Depression Plutus (Curse #4)

CHAPTER 62 Laboratory

OTTILIE VIRSES POV

Hindi na kami nag-aksaya ng oras at muling ipinagpatuloy ang paglalakad. Nakahinga lang ako ng maluwag ng hindi mag-sara ang pader nang makapasok kaming lahat. After a few minutes of walking, the tunnel led us to a steel door at the very end. Dylan immediately crouched down to inspect it.

"Hmm, it’s locked. And, great, it has a fingerprint scanner. This might be a problem." Said Dylan.

"I'm pretty sure na may gumagamit sa lugar na 'to, knowing na may fingerprint sensor ang pintuan na 'yan," dagdag naman ni Jenna.

"Move," Plutus muttered, then stepped forward, placing a hand casually on the lock.

"Huy, anong gagawin mo—?" Pigil ko sa kan'ya.

Pero bago ko pa man matapos ang sasabihin ko, suddenly, a sharp crackling noise echoed through the tunnel, followed by a low hiss. Smoke curled up from the lock as it sparked violently before crumbling apart.

"Problem solved," Plutus said with a shrug, bago ito bumalik sa tabi ko.

"What the heck did you just do?" Jenna asked, her eyes wide open.

I quickly stepped in, giving Plutus a warning glance. "Uh, may bagong spell kasi na sinusubukan itong si Plutus. Ha.ha.ha."

Bobo talaga nito, paano kapag nalaman nila na hindi siya isang wizard kundi isa palang demonyo? Grabe ang kaba ko, sana maniwala sila. Hindi ko alam kung anong magiging reaksyon nila kapag nalaman nila na isa palang prinsipe ang asungot na 'to.

"Impressive," Dylan said, giving Plutus a thumbs-up. "Pwede kana mag-level up bilang senior wizard."

Plutus smirked but didn’t say anything. I smacked his arm lightly, "Kailangan mo ba talagang manira ng gamit?!" Inis na singhal ko sa kan'ya.

He just shrugged again. "What? I helped, didn’t I?"

Napabuntonghininga na lang ako, tatanda ata ako ng maaga sa prinsipe na 'to. Itinuon ko na lang ang pansin sa pintuang nakabukas na ngayon. Bahagyang binuksan ito ni Dylan ngunit wala kaming maaninag sa loob dahil sa sobrang dilim nito.

"Pasukin na natin, guys?" Tanong ni Dylan habang palipat-lipat ang tingin sa'min.

"Paano kung mahuli tayo?" Nag-aalinlangang tanong ni Jenna.

Nagkatinginan kaming apat, nagpapakiramdaman. Si Plutus ang unang bumasag ng katahimikan.

"What if we go inside and take a look, and then get out of here?" Plutus said sarcastically.

"Oo nga naman, tara na bago pa tayo mahuli," pag-aya ni Dylan bago naunang pumasok sa loob bitbit ang flashlight nito.

Sumunod naman si Jenna. Papasok na sana ako ng hawakan ni Plutus ang kamay ko. Nang ibaling ko sa kan'ya ang tingin, napansin ko ang pagiging seryoso nito.

"Be careful, that room reeks of bad energy. Stay with me and don't touch anything," he warned, and then he went next while dragging my hand.

Kumunot ang noo ko sa sinabi ni Plutus, anong meron sa loob? Kinakabahan man, mas pinili kong magpatianod na lang sa hawak nito. As we stepped through the steel door, we were met by a dimly lit, narrow chamber. At its center stood an arched concrete wall, from which a spiral staircase twisted downward, leading us to venture even deeper into the tunnel.

Dylan signaled for us to keep moving, so we followed in silence. Tanging ang mga yapak lamang namin ang maririnig sa buong paligid.

"What if there's a zombie here?" Mahinang mutawi ni Jenna.

"Zombies are not real," balik na ani ni Dylan dito. "Pero kung meron man, malamang ikaw na ang unang matitigok."

Hindi pa rin maalis sa isipan ko ang sinabi ni Plutus kanina. Mukhang may kakaiba siyang nararamdaman sa lugar na ito. Pero kung tama man ang hinala namin, malaki ang posibilidad na dito nga nakatago ang mga nawawalang parte ng katawan ng mga estudyanteng biktima.

Nang marating namin ang dulo ng hagdan, may nakapang switch si Jenna sa pader kaya kan'ya itong pinindot. Agad kaming napapikit dahil sa liwanag ng buong paligid.

Nang makapag-adjust ang mga mata namin sa liwanag, unexpectedly, we all freeze in horror. My stomach twisted as I took in the sight before me. The room had been turned into a twisted laboratory. Along the walls stood large glass tubes filled with glowing green liquid, each containing dismembered body parts floating like grotesque exhibits.

Shelves were lined with jars, bottles, and samples, meticulously labeled. Then, there's a long, cold stainless steel table with various lab equipment, such as microscopes and bubbling flasks with vibrant, otherworldly liquids. The entire room was sterile and brightly lit, yet it felt suffocatingly sinister.

Dylan broke the silence, muttering under his breath, "I knew it, this is where the missing body parts ended up."

Jenna, walking past one of the glass containers, snipped, "They've been preserved using formaldehyde. That's why they haven't decayed."

Si Dad ba talaga ang may gawa nito? Nanlulumo ako sa bawat glass containers na nadadaanan ko. Hindi ko lubos maisip na wala ng buhay ang may-ari ng mga katawan na nakasilid dito. Napahinto ako sa paglalakad ng may mapansing kakaiba.

"Guys, lahat ng containers ay may labels," pagtawag ko sa atensyon nila.
"Check each containers, they're being labeled as rejected and compatible."

Lumapit si Dylan sa tabi ko at pinakatitigan ang isang container, "So, it's not just the students. There are other victims too," he said grimly. "Whoever's behind this... they're discarding the incompatible ones and hunting for the perfect match."

"There are seven marked as compatible," Plutus said grimly while scanning the labels.

"That means they're almost there. Just one final piece is needed to begin the ritual," I managed to explain.

"Kung gano'n, ano ang dapat nating gawin?" Dylan asked, letting out a frustrated breath. "If we don't put an end to this, your father could face serious consequences."

"We need to stop your father, Ottilie," Jenna said firmly, crossing her arms. "We all know that this isn't right."

Suddenly, Jenna stumbled backward, her foot catching on something on the floor. Napasigaw ito ng tumama ang likod nito sa pader. Before any of us could move to help, a hidden panel slid open, revealing another horrifying sight. Embedded into the wall was a large glass container, similar to the others but more carefully constructed. Inside it was a man's body that's been preserved perfectly.

My breath hitched, and my knees buckled beneath me as I fell to the cold concrete floor. My voice trembled as I stared at the figure inside.

"D-daddy...?"

Jenna gasped, "What?!"

Dylan hurried towards the glass container, inspecting the well-preserved body of my father. "Wait, if this is your father... then who's behind the murders?"

My mind raced, my thoughts spiraling into chaos. It didn't make sense. Everything we had investigated, every clue, pointed to my father. If it wasn't him, then who? My vision blurred, and a cold sense of dread washed over me.

Plutus came to my side immediately, patting my back for support. "Hey, are you okay?" He asked worriedly.  I nodded in response as I wiped my sweat.

Jenna stepped closer to me. "Ottilie, if it's not your father... then we're missing something."

"Whoever is behind this is still out there, and they're one step away from finishing what they started," Dylan added.

I couldn't answer. My head spun, and my chest ached with the weight of failure. All our efforts... Was it all for nothing? We were in deep thought when all of a sudden, a familiar voice broke through the air.

"Well, well, what do we have here? Intruders, or volunteers for my next experiment?"

To be continued…