The echoes of the gradually distancing loud thumps -flesh hitting the thin layer of metal-, marked the route of a thin, beaten, and battered boy's path as he slowly, but steadily made his way away from this hellhole that served both as his second home in life and his supposed prison away from society.
He was heavily heaving as he dragged his tired body further and further. His monstrous features have long since faded, only the weak and scrawny youngster remained. A thin trail of red remained smeared on the bottom section of the metal behind him, marking the bloody path he traversed throughout the maze of shafts, eventually finding his way into the escape tunnels.
The strange organism, the other, more powerful half of him, was gone. Whilst Lucien was aware of what happened, he was in control. He was merely a passenger in his own body. When the time came, someone, or most likely, something has forcefully grabbed the reins in his mind and made sure that he would make his way out to safety.
Even then, with the help of the supernatural, the inexplicable, he barely made it. No, it was better to say, that he or they failed. He was led into a trap and was about to be gunned down when the truly unexpected occurred.
Someone helped him.
Someone, unknown to Lucien, made sure that he would be able to escape. Someone, who knew that he would be okay.
'Could it be…' As he dragged himself higher and higher through a ladder, his mind wandered to an absurd, implausible thought. He smirked at his own stupidity, shaking his head as his left hand latched onto the next bar. With a low grunt, he pulled himself up once again.
'No… That's impossible. What am I even thinking?!' Knowing he had no way currently of finding an answer to this nagging question, he shook his head, smirking at himself as he continued to ascend towards the distant latch where a faint source of light could be seen seeping through the cracks.
Ultimately, what mattered now is for him to leave this place, and crash somewhere to spend the rest of the day. He was in dire need of some rest, every inch of his body was in constant pain. The viral appendage that was in place of his right arm changed back into something that was similar to a regular arm, albeit the skin was of a much darker shade, contrasting against the rest of his pale, pearl-white skin tone. In addition, whilst it mostly matched the shape of his body, there was a slight difference in his muscle structure. The limb was, after all, not his own, that he lost probably forever.
Strangely though, there was no pain, the mutilated stub completely merged, his body assimilated this strange, new limb. Though he had control over it, with all the necessary functions and sensations working as they would with a normal limb, he still hesitated in using it. Whenever he looked at his right arm, he could remember the black, pulsating mass of tendrils, as they formed that alien-like appendage almost twice the size of his entire body. He could still see the horrified look on the guard's face as the organism absorbed his flesh, turning it into some sort of energy that fuelled his abnormal powers.
So in the end, afraid of using, relying on the parasitic organism that for some reason resided in his own body, he kept it hanging by his side, using only his legs and left arm to pull himself up through the ladder.
It was a slow and tedious process, not just because it required much more effort and dexterity to grab each and every bar and then pull himself up, despite his weariness, but also because he was slowly approaching the unknown.
He didn't know what was on the other side. He truly had no clue. For all his life, the people around him made sure to protect the world from him. The world for him was the dilapidated walls of the orphanage, where his only friends were the animals. Even that, this incredibly small world of his was rudely taken away from him when he was brought to this hell. The last 5 years, this last part of his life was spent in a 2 by 2 small cell. His only daily activity was the daily experiments, tests, and torture 'in the name of science'.
The biggest joke behind this almost 5 years was that he could still recall that fated day back in the orphanage. That was the day he was so looking forward to. He planned the entire day, he would eat his disgusting breakfast, then would survive the lecture before he would rush to the barn and spend the rest of his day with his friends. It was supposed to be a great and momentous day, marking the last few years of his struggle before he could finally leave that damned place that he hated so much.
Now, looking back, after surviving this ordeal, he somewhat missed that place. He missed the contemptuous gazes of the other kids, he missed Billy and the bullies. Heck, he even missed the pigwash he got from the canteen.
"Eh whatever… at least everything is now behind me. After today, I can be free of the experiments, the torture. I can finally live…" Grabbing the last bar before the closed latch, Lucien sighed, mumbling to himself. He didn't want to look back, he didn't want to store any image of this place in his mind.
If he could he would gladly forget these last 5 years. Sadly, that was impossible. The horrors, the struggles he went through here will forever be a part of him.
Slightly wary of what awaited him on the other side, he grabbed the circular wheel at the center of the small hatch, and whilst planting his feet to not fall down, he pulled it to the side. Slowly pushing it open.
His eyes not used to the natural light, squinted as a blinding ray of white exploded into the dark tunnel. The smell of leaves and dewy undergrowth reached his nose, suddenly, the tiredness that he kept pushing back washed over him with newfound power.
With all his leftover energy, he reached for the ledges, almost squealing in surprise as his left hand touched the still damp mud at the other side. Grunting, he slowly pulled his weak body up, not even registering what he could see at the other side as he kicked the metal hatch behind him.
Using every last bit of strength he had, he slowly pulled himself towards a nearby trunk of a tree, ultimately falling face-first into the undergrowth of leaves and (to him) fragrant and vibrant green grass.
Barely being conscious, he grabbed the bark of the tree and pulled himself further into the dense thicket, ultimately falling unconsciously on the ground at the other side, shielded and hidden at the base of the thick trunk of an oak tree.
Due to the multitudes of events, he failed to register the faint feeling at the back end of his mind. The strange, ominous dark screen with the bloodied scarlet runic symbols was changing once again, all the symbols rapidly flipping over, revealing their eerie content…
---
As the sirens continued to wail in the remains of the now empty halls, a new source of noise, the platters of high heels clicking against the marble floors could now be heard. With a wide, satisfied smirk plastered on her bespectacled face, Dr. Frida was walking towards her office with hurried steps.
Although she didn't regret what she had just done, she knew she couldn't stay in this place any longer. Once Mr. Jacobson finds out what happened, learns about her involvement he will undoubtedly come after him with a force, not too dissimilar of Lucien.
Still, she couldn't just watch as that primitive baboon would order his henchmen to gun down her subject. The boy held the answers to the age-old question that plagued many minds of mankind throughout history. He was the key to unlocking the secrets of the limitations in the human body. The catalyst in elevating our genome to the next level.
Watching the screen of her tablet, she grinned with delight watching the confusion and chaos in the communications. Nobody understood what happened other than one of the specimens in the top-secret projects escaped from its cell.
Knowing she still had a bit of time, she pushed the button, opening the automatic doors to her office, and quickly walked towards her computers to extract all her research data. Her slender fingers hit the keys at lightning speeds, as she rapidly cleaned her hard drives.
'Time to find a new place to work…' She muttered to herself as the screens turned dark.
It was time to leave, this place has served its purpose. She needed a new place to stay and also, find and grab her lost little lamb once again.
After all, he was hers, and hers alone!