I look at the two insects in the large container with curiosity. One of them has a blue pearlescent shell with a white body while the other has a translucent red outer casing and a purple body. Both of them have six claw like limbs and a fan tail, but the eyes scare me. The blue one has 7 eyes while the red one has 1 large eye, but the blue one has all 7 of them staring at me.
I turn to look at Sam, "Can you find me an image of what a regular one of these parasites look like?" She nods and begins looking through her wristband while Jack looks at the parasites with curiosity.
"Why are these 2 so different?" Asks Jack as he looks at them with wide eyes. Suddenly, the red one's eye looks over at him, staring at him as a tendril begins to from from its fan like tail. The tendril slowly weaves its way through the tank as it grows towards him, its glowing red aura catching everyone's attention.
The tendril suddenly hits the glass with a ting as the parasite continues to stare at Jack, seemingly entranced. Jack points at the tendril while taking a step back, "What is it trying to do?"
Winter, who was sitting on the couch, gets curious and begins to scroll through her wristband as well. A second later, the blue shelled one suddenly mimics what the red one did, but instead moving towards me. The dark blue tendril reaches out to me before suddenly hitting the glass as it stares at me, an odd glimmer in its eyes if you can call it that.
Moments later, Sam speaks up. "I found a file on them. I looked through the article quickly and read about some interesting things, but this is what they used to look like."
She holds out her wrist as I look at the screen and I take in every detail. The one in the image has the same features as these ones, but instead the carapace is a tan color and the body's color is orange. It has two sets of eyes stacked on top of one another.
'I would of thought that these were different species entirely if I didn't have the system telling me otherwise.' I think shocked.
Sam looks at the tank as she points at the tendrils. "But that was not mentioned in the file." She was so caught up in the file that she hadn't noticed the tentacle like tendrils extending from the parasites' bodies.
Winter sighs as she closes her screen, slumping back onto the couch with a disappointed look. "I couldn't find anything on the tendrils except for some games or posts online from a bunch of geeks."
I nod while I pat her head, raising her spirits slightly when I suddenly have an idea. I open my wristband as I begin to look through the files from all of the servers, the thousands of names flying by. 'Maybe she technically doesn't have high enough clearance to access it, just like the cube controls.'
I fly through hundreds of files when I quickly stop scrolling as something catches my eye.
'Project Nerve: Entry 540.' I click it as lines of text show up. I run over it quickly before scrolling back to the top and rereading the first paragraphs.
'Test number 724 failed. The parasite chose its host but the host was unable to survive due to underlying health conditions mutating during procedure.'
'We concluded that the tendril like appendage that extends from the parasite is a set of nerves it uses to select and transform its host. While who it chooses may seem random, it is actually calculated to a large extent. From the hosts body temperature to what they think, these parasites are able to sense it and take it into account.'
I look at the tendrils being extended from the two parasites. 'If there were any other problems, they were probably negated by the time the sun exploded. The old man said the project inside was finished when I watched that video a few years ago.....but that doesn't mean new ones haven't popped up.'
At this moment, I make a decision that could change my future.
'Dragon morph, human.' My wings disappear as the horns on my head recede. My scales reenter as I take Slime Winter from my head, waking him as he lets out a confused mew. I gently place him on the ground as everyone looks at me with a curious stares. I gaze over the human shaped platform as I walk towards it, the blue parasite following me with its tendril. Everyone is startled as I lay my body onto the panel, not expecting me to act so quickly. Before anyone can even react, the clamps close shut as the machine revs to life.
Jack and Winter bolt towards me as they both ask in obvious shock, "What are you doing?!"
My expression doesn't change as I sternly look at them both, trying to show my standing. "I want to try it first. My body is the strongest here and since there are 2, this can be done twice."
Jack's eyes go wide as he points at the tendril, "One of these things pointed at you, for all we know, it could try to kill you!"
Winter nods rapidly, "Yeah! Listen to him! I know how strong you are but still, don't-"
I interrupt, "Listen, I made this choice after considering the fact that I have the highest chances of survival. If I don't live or barely live, then we know Jack wouldn't make it."
Before anyone can say another word, I am suddenly flipped upside down as a hole opens up in the platform near my neck. The arm comes to life as it moves towards the container, the sharp point gleaming dangerously in the light. The arm inserts the needle through a gel like covering on top of the jar, creating an airtight seal as the needle enters the yellow liquid. A few seconds later, a clicking can be heard as the needle suddenly expands into a disc. The blue parasite wastes no time as it retracts its tendril and swims towards the disc, it's tiny fan tail moving back and forth to propel itself through the yellow liquid.
As it reaches the disc like shape, the disc closes around the parasite as the machine announces its actions.
"Parasite contained, transferring containment."
Moments later, the blue-carapace covered parasite crawls into the tube on the opposite end of the needle, its seven eyes gazing at me longingly through the glass.
"B-beginning inser-r-r-r-rtion." The machine stutters as it moves away from my sight. Moments later, I feel a pinch in my neck as I assume the needle has entered. A *Ping!* enters my ears as a window pops up.
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"New Quest."
"Experimental Procedure."
"You have chosen to take on a procedure before your friend to ensure his safety. No one knew the equipment was faulty but your about to find out through one of the most painful experiences possible, using it. And it doesn't help that you didn't take any painkillers.
Goal: Stay conscious till the procedure reaches 50%
Reward: New title, unfaulty injection blueprint.
Secret Goal: N/A
Reward: N/A
—————————————————————
'Oh fuck!'