1. Samantha

My back was against the cold metal and I groaned from the depths of my lungs as the dull throb of anesthesia pounded against my temples. I found the strength to open my eyes, my eyelids weighed; pulling themselves closed as though a thousand termites were pushing them so. I pulled my hands to my face to try and rub my eyes, but my hands were stopped halfway by a grip of cold iron around my wrists.

At that, my eyes snapped open: what the hell?

The light that bathed me was white, white and oh so bright. Anaesthesia wasn't my only problem – the sudden light brought with it the ingredients for a killer migraine.

I looked down. That's why it was so cold. I was naked.

I looked right. That's why I couldn't move. A metal cuff was secured against my wrist, leading down to be attached to whatever I was lying on.

I looked left. And that's what I was lying on: A metal operating bed.

A voice came from somewhere nearby, "Maxis? Maxis!" The voice was calling out "I think she iz avake!"

A deeper, more collected voice came from another side, dismissively, as if he were otherwise occupied, "Doctor Richtofen, I vill attend to our subject in unt minute."

Lifting my head, I looked directly at the first voice, who the other had called Richtofen. He was looking at me, also. A look of excitement came over his sharp features, now sure that I was conscious.

"Vell Doctor Maxis" Richtofen replied tersely, snapping on a latex glove over his hand menacingly, "Every minute you spend iz vun minute further from our ultimate goal!"

I was terrified – undoubtedly, this 'ultimate goal' was to include me. But how?

"What do you want from me?" I screamed at Richtofen "Why am I here?"

Richtofen just smirked, not saying a word. If my shouts did nothing for Richtofen, they certainly roused the other doctor, 'Maxis', Richtofen had called him, as he threw down his notepad.

"Silence, American!" Maxis raged, skewering me with a glare that would freeze hell "your time vill come. But save your voice, you shall need it". At this, Richtofen hid a chuckle, but Maxis directed his anger at him as well "and if neither of you can shut up, zen I vill have to acquire a more capable lab assistant!"

At least that wiped the leer off of Richtofen's face, but it did nothing to quell my horror. I became self-conscious about my nudity. Surely no! That couldn't be why they had me here, chained up.

I began to panic, thrashing around trying to damage either the cuffs or myself. Maybe, if I damaged myself, I would become less desirable, and they would leave me unharmed.

"Richtofen, stop her, she might harm herself!" Maxis shouted "Increase ze concentration – but remember: paralysis, not pain-killer. She must feel zis if it is to have the proper effect." Maxis rounded on me as the other doctor fiddled with an instrument to my left "Stop resisting, girl, you must accept zat you are perfect for out designs, and there is nothing you can do to stop this!"

Doctor Maxis let out a cackle of delight, as the evil rock of his heart was shown the suffering it fed off of. Meanwhile, Richtofen finished work on the workstation. I felt a coldness, unlike anything I had felt before, wash through my entire system – there must have been some kind of IV in my back or something – and I suddenly found myself completely immovable.

"Maxis, the instrument is now in place" Richtofen told the other doctor.

"Vell zen, Doctor Richtofen," Maxis replied "you may fire ze DG-2 ven ready"

I couldn't turn my head to look at him, but I knew that his eyes had the glint of evil as a mechanical whirring came from above me. I was paralysed, staring at my stomach, as a bizarre contraption of metal and glass came down in front of me. The glass panels glowed ice-blue with an inner energy, and there were four such glowing capsules sticking out from one side.

"Three... two... vun..."

And then, without warning besides Richtofen's count-down, the so-called DG-2 lurched forwards – right into my stomach. The metal pinnacle of the device stabbed straight through my navel, and six other spikes, which extended out from the main one, made a circle of agony encompassing my entire abdomen.

The pain was unbearable, but I couldn't squirm away. On second thoughts, even if I could move, squirming would only have churn up the spikes of the DG-2 inside me.

"Do not be afraid, American, this will soon be over," Richtofen said, and then rethought: "on second thoughts –"

"Fear us!" Maxis finished "you are ours – forever!"

Richtofen threw a switch – I could hear the clunk – and my world dissolved with pain. The DG-2 became alive with an electrical energy, which roared through my body like a forest fire. My eyes began to heat up, and my tears evaporated before they could fall. I could feel my bones being incinerated. The agony made me scream – though it didn't come from my throat, which had already melted.

It came from my soul.

The most horrific noise, it didn't sound real but it perfectly conveyed the torture I was feeling.

"It's vorking!" Richtofen exclaimed, audibly trying to keep the fear out of his voice, "ze transferral is making progress"

But I couldn't hear. Or see. Or smell. Or feel. I could just sense, I was the room, no, I was the hospital. No! I was the world, the galaxy, the universe, I could sense everything, know everything, everyone.

I focused my omniscience on the room where my body had been. Had. There was now just a slush of melted bio-mass. Richtofen was holding up the four glass nodules like a mother would a baby, wonder in his eyes. He tapped one and my whole world shook.

"Hello, Samantha" Richtofen cooed.

I could know everything, and be everywhere, but my entire consciousness was focussed on that one room, filled by the evil doctors. As I learnt their thoughts and plans, time seemed to slow down.

"No-vun can stop us now, Richtofen," Maxis cackled "Ze vorld is ours!"

And though my soul touched the entire universe, I had never felt so small in my life.

Authors note:

- Please leave your rating, as I would really appreciate it, if anything just to know that this is being read, as it's a story I really want to tell!

- Check back, because I know the whole story arc, and the ending will be epic!

- Please don't quote your impressive knowledge of Zombies Easter Eggs at me, this is my own storyline for zombies!