Chapter 3

I woke up late the next morning. Buffy was in the kitchen preparing lunch when I walked in.

"Morning Sleeping Beauty. Rough night?" she teased.

I glared at her, saying nothing to entice her. I went in to the living room to watch the news. April was reporting on the robbery that occurred last night, which included the theft of the red fox I had seen in the truck. My conscience was screaming at me to tell her what I knew, but I wanted to know exactly what the professor was doing with that ooze and why he was creating monsters with it. I went back to the kitchen and got a plate of mac and cheese. I sat at the counter picking at my food, not really sure if I was hungry right then. Finally I pushed the plate away and went to the bedroom to change. I was craving an authentic New York hot dog so I took a cab to Central Park and found a hot dog vendor. I honestly have to say, New York hot dogs kick ass. I spent most of the day wandering around the city sightseeing. This place was so much different than Sunnydale. My attention turned to a man leaving a computer shop with boxes of merchandise. I recognized him as the professor's assistant. I hurried after him as he got into a moving van and drove away. I jumped onto the back and lifted the door far enough for me to slip inside. There were boxes of various electronic equipment, no doubt for Manx's cybernetic experiments. I quickly jumped out when the truck came to a stop at the laboratory. The assistant carried the boxes inside and I slipped in through an upstairs window. I nearly had a heart attack when I saw what the professor had been doing since last night. There were more mutated animals roaming about the room. A warthog, rhino, and crocodile. The shark was even walking around like a human with a long powerful finned tail dragging behind him.

"My God... It's an army," I muttered.

The animals were dressed in clothing just like a human. The rhino wore camo pants and a black tank top with combat boots. The warthog had on jeans with holes in the knees and a sleeveless shirt and black biker boots. The crocodile was wearing an unbuttoned flannel shirt with khaki pants and boots. The shark wore nothing. Manx came out of a room wearing his white lab coat. He carried a clipboard with him as he approached each animal one by one. He went up to the rhino first.

"You will be called Rocksteady," he said and handed him a set of military dog tags. He walked up to the warthog. "Bebop." He handed him his tags before going to the crocodile. "Leatherhead." He last approached the shark. "Armaggon."

"Excellent Manx!" the professor exclaimed happily. "There is one more mutant being prepped. He should be done shortly."

There was a growl from a containment room and the door flew off the hinges. Out walked a giant turtle with large sharp claws and teeth and spikes protruding from the back of his shell.

Manx smiled. "Ah yes of course, Slash." He walked over and handed him his ID tags. "Does this conclude the research Professor?"

"No. There is one final experiment I wish to conduct. However, I will need a human volunteer."

I moved slightly and must have disturbed something. Manx's ears perked up and he sniffed the air. "We are not alone. Rocksteady! Bebop! Take the east corridor. Leatherhead and Slash you take the west. Bring the intruder to me unharmed."

The four of them spread out to search. I quickly made my way down the hall, headed back to the window I came through when I was ambushed by the rhino and warthog. The rhino took a swing and missed. I countered with a kick to his chest, which was like trying to kick down a brick wall. The warthog then took a swing at me. I ducked and he hit the rhino in the snout. The two of them began to fight amongst themselves, which was my cue to leave. I ran down the hall, and just as I turned the corner I felt something hit me in the chest like a Mack truck. I flew back and slammed into the wall, stunned. The crocodile and turtle approached me. I was too dazed to fight back as they grabbed me and dragged me back to the lab. I was thrown onto a steel table and strapped down. The professor came over and looked down at me.

"I'm not sure about this. I was hoping for a voluntary subject."

"She may have seen too much as it is," Manx said. "Besides, anyone you approach would think you were mad. She already knows what we are doing is a scientific possibility."

"It just feels wrong to force this upon her Manx."

"If we don't do this then she'll run to the authorities. We'll be destroyed or experimented on, and you'll be locked away in prison or an asylum. There is no other alternative. We make her one of us, and she'll have nowhere to go."

The professor considered this and gave the green light for them to continue. "Bring me the animal." Manx left and returned with the red fox in his arms. The professor plucked a few hairs from the fox and placed them on my body. He then got a container of the ooze and opened it. "Forgive me. I never had any intention of this happening to you. I can only hope you won't feel any pain." He poured the liquid over me and stepped back.

Almost instantly I felt a tingle run through my body, followed by a burning sensation. I cried out and struggled against the restraints that were holding me. I broke free and made for the nearest exit, which was a window. As I leaped through the glass I heard Manx shouting to his comrades.

"Let her go. She'll be back."

I landed on the pavement and ran to find a water hose. I had to get this stuff off of me before it did any major damage. It may have had an entirely different effect on a human versus an animal. I found an outside faucet and washed the ooze off as best I could. I was still having reactions to the chemical when I had gotten back to April's. I hurried into the bathroom and showered. I scrubbed, hoping to rid my skin of the slimy feeling it had. I changed into some clean clothes, tossing the dirty ones into a corner and went to bed, feeling completely drained of energy.