Jack looked down on me with a hungry gaze. For the first time, I noticed he had a blue and a green eye. It gave his face a frightening and wild appearance, like he would shift into a beastly rage at any moment. The way he looked down at me, he seemed so full of himself, so sure that everything was under his control. He was so arrogant and self-centred that I wasn't even sure he thought the people around him were worth his time, but the way he stared at me for those few seconds, I knew, that he would always be interested in me. I had survived what no other person should have, and he wanted to see how far I could go. He was the one that took pleasure in my destruction.
I was so shocked by his sudden appearance that I could only lie there and stare. It turned out it was the right move.
"Ah, sir, we didn't know you were coming. Are yo-you sure you want to watch? It can become quite… horrific." The doctor spoke hesitantly, as if a single mistake in wording would mean his untimely end. I watched a change come over Jacks face. He hid it quickly, but I saw the rage that was contained under the pale mask. As Jack turned towards the doctor, the rest of the staff shrank back from his gaze. Except for the occasional shiver, the room could have been mistaken for a museum.
"If you don't mind me asking, Doctor Stevens, at what point did people begin to question my actions? I mean, come on, that would be suicide, and I know that you have everything a man could want. A beautiful wife, two lovely children and a comfy, well-paying job, it would be a waste for you to give up on it all now. So, please, let's stick to our respective pay grades, shall we? Of course, if you want to become part of young Fletchers experiments in a more personal way, that could easily be arranged. Do I make myself clear?" Jack's face wore a horrible mutation of a smile, and I knew that the doctor might not see one of his kids again, no matter what else happened here.
"O-of course sir. My apologies."
"That's better. Now, why are we all standing around like stunned skags? Get to work!"
I had hated Jack before, but after that, the thought of him really made me seethe with anger. How could he treat another human being so lowly? He has nothing against the man; it was just a simple question, and a decent one at that. As his gaze turned toward me and he saw the disgust that I let show freely on my face, he smiled. "Oh, come now, I'm not all that bad. If this particular experiment goes right, we'll be spending much more time together. Trust me. You'll learn to enjoy it, if you survive. But hey, you've made it this far! I have complete faith in you. Well, as much faith as you can put into someone who has nothing but what you give them. So really, you should be full of hope. Get it? Because I… ah never mind. Sometimes I overestimate you people."
He stepped back and motioned Doctor Stevens to carry on. I couldn't concentrate on anything anymore except the vials he was loading into the syringes. They glowed more ominously than any before, and the chemicals inside whirled and shifted, making it hard to see any one colour clearly. Blended together, the vials looked like they were filed with a mixture of crimson red paint, and the blackest ink. I knew that the red was the combination of the liquefied Eridium and strength enhancers, but the black was new, I looked at it with more apprehension than any serum I had seen. And I had seen more than my fair share, as you know.
Jack had noticed the look on my face and chuckled lightly. "Oh, don't worry Fletcher! That vial is just an upgraded version of the other serums. Combined, I'm sure they will provide quite… fascinating results." I glanced at him, and he smiled and gave me a thumbs up. Seriously? A thumbs up? What weird ass planet did this guy come from?
Stevens approached me now, one of the syringes in his gloved hand. On the other side, his assistant doctor also approached with a similar looking vial, but instead he injected it into a small tube in the side of the table. Stevens looked down on me with what looked like pity.
"That serum that Doctor Jones has just placed in that tube will be injected straight into your spine, Fletcher. To prevent any unnecessary damage to you or the equipment, we will need to secure you completely. If you would lie still and flat, please." He sounded so sad, but I didn't let any pity show. He needed to know that even though he was probably about to go through one of the worst experiences of his life, I had been living in worse for a long time now. So I set my features in stone and tried to get as comfortable as I could.
As the doctors pulled the straps tight, I grew even more apprehensive. What could they expect to happen that would require such safety measures? I had been through incredibly painful things before, and they had never gone this far. Jones stepped back, satisfied with the straps, and the rest of the team turned to the monitors, ready to begin.
"Vitals steady and brain activity normal sir. The patient is ready." The nurse on the left spoke quietly, and nodded to Stevens.
"Alright Fletcher, you've been through horrible things before and you've always come out strong. Please, don't give in now." He sighed, and looked up at the nurse, "I'm beginning stage one. All eyes on monitors people, we can't have a single mistake."
Just as Stevens was about to beginning the first injection, Jack stood up, a look of annoyance on his face. Jack seemed to be talking into his ECHO, and he wasn't happy with the news he was receiving, "Damn it! Alright, I'm going, I'm going," Jack turned suddenly, "Stevens, I have other business to worry about, apparently. Don't stuff up, or it will be all your heads." With a final glare at everyone he stormed out of the room and the door closed quietly behind him. The others looked at each other, seemingly glad that he had left, but it showed there was more to worry about out there than just Jack.
"Everyone, focus," Doctor Stevens turned back to me, the syringe at the ready, "Beginning stage one. Ready on the controls Jones." He leant over and slowly pushed the needle into my left arm, found a vein, and injected the serum slowly. As the fluid began to flow in my bloodstream, an inconceivable burning sensation travelled along with it. I groaned in pain, and felt my body tense up. This was bad, but I had experienced worse. I would not pass out from this, but I knew it would be close.
Then, through the red haze around my vision, I saw Stevens nod to Jones. "Begin stage two on my count. Five, four, three, two, one, begin." A split second later, I felt a second needle push up into my back. It kept going until I thought it might just pierce my heart. Again, I felt the contents being unloaded into my system, but this pain did not travel like the other. They had been aiming for my spinal cord, and they found it. The pain pulsed out in waves along my body. I felt as if someone had filled my bones with fire, but I did not pass out. I groaned loudly, and my whole body arched, stretching against the straps.
"Jennie! Begin stage three. NOW!" Stevens was handed another syringe, it might have been filled entirely with Eridium but I can barely remember; the pain was so overwhelming. Stevens did not hesitate and pushed the needle straight into my left leg, ejecting the contents into me as fast as he could. The pain was now all consuming. I kept chanting in my head. I am Fletcher, I am sixteen. I am Fletcher, I am sixteen.
As the pain increased with each beat of my heart, I began to feel some sort of energy rush through me. It was as if a gate had been opened and a flood had been let loose. I hoped it would ease the pain, but instead it brought it to a climax. I screamed, my voice breaking, as the energy and pain pulsed once more all along my left side. I felt the energy leave me in a massive wave, breaking the bonds and destroying the equipment throughout the room.
The last I remember, before passing out, was seeing my left arm glowing brightly before cooling into mysterious blue marks. My gaze shifted and I saw Doctor Stevens' lifeless body against the wall. Then the darkness rushed in around me, and I fell willingly into blissful unconsciousness.