Providence, Somewhere

The Descent

Dexter pedaled as hard as he could. It was great not having little legs anymore; he thanked whatever forced his growth spurt to happen. But he did feel some regret on not taking DeeDee's advice on aerobics. At least the bike was a good alternative. If only he could make it faster.

<"Turn left,"> his GPS stated.

He turned left.

<"Your destination is on the right,"> it stated.

He stopped in front of the clinic. Was it a clinic? Or was it a hospital? He didn't really care much; he had medical training he was proud of, and he chose people specifically so he could run the labs for the Research Department.

He burst through the doors. "Don't discharge Finn!" he yelled at the nurses.

Danny Fenton, an otherwise unassuming young adult, and Acht, an octopus-type person, stared at Dexter rather incredulously, kinda obviously.

"Dude," Danny said, setting down the tray of food intended for Finn. "He's not going anywhere. Why burst in like a bat outta hell?"

Acht couldn't help but cover their mouth, hiding a snicker as a cough.

"Have some respect!" Dexter said, marching up to the reception counter. "I have new information based on your findings that can help diagnose Finn and anyone who comes across this pest!"

"Alright," Acht said, leaning their head in their hand. "Shoot your shot."

"Take this seriously."

"I am. You just can't tell."

Dexter grumbled, handing Acht the folder of xeroxed pages as Danny went around. "Finn's bloodwork has come out bizarre. Compared to, say, my own, his is abnormal."

"He's clearly a different blood type than you," Danny noted.

"Are you taking this seriously?"

Danny shrugged. "You're a tough crowd. But alright, I'll take a listen, and I gotta deliver this food."

Dexter cleared his throat. "Anyway, take a look at the blood vials in the photographs on page 4. See anything unusual?"

Acht thumbed through the pages, then flipped to the one Dexter mentioned. "Yeah, blood doesn't coagulate like that."

"You can tell?" Danny asked. "Surprising."

"The way the blood coagulates," Dexter said. "It's unusual, abnormal, even. Almost looks like that viscous slime."

Uneasy, Danny grabbed the tray. "I'm checking up on Finn." He left rather briskly.

As Acht flipped through more of the file, Dexter leaned forward. "Say, why don't I try to help you of your affliction?"

They paused. "My what?"

"Er, you know, the one you said caused your mind to be all foggy and whatnot. I can fix it."

"I'll pass, thanks."

Before Dexter could counter, Danny appeared again, followed by a cold atmosphere.

"He's gone!" he said. "Finn's gone!"

"That's impossible," Acht said. "The only way to get in and out is through the front door."

"He threw a chair and broke the window."

"Did you two not hear anything?" Dexter chided.

"All we have are the vitals monitors. They're still connected to something."

Acht took out their phone as it buzzed with an incoming message. "If you could stop your bickering, come look."

They showed them the message on the phone.