by L. S. O'Dea
“Why are you here?” Scottsmoor could play this game too.
“I care for the sick and injured of all classes.”
“How noble. Not much money though.” Poor Almightys, even doctors, didn’t have much weight with the authorities. He tipped his head and his Guards drew closer. A dead Almighty in this part of town wasn’t unusual, especially one who catered to the lower classes. Everyone would see Kalper’s death as unfortunate but not surprising.
“No, but I have a lot of friends. Rich and powerful friends.”
He studied the other Almighty. If it were true, he didn’t need the hassle. “How nice for you.” He turned and hopped into his carriage. “You should keep your Guards close. No telling what might happen to them if they run loose.”
“They’re gone, sir,” said Kalper’s female Guard as she hurried across the parking lot toward them. Her mate by her side.
“Hmm.” The doctor stepped closer to Scottsmoor’s carriage. “Perhaps, you can help me.”
“Unlikely.” Scottsmoor looked down on the other Almighty.
“I came to see a few, very sick Guards. Have you seen them?” Kalper peered into the carriage.
“No.” Maybe, it was worth the hassle to get rid of this doctor.
“Shame. From what I heard and told several of my friends, these Guards were different. Strange. I’m sure you’ve heard the rumors of unnatural creatures inhabiting the forest.” Kalper’s blue eyes bore into his. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
That was it. He couldn’t leave this Almighty hanging around. “Guards, why don’t we escort...”
Stray Servants began to glide out of the shadows of the buildings. There were dozens of them.
“Sir, there seems to be a situation starting,” said Jorge.
“You okay, Dr. Kalper.” An adult, male Servant in his prime strode forward, a large gathering of Servants behind him.
“Actually Ray, I could use your help,” said Dr. Kalper. “I’m here to see some sick Guards and I’m pretty sure this Almighty knows what happened to them. Perhaps, you could help me persuade him to talk.”
“Gladly.” Ray grinned, making a small motion with his hand and more Servants appeared from the alleyways.
“We should go now, sir.” Jorge signaled for the other Guards to get into carriages before hopping in one himself.
“Hope we don’t meet again, Dr. Kalper.” Scottsmoor slapped the side of the carriage and the Grunts took off. Now, he had to be careful not to be recognized. If Conguise found out that anyone saw the Rattus hosts, he was in big trouble.
CHAPTER 29: RUFUS
Rufus flinched from the bright light as his eyes fluttered open. It must be noon. He groaned as he sat up. He had no idea what’d happened to him, but his body felt like it’d been trampled by ten Grunts and his head throbbed as if he’d lost one of those street fights. He blinked, staring at the bars, his mind fuzzy. He was in a cage again. His heart started racing. Not just a cage, the lab. That wasn’t possible. They’d escaped. They’d been in the forest and the city and...He dropped his head in his hands. They’d been captured because of Pepper, because he’d gone to her. The greedy bitch had turned them in for money.
“They have her.” Lee sat on the floor, staring straight ahead.
“Where is she?” Those words cleared his head like a fire clears the dead brush.
Lee pointed, streaks of clean marred his cheeks from his tears.
He spun around. Prin was stretched out on a cot in a small cage to the side of the room.
“Prin, can you hear me? Are you okay?” He hurried to the front of the cell, grasping the bars.
She moaned but didn’t say anything.
“What happened?” He turned to his brother.
“I don’t know. They hit me and when I woke, she was there.”
“Is the Almighty helping her?” That was the only possible blessing to this situation. Maybe, just maybe, Scottsmoor could make her better. Even if they all changed, as long as they were together, it’d be okay.
“Haven’t seen him. Haven’t seen anyone.”
“Hang in there, Prin. Lee and I are here with you.” He sat down by his brother. “Why didn’t you run. You could’ve made it.” He was pissed that Lee had surrendered himself again.
“I can’t live out there alone, without you. Without her.”
“But you would’ve lived. You would’ve been free.” Araldo, he wanted to scream or hit something. “I needed you to run. To live.” He closed his eyes, fighting the tears. He could’ve accepted whatever happened to him if he’d been able to save at least one of them.
“Free and alone. I...I can’t live like that.” Lee rested his head on Rufus’ shoulder. “I’d rather be with you...no matter what.”
Obviously, Lee wasn’t too old for a hug any more. He wrapped his arm around his little brother. Lee fell against him and sobbed.
He kissed the top of Lee’s head. “It’ll be okay. Like you said. We’re together and that’s all that matters.”
CHAPTER 30: SCOTTSMOOR
“I’ve captured the Rattus specimens.” Scottsmoor stood in Conguise’s office his chest puffed out a bit. Parson was still searching for his Gastropoda. Of course, he’d taken most of the Guards but there was no reason to mention that to the professor.
“All three of them?” Conguise’s tone was sharp.
“Yes, sir. All alive too.” He was quite proud of that. The female wasn’t doing well but she was alive.
“Do they look different or have you managed to do your job and enhance instead of transform?”
“Ah, unfortunately, not entirely, sir.” His shoulders slumped and his chest deflated. This was not at all how he’d imagined this meeting.
“What exactly does that mean?”
“They mostly look like Guards but they are transforming a bit.”
“A bit? You’re a scientist. Exactly how much is a bit?”
“They‘re still Guards but they have more hair, narrower bodies and longer faces, hands and feet.”
“So, they are noticeably different than other Guards?”
“Yes, sir, but they’re not fully transformed. I see this as a success. A good stage one. As I study them, I should be able to minimize those changes for stage two.”
“They’ve only been getting the serum for a few weeks. The process is far from complete. They may change more, considerably more.”
“Perhaps, but I don’t believe so, sir. In the other projects, the creatures fall ill during the metamorphosis phase and become better afterwards. These specimens changed but have not gotten sick.” There was no reason to mention the female’s health at this time. “They’re fast and strong. I still need to run tests, but I believe their senses have been heightened to an unforeseen level. The way they eluded our Guards in the forest...I’m sure they can hear and smell better than any Guard or Servant alive.”
“Then how did you catch them?”
Gruntshit. He’d not only walked into that trap, he’d made it. “Ah, the female is not well.”
“So, they are falling ill?”
“No. Not the males, sir.”
“Hmm.”
Scottsmoor tried not to flinch as Conguise studied him.
“If the males aren’t ill, how exactly did you catch them? Did you capture the female and use her as bait? Do they still have a fondness for their mate?”
“Yes. No. I mean, yes. They still show a consideration for her but no, we did not use her as bait. We captured them all at the same time.”
“How? You said they were extraordinary in eluding the Guards.”
“In the forest. Not as much in the city.”
“The city?” Conguise almost jumped from his chair. “Did they interact with the public?”
“Interact, sir?” He stalled.
“Yes, Scottsmoor. Did they talk to anyone? Did anyone see them? You said they don’t look like normal Guards. We can’t have verified sightings of...odd creatures.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, sir.”
“How do you know? If you were watching them, you should’ve captured them sooner.”
“Ah...I had Guards stationed in the worst neighborhoods. The Guards were ordered to watch for them and report back to me.”
“And the Guards saw them, but no one else.”
“Yes, sir.” He breathed easier. He didn’t like lying to Conguise but he also didn’t want to be something’s dinner.
“And what were they doing? Roaming around? Playing hopscotch.” Conguise’s tone could freeze water.
“Ah...no, sir. They were scavenging for food.” That made sense. “In the dumpsters. Topper saw them and followed them to the Servant district. I can’t guarantee that a few Servants didn’t see them, but Almightys don’t frequent that area.” Topper would back his lie or the Guard would die before he did.
“Those areas need to be purged. It’s a disgrace that there are sections of the city where Almightys need to be careful.”
Scottsmoor remained silent, letting the professor rant about the lower classes.
“Those who would touch an Almighty without consent should be executed, but we continue to look the other way. Pretend it isn’t happening. One day, that inaction is going to cause us real problems.”
“I agree, sir.” He didn’t. The lower classes would never be any threat except to the Almightys who visited those districts in pursuit of illegal fun.
“Well...yes. Enough about that. There’s nothing we can do except keep telling our Council representatives that we must have change.” Conguise relaxed a little. “Good job on capturing the Rattus hosts.”
Scottsmoor almost crumpled to the floor. He’d convinced the man of his lies. He’d live to see another day.
Conguise jotted a note on the paper and closed the folder before looking up. “I want you to hand over the Phasmatodea project to McBrid.”
“Sir, no. I can handle two projects. More actually. This was a one-time mistake. McBrid already has three projects and all of this was his fault. The Guards were feeding his Aranea when the Servant escaped.”
“Are you done?” Conguise tapped his fingers on the desk.
“Yes, sir. Sorry.” He should be thankful he wasn’t being fed to the Brush-Men, but still this one mistake had cost him his promotion.
“I admire your ambition but you have no need to be jealous of McBrid.” Conguise smiled slightly. “When Parson returns he will be given more training by McBrid and then the Gastropodas will go back to him. Other projects will also be reassigned.” He pulled out a new file from his desk. “Along with new assignments.”
The professor was giving him another new project. Two in such a short time was unheard of. “Of course.” He smiled. “Thank you, sir.” He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the folder. “I’m honored that you’d choose me.”
“You have proven your abilities and this is another special project. Very special.”
He leaned forward as the professor opened the file. “Avions?”
Conguise grinned. “Yes, we need land, sea and air weapons.”
“This is an honor, sir. A true honor.” He almost wiggled off his seat.
“Study these and we’ll talk more next week.” Conguise handed him the folder.
“Yes, sir.” He stood. He couldn’t wait to start working with Avions. No one had used them as hosts, not even Crackderr.
“Wait.” Conguise opened his desk drawer and pulled out two other files.
Scottsmoor sat back down. Two more projects? The professor must have complete faith in his abilities to offer...
“I’m hiring two additional scientists.” Conguise opened one of the folders.
“Two?” He’d expected one to replace Ableson. Even though Parson had been assigned Ableson’s River-Man project, he had been initially hired to replace Lossoto.
He shivered thinking about Lossoto. The young scientist had been charming, personable and brilliant but also careless. That was a deadly trait to have on Level Five.
“Yes. Gruder and Bing. Both bright. Both talented.”
“That’s excellent, sir.” It wasn’t. If Conguise was hiring two scientists, that meant someone was leaving. Sweat began to form under his armpits. The professor wouldn’t give him a new project if he were the one on his way out, unless it was to make him complacent.
“I’d like you to mentor one of them.” Conguise closed the folder.
“Mentor?”
“Yes, Scottsmoor. Are you all right? You seem to be having problems understanding basic words today.”
“Yes. Sorry. Yes, I’m fine. Tired, sir. That’s all.” He wanted to collapse in the chair. He wasn’t Conguise’s target.
“You can rest when you go home.” Conguise tapped the folders. “I want to do things a little differently with these new hires. Instead of me spending most of my time with them, I’m going to parcel that duty to senior staff like you.”
“Thank you, sir.” He was still on track for promotion but so was someone else. “Who’s going to mentor the other one?”
“Crackderr.”
“Of course, sir. Makes perfect sense.” This was excellent. If Conguise wanted to promote Crackderr, he would’ve done it by now. That meant, he was the only real candidate for the promotion. He wanted to go out and celebrate. Too bad Viola wasn’t in town.
“I’m giving you first choice.” The professor slid the two folders toward him. “Look these over and tell me tomorrow who you want to mentor.”
“Thank you, sir.” He needed to pick the smartest one to ensure the other scientist never surpassed him. “I’ll do that this evening, sir.”
“What of the female?”
“Sir? What female?” He glanced at the folders. He didn’t care if one of these new hires was female.
“Why is she sick and not the males? Did you give her too high a dosage? Forget to incorporate her smaller size into your calculations? You know the females are the important ones.”
“No, sir. I mean, yes they are important but no I did not give her the wrong dosage. She’s...she’s...” He paused and Conguise’s brow raised. “She’s pregnant, sir and that has affected her adversely.”
“Pregnant? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I discovered it right before the escape.”
Conguise frowned. “How far along?”
“Not far, but the growth of the baby has escalated. I hadn’t anticipated that reaction from the serum. She looks to be almost full term.”
“Full term? How far along is she really?”
“A month or so. She wasn’t pregnant when I purchased her.” He lied. This was not the time for honesty about another mistake.
“Interesting. The gestation period of the Rattus Norvegicus is twenty-one to twenty-four days. Do you expect the offspring to survive?”
“I don’t know, sir. I need to examine her more thoroughly.”
“You haven’t done that yet?”
“No, sir. I thought you’d want to know right away about the successful capture.
“Yes. Well, you’ve told me. Now, go. Go.” Conguise waved his hand. “Examine the female. Save her and her offspring.”
He hurried from the room, sure that both of those tasks weren’t going to be possible
CHAPTER 31: RUFUS
Rufus and Lee jumped up when Scottsmoor and his two Guards entered the room.
“Help her, please.” He hated the Almighty but he’d do whatever Scottsmoor wanted if it meant saving Prin.
“You should’ve thought about that before you escaped.” Scottsmoor turned to the Guards. “Bring her here.”
“Out of the cage?” asked Stink.
“Yes. She’s too sick to be dangerous.” Scottsmoor cleared the items off the table. “You can’t just stop taking the shots, but you didn’t worry about that. You thought about nothing but your
freedom.”
“We didn’t know.” He should’ve considered that.
Prin whimpered as they carried her across the room and put her down. She looked so small except for her stomach. It was huge on her slender frame. Her arm flopped off the table, unmoving. Lee grabbed Rufus’ hand.
“She’s not dead. She’s still breathing.” He couldn’t take his eyes off the rise and fall of her chest. It was faint, almost non-existent. “I’m sorry. We won’t leave again. Just help her.”
“I know you won’t escape again because there’s no way I’ll let you ruin my career.” Scottsmoor stared down at Prin. “Shame about your sister.”
Rufus’ breath caught in his throat. “Wh-what do you mean? She’s not my sister.”
Scottsmoor’s hard, blue eyes met his. “I analyzed your blood. I know you’re all related.” He patted her stomach. “This isn’t yours though, is it?”
“No. It’s not. Please save her and the baby.”
“We’ll have to see if the baby can even be saved.” Scottsmoor moved to the end of the table and stripped off her pants.
“What are you doing to her?” Lee pressed against the front of the cage, reaching for them. “Leave her alone.”
Scottsmoor rolled his eyes. “She can’t give birth with her pants on.”
“Oh. Yeah.” Lee glanced at Rufus, his face turning red.
“She can’t be ready to give birth. She’s only a few months along at the most.” Rufus’ hands trembled. This wasn’t normal. It wasn’t natural.
“Does this look like the stomach of a female who’s only a few months pregnant?” Scottsmoor rested his hand on her abdomen.
“No.” It had to be the serum. That was the only explanation for why the baby had grown so fast.
“Hold her legs open,” Scottsmoor ordered his Guards as he bent her knees.
Topper and Stink moved to each side, keeping her legs from closing.
Scottsmoor pulled on a glove before reaching between her thighs. “She’s partially dilated.”
“That’s good, right?” He didn’t know anything about pregnancy and delivery except in the end they’d have a little one.