Exiles: Another Shade of Darkness

The First Exposure

Fire Trucks, Police, & Ambulances started to swarm Zone Labs, the fire measures weren't quick enough to stop the blaze flames from spreading throughout the remaining lower parts of the building. 

Employees stormed out of the lab in a pit of worry & despair. Charred marks rubbed across their faces & clothing. They were coughing profusely, half were either hacking up smoke or being treated for injuries sustained from the burning building. 

Though the burning damage from the existing fire wasn't terrible, once the fire was successfully put out, severe damage was clearly seen throughout parts of the Laboratory. 

"Ma'am, what's your name", A paramedic asked as he wheeled a woman out of the laboratory. 

"My name- my name is Dr. Lucy Lexus", She responded. Her eyes slightly opened as she lifted her head up to look down at her numb limbs. Her body was burnt to a crisp & she had lost feeling in most of her appendages. She closed her eyes again as she rested her head back again, a tear escaped her eye. 

"Lucy, stay with me, stay awake", the paramedic said. "Lucy, I need you to stay awake with me, do you think you can do that"? 

Lucy nodded her head slightly, it was an empty promise that she made, she did not know whether or not she could keep herself awake. 

The paramedic pushed her past the police men & put her in the back of an ambulance. 

"Detective Lore, what's the body count", The sergeant asked as he walked with the detective closer to the scene of the crime. 

"We have four bodies & twenty-seven injured, we're still unsure if we have evacuated the rest of the civilians & it's unsure how many more bodies we'll find after we clear the rubble", Detective Ben Lore said as he & his sergeant walked into the lobby of the building. It was almost untouched by the fire, but there were burn marks on the ceilings & walls. 

"Do we know what happened", the sergeant asked? 

"A fire started simultaneously across many different stories of the building", Detective Lore explained. "Someone knew what they needed to do to burn this place to the ground". 

"How'd the fire start, detective, that's what I want to know", the sergeant asked? 

"Nobody knows, yet, but sergeant, I was the first officer on the premises when Kaine Markoff called about intrutors", Detective Lore spoke, but his sergeant rolled his eyes at the detective. 

"You're crazy superhuman theory, again Lore", The sergeant asked? 

"I saw them with my own eyes, it complies with the witness's statements about superhuman-like beings flying through the sky, robbing banks, & running the streets rancid", Detective Lore explained. "I have a viable witness who says they have video proof of these people". 

"Videos can be faked", the sergeant said. "I don't know what you think you saw up there, but there is no dawn of superhumans. Ever since you came back from Iraq, you haven't been yourself, I think it's time for me to appoint you to a mandated shrink". 

The sergeant started to walk away from Detective Lore. 

"Sergeant", Detective Lore said in disappointment as he walked away. Ben looked down at the ground, but his eyes shifted to his nerve damaged arm. It was a memory of his time in Iraq, that's what he tells people, but what he wouldn't tell anyone, was that his nervous system within his arm was starting to wither away until he no longer could use it. 

He again looked back down at the ground in a pit of rage. On the ground was a puddle that made Ben look back at himself. 

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