Infected

Prologue

The crunch of my brothers skull rattled through my body as a river of scarlet red blood flowed towards my boots. Choking on air, I'm unable to move, think, or react. Completely frozen in place, the problem was that I had no choice. I dropped my scuffed bat next to the disfigured body and crumbled to the floor. Heartbreaking tears flowed down my cheeks, I knew it had to be done. I had to kill my brother before he killed me. It's unimaginable, of course, knowing you have killed someone who you loved, cherished all your life, and then suddenly are forced to murder them for your own survival.

***

The streets of London were deserted. The only noise that could be heard from miles was the sobs of someone who was now indeed alone in an empty world.
Seconds, minutes, and hours passed before they were able to regain composure. Now, the only thought that was left on their mind was, what next?

40 days ago

"Professor, I've gotten the test results from D57." A middle-aged woman, lean and dark, slick back bun with a stride that only displayed confidence appeared in the room. No emotion could be seen, as if she were artificial intelligence.
"Thank you Darla, place it on my desk." A tall, scrawny man stood by a tank admiring at whatever was inside. Darla did as she was told. The place was cold and unwelcoming to those who didn't work there. For others, it's a nightmare that never ends, but those who wore a clean coat with a badge that each individual wore proudly found this place as a living wonderland. Big sharp tools, machines that stood eight feet tall, and tanks filled with liquid were found all over. These rooms gave pleasure to those who seek unimaginable creations and uncover the worlds oldest fossils and bring them back to life.
Darla walked up to the man with questions that need unloading.

"Sir, what do you plan on doing with project 107?" She didn't take her gaze off the tank as she spoke. The man stayed silent before answering.
"Darla, have you..." He began thinking.
"Have you ever wondered what it would be like as a human to not eat, sleep, drink, and have all the knowledge in the world?"
"No, I haven't, sir." She looked at him. His age was really showing more than usual. His once jet-black hair is now turning grey on the sides. The lights from the tank made him look sickly, creating eye bags and enhancing the color of his eyes to a seaweed green. The professor smiled at her.
"And why not? Is it because we have highly advanced technology to do that for us, or are you scared of change?" He placed his hands behind his back, looking toward the woman.
"I'm not afraid of change nor do I think our technology is so advanced to the point where humans can no longer do their job, I'm afraid of what I can not control."
"You would need not worry about that anymore. That's the whole beauty of project 107. Project 107 is to create the perfect human being who can survive harsh conditions such as being able to breathe on Mars without a space suit. The perfect human will have access to knowledge no one has ever touched to this day and are able to not eat, sleep, or drink for months. A perfect human as qualities where they do not seek violence nor destruction but rather help those elderly folks cross the road or help out any animal or human in sight. Always achieving high results and are indestructible machines. The life span of a perfect human being will be round about one-hundred and fifty years old since they won't do things such as vaping, smoking, illegal substances, binge eat, lay around all day in bed or reproduce so many kids that will eventually be neglected. These qualities are what humans posses and never care to think about because they are simply just simple-minded with a fragile conscience."

''Sir, with all do respect you are human too, why use the word they if you too are made of flesh and blood. It's only correct to use the word we in this statement, is it not?'' He smiled eerily as he continued to stare at the creature in the tank.
"Part human..." His voice lowered as he pulled his sleeve up, revealing a mechanic arm. She didn't say a word.
"We are not human, Darla. We are creators. We will develop a species that is greater than men itself. They will be an upgrade in a sense." The man smiled, watching the body float in the tank. Darla turned her head, watching the figure. It was neither female nor male. It contained both qualities, it's as if the embryo was born exactly as it was when it still was in development in the Fetus before it could become a man or woman. This is the pure definition of a they or it in this case.
Rapid footsteps came from behind both scientists with pure anxiousness.
"What is it, Freddy?"
"Professor, we need assistance in room 201. The subject seemed to have..." He looked like he was gonna through up any second now. Darla looked at the professor, waiting for an answer. He seemed neutral and nodded slowly.
"I'll be on my way." He turns to Darla and smiles softly.
"Excuse me." She nods in understanding and watches the two men walk off. Turning around, she watches the figure. Stepping closer to the tank til her nose almost touched the glass. The creature looked so peaceful, with long hair floating around, arms crossed as if it were in a coffin. A tube connected to the body leading to the lid of the tank. Her hand touched the glass, its cold liquid making her shiver.

"Darla Williams, we need assistance in room 212." Taking her hand off the glass, she turns to the speakers. She sighs, not quite ready to head back to her duties. Turning back to the tank, a pair of eyes stared into her soul. Her breath was caught in her throat as she jumped back. Its eyes yellow resembling of a fish. It was alive....

Darla scrambled back further away from the glass. Turning her back once more, she speaks into the microphone on the desk.
"Project 107 is awake." She announces, hoping the professor would come as soon as possible. Darla turned around. What she found was most unexpected.
"Shit..." Project 107 is gone. She felt her heart spike up immediately and ran to the emergency button. Hitting the button, as if on cue, she heard a man scream, followed by a screech of something unreal. Whipping her head around, she sees a dismembered body on the ground, for once in Darla's life, she feels true fear. Seeing her colleague in pieces on the ground, his body twitching with the figure looming over his body. The creature snapped its head backward, unnaturally making eye contact with Darla. Its fish eyes never leave her, never blinking. Turning its body, it moved at an unnatural speed. Its head stays still as it ran on all fours, much like as a chicken.
The middle-aged professor sprinted, her life at stake. The sirens blared throughout the building, causing the place to be on lockdown.

"Darla!" The professor shouted as he reached the room. Horrific screams were heard from a corner of the stairs. As he looked down, he saw his creation. His breath hitched as he picked up a piece of scrap metal, colliding the pip in its skull. It fell limped as it fell over.
"Darla..." He sounded confused but mostly shocked. Darla was dead. Her organs spilled over. She was missing a leg. Her angelic face was lifeless, with half of it smashed into the ground. His most trusted assistant, dead, in his lab, because of his creation. Her skin looked dull and greyish with black veins pulsating in her leg. Taking in the scene, he saw how his whole laboratory looked like a crime scene from a movie. Blood and bodies everywhere. His eyes quickly went over the creature, noticing how it twitched.