Jordan

"It's even nicer inside."

They walked into a small foyer that had a shelf to the right for shoes and pegs lined up along the wall for hanging jackets. From there they walked into the living room, what was visible was impeccably decorated; the walls were a light cream color, fake plants added a hint of color, and the art on the wall.

As nice as it looked, there was something off about it. It felt fake. All of the things that were supposed to exist in a home, like personal items scattered about, little messes here and there, clutter, or a catch-all spot were missing.

"All of this was for show. This was for visitors, for my tutors, and very rarely for work parties. I even have a room upstairs, it has everything a young boy could want. It just wasn't my real room."

He led them downstairs to the basement and went behind the bar. He disappeared and tapping could be heard, then a series of beeps. Suddenly, the faux wood tiled floor vibrated and in the center of the room, a four-foot by four-foot panel slid back to reveal stairs.

"Mad scientist 101; make certain everyone knows the code to get it, but make it unlockable from the inside."

Every time he spoke it was with the same sarcastic tone of voice and smile. It added to the wrongness of the house.

The group headed down the stairs but stopped halfway down when the sound of something hitting the floor came from where they were heading. Soren raised his hand to stop them and turned around.

"I need everyone to stay here. I have to be the first one down there."

"I can't let you do that, it could be Dr. Valle down there."

Agent Issac shook his head and started to move down. Soren moved to stand in front of him, the look on his face was enough to make agent Issac stop.

"Please. I can promise you that it's not my father that's down there. It has to be me that goes down first and it has to be alone."

Agent Issac felt that he was seeing past the hard outer shell of Soren. The person in front of him spoke with the shaky voice of someone about to break down. His eyes were shining and held no hints of the mischief that they normally do. The use of the word 'please' was shocking enough for the agent and he nodded.

"All right, but call out if you need help."

"Thank you. Everyone stay here and don't come down until I call you."

When he turned to look at the other two his expression had already changed back to it's normal appearance. It was as if he had flipped a switch on his personality. He turned away and continued walking down the stairs, disappearing from their sight.

Soren stood at the bottom of the stairs and took a deep breath, releasing it slowly in a bid to control his raging emotions.

~Jordan?~

Soren walked further into the room as he reached out mentally. Movement to his right, near the hallway that led to the bedrooms, caught his eye.

~Why are you here?~

~I'm allowed to come back for my best friend.~

~I smell the others, it's not normal that you'd have people around you. Two of them… They smell like you.~

~We're not alone anymore, Jordan. I can protect you now.~

Soren moved further in, trying to catch sight of the man hiding in the shadows.

~I brought you something.~

He held up the bag from the butcher shop. That got Jordan's attention and he stepped into the light. Jordan's skin was a shade of grey/green and the texture of leather. He was about three inches taller than Soren and broader with clearly defined muscles.

His hair was brown and long enough to be tied back. His eyes were blood-red without pupils and when he smiled he had two rows of pointed teeth. As scary as his appearance was, his short-sleeved shirt with a cartoon character, grey sweatpants, and bunny slippers took away some of the fear factor.

~You remembered.~

~Of course. When's the last time you ate?~

Jordan put both hands into the pocket of his pants and tilted his head.

~Two weeks. That was the last time I saw your father. I'm at my limit.~

~It's good that I came when I did.~

Soren motioned with his head for Jordan to follow and made his way to the kitchen. He took down a bowl and put half the container of chicken liver in it, put it in the microwave, and placed a cover over the bowl before turning it on. He then pulled down a coffee cup and poured some of the pig's blood into it.

When the microwave dinged he took the bowl out and put the cup in. He grabbed a fork and placed it and the bowl on the bar that separated the kitchen from the living room. Jordan sat down and started to eat. When the microwave went off again Soren took out the cup and placed it on the bar as well.

~Feel well enough for me to call them down?~

~It should be ok. Even if something happens, there are three of you so your human should be safe.~

Soren laughed and walked back to the base of the stairs.

"You guys can come down."

He stopped them when they came to the bottom of the stairs.

"I'm going to introduce you to my best friend. What I need from all of you is to not freak out or overreact. Jordan is nicer than I am and won't be upset if you react poorly, but I will."

Soren led them to the kitchen where Jordan was still eating. Their first impression of him was from the back so they did not realize how different he was at first.

"Jordan, I'd like you to meet Fry, Ethan, and agent Issac."

Jordan turned around as he spoke, pointing at each in turn. The struggle was real for the three of them to not have a reaction when Jordan turned to face them.

"Everyone, this is my best friend Jordan."

Jordan gave them a small wave and nodded in their direction. He smiled but tried to refrain from showing his teeth.

~You should tell the human he smells good.~

Soren shook his head, "No."

"What?"

Agent Issac turned to look at Soren.

"Jordan isn't able to speak verbally, his vocal cords have evolved in a way that cannot produce the necessary sound for words. Instead, he is able to communicate telepathically. He wanted you to know, agent Issac, that you smell good."

Soren moved to sit down next to Jordan.

~Finish your food. I can fix more if you're still hungry.~

~I'm capable of fixing my own food, thank you very much.~

Jordan rolled his eyes and turned back to finish eating.

"I smell good?"

Soren grinned, "Yes, sort of like how turkey smells good when it's cooking."

Agent Issac frowned and his brows creased. He crossed his arms to try and keep himself from reaching for his gun. It was an effort to show Soren that much trust.

"Do we smell good?"

"You and Fry smell like me."

Fry and Ethan shared a look.

"Jordan was my father's second favorite experiment subject. He is what would be considered an evolved form of the mutations that are happening now."

Jordan turned around suddenly, his eyebrows raised and his mouth partially opened. The tips of his teeth were visible and made the other three feel uncomfortable.

~What happened?~

"Father's lab blew up a week ago and he had apparently stored some of the virus there. Everyone that was in the building that day has already mutated. On top of that, some who were not in the building have started to mutate."

~No… ~