Krystalkode

Chapter 20

"Alright, man, you ready to go under?" Gordo asked in his slow drawl, his eyes heavy and red from fatigue.

"Yeah." Gwen replied, a look of apprehension on her face.

"You sure? It's a simple procedure, you won't feel a thing, man." Gordo replied, turning to the tray next to him and picking up a vial full of clear liquid. "I'm gonna' give you some dopamine and a sedative. It'll keep you nice and like, relaxed during the procedure, and you'll wake up feeling refreshed and brand new." Gordo said, smiling as he held the syringe up to the light and depressed the plunger slightly, a small stream of liquid squirting from the tip of the needle.

"Yeah, I'm ready." Gwen replied, nodding and laying back on the examination table. Gordon's surgery looked more like the back room of a junk store than an operating room.

The walls were covered in shelves stuffed with various items. Some appeared to be medical in nature, others were tools, electronics, food, bottles of water, and other assorted junk. In one corner of the room were two metal filing cabinets that looked rusted through, their paint worn from years of use. A stack of magazines as tall as Gwen sat on the floor next to them, and they had faded, peeling, plastic covers depicting shirtless men or voluptuous, nude women.

The room smelled of incense, and the floor was covered in a dirty shag carpet. A large, circular, yellow stain dominated one corner of the room, and Gwen couldn't tell if it was from coffee or vomit. The whole place gave her an uneasy feeling, but Gordo seemed nice enough, and she knew Benny trusted him.

Gordo swabbed a spot on Gwen's arm with an alcohol pad and inserted the needle, pushing the plunger down slowly until the vial was empty.

"You should start feeling that in like, a minute or two. Just sit tight, I'll take care of everything." Gordo said, smiling and patting her leg.

Gwen nodded and looked around the room. The walls were painted a flat, depressing blue, and there was a single, small, rectangular window set high up near the ceiling. The window had bars over it, and Gwen could see the sky through the grated glass, a small rectangle of dark gray sky framed by black wrought iron. Her vision began to blur, and she felt her body relax. Gordo was still standing at her side, and he took hold of her arm, and gently placed it down on the table.

"Alright, man, just lay back and relax." Gordo said, smiling at her. She could see his mouth move, but his voice sounded far away. "You're gonna' feel real relaxed, okay? It'll feel weird, but it's nothing to be scared of."

Gwen nodded and closed her eyes, sinking into the thin, worn mattress.

"You'll feel a little pinch, just try to relax, alright?" Gordo said, his voice sounding distant and distorted. His voice began to distort and warble as he spoke, and she couldn't make out his words. Within seconds, she was unconscious.

Gwen awoke to a bright, white light. She winced, closing her eyes tightly. She felt an ache in her head, a low, throbbing pain that was intense at first, but quickly subsided. She opened her eyes and the light was blinding. She squinted, her eyes adjusting to the brightness.

"There she is." Gordo's voice called from somewhere nearby. The blinding whiteness in her vision began to slowly fade as the silhouettes of the room's furnishings started to come into view.

She heard Gordo's footsteps on the carpet, and turned her head slightly to see him walking toward her from across the room, holding a glass of water in his hand. "You're gonna' be a bit sensitive to light for a couple days. Try not to stare at bright lights for too long, or it'll hurt your eyes."

Gwen nodded, blinking rapidly and swallowing, her mouth dry. Her eyes stung, but otherwise, she couldn't immediately notice a difference in her optics.