The Mutation Wave

Chapter 19: A New Conviction

The ice bed slowly floated back to ground level. It turned back into water once everyone got off, seeping back into the earth. There was a moment of silence as the group took in their devastated surroundings. Apart from the mangled bodies that littered the ground, the wall that used to surround the settlement was reduced to rubble. The main building however, remained mostly intact. William closed his eyes, feeling for the presence of every water body within the settlement. Thankfully, there were no more live zombies left and more than half of the settlement had survived, still huddling in their rooms. They were safe for now.

"Where are the guards?" Yuxia spat, grabbing Alexei by his shirt.

"I don't know what you're talking about-"

Yuxia slapped him, knocking him back to the ground. "Don't lie to me, you little shit. I saw you call them away from their posts. And then the tanks came. That was no coincidence."

Alexei laughed. "I simply called the guards away to protect them from turning into zombies."

"So, where are they?" William asked calmly, driving the arrow further into his wound.

The man trashed and screamed, but William kept a firm grip on him. He breathed painfully when William stopped. "They... They are in a better place. Their bodies, unfortunately, have to remain in this hell hole."

"Oh my god, you killed them. You freaking killed them!" Yuxia drew her dagger and raised her hand, but William stopped her.

"We'll let Victor deal with him," William muttered.

"Uhm... may I know what's going on?" Masako asked in a timid voice.

"Right, right. You must be very confused," William chuckled. "Yuxia, you wanna tell her what happened?"

~ ~ ~

One day ago...

William fiddled with the glass of water at his bedside, allowing his mind to run free. The water sloshed about in its holder like a tiny ocean in a storm, creating shapes that dissipated as quickly as they were formed.

Helplessness. Regret. Guilt.

The medical bay was quiet, which only made the berating voices in his head louder. He turned his attention to the water beside him to tune them out, but it had once again solidified into an icy figurine of a woman. The hydrokinetic man sighed, turning the ice back to liquid.

"Trouble sleeping?"

William looked up at the albino girl leaning against the doors. Her reddish white arms contrasted with the dark green vest hanging loosely from her petite frame. A white jacket was wrapped around her waist, blending in with her similarly coloured pants.

"Didn't think you'd still be here," he mumbled. "What's it to you?"

"Don't be so rude." She strolled over and sat on the empty bed beside him. "I'm here to thank you."

"For what?"

Yuxia held up a small, clear piece of oval-shaped plastic. "For helping people like me."

William stared at it for a while before the memories came back to him. He smiled slightly. "Ah, the contact lenses for people with albinism. That was a lifetime ago. I don't have the biology knowledge to make more for you, if that's what you're going to ask for. It was your father who pioneered this project."

Obviously to give his legally blind daughter 20/20 vision.

"No, no. Dad already left behind more than a lifetime's supply for me. Just thought it'll be polite to thank the man who manufactured them." Yuxia's expression darkened as she took out a voice recorder from her pocket. "But now that we've gotten the pleasantries aside, you guys are in for some trouble."