Mutations:
~ Chapter Three ~
"Wake up, Six!"
Inhaling sharply, my senses began to regain consciousness once again, and snapped back into action. My body was heavy with the need for rest, and I momentarily feared that exhaustion would eat me alive one day.
Everything would hurt when I woke up properly, I just knew it would.
Already, my sensitive nose was picking up the sharpness of floor cleaner, and the antibiotics that were clouding the air. I could taste Eric's cologne, and feel the itchy fabric beneath me too well.
Brightness temporarily blinded me as my eyes fluttered open, and I could see dust follicles swaying in the air above me. Everything felt hyperaware, and I needed to stay still for it to pass- until the ambush of floral perfume, that threatened to burn out my nostrils!
As expected, my muscles greeted me with a painful burning ache. The memory of my fight flashed back into my mind at a lightning speed, and my eyes sharpened.
"Is he here?"
Acting before I could think, I was out of the stiff bed I had been sprawled out in moments before, and on my feet. My hand's collided with Eric's broad chest as I shoved him hard against the wall, taking a protective stance in front of him.
Not something that I had ever done before in my life. I wanted to move, and apologize for grabbing him in the way I did but there was a stronger instinct inside of me that wouldn't allow it.
An almost primal instinct.
Even Eric seemed startled by my sudden movement, and he held his hands up, "We're the only ones that are in here." He answered in a soothing tone, touched with caution as he watched me carefully, "What is it, that you think you're doing?"
"What, it's not obvious?" I snapped, ignoring his every word as I pressed him harder against the wall. Moving my nose across his body, inhaling deep enough that I could smell the lingering scent of his last meal. I didn't smell him, so he wasn't here, yet
That was a small mercy.
My forearm was pressed hard enough Eric's throat to keep him in place against the wall, but light enough so that he had no problems breathing. Although, I could see the discomfort on his face, "You're protecting me." He announced, staring into my soul with that look in his eyes.
Just that expression itself, screamed out knowledge beyond my own. I hated that he didn't share all that he knew with me, but I understood why. There was a new feeling bursting inside of me that was distracting, to say the least, and it made my shoulders bunch together.
I had always believed that Eric didn't, ever, need to be protected from anything, because he could protect himself, but now I knew the truth.
He was mine to protect, and I needed to do just that. If that Three ever came at Eric, he would be dead. No way would he survive. Eric was right, I was protecting him. Because I needed to be the one to protect him, so that he would be safe, no one else can do it like I can.
"He'll come back." I announced, as I lifted my hand away from him, and stepped forward with my gaze locked on the doors window, peering out of it for any sign of Subject Three.
Eric stepped away from the wall, and moved towards the back of the room towards the chair. His movements were slow, so not to startle me anymore than I was, and it made comfort swell through me, "What makes you believe that?" He asked me, almost robotically, as he placed his arm on the rests.
"He needs to finish the kill. There was no settlement."
I wasn't sure what I was talking about, but both Eric and I knew what I meant. One of us had to win our fight or give up. What was inside my DNA knew it.
There was too much pride in me to lose, which meant that I'd either had to win, or fight to my own death because walking away as a loser wasn't an option.
He would be back. and I knew it. Because I know that I want to finish the fight.
"Six! What are you doing out of bed!?"
Recoiling away from the door in disgust, a wave of perfume smothered me, and hit my sensitive nose like a shark in the water. The stench was awful, and ruining any trail of Three that may have been in the air! It was like a damn chemical flower bed in here now, the sickly-sweet waft of it was burning me.
My eyes began to water as I backed away from her with a low mutter, and retreated to the back of the room to where Eric sat, in obvious amusement. He knew how I felt about body products such as perfume. He wore aftershave, but he didn't pour half of the bottle on like this one did!
Sometimes, I wondered if the people here done it on purpose.
"How are you, Mary?" Eric asked, ignoring my grumpy expression. Pain had locked on me, and now burned painfully through my spine. It felt like someone had lit me on fire!
Mary was probably the most annoyingly nice person in the world. She kind of reminded me of a little lamb, with her big blue eyes that reflected everything back at you in a bright light.
She could probably see the goodness in Satan.
Her honey hair was tied back into a ponytail as she moved towards me, her unwelcome cloak of chemicals following her.
"I'd be a lot better if she would stay in her bed." Mary scolded me, in that irritatingly kind voice, "You've ripped out your I.V that was feeding you painkillers! You need your rest, Six. Back in the cot, now!"
There was something on the tip of my tongue that was going to come out, along the lines of, 'and you need to stop bathing in perfume' but one look from Eric made the words evaporate into nothing at all. He was trying to teach me about manners, but they were hard to define in these kinds of states.
I did not want to say thank you to someone for putting a needle in my arm.
My mouth opened to deliver some kind excuse, when a siren began to screech through the air and my spine went rigid. Eric noticed straight away as my gaze locked on the door that had been left open, only a tiny inch.
But that was enough.
Animal instinct took over as I brushed past Mary before she even knew what was happening, swiftly taking the key card that hung from her jacket pocket as I went. Eric's voice yelled after me but I pulled the door shut behind me, and slipped the car through the locking system, ignoring his yells.
"I've got you." I muttered, tearing through the now busy corridors. People swerved out of my way as I stormed past them, following Three's scent.
But he found me first.
A large hand gripped me by the neck, and slammed me hard to the ground. It was only then I could judge his muscular build, and towering height over me; he looked like a goddamn Spartan!
All muscle, no bones. Animal instinct took over when Eric's scent moved closer to me, and I drove my knee into his gut, and kicked him over me so that I was on top of him.
This time, I wanted the advantage.
I knocked my knuckles into his face before he got the chance to react, bringing my hands around his head, and cracking it against the ground. It was so hard that his eyes rolled from the hit.
His eyes were still so strange to me. They were such a strange colour that I had never seen before, or should I say colours.
One of his eyes was a vivid lime greenish colour, tinged with something closer to a stormy grey around his pupil, but his other eye was an intense shade of blue that was swirled in with a golden tint in them.
Chemical.
Too bad they wouldn't ever open again. I wasn't wasting any time in finishing what he started, my hands curled around his throat until my bloodied knuckles whitened beneath the skin.
Eric was yelling in the background, demanding that I stop but how could I, not like this. Not when my true nature had consumed me. Even my Handler couldn't break that kind of concentration, not even I could.
Eric didn't understand the threat this man posed to him. As much as I hated it, he either had to die, or give up.
Could you live with yourself, with death on your hands?
The voice travelled through my mind like a hushed whisper, and I thought about it as I continued to squeeze. Three's face was rapidly turning red but his gaze was locked onto me, it was still unfocused though, like he wasn't seeing. My eyes swept down his attire once again and I saw his clothes, like mine, the number printed neatly on his shirt...
Realization hit me with a force.
Inhaling deeply my hands loosened around his neck, and he sprung away from me but I was too preoccupied with sniffing the air whilst sitting on the ground. He moved away quickly as he stood in front of a tall woman, his stance defensive. Like mine was with Eric.
"He's like me..."I breathed under my breath as I rose to my feet, unconsciously moving towards Eric who grabbed me by the arm, and hauled me away like a naughty child, "Eric, he's like me!"
Now, I understood why he was so inhumanly fast and strong. Three was a Splice, there really were others out there like me! I wasn't alone anymore.
My mind was torn in half about how to feel about this. My human side wanted to celebrate, but the animal inside me wasn't pleased with the discovery. Subject Three is now a bigger threat than ever.
Being me was difficult that way. I had two conscious sides to me; the animal, and the human. The war between them was constant, and it effected my behaviour, making it often unpredictable.
Knowing that I wasn't the only one of my kind was just like throwing gas at fire, and all my questions began to shimmer to life, with more joining the grand ball of them. Why was there two of us? Who was the oldest? Too many questions to count burdened my mind.
Eric wouldn't answer them until he saw fit, and the cold stare on his face told me that he was in deep thought. I wondered what his test meant. Why he wanted us to meet that way, instead of just raising us together? Maybe having someone like myself around whilst growing up would settle me down.
I wondered if Three thought the same, or if he was angry at me for trying to kill him.
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A/N
Hey, everyone!
So, from now on a couple more of the Splices will be introduced. The story kind of takes off from here, and I really hope you guys stick around to read the rest!
I really hope you all like this chapter! Three is one of my favorite Splices, and I cannot wait to develop this character for you all!
Thanks for reading, and for voting!
- EmbracingYou
(Another edited chapter that is different from the original, not by much at all but re-readers might notice it!)