My Collection of Short Horrors

The Others (MotherHorror Smackdown Rd. 4)

Picture: 5

Word count: 1650

The Others

    Eve sat on her bed with her legs stretched out, aimlessly browsing through random apps on her iPad. She tended to do this when she grew bored, which happened to be just about every evening.

    Unlike the rest of her seventh grade friends, Eve spent very little time on her homework. For as long as she could remember, academics always came naturally to her without her needing to put in much effort. Despite these talents, Eve still felt lost when she thought of her future. Her mother, Karen, always told her she could be whatever she wanted to be. Eve just wished she a future career felt right. It almost felt as though she were out of place in the world.

    Eve heard a soft rap on her door, followed by her mother voice’s asking, “Eve, are you in there?”

    “Yes,” Eve answered back. “You can come in.”

    The door opened and Karen appeared with a soft smile, asking, “How are you doing, sweetheart?”

    “Okay,” Eve replied, her eyes, falling back to her iPad. “Just bored.”

    “Are you done with your homework?” Karen inquired.

    “Aren’t I always by now?” Eve asked back.

    Karen smiled and nodded. “Yes, I suppose you are. You’ve always been a very bright student.”

    Eve merely shrugged.

    “Have you noticed your athletic ability change recently?” her mother asked, vaguely.

    Eve looked up at her and frowned. “No, not really. Why?”

    “Oh, its nothing,” Karen answered quickly. “It’s just that now that you’re body is going through puberty, you might notice some changes in certain abilities.”

    Eve opened her mouth but then realized she did not think of just what she wanted to ask. She just stared at her mother with a blank face.
   
    “Well, should go. There are some chores to be done,” Karen said, quickly, abruptly shutting the door behind her.

    Eve noticed that since she reached her pre-teens, her mother began acting more distant towards her. It almost felt to Eve as though she had begun treating her like an object more than her daughter. The twelve-year old figured she must be imagining some of that. Maybe it was her that grew distant. After all, it was normal for young girls to desire space from their parents once they grew into teenagers.

    As Eve looked back down at her tablet, she noticed some liquid red substance slowly sliding down the screen. It looked like blood, but she had no idea where it came from. Eve then felt moisture under her noise and rubbed her finger under it. Her eyes widened as she gapped down at the blood smeared across her index finger. Eve could not recall once ever having a nosebleed.

    She swung her legs from her bed down to the ground and walked over to her dresser to grab a tissue. Once Eve was about half way there, she felt her legs gave a sudden jerk forward, causing her to fall to the ground.

    Gasping, Eve attempted to stand, but this time her arms forced her back down. With her hands bearing against the ground, she noticed more blood dripped on the carpet from her nose.

    As Eve arose to her knees she screeched in pain as her hands bended completely back, her middle fingers almost reaching the inside of her elbow. It looked as though her wrist had turned to rubber.

    “What is happening!” Eve cried out, as she fell on her back. Suddenly, every bone and muscle in her body felt as though they were jerking in all different directions. The blood began to flow from her face even more chunkily.

    “Mom!” Eve wailed with as much strength as her vocals could carry. “Mom, please come now!”

    Moments later, the door opened and Karen rushed in, grabbing her daughter’s arms.

    “Eve, honey,” she spoke gently. “Come now. You need to get on your bed.”

    Eve could barely control her limbs so it was up to Karen to guide her to her bed. After she was rested flat on her mattress, her mom tucked her in. Eve found she could not even move her limbs at all anymore.

    Karen then rushed out of the room. Still lying motionless, while her nerves jittered around petrified, Eve heard her mother dial the phone.

    “Doctor,” Karen’s hushed voice said, on the phone. “It’s happening. When can I bring her in?”

***

    Eve opened her eyes and found herself in a fresh white room. Her back was already tilted up on her bed. Eve barely managed to turn her head as she saw she had been brought to a hospital. The green curtain by her bed had been pushed back against the wall, revealing only an empty mattress with no sheets.

    Eve tried to sit up, but found that her muscles still refused to move at her will.

    What is happening to me? Eve wondered, feeling her breaths grow rapid in panic.

    The door then opened, and a girl, carrying a tray entered. She had long tangled hair, and wore a white uniform dress with a red cross on her chest.

    “Nurse?” Eve asked, as she attempted to lift her head up.

    Without answering, the young girl nurse continued to stumble towards the bed. After Eve caught a glimpse of her face, her eyes widened in terror. This girl’s skin appeared like a white chipped painted wall. Her eyes were so shadowed it almost looked as though there were two giant black holes on her face. This girl did not even appear animate, instead like a walking corpse.

    Eve’s eyes moved down to the silver tray. On it were two giant shots, each containing a liquid substance.

    She tried to struggle, but it was useless. Eve’s body refused motion. She screamed as the girl stabbed the giant needle into her neck. She felt a brief dizziness, followed by nothing.

***

    The next time Eve woke up, she found she was not alone. A young man in a white coat sat across her bed.

    “Good morning, Eve,” he said pleasantly. “I hope you slept peacefully.”

    Eve sat up, finding that she was once again able to control her own bodily functions. She looked down at her fingers. It almost felt strange to be able to bend them at will again.

    She then looked at the man and asked, “Who are you?”

    “I am your doctor,” he said, simply. “That is all you need to know for now.”

    “But what…” Eve began before the doctor cut her off, motioning his hand.

    “Come, walk with me,” he said. “There is much for us to discuss.”

    Eve grew an unsettling feeling in her gut, but followed him anyway. She found the hall painted brightly, yet the area appeared dark.

    “We are underground,” The doctor explained. “This is a secret organization.”

    “Why am I here?” Eve asked him, running her fingers through her plain brown hair.

    “You are not like ordinary girls,” the doctor said, promptly. “Have you noticed?”

    “Not really,” Eve muttered.

    He lifted his eyebrow. “Really? How about in your academics? Do you notice any difference?”

    “I guess I’m a bit smarter without having to try very hard,” Eve answered, feeling uncomfortable.

    “Precisely,” the doctor said, “and there is a reason for that.”

    Just as Eve opened her mouth to ask him to elaborate, her eyes caught sight of the very same nurse that gave her the shot. She looked just as undead as Eve remembered her.

    The doctor looked down at her, noting her fear, and said, calmly, “Do not worry about the girl. I assure you she is harmless.”

    “What is she?” Eve breathed, staring after her.

    He sighed and said, “She is the result of an earlier experiment before you. It was an attempt to restore life to a body. It only somewhat worked. As you can see the girl is able to move, but her brain is not fully functional. She is only able to perform simple tasks, and never displays any signs of emotion.” He smiles and adds with pride, “But you, Eve… you and the others were our first successful project.”

    “What kind of project?” Eve asked, feeling her vocals grow chilled.

    “You were not born an ordinary girl,” the doctor said, “but rather created in our secret lab by our scientist. The woman who raised you was one of them. We call it Project Eden. In this experiment, we took human cells and genetically enhanced them to be superior to the average human being in hopes of one day creating a perfect race.”

    Eve’s mind began to spin. “Is that why I’m naturally smart?”

    He nodded.

    “But I’m not any stronger,” Eve pointed out. “I’ve always displayed just ordinary skills in athletics.”

    “Yes,” the doctor said, “for some reason, your superior strength does not develop until puberty. That was why your body felt as though it was breaking down the other day. Your muscles were regenerating. Now they are superior. You will also notice your senses such as eyesight and hearing are perfected.”

    Eve remained quiet, still feeling unsure if she was fully awake. She then asked, “What will happen now.”

    “You will stay here to develop your stills to perfection,” he said.

    “But why?” Eve asked. “What’s it to you?”
   
    The doctor smirked and began to chuckle, smugly. “You, Eve, will help me end the human race as it is and start a new one, a perfect race. This is what the world needs.”

    “But how?” Eve asked. “After all, it is just me.”

    He laughed louder and more slyly. “Oh Eve, I think it’s time you met, the others. Come with me.”

    Eve followed him to a nearby room, and he said, “Welcome, Eve, to the beginning of the end. The world, as you know it, is about to change.”

    As Eve stepped foot in the room, she gasped. There were five beds lined up against each side of the wall. On all beds, except one, rested a girl. Eve drew in a sharp breath, wanting out of this nightmare for each girl looked exactly like her.

The End