A/N Kay here's the next chapter and I hope you enjoy thanks for all of the awesome reviews and special thanks to kiki1607, this chapters for you.
Chapter 19
The cage was getting cramped. It had been a few years since the baby was put in my cage with me, and I was around six or seven now, I couldn't be certain as I forgot to buy a calendar at the Lab's gift shop. And whilst I was shopping I would buy a muzzle for the kid who shared my now severely cramped cage.
It was late at night and the lights had been shut off. The baby had grown to a toddler and was now adapt at speaking non-stop, I was thankful though that she was a heavy sleeper, that meant my peace and quiet lasted a little longer. Her skin was still a dark chocolaty colour and now she had short springy curls, darker than her skin, framing her face as she slept. Iggy, still chuffed at his name after so many years, was asleep. I was worried about him, the experiments where getting slightly worse, not as bad as the Arena's experiments but worse than I'd seen so far. The scientists had put chemicals in me, getting a variety of reactions from paralysis to high fevers and a rampaging heartbeat and shaking. It made my skin turn pale then a feverish red, the tattoo I was given looked like it had gotten infected and when the scientists scraped the scabs off, the ink seemed to just evaporate into my skin or something. Fang was being used in a few chases, he kept being thrown into cages and mazes with vicious creatures and had to fight to stay alive, to protect himself. That was an idea they must've gotten from the Arena. But Iggy I was worried about. The scientists seemed fascinated by his eyes, they kept putting eye drops and probing it, I wasn't sure what they were planning to eventually do, but I could bet it wasn't going to be good for Iggy. Perhaps they had found out he could see better from a distance and in the dark than us, where they going to try and change that? It must've been because we were older now, the baby only had minor tests. A few blood tests and some running simulations. She could run quite well actually for a toddler.
I leaned against the side of my cage as another shake rocked my body. I bit my lip to keep myself quiet, everyone was asleep and I didn't want to wake them up. My skin prickled and I felt heat rush through me, burning me like a flame. I broke out in a sweat and my breath became panted. I felt my mind straining, like someone was poking at sections of my brain with a scalpel. Just breath Max, breath and let it all pass. I told myself. I wouldn't think of who told me those words first, when I was little and so broken.
I clenched my fists and banged my head against the bar lightly trying to distract myself. The heat lessened but the pain in my head increased, causing me to hiss out in pain.
"You all right?" A quiet voice asked.
I turned my head slightly and I could just about make out the outline of Fang in the darkness, he nearly blended in with the night.
"I'm fine, it's just a side effect or something from whatever the hell they injected me with. Sorry if I woke you."
Fang and I had become something close to companions, friends in a way. In the middle of nights like this and I was in pain he always seemed to wake up and would talk to me until it faded away enough for me to sleep, or I did the same thing for him when he'd had a bad day and was covered in scratches and bruises. "How's Iggy feeling today?"
"He's okay I guess, they put more drops in his eyes and they went blood shot and streamed tears for hours, apart from them itching he says he's okay." Fang murmured as he leaned back stretching his legs out and avoiding Iggy's slumped form. I relaxed as we talked about little things, the stupid scientists and the Erasers, The baby's new hobby, talking, silly plans of stirring up some trouble for the white-coats.
Slowly I drifted into a half sleep, I felt Fang reach through the bars to slide my head down so I wasn't sleeping at an awkward angle.
I woke up to the feeling of someone jabbing me in the side. It was how I woke up most mornings now."Max? Max? Max? Max? Max. Max -"
"What?" I mumbled to shuch up the rambling toddler.
"Iggy says he has the coolest name ever, I want a cool name, what's my name? How do I get one? I want one. Give me a name. Better than Iggy's yeah? So much better than his name. Yeah? Yeah? Yeah? Max are you asleep again?" She started poking me again and I rolled on to my side facing the cage bars. "Pick your own name, we all do. I don't care what you call yourself just don't nudge me any more you little nudger." I growled rubbing my eyes so I could wake up. I probably only had a few hours sleep.
"Ha you're never getting a good name like mine, you cant even think of one right now." Iggy childishly poked his tongue out at her snickering.
"Yes I have! Max already said it, I'm….I'm uummm, I'm a nudger, I'm a nudge. My name is Nudge, and that's better thank Icky Iggy. Cause I'll nudge you if you keep picking on me." She pouted and glared at him. Thank God she didn't speak to the Erasers like that, they'd have turned he into a chew toy.
"You're a Nudge?" Iggy asked a bit confused.
"I am Nudge. It's my name, not a, I am." She turned and ignored him, acting all snooty as she rambled on about 'stupid Iggy' and what he thinks.
"At least we have something else to call you by instead of 'the baby' now." I murmured as I hunched in the cage moving around the small space I could.
My skin started tingling again and I hunched up trying to curl in on myself as it felt that pain was shooting through my skin and bone like a hot brand. Talk about ow.
"Max, what's wrong?" Nudge asked as she tried prying my hands from my head.
It hurt to just have her touch me, my skin was so sensitive even breathing seemed to strain my chest and make my lungs burn with pain.
"Nudge don't touch it her, it doesn't help. Just let Max get through it on her own and talk to her quietly, there's not much we can do to help?"
Nudge crouched by my head and whispered nonsense to me, just talking about anything and everything, which I was glad she had a skill for because it did help to distract me some. I wasn't sure how long it lasted but it ebbed away again so I could lower my arms and stare blankly out of the cage and at the wall. I heard a door open and footsteps, the lights flickered on blinding me for a moment, make the pain increase for a moment. I didn't want to move, because I felt if I did, the pain would shatter me into a million pieces. My mind was burning and I was trying to block it out, the pain, the sorrow, the remembered voice promising.
"Now lets give these experiments some breakfast. They can have whatever the hell this gunk is." One of the scientists laughed as he opened the cage doors to put bowls of grey porridge on the floor for us. He slammed the gates closed and hesitated when he saw me.
"What's wrong this one? She's not moving." His voice was more curious than anything, he didn't care at all. I'd probably be more worried if one of the DID care.
One of the other scientists grabbed a clipboard that was hanging on the wall by our cage and flipped through the notes. "It says here that if she shows any negative symptoms to take her to Lab C to get some blood samples and run a few scans. Haul her out and lets go, who knows what type of progress this experiment is making. Did you hear what she did down in the Black Burn Labs? She nearly ruined everything. Come on lets go." This scientist knew a bit about me and was obviously interested in the rumours. I flinched as a hand reached in and grabbed my hand. Again the pain increased, and my skull felt like it was fracturing as they pulled me out. My limbs stiffened and a high pitched whine came from my throat as I suppressed my urge to scream.
"Hey, don't take Max! Give her back!" I turned to see one of the scientists throw Nudge back and slam the door in her face. I tried to reach to her and say something but I couldn't, I was trying so hard not to scream. I closed my eyes and tried to wrap myself in a shell. To block out everything.
It was all black and I ignored the feeling of being touched, the pain, the stab of needles drawing blood, the cold metal of a table as the hum of a scanner passed over me. I focused on that silent part in me, where everything was dark and shadowed, but safe, where I could see dark blue navy eyes, and light grey ones smiling at me. A soft feminine voice humming a tune and a deep rumble that was a gentle chuckle. Home…
"Is she waking up yet? Somebody wake her up I need to know what to do with this. And you guys aren't helping me any!" Iggy….. He was complaining about something.
The floor was cold, I must've been back in my cage. I rolled over so I could push myself up. My wings stretched out and bumped something. "Sorry Nudge-" I murmured then stopped when I realised I shouldn't be able to move as much as I could. I looked around me to find my cage empty, only I was in it, and it seemed…bigger.
"|Finally! Max help me!" I turned to Iggy's distressed voice. Only to find him in a cage across from me, with a squirming baby in front of him.
"Huh.. What the..?" I frowned as I took in the changed scene around me, Fang was in a cage next to me, on his own and Nudge and Iggy was across from us, Nudge was on her own and Iggy had a new buddy which was the baby.
"They changed the cages around and separated us when you left, they even brought he baby and chucked it in Iggy.""Yes and I need you're help. The baby stinks and I don't know what to do!" Iggy practically begged. He had absolutely no idea how to deal with a baby. It would be fun watching him take care of it for a while.
"Just check his diaper, and try to keep him still, it's baby and they can get hurt very easily. Try t be as gentle s you can, as if the baby's made of china." I was actually quite nervous for the baby, I had helped Nudge and I could handle a baby, but I wasn't sure if Iggy could be gentle enough, he might just hurt the baby by accident.
We waited in silence as Iggy, very carefully thankfully, checked the baby's diaper. "Well it's a boy, and its clean. But he still stinks." He confirmed wrapping the baby back up in its clothes and the only blanket that was in the room.
"Wrap the blanket around him tightly and cradle him close to your chest, try to not let him squirm around too much." I instructed in a no arguing voice.
"Perhaps its you who smells and you've just noticed." Nudge poked her tongue out at him.
"Just as Iggy was about to retort we all heard the same noise. A small little toot that came from the baby in Iggy's arms. Iggy turned his head away and started coughing.
"Eeeew that stinks!" Nudge gasped as she pinched her nose crawling to the far end of her cage. It took a while for the smell to reach me and Fang and when it did, our faces scrunched up at the smell. The baby was giggling in childish gurgles. I was about to feel sorry for Iggy when he started laughing hysterically.
"Awesome, that was a ten out of ten. I bet no eraser is going to come near me. I've got a human gas bomb. Hahahahahaha." He continued laughing with the baby not seeming to care about the smell. Okay maybe I didn't need to feel sorry for him.
"That's one gas baby." I murmured to Fang even as he smirked a little.
"I doubt he'll appreciate being called the gas baby when he's older." Fang smirked at me as he turned his head. His face asked a silent question if I was okay, and nearly non-existent I nodded my head. I was fine now, hopefully it would last.
"Yeah he's not the gas baby. He's The Gasman!" Iggy laughed as he wafted the air towards Nudge snickering like a maniac. I was worried about the baby sanity if I left it with Iggy for too long now.
"Hey you cant give him a name, I got my name today. Give him his name tomorrow or something." Nudge whined.
"Well I've heard weirder things than The Gasman." I murmured to myself.
I heard Fang chuckle once and with a shock I realised he sounded like Chase when he laughed. A tear fell down my cheek. Damn, bad Max. Don't think about them ever again. Let the past stay in the past. You've got to move forward now.
A/N Well? Good? Bad? What do you think? Let me know and it doesn't take a genius to guess who comes in to the story next does it? XD review please and I'll have the next chapter up in a week hopefully sooner tho. Adios mi amigos! X