Chapter 5
Kim and Shego walked through the narrow doorway and watched their entrance shut tightly behind them. There was no turning back now, especially because there were no visible means of reopening the door. The two took a deep breath, as they began their journey.
"So what happened to Drakken?" Kim asked.
"I'm not sure. Last I was with him… those little hell spawn were after us. When we got far enough from them, Drakken told me to get help. He and a few henchmen fought them off as I escaped, but those little bastards started coming out from nowhere and a few minutes later, you found me."
"I'm sorry…"
"Don't be Kim. Truth be told, I'm a little scared, but at the same time, I'm glad that you're by my side." Shego smiled.
"You say that now, but I'm sure once this is over you'll forget this uneasy alliance and go back to trying to best me"
Shego smirked, almost as if wanting to respond, but not too far away, they could clearly see a bright light. As they walked quickly towards it, the air became colder and whispers could be heard all around them. They both stopped a foot away from the light, and together, they both entered.
Their eyes adjusted to the sudden change of lighting, they found themselves standing in what appeared to be a white sterilization chamber. A door slide shut behind them and the lighting dimmed, and a red light started to pulse every five seconds.
"Commencing sterilization" a robotic female voice said. A few tiny sprayers came out from hidden compartments on the walls and sprayed a white mist on them. And a bright red laser wall engulfed their bodies. The warm glow felt eerie on their skin and just like that, it was all done. A single sliding door opened in front of them and they braced themselves.
Kim set foot in the next room. A shroud of white light came from the frame of the door, masking what was on the other side. As her body passed through, she closed her eyes tightly, in response to the bright light. A cold stale air surrounded her and she opened her eyes.
"Oh my God." The walls of the room before her were spattered with layers of dry blood and gore. Chunks of flesh were strewn about near the corners of the floor. There were trails of blood leading to open vents.
"…" Shego clenched Kim's hand tightly. She had silently stepped into the room and fell into a quiet shock. Never had any of the two ever seen such a scene. Both were hesitant to go any further, but neither of the two would voice their fear.
"How could anyone do this?" Kim whispered.
"Someone couldn't. Something did this." Shego replied.
As they both examined the bloodstained room a monitor flickered on. The screen tinted the room in a crimson red light. A quiet hum came from it. Both girls walked over to it as the screen seemed to take on a life of its own.
"What is that?" Shego asked, staring deeply at it.
"I'm not sure. It almost looks like… a face." Kim replied. Suddenly the image became more human, its features instantly startling Kim. It was Wade. The young boy almost seemed to be screaming in vain. Trapped in some unknown purgatory. "No!" Kim put her fist through the screen, shattering it, and shredding her forearm as it pulled out.
"Kimmy are you okay?" Shego asked, quickly taking Kim's arm and covering the deep lacerations with her hand.
"I don't know anymore. I'm hoping to wake up in a few seconds. I'm hoping that this is all a terrible nightmare and that everything is all right." She replied.
Shego quickly ripped her sleeve off and carefully wrapped it around Kim's wound. Tightly securing it and stopping the bleeding. "You know something. I'm hoping that this is a dream too. I don't think that anything in the waking world can be this horrific." Shego ran her hand down Kim's arm and gently took her hand, "And before I wake up, I have to do this… "
"Do wha…"
Shego pulled Kim close and kissed her softly on the lips. Immediately kissing her once more, but giving her a deeper kiss, almost biting at her lip. Kim pushed Shego away and looked startled.
"What're you doing!" she asked.
Shego blushed, responding quietly "I needed to be sure…" but before she could finish, a loud explosion shook the building. Bits and pieces of the ceiling fell and a small crack formed on the wall.
"What's going on?" Kim asked, almost forgetting about the incident.
"I think I know." Shego replied. "I didn't think he'd do it…" she muttered.
Shego took Kim's hand and lead her to a steel door a few feet away. There was yellow and black striped taped around the door. And a sign hid underneath a thick layer of caked on blood and gore. Kim hesitantly brushed it off and uncovered the words printed on the sign. They read "Anti-Soul Research Laboratories" Shego keyed in a series of numbers into a small keypad and the door swooshed open. A new threshold lay before them.
