Guests
“I don’t think we should tempt those weird machines,” Pammy warned. Without replying Daniel turned and started down the passageway to the left. She was ready to submit to a fate of being drawn in by the unnerving glow but her meandering gait was interrupted by David.
“Come on. Pammy thinks she found something in one of the rooms,” he said. Daniel hadn’t noticed when the two had temporarily disappeared from her side. She’d almost forgotten there were doors in the hallway. She nodded slowly and followed David back to Pam.
The room they walked into smelled musty with an unpleasant undertone of acidity. There were broken beakers and chemistry equipment lying toppled on the floor and a layer of dust coated everything. No one had been there for a long time.
Pammy was hunched over a metal table shoved against the back wall of the abandoned lab. She beckoned them over without looking up. When they arrived behind her she stabbed her finger at a yellowing piece of paper. It had a sketch of what looked to be the cattails Daniel had so unfortunately stumbled upon. Daniel grabbed it excitedly. Her eyes swept across the page hurriedly. The writing was jumbled and smudged in more than a few places, leaving it to be a confusing piece of literature. Daniel listed off the keywords quietly as she read.
“Genetic mutations, cattails, experiments...Project Zero?” she paused. Her friends looked as confused as she was. “What the hell is Project Zero?”
“I don’t know...” Pammy began sifting through the other pages scattered on the table, searching for some other hint.
“Ah but I do.” The three investigators jumped at the deep voice of their unexpected guest...or unexpected host more like it. They whirled around to face a tall figure hidden in the shadows. Daniel uttered a short hiss and brandished her claws, Pammy doing likewise with her flashlight. The figure stepped out into the dim light, hands raised in surrender. It was an old man, his hair stark white. He was wearing an eye patch, a tattered lab coat, and a calm smile. “Please, do not be alarmed. I don’t mean you any harm.”
Neither Pammy nor Daniel lowered their weapons.
“Who are you? What do you want?” Daniel asked. Her tone was sharp but her voice was shaking slightly.
“Oh it’s not about what I want but what you want. And you want to know about Project Zero, correct?” the man replied, still smiling. He didn’t get a response. “Project Zero is a group that like many people in this complex--including myself, work with genetics and well...transformation. I can see you’ve already experienced this firsthand?”
Still he was given no response and continued, ever as mild-mannered. “As for me, I believe Project Zero chooses less than favorable methods to receive results unlike the likes of Zeta or myself. It is quite unfortunate.”
“Can you do something about...this?” Daniel had relaxed slightly and made a sweeping gesture over her torso. The man appeared pleased.
“I can...if you want me to. You seem to have adapted to it quite well,” he remarked. Daniel felt about ready to growl at him she was so peevish but before she could form a clever retort she was distracted by a delicate touch on her arm. She looked down to see Pammy staring at her, eyebrows furrowed.
“Are you sure you trust him?” she spoke softly.
“I don’t but he’s the only useful thing we’ve found in here.” Daniel didn’t bother speaking quietly and turned back to the man immediately after she finished the sentence. He was already leaving the room, hands clasped behind his back.
“If you want my help, you should follow along,” he called. Soon after he began humming a tune Daniel had never heard before. The melody melted slowly into the very walls, becoming disconcerting background music to Daniel’s thoughts as she tried to decide whether it was worth it to follow this mad stranger.
Written by Flutterbest on 08 January 2018
