16: The Gates of Armageddon
The scent of dried blood filled his nostrils. Many futile attempts were made to try to expel the smells from entering his nasal passages, but all failed. Opening an eye slowly, he noticed the bonds still attached to his limbs, holding him in gentle embrace. Stretching to test their strength once more, he found that they had been changed; the damaged ones from the night before replaced with newer, stronger bonds.
How long must I stay here? He wondered. What is it that Hajime wants from me? Looking down, he noticed small drops of water appear from on the cold cement. C…cou… could those be my tears? He wondered.
"Good morning my fine little friend!! I see you've finally awakened. And how might you be this glorious morning?" a voice asked.
He's back… Giving no answer, he kept his glare to the floor, hoping his torture would end soon.
"No answer huh? Oh well! Time for your 'treatment'. Hope you don't pass out again…" The scientist said, chuckling. The distinctive sound of levers and switches being put to motion were heard and panels in the ceiling began to withdraw, massive steel framed arms coming down near the insect zoanthrope.
"Jusssst geet it ovverrrrr witthhh…" He muttered to himself, only looking up to see a small, thin metal shaft hovering over his left arm.
Sticking its length into his hardened skin, he felt it move around as if searching for something. He knew what it was; fresh veins. What does he need my blood for? It is nothing more than contaminated waste-
"Urrgghh!" he choked out, feeling another needle enter his right thigh, it searching too for fresh veins. When will….. Agghh…. this pain… Gyaghh…. stop? He wondered, his vision slowly becoming darkened by the pain that was being registered by his once human brain.
"No, no, no… we can't have you going to sleep on us, now can we?" the evil scientist squealed.
Slowly another needle extended with what appeared to be a fluid of yellowish color in its small tube. "Now just hold still, this will keep you nice and awake during our session!" Slowly the tube descended to the junction where it would disperse its contents into the unwilling subject.
Stun suppressed the urge to yell out in utter agony as the thick, gelatinous fluid was injected into his system. His body convulsed as the foreign fluid began its trek through his bloodstream. What is this?!?
"I'll beat your wondering what it is that I injected into you. Well… let's just say it's an anti-depressant of sorts. Hopefully it won't kill you by the time it finished travelling through your bloodstream." The scientist said. His words soon faded as his maniacal chuckling boomed through the loudspeaker.
He's insane!! Eegghyagh… Truly i-insane if h-he thinks… Aaargh.. he can manipu-.. urggh.. manipulate me!! Stun proclaimed inwardly, his thoughts becoming erratic from the intense pain.
"Gyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagggrrgghhhhhh!!!!"
The shadowed cyborg perked up his head from his crouched position in the medical lab. The lights around him gave his form a particularly eerie shadow, distorting his features in a grotesque way. Withdrawing his knees from his chest, he pushed against the wall and slowly raised himself to a standing posture.
What is that irritating noise? He wondered to himself. What is that imbecile Hajime up to now?
Moving in silence, as was he programmed to, he led himself towards the sound of the piteous cries, trying to determine where they emanated from. Proceeding down the dismal hallway, he noticed the pale walls reflecting his attitude; dull, gray, and bored with humans and their insignificant lives. They know nothing of the power I hold, the elegance and grace that I use so delicately. They try to control me, and they think they have succeeded…
As he continued walking, he noticed a pair of heavily bolted shut doors, their signs reading:
'Restricted Area' and 'Hazardous Material'. Of worn color, a large eight was painted above the doors, giving the clearance required.
"Hmm…. I have not seen this door before. I am curious as to what it contains." He said aloud. Taking a firm grip on the sides of one door, he began to infuse his arms with his mechanical strength, slowly stretching the hinges from the wall they clung to. With a loud creak, they finally gave way, giving him access to that which he desired.
Before him stood another ill-lit room, its contents composed of large tubes that encased what appeared to be human test subjects. Walking through the doorway, he noticed various rooms around him where scientists of different natures were going about their daily work routines. He saw some shielded behind other rooms as they tested on live subjects, others were clothed for work with dead or unconscious subjects, and still others were doing data analysis. Level 8 clearance for this? What makes this facility so different from all the others I have seen?
"Eeeeeyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrghhhhhhgaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"
That hideous howl of pain... Where is it emanating from? He pondered. Walking further on he noticed a rather small junction, its doors that of glass. Above it read: "Air filtration system. All personnel must be cleared of any foreign particles before entry". What foreign particles would I possess? He wondered.
As he approached the doorway, it automatically opened, to his surprise; seconds later he noticed the small motion sensors attached at its base. As he stepped inside, the doors shut, and as he tried to proceed, the doors ahead would not open, though he noted another pair of motion sensors. Are they broken? Why would Tylon install such faulty mechanisms for their personnel? He wondered, quite confused that it would not allow him through.
To his surprise he began to hear a small whirring sound which gradually turned into a loud sucking noise. Looking around in astonishment he saw large funnel-like projections protruding from the walls around and above him. As he soon as he began to question about what they were used for, the doors ahead of him opened and the sucking noise dissipated.
As he walked forward more, the door closed shut with minimal sound. Throughout the long hallway stretched before him he saw multiple cameras moving left-to-right, performing 'sweeps' to find intruders. What is this place? He asked himself curiously. And why am I drawn to it so?
Proceeding down the teal colored hallway he noticed that the horrifying screams had ceased. Perhaps the subject is unconscious, or dead… He then heard a noise, though low in pitch at first, it gradually grew into something which made his human cells shiver. An evil cackle boomed throughout the hallway, its bearer someone whom he loathed and detested for as long as his components could remember.
"Busuzima…" He hissed. "Who are you torturing now with your grotesque mind?"
* * *
Moving through the calm night, a small group of determined fighters closed the distance between themselves and the complex before them. The chill night air only hid the musk of fear emanating from each of them. Though strong willed and having no fear for the human soldiers, their fear laid somewhere deep within the complex which had affected each of them in a certain fashion.
"Are you sure about this Jack? I mean, we could do this fine without you, no offense…" Shina asked.
"No, it's alright Jane, err… Shina." He responded, noting the slightly irritated look she displayed when before he corrected himself. I have to remember that she prefers Shina when fighting…
"Alright… Hey Shenlong, your sure this is the place?" She asked, turning her gaze towards the shadowed tiger clone.
"Yes I'm sure. Why, don't you believe me? You know, I have grown out of messing with you bumbling idiots, or haven't you noticed?" He asked, a bit peeved that she would think of him as still immature.
Forcing a light smile, she merely stayed silent.
"There are twelve guards on-duty near the inner gates. They have six watchtowers all focused at different points, though they seem adequately armed. They shouldn't be the problem, as we all know. Obviously, what we don't know is what Hajime has in store for us…" The lion stated. He had been surveying the complex for some time now and had finally seemed satisfied enough to report to them. "Are there any objections to splitting up into teams?"
After a few moments silence, all said no. "Good then, we'll go in teams of two, obviously to cover more ground. Should any of us get into trouble, we'll meet at building 3-BGR. Now, as to pairs…"
Surveying the team he noted eight in total. Too bad Jenny couldn't make it, her flight could have helped greatly. After pondering for some time, he cleared his throat to get their attention. All looked up at him with their full attention, knowing that crossing him could lead to unpleasantness.
"We shall pair up as follows: Uriko, you're with Alice. You'll be moving towards the lab research building. Try to keep silent and move quickly, we don't want to draw any unwanted attention. Yugo, go with Shenlong. You two will be heading towards the factory complex. Try to get any information on what is being developed as you can. Shina, you're with Jack. Try to take out the towers if you can, then head towards the monitoring station to knock out the surveillance equipment. Long, you're with me. We'll be heading towards the weapons development complex to knock out any of their operations before they can be finished. Are there any objections?"
Through the small breeze that passed, silence affirmed their answer; all were ready.
"Good then, let's move out as fast as possible. Remember the rendezvous point; 3-BGR."
With that, they all headed in their separate paths, each heading into the complex to stop the demented scientist and the evil corporation he 'worked' for.
* * *
Upon morphing into her rabbit form, Alice swiftly launched Uriko over the wall using her powerful rabbit legs, soon thereafter launching herself.
Edging towards the building that Gado had instructed them to infiltrate, dodging the spotlights and guards patrolling, they finally made it towards the wall of their target.
"Is there any other way inside Uriko? See if you can spot another door."
"I'm not too sure. I think I remember Tylon using two other routes for getting in and out of their buildings, but that was so long ago…" She responded.
"Don't stress yourself trying to remember your horrid past. Try to concentrate on our mission." She said, placing a comforting hand on her 'sisters' shoulder when she noticed her shiver from rememberance.
"Thanks Alice…"
* * *
Moving towards the first watchtower, Shina slowly scaled the building until she had reached the door, noting the guard inside was desperately trying to stay awake.
Hmm… How should I dispose of him? She wondered, bringing forth her knowledge of dispatching opponents to mind. "How would you knock him out Jack?" She asked when he had reached her level.
"Huh? I don't know, I'm nowhere near as skilled as you are… But if I had to say, it'd probably knocking slightly above the base of his neck."
"Hmm…." She sat in silence for a few scarce moments, pondering if she wanted to try his idea. "Sure, let's see how he responds. While I'm doing that, see if you can knock out the spotlight."
Creeping inside and behind the unsuspecting guard, she delivered a quick and solid punch to the man's neck, causing him to utter a loud groan before he slumped forwards against the wall. Meanwhile, Jack had taken his elbow to the spotlight, thus knocking out one of the six towers.
"Alright, that's one down." She said with a smile. Her attitude suggested that she enjoyed battle immensely as opposed to casual life.
I guess the battlefield is all she's known… Jack wondered as they headed towards the next tower.
* * *
Moving inside the factory, after Jack and Shina had dispatched with the tower that was sweeping their target, Yugo and Shenlong moved silently and quickly into the factory.
"Seems to me that Tylon's going for more of a global effect, huh?" Shenlong noted, watching the assembly-line pump out what appeared to be chest plates. "Wonder what these are for?" He wondered, picking up one of the armor pieces and examining it.
"I don't know, but from what I'm seeing, it doesn't mean anything good. Let's go on, there's a split ahead, let's see where they go." He responded.
Placing the piece back on the assemly-line, the tiger joined his 'partner'. Hmm… though I don't like any of them much, at least he doesn't seem to despise me as much as that leopard or the two little kids…
"Should we split up, or go down one together?" The wolf asked.
"Hmm…" He thought about the idea for a moment until a peculiar smell caught his nose. Yugo picked up on it soon after. "What is that rancid smell?" He asked covering his nose with his shirt.
"Uggh.. I don't know, but let's not go down that way, it smells like its coming from there." He responded, gagging as they started moving down the left hallway.
* * *
Edging through the ventilation shafts, moving in silence, the young assassin followed the robotic counterpart of himself.
Busuzima thinks he can replace me? He must not know that I cannot be surpassed, the fool… Machines show Man's weaknesses. He thought.
Cautiously watching him as he passed down yet another hallway, his mole counterpart sensed a slight tinge of curiosity and fear emanating from this humanlike cyborg.
Could he posses those hormones and feelings? No, he is just a machine designed to copy me, he should not need those…
Though it was still of autumn season on the outside, Tylon preferred to keep their ventilation shafts at a colder temperature, perhaps to keep their subjects from awakening. Bakuryu struggled to keep his composure and not allow his prey to sense his presence, though it seemed to be a downhill battle.
I m-m-musssst c-concen-n-nttrate… He thought inwardly, shivering involuntarily. He studied his prey intently when the cyborg had stopped suddenly. Small puffs of smoke arose when he breathed, and he hoped that the cyborg had not stopped because he sensed his presence.
A high-pitched voice could be heard humming as it walked down the hallway, sounding as if the bearer wore sandals. Who would wear sandals in a dismal place such as this?
Looking down, he noticed the cyborg had placed itself behind the wall, waiting to stalk his prey, as Bakuryu was stalking his.
I shall wait for him to finish his job, for I have a strong sense that I know who comes near him. Then I will strike down upon my robotic 'equal' before he has the chance to react.
And so they both silently waited; one from above, and one from below…
* * *
"Ugggh… I thought we took the 'clean' hallway…" Shenlong stated, his shirt making his voice seem higher than usual.
"Hey, don't blame me, I thought so too… We all make mistakes you know." Yugo responded, a hint of laughter in his tone.
"Haha, very funny wolfy."
Yugo merely glared at his remark. "Let's keep going, I think I see a door ahead."
Closing the distance quickly, after having to knock out a few cameras, they found that the door was tightly secured. A heavy bolt barred access to the other side; they would have to remove it to get any farther. Trying both their strengths at lifting the heavy bar, to no avail, they both transformed into their beast forms. Trying again, with much straining, they accomplished removing the giant bolt. After resting for a while and reverting back to human form, they thought of how to gain access to the blocked passage.
"So… got any ideas?" Yugo asked.
"Well… if we wait another few minutes to get our breath back, we could try ramming the door." He replied. Standing up, he walked towards the door and tapped its metal surface, trying to determine the thickness. "It seems pretty thick to me. What do you think?"
"Well, if Gado were here he'd probably be able to knock it down one, two, three… but its just us, so I guess we'll have to try and ram it."
"Alright…" He answered with a sigh. This is gonna hurt in the morning…
* * *
Jack and Shina, however, weren't in such good shape. Although they had knocked out five of the six towers, the last had alerted troops for backup after the guard had noticed the rest weren't responding.
"Crap… got any ideas about this?" Jack asked after tossing a guard to the concrete.
After tossing a guard into a group of others who were determined at stopping them, she turned to him and responded: "Umm… not really, why?"
"Oh, just wondering that's all…" His tone had a tinge of fear in it, but he didn't dare show it in battle. Don't they ever stop coming? It's like Tylon has their own personal army!
Coming from all sides, new guards appeared bearing riot gear and tazor batons.
"Surrender now and you won't get harmed. If you continue we will be forced to harm you." One shouted, appearing to lead the group.
Looking at each other, the two zoanthropes merely laughed and transformed. The guards seemed shocked that they weren't regular humans like themselves, but they soon grasped hold of their composure and rushed in to attack them.
Rushing towards the group to her left, Shina, now in her leopard form, easily took care of five of the guards, swiping her claw and watching happily as they flew through the air.
Swooping into the air, Jack rushed down on his opponents, using the backdraft from his rush downward to knock the soldiers off balance. Lightly edging down onto the ground, he suggested for them to rush him, his veins pulsing with adrenaline.
However, he failed to notice the guards edging up behind him, jabbing their batons into his back. Rearing in pain, he let loose a horrific howl that reverberated off the concrete walls of the buildings around them, the glass shattering from the bass in his voice.
After connecting her knee to the face of a guard, causing a sickening crack as his neck snapped backwards, Shina looked towards Jack, watching as he bent down on one knee, trying to take the pain surging through his nerves.
Releasing a large howl of her own, Shina rushed towards him, determined to stop the men who were causing her ally so much pain. Leaping over Jack, she extended her claws and slashed upon the guards without mercy. They failed to realize her power and anger, only fueling her determination for stopping them. She pounced with the fury rarely seen about her, slashing without care upon the hapless victims before her.
When the other guards saw the leopard slashing with such fury and rage, they sunk back, running away in fear. Seeing this and taking it as a blessing, Jack feebly managed to stand, though on unsteady legs. Turning towards him, her eyes turned white, she extended her claws towards his neck, thinking of him as another enemy in her way.
Seeing this in astonishment, Jack merely stood still, hoping that soon she would come to her senses. She suddenly sniffed the air, sensing that a different scent than the enemy surrounded the one before her. Gradually her eyes returned to their original color, and her claws retracted, her body shaking slightly from shock.
Grabbing a-hold of her, Jack let her body lean on his, trying to prevent her from collapsing to the ground. They both merely stood in the silence, allowing themselves to regain their lost breath from the battle they had just gone through…
* * *
Standing in front of a large door, Gado and Long pondered about how to get past it. It seemed as though the thickness wouldn't be a problem, but they were unsure of who was on the other side. Earlier they had heard at least two people, whom they presumed to be guards, struggle against the door. Though they knew that the door would not be a problem with Gado on hand, they still didn't want to risk being unprepared should they attack.
"So what do you think we should do?" Gado asked of the tiger. Long was sitting on the floor, in what appeared to be a meditative trance, before he opened his eyes and answered the old lion.
"I know that we do not want to show ourselves as weak after we remove the door as an obstacle, but there seem to be no other paths for us to follow except the one we came from. So unless we backtrack, then I would say that we follow through with knocking down the door."
Placing his hand against his chin, Gado thought about his idea. He is right in backtracking being useless, so I would have to agree and risk being unprepared rather than not moving forward.
"All right then, let's get this over with. Make certain that you do not hesitate should there be guards on hand after that door goes down, though I know you know that already…" He stated.
With that, both transformed and began charging their energies before them. A large humming grew from it, and a cackling could be heard as the energy began reacting with the metal around them and the natural atmosphere. They moved as close to the machinery as they possibly could, both thinking of using it as cover rather than leaving themselves exposed to a possible attack. With a thunderous roar, they both aimed directly at the door, and focusing all their sight on the target, let loose with the massive force…
* * *
"Do you hear something?" Shenlong asked. Lifting himself from the ground, he started to walk towards the door. Placing his ear on it, he began to pick up a large booming sound emanating from the other side of the passage, though the thickness of the metal was distorting exactly what it was.
"What is it? Do you think there's someone there?" Yugo asked, moving closer to the door. I hope we don't have to deal with Tylon's guards, that's the last thing I want on my mind…
Hearing the clamor increase dramatically, they noticed a large amount of light seeping through the cracks of the door, getting brighter as time flew by. It almost appeared as if energy was being thrown…
"Oh shit!! Take cover!!" Yugo yelled.
Taking heed of his warning, Shenlong wasted no time and threw himself as far away from the door as possible, not wishing to become crushed by its massive weight. Yugo did the same, hiding in a convenient niche in the wall.
After much straining, the door flew off its hinges. It flew nearly eighty feet before it allowed gravity to take over and fall with a loud clang to the ground. Peeking their heads out only slightly, both the tiger and wolf strained their eyes to see through the mist to find who had released such a blast.
To both their surprises, Long and Gado rushed forward after noticing no one advancing towards them. Quickly Yugo yelled to Gado, telling him to stop his attack. The last thing he wanted to deal with was the insanely strong Gado pummeling him into the ground.
Slowing themselves down to a trot, the lion and tiger were just as surprised as Yugo and Shenlong to know that it had not been Tylon on the opposite side.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Yugo asked.
"I should be asking the same thing… Why haven't you continued on with your search?" Gado asked.
"Well… we came to that door," he started, pointing to the now indented piece of metal. "And removed that huge bar you see over there that was blocking us from getting farther. Believe me, that thing was pretty heavy… Then we were about to ram it when we heard a huge rumbling. Then you busted through, and now here we are."
"Hmm… Well, have you found anything else?"
"We found an assembly line manufacturing what looks to be massive cyborgs." Shenlong stated after dusting himself off.
"Why would Tylon be creating such machines? What usefulness would they provide?" Long asked aloud. I had thought that they were only dedicated to biologics research…
"I don't know, but is there another path we could take besides the one you two came down?" Gado asked.
"Yea, but it smelled rancid, and that's why we went down this one first." Shenlong answered, wrinkling his nose after remembering the horrid smell.
"Well, we'll have to deal with it if we're to continue. Now lets go!" He commanded.
Thus, the four zoanthropes headed back down the path, Yugo and Shenlong examining the dent made in the door, awed at the force Gado and Long had released, and proceeded to move to the crossroads Yugo had talked of.
* * *
"Hmm-hmm-hmm hmm-hmm!!" Busuzima hummed happily, skipping down the hallway. It seems Stun has more spunk in him that I thought. Oh well, more pain for him, more fun for me! Hehehe!! "I'd better check on Unit BK-02 before he gets antsy. I've gotta find a way to fix the emotions from his human cells, he can be a bit of a nuisance at times…"
As he moved down the hallway, coming closer to the intersection, he failed to note that Unit BK-02 was waiting for him, ready to strike when he least suspected. The cybernetic unit had also failed to note that the deadly assassin Bakuryu was also in wait, though for him, and lying inside the ventilation shaft directly above him.
Coming to the intersection and turning right, the chameleon failed to see the cyborg move from the shadows and grasp his shoulder, tossing his gangly form into the closest wall. He then proceeded to deliver lightning quick shots to his face, the first four knocking him unconscious and breaking his nose, and the latter twelve delivered out of pure rage. Bakuryu was quite impressed at how the unit was handling itself, though he saw his uncontrollable rage as a weakness.
Hmm… Interesting. Perhaps I won't just kill you yet. You shall be studied far more than I would have previously allowed, and with that I shall find every flaw in you and every detail alike between us…
With that, the young assassin withdrew from his position, taking note that the unit had stopped and was dragging Busuzima's limp, battered body inside a nearby closet.
* * *
"Where are we?" Uriko asked, looking around at the miscellaneous tubes and machinery surrounding them. The bright lights bore down on them with no mercy, causing them to squint against the brightly polished metal and tile-lined floor.
"I'm not sure… Looks like some sort of factory or something. I don't know, Yugo or the others would probably know more than I do." Alice responded.
"Uggh… Can we do something about those lights, they're really hurting my eyes!" She asked, shielding her eyes with her hand and pointing towards the source.
"Yea, hold on." Morphing into her rabbit form, Alice used her well-muscled legs to spring towards the ceiling and punch and elbow out some of the lights, thus making the room more bearable, while giving more insight to the rooms' nature. After landing gracefully on the floor, she reverted back to her human form and continued with Uriko as they surveyed the rest of the compound.
"Thanks Alice." Uriko said, turning and smiling at her sister.
It's nice to see her happy in such a glum and dark place like this, especially considering she was mutilated in a place like this. After involuntarily allowing a small shiver to flow through her back, Alice smiled back at her.
Walking down another fifty yards or so, they found an intersection and decided to make their way down the hallway instead of wasting their time with the rest of the huge warehouse. The teal painted walls were dull and uninviting, giving a sense of passivity and indifference. The whole complex seethed with a feeling of indifference, as if the employees and test subjects were there only to work, or be worked on, and nothing more. This disturbed the two as they noticed a chill air coming from above them.
"Oooooooo… it's so cold… Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!" Uriko exclaimed, huddling herself together as they continued, starting to shake from the temperature involuntarily.
Alice was having shivering from the cold too, but tried not to talk about it as much. "Maybe that's because of their tests or something. They do perform experiments on human subjects, and the cells and things they inject in I would imagine they wouldn't want to multiply with a higher temperature."
"How do you know so much about that, Alice?"
"It's like food and the bacteria that can grow on them. That's why the fridge has to be set so low, so the bacteria can't grow."
"Oooh, okay. Don't really understand it any better, but okay!"
They both chuckled a bit and made a right at the next junction, paying no particular attention to the signs above them. As they proceeded on, the lights became dimmer. After laughing a bit to ease off the tension spread before them, they noticed that they were in fact standing in front of the Biologics Research Laboratory.
"How'd we get here?" Uriko asked, feeling a bit confused.
"I'm not sure, but aren't we supposed to be here anyway?"
"I guess so… Let's go in and see what we can find, then get outta here. Already its giving me the creeps!"
"Yea, same here."
As they proceeded inwards, they noticed a large amount of tubes and shafts cluttering the otherwise large area. In one corner, a large curtain was pulled back on its track to reveal an empty gurney and a life support machine.
I guess that's for the 'surgeons'. Alice wondered, trying hard not to form the mental picture of what went on there.
Uriko had stopped before one of the tubes, which held what appeared to be a young woman. As Alice walked near her, she noticed the tubes leading up to the one Uriko was presently at were either empty, or contained subjects with physical defects.
Noticing Uriko's glazed eyes and quiet tone, though at other times would have been considered a blessing, Alice looked back at the woman encased in the pale fluid and tried to see what had captured her attention.
"Uriko," she began. "Is there something you see, something wrong?"
She didn't respond. Her mouth appeared to be moving, though barely noticeable, and hardly audible. Grabbing her by the shoulders, Alice lightly shook her, trying to break her out of the trance she seemed stuck in.
"Uriko, come on. This is no time for joking around."
She continued her shaking, making it seem as though she were having a seizure. After a few more minutes of shaking, the worried rabbit finally got a response out of her younger sibling.
"Out…." She whispered, Alice barely being able to pick it up despite her increased hearing.
Out? She thought, for the moment confused. "What out, Uriko?" She asked.
She only continued, moving her head to face Alice with a face void of expression. "Out…." She continued.
"Ooooooo…. SNAP OUT OF IT URIKO!!" She yelled, not caring if anyone had heard her or not. Not to her surprise, someone had heard her and was moving towards the sound of her voice with hurried steps. Turning away from the doorway after she noticed large shadows creeping towards her, she dragged Uriko's near limp body behind the tubes, hoping that their pursuers would leave after finding nothing.
A voice soon filled the room and echoed through the open space. "Alice?" it called.
I recognize that voice… did they start exploring and happened to find us? She wondered. "Yugo?" she called out, hoping that her suspicions were right.
"Yea, where are you?"
Moving very carefully out from her hiding space, Alice's fear became doused when she saw that guards were not accompanying them, forcing Yugo to disclose her location.
"I'm so glad to have found you!" She cried.
"Hehe, me too. We couldn't find anything, so we decided to start exploring the rest of the complex. Where's Uriko?" He asked, looking around, trying to find the wily feline.
"She's over there," she said, jerking her thumb at the large tube she had just come out from behind. "She's acting really strangely though, not like herself. She's muttering something about letting something out, but I don't know what." She explained, looking down at the floor in frustration.
Suddenly a large chunk of a wall on the other side of the complex flew inwards, and a large amount of yelling, screaming, and growling followed soon after. All turning their heads towards the commotion, they all soon learned that Shina and Jack were struggling to take out a rather large number of guards that had somehow acquired a rocket launcher; Gado noted that the guard that had used the launcher was knocked unconscious.
Rushing forward to assist their fellow allies, Alice staying behind with Uriko, Gado, Yugo, Long, and Shenlong all transformed and aided Jack and Shina in their fight.
Slamming her current guard to the ground and clawing his face, Shina looked up suddenly when she heard the familiar howl from Yugo, now in his wolf form.
They've finally come to help us… Took 'em long enough! She thought as she tossed the guard into the wall.
Becoming driven back by a large number of guards, Jack found himself cornered near some large test tubes. Not letting his fear get in the way of his fighting, Jack rushed forward, slashing the chest of one guard with his claws, and knocking two down with his tail. He tried to swoop upwards, but found it difficult with the metal rafters and support beams in his way. Grabbing a guard by the face, he rammed him into a large tube, breaking the glass and allowing the fluid to pour over his arm and the guard's face. While he was doing that, a group of five guards had managed to lift up a large chunk of concrete and heaved it at the dragon, trying to knock him out.
After dropping the limp body to the floor, Rouche turned towards the guards quick enough to see the large gray slab flying in his direction. His reaction time wasn't quick enough and he was knocked back into a tube. After clearing the slab off him, he noticed a weight on his back. Assuming one of the guards had been thrown in his direction and happened to land on him, he tilted to one side and allowed it to slide off. He became shocked to realize that it was not a guard at all, but rather a young woman. By her looks, she appeared to be in her mid-twenties. He also noted that she was covered in a thick fluid and had a respirator hooked on her mouth.
She was inside one of those tubes? How could they do such a thing?!? His mind reeled at the horrible thoughts of her being experimented on. His senses became blotted and blurred, everything around him seeming to disappear as he stared at the young face before him.
How could they… How could they perform such, such vile acts on another human being?? A woman at that! There truly are perverse and twisted minds at work here… And I won't stand for another to get hurt!!! No more!! He raged inwardly.
"NOOOOOOOOOO MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORREEEE!!!!!!!" he boomed at the top of his lungs, not caring about the battle brewing around him. A large hue of gold encircled his form and his eyes turned crimson red. His blood boiled and adrenaline fueled his body's needs. Energy began to cackle around him, and the guards that had planned on shocking him with their tazors shrank back, only to find a large lion behind them who was more than willing to fight.
His voice becoming distorted, his rage building ever higher, Jack lost his senses, lost his mind to the emotions coursing through his body. The gold aura began to brighten slowly, until its light shone like that of the sun. Everyone around him stopped fighting, stopped their attacks and watched as the dragon zoanthrope howled with rage and pain.
Blinded by the light that streamed outwards, the others around him were unaware of the mental pain and anguish that was running through his mind, and were also unaware of the physical changes taking place. His whole body shifted and reformed, changing his pale green scales to a dark black. His snout elongated, adding another six inches to its length; with this elongation, extra teeth took root and gave his muzzle the look of an evil grin. He willingly surrendered to the psychosis and insanity, allowing his bestial urges to surface and take hold while they could. His whole body bulged with newfound power, adding muscle and mass to his entire structure. His tail grew short spikes, and along his spine, increasing in size from his tailbone to his neck, arose another series of spikes, their grayish membrane glistening in the light.
"What's happening to him?" Shina said aloud, awestruck by the magnificent power before her. Unaware that Gado had edged close to her, she found comfort in his touch as he placed his great hand on her shoulder.
When it seemed that the light could not get any brighter, the aura around the beast cackled and boomed, its radiance flowing outward towards them all as it exploded. Steel beams above the new zoanthrope creaked and fell, the shock wave knocking them away from him and onto the empty tubes below. The guards had been knocked unconscious by the blast, but luckily, still in their bestial forms, the zoanthropes had managed to stay on their feet. They all stood awestruck at the sight before them, the flash from the light starting to fade from their eyes.
Not wasting time to examine what had happened, the reformed zoanthrope kicked the few guards in his way into the air. He hastily picked up the woman on the ground near him and tossed her on his shoulder, hoping that she would survive. He looked up with fierceness and the other zoanthropes silently obeyed his command. They all headed out through the large hole in the warehouse and tore through the fence, stealing themselves into the night. When they had all reached a suitable distance from the damaged complex, the barely visible dragon walked slowly towards Alice and Yugo, who were watching Uriko with worry.
"Free…." Was the only word that they could hear from her small mouth, her expression still blank.
"She will be alright," Jack started, his voice sounding lower in pitch. "When you return home, leave her to sleep, she'll awake in the morning good as ever." Allowing the weight to fall from his shoulder, Jack handed the woman to Yugo and began talking once more. "Take her to the hospital and see that she gets the best of care. I don't want another innocent life to die at the hands of Tylon." His crimson eyes shone in the moonlight and both Alice and Yugo knew not to take him lightly.
"So what do we do now, then?" Shenlong asked.
"I'm not sure Shenlong," Yugo answered after a few moments. His eyes followed the new beast as it wandered down the hill and into the city. "Wait, I suppose." His thoughts reflected back to his words just a scant few moments before:
'…I don't want another innocent life to die at the hands of Tylon.'
He truly has been through a lot these past few weeks, Gado thought inwardly, also watching the new creature disappear from sight. I just hope that the battle strain hasn't made him lose grip on what's real, and what's not…
* * *
Two weeks later…
Watching with a face of concern at the nameless patient before him. The day after that horrific night at the Tylon complex, Alice had put the young woman in the hospital under her care and that of a trusted doctor. Luckily the heat from the aura that had exploded from Jack had kept her body temperature high enough to survive the night.
She was on a respirator much like the one Jack had seen her wearing at the warehouse, though they had cleaned her of the thick fluid that she had been floating in inside her glass chamber. Her shoulder length brown hair shone in the mid-day sun. Except for a few bruises marring her features, her face held such beauty. His eyes remained at her face for hours at a time; his mind trying to will hers awake.
Please wake up… His thought sorrowfully. Please…
As hours stretched into days, Jack continued to sit patiently for the young woman to awaken, only leaving to eat or relieve himself. Every so often the others would join him to see if her condition was improving, and unknown to Jack, see if he was doing all right also. Alice would pass by on her rounds and stop in to find Jack either staring out the window or asleep on a few outstretched chairs. Watching him intently, and hoping that he was feeling okay, Alice noticed that he rarely blinked, yet his eyes remained as bright and resilient as they had the first day she had met him.
I know your hoping that she'll recover quickly Jack, and for both your sakes I hope she does too… She thought silently, bowing her head and resuming her rounds.
As Alice continued her rounds, Jack continued staring out the window into the night sky. Somehow he felt at peace with himself and the world for the moment, patiently awaiting the awakening of the woman he had saved from the tyrannous grasp of Tylon. He merely hoped that in the next few days she would awaken and could begin to tell her story and let them all know of Tylon's true intentions, though that was not why he took particular interest in her. Somehow he felt deeply connected to her, as if something had taken grasp of his heart and soul and commanded him to take her out of that hellish nightmare.
Perhaps Fate made us cross paths… Who knows? I just hope that you will be able to live a better life with us by your side than in that horrible and demeaning hellhole.
Thus, staring at the stars, he waited…
* * *
Moving through the rubble, Stun found himself free from the twisted mind of Busuzima. He had awoken to a thunderous clamor. He had also noticed that his restraining collar was lying on the floor near him, its transistor smashed. He had managed to escape the compound, though injured from the experiments, with no trouble at all, to his surprise. He noted that a large battle had taken place and wondered what else he had missed.
As he walked into the night he inwardly thanked whoever had provided help with his escape, yet also wondered who had destroyed the compound. He would needs a few weeks to recover from his injuries, but he was sure to find the others and see if they had been the ones who had destroyed the compound.
But for now… He thought drearily. I must sleep…
AN:
Neo: Sorry for the long delay. I've finally finished this and I'm extremely proud of myself and how it's turned out. And just incase any of you are wondering as to the length of this chapter, its exactly 7258 words. Surprisingly enough it all flowed quite nicely after I got past a little difficulty in the beginning. Thanks goes out to the following:
Tiger5913: After reading SP, I got a better understanding of how Bakuryu truly works, so thank you for the bit of inspiration and helping me on my way to continuing with writing this chapter!! Also, I hope you're feeling better!!
AKA: Thanks a lot for the fun talks and stuff. I really enjoyed it all and it helped me get into a better, happier mood to writing this chapter, and for helping me somehow overcome the problem at the beginning, though it probably wouldn't make sense how you helped out… (I'm not quite sure myself, but I know you had a part in it!!) Also, you get well too, we want you healthy and well to continue with SC!
Raptor Red: Although you haven't really read this fic yet, you have helped a lot in writing this chapter. Our hilarious little RP lifted my spirits these last few days and helped me get some ideas while also letting my mind go at ease to allow the free-flowing writing that happened. Big thanks to you!! *Hands Oreos*
Neo: Hope you all like this chapter! I know I loved writing it. Till chapter 17, R&R and have fun!!