The Heath

2

Arata Chisuke.

Arata.

Arata.

ARATA.

I jolted awake yet again, but this wasn't my room. It was a grey box. No door, no windows, just walls of solid grey. This didn't feel awake. Looking down at my hand, I realized, to my own terror, that my skin looked different. It was paler than usual, and my hand was thinner. I ran my bony finger along my cheek, surprised to feel how thin my face was. "Heath?" My voice was distant, it echoed like a cave.

Ah, Arata Chisuke. You've awoken.

My head snapped to where Heath's voice came from, and I saw a man in some sort of throne, about three yards away. His face was smiling, but it wasn't kind. It was a kind of plaster smile. Something a CEO or a businessman would use to show that they're boss.

I see you're confused about my physical body. I was once a man, too, Arata Chisuke.

Something about his appearance stirred memories I didn't have. Long, elegant limbs, slender eyes the color of gold, smoothly combed auburn hair glinting in an unseen light from the dull grey walls. His skin was smooth as butter, but there was something... unnatural about him.

I can sense your thoughts. I was a colleague of your father's, you could even say, his work partner.
But that was before he turned. He captured my conscience into a capsule, and my last memories before you were being implanted into your skull. Now tell me, Arata Chisuke, what do you remember of me?

He sat forward, clasping his hands together, staring at me with intense interest.

"Nothing," I began, but before I could continue, an image flashed through my mind. Heath, the man in front of me, back-down on a metal table. Blood dribbled over the sides, as I watched my father laugh, holding up a small, pill-sized metal ball. Turning to me with a manic look in his eyes, he raised his scalpel, and the vision vividly ended. My heart was racing, and I could feel myself drenched in a cold sweat.

You saw.

I nodded, too shaken to speak. Raising my eyes to meet Heath's, I was startled to see sympathy lacing his face.

I hate to say it, Arata Chisuke, but your father was a horrible man. The things he did... he deserved his death. He was pure evil, from his black hair to those blue eyes to the soles of his shoes.

God, did I want to disagree, but there's no denying the truth. As angry as it makes me to hear it, my dad... was a horrible man. He experimented on humans. That's why my mom isn't... well, my mom anymore. He changed her. He made her hate me.

That wasn't your father's working.

I jolted out of my trance, staring, confused, at Heath. "Heath... what's your full name?"

Heath Kuragari. You may recognize it.

"Kura... Kuragari... You're the 'Lost Hope' case from 15 years ago!" News articles flashed through my brain, memories of the concerned newscasters, and pictures of the man before my eyes. "Today... today is... the 15 year anniversary? But... it's my birthday..."

Yes, correct. The nation of Japan has lost hope for my cause. It's almost sad, really, how ready they were to give up. Especially since I watched you kill him.

My breath froze in my throat. Heart pounding, tears filled my eyes, I couldn't speak. Was the room getting darker? My chest hurt. Badly. I couldn't breathe. Everything went black.