Copwane

Rickets

Gavin was out of breath as he twisted and turned, trying to free his hands from a restraint that kept his hands pinned behind his back. It felt like sharp Jell-o. Squishy, yet somehow biting his skin anyway.

The room he was in was dark. No sun shining in, the power off. Eerie noises made his heart pound out of his chest, but he couldn't free himself from the restraints no matter how hard he tried. He was just causing the skin to become raw. So, in the darkness he sat, listening for the clicking. Sometimes, you couldn't hear it. Other times, it was so loud you couldn't possibly ignore it. His mind raced. What was going to happen to him? Did the others know that he was gone? He hoped that they didn't think he had just abandoned them, but there was no way of knowing. And in truth, it may be easier for them to think that, then to know that he was taken by some strange being.

Suddenly, a single bulb in the center of the room flickered on, casting a dim blue glow around the room which was smaller than he thought, and resembled more of a closet then a room. It had nothing in it except himself, and the single bulb.

The large, gray door across from him creaked loudly as it began to open, and his heart took a giant leap, landing somewhere in his throat. A gray-skinned creature with blue spiky hair appeared in the doorway, his body seemed human, but his eyes had lights where the iris's should be and were a blinding white where the white of the eye is. These two factors caused Gavin to look away and blink at the stars floating in his vision.

As the creature spoke, he clicked. Like gears turning on a broken wheel, "Boy," He mused in such a way that it caused Gavin's skin crawl, "You are the first of your kind we have seen in quite some time...and this experience will not be one you will wish to remember."

Five other creatures exactly like the one standing in front of him entered the room. Besides the change in gender and the style of blue, synthetic, hair, they were identical. They walked in and stopped just within the door, being sure to shut it tightly behind them. They look slightly unsure as they gazed at Gavin, almost like they thought he might explode.

Gavin seeing the look of unease got an idea and blurted out, "My father saved the world." He didn't mean his earthly father. He meant his heavenly father, but they didn't need to know that.

The rickets looked at him with a look of fear, well...except the one in the front who was filling a syringe with a clear blue liquid.

Gavin watched the needle with eyes filled with worry and said, "He can heal the sick! Bring people back from the dead! Rise up armies to take down my enemies! There is nothing he can't do, and even now, He is with me."

"H-how can he be with you, if we can't see him?" a ricket clicked from right beside the door.

Gavin smirked weakly, his fear causing his hand to shake. "Good question. You should figure it out." The truth was, that Jesus lived within him. Wherever Gavin went, his father came too.

"Clacker," One of the rickets said looking at the spiky haired Ricket, "How is that possible?"

Clacker finished filling the syringe, "He is bluffing. No father can do all that. And he isn't here anyways so it doesn't matter,"

Gavin watched the needle draw near and began praying silently, for peace.

The needle pressed against his skin, breaking, and entering. The blue liquid now being injected. He felt as if he had tunnel vision as the last drop exited the syringe and entered his body.

It didn't take long for his arm to feel like it was on fire. And a gray tone began to bloom from where the serum had been injected. His eyes widening, horrified at the sight.

"What does it do?" he asked, fear stealing his breath.

Clacker smirked cruelly, "Slowly eats away at your..." he paused thinking of what to call them, "parts, and should turn you into a version of a Ricket. That is if your bodies act the same as the last humans who were so unfortunate as to show up here. Who knows," he said with a shrug, "It may just kill ya."

Gavin looked with fearful eyes at his arm. Was there a way to stop this? How long would it take? Would it be painful?

"Once the change takes place," Clacker continued, "You will be fully conscious inside a prison. The Ricket in you will take over, but you will still be able to think clearly." He sneered, "It is torture in its own kind really."

Gavin glared at his arm, then at the Ricket, Clacker. "Is there any way to stop it?"

Clacker clicked with laughter, "No, boy! You shall take the painful journey of becoming a Ricket, and then in a couple hours, the pain will be gone...unless, you are slain and die."

"You monster," Gavin growled as the gray tone slowly began to spread through his arm.

Clacker growled, "I have been called worse, by worse!" With that, he turned and left the room, followed closely by the other rickets, leaving Gavin alone as the "fire" spread through his arm.