The Curse of Taloncrest Manor

Chapter 15: An Unexpected Detour

"I sure hope you're right," Ricardo said worriedly to Jane as the group rushed towards the third floor. "We don't really have many leads other than this...." "If your friend isn't here, we could always search the balcony for clues, instead." Jane responded before she paused for a moment. "You know.....you and this 'Rose' fellow....it sounds like you and your friends have gone through quite a lot in order to get to her. You must truly love her." 

Ricardo smiled. "Of course. Her and I have been together for three years. I would move heaven and earth for her, if it came to it." "Move heaven and earth....." Jane remained silent for a little while. "Those are the same words Bart and I often said to each other when we were together...." She sighed. "I miss those days...." 

"Umm....hey! I got a problem here!" James suddenly called out to the two of them, gesturing to the balcony door. "It's locked." "What?!" Elijah exclaimed. He tried to tug on the doorknob as best he could, but to no avail. Cooper rolled his eyes. "Don't worry about it. It shouldn't be a problem. Jane's a ghost; she can just go through it." Ricardo turned to him. ".....But dude, what about us? We're not spirits, so we're not able to do that." James sat down near the door. "Well, now what are we going to do?" 

Just then, around the corner, a strange, humanoid creature peaked its head out. It looked reminiscent of a zombie, complete with rotting flesh, exposed bones, and a missing right arm. It was also about as tall as an average man. Cooper's jaw dropped. "Ewww! What is that thing?!" Ricardo instinctively stepped in front of the group. "Calm down, you guys.....it doesn't seem aggressive. It's just standing there.....for now." At that moment, Elijah spotted a familiar-looking object hanging around the zombie's neck. ".....Ricky.....? Is that.....?" James gasped. "That's the key to the balcony!" 

The zombie, having seemingly understood that it had something that Ricardo's group needed, began to turn around and run away. "After it!" James exclaimed as the crew began to chase the aberration through the halls of the mansion. The pursuit undid almost all the progress they made, as the zombie led them back down to the second floor, and eventually the first floor, jumping down the kitchen cellar which led to the basement.

"Well, we're not getting anywhere without that key. Let's go!" James urged the others. The zombie decided to take the elevator further down, forcing Ricardo's group to use the stairs. Once they met up with the creature again on the B2 level, they chased him through a familiar-looking labyrinth of exposed wires and damaged lab equipment. "Ricky.....? Do you think....he's.....still here?" Elijah asked, recalling their previous journey through the area. "Maybe. Still, it doesn't look like we have a choice. Remember, we have stuff to defend ourselves now. Hopefully it won't be so bad." Ricardo replied. 

"What......? I don't remember any of this being down here!" Jane exclaimed. "I thought the basement had been sealed!" She had remained blissfully unaware of everything that had happened down here since Dr. Lockwood's admission into the manor in 1903, or how his creation had ultimately rebelled against him and began practicing much darker work than its predecessor. 

After chasing the zombie around one final corner, the group skid to a halt, shocked at what they saw. Along the outer walls of the laboratory room stood numerous glass cages of countless zombies, who all looked extremely aggressive and were constantly banging on the glass attempting to get out. In addition, in the back two corners of the room stood two grotesque creatures; one was an abomination of stitches and organs, missing an eye and possessing an extra two arms which seemed to burst out of his back. In the opposite corner was another creature that stood slightly taller, and who was colored a sickly shade of brown. Its eyes had slit pupils and were positioned at different levels on its face, with the upper-left quarter of its face looking like it had been sewn on hurriedly to the rest of it. It also had a red pointed tongue always hanging out of its mouth. 

The zombie they were chasing ran up to a shadowy figure and deposited the balcony key into its hand. "Ahahahaha! Welcome back, my soon-to-be test subjects." said a familiar voice. 

"Dr. Octavio?!" Cooper exclaimed. "That's right!" the android said with a grin as he stepped out. "Who.....who are you?" Jane asked. "I don't recall ever seeing you in the mansion during my lifetime." "Oh, if it isn't the master's wife herself, Jane Taloncrest....." Octavio mused. "You know.....your husband really should be careful about who he lets into his mansion.....you never know what they might come up with...." Jane tried to press him further. "What do you mean?"

"Oh....? He didn't tell you anything.....?" Octavio laughed. "Shame on him. He is responsible in part for my creation, after all." 

"Explain yourself at once! Where did you come from? What is it that you have done?" the Taloncrest matron said. 

"After the untimely death of one of his servants, the Taloncrest master turned to different means of attempting to soothe his headaches. To that end, he hired Dr. Geoffrey Lockwood, my......'creator'.....and set him to task. Although the scientist did have good intentions, he was secretly harboring another agenda; he wished to create a human solely from scratch." 

"Death of one of his servants......? Soothe his headaches.....? No....it....it couldn't be....!" Jane muttered as she tried to piece Octavio's words together.

"However, there was one major flaw in the doctor; a severe lack of compassion. Like any scientist, he did not reach his goal right away. He experienced failure after failure after failure, until he created me. But just how did he treat all those who came before me, you ask? With isolation. With neglect. With abandonment. With mistreatment. He failed to treat them the way they deserved. So, I decided that something must be done." 

"I ambushed the doctor as he entered his lab one day, and slaughtered him instantly." The group recoiled in shock. "Believe me, I did not take any pleasure in doing so. I do wish I could have worked with him. It is....rather unfortunate that he proved himself to be unworthy. Still, he did serve a few purposes. After his death, I scanned his brain and downloaded his knowledge into my AI---now I know everything he knows. And I have used that in order to create all of this!" the doctor exclaimed as he gestured to all the zombies around them.

"You see, ever since my creation in 1903, I have had a lot of time to think, and to observe humanity's actions, further compounded by the fact that I was built to not require sleep. For years, I studied various forms of media, from history books, to newspapers, to DVDs, to several television news reports. I had hoped desperately that the behavior which my creator exhibited was only a one-time thing; that all of humanity wasn't like him. But when I concluded my research, I came to a tragic conclusion. Humanity, as a whole, is flawed, and must be terminated." 

"What?!" Ricardo cried. "No....you wouldn't....!" Jane said, stumbling back. "Yes! As soon as I'm done with you, these hit the streets! These durable, mutant zombies can assimilate any unsuspecting human into their ranks with a simple bite---aside from myself, of course. With my army, I will unleash a global zombie apocalypse to exterminate humans from this world altogether." 

"Octavio, I told you before; not everyone is like that," Ricardo said softly. "Oh, look at who's talking. The groundskeeper's little pet. And to think you had given me a sliver of hope before....that happened." Cooper stepped to the front. "What do you have against the groundskeeper, anyway?!" 

"Fool! He is Dr. Geoffrey Lockwood's grandson!" Octavio shot back. The four boys gasped. "He is part of the Lockwood line, the very line which tortured and abused my comrades---by inaction---to no end. Had he had been with you, I would've killed him on the spot, too." The group stayed silent for a while. "......You don't have to worry about him anymore, Octavio." James mused quietly. ".....What?" "He has already met his end." 

The doctor paused for a while, and then laughed heartlessly, much to the disgust of everyone else. "Well, I suppose that saves me a bit of trouble, doesn't it? Still.....there's still the matter of you five standing in my way. But not to worry. I know the perfect person to get rid of you...." 

He walked to the operating table---which had a concealed body on it---and pulled a nearby lever. 

Octavio laughed triumphantly.

"Behold, my greatest work! Dr. Lockwood, we bid you return!"