by DRK
Xavier and Clyden took George further down, to a deep, deep underground chamber built into a vast cave. A rusty iron door with a dust-covered view window sealed this chamber from the rest of the mine. Beyond the large hatch George saw vaguely through the dust a dozen empty tables with straps to hold down the unwilling criminals for transformation.
Sec. Ldr. Clyden opened the door and waved for Xavier and George to go, and he came in after them.
Behind a plexiglass shield a small crew of white-coated technicians manned the bank machines which made the process possible. From their plexiglass observation they would oversee the process. Several robots stood at attention within the transformation chamber itself.
A struggling young man was brought in by some of Clyden's Security Agents. The man yelled and kicked and hollered, to no avail. He did his best to escape their grip, so he could flee. But where would he go, anyway? He was already trapped in the mines. All that remained was to become a miner.
Clyden waved a hand, his gesture encompassing all the tables. "Pick a table, anyone you want, whichever is easiest for you men to secure him to," he told his guards.
Xavier told George,"This is the trespasser from last night that I had told you about. He may have meant me ill will last night, but by tomorrow night he will love me."
The security people strained themselves strapping the young man onto the table. "I didn't do anything wrong! You can't make me into a miner!!"
Xavier walked casually over to the table. "Oh, you think it is nothing to come onto my property, to try and break into the Governor's House, and maybe try to bring harm to me or one of my own? Okay, well, then, I guess we should just let you loose."
"But that's not why I came! I was trying to find my dog! My little boy's puppy wandered away and got lost. I followed from town along the road to the Governor's Mount. I thought I saw it there in one of your gardens! But it was gone by the time I got close enough to see-"
"So, you were going to force your way into the house to see if it wandered inside?"
"No! I- I wanted to ask if anybody had seen it-"
Arrogantly, Xavier said, "You could have simply found a guard on patrol and asked about your dog. I guess you can be a poster boy warning why all animals should be leashed." He nodded to the techs behind the glass. "Start the business!"
A man in a white smock came into the chamber through a door built into the plexiglass. He fit some intravenous tubes into both the unfortunate man's arms. The IV's connected to pumps and machinery under the table. Next, the technician attached a series of wired sensors to the chest and head of the trespasser, for reading his vital signs during the grueling procedure.
George, a bit queasy from the anticipation, inquired, "Aren't you rushing things a bit? Did you already have an investigation or a trial?"
Xavier stared at George, a look of surprise on his face. He shook his head. "I cannot believe how naive you are, George."
A dark, viscous fluid, almost a type of sludge, began to flow through one of the tubes into the youth's arm. Green ooze pumped through another tube into the other arm. In moments the strapped man began to tug to break free, yelling in terrible pain. "Ahh- turn it off! Turn it off!"
Xavier matter-of-factly explained to George, "This must be torture for him. The darker fluids are so thick they are practically semi-solids, and the green fluid carries the bio-enhancing ingredients throughout his body. Each cell is stuffed like a turkey for Thanksgiving, almost bursting. The ingredients then force the cell to split and multiply. And then these new cells are also crammed full of the bio-enhancing stuffing. And each cell is made into a super cell, which is a good thing, but, at the moment, I don't think the trespasser appreciates that. Listen to him howl."
The victim's flesh stretched tightly from expanding muscles and bones beneath, his whole contorting body growing and swelling by the minute. Perspiration drenched him. All his veins stood out, throbbing wildly as the fluids coursed inside them. The poor man panted like a dog ready to fall over from over-exertion.
A technician behind the plexi called out his vital signs. "Heart rate 250. Blood pressure 220 over 175."
Wailing, the misshapen man begged for mercy.
Not liking what he saw, George turned away and complained, "Xavier, what are you doing? You will kill the man!"
Clyden answered for the governor. "Then the guy should have thought of that before he forced his way onto Gov. Xavier's estate."
Xavier added, "Of course such a rapid transformation is painful and dangerous. But his body is being changed so that it is nearly indestructible. And mighty as well. You would think by now, being as large as he has become, he would snap the bindings and make his getaway. However, he is in too much pain to think that far, at this point. Besides, the straps are much stronger than they appear. Now, if something happens to him while he is suffering this agony as he changes into a miner, if his heart should stop, there is an eighty percent chance his body will regenerate or recuperate in time for his vitals to start back up again. It is unlikely he will die, although at this point I think he wishes he would. Sec. Ldr. Clyden, look how quickly this one becomes ready. He barely lasted five minutes before his mental faculties crumpled."
"So I see, Gov. Xavier."
The future miner's body continued to swell, but he didn't seem to realize it anymore. He groaned and muttered weakly, spouting nothing but gibberish. His eyes glazed over in a state of shock. He seemed completely out of it now.
Clyden said, "I guess he's ready to go. His mind is pretty much destroyed from agony by now. Good. Now it is time to administer the ID Wipe."
"The what? ID wipe? What are you talking about? Earth doesn't know anything about this! What's in that needle? Tell me!" demanded George.
The technician stabbed, with all his might, a large hypodermic into an arm of the morphing, blubbering, gibbering man, and the new miner passed out. He looked very still, almost lifeless.
Xavier found it all satisfactory. "Good. Now he won't feel a thing from here on out. His body isn't yet matured into a miner's body, so we can still force a hypodermic into his arm. However, it still requires much effort and strength. Of course, we use diamond-tipped needles, to make it easier. What we just did, George, is part of how I rehabilitate the criminals. After the pain has shattered his mind, we inject him with this tonic, before his mind has time to mend itself back into a somewhat healthy condition, once the agony of transformation is over. We just destroyed his sense of his personal identity. It will shut down parts of his brain which contain more than simple general knowledge. He won't have any more personal memories. He no longer will know who he was. It's a blessing for him, George. Would you want to remember your life, if you were a criminal? Who could be happy knowing he was such a miserable lout like that. When he is ripe, the robots will carry him to the recovery room, and when he awakes, he will be properly educated to respect authority. And we will teach him how to be a good miner."
"That's barbaric!" fumed George.
"I am sure you have already heard, while on Earth, about the ordeal these criminals are subjected to, to make them ready to serve us and dig out Earth's precious fuel ore. You did not complain then. The only difference now, is that you have seen it firsthand. Or did you mean it is barbaric because we give them an ID Wipe? But how can that be bad, if we make them happy to be serving their time?"
Disgusted, George told him, "You're crazy, Xavier. Even in college, you seemed a little off, but I think now you jumped overboard, off the deep end."
"Oh? If you think that was crazy, seeing it happen to someone else, you'll really think I am mad when I have it done to you," Xavier replied.
"That's not a funny joke!"
"No, it's not a joke," Xavier said. He nodded to the Security Agents, who promptly surrounded George. Sec. Ldr. Clyden did not interfere.
"You see, George, I know why you have come. I know what you are seeking. And if you find it, then what? Do you plan to take my job here as governor of the World of Hope from me? I alw
ays knew your true reason for coming. And that's what makes you are a threat to our World of Hope. You know, even the idea of removing me from my position, after all I have done to make our world run so efficiently, is a threat to Hope's well-being. Was it not enough that you took Nina from me? Well, now it's your turn to suffer. Oh, and I am taking Nina back."
George couldn't believe this was happening. "I don't want your job! I am only on this planet to make an assessment, and then I am going back to Earth to make my conclusions and recommendations, that's all. And- and I never took Nina from you. She had stopped seeing you long before she and I got together- You'll never get away with this, you know-" George put up a gallant struggle, even more energetic than did the young man who now seemed so peaceful, slumbering on his table, turning a dull grey, becoming a miner.
"Ah, ah, don't lie, George," Xavier scolded.
The agents strapped him down onto another table. One remarked, "Struggling won't help! If you don't want to become a miner, you should've thought of that, before you became a threat, like Gov. Bright says!"
Sec. Ldr. Clyden decided to help his agents, so mightily did George struggle. Clyden said to the others, "Yeah, the governor said George would be trouble for our world, so that's why I picked you guys to help. I know you're loyal and can be counted on to keep quiet about what we're doing here today."
Xavier watched. "Honestly, George, I think I will get away with it. First, I will convince Nina you had an accident, like the one you almost did have with the Eater. I shall give her a shoulder to cry on. I will comfort her. I will subtly woo her. I shall make it so that it is like before between us, before she met you, and, I suspect, whether intentionally on you part or not, I do not know, nor do I care, you managed to turn her mind and attraction away from me, towards you."
Strapped onto the table, George shouted, "You're delusional, if you think she'll ever want to be with you again. It's long past our college years! And she'll never believe your lies!"
"Oh? But I know how to persuade her. I can still remember how, even though it was all those years ago, George. Did you not notice how I still bring a certain light into her eyes, even now? Don't worry. It won't bother you. You won't know anything about it or even remember her. You won't remember who you are. You will just be a number. And you will want to serve me. It will be almost like a zeal, digging as much fuel ore as you can, for Gov. Bright. How nice. Oh, I hope that doesn't make me sound too egotistical. I know you always viewed me that way. But, see, I do it for the good of our world."
George groaned in despair, "Oh, God, don't let him get away with this! ...You were right, Nina, you were right when you warned me to be careful of trouble!"
Xavier cocked his ear, to be sure he heard aright. "Oh? Did Nina guess I might do something like this to you? I am hurt she would think that of me. But it seems like she knows me better than you did, my old room-mate. There must still be something between us, then, a spark, for her to know me so well. Wouldn't you agree, George? I will fan that spark into a fire. She will love me again, George, without you there." He turned to Clyden, as the tubes were inserted into George's arms. "Let us be going. I don't think I can watch this happen to my old room-mate, even though he has treated me badly and means me harm."
Xavier and Clyden turned and headed out the hatch, hearing George's screams as the transformation began.
Ham