(POV Isaac)
(Meanwhile, 5 blocks away from Amy's house)
I need to run.
The rumbling behind me stopped as I dived under the cupboard for cover. My head throbbed with pain, and my breathing was ragged. A chill ran down my spine as I checked for broken bones. None. That's a relief. I was just thinking of my next course of action, as my ears were hit by a sickly sweet voice.
Jack.
"Lookie here, dear Isaac. You know you can't escape. Even if you did, you're getting nowhere. I suggest you come out now, or else I wouldn't be so friendly. You have 5 minutes."
It's been two years in this hellhole. I can't take this anymore. I'm getting out of here, no matter what. He betrayed me. He captured me. He experimented on me. And as if that wasn't enough, he captured anyone like me. ACSD isn't a disease. It's a curse, especially with Jack around.
"Hm, 4 minutes and counting. If you aren't coming out yourself, I'll have no choice but to mess with the others!"
No.
I won't let you hurt them. I can't stop you. Or escape. But I can delay. It's plain pathetic, really, being literally too small to stop you. You know this, and you're using me. But I'll walk right into this trap if it means saving them.
"Wait! I'm coming! Don't take them!" I yelled as I ran straight towards him.
"That was sooner than I expected, you had 7 seconds to spare." He scoffed, "But I'm not very truthful, am I?"
A shiver ran down my spine as he bent low and picked me up in a carelessly tight grip. I shot him a glare, as he straightened up.
"Oh, come on Isaac. I need 2 this time. You're the first. And second? Hmm, how about Claire? Or Charlie? Actually, how abou-"
"Can't you make do with one?" I interjected, completely unfazed from his size and rough handling.
This is how you become if you're trapped for 2 years. In one room. With a maniac like Jack. He used to be my friend. But fate turned us into foes. At least he made it look that way.
"You've grown undisciplined again, Isaac. Do I need to teach you again?"
I'd like to see that.
"No, but you could-"
"NO! You will NOT talk back! Understood?" He yelled.
I could only nod as he started moving at a high speed, the world becoming a blur from all directions. I clutched my ears to block out the noises, but they were already ringing. This was the worst escape, so far. He didn't even try to catch me. He just coaxed me out of my hiding place, without breaking a sweat. And he seemed calm. A calm Jack meant trouble, and that specifically made me dread this failed escape attempt. My ears pained, as he blabbered carelessly. He knew that loud voices hurt my ears. That's why he was even louder.
33rd Failed Escape.
I really thought I could get away this time. Get help, and get everyone out.
But no, I'm to stay here.
---
"Get Connor, and you have 40 seconds. You know the consequences." He said coldly as I was dropped inside the miniature house. The fall wasn't much, but my body was already battered with bruises, and Jack's none too gentle handling would show its full effect by tomorrow. I entered the 'dollhouse', as it was called by Jack. It would have looked pretty, but seeing the fact that this had served as my prison since the last 24 months, there was nothing 'pretty' about the place.
It stood on a low lying table, with a miniature ladder attached on the side for us. Real caring, I thought sarcastically.
As I entered, all 5 of us that Jack had captured shuffled in fear inside the house. Since his mother was arrested for being unable to reverse shrinking in the ACSD cure she invented, and losing his father to an angry mob, he had turned into a monster... Sometimes I felt sorry for him. Then I remind myself of what he did to me. Of what he's done to me, Charlie, Connor, Claire and Ava.
Jack's a monster.
And that an undeniable fact.
(POV Jack)
Capturing Isaac was a piece of cake. There isn't exactly a lot of things someone 3 inches tall could do if someone who's relatively a hundred feet tall tries to do anything to them. I was his friend. Then I kidnapped him- No. I didn't kidnap him. He betrayed me. I trusted him, and he betrayed me. My mother made the cure, and the downsized betrayed me and my mother. They had wronged me, and I was only undoing the the damage by experimenting on them. It's only fair to capture them, to be stuck in a prison like her. And if they're here anyways, no harm in making use of them in experiments.
It's the least I can do to try to fix this mess to bring mom out of prison.
Of course, she didn't know. In fact, no one except me knew about this. And I intend on keeping it this way. Last thing I need is police knocking down my door and carrying 5 missing people from my room. 5 small, 3 inch tall people, but still, it would be inconvenient. And mom would probably be horrified too.
Oh, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about. Ok... I'm Jack Hood. Like most people say about me, I'm just like my mother. In fact, she named me 'Jack' because she said that when she first saw me, she knew that I would be the jack of all trades. And everything was wonderful. I was born in America, and stayed there till I was 6. But then it all changed.
My mother, Linda Hood, was a Medical Researcher. She was the one who found a cure for ACSD, when I was 4. She was the one who saved all those lives. It came at a cost though. The people would be saved, but the cure would leave them about 20 times smaller than a normal person. About three inches tall. Her superiors never took heed of this, and despite her protests, the cure was released. It made her a celebrity overnight. And then the protests came. Soon, the protests turned aggressive, and we had to leave America for Sydney, Australia.
My mother kept a record of all ACSD patients, and regularly updated it. She said that it was her duty to make sure that they were healthy, and safe. And I used to agree with her.
Isaac Smith, file ISAAC-004, had been one of the first cases. His ACSD treatment was successful when he was 5 years old. We met at school when we were both 9, and became best friends. It was weird, because of the obvious, but we made it work.
Yeah. My best friend happened to be 20 times smaller than me. So I was practically his guardian, ferrying him across classes and shielding him from bullies. Good times.
Not that he'll ever forgive me for what I'm doing to him.
You see, the protests died down, but my father was gone, courtesy of a mob. Or more specifically, a mob who targeted him. We moved to this quiet little town, when I was 14. More of a suburb, but hey, I'm not complaining. But what came afterwards was worse, or so I think. The parents of one of the shrunken patients, Ava Turing, sued my mother. And they were lawyers. The case didn't last long. My mom's boss and other colleagues straight-up blamed her, and exited. The government took the cure from her, and gave her something I couldn't even imagine.
A life sentence.
What happened in the coming weeks was horrifying to me. Richard and Evie Roberts, close friends of my mom were made my foster parents. They tried their best, but it was too much for any 14 year old. I was allowed to see her once every 3 months. Soon, my hatred for the so-called 'downsized' grew. They were the ones who messed up my life. And they would pay.
Isaac tried to comfort me. But I left him, not even eyeing him a single time. One day, he came alone, without telling anyone. I don't know what got over me, but I quickly captured him. He'll pay all the same. He's the reason my family's not with me.
Though the cure was gone, the lab at home was intact. I kept Isaac in a cage for months. He screamed, he cursed. But in the end, he just kept quiet. It almost hurt me, seeing what I was doing to him. But then I remind myself- This is his fault. His fault, and the fault of all the downsized. They must pay.
"Isaac 30 seconds and countin- oh. There you are. Took you long enough." I said, while roughly grabbing him and Connor. They didn't deserve and better.
So yeah, I started experimenting on Isaac. I actually had no idea what I was even supposed to do, but I figured I needed more test subjects. So, whenever I get the chance, I grab any shrunken patients around. That's how I got 5 of them. Capturing them wasn't the hard part. Doing it unnoticed was. But I had my own files of all the shrunken. It was handy, especially for recognizing them. I took a look at it each night before sleeping. Even though there were over 300 cases, I tried skimming through most of them.
File- ISAAC-004. Isaac Smith. Age 16. Captured for experimentation at age 14. He's the one who has been trying to escape the most. Been here for 2 years. He should know better than to escape. His bright face was replaced by a dull expression in the first year of capture. He barely sleeps at night. We used to be friends. Not anymore, we're not.
File- CHARLIE-209. Charlie Toulson. Age 14. Captured for experimentation at age 13. I found that he lived in Brisbane, with his guardian. Parents, businessmen were away for 2 months. A 3 hour drive to see my mother, and I came back with him in a jar in my bag. Isaac said that I was going insane when Charlie arrived. Not that I care of whatever he says.
File- AVA-034. Ava Turing. Age 16. Captured at age 15. She's the reason for all this mess. And I intend to make her aware of that. But something weird happened when I captured her. Isaac had pretty much kept to himself till now, quiet and all. He gave up on escaping, but on seeing Ava, he just went bonkers, screaming and cursing to no end. I was actually scared that Richard or Evie might hear him, and made sure that he sprained each foot and taped him to the floor. Curious, as he never reacted when the others were brought in... Apparently, he and Ava knew each other well. More reason to hate him, I guess.
It was then, that I realized that they needed a bigger enclosure. So, I brought out a sample 'downsized' house from the lab, large enough for 10 occupants. Placed it on a low-lying table, and attached a ladder for them to use. I didn't want them to escape, so I gave them only bare minimum supplies and kept all the doors and windows- both small and normal- locked at all times.
File- CONNOR-318. Connor Williams. Age 10. Captured 6 months ago, with Claire Mitchell. They were a part of an interschool buddy program. I wasn't paired with his grade, but snuffed both him and Claire out of there when I saw fit. They arrived in a single jar, unconscious. Ava went berserk on seeing them, yelling at me how low I was, capturing someone so young. A half-meter drop silenced her.
File- CLAIRE-319. Claire Mitchell. Age 10. Captured 6 months ago, with Connor Williams. Refer to CONNOR-318 for details. She has this insane smile whenever I look at her. It doesn't fade when I'm angry, or even while experimenting on her. It's unnerving. And the speaks in short bursts, and that too random gibberish. She only acts and talks normal when I'm not around.
---
And never once did I feel remorse.
No need for that feeling.
Especially not for them.
I smiled as we came to the lab, unnoticed by Evie. Richard was at his office, so no need to worry about him. I sat the two down on a desk and locked the door. I can't be discovered doing this.
"Are you going to do something, or what? Let's get this over with." Isaac said loudly. His voice lacked emotion. Like usual.
I smiled. "You know, I'll give you some advice. Clear up a room in the house, hm?"
My smile grew as Connor took a step back, horrified. Isaac didn't move, but his face spoke for him.
"Y-you found another one?"
"Yes. AMY-142. She'll be my classmate from tomorrow. Just like you, Isaac. But don't worry. She'll be here by the next week to keep you company. You can thank my class teacher for telling everyone about that. Oh, and make sure she's comfortable when she gets here. My teacher told us to make her welcome in the class."
I was confident with what I said. The tests ended without incident. Without Isaac yelling or even without Connor trying some crazy escape stunts. I locked Isaac and Connor back in the 'dollhouse' as I called it. And surely enough, they started clearing a spare room. Not that there was much to clear. I never gave them much, except for food and water.
After 2 years and 5 captured 'downsized', I had become better at getting them. Amy would be different though. Her file says that she was born with ACSD. So, she's naturally better than most other shrunken. Faster, and smarter too, as a huge world was pretty much the only normal she knew.
She could dodge, but I can grab.
She can run, but her escape will be drab.
I'll get her like the rest,
And if she resists, for her, it won't be the best.
For the first time, I took a look at only one file before going to bed. Amy will be captured, I'm sure of it. I felt a pang of guilt as I looked at that innocent face, smiling eternally in the photo. No. She's just like them. Undeserving of any pity.
I pushed these thoughts aside as I looked at the file.
File- AMY-142. Amy Edwards. Age 16. To be captured soon.
As I slept, I made my plan. And no, it wasn't just 'go and grab'. I think of everything, taking into consideration all the scenarios from my previous plans. It'll be flawless. Another captured 'downsized', without incident.
I'll get you, Amy. And you won't even know what hit you.