"T, T2! We have a problem!" I whispered. We were
completely surrounded by the dead and Joshua was missing.
The guttural wheezing of the dead was deafening as I
scanned for audial evidence of Joshua. His scent was faint, and he was last
present in a northern direction and moving swiftly.
"Dr. Harris, I presume!" came a voice over the droning
of the dead. "My how you've changed!"
A slender man in a white suit carrying a cane stepped
from a crowd of mercenaries clearing out the DCs. This man was looking at a
pocket watch. A clumsy scan of his mind revealed that his name was Greer
Nathaniel Beene. Mr. Beene was a local consigliore for various low lives in the
greater Atlanta area. When he displeased his bosses, he was often referred to
as Green Beene, a nickname he was none too fond of having.
"Dr. Harris, I work for a consortium of individuals
who, let's say, have a particular interest in what you have been able to
accomplish," he said. "We have welcomed into our midst one Mr. Cisco and one
Mr. Grundy and they have regaled us with tales of your far-reaching
accomplishments. We would like to extend a similar offer to you."
I was able to glean the location to where they were
taking Joshua from his mind and while I was there I decided to help us with our
escape by leaving a little suggestion for Mr. Beene.
"I'm afraid, sir, that I will have to decline your
most gracious offer!" I yelled over the droning of the dead. "And if you will
excuse me. Thank you, gentlemen, for the warning and your help!"
"Gentlemen, we have been betrayed!" shouted Mr. Beene.
"Your captain and your lieutenants are working for our targets! Execute them
now!"
The ensuing confusion and gun fire allowed us to make
our way to our vehicle. We headed towards the Peachtree District in downtown
Atlanta. The city was overrun with the dead. It figures the close proximity of
city dwelling would cause the outbreak to be much worse than in rural locales.
The streets were full of the dead following sounds that they have long forgot
they have heard.
As we turned onto Peachtree Street, you could see that
one of the blocks was cordoned off and heavily fortified. Mercenaries lined the
walls. Three skyscrapers jutted out from behind the wall and reached toward the
heavens. The gate slid open as the vehicle that contained Joshua entered.
"Listen, they know about the serum, but they don't
know the extent of its effects," I said to T and T2. "We have that and our
superior intellect as assets in this situation."
"So, what's the plan bro?" asked T. "Do we just run in
roughshod?"
"No!" I responded. "You and T2 are not bullet proof
and if they feel endangered, they may shoot first and ask questions later. I'll
go in alone. They know nothing about my immortality."
We parked around the corner from the sky scraper. I
took a bunch of Von-Bombs and took off on foot. Instead of tossing the bombs in
the midst of DCs, I set the alarms to go off 2 and half minutes before the
explosions to draw more of them away from my planned route. As the last bomb
exploded, I paraded right up to the gate as guns were trained on me.
"I believe your employers are expecting me," I said. "Now
do you wish to open the gate or should I leave?"
The gate opened as about 20 mercs rushed out to greet
me with guns drawn. I walked in with my hands held up. I scanned their minds
and realized that they thought I was just a fit human.
"All those muscles aren't going to help you now," said
a raspy but familiar voice. "My new partners want what's in us, in them."
It was Cisco. Although he was changed, it was minor
compared to Tank and the others. He seems to have gained a 9.038% addition to
his mass. I would surmise that he has been too cowardly to test whether or not
he was immune to bites. Based on the additional mass and cranial capacity, I
deduced that his strength and intelligence was a little above that of Joshua's,
but I could literally see that his exposure to the serum had made him immune.
"That's a real bitch move snatching the kid, Cisco," I
said. "If you wanted to talk to me, all you had to do was ask."
"Well, I'm asking Doc. Can we talk?" he said with a
smirk. "We have lots to discuss."
The entire trip today I had been theorizing a
supposition. I mean yes, I was engaged with T and T2, but just under the
surface of my subconscious I speculated that each person who received a dose of
the serum was a subset of me, T2, Em and the baby as a whole. The one constant
is that the baby is a subset of me and they derived their gifts from her
amniotic fluid. Therefore, should I supplicate that I should be able to
duplicate their gifts as well?
I also noticed a difference in Cisco's speech patterns
and diction. He was beginning to speak with an eloquence that he didn't exhibit
before. Was he evolving right before me?
"What do you and your partners want Cisco?" I asked
rather tersely. "You went through a lot of trouble and expense to get me here.
Let's skip the pleasantries and get to why we're here."
"See that's what I like about you Doc. Straight to
business," he said. "Grundy told me what you are now capable of doing. You were
dangerous before, but now it seems that your speed and strength have become
augmented like mine. By the way, where is our man Green Beene?"
"Mr. Beene has been otherwise detained," I said as I
smiled. "He ran into a bit of a tough spot back in the woods."
"In any event, my partners and I would like you to
develop more of the serum," he said. "As I stated earlier, they want what is in
us."
"But Cisco, you know that is impossible," I said. "The
last of the serum spilled back at your compound as it splashed on us. That was
the last of it and we are unable to make more due to you burning Eli's formula."
"Bullshit!" he yelled. "Either you make more or the
kid who is currently enjoying our hospitality will meet with a very unfortunate
accident!"
I decided to have a little fun with Cisco by planting
remarks in the minds of the present mercs.
"Like the one your parents made when they had you,"
said one of the mercs in the crowd which caused some laughter among his
compatriots.
"Who the hell said that?" screamed Cisco losing his
composure. "I won't tolerate any sass from you plebeians!"
As he focused his attention back on me, he continued.
"As I was saying, either you make more or junior dies,"
he stated matter-of-factly.
"Cisco, I do not believe you are capable of making
such decisions," I countered. "I would like to speak to the person in charge."
"You asshole—" began Cisco, but he was interrupted by
an opening door.
Out walked a man I immediately recognized. It was
state senator Ashur Harrington. More so, he was also a former patient of mine
and long thought to be linked to organized crime in the Greater Atlanta area.
"Is that you Dr. Harris?" he asked. "Wow! You have
changed a lot. I mean you used to be so nerdy, but you look like you've been
hitting the gym."
He then turned his attention to Cisco and motioned for
him to return inside the building. Cisco acquiesced with a scowl.
"As always Doctor, you are very astute in your earlier
assessment of Mr. Cisco's involvement in our little enterprise," he stated. "Just
between you and me, he and Mr. Grundy are no more than a means to an end. That
end being you."
I realized due to the skip in his heartbeat that Cisco
had heard Harrington's remarks, and he was not pleased at all.
"To put it bluntly Doctor, the group that I am a part
of has a very, very exclusive membership and those two are far from the right "types"
that we would consider for members," he said. "You, however, my good doctor are
exactly the type of candidate we are looking for to expand our little "club"."
"I'm flattered Senator Harrington, that you and your
fellow "delegates" would consider including me in your "club," but I have a
family and they take up the majority of my time and energy now," I said. "Besides,
I'm not sure Mr. Cisco and Grundy explained how events unfolded and how they
burned the only written copy of the formula."
"Come, come now Doctor, don't be modest," he said. "We
both know that if not for your genius, I would not be here now to extend this
most generous offer."
After Eli and a few other successes, I had an
emergency case of a politician who had collapsed into a coma and was basically
brain dead due to an overdose of narcotics. That politician was Senator
Harrington. But to his credit, or so I thought, he cleaned up his act. He
renounced drugs and that baller lifestyle that he had adopted and
rededicated himself to his constituency. There was talk of him even becoming
governor.
While he attempted to sway me with platitudes, I had
devised a plan that would work with a 78.637% probability. I could deduce that
the men that Harrington worked with would not be as susceptible to the word "No"
as Harrington and Cisco were.
"Well since you have such faith in me, how can I
possibly decline such a magnanimous offer?" I asked. "However, I will need the
young man that you all are keeping as a guest to assist me in my research."
"Doctor, he is more than just going to help you," said
Harrington. "He's going to be your test subject."