Beyond the Horizon

28. Lab Partners

Nezumi's heart raced as the dog stalked forward, its muzzle curled back in a warning sneer. The thick brown fur at the scruff of its neck bristled as a low growl rumbled in its throat. Nezumi took a step back and hit the wall. There was nowhere to go.

          Why did the Lab lock him in a room with a vicious mutt? They had invested years of energy and resources to bring him in—it didn't make sense that they would put all that effort into securing him, only to let a mangy dog tear his throat out.

          Had Rashi gone rogue? The man seemed to harbor a deep-seated hatred for Nezumi, though so far Nezumi had not been able to pinpoint why. He knew he had never met Rashi before in all his years of dodging the Lab. Whatever his reason for despising Nezumi, however, was it strong enough for Rashi to go against Horizon Labs' orders and have Nezumi maimed?

          Or maybe the Lab is thinking to hobble me so I can't cause trouble. My power is mind-based; if they wanted to use me as a weapon later, they wouldn't need my body to work.

          The thought sent a nauseating chill down his spine. He wanted to believe that this couldn't be the case, but he knew better than to trust the Lab was above such horrors. If Rashi or Mirai had provided a strong enough case for Nezumi's danger level, despite the scramblers blocking his powers, Horizon Labs would certainly make sure he was contained by any means necessary.

          No. This is not happening.

          Nezumi Reached into the dog's mind to calm it, but as soon as he tried, he knew that it wouldn't work. His powers had no effect on animals. When he was younger he had experimented on the birds and mice around the cabin, but none ever responded to his nudges or commands. He could never figure out why or what it was about animal brains that differed from humans'; he only knew that he couldn't control them as he could his fellow men.

          His mental suggestion for calm sunk into the dog's mind and passed through like wind through the trees. The dog lowered its head, its growls rising in timbre.

          Alright. Fighting it is then.

          Nezumi wasn't just a threat to an unprotected mind. His main antagonists were the Lab, of course, but humanity in general was a dangerous, selfish species, so Nezumi had made sure he had means to defend himself from anyone and anything that came for him.

          He had never had to fight off an animal, and would rather not hurt a creature that was only obeying the commands of its master, but Nezumi's life came first. There was no time for feelings when his survival was on the line.

          Nezumi straightened against the wall and prepared himself for the moment when the dog lunged.

          Something crackled overhead. Nezumi flinched and glanced up as a voice boomed in the room, its sound tinny from the metal speakers he hadn't noticed were set into the ceiling.

          "Alright, that's enough, mutt."

          As soon as the words were uttered, the dog yelped and began to thrash. Nezumi's breath stuttered in his throat as the creature snarled, tossing its head back and forth as though it were trying to shake off an invisible attacker. It was painful to watch, but also... Something was familiar about the dog's distress. It looked almost like the mental anguish some of Nezumi's subjects experienced when they attempted to fight off his suggestions.

          The dog bucked and yelped, crashing into the wall once, twice, and then it whimpered and slumped onto the floor. Its body started shivering. Nezumi's eyes widened as he watched the dog's body shrink down and take the form of a child.