Frobisher

Part 6

Aaron seized up and clenched Alex's hand tightly, as the serum coursed through him.

 That was when Edward flicked the second switch.

 Aaron had had the serum before but he had never had a constant stream of serum into him and a constant stream of blood out. The only time this was ever done before was with Gracie, as far as he knew. It felt odd. The serum coursed through him with agony, then left. He began to suck in lungfuls of air as the pain diminished.

Alex heaved a sigh of relief but then frowned. A warmth was spreading through her arm. But it wasn't a comforting warmth, it was an uncomfortable heat, spreading up her arm. Not particularly fast, but not slow enough for Alex's liking. She quickly realised it was the red, blood-coloured serum with the silvery sheen running from the wall. As the warmth travelled further up her arm, it began to get hotter, and burn. She cried out as it began to burn her from the inside out. She managed to glance down and realised she was glowing. The yellowish-silvery shine made her look like a torch.

The pain reached new heights and she began to scream.

That was when Edward flicked the third switch.

This released the serum into Alex. Her screams were no longer enough to contain her pain and she fell into silent agony. But when unconsciousness finally began to take over, she wasn't even allowed that. One of the nurses jabbed her neck with a syringe as soon as her eyes began to grow heavy.

The pure adrenaline rushed through her and jolted her back awake, so she could feel every ounce of pain.

That was when Edward flicked the final switch.

The serum now flowed through Eddie, out into the wall, then the silvery blood ran into Alex along with another set of serum, and then back into the wall and after, the transparent silvery blood ran into Cat.

Cat frowned, the uncomfortable warmth spreading quickly through her. Alex stared, the bright glow shining through Cat as if she had become a star. The warmth spread through Cat as it did Alex, but faster, and hotter, and brighter.

Eventually, the glow on her skin began to crackle and spark across her, and electricity jumped between her fingers. Alex managed to turn her head to face Aaron and saw that he was focused completely on something, but she didn't know what. Then the lights began to flicker and Aaron focused harder.

Eddie marched quickly toward Aaron, panic on his face. "Stop it! Stop this now! Control your power!"

Aaron strained against his bonds. "It's-" he said through gritted teeth. "Not." he managed to grunt out. "Me."

Edward stared at him in disbelief and then turned to Cat, whose body now crackled with electricity.

"I can't contain the power surge much longer," panted Aaron, the lights flickering uncontrollably, and beads of sweat forming on Aaron's forehead. Then he collapsed against the wall, not enough strength left in him to contain Cat and fight off the serum. 

The lights shut off as golden arcs of lightning began to shoot from Cat to the room, causing large sparks to fly from the damaged technology. Her whole body illuminated the area with bright, golden light, and the faint glow of Alexandra was hardly visible under the harsh glare of Cat.

"Cut the serums! Shut it down!" was all Alex could hear her father shout as the panic in the room intensified.

Suddenly, the pain stopped, the flashes of light stopped, and the glow of Cat and Alex slowly faded.

After a few seconds, the lights flickered back on and Alex could truly appreciate the carnage Cat caused. Black scorch marks dotted around the room, Cat's clothes had holes burned into them. The nurses and doctors crouched in the corners and at the walls of the room, eager to escape electrocution. Alex thought she heard Cat murmur something sounding like 'Wha-?' before passing out

Eddie was again banging against the glass, shouting her name, but no one could hear him, and he eventually just slumped down against the glass, tears in his eyes. Alex panted heavily with exertion as the rest of the room began to rise, getting their bearings. Eddie was sitting in the bed, hugging Gracie close to him. Toby and Arlo lay on their beds, exchanging nervous glances. Anna just stared off into space as usual.

Cat was quickly unstrapped and lifted out of the room, disappearing out on the shoulders of four nurses. Edward was smiling, but then the entire room became busy and rushed as nurses pulled Eddie and Gracie from their beds, and strapped them up beside the others. Tubes were attached to them and the wall, then run into the room and onto Toby, Anna and Arlo. The wall in the second room was opened to reveal a third room and more tables. The doors opened and five more people in red were led in, each lay on a bed and were strapped in.  Every one of the eight tables was full but the wall wasn't, and that was about to change. Next, five new people were led in. Well, four of them were pretty much dragged with two guards each flanking them. The odd thing about those four was that they weren't wearing red clothes, nor black and white like Eddie and Alex, but normal jeans and t-shirts. They fought and struggled as they were brought up to the wall, but each was strapped down by the nurses with ease.

The last of the five was who Alex believed to be Dara. He was lanky and tall, with a curly mop of hair on his head, but he was wearing red clothes and pretty much walked alone into the room. He nodded to Aaron, winked at Eidi, and raised his eyebrows at Eddie as if to say; 'miss me?'.

Then he looked over at Alex before back to Aaron. "Is that Alex?" he asked, as he was strapped up on the wall. "Yeah man, he got her," Aaron replied halfheartedly. 

"Well, the more the merrier, I always say," Dara replied cheerily. "In fairness, this is not exactly the right situation for this phrase but, I say it anyway 'cause why not." He smiled cheerily, not seemingly bothered about their current predicament. Once all of the tubes were attached, Edward began to turn off the stretch of metal behind their ears, which Alex quickly realised was on everyone's ear except hers and Eddie's.

He shut off Gracie's and Dara's, but when he reached the group of new people, he hesitated. "When I release the inhibitor, your power will return. I warn you if you try anything, I will kill you and all those you care for." He saw them glaring and nodding in understanding before he shut off each of the 'inhibitors' as he called them.

He again knelt by the switches and began flicking them, one by one and the serum soon flowed into every one of those up against the wall, and soon into the people lying on the tables, who writhed in agony as the power coursed through them, but unlike Cat, everyone's was different.

Alex was no longer attached to Aaron but to only Toby who glowed with a faint golden aura, Anna beside him glowing a brighter golden, being attached to Aaron. Arlo who was hooked up to Dara, had his veins standing up against his skin, blue and pulsing, his lips a similar shade and his brown eyes glowing with blue energy. The others that lay on the tables had their own marks, with one man's arms streaked with trees of black and another woman's whole body seemed to rise in a ghostly form before being pulled back into her corporeal form. It was a sight to behold, though, by the time the serums shut off, Alex almost immediately collapsed into unconsciousness.