Special thanks to Lordoftheghostking28 for the idea.
Rated M for a reason: violence, horror, suspense, blood, ect.
This is a work in progress. More chapters on the way.
Arizona
Tuesday
1200 hours
The scientist made his way down one of the steel halls, white lab coat flowing behind him as he secured a surgical mask around his nose and mouth. He adjusted his glasses and pulled skintight blue examination gloves over his hands as he reached the door at the end. Pausing a few seconds to button up a few buttons on his coat, he entered the code that would unlock the heavy door.
It was labeled 'DANGER! AUTHORIZED PERSONELL ONLY' for a reason.
Every five feet or so down this new hallway was a small, cell-like enclosure. Each one held a life-form from many different planets. The first one on the right held a tiger-like cat, with four eyes and two mouths. It stood on it's hind legs, dangerous claws swiping at the reinforced glass. Nothing had ever succeeded in breaking it.
The scientist only nodded at the tiger, moving down the hallway and glancing at the creatures. They all were as healthy as they possibly could be, nursed back to health from their encounters on Earth.
That is, except for the specimen 0048.
It's cell enclosure was in-between a fierce, Venus Flytrap-like plant that could easily devour a human being and a tiny, brown furred creature that wouldn't hesitate to inject lethal poison into your bloodstream.
Specimen 0048 was curled on its side, unmoving. Very unlike the feral beasts surrounding it.
It had been known to be sickly, weaker than what the other doctors had thought. The scientist had a special bond with the specimen... He had been the one who had found him.
It was in the woods; starving, wounded and dying. It had been attacked by some sort of animal, slowly bleeding out. The scientist had contacted the others and they managed to get the creature back to the labs. It seemed to know he was the one that had saved him, but it had no thanks. The scientist knew that this was the last place it needed to be, and yet the others and military insisted it be kept here. They never would offer it a way back.
The scientist pressed a password into the keypad nearby specimen 0048's cage. The glass slowly retracted into the ceiling, allowing the scientist access. The specimen didn't acknowledge his entrance, just clutched the thin blanket it was holding tighter to it's furred chest.
The scientist gently put his hand on its side, stroking its white fur and quills back. As far as he knew; this alien resembled a hedgehog, however slightly.
It didn't react to his touch at all. The scientist's eyebrows furrowed together in worry above the surgical mask he wore. It never did this before.
"Hey..." the scientist whispered. "Wake up. Are you all right?"
In reply, the creature shuddered under the human's gloved hand. It's large, golden eyes opened slightly, unfocused and settling on the scientist's face. It shuddered again, reaching out with one small hand to grasp the scientist's sleeve. When the scientist had found it out in the woods, it had been wearing a strange type of glove and boot. The doctors in the secret area had taken them, running experiments on them to find their purpose. They radiated energy; energy the scientist was certain that kept the creature alive. Now separated from the strange power source, he was sure it was dying.
"Do you need anything?" the scientist asked softly.
The creature only succeeded in a small whimper, keeping its grip on his sleeve. It uncurled itself completely, stretching its small, white-furred body to its length of three foot two.
"What is it?" the scientist continued. "I can't get you out of here...don't even ask me to try. We'd both be killed."
It stared at him, a pleading expression on its face. The scientist sighed, taking one of its wrists and finding a small pulse. It was faint and quick, as it had almost always been. It watched every move he made, still not completely trusting.
The scientist stood, ignoring the pitiful reaching motions it made towards him. It never acted like this before...it was almost...terrified.
"I'll check on you later, all right?" the scientist promised, stepping out of the cell and locking the glass back in place. He would never forget the terrified look on specimen 0048's muzzle, its innocent, golden eyes.
The scientist returned to the hallway a few hours later, running another check on the aliens. Nothing had changed.
Except the occupant of enclosure 0048.
"What?" the scientist gasped, turning and running down the hall. If it wasn't in its enclosure, then it was...
The scientist turned down a few halls, not stopping once until he reached a set of double doors. Throwing them open, his worst fears were confirmed.
The white creature was resting on its back in an incubator, wires and tubes trailing from its chest, sides, stomach and head, connecting to a few monitors and machines stacked around it.
"What's going on?" the scientist demanded. "What happened?"
"We don't know. Specimen 0384 had caused a ruckus, and while we were trying to calm it, we noticed him." said a female doctor in light green surgical scrubs. "He was...screaming. As though being hurt. We brought him back here, and tranquilized him..."
"And what?!" the scientist demanded.
"The monitors indicate he's dying. We can't do anything."
The scientist crossed over to the incubator, watching the weak lines cross the monitors. The creature's heart was slowed, but its chest heaved with shallow and quick breaths. It uttered a soft squeak of pain, thrashing in it's sleep. The scientist put a hand on it's shoulder, trying to calm it. It was shivering, but it's skin was burning with heat.
"We're going to ease its passing." the doctor continued, coming over to stand by the scientist. She was holding a syringe filled with something clear. "And when it's finally out of this misery, we're scheduled to dissect it. We've never seen one of his kind before, and I believe it's anatomy will be groundbreaking-"
"Where are its gloves?" the scientist demanded. "I know that's what it needs! They radiated power, didn't they? He can use that power to survive!" the creature kicked out, mouth open in a silent scream. Its eyes were shut tightly and its fists clenched.
"They were taken to another research facility." the doctor said. "I don't know where..."
"Then he's going to die." the scientist whispered.
The creature screamed, its pain-filled cries making the doctor drop her syringe on the ground, where it broke into five pieces. The alien started clawing at its chest, ripping at the wires and tubes. Blood seeped from a small tube that was half-wrenched from its side. The scientist couldn't do anything but watch as it began to choke up lungfuls of blood, staining it's white fur and the thin mattress it was on. Its heart fluttered, skipping beats and threatening to give out.
"No!" the scientist shouted "No!"
The creature coughed once more, struggling to breathe and instead wheezing in-between chokes. It went still, heart beating like a jackhammer.
"Just hang in there." the scientist whispered. A single tear had gathered in he corner of his right eye. "You're going to be fine. I promise."
The creature's eyes opened just enough to settle on the scientist. It raised one shaking hand and gripped his sleeve, wheezes becoming more and more faint.
"You're going to be fine." the scientist said again. "I swear..."
The creature coughed up more blood, not breaking its grip on the scientist's sleeve. The heart monitor continued with it's frantic beeping for another few seconds before it stopped...and flatlined.
The creature's eyes glazed over and the grip it had on the scientist's sleeve loosened. It lay limply, the last of its life gone.
