Virus
Continued
6. Humanity
Duo groaned impatiently; his feet were beginning to hurt.
"Where are we going?!" he demanded.
"To the main control room – we've got to turn on the lights on all the exits." Dr. J informed him. The five of them continued on down what seemed to be the millionth hallway. Dr. J stopped suddenly.
"What was that?" he wondered aloud. His companions heard the sound too. They turned around and around looking for it. Dr. J's eyes locked on a door and an expression of absolute horror formed on his face.
"My animals!" he screamed hysterically. "Not my precious test animals!!" Dr. J bolted for the door, the pilots staring at him like he was crazy. After bursting through the door Dr. J laid eyes on a very disturbing sight. There was blood all over the bone and fur littered floor. All the way at the other side of the room Dr. J spotted the bottom half of Wufei's body sticking out of a cow's body. He finally realized that the sound he had heard was Wufei ripping the flesh from the dead animal.
"UGH! You parasitic freak! You worthless little - !" Dr. J turned red screaming insults at Wufei. Wufei pulled his head out of the cow's stomach and glanced uninterestedly in Dr. J's direction, a piece of blood soaked meat hanging from the corner of his mouth. Blood stretched from his nose down. Dr. J stomped towards Wufei, pointing an accusing finger and still spitting venomous insults. As Dr. J got closer, Wufei stood.
"…Can't possibly know how much those things COST!! If you ever touch one of my test animals again, you mutated side show monster, I'll - !" Wufei wrapped his hand around Dr. J's throat, silencing him. He slowly lifted him off the floor.
"You'll what?" Wufei demanded, his yellow eyes glinting. The other pilots, who had followed Dr. J into the room, gasped as Wufei spoke. They all heard his voice but none of them saw his mouth move. Dr. J started to pass out from lack of oxygen so Wufei threw him off to the side. Dr. J slammed into the bars of a cage and was knocked out cold.
"So annoying…" Wufei said. The other pilots still couldn't get over the fact that Wufei's mouth wasn't moving when he spoke. Wufei turned to look at them. "Hmm. Even more annoying humans…" he said as he wiped some blood off his face with the back of his arm. He started to walk towards his former friends. Duo whipped out his gun.
"DUO!!" Quatre yelled.
"What?! I ain't gonna just let him attack us!"
"Duo put that away! You'll hurt someone!" Quatre ordered. He reached for Duo's gun. Duo tried to keep it away but this caused the gun to go off. Wufei grunted as the bullet sliced through his chest. The other four boys stood frozen with terror. They watched as Wufei dug his hand into his own abdomen and retrieved the bullet. Quatre winced at the squishing noises Wufei's organs made. Once he had removed the bullet, Wufei held it up to his face and examined it. There was no blood on it whatsoever.
"Interesting…" He dropped the bullet and watched as the wound in his chest healed. This gained several gasps from the horrified pilots. "Now where was I?" Wufei started towards the other boys again. Trowa stepped forward.
"Wufei - ." he began. Wufei cut him off.
"Don't call me that. That isn't my name anymore."
"What is your name then?" Wufei faltered a little.
"Names are for humans. I simply am what I am. I need no name."
"You're right. Names mean nothing. I have no name, either. But names don't define who a person is. A person defines himself."
"Shut up. I don't want to hear your stupid double-talk, human."
"Yes, I am a human being. But so are you, Wufei." Wufei's face twisted into an expression of rage.
"NO!! I am NOT one of you! You are ALL weak!"
"Everyone has their own weakness. No one is perfect. That's what makes us human."
"That's what makes YOU human! I AM perfect! I am the perfect predator!"
"Are you really perfect? Are you really the perfect predator?" Trowa pulled the flashlight he'd had in the sewer from his pocket. It was off but Wufei's eyes still widened at the sight of it. Trowa smiled slightly.
"You do have a weakness after all." Wufei snarled menacingly and lunged forward. Trowa barely had any time to react; Wufei had become impossibly fast. The only thing Trowa had time to do was point the flashlight; Wufei knocked it from his hand before he could turn it on. Duo and Heero took aim with their guns. A swift kick from Wufei sent the weapons flying. The enraged Wufei turned on Trowa with a vengeful cry.
"YOU WILL DIE NOW, FILTHY HUMAN!!!!!!!!!!" Wufei landed a direct hit on Trowa's jaw, sprawling him out on the blood drenched floor. The other pilots moved in on Wufei.
"Stay back!" Trowa ordered. The other pilots stared at Trowa in disbelief as he climbed back to his feet. The look on his face told the other pilots that he was dead serious. "Wufei –." The Chinese pilot backhanded Trowa viciously for the use of his human name.
"You will NOT call me that!!" Wufei yelled. Trowa turned his head back to face the disturbed teen.
"Wufei," he repeated firmly. Wufei growled deeply then swung at Trowa again. This time Trowa caught Wufei's hand but Wufei quickly lashed out with his other hand, punching Trowa in the stomach. Trowa was a little winded but stayed strong.
"You are a human."
"NO!!" Wufei tried to pull his arm away to hit Trowa again but couldn't get free. Trowa shook him to get him to stop struggling.
"Listen to me. I know you don't want to hear it but you are human. You're just confused right now. But you have to try to fight this thing inside you. We need you, Wufei." At this point Wufei began struggling wildly, blinded by fury.
"No, no, NO!! I am NOT a human! I'm not! I AM NOT!!" Wufei finally broke free from Trowa's grip and started attacking him. He punched him repeatedly at first, screaming out 'no' with every swing, then he switched to slapping and finally resorted to punching Trowa in the stomach. All the while his cries of rage and hatred grew more and more passionate and full of despair. Trowa also noticed that he seemed to be losing strength. Wufei panted from both exertion and pain. With some difficulty he lifted his arm and brought his hand down on Trowa's cheek. It should have been a slap but it was too weak to do anything. Trowa caught Wufei as he collapsed forward. Wufei spoke through his mouth.
"I…I'm not human…anymore…" he said, his voice barely above a whisper. He didn't really sound like himself; his vocal cords were no longer correctly shaped for human speech.
"We can help you, Wufei. But only if you let us."
"I can't…I can't think for myself anymore. I can't tell which thoughts are mine and which thoughts are from…I want to be in control of myself, my life…but I can't…I c-can't…co-co-con…con…" Trowa felt Wufei beginning to twitch in his arms.
"Fight it, Wufei. Stay in control." A low growl sounded from within Wufei's chest. He suppressed it and tried to speak.
"L-l-losing…losing…my…can't…ssss…T-Trowa…g-get… get…get…GET OUT OF MY WAY!!" With an earth-shattering roar, Wufei tossed Trowa across the room.
"WATER!! I MUST HAVE WATER!!!!!!" he bellowed. Having lost control once again, Wufei charged towards the door of the room. The other three pilots were still standing in front of it. Quatre jumped directly in his path and spread his arms and legs.
"Wufei those aren't your thoughts! You're only helping the thing that's trying to take over your body!" Wufei stared at Quatre for a moment. Without warning, he grabbed Quatre's head in one hand. Quatre cried out as Wufei lifted him off the floor, squeezing his skull in his fingers.
"I…" Wufei said, squeezing harder. "Am…" He squeezed even harder. Tears rolled down Quatre's face. "Thirsty…" Wufei sent Quatre flying and bolted from the room in search of water.
"Great…" Duo murmured as Heero buried his face in his hand.
***
Two rather muscular delivery men were refilling the water coolers spread out all over Dr. J's lab. They hadn't gotten deep into the building yet so they still had plenty of jugs with them. At the moment they were taking a short break to enjoy some of the fresh spring water they'd just replaced.
"Yeah, I heard the guy's some sort of mad scientist." The brown-haired one was saying. The two men laughed heartily. A small sound caused them to turn their heads. They were faced with a young boy about the age of fifteen with shoulder length black hair. His whole front and part of his face were covered with scarlet blood. For a moment the delivery men considered the possibility that Dr. J actually was a mad scientist.
"Water…" the boy repeated. His voice was quiet but they could hear – no, feel – the tension in it. "Leave!" the boy commanded. His voice was like a spasm, like a violent eruption he had tried to hold in. The boy's face twisted in agony. "Leave…" This time the voice was a low moan and it seemed deeper. The blonde delivery man decided that he had a spine.
"Look kid, we got a job to do and we ain't leavin' 'till we do it." he told the boy. The child, who had doubled over in pain, now crumpled in a heap. The man who had spoken edged closer as the boy started wheezing.
"Hey kid? You okay? Can you hear me?" The boy's body shook with silent laughter.
"You won't leave in peace?" he asked in a voice too deep to be his own, too deep to be human. His head lifted and his yellow eyes locked with the terrified blue ones of the man. He was grinning horridly. "Then you'll leave in pieces."
***
Dr. J and the remaining pilots had split up to cover more ground. Trowa and Heero were to search for Wufei and capture him. Duo and Quatre went with Dr. J as protection and to help him turn on the exit lights. At that moment, Dr. J and his two companions were walking silently down the corridor leading to the main control room. If anything could be said for Dr. J's lab, it was that it was humongous. It was no wonder he had been able to construct a whole gundam there. Quatre had been given a change of clothes so the only sound being made by any of them was the rustling of his blue hospital scrub pants. On his feet he wore blue slippers that may as well have been shower caps due to the way they seemed to envelope his feet. Quatre was pondering the problem at hand, wondering what Wufei was going through and what they could do to help him. A sudden question from Duo tore him from his thoughts.
"What will turning on all these lights do anyway?" he asked. Dr. J let out an annoyed sigh as though the answer was perfectly obvious.
"We've seen that he's afraid of light. If all the exits are lighted, he won't try to get out."
"But what if he destroys the lights?" Duo countered. Dr. J was silent. A furious roar echoed through the hallway. Quatre froze.
"What was that?!" he asked. Duo stopped and turned to look at him.
"What was what?" Another loud roar beat Quatre's ear drums.
"That! That sound! Didn't you hear it!?!" Duo tilted his head to the side and listened.
"I don't hear anything…" he said. Duo started walking again so Quatre moved hesitantly forward. Suddenly, a searing pain ripped through his chest.
"Gaah - !" Quatre fell forward onto his knees. Both Duo and Dr. J stopped this time.
"Are you okay, Quatre?" Duo inquired.
"My…my soul…it's being…ripped to shreds…!" Quatre gasped. Another jolt of pain sliced through Quatre and he clutched his chest. Duo knelt beside him.
"Quatre, are you having one of those Space-heart things!?!" Quatre nodded. "What do I do!?!" Quatre began coughing and hacking. Blood spurted from his mouth. Dr. J approached them.
"What's going on here?!" he demanded.
"I don't know! I don't how to help him!" Duo cried in panic.
"The pain…the anger…" Quatre's eyes squeezed shut. "…the hate…" He cried out as yet another ripple of agonizing pain caused him to throw his head back. Blood was flying everywhere.
"Quatre! What are we supposed to do?!" Duo turned to Dr. J. "You're a doctor – help him!" Dr. J's mouth was hanging open from shock.
"I – I've never seen…anything like this!" A sound very much like that of a car being ripped in half escaped Quatre's throat followed by a spray of crimson liquid. Duo and Dr. J covered their eyes as the blood fell on them. When they uncovered themselves, they saw Quatre standing in front of them, his fists clinched and panting heavily. Veins stood out all over his body. His narrowed eyes burned holes through theirs.
"Quatre…?" Duo ventured.
"No…Quatre is not here…" Quatre growled. His voice was low and cold. They could feel the hate it carried. Duo and Dr. J retreated slightly.
"You're really freakin' us out, Quatre." Duo said.
"Shut up, human filth!" Quatre snapped viciously. "You will pay for what you have done…you will not be shown mercy…" Quatre advanced on Dr. J and Duo. Dr. J pulled a tranquilizer gun from his lab coat and handed it to Duo.
"Use this! I'm sure you don't want to kill Quatre." he said. Duo nodded and took aim. Before he knew what had happened, Quatre had crushed the barrel of the gun. Quatre leaned closer to Duo, still holding the ruined gun in his hand.
"Foolish human. Do not attempt to stop me. I am far more powerful than you can imagine." Having said that, Quatre tossed Duo down the hall. Next he turned on Dr. J.
"You humans…you are a reckless species. You destroy everything in your paths and leave even more destruction in your wake." Quatre moved slowly toward Dr. J. "You took everything from me…my wife…my family… my home… my planet…now you must pay…" Dr. J froze in confusion. 'What did he mean by 'his planet'? His planet would be Earth…but he was born on a colony…but Earth is still there anyway…' he wondered. He couldn't make sense of it. Without warning Quatre hit the floor. Duo had jumped on him from behind. Quatre blinked and light returned to his eyes. The veins on his body disappeared. He glanced about himself.
"What…what's going on?" he asked.
"If only I knew…" Duo responded.
"Yes…what is going on indeed…?" Dr. J wondered aloud.
***
Trowa and Heero walked along in an eerie silence. The two stoic soldiers had nothing to say to each other and quite frankly, no desire to speak to each other anyway. All they were interested in was finding Wufei. And in due time, they accomplished that. They were turning down yet another boring gray hall when the sound of sniffing reached their ears. They followed it and came to a dark room. Turning on filtered flashlights, they entered the room cautiously and continued the search for the elusive Chinese pilot. Heero stumbled over a stray bottle. He shined his light on the plastic object not quite realizing it was only an empty water cooler jug. But when he did shine his light on it he saw that the mouth of the bottle had been severely mutilated as if whoever had drunk the water hadn't had even enough patience to unscrew the lid and had simply torn it off. Little did he know that this was unsettlingly close to the truth. He pushed the observation to the back of his mind and moved on. Trowa was examining the other side of the room with attentive scrutiny. He found a piece of cloth on the floor. He bent to pick it up, completely unaware of the golden orbs watching his back from the shadows. As he straightened he thought he sensed that he was being observed. He turned his head slightly to the right then quickly made a complete turn to the left. There was nothing there. Narrowing his eyes in suspicion, he pivoted back around and started walking again. He tripped over something but didn't fall. Instead he executed a perfect flip and landed on his feet, facing the object he'd tripped on. It was a body. It was a dead body. The expression carved into the man's visage was one of complete and utter terror. His blue eyes were wide, glazed and frozen with the nothingness of death. His mouth was slightly ajar, perhaps to mutter one last word of protest, one last plea for his life. His plea for mercy had not been granted. The skin…why was the skin so pale, so sickeningly colored? He couldn't have been dead more than an hour. Trowa couldn't answer his own question. The sniffing caught his attention again, drawing him away from the cadaver and he was grateful – he had no wish to stare at it any longer than was necessary. He pushed his way through empty bottles and overturned science equipment to the area the noise was emanating from. The room was in shambles – random tools and water bottles were scattered haphazardly about the blood stained floor. It was nearly impossible to move. But at long last Trowa discovered the source of the sniffing. It was not, as he had expected, Wufei. It was actually the other delivery man, the brown haired one. He was in a way crying, though there were no tears on his face. He glanced up at Trowa.
"Help…h-h-help me…." he begged. Trowa edged closer.
"What happened?"
"Please…he – he killed Tom…oh God, he killed him!!"
"Okay…get a hold of yourself. Come on, you'll be fine." Trowa held out his hand but the man kept staring at him as though he hadn't moved.
"He's gonna kill everyone! He's gonna kill EVERYBODY!!! Do you hear me!?! You have to stop him! PLEASE! You have to -!" The man's head tilted up sharply and there was a distinct crack. He slumped lifelessly to the floor. Trowa backed away as a figure stepped out of the shadows.
"You know, Trowa, I don't really like killing people," The all too familiar voice was unnervingly calm. There was a flash of white in the darkness, the reflection of light on his fangs as he smiled. "But I can't seem to help myself." Wufei broke into wild laughter that attracted Heero to the scene. Neither Heero nor Trowa had time to think – Wufei attacked.