by Mark Fuson
“First things first…we must get them attached,” she spoke without emotion. “I think the first task in making this work will be getting the circulation going. Once the infection spreads to the new limbs, the regenerative properties should engage. If we can’t get the arteries and veins connected I don’t see how this will work. The other problem will be your own healing. Your limbs might heal before I can attach the new ones. It’s a learning curve.”
“What’s his name?” Teddy asked as his gurney came to a stop a few feet from his donor.
“You know Teddy, I’m not really sure.” She stepped on the brake, bringing his journey to an end next to an operating table.
“I was James,” the meek creature responded.
“James! There you go, it had a name,” Doctor Gagnon smirked, raising an eyebrow. “Okay Teddy, slide over to the operating table and I’ll get your limbs secured.”
“Ahh, Evita?” Teddy asked reluctantly as he crossed onto the butchers’ board. “Would it not make more sense to do all four today? You have a donor and I am willing to undergo the pain, let’s just go for it!”
She stopped and looked to him, assessing the sincerity. “It will be incredibly painful.”
“You may not believe me when I say this. It’s not the pain that bothers me; Darwin has changed me. I actually welcome the pain now, I thrive in it. You saw how I can handle it,” Teddy begged.
“I tell you what, we’ll do the legs first and if you’re holding up okay we’ll consider moving on to the arms. I don’t want you wolfing out on me during the operation,” Gagnon reminded as she strapped his legs to a stirrup.
“I won’t wolf out! Trust me. I get off on pain.”
“Yeah.” She chuckled. “What about the young man on the table next to you? Don’t you think the smell of his meat might push you over the edge? That’s the last thing I need…you eating the donor half way through the procedure. Then you’d have only one white leg and I’d be forced to use the other donor to finish the transplant. One white leg and one black leg. You’d look ridiculous!”
Teddy’s heart sank because he knew she was right. He was hungry and had been hungry for days. He imagined heroin withdrawal felt like similar to what he was experiencing. The seed had been planted and his brain wouldn’t stop thinking about it. For Teddy, it was the first time he realized he was more than just a werewolf. He was a monster no different than the rest. In time, he would kill willingly and savagely.
“I think you’re right,” he admitted softly.
“I know you’d look stupid,” she replied.
Teddy surrendered. “No. I think I should eat before the operation. You’re right, I will kill James if I get a smell of him…I’m too hungry. He had promised himself he wouldn’t do it. Was he giving up or was he doing it for the greater good? He needed legs to fight back, yet he could feel the addiction flowing through him and possessing his every thought.
“We shouldn’t operate on a full stomach, but how about a light snack? That should help take the edge off,” she said with proper bedside manner.
“Anything would be better than nothing,” Teddy replied with drool leaking from his lips, running down his fangs that had spontaneously appeared as his resolve weakened.
Doctor Gagnon went to a fridge and retrieved a small glass bottle that looked to be filled with fluid that had the consistency of lumpy barbeque sauce. She went to a microwave and zapped the product for twenty seconds before returning to Teddy.
“Drink this up. It’s potent and will probably send you over the edge, but your hunger should go away.” She removed the cap and placed the lip of the bottle to his mouth as Teddy allowed the substance to be poured down his throat.
His body immediately glistened with perspiration and he began expelling semen as the substance coated his insides, bringing relief and ecstasy to every corner of his polluted soul. Teddy huffed and snorted, still with wolf on his face, but the tweak was reduced and contentment filled in the voids.
“That was amazing. What was it?” he asked, already curious to have more.
“Aborted fetus,” she replied as she took the empty container back to the counter.
“Is that why it felt so good?” Teddy asked, feeling sick but wanting more. “It was like a new lease on life welling up inside of me. How long will the feeling last?”
“It’s hard to say…everyone is different.”
“Why wasn’t I good enough?” James asked meekly from his table.
“Only you would know the answer to that,” she replied with a snap. “Judging by your indolence, I would guess you were labeled as useless.”
“It’s not fair.”
Doctor Gagnon stated flexing her logical prowess, “It wouldn’t have been fair to bless you if you had nothing to contribute to the group. You would have sat on your ass eating our resources. We couldn’t have had that now, could we?”
“I was never given the chance,” he said, staring blankly at the ceiling.
“Well, this is your chance! You’re going to evolve medical science and help to rehabilitate Teddy. He will be able to walk again without prosthetics and maybe even help him regain the use of his arms, doesn’t that sound like a noble cause?”
“I was hoping I could keep those,” James croaked pathetically.
“Oh, Jimmy, you’re too funny. I like a sense of humor, so I’ll do you a favor. I’ll give you a cocktail of drugs so you don’t feel a thing. You should be flattered; I never take pity on my subjects.” Doctor Gagnon began filling a syringe with a small amount of clear liquid. She quickly took the needle and injected the serum into the IV line she had set up.
“Do I get some drugs too, Evita?” Teddy yapped, feeling frisky.
“I don’t think so.” She smiled. “Now James, in a moment, you’re going to feel sleepy. I don’t want you to fight it, just let yourself go into a deep sleep. When you wake up it will all be over.” The good doctor patted the thin cheek of her donor.
James drifted off to sleep as Doctor Gagnon set off to work, grabbing a stainless steel bone saw from her tray table.
“How come you took pity on him?” Teddy asked.
“I didn’t,” she said coldly.
“Isn’t being asleep better than being awake? Who am I kidding; I should know the answer to that!” Teddy joked.
“I gave James only enough anesthetic to put him out. I gave him nothing for the pain and nothing to paralyze his muscles. It’s my hope to induce operational awareness; that’s when the patient wakes up and recalls feeling everything, but couldn’t speak during the procedure.”
“What is there to learn from that?” Teddy asked, truly curious.
Doctor Gagnon walked over next to Teddy and began to examine his left stump, “I think three inches above the scar tissue should be enough; that will put your new knees in roughly the right spot.”
“Sure, as long as they work.” He laughed, trying to defuse the tension.
“What there is to learn, Teddy, is can it be done. Can we cause the problem? By causing the problem we can then learn how to prevent it. The flip side to that is, does it occur randomly and without reason? That’s an interesting question, too.” She returned to the motionless James.
“Or you’re doing it because you enjoy it,” Teddy shot back.
For the next several hours Doctor Gagnon hacked away at James’ limbs, fighting bleeding and trying to keep the tissue healthy for transplant. On the first attempt, the doctor had wished she had someone to help her. The task of operating and surgically reattaching limbs was too much for one person to accomplish.
The first leg she scythed as she had forgotten to use a tourniquet. The life-fluid spewed from the wound causing her arousal. From Teddy’s table, he could see Evita struggle with her wolf and the operation. He never thought he would be the educator in limb severing, but he had been there and he knew what worked.
He said, “You’ve got to cauterize the wound; it’s the only way to stop the bleeding. Darwin use to slap alc
ohol soaked bandages on my stumps and light them on fire. It was crude but it worked.”
After the first leg, the process became easier. Doctor Gagnon stopped briefly to have her own shot of fetus before continuing. With a wet spot on her garbs, she pressed on with the attachment.
Sticking to her initial plan, the doctor chopped off the stump and tossed it to the side. Knowing the wound would seal over quickly she tried to attach the artery and as many veins as she could to get the blood flow started. She worked quickly, appending the tissue but the size difference in the limbs made her work challenging.
Teddy was flushed with sweat and grunted in pleasure as she rooted through his flesh. He was holding his wolf back, knowing how easily it would be to let go.
“Almost done, Teddy,” she assured. “I’m going to undo the tourniquet and see if the blood begins to fill. If it does, you should be able to assimilate the new limb. If the blood begins to move into the leg, I think you should change. It might help the leg fuse to your anatomy faster.”
She released the blood flow and watched as the fluid began to inflate the conduits, and began to cross the threshold into the newly acquired human limb. Her re-attachments were less than perfect…blood droplets leaked from the bonding points, but the blood continued the march into the new leg.
“Okay Teddy, go ahead and change,” she instructed as she continued to watch through the flesh.
Relieved, Teddy let go of his control and his muscles and hair rushed to the surface. The transformation rippled down to his stump and the wound began to heal. Losing her window, the doctor shoved the new limb into the closing wound and began the waiting process to see if Teddy could absorb the new leg.
The transformation stopped at the human flesh. Teddy’s wolf thigh wrapped around the new limb but nothing changed. For several minutes the doctor watched, hoping the change would over take the dying human material, though it looked like the operation had been a failure.
Just as the doctor was about to give up and walk away she noticed a slight discoloration in the new limb. The veins under the skin were darker and the flesh also appeared to be changing color. It was promising, even if the change was minor.
Within seconds, the color changed and the leg jumped in spasm, marking its return to life. The foot began to lengthen and the cracking in the bones could be heard. The leg transformed and became one with Teddy. Doctor Gagnon could see the leg still wouldn’t look right but she hoped the gift would find a way to make the new limb look more natural.
For the rest of the afternoon, the good doctor and her two subjects worked together on the project and by the end of the day, Teddy Holmes had been more or less repaired.
In thanks for his efforts, Evita Gagnon and Teddy Holmes had James for dinner.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Darwin had run the entire gambit to the cave only missing one turn along the way. Quickly realizing his mistake he made an abrupt U-turn, having mistaken a fork in the trail for a place where the trail double-backed on itself, moving higher up the hillside. It was a minor problem caused from a lack of concentration. His mind was filled with possibilities with only one option garnering his attention.
How could Darwin live with himself if he didn’t at least try bringing Steve home? If the outcome was the same…and the escape failed; Steve would be lost. If he stayed and did nothing he would be lost—and he was already nearing that oblivion. It made sense that the only option worth trying was to bring Steve home.
His mind was made up.
When Darwin arrived in front of Steve, he found that he hadn’t moved. Still on his knees and nude, Steve looked up with his fang-encrusted face and growled lightly.
“I’ve got what you need,” Darwin declared as he pulled out the vial from the back pack.
“Where’s Shawn?” he asked in a deep husk.
“He got hung up; he’ll meet up with us later,” Darwin replied in partial truth. “Here, drink this.”
Darwin handed over the vial expecting Steve to drink it right away, but he didn’t. Steve held the vial and looked at Darwin but made no further motion. Steve rocked slightly on his knees and huffed occasionally.
“This will only delay it,” Steve reminded. “I’m tired Darwin, I want it to end.”
Darwin dropped down and placed his hands on Steve’s shoulders, “I have a plan to save us both. You must drink that if it’s going to work. I think I can end it!”
Trounced, Steve took the vial and poured the contents into his mouth, placing the last shred of trust he had in what Darwin had said. In one large gulp he swallowed and the waiting began. “I only do this for you.”
“Thank you,” Darwin said, squeezing his shoulders. “How long does it take to work?”
“Last time…” Steve stopped in mid-sentence and began to shake.
His body vibrated in one continuous muscle spasm. His back lurched upwards creating a hunch before concaving back down. Steve’s face opened in anticipation of the mounting pain in his gut. He snapped his jaw a few times and hissed before collapsing to his chest on the floor and raising his rump as though he was presenting. The skin on his back inflated momentarily before subsiding as the hair began to spread outwards from the spine, thickening as it went. The shoulders cracked and stretched wider as Steve kicked out, extending his feet.
Steve turned his darkened face upwards to see Darwin. In that moment he could feel the last of his humanity slipping and by Darwin’s expression, he knew it to be true. He howled a scream before crumpling to the floor where he sprawled out and went limp.
His breathing stopped and the muscles relaxed in an unusual way, mimicking bread dough on a baker’s bench. Darwin knelt down in front of Steve, placing his palm on his head. Heat radiated from the cranium that was uncomfortable to the touch as Darwin pressed his hand down firm. He could feel nothing. The hair felt like a mounted taxidermist prize.
Darwin expected to cry at this moment. He had already been here before. Maybe that was why he didn’t—he was done with emotion. He was finished with good-byes.
He stroked the mutated head of his friend, waiting for something to happen. If Steve was dead, he should have changed back into a human form. On the other hand, things weren’t the same in the underworld. Even Darwin couldn’t transform—it seemed like all the rules went out the window.
Darwin sunk to the floor and cradled the large head. He would wait as long as he had to…there was nothing else he could do. Darwin didn’t even know how to return to New Haven. He was imprisoned.
Twenty minutes after Steve stopped moving, Darwin still felt extreme heat exuding from his body. The heat gave him hope. If Steve were dead he should be cold, but heat meant life. Was it part of the enigma?
At thirty minutes, Darwin broke the silence and decided to talk to Steve. Maybe it was time for another good-bye?
“All this…” he started with a pause, “after everything, you started it. I wanted to tell you that I am a werewolf. I wanted to bite you! After everything, you did this to me. It’s still hard for me to wrap my brain around that. We wasted so much time.”
Darwin stopped for a moment, his face sagging as he realized more truths. “They used you. It was me they wanted all along. Once they got me, they didn’t care what happened to you. Wasn’t that the story of your life?”
Snot billowed from his nose but he paid no attention. He was lost in thought.
“I want to know what to do next. Why is my family so…fucked up…important to these—whatever they are! Marta was marked, there’s no doubt about that. Zack did horrible things to me, probably Cornell, too. Was Zack marked? And Cornell…” He stopped as he felt something under his hands.
By the time Darwin had noticed the change, Steve had already shifted back to his human skin. In Darwin’s hands, Steve was awake and smiling. His skin was still searing hot but all traces of the wolf were gone.
“It worked!” Darwin shouted, lifting Steve off the ground for a hug.
“For now,” he sputter
ed out. “I have to be careful of what I think about, otherwise the change will start all over again.”
Darwin insisted, “that’s why we must find away out of here and back to the world. We must leave, now!”
“You know I can’t,” Steve grumbled as he sat up, closed his eyes harshly before re-opening them to a new view on things.
“I know what was said! Hear me out!” Darwin begged. “If you stay, you change. If you leave and get pulled back in, you change, or change faster. So, let’s risk everything and try to leave. The gate is opening! If the barrier between the two worlds is weak, maybe this will be our best chance to escape! Their hold on you won’t be strong enough and I think we can break away.”
“Then what?” Steve asked already seeing the next problem. “The gate will be open and Marta, the baby and whatever else is down here will be free in the world above. There’s no escape.”
“That’s right! Unless we close the gate after we escape. The message I had you send Teddy, that’s the first step in closing the gate. I wasn’t sure how this would work, but I’m sure now. Will you come back with me?”
Darwin had barely finished the question when the wind picked up outside and whistled through the caverns.
A gummy winter storm closed in and Darwin knew at that moment his plan had merit.
Chapter Thirty
Teddy was asked to stay in bed while his new limbs continued to regenerate. The operation, though taking many hours longer than planned had been a success. As he lay in recovery looking at his hands and feet, he could feel messages being sent to the various points in his body which in turn twitched.
He was excited to feel nerves where there had been nothing but air for so long. He wanted his rehabilitation to begin and to excel as fast as possible. Part of him wanted to run down the hall and sprint until the foreign feet were officially his. He knew better from injuries when he wrestled in high school. You had to work the wound, slowly and methodically if it was to heal quickly.
Teddy had been left free in Hadamar, no restraints or security. Doctor Gagnon had departed hours earlier and Teddy was left alone to rest. He wondered why Evita had such a reversal of opinion in her approach to him and he could only conclude that she was nothing more than a narcissist. As long as he did what she wanted she was quite amiable.