Alex led Debbie, Yvonne, Louis, and Christopher back into what was left of the living room. They finally found the answers they so desperately wanted.
As Alex plopped himself down onto the couch, a puff of black soot wafted into the air. "Do I even want to know?"
"Probably not," Louis said.
Everyone stood around, wanting to proceed but not knowing how. With a blink of her dense lashes, Debbie spoke up. "I guess Ron was telling the truth."
The other four in the group nodded. They were all wide-eyed and uncertain, with the exception of Alex. The cogs in the wheels of his mind were turning. He knew he had to formulate a plan. This wasn't just about saving his friends anymore. This was about saving humanity.
Alex's face wore the stare of some sort of predatory hunter. "We have to take down Riley."
At the sound of Alex's voice, the horse, which had been patiently standing guard on the porch, peeked through the open space where the door should be. It looked at Alex.
The sight nearly sent Yvonne into cardiac arrest. "Oh, my god! What is that thing?"
Debbie, Yvonne, Louis and Christopher, all grabbed onto one another in fear,
Alex frowned at the group with obvious disapproval. He stood up and walked toward the magnificent beast. "He isn't a thing. He's a horse, and his name is Gary."
Debbie held her hand over her mouth. "Alex, get away from it! That is not a horse."
Alex folded his arms across his chest. "Once again, Gary is a horse. He's a super soldier horse."
Christopher rubbed his eyes in shock. Louis shrugged. "Of course, he is."
Debbie held onto Louis's arm for dear life. "I'm going to faint. I thought you said there couldn't be super soldier animals!"
Alex swatted the air. "I never said there couldn't be. I just said it was highly unlikely. But there's nothing for you guys to worry about. Gary's incredibly intelligent. I think he can understand us."
"Hey, Chris," Yvonne said. "Can you pinch me? I just want to make sure this isn't a cruel dream."
Christopher pinched Yvonne. Her eyes widened. "Alright, it's real. Sadly, this is all real."
Focusing his eyes on the horse, Alex's expression softened. "I rode him home. I think Gary will be integral in helping us defeat Riley."
SCOT's voice interrupted. "Horses are considered to be one of the most intelligent animals on Earth. Some scientists claim that horses have the intelligence that of a three-year-old-child. Some claim they could be some of the fiercest killers in the animal kingdom."
Gary whinnied out the sound of SCOT's voice.
Debbie still clung to Louis. "Okay, yes, he's very smart, even if he is a little terrifying."
The horse neighed back, startling Debbie. "Oh, my god! But, he's a very beautiful horse! Good boy! Good, uh, good Gary!"
Yvonne rolled her eyes. "Alright, do we all want to take turns riding Gary into the sunset, or do we actually want to figure out what's going on?"
Alex gave Gary a pat on the head. "Easy, boy. I have some business to attend to."
Gary trotted away from the door.
"Somehow, when I think this day has gotten as weird as it possibly could, I'm proven wrong," Louis said as he shook Debbie off his arm.
Alex returned to the group. He stood tall, puffing out his chest. Yvonne crossed her arms. "Alright, pony boy, what's the plan?"
Alex cracked his knuckles. "We only have one option. To fight."
Christopher rocked slightly side to side. He didn't appear to have the same confidence as Alex. "I agree with you, Alex, but Riley has a whole army of genetically modified super soldiers."
Yvonne and Debbie simultaneously looked at Christopher. "And we have Alex."
Christopher fixed his concerned gaze on the two. "I know, but that's one Alex against a whole army."
Alex held up his hand. "I also have the horse."
Christopher sighed. No one was getting his point. "Do you really think you can take down all of Riley's super soldiers with a horse and a fire extinguisher?"
Alex held his strong posture. He showed little concern. "I know one thing. Riley is a coward. We took him down before, and we will take him down again. If Riley is puppeteering these super soldiers, they don't scare me. Not in the slightest. Between the five of us, I think we have what it takes to end this madness once and for all."
Christopher felt ashamed for doubting Alex. "Whatever you decide to do, I'll be on your side. You know that. I agree. Let's fight this rat-bastard."
Debbie clapped her hands together. "Alright, what's the plan? Do we all go in there and smash some skulls together?"
Alex brought a hand to his chin. "Well, first of all, I think we should split up a bit, infiltrate Riley's plan slowly. Riley doesn't know how to see parts of a plan. He could only see the big picture, so we have to chip away at him little by little."
As Yvonne listened to Alex's plan, she heard something. The sound was faint, probably a good distance away. She could barely make it out.
[SFX: radio static]
She tried to ignore it, but she couldn't. "Does anyone else hear that?"
When Yvonne asked, the noise stopped altogether. Alex raised an eyebrow in her direction. "Hear what?"
Everyone went silent.
Yvonne looked behind her. "I'm not sure. It sounded like radio static. No one else heard it?"
Everyone shook their heads. Alex shrugged, exuding focus and composure. "It was probably SCOT, or Gary, the horse."
Yvonne thought about it. "I don't think it was the horse. Horses can't talk. I don't know. It sounded like-"
"Don't worry about it. I'm sure it's just nerves," Alex interrupted. He leaned toward Christopher and put his hand on his knee. "So, Christopher, where do you think the lab could be located?"
"I have no idea," he replied.
As Christopher went on a rant filled with long, scientific words Yvonne didn't understand, she slipped into her thoughts. I don't have a good feeling about whatever that noise was. What if it was Riley again? We have no idea how he spoke to us before. I mean, Alex could have been right. It was just SCOT, and everything is fine. Maybe the stress of everything is getting to me. I don't know, though. I swear I heard something, or even worse, someone.
Yvonne noticed she was grinding her teeth. She relaxed the muscles in her face and glanced over at Debbie, who also wasn't paying any attention to Christopher. Part of me almost feels bad for being so rude to Debbie. ALMOST. She really had nothing to do with the super soldiers or Riley. I feel stupid for even thinking that she did. Even though I hate how annoyingly perfect she is, I should apologize. It's the right thing to do.
Yvonne grabbed Debbie and pulled her aside. "Hey, Debbie."
Debbie lowered her voice so that she didn't interrupt Christopher. "Is everything alright, Yvonne?"
Yvonne stared at her feet. She couldn't believe what she was about to do. "I was just thinking, after looking at all the super soldier stuff and everything. It was pretty heavy stuff."
Debbie gave Yvonne's shoulder a light squeeze. "I know, it's alright."
"Anyway," Yvonne whispered so low that she was almost impossible to hear. "I guess I'm sorry."
Debbie raised her eyebrows and leaned in. "What was that?"
Yvonne frowned. She mumbled. "I-said-I'm-sorry."
Debbie leaned in even further, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "I can't hear you, Yvonne. What did you say?"
Yvonne stomped her foot. "I SAID I'M SORRY."
The guys stopped in their tracks and stared at Yvonne. A flush rose to her face. She dismissed her loud apology with a wave of her hand. "Nothing to see here."
Debbie put her hand on her chest. "Oh, Yvonne, it's okay. However, I would actually love to know exactly what it is you're sorry for."
Yvonne knew she had made a mistake. Right thing, be damned. I should have never apologized. Her nostrils flared. "I'm sorry for being an asshole."
Debbie motioned for Yvonne to continue. She groaned. "And I'm sorry for saying that you were a murderer and for following you on your hike. And I'm sorry that I searched your bedroom and went through your personal belongings."
Debbie blinked in rapid succession. "Wait, you did what?"
"Anyway," Yvonne said, hoping to quickly move on from the discussion. "I hope we can move past this."
Debbie clutched her hands near her chest. 'Aw, Yvonne! Thank you. You know, I had a very rough childhood. I was always bullied for being too beautiful, too smart, and too kind. Everyone would always say, like, oh, there goes that gorgeous model, and that was really hard for me."
"Oh, I'm sure it was." Yvonne's usual rage for Debbie returned in spades.
Touched, Debbie closed her eyes. "Thank you for understanding. I always wanted a best friend, but I was never able to find one who wasn't wildly jealous of me. But, now, I think I found one."
Debbie wrapped Yvonne in her arms. Her prey wiggled slightly, not returning the hug. Yvonne was afraid to ask. "And who is that?"
Debbie giggled, finally letting go. "You, silly!"
"Yay," Yvonne said, sarcastically.
As she regretted every decision she had made that led her to this point, the static noise reemerged. This time, it was upstairs in Alex's room. But no one heard it.
On top of a pile of clothes Yvonne had rummaged through earlier that day sat Alex's trusty radio. It shook, as a deep, scathing voice played from its speaker.
"Can you hear me, Alex Ambrose?"
***
"Is everything alright, sir?" A sharp-dressed man with a clipboard entered the lair of Riley Naysmith.
Riley's hideout sat underneath the city of Baltimore. It was located far beneath one of his pharmacies, which was the perfect front. No one would ever expect a small, mom-and-pop shop would house a massive underground tower, equipped with labs, holding cells, and surveillance rooms.
Riley sat in his headquarters, his own surveillance room where he could see everything going on in the city. After Alex had nearly put Naysmith Pharmacy out of business, Riley knew he had to hit his nemesis where it hurt. He had developed an army of super soldiers in secrecy for months. He wasn't prepared to unleash them into the world yet, but Alex left him no choice.
For the last week, Riley sequestered himself in this room. He sat, with his trusty cat, Budge, on his lap, staring at dozens of bulky monitors. His eyes were glued to them, keeping a close eye on every inch of Baltimore, and, thanks to his super soldiers, that now included Alex's house.
While absently stroking the cat in his lap, Riley leaned over a microphone that sat on a control table in front of him. He muttered into it. "Alex, pick up your damn radio, you idiot. Come on, Ambrose."
"Sir?" The man behind him said again. This time his voice was laced with annoyance.
Riley turned around, silhouetted by the light of the monitors. "Oh, Dangles, I didn't see you there. Come in."
Todrick Dangles, Riley's new personal assistant, approached the control table. He was a fastidious man who aimed to keep his employer's affairs in order.
Dangles put a stack of paper in front of Riley, prompting Budge to jump off his lap. "Sir, it would appear that Mr. Ambrose has gained access to the USB drive."
Riley scoffed. "That's why he hasn't been listening to his trusty radio. I've been trying to use it to send him a message."
The assistant looked at the monitor. "Careful. You don't want him to be able to trace your location."
"Impossible," Riley said. "He would never suspect I would have built an underground tower. Anyway, letting that guy go was the smartest idea I've ever had."
"Ron," Dangles said. "I believe that was my idea, sir."
Riley ignored him. "I knew that little weasel would run right back to Ambrose and his little wimpy friends. This is perfect. They're right where I want them."
Dangles tapped on the stack of papers. "Well, here are the reports you asked for. The statistics about the super soldiers."
Riley greedily grabbed the documents. "Let's have a look. How did the super soldier monkeys go?"
Dangles stood stiff as a board next to Riley. "Not well. They would not stop throwing their massive feces around the laboratory."
"What about the horse?" Riley asked.
Dangles pulled down the rim of his glasses, looking down at his boss. "While the horse sustained the injections with minor complications, it managed to remove its tracking device, and we have yet to relocate it."
Riley stopped leafing through the papers and put his head in his hands. "That is not good."
With a small intake of air, Dangles continued to explain the laboratory's findings. "It seems that humans respond the best to the serum. While they have a low survival rate, those that do make it are successful beyond our expectations."
Riley threw the papers to the side. "But it takes so long."
Dangles nodded. "It's true, the process is slow moving."
Leaning back on his chair, Riley put his feet up on the control table, almost kicking over the microphone. "That's why super soldiers are only the beginning. How's our new operative?"
"Would you like to go check?" Dangles asked.
Riley stood up from his swiveling chair. He and Dangles walked through the corridors of the underground lair until they reached a door with a sign that read "AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY." Dangles punched a code into a keypad on the wall next to the door, and they walked in.
A scientist in a white lab coat typed away on the computer. He had an image of a sperm cell in a microscope blown up on the screen.
Riley walked in like he owned the place, because he did. "How's Project Boom, Doc?"
The doctor turned toward Riley. "Hello, Mr. Naysmith. We've been working on it."
Dangles stood between the two. "We haven't had much success with aging up the sperm itself."
The doctor lifted up his goggles to look at the men. "Dangles is right. It's nearly impossible to create life from just the male gamete. However, we're very grateful we had your generous donation to work with, Mr. Naysmith."
"Hey, there's more where that came from," Riley said, adjusting his pants.
Dangles chuckled. The doctor, very serious, did not. "Good to know," The doctor said. "However, we have concluded that we would have a lot of success with aging up the actual impregnated cell. We discovered a drug that would grow an embryo at a rapid pace, turning babies to men in mere days. However, it would make the men's brains extremely pliable."
Dangles leaned toward Riley. "In other words, they would be easy to control."
This excited Riley. "Perfect. We'd have an endless supply of humans to turn into super soldiers."
The doctor crossed his arms. "If we can get the egg cells."
Riley snapped at the doctor. "Well, make it happen, designers. I want an army filled with those man babies as soon as possible. They'll be the only thing to take down Ambrose"