Beyond Control

Prologue

 The lights flickered, illuminating the damp and filthy cage of mice cramping against each other due to the size of the compacted cage. The silence in the room broke when the lid of the cage was lifted, the squeaking sound of the rowdy mice filled the laboratory. The awful smell of the mice's urination and faeces passed through the room, showing how neglected the mice were.

As a gloved hand sank into the cage, one of the mice got squeezed out of the crowd and now stood on the other's back, being the most conspicuous one amongst them. The hand reached the mice and waved it around the mouse's body and hurled it up from the cage. The mouse's eyes were on its brothers, its feet wiggled a little in an exciting way, as if declaring farewell before moving on to a better life.

The mouse sat in the gloved hand's grip as it was brought to a different part of the laboratory. Eventually, the chosen mouse was settled on a glass dish, it turned its head around anxiously as the scientist settled himself down on the lab stool.

A satisfied smile formed on the man's face as he saw how perfect and healthy the chosen tester looked. He raised a hand and hovered over the mouse's anxious head to reach the syringe which rolled far away from him. When he grabbed the syringe, the mouse was still cluelessly wandering around the glass dish, attempting to seek a clue of its new surroundings.

The scientist inserted the needle on the syringe, his eyes tracking the dark green fluid in the tube as he shook it lightly to mix up the solution in the fluid. When the mouse tries to crawl over the petri dish, the man grabs its body and plunges the needle into its flesh, the fluid moving into its body when the plunger was pushed.

When the mouse thought that it's finally safe and free, the man swung it into another cage and sealed the exit close before the mouse could land on its feet. It is the same type of cage, but this is an empty one, like a solitude cell for quarantine.

Before the mouse got a chance to roam around its cage, the fluid inserted in its body had taken effect. It began to feel burns on its skin, it squeaked at the pain and remained frozen in the middle of the cage, unwilling to move until the pain got better. But it didn't, the condition deteriorated to a worse point where the organs inside of the mouse began rotting and blood was spewing out from its rotting body.

Moments after the toxic had taken effect, the laboratory was left with silence again after the mouse's painful squeaks had been terminated from its lifeless body.

The scientist who stood and watched the reaction on the mouse had his hands crossed across his chest in a relaxed posture. He let out a sigh as he saw the remaining gas from the fluid evaporating from the body, signifying another failed attempt. Then, he turned as the door of the laboratory opened, another man wearing a lab coat stepped in questioning the reactions, but all he got in return was a shake of a head.

"We are going to need more testers."