Have Subject Z brought to the south grounds of the manor.

He knew he should resist the temptation, but he just couldn't. The idea of showing Ezekiel to his ex-partner was just too good to miss. Of course, she wouldn't recognize him, and he wasn't going to be recognizing anything, so it wasn't quite as fullfilling as it could have been, but even if she didn't know quite what she was looking at it would be worth it.

Closing up his office, he returned to the Jeep, sitting down in the back with Angela. As soon as he was in, the driver took off down the hard packed dirt road. It was not a pleasant trip, but it could have been worse considering that Jeeps were not typically designed with comfort in mind.

It was about a mile drive when they left the jungle behind to enter a cleared out area towards the center of the island. A cliff loomed high over the clearing off to the east, and in the center of the clearing was a sprawling manor.

The doctor did not try to converse with Angela at all during the drive, nor did she have anything to say. Which was fine. The doctor did not like talkative women. In his mind, people were to be seen and not heard unless he desired them to talk.

"Here we are." Garret gestured at the building as the vehicle pulled to a stop. "Home." He gave a content sort of sigh, then helped her out of the Jeep. The way that he helped her left one wondering if he really used that cane for walking at all. In fact, he seemed to have as good strength in one leg as the other.

The richly carved double doors opened as he approached. Dr. Knight walked right through, paying no mind to the two hispanic girls responsible for opening the doors.

Instead, he just took her striaght upstairs, and down a dimly lit hallway to the end. "This will be your room. This room over here is mine. I do not like to be disturbed at night, so when I am in my room, you are not to ever enter or knock on the door unless it is an extreme emergency."

He did not bother waiting for an acknowledgement. Rather, he expected that his words would be followed whether she acknowledged or not.

"You are free to wander the manor as you like. The servants will be instructed to obey your every direction. Undoubtedly, you will grow to like it here." Dr. Knight smiled again, the sort of smile that somehow did not convey any sort of warmth or affection.

"Now, my dear, I will leave you to get cleaned up. Supper will be in about an hour, afterwhich, there are some things I wish to show you. Until later, darling." He gave her another forced kiss on the lips, then turned away and walked back towards the annex of the house.
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Post by VagueDurin »

She stood just inside the doorway for a great amount of moments... taking a slow, deep breath she clumbsily found her way towards the bathroom, leaning against the door behind her until it closed. It was dark, not a window in the small area... Dark like the box she'd been imprisoned in days before... It took a moment or two to locate the light switch and flip it to the on position. An overhead light grudingly flickered into existence, shining light accross the small room. It was a modest setup, but not barbaric in the least. Stepping forward she placed her hands on the edge of the sink, leaning on it for support as she gazed into the mirror at herself.

Hazel eyes that once danced with a fiery passion were dull and hollow. There were dark circles beneath her eyes and her skin seemed in less than desirable condition... fiery red hair was knotted and wavy. She swallowed deliberatly, and moved over to where the shower was located. Twisting the knobs to start the water, she delicatley removed the hospital gown from off her shoulders, letting the cotton garmet slowly slink its way to the ground at her feet. Slowly, she stepped inside the shower, pulling the curtain closed around it.

The warm water felt like heaven on her sore, tired body. Cascading down over her shoulders and breast, over a toned stomach before spiraling down her long legs. She ran both hands back through her hair slowly, as tears slipped out of the corners of her eyes...
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Post by Xalsin »

"Dr. Knight, the telephone is for you." One servants informed the doctor as he reached the base of the stairs which opened up into a large central living area.
Dr. Knight nodded to the girl wordlessly, and picked up a nearby handset.

"Yes?"

A female voice on the other end spoke. "This is Dr. Hildago. I just noticed your order for Subject Z to be brought to the manor. I certainly hope you are not thinking of putting Subject Z into contact with its ex-partner. I'm not one to disagree with you, Doctor, but there could be serious backlashes from such an action with Subject Z so recent into the Trasmorph process. The possibility of the sight of something from its past could-"

Dr. Knight interupted the other doctor angrily. "I would suggest, Dr. Hildago, that it is not your place to question nor suggest things to me. If I order Subject Z brought, your only concern is to ensure that Packmaster Xavier follows those orders. Am I quite clear?"

There was a brief silence before Dr. Hildago replied. "Yes, Dr. Knight. I'll ensure that he is brought over."

Garret didn't even bother to reply to this, but hung up the phone with a slam. Dr. Hildago was a brilliant woman, but Dr. Knight was not in the habit of tolerating back talk or questioning.

Perhaps it is time for her to tender her resignation... Dr. Knight pondered, but decided that was a matter for another time. He had a guest to see to.

But the conversation with Dr. Hildago had left Garret Knight annoyed, a state of being that was usually not healthy for someone. He went to the kitchen, just to ensure the staff was near readying dinner, which, of course they were. The Doctor kept a strict schedule and did not like having delays or interuptions in it.

It was about a half an hour later that Garret returned to Angela's room. He didn't even bother knocking, but walked directly in.

"Are you ready for dinner, my dear?"
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Post by VagueDurin »

Angela glanced over her shoulder as she heard the Dr. speak. If she was startled, she didn't show it. She finished slipping the smooth strap over her shoulder, before turning to face him, the generously cut, sleek black dress hugged to her athletic build excellently. She smoothed out a few wrinkles half heartedly before finally making breif eyecontact with the doctor. She did not speak, however, merely nodded her head in the affirmative and began to traverse the ground between them, as gracefull as ever, despite the heels she wore.
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Post by Xalsin »

Putting his free hand on the small of her back, the Doctor led Angela down to the dining hall.

Supper was a lavish affair set at a giant table, which was rather excessive for the two of them. The meal itself consisted of local game fowl, served with a tropical fruit salad, a mixture of greens and several less identifiable dishes.

For the most part, the doctor ignored Angela throughout the meal, which was fine with her. She did her best to ignore him too.

On occasion the doctor would ask her a question, which was usually answered with a dull nod or a dull shake of her head. He did note, however, that she was eating generously, if a bit forcedly. Undoubtedly in effort to reclaim some of the strength that had left her from being inactive for such a time.

"And now, my dear, I have something very interesting I wish to show to you. It's one of my latest experiments, and I daresay it is quite impressive." Dr. Knight spoke after dinner had been finished.

Angela just looked up dully at him, apparently not wild about the idea of being shown anything this guy had been working on.

************

Zek gave another snarl as the fourth chain was looped around his neck and pulled taut. Still, he resisted, refusing to let the four men drag him out of the back of the truck he found himself in.

He wasn't really sure why he was fighting them, other then for the sake of being difficult. But, in truth, he wasn't really sure of much any more.

With another snarl of rage, Zek reversed his energy, flying at the four of them instead of pulling away, in hopes of being able tear them apart. Unfortunately for him, they were expecting this, and fanned out to keep him from getting too close to any one of them.

Kicking, snarling and leaping at everyone of them, Zek was led into a grassy field just south of the manor. It was often called the show grounds, as it was the place that had the safety equipment necessary to contain a beast.

Quickly and deftly, Zek was secured to a tether made of a very thick gauge steel. The tether was secured into a ground and directly into a half of ton of concrete.

Once he was safely secured, the handlers immediately backed away, letting the beast rage against the chain that held him in place.

A moment or two later, the glass door to the manor opened and Dr. Knight led Angela out.

"Ahh, here we are." The doctor smiled, walking up to a red line on the grass that marked the edge of the beast's reach, towing Angela with him.

"Fascinating, isn't it?"

Whatever it was, the beast was certainly not human. At least, not entirely. The skull was oddly misshapen, the brow having jutted out to give it a scowling face, and it's jaw having dropped down several inches with a mouth full of jagged teeth.

It had incredibly brawny arms, which terminated in clawed hands. Very sharp claws, if looks were any indication. It's legs seemed a little deformed, forcing it to run on all fours mostly.

And, in the middle of an utterly inhumane beast, were a pair of blue eyes, glazed over with rage, confusion, and perhaps even.. pain?

"It always amazes of me to think of what the human body is capable of, given the right circumstances." The Doctor marvelled to himself.
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Post by VagueDurin »

She let out a small gasp of air at the sight of the monstrousity, before looking away... The doctor spoke again, his voice laced with some... sick, sadistic form of pride... it was as if he was bragging about the fact that he had managed to deform, and disfigure a man or woman into... into... whatever it was. A heavy shiver found its way up and down her spine at the thought that he could do that to her, if he should so desire...
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Post by Xalsin »

Zek stared at the two shapes that had come to stand in front of him. One of them was vaguely familiar, but Zek was not even interested in recognizing. But the other....

There was something so familiar about her (he could tell it was a her by the scent, somehow) it made Zek what to scream. She was wearing a black dress, as if in mourning for something, or someone one. Even as he was having the thoughts, they seemed to alien to him...

Another image came to his mind: a girl, just like her, standing in a doorway wearing a red dress. She thought he was asleep, but he was watching her through a half closed eye. Very carefully, the girl crept forward, giving him a playful and affectionate kiss on the cheek before sneaking back out of the room, gleefully certain she had gotten away with her little action.

Yes, he had done the same thing to her the night before, hadn't he? Yes, it was a little game that they played... The only problem was, Zek couldn't remember who they were.

Guardian angel....

Zek's body recoiled and convulsed painfully. He collapsed to the ground as if dead, feeling like a rail road spike was being driven through his head.

"Anngelll...." His voice was more of a growl then a voice, but somehow he managed to get the sound out in an understandable word.
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Post by VagueDurin »

"Anngelll...." His voice was more of a growl then a voice, but somehow he managed to get the sound out in an understandable word.

Angela's pained hazel eyes glanced back up at the beast... like a trainwreck she was disgusted to find it was hard to look away. Then his eyes met hers, such a kind blue, so opposite of the rest of the beast... It was then that the beast spasmed. It dropped heavily to the ground and growled out a sound...

no...
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