While en route to the research facility, hundreds of eyes gawked at Artie, gasping and snarling at his mere sight. He knew it was only thanks to Wana's presence that the disturbed people did not haze or attempt to harm him again.
That day was incredibly cloudy and gloomy. The sun and the planet's moons were covered, and the land was tinted in cool grays. The unmistakable smell of rain-triggered an instinctual reaction to take cover; however, he resisted hoping the rainfall on Earth-Two would not be toxic like the first.
Once at their destination, Wana instructed him where to go, then departed to tend to other matters. Artie entered the roofless building, discreetly walked up to the second floor, then walked to the furthest room on the left. It was made of light-colored wood and furnished with tables, chairs, and cabinets. Inside he was greeted, or, rather, ambushed by a familiar face.
"Incredible!" Shouted Rachel, who'd sat on a chair directly in front of the room's entrance.
She used a wooden crutch to stand, then limped within a few inches of Artie. She wore a loose white dress that extended down past her knees and a pink pair of flip-flops. A brace supported her neck and right leg, but her enthusiasm camouflaged most of her bruised body.
"I heard about your change, but this is unbelievably wonderful!" She exclaimed, reaching for, then gently feeling his feline ears.
Upon her touch, Artie immediately bounced back. Perhaps he was already aware, but the new limbs on his body were sensitive. It wasn't pain but an awkward stark sensation like his bare skin was being felt for the first time.
"There's nothing wonderful about this," Remarked Artie, glancing at the chunky cast she wore.
"Of course, Of course, now, please have a seat on the medical table." Grinned Rachel, relocating to the side of the furniture.
Artie willingly complied while Rachel began to equip gloves, haul over tools, and scatter dozens of loose pieces of paper.
"Are you sure you're in the right condition for this?" Asked Artie, watching the woman straining to navigate the room.
Stopping on her way to a wooden cabinet, she twisted her head around and grinned.
"Absolutely nothing could keep me away from his opportunity!"
"Scary," Whispered Artie, turning from her and staring blankly at the wall while awaiting whatever torments she'd apply to him.
Within two minutes, Rachel had everything she needed and stood in front of Artie. Her expression was a pure, unfiltered hysterical joy. The level of eagerness she displayed was worrying. Yet, he committed to the position, hoping he'd learn of a way to reverse his curse.
Just as she moved to begin, a CRASH interjected, and a tall, lanky older man stormed inside. He was light-skinned with a long reddish nose, dark brown eyes, hair, and well-defined cheeks. He wore a white lab coat and a thin pair of round glasses which overlaid his angry brows.
"Hold it!" He commanded with an English accent, which Artie thought sounded intentionally goofy.
"Get your inexperienced hands away from that man, THIS INSTANT," Continued the stranger.
"Don't you have more small lizards to cut open?" Snarled Rachel, looking irritably at him.
"Wha- I- YOU!" He stammered while strolling up and lightly shoving Rachel.
"Someone like you has no business examining such a crucial subject!" Continued the Englishman.
"Can't you see she's already hurt?" Growled Artie, baring his teeth, which he'd forgotten were reconstructed into fangs.
Considering he'd presumably dealt with Wana's abnormalities as well. The red-nosed man's reaction was bolder than Artie expected.
"Extraordinary," He commented, wide-eyed and examining his form.
"Yes, he is. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have work to do." Asserted Rachel, slapping her wooden crutch against the man's thin leg.
"Goodness, what was Mayor Wana thinking allowing a cheap like you to loiter here." Complained the lanky researcher.
Artie looked curiously at Rachel, whose joyful mood had diminished. He always understood her to be a capable analyst with essential discoveries, yet, the man before him stated otherwise.
"Listen"
"I don't want either of you poking around my body; But-"
Artie held his head up, covered his face, and audibly sighed.
"I'd prefer…. If Rachel does it."
Both of the reachers paused and absorbed the silence after his comment. Rachel openly gazed at him, bewildered.
"Artie," She breathed, passionately leaning in closer.
The woman inched forward more and placed her hand on his. The unprompted approach startled him, and his mindless dark ears and tail sprung up. His heart rate and breathing sprinted, needlessly warming his body's temperature.
With a gradual halt, she separated her lips, and then… She yelled.
"I won't let you down!"
The woman's cheery voice became a weapon at close distance. Artie hurriedly swiped his hand away from hers and used it to cover his ringing ears.
While he and Rachel had their episode, the Englishman became impatient and started to tap his foot on the floor.
"Please! If you could focus on the task at hand."
"Given the circumstances. And my expertise on the matter, I must insist on staying. So, despite my unwillingness, I propose a temporary partnership."
Artie assumed Rachel would outright refuse the offer based on their interaction, but she willingly agreed.
And so, for the next hour, Artie was experimented on. The experience wasn't nearly as terrible as he'd expected. His conclusion was that their lack of technology made it bearable and nothing like in the crude sci-fi movies he'd seen.
First, they subjected him to several causes of abuse. They held up a fire, and he burned; with his head dunked in a water bucket, he couldn't breathe. He bled when cut, coughed when introduced to fumes, and could not see in the dark.
After, the two shared a great deal of information with each other. From what Artie could gather, they spoke of Wana's physical condition and how she'd become fire resistant. Then, the two sat independently for quite some time, reading reports and documents.
Once done, they started a line of questioning for Artie. It began with his first day on the planet, then proceeded until the moment of his mutation. He could tell the two were absorbing everything he'd shared like a new sponge. Not only did they quickly process it, but they cross-referenced the information with stories from other hunters.
"It can't be a coincidence that colored hunters have survived attacks that have killed non-colored." Commented the long-nosed man as he sat and sifted through papers.
"Mhm, according to the debrief, Mayor Wana returned with minor first-degree burns while other hunters suffered over fourth degree or died." Added Rachel, who'd propped herself onto the medical table next to Artie and read through documents.
"A similar incident occurred with the hunter named Phillip. Though the reports of that night are incomplete." The man stated.
Artie flinched when he heard the name of the polite man he met the day of his trial. Curious, he probed the researchers for details of the incident. Still, they could not elaborate further than "He was diagnosed as blind, but later regained his vision." For a moment, for no particular reason, Artie considered what it would be like to live in a world of darkness. He swiftly decided it'd be horrible and erased the thought from his mind.
More time departed, and one hour turned to four. Not a single minute was wasted as the researchers talked and rambled on.
"In conclusion, we can assume that hunters were reborn with preset resistances. The only problem is that their moonstone color won't reflect that resistance until they encounter an almost lethal amount of it." Summarized the attentive man.
Rachel bounced around, shaking the medical table. She clearly couldn't contain her jubilance but demonstrated diligence as she waited her turn to speak and add to the topic.
"Mayor Wana's red stone is undoubtedly the element of fire. While Phillip's reflective multi-colored stone is the nature of light."
"And we can assume blue is a resistance to electricity."
The tall man stood straight, cracking a bone on his back before continuing.
"And what links both Mayor Wana and your friend here is that they both-"
"Ingested the blood of a God-type monster." Interjected Rachel, finishing the man's sentence.
"Why would blood!-" Shouted Artie, losing himself but stopping to breathe.
"Why would blood turn me into this…." Artie calmly inquired.
Rachel's face beamed, then she raised her pointer finger towards the roof and parted her lips to speak.
The lanky man snapped his finger and then excitedly took the lead.
"This is just conjecture, but the foundation of Earth-Two's creation, "D.R.A.," could have also been applied to the human body."
Artie had shifted his sights from Rachel, who'd frozen in the same pose with her mouth open, then to the man.
"What's D.R.A.?"
The man raised his brows high, plainly upset by the question.
"The pinnacle of human technology, D.R.A."
"A scientific concept thought to be unachievable but was realized and used to save all of humanity."
"Have you no clue?"
Artie heatedly squinted at the man. Then turned toward Rachel.
"Could you explain wha-"
"It'd be my pleasure!" Interrupted the joyful woman.
"Dematerialize, Rematerialize, Accelerate. All things are made of matter, and that matter can be manipulated."
"First, we dematerialized the necessary components of life down to a simple seed. Then we sent it into space where it rematerialized, then accelerated its growth a thousand-fold," Explained Rachel.
"To put in terms that you'd understand. We neatly packed the remaining plants and animals into a suitcase, then later unpacked it and made it age very, very fast." The man spitefully reiterated.
("Asshole…")
"Yes, except when we unpacked it, everything was corrupted and mutated." Chimed in Rachel.
"F-fine, how does this relate to me being turned by blood?"
"There must have been errors in our dematerialization. Making our bodies subjectable to foreign influences." Responded Rachel.
"To put simply, before humans slowly evolved, now we're moldable like clay." The man clarified.
Artie had clenched his knees, summoning every fiber of strength he had to not lash out at the degrading behavior he was being subjected to.
"Yes, which means there's a component to the blood that rewrote your D.N.A.," Rachel added, adjusting her glasses.
"She means, like on movies when vampires bite someone and they too turn into vam-"
"I get it! Just tell me if it can be reversed." Roared Artie, stopping the man's comment.
"With the resources available to us, no. But with more research and trials, it must be possible!" Reassured the woman.
Her response was far from what he wanted to hear. Artie covered his face with his hands, then slid his palm upward towards the top of his head as if brushing his frustrations away. Only, he became more fretful when his fingertips reached the horns protruding slightly above his forehead. Retreating his hands, he trembled and sucked in his lower lip, trying to hold back the urge to weep.
Low rumbles of thunder echoed outside. Each one startled Artie and further pushed him into his slump.
**
"If that's all, I will be taking my leave." Stated the red-nosed man.
Before he could evacuate, Artie stopped him to inquire further about the mysterious woman he'd recently met.
"It's hard to imagine that fire woman got close enough to ingest the lizard monster's blood. How did she do it?"
"Her name is Wana, and it was not just her but several other hunters."
"If you used your brain, you'd be able to deduce that a secondary factor allowed for such an opportunity." Insulted the man.
The male researcher tucked a clutter of papers under his arm, then walked to the room's exit.
"I'll be in my office. I'd ask that you keep me updated on the subject's status."
Artie scowled as he watched the man exit. He hated being shamed for his intelligence when he simply wasn't well informed.
"Allow me," Grinned Rachel.
"The factor he referred to is the red flower you saw. Before it was banned, another group studied the plant and found its properties induce deep sleep."
"And to answer your next question, the creature was not sheltered in a fire cocoon before. It was likely a new defense mechanism developed after being attacked in its sleep state."
Composing himself, Artie hunched over and laid his head on his palm.
"Sounds pretty useful; why was it banned?" Artie Asked.
"After waking up, the subject experiences an acute rage likely caused by spiked epinephrine levels, Also known as adrenaline. A researcher was… Extinguished, as a result of consuming the plant."
("You mean killed.")
Artie became sapped from listening to the researchers continuously share negative news, so he too decided to leave.
"Wait!" Rachel yelled.
Artie weakly turned and looked at the woman, who'd started to stand with her crutch.
She hopped closer to him on one leg but didn't get far before blundering and nearly falling. Giving up on advancing further, she raised her head and smiled.
"Come back soon, Artie."
"Au-" After uttering a faint sound, he groaned and then left the room and the facility with a warm face.