The Irangel | Prequel Story |

Chapter 31 ~ Agony

He could see the desperation in her eyes as she anxiously sought a way to prolong life by investing all her energy into searching for something he knew was impossible, though she still clung to that blind hope, the same hope Justin had tried to talk her out of, but with no success. He could still see the heartbreak that remained deep in her heart from her loss. He knew he was not the one she loved, yet it made him wonder if she'd mourn like this for him if he were dead. Some small part of him knew she would, though doubt lingered, threatening to dash his hopes.

It was a difficult, exhausting task for Tori to try to learn all the science and biology of the Iredescent alien species they had all become. She had but limited resources from the ship she'd stolen from planet Iredescent, as well as her human knowledge from college courses she'd taken. Her degree in human biology and anatomy wasn't helpful in that Iredescent bodies were very different from human bodies.

Iredescent bodies were complex and unique. Iredescent blood corroded and wore away at human skin from contact. It was sort of like mercury and other metals that burned through human skin, but Iredescent blood wasn't a metal; it was just blood, a powerful blood that dominated human blood while also having the capability of killing other lifeforms from contact. Tori thought it was one of the most phenomenal designs of the Iredescent lifeform. Who knew that their blood could either kill or transform another lifeform upon contact? she thought, watching as Iredescent blood killed a beetle from contact.

The n-r element that gave Iredescents their shimmery skin and wings/fins seemed to have lunar origins and properties deriving from Iredescent's two moons. But Tori had no way of confirming anything; all she had to go by was her limited knowledge of everything Iredescent. There were other components of the Iredescent body that Tori knew nothing of. She had seen some of their abilities in action, but had no idea why only certain Iredescents had abilities while others didn't. Camdren's ability to melt metal really fueled her drive to learn more about the Iredescent body.

She started experimenting on the irangels to try to find more information so she could use that information for her own purposes. She sought for a way to bring Nate back to life, but first she needed to find immortality so she could immediately make him immortal after she brought him to life. Tori suspected electricity was key to bringing the dead back to life, and she sort of had an idea how exactly to do it, but she never tested it, too intent on discovering immortality first. She didn't want to bring Nate back to life just so he could die again.

She started with internal study. She chose Millian for his slim, fit body and the fact that he had vision impairment as a human. Turning into an Iredescent had completely restored his vision, giving Millian cause to celebrate never having to wear glasses nor contact lenses ever again.

But Tori wanted to know precisely how Iredescent blood did that and how exactly it restored vision and eyesight. She had watched how Iredescent blood and elements turned humans into Iredescents; now she wanted to know how it did that.

Even though Tori had given Millian anesthesia so he would be unconscious while she cut open his body to examine and study his internal organs, Millian woke up screaming, the pain cutting through his consciousness.

His cries echoed in the hallway, reaching where the irangels were chained to the wall to keep from interfering with Tori's work. Cole's eyes widened in horror. Camdren exclaimed, "It sounds like she's cutting him open!"

Alarm, shock, horror, and dismay flashed through all their faces. Fear gripped them as Millian's screams and cries continued. Cole began violently tugging against the chains, moving rapidly until he suddenly broke free of the chains with an electronic spark, inadvertently freeing Justin who was chained with him. The irangels stared at them in astonishment. Eamon yelled, "Go help him!" propelling Cole to run for the experimentation room, Justin behind him.