I am the storm

Chapter 8 | The emotionless

"If I'm to assume is Patricia the girl next to you and is Michael the man on the floor?" Shadow replied as I nodded in response. Shadow then proceeded to pick up Michael's unconscious body and slung him over his shoulder and walked toward Patricia holding a stun gun!

Quickly, I moved between Shadow and Patricia and pleaded desperately, "no don't hurt her please!"

"She's a participant and has just been involved in a mass shooting. She needs to come with me!" Shadow responded sternly.

"Then let me blind fold her instead or just let her go!" I pleaded to Shadow.

Without warning Patricia's hand laid on my shoulder as she said "don't defend me! If it's needed then let him go ahead, I don't mind being knocked out. It's only a stun gun after all" she said calmly.

With that I moved out the way and Shadow jabbed her in the neck with the stun gun as she fell unconscious. Swiftly Shadow caught her falling body and placed her over his shoulder.

Shadow then walked off down the alley toward a black transit van, he opened the back and placed both Patricia and Michael into the van and hand cuffed Michael's hands together. Shadow closed the back door and got into the van's driving seat and beckoned me to sit in the passenger seat, so I did.

We drove down a few streets for about fifteen minutes before pulling into a warehouse unit on the outskirts of town we then exited the van. The warehouse was about fifteen metres by fifteen metres of empty space that was also about four metres tall with small windows at the top of the wall allowing for natural light to enter the warehouse.

Shadow opened up a hatch on the floor and walked down a flight of stairs to a code locked door, which he opened and then came back to the van to retrieve Patricia and Michael.

As Shadow grabbed both unconscious bodies he motioned for me to follow him down the stairs. As we entered the basement under the warehouse we walked into a brightly lit room with a set of computers and monitors on one wall and corner. On another wall was a weapons cabinet that contained a variety of bladed weapons and electricity based weapons plus some extra armour plating (presumably for Shadows suit) on another wall was a medical area containing a variety of medical equipment and tools along with multiple tables for operating.

Shadow slumped Patricia and Michael onto the medical tables leaving Michael still hand cuffed. Me and Shadow waited about ten minutes until both Michael and Patricia both woke up.

When they both fully had regained their composure Shadow started to question them both that lasted for about thirty minutes for each interrogation.

Eventually, Shadow started to address all of us "Alexis has informed me of 'The end of days' and I may have found a solution to disposing of a participant."

Michael interjected "you brought us here to kill us!" As he started to thrash in his handcuffs erratically motivated by the fear of death.

I interrupted "no no I'm sure Shadow would not bring you here to kill you!" My response barely convinced myself.

Suddenly, Patricia punched Michael straight in the face and said in a serious tone "please carry on, but if you did plan on killing me be assured I will not die easily!"

Shadow continued "I have found a drug used at the hospital to make people fall into a medically induced coma therefore 'disposing' of a participant."

Michael responded "wh- what is that even possible?" In a unsure voice.

"Yes and the person can be brought out of this coma by simply not giving a dosage of the drug I had planned to give this to all the participants that we meet!" Shadow explained.

Patricia asked coldly "is this procedure optional?" As she looked directly at Shadow.

"For you two yes, from what I can see you both are of sound mind so I can not see why I would force this upon you" Shadow replied.

"Yes" blurted out Michael as we all looked at him in astonishment.

"Are you sure?" I asked him.

"Yes" he replied in a facade of confidence.

Shadow interjected "first I would recommend you inform your family and friends you would be away for a while." Michael nodded in agreement.

"Well I would rather not want to be put under!" Patricia interrupted. I was confused why was Patricia acting so cold and yet so determined she was acting so emotionless!

After Patricia had interrupted everyone was silent until Shadow started to speak to Michael privately probably to further explain the procedure he had set up. To ease the tension I turned to Patricia and asked "are you alright?"

Patricia responded "I am fine, why do you ask?"

"It's just you seem so cold and distant that's all" I replied trying to conveys the concern and worry I had for her.

"Well a cafe shooting might leave a person shocked!" She responded quietly but fiercely.

I was quiet, stunned into silence before responding "why didn't you want the procedure?"

"Well why did you not want it?" She questioned back pausing. Within a second she continued speaking "well if you won't say, then I will my reason is simply I don't want to sleep through this nightmare when I'm being threatened by someone. I want to fight back!" With a hint of determination in her voice.

But still something was unsettling about her, she seemed different from the last time we had met up, then I thought of the question:
could someone truly be emotionless in such a desperate situation?