Hazard

Dr. Stein hung Tim's chart back on the foot of his cot. "I would recommend that you stay the night. You're fine. But a wound by the filthy mouth of a Kishin mutt is very prone to infection. I'd like to check on you later tonight."

Tim sat up in bed with his calf wrapped and comfortably propped on a pillow. "Thanks." He looked to his girlfriend. "You don't have to stay. Go on back to your dorm and sleep in your own bed. Nikki did."

Katy shifted closer to him. "I don't want to. I know you're okay but still…"

The scientist adjusted his glasses on his nose. "She's welcome to pull up a cot next to you. I would allow that. As long as you keep the intimacy to a moderate level."

Katy blushed. "Professor!"

He gave a small grin before turning to the door. "Get some rest, you two." He left the infirmary and now made his trek down the hallway to his private quarters that he shared with Marie. The shadows on the wall started shifting as he walked. He dare not stare directly at any of them but they kept slithering along beside him. The fire of the candles he passed flickered and wavered when the darkness passed over them. His neck craned forward and his jaw made his teeth grind against each other while he pulled at the collar of his shirt. With a shaking inhale he turned his head about with his eyes closed. He just had to make it back to his room. He could have a cigarette and maybe a drink and go to bed. The worst part then would be the nightmares but those were manageable as long as he was alone. Except he wasn't.

He entered his living room where Marie sat with a cup of tea clasped in her hands. She looked up at him with a sweet greeting smile. "Hi! How's Tim?"

"He's fine." He dragged his feet past her and straight to his office. Of course she had to follow.

"Are you?"

"Yes," he said with a smoke already between his lips as his trembling hands searched his desk drawer for a lighter. Within seconds his frustration at having not found it yet climaxed and he grabbed the drawer and slammed it downwards—nearly breaking it. He stopped with a steamy sigh and leaned over his desk.

Marie stayed in the doorway. "… Is there anything I can do to help," she said in a quieter voice.

He said nothing and only kept his head bowed. He wanted to tell her to leave but something inside him still smothered that voice from being heard. He felt his skin start crawling when he felt her approaching. Her hand carefully lighted on his arm.

"Let's go get some rest. Come on." Her fingers traveled down to his hand and gripped it tenderly. She applied minimal effort to pull. Without an alternative idea for how this night should proceed, he followed her, holding her hand loosely as she took him to the bedroom where a slate and charcoal king sized bed awaited them. Boy, bed did sound really nice. After all, he was so very tired. The gnashing teeth that swam through his peripherals would surely calm down after his eyes were closed. He sat down and his eyes fell on her as she stepped out of her dress, now covered in only her black bra and hip-cut panties. She sat down next to him and began unbuttoning his shirt. She slid her hands through the opening and over his shoulders to brush his shirt away while simultaneously wrapping him in a warm, soft hug. With her golden hair pressed to his chin he could smell her sweet scent. It had to be her white orchid shampoo that started to make him melt. In combination with her touch the complementing aroma of something so soft and embracing itself made him close his eyes. Though voices still hissed in his ears, they were starting to fade. She took off his glasses and set them aside before gently pushing him down onto his pillow. Marie nestled herself under his arm and molded to his bare chest where her fingers lightly brushed up and down in a pleasant monotonous pattern. It wasn't long before her lips traced the outline of his to ask permission for an embrace. He found his own opening for hers and a silky kiss ensued. His breath finally reached a slower and quieter state while her hair curtained his head and slid delicately over his skin. Sleep was nearly here. But now he wasn't sure he wanted to miss this.

The next morning, Marie sat up in bed, clutching the satin sheets to her naked chest. She looked next to her where he lay on his side with his back to her. His shoulders subtly moved with his silent breath. Marie fingered through her hair before picking up her eye patch from the nightstand and slipping it on. After dressing herself in her underwear that had been dropped on the floor next to the bed, she found a pair of comfortable jeans and a T-shirt to put on. She yawned all the way into the kitchen to put water on to boil for some tea. Marie then went back to the bedroom for her brush but halted before she stepped all the way inside. The bed was empty now. She blinked and peeked around before going to the bathroom and pushing the door open. "Franken?" He wasn't there. She knitted her brow and slowly made her way back to the living room. Empty. An eerie quiet settled and her ears started to ring. Marie found her breath getting thinner as she glanced around the space before her.

From behind her a hand snapped forward and clamped over her mouth, slinging her head backwards into a body. She let out a muffled squeal and grasped the wrists that held her. His unsteady voice hummed in her ear. "Shh, it's all right," he cooed, "I just need to borrow you for a few minutes."

Marie struggled in his grip until he turned her around to face him. She stared into his wild, almost glowing green eyes that stared back at her in something like envy. Or maybe hunger. With his hand now on the back of her neck she lifted her chin to speak. "Franken… You're unstable right now. Please listen to me."

He kept his voice to just above a whisper. "I know, I know. It's not fair." He shook his head at her. "It's not fair. But it's no more fair to expect me to keep you so close without finishing what I started." His thumb came up next to her left cheek and rubbed gently up to the edge of her eye patch.

She swallowed and this time her voice couldn't maintain its strength. "Franken, please… You're not well—"

"No, I'm not. But I will be." He nodded with assurance. "And it will be over quickly." His fingers went through her hair and she shuddered when his other hand gripped her jaw tightly. "You won't even know that anything happened. I promise."

William scratched his head vigorously, hoping to make the tingling stop. It had spread all over his skin, creating goose bumps. Now it had made it to his head and caused his hair to stand on end. Today it should be resolved. Having just left the infirmary, he was informed by Tim before he went back to his dorm with Katy that Dr. Stein had not come back and was probably still in his private quarters. So, William made his way there. The sooner they got this transfusion started, the better it would get. Surely.

He stopped in front of the door and shuddered at the hissing in his ear and the numb feeling at the base of his skull. He closed his eyes and forced a calm breath before knocking. He waited. No answer. But there were sounds coming from inside. William blinked and leaned forward to rest his ear against the door. "… Stein?" He grasped the handle and opened the door.

In the middle of the living room the scientist loomed over Marie with his fingers like a vice on her jaw with a needle and syringe held in his other hand. Marie's brown eye flicked to the door when it opened. She looked more afraid in this singular second than she did the second before. William's eyes locked on Dr. Stein whose lips twitched in eagerness. The floor could have fallen out from under him. That feeling of his skin about to burst at the seams climaxed. William's hands trembled for only a moment before his conscience detached from his body and hurled himself forward. The student plowed into him with rattling force, knocking the syringe free of his grasp as well as Marie who staggered back. William grabbed his neck and slammed him against the wall then threw him back into the coffee table, making it snap under the shock. Dr. Stein lay on the splintered wood and his shoulders shook with a bubbling giggle that rose up from his chest. An inhuman grin donned his features as he lifted his head and stared at his attacker. William wasted not a second to pounce on top of him, straddling him and launching his fist into his jaw repeatedly. When one fist wasn't moving fast enough, he balled up his left and let it join the other. With every thumping impact his vision popped with light that blinded him from the actual contact and would return like flashes—a skipping scene of accumulating blood on Stein's face and his hands. But that laughter went on. And it got louder and rose in pitch. It started to distort. In the flashes of vision he received he saw Kishin eyes sparking back at him. He saw Odette's bloodied face under him, then Carvalho's, then Giriko's, then his own. Among all the noises that battered around his skull, a shrill cry pierced through at the same time he was knocked back against the wall with a harsh thud. William struggled to reel in a breath as his chest and ribs flared in pain.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Marie screamed, her fist in the form of a hefty steel hammer. She dropped to her knees beside Dr. Stein and held his beaten head carefully.

William sat up a little, still gasping for a breath from her powerful strike. He blinked through the chaos to focus on the reality. Marie's hair flicked back over her shoulder when she looked to him.

"Get out! GO!" She cried with tears threatening to roll.

Now he stared in horror, the pain in his chest growing to something he hadn't felt before. Without waiting for the wherewithal to stand, he pulled himself up and staggered about until he reached the door. He went out and didn't look back. In the hall he could still hear Marie's voice—crying and pleading, maybe cooing soft words of comfort to Stein. Though what had just happened had not fully processed yet, he knew it was serious. When his breath came back he started to run. He picked up speed and sprinted through the corridors and burst through the front doors. He blew past students and shoved aside those who were in his way as he shot straight for the gates. There was no destination but away. Soon he was in the trees. William weaved through them further and deeper into the thicket where little light shone through the canopy. He slowed down and finally stopped, sliding down against the trunk of a tree and leaning his head back with his chest heaving. Eyes open or closed, it was all the same chaos. But God. What had he done?

He looked down at his shaking hands painted in Stein's blood. A flare of pleasure fought a flash of pain. The voice inside of him moaned in ecstasy while the rest of him tried to snuff it out. This was psychotic. He was a hazard. He couldn't allow this to continue. What was next if it didn't stop here?

William swallowed and let his hand from the wrist up to his fingertips transform into a black blade. He ignored the sickness in his stomach and pressed the edge of the blade against his throat. This was the only way now.

He paused when a gurgling hiss came from beside him. He turned his head to see a long-snouted beast slinking between the trees. Its face bore no eyes at all though something like Kishin eyes were marked on its pale skin. It had long slits for nostrils and it inhaled his scent. Its maw opened and let out a whispering growl—signifying that it had found prey.

William stared up at it from where he sat, the blade still against his throat. He huffed. "All right." He let his legs sprawl out in a sloppy slouch on the ground while his entire forearm and hand turned into a black steel blade. "I'll take you with me."