Mission Cure

CHAPTER TWENTY - M:FAC/1 - Charlie

CHARLIE

Shouldn't they be back already with the cake? How long has it been? An hour? Five minutes? Beth would be home soon, and the kids were getting rambunctious.

"Settle down back there!" he called toward the bedroom. "It's almost time for ice cream!"

Adrian was giving him a weird look. But there wasn't time to analyze it before the kids opened the bedroom door and came running into the living room.

"Ice cream!?" Oren shouted.

"Nyet," Adrian answered quickly. "No ice cream."

"Of course there's ice cream," Charlie chuckled. "How can you have a birthday party without ice cream?"

The kids started cheering.

"Who's birthday is it?" Oliver asked, leaning into Charlie's lap. His neck looked so appetizing that Charlie wished he would lean a little closer. Skin so soft and fragile, easily pierced.

Wait!

Charlie pressed his back against the chair. Why were the kids acting all excited and talking about a party? Why was little Anni saying, "Love ice cream," over and over again.

"What's going on?" he asked Adrian. "What party are they talking about?"

"Okay," Adrian stood up and ushered the kids back to the twin's room. "No party now. Maybe later."

The door closed, muffling the boys' disappointment. Charlie could hear them talking about their favorite ice creams - of course, they only know of the makeshift flavors created on the Fleet. Neither of the twins were old enough to remember the Sunday mornings Beth would take them for ice-cream cones back in the day. Oren would always ask for mint, and Oliver would tell him, 'Green is yucky'.

Charlie smiled at the fond memory.

Then the itching returned. He could feel Adrian watching him from across the room with wary eyes. Normally, he would try to ease his worries, explain that everything would be alright. But he was having enough trouble hanging onto his thoughts - there was no way he could devote energy to helping Adrian.

A muscle in his neck started to spasm. Then his shoulder was twitching. He couldn't make it stop. No matter how hard he concentrated on keeping still, his head moved with the involuntary convulsions. When he tried to reach for his shoulder, he realized he couldn't move his arm. Not only was it tied down, but his entire left arm was paralyzed.

Adrian's voice was just an echo very far away.

Charlie was alone, warring against this loss of control. He was loosing himself. His memories were like liquid mercury, blending one into another, indecipherable, confusing him to the point of absolute frustration.

A minute passed. Or maybe longer. Time felt like it was slipping into the abyss of Charlie's mind as he lost his grip on reality. He could feel it, sand through his fingers.

One second, he was Charlie - father of three, resident of Ship One, with complete control over his body and mind. The next, he was waiting for Beth to return to the party.

Beth...

In a last-ditch effort to hang onto his sanity, he focused on that singular image - Beth. With her ever-smiling face and curly, brown hair. With her sure stride and encouraging words. She'd made everyone around her feel safe.

Then Beth was suddenly dripping in blood and reaching for her children, a wild look on her face. She grabbed Oren. He struggled, but she tightened her grip and bit his neck with enough ferocity that she shredded the flesh. His little body went limp.

Charlie began to cry.

What if they untied him? What if he couldn't protest because he was locked in the cage of his own mind? What if he couldn't protect his children from himself?

Just then, Adrian moved closer. In a motion of rescue, his fist came swinging through the air.

Thank you, was Charlie's last thought.

Then everything went dark.