Inception: Kasady Declassified

[Undead]

Hey CoDz!

 

I started thinking about the ol' Inception RP I did with a handful of great friends from CoDz here a while back and decided I'm gonna go for a full-fledged story. (Somethings just never die ) I'd like to also dedicate this to the Inception crew, and hope they are watching...er...reading this too. Which speaking of which, please! For anyone that does read through this, private comments to me about the story are definitely encouraged. Helps me keep the motivation alive and to push forward at times.

 

So, with that, I'll begin!

 

 

Chapter One: Prologue

 

October 2nd, 1943

 

It's been a long journey through the outskirts of Silesian, Germany. Twenty-four days and have found little evidence regarding my research. Still, I can feel it in my gut. We're onto something here, but the crew is getting tired, I'm not sure how much longer I can convince them to carry on with our search. Hell, we barely even know what we're really looking for our here and it's dangerous enough being on enemy soil. Regardless, I'm gonna push forward. This is too important to me, to us, to simply give up. I need to find some answers.

 

- Kasady

 

"Hey Kasady, you ever gonna put that thing down?"

 

Kasady jumped, slamming the journal shut with a quick turn towards Lieutenant James Gale, USMC Marine Raiders soldier. Kasady sighed, less that amused;

 

 

"Dammit James, I told you to stop surprising me like that..."

 

"Heh, everything surprises you anymore. Now come on, dinners ready. You should actually join us for once."

 

Kasady smirked, still unamused;

 

"Chili?"

 

"Chili..."

 

Kasady chuckled to herself, putting the journal in her satchel while putting out the lantern. 

 

"Hey, if you actually bothered for once, maybe we'd have something different for a change!" 

 

James winked just before walking back to the camp fire. Kasady quickly slipped her boots on, stopping abruptly upon glancing at her right palm of black veins and charred scarring. The sudle smile turned cold and grim, determined. Kasady shook her head and marched towards the fire.

 

"Huh-hey! Ms. Rhodes, nice of you to join us!"

 

The crew, all making small jokes as Kasady approached the circle, almost expessionless, Kasady sat down starring deeply into the orange-red flames beneath the blackened steel pot of beans, lost in thought and distant from the now. James has seen that expression, or the lack thereof many times;

 

"Alright everyone, shut the hell up and eat your damn chili..." 

 

James patted Kasady on the back, still starring into the fire as she sighed almost hopelessly. James leaned over, speaking softely to her;

 

"Don't worry Rhodes, we'll find something"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Undead]

Continued...

 

 

Kasady began to loosen up a bit with a few of her own sharp comments amongst the crew as the night grew older, even for being female and anything but the idealistic soldier, she was always treated like part of the crew. Even essential to some of them. No one really knew what they were looking for, but would rather be chasing something blindly than charging on the frontlines. 

 

Kasady took one last swallow from her tin flask with a chuckle joined by the rest of the crew, reminscing about the childhood days. She stayed quiet, but was intrigued by most of the stories passed around.

 

"Well, that's it for me gentlemen, we gotta long day ahead of us -" Kasady began passively, only to be interrupted by several upset moans from the crew;

 

"C'mon Rhodes! Let's here your story"

 

"Yeah!"

 

Kasady smirked timidly, walking back towards her tent.

 

"Maybe some other time, fellas."

 

Flopping onto her sleeping back, Kasady sighed with disarray as she tightly clenched her forehead, wishing she hadn't drank as much first and foremost, but also that she had something good to remember about her own childhood. Her eyes quickly became heavy, drifting off to sleep lying flat on her back.

 

...

 

The world looks cold and dark, shadowy figures move about. I see what looks like headlights, they approach rapidly. It's cold outside and quiet, suddenly there's gunfire;

 

"Grandfather? GRANDFATHER!? N-no, no! NO!"

 

(screaming)

 

...

 

*GASP*

 

Kasady swung forward, panting intensely with sweat dripping down her forehead, her eyes wide, almost filled with shock. She gulped for air, trying to calm herself down, suddenly a silhouette approached, shadowing the tent from outside; Kasady quickly drew her glock from underneath the pillow.

 

"Whoa hey easy Rhodes!"

 

James whispered harshly as he jumped back upon entering the tent;

 

"Are you ok? I heard you from my tent and I came to check up on you, thought you were getting strangled!"

 

Kasady's rate began to slow down, she took a couple more deep breaths as she wiped her forehead;

 

"Y-yeah, I'm fine... Sorry James."

 

"Here, drink up. I went back for water after I knew you weren't dying."

 

Kasady took a big gulp from the canteen, wiping her lips as she handed the canteen back to James.

 

"Thanks..."

 

"Another one?"

 

Kasady nodded.

 

"I don't even remember the last time I had a good nights rest..."

 

James gave a friendly slap to Kasady's knee;

 

"Well, must be a sign you already maxed out on beauty sleep, huh Rhoads?"

 

Kasady smiled timidly;

 

"Go to sleep James... I'm fine. We got shit to do tomorrow and it doesn't include you!"

 

James chuckled as he stepped outside the tent;

 

"Well we will just see about that." He began, nodding at Kasady as he closed the tent. 

 

"See you in the morning, Rhoads"

 

[Undead]

Continued...

 

 

The distant sounds of intercom chatter echoed through Kasady's head as though it were subconcious, she moaned as she grabbed her forehead, her vision slowly fading from a blur to normal. The sound continued, echoing through the trees, more distinct, spoken through some kind of megaphone. Kasady quickly reached for her boots and pistol, slowly peeking outside her tent.

 

The cool frosty air of October left blankets of fog covering patches of the land, the sky was a very pale grey, and nothing beyond fifty yards was clearly visible. Everything seemed quiet; normal. Several members of the crew already stood outside cautiously and armed, James stood almost casually, smoking a cigarette as he stared off into the distance. Kasady slipped her glock into her holster and walked outside to James' side.

 

"What the hell?" Kasady questioned nervously.

 

"We're near German forces; A camp by the sounds of it. I can't see a damn thing, though"

 

James took another hit, breathing out slowly just before looking at Kasady.

 

"Think this could be it?" James asked, trying not to show fear in his eyes. Kasady looked at James;

 

"I don't know... I don't know if I WANT to know."

 

James sighed, taking his last and tossing his cigarette on the ground in front of him;

 

"Well, there's only one way to find out. Grab your gear."

 

The Marine Raiders Recon crew packed their equipment and readied their weapons, everyone with concern in their eyes, some doubtful. Kasady observed the men as she finished packing her bag, beginning to even doubt herself and the mission, as usual. It's been a solid 24 days and no run-in with German forces, everyone seemed to have forgotten the reality of the situation, until now. 

 

James screwed a custom silencer to the end of his Thompson;

 

"Let's go, gentlemen. Eyes on."

 

 

 

 

 

[InfestLithium]

Gonna keep a good eye on this, cause I know a juicy story when I smell one. I was gonna see how long it would take you to start hitting the nitty-gritty events, but I definitely see them comin'. Keep on with this, friendo.

[Undead]

Chapter Two: The Path Less Traveled

 

 

The crew proceed cautiously through the hollow trees along the outskirts, the echoes of the intercom slowly got louder in the patches they would occur. Kasady felt weak, empty. Unsure if it was her gut instincts of uncertainty kicking her in the groin, or last night's chili starting to take its toll. 

 

"Dammit L.T., I gotta bad feeling about this..." Said Corporal Richard Collins, in a worried but desperate hush tone;

 

"Yeah, If I had dollar anytime something bad didn't happen when you say that, I'd be poor..."

 

"I think I would have preferred Shut it Collins! More sir..."

 

Kasady managed to tuck in a smirk under her uncertainty, just before looking back at Collins.

 

"Hey Collins..."

 

"Yes ma'am?"

 

"Shut the fuck up!"

 

Collins paused, then surprisingly smirked back;

 

"Yes ma'am!"

 

James came to an abrupt halt, signalling the crew to stop;

 

"Shhhhhhit stay back!" He whispered harshly;

 

The crew suddenly went completely silent, gripping their guns tighter as their heart rate dramatically increased. James peeked around the corner, scanning the empty open gravel path, he watched as several German soldiers stood casually around what appeared to be some kind of digging site between some charred rubble and trees. 

 

"What is it, Lieutenant?" Kasady asked, walking slowly up behind James;

 

"Two hostiles, looks like they've been digging out something..." James whispered; Kasady leaned in closer, trying to see for herself in curiousity;

 

"Digging what out? What does it look like?" Kasady questioned, eagerness in her tone;

 

"I don't know, I can't tell. But they've got crates of the stuff out there"

 

James looked harder, squinting at the crates;

 

"Looks like there's some writing sketched on the crates, but I can't...make...them...out..." James hesistated, trying to read the side of the crates;

 

"Dammit L.T, what are we doing out here!" Collins whispered harshly from behind, the crew could feel their adrenaline rising as they heard the commotion between the German soldiers underneath the spontaneous patches of intercom chatter. Kasady insisted to find out;

 

"James, what does it say?" She asked impatiently;

 

"I can't read it from here, Kasady!"

 

The crew started hearing the trees nearby shuffling, followed by snapping branches;

 

"Lieutenant!" 

 

"Dammit let me look!" 

 

Kasady began to shift towards James again, suddenly a small circular tin container slipped out from Kasady's pocket, bouncing on the ground; 

 

"Lieuten--"

 

Kasady gasped in shock as she watched the container roll out in the open, the world seemed to slow down as watched it, then quickly looked back as Collins sluggishly stood on his knees, the blank stare of death covered his face as blood trickled out from his neck as the blade of a ghillied German soldier withdrew his dagger from the wound. Kasady couldn't hear anything but the sound of her breath,  several marines tackled the soldier, then nothing... James had shoved Kasady down, she couldn't see them anymore. 

 

Kasady frantically looked up at James as he opened fire on the soldiers near the dig site, Kasady looked up underneath the dust kicked up from the struggle, she watched as the two soldiers toppled lifeless. She laid completely still, it was quiet again, this time normal. Kasady slowly made her way back to her feet, her heart pounded from the shock, slowing to a normal rate took a few quick breaths. She reached for the container, studing it briefly before slipping it back into her pocket. Kasady looked back at the crew, kneeling around Collins body as several of the men still stood ready, looking for anymore signs of hostiles.

 

"Collins!" Kasady gasped.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Undead]

Continued...

 

 

"Shit! Collins! Collins, stay with me! Dammit..."

 

"Goddamn German bastard!"

 

"Oh man, what the fuck?!"

 

Kasady hurried over to the group as they all murmured amongst themselves, James and the crew's medic put pressured on the wound, but seemed helpless. The blood was spewing quickly, Collins merely choked and gagged in shock, his face was turning pale.

 

"Collins! Hang in there, It will be alright!" James said, as calmly as possible underneath his frantic pace to slow the bleeding; the medic sighed in defeat, his hand and rags soaked in blood, he pulled away from his pressure on the wound.

 

"Lieutenant... he's done for." 

 

Collins wheezed, gasping for air then; nothing. James slowly pulled back as well, staring at Collins now lifeless body lie cold on the bloodied soil. James sighed; yanking the dog tags from the corpse.

 

"Dammit..." He cursed under his breath; James looked towards the dirt road, then immediately double took as he noticed Kasady cautiously approaching the dig site, her glock held firmly to her chest;

 

"Rhoads!"

 

Kasady continued with no sign of acknowledgement.

 

"Rhoads!"

 

James quickly whipped his hands and drew his Thompson as he jogged towards Kasady, grabbing her angrily by the shoulder;

 

"Dammit Kasady, are you trying to get yourself killed today?!" He proclaimed; Kasady seemed delighted;

 

"Look! This is it!" 

 

Kasady pointed out the giant hole that glowed a vibrant orange hue, walking up cautiously they felt the ground vibrate, waves of energy pulsed through the surrounding area, static crackled and buzzed around the surface. James looked down at kasady as she slowly opened the lid to her container, the same color beamed out of the crack as she began to open it. Kasady smiled, whispering to herself;

 

"I've found it!"

 

James stared in amazement, but confused; he glanced over at the crates again;

 

"115?"

 

 

 

 

[Undead]

Continued...

 

 

James cautiously looked around, looking for any signs of trouble. He felt uneasy, weak; something didn't feel right to him. He cracked open the lid to one of the crates stacked aside of the large crater, chucks of rubble glowed intensely back at him. The crew shortly caught up behind them, some seemed angry, other's mourned, but they all had a sense of fear hung over them.

 

"What the hell is that, L.T?"

 

James stood still, studying the chunks. He reached inside the crate, hesitating as he could feel the energy vibrating his hand, almost forcing him away from it's grasp; 

 

*ZZZT*

 

James pulled back swiftly, shaking his hand;

 

"I have no idea..." He spoke curiously, still with discontent in his voice.

 

Several more men from the crew gathered around to look; Private Henry Williams stood with his arms folded, less than amused;

 

"Rocks? We've been out here searching in German territory, risking our lives and lost Collins over a bunch of fancy goddamn rocks?!"

 

James just looked at his hand, nothing seemed different, unusual. He looked over at Kasady, who seemed very intrigued, furiously taking notes in her journal and getting as close as she could, Kasady slammed her journal shut, stuffing it back into her bag. She squinted, studying the luminous wall of alien minerals. 

 

"Rhoads, what is all this?" James questioned, closing the lid on the wooden crate. Kasady didn't respond.

 

"Rhoads?"

 

 Nothing.

 

James paused, his head tilting downward; the sound of humming suddenly filled his ears;

 

"Hey sweetheart, you gonna answer the lieutenant?" Shouted Williams.

 

"Shhh!" 

 

James, abuptly interrupted Henry; the sound of humming vibrated the road, getting louder, James immediately shifted, looking down the road as a dust cloud formed, a large vehicle silhouette emerged in the middle.

 

"Shit, move!" James shouted running towards the woods beyond the crater;

 

Kasady slowly reached forward, oblivious to her surroundings. James stopped, looking back at Kasady;

 

"Rhoads, let's go!"

 

Kasady stood in awe, her hand lightly glazed the surface, numbing her hand in vibration and energy. Her right nostril slowly began to trickle a single drop of blood;

 

"Kasady!"

 

The vehicle roared as it approached the dig site, the sound of yelling Germans filled the air underneath the humming motors, James grabbed Kasady's shoulder. Kasady violently shugged him off;

 

"Dammit Kasady we have to leave NOW!"

 

James whipped her around, Kasady resisted but it was no use, she her face was blank with anger;

 

"Kasady what the hell is wrong with you?! We need to GO!"

 

"J-James?"

 

James whipped Kasady's arm around his neck, jogging towards the forest out of sight. Kasady looked exhausted, holding her forehead as her vision began to blur, then fade. 

 

"James...."

 

 

 

 

[Undead]

Continued...

 

(I don't know sir, she hasn't regained consciousness in nearly-)

 

(She's not dead, corporal. She'll make it...)

 

(But her vital signs are-)

 

(She'll make it.)

 

(I hope you're right, Lieutenant... What was that stuff exactly? You said she just "blacked out"?)

 

(Wait, I think she's coming out of it;)

 

(Rhoads, can you hear me? Rhoads!)

 

...

 

*GASP!*

 

Kasady violently sat up, her eyes wide, almost struck with the look of shock. She swung swiftly, knocking Corporal Dan Reynolds, the crew's medic against the wall;

 

"Gah!"

 

James, quickly grabbed Kasady's arms, restraining her till she calmed down.

 

"Kasady! It's alright, it's me!"

 

Kasady paused, lessening her grip slowly. James released his grip shortly thereafter,

 

"Wh-what happened? Where are we?" Kasady hesitated, the room still spinning slightly.

 

"We're not sure exactly. We booked it after a German patrol approached that dig site" James began,

 

"We've set up camp deep within the forest, you've been out cold for almost three days"

 

Kasady looked appalled as she blankly stared at James;

 

"Three days?"

 

James nodded.

 

"You should take it easy, Kasady. I have no idea what happened to you. We need to be sure you're ready and able." Dan suggested.

 

"I'm fine."

 

"Do what the doc says, Rhoads. You weren't yourself back there. Like you weren't even there." 

 

James patted Kasady's shoulder as he began to stand, Kasady held her head in pain as she let out a silent sigh of discontent. 

 

"Get some rest, I'll check up on ya in the morning"

[Undead]

Chapter Three: Clairvoyance

 

Kasady rolled with discomfort in her sleeping bag as noise - voices - echoed around her like white noise, faint and soft, but vivid enough to make anyone restless. She rolled over one more time, lying on her back. As her consciousness kicked in, the noises came to an abrupt halt, Kasady slowly cracked open her eyes, her vision blurred;

 

"Wh- what the?"

 

What appeared to be Kasady's journal floated above her, drifting in place, pages slowly flipped as the journal slowly spun in place as though it were suspended in space. Confused and groggy, immediately switched to shocked;

 

"Hell?!" *gasp*

 

Kasady quickly sat up, the journal falling hard next to her simultaneously. Kasady stared at the journal, disturbed by what she thought she saw, her heart pounded, then slowed. Kasady rubbed her eyes with frustration as she let out a long defeated sigh;

 

"What have we gotten ourselves into?" she muttered.

 

She sat feeling heavy and fatigued, but sleep was no use. She slowly began to stand up, grabbed her boots, pack of smokes, then walked out of the tent. A bright single glow of a lantern caught her eye that hung over a cement doorway of an old bunker. Intrigued, Kasady quietly walked over to check it out. The clumping sound of her boots echoed within the tight spaces of the cement wall, the bunker was empty, full of nothing but the crew's supplies and what was likely the room she first regained consciousness in, she thought. She mindlessly browsed around, looking for anything new or unusual, everything seemed normal.

 

Sitting down to a dusty old wooden table that appeared to be the only thing left behind, Kasady lit up a cigarette. An old coin caught her eye, staring at it as she let out a cloud of smoke and a sigh; she began to focus on the coin, squinting even, watching it intensely as though waiting for it to move - nothing. The noises began to feel faint, this time consciously, Kasady could hear the single flame from the lantern hum and crackle as though it were a roaring fire, the trees sounded like a hurricane versus a small and sidle wind, still she focused only on the coin. It remained still, then suddenly began to skid in millimeters;

 

"Can't sleep?"

 

*gasp*

 

Everything stopped abruptly, returning to near silence;

 

"Whoa easy ma'am, I'd rather not be kicked into the wall again. Or worse this time..."

 

Kasady sighed,

 

"Sorry Dan,  I didn't hear you." 

 

"Well if I didn't know better I'd almost say you looked as though you were sleeping with your eyes open just then"

 

Kasady smirked with baggy eyes and a loopy blink;

 

"heh, I don't even remember the last time I actually slept."

 

"I hear ya ma'am. Mind if I join you?"

 

"Have a seat, Corporal"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Undead]

Continued...

 

A light glows brightly above, the room is nothing but a blur and haze, figures seemingly move about, human and normal looking, but they fade in and out between commotion, the discussions echo and hum, as though time passed in slow motion;

 

"Is she stable, Doctor...doctor..doctor?" 

 

"Put on the restraints, you can't be too sure with this one..one..one"

 

"Doctor, the charts just made another spike, this time constant brain activity;"

 

"Her subconscious is sublime, it works unlike any normal human being, she's only dreaming"

 

"Status rising off the charts, Doctor... she's not dreaming, she's showing signs of awareness, she's..."

 

"Dammit, someone lock her down! She's not ready yet, keep her restrained!"

 

"Inject the neural sedatives, that should buy us some more time..time..time"

 

"Hold on, Kasady we'll get you through this..this..this"

 

Voices and figures begin to blur even more, then fade. The room goes dark slowly, then silence:

 

...

 

*gasp*

 

Kasady tilted her head up swiftly from her arm-folded cradle upon the old wooden table, the sun pierced brightly through the cracks in the trees as the morning grew old; Kasady quickly scanned everything around her, everything looked normal. A sharp headache pain suddenly smacked her right between the eyes;

 

"Ugh..."

 

"Huh-hey! Look who's finally awake?" James said, leaning against the cement door way, equipped and ready to go.

 

Kasady looked over, running her fingers through her hair feeling as though she was hungover somehow.

 

"You look shit, Rhodes. Party hard without me last night?"

 

Kasady squoze in a faint smirk as she raised a flimsy middle finger; 

 

"Heh heh, well at least you seem normal now. Come on, crew's just about done gathering their shit together. We're heading back"

 

Kasady looked confused;

 

"Back? Back where?" Kasady asked with confusion,

 

"Back home, Rhodes. We found what we we're looking for." James said assuringly.

 

"We don't know what we found, James. Or, what we're really even looking for yet..." 

 

"I know we aren't looking for anymore trouble?"

 

"You know what we signed up for, James. We have to find that German outpost and figure what exactly they've got their hands on"

 

"We signed up for a recon mission, not a suicide mission Rhodes..."

 

"And we haven't even finished that yet, James!"

 

"What else are you expecting to find? We already found a big fucking glowing rock out here that seems to match the description of our target, and lost half our crew doing it!"

 

Kasady stood irritated, but silent; the two just stared at each other momentarily.

 

"Son of a bitch..." Kasady muttered.

 

"We're going back, Rhodes. I'm not going to lose you too."

 

"You've got nothing left to lose, James"

[Undead]

Continued:

 

It was a oddly quiet yet peaceful morning, the marines continued to pack their gear but with few words amongst themselves. The sound of magazines being jammed into rifles, canteens and steel clashing together and belts locking in place shuffled amongst the remaining crew. The expression of fear and mourning between each soldiers face seemed to do the talking alone. For all of them. The absence of chatter, even between the morning flock of birds was discomforting. 

 

James shook his head and walked back outside, lighting up a cigarette on his way out. Kasady sighed, her face buried in her palms as she ran her hands through her hair once more, contemplating the situation. She lowered her hand slowly, studying the scar in the center of her right palm; she could feel the pulse of her heart pound within, her veins appeared to be darker.

 

Kasady looked confused, then shook her head, pulling her glove over her hand and walked towards the door.

 

"James, look I didn't-"

 

"Shhh!"

 

James abruptly stopped Kasady, throwing his hand up simultaneously.

 

The marines all stood en garde; it was quiet. James slowly scanned the environment;

 

heh heh heh heh...

 

"What's so funny?" Kasady questioned irritably;

 

*SSSSSSSSHHHHHHH*

 

Suddenly several steel canisters were tossed between the crew leaking clouds of vapors.

 

"GAS!" 

 

The crew frantically covered the face as gunfire erupted; the camp immediately was blanketed by toxic fog. Kasady covered her face, watching in horror as mists of blood colored the fog and bodies fell limp. Her vision became blurry, the world began to spin, it was no use:

 

"J-James!" 

 

"JAAAAAMES!"

 

Kasady dropped to her knees, then stomach first, crawling towards shelter. Kasady glanced towards the distance as she rapidly began to lose consciousness. Shadow figures emerged behind the fog;

 

"Find the girl, I want her alive."

[Undead]

Chapter Four: Inception

 

The room is small and plain and built strong, like a prison. Voices are heard outside the door; 

 

"Subject 601 has shown remarkable resiliency to the effects of Element 115, how she-"

 

"It's Kasady, Doctor... her name is Kasady"

 

"Doctor?"

 

"Leave us"

 

"But Doctor I-"

 

"Now... And bring her something to eat please"

 

"Y-yes Doctor"

 

There is a pause in communication as the sound of footsteps tapping down a tiled floor are heard echoing into a distance;

 

"We're here to help, Kasady... I don't know if you remember me but... look, we're trying to help. We just need to make sure you're stable. I know this is all strange to you but... Kasady, we can help you. I can help you. Please remember me..."

 

....

 

The sound of thunder echoed through the forest as a light rain slowly became more aggressive, the motion of the wind smashing into the trees sounded like thousands of tacs dropping onto a hard floor. German chatter and shouting pierced through the brewing storm...

 

Kasady slowly began to regain consciousness, her eyes felt heavy, blinking very slowly and only lifting half her eye lid at a time. She made out the muddy ground and her feet being dragged behind her;

 

"J-James?" 

 

"She's regaining consciousness!"

 

"Quickly, get her to zee cell!"

 

Kasady, struggling to tilt her head, caught a glimpse of the facility; the sound of the megaphone roared through the sky.

 

"Welcome to Der Riese, my dear."

[Undead]

Continued...

 

It is quiet, I still remain inside the small cell, lying on relatively soft twin bed. This was no ordinary cell. Where am I?

 

"Doctor, we've completed diagnostics on Subject 6- er... Ms. Rhodes."

 

"Excellent. Is she stable? Will she make a full recovery?"

 

"Her vitals are normal and she has already recovered extraordinarily quick given the trauma she's been through;"

 

"...But?"

 

"But it's still unclear how stable her... condition is. Her telepathic ability originates from Element 115, but is driven almost purely by emotion, Typically anger."

 

"Yeah... that's an understatement..."

 

"Ma'am?"

 

"(ahem) How soon can we get her in for testing?"

 

"I imagine the shock alone is going to make her unstable. We'd be wise to break her in slowly"

 

"You're right. I'll go speak with her now. Thank you, Doctor."

 

"Be careful ma'am..."

 

 

.....

 

Kasady felt weak, her stomach felt as though it were going to devour itself. Her vision slowly recovered from a blur; the room was dark, cold and gloomy. Nothing but stone and brick. A small lantern hanging on the wall gave off a suddle, ambient light. She quickly came to realize she was suspended by iron chains and shackles. Several soldiers stood armed and at attention near the door; Germans...

 

"Ah! I see your awake child, I vas beginning to worry I may have been a bit too hard on you..." one of them spoke, his back 3/4 turned towards Kasady as he let out a cloud of smoke from his delicate cigar, looking outside at the stormy skies. He turned, a devilishly grin and soulless eyes met Kasady's;

 

"But I'm glad to see I was wrong."

 

Kasady begin to struggle with what little energy she had left;

 

"GAH! Let me go!"

 

"Ugh... K-Kasady..."

 

Kasady's attention swiftly took a hard left;

 

"JAMES!?" Kasady cried.

 

Blood slowly dripped off James' sagged head and face, he could barely move, yet alone speak. 

 

"K-Kasady... I..."

 

Kasady began to struggle even more;

 

"Now now, there's no need to get upset, child. We're all friends here!" The officer began,

 

"Go to hell you son of a bitch!" Kasady shouted, still tugging on the chains.

 

"I like this one. She has a temper..." He spoke coldly as he took another hit from his cigar.

 

"So tell me my dear, what brings you all the way out here? You're a long ways from home now, aren't we?" He spoke as he approached James;

 

"Touch him and I'll kill you!" Kasady grumbled, glaring at the officer. The officer chuckled to himself;

 

"Aw but then who vould tell you what it is you've been looking for out here? You've stumbled into something grand my dear!"

 

"Great... suspended by chains in a damn German facility and we're going to listen to this nazi bastard ramble before he probably kills us anyways. James was right. We should've turned back when we had the chance...this is all my fault"

 

"Now why vould you do that, child?" The officer began with a smirk as he lifted James' chin, glancing over at Kasady. Kasady looked confused;

 

The officer pulled his hand back, turning towards the other German soldiers, gesturing one to bring him something. He turned again, walking towards Kasady with a small round tin container in hand; Kasady's eyes widened in shock;

 

"Isn't this what you came looking for? Answers?" He said devilishly. Opening the container slowly, a bright orange light beamed from the cracks in the opening of the lid; it was identical. 

 

"How... where?!"

 

"Which question shall I answer first, child? Hahahahaha!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Undead]

Continued...

 

Kasady shouted in pain, the voice of the German officer rang in her head like white noise, loud white noise. She felt her scarred palm burning, heating up the more she resisted;

 

"Vunderful, isn't it?" He began, breaking from self-indulged cold chuckles and taking one last hit of his cigar. Kasady was sweating bullets, her head hung heavy in exhaustion. Chains and shackles were the only thing that kept her up-right.

 

"To have unimaginable power at your fingertips. To embrace the power of the GODS!"

 

The officer reached towards Kasady, gently lifting her head from under the chin; She grumbled with disgust, spitting at his cheek. His grin immediately turned to contained displeasure has he looked away.

 

"Your grandfather wasn't the only one who kept our little secret from the world you know..." 

 

Kasady's eyes burst wide-open in shock, her mind emerged in a flashback:

 

"Here you go, Kasady. For you." he began; "You're mother and father would want you to have this, it's been in the family for generations, I wanted to give it to you when the time was right"

Wrapping my arms around him as I grinned from ear to ear, I did not acknowledge the false smile of my Grandfather's almost hopeless heart. He was hasty and eager to leave the shop, his shop that he'd usually spend day in and day out if Grandma would let him. The shop was slowly beginning to glow brighter as a long ebony vehicle slowly drove down the snowy streets, squeaking from a sudden halt as it arrived at Grandfather's shop. Never have I seen his face look so paranoid that night, I was confused and worried as he grabbed me by the arm, pulling me behind the counter.

"Come with me darling, quickly!" He spoke quietly;

"What is it, Grandfather?"

"No time to explain dear"

Heedlessly, he began to rummage through some drawers he kept locked behind the counter, eventually pulling out a rusty old chewing tobacco tin container of some kind, he studied it momentarily, his expression showed great uncertainty as he looked down at me;

"Take this my dear, and do not open it no matter what, do you understand?" I nodded hesitantly with grief, nothing seem to ever worry my Grandfather. "Go out through the back and get in the car, I will be out there shortly" he assured.

As I exited the back, I heard the small jingle of the bell as the front door opened, I caught only but a glimpse of two shadowed figures entering the shop, both of whom were dressed in German military uniforms. My childish curiousity got the best of me, as I made my way down the frosty steps, I stopped halfway as I heard what began as mutterings between the men and my Grandfather, evolved into a commotion. I pressed my small head and hands against the frozen door as I heard shouting from the main room.

"Where is it, old man?" The man shouted with a thick German accent.

"I don't know what you're talking about..."

"Don't lie to me! I know its here somewhere, I can feel it!"

"I swear I have no clue what you're looking for, now please, leave me be!"

 

...

 

"Y-You... YOU KILLED HIM!!" Kasady screamed. Her fingers began to go white from gripping such tight fists, she vibrated with anger, she felt the burning feeling pulse through her body, adrenaline fueled her body.

 

shocked as thoughts raced through her mind watching the officer slowly begin to grin coldly once more;

 

"I'm afraid you have something I still need, my child... So I vill ask you once; hand over the stone."

 

Kasady's face turned grim, her glare piercing the eyes of the officer;

 

"Go to hell..."

 

The officer smirked as he looked Kasady straight in the eyes, 

 

"Have it your way..."

 

With one swift and stern swipe, the officer threw a fist in front of him;

 

*CRACK!*

 

Kasady watched in horror as James' eyes rolled in the back of his head, his neck snapping like a twig from thin air.

 

....

 

The vibrant hum of the light on the wall balances the ambience of the silence within the cell alongside the repeated ticking of the wall clock. 1:15 PM. I've seen those numbers somewhere before. The tapping of heels on a hard floor approaches the door from outside, the door beeps and slides open. Several unfamiliar well armed guards walk in and stand aside; 

 

"Ms. Rhodes, please forgive our intrusion... our medical specialist would like to see you;"

 

The woman, dressed all white also stood aside as she pointed towards the door with a nod; in followed another woman dressed similarly; but with unusual curly hair that was blue.

 

"Hello Kasady..."

 

Kasady, still disoriented squinted as she entered the room; she pondered for a moment;

 

"T-Tia?"