The Balavans

Chapter 1: Experiments

Today

Two months. That's how long I'd been stuck in this lab, starving and barely surviving. The only thing keeping me going was that kiss Dominic had given me the last time I'd seen him. They hadn't found him yet, and I was thankful for that. The things I'd been through, I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy, especially not my best friend and love interest.

I shivered in the small containment cell I was in. I only wore the clothes I had been wearing when they took me, which was a thin white - or now dark grey - shirt and a thin pair of linen bottoms. I couldn't even call my fire to me, something they inject into my arm preventing it. I curled up into a ball, knowing I could get maybe an hour of sleep before they came back for me.

I drifted off into restless nightmares about Dominic getting brought in, the tubes and wires sticking out from his stomach and arms like they did me, or even worse, Dominic being the one torturing me. The door on the cell banged open and I gasped, jerking awake from my unsettling dreams and shot up, cowering against the wall.

"Now now, Hakan, let's not do that. You know we only want to help you get rid of this curse," the main doctor, Dr. Malachi, said, his tone as if he were talking to a 5 year old, not a 29 year old. I glared at him and spat at his shoes, stiffening my spine. I'd told them my name was Hakan, hoping that if I used that name and not my actual name, it would be harder to find Dominic.

The doctor tutted, turning around and gesturing at me to the two people next to him. They nodded and walked in towards me, stun rods in their hands. My pseudo bravado disappeared and I shrank away from glinting silver, my nerves twitching with memory of their touch.

The man was closer to me but I kept an eye on the woman, knowing she didn't care about zapping me. She did it almost every time, and I hated it. I tried to summon my fire but nothing happened, just a slight stirring in my chest where that heated pulse should be.

A feeling as if someone had just jammed a heated iron from my fingertips to my shoulder appeared, making me scream and jerk back, my fire trying to react defensively but just sputtering out. I whimpered as my scream came to an end, collapsing to the floor. The two assistants took my arms and dragged me out to the observational room.

They strapped me to the lifted bed table, leaving me no room to move a centimetre. Just as they started their typical opening torture, someone rushed in and said, "Sir! They've found the water boy!" My heart dropped when he said that, terror and protectiveness filling my veins as the doctor turned around eagerly.

"Bring him here immediately," he said and the man nodded, leaving the room in a quick walk. Dr. Malachi turned to me and smiled satisfied. "It seems that you won't need to tell me anything today, your friend is already here," he said happily and I spat into his face, making him reel back.

Normally, I would have never done something like that, I was raised to treat everyone with kindness, but after the torture I'd endured these last two months, I didn't care anymore. He didn't deserve my kindness, and I knew that if he laid even one finger on my Dominic, I would personally burn his body to a crisp.

"Let me go! Stop!" Dominic's voice shouted and my heart sped up and dropped at the same time, causing my chest to ache. He was brought in, a bruise forming on his temple and his face pale. He saw me and paled even further, horror filling his eyes.

"Hakan," he whispered and I gave him a faint smile, my face hurting. "Ryo," I replied softly but before anything else could be said, Dr. Malachi walked closer to Dominic and walked around him. "He's strong, I can see that. His power is great, how is the serum working?" he asked, examining Dominic as if he were an interesting science project rather than a person.