Subject One

V. Change

I place my palm onto Cane's sticky, cold forearm. So another one of us is here. I'm not quite sure how to react, not being the only "subject," anymore. Maybe Luca will let some of the heat off me now, but I'm not sure. I glance behind me and watch Luca and a nurse exchange a heated and hushed conversation before turning back to the new subject. He seems more docile, like the subjects are supposed to be, according to my doctor, but maybe he's just in shock. Cane's eyes dart around the room, trying to make sense of his surroundings. I approach him, and lean close to his ear. If the doctor's can have secrets, then so can we.

"Don't let them treat you like you're nothing." I whisper. I hear his breathing pick up rhythm. "They're going to try and derail you, use you, make you feel insane. Don't let them." I squeeze his arm once more and then Mafiona comes forth, shoving in front of me to get to Cane. She starts to go through the typical procedures. I back off, watching as Cane allows Mafiona to poke and prod him.

I turn, and Luca is alone now, standing sternly with his arms crossed over his chest, his brow furrowed in concentration.

"At least he's not yours, right?" I poke fun at him, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes, I think one is more than enough. The pleasure of having this new subject has been assigned to my father, Dr. Eon Arthyr." Luca says through a stern jaw.

I roll my eyes at his formality. "Are we still going to go see Dr. Arthyr?"

"I suppose." He gives the new subject a wary eye and then leaves, expecting me to follow him. I throw one final look back at Cane, who meets my eyes with worry, before I follow after my doctor. I'd like to meet the man who is assigned to Cane and get a feeling of what kind of doctor he is. Will he have cold eyes but a lukewarm touch like my doctor? Will they share secrets too? As we approach the cold metal door leading to the restricted wing of the shuttle, a shimmer of fear overshadows me as I think about how I could have possibly gotten it easy so far. Luca presses a few numbers into the keypad and then scans his fingerprint. It's a short hallway, lined with many desks filled to the brim with test tubes and equipment, all accompanied by various doctors. None of them even bother to look up from their work.

"Where is your desk?" I ask Luca.

He remains silent but his eyes tell me everything. Only speak when spoken to, especially in here. I shiver again, and it's not from the cold. We make our way down the hall, toward another door with a logo above it in big, dark letters. ADAPT.

I can't hide my scoff, and Luca throws me a look.

"Yes, subject?"

"I like the word of encouragement," I point up to the logo.

"It's more like a mantra," Luca sighs, his hand on the knob. "Oh, and by the way, you'll also be meeting my mother."

I blanch. "What?"

"This is where she is kept."

"Kept." I reiterate.

"Yeah, kept. Stored. Placed. However you would like to put it." Luca says with no emotion in his voice. He opens the door, and we enter an even colder room. Goosebumps rise on my arms and I try to rub some life back into them. Luca watches for a brief moment, looks behind him to see if anyone can see through the closing door behind us, and takes off his doctor's coat before throwing it at me.

"Don't freeze to death." He says.

I pull the large coat over my shoulders. It almost reaches down to my ankles. It's warm, and I wrap the coat tighter around my body. We step forward and approach a man, who must be Luca's father, Eon. He's average height and has quite a sturdy build, even if his muscles look like leftovers from his prime. He has dark brown hair, buzzed short, and a big speckling beard that is mostly well-kempt but looks as though he tugs at it throughout the day. He's bent over a metal table with a cadaver laid out on it. This must be what they practice on after rats.