Many years later
Two: Quint and Subject 2
Quint decided that he would never get use to the smell of his father's headquarters. It reeked of ammonia with a slight touch of sulphur. His super-heightened senses were overloaded with the stench of chemicals and odor stimulants. Thank goodness he had the tolerance for these types of things ever since he was a teenager. The lab was almost his second home. He spent more time in here than he did in school ever since the little incident when he was twelve.
Once he and his father discovered what they had become; it had taken some time to get over the initial shock. His father did not speak to him, his mother, or anyone for the longest period of time. Quint's mother, Catherine, had been very frightened and disbelieving to say the least. All Quint remembered that was during the full moon, that month, he and his father had gone to bed after feeling sick. Both of them woke up to the most indescribable pain they had ever felt in their mortal lives. Next thing he knew, he was sprouting a muzzle, sharp claws, fur all over his body, and he had a sudden palpable desire for fresh red meat. Thank goodness his mother had been gone that night at her sister's house. If she had been there that night, she would have undoubtable become the first course meal of her metamorphic son and husband.
Instead the two of them settled for the rabbits in the garden and their neighbors' beloved pets. Quint had ended up eating his own dog; a cocker spaniel/beagle mix named Bandit. When the sun finally peaked its orange tails over the house and the moon retreated back into its own comforting darkness; the two men fell into their own carnage, haggard and sick to their stomachs.
He had been very upset over the loss of his furry friend but had forced his feelings of regret to pass. Ever since he came home from the hospital, bandit had treated them differently. As if he knew that they were no longer human. The dog had been hostile and snappy at him and his father.
Catherine had been horrified to discover what her two boys had become. She had a breakdown once she realized they were not joking. While most women would have left them both; his mother had stayed. She adjusted her life to be supportive to her family and she kept quiet it as well. It was hard for her, but she had declared that she was not going to leave either of them in this frightening era of their lives.
Too bad she couldn't even keep that damn promise. Quint judged bitterly. His mother had left. Right before the purge, for whatever reason, she fled. He had made no attempts to follow or find her. His father advised against it.
Quint found it amusing to be thinking of mothers. Sometimes the most unlikely or undeserving people were blessed with little lives to take care of. People who no one thought would become parents were suddenly discovered to be pregnant. He could think of just one person, the vampire Selene and her hybrid lover. Both had been captured and put into an animated state through cryogenic freezing. This was not done before his father had discovered the vampires to be pregnant! Oh, the little creature was an anomaly before it was even conceived!
Quint turned down the familiar hallways and passages until he reached a familiar doorway. He didn't waste time in formalities and pushed the door right open. Sitting on a cold steel table was the offspring of the comatose vampire and hybrid, a little girl-child named Subject 2. Only six years old, she was the most important child in the world, to the lycans at least. Her unique genetic makeup was just right for creating the formulas that would ensure the lycanthropes ultimate victory.
Subject 2 was curled with her arms wrapped around her legs; such a strange little girl, so special, and undeniable innocent to the outside world. This was just how his father wanted her to be. Though his father had referred to her as 'it' ever since she had been brought into this world, he still called her 'she'. The girl was the quiet little lab rat she was conditioned to be. Her strength itself was impressive for a six-year old; her speed could already outmatch any vampire or lycan ever known. As far as healing abilities went she was astoundingly gifted in that department. Her skin could be cut or bruised until she was covered in her own blood and she would still be able to get up and you could visible watch her injuries heal. She was spectacular.
Though the way everyone treated her, you would think they would consider a stain on the fabric of the universe. Half lycan and half vampire; she was the unwilling individual for a series of tests which most would consider inhumane and unusually cruel at times. She took all of the tests and examinations quietly and with little fuss. Dr. Lane had done well with conditioning her to accept her fate and just take it in stride.
Scientific jargon aside, she was an unnaturally pretty child. She had her mother's dark hair and lips as well. She had also inherited her father's blue eyes. Not to mention his strength, speed, and black eyes whenever she became angry or defensive. Unlike her parents, this child's eyes took on the strangest but also the most beautiful design in her hybrid form, in Quint's opinion. When her eyes changed, they became jet black like her father but they took on an icy-blue iris ring; just like her mother. Unlike her mother, she was passive. Never caused a ruckus and never tried to cause trouble every waking moment of her short life. He almost felt sorry for the poor thing, almost. Without her, they would never reach their goal to give the lycans the power and prestige they deserved all along.
If that meant she had to give her life for a noble cause, well; so be it. One life is given so thousands could be saved. It seemed like a pretty fair trade. His father had convinced him of that. Of course they had to wait until she was old enough, until she matured.
He strode over to the steel table and came up behind Subject Two. "Hello Subject Two." He inquired softly. The child turned to him hesitantly and scrutinized him with slight suspicion. She didn't talk much either. She never seemed to like strangers and it took a while for her to get use to them. He was no stranger though. He reached out for her and she leaned away from his touch. Quint flashed a toothy grin. "Why are you cringing Subject Two? You know you're like a little sister to me." He assured her with that wolfish grin still on his lips.
Subject Two didn't really understand what a 'little sister' was but she still didn't like the seemingly harmless term coming from this man. Though she knew him, she did not like or trust him at all.
Quint brushed his fingers against her long hair. "I'm never mean to you am I? Why are you afraid of me?" He asked. Truth be told, when she was just a newborn; he had wanted her to view him as a sort of 'big brother' figure. His father had advised him against it and told him what their plans were for her. Getting attached to her was out of the question. Besides, even though she was young she was as dangerous as her parents. It would do no good to have her like you then get irritated and lash out. She had already done that with her caretaker, Lida. Like the kings of the previous centuries, his father knew how to handle this. It was better that she feared them all and did what she was told; rather than trust them and gain a rebellious streak.
Subject Two shook her head slowly. No, he had never been mean to her. There was just something about him that she just didn't like. She couldn't understand what it was. Then again, she didn't understand a lot of things. They kept her so isolated in the lab. Lida sometimes told her stories but so did this man, Quint. Lida's stories where light and happy sounding. They were about the people and things that lived outside the labs walls. Quint's stories were about much nastier sounding things outside the walls. 'It's dangerous out there Subject Two. If we sent you out there you would never make it. You're protected in here and I expect you to be a little more grateful.' She remembered him saying to her.
"Let's just talk Subject Two. Is there anything you would like to know?" He questioned in a genuine voice. His tone had an underlying threat to it though; warning her not to ask the wrong questions. The questions she so desperately wanted answers to. Questions about her parents and what she was, where she came from, and if she could ever just look outside the lab! She wanted to see real trees; not the ones Lida had painted for her in her room! She also wanted to just here something, anything about her mother. They kept telling her that her mother was dead. They always lied, she could just tell. She felt her mother's presence, she was somewhere close, she just didn't know where. Subject Two suspected that her 'caretakers' did though.
"No. Not really." She admitted sadly. What was the point? It was always the same.
"Are you sure? Because I wouldn't mind telling you anything." He said, and then quickly added as an afterthought, "Well, almost anything." He finished sternly.
Subject Two shook her head again. "I just want to be left alone." She confessed softly.
Quint suddenly reached out and gripped her arm. Subject Two gasped in alarm and tried to yank her arm out of his grip. She was unable to find the words to tell him to let go. They had all but stomped out any rebelliousness she might ever feel. She was left with just struggling.
Quint's eyes were stone-hard and cold. "Left you alone? If we left you alone you would just end up hurting yourself! We talked about this before Subject Two." He scolded. "We keep an eye on you for your own protection. Remember what happened last time?" He all but snarled.
The girl winced; she didn't want to relive that memory. She was just a baby at the time. She had learned to walk only a month ago. Lida had taken her eyes off of her for a minute and she had somehow managed to climb the shelf in her room. There was a shiny prism on the very top and she wanted to see it. She had done a surprisingly good job until she had reached the very top. As she tried to grab the prism, the book underneath her had slipped towards the edge and fallen off, leaving her with nothing to stand on. Try as she might, she couldn't hang on and fell. Lida had turned around as the book fell and caught her just in time.
She got herself and Lida into so much trouble for that. Lida was yelled at by for not keeping an eye on her and he had scolded Subject Two for trying something without their permission.
She hung her head meekly. "Yes, I remember." She said softly. The grip on her arm turned less painful.
Quint relaxed a little and ghosted a finger under her chin; tilting her head up to look at him. "You see child, we're not doing this to hurt you. You are a very special girl Subject Two. You're not like any other girl in this world. You're different. In the Outside World people are very afraid of 'different'. Sometimes they get so afraid that they hurt people who are different. You're safer here; okay?" He urged.
She nodded. She knew nothing about life outside the walls. Though it seemed exciting at times she was also fearful about it. Lida had admitted that it could be a dangerous place but it was also very beautiful too. Quint said it was a scary and dangerous place that was hard to live in and the weak and small usually died quickly. He had said that she was weak and small and of course she would die immediately once she stepped outside.
Even though Quint seemed like as big of a liar as the rest of the doctors, she wasn't going to risk anything.
The door behind them opened and Quint released her almost as quickly as if she were on fire. Dr. Lane lumbered in along with an intern. Quint couldn't remember his name and decided it didn't matter. As long as he did his job, that was all that really mattered.
The intern viewed the hybrid child with a mixture of fear and curiosity. He turned to Dr. Lane, "Is it true that she's really a-". He was cut off by a wave of his father's hand. "Yes, it is. I know what you're thinking and I just want to tell you that it's very docile. Subject Two won't do anything as long as someone it knows is in the room." He turned his dark eyes on Subject Two. They were filled with maliciousness and warning to her that she better not do anything she wasn't instructed to do.
The wide-eyed child sat with her legs hanging off the edge and was already presented her pale arm for any injections they might need. Dr. Lane smiled coldly at her and then turned it into a smirk when he turned back to the intern. "As you can see, it has been conditioned well." He boasted.
The intern visible relaxed and pulled out the syringes and prepared them. Subject Two was use to needles and being stabbed with them. This didn't mean she liked them though. A sense of dread filled her body and she considered pulling away at the last minute. No, she couldn't do that. Dr. Lane was watching and he would just force her to hold out her arm anyway. It was easier if she just did it willingly. It seemed to end faster that way.
As the intern approached her she felt two hands softly grab her shoulders. Quint stood behind her and gripped her intently. She was confused until she heard the new man speak to her. "This is a shot that is very new to the medical world and it will make your arm feel as if it's hurting. Really it's just going to completely numb itself. But the process to that is painful. Dr. Lane tells me that you can't feel pain as well as other so you shouldn't worry." He assured her. All strangers in the lab talked to her this way; like she was still a baby or some mindless animal.
Even though all she heard from him was "hurting" and "pain" she braced herself. As he injected her she could already feel a stinging pain in her blood; like a fire that was being pushed into her and was spreading throughout her whole arm.
Quint's voice said lowly in her ear. "You might want to close your eyes little one. It's better if you don't see what's happening." He muttered. Though it sounded like a helpful hint meant to comfort her all she felt was revulsion. She was right about Quint, he was creepy and she didn't like him. He tried to speak to her like he cared about her but it was clear he didn't. His voice and his eyes betrayed the evil and ill-will towards her. He was just like all the rest.