Chapter 8
A/N: Oh damn, things just got real. If you are still with me after 7 chapters Yay! I know this is dark but I really wanted to write something that would counteract the constant fluff of most fanfics on this site and so; here I am. Post in the reviews what you think happens next and any advice/criticism you have of my work is welcome as long as it isn't just slander. Enjoy reading and I hope I haven't scared you away with the dark themes yet, there are still three kore chapters to go after this!
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Edward shut the door behind him quietly, the moon still shining relentlessly through the thin windows of the house, illuminating the front room in an eerie light akin to that of an interrogators torch. HE crept up the stairs and checked in on Luke to see him still awake, staring at the ceiling silently, his eyes blank and his expression nameless. He startled slightly, seeing Edward in the doorway.
"Why are you back so late?" Luke asked quietly, despite the house being empty save for the two of them.
"Matthew didn't make it, his heart gave out or something" Edward replied, his voice solemn, trying to hide the guilt he felt.
Luke threw himself on the bed, clearly broken from the news, and he slowly began to weep. Tears streamed down his face, the silent grief in the room choked the room like a thick veil. Edward turned out the room and left for his own, the atmosphere became too thick for him to bear, the guilt of his actions weighed down his heart like an anchor on a docked ship.
"It's for the greater good" he heard Brenner's voice say in the night, a silent thought within a silent room. His resolve hardened, remembering it wasn't for any petty reason he murdered his brother, no it was for the security of his family. It was for the greater good.
Meanwhile Luke wept silently in his room, cherishing the memories of his dear brother who was there for him when no one else was. He remembered back to before the war, playing games in the hills and marshes nearby Stanley, or the times during the war when his elder brother kept him calm, when even under fire; he was there for him.
The grief and the remorse, those unsaid thankyou's and goodbyes weighed down on his body, dragged him further into the abyss, his mind twisted and tainted into an unnatural creature, maddening and distorting with each passing second. His heart pounded and his brain thudded as his remorse and grief turned into white hot anger, the adrenaline coursing through his body, his breath speeding and churning in the night. He leapt from his bed and threw the paperweight on his bedside table at the wall, shattering into thousands of pieces of tiny shrapnel. He continued with his rage, throwing around pieces of furniture as though they were paper planes, the anger and fury in his veins spurring him forward.
After what felt like seconds, although could've been hours, he collapsed in the destroyed room. The broken wood and walls being the reminder of his anger, now dissipated from his body. He panted on the floor, curling into a foetal position as he broke down sobbing into the carpet. Edward came into the room, hearing the destruction through the wall and wrapped his brother in a tight hug, tears streaming down his face too. Not from grief, however, but from guilt.
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Luke ran out of the house, his legs taking him as far as the edge of the woods before he doubled over, throwing up water from the exertion. He walked dazed through the rods of the small town, passing through suburbs and shops in a melancholy trance before he decided where he would go. Stumbling around he gathered his strength and started the trek to the Byers' house. The moon soared across the sky, the night still being young, casting a dark shadow onto the black earth. He came to the house, illuminated with the warmth of the lights and the love held within by the family. He knocked on the door, weakly at first, but tried again with an ounce more of determination.
Hopper opened the door, having spent yet another meal with the family and Luke promptly collapsed on the porch, his legs crumpling onto the hard concrete.
He awoke an hour later with a concerned Joyce and Will looming over him. The concerned face of Joyce made his heart pang with grief once more, the likeness of her to his mother striking.
"What's the matter sweetie?" she asked, rubbing his shoulder affectionately.
"Matthew… He was shot… Dead" he panted, the memories coming back to him and racing through his head.
"Woah, Woah, Woah Kid slowdown" the chief said, moving besides Joyce.
Luke took a moment to catch his breath and as the panting subsided he continued with his story.
"Matthew was shot by a guard, he was taken to hospital but he died, Edward said his heart gave out or something" Luke said, his voice shaky with the grief. Joyce wrapped him in one of her signature hugs, the tears still flowing from his eyes as he embraced her yet again. No matter what the situation, Joyce could always find the compassion in her heart to help a distressed child, whether it be her own sons, a telekinetic little girl or a broken boy, whose brother had died a terrible death.
Will stood there, uncertain of what to do, before his mother shifted slightly and he too joined in on the hug, the reassuring presence soothed Luke, the smaller boy nestled into his chest as the older woman wrapped her arms around him. His sobbing eventually slowed to a dull throb as the two removed themselves from him.
"You were really close to him, weren't you?" Will said, still leaning on Luke, he just nodded silently.
"He was there when my mother died, during the war. He wasn't just my brother but also my best friend" he broke down yet again, the abyss pulling him deeper and deeper down.
Will wrapped his arm round the boy's shoulder. The once stoic and fearless Luke now reduced to a weak and whimpering little boy, his heart ripped from him and truly alone in the world.
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The Funeral was a quiet affair, the black coffin was lowered into the ground slowly whilst a chaplain said the famed words. Emily, Luke and Edward were in attendance, as well as the Major from their old cadet battalion and a few other close friends who had fought alongside them in the war. The dark looks on Edward and Matthew's faces seemed identical, both being unhinged and disturbed by the past month's events. Luke from the grief of his brother's death and Edward from the guilt of the continued experiments and from the murder of Matthew. The wake was also quiet, Brenner specifically organising it to be, so that his own son would just slip into the aether, no questions asked. Had it been a faceless victim with no relation to Edward, he would've said his plan worked perfectly. With the few goodbyes from his closest friends, Brenner, Edward and Luke left the scene, supposedly driving home.
"Luke, Edward and I have something to show you" Brenner said in the car.
"What?" Luke asked, not wanting to be disturbed from his thoughts.
"Your brother joined in on some very important work and we would like you to take his place. You have showed great aptitude in your results and we have decided to give you this opportunity" Brenner finished, eyes unflinching from the road.
"Can this wait?" Luke asked, wanting just to land on his bed and weep.
"Unfortunately, no, the work required needs to be started tomorrow. All I ask is that you see what I and your brother, Edward, do and if you would like to participate, then you are free to do so. If not, then you are free to walk away.
Intrigued, Luke agreed and the car went down a dirt track leading through the woods.
The blackening building loomed out of the treeline like some cancerous growth, sticking out of the green leaves and visible for miles around, the image made Luke gulp in apprehension. Still clad in his green uniform (only reserved for special occasions) Luke was led by Brenner and Edward into the main office. The polished shoes sent echoes around the empty foyer, the secretary looking up and seeing the three Brenner's let them into the main facility. He took his two sons to his office and sat Luke down in the chair, his brother standing beside him. The two looked at each other, Luke with apprehension and Edward with expectation as Brenner too took a seat.
"Your brother worked as part of a continuation of the MK ultra-project. Because of the project itself, some of the births that followed exhibited unique abilities that could help us with our fight against the Soviets. I am aware that you may morally object to this, however I believe you can sympathise with us when we say it is the lesser evil. This is your chance to leave" Brenner finished, looking at his son expectantly.
"I agree, I think this is the lesser evil" Luke lied, seeing the opportunity to help his friends in the struggle against them.
"good, we will show you one of our greatest assets that Edward here is co-ordinating with. He has made great progress" Brenner said as he got up.
Luke subconsciously checked his green uniform, a relic from the cadets, as he stood up. A habit he learnt from the numerous inspections he went through.
He followed Brenner to a viewing room, where several other scientists stood and a high ranking military officer sat in one of the chairs below. The officer stood up, Luke automatically saluting him, and shook the hands of the boy.
"You must be sergeant Brenner, your brother here has shown us some very promising results" the general said, making idle chit chat with the boy before the actual experiment began.
"Thank you, sir, what branch do you administrate?" Luke asked, noting the unusual patches on his uniform.
"That's for me to know son, say, what branch do you come from? That uniform isn't American"
"I served in the British army Cadets during the Falkland's conflict, it was my brother's funeral today which Is why I haven't changed" Luke curtly replied, stiffening slightly.
"I heard about that actually, it was in the paper's. I send you my condolences. Say, I recognise that medal there, what is it?" the general gestured to the chest of Luke, where his two medals hung.
"South Atlantic medal and Victoria Cross" Luke said, shooting the general an apprehensive look.
"Well I'll be damned" the general said, patting Luke on the back, his muscles tensing as he did so. The crackle of the speaker interrupted their conversation as Edward, dressed in a biohazard suit stepped into the room on the opposite side of the screen.
"Gentlemen, today we are observing subject 16's immune response to various chemical weapons. As a precaution, you will find CBRN gear in the locker to your right, and the room has been sealed and an isolated oxygen supply is being used. Nonetheless I expect all should go to plan and we should see some very interesting results. We shall start with 50ml of phosgene gas.
Edward bent over and pulled a canister out from the trolley. He placed a mask on the boy strapped down once again to a metal chair and turned the nozzle on the tank on. The boy screamed in pain immediately, writhing in agony under the constraints, the view made Luke wince in pain, trying not to give away his discomfort he disguised it with a cough. Edward shut off the gas and removed the mask, the boy wheezing and spluttering from the exposure. Slowly but surely, however, his breathing returned to normal and the red blisters and irritation from the exposure around his mouth faded in a remarkable time.
"As we can see, the subject possesses unique healing properties when exposed to blistering agents, now we shall test nerve agents" Edward said, his voice crackling through the speaker.
He took out a vial of a clear substance with a consistency like motor oil as he presented it to the people in the room, who all shifted nervously. He placed the vial on a gas burner and attached it to the tube leading to the mask. The boy, sensing something bad, started to whimper loudly, the sight making Luke's heart burst with sympathy for the boy, desperate to help him escape.
As soon as the vapour reached the boy's mouth, he went solid. The muscles in his body contracting suddenly. The gas kept on coming, the boy silent as the nerve gas paralysed his airways. Eventually, another remarkable thing happened, what started as a twitch slowly developed into a moving hand, that movement transmuted across to a full movement of the arm. A few minutes later, the movement continued to spread until the effects of the nerve gas on the boy were no longer exhibited. The crowd started to clap as Edward took a bow. Once the applause died down, the speaker crackled into life once again.
"This remarkable subject has shown that when the Acetylcholine esterase molecules in his body are not able to break down the acetylcholine in his body, the cells responsible for his other abilities release more chemicals directly at the site of the receptors, that somehow aren't affected by organophosphates. This in conjunction with his rapid healing reactions when exposed to chemical agents means that if we isolate the cells responsible for these reactions, our troops will be immune to any chemical weapon that the soviets have." The applause grew once again, as the boy was wheeled off by some technicians. The sickening knot in Luke's stomach only grew when he saw the bloodshot eyes of the boy staring manically back at the window.
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Back at their office, the three sat down in silence. Luke trying desperately to hide the sick feeling in his stomach, with Edward and Brenner staring at him expectantly.
"Well?" one of them asked, the expectation clear in their voice.
"Remarkable" Luke said, his eyes trying to hide the hate in them.
"I told you he would agree with us" Edward said
"So, can we count on you joining on us?" Brenner asked
"Yes" Luke stated, although his voice weaker this time, hiding the deceit.
Brenner stood up and shook his sons hand warmly, Edward patting him on the back and clasping his shoulders.
"May I see some of the other subjects?" he asked.
"Yes of course, you will be working with them after all, I'll let Edward take you"
"No, it's alright, I'll just ask one of the guards to take me. It'll only be short trip" Luke said, trying to hide his aversion.
"Okay, Smith!" Brenner shouted, the guard's head popped through the door,
"Take Sergeant Brenner here to the cells to see the subjects" The guard nodded and motioned for Luke to join him. They walked silently through the corridors, Luke eyeing the silenced pistol in the man's holster. Once he was sure they were out of sight from any lingering scientists he grabbed the guard's gun, pointing it at his head.
"Yep, you know what this means" Luke said, as the guard made a move to grab his radio.
Luke toom the man's baton and radio before beckoning him to take him to the cells, pistol still pointed precariously at the man. A group of scientists walked past, making Luke hide the pistol in his green tunic, the guard still walking calmly forward, once they had passed again, he pulled the weapon out and they continued their walk.
Once they had reached the cells, Luke noticed another guard room. He motioned with the pistol for the man to enter.
"Everything's normal" Luke whispered darkly, the gun still pointed at him.
Sweating, the guard entered the room.
"Hey mark, how's it going…" the guard was cut off by Luke firing a single round into his forehead, the red stain on the wall spreading as the blood emptied from his head. The crumpled man sat there, slouched against the wall. He forced the other guard to sit down on the chair next to him.
"close your eyes" Luke said darkly, the man did as he was told, before Luke fired a single round into the side of his head, with deadly precision.
He took the Guard's wallet and found a picture of his wife, before planting it on the other man's body. He then wiped the pistol's handle with alcohol before placing it in the guard's grip.
"Guard A found out that Guard B was having an affair with his wife, he shot guard B and then killed himself" Luke thought, going through the cover story in his head. He took the Guards ID and used the keys attached to enter the first cell.
What he found shocked him, a young girl, no older than eleven or twelve, lay in the foetal position on her bed. Not thinking, he took her hand and left through the door. Checking the corridors were clear he took her through the fire door exit, half carrying her. They eventually made it through the door on the ground floor as he boosted her over the wire fence.
"Run, go to the big tree in the forest, I'll meet you there in a couple of hours" The boy gave her his watch, her scared eyes eyeing him cautiously.
"If I'm not there by 815, then run away, don't trust anyone" he finished through the fence and left her, the girl running away into the forest, her bare feet leaving little noise behind. Luke just sighed with relief as he re-entered the lab.
A/N: Remember to R&R! Update should be tomorrow evening.
