CHAPTER 6

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I opened my eyes and was greeted with intense light so bright it actually burned. My eyes watered and I attempted to move my head, only to find it secured in place by something soft yet firm on either sides of my head and over my forehead. I squeezed my eyes shut and uttered a small groan. I realized I was lying down on something cold and hard. My wrists and ankles were secured in place by the same taught material. I pulled on the restraints, the familiar strain of my jersey and pants not registering. I was naked save for a cloth around my waist.

I was suddenly aware of the smell. The burning, clean smell. Like a doctor's office. The realization shot through me, making my head spin. I knew this smell...I could faintly recall it. I could remember it even before Vader.

I was in the Institute.

Panic flared through me and I struggled uselessly, my wrists and ankles bruising. It was hard to breathe...the smell was choking me. My body shuddered from the cold metal I was lying on and the fear.

A door opened. I strained to see who had entered my prison, but they hovered just out of sight. I counted eight. All eight seemed to have long white beards...

One finally hovered within my sight. He indeed had a beard and was the oldest person I had seen in Zone 2 so far.

"You're at the Institute." He said. "We're going to reset you."

"Reset?!" I nearly shouted. "No! We have to find Vader! Where did she go? Have you searched for her?!"

The old man ignored my frantic questions. "You have acted outside of your puppeteer's orders, outright attacked a fellow puppeteer, and developed your own way of thinking. That is why we must go on with this procedure."

"What about Vader?!" I roared. "Save her! SAVE HER!"

"Sir, he simply overrode the mind wipe we attempted on him the first time." Another voice said. "We're going to have to find another means of controlling him."

Controlling?! Mind wipe?! Reset?! What the hell were they talking about?! Vader was in trouble! She could be dead, for all I know! I had to save her! I had to save her NOW! I HAD TO SAVE MY WIFE!

I struggled against the restraints with more power, feeling them cut deeply into my wrists and ankles. I ignored the pain and instead used it to fuel my rage. The eight men had crowded around me, trying to keep my arms and legs secured to the table. I unleashed a feral scream and broke my right arm free, slashing at those around me.

My arm had changed.

Instead of my normal hand, five long, curved talons were weighing down my fingers. My skin had changed to a rougher and darker texture and shade all the way up to my elbow.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!" I roared. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"

The men continued to frantically try to restrain me. I slashed at them with my new claws, drawing bright red from their faces. I could feel that my other hand had changed as well.

"I was afraid of this!" One of them shouted.

"The King corrupted him as well!" Another gasped.

"What do we do?"

Something soft and sweet smelling was pressed tightly over my nose and mouth. I tried to jerk my head to the side, but I could not escape the bonds about my head. My eyelids felt heavy. My arms felt heavier. My frantic movements began to slow, buying the men time to re-secure my arm. I was tired...

"Look...the transformation is reversing itself." I heard the first one say. The sweet smelling thing was removed from my face.

"It only occurs if he is enraged."

"We need to restrain that monster for good."

"We should just kill him...purify him."

The lights above me were swimming in and out of focus. I tried to focus and took a deep breath, coughing out the harsh scent in the air.

"He is too good of a purifier for that."

"We'll use the marionette strings."

"I fear that is the only option."

I felt someone marking long semicircles around my neck, arms, legs and torso. I attempted a halfhearted attempt at escaping, but it wasn't even close to my former rage. Something made a mechanical whirring noise above my head. I tried to focus on it, but the world was growing fuzzier and fuzzier...

The metal teeth of a surgical saw bit into my upper right arm, ripping skin and a scream from my throat. I could feel it digging into my muscle, continuing to tear through my limb. My fingers suddenly didn't work. The feeling of tiredness had been wiped completely out.

I heard a jarring sound as a shockwave shot into my chest from the saw. I realized with horror it had struck my bone and that was the only reason it had stopped. I grit my teeth, my entire body shuddering. My arm was released from the table and held into the air. Another semicircle marked the area under my arm, joining the gaping wound. I still couldn't move my fingers.

"S-stop! Stop!" I gasped.

The saw started again, sending bits of my own flesh flying over my pale body. It dug into the underside of my arm, not stopping until it reached bone. I screamed myself hoarse, only spitting out tiny wheezes of agony.

Something was wrapped around my bone and pulled taught before Luck Tickets were plastered to my arm. I felt my flesh and muscle regrowing itself until it was as though nothing happened. All that remained from the searing pain was a thin, clear string. I could use my fingers again. They tied down my arm before I could escape my shock.

I moaned and shivered uncontrollably, stammering out pieces of sentences. I couldn't think straight. I couldn't remember my name. I was angry and upset and scared, but I couldn't remember why. I was being enveloped by more darkness. The eight were talking.

The sweet cloth was pressed over my nose and mouth again, and I inhaled it deeply. I felt nothing for a very, very long time.

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I could remember my name.

I was the Batter. My mission was to purify the Zones of Spectres. And I was dangerous.

I don't remember why. All I know is that I did something terrible. They put strings in me...to control my movements. The strings connected to a miniature computer which would give me commands. I am forced to follow them.

I pulled at the string protruding from my lower arm. It hurt, sending an ache throughout my entire limb. I didn't exactly know what I expected.

The strings faded into nonexistence a few feet from my body. Though I could reach through them from that point on, they were still joined to the computer that was currently being given to my new puppeteer. I hoped they knew what they were doing. Every command given to the computer cost me greatly.

I was slouched in a plastic chair, two puppets on either side of me. They had their gaze fixed on me, their orders clear. Any sign of resistance was to be met with extreme force. I don't know why they were necessary. I didn't have the strength to fight.

A light flashed and an old, bearded man walked toward me, carrying the keypad that would control my every movement. At his side was a young girl with long, burning red hair. I turned my gaze downward, staring at the ground.

"All right, Regina. You have been assigned to a being called the Batter." The old man spoke. "But be warned...he can be as dangerous as the Spectres themselves."

My shoulders sagged at that last comment. Why couldn't I remember why I was so dangerous? I was fairly certain I could remember something like that.

I felt a jolt in my leg muscles, forcing me to stand. Another shock in my neck made my head snap up so I was facing the two in front of me. Regina...the girl...her eyes were so blue. Blue and full of pity. Pity toward me...?

I figured I looked terrible. I had been denied any kind if rest for three days. I was weak from the deprivation and the computer's constant commands. My very bones ached. I felt that at any minute I would fell over and never stand again...

"We will let you off in Zone 0," the old man continued. "Purify it and the other Zones of Spectres. Use any means necessary."

Regina nodded. "The Spectres have gotten out of hand again?"

The old man said nothing. He handed the keypad over to her and turned, walking back to the circle of light that would lead him out of the Nothingness and back to his Zone. The puppets on either side of me followed him. It was just me and my new Puppeteer.

I directed my gaze back at the ground, my shoulders sagging. Around me, the darkness of the Nothingness vanished to be replaced by orange and white. Zone 0. A dripping noise sounded from a mutilated building in front of us.

Regina took a few steps toward me and lifted my chin with one of her fingers. I found myself staring into her eyes. Her fiery red hair accented the blue almost perfectly.

"It's been five years since the King," she said in barely more than a whisper. "You were asleep for five years."

I didn't respond. I broke eye contact and stared at the building in the near distance, trying to make sense of what she had said. Who was this King...? And I feel like I've been running for five years straight, not sleeping.

Something was moving in the building. I tried to put myself between the threat and Regina, but the strings in my body pulled painfully, ripping skin and muscle. I winced and stopped, unable to do anything unless she commanded me.

"Batter, look! A cat...?" She sounded puzzled.

I lifted my head to see a white cat making its way toward us, its teeth uneven and pointed. It gave Regina a puzzled look before turning its gaze on me.

"Batter?" It asked.

I had never seen the cat before. I avoided its eyes and stared at the orange platform again, feeling a small trail of blood make its way down my wrist.

"By the Four Zones! What has ailed you? You look terribly ill!"

I still didn't respond. I couldn't, even if I wanted. Regina had to grant me that ability.

"And who are you, being of flesh and blood?" The cat continued to ask.

"I'm Regina...the Batter's new Puppeteer."

"New? But what has happened to Vader?"

That name...! I knew that name...! But I couldn't place it!

"She's not his Puppeteer anymore." Regina continued. "He was reassigned to me."

The cat curled around my ankles, still staring up at me. "Your puppet is in need of a good slumber."

"I was told to not let him regain his strength." Regina said. "But you appear to know him. Was he always...a monster?"

Her words stung. My shoulders sagged even more, the strings in my upper and lower arms and chest pulling painfully. My breathing became even more restricted, but I ignored it.

"Both you and Batter...accompany me to my home." The cat said. "It appears you were not properly educated at the Institute. I am the Judge."

The Judge...? Why was that name also frustratingly familiar?

Regina input a command into the keypad, causing the strings to shock my leg muscles into working. I took shaky, controlled steps after them as we walked into the dilapidated building.

The main room was furnished with a bed and desk, nothing else. The Judge pulled a blanket from the top of the bed, exposing the mattress underneath. "You need rest." He said to me.

Just looking at the bed made my strength fade away almost completely. I was exhausted...all I wanted to do was sleep...

"I...I don't know if he should..." Regina stammered. "The Institute said–"

"If the Institute said to jump off a building, would you?" The Judge snapped. "That man needs a place to rest his head. Now, I assure you, I will explain everything you want to know to you. But instead, we sit here bickering, while your 'puppet'," he spat the word like poison. "Is dying on his feet."

Regina gave a slow nod. "I suppose you're right..." She began to manipulate the controls, giving me limited movement to make my way into the soft quilts. I buried myself into the blankets, immediately feeling warmth cover me almost lovingly. I felt someone caressing my cheek and I rolled over, squinting. Someone...a woman...was standing over me, her features hazy and unclear. She whispered something, her voice soft and reassuring, yet I could not make out the words. I opened my mouth and spoke for the second time I had left the Institute, "Who...? Who are you?"

"Shhh..." The woman whispered. "It's all right. Do you want some coffee, my love?"

I tried to say yes, but my throat was blocked. Frantically, I tried to cough, but no sound came off. A blinding pain was ripping through my arms, chest and throat. But...I had to answer her! I had to ask her who she was!

"Zounds! Your companion is having a fitful nightmare!"

My eyes shot open and I squeezed then shut as searing light filled them. The strings in my arms were tugging painfully at my limbs, trying to restrict my movement as I clutched at my neck. Something hot and sticky was bubbling in my throat, the agony from the string inside making it worse. My breathing was even more restricted. I opened my mouth to gasp, but only a gurgling sound emanated. Liquid dripped from the corner of my mouth.

"He's having another attack!" Regina gasped. She began imputing commands into the keypad. "The Institute warned me about this!"

The pain from the strings slackened, allowing me more movement. My entire body was convulsing, my muscles completely out of control. I couldn't breathe...

Regina grabbed my arm and rolled me onto my side, sending a pool of red cascading from my mouth. Wet, wheezing sounds escaped my lungs and my entire body jerked spastically.

"An attack? By whom?" The Judge demanded.

"His body attempts to resist the strings...he'll fight back." Regina said. "Most of the time it's unintentional, like this. The string in his throat will contract against his windpipe...but sometimes it will damage it enough...like this..."

I coughed, sending more red out of my mouth in a painful burst. My eyes rolled back into my head as I attempted to will my consciousness away...

"Zacharie! Get your blasted Tickets and assist us!" The Judge's voice startled me back into reality. My body gave another, extremely painful spasm, forcing a moan out of my blood-logged windpipe. I saw another figure come running from another room...

Someone put something over my throat and the pain began to ebb away almost instantly. A few more papery things were placed on my forehead, somehow stopping my convulsions. I coughed again, expelling the rest of the blood from my lungs and throat, and took a shaky, gasping breath.

"That looked close." The newcomer said, his voice wavering.

I squinted, focusing on a tall man in a white sweater, a red heart stitched to the front. He had dark hair and a white bandana around his nose and mouth, but that didn't obscure the shock in his eyes. "Batter?"

I couldn't respond.

"You know him too?" Regina asked.

"Yeah." The man said. "I'm Zacharie. I was the one he attacked on accident that night with the King."

Again with the events I couldn't recall. I noticed Zacharie's neck was swollen, like something had been damaged and not properly healed.

I shakily raised my hand, clenching and unclenching it. The fit had passed completely. I let it fall back to the bed. I was more exhausted than before.

Regina tightened the strings around my limbs and resumed talking to the two gathered around me, leaving me to drop back into sleep.

I didn't dream this time.

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Regina is my OC, but she has good reason to be here. She represents the puppeteers as a whole, and plays a role a bit later in the story. (Seriously, she is kinda important. And I really hate her)

Anyway, tell me what you think! This chapter is one of the crucial ones, and I need to know it I did it right.

Hasta la Vista, Readers!

Lordoftheghostking28