Game on!

Time: May 12, 2005

Location: Middle of the Forsaken Desert.

†**********†

A woman in lab coat was walking towards a room at the end of the hallway.

Taking her last two steps closest to the glass, she looked through it to see a child sitting crossed legged in a yoga position, his back was facing her and his blonde hair left unkempt. She entered the security lock code on the handle of the transparent door, the lock clicked open and she went inside.

"Young master, it's time for your next round of the experiment." She said bringing out a handcuff.

Henry stood up and walked towards her as he was looking down, not wanting an eye contact with her. She felt pity for, but at the same time she couldn't help but follow orders.He stretched out both hands and was handcuffed by the woman.

She turned and started leaving with Henry following closely behind her without uttering a word, like a prisoner. He had already understood and maybe accepted his fate.

.....

"Wait, did you guys know that the kid who has been undergoing the experiment for a year now is the last son of Mr Darkling?" A man among a group of workers who were using their break period to discuss over some drinks said.

"The owner? As in the boss boss... that's baloney, you here me, BA...LO....NEY" One of them doubted.

"Yh, I think I heard that somewhere. The child has been here since the moment he stopped breastfeeding." A female staff chimed in.

"But why? Why would Mr Darkling do that to his own son?" The doubtful man asked.

"People say that it's not his son, he has purple eyes and a blonde hair, no resemblance to his father, unlike his other siblings." The first mam said.

"But Mr. Darkling's mother had the same eyes."

"It's hard to say if it's his or not."

"Still, why is the child confined here and have been going through those terrible experiments. Even the animals that were used for the experiment either died or went berserk, so why?" One of them asked

"It's said that he's son posses a very dangerous and strange power and he's trying to take the power for himself." Another answered.

"Is that why he has gathered the best of the bests in matters related to Chi? For such a selfish reason without considering that the boy might die?" The woman said a tone of pity and anger in her voice.

"Calm down will ya? Don't get emotional about this and if there was a chance he had you, you know your faith by now." One of them who had been quietly listening all the while said and everyone went quiet as he continued.

"Besides the boy hasn't, have you considered that maybe the child is immortal? From the way he's being treated makes me believe that and if Mr Darkling should go to this length to get a hold of power, I think that power should be immortality. It's just a speculation tho..."

"That's not possible." He was cut in by one of them.

"Are you sure? We don't know the kind of dangerous power he possesses that had him confined for five years all in that white room, think about it." Everywhere again went silent with everyone in deep thoughts processing what the man has said. It made so much sense to all of them.

"I... I'm honestly speechless, I don't know what else to say." One of them admitted before the alarm for break over rang.

"We better go get busy." They all heard back to work.

....

~Ding~

The door opened after the woman in the lab coat had confirmed her I.D. She walked in, Henry following suite.

At the middle of the room was a big tube filled with blue liquid and some other tubes connected to it. At the edge, several computers, mini tubes, lab rats and other scientific stuffs.

Augustina was typing in her computer and beside her was a man who was observing the lab rat.

"Ma'am he's here" the woman in the lab coat reported.

Augustina stopped typing and looked at Henry who was still looking down. She let's out a tired sigh as she took her googles off to wipe her eyes, with bags under it, a proof of a lot of sleepless nights.

"He knows how it is done, let's get started." She said putting back on her googles and taking up her notepad and pen. The other man who was observing the lab rats gave Henry a pitiful glance.

The female assistant unlocked his handcuffs, stepped back as Henry started to undress. After undressing, completely naked, the lab assistant stared at the build as a child of five years old, but, there was something more... disturbing. He had different bruises, cuts, burn marks on his body. Only his face was spared, although she had seen it multiple times, she couldn't get over it mostly because each time he came for an experiment he left with new ones.

He rejected the offer of being healed by a skilled Chi user or an elexir, saying that he liked seeing them. "It is a proof and a record of my history" He had said surprising anyone and making them give up convincing him.

~drip, drip~

Tears starts dripping from Henry's eyes and he started crying. It was heart breaking seeing him cry every time he was about to undergo an experiment. He had already accepted his fate, but the pain that followed, was difficult to bear, he had to let it out, somehow, besides it was his fifth time coming for an experiment and it wasn't even evening yet.

Augustina knew that she shouldn't let her emotions get the best of her. She felt guilty and pity for him more than anybody else, but she had to follow order, no, maybe she can break the rules.

'Rules are meant to be broken afterall.' She thought. She didn't care anymore, she would happily face the consequences later, but she's doing it her own way. Walking up to Henry she tapped on his shoulder.

"I thought that you must have gotten used to this by now, but I guess you can't get used to pain. Let's have this round of experiment and you will be done for the day." She said.

She would have stopped the experiment if she hadn't already prepared the resources needed and plus his dad was requesting results for the one she was about to perform in particular.

She could come up with an excuse for the rest but this one, she couldn't control it.

With a nod of his head he wipped his tears with the back of his hand, but Augustina used her handkerchief to clean off mucus from his nose.

She nods towards the lab assistant as soon as she was done, the lab assistant took him to the huge tube in the middle, pressed a remote button and the blue liquids started to get sucked up by the other tubes connected to it until the big tune was completely empty.

Henry entered and she pressed another button that started connecting tubes to Henry, they all had needles.

"Aaargh!"

He shouted in pain each time a needle stabbed him. After the last tube was connected to him, they waited till he had calm down.

Before the tube closed the lab assistant took a face towel, cleaned his face and then pressed a button in a remote to close the tube. After Henry had already calmed down, she went ahead to press the remote and the water started to slowly come down.

Henry braced himself and took a deep breath since the liquid was going to cover his face. The liquids eventually got up to his neck and drowned him

"Pull the lever Dreyfus!" Augustina commanded the male assistant.

Beside him was a lever and he pulled it and immediately electrical currents started flowing into the tube eleticuting Henry.

~blog, blog, blog~

Henry's scream was swallowed by the air and Augustina watched closely as the boy suffered their heartless toture in the name of experiments.

Just as Henry was about to pass out, he heard a voice inside his head.

"Give in."

Without having the time to process his thoughts, he passed out.