Yay! Another chapter up so fast! Hope you enjoy, it's about to get intense.
Kaoru's vision was blurry and his body wouldn't cooperate, but he was still aware of everything. His eyes were staring blankly into the bright light overhead. He begged his eyes to move away, the light hurt, but they refused to comply. So he was left to suffer mutely, listening to something shuffling somewhere nearby and a metal clinking and lowered voices.
Kaoru was unsure to how he got into this mess. He strained his memory. Let's see, what was the last thing he was doing? Hmmm… oh! He was laying on the subway tracks. He remembered the blood and the pain, the blistering pain. His stitches had throbbed until he couldn't take it anymore. Maybe that's when he passed out… he didn't know for sure.
All he knew is that his body was now blissfully numb, free of the heated pain. Kaoru blinked groggily, and suddenly he could hear the voices a bit clearer. "So just one injection?" a woman's voice questioned.
"Yes," a man replied. "If he's immune… then he won't die. If he only reacts badly to the disease, he will be much like our other subjects. If nothing happens at all… Well, then we finally will have a blood sample to test against subject number one."
Kaoru was startled. What about an injection? Were they, whoever 'they' are, going to give him the Red Plague? A low whimper escaped Kaoru's lips.
Suddenly a soft, womanly face appeared in front of the blinding light. "No, honey, it's okay," she soothed. Her face was drawn into a concerned frown and she brushed her blonde wavy locks behind her ears. She placed a light hand on his shoulder. Kaoru could barely feel it.
"Stop ogling the subject and move aside. I want to start this immediately," the man muttered, pushing her away. With a loud clink of metal, the man appeared in his view with a long, thick needle in his right hand. "Hello," he greeted with a hideous smile. "I am your doctor. You've already met the nurse." His smiled widened as he leaned closer with the needle. "Don't worry, this won't hurt too much."
No, no, no! Suddenly Kaoru was moving, thrashing side to side, and squeezing his eyes gruffly shut. He groaned just as the needle pierced his skin, sending a jolt down his spine. And suddenly the warm liquid was spreading through his veins.
The pain was unbearable, the virus stung his arteries. His body heated instantly. "His temperature is spiking," the nurse stated over Kaoru's loud grunts. Kaoru's chest pounded. "Heart rate increasing," she called, panicking. "He's reacting badly!"
Kaoru's brain felt like it was going to explode. He cried out as his whole body convulsed, staining against his bindings. "No," the doctor replied with interest, "this is like nothing we've seen before."
Kaoru began coughing roughly from deep in his chest. It hurt so, so bad. Tears streamed from his eyes. Oh, someone make it stop! He whipped from side to side. Oh god, oh god. He was going to die.
"His heart rate and temperature are far above maximum!" the nurse cried.
The pain intensified. There was a ringing in Kaoru's ears. He was blinded by white light beneath his eyelids. And suddenly, it ceased.
Kaoru was floating in pitch black space. The world was empty but it was wonderfully free and painless. He welcomed the darkness… but suddenly it was fading, being sucked back into his body. Kaoru shied away from the stinging of limbs, but he couldn't fight it.
He was sucked back in with full force. The pain wasn't as strong as before, but he was still left twitching in his restraints.
"Dear God," the nurse whispered pitifully from somewhere in the room. Kaoru couldn't pinpoint her location; he was still focusing on the faltering pain.
"Amazing," the doctor exclaimed. But Kaoru didn't understand what was so amazing. He had almost died… "Amazing," the doctor repeated. "Quickly, grab the syringe. I need a blood sample." There was quick movement and Kaoru gasped when cold metal pierced his skin a second time. Only this time, it was to take away from his body.
Kaoru pried his eyes open just in time to see the blood filled tube being pulled away from his arm while the doctor held it up in awe. "This is so much more than I expected," the doctor gushed breathlessly. "I never even imagined this sort of thing even existed." The doctor shoved the vial at the woman who stood at his shoulder. "Take this down to the lab immediately to have it tested." The woman took it and hurried away wordlessly.
The doctor turned on Kaoru, smiling wildly. But Kaoru couldn't concentrate on him because he was drenched in sweat with the taste of blood ripe in his mouth. Something damp trickled from his ears as he blinked lethargically. His heart was still beating rapidly.
Kaoru flinched when the doctor's hand suddenly came down to wipe his sticky bangs from his forehead. He turned his head away from the lingering hand. "Amazing," the doctor whispered for a third time. Kaoru ground his teeth at the word. The hand trailed down Kaoru's jaw bone and rested at the base of his ear.
And slowly, the doctor removed his gloved hand. Kaoru gasped in shock at the sight of the doctor's fingertips. They were bloodied; However, the blood on his hand looked… almost watered down. If Kaoru's hands weren't restrained, he would have checked his ears himself for the mysterious blood. Instead he had to settle for the odd sensation of trickling blood in his ears. They felt full and plugged.
The doctor's dark gaze switched back onto Kaoru's face. "You are one special boy, you know that?"
Kaoru stared, not comprehending. So the doctor turned quickly and came back with a fresh needle full of a clear liquid. "This I hold in my hand," he explained, tapping the vial with his pointer finger, "is a needle full of the Red Plague. And we just injected you full of it…" The doctor trailed off as if he expected something but Kaoru only blinked slowly.
"This is enough to kill the average man while you," he gestured to the blood on his fingers, "you dispelled the disease completely from your body through your ears. Your body completely rejected it." A sly smile curled across his lips. "I have a lot planned for you, boy."