"PATIENT ZER0"

Elizabeth

Chapter Three

Elizabeth

Caspian lay in the center of his too-small-for-life bed under his fresh white blankets, thinking over all of the day's events. Throughout the night, one thought continued to pester the young scientist.

What the hell was up with Ian?

It was always painfully obvious to him that Ian had some problem with him but he could never figure out what.

Did he hate him because he was younger?

Was it because he was smarter?

Just what was this man's problem??

Caspian simply couldn't figure it out - not for the life of him. And it was really starting to get on his nerves. The brown haired male tore the sheets from his body, growling angrily as he crept out of his bed in his boxers. His brows were furrowed, and he stumbled about his room searching for some clothes. It took some time, but eventually the green eyed brunette found himself some loose shorts and a hoodie.

In the dark, he crept from his room to his workspace with a bag of gummy bears in hand. His eyes held curiosity - a trait he had inherited from his mother - but mixed with caution.

After all, could you ever really be sure what lay in the shadows beyond your line of sight?

The young man lazily strolled past the many barren cells, pleased to find the boulder of a father they had brought him asleep. He continued to walk past dozens of empty cells to eventually come across her old cell - and he was once again reminded of the atrocity he had committed.

It was a bright summer's day... the sun shining, the waters of the nearby lake glistened in it's brilliant light. The birds were singing, and the sky was painted a brilliant shade of blue.

Caspian still had his old workspace then - the one he was given when he wanted to be alone. He was much younger then - and so naive. He hated everyone then, and he was the biggest asshole. He was constantly afraid of what others thought of him because of his intelligence, and he was upset that he could never find someone to relate with. He pushed away anyone that ever tried to grow closer to him, so instead people grew to hate him.

One day, the young man was given an assignment that would forever alter his life and the lives of others. He was assigned to a project with another scientist close to his range of expertise - An Bao. This would be the first time they met, and the first time he would come to meet his precious Elizabeth, his first love.

She sat with her back towards the open door of his older lab, her wicked black hair gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight streaming through the windows and open doors... He would always remember the way her hair fell when she turned her head over her shoulder to smile at him... the way the air went still and her dull overcast eyes shut so wonderfully in her closed eyed smile...

"Hi, my name is Elizabeth.... And I'm the volunteer for your tests," she told him sweetly. And as she uttered those last six words, her fate was cruelly sealed by beings much higher than those Caspian worked with - not any god, but someone who could certainly be compared to a being so powerful and influential.

But this man had no soul.

Caspian would be forced to tear this woman whom he loved apart - ripping her wings away from her feather

By feather

By painful feather.

He would be forced to cruelly steal everything that made her beautiful and unique, turning her into something else - something dark and terrifying.

But she still loved him, and he still loved her. And when he found a way to undo all the evil he had done, there was the fire... that terrible terrible fire....

"CASPIAAAANNNNNNNNN!!! HELP ME... SAVE MEEEEEE!!!" her screams of pain would be forever ingrained into his mind... the smell of her burning flesh too haunted his memory. After the incident, he-

"Caspian?" He heard a small voice call out followed by a series of groans. He turned his head to see Cameron in her cell at the other end of the hall, sitting up and staring. "What are you doing up so late? I mean, I dunno what time it is but it feels late... what are you doing?" she asked again, curious but obviously cautious as well.

"Ehh... sorry if I woke you. I'm just taking a little walk, I can't sleep. Not that you'd care, but I tend to have some bad nightmares," he confided in the small girl. From the corner of his eye as he still glowered upon the cell, he saw her shivering atop the cool metal slab that was to be her bed beneath the thin rags given to her as a bed sheet. Annoyed, he opened up her cell door and entered slowly as she backed away, removing his hoodie.

"Wh- what are you doing??" she stood cautiously - arms raised. He of course was not wearing a shirt beneath his hoodie, and he realized she was getting the wrong idea.

"Relax, I'm just giving you my hoodie. You're gonna get cold in here at night," he calmed her.

"I'm not taking it" she said monotonously.

"Yes, you will take it. Because if you get sick you'll just die sooner and I really can't have that," he ordered as he held out his hoodie in one hand. Sighing angrily, the girl ripped the thing from his hand and threw it on over her sleeved shirt lazily. The hoodie was twice her size, nearly reaching her knees and incredibly warm. She blushed, she appreciated the hoodie but she would never admit to it. They stood for a moment, staring at one another as Caspian studied her features and Cameron struggled to keep herself from taking in all of his. Soon Caspian cleared his throat, bidding the girl goodnight and made his way slowly back to his room. His mind ran rampant as he lay shirtless in his bed that night, wondering why her face was dusted ever so lightly with a blush. He wondered if he was crossing a line, giving her his hoodie like that - or if it was too much to expose himself like that to her. Oh well, it was too late to do anything about it now - he had to let her sleep. He decided instead that he would apologize to her in the morning, and find a way to get her some suitable warmer clothes for the night.

Caspian undoubtedly felt very strange that night - he didn't sleep. He wondered what that was, when they had been staring at one another. It was odd- and he swore to himself that he wouldn't let it happen again.

But his fate had already been sealed.