Maxum Lass

Chapter V

I exit the observation room, dossier in hand. I enter into the hallway lit by a white lights and walk down it at a brisk pace. When I reach the terminus I continue on straight, for I have not been this way before. My corporeal energy is fueled by my hatred for this place and these people. I'm pretty sure I dented the metal floor. The hallway is lined by thick metal doors which unfortunately, but probably for the safety of the scientists have no windows . Each door has a plaque that says something like: "Subject #24602" and maybe some sort of nickname like: "Bessie". Under the name is written: "Status: ", most of the subjects seem to have: "Discontinued" written under it, and only two have: "Missing". Hopefully that number will go up by one in their records. I reach the end of the hall. In front of me is a giant blast door. To the left is a keypad, a hand scanner and retina scanner. I can do this three ways, punch the door, punch the security system or maybe try to disable the security system.

I put my ear to the door and wrap against it with my knuckle. Sounds pretty thick. But just to make sure I pull my hand back and clench it, bracing for possible pain. My fist flies forward like a spring ad makes a resounding impact with the door. The dent is substantial. I punch again, the dent deepens. It doesn't look like I'm going to get through the door. It's also probably not a good idea sticking your hand into something without seeing what's on the inside, or on the other side in this case. I turn towards the keypad and pull it from the wall, the metal from it rips and electrical sparks fly as the current is ended. Now what to do about the scanners. I know I'll just use the unconscious scientist's hand, attached of course and his eye, not amputated. So as I don't waste time I start down the hall in a run then take off. I fly down the hall creating a vacuum. As I approach the terminus I try to slow down but I cant. This is not good, I just manage to cling onto the corner of the wall and swing myself down the hallway where I left the company personnel. Unfortunately Newton's first Law(d=vt) still works so I continue to go down the hallway. The door is coming up, so I grab onto it. For a split second I think the door is strong enough to reduce the momentum. But alas I am mistaken. The door is pulled from its hinges and the door and I start spinning around until we make impact with a bookshelf stopping our mad dance. Books fly everywhere and the bookshelf splinters and falls on top of me with a cascade of tomes.

After a minute to catch me breath I emerge from the pile of books and groan. I really need to work on speed control. Ughhh. The door is on one of the staircases. It took out one of the balustrades. I remember that I need to get the scientist. I fly at a slower pace into the hall and pick up the scientist. As I fly down the hall to the blast door, I finally figure out something that his been tickling my puzzler Why haven't these ChemiCorps people sent reinforcements to attempt to detain me or knock me out? Because they obviously have security cameras. They would have seen me accidentally knock out those men. So why haven't they sent more security staff? Maybe they have an entire army behind the door? Waiting to ambush me. I take the scientist's right-hand and put it against the scanner. The machine responds in a robotic male voice: "Access Granted". I pick the scientist by the crown of his head in my left hand and press his head against the retina scanner. With my other hand I open his right eye. It takes moment, but then the system once again responds with access granted. I hear a few metallic clicks and clunks and the door lifts slowly. It reveals a white room with a glass door at one end. The walls and floor seem to be made of white tile. Was I surprised to find a platoon of the biggest men I've ever seen, sorry imagined,  all of them probably on steroids or some vile concoction made by ChemiCorps, arranged in a line, with menacing looking guns all pointing towards me? No, not at all.

 Once again a volcano erupts inside my head with magma made of swears. Some of the swear-magma probably exited through my mouth. I probably also yelled: "OH COME ON!". They open fire. Multiple bursts of what is evidently plasma come flying straight towards me.This is all processed in about 1.6 seconds. Acting on instinct, I immediately drop to the floor. I just barely avoid the bursts. The top of my head feels a bit singed. Fifteen armed men on steroids. One woman. One woman who was the strength of about ten men. I slowly rise up so I am just barely hovering above the ground. Then, I kick as hard as I can while quickly opening and closing my arms like a the Tree position in Yoga. I shoot forward like a bullet. Hair and dress whipping. I put my arms out in front of me a second before I make contact with the lugubrious louts.

As soon as I hit the front man in the chest of the closely-packed fifteen man platoon,  he is propelled backwards into the other men. The platoon shatters as they all going flying in a ray. Some of them hit the tile walls, creating a spider web of cracks in the beautiful stone. Others fly towards the glass door and smash through it and sliding against the floor of the hallway on the other side at an alarming rate. I unfortunately, still not adequately used to my powers of aerial locomotion, fly with them. I am able to turn over and dip down a bit and skid on the floor. My head makes contact with the remains of the glass door and luckily I only hit my head. After a few seconds of respite. I sit up and feel my head. I feel a lump. What's interesting is that it didn't hurt as much as I would of thought. Probably because of my super-strong muscles. Or maybe the infernal, yet heavenly ChemiCorps amalgamation also hardened my bones or dulled my nociception.

I sit there for a bit, staring into the bright white light of the chamber. Mesmerized. Dazed to stay the least. The light is really pretty, I could just stare at it forever..........and ever........ Wait, wasn't I supposed to be doing something? .............Oh yeah......... I was escaping. I stand up and before  walking through I check to make sure no papers flew from the dossier. Good everything is in order the dossier is perfectly fine. I walk thorugh the hole left by the four men, wary of the broken glass.  

                                                                                        ***

Beyond the shattered glass door is a once-pristine hall way, it's floors now somewhat imbrued. On either side of the hallway are dark wood doors with plaques that say things like: "Dr. François Toulouse, Assistant Scientist", "Mr. Juan Hernandez, Secretary". I open the door to the secretary's office. In the room is all that you might expect in office. On a large desk there is a computer. Also on the desk is a plethora of papers. There is flora. But no secretary. Odd. Maybe him and the rest of the staff are cowering in a safe-room or something. I exit the room.  At the end of the long hallway of offices is a door that that is more ornate then the others. The plaque on the door says: "Chief Scientist Dr. Callisto Xystus". To the right of the door is an elevator and an emergency staircase.  Where to go?

Do I pursue my goal of escape and take the safer route to the elevator/staircase, but pass up the chance of figuring out more about my past, or do I open the door to a room which might be a trap or might be completely empty, but be more likely to unravel this mess of a mystery. Well, what's the worst a Scientist could do? Maybe he has a few bodyguards, but I've incapacitated fifteen bodyguards, so I doubt that three should pose a serious threat. I walk to the door open it, when two ideas hit at once. First, that the possible bodyguards might be elite compared to the fifteen I defeated, and that if this room beyond this door is not empty, there is a slight chance that I could have my first conversation. I take a deep breath and turn the handle. As I turn I swear I hear shuffling or movement. The door opens.