“No need,” 452 says, coming around the corner and looking up from a clipboard. Clearing his throat, he holds the paper against the front of his body, looking the epitome of calm and collected.“Paralyze.” He says it like an instruction, and before my eyes, Harrison’s limbs lock up, straightening out against his will as he lies there unable to fight.
“Brilliant,” I say, shocked, a smile reaching my eyes. Remy rolls up his pants to show me his leg, and I’m stunned at what lies beneath. “Scales,” I voice, not believing what my eyes are seeing.
“The start of them, yes. It was a surprise to us as well,” 452 says. “I would like to keep him under observation, since this is only the second case we’ve seen since—”
“Since subject 1,” I finish for him. It’s true. We thought 1 to be an anomaly, a fluke in the system. Because since the accident, we’ve never come across something so out of the ordinary. And she was too much of a risk to keep in the institute. She had to be taken care of.
“Precisely. I want to run more tests, compare them to 1’s, and see what the commonality is,” he suggests.
“Do you have any theories?”
“Of course, but I don’t want to say anything yet. It would be unfortunate to get your hopes up. But with there only being two charts for me to go over, the likelihood of me finding something useful and not just a coincidence is highly unlikely,” he states. “They’re unique in some way, but our labs and the magic we’ve been able to source is a lot more complex than when 1 was in our care. But I’m hopeful.”
“Do whatever it is you need.” Because if this is something, this would open up so many more possibilities—they’re endless. My mind races with the future, with what this could mean. If there’s something concrete here, something we can create on our own, duplicate into another treatment, then my plans open up to whole new prospects.
Truthfully, this wasn’t something I’d thought of. I’m not sure how, especially when it was staring at me so blankly in the face in the past. We could expand beyond the land of Siderium.Creatures that haven’t been seen in centuries coming to fruition and at my disposal.
If this works… If this is what I think it is…it’s monumental. Sirens will lead the charge, being my eyes and ears across the ocean floor.
THIRTY-ONE
Subject 763
Opening my eyes, I feel as if a fog has been lifted—but not entirely. There are still blind spots, sections that are missing to create a narrative far from the truth. But it’s the start of a clear mind. I’m so tired of everything being fuzzy, bits and pieces of time missing from my memory. Like I go to sleep and wake up in a completely different area of the realm, no knowledge of how I got there. It could make a person go mad.
The rising sun slowly begins to wake the rest of the realm, casting a soft blue hue over the forest. 306 is nowhere in sight, and I’m grateful because the headache stabbing my skull is something fierce. I don’t know when it started, but over time, my cognitive skills became like a war drum, beating against the invading foreign substance, and from the feel of it, I think I won. That was how it felt last night, anyway.
Seeing Kallie, even if it was a world imagined behind my eyes, was like a saving grace. There was a split second I felt the powerof whatever they’ve been dosing me with trying to take root. It was coaxing me, whispering victory and glory into my ear to get me to succumb, but as soon as I saw her standing in the field, looking the epitome of peace, the trajectory of those promises got thrown off track.
She was absolutely breathtaking, and even then, I felt lighter. Holding her close was like coming home. But I could see it in her eyes, in the way she looked at me with disgust and betrayal. Even that isn’t a memory I wish to be erased, because it reminds me there’s still hope for us, even if she doesn’t believe it now.
With other memories coming back in waves, the hold the treatments had on me is slowly dissipating, chased away by power I wasn’t aware I carried. I’m going to relish in their downfall, because this wasn’t part of the plan. Infiltration, trust, and takedown. That was the premise, anyway. I thought I’d done my part in playing the obedient pet the king wanted—needed. But I guess I didn’t take into account his trust issues. The idea that he would make me one of his test subjects wasn’t part of this charade.
And that miscalculation could cost me everything.
But now, I’m in too deep. It’s too soon to show my cards now, so for the time being, they need to continue to believe I’m on their side. There’s no telling what they would do if they thought I was compromised, especially if they take into account all the treatments 306 has injected me with over the past days. Because according to them, to the research, there’s no way it shouldn’t be working.
The forest floor is damp, and if I had been in any other clothes, it would’ve soaked right through, chilling me to the bone. Sitting up, the grass wets my palm, and I use the heel of the other to rub my eye, wiping away the remnants of sleep that cling on for dear life.
Rustling to my left pulls my attention, and naturally, it causesmy guard to rise. Inky black becomes visible along my veins as my shadows sit steady, ready to attack if necessary. But they quickly recede once I see it’s 306 stumbling out from behind the bushes. He notices the onyx tentacles shrinking back but doesn’t say anything. Instead, he holds my stare, his eyes holding a mixture of guilt and panic, like he wasn’t expecting me to be awake.
Interesting.
I cock my head to the side curiously, analyzing his body language, and it’s quite telling. It would seem like he was coming back from doing something Ambroyss wouldn’t be pleased about. I decide to keep those thoughts to myself and let him spew out whatever lie he’s already preparing to sell me.
“Morning,” I rasp, standing up like I didn’t notice anything. But inside, rage swirls with a vengeance, begging to be set free. But I rein it in, controlling my anger even though I want nothing more than to kill him where he stands. He should be fucking petrified, praying to whatever god is listening that all this works out in his favor. But he has no idea he’s already lost.
“I wasn’t expecting you to be awake so soon,” he admits.Why? Intending on injecting me one more time before starting the day, to make sure I was an obedient pet?I wonder. I had let him get the upper hand on me, and that won’t happen again. As long as I play along, giving him the impression that nothing has changed, everything should be fine.
I keep my features cool, not giving away even the slightest tick of my jaw. He’s hiding something, and I fully intend on figuring out what it is.
“Hard to sleep, considering the circumstances.” There’s an awkwardness in the air, but I refrain from speaking on it, knowing he can’t suspect a thing or else this could all go sideways.
Last night, I’d gotten through to Kallie—at least, I think I did.There was some sort of understanding, and I pray she believed me. But I think the little stunt 306 pulled—causing me to turn on her against my will—had to rebuild some of those bricks. Now it’s just a matter of reaching her without him knowing.
Then I remember. How could I forget? Something so simple but so special sitting right in the back of my mind. The bond that tethers Kallie and I together rests fully intact, calling me to use it. I don’t change my facial features, not wanting to give anything away.
“Kallie.”I don’t know why I whisper. It’s not like 306 can hear inside my head, but something about it seems secretive, forbidden. I wait a few seconds, but nothing comes back. I wouldn’t blame her if the connection was closed on her end, but I leave mine wide open, just in case curiosity gets the best of her.
